"So you have family along this route?" I ask one of the travellers who had settled down here as well.
"Yeah, got a few cousins running a shop this way. Don't see them enough so I thought we would go and pop over." he answers as he leans back on his hefty bag. It wasn't as big as mine, but he did not seem to have much issue with it.
I then suddenly wince in pain, "This is quite bad, you know." his wife points out in regards to my leg injury.
"I know... We just don't have the magic to sort it out." I say with a sigh as she applies something to my wound to clean it and soothe it.
"Not to worry, we got a little witch right here getting ready for school." she proudly admits as she gestures to her distant daughter.
"Whatever." they reply back as they unamusedly play with some of their magic.
"I might be able to give a few tips with that, actually." I point out as I use my own power to shoot hers out of her grip. It might've seemed like a spell, but I just manipulated the flow of mine to interrupt her shaky control. If she had kept her concentration, as well, her magic would've flowed again like just now.
"What does an aelenvari know about magic? All the big academies are for humans."
"Hanrah!" her mother snaps lightly.
"It's fine, honestly." I say with a smile as being around Rose'lhia meant dealing with far worse barbs. At least with this girl too, the fact I barely knew her helped it slide away.
"Alright, I'll bite, then. Where'd you learn your magic, Aelenvari?" Hanrah asks.
"I learned it at my flower, who I hope to reunite with soon." I tell her before I looked longingly up at where Spruce was being looked after. I should be able to come spend some time with him again soon. Putting him to bed was something I would not let her have...
Until then, though, I needed something to keep my mind occupied.
"So, how about it, I teach you a few things and you can go into school knowing a lot more than anyone else?" I confidently tell her, hoping that she'd accept if I rubbed her ego a little.
"Sounds nice..." she mutters quietly to which I smile before getting up.
"Hold on, borrow this for now." her father tells me as he passes over a cane for me to use.
"Thank you." I say as I move away to somewhere a little more open. The group was quite large so a few campfires had been made. And when the magic started to come out, it would be even brighter.
"So what do you want to show me?" Hanrah asks impatiently as she crosses her arms while chewing on something tackily.
"First, show me what you know."
"Nothing impressive." she says with a shrug as a weak light forms in her palm. A very weak sensation of blowing wind then washed under me when she chucks it away a short distance.
"Alright, first off, don't think of it like that." I say to her as I summon a weak spell that matched hers nearly in strength. Yet, it was far brighter and far more stable.
"You're better than me, so what?" she scoffs.
"It's not that I am better," I tell her, yet I was unsure if that was a peculiar lie, "It is because I did not let my thoughts decide for me how strong it was."
And when I let it drop, I nearly blew out several of the campfires.
"H-Hey!" someone complained as the sound of someone falling filled the air.
I laugh to myself in response, "Sorry!"
"If my magic isn't impressive, how am I supposed to not see it that way?" she argues.
"You won't be able to fully grasp it tonight. But, you'll figure it out along the way." I tell her as I gesture for her to do it again while I also did it again.
"Okay..." she says with a shrug before she carefully protects her magic sphere.
"Now get rid of it." I say as I swiftly dispel my magic.
"There?" she asks after she chucks it away again.
"No, dispel it, don't use it." I tell her as I move closer to then hold her arm. It was easier to teach her if I could feel how the magic flowed inside her. She initially, did not get it, though.
"Get off!" she snapped angrily.
"Hanrah, I'm sure she knows what she is doing." her mother tells her, which, thankfully, calmed her down enough to allow me to figure it out.
"Okay, now, make another." I tell her as I carefully feel her wrist out.
"How did you get those scars?" she asks me.
"Make the orb, first." I tell her, and that desire she had seemed to help her. As it came out a lot smoother this time. I nearly lost track of the flow as well as it just raced past!
"Now what?"
"Dispell it. Let your mind and body just go limp." I tell her vaguely for the moment. Her internal and external-magic were not tangible things. But they were there and apart of her. And she went on to do it!
"Well done." I tell her as she stares down at her now clear hand. Well, it was somewhat a done process. Some magic was still there, but the gathering had mostly dispersed.
"Okay, now?" she impatiently asked as her gaze started to make me feel uncomfortable. It was such an intense one but like with my leg injury, it was best to keep quiet on it. There was no telling what could happen if the perpetrator was found out by them.
Yet, I could also not just avoid bringing Rose'lhia up somewhat, "Someone I thought I could trust tried to keep me away from those I love." I angrily answer.
"Woah..." she let out with wide eyes along with her parents.
"You poor thing." the mother commented.
"It's fine, it's being resolved." I say as I start to focus on how Rose'lhia was the one leading me home. That thing I dreamed of every night was going to happen thanks to her. Though, now that the discussion had ended up going to her...
"Are your friends and family up in the keep? I know you made a point of warning us off when we arrived."
"Yes, my son." I answer before I moved to return the cane. Only to be rejected when I tried to do so.
"Go check on him if you need to." the father said to me as he smiled and waved me off.
"Maybe I can bring him down to meet you too!" I happily reply back with before I head back up into the ruins. Towards where Rose'lhia had me set down our stuff while she played with my son... She took to it quite well, despite not being a mother like me. But I really wish she would stop trying to keep me away from him.
She was doing this for both of us even if it was my son she cared for more. Our family could not be kept separate forever despite what her actions had led to. So I could only pray for divine help regarding her behaviour... Something would surely happen that made her consider me more, surely?
I know she wasn't short-sighted enough to just disregard me... I was Spruce'endoor's mother. His loving Mama. And Oak'endoor was my lover and his father.
