As Ophelia circled the mill she could see the Paladins begin firing flaming arrows at the mill, it was not going to last long, but the sight of the flames caused memories to flash before Ophelia's eyes, her home burning, everything filled with smoke, she could still feel the smoke in her lungs as the flames burned hotter. She had to do something, she had to!
She let out a piercing scream like the cry of a bird of prey, shrieking like a banshee trying to drive fear into the Paladins as she battled with her own fears. Ophelia saw the last few warriors filtering out of the mill, fighting with everything they had, she drew her sword as she placed her bow in her open quiver. She pulled her wings in close and dove into the fray, landing in the middle of a circle of paladins, they all turned towards her and she fought like a sword dancer, her wings pulled into her body and she slipped under their attacks with ease, her lightweight form moving faster than they could react.
She turned to block an attack she felt coming towards her back and the swords clashed with a sharp sting. Her hellfire red eyes glaring into the steel blue of the grey figure, the color faltering for a moment before she used her powerful wings to push herself forward against him. He slid his sword from hers and they dodged each other's attacks becoming locked in a dance of swords, cloak, and feathers.
"Gah! So much for protecting me..." she growled and he glared down at her as she pulled away from him.
"Who's to say I'm not still protecting you?" He asked almost mockingly.
"I can't believe I kissed you!" She charged towards him pulling her wings into herself, causing her to launch herself at him like a bullet, she knocked him down and he glared up at her as she pressed her blade to his throat.
"You did it to distract me. I won't make the same mistake again." He growled and flipped her onto her back, pressing her own blade down against her.
"Think what you like, but I didn't do it to distract you, you bastard!" She lifted her leg to knee him in the gut but he knelt on her leg forcing her to lay flat
"Don't lie to me!" He growled and she glared up at him
"Have I ever lied to you?" She asked with a tight voice before rapidly pushing herself up onto her elbows and moving to bite at his neck. He flipped her onto her stomach and pressed her head into the ground.
"There's always a first time." He growled and she turned her head to look up at him sideways before wriggling out of his grasp and crouching on the ground.
"Ask yourself who's lying to who here." She hissed and he glared at her as a thick fog came and swallowed up the field, the grey monk couldn't see her, she was gone. He looked through the mist and was met with her face at level with his. She kissed him one last time, her cheeks wet with tears, her lips trembling against his, he hesitated only a moment before he kissed her back. She pulled away from him reluctantly, she was shaking.
"Stay alive..." she breathed and shot into the air above the smoke and over the trees. Her heart was beating out of her chest as she dove into the trees to meet up with the others as they ran. She saw the boy she had entrusted Aria to and grabbed him roughly by the arm.
"You!" She hissed and he struggled against her
"Lemme go! That hurts!" He snapped his grubby face trying to look mean and tough.
"I entrusted Aria to you! Where is she?!" She growled and he rolled his eyes.
"She's still at the sanctuary, I left her with the crazy moonwing." He groaned and she became beyond furious.
"You... left her alone... with a total stranger...?!" She growled and her eyes turned black as she glared at the boy.
"You're lucky I don't kill you boy..." she snarled and he struggled against her clenched fists.
"Ophelia we don't have time for this!" Arthur urged and she glared at the boy in front of her before releasing him and running with the others back towards the sanctuary. She knew it was only a matter of time before he would find them, the Weeping one. She let out a sigh of frustration and ran ahead of the others and taking off into the air. She would scout ahead, keeping her eyes on the trees below her. Her mind was a blur of thought as she soared over the trees, replaying those kisses in a never-ending loop. She dived back down towards the sanctuary and landed in its center.
"Ophelia!" Aria shouted and hugged her around her waist.
"Whoa! Little Bird what's wrong?" Ophelia crouched down and looked at Aria with worry.
"I saw... I saw you laying on a field, you were all covered in something wet and red... you were screaming..." she whispered and Ophelia pulled Aria into a tight embrace.
"It's alright... I'm here... I'm alright..." Ophelia soothed and looked around the sanctuary, she did not feel safer here than in the Paladin camp. Everything was turning against her, she wasn't safe with these Fey. But Aria was.
"Aria..." Ophelia soothed and the little girl shook her head
"Don't leave me alone! Please!" She begged and Ophelia sighed rubbing her back and picking her up.
