Faint giggling sounded from the docks as a woman in a woolen dress strode towards it.
Her bright grey eyes, slightly striped with white streaks, blinked fondly at the little, h/c haired girl who was dipping her toes in the cool turquoise-tinted water. She kicked at the glassy water, sending sparkling sprays of liquid flashing through the air like clouds of diamond. Her rapid laughs echoed across the lake.
The woman stopped beside the docks and sat down beside the girl, taking off her soft leather boots to dip her toes into the cool water. Quaint breezes filled the air, blowing back their hair.
"Having fun, little one?" She asked the girl. The girl looked up from her made-up game of kicking and smiled toothily at the woman.
"Yes, auntie. Very much." She kicked up a few more sprays of water. "Thank you for taking me here."
The woman smiled at the response. She gazed out at the wide expanse of the landscape mirrored in the water, slightly blurred from the reflection.
"Little one, do you know why this lake is called Lake DerSera?" The little girl stopped kicking and thought long and hard about it, trying to remember her language lessons.
"I can take a wild guess, auntie. 'der See' means lake or sea in an ancient language, I can't remember which one. Over time, the word slowly changed to DerSera." The woman nodded approvingly.
"Very good, little one." She adjusted her navy blue skirts. "In the language known as German in the Ancient Eras, long before the Thirteen Wars, 'der See' means exactly that." She looked at the girl, who had resumed kicking water. "You've been paying attention in your lessons, little one."
They spent the rest of their day laughing and chatting by the lakeside. Just as the sun lazily slid behind the mountains, the woman scooped the girl up into her arms.
"Time to go back to the village, little one." She nodded, eyes heavy with sleepiness. The woman transferred the girl onto her back, and hopped onto her bike. They cycled from the lake into meadows full of flowers, then changed course onto a beaten road of dirt.
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The villagers had their firefly lanterns swinging on their fences when the woman and the girl returned. They wove through the village until they stopped at a beautiful little cottage with a traditional thatched roof. They entered the house and the woman deposited the girl on the couch.
"I'm going to make some supper, little one. Stay where you are."
"Yes, auntie," the girl said drowsily, flopping comfortably on the couch.
The woman's eyes glowed as she baited a few fireflies from outside with a stream of light grey energy from her fingers and put them inside an empty lantern. She hung it above the girl and went into the kitchen.
The girl could hear her singing a soft song as her aunt chopped onions and sliced meat.
"Feel the melody of the travelers
As they journey on and on
On and on into the unknown
As lanterns swung
And boots stomped
As bows were strung
And songs were swapped
They journey into the unknown..."
Her aunt finished the stew, and the girl ran up to her to steal a taste.
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Rise Again {Countryhumans X Reader}
FanfictionThe world has seen many World Wars over the years, caused by human greed. It's the final straw. Fallen Empires have risen to bloodily conquer the world, and the Countryhumans have also risen to stop them. With the world split in two by the wars, mag...
