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 Posted: Tue Nov 24, 2020 6:11 am
Powering up wasn't at all what Priam had anticipated doing after taking the damage he had, but Soleiyu had been insistent that this was one of the fastest ways to ensure he healed and, even if he had the time off, Priam was desperate to back on his feet. He didn't want to be a burden to Yu and Sterling anymore than need be, so when the opportunity presented itself to him that he could be more proactive about his recovery, he took the chance.
He had waited until he was healthy enough to be moving around, healthy enough to take a little walk. Sterling had been with him and he had leaned heavily on him--even when they reached a dark part of the nearest park and powered up. He was amazed to find that when he powered up, he still had his casts--and a strange warmth that made his injuries hurt a little less, even without them being on his Wonder.
Soleiyu had described the process and what to expect in great detail, and it only made sense to bring him along to make sure they could get there--and back--in one piece. Nalanda kept one arm wrapped around Qingcheng's arm as the other Cosmos Knight held onto Soleiyu.
Nalanda diligently followed the Mauvian's instructions. It didn't seem hard in theory--make a pledge to his Wonder, to the name that popped into his head when he'd first powered up, and trust in it.
He closed his eyes and focused, repeated the words--and suddenly felt completely exhausted.
When he opened his eyes, Destiny City was gone. Qingcheng was next to him, but the world around them had changed. No dark alleyways--instead, a beautiful night sky with a beautiful pastel lightshow above them. He thought it looked a bit like the aurora borealis, but with a different array of colors.
The air was cool, but not unpleasant--and he felt suddenly like warmth and love and affection embraced him. He felt safe, like the pain had been chased away. He could feel the power surging through him, even though he was a bit too overwhelmed to completely take in the beauty of this strange Wonder they'd appeared on.
"...Qingcheng," he said softly, still leaning against him. He felt out of breath and drained and rested his head on his shoulder. "...Are you all right? ...I'm afraid I need a seat already. I know Soleiyu said that would be draining, but...I feel winded. But warm. I can feel the energy here..."
"Yes," Soleiyu agreed, worriedly looking at Nalanda as he rested against Qingcheng. "Let's get him somewhere good to sit and rest. He doesn't need to be moving much, him just being here should help."
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Posted: Wed Dec 02, 2020 8:52 pm
Qingcheng was in utter awe of the place, looking around with his mouth hanging open rather comically. “This...this is your wonder?” Obviously it was his wonder. It sure wasn’t the city. It wasn’t any place he had ever been...ever thought of. Quickly, the squire looked around and moved to a large, worn stone that was large enough to sit on.
Gently he walked with Nalanda there and helped him to sit, taking a seat next to him and allowing the male to rest against his chest. “Here we are. Goodness...it’s beautiful here...this sky...if I had any artistic skills...I’d want to paint this. Seriously…”
He glanced at Soleiyu and patted his lap. “Come and cuddle, Soleiyu...do we have to do anything here or just...let him rest? We should have brought food...Had a picnic…”
Next time. They would have to come up here again...there was no way Priam would be able to heal with just one trip, right?
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Posted: Wed Dec 02, 2020 9:08 pm
Nalanda flashed a quick smile; it seemed this was his Wonder but he wasn't sure how it could be anything else. He hadn't been before and he was visibly overwhelmed, but there was something about it that just felt right. It reminded him of how he used to feel in college, when he was studying, when a concept just clicked or when he worked his way to the answer of a particularly difficult math problem.
He rested against Qingcheng as they walked. He offered a soft word of thanks as he was eased onto the platform. It was cool, but not unpleasant.
"Please," Soleiyu scoffed. "You underestimate me. I came prepared."
He jumped up onto Qingcheng's lap, keen to be close to Nalanda without risking hurting him. "Take some time, soak it all up. We'll have to go to yours soon, too. And see if we can't find Nalanda's ring while we're here. Though," he looked a bit apologetic. "You should probably just stay resting, Priam. I don't want you to strain yourself. You can come back once every few weeks--and the more often you do, the more beautiful this place will get. A long time ago, all worlds used to be covered in life. Now," he sighed. "...This is all that remains. But if you work hard to get stronger, and if you visit often and try to clean things up, it will be a big step in the right direction. Plus, it's nice to get out of the city, isn't it? No energy signatures, no threats. Ah. Usually, at least. I've not met anyone with trouble on their Wonder..."
