Fantasy The Lulls Between

[Daisie]

Tall and ancient woods reached for the skies and cast the moss-coated forest floor in lazy shadows, swaying in the breeze. A relaxed river snaked through a valley between the Earth's mounds, not flowing enough to roll and rumble, but to trickle by softly. Clinging to the edges of the riverbed were speckled toadstools of various shapes and sizes, soaking in the abundant moisture. It was a peaceful, undisturbed slice of nature that existed in serenity.

Until those two showed up.

"I believe I see it!" The man's voice called, a dusty purple hand pointing through the foliage. "As I said, we were going in the correct direction. These woods are simply very... distracting."

Weaving through the shrubbery as gracefully as a baby fawn on ice skates, Draven Hawthorne made his way down the steep decline towards the riverbed, navigating bare rocks and thick roots. The Tiefling wasn't necessarily known for his grace, but his tall stature at least made the descent a little more bearable. As he planted his boots against the moss-coated ground by the side of the river and gripped the edge of a map tightly in his hand, he gazed over the river with triumph.

"We should be quick about this," Draven called back over his shoulder to his travel partner, who was yet to emerge. He glanced back towards the stream, eyes locking onto the movement of a fish swimming just beneath the surface. "Loreliah and Oaklynn predicted they would be arriving at the town by noon tomorrow. We must not dawdle long if we wish to meet them there."

KarriJorg99

 

[KarriJorg99]

"Persephone thinks that the woods are lovely and not distracting at all." A little half-ling, lady with pink curly hair said, a smile written on her face. "They can help us too you know, they prove everything we need if you really think about it. "What are we doing here anyway? How did we even get away from the others again?" Persephone sighs deeply. "Persephone thinks it's best for a break right now, how long has it been since we rested? Persephone has short little legs, remember, Draven?"

 

[Daisie]

When Persephone began her ramble on about the woods, Draven raised his eyebrows and cocked his head towards her, confused. Of course, maybe he shouldn't have been surprised, he figured to himself. Persephone was an odder duck than him in more ways than one, and that was saying something.

Nonetheless, he peered up at her, the sharp hill leading about 7 feet up from the ground he stood on, cobbled with rough rock. That was when she reminded him of her stature.

"Ah, mm... Yes. My apologies." He stepped up a couple of times onto the incline, a little wobbly. Steadying on, he reached a hand out and up to her to offer support. "Careful coming down."

But he had a moment's pause, something still nagging at him as his arm still hung outstretched towards her.

"What did you mean by the woods 'proving anything we need'?"

 

[KarriJorg99]

Persephone's smiled at Draven. Talking about the woods has always giving Persephone a since of comfort. Even just thinking about the woods gives her a warm feeling like a hug from someone you love.

"Persephone accepts your apology, Draven. But it's really not your fault, Persephone just have little legs. But to answer your question: it's simple really," She says, "The woods have well, wood for a fire, if we're lucky there would be a steam or a lake filled with water for us to drink. And in that water they're might be some fish for us to ate if we get hungry. We can build a small hunt for shelter with the wood or leaves but building that hut would take days to do. So really if you think about it the woods it a perfect place to live in. But the only thing that it's missing is the people of a city or town. But yet again living in the woods can give one a peace of mind from the chaos of living in the city. If you help the nature, the nature helps you. It's that simple, Draven."

 

[Daisie]

As Persephone explained, Draven was quiet, his arm eventually weighing down to his side again. He found her explanation quite whimsical - maybe too much so - and he pressed his lips together, dissatisfied.

"Nature is callous." He stated this plainly, with distaste. Yet the look upon his face was subtly thoughtful. "Monsters dwell in the wilds. They're untamed. Wrathful beasts and evil things that thrive on pain."

Yet despite his words, he couldn't help but glance about again, gaze flitting from rocks to bushes, from tree trunks to mushrooms. There was a significant part of him that, similar to Persephone's outlook, stood in awe and wonder of it all. He could really never fully get used to the colors.

