Journey to Womford
Night 1
Theamen and Menelwen sat together after relieving Thok and Henry of an uneventful watch. They waited until the evened breathing indicated that they had fallen asleep. They quietly prepared their spells before he spoke.
“Do...you want to talk about it?” He asked, broaching the topic first.
“Talk about what?”
“..What happened there. At Feathergale Spire.” She could tell his cheeks turned a subtle shade of pink. He wasn't talking about the fight.
“Putting it like that..makes it sound like you regret it.” She glanced at the sky, her eyes tracing constellations.
“I very much do not.” His voice was gentle. “Do you?”
She looked back at him and smiled. “Of course not.” Her hand touched his, lacing their fingers together. “...You know how I feel about you, right?”
Theamen closed his eyes for a moment. “I do. Because I feel the same.”
“Good.” She shifted up to a kneel to kiss his cheek before settling down next to him.
The rest of the watch was relatively uneventful.
Night 2
“Menelwen.” Theamen's low voice caught her ear as he gently woke her.
She smiled slightly and opened her eyes to see him. “It's time, isn't it?”
“Yes...” He glanced to where Thok and Henry were bedding down for the night. She stretched, fully rested unlike him who would be catching another few hours after this watch. But unlike last night, there seemed to be something on his mind.
She frowned. “What's up? You look so serious....was it a bad dream?”
“Well, not exactly...” He patted the spot next to him. She sat. “...I wanted to talk to you about the third shift last night.”
“What, with the ghouls? Vega and I handled it-”
“Yes but you should have woken the party instead of rushing headlong into danger.” His voice had an edge to it. An inhale, exhale. “...I'm sorry, that was harsher than it should have been.”
Menelwen was quiet, considering his words. “...I'm a capable fighter in my own right you know.” It was a soft snap.
“I'm well aware. I've seen you fight. But you are...delicate.” He raised a hand before she could slap him for the comment. “Wait, let me finish. You are squishy, but you do hit hard. But...put yourself in any of our shoes. What if you hadn't been able to handle it?”
“...But we did.”
“But what if you didn't?”
She looked down at her lap for a moment, composing herself. “...I...could have cost the party their lives if I...we hadn't taken care of them.”
“While this may be true...there's something else you should think about. What if I had woken and found you dead?” The words hung in the air, poisonous.
“...I'm sorry Theamen.” She winced. “I hadn't...thought of it.”
He exhaled, covering her hand with his. “Promise me you won't do that again. You're not fighting by yourself anymore.”
She squeezed his hand. “...I promise.”
The rest of the watch passed uneventfully.
Night 3
After Henry and Thok turned in, Theamen broke the quiet.”This may be out of bounds...but I don't actually know that much about your family. We've spoken about mine....”
“In which case I would like to hear more about them...at some point.”
“At some point perhaps.” He nodded. “...But I was wondering if there was anything you'd be willing to share about yours.”
Menelwen went quiet, considering.
“You don't have to-”
“...I was closest to my father. Before he passed away.” This rang a bell with Theamen. He remembered (after the accusation of being pregnant), Henry had asked point blank “Your father's dead right?” How she had tensed before saying that he was.
“I'm sorry to hear that. I bet he was a great man.”
“He was. He absolutely was.” Her gaze trailed up to the stars as if searching for the words. “He taught me everything I know about magic...how to mold earth....my first firebolt...” Her lips curled in a sad smile. Menelwen's fingers moved, brushing against the tome on her hip. “...He gave me my tome. It's...all I have left of him.”
A tear escaped her eye and she wiped it away. “..Sorry.”
“There's nothing to be sorry about. You were close.” So different than he and his father... “...How did he die....if I may?”
“A raid, he was fighting to defend Solaris. He...told mother and I to stay hidden until he came back. But...he never came back.” She sagged slightly against him. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders to draw her closer. “'Menny', he said. 'Make sure you keep your tome with you. It can make anything happen.' Which...was a lie. It didn't make him come back. But...” She glanced up at him. “...It helps me protect people...and...” a half smile crossed her lips. “...it's part of the reason we're so close...so...I suppose he was right.”
