One last bond - the sisterly bond

Take a look into the life of a not-so-ordninary servant of the light!

Topic/Postby Lilandris » 15 Sep 2014, 02:15

One last bond - the sisterly bond

It was about time I shed a little light on Lil's older sister who pretty much came out of nowhere all of a sudden.

Hope y'all enjoy. And as always feel free to comment, be them big or small :)

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One last bond - the sisterly bond

A knock on the door. Heavy knuckles, slow and purposeful. A rusty heart on my doorstep.
“Lil. Sister... I would speak with you if I may.” Kynidris’ bright blue eyes were pleading. I could tell from her sore cheeks that she had been crying.
“But of course Kyni-dear. Come in.” Closing the door behind her I followed her over to the dining table. Her steps were slow, and so were mine. Her gaze fluttered around the room, eventually resting on the mantlepiece and the picture upon it. Zho, my ex-wife. Kynidris had commented on the picture when we first met. - “My life seems so small compared to yours.” she had said. I didn’t believe her then. I still didn’t believe it. I had a feeling I was about to learn a thing or two about my older sister. Something to confirm my disbelief in my her claims about her life’s size.

I grabbed an extra cup from a cupboard. I was in the middle of my late morning tea when Kynidris had knocked on my door, I figured maybe she would want some tea as well - tea was a good accessory to talks. She seated herself and I sat across the table from her where my cup was, I poured up a full cup of tea for her, before topping off my own with what was left.
“At least it’s not completely lukewarm yet.” I offered her a smile. To my relief she gave a genuine smile back. “I’m all ears, sis’. What’s troubling you?”
She gave a slightly puzzled look in return.
“How do you know it’s trouble I came to speak of?”
“I’ve been down that road myself too many times to be oblivious to it’s signs... You’re speaking awfully formal compared to what you usually do, especially to me. You look a little nervous, like someone treading through unknown territory. And those sore cheeks tell me you’ve been crying. Beyond that, there’s a slight quiver to your voice and a slower pace in your steps...” I sipped my tea to conceal a little smug smirk, I couldn’t help but taking a little pride in my observation skills, even in this situation. “...And you’re my sister for Light’s sake, I can feel it in here when you’re in pain.” I tapped my chest.
She gave a tiny chuckle, rather a small exhalation of amusement. “You’re good.”
I waved her compliment aside with a shrug, I hadn’t intended to fish for it anyway.
“I assume you’re not too used to talking about your feelings? Take your time, dear. I’m not going anywhere until you’re done.” I sipped my tea again.
Kynidris cast a gaze toward the door to the next room then back to me. “Is she-..?”
“She’s out, don’t worry.” I gave another smile.
She let out a long, heavy sigh. Looking for the words.
“I’ve not talked too much about my past, save for a few things from my childhood and my service with the 7th Legion...” She looked down at the cup in her hands before taking a sip. “As you can imagine, there are a few holes in between... I’ve never told you - or anyone... That I was once betrothed.”
I had to admit I didn’t see it coming.
“Really?”
“Yes... Many years ago now. I...” Her eyes sparkled from tearing up again. “I lost him in battle before my service in Northrend. I suppose it’s part of the reason why I chose to serve up there. The chilly nights in Wintergarde Keep doesn’t come close to the coldness I felt at my loss.”
My heart sunk. I had been hoping it was much simpler than this. I slid my hands across the table for her to hold.
“I’m so sorry to hear that.” I wished I had any better words to offer.
“I try not to think about it too much. But my heart never healed enough for me to move on. To this day it bleeds for him.” She sighed again.
“Dear sister, why haven’t you told me this before?” I was quite sad from the fact that she hadn’t shared any of this with me before, just kept carrying the burden alone in silence.
“I don’t know... I wasn’t sure how to say it. I had trouble finding the words or the courage. I wasn’t ready I suppose.” She withdrew her hands from mine and fiddled with her fingers, hanging her head down as well.
“Well, you’ve sought me out today. It’s my duty as your sibling to listen to you, and share your burden.” She looked up at me with a look of somewhere between surprise and revelation from my words. “I mean it; your heartache is mine too, dear sister. No matter the size.”
A single tear rolled down her cheek and a little smile emerged.
“Haraan and I grew up together in the orphanage. We were always thick as thieves back then. Whenever one of us got in trouble the other never hesitated to share the blame. As we grew older, a romance bloomed between us, seeing as we were the outcasts - the ones who always got in trouble and were different from the others. Nobody understood us but each other, we said.” She took a long sip from her tea before she continued.
“We were inseparable to say the least. We became soldiers together later on in life, restless as we were we never slowed down for anything, least not for living. As if we were running ahead to put as much distance between ourselves and the past. Why? I don’t know. Besides a somewhat lack of friends, our past hadn’t been that bad, all things considered.”