His voice left his throat in a soft, absent-minded mumble. "But it is beautiful."

He didn't let his thoughts wander long, craning his head back up towards Persephone and peering at her with expectant golden eyes. He raised his hand to her again.

"Well, come on then."

 

[KarriJorg99]

Persephone rolled her eyes at the thought of monsters lurking in such a beautiful place. But she did follow Draven down the path they were on. Sighing deeply, her mind still on the thoughts of home. Her home. Her woods. Instead she let herself to helped by Draven on areas that seemed rocky. Being short as she is, she can be clumsy.

"Persephone is glad that you think that nature is beautiful, in you're own way of course."

Persephone found herself sighing once again, "My legs are getting tired of walking...Is there a way we can rest for a moment or two?"

Walking was never Persephone's strong suit, even long distances made her feel uncomfortable from time to time. Persephone wasn't use to this type of adventure. Even if it's with friends she made. She's use to living on her own, and not really speaking to anyone. When she spoke, people often looked at her weirdly, like she was the odd one out.

"Persephone hates long walks..." She mumbles to herself. "She loves nature but walks, not so much."

A question came to Persephone's mind, one she's be meaning to ask. But one she's been fearing of the answer. She took a deep breath and let herself ask it anyway.

"Draven? Do you think Persephone talks weird?"

 

[Daisie]

With Persephone requesting rest, Draven ambled off from the path that ran alongside the river, his attention diverted from his search for the best place to find fish. It made sense Persephone would be tired - every one of his strides had to be at least three of hers. He found her a fallen log and gestured towards it, allowing her to climb up on top before letting himself sit down. He sat on the grassy soil at below the log, cross-legged and hunched forward to let his elbows rest on his knees. At least when he was down on the ground, he was more comparable to her own height. Even a little under, with her sat up on the log.

When she inquired about her speech, his answer came decisively.

"Yes. Absolutely." He confirmed. Tucking his stubbled chin down, his eyes remained on Persephone with a deep-rooted intrigue. "Most do not announce themselves as you do. You say your name quite frequently. Call yourself 'she' and not 'I'."

For just a few seconds, he let his gaze search downwards aimlessly in thought before returning to her. He let slip the slightest amused smile across his normally-dismal expression. "I admit to benefitting from it. Suffice it to say, I won't ever forget your name. This mind, it's... difficult, at times."

He moved on quickly, not allowing enough time for her to press more about the subject. "Do you believe your speech is strange?"

 

[KarriJorg99]

As Persephone found herself sitting on the log Draven had found. The counter question from his lips made her smile. Did she think her speech is strange. To put it simply to her thoughts, no. But yet again others have told her she had a strange speech, making her quiet down a little, letting others talk for her. The smile fell a little as she thought about more of his question. Could he tell if she told a lie? Could she ever lie to someone? Being what she is now, she couldn't lie. She took a deep breath, letting the fresh air clear her thoughts. Being back in the woods again made her feel alive.

"To put it simply; Persephone never really cared how she sounds to herself. But she sees how others reacts to her speech, makes them uncomfortable." She whispers gently.

She places her chin on the palm of her hand. Her eyes looking out to the water. Her eyes give off a small sparkle of light when the sun reflected off the water.

"When Persephone sees that it makes them uncomfortable, she just stops talking and let others talk for her. Persephone as an odd ball is not new in her own world."

It wasn't easy for Persephone to speak openly to someone. This was the first. And for some odd reason, she was getting to use talking for herself. And with that thought, she smiled again. This time, letting the smile to be big instead of small.

"What makes your mind difficult, Draven?" Persephone asked, letting an eyebrow go into an arch. "Besides the fact that you say you won't forget Persephone's name."

 

[Daisie]

With Persephone's smile beaming at Draven all of a sudden, it was difficult not to be charmed. Even then though, his face seemed to be trapped in a never-ending state of unease. The gilded eyes that settled on her gave presence to his anxiety, even in such a calm location. Yet somehow, the subject of his wariness never appeared to be the world around him. It was never concentrated on any one thing.

