1x1 Dragon/Color

[ColorCoffee]

The boy set the food in front of them. Valentine's mouth began to salivate. Her eyes went wide. She began to dig in. She tried to eat slowly to maintain some dignity, but being so hungry it was a little hard. It was only a matter of a seconds before she had devoured the soup and bread. She gulped down the water and leaned back in her chair satisfied. With warm food in her belly she was ready to find an inn and sleep, hopefully without night terrors. Her body let out a yawn signaling her exhaustion. She looked at Gawain waiting for his next move.

[DragonDream]

Prince Gawain: Robin Fletcher
He had no reservations about digging in, the warm soup filling the void in his stomach. It felt wonderful to eat something with warmth and flavor. When he finally looked up he could that Valentine was falling asleep sitting up. Every muscle in his body hurt from riding so much after so long not doing it, and he was still so tired that all he wanted was to rest. "Let's go find some place to stay for the night." he said getting up. As they left he waved goodbye to the barkeep, and she smiled and yelled for them to have a good night. Outside things had slightly calmed down, but there were still plenty of people roaming about. Linking arms with Valentine he set out at a steady pace, scanning the streets for an inn. A rather large building stood on the corner, the sign out front reading Nightgate Inn.

Heading inside he was surprised at how nice that the building was. Figuring that since all types of visitors came in and out of the town they must have need for a larger and nicer in. When they had gotten a room he plopped down on the bed, face first into the pillow.

[ColorCoffee]

When they got to the room Gawain planted face first on the bed. Valentine walked over to the other side and sat down. Immediately, she fell back and sank into the bed. A sigh escaped her lips as her body became surrounded in a cloud of comfort. She turned to look at Gawain. "So, what's the plan for tomorrow?" She was dreading the thought of traveling to an unfamiliar country. She was hoping it would be prolonged as long as it could be.

[DragonDream]

Prince Gawain: Robin Fletcher
A muffled groan escaped the pillow. Rolling over so he could breathe and speak he hesitated to answer, trying to think through everything. "We leave early in the morning. The terrain is fairly flat but we will still be pushing it to get there by night again. Then we stay there for the night and scour the city for a ship heading that way." he said simply, too tired to really give anything more detailed than that. Another busy port city was ahead of them, and he wanted to get out of Carahan as quickly as he could. It would mean he had a chance to change things. Even if it was a small one. At that point he was drifting off to sleep, unable to keep his eyes open. Gawain didn't fight it, sinking into the embrace of sleep.

[ColorCoffee]

"Well, I guess that means we need to get some sleep. Goodnight." She turned and looked at him. He had already drifted off to sleep. She laid on her back, unable to go to follow. Her mind raced. What was going to happen after this? What was going to happen when they arrived at Gawain's Uncle's kingdom? What if he refused to help him? What if they became stuck in that country with no help? What if they never made it to the country? What if the boat they get on sinks and they die at sea? She wasn't ready to die. She had her whole life ahead of her. The thought of dying and her family never knowing scared her the most. Thoughts of her family that she was so abruptly stolen from flooded her mind. She tried not to think about it. She rolled over and looked at the sleeping prince laying next to her.
She hadn't really given herself time to think about the situation she was in. Things like this never happen to people like her. She was just a commoner girl, who had unknowingly housed and helped the runaway enemy prince. The prince that she was forced to believe was malicious and out for blood. The monster who was out to destroy Carahan. The man whom she feared more than anything. He laid there, peaceful yet pained. Everything that had been spread about him so far seemed to be false. The worse thing he had done was kidnap her, but even then he did everything in his power to keep her safe. She couldn't help but wonder if her King wasn't as honest and true and she was led to believe. She wanted to remain loyal to the King, but something inside her was pulling her to the side of the enemy. Something just didn't feel right to her. As she continued to ponder on the thoughts, another horrifying realization came to her.
If anyone found out that she had helped the enemy prince, she would hang beside him. Her acts would be seen as treason and the only acceptable punishment for her would be death. Her heart stopped once she realized they were now in the same boat. They wouldn't hesitate to kill her, so at that moment she decides to do everything in her power to help him and save their skins.
As she continues to study the man she was stuck with she starts to notice things she hadn't before. He had changed a lot since the day she found him in the woods. He started out so frail and weak, looking as though he had wondered the forest for years. Now he was strong and looked like a proper commoner. She had never truly looked at him before, not like this at least. Freckles danced across his face like stars in the night sky. His eyebrows were furrowed. Even in sleep he was still hurting. A strand of his auburn hair fell across his face. Without thinking she took her hand and delicately swept it back behind his ear. After doing this a strange sensation filled her. Her heart began to pound and her face began to heat up. It was a feeling unknown to her. It got worse the longer she looked at him. She rolled over and stared at the wall. Eventually her mind gave up and she drifted to sleep.

[DragonDream]

Prince Gawain: Robin Fletcher
He was alone. Trees towered around him blocking out any light from the sky. Gawain shuddered. Even if it was just a dream he knew where he was. The Wyldwood. Few places he feared but that was one of them. 'You will never win you know." A voice sounded right in his ears, making him whip around. Quinn stood there smiling at him, looking pleased with himself. Clenching his fists he backed away. The darkness was closing in on the both of them. 'You know, this is a very familiar scene now isn't it? Did it scare you that badly Gawain? Come now, this is only a dream. It can't hurt you, right?' The darkness swallowed the other man, leaving Gawain alone in the darkness. He backed up against the tree, trying to stay away from the spreading wall of ink. Something reached out and grabbed him from behind, his head smacking against the tree. Blinding pain ran through him and he was grabbed all over by clawed hands. No matter how hard he tried to scream no sound escaped him until he finally pulled away...

