That night, Luna visited the attic again. “Did you check on your grandmother? Is she alright?” he asked as she sat down by his side on the bed roll. To his dismay, she nudged aside a towel that was slightly stiff to the touch.
“Yes, she’s growing old and was just tired… move over a bit and give me your pillow” she whispered, nudging him aside. Luna then slid under the covers and lay on her belly, resting her chin on his pillow as she stared into the lantern flame.
Turned to his side and propped up on his elbows, Exill examined her profile, illuminated by the warm glow of the flickering lantern. She was beautiful in every sense of the word.
“Take off your top” she said after several minutes had passed.
“Excuse me?”
Luna repeated herself, her face going red, “take off your top, I want to check up on you. I saw some deep scars last night.”
“Yeah, those are old and healed” he replied, confused by her intent. One of the things he had learned early on from Savta was that scar tissue, while flawed, was considered a healthy part of the body. No matter how much mana was poured into it, blemishes would remain flawed.
“Even if I can’t fix the scars, I can try to heal the underlying damage, you dummy.” Luna insisted, growing redder each time until Exill acquiesced, taking off his tunic. He felt a chill as her hands caressed his back, channelling healing magic. The skin writhed as new muscle fibres formed under the scarred surface. She did this for a few minutes until Exill turned around to grip her arm in concern.
“That is enough for today. Save your vitality for the patients,” he pleaded, causing her to pout in return.
“Fine, I’ll use some of your vitality to heal then. Do you have any injuries that still hurt and ache?” she saw him hesitate.
“It’s one of my first injuries, my thigh was pierced by a mud fly and the leg has never been the same since” he explained while rolling up the pajama legs but found they wouldn’t go so high up.
“You’ll need to take it off.” Luna breathed. She had seen men in their underwear a hundred times while working at the clinic, yet this felt different, almost wrong. Unconsciously, she glanced back at the ladder to check Nana wasn’t there.
Luna swallowed at the sight of him peeling down his trousers, exposing his loose underwear and muscular defined thighs. Heart pounding, she gathered herself and leaned over the puckered scar, channelling [Heal] into the old wound.
He could feel her soft touch, and the tips of her hair brushing against his thigh. Her caress and attention aroused him, making it uncomfortable.
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“I think that’s enough for today” he said in an embarrassed whisper.
“Just give me a minute, this one is really bad.”
“I really think you should go.” Exill insisted, and this time, he pushed her away by the shoulders.
Luna grew angry. She was still far from completely healing the underlying muscle and didn’t appreciate the disruption. “What is your problem?” she began to ask, before catching a glimpse of the tent shrouding his underwear.
‘Oh…’ she thought, a little belatedly.
Luna covered her eyes with her fingers as Exill quickly covered himself. It was not as if she hadn’t seen the physiological response before while treating patients, but right now, here, isolated in this dimly attic… the atmosphere was completely different. Finally, she stepped back and wordlessly descended the ladder, her brain completely fried, unable to wish him goodnight.
As she slipped into bed, heart still pounding in her ear, she made a sudden realization. The sensation of his bare toned skin, combined with the firmness of the muscles and the texture of the scars awoke something strange within her. It felt like she was both exploring and getting to know Exill in a way no one else had before. It was exciting that a simple touch could arouse and elicit such an extreme response.
Whenever something like this happened in the Clinic, she had concealed her distaste and carefully moved on. However this time, it had felt strangely empowering. She stared at the ceiling deep into the night, trying to organise these complex feelings.
***
The next morning, Old Savta sensed something had shifted. Noises had been heard late last night, and now the kids couldn’t even look at each other without turning beet red! She actioned one of her cunning plans prepared long ago.
“Aah, I feel like having sweet rolls today… Luna will you be a dear and fetch some from that baker at the eastern marketplace? Exill, you should follow her. The outer wall isn’t as safe as it used to be… she’s been mugged before.”
“Nana! I’ll be fine on my own… and that was a long time ago, I’ll avoid the side streets.”
‘That she-devil...’ Exill thought, speaking up after suffering Nana’s scornful gaze, “It’s no problem Luna, let’s go after this.”
Luna fetched her wicker basket, and they exited the clinic to the morning rays. The cobblestones clacked underfoot as they walked together towards the bustling East Gate. Exill flashed his red token to the guards, indicating his residency in the city. Now that he was a registered citizen, he would have to pay taxes, but one of the perks was exemption from the entry tolls.
The streets became more packed as they entered the Outer City and the flowing crowd threatened to both split them apart and press them together. Exill felt delicate fingers intertwine themselves around his and he held tight, forging a path towards the marketplace. He grew wary as they approached the square for he recognised the place, having worked at Ham’s Smithy for around a week. “Oh please, no” he muttered under his breath, realising the sweet roll baker was two stores down from Ham.
He really didn’t want to encounter the dwarf, and was tense and alert as Luna made her purchase. As she was paying, the worst thing he could imagine happened. The dwarf exited the Smithy and their gaze met, his eyes lighting up in recognition and greed. “Exill, is that you me boy?” he exclaimed.
‘Gods no! I just know he is going to extort me for money!’ Exill grabbed Luna’s surprised hand and the bag of sweet rolls, then raced down a side street.
“Haah!? What’s happening?”
He glanced back to answer her but instead caught a glimpse of a stubby figure chasing after them. He turned right at the next junction and exited the streets into a small square. He looked around in panic searching for a way out, before diving into a large covered tent, dragging the poor elf maiden in with him.