For quite a while, Ciri had been considering packing up her things and making her way down to Brugge, well before her argument with Avallac'h.
Now that their spat was behind them and any bruised feelings had been smoothed over and ironed out, she had decided that it was finally time to make her way to the pit of monsters in the south and the sage had no qualms about it; his only requirement was that he be allowed to accompany her, so that she wasn't all alone in a war zone, and Ciri was able to agree to this one stipulation.
At least he's not breathing down my neck anymore, she thought smugly.
They had managed to come to an understanding of sorts, and learned how to better navigate each other's temperamental personalities without overstepping each other's boundaries and they now felt much more comfortable with each other. As a result, it was easier to make certain kinds of decisions, such as planning their next move.
Brugge had been in the midst of a bloody civil war for well over a year now, which would have continued had Emperor Morvran of Nilfgaard not forced the country to sort itself out.
Ciri had thought it odd that the Empire had put in so much effort to stop in-fighting occurring in a different kingdom that was one of the few on the Continent that wasn't even one of Nilfgaard's vassal states, complete with armed mediators who had forced the conflict into a standstill… until she learned that the civil war had disrupted trade routes of important materials that Nilfgaard needed but was running low on, as well as river traffic.
Nobody could hope to pass along the stretch of river in Brugge's territory, not without being instantly spotted and subsequently tortured, killed, and robbed by bandits and murderers, though not always in that order.
Of course, she wouldn't have been any more surprised if Nilfgaard had decided to allow Brugge to tear itself apart from the inside and take whatever was left… if anything was left to be taken.
The kingdom had put all of its ugliness up front for everyone to see and become a breeding ground for monsters and killers of the human variety. It was a living nightmare for the common folk but also a blessing for witchers who made a living off killing monsters and Ciri had indeed made a killing these past few weeks, bringing home hefty coin pouches unlike anything she had ever seen back in Novigrad.
Although Ciri had initially rolled her eyes when Avallac'h offered to close up his shop and come with her, she was glad to have him by her side. He was the only friendly face she could turn to every night when she came home…
Until one evening, Ciri didn't return at her usual time.
Avallac'h would have been the first to admit that he spent every waking moment worrying about Ciri, not because of her powers but because he just knew that something was bound to go wrong with a witcher contract, as it almost always did, but when she didn't come home and he had last felt pulses of her teleportation hours ago, he was understandably worried.
The Swallow tended to be punctual, always arriving around the same time, no more than ten or fifteen minutes late, but it had been over a half hour and there was still no sight of her. He would have felt less concerned if they weren't trying to scrape out an existence in the middle of a war zone, which most certainly was not the kind of place to go sightseeing.
Perhaps it had been in better times but Brugge was a death trap now, even for the most skilled witchers.
It would have been most preferable for Ciri to teleport to their doorstep, as she did almost every night, but for her to still not be here meant that she had run into a serious snag. Of course, Avallac'h could not bring himself to wait around any longer and set out to look for her.
He wasn't worried about running into militants warring between themselves but he was worried about the possibility of Ciri running into bandits or getting ambushed by a horde of monsters on her way home.
After a long, arduous day, he couldn't blame her for not being at her sharpest but Avallac'h also knew that it could be fatal if she let her guard down prematurely. His days were not nearly as difficult as hers, which was why he was willing to escort her home if she was too tired to teleport.
As he stepped out onto the front stoop, Avallac'h sensed the pulsations of Ciri's powers - they were strong, and she was nearby - and he hurriedly sought her out in hopes of getting to her before some monster or brigand did, and found her crying under a tree not too far from where they were staying.
Avallac'h's stomach sank when he saw that she was completely covered in blood and guts and the only clean spots were two lines on her cheeks where tears had washed away some of the filth on her face.
"Zireael?" Avallac'h uttered quietly as to not startle her. "Is something the matter? Why are you crying?"
"There was a little girl in some fields… she… she was so scared and she needed my help but I wasn't fast enough and the alghoul, it…"
Despite her best efforts to remain composed, Ciri burst into tears and proceeded to cry into her hands. Her shoulders shook with sobs and her whole body trembled as if she was freezing, though that clearly wasn't the case. What she had seen today had deeply shaken her and Avallac'h had never seen her so upset except for when her dear uncle, that old witcher, died in battle.
