ruinations | adsom: reunions

It was good to see something of a smile, even fleeting. It was decided, then; they would go to the market at first light. And until then, she could have his company.

Neria stepped away but paused as she saw him pull up his sleeve. There was a line and now, now she remembered the pale blood she'd seen on his fingers. Her brow furrowed as she watched him cut into his arm once more without a care and she stiffened, biting down on the protest that started to form. How many times had she done the same, recently? Kell had told her from the beginning that his power was in the blood. She had forgotten; Kell's power seemed effortless to her on a magnitude beyond her comprehension. His blood coated the symbol, he whispered, and then he was gone.

And she was alone.

The room was quaint, quiet. Under other circumstances, it would be peaceful. But the silence in such a foreign place had her nerves on edge without him. Slowly, she sank back down to sit on the rug, and she emptied her thoughts. Hands pulled in close, cradling each other, she cast her senses wide - not to sense for Kell but simply to know the city. The dark spun out in silence, webbing around buildings in the night, looking for new and strange places. She mapped the city in her head through the eyes of the dark, through the whispers she strained to hear as she reached deep into her divinity. The scar on her shoulder and breast burned with the effort.

All of that snapped back into place with a shudder as Kell suddenly returned, leaving her briefly shaken and wide-eyed. She blinked, quickly standing, and she moved to help him. Her hand gently went out for his arm. "Another?" she asked softly, coaxing him to sit.

Kell handed over one of the mugs, caught up in the surprised look on her face, as if he'd startled her from a deep dream. Though he hadn't been concentrating on what her magic was doing, it left a chill in the air he couldn't attribute to anything, and he gave a small shiver before following her gaze to his arm.

"Once here, once back, once here again," he explained. "They take less time to heal when I cut shallowly, but close quickly."

Kell ran his fingertip over the marks. Before his death they would have healed before morning, without leaving any scar behind. Now, it would take much longer, provided Kell did not seek Tieren's touch.

- or Neria's, he thought, for a split second, before realizing that that magic would have been taken from her as well. A shadow crossed his eyes as he moved to sit with her, taking a spot on the bed.

"Did I interrupt something?" he asked.

"Do you have to be bleeding when you use the spell?" she asked. She knew sometimes blood was required for spells - a great deal of it, too, in Thedas - and knew most rituals required for the blood to be fresh, the wounds open, the power in it still active. She felt briefly guilty that he was doing all of this for her when it would be easier if he hadn't--

"I can help," she whispered, reaching for him with one hand. The other took the mug he offered and Neria began to settle beside him. At his question, she looked to the middle of the room silently.

She did not speak for a moment. Then, "I was looking and listening to Arnes. That's all. I wanted to...see it, to know what it all looks like. To know the streets. I was only curious." And wanting to know the layout, to know where she could run if she needed to. To find the darker places of the city, that she might slip back through the fissure if all went poorly tomorrow.

"I do," Kell confirmed quietly, but not with any shame. Rhy hated it and always had, especially when they'd been younger, and Kell had been ready and willing to open a vein at the slightest of boyish injuries. Rhy never went to sleep with more than a bruise -- and Kell always healed quickly.

A small pain like this was hardly more than a blink.

Curious, he moved into her grasp, watching her eyes as she spoke, as if she were apologizing for something shameful, having to justify it. Kell frowned slightly, troubled, but not because of what she'd done.

"Did you find anything?"

Setting aside the mug, Neria reached for his arm. Her eyes scanned the cuts carefully. In her eyes, there was no judgment for what he'd done; this sort of work, to Kell, was like breathing. It was necessary to do what he needed to. "I found people," she said softly, her gaze on his injuries. "And I was mapping out the city with my senses. If you're...asking if I found threats, then, no. I don't sense any of the other godlings or anyone so powerful that you need to worry on." It was only her.

Her fingers outlined the newest cut and Neria reached deep within to carefully coax out a tendril of dark, which came to her bidding like faint, dark smoke. But beneath it, strangely, shimmered a faint light - the familiar glow of her natural, magical healing. Which seemed to startle her, as she pulled her hand back and looked at it strangely. "Why--" she murmured, uncertain. Briefly, she touched the branded mark Murphy had given her. It was still there, so how was it possible that she had access to her magic?