"No, please, I told you not to come up here." I say when I suddenly started to hear noises behind me. So I turned to look at whoever it might be. If it was a child I could just...
"Damn!" an armed man cursed before he dropped his rifle and charged me.
"EH!?" I squealed as I was picked up and pinned against the wall. Thankfully, an old tapestry kept me from experiencing any noteworthy head injuries. Or maybe I was too full of energy right now from the sudden attack to notice.
"Wher-" they started to say before I struck them away with a blast of magic. But, that was all I had the confidence to do. So I struck at him with the cane before I hobbled further inside. It wasn't enough, though, and he came running after me angrily.
"ROSE'LHIA!" I screamed as he lunged at my nearest point and dragged me down as I was climbing the stairs.
"Whe-" he started to demand before I started to strike at his face with my tubes. Thankfully, I managed to get him in the eye and he let go with a howl. And he fell off the stairs with a crash.
"Help!" I called out once I got closer to the entrance.
"Alright, you damn prick-leg..." the man growled as he came storming up the stairs clutching his left eye. Yet, for the moment, I held my ground near a wall so I did not lead them towards Rose'lhia. Surely she was coming to help...?
"Well, come on." I tell him as I try to stabilize my footing. My points, even with their tubes were not ideal for the stone surfaces I had to deal with. And the old carpets were too loose! I just forced them up!
Yet... That might be able to help... So I made preparations by forcing it along before I then brought my magic forth. I was no thorn or a full-name petal. But I was still a petal!
This common brigand would not overcome me and endanger my son!
"Come on now, where is he?" the man ominously asked as he relinquished the grip on his eye. Then, in the brief moment he was distracted by the pain and the stinging. I lashed out with my magic. Striking him right in that same eye.
And he roared whilst stumbling back. Yet, even though my prior plan had to be abandoned, I kept up the pressure. I flung ferocious winds at him again and again until he was clinging to the wall. With a quick hop to the right, I then fired off one last spell.
Forcing him through the window he so foolishly backpedalled towards. With a terrified scream, that man then fell through. A sickening smack came moments later and I turned towards where my son was. Panting in pain as my leg became aggravated by the sudden movement.
"What was with all that noise?" Rose'lhia demands to know as she played with my son. The pair of them were as careless as ever despite what I had done... I screamed for her to help me and she was just...?
No, I needed to keep my focus, I needed to just explain things, "Someone just tried to attack me, I think they're after Spruce'endoor!"
Her eyes widen before they then narrow, "Are you certain?"
"I just... Killed one... He was asking me about a 'he,' it could only be my little one!" I explain further before I tried to take my son into my arms. Rose'lhia was far stronger than me, she was the one who needed to fight now.
Yet...
"Then I shall remind them of why that is a bad decision." she growls before she walks past me with my little one. My attempt to retrieve him was cast aside and she ignored me.
"It started outside, down those stairs." I decide to explain as I acknowledge it was probably for the best. I was in no condition to fight. So if someone got past her, my little one would be in danger! I only killed that assailant from before by sheer luck!
If he knew any magic at all...
"It was those damn humans I warned you about!" she snaps at me as magic starts to flow from her free hand.
"It wasn't them! The man who attacked me is someone else!" I try to tell her before she lashes out at the nearby stone with her magic. Carving it completely open and then some. And I was frozen in fear as I saw that magic.
Power I once had flow down my throat and burst out all about me...
"Then go down there and prove it, now!" she nearly roars as she forces me down the stairs.
"Mama!" my little one cries as the powerful magic starts to scare him.
"Rose'lhia, please, you're scaring him!" I plead to her as I desperately clutch the staircase handlebar. Tightly gripping it as she forces me to go down the relatively smooth surface.
"No, you're scaring him with your talk of kidnappers and brigands, so move!" she demands before she forces me down the stairs with a powerful blast.
"AH!" I scream as I fall down the last of the stairs and crash against the floor. My head felt a little wet as I got up, but I couldn't muster the will to go after her. I just looked at my son, fearing for his safety near such potent arcane might.
Yet, because I was either a coward or somehow trusted that malicious woman... I backed away from the staircase as my little one cried his name for me. He wanted Mama but I wasn't able to get to him. So I just did as was demanded from me...
"Where'd he go? We need to go now!" some man barked as the sound of gunfire suddenly filled the air.
"MOM! DAD!" I heard Hanrah scream before she was suddenly punched to the ground.
"Enough of this." a large man snapped before he walked past her and shot her. I gasped in shock and hid myself but then found myself looking up at where Rose'lhia was. Where my son was... We could not escape this.
Not with my leg injury, not with how she felt about me...
"WHERE IS THAT CHILD!? DO YOU NOT FEEL THE PRESENCE OF A WITCH!?" one of them roared as they all started to scramble about the ruins. But, I still kept my gaze on the keep.
"I love you, Little One... Stay safe, keep them safe..." I tell them both before I leave my cover and intentionally move out to get caught.
"We got an aelenvari!" one of them cheered to another before they harshly dragged me before what must've been the leader.
"We need the child you idiot!"
"You won't find him... We knew you were coming... He's long gone..." I spit up at him before he strikes me with his gun. But, I just spit out the blood as the pain of abandoning my child was far worse.
"So why were you left..." he started to ask before he noticed the bleeding injury on my leg.
"They can't have gotten far." one argues as their gun makes some kind of snap.
"No! Not with that kind of magic near here. Union will be sniffing about, let's bounce for now." the head one orders while two others kept me pinned.
"And this one?"
"She'll ease our punishment, so black her and heave." they order before one of them stands before me and raises their weapon before my face.