I do not own Witcher or any of the characters.
Cursed
"Any thoughts on Vivienne?" Guillaume asked.
"She looks like she'd be amazing in bed," Renfri offered.
"That is...not what I meant," Guillaume said uncomfortably.
"I think you're right about the curse," Eldin said, saving Guillaume from further commentary about Vivienne's attractiveness by Renfri. "Not sure what the curse is, or if it can be broken, or even how she might have been cursed to begin with, but I think it has something to do with an oriole."
"I see," Guillaume nodded, then stood. "To Vivienne. May you find the means to help her."
"To Vivienne," Eldin, Renfri, and Aralyn echoed, all of them taking a drink.
"When I first laid eyes on her, I finally understood what all of those poems and ballads were trying to say," Guillaume said as he sat back down.
"Love's not all poetry," Eldin warned him. "Sometimes it's beautiful, other times it's about as poetic as anything that comes out of Renfri's mouth."
"There once was girl from Toussaint," Renfri began, only for Aralyn to cover her mouth.
Just then, a pair of gauntlets landed on the table in front of Eldin, their owners, two of the other knights in the tourney, glaring at him.
"You dropped something," Eldin said flatly.
"I demand satisfaction!" one of the pair snarled.
"Then find the nearest brothel," Eldin said, taking a drink, Renfri snorting and coming up from her own mug coughing.
"How dare you!" the other knight spat. "You have no right to take part in this tourney! This tourney is for knights only! And you, Sir, are no knight! You are a mutant freak!"
"You have no honor!" the first knight spat. "We have seen you adulterate with both of these women, your coat of arms is a sick joke, and now you insult me in such a way!?"
"Oh, you shouldn't have said that," Aralyn sighed.
"What way would you like us to insult you?" Eldin smirked.
"We take requests," Renfri finished. "Also, you should be careful what insults you use. He's not the only Witcher at this table, and we aren't insulted that he 'adulterates' with us both, we want it that way. We can choose who and how many people to include in our bed all we want."
"Shut your mouth, you mutant whore!" the first knight spat. "We don't care about you or this filthy elf bitch being insulted! He has no honor!"
Eldin stood. "See, I was going to let you off easy, since you clearly have no idea who you're challenging to a duel, but now you've crossed the line. I accept your duel. Unarmed combat, right now."
"Excuse me?" the first knight asked. "That is not-"
Eldin's fist crashed into his nose, knocking him to the ground in a heap instantly. The other knight shouted angrily and swung, only for Eldin to duck under his fist, then stand and slam a fist into the underside of the man's jaw, sending him staggering backward until he, too, crashed to the ground, unconscious.
"Pathetic," Eldin huffed, then spat on each of the knights. "Let's find somewhere else to drink. These two are ruining my good mood."
"Agreed," Guillaume nodded.
They collected their drinks and walked away from the unconscious knights, the other people attending the feast allowing them to pass without a word. A while later, Vivienne arrived to welcome everyone to the feast and announce that the last event, the group combat, would be held the following day, with the person who scored the highest facing the previous champion, Sir Gregoire, immediately after. Then, as she walked away, Eldin followed. By the time he reached her tent, however, she was gone. An oriole sat on the railing of the small balcony behind the tent, however, and tweeted at him as he walked in. He walked toward it, but it flew off before he could get close, only to begin singing noisily as it flew. He watched it for a moment, and it stopped to hover, calling back to him in bird song, so he shrugged and hopped over the railing, jogging after it. It began to fly again, and he followed it into the woods nearby, then through them, using his hearing as much as his sight to track the bird. After a bit, a panther leapt out at him, only for him to narrowly evade its claws and split its side open as it passed, killing it instantly. Finally, the bird flew over a large, steep, stone hill, so Eldin entered a cave running into it, hoping for an exit. After a short walk through the caves, he found it, leaving the caves into the woods and finding the oriole waiting once more. He followed it through the trees to a small, beautiful clearing. There were flowers all around, a small pond in the center, and there, crouched on a rock by the water, was a hybrid between a bright yellow and blue bird and a human woman. Vivienne.