Only one way to tell if it was true.

With hardly a gesture, Neria's hand glowed a faint blue-white light, and she went to work on the cuts on his arm. It took two tries to get the magic to work, as all of the godlings had become difficult to heal, but the magic seeped into his skin and knitted it closed. The dark she had summoned remained still, cradling the magic, seemingly soaking in its presence. And, oddly enough, the dark felt no different in that moment than her healing did: warm, comforting, like a balm.

At length, she pulled away. The magic, and the dark, receded. Neria pressed her fingers against the hand that had used that magic, a frown set into her features. "...I thought she took it. I haven't-- I haven't been able to do anything until now."

Kell nodded. Though he could sense things, they could always shield, and he'd outgrown being surprised by anything that came out of Asora. It could make the impossible look routine.

Staying still beneath her touch, eyes half-shut, they blinked wide again at the touch of her magic. It felt like the first time she'd ever healed him, with the aftertaste of dark.

He took a deep breath, then flexed his arm, running his fingertips over the newly unbroken skin, then looking up to meet her eyes, find the shock mirrored there.

"When I came to Asora," Kell said carefully, "My connection to Rhy was muted to all but his heartbeat. I couldn't feel his emotions, his pain, nothing. Your link may be flexible, as well."

Neria met his gaze, watching, listening. Her fingers curled in on themselves and fell, slowly, into her lap. "Then things will change again once I return." And her magic will be taken back. There was no comfort in it. Slowly, Neria released the breath she was holding. "At least I have it for a short time and I can practice, see what it does with my divinity. Perhaps I can find a way to keep her from taking it back."

But would that, then, disrupt her trial? Neria did not know.

"Did you feel...too far from him? Or do you think it was a matter of the connection between worlds, that you were not able to feel Rhy?"

"A matter of connection. All of the Londons are interconnected, and I can feel Rhy perfectly between them. Asora was different."

The furrow was back in Kell's brow, and it seemed as though he could do nothing but confirm what Neria was saying... but at least she had access to it here. At least she had something familiar to work with, to lean on.

"Be careful here," he reminded her. "Almost everyone in Red London is magically inclined, and some can sense the feel of it as it flows through you. They will respect that, but also fear it."

"Then it is a difference in worlds," she said, nodding. "It makes sense. I cannot reach out to others with my own magic between worlds, even with a connection. I had wondered if the binding on a god would be different but...perhaps there will always be rules."

It was something to remember, though, if she should try to do something in Red London to protect it. It might not hold up, if she should leave.

"If I have my magic back, I will not need to use my godhood," she murmured softly, meeting his gaze. Slowly, she reached over, loosely taking his hand. "They do not need to fear me. I want for their protection, as you do. I promise."

"Perhaps."

Though given what they'd been through, the divinity thrust upon them, even if Neria had sought it out... the rules weren't always what they seemed to be. Though there were parallels between worlds, that worked differently.

Kell's fingers curled around hers, squeezing.

"I know that, but others will not. And you know as well as I do that people do not need a reason to fear something powerful, only a lack of understanding."

Giving Neria a level look, Kell pressed his lips together in a thin line.

"Faro and Vesk have citizens who legitimately believe that I can and do dictate the sun rising and setting on Arnes. You would be a target and a prize; your alignment and disposition significant."

Tilting his head, Kell nodded to the stone wall, in the vague direction of the Isle.

"The King's concern is not just for you; the Essen Tasch is about to begin. The Games are meant to be a symbol of friendship between our lands, but it's no secret that our peace is not entirely solid. The house of Maresh does not want war, and our strength is the stopgap. But it is not absolute."

Kell wet his lip, then turned back to look at Neria, as more than her friend and ally. As a protector of his Kingdom.

"The city is flooded with strangers and foreign royals. They are staying in the palace, and will undoubtedly, immediately take an interest in you. This is partially why the King and Queen are concerned."

Squeezing Neria's hand, he shook his head.

