<b>Pegawen stared off into the distance, listening to the sounds of nature as she stood her watch. What she could hear, that was, over Flagdon's snoring. She bit back a chuckle. Dwarves were all the same, no matter where one went. <br/>
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She stood up, careful not to wake Lotharn, and went to make another pass around the perimeter of the clearing. The movement served a second purpose – keeping her awake – though it was getting harder to keep her eyes open after everything that'd happened earlier. The attack, and its aftermath, still loomed in her mind. She glanced over at the sleeping group, first finding Thorgan. Was he asleep? Did he just pretend to be? She'd watched him avoid Allassiel, not even looking up when her cousin had placed her armour near the fire. <br/>
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Following her train of thought, she sought and found Allassiel. Pegawen knew that she was likely not sleeping. Allassiel hadn't been happy about her taking a watch, but Pegawen pointed out that everyone needed to do their share. Beneath that, though, Pegawen worried that Allassiel had simply used that as an excuse to avoid talking. She was shaking her head even as she returned to her bedroll to sit back down. There had to be a way to get those two to understand each other, but she had no idea how. <br/>
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Noticing the moon high in the sky, she wondered how much time had passed since she'd started her watch. Lotharn had insisted she wake him for the second watch and, while she wished he could get some sleep, she crawled over to his bedroll and leaned in to brush her lips along his cheek. “Your turn,” she whispered. <br/>
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Allassiel listened to Pegawen walk around in the darkness, her own body tense as she stood silent guard. She'd argued against her cousin taking the watch, but Pegawen had merely pointed out that she was only doing what any of them would be doing, and she was well able to sound an alarm if something happened. Allassiel hadn't been happy, but she'd finally given in. <br/>
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At least it'd kept them from talking about what Pegawen wanted to talk about – or who. Allassiel turned her head, looking across the fire at where he lay. He'd not even looked up when she'd gone to the fire and had stood and walked away before she could even find the words to speak. His snub had hurt, and she'd watched as he walked away. But what was she supposed to say? It was foolish to think a human could understand an elf, much less love one. She cursed Pegawen for putting that thought in her head. She'd be better off just forgetting it. <br/>
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But how?</b>