Roleplay

The lady watched in silence as the boy before her trashed and fell about, gripping his arm and putting on quite an unsettling show. From looking at her, she showed no real emotion, just watching with utmost curiousity as boy denied to leave, and then denies physical help.

“No,” she said quietly, shaking her head, “I’m going to have to ask you to leave.” She nodded to herself, as though she was agreeing with what she had said, and looked back to the people at the counter, who were watching the show with wide eyes. The lady shook her head and walked towards Callum, reaching out to pull him up.

On the wolf’s back, Lucine began to stir.

She was beginning to come out her dream now, and could see the light of the tavern behind her eyelids, hear muffled snippets of the scene which was going on before her. She could hear Callums voice, and though she couldn’t hear what he was saying, he sounded like he was in pain.

Her eyes shot open, and she sat up immediately, taking a moment to look around the area. They were in a tavern- no, an inn, they had probably stopped there for the night. Lucine wondered how long they had been there, all she knew was that she had fallen asleep, which in turn made her wonder how long she had been asleep.

She turned her head slightly to see Callum, curled in a corner, hunched on the floor, obviously struggling, and a strange woman standing before him. Lucine really didn’t have any time to process the situation before she was off Raven’s back, though she more fell off then jumped, and walking as fast as possible to the corner, pushing the lady aside and not noticing that she fell to the floor.

“Excuse me,” the vampire said politely, not taking her eyes off of Callum, and kneeling in front of him cautiously, as though any sudden movements could upset him. She tried to meet his eyes, but kept her hands to herself, incase her touch would greaten his pain. She took a deep breath, and then another, and watched him.

“Callum,” she said carefully, her eyes flitting from his face to his wrist momentarily, checking to see if there was blood, “Callum, you aren’t okay.”

She didn’t mean to say it as an insult, or as anything of the sort. She knew the boy had a problem with telling people he was fine when he wasn’t, and she didn’t find that very healthy, nor did it make her feel settled, and in her opinion she was sure it didn’t make him feel settled either, and so she sat there, watching him, and taking deep breaths.

“You aren’t okay, and I’m going to find you some assistance, but first I very much need you to calm down. Are you able to walk, at least to where Raven is?” she turned to look at the wolf, as if to tell her she may have to carry him, and then looked back to Callum, her breathing still steady. “Can you tell me what hurts? Is it just your wrist, or has the pain spread?”

Lucine heard shuffling behind her, and turned around to see the woman who she had pushed aside was now standing up, glaring daggers at the two. Lucine blinked her amber eyes at her, and tilted her head.

“Is there a form of problem, miss?” She asked, folding her hands in her lap.

The woman shook her head and continued to glare down at Lucine, motioning her head towards the door, “We don’t like your kind in here. Get.”

Lucine blinked at her, and then just shook her head, “I’m potentially in the middle of something right now. If you don’t mind saving your prejudice for after my boyfriend stops dying, I would very much appreciate it.” She said this quickly, and then turned her head back to Callum, looking him over.

“Callum,” she said quietly, reaching out her hand gingerly. Whether he took it or not was another question, “You’re going to be okay. Don’t be afraid. I will figure this out, I assure you. I promise.”

I'm going to have to ask you to leave.

What the lady said came across as an immediate threat to the terrified Callum, causing him to curl up into an even tighter ball than before. What do you mean, no!? he thought frantically, whimpering. The burning in his arm was... gone. For the most part, anyway. It was mostly numb, with the most pain being in his chest, preventing him from moving too much.

He wasn't aware of the other people. In fact, if he had been, he would've been afraid of every single one of them. He didn't notice Lucine awakening on top of Raven, who was keeping her distance out of instinct; she knew he was afraid, and didn't want to disturb him further. However, the lady asking them to leave didn't seem to be aware of that. In fact, she was getting closer. Closer... closer... reaching out...

His eyes finally widened a little when he could make out Lucine directly in front of him, having pushed the lady aside to reach him. He heard his name, ceasing his trembling only slightly. He stared into her eyes, finding comfort in them. Yes... comfort. Warmth. That was always why he loved looking into them. They took him into a world of light that he hadn't known existed before... even brighter than the one Thalia's eyes offered. It was holding off the strange fear currently controlling him for the moment, but it left him very much aware of how much pain he was really in.

