The Fateful Heart 2

Evaline opened the door then gently closed it behind her, the wet air once again clinging to her skin and clothes.

She turned and placed the items on the bench. "I got your spare shirt, the roll of bandages, the salve, and... the comb, for if we have time."

She glanced up at James and realized that he put on his pants and belt. He must have used the time spent alone to pat himself dry, although his back still looked damp.

"Okay. Liana came by earlier giving a ten-minute warning. So - if you could just pat down my back, I'll take care of bandaging. I want you to have time to finish up drying off or whatever you need to do. I might just have to do your hair outside. Okay?"

"Oh. Yes, of course, that's fine," Evaline said quickly. It sounded like he thought she was panicking, but she wasn't. Should she?

She decided to not tell him that Kurt was probably waiting for them to come out any second now.

Deciding a fresh towel was better for absorbency, she grabbed another one off the rack and held it in her arms.

"Are you ready?" she asked.

James decided to just stand up and turn his back to her. “Go ahead.”

"...Okay," she said after a brief hesitation, walking up to James. She was getting a feeling that James was panicking because of the time limit, which she understood. He didn't want anyone to see him like this. Not anyone he didn't know. Anyone besides her.

She unfolded the towel and silently began to gently dab the moisture out of his back. Some of the scabs looked like it could be scraped away, so she did her best to only apply pressure towards the skin and not against.

James took in a deep breath, but he could feel the uncertain timer counting down in his head.

“Could you hand me the bandages?”

He could start on his arms. Kill two birds with one stone.

Evaline paused drying to walk back to the supplies. She grabbed the bandages and salve, then walked back and handed them to James.

"Here," she said, extending her arm. "And the salve if you need it."

James nodded, and he took the salve and bandages and immediately got to wrapping.

“I won’t look, so just let me know when you’re dressed and ready.”

He kept his eyes down and on himself. It was awkward and a pain to wrap around his back, but it always was. He was used to it.

Evaline took some steps back, nodding. She was glad that James offered to give her time to fully dry. It was getting to be rather uncomfortable, feeling wet under dry clothes.

"Thanks," she said softly, and then started to unpeel out of her clothes. She took her shirt and then pants off, grimacing that it got a little damp since she didn't get to fully dry off, but at least it wasn't soaked. She sat on the edge of the tub after she peeled out of her bra, bracing for her chest to still feel grimy and dirty due to the compression. Still, she didn't want to waste that much time, so the only leaned over and splashed some water on her, trying to ignore the fact that this water was tainted by James's blood.

She wrung out the bra and, used the fresh towel to dry herself off, and then repeated the same process with her underwear. Both items weren't completely dry, but it was an improvement. When done, she dried her body out as much as she could before putting all her clothes back on.

"Okay, I'm done," she said, pushing a strand of wet hair out of her face. "Do you need help with anything?"

James had just finished wrapping the bandages and secured them around his waist with a knot. "I'm good," he said, his voice steady. He felt like he could breathe, now. He grabbed his shirt and slipped it on, feeling a wave of relief wash over him now that that was over. All that was left were his socks and his shoes.

Then there was a knock on the door.

"You guys all wrapped up in there?"

James grabbed the roll of bandages and the salve, shoving them in his pockets.

"We should grab the towels we used," he said softly to Evaline. He started grabbing the ones closes to him.

"Yes, we're done," he called back.

The door swung open, and Liana stood there with Kurt hovering just behind her.

"Oh, the towels -" she said, noticing James holding them. "We'll take care of those, you can leave them on the bench."

James hesitated but did as she said. He sat back on the bench and started to slip on his socks.

Evaline followed James's lead and sat on the opposite bench to slip on her socks and boots as Liana and Kurt stood nearby. She noticed Liana was holding cleaning supplies, and so she was likely waiting for them to leave before she started. Liana's gaze was over towards the tub, and Evaline only hoped that she didn't have magical blood detection abilities.

"Wow, you guys really made a mess in here, huh?" Kurt said behind her, and Liana then jabbed him on the stomach, causing him to let out a yelp.

