Chapter Text
There are only a few things that he holds close to his heart. A pocket watch given to him by his grandfather. Books, gifted by various family and friends. His first custom knife.
Yet, they all pale in comparison to the greatest gift he ever received. He knew the moment he looked into pale blue eyes, that he would sacrifice the world for her.
“Hello, Gwennis.” He lightly tapped her little nose. “I’m your older brother.”
*****
The snow swirls around him and he grits his teeth, pressing on. He holds her close, trying to make sure the cloak is tucked around her tightly. He stumbles, but catches himself in time. Probably a hidden rock on the ground.
“Brother?”
“I’m sorry, but I can’t see much in the snow. Just tell me if it gets cold.” He tucks the cloth around her tighter. He wasn’t expecting the snow to come in so soon, there should have been two more hours before the storm was predicted to start. He squints and makes out the faint outline of a cabin.
“There wasn’t one on the way here.” He mutters to himself. “But there should be an awning at least.” With a glimmer of hope, he trudges to the cabin and there is a small patio with a roof over it. There seems to be no one around, but as much as he wants to get inside, he’s not going to risk a dagger to the back.
“Okay, we just need to wait here for a few hours. Can you hold on for me Gwennis?” He gets a small nod. The wood is cold against his back and legs, but the respite from walking through snow is a welcome one. He feels his eyelids get heavy, but he knows that sleeping here would be inadvisable. A finger presses to his neck and his shoulders tense.
“One wrong move, and I’ll blow your head clean off.” A gruff voice whispers. “What are you doing here?”
“Taking some shelter from the snow.” He doesn’t move, his voice strangely steady. “We got caught outside and saw the cabin.”
“We?”
“My little sister.” He doesn’t move, but Gwennis takes that time to look over, the cloak slightly falling away from her face. The finger lowers from his neck and he can breathe easier. He still doesn’t dare move. Maybe they’ll pass for Dahnans.
“I didn’t know they let Renan children come down here.” Ganabelt can’t help but laugh at that. So much for that plan.
“They don’t.”
“So you trying to get rid of her?”
“Of course not!” He snapped, his anger getting the best of him and he turned to glare at the stranger. “I had to get her off of Lenegis for her safety!” When did Dahna become the safer option, he wonders. When did the child in his arms become more important than everything he had ever known?
He blinks and stares, the anger evaporating into the cold. An old man stares back. He had hair as white as the snow blowing around them, and had an impressive beard and mustache. Golden eyes looked at him warily, and he wore normal Dahnan clothes. Yet, Ganabelt could feel the sheer astral energy emenating from him. This wasn't a normal Dahnan.
“You can use artes.” The words fell out before he could stop them. The cold whipped around them and he wasn’t sure if it was natural anymore. There’s a reason why they taught all Renan children to control their emotions. Was it his or the old man's? Did it even matter?
“What gave it away, kid?”
“Glowy…” Gwennis interrupted sleepily. “Like lightning.” Ganabelt turned back quickly and panic welled up as he noticed how slow her breathing had gotten. “Brother…cold…” Her breath was coming in small puffs and she was shivering heavily.
“It’s just a few more hours, then we’ll be back in Cysloden.” He soothed, trying to draw some fire energy into his hand as he cupped her face. “Can you stay awake for me?” She nodded slowly, leaning into his hand. He tried to calm his heart as he felt how cold she had gotten. Lenegis never had anything close to seasons, and even then, there was never really any danger of dying from the cold or heat.
“Come in kid.” The man gruffly said, opening the door. Ganabelt hesitated, but a sneeze from Gwennis prompted him to get up and follow the man inside.
The windows were covered with dark curtains, hiding the warm glow of a small fireplace. “Get the girl closer to the fire. You can probably draw on some more energy yourself, boy.” Ganabelt sits on the rug and scoots closer to the flames. Gwennis sneezes again and he sets her down as close to the fireplace as possible.
He takes the time to look around him. They sit in the main area, the front door behind and to the right. The rug he sits on covers half of the room, the other half taken up by a small table and chair with a small stove shoved in the corner. He can see a sofa and a small bookcase through the door as well as a small staircase, no doubt leading to other rooms.
“Here, have her drink this.” The man shoves a small cup into his hands. “It’s made with pepper and ginger.” He accepts the cup cautiously and takes a small sip first. There is no poison that he can detect, and he can feel the liquid warming him up.
