Silver eyes fluttered
open and a look of panic crossed Malandrae's face as she lay in her bed.
She inhaled sharply, the sound breaking the stillness of the night.
After a few more deep breaths, she stopped shaking enough to settle down
and take stock of her situation.
She'd stopped breathing again.
It had happened several times while she slept, and was not entirely unexpected given what she'd been doing that evening. Even so, the feeling was terrifying and it would be a long while before she could fall back to sleep again, even though sleep was what she so desperately needed. She lay in her bed, looking into the dim moonlit room trying to bring back the serenity that she needed to just close her eyes and rest. Within herself, she felt her energy fluttering, like a candle in a breeze always on the verge of being snuffed out. It was a most uncomfortable feeling.
After several minutes of lying there staring at her ceiling, the Highborne sighed and pushed away her sheets, rising somewhat unsteadily and sitting up in bed. She sat there for a while, staring at her feet as they dangled off the edge of the bed, listening to the sound of Eldre'nor sleeping in her bed nearby and wondering how long it would take for her to recover. After a few minutes she felt steady enough to push herself off the edge of the bed and walk over to her low-standing dresser, her bare feet making no sound as she avoided the many obstacles that she and Eldre'nor left scattered about the room; mostly discarded clothes and a magical trinkets.
She leaned heavily against the polished wood of the dresser's top, the room spinning for a moment as vertigo seized her. After it passed, she looked up, meeting the gaze of the Highborne staring back at her in the mirror. The image there was far paler than it had been just the evening before. Her silver eyes gleamed more dully, her hair was a mess and her makeup had been ruined and she'd not even bothered to fix it. It was unusual for her to look so unkempt, but she couldn't find the energy to fix it, and she'd be sleeping and staying in the house for several days she figured; an opinion that was confirmed as she studied herself in the mirror. She sighed and pushed the strap of her nightgown back into place as she looked at herself.
Careful not to wake Eldre'nor, she sang a soft spellsong. Beside her head, a faintly glowing orb sputtered into existence, spitting small sparks of blue light here and there. It was a feeble glow, and less than Malandrae should have been able to easily summon. She smiled at it bitterly, knowing it was the best she was likely to do for several days. She was almost completely useless, and certainly defenseless at the moment.
Her eyes met her own in the mirror and she smiled again, whispering softly, "What have you done to yourself you silly little Sorceress? You look a mess."
The room spun again and she held on to the dresser's top for dear life. After a moment it passed and she returned to her scrutiny of herself, "Was the price too high to pay? What exactly has it cost me?" Her eyes closed for a moment as she thought about the question.
A child's life. What value can a person place on that? What WOULDN'T one do to save the life of a child? To give them the ability to live it to its full possibilities? In the end, no cost is too high, provided a child's laughter and love can be shared with her family. It is the most precious thing Elune can give us after all.
Her eyes opened and she looked down at her arm. From wrist to elbow it had little trails of white marks across it; marks where she'd been burned and Silveria had healed her. The wounds wouldn't scar thanks to the magic of the priestess; they were merely discolored and it would fade in time. She turned her palm over, looking at the tiny white circle in the center; the spot where the artifact had been connected to her. It likely would not fade as much and would become a permanent reminder of what she'd done.
Her gaze returned to her reflection. "They can never know. I shouldn't have lied to Miss Kelliana, but she wouldn't understand. They can never be told how the device functioned."
She smiled at herself, and despite the dullness of her eyes, the expression was genuine, "I would have done it again a thousand times over anyway. And no one HAS to know. It'll be my little secret hmmm?"
Her reflection didn't respond, and she hadn't expected it to, but it did do something odd. It got smaller and further away. She frowned a little bit, wondering why it was behaving so strangely, and then why the ceiling was rolling. A second later she hit the floor hard, staring upwards in a daze. The sound startled Eldre'nor from her sleep, and in a moment the other Highborne was kneeling beside her.
"Have you been drinking tonight Malandrae?" Eldre'nor began to scold, but then she paused and frowned down at her friend. "You don't really look so good, I think you'd better get back in bed."
By then of course, Malandrae was well beyond replying, and Eldre'nor carefully checked her friend to ensure she wasn't wounded and that she was breathing regularly before sighing and lecturing the unconscious elf, "You've done something foolish haven't you? I can sense it. I have a feeling you will be sorry you played with so much magic before it's done. For now though, back to sleep. I'll tell Professor Knox that you won't be up to classes for a few days."
Eldre'nor spoke a few words and her sleeping friend lifted gently from the floor with magic, safely deposited back in her own bed. She walked over to where Malandrae lay unconscious and sighed again, gently covering her with her blankets.
"Next time ask for help! You can't do everything by yourself. Tyavel and I were always there to help you Malandrae," Eldre'nor said to the sleeping form of her friend. "One day you'll learn that asking for help doesn't put a burden on people, especially your friends. At least you didn't get blown up, whatever it was you were doing."
