It was drizzling and cool. Not unusual for that time of year. Tristan rode his horse, keeping his cloak wrapped tightly around him and the poor little injured hawk underneath.
If he could have stopped and waited the night where he'd found it he would have. But, he didn't have a lot of time. Being up north again was dangerous, especially alone as he was. But, it was easier for him. And, he was on a mission for Arthur.
He pulled on the reins of his horse, coming up to a little cottage. An old woman stepped out, waving to him. She smiled warmly.
"Tristan," she said.
The little hawk in his arm made him dismount carefully.
"Mistress Elaine," he said with a nod of his head.
"What is this?" she asked, noticing the injured bird.
"A hawk I found on my way here," he said.
"Allow me," she said, reaching out, he gently eased the injured creature into her arms. "I have dinner ready. Take care of your beast and come inside. I'll tend to this creature."
He nodded his head. She had an uncanny ability to know when he'd be coming. Always ready with food for him to eat. He couldn't help but wonder if she just always had food ready for company. Although that seemed like a waste.
It didn't take him long to tend to his horse, making sure it was comfortable and settled for the night in her little stall.
Stepping into her cottage, he immediately walked over to the little hawk. She'd set the creature near the hearth in a little blanket. The home smelled good. Elaine stirred the pot that was over the fire.
"Boots and cloak off," she ordered.
He stiffened, but soon took off his boots and cloak. Setting his boots to one side and his cloak he hung.
"Dinner should be ready soon," she said. "How is my grandson?"
Tristan sat down on the floor and gently eased the little hawk onto his lap. He hadn't had time to check on the extent of its injuries. Arthur's grandmother set down a bowl of water and some rags near him.
"He is doing well," he replied automatically. But his mind was elsewhere.
He did his best to be gentle, wiping its feathers, searching for wounds. There were many small cuts on the creature. Blood seeped out of everywhere, but it was the ones on its right wing and upper chest that had him concerned.
"She's not looking well," she commented.
He nodded in agreement. If it survived the night then it would probably live. If. He carefully cleaned the injured bird, stopping any time it would cry out. It was weak. Very weak. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Elaine place a bowl of food by his side.
"Where did you find her?" Elaine asked.
"She landed near me," he said. He gently wrapped her up, trying to keep her sharp talon within sight as much as possible. He'd done what he could. Bundling it up, he set it back down in the blanket to hopefully rest.
"Well, she's in luck. She landed near the one man who could probably help her."
He wanted to smile, but he had a feeling that she was wrong this time. He liked animals. And, for some reason, they seemed to find him when they were injured. But this one was just too injured, too small. Hope was something he had very little of.
He slowly ate, giving the creature side glances, waiting to see if it would wake up. It bothered him. The way it breathed and moved. There was something slightly unnatural about it.
Gently, he placed his hand on his belt and took out his dagger. He'd given it to Myrina. And the little hawk had it clutched in its talons. Why? A message perhaps?
But he couldn't imagine she'd injured such an exquisite animal just to send him a message. One of her people? Did they find out that she didn't kill them? Did they hurt her because of that?
You shouldn't care, he told himself. She's the enemy. It didn't sit right though. Did she send the hawk, hoping it'd find him and return him his knife? That didn't make sense.
"Perhaps Arthur will find his way up here next time," Elaine commented.
Tristan raised his eyebrows.
"My understanding is that your contract is up soon. Tell him before he goes to Rome he should come up here to see his dear old grandmother one last time," she said.
"He seems intent on bringing you with him," Tristan said.
Elaine laughed loudly, shaking her head. "Rome ceased to be my home when I married into this land."
Tristan couldn't help but give her a small smile. It was a conversation they had many times. And although his report back to Arthur was always the same, he couldn't help but be amused by Arthur's frustration.
Although Arthur trusted all his knights, Tristan was the one he sent to visit his grandmother. Tristan wasn't entirely sure why. Gawain, Dagonet, or even Lancelot were better talkers than he was. They'd probably have an easier time convincing Elaine to move to the Wall. But Arthur sent Tristan. He had been sending him for years.
