Authors note: TA DA! Longest chapter of the series, and for the right reasons ;)
Silverymoon. It is a very short walk from Mithral Hall.
This trip, though, feels long as the coldest winters of Icewind Dale.
Cattie has left for the forest and we wait her return. Wulfgar has turned in for the night, as has Regis. Me and Bruenor stay up and talk.
"Ye worry about her as much as me, don't ye?" He asks me as I stare off into the woods behind me. I turn my attention to him and shrug slightly, Choosing a stick and poking at the fire between us.
"I worry about her a good enough amount. Not nearly as much as Wulfgar, one would wonder." I look to the sleeping barbarian, taking note of his limbs which were sprawled about the ground. He is deep in his sleep
"Ah, the boy does not worry about me girl. He worries about his own pride and nothin' else, I woulda figured ye'd know that. Yer a smart lad." I chuckle at him. He's got me there. "The boy needs to drop the ego. My Cattie won't warm up to 'im this way."
"Ha, its very true." I throw the stick into the fire and cross my arms on my legs, hunching over. I start thinking about what he said. It is sad that I know it to be true. If he doesn't drop his ego then he will be without a fiancée…
Which, in my case, is a good thing.
I try and push away the thought. What a terrible thought! I cant stand thinking this way about my best friends fiancée, who has been my friend since her dearest moments in childhood. And now I sit next to her father thinking such terrible things. I wish the worst on Wulfgar for my own gain? That seems as if I am not myself.
"Well If he truly wants her he'll-" Bruenor stops, staring at me for a moment. "Drow, what bothers ye?" I look to him.
"Say again?" I tell him.
"What bothers ye?" I shake my head and sigh. Apparently I am an open book by facial expression alone.
"She has been gone so long. It just worries me, as it worries you." I tell him. Its not a lie, again. Truly it isn't, I am deeply worried that she has caught herself in an unfixable position. I worry that some rogue elf has taken her hostage. Even worse, I worry over even the silliest of fears, one of said fears being that my kind has come to the surface and killed her brutally in a raid against the surface elves.
That, though, is just my imagination gone awry.
"Tell me, elf, ye keep something more inside?" he questions me with raised eyebrows. He knows me. Less than his rambunctious daughter but he knows me. I hear Regis snore loudly and Guen purr loudly as it lies next to where I sit. I shake my head no to the question.
"Nothing of concern." I smile at him a moment and lie back on the ground.
"are ye trying to tell a false tale to me?" he asked gruffly. "I am not a Dwarf to be lied to, I'm warning ye." he is going on a rant now and I shake my head, taking to the upright position once more.
"Bruenor, I did not tell you that I wasn't thinking of something, just that I wish not to ponder it, or express it outwardly." He shakes his head and strokes his beard.
"Drow. Never understood them, never will." He states as if I am not next to him. He is not angry, but frustrated that I will not tell him
"Come on old friend, do not be soar. I merely do not feel the desire to discuss such a fragile matter." I try to coax him into a sense of friendliness instead of his now argument state. He wrinkles his nose at me. He is very stubborn.
"Don't tell me not to be soar." he mutters to me. "I'll be good and soar as long as me wish." he declares.
"Is it so dire that you know what bothers me? Why does that bother you"
"'S not so much that me know what ye worry about, but that you told me that nothing was concerning you. Tha's what bothers me." I chuckle. He's acting childish.
"But I did not lie to you." I state plainly. His over reactions are quite frustrating, but more entertaining than anything. He shakes his head and turns to a rustling of leaves.
"There's me girl!" he bellows aloud. She comes out of the trees and half smiles at him. "oh, something be wrong with ye too." he growls.
"noth-" she starts but I shake my head no as to tell her not to tell him nothing is wrong. She looks at me strange but then to Bruenor. "I'll be sure to tell ye about it lat-"
"Excellent. Come sit between Drizzt and I and we will discuss this." Her shoulders slump and she follows her father over and sits next to me, looking exhausted. Regis snores again and mumbles something in his sleep.
"So what troubles ye?" Bruenor asks her, her hand in his. She sighs, staring at the ground. Something is truly bothering her. All I wish is to hold her close in comfort right now… but it wouldn't be appropriate. Guen walks over and puts its head under Cattie-Brie's hand, hoping that she will stroke it. Cattie-Brie complies with the desire.
"My feelings." she mumbles, but we both catch what she says.
"About Wulfgar?" I question her, intently. She nods at me and then shakes her head as if she doesn't know.
"I didn't know what to think… but I've narrowed it down to a terrible though." I fear moisture will cover her cheeks for the second time in one day.
