Post by journeycat on Mar 30, 2010 20:55:20 GMT 10
Title: The Broken Soul
Rating: PG
Length: 368 words
Competitor: Owen
Round/Fight: Final
Summary: She wants to heal him.
-----
Baird met her at the door, his expression grim. With a sinking heart, Keladry knew then that his verdict was grim.
“I’ll allow a visit,” he said gravely. “But I warn you, Sir Owen is not himself. He doesn’t recognize anyone, my dear. I just wanted to make sure you’re forewarned.”
“Neal told me as much,” Kel said, sickened. “I just—I was hoping he was exaggerating.”
The duke sighed, his eyes sad as he cast a glance over his shoulder. “I wish he was, but it was just too much for the poor lad—returning to Jesslaw to find his sisters, his gentle wife and their young son slaughtered by bandits broke his spirit.”
“Margarry was pregnant, too,” she whispered. “Lord Wyldon was with Owen when they arrived—he told me that her stomach was split open so that—so that—you could see the unborn baby.”
The monstrosity of it was painful, even for a knight who had seen it all; it was different when it affected a longtime friend. She took a deep breath.
“I want to see him,” she said. “I know he’s catatonic, but—I’m hoping he can hear me, somehow. I want him to know he still has something left.”
Baird regarded her with something akin to fondness. “That’s a lovely thing,” he told her, “and I am willing to try anything to save him. Go on in. He has the room to himself.”
Kel slipped past him, and he gently shut the door behind her.
She spotted Owen immediately. He was sitting in a chair conveniently placed by the window, his hands limp in his lap and staring outside, or at least in that direction. It was clear his attending healers had done much to keep him comfortable: he was surrounded by cushions and a light blanket was draped over his shoulders.
“Owen,” she ventured tentatively.
Not a twitch, not a sound. He was deaf to her. She thought her heart would break as she slowly knelt in front of him. His blank eyes gazed above her head. All she could do was take his rough hands in hers and bring them to her wet face, and she prayed for him.
Rating: PG
Length: 368 words
Competitor: Owen
Round/Fight: Final
Summary: She wants to heal him.
-----
Baird met her at the door, his expression grim. With a sinking heart, Keladry knew then that his verdict was grim.
“I’ll allow a visit,” he said gravely. “But I warn you, Sir Owen is not himself. He doesn’t recognize anyone, my dear. I just wanted to make sure you’re forewarned.”
“Neal told me as much,” Kel said, sickened. “I just—I was hoping he was exaggerating.”
The duke sighed, his eyes sad as he cast a glance over his shoulder. “I wish he was, but it was just too much for the poor lad—returning to Jesslaw to find his sisters, his gentle wife and their young son slaughtered by bandits broke his spirit.”
“Margarry was pregnant, too,” she whispered. “Lord Wyldon was with Owen when they arrived—he told me that her stomach was split open so that—so that—you could see the unborn baby.”
The monstrosity of it was painful, even for a knight who had seen it all; it was different when it affected a longtime friend. She took a deep breath.
“I want to see him,” she said. “I know he’s catatonic, but—I’m hoping he can hear me, somehow. I want him to know he still has something left.”
Baird regarded her with something akin to fondness. “That’s a lovely thing,” he told her, “and I am willing to try anything to save him. Go on in. He has the room to himself.”
Kel slipped past him, and he gently shut the door behind her.
She spotted Owen immediately. He was sitting in a chair conveniently placed by the window, his hands limp in his lap and staring outside, or at least in that direction. It was clear his attending healers had done much to keep him comfortable: he was surrounded by cushions and a light blanket was draped over his shoulders.
“Owen,” she ventured tentatively.
Not a twitch, not a sound. He was deaf to her. She thought her heart would break as she slowly knelt in front of him. His blank eyes gazed above her head. All she could do was take his rough hands in hers and bring them to her wet face, and she prayed for him.