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“Yeah,” Acrucis nodded her head numbly. The motion in and of itself made her body ache in places she didn’t even realize that she’d injured. “I’ll be okay.” She added in reply.

How silly was it to have the magic to heal and yet, in the end, have to rely on others because she didn’t have enough in her to heal herself? It was a hard lesson to learn, that if she’s going to keep going out on her own it would be wise to keep one heal on reserve for herself incase something like this were to happen again. As for the current moment in time the only thing she could do was thank God that it had been Benitoite that chased after her and not some other General. Given what happened Thraen she knew quite well how deadly this evening could have been.


Just as he stood up Acrucis reached out with a shaky hand, the bracelets on her wrist ringing with the movement as they bumped against each other, and grabbed onto the hem of his cape. For a second she sat in silence, aside from the constant hum of the halogen lights. “Thank you,” her words were spoken so softly she almost wondered if she had actually said them at all and so she ran her tongue over her lower lip where blood had begun to cleared her throat and said it once more.

It wasn’t his obligation to help her and yet… he still offered. Was this his olive branch?

Acrucis offered him a rueful smile and with eyes glanced downward she replied “It’s okay.” she replied. Thankful for the use of his cape once more the Senshi of Prayer leaned forward so he could drape it over her back and fasten it to her caplet like he had done the first time they met. Here I was trying to protect someone else and yet I’m the one that ends up needing protecting. Irony could be so cruel sometimes.

For the most part the scrapes on her hands had stopped bleeding and the place where she had bit her lip had turned into a bit of a blood blister. Both were swollen and tender but not as much as her knees; those still bled a slow yet steady stream staining her boots a crimson hue.

“Thank you,” she spoke softly then closed her eyes and bowed her head “for helping me.” She added. “Had I’d known it was you I wouldn’t have ran.” Perhaps not the wisest thing to admit but in truth there was a part of her that felt like she could trust him even though she couldn’t pinpoint the reason why.

“I just…” Acrucis paused and drew in a breath to help herself calm down. “I thought you might be the general I was warned to stay away from, the one with the eyepatch. I’ve seen the carnage he leaves behind, and so I ran.” Her voice trailed off though fear lingered in her expression when she once more opened her eyes to look at him with a searching gaze wondering if the description perhaps was familiar to him.

Acrucis drew in a hissing breath and squeezed her eyes shut. Sting was a bit of an understatement, even the fall itself didn’t hurt this much; then again when pumped full of adrenaline you tend to lack a few key pain receptors. Why did alcohol have to burn so much?

The tears pulled forth were unbidden and fortunately absent of a sob. None the less she quickly wiped them off on her sleeve. “Even if there was a safe place for us to meet, it wouldn’t stop us from running into each other like we did today.” It was true, unplanned meetings tend to happen in inconvenient times or places. “Even if I sense someone with a signature like mine, I have no way of knowing who it is. The only thing I can-” She squeezed her eyes shut and nearly bit her lip again when he dabbed at her other knee. “The only thing I can think of- it’s kind of stupid, but if we whistle or something if we’re not sure?” Just like a scene pulled from the lost boys in peter pan, owl calls and bird whistles; yup stupid idea.

“I’m open to suggestions.” Acrucis replied. “Anywhere except the park.” Too many things tend to happen there it seems; no doubt because there is a lack of security cameras and plenty of places to hide.

“I admit I haven’t been going on patrol as much as I’d like. At least, not since our clones attacked and their queen was defeated.” Mostly because her civilian life had gotten busy with semester finals and group projects. “Even powered I don’t think my immune system can keep up with the freezing.” Though a blanket would probably be wise to bring along.

It was a very real fear that sat in the back of her mind. This time of year typically brought on a whole slew of new viruses; the last thing she needed was to get sick and be stuck in the hospital again just to ensure she didn’t relapse again. Her illness had already become a huge financial burden on both of her parents. Three to four days may not seem like much to most people but after all they’d been through these past three years, predating even before she had been diagnosed, all those visits tend to add up. No, getting sick this year really wasn’t an option.

Acrucis shook her head, a silent request to not worry about it. Winter often brought about a plethora of illnesses ranging from the common cold or flu all the way to pneumonia and whooping cough. There was no need for him to know just how far down the scale her worries weighed.

Just like when they first met, and Benitoite pinned the ivy clips on his cape to her uniform, Acrucis hugged the fabric close. The scent that clung to it was not at all unplesant; if anything it reminded her of the shampoo her older cousin Jesse use to use back in High School.

"Thank you," she replied quietly. Sitting beside the large lamps, the Senshi of Prayer could feel the warmth radiating from the bulb. Truth be told, the only place outside of where they currently were that might be warm would be the outdoor fireplace near the strip-mall but a place like that would be far too crowded at this time of night; same with the one located at the outdoor rink. Then again, locations such as those would make it easier to part ways if they got lost in a crowd.

"Benitoite?" Acrucis' toes curled in her boots and face winced when he dabbed at a scrape on her knee.Ow ow ow ow "Sorry...I uh, I have a question... If that's okay." She paused, looking at him ruefully, the senshi waited for an okay to proceed.

Acrucis remained silent for several moments while Benitoite patched up her scraped knee. It almost seemed as if she had reconsidered asking him what was currently on her mind.

Worrying her lower lip she some how found the courage needed and with a deep breath to steady her nerves, her hands balled into fists holding onto the fabric of his cape as if it were a life line. "What... what would you have done if I had been anyone else?" It was hard to shake the memory of being chased, even though it turned out well enough in the end, Acrucis couldn't help but wonder what the outcome would have been if he had found another senshi instead.

"I'm sorry, that was rude of me to ask. Please, I don't mean to look a gift horse in the mouth especially since you have been so kind to me. It's just...I keep hearing these words of caution and I've seen..." Her words trailed off, clearly caught off guard by a memory she didn't expect to have. Blue eyes hid behind closed lids and almost as if she had admitted defeat, Acrucis buried her face in the folds of his cloak. "He was dead. And the... the senshi with him... he was badly hurt as well. Please tell me, tell me that wasn't you."

Her heart sank having heard he had killed before. On one hand at least it wasn't something he was hiding or lying to her about but on the other, he had taken at least one life if not more.

"Why, why did they have to die?" As the Senshi of Prayer, or even as a human being, the rational behind killing someone was something she couldn't comprehend; it went against her nature.

Though she asked these questions out of necessity to understand, Acrucis knew in her heart that he would only validify the warnings she had been given. But what about the fight against the Shade Queen where everyone was working together? His reasoning had to be more than 'because he wanted to see them dead', otherwise why wouldn't he have killed her the first time they met. "Tell me it was in self defense and I'll believe you."