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The air is still and cold on the road to Winterbloom. Ankle deep snow crunches with every step the travelers take. The snow falls in gentle flecks on the party.
Ochette’s fur catches the snow as it falls on top of her. She’s stopped licking at every flake that falls now that the snow has lost its novelty. It takes her no time at all to stop playing in the white piles and start grumbling that she’s too cold.
Castti is cold, of course, but you wouldn’t be able to tell. She’s a caretaker at heart and as such, she has the stiffest upper lip of their group. She tends to everyone else’s needs as they walk, telling anyone who asks if she’s okay that all she needs is a warm cup of tea once they arrive in Winterbloom.
Temenos’s robes seem to blend in with the snow. The only thing that offsets him from the environment is his staff he elegantly dips into the snow before he takes every step. Being a local of this area, Temenos takes it upon himself to educate the other travelers about the local flora and fauna as they pass anything of note.
Osvald stopped feeling cold a very long time ago. His lengthy imprisonment on Frigit Isle numbed him to the stings of cold and lash. He walks in his usual silence but replies when spoken to. Whether it be Ochette asking about what life was like in prison or giving a typical “No” when Castti asks if he’s cold.
Partitio isn’t having a particularly good time. Naturally, the merchant’s tan from his life in Oresrush is of little use when the air is cold enough to freeze water. Other than a few comments about the cold, Partitio continues onward without objection.
Agnea is only used to light wintertime snowfall back in Cropdale, her usual dresses weren’t going to cut it for this weather. However, Castti might have been a bit overzealous with the precautions taken for the young dancer. Agnea is swimming in three layers of furs and parkas, making her look only slightly ridiculous. She is warm, however, so she doesn’t object.
Throné’s mind is anywhere but the cold. Her fingers trace the damnable collar around her neck, imagining how it will feel once she finally slays the Blacksnakes’ Mother and Father to obtain the keys to unlock it. She’ll never admit it, but freedom is all she yearns for. She was told that she would find Father in Winterbloom, so the party agreed to come here for her sake.
Hikari is by far the most affected by the cold. He grew up in the desert sands of Ku; he’d never even seen snow in his life. A naïve part of him still thought it was a myth. A tall tale spread by the kingdom’s children of ice falling from the sky. However, the cold does serve a useful purpose. His dark desires are dampened in the cold, it seems. But the prince knows that when the urges are calm, it is only so that they will come back stronger.
For the residents of Winterbloom, the arrival of the travelers is a strange sight. The village doesn’t get many visitors due to its weather and less than savory criminal activity, much less eight at the same time.
“I need to go.” Throné starts towards the back of the town. Her wrist is caught by Castti.
“Not a chance. We’ve just had days on end of travel; you’re in no condition for a confrontation.” The apothecary scolds.
“You aren’t my mother, let me go!” Throné pulls harder, but Castti remains unyielding.
“Y’know she’s right, Throné.” Partitio adds, taking off his hat to shake off the snow. “You ain’t gonna do any good when you’re this tired.” The rest of the party nods and vocalizes their assent. Eventually, the thief relents.
Partitio leads the group down the snow speckled cobblestones, past the wooden houses with icicles hanging off of the edges of their roofs. Windows are frosted over and the burning hearths inside tempt everyone in the group.
The travelers finally come upon the inn, and the resident merchant manages to snag them two rooms for a very reasonable price. They unanimously agree to split the boys into one room and the girls into the other.
The boys and girls say their farewells for the night before walking into the bedrooms. Osvald lights the fire inside with a single plume from the palm of his hand. Ochette draws her trusty bow drill and gets the fire started on their side.
The travelers all shed their snow gear and settle into their beds. Hikari stares up at the ceiling. His head is pleasantly empty at the moment. His desires are entirely centered around rest and nothing else.
“I should exhaust myself more often…” Hikari thinks to himself. his hands aren’t twitching at the constant thoughts of ripping somebody open, only shaking from the cold. He looks at the men sleeping on their beds beside his. He smiles wearily to himself and closes his eyes.
It’s shameful, really. Hikari’s father always told him that he would take the throne because Hikari is less bloodthirsty by far than his brother, Mugen. Hikari knows the truth. He only gained favor with his father because he hid the bloodlust which is his very nature. He isn’t a blatant killer like his brother, but Hikari feels it’s almost more disgraceful that he hides how he sates his desires.
Hikari’s dreams take him to when he was a child. He has this dream often. He remembers the first time he smelled blood. He was just a child, watching the royal guards train. He always loved to watch the drills. However, one of the soldier’s bandages fell off during training and Hikari picked it up to dispose of it. Curiously, the young prince brought the bloody rag to his nose and bolts of pure bliss shot down his entire body. His nerves were alight with raw pleasure, and his mind was never the same.
Hikari hates this dream. Hates craving something so undeniably wrong. But he can’t stop himself from fantasizing about the carnage he can unleash. He thought he was past the worst of it when he was forced to flee from home and began gathering allies, but it’s as if the urge was waiting for just the perfect moment to come back. His dreams shift and take him elsewhere.
It was when he, Partitio, and Castti arrived in Cropdale for the first time. They were still seeking new allies to join their quests. They met the dancer, Agnea, and she was the perfect fit for their rag-tag group. She got along with the rest of the party nicely, and Hikari couldn’t help but find her pretty.
Then the four left the village together and that pull of primal, dark desire wrenched on Hikari’s heart…
“Agnea is a beautiful girl…” Hikari thought to himself, “she’d make a lovely corpse.”
Hikari shoots up in bed with a half-gasp. He looks at his allies surrounding him. His mind is his own, he craves no blood. He looks out the window and finds that it’s still well within the dark hours of the morning.
Hikari knows he won’t sleep anytime soon. He slides out of bed, puts on his winter coat, and walks out to the second-floor hallway. He sees a balcony at the end of the hall and decides that’s as good a place as any to clear his head from the lingering nightmares.
The air bites Hikari’s cheeks as he steps outside. He hates the cold, but having normal thoughts for once makes it worth the pain. His mind wanders from various things that he’s seen and done since the travelers came together. His wistful thoughts wander from topic to action to Agnea. Because whenever he lets his mind wander, it always ends with her.
Their relationship is strange. They’re not together, but they’re definitely not nothing, either. Even the sheltered Hikari knows that ‘just’ friends don’t hold hands when they walk or exchange forehead kisses before bed. Yet somehow, the dancer and prince find themselves on an incredibly narrow path. Just one word could hold two equally terrifying outcomes. If Hikari pulls away now, he’ll destroy the fragile bond of affection between them. But if Hikari pushes further, then he and Agnea might dive too deep into something they aren’t ready for. Especially when he knows his dark impulses only get stronger when he’s around the dancer.
The door swings open behind the prince and he’s about to turn to look at the emerging figure, but he knows it’s her when she loops her arms around his left and leans into his shoulder.
“It’s pretty early, y’know.” Agnea states, rubbing a gloved hand gently up and down his arm. “Nightmares again?”
“How do you always know what I’m thinking?” Hikari lets a genuine smile flit across his lips.
