9. care

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The gramophone music was lazily playing a slow, tender note. Thresh paid no attention to it – he sat as motionless to this tune as he had to a dozen others before it, the lively notes announcing the joy of the world. Since he'd been back, he'd been here an hour, two, a whole day – he didn't know how long. As the minutes ticked by, he stared into the dead green fire, thinking only of what had happened on the shore.

One moment changed so many things. Nothing was normal or right, everything had turned upside down, and Thresh didn't even know what to do with it all.

He pressed the fingers of his right hand to his temple. The metal of the gloves clattered against the hard black skull. Just a moment ago, when Aylin had purred in his arms, it wasn't just cursed bone – he could feel muscle and skin and nerves, the memory of flesh lost a thousand years ago.

Thresh didn't know whether it was blessed water or Aylin's tattoos – either way, his body returned to him for a moment, letting him feel not only what was lost, but also what was new – most of all, all the tenderness Aylin had offered then.

Thresh hummed, disheartened at the mere mention of the situation. Something inside him clenched too tight. It's not that he didn't like it. Oh, no! He liked it even very much. Short kisses, soft purrs, the warmth of a woman's body next to him, which he, damn it, finally felt – he liked it very much. Too much, actually.

What possessed Aylin to kiss the cursed wraith? What was on his mind that he allowed it to happen, that he not only did not stop it, but also continued it? With a grunt of displeasure, the Warden got up and went to the window.

It was terribly dark outside. So, it had actually been a few hours since night had fallen. Thresh looked around – from Sanctum he could see the harbor, archives, library, Brotherhood, and the hills beyond the city. Involuntarily, Thresh's gaze turned to the Brotherhood. The Chain Warden wondered if Aylin was asleep, or if today's event was bothering her as much as it was tormenting him.

The ghost sighed once more. After lovingly exchanging kisses, they pulled away from each other. The sudden outburst of passion was unpredictable and brought with it a great deal of embarrassment. The silence was broken by the wraith, muttering incoherently that they should return. A second or two later, the recovered body disappeared, leaving behind an unbearable, dull pain. He bore it without a word, though he could see in Aylin's eyes that the woman knew how much harm and how much good her sudden, passionate gesture had brought to the wraith.

He walked her silently to the Brotherhood and left her by the crumbling wall, hiding himself in the darkness and Mist. On the one hand, he felt so excited and happy, and on the other... he was painfully aware that the forbidden remained forbidden, and the impossible was still impossible. These feelings were with him constantly, even now.

He no longer thought about examining Aylin, taking her to the laboratory in his Sanctum, not even the slightest thought of doing anything wrong to the woman. He wanted, strongly and imploringly, that the brunette managed to get out of here as soon as possible. The longer she stayed in the Isles, the less likely she was to make it out alive and well. Even though it was freezing him and burning him inside at the same time, he desperately wanted to let her escape safely.

Unable to take the uncertainty and stillness any longer, Thresh turned, grabbed his lantern, and left his Sanctum. He headed inland. He assumed that either Aylin was waiting for him by the crumbling wall, or on the contrary – she was holed up in the Brotherhood and would never see her again after the action from the beach. The latter possibility echoed in his mind, chilling everything with an uneasy breath. No, he absolutely did not want such a development of events.

He was at the rear of the Brotherhood in a few minutes. With a sigh, he noticed Aylin – the woman was walking over the wall, uncertainly and cautiously. Thresh almost burst out laughing. He didn't know if she would rather not wait for him at all, or if she was tired of waiting for Warden.

"Someone got brave here."

"Thresh..." Aylin looked at him with relief. "You came. I thought that ... that already..."

"I'm here now," he interrupted her as he approached. "It's late. Where did you want to go alone, huh?"

She blushed, shook her head violently, and sat down on the wall, a bit closer to the Mist than usual. Thresh sat down beside her, setting the lantern in front of him. A bright greenish light swept the area around, revealing both the restless beauty of the islands and the foulness of the curse.

"You shouldn't leave the Brotherhood alone at night."

"Yorick says I have to get used to the Isles," she whispered softly. "That I might never leave them again."

Thresh just snorted. He stared at the Mist lazily pouring between the deformed black trees. He very, very much did not want to look at Aylin. Seeing her made something strange happen to him, something he didn't understand. He loved it, he loved it and hated it at the same time. This condition deepened after the last walk on the beach.

"We'll find you a boat," he assured her. "During Harrowing, the Mist moves far north. With any luck, he'll drop you off at Bilgewater."

"In one night?" Aylin just shook her head. "But...we've been sailing for weeks."

"It's Harrowing," he murmured. "A night of magic. Do you want to get out of here or not? Now you sound like you want to stay here."

She was silent, so he glanced at her and immediately regretted his choice. The woman had her eyes downcast and a lovely blush on her rather pale cheeks. She looked so sweet, so innocent, so different from the curse of the Isles. The sight sent a wild, hot shiver down Thresh's back again and again, stronger and more unbearable with each wave. He gritted his teeth, clenched his fists tighter, and reluctantly looked into the darkness of the night.

He couldn't believe it wasn't the effect of blessed water. Common sense, however, spoke clearly and clearly – there is no magic of the life-giving waters in Aylin. Not anymore. So, those damn shivers... what were they?

"I said I'd help you get home," he muttered after a moment.

"I know," she whispered softly. "I appreciate it, Thresh."

"But?"

Aylin shook her head so vigorously that even he noticed it out of the corner of his eye.

"You always have a 'but'." The Chain Warden gave a short laugh and stood up.

"Are you going already?" she whispered regretfully.

"I'll come before noon," he promised. "I have a lot of work. Get some sleep, be good, Yorick is old, he can't follow you everywhere, or watch you when you go out alone at night to the cursed Isles, Aylin."

"I'm not running anywhere," she grumbled reluctantly.

Thresh laughed and nodded, heading toward the darkness, where the thick Mist prevented him from seeing anything.

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