Page 59 of The Wolf and Her Shadows

Gritting my teeth, I let out a hiss, the pain quickly transforming into a pleasure I haven’t felt in entirely too long. And I definitely shouldn’t be feeling it right now either. Apparently Vann’s girlfriend gets a little handsy in her sleep.

I attempt to wiggle my way out from beneath Mariane, so I can go put some damn clothes on, but the woman clutches me tighter. Her face presses further into my neck and it’s…wet. Why is her face wet? Didn’t they finish bathing hours ago?

Careful not to wake her up, I brush aside her hair trying to get a better look at her. She’s definitely still asleep, but there’s tears streaming from the corners of her eyes and her expression is anything but peaceful.

Comforting people has never really been my thing, so I try to think of what either of my mental companions would do in this situation. Remembering how Aren had helped her during her shift earlier, I gently cup her cheek, and whisper, “Hey, Mariane. Wake up. I think you’re having a nightmare.”

Apparently that was the exact wrong thing to do because she whimpers, flinching away from my touch so violently she ends up hitting me in the nose with her head. Somehow, it didn’t manage to wake her up though.

Ignoring the throbbing pain in my nose, I try again. “Mariane. Hey. Come on, wake up.”

She lets out a pained whine, digging her fingernails harder into my breast, but still doesn’t wake. I watch helplessly as her breathing becomes erratic and she starts muttering something.

“No. Please, don’t. I… Stop, don’t… Please stop,” she pleads, her voice growing louder with each word. “NO!”

Her scream echoes in the air around us as Mariane bolts upright, doing her best to shove me away from her.

Scrambling out of the way of her flailing limbs, I call out, “Whoa, whoa. Hey, calm down. You’re okay.”

It looks like she’s about to reach for her swords, so I throw all caution to the wind and lunge for her, pinning the woman’s arms to her sides as I embrace her from behind. My heart feels like it’s already been stabbed when she lets out a sob and starts desperately struggling to break free.

Unwanted memories flash through our mind of Zorah having to do this exact same thing to me a few times back when we’d been together. Gritting my teeth, I keep holding on to Mariane, hoping that the end result will be the same too.

After a few more moments of sobbing mixed with a bit more pleading, Mariane’s body goes slack. When she inhales a deep, yet very shaky, breath, I assume it’s finally safe to let go of her.

As soon as I start to loosen my grip, she slips a hand between our bodies and shoves me away from her so hard I fall on my ass. I’m about to say something less than nice in response, but before I can utter a single word, Mariane leaps to her feet, only making it a few steps before she doubles over and vomits.

I’m at her side in a flash, using our shadow magic to close the short distance without even meaning to. I manage to gather up her hair just in time for her to wretch a second time and I feel my heart constricting at the whimper that accompanies it.

Once the contents of her stomach have been thoroughly emptied, she brushes the back of her hand across her mouth and whispers, “Thank you.”

I give her a grunt of acknowledgement, wishing Vannaria would pop up in our mind so I could force her to switch places with me. Or hells, even Aren would be better than…

“You’re Rayne, aren’t you?” Mariane asks, her voice trembling slightly.

“Yeah,” I mutter, letting out a sigh. “Sorry, Wolf. But, your girl ain’t here right now.”

She groans, spitting out a bit of leftover bile before standing up straight and turning to face me. “Wolf, hmm? And here I thought you knew my name already.”

In all the chaos, I’d somehow completely forgotten we’re both naked right now and it takes extreme effort to keep my eyes on her face as I say, “Eh. Just cause I know it, doesn't mean I gotta use it.”

“Suppose you’re right.” She glances towards the nearby stream. “If you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go wash my mouth out. And perhaps scrub my skin raw for a second time tonight.”

The last bit was said in a near whisper, causing me to frown. “Dream was that bad, huh?” I shake my head, cursing my own stupidity. “Nevermind, don’t answer that. Of course it was.”

“Yes. I imagine the screaming and the sobbing made that quite obvious.”

“Sorry,” I grumble, crossing my arms over my chest. Which of course only highlights the fact that my nipples are now rock hard from being exposed to the cold air. “I’m not so good with talkin’ to people. That’s Vann and Aren’s job.”

She nods, a look of guilt briefly crossing her face. “It’s alright. I’m sorry I woke you. Feel free to go back to sleep now, I’ll move my bedroll over when–”

“Nope. Not happening,” I blurt out, cutting off her ridiculous offer. “You’re going to go wash your face and by the time you’re down I’ll have hopefully dragged Vann’s lazy ass into control. You need someone to hug you, and I have a good feeling you’re really wishing she was here right now.”

One corner of her lips lifts in a shy grin. “Is it that obvious?”

“Maybe not to a blind man wearing earplugs,” I say, keeping my tone light so she knows I’m not offended. “Now shoo. I gotta concentrate.”

Chuckling softly, she does as she’s told and starts walking over to the water.