"Sorry about the candles," James said quickly. "It was an accident."

"That's okay, it happens sometimes," Liana said with a shrug, walking over and picking it up.

Evaline decided to completely ignore the comment, subject, and any implications that followed. When they finished, Liana shooed them out of the hut.

"Kurt said you both needed to do laundry, yeah?" she said, herding them out like cattle. "I need to get the bath ready for the next people. You can follow him. He'll show you where to go."

The door shut behind them, and the three of them were back outside in the dry air with the sun beating down on them. It was a different type of hot and warmth out here.

"Yeah!" Kurt chirped, already walking down the path. "Follow me. Oh, wait. You need to get your old clothes. Right, right, right. And! Right. Your current clothes need washing too. Hmmm."

He stared at James and Evaline, scanning them like he was trying to determine how dirty they were.

"There are some extra sets of clothes that you can borrow. Let's go there first. C'mon!" He gestured towards himself with a grin as he walked down the other path, past the bath hut.

It wasn't like they had anywhere else to be, and it wasn't like Kurt was wrong, either. They did need to wash their clothes. It was a bit of a shame that they cleaned up but had to put on dirty clothes.

Evaline gave James a glance and shrugged. They wordlessly followed Kurt while he babbled on about the laundry process and how everyone at the oasis did their parts and what kind of chores they all had to do. It was a one-sided conversation, really, but that made things better.

They eventually made it to a different hut, one that was smaller and full of supplies. Kurt opened the door for them and gestured inside, although it felt a bit crammed with the three of them in there.

"We mostly keep our spare clothes in here," Kurt said. "Any textiles, really. So, like, clothes, towels, blankets. Stuff like that. But mostly clothes. It's mostly a communal closet, really."

He gestured to one side of the room. "Women's clothes are over there." And then he gestured to the other side. "And men's are over there."

Kurt gave them one quick lookover before leaning back against the door. "So, ah, just pick what you want, and then meet me outside, yeah?"

Evaline and James nodded, but he didn't seem to want to leave.

"We got it. Thanks," Evaline said, and Kurt smiled at the affirmation before finally leaving.

James was relieved when Kurt left them alone for a moment, but he knew they didn't have long. He started scanning the shelves, looking for colors and styles he preffered, but firstly, for things in his size.

There were a few varying textiles. Some looked like they were clothes meant for travel - they were the colors of the desert, lightweight, and made to cover as much skin as possible to limit overexposure. He found himself briefly envying the people of the village for having the resources to be properly prepared for travel through the desert, but he knew that, just like everyone else in the world, these things likely didn't come as easily to them as it seemed.

That said, the fact that they had a full hut full of clothes to lend and share was a blessing, and though they were only borrowing, it would be nice to wear something different. New to him.

He was drawn to a dull green garment - one that was meant to be layered over something like a tunic, or a long shirt. He pulled it off the shelf to examine it. It was simpler than some of the more colorfully patterned clothes, but he liked the v-cut and the shape it made.

Holding it up to his chest, he tried to eyeball if it would fit. It looked about his size, and if he belted it, it would hardly matter. He started searching the shelves for pieces to fill in the blanks for the outfit, piling clothes over his arm. A tunic, pants, a belt, and wraps to cover his arms (to make sure his bandages didn't peek out).

Meanwhile, Evaline was eyeing the other side of the closet and seemed more unsure.

"Have you picked something?" she asked.

"Just did," he answered. "You?"

"No," she said after a hesitation, but didn't any anything more.

"I haven't changed just yet -- can I turn around?"

"Yeah. I haven't -- I'm still looking."

James turned around and came up beside Evaline with his clothes draped over his arm. He looked to Evaline, and then found himself scanning the shelves.

"Do you see anything you like?" he asked.

She let out a small nervous laugh. "I know that we'll just wear this for a day, but I can't help but feel that I have to pick something I should wear for the desert, not something I like."

