A/N: This chapter's dedicated to Mitsukai Kanashimi, happy birthday! She's an amazing inspiration and role model to me as an author, so I'd like to thank her :3 And a YAY for over 100,000 words in this story~! (Last chapter was at 99,664 xD;;) ROAR, SPELL CHECK! D8 Armoire is a word!
Disclaimer: Unless you count my dreams, I don't own Grand Chase or their wonderful rainbow-coloured characters.
Chapter 16: Mishaps at the Castle
Armewoke much later to the sound of the bed softly creaking, light streaming in through her closed eyelids. After a second she sat up lazily, opening her eyelids a crack. What she saw made her tilt her head in confusion; Lass was sitting up, much like herself, but he was white as a sheet, eyes wide as he stared at her. Rubbing her eyes so she could focus on him properly, the magician gave a small stretch.
"Lass? Are you alright?" She questioned a few minutes later' when the assassin didn't explain. He was silent for a moment longer, eyes closing slowly.
"I... fell asleep." He murmured quietly, standing up and off the bed. Arme nodded in confirmation, her stare now slightly concerned.
"Yeah... So?" She turned to the window, where the sun had risen a fair amount, "It looks like it's only been about three hours, maybe four." The news didn't seem to lift his spirits in the least, and he opened his eyes again to stare at her.
"I... Are you alright?" He questioned, looking her over.
"Mmhmm... Why wouldn't I be?" At this question he avoided her gaze, instead looking towards the window.
"I fell asleep..." He murmured again, almost subconsciously. Hazarding one more glance towards the magician, Lass turned to the door. Arme shrugged.
"Lass... You might not like sleeping in front of people, but it's not a crime or anything." She mentioned gently, realizing that it was a bigger deal than she had initially thought. The assassin looked down at the ground, a frown on his face that was hardly visible from Arme's angle.
"I know that, Arme..." He muttered, "I just..." He took another step to the door, his face still not having returned to it's normal colour as he grasped the door's handle.
"Just...?" She prompted the cut off sentence quietly, almost getting up to follow him. His silvery white hair swayed lightly as he shook his head, pushing the door open.
"Nothing. I'm sorry I woke you up." He said, an emotion in his voice that was unidentifiable as he stepped outside and pulled the door shut behind him quietly. Arme's hands gripped the sheets tightly as she stared at the door, more shaken up by the quiet sound of footsteps padding down the hallway than anything. For Lass to be so out of it to not care enough to silence his footsteps, something must have been wrong; worse than she had imagined.
Leaning back on the covers, Arme rested the back of her hand against her eyes as she waited for her anxiety to go away. It didn't entirely, but in a few minutes she was calm enough to think through the situation. What could be so wrong with him sleeping? I mean... It's not like it was for very long... She thought over all the facts quietly, only one standing out to her. Perhaps... Is it because no one else is here? I suppose if some monsters had shown up while we were sleeping that kind of would have sucked, but... Why was he worried about whether or not I was alright when there were clearly no monsters around? Because he fell asleep while I was still awake? That doesn't really make sense... She sat up frustratedly, glaring at the door. Even if I go after him he's obviously not going to tell me what's wrong... Could I even find him in here? It's at least a four story building. Getting him to come to her would be as simple as tripping down a staircase, but she assumed if she did that he would be in even less a mood to tell her what was going on. With a frown she glared out the window.
"What should I do, then?" She wondered aloud, sighing. The window, of course, didn't answer. She finally resigned herself to sitting back on the bed, pulling the book off her nightstand. She didn't feel very interested as she flipped through to her spot, more than concerned for the assassin as she tried to focus on the words in front of her. After a couple minutes she gave up, leaving the book open and on her lap as she closed her eyes and leaned back on the headrest. Her hand holding her page, Arme allowed her mind to wander as she began to doze off. Maybe when I wake up I'll be able to understand what's going on better... I hope. She had been lying down for at least ten minutes when she felt the book being eased from her hands, and the blankets pulled up to rest over her. Her mind dully registered that it was Lass, but she couldn't feel the energy or will to do anything. Instead she stayed still, waiting for the last of her consciousness to slip away.
"Arme... Wake up..." The magician stirred slowly to the sound of Lass' voice, her eyes opening to see the azure eyed boy standing next to the bed. Somewhere along the line she had been laid down so her head was on the pillow instead of the headrest, saving Arme from the headache she had realized lazily that she would have before falling asleep. Looking at him, Arme noted he was back to his regular shade of pale, but something in his eyes wasn't quite right. He still looks a bit out of it... She thought silently, hardly noticing that he had brought a plate of food. She did realize it when he picked it up off the bed stand, waiting for her to sit up before resting it on her lap.
