Chapter Text
"Do I have to wear this?" Yennifer rolled her eyes at the Witcher.
"You have been going to parties with Jaskier for at least two decades. You know what is expected of guests to wear." She walked up behind him and fixed his hair, or attempted to. "How he had ever got your hair to behave is a gift in itself." Geralt huffed and let Yennifer attempt before he pulled away.
"It will be fine. Anyways, we are only attending as they will be giving a contract." He didn't have to mention that the two of them only accepted because there were rumors that Jaskier was seen nearby. There was a possibility that he would be playing at the feast.
Ciri walked out from behind the privacy screen in a simple but beautiful brown dress and her hair freshly dyed. Yennifer had added some coloring around her eyes in an attempt to make them look somewhat different than their typical green.
"How do I look?" Ciri asked.
"You look beautiful, my dear," Yennifer answered while Geralt grunted in agreement. Yennifer elbowed him, and he muttered out a short "nice" before turning away. The three of them made sure they had everything before starting on the road towards the land's manor.
"Who is the lord anyway?" Ciri asked.
"Lord Elacan Alfred Pankratz has been lord for many decades. Rumor has it that he has the gift of long life due to partial elven lineage. No one knows exactly, and there have been no signs of harm to those around him beyond the typical political disputes. Because of that, our dear Witchers never looked into it." Geralt rolled his eyes at Yennifer's answer.
"It isn't that we haven't looked into it. Some have long ago looked into it."
"And?" Ciri asked.
"They said to stop looking into it." Ciri looked as if she was about to ask more questions, but sighed and gave up the topic.
"The name sounds familiar." Ciri instead brought up. Yennifer looked over at her.
"Oh? Well, I am sure your grandmother was familiar with the Lord and his family." Ciri nodded but thought about it.
"Does he have any children my age?" Yennifer laughed at the question.
"If you are asking to know if you can escape with them, you are wrong. We aren't allowing you out of our sight while here." Yennifer watched the small girl roll her eyes.
"That wasn't it. I remember a few years ago meeting a young boy and a girl with the last name Pankratz. They were on a trip with their father. They would actually come by occasionally to visit the area, and I would get to spend time with the three of them. They were kind, and I would not mind seeing them again." Geralt paused for a second. Now that Ciri was talking about it, Pankratz was familiar, but he could not put his finger on why. The only thing he could think of was that it was a good thing to be here tonight.
Once the three of them arrived at the manor, they showed their invitation and were directed towards a table. There were many people, none which were the Lord Pankratz. Geralt looked towards the entertainment and did not see that Jaskier was one of them. He felt a hand touch his. He turned to see Yennifer already looking towards him with sad eyes, almost saying another dead end. There was a call to attention to announce the Lord's arrival. Ciri peered up and made a face towards the man.
"What? Is that not the Lord Pankratz that you were thinking of?" Yennifer asked jokingly.
"No, it's not. He looks similar, but older than the father to my friends." Geralt looked and studied the Lord Pankratz. The man was tall and had long hair with gray streaks. When the Lord had caught sight of the trio, Geralts' heart had almost stopped. The man had given them a large smile and tipped a glass towards them. The smile was almost exactly like Jaskier's. Before Geralt could say anything to Yennifer, another call to attention was made to announce Lord Pankratz grandchildred, Erbec Pankratz and Aldas Pankratz, before announcing the guest of honor.
"And now introducing, Witcher Aiden and Future Augur Julian Alfred Pankratz." It was Jaskier.