[PD] Unexpected reconnections & ramifications (Emery & Pyry)

[MoogerMint]

The buzzing in his head and numbness he was feeling made it difficult to wrench his mind completely from the thought that he may still be living some wild dream at present. There would have been nothing more that he would have wished to turn out true than that tentative question, but something told the boy that this was reality, whether he chose to accept it or not. How was he supposed to believe it if he couldn't even feel Pyry's hand, as Emery reached for it in aid? He couldn't even tell if his fingers were actually working to grip the outstretched hand, or if Pyry had to do all that work himself in order to pull the half-frozen magnemite off the ground.

Emery was quick to briefly latch onto Pyry as he helped to steady the boy. He still wasn't sure how steady he was going to be able to remain himself, but wasn't this just adding to Pyry's pain? It was apparent that the cryogonal was having difficulty standing on his own, what with the conjured staff at hand. Emery didn't feel any pain at the moment, so why even worry about his condition? Being numb was a good thing, wasn't it?

He didn't understand, and Pyry's take on the whole event had him utterly baffled, even if it had made him feel a bit more at ease. He put a hand to his head, dizzy and still trying to make sense of the situation through the catalyst that was Pyry's words. He tried to fidget with the radio dial at his side, but he couldn't seem to find it with the sense of touch taken away from him. While he still looked unsteady, his first reaction was not to comment on his own well-being, "...You're bleeding." Didn't that automatically trump anything else? What was Pyry so afraid of having happen? Was it just because of the way Emery had been acting before?

His other hand reached for the wall to keep himself upright. He didn't want Pyry to strain himself more than he already had, but he wasn't sure how well either one of them could make it to wherever Pyry's home was. "How far is it?" the concern in his voice wasn't misplaced, but the effort it took to focus his attention may have made him sound skeptical.  

[Lirilei]

Pyry didn’t mind one bit that Emery was hanging onto him, he figured it was probably for the best he had, as stiffly as the child seemed to be moving and how hard it appeared for him to stand he didn’t blame him really. Pyry himself was having just as hard of a time, and thus his conjured staff to lean on for support.

He could see by the look on his face he wasn’t grasping the seriousness of the situation he was in. “I’m bleeding yes…but you’re going to freeze to death if you don’t get moving. NOW!” he had never raised his voice to this point in his life, but the others life hanging in the balance worried him and he knew they couldn’t waste much more time before the cold took hold and couldn’t be gotten to let go.

The question on how far it was drew a slight breath of relief from him. “Not far, a little further up the mountain. Mister Escher keeps it well protected, we’ll both be just fine there. Come, I’ll help you.” And he did move closer, arm wrapping around the others waist, staff held close. “Hold on to me…don’t let go no matter what and we’ll be there in no time.” And there…an impish sort of smile on the teen’s face and his arm tightened more as he began to rise up in the air, feet no longer on the ground thanks to Levitate. Being taller than the magnemite he was of course going to pull him up into the air as well. It would be faster to float them there, than for them to walk. Being up in the air as he was, he felt an immediately relief from the pain in his legs. Still there, but lessening due to no weight on them. He glanced to Emery in the process of all this, to make sure he was okay before doing anything more than this, waiting on a reaction. If he was going to panic, doing it now while it was just his own feet off the ground was best.  

[MoogerMint]

Even if Emery wasn't able to fully grasp hold of what was going on, or able to focus on everything Pyry was trying to convey to him through the fog, Pyry's next words cut through as sharply as the bell had through his confusion moments earlier. 'Freeze to death'? That could happen? Wide-eyed, he glanced to Pyry as though to ask as much, even if his choice of words was a little more vague, "W-What do you mean?" While he may have been unfamiliar with the idea of death on the whole, the implications were as clear as they could have been. He wasn't hesitating, especially if the teen was using such a commanding tone; much as with the supervisors at the factory he used to live in, he knew that meant that you did what you were told. No slacking, no exceptions.

Luckily, walking was more of a mechanic motion, otherwise he was sure he wouldn't have been able to remain upright so long. Perhaps his movements were still precarious, but he tried his hand at walking with what felt like the absence of his legs. It was... very strange, to say the least, as though he were walking a tightrope. At least he had Pyry's support to stay upright, but he felt he was relying a little too heavily on someone who seemed more injured than he was. Apparently Pyry thought the opposite. "Thanks," he managed to say, though it was only after those first few steps did he realize how exhausted he really was, holding onto the cryogonal's shirt tighter than he really registered. It was extremely disconcerting.

