[Llyr, O] - Wayward Glances

[Gale Devlin]

Gale watched Llyr carefully, knowing that if she was going to get out of the situation it would be by his hands and not her own. The older man seemed lost within himself in ways she never understood, though his version of lost seemed different than others. Lost almost seemed the wrong word to her. Llyr seemed too vastly talented to get lost, though he did seem to need to pick through his mind carefully for what he needed. There must have been much that the muse picked up over the years, though Gale couldn't really begin to imagine. If anything, Llyr was good at perpetuating the rumors of his intelligence without meaning, which was a good sign that he probably was what they said. The Sea. Gale stared, almost as if she had the ability to see through him if she tried hard enough. It wasn't until a while later that she realized what the elder muse was doing.

Humming. The first step to magic for Llyr was always something subtle from what she could tell, and it appeared he was doing it soft enough that the green-haired boy didn't detect. Her suspicions were confirmed when the boy spoke of the silence that had fallen between them all. Gale clenched her fists at her sides, still having a hard time with the closeness of the boy and the feel of his hot breath on her neck. The young woman felt herself reaching the limits she hadn't touched upon since her mother's death and wanted to act again, knowing she couldn't anyway. At least the image of Llyr knocking that mask off his face could tide her over until he actually got what he was asking for, though that time came much sooner than she expected. The magic that Llyr was building up silently was noticed only after it was too late and Gale's heart started to race at the sight of it.

When Llyr sang out the magic, looking somewhat uneasy anyway, and stumbled backwards. The muse looked dizzy for some reason, but Gale didn't have much time to dwell on Llyr considering his spell was heading right for her. Normally the elder would be a well of accuracy, never missing a target even in training, but Gale watched his strike curve. There was a very good chance that she would be an unintended casualty to the magic and Gale was suddenly on high alert. Her body reacted in ways that her mind was not able to, feelings of panic racing up her spine while her eyes widened slightly. It was when she was most positive that she would be the one the attack hit when something peculiar happened to Gale. The dark embrace was suddenly gone and the sensation of falling took its place once more. Gale felt a stinging sensation spread across the side of her face and ear just before she collided with the ground.

Collapsed on the grimy floor of the movement, the young woman was bewildered and in pain. Slowly she realized that it was the green-haired man that had pushed her out of the way while his mask and face absorbed the attack. Or what seemed like all of the attack until she felt the warm trickle slid down her face. At first even the warmth was confusing, but Gale could recognize it as blood flowing from her cheek and ear as she pushed herself up. Red droplets hit the ground lightly and the young woman stared at them a moment. Seeing her own blood made her flash back to the last time she saw crimson, which was one day she could never erase. Without her acknowledgment the young woman was suddenly crying, though she didn't really feel any emotion to go with the empty tears. It was a pain because tears were useless and the salt got into the wound on her cheek which only made her want to cry more.

There wasn't time to mope on her light wound though, and Gale knew it. The child turned her attention back towards the green-haired man just in time to see him leap towards Llyr with vicious fury. It looked as if his mask protected him from the full weight of the magic, which was good for him but bad for Llyr. At least Gale was free. The shear anger in the green-haired boy's voice made the young girl shiver and wince. He had drawn back his fist and was trying to hit Llyr, probably to make up for the damage done to his mask. It was cracking a fair amount and it made Gale wonder if it would fall away by the end of their little encounter. For some reason the concept of seeing the green-haired boy's face and eyes terrified Gale in ways she didn't know how to express. There was something there that made her skin crawl. Gale tried to get up to help, but he head was spinning from the fall and she didn't imagine she'd be much use anyway.

[Llyr Lunette]

Llyr's mind raced for answers to the full picture of why it was happening. The young man continued to tell himself that just a single drink wouldn't do so very much to wrong his magic, but the more he thought about it the more it made sense why he would not be able to properly conjure his magic. The life energy within him was usually kept in a delicate balance, and Llyr constantly tried to make sure it stayed that way, so even the slightest bit of alcohol seems able to tip the balance. Without balance then forbidden magic is a reckless tool that should not be even spoken of. The man vowed he would use no other spells during the fight unless he was positive that he could damage no one with them.

