Loretta of the Lamp

I just want to go home

Scrambling up from the mat, Loretta made for the door. She felt sick to her stomach with fear, and with disappointment. Outside in the blinding daylight, she collided with the first object in her path.

Akil.

She lost her balance and slipped.

He caught her with both arms as she fell against his chest, placing one hand directly on her poorly covered wound. She cried out in pain.

He let her go, shocked, but only for a moment before he caught her around her waist. A small sob held in her throat. It was closest she had come to breaking under the fear and pressure of all that had happened to her.

"What's wrong? What happened?" he asked, running his words together.

"I just want to go home," she whispered in a voice only Akil could hear. She allowed him to hold her, completely collapsing into his embrace as fatigue hit her in a wave.

It felt like the world was caving in, and she clung to him to keep upright. He held her easily, and the longer they were touching, the less painful the force between their contact was. The electrical pulse softened and slowly became bearable, almost to the point where she did not want to let him go at all. It had been a long time since anyone had held her.

She could not even remember the last time someone had given her a hug.

Her cheeks burned red with embarrassment the more she thought on it, and as she felt her strength returning, she pushed away from him.

"Loretta," he said suddenly, his voice full of its usual disdain, "what have you done?" He was looking at her arm. Blood had already soaked through the tattered ends of her sleeve.

"I fixed it," she replied in a small voice.

"I'm sorry, what?" The crowd around them was loud and bustling with movement.

"I fixed it. No more Jin, and no more crazy episodes in the night," she told him in a low but confident voice, "I traded the curse to the woman in that tent."

"You should have spoken with me first," he glared over her shoulder toward the tent.

It was Loretta's turn to frown, "Well you just ran off this morning."

"You were tired, and I needed to arrange a caravan for us to travel with."

"Did you?"

He sighed, "Yes, but it doesn't leave until the day after tomorrow because of all the celebrations."

"Oh," she replied, realising she was actually happy about this news. "I have some trousers I need to pick up tomorrow anyway," she said.

"What's wrong with the ones you are wearing?"

She looked down at the jeans she had been wearing for the past three weeks. "They are dirty," she pointed out, instantly annoyed, "they stink. And actually, I was on my way to the baths."

"They will dress your wound properly there," he said, nodding in agreement.

"Have you seen Mehbah? I was shopping with her and her cousin, but I lost them in the crowd," she looked to her left and right with only a vague hope of spotting them.

He shook his head.

"It doesn't matter, I guess they will meet me at the baths," she muttered, "Well, I hope they do because I don't want to put these clothes back on afterward, and Mehbah's cousin is carrying all my new clothes."

"You bought more new clothes? With what money?"

Sheepishly, Loretta handed him the almost-empty money pouch that she had pilfered from his belongings.