You aren't okay.

"I-I'm not...?" he echoed, staring confusedly at her. He felt strange after he spoke. He didn't know what was making him think that he was perfectly fine; he was hunched over on the floor with a great deal of pain in his chest. Why did he think he was alright? Maybe whatever poison that had infected him was controlling his mind, but he didn't think about that. Maybe Lucine or Raven would come to that conclusion, but he was too delirious at the moment to think about that too much.

He took a while to process the questions he was asked by Lucine, even seeming to fall into a pained daze before shaking his head and snapping him out of it. He glanced down at the bandaging around his wrist, not noticing any blood. He had a feeling there would be blood soon. He looked up at Lucine again, trying not to look at anyone else. "Can I walk...?" he repeated. He wasn't able to tell at the time, but anyone else could possibly tell that there was a child-like tint to his voice, as if he never knew these things and was curious about them, including the fact that he wasn't okay.

He strained and tried to push himself back up. He managed to actually get on his feet, but when he took only two steps forward, he immediately fell to his knees again. He balled his fists and held back a cry as Raven looked on with intense worry. He found it weird how even though his chest hurt badly, it didn't put too much strain on his lungs. He was able to breathe fine, if not for the panic he was undergoing, which was making him wheeze slightly.

"No..." he answered in a quiet voice, turning towards Lucine again. He blinked, processing the other question she asked earlier. "Pain... it's in my chest," he told her, though he sounded just slightly unsure. Again, that could've been due to the substance flowing through his veins. "I can't feel my arm," he added quickly, still propping himself up by his arms. "I-I can't feel it. I can't..."

He would've gone on if it weren't for the interference of the lady from earlier, who had been about to touch him. He cowered underneath the glare in her eyes, stiffly backing up closer to Lucine. She definitely would've been able to tell that something was wrong, because Callum nowadays was definitely not a coward. Sure, he wasn't completely fearless, but he was considerably hardened compared to the Callum in the first old future.

He also normally would've grown hostile when Lucine was threatened, and if it weren't for the infection, that would've been his main emotion at that particular moment. But instead, he looked just a smidge more fearful. He gazed at Lucine as she offered a rebuttal, and then when she reached her hand towards him. His eyes were directed from her face to her hand, and the grey and orange orbs stared for a while. She was telling him not to be scared. She was telling him that she would help him, that she promised she would help him. He almost smiled.

Almost.

The boy glanced back at the angry woman, and suddenly, he was seeing someone else. He let a gasp escape him as the eerily familiar figure of 'Torvald' took the place of the woman, but only in his vision. His breathing increased as the man appeared to grin down at him maliciously, even mockingly. It didn't take him even a few seconds to notice the silver sword the God was dangling by his side, already dripping with blood.

It never truly seems a reality that heroes can die, does it?

"No!" he wailed, barreling towards Lucine and wrapping her in an incredibly tight embrace. His fingers interlocked around her previously extended hand and squeezed. His sudden fright caused his soul dome to return, this time surrounding only him, Lucine and Raven, who had moved closer to him, whining.

"I can't go again!" he begged, burying his face in her shoulder. "I don't want to go again, I won't let him take me again! Please!"

Lucine shook her head as he asked her, almost like a curious child, if he really wasn’t okay. She could tell he was delirious at the moment, and knew very quickly that it was most likely an effect of the poison in his bloodstream. It scared her, immensely, wat this could mean. It was fast acting- she wondered how long it had been since he had been infected. Usually intense effects like this waited until 24 hours to show up. She began to feel a stone of worry sink her stomach, but she tried not to show it as she watched Callum, doing her best not to just reach out to him and pull him close to her. She couldn’t lose him again.

She fought that urge back, knowing in her rational mind that wasn’t the best choice of action. Throwing herself over him wouldn’t change anything, not if the poison was already inside him. She was watching him closely, watching to take notes of how he acted- was he dazed, or just delirious. Unfortunately, she happened to notice that as she asked him questions, he seemed to glaze over, as though he didn’t know what her words meant.

As he stood, she stood, ready to be there incase he were to fall. Sure enough, as she had expected, he took two steps forward and then fell to his knees, unable to walk further. Lucine nodded to herself and kneeled down behind where he had fallen, waiting for him to turn around. She was doing everything in her power not to hold him.

