Alright, so here we go. This is chapter two of my little two-parter "I remember you" and it takes place about 20 YEARS after the first one (and thus at the Nomad).
This one got written on special request. - Thank you, dear Banmaixanh! It was a pleasure to write this part and I hope you still like what I did with it. :3

For anyone who's not familiar with the ships I support: yes, this actually features a beginning Bryn/Doubar pairing. But please don't feel repelled by this. I know they're a rather uncommon couple and that they got only few fans, but do give them a chance. I, too, found the idea to be odd at first and now support them whole-heartedly.

Last but not least: this part was written to Adele's "Someone like you" and while the lyrics don't fit the story, the melody is what inspired me. Thus, feel free to listen to it while reading. :)

Well, I hope you'll just have fun.
Feedback, as always, is most appreciated and anonymous one (i.e. guest review) is enabled.
Take care all of you.

Best wishes
TiaKisu :)

P.S.: Everything written in italics refers to the vision and the girl in there (i.e. the events of Chapter one).

I remember you

It was deep in the night when the vision came haunting her again. The fear and threat that seemed so real to her – and yet she knew that those pictures existed only in her mind. She had seen them so often these days, had heard the voices. Bryn winced in her sleep as once more their accusations rang in her ears and she held back a cry as she heard her scream in pain. Her heart beating fast in her chest the sorceress tossed in her bed, fighting to get back to a reality that would offer her safety. But no matter how much she struggled to escape this dream, she could not flee from the world that had such a firm grasp on her.

She had not told any of her friends of the images she saw, had decided to keep them to herself for as long as she didn't know of their real meaning. At first she had believed that it was a call for help she received, someone who tried to reach out to her in search of protection but with each time that she lived through her ordeal Bryn started to understand that whatever she saw had nothing to do with the future. It was an echo of the past, the revelation of what had once happened to a soul so young and innocent. The sorceress knew that the memory she witnessed belonged to a little girl, she heard her voice sound through the night – followed by words of hatred and anger. So often had she tried to focus on the one they chased, had tried to finally lift the veil and see her face, but all she had succeeded in was to drag herself deeper into this vision that more and more consumed her own world as well. While at the beginning she had been nothing but an observer, surrounded by the mists of a distant past, tonight she felt like every step the young girl did was her own. And so was her fear.

Somewhere in her mind Bryn knew she was onboard the Nomad, that she was in her cabin – her friends sleeping nearby in their own quarters. In this life she did get not chased, she did not get judged by what she was but only by who she was. And still she could not flee from the world that only she could see.

We will rid our village of your family. And I will do my share by starting with you.

It was him again. The voice that spoke with more hatred than Bryn believed she had ever heard before. It was blind rage that poured from of her attacker's lips, a fury that knew no mercy and no reason.
Her heartbeat took up speed as she tried to influence the vision, tried to turn around and face the one who threatened her but just like those countless times before she had no control over what she encountered. All she could feel was how her body tensed as her breath got caught in her lungs. She knew he would strike, knew her fragile form wouldn't be able to stand his blow.
Her whole world started to spin and her heart seemed to constrict as the danger approached her with unbearable speed. She couldn't help the cry that finally left her throat and which melted into the girl's terrified voice – the impact of their combined sound suddenly tearing her from the vision like the ocean that had once torn her from her own past. Bryn felt how her upper body arched and bringing herself into a sitting position she clutched her blanket with her hands. She felt how magic ran through her veins, was so keenly aware of its power illuminating the room. She noticed the wind that passed her by and with her heart still beating hard against her chest she couldn't stop the flow of power until another voice cut through the deafening silence the vision had left inside her head.

"Bryn, is everything alright? I heard you…"

Her name came from his lips as an alerted call. With his eyes opened wide he stood in the doorway to her chamber, his mouth dropping open as he saw his friend and companion look at him with glowing eyes. The strong wind in the room made him squint and raise his right arm in order to protect his face from the little objects it drew along.

"BRYN!"

His voice was barely audible against her magic but it reached her like thunder and suddenly the blaze vanished from her eyes, her magic fading like a candle that had been blown out. Her exhausted body doubled over and for a moment she believed she had to fall when suddenly she felt two strong arms grasp and support her when she couldn't have done it herself.
Bryn drew in ragged breaths while she tried to shake off the remnants of her dream and what it had triggered. And as bit by bit her vision cleared she lifted her head. Reality crashed upon her then and she winced as with it there came the pain. Her right arm softly detached from the warmth of the other one's presence and unconsciously she brought her hand up to her temple where the stinging sensation seemed to have its source. The brunette sorceress frowned deeply as her fingertips met a warm fluid they had not expected to sense, and when she brought them into sight again she realized they were covered with blood. For a moment she just stared at the bright red liquid that so slowly spread on her skin, her attention completely drawn to it until she noticed her hands begin to tremble.

"Shhh, 's alright, little one. Just a bit of blood."

