Silvana is awoken early in the morning by birds singing. It's a beautiful song and a calming tune to sing to wake up. The birds are chirping loudly, and she wonders what kind of bird it could be. The sound is soothing and familiar yet new simultaneously, bringing a calming effect to her mind. The birdsong and the sun warming her skin get a sense of security, and security makes Silvana feel safe. She thinks, letting her thoughts go blank for a little bit. She opens her eyes and takes in the scenery around her. Trees surround them everywhere, and a river flows through in the distance. She smiles in awe. It must be paradise. She thought happily.
"Oh!" A loud gasp comes from behind her, startling her slightly. She turns around quickly to see who made the noise and is relieved to see Vienna standing near her. "Vienna, you scared me!" She whispers loudly, covering her heart with her hands.
"Sorry! Sorry!" Vienna apologize
She laughs and shakes her head. "No need to apologize. What brings you here so early in the morning?" She asks
"Well, Ironna asks me to watch over you and make sure nothing bad happens to you while you're here." She informs, smiling widely at her. "How are you feeling today?" She asks cheerfully.
"Better, thank you." Silvana answers.
"Can you stand?" She enquired gently
"Um, yeah, of course." She says, getting up.
She immediately falls to her knees when she stands, clutching her stomach in pain. Her vision turns black for a second, and her eyes roll into the back of her head. She embraces her stomach harder, her breathing becoming laboured and rapid. She tries her hardest to stay conscious.
"Silvana!" She hears Vienna exclaim.
She struggles to open her eyes again; everything feels blurry and unfocused. She sees Vienna kneeling next to her.
"It's okay... She mumbles, her throat dry and aching. "It's just a stomach cramp. I'll be alright. Just let me lie down for a little while. She whimpers, closing her eyes again.
Vienna helps her lie down, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and pulling her close to her chest, supporting most of her weight. She holds Silvana tightly to keep her safe from falling. She doesn't know why but seeing Silvana like this makes her feel uneasy and scared.
She tries her best to remain calm and composed despite being nervous. She wants to help her, but she feels helpless, so she does what she usually does and stays silent.
"Are you okay?" Vienna asks, concern filling her voice.
Silvana nods slowly. "Just tired…" She trails off. "And my head hurts." She adds.
She winces as she feels another wave of pain hit her.
Vienna can feel the panic rise in her as she watches Silvana. She starts shaking uncontrollably, tears pooling in her eyes, and her breaths becoming shorter. Tears fall steadily from her eyelashes and drip onto Silvana's clothes.
Silvana hugs her closer, holding her tightly against her chest.
"Shh… Vienna, don't cry. Nothing will happen to me. Everything is going to be fine." She comforts, hoping that Vienna believes her
After some time passes, Silvana manages to stop her shaking and pulls away. She wipes her eyes, trying to keep herself from crying anymore. Embarrassed and just got carried away and acted like a baby in front of her. She was supposed to protect Silvana. Instead, she broke down and cried.
She cups Vienna's cheeks gently, wiping away the last of her tears, and brushes away her hair from her face. Vienna rests her forehead against hers, closing her eyes shut.
"I'm sorry." She murmurs
"Don't be sorry. You didn't do anything wrong." She responds quietly, resting one hand on Vienna's cheek.
"Do you want to hear how Hector and I met?" Silvana inquires, trying her hardest to change the subject. Vienna nods, encouraging her to continue. Silvana grins before continuing. Well, I first saw him while walking in the woods together. It took him a while to notice I'd stopped following after him, and when he turned around to look for me, he looked like the biggest idiot I had ever seen. He tripped over a rock and almost fell flat on his face." She starts laughing at the memory, finding it hilarious that she found it amusing.
Vienna laughs along with her.
"His late father was teaching him how to hunt and gather in the woods." She continues with a smile.
"That's when they came across us. Hector and I had a competition to see which of us could catch more rabbits. I won because I managed to catch four rabbits. Hector, of course, was angry about it. He said I won because I was born an Elf."
"Really?" Vienna smiles, amused.
"Yes. Afterwards, we became friends, and I began to follow him around and get to know Ironna, his childhood friend. At that point, we would go hunting together." She continues to explain the story, feeling happy reminiscing about those times. She smiles when remembering all the memories, she shared with Hector and Ironn. They were truly unique, and she wouldn't trade them for anything.