"Rhy and I will be there for you. But I want you to be aware."

Neria's brow furrowed. Her expression was an uncertain one. "But...a prize of what? I'm not a native of Red London and I won't be here long. Do you really think they would be able to sense all that I am?" The protests quieted as she listened, shaking her head faintly as she tried to reason and understand it.

Her lips pulled down into a deep frown. Her thumb brushed over his hand, more out of the need to fidget than to offer comfort.

Softly, she asked, "Would it be better if I stayed here in the Sanctuary? Or...that I should try to go back tonight or tomorrow? I don't want to make this more difficult for the King and Queen or for your home-- And you need to have your eyes open. You can't be concerned over where I am and what I'm doing."

"Not all, and not in any detail, certainly. But you feel..." Kell trailed off, his brow pinching. "Something in your power has the echo of mine and Rhy's. It's far from the same," he added, quickly, "but it gives you the taste of an Antari. And Antari are certainly prizes."

Not for the first time, he wondered if he was scaring her needlessly, building her up for something that would not happen -- but then he remembered Lord Sol-in-Ar's eyes on him, and shook off the lingering feeling of disgust.

"I don't- mean to alarm you. I do not think it will be so dire a situation, and certainly nothing like Asora."

Nothing like Asora. Something folded in on itself in her chest. Neria was silent, letting it sit there, and weighed his words. Slowly, she nodded. "I understand." She would be seen as powerful and useful, no matter how she might try to hide it. Even staying in the Sanctuary would not offer much in the way of solace. So long as no one meant her harm, someone could still come looking.

"What else should I know, so I don't blunder ahead and make things difficult for you and your city?"

"I do not think you would blunder," Kell answered, honest, and only belatedly realized what he'd made it sound like. With a rough sigh, he shut his eyes, shook his head. None of this was coming out right.

"People may- to treat you differently," he said softly, thinking of Rhy, thinking of the fear in the guards' faces when he turned his dark eye on them for the first time. How clearly he'd felt the twinges of pain and shock.

"Not badly," Kell was quick to add. "But differently."

Neria listened, parsing through what Kell did not quite say. Differently, not badly. But there was something derogatory in the way he said prize. Kell had lived his life in a unique way that Neria had not completely understood. He was seen as brother to the prince but not related; he was protector and Antari. Useful, marked. Blessed or cursed. Aven.

"I don't know your culture. What I did tonight could have very easily gotten me into a great deal of trouble. I don't...want my actions to reflect poorly on you, Kell, nor do I want to give the wrong impression to the people who matter." The King and Queen, the potential allies they were trying to secure.

"What do I need to know for tomorrow, so I can act accordingly?"

"No," Kell shook his head. "I don't believe you would have attacked anyone unless you were defending yourself. Even then-"

... she would have been detained.

Kell's mouth was suddenly dry. That had not gone well for her last time, even with Kell in a position of power, capable of having her released. It took a few moments for the full impact of that to sink in, and Kell squeezed her hand, holding it between both of his.

"I trust you to conduct yourself. Answer them honestly, as best you can, even if you know they will not like the answer."

She wasn't quite certain what he would have said. But by the way Kell squeezes her hand, she at least understood it was not something he wanted to contemplate. Neria's fingers threaded with the one clasped over hers; her other hand pressed over his, trying to reassure him.

"I'll be honest, I promise." What might come after was what frightened her, and it was an icy lance up her spine - very quietly mirrored for Kell. "How...much do you want them to know about Asora, if they ask me? About what we have seen?"

"Answer what they ask. I've told them an overview, but Tieren knows the whole story. They may ask you to corroborate parts of what I've said, or-"

Kell pressed his lips together.

"Be truthful, even if it does not show me in the best light. They know what happened, but may be checking your story against mine."

Neria's frown grew somewhat. She would, of course, act in the best interest of his world...but it felt a little like betrayal. She'd been loyal to Kell first.

"Won't that get you in trouble?" she asked. And, worse, that they were Rhy's parents... Did they blame Kell for what had happened? Did they think it was his fault that Rhy came back changed, came back as an Other? "Can they sense what is true and what is false? Not...that I would lie. I know better than to do that. But if they can sense such a thing, I'd like to know."

