Chapter Text
At the sight of the white walls enclosing the temple grounds Ciri urged her horse. She rushed like a whirlwind through the open gates. A group of chickens and ducklings spread around from under Kelpie’s hooves, clucking and quacking madly in protest.
It seemed like Nenneke knew. Like she had been waiting for them. Ciri reined Kelpie and jumped off the saddle before the mare stopped - right into the priestess's open arms.
"Ciri!"
No questions, no wondering. Nenneke just closed the girl in a hug and kept her for a long time. Her eyes were wet.
The witcher and the sorceress joined them after a moment, riding slowly as not to traumatise the poultry at the yard. The priestess let Ciri go reluctantly and looked at them both, standing arm in arm by their horses. She studied them for a moment, then shook her head and snorted.
"Finally!"
"Greetings, Nenneke." Geralt smiled. It was a nice, warm smile reserved for few. Beside him, Yennefer inclined her head slightly.
"Oh, come here!” Nenneke dropped the last bits of stern pretence and smiled at the two before giving each a short, firm hug. “I’ve heard an awful lot of gossip about you and none of them were exactly reassuring, including those of your demise. I’m glad you came to prove them wrong.”
“As soon as we were able to.” Yennefer shot Geralt a side glance, one that made him look away for a brief moment.
“I’m sure you could have sent a word too.” Nenneke’s piercing gaze seemed to be seeing right through them. “What brings you here?”
"We need a break."
***
Nenneke invited them to dine with everybody in the refectory after they freshened up from the journey and offered to join them in private later, once her duties no longer called her. They met in the evening in the priestess’s rooms, free from any curious glances and eager ears.
Though Yennefer was reluctant to talk about the Lodge and their plans with anyone, Geralt did mention briefly their current situation. Nenneke had been a part of Ciri’s upbringing and she was on the short list of people, along with Dandelion and the witchers in Kaer Morhen, who deserved to hear the whole story.
Nenneke offered them a place to stay for as long as they wished, dismissing Geralt’s careful remarks about them not being exactly seen as welcome by most. The head of the temple of Melitele was still her own mistress. She was in charge of the temple and she would host whoever she pleased, for as long as their mutual desire was. Just like Geralt assumed, the priestess agreed to help Yennefer with her hands. They decided to take a closer examination the following morning, but upon seeing the crooked fingers and misshaped bones, Nenneke hissed angrily and gave them fair warning that the process was going to take some time.
Ciri surprised them all with her desire to use the time spent in the temple to study, but also to learn some basics in healing arts. Her education was lacking, she said, but did not elaborate. Nobody asked for details and Nenneke promised to have some training arranged for her with one of the priestesses.
***
The witcher danced, the blade a blur in his hands, his movements too fast to predict his next step. There were few who would ever try, but to any viewer wandering this far in the temple gardens, the dance was as morbid as it was elegant.
But the witcher wasn't alone. Slender, ashen-haired girl danced with him, her own sword glistening in the sun. No longer a child, but not quite a woman yet, wielding a sword with grace and speed that would astonish many. But not her partner.
Geralt wasn't holding back this time, forcing Ciri to be in constant movement in order to have a chance to avoid him.
"You're too quick!" Ciri panted with a growl, jumping back to her feet after the impact of their clash sent her stumbling.
"I am." Geralt nodded, taking a step back and lowering his sword. "You gave me too much ground, allowing me too many options. I could do plenty as I had both the time and the space for that. You need to move, but you also need to keep me engaged or I will take the initiative.”
They circled again, the whirlwind of movement interrupted now and then by the metallic clash of their blades. Geralt kept commenting on Ciri’s actions, correcting her footing and pointing what she could do better. Unlike during their trainings in Kaer Morhen, they didn’t pause so often to start anew, keeping in constant motion.
"Don't rely too much on the sun blinding your opponent. It does nothing to me," Geralt spoke again after Ciri attacked with the sun behind her and he dodged her easily.
"I know that!" The girl shot back. "A witcher never fights with light," she mimicked Vesemir.