“Drink.” He brings the cup to her lips, and she sips it slowly. Her cheeks are red and snowflakes are melting on her eyelashes.
“Paranoid, aren’t we?” The man chuckles, continuing before Ganabelt can retort. “But I don’t blame you. A Renan in Dahnan territory isn’t where you want to be, even if you have your fancy artes.”
“Why are you helping us? I thought a Dahnan wouldn’t bat an eye if one of us dropped dead.” He asks, focusing on the flames, making sure Gwennis finishes the cup. Because he knows he wouldn’t care if a Dahnan dropped dead in front of him. Not many Renans would.
“I wouldn’t give a damn if you Rena all froze to death. But I can’t let a kid freeze to death right outside my door. Renan or not.”
“...Thank you.” He sets the cup down and Gwennis yawns, huddling more into the cloak. Her breathing evens out, and her eyes have slipped closed. “We’ll be gone once the storm is over.”
“What’s your name, kid?” He doesn’t answer immediately and the man’s gaze seems to sharpen. His silence is damning. “I heard a new lord is in town. Guess you must have come with his entourage.” He holds back his laugh, because it’s not like the old man is wrong.
“News travels fast here.”
“If you count seeing the ships in the air as news. Can’t miss the damn things.” The man laughs harshly. “I’ve heard the guards talk when I go into the city for supplies. They talk about a silver-haired genius. Eyes as blue as ice.”
“They give a name?” Ganabelt still doesn’t look up at the man as he asks, aware of the golden eyes boring into him. The man had threatened to blow his head off, and he doubts it was a bluff.
“They only refer to him as Lord Valkyris. But something tells me that you knew that. So tell me, Renan, who are you?” He trapped himself, so he takes the leap.
“I am…Ganabelt. Ganabelt Valkyris. Head of House Valkyris and…the current Lord of Cyslodia.” He whispers the last part softly, a confession. The wind howls outside, and his title feels so small against the noise of the world.
“Meneck.”
“Excuse me?”
“My name. I am Meneck.” The man, Meneck, smiles crookedly. “Thought it would be fair to give you something to call me. Don’t have one of those fancy last names or titles like you Renans have.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Meneck.” And he finds that it’s not a lie.
“And likewise to you, little lord. So tell me, what is a high and mighty Renan lord doing getting lost in the mountains, where there’s no Renan outposts anywhere?”
“...I heard a rumor.”
“Oh?”
“It was in a book I found. There exist Dahnans who can wield artes. Their eyes don’t glow, but they can be just as or even more powerful than Renans.”
“And why were you looking for them?”
“For answers.” Ganabelt stares into the flames. He continues, his exhaustion getting the best of him. Or maybe he needs to stop his secrets from strangling him. “She doesn’t have glowing eyes like the other Renans.” It feels strange, being able to admit it. Yet his chest is still tight, the weight of what he’s doing, pressing down on his soul. If he has one left. He's not sure at this point.
“And I guess the other Rena didn’t like that?” Of course they didn’t. Because that’s what made them better than the Dahnans. And Dahnans didn’t have glowing eyes. But Dahnans shouldn’t use artes either. And he’s looking at one right now.
“She can use artes, that should be enough.” He argued back. But the words sound hollow even to him. Because he knows what’s coming next. Because he’s asked himself the same thing.
“What if she couldn’t use artes?” Ganabelt tensed at the question, the silence deafening. The weight of the answer is choking him. It shouldn’t matter. But it does. He can feel the disgust rising in his throat. He doesn’t know if it’s directed at himself or the hypothetical situation. He can’t admit he would be just like the other Rena, throwing a child to the streets because they couldn’t use artes. Yet, he knows. Because he never got in the habit of lying to himself.
“I…I don’t…” A small hand reached out and gripped his sleeve. He looked down at Gwennis, her expression relaxed in sleep. Even when sleeping, she reached for him. He covered her hand, his fingers wrapping gently around hers.
“Brother…” She snuggled against him, and Ganabelt felt something in him break. He wordlessly gathered her closer in his arms and hugged her tight, pressing his cheek against the top of her head. She feels so small in his arms and oh so very breakable.
“I’m sorry.” He whispered. And he is. Those two words are meager offerings and he’s glad that she doesn’t understand. That she doesn’t know about the what ifs. That she doesn’t know what her perfect brother would have done.
