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The party had just decimated an entire goblin camp, and now they were in the Underdark, stumbling around between exploding mushrooms and terrifying beasts. All the while, Karlach and Astarion both complained about the loss of the sun, while Lae'zel and Shadowheart bickered about who-knows-what. Wyll and Gale were fairing fine, though Tavor could do without the wizards constant flow of factual babble over his shoulder, and all the while Tavor's chest ached.
He huffed, tuning out Gale's chatter and rubbing his chest absentmindedly, staring down at his journal where a long, long list of things to do glared up at him. He struggled to pick where to start, and ultimately decided the best thing to do now was simply explore and get a feel for these new, strange surroundings. He said as much, accidentally cutting Gale off, and Lae'zel looked at him disapprovingly. The ache in his chest worsened.
"Do you truly believe wasting our time running around down here is wise?" She questioned. Tavor swallowed thickly, nodding.
"Y-yes. We can hardly get anything done if we don't know where anything is. We'll explore, and I'll draw up a map as we go. It'll make things much easier."
Lae'zel seemed to accept this, as did the rest of the party, so they continued onward. Yet that heavy feeling never left Tavor.
He sucked in a deep breath, making sure to keep his head high and his shoulders squared. He was so focused he didn't even notice Astarion creeping closer until a hand was on his arm, squeezing slightly.
"Is this place getting to you too, Darling?" He asked, not even looking at Tavor as they walked. Tavor smiled softly despite himself.
"Perhaps. It is rather... unsettling down here, in a way. Beautiful, but unsettling."
"I couldn't have put it better myself, Darling." Astarion chuckled. "Nothing but mushrooms and dirt as far as the eye can see."
Tavor glanced at Astarion then, noting the darker shadows beneath the vampire spawns eyes, and the way his skin seemed even paler than usual, and his gut twisted. When was the last time Astarion had something to eat? He was right, after all, there wasn't much of substance down here, and he hadn't bitten Tavor in at least a week.
"You can feed tonight, Star, with me." Tavor blurted. Astarion turned to him, blinking.
"Oh? Well, thank you, Love, I certainly wouldn't turn down such an invitation."
Tavor smiled, allowing himself a second to be lost in a pair of cherry-red eyes.
A moment later there was a 'thwip!', and searing hot pain ripped through Tavor's right thigh, causing him to drop to one knee with a cry. The party quickly reacted, weapons drawn, as they were suddenly surrounded by Duergar. A fucking ambush, Tavor thought, gritting his teeth as he rose, dagger drawn. It wasn't an easy fight, but it was by no means the hardest, and the party made it through without anyone dying.
Once Shadowheart finished off the Duergar mage, Tavor looked around, taking stock of everyone. Astarion, Wyll, and Karlach were bruised, but otherwise fine, and Shadowheart was merely exhausted from launching spells. Lae'zel had suffered a slash to her arm and a few shallow cuts along her legs, and Gale had taken a nasty hit to the head, but all of them were still standing, alive and well.
"Everyone alright? He asked.
"I will live." Lae'zel said simply.
"A bit of a headache, but nothing a healing potion won't fix up." Gale assured, wincing as he rubbed his head.
"Let's focus on you, Dear. You're trembling." Astarion frowned, coming closer.
"I'm fine." Tavor said, and he meant it. Honestly, he couldn't even feel the injury, everything was foggy, his ears ringing slightly as his heart raced. He struggled to take a deep breath. He needed to focus, he couldn't lead them into another trap, he had to be alert, be better-
"-to calm down. Focus on me." A voice cut through the white noise. Tavor shook his head.
"We- We need to go to- We sh-should make camp. Everyone needs their injuries tended to-"
"Tavor-"
He stumbled forward, unsure where he was even going. Where was the best place to set up camp? They'd barely made any progress today, and the feeling of failure was near crushing. Why couldn't he just stop being useless?
"We can- The temple. That'd be safe, we can make c-camp there and, uh-"
"Tavor, for all the Gods sakes would you sit down!?"
Tavor froze, blinking, as Astarion gripped his shoulder and pulled him down until he was sitting in the dirt. A second later, and his face was being gently cradled, Astarion's face filling his blurry vision.
"Breathe, Love. You're all right. Everything is fine." Astarion said softly. Tavor shook, breath hitching, the feeling of not getting enough air only just hitting him. His chest and thigh burned, and he groaned through clenched teeth, willing himself to calm down.
"I- I'm s-sorry," He whimpered pathetically. "I don't- know wha-what's-"
"Shh, Darling, nothing to apologize for. Here," Something cool was placed on Tavor's lips. "Drink up, slowly now. That's it."
A healing potion, Tavor thought fuzzily as the pain in his leg slowly began to fade. Astarion continued holding him, thumbs brushing lightly just under his eyes, and after a few minutes Tavor finally felt himself relaxing, breaths coming in slow and steady and his heart no longer racing.
"There we are, Darling. Are you back with us, then?" Astarion cooed. Tavor nodded, face flushing as he realized he'd just lost it in front of everyone. Gods, he probably looked ridiculous-
Astarion winced in the way he always did when his tadpole was active, and his ears twitched as he looked at Tavor with a frown.
"Now now, Love, none of that. You've seen us all during our own struggles, it'd hardly be fair for us to judge you during your own."
"But I'm fine now, we can- can set up camp and-"
"And we will. As for you, you're going to get some rest and let Halsin tend to your leg."
"The healing potion-"
"Slowed the bleeding, but didn't heal you entirely. Which is why you'll be letting me help you walk, won't you Darling?" It wasn't really a question. Tavor bit his lip, but nodded, too tired to argue any longer. Astarion helped him stand, draping one of Tavor's arms over his shoulders. The world tilted for a moment before righting itself, his leg throbbing dully. Around him he could see the rest of the party, all looking relieved to see him up and moving. None of their expressions held even an ounce of judgement. Something in Tavor's chest loosened slightly.
"I think there's a clearing not too far from here where we could settle for the night." Wyll informed, moving to lead the party.
"Wonderful. Come along then, Darling." Astarion guided Tavor with ease, moving slower than normal but with all the same grace. "You'll feel better in no time."
"I think you're right." Tavor huffed, smiling softly as he let himself be helped.