"Amy made this for you in the morning before she left." He said, gesturing vaguely at the entire dish. This made Arme feel a bit less than comfortable, remembering the stash of vials in her cupboard and the coffee-hyped Amy; somewhat wondering whether or not the dancer would have had a chance to sneak some of the potion in her meal. Lass noticed her apprehension quickly, shaking his head as he took a few steps back.
"If you're worried about the medicine, Amy told me you can only have it during or after dinner. She wouldn't have purposely stuck it into your lunch." He said, though the words didn't particularily assure Arme of anything. She somewhat hesitantly picked up the spoon, dipping it into the bowl of soup and lifting up some of the soup. Blowing over the liquid to remove as much of the steam as she could, Arme had taken one sip of the soup when she noticed Lass had moved back. She blinked as she watched him standing against the wall, hands at his sides while he stared back at her.
"You can come sit down, you know." She mentioned as she took another spoonful of the soup, the assassin shaking his head in response.
"I'm fine..." He said softly, glancing out the window. Arme huffed, a light pout on her face when she continued eating. The pout didn't affect the assassin in the least, and he stayed in place as he waited for her to finish her meal. When the violet haired girl finished the soup (that she had concluded to be made of some of the harpie from the previous day), she moved on to the toast that was lying next to the bowl (probably dredged from Amy's bag before she had left). Nibbling on the edge of the bread, Arme spared a glance towards the water before she took a sip, deciding to trust Lass that Amy hadn't added her potion to the drink. It tasted plain; in no way the equivalent to the vial she had been made to drink the previous day. Satisfied that nothing on the plate contained traces of the nasty-tasting liquid, Arme finished the rest of her food quickly before turning to the silver haired assassin at the wall. Lass looked over and caught her eye, standing up straight and walking over as he realized she was done. When everything had been placed on the tray he stuck it on her bedside, and the magician was more than shocked to see him reaching into his pocket. No, no, no- Her fear was soon realized; Lass pulled the small white tube Amy had given him out, and was watching her lazily in a way that clearly stated 'You know this is inevitable so just get it over with. You're wasting time here...' Even so, Arme did the best thing she could to avoid the situation; attempting to reach out and take the cream from him. Shaking his head, the blue eyed boy pulled it back the slightest and out of her reach.
"Show me the wound, Arme..." Lass murmured, still staring through half-lidded eyes. Arme shook her head furiously, leaning away as a blush coloured her cheeks lightly.
"I can do it myself!" She insisted quietly, hands covering her wound defensively. The assassin rolled his eyes.
"And what happens when you somehow manage to break the skin over the bite again and neither Amy nor Ronan are here to heal? Not going to happen, Arme." The magician still resisted, even as he reached a hand out to pull her wrist away from her stomach.
"No!" The short girl protested, averting her gaze, "I'm not taking my shirt off in front of you!" Lass sighed exasperatedly, managing to pry away one of her hands.
"You're not taking your shirt off. You just need to lift the edge so I can see where the injury is..." He explained. This was something Arme already knew, and it didn't seem to make her feel any less embarrassed.
"B-but-" She was cut off by a rather final statement by Lass, "And if you don't move your shirt, don't trust that I won't." Eyes widening, Arme turned to look at him as her other hand was pulled off the bite.
"Y-you wouldn't-" She stuttered, receiving a skeptical gaze from the thief.
"I would." Arme's blush darkened as he reached for the hem of her shirt, and she frantically pulled her wrists from his grip.
"Okay, okay! You win!" She gave in loudly, hand hesitantly grabbing the edge of her shirt before he could. Lass watched her without any particular expression, and Arme turned to look at the window when she had pulled her top up enough that the wound was visible. It was only a moment before the cool cream was pressed against her stomach, both hurting and comforting the wound. She winced lightly, leaning back on the pillows a bit more for support. Lass noticed; a glance up at her for a second as the pressure on her stomach pulled away.
"Arme? Are you alright?" She gave a nod, looking down at the wound. The bruise that had begun to surround the large red mark was enough to make her frown, the dark purple looking out of place on her light skin (even more so due to Lass' pale hand lying next to it). When he was assured that the magician was actually as alright as she said she was he placed another thin layer of the cream over the skin before placing the cap back on the tube and placing that back in his pocket, allowing her to pull the pajama top back down the rest of the way. With that finished the assassin turned around, lifting up the tray of food as he headed toward the door. For some reason the sight alarmed the magician; she didn't want to be left alone.
