Kier refused to leave Miriam.
He was convinced that Miriam had been kidnapped, and tortured until she died. Then discarded onto the nearest land, away from her home and her guard.
Miriam just wanted to sleep, and she couldn't do that with Kier checking to see if she was still breathing by putting his fingers under her nose every twenty minutes.
"Then can you stand guard at the door?" she suggested instead, Kier stiffening before nodding.
He opened the door, and stood outside of it, body taut as if he was ready to strike down any enemies.
After he was gone, Miriam no longer felt tired.
In fact, she could feel guilt crawling up on her, as she remembered that even though Kier had found her, he had also lost her in the first place. Kier was set to get lashings from her father, and though Kier wasn't too concerned about his punishment, Miriam didn't think he was at fault for it.
It was whoever had done this to her.
Miriam sat up, ignoring the ache in her legs, and body, trying to stretch her limbs. She felt a strange weariness in her bones, and she scrubbed her face as she tried to process it all.
Firstly, her name wasn't Miriam Weston. It was Laney Vanders and she'd been a college graduate working at a museum.
Oh, and Laney had been killed by a fallen vase, and then ended up here...in the Kingdom of Pi, one of the twelve or thirteen kingdoms. And her father was a high duke of Azuris, which was the land that he owned, and she lived in.
Her head was starting to hurt from thinking about it and trying to understand it, so in the end, Miriam gave herself a break.
"What troubles have I stumbled myself into?" she asked herself, rubbing her temples.
Eventually, Miriam decided that the best course of action would be to get rest, and she pulled up the blankets over her collar, letting herself fall asleep.
In her dream state, cool hands lifted her by her arms as they took off the gray gown that was placed upon her. Warm water scrubbed at her skin gently, and she let out a sigh, words being murmured around her.
It's when they took off her bandages on her arms that she woke up, watching bleary-eyed as the first layer of skin peeled off with the bandages.
Maybe she was too exhausted to feel pain, or maybe her nerves had been burned off, but she didn't really react to the sight, only feeling the cold touch of a white cream being spread evenly on both arms, the tingly sensation soothing her.
Miriam laughed, and a warm hand pushed back her dark hair.
And to be honest, she couldn't remember the last time she'd been handled go gently.
A cup was placed against her lips, and she drank from it, water refreshing her mouth and tongue.
Almost too soon, Miriam was put back to sleep.
Miriam was in the medicine area for another two days before she deemed herself better to at least get ready to greet her father. Kier was literally a step away from her, being closer than her shadow.
It frustrated her but Kier was always at the ready to explain the estate that was her home.
Currently, she was in the library, reading through some books that had everything written down about the kingdoms of Zodius. While Kier stood out at the entrance of the library, Miriam flipped through the thick pages, reading through it.
The kingdoms of Zodius was made up of twelve kingdoms, in sets of threes interconnected. From the fire kingdoms (Aurellius, Leo, and Sagiterren) to the earth kingdoms (Taurell, Vereon, and Caprick), to the air kingdoms (Aros, Librayan, and Aqua.) to the last three water kingdoms (Canerulus, Scorpious, and Pi).
But as Miriam continued to read, she found out that one of the air kingdoms, the kingdom of Aqua, had fallen under strange circumstances, disrupting the magic and harmony these kingdoms once had.
Miriam chewed on her bottom lip; the next paragraph concerned her because apparently, another kingdom called Ophiuchus had risen up and taken place away from the other kingdoms. Nothing was known about the strange castle, as allyships had been offered but denied each time.
Even trade was refused, making the other original eleven kingdoms become wary.
But even as Ophiuchus was on the rise, the harmony still hadn't returned, climates reaching hotter, colder, drier, or wetter instances, and the people were becoming desperate to find answers.
Who had sunken the kingdom of Aqua? What had they to gain from it? And how did Miriam tie into all of this?
"You are struggling, my lady." Kier's comment sliced through the silence, Miriam dropping the book that she had been reading.
"Just...trying to remember is all." she replied, avoiding his gaze.
Kier sighed, sitting down across from her. He somehow managed to sit on the chair with ease, despite making everything around him smaller.
"My Lady, perhaps you shouldn't rush it. Whatever was done to you was so traumatic that your brain chose to forget it to protect you." he suggested, and Miriam sighed, not wanting to tell him the truth of it.
Because who in their right mind would believe what she had to say?
"Maybe you're right, Kier." she said instead, closing the heavy book. She'd made a promise to herself to sneak back into the library without Kier. "Anything of my father?"
"He's entered Pi, but it'll be a couple of hours or so before he arrives to Azuris. Are you sure you don't want to eat? You must be hungry, my lady." he answered, and at that moment, Miriam's stomach grumbled, reminding her that she needed food to live.
"Sure, Kier. Please lead the way." Miriam said, as she stood up, Keir leading the way, his head almost hitting the doorway.
Down the halls, Miriam admired the art hung up on the walls, the frames looking like they were made with solid gold. She wanted to take a closer look at them, but Kier had a grip on her elbow to prevent her from wandering off, so she decided it was best she didn't push her luck.
"Does any of this bring back memories?" Kier asked faintly, and Miriam shook her head, his broad shoulders slumping a little. "Well...maybe we'll have better luck when you see your father's face."
He sounded so hopeful, all Miriam managed was a weak nod.
As they made it into the dining room, long tables were filled with knights. Some looked like they wanted to greet her, but then they sat down for an unknown reason.
"Did I do something wrong?" Miriam whispered to Kier, who was leading her to be served food.
"No, my lady. They're glad to see you alive and well but they've also heard of your condition and didn't want to overwhelm you. In fact, the fact that you didn't run up and greet Sir Luis speaks volumes as he was the knight that taught you how to spar and wield weapons." Kier explained, and Miriam nodded, feeling guilt though she knew she wasn't the one at fault.
"Though that's considerate of them, maybe I should enjoy my meal in my room-"
At that moment, large arms wrapped around her and picked her up with ease, Miriam letting out a squeaked "Kier?!" in her wake as she was pulled from him.
Crushed against a solid chest, Miriam struggled to look up to see who was the large person that was crushing her as if she were someone's teddy bear.
"My darling daughter has graced my arrival with her presence!" a deep booming voice proclaimed, rattling Miriam's teeth from the vibration.
"I can't...breathe..." Miriam stuttered out, Kier looking like he wanted to intervene but not doing so.
"I'm so sorry daughter." the tall man replied, placing her down back on her feet.
Miriam took a deep breath and looked up at the man that casually carried her as if she were a toy. He was only a few inches shorter than Kier, but this man had thick muscles on his arms and torso that put Kier to shame. The man's dark hair had a faint of silver going through it, and he had crow's feet that were around dark blue eyes. His skin was tanned as if he spent a normal amount of time under the sun, his gray tunic tucked under his clean trousers with his collar smoothed over.
"Um...who are you?" Miriam asked, and she could see pain reflect into the man's eyes, as he placed his large hand on her head.
"Miriam...it's me. Your dad." he replied, Kier coming up next to him.
Miriam waited and waited for the memories to come to her, so her reaction could be genuine when she went in to hug him, but the seconds ticked, and even the knights seemed to be uncomfortable with the tension that grew and left them be.
In the end, her father sighed in dejection, but still served himself food alongside her and Kier.