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Hot...
What... What is this?
Hot... Hot...
Hm... My skin is receiving this... energy... I can feel every part of my body reacting... to this feeling.
Hot... Hot...
Now that I think about it, it also feels... familiar... As if I have been in a situation like this before. B-But...
Hot... Hot... Hot...
Hgh... My mind... W-What's going on...? My body is starting to give up to this... Heat...
It burns...
Ngh... A-And not just that... This had happened before... When... She used to punish me...
It burns, It burns...
Those memories... The ones I so desperately wanted to forget... Why... Why now?
It burns, It burns, It burns...
Why did I have to go through all this again? No... I don't want to feel that ever again—
IT BURNS!
AH! AAAAAAAAAAAAH!
.
.
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"AH!" The mage let out a scream as she abruptly stood up, breathing heavily.
“Ugh... Ugh...” She tried to get rid of that awful feeling by controlling her breathing. Unfortunately, she could still feel that burning sensation all over her body.
“Sigh... I-It’s THAT nightmare again.” Tine thought, placing her hands over her heart. “I-I think I’ll go outside for some fresh air.”
The mage, wearing her simple pink nightgown, carefully got out of bed; after all, she didn't want to wake her husband, Ced. He was still sleeping peacefully, after a long and exhausting day. He had been away from Silesse and had come to their room to rest.
“Don't worry, my love.” Tine said very softly, careful not to wake up her husband. “I will be back soon.”
And just as she put on her personal slippers, she left her room to go for a walk.
.
.
.
Tine went to her favorite spot in Silesse Castle, a balcony not far from her bedroom, to get some fresh air in solitary. There, the silver-haired girl stood gazing at the landscape around her as the cold winds of Silesse caressed her body and made her long, soft hair flow with the breeze. She found that spending a little time alone and breathing in the fresh air, always helped clear her head.
Fortunately for her, the cold weather wasn’t a problem, since the Blood of Fjalar allowed her to withstand very low temperatures without any trouble; her body maintained a fairly comfortable temperature, which generally prevented her from catching a cold.
But right now, her mind was still fixated on those painful memories from the past.
"..."
It was no surprise that everything that happened back in Ulster had left her with lasting scars. She and her mother had been victims of Hilda’s repeated abuse, which had reached such a point that even today there were still marks from some of the most severe punishments, and it had also taken a toll on her mentally, as nightmares were always quite common.
Just reliving them in her dreams caused her a lot of distress; just remembering the horrible punishments, like...
"(!)"
“Ugh... Just thinking about that makes me sick...” Tine thought. “I shouldn't have thought about this. I think I should...”
Perhaps she needed a nurse's help to keep from fainting, as she was shivering from these horrible memories, and she tried to hold onto the nearby pillars.
And just as her mind was consumed by that alone, suddenly, she felt hands trying to wrap around her.
"(!) Ah-"
But to her relief... It was Ced... Wearing his sleeping clothes—a shirt and shorts—and a big coat, as he tried to hug her from behind.
“My dear Tine... What's wrong? Did it happen again...”
“A-Ah... Cedsy...”
Slowly, Tine gave in to her husband’s affection and hugged him back tenderly.
“Don’t worry.” Said Ced, holding his wife tightly. “It’s all over now. It’s just another bad memory, that’s all.”
Surrounded by her beloved Ced, Tine’s mind was finally able to relax. That tenderness she adored so much in him could truly cheer her up in any situation.
“Hmm~ O-Oh! W-Wait...” Tine tries to pull him away a little. “What are you doing here, my love? Could it be that you...”
Looking at her husband again, she was surprised to see that he was already all set to leave the room, but how?
“Hehe, don't worry. I woke up so fast when you got out of bed.”
“Oh...”
Fjalar's descendants also had another particular advantage: their body temperature was quite pleasant, and very comforting to Ced, who couldn't stand the cold. It was no surprise that Ced would accidentally wake up every time Tine got out of bed.
“Don't worry.” Said the mage. “These early mornings won't bother me, as long as we go back to sleep soon.”
“I-I know. I’m sorry for waking you up, my dear.“
“Hey, don’t worry about it.” Said Ced as he took Tine’s hand. “You know I’d do anything for you, right?”
Tine smiled a little; he was still just as romantic as ever.
“Heh, of course you would.”
“All right then, let's go back to our bedroom.”
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.
.
The two mages returned to their bedroom; fortunately, the warmth from earlier was still there, so it felt quite cozy.
“Yawn...” Ced yawned. “Back to our bed.”
Ced took the time to settle into bed first, while Tine followed him and lay down a little away from him, which obviously caught his attention.
"Eh?"
“What's wrong, Ced?”
“Hm... Don't you want to sleep more...” For a moment, he turned his head, seeming to hesitate over whether to keep talking or not. “What if we sleep... closer together?”
Tine was surprised by that suggestion; it wasn’t usual for him to act like that after waking up at this hour.
“O-Oh…” She blushed a little. “Do you want me to be… closer to you?”
“Y-Yes... That way you can sleep better... with me by your side...”
“Cedsy...”
Tine slowly moved closer to Ced’s chest and rested her head near his chest, while he tenderly embraced his beloved and gently stroked her hair.
“Ah~ It feels so amazing.” Tine thought as she felt Ced's heartbeat. And with her husband's arms wrapped around her, she felt even safer, and slowly her body relaxed more and more until she fell into a deep, peaceful sleep.
Tine's nightmares continued. The same feeling—the heat and the bad memories—always haunted her. But the tender love of her dear husband, Ced, always lifted her spirits and restored her soul. And fortunately for her, the nightmares slowly began to fade, and her heart began to heal more quickly from the wounds of the past.