"T-thank you..." She called after him quietly. The assassin nodded, still headed towards the door without turning around. Arme stared at her lap, frustration building up until she finally decided to throw away her pride and call him back.
"L-Lass..." She started hestiantly, "Could you..." Her voice trailed off as she looked down at her hands nervously. This, however, grabbed the silver haired boy's attention. He turned back to her curiously as she stuttered over her words. There' s nothing wrong with this place... Why am I even worried? I shouldn't be asking him this...
"I... Never mind." This just proved to make him even more curious, turning around fully to face her.
"Hm?" The tone in his voice was clear even through that one sound, letting her know he most likely wouldn't leave until she said what was on her mind. Taking a deep breath, Arme looked back at him.
"I don't think... I'm not sure, but... I don't feel comfortable in this place alone right now..." She finally said, voice quiet. Lass' eyes widened; that quite obviously wasn't what he'd been expecting. Even so, she watched with shock as the assassin took several steps back into the room and towards the fireplace. Taking a seat in the main chair where she herself had been seated hours ago, he looked at her lazily. She had initially been expecting him to laugh at her, maybe a smirk or some sort of cynical remark before he left anyway. Instead he had pulled his legs up onto the chair as well, leaning forward on them as his gaze moved to the hearth. The tray that held the empty bowl and cup sat on the chair next to him, and silence filled the room as Arme watched him for a few more minutes.
"Aren't you going to make fun of me or something?" Lass shook his head, "If I was going to, wouldn't I have started a couple minutes ago?" Silence ensued, Arme lying back down on the bed. Rolling over and onto her side, she curled up and sighed. A light frown and blush covered her face as she pulled the covers up tighter around her, pressing her cheek into the pillow. Just brilliant, Arme! How am I supposed to sleep with him staring at me? Finally she pulled the blanket up over her head, giving her the feel of a bit more privacy. Fortunately for her, in the more recent days sleep had been easier to be lulled into. She was soon sleeping soundly, despite the bright light that filled the room.
The next time Arme woke up the sky had gotten a bit darker, though there wasn't any immediate fear of it being to dark to read. Pulling the covers down over her head lazily, the magician sat up and stretched before looking around. What she noticed immediately, to her surprise, was that Lass was still sitting in the chair, in nearly the exact same position he had been when she had fallen asleep.
"How long was I sleeping for?" She questioned lazily, tilting her head to the side.
"Two hours, possibly three." He shrugged, standing up. Picking up the tray of food, he turned to look at her. The purple haired girl was staring back at him surprisedly, eyes wide.
"You actually stayed that long?" Nodding, Lass stepped towards the door.
"Yeah. I need to put this tray back in the kitchen, are you okay being here alone?" There was a slight trace of worry in his voice, and Arme began to feel guilty. It was just some little feeling, and I'm making him worry over it like it's something big...
"I'll be fine! Don't worry about it." Smiling, the magician waved him out of the room, reaching over to pick up her book. The story so far had been interesting, the contents sounding much more like a fantasy book than that of a history book. Then again, doesn't this whole world seem a bit like a fantasy book? She mused as she turned the pages, searching for her spot for about a minute before finally finding what she was looking for. In the beginning it had seemed much like the Grand Chase, a group of people lead by the person the book was about, Sieghart. At the opening of the book it had had a bio for each of the members, leading up to their unfortunate deaths during the mission. It was said that Sieghart himself was the only one standing to fight the final enemy, and that he was able to single handedly take down a god. For this he was given immortality by the other, thankful gods, and his current whereabouts were unknown. He had all but disappeared when the fuss over the final fight was done, leaving thousands of people confused. Arme was currently reading a more detailed account of the first of the chain of deaths, a finger resting on her lips as she thought. Wouldn't it be amusing if we ran into this guy during our travels? She wondered, even though the logical side of her was screaming that it was impossible for the highlander to still be alive.
Immersed in reading through the book, Arme had hardly noticed as hours passed by, and she was several chapters further by the time the silver haired boy returned. The creaking door caught her attentions immediately, and she looked up from her page to see Lass standing in the doorway with a new tray of food. He closed the door with his foot before walking over to the bed, Arme closing her book.
