♪ ninth hymn. [Action]

[seleniahymn]

[For all its beauty and serenity, it was unfortunate that there would be the body of a young woman abandoned at the foot of grand tree left behind by Amaterasu, to the north of the village. A journal lay open at her side as her head slumped forward onto her chest, drops of what appeared to be blood splashing onto the pages as they dripped down her arm at a steady pace while she remained still, breathing far more shallow than she should be. Those who would pass by this secluded area would note the tattered white dress she was clothed in, peppered with deep red stains of various sizes around the area of her neck and upper arms, with small cuts along her fingers. Her wrists, however, were a raw, shining color, as though she had been restrained.

If Tear were awake, the deep cuts along her upper body would be the least of her worries in comparison to the nausea that will undoubtedly overtake her when she wakes up, or the sense of failure that will come with it when she realizes what had happened to her.]



((OOC: Tear is back, but unfortunately she once again believes she is a resident of Luceti Valley, albeit younger! For those who weren't around then or don't remember, here is the mod post with the information. And if you need a family tree reminder... message me. o_O))

Comments

[Action]

[fabrecation]

[It was just a walk to clear his head. Another attempt to contact Asch, really. The tree was always soothing, the way it swayed in the wind and sometimes dropped flowers...

But when he sees who's there and the shape that she's in... All thoughts of peace and quiet get thrown out of his head, and instead a sense of panic grips his chest as he sprints up the hill towards her.]

TEAR!

[seleniahymn]

[Tear remains immobile, barely slipping in and out of consciousness as Luke makes his way up to the tree she rested against. Unfortunately the blood continues flowing at the same steady pace as when she was dropped here.]

[fabrecation]

[Luke makes it to her side quickly and slides down to his knees, not even caring about the fact that the action burns a little thanks to the speed. With one arm he lifts up Tear's shoulders, letting her head rest on his upper arm, and the other hovers over her body, trying to find her worst wounds.]

Dammit... Tear! Can you hear me?! [She's bleeding so much and - and he can't even heal, or - ]

[seleniahymn]

[There is a notable grimace on Tear's face as she's lifted, a cry almost escaping her lips if it weren't for the fact that the pain managed to wake her up a little more, allowing her to hid how much it really hurt.

Who was...? No, she'd seen this man before, with her younger brother.] Luke...?

[fabrecation]

[Thankfully, Luke has no idea that Tear doesn't truly know him. Not like how she usually does, anyway. When he hears her voice, Luke turns his attention to her face, and he brings his shaking free hand up to rest his palm against his cheek.]

Tear... What happened to you? Can you tell me where you're hurt?

[Not that Luke can do anything about it... like always.]

[seleniahymn]

[She opens her mouth to speak, but all that manages to get is a weak cough, followed by a stronger one. Whoever it was that did this to her had forced her to sing her hymns so much that it hurt to swallow, not that it stops her from trying anyway.]

Where... are we?

[fabrecation]

[She's coughing, and when she speaks she sounds so hoarse... They must've done something to her voice. Not surprising, considering her voice can be considered a weapon for both offense and defense. He looks down her body, sees all that blood and wishes for the thousandth time that he could do something that has to do with healing...]

We're... that tree. Under that one tree... Ama's tree. [Because her name is long and he can't be bothered to remember the whole thing.

He looks back over his shoulder, hoping to see anyone he knows who could help.] I-I need to find someone... someone who can heal you! I can't...

[seleniahymn]

Ama's tree...? [She wasn't sure of who Ama was, but there was really only one tree so distinctive to the villagers that he could be speaking of, to her knowledge. That meant she was close enough to home, she would look around to check for herself, but she was feeling so ill that she didn't dare to try it.]

My mother, she... or my father! They should know what to... do...

[silversnowfall]

[There is someone he knows coming...but she's just out for a walk. If not for her recent need to do something outside of that empty house, she might not be here at all.

When she spots them both she comes running, though. That's Luke, and Tear. She's not home after all.]

[fabrecation]

[Just before Neprhy came across Luke's vision, he looks at Tear again, his eyes slightly wide. He's still fearful and worried, of course, but... there's some confusion written on his face, too.]

Mother... father?

[But weren't they...?

Before he can ask further, though, he hears footsteps, and he looks over his shoulder again. Oh, thank goodness...]

Nephry!

[seleniahymn]

[Nephry. No, she could not allow her mother to see her just how badly she were injured, what a foolish thing it had been to tell Luke that her mother would know what to do with her. Tear sits up quickly only to fall back into Luke with a sharp cry, her body forgetting all she had learned about being a calm soldier in favor of falling to the instincts of her confused state of mind.]

Mother...?

