Unquiet Slumber (24 page)

When Nathaniel entered the room, he was furious and grumbling something no one could understand. He quickly glanced down when he saw Tianna jump back from Gabriel. They all stared at each other silently for a moment, Nathaniel quickly realizing what he had interrupted.

Tianna stared at him confused. “What are you doing here? I thought you were staying someplace else tonight.” She swayed since her head was still spinning from the kissing.

“Obviously,” Nathaniel said with a growl. He stomped over both of them. “I’m coming to bed.”

He laid down in his favorite spot behind Tianna and pulled her close to his body, while Gabriel tried to recover from Tianna’s lesson. She quickly pulled Gabriel toward her so she could rest her head on his shoulder and put her arm and leg over his body. She whispered, “Thank you,” and she kissed him on his chest. He put his hand over hers and gave it a squeeze and let her snuggle in.

Nathaniel wasn’t sure what she was thanking him for, but he was going to find out from Gabriel first thing in the morning.

Tianna wondered why Nathaniel had returned since he had left with several very attentive villagers in tow. Maybe he didn’t like magical females as much as human. The thought bothered her more than she liked to admit given she was now in the category of magical.

Gabriel only had one thought, “
Damn
.”

Nathaniel hugged Tianna closer to him and smiled. He was glad he came back to the hut and thrilled for interrupting Tianna’s newest nighttime activity.

There was an uncomfortable silence between the three of them, since no one knew what to say. Tianna thought to herself that she would have something interesting to write about in her journal.

The next day, after a very quiet and awkward morning meal, Nathaniel pulled Gabriel aside. “Brother Gabriel.” Nathaniel bowed to his brother in arms.

“Brother Nathaniel.” Gabriel returned his greeting, never taking his eyes off of Nathaniel’s.

Nathaniel took a deep breath and blurted out. “What are your intentions with Tianna?”

Gabriel knew exactly what Nathaniel was asking but decided to toy with him. “What do you mean?”

Nathaniel growled.

Given the look in his eyes, Gabriel decided not to push him too hard. “You mean since Tianna and I kissed.”

 Nathaniel thought that a kiss had better have been the only thing he interrupted. Out loud he said through clenched teeth. “Yes.”

Gabriel knew how much this conversation was costing Nathaniel so he responded honestly. “Tianna is a beautiful creature and I enjoy her company. She makes me feel young. She even makes me consider taking on a new mate.”

Gabriel saw a distress appear in Nathaniel’s eyes that he had never seen in him before. He put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed gently. “Ease your mind, brother. Nothing other than a kiss happened last night. Nothing else will happen.” He couldn’t help himself from adding, “Unless she asks.”

Nathaniel’s posture eased, but he vowed to never let her be in a position with Gabriel to be able to ask.

Gabriel continued, “Tianna had never kissed a grown male and wanted to try. I was happy to give her lessons.” To himself he added, “
Although she doesn’t require lessons.
” He shivered at the memory of her kiss.

Gabriel was the recipient of her first adult kiss. Nathaniel about crawled out of his skin, and he had to breathe deep to calm his dragon.

Now it was Gabriel’s turn to ask the questions. “Why do you ask so intently, brother? What are
your
intensions toward Tianna?”

Nathaniel thought that was an excellent question and one he really didn’t know how to answer.

Gabriel knew that Tianna held some feelings for him but, based on the discussion of the night before, he knew her feelings were stronger for Nathaniel. They had a mental connection that he could never have with her. He had seen how they looked at each other when they thought the other one wouldn’t see. Now Gabriel also knew the extent of Nathaniel’s feelings and, worst of all, Tianna believed that Nathaniel really didn’t care for her.

“Nathaniel.” Gabriel put his arm over his brother’s shoulder. “Now isn’t the time for secrets. There must be complete trust and honesty between us.”

Nathaniel sighed in frustration. “Do you want to know why I was angry when I entered the hut last night? When I was with the other females, all I could think about was Tianna. I felt no desire for either of them and left without ever touching them. I just couldn’t get Tianna out of my mind. Until meeting her, I was enjoying my freedom. Now, I don’t even want to look at another. I’m not sure I’m ready to mate, but the thought just keeps popping into my head. I haven’t even kissed her, yet she draws me to her. I’m not sure I want to be tied to any one female.” He added quickly, “Especially one that loves to live in trees.” He peeked down to the ground way below him and shivered.

Gabriel loved Nathaniel like one of his many sons and this son was being stupid. He shook his head in disgust. “Mating isn’t a death sentence, Nathaniel. It’s just the next stage in our lives as males and as future fathers. It’s time for you to embrace your future and open your eyes to the possibilities. You must be honest with her and tell her how you really feel. She’s lost and confused and thinks she has no future with anyone. Show her that she has doors open to her if she wants to step through them.”

From another tree, Tianna saw Gabriel and Nathaniel having a very intense conversation. She was afraid that it was about the events of the previous night. When she approached them, they stopped talking, smiled, and went about their business. They seemed to have worked out their differences since she didn’t see any additional outbursts from either of them.

Over the next week, they settled into a daily routine. Tianna thrived and tried to do everything. She spent a lot of time with her newfound friend Hollee, who helped her embrace her Inari connection to nature. She was introduced to the younger trees in the tree nursery, where she worked on her ability to hear what the trees had to say. Although she never heard words, over time, she did have images appearing in her mind. The trees were trying to communicate.

When she wasn’t with the trees, she studied how to make the vine based material and how to braid the Inari way. She mastered both skills quite quickly. She was even able to modify some of the Inari techniques by incorporating her own braiding and sewing methods. In the end, she taught the villagers some new tricks.

