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He felt the gentle embrace around him. Slender pale-skinned arms came around Osclow as he continued to drift through the strange endless space all around him. The form of a woman pressed against his back, somewhat petite but warm and comforting. The sway into the blackness brought the tips of several strands of red-colored hair into Osclow’s corner vision. With the closeness of this individual the bard felt at ease and all seemed right in the world. There was only one individual who could inspire this sensation within him.
“So, I am dreaming then.” Osclow said with a light sigh, still holding on to a somewhat playful smirk.
“Of course you are.” the voice said softly “But, this is not as fake as you make it out to be.”
Osclow said nothing and tried to hide his surprise as best he could. However, as talented as the bard was, the woman was not fooled. A playful smile laced her lips, which came but inches away from Osclow’s left ear.
“You can’t fool me. I’ve known you since we were kids, remember?”
Her voice was so soft and sweet, just as he remembered it. But that is all this was, a memory. She was not real, just a personification of how much he missed her; how much he regretted being responsible for her passing from this world. The smile was gone, replaced by pain, sorrow, and teary eyes.
“Lilia… “ Osclow spoke the woman’s name gently.
“Why do you look about ready to cry Oswilt?” Lilia asked with genuine concern accented with just a hint of playfulness with the use of his occasional nickname for him.
“Do not call me that. No one calls me that anymore.”
“I used to call you that all the time. You did not mind then. You had a rough day today and nearly died in battle. I just wanted to make you feel better is all.”
“Please stop…” a tear came free, the bard’s eyes widening as the woman’s embrace tightened and her voice grew softer.
“Think of this as a gift Osclow. You have done a great deal for many people. Do you not deserve this?”
“I deserve nothing. I have done nothing. Your daughter…”
“OUR daughter.” Lilia quickly corrected him. True Osclow was not little Tia’s father by blood but was closer to a father than anything else she ever had. “…and let me stop you there. You have done far more than you realize. You have kept our daughter happy. You strive to bring joy to all those dear to you and even to those you do not even know. You have been nothing less than the same kind-hearted, sweet man I knew all my life.”
The bard sighed. “I still have far to go, much farther to go. I am not making enough money here. I still cannot make her dreams come true.”
To this, Lilia turned him to face her. She was every bit as beautiful as Osclow remembered; a slightly round face with wide dark blue eyes like pools of deep water, easy to find himself forever lost within. Somehow seeing those thin but absolutely perfect lips move to each word spoken made them all the gentler.
“She just wants you Osclow. All she’s ever wanted is you, her father, her daddy. You’re hugs and bedtime stories are all the luxury our little girl will ever need.”
Her words felt so comforting. To hear such praise from the woman whom he loved more than life itself, surely this was a gift from the gods as she had said. Still, with comfort came guilt and pain as well. Everything Lilia said about Tia simply had to be true, yet Osclow did not feel compelled to leave these lands. He wanted nothing more than to see the face of his daughter once again, but he could not turn his back on the same people that had helped him through so much.
Hano… brother…
Tamryn, Lauan, Yashia, Sehron, Quelistyra, Nulinus, Cirion, Kathryn, Sol, Balthasar, Calandra, Snow Hawk
He could not leave them….
The bard felt so torn. He was being pulled in two directions. He yearned for both, and was practically screaming in the dark in frustration over the thought that to turn his face to his friends was to turn his back on Tia, everyone in Navil, and his good friend Fenton, who wanted nothing more than to leave Sundren.
“I cannot leave my brother… I cannot leave my friends… Even if they do not need my help, I just cannot turn away now. Why?… Why can’t I?! Oh god… why can’t I just go back home where I belong?! What’s wrong with me? Have I truly forgotten why I set out down this crazy path to begin with. All I wanted was to make our daughter happy, so why do I abandon her now dammit?!!”
Lilia gently took a hold of the bard’s chin and brought their gazes together. In the bard’s eyes, she saw apology, shame, and a river of tears about to run free. She could not bear to see him like this.
“Sweet Oswilt. Please don’t cry… don’t shed another tear. Think about all you have learned when you set off on this path. Think about all you discovered coming here. You found people that care about you, that YOU care about. You wanted not only to return to Tia a wealthy man but a better man, correct?”
Osclow simply nodded.
“Well that is exactly what is happening.” Lilia continued “You are a better man than you were before and not the type to leave things unfinished. You will return back to our daughter in just the way you wished."
Osclow nodded once again. She was right. He felt no regrets for coming to this land not because he had forgotten what he was, but was in fact becoming what he wished to become. This was what he was. This was the true Osclow. Sorrow faded from his gaze and voice and he moved forward to embrace Lilia, who was all too happy to return this gesture with equal desire.
“I love you…” the bard said “I have always loved you… and I never got a chance to tell you that.”
“I was not as clueless as you may think my love.” Her smile was so warm and angelic
Please stop blaming yourself for what happened. Whatever happened to your old ‘stand-by’ cliché?” Lilia smirked playfully, as did Osclow.