Luckily enough, however, it appeared as if the green-haired menace had a slight change of heart. It did surprise Llyr when the boy pushed Gale out of the way and suddenly he didn't know what to think. Focusing his sharp gaze, Llyr picked apart every detail he could from the action, finally coming to the conclusion that it was only done with the belief that it would aide him in the end. The thing that concerned the muse the most though was that the green-haired boy had taken such an interest in Gale that he would refuse using her as a human shield.

Though she was pushed away, Gale did retain an injury from the shot. Llyr's heart dropped as he watched the crimson drip to the floor. Sure she would probably be able to heal herself, but that didn't stop the elder from feeling worried about her. Faintly Llyr swore he saw tears on her face. After all of the thoughts that he didn't want to hurt her he ended up doing as much anyway. The only salvation was the understanding that he had mostly struck his original target. In fact the attack hit hard enough to send the young man back, tumbling over a table. A heavy sound of magic against the boy's metal mask hung in the air and Llyr waited on baited breath to see how the green-haired boy was.

When the boy stood up he took a moment to check his mask, which Llyr had managed to crack rather well. It was still disappointing that his spell hadn't shattered it, but he wasn't-- at his usual level of ability. Eyes narrowed in anger, Llyr listened to the boy speak. By the end of the sentence things jumped right back into dangerous territory, the green-haired boy lunging to strike. He did somewhat expect the boy to bounce back fast, but the rate at which he did was still somewhat startling.For but a moment the muse shot a gaze to Gale, making sure that she was alright, before he threw the brunt of his attention back to his assailant.

Whilst in mid-air the boy suddenly brought up his fist, intending to bring the weight of gravity and the capability of his punch down on the muse at the same time. Llyr was trained for hand-to-hand combat even if he wouldn't be as adept as the young man so he at least had an idea of what he could do against such an attack. With a deep breath, Llyr threw out his hand, clasping the green-haired boy's fist as he came into range and side-stepped out of the way. With all of his strength Llyr threw the boy down, encouraging his momentum to continue bringing him down to the ground harshly. It it went right then he would be able to smash the boy's fist into the ground and hopefully damage his abilities in the process.

Once he had finished with his attack's follow-through Llyr took a few unsteady steps back, suffering a little residual dizziness in the process. It frustrated the man that he was suffering from something that he couldn't control, but he remained stoic to save face. "You made the false assumption that being at a lower power level than usual would prevent me from kicking your ass," Llyr retorted to the boy's earlier comment. "You'd be surprised what I can do you foolish little boy."

[Kieve Viho]

The man knew how to fight. While Kieve knew that he was more talented at hand to hand combat than his elder it appeared that the elder was craftier and didn't hesitate when he saw some type of opening. For this strike he was far too vulnerable and Kieve should have realized it before he dared act, but he didn't. The boy felt Royal blue wrap his hand around his fist as he side-stepped. He began to list out a sting of curse words in his mind and his fist was brought down to the ground, full momentum assisting in the stinging pain of the strike. The punch to the ground hurt so much in fact that Kieve was positive he had broken a finger or two. That simple fact made the boy so angry he started shaking, cradling his broken hand carefully. Tears didn't come. No, showing tears would be too generous to the Royal blue bastard.

"Kick my ass you say?" Kieve repeated, voice trembling with his barely contained fury. The boy began to stand and a distorted laugh came from his lips. There wasn't a chance in hell he was going to lose to such a man, but considering how things had went so far he decided it was about time he steal his magic to get it over with. But before that he had something else of pressing importance to deal with. The boy began to sing and a healing light engulfed his figure. It was the only thing he could do to actually use the infernal magic he had stolen no matter how dark his singing voice actually sounded. Song of healing finished, Kieve turned to face Royal blue, who had fled to be beside the little bitch that began some of his problems. Kieve would have her. He would have her and he would use her until she was all gone.

