Darkness had settled over King's End in the wake of the Feast of Bells. Tal had been relieved that the festival had been so near to their home; it made it easy to slip away when the merriment became too much for their somber mood, and between Alys's lantern and his Goggles they were able to make it safely in their door.
The first floor of the house stood empty for the week. The two shops that filled the space - one for collecting deliveries, one for interpreting futures - were dark and shuttered, the doors locked and barred against the cold and dark. Upstairs, however, hidden behind heavy curtains and thick walls, the fireplaces burned cheerfully to warm the cozy rooms. Lanterns holding thick candles lit the tables where the fires' light didn't reach, and their larder and ice box had been filled with food and drink to last the week of night.
Alys, who had lived in the Grounds and Tal, who had grown up in Halo, had their own reasons for making their home a fortress this week and staying safe and warm within it.
But that didn't mean their thoughts had to linger on those old fears and wounds.
"I got y'somethin'," the courier offered shyly as he brought the filled wine glasses back to the couch where they had built a little nest of blankets. He had palmed the small black gift box while getting the drinks, and as he settled back beneath the mantle of furs and knitted throws he held it out to his partner. It couldn't replace the hole in their hearts where the small companion had been, but it was more important than ever to him to give Alys more to live for, more to look forward to, now that Sascha was gone.
The first floor of the house stood empty for the week. The two shops that filled the space - one for collecting deliveries, one for interpreting futures - were dark and shuttered, the doors locked and barred against the cold and dark. Upstairs, however, hidden behind heavy curtains and thick walls, the fireplaces burned cheerfully to warm the cozy rooms. Lanterns holding thick candles lit the tables where the fires' light didn't reach, and their larder and ice box had been filled with food and drink to last the week of night.
Alys, who had lived in the Grounds and Tal, who had grown up in Halo, had their own reasons for making their home a fortress this week and staying safe and warm within it.
But that didn't mean their thoughts had to linger on those old fears and wounds.
"I got y'somethin'," the courier offered shyly as he brought the filled wine glasses back to the couch where they had built a little nest of blankets. He had palmed the small black gift box while getting the drinks, and as he settled back beneath the mantle of furs and knitted throws he held it out to his partner. It couldn't replace the hole in their hearts where the small companion had been, but it was more important than ever to him to give Alys more to live for, more to look forward to, now that Sascha was gone.
