Long Road Back

The moonlight cast strange shadows on the ground, and she felt wary around them as they danced on the earth. Their dance was flawless and strange, and for a moment her gaze would follow the shadows of the few trees that dappled the plains, before settling back on Twig. But the woman's cold voice would bring her back to reality, and she would focus her stare on her again. The young girl's gaze was not as soft as she hoped, so different from the kindness in her heart -- she often struggled to show compassion when it was necessary, instead preferring to stay guarded and serious. Things were easier that way.

"I know that kind of pain," she offered as gently as she could. Even from birth, Ara had always been different. A dreamer, a thinker, often lost in her own world, and often her words mirrored her aimless mind.

Though she was young, she truly understood that there were things in the world far more painful than physical pain. Like when her father had been taken as a prisoner; she would rather bleed than feel that kind of loss. It was for that reason that she felt so inclined to master the art of healing -- to know everything there was to know -- hoping that someday, she might find a cure for such things. For sadness, for heartache. For the empty feeling that had lingered in her heart for so many months before her father's return.

"I.. might be able to find something to relax your mind," she suggested timidly. "Or help you sleep.." It was the best she could do, and she wasn't sure if it was company that the woman wanted.