:):
Alright, this is the very last chapter taking place on the surface for awhile.
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A Tearful Farewell
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Arriving at the stables, the three youths carefully made their way to the small wooden door as quietly as they could. The guards had just passed by here not too long ago, so they had at least a few minutes before they came back around. The horses gave them curious looks as they walked by but did not bother to make a sound, much rather preferring to go back to sleep.
Inserting the key into the rusty lock, Frisk fiddled with it for a second or two before it finally cooperated. With a not so quiet creak, the wooden door swung open revealing the moonlit meadows just beyond the wall. A warm late summer breeze blew gently through the native grasses.
"Well, this is it." Paxon said once the door was closed behind them, a forlorn look upon his face. "You'll be careful, won't you? It's not exactly safe around here, especially at night. Who knows what manner of beasts are lurking about. There could be wolves. Or worse, dire wolves. Less likely than normal wolves, mind you, but it's still a possibility." Paxon nervously scanned the forest line before looking back to his stepsister, concern written across his face. This was a horrible idea! "Perhaps I should go with you."
Liling rolled her eyes before she shoved the taller man out of her way causing him to stumble. "Why? So you can act as her brave protector?" The moody teenager scoffed humorlessly. "What help would you even be, Paxon, other than becoming a meager snack to occupy the wolves as she flees? Don't be a fool."
Sputtering, Paxon rubbed his sore shoulder as he tried to defend himself against his little sister's merciless logic. "Where it may be true that I'm not that impressive physically, that, however, does not mean that I am incapable of defending both myself and Frisk."
At this, the cynical teen simply raised an eyebrow in obvious disbelief. With a dower frown, Paxon reached into a small pouch he had tied to his waist. "Put away your skepticism, Liling. Not all situations need to be solved by brute force. Sometimes, all you need are the right tools."
Silently, Frisk peered down at the items her stepbrother had proudly presented. In his hand, were two small vials which contained a yellowish liquid and one more that contained a red liquid. Beside them, were five tiny balls wrapped in paper. Lastly, dangling from a leather drawstring around his middle finger, was a small leather pouch.
"What are those? Gunpowder snaps?" Liling asked dispassionately as she reached for one of the balls of paper.
"No." Paxon said as he quickly moved his hand away. "Only two of them are. This one," he pointed to the largest of the tiny balls. "is a smoke snap, and these two are stinkballs. Individually, they may not be very effective, but when thrown together, they are supposed to create a large noxious smokescreen. I'll admit, I haven't actually tested them yet, so I'm not one hundred percent certain if they will work. So, in the unlikely event that the smokescreen fails, I have also brought two vials of bear deterrent and one vial of bloodbait."
*What's in the pouch?* Frisk had been eyeing it since it had appeared. For some reason it looked a little familiar. Maybe it was just the runic symbol painted on the soft leather. The rather angular design clearly stood for 'fire' or 'heat', though there weren't many people left who could read it.
Paxon gave the mute girl a thoughtful look before carefully tucking away all the items expect the small pouch. "This," He started, taking a moment to stare fondly down at the small object he now held gently in his hand. "...This was my mother's." Paxon revealed as he loosened the strings and tipped out a small white stone with red runic carvings. "She used to use it in her alchemy. I've had it with me ever since... Frisk, I want you to have it now." Smiling warmly, the young man held the stone out to his stepsister.
Hazel eyes widened as Frisk took a step back, shaking her head. *I can't accept this, Paxon! It was your mother's, it's precious to you.*
Catching the mute girl's hands as she frantically signed out her refusal, Paxon chuckled as he placed the naked runestone into her open palm. "Don't say no. I want you to have it. Besides, you're the only one I know who can even use runestones anymore." With great care, he closed her fingers over the object and held her hand between his. "Please, Frisk, accept this as a parting gift. I know it will be of use to you."
Warmth flooded her cheeks, before Frisk ducked her head and nodded in defeat. Her stepbrother was just too sweet and considerate, she literally could not tell him no. He was right, of course, this small stone would be very useful if she was going to brave the forest alone. But, even so, she still felt guilty about taking his mother's firestone. She had never had the pleasure of meeting the renowned alchemist, but she knew Paxon had idolized her. To see him willingly give something of hers away felt strangely painful. Frisk wasn't sure she could be as generous if their positions were reversed. She still couldn't stop blaming herself for losing her mother's sunstone, and ever since then, she had been protective of what little she still had left to remember her by.
Liling watched silently as the moment dragged on. This was becoming more awkward by the second, and she had had just about enough of their repulsive sentimentality. Before she could tell the two just what she thought of their sickening display, Paxon broke the moment first with a pained hiss.
Yanking his hands away, Paxon shook them wildly in the air trying in vain to cool them down. They were on fire! Well, ...no they weren't. But they sure as hell felt like they were!
Frisk released a silent gasp as she looked down at her steaming hands that presently cradled a firestone and then back to her older brother. He was attempting to cool his burned hands by blowing on them. How could she have been so careless?!
