The Princess and the Blade

[Soran Nightblade]

Ren closed his eyes and let a faint sigh pass through his lips without meaning to. It wasn't that he was aroused, but something about her touch was so absurdly comforting, like the first kiss of the sun after standing in a blizzard. His head spun. Why had she kissed him? How many people had he kissed today?

He had the sinking feeling that his master would not appreciate him diverting from his task. It didn't really matter. He just needed to keep them alive until he could make the portal, and get this one to safety. Just this one kind, gentle, mourning Yurivis. After that, nothing else had to matter. He didn't kiss her so much as he pressed his face lightly to hers, as if doing so could absorb her gentle warmth and keep it with him for later.

[Emora Deen]

Tenara wasn't certain what she had planned. She only knew she didn't want Ren to give himself to Elias for her, and she didn't want Elias to touch her. She thought that if Ren did... If he touched her—if they touched each other—then they would be safe.

She thought of Havi, and her heart ached. She was Havi's, and he was hers... But he was gone, and Laurius was gone, and she and Ren only had each other. He would need a Yurivis, wouldn't he? Could she be that for him? So he would have someone kind...

The pendant at her breast felt so heavy, like the weight tugging down her heart, and she felt a deep shame for thinking such a thing.

Elias sighed heavily, and it broke her from her thoughts. He was looking at them strangely. "He's not my type anyway," he told her, as if shaking off a chill. Elias rose and scooped Tenara's clothes from the floor. He tossed them to her. "Help her dress. Rest, I suppose. You have a portal to make tomorrow."

[Soran Nightblade]

Ren sat up instantly. He hadn't thought it would matter whether the man took advantage of his offer, yet when Elias pronounced his disinterest, nauseating relief washed through him, not just for Tenara's sake but also his own. He averted his eyes from her bare form.

Perform your tasks. Don't think. Don't waste energy. But the rage took over anyway.

"Fucker. Fucking fucker! Would you like help with the buttons?" he asked, his rage oddly juxtaposed with concern for her hand.

[Emora Deen]

Tenara jumped a little at Ren’s uncharacteristic outburst. Tenara slipped into her ruined shift gingerly, and accepted his help with the equally ruined dress. “Yes,” she said, because she couldn’t do them with one hand and because she thought the repetitive task would help him.

“Thank you,” she said. “For… I’m sorry I kissed you.”

[Soran Nightblade]

Ren touched her as little as possible, doing up her buttons and lacing her dress. "You don't have to be sorry. I'm sure it was unpleasant. But thanks to that, he lost interest for now, and that's all that matters. Just.... keep doing whatever helps you survive until I can get you out of here."

He rose, and his legs tried to wobble under him. "Fuck," he growled, and kicked Elias's chair, sending it tumbling across the floor of the tent. He shook himself off and turned to Tenara and extended a hand to her gently. "Can you stand?" Again, he seemed to be two different people trapped in one body.

[Emora Deen]

Ren’s mood made her uneasy. It wasn’t his fault, not with everything happening to them. But she had come to rely on his predictable coolness and she couldn’t read this side of him. What if his anger swung to wild? What if he made Elias mad? How would they be punished?

She hesitated, and took his hand. “Should we rest?” she asked, not quite certain where they were going. She thought Elias would want to keep them in his tent. She wasn’t entirely convinced he was finished with his game, but whatever they had done it had turned him off enough to give them a moment of peace.

When she was on her feet she met his eyes. “I didn’t hate it. I… I would rather kiss you than him. I know you won’t hurt me.”

[Soran Nightblade]

"Should we rest?"

The manic edge in Ren's eyes softened, and he finally looked at her. The idea of resting was such an impossible and unexpected suggestion that it blew out the flame of his anger. Of course, that carried its own risks. His anger was nearly the only thing keeping him on his feet at the moment.

“I didn’t hate it. I… I would rather kiss you than him. I know you won’t hurt me.”

"That's my line," he said with an aching grin. He stared at her exhausted face and desperately wished to soothe her. "I need to teach you something," he said, guiding her to sit on the cot and then grabbing the grimoire from the desk. He knelt next to the bed and spread the book open on the blanket next to her. He had used a small leaf to mark a particular page. "You-... well, Thvoros used this spell on me, and I assume on himself, so that we could understand your tongue. This time, I need to make it so you understand ours."

[Emora Deen]

Tenara looked at the spell and then back to Artisuren. "Alright," she said, confusion creasing her brow. Then, her eyes widened. "You are really going to open a portal to your world? It's not a lie?"

[Soran Nightblade]

Ren looked up at her. "It's not a lie. Even if he follows, he will have no power over you there."

[Emora Deen]

Tenara felt a rush of panic. Everything Havitharon had told her about his world made it sound like such an awful place—even if women seemed to be on top of things there. But, beyond that, she would leave this one...

"Will I be able to come back to this world?" she asked softly.

[Soran Nightblade]

Ren looked genuinely confused. "Do you want to be here?"

[Emora Deen]

Tenara shook her head. "Not here," she said. "But... my home. My mom and fathers..." She faded off. Elias had sent Narissa out to collect all of her little clues lining the path here. No one was going to find her. If she didn't escape—by any means—then she would be trapped with Arken and at their mercy for as long as she intrigued them. She had to escape, even if it meant never seeing home again. "Okay. We stand in the same circle, right?"

[Soran Nightblade]

Ren tried to keep the bafflement off his features. Would it be rude to question her love for this place? All he'd seen since coming here was ugliness.

There was a moment of blinding panic as his thoughts tried to swing towards Laurius. He shook his head and scrambled to his feet as if stung. He realized she'd just asked him something.

"...That's right. Give me a minute to copy the sigil." He dragged aside the rug that covered the earthen floor and traced a ring around himself, rotating on his heels. Possessed by his task, he began drawing with his clawed fingertips in the soil, glancing up at the grimoire to confirm the shape of the rune.

[Emora Deen]

"Will you be there with me?" she asked as he finished. She eased up from the cot, wincing as she did. She limped her way to him, hesitating as she thought she heard someone approaching the tent. Her heart lurched, but the steps passed them by. "Let's be quick."

[Soran Nightblade]

Ren hesitated when she asked her question. "I will be with you as long as I can," he said, before being startled by the same noise she'd heard. He reached out for her to lead her into the circle. "I hope this works as I think it will." He spoke each line of the spell to her, but this time, translated into her language. "Together," he said, and they spoke the incantation in unison. As soon as they finished, he reached out in case he needed to steady her. He felt only a vague tingle, but if it was anything like it had been in the opposite direction, Tenara might be in for quite the headache.