Was he losing his mind?
“No, it wasn’t that,” he answered slowly, studying her for some sign that he wasn’t seeing things. Perhaps it had been a trick of the light, or maybe his dreams were getting the better of him.
Her head quirked to the side inquisitively.
Caspian gave up on his examination, chalking it up to a bout of momentary insanity.
“…It was someone that I lost a long time ago,” he explained.
A great and genuine sadness came over her features, the sort that weighs down a person’s soul. Somehow he could tell at once that she knew exactly how he felt, to have someone pulled from your life, to try to fill the cavity left by their absence.
“I lost someone,” Erin said quietly.
The heartache in her voice stirred an overwhelming urge within him to comfort her. The feeling was so powerful, he almost reached for her… To lay a hand on her? To hold her in his arms? He wasn’t sure, but in either case, his common sense prevailed. He was in no position to offer her consolation. Instead, he forced himself to wait, to see if she would go on. It wasn’t his place to pry.
“He died,” she said finally, answering the question he wouldn’t dare ask. “He died at Icespire Pass.”
A heaviness lingered in the air, understanding settling over him. She hadn’t been curious about him because of the rumors. She’d been searching for some closure, wanting to know more about that wretched night. For a moment he allowed himselfto remember them… He wondered if he had known this person who Erin still grieved. It wasn’t likely, but even so the faces of the dead flashed through his mind.
“I’m sorry,” Caspian said. His hand smoothed over her cheek without thinking.
Her tearful eyes snapped to his. She looked almost startled by his touch.
Of course she was, he chastised himself. He was little better than a stranger. Caspian removed his hand and stepped back, doing his very best to look as apologetic as he felt.
She turned, putting several paces between them. He did not miss the opportunity she took to dry her eyes once her back was turned to him. “We should keep moving.” Her voice was stiff and forced.
Caspian only nodded, guilt swelling inside of him. She was suffering, and somehow he’d made it worse. As they continued through the wood again, all he could think of was the silence taut between them, and the urge to fill it, to comfort her. He could feel her pain echoing within him, a blade lodged in the heart. Caspian wanted to wrap her in his arms and run his fingers through her hair, to absorb her sadness, and perhaps share some of his own… Which was clearly ridiculous, and inappropriate. He couldn’t feel this way about a stranger, even if he understood the loss so clear in her. He wasn’t the one to help her, no matter how much he wanted to. He barely knew her.
Keira
Caspian hated her.
He’d been moody and distant for an entire day because he’d dreamt about her. Absently, she couldn’t help but wonder if part of him was seeing past the Oculus charm. She supposed it was possible that his subconscious mind was somehow processing what his eyes could not, warning him through his dreams. But she didn’t spare her curiosity much thought as she agonized over how he would react once he knew- And he would eventually find her out if she didn’t tell him herself soon. Every time he looked at her, she feared he would see through her glamour. She would have to face him. Yet instead of mustering the courage to do so, her imagination berated her with every terrible, torturous thing he could, and likely would, say if he learned the truth.
Someone I lost…
He talked about her like she was dead. Keira shook the thought away as it clenched at her throat. Maybe he preferred to think of it that way.
They camped beside the small stream she had seen in her vision. It would be another day’s journey to the caves, but they had already passed trees embedded with quills and others with bark stripped by powerful claws. There was a noticeable lack of large game here. No doubt the beast had terrorized the local populations away and now needed to travel farther to appeaseits appetite. Of course, she pointed out these signs to Caspian as they went to keep up her pretense. They had agreed to sleep in shifts that night, though neither of them had settled in yet.
Caspian returned to camp with an armload of logs. Enough to keep the fire healthy throughout the night. He set them down and looked to her tentatively. He’d been skittish ever since she’d broken and finally asked him what was wrong. Of course, that had ended in him comforting her…
And now she was sitting on a thick fallen tree. There was clearly space for him to fit beside her, but he watched her tentatively, as if worried that sitting too closely might make her cry again.
Keira moved over purposefully so he wouldn’t sit in the dirt. Caspian took her meaning plain enough and sat beside her. Keira pulled the rabbit she’dtrappedoff of the flames. In truth, she’d used her magic to snap its neck when she’d been sent out hunting. Now it was cooked and steaming on the spit she’d fashioned. Her stomach growled.
Keira offered an apologetic smile as Caspian turned and produced two bowls from his bag. Soon they were filled with warm meat and a few small potatoes, washed down with fresh, cool water from the stream.
“I’ll take the first watch,” he said once the bowls were empty. After such a long time without a spoken word, even his soft voice hung heavy in the air.
“I can-”
“You should rest.”
She opened her mouth to protest, only to shut it again. It was better this way. He’d wake her for her shift in the dark. There would be less chance of him seeing her true face. Even so, he was being chivalrous. Of the two of them, he was obviously more tired. She was being selfish. Again.
He stood up unexpectedly and began to unfasten his own bedroll, clearly meant for her. It was too much.
