Unusual feelings

Unusual feelings
We moved at a steady pace on the smooth ground between the trees and the riverbank. Birds chirped and smaller animals could be heard shuffling through the underbrush nearby. As the precious sunlight became overrun with grey clouds, I could smell the crisp scent of an incoming storm on the wind.




Caliban held the reins with one hand at my right side and I got the sense he was leaning away from me as much as we could. The colder it got the more I wished he against my back completely if only to steal some of his warmth. With the silence between us it became increasingly difficult to think of anything except for him.




And food.




After an hour of riding in silence the growling of my stomach began to sound like I was smuggling a pack of wild animals. The ache of hunger was an unusual feeling for me especially when it was this strong.




The privilege of growing up in a palace as a king's youngest daughter ensured I had food and drink at every whim. My mind went back to picnics in the gardens with my sisters and my mouth watered at the thought of platters of fruits, cheeses, and fresh loaves of bread. It made my growling stomach worse.




The king began to shift behind, and I turned my head to see him reaching into one of his saddle bags. Caliban pulled out a wrapped cloth and handed it to me. "Here, before you get any ideas about eating me."




Eagerly I took the parcel and unwrapped the last half to a loaf of bread. My eyes widened as I looked at it and casting Caliban another glance, he was ignoring me and staring ahead into the rolling dark clouds.




While he was distracted, I tore the bread in half and pushed one of the halves back to him. His eyes tore away from the sky to examine my outstretched hand with one of his brows raised in curiosity. I shook the chunk of bread at him and nodded as though encouraging him to take it. It didn't take him long to accept.




Although the bread was stale it was nearly the best thing I'd ever eaten in my famished state. The offering meant something as well. The king had heard my stomach growling and offered me food from his provisions when we were alone in the wilderness. He hadn't had to do that.




More silence filled the space between us. I tried to keep my thoughts empty as hours passed and the clouds finally released the storm they'd been holding back. First it was a soft drizzle, and then it was a heavy downpour that had me pulling the blanket up over my head and holding it around myself to get any protection from the cold I could get.




Caliban lead his horse into the cover of the trees, and we traveled there at a faster pace for a while until the rain was too strong and too thick to see through. I wasn't proficient with horses, but I didn't think they could see any better through a blanket of rain than the king could. Not when his kind had eyes born for the shadows.




"We'll need to stop and wait out the storm. This is only going to get worse," Caliban shouted over the thunderous downpour.




"By all means, after you." He grunted at my response before reaching around me and gripping the reins with both hands instead and steering Abaddon deeper into the woods.




The river we'd been traveling along split off into a smaller stream through the trees and the water was dark and rushing with the force of the rain adding to it. I was shivering as the wet and cold seeped through the blanket cloaked around me. The king leaned forward pressing himself into my backside which helped in warming me a fraction and I closed my eyes to only focus on warm thoughts.




When he pulled the horse to a stop, I opened my eyes to see we'd traveled along that stream until an outcrop in the land formed what appeared to be a small waterfall, we had just reached the base of. I looked around the area that might have quite serene without the storm. A clap of thunder followed that thought and caused me to jump in the saddle.




It might have been on instinct, but Caliban's arm wrapped around me as the thunder startled me. My body tensed but I didn't fight him.




The stream rushed over the smaller cliffside into a shallow pool below where fat droplets of rain added to the turbulence in the water. But behind the falling water it looked as though there was an expanse of darkness, perhaps a cave.




"Wait here," Caliban instructed as he dismounted and thudded into the damp ground. I shivered at the feeling of the wind on my back but stayed put.




It didn't take him long to disappear behind the rushing water after skirting the edge of the pool. I hadn't realized I'd been holding my breath until I caught sight of his long white hair reappearing.




Back at the side of his beast Caliban took the reins and led his horse to the driest spot he could find under a nearby tree and then tying him to a low hanging branch. Abaddon snorted and blinked raindrops from his eyes before dipping his head to the ground and start grazing on wet grass.




Caliban wrapped his massive hands around my waist before I had another second to register what was happening. "Will your horse be alright out here?" I mumbled what was on my mind to distract myself.




"Steads in Gwathendor are bred to thrive in the worst weather imaginable. Pay you no mind to that beast. He'll be happy to graze here." He put me down and reached for the saddle bags before nodding in the direction of the waterfall. "Just follow me and watch your step."




"Where else am I going to go?" I grumbled as my slippers were nearly sucked into mud as I began to walk after him. I caught him looking over his shoulder to glare at me and gave him an exaggerated frown in return.




Behind the waterfall I could hear Caliban moving within the space, but it took my eyes several moments to adjust to the darkness lacking the shadow elf nightvision. After several hard blinks I was able to see that we were indeed in a small cavern that dipped into the ground. Most of the ground was dry save for a small trickle of water along the left side of the cave that was steadily flowing back into the darkness.




Ignoring that I peeked over to the right where the shadow king was laying out the bedroll on a slightly raised portion of the cavern floor with the saddlebags leaning against the rock wall.




It hadn't occurred to me I was just standing there watching him with the damp blanket around my shoulders until he stood and stopped suddenly to look at me. While his face was void of emotion, I noticed his hands clenching into fists at his sides.