(It's no problem! are you feeling better? how are you?)
By the time Nathan had finished reading, Dara's wide doe eyes were alight with entrancement, her lip parting to form a slight 'o'. The way he wrote, the way he read aloud, was all beautiful. Captivating, even hypnotic. Dara had never been the best at recognizing talent, but this? This was really something special. "That was– wow. That was amazing," she breathed, for lack of better word.
(A little better! I’m still stuck with a sore throat, but it’s easier than yesterday. Thanks for asking!)
He was finding it hard to breathe. The way she looked…
A knock at the door sent him a foot into the air. Annabeth came in, dolled up to the nines, her brown hair in a big bun and her eyes made up perfectly. She smoothed part of her checkered skirt and gestured out to the hall.
“Bathroom’s open again. Nathan, do you think you’ll be able to wash yourself?”
“Should I?” he asked, embarrassed. The moment had broken, and he’d been left gawking at Dara without an explanation.
“Probably. Bella didn’t tell me otherwise. Besides, you stink like a cow.”
“That’s-“
“Just teasing. But seriously, do you need help? I know your movement’s kind of limited right now.”
“Uh… I don’t know…”
“Dara,” she said, shifting topics, “do you want to bathe? We have soaps for your hair and body, but we don’t have any lotions or powders.”
(Np! I hope you’re up to 100% soon)
Dara’s attention shifted from Nathan to his sister, watching the two quarrel back and forth for a minute. When a question was directed towards her, her eyes somehow managed to widen further, confusion distorting her features. “That’s okay with you? Me taking a bath? I wouldn’t want to dirty your belongings,” she replied tentatively, though a bath was exactly what she needed at the moment.
(Thanks again!)
“You’re not going to dirty them up, trust me. Nathan’s come home covered in blood before, and that didn’t leave a mark.”
“Deer- deer blood,” Nathan clarified faintly, “I was hunting.”
“That was a big old thing, wasn’t it? Swear it had antlers the size of this room!”
He directed the focus back to Dara. “I promise it’ll be fine. We have a lot of soap, anyway. Use as much as you need. You already know where the bathroom is, so you can go now if you’d like.”
“And I’ll leave clothes for you outside the door! What do you say?” Annabeth asked excitedly.
Dara hesitated, wrapping her arms around her torso. “If- If you’re sure. I’m sorry, I seem to keep putting your family at an inconvenience,” she said sincerely, getting slowly to her feet.
(I’m sorry, I just got back to school and I have so much work to catch up on! It’s been a little hard!)
The young woman waved it off. “Nonsense, it’s fine. We did offer to let you stay here; what kind of people would we be if we didn’t let you use our stuff? Our stuff is yours. Well, except for the money. That’s Bella’s to budget.”
“She gives us portions to buy things we need, but only that. We’re running low right now. That’s why I went out yesterday—I thought we were going to need more food, but I forget I’m not the best at stealth missions.”
“I can’t believe you used your magic,” Nathan’s sister responded, equal parts scolding and soft.
“It wasn’t intentional. It was just-“ He motioned lifting something heavy with his hands. “Like that. I got caught, and that was what happened.”
“Mmhm. Anyway, I’ll go get your stuff ready. You should come with me to the bathroom so I can show you can use.”
(don't worry about it, you do what you need to do, take care of yourself
feel free to take a break if you ever need it, 'kay?)
Dara gave a slight nod, eyes lingering on Nathan for a moment before she trailed after his sister, movements akin to that of an easily startled deer. I wonder what his powers are.. she thought to herself, but didn't voice the question. Who was she to ask of such personal affairs? She'd already intruded on their lives enough.
(Thank you very much for your concern! I’m not taking a break, but my replies may be slow for the next bit)
Annabeth left the girl by their bathroom to go to her room, where she pulled out some nice, simple clothes: a long maroon dress with sleeves, a pair of boots, and some high socks that would stop her legs from getting cold. She didn’t know whether or not the girl liked dresses, but her good pairs of pants all needed a wash. Layering the items over her arm, she returned, opened the bathroom door, and took a couple of bottles and a round, unused bar of soap from a cabinet right over their sink. The bath was in the back of the room, shielded by a curtain that hung slightly off its loops.
“Here, this will work for your hair, and the soap can be for your body. It actually smells pretty good.” She put the clothes down on the sole countertop in the bathroom and turned back to the girl. “If you want me to help you with your hair, I can do that after your shower. Not that there’s anything wrong with it, of course, but,” she patted her nunca proudly, “I can do quite a range of styles, even with short hair. If not, I’m going to see if Nathan needs anything.”
(It’s no problem, how are you?)
