Doom Upon All The World

Chapter 46: Deals and Discovery

     Maeve woke what felt like only moments later. The room was cold, unbearably so. She pulled the blankets up over herself, reveling in the feeling of the softer than silk cloth against her bare skin. The cool air got in still and Maeve began to shiver. She reached out for Solas, needing to feel his intense body heat. She then stiffened at the realization that he was not beside her. Solas was not in the bed. Not in the room, she soon discovered. She could not sense him anywhere around her and yet she could not force her body to move in order to search for him. Flashes of their encounter flowed through her head as she laid there, hardly able to keep her eyes open. 

     She remembered how different he'd been. The feeling of his hands on her, his touch, the force he had used with her, the faint trace of liquid lyrium on his lips. Solas was not a rough man when it came to intimate situations but he like any man had his moments when he needed just a little more. She was happy to oblige. Begged for it even. And when he had given it to her, it was glorious. She kept feeling all of it even after she had collapsed from the exertion. The friction, the heat, the lack of mercy in his every movement. She craved it even as she fell unconscious in his arms. She blushed heavily at the thoughts that filled her. 

     In that frenzy he had given her exactly what she needed. She allowed her eyes to flutter open, finding the room empty and dark. It couldn't have been even close to sunrise yet. Where was he? She knew something was amiss. When she kissed him, crashing her lips violently against his with desperation, she could taste the sugary ale remnants of lyrium on his lips and tongue. Why had he needed it? The extra energy was obviously the reason he had not exhausted himself as she had but had he expected it? Had he known they were going to act as they had? All the unknowns pounded in the back of her mind as she imagined the worst of the possibilities.

    She felt the dread creep into her as she contemplated why he'd gone. Had she done something? Could something have happened? She shamed herself for not realizing before that something was wrong. She could not see through the rugged desire in her being though. It burned and blazed and once it spread there was no stopping it. She was unsure even if she had known, would she have been able to ask him? Nevertheless, the fear of his absence caused her to be unable to sleep any longer. She sat up only to be struck with the soreness of her every muscle. Her thighs burned with a tension greater than any she had felt in a long time. Her back ached and her limbs throbbed in agony. This was the price she paid for pleasure. She laid back as soon as she had gotten up and stared at the ceiling. 

     The panic in her bones only seemed further in, leeching onto her soul as she wondered where he was. She closed her eyes then and searched for him in her mind, sensing his soul's distance from hers. Obviously he was alive and uninjured as she was but could he be in danger? There was only one way to find out. She would have to wait for him to come back. 

~~~~~~~

     "I would not have stood there waiting for you, had I known that's what you were doing." Cullen remarked awkwardly as he and Solas walked away from Skyhold. They'd been walking for about half an hour and Solas knew they were approaching the clearing but the Commander felt the need to fill the silence. The elf chuckled as Cullen scratched at the back of his neck nervously. His hand rested firmly on his sword, a precaution in case this meeting was an ambush. It was undoubtedly more than a meeting but Solas would not make assumptions so soon. They had to know what Gilderoy was up to.

     He was careful to observe their surroundings. The last thing they needed was to be caught unawares. Solas considered what Cullen had said. He'd been standing outside their quarters with a flushed expression when Solas exited. It took him but a moment to realize why the human looked so embarrassed. He had heard every sound that resonated from their chambers. He smiled smugly at the thought and the two of them left the compound, unseen in the night. "Well, had I told you how I was going to subdue her, would you have agreed?" Solas responded, stepping lightly as he walked against his staff. It helped his aching muscles keep up with the demanding trek through the Frostbacks. Cullen chuckled his reply but shook his head. "It is your own business how you treat your wife in bed, Solas. I simply ask for warning next time." He requested as he strode beside the lanky elf. "If there is a next time." Cullen added with a sudden sense of dread.