However, that dismay didn't last long, for before he knew it, he was being lifted into the air. At first, he thought he was falling, and scrambled to grab onto Pyry tighter. When he realized his feet were no longer touching the floor -- and neither were his friend's -- was when he recognized what was going on. Emery used to be able to do this, too; it felt just the same as before. With a start, his questions came hesitantly, "Hey Pyry... this is all real, right? This is actually happening?" He'd had dreams like this before, but none so vivid.  

[Lirilei]

It was easy to see the moment his words began to sink into the others head, and become a very real possibility in his mind. It was a relief in a way to see he’d finally managed to get through to him, he’d been worried he would have to keep arguing with him, and just flat out carry him from this cold cave. “I mean, it’s too cold here for you, and if you stay too long…you’ll end up…not being you anymore. You’d be a mister Emmerich popsicle, and I don’t want that.” Not at all! Seeing the reaction to his sudden change in tone was surprising. He didn’t tend to raise his voice, so that he’d been instantly listened to was shocking!

The others fingers clutching tightly to his shirt didn’t bother him at all, it seemed to bother him about as much as the cold which was to say, it didn’t. The tight grip was a reassurance of sorts to the worried teen, it at least let him know the other was still awake for the time being. If that grip loosened, then he’d really be panicking! “You’re welcome.”

He let the staff clatter to the floor and watched as it shattered into several icy shards, though he wasn’t caring. No instead the hand that had been holding it curled around his own body and towards Emery in an attempt to hold him just a little tighter, just to be on the safe side. Content the other was okay with this new plan of action he began to move them from the cave and back out into the open, glad the approaching storm had his a temporary lull. That question though, it brought a smile to his face. “Yes mister Emmerich sir, this is all real I’m afraid. Come…we’re almost to my home and then I can take care of you and make you well.”

The wind was picking up a little, causing his hair to dance around his face, the remaining bells still woven into his hair tinkling as they went. The cave would be visible in a few moments more, around this giant rock blocking the view. That Emery had come so close…it surprised him!  

[MoogerMint]

Implications were still quite a bit far from facilitating true understanding, but they certainly weren't established without comprehension towards the imperative tone in Pyry's voice. Much like reading a word that wasn't in one's own dictionary of encountered vocabulary, Emery could at least pick up on enough from the context. As a magnemite, a pokémon walking the thin line between natural and artificial, the concept of 'death' was a little more difficult to fully perceive, even if it applied to him much more now that he had found one of Jirachi's stars. Pyry seemed to be able to grasp it well enough for the both of them, but that still left the young magnemite with a want to understand his own predicament more fully, even if it was a frightening idea. "I can still move, though," he insisted, taking Pyry's words a little too much at face-value, partially as an attempt for him to elaborate. He had correlated the lack of feeling with his state of mind, not the frostbite caused by the cold. Why would temperature impact a person so much? He had still not gotten used to such differences between his metallic shell and the skin that now replaced parts of that.

Even though the shattering staff was considerably louder, it took a bit of effort for Emery to realize that the sound was coming from the surrounding area at all, and he didn't flinch to the sudden noise as he normally would have. He glanced down at the broken staff, still distracted by the static he couldn't turn down, as Pyry repositioned his grip on the boy to pull him closer and get a better grip. Oh, that was right... "I'm not too heavy?" he asked, turning attention back; it wasn't like Pyry looked like he did much in the way of physical labor, after all.

Emery did, however, flinch a little at the confirmation that this wasn't a dream. As much as it was nice to know for now, the fact that Pyry actually was hurt, and that Emery was in danger he didn't quite comprehend, made such relief feel a little misplaced. He tried not to let his grip falter, but he couldn't tell how tight he was holding on, or if he was even managing to at all. He just felt so exhausted, he didn't want to move. Instead of looking where Pyry's home was indicated, his mismatched eyes fell on the cut on Pyry's forehead instead. "...What's going on?" he hesitated; he felt like he had asked that before. Had he only thought it? He couldn't tell, he was just so dizzy... Leaning into the teen, he closed his eyes to focus on the sound of the radio static, and the chimes caused by the wind through the bells.  

