A Gift

The elven assassin wandered around, searching for the hero. It was not often he did not know where she was, but even he needed to sleep some time. He walked soundlessly around the palace, and stopped outside the wardens room. That was as good a place as any to start looking he decided, and knocked on the door.

Knocking. Someone was knocking on her door. Her hazel eyes opened just enough to see a blurry wall then closed again. Another knock. Naw. Come on no.

The day had been spent on boring stuff which could drive a bronto to death by boredom. It was a long day working with several people on several projects for several different situations with several different possible outcomes and several different ways it could mess up. It was tiring and could drive one mad.

Her head ached as there was another knock. Where was Kai? Finally she lost it, "Kai kill that interloper!" Right now she didn't really care if he did but she also knew he wouldn't do that unless it was required. Well ... maybe unless it was Alistair.

Opening the door a little, The assassin looked in the room and smiled at the dwarf. "You would like for me to kill myself?" He asked, teasing her a little. Quietly he entered and shut the door behind himself, he waalked over and sat beside her on the bed. "I assume today was a troublesome one?"

Her arms and legs were flailed about the bed, her clothes and boots still on and a pillow covered her little head. She moved one side of the pillow to look at him then breathed out in a ragged sigh, "No. Not yourself of course. And yes, today was troublesome. Why do the noble types all think I can fix something if the king cannot?" She took the pillow off her head then put it under to use it the normal way.

Kai took one of Nygozy's hands in his own. "Because they think you can do anything, and while you ae quite talented you are not the maker." Using his one free hand he swept hair from the hero's face. "Anyway..." he started quietly. "There is something I..." He glanced away and focusedon the bedside table. He had never done anything like this, and felt nervous. For once in his life the assassin wasn't confident he could do something.

A chuckle slipped from her lips as Kai spoke of her being thought of as being able to fix all ills. Unfortunately, he was correct. That was a scary thought that people would believe so much of a person that you could never fulfill them all. There was the fortunate fact that she did have connections and a great many of them at that.

He lifted her hair from her face in that gentle manner that she found so sweet, almost innocent, then he spoke in such a way that it made her stare at him. Something was different and she could not figure it out, "What is it, Kai?" She did not wish to voice her fears that he would have taken another commission or something was wrong that he needed to deal with. There were so many things that could make one speak so softly.

"Well I..." He blushed and dug around in his pocket "Well is it..." The assassin looked at the woman, his face a pale pink. "Is it all right if I present you with a gift?"

Nygozy blinked and lifted her body partially from the bed, lying on her side now and giving him a completely stunned stare, "A present?" That was unexpected, "Well ... yes you can ... but why would you ... you enjoy when you can befuddle me into not being able to talk properly don't you, Kai?" She teased with a smile.

Shaking his head Kai gave a soft sigh "I have not lied to you yet hero, and I have no intentions of doing so. I have no Idea, in all honesty, why I have such a strong wish to give you something. But I feel as though you have.....the right, I suppose, to possess it." Kai held out his hand, it was closed loosely around something and a small length of rope was all that was visible. "Maybe 'right to possess it' is not the right way to express it, but then again...I was never suited for this type of situation."

The assassin looked away, intentionally avoiding the dwarven eyes in front of him. He felt his cheeks warm in a blush as he slowly opened his hand, in his palm there lay a finely crafted heart. It was made of a pure silver that sparkled brightly when light hit it. And resting in the center was a clear pearl, it was well polished and smooth.

"This was..." The elf spoke softly as he slid the necklace carefully around the hero's neck "My mothers, she recieved it fom my father, she gave it to me as the oldest son she had. She always told me to keep it safe and one day give it to the woman I love. Now I..." he hesitated "I don't know anything of love, as I have never experianced it. But I do know...I wish for you to keep it."

"I never meant that you would lie. Just that you can mess up my mind but in a good way." She smiled at him then looked down at his hand and back up at his face just as he looked away.

Curiosity made her look down once again to see the lovely pendant sitting in his hand. It was like nothing she had seen before, the silver a Dalish artisan crafted with magnificent skill and a clear pearl the likes of which she had never seen before.

She gaped at the trinket, befudled as he explained what it was and the meaning behind it. This was something that was close to his heart, a piece of his past to be handed on to someone who would be his future, a person he would love and cherish.