"Witcher," Vivienne greeted him.
"Lady Vivienne," Eldin replied. "You led me here. But I'm assuming you were hoping I would get lost."
"I was," Vivienne admitted. "I thought you no different from the knights. Good in tourneys, helpless in the face of true danger. I was mistaken."
"The only dangerous thing I've seen tonight was the panther," Eldin said.
"I had hoped the panther would scare you away," Vivienne admitted. "Once I saw that was clearly not going to happen, and that you were not going to be so easy to lose, I decided to bring you here."
"I hear you come to this clearing often," Eldin said.
"This is where it all began," Vivienne said wistfully. "And as I was not able to evade you, save myself from you, I want it done here, in this very spot, with no witnesses."
"You misunderstand," Eldin said. "I have no intention of harming you. I was hired not to hunt you, but to cure you of your curse, if I can."
"Cure me?" Vivienne asked, turning toward him. "You think this can be cured?"
She was bare of clothing, but green feathers grew from her body in such a way that green feathers wrapped around her hips and covered her like a skirt, tail feathers hanging down behind her, and more green feathers grew from her shoulders to cover her breasts. Her shoulders bore yellow feathers with green tips on top, the long green feathers that covered her breasts grew from the front of her shoulders and the green wrapped around the outside of her shoulders to the back, her upper arms bore yellow feathers, a mix of yellow and green covered her forearms, and her hands were reminiscent of bird feet, yet still with five fingers, though each ended in a sharp, black talon. Tiny yellow feathers covered the upper half of her face into her hairline, her neck, the sides of her torso, and her outer thighs, the yellow interrupted at her hips for the long green feathers that provided her lower body modesty and which connected to the green tail feathers. Her nose and upper lip had been transformed into the upper half of a beak, and human flesh existed on her body only in a patch in the middle of her back, the lower half of her face, a strip from her collarbones down to her waist, where the green feathers met, though Eldin wondered somewhere in the back of his mind if her nethers remained, as yet, human, then along her inner thighs until the knee where the feathers ended and she retained human legs.
"Yes, I do," Eldin nodded. "It's a curse, and all curses have a solution, that's what gives them their power."
"If you've no contract for my life, then why take an interest at all?" Vivienne asked. "Did Guillaume put you up to it? Is that why?"
"He was worried for you," Eldin said. "He wanted to help you, but knew he couldn't do anything about it himself, wouldn't know how, so he asked me to help you. If I can help you, I will, willingly."
"Why should I trust you?" Vivienne asked.
"Because I can help you," Eldin said. "Because curses are my specialty. Because I know what it's like to hate yourself for what you are and to feel like a freak. I'm here to help. Does there need to be a reason? Is it really too much to believe that someone wants to help you just for the sake of altruism?"
"Is it truly altruism when you only work for a reward?" Vivienne asked.
"I didn't ask for one," Eldin said. "I just agreed to help."
"You shall not turn on me?" Vivienne asked. "Use what I say against me? You shall not tell anyone?"
"I'll only be telling Guillaume, and that only because it's he I'm helping," Eldin said. "But I won't tell anyone else. Even my two companions."
Vivienne was silent for a long while before speaking. "So be it. I shall tell you what my mama once told me." She turned, walking down to the water. "When she was with child, expecting me, she and my father spent much time together near the wood, here in this clearing. Mama loved to listen to the orioles sing. She would stroke her belly and say, 'My daughter should be as beautiful as that bird. Such is my wish.' But a creature dwelt in the wood who envied my parents their happiness. One day, it appeared before them to say the whole wood belonged to it, and they had dared to delight in something that was not theirs. It demanded payment, and when they said that they had nothing, it claimed their unborn child as its own."
"Parents ever describe the creature?" Eldin asked.
"They called it a nymph born of the deep woods," Vivienne answered. "With no mother or father. But I was too young, too distraught by the curse's onset, to ask after details."