“Jes’ an actress’s intuition, I s’pose.” Agnea answers, letting herself use her genuine accent. Hikari puts his arm around her waist and holds her in silence. Agnea continues her gentle rubbing up and down Hikari’s off-hand arm.
Hikari moves his face to the top of her head, burying his nose in her caramel brown hair. Agnea senses the change in the atmosphere and fully faces the warrior, wrapping her arms around his middle as she presses her cheek into his chest. The cold is entirely blocked out by their embrace. They may not know what exactly they are, but they can’t bring themselves to care. Hikari puts a hand on her cheek and gazes into her green eyes, glittering in the balcony lamplight. This is the moment fictional works try to encapsulate. The tense atmosphere that precedes a kiss is something that can only be experienced firsthand. And these two are in the middle of one such heated moment.
Agnea rises to her toes, eyes flittering shut as her pink lips part ever so slightly. She looks so perfect right now. Hikari never thought he’d get to experience a moment like this, but as he closes his eyes and leans in to meet her…
Bliss wracks his body.
Hikari’s eyes snap open as soon as the scent of blood hits his nose. He should’ve known. The moment was too perfect, how could he forget his own warning to himself. The urge only grew quiet to hit him harder now. His eyes search Agnea’s face for the source and he sees a small cut on her lower lip, with a small amount of blood trickling down. His saliva glands sting to life at the sight and he forces his eyes shut to try to control the overwhelming desire coursing through his body.
“Hikari! What’s wrong?” Agnea brings a hand up to the young man’s cheek when she feels his reaction. She can feel his heart pounding violently.
“You’re… bleeding.” Hikari wipes his thumb along her cut to clean off the blood, trying not to imagine opening that wound up even more.
“I am? I thought that one healed.” Agnea sees the blood on the prince’s thumb, “must’ve opened back up without me knowin’.”
“You should get… get that sorted.” Hikari’s free hand grips the balcony railing as he tries to hold himself back from bloodying her further.
“Yeah… I’ll get it cleaned and covered.” The dancer tries not to sound disappointed that their moment is ending. “I’ll… see you in the morning?” Hikari nods in affirmation at her hopeful request.
Once the balcony door shuts behind Agnea, Hikari immediately brings his thumb smeared with her blood to his nose. He inhales deeply; the scent ignites those wretched instincts he tries so hard to bury. But right now, those instincts are driving him to new heights of primal pleasure. But this time, he could feel that simply smelling wasn’t enough. He closes his lips around his digit and runs his tongue along the viscous fluid. It tastes better than the finest wines and most lavish meals. Even other bloods never tasted this fine. Something about it being Agnea’s very essence makes the taste even more irresistible. He sucks the liquid off his thumb until there’s nothing left.
After the manic high fades, Hikari’s heart grows unbearably heavy as he realizes what he’s just done. He lusted after Agnea’s blood. He was fantasizing about violating her, the girl he cares for so very deeply.
“What horrid creature am I?” Hikari’s vision blurs. He feels sick. He empties his stomach off of the balcony like that could absolve him of his sin.
Hikari walks back inside the inn and washes his mouth out before curling up in his bed, loathing his own perverted mind.
In the morning, the girls all begin to wake. Castti looks around the dawnlit room, performing a silent head count. She counts only three in the room including herself, which couldn’t be right. She counts again and realizes Throné is missing from her bed. The apothecary swears under her breath as she stands up, getting dressed in record time before walking out of the bedroom.
She bangs on the boys’ side door and projects into the room.
“Throné is gone. I need a group to help find her.” At her words, Osvald steps out of the oaken portal to volunteer. Ochette bounds out of the girls’ side, ready for action. The three hustle down the staircase and out of the inn door into the cold morning.
Ochette puts her nose to the floor and tracks Throné’s scent all the way to one of the shadier districts of Winterbloom. The cold air makes it harder for her scent to be tracked, but regardless, they come upon the Thieves’ Quarter tavern where three ruffians are waking up from seemingly being knocked unconscious.
“Throné was definitely here…” Castti hums as she approaches the men, “excuse me, I assume you ran into a woman with raven hair and purple garments last night. May I ask where she went?”
“What the hell could you want with her? Woman’s straight crazy, I tell yeh.” One of the men groans, holding the head that Throné likely smashed a bottle over.
“We’ll be asking the questions.” Osvald inserts his quiet authority into the situation.
“F-fine! She said she was headed to the Snowhares’ Den. Don’t know what she’s after, but she sure seemed angry.” One of the other men answers.
“Damnit, Throné. I told you to wait.” Castti’s fists clench, “thank you for the information.” With that, the apothecary turns and walks out of the abandoned tavern.
The road to and within the Snowhares’ Den is nearly abandoned, littered with bodies with slit throats. The thief had clearly been at work here. Castti, Osvald, and Ochette delve deeper into the hideout.
The dank halls twist and turn, rise and fall. The path is clear of obstacles, but every step the travelers take makes their anxiety grow. After running into one of the main chambers, they discover that their anxiety was well-founded. Throné is lying in a pool of her own blood, bleeding from her neck, but yet clinging to life.
“Throné!” Castti throws herself onto the ground beside the thief, tearing bandages from her bag. She mixes the fastest salve she ever has, grinding up a grape leaf and applying it directly to her wound before wrapping the bandage around her neck to keep the salve applied.
“Nnn… Castti?” Throné gazes up at the apothecary with hazy, unfocused eyes.
“Shh. Don’t speak. You’re going to be okay.” Castti hushes as she inspects Throné for more wounds. Throné doesn’t resist aid this time, resting her head in Castti’s lap. More footsteps approach behind the four of them. Temenos and Partitio both worry at the scene in front of them.
“What in tarnation happened here!?” Partitio asks through heavy breaths from running.
“Is she stable?” Temenos asks Castti directly.
“Yes, thankfully.” Castti runs her fingers through Throné’s hair, calming down from her initial panic, “where are Hikari and Agnea?”
“Hikari told us he was feeling under the weather this morning, so we decided it was for the best to leave him to rest. Agnea is keeping an eye on him, don’t worry.” Temenos answers.
(Before Temenos and Partitio Left)
“My, my…” Temenos muses from the boys’ bedroom, staring out of the frosted windowpanes at the retreating group. “Our resident thief surely gets us into more than her share of trouble, no?”
“You got that right. But I am worried ‘bout her.” Partitio replies, buttoning up his clean day shirt, “whaddya think, Hikari?” The merchant and cleric cast their gazes on the prince who lies curled up on his bed, still.
“Is something the matter, Hikari?” Temenos asks, sitting on the bed parallel to the prince’s.
“It’s nothing… I simply do not feel well this morning.” Hikari lies into the blankets.
“This wouldn’t happen to have anything to do with your little… meeting on the balcony?” Temenos asks knowingly, causing Hikari to immediately sit up straight.
“H-how in Solistia do you know about that!?” The prince tries to appear angry, but it’s clear to Temenos by the boy’s fluster that he hit the mark.
