“It's a lesson. It must be”
Perhaps it was a lesson to be thrown off a ship by your mentor. A quest of perseverance. At least, she had hoped that it was – and continued to hope. The battering of the waves must amount to something, and the risk of death had to have meaning. But there were no further splashes of water; no rope thrown down, none to dive after her. Perhaps this was an extended lesson.
God, it’s freezing.
“It’s not the season to go swimming.”
Vasily – Arrogant and smug. He was a stranger when he pulled her out of the water, dragging her limp body through the sands. He had cause to be arrogant in that instance, but it didn’t stop her from thinking so. And saying it (An appreciative thank you following, of course). He was the first face she saw when she had awoken. A part of her still questioned why he did it – would this count as failing her lesson? Is this a part of it? How was she meant to find her way back to The boat?
“You think too much. Come along.”
Her time in Reinmar could be defined by two faces. The first was the face of Jeffrey De Wees.
She had gone to Reinmar as directed by Vasily, then left to stand alone in front of its looming gates. Entering it felt odd, and she was sure that she looked as out place as she had felt. Perhaps that was why Jeffrey approached her, taking pity on the lost. But he was, undoubtedly, the face which marked the beginning of her stay in the city. He led her to the outer region of the city, past the woods and towards his monastery. Their conversation was formal, polite; kind, even, as he offered to house her within his monastery for the time. It was Jeffrey, too, who then pointed her way to finding her Mentor once again.
“Gael. You should look for Gael, the Paladin.”
Tilruir’tir of ******* Joma.
It was a name that created an impression before you met him. At least, She thought so. She had teased and commented on the matter incessantly, from the moment the name was mentioned. Her reunion with him was as sudden as her departure from him. Quick– unintended. Her investigations for Gael had led her to the steps of Urguan. A daunting task, to locate a man she had never met before, but her hope was enough to drive her feet towards the city. It became a fruitless endeavour at first, as she saw no signs of the man she was meant to find. But then came Tilruir’tir of ******* Joma.
Of course it was him.
The second face of Reinmar did not have a name, nor even a face.
Well, not a name that she could remember. He had found her when she conversed with Tilrurir’tir – Or Til, as she called him – within the Church. The pair had returned there following their reunion in Urguan, bickering, before the man interrupted their way. We're Agents of Janus. The moment those words came from Til’s mouth, there was no room in Reinmar left for the both of them. No amount of back and forth exchanges could change the matter. By the end of their meeting, the matter was settled:
They were not welcomed.
Kicked out of, yet another, form of home – Trespassing was evidently the only option left.
Til didn’t know where the Sage had gone with the boat; though his departure from it kinder, stepping off on the docks rather than shoved off the railings. Now, they were left to find accommodations of their own. And She did. Sort of. If trespassing counted as accommodation. The cabin was old and unused. Snow had blown through the broken windows, and the locks on the doors had long broken. Perhaps there was a bit of blood, but nothing that Til and her couldn’t clean themselves. It was perfect.
“Surely the lesson is over soon?”
“I think he forgot us”
She uttered these words as she led Til back to the place Vasily had found her. An open beach, with the forests a few steps back from it. The Sky was clearer than it was when The Sage pushed her, the waters calmer and the sun kinder. What a joke. But the cabin was cleaned, and she was here now with Til – she could afford to be patient. Perhaps that was the lesson. Not perseverance, Patience. If there was a lesson to be learned, at all.
"Come along, Serana. He'll come back when he wishes to – He always does."
