2017-07-03: Recuperation
- Log: Recuperation
- Cast: Riesenlied, Noeline, Hiro
- Where: Lacour
- Date: 3rd July 2017
- Summary: Hiro runs into Riesenlied and Noeline during a stroll out, but the Tainted commander appears to not be herself...
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
It's been an extremely harsh and trying week for Noeline and Riesenlied, cutting it deeply close to the root of their survival.
A couple of days ago, Old Petra was struck -- a military expedition assembled of Drifters, Adlehyde and Althenan guardsmen and mercenaries that shouldn't have been a problem... if it weren't for the sudden presence of the Demon of Elru, ending with a loss that's left the village of Tainted and Demons torn asunder to the ground. The Ebony Wings have fled, and the Tainted are largely safe, but the casualties are still staggering -- especially amongst those who participated on the ground of the battle of Adlehyde.
And if that weren't enough... Riesenlied also communicated personally with Id through the Laevateinn, bringing her mind to the fore of his malice and despair. Though it isn't exaggeration to say her intervention likely saved what could've been a complete wipeout, it's left her fragile and damaged as well...
... which is evident in how she walks now -- cloaked and robed, with her hood up as she holds Noeline's hand as they move through Lacour's marketplace. Gounon had gotten a bit too hot for them after what happened at the Temple of Rejection -- news inevitably spread, and what was supposed to be an advantage turned to disadvantage as the small village was suddenly much harder to remain scarce in.
"I--I'm... I need a moment..." she begs to Noeline, feeling jittery as she tries to walk through the larger crowd, rather daunted. "Please. I'm sorry."
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
At Riesenlied's side, one frilly arm helping to support the cloaked figure, walks the rather obvious figure of a certain Crimson Noble. It's not clear whether her obvious 'disguise' helps or hinders the situation - certainly there are rather more eyes on the flamboyant girl and her companion than their might otherwise be, but at the same time most of the nods she receives are ones of recognition, from people she's helped in Adlehyde or along the way.
The experiences of the last week haven't just shaken Riesenlied; the Crimson Noble at her side has had it rough herself, finding herself torn between feelings of anger at her own lacking abilities, an inability to protect Riesenlied, and a deep-seated concern for what her partner might be going through.
The loss of Old Petra - of yet another home, however temporary it may have been intended to be - has weighed her down as well, leaving her uncertain of their next course of action and lost as to how to pursue the Demon of Elru.
... still, she holds her head high, having managed over the last couple of days of rest to rebuild something of her defiant nature. She may not quite have the light back in her eyes quite yet, but there's a determination in her step as she slowly guides Riesenlied through the crowd, aiming for lighter areas wherever she can. "... of course," she nods, her voice kept soft as she gauges their progress through the busy town - and turns to aim for a side path that leads along the side of a small patch of grass and greenery. "It isn't far. I have a room at the inn already - fortunately, the innkeeper recognized me."
<Pose Tracker> Hiro has posed.
So Lucia was awake. She was fine. And she was safe in a city that would protect her while she recovers. /And/ he was still participating in the tournament while she recovered. /And/ this means that he can actually spend a day looking for new equipment in a city where Arms merchants were throwing themselves at participants to sponsor their equipment.
Hiro Mood right now: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPUmE-tne5U
He's even whistling, all but strutting through the city streets, sometimes even throwing in a dorky dance step into it. Newsflash: Hiro had never seen anyone dance but Jean. He can't do it. He should never do it. Please stop this boy.
"Alright alright you're in a good mood! I get it! Now let's check out some swords. And get you a proper shield- and new armor. Heavy armor. So I never have to watch you do that again." Ruby was less amused that Hiro was so happy about Lucia being awake, even if she was also happy. "Can't help it Ruby." He just can't stop smiling, "I'm just so relieved she's okay!"
