Lea's Liberation

Snowed In

Snowed In

The blizzard grew exponentially in ferocity overnight. When Lea opened her eyes into the darkened parlor, she couldn't tell if it was morning, day, or night because of the complete darkness. She heard the rapid taps of the snow flakes smacking against the windows beneath the roaring of the whipping winds. The air was frigid, but she was tucked into Emilien's side, under two, thick blankets, his warmth fully permeating her body as he breathed slowly and evenly, still sleeping as thunder rumbled distantly overhead.

Needing to relieve herself, she carefully extracted herself from Emilien's arms and out of the blanket, into the cold. She shivered, wrapping her arms around herself as she walked to the near water closet – just across the hall.

Though she had been careful not to wake him, when Lea returned to the room, Emilien was already sitting, staring up at the ceiling, listening to the howling storm.

"It sounds pretty bad out there," he said softly, the sound of his voice nearly lost to the deafening storm.

"Yeah. A bit." Lea returned to the blanket, sliding under it with him. To her delight, none of the warmth had managed to seep out with him there to keep it in.

Without even thinking about it, Emilien laid back down, pulling Lea into his side as she pulled the blankets back up over them. They could have gone to seek one of their beds down the hall but, with the cold as angry as it was, it was better to stay near the heart of the house even if it meant laying on the floor.

"Shall we light the fire?" Emilien asked sometime later.

They had intended on waiting until the storm had passed completely, relying on the pipes that pumped steam through the walls to keep them warm until then, but that seemed to not be doing as much as they intended.

Lea nodded and, this time, she was the one to guard the warmth under the blanket as he snuck out to first relieve himself as well, then to gather firewood and bring it back. She watched him walk around the silent house, finding herself entranced with each movement he made.

A short time later, a small fire was building in the fireplace and Emilien opened the chimney, sending a rush of cold air down into the room that almost extinguished the fire. He had to tend it quickly to build it up again. Lea shivered, snuggling deeper into the blankets, only lifting them long enough for him to duck back in beside her when he finished.

Though he had only been out for a few minutes, he was already chilled. Lea grabbed his hands, rubbing them to bring some warmth back into the chilled digits. The fire wasn't putting out a great deal of heat yet, but it was slowly growing, despite the wind at the chimney top.

The two fell silent again as they leaned back in their pallet, watching the fire slowly grow until Lea could finally feel the warmth of it beginning to seep through the blanket at her feet.

"I'm a bit hungry," Emilien said, gently stroking the slope of her hip. "Shall I get us some food?"

"I can do it-" she made to stand but he tightened his hold, stopping her.

"It's fine. Stay warm. Let me do it."

"You got up and made the fire. It's my turn."

"It's not a matter of turns." He kissed the tip of her nose. "My lady shall not be cold if I have the ability to keep her warm. Stay in the blanket. I'll be right back."

My lady shall not be cold if I have the ability to keep her warm.

Lea's face burned red at the words as he stood and walked away into the kitchen. That was a vow from a Gasconian wedding ceremony. It was the basis for why they gave their women their coats. And he had just said it to her in all seriousness.