Lucine nodded when he told her he couldn’t walk, looking him over. “Yes, I assumed as much.” she told him, in waiting for him to answer her next question. When he did, informing her where exactly his pain was centered, she nodded again, and watched him, looking down at his arms.

“You can’t feel them..?” She asked, pointing to the bandaged arm, “Just this one, or both of them?” She wasn’t worried about his chest. That was normal- probably his heart trying to process the new substance in his bloodstream.

The next few events happened in a rather quick succession.

Callum gasped. She could hear it, and she knew what it meant. There was pain- new pain, or intensifying pain- whatever it was there was pain. And then she realized from the look in his heterochromatic eyes that it wasn’t pain at all. It was fear. Intense fear, and Lucine knew what it was.

There was a flash of silver, and red, and..

It was a memory Lucine had pushed to the back of her mind- one she wanted to forget for Callum’s sake. If she was hurt by it, she wouldn’t be able to help his pain. She saved her feelings for when there was no one around to hear them. Lucine had bigger fish to fry.

She pushed it back down again, the memory- the feeling that her heart was bursting, the feeling that there was nothing left, the feeling of loneliness, the intense pain- it was all gone. She had become rather talented at purging it from her brain. Just cramming it back there in the dark part of her mind she never touched- the part where her vampirism lived.

And then, he had pulled her close to him, taking her hand and putting up a dome around them, out of fear. He was reliving it. And every second of seeing him like this was hurting Lucine more and more.

Purge it, Lucine. Pull yourself together.

“Shh..” she whispered to him, taking the hand he hadn’t grabbed and moving it to his hair, running her fingers through it. “Shh, Callum, he isn’t here. You’re safe my love.”

“He won’t hurt you, ever again.”

This was the promise she had made to herself, not just to him. Nothing would ever take Callum from her. Not again. Not after that day.

“You’re safe here, with me. I promise you. He won’t take you. I’m going to keep you safe. I promise.”

Lucine felt tears bubbling in her eyes. It was all coming back. The flash, the blood, the smell, the warm inviting smells. The feeling that the world was crushing her, pushing her to the floor, the feeling that nothing would ever be okay again. Being forced to watch. Watching. Watching him die. Clinging to the screams of his soul because that meant he was still alive.

Being dragged away from him. The pain. His body.

Stop it. Pull yourself together.

“I promise Callum, I promise…”

Lucine wouldn’t give into it. Not tonight. She had bigger fish to fry.

The girl could no longer feel the fingers of her right hand in his hair, but she could feel her hand squeezing his. Taking a quiet breath, she placed a kiss on his head, and squeezed his hand again, hoping to give him some comfort.

“You’re going to be okay, my dear. Let’s get out of here, yeah? Can Raven carry you out?” Lucine was whispering to him, her hand still in his hair, his face still on her shoulder. She turned slightly, her yellow eyes landing on the whimpering wolf, and she gave her a small nod. Then, she turned back to Callum and pressed her whole face into his dark hair, fighting with her tears.

“We’re going to be okay, my love.”

Callum wasn't crying, but he was shaking in distress as he held Lucine, keeping the dome around them. Now all of the pain was directly in his chest. It was burning, and it was a little harder to breathe, beckoning him to fully relive the traumatizing memory of being impaled. He squeezed the girl's hand a little tighter, as if he didn't already have a tight hold on it. He kept his face hidden in her shoulder, closing his eyes.

He didn't quite understand why that memory had become so prominent. If he wasn't delusional, he would've reminded himself that he had indeed taught himself to push it back into the darkest depths of his mind. He would've been able to handle this easier, but instead, he was unintentionally putting on a show for the other people in the inn, who were probably still watching. He hoped none of them could hear what either of them were saying... though, the lady trying to kick them out probably could.

He wasn't aware that he basically just outed himself as a mage. He hadn't used his Shadow magic, but projecting his soul was still magic. It wasn't like everyone was born with that specific ability. Someone here could be listening more carefully than everyone else, and that would put him and Lucine in danger, as well as Raven purely by association.

Danger! Danger!