It was her question that prodded Draven to sit up straighter. As a contrast to Persephone's willing honesty, his posture switched to something far more guarded with the attention on him.

"It was all-..." He sputtered at first, suppressing himself before his words could escape him. That was before his shoulders sagged, his eyes avoiding her interested gaze and boring into the ground.

The silence afterwards stretched on for a little longer than comfortable. The quiet trickle of the river and the distant birdsongs overtook their conversation. But then he breathed in to answer, hesitation clear in him.

"Do you ever wonder if the things you have seen are so-..." He stumbled, failing to grasp a way to communicate his thoughts. "... That their very existence in your mind could... will them into reality?"

He laid his palm flat against the grass, the blades combing between his splayed fingers and pointed nails.

"Do you think that a memory could ever claw its way into the world? Into your body?"

 

[KarriJorg99]

Persephone found herself in an odd place at the of his question. She found herself pulling her knees to her chest, her arms hugging her knees, almost as if she was just starting to close herself off after being so open with Draven. Her eyes seem to avoid his now as she found herself looking at the water, watching it slowly move.

“Memories?” She whispers in a dreamily way to herself.

Persephone shook her head, and found herself looking back at Draven.

“Persephone apologizes for the delay in question that you have ask Draven.” She says in a small whisper, she doesn’t know if he could her small voice now. “But Persephone might not be the best person to ask that question. Even if she is a Cleric.”

Her eyes now seem to avoid Draven’s eyes and found herself looking at the water once again. Her throat felt dry after talking about the word memories, or even just thinking about them. Someone needed to change the subject, but she already felt closed off, so talking openly now would be a little bit more difficult for Persephone. Even if it’s with Draven.

 

[Daisie]

Persephone's reaction struck a vivid look onto Draven's face - a bright flash of shame. His lips pressed together in a grim line, his eyes closed, and his fingers came up to rub at the tiny horn protruding from the bridge of his nose.

"Yes. Apologies, Persephone," he muttered, as if wishing to yank his questions out of the air again. "That was not a... good question."

That being said, when he finally opened his eyes again, he reached over his shoulder, detaching the spear from his back. He took the time to inspect its sharpened head, running a fingertip along its edge. His sudden fixation was almost threatening, in a way.

"You are right." He admitted, a tone of finality setting in. His grip around his spear shifted and tightened. "A cleric cannot heal my wounds."

When he stood, effectively reclaiming his six feet of height over her, he turned towards the river, spear in hand. He stopped though, before he could get ahead of himself. Instead, turning back towards Persephone, he had a softer and kinder expression.

He offered a hand towards her once more - a considerate offer of assistance from off her log.

"It is about time we caught our supper."

 

[KarriJorg99]

Persephone looked at her hands, the black scars of a reminder of something, but what? She gently placed her hand in Draven’s letting him help her off the log.

“Persephone think we’ll find someone to help you out, even if it’s not Persephone herself. A cleric at heart.”

Persephone found herself looking at her fingers again. Shaking off the odd feeling, she turned to gaze to the water, with that she sprinted towards, smiling back at him.

“Persephone is racing you, Draven!”

 

[Daisie]

That same small smile quirked onto Draven's face again as Persephone dashed off. He leapt to her challenge, but seeing as he had a certain advantage over her, one would assume he would slow down.

One would assume.

He did not. Not at all. Instead, he'd only taken two steps to catch up before Persephone found an arm suddenly wrapping around her torso. The mossy grass swooped out from beneath her bare feet as Draven heaved the woman up off the ground with startling ease, continuing his sprint with her tucked under his arm.

But in true Draven fashion, he was merely a step from the water when his foot dropped into a divot in the ground, turning his speedy stride into more of a hurdling tumble. The two were sent flying into the shallow waters, thankfully only a few inches deep, but still enough to make quite the dramatic, flailing splash. One that ended with Draven face-down in the water, peeling himself up off the soggy riverbed with mud drenched over his nose-horn.