“It’s really quite simple, you know.” Temenos shifts to one of his detective moods, “I am roused in the night by the sound of someone leaving their bed, and who else is it but our young warrior? I think to myself ‘what on earth could Hikari possibly be up to at such an hour?’ and decide to observe from a distance. You headed out for the balcony to get some air, and I thought that was the end of the story, but oh not so! Our little dancer joins the plotline, taking her spot beside you like she never wanted to be anywhere else. Of course, it would have been rude of me to continue spying on such an intimate moment, so I contented myself to just observing that much. Now tell me, dear Hikari. What could have happened out there to put you in such a state as you are in now?”
“I…” Hikari can’t tell the truth. Not when it could destroy all of the bonds he’s made until now. “I caught cold. That is all.” Neither Temenos, nor Partitio are particularly convinced by the prince’s words, but they’re also aware that pressing further won’t do any good.
“Hm. Very well, then.” Temenos nods, sliding on his final accoutrements, “I won’t pester you any longer. Come, Partitio. We should confirm our rescue-party’s success.
“Sure thing, pardner.” Partitio settles his hat onto his head, “rest up, now, Hikari.” With that, the two exit the bedroom. They knock on the girls’ door and Agnea opens it to answer.
“Agnea, Hikari is feeling a bit unwell this morning. We were hoping you could keep an eye on him lest his condition worsen. We are going to join the search for Throné.” Temenos informs the girl.
“That’s no good…” Agnea puts a hand to her chest, “of course, I’ll make sure he’s just fine.” Temenos and Partitio depart from the inn. Agnea puts a shaky hand on the boys’ bedroom door. She takes a breath before twisting the handle and pushing the door open.
She sees Hikari in a state she’s never seen him in before. The prince is usually so put-together, so composed. Right now, he’s in a sorry state. His long black hair is fully let down, tangled in many places. He’s curled into a tight ball, hugging his knees to his chest. She’s never seen him so… defeated.
“Hey…” Agnea speaks as softly as possible, trying to gauge his condition, “not feelin’ good?”
“… No…” The haunted warrior murmurs, not even daring to look at her.
“What’s wrong?” She keeps her gentle tone, sitting down on the bed beside where he lies, “you can talk t’me.”
“I just stood out in the cold too long… That’s all.” Hikari tries to sound honest. Agnea also doesn’t believe him, but she decides that trying to make him feel better is the most important thing she can do at this point. She threads her fingers through his hair, untangling the knots. She sits with him for quite a while, gently playing with his hair.
“Can you look at me? Please?” Agnea pleads softly. Hikari knows it’s a bad idea. If he sees her, who knows what sick fantasy will materialize in his mind. But he can’t deny her what she wants. He slowly turns his head to look at her.
Agnea is smiling at him. Usually Hikari loves seeing her smile, but right now, it only makes his guilt worse. He doesn’t deserve her smile. If she knew all the disgusting things he thinks about her, she would hate him. She would have every right to hate him.
Before Hikari knows what’s happening, Agnea’s hands are on his cheeks, and she’s pulling his face up towards hers. He panics for a moment, which Agnea notices.
“Shh… it’s okay. We’ll go slow.” Agnea soothes the warrior, gently rubbing his cheek. Hikari relaxes into the proximity. It’s just her. He’s looking into her shining green eyes, full of adoration for him. He can’t understand how she can look at him like he’s anything but a monster. But when it’s Agnea looking at him like this, he almost believes it’s possible that he’s more than the sum of his past mistakes.
Hikari leans his head against her chest. His arms wrap around her back, and he lets her warmth and scent surround him. He’s relaxed in her arms, not fearing his own evils. Agnea’s fingers drag through his hair in slow, even strokes. She moves her lips down to press slow kisses to his temple. They stay like this for quite some time before Hikari pulls his face from her chest to look into her eyes again.
“Ready now?” Agnea rubs the pad of her thumb across Hikari’s cheek.
“Yes… I think so.” Hikari nods his affirmation, then puts his own hand on her cheek in return. They slowly lean close until their lips connect in a soft press.
Neither of the youths are particularly experienced in intimacy. The farthest Agnea ever got was some stolen pecks on the lips with some of her childhood crushes in her village, and Hikari has experienced nothing at all.
“I understand why this is so popular, now…” Hikari thinks to himself as Agnea’s arms wrap around his neck. Her lips are so soft and warm, and she somehow seems to know exactly what feels amazing for him.
Hikari rests his hands on the small of her back as he lets himself get adventurous. He deepens the kiss just a bit more. It’s a strange, but pleasant feeling. Agnea feels the same as she lets out a pleased hum into his mouth. Hikari takes his time to feel all the ridges of her lips against his as he feels a deeper nick then-
Bliss wracks his body.
Even though the cut on her lip is mostly healed, it’s almost as if Hikari can sense where it once was. The intimate atmosphere is immediately shattered as the prince’s carnal desire forces him to sink his teeth into her lower lip. It’s not a gentle, playful bite, but a deliberate bid to bring pain.
Agnea immediately pulls away with a beautiful, pained cry. Tears sting her eyes as blood bubbles at her wound and trickles down her chin. She scrambles to the other side of the bed, hurt and fear visible on her face.
Hikari forces himself to not advance on her. He looks into her eyes, it hurts to see her in pain, but that pervert inside him floods with rapture at the sight.
“Go! Get out, run!” Hikari tries to keep his right mind as long as he can, “I don’t want to hurt you again.” Agnea is torn but stands up off the bed and runs out the door downstairs. Once she’s gone, Hikari stumbles to his pack with the last of his sanity. He binds his hands and legs together with the rope he has, then drops to the floor to tie himself to the bedframe. The beast lashes out, thrashing against the restraints once Hikari succumbs. Hikari’s eyes lock onto the door where Agnea retreated. He tries to chase after her but finds he’s restrained. He wrenches against the bindings, burning his wrists with the friction and bruising his body with reckless thrashing. He snarls and pulls harder, even trying to bite through the ropes, but to no avail.
Eventually, he exhausts himself and loses consciousness.
Hikari wakes up some time later to a gentle hand applying a goopy substance to his face. The prince opens his eyes and sees Castti kneeling over him.
“You did quite a number on yourself, Hikari.” Castti remarks, not scolding, but certainly not pleased. Hikari takes a moment to feel his own condition. He feels every bruise from bashing against the legs of the bed and the burns from the ropes around his wrists.
“I tried to hurt Agnea… I couldn’t let myself roam free.” Hikari doesn’t even try to get up or release himself.
“One mistake doesn’t mean you should tie yourself down like a wild beast.” Castti inspects the salves she applied.
“It may have only happened once… But I always want to. Some dark, disgusting part of me always desires to bring pain.” Hikari comes clean, gazing up into the motherly grey eyes. His admission gives the apothecary pause, but she refuses to let Hikari think of himself as nothing but a monster.
“Be that as it may, you are still an integral part of our team, and we will not give up on you.” Castti holds his gaze, wanting to give him some confidence that he’ll make a recovery, “we’ll figure something out.”
“I’ve tried many things throughout my life… I’m unsure if any such solution exists.” Hikari closes his eyes, letting the soothing feeling of the salve sink in.
“We can’t lose hope. Even if it’s all but impossible, I swear we will all do our best to find a cure.” Castti puts her leftover supplies back in her bag, “but you won’t do it on your own anymore.”