"No... never. Never again sweet one." She breathed and walked towards a quiet corner of the sanctuary, where she could sit with Aria and hold her. It wasn't long before it was clear that the Paladins had found them. Ophelia wasn't surprised, she knew how relentless the Weeping Monk was. She helped Aria get ready for travel, setting her up on their horse with a few other Fey children. Leading the horse through the middle of the mismatched caravan.
"Ophelia." Gawain called and she looked up at him on his horse, his eyes held concern and something deeper, she didn't want to know what that something was. He dismounted his horse and walked beside her not a single word passed between the two.
"I'm sorry about your friend... I haven't stopped thinking about it if what I did was right..." Ophelia admitted quietly.
"He would have wanted you to. It was a small mercy." He replied and her frown deepened.
"You seem familiar with the monk." He said and she looked up at him
"He was my guard and my warden for five years, it was his job to make sure I didn't escape with Aria. I fled when it was clear that Father Carden had every intention of killing me as soon as Aria could fly. I couldn't let Aria go through the hell I was trying to protect her from." The Green Knight listened carefully, this girl was quite different from other Fey, she didn't crave the death of Paladins despite the years she had spent among them.
"I just want peace Gawain. I've had my fill of blood and battle."
« ~ • ~ »
As Ophelia lay down to rest that night, she thought she could feel something just at the edge of her vision, something dark dancing along the edge of shadows. Her mind fell into a fitful sleep, images of the battle flashing through her dreams, the Weeping Monk making sleep impossible. His face was etched into her mind and she couldn't rid herself of it. She finally gave up on sleep and stood from her bed of leaves where Aria slept, she paced through the silent, secluded camp and leaned against the wall, losing herself in her thoughts.
"Can't sleep?" Came a voice and Ophelia looked up at who was speaking to her. A girl, not much older than her, Ophelia recognized her as Nimue, the Wolf Blood Witch.
"No... sleep is not easy for me. Living in a paladin camp teaches you that restful sleep is something you'll never have. Especially around human men." She said sorrowfully
"I'm sorry. You came here with a young girl. Is she...?" Ophelia looked up at the question
"What? Oh no! I found her in a river when I was captured. I practically begged the Weeping Monk to help me save her, he doesn't harm children..." Ophelia said this almost fondly but corrected herself as she caught Nimue staring at her.
"How did you survive five years in a paladin camp, with him?" She asked and Ophelia looked up at the stars
"My wings, for one thing, Father Carden wanted to mold Aria into a weapon, I was the only one left. The monk protected me, changed Carden's mind... not once did he raise a hand against me. Until today..." she looked down at her hands and Nimue reached out to her placing her hand on Ophelia's shoulder.
"You protected the girl in the only way you knew how. That's all that matters." Nimue said and Ophelia looked up at the sky.
"I'll keep watch, if I can't sleep I might as well be useful." Nimue nodded once and Ophelia let her wings extend silently, carefully taking off to sit in the high treetops.
"If only it were as simple as protection..." Ophelia muttered and looked down at the forest floor below, her mind was filled with images of the monk, both memories, and fantasies. The more she thought, the more real those fantasies seemed, her heart ached as she thought of him.
"Why did it have to be him...?" She whispered and a few stray tears fell down her cheeks. As she sat in the moonlight she almost felt as if he could see her, as if he knew every secret she held in her heart.
"The grey bastard..." she muttered and sat up a little in the branches staring up at the stars in the dark indigo sky.
Not far away, a group of Paladins bed down for the night, among them was the grey cloaked figure of The Weeping Monk, keeping his eyes on the night sky.
"I'll keep watch." He said quietly to one of the paladins who was guarding, he nodded and went to find his own place to sleep. As the monk stared up at the glittering stars he almost wished he could see Ophelia soaring above him, there was a kind of weightless joy in her eyes when he saw her in the air. Though battles are ugly affairs, she made it look like art, the way she carved through the air made him wonder if he had let her go on purpose. She had never clouded his judgment before, not until she had kissed him.
He licked his lips as he remembered the feeling of her against him, her small frame held close to his chest, her heart fluttering like a caged bird.
"I'll find you... you won't get away from me again." He whispered into the night and kept watching the sky, perhaps he was looking at the same patch of starlight that Ophelia was watching.