She came in on the tail of the returning patrol, chin high, and shoulders rigid as a cat in a new room. Her laughter died as the last them vanished, dispensed temporarily back to what passes here for a private life. After a week's travel, she could have claimed it too. There were invitations, introductions; the offer of belonging, of the start to something new.
She didn't follow.
It's been a good half hour now, and Melys still lingers by the gate, willing herself to pick up and run. The direction won't matter, just the motion-proof that she had a plan, beyond this, that she has any idea what to do.
Ahead, it's all bright day and soft wind. Metal clashes almost musically from the practice yards, and the air's full of the heady smell of living things. She breathes it in, eyes pressing shut...
...And open, again, onto him.
Melys almost startles, but she's used to this by now. A mistake, her eyes are playing tricks again. Another mistake. She'll blink, and he'll be gone.
She'll blink, and he'll be gone. She'll blink. She'll —
this is why DA just needs facebook or something - MAL
She didn't follow.
It's been a good half hour now, and Melys still lingers by the gate, willing herself to pick up and run. The direction won't matter, just the motion-proof that she had a plan, beyond this, that she has any idea what to do.
Ahead, it's all bright day and soft wind. Metal clashes almost musically from the practice yards, and the air's full of the heady smell of living things. She breathes it in, eyes pressing shut...
...And open, again, onto him.
Melys almost startles, but she's used to this by now. A mistake, her eyes are playing tricks again. Another mistake. She'll blink, and he'll be gone.
She'll blink, and he'll be gone. She'll blink. She'll —