𝐓𝐖𝐎 𝐁𝐈𝐑𝐃𝐒 [ 𝘢.𝘮 ]

𝐅𝐈𝐕𝐄. Six Point

As soon as the sun rises, it pierces through the reflecting window. The light clings to her eyes, causing them to squint in displeasure. 

Yet, it's not the bright rays that shake her out of the cozy slumber.

It's a pair of hands. Each gripping onto her shoulders and quite literally shaking her back to consciousness. She has no choice but to crack one eye open, attempting to make out the person disturbing her precious rest.

She blinks. Her hand makes its way to her eyes, itching the cloudy slumber away. 

"What?"

Her voice is hoarse, tone low with annoyance.

"Finally! Feels like I've shaken' ya for days on end," Tandy exclaims, quickly throwing both hands in the air. 

Lilly cringes at the loudness of his voice, silently glancing around the room. Surprisingly, the rest seem to be fast asleep, not the slightest bothered by the loud Irishman.

The motion of squinting causes an ache to appear on her face, reminding her of the night before. Fingers instantly find the sore area, feeling around as to make out the current state of her nose. 

"What the hell are you shakin' me for, then?" she grunts, tiredly making her way to her feet. 

Tandy grimaces at the sight of her nose. It's not too bad; simply counting a small cut and a gentle swelling. Yet, no matter how drunk, he still remembers being the reason behind the injury.

Lilly raises a brow at his lack of reply, snapping her fingers in front of his concentrated eyes. It seems to burst him out of his thoughts, brows shooting up as if he just remembered the reason for disturbing her. 

"Colm wants ya."

Suddenly, all annoyance vanishes. "He does?"

Her stomach drops. Is this about the fact that she didn't help Jefferson at the saloon? Colm is usually not a man who bothers with small conflicts like those. But then again, his mood is hard to predict.

"Sure does," Tandy replies.

"Positive?"

The man watches her for a moment, attempting to make out the purpose behind her ongoing questioning. He nods slowly, "as positive as a drunken Irishman, I'll tell ya."

Despite the humor in his reply, Lilly simply skips right past him. She aims directly for the door, not even halting to acknowledge the fine weather outside. 

She breathes shakily, attempting to soothe her speeding heart. This is it. Once past the door in front of her, there's no turning back from Colm's unpredictable temperament. 

As if throwing herself off of a cliff, her knuckles make contact with the timber. Two hollow knocks follow her actions.

Shortly after, a faint 'come in' sounds through the wall. Not wasting a second, she takes hold of the handle and pushes the squeaky door open. Only to reveal a fairly empty room. 

Eyebrows draw together in confusion as she takes careful steps inside, the spurs attached to her boots clicking against the wood. Going deeper into the cabin, she proceeds by turning her head in both directions. Yet, there's no sign of-

"Took your time."

Her body spins around at the sound of his voice, nearly as an act of self-defense. Colm is standing by the door, which is now closed, his hands secured behind his back. As if to non-verbally tell who has the most dominance.