Chapter 4

Catherine sighed heavily as she placed the damp, warm wash cloth over Larsa's forehead after washing it thoroughly and sat there waiting for Kira to return. She was becoming more and more upset with Kira as time went on. As much as she agreed that it didn't make sense to go to a hospital for Larsa's treatment when Kira could do it just fine and for free, it baffled her as to how she could live with herself as she only ever came to him once since she left him with Catherine. She had only come to cast renew to keep him alive and left again.

Catherine was so upset when she had waltzed in, cast the magick and waltzed out that she nearly threw her shoes at her, but she had long since decided that Larsa was her priority. It had been about four hours since Larsa was cursed and throughout that time Catherine had been talking to him, giving him encouragement, a reason to keep fighting on. Letting him know that she couldn't live without him, that he couldn't die, not now, not after she had only just managed to meet with him again after so long.

Catherine frowned again as she sat with Larsa's head in her lap, her fingers gently combing through his hair as he moaned, the pain shaking his entire being. Not once had he opened his eye since they were teleported to the house, not once had he spoken, not once had he acknowledged her presence, but she knew that he was fighting it. He had to. Kira herself had said that the curse was fatal unless you were strong enough to fight it. How she could be so calm while Larsa was trying his hardest to fight the curse? How could she act as if he were infected with the common cold and just needed a few days to be rid of it? Catherine just couldn't understand her thought process. In fact, if Catherine didn't have Larsa to think about, she would've been freaking out at the moment. She was positive that if her primary focus wasn't keeping Larsa alive and well, then she would've been crying ever since they were teleported back to Rabanastre.

The truth was that, Catherine was extremely confused. Everything that had happened since they left Archadia, was like a movie being fast-forwarded while she was trying to watch it, as if she wasn't in it herself. She just couldn't understand how everything could've gone so wrong so quickly, and how Kira seemed to be so calm about all of it. The only reason Catherine was able to keep her 'cool' throughout all of this was because she had to, for Larsa's sake.

Catherine looked down at Larsa again and sighed once more. She wanted to cry, she was tired and hungry, mentally and emotionally exhausted and she was worried. She so worried about Larsa, she was fretting, she could see that he was fighting it, she could see that he was strong, that he was trying his hardest to stay alive, but the very thought of loosing him sent her over the edge.

Catherine sniffed softly as she felt the burning of tears behind her eyes and the stuffiness in her nose as her emotions finally began to betray her, as her resolve finally began to crack under the stress. Catherine brought both her hands to her face and squeezed them into fist as tightly as she could while trying her hardest not to let the tears fall. Catherine sobbed a dry sob and shook her head vigorously, trying to convince herself that now was not the time to be crying. Her entire body was rigid and her hair a newly made mess as she tried desperately to regain control.

Catherine gasped loudly as she suddenly felt a cold, clammy hand gently brush the one tear that had strayed away from her hands as was bent low over Larsa's face, the lone tear ready to fall from her before it was caught. She removed her hands instantly and looked down at Larsa. His eye were open and despite the smooth layer of unshed tears of pain and the easily read display of how his threshold for pain had long since been crossed, they were warm and held a gentleness most others could not muster even in their best conditions.

"It's alright, Catherine. You can cry." His words were soft and nearly inaudible, but she heard him, and she cried. Catherine did not hesitate in the slightest as she sobbed loudly, her tears raining down on Larsa's face as he closed his eyes and returned to his half conscious state as he fought the curse. Catherine shook as she sobbed, her tears flowing heavily, as if to wash out all the terrible events that had happened so far. She cried for Larsa, and for herself, for the hope that he would recover soon, that she may be able to spend more time with him, to be with him and be his.

She wasn't sure how long she cried for before there was a light knock on the door. Catherine is startled and spends a little time to wipe her face and Larsa's before she looked around at the entrance to see a small girl standing by the door. Catherine blinks as she watches the girl. She was very small, not possibly over the age of four and had short curly dirty blonde hair that puffed like an afro. She looked very fragile, slim for a child her age, not malnourished, but very slim and had on ragged clothes that were far too big for her. She did not move or talk as she stared at Catherine, her hands behind her back as she fidgeted by the door, her eyes suddenly watching the ground.

