Chapter 353: Smaller Reunions
For Ashlynn, the night passed with the most blissful, relaxed sleep she’d enjoyed in months. In time, she became accustomed to the hammock in her small hut in the Briar, but no matter how comfortable it was or how welcoming Amahle tried to be, the Briar never felt like home.
The High Fen wasn’t home either. Ashlynn had been here for close to two weeks and she had yet to rest as peacefully as she had the night before. It wasn’t about the soft, pillowy mattress on the oversized bed or the warm crackling hearth that kept the evening chill at bay. Those were certainly more familiar things than dangling from the ceiling in the middle of a swamp, but they couldn’t make a place feel like home.
Nyrielle’s arrival had changed everything for Ashlynn. Her lover’s presence provided more than just a sense of physical safety and security, or the soft comfort of intimacy. Now, she had someone she could share her burdens with. She didn’t have to be the imposing and strong Mother of Trees around Nyrielle the way she was when she toured High Fen City. She didn’t have to carry the weight of planning for their return to the Vale of Mists... at least, she didn’t have to carry those things alone.
She didn’t want to be rescued from those burdens. Owain might have thought that it was his duty as the husband to relieve her of all burdens but that wasn’t the kind of woman Ashlynn wanted to be at all. She had no desire to be a beautiful songbird in a gilded cage, kept for the enjoyment of a select few. She wanted to share her burdens with Nyrielle and for Nyrielle to share them with her.
With that in mind, when Ashlynn rose in the late afternoon, she asked Heila to bring company to share a late lunch with her. Unlike her previous visit, this time she’d made sure that the palace staff understood her need to replenish herself after Nyrielle fed on her and by the time she had washed and dressed, not only had her oversized meal arrived, but her guests had as well.
"Captain Lennart," Ashlynn said with a welcoming smile that faltered when she saw the ragged scar that distorted the bearish man’s face. "Things must have been hard for you since we last saw each other," she said simply.
Her hand twitched at her side and it took every ounce of restraint she possessed to keep it there. After months under Amahle’s tutelage, her first reflex had been to offer to heal the old wound, fading or even erasing the scar. But for most Eldritch clans, including the Clan of the Great Claw, scars were either badges of honor or marks of deep shame, depending on how they were received.
In either case, erasing them was taboo, and offering to do so would only offend the man who had guarded Nyrielle this whole time. And so, rather than comment further, Ashlynn turned to the other warrior who entered the room, giving her a wide smile when she saw no obvious signs of injuries, whether they were honorable ones or not.
"Virve, it’s good to see you again," Ashlynn said before gesturing at the small table in her sitting room. "Please, join me. Take as much as you’d like, there’s no way I’ll eat all this, even after Mistress Nyrielle drank her fill last night."