“Thank you… But I think it would be best if I am alone for a while.” Hikari lets his gaze drop to the ground.
“Very well. But only for a little while.” Castti purses her lips and walks to the door, “I promise, you aren’t too far gone.” Castti walks outside and downstairs where the rest of the travelers are waiting.
“Is Hikarin okay?” Ochette pads towards the apothecary, ears folded down against her hair.
“He’s in his right mind, now. But he clearly feels guilty for what happened.”
“As he should.” Throné scoffs from her chair by the window. She’s gazing out of the inn without turning her injured neck too much, “it’s his own fault he’s in this mess.”
“Throné” Castti speaks with a healthy dose of warning, “have compassion, we have no idea what he’s going through.” Throné rolls her eyes at the reprimand, then falls silent. Castti walks to where Agnea sits, slowly picking at her breakfast.
“How are you feeling?” Castti pulls a chair over to sit beside the dancer, inspecting her still swollen lip which seems to be healing well from her balm.
“Much better, thank you.” Agnea nods, smiling, however Castti knows she’s still shaken by what occurred. “Could I… see him?”
“I don’t think that’s wise. Especially if he’s volatile in your presence.” Castti answers patiently, “don’t worry. We’ll find a solution, then you can see him as much as you want.” Castti’s warm smile puts Agnea’s mind at ease if only a bit. “Where are Partitio and Osvald?”
“They left to search the nearby library for anything relating to Hikari’s condition.” Temenos answers, “I doubt they’ll turn up with anything, but it’s worth the attempt.”
“Right…” Castti nods, “well, I suppose it’s better to hear more from the horse’s mouth.” Castti rises to go back up the stairs to check on the warrior again when she sees Throné get up and leave the tavern. The apothecary knows that means nothing good, so she turns to the door as well.
“Temenos, check on Hikari. I need to handle this.” Castti turns to the cleric.
“It is done.” Temenos nods and starts up the stairs.
Castti pushes open the inn door and runs to Throné’s retreating figure, heading to the entrance of town. Castti catches up to the thief and grabs her wrist to stop her movement.
“Gods above, what do you want?” Throné jerks her hand roughly out of Castti’s.
“I want to know where in Solistia you think you’re going?!” Castti demands, trying to keep her frustration from rising.
“I’m leaving! I don’t have time to stick around while you keep babying everyone in the group and slowing me down!” Throné shouts back at her.
“Your problems aren’t the only worth considering!” Castti’s anger boils over, “we are a team, and that means nobody gets left behind or neglected. Tell me exactly what happened when you tried to take on your father alone.” Castti’s words cut, as she intends them to.
“Shut the hell up.” Throné snaps.
“We care about you, Throné. I do especially.” Castti takes a step towards the thief, who retreats slightly. Undeterred, Castti brings a gentle hand to Throné ‘s shoulder, “I know you want to handle this on your own, but none of us want to see you hurt. Please come back.” Something about the soft tone of Castti’s voice makes the thief unable to reject her.
“Tch, fine.” Throné huffs with her breath visible in the frigid air, letting Castti clasp hands with her. The two walk back and Throné finds herself walking nearer to Castti’s side. The air is cold, but the thief’s face right now is anything but.
The inn door swings open once again as the women return. Once inside, Castti sits her down, tending to her bandages while humming in a way that soothes Throné immensely.
(Upstairs)
Within the second story of the inn, Hikari glances up at the door opening. It is Temenos who enters this time.
“Hello there, dear prince.” Temenos offers a smile to the tied down warrior, “would you mind terribly if I asked you about some of your symptoms?” Temenos takes Hikari’s head shake as an invitation to pull a chair in front of the ground where he lies.
“What do you want to know?” Hikari exhales, pushing himself into a sitting position.
“Yes… that is the question, isn’t it?” Temenos muses, “Firstly, what triggers your bloodlust?”
“…Many things… The sight and smell of blood, heated battles, and sometimes even my own thoughts.” Hikari answers, having nothing left to hide and wanting a solution.
“How interesting… Second, what exactly do your desires entail?”
“Anything and everything violent… I want to kill, to feel bones break, to feel flesh tear. I want to feel blood stain my skin.” Hikari’s brain begins to fog at the delicious images he conjures.
“Hikari.” Temenos says sharply, snapping to draw the boy’s attention, “focus, don’t think about it. Look at me.”
“Right… I apologize.” Hikari blinks away the images, focusing on the cleric in front of him.
“Don’t… Whatever manner of instinct this is, it’s clearly not of your doing.” Temenos takes on a surprisingly caring tone. “One final question. Is there anything that seems to suppress these desires when they appear?”
“Exhaustion and tiredness keep my mind away from violence…” Hikari answers, then adds with a touch of embarrassment, “and the cold…”
“Very well, then.” Temenos stands up from his chair, “I’ll speak to Castti of creating some sort of concoction to take your mind off of your urges when they appear. From there, we’ll see what we can do to fully eliminate the problem.” Before the cleric makes it to the door, Hikari speaks up.
“Temenos… Thank you.” Hikari gazes up at him, not smiling, but grateful, nonetheless.
“Don’t thank me yet. Our troubles are far from over.” Temenos replies, but speaks a final time before leaving, “but I swear we will do whatever it takes to fix this.”
Back downstairs, Temenos sees the other travelers all in a very blue state. Castti is lost in her thoughts, sitting on one of the booths. Throné is sitting beside the apothecary, leaning on her shoulder. Ochette is curled up under the table Agnea is sitting at, tail tucked against her chest and ears flat against her head. Agnea’s arms are folded across the surface of the table, she rests her head on her arms, picking at the loose splinters on the tabletop. Castti looks up at Temenos once she sees him arrive.
“Did you learn anything we can use? Anything to suppress his instincts?” Castti’s eyes lock with the cleric’s.
“I did, actually. He told me that when he is tired and when he is cold, that his urges are quiet.” Temenos answers.
“Tired and cold… tired and cold…” Castti mutters to herself, wracking her brain for anything she could make with those effects, “Sleepweed can be bought almost anywhere, but I have nothing that makes one feel cold…”
“We can help with that.” Partitio throws open the inn door with Osvald, who holds a tome. Osvald walks to the booth where Castti sits.
“This book details a certain ingredient, frostmint. When prepared properly, it causes the consumer’s body temperature to drop regardless of the ambient temperature.” Osvald explains, tapping the page with the details.
“This… this is excellent!” Castti lights up as possibilities flood her mind, “but how in the world did you know what we needed?”
“We didn’t.” Partitio admits, “but this book had a lot of rare plants and ingredients apothecaries use, so we figured you could do something with it.” Castti doesn’t really care at this point, she skims the page for the location of the plant. She finds that it grows primarily in the snowy forests in wintertime.
“How fortunate…” Castti thinks to herself until she reads that it is primarily eaten by dire elk. “How… unfortunate.” Castti sits Throné against the booth with only a slight protest from her. The apothecary stands up and addresses the room.
“If we intend to procure this ingredient, we must be prepared for a bitterly difficult battle. I can’t guarantee that it will come to violence, but we must be prepared in the event that it does. Dire elk are at their most dangerous this season, since they’re desperate to find food in a scarce ecosystem.