[Lirilei]

He didn’t know why the sharp tone had caused him to listen and right then he didn’t care, he could ask questions later he wagered. For now… well for now getting Emery out of the cold was the most important thing. “Not if you stay here much longer. You’ll start feeling really tired, and like you can’t move, or don’t want to. You’ll just want to stay in one spot to sleep… and despite being really cold, you could suddenly feel warm…that’s because your nerves are freezing, your skin freezing, your blood…all of you. You wouldn’t breathe, or anything anymore.” It was one of those things Escher had him study in the time he’d been under the Palkia’s tutelage. So many things learned.

Pyry grinned at the question of weight and shook his head. “No, not that heavy at all. I probably weigh more than you being bigger anyhow.” It made sense to him. Still he wished he could move them faster, but he was having a hard time focusing with his pain and own confusion as to what all happened really. So to be asked what was going on…?

A sigh was exhaled, slightly warm breath playing over the magnemite’s hair as he did so. “I’m pretty sure my appearing like I did scared you, and you defended yourself from what you saw as a threat. I don’t blame you, I don’t look like I used to. I’m taller and older looking and the light was to my back. Would have made it hard for you to see my face. I’m sorry for scaring you like that, it wasn’t my intention.” Why yes, he was fully taking the blame on this whole fiasco, it seemed – to him – to be the truth. He felt Emery lean against him, grip slacking slightly, and he stopped levitating a few feet from the cave.

Instead of that which was too slow for his liking he was scooping Emery into his arms intending to carry him those last few feet into the cave, a barely concealed wince at the sudden pain lancing through him at not only his own weight on his legs, but the added weight of the magnemite. Still it was ignored, and he inhaled sharply…and held his breath, and grit his teeth in an effort to block the screaming pain, the throbbing in his head dancing with dizziness suddenly. No, he would not black out from this sudden wave of pain. Just one foot…after the other…maybe a dozen steps and we’ll be there…I can do it. I will do it!.  

[MoogerMint]

Well, from what Pyry was explaining, it was probably a good thing Emery hadn't managed to voice how he was feeling at present. His expression knit, but it was out of a jolt of concern: he was already experiencing most of those symptoms. That's what led to death? He forced an altered trajectory for the conversation, if only because Pyry seemed so worried for the attacker he had every right to leave out in the snow, "What about you?" Yes, he knew that Pyry was an ice type -- he could still recall when he had tried to stop a truck by launching frozen knives at it -- but he didn't know how well that stood to being transformed, either. Obviously it didn't do so well for a steel type.

While surprised that Pyry seemed so sure he could lift his own body weight if he had been carrying another person, he had no reason not to believe as much. It was a relief to know as much, for Pyry already seemed to be doing a bit more than he was physically capable of accomplishing at present. It was true, though, the cryogonal had grown since they had last met. Despite being right there with him, Emery had nearly forgotten that, considering Pyry still acted like the Pyry Emery remembered.

Pyry hadn't been too far off base with his assumptions, but considering the past seemed to keep rewinding itself in the most unpleasant of manners, Emery could decipher parts that he would have been able to elaborate on, even if he couldn't explain the reasoning. He sank a little in Pyry's grasp, but he hoped just the fact that he had to ask what had just transpired would indicate that he wasn't in his right mind, not that he thought so little of what just occurred. His voice was apologetic in tone, but the conflicting word usage was likely to give a confusing answer, "I would have... attacked anyway..." Pyry wasn't kidding when he said that all Emery would want to do was sleep, but he tried to fight it off, focusing on the white noise that was only heard in the conscious realm.

He couldn't feel the pain coursing through Pyry's body, but the cryogonal wasn't the best at hiding the reactions. Disoriented, Emery opened his eyes again, squinting past the vertigo. He didn't need to see Pyry clearly, or be able to physically feel his stumbling actions. "Put me down," he quietly insisted. It didn't matter if he probably couldn't hold his own weight up, at least Emery wasn't the one feeling that much pain! This wasn't right!  

