Rest and Relaxation

She's seated in what she has come to call 'her' chair in the Outsider's private library. He's seated on the floor with his back pressed against her legs, her left hand is buried in his hair and her right hand holds a book. They've been sat here for the better part of what feels like three hours, relaxing in front of the still and purple fire. She has made her way through her small stack of books these past few weeks. They were fairly interesting and she is quite certain they are on the Abbey's banned books list, if she hadn't already been a heretic before she certainly was now. Don't even get her started on what seems to be her physical relationship with the Outsider. Speaking of which she turns her attention to the back of his head as she moves her hand to run her fingers through his hair, she sets her book down on the arm of her chair and her right hand joins her left. A sound akin to a purr leaves his throat.

He begins talking quietly in that foreign language which she is pretty sure he speaks because it gives her goose bumps. She doesn't even know what he's saying, it could be sweet nothings but it could also be an. Ancient bread recipe for all she knows. He hasn't tended to any of his marked in her presence these past few weeks and she can't help but wonder if he's doing it in favor of spending more time with her. His voice rumbles over her in waves so she closes her eyes and continues to run her fingers through his hair. If she wasn't already asleep she is certain she could have drifted right off from this alone. Warm and comfortable, surrounded by the gentle rumble of his inhuman voice. It should probably not be so relaxing, but one Emily Kaldwin had never been a normal girl and had no plans to start now. The head she had been gently caressing is suddenly gone with a growl and the whispering sounds she knows means he just teleported.

She hates it when he does that, she has no idea how to find him when he leaves her behind. With an annoyed huff she throws herself out of her chair and exits the library, making her way straight for the unconnected path. She needs something to climb. It's the only real way she can get her frustrations out here in the Void. Hopefully the whales are nearby for a helpful ride to somewhere more interesting. Or perhaps she'll throw herself into the Void, it's been known to drop her in new places from time to time. Thankfully the whales are playing at the end of the path and she has zero need for the dramatics of throwing herself into the Void. She hitches a ride with them and is thankful they don't bring her to the Outsider this time. They bring her to a new section of the Void and she happily sets to exploring and climbing what seems to be a ruined cityscape.

She spends what feels like hours exploring before she wakes up in her head back at the Tower. There is a single white rose on her pillow beside her head, and she snorts. How typical, abandoned and apologized to by her wayward God. At least she hopes so. She can't help but wonder what had grasped his attention so thoroughly that he had left her in the library without a single word. Had something happened with one of his marked? Was there a new threat for him to be looking into? She'll never ask and he'll never volunteer the information, this she knows. She drops the flower on her desk and goes about her day trying not to think about what could be the reason for his little disappearing act. That night she does not find herself in the Void, but in her own dreams. Waking to the rhythm of her own nightmare she spends the early hours of the morning pacing her own room until she can start her day as if everything is normal.

Her father can tell how agitated she really is and runs interference as often as he can. He doesn't know about her nightly visits to the Void or her borderline relationship with the God who inhabits it. He only knows that she asks a lot of questions that he can't altogether answer, as far as he knows neither of them have seen the Outsider since after the Delilah incident. He seems perfectly okay with that and she has no interest in letting him know otherwise. She especially doesn't want him to know of her little relationship with the Outsider, he'd been unbearable enough about Wyman. The last thing he's going to let her get away with is a relationship with a being that would cause the Abbey of the Everyman to collectively lose it's shit. She finds herself in dreams again that night, waking early due to nightmares again. She's a fair bit more agitated now.

She spends her day restlessly pacing and being fairly short with her advisors and the nobles of her court. Today her father asks questions about what is wrong, she gives no answers. She simply stares out the window in her office, she knows she won't be sleeping tonight. She'd gotten so used to the lack of dreams these past few months and her nightmares are finally catching up with her. Once full dark hits she hits the rooftops of Dunwall. She scales only the tallest buildings and uses every ounce of her stealth to break into the most secure buildings, she even manages to find some kind of fight club, she takes on half of them before they kick her out. She's exhausted the next morning and is thankfully to drained to snap at anyone. The day goes by to slowly for her liking, she already knows she is going to sleep tonight whether she wants to or not.