“I’ll go with ya’.” Agnea stands up to volunteer immediately. Castti nearly asks why she’s so eager, but then realizes she knows exactly why.
“Ooh! Take me- oof!” Ochette leaps up from her spot under the table, hitting her head on the underside before regaining her footing, “I want to hunt!”
“I’ll go.” Osvald nods, walking to the forming group.
“Take me with you.” Throné stands up from the booth, reaching for her knife.
“Absolutely not.” Castti shakes her head vehemently at the idea, “you’re barely well enough to walk, let alone fight.”
“Don’t patronize me, I’m fine-” Throné pushes off of the table to advance, but her walk is cut short when her legs give out from her blood loss. Castti is quick to catch the thief before she falls. Castti brings Throné to her feet, holding onto her.
“It’s okay, Throné. We can handle this fight. I want you to rest.” The apothecary embraces the thief for a brief moment, placing a soft kiss to her temple before sitting her back in the booth, “we’ll be back before you know it.” She turns to the merchant and cleric next. “Keep an eye on the two of them.”
“Can do!” Partitio tips his hat with a nod.
“But of course.” Temenos gives a bow.
Castti, Agnea, Ochette, and Osvald set out from Winterbloom into the forest. Ochette leads the charge, ears pricked up and nose hard at work to detect anything that smells of mint. Castti stays just a step behind to keep her with the group. Agnea’s arms are crossed over her body to warm herself. She’s lost in thought. Osvald walks next to the dancer, holding a mote of fire in his hand to keep the two of them warm for the walk. The snowfall picks up from gentle precipitation to something a touch more worrying.
Hours of walking later, the four travelers are trudging through shin deep snow and losing hope. The frostmint plants themselves are so small that even if they’re in these woods, they’d be completely invisible at this point. Castti has to make a difficult decision now. Turn back and try again another day, putting Hikari’s health at risk? Or the far deadlier alternative. Castti makes up her mind and puts a hand on the beastling’s shoulder.
“I want you to track a dire elk, Ochette.” Castti speaks seriously, causing the rest of the group to pause in surprise.
“Are you sure?” Ochette stops walking and turns back to Castti, tail tucking between her legs a bit.
“Yes… If we track the creature itself, it’s bound to lead us to the plant it eats.” Castti nods, trying to look more confident than she feels.
“Okay… mama.” Ochette’s nervousness doesn’t diminish, but she trusts Castti enough to go through with it. Agnea’s adrenaline spikes at the idea, but images of how Hikari must be suffering right now force her onward. Even if Osvald is scared, nobody can tell. The four of them press on. Ochette’s nose is to the snow, sniffing and following anything that even resembles tracks in the snow.
Another hour of searching and the snow us up to their knees as the weather can easily be called a blizzard now. Wind whips against the party, forcing a step back for every two steps forward. Nobody relents, however. Ochette sinks her claws into whatever she can touch under the snow. Castti digs her fingers into the trunks of trees and forces herself forward. Osvald plunges his staff into the ground as he walks in front of Agnea to keep the worst of the wind off of her. The weather continues to worsen, they’re up to their hips in snow now when Ochette freezes, ears fully forward and eyes locked onto something. The others follow her gaze and find what she sees. A dire elk. It’s a majestic creature, easily eight feet tall with a frame broader than the trees it lives among. The specimen they’re looking at is a male, given away by the massive antlers, spanning farther than a grown man’s wingspan individually. The creature has its head to the floor at first before it shifts its attention to the four gazing humans.
(At the Inn)
Throné lies in her bed, staring up at the ceiling, trying not to disrupt the bandages that rest just above her collar. She’s itchy, lethargic, and feels utterly useless. With a grunt, she stands up and walks to the boys’ side where she knows the prince still has himself restrained. She knocks but doesn’t wait for a response before opening the door.
“Hey.” Throné calls quietly into the room to get Hikari’s attention, prompting him to look up at her from where he remains tied on the floor next to the bed. His hair is fully down, blanketing his shoulders with his inky locks.
“Hello…” Hikari gazes up at her, waiting. Throné already doesn’t know what to do at this point. She isn’t a gifted conversationalist, and she doesn’t know Hikari terribly well. But she’s bored and feeling awkward is better than feeling nothing at all.
“So… what’s your deal?” Throné asks with all the tact of a loose floorboard as she takes a seat on the bed he tied himself to.
“I…” Hikari says nothing for a moment, finding the direct question catches him off-guard, “I often have urges to kill or bring harm to people.”
“… That’s tough.”
“… Indeed.”
The silence returns. Somehow, they’ve already exhausted that topic. Throne absently taps on the footboard and Hikari shifts in his bindings before Throné makes another attempt.
“You and Agnea huh?” The thief finds the curtains particularly interesting after the words leave her, “you like her?”
“I do… she is a kind soul.” Hikari flusters a bit at the direct question, but answers honestly.
“Yeah, yeah, she’s nice.” Throné agrees halfheartedly, “you think she’s cute?” Hikari chokes on his own spit at the even more brash question.
“I- cough er. Do not think that is either here or there.” Hikari’s blush only spreads further down his face towards his neck.
“Ooh… So, there is something there~” Throné leans forward, not letting up on the golden opportunity she’s stumbled across, “when’d you catch feelings?”
“Well… I never intended to… but I find myself unable to suppress my affection for her.” The prince rolls onto his back to look out the window at the sky, “I suppose if I had to pinpoint a specific moment… there was a night in camp when she taught me to dance.”
“Oh, I remember that. You were doing box-steps all day the next day.” Throné doesn’t relent with her teasing, “you wanted to pick up some of her ‘hot moves’, didn’t you~”
“I-” Hikari’s face burns even more at the deeply personal reference, “you are being unusually cruel today.”
“I just think it’s entertaining when the composed, unflappable warrior starts blushing like a lordling with a crush~” The thief lies face down on the bed, resting her chin on her hand and kicking her legs in the air behind her with an insufferable smirk on her face as she gazes down at the young prince.
“Very well… if that’s what this is, then you are just as guilty as I.” Hikari replies, having the bow of his rebuttal fully drawn, “you let nobody heal or tend to you at all, but whenever Castti requests to check you for injuries, you always comply.”
“You-” Throné’s composure shatters for a moment, “listen here you little shit, that doesn’t mean anything! She’s just so pushy, she doesn’t let me say no.”
“Oh, of course, of course.” Hikari smiles up at her, already knowing the truth.
“Screw you.” Throné stands up off the bed, “I’m going to… get you some food or something.”
“Many thanks.” Hikari relaxes on the floor, feeling lighter.
(In the Woods)
Castti inches forward, slowly trudging through the snow towards where the dire elk stands. She tries not to startle the beast as she moves, but it is clearly wary. It lets Castti get close enough to touch, but once she reaches into the snow where it was grazing, it rears up and lets out a cry once it sees the apothecary as a threat to its food.
Castti immediately backs up and draws her hatchet. She sees the elk begin to stomp the ground; it shakes the snow all around them. It’s about to charge and the snow is stopping them from being able to escape.