Before those thoughts could properly take control of him, he felt Lucine's fingers brush through his hair. It eased him a bit and made it less difficult to ignore the pain in his chest. He let out a shaky sigh while his face remained on her shoulder, attempting to cling to every word she uttered. He was mystified when she told him that the God wasn't here... he saw him right there. Right in front of him, that lady had morphed into him, and...

It wasn't real?

He began sagging against her as she reassured him, telling him she was going to keep him safe, and he believed her. It wasn't just out of desperation; he loved her with all of his heart and soul. He believed in her, and he would never stop believing in her, no matter what. She knew what she was talking about, and he never wanted to leave her. Not again. Not ever, ever, EVER again.

Suddenly, the foggy fear invading his mind was slowly fading away. His heart was beating slower, but that was a good sign. It was returning to normal. He was controlling his breathing, as well as his shaking. For the most part, he was still, though he could barely get his muscles to relax, especially in his numb arm. Nevertheless, the fiery pain in his chest was beginning to bother him less.

"Promise..." he murmured, repeating what Lucine was telling him. He gave her hand another squeeze, shivering in her embrace. He felt the urge to cry right then and there, but he didn't let any tears escape his eyes. He let out a soft purring sound when she planted a kiss on his head, breathing just as softly. The constricting fear retreated for the most part, and weariness took its place. He took a deep breath.

"Yeah..." he agreed, replying to Lucine when she suggested leaving the inn. "Let's leave... I'm tired..."

Raven met Lucine's yellow eyes and nodded in return, moving towards to scoop the both of them up. She squirmed underneath them as she had done many times before, despite the fact that they weren't standing up, and managed to get them onto her back. She used her wings to keep them balanced, applying them within only a couple seconds of getting them onto her back. She barely even acknowledged the angry woman with nothing more than a sideways glance. She didn't feel the need to give a s**t about anyone else in the room other than Lucine and Callum.

The boy eventually remembered that he still had a dome up and decided to call it off. His soul felt a little better once the dome was gone. A warm feeling spread towards Lucine's soul from his own at the same time. It seemed as though this poison wasn't affecting his soul all that much, if not at all, so he was able to keep up the spiritual link the two shared.

"I love you," he cooed, though his voice was still a bit shaky and tired. He held back a yawn. "I-I'm sorry if I made you cry... I just don't want to go. I don't want to leave you."

He was finally fully able to relax against the girl he loved the most as Raven moved towards the door, with the mindset that no one was going to stop her from leaving. She was too focused on the couple she was carrying to take notice of anyone else around her, even if she wanted to pay attention.

Lucine was quiet, deathly silent except for her slow, steady breathing, as she waited for Callum to calm down. Her face was still buried in his dark hair, and it smelled like him. She wasn’t really sure what exactly he smelled like, but she liked whatever it was, and it always managed to remind her of something, yet she couldn’t manage to truly put a finger on what it reminded her of.

She felt the boy she was holding sag up against her as she attempted to comfort him, and it made the tears in her eyes threaten to spill out. She didn’t want to cry right now, she didn’t want him to see her crying or to know that he had done something to make her cry- even though it was something he couldn't control. Yet, as she held him in her arms, the memories of his death that never seemed to go away no matter how much she poked at them and tried to make them disappear were playing in the back of her mind and making her wish she had just run to the front of that throne room and thrown herself over him, instead of being cocky. A God would not listen to her. She didn't know why she tried.

Lucine gave a small nod when he agreed to leave the inn, pulling her face away from where she had placed it and taking a deep breath, finally getting to look around. It felt unsettling- and the worst part was everyone there was watching them. Watching them through the soul dome that Callum had projected over them, the soul dome which outed him as being a mage. Lucine knew that was dangerous, anything he did with his magic was dangerous, and it caused her to instinctively give his hand another squeeze.

The girl made a small noise not unlike a grunt as she and Callum were lifted up onto Raven's back, as Lucine was trying to support most of the weight of the boy who was leaning against her. "Thank you," she said to the wolf, closing her eyes and letting Callum lean up against her. She would open them again once they were out of the inn, right now her goal was to pretend nothing was wrong.

