Leliana was more than exhausted. Finding her way in the darkness was hard, her eyes kept falling shut of their own accord and her feet couldn't seem to remember the simple left-right-left rule. Yawning and tired munching were interrupted by constant sighing that she couldn't seem to suppress. Tonight wasn't going according to plan. At all. She had counted on the witch being reclusive and leaving her alone. But when she had offered her a place in the warm water, everything had gone downhill. Never mind touching the older woman, losing her composure and crying like Alistair was much worse. The Witch of the Wilds would not forget that. She would make Leliana regret this night for the rest of her life, the bard was fairly certain of that.
When the rogue reached the part of the stream they all usually bathed in, even the light of the moon didn't offer much help in discerning her surroundings. She could make out the log and a dark pile of... something that was supposed to be her clothes. Leliana stumbled towards it, clumsily falling over roots and rocks until she finally reached the log and came to rest in front of it in a heap of flesh and linens. Grunting, she tried slipping into the now very cold clothes, which caused goosebumps to form on her delicate skin.
She could feel herself drifting off in the middle of getting dressed, and no matter how hard she tried to stay awake, her mental and physical exhaustion combined were more than a match for her battered will. Hey eyelids were getting heavier by the moment and her limbs seemed to have minds of their own. Heavy arms came to rest on a rough log and long legs pulled into the warmth between her body and the ground. The way her body came to rest over the log was surprisingly comfortable and before Leliana's mind succumbed to sleep, her lips curled into a tiny little smile.
Her dreams were littered with magical flames and shadows that resembled a certain witch. Leliana was floating in a fiery sea, soft touches fluttering over her naked body. Words were washing over her like waves of ice cold water.
"...not welcome here ... self-loathing ... your perceptive powers know no bounds ... disturb me even now ... are insane ... deserved to die ... off you go ... bother me ... 'tis over ... dismal failure, best forgotten ... your precious little head ... loneliness would be preferred..."
Ambivalent feelings were filling her up, confusing her sleeping mind. A part of her enjoyed the gentle fiery touches, the sarcastic remarks, but there was also another part of her that slipped away from her, hiding in a dark corner, crying in the stillness of a watery grave.
It was then that Leliana awoke. Drowsy eyes tried making out the environment. At first, she didn't understand where she was, until her hand felt the rough bark beneath her fingers. The log. She had fallen asleep in the middle of nowhere, with no camp to protect her. Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, the bard grabbed for the remaining fabrics strewn across the ground, when she heard a low grumble. Shell-shocked, she froze with her hand midway in the air. Her eyes slowly wandered around in the direction of the sound, coming to rest on what was likely the largest bear she had ever seen. Its yellow eyes were menacingly bright in the glow of the moon and the lithe bard swallowed hard. She had not summoned this bear. Gulping, she reached out with her mind, trying to establish a connection with the wild animal. Normally she would only summon animals if there were foes nearby, but not having that luxury right now, she decided it was all she could do to keep the majestic animal out of the camp.
The intelligent eyes of the bear seemed to study her and even though the thought itself seemed strange to her, the look the animal gave her was one of true interest. Breathing shallowly, Leliana slowly extended her hand towards the huge creature. A wet nose greeted her cold hand, and an enormous head pressed itself into her palm, blatantly pleading for her to ruffle the dense fur. Smiling hesitantly, she obliged and let her hand wander over the supple hair, flexing her fingers to gently scratch the skin beneath. Circular eyes closed in what seemed to be pleasure and a soft tongue peeked out from beneath animal lips. The bard let herself drop onto the ground, her buttocks hitting the floor with an audible thud. She scratched the back of her head tiredly, thinking about her options. Somehow the way back to camp stretched out in her imagination and became a distance she was not prepared to travel.
Leaving the bear here might have been an option before she had stroked it, but now the animal was fixated on her and there was little she could do about it. Leliana shrugged off all reasoning and simply let her body loose, gliding down onto the forest ground. She was tired.
Her head slumped forward, hitting the ground hard. A low groan escaped her lips shortly before soft fur tickled her nose. A satisfied grin spread over her face, when she felt the large animal snuggle close, offering her the warmth of its body. The bard hid her face in the softness of the fur, breathing in the distinct smell of bear that she knew so well. It had been a long time since she had summoned a creature. Let alone a bear. Usually Kaala would ask her for a wolf...
The moment she woke up, she immediately knew something was different. Her back was still pressed against the log, saving what heat it could by hiding behind it. But where her face had snuggled into soft fur, there remained nothing but chilly morning air. The rogue opened her eyes, fully expecting to be alone. What she found instead, made her gasp aloud and cover her mouth in shock.
The witch was lying right in front of her, astonishingly beautiful and relaxed in her sleep. At first Leliana had a hard time understanding, but when she noticed the amount of bear fur scattered over the two of them, it dawned on her. Somehow the witch had found her here and decided to keep her safe in her own, somewhat incomprehensible way. Nevertheless, the bard was thankful and she couldn't help the hand that reached out to touch the peaceful face of the older woman. Morrigan's skin was as warm as it had been the day before. Her mana seemingly kept her warm even during sleep. Leliana was fascinated by the magic of the witch, though she would never admit to it. She knew that the witch thought of them all as lesser beings. Even Wynne, who was a mage, but had to live by the rules of the Chantry, which was more than the dark haired woman would ever abide.
Proud she might be, and cruel when it suited her, but there was also an unexpected tenderness in the Witch of the Wilds, that Leliana wanted to explore. She knew that Morrigan was not an evil person, but seeing through the wall of sarcasm and snide remarks was hard sometimes. Mainly because she usually was at the receiving end of the hurtful words. But still, she had come to respect the mage enormously. In fact she really liked the woman. Not only because of her beauty, but because of the softness that she kept so carefully hidden from the world. The bard had seen through that act early on and had tried to bond with the bitter witch. It had proven more than a challenge to show the lithe woman that she, too, was a human being worth her time. And her display the day before did not help her case.
Leliana sighed inaudibly and pushed a stray strand of hair out of a pale face. Such tenderness would not be welcome were the witch awake. But she couldn't resist touching the fair woman. Too long had she lived in fear of the future, in fear of the past... Killing Marjolaine had freed her in more than one way, it seemed.
It was still early and she wasn't sure how deep the mage's sleep was, but seeing as the witch had come here of her own free will last night, Leliana decided to risk the other woman's wrath just this once. She carefully pushed herself away from the log and snuggled close enough so she could rest her head on an inviting armpit. She didn't dare throw her arm around the beautiful woman, but resting right next to her, looking onto her face whenever she opened her eyes was more than enough for her. Morrigan would probably put a spell on her once she found her almost on top of her, but the thought actually made Leliana smile. She would endure whatever the witch might throw at her after waking up.
After last night, everything felt different. Spiteful and resentful Morrigan had made the mistake of letting her softer side show, and Leliana would make sure it happened again. But first she would have to get out of this situation alive.
TO BE CONTINUED.