[14] Tale of Neshka: Two Fugitives from Common Sense

This is the backstory of my tabletop RPG character. In it, Neshka recounts her tragic past in the world of Pathfinder. Part 14: Two Fugitives from Common Sense [Intro – spoken, mischievous] I should probably mention that Merisiel and I were not always sensible. In fact, we were rarely sensible. But that particular evening... [Small amused breath] ...we exceeded even our own expectations. [Music erupts – fast medieval folk-rock, fiddle, lute, stomping percussion, tavern energy] [Verse 1 – lively, rhythmic] The ale was flowing, the fire burned bright, Merisiel was winning every argument that night. She challenged a merchant to a drinking contest. He lost his money. Then his temper. [Spoken, dry] In that order. [Verse 2] Someone overturned a table. Someone else began to shout. A chair went flying past my head. Merisiel laughed. I joined in. Then a rather large man decided that we were responsible. [Small pause] We were. [Music kicks harder] He came toward us. We headed for the door. He brought his friends. We ran across the floor. A mug flew past my ear. Merisiel grabbed my hand. And suddenly we were outside, running through the streets, laughing like complete idiots who had absolutely no plan. [Chorus I – explosive, playful] Run, run, run! Don't look back! Someone's shouting, someone's mad! Take the corner! Jump the fence! We can sort it out when it makes sense! [Small amused breath] Which, admittedly, was not our strongest skill. [Verse 3 – breathless, playful] We crossed a field. We crossed a ditch. Merisiel fell. I laughed. She pulled me down with her. [Pause] I laughed harder. Eventually we found a barn, or a shed, or some sort of wooden building. I never did establish what it was supposed to be. But it had a roof. And nobody was chasing us. [Small pause] For the moment. [Chorus II – warm, energetic] We were breathless, we were filthy, we were laughing far too loud. Two fugitives from common sense, the pride of no one's crowd. The world could wait until the morning. We had nowhere else to be. And when she reached to pull me closer... [Music softens] ...I didn't move away. [Verse 4 – intimate, gentle] I don't remember who kissed whom first. I remember her laughter fading into silence. Her hand in mine. The warmth of her cheek. And for once, neither of us had anything clever to say. [Pause] We stayed together until the night grew quiet. The rest... [Small pause] ...belongs to us. [Music fades to soft lute and cello] [Verse 5 – morning, spoken-sung] Morning came. Cold light through the wooden boards. A stiff neck. A sore back. And Merisiel. [Pause] She was asleep beside me. Her hair was everywhere. One arm was trapped beneath her head. Her mouth hung slightly open. She had somehow managed to wrap herself in her cloak like an angry caterpillar. [Long pause] I stared at her. [Small amused breath] This was the woman who could talk her way through almost anything. The woman who walked as though the world belonged to her. The woman who had opinions about absolutely everything. And now... she was snoring. [Quiet laugh] I tried not to wake her. I failed. She made a noise, pulled the cloak over her face, and went straight back to sleep. [Pause] I smiled. Then I stopped smiling. Because something inside me had changed. [Music becomes delicate and warm] [Verse 6 – intimate, vulnerable] I wanted her to wake up. I wanted her to stay. I wanted to hear her voice complaining about the morning. And I wanted... [Pause] ...I wanted this not to be just one ridiculous night. [Short pause] I didn't understand it. I knew grief. I knew loneliness. I knew what it meant to miss someone who was gone. But this was different. She was right there. And somehow, that made it more frightening. [Chorus III – emotional, restrained] What is this feeling I cannot explain? A quiet little fire beneath my ribs again. I have walked through darkness. I have learned to be alone. So why does this one sleeping elf feel almost like a home? [Verse 7 – soft, reflective] Merisiel stirred. She opened one eye. Looked at me. Then at the roof. Then back at me. [Spoken, sleepy] “Are we dead?” [Small amused breath] “Not as far as I know.” “Good.” She closed her eye again. [Pause] I laughed so quietly that it almost hurt. And there it was again. That strange warmth. That wish to keep this moment a little longer. [Final Chorus – gentle, hopeful] I didn't know what love was. Not then. I couldn't name the feeling. Couldn't tell where it would lead. I only knew that when she smiled, the world felt less unkind. And for the first time in so long, I wondered what it meant to want someone to stay. [Outro – spoken, intimate] Eventually, Merisiel woke up properly. She complained about the floor. Then the cold. Then her hair. [Small amused breath] Somehow, she blamed me for all three. I argued. She laughed. And we went looking for breakfast. I told myself it had been just one very strange night. [Pause] I was wrong. I couldn't have known, how much it meant to me.