“Agnea, we need some space to fight!” Castti shouts to the dancer.
“On it!” Agnea raises her arms above her head and finds a rhythm in her head to dance to as much as possible. She sways her hips and pulls her arms in. After just a moment the winds stop whipping against them before erupting out of Agnea when she straightens her arms again, clearing the snow in a large enough radius to have a fighting chance.
The travelers roll out of the way of the charge with their newfound freedom, forming up into their fighting formation once they’re on their feet again.
“Forgive us… we have a friend who needs this.” Castti murmurs to the beast as she adjusts her hatchet in her hand. Ochette growls as she draws her bow, nocking an arrow and pulling the string back. Osvald incants under his breath, reciting the formulas for his magic. Agnea changes her movements to the lion dance to raise the power behind Ochette’s strikes.
The dire elk huffs and stomps again, charging in to swipe at Osvald with its massive antlers. Ochette releases her shot, knocking the beast off-balance and the scholar capitalizes with a burst of flame to its head. Osvald notices the effectiveness of the bow and fire as well as hypothesizing that this creature is weak to axes.
“Keep up with your weapons and we’ll break it yet.” Osvald prompts the party who all nod. Castti hacks at the elk’s legs with her hatchet when an opening presents itself, making the creature less and less able to stand on its own hooves. Ochette continues landing shot after shot into the massive beast and Osvald doesn’t slow down with his magic either.
Agnea’s body moves on its own, guiding her through the motions she’s practiced since her girlhood. Her limbs are numb from cold, and the beast charges towards her many times, but she never stops. Her mind races through her dreams, both the grand and the simple. But she can’t think about her fantasies without thinking about Hikari, as he has been the one to encourage her dreams through everything. She remembers the very first time…
(Months Ago)
Agnea dances by the fire in camp. Her dress follows a second and a half behind every twirl and sway she makes. Her braided hair switches from shoulder to shoulder with every spin. She spots the corner of Hikari’s tent while she rotates over and over, locking her eyes back onto the folded cloth as she whips around and around. She changes her routine to something quicker with small footwork as the prince emerges from his tent. He doesn’t speak up or move closer, just watches her. Agnea finishes up the routine with her usual curtsy.
“Your dancing is excellent.” Hikari compliments her, stepping forward into the firelight.
“Aww, thanks.” Agnea plays with the frills on her dress, “glad you like it.” The two stay in silence for a moment. They don’t know each other terribly well at this point, but they both want to. Hikari steels his nerves before speaking.
“There aren’t many dancers in Ku and even fewer teachers...” The warrior meets her eyes with his quiet resolve, “would you teach me?”
“Ah- well…” Agnea flusters a bit, “I don’t rightly see why not. Whaddya wanna learn?”
“Just basic steps for a partner dance.” Hikari replies, “I must admit I find it a bit embarrassing that I am likely one of the only members of nobility who doesn’t know how to dance… as vain as it is to think that way.”
“It ain’t vain to wanna learn something new.” Agnea gives the boy a reassuring smile, “’sides, you’re such a quick learner, I’m sure you’ll have it down pat before we break for the night.”
“I hope your confidence is founded…” Hikari mumbles, letting Agnea put his hands where she needs them. His left hand settles against her waist, and his right holds her left while Agnea’s right hand rests on his shoulder.
“You don’t gotta be perfect, just relax and follow my lead.” The dancer looks up into his eyes, ready to call out the steps without needing to look at their feet, “it’s jes’ a box-step.”
“Right…” Hikari nods, pretending to know what she’s talking about.
“Ah, don’t know that either.” Agnea goes through the steps in her mind for a moment, “okay, step forward with your left, then swing your right up and to the right, then close your left to meet it, step back with your right, sweep back and to the left with your left, then close your right to your left.” Hikari closes his eyes, envisioning what she’s describing.
“Forward with my left…” Hikari walks through the steps very slowly. Agnea corrects any misstep as it happens. No matter how many times the prince slips up or steps forward with his right and not his left or swings left when he should’ve swung right, he doesn’t stop. The drills continue for several minutes before Hikari lands his first flawless box-step.
“Good!” Agnea chirps, patting his shoulder, “now, just match the steps with my count.” Agnea begins counting in 3/4 time as they start the steps. Despite his footwork needing to be restructured from what he’s used to for battle training, Hikari’s sense of rhythm is impeccable. Now that he knows the steps, he lands them all on their beats.
“You’re a natural!” Agnea giggles once they find their rhythm. She hasn’t danced with a partner since she left Cropdale. Most of her dances have been done in taverns or in the heat of battle. Both venues lend themselves to a solo actress, but she finds herself enjoying the partner dance more than she anticipated, even though this was supposed to be a lesson for the new dancer. Despite her skill level having evolved from these basic steps, she finds it rewarding to revisit the roots of her skills to see just how far she’s come. She sees her younger self in Hikari in this moment.
Eventually their dance comes to an end, and their steps slow to a gentle sway beside the fire. Agnea leans forward, letting her head rest against the warrior’s chest and circling her arms around his middle. Hikari doesn’t let go either, looking up into the night sky where they stand.
“You think I’ll be able to do it?” Agnea asks softly into the warrior’s robes.
“Do… what?” Hikari asks in reply.
“Y’know… be a star? Like Dolcinaea?” The dancer feels uncharacteristically small at the question. She doesn’t usually second-guess herself this way, but she finds herself strangely hanging on Hikari’s every word.
“Agnea…” Hikari shifts his gaze to look down into her eyes, “you are already a star to me. You shine brighter in my life than anyone else I’ve ever met.”
(Present)
Tears sting Agnea’s eyes as she remembers the words Hikari spoke to her all that time ago. She’s willing to set the world’s judgement aside as long as she knows he has her back. But she knows that if she fails here, those dreams are as good as dead. The dancer snaps out of her memories; it’s just her party and the enemy in this moment. Agnea’s dances grow more spirited, Castti’s strikes land with all the needed precision, Osvald’s fires burn hotter and Ochette’s shots bury themselves to the fletching in the dire elk.
A burst of flame from Osvald sets the beast off-balance and Castti strikes an already uneven leg to send the beast crashing down onto its side. Ochette stows away her bow and runs straight at the crippled creature. Her claws dig into the frozen dirt as she draws her axe from her back. The beastling lunges and swings down, the lever of the axe speeds the sharp head directly down into the skull with a deep crunch as blood splatters up from the wound all over the girl.
The travelers all fall to their knees after the fierce battle. They catch their breaths as the adrenaline slowly leaves their system. Castti stands up first, walking over to the edge of the blown-out arena where she spots a cluster of short, bushy mint plants. She takes cuttings of the leaves for her component pouch and clusters of roots to grow more when they inevitably need it.
“Is everybody okay?” The apothecary turns and addresses the three who all give various discontented sounds of exhaustion, “thought as much.”
(At the Inn)
Hikari picks at the food Throné acquired for him, mind wandering back to his condition as it usually does when left alone with his thoughts. Memories of everything he’s done because of his urges haunt him still. His assault on Agnea is at the forefront of his mind, torturing him whenever he tries to find peace.