There were, of course, many things wrong, the first of which being that the poison in Callum's bloodstream was already beginning to take effect. This was bad, very very very bad, and meant the quest would probably need to be ended before it even began, and Callum needed to go to an actual physician and not just listen to the few nuggets of medical knowledge his girlfriend had. Lucine was thinking all of this, but was soon brought out of her thoughts as a warm feeling spread through her soul, causing her to open one yellow eye. She knew the feeling, and knew that it meant Callum was calming down. She looked to him, and opened her other eye, seeing the soul dome was no longer above them.

"I love you too," she said calmly, her hand still stroking his hair gently, "You have nothing to be sorry for, dear."

She didn't comment on him saying he didn't want to leave. She didn't want him to leave again. She wanted to hold him close and never let go, and on occasion, lock him up somewhere safe and hide the key. He had seen too many horrors, and Lucine was always worried. Always.

They had both seen too many horrors.

Lucine smiled down at him as Raven moved towards the door, the same lady from earlier opening it. She was probably happy to see them go, and Lucine wouldn't miss her.

Lucine knew once they entered the main part of the village finding an inn to spend the night in would be the most important, but that night would turn to morning very soon. The vampire pulled Callum slightly closer to her and sighed, closing one of her yellow eyes from the tiredness.

"Callum," she said sleepily, feeling strained from everything that had happened the night before, but she wasn't able to finish her sentence, as she found herself yawning instead. Though the town was bustling and anything but quiet, the girl was tired, and trying to keep herself awake.

"We could try another inn, maybe one closer to the edges of town," she told Raven, looking around the village to keep herself awake. She didn't need to fall asleep and Callum freak out again, "We really need to find Callum a place to rest." She looked down gently at the boy in her arms, smiling. It was a worried, weak smile, but she was still relieved to know he was alive for now.

Callum had finally taken his face out of Lucine's shoulder as they made their way out of the inn, instead slowly resting it against her chest. He allowed her to continue stroking his hair, finding himself smiling a bit despite his exhaustion. He always liked the feeling whenever she was the one doing it. It brought comfort to him. In fact, it felt like an exclusive form of comfort that only she could bring, and no one else.

He suddenly felt the urge to cuddle. It was too far-fetched to say that it came out of nowhere, but at the same time, it had grown at a quick rate, almost as quick as his earlier fear. He wanted nothing more than to hold her, and to have her hold him. He wanted her hand to stay in his hair, and their other hands to stay connected. Whenever they held each other, he always felt safe, no matter what situation they were in. It made him feel like he could forget all the torment of the past and never return to any of it.

That didn’t mean the feeling lasted forever.

He couldn’t be more relieved the moment they were out of the discriminatory inn, though paying no heed to anyone within it. He was just glad they were allowed to leave freely in the first place. Trouble may arrive later, but in all honesty, he didn’t want to think about that right now. He knew his mind should be on trying to find a proper place for his beloved Lucine to rest, but she and Raven had the ability to focus more than he did at the moment.

He still couldn’t feel his infected arm, but other than that, there was no pain. The annoying tingling from earlier wasn’t even there, and that was a relief. He had hated the tingling, and he was more than happy that it was no longer there. His mind did still feel foggy, but it was filled with a different kind of fog... it was more like a tired fog, with dashes of cuddly affection mixed in it.

He cracked his eyes open halfway when he heard his name, looking up at the girl holding him after she had pulled him closer to her. He was a little confused at first when she didn’t finish what she was going to say, but then he came to the realization that she was about just as exhausted as he was. He felt a little concern, yet he tried not to show it. He didn’t know whether or not to feel guilty about that. He didn’t want to be selfish, but all the same, he somehow knew through the fog that she would want him to try and take care of himself as well.

Despite the noise-level in the town being high, the boy could barely stay awake, especially after his "episode" in the inn. He felt comfortable with the rhythm of Raven moving through the crowd, coupled with snuggling against Lucine. He nuzzled his head closer to her chest, wriggling a little in a cute manner and even sighing contently.

He overheard what she was saying to Raven, but he didn’t comment on it, even though something tugging at the very back of his mind was telling him to.

Raven glanced up at the girl as she spoke, nodding and huffing lightly. She then gave Lucine a wolfish grin before starting in another direction. She wanted to find an inn closest to where they would have to depart in the morning. She was going at a relatively quick pace due to the fact that it would be morning time very soon.

