2021-03-11: Bloodstained Memories, Part 2
- Log: Bloodstained Memories, Part 2
- Cast: Riley Arwell, Xander Lovell
- Where: Camping in the wilderness
- Date: March 11, 2021
- Summary: One year ago, Riley and Xander were on the cusp of a second chance.
<Pose Tracker> Riley Arwell has posed.
Riley and Xander were able to find a promising ritual -- a Cleansing aimed at rendering a Part of Valmar harmless for extraction. It requires the cooperation of a priest of Granas and several special components. Securing these has taken them several weeks -- a difficult undertaking, given Riley's condition and Xander's general rustiness when it comes to adventuring.
And throughout this, despite Xander's best efforts, there was never really any meaningful reprieve from the pain for Riley. But there has been warmth, and laughter, and some spark of hope that there really might be a return to life after this.
Now that they've collected all the materials, that hope feels closer than ever.
They find themselves resting by the fire at camp. Tomorrow's journey will take them to the town where they found a priest willing to perform the ritual. And then, after that...??
Riley sighs dreamily into the distance, a genuine smile on his face despite his exhaustion. He's in somewhat better condition than when he first reappeared, no longer completely overgrown with flowers, but only a few stubborn clusters of fresh sprouts that have appeared since the last time they were tended to.
"If it really works, should we celebrate or something?"
<Pose Tracker> Xander Lovell has posed.
Clumsy as he was in adventuring, traveling in Riley's company was akin to injecting life back into Xander's veins. The tedium and loneliness of his routines in Cereza had normalized to the point that Xander didn't realize it all until now. Laughter was so unpracticed it hurt at first. And the fact that Riley had become so skilled in their time apart was... captivating.
He kept trying to swallow that feeling down, but had reached a dangerous conclusion: he was never going to be able to.
"We could have dinner with my parents for starters," Xander said, smiling. "They missed you, too. They'd love to see you again."
And Xander would need to tell them, in person, that he couldn't stay in Cereza any longer. If... Riley would have him. After the ritual, he'd have to tell Riley everything, and Riley could answer without worrying if Xander's assistance with the Fangs was at stake.
"How are you feeling?" he asks, carefully. "I know I haven't been much help in that regard, but..." His medications proved futile, but whatever follow up Xander's thinking, it catches in his throat.
<Pose Tracker> Riley Arwell has posed.
We could have dinner with my parents for starters.
"Ah! That would be so great!" Riley closes his eyes, bringing the memories back. "I want to see them again too. I miss crashing your family dinners. Are they both doing well?" There's a tug on his heart at the thought that tomorrow he might be himself again, that he could sit down with Xander's family again like he's a part of it.
What did he really find out there on the road except disaster? It feels like he left all his happiness behind in Cereza. He wonders if there's some way he could just... stay there. There must be something he could do with his skills to make money in a small town.
How are you feeling? I know I haven't been much help in that regard, but...
"You've been healing my soul, Riley replies, still with a bit of dreaminess that makes it land lightly, despite how serious it really is. Before this, he'd been starting to lose the will to go on. "I'm -- you know -- tired." An awkward laugh. Xander has seen what happens when he tries to sleep. "Do you think I could have some more cherry medicine...?"
It's probably not going to help with the symptoms, but it may help his soul.
<Pose Tracker> Xander Lovell has posed.
When Riley agrees readily, Xander's heart skips briefly to his throat. But, no, that's normal. That's a normal thing they always used to do. There's nothing special about it.
Nothing except for how long it's been and how much he missed it.
"They're as well as they've always been," Xander replies, because that's easier than admitting mostly they look at Xander now like they're handling a fragile piece of glass. He's tried to be a good son, but somehow, he still ends up worrying them. ...Maybe they'll understand, he thinks. No, surely they will. His parents weren't trying to be strict. They were trying to guide him down a path of security and happiness. They didn't know Riley would leave, either.
You've been healing my soul.
Another flutter assaults Xander's chest. He laughs at that, weak and dizzy. Isn't he supposed to be an adult now? Why does he still feel the same way he did as a boy? "I've still got some," he says, fetching one of the round, red pills from his pouch. "I tried to make a stronger dose, but I think we've both learned not to expect much."
He smiles a little, then reaches forward to brush Riley's bangs from his face, trying to get a good look at his eyes. There's at least a little more clarity, but the tired is cleanly written there. "But you only need to hold out one more night." It's with great reluctant he forces himself to pull back and hand Riley the pill. Not now. Not yet.
<Pose Tracker> Riley Arwell has posed.
They spent much of the day on their feet, fighting off creatures native to an underground cavern as they sought a rare mineral deposit. The day's exertions are very clear on Riley's face, but the sense of safety from Xander's presence -- and the triumph of their little quest -- turn that fatigue into more of a relaxed contentedness.
He doesn't overthink it when Xander draws near and brushes his bangs aside, responding instead with a soft smile and a quiet enjoyment of the moment.
He's let his guard down enough that he almost doesn't notice -- it feels like such a natural thing to do -- that when Xander offers him the pills and tries to pull away, Riley grips him by the arm, pulling him in closer. His other hand goes to his dagger and plunges it toward Xander's stomach.
In that moment, Xander's words finally reach his ears.
But you only need to hold out one more night.
He catches himself a split second before the blade breaks the skin, but not before it pricks. His whole body goes rigid as he fights the completion of the movement, before tossing the dagger away in a panic.
"I... am... sorry...!" he gasps, wide-eyed with horror at himself.
<Pose Tracker> Xander Lovell has posed.
Xander voices only the smallest, broken utterance in the shock of the moment. His heart hammers against his ribs, but not for the reason they were moments ago. Fear tenses every muscle, and locked in such a precarious position, his instincts demand that he not move anything.
Even just trying to breath in presses his flesh just a touch closer to the tip of the knife before Riley regains his the presence of mind.
The bloodlust was so easy to forget. It was an invisible symptom compared to the bleeding and flowers that constantly stared Xander in the face, demanding his attention, especially with how Riley always managed to carry himself with a joke and a smile.
Once Riley pulls away to throw the knife, Xander throws himself at Riley from behind, wrapping his arms around tight and cognizant of the fact that Riley wouldn't be able to bite him easily from this angle. His arms tremble, but the way he squeezes in suggest as much reassurance as panicked self-defense.
"One more night," Xander repeats, softer. "Then this will be over."
<Pose Tracker> Riley Arwell has posed.
Riley lets himself be captured, his own heart beating quickly now as well from the shock and urgency of moments before. He cranes his neck, trying to get a glimpse of Xander, to see if something's changed in the way he looks at him now. The small squeeze and the soft promise help.
Tomorrow, there's hope. A chance to reclaim his life and maybe find a new place in Xander's. Even a small place would be enough.
But for now... he's still a monster with something evil inside him that he can only barely control. He can't let himself forget that, or Xander could pay the price. He hopes it isn't already too late, that he hasn't broken something between them with this slip that he can't fix.
"One more night," he echoes, quietly.