The nights where temperate in nature.. calm as was to be expected in this area.
The manor stood a stark contrast to the open fields about it. It had been placed with defense in mind, and only later aesthetically pleasing to the eye. Its owners held riches. That was apparent.
The most expensive of such was in the west corner bed room.
He’d been tasked two months prior to watch this woman. He’d gone soft for this particular task. The dark gray cloak swirled about his figure as he leaned against the dark rock of the outer wall.
The guards had become extremely predictable just in the application of their duties. Same routes, same times. Two moving in pair around the outer wall every four hours.
Two moving in the bottom floor of the manor, and two outside of her door.
Rotated every eight hours. So he had that much time to watch.
He grabbed onto the rock with his fingers, power emitted through his muscles as he pulled himself up the wall scaling it with fingertip and boot tip. his clothes were all gray muted.
He achieved the top of the wall and almost chuckled. It was covered in bits of broken glass and pottery embedded in the surface and mortar. But the wall was literally less then a foot in lenght. He simply pushed off with his legs as he toed the edge and dove head first over the wall. Tucking as he fell to roll on a shoulder and come up in a low crouch looking about.
The Hood he wore fell from his features exposing the strong jaw line, the Deep set eyes of dark blue. Black hair cut close to the sides of his head, but longer at the top.
He reached up pulling the hood back into its place, the cloak falling from his strong arms, covered in a variety of scars and old wounds.
Light flashed as a sash was drawn clear of a window.. the very one he had to achieve. He ducked back into the shadows of the wall and looked up watching the silhouette appear there.
Her shadow betrayed the innate beauty that she was. Tall, Slender, Willow form. The light played along her narrow jaw line, He could see her eyes in his mind.. emerald, framed with the dark lashes, slightly almond shaped, every time she blinked he felt a shudder in his chest.
Her lips were pursed as she looked out the window at the growing dark, as if she was confused.. or frustrated at something. He’d noticed this more over the past few nights.. especially if he was not in his perch before she went to bed.
She turned and moved back into the room from the window. He shifted and sprinted across the open grass to the wall of the manor. The same technique he used to scale the wall he now applied to the manor itself, his fingertips finding purchase on exposed cracks and crevices of the wall, boot tips following suit. His hand reaching the ledge just to the left of her window he pulls himself up slowly ensuring he did not brush against the wall or his clothes did not move loudly.
She was keen of hearing.. she’d heard him two nights past, a strange thing.. she’d literally looked right at him as he melded against the wall his cloak pulled tight to hide within the shadows.. That had confused him. He’d watched her supple light pink lips move.. as if she was about to call out to him.. or yell for the guards. then she’d pursed them gently under her slightly upturned nose and moved back into the room.
That night he had stayed perched upon the ledge, watching her more keenly than ever.. her movements precise.. yet occasional a stumble. This had kept him keen to watch further.
Most evenings resulted with her running a brush slowly through her blonde slightly curling hair, running it the full length down her back. First one side then slowly the next. It was ritualistic to him to watch with enraptured attention.
She was so exact.. precise with each movement. Even in combing out that silken flow of her hair. He had often sat just like this each night watching.. his head cocked to the side. He knew what was coming next. Her nightly preparation to sleep.. this even sent a shudder from the depths of his stomach through his chest. He didn’t quite understand what it was stirring in him as he watched his charge.
She slipped from the chair resting a hand against her dressing table, the same as every night. setting the brush in its precise place.
He’d moved it one night as he padded about her room as she slept. That morning before he’d slipped from the wall he’d heard her give an startled cry at finding it moved. She knew precisely where she’d placed things.. That had started a interesting game between them.
He would move small objects. not much.. just enough to see how much she noticed, and each morning he’d hear the exasperated sigh.. at first she would open the door and berate the guards for moving her things. He chuckled at that.. those dull witted individuals.. He’d caught one peeking through the crack in her door one night as she dressed.. He’d strangle not been found the next morning for change over.
This night.. though he left something different. A lilly. He’d had to do something whilst she dressed for bed.. as much as his chest ached to even watch that, he could not.. propriety demanded he look else where.. and thats when he’d spied them, growing against the wall.
He knew she would be drawing her gown from her full hips folding it gently and placing it to be taken by the morning staff for cleaning in its exact place on the chair near the door. He knew she would take exactly seven steps her hand reaching out to take the handle of the Armoire the light falling against the slightest glimpse of her slender rib cage. Her pulling on a simple night dress to sleep within. Pulling her long blond tresses from within the dress to flow down her back. Then turning.
Making those last ten steps to her bed, and gently crawling within.
He knew exactly how long he had, how long he did not have to look before returning. And in that time he’d plucked a Lilly and scaled back upon the wall. He’d took his crouched position in the crook against the wall and near her window.
His eyes gazed over her form as she curled under the blankets. tonight was a good night, she went to slumber with no tears. He slowly slipped through the open window.. the sashes pulled back. That was something that had become ritual as well.. each night the sashes drawn back. The first few times he’d had to angle to see inside insure she was there.
His feet made no sound as he moved swiftly but soundlessly through the room to the bedside table. There a single glass half full of water.. She’d awake just after dawn and take a drink of water.
He gently placed the flower in the water glass and turned looking down at her. His cool hand extended out slowly.. then stopped inches from her cheek and he shook his head..
His duty was to watch and protect.. what he desired. would never become. He turned and slipped silently back out the window. Dawn approached..
