I wanted to post this because I stopped really abruptly yesterday. So, here's what happens next. Yeah.
... "She is mine," says Ithal.
I hear myself reply, "Yes, I am." So much like Gemma on that night so long ago, I walk to him in a daze. My mouth finds his for an instant, only an instant, but it is enough. The other men turn back to the fire, bored with me now.
Ithal is grinning at me, his arm snaked around my waist. "I know you come back," he says happily. "I wait a long time, but I know you come back."
I don't tell him that I came for Mother Elena. He is a much better distraction anyway. He looks handsome and dangerous in the firelight, his eyes flashing black as the night. I toy absently with his hair, so thick and dark – the opposite of Simon's – as he speaks low in my ear words I do not know. Romanian. In this other language, his voice is deep, eloquent, perfect.
Then, he's leading me to his tent like I was here yesterday, as though I have not ignored him for a year. I see movement in the trees; Ann is watching me. I find that I don't care; she wouldn't dare tell on me, and she can surely find her own way back to the school. Or her own gypsy man.
"Felicity." My name sounds foreign on his tongue, but his hand is familiar in mine. When we reach his tent, he lifts me off my feet, cradles me in his arms like a babe. He has to crouch down to get through the entrance. Inside, it's even darker than the night. He lies me on his blanket. I can feel every flaw in the uneven ground below me.
It's too dark to see, and he finds me with his hands, tracing my nose, lips, neck with his fingers. I can feel him arched above me, and I reach up, tangle my fingers in his curls, pull his face down to mine. Then, we're kissing, and he lowers himself onto me, gently. His weight is keeping me grounded, and making me forget. He kisses my neck, and his fingers find the buttons on my gown. He has nimbler fingers than Simon; the buttons are undone in mere moments. Somehow, his shirt has gone; I don't remember removing it. I don't remember why I'm here.
"Ithal." My voice is a croak. "Ithal, I have to go back to the school."
He rolls off of me, lies panting on the ground. "You will be back?"
"I don't know," I say, and it's true. I don't know anymore.
Hope you liked it... the end isn't my favorite thing ever. Please review and tell me what you think. It will make me very happy... and if I'm happy, you'll be happy too. Maybe.