It was only for a night. Travel two days north, visit the old woman for a night, then travel two days back to the Wall. A journey Arthur had been unable to make although he wanted to. Leaving the Wall was not a luxury he had, being the commander. If he left he had to leave with a group of soldiers or knights. And going north with that kind of military at his back would only cause more tension. So he sent Tristan.
Elaine was a stubborn old woman. Insisting if her grandson wanted to see her then he'd come up north. This was her home, her daughter's (Arthur's mother's) home. It was his home. She knew the dangers. But, Tristan wasn't good with arguing, with pressing the issue.
The little hawk stirred, catching his attention.
"Easy, little one," he said gently as it struggled to get up, trying to move its injured wing. He knew it couldn't understand him.
He saw it fall as he rode. He was sure it was going to crash onto the ground, but at the last second, it managed to pull itself up and slow down its descent before landing in a puddle. When he got there, he assumed it was dead or close to. He would have given it a mercy killing. And then he saw his dagger. It made him want to try and save the creature. Not that it could give him answers
"I will see if I can make something for it," Elaine said as she stood up and walked away.
The cottage started to go dark as the sun began to disappear, leaving the candles and fire as the only light.
The little hawk let out pained cries as it struggled against the wrapping.
"Easy," he said again, keeping a wary gaze on its talons. Despite being injured, those talons could still cause damage if he wasn't careful. It staggered around as if looking for its footing.
He got up, crouching in case he need to jump back, and watched. All he had to do was-
Its body shuddered and shifted. Something changed. He felt paralyzed. It was difficult for his mind to fully comprehend what he was looking at. The hawk shifted and grew. Its feathers seemed to slowly seep into its skin. And then finally, it became a woman.
She stood there for a moment, then her body went limp. He caught her before she dropped to the ground.
"By the gods," Elaine said softly.
Tristan looked over at the old woman.
By the gods indeed. Tristan didn't waste another second. There was no time to think. Blood seeped out of her wounds.
"Take her to my bed," Elaine commanded. Clearly, the old woman was in the same thought process as he was. "I will get some more supplies."
Tristan nodded. He put his arms under Myrina and lifted her up. She whimpered but didn't fight him.
It was impossible. She was impossible. But the little hawk had turned into a woman before his eyes. Into the one woman, he had wanted in his arms for weeks now, knowing full well that it was just a fantasy.
It was ridiculous. Feeling the way he did for her. He didn't even know her. There were too many barriers between the two of them for anything to ever happen.
She groaned with every step he took, but he couldn't make her journey any smoother. The moment he got to Elaine's bed he laid Myrina down as gently as possible. He would have loved to respect her privacy. But the injuries that were on the hawk he was sure were on her body. The cut on her cheek was unimportant. As he started to look over her injuries she moved.
Her brown eyes opened and she looked up at him. Pain, fear, and tears filled them. "Are you going to kill me now?" she whispered.
He placed his left hand on her right cheek, careful not to touch her wound. He shook his head. "Of course not, Myrina," he said softly.
Her lips trembled. Her right hand reached up and she touched his face. "We're enemies," she whispered.
"Not today," he replied.
"He tried to steal my gift," she said.
Tristan didn't say anything. Her gift? Having the ability to change into an animal? That was some gift. A whimper escaped her lips as she moved.
"What can I do?" he asked. Her fingers felt nice against his skin, but they also shook. He grabbed her hand, keeping his gaze in her eyes.
"So much hurts," she whispered.
He could believe it. She moved her hand and out of the corner of his eye he saw blood.
"Rest, Myrina," he said, slowly adjusting his body to keep her from moving so much.
She shook her head as she tried to get up. "I'm not safe," she muttered.
He ran his hand behind her head to make her look up at him. "You're safe with me. I swear," he promised. That seemed to be all she needed to hear. Her body went slack as she lost consciousness.
"You should kill her before she wakes up," Elaine said softly, surprising him.