Geralt smiled. "That's right. But you also can never assume that light works to your advantage. It's better to assume it doesn't affect your opponent and avoid being blinded yourself.”
Ciri heeded his advice and danced around him, engaging his sword and forcing him to parry her attacks instead of letting him attack her. It worked for a moment, but soon she was hard pressed for a change. She rolled back on the ground, then jumped up and tossed a fistful of sand right into the witcher’s face.
Geralt managed to avoid most of it, but some got into his eyes, blinding him. Now he was the one forced to take a step back as Ciri attacked. He parried her sword with much less ease.
"Good. Very good,” he praised when they stepped away from each other. He wiped the rest of the dust from his eyes and blinked a few times. “Everything can be used as weapon.”
"Are you completely out of your mind, Geralt?"
The tone made both Ciri and Geralt turn. Nenneke was standing on the stairs leading to the inner yard, a mixture of fury and horror plain on her features.
"I'm sorry, Nenneke, we didn't mean to disturb any of you,” Geralt inclined his head slightly. “We can go elsewhere, but you never seemed to mind when I came to train here."
“You never crossed that razor blade of yours with another living being,” Nenneke scoffed at them.
“Oh. Yen made sure we wouldn’t be able to cut off anything. See?” Geralt ran his finger along the blade, then showed it to the priestess. “Is there anything you need from me?”
“Oh yes.” The cloud of fury on Nenneke’s face was replaced by mild concern. “Are you done for now? If so, then come with me. I wish to examine you.”
“Whatever for? I am fine.”
“I saw the way you move. How you keep distributing weight, keeping it off one leg. You never did that before. And as Triss was here and mentioned the state she left you in in Brokilon, I’d rather see for myself.”
“A force of habit, I’m afraid,” Geralt offered in explanation, looking uncomfortable. “My knee bothered me for long and I couldn’t trust it. It’s fine now. A sorceress fixed it for me.” He didn’t want to evaluate, not with Ciri watching him with too much interest. While he hadn’t exactly hidden from her the fact that he had been badly wounded, he hadn’t shared many details.
“Was she a trained healer?” Nenneke scoffed. “I thought so. Then let me be the judge of her job, unless you want to be proven wrong the moment winter comes again. Off you go, Ciri, Alina is waiting for you in the healing ward.”
***
Nenneke was not pleased when Geralt reluctantly but honestly shared with her the aftermath of the massacre at Thanned and the long-lasting side effects of his injuries. Her lips were pressed into a thin line as he admitted how soon he had left Brokilon, but she said nothing once Ciri’s name was brought up. Instead, Nenneke forced Geralt into full examination which took far longer than he anticipated.
“Your nerves seemed to have regenerated nicely,” she said finally. “It wouldn’t have been this bad, had you let it heal properly in the first place, but that break you took in Toussaint seemed to have worked. I needed to check. Wouldn’t want to let you out of here and learn later that you ended up having trouble when the weather worsened. But you’ve been active for months now and there is little difference in muscles.”
“I told you I’m fine.” Geralt offered her a small smile.
“None of you is,” Nenneke replied simply. She gave him a pointed look before busying herself with her tools spread on the table. Geralt watched her for a while, considering.
“There is something I want to ask you since we are talking in private,” he spoke finally. “Ciri’s scar. Is there anything you can offer her for that?”
“Why?” Nenneke’s piercing gaze was on him again at once. “Does it bother you? You travel with a sorceress.”
“It doesn’t.” There wasn’t a moment of hesitation before Geralt answered. “As for Yen… The Lodge threw some off-hand remark about masking the scar, but you know as well as I do that Ciri’s comfort was not in their minds.”
“Have you talked to Ciri about that?”
“No. And I can’t.”
“Why not?”
