Growing up, tales of immense expanses of water, deep, salty and mesmerizing, that stretched endlessly, perhaps to other lands, were a constant source of astonishment to the little girl. Peter had said that if you didn't know how to swim, you drown.

"What does it mean to drown?" A mouth that was missing a couple of teeth was pulled down into a confused frown as the child inquired. Peter had cleared his throat, masking his slight shock as his kid decided to ask about that when she didn't even know what swimming was. His girl had always been slightly strange with her questions and interests.

"It is to get soaked so much with water that you drift infinitely, sweetheart, without ever coming back to your mother and father."

"Oh..." Tears welled up in her eyes. "That is scary!"

Alyviah has never seen the sea. However, she was certain that if her life was one, she would be drowning right now because it surely felt like it.

Heavy eyelids fluttered open, the memory pulling her out of an unintentional nap. A rugged breath sliced through the silence surrounding her. Shuffling around, her eyes roamed around until she came to the conclusion that the chilly tent was empty aside from her.

A sigh left her dry lips as she made her way out, careful not to make any sound. How long did this nap last? All she remembered was wrapping the cloak tight around her body, turning her back to Thaddeus and curling in a ball in an attempt to stop herself from shaking as silent sobs emanated. It seemed her body sought the calmness sleep offered.

Alyviah could pick up some quiet words being muttered somewhere nearby. Stilling by the entrance, her ears strained to understand what was being said.

"It took forever even with the shifters, Thaddeus. The trees kept changing, confusing and eluding us. It was such a pain to find it and by the time we arrived, the shabby cabin was mere ashes." Her heart stumbled over its own strings.

"Were there anyone? What about the fire?" The steadiness of his voice reminded her of how inexperienced in life she was, as weird as that was.

"No traces, boss. I know, so fucking unbelievable. It was as if no harm has befallen the forest and no one has stepped foot in it."

"The parents?" Alyviah slid down slowly, knees buckling and connecting with cold unforgiving soil, a hand cupping her gaping mouth and the other tightening around the blue fabric shielding her.

"Only the mother, buried deep under the shambles and yes she is alive, barely but alive." A heavy exhale stopped their conversation.

"Tend to her. We'll resume our conversation later, Andric." A curt nod was his response before he marched back to the others. "It is rude to eavesdrop, my lady."

Thaddeus didn't move from his spot, and neither did she. "Take me to my mother, please." The feeble plea nearly crushed his heart, spurring memories from many years ago to spring up through his mind, almost choking him. The pain was still as raw as ever no matter how much he pretended it was long gone.

When he spoke, his voice was thick with unfathomable emotions. "Very well, then. Follow me."

It was starting to darken, the sun setting and messily spilling various colors all over the sky as if it had enough and couldn't wait to call it a day. The further they progressed to their destination, their surroundings changed, ranging from scattered tents, smaller than the one she was in, sleepy horses and rowdy warriors, their shields and weapons loitering the ground, to strong flickering flames, rusty pots and a tiny purring string of water that sparkled under the timid, pale moonlight.

Alyviah shivered, the cold breeze teasing the cloak and tickling her whole but getting dismissed as her mind, heart and soul were momentarily bewitched by the scenery.

However, that didn't push the suffocating anxiety coursing through her as each step felt heavier than the one preceding it. An eternity passed before Thaddeus came to a sudden stop in front of an open place that resembled a tent but only the top was covered with a similar fabric draped over and fastened around long and sturdy logs. Her heart lurched, slamming against a rapidly moving ribcage.

"Oh, mother!" Alyviah dropped to her scraped knees, her teeth chattering, red surrounding amber as tears brimmed her eyes. Davette was not a sight for the faint hearts as she lay over a makeshift bed of layers of linen placed atop each other to support different weights. "What have I done?" A soft sob emitted and trembling hands hesitantly sought a spot that could be deemed safe to touch.

An outburst of gritty coughs erupted, scaring Alyviah's tears away, pained groans following. The girl shot endless questions at her mother, rambling unintelligibly. "Hush, Aly. My head," another set of coughs interrupted the mother's gruff whisper, "it hurts."

"Forgive me, mother." And so, Alyviah sat there silently like the obedient child she rarely was and simply watched as a couple of other women doted over her mother, doing their best to apply a variety of ointments to multiple bruises, cuts and burns.

Davette's hair, or what remained of it, the one she had been raving on about for years, was sticky, ashen and sparse. An eye was swollen, red imprints dispersed across the exposed skin of her arms, neck and puffy face. Whoever sought to catch her was very real and they weren't to be taken lightly, she concluded dejectedly, flinching just as her mother did when a girl about her age pressed gentle hands coated with a foul smelling salve to the coarse burnt skin of the mother's forearms. "My apologies, I know this hurts but it is necessary."

Alyviah gulped heavily. Guilt was an abyss of darkness and pain...and it swallowed her whole.

It was many hours later when Davette stirred, awakening from restless slumber to a bundle of quivering limbs, drifting in a state of dormiveglia, curling on the ground beside her. "Aly," she called, as gently as her raspy voice allowed. The daughter scrambled to unsteady legs, frantically glancing around, searching for a threat. "It is just me, sweetheart."

"Oh, mother." Treacherous laments raced down her dirty cheeks.

"I am okay, I am okay." Davette forced her face to remain neutral despite the pain surging through her bandaged arms as they reached for Alyviah's hands, intertwining their fingers before moving to stroke messy knotted locks as the girl rested her head by her mother's side.

Time elapsed before Alyviah spoke again, uttering the dreadful question that plagued her mind. "Where's father?" The words hung in the air for a while afore a terse inhale sliced through her hopes.

"I don't know, sweetheart. They might've taken him." Her voice wavered. "He might've been reduced to ashes. I don't know." Then, it faltered. "I don't know."

"Oh." Fresh tears spilled. She cursed them as they were useless and only served to intensify her headache. Alyviah had enough with all these arcane whispers and mysteries surrounding her for she only sought to have a normal life, interact with living beings and simply exist among them...not run away from fires and stumble upon death, sorrow, helplessness to realize that her life was missing plenty of pieces that were patched up with constant lies from those she trusted the most. "Mother, tell me...what is going on? Who are these people and why do they seek me? What are you hiding from me? I beg you."

Davette exhaled heavily, her eyes fluttering shut. A couple of heartbeats later, she spoke again, her voice distant, busted lips quivering and her grip tightening. "I never thought it would be under such circumstances that we, well, I would be telling you this, confessing sins your father and I committed many years ago."

Alyviah straightened up, the dormant curiosity rekindled again. "Mother, please, no more secrets."

"It is only foolish to keep secrets now, Aly, as they're unraveling already."

Word count: 1358.

MEANING OF THE WORDS USED:

Elegiac: expressing sadness, especially because someone has died or because something no longer exists.

Andric: Old Greek name that mean Male; Manly; Brave; Virility; A variant of name Andreas.