Note: All Suikoden elements belong to Konami.
Rebirth
Chapter 13: Observation
by ArchFaith
"Sylvia…" the vampire repeated, letting her voice caress the delicate syllables. "A beautiful name, indeed."
The girl smiled again, giving Sierra another clear look at her large azure eyes. "Thank you," she replied.
Sierra looked over to the child, who was now walking next to her, making two steps for each of the vampire's one. She was short; she only reached up to the vampire's waist, from the tips of her toes to the top of her wavy blonde head. Yes, the girl had very light, platinum blonde hair; if one were to observe her from some distance, they might even venture to say it was white. But upon a closer inspection, her hair was indeed blonde; it was of medium length, and reached just past her shoulders.
The girl's clothes were another thing, though. If Sierra had seen the child any where else, during any other time, she might have though the girl came from a rather well-to-do family; her traveling cloak was made from fine sky blue leather, reaching down to her ankles and featuring a small hood. Thick-soled brown boots fastened with silver buckles at her ankles and her leggings were of a grey cable-knit material; over this she wore a thick white cotton tunic with a protective vest, with a small brown leather pouch slung low over her hips. Her cloak was fastened at the neck with a small crystal pin. And her hands; her small, dainty hands were mysteriously swathed in black gloves. Rather adult for a child, the vampire mused. Perhaps her parents wanted her to dress in style…
Yes…about her parents…she had to know more. She would ask a few choice questions, and see where the conversation went. If the endeavor proved fruitless, she would dismiss the entire matter. But if the answers the girl provided were of some consequence…then…
You are lying to yourself if you think this little girl may be familiar, a grim, angry voice whispered inside her head. You have grown so lonely you now project your feelings and desires upon this child. Give up the fight. It will only make you more sorrowful.
She decided to ignore her now faulty judgment. It had cost her so much happiness in the years gone by; to listen to it now would only be foolishness on her part.
"So, Sylvia…do you live around here?" she began awkwardly, quite forgetting what it was like to converse with another person.
"No," the girl replied, folding her hands together. "Me and my dad live in Caleria."
Caleria?
Sierra forced herself to continue. "Ah…so you are only a traveler in this region."
"Yup," Sylvia replied as her foot crunched down upon a noisy twig. Fortunately for Sierra's curiosity, she began to elaborate. "My dad travels a lot—he's been to tons of places! He works for a Harmonian bishop…so he has to be away some times. But this time he said he would take me with him, because he said that all he needs to do is deliver something to someone. 'Cause he usually does more dangerous work, you know…so I got to come too."
"I see," the vampire replied, with a suddenly tight feeling in the pit of her stomach. Like clockwork the puzzle was revealed…it was all too obvious…but no…it might just be a coincidence…
"So…your mother did not come along as well?" she asked. Surely the little girl had a mother, a good, loving woman who cared for her and encouraged her…
"Ooooh," the little girl replied, suddenly drawing her eyes to the grassy forest floor. "Um…well, I don't really have a mom."
"No?" Sierra continued, despite the desperate feelings within her soul that told her to stop. "Your father is not married?"
"Nope," Sylvia answered, putting her hands behind her back. "It's just me and him. I mean, Dad used to have girlfriends, but they weren't too nice…they were really vain and girly! But he hasn't had a girlfriend for a while now, 'cause he told me that all the girls are boring."
A sort of dull shock had now registered in the ruby-eyed maiden's chest; it was too easy, all of it…the girl's father worked for a Harmonian bishop, he usually did dangerous work, he was unmarried…and this little azure-eyed girl…could she be…?
"But what about you, Miss Sierra?" the girl asked, looking up at the vampire. "Why are you here in the forest at night? Are you traveling too?"
"Well…I suppose you might say that," Sierra managed to falter out, raising a hand to bend back a large branch. "Yes…I have been wandering about for quite some time now."
"Oh," the girl replied, smiling good-naturedly. "Are you going some place special?"
