36. living in a society where their love is taboo au
A cold breeze rustles the dry leaves in the trees around the settlement and a wooden door slams shut somewhere in the distance, startling the women hurrying through the dark. She pauses for a moment, frightened into immobility, before slowly creeping forward again, keeping to the shadows of the wooden buildings that make up the town. She's heading towards the empty barn that sits on the perimeter of clearing, right before the dark, imposing tree line takes over. There is someone waiting for her behind the barn, on the widest side, in the dark.
Elizabeth is meeting her lover.
And she can't be seen.
Elizabeth breathes a sigh of relief as she cuts across the last foot of the clearing, now fully in the darkness and out of the ring of torch light that encircles the town, coming around the corner of the barn to see him standing there.
Raymond.
He is looking the other way, pacing restlessly in the dark, but when he hears her rustling skirts, he whips around. He lets out a ragged gasp as he sees her and rushes forward to meet her, grabbing her outstretched forearms as soon as he can reach them and pulling her roughly against his body. She lets out her breath in a rush as her body hits his.
"Elizabeth," he breathes, his face suddenly very close to hers, his eyes burning.
And then he's kissing her, desperately, greedily, just this side of too rough, his mouth working over hers like a madman. And she's meeting him kiss for kiss, driven as crazy as he is by this burning, sizzling helplessness between them, some mix of want and frustration and fear.
They could be killed for this.
Raymond rips his mouth from hers with a groan, only because of a physical necessity for air, something he would avoid if he could. Her hands remain gripping his dress shirt beneath his waistcoat, where no wrinkles will be visible, and his arms only tighten around her waist. Not for the first time, Elizabeth curses her corset, laced tight beneath her layers of skirts, preventing him from pressing closer to her.
"Raymond," she whispers, leaning forward to press her forehead helplessly to his, overcome.
He raises a hand to gently cup her head, feeling her smooth hair under his fingers, being careful not to dishevel her formal up-do.
"Damn these infernal rules!" Raymond hisses, startling Elizabeth, suddenly unable to contain his rage.
"Why can't we go before the council, Raymond? There must be something we can do!" Elizabeth strokes his neck, serving to both soothe and inflame him in equal measure.
"Because I am on the council, Elizabeth," he growls, not angry at her, only their predicament, frustration evident in his voice. "I am a councilman," he mutters, the anger fading as soon as it came, leaving him exhausted and hopeless. "And, by the ancient laws of this town, decrepit councilmen are not allowed to touch unmarried maidens."
It is Elizabeth's turn to attempt to control her temper, her voice coming out in a forced hiss, attempting to stay quiet despite her anger. "You're the youngest councilman in the history of this town, Raymond, not an eighty-year-old lech! And I'm not a young girl blinded by first love, I'm well past thirty! It's not my fault that Thomas died of an infection before we were actually married! Besides, what could they possibly do to us that we couldn't face?"
"They'll exile me in a second, I'll be thrown out into the woods with no way to fend for myself, and –" Raymond squeezes his eyes shut at the thought of what they would do to Elizabeth. "If they found out you were complicit, Elizabeth, they… they would kill you."
Elizabeth feels a pang in her heart at his obvious pain, not sparing a thought for her potential fate, and a fierce rush of protectiveness and defiance soon follow. She grips his arms tightly, staring into his eyes.
"I don't care! I'd rather die a thousand deaths than be kept from you!"
Raymond huffs a rueful laugh despite himself, gazing in wonder at her fierce expression. "Elizabeth…soft, then hard, then soft again…"
And he leans in to kiss her, unable to help himself, his lips once again moving helplessly over hers. Elizabeth breaks it off after an aching moment, however, while staying close enough that their noses touch.
"What if we ran away, Raymond?" she whispers, an edge to her voice that he's never heard before. "What if we just leave, get away from this cursed town and their ridiculous laws, and just leave?"
The last two words catch in her throat, sudden tears and sorrow overcoming her, and Raymond is tucking her head underneath his chin and gently shushing her.
"We can't leave, Elizabeth, we wouldn't make it far…they'd make sure of it."
She gives a little hiccup at his words and he rubs her back, trying to sooth, but it's not long before she pulls back again, wiping uselessly at her eyes. "This will never work, will it?"
Raymond gives her a long searching look, the reality of it punching him in the gut, tears gathering in his own eyes at the sensation. "No, Elizabeth. This must end."
She closes her eyes in dismay at his words, the ones she knew were coming, and turns to leave in a swish of skirts and tears.
Raymond feels his heart seize in panic. He can't lose her, no matter what the council decrees. Losing her would mean losing the best part of himself.
"Elizabeth," he whispers to her back, unable to stop himself from taking a step or two after her. "Elizabeth, wait!"
She slows to a stop and turns her head slightly, a sign that she's still listening, her hand covering her mouth to stifle her sobs.
"…I'll see you tomorrow night."
Elizabeth is frozen for a moment before she hangs her head, feeling the truth of the matter in her bones. She can't stay away from him any more than he can stay away from her. She gives one brief nod before she's around the corner of the barn and gone.
Raymond falls against the side of the old building, an odd weight pushing him over, something that feels strangely like inevitability.
They are doomed.