"Is it a possibility?" Nalanda blinked, moving his gaze from the colors dancing in the sky.
"...I suppose," Nalanda admitted; he was fishing around in subspace to distract himself. "...But it's rare enough that I haven't heard of it. It's why we came--just in case."
"Oh," Nalanda answered; he seemed peaceful, although still tired. His eyes trailed along the beautiful white trees that grew around them, and their thick white leaves. They had a bit of an iridescent shimmer to them but he couldn't see so far from here. The ground was white as well, and it seemed like all of the plants had that same iridescent gleam. It seemed like there might have been a stone path, but it was old and worn and disappeared into the tall white grass.
"I was worried you'd be tired, too. I brought energy drinks, and tea, and water. And Evan--he's one of the Senshi I live with--made us sandwiches, and soup. It's not quite a picnic, but it's a good meal. If you're not hungry now, I'll put it back and we can eat more later. I want Nalanda to be here for a few hours, at least. That should help."
Nalanda let out a little sigh and closed his eyes. "...I feel like I'm in a spa," he admitted. "...It's so warm. It almost feels like coming home." He rested against Qingcheng. "Like walking right into your arms, or Yu's."
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Posted: Thu Dec 03, 2020 6:15 pm
It might have been a possibility that there was danger here...but Qingcheng didn’t feel any fear. It was peaceful. And very relaxing. “I’m glad that you feel that way, Nalanda...relaxing is what you need to do. Just think of how good this place will be, feeling like you’re in our arms…and actually being in mine.” He gave a soft chuckle and looked at Soleiyu with an expression filled with wonder.
“Seriously? Why are you so cool, Soleiyu? You spoil us…” He stroked up and down Nalanda’s arm gently, careful not to hurt him.
The idea of having food up here did make it seem like some kind of a holiday, and the smile on his face was genuine and very eager. “...Please tell Evan thank you. Priam, would you like me to feed you? Because...I’d like that. After, I’ll go and look for your ring, okay? I want to find it for you.” And slip it onto his finger...and wish that it was a completely different kind of a ring but…
Another day.
Another day indeed.
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Posted: Thu Dec 03, 2020 6:53 pm
Nalanda couldn't help but laugh. "I'm not completely helpless," he insisted. "...But it would be nice to rest my arms. If you want to, I won't object. But I could also probably manage on my own," he assured.
"Well, eat up," Soleiyu all but demanded. "Because the next part of why we're up here is going to be the hardest part. Sort of."
Nalanda moved his had just slightly; he still felt stiff and sometimes turning too quickly sent a burning pain from his neck to his fingertips, and the lingering numbness always made his heart stop for a few seconds until he got everything working again. "...What's going to be hard?"
Soleiyu nudged a sandwich towards Qingcheng. "...I've got something to help you heal. It took me forever to find it. I don't know if it will be uncomfortable. But it will help you heal, quickly."
"How?" Nalanda asked, a little surprised but obviously eager. "--The magic you were talking about?"
Soleiyu nodded. "Eat up first. If it heals you enough, you'll be up and looking for your ring with us after lunch."
Nalanda did not trust magic over science, but he was clearly desperate. "All right," he said, and looked to Qingcheng expectantly, suddenly more eager about lunch.
...He wanted to get it over with and see what Soleiyu was talking about before he talked himself out of it.
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Posted: Thu Dec 03, 2020 8:28 pm
Qingcheng took the sandwich and smiled softly, taking a bite of one half, and holding the other up to Priam’s lips. “I don’t think anything will be hard. Nalanda wants to feel better, and Soleiyu, if you have a way for that to happen, we’ll do it, no questions asked. You’re the reason that we’re both alive today to begin with, so...we know you wouldn’t steer us wrong.”
