Napping in the Garden
alcove.jpg

Xanadu Weyr - Secluded Alcove

A twisting, darkly mulched pathway, leads through a densely wooded area off to a set of wooden beams grown into the landscape to form a set of rustic stairs. Each one covered in a bit of leafy moss here and there. Just beyond the path opens up into a romantic secluded garden cut into the wilds themselves. The aromatic scent of the woods is enhanced by the restful sound of a small waterfall splashing over a natural rock formation down into a mountain spring that feeds other water required points of interest elsewhere. Huge mossy covered boulders surround the scene, sparse flowering trees and bushes darting the background with their pale pink blossoms.
A few benches are set off in private areas here and there for the murmured discussion of lovers. Visitors are encouraged to take a swim in the pond, or lounge on the velvety carpeted mossy rock encasing the body itself. Several large flat stones stand alone just inside, allowing one to sit and refresh themselves by sinking perhaps just their legs into the fresh cool water.


Fall has come to Xanadu Weyr, and the candidates have been back from their stint in the wilderness for just a few days. Poor Phylicia hasn't had her day off until this clear day, though the sun doesn't make the brisk day any warmer, as it doesn't cast down beams of warm light. Her usual plans of running out to Tenebrous' garden have been foiled by the Weyrlingmaster and his staff, all candidates being restricted to the Weyr grounds. Rumor has been spreading that the eggs are getting hard enough to hatch, and experienced eyes put the range within the next month. And so Phylicia has come to the place that most reminds her of the tranquility found out in the deeps. She's laying on her back on one of those benches in an even more secluded alcove, though she lacks a partner for the moment to whisper things to. Hinae is curled next to the girl's head on the bench, while it can only be assumed Estevan and Ciaran are watching the path that leads to her little retreat as she dozes.

The fire lizards will, without a doubt, warn the young healer when someone else approaches her location, either with a mental clarion or a physical cue. Either way, when gingerly taken footsteps sound from around the corner, it should come as little surprise. -Who- it is might though. The master mind-healer that Phylicia calls father has certainly seen more comfortable days. The steps he takes are careful, as though he's in a bit of discomfort and the hem of his dark, healer's robe shows signs of wear and tear not normally associated with time in the Hall. The dirt and bits of leaves that stubbornly cling to the hem of the robe are testament to just how much time he's spent out in the wilds with his patient as he approaches his daughter, offering a warm smile. He doesn't actually touch her, to avoid any possible startling, but he does quietly call her name. "Hello there, Phylicia."

There's a bit of both actually, Ciaran glides down to perch upon Jaice's shoulder, chittering mentally to his human, while Estevan takes the more direct route, introducing his mass to her stomach with enthusiastic chirring and chirping. Phylicia wakes from her doze with a loud 'oooph!' as her muscles momentarily spasm. Leaving her a little dazed as her father comes to greet her. At first he gets nothing more than a grin as she rights herself to a sitting position. Give her brain a few moments to catch up… and there's the recognition that he's not quite as clean as he usually is. And that draws up the memory of the last letter. "Daddy." She greets, just as warmly with a slightly impish grin. "Hide really tends to work a bit better in the forest, you know." She can't help but tease him for the bit of debris clinging to him.

Jaice chuckles a little, holding his arms out. "I confess, there's a certain practicality to that coat I've seen you wear from time to time, and I understand why now. If I spend much longer down here, I'm going to have to invest in some new wardrobe, if only to save my current one." Then he smiles back at her. "You've been well, I hope? I trust the supervising riders aren't keeping you too busy with your chores?"

"Of course they're keeping us busy." Phylicia comments with a laugh, standing so she can go put herself in her father's arms. "They have to keep all the troublemakers busy." And of course, she's just been tuckering herself out so her mind doesn't have too much time to wander. In the next moment she's tucking herself against her father, wrapping her arms around him in turn. "I told you, when I requested the marks for some new clothes, it was for a good reason." Though in actuality, she did that a few different times. "What are you doing back at the Weyr?" Not that she isn't happy to see him, but with him here… her mind has to wonder if the man he's been trying to help is around. And indeed both Estevan and Ciaran are flitting back off to their sentry duties.