James hummed. "Well, we won't be traveling in them, so I don't think you have to pick something sand-storm ready. They may put us to work, but I'd think they'd let you know if they don't want certain clothes getting dirty, or whatever. I say just pick something you like. Like I said before, we'll probably never have an experience quite like this again, so you might as well enjoy it."

Evaline glanced up at him then back at the clothes, thinking this over. She reached over for a simple long-sleeved blouse and brown cotton pants, although it took her a minute to rifle though it and find something that appeared to fit.

"To be honest, I don't really find joy in how I look or present myself. Clothes and appearances have always been a trivial thing to me," she said as she pulled out the pants. "So, I guess... if you have any recomendations... I'm open to hearing it."

James looked at Evaline with a slight smile in his eyes.

"Sure," he said, turning his attention to the shelves in front of him. He started picking up a few things briefly, glancing at Evaline, then putting them back down. It looked like she'd found some solid staple pieces of clothing as a base, so he was looking for something more colorful to layer on top. She said she didn't really care about clothes, but he wanted her to feel like she looked nice.

He pulled out a long, loose garment that looked like it was meant to be draped over a shirt, and cinched with a belt or a tie. It had a colorful geometric pattern, and some of the hues looked like they would compliment the undertones of her skin and contrast her light blue eyes. He turned to her and held it up in front of her, then pulled it down, humming in thought.

He lifted it up again, pausing just before moving to drape it around her shoulders. He asked if he could wrap it around her with his eyes, and she nodded in response, seeming to understand.

He brought it around her, adjusting it carefully over her shoulders before he took a step back. Her eyes watched his movement the entire time, and when he finished, she looked like she was trying to suppress a smile, but was doing a bad job of it. He tried not to think much of it, but found himself fighting a grin too.

From the shelf, he pulled out a long, fabric belt with tassels at the end, and he came up to her again, reaching briefly around her back to bring it around her waist. He brought it around in the front and tied it, then adjusted the garment around her shoulder and waist again to make sure it sat right. He stepped back again to get a better look.

"Am I your new model now?" she asked, no longer able to hide the silly smile.

James was still fighting his grin, but still seriously trying to guage if the outfit worked. He wasn't sure how to respond, and he took to long to come up with somethign witty.

"Would you like me to spin around, or..?" she playfully added when he didn't respond.

James bit his lower lip just before his mouth spread into a smile. "Sure," he said. He twirled his finger for good measure.

Evaline gave him a long look. "You don't actually..." She then let out a short laugh and half-rolled her eyes. "Okay. Fine."

She shuffled in place, giving a very awkward and slow twirl. When she was facing him again, he was smiling. She returned the smile but looked at him with raised brows as if saying with her eyes, 'And? What do you think?'

"I think it looks good on you," he said, still smiling. "But what matters most is if you like it."

She looked down at herself, smile still tugging her lips. "I like it," she said. "But I'm sure it'll look and feel better with the clean clothes, too."

"Oh, of course," he said. "I was expecting you to change into those and wear this over that." He pointed to the blouse and pants she'd pulled out for herself.

"So, you think those clothes are good to wear too, then?" she asked.

"Yes," he said. "I just thought you should add a splash of color."

Evaline looked down at the colorful fabric again. "Alright," she said, and then said in a slow voice like she was recalling something: "I value your opinion."

James stared at her for a moment with his smile lingering, and then met her eyes.

He cared about what she thought too.

"Well," he said after a small pause. "Let's get changed before Kurt comes back."

He felt that she would understand the nuances of that last statement. Kurt had a tendency to say a lot of things without much of a filter or social awareness, and he didn't want Kurt drawing more assumptions or making things more awkward.

Before he could see Evaline's response, he turned around, assuming she would do the same. Since the closet wasn't too large, he went to the far corner and let her change in the front.

He could hear the shuffling of clothes, signaling that she was hurriedly changing as well.

"Thanks," she said after a while. "For picking this out."

"No problem," he said as he pulled off one shirt and put on another. He forgot how nice it was to wear fresh clean clothes.

Evaline uncinched the fabric and peeled it off of her.