With every little word the child was slowly disarming her; the vampire found it hard not to look into that eager, bright face without telling the truth. "No, not particularly. I just thought it might be interesting to see the world." Such a vague, stupid answer. It was a good thing she was speaking to a child; children were easy to impress, and easy to influence. And so distracted by unimportant things; innocence prevented them from seeing further, from looking past the façade and discerning the truth. Sylvia, it seemed, was no exception.
"Wow, that sounds like fun!" the child exclaimed, nearly jumping into the air, as all children do when they hear something of particular interest. "Have you seen a lot of cool things?"
"I suppose," Sierra replied neutrally, mentally seeing projections of all the beautiful, miserable places she had visited within the last few years. "The world is wide; surely there are many things I have not yet seen."
"Wanna know a place I want to go to one day?" the little girl asked, in a sweet, unassuming voice.
"Where?"
"Its name is carved on the back of something my dad gave me," Sylvia said as she began to rummage through the small pouch tied at her hips. "I've read about it in books, but now I want to see it for myself…" Her low, calm voice drifted off as she turned aside several small trinkets inside the leather pouch. "Hey…wait a minute…oh!" she suddenly whispered, in a decidedly different tone. "Oh no!"
"What?" the vampiress demanded. "What is it?"
"I…I think I lost something…" the girl said, as she continued to feel around the pouch. "My comb…it was in my bag, but I think I must have dropped it…"
"Your comb?" Sierra asked, placing a hand on her hip. Such a small thing as a comb might have dropped much earlier in the night; perhaps when the child was running from the wolf, or when she was hiding behind the tree stump—in the large forest, it could have been anywhere…and she was really not in the mood to go crawling on her hands and knees searching for it.
Fortunately, even such a tiny thing as a comb was no match for the vampire's excellent sense of sight. Quickly summoning her impressive skills, she scanned the forest floor, looking for any sign of a man-made object…so far there was nothing…and nothing still, except the always imposing shadows of trees, magnified by the pale moonlight…
She turned around, as the little girl began fretting over the loss of her comb in anxious, worried tones. A comb…a comb….ah….
A small white object was lying on the ground a few meters behind them; signaling the little girl to come with her, the vampire rapidly strode over to the ground and knelt, gently smoothing away the dirt that covered the comb's surface. Gingerly picking it up, she held it to her eyes…
Ah!
The final confirmation; the last piece of evidence. It was true…it was real…there was no denying it now. It was the white ivory comb, decorated with vines and curliques, suns and moons…with the small engraving reading "Falena"…
"Oh!" the little girl gasped, her worried face quickly breaking into a smile. "That's my comb!" The vampire, eyes bowed, handed it to the girl without a word; grinning, the girl clutched the comb tightly in her fingers, giving it a quick examination to ensure that it was alright. "Oh, thanks so much, Miss Sierra!"
The vampire looked up, apparently in a daze; the sudden shock of seeing the familiar item had left her confused soul in silent distress. "Ah…you are welcome, child," she answered, slowly rising. She dusted off her blue skirt, in a quick attempt to regain her composure. "So…we should continue on," she said weakly, looking down at the wavy blonde head.
Smiling, the girl unexpectedly came closer to Sierra and gently took hold of her hand; the vampire looked at her in surprise. "Will you hold my hand?" the girl asked innocently, azure eyes twinkling.
She had always been a fool for those eyes; she always would be. "Yes," she agreed, grasping the girl's small gloved fingers. "Yes, if you would like me to."
"Uh huh," the girl replied as they began walking again. "Oh Miss Sierra, this comb is really important to me…thank you so much for finding it."
"Think nothing of it, my dear," the vampire replied weakly; she was now in a state of high agitation; the fact that she might be holding hands with her own—
"My dad gave it to me for my birthday a few months ago," the girl continued, still tightly clutching the small ivory comb in her free hand. "It says 'Falena' on it…it came from a really far away place. I really want to see it one day."
"Is that correct?" the vampire replied absently, looking down at the child's blonde forehead.
