Imperial Audience.
Once again, Brittany found herself neck deep on warm water. The only difference was that this time she was sure that it wasn't a dream, because she hadn't slept since the previous night.
Fifteen hours had passed since the Chamberlain gave her a temporary room in a new wing of Vizima's Palace, formerly known as Temeria's capital distinctive building, built specially for Nilfgaard's diplomatists. Fifteen hours of being just a few meters away from Santana, and compared to how far away they were to find each other the day before, that distance was nothing. Santana had her own room at the palace, which meant she had a long time serving at Emhyr's court.
Brittany was more anxious than ever.
What had caused the Wild Hunt to chase them besides the obvious reasons? What did the Emperor want? What was Santana doing in the middle of everything? She had so many questions and she still had a couple of hours to get her answers.
"Lady Brittany, I'm sorry for interrupting but we have to hurry if you want to be presentable for the Emperor," the Chamberlain who had assigned her the room was also the one in charge of making her presentable, he kept calling her Lady, when she obviously wasn't worth of the title,and he was obviously not sorry about interrupting her.
With a grunt, Brittany got up and grabbed the towel and the robe that another servant was giving her. She tied her hair in the towel after getting rid of the excess of water on her body and put the robe on, thankful for not having to give the Chamberlain and the other servants a free show. Though everyone seemed strangely disinterested in anything that had to do with her.
"If you'd be so kind to follow me, we shall cut your hair and find you a suitable dress for your audience with the Emperor," he put a finger on his chin, and after giving her a look from head to toe, he continued before Brittany was able to interrupt him. "I know that asking for your permission to put some make up on you is pointless, so please accept the trim and the hairdo, I beg you."
This is fun.
"Santana doesn't seem to be fond of hairdos either."
"Lady Santana won't be reuniting with The White Flame Dancing on The Grave of His Foes, and I should remind you that her attire always goes in accordance with her position at court and the situation that she finds herself in."
"About that… what's exactly her position at Emperor Emhyr's court?"
The Chamberlain seemed to think his answer for a couple of seconds, considering if that information was, perhaps, out of limits. At the end, he answered. "Lady Santana possess a privileged position at court, she funges as counselor and the official sorceress of Emperor Emhyr."
"I didn't know there was a title such as oficial sorceress" Brittany wasn't able to hide her amusement, and the Chamberlain, it seemed, wasn't very convinced of the utility or veracity of that position either.
"That would make two of us, Lady Brittany. I'm afraid we must hurry, I'm sure you can ask Lady Santana everything you want."
The next hour was torture. Between revising her lections in manners, her curtsies, the dress fittings and alterations, and the endless discussions about what style would make her hair look better, Brittany wanted to explode and throw them a Signal ― Axii was her first choice, so she could make them shut up and do what she pleased― but she knew that she would make Emhyr and Santana mad, and, in all honesty, Santana could make her feel more fear than Emhyr.
Her dress was quite simple, with long sleeves, a conservative corset and a plain skirt. Her shoes had the smallest heel they could find, almost as small as the ones on her training boots, forgotten in her room at Kaer Morhen. It was decided that she should wear Nilfgaard's representative colors: black and white with a sparkle of yellow here and there, representing the Great Sun, ever present in the banners.
Santana's favorite colors if we replace yellow with red.
Her hair was a completely different adventure.
She had been so long on the Path that her hair was practically destroyed, and yet, the barber did an excellent job, since he managed to rescue almost all of it and leave it to the middle of her back, enough to put it on a pony tail if needed. But for that occasion, they let it fall free around her shoulders, only giving it a little curl at the end.
Brittany felt ridiculous, they didn't even let her keep her Wolf medallion. But she knew it was necessary, her meeting wouldn't even last five minutes, for Emhyr always liked to go straight to the point, and when she was finished with that, she would be free to do whatever the hell she wanted with her clothes and her hair.
"Well, If you allow me to say it, this is much better than we expected, Lady Brittany", the Chamberlain seemed genuinely surprised, and for the first time since she arrived at the castle, his voice didn't sound condescending. "Now, if you'll be so kind as to follow me, your meeting with the Emperor shall start soon, we must hurry"
The first thing that caught her attention when she was outside the guest room, was the large hallway in front of her, with six doors on each side. She never doubted the power that the Nilfgaardian Empire possessed, not for one second, after all they were on their third great war against the North, searching for expansion, and yet, to witness something as unimportant as the number of rooms in that hallway, made her remember who she was dealing with.