"Since we have time alone..." she started. "I was wondering. Do you have any plan on what to do after all of... this?"

She was referencing what to do after the oasis, but maybe the question wasn't clear.

"After we leave this place, I mean," she clarified. "Or when. When we will leave this place."

"Well... when we leave, we'll need to head back to the river," he answered. "There's a few things I'm unsure of at the moment. I don't know how far these people's generosity will extend, so I don't know if they'll send us off with much food or not. But in any case, we'll likely need to stop into a town again, even though it's a risk. We could just keep eating food raw and -- but I know that's not preferable. From here, there should be a town maybe a day or two away. I assume these people know of it too."

At this point, Evaline had already slipped out of her clothes and began to button up the blouse.

"Whatever we decide, it'll be easier being.... healthier," she said. "I just want to avoid last week again. But at least while we're here, we can prepare to make sure that doesn't happen again."

"I agree," he said. "I don't know how long these people will have us for, but it would be wise to recover our strength before we go back out into the desert alone. My only concerns are... well, losing time and distance. But at this rate, I think we'd make better distance once we're both feeling better."

Evaline slipped on her pants, trying to listen to the words James didn't say. She didn't want to make any assumptions that the people in the oasis would let them stay longer than a day, but she did wonder if they would. And if they would, would James want to stay? It was a different situation than mage camp since no one was pressuring her to become a resident.

Last week was difficult. Although the day so far was awkward, it was still... nice, especially after the hardships of last week.

"One day at a time," she simply said, buttoning her pants and then brushing her clothes down. "I'm glad it was them who found us and not anyone else."

James sighed. "Me too."

The conversation turned into a natural silence. She put on the colorful garment that James recommended, doing her best to copy what James did to her, but she wasn't sure if she did everything right, especially without a mirror.

"Are you almost done?" she asked.

She heard a little bit of shuffling, and then: "I'm done now."

"Okay, I think? This is right? But if not, then..."

She was messing around with the tassels, but then turned to look at James, her sentence naturally trailing off as she noticed his new outfit.

Spoiler

It was almost strange to see James wearing anything else but the same two outfits he rotated out of. Strange, but... refreshing. It was nice.

"You really were serious when you consider yourself fashionable, huh?" she said as she admired his new clothes.

James stood up a little straighter, but his face looked a little flushed. "Do you... like it?" he asked, sounding uncertain.

Evaline crossed her arms and smiled. "Hard to say," she said, trying to keep a neutral expression. "You might have to spin first."

He stared at her and blinked for a moment, but then he dipped his head and spun around. Not too fast, but with a slow and natural movement like he had done this before.

When he turned back around, she was meeting his eyes with a grin.

"I'd say it looks good," she said with a nod. "The spin really sold it."

James smiled and shook his head with a sigh. "I guess I'll just have to keep spinning then. All day."

"I hope you don't get too dizzy," she said back, suppressing a giggle.

"I think I'll manage," he said, looking down at the tie around her waist. "Do you mind if I adjust...?" He pointed at it.

"Oh," she said, looking down at her waist and uncrossing her arms. "Of course. Feel free."

He stepped forward, just a little closer than an arm's length as he untied it, let the garment hang down loosely, and then carefully brought it back around again. Up close, she could see the flushed tint of his cheeks still remained. Although he was looking down to readjust, it wasn't like she tried to look at his face or eyes; they were practically the same height, and his face was right in front of hers. Seeing him like this made her own cheeks start to flush too.

James re-tied the cloth belt in silence, and he fiddled with it for a second before pulling away.

"Thanks," she said, tearing her gaze and looking back down at herself. It looked a lot less messy than before.

"You're welcome," he said. His gaze traveled to her hair. "Do you... want to let your hair down to dry? Since we won't be traveling today, I... don't have to braid it. Unless you want me to."

Evaline wordlessly slid the ribbon out of her hair, letting her partly-dry hair fall along her back and shoulders. She looked down and tied the ribbon around her wrist, taking her time to catch the right words.