"Yup!" Sylvia answered enthusiastically, as she carefully tucked the small comb back into the leather pouch. "It's really special for another reason, too…it used to belong to my mommy."
"Your mother?" the vampire asked, a sudden, uncomfortable feeling seizing control of her throat.
The girl nodded as she stared straight ahead, through the dark thicket of bushes looming ahead of them. "Yeah…Dad said he gave it to her on her birthday…but he said it was mine because my mom and I have the same birthday!" Grinning, the girl looked up to Sierra. "My birthday and my mom's birthday is the sixth of April! Teehee."
It was as if the nail of fortune had come to hammer down upon the vampire's tortured head; Sierra could barely look the girl in the eye as they maintained their steady walking speed through the thick woods. "Sixth of April, mmm?" she replied, in an almost languid tone. "Yes…it is rather amusing, girl…that is my birthday, as well."
"Really?" the girl asked, with wide eyes. "Oh wow! So there are three people with the same birthday…me, you, and my mom!" The girl cocked her head as she suddenly squeezed Sierra's hand…the gentle pressure of the tiny hand within her own almost served to drive the guilty vampire over the edge as the girl continued on.
"I wish I could meet my mom one day…Dad said she had to leave right after I was born, because she couldn't stay with us…but I wonder why? Dad never told me why…but why would she want to leave? Maybe she thought Dad and me were bad people…but I really hope she didn't. I just wish I can meet her one day." The girl lowered her thoughtful, smiling face to the forest floor as she continued with her reverie. "And I really hope she still loves us, too."
At this moment Sierra roughly yanked her finger out of the girl's weak grasp; immediately bringing a hand to her face, she quickly felt the warm bloody tears against her fingers. With every innocent word that came of this sweet girl's mouth she felt guilt beginning to swallow up her soul, a delayed punishment for the sin she had committed so long ago. Oh gods…she thought to herself, closing her eyes and turning away. What have I done? So many times have I asked myself this…but what have I done? I never meant to harm her…I never meant to harm him…she is the most beautiful thing I have ever laid eyes on, now as well as then…she never asked to be born. He was only a child himself when she was born…yet he loves her all the same…
"Are you okay, Miss Sierra?" the girl asked, clasping her hands together in sudden fear. "Are you bleeding?"
"Oh…it's nothing, child," the vampire replied, quickly smoothing the bloody tears off her face. She had to pull through this; there was no way she could explain the truth to the girl now. She could not let on that the many coincidences surrounding their relationship were not pure coincidences at all; the child could not understand this. No…she had to find him…she had to speak with him…
Fortunately, a small, flickering light through the treetops suddenly twinkled; coupled with the growing sound of water rushing over rocks, it was clear that their destination was close at hand. After carefully wiping the blood off her pale, white face, she looked up with renewed interest. "Look," she called out. "I believe that is the inn near the waterfall…it is only a few more minutes ahead. Come, let us hurry…if your father is there, you would not want to keep him waiting."
"Nope!" the girl said, grabbing hold of Sierra's hand once again; the vampire gave the small gloved fingers a gentle squeeze. "Let's go!"
-
The forest was vast, indeed; if one could look out over the treetops, out upon the floating green ocean awash with delicate moonlight, it would look as though nothing else existed beyond the leafy green behemoths. But the elegant trees were only one part of the forest's great majesty; the other honor, it seemed, belonged to the fabled waterfall.
Quietly pushing away all her tortured speculations for the time being, the vampire turned her attentions to the noisy sound of water lapping against muddy banks, to the loud rushing of water as it emptied out over a steep cliff. They were nearing their destination; already the flickering light grew larger, and was soon joined by other, smaller lights of varying luminosity and position. Candles, she surmised. Surely they had been set up inside the windows of the rooms of the inn; and surely the guests inside were sleeping soundly, aware only of the comforting noises of the water. Peaceful and ignorant of guilt. Of shame.
