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“Quit being so stubborn--,” Nova demanded in a huff, clutching Morax’s sleeve as he stormed away in a manner many of his subjects would consider the height of insolence, “--and let me heal you. I won’t take no for an answer, I don’t care how minor it is, wounds are wounds and I am going to treat yours!”
The agitated man pivoted in his stride, using her grip on him as leverage before adopting a more dignified posture. “I don’t understand your preoccupation with this matter. Minor injuries are easily mended and anything more severe is certain to likewise resolve itself, given time. This is not the first or last time I’ve found myself outmatched and I, like anyone else, must face the consequences--”
“Well your consequences aren’t mine to suffer!” The ferocity roiling in her dark gaze was adorable, and he knew she’d be even angrier if she was even the least bit aware of that observation. “The state of my nerves is unquestionably a collateral consequence of your self-sacrificial atonement,” she explained, surprisingly eloquent as she moved to stand directly in front of him. Relinquishing her grasp and examining his annoyingly impenetrable expression, she simultaneously steeled herself against the intimidating nature of his imposing form.
He was truly bewildered, utterly incapable of comprehending her insistence. “There are arguably always others who require examination and treatment even more urgently, why would I ever be so selfish as to put my life before the lives of the people that have sacrificed so much? My current condition is stable and unimpaired, so why--”
“Are you bleeding?”
The Archon raised a brow. “How is that relevant to the topic?”
It took everything in Nova’s power to not just give up right on the spot. “Bleeding means you’re hurt, injured. It means you need treatment. Oh, and need I remind you, which evidently I should, of the contract you made with me before you set off?”
The silence was as heavy as stone.
“I believe it was something along the lines of ‘come back safe, unharmed?’”
Well, that took the wind right out of his sails. “No details were specified--”
“You’re right, nothing was specified,” she began, her tone darkening, “but I could certainly argue that the implication of ‘unharmed’ is all encompassing. I think a case for exceptions is a little less convincing, you know, since none of it was specified, technically. And another thing, arguing about a contract? Really? Over terms that don’t appear to have been included no less. Since you recall every contract perfectly, I’m sure you can verify the very words I just spoke, which provide concrete evidence to overrule whatever retort you were preparing to make. Now pick somewhere to sit and let me heal you, just get it over with if nothing else.”
Even if he had a more extensive case he wanted to make, he wasn’t going to get a chance to introduce it. Nova had made up her mind and if he wanted to do the smart thing, Morax would abandon his pride and acquiesce to her demands. He wasn’t happy about it, but she had too much of a point in interpreting the wording in her favor. It was a mistake he wouldn’t allow himself to make again. With a subtle sigh of reluctance he located a suitable place to perch and submitted to her treatment.
“You’re not more or less valuable than anyone, if that makes you feel any better,” the young woman remarked as she began tending to the most severe wounds she could see. “Not in my eyes, anyway. I mean, you’re valuable, but in the same way that everyone’s valuable. If I had to pick between saving you or someone else, I’d pick you because you are worth more to me, but it’s not because I think less of the other person. You’re an incredible person because you’re you, not just because of how powerful or intimidating you are. People want to protect you not just out of duty, but out of concern, caring, for the person they want to keep around.”
“So in a life or death situation, are you saying you’d always pick me?” the Archon couldn’t keep every trace of amusement out of his voice, nor could he entirely mask the hint of fondness that crept in alongside it.
The recently ascended demigod blushed, but she wasn’t sure why. “I mean, it would depend on who you were up against. I can’t confidently say I’d choose you over my Archon, or my parents. But you’re certainly not nobody to me…”
The lips that kissed her forehead and the hand that caressed her shoulder were almost enough to snap the woman out of her treatment. She started to ask him why he’d deigned to offer her such tenderness, but the words got stuck in her throat. That was probably for the best. Reining in her racing, tumultuous thoughts was a challenging endeavor in and of itself. Keeping the energy flowing through her manipulation of hydro on top of that appeared to be the most she could manage at the moment.
“Thank you for your consideration, and your kindness,” the somewhat sentimental Morax whispered to his treasured companion, one that even he had yet to accept any notion of feelings towards. “I vow to conduct myself with greater caution, as long as you promise to be here to provide your aid should things take an unfortunate turn.”
She spoke the thought aloud before she even realized what was happening: “There’s nowhere I’d rather be.”