Her whole body was hurting. She might have been bleeding from a gash on her stomach, but she wasn't sure. Her eyesight was getting blurry and the smoke was filling up her lungs rapidly. She needed to get them out of here.
She struggles to carry Nicholas, his arm slung on her shoulder, a dead weight on her side. She doesn't stop trudging on the path. They have gotten so far away from the battle. The war between heaven and hell was waging on in the depths of the fiery pits of hell, but nothing really registered in her head other than the fact that Nicholas was so near now beside her, that she could feel his warmth seeping thru his blood-soaked clothes. She needed to get him out of here. Fast.
The ground shook and the walls were starting to cave in. There was so much dust and soot in the air. She was having a hard time breathing. The entrance was getting closer, but her consciousness was waning, closing in. If they don't get out of there now, they were never leaving hell.
It seems like the light at the end of the tunnel was getting brighter and she could almost imagine tasting fresh air, she could almost imagine seeing Nicholas cradling her face, healthy, safe, and smiling, with an amused smile, laughing at her worry. Telling her it was going to be alright. 'God Please, Satan, Lilith, Jesus Christ. Whoever is there. Please let it be alright', she thinks.
She drags every inch of strength left in her bones and carries on. She doesn't see the ceiling collapse and come down just right in front of them and she loses her balance. They both fall on the ground. She doesn't notice her knees start bleeding. She doesn't waste a minute and scrambles up to his side, she tries to keep her tears at bay, but she chokes.
"Nick. Nicholas. Nicholas! Wake up please! We need to get out of here. Wake up."
She chokes on her tears, his eyes are closed, he doesn't move a muscle. There was blood running down his head and she desperately tries to wipe it away but the blood flows thoroughly. He was deathly pale. She panics for a minute and tries to feel for a pulse. It was weak, but it was there. She breathes a small sigh of relief.
She realizes there was no way out anymore. The exit was blocked by debris, most of which were bigger than her. There was no way she can get past that. The cave was getting darker now, she knows she is left with no choice.
She gently cradles his head to her chest. Presses a kiss on his forehead. Prays to the Gods that her powers would work. She closes her eyes and visualizes the pool of magic within her. The well was almost empty. There was nothing much to draw. She concentrates harder. The transportation spell was easy if she needed to transport herself. But it was trickier with an unconscious person. If she didn't have enough magic left, the transportation spell could take hold of her, but not on Nicholas. Initially, she didn't want to take the risk. But if they stay longer, the less likely they were to escape.
She focuses her mind and draws deep, she feels the murmuring of her power on her skin and with a hoarse voice, she shouts, "Lanuae. Magicae."
She doesn't remember to whom she prays for, Satan was clearly dead. They had no Gods. But she remembers praying hard. Her vision spins and the last thing she remembers is being engulfed by cool blinding light, Nicholas in her arms, her grip iron tight around him. She was not letting him go this time.
She wakes up feeling warm, bright sunlight streaming down the room. The walls that greeted her were yellow and cheery, and she could smell cinnamon. A sign of protection. A safe haven.
She closes her eyes again and remembers that she was having a dream. They were attending the ball at Baxter High, she was swaying to the music, head on Nicholas' shoulders. Her eyes cast away to Harvey and Roz's direction. She remembers smiling, closing her eyes with content, and leaning further into Nick.
She remembers thinking how terribly sad and poignant was it to say goodbye to a person you knew so well like the back of your hand? How can leaving a relationship that was a great imprint on your soul, be okay? The truth was, it wasn't okay. The love she and Harvey shared was the most – innocent and young, that she will ever know. That time when they had it, it was perfect. It was hard to accept the other truth in life – people change. The things you feel before will not always be the same things you feel now. And that was okay.
Day by day, you learn that there are matters in life that you know you cannot give up. Other matters, you must know because your soul seeks it. There are relationships in life you will learn to outgrow, while some you realize you will grow old with. She loved Harvey. That never really changed. It was just a situation where they both learned that they had exceed each other.
But love was not something you learn to quantify. Love was just that. An unexplainable feeling that takes over your soul. A compulsion that makes you reach to another, maybe in search for a home. She gave a piece of her heart to Harvey. And now she knows, she was giving away a distinct piece of her heart to Nicholas too.
How do you explain an unfamiliar love that exceeds a love that is first and pure? How does she even begin?
She feels Nick disengage from the dance, feels him stare at her, a silent burning question in his eyes. She knows the question. She knows, he wonders constantly about the need to surpass Harvey. When will he leave his shadow?
