The Chronicles of Nir

1 | A Chance Encounter

"Ahh!"

Tallon gasped as Ben applied a light layer of healing salve to his blistered shoulders. He sat on a mossy log beside a burbling brook, in which they had recently bathed, while Ben stood at his back. Maisie saw to her own needs in a secluded spot further on.

"Hold still," he admonished when Tallon flinched. "It's your own fault for carrying more than your share of the load—as usual. Maisie and I are both perfectly capable, you know."

Tallon bit back a hiss of pain as the salve stung his broken skin, then released his breath in a huff.

"In other circumstances, I would have. It's not my fault three feet of snow fell the same night we summited the pass. Starlight couldn't pull anything but an empty wagon, you hurt your ankle when you fell down that slope, and Maisie..." He bit his lip. Maisie was a warrior at heart and as tough as any, but her moontime had struck with a vengeance, and most inconveniently. She'd been hobbled by cramps for several days, sapping her strength. "Maisie wasn't feeling well," he finished. "I had no choice but to shoulder the burden."

As much as it irked him, Ben knew Tallon spoke the truth. Frowning, he replaced the lid on the salve jar and tucked it safely into the healer's kit. Aeslin's medics had equipped them with a generous stash of supplies, several of which had come in handy already.

They'd been trapped at the top of the pass for three days and nights, which had been a most unpleasant experience. With the road and all landmarks buried in a blanket of white, they would have become hopelessly lost if not for Tallon's enchanted compass, which showed them the way. Even so, Ben had developed an intense dislike for the cold, and rejoiced when they'd descended to more hospitable elevations. He was grateful to be in one piece, and to have his friends at his side, and he knew he owed this to Tallon's fortitude.

"Alright," he murmured. "Let's leave that all behind us in the snow." Along with half our gear.

He kept that last thought to himself—or tried. Tallon still caught the sentiment through their bond, and turned to Ben with a crease in his brow.

"I'm sorry," he said aloud. This road has been hard on us all.

Ben heard the quiet regret in the words, and relaxed a little.

Bending, he pressed a light kiss to the side of Tallon's neck and ran his hands over his lover's firmly muscled chest.

"So it has," he agreed. "On you most of all, I think. You always shoulder the largest share of every burden. But you forget you're not alone. There must be some way I can... lighten your load."

He whispered the last part in a soft, teasing tone, making Tallon shiver, laugh, and swear as Ben's hands slid lower still. It was a line lifted straight from The Duchess and the Dwarf, and Tallon composed a mental note to purchase more 'educational materials' for Ben at the earliest convenience.

Tallon grasped Ben's wrist and angled himself so he could kiss him. "Careful what you ask for, etali," he rasped when he came up for air. "You may find yourself taking quite the load, indeed. Besides," he added, humor fading, "I was stuck on a ship for months while you and Maisie braved the wilds and a crypt. While you trained day in, day out, with Bran. While you..."

He shut his eyes as memories flashed through his mind: Ben with a bloody cut on his brow; lying in a sleep like death; with eyes black as the void, poisoned by Volaer.

"Tallon, stop." Ben's green eyes locked with the half-elf's amethyst gaze, guessing his thoughts well enough. He shook his head, wishing he had Bran's gift of speech, and did his best. "You're a hero," he breathed. "You give everything, and you keep saving me, and I hardly know why."