Now. Hiro knows better than to check the big name stores first for sponsorship at least. He wanted to check out the smaller Mom and Pop establishments first. Which means he's cutting out of the market, down the same side path until he comes face to face with-
He stops, "Say isn't that..." Hiro suddenly strides forward, holding up a palm to Noeline to let her know she means no harm. Not that he suspected Noeline would think that anyhow, but he wanted to be sure. Even cloaked and robed it was fairly obvious she was having a bad day, "Riese? You look like..." A glance over to Noeline, "What happened?"
"This wasn't from you two attacking more people /was it/?"
"We can worry about that later Ruby." He looks between the pair, "Where are you two heading?" And then at Noeline in particular, "Wouldn't be right to discuss things until she's safe."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Unfortunately, Riesenlied is both a) in too poor a state, b) didn't see it and c) wouldn't be able to judge for herself just how out of lock-step Hiro's dance skills are. She is, however, slipped into the alleyway that Noeline tugs her into. She's breathing rather short, like she's out of air; her eyes look just a little unsettled and unfocused as she clutches in a faintly desperate measure to Noeline's clothes. It's a rather marked difference in tics from how Riesenlied usually carries herself, even at her most gentle. She usually doesn't look terrified.
"H-- Hiro... Ruby..." she whispers, before-- shying away with her head down, seemingly agitated. She didn't seem to have anything else to add -- any words that she tries to form just seem to wash over her lips and crumble, in her feverish anxiety.
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
Noeline doesn't look like she's about to let Riesenlied step away from her - on the contrary, she steps in even as the other woman shrinks backwards, tugging the other demon into a hug with a hand on her back. "I'm here-- it's alright. They're friends," she reminds Riesenlied gently, coaxing the commander's head to her shoulder for a moment of obvious affection and care.
--and then she glances over her shoulder towards Hiro, huffing out a solid breath of disbelief at the boy in front of them. "Honestly, to think you'd prance around town like that," she grumbles, the biggest hypocrite perhaps of /all time/.
"Quite the opposite, thank you very much," she grumbles at the little pink creature next to Hiro, her brow drawn down in a serious furrow. "It-- has been a very long and very difficult week. Old Petra is gone, and many of our forces killed. Were it not for human intervention - and our evacuation of them afterwards - the losses might have been even greater. Surely you've heard the rumours? As for Riese--..."
She hesitates in her baffling, half-complete story, and bites her lip hard. "--I have a room at the Lacour Grande."
<Pose Tracker> Hiro has posed.
"Yeah it's okay. You're with friends." She says to Riese. "Speak for yourself." Noeline's reaction makes him look a little chagrined, "There's... a reason for that. Tell you la-" "Lucia just woke up. /That's/ why he's acting the fool." Hiro puts his fingers over his face, "Thanks... there was a reason wanted to tell them... nevermind..."
Fortunately Noeline derails Ruby's shade train before it starts, as she lands upon Hiro's shoulder. "We hadn't heard yet..." His mood dissipates from the grim news, while Ruby whimpers once.
He doesn't really know much about Old Petra, but people dying whether Hyadean or Human kind of gets his attention. "...that sounds..." He shakes it off though, "Later, she sounds like she's about to faint dead away. Let's get to her to your room so she can rest."
He doesn't doubt Noeline's strength in supporting Riese upright, but he moves to the opposite side of Riese to help out in holding her up with her other arm.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied's eyes widen as she genuinely looks relieved, cutting through whatever anxiety and fear that's clouding her-- "Lucia has--? Oh, thank ..." Who does she thank? She hadn't quite thought about it, but... she doesn't feel like 'thank Mother' is appropriate. "... I'm... I'm deeply relieved..." She pauses, and then expresses to Ruby, "Odjn is ... safe as well... I made sure she evacuated before the battle started..."
Even saying that much seems to take a lot out of her, but she wanted to at least offer something of an olive branch to the indignant dragonet. It isn't long before Noeline leads them to the Lacour Grande -- Riesenlied looks hesitant before they cross the hotel threshold, a combination of chatter and music and noise from the outside stymieing her from all directions and rooting her to the spot.