With another sigh Eldre'nor returned to her own bed, listening to Malandrae's breathing for a long time before drifting off to sleep herself.
She'd stopped breathing again.
It had happened several times while she slept, and was not entirely unexpected given what she'd been doing that evening. Even so, the feeling was terrifying and it would be a long while before she could fall back to sleep again, even though sleep was what she so desperately needed. She lay in her bed, looking into the dim moonlit room trying to bring back the serenity that she needed to just close her eyes and rest. Within herself, she felt her energy fluttering, like a candle in a breeze always on the verge of being snuffed out. It was a most uncomfortable feeling.
After several minutes of lying there staring at her ceiling, the Highborne sighed and pushed away her sheets, rising somewhat unsteadily and sitting up in bed. She sat there for a while, staring at her feet as they dangled off the edge of the bed, listening to the sound of Eldre'nor sleeping in her bed nearby and wondering how long it would take for her to recover. After a few minutes she felt steady enough to push herself off the edge of the bed and walk over to her low-standing dresser, her bare feet making no sound as she avoided the many obstacles that she and Eldre'nor left scattered about the room; mostly discarded clothes and a magical trinkets.
She leaned heavily against the polished wood of the dresser's top, the room spinning for a moment as vertigo seized her. After it passed, she looked up, meeting the gaze of the Highborne staring back at her in the mirror. The image there was far paler than it had been just the evening before. Her silver eyes gleamed more dully, her hair was a mess and her makeup had been ruined and she'd not even bothered to fix it. It was unusual for her to look so unkempt, but she couldn't find the energy to fix it, and she'd be sleeping and staying in the house for several days she figured; an opinion that was confirmed as she studied herself in the mirror. She sighed and pushed the strap of her nightgown back into place as she looked at herself.
Careful not to wake Eldre'nor, she sang a soft spellsong. Beside her head, a faintly glowing orb sputtered into existence, spitting small sparks of blue light here and there. It was a feeble glow, and less than Malandrae should have been able to easily summon. She smiled at it bitterly, knowing it was the best she was likely to do for several days. She was almost completely useless, and certainly defenseless at the moment.
Her eyes met her own in the mirror and she smiled again, whispering softly, "What have you done to yourself you silly little Sorceress? You look a mess."
The room spun again and she held on to the dresser's top for dear life. After a moment it passed and she returned to her scrutiny of herself, "Was the price too high to pay? What exactly has it cost me?" Her eyes closed for a moment as she thought about the question.
A child's life. What value can a person place on that? What WOULDN'T one do to save the life of a child? To give them the ability to live it to its full possibilities? In the end, no cost is too high, provided a child's laughter and love can be shared with her family. It is the most precious thing Elune can give us after all.
Her eyes opened and she looked down at her arm. From wrist to elbow it had little trails of white marks across it; marks where she'd been burned and Silveria had healed her. The wounds wouldn't scar thanks to the magic of the priestess; they were merely discolored and it would fade in time. She turned her palm over, looking at the tiny white circle in the center; the spot where the artifact had been connected to her. It likely would not fade as much and would become a permanent reminder of what she'd done.
Her gaze returned to her reflection. "They can never know. I shouldn't have lied to Miss Kelliana, but she wouldn't understand. They can never be told how the device functioned."
She smiled at herself, and despite the dullness of her eyes, the expression was genuine, "I would have done it again a thousand times over anyway. And no one HAS to know. It'll be my little secret hmmm?"
Her reflection didn't respond, and she hadn't expected it to, but it did do something odd. It got smaller and further away. She frowned a little bit, wondering why it was behaving so strangely, and then why the ceiling was rolling. A second later she hit the floor hard, staring upwards in a daze. The sound startled Eldre'nor from her sleep, and in a moment the other Highborne was kneeling beside her.
"Have you been drinking tonight Malandrae?" Eldre'nor began to scold, but then she paused and frowned down at her friend. "You don't really look so good, I think you'd better get back in bed."
By then of course, Malandrae was well beyond replying, and Eldre'nor carefully checked her friend to ensure she wasn't wounded and that she was breathing regularly before sighing and lecturing the unconscious elf, "You've done something foolish haven't you? I can sense it. I have a feeling you will be sorry you played with so much magic before it's done. For now though, back to sleep. I'll tell Professor Knox that you won't be up to classes for a few days."
Eldre'nor spoke a few words and her sleeping friend lifted gently from the floor with magic, safely deposited back in her own bed. She walked over to where Malandrae lay unconscious and sighed again, gently covering her with her blankets.
"Next time ask for help! You can't do everything by yourself. Tyavel and I were always there to help you Malandrae," Eldre'nor said to the sleeping form of her friend. "One day you'll learn that asking for help doesn't put a burden on people, especially your friends. At least you didn't get blown up, whatever it was you were doing."
With another sigh Eldre'nor returned to her own bed, listening to Malandrae's breathing for a long time before drifting off to sleep herself.
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