To Trust a Witcher

Waking Up

Someone is rubbing a cold cream into my rough palm. It is so soothing, it almost causes me to fall back asleep. But my plans are cut short. Before I can doze off, the pain of my body enters my awareness like a sharp stinging slap to the face.

I feel the person place down my hand gently and move on to the next one as I struggle to come back to my senses. I urge my eyes to open, and I am surprised when light pierces them, causing them to flutter shut too quickly for me to look around. A small groan escapes my mouth as I try again.

"Ciri?" I hear Geralt's voice. I blink a few times before being able to see Geralt in a wooden chair next to me. There are slight eyebags under his eyes, and his white hair looks unkempt, with many strands falling in front of his face. 

Then, I recognize my bed and my blue tattered blanket that hardly does the job of keeping me warm at night. How did I get back to my room? The last thing I remember is feeling dizzy in Geralt's room, after he took care of my wounds. I push myself up into a sitting position, using the wall behind me as a backrest. 

"What happened?" I say, glancing at the white strip of cloth marred with old blood encircling my arm, briefly remembering the spike that had struck it. The rest of my arm is doused in bruises. 

"You fainted, partly from exhaustion and partly from the amount of blood you lost," Geralt says it without emotion, trying to cover up any hint of his feelings as best as he possibly can, but I can hear the undertone of his voice- he is frustrated. If I couldn't read his voice, I for sure could tell he is annoyed with the way he is subtly clenching his jaw. 

Oh boy, I am in it for now. 

Before I can apologize for the actions that have lead me to this situation, I take note of the sunshine glowing in my room, as bright as the light during midday. But after finishing the pendulum course, it was nearly nighttime. Why is there such light outside right now?

I frown as my mind tries to process what had happened after going unconscious. "How long was I out?"

"Nearly two days. We had to bring the healer of the nearby town to take a look at you and heal you; otherwise, you might've not made it." Geralt is far too calm. It almost makes me scared. I wonder why he is not yelling at me, or why he isn't giving me another one of his lectures. 

"Geralt, I'm sorry. I didn't realize it would affect me this much. I just knew I had to complete that course," I explain myself, my eyes on the blue blanket I am playing with in my hands. 

"Even if you needed to give up your life for it?" He shoots out. 

There it is. I've finally pushed him over the edge. 

Will he leave me?

Cast me aside? 

Throw me out of the keep to find my own way? I'd understand why.

I breathe. "I didn't think it would go that far... It won't happen again, I promise."

"You're right. It won't, because as of now, we are ending your training."

I jerk, my eyes snapping up to his yellow ones. "What?"

"No more training," he repeats, an unwavering gaze on me, daring to oppose him.

My mouth falls open. "No, Geralt, you can't-"

Geralt interrupts me, "Tell me, what's the point of training you, if you train yourself to death? What I teach you won't help if you're dead, Ciri. As of now, I don't want to see you picking up any sword anymore. That's it. You're done."

Tears build up in my eyes, but I force them down. He can't take the only thing that makes me feel strong. How am I going to defeat the Black Knight, as weak as I am now? It will be impossible.