Chapter One Hundred and Fifteen: Complications (Part Eleven)
She gave him a hug and then hurried off with a grateful frown that left a strong impression. A few moments after she left, Alistar proceeded to roll up his sleeves and then set about storing away the food that had been brought in by other house servants earlier on. The entire time that he worked, he thought of his uncle Daniel with growing contempt. It was regrettable that Alistar was over a dozen spots down the list of those in line for the throne of Civus, for if he were the king of this kingdom then he would surely change many things. At least he would hope to, though as he was now he doubted that he could manage a small business much less an entire realm.
It took him an hour or so to wash, dry and store the dishes away, a process made much easier by the use of basic water magics. By the time he finally retired to his room for the night, it was with a tired mind and sluggish limbs. He had spent days tied up in enchanted rope after hours of dangling from a tree, all the while juggling numbness, hunger and exhaustion. This had been an incredibly stressful time for him, which left him quite drained now that he was back at home with nothing to do.
He decided to go to sleep early, though not until after he had cleaned his body and changed into a soft pair of silk pajamas.
At least I know she’s alive, he yawned, having just confirmed the presence of Vanessa’s magic imprint on the copper lucet that she had given him. If only I had one of these for Kaila.
Crawling into bed, he slid beneath the covers and made to put out the candles when he sensed Anice’s aura following the path through the manor that she usually took when she decided to stop by at his room. Curious, he waited off on dousing the lights. Sure enough, the door soon reported a sharp series of rapid knocks.
Hearing the noise, Alistar climbed out of bed and unlocked the door, opening it to allow Anice inside.
“Hey Anne. What brings you…why do you have a pillow?”
Also in her pajamas, which were crimson to match her long, flowing hair, Anice was hugging her favourite pillow as she stood awkwardly in the warm glow of candlelight that spilled from his room.
“I’m worried one of the boys might sneak into my room again, so I decided to sleep here tonight.”
He suppressed a sigh, wondering if he should have just pretended that he was asleep and not opened the door. “Where am I supposed to sleep, then?”
She walked over to his bed and sectioned off a spot with her pillow, allotting herself more than half of the available room. “You’ll sleep here, obviously. What’s the point of sleeping in another room if you’re not there? You’re the one they’re scared of.”
“Are you sure?” He glanced at his bed and was suddenly aware of how small it was. “I—I’ll be honest, I’m a bit embarrassed at the thought of sleeping next to a girl.” He made to lift her pillow off of the bed, but she swatted at his wrist.
“I bet you wouldn’t complain if it was Lessa,” she muttered. Pushing past him, she spoke in a louder tone. “Anyway, you’re embarrassed by everything. If I couldn’t get the girls to stop poking you, I was worried you would stop spending time with our friends.” Her face looked a bit red in the candlelight, but it was difficult to tell in the dimness.
Thinking back, his shyness had been quite a problem early on into his friendship with the Dozen. “I guess you’re right.”
“If Edmun or Calum come in, then you beat them for me.” With that, Anice crawled into his bed and slid beneath the covers. “Now hurry up and turn off the lights. I’m tired.”
Alistar rolled his eyes and followed after her, a bit annoyed that she had occupied two thirds of the space while he was left to lay stiff as a plank along one of the edges.
“Do you really need so much blanket?” he muttered, his left leg exposed while Anice was cocooned within the majority of the heavy fabric. “It’s my bed, so we should at least share it equally.”
“Say something earlier. I thought you had enough.”
Comfort washed over him as his left leg was draped in warmth, a steady silence setting in as they lay there facing the stone ceiling.
“It’s so cold down here,” shivered Anice. “How do you ever fall asleep?”
“I guess I’m just used to it? It was colder in Crystellum.”
“Then I should get more blanket!”
A short fight for the covers ensued, though the end results were the same as before. Anice begged him to keep the candles lit for the sake of the warmth they provided, however little, so he left two of them undisturbed despite the fact that he preferred the darkness when it came time to sleep. Now that the room was mostly dark, he could hardly see Anice at his side as he lay there in the silence of the slumbering manor.
His heart was beating quite loudly, enough that he wondered whether or not Anice could hear it. He was overly conscious of the fact that his right arm and shoulder were directly pressing up against her left side, and it wasn’t long before there came an awkward moment where their toes touched beneath the covers.
How am I supposed to sleep like this? He was expected at Tramon’s for practice in the morning, and would have to wake up extra early so that he could help prepare breakfast in Elly’s place. He would also have to rush home earlier to help out with lunch, so he couldn’t afford to lose any sleep.
Half an hour passed in the dim, flickering silence, an eternity in his flustered mind.
“Alie. Are you still awake?”
“I am.”
“W—why are you so warm?”
Feeling her quiver, he shrugged his shoulders in the darkness. “I don’t know. I just am.”
“That’s not fair.”
