Eyepatch

It had been some months since the decision had been made for Arand and Fleur to be engaged, and while the two spent much of their time together, it was not until their wedding night that Fleur finally saw her newly made husband remove the eyepatch from his head. His uncovered eye had always seemed off, having a faint scar below it and being nearly as pale as the white around the iris. But she supposed she wasn't one to talk - she and her people were famous for their blood red eyes. But as he uncovered the other eye, she was stunned to find it a beautiful shining gold, and the pupil far more active and sharp then she would have suspected from a covered eye. It turned and focused on her, and the intensity with which it stared at her nearly took her breath away.

"I am sorry," Arand said quietly, taking the eyepatch which she had made for him as a wedding present and going to place it over my head. "I know it is..."

His voice ceased as she placed her hands on his own, stopping him from replacing the patch. "It's beautiful," she said quietly, focusing both of her eyes on his one. "I've never seen it before. I never thought..." She frowned. "But I don't understand. Why hide it?"

Arand looked back at her, his golden eye far more focused upon her than the white. She felt as though it were peeling away her clothes, her skin, seeing the abomination that was hidden just below. No one had ever looked at her like that before. It made her uncomfortable, but at the same time it didn't stop. It didn't feel as though it were judging. It was simply there, seeing, observing. "If it's all the same to you," he said, his voice still low, "I'd prefer to put the eyepatch on before I answer that. It is a bit distracting to see both of you."

She could feel the blush flush across her face and gave a small nod. The way that he had said that, she knew exactly what he was talking about - she didn't know how it could be true, but she understood. Carefully, Arand placed the new patch over his eye, adjusting it in place, once more fully covering the golden shine. "I'm sorry," he repeated. "The eyepatch makes it easier to function. It softens the sight, makes everything easier to take in. Keeps me looking at the front layer, instead of what's beneath."

"Is it magic?" she asked.

"I suppose magic is about the only way a blind infant can be made to see."