Tianna discovered that the ear piercing was an Inari tradition and had special meaning. A villager received their first piercing when they turned an adult. After that point, they received an additional piercing for each special skill they mastered. Tianna was very proud when they told her that they thought of her as a lost member of their village, and she received her first piercing.

Watching Tianna blend in effortlessly within the village, Huon excitedly informed Marcus that he was positive she was part Inari. Although Tianna was beginning to feel at home and thought that she resembled the Inari in many ways, she noticed that she still stood out from the others. Her skin tone was too light and her body’s build, especially her pronounced curves and silver hair, didn’t fit the Inari mold. She hoped that on her travels to Haven she might be able to find a village where she would seamlessly blend in.

Seth was thrilled to study the Inari’s version of maps and tracking. He was spending much of his nighttime star gazing with Hollee, and she was also teaching him how to braid hair the Inari way. He was an excellent student and soon was braiding the hair of many giggling villagers.

Marcus and sometimes Gabriel spent their days with the young Inari teaching them about Draaks and the world outside their village. Gabriel would often shift for them on the ground so they could see his dragon up close. He even let them crawl all over his back, which caused squeals of delight. Tianna was amazed at how a feared warrior could be so wonderful with children.

Gabriel continued his nightly warrior lessons with Seth and Tianna. After seeing local protectors watching with interest, he asked them to join in. He was pleasantly surprised at how well they fought. They attacked in small teams but seemed to think as one. They used whatever nature was around them as weapons, such as vines, branches, or even the ground itself. When they fought in mock battles, the designated enemy, typically Nathaniel or Seth, was often wrapped up tight in vines before they even saw their attackers.

Both Marcus and Gabriel helped them with new team-based attack patterns, which they mastered quickly. Several times Tianna joined in on a team. She seemed to thrive when working with others and quickly picked up the ability to use nature around her as a weapon. Thinking that the Inari would be excellent allies, Gabriel invited local warriors to come to Haven to help teach his fighters how to work better as a team. Huon beamed in surprise at receiving such praise from a Draak warrior.

Nathaniel and Tianna, when she was available, studied some of the village healing techniques. They learned how to find better potential healing ingredients from the nature surrounding them.

While Tianna thrived in a tree-based village, Nathaniel continued to struggle navigating through the trees. Branches had to continuously reach out to catch him when he lost his balance. Given his uneasiness, he became a perfect target for the young villagers. The little ones would play practical jokes on him constantly to watch his reactions, which were often very funny. If Tianna was around, she would participate in these jokes and squeal away from him like the children. He warned her that one day he was going to get her back, but secretly he loved playing with her.

When Tianna wasn’t playing with the children, she was carrying one around on her hip. She obviously loved children and the children of Willow loved her back.

One cool night after Tianna was exhausted after a full day of playing, they all settled in the same hut. Nathaniel once again had managed to be the one lying directly behind her and was playing with the jewels that now lined the entire edge of her ear. They said she earned each one, but she thought they just liked seeing how her body healed so quickly after being pierced.

As the Draaks laid around in the hut talking about the day’s events, Tianna fell asleep. When Nathaniel saw her shiver, he snuggled in close and put his arm around her for warmth.

Seth stopped talking and tilted his head. “What’s that noise?” They all went quiet and heard a faint, rhythmic sound.

Nathaniel put his head closer to Tianna’s body, chuckled, and whispered, “It’s Tianna. She’s purring.”

Marcus said, confused, “She’s what?”

Nathaniel repeated himself. “She’s purring, like a cat. I can feel her body vibrate.” He motioned them all to come closer.

They all crawled over and leaned in to listen. Nathaniel was right. She was sound asleep but making a soft purring noise just like a cat. As they listened intently, she stirred. They all jumped back in case she woke. She rolled over and snuggled face first into Nathaniel’s chest. Once she was settled in, she started purring again.

They all tried to hold back their snickering, but Nathaniel wasn’t laughing. The sound sent warmth deep within him. Listening to it and feeling the resulting vibration gave him an odd sense of contentment. He pulled her into his chest even tighter, draping his leg over her hip. She wiggled contentedly as he rested his head above hers and closed his eyes. Everyone else went back to their sleeping positions, chuckling quietly. They all fell asleep listening to Tianna’s purr.

 At morning meal they teased Tianna about her new night time noises.

“I don’t purr!” she exclaimed. “I’m not a cat.” After a moment to ponder, she looked at Marcus and asked, “Am I?”

After all of the laughing died down, Marcus announced that it was time for them to continue their journey and they would be leaving in a few days. Tianna was very quiet after his announcement. She knew that she would have to leave sooner or later but she loved Willow and it was going to be very difficult for her to leave.

Knowing she was leaving, Tianna spent her last few days with Hollee, even staying in her hut at night. She wanted to give the Draaks a needed break. She knew none of them slept well when she was around because they were too busy watching over her. What she didn’t know was that they found her absence unnerving and everyone had restless nights, especially Nathaniel. Although he didn’t always sleep next to her, he found it difficult to sleep without smelling her scent.

At sunset on the evening before they were scheduled to leave, Nathaniel went looking for Tianna. He had seen her for only a few minutes over the last few days and he decided to find her so that he could escort her to evening meal. While he searched, he caught the sounds of her laughter and followed it to the waterfall. When he arrived, his body froze as he observed the scene in front of him. Tianna, Hollee, and several others Tianna had become friends with were all bathing under an open section of the waterfall.