“Always keep your eyes forward.” A cliché it might have been but a lesson that served Osclow well.
“Right.. always forward. But, do not be afraid to enjoy life along the way.”
“I will not.. I promise.”
“So, I am dreaming then.” Osclow said with a light sigh, still holding on to a somewhat playful smirk.
“Of course you are.” the voice said softly “But, this is not as fake as you make it out to be.”
Osclow said nothing and tried to hide his surprise as best he could. However, as talented as the bard was, the woman was not fooled. A playful smile laced her lips, which came but inches away from Osclow’s left ear.
“You can’t fool me. I’ve known you since we were kids, remember?”
Her voice was so soft and sweet, just as he remembered it. But that is all this was, a memory. She was not real, just a personification of how much he missed her; how much he regretted being responsible for her passing from this world. The smile was gone, replaced by pain, sorrow, and teary eyes.
“Lilia… “ Osclow spoke the woman’s name gently.
“Why do you look about ready to cry Oswilt?” Lilia asked with genuine concern accented with just a hint of playfulness with the use of his occasional nickname for him.
“Do not call me that. No one calls me that anymore.”
“I used to call you that all the time. You did not mind then. You had a rough day today and nearly died in battle. I just wanted to make you feel better is all.”
“Please stop…” a tear came free, the bard’s eyes widening as the woman’s embrace tightened and her voice grew softer.
“Think of this as a gift Osclow. You have done a great deal for many people. Do you not deserve this?”
“I deserve nothing. I have done nothing. Your daughter…”
“OUR daughter.” Lilia quickly corrected him. True Osclow was not little Tia’s father by blood but was closer to a father than anything else she ever had. “…and let me stop you there. You have done far more than you realize. You have kept our daughter happy. You strive to bring joy to all those dear to you and even to those you do not even know. You have been nothing less than the same kind-hearted, sweet man I knew all my life.”
The bard sighed. “I still have far to go, much farther to go. I am not making enough money here. I still cannot make her dreams come true.”
To this, Lilia turned him to face her. She was every bit as beautiful as Osclow remembered; a slightly round face with wide dark blue eyes like pools of deep water, easy to find himself forever lost within. Somehow seeing those thin but absolutely perfect lips move to each word spoken made them all the gentler.
“She just wants you Osclow. All she’s ever wanted is you, her father, her daddy. You’re hugs and bedtime stories are all the luxury our little girl will ever need.”
Her words felt so comforting. To hear such praise from the woman whom he loved more than life itself, surely this was a gift from the gods as she had said. Still, with comfort came guilt and pain as well. Everything Lilia said about Tia simply had to be true, yet Osclow did not feel compelled to leave these lands. He wanted nothing more than to see the face of his daughter once again, but he could not turn his back on the same people that had helped him through so much.
Hano… brother…
Tamryn, Lauan, Yashia, Sehron, Quelistyra, Nulinus, Cirion, Kathryn, Sol, Balthasar, Calandra, Snow Hawk
He could not leave them….
The bard felt so torn. He was being pulled in two directions. He yearned for both, and was practically screaming in the dark in frustration over the thought that to turn his face to his friends was to turn his back on Tia, everyone in Navil, and his good friend Fenton, who wanted nothing more than to leave Sundren.
“I cannot leave my brother… I cannot leave my friends… Even if they do not need my help, I just cannot turn away now. Why?… Why can’t I?! Oh god… why can’t I just go back home where I belong?! What’s wrong with me? Have I truly forgotten why I set out down this crazy path to begin with. All I wanted was to make our daughter happy, so why do I abandon her now dammit?!!”
Lilia gently took a hold of the bard’s chin and brought their gazes together. In the bard’s eyes, she saw apology, shame, and a river of tears about to run free. She could not bear to see him like this.
“Sweet Oswilt. Please don’t cry… don’t shed another tear. Think about all you have learned when you set off on this path. Think about all you discovered coming here. You found people that care about you, that YOU care about. You wanted not only to return to Tia a wealthy man but a better man, correct?”
Osclow simply nodded.
“Well that is exactly what is happening.” Lilia continued “You are a better man than you were before and not the type to leave things unfinished. You will return back to our daughter in just the way you wished."
Osclow nodded once again. She was right. He felt no regrets for coming to this land not because he had forgotten what he was, but was in fact becoming what he wished to become. This was what he was. This was the true Osclow. Sorrow faded from his gaze and voice and he moved forward to embrace Lilia, who was all too happy to return this gesture with equal desire.
“I love you…” the bard said “I have always loved you… and I never got a chance to tell you that.”
“I was not as clueless as you may think my love.” Her smile was so warm and angelic
Please stop blaming yourself for what happened. Whatever happened to your old ‘stand-by’ cliché?” Lilia smirked playfully, as did Osclow.
“Always keep your eyes forward.” A cliché it might have been but a lesson that served Osclow well.
“Right.. always forward. But, do not be afraid to enjoy life along the way.”
“I will not.. I promise.”