"Remember when you first started to braid my hair?" she started, looping and re-looping the ribbon around her wrist. "It was because I thought it'd be better if it was cut, but you offered to braid it instead. It's been over two months now, and it's gotten a lot longer. So I think the better question is to ask you if you want to braid my hair everyday or not. Because I'm sure there's someone here who could cut my hair if I asked."

James's eyes lingered on her hair, then traveled back to her eyes.

"Well," he said softly. "I have enjoyed braiding your hair everyday. And I offered to at first because I didn't want you to feel pressured to cut your hair if you didn't want to. Especially because two months ago, things were more uncertain. But if you wanted to cut it, that wouldn't be my decision to make."

He paused, breaking eye contact to look at the ground, but it seemed like he wasn't quite done.

"You would look lovely with whatever hair length you chose. But I must admit I would miss it if I wasn't able to braid it anymore."

Evaline lingered her gaze on him for a second, feeling a confusing mixed bag of emotions and thoughts. Before she could think about how she really felt, she quickly turned around and sat on the floor.

"I wouldn't mind if you braided it, then," she said, draping her hair along her back. She paused, trying to fish for the right words. Something that will help explain this. Her appreciation and... want.

"I'd also miss it," she said quietly.

She could hear James sit down behind her.

"Do you want anything in particular?" he asked softly.

"I'll let you surprise me," she said back in the same tone.

His hands drew her hair back, and he started working from the top of her head. Slowly and carefully he loosely weaved her hair together down her back in a single braid. She was right that her hair had grown, and there was more length to work with than two months ago, but it didn't take too much longer. He tied off the braid at the end with the ribbon and started gently tugging at the braid to increase the volume and make sure it was even. He turned her head slightly to the side and pulled out a wisp of hair by her ear to frame her face, but just as he did so, someone knocked on the door.

"Hey guys!" came Kurt's voice. "Everything okay in there? Are you dressed?"

"Yes, but--" was all James got to say before the door swung open, and Kurt looked down at the two of them on the floor, with his hand still lingering by the side of Evaline's face.

James reached for his clothes on the floor just as Kurt let out a long, loud:

"Awwwwwwwwwwwwwww!"

James turned back to Kurt, looking at the smile spread across his face. Kurt clasped his hands together.

"So you're the one who braids her hair? You do that every morning? All the time? That's so cute. You two look so cute! And your outfits, too. Cute!"

"Where do we need to go to do laundry, Kurt?" James asked, quickly changing the subject as he bundled all of his dirty clothes in his arms and stood up. He saw Evaline doing the same.

"Oh, it's by the river, I can show you, no worries," Kurt said with many nods, leaning up against the door.

James nodded, and he waited for a second for Kurt to leave the doorway, but he didn't. After one slow blink, James weaved past Evaline and pushed past Kurt. That non-verbal cue Kurt seemed to understand, and he backed out before James could really push him much. Evaline followed out behind him.

"I don't think we can thank you all enough for your generosity," James said. "But we really do appreciate everything."

"Oh, it's no problem!" he said too cheerily, walking down the path and glancing back at them too often like he was scared they were going to run off without him. "All of us here have had some troubles in the past, so we do our best to make sure to help others when we see them. We usually pick up older people, or outlaws and the like. Not innocent couples like you. You're both pretty rare out here. I'm glad we found you! Man, who knows how long you'd both survive like that... Out there in the sandstorm, trapped in the cave..."

He finally stopped like he just now realized he wasn't allowing them to talk at all. "Anyways, yeah, not an old outlaw, just a nice married couple."

James smiled, but it was a practiced smile, not a real one. "It sounds like you've met people from all sorts of life out here in the desert," he commented, avoiding addressing the outlaw or the married couple comment.

"Oh yeah, all sorts of people," Kurt said enthusiastically. "It's kind of nice seeing different people from everywhere in the desert. Let's see, the other week we got an old woman with a two-year-old grandson running from her crazy husband. Very sad story there. She was really sweet, though. But two months before? A woman named Perona Blease who said she was looking for her family, but she was a crazy thief! Left and stole a lot of our supplies! Ever since then, I've been telling the others, 'Guys. We gotta stop accepting everyone.' Because clearly fishy-lookin' people are fishy, right?"