"As a father, I have to assume that you're not one of troublemakers, young lady," Jaice says down to her with faux-sincerity. She gets a firm hug from him before he answers, "Supplies, actually. We weren't at a loss for food, but apparantly, some of the medical supplies that your friend keeps out at the waterfall aren't good anymore." He wrinkles his nose. "Which is sort of a curiosity to me, because I've looked all around that clearing and I have NO idea where he's hiding them. We've been out there for days now, and I think I've looked at almost every single blade of grass out there, and there's not even a single medical kit." He shakes his head. "I don't get it. He lives out there, but I don't see…anything. I woke up the first morning we were there, and suddenly where were cooking supplies, additional blankets…and when I went off into the bushes for a moment, he somehow made them all vanish again."

Phylicia looks up at her father, batting her chocolate brown eyes at him. "Of course I'm behaving, Daddy. Do I strike you as a trouble maker?" She asks him, actually hoping he won't answer. Or at least maybe he'll forget about the whole fiasco that is the reason he currently has Tenebrous in his care. At her father's description of disappearing and reappearing supplies, it dawns on her that he's never been inside the cave. "You just aren't looking in the right spot." She assures him with an impish grin, not going any further into it. She pulls back enough from her father to finger at his abused healer's robe. "I would think that if you talked to the headwoman, she'd have a coat available for you, that'd be better than this."

Jaice rolls his eyes. "Not a trouble-maker indeed. Your mother would laugh, and I'd probably join her…" When she comments about not looking in the right spot, he sighs. "I don't suppose you want to help your father out and tell me where, exactly, he's got all of this stashed, do you? I'm supposed to be learning about him, but that's hard to do when he goes out of his way to keep me in the dark." He points a finger. "And I suspect that you know exactly what he's doing." Still, he won't press the issue. "Get a coat for myself? I've been trying ot get him to take HIS off. Metaphorically speaking. I'd never hear the end of it from him." He winces. "He already talked me into some better shoes, and my feet are about to walk away of their own accord in revolt."

Alright, so Phylicia has been the minor sort of troublemaker for most of her life. But a little bit of mischief has always been fun. Escaping into the forest - even at Boll as a young girl - has been a favorite past-time of hers. But to her father's plea she shakes her head and smiles. "Things tend to be hidden with Ten, Daddy. If you want to find where he's keeping it all, you need to really look at your surroundings." Just like he's likely learning to look elsewhere than some of the socially accepted norms as far as the forest-dwelling healer goes. But at the mention of his aching feet she starts to pull him towards the pond. It may be a little brisk, but chances are it'd still feel nice, were he to soak his feet. Her shoulders roll slightly in a bit of a shrug to herself when it comes to the topic of Ten's protective coat. There's a line she treads here, similar to the one she used to tread between Ten and Thea.

"I can accept 'hidden', honey, but this is bordering on unnerving." He shudders. "At least he let me call for a dragon transport out of there, rather than trying to hike out. I don't think I could have made it up the incline with my feet the way they are." He follows Phylicia's lead, even going so far as to sit down at the edge of the pool and extend one booted foot towards her. "You've been getting my letters, I assume?" he asks quietly.

Phylicia gives a look to that booted foot he offers her, and she laughs. "What? You can't take your own boots off?" She teases her father, though she kneels down, undoing the lacings and tugging each off in turn. "Handle your own socks." She notes to him as she eases her own shoes and socks off. She's she's confined to the Weyr, she hasn't bothered to put on her hiking outfit lately since it would only remind her of where she can't currently go. Temptation. "I wish I could ask him to be … less unnerving for you, daddy." But she's not going to stick her fingers into that pie at all! As her father mentions the letters, her face falls into slightly more solemn lines as she dips her feet into the water. "Did he ever tell you why it hurts to be remembered?"

