Blood and Water (♠ Blue Suit ♠)

Mia felt like she was under water, slowly drowning but without the possibility to pull herself up. It was until a while that she finally gave up, the slow pain of suffocating was killing her. But then, she felt as if she could breathe again and could almost swear that she had coughed up the water that had leaked into her lungs. Still, she felt herself on the deep ocean's floor and though she was now allowed to breath she was unable to get up. Did she even want to in the first place?


But she, she couldn't let herself die, now could she? There was something that drove her forwards, that even if she hadn't found something to live for yet she had to survive, maybe it was just her self-preservation. So she struggled again and again. It was as if she had truly resurfaced from under water when she managed to pry her eyes open, grasping for air. Everything was so blurry. Her body was just so stiff and she felt the dull pain all over her body "Where..." She mumbled under her breath, darting her eyes from side to side. It was such a familiar place. Was she still asleep?
 
Tome was able to make Fawn's meal, help her eat, and even eat his own food before Mia began to stir. He didn't hear her speak, but when he passed through the sitting room to go back and clean up the kitchen, he saw her moving. He continued on, for that moment, and brought back a glass of water for her.


"Stay still." He said when he got back to her, slipping a hand beneath her neck and shoulders to gently tilt her up enough to drink. "You've too many injuries to be moving on your own."


((I miss your old sig, but I also adore this one xD For one, it's not completely animated, so I don't stare at it too long before replying lol But also, I just love the way they're looking at each other, and the way the boy is sitting :3 Is he holding a big, fluffy chicken? He's just adorable))
 
Mia blinked when she heard Tome's voice and her eyes widened when she saw him. So she was truly in his house! How had she even got there? She drank automatically when the glass of water was near enough to her lips. Her eyes revealing just how confused she was. What was the last thing she could even remember? It was just so vague and fuzzy.


"How... Did I get here?" She said after she was done drinking, giving him a small grateful gesture before she asked so. Her voice coming out as hoarse and rather low.


(I loved it! But my sister pointed out something I hadn't noticed before that I didn't like about it and I just couldn't stop thinking about it nor ignore it until I just had to change it :/ But I also love this one! It's just so cute! Yeah, it's his 'pet' xD It's from an anime I saw just recently and I loved it! <3)
 
((What was wrong with the last one? Also, what's the anime from this one? lol))


Tome shook his head and just set her gently back town, getting to his feet to take the glass back. "By carriage." He said, shrugging slightly, and left. After putting the glass back, he came back to her and propped her head up a bit since she was awake now. "How do you feel? There shouldn't be much pain." He'd done his best to heal all of her, but his magic wasn't strong enough for that. What he'd done should've at least taken away most of her pain.
 
"Mostly stiff" She admitted, her voice clearing a bit. No, there was no unbearable pain as before, there was just a dull pain, of those that bothered a bit but were easily bearable "Were you the one who... saved me?" She wasn't sure if those were the words she was actually looking for though "I mean, the one who stopped that man?" She rephrased it, to avoid possible misunderstandings.


(It's kind of dumb xD but my sister told me it looked like they were father and daughter. And well that it seemed like the daughter was kissing the father. After that I just couldn't get the image out of my mind each time I watched it and simply changed it. I thought like "Oh well, I had been planning on changing it for quite anyway") (The name is 'Tonari no kaibutsu-kun' I haven't watched any anime in a while but this one was pretty cute ^^)
 
((It actually looked to me like Accelerator and Last Order from Toaru Majutsu no Index. I have no idea what their relationship is, as I've never watched it, but I know they're not related lol))


Tome nodded and settled into a crouch next to where she lay, in case she needed anything. "Yes." He said, shrugging slightly. "I made sure he won't hurt anyone again. At least, not without time and a great deal of effort." It would be difficult to hurt someone with a slightly crippled arm and leg, especially on the same side. "Don't try to move for a while. Your bones are still in the process of knitting back together."
 
(Lol! You're right! xD I'd never seen nor heard of that anime before, but is seems rather interesting)


"I see" Mia said softly before she glanced up at the ceiling. She hand't really noticed, but she had indeed missed that kind of warm place. She... had... Mia blinked as her vision turned rather blurry, tears slowly welling up on her eyes. Ah, she had also missed being taken care of, she had... Missed them. She nibbled down on her bottom lip, a small tear drop sliding down her cheek. She squeezed her eyes shut in an attempt to stop herself from crying. She would have even covered her face with her arm if she had been able to move at all "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, sorry" She hadn't been able to say it properly before, not even now she was fully able to do so, but those words had been haunting her all along "I'm sorry, Tome" Her voice broke at the end. She didn't really now how to convey those feelings and they were choking her.
 
