Fan Fiction ❯ Illusia ❯ Illusia - Her Story 17 ( Chapter 17 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: Serenitychan13 
Chapter 17: Cold Night
Anime/Manga: Fan Fiction | Genre(s): / Suspense / Supernatural / Romance / Fantasy / Action / Angst / Drama | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 01.24.2004 | Updated On: 04.15.2004 | Pages: 1 | Words: 1.3K | Visits: 160 | Status: Completed
Chapter 17: Cold Night
Anime/Manga: Fan Fiction | Genre(s): / Suspense / Supernatural / Romance / Fantasy / Action / Angst / Drama | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 01.24.2004 | Updated On: 04.15.2004 | Pages: 1 | Words: 1.3K | Visits: 160 | Status: Completed
Chapter 17
I felt my knees growing weak and the little color remaining in my face draining away from it. I stumbled backwards and tripped over a crack in the floor of the cave. With a frightened gasp, I fell against the wall. My back hit flat against the stone wall with a sickening thud. I slid down to the floor, scrabbling against the wall like a cornered animal in a frantic, if futile attempt to get away. I turned my face away. I froze as I heard footsteps coming toward me. I knew I would faint soon, then it would all be over. I took a peek at him from under my arm and quickly turned my face away again. What I certainly did not expect was exactly what happened: he smiled at me.
“There is no reason to be afraid, Princess,” he said gently.
Slowly I turned my head to look up at him, my eyes still widened in fear. Moving slowly, as though afraid he might startle me, he approached me, reaching his hand down to me. I was shaking. Reflexively, I braced my arms in an X-block in front of my face. I closed my eyes, still fearing the worst. Instead, I heard soft, deep-voiced laughter and felt a gentle touch on my wrist. The tension in my arms melted away and he gently guided my arms down to my sides, holding them there with a tender but firm grip. My mind still wanted me to resist, to try and fight him. My heart, however, was having different ideas altogether. My heart wanted to trust him, sensing good deep inside him.
“Relax, Princess. I’m here to help you.”
“Who are you?”
“I’m afraid I can’t tell you that…”
I stared up at him, my eyes holding a question.
“At least,” he paused. “Not yet.”
He smiled. I still wanted answers but took a look at his katana and thought it better to keep my questions to myself. No matter what my heart wanted, I still didn’t know if I could trust him. I wanted to, but when I looked at his eyes, it gave me second thoughts. They were just so cold.
“Princess, is something troubling you?”
I closed my eyes.
If only he knew…
I wished so much that I could tell him. Though my mind was continually telling me otherwise, he seemed so gentle. My emotional battle must have been all too obvious. His grip on my arms tightened very slightly and he lowered himself to his knees, his face inches from mine.
“Do not worry. You can trust me… Did you actually believe that I would harm the Supreme Princess of Kerahneeah?”
My defenses melted away as I opened my eyes a bit and caught a glimpse of the look on his face. He looked so hurt. I couldn’t believe that I had ever been afraid of him. His eyes, the same eyes that had frightened me so much and seemed so cold, now seemed wonderfully warm. I still wished, however, that he would let go of my arms, or at least loosen his grip. I was always uncomfortable in a situation where I felt restrained.
I swallowed hard and finally spoke. My voice was soft, though not quite in fear.
“Well then, what should I call you? I need to thank you for helping my friend… and for helping me…”
He pulled back away from me and seemed to be deep in thought for a moment before surprising me with a rather gruff reply.
“Call me Sawyer.”
“Well, Sawyer, thank you…”
For the first time, I smiled up at him. He barely smiled back. Slowly, he took his hands off my arms and stood up. My arms now felt cold in the places where his hands had been. Except for the faint smile, he never looked at me, only stared into the fire. Without taking his gaze away from the dying flame, he slowly walked back to his dark corner.
“Get some sleep Princess,” he said tonelessly. “You are badly injured and it will take time to heal.”
I opened my mouth to protest, wanting to ask him some questions. He still didn’t look at me, just said “Go to sleep” like a parent ordering a difficult child to bed.
Reluctantly, I shut my mouth, after pouting at him for a second, and lay down. I let my eyes fall half-closed. The last thing I remembered seeing was Sawyer looking at me in a way I had never seen before. I closed my eyes completely with a trembling heart. I was so homesick. I missed my pretty silver room with the lavender canopy bed. Though I kept my sobs silent, muffling them into the soft wolf-pelt blanket, I cried myself to sleep.
Again, my dreams were occupied by the same young man I had seen before. The deep, open slash across his chest seemed more prominent now and I recognized why it was there. It had been made by a katana. I thought back and the first thing that came to mind was…
Sawyer…
I woke with a scream of terror.
I sat bolt upright, causing the gash in my back made by Diamondsea’s horn to re-open. Blood streamed down my back, raising chill bumps all up and down my arms as I felt its grisly warmth spreading. I was breathing hard, as though I had been running for a long time. I looked around in a panic, hoping to find some little comfort in the old cave. The fire had died out long ago so it was almost pitch-black and bitterly cold.
As my eyes adjusted to the darkness, my gaze fell on Sawyer’s dark form, barely visible in the darkest corner of the cave. He was curled into the corner, his trench coat drawn up tight around him. I watched him turn over quickly. He looked miserable.
Slowly, silently, I struggled to my feet, my wolf-pelt blanket drawn around me. I danced across the hard, cold stone floor of the cave on tiptoe, squeaking a little as my bare feet hit the ice-cold stone. Sawyer barely stirred, turning over and facing me.
As a fool, a total innocent, I curled up beside him, wrapping my blanket tightly around me. He wrapped an arm around my waist, pulling me closer to him. As he shifted, his hair, now loose from its messy ponytail, fell over my face. Soft white-blonde strands tickled my ear and the beginning of my jawline. When I moved my hand up to push them off, I lightly brushed his cheek with the tips of my fingers by accident. I could have sworn I heard him laugh softly in his sleep.
