forum mist in the air, blood on the ground // O/O // Closed

Started October 31, 2020 by @MarDeColores this is not it kids

tune

Their first warning that something was wrong was their barrier opening. That could only mean one thing: Nova had found them. Almost as a habit, they tried to call some mist to confuse him and lead him out of there, but nothing happened. He sounded worried, and he promised that he wouldn't hurt them… but they couldn't trust him, not completely. Phantom moved their hand slowly towards the fan tucked into their belt, wishing they hadn't thrown their veil away. Their face probably looked like something out of a nightmare, fresh cuts and blood all over it. They pushed themself to a sitting position and quickly splashed some water on their face to wake themself up a bit. Phantom then turned towards where Nova's voice came from, their pale green eyes scanning the area. The fan was clenched in their hand, ready in case Nova tried anything.

Nova enters the room slowly and inhaled quietly. His hands were in the air, a small smile on his lips. "Hey. No tricks, you can see my hands. I'm here to help. I'm not going to hurt you." They looked horrible, and Nova only looked more concerned. He walks slowly over to their side, being wary of the blood soaked ground. He used his magic to slowly move the blood out of the way, cleaning the space a bit. He then used his magic to clean and decontaminate the water. He takes a deep breath before turning to Phantom. "Do I have your permission to help you?" He asks quietly.

The moment Nova appeared, Phantom flicked the fan open. They wouldn't be able to use it very well, being a temporary mortal, but it was still a magic weapon. But Nova came in with his hands up and gentle words, and they couldn't help but lower the fan slightly. They were fine with being alone, fine with being the only one there… except during these times. Everything was harder during these days, and they always wished that the ravens could help them. Now, they did have someone to help them. He hadn't done anything hostile towards them in all the time he'd been there. Now, he might just be biding his time, but something told them that wasn't the case. Phantom stared at him, the last of the mist disappearing from their eyes, leaving them a bright, venerable green. "Alright," they said softly, flicking their wrist and closing the fan with a soft snap.

Nova noticed the fan and took a quiet breath. He knew that Phantom was more than capable of taking him out. He made sure to keep his movements slow and able to read. He didn't want to upset them, they were already in enough pain. Nova usually wasn't a hostile person unless he had to be. He nods once they gave him permission. He grabbed the bandages before waving his hand and calling some water to his hands. He gently pressed the water over their bloodied body. At times, the water would halt over one of the open wounds, making sure it didn't bleed anymore, the rest of the water gently cleaning the blood off of Phantom's skin. Nova had his eyes closed, a serene look on his face has his hands moved slowly through the air.

Phantom was tense as Nova washed away the blood and cleaned their wounds. It hurt, but they made sure not to flinch or move at all. Nova might see it as a threatening move, and… wow, they were paranoid. Phantom kept their eyes on the man, watching what he did closely. It really was effective, much more than what they would have done. Which was probably just jumping into the pool after the bleeding had ceased and cleaning themself off as best they could. Ah, how funny of the forest to grant them an almost immortal existence, but give them a yearly reminder of the day that drove them to make the deal with it in the first place. And how funny that a mortal, who had been responsible for that terrible day, to be the one helping them now. If only the ones they'd ran across all those years ago had been as kind and curious as he was.

Nova was quiet as he worked, the water glowing a faint blue as he healed. His hands were gentle as they move over Phantom's body. Nova was aware that Phantom was watching his every move, but he didn't seem to mind it. His eyes remained shut, his posture straight. Life was made up of water, which could be used as healing. So that's what he did. Nova looked so content as he healed, humming as he worked. However, once Phantom was healed and cleaned off, a look of exhaustion wiped over Nova's expression. He slumped to the side, shaking and breathing heavily, clutching at his chest. A layer of sweat had settled over his skin and he looked pale. Magic was a wonderful and beautiful thing, but using to much of it came at a cost.

Phantom was not regretting their choice to let Nova help them. He was healing them much faster than they could ever have done on their own. The cuts refused to disappear completely, of course, leaving behind pale scars. They still ached– the curse really was dedicated to making them uncomfortable. Phantom opened their mouth to thank Nova, then noticed that he didn't look very good. "Are you alright?" They asked instead, setting their fan in their lap and brushing stray locks of hair behind their ears. Nova had probably stretched himself using his magic, though Phantom had no idea what they could to help him. Because they had to help him. He had done the same for them– it was the least they could do. On top of letting him walk out of this place alive, too.

Nova seemed very practiced in the art of healing, he didn't even have to look. His hands simply guided him. Of course he knew that most of the injuries would scar, he couldn't heal wounds to the point that they were invisible. Nova hunched over, slightly falling once the healing process was over with. He seemed so tired, so weak. If Phantom wanted to, Nova could be dead within a second. Nova considered that a possibility. After all, he had been alive so far. But if Phantom wanted to kill him off, perhaps death would be accepted. Nova… hadn't really found a reason to live. So either way, he accepted his fate. "Mmm… Yeah… I'm okay." He mumbled, but it was hoarse and tired. "Just… just lost a lot of energy… s' fine. I'll be back to normal in no time." Usually after healing moments like that he would sleep up to 48 hours.

"Ah, I see." Phantom nodded slowly. "Is there anything I can do for you?" They wouldn't be able to do much in the way of magic, having lost it for the duration of the curse, but they could give him a place to rest at least. "I'm… I'm not going to kill you," They added softly, trying to ignore the side of them that screamed that it was a terrible idea. But this man had pushed himself in order to help them, so he was probably not going to turn around and kill them. They had to trust, although that was difficult for them. Phantom shifted to a kneeling position in front of Nova and quickly tied their hair back in a simple braid. "And thank you," They said softly, remembering that they still hadn't done that.