((I see Accelerator's pics on zerochan a lot, so I looked up the plot-ish thing on wiki, but I've never watched it. Seems cool, but for some reason I find it hard getting into new series lately lol))


Tome flinched when she started speaking, in a tone so broken and sad that he didn't know what to do. He shrunk back a bit, surprised and lost, and his eyes widened a little when she started crying. "D-Don't . . ." He wanted to shout at her, somewhere in the back of his mind, shout that she had betrayed him and no 'sorry's would fix it. But he didn't. He felt almost like he couldn't, faced with how broken she looked, how much weight she had lost and how hurt she had been.


"I . . ." He didn't know what to do. He had never been good at such things, never been good at interacting with people. He just had to think of Fawn, to think of what he did when she cried, and because he didn't feel safe hugging her, he just held one of her hands, unable to look at her. "Don't cry. . ."


((I have to leave early for work so I might disappear))
 
(It usually happens xD Lately I've been reading manga only, watching new series get me bored sometimes :/ Not like before when I was a full time otaku xP)


Mia tried to turn her head to the side when she heard him speaking. She was expecting him to shout at her and she would've understood it completely. Nevertheless, he held her hand and her eyes widened in surprise as she turned her head to him. He wasn't able to look at her, she could see that, but he was really trying. Her eyes strangely softened a bit, her tears were still streaming down, but she was trying for them to stop "You're a really nice person" She declared, unable to stop herself.


"I didn't mean for all of that to happen" She had the chance to speak now, so would he hear her out? "I really was panning to get revenge on The King since the very start but I didn't want anything happening to you. No... At first I was, I thought that because you were his son I could take revenge on you instead on him, who was inaccessible" She shook her head a bit "I was wrong, I realized that since the beginning. I couldn't bring myself to even try to hurt you" She closed her eyes slowly "I was happy when I realized we were heading into the castle, I could try and bring The King down this time and leave you alone. But..." Her voice came out choked for a moment before she cleared her throat "But you were caught in that as well. I didn't know what to do, I... " She opened her eyes again, the tears which she had managed to stop a bit before started to flow again, not allowing her to keep going.


(Oh, 'kay. Have a good day today as well :3)
 
((Thanks :) Something super creepy happened O_O Over the walkies we carry around to communicate, after we'd already closed and half the lights were off like usual and everything's quiet, this voice came on, really quiet. I turned my walkie's volume all the way up to see if I could hear it, but it was still quiet, so I put it near my ear in time to hear this woman's voice screaming "Help meee! Help meee!" And of course then I was like "O~o What the hell!?" and starting to freak out. And then, in the usual cartoon-y fashion, the voice said "What a world! What a world!" I think someone used sound that was still playing in Electronics and just put their walkie up to it so other people would hear, but I was still thoroughly creeped out for the rest of the night, and this other girl working near me was like "I got paranoid after that..."))


"You think I haven't had hundreds of thousands of chances to kill him by now?" Tome's voice was stiff and his fingers curled a little tighter around her hand, but not enough to hurt. "I could have had his head on a platter every day of my life for over the past ten years." He'd been strong enough for it by then, and had the skill and the reason. "But I will not allow it."


He shook his head. "I've no love for the King." That much was clear, but needed to be stated out loud to someone who wouldn't turn him in for treason. "You've surely figured that out by now. That isn't why I let him live. I let him live, even protect his life myself, because of my baby sister. She's weak, she's ill, she's naïve, and she's sheltered, and she loves him. He's her father, and to her that can still mean something." He only let the king live because he knew Fawn would be crushed if he died. "I trusted you to be near her, to help her. . . But you weren't thinking about her. You were thinking about you."
 
(Lol! Now that's something! I would have been totally freaked out after that xD Hey can't say something interesting didn't happen to you at work tho xP Knowing me I'd have probably thrown the walkie to the floor and panic xD )


Mia didn't say anything for a moment, replaying his words on her mind before she actually spoke "I can't fully deny that" She said in a low voice "But I won't say I never ever thought about her. I like her, she's nice and kind hearted. She reminds me of someone I lost a couple of years before. Each time you tasked me with something that concerned her I did it wholeheartedly, as if she was that very someone I used to love. I was just more than happy to have the chance to do something for her" Those words were true and she wouldn't allow others to tell her they were not.