It takes her a bit more coaxing before she's led inside, taking her a moment of assurance from Noeline and counting and breathing exercises, of all things. But eventually -- they end up at a rather well-appointed hotel room, as is Noeline's tastes... somewhere rather quiet and away from the bustling activity of Lacour, albeit one with a balcony and light.
"... Old Petra was ... well-- it was our base. But it was also a village that the Tainted had started to populate... over the last few months... it was our home..." she speaks as she's eased down onto the bed, draped up rather thickly in her robes and a blanket. "... and now it's gone... all gone."
There's a moment in which she shrivels and -- jitters again, like she just saw something horrific but invisible, causing her to double back down and hold her head.
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
For a moment, Noeline's eyebrows pick up in surprise at Ruby's rather blunt statement - and while her huff might be amused and a little sarcastic, it's also got a thread of genuine appreciation behind it. "... is that so? Well, then. I will take that as good news, hm?" she suggests through a lightly fanged grin. "But I didn't think that would send you into an /actual/ seizure, hm?"
As much as she seems to enjoy the chance to joke, her expression fades back into that thin line of concern as she glances at the crowds. "... avoid clumps of people," she suggests solemnly. "And let me take the attention on myself. This may be neutral ground - however the King managed /that/ - but better safe than sorry."
- * *
When she sits next to Riesenlied, coaxing her down to rest, it is with a hand in the other demon's blonde hair; they look anything like the Deceiver and her Demon Knight consort right now. The vampire glances up, and tilts her head towards any of the chairs in the room, bidding Hiro to sit down as she starts to fill in the gaps in Riesenlied's disjointed story.
"... you heard of Gylfi's declaration towards Tindus, I take it? A foolish idiot - overconfident and pompous, his reckless attack was repelled by human forces. Serves him quite right," the Crimson Noble huffs harshly, staring towards the corner of the room as she grimaces at the thought, letting her fingers sift through Riesenlied's hair.
"We had to flee our forward base - and in the wake of it, left behind intelligence that pointed towards Old Petra. We knew there would be an imminent counterattack, and were resolved to do what we could to protect the place, if we had to." After a pause, she looks back up, fixing Hiro with a frown. "I am the first to admit that I am very distant to most Metal Demons - but that place was not a base. It started that way, perhaps - but at the end it was a /home/. Our wounded, our children were there."
Pausing, she heaves out a sigh, glancing down at Riesenlied as if expecting her to jolt when she continues: "The humans attacked, but we held them off, defending as best we could without hurting them. ... and then-- and then, the Demon of Elru appeared, carving destruction in his wake. Human, demon - it did not matter."
<Pose Tracker> Hiro has posed.
It's hard to take in a scale of what that means. How many? How many were lost? That's the sort of thing he's thinking in his head. Yep that good mood is gone. He still says quite sincerely. "I'm glad you both are enjoying that good news. As it sounds like you've had more than enough bad news for a few lifetimes."
Hiro nods at Noeline, letting her take the lead. "Well you're the Crimson Noble after all. So I'll let you take the lead and do all the talking." It's not actually a light tease right now. He figured that meant she was the smoother talker, after what she said.
-=-=-
Once Riese is settled in, Hiro sits down upon the bed. He nods at that. "Sure did." "He sounded like real dummy." Which Noeline confirms like, half a second later.
Hiro closes his eyes as Noeline talks about it, shudders a little, clenching his hand a little, then unclenching it weakly. It's not like his anger would do any good. He wasn't strong enough to do anything about a guy who could wipe a town off the map like it was nothing. He knows it. He still would have tried.
But the thought that he would have isn't good enough. It's nothing but air.
"How many?"
He finally asks, quietly. Before glancing down to Riese. "How many of her people died?"
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
It's hard to put a number, in the wake of everything that had been scattered.
How many Tainted... there were a good few hundred of them in Old Petra, those that were able enough to make the trip out of the Photosphere to Ignas without perishing in some way. Then there were those that /became/ Tainted after the Battle of Adlehyde for a multitude of reasons -- loss of limb, battle trauma, PTSD, the works. And of those that escaped... there were plenty that were hunted down by the Red Gear, and greater still that were just simply crushed when he defied the laws of physics to crush entire battalions under his hand. 'Hundreds'.
