[Baconwizard]

Freylan was silent as Clivius began his rushed explanation, and she let him handle the contraption. He was close. Freylan could feel the warmth emitting from his skin, even just a few inches away. She stared at the ground, hard, holding her breath as her heart thumped loud in her ears. Don't think about it. She must not think about it. Hunting humans is what killed her uncle, and they killed her father in retaliation. And how could she even consider such a thing, when this human was being so kind to her? It was not to be thought of. Freylan heard the shift of metal, and froze. She glanced over at Clivius, her eyes drawn to the cold metal chain around his neck. Everything froze for a moment, and Freylan sat there, petrified, until Clivius had leaned away. He was a human, from the human village. He was dangerous. If Freylan was ever to see one, she should run and hide, because if she met a human, they would bring more, and they would hurt her. Her grandmothers words echoed in her mind, and with a small, panicked sound, Freylan stood up, knocking over the makeshift seat. "I-I have to go!" She whispered, breathless with panic. Picking up her skirts, Freylan dashed towards the edge of the clearing, fear lending speed to her footsteps.

[zapdragon555]

Clivius jerked in surprise as he heard the not-seat hit the grass, and he blinked rapidly, straightening up just in time to hear her quiet words. A moment later he was staring at her back as she ran towards the woods, his heart squeezing and clenching painfully with confusion in his chest. "W-wait!" he finally blurted out in surprise, his body moving forward before his feet did, and he stumbled, gasping and catching himself before he could fall. He didn't know where she lived; he didn't know if she'd be back there ever again now that he'd intruded on her stargazing spot. Where was she going? Had he said something? The fear in her voice... "Miss--wait, please, Freylan!" he called, stopping at the edge of the woods, his breath coming fast as his eyes darted from tree to tree, shadow to shadow, unable to see any sign of the small woman anymore.

[Baconwizard]

Freylan was good at ignoring things if she wanted to. After that night, when Freylan finally arrived home with muddy skirts and a gasping, pounding heart, she threw herself into the chores around the house. She cleaned the floors, dusted every surface, washed and mended her clothes, even ventured out a little to check on the animal traps. She was determined to be well fed, just in case. She poured over the char maps and astronomy and astrology texts that she had collected. They were faded and crumbling with age, and the almost invisible ink made Freylan's eyes hurt. There was no doubt about it; the stars had shifted somehow, even during the past two hundred years. None of Freylan's charts were currently correct, and it was maddening. She couldn't stop thinking about the telescope, and the human who had been just as excited about stars as she was.

After a week of this, Freylan was going stir crazy. There was only so much that she could take of the quiet cabin nestled in the woods. So, she donned her dark cape and unlatched the door, slipping out into the dark woods, heading towards the clearing. Part of her hoped that the human wouldn't be there, and another part, the part that kept her heart pounding in breathless anxiety, hoped that he would.

[zapdragon555]

A sudden cold snap had left the forest air bitterly chilly for the past couple of days, and Clivius had found sneaking out at night with all of that equipment had grown difficult more and more. He did indeed stand in the clearing, as he had done every night for the past week, a cloak drawn around his shoulders as he stood in the center, his eyes scanning the sky. By now he'd grown accustomed to the sounds of that clearing; he was familiarized with the way the crickets sounded, the way the owls hooted, but tonight, on this particular cold night, it was silent. It was for that reason he heard the almost silent sound of someone coming through the trees, and he fought all urges to turn around and look. If it was her, then he might frighten her off with the sudden movement. If it was not her... then he supposed he'd find out.

[Baconwizard]

It was cold that night. Temperature didn't both Freylan much, since she was a vampire, but even she could tell that it was finally beginning to become autumn. Soon the equinox would occur, and the stars would begin their winter course. The thought made a small smile appear on Freylan's face. Soon Orion would dominate the sky, along with Taurus and Canis Major and Minor... With these thoughts in mind, Freylan quietly moved through the woods until she almost stumbled into the clearing where the human was waiting. She sucked in a breath, freezing in place, then quickly ducked behind a tree. He was back! Did he hear her? Did he see?

After a few quick peeks, Freylan decided that he hadn't noticed her presence. That was good... Freylan let out a little breath of relief, which quickly turned into a mild frustration. This was getting ridiculous. She wanted to look at the stars! Maybe... if she asked him, he would leave. He seemed alright enough; maybe he would listen. And if she kept her face hidden... Yes, that was a better plan. Making sure her hood was situated around her head properly, Freylan carefully stepped out from behind the tree and made her way to the edge of the clearing. She stood there for a moment, her heartbeat filling up the silence of the clearing. He must have not heard her; his back was facing her. Freylan made a soft sound, hoping that would get his attention.

[zapdragon555]

Clivius visibly tensed as the noise of her walking stopped, and he barely jumped in surprise as she made a small noise. Clivius took a steadying breath, then turned around to face her, as slowly as he could with cold, jerky limbs. He blinked at her, his eyes filling with happiness that quickly flickered out as he noticed she didn't look particularly glad to see him. "Ah..." he murmured, his voice very soft. "Um... h-hello again," he murmured, nodding his head to her.

[Baconwizard]

Freylan stared at Clivius for a moment, her eyes wide, her heart beating nervously in her chest. "H-hello," she said quietly, after a small pause. Freylan looked down at the grass. He had looked happy to see her. A sudden thought crossed her mind, and she looked back up at Clivius. "U-um... I-is... D-do you come here often?"