As they were moving, Callum took notice of the smile Lucine was giving him, and he smiled back, nuzzling her with his head again and sinking a bit further into her embrace. A light blush crept across his cheeks, and it wasn't because of the poison. He tried to match her breathing with his as another warm wave spread to Lucine's soul from his own. The strangely abundant amount of affection he was feeling at the moment was much, much better than the strange amount of fear he had felt invade his mind earlier.

"You're my favorite jewel," he murmured affectionately, squeezing her hand a little. "My absolute favorite. I don't need perfect vision to see that you're beautiful in every way."

After he spoke, he just remembered something Lucine had asked him earlier, and the blush deepened a little. "Oh... and it's just this arm that's numb," he whispered, motioning to the arm with a bandage wrapped around the attached wrist. "No pain... no pain."

As Raven moved, Lucine took her eyes away from the world around her to focus on the boy in her lap, who was currently snuggling up against her. It made her smile grow slightly, and she felt herself filling with feelings of affection, feelings which due to their strength would make their way towards Callum’s soul. Despite her worry about the condition he was in, she felt overall happy, snuggled up against him on the back of Raven. It made her feel warm, incredibly warm, and loved.

Lucine was quiet as the boy laid against her, preferring to listen to his breathing. He was making attempts to steady it, she could hear them, and it helped to calm some of her worries. If she could just get them to an inn, an actual inn and not wherever they had just been, she could get him to lie down and sleep and could actually get some research done. The girl had been making mental notes of most things, so she could follow up on them, but at the moment her sleep and her distraction on account of the fact that she just wanted to curl up into a ball with Callum was threatening to take all her mental notes and throw them into the ocean.

She could feel the warmth and affection from his soul, and it brought a small blush to her cheeks. Callum was always cute when he was sleepy, or so she thought, and this was no exception, despite the events that had preceded it. In all facts, it made sense for him to be so sleep after what he had just had to go through, but Lucine tried not to think about that. Instead, she placed her chin on the top of his head and sighed contently, looking forward in the direction that Raven was heading.

The inn at the edge of town was significantly less perfect than the one in the center. Paint on the sign was chipping, to the point where from far away it only said “As s Inn,” instead of, “Asril Stay Inn.” The sign caused the girl to chuckle a little, before realizing her immaturity and quieting down. A faint glow from lights inside the inn were creeping out through the windows, and despite the place looking rundown, the silhouettes of customers in the entrance hall could be seen through the window.

She looked away from the inn when she heard Callum’s voice start up, lifting her chin and looking down at him instead. After she heard his words, a blush began to creep over her cheeks before she was able to stop it, and soon they were red. Slightly flustered, Lucine wasn’t sure really what to say.

A jewel? she thought to herself, slowly smiling, he must really be delirious.

“Am I a jewel?” she asked him, curiously, as though she was processing what she had been told. “Well thank you. And while I do happen to have somewhat heightened vision due to my vampirism, I don’t need it to see that you are, in my opinion, the greatest human I have ever meet.” She hoped that it had come out right. She wasn’t very good at flirting.

Lucine then laughed, her mind slightly foggy from being tired and strained, and she squeezed Callum’s hand, relaxing slightly on the wolf’s back, and dropping her eloquence. She only did that around Callum.

“Gods, I love you,” she said quietly, watching the “As s inn” grow nearer, “I love you so much, and I promise you won’t be taken from me again..”

She was quiet for a moment as she waited, though unsure what she was waiting for. She nodded slightly as Callum answered a question she forgot that she had earlier asked, and carefully, she adjusted herself on Raven’s back so as not to disturb him.

“I’m not really sure what the poison is,” she told him, deciding the truth was better, “It has a lot of symptoms of basic poisons, yet some I’ve never heard of..” the girl shook her head, her worry returning, “I’m so sorry..”

“I hurt you again… and I can’t fix it, I don’t know how to fix it…” Lucine felt herself sinking inwards. She couldn’t help her guilt, and the reasons why Callum was snuggled up against her were making it worse.

Callum heard Lucine laugh, and immediately, he laughed. It was a tired laugh, but a laugh nonetheless. He didn't know what she was laughing at, nor did he have enough energy to see what it was, but if she thought it was funny, he would most likely find it funny as well. He just loved hearing her laugh. That was probably it. It made him feel better... even when nothing was funny. He felt unusually guilty whenever he admitted that to himself. Laughter without anything to justifiably laugh at meant there was something wrong.

