Skedaddle

[Emora Deen]

Laya still didn't like the idea of him being on the ship, passing him in the hall or eating dinner with him. He might not remember what he did, but she couldn't get it out of her head.

She didn't say anything about it though. She pursed her lips together and lay back down, pulling the covers up over her shoulders as she curled on her side. She looked at Telanis and gave him a gentle smile.

"I'm just tired," she told herself out loud. She stared at Telanis a moment longer before closing her eyes.

She wasn't sleeping, just restling with herself. She was trying to think about other things besides the emotional roller coaster she just jumped on at the realization that she could have to face that man tomorrow on deck.

[Soran Nightblade]

Adonis sat down in the corner and leaned back into their luggage, pretending to get comfortable although he couldn't imagine sleeping. "Just get some rest, then," he instructed them. "Not together," he clarified sharply before his brother could get any ideas.

[Emora Deen]

Laya jolted inside when Adonis mentioned they couldn't sleep together. She didn't want to sleep alone, Telanis's presence calmed her. He made her feel safe. She excepted it and didn't argue, she didn't even open her eyes. She just concentrated on falling a sleep. The sooner she fell a sleep the less time fear would have to play with her mind when the candle was blown on.

She reached out and gave Telanis's hand a squeeze, holding it longer than she'd meant to. Then she drew her hand back to her, hugging it to her chest beneath the blankets.

[Soran Nightblade]

Telanis put out his hand and stroked Laya's hair back. He couldn't bring himself to leave her. "Adonis...I'm sleeping here," he resolved quietly.

*Keep your clothes on,* came the tired mental reply.

Telanis grinned slightly, still baffled at his brother's aversion to what he and Laya shared together. He leaned forward to take off his boots and spread out on his side next to Laya, stroking her forehead gently to try to relieve the horrible tension he felt from her.

[Emora Deen]

Laya relaxed almost instantly, happy that Telanis could stay close to her. "Thank you," she whispered. She gave an inward sigh of relief. She let the emotional and physical exhaustion that was rippling through her consume her. Within minutes she was sleeping soundly, so deep that no amount of noise could wake her.

[Soran Nightblade]

When Laya was asleep, Telanis looked back over his shoulder at his brother. Adonis seemed to be doing something with his hand, but he lowered it when he noticed Telanis's attention. "You could sleep up on the top," Telanis offered cautiously.

Adonis ignored him and shifted onto his side, using the luggage as bedding.

Telanis swallowed a sigh and turned back to the person he loved. Not just a person he loved, but the person, he realized. He'd never met a person he wanted to protect and be near specifically, more than any other. And he was determined to keep her safe. He eventually rested his arm over Laya's side and slept.

Adonis thought of every memory he had that night, remembering past and long past and the things he'd seen that night. Nothing would bring him closer to rest, and he couldn't stop thinking about things he'd long since committed to with full resolve. Nothing felt real or permanent tonight. He might be himself tomorrow, or he might be the humans' ally, hopelessly grasping to have faith in a useless race, or he might be a forsaken monster with black-marbled skin and a mind too wiped out on black magic to control his own actions any longer.

[Emora Deen]

Laya groaned as she slowly lifted from her slumber. She licked her dry lips and listened to the calm waves. The storm had passed, and they were gently sailing. Her eyes opened to see Telanis's soft face, and she was thankful to wake up to something so beautiful.

She shifted her hand across the fabric of the matress, moving to touch his face. She stopped herself short, looking at her hand and then his face.

She didn't want to wake him. Laya slipped from under his arm, trying very hard not to wake him as she crawled from the bed. She saw Adonis in his corner sleeping with the baggage. She saw hers just beside his head.

Laya knelt down next to him, moving to untie the strings of her bag. She tried to do it without waking him, looking for her a clean shirt with no blood across the front. She winced when she found what she wanted, and pulled it free slowly.

When she pulled the white dress forth she stepped back slowly. She pulled the curtain on Telanis's bed closed half-way and gave Adonis a long thoughtful look.

Given how much he hated humans she doubted he would facy a look.

Laya pulled her bloody clothes off and dropped them on the floor. There was a small old spotted mirror mounted on the wall, and she caught her reflection in it. She saw the black mark on her arm, the intricate magical rune that would link her to Kron if he were alive. He had carved it into her skin with his knife, and bound her to him. His slave forever. Her finger tips trailed over the mark.

She closed her eyes, her hand covering it up as she gave a deep sigh. Laya pulled the dress over her head and tighed the lacing in the front. She pulled the white sash around her waist tight and moved to wash her face in the basin.

