Guardian (Sequel to Fearless)

Chapter Fifty Six

A/N -- Unedited right here because it's 3 AM and whatever. Shouldn't be an eyesore, but if you see anything small, just overlook it.

Iris finished powdering and painting her face once it was all a uniform ivory color. She smudged her mouth with an opaque shade of purple to hide the discoloration from where it had been busted. It had been a while since Iris had actually used cosmetics, not counting last night's excursion. Today, though, she figured it might make her look relatively normal now that the swelling had gone down.

She wasn't wrong. While the powder was strange and the sensation of the lip paste was gods-awful, it was nice to at least look like herself again. She listened as Kayde shuffled about her bedroom as she pulled her curls up into a haphazard twist. The mass of ink just spilled down her back and a few wisps hung softly around her cheeks.

With a breath, she dropped her towel and pulled a fresh set of robes over her body. One last look, and she decided that she felt pretty. It was a weird emotion. Since she'd left home to become a soldier, she hadn't put much thought into dressing herself up to perfection every day. She couldn't help but remember that she used to always doll herself up for Shadford or for the purpose of finding someone else after he'd left her. Today, the little she did... she did it for herself. It was a nice feeling.

She left the bathroom to find her room clean and Kayde sitting on her bed. When he heard her coming, he whirled to face her. Whatever Iris was halfway expecting, she didn't get. Kayde just raised a brow. "Got somewhere special to be?"

Iris tsked playfully. "Not even a genuine smile, and I went to all that trouble too. What good are you?" She walked up and poked his shoulder. "This is the part where you say some sappy shit. This is where you tell me I'm beautiful like the stars with eyes like jewels. Gods, Kayde, pick up a novella once in a while."

He grinned. "Alright, how's this? You wasted your time, dear girl."

"Pfft. Obviously."

Kayde rolled his eyes at her antics. "Oh, don't give me that face. You wasted your time because you are already stunning. Even with your bruises. And I don't need a fancy colored mouth to see how beautiful you are." He stood from her bed, and his smile went roguish in a way that made her very aware that she'd be eating her words soon. "I doth know that her eyes are luminescent like the moon. They shine the brilliance of an unseen, unknown truth -far away and yet so terribly, painfully close. The intimacy of the glow washes over me as a cool river, drowning me in the depths of..."

"Gods, stop it." Iris cringed. "Overkill."

"Indeed," he agreed with a wink. "Careful what you wish for."

"I think I taste vomit. Where did you get that ...whatever that was from?"

"Eh, it was improvisation on my part," Kayde shrugged. "I've read my fair share of poetry. With the right amount of theatrics and a sprinkle of good vocabulary, anything sounds whimsical."

Iris snorted and kissed his mouth. "You're too much."

"Uh huh," he agreed. "Well, you feeling ready to go talk to my father? I imagine he's got a lot to say to you."

"I imagine he does." Iris digested that. "You think it's bad? I don't see a lot of guardians summoned to his office for chats. I can't help but feel like I'm nine again and being kicked out of Valla's fruit store by a woman that was nearly all boils and lip hair."

Kayde clucked his tongue. "That's way too descriptive to be hypothetical."

"Perceptive of you," came the half-assed sarcasm. "All I did was run around a bit. Knocked over a bushel of apples."