Hestra stooped to where he lay upon the ground, and he crawled towards her. He wordlessly took her into his arms and embraced her. Hestra nearly cried out in pain from the sheer force with which he clung to her. He was shaking, and he held her as though he never intended to let her go. A moment passed, then more, and when he finally released her, he cupped her face with both of his hands and observed her face intently. As though he were attempting to commit her face to memory, much as she had done the day before. Hestra held his loving gaze, and an understanding passed between them. There was so much they wanted to communicate with one another; the air was thick with words they left unsaid. Hestra smiled; for the first time, Hestra found that she did not shiver at his touch; in fact, his hands felt warm, and comforting. He looked deeply into her eyes and took a sharp breath as his thumbs caressed her cheeks.
He then turned to face the others. He followed their gaze back to Hestra, who stood half-bare in the moonlight. He struggled, limping to his feet. "By the gods, why are you all staring at her like that? Have some decency." He removed his outer coat and placed it gently around Hestra's shoulders, surely staining it with the deadmen's blood. Halsin was the first to break the silence, letting out a deep breath. "I'm very glad to see you, little healer; I just wasn't expecting you to be... quite so.." He trailed off, and Hestra filled the silence. "Alive?" She offered. "Murderous. " He responded with a chuckle. "It was quite unlike you, quite jarring to see." Hestra smiled, "I did not kill them, not a single one. I merely took enough blood to induce loss of consciousness." This seemed to put the party more at ease. "Of course you did, little healer. Of course, you did." He grinned. Hestra turned once more to Astarion. He was the only one who knew the answer to the question she dreaded. Only he could tell her the awful truth that she feared. "What...what happened to me?" She asked. The companions fell silent. Not one answered her. Hestra tried desperately to remember what could have transpired in between her last moments till now. She had died in Astation's arms, that much she knew. He stood beside her, but would not meet her eyes. Understanding, as terrible and unwelcome as a storm, dawned upon her as she took in the whole of his meaning. "Astarion, you didn't." Hestra whispered. She could deny it no longer. He had turned her. Hestra, the healer stood now in the light of the moon a vampire spawn. He would not meet her eyes, and that was all the confirmation that she needed. "I couldn't let you die; please understand, I only did what I could. The others took too long. You did Hestra, you died, and I watched you die. I had to bring you back. The only way I knew how." Hestra knew what he said to be true; and she fully understood why he had done what he did. He looked at her with such pleading, but she could not bring herself to meet his gaze. "I was content to die on that road. I wish you had let me."
Hestra turned and ran. She ran swifter than her feet had ever carried her before. She was aware of the fact that Astarion was following her, the only member of the party who was capable of such a feat. Even in his wounded state, he followed. Calling after her. It began to rain. Puddles began to form in the earth, and Hestra's feet began to splash and slip as her footing grew unsteady. She tripped, falling forward into the mud. In the expanding puddles beneath her, Hestra peered silently into the nothingness of the water. It reflected everything but her. Astarion approached her from behind, slowly and cautiously as though she were a wild beast and liable to strike were he to make even the slightest of movements too fastly. "Hestra, please, do not run from me." Hestra stood and walked towards him. "Little Dove." She greeted him. She was not angry with him, if the roles had been reversed, she knew fully well that she would have done the same. She was tired. So exceptionally tired. She had saved the others, and they lived, that was all that mattered to her. Her work was done, and she was content to let it end there. Astarion took her by the shoulders, attempting to lead her back to the group where they remained. "It will be morning soon, and you must take cover from the sun, darling." Hestra remained steadfast and unmoving. "I do not fear the sun, little dove." Astarion huffed at her, "You don't understand, you're a spawn now, Darling and you're fresh, you're...sensitive. To face the sun is to die." Hestra smiled. "I am tired, Astarion. I have died once, I do not fear facing death again. I want to rest." Astarion's arms lowered to her arms as he attempted to drag her. "Hestra, please!" He yelled. As though her obstinance pained him. "I watched you die once, I cannot-I will not watch you die again!" Hestra resisted with a strength she had never known before. Wounded as he was, he could not overpower her. He sunk to his knees and pleaded with her. "Hestra... please, don't do this. Don't make me watch you die again." Hestra ran her fingers through his hair. She said nothing, for what could she say? That she could not live like this? As he did? That she was exhausted? Words failed to come to her. From where she sat, she could begin to see the first rays of golden dawn peaking through the tree line. She knelt to face him. She recited her last words to him once more."You will find the freedom you seek, and all will be well, little dove." She lifted the coat from her shoulders and placed it gently around his. She kissed him gently, and only once. Tears began to well in the corner of his eyes. "Hestra, I..." As he spoke, her skin began to rise and peel. She was gone before he could finish, but Hestra knew what he would have said. She knew because she felt the same. Hestra the Healer died for a second time facing the dawn, a creature drenched with rainwater, soaked in blood and mud. Hestra died for a second time, smiling, glad to have died so tenderly loved.