Needless to say, all of the fish darted away at the exact same time.

 

[KarriJorg99]

Small fits of laughter came from Persephone’s mouth. When was the last time she had actually laugh? Let herself be free from fear or worry.

“Classic Draven.” She whisper, “For someone who is taller than Persephone, she thought you would be more confident in where you walk. But it looks like you’re just as clumsy as Persephone here.”

The sun gave off a warm glow as set begin to set. How long has it been since the two are dinner or even slept? Taking a deep relaxing breath, Persephone felt better. Her mind filled with less worry then ever.

“Persephone thinks the fish gotten scared of the splash. We should probably find some where down the steam if we want food.”

 

[Daisie]

"I thought so." Draven sighed and nodded defeatedly before swiping his sopping black hair from out of his eyes. He stood up from the water and wiped off the horn of his nose with displeasure. "At this rate, this horn will be filed down to a nub by the end of the year."

Regardless, he stepped from the shallow waters of the river onto dry(er) land, his soaked boots squelching with each step. That is, until he passed a curious glance towards Persephone's bare feet. With a couple of contemplative looks back and forth, he eventually sat himself down and carefully slipped his boots and socks off.

As he did so, he revealed shockingly large patches of mangled skin across his feet. Swaths of mottled, dark burn scars curled up from the soles of his feet, twisted in uncomfortable wrinkles somehow both too tight and too loose. As he rolled his pants up to just below the knee, it was clear they didn't stop there, either, the patches extending well beyond what was visible. The scarring didn't appear new, but it certainly didn't look old either.

Though his movements were a little more ginger than before, he stood up again, the sock-stuffed boots both hanging from his hand as he pinched their tops together. He tensed as he stepped into the shallows again, but slowly relaxed, the cool relief of the stream on his angry skin washing through him.

With that being done, he began to trod slowly through the shallows in long, even strides, boots in one hand and his other steadying the spear laid over his shoulder.

"Tell me when you spot a fish."

 

[KarriJorg99]

It didn't take long for the two to find the fish that they wanted. Turns out fish is pretty easy to catch when you have a Tiefling at your side. The fire was easy to build, simple if you had a fire bolt spell really. Persephone found herself looking at the black scars on her fingers. Sighing deeply, she sat on the ground, her legs crossed, her eyes watching the fire.

"Persephone wonders if you ever miss home?" She asked in a whisper, unsure if she should speak more on the subject.

It was an odd question in her mind. How could one miss something so much even if you don't really remember much of it. She found herself looking back on the black scars on her fingers. For a moment an odd feeling came over her but she couldn't place what the feeling was so shaking her head she turned away, looking back at the fire. Watching the fire glow as it burn the logs, twigs and anything else needed for a fire to burn.

"Also, do you think the fire knows it's hurting things to keep it burning, to keep going?" She asked.

Persephone didn't know why she asked such an odd question again, but she was an odd person herself. So hearing odd question shouldn't be such a surprised to anyone who knows her or have been around her. Persephone tucked a piece of her pink behind her ears, though it didn't do much help. Her hair has always been crazy and very curly. Most of the time Persephone just let's her hair do whatever it wanted, like it had it's own mind. So instead of fighting it, she pulled up her green hood up, hoping that the hood could her hair in it's place. Although there was a fire going, she pulled her cloak tightened around her. The feeling of comfort came over her again. The cloak has always been her favorite thing that she has. Her knees automatic came to her chest again, so she rested her chin on one knee. Her eyes still on the fire, waiting for Draven's answer.

 

[Daisie]

Draven was watching the skewered fish cook over the fire when Persephone broke his trance, but it was the content of those two questions that startled him. He sat right by the fire - almost dangerously close - with his pant legs still rolled up and damp from the river, but drying by the heat of the flame.

