Waking up alone

You feel an emptiness in your arms as you wake up, now noticing that Camilla has left your embrace. Looking around, she doesn't seem to be present in the abode at all. You can't even hear the faint sounds of her training in the backyard. You stretch, feeling cramped in both normal areas and in your wings from having supposedly held her all night. After a cursory investigation, you don't find any sign of where she could have gone, except that her armor is still here, so she's probably still in town.

Thinking you've probably overstayed your welcome a bit, you head out back, and after walking for a bit, you fly off to scout the area. That's what guards are supposed to do, right?

Camilla sat alone in the back pew of the church. She didn't feel like wearing her armor today; she'd lost the privilege to that. It didn't help that it felt like her chest was swelling, stretching her bindings to the limit. She needed to get away from it all for a bit, and since she rarely visited the church, that seemed like the best place to do so.

"Are you alright, Captain?" The familiar voice of Gilford snapped her out of her stupor. He looked concerned, and rightfully so.

"I-I...don't think so..." Camilla dropped her head back down, gazing at nothing in particular but the pews ahead of her.

Gilford sat down next to her. "You don't need to take it all on yourself, you know. I'm always here to lend an ear, even if we don't normally talk much to each other since...back then." Gilford may have been a full decade older, but before Gilford became a Priest, they shared the battlefield as equals

"How...how did you cope, knowing that...you failed?" With how she was feeling now, Camilla regretted not being there for Gilford when he had been suffering the loss of his wife.

Gilford was a bit taken aback, but thoughtfully looked at the giant stained glass window of his goddess. "I didn't. I spent quite some time in Garth's tavern, spending every copper I had on drink. But then, my son came around and challenged me to a duel. He may be underage, but he's always had the heart of a warrior. He bested me easily, you know, because I was drunk." He chuckles, trying and failing to get Camilla to do the same. "But that made me realize something. I hadn't been there for him. I hadn't been there for any of my kids. I may have lost my wife, but they lost the only mother they've ever known. They were counting on me to get back up after I had fallen. I may not know what's on your mind, Camilla, but we're all counting on you. However you've fallen, get back up. I can't do it for you, but I can be here for you every step of the way." His hand rests on her thigh comfortingly.

"...and...what if I can't get back up?"

"Then I'll still be there for you." He gives a reassuring smile.

You spend some time thinking as you're soaring just above the treetops. There's a lot going on. I don't know how much XP I got just from the hornets, but I already leveled up in Knight. While I could use them to grind, it would probably be better to just take them out. That way, Riverbend might be able to accept me faster, and I'll already have something 'under my belt' to help convince others I'm a good guy. Or, I could claim to be really selfish and wanted Riverbend to myself for convincing the darkies.

After circling town a few times, you end up back at the barracks, even though you know it better now to be Camilla's house. You polymorph yourself to your human guise before approaching the back door and opening it. To your surprise, the captain is finishing dressing up in her leather armor, looking herself over a bit. She turns to you. "You're just in time. We're going scouting."

"I already scouted the area around town today."

"Not around town. We're gonna try to find this hornet hive. I know they come from the northeast, but no idea where they are specifically." She goes to the pantry, before turning her head to you. "Are you able to fly both of us there?" You nod, and she continues packing a burlap sack with some food.

"Shouldn't you or Gilford already know where the hive is?" You rub the back of your head, confused.

"That was last year. We eliminated that hive, if only barely." She tightens the sack, before slinging it over her shoulder. "Now, it'll probably be the two of us. If my letter gets to him, my brother might come in before three months are up, and we can probably convince Garth and Gilford to join in on the raid. But that's in the future. Now, we're just scouting." She pushes past you and out the door. When you follow her, she's already sheathing a sword and tossing it to you. "Tie the belt around your waist. Again, it's not the best, but it'll do for now." As you don the scabbard, she sheaths another sword into her own scabbard and ties it around her waist. She then grabs her bow and quiver and slings them along her back before grabbing one of the dingy spears and a fresh(ish) shield. "Let's go."