[Chriseva] Cindereva

2. The Cottage in the Woods

Eva doesn't know how long she stands there motionless, staring dumbfounded at the unconscious figure at her feet and the dark pool slowly growing larger around his unmoving body. Faen has ceased his barking and has retreated to cower behind Eva, peeking out at what was happening through the gap between her legs. So much for being her protector, Eva shakes her head while glancing back to look at the cowering hound behind her.

In the sky up above, she can see the dark clouds start gathering in the distance and the telltale rumble of the thunder slowly making its way towards her.

She doesn't know what to do. Should she run? To where? To the Count's house and tell them about the enemy that's breached their borders and made his way into their quaint little village? Should she just run back to her house and pretend none of this was really happening? It would have been the most logical choice, after all who would know? No one, not even the unconscious enemy before her.

But when Eva glances over at him again, seeing his bloodied face turned to the side, facing his arm splayed out in front of him. She sees the pool of blood spreading around him like a sinister halo and the way his breathing was coming out as uneven, pained gasps.

Eva finds herself on her knees beside him before she can really think of what she's going to do. Her hands hover uncertainly over him, daring to reach over to touch him, but being terrified to do so.

He stirs all of a sudden, sending Eva tumbling back to land unceremoniously on her behind though her eyes stay glued fearfully on his otherwise motionless body, but he doesn't wake up. Eva sees his mouth moving, but his words are too soft for her to hear, but she finds herself leaning down to listen; her ear close to his mouth and she hears his voice coming out more like a whisper but it causes her to immediately still in her place.

He says, "Mama," and Eva feels her own heart lurching in sympathy and understanding.

All of a sudden, she isn't looking into the face of an enemy. She isn't hearing the stories about the atrocities of the Southern soldiers playing on a loop inside her head. She isn't looking at a vicious, blood-thirsty killer whose sole purpose in life was to maim and kill.

She's just looking at a boy. A boy who's been hurt and a boy who needs help, and the only one who is able and who is willing to offer this boy help is her. Her mind is immediately made up in that instance.

Faen has moved on closer to them at this point, though he remains wary, sniffing the body suspiciously, his tail tucked firmly between his legs and his entire body language shows that he is immediately ready to leap back if something is to suddenly pop up.

Eva's mind immediately runs through everything she knew about the human anatomy from reading the science text books she'd borrowed from Noora. She reaches over and hesitantly, though firmly, grabs the soldier by his arm, her other hand grasping the material around his waist before she heaves with her whole body, pulling him onto his back so that she could better examine his wounds. Her fingers fiddle awkwardly with the latches of his armour, praying that he wouldn't suddenly wake up and...and...what? Hurt her? Kill her?

Eva shakes the thought from her mind just as her fingers find the right way to unlock the metal latches down his side, freeing his torso from the constricting protective breastplate. Eva's stomach churns when she hears the squelching sound of the drying blood soaking his entire chest and sticking to the inside of the armour coming free. There's a deep stab wound almost right in the middle of his side where the seams of the front and back plate of the armour doesn't meet fully, still leaking blood. Eva doesn't think before reaching into her basket and pulling out one of her dresses, tearing a section out of the hem of the skirt with her teeth and using it to try and staunch the blood flow.