The great hall of Kaer Morhen felt warmer than usual. Not because the winter had loosened its grip, if anything, the cold pressed harder against the ancient walls, but because every torch had been lit, and the hearth burned high, crackling with a steady, comforting flames.
No one had retreated to their corners, they stayed, waiting.
Two beds had been dragged closer to the fire, their rough frames creaking faintly whenever someone shifted nearby. On one lay Sebastian, still, unmoving, his usually shining presence reduced to silence.
On the other, a small movement.
Ciri woke up, her fingers twitched first, curling weakly against the wool blanket. Then her brow tightened, breath hitching slightly before her eyes finally opened.
At first, there was nothing but confusion.
Blurred light. Warmth. Shadows shifting against the ceiling.
Then she slowly realized, the familiar Kaer Morhen pressing gently around her.
She blinked, slower this time, turning her head slightly as shapes came into focus, figures standing nearby, watching.
"…Uncle Vesemir…?"
Her voice was hoarse. Small.
Vesemir stepped closer immediately, the stiffness in his posture softening as he reached out, placing a steady hand on her shoulder.
"When did we..."
"Easy now," he said quietly, firm but gentle. "Lay down. You're still weak."
There was no argument in her.
She sank back into the bed, the effort of speaking alone seeming to weigh on her. But her eyes didn't rest. They moved, searching.
Counting and looking for something.
Someone.
And then
Her breath caught.
"Seb…!"
The word came sharper this time, panic slipping through before she could stop it.
"Where is.. is he…?"
Vesemir didn't hesitate.
"He's here," he said, nodding slightly toward the other bed. "Alive."
Ciri's gaze snapped toward Sebastian.
Still and unmoving, something in her chest tightened painfully.
"He hasn't woken yet," Vesemir continued, his voice lowering, more serious now. "What he endured… I've never seen something like it. The kind of magic that tears, crushes, burns from within, yet he stood against it."
"Somehow… he endured. He will wake. In time."
Ciri stared at him, her vision blurring.
"I saw him…" she whispered, her voice breaking under the weight of memory. "He... I thought he..."
Her fingers clenched weakly into the blanket.
"And now he's like this… because of me…"
The words barely made it out.
Geralt, who had been standing nearby with his arms crossed, shifted slightly. His gaze moved from Sebastian to Ciri.
"It's enough," he said, voice calm and grounding. "You're both alive."
A small pause.
"That's what matters. The rest… we'll deal with later."
Ciri swallowed, but the guilt didn't leave her face.
Vesemir straightened slightly, his hand still resting on her shoulder.
"You carry power, child," he said, measured, thoughtful. "More than most could ever hope to wield. But power like that… demands control."
Lambert, leaning against one of the stone pillars, shifted awkwardly before speaking.
"Yeah… about that," he muttered. "That mountainside? It's... well, it's not a mountainside anymore."
Eskel shot him a look immediately.
"Lambert..."
"…Right," Lambert exhaled, rubbing the back of his neck. "Bad timing. Sorry, Ciri."
Ciri didn't respond.
Her eyes hadn't left Sebastian.
"It was my fault," she said again, softer now. "I followed them… and he... he kept protecting me, even when it was hurting him…"
Geralt uncrossed his arms.
He stepped closer, just enough for his presence to be felt.
"That's what we do," he said simply.
Ciri's eyes shifted slightly toward him.
"He cares about you," Geralt continued. "About all of us."
A beat.
"We're not just passing through each other's lives here. We stay. We fight for one another."
His voice didn't rise. Didn't need to.
"Out there the path of a Witcher might be a lonely journey, but here, we're a family."
The words lingered in her mind,
"And anyone here would've done the same."
Ciri's lips trembled slightly, her eyes glassy.
Eskel stepped forward next, his tone more subdued than usual.
"That one's on me too," he admitted. "Didn't think the forktail would have a mate nearby. Should've."
He exhaled slowly.
"Mistakes like that… get people killed. This time, it nearly got you both."
Vesemir nodded faintly.
"You shouldn't have followed them," he said, not unkindly. "That much is true."
Then, after a pause,
"But we should have told you more."
Ciri looked up at him.