"But, after his parents passed away, Hector began to shut himself from us. Ironna and I felt bad every time we tried to talk to him about it, and we knew he needed someone, but we couldn't find the right words to bring it up." She pauses for a moment, thinking carefully about how she should phrase what she says next.
"Eventually, though, I couldn't take it anymore. I wanted to talk to him. We were worried something might have happened to him because he wouldn't speak or leave his house. And I couldn't stand seeing him like that anymore. I finally talked him out of his house and convinced him to talk with us."
Silvana smiles as she remembers the events. "You know how much he loved talking about his adventures with Ironna and how he always ended up chasing after the biggest rabbit he could find, only for us to laugh and tell him he was being silly," Silvana says affectionately.
"And he always insisted on doing everything by himself even when it was dangerous because he never wanted anything bad to happen to us..."
Silvana sighs sadly. "But one day, he didn't come back from hunting. Ironna went looking for him, but she found him lying in the woods, unconscious from exhaustion." Silvana closes her eyes briefly.
"We try to heal him with our healing magic. But when we try to wake him up, no matter what kind of light or force we try, he doesn't respond. Ironna and I spent hours trying to figure out what happened. But no matter how many spells we cast, nothing we do seems to work. Finally, we decided to carry him home."
She sighs heavily, opening her eyes. "Once we got there, we placed Hector on his bed and tried again to wake him up. This time, we used all the healing spells we could muster and succeeded, but something was still wrong. His body was not responding to the healings we cast, and it wasn't until the third time that Ironna realized what was happening to him. She said it was a curse. The curse was causing his body to be unable to process any magic from outside its system. If we weren't there, he would never wake up."
She smiles sadly. "We stayed with Hector that night and tried to stay hopeful for his recovery. The next few days, we spent sleeping in his room, waking him when needed, and checking if he was getting any better every day. In between, we made sure he drank all the liquids he could. Eventually, he woke up. He doesn't seem to remember anything. He also got noticeably stronger and he/healthier over time. Soon enough, he was well enough to hunt again, and eventually, he became his old self."
Silvana finishes, leaning back against Vienna and letting out a deep breath. She's only talked about this to Ironna.
It must've been hard for her to remember all the terrible things Hector has gone through since his parents' death. She wraps her arms around the young lady tightly.
"I feel sorry for Hector; he had a difficult past…" Ironna gives a soft smile.
"You mentioned that Hector was cursed. Is it a bad thing or a good thing?" She adds.
Vienna questions cautiously.
Silvana looks into Vienna's eyes, sensing she's concerned about his condition. "If I may say so myself, this curse is rather a gift than a curse." She answers
"Why?" Vienna presses.
"This gives him a significant boost of mana, which means he can use magic and become even stronger. But he doesn't know he has this gift, and I am certain Hector would never let it go to waste if he did. He'll go out and save lives, but he will put his safety above everyone else's and die fighting before he lets himself live a life of ease. And I don't want that to happen." Silvana tells Vienna. She wants Hector to be safe and happy, and he deserves it.
Vienna ponders on her answer. She knows Silvana is right. Hector is stubborn and doesn't like giving up easily unless he's sure he can make it.
He is incredibly passionate about protecting people and would probably end up risking his life over and over again if he thought it would help others.
Vienna nods her head in understanding and leans into Silvana's arms.
"You like getting pampered, don't you?" She smirks, running her fingers through Vienna's soft hair playfully.
"Mhm~ I don't like it when you're hurting." Vienna hums contently, resting her head comfortably against Silvana's shoulder and closing her eyes.
She doesn't feel like moving anytime soon, and everything feels too comfortable and warm. It's nice, and she likes staying there, with Silvana's strong arms wrapped around her.
Silvana caresses Vienna's hair softly. "I wonder how Hector and Ironna are right now …" She murmurs.
"Hmm… I bet Hector and Ironn are fine. Ironna is strong, and so does Hector." Vienna mutters sleepily, nuzzling closer to Silvana and curling herself into her lap, placing her head against her belly, listening to the sound of her baby.
A small smile forms on Silvana's lips as she watches Vienna slowly fall asleep. She hopes it's true.