Prologue: The Mother
Sweat soaks her features as another wave of pain flashes through her. There are people around her but she has forgotten why. She tries to listen through the pain but it's extremely difficult to do so. Only one woman manages to make herself heard and even then she only yells one word.
"Push!"
She responds instinctively and with everything she has. A scream rips out of her throat as the pain becomes unbearable. She tries hard to remember why she is here, why she is in so much pain. It's for something important, she knows it is. But what is so important?
Another cry is heard and it takes the woman a second to process that it isn't her crying. She looks for the source knowing on some level that it is extremely important. Infront of her the woman rises with a squirming bundle in her arms. A tiny wail escapes from what she realizes is an infant.
Her infant.
"It's a girl," the woman breathes.
Her daughter.
The new mother reaches for her baby and the midwife hands her over. The baby is red faces and clearly upset over the whole ordeal. She squirms smearing after birth on the blanket she is loosely wrapped in. The mother lets and exhausted laugh escape and smiles, "You're perfect."
She names her baby Robin for the birds that flutter around their home. Their vibrant blue color setting them apart from the typically dull colored birds of Plegia. She loves their color so much she decorates her infant's nursery with it when ever she can. She hums softly and rocks the baby with these thoughts.
"Nayeli."
Her husband voice draws her from her happy world. She swallows hard, all semblance of happiness has been quickly eradicated.
The birth of her daughter and the way Validar looked at the infant that made Nayeli realize a lot of things. Realizations like the fact that she no longer loved her husband and worst of all was that she didn't trust him near their daughter. It was his fault after all. His fault that her innocent little Robin had Grima's mark on her hand.
"You shouldn't spoil her so. It will only become difficult to teach her later."
It isn't a suggestion. It is a command. She doesn't feel terrible for no longer loving him because now she realizes he never loved her. She was simply a means to achieve his goal. It only makes her decision set more firmly in her mind.
"I suppose you're right," she says softly and lays the infant in her crib. She wraps her arm around his out of habit and leaves the nursery with him, a sour taste in her mouth.
The spring night descends on them at the same time the blue robins stop singing. Everything is deathly quiet and the air takes on a chill. Nayeli wraps her daughter securely in her blankets to protect her from the cold. With her daughter in her arms she slips into the shadows of the large mansion. She knows the guard's shifts and when they change. She has memorized them just as she has memorized every nook and cranny of this place she once called home.
Outside she slips away into the newly blooming forest. She keeps a tome within her reach at all times. Nayeli is infinitely aware of the dangers that the beautiful forest hides. Any number of predators or hunters traps could spell an end for herself and her daughter. Getting caught by Validar though is a far worse thought. Getting caught by the man means death no matter which way she looks at it.
The only place she can be safe is Ylisse. No member of the Cult of Grimleal would risk stepping anywhere near that border. If she can get across she knows they will be safe. She will have to craft new identities for them and more importantly hide the mark upon her daughter's hand.
"I can do it," she whispers to herself firmly and keeps trudging through the forest. She stops momentarily to listen. A soft crack behind her captures her attention and she quickly hides behind a tree. Robin is cradled tightly to her chest and blessedly remains quiet and asleep.
Nothing stirs. No noise is heard. Slow and cautiously she moves forward again and begins to continue on. Robin stirs slightly after what feels like hours of walking. The forest brush tries to trip Nayeli's tired legs which only jostles the infant more. Robin is quickly becoming irritated. She stops to sit on a log and rock her daughter.
"Just a little while longer. I promise. Just a little while longer," She says softly. It will not do to let someone hear her if Validar has realized what she has done. If he has sent his followers to track her through the woods.
She settles Robin down and feeds her. She keeps moving all night, only stopping to settle an increasingly fussy Robin. As light begins to appear and warm the air she steps out of the forest. A small village sits not too far off with smoke lazily rising upwards from the homes and business. She sets off for it.
She doesn't even have to enter the town to find what she needs. A caravan is steady getting ready to set out. Refuges hoping to escape Plegia before the exalted King of Ylisse declares war on the nation and it's chosen religion. She weaves through the people softly asking for leader of the caravan.
She finds him loading heavy bags of provisions into a wagon with another man. He is tall with a mess of dark moss green hair. A long scar adorns the left side of his face barely skimming past his eye. He spots her as she makes her way to him and quickly dismisses himself.
"You try to escape this death trap too?"
She is briefly taken aback by his bluntness but recovers enough to nod and affirmative. He circles her like a wolf then, examining every inch of her. He stops infront of her then smiles a large boyish smile that hardly fits his features.
"Boy or girl?"
She doesn't understand what he is asking for, "Beg your pardon sir?"
The boyish smiles doesn't falter, "Your baby miss. That is what the bundle in you arms is, right?"
"Oh, of course," she stammers, "She's a girl. Her name is Robin."
She allows him to look at the baby then hand her over to him. She smiles softly at the irony of trusting a stranger with her baby more than the infant's own father. He smiles softly and asks no more questions, only hands her daughter back to her and directs her to a group of other mothers.
That same day they are on the move. Quickly and quietly the band of refuges make their way through the nothern Plegian wastelands. Nayeli and Robin ride with caravan leader in the front wagon. She learns that his name is Merrick. She also learns they will travel in an arc through Regna Ferox and and enter northern Ylisse under the guise of a merchant caravan at Longfort.
As they draw close to the northern border Nayeli feels something in her chest contract tightly. Worry gnaws at her heart. What if they aren't allowed through? What if the Grimleal are waiting for them?
What if they are waiting for her?
Merrick casts her a sidelong look then wraps an arm around her shoulders. Something about the gesture feels so natural that it soothes her. Then something occurs to her. She is still technically a married woman and in that regard this is highly inappropriate, besides the fact she barely knows the man.
Still the moment pass quietly and naturally. They cross the border with ease and enter into Regna Ferox. It takes a smile from the man she rides with to tell her this though. The land, the plants, the animals are all the same. There is no sudden shift in nature that tells her she is in a different nation. The knowledge though brings a sense of relief and a lighter atmosphere.
She has escaped Plegia at least. Perhaps that will be enough.
Author's Note: I kind of feel like this should be longer? Also don't be fooled. This story is going to have some nasty surprises, I hope (is that weird?). Until then enjoy the beginning of my fanon back story for the Avatar. This is separate from 'Around the Fire' hence the change in names for the Avatar. I went with the default Robin because this is actually going to be a story and not a handful of drabbles. Also the birds Nayeli is talking about are/based on Siberian Blue Robins.
I feel reviews are going to be really important to me for this story and with help me decide where to guide it. So please review. Tell me what you like about the plot, my writing, and even try to guess where I'm going with it. Feel free to criticize my work also. Point out the flaws in my writing, spelling, grammar ect. Give me suggestions on how to improve or point me in the direction of resources that could help. Thank you.