Riesenlied doesn't answer. She puts her hands to her face, letting out a little agitated wail, stiffly -- gasping. Like she's stifled from screaming or speaking. When Noeline speaks of the Demon of Elru, her eyes glint for a moment, and she shrinks further, her wings falling -- not even curling around her, just falling down to either side of her like they have no energy to lift under their own power. "... a coward ...? I'm ..."
She doesn't sound like she's speaking to either Hiro, Ruby or Noeline.
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
"--I do not even know the number, quite honestly. We have yet to properly take stock. However, I can thankfully say that it is less than you might expect," admits Noeline, bowing her head towards Riesenlied to let out a breath. This time, her voice is truly soft, letting out a sigh as she works to try to calm the woman next to her with a hand in her hair, brushing through it slowly.
"I am pleased to say that - once the human forces realized what was happening - many of them fled to safety, while those amongst them who were capable fighters joined in the defence. Some of them Drifters, others members of the Guard. Their aid, together with the efforts of the Tainted, allowed us to evacuate a significant number of the Old Petra residents. In turn, our evacuation efforts included those humans left behind."
Noeline pauses, and shakes her head as she lets out a long breath, willing her voice back to something more human compared to the clipped, report-like tone that it managed to take, a shadow of her 'true' self as a metal demon spy. "My only regret is that it took something so massive to force cooperation between our species - and I hope that it will stick with them, for the times to come."
The woman next to her gasps again, and Noeline's brow creases as she looks down, biting at her lip. "In the midst of it... Riesenlied drew the Fallen Sword. She sought to contact the red Demon - sought to understand its anger. And that /thing/ left her in this state," she adds, an edge of sheer anger and steel coming to her voice. "For facing it-- you are anything /but/ a coward."
<Pose Tracker> Hiro has posed.
"Maybe less than I expect." Hiro answers to Noeline, "But more than I'd hoped." The answer to how many he hoped for? It's Zero. It's always Zero. Maybe he was hoping distantly before that Ebon Zero was going to deliver the news that it was in fact... that. But he knew better. He always knew better. "My Grandpa always said it sometimes takes the worst to draw out the best in us." "Look I'm sorry for my earlier remark it's just..." Ruby's head slumps from her current perch, "I was just upset. We escorted a lot of people out of Adlehyde who'd all lost someone..."
Hiro almost instinctively tells her it's alright, but it's not his place to say it.
"If there was any time to do that... it had to have been then but..."
He observes Riese as she shrinks in bed, "... what did trying to understand him do to her?" Would it be like trying to understand Zophar? A being who can just destroy and destroy and destroy? His insides shrivel a bit, remembering that voice. He takes a deep breath, then, "She's right you know. You went up against a monster to protect your people. I've always thought you were braver on my worst day than I am on my best." He doesn't get it. He doesn't get that the coward might not be Riese, but whatever is inside of Fei.
Opening up his satchel at his side, he takes out the fruit of a Holy Berry. "Someone gave this to me for Lucia. To help her."
He stands up, passes it over to Noeline, "I was going to give it back to him, but I think he'd understand." "Hiro maybe it's /not/ the best idea to use something like that on someone the Guardians have rejected? It could hurt her worse." He winces at that, again another time where he didn't think, "That... well... maybe just keep it on hand." He says to Noeline, "If she takes a turn for the worse and you have no other options."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied doesn't relate a number. A number doesn't... it doesn't sit right to her. It's a statistic. She doesn't accept that. To her, it isn't... '13 people died today'... even if she must report it that way, even if she must carry on as a commander as she has been for four hundred years...
She can still tell. She knows who fell, for she knew who was where, even roughly, on the battlefield. She won't see Eir and his predeliction for jokes, and she'll have to tell Hildr the bad news. She won't be able to inspire Ydallr to keep up her physical therapy, help her through the pain, encourage her...