"I understand," Eldin nodded. "When did the curse show up?"
"At fifteen summers into my life, it began," Vivienne said. "At first, only when the moon was full. But now, it's advanced so that even in daytime, I must use magic ointments to mask its symptoms, to look normal. Thus, I thought someone had discovered my secret then hired you to kill me. In fact, I was resigned to death in coming here. Perhaps death would be preferable to my complete and permanent transformation, for I fear that is what lies in store."
"Well, I won't let your curse go that far," Eldin said. "I know someone who once met a baron cursed into a cormorant, supposedly for good, and cured him completely. I myself, very recently, met someone cursed into a Spotted Wight, a very dangerous monster, but I cured her."
"And you think you could do something like this for me?" Vivienne asked.
"I can promise to try," Eldin said. "But your case is more complicated than theirs. You were cursed before you were even born. That makes the curse's hold stronger. Also, you said the curse's hold is increasing, that the symptoms are growing worse. Again, this complicates matters." He considered, trying to recall every method to undo a curse. "We could try transferring the curse onto someone else." He held up a hand, continuing before Vivienne could object. "The new bearer of the curse wouldn't have the same symptoms. They would be a full-grown adult, as opposed to an unborn child, so their body would resist better. their symptoms could potentially be as mild as gaining the ability to speak to birds, or a compulsion to eat worms, or they may grow feathers, small ones and likely somewhere easy to hide, like the chest, or neck, or their elbows. It would be the safest option, but the requirements for it are difficult to achieve."
"Giving my curse to someone else is out of the question!" Vivienne said. "I will not risk ruining someone else's life! Is there no other method?"
"Without finding the creature that cursed you, there is one other I can think of," Eldin admitted. "But I strongly suggest we avoid it."
"What is this method?" Vivienne asked.
"An ancient ritual," Eldin said. "We'd need an oriole's egg. The ritual would likely release the curse, but in exchange, it would drastically shorten your life. Most likely, you'd come out of it with the lifespan of an oriole."
"Seven years?" Vivienne asked. "I understand. Every rose has its thorns. There are no happy endings. Yet, truth be told, I never thought I would get one. I came here prepared to die. Yet you wish to give me seven years of life, real life, free life. This is no dilemma. I agree. Wholeheartedly."
"You misunderstand," Eldin shook his head. "You're already over the age of seven. It may be from birth, in which case you would die when the curse is lifted. it also may start the seven years from when the curse first began to manifest."
"Which would leave me with only two," Vivienne understood. "I see. I still would prefer it over risking someone else's life being ruined."
"Don't decide now," Eldin said. "I mean to finish the tourney anyway, so you can tell me your decision when you award me my laurels and sword."
Vivienne smiled. "So confident." Her smile fell. "Please, do not tell anyone."
"As I said, I will only tell Guillaume," Eldin said. "He's in love with you, so he should know that there's a chance you'll die. And if you decide to try the safer method first, which may not work at all, we'll need him."
Vivienne hesitated, then nodded. "I will consider the options. Thank you. They must miss me at the tourney grounds by now. Shall we return?"
"Let's," Eldin nodded. "But you should probably hide your curse first. I'll wait here."
"Ah, you are right," Vivienne nodded. "Pardon me for a moment."
Eldin nodded, and Vivienne walked into the water, her body shimmering for a moment before the feathers receded, leaving her appearing normal and bare of clothing. Eldin turned away to give her privacy to dress.
"Was that you, or the water?" Eldin asked.
"The water," Vivienne replied. "Its effects are brief, but I can always be sure of them."
"Interesting," Eldin mused.
After a moment, Vivienne stepped up beside him, fully dressed, and they walked back to the tourney grounds together. They parted at her tent, and Eldin returned to his own, finding Guillaume waiting with Renfri and Aralyn.
"Did you learn anything?" Guillaume asked.
"Renfri, Aralyn, would you mind waiting outside?" Eldin asked. "I gave her my word."
Both nodded, stepping out of the tent, and Eldin sat, pulling a bottle of vodka from his satchel and pouring some for both himself and Guillaume.
