Title: The Lady In White
Pairings: Bertrand/Hrothgar, mentioning of Bertrand/Violetta
Summary: Hrothgar found himself in a field of flowers, speaking with a lady in white. Who was she and how was she connected to Bertrand?
AN: More Bertrand/Hrothgar? Sure! Here's a quick one for today :3
As he opened his eyes from what felt like a short, but surprisingly restful nap, Hrothgar found himself standing in the middle of a meadow of wild flowers. It was a place he hadn't seen before and knew that he was no longer within the boundaries of the labyrinth. Yet, he wasn't alarmed.
He just started walking. One step at a time. Moving forward with a sense of purpose, though he did not know why or where he was going. Something was telling him to keep going forward. Something was pushing him to move.
Just walk and see, he told himself. Not much further now.
As he reached the crest of a small hill within the sea of flowers, Hrothgar finally came to a stop. All around him were beautiful flowers. Poppies, yet of different colours he had not seen before. Pinks, purples, blues, yellows. It was quite beautiful.
Something…something didn't seem right, though. The flowers were gently swaying, as if dancing from a caressing breeze, and yet Hrothgar could not feel any wind upon his face. And his colourful surroundings seemed oddly muted in shades.
And he couldn't hear a thing. No sound of the wind blowing through the tall flowers. No birds chirping in the distance. Nothing.
A flash of white suddenly caught his attention and he turned to look. A woman was seen amongst the flowers, her back to him. Luscious long hair held in a high ponytail danced and curled in the wind. She wore a long white dress that draped so effortless over her curves. Her presence felt regal and somehow ethereal in a sense. She was quite a striking woman, no one Hrothgar had seen before. And yet…
Yet there was a strange sense of familiarity from her. It was as though he knew of her, but did not know her. It was a confusing feeling, but he did not dwell on it. The thought came and went quickly.
Slowly, the woman in the white gown turned toward him and smiled warmly, gently. Her hair continued to dance unabated in the wind as she held a long, pale arm in his direction. She appeared to be beckoning him over to her.
"Hrothgar," an almost celestial voice said to him, the voice seeming echoing throughout his mind and the flower covered meadow. "Sit with me for a while."
Oddly, Hrothgar felt a slight sense of trepidation...How did she know his name?
The feeling of unease only lasted a mere moment, though, and Hrothgar was soon making his way toward the beautiful woman. He then found himself sitting on the ground, amongst the flowers, and next to the lady in white.
With her white dress sprawled around her, her legs folded neatly beneath her, she gazed over the field of flowers with a small smile on her lips. "It's beautiful here, isn't it?"
"Yes," Hrothgar found himself answering. "It's very peaceful."
The woman nodded her head and continued to smile gently. "There is no pain here," she said.
Hrothgar tilted his head to the side in confusion. What did she mean 'there was no pain here'? Could that really be possible?
The lady in white was suddenly standing up a few feet in front of Hrothgar, her arms folded behind her back as she looked up at the sky. "There are..." she hesitated for a moment. "A few things that I wish to ask of you."
"Yes, what is it?" Hrothgar replied without any hesitation.
The woman turned to look at him, her hands folded in front of her in a prayer. "Please tell Bertrand that I am safe here. That I am free and happy."
Hrothgar felt a sudden pain in his heart at the mentioning of that name and he clutched at his chest. Bertrand...
"Please." The lady in white was now kneeling before him, holding her two hands out toward him. "Show Bertrand this."
Hrothgar glanced down at her hands to see a delicate piece of jewellery; a silver oval pendant with a milky-white stone on a long silver chain. "A necklace?"
"It was a present from long ago," she told him as she gently took one of his hands and pressed the silver necklace against his palm, curling his fingers around it to ensure a firm grip. "He gave it to me with a pledge. But that pledge has been fulfilled. It is time that he makes another. To you."
"M-me?"
"You need to go back now," she said to him with nothing but compassion in her eyes. "He's waiting."
G-go back? Waiting? What did she mean? Go back to where?
Wait…
"I...died?" Hrothgar whispered in shock, yet he felt no fear or distress.
The woman before him laughed ever so softly. "No," she said as she reached up to tap the tip of his nose with her finger. "Just visiting. I'll send you back now."
The ground beneath Hrothgar suddenly gave way and he felt as if he was slowly falling. Something had the hold of his left arm and pulling him slowly downwards. Pulling him back to a place that was…important. But he…wasn't ready yet. He had to know who this woman was.
"W-wait," Hrothgar said as he reached out toward the lady in white. "What is your name?"
"...Violetta."