The very reminder of the fact that, at some point, he had a home was something that created a type of restlessness in his chest. It was a sting through his bones, and he wondered how it was possible that Persephone could ask a question that could cause such pain... much less two. The golden eyes that reflected the firelight shied from her, as if he were suppressing the urge to hide away somewhere.

Regardless, he steeled himself.

"The fire knows," he answered, oddly sure of himself. He finally allowed himself to become enthralled with the campfire, as Persephone had. That was when he reached his hand out towards the flame, but in fact he reached farther in than one could expect. For just a few seconds, the licks at the top of the flame coiled around his open hand as he turned his palm around in it. "This is its design, you see."

When he pulled his hand out from the flame, he inspected it: undamaged. Nothing but smoke floated up in ribbons from his fingertips. "It is designed to not only consume, but to inflict the greatest amount of agony upon its victims as possible. A pain that exists for years after the flame's own demise."

"Yes, that is its purpose. But it isn't evil." His eyes sunk, half-lidded and wistful. "It is only... the punisher. You can't hold blame to it."

The crackle of the fire he spoke of was the only sound that greeted them for some time more, Draven allowing his words to saturate the air. His expression remained bleak, the gleam to his eye having dulled over the course of his answer.

Then, without looking back to Persephone, he spoke, his tone shockingly quiet. Soft. Almost helpless.

"I don't want to go home. But to be honest... I can't convince myself that home has ever left me."

 

[KarriJorg99]

Persephone’s muscles tensed as she watched Draven explain her question on fire. How placed his hand in the fire but then removed it and nothing was done. She relaxed again seeing that no pain or harm was done to his hand. The glowing power of her cleric healing spells were ready to heal if any pain had been done. But it looked nothing was done to his hand.

The purpose of fire was answered in way Persephone was not expecting. Does the fire feel guilty for doing its job? Suppose it didn’t feel anything but the burning things to keep it alive. Maybe it wasn’t dangerous but people make it out to be. Persephone sighs deeply, watching the fire once again.

“Do you think the fish is done?” She whispers.

Draven’s answer about home didn’t really surprise her. But would her answer surprise him? For as long as she can remember, her home has been a fuzz ball in her mind. Would she even remember how to get back home if she can? Would she even want to go back home? Her eyes flicker to the black scars again, the fire just lighting up enough to see them.

The odd feeling came over again, and she shook it away by folding her arms again, hiding the scars.

“At least you have a home that you remember.” She whispers, her voice soft and quiet. Hoping it was enough for him not to hear her well, but knowing how hope works, she knew Draven had heard.

 

[Daisie]

When Persephone inquired about the fish, Draven's eyebrows flicked up in acceptance that it was, in fact, done. Perhaps even a little singed around the edges, but otherwise the heavy scent of cooked meat wafted up pleasantly from its flesh. He removed the skewer from over the fire and rustled around in their pack of supplies for a second before drawing out a small blade. As if he'd done it many times before, he begun to slice through the meat to remove its head & tail (which he set aside), and the remaining bones. He was halfway through when Persephone's whispered comment suddenly froze him.

Something flipped.

The look to his eye was distant, but different all the same. It didn't hold that warm familiarity that he treated Persephone with, nor the haunted mask he wore constantly. As his grip tightened on his knife, which hung over the fish idly, his mind was flooded with something else. At that moment, something unidentifiable.

"That's the problem." Draven seethed back, the timbre of his voice having changed to nothing but bitter resentment and fury. All of a sudden his words began to tumble out in a disorganized way, lacking his general - albeit quirky - sense of dignity. "You think I want this? That I want to carry this with me? The-... The tolling and weeping, the taste of its voice from off my own tongue...! I'd gut it out from my mind myself, if I could! My 'home' needs to learn to stay gone!"

He hadn't realized he was shouting by the end of his speech. Nor that his hand had latched onto the handle of the black morningstar hanging at his hip. It was moments afterwards that recognized himself, alongside the righteous fury he was boring straight into Persephone with his deranged stare. His hand left his weapon as his brow softened, though it was with the full knowledge that it was too little, too late. He could only watch that small, pink-haired woman apologetically, hanging on her reaction.

