Berserkr (boyxboy)

Chapter 5: Midnight Canvas

Tiny specks of dust floated, captured in thin rays of daylight and reflecting like stars before they finally found respite atop the button nose of the omega who lay, bundled deep beneath a mountain of furs. Multicolored eyelids twitched, chasing after dreams.

Although the barn loft was quiet – the sound of soft, sleepy breaths and the occasional huff of the horses below the only indication that it bore any semblance of life – the rumble and clang of faraway movement gradually roused Vali from the pacifying depths of slumber.

Mismatched eyelashes fluttered, full lips stretching into a small oval as he yawned, squirming back to life beneath the warm furs.

His dreams had been licorice sweet, filled with flickerings of delight as the sky morphed into a tapestry of Tofa's bright, blue eyes, pinched up in the corners with joy. Vali had held his arms out in that dream, soaking himself head-to-toe in the immortal light that dripped from his friend's eyelashes like tears. Tears like mercy. Tears like forgiveness.

It was with a heavy heart that Vali eventually managed to tear himself from the abstract farewell and crack his own eyes open, blinking a few times to clear the weary fuzziness that had settled over them throughout the fitful night.

His face was still tight with the remnants of salty tears when late morning trickled through the hay loft, hazy lines of light crisscrossing the floor from the places where the wallboards bowed away from one another.

The meager space was still filled with the same few knickknacks and necessities he'd spied the previous night, although it didn't take more than a moment for his senses to pick up on the fact that a particular something... Better yet, a particular someone, was absolutely nowhere to be found among them.

Pushing up onto his arms, Vali shivered when the furs fell, pooling around his waist and exposing his skin to the nip of chilled air. The Omega drew in a deep, calculating breath through his nostrils.

The scent of Alpha was caked into each strand of the soft bedding surrounding him, as if the large man had remained there, beside him, for the entirety of the night. But it was somewhat stale now, muted and dull as it swirled through his sinus cavities.

Where could he have gone? Vali found himself contemplating, puzzlement only deepening once mismatched eyes settled on the rusty hook from which the man's giant bearskin still hung. Certainly, its presence meant that he must not be far... right?

The call of an impatient bladder interrupted his diffident musings.

Vali scurried his way out of the tangle of furs, yanking at his britches as he made a beeline for the chamber pot, the wooden pail still tucked away in the same corner it'd been the night before. With a sigh of relief, he quickly handled his business and tied himself back up before turning around to ascertain a better view of the room, now with the assistance of intermittent daylight that trickled in.

Someone less perceptive would certainly have overlooked it, but on a spot high up on the wall – far exceeding what Vali's short form could possibly reach on his own – a loose wallboard tapped against the ones around it, wind jostling it around in its spot. The Omega immediately took interest.

It took almost all of his might to tow the heavy, dusty old trunk that had somehow escaped last night's survey of the loft to the perfect spot. But he was immediately rewarded for his efforts when he hopped atop it with a small grunt, pushed up onto his tiptoes, and slid his fingers up against the loose spot.

It slid up with a quiet creak, hinging on the nail that still attached it to the other wallboards on one side, and Vali craned his neck, peeking through the slim crack as if it were a portal to the outside world.