But as long as her powers continued to remain under control, he wagered that she would bounce back soon enough and started to focus on making her feel better.
"You needn't say anything more," he soothed.
He helped Ciri to her feet and led her back to their lodgings, where he coaxed her to take a warm bath and left a bucket filled with water for her to toss in her dirty clothes to soak.
Some magic would do the trick to full bleach and remove the bloodstains from her white shirt but she also had her Wolf School armor and Zerrikanian gear to wear for the next few days and by the time she came home, today's outfit would be clean, dry, and ready to wear once again.
Today had been a difficult day, which prompted Avallac'h to set out a cup of calming lavender tea.
Once she emerged from the bath dressed in clean, fresh sleeping clothes, Ciri joined the elven sage by the fireplace but not even her bangs hanging in her face could hide the fact that her eyes were still watery nor the occasional tear that slipped down her cheeks. He had never seen her this devastated before and her tears were genuine cause for concern but Avallac'h remained calm and stoic as he always did, if only to provide Ciri with the grounding she needed.
He sat there and listened while she recounted today's events, telling him of all the bandits she slew, all of the bodies she helped burn, the victims of war she tried her best to console despite there being absolutely nothing she could do to ease their plight except listen to them for a few minutes, and of the little girl who perished under the claws of an alghoul.
"She doesn't suffer anymore, Zireael."
"As if that's supposed to make me feel better?" the witcher scoffed tearfully. "That poor girl was calling for her mother in her last moments… and I couldn't…"
"It wasn't your fault."
"Don't say that! It… it…"
"Finish your tea, Zireael," said Avallac'h pointedly. He saw no point in them bickering over semantics and pragmatics regarding a deceased child's sealed fate. "And then go get some sleep. You've earned a long rest."
Ciri begrudgingly obeyed but even once she'd finished her tea, she didn't immediately move to go to bed. Avallac'h sensed something was on her mind and waited for her to speak.
"I thought about it long and hard while in the bath," Ciri admitted with a sniffle. Her voice was unusually soft and mousy, nothing like the fiery, headstrong person he knew her to be. "and I think we should leave. Soon. Very soon."
"There is a portal opening soon. We can be back in Novigrad by dawn-"
"No. Two more days."
"Zireael…" What happened to needing to leave as soon as possible?
"Please? I already promised to help a group of mercenaries clean out ghouls from the mines. I can't let them go to the slaughter."
"Very well," Avallac'h begrudgingly agreed with great difficulty. "Two more days and then we leave."
The next morning, Ciri was already gone by the time Avallac'h woke up but he was pleased to see that she had eaten the breakfast he had set out for her. It hadn't been anything special, consisting of a slice of bread, a bit of butter, and a few chocolates to lift her spirits, but it assured him that she was feeling alright if she could still eat.
It would have been a different story if she hadn't eaten her breakfast, and true cause for concern that probably would have motivated him to seek her out and make sure she ate something before letting her get back to work.
He didn't want to be overbearing but needed to ensure Ciri was taken care of when work was the only thing on her mind.
After eating breakfast himself, Avallac'h got to work. Just because he was living in a war zone did not mean that he didn't have his own duties to fulfill.
The elven sage bided his time by crafting potions and herb mixtures and had even managed to sell some to a few desperate Bruggians who had somehow learned that he was in the area and braved the dangerous streets to reach him, for they had been in need of desperate medical supplies.
He didn't question what they needed it for or what side they were on - he couldn't possibly care less about the petty squabbles of dh'oine - and while he wasn't selling potions with a witcher's mindset, which was to earn as much money as possible for the amount of work he was doing, much like a dragon hoarding coin, he still wanted it to matter.
Still, despite adopting that mindset, Avallac'h was unable to stick to it and ended up giving away a few healing potions to a poor man who had wanted to purchase one for his sick wife and daughter but didn't have nearly enough to afford even one vial.
He had no coin and the loaf of bread he'd brought to trade for was already starting to get moldy, which already made it worthless.
Avallac'h wasn't sure what possessed him to do this but he told the man to wait a moment and went into the pantry to see what he could afford to give away. They had no meat, as it was far too expensive to procure from havekars and hunting was scarce on account of the war, but they definitely had more than most Bruggians right now.