"Ye think what? What be wrong with yer thoughts?" her father asks in a calm tone, calmer than he would ever offer to anyone else.
"I don't love 'im anymore." she sobs now. My heart freezes and my body goes slightly numb. I don't know if its in excitement, astonishment, or just in fear. I look to Wulfgars lazy body, which hasn't moved but an inch. He's still deep in his sleep. "I didn't feel anythin' earlier when I lie on 'im. And even the thought of him kissing me makes me feel repulsed sometimes… I do not wish him to be near me."
"Don't cry now." Bruenor says, patting her back. He looks around hopelessly. "Do ye want some water? Maybe ye need some water to calm ye down. Cool ye off." Cattie-brie nods at him and he stands up. "Cat, come with me." I see Guen take to its feet and follow Bruenor in the direction of a spring in the forest.
"Cattie-" she falls into my arms and cries into my cloak.
"I don't know how to tell him Drizzt." she sobs into my chest, clinging to my torso tightly. I hold her head close, feeling her soft strands one by one with my fingertips, stroking her back, trying to calm her. It is a perfect moment and nothing could ruin it. "It is sad to even think, but I love ye more than I love 'im, not to be sayin' it in a bad way, of course." this makes my heart sink. She is still referring to me as a brother in that love. I lean my head back and stare at the sky in a heartbroken frustration, then back down and I stare at her beautiful rich red roots. "ye know what I mean, Drizzt right?"
"Yes I do." I sigh. She pulls away from me and looks to her hands before looking up to my face. I see the beginnings of a smile.
"Yer eyes always seem to make all my worries melt away." she says in a calm, serene tone as she stares deeply into my lavender eyes. I hold my breath as if expecting her to say more as she stares. I notice the cherry red color of the tip of her nose, as is the same in her cheeks. It brings me wonderful feelings. Even the tears that were brought by pain are lovely on her cheeks, the wetness of the streaks reflecting the shine of the moon above and the fire next to us, just slightly. "ye always make my worries melt away." she chuckles and explores my face more before looking shyly to her hands. She doesn't enjoy crying, especially in front of someone, twice in one day. She sniffs and rubs her nose.
"I want you to know that you are a beautiful woman." I tell her sternly. She faces me more and I put my hand on her cheek. "You are intelligent and independent and anyone who cannot live with such a wonderful thing is a fool. You were made this way and made to be loved this way. I can't believe that he is so blind to what he has." she lets out a small sigh, as if an epiphany overcomes her body. "Cattie-brie-"
I am cut off and now my stomach is leaping as her hand covers my mouth.
"Please, Drizzt, don't say anything more." she told me sternly. I take her hand from my mouth.
"Why not?" I ask her.
"I may do something foolish." she says quietly, looking toward Wulfgar.
"But Cattie-Brie these are things you need to know!" I tell her enthusiastically. "Even as a brother figure to you, I should be able to tell you how wonderful you are and what your strengths are opposed to you hearing about your faults or thinking about them!" she stares at me in a thoughtful, yet slightly worried, way. I find myself not being able to hold back what I feel. "You are probably the greatest woman that I have ever met in my life, I've watched you grow from childhood and You need to know that you have grown well, into a wonderful woman and an even greater-"
I'm cut off again and my stomach isn't doing anything yet. Its taking me a minute to register what has happened.
One minute I was talking and the next…
Cattie-brie pulls back and covers her mouth with wide eyes.
"I'm sorry." she says in a terrified and shocked tone.
"Cattie-Brie…"
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Drizzt Forgive me I didn't mean to."
"Didn't mean to?" I asked, still stunned. "Cattie-"
"Oh no." she buried her head in her hands. "Oh no, no, no. I'm sorry!" she's crying again and now my stomach has registered and my mind clicked back to reality.
"Why are you so sorry?" I ask her, finding it uncomfortable to move to face her. I pull her into my arms again.
"Drizzt, I'm engaged. He doesn't know I don't love him anymore… how can I tell him that…"
I see Bruenor behind us staring with raised eyebrows. He clears his throat and Cattie jumps, turning back to look at him.
She kissed me… Though it is the greatest moment of my life I know it will not blow over well…
^ - ^ well wha'd ya think? I wasn't intending on making the relationship begin so soon but… well… as a writer I hate waiting to get to the good part. Plus it seemed the greatest place to put it. I know its not much but there will be much in future chapters. Kind of scandalous. I think you'll like. Please R&R. I know this is the second chapter in two days. I got restless :)