The moon was still high in the sky, now hovering almost directly over the crest of a large, flat hill; gentle, curving slopes suddenly gave way to a thick, bare rockface, peppered with cracks and scratches. The result of an ancient landslide, it was said; the villagers said there was a lake at the top of the hill, and eventually a stream had started to flow. This stream became a river; and this river traveled over the edge of the cliff, effectively transforming it into a waterfall.
And a beautiful, splendid thing it was. Unfortunately, the waterfall was the last thing on Sierra's troubled mind.
She held the little girl tightly by the hand as they made their way through the woods. The girl had ceased her talkative explanations; judging from her slowing steps and drooping eyelids, she was already quite tired. But they would be nearing the inn soon; there she could eat something and then be put to bed.
How many times has he put her to bed? How many nights have I missed…?
Soon, the inn came into view; built at the very base of the deep pool the rushing water formed as it slid down the falls, it was a moderately charming structure built of oak and pine. It was more or less a large house, with a sturdy-looking sloped roof, and linen curtains blowing softly through each open window. Just an ordinary inn, a place for the tourists to go and spend their money.
This meeting will certainly not be ordinary.
As they neared the steps to the inn, Sierra addressed the sleepy child once again. "We have arrived," she said simply. "Perhaps you should open the door, my dear; I will enter in behind you."
"Okay," the little girl replied, yawning. Suddenly brightening, she turned and smiled up at the vampire. "I hope my dad is there. I really don't want him to think I'm dead or something."
"Well, why do you not go and find out?"
Nodding, the girl slipped out of Sierra's grasp and rapidly ascended the inn's stony steps. Lightly pushing against the wooden door, she gently pushed it open.
-
"Listen, mister, I haven't seen any little kids around here lately—"
The blonde man standing at the counter sighed in frustration; placing both gloved hands down against the wooden desk, he looked with deep annoyance down at the old, tired innkeeper.
"Are you completely sure? Her name is Sylvia, she has light blonde hair and blue eyes…"
The innkeeper was an old-looking man; a crown of white hair sat seemed pasted upon his otherwise bald forehead, and the wrinkles on his face seemed like loose, withered flaps of dry skin. Sleepy, circled eyes peered out from behind thick-rimmed glasses, his thin body obscured by the large, frumpy robe he wore over his nightshirt. Pushing his glasses further up his nose, he shook his head.
"Sorry, sir. Haven't seen a little girl at all around here…but if you lost her in the forest, then…well, that's a pretty serious matter…"
Sylvia…
"Can you organize a search?" the swordsman demanded, green cloaks rustling against his muscular frame as he leaned forward, in an urgent state of panic. "She was being chased by a wolf..." Bowing his head, he continued. "I tried to go after her, but the other wolves attacked me; I had to fend them off before I could begin looking for her…"
An image of the terrified, screaming child flashed into his mind as balled his fists in aggravation. "Please…there has to be something."
If anything happens to her…
The old man again shook his head, a frown now upon his face. "I can send up to the village for a few men to come down, but they'll take a couple of days to get here…I reckon it will be too late by then, if she hasn't shown up by now…"
The sudden, rapid convulsing of the swordsman's heart quickly increased as he gritted his teeth in a desperate attempt to keep calm. "Look, sir…she's my only daughter…she's small, she can't defend herself…there has to be some way to rescue her…I know she's still alive. Please…isn't there anyone here who will able to look for her with me?"
The innkeeper was about to open his mouth once again when the inn's wooden door swung open with a loud bang. Whirling around, the swordsman felt his beating heart come to an absolute stop as the familiar little figure appeared, calmly framed in the shadowed doorway…
"Sylvia!" he exclaimed, kneeling down as the smiling girl rushed into his arms, flinging her short arms around his neck. A quick and rejuvenating relief flooded his soul; if he had lost her…if he was never to see her again…what a punishment that would surely be! For a moment it had seemed as though everything he ever truly loved would be taken away from him, eventually; but no, fortunately that would not be the case.