"It's dinner time already?" She questioned as she placed it on the other side of the double bed, accepting the tray from the assassin. Lass nodded, and Arme looked back up at him curiously.
"Shouldn't you be eating too?" She asked, a fork hovering over the piece of meat that lay on the plate next to something that looked similar to a stir-fry. The azure-eyed boy shook his head, stepping away.
"I'll eat after." He murmured quietly, watching as a sudden expression of dread came over Arme's face. Picking up the cup of what appeared to be a light red juice, the magician swirled it around in it's container before looking over at the thief worriedly.
"Your potion's in that." He stated, not even bothering to deny it in the slightest. Shivering, the short girl placed it back on the tray before looking back to her meat and resolving to eat that first.
"I expect you to drink it..." He reminded her, Arme nodding as she cut off a piece of meat. When it was in her mouth she blinked slowly, staring at the short haired male.
"Amy didn't cook this, so you did?" She questioned surprisedly, receiving a nod from the assassin.
"Lass, you're a really good chef! Amy said no one else could cook!" She gaped, looking down at the plate. The mentioned boy shrugged.
"That's because I don't cook for other people often." He explained, getting a confused glance from the girl.
"Wait... You mean all this time that I've been cooking, I could have been getting you to make the food?" Arme demanded.
"I wouldn't have. I prefer your cooking." He said quietly, another blush coming to Arme's cheeks. I really need to stop all this blushing... She thought embarrasedly, though it didn't do anything for the colour of her face. When she finished with the meat and the stir-fry she stared at the drink for a good few minutes before cautiously picking it up, raising it to her lips with a sigh. As soon as she drank a sip, the cup was away and she was staring at the assassin in confusion.
"This tastes exactly like water!" She exclaimed, a frown coming onto her face when he nodded.
"That's because it is water." Was the unexpected reply, and Arme gaped at him.
"B-but you said-"
"I lied. It was in your meat." He stated, watching as the magician looked down at the plate in disbelief.
"But there's no way- I didn't taste it at all!" Taking another sip of the drink, Arme stared down at her plate with confusion.
"The taste wasn't too hard to cover up..." He explained, nearing the side of the bed as she finished with the drink. Handing over the tray, Arme reached out to grab her book as Lass took it from her. He looked her over once before heading to the door, balancing the tray in one hand and sliding it open smoothly. It closed behind him without another sound, and the magician quickly glanced towards the bathroom. I should probably take a bath now... Why does this place even have running water? The question came to her mind suddenly, and Arme resolved to ask Lass when he got back. Slipping out of the bed quietly, the purple haired girl tip-toed over to her armoire and pulled it open. Her bag's contents appeared to have been folded and/or hung up, and she quickly found another set of pajamas to change into. Making her way quietly over to the bathroom, Arme shut the door quietly behind her before turning on the tap. Amy appeared to have left the soap and other bathing needs nearby, Arme gathered them up and set them on the rim of the tub as she noticed the bath filling up quickly. The water was warm, and she stepped into the large tub carefully. The water not yet full, Arme was given another look at her injury. It wasn't bleeding, that for which she was extremely grateful. There were still a few areas of it that were a dark red, but it was mostly the bruise at that point, blooming over her skin much further than the original bite as a most likely result of all the incidents that had gone on after it was inflicted. With a sigh she rested her head on the rim of the tub, the water still pouring in and making it almost impossible to hear when there was a knock on the door.
"Arme?" Oh, Lass.
"I'm taking a bath!" She called back as loudly as she could over the sound of the running water.
"Alright. Don't hurt yourself. Or drown." The worst part about hearing this was that she could tell he was being serious, and Arme frowned.
"I'm not that bad! I wouldn't drown in a bathtub!" She yelled. There was silence on the other side of the door for a moment before he responded.
"I'm going to leave the time you fell asleep in the main house's bathroom with the water running and nearly flooded the second floor out of this argument." He responded, to which Arme didn't have a comeback. Splashing the water with her hands lightly, she waited until the tub was a bit more full before turning the rather large oversized and gold-coloured tap off. The bath in general didn't share the rustic look of the rest of the castle, and Arme wondered briefly if it had just been better maintained or if there was another reason for it's good condition. The thought swept away as she started to wash her hair, Arme gave a sigh as the relaxing feeling of the warm water began seeping in. She didn't lie back for a worry of falling asleep and proving Lass correct in that she could drown in a tub, realizing that he would probably have to open the door to come get her if she did so. Frowning, Arme quickly washed the cleaner out of her hair and grabbed the soap. Soon she felt fresh again, and she stepped out of the tub slowly. After changing she threw her previous clothes into the hamper provided, resolving to wash them when she was given the okay to move freely again. When she exited the room she noticed Lass sitting in the same chair he was in earlier, glancing at her lazily. Arme gave a small wave before heading over to the bed, curling up in the warm blankets. Thoughts to ask about the bath were forgotten as she dozed off, breathing softly.