They made their way to the Throne Room. It seemed that it was under maintenance and having a remodeling. Servants of the castle were trying to destroy the coat of arms of the conquered Temeria, found in the center of the room, but the Temerian Lilies were not ready to give up.
In that way, the former inhabitants of the free Temeria were very much alike that coat of arms adorning the palace. The guerrillas were gaining strength although the number of rebels was decreasing thanks to the Imperial Army.
Brittany had a feeling that one of the generals responsible of the resistance was one of her old acquaintances, Noah Puckerman. Puck had always had an unbreakable loyalty towards his country, and even after being on the verge of death in various occasions, he never thought of retiring. Brittany admired that determination. Unfortunately, they hadn't spoken since she started her quest of finding Santana. She hoped to know of him soon.
But that was not the time to think about anything else except the situation at hand. She needed to focus and be as calm as possible. Emhyr knew that she hated conflict, so she would had to hide her true feelings while being in his presence. If he started to bother her, he would win whatever negotiation he had in mind.
She was so immersed in her thoughts that she didn't realize the moment they got through the Throne Room, and soon enough, she was standing in front of the huge door of what she believed was the Emperor's temporary studio.
"Remember the curtsy we practiced, Lady Brittany", the Chamberlain muttered between his teeth. Go figure, Nilfgaard had a different curtsy. She didn't expect less of someone as conceited as The Invader from the South, Emhyr Var Emreis.
Before she could answer him, the door opened.
"Brittany Pierce, witcher of Kaer Morhen", a herald announced her arrival, and Brittany was taken back in time, when she was just a girl and her parents used to organize all kinds of social events, dances most of all. When she was presented differently; when she was part of the nobility, a long time ago.
An elbow landed on her ribs. The Chamberlain was looking her with big open eyes, waiting for something that Brittany wasn't sure what it was, until she realized that she was face to face with Nilfgaard's Emperor, whom, sitting behind his big desk, watched her expectantly.
Reacting as fast as possible, Brittany did the curtsy like she had practiced: left leg slightly extended, right hand to her chest, head bowed and chin to her chest. When she took a glance at the Chamberlain, he nodded imperceptibly to let her know that she had done it well.
"Everyone, out. Leave me alone with her", Emhyr's voice was low and authoritarian, it fitted his powerful persona. His presence demanded attention and respect. And Brittany thought that someone had to be crazy to disobey this man, even more so, to betray him. But stranger things had happened.
When the room was cleared out, Emhyr got up of the chair and walked towards her, his black tunic with yellow rivets and the rings around his fingers shining with the light projected by all the candles. He had his brow furrowed, like most of the times that Brittany had seen him; his aquiline nose and his unexpressive eyes made him look even more intimidating.
"I thought dresses weren't your thing."
"They were, once upon a time, and I didn't want to disappoint the Chamberlain, we're friends."
Emhyr just pursed his lips. "I expect that Santana hadn't told you why you're here, I know she'd always had a weak spot for you."
"No, my Lord, I don't know anything yet."
"Good."
The Emperor decided to walk around his studio for what felt like hours, perhaps thinking of what was the best way of telling her what he had to tell her, and Brittany had the chance to look at her surroundings. What she saw was not that much surprising, only three walls with lots of books shelves, important looking papers and a large map on the desk, but what really caught her attention was the portrait of a little girl with the most hideous pink dress that she had ever seen and the angriest face that someone her age could show, between two bookcases.
Cirilla Fiona Elen Riannon, heir to the Nilfgaardian Empire.
She couldn't have been more than six years old, if her chubby cheeks and the little hands were any indicator. Her ashen hair and her emerald green eyes had stayed the same throughout her life; last time Brittany saw her, she was starting to become a woman, leaving behind that baby fat. She was almost as tall as Santana, and strangely, she was starting to grow an unexplainable love for magic and the monsters that she hated so much when she was younger. It's a shame that we didn't have more time together… but this isn't the right time to think about Ciri.
"My daughter's back."
Or maybe it is the time to think about Ciri.
"Are ― are you sure?"
"I wouldn't have called you if I weren't, I've been through a lot of trouble to bring you here, I wouldn't have done it if I weren't sure", his tone was condescending, and because his tone was the only way of figuring out how was he feeling, Brittany had to leave her emotions aside, after all, wasn't that the point of the mutations?
"And what do you want me to do about it, Your Imperial Highness?"
"I want you to bring her to me. State reasons. She trusts you."
Of course, you were never a father figure for her, you won't start now, after all these years.