“She bled so beautifully…” Hikari thinks to himself.
“Stop.” He speaks aloud, trying to force his own desires away.
“Why do I resist? This is who I am, who I want to be.”
“I said STOP!”
“Oh, to see her fully split open by my hand-” Hikari’s thoughts are cut off by Throné slamming the door to his room open.
“Hikari, Blacksnakes caught our scent, they’re trying to break in.” The thief draws her dagger and begins cutting Hikari’s restraints off.
“Stop, Stop! What are you doing?” Hikari pulls his bound arms away from her as much as possible.
“I’m letting you out so you can help us, damn it!” Throné hisses into the prince’s face.
“You cannot! I am far too dangerous to be released right now.” The warrior pleads. Throné takes his wrists in her hand and forces him to look straight into her glaring black eyes.
“I don’t care what you’re going through right now. You’re a part of our team, urges or not.” Throné tries to get through to him but finds no fire in his eyes. She decides to do something potentially hurtful, “is this how the prince of Ku wants his people to remember him?”
“What?” Hikari’s gaze snaps to hers and his jaw tenses.
“Is this the heir to the kingdom of Ku? Do you honestly expect to be able to lead your people if they can’t count on you to defend what matters when it matters?” Throné sees Hikari beginning to react and gives one final push, “show me that noble pride I know you have! Show the world why it should be you on the throne!” Throné’s words hang for a moment before the prince responds.
“… How right you are.” Hikari looks straight into her eyes, letting his ego burn white hot. He rakes his bindings along her dagger, letting her next cut through the ropes at his feet before taking her hand to stand up, “how many are we dealing with?” Hikari asks, tying his hair back with his ribbon and grabbing his sword from where it leans against the wall.
“Does it matter? They all have to go anyway.” Throné throws the door open and leaps down the stairs.
“I suppose not.” Hikari follows her lead. On the first floor, Partitio and Temenos have barricaded the door and windows with the loose tables and chairs. The innkeeper is trembling from where he’s crouched behind the counter.
“There ye are!” Partitio claps Hikari on the back before taking his well-worn spear in hand, “was wonderin’ when ye’d show up.” Temenos turns from the barricade to face the newcomers.
“This battle will be bitterly difficult. Are you both well enough to fight?” Temenos asks the injured thief and haunted warrior.
“Ready when you are.” Throné throws off the bandages around her neck to fight unencumbered.
“I will accept only victory.” Hikari draws his sword.
“Good. Then let us teach these miscreants a lesson.” Temenos smiles as the four of them throw the barricade away and launch into battle. The travelers are outnumbered at least four-to-one, but none of them look concerned.
“Let’s have ourselves a showdown.” Partitio grins before sending the shaft of his spear into the jaw of a Blacksnake, setting off the battle. Temenos sets up a sacred shield on the injured Throné to keep her fighting as long as possible before bashing another assassin in the temple with his staff.
Throné sees a blade flashing in her face, she lets it hit the shield the cleric set up before stabbing the arm of her attacker to steal their knife. She uses said knife to tear open their throat. Afterwards, the thief lunges to cover Hikari’s back from an attack on his blind spot, shouting through the chaos.
“You holding up, your highness?” Throné kicks the legs out from under the assailant, letting Hikari plant the tip of his sword through their chest.
“Never better.” Hikari splits off from the thief to parry the attack of a cloaked figure, then rips their chest with a single downward cut. He feels the blood gush from the wound. It’s a delicious feeling, sinking his blade into an enemy, feeling the warmth of their blood on his skin, knowing it’s the last part of them that will ever be warm again.
Hikari feels the shadows grip him, but he doesn’t resist. He lets their influence guide his sword. He plunges his blade into the stomach of a Blacksnake, letting go of the hilt to catch the thrusting arm of another, forcing their elbow up until he hears a crack that sends dopamine splitting off down every channel of his body.
The warrior returns his attention to the enemy with the sword in their gut. He pulls it out, then slashes horizontally as the body falls, sending the masked heads of both the Snakes in front of and behind him rolling on the cold cobblestones. Hikari is laughing. He can’t hear it, but he’s giggling uncontrollably as he hacks through enemy after enemy. He can’t see their faces, but he can feel their fear. The more desperate they are, the stronger his cuts become. If one of them tries to play hero by trying to attack Hikari, it’s all the more fun to see their split-second panic as their attack is displaced before the life is stricken from their eyes.
It isn’t long at all before the Blacksnakes are either dead on the ground or running out of Winterbloom as fast as their legs can carry them. Hikari turns back to the three others, his grin remains and his diaphragm is spasming with unchecked euphoria. He slowly starts towards them, mind set on seeing that same fear from the other travelers before he snuffs their lives out. But his lightning-fast lethal movements have left him now.
“Why am I moving so… slowly?…” Hikari trudges along the path, blood dripping from his clothes and skin with every step. He barely manages to lift his sword up before he drops to his knees. Despite his mind refusing to acknowledge it, his body can go no further. Throné steps forward towards where the prince kneels.
“It’s okay. You did it. It’s over.” She kneels in front of Hikari, putting a hand to his bloody shoulder, “rest now, your highness… and be proud.”
Hikari holds onto his last remnants of consciousness. His right mind returns to him just as exhaustion sets in. He whispers just one thing before succumbing.
“Thank you…”
The comfortable scents of chamomile, mint, and tea meander through the air. There’s a bed beneath where Hikari lies. He hears movement in the room. Water pours. Glass clinks. Floorboards yawn and settle. Next, he feels a warm pressure around his left hand. The warmth travels across his knuckles then traces up and down his fingers. The hairs on his exposed arms prick up with goosebumps as the gentle sensation wanders up his arm towards his bare torso.
A voice, which Hikari loves very much, murmurs, “Castti, he’s awake.” The prince feels a soothing presence draw near, stopping in front of his bed.
“Rise and shine.” A motherly voice whispers before a firm, yet loving, hand taps him on the side of his leg.
Hikari opens his eyes to see Castti carrying his Hinoeuman tea set, full of warm tea, to the side of his bed and sets it on the dawnlit nightstand to his right. His eyes shift to his left and he sees those adoring emeralds gazing right back at him.
“Drink up.” Castti hands the prince a teacup. Hikari holds the bottom of the cup in the palm of his hand as he breathes in through his nose.
“It smells wonderful.” Hikari smiles at the apothecary before bringing the cup to his lips. A homey flavor permeates his mouth. Mint and chamomile travel across his tongue and down his throat as the scent escapes back up his nose. The flavor is immaculate. What happens a few moments after he swallows the last drop of it, however… is not.
“Wh-why in the name of the gods am I so cold!?” Hikari objects, eliciting tinkling laughter from Agnea and Castti.
“You said your symptoms are ameliorated when you’re cold and tired. So, I mixed up a blend of sleepweed and frostmint to do just that whenever you need it.” Castti explains. It’s a thoughtful gesture, and a helpful one at that, so Hikari is forced to still his tongue of any more complaints.
“Feelin’ any better?” Agnea lolls her head onto Hikari’s shoulder, gazing up at him. The warrior hesitates for a moment, really searching his mind for any sign of the dark voice.