The rest of the week passed much in the same fashion, Lass making meals while Arme stayed in her room either reading or sleeping. The effects of whatever spell had been used on her had been wearing off each day, leaving Arme awake and much louder. She had finished several books on magic and was eager to practice, though she couldn't imagine Lass being happy to find her conjuring a spell while she was supposed to be resting. Amy, Elesis and Ronan were scheduled to come back any time within the next few days, something Arme was hyperly awaiting. The assassin had been more anti-social than Arme was accustomed to over the last week, not speaking unless she had a question, and even then sometimes not answering. The most she had gotten out of him was a scolding for when she had been caught trying to make her way back to the study, looking for a book mentioned in one of the others she had read. The magician had also taken to making a game out of trying to find out what the potion was inside on her food tray, though she had only guessed correctly twice.
That particular day brought Arme sitting in her bed, reading a book containing several useful-sounding potions while Lass watched absentmindedly from the chair infront of the fireplace.
"And this potion can make anything blend in with it's surroundings! It's known to have some pretty weird side-effects if it's done incorrectly, though." She explained to the assassin, who didn't seem to particularily care. He nodded lazily, rubbing his eyes as he looked out the window.
"I'm going to go make lunch, alright?" He told her as he stood up, Arme nodding in agreement.
"I'll be here, not sneaking out or doing anything self-hazardous." She grinned as he walked away, a glance back at her to quite clearly tell her 'Stay put.' She looked at him mischeviously, even though she knew she was too interested in the current section of her book to bother causing trouble. Sighing, the assassin left the room anyways. She looked back down at her book interestedly, reading over all the necessary ingredients to make the potion. Can probably get that... That... And... What is that? She frowned at the request for the 'Frill of a Giant Frillzard', supposedly making the potion a rare one. Folding the corner of the page, she left it for asking Lass about later as she moved on to the next potion listed.
"Colour inversion potion? I'd like to know the practical use for this..." She murmured as she looked over the ingredients and procedure lazily. Well, it's not too difficult. I could probably get the ingredients and... I dunno, change my hair colour to blonde and see if I could confuse Lass? Or I could dye his hair, or... Her thoughts on the topic were disturbed by a quiet sound, catching her attention quickly after weeks of trying to hear Lass' silent footsteps on the ground.
"What... Is that?" She questioned quietly, though no one was in the room to hear it. There was a steadily crecendoing beat, sounding almost like... The flap of wings? It's so loud... Worriedly the magician sat up, swinging her legs over the side of the bed as the sound got louder. After closing the book and sticking it on the bedside table she stood up cautiously, walking slowly over to the window. Through the ancient glass she couldn't see extremely clearly, though it was enough that her eyes widened as she saw a large, reddish shape enter her view. Taking a step back from the window and blinking as though it would make the shape go away, Arme was disappointed to find that it wasn't disappearing.
"Harpie..." She murmured disbelievingly, unable to get herself to speak any louder. Do they just fly around the castle like this? I've never seen one do this before... Just stay calm... Her tact didn't prove to be the most appropriate, and soon there was a large crash as claws shattered the glass on the window. It rained down on her, though that was quite easily the least of her worries at that point. The large red and golden bird-human didn't stop at the window, though several shards of the glass were sticking into it's body and wings. Arms covering her eyes to protect them from the glass, Arme couldn't tell that the bird had continued diving forward until she felt three claws pierce her abdomen.
"Ahhh!" Screaming loudly, the magician was completely unsure of what to do as the claws hooked into her, the harpie-woman leaning down as she attempted to spread her mangled wings in the room. Beating her wings faster and faster as the feathers were straightened out the best they could be, the harpie cackled cruelly as she turned back to the window.
"MiNE, MinEMiNE.. I'Ve GoT HEr...!" She rasped loudly, Arme's small body slammed into the stone wall area below the window like a ragdoll while the harpie raised her other claw to the window sill. Arme's head was spilling, hands trying the best they could to loosen the claw's grip on her flesh as tears poured down her face. Blood... There's so much of it... She thought queasily, her hands coated in the red liquid. The sound of the door slamming against the wall as it was flung open was her only refuge, her eyes blearily searching the room.