Tristan whirled around and stood up, pulling the blanket over Myrina to cover her from the cold. He placed his body between the two. Elaine watched him, giving no clue as to what she was thinking.
"I told her she's safe with me. I won't break my word," he stated.
"Do you know what she is?"
He clenched his jaw. He hated admitting to anything he was uninformed about. What she was was impossible. An impossible, marvelous creature. Dangerous, his enemy, blessed by her gods, and a woman he'd been dreaming about.
"Does it matter?" he asked. "I gave her my word."
Elaine lowered her gaze then nodded her head. "Then we shouldn't allow your word to be broken."
Elaine worked with Tristan in searching Myrina's wounds. Elaine figured out how to cover Myrina up to access her wounds while also giving her some privacy from Tristan's eyes. Not that he was paying much attention.
There were many cuts along her whole body. Not deep enough to kill her, some probably would leave scars. He couldn't help but hope that she gave her attackers wounds equally as bad. She didn't seem to have any broken bones, luckily. But there were plenty of bruises.
Out of all her cuts, only three bothered him the most. She had what appeared to be a carved symbol at the top of her left breast, and a deep cut on her right hand. But it was the one along her belly that bothered him the most. The rest of the wounds seemed calculated, exact. That one looked as if it were just intended to punish.
He gently ran a cloth over the symbol again. It rubbed him wrong. It wasn't right. Once he was sure it was clean, he placed a healing salve and then a cloth to keep it covered.
"We've done all we could," Elaine said as she sat back.
Tristan didn't reply. She wasn't going to die. That much he knew. Although some wounds were serious, they weren't life-threatening unless they got infected. But they were now clean and the worst of them had salve and were bandaged.
He felt Elaine's eyes on him, making him look at the old woman.
She opened her mouth then closed it, shaking her head. "Get some sleep, Tristan." She placed her hand on his shoulder and gave it a squeeze. "It is time for all of us to rest."
Tristan nodded. He watched Elaine as she disappeared into another room. The room he would have occupied. He turned his attention to Myrina. She hadn't woken up. Despite all the moving and searching that they did. He did his best to give her some privacy and not look at her, grateful that Elaine was around.
He tried to steal her gift. Who? Whoever it was clearly failed. Tristan clenched his fists. But they also hurt her, pretty bad.
She's the enemy. You cannot lose sight of that.
Still, he looked down at her sleeping form and couldn't help but view her as fragile. He set his dagger near her, to give her something to fight back with.
With that, he laid down on the floor and got comfortable. He trusted Elaine not to try and kill her. But, if Myrina woke up needing something, he'd be there for her.
Reghan's dead cold eyes stared back at her as he lay on the ground. She could have saved him. Right? What use was her gift?
"Your gift should have been mine, Rina," she heard her brother's anger-filled voice snap at her.
Her gift. Hers!
She shot up, her body screamed at her because of her sudden movements. Where was she? Her surroundings were completely unfamiliar to her. She was in a cottage. She felt something hard near her left hand. Looking down, she gasped. Tristan's dagger was by her side.
"Easy," his soft voice broke through her mind.
She scooted back, hit the wall, and grabbed his dagger, aiming it at him.
"Where am I?" she asked. Things made sense, but at the same time, they didn't.
"I'm not your enemy tonight," he said, holding his hands up. He was trying to reassure her.
But tomorrow.
She moved then groaned as her body reminded her of her wounds. He stayed still. She moved her right hand and winced in pain. Bandaged. Giving herself a quick look, most of her body had been taken care of. Her wounds were either bandaged or had some sort of salve on them. She wore a simple shift covering her body.
"You," she paused. "You did this?"
He looked away for a moment. A little bit of color seemed to come to his face before disappearing. Finally, his eyes were back on hers.
"You were injured," he stated.
She looked at the bed. Yes, she was injured. She was injured and-
"I won't hurt you," he said. He must have seen her sudden panic. He took a step back and kept his hands raised to show he was unarmed.