Hrothgar drew in a sharp intake of air. That name. She was…? N-no, she was too important to Bertrand! He had to let her know!
"V-Violetta? Bertrand-"
Violetta suddenly grasped his hand tightly with both of hers and looked at him with a warm yet somehow desperate expression on her face. "Tell him. Tell Bertrand I said thank you and I am sorry, for what he had to endure because of me. Tell him that it's ok for him to let me go. Tell him that I will always watch over him. Tell him that his happiness is my only wish."
Violetta…she cared for Bertrand so much.
"And Hrothgar, please," Violetta continued as tears appeared in her eyes, her smile tender. "Love him in a way that I could not."
"I-I will. I promise," Hrothgar said as his eyesight slowly began to fade to a strangely comforting black.
Hrothgar suddenly felt…numb. He didn't know where he was now. He was no longer within that field of flowers. His eyelids also felt incredibly heavy when he tried to open them. He wanted to, though. So badly. He could hear sounds. Like voices murmuring from a distance. He couldn't make out what they were saying, yet he felt as if there was a sense of frantic panic in the air.
"Hrothgar!"
That…voice…?
It was so hard, but somehow Hrothgar gained the strength needed to open his eyes. A piercing light immediately flooded his vision and though he didn't want to, he shut his eyes out of reflex.
"No, come on, kid. I need you to keep those eyes open."
It was that voice again. Hrothgar immediately recognised it.
"Hn…" Hrothgar murmured as he forced his eyes open once more, the light from before not as painful. Slowly he lolled his head to the side, and even though his vision was blurry, the symbol upon the cloth of yellow and blue was immediately recognisable to him. "Bert…trand?"
There was a loud sigh of relief and Hrothgar felt something curl tightly around his shoulders, pulling him against something warm and comforting. "Thank the gods…"
Hrothgar could only stare at the crest upon Bertrand's clothing as more voices began to slowly register in his mind.
"D-don't try to move, ok? You're fine. D-don't worry about a thing, ok?"
"Trand, we need to get him back to town. Keep him awake."
"Sir Hrothgar, hold on a little longer, everything will be fine."
"I'll clear the way for everyone. The geopole is close by."
The Midgard Library Guild? All of them. And they sounded worried. Why would they be so worried? He and Wulfgar had just been helping a rookie guild through the third floor. Nothing to worry about. No foes. Just…a strangely large frog he had never seen before…
"What happened?" Hrothgar murmured as he found the strength to lift his chin up to gaze up at the man cradling him close. "Where's Wulfgar?"
"Wulfgar's fine," Bertrand replied immediately, his voice sounding surprisingly hoarse. As if thick with emotion. "Don't worry."
"B-Bertrand?" Hrothgar whispered when he realised that Bertrand was holding him closely against his chest, one arm wrapped firmly but gently around his shoulders as the other idly toyed with his hand that rested against his chest. "What happened?"
"...You died, kid."
Hrothgar drew in a sharp intake of air before he chuckled softly. That was right. He remembered now.
"No," he said. "I was just visiting."
Bertrand immediately turned to look down at him in confusion. Hrothgar licked his dry, chapped lips as he tried to tell him what had happened when he realised that Bertrand hadn't been idly toying with his hand. His right hand had been curled tightly into a fist, as if keeping a firm grip on something important.
Hrothgar lifted his hand from his chest and slowly unfurled his fingers. A long silver chain slipped through his fingers, but he made sure to hold onto the silver and white pendant. "B-Bertrand, here."
Bertrand glanced at the pendant for a moment before his eyes grew wide in shock. "…Where did you get that?"
"Violetta g-gave it to me," Hrothgar explained as he tried to sit up, to tell Bertrand everything Violetta had asked of him. "She wants you to know…something."
"E-easy," Bertrand said as he pulled Hrothgar closer toward him and allowing for him to sit up a little more without putting any strain of his body.
"She's not in pain anymore, Bertrand," Hrothgar said as he rested against Bertrand's chest, his eyes drooping from fatigue. "You don't…have to worry anymore."
"Is…is that so?"
"Yeah," Hrothgar whispered as he lifted the necklace higher, wanting Bertrand to take it, to look at it. "She…sent me back. With this. Your pledge has been…fulfilled."
Bertrand made the motion to take the necklace from him, but instead placed his hand atop of Hrothgar's, curling his fingers around the keepsake. "…Keep it."
Hrothgar smiled as he tightened his hold around the necklace and rested his head against Bertrand's shoulder. "She'll always…watch over you," he whispered as he closed his eyes.
Bertrand suddenly hugged him tightly against his chest and buried his face in the crook of his neck. "…thank you, Violetta…"
