War

Hello hello, I'm so very amazed at my sudden review jump. It makes me very happy! So long as I get responses like that I'll keep writing this along ^^. This one is sort of sweet like the last one, and I'm sorry to say she gets a little weepy again, but she tuffs it up, I promise. Anyway, thx again for all the wonderful support guys, keep it up! (oh and I promise some smut soon too...like next chapter soon)




11
Catherine didn't think her backside could hurt any worse than it did now. The lumber of the horse made her wince every time he stepped, but she refused to complain. The sun was close to setting, she hoped Azel would break for camp soon, or else she was sure to find herself crippled. He on the other hand seemed unaffected. Their day had been long and boring. She managed to sleep until noon at least before Azel woke her for a stop for some water and a bit of food. She had stretched and first realized then how stiff and sore she was from the saddle. They didn't really talk much, Azel she found wasn't much for talking on these trips, she decided he had traveled many of them. From that point on she found it impossible to sleep, and instead watched the world past by her at a slow trot. He had taken it down into a walk a little before the sun reached the horizon; it was halfway peeking over the land now. Bugs of every kind were beginning to swarm in the thick forest and she could hear bats flapping their wings in the start of their evening meals. It didn't bother her much, if anything she was calmed by the quiet surroundings of dusk. He pulled the reins to a halt and slid out of the saddle. Catherine sighed and did the same with some help, wincing from the pain before stretching as far as her body would allow. He ignored her discomfort however and proceeded to untie their things from the saddle. She looked about herself at her evening stead. It was a plain spot, a bit more open than the surrounding forest but nothing of true specialty. She could hear water not far from them, most likely just through some brush. She decided that she should clear the ground so Azel had a better place to work. She set to kicking away sticks and rocks and any other offensive material with her feet.

"Could you be any louder?"

Catherine glanced at him from over her shoulder. He wasn't looking at her, just making a statement towards her as he tied his stallion. She stopped her 'helpfulness' and looked despondently at the ground. He walked to her, tent bundle in hand and gave it to her.

"Set up the tent, I'm going to find some food. Stay quiet or you'll scare everything away."

He didn't wait for her to respond, he only gathered his bow and quiver and went on his way. She found it interesting that he could walk across the forest floor and still not make a sound. She stared at the heavy bundle in her arms. Sturdy wooden poles with elaborate holes and straps for ropes wrapped in a forest green canvas that was neatly folded and tied. She undid the knot and set the rope aside along with the canvas as she slid out the wooden poles. Two of them were medium sized poles with identical loops and holes; one was longer than any of the others with different holes. The last four she decided weren't poles at all but stakes for the ground. It was a VERY simple tent, she was sure the cheapest Azel could find. She fanned out the canvas to look at it, leather loops stood at the corners for the stakes, loops in the center splitting the fabric in half were for the longest pole. As she examined her task she wasn't sure how the two other poles were to connect to the longest to form the support. Leather loops were attached to the longest pole but she couldn't find a secure way to slip them into the notches on the others.
She decided she would do what she could, the longest pole slipped easily through the loops of the canvas. She decided she would drive the stakes into the ground to one side and lift the tent with the pole until the side was taunt, then she could decide where to place the support poles. She did this with a large stone, since she couldn't find a mallet in Azel's things. Once secured she pulled the side taunt by lifting the pole, the ground was softer than she had expected and with only a little tug one of the stakes pulled out. She sighed and set down her load to attend to the stake. She drove it a little deeper than before, doing the same with the other for good measure before going back and drawing the canvas taunt. The stakes tilted a little but didn't pull free and she smiled satisfactory. She measured out with her eye where the support pole should go and marked it in the dirt with her foot. She grabbed the end and began to decide how to connect the pieces. Their cuts were diagonal so the wood would fit together perfectly. She decided to wrap the leather loop from the longest pole to the support poles end, hooking it into the notch several times for good measure. She did this and stood it up driving it into the ground a few inches to be sure it would stand. She nodded at her work with a smile before doing the same with the other end. The tent looked half finished by this time, with only one side stretched and staked. She pulled the other end gently to be careful not to topple her hard work until the canvas was taunt. She staked it deep like the other side and stood back to inspect her work. As she stood with her hands on her hips she watched as the soft forest dirt gave way and her support poles fell to the ground, two of her stakes pulled out as they went until her work was nothing but what she had started with, a pile of supplies on the ground.