Catherine noticed that the girl was shy and wanted to come but was unsure of the stranger she saw, so Catherine smiled sweetly at her and said softly, her voice like smooth honey, "It's alright, you may come."

The girl seemed startled at first as she looked up sharply at Catherine then looked down at the ground again before she took a tentative step forward, glancing at Catherine through her messy locks as they fell into her face. Catherine smiled at her cuteness and beckoned her again with a gently wave of her hand, the other resting gently on Larsa's forehead.

Catherine's smile widened as she watched the little girl jog over to her and stop just out of arms reach of Catherine and said nothing. Catherine smiled at her and said, "Hello there, I'm Catherine, what's your name?" Her voice was calm and sweet, a complete contrast to how she was as she cried over Larsa, her voice course with worry and her eyes red; but now, you would've never guessed she was crying or worrying at all as she gently coaxed the little girl into trusting her.

The little girl fidgeted slightly before she said softly, "Tihana..." Her voice was small and soft and Catherine had to smile at her cuteness as she watched the girl blush slightly.

"Tihana? That's a pretty name. How old are you?" She asked her tone of voice held a consistent gentleness.

"I don't know, ask mommy..." She said softly, her tiny hands wringing nervously behind her back.

Catherine blinked and chuckled slightly as she watched the girl blush harder and said, "And, who is your mother?"

"Kira." the girl's face brightened suddenly and she smiled for the first time, a brilliant smiled that Catherine should've been smiling along with had she not been gazing wide eyed at the girl.

Catherine blinked twice before she lightly shook her head and said, "I'm sorry...did you say that Kira was your mother?" Catherine could not believe what she was hearing. There was just no way, no possible reason for Larsa to know someone so immoral, so impure as a girl who was not married, who was not even of age, who had a child!

"Yes, both mommy and daddy have been taking care of me since my mother died. I don't remember her at all, but Kira told me that she died giving birth to me and that she's in a better place now so I'm not worried." the girl said calmly.

Catherine was shocked to say the least. Her mother had also died giving birth to her, but her father hadn't said anything to her until she was seven and a half, and to this day she still cries when she thinks about it. And yet, here is this little girl, who not only knows that her mother is dead, but is completely fine with it, she understands what happened and isn't sad or angry or even guilty about it. Catherine couldn't possibly understand how such a small girl could've grown to be so mature so quickly, it just didn't make sense to her.

"I'm sorry to hear that. You don't miss her at all though? Your real mother that is..." Catherine had to know, she just couldn't believe her ears.

"I have Kira now so I'm ok, and Kira also says that my mother had asked her to take care of me when she was pregnant so that means that its all ok." she said innocently, not understanding the importance of Catherine's question.

"...I see..." Catherine said softly, simply amazed by the little girls level of maturity.

There was a brief silence between them as Catherine thought about the girl and her relationship with Kira, silently admiring Kira's ability to raise her and let her know the truth without scarring her for life before she heard soft sobbing beside her.

Catherine looked up sharply at the girl and found that she was trying desperately to wipe away her tears, her tiny body shaking as she cried softly, her sobs soft and inconsistent. "Tihana, Tihana what's wrong?" Catherine said softly as she reached out to the girl and pulled her closer to her, one arm around her small waist and the other wiping away her tears with an extra rag she had laying around.

The little girl sniffed softly and shook her head the same way Catherine had shaken hers not so long ago and said between soft sobs, "Is...is daddy gonna be ok?"

Catherine was taken aback slightly and realized suddenly that the girl was either an orphan or her father was simply no where to be found and that both Kira and Larsa were taking care of her, so she referred to them both as her parents. Catherine looked down at Larsa and found that his eyes were open and he was watching the little girl as she cried into Catherine's chest. Catherine gasped as she began to fully understand how close Larsa and Kira were to be raising a child together. Catherine was so taken aback by the idea that she immediately discarded it and decided that the "daddy" the girl was talking about was else where and that she had assumed that Catherine knew him, or maybe that Larsa knew him. Catherine squeezed her eyes shut after noticing that Larsa was trying hard to raise his hands to reach for the girl, and decided to ask before he could reach her.