With the darkest of smirks, Kieve held up his fully healed hand, warm blood still dripping down his palms from wounds that were no longer wounds. "You'd be surprised at what I can do too." It was at this point that Kieve was almost positive that Llyr would infer who he was from his actions. It was said that since he killed that woman who taught that healing magic that it had been in short supply. It had also been said that some form of unconventional and not as effective teacher had taken her place, but that wasn't fully confirmed in his book yet. It was interesting to learn later just how important of a woman he had slaughtered that first day. The memory made him laugh slightly.

It was then that Kieve felt something that caused him to stop in his tracks. A chip fell away. Then another. His mask was coming apart. Rage ignited over all the rest once more and Kieve knew he wouldn't be able to stay and play out this fight to the fullest. His fists suddenly clenched and the boy tried to work through if he should make one last attack or not. If he did he might be able to bring a little pain back to Royal blue for breaking his fingers, but he might also lose his mask in the process. In the end his rage toward the serene blue man trumped all else and he vowed to make him bleed. After he fled Kieve would position himself outside so he could follow the girl home. It would help him to know where his pray lived and he didn't intend to give up her or what he would use her for later just because he wanted to kill Royal blue first. It would all come in time, the boy knew this to be true.

"Fuck you!" He cried, bolting towards the man once again. This time he made no special play and did no special moves. Kieve would punch the look right off of Royal blue's face the old fashioned way.

[Gale Devlin]

Gale had to admit that she was somewhat surprised by Llyr's ability to fight. Certainly the man could triumph over anyone with his magic abilities, but to see that he was also talented at physical fighting was a relief. Gale watched him deflect the attack rather swiftly and tried not to cringe when she heard the green-haired boy's fist hit the ground. By the sound of things it seemed he had perhaps even broken bones. The girl was still somewhat unused to such violence, even though she had watched her own mother die, and wanted all the more to flee the area. The desires to run calmed considerably when Llyr retreated back a few steps, still looking strong enough to finish the fight if need be. Gale believed honestly that Llyr could overcome whatever the boy could throw out, especially after seeing how he avoided the punch so gracefully.

It was startling when the green-haired boy stood without outwardly expressing any real pain. Certainly the boy was in pain considering the state of his fist, but as he began to rise there was a fury in his voice before he let out a twisted laugh. That distortion was enough for Gale to know confidently that the pain wasn't bothering the green-haired boy as it would her. Reluctantly Gale let her fingers skim the wound on her face from Llyr's attack, from which she couldn't stop the slight wince. It was frustrating more than anything else to know that she couldn't retain such a simple injury without cringing yet this boy, demented as he may be, could break bones and have his biggest problem be his rage.

Gale almost felt like she could envy him until she heard him singing. It sounded foreign in his voice, like he couldn't possibly normally do such a thing. She stared, somewhat dumbfounded at the concept of such a man singing, before she realized he was doing magic like just the Llyr had earlier. It was a more powerful type of spell based on the fact that he had to sing through the whole thing and couldn't just hum out most of it. The nature of the spell unfolded and Gale actually felt at the concept of it. Her eyes took it in and her expression remained unchanging, but her heart started racing and he breaths came in short bursts. "Harmony magic," She muttered in a tone that could almost be recognized as anger. Gale was still remaining outwardly calm, but suddenly she was lost in trying to understand how such a boy would learn Harmony magic.

As far as she knew she had never seen him before. Gale had been present for each and every one of her mother's teaching sessions and she didn't recall a green-haired boy in any. In fact she had only seen such green hair on one person before... The young woman couldn't understand. When that tribe came it had changed everything for her, but she remembered the boy with the green hair specifically. She hated that entire tribe, but she hated the boy even more. It wasn't something she expressed or dwelled upon for long, knowing it would cause her anguish if she did for too long. Still, the young girl knew she had to recall for this encounter.