She feels speechless in front of his unwavering stare. She didn't know how to answer him then. For the first time, she felt afraid. How can she contain all the love overflowing from his soul?
She hears a crash downstairs and reluctantly she opens her eyes. Wait. Nicholas. She recalls him in her arms. The Mines. Escape. Transportation Spell.
She jolts out of her reverie and she feels a chill run down her spine. Where was she? Where was Nick? She stands hurriedly and ignores the pounding pain in her head and runs down the spiral staircase. "Nicholas! Nick!", she shouts.
She reaches the end of the stairwell and sees a surprised Auntie Hilda balancing a tray full of dark porridge and mandrake juice.
"Sabrina! You're awake! My dear, oh my goodness dear." Auntie Hilda engulfs her in a tight hug. The bowl of porridge clatters unattended on the floor. They hug and cry, but she wastes no time and asks, "Auntie, I was – I was with Nicholas. I tried to teleport us both back – but, but, I, I don't know what happened. He might be in the tunnel. How long have I been asleep? Where is Nicholas?"
Hilda smiles slowly and places her hand on Sabrina's cheek, "Hush now baby girl, Nicholas is here. He's safe. I was just taking this porridge to him."
Immense relief courses through her. She didn't know how, but she found herself on the floor. Strength sapped. Her knees weak. He was alive. He was here. He was here. The spell worked. She saved him. Dear God. She feels her tears pool from her eyes. She's been crying a lot these days. She doesn't normally stray away from feelings of sadness, but since Nicholas left, there were days when the sorrow was unbearable.
"Where is he, Auntie?", she asks.
Hilda takes her to the corner room on the second floor. When she opens the door, Sabrina stays rooted on the spot for a moment, but then she takes the first step and rushes by his side. She sees Nicholas on the bed, his eyes closed, (she doesn't remember the last time she's seen those eyes open), his forehead was bandaged up, a cut from his left eye down marred his cheek. She could see bruises on his arms, his chest. She knows his right leg was broken. She saw how mangled it was the first time she found him.
She kneels beside him and picks up his hand, and cries.
She found Nicholas in the ninth circle of hell, injured, weak, and on the verge of imminent death. He was in the middle of the frozen lake. The 4th round, Judecca. He did not recognize her or anything for that matter. When she tried to talk to him, he would stare at her face blankly, eyes empty, no light. She remembers pulling him in her arms and promising to take him back home.
But where was home? She was sure Nicholas knew the answer to her question. She needed to hear him say it again. She needed Nicholas to wake up. She knows the answer now too. She needs to tell him that her home was him. And she was his home now. She needed to tell him so many things.
She stays beside him and waits.
He stirs and he knows he is somewhere safe. The sheets were warm, and a breeze was coming in. He knows he is safe because there was no breeze in hell. He struggles to open his eyes, his whole-body hurts, and he can't feel his right leg. His throat was parched. His ears disoriented from the empty ringing. But he feels grateful. It's been so long since he's felt anything other than excruciating pain. Hell was no joke. The torture was beyond imagination. He's never going back again.
He feels something heavy beside his arm and he tries to turn his head sideways. A soft sleeping face. White platinum tresses. Sabrina.
He struggles to keep his emotions in check, he feels his throat close up, his eyes water, a heavy sense of need flooding his chest. He thought he would never see her again. Good God.
He winces when he tries to lift his right hand to pull her in. His ribs were apparently also broken. But he doesn't give up. She doesn't stir. When he's gathered her in his arms, he breathes a sigh of relief. He kissed the top of her head. He imagined this one too many times while he was in Hell. When he felt the burning pain of Satan, imprinting on his soul, he thought only of one thing. Sabrina.
Sabrina in his arms. Sabrina smiling, laughing. Sabrina running. Kissing.
He realizes that he is alive and safe now, yet he still thinks of the same thing.
He closes his eyes to sleep.
When he wakes up the second time, he finds her still there. Awake.
"It's been a while, Spellman.", he says. His voice was hoarse from lack of use.
Her face crumples up and she has a ridiculous smile on her face, tears falling on her cheeks. She tries to clear her throat and with snob, she says, "Nicholas Scratch, that was, by far, the stupidest thing you've ever done."
He takes her within his arms. And he laughs, "I love you, Sabrina."
She takes a deep unhurried breath, decides and says, "I love you, Nick."
Prompt:
(1)honey-bee-fangirl: Nick is really really badly injured, really ill and weak and bedridden, Sabrina kissing Nick's forehead, and Sabrina saying I love you; and
(2)Whcczes: Prompt 24 "that was, by far, the stupidest thing you've ever done."