[Lirilei]

“I would probably eventually freeze to death too, because I’m more fleshy than icy. While I still like the cold, I seem to handle it a little worse every time I grow.” He was cold right then but he truly suspected it would take quite a bit longer out in this weather to fully do him in. This wasn’t a theory he was willing to test this very moment however, or really in any moment. It was a strong hunch though. “So don’t worry too much about me mister Emmerich, I’ll be just fine. I’m worried about you and all the metal on you. Metal gets really cold when frozen like this. I don’t want you to freeze.” Not a bit!

He wasn’t the most muscular of teens…really he was sort of wiry… he was rather sturdy thanks to all his traveling around as a child. He could carry more than it looked like, case in point being Emery didn’t really feel that heavy to him…at least his upper body. His lower was screaming at him for picking the child up but he didn’t care.

There was a puzzled frown at those words, trying to work them out into some sort of sentence that made more sense. ’ I would have... attacked anyway...’ why would he have attacked me any way? I don’t understand…. oh…. and then he did understand. At least he thought he did anyhow. Mister Emmerich doesn’t like me…that’s okay. He doesn’t have to, so long as he lives. He can’t hate me if he’s dead…and I won’t let him die hating me, when he’d be better off alive and doing so.

The moment Emery requested to be set down Pyry did so….only because they were through the cave and out of the storm. The cave while still chilly at least in this portion was still warmer than outside. As they moved deeper in, it would warm up more, and begin to look less like a cave and more like a home. Which of course it was. “Come…mister Escher will have a fire going…you can warm up there and I will get you food, and dry clothes, and treat your wounds so you won’t die and you can continue to live and hate me, because I would be really sad if you died mister Emmerich, because then you’d have double the reason to hate me and I don’t want to have given you any reason to hate me, least all all letting you die on me when I could have saved you.” Why yes…Pyry was rambling between the pain and his worry for the other.  

[MoogerMint]

Well that was a discouraging explanation to hear... so even Pyry, the kid practically made out of ice, was probably not immune to this sort of weather condition? Then Emery's survival rate would have been a shot in the dark, if he had been left out here to fend for himself. The one odd chance Pyry had of finding the magnemite before he froze to death, and what did he do? He tried to kill him... He shivered, though the action went unrecognized. Instead, he shook his head, lifting a hand away from its grip on the cryogonal's shirt and carefully maneuvering it to touch Pyry's forehead, near the cut. That's what he had meant... that's what Emery had done?

While the magnemite would have easily been able to guess that Pyry was just as confused as Emery was, for slightly differing reasons, he wouldn't have known the extent that any assumptions lied. He was not one to hold a grudge, treating each encounter as a separate instance, a new start, regardless of past interaction. The fact that he could so easily correlate Pyry as a friend would have felt strange, if it wasn't for the fact that the teen was backing up such quick labeling to such an extensive degree. How could anyone consider Pyry anything but a friend?

As Emery's request was recognized and carried out, the boy felt a sense of relief that he could become a little less of an encumbrance. At least, he could for about a second before he realized a little too late that his legs refused to act in the manner they were built for. His temperature had dropped in order to keep his core from freezing with the rest of him, causing him to stumble backwards into the wall, half-catching himself before sliding to the floor in his fatigue. He was having a very difficult time insisting his own body cooperate with him, but he listened to Pyry's explanation on what the place had to offer.

It wasn't difficult to pick up on the teen's misunderstood presumption to how Emery felt about the icy teen, but it was nonetheless completely unexpected. "...What? Hate you? N-No, I-- nngh..." he attempted, but the effort took too much energy. He tipped forward slightly, the static on the radio running silent for a brief moment as it was cut from its power source. The sudden stillness caused Emery to jerk back into consciousness, the touch of panic stinging where he still had feeling as he tried to pull himself further into what Pyry kept referring to as a cave.  

[Lirilei]

The touch near his cut was surprising, and he gave a smile about that. “I’ll be okay. I froze the wound a little, so it won’t bleed so much. Upside to being an ice type, I can sort of coagulate the blood by cooling it down. I won’t bleed much more, until I start cleaning it up.” It ached oh yes, and the area around it was swelling slightly, discoloring mildly. He’d be fine though he knew.

It would have done Pyry some good to know that the other wasn’t reacting because of anything Pyry was thinking he was. To know how his thought process worked on things and all. It’d have done him a lot of good, and cut down on the stressing he was doing in fact to know this. But he didn’t…so it didn’t.

