“Like this one?” he mocked.
She started to sneer at him, but the sight of the smirk on his lips made her pause. He gave her an upwards nod, and she looked down to see that her hands were blackening, and there was a black fog beneath her feet. She closed her eyes and drew a deep breath, counting as her frustrations waned. The black on her fingers receded, the fog dissipating as though rewinding into itself.
Nadir crossed the room towards her then, only stopping as he took her hand. “We’ll work on it,” he promised. "I know you're frustrated—“
"Frustrated isn't even the right word," she grunted.
He paused, simply staring at her as though he expected her to go on, to continue speaking. But she just shook her head and pushed her hands over her face. "I'm sorry," she managed.
"For what?"
She sighed, gripping her waist in her hands and cursing herself. She couldn't get the words out, too enamored by her frustrations and emotion that she chose not to speak.
"How about you come to the bonfire with me?" he suggested. "We have food. Someone, I think, is attempting to play drums. There is dancing. We can just be us for a few hours."
It did sound enticing. And she was starving.
"Okay," she finally said.
She reached for her belt then, and as she wrapped it around her, it went past the last notch, making her grunt under her breath in frustration. Nadir chuckled, and she punched him in the side upon glaring at him.
“Shut up,” she mumbled.
He laughed openly this time and pulled his knife out to make her a new notch. “I’ll make sure they bring you all the sweets—” he tightened the belt with a jolt around her waist, and her heart fluttered at the dilation in his suddenly domineering gaze “—my ferocious shadow Queen.”
The sound of his rasp vibrated her insides, her breath skipping, and for a moment, she completely forgot about the entire ordeal she’d been having with herself in front of the mirror. But she shook her head at him and fought the smile threatening her lips.
“Was that your attempt at growling?” she mocked.
He grinned, chin rising as he gazed down his nose at her. “Dammit, I missed you,” he breathed. He held out his arm, and she took it with a flee of her heart.
Lex was lounging on a piece of driftwood by the fire when they arrived at the celebration.
“Commander and the Princess,” she bantered. “Should I ring the bells?”
Nadir only smiled at Nyssa and kissed her hand before he told her he had to see a few friends before he could join her. She caught Lex winking at him as she sat, but she didn't ask about it. Lex held out the basket of food she was eating from. Sweet bread rolls and honey. She also passed her a plate with smoked fish on it, as well as the canteen of water.
She could feel her eyes on her as she devoured the food, but she didn't care.
"How is my little shadow today?" Lex asked. "I don't recall hearing as many screams last night."
"Nadir stayed with me," Nyssa admitted. "Nothing happened... He was just there."
"I wondered if he stayed,” Lex replied.
Lex told her about the legion she'd been helping Nadir with while she ate. She was grateful for the absentminded conversation, almost as though Nyssa had simply been away on an adventure with her brother. No mention of her starvation or torture. Just Lex. Telling her stories of the recruits and what she'd been up to.
Nadir joined them a few minutes later, sitting down at her side and squeezing her knee when she met his gaze. She noted him eyeing the honey in her hands when he looked down, and his brow lifted in a teasing manner.
"Who gave you the honey?" he asked, wickedness dancing in his gaze.
She couldn’t help her unfamiliar smile. The memory of him licking that breakfast honey off her body and between her legs at Magnice filled her mind. She inhaled a jagged breath, red flushing her cheeks, and she sucked the honey off her finger. Nadir stared at her as she did, tongue darting out over his lips, but he didn't say anything.
She loved that he was being his usual self and not treating her as though she were broken. He was attempting to make her feel at home. Bantering and joking. Continuing his leering jokes as he’d done before she ran away.
A few people came up to them, sitting beside Nadir or Lex, all of whom addressed Nyssa by her actual name, a few of them nodding for extended periods. Long enough that Nyssa stopped chewing.
"What are they doing?" she asked Nadir at one point.