Since they were leaving the morning after tomorrow, Avallac'h figured they could afford to give some supplies away and stuffed butter, several loaves of bread, and a couple of jars filled with different condiments, including a mash made from roasted peppers and a jar of jelly, both of which they hadn't even opened yet, into an old satchel that he'd found in one of the rooms of the inn they were squatting in.
For good measure, he enchanted the bread so that it would stay fresh for longer and help feed the man's family efficiently.
The food would hopefully last the man and his family two, perhaps even three weeks, if they rationed properly, and although it wouldn't save the world, perhaps it would make a small difference for a family of dh'oine.
As he returned to the main hall with a satchel of food in one hand and a crate of six potions in the other, Avallac'h couldn't help but wonder when he had gotten so soft.
"Mix one-part potion with two parts water," he instructed the peasant. "It will last you a long time so do not under any circumstances drink the potion straight from the bottle or it will kill you. Is that understood?"
"But good sir, I cannot afford all this!"
"You need not worry about paying me. Please take this."
Once it was in the man's hands, he lifted the flap and searched the satchel's contents before stopping. He was unusually quiet when, just moments ago, he had been babbling on and on to Avallac'h about his troubles, as if he had found the first person in a long time to listen to all of his woes.
Now, so much time had passed between them that the silence was almost uncomfortable and Avallac'h was at a loss for words. Then, the man started thanking him profusely, nearly reduced to tears, and all Avallac'h could do was accept his thank you's in humble silence.
After the man left, Avallac'h realized something: that not all dh'oine were cruel-hearted and that most of them were just trying to survive in a brutal world that didn't care whether they lived or died.
And despite their shorter lifespans and ugly features, he could see some shared similarities in goals, dreams, and desires that he could relate to, mostly because it reminded him of Ciri so much.
Am I getting soft? he asked himself once more as he ducked back into his laboratory to brew up more potions, though he didn't get quite nearly as far as he would have liked because he was too distracted.
He didn't like the effect that the dh'oine's kind words had on him, and he didn't know why.
Ciri came home in the evening. Just like yesterday, she took a bath to wash herself off of today's toils and joined Avallac'h in front of the fireplace, dressed in clean clothes and her hair wrapped in a towel to soak up the excess water.
"We finished clearing the mines today so… we'll be able to leave a day early," she reported.
"No point in wasting time. We'll leave in the morning," Avallac'h hummed.
He was just glad to hear that they would be leaving Brugge ahead of schedule and didn't care where they went, so long as they left the kingdom that was eating itself alive from the inside as soon as possible. Come dawn, they gathered up what little possessions they had brought with them and departed the dilapidated inn they had been squatting in, intent on putting Brugge behind them for the foreseeable future.
The elf hung up a notice on the door, informing any of his would-be customers that they had left Brugge and had no plans to return.
Ciri then took his hand in hers and teleported them away from the war-torn kingdom and in the blink of an eye, they found themselves in the peaceful fields just outside of Novigrad. They walked the rest of the way back to the building where Avallac'h had been running his shop and let themselves in through the back door, as the store was open for business and it would not be good for business for customers to see a bedraggled elf and exhausted witcher walk in through the front door.
He'd paid the next two months of rent and left the shop in the care of his store manager, a half-elf named Eimear, and although they hadn't been expecting to be back so soon, it felt pleasant and relieving to be back somewhere familiar and relatively peaceful. Avallac'h could deal with the occasional Novigrad racist and attempted break-in without letting it faze him because it was most preferable to Brugge, especially after seeing what two weeks in a war zone had done to Ciri.
"Welcome back," chirped Eimear as she strode into the back room. "It's nice to see you two again."
"Likewise, Eimear. How is everything?"
"Everything was just fine. The shop actually experienced a boost in sales for a few weeks and we've made a considerable profit on healing potions. Shall I show you the numbers?"
"Perhaps later."
"Of course, of course. You two must be exhausted so I'll leave you be and get back to running the place."
Avallac'h decided he still needed a few days to recuperate before he started interacting with customers again and wished to spend time with the Swallow to make sure she was truly doing okay before he left her alone for long periods of time.
He had even been ready to suggest that they go to Toussaint so Ciri could be with Geralt and that snappy raven-haired sorceress but Ciri had decided to be back in Novigrad and he was content with her choice.