Jaice snorts then. "No respect for the elderly," he calls over before bending his own legs and gingerly removing said socks. The blisters are quite visible, even though they appear to have been at least properly drained. "And I seriously doubt he would change for a situation like this one," he grimaces before slowly rotating over to the water. "I think a part of him enjoys dragging me into his world the way he has. I don't suppose I can blame him, but… " He hisses as his feet hit the water. "Empty egg, I wish it hurt less." he closes his eyes for a few moments as the pain begins to ebb. "And no, Phylicia, he hasn't, but I think I know why." He glances over at her. "You are loved. And you know that. You know your family cares about you, and when we tell you that we love you, you know it's real. I don't know if you're honestly old enough to have experienced…what it's like to have someone who you've come to know confess their love for you… to prove it." He purses his lips. "When you hear those words for the first time, when you… suddenly realize that they do love you… The feeling is almost painful. I can only imagine how he must feel. Love and being loved is like a muscle in a way… it atrophies if not used, and hurts the first few times you take it out for a spin… "

Phylicia at least isn't examining her father's feet. That's a little too up close and personal, even for family. Plus they don't look to be infected or anything, so a happy little soak is likely the best remedy for the moment. "If you keep doing it you'll build up endurance, though." She points out to him kindly, referring to the walking and the blisters. As Jaice goes on to explain his view of the situation, she leans back on her hands, looking up the blue sky. As she listens a small smile starts to touch her lips. "I would be out there today, if I were allowed further from the Weyr." She says softly after a few moments.

Jaice looks over at his daugher sideways. "With the eggs so close to hatching, Phylicia, it would probably be foolish to venture so far away from this place, even if they DID let you. It took us nearly a day and a half to hike out to Stormhaven once we got here. It would be a shame ot get caught out there when they started hatching." Then he sighs. "You've got that look on your face again. It's the look all fathers both love and hate. You know that, right? You won't consider becoming like…I don't know, something non-social and opposed to contact with males?" He smiles a little. "Will you tell me about him?" he asks quietly. "Tell me what you like about him? Not…as a mind-healer, but as a father?"

Phylicia nods in slightly grudging agreement to Jaice's assessment. "I know. But I'd be lying to say part of my heart wasn't out there, with him." Oh, just the words her father likely wants to hear! And then her father is getting a bit of a look from her, one eyebrow and one side of her mouth quirked upwards. "I'm not turning into Craftmaster Fraille." She says pointedly, but somehow with an acceptable amount of respect. Barely. But that slight smile she had before grows into something that borders on silly as she lets her weight resume on its backward lean. "He's smart, for starters." She says at first, letting her mind detour to the aspects that make him appealing to her. "He may no longer be my mentor, but I could still learn so much from him, just because it'd be a pleasant thing to do." She pauses for a moment, looking at her father. "Are you sure you want me to continue, daddy?"

Jaice grumbles a little. "The Craftmaster has her merits, Phylicia, and she went out on several limbs for the two of us where that young man is concerned. There's good to be had in all things, as long as you know where to find it." He smirks. "And don't lip off to it." Then he's listening to her talk and nodding slowly. "That he's an intelligent man had not escaped me either. BUt does that intelligence extend beyond plants?" He raises a brow. "Do I want to hear more? Probably not, but you should tell me anyway." He rubs one side of his face. "If he's going to be around for awhile, I should probably know what my daughter is running around with."

"I never said she didn't, but you asked for someone relatively un-social, who romantically avoids men." Phylicia's grin is a cross between happy and impish. "But you should take that sentiment and apply it to Tenebrous, daddy." Her hands shift on the ground, distributing her weight a little better. "I'd think it does." She says in reference to Tenebrous' intelligence. "It's just that… his terms… what he's willing to deal with socially… they're different. It doesn't mean he's socially inept." But she lapses back into thinking for a few moments. "He's courteous, and respectful." Or maybe that's just to her. "He's kind, and we could-" Nevermind the fact they likely have. "-spend all day together in silence." There's a wistful sigh from his daughter as her memories go trailing. "There's just … something there, between us."

"I should think 'clothing' at the very least," Jaice says dryly. His feet are stirred around a little in the water before he offers, "Would you like him there? At the hatching? Your mother and I had planned on attending, at the very least, and I can't very well leave him unattended." He glances over at her. "I gather that he's normally loathe to spend time around them, but perhaps for you…" He leaves it hanging.

The smile that Jaice gets from Phylicia then is probably not the most reassuring smile ever, especially when it's accompanied by a faint blush she's unable to control, though verbally she says nothing until he asks her the question. "Selfishly? I'd like him there. One way or the other afterwards, I should be able to come visit with you and mom, and with him." She pauses there for just a moment. "But that's selfishly. I'd feel better if he decided whether or not he'd like to come watch by himself."

