The Dragon Bond: Heirs of Lyra

Chapter 36

The harder Elysia tried to sleep, the more awake she was. She counted sheep, calmed her mind, and relaxed her body. Nothing worked. Her thoughts were pinpointed on the fact that there was a man in her room. Her very small room. He was positioned about 5 feet away from her, his back resting against the cave wall. She had offered him the cot but he had declined as she knew he would. Besides, he didn't sleep. Ever. Another fact she was all too aware of.

She tried to keep her breathing quiet so as not to disturb Shade from his "relaxed state of consciousness." She wanted him to be well rested. He deserved it after successfully guiding them through that treacherous cave system. In the dark no less.

"You should really get some sleep." Shade's voice jolted her. The room had been completely silent and dark for the past hour. She hadn't expected him to say anything.

She suddenly wondered how he had known she was still awake?

"You haven't taken a deep breath in an hour," he said as if reading her thoughts. "Relax already."

"I'm trying!" Her voice was exasperated.

"Try harder."

She let out a heavy sigh, finally allowing herself to breathe normally. While part of the problem was having a man in the room with her, she had to admit another part of her inability to sleep was dreading going back through those tunnels to get home. It was the most claustrophobic she had ever been, squeezing through the passage so tight she had to suck in a breath just to move further in.

It didn't help that the room she was in now was small. Much smaller than her room in the castle. While she had never considered herself a claustrophobic person, she was beginning to wonder if she had developed a new fear.

While her mind raced, her thoughts shifted back to the moments after she had made it through the narrowest passage of the cave. She remembered the panic all too well. Had Shade not been able to calm her she wasn't sure she would have overcome the terror.

Although she tried to resist remembering, the memory of Shade clutching her close to his body shoved its way through until it became the focus of her attention. She closed her eyes as she allowed herself to remember how he felt. How he held her so protectively. The way his hands brushed through her hair, calming her as best as he could.

Never before did the Princess believe Shade could have been so gentle. Despite all his talk of having no emotions, he certainly knew exactly how to calm hers. Without a mother figure in his life, Elysia would have assumed Shade had no nurturing or soothing capabilities.

Yet, despite being in an unfamiliar place and surrounded by a culture that was completely foreign to her, she found herself feeling protected. Although Shade's presence unnerved her in a way she couldn't understand, she had to admit that she had never felt safer. Regardless of his efforts to remain distant to her, Elysia felt her guardian pulling closer. And she knew without a doubt that he would never let harm befall her. With that in mind she took one last deep breath before sleep finally pulled her into its grasp.

She knew she was dreaming, of course, but she allowed her mind to continue its journey. This dream, after all, was particularly wonderful. Fall and winter had passed and summer was just beginning. Elysia could practically feel the warmth on her skin as she walked in the meadow by the lake of the castle. Though her pace was unbearably slow she did not mind. The beauty around her was enough and she could not remember a more vivid dream. When she finally reached the meadow's peak she looked down at the lake's edge and noticed there was a person there.

Although she could not see his face she could tell it was her guardian. She started to walk faster towards him but her dream state would not allow it. Her legs rebelled against her will and so she called out to her guardian. He turned and when he did Elysia was shocked to see he was not wearing his usual dark hooded cloak. Instead he was dressed normally, his face exposed. To her frustration the dream did not allow her to see his face, not fully. His face was muddled, only exposing the bits she knew.