With a groan she set to it again, a little saddened by her failure and a little worried that Azel would come back and find her where she started. To do jobs like what she was trying to complete was what he had bought her for, she had to do it, or else what would he think of her? He wouldn't keep her long if she couldn't be useful. She tried again, but this time her poles fell over the moment she drove them into the ground. She twisted them and pressed them down with all the force her body could muster. She tried to drive them with the rock but nothing seemed to get them deep enough in the soft ground. Frustration and panic was mounting in her, she had to finish the tent before he returned, this was her goal. She decided the rock worked best, she could apply more gradual force with it rather than tiring herself out trying to twist it deeper. She lifted it and drove it down as hard as she could. The stone glanced instead of striking because of the force and the diagonal cut drove into the bottom of her palm near her wrist. She cried out in pain and held her hand, she immediately remembered that she was supposed to be quiet and bit her lip to hold back her whimpers. It wasn't too deep, merely a scrape but the blood flowed freely anyway.
She held her hand tightly as if it would stop the pain. All at once her mood fell, she couldn't saddle a horse, she couldn’t prepare a tent, she couldn’t even be quiet. Her eyes clouded over as she watched herself bleed, she couldn't hold back the tears. She had to learn how to do things quickly, or else he wouldn't bother keeping her, she knew this. She grit her teeth as she wiped her hand not-so-gently against her dress. She would finish what she started. With tears running down her cheeks she kneeled in the dirt and started working a support pole into the ground. She grit her teeth from the pressure on her hand, and she left red streaks against the smooth wood but she persisted all the same. She managed to keep it standing and moved over to set up the second. She just started working it into the ground as she wiped her eyes on her forearm. Azel walked into his unset camp, several rabbits in hand, but Catherine ignored his entrance. She had to finish what she started, it was her job, the reason why he purchased her, she had to do it herself.

"Cat what happened?" She sniffed but continued to work the pole into the soft ground; she refused to look at him. She felt if their eyes met she would fall apart.

"I got cut." He stooped towards her where she sat and reached for her hand.

"You're bleeding." She jerked away from him, raising her voice a bit more than she originally meant to.

"I'm fine, it's just a cut." He backed off of her for a moment before sighing and attempting again. She knew he realized then that she had been crying.

"You'll never get them to stay like that."

He grabbed hold of the pole firmly above her hands. She watched as the muscles in his arm stood out with effort, the pole sliding easily into a depth that she couldn't reach on her own. She dropped her hands dejectedly into her lap, her tears running fresh again. He left her there for a moment, she watched as he dug into one of his bags. He pulled out a strip of white linen and a square of cotton. She stared at her sad work and realized how unsteady her first attempt must have been. His pole he had worked into the ground was straight and solid, hers was tilted a little, only a few inches into the ground, the dirt spread away from the hole from turning it while twisting. He came back to her and knelt in front of her soundlessly. He took her hand and wiped it clean with the cotton, she winced, but he wasn't rough. Once it was clean he wrapped the linen around her hand and tied it off tightly. He inspected his work a moment before standing.

"Take the pot and get some water to boil, we'll have stew tonight."

She wiped the moisture from her cheeks and did as she was told. The water wasn't far from them at all, only a few feet through the brush, it was a small creek with clean enough water to drink. She filled the pot and walked it back to camp. Azel had already erected the tent to perfection and was putting the last stake in its place. She sighed; it was far better than what she could have done. She set to work finding bark and twigs to start their fire. She piled it up and found rocks to circle around the brush. Azel struck his flint and started the fire, the flames licking up the twigs and bark quickly and demanding heavier wood. He had gathered small logs already and began to build it up, allowing Catherine to sit for a time. The fire wasn't too large and he set the pot directly on the wood to heat into a boil before tending to the rabbits he had killed. She sat and watched him clean them with a skillful hand, his knife making short work of his kills. He dropped the meat into the water and let it boil. He went to his packs again and returned with a few potatoes and some carrots. He cut them up as well and dropped them in piece by piece. Catherine was still feeling useless, and watching him do what she thought she should do made it worse.

"I'm sorry." Azel didn't look at her, he kept cutting and for a moment she thought that maybe he hadn't heard her.