“Because I’m a witcher. Scars are a natural part of the life I lead,” Geralt spoke softly, knowing Nenneke was the only person he could bring this matter to. “Ciri saw us all in Kaer Morhen. We spent a great deal of that time convincing her she was good enough. I don’t want her to feel like I think she can’t handle having been scarred like that. She would think of it as me seeing a weakness in her, a weakness she can’t show. But I also know she is a teenage girl, aware that her beauty was marred. I have seen the look she gave Yennefer when she used glamarye and all the other things she has. Ciri will not talk to either of us about that.”
“I see,” Nenneke replied, nodding at the witcher’s reasoning. “I don’t think anything but a strong illusion could mask a scar like that completely, not this long after the injury. But I have means to make that scar pale and fade more quickly. I will talk to Ciri about that. She does seem eager to learn. I’m sure I can bring it up without getting you involved.”
“Thank you.”
***
"You know I hate those."
Geralt paused in the doors, a leather box in his hands. "And you know well I am safer with them." A full stock of potions was something he hadn't had for over a year. Nenneke resupplied him just in case and when he mentioned he didn't plan on witchering actively unless necessary, she just smirked.
Two days later life proved she was right.
"Then why not take them?” Yennefer placed the book she was reading on the bed next to her. “Don't give me that look, I can see you're about to tell me something I'm not going to like. You may as well get over with it."
"There is a growing problem with drowners by the road leading here. People seek help in Ellander and get attacked on their way,“ the witcher explained, surprised by her edginess.
"And Nenneke asked you to deal with it?" Yennefer asked, ire lighting her violet eyes. Her left hand clenched into a fist; her right couldn’t, neatly splinted and wrapped after the surgery.
"She didn't," Geralt snapped. "I offered, so leave it be. It's simple enough and I will not sit in the temple waltzing around with Ciri while our hostess and my friend is having trouble."
Yennefer looked away, but said nothing. Geralt put the box safely among his things and came to sit by her. "I'll be back by nightfall. It's a simple task," he offered and regretted it instantly.
"Then you can take me with you." Ciri looked up from the book she was studying, her face lit with excitement. “Come on, Geralt, can you for once show me how to kill a monster in practice?" The girl was on her feet already. "We never really had a chance."
"I was still under impression you didn't want to kill."
"I want to help mother Nenneke," retorted Ciri. "Is this not why you all trained me in Kaer Morhen? So that I can protect myself and protect those dear to me?"
Geralt shot Yennefer a pleading look, but one glance at the sorceress told him she wasn't going to fight this battle with him. She seemed amused, not angered anymore, waiting to see him handle the matter.
"That's why I will go and get rid of these drowners. To keep people coming to Nenneke safe," Geralt nodded. "But there is no need to endanger you."
"I can protect myself!"
"I know that."
"Isn't it better for her to go with you the first time? Rather than let her face them alone later, without you to keep an eye on her?" Yennefer interjected and Geralt sucked in a breath to suppress a groan. "Unless it's not as easy as you are trying to make it sound?"
"Geralt, we've been training for two weeks here! It's not for nothing, is it," Ciri glared. "I faced a wyvern before. And other monsters."
"Very well." The witcher surrendered. "On one condition. If things get out of hand, you will step aside and let me deal with them. If there is something more than a bunch of drowners, you stick to them and leave the rest for me."
"Geralt, you won't make me run!"
"That is not my intention, Ciri. It's the matter of safety, both yours and mine. Do I get your word for that?" Geralt held her gaze, unperturbed by the anger and offense he could see. "Witchers rarely work as a team, but if we do, we need to coordinate. I need to be sure you will listen."
***
The lake by the road leading to the temple seemed peaceful in the slowly setting sun. It looked uninhabited, but when Ciri mentioned it aloud, Geralt shook his head.
“They are good at making their hunting place look inconspicuous. Remember what that merchant said? They left several goods scattered as they ran away, but there is nothing here now. No reason for alarm,” he reached for his sword as he came closer to the seemingly peaceful surface of the lake. Ciri followed suit. “Just a good spot to have a break, far enough from the nearest villages, so the people travelling to Nenneke are unlikely to be forewarned.”
“So what now?” Ciri looked around. “Are we just going to wait for them to come?”