“Mister Emmerich!” Pyry’s voice was a soft cry of concern as he reached for the other as he stumbled back against the wall moving closer to him despite the pain he was in. Oh he hurt, he wanted to get off his feet, his legs hurt in ways he couldn’t describe. But, he was thankful the cold was numbing it as well as it was until he could get to the potions and such they had.

The fact he was tipping over, the noise he’d been hearing stopping frightened Pyry in ways he hadn’t felt since he was a child and he lurched forward a cry of pain tearing from his lips as he did so, though by that point, Emery was jerking upwards again. “Come…inside. Warm drinks…warm blankets…potions…fix you up so you’re okay…you’ll be okay. Won’t let you not be okay…” yes, worried rambling!  

[MoogerMint]

While Pyry's smile may have been reassuring overall, it was probably for that very fact that it annoyed Emery so much more. How could the magnemite be sure about Pyry's defense if he smiled through the pain like that? The words may have made sense when he was able to deliberate on them, sure, but it still felt like he was being lied to in some manner. All he could really offer in response was a growl, but it was muted and sounded quite pitiful. He pulled his hand away and nearly replaced it at its handhold, until he realized the blood on his fingers.

The temperature change while out of the snow was still indistinguishable at the entrance of the cave. The magnemite-boy already knew he needed to get himself further inside, as per Pyry's knowledgeable instruction, but that was a bit easier said than done. He probably would have let the teen help him further inside, as he had planned to do before Emery had requested the release, if it wasn't for the fact that Pyry was obviously in far more pain. That much was obvious even while vocal directive was becoming like static on the radio, background white noise to a muddied and half-conscious mind.

Stubbornly, biting back the stinging fear, he used the wall as a tool to get himself back up off the ground. While he may have been content to stay where he had fallen, it was made perfectly clear that that was a bad idea, even if it was the easier solution. Moving with only the sense of pressing forward as guidance was certainly disorienting, but not impossible, just so long as he maintained attentions toward staying upright. Without the sensation there that told him that he was properly steadied by the cave wall at his arms, and the accompanying dizziness, it was difficult to discern if he were even walking straight. He had slightly more feeling left in his shoulder, so upon realizing this, he leaned more heavily into the wall to guide himself better. Had the radio grown quieter since he last listened, or had it been that way for a while and he only just now realized it?

The sharp cry hadn't gone unnoticed, but Emery's reaction time was delayed until Pyry continued to speak, exhibiting stronger, telltale signs of panic. The magnemite felt like he was feeding off of it, if only because it seemed like something he should have been experiencing himself. He'd have responded clearer if he wasn't afraid he would only pass out again! As he moved further inward, as instructed, a metallic sound ricocheted off the floor to his side. Wincing at the sudden noise, he glanced over to see the dented bell that he had picked up after their little skirmish had completed. Oh yeah, he had still been holding that... like a vague memory, he recalled that it was because of a bell that he was even here in the first place. He'd have to remember to give the one in his pocket back, once he had the capabilities of fishing it out again. For now, he merely made his way as far as he could without obstacles snagging, as long as there was still wall he could prop himself up on.  

[Lirilei]

The growl despite how pitiful it was, surprised Pyry, making those impossibly blue eyes grow wide in surprise. What had he said or done to deserve such a reaction!? He didn’t know the other thought he was being lied to, when while not lying he was trying to ease any fears for his concern. He was hurt yet, but he would survive. It was good training, is the way his mind was seeing it.

He hovered close to Emery as he leaned against that wall and worked his way deeper into the cave area ready to catch the other if he faltered. Sure he was limping, the numbness was starting to wear off quicker than he’d like but he wouldn’t let his focus waver from his friend.

That one of his beloved bells had been dropped by the other and was in such sorry shape hadn’t gone unnoticed by Pyry but he had more important things to worry about. Bells he could replace, Emery he could not after all! Finally, Pyry hobbled a short distance off and returned pushing a chair and set it behind Emery. “Sit. We get you fixed.” We, he. Either way Pyry would fix him. Here, a fire would be easily felt, it was already going after all, and would serve to start warming Emery up. Pyry was raiding the shelf they kept things on, various potion bottles clinking together as he scooped them to his arms and came limping back to the chair and wincingly lowered himself down so he was kneeling next to the other.