He felt her creep closer, his arm going completely still as she grasped it with cold hands.
“D—don’t misunderstand. I’m just really c—cold.”
Time seemed to stand still as they lay there, Alistar finding himself very confused. The only person that usually left him this pleasantly befuddled was Lessa, which made him wonder whether he was feeling so uncomfortable because the person beside him was Anice, or because he was simply lying next to a pretty girl.
Come to think of it, she is quite beautiful…
He recalled the first time that they had met, when he had initially woken up from his bedridden state and wandered into the art hall in the weeks after he had been freed from Crystellum. At the time he had thought her the prettiest girl he had ever seen, at least until she had begun to punch him. Her beauty was even more apparent now that they were adolescents, though tonight was the first time that he had truly noticed this, let alone given it any thought.
His mind conflicted, he decided to have another talk with Alder at the earliest convenience. For now, he would collect his thoughts by doing some simple meditations and then he would quickly fall asleep.
It took another half hour of heart-hammering silence for him to grow drowsy, at which point Anice was hugging his arm tightly with both of hers as if it were a final lifeline linking an overboard sailor to a large vessel. Just when he had finally defeated the distraction that the soft sensation of her breasts imparted on either side of his arm, she spoke up once again, this time more timid than the last.
“Are you…still awake?”
He almost wanted to keep silent, but he didn’t want to lie. “I am.”
“Can you look at me for a moment?”
“I was just about to fall asleep…” He turned his head toward her, his voice slightly exasperated. “What’s the point, anyway? I can hardly even see—”
A soft, moist sensation left him frozen in place, his mind blank as he felt Anice’s thin, soft lips press into his with a slight hesitancy. The kiss lasted for over ten seconds and left his lips a bit wet from contact with hers, his fatigue completely vanishing as he tried to process what had just happened.
“W—why did you do that?”
“Edmun stole my first kiss, so it’s only fair that I get to steal yours.”
Even though her logic was overtly flawed, he didn’t point this out. “Is that so?”
“It is.”
Alistar didn’t know what to think as he lay there in the poorly lit room, his entire body warm as if he had just ran across town. If there was one thing he knew for certain, it was that he very much enjoyed the act of kissing, and that he really hoped to do more of it in the future.
Neither of them spoke another word, the two lying side by side in a strange silence that Alistar would never have anticipated in the hours leading up to this moment. He wasn’t sure how long he lay awake that night, but it was safe to say that he only had a scant amount of sleep.
Chapter One Hundred and Fifteen: Complications (Part Eleven)
She gave him a hug and then hurried off with a grateful frown that left a strong impression. A few moments after she left, Alistar proceeded to roll up his sleeves and then set about storing away the food that had been brought in by other house servants earlier on. The entire time that he worked, he thought of his uncle Daniel with growing contempt. It was regrettable that Alistar was over a dozen spots down the list of those in line for the throne of Civus, for if he were the king of this kingdom then he would surely change many things. At least he would hope to, though as he was now he doubted that he could manage a small business much less an entire realm.
It took him an hour or so to wash, dry and store the dishes away, a process made much easier by the use of basic water magics. By the time he finally retired to his room for the night, it was with a tired mind and sluggish limbs. He had spent days tied up in enchanted rope after hours of dangling from a tree, all the while juggling numbness, hunger and exhaustion. This had been an incredibly stressful time for him, which left him quite drained now that he was back at home with nothing to do.
He decided to go to sleep early, though not until after he had cleaned his body and changed into a soft pair of silk pajamas.
At least I know she’s alive, he yawned, having just confirmed the presence of Vanessa’s magic imprint on the copper lucet that she had given him. If only I had one of these for Kaila.
Crawling into bed, he slid beneath the covers and made to put out the candles when he sensed Anice’s aura following the path through the manor that she usually took when she decided to stop by at his room. Curious, he waited off on dousing the lights. Sure enough, the door soon reported a sharp series of rapid knocks.
Hearing the noise, Alistar climbed out of bed and unlocked the door, opening it to allow Anice inside.
“Hey Anne. What brings you…why do you have a pillow?”
Also in her pajamas, which were crimson to match her long, flowing hair, Anice was hugging her favourite pillow as she stood awkwardly in the warm glow of candlelight that spilled from his room.
“I’m worried one of the boys might sneak into my room again, so I decided to sleep here tonight.”
He suppressed a sigh, wondering if he should have just pretended that he was asleep and not opened the door. “Where am I supposed to sleep, then?”
She walked over to his bed and sectioned off a spot with her pillow, allotting herself more than half of the available room. “You’ll sleep here, obviously. What’s the point of sleeping in another room if you’re not there? You’re the one they’re scared of.”
“Are you sure?” He glanced at his bed and was suddenly aware of how small it was. “I—I’ll be honest, I’m a bit embarrassed at the thought of sleeping next to a girl.” He made to lift her pillow off of the bed, but she swatted at his wrist.