Jaice actually winces a little at Phylicia's blush before moving the conversation ahead in a direction that's more…clothed. "Honestly…I'm not sure which would be better. I don't think I need to tell you that…" He sighs. "You probably know that he hasn't…taken well to you being searched. I susspect that it has more than a little to do with his past, and his feelings for you, but…Phylicia, if you impress, I don't know how he'll take that. And as his attending…I have to err on the side of caution."

"That's why I want him to decide, daddy." Phylicia says, her tone only a little strained, a little sad. "If he thinks he can handle it, trust him. But… if he doesn't think he can, leave him to himself for awhile." At the the thought of possibly impressing, her lips quirk just slightly. "So many people think I'll impress, and I don't know why they think that.." But the quirk of her lips doesn't last too long, her face falling into solemn lines once more. "I'm not there for him, anymore. Like I used to be." She lets out a soft, drawn out sigh. "And I want to be, I really do. But I also want to be here…" There's a pause as she lets the thoughts sink in. "I miss spending time with him. I miss his company."

"If you feel that way Phy, you need to tell him." Jaice's face twists a little. "He needs to be allowed to go his own way if you don't think you'll be able to continue your relationship with him, even if that way is…away." He lifts his feet from the water slowly, crossing them and turning more fully to face her. "No one needs mixed signals, Phy. Least of all him." He takes a breath. "And everyone thinks you'll impress because they know the same things about you that I do. You're good, and honest. Kind and caring and selfless. You could do great things from the back of a dragon." He spreads his hands. "And you could do great things on your own two feet. Regardless of how your hatching turns out, you will go on to do well in your life."

"And how am I to tell him anything, daddy? A letter won't cut it." Phylicia says, her tone minorly bitter. "But as we've both said already, I can't go out to the garden in the deeps, much less to Stormhaven." She inhales and exhales deeply, willing that bitterness back out of her voice. "In 'preparing' us for weyrlinghood, they make keeping in touch with your family awfully hard." But what she won't tell her father is that breaking it off would likely hurt the both of them now, even if the current situation isn't much better.

Jaice is quiet for several moments, absorbing what Phylicia has to say. When she's done, he murmurs, "And if I could bring him to you? The forest isn't that far away. The edge, perhaps, where the minecrafters and their dens are, or…maybe the meadows, near the treeline?" he leans in a little. "If I could bring him to you…what would you do?"

"I would…" Jump him? Hug him? Not let go? "Be very grateful." Phylicia says at first, avoiding the question for a moment. "I would talk with him." She finally supplies after a moment, honestly. "Hurting him isn't my intention. It never has been." But there's little else that she can say, or that she can do at the moment, other than go with whatever happens.

"We hurt the ones we love," Jaice offers calmly. "It's cliche, but only because it's so very true." He reaches for his socks then, beginning to unball them and work one down over a foot. "Perhaps the two of you will come to some agreement." He glances over at her again. "You understand that…if I were to do this, it wouldn't be for very long…and I would have to stay relatively close by."

Phylicia's head bobs in momentary silent confirmation. "Just… not within listening range?" Which probably isn't that big of a request. Her father might not want to overhear what's being said anyways. Though Phy's face is sad, there's a minor sort of inner light at the same time. A thrill of being able to even see Ten again. She takes her two feet from the pond at this point in time, drawing her socks closer as well, and a little faster so eventually she can help her father stand back up. "I hope so." She murmurs to her father, willing a small smile onto her face. "It'll be very nice to see him again, either way."

Jaice nods slowly. "I left him over by the Infirmary to gather what he needed for his little hideaway." He smiles a little. "We're going to make the hop back to Stormhaven on dragonback this time, rather than moving through the woods, thank the stars. I honestly don't know if I could handle schlepping down that embankment again. Not for another good long while." When Phylicia helps him up, he hugs her gently. "Whatever happens, honey…your mother and I are both very proud of you. I hope you know that." He leans down and kisses her forehead. "We both love you very much."

Phylicia's smile is soft as she returns the hug, letting herself be kissed. "It's not THAT bad." She insists with a small amount of humor, knowing full well how bad it is, and how unbearable it would probably be with blisters. But her father's words of endearment let a slightly wider smile take her face, accompanied by a small sigh. "Thank you, daddy. I love you too." Once again she seperates herself from her father, and moves as if she's intending on walking with him back to the Infirmary.

