Post by Lisa on Apr 5, 2010 12:26:44 GMT 10
Title: When the Lights Are Down
Rating: G
Length: 330 words
Character: Wyldon
Summary: He wears his own Yamani mask, even after years of marriage.
The tiny infant cry never failed to wake Kel even from the deepest sleep. But even before she opened her eyes, she recognized that there was something different in his wail. And she thought she heard shuffled movement – feet across the floor.
She kept a knife within reach of her bed. It was habit – this fief was more secure than Mindelan, and she’d never worried about safety there. But she liked security, especially when she was alone. And Wyldon had been in Corus for the last week.
Opening one eye, she saw movement. Shadows shifted along one dark wall; the faintest light from the window did little to illuminate the room.
“Shhh,” she heard her husband’s low whisper. By the steady shuffle of his feet (slipper-clad, she now realized), she knew that he was pacing. With their son in his arms. “You don’t want to wake your mother, do you? She’s exhausted from caring for you all day.”
Kel released her grip on the dagger’s hilt and continued to listen, smiling in the darkness. She thought she knew the range of Wyldon’s voice, from his commanding bark in combat to the husky tones he reserved for the bedroom. But this was a softness she’d never heard before – perhaps it was something he reserved for crying babies. Or maybe the love she heard in his voice was particular to this one child, this one son of his.
Ewain seemed to appreciate it, too. His cries quieted, then were lulled to a stop by his father’s gentle words. When he was finally asleep, Wyldon placed him back into the bassinette before settling in his own bed.
“Thank you,” Kel murmured, nuzzling up against him. “I’m glad you’re back.”
“Go back to sleep,” he whispered, kissing her hair.
Hearing the tenderness in his voice, she realized that it wasn’t something he saved for his son. It was something he saved for moments when he thought he was the only one who would remember.
Rating: G
Length: 330 words
Character: Wyldon
Summary: He wears his own Yamani mask, even after years of marriage.
The tiny infant cry never failed to wake Kel even from the deepest sleep. But even before she opened her eyes, she recognized that there was something different in his wail. And she thought she heard shuffled movement – feet across the floor.
She kept a knife within reach of her bed. It was habit – this fief was more secure than Mindelan, and she’d never worried about safety there. But she liked security, especially when she was alone. And Wyldon had been in Corus for the last week.
Opening one eye, she saw movement. Shadows shifted along one dark wall; the faintest light from the window did little to illuminate the room.
“Shhh,” she heard her husband’s low whisper. By the steady shuffle of his feet (slipper-clad, she now realized), she knew that he was pacing. With their son in his arms. “You don’t want to wake your mother, do you? She’s exhausted from caring for you all day.”
Kel released her grip on the dagger’s hilt and continued to listen, smiling in the darkness. She thought she knew the range of Wyldon’s voice, from his commanding bark in combat to the husky tones he reserved for the bedroom. But this was a softness she’d never heard before – perhaps it was something he reserved for crying babies. Or maybe the love she heard in his voice was particular to this one child, this one son of his.
Ewain seemed to appreciate it, too. His cries quieted, then were lulled to a stop by his father’s gentle words. When he was finally asleep, Wyldon placed him back into the bassinette before settling in his own bed.
“Thank you,” Kel murmured, nuzzling up against him. “I’m glad you’re back.”
“Go back to sleep,” he whispered, kissing her hair.
Hearing the tenderness in his voice, she realized that it wasn’t something he saved for his son. It was something he saved for moments when he thought he was the only one who would remember.