Forgotten

[6]

WINTER

He held still, his silver eyes widening as he took in glaring eyes that pierced towards him.

Sansa supported herself against the tree, arms crossed and mouth set in a frown. There was a darkness that leaked from her. It was obvious for him to see as he slowly edged away from the wild animal she had become.

"Sansa..."

"Oh..." she laughed, a sound that brought no joy to the surface. "You remember me?"

His eyes showed a franticness, the silver whirling around as if looking for an escape from her accusing stare.

"What is wrong?"

"What's wrong?" She moved closer, her voice growing with its anger as she edged towards him, "what's wrong? This," she motioned between them. Night held his breath, eyes wide in weary watchfulness as she continued to move to him.

"I have so many...so many questions..." her voice broke, face crumbling at the truth to her words. She looked up at him. They were close. Closer than he had ever allowed her. His back was pressed to the tree, escape not an option she was giving as her questions of suffering became known.

"Why can't you stay? Why do you leave? And why do I know nothing about you....I know it's selfish but just this once I- I want to be selfish."

A shaky breath left him. She did not move closer. She knew better if she wanted her answers.

Those silver eyes closed in defeat as he shook his head.

"I'm sorry I put you through this pain."

"Don't be sorry. Just tell me."

"I can't."

His answer was a slap to her face. She backed away, tears threatening to surface, but she pushed them back, refusing to let him see her cry.

Night's hands rose, a new panic rising in him also as he took in her reaction.

"Sansa, please forgive me."

"Why can't you tell me?"

He paused, his eyes concentrating hard on her. Finally, he stood straight, pushing off the tree. He took a step closer to her, bringing her to stumble back.

"What are you-,"

He continued his advancement. The roles reversed now as he herded her to corner her body against the tree. He was close. So close. Sansa couldn't think correctly as his smell hit her for the first time.

She gasped, taking in the odd mixture. It was something she had never breathed in before.

"Do you smell it?" he asked, his voice strained with sorrow. She became distracted with how close his neck was- how she was able to see the quickening of his pulse upon it. The darkness of his skin and how beautiful it was against the contrasting dead white of the trees and snow.

It was hypnotic to her eyes. She couldn't look away. Not until he spoke again, "it's a smell I hope you never know the source of..." his low words made her shiver against how much pain buried inside them, as she finally registered what he meant- a smell she had only encountered once while working in the clinic. It only made her want to know him more.

"Please Night. Please, I just need..."

She didn't know how to explain her words to him. Her emotions overwhelmed her as she caught his eyes. Silver drowned her thoughts.

"I know," he whispered, lips barely moving as they inched closer to her own.

Suddenly he pulled back. She gasped, able to take in the air around her properly. Her lungs suddenly knew how to work. They become aware of the pull and push of air – the mechanics of how it should have functioned normally.

"I belong to no pack Sansa...I am something that..." a frustrated sound left him as he shook his head, "I wish I could," he raised his hand, fingers flexing in the air. She completed his sentence for him as she moved her head, resting her cheek within his palm before he could pull back.

He froze, eyes widening from the contact.

They stayed still, not looking away as he carefully took his hand to trace the different features of her face.

She closed her eyes to feel the roughness of the skin, hardly believing such a thing was happening and he really was this close.

Fingers danced down her chin, carrying up to her eyes to feel her lashes, her forehead, down her nose until they whispered along her lips. They trembled slightly. She felt the faint quiver of his limbs as they brushed against. She felt a breathless gasp leave her, causing her lips to part and open.

Her eyes reclaimed the world as sight came back to her. He stood before her, pure wonder and awe in his face as he took her in.

"I can't tell you. I don't want anything to happen to you, but just being here-," his voice choked on itself as he pulled back. His words served as a reminder to himself.

"I shouldn't be here...but I can't pull away from you."

A sound of frustration left him, "you make me weak."

"I'm sorry," she whispered, not understanding his words, yet at the same time feeling a sorrow grow in her from them.

He stepped away, turning around to walk towards the lake.

"Are you leaving?"

He looked back at her.

She thought it many times and wondered why this beautiful stranger came to see her. But as the edge of the fading sun hit the border of the sky to flare off its final colors, his skin burned her eyes in its brilliance of dark wonder.

How fitting that Night stood to greet the falling of day.

"No, I'm not leaving yet. You still haven't told me about your day."

She smiled at his reasoning, feeling her chest lighten as it always did when he came to her.