"Paxon, you imbecile!" Liling snapped angrily as she stormed over to the young man. "Do you know nothing about runestones?!"
Paxon winced as he smiled weakly down at his blistered hands. "Not as much as I thought I did." He admitted in spite of himself.
Shoving the runestone back into its protective pouch, Frisk quickly stashed it inside her bag before rushing over to her injured sibling. She frantically signed out apologies as she beheld the nasty forming blisters.
"You won't be able to use your hands for awhile." Liling grumbled as she gently held one of Paxon's hands, examining the damage. "Idiot... Why didn't you remove your hands sooner? Didn't you feel the heat? Or are you some kind of masochist?"
"Of course not!" Paxon defended. "I just thought it felt pleasantly warm ...until it wasn't."
Frisk sighed to herself. At least her stepbrother still had his humor. Feeling sincerely bad about what had just happened, the mute girl decided to offer something she usually only reserved for her accident prone little sister. *Here*. She signed, getting the young man's attention. *Hold out your hands. I can fix this.*
"You can?" Paxon raised an eyebrow. He was skeptical but curious nonetheless. Gingerly, he held out his blistered hands in wary hope. He almost flinched back when the small hands that were approaching his began to steadily glow with a golden ethereal light. "This isn't going to hurt, is it?"
Shaking her head, Frisk concentrated on her task. The magic emanating from her palms began to take shape as small wisps of light slowly reached out towards the young academic's injuries. To his credit, Paxon didn't move an inch. Whether it was due to bravery or fear, only he knew for sure.
"This kind of tingles." Paxon commented as he marveled at the blisters and burns that seemed to be mending right before his eyes at record speed. "I had no idea that you had healing magic."
Frisk gave a small smile once she was done. *It's not actually healing magic.* It was a rare form of magic that effected time. But explaining to them how she was simply winding back a few minutes of his life to right before he got burned seemed a little too complicated to explain right now.
"It's not?" Paxon looked doubtful as he inspected his unmarred palms. "You could have fooled me, because this sure does appear to be healing magic."
"The Chief doesn't know about this, does he?" Liling asked almost accusatorily as she narrowed her dark eyes at her stepsister. "If he did, I doubt he would so willingly offer you to the Fugue village. What more are you hiding?"
Paxon sighed as he noticed the mute girl's guarded and slightly hurt expression. "Now, Liling," He chided. "Frisk is allowed to keep her own secrets. As for me, I'm delighted I got to see some real magic. It's been years since last I've seen any."
"That's just the thing!" Liling snapped, turning her ire to their older brother. "Runestones aside, there isn't supposed to be any real magic left. Not since the Magic Bane. All the true magic users are supposed to be dead. Your mother even died, Paxon. Only people with muted magic were supposed to have that rare chance of not dying. But her magic isn't muted! So, how is it that she survived when nobody else did? How is it that she's alive today and my..."
...and my father isn't.
The sentence didn't need to be complete for the meaning to be understood. Liling's father had been severely weakened by the Magic Bane right before the Clan of the Dragon had been invaded and eventually overtaken by Chief Marx and his army. That would never have happened it if hadn't of been for the fall of the Kingdom of Magic. And now knowing that possibly the only magical person to survive the Bane was originally from said kingdom, the place of its origin, must be quite a hard pill to swallow. Frisk wasn't at fault for this, of course, but really there was no one else to place the blame.
*Liling, I-*
"Save it." The contemptuous girl said darkly as she turned away from them. "I'm going back to bed. May your journey be a safe one..."
Once the wooden door was closed securely again, the young man sighed heavily as he ran a hand through his messy ginger hair, accidentally knocking his nightcap off. "I know what you're thinking, but she doesn't hate you. She's just... unhappy. About everything. It's understandable..." Paxon looked pained as he continued. "My father has destroyed so many lives, including yours, Frisk. For that, I'm truly sorry."
Not bothering to sign anything, Frisk hastily wiped her cheek before embracing the kind man. What he said was true, but he had nothing to be sorry about. He had only been but a young boy when they had first met. Knowing this, she rejected his apology. He had no business sharing his father's sins, for they were his own.
Wrapping his arms around the mute girl, Paxon held her close. "How I wish I could have helped you and your family throughout the years. I've been so useless for far too long. But, now I can finally do something." Pulling her away, he gave Frisk a sad smile. "I can set you free." With that said, he gave his stepsister a gentle shove away from the village that had been her prison for the last decade.
Frisk looked to the dark forest for a moment then back to Paxon. She was free? Well, she was planning on running away anyway, but to hear someone actually tell her she was free sounded so strange. She wasn't about to tell him that in all likelihood she was probably just leaving one prison to be trapped in a different one. He didn't need to know that. Instead, she gave the young academic a smile. A real smile. One she hadn't shown in years.
*I'll miss you the most, Paxon.*
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I know this seems a little Paxon/Frisk but it's very one-sided romantically. To Frisk, Paxon is her dear childhood friend.
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In the next chapter, we'll be back Underground with Fearia.
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Thanks for reading!
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Sheii Bae~