She was safe, that was all that mattered; he gently smoothed his fingers through her wavy hair as he embraced her tightly. "Gods, Sylvie…I almost thought for a moment I had lost you."
The girl laughed, as if it had only been a practical joke on her part; pulling back, she looked her father straight in the eye. "I'm sorry, Dad…but I'm fine now. The wolf stopped chasing me after a lady came out of the forest and hurt it really badly!"
The swordsman cocked his head. "A lady?" he asked. "Someone helped you escape?"
The little girl nodded. "Yup…she was really strong and pretty! She came with me here, too!"
"She did?" the man asked, quickly rising from his kneeling place on the floor. Setting his hands on the little girl's shoulders, he looked down at her. "She's here right now?"
"Yes!" Sylvia answered enthusiastically. "She's standing right outside the doorway…" Turning back to the still-open door, she called out with a large grin on her face. "Miss Sierra! Come inside! I want you to meet my dad!"
-
The pale maiden had been standing by the edge of the doorway, obscured from view due to the lack of sufficient lighting from within. Sylvia had rushed inside, and from the conversation it seemed her father was there after all.
Yes, her father…
There were two possible decisions for her at this time; the first was to leave. Simply leave. In an instant she could be sprinting through the forest, faster than a human eye could observe. If she simply vanished, no matter what Sylvia said it could not be proven that the vampire was who she was; her father could believe whatever he wished, but there would be no concrete evidence. She could leave them now, without any harm having been done. She could forget the whole situation and go on…
And the second option? Why, simply to show herself; to let it be known it was she, Sierra Mikain, the legendary vampire…the guilty soul. But where would things go from there? What could she possibly say to him now? After so many years of solitude, after so much time to mull over her ultimately self-defeating decisions—what could she say? What could she say?
It no longer matters what I tell him. It is only important that I see him again…that I see his eyes once again…
She quietly stepped up to the doorway, letting the soft light of the lanterns within cast a flickering glow over her pale, ethereal form. Sylvia stood there expectantly, a calm smile upon her face as she watched the vampire enter the room.
And behind her, his hands still steady on Sylvia's shoulders, was…
The vampire sighed as the man's surprised azure eyes stared, clearly amazed, on her motionless form.
"It has been a long time, Nash Latkje."
To be continued…
End notes: Hmm…I'm having mixed feelings about this chapter. I'm a little worried I might not have elaborated on some things enough…such as Sierra's guilt, or Nash's relief. I'm the sort of person who likes to have every detail put forth in a story…I'm the kind that likes to leave very little to the imagination. Ah, well…I hope I did a good job with this. And don't worry…no more of this "I've come back only to leave you" crap from Sierra…from here on in, it's all or nothing! Every thing WILL be resolved…but for better or for worse…I really can't say. But please review and tell me what you thought of it…good or bad, I want to hear your comments!
I also would have liked to write a bit from Nash's perspective (man I miss his POV) but now that the story is really being told from Sierra's point of view, it would just be out of place to describe everything that's happened to him in the last seven years to the reader. So, it's Sierra's place to ask….and Nash's to answer. Two more chapters, I think. That should do it.
thundersenshi: teehee…yes, Nash does suffer a lot. It's Sierra's fault, that old witch! And yet…she makes herself suffer as well :evil grin: No one's ever happy in this fic, I just realized that…
Virtue: Yup, then Sylvia would have been wolf food. I bet she'd taste pretty good too, since Sierra clearly enjoyed drinking Nash's blood…
Eni Li'Nave: hehe, glad you think little Sylvia's cute. Ah, and about the "ruby-eyed maiden" phrase…I was originally thinking about whether I should use it or not, since pretty much everyone knows "maiden" refers to a young virgin. However, Sierra will always look young; and to me, she'll always look more like a maiden then a woman, really. Yup, incorrect connotation there, hehe.
Next chapter: It's question and answer time. As both Nash and Sierra awkwardly readjust to the other's presence, it's time to catch up. After Sylvia goes to bed, that is…stay tuned!