Glass Rose

Chapter 4B

"Hey."

Laera's face was buried into the horse's mane. The night enveloped them into an abyss of darkness, and she had no idea what time it was. Her mare trotted slowly, bumping Laera's head with each step. Alec was only a few feet ahead, and she could hardly make out his features against the blackened sky.

"Hey," She stifled her yawn as she pushed her body upwards. "How far along are we?"

"We're close."

"Great." Tall, skinny branches reached up towards the stars, decorated with rounded leaves in various shades of green. The wind brought a damp moisture onto her cheeks. She welcomed in the earthy fragrance that was so absent in the castle, she almost forgot it. Small patches of twisted wildflowers grappled at the edges of the path.

Ahead of them, the rubble gave way to round stones, and soon, small townhouse silhouettes could be seen. With every step, Laera marveled at the foliage climbing up each building, and the streetlamps illuminating their doorsteps.

One particular building stood out. The windows were cased in golden light. A wooden sign hanging down in front of it creaked as it rocked back and forth, the word 'inn' burned into its side. A small stable was tucked beside it, as Laera tried to figure out how to make her horse slow down.

"Are you going to be alright getting off?" The Captain's horse slowed to a halt. He slid off with ease, as the chestnut beast beside him stirred from the sudden loss in weight. Pushing open the gate, he led his horse in, and Laera's followed.

"I'll be fine." The stable had small lanterns hanging down from each stall. Hay was littered throughout the ground and pushed into the room's corners. 

Laera stepped down slowly, bracing her foot for the ground. When it didn't come, she mentally cursed herself for her height and squeezed her eyes tightly, prepping to jump.

She leapt, the uneven ground hitting her feet faster than she anticipated, landing her left foot directly on a jagged rock. Her balance wavered and before it could register in her mind, she was falling back. Her arms reached helplessly in the air, and Laera found herself preparing for the ground.

It never came.

Warm arms enveloped her waist, as her back bumped against the figure. She knew who it was almost immediately. "You could've asked for help."

"Thanks." She muttered, unwrapping her arms from their grip on the Captain's.

His hands still were wrapped around her, holding her back against his stomach. It wasn't tight, but there was no way to get out from his grasp without moving even closer to him. His touch radiated heat, and unconsciously, she leaned in, suddenly aware of how cold the rest of her body was. She could feel his gentle murmurs against her ear as he spoke, "I don't like worrying about you."

Her heart was pounding, crashing like ocean waves against her ribs. 

As if he suddenly realized how close they were, Alec unfastened his hands and stepped back. He glanced around, avoiding her eyes, before mumbling something about attending to the steeds and walking off.

Her muscles were tense as the warm tingles turned to freezing shivers. She wanted to speak, but every word seemed to be lost behind the repetition of Alec's sentence echoing in her head. Her focus was muddled and even her sight couldn't turn away from him. Laera enjoyed the control she had managed to keep on the walls around her, and knowing he had managed to shatter the mask so quickly...

It terrified her.

Her heart never slowed down, no matter how long she waited. Fear settled into the cracks of her soul as it began to rebuild her facade. In moments, her mind retreated back to the castle, back to court, where she became what was expected of her.

"Then don't." Her voice was calmer and icier than she meant it to be.

Had it not been for the flinch in his shoulders, Laera wouldn't have believed he heard her. He didn't respond, thankfully. Laera wasn't ready to have another conversation yet.

Her mount let out a soft sound, and began to brush itself by Laera, surprising her. Her fingers glided down the back of its head, letting it nuzzle into her touch, before guiding it to the pen. She began to unhook the satchels from the mare, combing through them to make sure nothing had fallen out.  

The Captain grabbed his things, and they both began walking towards the inn's entrance. While Laera was grateful for the fresh air's distraction, she couldn't help but notice the layer of unease building between them. Their eyes hadn't met, not even when the Captain held open the door. Besides, Laera was way too interested in the scene in front of them. 

A plump lady with thin round glasses and her nose buried in a book sat behind a red counter. She hadn't stirred when they first walked in, but as a couple of coins clattered against the desk from the Captain's hand, she slowly peeked from behind the book.

She folded the novel, careful not to crease any edges, and focused on the two. A joyous smile appeared on her face, and her patterned nightgown flowed into Laera's view as she rounded the table.

"You two must be knew here! Strange too, showing up at two in the morning!" Her hair was rolled up into cylinders, which bounced as she grabbed a key out from a drawer pressed against the wall. "Welcome to Maye!"

"We don't have many available rooms right now, but I hope this will work for you." She briskly walked through a hallway on her right, and Laera felt the eyes upon her.

Laera followed without meeting the Captain's stare.

"Here you go!" The woman practically pushed the two in. "My name's Elowen, you can call me Ella, and if you need anything, I will be just down the hall. Enjoy your stay!"

The room was simple, with plain gray walls and a small table situated in the corner. It hadn't taken long for Laera to find the main issue though, and she quickly turned around to address it. "Excuse me, but do you ha-"

She was met with a bright blue door in her face. Oh gods...

"Ah....um." The Captain's voice sent a jolt up her spine, as she finally met the golden brown stare she had been attempting to ignore. "You can have the bed if you'd like."

"There's nowhere else to sleep." Her voice was still cold and matter-of-factly, though she tried to soften it a little.

"I don't know, the floor looks pretty comfy." His hand stretched behind his neck, as he sent Laera a smile.

She let herself grin a bit, before shaking her head and looking back to the object causing their mess. "The bed's big. If you're comfortable sharing..." She let her voice trail off.

"As long as it's alright with you." His voice seemed light. She felt light. "I'm going to go take a shower beforehand. Goodnight, Laera."

She snapped her head back to him and beamed. "Goodnight."

He was off towards the bathroom, while she crawled into the bed, claiming the left side. Her body sunk into the pillows, as the cotton blankets smothered her. Her eyes slammed shut as she tried to rest her mind.

From the bed, she waited until the bathroom door's lock snapped shut. Sighing, she sat up and threw her body into her hands. 

What in the world was he doing to her?