Jaice chuckles. "Maybe after you make the trip four or five dozen times, you get used to it." He settles himself a little before starting away from the little pool, his steps a little uneven from the blisters.

When it happens, it's quiet, a rustling in the trees next to Phylicia's head. It looks ot be nothing, a rustling of wind, but then it happens again, and little Truth can be seen, nearly invisible amidst the branches. She blinks owlishly out at the woman before she abruptly bleeds into the background again, vanishing.

Phylicia doesn't move at first, watching her father walk unevenly with a bit of a smile, giving her an appreciation for her own endurance, and the calluses built up on her feet. It's not unnatural for her to be quiet, even after such a conversation. So when the rustle of leaves catches her attention, she gives a momentary look towards her father … and then carefully slips into the trees, where she just saw Truth. Silently her trio fly out into the woods ahead of her. She doesn't call out, not wanting to attract her father's attention until she's a little deeper into the forest, though part of her wonders…

With Jaice ambling up the path, it's no trick at all for Phylicia to simply bleed into the forested area. What might come as slightly disturbing, however, is the fact that her fire lizards don't have to go very far at all to find Tenebrous. Golden Hinae seems to think he's back at that pond where they were soaking their feet together, her father and her…and soon, Esteven and Ciaran are reporting the same thing. In the deep of the woods, he's not even trying ot hide, simply crouched and draped in that brown, blending coat of his. he stands slowly when she approaches, making a gesture of his own. She'll not see them, but it's understood. His own little flock is out on reconnesance as well, searching… And Tenebrous? He's simply quiet. How much has he heard?

Phylicia circles back around eventually, a little confused actually that her trio is reporting him at the pond. But she goes to where they direct her anyways, blinking as Tenebrous stands from that pond. And it's a matter of a few elongated paces until she's at his side, moving to wrap her arms around him. Unlike the last time they faced each other initially, she's not waiting. "Ten…" His name is said more like a sigh of relief.

Tenebrous doesn't even blink when he sees her, simply holding his arms open and waiting for her to come into them. Then he holds her, rocking her back and forward slowly. "The mind-healer is a fool if he thinks he can bring me so close to you and then not expect me to come to see you. And double the fool if it's within an area like this." This, of course, being the woods. His arms tighten a little and he whispers, "I missed you…"

So it wasn't quite jumping him that happened, but Phylicia is now firmly tucked against him, and that is perfectly fine with her, as her hands go about getting their fill of touching him. "I didn't know you two were coming to the Weyr today, when I came here." She laughs in a mere huff of air. "I think daddy thought you'd wait there. We were going to see you." And his tightening of arms make her own tighten. "I've missed you too…!" And she lifts her head away from it's natural resting position against his chest, as she looks up at him. "How… much did you hear? How long were you listening to us talking?" It's not exactly something she wants to change the subject to, but it's also something she should know.

Tenebrous' face turns a bit more somber then. "I followed him when he went off to see you. Truth had been shadowing him since we left the Deeps, and when he excused himself from the Infirmary, I waited about a minute and broke for the woods to follow. After all, there are only so many places that a master mind-healer goes at Xanadu Weyr…" Which means all of it. "I hadn't realized that the mind-healer was sending you letters about me."

Phylicia's smile is a bit of a shakey thing, but it's honest and she's not pulling away. "So you were here all along then." She confirms softly, laying her head back against his chest for the moment. "Am I sending you mixed signals?" She's full of all sorts of quiet questions for him today. "And does it bother you that he is? I'll ask him to stop…"

Tenebrous glances around. "The forest is my domain, if not my claimed home, especially here at Xanadu, where I know it well." A pause. "Yes. Yes, I was here all along. As for the mind-healer's communications to you…a curious man would want to know what was in them. But as long as it's the truth, I don't suppose I care what he writes. He's entitled to his thoughts, even if they're backwards. And…" He sighs. "You are, in a way, sending me…mixed signals. I'm sorry, but you are."