"Tihana, who is your father?" Catherine had failed to keep the gentleness in her this time and Tihana had noticed as she looked up at her suddenly and shied away a bit at the hard expression on her face as she stared down at Larsa.

"...Lamont." Catherine suddenly breathed a sigh of relief and looked back at the girl, her sweet gentleness back into place as she smiled at her. However, when Catherine noticed that she was pointing at something, and followed the direction of her finger, her gentleness failed again. Tihana was pointing at Larsa and was calling him Lamont, no, Daddy...

Tihana jumped slightly when she had noticed that 'Lamont' was reaching out to her and had just managed to take hold of her hand while he gazed up at her with a soft, yet pained smiled gracing his features. "Don't worry about me Tihana, daddy'll be just fine you'll see." He widened his smile for her then winced, biting his lip to prevent a yelp as she dove unto his stomach and began to cry heavily as she clung to his shirt with her tiny fingers and buried her face into his chest.

Catherine watched, stunned into silence by Larsa's words and unable to say anything as she watched him gently stroke the girl's curly locks and whisper gentle nothings to her to try and calm her down.

Catherine watched and felt the tears building up behind her eyes and she registered a number of things at once. First she noted that Larsa and Kira had such a bond between them as to allow them to raise a child together, they were so close that this young girl understood them to be her mother and father. How long would it be before she herself could form such a bond between herself and Larsa? Second, she noted that Larsa must also be well known among the people of Rabanastre, Low Town, and maybe even Old Archades for he had a code name, Lamont, that this girl, his surrogate daughter, had called him by. And lastly, she realized with a jolt that Larsa was not fighting the curse for her, or at least, not for her alone. She was not the only person that depended on Larsa. She was not the only person that needed Larsa, she was not the only person that loved him and she was definitely not the only person he loved in return. Larsa was fighting to stay alive not just for her sake, but for the sake of his surrogate daughter, for the sake of the people he took care of with Kira, for the sake of his country, for the sake of Ivalice, probably for Kira's sake as well.

Catherine cried heavily as she realize how heavy a burden Larsa carried, how many people depended on him, how much he was loved, how much he loved and how many he cared for and how much work he had in store for him once he was king and she finally understood his and Kira's purpose. She finally understood why they were working so hard for the sake of these people. She too, could not imagine what this little girl would've gone through were Larsa and Kira not there to take charge of her.

Catherine jumped slightly as the door to the room suddenly opened. She spun around to see that Kira was making her way to the three of them with a soft smile on her face. "Now what's going on here? Goodness, soon you girls will flood the room with all those tears, what've you done to them Larsa?" She said jokingly.

Larsa chuckled slightly as he looked up at her while Tihana jumped and shouted, "Mommy!!! Mommy is Daddy gonna be ok? What's wrong with him?!" Tihana ran over to Kira and held her arms up so that Kira would lift her up.

Kira smiled down at her surrogate daughter and said while she bent to pick her up, "Oh you've no need to worry about Lamont, Tia. He'll be up and about before you know it. I'll bet you." She grinned widely at the girl and wiped away the tears flowing from her eyes gently, her touches soft, light, just like that of a mother.

Tihana immediately calmed down and nodded before she wrapped her arms around Kira's neck and rested her head on her shoulders, closing her eyes and popping her thumb into her finger. Catherine marveled at the power Kira had over the girl, at the way she handled her so gently, so motherly. Catherine wondered just how Kira had come to be the one to take charge of this girl. Weren't there others, someone more mature, someone who had proper experience as a mother, some one older and more trust worthy? Catherine watched as Kira gently pried Tihana's thumb from her mouth before Tihana looked up at her sharply with a guilty expression, mumbled an apology and dropped her head back unto her shoulder while closing her eyes. Catherine watched as she moved to place her thumb back into her mouth, as if she were running on gambits but hesitated and placed her arm back around Kira's neck, correcting herself.

She watched as Kira smiled down at the girl, she had been watching her and was proud to say the least that she had learned that sucking her thumb was bad and that she had enough sense to correct herself. Catherine couldn't help but admire Kira in that moment as she held the now sleeping little girl in her arms, the perfect picture of a mother and daughter.