But Gale wasn't allowed to think for too long, as the boy clearly had other plans. His mask was falling away in little chips, looking like it wouldn't hold up for much longer, and that was when he decided to strike. To see the boy so outwardly upset was startling. Gale wanted to do something, but yet again she felt like she could do nothing. Especially since the boy's attack was a straightforward punch, though seemingly packed with all of his hate and frustration from the entire encounter. Unsteadily, Gale took a few steps back as the boy rushed on.

[Llyr Lunette]

The cracking noise confirmed his success, but it didn't really make Llyr feel any better. The fact remained that he had just broken a young boy's hand in perhaps a few different ways and that guilt would be on him until he could realize that there was no other choice. But he wouldn't let that come because secretly he knew there would have been other choices. He could have disabled his abilities without breaking bones. It wasn't unexpected that the boy began to shake considering hen must be in pain, but what was unexpected was when he began to speak. He repeated part of what Llyr had said, but his voice was shaking from something other than agony at his injury. Rage. Llyr's eyes narrowed as he watched the child, suddenly on edge and ready to handle an onslaught that may come soon.

Based on the young man's cryptic laughing it seemed he wasn't far off from the point. When the boy began to sing Llyr could feel himself freezing up. Music in Symphony almost always led to something and the fact that the boy decided to start singing during the battle was the silent understanding that confirmed it. It didn't take long for the muse to see the tale-tell signs of music magic wrapping about the boy. Llyr felt his heart dropping and suddenly his concern for Gale sky-rocketed so he inched his way over. Though being next to her wouldn't really protect her entirely from magic he felt like he might be able to find a way to do as much if only he was near. When the boy turned about though, brandishing his still bloody but entirely healed hand. The green-haired boy's voice hit Llyr in a wave as his mind slowly registered what had just happened.

"Harmony magic," Gale whispered with anger. It snapped in Llyr's head that very instant that not only was the man using that magic, but that he had got it from foul sources. The boy was a magic thief. Perhaps it was even he, the cruel beast of a young man, who cut Gale's mother's throat that first day that the Recital tribe had arrived. The absolute anger that began to course through Llyr's veins was almost too much to handle. If this boy truly was the reason that Gale had to lose her mother he would not stop until the boy was face-down in the dirt. Suddenly he didn't feel any remorse for breaking the little bastard's bones and wished to do so more. It was then that pieces of the boy's mask began to fall away.

Llyr thought that there was a way to cast the situation in his favor. If he could remove that mask, perhaps even crush it, he would be able to sway Gale. When she saw his face she would know if he was the one who murdered her mother and that would be the only confirmation the elder needed to cast devastating forbidden magic to destroy the boy. Llyr suddenly didn't even care if the magic was cast in his dangerous state of mind or sent him spinning again. When he had cast the first shot of magic so much of the crowd had run off, knowing that such spells were nothing to trifle with even if the battle did look interesting. There were few stragglers and if he pushed Gale behind him the man was confident that he would be able to strike the enemy he wanted to.

Lost in his plans, Llyr wasn't focused when the real attack came. It was straightforward enough, a devastating punch laced with more power than the last, that he caught coming only after it was too later for him to process. He should have known what was coming due to the boy's screaming, but he didn't and the punch hit directly where it was intended to. It was strong enough in fact that it sent Llyr tumbling back. The pain didn't really get to the muse as much as the blood did. The taste spread in his mouth quickly and almost made him dizzy. Llyr spit out a mouth full of blood and tried to come back to full attention as quickly as he could. He couldn't afford to be weak because Gale was counting on him. The child couldn't really defend herself. In a rage the elder decided it was time to strike back, so he went rushing back at the green-haired boy with a punch of his own.

