Work Text:
It’s a moonless night, just an hour past midnight. The air is warm –although much cooler than it is during the day– and a light fog covers the streets. It’s the perfect night for a journey.
Asra stands in the middle of the small living area above the shop; bag packed with only the essentials and his hat resting next to Faust on a nearby chair. The only thing left to do is to reinforce the protection ward on the door before he leaves. Instead, he continues to stand unmoving, watching the figure lying asleep in the bed across the room.
The woman, his apprentice, is lying on her side with her back to Asra, the bottom half of her legs tangled in the blanket. She doesn’t normally move much in her sleep, but tonight she seems restless. He hopes a nightmare isn't the cause, although it’s been a couple of months since she last experienced one. Even so, he is reluctant to leave her alone; not only because he fears the trouble she will get into in his absence, but also because he knows how it makes her feel. And, if Asra is being honest, he feels the same way. He doesn’t want to leave, doesn’t want to say goodbye and not return home for weeks at a time, but he has to. He has questions that need answers and he won’t get those answers by staying in Vesuvia.
But, that’s only half the truth.
He is becoming too comfortable around her; too loose with his affections and he is afraid she’s noticed. Afraid that she’s caught him gazing at her more than once or noticed that his touches linger longer than they should (though he tries so hard to hide his feelings).
Slowly, quietly, Asra makes his way towards the bed, taking care not to step on any creaky floorboards.
He should get going, should start his journey and hope that the weeks he spends away this time will all be worth it. But he really doesn’t want to leave yet.
The figure begins to stir and Asra stiffens, frozen in place. The woman turns onto her other side - Asra now having a clear view of her face. ‘She looks so sad’ he thinks. She knew he would be leaving soon.
In a few hours, when she wakes up, he will be gone - should be gone. Although, if he stays any longer…
Very carefully, when he’s sure she’s settled, Asra leans down and gently brushes his lips against her cheek. The kiss is mothwing light, his lips barely touching her skin. He lingers like that for a moment, silently watching her face, before reluctantly pulling away.
“I’ll miss you,” he says so quietly, it’s barely a whisper.
Silently, once again doing his best to avoid the creaky floorboards, Asra gathers his bag, his hat, and Faust, and leaves the shop, making sure to strengthen the protection spell on the door before he goes.