As Lucine returned his flirtatious remark, he purred and snuggled even closer to her, as if they weren't close enough. His smile grew. He knew she essentially considered herself to be a fledgling when it came to flirting, but he thought her attempts were adorable. "Thanks," he whispered, closing his eyes as she told him, once again, that she loved him. No matter how many times the two said the same thing to each other, it would never get old to him. Ever.

I promise you won't be taken from me again...

Upon hearing that, he vaguely felt the sensation of tears forming behind his shut eyelids, but he pushed them back. He didn't need to cry right now. If he cried, he would worry Lucine even more than he already was, what with the poison in his bloodstream and all. That thought actually reminded him of the fact that he still had an arm, because it was so numb that he forgot. It confused him.

He made a noise of acknowledgement towards her when she told him about the poison, and how she didn't even know what it was. He couldn't help but agree with her; he hadn't heard of something like this before, and he certainly had never seen a dart with purple fuzz at the end before. Whoever shot him either knew the poison very well, or he was just the first victim to the substance. A test subject.

He wanted to shake his head as Lucine apologized. He wanted to protest as she claimed to have hurt him, and expressed her insecurity when it came to fixing it. He tried not to frown at her words, already feeling himself being pulled out of the moment. Her worry was only making him worried, but this time, it wasn't just for Lucine's well-being.

He didn't want to go again.

"Love..." he pleaded quietly, opening his eyes slightly to look up at her. He gave her a sad smile, though he wasn't trying to make it sad. "You didn't hurt me. You... you didn't hit me with the dart. I promise, we'll figure this out. I won't go again. I won't let myself go again, for your sake, and for mine. I won't be so stubborn if it means I can continue alongside you. I love you too much to leave again."

The boy mustered the strength to lean upwards and kiss Lucine's cheek before settling back down in her arms. It was then that he glanced over at their location, managing to stifle a laugh upon seeing the chipped sign. Raven was focused on getting inside the inn, allowing the two to talk without worrying about her snooping.

"Lucine, is there anything I can do to help?" Callum asked quietly, sighing softly after he spoke while suppressing a yawn. "I want to help..."

Lucine was quiet after she finished speaking, knowing she had said too much. The truth was, she was absolutely paranoid of losing him again. She tried not to let it show, especially not around Callum, but his death was still haunting her in small ways, despite the fact that he was alive again and hopefully, would stay alive. Lucine knew, as she had always known, that she would outlive him by probably about 50 or so years, depending on how much of a vampire she actually was, and despite her inheriting much more of her human side, she still possessed vampiric attributes. She had always just hoped that would come after they had spent a life together, not a few months after she finally had him back again.

The girl then realized that her melancholy was ruining what little segment of peace the two had before the next disaster befell them, and instead of spending it worrying she probably needed to spend it in a more cheerful manner, if not productive.

As Callum began to respond to her, the girl looked down, with a sad look her in eyes that made it seem like she was trying to look on the bright side and failing extremely miserably. She squeezed his hand as he talked, her face breaking out into a small, sad smile that mirrored his.

“I love you too..” She whispered, pausing as he placed a kiss on her cheek, which turned her smile into a happier one, “And.. I just want you to be safe, is all.. And I’m sorry to be so melancholy, I just worry.” She quickly paused though, when she noticed that they were approaching the “As S Inn,” and the name brought her back into the world, causing her to laugh again, though quietly this time.

“‘As S Inn’” she said aloud, reading the sign, “Sounds promising, don’t you think?” she was still chuckling as Callum asked her his next question, about what he could do to help.

“What can you do to help..?” the girl asked herself, still stroking his hair, “You can rest, my love. You deserve some,” she said this gently, and then, with a hint of a joke in her voice, “We’re almost to the ‘As S Inn’.. oh my gods, I can’t take that seriously.”

She managed to calm herself down, looking at the oy snuggled up against her, and smiling, pulling him slightly closer as though he wasn’t close enough already. “Just get some sleep.”