[Kieve Viho]

It was unbelievably satisfying to feel his fist connect with Llyr Lunette's face. The attack had worked just as he wanted it to and the boy would be lying if he said he didn't want more, but he knew it wasn't the time. His mask was deteriorating and he simply wouldn't risk being seen without it. Not that the boy felt shame or the desire to hide himself, but the mask was a part of who he was now. The face underneath was from the past and he had buried it as such so that he might continue on to the future without it to weigh him down. Another piece of his mask chipped away as Kieve hovered over Llyr, having fully knocked the man off his feet. A cruel laugh slipped from his lips once more as he caught the light traces of blood from the punch. That helped him feel much better about the recent happenings.

But before he could fully take in the pleasantness of the situation, Kieve had to get back on the defensive. Though his punch was powerful it wasn't enough to throw the elder off his feet it wasn't even to keep the man down for long. Kieve was almost positive that if he could put enough of his power behind the strike he could keep the older man down. It was true that the man was better in magic than Kieve and could still defend himself in physical manors, but his body didn't look capable of taking much abuse. It appeared there was much that Kieve still had to learn about Royal blue before he would be able to snatch the magic of the man, but that would not stop the distorted young man. Kieve would plan for months if it would grant him that magic in the end

Retaliation came swifter than Kieve would have expected. The punch thrown back at him must have carried all of Lunette's frustrations because it hit and it hit hard. While Kieve was extremely swift he hadn't been swift enough in that situation to save himself from that specific power punch. It sent him flying back, just as his had made Llyr. As he fell back he turned his body so that he could land face-down. The reason for this maneuver was because he felt his mask shatter as it took the brunt of the attack once more. It cracked so deeply that shards cut into his face before most of the mask fell away to the ground. Kieve hunched over, knowing that there was no longer any time to delay. The boy hunched over, making sure he hid his face from his enemies.

"It looks like our little play will have to take intermission now," Kieve started slowly, drawing on his words with a sort of venom that couldn't be contained. "I'll be back for you at a later date Lunette. And you, child..." Kieve paused, a sick smile crossing his hidden face, "I look forward to our private play." Since he was done speaking, Kieve jumped up, still making sure to keep his face out of sight, as he rushed towards the exit. The mask was beyond salvation so he decided to leave the pieces of it behind. He had an extra and would commission someone to make him another when he had time. For now Kieve know he had to get outside and hide in the shadows. The young man still wanted to follow the girl home. He would have uses for her later.

Once outside of the movement, Kieve pressed himself against the side of the building to catch a breath. Seeing clearly and feeling the cool air on his face was peculiar. It had been a while since Kieve had gone without his mask. That mask had become a part of who he was. It was a part of his new identity and Kieve was just fine with that. The young man stowed away in the shadows, waiting for the girl to come out so he could start on the next act of their play.

[Gale Devlin]

Seeing Llyr take the full brunt of the punch made Gale's heart skip a few beats. The girl knew that the muse wasn't invincible, obviously, but seeing him hit so hard in the face almost shattered her image of the mysterious elder man. The girl stared, mystified, as Llyr was knocked off his feet and collided with the ground. She continued to stare, stuck in her place, as Llyr began to bleed. Gale felt so confused at what was happening that she just continued to stand idly bad, not knowing what to do or say while somehow understanding it was always nothing. There was nothing Gale could do because she was still so frail and weak compared to the two fighters before her. Carefully Gale took a few unsteady steps back, not really wanting to be in the heat of the battle any more now than when it had started.

It was almost just as terrifying when Llyr jumped up and began his counter-strike than when the green-haired boy threw his punch. Gale felt her fists ball up in nervous anticipation until she watched the retaliation strike hit the boy with devastating force. The child muse couldn't imagine what it would have been like if the green-haired man didn't have a mask, but since he did he was still somewhat protected. That protection seemed to backfire though as the worn mask gave out and shattered from the impact. The green-haired boy seemed to purposefully make sure he landed face-down though, so even though his mask had shattered and fell to the ground in a mess of pieces she still didn't catch his face. Gale could catch the slightest bit of the ground below the man and small droplets of blood dripped to the ground.

