The Vampire & Her Witch

”While you have all that power, I have something I’d like you to use it for before we arrive in Lothian City.”

A smile formed on Ollie’s lips as soon as he heard Ashlynn’s words. It felt good to be able to do something for her, whether it was sitting here now, providing a shoulder for her to lean on, or taking on something greater.

Anything he could do to reduce the burdens she had to carry, whether it was large or small, summoned a warmth in his heart that felt much better than the smoldering rage that had come with the infusion of power from the Blood Acorn.

”You want me to carve something?” Ollie asked, having a good idea of what she’d likely want from him.

”Mmm, yes,” Ashlynn said, nodding slightly and snuggling closer to Ollie as she allowed herself to finally relax for the first time all day. His presence was strong again, and she no longer felt the frailty that had torn at her heart when she touched him. Instead, he radiated a warmth that pushed back the chill of the small room in the Broken Blade Tavern, along with the sturdiness of a tree that could weather any storm.

”I promised to protect Samira,” Ashlynn said. ”I need you to protect Jocey, and Isabell will watch over Samira, but she hasn’t been a witch for very long. I’d like to give her one of your protective talismans, just in case the worst happens.”

Ashlynn doubted anything would overcome Isabell’s ability to create strong defenses in the long term, but she still remembered the way a simple kitchen knife had tried to reshape itself into a fighting knife in Isabell’s hands not long after Isabell had emerged from her trial. She still needed at least another few weeks or months in order to fully adjust to her powers, and until then, Ashlynn wanted to make sure there was something else Samira could rely on to protect her.

”I can do that,” Ollie said, already imagining the sort of totem he would carve for the heavily pregnant woman so that he could offer protection not only to the mother, but the child she carried as well. ”Did you bring my tools?” Ollie asked lightly.

”We did,” Ashlynn said. ”I also told Hugo to gather some well-seasoned wood for you to work with before we left the Vale,” she added. ”We didn’t have much time for preparations, but he’s brought a selection that includes black walnut, white oak, and cherry. The pieces may not be ideal, and I know that I’m asking you to rush, but...”

”But a little bit of protection is better than none at all,” Ollie said, nodding in understanding. ”And it’s not like you can give her a coat of mail to wear. It’s fine, I can make something for her in a few hours that should protect her long enough for someone to intervene, even if Owain tries to strike her directly,” he said, imagining that the Lothian lord would be furious when confronted by the woman carrying his child.

”Do you think, with all the energy you’re holding, that you could make more than one?” Ashlynn asked. ”At a minimum, I’d like to offer a form of protection to Baron Loghlan and Baroness Mairwen. They’re going to be taking a significant risk by helping us.”

”I’m still not very good at carving,” Ollie admitted. ”I can make something simple in an hour. If I spend two hours, the result isn’t twice as good; it takes closer to four hours to make something twice as strong as what I can do in an hour.”

”If I want to do anything better than that, it takes even longer, but,” Ollie sighed in frustration, ”At that point, I start breaking things because the carving isn’t good enough to hold all of the power I’m trying to put in it.”

”I asked Erkembalt for help,” Ollie added a bit helplessly. ”He told me that it’s because I’m too slow. The power gathers around the carving, but if the shapes that hold it aren’t finished quickly, then the power just puts more and more pressure on the carving while I’m working, and eventually, it cracks.”

”You haven’t been doing this for very long, Ollie,” Ashlynn reminded him. ”It’s already impressive that you can create a talisman to protect someone’s life from one or two blows. Give it a few years, and I’m sure that you’ll be able to make things just as impressive as the things Artificer Erkembalt makes. Until then, it’s enough to spend a few hours on something for Samira, and then an hour each on talismans for a few other people.”

”But that does bring me to an important question,” Ashlynn said, shifting in the small bed so she could lie down, resting her head on Ollie’s chest as she stared out the room’s small window at the dimly lit village outside. ”Tell me what you think about our new allies, Ollie,” Ashlynn said. ”I’ve spoken to Liam about his parents, but I’d like to hear what you think of them as well, along with his knights and their ladies.”

Soon, she would meet with the Dunns and their vassals, and while she had a faint impression of Loghlan and his wife, Mairwen, from the last time they’d met at her wedding feast, the conversations she’d had with most of the Lothian barons had been brief, superficial, and filled with social niceties rather than topics of any real substance.

It hadn’t helped that Owain was at her side for those conversations, constantly interrupting when she tried to bring up anything of substance or turning the topic towards preparations of soldiers and supplies for the upcoming Holy War. The result was that most of the people she’d met during the feast had blended together in an endless stream of ’That’s a lovely dress’ and ’You should visit when the weather improves.’

While Marcel had given her copious notes about the people she would soon be meeting with, and she’d gained some information from Liam while they negotiated the parameters of her offer to the Dunns, Ollie’s perspective on people was entirely different, and Ashlynn valued his insights greatly.

”I like Lord Loghlan and Lady Mairwen,” Ollie said simply. ”He can be a bit, um, strident,” he said, thinking carefully about the best way to describe the baron who had pressured Liam into telling his tale to the assembled members of the Lothian court, refusing to back down despite Liam’s objections. ”But it comes from a place of wanting to do the right thing,” Ollie continued.

For several minutes, Ashlynn just lay there, resting against Ollie and listening as he recounted events from his perspective. Occasionally, she asked questions, picking up on details that Ollie hadn’t noticed, but for the most part, she listened passively.

She was enjoying this moment. While she had chastised Ollie for his mistakes in handling things, she was also proud of him for what he’d accomplished.

Hearing about the genuine gratitude that Sir Gavin and Isolde had for Ollie’s healing, and Sir Bedwyr’s willingness to take great risks in the name of supporting his baron, gave her a favorable impression overall about the people she was about to entrust with a dangerous plan.

It wasn’t until Ollie began speaking about the younger companions he’d arrived with, however, that she felt like he’d truly missed the mark.

”Ollie,” Ashlynn said sternly, turning onto her side so she could glower at the young knight. ”I don’t think you’re being fair to Lady Eira, or to Lady Morwen...”