“I bet you wouldn’t complain if it was Lessa,” she muttered. Pushing past him, she spoke in a louder tone. “Anyway, you’re embarrassed by everything. If I couldn’t get the girls to stop poking you, I was worried you would stop spending time with our friends.” Her face looked a bit red in the candlelight, but it was difficult to tell in the dimness.
Thinking back, his shyness had been quite a problem early on into his friendship with the Dozen. “I guess you’re right.”
“If Edmun or Calum come in, then you beat them for me.” With that, Anice crawled into his bed and slid beneath the covers. “Now hurry up and turn off the lights. I’m tired.”
Alistar rolled his eyes and followed after her, a bit annoyed that she had occupied two thirds of the space while he was left to lay stiff as a plank along one of the edges.
“Do you really need so much blanket?” he muttered, his left leg exposed while Anice was cocooned within the majority of the heavy fabric. “It’s my bed, so we should at least share it equally.”
“Say something earlier. I thought you had enough.”
Comfort washed over him as his left leg was draped in warmth, a steady silence setting in as they lay there facing the stone ceiling.
“It’s so cold down here,” shivered Anice. “How do you ever fall asleep?”
“I guess I’m just used to it? It was colder in Crystellum.”
“Then I should get more blanket!”
A short fight for the covers ensued, though the end results were the same as before. Anice begged him to keep the candles lit for the sake of the warmth they provided, however little, so he left two of them undisturbed despite the fact that he preferred the darkness when it came time to sleep. Now that the room was mostly dark, he could hardly see Anice at his side as he lay there in the silence of the slumbering manor.
His heart was beating quite loudly, enough that he wondered whether or not Anice could hear it. He was overly conscious of the fact that his right arm and shoulder were directly pressing up against her left side, and it wasn’t long before there came an awkward moment where their toes touched beneath the covers.
How am I supposed to sleep like this? He was expected at Tramon’s for practice in the morning, and would have to wake up extra early so that he could help prepare breakfast in Elly’s place. He would also have to rush home earlier to help out with lunch, so he couldn’t afford to lose any sleep.
Half an hour passed in the dim, flickering silence, an eternity in his flustered mind.
“Alie. Are you still awake?”
“I am.”
“W—why are you so warm?”
Feeling her quiver, he shrugged his shoulders in the darkness. “I don’t know. I just am.”
“That’s not fair.”
He felt her creep closer, his arm going completely still as she grasped it with cold hands.
“D—don’t misunderstand. I’m just really c—cold.”
Time seemed to stand still as they lay there, Alistar finding himself very confused. The only person that usually left him this pleasantly befuddled was Lessa, which made him wonder whether he was feeling so uncomfortable because the person beside him was Anice, or because he was simply lying next to a pretty girl.
Come to think of it, she is quite beautiful…
He recalled the first time that they had met, when he had initially woken up from his bedridden state and wandered into the art hall in the weeks after he had been freed from Crystellum. At the time he had thought her the prettiest girl he had ever seen, at least until she had begun to punch him. Her beauty was even more apparent now that they were adolescents, though tonight was the first time that he had truly noticed this, let alone given it any thought.
His mind conflicted, he decided to have another talk with Alder at the earliest convenience. For now, he would collect his thoughts by doing some simple meditations and then he would quickly fall asleep.
It took another half hour of heart-hammering silence for him to grow drowsy, at which point Anice was hugging his arm tightly with both of hers as if it were a final lifeline linking an overboard sailor to a large vessel. Just when he had finally defeated the distraction that the soft sensation of her breasts imparted on either side of his arm, she spoke up once again, this time more timid than the last.
“Are you…still awake?”
He almost wanted to keep silent, but he didn’t want to lie. “I am.”
“Can you look at me for a moment?”
“I was just about to fall asleep…” He turned his head toward her, his voice slightly exasperated. “What’s the point, anyway? I can hardly even see—”
A soft, moist sensation left him frozen in place, his mind blank as he felt Anice’s thin, soft lips press into his with a slight hesitancy. The kiss lasted for over ten seconds and left his lips a bit wet from contact with hers, his fatigue completely vanishing as he tried to process what had just happened.
“W—why did you do that?”
“Edmun stole my first kiss, so it’s only fair that I get to steal yours.”
Even though her logic was overtly flawed, he didn’t point this out. “Is that so?”
“It is.”
Alistar didn’t know what to think as he lay there in the poorly lit room, his entire body warm as if he had just ran across town. If there was one thing he knew for certain, it was that he very much enjoyed the act of kissing, and that he really hoped to do more of it in the future.
Neither of them spoke another word, the two lying side by side in a strange silence that Alistar would never have anticipated in the hours leading up to this moment. He wasn’t sure how long he lay awake that night, but it was safe to say that he only had a scant amount of sleep.
