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Everyone was already resting on their bedroll when Aelys decided to take a look at how her braid was before taking it down to go to sleep, even though the only reason she had not taken down yet was because she wanted to make Maravix happy.
The memory of a lake she had spotted nearby came into her mind and, when she reached it, she sat by the side of the water, taking a deep breath as she hadn't built the courage to really inspect her new appearance until now. Aelys looked at the water, spotting her figure and the long braid falling over her shoulder, but, before she could really see it, she heard a movement from behind her, quickly turning to see what it was.
“Oh,” Aelys felt the tension in her body easing as she saw who was approaching. "It's just you.”
“Wow, someone is happy to see me,” Sal said with a sarcastic grin on his face. “Were you expecting someone else?” He settled in next to her, close but still keeping some distance between them.
“No!” She blurred out immediately, which was motivated by her embarrassment of the implications from that question being asked in the middle of the night but also by the inexplicable urge to not let Sal think about those implications with Aelys and someone else. “I- It's just that I thought everyone was asleep, you caught me by surprise.”
“I was going to but then I noticed you leaving camp, is everything okay?” His tone shifted, showing genuine concern in his voice “You don't need to tell me anything that you don't want to.”
“It's fine, I just wanted to see how I look with this braid,” She said while playing with the tips of her hair.
“I think it looks nice but you don't seem happy with it.”
“I don't know, I barely saw how it was and I don't think I would've liked it anyway,” Aelys felt that same gaze of when she said she wanted to feel pretty again upon her, but she continued speaking. “I just wanted to give it a try because this would be good for fights but I never liked having all of my hair up in whatever style it is, it always felt a bit overwhelming.”
“If you don't feel comfortable with it, it's not worth it,” Aelys shrugged in response. “If you want to, I can take it off for you and you can do the little braids on the side again, you seemed more pleased with it”
Aelys thought about it, she had left camp to see how her hair was and had just glanced at it, but thinking about what Sal said while she felt all of her hair being pulled back, it seemed a tempting offer. She nodded, without saying anything, she turned her back to him, the long braid grazing lightly on his lap.
Sal started slowly and gently, taking his time to undo the braid. The strokes of his hands on Aelys’ hair kept always tender, making her close her eyes and enjoy the moment, the closest she felt to relaxation in months. His hands moved carefully, contained as if it was avoiding touching her while simultaneously longing for more, wondering what it would be like to sweep her hair aside and place a kiss on her shoulder, how would she react. But he didn't want to trespass any boundary, so this stayed only in his imagination.
“You know,” He said while combing her hair with his finger. “I think you look your best in whatever makes you feel more comfortable.”
“Maybe, I don't know,” Aelys glanced at the starry sky above them. “I don't think that the Aelys from a year ago would agree with you but…”
“I don't think the Aelys from a year ago would’ve let me near her hair,” Aelys chuckled at that. She could've tried to deny it, to defend her old self, but she knew he was right, he knew her and that brought some comfort to her. “So keep your mind open.”
When Sal ended, her long white hair fell along her back. Aelys turned to him again, a shy smile but that she couldn't hide even if she wanted to and Sal mirrored her expression, as he watched her start to do the little braids. As the hairstyle was finished, some strands of hair were still loose in the front of her face and, before he could stop himself, he tucked it behind her ears. Their eyes met, the bright green encountering the icy blue made it seemed like the world stopped and they were the only beings in it, his hand not leaving her hair.
“I really wish you could see the way I see you,” Sal murmured, only being heard by Aelys because of the distance between them, and it was true, as he looked into the depth of her eyes, the window to the mind, it was not right that she could see all the good things that he'd always seen on her. He could swear that, for an instant, Her eyes left Sal's and moved to the lower part of his face, but that was quickly interrupted by the arrival of a third person.
“There you are! I just woke up and…” Maravix’ voice died down when she clocked Sal’s presence, crossing her arm. “Just like clockwork, Salvador, every time I lose sight of my sister, you are with her.”
“Can't I enjoy your sister’ presence, Maravix?” A smirk was across his face, as Aelys turned her face towards the ground, trying to hide the flush on her face.
“You could start enjoying it at any hour that is not when we need to rest, come on, you two, let's go back to camp” Maravix said, starting to lead their way back to camp, but quickly Aelys got up and passed her, going fast towards camp, which made her older sister shot a confused glance towards Sal, who just shrugged.
As he went towards camp, Sal couldn't help but wonder what would've happened if Maravix didn't appear.