[Soran Nightblade]

Adonis was almost relieved to hear Laya rise, maybe because it meant the night was almost over. Lying still trapped with his thoughts was not an approach that was treating him well. He hadn't so much as dozed off, but he kept his eyes closed as he realized Laya was trying to get dressed. He cracked an eyelid at her as she washed, uninterested in her form but curious about her state of mind. The soft light of a post-storm dawn lit the room in a warm orange glow. He resisted the temptation to look down at his arms to see them in the light. He kept them tightly folded around his chest and lay still, wanting an excuse to get up without seeming like he'd been watching her dress.

[Emora Deen]

Laya turned to put her ruined close in her bag and tripped over Adonis's feet. She cursed, catching her balance on the door. "Sorry," she whispered.

She knelt and pushed the clothes into the bag, her eyes drifting to him. After a moment Laya gave a heavy, shaky sigh. "Adonis, can we talk?" she asked low, still not sure if he was awake.

[Soran Nightblade]

Adonis drew his legs up instinctively after she tripped on them. The sudden sensation was a wake-up call for his muddled thoughts. He glanced to where Telanis still slept and back to her. What could she possibly want to talk to him about? "What is it?" he answered her quietly.

[Emora Deen]

Laya fiddled with her hands in her lap as she sat next to him, admiring every line in the wood floor. “You saved me from him,” she breathed, holding back mental images as best she could to keep from making herself sick. “I don’t understand why. You think I meant to do a terrible thing to Telanis, yet you kept that man from doing something terrible to me. No one has ever saved me from it… So why wouldn’t you let him, if I deserved it.” She couldn’t look him in the eye, so she watched her hands. “I’m not ungreatful, I really… Thank you, but I don’t understand.”

She finally met his eyes. “Telanis is the first person to show me kindness in so long,” her eyes brimmed with tears. “I forgot what it was like to not be afraid of someone. He makes me feel very safe and I care about him so much. I love him, I don’t want to hurt him, and I didn’t mean him any harm yesterday.” She wiped the tear from her cheek, as if she’d make it disappear and he would never see it. She swallowed and pressed on. “But, if you think I will hurt him then when we reach land…” she couldn’t even finish her sentence. “If it is best then make him leave me. I don’t want to be the reason he becomes you. I don’t want him to hate so much. You are right. I am tainted." She felt sick.

She couldn't look at him, she exhaled, tilting her head away to wipe her eyes.

[Soran Nightblade]

Adonis locked his jaw and stared at her. There had been times throughout the night when he'd been mad enough to hate her and all other humans. Right now, he was numb, and her worry seemed more real to him than his own emotions. Truth be told, he was a little shocked to see her cry. He'd expected her to be defensive, not as frightened of her nature as he was. What exactly had she been through to make her act like this? It had to be more than just what happened last night.

He wasn't sure how to explain why he'd helped her. To really make her understand, he'd have to tell her a lot more than he'd ever tried to share with someone. Especially not Telanis. Why make her understand at all? Why not just let her leave him? He could separate them. She'd just said so. She'd surrender. Why didn't it feel as good as he'd expected?

"You were screaming," he said, carefully, "with your mind. I don't know if you can understand the effect that has on us." It was a half truth. Why tell her any more than that?

Because she'd understand why he could never trust a human with his brother. Any more than he could stand to watch what that man had tried to do to Laya last night.

"I had a human, once. Has Telanis mentioned it?"

[Emora Deen]

Laya tried to stop the stream of waterworks. She sniffled and sighed, but couldn't make it stop. So she just shook her head at him. "No," she breathed, wiping her eyes.

[Soran Nightblade]

Adonis studied her emotions carefully, opening up his senses to be certain there was no act involved. "You don't remind me of him," he informed her flatly. "It's a start." He reached to his pocket and pulled out a kerchief that had mostly survived the wet last night. He passed the cloth to her solemnly.

"I want to be clear. The reason you are unsafe for Telanis is not your pain. Being hurt does not make you impure. You are dangerous to him because humans do not love the same way we do. It may appear so, for a while. But humans grow bored. They grow bored with things, and then they discard them, or break them. They change quickly and constantly.

"We do not change. We cannot stop loving something once we've accepted it. If he bonds to you, and you change, you become a noose around his neck. He cannot put what he needs before your needs. He will not blame you or stop you from destroying him. Do you understand?"

[Emora Deen]

Laya took the cloth from him and wiped her cheeks. She listened to him, trying not to feel angry that he would think she'd just pick up and leave Telanis.

"I wouldn't do that," she whispered. "I would never hurt him." She gave a ragged sigh. "At least, I would never mean too." Laya's gray eyes found the floor again. "What did he do... the one you trusted?"