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 Posted: Wed Apr 15, 2009 11:07 pm
Her hair swept across her face as her eyes seemed to glimmer at the sight in front of her. While the world had seemed so small and breathtaking before, now it seemed to expand for all eternity. It seemed that no matter how far she looked in any direction, the world would continue on and on, leaving her behind. While before she had felt so empowered, now she only felt small. It was amazing and terrifying at the same time.
“The other boy will no longer protect you. He may very well attack you.”
Shaking her head, her hair whipped gently around her. “Varu…” She shifted in his lap, now able to turn and look at his face. His god had made it all too clear that the boy was in possession, as if barely leaving behind any of the original child that he had once been. She thought back to his baby pictures, how normal and happy he looked, playing with his parents. Now, the man in front of her bared almost no resemblance to that child… It was as if the game had sucked the very essence of Valeriu from him, leaving behind only what was required to play this violent and hateful game. Honey eyes turned red, smiles turned into scowls; he wasn’t who he once was.
Try though she might, she couldn’t help the tears from welling in her eyes. She didn’t want to fight him, she didn’t want to be stuck in this game, and she didn’t want to see people hurting themselves for some Gods’ agenda. It wasn’t fair-- Not to anyone.
“Promise me… That you won’t get stuck in ‘The Game‘…” She knew, she knew all about it-- more than he would have hoped that she had known, “Because… There’s more important things than winning… And there’s more to Varu than just the player… “
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Posted: Wed Apr 15, 2009 11:22 pm
He didn't know how she knew. Perhaps Quinn (that obnoxious, indecent idiot!) had said something, perhaps she had heard of the Game beforehand.
It didn't matter.
He couldn't make that promise. It would be a terrible lie. Even if nothing could break his heart more than her face right now.
He reached out, carefully brushing back her windswept hair and tugging her into a comforting hug, arms wrapped securely and gently around the tiny stray.
"I can't promise that," he answered quietly. "I can only promise to try my best."
He smiled, tucking her bangs back behind her ear fondly.
"I hope that ee's good enough. Da?"
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Posted: Wed Apr 15, 2009 11:45 pm
It wasn’t. It couldn’t be. The game could bring no good to him, she knew that. What if he got hurt? How would they afford to live? What if someone targeted Sydni as a way to get at him? What if he died? What if Sydni was orphaned? Her mind raced though the possible disasters as the tears flowed freely down her cheeks, dragging the dirt she had collected on her face along with them. It could never be enough! He had to think about himself before something so stupid!
“Mm, yea,” She lied, burying her face deeper into his shoulder, refusing to look at his face-- she couldn’t stand to see his face, not after knowing what he had once looked like-- “That’s good enough.”
She should have known he would never back down. He was the type of man that had to finish what he started. That was why he decided to help her, and that was why he hadn’t shipped her off to the police. For whatever reason, whatever meaning he might have, he had to play this game. It was as if that were a calling of sorts-- some unseen reason pulling him along in life. She cowered in the face of fighting, yet he stood tall against it. Here in his arms she felt so small, so aimless. He had a strange and powerful determination, that much she could acknowledge.
He was both amazing and terrifying at the same time.
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Posted: Wed Apr 15, 2009 11:56 pm
"Come," he finally said at last, tucking her close to his shoulder and slinging the lunch pail over his arm, unfolding and rising to his feet effortlessly. "Ee't ee's time v'e get back to v'ork."
He let her cry, let her hide, let her have his shoulder. He stood at the edge of infinity for one last moment, looking into the beyond - and then he walked back the way they came, each step as careful and confident as the last, taking great care for the life he held in his arms.
Not yet, something seemed to say. Not just yet.
Just a little longer.
For the both of them.
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