|[ THE FAERI'S KEEPER ]|

Chapter 32: Split Ways

I couldn't sleep. No matter how long I laid there with my eyes closed, praying for my dreams to start up I couldn't. It was if the door to my subconscious mind had been slammed shut and I was locked out in the cold, dark world of the awake, and no matter how many times I threw myself against it, the lock would not budge. I turned my head and saw Claude's sleeping form, curled on his side, back facing me. His thin shirt was pulled tight against his back and I felt another pang of... pity? Just beneath that material were dozens of lines of pain, the marks of a cruel childhood few would ever know about. I almost felt honoured, that he had told me... but then again, he couldn't have just not explained them to me... or could he have? It was Claude, after all. And he did not seem to give one single damn about what others thought of him. If he hadn't wished to tell me, he wouldn't have.

Claude shifted in his sleep and rolled over until he was facing me. His eyes were closed, lavender lids fluttering as he dreamt. It felt intrusive to be looking at his face, vulnerable while he was asleep. It contained none of the defensive, hardened outer coating he usually wore. He belted himself in an armour of dark humour and distance, I thought vaguely. But asleep he was free, with no armour on. It was smooth, peaceful... he looked younger and older. It was an odd and intimate sight.

I quickly turned away, feeling my face flush with warmth. Why did I flush? All I had done was see him sleeping. It was not anything to be embarrassed about, and yet there I was, blushing in the dark. I sighed, clamping my eyes shut. Just sleep, I thought, please, just let me sleep.Mīla, let me rest.

"You can't sleep?" his voice asked softly. I turned back slowly and saw his green eyes watching me, luminous in the dark. For the second time in a short number of days I wondered if he had the ability to read minds.

"No." I sighed slowly, "My mind is just too..."

"Busy?" Claude suggested with a smirk, "Cluttered? Completely full of bull..."

"Yes, I guess you could say that." I said hastily, cutting across him. We were talking quietly, barely speaking louder than a whisper. He grinned at me, teeth flashing in the dark.

"I could tell you a story if you want," Claude said gently, "It might help you go to sleep." I looked at him carefully.  My face was still warm, as if I had spent to long looking up at the sun and my stomach churned in a strange way. I wasn't uncomfortable under his gaze, but at the same time I wished he wouldn't look at me.  I felt awkward as he smiled at me. I gave a quick smile back before turning away from him. I felt better as soon as his green eyes weren't locked with mine.

"I'm fine, thank you." I tried not to be rude, or sharp. I didn't want to offend him.

Why was I rejecting his offer? Why was I turning him away? I sighed and forced my breathing to slow down, as if to mimic sleep.

"I could tell you about the dwarves, stories I have heard whispered through the trees."

"What could you possibly know about the dwarves?" I asked, curiosity causing me to turn back around.

"You'd be surprised the stories strangers have to tell when they pass through these trees." Claude grinned, "SO shall I tell you?"

"Oh very well," I sighed, lips curling into a smile, "It's not like I can stop you." Claude laughed quietly.

"I'll tell you about Hazdod. He always fascinated me." he propped himself up on his elbow and locked his eyes with mine. For once the awkwardness melted away. "Now, Hazdod the Mighty was the youngest of three brothers, and so when the Dwarves were called to war against the Elves many, many millennia ago, he was asked to remain and tend to their holdings. As a good son he obeyed his father and stayed to await their return.