"How you feeling?" Kira asked Larsa as she stood beside him, her expression neutral, even with her ever present smile.

"I've had better days, but I've also had worse..." He said, his voice cracking half way through, his strength returning slowly but surely.

"True, true..." Kira nodded as she recalled a certain event when she was sure Larsa had died on her, but he had pulled through, he always does, and he always will. Kira knew Larsa well, and she knew that something like this could not possibly break him. His resolve, his determination to make the world a better place, however silly his dreams may seem, they were still powerful and nothing could break his will. If Larsa fought, he was going to win, she knew that; losing was simply not an option in the dialog box.

Kira then turned to Catherine and cocked an eyebrow, "So what turned on your water tap?" She said jokingly with a small smirk.

Catherine frowned slightly and wiped the half dried tears from her face before she said, "Kira, how did you come to be this little girls mother?"

Kira looked slightly taken aback but smiled before she answered, "Long story short, I'm everybody's mom here. All the orphans look up to me as their mother, if not their older sister. Tihana's mother was about my age, she was one of my closest friends and was," Kira did a quick check to see if Tihana was really asleep before continuing, "raped by some Arcadian Soldiers just before the end of the war and became pregnant, but she was always a sickly girl, she had a very weak body, so she knew as well as I, that she would not survive labor, so she entrusted me with her child. She had said that she would love it if her daughter grew up to be as strong as me. She made me promice that she would grow up to be a strong warrior who would fight for justice and all that jazz. I'm not sure about the warrior part, but I do intend on keeping that promice." Kira said sternly as she looked down at Catherine, the strength of her resolve evident in her eyes.

Catherine gasped softly as she listened to Kira's story, shocked that such thing could've happened during the war. From what she had heard while the war was going on, it was supposedly very calm and docile in Rabanastre with the Archadians watching over them and Vayne being their Counsel, but it was obviously not so. "That..that's terrible. Who could do such a thing?" Catherine felt the tears building up in her eyes and did not bother to hide them or wipe them away as she let them fall.

Kira sighed as she watched Catherine fall into another fit of tears and decided that she'd best be one her way. "Alright, Lamont, I'm going to go check up on Old Dalan, give him his medicine, see if his conditions has improved any and report to you later, yah?" Kira said as she cast renew.

Larsa nodded, a new level of strength regained along with the refilling of his life bar, "Give him my regards won't you?"

"But of course, how could I not?" Kira smiled widely at him before she made her way to the entrance and left, Tihana still fast asleep in her arms.

Catherine sniffed slightly as she tried hard to control her sobbing and stop her tears. She just couldn't understand how someone could be so cruel, so insensitive. She didn't understand how while she was comfortable in her castle, safe and secure, there was someone out there being raped, someone out there was death warrant was being signed without her acknowledgement, without giving her any say in the matter. How was that fair? Catherine had thought the world was fair, but now she did not know what to believe.

She looked down at Larsa to find that he was watching her. Catherine gasped slightly and worked harder to wipe the tears away from her face, not wanting Larsa to worry about her when he had his ow battle to fight. "I'm sorry Catherine, because you came with me, you've been forced to see the truth of it, the true horrors of war. You are too fragile for this sort of thing and I'm sorry that that I have exposed you to it." He said softly, conserving energy as best as possible.

Catherine shook her head slightly before she wiped the last of her tears from her face and said, "No, I am glad I came. I would much rather know the truth than live in a fantasy all my life...as hard as the truth is to bare.." she sniffed again and turned away from Larsa, trying to hide her face as her eyes began to tear up again.

Larsa smiled up at her and whispered, "You've grown nicely. I am relieved." Catherine looked back at him sharply to find that he had closed his eyes again, exhausted apparently. Catherine blinked as she ran his words over in her head and realized that Larsa had been worried about her. He hadn't forgotten her during their years apart. He remembered her well and was hoping for the best, hoping that she'd grow to be a mature woman. She wasn't exactly sure what he was hoping for exactly, but he was happy with how she had grown and she was happy with that. Catherine allowed herself a small smile and a giggle before she replaced the now cold wash cloth on Larsa's forehead with a clean, warm one.

OoOoO

To be Continued