The “As S Inn,” official name “Asril Stay Inn,” was an old establishment, built to house traders from Bellenau coming into the village to trade. The owner of the inn didn’t care much for the upkeep of the front, just as long as it looked nice inside, which the main entrance looked very cozy. Lucine would take over finding a room once they got inside, and as they got closer, it was easier to see through the windows what the inn looked like.

It was lit mostly from torches on the walls, and there was only a small hallway to the main desk, which had a wall of keys used to open and close the different bedroom doors. There was a small doorway behind the desk, which led to an area outfitted with many tables and chairs, probably used when the inn still offered breakfast. Now, it was being used almost like a tavern, people staying overnight bringing booze from other places and making merry in the small room. Lucine knew already she would want no part of that, just a nice room where she could study the poison and Callum could sleep.

The man at the desk looked older than a century, and was small and slightly cranky looking. He reminded Lucine of an older version of Keaton, the boy who had been working at the tavern in Bellenau… the one who they had left to probably be taken by the vampire hunters. She doubted they would do him any actual harm, since he was human, but she would make sure to check up on him when she went back the next day.

The inn also had a faint smell of something which smelled like cinnamon, but not cinnamon exactly, and it smelled as though it was burned, and like the smell had been there for many years. Lucine wondered if Callum would be able to pick up on the scent.

When the trio entered, the old man picked up his head and stared at them, before bursting into laughter. “There’s something you don’t see every day..” he said, before turning an eye to the two on top of the wolf and very obviously trying not to snicker at them.

“Can I help you two?” he asked, winking at them from where he sat, looking up at the wolf, “Interesting ride you’ve got there.”

Callum seemed content with what he said after he spoke, awaiting Lucine's answer after she apologized for being melancholy. He knew she worried about him, as he worried about her. Honestly, he would actually be concerned if she didn't feel any worry for him, especially after...

Stop. Forget it. It's in the past, and it isn't going to happen again.

When she announced where they were going, just after laughing quietly, he let out a laugh of his own. It was louder than hers, and he covered his mouth with one hand after laughing, chuckling quietly afterwards. Too loud, he thought to himself. It wasn't nearly as bad as he thought, since the crowd was rowdy as well. If he had done that in the ghost town that was Bellenau, it would've been more embarrassing and potentially even dangerous. Good thing there wasn't much danger at the moment.

"Definitely," he replied with quiet amusement in his voice. "As S Inn... oh my Gods." He spoke almost inaudibly, mumbling to himself while also unable to stop smiling. The lowest he could get was a slight smile. "I... mmm... doubt they intended such... crudeness." He was still mumbling, but he could've also been talking to Lucine. The name just sounded wrong and hilarious at the same time. In a way, it was helping keep him awake, so that was a thing, he supposed.

Once he finally heard from Lucine what he could do to help, he almost huffed in amusement, but didn't say anything opposing the advice. He wasn't in the mood to be stubborn at the moment, and he was pretty tired. A part of him wanted Lucine to get rest, but at the same time, he knew what she would most likely be doing. She would most likely be working to help him with the poison he was infected with, and he wanted to allow her to do so without distracting her at all.

"You know... can't take it seriously either," he whispered, chuckling again. He could feel the tired fog in his mind starting to lull him into sleep, and he had to try hard to stay awake. He at least wanted to stay up until they actually got a room. What if he had a nightmare when they weren't in a room and made another disturbing public display? From what Lucine had informed him of every time he woke up from a nightmare, and from what others had told him of, he tended to make some form of outward sign, whether it be screaming, twitching, gasping, or the like.

As soon as Raven took them into the inn, Callum observed the inside with half-open eyes. It looked very cozy, despite the outward appearance of the inn, and it made him even sleepier than before. He let out another purr, still enjoying the feeling of Lucine stroking his hair. He could see the old man behind the counter, and he barely picked up the scent. He didn't pick up nearly as many details about it as Lucine did, but it did kind of smell like cinnamon.

He didn't even notice the old man at the counter until he spoke. He didn't actually pick up on what he was talking about, but he assumed he was talking about the two of them snuggling together. It slipped his mind that he could've been talking about Raven herself.

When he seemed to compliment Raven, Callum looked at the man with half-open, weary eyes. Raven nodded towards him in acknowledgement. "...Thanks?" he squeaked tiredly, yawning quietly. "Um... we'd like... a room... please..." he added, slurring out of exhaustion.