A/N - I'm sooooooo sorry! I know I should try to stick to the schedule, but my only excuse is that last night me and my family were watching The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King. Both part 1 & 2. So yeah, that's my excuse. But that meant I was able to improve this chapter, so enjoy! 😸
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(Lily's POV)
I wake up refreshed, the sun not yet upon the horizon. The stars above my head twinkle gleefully, as if anticipating their daily rest. I look over at Aiden, snoring softly as his chest rises up and down. Though he had revealed his name to me just yesterday, he still refused afterwards to remove his weather-stained cloak, no matter how hard I tried to convince him. Then again, it probably means an awful lot to him in some way, shape or form.
Sadly, that means I still can't see his face, though I imagine that his usual serious expression is now calm, neutral. I hope he doesn't mind that I'm going to be here for a few days or so. But really, by now we're kinda like partners in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D, surviving the onslaught of Hydra's trackers.
Wait...trackers? Oh. My. Gosh. I totally forgot about those guys.
I stomp my feet in frustration, "I can't believe I totally forgot about—", I freeze as Aiden rolls onto his back.
He groans, "Lily, why are you so loud? What does it take to let a man have his well deserved rest?"
I turn away from him mumbling, "I still can't believe I forgot about the Trackers." Apparently I wasn't quiet enough.
Aiden sits up and cocks his head to one side prompting me, "What was that?"
This is bad, I can't let him know what is going on, for his own safety. I shuffle my feet, before trying to imitate a sick person's voice.
I croak out, "Oh no, I was saying that I got...stung by a tracker jacker." I take a deep breath before continuing. "Yeah, that's it. I got stung by a tracker jacker this morning. Before you woke up obviously."
He just looks at me totally unconvinced. "Really? Is that all you can come up with?"
I shake my head, looking towards the ground in shame. "No."
He sneers, "Ya, didn't think so. Want to tell me the truth?" His face looks a bit more worried now, like he really does care about my well being. But I don't know. I've never really opened up this much to another human so darn quickly. There's a first time for everything, I suppose.
But I swear, if he stabs me in the back later on from now, I will haunt him for the rest of his life. ☠⚰☠
I look back up, asserting myself so I am just about eye to eye with Aiden. "All right, I'll tell you." He grins, as if expecting me to spill the beans right this second. "But first," he groans. I ignore him and continue. "After aye spin me yarn," I add a little accent, "Ye will have to take off ye coat."
Surprisingly, he agrees, "Alright." His eyes are serene, like he's known this would have happened eventually. He gives me a weak smile, "Don't worry, I could never imagine hurting you, no matter how horrible your actions. The past is the past. You gotta get past it eventually."
I give a small smile back. "Thanks, but how about I tell my take tonight."
He smirks, "What? Afraid I'll look hotter than you without my cloak on?"
I counter, "Nope. Not at all. In fact, I want to do it tonight so I don't have to see yo ugly face, boy."
He scoffs, "Uh huh. You keep saying that." He peers over his left shoulder, watching the sun finally peeking over the horizon. He coughs a bit, the asks, "Anyways, could you help me pack up the supplies? We need to move to a safer campsite."
I nod, and we get to work.
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(Epic Time Skip to 7:52pm)
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(Aiden's POV)
I finally finish Lily's bed, again. At least this time it was a bit easier. Our new campsite is a cave. I guess that doesn't sound very exciting, but it is a lot like a hobbit hole, cozy and warm. Well, it is now with a steady fire now going, it's faint white smoke spiraling through the tiny opening in the ceiling. The back of the cave I'm sure hides many stalactites and stalagmites, though currently it is enveloped in shadows.
I look over at Lily sitting beside the pot, humming a familiar tune whilst stirring tonight's grub. Which I must say is much more desirable to consume then my own measly meals. She looks over at me, her shoulders slumped, eyes glazed over. I scoot over to her and pat her back.
"It's ok. You don't have to tell me tonight. We can wait for another time."
She turns to me, her eyes now bright and sparking in the firelight. "Really, I'm fine. I can do this. Besides, this is something I should have done a long time ago."
I nod respectfully, then grab a wooden bowl from the pile and spoon myself some gruel. What? Can't listen to a story on an empty stomach. It's just not right.
Lily copies me, before sitting herself down on the opposite side of the crackling fire. She shuffles around a bit more trying to get comfortable on the solid barely heated stone. She checks again for any creepy crawlies around her bum.
Little embers float away from the fire and wreath her face, illuminating her with an enchanting glow. At last, she takes a deep breath, crosses her legs together, and finally begins her tale.
"Once upon a time, there was a little girl, only about ten years old. She lived in the peaks of the Háidagon mountains. Her home was a small village, only about twenty souls within it."
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A/N - Hello! It feels so good to write again. Anyways, how did you like the chapter? Since I was a day late in posting the new chapter, I decided to extend it to exactly 1000 words. Yup! You heard me. Instead of it being its usual 500 words or so, I doubled the amount, making it super duper awesome! I do hope you liked it. Just a little heads up, the next chapter will be posted on Friday as to stick to the schedule and have some more time to write it. Also, the next few chapters will mostly be of Lily telling her life story to Aiden, though I'll make sure to try and keep it interesting. I might also create a new book in a week or two, I'm not really sure. Anywho, I'll see y'all later.
—🐉Ivypool Out!🐉—
