The Crow
Prologue: Mates
It was an early winter and the villagers were worried that they might not have enough food for the winter. The sun shone bleakly over the white landscape trying desperately to push through the swirling clouds to warm the frozen land.
Aly shivered and rubbed her arms as she watched the household wake and start their morning. Her eyes drifted over towards a certain bench where a dark haired young man was already starting his day's work while munching on something crunchy and what she suspected was a bug.
A wonderful smell drifted from the kitchens and Aly licked her chapped lips in delight. Of course it wasn't some sort of rich delicacy, as it was winter and the food needed to be rationed if it was going to last until spring. Yawning and stretching her hands over her head and arching her back Aly made her way tiredly to the Great Hall for breakfast, all too aware of the dark eyes watching her from across the courtyard.
The Hall was alive with people bustling around getting plates and hot porridge. Aly quickly got her own small portion and sat down at one of the many benches, her eyes casually going over the faces of the people near her.
Eating slowly as to savour the feel of food in her mouth Aly then placed her dirty bowl with the growing stack and left the Great Hall to the cold outside. Her eyes immediately locked onto the carefully working Nawat and she smiled softly before walking towards him.
He was working with Goose feathers today and he was working much faster then when he worked with Stormwing or Griffin. His long fingers were deft and his eyes did not leave his work even when Aly stood beside him.
"Good morning" Aly said as she watched him finish gluing the last feather into the arrow shaft. Nawat smiled and lifted the arrow up to eye level before placing it carefully down and turning towards her.
"Yes, it is" he replied eyes dancing with mirth.
"What are you so happy about?" she asked while sitting down in a clean spot on the bench. Nawat swivelled around to face her.
"You have come to see me" he stated naturally his dark eyes looking up as a few crows flew past, his face turning wistful.
"Do you miss it?" Aly asked softly, her eyes too on the flying crows. Nawat sighed and smiled at Aly
"Sometimes, but you make me forget" he said his hand coming up and brushing through Aly's hair preening her. Aly leaned into his touch as it calmed her and made her sleepy again. "I like preening you" he said softly his breath brushing her cheek and Aly smiled before what they were doing reached her numb mind and she sprung up from the bench blushing, smoothing down her spiked up hair she smiled shakily and then quickly darted away back to the castle.
Nawat sighed his eyes sad, he then turned back to his work and pulled out a long sheath of black leather, which the crows had given him, they had found a dead winged four legger. Laying it flat he flicked out a knife and stared to cut into it.
~
Aly ran a hand through her hair trying to figure out what she was feeling for Nawat. She had never felt this way about anyone before. It had always been a game, she used to act just like Sarai until she'd get bored of a boy and go on to the next one. Clenching her eyes shut she remembered the feel of his lips on hers and she shivered, no one had kissed her like that.
She also felt so calm around him, and he was so interesting, she knew that however long they spent time together she would not get bored of him. Smiling she lent against the stonewall and sighed. All right so she liked being around him, she liked being kissed and preened by him, and oh the smell of him was like an aphrodisiac.
Clearing her mind she spent the morning going through every feeling she had when she was with him, why he made her embarrassed, and why she blushed and why she felt so flustered whenever she realised what they were doing.
Then it came to her with such a crushing blow that she almost fell to her knees. She, Alianne, was in love with the crow-man Nawat.
~
Now she wasn't sure how to act around him, he would smile and she would blush and turn away, he would talk to her and she fidgeted trying to keep her hands back when they went to reach out to him. The worst thing of all though was the way he acted when she could not act the way she used to around him.
His smile would falter, his eyes turned sad, his voice trailed off and it was breaking her heart to see him like this. Damn it! She didn't know what to do, she had never been in this kind of situation before and it was making her crazy.
And then one day he wasn't there on his bench in the morning, he wasn't anywhere and that made Aly worry, he had always told her when he was going away except that one time when he turned himself from crow to man. She searched the entire day, asking around trying to find him.
She resorted to asking the crows and they told her to wait, that he would be back but that didn't calm her down. She even asked Kypoith where Nawat was and he said the same as the crows his eyes glinting mischievously. Aly wouldn't speak to Sarai or Dove when they tried to calm her down, she would snap at people who got in her way or tried to talk to her. She needed to know that Nawat was safe, and to tell him that she didn't hate him at all like she feared he might think she did.
It was a week before he was spotted on the other side of the wall, shivering, tan skin a slight blue colour but a bright grin on his face when Aly raced out to meet him slamming into him and pushing them both off balance and into to snow. Aly kissed his fiercely, hands running all over him to make sure that he was not hurt. His eyes were alight with some kind of emotion that Aly could not place but she continued to place small kisses all over his face.
"Where *kiss* have* kiss* you *kiss* been *kiss*?" Nawat chuckled and captured Aly's mouth in his before pulling them both off of the freezing ground; Aly quickly gripped his hands and started to rub feeling back into them her eyes worried for him. Nawat nuzzled Aly's ear his soft lips kissing her before he whispered that he was fine, just cold and they both went back inside the walls and to Ochobu so that she could look over Nawat to make sure that he was well after his week traipsing in the cold snow.
Ochobu grizzled about saying that the crow was stupid to go off in the snow without rugging up properly and she gave him a few rather smelly potions to drink to get the blood flowing properly through his body again.
Aly stayed with him, her hands now rubbing his back, preening through his wet hair, she couldn't stop touching him and Nawat didn't seem to mind. He was exhausted and once Aly had led him back to his home with Falithe he was asleep instantly. Aly kissed his forehead, then his thin nose and his soft lips before leaving for her own pallet.
~
The next morning found Aly and Nawat sitting by the frozen fountain nestling together, Nawat's long muscled arm was around Aly and they snuggled into each other to keep warm.
"Aly?" Nawat asked his breath tickling Aly's ear and she was reminded of when they had first met in her dream. She looked up at him and he preened her hair. "Will you be my lifemate?" Aly felt a shiver rush through her body and se bit her lip trying to keep a smile off of her face.
Nawat was looking at her so intently and he was absolutely the most beautiful creature she had ever seen. His feather prints under his skin shone in her sight and she moved closer kissing his lips slowly and softly.
"Yes" she whispered and Nawat brightened, he picked her up and swung her around before capturing her lips in a fierce kiss that took their breath away. "But" Nawat stopped smiling and watched Aly expectantly "you can't go running off without telling me again you hear?" Nawat's dark eyes twinkled
"I like when you greet me though" he said with a small pout though the corners of his lips twisted upwards and he laughed.
~To be continued~
Written by Aramis Liora
Disclaimer: Tamora pierce owns the characters; I'm just using them for my own enjoyment
Next chapter: Learning
Sarai flirts with Nawat
Aly learns to use the bow
Crows warning
Winters grip is tight
(a little mobbing in later chapters hahahaha)