[zapdragon555]

Clivius blinked as she spoke, his heart seizing slightly in his chest now that he knew that she was, in fact, real and not just a figment of his chilled imagination. He blinked a few times in confusion at her words, his eyelids feeling heavy. "Oh... um..." Clivius looked around at the grass, then at his feet, then back at her, looking the slightest bit sheepish. "Well... l-lately, yes..." he admitted. "I-I was hoping I could run into you again." He internally winced at himself at how creepy that might sound to a young woman. "I mean--I... well... y-you had to leave so suddenly before, a-and I just... well... I-I feel like that was the wrong foot, we got off on..." Clivius' words stuttered as his teeth chattered a bit, and he drew the coat tighter around himself. He always was terribly cold natured.

[Baconwizard]

Freylan didn't quite know what to think about that. He had been coming back, every night, just to apologize for scaring her? She pondered on that for a moment, her heart filling with happiness and her mind filling with confusion. He was a strange person, that's for sure. Oh dear, she was supposed to reply now, wasn't she? Clutching at her cape, Freylan made a small, unsure noise before speaking in as soft voice. "Um... Nn--it's okay..." Freylan hunched her shoulders, wondering if it was alright to say that. "A-are... Aren't you cold?"

[zapdragon555]

Clivius was inwardly relieved that she hadn't immediately run away, and it brought the smallest of smiles to his face. "Ah... well... j-just a bit," he said, truthfully, though he supposed it wasn't the whole truth. He tugged his cloak a bit tighter around himself, then took a tiny step closer to her, then stopped again, thinking better of it. "But... a-anyway... I'm afraid I didn't bring the telescope this time. I-it... well, it's a bit cumbersome, and a few people at the university noticed it was disappearing every night, and I was a bit afraid it would get back to my father, s-so..." Clivius cleared his throat, realizing he was rambling about things she had no reason to care about, and he would've flushed if it wasn't so cold. "Um... I'm sorry, a-about that. And... I'm also very, very sorry if I... frightened you off, the other day."

[Baconwizard]

Freylan nearly stepped away when Clivius stepped forward, but she relaxed as he maintained the distance between them. Still clutching at her cloak with tight fists, Freylan listened to Clivius talk, processing his words slowly. He was a student... and he had a father. Freylan wondered briefly why he didn't want his father to know about the telescope before Clivius had suddenly shifted the conversation back to her without Freylan knowing it. She jumped slightly, making a startled noise, then quickly shook her head back and forth. "N-no, it's... um... n-not your fault. I-I'm... n-not good with... people." Freylan cringed slightly, wondering if that was too much. But she couldn't quite help it. Clivius was nice, there was no getting around that fact. He was so considerate and open with her, about his life and his telescope, that Freylan felt the urge to reciprocate. Maybe that was the real reason she ran away that night.

[zapdragon555]

Clivius' heart had nearly stopped in his chest as she jumped, as if afraid she'd flee again, and he relaxed as she spoke. Slowly, a small smile crossed his face, and he nodded slowly. "Neither am I," he breathed, his voice clouding in the cold air, and he glanced at the grass for a moment, which looked almost silvery in the moonlight. He blinked slowly, then looked back at her. "Even so... um... I wanted to--t-to talk to you again. After that night... I hoped you'd show up, a-and now I don't even know what to talk about... I'm sorry," he finally finished, a soft, rueful smile on his face.

[Baconwizard]

Freylan stayed quiet as Clivius talked, her breath coming short and cloudy in the night air. She shifted, looking down at her worn down boots. Like everything else, they had seen better days. Biting her lip, Freylan tried to swallow down the rush of emotions threatening to bubble up inside of her. "I'm sorry," she murmured, not quite sure what she was apologizing for. Maybe for being so afraid of him, when she knew she shouldn't be. He was a good person, she decided. Freylan glanced up at the stars, which could be seen, even though the strong moonlight dimmed them a bit. "I... I missed the meteor shower. It--it happened last week." Freylan looked back at Clivius, a small, almost hopeful look on her face. "Were you able to see it?"

[zapdragon555]

Clivius blinked at her apology, his brows knitting slightly. She had nothing to apologize for, surely. Though... he wondered if it really had been something else drawing her attention, and not him frightening her off. But... Clivius wasn't sure what to think about that, until he inquired further in the future, if he ever did. If there was a future, where they'd meet and talk more often.

At the mention of the meteor shower, Clivius' eyes softened, his expression a little rueful. "Yes, I did," he murmured softly, nodding. "It was beautiful... this spot really is the nicest for seeing it. I'm... sorry I took it, though. I suppose in hindsight it... probably wasn't good that I kept coming here, since it's your place."

[Baconwizard]

Freylan blinked at that, a little taken aback that he felt bad about taking her spot. She hadn't expect him to do that. Quickly shaking her head, Freylan made a small noise in her throat. "I-it's okay..." She murmured. There was a pause, where the night sounds filtered in again. Freylan shifted slightly, her voice softening. "It's... It doesn't belong to me, so..." Freylan let out a small breath, then moved over to the small rock where she usually sat. Tucking her skirts around her, Freylan craned her head up to look at the sky. "I imagine it was beautiful," she breathed, a small smile on her face. "The stars always look the best here..."