“First, shoes off. They’re soaked. Feet need to be dry and warm. Will get socks soon, blanket is on back of chair…scarf and jacket will keep you warm till I get you better clothes.” He was rummaging through the potions to find one that would help, and found it finally, smiling. “Here, this helps…super potion. Will fix much that’s wrong.” He uncorked it and held it to the magnemite keeping hold of it as he did so it wouldn’t spill. He was completely focused on his friend, though his body was screaming in agony. He wanted Emery out of his own pain though, not even realizing it was his own pain causing most of Emery’s problems.  

[MoogerMint]

With all the distortion Emery was receiving from his senses, he hadn't realized Pyry had been hovering nearby until the teen had wandered off in a different direction, retrieving a chair and bringing it over. The child might have argued if he hadn't found himself grabbing for it, half conscious of his own actions, as though someone else were moving his limbs but tethered to a sense of deja vu. Saying he didn't want to oblige now wouldn't have done much, considering his frozen legs seemed to want to give out on him altogether. He pulled his legs up, hugging his knees to his face as he huddled on the seat, pulling the coat collar closer against the scarf and listening to the colorful sounds the potion bottles made as they tapped against one another in Pyry's search.

As Pyry returned, Emery tilted himself in the opposite direction a little. He wanted the cryogonal to take care of himself first, not worry about some kid that wasn't even feeling any pain at the moment. Sure, he was a bit scared, for this hadn't ever happened before... but he couldn't comprehend why attentions were turned in the manner they were. Even if it had been explained, they didn't seem to add up as well. How serious were Pyry's injuries? He never explained that!

He didn't move his feet from off the edge of the chair, and tried to remove them as instructed while they were still perched. He could barely move his fingers, and when he did, he had no sense of how far, or really that they were there at all. Regardless, he fumbled with the laces on his shoes before he got too irritated, and ended up sliding them off using the chair as a shoehorn to the back of the footwear. No, he was still not accustomed to what proper manners were.

With the super potion held out to him, Emery seemed to shrink back a bit more into the scarf. He didn't notice he was shivering at all until he decided to try to say something again, the tone wavering a bit, "What a-about you? I'm not feeling anything... does it h-help with... the cold?" Was the shivering a bad sign? He didn't know; he wasn't used to being able to feel temperature like this! Reluctantly, he tried to grab for the potion, but he wasn't sure if he could actually grip the thing like he wanted to with the decreased mobility. How was he supposed to administer it, anyway? Blinking, he voiced his confusion, "Am I supposed to... drink it?" It wasn't going to try to choke him, was it? The child noticed the end of the scarf had clung to his arm, and he worked to grab hold of the potion using the scarf for a better handhold. It smelled terrible... hopefully his taste buds would be just as numb as the rest of him. Wincing before even trying it, Emery took the medication and made a face as he handed it back. Nope... he definitely tasted that. "Ugh, that's gross..." he complained, bundling himself back up in the few layers he had.  

[Lirilei]

There was an amused smile at how Emery removed his shoes and he moved them closer to the fire from where he was at so they could dry that much faster. The other pulling away from the super potion though, had him just hold it steady. “No…not so much the cold, though it will help you get strong again regardless. Me?” he did look down at himself speculatively. “I will drink one too.” And he did pick up a second one then, and worked the small cork free, and brought it to his lips and drank it down like one would water.

Setting the empty vial down he breathed a soft sigh of relief almost, he could already feel the pain in his legs lessening slightly, the pain in his head vanishing entirely from the cut he’d had. The ice that had been placed as a patch was melting away from the heat and ran down Pyry’s face unnoticed, a small scar left in its wake, but nothing more.

He was still in pain, though not as much as he’d been before, though he was sure another potion would help him out. He would do that before long really. “Are you cold? I will move the chair closer to the fire.” And he did pull on the legs a little to tug the chair forward with Emery still in it. “What are you doing up here in the mountains mister Emmerich?” it was obvious the child wasn’t prepared for this weather, so why come here? It made absolutely no sense to the ice teen!

“Oh! Warm drink…will help the shivers.” He was pushing himself up, legs still stiff and sore but not to the point he wanted to yelp when walking. It didn’t take him long to heat water and make up some hot tea that he brought back after a few moments. “Here..hot tea…will warm you inside and help you warm up on the outside.”