"Put her down!" The Harpie looked around displeasedly for the source of the voice, and it located the white haired boy at the same time as Arme. A smile was brought to the magician's face as a frown fell on the harpie's, the over sized bird attempting to back out the window.
"MiNe MInE MiNE MINE MINE MINE MINE MINE!" She seemed to insist, voice coming out in a shriek. The claw in Arme's abdomen tightened, and Arme began coughing. Lass is gonna be... So mad at me for this... She thought hazily as the assassin charged, slicing through a wing that was wrapped over the magician to hide her. Another loud shriek issued from the harpie as it's leg was sliced cleanly off, and Arme fell roughly to the ground. Pieces of glass were pressing painfully into her back, her eyes hardly open as she watched Lass whip a chain at the harpie that was now attempting to grab Arme with the leg, clearly valuing the little magician more than it's own life.
"Yours? Hardly." Lass whispered venomously, blade dredging hastily through the chest of the bird before it could reach Arme. The harpie wailed, a higher pitch than Arme had ever hoped to hear anything at. Her eyes finally fell shut as her hands tightened and loosened around the leg of the claw still attached to her stomach, not wanting to deal with the pain of pulling it out. She could hear when the harpie's shriek finally dwindled to nothing, another loud sound as it crashed into the ground four floors below. Next she felt Lass' hands resting on top of her own, gently easing them off the claw. She instead reached out to grab onto the front of his shirt, eyes clenched shut to try to prevent tears, her teeth digging into her lip as she tried to keep herself from crying out. Did it hurt this badly when I was bitten? She wondered vaguely as she was lifted up, I don't remember... A hand ran through her hair in an attempt to comfort her as the beating of more wings were heard, and Arme began shaking.
"T-There are... More?" She whispered quietly, looking up at the silver haired boy through watery eyes. Lass glanced down at her, nodding softly as he walked over to the bed, brushing off the glass and fixing the sheets as quickly before attempting to set her down. Arme didn't release her grip on his clothes, azure eyes looking down at her worriedly.
"I... I hurt, Lass..." She whimpered, pressing her forehead to his shoulder. Lass nodded, a hand wiping away as many of her tears as he could.
"I know. I'm sorry... Lay down for a while, I need to go get rid of the rest of them. You'll be alright." He murmured, lying her down on her side. Still one small hand held his clothes, and Lass gently tried to pry it off.
"I'm... Afraid to be alone right now." She weeped softly. At this it was apparent the assassin was about ready to cry himself, and he finally loosened her grip on his clothes.
"I'm sorry." He repeated, picking up his scimitar from the ground where he had apparently dropped it after defeating the first harpie. With one last look back at her, he jumped out the window and down to where the harpies were probably congregating. Arme didn't dare roll over and press the glass further into her back, her hands deliriously wrapping back around the leg of the claw. It hurts so much... If I get rid of it, will the hurt go away? She wondered, pulling at it. This only brought more wrenching pain, and Arme stopped almost immediately. Her eyes stayed closed to avoid the sight of all the blood that was probably in the room by that point; hers, the harpies... She wouldn't have doubted it if Lass' had somehow managed to make it into the mix as well. Loud footsteps were soon heard, and Arme shook as her eyes squeezed shut. And now something else is coming? Can't I ever just be left alone and not in pain?
"ARME! ARME!" A... Amy? Oh... That's a good sound. The footsteps got louder quickly, and soon they were close enough that she knew the dancer was in the room.
"Oh my god, Arme... RONAN, HURRY UP!" Amy yelled. Arme opened her eyes lazily to see the pink haired girl kneeling down next to the bed.
"Arme, don't pull that out yet. It'll make the bleeding worse..." She reprimanded gingerly, turning as the spell knight entered the room.
"W-What... Arme!" He gasped, and the magician could hear footsteps running over to Amy's side, "It's really as bad as Lass said it was..." The dancer rolled her eyes, though they were watering up.
"You think he'd lie about something like this?" She questioned as a hand rested on Arme's side, and the purple haired girl could feel when she began to cast her heal.
"Not lie... I guessed he might have been a bit over-concerned, b-but..."
"We can discuss this later! Go to her back and start pulling out the glass... Make sure to heal the cuts closed after you're done, I don't want her losing any more blood than she has to right now. It's going to be bad enough when we pull out this claw, it looks like it's hooked in there." Arme's body began shaking worse, and she watched as Ronan nodded and moved to the other side of the bed. Amy noticed, and her hand rested on the shorter girl's sympathetically.
