Regynn Winters

At the Garrison

((Written in collaboration with @marachius. Thanks again for being a great RP partner.))

The Kul Tiran guard cast a glance over his shoulder to assure himself that Regynn was still behind him. She hadn’t spoken, moving silently, wraithlike through the rain as he lead her over the causeway to the garrison in which the Alliance troops were billetted. They were brought to the duty officer and the two men stood in quiet conversation, each casting occasional glances at the priestess before the guard saluted then made an exit, leaving Regynn in the hands of her countryman.

Captain Severino ushered the young woman into his office, barking orders as he went; warm blankets and hot coffee to be brought post haste. He ushered Regynn in, attempting to engage her in conversation but she barely seemed to notice as she moved to stand near the fire, still clutching her sodden cloak tightly in fingers gone blue with cold.

The paladin looked at her for a moment, she wasn’t what he’d call a beauty, too tall and thin for his taste. She reminded of a puppy he’d seen once, beaten and abandoned in a storm, and it was this that prompted him. “Please feel free to use the room as long as you need ma’am, try to relax and warm yourself. Your young man will be with you shortly.”

He stepped out of the office, shutting the door firmly before turning to the soldiers standing nearby, “Get Ainsley here now.” he snarled. “He better pray he’s not responsible for this!”

Not long after, the main doors opened again. The soldier that Captain Serverino had sent to find Ainsley stepped through with the young paladin in tow. Marachius was wearing simple linen pants and a loose shirt and had all the signs of a person who had been suddenly roused from a deep sleep. The young paladin stumbled into the room, almost losing his hastily tied shoes as he crossed the threshold. Upon seeing the captain, he immediately snapped to attention and raised his hand to salute his superior.

“Sir.”

The elder paladin glowered at Marachius, his tone flat as he hooked a thumb over his shoulder, indicating his office, “You’ve got a visitor.” he started to walk away then stopped, looking down his long, beaked nose at Marc, “If I find out you had anything to do with this you’re finished.”

“A visitor?” The young paladin was caught completely off-guard and stood for a moment more before realizing that he still held his arm in salute even though the captain had walked away. Slowly, he lowered his arm as his gaze first followed the captain as he left the area and then turned to the door of the office. Marc walked over to the door and knocked with one hand as he tentatively opened the latch with the other.  “Hello?”

There was a moment of silence then the door opened slowly and he could hear her voice, timid, shaking; like he hadn’t heard in ages. Regynn stood by the open door, her gray gaze resting on him for a moment before falling to the floor, “I… I’m sorry. I hope I didn’t get you in trouble. It… it’s just. I didn’t know where else to go.”

“Reggy?” Marc’s look of surprise quickly turned to one of concern. The paladin knelt down next to his friend and looked her over real quick for any obvious signs of injury. “Don’t worry about that. What happened? Are you hurt?”

Regynn gave Marc a shaky smile and nodded tucking a damp tendril of hair behind her ear, “I’m fine. I… fine.” she took a deep breath and nodded, “I… it’s… Jonah.” as she said his name tears welled up in her eyes, spilling unheeded down her cheeks, “he…” she stopped and swallowed, visibly struggling to get hold of her emotions. Finally she took another breath and let it out forcefully, “It didn’t go well.” she finished, her spine ramrod straight as she brushed the tears away.

“What..” Marc began to ask, but then stopped short. “Let’s go inside,” he began again, motioning for inside the office. He stood and then held out his hand to help Regynn up. Marc led her over to one of the chairs that faced the captain’s desk and waited for her to sit down. Once she was settled, the paladin went and closed the office door before taking a seat in the chair next to her.

“Okay, start from the beginning. What happened?” he asked calmly as he watched the priestess closely.

Regynn clenched her teeth, stiffening when Marc reached for her, but she let him lead her inside the office, shutting away the prying eyes of the men loitering outside. She sat on the edge of the chair, her head lowered, her hair falling forward like a thick, matted curtain to obscure her features from him. She pulled her cloak closer, shivering as the damp wool pressed against her skin.

She waited for him to sit then took a deep breath, her words starting slowly then coming out in a rush as she told him about dinner and the way Jonah’s parents had treated her. She slowed again when she spoke of the walk in the garden, stopping to take deep breaths, her teeth clamped tight against the flood of emotion that threatened to make her breakdown. When she had control again she told the paladin of the things Jonah had said and done.

She stood in a rush, stopping by the fire, her cloak slipping from her shoulders as she passed Marc’s chair. He could see that she was wearing the dress he’d given her, the panel of lace she’d sewn into the neckline to make it more presentable was torn, hanging by mere threads. Above the white fabric, against the pale skin of her throat, was a dark purple bruise the size of a man’s thumb.

Marc leaned forward slightly so that he could try to get a better look at Reggy’s neck. With a mixture of concern and anger on his face, the paladin then looked to the floor for a moment while he tried to compose himself better. Taking a deep breath, he leaned back and looked up at Reggy.

“Are you sure that you’re not injured?” he asked calmly, in a quiet voice. “Do you need to see one of the healers?”

Reggy nodded, her hair falling forward to hide the bruise once more, “Yeah. I’m fine. I’m just tired. I… I think I want to go home.”

Marc watched her for a little bit longer before responding. “Okay, if you’re sure. But how about you stay at the inn tonight. That way you won’t have to go all the way across the city to your place.” The young paladin paused and watched his friend, waiting for her to disagree with his suggestion.

She nodded then looked up at Marc, her expression bleak, “Do you think they’d let you come with me? I don’t want to be alone. I know you’ve probably got duty in the morning and I don’t want you to miss that but I don’t think I can sleep and I… I could use someone to talk to to keep me from thinking…”

“Yeah, sure,” Marachius answered with a smile. “Let me go clear it with the captain. You be okay here for a minute?”

She nodded again, giving him the hint of a smile, “Thanks Marc. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”