Je'stance - Far from home

[SlipperyCatfish]

His hands wouldn't stop shaking.

Je'stance sat awake on the couch, the sounds of his sleeping companions mingling with the crackling of the hearth, in what should have been a comfortingly quiet night. Outside, a rumble - wagon wheels rolling over tired soil.

But his hands would not stop shaking.

Hazels squeezed shut to no avail, no chance of stopping the rush of images that returned to him - the forest, the yells and screams, steel on steel and the sharp thwip of arrows flying overhead. One by one, the sounds were swallowed and smothered, cut out until not even the frantic chirping of the birds remained. He tried to call, make a sound, anything; the knot in his throat choked him. Something trickled past his hairline.

His hands would not stop shaking.

He rocked forward, falling - onto the soft woolen rug beneath, the impact of his leather garment muffled on the cushioned surface. Je'stance blinked then, rapid heartbeats steadily slowing, looking about. There was no forest, no dark shapes; only sleeping bodies around him. A girl shifted on the couch opposite, a pitiable whine escaping as she clutched at her ribs.

The man shook his head, brushing warm brown locks back over his ears as he crawled up onto the couch once more. There he would sit until morning came, drifting in and out of sleep.

And still, his hands would not stop shaking.