"Arme, I'm not going to lie to you here... This is going to hurt, but if we don't do it now it'll hurt a lot worse. Just try to hold out while we do this, alright?" Nodding, the magician squeezed her eyes shut as she felt a small piece of glass removed from her back. The healing afterwards was slightly comforting, though it didn't have her prepared for when the claw in her stomach was wenched slightly out. Gasping in pain, the girl buckled over. Her hands instinctively tried to cover the claw and keep Amy from pulling it out, but she stopped them at the last second, clenching them into fists and pressing them against the bedspread. More pieces of glass were pulled out quickly, Arme wincing. She couldn't help it when her eyes began watering again, sobs wracking her body as she prevented herself from trying to stop either of the healers from doing their part.
"Sorry... I'm almost done." Ronan said quietly, attempting to comfort the girl cautiously. Arme didn't respond, the pulling of the claw out of her stomach making her uncertain on whether or not she would be able to silence the scream that was building.
"You've healed all the cuts, right?" Amy questioned, her voice broken up by her own tears.
"Mostly... Some were too big to be fully fixed." He responded.
"Wh... Wh-ere's Ele... Elesis?" Arme asked faintly, trying desperately to keep her mind off the pain.
"Outside with Lass, fighting the harpies." Amy answered quietly, brushing a strand of pink hair out of her eyes, "But they'll come inside as soon as they're done." A rather large piece of glass was pulled out of her back, and Arme gasped quietly.
"Last one." Ronan stated softly, moving back over to where Amy was, "Need more help?" Amy shook her head.
"Right now I need a bit of time to concentrate and decide on the best plan... Go outside and provide some backup, let them know what's going on so far. The faster we can get the rest of the harpies gone, the better." The knight nodded, turning back to the door and exiting quickly.
"Arme, the claw's about half way out. It's just a little bit more, okay?" Nodding, Arme bit her lip and braced herself for the pain that was to follow. The talons were removed slowly, the magician feeling every last tug as it was pulled out of her skin. When it was finally removed her head collapsed against the pillow, her body going slack as she closed her eyes. She hadn't been expecting the antiseptic that followed, burning as it was rubbed softly against her stomach.
"Your shirt is ripped to shreds, do you mind if I take it off while I wrap your stomach?" The dancer asked, a light heal still hovering over her new wound. Arme shook her head numbly, everything beginning to go fuzzy as the material was ripped at the seams. She felt somewhat guilty for not being more helpful when the dancer began to wind the gauze around her, though she couldn't muster the energy to sit up in the slightest. Footsteps were heard heading towards them soon enough, the blanket resting over the magician gingerly when a thud was heard.
"How is she?" Arme's eyes opened as Lass' voice was heard, and she saw the assassin walking over to kneel next to the bed. His hand was lying on the sheets, and Arme reached out with her own to grab onto his lightly. The silver haired boy didn't complain in the least, turning to look at Amy.
"She's in a lot of pain right now," The dancer sighed, "But there isn't any threat to her life any more. If we hadn't been arriving back right then, though... You would have been needing Ryan." Lass breathed out a sigh of relief, reaching out his other hand to smooth the magician's lightly bloodstained hair.
"You can sleep now..." He murmured softly, looking over at the door as Elesis and Ronan entered the room. Arme nodded sleepily, head pressing into the pillow.
"It's just one thing after another..." She whimpered absentmindedly, everything blurring out, "It'd be nice to just be fine for once."
"Nhh..." Arme stirred slowly, the pillow soft below her.
"Arme?" At the sound of Lass' voice the magician opened her eyes, looking into azure ones. His eyes widened before he let out a sigh, a hand wiping the corner of his eye. The short girl reached out to put her hand on his arm, gingerly turning her head to look around the room. She appeared to have been moved to a different room, no one else present inside. It had nearly the same layout, though there was no fireplace and the bathroom was on the east wall instead of the west, next to the armoire.
"I... How long was I out this time? Where's Amy and the others?" She asked curiously, attempting to sit up. The thief noticed her attempt, and before she could get too far she was pressed back down onto the bed.
