Homecoming - (Part 3 of the Ignaius-Saga)

Aftermath

They only travelled for a few hours, until they reached another palace, that Variel had never seen before. A servant had checked in on him repeatedly to see, if he needed or wanted anything, especially water. The room or rather suit he was brought to was spacious and remarkably beautiful. The reason became clear soon, as not just his, but also Tanier's belongings were brought to the room, so for now the king's rooms was his rooms as well. So probably this was the biggest and most luxurious suit the building had to offer.

Variel drifted in and out of sleep throughout their short journey, but even when he was awake, he never answered any of the servant's questions. He drank water when it was given to him, but he never asked for it, nor did he look at his caretaker. His sleep was not entirely peaceful, either. The nightmares were starting, and they made him want to stay awake. That was impossible, however, and so he woke several times gasping for breath or sobbing.

He was awake when he was placed in the suite, trembling as strangers moved him from one place to the other. He had figured out by now that he was no longer imprisoned, but he couldn't calm down. Every new noise made him jump, and every face looked like a threat, even when he knew it should not. When he was left alone in the suite, and just clutched one of the pillows and watched the door, hoping that the next person to come in would be the king. Tanier was the only person he felt safe with. Plus... he had questions... and he couldn't bring himself to speak at all when other people were around. His throat still hurt a little, but the crippling anxiety was truly responsible for his silence.

He did not have to wait long. As much as it was not easy for Tanier to free up time at the moment, he was aware that Variel had really no one to rely on but him. He had also been informed that Variel was awake now and he was anxious to see him. "Variel! I am glad to see you awake!" he greated him when he entered the room. Variel looked pale and shaken, but this didn't hinder a big smile to appear on Tanier's face, as he sat down on the bed. He inspected Variel and reached for his hand. "It is so good to see you." It was, as every small improvement meant a lot to him.

Variel let go of the pillow to instead clutch Tanier's hand. He had never been particularly bold in their relationship before, but he was desperate for closeness and security, so he did not wait for an invitation. He moved closer and curled up with his head on the king's thigh. "...thank you for... coming to see me, sire..." he murmured, voice still quite hoarse, partly from a lack of use. "...I'm sure you must be... very busy... I-I'm sure everyone was... worried..."

Variel clutched his hand a bit tighter for a moment while he pulled in a deep, shaky breath. "Sire, I... I'm afraid s-something has... happened to my memory. I... I can't seem to recall how we escaped... The last... thing I remember is... i-is..." His voice failed him then as the visions of horrid monsters and a realm of frightening shadows returned to teh forefront of his mind. He couldn't even think of the words necessary to describe what he'd seen, much less actually speak them.

Tanier shifted to sit and hold Variel more comfortable. His arm rested on the young man's shoulders. For a moment he was searching for words. This wasn't easy to explain. "I don't really know what happened. You were dying. And suddenly the ground was shaking and flames were all around. The walls started crumbling and everything and everyone was burned to dust. Everyone but us. When it was suddenly over and I looked around you were lying on the ground, unconscious, but unharmed. Except for the bruises you already had. But the fire that burned the men who tried to kill you to ashes didn't touch you. I picked you up and left as quickly as possible." He paused, realizing how strange this must sound to anyone, including Variel. "I bet you don't believe me," he said. While he made this statement, he still sounded more amused than upset.

Variel stared up at Tanier for quite a long time in silence. A few times, he opened his mouth as if he was ready to speak, but then changed his mind. His struggle to make sense of what he'd just been told was clearly visible. he wondered if maybe it was just his scrambled mind missing some sort of obvious conclusion, but this was far too unheard of to have any obvious conclusion. At last, he began slowly stammering out a response.