The Shadows | Astarion

~ 14 ~

In the early hours of the night, they'd found the entrance to the small town, all too exhausted to even read the sign of the name.

They trudged onto the road and headed towards a tavern, and prayed they'd had rooms otherwise Astarion would have to hide elsewhere from the sun.

Unlike the other taverns, this one was less busy which meant they wouldn't have to fight to get to the bar.

Gale headed over to the man and asked if they had four rooms available and they did.

Aelia couldn't help feeling a little put out that she wouldn't have to share with Astarion again, so they silently walked up the stairs. Shadowheart and Gale instantly went into their rooms, looking tired.

But Astarion lingered as Aelia put the key in her door.

She unlocked it and pushed it open, using her magic to light the candles in there. Light filled the room.

She turned back to Astarion with a smile, "I'm sure you're happy to have a peaceful night."

"Far from it." He murmured, staring at her.

She lingered in the doorway, her hand brushing against the wood.

"I suppose it'll be strange not to listen to your snoring." She teased, grinning at him.

His mouth fell open in offense, "I do not snore! Would you like to test that theory?" His voice slipped into a sensual tone, his eyes teasing.

Aelia just laughed and walked further into her room, closing the door behind her. She smiled to herself as she surveyed the room.

She slipped into her black nightshirt and closed the drapes, she then slipped into bed. The candlelight gently glimmered in the room as she closed her eyes, and slipped into her meditation

*

Her eyes flew open and darkness greeted her, the room was grey as her Darkvision kicked in, but her mind was panicked.

She tried to ignite the candles, but saw that the wax had all melted and she couldn't breathe.

She jumped from under the covers and threw open her door, and she didn't know what force controlled her, but she went to his door.

She didn't even bother knocking, and just walked straight in. She could've cried when she saw faint candlelight beside his bed.

Then she realised it.

He was sat up in the bed, completely shirtless and starting wide-eyed at her.

She couldn't help it as tears lined her eyes, as she stood there in just a long black shirt.

"I-I'm sorry, I don't know why I came in here, but I woke up and-"

But Astarion had already climbed out of his bed and walked to her, and gently combed back her hair with his fingers, wiping away her tears.

She breathed out as he touched her, and felt calmed as his thumbs gently grazed her cheeks as he wiped the tears.

"It's alright, gods, I'm just relieved you felt safe enough to come to me." He whispered, and Aelia wrapped her arms around his torso, her head tucked under his chin.

Astarion stilled.

He looked down at her with wide eyes and slowly moved his arms around her body, his head slowly burying into her neck.

They held each other, never loosening their hold on each other. It was like the other was their anchor to this world, holding each other to keep them from drifting away.

Aelia then stopped trembling in his arms, and had calmed down. But kept hugging him.

They both needed this.

But it was Aelia who slowly pulled away first, and Astarion reluctantly let her go, staring at her softly.

"Thank you." She whispered, looking away shyly.

"No need to thank me, darling. I'm here." He replied, his voice tender.

"Could... Could I stay with you for the rest of the night, I don't think I can go back into that-"

"Of course you can." He answered instantly, and Aelia smiled gratefully, making her way to the other side of the bed and slipped under the covers.

She nestled into the warmth and closed her eyes, exhausted from crying, and went into a deep meditation.

Astarion watched her, gently getting under rhe covers to not disturb her. He sat up in bed and tried not to watch her, but his eyes automatically gravitated towards her.

He spent a few more minutes doing that before falling into his meditation beside her.