He was warm and he still smelled faintly of wood smoke. I was still very cold from hopping across the cave in the freezing night air, so I cuddled closer to him. I turned my head slightly so I could see his face, to make sure I hadn’t woken him.
He was smiling.
I felt my knees growing weak and the little color remaining in my face draining away from it. I stumbled backwards and tripped over a crack in the floor of the cave. With a frightened gasp, I fell against the wall. My back hit flat against the stone wall with a sickening thud. I slid down to the floor, scrabbling against the wall like a cornered animal in a frantic, if futile attempt to get away. I turned my face away. I froze as I heard footsteps coming toward me. I knew I would faint soon, then it would all be over. I took a peek at him from under my arm and quickly turned my face away again. What I certainly did not expect was exactly what happened: he smiled at me.
“There is no reason to be afraid, Princess,” he said gently.
Slowly I turned my head to look up at him, my eyes still widened in fear. Moving slowly, as though afraid he might startle me, he approached me, reaching his hand down to me. I was shaking. Reflexively, I braced my arms in an X-block in front of my face. I closed my eyes, still fearing the worst. Instead, I heard soft, deep-voiced laughter and felt a gentle touch on my wrist. The tension in my arms melted away and he gently guided my arms down to my sides, holding them there with a tender but firm grip. My mind still wanted me to resist, to try and fight him. My heart, however, was having different ideas altogether. My heart wanted to trust him, sensing good deep inside him.
“Relax, Princess. I’m here to help you.”
“Who are you?”
“I’m afraid I can’t tell you that…”
I stared up at him, my eyes holding a question.
“At least,” he paused. “Not yet.”
He smiled. I still wanted answers but took a look at his katana and thought it better to keep my questions to myself. No matter what my heart wanted, I still didn’t know if I could trust him. I wanted to, but when I looked at his eyes, it gave me second thoughts. They were just so cold.
“Princess, is something troubling you?”
I closed my eyes.
If only he knew…
I wished so much that I could tell him. Though my mind was continually telling me otherwise, he seemed so gentle. My emotional battle must have been all too obvious. His grip on my arms tightened very slightly and he lowered himself to his knees, his face inches from mine.
“Do not worry. You can trust me… Did you actually believe that I would harm the Supreme Princess of Kerahneeah?”
My defenses melted away as I opened my eyes a bit and caught a glimpse of the look on his face. He looked so hurt. I couldn’t believe that I had ever been afraid of him. His eyes, the same eyes that had frightened me so much and seemed so cold, now seemed wonderfully warm. I still wished, however, that he would let go of my arms, or at least loosen his grip. I was always uncomfortable in a situation where I felt restrained.
I swallowed hard and finally spoke. My voice was soft, though not quite in fear.
“Well then, what should I call you? I need to thank you for helping my friend… and for helping me…”
He pulled back away from me and seemed to be deep in thought for a moment before surprising me with a rather gruff reply.
“Call me Sawyer.”
“Well, Sawyer, thank you…”
For the first time, I smiled up at him. He barely smiled back. Slowly, he took his hands off my arms and stood up. My arms now felt cold in the places where his hands had been. Except for the faint smile, he never looked at me, only stared into the fire. Without taking his gaze away from the dying flame, he slowly walked back to his dark corner.
“Get some sleep Princess,” he said tonelessly. “You are badly injured and it will take time to heal.”
I opened my mouth to protest, wanting to ask him some questions. He still didn’t look at me, just said “Go to sleep” like a parent ordering a difficult child to bed.
Reluctantly, I shut my mouth, after pouting at him for a second, and lay down. I let my eyes fall half-closed. The last thing I remembered seeing was Sawyer looking at me in a way I had never seen before. I closed my eyes completely with a trembling heart. I was so homesick. I missed my pretty silver room with the lavender canopy bed. Though I kept my sobs silent, muffling them into the soft wolf-pelt blanket, I cried myself to sleep.
Again, my dreams were occupied by the same young man I had seen before. The deep, open slash across his chest seemed more prominent now and I recognized why it was there. It had been made by a katana. I thought back and the first thing that came to mind was…
Sawyer…
I woke with a scream of terror.
I sat bolt upright, causing the gash in my back made by Diamondsea’s horn to re-open. Blood streamed down my back, raising chill bumps all up and down my arms as I felt its grisly warmth spreading. I was breathing hard, as though I had been running for a long time. I looked around in a panic, hoping to find some little comfort in the old cave. The fire had died out long ago so it was almost pitch-black and bitterly cold.
As my eyes adjusted to the darkness, my gaze fell on Sawyer’s dark form, barely visible in the darkest corner of the cave. He was curled into the corner, his trench coat drawn up tight around him. I watched him turn over quickly. He looked miserable.
Slowly, silently, I struggled to my feet, my wolf-pelt blanket drawn around me. I danced across the hard, cold stone floor of the cave on tiptoe, squeaking a little as my bare feet hit the ice-cold stone. Sawyer barely stirred, turning over and facing me.
As a fool, a total innocent, I curled up beside him, wrapping my blanket tightly around me. He wrapped an arm around my waist, pulling me closer to him. As he shifted, his hair, now loose from its messy ponytail, fell over my face. Soft white-blonde strands tickled my ear and the beginning of my jawline. When I moved my hand up to push them off, I lightly brushed his cheek with the tips of my fingers by accident. I could have sworn I heard him laugh softly in his sleep.
He was warm and he still smelled faintly of wood smoke. I was still very cold from hopping across the cave in the freezing night air, so I cuddled closer to him. I turned my head slightly so I could see his face, to make sure I hadn’t woken him.
He was smiling.