"I think Ciri does a lot more than just trust me, but I'll do it. I'll find her, and if she decides to come here, I'll bring her."
"I'm sure you'll do de right thing, for her. Now get out, I don't want to keep wasting my time with you. Santana should tell you everything you need to know", he bid her farewell with a gesture of his hand, indicating the door.
The Chamberlain was waiting for her to escort her to Santana's room when she got out of the studio, and Brittany wondered what kind of expression she had on her face, because her companion kept looking at her with worry and fear, as if he was waiting for Brittany to collapse and start to burn things at any time.
There wasn't anything in the world that she wanted more.
But just like Santana, Brittany had a role to play, and in that moment, she had to maintain her stoic façade. Even if she wanted to cry more than anything, she would have to wait until she was alone, preferably in a room with thick walls.
Upon arriving at their destination, the Chamberlain gave Brittany a look that almost seemed pitiful, and with a firm voice, he said, "I hope that everything goes well for you, Lady Brittany", and with that he left, not waiting for an answer.
Brittany didn't think that she would've been able to give him one.
She took a deep breath and tried to slow the beating of her heart. When she managed to do so, she opened the double door of Santana's room.
The first thing that got her attention was how big the room was. It seemed like two guest rooms molded into one, and Brittany supposed that it was just enough so Santana could put all her things in just one room. And not just some stuff like clothes, perfumes and books. In the right corner of the room, Brittany saw, of course, that blasted stuffed unicorn.
Unfortunately, the trip down memory lane was cut short when she heard footsteps coming from her left, where she guessed was the dresser.
Soon enough, that perfume so inherently Santana invaded the room.
Brittany didn't have to wait but just a few seconds for Santana to be in front of her, with her hair loose and falling upon her shoulders, black as the nights in which Brittany thought that she would never see her again; her eyes glistening with anticipation, without those useless walls that she always had to carry in front of other people.
When she laid eyes on her, Santana immediately knew that Ciri's return had affected her more than the two of them hoped, so she decided to say nothing and just embrace her.
That was all she needed in that moment: Santana's arms around her waist and her face hidden in Santana's neck. Just like that, she finally could cry without another care in the world.
She couldn't avoid thinking that Ciri disappeared in the first place because of her.
Ciri possessed incredible magic abilities: she could move between space and time. Thanks to that, Ciri had saved them of a sure death in the hands of angry and scared humans at Rivia, all because Brittany couldn't defend herself of a simple peasant, who took the chance and stabbed her in the stomach with a pitchfork.
Santana had put her own life at risk trying to save her, but there were so much people and so much blood that it would have been practically impossible to achieve her goal without Ciri's help.
So, she took them to a faraway place, the Isle of Avalon. After making sure that Brittany would be fine, she left, leaving them in what seemed to be a limbo, without worries, without anyone but them.
But they didn't count on the Wild Hunt to take an interest on Ciri, and they surely didn't think that that was the reason for her to be running around between worlds.
No one was able to find her, until the one and only Eredin Bréacc Glas, King of the Wild Hunt and the Aen Elle (ancient elves, different from the Aen Seidhe that had arrived to the human world after the Conjunction of the Spheres) decided to get out of Tir ná Lia and take matters in his hands, kidnaping Santana to gain Ciri's attention and make her return to their world.
But Brittany would not wait for a miracle.
She had to do something to assure Santana's wellbeing, so she did the only thing that she could do: trade places with Santana, knowing damn well that Eredin was aware of the close relationship that they shared with Ciri.
It wasn't easy, but after a long negotiation, Brittany was able to convince him, and at the end of the day, Santana was free and she was riding with the Hunt.
After almost a year of being their prisoner, Brittany was finally able to escape. Not without a little bit of help, of course. Even if she didn't remember her time with those monsters, she did remember a hooded figure with ashen hair teleporting her near Kaer Morhen, where Mercedes and Sugar found her, hurt and without memory.
Upon gaining conscience after a week of her appearance at Kaer Morhen's woods, Brittany was left with nothing to remember about her life. Mercedes and Sugar tried to tell her about important moments of her life ― like her witcher training, thankfully intact ―, and people who had played important parts in it, but all was in vain.
A few months later, she went back to the Path, and as fate would have it, she ran into an old friend: Mike Chang, the "most famous bard in the world", according to him.