“Seems like you’re not too bad at talking about these things after all. You seem to be finding the right words.” I smiled reassuringly at her and nodded for her to continue.
“If there’s anything I’ve had, it’s time to think.” She sighed. “One day Haraan knelt before me and asked for my hand in marriage. From that moment on I felt like maybe even we had a shot at true happiness, somewhere down the road. But I should have known it was an illusion, a curtain to be torn apart by the harsh reality of life. Sure we lived dangerous lives between sword edges, but it didn’t make it any less disappointing and paralyzing.” She put her face in her hands and sobbed loudly. I had never seen my sister like this before, she always seemed the confident and stable type. It hurt to realise that there were probably many things I didn’t know about my sister. And it felt so strange to hear my sister talk about her past like this and how far away it seemed to me. I was supposed to have been back there with her from the start. I rose from my seat and went over to give Kynidris a long proper hug.
“It’s okay to cry, sis. Even for us who armor our hearts and our bodies as best we can. Sometimes our armor cannot keep us from being wounded. It’s okay to cry.” No sooner than I had uttered the words, did I start crying as well. We must have been crying on each other’s shoulders for several minutes in silence. Eventually she spoke again and I seated myself next to her.
“We were on a mission to clear out some undesirables in Arathi... Myself, Haraan and a few other good men and women. Problem was, they knew we were coming. While we were easily better fighters, they had better numbers as they ambushed us. Back to back, Haraan and I fought off what seemed like an endless amount of bandits. We got through the worst of it, but fatigue eventually struck us. As I struck down my last opponent, I quickly turned to aid Haraan. In the same moment a crossbow bolt pierced his armor, lodging itself in his heart. As he fell to his knees I could hear a shriek of despair escape my lips, and in my desperation and anger I threw my axe at his killer, splitting his skull in half. Then I fell to my knees by Haraan’s body. And I cried like I never knew I could. He wasn’t even granted a final breath for his last words. It wasn’t supposed to end like that.” Kynidris heaved a heavy sigh. “Having lived with few friends your whole life makes you learn to appreciate the ones you have. But ultimately it also makes it that much harder when you lose someone.”
“May the Light keep him in death.” I squeezed her hand reassuringly.
“We were supposed to have a life together... Have children and be a family - the things we’d never had before. Now all that was left for me was a cold void where my happy future had been... Not long after, the Northrend business began and I shipped off under the 7th Legion banner once more. Seemed a good a place as any to run from my problems, and either way I was still honorbound to my comrades in arms. In a way, it was good to be able to focus on something and forget about everything else, and Northrend was a good reminder to why we fight, and why our lives are worth living.”
She sniffled and dried her eyes with the backs of her hands.
“At least for a little bit... After Northrend I returned to Shattrath City, and by grace of the High Priestess I was set upon the path to find you. I needed purpose, and a reason to value my life once again. And to know I had a sister out there in the big world gave me both... I was reluctant at first to open myself up again to possible disappointments and more pain. But I figured I had nothing to lose anyway.”
I couldn’t help but smile at the fact that I was the one last beacon of hope for my sister. The reason why she gave life a second chance.

“I was happy to know I had a sister too! It gave me great joy when you showed up on my doorstep that day!” I hugged her tightly, I wasn’t letting go until she did.
“At the very least I have one last bond... The sisterly bond.” She smiled at me.
“Hey, your bond with Haraan is still there. Your souls are forever connected. And though that day is not today, there will come a time when you will see him again.”
She nodded solemnly.
“I guess you’re right, sis... You really are the wiser one.” She mustered a little snicker. And it warmed my heart to hear it - an immediate reminder that she was far from completely lost. “I hope you understand now why I can be a little withdrawn sometimes.”
“Of course! It’s alright, sometimes one just needs a little space.” I hugged her again. She seemed to have calmed down now. “Where is Haraan buried?”
“In the Stormwind cemetery, why?”
I rose from my seat and pulled the fresh flowers on the table out of their vase.
“Come, show me.” I smiled at her and offered her a hand to stand up. “Let us pay him a visit, sis.” I wasn’t sure how she’d respond, I took a little leap of faith. It seemed my enthusiasm had rubbed off on her a little though, as she with a smile took my hand and stood up.
“Okay... I guess we can go say ‘hi’.”
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Lilandris
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