(Omg Nathan’s going to see her in a dress with a nice hairdo)
Overwhelmed by the quantity of both supplies and kindess, Dara nodded twice, lips parting to give way to a soft exclamation of gratitude. “Thank you— thank you so much for all this,” she told Annabeth sincerely, an amazed, shy smile on her face.
(Oh, I’ll be fine in a day or two. I just need to get back on my rhythm)
(And yup, that was my plan!)
She smiled sincerely. “It’s really my pleasure, Dara. Anyways, have a nice bath. You can knock if you need anything. I’ll be in the living room, but only for an hour or so more. After that, I’ll be going on a date.” Her eyes glimmered with happiness. “He’s a really sweet fellow. Says that he’s a baker and offered that I come try out some of his food. I’ll try and snag something for you two while I’m out. Who knows, maybe I’ll even get some sweets? That’d be lovely.”
As she was moving towards the door, she stopped still, like she’d remembered something important. “Oh, and Dara? Nathan… um, he… you two looked like you were getting along well, but just know that you don’t have to hang out with him if you don’t want to.”
(Alright, I’m glad
Eyy)
Dara’s brows drew together in confusion, her whole body coming to a stop. “What do you mean?” she asked, an undertone if hrgency in her voice. “Why would I want to do that? Did I- Did I do something wrong?” Her heart plummeted, head lowering ever so slightly.
Annabeth shook her head frantically, her bob bouncing. She clasped her hands together in mild fright.
“Of course you haven’t done anything wrong! I just meant that, well, you don’t have to feel debted to him because we let you stay the night. I guess what I’m trying to say is that you don’t have to feel that you have to please him in order to stay. The room is yours either way. If you don’t necessarily enjoy, uh, what was he doing- oh, hearing the stuff from his journal- then you can tell him. We all want you to be as comfortable as you can be here; don’t worry about appeasing us or anything.”
This only served to further baffle Dara, but helped to soothe her at the same time. She gave a small nod, thanking the kind woman and assuring her that she was comfortable with everything and had no problem with Nathan. After Annabeth had left, she slipped off her soiled, ripped garments and stepped into the bathtub, which was already filled with warm water.
And oh, it felt like heaven, to bathe under such circumstances, to use such nice soaps. It was the first proper wash she’d been permitted in a long time, forget dips in the dirty river water. She lathered to shampoo into her thick hair, enjoying the way her fingers massaged her scalp.
And, in truth, the bath helped wash away more than just mud and grime. Dara could feel her tension trickling down the drain with the water, scrubbed off her skin until she was relaxed, content. She dried herself carefully, slipping on the pretty red dress and high socks, the nicest thing she’d worn in a long time. Usually, she avoided dresses, but it was strangely pleasing now. Dara brushed and dried her hair until it was fluffy and stood on her toes to look in the mirror.
The woman reflected back at her was a complete stranger. She blinked, leaning forward to study herself, and hot shame washed over her. What had Nathan thought of her, dirty, scrappy, with oily hair and threadbare clothes? What had the sisters thought of her? Dara bit the inside of her cheek in embarrassment as she cleaned up after herself, slipping out the door and back to the bedroom. She knocked softly, awaiting Nathan’s answer.
Nathan, swaying only a little, managed to push himself up to get to the door when he heard her knock. He hated to admit it, but the day, all of its wild feelings, and the warmth of the room were all making him tired. The weakness of the thought made him shudder. If he wasn’t back to his old, strong self again soon, they’d lose money, food, and more materials than they could take. Risking himself for some simple bread was turning out to be one of the worst mistakes of his life.
Or maybe not. His eyes landed upon Dara, and his heart immediately picked up its pace. He suddenly felt very, very hot, but it wasn’t because of the fire Anna had restarted anymore.
“Hello,” he murmured softly, feeling underdressed in his shirtlessness.
(Good morning)
“Hello,” she echoed, wrapping her arms uncomfortably around her stomach as if hugging herself. Slipping past him and into the room, Dara settled on the bed, fidgeting slightly under his continued scrutiny. She wasn’t sure why, but the idea that Nathan was seeing her in a dress caused an odd stirring sensation to form within her rib cage. She shrugged it off, clearing her throat awkwardly. “Feeling better?”
“Not much. Wish it’d get better already—I’m starting to get woozy.” He came up beside her, only close enough so that he could sit down without having to raise his voice for her to hear him. “Is that one of Anna’s old dresses? She mentioned something about wanting to get you some clothes of your own, but I didn’t think she had already.”
“Oh, I don’t think I’m keeping it, it’s hers after all,” Dara replied, resisting the urge to fiddle with the end of her skirt. “You should drink some water if you’re woozy, it’ll help with any dizziness.”
(G’morning, how’re you?)
(Ella? Are you alright?)
(I know you've probably left Notebook, and me posting this is useless, but I hope everything is okay)
