The Flower of Life and Death

𖤓 8 𖤓 Rising from the ashes

As so often Katherine wandered through the woods searching for herbs. She hummed a folk song her mother used to hum while strolling thoughtlessly through some bushes. She listened to the leaves rustling in the wind and the animals living peacefully. Until suddenly something disturbed the peaceful silence. It was a groan that made one nearly feel the pain the groaning one must have been having. It was an animalistic sound so raw it made her shake.

Without thinking Katherine slowly walked towards the groaning. She picked up her paste the closer she got until she was running. The groaning got less loud as if the one was losing the power to groan, as if the one was losing his life. As she came rather close she found a blood trail which she followed.

Katherine found a man leaning against a tree. His wounds were even more severe than his blood loss. She quickly picked some herbs to stabilise him at least for the time being. While supporting him they slowly walked to the shed in the woods she was living in.

As soon as they arrived Katherine placed the man on the table where Marisol used to treat her patients. She took some of the herb mixtures stored in the shelf next to the table. She looked after his wounds and dressed them before laying him on the table and covering him with a blanket.

Katherine spent her night sitting next to the man changing his bandages and dabbing the sweat from his forehead. In the morning she was so tired and he had at least stopped shaking and sweating so she decided to get some sleep.

When Katherine woke up it was already early afternoon when she one again sat next to the table the man was lying on. And again the spent the rest of the day and the whole night caring for him. At dawn she went to her bed and to sleep.

Katherine woke up only to once again spent the day caring for the man. When the sun was setting he started to mumble things. She heard them but she did not understand since they made no sense to her. In the middle of the night she decided the man was doing better, good enough for her to get some sleep.

In the late morning Katherine woke up and noticed someone staring at her intensely. As she turned she saw the man on the table was awake and had his head turned towards her. His stare had something deeply penetrating but it might just be his incredibly dark irises. She slowly got up and walked towards him.

The man watched her just as closely as she watched him. He was broad shouldered and muscular. Even though his clothes were torn and dirty they clearly used to be black. His face was angular and his hair pitch black. Over all he looked a war god and Alexandra knew without a doubt that he was a warrior.

Alexandra wore a white flowing dress that complimented her fair skin which is a result of spending much time in the shadow of the woods. Her brown hair is in a half up-do and the rest flowed in waves over her shoulders to the middle of her back. Her cheeks glowed rosy just like her lips and her brown eyes and her freckles reminded him of a deer.

Neither of them talked as she changed his bandages. After she was done he attempted to get up but she had other plans and held him down. Katherine tilted her head, "You will only reopen your wounds if you move now." Sighing the man seemed to have accepted his fate as he laid down again.

Katherine didn't show but she was surprised that he gave in so easily. He just did not feel like fighting at least not now and not with her. Her whole being was just so peaceful and calm it made him feel funny. The man could not say what it made him feel but it was definitely something and something strong.

They both scrutinised each other until she sat down on the bench next to the table he was lying on and demanded to know, "What happened?" "I do not want to talk about it", he had turned his head to face the ceiling and stared at it. Patiently she asked, "Who are you?" "Where am I?", the man asked in return. Instead of responding she kept being patient, "Where did you come from?" "Who are you?", he screwed up his eyes.

Neither of them answered a question or spoke at all. Silently Katherine prepared some food for the both of them. She placed both plates on the bank before helping the man up so he could sit on the table. She handed him a plate and sat down on the bank holding the other plate. They ate in utter silence. After both had finished their food he handed her the plate with the words, "It was good, thank you."

She just nodded and washed the dishes before sitting back down on the bank. Katherine sighed and leaned back smirking, "We will not get anywhere like this. Why do not we just answer each other's questions?" "You answer first", the man screwed up his eyes again. She tilted her head smiling, "I saved your life and you are in my house, you answer first."

He clicked his tongue submitting, "I can see your point. Fine, I will answer first." "Who are you?", her smile grew recognising that she won. For a moment the man hesitated to answer but then he responded, "A mercenary. Who are you?" "A girl living in a shed in the woods. Where do you come from?", Katherine was obviously intrigued by the man and stood up from the bank now standing right in front of the man.

The man avoided looking at her at first but then he shrugged his shoulders, "I lived with my family in the capital. Where do you come from?" "I'm from the village nearby. But I've never felt at home there and nobody wanted be to be there anyways. How did you end up here?", when Katherine spoke of the village she was the one avoiding eye contact but the pain in her eyes was obvious.

Somehow this question seemed to be the easiest to answer for the man, "I had an assignment that went terribly wrong and I had to flee badly wounded in order to survive. How did you end up here?" "I decided to live with Melissa, a healer who lived in this shed and taught me to be a healer until she passed not even a year ago. How did you end up as a mercenary?", Katherine's eyes got watery as she mentioned Melissa. While speaking of Melissa the man took her hand and they just faced each other holding hands spending each other comfort and strength.

The man struggled to find the right words to say but the look in his eyes spoke volumes, "When I was just a boy I was sent to war and I lost all hope in humanity. ... That's why I became a mercenary. How did you end up living so far from anyone else?" "I have always liked the woods, felt at home there. I was picking some herbs in the woods but when I returned to the village my home was burned down with my whole family trapped inside of it. The village accused me of being responsible of what happened. What is your name?", Katherine's voice was shaking at first but became rather cold during the last sentence.

The man slowly pulled a bit back, "Names are powerful, do you know that?" "I know", Katherine didn't move an inch as he leaned forwards and therefore closer to her. When they looked at each other they realised that even though they could not be more different they might just be the same. The man started smiling as he finally answered, "Orpheus Lakaris." "Katherine Depuis", she smiled at him as well.

Even though they were strangers neither could deny the connection they had instantly felt.

Something about the other intrigued them.