She had returned the disguise to the storage wagon, then had gone to the bath wagon to clean up. She was growing a bit weary of all of this, but was not ready to capitulate just yet. She found a slave to help her to bathe, and to braid her hair, adding some beads to it. Dressing in one of her better soft leather dresses she went to the fires, and joined in the banter there. Yes, she was distracted, but she did the best that she could.
It seems like everyone is having babies. Well, no everyone, just Kaeli and Apoini that she knows of. It actually makes her very happy for them both, because she knows they will both make wonderful mothers. And, it was funny to watch Jai and Teng. If Teng's chest swelled any more, he would not be able to wear his vest. There was the usual banter and just that made her feel more normal, better.
Then there he was. He strides up, asks if anyone has anything to talk about and proclaims that he is hungry. Without a word she did as she always has and went to make him a platter of his favorite cuts of meats, cheeses and breads, and gets his bota. Moving to where he was sitting she lowered down and held it out to him. And held it, and held it, and held it. He treated her like some slave that could be ignored. Anger began to well inside her, but she swallowed it down like a bitter draught. She was not going to let him know how he was getting to her. She was stronger than that, so she just held the platter, never saying a word, but she knew that her cheeks were beginning to take on color.
She actually got a reprieve from a source she was not expecting. Jai. It had something to do with a wager on a spar, and a slave, or something like that. He did finally take a piece of the meat from the platter and walked off to spar. She promptly set the platter down on his furs and moved to the ones she had been sitting on, to watch.
Or she tried to watch. It was not a pretty thing. On any given day, one warrior can best the other, then the next day, the outcome would be reversed. Tonight was just not Ba'atar's night. Jai trounced him badly, but he gave almost as good as he got. In the end they were both beat and banged up, but Jai prevailed.
She had gone to get damp cloths to try and wipe some of the blood away, and he turned and looked down at her, and told her to take him to their wagons. He did not have to ask twice. She helped him to limp home to their wagon, and when they got here, he asked her if this meant that she was home. She said yes, that if he wanted her, that she was home. That seemed to confuse him for a bit, so she told him, yes that she was home.
She had helped him to undress, made him some of the tea they had left from when he was injured before, then bound his ribs. There was no hiding the fact that he had missed her. Part of his body was willing, but the bruised and battered ribs were not. She finally convinced him to lie down and rest and let the tea work its' magic.
And it was her night to hold him, comfort him while he slept. It was good to be home.
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