Nygozy gulped as the heart settled upon her chest and lifted it to look at it again, "Kai?" Her eyes lifted slowly as she set the gift back to her chest and put a hand on one of his cheeks, softly touching the skin which was still warm from the blush, "This is remarkable. I ... I ..."

Gazing at the hero with an uncertainty he was unfamilliar with, Kai spoke softly. "You like it then? I hope you'll care for it as I have..." he smiled but it faded quickly "Now as I explained...it is meant for love, a subject I know little of...so by giving thiis to you..." The assassin hesitated "I suppose I'm trying to..." he stopped unable to finish

Nygozy watched his eye, noticing how unsure he seemed, being confused and not used to what he was saying, "I will cherish it as you have." She said quietly, in a tender tone she seldom used. The assassin inside seemed to be wavering in an uncharacteristic fight to try to get out words he did not know how to say. She moved much closer so that their noses touched, "You're trying to ..."

Kai was out of words, he didn't know what one was supposed to say in a situation like this. Then the hero assumed such a tender tone, it both surprised the assassin andmade his cheeks warm again. He desprately wanted to say something to her, before he could however, Nygozy was just inches from him and his body took over, The elf held Ny's face gently in his hand and moved even closer. He had kissed her.

What Kai would do was as unpredictable as what she would do and he proved that by kissing her. She had not been sure whether he would or not as she was not much more used to relationships than he was, the one with Alistair being her only guide to such things and they had truly fumbled about trying to get anywhere.

Yet the elf was much more aggresive in his reactions which should not have surprised her so much considering he was an assassin and given to quick reaction, his body moving faster than he could probably think with his mind.

His hand was warm, making her flush from the tenderness that such hands of death could administer, then his lips were on hers. Her arms circled his head, holding him as she kissed him back, her body reacting with an excited shiver. It had been so long since she had been touched with such caring and she didn't want the kiss to end.

After a long moment Kai pulled his lips away from Nygozy, but he still held her body close. The assassin stared at her quietly before he finally found his voice again 'I...apologize hero, that was out of line, I-I didn't think..."

He pulled back even though he still held her then what he said confused her as she tried to comprehend what these mixed signals meant, "Why was it out of line? You don't think ... what?"

Was he trying to say he'd made a mistake?

"W-well I...I don't understand myself...I-I-" he looked away "Liked that....but I...was hired to be you're guard, I-I reacted that way with out thinking first, it was ucalled for and I was sure you would be suprised, maybe angry"

Now that she could handle. Both hands cupped his cheeks, turning his face so he would look at her with that one lovely blue eye, "Ssh. Yes, you did surprise me but not in a bad way. It does not anger me. We are attracted to each other. Is that so bad?"

Nygozy rubbed his earlobes as she smiled, the concerns making her more interested in him, "Kai ... we are attracted to each other without even thinking of it. Don't you feel your heart pound: feel my body shiver just being close to you? You have given me a beautiful gift your mother chose to have you give to the one you fall in love with. Was that not because of feelings you wish to share? Do you not want what is best for me, to be with me in many different ways, and will do your best to keep me from harm and make me happy?"

Kai listened in silence, he was finally starting to accept that his heart could feel such emotions. Even with all of his effort to block them. Nygozy's words sank into him and the assassin and he held her small body close. "You...are right." he whispered to her before he kissed her again, more freely this time.

The chains he seemed to have set upon himself around his heart were loosening, letting him accept what he could not allow himself to believe in before. He kissed her and she relished the feel, her heart thumping against his chest as she fell back into the pillows, kissing him hungrily while holding him as if he would disappear.

Kai pulled back again, he breathed quickly and breathlessly, he gave the hero a sincere smile. "I..." he started before nerves started up "I think I'm ready to admit that I've fallen quite strongly in love with you hero"

Nygozy rubbed one of his ears, tracing the outline and the pointed tip as if it was a cherished artifact, "How long have you been fighting yourself with this, bodyguard?" She teased calling him by what he was due to him always calling her 'hero.'

"quite the while" Kai smiled again, relaxed by her lighthearted teasing. "Back before we ever met Royce, I believe I got quite jealous then."