It seemed the mask did more damage to the boy than Llyr's punch in the end. Gale couldn't much argue with it though because the end result made it seem like the confused battle had come to it's conclusion. To further astound the young girl she heard the green-haired boy speak of their 'play' needing an 'intermission'. It send a shiver down her spine when the boy addressed her. Not long after he was fleeing the scene, leaving behind the shattered remains of his mask and a few drops of his blood on the floor. The child casually walked over, the danger having left the area, and stared down upon the remains of the green-haired boy's presence . Seeing the sturdy mask in pieces reminded Gale how strong Llyr really was. She had no right to doubt him.

"Should we go after him?" Gale started, already knowing the real answer. It would have been pointless to go after the green-haired boy. In fact he was probably still running, trying to avoid letting anyone see him without a mask on. "Nevermind. There are other things that should be attended to first," Gale stated simply as she took the few steps she needed to stand before Llyr. The elder was taller than she was so she had to turn her gaze up a big. Without asking she placed her hands on his jaw gingerly and began to hum. It would only take a rejuvenating harmony to heal his jaw so that was what she began to weave. The spell came swiftly and the healing was perfect. When she was done she let her hands return to her side as she asked, "Does that feel better?"

[Llyr Lunette]

The retaliation struck just as well as he needed it to. Llyr winced as the mask shattered under his punch because, while it was nice to break, it still stung when the pieces came apart. The green-haired boy anticipated the mask breaking though and turned his body so he spun and collapsed face-down, keeping anyone from seeing what was beneath the mask. Llyr was somewhat impressed by the movement but chose not to say anything. You didn't usually compliment your enemy in serious battles after all. Especially not after you break their fist and send shards of metal into your foe's face. The blue-haired muse shot a quick look to his hand and picked a lingering shard of the mask out. His fist was bleeding, but not enough to be concerning. If he needed it there would always be Gale's magic to count on anyway, as she was quite capable with healing despite her age.

The green-haired boy's voice unsettled Llyr though. Even though he was clearly wounded and his mask was gone he still managed to sound confident in his distortion. The cruelty in his tone and the way in which he spoke was unlike anything else that Llyr had ever experienced before and he didn't imagine he wanted to see it again even though he knew he would. Probably not too far off either based on how the young boy was speaking. And then the green-haired boy was off, running out of the motif with an impressive speed considering he just took a punch to the face. Llyr watched for a moment, the taste of blood still on his tongue. It didn't take long for Gale to walk over, looking down on the broken mask with her blank gaze.

She asked Llyr a question, but answered it soon after, turning her attention from matters of the boy altogether. It was somewhat startling when the young muse walked over and placed her hands on Llyr's jaw gently and began to weave her magic. The magic was swift and effective, all pain in Llyr's face melting away as Gale hummed her spell. Once she was done he rubbed his jaw lightly with the non-injured hand and said his thanks. "That's much better. Don't worry about my hand though. That isn't of importance. I need to be able to sing though..." Llyr muttered absent-mindedly. He was still thinking about the boy and what the next step would be. During their next encounter Llyr would make sure he was level-headed so that he could properly demolish the young man with his forbidden magic.

That determination was keeping the blue-haired muse from chasing after the boy. Not only would be not be able to catch him, he still probably wasn't capable of completely controlling his magic yet. "After this encounter I want you to be more careful. Don't wander the city alone," His tone was somewhat sharp as he addressed Gale. He felt like the scolding father, and even though she hadn't actually done anything wrong yet he knew she was likely to. Gale didn't seem to have the ability to fully process fears and got herself into trouble because of it. This time he would try to take special measures to avoid it. Even if it meant he wouldn't let Gale out of his sight for a few weeks.

"I think it's time we get you home," Llyr said lightly. He didn't want her to leave on a sour note so he tried to put a little more obvious caring in his tone for her. They would speak on the walk back to her apartment and he might be able to convince her to listen to him on matters of safety. "Come on," Llyr motioned with his bleeding hand as he made his way towards the exit.