It's zero. She, too, always hopes for zero. How can she hope for anything else? Even if it is unrealistic.
"... to-- to stop him," Riesenlied spoke, meekly. "... he was not an enemy that we could defeat." She looks to him, looking lucid for a rare, clear moment. "He singlehandedly defeated Lord Siegfried. He took advantage of his anger, his hatred... their past together... and..." A pause. She should not be talking about this. But to see her friend -- no matter how consumed by enmity and hatred he'd become -- be struck down... "I knew that... Laevateinn might be able to stop him -- distract him, for precious moments..."
Her lips thin. "But it drew us into a... an empathic space...? it'd never happened before... I..."
She's about to speak again, and... and it's just gone, from her lips, from her mind. She holds onto her head and clutches at her head again, choking as if being grasped by something else invisible. "... don't reject me ..." And she's gone again -- stolen away to a mental landscape only she can see.
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
Noeline's smile is rather sad and complicated, the look of it somewhat unusual on her face - but she huffs as she reaches up to pat the little creature on the head, snorting softly at the same time. "And you were right to be upset. /I/ was upset at the attack on Adlehyde, and still am," she retorts, without a trace of joking or teasing to it. "It is a complex situation on all sides - be you human or Hyadean, Drifter or Ebony Wing, or stuck all in the middle as I am. And it is not a feeling that can - or should - be boiled down to a single summary of 'good' or 'bad'."
She sighs, running a hand back through her hair. "I have hated demons-- I have resented them, at times. But none of them deserved what happened in that attack, especially not as many of their number just started to learn about what it was to actually live. ... but we will survive," she adds a moment later as she sucks in a breath, as if to remind herself - and to remind Riese, as well. "We will regroup - we will find a new home, if need be, and seek to redeem ourselves for Adlehyde. At least, that is my goal, amongst other things.
She pauses, as Riesenlied manages to summon the strength to speak - and then lapses again, drawing a hiss of uncertain air from the 'vampire'. She doesn't know - cannot begin to say what happened in that shared space between Reisenlied and her opponent - and it obviously gnaws significantly at her.
"... I-- I could not help her," mumbles Noeline with no small amount of regret. "As a protector, I have rather a terrifically poor track record... but I will stay by her as much as I can, to at least do my best to see her through-- whatever this is," she mutters, her eyes as hard as her touch is soft as she gathers Riesenlied back to her. "It's alright--... it's alright..." she mutters.
She blinks for a long moment afterwards as she lifts a hand to take the odd and vibrantly coloured berry, her eyebrows going up in surprise at the sight of the fruit; she squints for a moment, obviously trying to identify what she can of it - and then bows her head, with a soft and amused sigh. At the very least, she seems willing to accept the feelings behind the gift. "... thank you. I cannot say for sure if it will provide any benefit - but Filgaia's rules do seem to bend rather from time to time, hm? Riese can see Seraphs, and empathize with all and sundry - so perhaps it shall work, hm?"
<Pose Tracker> Hiro has posed.
"Singlehandedly..." He breathes, caught somewhere between disbelief and believing it far too well. He remembers Siegfried tossing them all around like children. All he managed to score was a singular strike against that monster. And this was a monster who beat him on his own.
Not only that, but the Demon knew how to take advantage of him? Could throw someone like Siegfried off his game?
The rest is sort of beyond him. He barely knows how Laevateinn works. Only the glimpses of what Riese has told him, in the tale- what it had done to... "What's happening to her... it feels a little like what happened to Maya... but different too."
He presses his lips together, "Well she got better eventually..." "Yeah but it took a while."
Hiro rubs the back of his neck, "I get the feeling that it brought some bad things to the surface she had to work through on her own. And if Riese was... tapping into the mind of a monster like that..." He swallows, "It might take too long with her trapped in a city like that." People might give him, and Lucia and the rest of them the benefit of the doubt because they're /human/ at least. But Adlehyde was fresh on people's minds. If they found out Riese was here while she was still recovering...
