Babel's Magic-Khadgar FanFic

Blood Letting

With a huff, Khadgar moved the last of the literature to his makeshift bed side. Heavy books half the size of his own torso, scrolls as thick as his arm and manuscripts scribbled on ugly worn animal hides, Khadgar gathered his second go around of studying and sat with a plop on his rugged bed. Raising his cold hands to the flicking heat of the fire Khadgar felt a heavy tired sigh leave him as the mage looked over at the empty bed he'd made up for his traveling companion. It remained untouched for the past two hours.

The sun had set and only the spare candles and fire kept Medivh's study lit enough for the man to continue his research. Gathering his previous scribbles, Khadgar continued with his research on the subject of fel and warlocks possibly locked away in the words of these books. A small cast iron pot of stew had been pulled off the fire and sat beside it keeping it warm. His stomach hadn't settled and Khadgar lost his appetite after his unintentional confrontation with Fain. Looking through the books had provided some relief to his aching stomach but it lingered while he labored over the second set of stories and recollections of fel from times before him or even the kingdoms.

Click.

Khadgar swiveled around to the sound he heard over by the window and relief crashed over him as he saw Fain standing by the stone window. Words posing a possible argument, he licked his lips a tad nervous and spared one last look in her direction before returning to the book in his lap. By now the mage had pieced together that her spell class had some transformation traits like mages did. Khadgar himself hadn't mastered turning into a crow like many mages before him but the owl Fain's kind turned into was a peculiar adaptation he'd like to know about some day if they ever spoke again.

Soft steps barely gave her away as Fain moved over to the bed Khadgar had made her. Not going unnoticed that hers was fluffier and much more inviting that his hide pad and single woolen blanket. Khadgar watched out of the corner of his eyes as Fain moved to stand in front of the fire. Observing that she'd lost her shoes or discarded them, her feet were covered in spring dirt. Astonished when she thrusted a book into his face Khadgar was shocked to see it was his dream journal.

Scrambling to take it from her the man thumbed through the pages to see if it was what he'd been missing. Before he could speak though Fain shook her head, "I didn't take it. But I looked through it."

Crimson blush scathed his face knowing well that she must have seen his poor drawings of her. Tongue tied Khadgar's chest swelled with a breath as he tried to settle down and ran his hand over the journals face, "...then who did?" Fain's face never turned away from the fire, it flickered and deepened her features. Adding an angularity to her face that it didn't have in normal light. Khadgar watched as shadows flickered on her cheekbones, across her nose and softly kissed her lips. Suddenly realizing two nights ago he was hoping to get a kiss from the stranger before succumbing to some sort of spell, "Were you the one who cast the spell on me?"

That agitated sense fell on him again like their first interaction when he broke into her room. Shifting a little, Khadgar set the book down and made his posture friendlier if that was possible as he felt his emotions gurgling inside him making it incredibly hard to form a coherent thought. Fain dropped down to her bottom as her knees tucked up under her chin and arms wrapped around her legs. A jagged breath left her and sent a quiver through her shoulders. Timid to reach out at lay a hand on her Khadgar sat still and made no movement as he could feel distress radiating off of her.

"Fain...I..." he tried to piece something together in the hopes of quelling her unstable state but Khadgar couldn't think over the thumping in his chest.

"...I tried...I tried to do good with this wretched power, I thought I could. I thought I could be good with all this fel in me. I-" Her voice hitched and a sob choked out from her voice. Khadgar mistook her agitation for anger but quickly came to realize the woman was sobbing into her lap. Scooting closer on the edge of his cot Khadgar reached out and touched her shoulder, stunned when the normally combative female didn't even lift her head. The only sense of life to her was the shudder in her body as silent tears rolled down her cheeks and quiet cries choked her words, "I....I didn't know they'd hurt you.....I...I didn't want to be this."