“Yes, essentially.” Geralt nodded and pointed at the willows to their left, their branches touching the water. “Can you hear them? There are at least four hidden there.”
“No,” Ciri muttered gruffly. “Hmm, maybe? Geralt, what if they decide we are not worth hunting for?”
The witcher smiled in response. “Then we will hunt them. Just remember what I told you.”
“Don’t let them drag you into water, yes, I do remember,” Ciri rolled her eyes, but at a sudden splash she jerked her head. “And what’s that?”
“Damn,” Geralt muttered under his breath. “There is a water hag as well. Leave that one to me.”
“Why?”
“Because they can be poisonous. You’ll get plenty of drowners to deal with. Watch-“
Ciri ducked already and turned around, facing the creature that almost managed to sneak up on her. Geralt let her take the initiative and took a moment to asses the whole situation. He could see at least six drowners trying to figure out how to deal with their unusual, armed prey. He knew there were at least three more with the hag, still hiding behind the branches.
“Don’t let them encircle you!” He called as a swift cut of his sihil cut off the arm of the drowner that was about to sneak behind Ciri. The witcher finished it off.
“Trying!” Ciri shot back, too busy for a longer reply. She was dancing between two drowners, constantly moving just like they had trained.
“Very good!” Geralt nodded in approval. Keeping an eye on both Ciri and the two creatures trying to get to him was a bit challenging but not impossible.
But the hag wasn’t about to leave the drowners alone with their attackers. She emerged from the willows with a howl, her long arms cutting the water. She looked clumsy, but Geralt had warned Ciri not to be fooled by that. With one more glance at the girl, the witcher sprang forwards. He was certain Ciri would manage if he kept the hag engaged.
Ciri was holding her ground indeed, dancing on the stones at the edge of the lake. She jumped at the largest drowner and landed knees deep in the water, deeper than she had apparently expected. The big drowner didn’t manage to escape her blade, but another, smaller one jumped at her back. Geralt hit it with the Aard sign, sending it right on the rocky bottom of the lake. The impact hit Ciri too, surprising her.
“Get back!” yelled the witcher. “Out of the water, now!”
Ciri swirled and killed the disorientated drowner. The next moment she found herself right next to Geralt as she escaped the third one that tried to use the commotion to its advantage. The witcher had to step back to avoid Ciri’s wide parry – right under the hag’s claws. Cursing under his breath as the claws ripped his sleeve, he fell to one knee and hit the hag from below, cutting her open. Another precise movement sent her head flying.
With a splash, the last drowner disappeared under the surface. Ciri looked at the grime on her hands and sleeves and winced. She leaned down and tried to wash out the worst of it, before realising the very water by her feet was full of the drowner she had just gutted.
“Please tell me we don’t need to drag any of that as a proof to mother Nenneke.”
Geralt didn’t smile. “No, not this time.”
Ciri sighed in relief. She wiped her hands and sheathed her sword. “Why did you intervene? I could have handled that!”
“I told you to not let them lure you into the water.”
“I knew what I was doing,” Ciri repeated furiously. “I don’t need minding, I had it under control!”
“Did you?” The steel tone did not disappear from the witcher’s voice. “Take off your jacket.”
“What?” Ciri looked at him with surprise, but did as she was told. Her eyes widened more as she saw three gashes tearing the leather right under her shoulder blades.
“The pendulum would hit you if you were too slow,” said Geralt.” The worst it could do was to bruise you. The drowner’s claws can rip your muscles just like they ripped your jacket. Do you see why I intervened? You asked me not to treat you like a child. I’m not. But it is my role as your teacher to see that you live long enough to learn it all.”
“Oh. But your jacket is torn too,” Ciri pointed out with a smirk that was immediately gone once she saw the shirt sleeve underneath. “Geralt, there’s blood.”
“Yes,” the witcher nodded. “Like I said, witchers rarely fight together. It was either the claws or your sword. Don’t worry, it’s just a shallow cut.”
