Side by side, Liz and Fenris left the house and headed towards the gate that led to the Wounded Coast. Liz wore her bast basket over her wrist and had - as she always did in this disguise - lowered her head which was covered in a blonde mop of hair. Out of the corner of her eye she saw one of the neighbours looking down at her from his balcony. He made some funny gesture with his ´hands, and quickly called his wife to him and pointed down. The two of them seemed suitably excited that the elf dared to step out into the street, and that with a human servant at his side.
"Poor thing," whispered an old maid, who stood a little aside with an even older maid, waving a fan at her face. "Do you think he... will do something to her? Or ... has..."
Fenris stiffened up next to her, but kept going.
"He must be... well, let's say abnormal, by the look of him. These tattoos..."
Now it was Liz who got tense. Her gaze flitted over to him, but there was nothing to be read from his stony face.
Could he be tempted to stick his hand into the chest of those silly old hens at any moment? Fenris seemed to have this mood quite often and he also had zero tolerance for annoying people and ALSO that would probably be a good death, as it would be the first and last time a man had touched this hag in that particular area and
Evil, Liz. Very, very bad, Liz, don't do that...
"Poor thing," whispered the first woman, so loud that even the neighbour on the balcony above her had to be able to hear her. "She looks like a battered little mouse. Surely he's making her do indescribable things..."
Liz lost her patience. With a jerk, her head flew up and she drove around to Fenris, whose green eyes immediately widened in alert. His hands lifted - she couldn't tell if he wanted to push her away or calm her down - but she didn't touch him, just looked up at him, pleading and yearning.
"Master, I... I just have to tell you. What you did to me last night...", the eyes and ears of the old maids became huge, "no man has ever done to me before. By the builder, had I not smothered my screams in the pillow, all of Hightown would now know the nameless pleasure you have given me." Her hands sank against his chest and she breathed: "You and your immense charm have brought me to ecstasy..."
There was a dead silence when it ended. The neighbours were silent. Fenris stared at her and looked as if he couldn't decide whether to strangle her or rather practice the "hand through the chest" number. He was flushed under his tan. She tinkled her eyelashes once or twice more, then turned away and walked away with a dreamy smile, passing the two old maids staring after her.
As she turned the next corner, a loud laugh burst out of her. "Did you... did you see their faces...?"
Silence. A side glance showed her her companion's grumpy, still slightly reddened face.
"Oh, come on, Fenris. Better to be known as a sex god than a perverted bastard, don't you think?"
"If you hadn't been there, it would never have come to this," he growled.
"You may be right," she replied, "There'd be other things the neighbours are absolutely sure of. You'd play wild bondage games with Isabela, for example. Strangle her with her gold jewellery. That would be SO much better..." She sounded nastier than intended and bit her lip. On the other hand, Liz. had every reason to be angry. After all she had only wanted to save his reputation. And Isabela was Isabela.
Fenris was silent, and Liz, surprising as it was, was as well. They stopped briefly at the merchant's stall to pick up the provisions, then they went on and left Hightown for the coast.
Thei anger faded from Liz the further they got. It was a beautiful, sunny day, and only a light breeze was to be felt. With the basket on her wrist and the light summer dress she was wearing, it was almost like going for a walk with an admirer. Her gaze slipped to one side, and she grinned. In this case a grumpy looking elf in a deterrent "Don't come near me" armour and a huge broadsword on her back did the job.
"You didn't buy that in a store, did you?" When he looked at her confused, she added, "The armor, I mean."
"No."
Talkative as ever, the fine gentleman elf. "How did it come to be the way it is?"
He hesitated and then said, "I've had it tweaked bit by bit..."
Her eyes glided attentively over the buckles and the custom-made leather. "So it protects, but at the same time it takes the pressure off your marks, right?"
Now he looked at her, surprised. "Yes."
"Does it hurt?"
Immediately he closed himself off, but she did not avert her gaze. When he saw that she would not give in, he growled, irritated: "Yes, sometimes. They're... sensitive."
Of course, he did not want to talk about it, because admitting it meant revealing his greatest weakness. So it was all the more significant that he had admited to the tattoos being a difficult thing for him at all.
In a soft voice she said: "The leather has cracked. Let me help you repair it. I have just the right kind of leather in mind. We'll get it when we get back home."
He looked ahead. She hadn't the faintest idea what he was thinking. Then Fenris nodded slightly and said, "Why not?"
Stage win number three? She didn't know, and it didn't matter right now. All that mattered was that he relaxed.
"So what's your plan?" he asked after they'd left the city gates behind.
Liz pulled out Ben's doodle and tried to decipher his sketch. Marker, had he always had such a horrible scrawl? She tilted her head and turned the sketch around. Liz squinted, and read "At the Pha... Phal... What exactly are you trying to tell me, Ben...?" She paused. "Oh."
"What?"
"Uh... we're looking for a large rock, north that looks like a... well, like a..."
"Like a what?" asked Fenris irritably as she began to stutter.
"You know."
"No, I don't know." When she continued to be silent, he made an irritable sound.
"Like a phallus, all right?"
Fenris was staring at her. "A... phallus?"
This time it was Liz who turned red. "I can't help it, that's all Ben. He says, "At the rock that looks like a giant phallus, we'll have to take the left turn."
By now she knew what he looked like when he pinched himself with a laugh. Well, at least her humiliation had one good thing.
"I think we'll find the trail with such a powerful description waysign," Fenris said dryly.
