Found Love
The face of a child in pain was a sight that few took joy in, and very well might have been the thing Vetelle dreaded most, especially with the young one involved in this particular circumstance.
Yura was so strong, so full of life, but despite the appearance she put on, the maturity she tried to reflect, she was, to many, still but a child. She wasn’t supposed to be a hero. Yet here she was, a decrepit and abused figure, injured and exhausted from the torment she had been through, all to divert attention from her friend, an older woman who felt she should have been the one to bear the burden. But Yura would never allow that. She took the hard so that Vetelle didn’t have to. And now here she was, a shattered child, out cold and remaining so.
It seemed in rotation that people would look over Yura as she slept. Sometimes Iemori, sometimes Alphinaud, at other times Vetelle. It wasn’t easy for any of them, but they all wished their support.
It had already been hours since Vetelle had carried a sleeping Alphinaud from Yura’s recovery chamber, thinking it well past due that the boy get rest of his own, and begun watching over Yura herself. This realization never hit her, however. At least, not until the sound of a door rang through the room, shattering Vetelle’s trace. She looked up from Yura for the first time in hours to see Iemori standing at the door with a sad smile on his face.
He approached the young woman, giving a hand to pull her up from her seat. “I know you want to watch over Yura, but you’ve been through hell and back too my dear.”
Iemori was right. Vetelle herself had suffered. Her once flawless skin was marked by a roadmap of the abuses she herself had suffered. Bruises dotted her face. Even her once well kept hair was tousled about. But she still knew she didn’t have it nearly as bad as some. She was awake. Alive.
Iemori gave a firm pat to Vetelle’s shoulder smiling down at the woman sincerely, “Go home, Vetelle. You’re friend are waiting for you. And hey aren’t the only ones.” Vetelle couldn’t manage any words, only the slight gesture of a nod and a smile as Iemori stride last her to look down at his daughter.
Vetelle quickly stride from the girl’s room, but the closer she got to the door to the outside, the slower she became. It was now that she was faced with the notion hat she would have to face the reality of what happened. The reality of that which was lost. Friends. Family. She had come to realize she had little apart from the few remaining friends who dared to stand by her side. Even a part of her missed her husband, the man responsible for her imprisonment, if only for the security he had once brought her. She was scared of what the future would hold. She was terrified of what was beyond that door.
Vetelle stepped out from the house, the cold biting at her face, a favorable pain to that which she had experienced not long before. She closed her eyes as she continued out the door, still unsure of everything. But she didn’t have to be. The face before her made her sure of that. Aymeric’s familiar figure came into view as Vetelle opened her eyes. He was a welcome sight in this time of strife, despite all that he had been through as well. The relief she had felt when she had heard that he too was alright? It was a feeling that rivaled only her relief upon hearing that Yura would survive.
Despite her relief, Vetelle still elected to take on a respectful tone with her dearest friend, “Lord Commander, ‘tis a relief to see you well. What, may I inquire brings you out here so late?”
“For the same reason as you, I can imagine,” his tone was soft, as was the slightest of smiles that graced his face. It continued to remind Vetelle of just how happy she was to have him back in her life, if only for the slightest of moments. “Iemori was kind enough to inform me of your being here. I took the opportunity to seek news on the well beings of both Yura and yourself.” The faces of both became a bit more grim at the mention of Yura’s name, a serious tone overtaking them once more. “Has she...?”
“It's been weeks. The damage she sustained may have been far worse than the rest of is, but shes recovering well. Shes already been sneaking out once more, after all.” Vetelle brushed loose pieces of hair from her face, but simply allowed them to fall back into place. She was a bit embarrassed at this point. Vetelle was not usually one to worry about how others looked upon her, but feeling so disheveled in front of the man she had come to care for was a might humiliating for her.
It didn’t matter how disheveled she looked, however, and Aymeric made that clear. In a calm and gentle motion, he stepped towards her, repeating the motion Vetelle had made not moments ago. He carefully brushed the stray hairs from Vetelle’s face once again, his fingers careful on her face, minding the injuries that marked it, and carefully leaving a soft trail as he fished the hair from her eyes. The stands remained away from her this time. “And what’ve you?”
Vetelle was unsure of how exactly to answer his inquiry. She didn’t know how she felt. But she wasn’t about to say that. “I am... fine. Rest is all I need presently, still. I think it’s something we all need.” Her uncertainty existed in many forms, but the one distracting her most was the one directly before her.
Aymeric took a small step back from Vetelle, but still remained rather close to her. His smiled remained as he offered her an arm. “Then would you allow me the honor of seeing you back safely?”
A genuine look of happiness graced Vetelle’s face as she accepted the offer of Aymeric’s hand. Rarely did she have the pleasure, but it still felt more common with Aymeric than with Ben Vetelle’s late husband. He had always gone out of his way for her, even as children. Now was no different, save for the flourishing feeling between them.
The two walked in silence, allowing them opportunity to think as they did. Both their thoughts seemed to be on one another. Vetelle couldn’t help but think of the times they had shared through the years. The good, the bad, all of it. Especially the night the air between them had been made clear. The night Vetelle once thought to be her gravest error, but now came to understand that it was the night she learned what love really was. It was these memories that brought a feeling of relief and sadness to Vetelle, and before long, the look of content she had once feigned had melted into tears.
Vetelle finally stopped, succumbing to her feelings of relief, regret, confusion, all of it. Aymeric stopped along with her, and a look was all he needed. He needn’t ask why the tears had begun streaming down her face. He knew. Had had always known. But he also knew that Vetelle had to come to terms on her own.
Shaking her head rather rapidly, Vetelle threw her arms around her dear friend, soon becoming enraptured by his own embrace. They remained as such for what seemed like an eternity before Vetelle finally pulled back from the warmth between them. She placed s cold hand upon his face, tears still marking her own, but the smile showing they were not to be fretted over. “Now please tell me, what’ve your well being?” Aymeric begged, placing a hand over the one that graced his face.
Vetelle’s smile faded a it as she glanced down at the ground, but she spoke the truth, and nothing less. “I was a damaged woman seeking solace from a loveless marriage. I thought myself a fool at first after.. what happened. After that night as we laid. I thought myself a fool. Convinced myself it was a mistake.” Aymeric knew well of that which she spoke, and she could feel a look of concern through her palm. But she soon glanced up, the smile returning to her face and reassuring the man before her. “But I soon came to realize it was one of the best things that could have ever possibly happened to me. I found the love I had been holding down for so long was real. I found a real and true love that I had never known.” Vetelle shook her head once more, a look of confusion and concern hitting her face. “But after that, I had come to fear it was never meant to be. We were worlds apart. But I was wrong.”
Vetelle glanced up at Aymeric once more, himself seemingly close to tears. Slowly he brought his own hand to Vetelle’s head, pulling her closer and leaning down to place his forehead upon hers. “ That time which we spent together? The night which we laid? ‘‘Twas a time of comfort and happiness for me. But knowing the pain it had brought to you soured it for so long. But know that the love I felt never left. Not once. I only hope that no regrets remain any longer.”
Vetelle’s free hand moved to cup Aymeric’s face as she shook her head. “ My only regret was making you wait.” A sigh of relief escaped them both as they closed the gap between them. It was a moment the two had been waiting for for some time. Falling snow dusted them, but they cared not. The warmth of their lips upon one another kept them well distracted from the blistering cold that surrounded them. For what seemed like an eternity they remained, well aware of just how breathless they would be. But they didn’t care. Nothing mattered. The world was theirs in that moment, and that was all they needed.