Elements Collide

[Mullen]

Anica was a princess, trained for most of her life in poise and politics. She was intelligent and has a certain fire to her as well that Thaos recognized and even respected. From the way she reacted to a casual oberver she may have seemed unphased, but he knew better. His words had had their intended effect and moreso... and he regretted it. He had let his anger over his mission, his frustration with how casually their peace was being thrown aside, and his self-hatred for following orders even now boil over and had directed it to her needlessly. He did not blame her, for what she had done: she was scared, and who knows what would have happened if her family had found out she had control of earth?


He let her push his hand away and shivered slightly when she gripped his cloak, wanting to comfort her but also not wanting to dampen the effect if she was going to be complacent now. He let her break the contact, but could not bring himself to look at her. He knew that if she could see his face, truly see it, she would see only the remorse he had for her. The sympathy he had for how her entire life had been ripped away and her homeland was now going to be plunged headlong into war was impossible to fully mask.


He moved at her side as she walked towards the tent, matching her pace like a shadow - silent, and ever present. When they got to the small flap that marked its entrance he placed his hand on her shoulder gently. "It's not your fault". He released her shoulder and sat just outside the tent as he had before.

 

[amlia]

She didn't dare to look his way, so she wouldn't know that he wasn't looking at her and she wouldn't know that the look on her face gave off the opposite of what she thought he felt. In her head she thought that he was just a soldier following orders- no matter how dangerous and risky they might be. She didn't have any idea that he regretted his words or thought any different.


Her teeth were clenched as she walked and her eyes were glued on their destination. Only when his hand landed in her shoulder did she move. At first it was t I shrug her shoulder away but then she stopped at the sound of his words. Her eyes flicked toward his for a fraction of a second, glints omg the tiniest bit due to the fact that tears rimmed her eyes. She didn't say anything. Only a nod came in reply and she ducked into the tent in silence.

 

[Mullen]

The small glimpse that they shared was enough: the tears that Thaos saw framing Anica'a eyes redoubled the doubt he had in how he had spoken to her. He was tempted to try to continue talking to her, expanding on how it wasn't her fault. But it was pointless: letting her be alone would hopefully give her time to consider her position on her own, and reflect.


Thaos sat up alert outside of the tent, keeping guard. None of the other men in the camp would dare to approach the tent with him there, and Anica would have an undisturbed night. It had the side benefit of also giving him the chance to stop her if she tried to get away. He closed his eyes, relying on the earth around him to keep him alert and aware even as he drifted to sleep. Any disturbance, anything out of the ordinary, and he would know.

 

[amlia]

Anica noticed that he had sat outside the tent, most likely to make sure that she didn't run. She didn't blame him. She was also somewhat relieved that he was there as well, since she didn't know what the others were like and she probably didn't trust herself any more than Thaos did.


After a while if thinking, she saw that there was no point to the fight. Of course he was following his Kings orders. A stupid idea, yes, but what would happen if he didn't?


She gave herself time to relax and to calm herself again. To bring that feeling of peace from when he was insturcting her back. After an even longer amount of time she sat forward from the darkened back of the tent to see if the man was asleep. She didn't know what she would do or say if he was awake, but he wasn't.


She didn't feel trapped this way as one might expect, but more at ease. She trusted him in a way; Enohgh so that she felt comfortable situating herself and soon drifting to sleep just as well.

 

[Mullen]

Thaos opened his eyes slowly in the morning, seeing that many of the other members of the camp had started to stir. The guards who had stayed up through the night had kept the fire stoked. It continued to let out a slow column of smoke, blanketing the camp with the rustic scent of smoke. Tents were starting to get broken down, supplies packed away. Soon, the camp would be moving on and Anica would be with them.


She had not tried to escape, or even left the tent. That gave Thaos relief - it was much more pleasant to take along a willing travelling companion than a prisoner. And, if he was telling himself the truth, he was starting to enjoy her company.


He stood and stretched his tired muscles, feeling the ache of having slept in a less-than-comfortable position. He went to the main camp to help break it down to let Anica sleep for at least a little bit longer; any additional rest she could get now would be beneficial for the trek ahead. And she would need to be well rested and ready if he was going to continue helping her refine her skill.