The boy died with his eyes opened before they reached Wey Manor, his body already cold. By Northern customs, it was an ill-omen sign to do so with your eyes open; it meant your soul could not rest, and so the man in black reached over and closed the boy's eyes.
He felt her eyes on him as he led the boy and the horse up to Wey Manor gates and then jogged back. He climbed into the saddle behind her.
"Will he be all right?" She asked.
"He's dead." He said with no gentleness in his voice.
The shock sent her gasping. A moment later she processed his words and shook her head. "Dead? How?"
"You know how. If you'd listened to me. We could have avoided it," he answered in a harsh tone. That put the blame on her.
"Yujen's only two years younger, and barely a man yet. I'll never get to see him marry a beautiful woman, grow old, or touch the faces of his children, like how we teased each other." She spoke. "Am I responsible for his death?" She choked back tears, but soon they came flooding out.
Denial the first stages of grief. He wondered if she learned to cry without making a sound, for she kept wiping her eyes, but he heard no cries.
She clutched at her chest and let out a breath. It hurt her deeply, the boys' death but her cries never came out. Only a sadness in her eyes. His hardened exterior changed. "He gave his life for yours. Remember that. Live to fulfill it." That's the most he could say. There's no comfort, only blame. "We could have avoided this."
She did not speak it, but the girl stared at the Wey Manor gates for a long time. She took deep breaths and clutched to her chest. He sensed she was saying goodbye to the boy, her Father, and home. As she should for this moment would be the last time she'd see this place again. They both watched the horse approach the gates. A lamp turned on.
"Who's there?" The gatekeeper call out.
He pulled the reins on his horse and took off into the night.
With the soldiers of Biah after them, he took the path through the mountains. These Northern mountains were treacherous and sat covered with dense trees. Trees that stood higher than any he'd seen even in his home. The only way you could get a glimpse of the top would be to lay flat on your back. They had a sinister feel to them, like they were starved for light and absorbed every bit that shone through, and with only a crescent of moonlight tonight it would be pitch dark.
A path too dangerous to use, but the lack of light was the least of your worries. Once you ascended the mountain, the road grew narrow, and a misstep on the loose gravel could send you over the edge to your death. The soldiers could not follow them. Not up this way for sure.
When they reached a high enough distance for the woman, Ryas found an open cave carved into the mountainside. They'd rest there for the night. The size of this cave would be enough to take shelter in and build a small fire. He would send word to Zehan tonight, and when daylight came, they would descend the mountain.
It'd take additional time, but they could continue through the mountain range to get to Murai, the last Northern City outside of the Ethereal Forest. He would meet Zehan outside of Murai, then head to the Southern Kingdom, where he hoped to be free of this woman. She seemed to bring him only complications and discomfort.
At the mouth of the cave, Ryas slid down from his horse - the frozen ground crunched beneath his feet. He looked up at the girl sitting on the horse, still out of it. He could see her torn dress and what little left, barely covered her body and both heels gone. "Come here." he pulled the girl down by her waist, and she fell right into his arms.
She struggled against him. "I can walk," she told him.
"No. The grounds frosted over and you have no shoes, your feet will freeze. Then we'll have more complications. You already made a poor decision tonight. Put your ego aside and don't add to it." Ryas carried her into the cave.
The girl weighed in his arms and stood taller than half of the woman in the Northern Kingdom, but he wouldn't consider her large. Women from his homeland were much taller. He still towered about a foot in a half above her, and when he carried her, she sat quietly like a small child in his arms. With little to no clothes left and cold to the touch. Ryas released his Ethereal Spirit - letting it wrap like a blanket of warmth around her.
It would keep them both from freezing. Strangely, being this close to the woman warmed his body and oddly comfortable. A fleeting moment that didn't last long. He lacked no gentleness when he dropped her to the floor. "I'm leaving. Stay put and don't complicate our lives."
She looked away and said nothing to him.
Ryas left for a while, and when he returned, he didn't feel the need to acknowledge her. Still irritated from how things had gone tonight, he built a fire and sat on the other side away from the girl. The second fire he started tonight to save her. Every once in a while she would glance over as though she waited for his words, but he said nothing. She looked different after the beating and every time those eyes looked over in his direction, guilt for not being able to protect her pressed down on his chest, causing him discomfort.
She must have thought he would at least tell her he came back, because Ryas could see her looking at him eagerly, but he acted cold and ignored the girl as though she weren't there.
He already freed her from that bastard of a fiancé and done enough. Words of comfort? It will not happen. Nor would he give her that. The girl made poor decisions, and that irritated him.
Ryas didn't know the woman but risked more than he thought rational to save her, and the terrible choices she made turned the mission into a shit show. He regretted his choice to help her father and glared over at the girl. This startled her and she scooted back further towards the cave walls.
He scuffled loudly. The girl rose and made eye contact with him. Idiot. He turned his head sideways. She should move closer to the fire for warmth, not further away. When he looked over at her again, she sat there looking at him intensively. Then suddenly slumped backwards and turned over.
Little sniffles filled the cave, and he knew she turned away to cry. Ryas didn't care to comfort her. She needed to own up to her mistakes. He hoped this would make her wiser.
After a while she no longer moved or cried, but lie asleep curled up in the corner. Locks of long black hair tangled together as it lay flipped over her head in a mess.
The sniffles she made drowned out by the gurgled breaths that followed. At first, he tried to ignore them, but the sounds coming from her grew louder and constant. He walked over and stared down. Slightly nudged her head with the tip of his boot, and the noises stopped. Good. He walked back over towards the fire and took a seat. That heavy mouth breathing stopped. It annoyed him people who snored. It disrupted his sleep and he could barely get enough sleep already.
He fanned his cloak out, ready to get a few hours of sleep in, when the gentle breaths she made suddenly stopped.
Shit, she took a terrible beating from that asshole husband earlier. Could she be dead? Maybe her lungs collapsed? Or drowned in her own blood? A chill ran down his back and he briskly walked over. Bent down, lifted the girl's head to his ear.
Ryas didn't notice because of how fast it happened, but he exhaled in relief. Yes, she was still alive. Her breaths struggled in and out through both nostrils.
She did not even stir when he scooped her into his arms. He cradled her cold, almost rigid body and looked down. Ryas pulled the girl's head up against his chest and released his ethereal spirit, then placed his cloak around her. Strands of black hair fell over her face again, and he brushed it aside. He acted like an asshole earlier towards her and she did not deserve it.
Two, maybe three centuries passed since he'd been this close to a woman or touched one. Only his mother and younger sister, but it that's fifteen years ago and a different touch. He forgot how delicate women were and pushed more hair aside, exposing her entire face. Bruises scattered and swelled across the girl's face, and the parts that cut opened crusted with blood.
He'd seen the dead and mangled bodies of hundreds of women throughout his life and built an immunity to it, but when he looked down at this girl, thoughts of her stirred his curious mind. Who was she? What sort of life did she live to end up this way?
Ryas felt his chest tighten and swallowed. All the emotions he experienced from the moment he lifted this woman's veil to now were foreign to him. He acknowledged, let them passed and tried to recall what she looked like before. What came to mind were dark features and honey eyes like that of a tigress.