a moment together - ronance

loved you in secret

Prompt: Nancy is gathering herbs in the forest near her cottage when she stumbles upon an injured Knight. Worried, she takes the knight home and heals her. The two find love on the moors.

Nancy sighed happily. The sun was shining through the fluffy clouds, leaving golden light trailing through the forest canopy. She tugged the hood of her cloak off and let the warm light beam down on her. She knew she should focus on gathering the herbs and flowers she was running low on, but the day was too nice to waste.

She turned off the dirt path and onto a trail that led to a hidden spring. Frogs leapt from the lily pads they sat on and into the water. A fox peaked out from behind a rock. Nancy settled on the soft ground and trailed her fingers in the water. The ripples reflected the sunlight and settled on an image. Nancy had no idea why this particular woman showed up every time she looked into the pool. She had never met the surly knight with brown hair and blue eyes before. Nancy had watched the knight spar and train, sometimes get wounded. Once, she even saw a glimpse of the woman in bed, lying with another woman. Nancy had blushed and quickly scattered the image back to the depths of the pond.

This time, the knight seemed to be slumped over their horse, holding their ribcage with one arm and the reins with the other. Nancy tried to see how badly wounded she was, but the dark clothes concealed much of the blood and wound. Nancy watched as the knight's shoulders hunched lower and she sagged into the saddle. Time ticked by and the image eventually vanished on it own. Nancy was worried for her mysterious woman, but knew there wasn't much she could do when she didn't even know where to begin searching for her.

Sighing, Nancy stood and brushed the leaves from her breeches and shook out her cloak. She checked the sky and realized the sun had already crested and it was well into the afternoon. She would have to hurry to gather what she needed to restock her supplies. Nancy wove her way through the familiar section of forest and picked the easier items first. A small spot near the rabbit warren grew two varieties of wolfsbane. The fairy circle was full of mushrooms and even some turkey tail, which she needed to replenish some of her medicinal salves.

She would have to come back the next day to finish. She still needed mistletoe and she didn't want to climb the oak trees in the dark. Nancy tucked her knife away and stored her clippings in various pockets. Hurriedly, she walked back to the dirt path that would lead back to the moors and her cottage. She came out farther down the path than she thought she had been. The shadows always made the trees shift in their spots.

Nancy had barely taken three steps when she heard a low groan. Her hand went to her knife on her belt. It wouldn't do much, but hopefully she could fend off a would be attacker long enough to get some distance between them. Her eyes darted along the ground and scanned the foliage. Under a bush, she saw dark boots sticking out.

"Are you injured?" Nancy edged closer, fingers tightening on the handle of her knife. "Hello. Are you injured?"

Still not getting a response, Nancy nudged the boot with her own. Cautiously, she pulled the branches of the bush back, apologizing to it for any disturbance she may have caused. She nearly let the branches go when she saw the woman from the reflecting pool laying there unconscious. She kneeled down and placed her hand beneath the knights nose. Nancy let out a breath of relief when she felt warm arm hit her hand.

She pulled back the dark tunic and saw a large wound slashed across the woman's side. Nancy knew that she wouldn't survive the night. The knight had lost too much blood and it was still seeping out in dark rivulets. Quickly, she walked back to the trees and felt their bark for moss. Finding a large patch on one, she slid her blade behind it and removed it in one piece. With a bit of water from her canteen, she cleaned the wound and pressed the moss to it. Nancy tore the bottom of the woman's tunic and used it to tie the makeshift poultice in place.