Eimear could handle the shop for a few more days before he was ready to go back to work and asked Ciri if she wanted to accompany him for a walk. She agreed, though he got the impression that she wished to wallow in bed all day and be miserable. No, he could not and would not stand for that.
Fortunately, a portal was just about to open and it was going to take them exactly where he wanted to go.
He asked Ciri to hurry along to an old, foreclosed house on the fringes of Novigrad, which didn't even have a lock on the door, and she begrudgingly followed Avallac'h down the stairs and into the basement, where an active portal swirled with powerful energy.
"Come," was all Avallac'h said but he didn't enter the portal until Ciri did, wanting to have the assurance that she was following him.
In the blink of an eye, the portal dropped them off at their destination and they both managed to land feet-first with very little trouble. While Avallac'h was pleased that the portal had brought them to the right spot, Ciri seemed to have some reservations about his intentions.
"What are we doing here, Avallac'h?" Something between exhaustion and exasperation was clear in her voice.
"I wanted to bring you here to show you that beauty isn't completely gone from the world."
"I know that," she said. He heard her grumble "damn sage" under her breath but her snippiness was endearing rather than bothersome.
Still, she didn't understand why he had brought her here, to this secluded grotto.
As well-traveled as she was, she didn't know how far away from Novigrad or if they were still in Redania.
All she knew that they were far away from civilization, for all she could hear were the croaks of nearby frogs, chirping birds up in the trees, and the rustling leaves against the wind that blew through her hair. The place was so overgrown with greenery that she couldn't tell if this had once been a castle or an elven ruin but she quickly realized that he hadn't brought her here to give her a history lesson on the never-ending, petty, and stupid civil war between elves and humans.
Avallac'h wasn't being nearly as secretive as he usually was or perhaps he had let down his guard so she could read him, though she couldn't imagine why he would want to do that.
What was he plotting?
Ciri was, admittedly, very suspicious of the sage right now.
"Sometimes you just need some time away from people and get back in touch with yourself. The best way to do that is to return to nature."
"And that's your humble opinion?" Ciri snorted.
"That is the truth, Zireael."
"Well, I don't agree."
"Then what is your idea of relaxation?"
"Running through the forest, practicing one's swordsmanship on the pendulum at Kaer Morhen-"
"Then let us do that."
"What? The pendulum?" But instead of getting an answer, Avallac'h broke off into a run and Ciri stood there, stunned like a deer caught between a rock and a wolf's teeth, as she watched him get further and further away.
"Come, Zireael!" Avallac'h called from across the clearing.
I didn't know he could run that fast! she thought as she teleported over to him.
"I thought we were running," Avallac'h remarked once she appeared next to him, though he didn't sound disappointed in her apparent "cheating". Rather, he seemed… amused that she thought the best way to catch up to him was to simply teleport.
"Nobody said anything about any rules," she snarked back.
"To be fair, we did not. Come, let us keep going."
As he turned and started walking, Avallac'h whispered a spell under his breath and simply waited with bated breath…
...until he heard Ciri cry out in surprise and looked over his shoulder, finding her in a state of shock and completely soaking wet.
"A-Avallac'h!"
"What is it, Zireael?"
"What did you do? I'm soaking wet!"
"Fortunately for you, it's a warm day. You'll dry off in no time."
She saw right through him and took the bait because a moment later, Ciri leapt into the stream and kicked up water, managing to completely douse him. Water dripped from his hair, down his face, and his robes were completely soaked through but his eyes glittered and the smile on his face was the brightest that Ciri had ever seen; it was quite a refreshing change from the gnarled, battle-worn, and exhausted faces she had been forced to look at whilst in Brugge.
"I'm going to get you!" she laughed breathlessly. She kicked up more water and managed to send it flying so high that there was no way Avallac'h could avoid getting splashed from head to toe.
He did the same to her in return until they were both soaked to the bone and the riverbank around their feet had become slippery with mud. Tired out, Ciri and Avallac'h sat themselves on a mossy log some distance away from the river, which continued to flow as if they had not caused a massive disturbance in the name of some good fun.
After she had caught her breath, Ciri stood up and moved closer to Avallac'h until they were sitting side-by-side with hardly any space between them and leaned her head on his shoulder.
"Thank you."