"I should be apologizing then, not you." Phylicia says softly, once again drawing her head back from his chest. "In what way am I? I don't mean to…" She lets the topic of her father's letters drop, since they're of little consequence at the moment. Her lips press together as she looks up at his face, her face nearly as solemn as his is. "And did you overhear anything … interesting?" Its her try at lightening things up a little bit, maybe.

Tenebrous closes his eyes for a moment. "It's… difficult for people to give up the things they care about, the things that they…love. I can't be too angry about you sending said signals because…if I were in your shoes, I might very well do the same." He takes a breath. "Your life is…about to change, Phylicia. If you impress, there won't be a garden, or…trips to Stormhaven, or rendevous in the forest. Not for a long time." He swallows then. "And I honestly have…no idea how I'll feel if you do…"

Phylicia's hands have gone still on his body, though she makes no move to pull herself away from him. Though she's also just not moving much right now at all either way. "It might change." She corrects him gently, though they can't totally disregard the possibility she might. Hearing her father's words nearly echoed from Tenebrous' mouth has her closing her eyes to collect her thoughts, swallowing as well. "I don't want to give you up. But… I also have no control over if I'm chosen or not…" There's a long moment's pause, where she opens her eyes and looks up at him. "Do you … want … me to give you up?"

Tenebrous' expression is droll. "Do I…want to give you up?" One of his eyebrows slowly raises under that hood. "I think we both know the answer to that. And I think you knew the answer to it before you asked. If I wanted to give you up, I wouldn't have followed the mind-healer to this meeting. I wouldn't have had Truth stop you, and I certainly…" He shakes his head. "You worked on my garden while I was gone," he says in hushed tones, one of his hands coming up to touch the side of her face. "How could I ever want to give you up? What would I be giving up that would be in any way acceptable?"

"And you certainly wouldn't have let me find you." Phylicia inserts gently, before her eyes close and lean into that hand on the side of her face. She makes no pretenses. He could very likely still hide even from her in the woods, should he choose to. But now a soft smile touchs her face as her body gains back some of it's natural-yet-still type motions. "I did. It's part of the reason I only got out once to visit you. The plants were doing well, and didn't actively need to be tended yet…" If he looks carefully at her face, he might see some of the signs of unrestful sleep still.

"What would it mean…to give you up, Phylicia?" The question is asked quietly, Tenebrous' voice a little tight. "I don't…want to, but…if it comes to that, I think I'd like to know…what 'giving you up' details. I don't…know what I have now, to be honest. It's one of the penalties of…not catagorizing what we are. What…do I lose?"

If Tenebrous' voice is tight, Phylicia's first few words are positively strangled, after she spends several minutes thinking about it. "We go back-" And she coughs into her shoulder then, clearing her throat. "We probably go back to… something like apprentice and mentor." There's a failed attempt at a smile from her as she looks up at him. "We saw how long 'just one kiss' lasted. How I build up… associations with holding, with kissing." And needless to say, there would be no sex whatsoever.

"Would you still be my friend?" Tenebrous asks softly. "Would…I still be able to talk to you? To come and see you, if I couldn't sleep? I don't….I'd miss the…holding and the touching, but I don't…think I'd like not having you as a friend…" That hand on her face quivers a little.

Phylicia doesn't even need to think about the answer to that one. "Of course!" Her answer is vehement, though not entirely loud as one of her hands moves to cover his hand on her face. "Not being with you… would break my heart, but not being your friend… that would kill me." Her hand gently squeezes his, looking up into his hood.

"You have to forgive me if my instinctive reaction is to come up with a way to keep both of them from happening. I don't want you broken hearted, and I definetly don't want you dead," Tenebrous breaths. Lips move in to brush her forehead before he whispers, "I don't know how long we have before the mind-healer decides to come back here and check on you, once he realizes that I haven't stayed at the Infirmary…"

Those actions bring a wisp of a smile to her face, and it actually manages to stick around for a little bit. She doesn't seem to be disturbed at the fact her father could very well walk back to the two of them holding each other. "Or before he realizes I didn't follow." She points out, before impulse takes her, and very gently, very slowly she reaches up for his hood, looking to move it away from his face. "Do we continue on like this for now, then?" It's her turn again for the soft, tentative question.

