The Guard at the Window (Laurance x Reader)

ii. The Journey Through the Woods

You turn your head to look at him. He's taller than you, you notice. "I'll go with you, if that's not a bother. I don't really know what I'm doing."

Laurance smiled—a kind one that would put anyone's nerves at ease. "Of course, my lady. Shall we be on our way, then?"

You nodded, and waited until Laurance stepped in front of you to follow behind him.

You were slower than him. It might have been that Laurance was simply faster because his legs were longer and he was obviously more experienced with traversing around grass and sticks and rocks (not to mention he was wearing shoes and you had been careless enough to leave your tower completely barefoot), but a part of you thought you were slower because of your hair.

The weight of it held you back, acting as a tether you to your tower of solitude. Maybe it was a warning, you thought. Maybe it was your mother's magic tugging on the ends, a desperate plea for you to not subject yourself to the dangers of the world.

You softly gasped when a knot in your hair got caught on something. You weren't sure what it was or what part of your hair had gotten caught, but it must have been something big because it made you stumble back.

You looked behind you, wrapping your hands around the strands of hair and attempting to pull the knot out. If Laurance had asked what you were looking for, you would have said what your hair was caught on, but you didn't know if that would be an accurate answer. Some part of you, as much as you didn't want to admit it, was looking for your mother.

You could feel her presence watching you. It was a weight on your shoulders that pulled you down almost as much as your hair did. You were waiting for your mother to come out of the shadows and grab you and drag you back to the tower. If that happened, would Laurance run after you? Would he try again to coax you out of what you knew? You had hardly just met him, what reason would he have to do that.

"Are you alright?" You turned at the sound of Laurance's voice. He was right behind you, so he must have noticed your minor distress and stepped closer.

"My hair got caught," you said. Your voice was soft, but Laurance was already walking past you and following the length of your long hair to find where it had gotten caught. "I'm sorry."

"For what?" Laurance stopped a few feet away from you, bending down to untangle the knot. "You don't have to apologize. You have a lot of hair, I would've been surprised if it didn't get caught on something."

He undid the knot and pulled a gnarled root out of the ground, tossing it away so it didn't catch the rest of your hair. He began to bundle it up, pulling it close to him to gather in a ball for him to hold close to his chest.

"Here," he said, standing straight once he had gathered your hair. "I'll help you with it."

"No, it's okay." You step closer to him, holding your arms out for him to give you the pile of hair instead. "I can carry it. I don't want it to get in your way."

"Are you sure?" You nodded and he let the full weight of your hair fall into your arms, although reluctantly. He took a breath, looking towards the sky. "It's getting late. I doubt we'll catch up with my companions, so we'll find a place to stay." His gaze met yours again, and he gave you a once over. "And we'll see what we can do about getting you shoes."

His gaze flicked back up to yours, his lips fighting to pull up into a teasing grin. Your cheeks heated.

"I was in a rush," you said.

Laurance shook his head. He allowed a smile to grace his face, though it was kind. "I didn't say anything."

"But you were thinking it." He stepped past you, continuing on the path he had mapped out in his mind. You scoffed, following after him. "It's not like I meant to forget shoes."