A Dance of Flames

An Unexpected Turn

Akua glanced down at her hand with wide eyes and gave her a crooked smile. He slid his hand into hers, the smile fading into a smolder. Neira pulsed with nerves, lost in the sensation of their entwined fingers and the weight of his gaze.

She looked away, her cheeks hot. This was dangerous. The last thing she wanted right now was to make a fool of herself. She looked up at him again, fighting to mask the strange desire that welled up inside of her.

"Akua..."

Gobren appeared behind them, and clapped his enormous hands on their shoulders with a hearty laugh.

"Whoa there you two, I know that you are newlyweds but do not forget you have an audience out here."

He paused, a frown crept onto his lips.

"I hate to do this but I must ask Akua to join our shifts for night watch. Now that we are this close to Nopriat it is necessary to be extra vigilant. Aside from the bandits we have all manner of wild creatures to watch for. They won't all be as polite as your feathered friend here." He reached out a hand to Tawny who recoiled with a screech, hackles raised.

Akua slipped his hand from Neiras' and gave Gobren a polite smile.

"Of course. I'll be happy to, it's the least I could do after all your help."

Gobrens' face brightened once more and he slid his arm around Akuas' shoulders.

"Good man! Let us go and see what shifts are left, eh? Then you can rejoin your lovely bride."

The two walked off to join a knot of men standing near the fire. Neira buried her face in her hands, torn between disappointment and relief. She crawled under her thin blanket, Tawny curling up beside her. Neira ran her fingers through Tawnys' thick fur with a sigh. The repetitive motion soothed the turbulence in her mind. Before long she succumbed to a deep weariness and slept.

Akua volunteered for the first watch. He was glad of a reason to be on his own for a while. His face clouded as he looked over toward Neira. He shook his head, as if that would rid him of the unfamiliar longing. She was a human. He could not allow himself to forget the distance between them.

He kept wanting to please her, to see her smile and laugh, and it felt dangerously unrelated to their contract. What did it feel like to fall in love? He had wondered that for years. How do you avoid something you know nothing about? His old mentor had known, but she hadn't had the chance to explain it to him before she was gone. He sighed, looking up into the vast array of stars above him. He could not end up like her.

The hours passed quietly, nothing but a soft wind occasionally stirring the vast ocean of sand. When his shift was over, Akua woke Dyric to replace him. With a groan he separated from Assems' and took his place beside the fire. Feeding another log to the flames, he turned to look out into the night. Akua settled onto the warm sand nearby.

"Not going to join your wife?" Dyric asked with a cocked brow.

"She's a light sleeper, I'd rather not wake her up."

Dyric nodded and fell silent. Akua closed his eyes and let himself fall into a dreamless slumber.

When morning came the fire had faded into a nest of embers to be buried in the sand. Akua and Neira avoided each other, each finding some task to occupy them until they began the days long trek. Neira stuck close to Assem, excited to train with her again.

Assem laughed, watching her fiddling with the hilt of her sword.

"I doubt that I have ever taught anyone quite as eager as you Zora."