Tenebrous doesn't stop that hand from moving the hood, and in due time, it slips back onto the shoulders of his coat. Neither of them appear to be sleeping very well right now, it seems. His face is only slightly better off than hers, and lines of worry have started to form on either of his eyes. "We can always move back into the trees," He offers softly, eyes drifting off in the general direction of Stormhaven. "NOt that…I care what he should think if he comes upon us. I know he's…your father, but the only thoughts of his that I want right now are those that let me go back home with my knot, unmolested…"

"Against a tree?" She offers, actually managing a little joke finally, though all of her actions scream more of an emotional need than a physical need. And her fingers reach up to gently brush at the worry lines starting to form with her fingertips. "What are these? You didn't have them before." After she finishes studying his face, both with her fingers and her eyes, she wraps her arms around his shoulders, both pulling him down to her and her up to him as she contents herself to simply hold him close. "No need to move if we don't want to." she murmurs into his ear.

"I had less to worry about before," Tenebrous murmurs in reply, though her comment about a tree does get a bit of a smile out of him. "I had…less to lose before." The pull down into her is easily managed, and his arms wrap around her waist to further facilicate the hold. "I don't ever want to move," he breaths. "I don't want you to move…I know you'll have to, sooner or later…but I don't want it…"

"There should be smile lines to go along with those." Phylicia comments softly, simply arranging herself until they're both in a comfortable position, and then they really do stop moving. Her entire body for the moment screams of pleasant contentment. "Well become statues, just like this." She murmurs next, her lips quirking into a small smile. "It'd suit me, to always feel your arms around me…" She inhales and exhales slowly, her body slowly starting to relax in his grip. It may be in the middle of the day, but the young lady seems to be fighting off weariness of a nap-worthy scale.

A smile tugs at the corner of Tenebrous' mouth. "They would…all of them probably panic…if you came up missing, wouldn't they." One of his hands begins to move slowly up and down her back. "And I don't think I'd care, honestly…all I want right now is to lay somewhere with you and drift off, Phylicia."

Phylicia is practically asleep in his arms anyways, a little man handling never hurt anyone. "Why not in this area?" She offers. "People don't usually start coming until sunset.." And that would be one long nap if they slept that long. "And it's peaceful here." It's a little on the public side, which for the moment is likely actually a plus. There's not a single rule against cuddling and holding, after all. "Just find a nice comfy spot…" Though from the sound of her voice, she's already starting to drift. He just needs to find somewhere he would be comfortable.

The base of a nearby tree is where Tenebrous chooses to make his 'stand' as it were, gently guiding Phylicia over to it and sliding down to the ground with her. His back laid to the tree's trunk, he nudges her between his legs so that he can cradle her form, opening his coat and pulling her inside of his warmth. A hand strokes her hair away from her forehead before he kisses it, his eyes sliding closed. "Yes," he murmurs. "It's…peaceful here…"

Phylicia apparently isn't of the mind to give her father (or whomever discovers them napping) a heart attack. Instead of folding to the ground facing him, she shifts just enough to lean sideways against him, her legs draping over one of his with her calves trailing the side of his legs, and her torso twisted so she can still comfortably rest her head against his chest. "Similar…" She breaks in that thought to yawn, reflexively lifting a hand to cover her mouth. "To how the garden feels." She's snuggling into that warmth that he offers her, her hands held loosely in her lap.

"Similar," Tenebrous offers quietly. "I never thanked you for keeping my garden up…it meant… a great deal to me when I returned to it with the mind-healer and discovered that it had not gone quietly into the fall without me." That hand still strokes her hair softly. "To know that…you had not forgotten that part of your life while working towards your possible new life."

Phylicia is nearly stroked into slumber by this point in time, her breathing coming slowly, easily and deeply. But something drags her back from the edge of falling asleep. He's talking. "You're welcome, Ten. It was my pleasure to." As her mind finishes processing his words, she pries her head away from his chest for a moment to look at his. "I could never forget you." For being nearly asleep a moment ago, those four words hold an awful lot of oomph to them. "Never."

Tenebrous kisses her forehead once more. "It's … good to be remembered," he offers quietly, even if there's a bit of uncertainty in his voice. "Especially by you." Then he's leaning his own head back against the tree, letting his eyes close, and his breathing slow.

