Babel's Magic-Khadgar FanFic

Good Night My Magi

Roused by nothing but the faint dreaming in and out of remorse in her subconscious, Fain's slate eyes quavered. Pitch blackness giving only the deadened shapes of each piece of furniture in the room. Still in the vast pillow topped mattress she heard Lothar's shallow breathing next to her. Extending her arm slowly out Fain felt his arm first. Drifting tender fingertips up his arm to the man's side Fain finally found the mobility in her to roll over.

Across from her Lothar slept deeply, the mixture of scotch and the previous days extenuating events leaving the human drained. Fain's eyes made out the figure of his face in the muted light given by the waning moon outside the city. Stretching her hand carefully up Fain sweep warm fingertips across his forehead and moved his drab long brown hair from his face. Awake like it was morning Fain laid in the lurid room letting her senses attune to sound instead of light.

Twang with an emotion Fain was not familiar with, it was the same feeling that corrupted her dreams before unpleasantly waking her. Scrupulous of peeling the down comforter off of her Fain watched Lothar's sleeping form vigilantly aware of any change. It was her best hopes that the knocked out King would stay sleeping soundly.

Painstakingly leery about squirming out of the bed Fain was triumphant only the moment her flushed feet touched the cool wooden floor. Exhaling slowly she let her body relax with the breath. Tossing a look back at Lothar she noted he didn't budge a muscle. Lucid enough to recognize the throbbing headache in her temples Fain searched for the tray he'd moved hours before. Catching a glimpse of it across the room on the desk Fain looked back on Lothar sound asleep.

A light thrust and she nimbly got off the bed without a noise. Testing the ground with a timid foot Fain noted no squeak of the ground before stepping forward. Scampering across the room to the tray of stale treats and chilled tea. Squinting hard Fain saw which of the cups was still full of the cold steeped tea and took it for her thirst.

Sloshing the acrid over brewed tea in her arid mouth made Fain gag in disgust. But the welcoming liquid was too much to pass up and she slurped it down as quickly as possible. Quenching her thirst for the moment Fain flinched when the cup clinked against it's siblings. Shooting a quick look over to the bed, Fain sighed when she saw no movement.

Licking her lips and taking a minute to survey the room. Eyes adjusted to the dimly lit room now Fain navigated the wooden floors with care as she wandered over to the chair Lothar had previously claimed he'd sleep in. Embers long dead from the small fire, the ashen pit sat as cold as the tea on the table. Fain caught a glimpse of the book he'd been reading previously. Stepping forward she leaned down squinting trying to read the cover.

Etched into the leather face of the book was words she was not familiar with. It looked nothing like the human's writing but nothing she could compare to the words of her world. Tracing her fingertips lightly over it she impulsively lifted it up only to find it was to dark in the room to see the scribbled words or pictures inked on each page. Peering over at the bed she regarded Lothar's silhouette shift in bed but only to roll over as she felt a catch in her breathing.

Taking a gander back at the book in her hands Fain was curious to look at it but now was not the time. Teetering with laying back in bed until the King and city awoke with the sun, Fain could not tell how long that would be. Agitated like she'd been awake for hours now Fain wrestled with the fact she should lay back down considering the generosity Lothar had extended to her over the past few hours.

It was too much to hold the weighted book in her hands and just toss it aside. Searching for the door Fain tip toed over to the arched doorway. Laying a hand on the brass knobs she peered back at Lothar the moment the latch in the door clinked.

A moan from the man but nothing. Fain crept out of the door. To her surprise the halls were dimly lit with torches placed every ten feet or so. And the only guard to speak of was walking down the hall to the east of her. In the spur of luck Fain skittered out of the door cracked open barely enough for a sliver of a person to squeeze through. Discreet to shut the door with just as much care as she'd opened it, Fain let out her breath when she heard it latch shut.