A bit of the beginning of CiriXAvallac'h...
Crevan frowned as he watched Pen Stomp passed him toward her office, not her study as usual. He had seen that stomp before, a thousand times. First with Lara, then Ciri and then with his own daughter.
"They do not change, those of the Elder blood...fire and stubbornness." He said quietly. "Naught can be done until their heads cool..."
"I would agree with you, master sage..." Said the young Sidhe standing beside him. "...Lady thorn has both in equal measure..."
He took in a breath, wondering what Ciri would have said on her. No doubt liked her, it was hard to remember sometimes.
Avallac'h sat trying to clear his mind, the temptation to ask the healers where he could...no there was the death in that direction. He could not leave the elder blood unprotected. He could not leave Ciri unprotected. He could not do that if he was very much out of his head on the white death. He still shook when the near maddening need came, One snort; one rub on his gums and he would let go.
"No..." He hissed. "I will not go down that path..."
Steps distracted him from his attempts. It was Pen with a bowl of soup.
"You did not come to lunch..." She said. "You must eat to finish healing..."
"I have no appetite..."
She set the bowl on the table.
"...I have to apologize for the last few days." She said. "We have been keeping Ciri busy...I think the court intrigues her..."
"As she has said, it is good to see her happy..." He said, "How long until they come, this peace cannot hold..."
"For some time yet...and not without a price." She said. "There are other problems that may shatter our peace..."
He looked into her eyes, those were Ciri's eyes, Lara's eyes. He knew. The elder blood lived on still.
"...You are the last?"
"No..." Pen said. "Not the last...only a bridge."
He remembered the two little children, Lara's many generations removed Great-grandchildren. Her blood and he hoped...one day through Ciri, his.
"There will come a day..." She said softly. "a secret will be whispered to you..."
He saw something in her eyes shift, darken as if the knowledge she held was a burden.
"Weigh with care your choice..."
She closed her eyes for a moment and they were bright again.
"I must go...eat it will help you focus a bit better..."
She was gone before he could ask what kind of Soup she had brought.
Ciri returned to sit with Avallac'h bringing a tray with dinner upon it. He knew they needed to go, the red Riders would not come here he knew but what had spawned them was knocking on the doorstep to a place that many had hoped would be.
"Those that follow the swallow..." He repeated part of the prophecy.
"What are you thinking of..."
"Words, Lady thorn's and ancient ones..."
They had come to a comfortable rapport, well enough to know what the end goal required.
"He won't be happy..."
They spoke of the end, the place where the frost would cover the worlds. He had brought her there, shown her. She had returned to protect Geralt and freed him from the Riders.
"No, you're Witcher will not be...Nor will I, but I will not stop you."
She looked at him, he had lied, cajoled, deceived...protected her, healed her, taught her. What had changed in him, what it because of her blood as he claimed? Or because he remembered Lara.
"I'm afraid..." She said, admitting it to herself.
He stood and wrapped his arms around her, held her. She only half caught what he whispered in Elder Speech into her ashen hair. No, they were not lovers, but his embrace offered comfort.
"...I will teach you to overcome it.." He said as a promise.
She leaned into the embrace, laying her head on his shoulder.