His fingers ran through her hair idly, just listening. “...Yes, I suppose it did.”
The rest of the watch passed uneventfully.
Night 4
It had been another relatively quiet day and a quiet night so far. They woke for second watch. Keeping an eye out, she absentmindedly ran her finger down the pages of her spell book. “You're expecting another story...I can tell by your posture.”
“Only if you're willing to share.”
Once certain that there were no enemies near, she nodded. “..It's nice to be able to open up to someone about them. Makes them feel alive, you know?” She closed her tome. “...My Mother and I...had a tense relationship. Mostly because she...while a wonderful person...was dense when it came to certain things.” Menelwen ran a hand down her face and sighed. “So we tended to fight...Father would break the tension until...you know.”
“Right.”
“..She fell apart when he passed away. I needed her to be strong...to be the parent but it didn't quite happen. I had to step up..and take care of her. It was like...I lost a father and gained a full grown child to take care of it. Getting her to eat...to sleep...to rest when she started pushing herself too hard...to pick up the slack...”
She shook her head. “It was rough but we managed. Somehow. Then the “child” grew into a teenager when she met Ulstan.”
“Ulstan?”
“Mmhm. He was a human bard who found his way to Solaris. He was on a pilgrimage for stories to immortalize in song. He heard about the raid somehow...and wanted to help ease the pain by creating songs for our dead. And learn Elvish...because the language 'is one of the most beautiful when sung, and it doesn't even matter what you say'.”
“I can see that.” He smiled a bit. “But you still have to be careful with any language lest you insult someone.”
“True...I'm pretty sure he was trying to call my mother a beautiful vision...but called her a beautiful venison instead...anyway.” Menelwen shifted her position, her shoulders relaxing a bit. “...They spent a lot of time together. And she fell for him.”
“But isn't that a good thing?”
“...Generally yes...but elves...if we marry tend to stay with the same partner and take no others after they die. So when she...” Her eyes closed as if remembering something painful. “told me she was pregnant...my world just...crumbled. Father was the greatest love of her life...how could she just...move on and start a new chapter with this human bard?”
Theamen squeezed her hand. “So you have a brother?” He seemed surprised to learn this fact and was hoping to change the topic away from what was clearly causing pain. “I'm sure you had your reasons for not mentioning him sooner...”
Menelwen winced slightly. “...I did, because I'm afraid you'll think less of me when I tell you that story.”
“...Take your time.”
She nodded, settling against him. The rest of the watch passed uneventfully.
Night 5
They sat quietly under the moonlight, the battle with the barbarians still fresh. “..You're sure you're okay?” She asked him.
“I'm fine. I can take a hit.”
“Still...” She bit her lip. She should have helped with his fight...especially when she saw his sword fall.
Theamen sighed, looking at her. “You did exactly what you were supposed to. Take care of the bigger threat. Which was about five feet away from you. If you had turned your attention away from him things may have ended worse.”
“I suppose...”
“Look on the bright side.” Theamen said, hoping to change the conversation. “Only one person needed to be revived today, and it wasn't you.” He kissed the top of her head. “Still, we should find a way to bolster your defenses more...”
“You mean besides staying away from big burly men in loincloths with axes?”
He chuckled slightly. “Yes, besides that.”
They fell quiet. “...Theamen?”
“Yes Menelwen?”
She looked up at him. “...the black fire you used....hellish...rebuke?”
He expelled a sigh. “...Yes. It's because...” His hand touched the tarnished symbol of Mystra. “You know.”
She nodded. “..I do. But...it...scared me. I'd never seen that kind of look on your face...” Menelwen shifted to her knees in front of where he was sitting. She cupped his face between her hands. “..Don't give into the darkness...more than you can help. My light spell can only go so far. I'm not...as strong as you are.”
He closed his eyes, raising his hand to cover hers. He kissed her palm before pulling her into a hug. “I'll do my best...” But he couldn't make any promises. They both knew that.