“Brother…warm…” Her words drifted into nothingness and quiet breathing as she continued to sleep. Ganabelt grit his teeth as he continued to stare into the flames. The warmth of the fire filled him, but his chest was ice cold as the snow swirled heavily outside.
*****
She remembers waking up and it was warm. Brother was still holding her, but his grip wasn't that tight. He also was staring deep into the fire, like when he's sleeping, but not asleep yet. She crawls out of his grip, and he lets her.
“Sleep?” She asks, poking his cheek. He doesn’t respond, just slightly turning his head. She wonders what he’s looking at and turns around. There’s nothing but a wall.
“Hey, kiddo.” She turns again at the strange voice and looks up at a big man. He was very tall and his hair was white, like the snow outside. “Awake?”
“Uh huh.” Brother always said to be polite and answer questions. “Are you a light spirit?” The man’s eyes widened. She blinked, because Brother said that you shouldn’t stare at people.
“No, why are you asking?”
“Because, white.” She pointed to the man’s head. “It’s like the orb thingy.” There was a pause and she waited for the man to say something. But the man doesn’t speak, so she makes her way to the side of the room, where there’s books. She can’t read them, but Brother will, so she looks for the prettiest one. One book has gold on the side and it reminds her of the weird shiny thing Brother sometimes wears. So, she tries to pull it out.
“You probably don’t want this one.” The man pushes it back onto the shelf.
“Why not?”
“Because it’ll be boring.”
“But it’s pretty.”
“Pretty books doesn’t mean it’ll be interesting.”
“Oh.” She thinks for a bit. “Can you read a story to me? Please?” Always be polite. And use please and thank you. She’s thrilled when the man pulls out a book and points her to the couch. Story time was always her favorite.
*****
He doesn’t completely remember what happens during the rest of the time, but when he comes to, Gwennis is sitting at the small table with Meneck, who is reading a small story to her. It’s a Dahnan fantasy story, but Ganabelt would bet anything that Almeidrea would actually try to turn someone into a frog if she was allowed to. He wonders if that would make that story non-fiction.
“-And then the princess kissed the frog, for that was her promise to him.”
“What if she still didn’t?” Gwennis asked, looking up with wide eyes.
“Well, that wouldn’t be nice of the princess right?” Meneck asked back. “And then she wouldn’t be considered a good princess if she broke her promise right?”
“Oh.” Gwennis seemed to think for a bit. “What if she doesn’t want to be a good princess?”
“Then she wouldn’t be a good person.”
“Oh, okay.”
“Any other questions?”
“Nope.”
“So then in a flash of light, the frog turned into a handsome prince and the princess was so startled by the transformation, she fell back onto the bed. ‘Since you have fulfilled your promise, I know that you are a true princess. So I ask for your hand in marriage.’ The princess was taken by the prince and agreed to marry him. They lived happily ever after, the end.”
“That’s a good story.” Gwennis swung her legs back and forth, as she talked. “I liked the frog.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah.” She didn’t elaborate, only lightly humming as she sat there. Meneck raised an eyebrow, but he didn’t push. Ganabelt also didn’t know what to make of her statement. Three year olds always seem to say the strangest things.
“Well, the storm has stopped.” Meneck pushed the curtain to the side, revealing a sliver of the window. “You two should be safe traveling back to the city.”
“Then we should hurry. We don’t want to impose any further.” Ganabelt stood up quickly, eager to leave. He wasn’t keen to risk someone looking for him. “Gwennis, please thank our host.” Regardless of the conflict in his head, he still had to teach her proper manners.
“Thank you!” She hopped off the chair and bowed to Meneck. “Your house is very nice. Can we come back?” This last question was directed at Ganabelt, who froze in place.
“I don’t think-”
“Why not?” Meneck interrupted. He gave them a crooked grin. “As long as it’s just you two, I don’t see why you can’t.” Ganabelt looked between them and sighed. He couldn't refuse when Gwennis was looking at him with round eyes.
“Fine. We can come back.” Gwennis’s bright smile was almost worth it.
*****
They manage to make it back to the castle without being seen and Ganabelt breathes easier once the door closes behind him.
“Who was the person in front of the office?” Gwennis asked and he feels his heart freeze in his chest. Not another secret, he silently begs.
“What person?” He asks slowly, not wanting to hear the answer.
“The lady in red.”
The universe didn’t like him very much, he decided.