Take Me Home

21. Memories

Axel's P.O.V-

Axel's eyes blinked opened as he let out a long yawn and groggily sat up, reaching him arms out to stretch. He looked around and was disappointed it was still dark outside as he lit another candle, wondering what time it was. He leaned down and adjusted his splint and then stood up, limping over to the window in the room and moving the curtains aside. It was almost dawn, so he didn't bother trying to sleep in more. He could see the sky in the distance, this room didn't face the ocean so he saw sunlight in the far horizon as it climbed back into the sky.

He yawned again, looking around the room for a moment. He grabbed the button up shirt Freya had given him and he slid it over his bare skin, buttoning it up and then looking at the pants. He hated pants and the ones Freya had given him were too long. He limped over to the dresser nearby, opening a few drawers until he found a pair of simple, plain knee length shorts. Those would work. Once those were on, they fit well too, Axel walked over to a mirror leaned against the wall across from the bed. He stood in front of it, judging the person in the mirror before him.

He looked older, more tired as he stood there. His thin but lean build was leaned to the right to keep pressure off his broken left. But he didn't look like a mess, so he shrugged and moved his gaze up to his head. His bandage caused some of his hair to stick up and it looked a little bit funny. He grinned, reaching up to the bandage and unwrapping it carefully, then holding it in his hands. Blood had soaked the small piece of square cloth Freya had attached to the bandage. The bleeding had thankfully stopped now and he set the bandage down on the table, grabbing the candle and setting it on the ground next to the mirror so he could see what the wound looked like.

It wasn't too deep into his skin, but it had been deep enough to cause enough blood to soak the cloth. A large scab was in the process of forming over it and all around the red gash the skin was a shade of purple, revealing a large bruise. Axel felt annoyance rise up inside him. That would leave a scar. He knew it wasn't a big deal, but it wasn't the prettiest sight. At least it had stopped throbbing. His feet were bare on the wooden tile as he picked the candle up and limped toward the door, almost tripping but he caught himself on the wall. Taking a deep breath, Axel placed his hand on the knob and slowly turned it, opening the door with a loud creaking sound.

He limped outside of his room into the empty and dark hall, his eyes pausing on Freya's room for a moment before he kept limping toward the stairs. He reached them after a struggle and then sighed as he looked down a long flight of stairs. Carefully, he put one hand on the rail and the other against the wall, then lifted himself up by pushing against the wall and rail and put his right foot down. He continued using this tactic as he slowly went down the stairs, wincing every time his right foot hit a board of wood that creaked loudly. Letting out a breath of relief as he reached the bottom, he thought about what he wanted to do. It wasn't his home so he wasn't going to treat or act as if it was. He narrowed his eyes and stood at the bottom of the stairs for a moment.

He could wait for Freya to wake up and see what her plan was for the day. Or he could go and try to take a nap on the sofa. He limped across the wooden floor over to the kitchen counter. Everything was still dark, so he didn't want to accidentally bump into anything or break something. He let out another breath, feeling awkward as he stood there in the dark in silence. What did Freya do every morning? She normally came and fed him while he was up in the loft and fed the animals. His gaze flickered to the door for a moment. He could feed the animals for her.

Doubt and fear crept into his mind as he pictured English soldiers waiting for him. He didn't know what was outside. He wouldn't take the risk. Axel looked around, unsure what he was to do. Boredom settle inside him as he limped out of the kitchen and into the main room. That's when he saw it.