 

[KarriJorg99]

The sudden hunger faded away from Persephone as out burst Draven had just a moment ago. Her throat suddenly felt dry as if she hadn’t been drinking enough water all day. Her black scars suddenly begins give off a small bit glow, almost like they had power. Persephone hands quickly covered her ears.

With that note she began to mutter softly saying the word no over and over, along with please. Her eyes closed tightly, as it would help this situation. The glowing from her fingers faded quickly, whatever was doing this, it seems to have gone quickly just as it came. Her eyes still tightly closed, her hands still covering her ears. A single tear dripped from one of her eyes. Her heart quickly beating, not seem to be slowing down any time soon.

Her lips still mumbling no and please. Her voice cracking at the slightest. The mumble stopped in a few seconds. But her muscles didn’t loosen up. Whatever was within her seem to be gone but she still felt scared that it could come back again. The moment she open her eyes, she removed her hands away from her ears and quickly whipped off any tears before anyone could ask or see them properly. She took a deep breath, letting the fresh air fill her lungs. Her heart beat finally coming to natural beat.

“We might need a new fish.” She whispers, her voice still giving a small crack at the end.

 

[Daisie]

The alarm in Draven that came from spotting Persephone's strange, glowing fingers wasn't enough to deter him. In fact it was subtle enough that for a second, he questioned whether or not what he was seeing was real, continuing to look bewildered and tense for the moments afterwards it took her to recover. His legs were still in position to spring up at a moment's notice, but when Persephone took her breather and commented on the fish left forgotten by the fire, he huffed through his nose in amusement, not expecting that to be the first thing from her mouth.

He picked up the fish again carefully, brushing off the bit of dust it had collected from being left behind. It was, indeed, a bit mangled from his outburst, yet still...

"Nonsense." He mumbles, his voice far more careful and tame. "It's still helpful to us, if damaged."

With that being said, he wielded his knife to their meal again, slicing out the skeleton with more elegance this time around. He split the remainder in half before pulling his gaze back up towards Persephone, having given her ample time to recompose herself. Having given himself ample time to recompose.

With half the fish in a hand, still piping with steam, he stared it down thoughtfully. He even opened his mouth to say something. A question about what had just taken place hung unsaid in the air, but before it could work its way out, he finally snapped his jaw shut again. If there was one thing he understood, it was the incredulous looks and prying questions of strangers trying to make sense of his world. Toiling to keep his history to himself. Granted, from the few conversations he'd managed to muster from Persephone before, he understood that she had little idea what her own history was like, but either way, the mere distress of a question being asked was one he'd grown familiar with.

Instead, he allowed his questions to slide away. Though he didn't make any kind of apology, he did place the piping (albeit somewhat shredded) slab of fish down by the edge of the fire, an even distance between he two in a silent offering. It was certainly too hot to hold, anyways.

He brought his own half of the meal to his lips before pausing, thoughts churning on behind his eyes. His muscles then gradually came to relax, eyelids weighed down in exhaustion.

"... We are still helpful. Even if damaged. Are we not?"

He took his bite.

 

[KarriJorg99]

Persephone sighed as she poked at the fish, the feeling hunger still faded away. Her mind still racing with what just happened, not sure how on to act or even think at the moment. The fish was still burnt from the fire but still worth something to the two of them with the burn pieces off. Draven did have a point, Persephone thought.

“Persephone thinks you answered your own question. What you said about the fish pretty much answered the question. We’re still using the good parts of the fish.” She says, her voice back to normal now. Almost as the whole strange act she did never happened.

she should eat, she knows that but something about it just made her not feel great. With that feeling she put the fish down and pushed it away from her. She pulled her knees to her chest and her arms around her legs. Her black scars making it easy with the light of the fire to catch her eye now. How was she going to explain what happened to her?