“Highly unlikely. Tieren was placed in charge of reviewing our stories, and given the… circumstances-“

The lengths he’d gone to. Accepted enslavement to avoid fighting a war on behalf of another crown. Inadvertently freeing both Rhy and himself from slavery. Brought them home. Ensuring Rhy remained alive, even at the expense of his own life.

“I was ruled to have acted as the crown required.”

With Rhy’s own testimony weighed in, he’d performed his duties to the letter. To lengths to be commended. It was not praise that had sat comfortably, and it showed in Kell’s eyes even if he did not explain aloud.

Kell considered her next question carefully, silent longer than a few seconds, then shook his head.

“Not that I know of – but they are both rulers and parents.”

She heard what Kell did not say. There had been so much sacrifice. Kell had submitted to slavery, allowed himself to die because he would not give Rhy up. If anything, shouldn't they be proud of him?

Slowly, Neria slid closer to him until she was a solid weight against his side. She looped her arm around his and leaned against his shoulder. "And you did," she whispered, reminding him, for she often feared Kell lost parts of himself to his duty. He loved deeply and painfully, as she did, and he was fierce in his protection. He had done everything.

"Rulers are more suspicious of others than they are clairvoyant," she murmured. "And parents... I can't speak to that. Sometimes, they miss important things." Neria's gaze was briefly hard. "But they will be protective and concerned. I understand."

The easy hugs had mostly ever only come from Rhy, but Kell hadn't realized how much he'd missed hers until he'd thought they would not touch again. She felt like a warmth that threatened to have him melting.

Kell didn't let go of himself, but he did relax marginally, a shiver of nerves under her touch before he braced himself, becoming something more comfortable to lean into and against. He wrapped his arm around her back.

Sometimes they miss important things.

"They will be," Kell confirmed, but didn't explain that their protective concern would be for Arnes, and for Rhy, far before it would ever be for Kell himself. Emira saw him as invincible, and Saints only knew what Maxim thought.

Rather than get into it, sipped at his tea. It was already starting to cool.

"Do you have any other questions?"

He did not need to say they would be more concerned for Rhy. Neria knew that and said nothing of it. Kell relaxed in increments and wrapped an arm around her back, and for a moment, she closed her eyes and tried to be still.

At his question, she shook her head. "No, you've told me enough. I'll need to simply allow the rest of it to happen." And she would need to trust that the King and Queen were not similar to the last king they had confronted. She believed Kell and put her faith in him implicitly; if he said it would be all right, then it would be. The rest was nerves and unpredictability.

Reluctantly, she stopped leaning so much so she could sip at her tea.

"How is Rhy?" she asked softly.

Kell genuinely believed it wouldn't be as bad as Neria feared it might. Deliberately, he tried to project some of that faith, in the hopes that it would siphon away some of the anxiety. His parents could be harsh, yes, but they were only human, and they weren't bad people.

As the conversation turned to Rhy, however, she'd feel the worry settle over Kell like a weary blanket.

"Healing," he answered. "But slowly." Kell cut off, trapped his tongue between his teeth before going on. "Learning the power he carries, and how to use it. But he..."

Kell paused again, here. "I don't think he was prepared for how people would react to his eye."

It helped a bit, staunching some of the deeper wounds the anxiety reopened. Neria loosed her tension in increments, reminding herself that things were not the same here. Kell knew his world, knew the monarchs, and that was enough to faintly soothe her.

Neria fixed her attention on what he told her of Rhy, her expression saddened. Rhy had been gentle, open, smiling before his death and even after. But Asora took from people and it had taken some of that wide-eyed wonderment from him. She could not imagine how it must have felt to return to a world where people loved him, where people knew him, and to see the shock and horror as they saw him forever changed.

"Do they still...look on him as if he is Rhy? Or do people look at him the way they look at you?"

Kell, she surmised, had always been different. It wasn't the eye that concerned her. What she was really asking was if they looked at Rhy as useful and powerful now instead, or if they continued to love him because he was Rhy.

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