forum RP? One on One

Started July 19, 2019 by @ElderGod-Icefire

tune

(alright, sounds good. How big of a skip? I was thinking anywhere from six months to a year?)

He smiled slightly. "Yes."

8 month time skip

Kana was engaged to Aydan, living as happily as she could. Which wasn't too happy at all. During the 8 months, she had wanted to write to Jair, but she didn't know where to send it to. She would always wait for letters, hoping that one day she would find one. But that never came. So she assumed the worst, and even held her own little secret funeral for him. She never really got over his death. And her new guard was just about the most despicable person you could ever find. About a month ago, Aydan had proposed to her and she accepted, knowing that there wasn't any other choice.

Jair closed his eyes for a moment, then knocked on the door. He was missing three of the fingers on his left hand, and he had stubble dotting his chin, his dark hair longer than it had been. He looked like hell. Felt like it, too. He had had some time to heal since what had happened, and he was clean, didn't smell or anything, he just…didn't quite look like himself anymore.
A maid answered the door, and gasped, recognizing him after a moment. "Jair Delos?" She said, shocked.
Jair nodded. "Yeah…I promised K-the queen that I would come back. Can you let her know I'm here?" He asked.
The maid nodded, staring at him, then hurried off to get Kana.

The second that the word 'Jair' was heard by Kana, she immediately stood up, almost falling over when she did. She quickly rushed to the door where the maid said he was.
Kana slowly opened the door, wondering if it was really him. She thought he had died. She had been mourning him for quite some time now. She looked up and stared at Jair, tears forming in her eyes as she took in what she saw. She knew something was off. He obviously looked different, but there was something beneath the surface. She could just tell.
Kana took a step closer to him and gently brushed his cheek with her hand. "Is it really you?" She whispered, trying not to cry.

Jair nodded, giving her a tiny, very small smile. "Yeah." He said softly. "I told you I'd be okay." His left hand twitched; it always did now. Some sort of nerve damage, maybe. It would just…twitch. For no reason at all. There were still healing wounds on his torso, that were covered by bandages and his clothing. He looked down at Kana. Something had changed. He wasn't sure what yet, but something had changed.

She noticed the twitch, and that beought her attention to his missing fingers. "Oh…" She picked up his hand and inspected it. A wave of guilt washed over her. She wished she had stopped him from going. "I'm sorry." She gently let go of his hand, and started to nibble on the skin of her thumb, making it bleed some more. It was a habit she picked up on after Jair's "death".
"Er, please. Come in." She opened the door more for him and gestured for him to walk inside.

"It's okay." He said, stepping inside. He looked over at her, then looked away with a soft sigh. "Kana I…" He trailed off, biting his lip. He closed his eyes for a moment. He shook his head slightly. God, what do I say? What do I say? He wondered. I missed her so much, but…did she miss me? He gave a soft sigh.

(By the way, he doesn't know she's engaged)

(I figured)

Kana looked around the area, listening and looking to see if there was anyone around them. When she finally convinced herself that the coast was clear, she embraced Jair. It wasn't a tight hug. She didn't have much strength or energy left. She tried to hug him as tightly as she could, but it ended up feeling more like a weak child trying to hug someone. "I missed you so much," she let out a shaky breath. In a quieter voice she said, "I'm so sorry."

Jair hugged her back, wincing slightly as even her loose grip aggravated the wounds. "I missed you too." He said quietly. "I'm sorry that I never wrote, i just…there was so much going on and I…" He stopped. "You have nothing to be sorry for." He said quietly. "Really."

She broke away from the hug. "I thought you died." She remembered cold, empty feeling that took over her when she assumed his death and looked down at the ground. "I'm just glad you're alive." She looked back up at him, her eyes somehow capable of showing how truly detached and sad she felt. "I don't know how to feel about it though. I mourned you for so long… I still am, if I'm being honest."

"I-I know, I'm sorry." He said softly, not meeting her eyes. "I should have written, i should have…" His hands shook slightly. He wasn't the same man he had been when he left, that was painfully obvious. There was something hesitant in him now, where he had been confident. Something shaky where he had been strong.

Kana shook her head and tried to reassure him, "It's fine, Jair." She sighed, not knowing what to say. I need to tell him about Aydan but.. "Will you walk with me for a bit?" She asked him, trying her hardest to smile. Her lips were dry and cracked, not really something fitting for a Queen.

He nodded. "Okay." He said softly. He looked over at her. "Are you alright? No one tried to murder you while I was gone?" He cracked a faint, teasing smile. There were dark shadows under his eyes from lack of sleep.

She chuckled. "A lot of things happened while you were gone, Jair." Kana peeked at him, worried every time she did. "In all honesty, I'm more concerned about you."

"I'm fine." He replied automatically. "Really." He looked over at her. "What happened?" He asked, looking at her cautiously. Is she okay? He hoped she was. But…she wasn't exactly acting like it.

She bit the inside of her cheek, biting off some skin when she did. "Well, I held you funeral for you." She chuckled. "It was very nice, by the way."

He chuckled softly. "Mm. Guess you'll have to take that back, then." He said. For a moment, he seemed almost his old self again.

She smiled at him. "I guess so. Let's see… What else did you miss?" She tapped her chin with her index finger, trying to think of minor things rather than telling him about Aydan.

Jair watched her, a tiny smile on his face. At least she's okay. He thought. At least she was here for me to come back to.

"My new guard sucks." She sighed, exasperated. It was true. Her guard was pretty much the worst person for the job. "He can't even follow me around the castle, apparently." Kana groaned as she noticed that he wasn't there. It was probably for the better, as he probably would've stuck his nose in.

He gave a soft chuckle. "You could always rehire me. I can still do my job, even if I'm missing a few fingers." And a little PTSD. He added in his mind.

Kana's eyes lit up for the first time in a long time. "Really? Oh, please!" She laughed. "You're definitely one of the best guards I've ever known."

Jair smiled slightly. "Well. I guess I'm just special like that." He said. The question he really wanted to ask hung on the tip of his tongue. Do you still… feel the way you used to? He did. It had only gotten worse. His feelings for her. There was so much pain in this world, so much darkness. The like he held for her had helped him survive more than she would ever know.