Her head shot up as she heard his words, her heart suddenly skipping a beat as he spoke the latter. Velvet eyes searched for an answer to a question that she herself didn't know yet while for the first time now Bryn's mind allowed her to realize that Doubar knelt on the ground next to her bed, his left arm still supporting her gently. His face showed a deep frown and in his voice she heard the worry and – much to her surprise – the fear. His pale blue eyes lay on her and as he lifted his right hand his gaze shifted to focus on her temple.

"Something must've hit your head", he mumbled while softly his thumb settled on her chin, turning her head ever so gently and allowing him to have a look at where the blood came from. Although she didn't know the reason why, Bryn couldn't help the gasp that escaped her throat when next he reached for his pocket and so shortly after pressed a piece of clean linen firmly on the side of her forehead. Suddenly the world she had just escaped from seemed to close in on her again and as the images from before intertwined with her own reality her vision blurred and she got dragged back to the place she had just left behind.

There she was again, seeing through the girl's eyes, hearing what she encountered and whereas before she had never been able to see past this one moment in which the wee one's world seemed to shatter, now the scene moved on. Now Bryn saw the fist that was so close to strike - yet the impact of the blow never reached her consciousness. Not realizing she was staring straight ahead in her own reality as well, her eyes perceived what so long ago had happened while at the same time her gaze settled on the one who held back her attacker. It was blond hair that met her sight and pale blue eyes that transfixed her. She heard him speak, felt his presence be so close to her own and she felt how her soul fled to him. And as the darkness made way to the light he seemed to carry deep within, she remembered his touch – remembered his warmth. A warmth she once had thought she could never forget.
And yet she had.
It was an intense pain that ran through her system as she felt a barrier was broken. She stared into those bright eyes and in the one moment in which past and present merged right in front of her Bryn reached out for him, her own eyes closing tightly as only seconds later she encountered the embrace of the only one who was left of her life.

She couldn't feel his frantic heartbeats as he encircled her quivering body with his arms, didn't hear his anxious words as he desperately tried to understand. She seemed to live in a world that was trapped in-between the realities, her emotions isolating her from either of them. But slowly, gradually, the memories faded and she became aware of the world that truly was her own. His voice once more reached her ears and she realized that she was in his arms, her head buried underneath his chin. Bryn inhaled deeply, the importance of this moment preventing her from feeling uneasy in the closeness she never before had allowed herself to seek. And as she held on to him she whispered against his chest:

"I remember you. "

Bryn knew he wouldn't understand, knew he could not know but her whisper was all she could give him right then. With her eyes still closed she tried to draw in even breaths, her tired body making it hard for her to build up the strength and leave his side. She felt how he shifted under her embrace, his body tensing with confusion but she knew nothing to reply just yet and so she remained silent for just another moment.
It was when he attempted to draw away from her and his worried words asked her whether he should get her help that she lifted her head and caught his gaze. His blue eyes looked at her with so much concern and it had the brunette's heart go out to him. She had never intended to scare him and yet she felt that what he just witnessed must have been frightening to him. Bryn willed her lips to curve in a small smile while she rested her arms on his' for a little while longer. Her eyes sparkled serenely at him when softly she then spoke:

"There was a girl. She got chased by four boys. They accused her of being a witch, believed she deserved to be punished only because she held magic. She tried to run from them but…"

She saw him frown deeply at what she revealed, knew he was trying hard to follow her train of thoughts and then suddenly, she saw his features change.

"She fell", he breathed and in his voice she heard the recognition, "and cut her chin."

Carefully his hands left her back and as they found their way to her face, she couldn't stop the tears that formed in her eyes from falling.
While his right one came to rest at the side of her neck, his left thumb traced the scar on her jaw, his touch sending the sweetest tingling all through her veins. She brought up her own hand and covering his with her slender fingers, she whispered to him once more: "I remember you", before silently she asked of him the one thing she knew both of them needed. And he gave it to her willingly. Leaving the ground to settle next to her on the bed, his arms encircled her again, drawing her delicate body towards his own and offering to her what he was aware no one else was able to give.

It was a memory. A shared past. Something she could remember.

For the first time in her life she had something to hold on to and as she stayed in his embrace, savoring the warmth that she knew she needed like she did the air to breathe, she felt how a sense of peace unfurled and spread all through her soul.
She did not know why after all these years, after all the time she had spent in emptiness her mind chose to return this one memory to her, but while at first she had feared the images she had seen, she now was grateful for them. Because out of all the forgotten moments she held, she knew she couldn't possibly have asked for a more precious one.

As he bent his head and rested his chin in the crook of her neck, she drew herself closer to him and while just for once time lost its meaning to her, out of the distance of a past long gone by a female image smiled warmly upon the light which she knew Bryn had found.
The lady's hazel eyes closed softly and as her form vanished to become an echo of what once had been, she chanted words that so long ago, in another world, had left her lips for real.

One day, oh daughter-mine, your heart will recognize his golden soul.

And may just then my blessing show what darkness once will hide from view.

You both are bound by fate and time

As you will say the words: I remember you