[ooc: feels a bit rushed, this... oh well
]
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Olm sighed, exaggeratedly, and glared at the door to his lab – he had been
trying to do some more work on Jase, but those soldiers upstairs were being damn noisy again, and it was hard to concentrate, sometimes, wondering what they were breaking… To be fair, he didn’t know that they were damaging
anything, but judging by some of the ominous crashes he’d heard over the past hour or so…
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*At a soft sound, he glanced up – oh, it was only her. Poor kid, she was in a mess… he’d patched up what he could, and got her sedated, so she’d sleep – she’d been too worked up to sleep on her own… She’d looked like she’d make a quick recovery – they were wiry little creatures, after all, usually back up on their feet very quickly after an injury – but the wounds had got infected. He’d cursed himself for that, for not suspecting it and starting the antibiotics sooner, but he’d got her on a pretty heavy course of them once he’d realised and although she was suffering somewhat – a little delirious, at the moment – he reckoned it’d clear up pretty quickly.
-----
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*It was night. Aura lay in bed, a little bandage-wrapped parcel under her blanket, and watched the moon. Usually she got some comfort out of the moon, but tonight it was merely a dispassionate watcher, staring critically down at her with an uncaring eye.
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Soft footsteps caught her attention – she glanced over at her doorway, and watched as
He padded in and settled on his elbows at the foot of her bed. She was a little confused as to how he’d got past the guards, but found she didn’t really care. He was here, and that was all that really mattered.
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*She didn’t look up. “Come to finish the job you started, huh?” she asked, softly.
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*The red head swung her way. “What?”
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*She coughed, weakly, hugged her blankets closer. “Didn’t think you would. You’re too much of a coward…”
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*He gave her a considering look. “Why
would I do that, anyway?”
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*“It’s what you do, isn’ it?”
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*He shrugged, offhandedly. “I don’t know. Maybe. Most of the time. Maybe this time I just wanted to come talk.”
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*“Talk?” she pushed herself upright in the pillows with a wince. He sat mostly in the shadows, but moonlight drew a strike of red across his face.
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*A nod. “After all, it’s me that’s in trouble, now. Maybe I want to find someone who’s not scared of me to talk to,” he smiled, faintly. “Someone who has the added advantage of being physically incapable of killing me on sight. After all, even utterly psychotic killers like to just talk, sometimes…”
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*She cocked her head. “What makes you think I’m not scared of you?”
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*The head turned to gaze out of the window, and the moonlight tracked across his sharp, angular features to draw a line down his back and pick out all his spines. “I don’t know. Not many people come to find me, apart from to try to kill me.”
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*She slumped back down in the pillows. “Of course I’m scared of you,” she replied, softly, measuredly. “Scared as anyone, I guess. But… I know I’ve got to face you, sometime. Rej may talk rubbish, but he has something of a tendency of being right…” she gazed down at her hands, at the neat line of stitches across the stump of the little finger on her left hand. “And he implied… I don’t know, maybe one of us is going to die. And… I suppose I don’t really want it to be either of us…”
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*He cocked an eyebrow. “Why?”
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*“I don’t know,” she managed a watery smile, although it quickly faded. “Maybe I think death is too good for you.”
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*He laughed, wryly. “Unlike yourself, you mean? Why were you so determined to get me to kill you?”
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*She sighed, softly, lay back down in her blankets and curled up. “You ever been betrayed, you big red freak?” she asked, faintly.
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*“Betrayed?”
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*She nodded, gazed back out of the window; the moon hung low and fat on the horizon, still watching her, as ever… “I suppose you wouldn’t know about that, would you?” she sighed. “Betrayal hurts in ways you can’t imagine… Especially when it’s by someone you thought you could trust with your life…” and laughed, bitterly. “Frack, even
you betrayed me, in a way. I thought I could at least rely on you to do one little thing, and you couldn’t do it…”
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*He stood up, padded closer. “I was interrupted,” he said, stiltedly, staring down on her.
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*She smiled, sadly, closed her eyes. “Well… No-one’s going to interrupt you now…”
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*“That’s true…” he replied, but there was an odd tone to his voice. A somehow
knowing tone…
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Something brushed against her shoulder. She gave a start, opened her eyes, sat up – but he was gone. Almost as though he’d never been there.
Delirious