His mind is blank.
“Why… yes, I feel…” Hikari pauses again, almost not believing that, even for a moment, he could be free of his desires which have always clawed at his mind, “I don’t know if I have the words to express it.”
“You don’t need to tell me exactly what you feel. As long as you aren’t feeling any compulsion to cut us down.” Castti jokes lightly.
“I assure you, bloodshed is the farthest thing from my mind at the moment.” Hikari laughs in response before turning to Agnea, indicating exactly what is on his mind. She bats her eyelashes coyly, but of course she wants some alone time too.
“What am I to do with you two…” Castti huffs in feigned annoyance as she walks to the door, “just don’t stay up here too long, lovebirds. Osvald is downstairs making breakfast and I’m sure neither of you will want to miss it.”
“Of course.” Hikari nods.
“Sure thing!” Agnea concurs. Castti gives the two of them a smile before exiting the bedroom, shutting the door behind her.
Despite having wanted the very privacy they’ve just been given, Hikari and Agnea sit in silence for more than a little while. Agnea rubs her fingertips gently up and down Hikari’s arm, feeling the little goosebumps that her gentle touch provokes. Hikari shifts to face towards her more, resting his forehead against hers. He feels her breath against his face and her legs gently rubbing against his beneath the covers.
Even though the tea has dropped his body temperature significantly, Hikari’s heart feels warm. He brings a hand to her waist, gently rubbing his thumb in small circles over the base of her ribcage. Agnea leans into his touch, moving to sit in his lap so they can more easily dispense their affection. The current scene reminds Hikari of what happened just a few days ago, the perfect, intimate setting that was broken in an instant by his damnable urges. The prince moves his gaze down from her eyes to her lip, it’s mostly healed, but Hikari can still see where his teeth had damaged her.
“I’m sorry for what happened when we were last… here.” Hikari brings a hand up to her cheek, his thumb hovers just above where her injury was, but he doesn’t touch.
“You’re still broken up over that?” Agnea huffs, pressing his hovering finger to her healed wound, “you don’t gotta keep beatin’ yourself up about it, you weren’t in your right mind.”
“I know… but I hurt you and… I don’t know if I can forgive myself for that.” Hikari looks down at the blankets. Agnea doesn’t want him to stay strung up over this one incident, so she tries to lighten the mood.
“If you’re so down over bitin’ me… then I should bite you back right? Fair’s fair ‘n all.” Agnea pokes a teasing finger into Hikari’s chest as she proposes the idea. The prince’s visage is immediately ablaze at her idea, and he stutters for quite some time.
“I- well that’s, er… I don’t…” He stumbles over his words until eventually blurting out, “do it.” Agnea wasn’t expecting him to agree to her ridiculous idea, but she got herself into this mess, so she can’t exactly go back on it now.
The dancer takes a very deep breath and slowly leans forward to inspect the prince’s face and neck. She tries not to get lost in his sharp, handsome features as she probes him. Hikari is nearly losing his mind at this point; he feels her warm breath ghosting over his cold skin as she looks him all over. Agnea’s lips are so close that he swears she’s placing small pecks on his skin to help her decide where she wants to sink her teeth in.
Eventually, Agnea finds a spot that satisfies her requirements. She settles on right where Hikari’s neck meets his shoulder. There’s enough skin there to bite, but it’s not so sensitive an area that it would hurt too much. After one final inhale and exhale, Agnea puts a hand on Hikari’s opposite shoulder to stabilize herself as she bites down on the warrior’s neck.
“A-ah…” Hikari’s hands fly to Agnea’s hips as he feels her teeth against his shoulder. He expected this to be a painful retribution for the suffering he inflicted on her, but the pain he’s experiencing is really very minimal. He actually finds the whole experience rather thrilling. He feels her chest pressing against his through their clothing, her warm mouth on his neck, and just enough of a sting from her teeth to ride the border between discomfort and felicity.
After a moment of letting her teeth stay buried in Hikari’s neck, Agnea pulls away a bit, soothing the area with gentle circles from her tongue. Hikari wraps his arms around her back as she does, feeling absolved, dirty, and hopelessly smitten all at once.
“Feel better?” The dancer pulls away to grin up at him. A strand of saliva connects her lips to the bite-mark she left.
“Yes… I think I do.” Hikari nods, letting his buzzing high fade to something calm and comfortable between the two of them.
Agnea leans forward again after a moment, bracing her hands on his chest to get close enough to kiss him. Hikari brings a hand up to her cheek, thumb swiping gently back and forth along her fair skin. The press of their lips together is gentle and exploratory. Their lips stay connected for a bit before Agnea moves her mouth to the corner of the prince’s mouth for a kiss there, then Hikari mirrors the gesture.
They’re both figuring it out together. And they find that they enjoy the mutual experimentation; the willingness to try, fail, and try again. Their time together may only just be starting, but when they hold each other, they feel like they’re holding eternity.
They enjoy their time together as long as they can. They stay in that calm, serene moment for just a bit longer before the scent of breakfast makes its way up to them.
“Hungry?” Agnea pulls away from his mouth, already getting up off of his lap to skip to the door. Hikari isn’t far behind. He slides on his red robe, embroidered with lotus flower prints, to hide the very visible mark which has just been left on him.
The two walk down the stairs together to find all of their friends sitting around a table together, already digging into their breakfast. Hikari and Agnea take their seats beside each other in the two available chairs.
“This looks wonderful, thank you, Osvald.” Hikari smiles and nods appreciatively to the older scholar.
“Yes! I can already tell it’s amazing!” The dancer and warrior join the travelers in eating. Ochette is currently in the middle of regaling the half of the team that wasn’t present about how they killed the dire elk.
“My arrows were like thwack! And mama’s axe was like shwing! And then papa set off a biiiig explosion like KABOOM!” The beastling’s tail wags faster with every element she adds to the plotline. Hikari smiles at the tale, feeling almost disappointed that he missed out… almost. He reaches for the pitcher of water in the center of the table when a scolding smack lands on the back of his hand.
“If you’re thirsty enough for water, you’re thirsty enough for tea.” Castti scolds, only slightly joking, “I think it’s about time for your second dose, besides.” Hikari can’t stop himself from letting out a small sigh.
“I just got warm again…” The rest of the travelers break out into their own distinct laughter.
(Afternoon)
The travelers are fully packed up at the entrance to Winterbloom, ready to set off for Stormhail.
“Ye said Stormhail’s where yer plannin’ to find Glacis?” Partitio asks Ochette.
“Sure is! I need to find her so she can help me stop the Night of the Scarlet Moon and bring peace back to Toto’haha!” The beastling nods resolutely, tail flicking behind her.
The rest of the party nods their agreement as they all set off without looking back. Partitio takes off his hat to shake the snow off before setting out beside Ochette. Temenos keeps stride just a few paces behind the two leading the pack. Osvald walks in his usual quiet contemplation. Castti keeps her eyes on the party from the middle and Throné is close by her side. Hikari and Agnea put their hands together, lacing their fingers as they walk.
They travel unafraid of what tomorrow brings. For they know that no matter what they face, they will face it together.