It's only upon waking in the middle of the night choking on her own screams that she remembers the bone charms the Outsider had given her. She makes her way on unsteady feet down the Tower halls to her office and retrieves the two charms from the locked drawer of her desk. She huddles in her desk chair the charms locked in her grip, she is asleep almost instantly. She's awoken sometime the next day by harried knocking on her office door. A glance out the window confirms it's at least noon. She can hear her fathers voice on the other side of the door, he sounds frantic. She slides the charms back into her desk and hurries to assure her father of her wellbeing. He keeps a very close eye on her for the rest of the day. She'd scared the lights out of everyone when she hadn't left her room in the morning and they had later found she was no where to be found.

She wouldn't apologize for scaring everyone, she had just wanted some uninterrupted sleep. It was apparently to much to ask. Her father stops in her office before bed to escort her to her room, she shoves the bone charms in her pocket and makes her way to bed sliding the charms under her pillow. She turns to watch her father assign guards to her door. She rolls her eyes but says good night as she closes the door on the lot of them. She locks it for good measure before moving to get changed. She spends the next couple of weeks sleeping normally, no signs of the Void or her wayward God. One day during her usual open court session listening to a lesser noble drone on about something she could care less about a commotion starts in the back of the room. She pays it no mind until her father leaves her side with his sword drawn.

Now she's curious, she waves her hand dismissively at the lesser noble and stands. She doesn't make her way to the commotion knowing her guards would simply make her leave the room if she did. The commotion grows louder, she can hear yelling and the clashing of weapons. It isn't much longer before black smoke is jetting between the nobles towards her. A man appears from the smoke a few feet away from her. He only manages to take a few steps towards her with his sword drawn before the familiar figure of the marked she'd been seeing in the Void appears behind him and slams his sword home, through the other man's chest. Her would be assassin stills before slowly begins to slump down towards the floor his weapon clatters loudly to the floor from his suddenly nerveless fingers. She is to busy looking at the marked behind him to pay him any mind however. How had he gotten here?

What is he doing here? Had the Outsider sent him? What if both of them had come to kill her? Tracking down fellow marked to kill. She lowers her hand to her sword watching the other marked closely, but he only smiles and bows. "Greetings your Majesty." He says with a thick accent that she cannot place. She wonders only for a second before her father is there. She rushes forward to stay her fathers hand, shaking her head all the while. He lowers his weapon but watches the marked warily. The other marked bows again winks at her and disappears into black smoke as Overseers rush to try and capture him. Failing that they try take the body of the unknown marked from the ground for study, after all it isn't every day they get to study the body of one of the Outsider's marked. Her father escorts her quickly from the room telling the room at large that todays session is over.

She spends the rest of her day in her office under guard at all times. It's a ridiculous precaution, she can take care of herself and the guards wouldn't last a second to one of the marked. Perhaps they would act as a distraction long enough for her to get the upper hand if he did return to kill her. Not that she thinks he would, he had killed the other marked but had seemed almost pleased to see her. She's escorted to her bedroom a few hours later, her father has chosen to guard her himself this night. He's sitting in a chair in the sitting area, facing away from her as she changes into her nightgown. She's just about to sit down at her vanity when she notices the mirror and bookcases are warped and fractured. She gasps causing her father to turn, he jumps to his feet ready to defend her. He needn't of bothered, for out of the shadows steps none other then the Outsider in all his godly glory.

He doesn't even bother to glance at Corvo, he steps up to her bringing one hand up to her jaw. He seems to be inspecting her, perhaps for injury from this mornings activities. She stays still allowing him a few moments before removing his hand from her face and making her way to her bed. She's tired and isn't going to allow this visit to stop her beauty sleep. He follows her, standing silently at the edge of her bed. Her father is asking questions now, but she just wants to sleep. She can just barely make out the Outsider hissing something to her father before she is asleep and waking in the Void. She turns to look around and catches sight of the marked who had saved her earlier grinning at her. He enthusiastically waves her over, "Come Empress. Sit with me!" His accent is still thick and unknown. She knows they can't hurt each other in the Void so she moves to sit beside him on the settee of foreign make.

They sit in companionable silence for a few moments, before long however the Outsider returns. He is not alone however, her father stands behind him staring down at the renewed mark on his hand. She can't help herself, she throws her head back and laughs.

Fin.