From The Ashes

19

When morning came, gentle sunlight filtered through the white clouds already in the sky. The sky itself was a mixture of warm oranges, gentle pink hues, and the onset of light blue. The rays of the sun shone gently through the window, and it was the warming sensation on her back which awoke Alassëa. Slowly at first she came to; along with the warmth of the sun, she was also aware to the comforting aroma of linen, woodland, and the scent of salty air. The underlining undertone amongst all of this though was the distinct smell of something, someone, male.

Her eyes slowly opened, Bard. He was the first thing her eyes landed on. She tilted her head to the side, he looked so peaceful when asleep. All the worries and concerns which seemed to plague him when awake were not evident in his expression now. Alassëa couldn't help but think that this was the first time she had ever seen him so content, without a worry in the world. She frowned slowly at that though. As soon as he awoke she knew, more than anyone, that his expression would shift to one of alert tension.

She reached down, while keeping her gaze on him, and removed his arm from around herself. It seemed they had not shifted about much since falling asleep. She was still tightly, yet not too tightly, held in protective arms. She paused in her movements when Bard seemed to shift in his sleep. She did not wish to wake him. As far as she could tell he did not have work today, she however did. Being woken up at the crack of dawn when not needing to was not a pleasant experience. It was an experience that she dearly wished to avoid for him. He needed rest, though Alassëa would not openly admit it to him, he had looked thoroughly exhausted last night. His dark eyes, which were usually so bright and alert had dimmed and took on the look of someone who was truly at a loss.

Managing to get out of the bed she quietly pottered over to the small wardrobe in the room. Opening it up, she continued to get ready for the day, as quietly as possible. She pulled out a warm cream coloured under layer, quickly peering around the wardrobe door, she shifted awkwardly. He was still asleep, but even still, undressing and changing in a room with a sleeping male was still something which caused her to pause.

With a resolute sigh she quickly pulled off her nightdress and dropped it to the floor. Pulling the under layer on over her shift, she quickly pulled the thin cord ties at the neck. Once she was pleased it was tight enough, she pulled out the overlay dress. It was a rich dark red, as soon as Alassëa had spotted it she knew she wished to buy it. Straightening out both the skirts she looked around, finding her boots near the bedside table, she pulled them on over thick tights.

Turning swiftly, which caused the skirts to swish behind her, she walked to the small mirror in the room. Using the wash basin in front of her, she scrubbed her face and then took to doing her hair. Undoing the small braids, she simply brushed the long locks and then braided her hair again. All the small braids led into one which ended in the middle of her back. Happy that she was as ready for work as possible, she gave a swift nod. Patting her sides she turned, her expression softened, Bard had seemingly sensed that the warmth she had supplied, and the comfort of her presence had disappeared. So he did the next best thing and reached out to hold onto the pillow she had once been laying on.

Walking slowly over, she crouched down by the bed and looked to him. Reaching out, she brushed stray dark strands of hair out of his face. It seemed the tie which usually kept his hair in place and out of his face had come loose while he slept. With a light frown she leant forwards, pausing slightly she gently placed a kiss against his temple. "Márë olori, Bard." She whispered and pulled back, she just didn't expect to have a half asleep pair of eyes looking up at her. Alassëa smiled gently, she hadn't realised he had woken up.

Rubbing his eyes slowly, Bard looked Alassëa over. She seemed up and ready for her day, from over her shoulder the sun continued to shine in. And if anything the warm rays shone off her hair and made it look like flickering flames. "What does it mean?" He asked quietly, coughing lowly he pushed himself to sit. He was trying to wake himself up, though he found that his body did not wish to it seemed.