She tilted her head before turning, propping herself up on each hand that was on either side of his head and leaning down and kissing him. *** He paused, looking as if a realization dawned upon him. He went quiet, his eyes on the ground.
He flushed deeply, his hand coming up to cup her jaw as he lifted his head to kiss her back. *** The forest had grey leaves that hung heavy with the rain. The branches brushed his back as the nomads fled. Spoiler: If Ezekiel is Observant about his Environment He had not spent a lot of time in the woods. The ground was muddy from the rain from overhead, and old gnarled tree roots crossed the ground, threatening to trip uncertain trail-walkers. There were sounds of life, if he cared to listen; crows battled overhead, their cawing loud and sharp. Some variety of insect droned tirelessly in the distance, filling the world. Rushing water to his left brought the sounds of frogs and the splashing of some kind of rodent. The mist turned around him, filling his lungs with clear, cold air. Spoiler: If Ezekiel is Observant about the Nomads He would soon realize that the Nomads were in rough shape. Their feet, normally bare, were cut and bleeding, sinking into the ground as they ran. The faces of the people were smeared in grime and sweat and blood, a majority of them with black eyes and split lips. Their ears gleamed with gold piercings, although the metal had become filthy and half of them had ears that were now deformed and scarred, as their piercing has been ripped out. Spoiler: If Ezekiel is Observant about Clara Clara seemed to be in the epicenter of the crowd. People ran beside her, checking up on her consistently, their fingers brushing her back gently. She would always glance in their direction and give a small nod of some sort of appreciation, but she would never smile. It seems that she had forgotten how. She was almost skeletal, her limbs tiny and those shockingly severe eyes huge in her skull. As she ran, the small, curly locks that had grown back bounced, still catching the sun like it used to despite the grime that seemed consistent with the entire community of Nomads.
She pulled away after a few moments, blushing deeply. *** Ezekiel was quiet, his brows furrowed as he looked around slowly. He stopped struggling quickly, and he went completely silent, staring off hazily.
He watched her with something like wonder, brushing her hair back before pulling her down to him again, kissing her. *** They eventually happened upon a cave. Ducking under vines, the Nomads entered it, coming into an enormous cavern. The one carrying Ezekiel set him down, and he would be able to see a camp of sorts, tents set up and torches lit on the walls. A large crowd stared at them, all of them worse for wear. They were silent as the two groups stared at each other, until Clara stepped through the crowd. Upon seeing her, the entire group erupted into cheers. Her permanent frown deepened and she raised one hand. The crowd fell silent respectfully and she spoke, her voice low and exhausted. “The Nomad population in the Ikhirin Empire have escaped,” she said. “We have freed all of our living from their prisons. We have moved our homes away. We no longer endure the laws from a cruel dictator. This fight did not come without losses, and it is important that we now allow for time to grieve and recover. Stay safe. Take care of each other. We will survive this; we always do.”
She smiled against his lips, leaning down slowly. *** He looked up at Clara, his gaze wary and cautious. He didn't say anything, though, pulling himself away from the group and pressing against the cavern wall.
He pulled her to him, his hand cupping her face gently. *** The nomad that had been carrying reached out and pulled him back. “Oh, no, you don’t.” Clara heard this and turned to look at them. “Right. This is Ezekiel,” she said flatly. “The son of the sun. His capture was integral to our escape, but we now must place it to a vote whether to have him as our prisoner, much as his family treated us, or to diminish his suffering and let him die quickly.”
She laid next to him, resting her hand on his jaw. *** He looked up at her, his gaze burning. He balled his fists, appearing incredibly betrayed.
He turned his head to kiss the palm of her hand, his eyes never leaving hers. *** A small bit of fury was in her eyes, but she was better at hiding it, her eyes sharp and unforgiving. She turned back to the crowd. “The crimes of the individual include the following. Manipulation of Nomads and involvement of the torture of our kind. Traitorous intentions designed to incarcerate Nomads that resulted in the death of a third of our population.” The population began to talk quietly among themselves.
She watched him with wide eyes, her heartbeat quickening slightly. "I've never felt like this for anyone before.." *** His head jerked up as he stared at her. "Manipulation? Traitorous?" He bit his tongue until he felt a metallic taste in his mouth before shaking his head furiously. "All I ever did was help you!"
“You’ve never fallen for someone that you previously swore to protect? Me neither,” he teased, resting his head against her open hand. *** She jerked her head towards him. “I wish I had never met you,” she replied quietly.
She rolled her eyes playfully. "You know what I mean." *** His gaze was hurt. "You betrayed me, Clara. You.. You were using me all along. It was probably all for this. So you could escape with everyone who needed it. You never cared about me. How could I have been so stupid?"
“Do I? What do you mean, exactly?” *** Her face was impossible to read but she watched him for a moment before she turned to the crowd. “You’re all dismissed. Go about your business.” They did as she asked, returning to their jobs. Clara sagged tiredly but then seemed to remember that she still had people to talk to. She turned back to her group. “Put Ezekiel in the Binds. I’ll be along to talk to him in a moment.” The man who had him nodded before pushing Ezekiel forward into the town.
"I've never felt this way about anyone like I do with you." *** He glared back at the man, but moved along.
"You're just repeating yourself," he teased playfully, cupping her jaw with his hands. "I need answers!" * * * The man brought him to the opposite wall. Chains had been hammered into the cavern and the man snapped some cuffs around Ezekiel's wrists.
She grinned. "What do you want me to say?" *** Ezekiel didn't struggle, his gaze dull and mouth set in a frown.
"I just need details. That's all." * * * The man left him and after about ten minutes, Clara came up to him. She was pressing a damp washcloth to her wounds, wiping away the dried blood.
She shifted closer playfully. "Like how I get really happy when I see you? Or being around you relaxes me?" *** He looked like a cornered animal, his angry gaze sharp and wary as he pressed away from people against the wall.
“Oh, I see,” he teased, resting his forehead against hers. “You have a big crush on me.” *** She looked down upon him without sympathy. “Feels strange to be on the other side, doesn’t it?” she said quietly, sitting down again the wall next to him.
“I can’t believe it.” *** She raised an eyebrow. This used to mean that she was about to tease him, but there was no humor in her expression. “You trusted me?” she said incredulously. “I trusted you.”