“People like to push away the bad part, even though it doesn’t taste really good, it’s still worth something to someone. You just have to find the right people who want the good and the bad. Even if the bad will take time to mold over.” She says, this time her eyes finally went over to Draven. She found her lips forming into the smallest of smiles. “At least that’s what Persephone’s been told.”

With a simple gesture, she pushed her half of the fish towards Draven. Her eyes returning to the glowing of the fire. The smile still on her lips, even if it’s a small one.

 

[Daisie]

As Persephone spoke on, the discomfort between the two from their odd encounter began to subside. Draven figured to himself that he didn't need to ask her for more information. He didn't need to know. He'd made it that far without knowing, and another night wouldn't kill him. Everyone was entitled to their secrets.

He was quiet as he took in Persephone's speech. He found it unusual, but by this point, that wasn't particularly unexpected of her - the day Persephone Moonstone started making sense, he'd know for sure that hell had frozen over. While he wasn't totally sure he understood her meaning, he remained attentive, if still a little strained as a leftover from their previous tensions.

As Persephone offered her portion, he instinctively reached for it, perhaps with a bit more eagerness than intended. He stopped himself short though, eyes locked to Persephone as if still somehow caught in a crime. After a second, he leaned back again, focusing on his own half of the fill with another bite.

"I can't take that." He affirmed between his chewing, stubborn but underscored with doubt. He wiped his lip with the back of his hand. "It's yours. And I have mine. Good people don't take other people's things."

 

[KarriJorg99]

It didn’t take Persephone’s half of fish to be gone. The fish turned out to be cold but it was still a worthy fish to be eaten. The sun just barely finished setting and the moon is now rising. The night bringing the chill air, the fire was starting to go down a little but with the simple fire spell, it kept going. Kept burning.

Persephone sighs. Unsure of what to do now or even say. What does one say to break silence? Should she even bring up his or hers little out burst again? She opened her mouth to say something but quickly changed her mind. She didn’t want to push the subject of home again into Draven. Even if it pains the both of them. If only she could have a small sense of hope about home. About her home.

“Persephone thinks, she isn’t good.” She whispers, her eyes looking into the fire. The fire giving her normal pink eyes, a red hue to them instead of the color pink. “She has this feeling that keeps coming over her when she starts to feel good. Or do something good…She wants to know if you, Draven have ever felt that way before? If so how…how do you deal with it? Persephone is a cleric, yes, but this…this feeling is…something else…Because running away from this feeling doesn’t help. Persephone is just tired of running.”

In the small fire of light, a single tear slipped from one of her eyes. She presses her legs closer to her chest as she tightly wraps her green cloak around her as if she was cold. The black scars hidden away from her sight as they tucked in her hand, holding the cloak. She looked at Draven this time. Hoping that he could see the pain in her eyes again. Being open again.

“Do you ever get tired of running away?”

 

[Daisie]

Draven had closed his eyes by the time Persephone finally broke the silence again. Even then, he seemed far from relaxed, still sitting up and alert, as evidenced by how his eyes opened almost immediately when Persephone addressed him, settling on her heavily.

He didn't react straight away, only watching from across the flame as she shrunk into herself, and eventually, maintained eye contact. Perhaps the first time the two had dared to stare each other down. It was scarce to find a common ground. Everything about them seemed different: sizes, principles, dreams, even their attitudes as a cheerful young woman and a haggard, worried man. Yet the pain trapped behind her countenance was one reflected back at her by the dark and tired circles worn beneath Draven's eyes. All at once, her question about his tiredness didn't even need an answer.

Regardless, Draven's gaze poured over her face for a few seconds longer, stretching out to the point where it wasn't clear whether he'd given up on responding entirely, yet somehow it came more suddenly than could be expected.

"I can't afford to be tired."

It was simple. Simple enough that Draven didn't appear to recognize the brutality of it, himself. He only spoke it as if it were the only truth he knew for certain.

"If running isn't working..." He began, his voice low and steady as he stared through the golden rings around his pupils. "Then you run harder. Faster. Until your throat dries and your lungs burn."