"I wouldn't suggest that unless you're looking for pain." He stated, "And you were out for four days. Amy, Ronan and Elesis had to go or they wouldn't finish checking out the marsh in time, but Amy was sure to leave plenty of instructions. Your bed rest time was upped from one week to the rest of the month, and there are some other things that apply here that I'll leave until later. Before leaving Amy and Ronan were here for nearly three days healing until they were both at their limit... Your wound should be healing more quickly than the initial bite. Which is good, seeing as it was worse..." He sighed, resting his forehead on the bed near her arm.
"I... I'm sorry, Arme." He said eventually, glancing up at her. Arme rested a hand on his hair confusedly, tipping her head to the side, "For what?" At this the assassin frowned, though he didn't move away.
"I shouldn't have left you alone... If I was in the room this wouldn't have happened." The magician rolled her eyes, pulling on his hair lightly.
"Don't be silly, Lass! You were making lunch, you hardly knew a harpie was about to burst through the window."
"But-"
"No buts! If you hadn't shown up I would have been dragged out of the window and transported via claw-in-stomach to where ever that thing seemed to think it wanted me!" She insisted forcefully. The assassin looked at her disbelievingly, then sighed. A small smile slowly pulled onto his face, a light chuckle as he shook his head.
"You're unbelievable some days..." Arme grinned.
"And that's the first time you've laughed in the last week and a half! Now go make me lunch!" She smiled, waving him out of the room, "I'm hungry!" Lass looked down at her as he stood up, glancing uncertainly at the door.
"Call me if you need me, Arme. Seriously." She nodded, rolling her eyes.
"I will, I will! Now go!" The assassin sighed.
"Impatient, are we?" He smirked, "I'll be back soon." With that he left the room, allowing the magician to rest her hand on her wound. I can't tell him it hurts... After all the worrying I'm sure he's done, that would just be cruel...
The next two weeks passed in a similar way, Lass making sure Arme didn't do anything too strenuous. The magician's condition had improved greatly, enough so that on that particular day Arme had decided to get up. Lass is off doing who knows what for once, which means... I can make dinner! The purple haired girl though gleefully, clapping her hands together. He's been doing so much for me lately... I feel pretty useless. Her stomach still hadn't completely healed, but that didn't do much to deter the small magician from slowly easing herself off her bed. Praying Lass was nowhere near the room, Arme used the wall as a support to get to the door. The hallways outside her room looked extremely similar, and Arme soon realized that she had only been moved a couple rooms off of her old one. Silencing the urge to go see if it had been cleaned up yet, the amethyst-eyed girl cautiously and quietly made her way down the hallway. Staircases took a bit longer, but Arme tried to move as quickly as possible. He always checks on me before he goes to make lunch... He's gonna go berserk if he finds out I'm not in my room. Giggling a little, Arme realized that in the end that result would be inevitable, especially if she made dinner. Still... I want to do something for him...Peeking cautiously into the dining room after braving two flights of stairs, the magician let out a breath as she noted that no one was there. Tippy-toeing past the table, Arme slipped into the kitchen quietly.
"Let's get cooking!" She grinned, rubbing her hands together. It took her a few minutes to get familiar with the location of everything, and she had to use the counter as a prop to keep herself standing as she looked around. She remembered suddenly that there was no fridge, but Lass had fortunately left his own cooking supplies for lunch out. A simple soup in mind, Arme reached down into one of the cupboards to pull out the large pot she had noted when looking over the stock.
"Hm?" It was heavier than she had expected, and she had to pull at it several times to finally yank it out of it's spot.
"So heavy... Is there something inside?" She questioned after she had set it down on the stove. Stretching to reach the inside, she was surprised to find something was actually inside. Pulling it out, Arme gaped at the object in her hand.
"Wh-What?"
From his spot on top of the roof, Lass sighed.
"Better get downstairs and check on Arme..." He murmured thoughtfully, "I wouldn't doubt she's gotten herself into some sort of trouble or another, she's getting restless..." Standing up, he took one last look at the scenery before him. It was still a week before anyone was due to come back, and he wanted to make sure they didn't get any more... Unpleasant surprises. Not noticing anything out of the ordinary, Lass was about to jump down when an explosion sounded, shaking the roof below him.
"Arme...!" He groaned, swinging into the window below him and making a beeline for the magician's room.
A/N: Nomnomnom =D Late update again? You bet 8D I do have reasons though! ... Not very good ones, but still! My family was planning my b-day party~ (has a b-day on the 21st 8D) Anyways, somewhat of a cliffhanger? Hope you enjoyed! And thanks so much for all the reviews, I love recieving them! You guys make my day :3
-Utsuro