"Sebastian…" Vesemir continued, glancing briefly toward the unconscious boy. "He is not like us. Steel and claws won't take him easily. Only magic… or silver… truly threaten him."
A faint narrowing of his eyes.
"And even then… he proves difficult to kill... We've trained him well."
Geralt huffed quietly.
"He'll explain it himself," he said. "When he wakes."
Ciri's gaze softened slightly as she looked back at Sebastian.
For a moment, the room was quiet again.
Only the fire crackling and the faint whistle of wind beyond the walls.
She slowly nodded, her strength fading once more as she settled deeper into the bed.
"…thank you," she murmured, her voice barely above a whisper. "All of you… truly."
****
3 DAYS LATER -
The great hall was quieter than it had been in days. The fire had burned down to a low glow, and on one of the beds drawn close to that warmth..
Sebastian finally opened his eyes. At first, it was nothing more than a faint tightening of his brow. Then a slow breath, deeper than the ones before it. His fingers twitched against the rough wool of the blanket,
Then his eyes opened.
For a moment, they didn't focus.
"tch…"
A quiet sound escaped him as he shifted slightly, and immediately regretted it.
Pain flared.
A deep, lingering ache that seemed to sit behind his eyes, pressing outward.
His hand came up instinctively, fingers brushing against something wrapped around his head.
Bandages.
Sebastian frowned faintly, blinking more steadily now as awareness returned in fragments.
"…what…"
His voice was rough,
He lifted his hand in front of his face, turning it slightly, watching the way his fingers moved. Slower than usual.
"…for how long have I been out like this…"
The words came more to himself than anything else.
He exhaled slowly, letting his hand fall, and that's when he noticed.
A weight. Light, resting against the edge of the bed.
His gaze shifted.
Ciri.
Curled slightly where she sat beside him, her head resting against the mattress near his arm. Strands of her ashen hair had slipped loose, catching the dim light. She looked like she been like this for some time, exhaustion written plainly across her features, even in sleep.
Sebastian stared at her for a moment.
Something softened in his expression.
"…Ciri?"
His voice was quieter now.
Careful, her brow twitched faintly.
Then she woke up, shifting slightly before lifting her head.
For a moment, she just looked at him eyes unfocused, caught somewhere between sleep and waking.
Then it clicked.
Her eyes widened.
"Seb?!"
The word broke out of her, sharp and bright.
"You're awake!"
She didn't wait, she practically threw herself forward, arms wrapping around him tightly.
Sebastian barely had time to react before the movement sent a spike of pain through him.
"Ow.. Alright! Easy.. I'm still kind of.."
He didn't get to finish.
Because he felt it.
The way her grip tightened.
The way her shoulders shook.
"…I'm sorry…"
Her voice broke against him, muffled, uneven.
"I.. I thought, I almost…"
She couldn't finish it, the words tangled somewhere between fear and guilt, collapsing into trembling breaths against his shoulder.
Sebastian just remained frozen for a moment.
Then, slowly, one hand came up, resting against her back.
"Hey…"
His voice was softer now.
"Knock it off."
There was a faint hint of a smile in it.
"I'm not that easy to kill."
His hand moved slightly, a light, reassuring pat against her back.
"If anything…" he added, teasing, "I'm still a hundred times stronger than you are."
"Even with that terrifying magic of yours."
There it was.
A breath, shaky and uneven,
Then a small, broken laugh slipped out of her, muffled against him.
Sebastian huffed quietly, wincing faintly as he shifted again.
"So don't you worry, I'm fine."
Ciri pulled back slightly, just enough to look at him properly. Her eyes were still wet, red at the edges, but brighter now. Alive in a way they hadn't been before.
"You scared me," she said, quieter this time.
He met her gaze.
"…yeah," he admitted. "About that, I'm kind of made of fire so..."
A brief silence settled between them.
Then, after a moment, he tilted his head slightly, studying her.
"You've been here the whole time, haven't you?"
Ciri hesitated, just for a second before she looked away. "…Maybe."
Sebastian let out a quiet breath,"Stubborn."
"Learned from the best," she shot back,
He smirked faintly. "Must've been Geralt, then. Because that's definitely not me."
/-\
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