Hiro puts a hand on Noeline's shoulder, trying to offer a comforting squeeze, "It's a terrible feeling- like you're responsible for all that they're going through because you couldn't." Quietly, "But it sounds like nothing could have protected her from that thing... and that she did the only thing she could to stop that thing, even for a moment. She's still here, and you're still with her. That's the important part."
Hiro knows Noeline knows that. She said pretty much all of that, but sometimes it helps to hear it from someone else. Just hear that sort of validation.
And then he gives Noeline a weak smile, "If there's anything benevolent about the Guardians at all, they can look the other way for once. If they can't..." He sounds a little more grim, "...then they've got a lot to answer for."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied's eyes widen softly, as she shudders with a breath. She lets out an awkward-sounding noise, as she struggles to let out, "... don't resent yourself ... please. I am difficult to protect, stubborn and reckless as I am, and yet... you've stood there..." she holds onto her head, as she sucks in a harder, deeper breath, struggling to keep air within her.
She closes her eyes as she struggles again, and as if to further highlight Hiro's point, she squeezes the hand Noeline's got in her, their fingers laced together. "You have bared yourself more than you need to... the truth about yourself, who that you are... and you were willing to stand with me."
A soft tear rolls down her side, as she tries to fight back the wellspring of feeling starting to overwhelm her. It feels intense, moreso than usual, in part due to the condition she's in.
"Not just stand... You've sat by my side... you've held my hand and reassured me... you've spotted for me where I am blind... and you have loved me, for everything that I am, and everything that I am not."
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
Noeline probably shouldn't talk about this either - but where Riesenlied probably needs to let the feelings out, she just seems more like she's stopped worrying about what might be appropriate and what might not be. Perhaps it's her own way of recuperating, perhaps she's decided upon some kind of resolve that's knocked cracks in some aspects of her Crimson Noble disguise - or perhaps she's just feeling a little more devil-may-care than normal - but whatever the reason she grumbles, and flicks a hand through her hair.
"It appears that our race has history with that Demon of some kind, and Siegfried especially. I don't doubt it will come back, and we will likely have to be a little more prepared for when it does," she decides, her mind obviously already turning the problem over in her mind, approaching it from different angles. "But I will not let it get the best of me again."
Her sigh at Hiro's advice is not exactly one of relief, per se, but it is one of recognition and thanks, and her head bobs slightly as she allows the touch. "I-- I am aware, I assure you. On some level, I am quite aware of that fact. Riesenlied is a commander - and for all my ability in battle, I am just a spy, more suited to-- ah--"
She trails off, and then clamps her mouth shut automatically as Riese begins to speak, feeling colour rise to her cheeks unbidden. Once or twice she attempts to interrupt, even, though the next word promptly silences her again as she sucks in a shaky, uncertain breath full of emotion.
"--I-- I will try-- I promise," she mumbles softly afterwards, caught between affection and the knowledge that Hiro is /right there/... but also speechless from the depth of the other demon's feelings. After a moment, however, the Crimson Noble gives in, leaning in closer to press a fervent kiss against the other woman's forehead right there in the open. Gosh. "I have barely even begun to protect you... how could I possibly leave your side at a time like this, or any other, for all that you've done? That would be the one thing that I could never do, in my love for you," she adds as she nudges her forehead against Riesenlied's, though she just about remembers herself enough to give Ruby one hell of an ineffective glare.
HIRO ARE YOU TAKING NOTES, HUH
<Pose Tracker> Hiro has posed.
"You're a better warrior than I am, for a spy." Hiro says to Noeline, "And I think your talents as a spy protect her more than any number of blades could have from the Demon of Elru."
As Hiro listens to Riese talk to Noeline... there's something he feels curl up in his breast. It's a peculiar feeling to him. It's one he has trouble beginning to even parse.
But it's envy.
It's not a cruel sort of envy, it's one entwined in admiration which keeps it from taking root. But he admires their emotional openness. The fact that they can just... just /say/ things like this.
