Chapter 4: A Secret For The Moon

Wagons bumped into one another, the sound of chatter filling up the gray skies. Together with Thorne, Lily stuck out like a sore thumb against the monotonous hues of browns. She tugged at her hood, wishing she’d made it something other than a pale green.

Drivers jeered at one another; drunks littered the streets. It wasn't a pleasant sight to see. Lily weaselled her way through the crowd, trying to get away from the center square. She grabbed onto Thorne’s hand, pulling him after her.

‘We don’t want to stay out too late.’ she explained, still holding out his hand, ‘All sorts of bad things happen in the night.’

‘Surely they have guards?’ Thorne asked, lowering himself slightly to meet her eyes.

‘They do but you know how these things are…’ Lily peered into his helmet’s slits, unable to make out any part of his face in the dark, ‘Anyway, we’ll rent out a room and leave at dawn.’

She led him through the back alleys, though she didn’t really remember which way was the right one. It was easier then travelling through the crowds though. One way or another, they found their place: a small quiet inn buried in the corner side of the city’s poorer district.

Lily knocked on the door, it opened slowly. An old man, hunched over, looked up at them.

‘Ah, adventurers, is it?’ he said, standing back to let them in. Lily smiled politely at him and walked inside, followed by Thorne. The room was warm, she shivered off the cold as the old man closed the door behind them. Lily pulled her hood off softly, her ears poking out of her short hair. The man narrowed his eyes but didn’t say anything.

‘How many nights will it be?’ he asked, looking to Thorne for an answer.

‘Just one.’ Lily answered, sliding over the few remaining coins in her pouch.

‘Passing through then,’ the old man murmured, reaching up to grab a set of keys. He handed them to Thorne, much to Lily’s annoyance.

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‘Rare that you see a party of two,’ he went on, ‘Less people have been adventuring out here since the undead king’s arrival.’

‘Undead king?’ Thorne asked, leaning in closer to the old man.

‘Yes, it’s all the people talk about these days,’ the old man enjoyed the attention from Thorne, Lily was starting to suspect that there was a reason the inn was so boringly quiet.

‘He’s been raising an army from all over half the country. No one’s taking any action against him because no one’s sure where exactly he is.’

‘But we’re fearing the worst.’ He finished dramatically.

‘What’s the worst?’ Thorne asked, thoroughly engaged in the subject.

‘That he’s going to raze this entire kingdom!’ the old man exclaimed, banging the table. Lily sighed softly, sneaking the keys out of Thorne’s hand.

The two of them continued talking while Lily crept upstairs. She didn’t want to interrupt their conversation by asking which room the key was for, so she began to test each room lock with the key.

‘Was it counter-clockwise or the other way around?’ she muttered as she tried turning the key to no avail.

It didn’t take her long to find their room, she jumped happily onto her bed. It wasn’t soft nor particularly cosy but she was happy to sleep under a roof for once. Lily slipped under the blankets.

She’d left the door open, leaving the key inside the lock. Lily would’ve previously felt too uncomfortable to even close her eyes against an unlocked door. But with Thorne downstairs that fear had vanished. He would keep her safe.

Lily fell asleep.

When she woke up, she found Throne asleep in a chair. His helmet was facing the floor and he was still. She listened carefully; she couldn’t hear him breathe. It was probably too soft for her to hear. The wind pushed the curtains around, she went to go close them. Moonlight trickled into the room.

She turned the latch down and turned back to look at Thorne, the knight had let his hands hang from the sides of the chair. Lily paused, looking him up and down again, focusing on his metal helmet. She had a thought but hesitated.

She really shouldn’t.

Lily caressed his face, or just the helmet. It was cold and sharp; bits of steel had chipped outwards. She bit her lip, grabbing just a little tighter against his helmet. It was sealed tight against his armour; the helmet had partially melted to stick to it. Still, if she could just pull a little harder…

There was a quite creak. She let go, not wanting to wake him. Maybe it was for the better. She should wait.

But still, she couldn’t help herself

She pressed her nose against his face, looking down his visor. Still, the darkness was all that stared back.

Lily stepped back, breathing nervously. She was sweating a little.

She ran back to her bed, hiding away from her curiosities. This could be a secret between her and the moon, and nobody else.