Kings and Thieves

﴾4♦Fire﴿

  "Out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls; the most massive characters are seared with scars."  ~  Philosopher Kahlil Gibran

-------

Nix's POV:

I woke up to the strong banging of the window pane against the wood walls. I could have sworn I'd closed it last night. The wind felt strong in the early dawn and the shivers were sent through my body. I instantly noticed the lack of the extra body heat I would have had if Iris had slept in the same bed as me.

I sat up from the bed, rubbing the sleep away from my eyes. A strong yawn escaped my lips as I stepped out of the comfort and warmth of the sheets. I looked around and found Lydia and Axel snuggling in their bed. Those two were inseparable and I gave a soft smile to the two as I watched them sleep.

I looked around the dimmed motel room, slightly disgusted with the lack of hygiene but realized how used to it I was. I walked to the window and grabbed both window panes, but stopped once my eye caught the young girl sleeping in the tree.

The form looked somewhat uncomfortable as she laid in between two thick branches. The leaves covered her almost entirely and I almost missed her. Her breathing was even and her chest fell up and down, blowing the silver white hair that had fallen over her eyes up and down. She was quite adorable when she wasn't talking, or killing.

I'd forgotten for a second what she said earlier that day. She'd murdered two of the guards out in the forest, and admitted to it completely nonchalantly. Almost proud, even. She must have had to kill before and it wouldn't surprise me. After Gadreel took over, he left the people in a chaos, making everyone fend for themselves.

Thinking of all the horror she had to face, as a young, beautiful girl out alone in the forest, sent shivers of disgust and anger down my spine.

I looked at her position once more, wondering if I'd be able to carry her to the bed, but it seemed almost impossible. Any movement of the branches would wake her up, I could tell that much. I sighed in defeat and resulted in simply throwing a blanket over her.

The small smile that lit up her lips as she snuggled under the warmth of the blanket was enough gratitude for me and I found my lips copying the action. After making sure she wasn't going to fall, I closed the window panes without locking them, and left the girl out in the tree.

I stood there for a second, watching the wind and her breath blow the hair away from her eyes, before turning and putting on the leather outfit again. I felt more like myself when I wore the leather anyways, not like royalty but like one of the people.

I looked at Lydia and Axel one last time before stepping out the door. I cringed slightly as the wood floors creaked under my feet with each step and released a sigh of relief once the shouting and laughter from the bar below reached my ears.

I left the bar and into the chilly night of the town. My steps slowly became louder as I got farther from the loud bar. The streets were empty due to the lack of light, making the dangers more pronounced. The houses stood tall and dark, providing even more cover from the moonlight.

I threw my hood over my head and shoved my hands into my pockets, trying to grasp the slight warmth emanating from my body. The wind blew against my face violently as I walked away from the center of the town, exposing myself more.

The forest came into view. It's tall, large trees dwarfing me in their shadows. The moon and stars slowly disappeared from view as I stepped closer and under the leaves. I made my way through them, looking for that singled out tree. It sat in a clearing standing tall at the center of the open circle. I placed my hand on the bark and closed my eyes, thinking of the flames waiting to burst from inside me. The heat in my hand increased though I only felt relief. My breathing became heavier as I felt the wood beneath my palm start to burn. I opened my eyes to see the bark slowly turning black around my hand then suddenly the tree burst into flames.

I pulled my hand back and gasped for air. Coming out here always made me feel better. I looked around to make sure no one saw me. I kept the fire contained within the clearing, making sure it only affected the tree itself. Once the large oak tree was a pile of ash, I turned back towards the town. The area was as dark as ever under the cover of the trees but when I walked back into the town, I could see the sun starting to peek over the horizon. I sighed and made my way back to the motel.

The bar was nearly empty save for the few drunks till loitering and those who were already passed out. I passed them all as I walked up the stairs and opened the door, though I quickly closed it with a slight shriek at the sight of the blade coming at me. I looked at the half blade sticking out from the door wide eyed, quickly swinging the door back open and staring at the handle on the other side. My eyes shifted to Iris who stood there with her eyebrow raised and an amused smirked.

"I do believe you shrieked." She said as she crossed her arms.

"I did not!" I retorted pulling the dagger out of the door and looking out the new peephole.

"You kind of did..." Lydia said holding in her chuckle. Iris smirked back at me in response.

"Can you really blame me? I just had a dagger thrown at me!" I asked incredulously. "Speaking of which, why did you throw a dagger at me!?" I shouted at her.

She shrugged as she pulled out another dagger and started twirling it in between her finger. "You walked through the door, I didn't know it was you. Call it instinct." She smirked.

"You didn't notice I was gone and think "Hey, maybe that's Nix and I should look before throwing a knife at the door." Did you really not think of that?" I asked walking to the center of the room. Lydia and Axel watched us with amusement as she shrugged again.

"Didn't even notice you were gone."

"Oh, please. You were the first to notice and don't pretend you weren't worried, it was all over your face." Lydia said and I looked to Axel for confirmation. He nodded slightly making me smirk at Iris as she glared at Lydia.

"I wasn't worried about him. I was worried that if he wasn't here to go with the plan or whatever, then my leaving the forest was for naught." She growled out.

"Sure." I shrugged angering her once more. She opened her mouth to say something but instead closed her mouth and pursued her lips. She stared at me for a while before melting back into the shadows of the room.

Lydia groaned and flopped back on the bed. "I hate it when she does that! It's so creepy!" I rolled my eyes and looked at Iris' shadow.

"Come on, we've actual work to do." I patted Axel's leg and turned to leave the motel room.

"What kind of work?" Iris asked by my side, curiosity shining in her eyes. If it weren't for the creak in the wood, I'd never hear her steps.

"The fun kind." I winked at her, leaving her confused as I walked out the door and down the stairs, into the bar.