"I guess," Will mumbles, bringing a palm to rub at his eyes. "I pray you won't kill me while I'm sleeping." He pushes the comforter out from under him and carefully slides between the sheets. Naturally, he ends up turning his back towards the other side of the bed. The warm covers, cozy lighting and silken pajamas all are perfect ingredients to dragging him under. Before he can even register it, he's on sleep's door.
Kaz just shook his head, not bothering to respond to that. He turned off the lights and got into the bed, lying with his back to Will, since the young man was clearly uncomfortable facing him. Which was fine. They would both adjust to the other's presence eventually. And if they didn't…well, then they didn't, and that would be that. He exhaled faintly, and sleep soon claimed him.
He doesn't know how long he's asleep before he begins dreaming. This one is less vivid than the last, instead of a clear memory there's nothing but fuzzy glimpses. The light is warm, there's a mouth on his, there's a hand creeping to his neck–and then there's pressure and Will can't breathe. He shoots up, shaking himself from the dream before it can truly bring the residual pain. His chest heaves as he gasps for air. The only light fleeting through the windows comes from the moon.
Kaz was still asleep when Will awoke, curled on his side on the bed with his pale hair a touch messy. He looked peaceful, in his sleep. Relaxed. Less cruel and vicious than he was when he was awake. Just soft and dreaming and almost harmless. Not quite harmless, but closer to it than he ever did awake.
As his eyes clear and adjust to the dark room, Will finds the Snake sleeping soundly next to him, not even stirred from the nightmares. "Good god," He mumbles, hardly above a whisper. He swallows once, twice, and a third time trying to get the suffocating feeling from his throat. After a few more attempts and finally rid of the horrible feeling, Will lays back down, staring right up at the ornate ceiling. Sleep slowly drifts into his mind once more. He subconsciously shifts closer to the middle of the bed, turning his head so Kazimir's blond hair just barely brushing his nose. He closes his eyes and lets sleep reclaim him.
If WIll had wanted to, if he had found a weapon (which wouldn't be hard, in Kaz's chambers), he could have killed Kazimir right then and there. Could have ended their cycle forever, while the Snake slept. But he hadn't, and Kaz continued to sleep, shifting very faintly when Will slipped closer to him. At some point in the night, he rolled over, his face now mere inches from the Martyr's.
Will dreams again of poison and wine and masquerade balls. He’s dancing and there's laughter surrounding him. It's both pleasant and bittersweet. When he slowly comes to consciousness, he doesn't need to dwell to know that he had died that night. As he blinks the sleep from his eyes, the first thing he notes is the early sun drifting through the windows and drapes. The second thing, his heart choosing to skip a beat, is Kazimir's sleeping face hardly three inches from his own. Will doesn't dare move, instead choosing to study the Snake's blonde eyelashes and porcelain pale skin. His hair glows angelically in the rising sun.
Kaz was still asleep, face soft and relaxed. His arms were drawn up close to his chest, and his chest rose and fell slowly with each breath he took. He was so vulnerable like this. So soft and unprotected. Yet, he slept beside the Martyr as if Will posed no threat to him. As if death at Will's hands would not end their cycle permanently.
It occurs to Will that the Snake is truly asleep… and defenseless. He blinks the remaining sleep from his eyes and sits up, already scanning the room for anything he could use to finally put the cycle to an end. A swell of hope flutters in his chest. This could be it. He could finally be done reliving this hellish cycle over and over again–he looks down the Snake. Asleep. Defenseless. The hope burns into another feeling. Not yet. He tells himself before gently falling back against the pillows.
When the mattress shifted because of Will's movements, Kaz shifted faintly, a soft sound escaping his throat, but he didn't wake up. Not just yet. He continued, instead, to sleep, head on the pillows. He would awaken sooner or later, but not just yet still.
Minutes pass and Will grows impatient simply laying around. He slowly slips out of the bed and makes his way to the wardrobe. After quickly sifting through the garments, Will decides on stealing a simple flowey off-white blouse and a pair of dark brown trousers. He moves into the connected bathroom and begins changing.
Kaz woke up while WIll was in the bathroom, sitting up and rubbing his eyes sleepily, white hair slightly messed up from being slept on. He cleared his throat, looking around for Will and hoping the Martyr had not run off. It would be a hell of a time tracking him down, if he had.
Slowly making his way out the door, Will begins buttoning his shirt. "Good morning," He greets quietly, using a ribbon he found in the bathroom to tie his hair back. "Decided to sleep in?" Despite wanting to keep a distant demeanor, Will can't help the small smile that pulls at his lips.
"Mmph." he rubbed his eyes, blinking sleepily at Will. "I did." he replied, expression turning slightly mystified. He had not slept in for…a very long time. Normally, he was up with the sun, but clearly that was not the case today. He glanced out the windows, then back over to Will, pushing back the blankets and standing up in order to stretch, fingers reaching up for the ceiling.