Ciri was already digging in the bag she had left hanging on the tree. “Was it a drowner? Or a hag? Geralt? You said they can be poisonous.”
“So you were listening. Good.” Geralt moved closer and placed his hand on her shoulder. “Calm down, it wasn’t my intention to frighten you. You did well with the drowners. The point is, they could easily get an upper hand.”
“Point made,” Ciri winced but stopped the fussing. “I’m sorry, Geralt.”
The witcher nodded. “It’s alright. Now let’s go. It’s good that you packed what Alina prepared for you, but there is no need for that now. I’ll clean myself when we get back.”
“Do you think Yennefer will help with these?” Ciri pointed at the tears in her jacket. “I don’t know how to repair leather.”
This time, Geralt smiled. “If you’re ready to ask her to do that.”
***
”Yen. I thought you would be asleep.”
“You took your time.” Yennefer scanned him with her violet eyes and her gaze stopped at the witcher’s torn sleeve. “What’s this?”
“A lesson,” Geralt replied dismissively. “No, not a scratch on Ciri,” he added, sensing the approaching storm.
“Very well, you’ll tell me in the morning.” The sorceress shrugged and motioned Geralt to roll up his sleeve. “I assume you don’t need it anymore,” she stated and waved her good hand. A dismissively muttered spell sealed the fresh cut neatly.
“There was no need for that.” Geralt scratched his arm as the spell left a lingering itch. “I thought Nenneke told you to keep from using spells just yet?”
“On myself,” hissed Yennefer. “I don’t fancy the smell of fresh blood.” She didn’t wait for him and headed straight back to bed. She slipped back under her blanket and wrapped it in a tight cocoon around herself.
Geralt paused. He expected at least some kind of inquiry from her, perhaps even a change of mind about the sensibility of taking Ciri with him, since the hunt he had deemed easy didn’t end entirely bloodless from their part. He was half prepared to suffer a row that would wake half of the temple. Anything.
Shrugging, he decided to leave the matter be for the moment and instead took extra time to make sure he washed away all the dried blood, both his own and the drowners’. Yennefer had been moody and frustrated that Nenneke had told her to leave her fingers for a few days before aiding the healing with magic. Perhaps the medicines were making her drowsy, he thought as he quietly laid down next to her.
Yennefer wasn’t asleep, he could tell that. She laid motionless, but her heart beat too fast, though her breathing seemed carefully controlled. Geralt couldn’t see her face as she had turned away from him, but he could feel her tension.
She lasted perhaps half an hour before she slipped silently from the bed and left the room.
***
He found her at the patio, looking at the linden trees in the garden, her elbows resting on the stone railing. She must have heard him approaching since he had no intention to sneak up on her, but she didn’t move.
"Fingers bothering you this much?" Geralt asked. "I have potions if you don't want to wake Nenneke now."
"No need," Yennefer waved her hand dismissively, still watching the linden leaves rustling in the wind. "It's not nearly half as bad as the last-"
She looked away. There was a lot she was not saying. It still happened way too often. Geralt moved closer and wrapped an arm around her waist, placing his other hand on the railing net to hers.
"Yen. What did he do to you?"
Yennefer did not answer for a long time, her gaze locked on the linden tree. She leaned to the touch, moving until she could rest her head against his chest.
Geralt placed his chin on the top of her head. He wished he could promise he would never let anything like this to happen to her again, but it was a lie he would not feed with neither her nor Ciri. He could only do his best, so he said nothing.
"Don't dig, Geralt," Yennefer said finally. "He wanted me to track Ciri for him. I refused. It doesn't matter now."
Geralt disagreed, but did not comment. "Then come back inside with me?"
The sorceress only nodded. They walked in companionable silence back through the empty corridor, quiet to the point that the temple seemed almost abandoned. They walked silently, his arm around her waist, her fingers playing with his sleeve. This time she didn’t push him away, just nestled against him.
The next morning, when Nenneke came to see about her patient, Geralt shushed and pointed silently at the sorceress sleeping curled next to him, her head resting on his chest. The priestess only nodded approvingly and left.