Beyond The Walls

Chapter 30. The Day Of

Winsome (adj)

Charming in a childlike or naive way

Cherie's POV

I awaken in the warm arms of Bakkhos, slightly sore but happy nonetheless.

Neither of us wanted to wake up and get ready. By the somber look in his eyes, I can tell he had to fight with himself to actually let me get out of bed.

I wish you didn't.

A knock on Bakkhos' door draws our attention. It's the only noise other than our light breathing we've heard this morning.

Bakkhos opens it to Rabiah. She's dressed in pants and a tight shirt, showing off how toned she actually is. Her hands hold out the bundle of clothes she's been holding.

"Talk her into wearing these, it'll be much easier for her to run in if we need to get away."

Bakkhos takes the clothes, nodding before he invites her in.

"They are throwing a going away breakfast, tell her that too!" Rabiah says louder as Bakkhos walks away from her.

I don't know how she didn't see me peeking out the corner of the room, but I'm happy she doesn't seem upset to have to do this. Her Empress instructed it but I'm sure she could've said no.

Bakkhos shares the same actions as his sister, holding out the clothes for me to take. I notice how his eyes don't meet mine.

He's not someone to avoid eye contact, he quite enjoys playing the cat and mouse game of catching me look at him.

"Please," he clears his throat.

I nod, taking the clothes from his hands.

Linen and leather. That's what it's made out of. In Abandale, it's rare to see leather on anything other than shoes.

I slide on the pants, the feeling of something covering my legs completely is foreign. It almost feels like my skin is suffocating. The shirt isn't much different but luckily, the sleeves are nonexistent. My shoulders are exposed and my chest shows a little more skin than my dresses usually show.

The King and Queen would kill me for this.

Not only am I dressed in manly attire, like the pants and boots, I'm also showing too much skin. I hope my family doesn't disown me for my choice in clothing.

The siblings gawk at me once I walk out from the room. In fact, Rabiah's jaw physically drops in surprise when she sees me.

"Is it that bad?" I ask, covering my embarrassment with a shy laugh.

I'm sure my hair is in a birds nest of curls and I still probably have sleep in my eyes.

"You pull off my clothes better than I do," Rabiah compliments me, giving me a fake jealous scowl.

Really? I highly doubt I look more than halfway decent.

"For fucks sake," Bakkhos sighs, "how am I supposed to send her back there?" He questions his sister.

She shrugs, "I'll take care of her, brother. You trust in my abilities to leave daily, trust in my abilities to care for her," her hand squeezes his shoulder.

I suppose our absence will really upset him. I wonder if it upsets Zuko just as much even though he volunteered it.

Zuko expressed that the Empress would've made me go regardless so Rabiah going with me would be the best option for keeping me safe. I'm happy her didn't mention Keely coming with me, but Rabiah getting put in the face of danger doesn't exactly excite me either.