However, her whole expression darkened as she opened her mouth to speak again "Nevertheless, that wouldn't have stopped me from trying what I tried nor would it stop me if I had the chance again. You love your sister, I get that. But even if I appreciate her too I have two people to whom I owe that. That's why the only thing I really regret was betraying you, but I do not feel remorse or whatsoever for attempting to murder The King"
 
((That would be destroying company property xD so no i didnt do that, but yes i was freaked out))


Tome's grip went slack, and his hand slipped away from hers as he got to his feet. "The King is responsible for many lives and many deaths. Don't think yourself special because he's taken things from you. He doesn't know who you are, and you will never step foot inside the castle again." He turned, giving her his back, and just walked away. "Rest. Ill make you something to eat." She had taken a loss at the King's hands, whether by his command or by extension of something else he'd done, and he could understand her bitterness - perhaps no one could understand it more than she did - but Tome had learned long ago that caring about himself got him nowhere. So long as Fawn was safe and happy, he didn't care what happened to him, or what hurt his feelings, for lack of a better phrase. Even if somehow the guards allowed her back, Tome wouldn't let Mia near the king ever again.
 
(I guess that's true xD )


"I know" She said, even if he had walked away, she just couldn't stop herself "I know it pretty well. I realized that when I set foot in the castle and saw him. That's why I haven't tried again. That's why, though I would try and kill him if I had the chance, I had given up in some way" She pursed her lips together before continuing "I understood that I had wasted my life over something that nor my mother nor my brother would have asked for" Yeah, she still felt as if she owed it to them but she was now aware that they would've never wished for her to do something like that "But I couldn't do a thing. I'd had such bitterness within me practically all my life that I just couldn't give up when I was near that who I had hated from long ago"


She had refused to think otherwise, but know she knew it had been for the best everything that had happened. She had been given the chance to have such a beautiful and marvelous baby brother by her side, if only for a few years. And with what she had been told in the castle she realized it had been a good thing her brother had not been taken to the palace "I won't ever try to get to him again, but I'm not sure that I would be able to get rid of that hatred that just seems to grow each day that goes by" Then her expression finally grew blank, almost expressionless as she went silent.
 
Tome listened to her story even as he rewarmed some of the food he'd made for Fawn, something simple and easy to digest. When it was hot but not quite steaming, he brought it back to her and sighed. "Holding on to hatred that way is like drinking poison and waiting for the other person to die." He said, shaking his head, though he realized it was probably a pour example, seeing as she'd actually tried to give the king poison.


"You have to adapt," he said, giving her forehead a light tap as he perched carefully on the couch next to her arm. "See the changes and mold yourself to them. You have to not let it trample you into the ground, and learn to be strong." He set the food on an end table and slipped an arm under her shoulders to lift her carefully. "And you have to sit the hell up and eat something before you're nothing but skin and bone." He was done talking about 'deep' things, or he wanted to be. He never liked these sorts of conversations. He was never very good at them.
 
Mia blinked when she felt his light touch on her forehead and smiled a bit at the feeling, his hand felt cool and refreshing against her skin. She raised her eyebrow at what he told her afterwards but didn't talk back, not until he lifted her to eat "Yeah, maybe you're right" She concluded to both of his statements. She didn't try to broach the subject again, for she had understood that he was done talking about those things and maybe it was better for Mia to be done talking about them as well.
 
Tome nodded and just settled her up to a good angle, then out a hand on her arm so she wouldn't move it. "You won't be able to use your dominant hand for a little while, just to be safe." He explained, and set the fork in her other hand. "It's stabilized, but I don't want to push it. My healing spells aren't exactly the strongest." He had never had as much potential for magic as his sister, being what he was, and she could never have used it without draining what little energy she had.
 
Mia's eyes lowered to her hand and fork before her brows furrowed "Thank you. I'm truly grateful for your help, but... How much is 'for a little while' exactly?" Mia's work was the only thing she had now that she was not a slave. She was not even sure that they wouldn't kick her out because she had lost the sack. If she couldn't move that well... She would have to find a job again. And that was easier said than done.
 
Tome shrugged slightly, sitting back a bit to let her eat but near in case she needed help with anything. "A few days, at least. I'll do what I can to speed it along, but you're just going to have to learn patience." She wasn't as fragile as his sister and he would darn well tie her to the couch if it got her to stay still long enough to heal. If Fawn could help him learn a new spell - by instruction and not example - maybe he could help her heal faster.
 