Phylicia watches him studiously for a few more moments as he rests his head back against the tree. But she isn't so far gone out of her tired stupor. After a few long moments pass she resettles herself against him in the exact same position, once again comfortably curled up in his warmth. "You'll always be there. In my thoughts. In my heart." She murmurs sounding much like a promise, as she lets her breathing slow again.

There's something to be said for the drifting of time when two people are comfortable and tired. It's ultimately almost two hours later before Jaice finally decides to come back to the garden, and sleep weary Tenebrous doesn't really hear the warnings of his brood until it's all but too late, tired eyes sliding open to regard the man that looks down at the two of them from several feet away. That hand continues to stroke Phylicia's hair gently, willing her to stay asleep. Hard eyes bore into the mind-healer's, daring him to say even a word.

Phylicia has always been pretty loathe to wake, and this time is no different. It may be a different position than normal, but the feel and the comfort are still the same. Phy's trio is napping in a multi-colored ball not too far off from the pair, the young lady's contentment bleeding over their mental bond, as is evidenced by Hinae's eyes as the gold only lifts her head for a moment before dismissing the scene at hand, slipping back into her slumber. And somehow, even through the warnings of Truth, Cila and Quence, Phy naps on, for just a few more moments, though she stirs, turning further into Ten's warmth with a small noise.

Jaice watches the scene before him, his face torn between anger and distress and even a bit of chagrin. Finally, however, he sighs and shakes his head, whispering, "We have to leave soon. It's dark, and your friend the brown-rider doesn't want to make her approach to the falls once night time has fallen. And I'm bloody well not walking back on foot." BUt then he's turning and starting away again, walking over to one of the far benches of the garden, and leaving them mostly to themselves.

The whispering is enough to bring Phylicia mostly back to the world of the waking. Maybe there's something about Jaice's tone that triggers her to wake up, or maybe it's just the murmur of voices. She stays in the exact same position as she has been while asleep, but her voice comes from his chest, muffled and slightly slurred. "Did I hear something 'bout leaving…? 'M not needed anywhere today…"

"No," Tenebrous murmurs to her, continuing his touch of her face. "No one's leaving right now…go back to sleep…" And while that's exactly what he's urging her to do, his eyes are wide open, fixed on Jaice's location with unwavering strength.

Was Phylicia imagining her father's voice? The young healer's body tenses for a moment as if she's thinking about moving, but then she's going lax against him again, sparing enough movement to turn her head blissfully into his hand. She's at the point of wakefulness where if someone she trusts says something… well, so be it. "Mmmkay." But she has just enough wits to ask a question. "You not tired anymore, Ten?"

"I'm very tired," Tenebrous whispers, honesty in his voice. Lips brush the top of her head before he more fully covers her body in his coat, moving his hand away from her head to slowly stroke up and down her back. "Just like you…"

"Then you sleep too." Phylicia murmurs firmly in something not quite a request and not quite a suggestion, or even demand. Drowsily, in pleasure as he strokes her back, her spine both lengthens and arches as she resettles herself against him again. "Let Cila, Hinae 'nd the others watch…" Of course, about the time she's making this known to her trio, Hinae lifts her head again and chirups. And Tenebrous might be able to feel the look of perplexion that crosses her sleepy features through his clothes. Or he might be able to see it as well.

Tenebrous simply raises a finger to Hinae when she offers up her little trill, though he's already started to scowl a little. "They are, don't worry," He assures her quietly. "They'll let us know when it's time to wake up." His hand stops its rubbing, but it's only for the arm to wrap around her, holding her gently to him. He even yawns once, for effect.

Phylicia blinks a few more times, even as the images she gets from Hinae blank out. For not being bonded to the man she's snuggled against, the sunset gold is remarkably perceptive. She even croons reassuringly, echoing Tenebrous' statement. And it's that that smoothes her face out of its perplextion. This time her arms don't rest in her lap as she slips easily back into a doze, truely exhausted as she is, but manage to wrap loosely around him.

And so it goes, Tenebrous' breathing becoming more shallow, a bit more rhythmic, all in the name of luring that young woman in his arms a bit closer to Moebius. And for the better part of two hours, Jaice simply watches, his expression many things…but most of all, jealous.

Unless otherwise stated, the content of this page is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 License