The soft light brushed through the part of the window not entirely covered with the curtain, falling over Athena's face like a timid caress. She stirred faintly, groaning when the pull of a dull ache gripped the side of her neck.
"Damn it," she muttered under her breath, rubbing the sore spot as her eyes adjusted to the golden hue spilling across the sitting room.
She blinked, momentarily disoriented before realizing where she was. The throw pillow beneath her head had flattened somewhat into a lumpy mess, and the couch she had used as a makeshift bed had done little to help.
She tilted her neck to one side, grimacing at the sharp twinge that followed. "That explains it," she whispered, blaming the stiff neck on the throw pillow as she sat up slowly, her body protesting from hours of immobility.
