Episode 198 What We Fight For
What We Fight For
Tharios has held plenty of new elflings at the healing center, but when Mother gently places Nestial in his arms in the arena, his heart beats a little faster.
Soon, it will be his own elfling he holds, and the thought fills him with so many varying emotions.
Joy. Longing.
Fear.
Nestial is so tiny. So light. So in need of protecting.
The weight of being the one to carry that burden for a whole new person is daunting, yet Tharios feels a tug to protect this little one in his arms. It’s instinctual and undeniable.
And she’s the daughter of his mentor. His friend.
How much stronger will that feeling be when Tharios holds his own elfling?
Viala rests her head against Tharios’s shoulder as she smiles at Nestial’s sweet little face. “I could get used to this,” she whispers, and his smile grows.
“Would you like to hold her?”
“I’ve never held a baby,” she says in quiet Lothlesian, and he looks at her in surprise.
Perhaps he shouldn’t be surprised, though. Her siblings are so much older than she is. She has nieces and nephews born before she was.
Longing mixes with hesitancy in her eyes, and he smiles softly. “Then you definitely need to hold her. Support her head, all right?”
He carefully places Nestial in Viala’s arms, and as he looks at them together, something tightens in his chest.
This woman he adores will be the mother of his own elflings. The one to hold them when they need comfort. To protect them when they’re scared. To push them to be the best versions of themselves.
And how lucky they’ll be to have her.
How lucky he is to have her.
Whether it was fate or chance that brought them together, he can’t imagine spending his life with anyone else.
“Like what you see, elf prince?” she teases, and he grins.
“You have no idea, faerie.”
When Rafelis approaches him, Tharios turns.
“How are you holding up?” Rafelis asks, and thoughts of Valethan and everything they face intrude on Tharios again.
“Someone may have held me while my eyes watered earlier,” Tharios admits. “But I’ll be all right.”
Rafelis grips his shoulder. “Never grow hardened to the pain, Tharios. Feel it and let it shape your heart for your people. Even when it’s hard.”
Tharios nods.
“You’ll be a good father,” Rafelis adds near Tharios’s ear, and Tharios smiles.
“Thank you for keeping our secret.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Rafelis winks before turning serious again. “I spoke to Valethan before he left the barracks and returned to his daughter. He wished for me to give you this.”
Rafelis pulls a folded paper from his pocket and hands it to Tharios.
“What is it?”
“You’ll have to read it and see. You did well today. I’m proud of you.” Rafelis squeezes his shoulder again before Viala returns Nestial to her father, and Tharios stares down at the folded paper.
He should probably read it.
With heavy steps, he walks a short distance from the others and carefully unfolds the single page before scanning the words.
My prince,
Risial used to tell me that there is always light, even when it seems dark.
I lost sight of that, but today, you reminded me. And you reminded me that the world I want for my daughter is worth fighting for, even when hope is hard to find.
If you ever wish for a Fressenia to stand by your side, send for me, and I will come.
May the stars shine ever on the gift of new life the fates have seen fit to bestow upon you.
Until we meet again,
Valethan Fressenia
Tharios reads the words and reads them again.
When an arm slips around him, he rests his cheek on Viala’s hair.
“Find the light, Tharios. Even if you need to create it yourself,” she says softly after glancing over the page. She’s getting better at deciphering written Elvish.
He folds the note and stuffs it in his pocket before pulling her to his chest. What would he do without her?
Hopefully, it’s a question he’ll never need to answer.
Is this aching he feels at the thought of losing her what she endures when she considers a future without him?
He tightens his hold on her. No wonder she longs for a heartbinding with such passion.
She does everything with passion.
“I will fight for you,” he says softly. “Whatever it takes to convince your father to let me bind my heart to yours. I won’t give up.”
Her breath catches, and she clings to him.
For a few minutes, they stand there together, not speaking. Are there even words to convey how he feels about this faerie who walked into his life and upended it completely before stealing his heart and never letting go?
Perhaps words aren’t necessary.
When he eventually loosens his hold on her, she finds his lips in a gentle kiss.
A kiss to convey everything for which words simply don’t exist. Ideas of need and longing.
Of promises against a backdrop of forever.
Of light and darkness and everything in between. Of yesterdays and todays and tomorrows.
As many tomorrows as life will grant them.
The kiss ends, though the warmth remains, and Tharios drapes his arm over Viala’s shoulders as they turn back to the others.
They watch from the sidelines, and a smile finds Tharios as Jonas steals Nestial from Taliel’s arms.
“I was not finished holding her,” Taliel says, and Tharios quietly translates her words into Lothlesian.
Jonas shrugs. “She wanted her Uncle Jonas. She likes me.”
Taliel’s lips twitch as she fights a smile, but the warmth that fills her eyes as she looks at Jonas is unmistakable.
Jonas holds Nestial like it’s second nature to him, and Tharios’s smile grows at the sight.
“It must be all those nieces and nephews he has,” he whispers to Viala.
“Someday, it will be an elfling of his own. I am certain of it.”
Tharios takes in the obvious affection flowing between Taliel and Jonas. “I’m pretty sure you’re right.”
“Of course I’m right, elf prince. Have you ever seen him so happy?”
“Do you wonder if perhaps two souls are destined for each other, and we’re simply tools in the hands of fate to help their story unfold? Even when it’s the mistakes that shatter us in the moment that lead to something beautiful in the end?”
“Look at your parents, Tharios. Your father carries a scar above his heart as evidence of a mistake that led to one of the greatest loves I’ve had the privilege of witnessing. How could I not believe?”
Tharios lets his eyes drift to his parents. They look happy and content despite the dangers facing them.
They face them together.
“This is joy, Tharios. Light. It’s all around us. It’s what we fight for. What we survive for. What we hold on to even when our grip is slipping. Cling to the light, my love.”
“You believe I should let my guilt about Taliel and Jonas go.”
It isn’t a question. He already knows the answer.
“Yes, my love. We learn from our mistakes. We try to make things right when our actions harm others. And then we do our best to let the regrets go. Taliel and Jonas are happy. Be happy with them, and let it all unfold into something more beautiful than we ever could have imagined.”
Tharios squeezes Viala’s shoulders. “I adore you, faerie. I’m pretty sure my love for you grows stronger every day.”
He presses his lips to her ear, and she smiles at the touch.
“Now, I’m going to check on Cerian,” Tharios whispers. “I’m betting he’s finally decided he wants a tattoo as well, and it’s an older brother’s sacred duty to oversee such a monumental event.”
Viala chuckles at that, and Tharios steals one last kiss before letting her go.
“Always taking care of everyone,” Viala says, and Tharios lifts a shoulder in a half-shrug.
“It’s who I am.”
“And I wouldn’t have it any other way.”