Sitting up with his heart beating he rubbed his head, the pounding feeling still there. It had been a while since he had a dream like that. One where he woke up feeling like it had actually happened. There wasn't much time to linger on it though. Looking over he saw that Valentine was asleep. They needed to get going. After a dream like that the last thing that he wanted was to be trapped in the dark. It was only a dream... he told himself. It bothered him though. He could still feel where the hands had grabbed at him.

Looking over at Val who was still fast asleep he pursed his lips. Once again he was struck by the guilt of what he had done. She had been too good to him. "Valentine, its time to go." he said gently shaking her shoulder. Stretching out his stiff shoulders he got out of the bed and pulled his boots on. They had a long ride ahead of them, and he prayed there would be enough to distract him from his own thoughts.

[ColorCoffee]

She felt a hand shake her, trying to get her to wake up. Half asleep she groaned and shook the hand off, rolling over refusing to get up. She could feel the bed rise as Gawain got off of it. The rising sun shone in her eyes, forcing her to wake up. It took awhile, but she eventually opened her eyes. She rolled on her back and stared at the ceiling trying to get her brain to catch up with her. She sat up and pulled the covers off. She stretched and yawned. She was still exhausted from last night. At least the thoughts had subsided now. Walking over to Gawain, she tied her hair back and headed toward the door. "I'm ready when you are." She said looking at him, waiting for him to lead the way.

[DragonDream]

Prince Gawain: Robin Fletcher
[i]"Alright lets get going." Back out on the street things were starting to become busy once more. It was less revelry and more work now that it was daylight, and people were heading towards their respective jobs. Before they made it all the way back to the stables he stopped at a stall and bought some food for the ride, as well as a treat for the horse. Gawain knew a lot about horses and was very fond of them, and he knew that it was probably a lot of strain on the mare who wasn't really meant for all the travelling and running he was making her do. He hoped to sell her when they reached the next city so that she wouldn't be put under anymore stress and could be used for carting or plowing like she had the build for. When they finally found their way to the stables at the edge of the city he saddled the horse, feeding her the apple that he had gotten for her before he put her bridal on.

When she was tacked and ready he and Valentine walked out and got up on the horse. "One more day of serious riding then we shouldn't have to for a while." It would be a blessing to get a break from it. As much as he loved it doing it days on end for hours and hours was wearing him out.

Around midday he decided it was a good time to stop and eat. His head was swimming and he figured it was because he was hungry. They were right along the edge of the coast and the weather was nice and pleasantly warm so he steered them closer to the waterfront. Out in the distance there was a ship on the water, birds circling above it. Dismounting and helping Valentine down he just decided to let the horse go off and eat grass for a while. As much as he had ridden her he knew she wasn't easily spooked and hoped that she wouldn't just run off. Sitting down on the ground he opened his bag and pulled out the things that he had bought for them to eat. Bread, apples, dried meat, and a small wedge of cheese. Dividing everything up he handed Valentine hers and he began to eat, his eyes going out over the water.

[ColorCoffee]

They arrived to the coast, waves crashing against the shore. Her eyes widened at the beautiful sight. She had never seen the ocean before. It was nothing like her father had told her. Gawain assisted her off the horse and handed her share of food. Valentine kneeled on the warm, grainy sand and slowly ate her food. She was taking in the sight and burning it into her memory. Once she finished, she stood up, took off her shoes, and walked to the edge of the water. The cool waves rolled over her toes, the foam tickling her feet. A small chuckle escaped her lips. As she watched the tides something brushed up against her foot. She reached down and pulled up a sea shell, she was unsure of the name but it looked like a small trumpet. She held it in her hands and admired how the sun bounced off of the shiny surface. She used her sleeve to dry it off and placed it in her bag. She looked up and closed her eyes, allowing the ocean breeze to blow through her hair and the smell of the coast to enter her lungs. It was peaceful.

[DragonDream]

Prince Gawain: Robin Fletcher
Gawain ate slowly, seeing as how she was so mystified by the water. By the time she finished he was still eating, wanting to give her as much time as he could. For the first time in a while she looked... kind of happy. He watched as she walked to the water and let the waves roll across her feet. Unable to hide how good it felt to see her enjoying herself he smiled. His heart ached as he looked at her, illuminated by the light shining off the water. There was an inexplicable feeling inside of him, and he didn't know how to feel about it. Putting his waterskin back into his bag he leaned back on his hands. Rushing to get to the port city still wouldn't get them there before dark anyways. Gawain knew that there were farms and an actual road stretching for a few miles with lantern lighting for travelers. At least there were the last time he ventured this far. They could afford to stay at the water for a little longer.

After a while of sitting there his face was starting to burn under the sun, and he went up the water and splashed some of the water on his face. He figured he must really look the part of a commoner as much sun as he had been getting. Generally he was freckled anyways but he figured it was much worse now all things considered. Drying his face on his sleeve he looked over to Valentine.