They have their own missions. He's not going to say either of them are less determined than Lucia to complete theirs. But his excuse that Lucia's mission takes precedent, takes priority over his feelings just feels like he's making excuses.
He wants to be able to communicate like this. He wants to be able to tell her how she feels. He wants, he wants, he wants...
It's the same moment that Riese says 'You have loved me for everything that I am and everything that I am not.'
That's the way he wants to love her. In order to love her that way, he needs to understand. And understand, and understand more.
He's already reddening in time with Noeline, and when Noeline presses a kiss to the other woman's forehead, he looks away. Not wanting to indulge in that kind of voyeurism.
If his face could steam like a stove, then it would be right now, as he rubs the back of his neck.
And then, fully well acknowledging Noeline's glare, Ruby gives Hiro this sly look, Hey Hiro. Why don't you ever talk to me that way?" And when there's no immediate response. Suddenly there's a paw pressing into his cheek, then again, and repeatedly, "Hiro... Hiiiiiroooo... Earth to Hiro..."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied's own cheeks are red, though perhaps not as bashful as they could be if she were fully there. Then again... if she were fully herself, she might not have delved to such depths, especially with present company. But there is something about how Noeline hurts, about the way she voices her frustrations about her perceived failures as a bodyguard, about her inability to reach where she had taken herself... ...that was what she needed to say, at that moment.
That feeling had to be let known.
She closes her eyes tenderly as Noeline kisses her forehead. Their movements are not overt, wild, passionate -- they're deliberate, slow, graceful, in step with one another's. They don't need to show grand sweeping gestures.
"I... I am sorry. I felt that woundedness... and I had to address it..." Riesenlied murmurs. A pause. "And I do not wish to take away from the triumph of Lucia's recovery with our own woes, though I know that you are kind and would care, much like how you came for us at that time when our wounded were in peril, Hiro."
She lowers her head with a quiet nod. "I would like to speak with Maya, if she is well again... the last time we spoke, I felt we made progress, but circumstances had forced us apart for longer than I'd wished to... and, of course, Jean, and Lemina, and Lucia as well... as I have yet to... apologise."
She holds onto Noeline's hand closer. "... please be patient with me, for just a bit longer... I--I will overcome this, I know it." That conviction in her voice has grown again, unrelenting in how it wishes to be heard. "I'd... like to rest for now. But... hopefully, also to speak with all of you again, when I feel a bit more whole..."
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
To be fair, Noeline's words /are/ somewhat halting; the pomp and flair that seems to suit her as a Crimson Noble has taken a definite hit in her worry over Riesenlied, and the woman on the bed is not the only one who seems lacking in energy, the events of the last few days having taken a significant toll on her.
On the other hand, that just makes her motions more genuine - stripped away from the flamboyant overacting that marks so much of her other interactions, her voice is quiet and soft. The fact that she looks as crimson as her dress is probably not something that you see every day, for that matter, nor the way she almost fidgets as Ruby decides to get her digs in.
"... really, now..." she sighs afterwards in amused disbelief, one hand squeezing the other woman's and her other resting on Riesenlied's cheek as she chuckles. Of all things that might bring Riesenlied back to lucidity, of course it would be worry over someone else.
"... I am supposed to be the one worried over you, right now," she drawls, and then closes her eyes. "Just... take as long as you need, and know that I will be with you no matter what. Most of all, do not rush yourself. We have-- time, for a while." Admitting that almost seems strange, after everything that's happened - but a relief, as well.
And then she clears her throat heavily as she straightens up a little, ruffled but trying to recover in a rather cat-like manner. "Ah-- ahem. We-- will be here for a while, after all. I happened to know the innkeeper, and have managed to call in a few favours to ensure that Riese's rest will be undisturbed..."
The attempt to recover is-- well, it's pretty poor.
<Pose Tracker> Hiro has posed.
"You're not taking away from it at all." Ruby is still nudging a precious pink pawsie into his cheek, but she's lost hope for any answer any time soon. She does eventually cut it out- "Riese. Look."