"I hope you can get ready soon." Will crosses the room to his side of the bed, retrieving his sketchbook and the book: Introduction to Fae Flora. "I need you to take me to the garden. The morning sun will only last a little while longer." He learned long ago that the earlier in the day he got to studying, the better. Plants, no matter their magical status, always look best when the day is new.
He raised an eyebrow at the demand, but shuffled over to the closet in order to change. The clothes he wore today was a black button-up, paired with slacks of the same tone. The dark colors made his pale skin and hair look even lighter, and drew all the more attention to his crimson eyes. He went into the bathroom, and came back out after a few minutes with slashes of eyeliner cutting across his eyelids. "You don't want breakfast first?"
"No," Will answers rather quickly. When afternoon comes, he'll know to regret it but he can't deal with the foresight now. All he truly cares about is getting to the garden in time. He saw it the afternoon prior, and it was breathtaking. Who knows what it'll be like in the sunrise? He throws the satchel strap over his shoulder, noting the lack of pain from his back. The magical salves put on his first night there must be doing their job.
Kaz shrugged a shoulder. "Alright." he headed over to the doors, opening them up. "Come on, then." he said, stepping out into the hall and then pausing to wait for Will. It amused him, a little, how easily he and WIll had fallen back into some of their old patterns. How easily Will ordered him around.
It's not like being bossy comes naturally, it's more Will has plans and Kazimir's the only one who can help him turn them to reality. Plus, it's not even his fault he doesn't know his way to the garden. The Snake blatantly chose to take the most irritating path. "Lead the way," Will says, quickly falling into step behind him.
Kaz did just that. The route he took this time was a bit less winding and circuitous, but was nontheless not the most direct route he could have taken. They arrived to those lovely glass doors, and he opened them, holding them so that Will could walk through. The morning sun was still filtering down onto the gardens, lighting all the flowers and trees with a gentle, lovely light.
As soon as he steps foot through the doors and into the gardens, Will draws a long breath of the fresh morning air. He sweeps a loose strand of hair behind his ear before making his way down the constructed path. "Are you coming?" He asks eventually, looking over his shoulder at the Snake. "You have to see some of my favorite flowers."
He laughed a little. "Your favorites? Will, you have only been here for a day or so." he replied, shaking his head a little bit and following Will out into the gardens. "How could you possibly have favorite flowers already?"
"You have some of my favorites," Will briefly elaborates. "I saw them when I was in the willow yesterday." He glances over his shoulder. Eventually he stops, kneeling in front of a flowerbed. Beautiful purple, red and white flowers coat the soil, all of them nearly perking up as Will arrives. "Hyacinths."
Kaz watched as the flowers reacted to Will's presence, smiling faintly at the sight. He stayed back a little bit, watching, his wavy white hair falling in soft curls over his forehead. His gardens were lovely, yes, but he didn't usually spend a lot of time in them. Not like this. But, if they made WIll happy…maybe he would.
Without even thinking, Will has the hyacinths grow towards him, their long stems expanding and twisting around his hand. Soon enough, there's a bouquet in his hand with their stems looking through his fingers like rings. "Do you have a favorite flower?" Will asks as he stands, taking the rapidly growing flowers with him. He ensures they're still rooted with a small tug. After all, he does hate to uproot them when they're so content living in the ground.
Kaz watched the flowers grow, and shook his head slightly. "No." he replied softly. "Not right now." sometimes he did, sometimes he didn't, but generally…no. Flowers were not something he usually devoted a lot of time to thinking about, if he was honest. "Not that I can think of, in any case."
"You remind me of a red bougainvillea," Will says nonchalantly, as if he's complimenting the clouds on a pleasant overcast day. "They're quite beautiful… Covered in thorns." A small smile tugs at his lips at the last statement. "I haven't seen enough of the gardens to know if you have any." Will flattens his palm, letting the hyacinths slither back to their regular height near the ground.
Kaz's brows gathered together for a moment at Will's remark, and he shrugged faintly. "We may have some. You would have to ask the gardeners to know for sure, as I do not really know." he replied, stepping to the side to inspect some of the otehr flowers and bushes taht grew in the garden, bending to inhale the sweet scent radiating from some of them.
Will slightly straightens at the mention of gardeners. Back in the village, the only horticulturist around was grouchy Madam Snuller; Will avoided her at all costs. (She would always snip her oversized shears around his ears, mumbling this and that about a haircut.) "Do you think I could meet them?" He asks, fully prepared to find them anyways if Kazimir said no.
Kaz cleared his thraot softly, cocking his head and considering the question. "Probably." he replied, thinking. He didn't really know where the gardeners were, at the moment, but he could likely find a way to help Will meet up with one of them. "Not right at this moment, though."
(love how Will asked but wasn't planning on listening unless it was a yes lmao)