In Love and War

[Lizzie B]

When he was gone, the crushing loneliness set in. What if someone came into the tent? What if they killed her? They had every right to, she was the enemy. Could she fight back? Did she want to? The top of the tent seemed so far away, as did the pain now. It was all on another plane of existence, far away from where her mind was currently drifting. She could hear voices, movement behind that thin veil. Could she sleep with them there? Could she stay awake until Fenris came back, so that she could feel..well, safe. On some level, she felt safer with him. It was ridiculous really, he was the enemy and he'd stab her again if his prince told him to. This was a momentary kindness. No, there was nowhere that she was safe anymore.

Mirra wanted to go home. She wasn't used to sleeping without a body beside her, though she was coming to the realization that she would never see her siblings again. Not Troy, with his shaggy blonde hair and bright blue eyes. Not Olivia, whose first words were 'Mama', though they'd been directed at her accidentally. Her mother was so busy, they were all so busy trying to survive. It had broken her heart and melted it all at the same time. Mama, but she would never be anyone's Mama. Not anymore. Maybe it was best that way? This was hard enough, knowing she'd failed the family she had. Would her mother weep? Or would she throw herself under a carriage so she wouldn't have to watch the baby starve? A grunt escaped from behind Mirra's gritted teeth. It was followed by a low moan, though she clasped her hands over her mouth to keep it from turning into a scream. Oh, what had she done? What had she done, what had she done...

The sobs came, though she didn't have the energy for them. Breathing was difficult, thinking was becoming hazy. All she knew was that the pain in her heart was far worse than the agony of her leg, and she would do anything to make it stop. Eventually she fell into unconsciousness, a black place without dreams. But surely she would have only had nightmares? Yes, the blackness was a blessing.

~~~

Disorientation came with waking. It was early morning, still dark out, but her body was trained to rise before dawn. She blinked blearily, pushing her hair out of her face, trying to convince herself to get out of bed. She would get dressed, wash her face, start the fire. Did they have bread? Not much. It would have to be half slices this morning. Maybe she could heat up some water to help trick them all into thinking they were full...but they'd be crying by noon. She felt so empty...but there wasn't enough. Not today, that was that. That was how it had to be. She would ask around later, see if anyone had any laundry that she could so for a small fee. But...the house smelled wrong. So clean, like fresh and and grass and....

Mirra opened her eyes, suddenly aware of the pain in her leg. It was slight, compared to the day before. The day before. It all came rushing back to her, the reality of the situation. This wasn't home, she could never go home again. There was no warm child curled up by her side, no fire to be made, no way she could get up to make a fire. Would she ever make one again? Or had they decided to kill her? It seemed of little importance compared to the fate her family was facing, or the burning thirst in her throat. Had she ever been so thirsty in her life? Her eyes scanned the tent, though they weren't quite working in the dim light. "Fenris?" Her voice was hoarse, harsh against her own ears?

[RyuHll]

The talk had been long and hard to put up with. The prince was the nearest thing to family that Fenris really had. To ask for such a favor was odd to him. But, it had to be done. And, despite his displeasure at hearing the news, he listened to the other elf's story in full. He didn't interrupt, even though he hated the idea of a human in their midst. Hated the idea of saving the life of an enemy whom he and his father and brothers had spent years trying to eradicate. But he still listened, only offering his opinion at the end of the long explanation. The prince didn't want to allow her to stay. In the end, though, Fenris had convinced him otherwise. Unlike his brothers and father, he was more open to the idea of a truce if the humans could be at least a little bit stubborn about it. And, given the attack by the orcs the night before...an alliance wasn't a terrible idea. In the end, the young prince consented to Fenris' idea of protecting the human girl. "Do what you want with the wench. I'll support her staying here until she becomes a problem for us," he had said.

It was better than what Fenris could have hoped for, at least. Perhaps there was some hope for his plan afterall. With that done, the elf had gone about his business, preparing other medicines with Myriam and convincing the younger kid elf to deliver two breakfasts to his room come morning. For the injured woman, of course. He hadn't seen that the woman was a human, so the assumption was that he was serving another elf. When he had finally arrived at his tent, he was greeted by the quiet sobs Mirra had descended to. He went quiet for a moment, but didn't try to intrude on her. He let them ride themselves out until she exhausted herself into sleep. Then, he slipped in himself to find a spot for him to rest for the night.

As such, Mirra found him in a chair, sleeping the next morning. As she began to stir, he cracked his eyes open, a light sleeper by nature, especially given where they were at the moment. He heard her call his name and smiled a bit. He was tired. It was harder for him to get a good night's rest sitting up rather than laying down. But he had sacrificed his tent and his bed for this. There was nothing he could do about it. "Ah, you're awake," he said softly. "There's some water on the nightstand. Drink a little bit. Breakfast will be delivered to us shortly, I believe." It was close to dawn, when the soldiers would begin stirring. Everyone would begin preparing for the march. He wasn't sure what their objective today was, given the interruption yesterday. But he was sure he'd find out soon enough.

The younger elf wouldn't enter the tent without permission, respecting the higher up's privacy. But he announced his presence, allowing Fenris to come to the flap and retrieve their breakfast. He thanked the boy and brought the two trays in, placing one in front of Mirra. "Try to eat all of it. It'll help you regain your strength," he commented, taking his own back to his spot in his chair. It was an unusual breakfast for a human. There was no meat. There were eggs and herbs and fruit, but only things that came from living beings, nothing that had once been a living being. Despite that, she would find it quite delicious. As a race that lived in harmony with the forest, they relied on that forest to supply them with a means to survive. While there were instances of elves breaking from the diet and eating meat, most became sick from even the taste, including Fenris.

The elf paused a moment as he realized that the food was a bit odd for a human to eat and smiled. "I'm sorry. This is typical of an Elven meal," he said softly, as an after thought. "But, please, give it a try. I had it specifically made to help you regain your strength and heal faster. It's healthy for you. Personally, I think it's quite good myself. But I'll let you decide if you like it or not." His tone was slightly playful, but it was dulled down slightly be his exhaustion. Even with the lack of sleep he'd received the previous night, heading to an uncomfortable sleep later than he was used to and then waking at the same time, he was trying to be light and easy to talk with Mirra and, hopefully, help her feel a little bit better about being stuck in their camp.