[silversnowfall]

[Did she...just call her 'mother'? Nephry freezes in surprise. Between that, the blood, and the desperate look on Luke's face...

...No matter who Tear thinks she's talking to, she needs help. Nephry comes closer, kneeling on her other side and very carefully taking one of her hands]

Don't strain yourself, Tear. [With her other hand she gets a handkerchief out of a pocket and hands it to Luke.]

[fabrecation]

[Luke takes the handkerchief and... stares at it, slightly dumbfounded. Maybe it's because he's still in a state of panic, but he has no idea what to do with it. There's no way he can help heal her wounds with this...

But he does bring it to one of her wounds, and he presses gently against it, trying to stop the blood flow. His hands still shake, though, and he turns his head slightly to Nephry while keeping his eyes on Tear's face.]

Nephry, what... what can I do? I can't heal her!

[seleniahymn]

[While Tear doesn't know this person very well, there is a part of her that is deeply bothered by how panicked Luke is. Very carefully and with a lot more effort than she expected she reaches up to rest her unoccupied hand on one of his, trying to will him to calm down while taking comfort in the touch given by Nephry.]

I'm sorry, I'm being... a burden to you both...

[silversnowfall]

Luke. [Not harsh, but serious. Tear is bleeding quite a lot and Luke is the only one around here strong enough to carry her to help.] I want you to calm yourself down. You can't help her if you aren't thinking clearly.

[She has a second handkerchief, and she picks a different cut to press it against - one of the worse ones. Her voice is much less intense when addressing Tear.] It will never be a burden to help you.

[But it's Luke she watches, for now.]

[fabrecation]

Sh-Shut up, you're not being a burden.

[There's no anger to his tone, though, nor annoyance. In fact, he even shifts his hand, the one she touched, to squeeze her hand in return, and then he really looks at Nephry as she speaks.

Yeah... she's right. He might not be able to heal Tear, but he needs to do something. And he can't do that if he's not calm enough.

So, he shuts his eyes and with a deep breath, and then a sigh, he opens them, frowns and nods.]

... Right. Do you know where I can take her? [Both the Battledome clinic and the normal one are too far...]

[silversnowfall]

[Though she can't read his mind, she would agree - they're far from either clinic, and short on the healers and doctors she knows.]

For now? I believe you should bring her home. [Tear's home, rather.] Our house is nearby, and we can do more for her there than we can here.

[fabrecation]

All right.

[He looks down at Tear and gives her hand another squeeze before he brings it back to her shoulder.]

I'm going to lift you up, okay? It's going to hurt...

[seleniahymn]

[What was going to be a vocal response turns into simply a small sound, the most she could manage through all the pain and the oncoming wave of nausea. Her body is already tensing in anticipation, for surely this was not going to go without some amount of pain.]

[silversnowfall]

[She doesn't like to see people in pain. Nephry's expression stiffens as she stands.]

Go as quickly as you can.

[fabrecation]

I know.

[He leaves the handkerchief on Tear's body as he moves his other arm to slide under her knees, and shifts his own legs to stand easier. With a quiet countdown to himself, he straightens his legs and lifts Tear up, keeping her against his body in case she was something to hold on to, or press her cheek against or... anything...]

I'm sorry...

[Luke hates seeing Tear in pain... and it's even worse when he's the one causing it. Tear isn't the only one feeling nauseous at the moment... But he keeps that feeling away with a frown, and with a nod to Nephry, he starts to head down the hill in a quick, though steady walk.]

[seleniahymn]

Don't... apologize... [She leans against him as she says those words, clenching her teeth silently in continuous pain. It's all she can do to stay conscious, and despite Luke's efforts every step still manages to jar her just slightly.]

[silversnowfall]

[It's a much shorter walk to house one than to...almost anywhere else, at least. Nephry's sure Luke knows the way, but she'll stick close to him regardless. After all, someone has to open the door and everything.

But unless Luke or Tear speaks to her, she will be silent until they arrive.]

[fabrecation]

[Luke will be quiet. If he speaks, he's afraid his voice will shake, and Tear doesn't need that. She needs someone to lean on... someone strong enough. Hopefully Luke can be that person for a little while...

Once they make it to the door, Luke lifts his foot awkwardly, as if to push it open with that... then sets it back on the ground with a small little blush of embarrassment, and looks back at Nephry.]

Uh...

[silversnowfall]

[Door, open. And she'll pace herself in front of him once they're both inside, leading him to Tear's room. She stops to grab a towel and spread it on top of the bed before he sets her down, though. It will be a much faster cleanup that way.]

Saphir keeps the first aid supplies in his room. [a quick, firm hand on Luke's shoulder] Stay with her.