Light Eyes; DarK Eyes

Chapter 14

Aiden woke up early the next morning. Blinking, he opened his eyes, letting them adjust to the dim light. Aurora was curled up next to him. He hastily removed his arm from around her waist, blushing. She frowned at the loss of warmth, and snuggled closer. Face red, he slid out of the bed, replacing himself with a pillow. From there, he went straight to the bathroom, and turned on the shower, stripping before climbing in. Water that had more in common with glaciers then streams rained down on him, plastering his hair to his neck. Aiden’s forehead made contact with the shower wall, as he stood there, letting the water beat down any surviving passion. When his back was all but numb, and any fiery feelings were well suppressed, he shut off the water. The bathroom air was warm to him as he quickly dried and dressed himself. He shook his head like a dog to get rid of the excess water.
The sun was just rising when he walked out of the bathroom, ten minutes after walking in. Aurora was still asleep. It was early enough that he could slip out of the city without attracting undo notice. He sighed. He was going to have to, as much as he didn’t want to. Picking up Hiraka, he buckled her on, having already slipped on boots. He went back into Aurora’s bedroom.

Aurora woke with a start. That had been a really strange dream. It had to have been a dream. Aiden never wore Hiraka inside. And he certainly wouldn’t come in just to kiss her before leaving the room again. Not with such a sad look on his face. She touched her lips thoughtfully; as though to see if maybe there was some sign that he’d been there. Of course there wouldn’t be, she told herself fiercely. Even if he had kissed her—unlikely, to say the least—it had been far too gently to leave any mark. Throwing off the sheets, she ran into the sitting room. He wasn’t there. The other rooms where similarly empty. She returned to the sitting room. The corner where Hiraka and Kirie usually stood contained only the lonely-looking Kirie.
Throwing on her clothes, and pulling on boots, she bolted out the door. She raced down to the courtyard, what little hope she had slipping away by the second. He wasn’t there. A student, startled by her sudden appearance, nearly didn’t recognize her without her tall, red-eyed shadow.
“Princess?” He called, as she started almost as badly as he had. “Where’s Aiden, Your Highness?” he asked, wondering. She stared at him for a moment.
“He—he’s gone, James.” She told him, her face blank. He blinked.
“Oh. When is he coming back?” James asked innocently.
“I don’t think he will.” She said, feeling like her heart was being ripped to shreds.
“’Course he will, Your Majesty.” He assured her. “Why wouldn’t he? My mum said she’d never seen a man fall so hard. Whatever that means.” He said, his head tilted to the side thoughtfully. Aurora laughed a bit, a pained sound.
“Tell your mother ‘thank you’, from me, alright?” She asked. He nodded, and she smiled, before going back inside, up to her room. She wandered her rooms, wondering if they had felt this empty before Aiden had shared them with her. She sat on her bed, trying to accept that he was gone. It felt like he would walk into the room at any moment. Depressed, she fell back, lying on the bed with her legs hanging off the sides. She could still smell him on her pillows and sheets.
“I’m acting like some jilted lover,” she remarked to the ceiling. She felt like a jilted lover, too. “We weren’t lovers. If it weren’t for this stupid war, we never would have met.” Saying that didn’t make her feel better. She sat up, wondering if he felt anything like this. She sighed, eyes wandering around the room. They ended up on the bedside table for some reason. There was a small packet there, a bit of cloth holding something, next to the collar that her father had allowed to be discarded. She picked it up, curious. Unfolding it, something on a length of cord fell out.
It clinked on the floor. She reached down for it, and held it up by the string. On it was a small glossy black stone, only the size of her pinky’s nail. Aurora recognized it as the one that usually hung around Aiden’s neck. Her eyes watered, but she shoved the feeling away. She put the necklace on; it rested comfortably two inches below the hollow of her throat.

Outside the city, Aiden took one last look back. His heart was beating funny again, and he wondered if she’d found the necklace. Would she even want it? Well, even if she didn’t wear it, the obsidian should be good for something. Hopefully, it would turn away any more assassination attempts.
But, and with any luck he was correct, they weren’t trying so much as to kill her, as they were trying to kill him. His father was powerful enough to make it look like a Celestine had taken over that messenger’s mind.
More than likely the messenger was dead now, to Aiden’s disgust. But if he was willing to take out innocent people, Aiden wasn’t going to endanger them anymore. He still had to avenge Mika’s death, as well. One good thing about that contract was that he would still know if someone tried to go after Aurora.
Aiden disappeared into forest surrounding the city, wondering if he’d stay alive long enough to see it again. To see her again.
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Well, this one was...sickly sweet. Kudos to you if you don't gag at least one time.
Just to clear something up; no, they didn't do anything. They just slept in the same bed. Don't worry, the plot will thicken again soon. ^_^