Nova hummed quietly as he turned his attention to the other. "Hm… I don't think so… Just a place to rest…" He whispers quietly and takes a deep breath as he lets his body ease slowly. He blink ed a little when the other said that Nova wasn't going to meet death's hand just yet. He eased a little bit. Nova didn't really have anything to lose, so death or not it was fine. He hummed and smiled a little bit. "I was just doing my part." He murmured quietly. "You were in pain, I did what I could to help." He murmured quietly. He leaned into Phantom's hands as his hair was braided before his body glowed for a moment and he passed out.

"A place to rest? Alright, I can do that." Phantom nodded. He could rest on their bed for as long as he needed. They could find somewhere else to sleep if he slept for more than a day. "Well, it was still a very kind thing to do." They smiled slightly, then quickly stopped Nova from falling to the ground. "Nova?" Phantom called his name once but guessed that he would be asleep for a while. The man was almost half a foot taller than them, but Phantom was able to get him onto their bed with minimal struggles. They tried to make him comfortable, tucking a pillow under his head before walking out of their home. The first course of action was getting something to eat, and then they would change out of their bloodied clothes, and then… probably make sure the plant room was blocked off.

(Ack! I'm so sorry!)

Nova woke up a few days later, groggy and a bit confused. His felt rejuvenated, that was for sure, but extremely sore. His body ached everywhere. He let himself gather his surroundings and let his memories come back. He had wandered into the forest, found the creature… or Phantom… woman died- he was allowed to live… Phantom started bleeding. Okay- he was safe. He knew that much. He grunts and slowly sits up, grunting and supporting his head. He needed to stop over using his magic. If he used to much who knew if he'd be able to wake up again. He didn't know what time of day it was, but he guessed late in the afternoon.

(Oh, you're good!)
Phantom had spent the last few days going around their normal routine, minus the long walks through their forest they used to take. They had trusted Nova a lot, but leaving him alone in their home was still a little too much. They'd been able to get a lot of small tasks they hadn't had the time for yet, which was really nice. Phantom walked slowly down the steps, adjusting their grip on the basket once they'd reached the bottom. It was full of apples and pretty heavy, and they were still recovering. They maneuvered around the overgrown raspberry plants– they'd have to trim those after dropping off the apples– and headed towards their home. With only a few steps until the entrance, Phantom heard something from inside. Had Nova woken up? Their magic hadn't come back yet, unfortunately, so their veil was still missing. Well, it wasn't like he hadn't already seen their face. At this point, they really couldn't hide anything from him. Phantom pushed past the curtain and stepped into their home. Nova was sitting up on the bed against the wall, holding his head.
"You're awake," They said softly, picking up an apple and holding it out to him. "Do you want one?"

Nova felt pain rush through his head, his eyes shutting for a moment as he let himself breathe. Overused his magic, passed out for what he assumed was a few days, and wakes up with a splitting headache. Sounds about right. It happened all the time. He glances up, tensing slightly at the sound of footsteps but he instantly eased with the other popped in. He smiled a little at the sight of Phantom, which wouldn't really be expected. He was smiling at the most dangerous creature in the forest. Of course, Phantom had let him live, and from what he could remember, Nova wouldn't be meeting the cold hands of Death yet. He nods slowly, his body registering how hungry he was. He took the apple gratefully, biting into the sweet and crunchy skin. it was so good. He ate quietly before asking quietly. "How long was I asleep?"

Phantom nodded and set their basket of apples on the nearby table. While Nova was eating, they slowly unload the apples onto the table so their basket would be free for other things. "A few days. Not too long." They turned towards Nova, long hair swishing down their back. Phantom had gotten used to having Nova there, but asleep, so they honestly had no idea what to do. Should they give him another apple? Kick him out of the forest? They glanced at the ground, then held up their hand to check their magic. It should be coming back now, but instead of mist curling around their fingers, there was only a slight fizz. Phantom's mouth turned down slightly, eyebrows creasing. This was concerning, but at least they still had their weapons. They unconsciously grabbed their fan and snapped it open, covering half their face with it. "Are you feeling… better?" Phantom asked, peeking over the top of their fan.

Nova inhaled shakily. A few day's huh? He didn't want to think about it. He knew that the more he overused his abilities, the longer he would sleep. And if he ever over used his magic, it would mean that he could fall into a death like sleep. It scared him. He takes a deep breath and glances over at Phantom. He ran his hand through his hair and shrugged hopelessly. "I'll be better soon enough. I shouldn't be using to much magic however." he sighed deeply and leaned back for a moment. "Thank you for letting me stay here and rest." he murmured quietly. He was surprised that he was still alive.

"Oh. That's good." Phantom nodded slowly, still covering their face with the fan. "Do you need anything else?" They felt a bit guilty, since Nova had come into this state because he had been helping them. "It's the least I can do. You helped me. I'm just repaying." Phantom took a deep breath and lowered the fan slowly, snapping it shut but keeping it in their hand. This entire encounter was reminding them of the past, the one other time when they allowed someone to walk out of the woods unharmed. How long ago that had been! They still had Weightless Ruin back then. Phantom smiled slightly at the memory. That really had been the best sword, but they didn't regret giving it away. She had needed it more than them, anyway.