"Why?" She stared at her hurt hand in her lap, a little embarrassed to be admitting her weaknesses.

"I don't know how to do these things." He seemed disinterested, almost bored as he smiled, actually smiled at her words.

"You'll learn."

Catherine sighed as the aroma of the stew began to grow more and more appealing. He stirred it a few times before taking up a bowl and getting some for himself before pouring one for her too. She took it and ate hastily; she was starving after only cheese and bread from earlier that day. He didn’t eat quiet so hurriedly and laughed at her actions. He poured her a second bowl, finishing off their small pot, she felt a little bad for eating more than he had but she was hungry and refused to ride sore and hungry the next morning. He finished his first bowl as she finished her second and smiled at her amusingly.

"You aren't so shy when it comes to food."

She wiped her mouth on her sleeve, not such a proper thing to do but again she didn't really care, her mood was far too low to care. He sighed at her as if she was a child and moved towards her.

"You missed some."

Her body stiffened from his sudden close proximity but he gave her no time to react. He was just next to her, her chin in his hand as he turned her face towards him. His gray eyes glinted a strange orange tint from the firelight as his gaze fell to her mouth. He studied her a moment, her eyes wide and face flushed. The air in her chest hitched tightly in her throat. His mouth fell to the side of hers, a light touch that didn't seem right for his type. She felt a jolt shoot through her from the touch, she pulled away from him slightly but she couldn’t bring herself to really leave him where he was. His face was still inches from hers as she watched his eyes graze over hers, a cool, confident, calculating gaze. His hand was still on her chin, and after seeing that she wasn't completely opposed to him he slid his grip to the side of her face, his fingertips resting at the nape of her neck.
He pulled her to him lightly and she gave little resistance. She closed her eyes as their lips met again; she had never EVER done such a thing before. She had seen other women do it but she had never kissed. He was so light and gentle she thought him maybe a different person. He coaxed her lips apart and she obeyed, a little unsure of herself. His tongue darted into her mouth and tasted her, this startled her, but his grip tightened slightly keeping her from pulling away again. He slowed his actions a little, teasing her tongue with his until she relaxed again. He broke the kiss, slowly and reluctantly; she could almost taste his loath to separate. His cool eyes rested on her, cocky confidence in their depths as he stood and strode towards the tent where their bedrolls were already prepared.

"You'll learn Cat, I can teach you."

Once he was out of sight she let out a slow and shaky breath. Her heart was fluttering in her chest like a bird and she felt herself shaking a little. The sun was gone now and the fire growing low, she steadied herself and got to her feet. She hoped he would be asleep but she didn't think five seconds was enough time for that. She slipped through the tent flap, near crawling from the lowness of the supports. He was lying on his back; his shirt gone again and she flushed thinking of what just happened. She tore her gaze away from him and crawled under her blankets, facing away from him.

"Come here."

She stiffened at his words but knew she couldn’t refuse; his hand lightly rested against her side, just under her ribs, an innocent enough place to rest his hand. He pulled a little, urging her towards him, she knew he could feel her growing discomfort but she obeyed and moved towards him without looking at him. He moved a little to close the space between them until he was to her back, his arm about her waist, his breath against her ear.

"You're all right, nothing more, this is all I want."

She didn't quiet relax being so close to him. She didn't exactly like it, but like the kiss, she wasn't exactly opposed to it either. He was warm and muscled against her, she could feel his chest rise and fall to her back, his breath brushing against her ear and cheek.

"Sleep Cat, nothing will happen, we leave again at dawn."

She relaxed a little, his voice was light and coaxing, she didn't know he could carry such a tone. She listened as his breathing grew steady, her own heart slowing for sleep. She closed her eyes and finally let sleep take her, secretly relishing in his arm about her small body.

Image of tent here if you're confused. Just a basic, simple tent, not much to it.
http://s44.photobucket.com/albums/f36/JULIGAL21/?action=view¤t=TENT.jpg

weeeee ok another chapter. If you can't tell, Azel is having a hard time contaning himself. It won't be long now before he just explodes (giggle) Anyway, SMUT SMUT SMUT next chapter!! Will be up Thursday or Friday, hell maybe even Wed. nite, who knows! Plz R&R, it's your gentle kick in the arse to keep me moving.