He moves closer to the bed, "You're a friend. Maybe things have complicated that, but you still are. You shouldn't have to feel like your sorrows are taking away from our triumphs. Friendship is sharing both in equal measure. And our triumphs, if they helped your sorrows even a little... then I'm glad."
He takes a deep breath, then nods, "I'll let Maya know. I'll pass along the room number to her. You can have ours too..." He rubs his neck, "...it's actually just down the hall? Well theirs is. I'm in this single... same floor though. But now that Lucia's up and about... you'll get your chance to apologize to them."
Ruby however, flies off Hiro's shoulder almost soundlessly to move towards Noeline, "/So/. Since the two of us are in the market today..." She acts like she's lowering her voice, surreptitiously putting a paw near her mouth, but honestly she didn't lower the volume much at all so Riese can definitely hear it, "Would you like us to pick you up a get well gift for her? Or maybe a /looovveeee/ gift?"
She presses her paws together, clasping them, batting her eyes at Noeline, "Or maybe a /love-love/ gift? Just say the word and let us know what she likes...�[0m" "Ruby I really don't think you should meddle in people's personal affa..." "Are you kidding me? Of course I should! Especially when they're as hot to trot as these two are!"
Hiro puts his hand over his face.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
It is rather endearing, doesn't it? The concern that she has for Noeline, pulling her through...
It's rather cute, perhaps, how Riesenlied doesn't seem to really register Ruby's half-whisper, but she smiles as she looks at Noeline as she places her hands to her lap. "And on the same measure... if you'd like some fresh air -- to speak to other poeple and recharge... I wouldn't mind taking a rest for now. I know that is important for you as well." She also looks at the dragonet to say, "Ruby, I don't think it will be long before Odjn rejoins us here... so you'll see her soon as well."
She nods very gently towards Hiro, resting onto the bed with a deliberately slow, gentle lowering, as if she can't trust herself to make quick movements when her arm is shaking still. "Thank you... this news really has been welcome, in a week that has been harsh to us."
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
Noeline holds what is evidently a great, great deal of affection for Riesenlied, to the point where her love and consideration are declared and out in the open. She has bled for Riesenlied's sake, worried and hurt and even shed tears, and even if that last one is a secret that the spy is likely to take to her grave, she still did it. Would do it again, if necessary.
Unfortunately, she's still also kind of a shit.
So she leans back to Ruby with a theatrical frown, just about managing to bull her way through the blush still spread across her cheeks. "Excuse /me/," she grumbles, and even if her tone still holds some ruffled embarrassment she does manage to allow a grin to pick up on her face ever so slightly. "Should you not look to your /own/ affairs first, before worrying exactly how close to trotting we are? I don't see /you/ making any headway with your prime rival back in the picture, hmm?" she retorts. You know, aloud.
She pauses, though, as Riesenlied's care cuts through her teasing. "... we shall see," she replies with a soft smile, brushing at the demon's hair once more. "For the moment, I will stay - in fact, I will do my best to give Odjn a message, now that we are situated." She helps Riesenlied back down to the pillows, fussing over her terribly. "The more people around you, the better, I do not doubt. ... and I'm hardly in the mood to move right at this moment," she grumbles, her colour refreshing itself. R-riese, can't you realize when you just got seriously romanticcc...
<Pose Tracker> Hiro has posed.
Oh good! I'd really love to see her! But Noeline, She's not a rival! Ruby looks scandalized at the very idea, "A girl like her is absolutely no threat to me whatsoever! When I told her she stands out in a crowd, she asked if that means she needs to STOOP LOWER! If that girl is a threat then I'm a-" And that's Hiro yanking Ruby out of midair to her flailing and waving, as he moves out the door. "Say bye Ruby. Bye." He waves her pink pawsie for her.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
There's about five seconds of deep silence after they leave. Then Riesenlied, ever-sharing traits with Lucia, has to ask of Noeline: "Who... is her rival...? For whom??" She sounds so perplexed. Go to bed, Riesenlied.