Geralt had left Stregobor in his usual brooding mood, wading through the dense forest now, leading Roach, a Friesian horse, near a stream. The water trickling downwards, hitting the rocks either side of the stream was the only sound that filled the air. Geralt paused for a moment, looking at Roach for a brief moment as he neighed softly, he took the reigns from his hands and looped it around a fairly large rock, it wasn't much of a tether to anything but he trusted Roach enough to stay.
He knelt down by the stream, picking up a small plant, ripping it from the ground, his ears tweaking at the sound of twigs snapping, but he didn't divert his attention. He looked up for a brief moment as the twigs snapping got closer to him, he sighed inwardly and looked back down placing the plant back down, he knew just by the sound of the footsteps that it was human.
Renfri was there, her face a more sour expression than earlier, stern and almost cold. She looked at the Witcher, a slight sense of hesitancy in her eyes as she watched him pay no attention to her, it was almost like she knew that he knew who she was, what he'd been asked to do. "The girl this morning." Renfri said, her voice deeper than usual, no longer playing games with the Witcher. "She took you to see Stregobor, didn't she?" She asked, her hands slightly curled into fists beneath the long cape she had loosely hooked around her shoulders.
Geralt stood up effortlessly and looked at Renfri in silence for a moment, his brows furrowed together, creating a crease between them that still made him look just as sexy. His lips pursed for a moment. "I know who you are, Renfri." He said sternly before he walked away from her. Renfri nodded some, keeping her actions to a minimum, she wasn't sure if he'd already made up his mind about her, the mutant didn't really give many social cues. Her eyes followed the Witcher as he walked away. "You know that I want to kill Stregobor, then." She said cockily, head moving to the side slightly, almost proud of her proclamation.
Geralt kept walking, his brows lifting up slightly at her statement but had no choice but to listen to her talk, as much as he wanted to be alone with Roach right now. "I used to be a princess. Did he tell you that?" She called out. "Until he sent a thug into the woods to kill me." Renfri said, arms out to the side slightly. Geralt turned slightly and he walked back over to her, gloved hands curled into fists, only a natural stance for him. "You killed him." He stated as he approached her. Renfri suppressed a smile. "With my mother's brooch." She said, proud of what she'd done, her eyebrows cocking up in amusement as she saw Geralt's look of....well nothing.
Geralt simply stared at her, didn't comment, his brows furrowing some before he glanced down and turned his back to Renfri, kneeling down to the floor once again as he needed to stock up on his items. Renfri let out a sigh and slowly stepped forward, she crouched down beside him, her elbows resting on her knees and her arms outstretched some, palms of her hands pressed together. She pressed her lips together, eyes scanning the treeline of the forest, a distant look in her eyes as tears began to form, the almost peaceful silence could only last so long. "Stregobor's man raped me..." She stated, firmly, but not as cocky or as dismissive as before.
Geralt turned his head to the side, his eyes fixed on the brown haired woman beside him, his hands pausing for only a moment at what she said. He blinked once, taking in the information, so, at least why she did kill him seemed to have a reasonable reason, perhaps she wasn't just a cold blooded killer like Stregobor had said. "...robbed Mr and let me go." She continued. Renfri kept her eyes fixed on the trees looming above her. "No more princess." She said quietly. "I had to survive." Geralt turned his face away from her, attempting to keep busy as he gathered things by the stream. He knew something about being forced to survive, but he was not about to sympathise with someone he'd been asked to kill.
"I stole rather than starve. I killed rather than be killed." She said, her gaze now turned to the man, her voice softer, just trying to tell him her side of the story, not the one that Stregobor undoubtedly told him. She shook her head slightly, lost in thought as her eyes returned to the trees. "Nohorn and the others saved me." A vague smile appeared on her lips. "And they'll be by my side at the market as I get my revenge. Lilit help me, I will take down anyone in my way." She added quickly, telling herself more than him. Her eyes flashed to the Witcher for a moment, sharing a brief glance to one another, a quiet warning. Renfri's head tilted to the side, eyes fixed on the man once again. "Unless..." The smile appeared back on her face. "Destiny intervenes."
Geralt stood up after a moment, he didn't know what it was about the word Destiny recently, but he really disliked it. He turned his body to Renfri, a slight smile on his face, one more of appropriate amusement rather than joy as he realised what she was asking. "You want me to kill Stregobor for you." He said, his smile fell and he walked away once again. "It's the lesser evil." Renfri said as she stood up, her eyes trained on the back of Geralt's head. Geralt cocked his head to the side, his face now one of amusement. "So I keep getting told." It almost would have been a chuckle if Witcher's we're capable of feeling, perhaps Renfri and Stregobor were more alike than either of them thought.
Renfri stared at him as he approached the saddle on Roach, she tensed her jaw some, tongue darting out for a moment to wet her lower lip before she walked towards him. "Stregobor asked you to kill me too." She said, eyes narrowing some, it wasn't a question, she knew exactly what Stregobor was like, she was looking for confirmation. "'cause I was a girl born during an eclipse?" She asked, head shaking side to side, disgust written over her pale delicate features, she'd done nothing wrong. "I could've become so many things." She strained. "Queen Calanthe of Cintra, she just won her first battle at Hochebuz. But here i am trying to convince you I'm not..." Renfri was cut off.
"A monster." Geralt said softly, he'd stopped working, golden eyes now trained on Renfri, he understood something about that. He watched her silently for a few seconds. "Are you?" He plainly asked. "How am I to know?" Renfri questioned, and almost pained look on her face, like she really didn't know the answer. "When I cut my finger, I bleed. That's human, right? When I overeat, my stomach aches. When I'm happy, I laugh. When I'm upset, I swear. And when I hate someone...for stealing my whole life from me, I kill him." She rattled off, softly at first but with a slight crisp tone at the end. Geralt simply hummed deeply at that, breaking eye contact for a moment. "People call you a monster too." She said.
Geralt pressed his lips together slightly, head tilting to the side. "A mutant." He replied as he looked back up at the girl. "What if they come after you?" She asked. "Attack you?" She asked softly, she wanted to know the answer still, if what she had done, had made her a monster, perhaps if somebody else agreed or said that they'd do the same, she'd feel better, not that Renfri needed anybody else's comfort. "They have." Geralt said with a smirk. "Why not kill them?" Renfri asked, each word spoken slowly and deliberate as she took two steps towards him. "Because then...I am what they say I am." He replied softly, stepping closer to her.
Renfri's eyes studied his, her gaze flickering from one golden eye to the other and her lips parted after a moment, she took another step closer. "If I tell you, Witcher, that I can neither forgive Stregobor nor renounce my revenge, is that it?" She asked, voice a low whisper now. "I admit I'm a monster?" She asked, brows furrowing together for a brief moment. "Yes." Geralt replied firmly. "Or...you can leave Blaviken. And finally live." He said with a slight nod to her, there was always a choice. Renfri studied him for a moment, not replying, her lips quivered together, considering his words for the slightest of moments.
"You choose, princess."