Fantasy The Merchant and the Demon

[RaiAthar]

Aurelia rolled her eyes in annoyance at Peridot's remark on sweet tasting medicine, though she did take the advice to heart -it made sense to her.

"You want to know my stories?" A sudden sense of realization followed by a swell of emotions rushed into Aurelia's mind and soul, respectively. "I'm not supposed to be here. Uncle Bo-.. the village head, Bogdan. I did something terrible."
"I'm not supposed to be here" she repeats.

Aurelia eyes traverse the room, almost frantically, trying to locate her sword. The sword isn't in there. Her breath quickens; gets louder. She wants to scream at the top her lungs; rage until her emotions pass away into the darkness inside. The Aurelia of the past might have done just that; however, the present Aurelia was far more tame; perhaps a shadow of her former self. She painfully brings her left arm to rest over her bruised face. Her eyes are burried in the crook of her elbow to hide the tears.

"Get out." The voice that escaped her lips was not the same one that was speaking earlier, and nothing like when she had first met Peridot in the marketplace of Lem'Temar -this voice was feeble; a broken whisper.

 

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

Aurelia's words hurt Peridot. Not because she felt wounded that Aurelia was trying to push her away, but because such a powerful creature was reduced to such feeblness. It felt wrong, like watching a waterfall flow upwards, something Peridot has experienced before.

Peridot was torn. Should she obey and leave Aurelia. Aurelia was a strong, prideful woman that treasures her privacy. Or, perhaps, she should try to comfort the woman? There's no telling how she would react. How would she feel if she knew Peridot was tending to her wounds?

In the end, Peridot's mischievous side won out. She couldn't help but interfere, even where she wasn't wanted. She moved closer to Aurelia and knelt beside her. With all the care of a mother, she let a single finger stroke Aurelia's cheek, brushing aside a few stray locks of her hair. Peridot looked upon Aurelia, not with worry, or pity, but, like her touch, all the care of a mother. A warm, gentle gaze. She wasn't sure how Aurelia would react, or much about her, so, rather than coming up with a plan, she decided to play it by ear based on how she reacted.

 

[RaiAthar]

Aurelia did not recoil from Peridot's kind and well intentioned gesture because, sadly, she knew that this line-toeing orange haired merchant was the closest thing to a friend she had in this God forsaken world, and as of right now, after everything that had just happened, the thought of being alone was deeply unsettling to her. She continued to cry silently into her arm.

"A knight is sworn to valor,
Her heart knows only virtue,
Her blade defends the helpless,
Her might upholds the weak,
Her word speaks only truth,
Her wrath undoes the wicked."

This was Aurelia's mantra. Ultimately, the mantra reminded Aurelia of the person that taught it to her in the first place -her mother. Her state of mind moved into a deeper sadness.

"A knight is sworn to valor...
Her heart knows only virtue"

She was unable to finish.