Aloy x Erend (HZD fanfiction)

Chapter 2

Erend and Aloy spent the rest of the day running small errands for the citizens.
Now the sun was setting, and the two were truly exhausted. Aloy had wanted to stay and rest, but she had to admit, staying in the palace near Avad felt...uncomfortable.

He liked her. No, he wanted her. She knew this, and it made her a bit on edge.

E: "So, are you going to stay until tomorrow or are you leaving the day after?"

Aloy was snapped back into reality.
That's right. They were walking back towards the palace now.

A: "Actually, I will probably leave soon."

E: "What? It's getting dark and you look tired as hell."

Aloy rubs her arm a bit, staring at the ground before looking back up at Erend.

A: "I uh..I wanted to stay, but I don't feel comfortable staying in the palace."

Erends face was painfully surprised.

A: "Besides, it would probably be better if I just-"

E: "Are you comfortable with me?"

The sudden question caught her off guard. Was she comfortable with Erend? Sure, she knew he liked her.
He admitted to openly flirting with her because she was a pretty girl.
The way he complimented her, about how he was lucky to get just a minute of her time, that struck her hard.
Then, to make matters worse, his soldiers, the vanguard, messed with Erend right in front of her, saying, "I think she likes you" and "You gonna kiss her Captain?"

Yet, she didn't feel nervous around him. He didn't seem like the type who would try anything.
His flirting was different.
Honestly, Aloy didn't mind it at all, not that she'd ever admit that out loud.

A: "Yes. You don't worry me like most people do."

Erends mouth curled slightly.

E: "Well, if you don't want to stay in the palace, you can always stay in the building I'm in."

A: "That wouldn't be too much trouble?"

E: "Not at all."

Aloys expression is one of surprise, but also, pure delight.

Erend grins, obviously too happy for his own good, and leads her to his current building. It was one of the few newest buildings. Aloy glanced around as Erend closed the door behind them. There was a small area with a table for meals, a room with a sofa in it, for relaxing and occasional reading, and it appeared to have stairs. Perhaps a bed is on the second floor, she thought before turning to see Erend plop on the sofa. It looked soft. Well, softer than any fabric found in the Nora homeland.

Aloy watched as the large male fumbled over, pulling a bottle from beside the sofa. That's right, Erend drinks. She found it annoying when he got drunk, but at least he wasn't completely useless during those times. He must have a tolerance to it.

E: "You want a drink?"

A: "No, I don't. Thanks anyways."

Erend pops the top off, and turns the bottle up. When he finally pulls it away, he speaks in a raspy tone.

E: "You can sit down if you want. There are a few books here, though I got most of them from Avad."

Aloy is silent as she finds the books and skims over their covers. There's one about the Nora. The cover is a female caught in mid jump with her bow pulled back.
Aloy smiles at this and sits beside Erend on the sofa.

She uses her focus to help understand some of the side writings. Erend is looking over at the book as well, occasionally taking a swig of his drink.

E: "You were an outcast right? I remember you saying that when we first met."

Aloy paused, glancing up at him before returning to the book.

A: "Yes, I was. I don't follow our laws so I might as well still be an outcast."

E: "I couldn't do it. If my own clan treated me like an outsider, I couldn't do as they say. Seems messed up."

A: "It is. I wasn't really alone though, I had Rost."

Aloy flips the page, which oddly has details about the Nora appearance and the female from the cover is yet again on the page.

E: "He was the man who raised you?"

A: "Yes. He raised me because nobody else would. He died when we were attacked at the proving. He saved me."

There was a moment of silence, leaving Aloy to read a bit more.

E: "I wish I could've met him."

This caused Aloy to stop reading entirely, and look up from the page.
She gave him a faint smile before returning to the book.

A: "You're definitely not a Nora, but I think he would've liked you."

Erend grinned, and grabbed the other side of the book that was drooping over Aloys leg. The page had the picture of the female on it, and details of the Nora's appearance. Aloy had already read it and moved on to the next page.

E: "You're right, I'm definitely not a Nora. I find it strange that Nora mostly have black, brown, or blonde hair. Yet, you have straight red, with green eyes. You don't look like a Nora yourself."

A: "That's because I wasn't born a Nora."

E: "You weren't? Then what clan were you born from?"

A: "It's a long story. I'll have to explain it another time. Maybe when you're not drinking."

Erend snickers, setting the bottle down beside the sofa and returning his hand to the book.

E: "Also, every Nora woman I've seen have a different body type than you."

Aloy went to say something harsh to make him shut up about her figure, but she was distracted by him. His thumb was rubbing the page, and his eyes were cut over to her.

E: "You really are something."

Aloy turned her head completely, to which Erend followed. Their eyes were locked on each other.
Maybe it was the smell of the alcohol on his breath, or maybe it was just the way his pale blue eyes were staring at her, but she leaned in.
Realizing she was way too close for comfort, she drew back, leaning back on the sofa and cutting her eyes the other way.
She cannot see the smile on Erends face.

A: "Why don't you..tell me more about your homeland?"

She desperately wanted to change the subject. Luckily, Erend did just that, and began talking about the Claim. Their conversation trailed into the late hours of the night, both telling stories of their adventures. Aloy even explained everything that happened since the proving.

Somewhere along the way, the two had passed out. Erend had his head flung back, mouth slightly ajar, while Aloy had sunk her head into Erends neck.

So much for personal space.