[Gale Devlin]

Gale rolled her eyes at Llyr's comment. Of course he wouldn't want her to heal his hand. Really it should have been the first thing she tended to considering it was more serious than the punch was, but there certainly was a plus site to healing Llyr's jaw first. When the elder muse said that she didn't need to heal his hand she instantly grabbed it and began to hum quietly. It didn't matter what he had to say really. Gale wanted to heal his wounds because she had done so little during the fight so now that she was finally in her element she would take advantage of it. As she hummed her elder began to speak once more and she payed attention over her healing work. The sudden edge to Llyr's voice was slightly concerning, though Gale didn't exactly express it.

Once she was done healing Llyr's hand she rubbed her palms on her dress to get off the bits of blood from his injuries. The young girl didn't really care that she was ruining her dress. She never did get particularly attached to any one piece of clothing. Or any one anything lately for that matter. Considering his state of upset though, Gale chose to look away and take a few steps toward the door. She would be 'good' until Llyr wasn't upset at her anymore. In reality it was just concern for her well-being she was sure, but he made an effort to sound angry so she played the part of a punished child. In all actuality she really didn't care to disobey Llyr anyway.

The green-haired boy had made it clear that he was an unstable character that everyone should veer away from and he seemed to take an unhealthy interest in Gale. The fear that she normally didn't feel crept in and Gale tried to observe the situation objectively now that it had been resolved for the time being. It was likely that Llyr wouldn't let her alone after such a thing, which she wouldn't complain about. If she was with Llyr she would be safe. If she was with Llyr she could protect him too and make sure he could always get back up if he took a hit. It was the least she could do for him considering he would protect her. Though it was still troubling that he would have to fight in the first place, even if that was what muses always did these days. Gale got a little nostalgic for the days when the Sanctuary was nothing more than the city's school instead of a training zone for heroes.

Llyr's voice broke Gale from her thoughts once more and she looked back to him expectantly. It probably was a good time for her to head home. Gale was tired and looked forward to laying down to rest. Llyr motioned with his still bloody hand and Gale stared at the crimson running down his fingers. She wished that her healing spells would remove the blood as well, but there were limitations to musical magic and that was one to hers. She closed the small gap between them and took some of the slack in her dress to wipe the blood from Llyr's hand. "I don't want to hear anything about ruining my dress. I already got blood on it before." Her voice was as toneless as ever.

"I want to be able to hold your hand on the way back. I wouldn't be able to do that if it was injured or bloody," She offered in explanation before placing her hand in Llyr's and leading him to the exit.

[Llyr Lunette]

Llyr couldn't pull back when Gale swiped up his hand. She would heal it despite his wishes and that was to be expected, but that didn't stop Llyr from being partially bitter. Once she was done healing it Gale wiped the blood on her dress and that concerned Llyr. Not only was the child ruining a perfectly good dress she was doing the exact opposite of what he wanted. He wasn't the one who needed protection or to be babied. In reality he was just angry he needed to be healed in the first place.

There would be much to do if Llyr wanted to protect Gale from the green-haired boy. It would take focus and some protection details. Llyr may be able to take Gale to and from her house, but around the Sanctuary he would have to assign people to be with her. It would have been foolish of the boy to attack in the well-guarded academy, but Llyr would take no chances.

After motioning to leave Gale grabbed Llyr's hand again. He sighed slightly as she began to clean it off with her dress. Not only did she ruin it by rubbing her palms on it earlier she got it even more messy with that little stunt. It was only counter-balanced by the fact that she put her hand in his once she was done and explained that she wanted to hold his hand on the way back. Llyr didn't mind after she said that much.

Gale still managed to be cute as children normally were, which was a bit of a relief. Llyr hated to think how fast she had to grow up with her new responsibilities so he would indulge her when she got like this. Following her lead, Llyr said warmly, "Well maybe we'll stop for a treat on the way home, yeah?" He laughed a little, feeling a bit more at ease.

FINISHED THREAD