When consciousness finally licked at his senses, he was once again surrounded by warmth; a familiar warmth he wouldn't mind getting accustomed to. "Glad to see you are finally awake." Louis was hovering over him, a decent inches away from his face, blue eyes blinking down at him with concern. "I s—"
"Y-You weren't showing any signs of waking up, so I had to, um, scent you a little to coax you out." There was a prominent flush to Louis' cheeks as he explained himself, rubbing the nape of his neck with sheepishness dripping down his words. " 'S alright, uh, thank you." With a much more conscious state of mind, Harry could pick up the heavy scent permeating the room. It was soothing, predominant tones of vetiver with just the right undertones of his own scent, a mix that was almost as intoxicating as the alcohol sold in the tavern they had been to. "Are we?" He trailed off unsurely, gaze roaming around the dark room, the words dying on the tip of his tongue as he propped himself up with his elbows. Louis must have sensed his confusion, as just seconds later, the alpha was rising from his perch on the edge of the bed. "I booked us a room in an inn for the night, we obviously cannot afford to travel all the way back home this late at night."
He settled for a simple nod of his head, surveying the room with rapt attention. Leon had yapped about inns more often than not, arguing how they were simply far better than the newly-emerged hoteling facilities, and cheaper, too. The walls were chipped, an off-white in color with a few patches of a floral wallpaper that gave the impression that the owner had tried to reconcile the paint blunder with the aid of wallpapers far too many times. At the very least, there was a four-legged bed rather than a wooden pallet laid out on the floor; he wasn't exactly keen on sleeping on the floor of a lodging room that definitely looked like it had rodents residing alongside humans. "I hope it was not too pricey, if it was, I can pay you back—"
"I don't need money, Harry." A short huff of laughter that entailed offense more than amusement, and Harry wasn't too certain on how to tackle that. Offending Louis was akin to returning himself to his father right now. He didn't have any appropriate money on him that could help him run out of here, nor did he have any knowledge about the kingdom let alone the basics of survival in the crippling economy. "I am sorry, I —"
"You feel sorry for offering me money?" With Louis' back towards him, he couldn't see the alpha's facial expressions precisely. "Uh, I apologize for offending you?" He hoped with all his might that his words were exactly what Louis had been looking for, breathing out a sigh of relief only when the alpha turned around with a teasing smile, blue eyes glinting in the steady flame of the gas lantern burning just beside the right of the bed. "I am not offended, don't worry." Louis was quick to wave him off, inching towards the other side of the bed. "I was just pulling your chain." He nodded, unsure of what to do (or say) next. Fortunately for him, Louis wasn't as awkward as him at making small talks.
"Fancy a cuppa? I think they have oolong tea here." Louis was already walking to the other side of the room, which was not much visible to him due to the lack of proper lighting facilities. It was in times like these that he truly reminisced about the luxury of the palace. No, he reproached himself. He would rather be sitting in a murky room than be sitting on a bed of roses with an old deviant ordering him around. Freedom was way better than measly luxuries, or at least, that was what he told himself constantly. When Louis came back with two cups of tea, the alpha didn't hesitate in taking a seat on the other side of the bed. "Careful, it's a little hot."
His brain had processed Louis' warning a little late, it was alright, though. It only hurt a little, nothing he couldn't handle. Louis was by his side in a second though, the alpha's very tactile solicitude making his stomach flip unexpectedly. "Do you need some water?" As always, Louis was already on his way before he could even formulate an answer, coming back to the bed with a cup brimming with water. The water, bless the lousy facilities of inns, was cold even in this harsh winter.

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Polaris || l.s.
Fanfiction[discontinued until further notice] Harry's heart was dead set on freedom. It was not a recent thing, he had been itching to get away from the confines of the responsibilities he had as the prince of Eonshire. Running away from home was easy, but b...