But. He saw her. She had been a hawk when he found her. Her heart beat picked up. He saw her change. She vaguely recalled the feeling as her body was forced back into her human form.
He could have, he should have killed her. The gift she possessed was dangerous to Rome, to him.
She frowned. "Why?" she asked, still not entirely trusting him. He didn't know what else she could do. Did he think he could use her gifts against her own people? Her family?
"I gave you my word," he said, as if that simply explained it.
She gulped.
"You are safe here until morning. You should get some rest," he said.
Rest. Yes. She wasn't sure if she could fully trust him. But rest sounded like a good idea. Gather her strength to fight him in the morning if she needed to.
Brandon! She needed to warn her siblings of his treachery.
She scrambled off the bed, set one foot on the ground, and immediately collapsed. Tristan easily caught her.
"You're safe," he repeated as he helped her sit back down. She gripped his arm, shaking her head.
"I need to warn my siblings," she said, looking up at him. "They're not safe."
He studied her for a moment, before letting her go and stepping back. Her human form was weak, but her wolf? Far more capable to handle the journey. He was going to see something else. Hopefully, he would keep his word and not try to kill her.
She closed her eyes and took deep breaths, searching for that part of her that knew the wolf. She could see it. The body developed in her mind: bones, nerves, muscles, skin, fur. Every last intimate bit of it that she knew. She didn't feel it though. She didn't feel the familiar spike of pain as the change took hold of her body to rearrange it.
Myrina opened her eyes and stared at her hands. Nothing. She frowned. Inhaling deeply, she loudly exhaled. The wolf was there. The form clear in her mind. But she couldn't.
She opened her eyes, looking up. Tristan was watching her. Having people watch had never been a problem before.
"Could you turn around?" she asked.
He hesitated then did as she asked. She closed her eyes again. Still. Nothing. The hawk was also clear in her mind, but also, nothing. The bear? No, that form was unfinished.
"Myrina. Myrina," Tristan's voice echoed in the back of her mind. He sounded so far away. Her own breathing was far to loud. The blood rushed out of her face and she felt woozy. He grabbed her face, forcing her to look at him.
"Calm down," he said.
Her world started to spin a little while her breathing only got worse.
"You're safe," he repeated.
He thought she was worried about her safety? She couldn't feel them. She couldn't feel the familiar threads of magic that helped her change into her forms. Brandon did it. He stole her gift.
She moved automatically. Before Tristan could do anything she wrapped her arms around his body and hugged him. She felt his body stiffen, but she didn't care as she quietly sobbed into his tunic.
She thought she did it. She thought she was able to get away. Wasn't she a hawk when he found her? But now, she was human. Her beast forms only knowledge of what once was. He had seen the last time she could do that.
She settled her body onto his, clasping the back of his tunic with one hand. Her right hand was too injured to grip. He smelled nice. He smelled nice? Here she was, mourning the loss of her gift, ignoring the pain her body was in, and her brain decided to focus on his smell.
He's still the enemy.
She reluctantly pulled away from him, wiping her nose. "Thank you," she whispered.
He didn't say anything in return.
She looked out the window at the darkness of the outside. She was of no use to her siblings. She couldn't travel in the dark in her current state.
"I will wake you up at first light," Tristan said as if reading her longing.
She nodded her head. "Thank you," she replied. She couldn't tell him. She couldn't ask him for help. They had an understanding for now. For whatever reason, he chose to let her live. For a fourth time.
"Good night, Tristan," she murmured as she settled back down into bed.
He looked away, sitting down on the opposite wall to her. She let out a deep sigh and closed her eyes. She shouldn't have felt safe enough to sleep with him there. She should have felt the need to be on alert. How could her enemy make her feel she was in no danger?
"Good night," she heard him say almost a little too soft as she drifted off into sleep. "Myrina."
A/N: I couldn't wait an extra week. Thank you, jinxcat21! I'm really enjoying where things are going to be headed and this version. Yeah a little bit more intense and scary, but I think all for the better. SunMoonAndAllTheStars, I'm so glad you're just excited for this version.