Mia's eyes widened but she didn't complain. He was doing his best to help her, she couldn't really ask for more. She also knew there was no way she could go back into town and look for a job when she wasn't even able to move around properly. All those times she had avoided to be beaten up like that since she was left without a master gone to waste. She nibbled down on her bottom lip before a sigh escaped them "I understand" She finally granted with a nod before she started eating. Nevertheless, she couldn't even finish it all. Her stomach had shrunk once again and she felt unable to eat more than that. Even if she tried to force herself out of courtesy, she reached one point where she couldn't get herself to take not even one more bite "Thank you for the food" Mia told him with an apologetic smile.
 
Tome eyed both Mia and the plate when she was "done", then just shook his head and took it from her, getting to his feet. "You've lost your appetite. Is it the injuries, or habit?" It wasnt possible. There was no way she could have spent all the money he'd given her already and still be destitute enough to shorten her food supply. He didn't understand. Why was she so bedraggled now when he'd given her enought o get her back on her feet?
 
Mia blinked "Habit" She answered automatically before tilting her head to the side a little "I... Don't usually get to eat a lot, so I'm used to eat just a little" Her body had grown used to consume the amount she provided. It was something good actually, that way she was able to work even if she ate once or nothing a day. She didn't complain though, it was just how things were after all.
 
Tome nodded, though he didn't actually believe her much at all. Then again, that could just be the previous betrayals shouting at him. He doubted it, though, but didn't comment, just said "I see," and left to dump the uneaten food and wash the dishes. When everything was done, he retrieved a book from where he'd left it and set it in Mia's lap. "To entertain you. I have to check on Fawn."
 
Mia brushed the book with her fingertips and smiled "Thank you" She declared as she watched him leave. A book, huh? It had been years since she had even gotten something to read. She flipped the book open and eyed the first page. Mia, however, didn't even make it to the second page before she closed it rather frustrated. That's right, she had forgotten it... Ever since she was little she hadn't been able to read full texts properly. Sometimes words' letters would change in order or she wouldn't really be able to understand what she was reading at all. It was sad to admit it but once when her mother had tried to teach her how to write, it would be really difficult if it was meant to be a whole coherent text. Her spelling errors would normally be a bunch, she would change the letter order or even add or subtract a letter here and there, two things that also happened to her when she read.


How was it that the doctor had named what happened to her? She couldn't really recall it. She did remember it had been classified as a type of learning disability or something along those lines. But it only affected her reading and writing, nothing more. How could she have forgotten it? How could she have forgotten all those times her mother had sit by her side and had read her whatever Mia herself couldn't. How could she forget such frustration and exasperation caused by that fact during her childhood. Even Elliot, who was younger than her had been able to learn how to write and read perfectly. A long sigh escaped her lips as her brows furrowed, how bothersome.
 
Tome checked on Fawn and found her awake, sitting up a bit in bed. She smiled for him, feeling all right, and when he asked if she wanted to get up she was able to even stand on her own feet and walk. She usually let him carry her when she was tired, but she was feeling well enough to be up and about on her own, and that made him immeasurably happy.


He kept a hand wrapped gently around her elbow to support her as they went down the stairs, but she seemed steady on her own. She'd been recovering slowly ever since they'd left the castle, and Tome was happy to think that she was better out here, that she wasn't so sick and was happier. After what had happened, she wouldn't be very happy in the castle for a long time.


When they got downstairs, Tome guided Fawn into the sitting room, where the small girl's eyes landed on Mia and went wide. "Mia!" She cried, not very loud but overjoyed still, and broke away from Tome to walk over and sit next to the other girl. Fawn hesitated, looking for a place to touch that wouldn't hurt, and ended up just settling a small hand on Mia's arm. ". . . Are you coming home now?" Tome didn't have the heart to say anything. He left instead to get them both something to drink.
 
Mia, who had been scowling with her eyes closed, had been quite surprised by Fawn's familiar voice. She had opened her eyes immediately just to find the little girl walking to her. She seemed... Pretty well to be honest and that made Mia herself feel rather overjoyed, even her frustration seemed to disappear for the time being. She gave Fawn a genuine, warm smile "Look at you! You seem to be doing perfectly" She said cheerfully. However, when she asked about her coming back to that home, her smile faltered, her gaze unconsciously looking for Tome just in time to see him leaving "I... I'd love to, but I can't since I've got a job back on town that I can't leave" Though Mia wasn't even sure if they were going to be the ones leaving her soon "How have you been?" She asked instead, trying to change the subject.
 
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