Mike was a storyteller turned into a bard. Brittany met him when she first started her alone travels as a witcher, and he had become her closest friend. Their different responsibilities made them go months without seeing each other, but they always made the effort of meeting once a year; that way Mike would have new ideas for his stories and songs, Brittany was an endless source of inspiration for him because of all the adventures and misfortunes that Brittany found herself into and Brittany would have the chance to bluff about her adventures and the honor of being in the presence of the great master Chang.
When Mike found out about Brittany's memory loss, he suggested to pass the next few months ― that became almost a year ― together, that way, he could tell her with detail her stories and be at the front row when she was killing monsters.
Brittany regained, somehow, her memory. She remembered almost nothing of her time with the Hunt; she believed it was better that way.
Mike insisted that it was thanks to his tales and songs that she regained her memories. Brittany swore that it was just a matter of time.
Brittany would later find out that Santana had suffered from amnesia after being with the Hunt, too. Fortunately, those who had found her were people loyal to the Nilfgaardian Empire and took her before Emhyr, whom made the best sorceress tend to her and brought her memories back. After that, he gave her a place at his court, and when the first sightings of Ciri happened, he told her about his intentions of finding her. That had everything to do with changing the course of war and nothing to do with his paternal instincts.
Santana doubted herself so much that she preferred to not bother her anymore, thinking that Brittany would be so much better without remembering her; until her search for Ciri came upon a sudden stop and contacting Brittany was the only way for her to solve that problem.
But now they were there, with Brittany clinging to Santana as if her life depended on it.
"I'm sorry that Emhyr was the one who told you about Ciri." Santana said after Brittany started to calm down. Their position was the same, and Santana had started to comb her fingers through Brittany's lose hair; she didn't have that chance often.
"Don't apologize, I know that otherwise he would've punished you in some way."
Santana nodded, and after drying Brittany's wet cheeks with her thumbs, she took her hand and led her to the huge bed. Brittany supposed that it was better to be comfortable for the approaching conversation.
"I've been trying to find Ciri for almost a year now. That the Empire gained so much power over these months helps, but even all the spies in the world haven't been able to give us her location."
"Why didn't you find me earlier?"
"I―uh, there were rumors," Santana let go of Brittany's hands for a moment, but Brittany didn't let her pull away, grabbing them again, letting her know that whatever thing she was going to say wouldn't have repercussions. "Rumors that said that you and Mike had a romantic relationship."
The most ridiculous rumors, Brittany thought, but that somehow made sense: if Brittany didn't remember her and someone was with her day and night for months, certain feelings might've appeared.
"Oh, San," now Brittany was the one hugging Santana, and even though she would never hold something against her, she couldn't not think about how different her recovery would've been with Santana by her side, helping her to remember and to forget.
"I know it doesn't matter anymore, we have all the time in the world to recover everything that we lost, but I'm sorry for not being there for you, and I'm sorry that our reunion was so hasty, I never wanted that, but at least now we have a chance to rebuild what we had," Santana broke the hug and with one hand, without daring to let go of Brittany's hands completely, she took an old paper from underneath her pillow. It was a portrait of Ciri, sharp factions and a scar that covered her left cheek. "Our little witcher is all grown up."
"Look at that," to say that Brittany was speechless was an understatement.
"We have to find her, Britt, before the Wild Hunt does."
"What was the last thing you knew about her?"
"We have three trails," Santana began to speak to her as if she was a stranger, but after remembering who she was talking to, her tone became calm. "She was in Velen, Novigrad and Skellige, where I suppose was her first appearance because there are reports of a magical explosion near the Ard Skellig woods that happened two months before our search began."
"That's why the Hunt was so close?"
"No, it was a coincidence that we're close to Velen, I think it was because they felt my magic, just as they can feel Ciri's," she got closer to Brittany as she spoke. "I've tried everything to find her, every spell that I could think of, I searched in every book that I have, but it's been impossible. The only good think that came out of not accomplish anything was that I was able to convince Emhyr to bring you here."
Brittany smiled, a light blush tainting her cheeks, and said, "I missed you."
Santana's smile could have lightened up the entire castle, Brittany was sure.
That was her favorite smile. All teeth and the most perfect dimples Brittany had ever seen. She remembered thinking that even when they first met, when they were just children worrying about not messing up the carpet on Brittany's room, or not waking Hayley (Brittany's little sister) or her parents up when her and Santana sneaked away to watch the stars in the highest balcony of the castle.
Brittany laid her hand on Santana's right cheek, the other one not leaving for a second its place between Santana's hands. She started to close the distance separating them until she could feel on her lips Santana's breath, whom closed the remaining gap, resulting in a kiss that both had been waiting since the last one they shared.