Evaline gave James an alarmed look, but he couldn't quite decipher why. He kept his expression calm and engaged with the conversation.

"That is often the case," he said to Kurt, agreeing for the sake of peace.

Kurt kept going on and on as they continued on the path towards the river.

"Right! So I tell them, let's go to a town sometimes and maybe double-check some of the outlaw posters, but apparently, that's too much work these days because the town nearby is overrun by criminals, so what's the point. But there's gotta be a way to figure out who's-who, ya know? Don't ya think?"

He looked back at James for validation again.

"That does sound wise," James agreed. He was glad that they slipped through before any advanced screening, though.

"That's what I'm saying!" Kurt said with a relieved grin. "Although, I've been told that the sheriffs do an awful job at keeping the posters up-to-date these days. We're using the posters to recognize the outlaws and keep them out, but what's the point if they're not up-to-date? You'd think they have more sketch artists around these parts, but this is the Outlands, so who knows."

James made brief eye contact with Evaline - not worried so much as he was amazed by the irony of their current situation.

"But anyways, main point being, outlaws shouldn't be allowed in the oasis," Kurt said, voice suddenly serious. "I know there are lots of outlaws around these parts, but I think the oasis should be a safe haven from those ruthless thugs. Any outlaws around these parts should be... heh, outlawed!"

"You should probably discuss this with whoever makes those calls," James suggested.

Kurt glanced back at them again, nodding. "I did though. Years and years ago. No one listened to me..."

James was quiet for a moment before he said: "I'm sorry to hear that. I think your concerns are valid."

Kurt stopped for a moment to give James an appreciative smile. "Thanks Yoen. Means a lot. Especially since..." He sighed and kept on walking. "Especially since, well, I think all outlaws are bad, bad people. They're outlawed for a reason, and if towns and other places like the oasis actually did a decent effort in keeping them out, then maybe my parents would still be..."

He trailed off, not finishing his sentence, slowing down. The river was just ahead of them, a brief walk away. When Kurt came to a stop, James reached out and put his hand on Kurt's back.

"I'm sorry for your loss," he said sincerely.

Kurt looked down at James, eyes glistening. "Thanks," he said with a soft smile, and then glanced between him and Evaline. "You two kind of remind me of them."

James smiled a little and patted Kurt's back before pulling away.

"What were their names?" he asked gently.

"Meredith and Drake," he said with a little sniffle.

"I'm sure they'd be happy that you're helping so many people. It's honorable, what you're doing," James said with a little smile.

Evaline cleared her throat. "It is," she added. "I'm sure they would be proud."

James's eyes drifted to the water up ahead. "Is... Is this the spot?"

Kurt wiped his eyes with his sleeve and sniffed one more time before nodding. "All the supplies," he began, his voice breaking a little. He cleared his throat and started again. "All the supplies are over there." He pointed at a chest nearby, on what looked like a small dock, with clotheslines tied between trees nearby.

"Thank you, Kurt," James said. "We'll go wash our clothes. Is there anything else we should know?"

Kurt shook his head. "Everything should be there and pretty self-explanatory. Um - let me know though if you need anything else. I'll be around."

James bowed his head and flashed Kurt another soft smile.

"Will do," he said, before heading over to the dock with Evaline.

Evaline looked back, wanting to make sure they were out of earshot of Kurt. He seemed to stand there and watch them walk away. She did feel bad for him, especially with the sad story he shared about his parents. James seemed to instantly empathize despite being an outlaw himself, and she wondered if Kurt will one day walk into a town, see the poster of him, and think of him differently.

James instructed her to grab the other clothes from the saddlebag, so she walked back (taking a different route from Kurt) to do that. When she returned, James was by the dock with all the supplies surrounding him. She looked down the shoreline and didn't see anyone around.

"So that was an interesting conversation," she said, setting the clothes down on a pile next to him.