"You'll want this," Eldin said.
Guillaume sat, and both drank, Guillaume grimacing. "So?"
"She's cursed, like you thought," Eldin said. "It's slowly transforming her into a bird, and it's progressing. Before long, she'll probably become an oriole forever."
"Gods!" Guillaume gasped. "A curse that is a worse affliction than a disease! What now? Can you help her?"
"I'll try," Eldin nodded. "There are two options for it. Neither particularly clean. Among other risks, one option could kill her instantly, or may shorten her life to at most seven years."
"What!?" Guillaume snapped. "This is not what we agreed!"
"The curse is more complicated than any I've encountered," Eldin said. "That means there's no clean way to end it. However, that's only one option. The other option she refused before I could explain, because it involves transferring the curse to a willing host who would assume it in her stead. I tried to explain that the curse would be weaker in the new host, might not have any noticeable symptoms at all, but she wouldn't hear of it. Of course, it may also have severe symptoms. The new host may also sprout feathers or may develop a compulsion to eat insects. It may also, depending on the nature of the curse, simply kill the new host, and maybe her on the way."
"I am prepared to sacrifice, give my life for her," Guillaume professed. "Just as King Vridank's knight did for the beautiful Queen Cerro."
"I know," Eldin said. "You're almost foolishly enraptured with her. But are you prepared to swallow bugs for the rest of your life?"
Guillaume hesitated, either considering or fighting back a wave of revulsion. "Yes."
"Say it," Eldin said. "Honestly. No boasting, no comparing yourself to fairy tales and legends. What is she worth to you? From the heart."
"Anything," Guillaume said genuinely. "I would sacrifice anything, do anything, for her."
Eldin nodded. "Good. I want to transfer the curse to you. It's the better option. But first, you have to convince her to allow you to bear it. And when we try, you'll have to focus on your love for her, just as you just expressed. No boasting, no fairy tales, just your honest feelings."
Guillaume nodded. "I'm ready."
"She's not," Eldin said. "I told her to consider the options while I finish the tourney. After, there's a clearing in the wood where we have to go to lift the curse, the same spot it was placed. I'll bring you there when it's time, and then you'll have to convince her to let you shoulder her burden."
Guillaume nodded. "Thank you, Witcher. Get some rest. You'll need your strength for the battles tomorrow."
"That remains to be seen," Eldin said. "I'll see you after the tourney."
Guillaume nodded and bowed out of the tent, Aralyn and Renfri entering and closing the flaps at the tent's entrance behind them. They quickly helped Eldin out of his armor, then just as quickly out of his clothes, shedding his own as he did.
"You've done a wonderful job in the tourney so far, sir knight," Aralyn smiled seductively as she spoke in a thick, sultry Toussaint accent. "Allow us to reward you."
As one, Eldin and Renfri groaned, grabbing Aralyn and throwing her onto the bed. Renfri all but attacked Aralyn's throat with her lips, her hands cupping Aralyn's breasts, and Eldin lay himself between Aralyn's legs. Aralyn moaned, a hint of the accent still present in her voice, and then still present as she begged Eldin and Renfri for more and encouraged their ministrations. Renfri and Eldin both grinned, happy to oblige and thoroughly enjoying Aralyn's willingness to play to their love of accents. By the time they'd tired themselves out enough to have to give up on their fun, it was already into the wee hours of the morning, barely a handful of hours before Eldin was expected to appear for the group combat.
Eldin deflected his opponent's blade, slamming a palm strike into his chestplate to force him back and glanced around, sighing. All of his allies were down, groaning as they lay scattered around the arena. Eldin sighed as, across from him, Palmerin smirked
"Looks like your luck's run out on this one, Witcher," Palmerin taunted as he and his four teammates surrounded Eldin.
"Seems like it," Eldin nodded. "But who knows? I may yet manage to pull it off."
One of the knights, who held a battle axe with two heads, let out a bark of laughter. "Let's finish this!"
Leave a review.