A lump in her throat, she hugged him. “...I'll stand by you, no matter what.”
The rest of the watch goes uneventfully.
Night 6
After the excitement of the previous day, this part of the trip was uneventful. As was the watch. Theamen gently woke Menelwen for their watch.
“So...” she sighed, lacing her fingers with his. “...Are you ready? This story may...make you think differently about me.”
“I doubt it, but go on.” He gave her a reassuring squeeze.
“My brother's name is Miramaer, Mira for short. And...after...he was born...for a while...I hated him. With everything I had. I...wanted him dead.”
Theamen listened quietly. “...Because of what he represented, not who he was.”
She nodded, taking her hand back. Menelwen covered her face. “She introduced him to me as my brother...but he looked so...different. He had dark hair like his father...but our ears. Mother said we needed to keep him a secret....because he was a half elf.” She expelled a breath. “...Mind you...I don't have grudges against humans or half elves in particular-” Menelwen glanced at him, to the sleeping party and back to his face.
“I know that.” He reached out, smoothing a hand over her hair.
“...She handed him to me when he was fussing. He stopped squirming and fussing...I....the first thing I said to him...to my brother was that I hated him.” She searched his gaze. “I wanted him dead....and what did Mira do? He just smiled and babbled at me. Like I had said some joke. But...I know it wasn't his fault Father was gone...just...”
“It's alright. I understand what you mean.”
She leaned against him for support. “...I took care of him...most nights so she didn't need to get up. Even though I hated him...I still...loved him because he was my brother. I promised to always be there for him.”
“Did you lose him in the fight as well?”
Menelwen shook her head. “No. His father took him away when he was about five or so...when the tribe found out...so he's...somewhere.”
“Maybe we'll find him.”
“...Maybe...” Her gaze was distant. “...I'll have to tell him about mother if I do....” She focused on Theamen after a moment. “...So...”
“I don't think any less of you. Everyone...has their weaknesses...but it's how you deal with them that matters.”
Deep breath, exhale. “That...means a lot. Thank you.”
He gave her a peck on the lips before they settled in for their watch. An uneventful watch.
Night 7
When it came time for their watch, it was Menelwen's turn to wake Theamen. “It's time...” She shook his shoulder gently. He opened an eye and winked slightly. The fight with the Perytons had been...brutal. For them, not the party.
He got up and they took their normal positions to keep watch. “...I just wanted to say how amazing that was. The way you took them down...”
Theamen chuckled quietly, a little embarrassed for such praise. “Like I said, it's a spell you can learn too...”
“I know. But still.” She seemed in much better spirits.
“They were eyeing you and Vega. They wanted to rip your hearts out to feast.” He arched an eyebrow.
“Wanted. Past tense.”
“Indeed.” A pause. “...Well..I didn't want anyone or anything else taking your heart.” He glanced at her.
She blushed. “Silly bladesinger...you know it's already yours.” Menelwen whispered conspiratorially.
Theamen touched her cheek. “I do...but it's nice to hear. And mine is yours. Speaking of hearts...” He shifted, bringing out the locket that they had looted from one of the previous places they had all but forgot about. “Here.”
Menelwen seemed surprised. “Are you sure?”
“Yes. Thok...doesn't care about it, and the others seemed to have forgotten it existed. I don't...have anything to put into it though...”
“Theamen...” Her voice was soft but it was clear the gesture was appreciated. She kissed his cheek before shifting. She found a piece of parchment in her pack and a writing utensil. Menelwen glanced at him and smiled. It took a couple moments before a rough image of the two of them came together. Carefully ripping it from the parchment, she placed it in the locket. “There. It's perfect.”
“Just about.” He clasped the chain around her neck. “Now it is.”
She blushed pretty deeply. “..Thank you.” She gave him a sweet kiss.
“You're very welcome.”
They settled in for a final uneventful watch, looking forward to reaching town tomorrow.
No comments:
Post a Comment