Date: Mon, 29 Jun 1998 18:10:29 -0700 Subject: [ffml] Re: [MW] The Heroes Part From: "Beth Davis" > "Lady, I think you are keeping things from me," said Bacca softly. > He stood up and crossed to the cot and sat down next to her. Taking her in > his arms, Bacca held onto Lady. > "Will you tell me what is wrong?" > Lady Paladin felt guilt gnaw at her stomach. She silently averted her gaze from Bacca's pleading eyes. Staring at the floor of the tent, her fingers softly caressed Bacca's hands. "Of course I will tell you," the white wizard said, her voice unsteady. Bacca reached a hand up and turned her face towards his. "I am here for you. Tell me," he urged. "I...am a dreamseer." Seeing no reaction on Bacca's face, Lady Paladin realized that her explanation was quite insufficient. "My whole life, I have had dreams that could foretell the future. I suppose some people would call me a blessed prophetess, but I consider it more of a curse." Her voice became bitter, and her shoulders slumped. "I have recorded every one of my 357 outcomes for this war, plus a few outright nightmares that connect to the war in one way or another. Most of these have taken place since leaving the Dark Lord's Keep." "So, how much sleep have you had lately?" he asked, his gaze unwavering. The master healer shrugged. "A few hours each night. I manage to sleep a few hours, then once I hit the first REM phase, I soon wake up in terror. It takes about 5 hours to fully recover and record the dream, and then when I try to sleep again, I receive the next nightmare. It was a seemingly unending cycle, but the dreams haven't been as bad since Crystal Peak." Her lip trembled at the memory of her nightmarish nights. Bacca gave her a tight embrace and a light kiss on the lips. Running his hands through her long blonde hair in an attempt to soothe her, he said, "So, that is what you've been hiding from me." His tone was soft, not accusing as Lady Paladin feared it would be. "But why couldn't you tell me?" She stiffened. "And what purpose would that serve? You're heading a massive army in a war that determines the outcome of all humanity. It would have been very selfish of me to distract you in the slightest way." "Did it ever occur to you that my worrying over you was a distraction, anyway?" he chided. "Of course it did!" she said with a weary sigh, hugging him fiercely. "But can you rest any easier with this knowledge? The Elder of Mysidia is the only other person who knows of my...gift, and even he said that he is thankful that he is not a dreamseer. And I didn't know how you would react to it." Lady Paladin closed her brown eyes and simply leaned against Bacca's strong shoulder, so very relieved to have the truth out. Lady Paladin or the army. She had been afraid to tell him for fear of distracting him from his highest priority, the war effort. Bacca sighed, his hand still stroking her hair. If only things could be simple, and not conflict each other. "It will be okay," said the warrior, "It can't be helped that you're a dreamseer. And at least the nightmares aren't as bad now," he pointed out, trying to find the positives in the situation. "I know. That's true." The white wizard pulled back and smiled at him. "I'm starting to get more sleep now, so hopefully I'll be back to my old self soon. I was keeping myself awake with huge doses of caffeine and some minor stamina spells, but now I won't have to do that anymore." She gave a wide grin, looking more like a child who had just received a new toy than a newly-proclaimed master of white wizardry. Lady Paladin was wearing her traditional white robes again now that she had mastered her art. With the burden of secrecy off her shoulders, the healer seemed more vibrant and alive; in Bacca's eyes, she seemed much more back to herself already. Bacca felt secure in Lady's arms, and his concerns for the war seemed to vanish. How long had it been since they had gotten to spend this much time together, alone? They had been able to spend some time together before they had headed through the tunnel to Crystal Peak, but not much. It hadn't been since Dark Lord's Keep that they had simply been able to sit and talk like this. He smiled in contentment.