Liz laughed brightly. Oh, she liked it when he made a joke, even though he would have claimed never to do anything like that, of course. Then she looked over her shoulder and made sure they were alone before she pulled the dress over her head and wiped off her wigs. He watched her carefully as she put the things in her backpack.
"Is it really necessary to keep up your charade at all times?" he asked.
She nodded and looked at him as she straightened up again: "It's better that way. It protects me."
She didn't need to say anything else, because he understood her all too well. Smiling, she stepped aside him, shouldered her backpack and then started moving again.
The sun burned hot down on Liz, and soon her tunic was sticking to her body. In moments like these she loved to have short hair, as the wind caressed her neck, giving her at least some cooling. She wondered how Fenris fared in his dark, tight-fitting armour and watched him from the corner of her eye. Not a single drop of sweat showed up on his forehead. His movements were alert and relaxed, and his gaze never stood still and perceived every movement, no matter how small. She felt safe and protected at his side.
With her hands buried in her trouser pockets she thought about whether she should take advantage of his gentle mood to ask him a few questions again...
"You'll start talking again in a minute, won't you?" he sighed.
Liz suppressed a smile. "What if I am?"
"I wouldn't give you any more answers than I usually do," he replied, brushing back the white streak of hair the wind kept blowing into his forehead.
"And why?"
"Because it's none of your business."
She remained silent and chewed her lower lip. Then she shrugged. "Whatever you say. That reminds, me, though, that I am not sure about that armour oil after all. I mean,good oils are really hard to get, you know? Sooo much trouble to get them."
"Then of course I should think about these answers again," Fenris said dryly.
"You should," Liz replied, then stepped in front of him and kept walking backwards in front of Fenris. "The oil that I will use is even available in different fragrances. Lavender... or something that smells a little like thyme..." His eyebrows climbed upwards. "There's even one with aphrodisiac properties," she continued, grinning. "It would certainly help your new reputation..."
Fenris accelerated his steps without changing his expression in the slightest, or turning his gaze away from Liz. Laughing, she spun around and ran a little way ahead to get to safety. Then she looked up and saw that they had arrived at their destination.
"I can't believe it," she gasped. "It really does look like a giant..."
"Yes, it does," Fenris confirmed her words before she could finish the sentence. "Do we move on?"
The path they had to follow was narrow and steeply ascending. Liz went ahead and felt the sweat run down her back. Once she had to climb several meters over loose scree and lost her balance for a short time. Fenris was silently and quickly at her side and grabbed her by the arm to stabilize her. She muttered a thank you and then went on, unconsciously placing her hand over the spot where he had touched her.
The following minutes passed in silence. At least until she said, "Fenris?"
"Mm?"
"Are you staring at my ass?"
"What?" He sounded horrified. "No!"
Oh well, hope springs eternal. She suppressed a grin. "Really?"
"Damn, woman, I'm trying not to fall backwards down that cursed path again," he growled. "I am not staring at your ass."
She sighed. "So you don't like it."
It was quiet for a moment, then he answered: "I... didn't say that."
Liz gaped in surprise. Her heart leapt. "So you do like it?" Her butt was one of the few parts of her body that she was really proud of, so - !
"I didn't say that either."
He drove her crazy. In a good way, though.
When the path reached flat ground again half an hour later, they both breathed up at the same time and looked around. Not far away from them, Liz saw the entrance to the cave waiting for her like a gaping hole in the rock. As they stood in front of it, she turned to Fenris.
"Better let me speak to Ben alone."
He frowned. "What for?"
"I don't want you to get into any trouble. Who knows with whom Ben has entrenched himself there," she calmly explained.
"I won't let you go in there alone," he replied immediately.
"Fenris, please. If anything happens, I'll scream, and you know how sweet and loud my voice can sound."
"No!
"Why so many Nos" she said. "There are other ownderful words like Yes, and like You are totally right and so wonderful, Liz - okay, listen, I know Ben and I can take care of myself..."
"Says the woman who asked me to accompany her to look after her," he replied scornfully. „And almost dies the first time I met her."
Liz hesitated, then sighed. "You won't be persuaded, will you?"
His smile flashed briefly, sharply and dangerously and made her knees go wobbly. "Not in this lifetime."
"Well, that makes two of us," she murmured and turned to the cave entrance. "Very well, Ser Bodyguard, let's go."
Darkness and cold hit them as they entered the cave. It smelled of moss and wood, because the roots of the trees above them had dug deep into the ground. The soft sound of trickling water was in the air, and their hands, which glided along the cave wall, stroked over moisture.
The cave expanded after only a few steps, and the ceiling opened up into the sky in some parts. Sunlight seeped into the room here and there. The sight was peaceful, as was the silence that prevailed - apart from the soft sound of water running somewhere, in silent, small streams.
A sound could be heard from the cave entrance. Fenris' gaze immediately back. Liz looked back as well, but Fenris' body covered herview.
He turned back around very slowly. Her neck hair stood up when she saw the expression in his eyes.
Then Fenris asked, very gently, very quietly and thoroughly threatening, "Why did a Templar just appear in front of the cave, Liz?
_
So while it took me 3 year to update chapter 6, it took me FOUR to get to chapter 7. I am so sorry. Though: I did get there. Yay!
Also, I discovered Deep L translator, got curious, put this chapter iin, corrected stuff - I had to correct a few things, but not THAT much - and now this is how it is. Feel free to point out things I missed / that sound weird!
See you around. This year, hopefully!
