Terror had engulfed the hearts of most of the citizens of Tellius for the last years. Families had been shattered by the axes and spears of beorc as well as the claws and talons of the laguz. Fields had been burned and turned into enormous wastelands. Cities had been reduced to empty ruins, haunted by the memories of neighbors and of friends whose lives were forfeited in battle.
Despite this, the people should be grateful, for they did not know the full extent of desolation that the war could have brought. They did not know that they had been turned to stone and that, during that time, their very existence had been threatened. Only a few knew this and they had come to the agreement that they would guard that secret till the end of their days.
But the war was over now, and with it, the life of Naesala.
Oh, how Leanne had worried. She had been refused entrance to the Tower of Guidance and thus she had spent countless of hours walking up and down the streets, twisting her hands in agony and whispering prayers to a goddess that she was not sure existed. Her thoughts had been with her brother Reyson, and the hawk king Tibarn, but above all others they had concerned her long since friend and secret guardian Naesala. For she knew now, in spite of what Reyson and Tibarn believed, that Naesala had always been her friend.
During the four years that had passed since she had been found in Serenes Forest, whenever she had come across him, Naesala might have postured nonchalantly but he had kept a reserved place in his heart hidden away from her and the rest of the world. Unlike Reyson, however, Leanne had uncovered the contents of that hideout and upon doing so she had come to realize how much Naesala in fact cared for her and her brother.
Over the years their somewhat shy conversations had turned into joyful conversations and ethical discussions and as understanding was awakened, so was romance. The latter had taken shape during their last journey to Sienne and it had grown more and more intense with each passing day. Eventually they had reached the tower that they sought out and in the tumult that ruled before the chosen ones were to enter, Naesala and Leanne had secretly sealed their parting with a kiss.
Imagine Leanne's joy when the great stone doors of the tower had opened, when General Ike had led his troops down the steps and when the man that she loved had taken a pause in the opening, searched her out in the crowd and with a smile of relief made his way to her. Leanne had looked at him with proud and glassy eyes, seen him approach, waited for him to take her in his arms and perhaps fly away with her; away from the crowd, away from the beorc city, to a place where they could finally be together.
Suddenly, out of nowhere, a muscular arm had grabbed Naesala's neck and snapped it with one swift motion. Naesala had hardly had time to react. His smile had turned into a grin of pain to which his eyes contributed. Leanne had speechlessly reached out a hand for him as he fell to the ground, without so much as a chance to say farewell. In that moment Leanne's heart broke and she too sank down on her knees and cried incessantly in her hands. Despite her desperation she could still make out Tibarn's boisterous voice in the crowd, addressing the corpse of the raven king.
- There, it is better than you deserve, but at least it is over now. Your debt is settled.
Whatever discussions arose between Tibarn and Reyson that evening, Leanne was ignorant of them, for in her distress she left. For good, she thought.