That kiss seemed to be the lost piece of a puzzle, the only thing that was missing for them to feel at home again. It was what they were looking for those past years, something to hold on to, a guide and hope for their happy ending, that happy ending they used to dream of. Their hearts beat to a rhythm they both knew like the palm of their hands, calm and constant, taking that warm feeling to each one of their nerve endings. It was overwhelming, so much that Brittany felt her cheek damp, and when the air in her lungs was starting to disappear and she opened her eyes, she saw that Santana hadn't been able to keep her tears at bay. Their foreheads were still together a few seconds later, giving them the perfect excuse to sneak another kiss followed by that smile that was exclusive for each other. Santana then laid her head in Brittany's shoulder, giving Brittany the opportunity to engulf her in a hug, enjoying the perfect atmosphere they had created.
They spend some time that way, until Brittany spoke, much to her dismay. "So."
Santana sighed, knowing that time was an important matter and even if she wanted to stay there, in Brittany's arms, she couldn't. She would have to say goodbye to that warmth for the third time in her life.
"I'd suggest starting with Velen, the last report from our contact, Hendrik, said that Ciri was seen near a swamp, a fight with a witch of some sort was reported, too. He also said that she was with Phillip Stranger, Crow's Perch baron, but the only thing that we found out about that is that he helped her because she was hurt, then she was gone, again."
"Where can I find this Hendrik?"
"He's dead. He used to live in Heartherton, the Hunt found him and tortured him, but I'm pretty sure he didn't say anything."
Fuck.
"I guess I'll start with the witch thing."
"There's a village near the swamp, Midcopse, you should ask the villagers, that's the only option for now."
"What about you? Will you stay here?"
"No, I shall go to Novigrad, I'll dig some more for information and I'll see you there, yes?" Brittany nodded, not wanting the farewell that was coming and not liking the idea of Santana going alone. "Hey, I'll be fine, and you wouldn't have to worry about not being able to communicate with me, I'll cast a spell and then we can communicate whenever we want to."
"'Kay, I'd feel much better and less worried, that's for sure."
"Of course you would," Santana smiled at her, Brittany couldn't believe how easy Santana could read her. "Now, even if I absolutely love watching you in a dress, I'd say it would be useless compared to your armor, so go change."
After casting the spell and pointing to the direction of her armor, Santana changed her own clothes, transforming the long skirt into mounting pants, tight mounting pants, but Brittany couldn't think about that now. She shook her head and proceeded to change.
When she emerged from behind the folding screen, with her two swords and her medallion in place, Santana was waiting near the door.
"Here, I thought you'd wanted it," she said as she handed her Ciri's portrait. Sensing her hesitation, she told her with a little blush on her cheeks: "I have others."
Brittany just smiled and accepted it, putting it between the folds of her armor jacket.
"Do you want me to open a portal to Velen?"
Brittany doubted her answer, she was almost sure that if she went through the portal, she would have to leave Lord Tubbington at the palace's stables.
"I know what you're thinking, I'll make sure Tubbs arrives with you."
"Oh, well, in that case, it'd be an honor," she said with a playful smile.
"Be careful, okay? Don't try to be the hero, I want you to come back to me in one piece," Santana kissed her sweetly one more time, a kiss full of expectation for the next time they saw each other, without the sadness and despair of the last kiss they shared, all those years ago.
"I'll see you in Novigrad soon, and I'll talk to you sooner, I promise."
Brittany extended her pinky finger for Santana to take and seal the promise. It was a thing they used to do when they were children. Santana smiled and did just that, somehow feeling more confident about Brittany returning soon to her side.
Hey, look who managed to write another chapter!
And just in time for tomorrow's festivities so, if you're a Star Wars fan like myself, happy May the 4th!
Anyway, thanks to Guest #1, Guest #2, Guest #3, and rg521 for the reviews. As you could see, this was more of a filler because of all the backstory that I tried to put in there, but I think it's necessary to get things moving. I'm thinking of doing a Ciri's and a Santana's POV, would you like that? Please tell me in the reviews :)
Oh, I replaced Sam with Mike as you can see. I also fixed that on last chapter. I always wanted Mike as the "bard" but I guess I got distracted and mixed them up, sorry.
Again, all mistakes are mine. Hope you enjoyed!
Dany. (04/03/2017, 21:30 P.M)
P.S. You can also find this story on AO3 and you can find me on Tumblr as thisisnotourparadise . tumblr . com. Love you!
