In the middle of the night, Nathan opened his eyes.
Sleep had never fully taken him. The pain in his neck had made sure of that. Even after resting for most of the day, Yorimasa's bite still burned beneath his skin with a slow, maddening pulse that refused to let him sink into proper sleep.
Carefully, he lifted Yukihime's arm from over him and sat up.
She did not stir. In the dim light, she looked peaceful in a way the waking world rarely allowed her, her silver hair spread softly over the bedding, her breathing slow and even. Nathan watched her for a brief moment, then rose without making a sound. He had no wish to wake her.
He needed air.
And perhaps silence.
Meditation had helped him before, more than once. When pain became too loud or his thoughts too crowded, stillness at least let him contain them. So he left the room, descended quietly through the inn, and stepped out into the night.
The streets of Death God Valley no longer looked like the same place they had entered.
