Flower Falls and Crystal Calls

Walls

Chapter 24

Although Caius was a hardened warrior, no matter how many men he had led, how many monsters he had killed, how many women he had declined or bedded, he could still feel his face heating as he forced his eyes to stay locked onto Elle's instead of trying to satisfy his morbid curiosity. He swallowed thickly before he spoke. "Elle, are you finished?"

Elle was momentarily fascinated by the sight of Caius' cheeks turning such a charming color of red. She had never expected to see such a thing and briefly wondered why it happened. At least until her brain finally caught up and her own face worked to outdo his. "No!"

Her voice came out in nearly a screech, and she tried to calm it as he quickly turned back around. She scrambled back and dropped the now wet shirt before she practically jumped back into the water. Once she was covered by the cooling waves, she felt it was safe to speak again. "Sorry. I don't know- I mean- I guess I wasn't thinking. Just forget that, okay."

Caius cleared his throat before he spoke again. "I appreciate your sentiment. I do not share that often. Only Praes knows the whole story. The others only know that Yeul and I are both from the same village. The rest is something I do not usually discuss."

Elle was grateful that he was pretending her little mishap hadn't happened, but his words left her floundering. Why had he shared with her if he never had with his other friends? Surely that violated the wall he tried to keep up between them. It took her several moments to figure out what to say. "I understand not wanting to talk about something like that. Don't feel like you need to share more just because I ask things out of ignorance."

Caius didn't respond right away, and Elle wondered if she had said something wrong when she saw him shake his head slightly. When the silence continued to stretch, she felt a pit form in her stomach, but she could also feel her skin starting to wrinkle. She hurriedly finished cleaning and made her way back out of the water.

She noticed Caius tense when she grabbed her clothes, but he didn't turn or say anything. Elle wondered if she had hurt him in some way, and played her words back several times. She began to wonder if he had felt she was telling him that she didn't want to know. That wasn't the case at all, and she resolved to tell him so.

Once she was dressed, she called his name softly. He stood and turned to her, but the words she was about to say froze as he almost immediately put his hands on her shoulders. His eyes looked into hers so intently that she almost forgot what she had been thinking, and his voice was so low she leaned into his touch to hear him better.

"Elle, compassion is not a weakness. Not for you give it, nor for you to receive it. I do not talk about my past often because it could be harmful to the Seeress, not because it would bother me to have my friends know. Especially not you. Someday, I hold to the hope that you would see me in the same light."

Elle was frozen. Caius was the most open that she had ever seen him. All his walls were gone, and there was that same something in his eyes that she had seen a couple of times before. It was something that both thrilled and terrified her. What exactly was he trying to tell her? Surely it wasn't what it sounded like. They were friends. Good friends. That was all she could afford. Hell, she couldn't even afford that really.

It was several seconds later that she finally found her voice. "You already know more about me than anyone here. If I open up to anyone, it will be you."

Caius sighed and dropped his hands. He gave her a half-smile and shook his head. He looked past her to the water and then up to the sliver of moon that was peeking over the canyon wall. With a sigh, he turned back. "I should finish as well so we can return. It is already far colder than I would like."

In different circumstances, Elle might have laughed at his intolerance to the slight chill in the air, but this time, she barely managed a smile. The wall had come back between them, and she had the uncomfortable sensation that this time, it wasn't because Caius had put it there. She finally managed a nod. "I'll keep watch."

That was all that was said as the two of them moved to switch the positions they had just been in. It did not take Caius half as long as it had taken Elle, though a good portion of that was the fact that he found the water to be freezing. Once he was dressed, he reluctantly started to put the fire out as he called to his companion. "We should return. You can go first. I know you are familiar with the climb, and the moon is nearly full, but I will follow in case you have any issues. Be mindful of loose rocks."

Elle rolled her eyes at his admonition and put aside the unknown emotions that had been roiling in her chest. She slipped back into the teasing smile she was most familiar with as she spoke. "First off, I could probably climb this cliff with my eyes closed, but even if I couldn't, what could you do to stop me from falling? We'd probably both end up at the bottom." Her grin widened as she gestured to the water. "At least the pool would break our fall."

Caius looked into her eyes for a moment. She had no idea what he was looking for, but he finally shook his head and returned her grin. "Where we would both die of hypothermia, no doubt."

Elle nearly doubled over in laughter. It was several seconds later that she stood and wiped her eyes. She then clapped him on the shoulder and headed to the cliff. "You have no idea what cold actually is. Have you ever seen snow?"

He fell into step beside her and gave her a curious look. "I have heard of it from traders that travel far and wide, but I have never seen it. I was told it is frozen rain. That sounds unpleasant."

Elle paused and looked at him with a chuckle. "No, freezing rain is a thing too, and so is sleet, which is a mix of snow and rain. But snow is something else. Water crystallizes in the upper atmosphere before it falls. Yes, it is cold enough to make you fondly remember and wish for the days you were sweating your ass off, but it's also beautiful. At least when it first falls. Everything is covered in a pristine layer of white. It's like a whole new world for just a little while. It almost looks magical, and even the trees seem to be different. I hate the cold, but I like winter. Strange, I know."

Caius stared at her for several seconds before he lowered his voice. "Listening to you, I find that I would like to see that at least once."

She blinked up at him before her eyes widened. She hadn't realized how close she had gotten to him, or how lost in her memories she had been. He was giving her that look again, and she couldn't handle it. Instead, she turned to face the cliff. "I doubt you'll ever see it here, but maybe you'll get to travel someday. You never know. Gran Pulse can't all be like this."

She ignored his soft sigh as he followed her up the cliff. "Perhaps you are correct."

That was the last thing said about it as they made their way back to camp. It did not take them long to get settled. Neither of them paid much mind to any of the others, or to the fact that they did not get the teasing they had expected. Laer was just as lost in thought as both of them. It was only a short time later that they all turned in.

None of them had noticed that Ingens had not left the spot he had taken up the whole time. He only returned when everyone else fell into their bedrolls. He was wearing a frown as he looked to where the Apprentice and Emissary were sleeping, but his eyes were thoughtful. He shook his head as he too turned to find sleep. They all had one more long day before they would have a chance to relax for the next week.