He placed a light kiss on Nalanda’s ear, grinning slightly. “Magic...isn’t bad. And if it can get you up and looking for the ring with me...that just makes things all the better, don’t you think?” There was hope in his voice as he took another bite of his sandwich, raising the other half once more for Priam.
...This place was rather magical...and it made him want to see his own Wonder...hopefully Priam would be able to go with him, but if not...well.
That would be okay too. He’d come up one day, Qingcheng was sure about that.
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Posted: Thu Dec 03, 2020 8:33 pm
Nalanda took a bite carefully, mindful not to make a mess or hurt himself. He couldn't help but smile a little at the kiss, even with a mouth full of food.
"Mm. Well," Soleiyu sighed, perhaps a bit dramatically. "I do care for you. Mauvians are tied very closely to Senshi, you know. But there's a place in my heart for the two of you and I find I care very much for the both of you. I'd be very upset if something happened to you--I am upset that you got hurt, Priam," he added. "...Now I just want to make it up to you and make sure you're getting better. So, here it is," he said, drawing a cracked bone out of his subspace.
"...A...bone?" Nalanda asked, after he'd swallowed the last bite he'd been given.
"A bone, yes. I can feel the energy in it. When you're ready, I'll crack it open."
"...This feels a bit like some folk remedy," Nalanda cautioned, offering a small, slightly strained smile.
"You'll see," Soleiyu assured. "For someone who loves fairy tales so much, you seem to have a hard time trusting in magic."
Nalanda gave him a look; he wasn't wrong but there was still something a little strained about it. "I think it's all the medical school. I'd love if magic really existed like that."
"Well, it does. And when you're feeling better, you'll have so much more of it to investigate. Have either of you used your magic before?" Soleiyu asked eagerly.
Nalanda was taking another bite and made a little noise to indicate that he hadn't.
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Posted: Fri Dec 04, 2020 9:53 am
Qingcheng tilted his head, as confused by the bone as Priam seemed to be. He looked at the little bone and nodded slowly. “...He doesn’t have to eat it, does he?” Soleiyu said something about cracking the bone...would Nalanda have to eat the marrow? That sounded...awful. But if it was the case...he would try to see about making a fire so at least it could be roasted...that was how you cooked marrow, at least he thought that was how it was cooked.
Ah. What he wouldn’t give to have Yu up here with them!
The idea of healing with magic though...Soleiyu really did know everything. “If he does have to eat it, maybe I can roast it a bit first? I can’t...imagine raw bone marrow tasting good at all…” Nor cooked, but that was neither here nor there. Idly he stroked up and down Priam’s back, taking another bite of the sandwich. “I’m excited to see magic used...I haven’t...gotten the chance to use mine yet either...but. I want to. I’m ready to try the next time I find someone to fight…”
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Posted: Fri Dec 04, 2020 12:55 pm
Soleiyu huffed. "If you'd had to eat it, I would have had Evan bake it into a pie. No, it's easier than that. I'll show you."
Nalanda relaxed against Qingcheng's gentle touch, and it felt like the meal passed too quickly. His strength had returned somewhat after the travel, and it might have been the food--or just being here on his world. His wonder.
He could see why it was called that. His thoughts seemed to drift in and out; he was torn between feeling incredibly attentive and feeling like he could have drifted into a peaceful sleep. Soleiyu did not grant him the option though, and he realized that he had zoned out for a bit while Qingcheng and Soleiyu continued to talk. The Mauvian was pressing a gentle paw on his lap and looking up at him worriedly. "Are you ready...?" Soleiyu asked uncertainly.
"Oh, yes, of course," Nalanda answered before he could really think of anything else. "I'm sorry, my mind wandered."
"It's all right. We were worried about you."
Nalanda smiled quickly. "I'm quite all right, thank you. It's just nice here."
Soleiyu watched him for a moment longer, judging if it was a trustworthy statement, but finally nodded. "All right. Then, when I do this, I just need you to take a deep breath."
It was a simple instruction; Nalanda nodded. Carefully, Soleiyu passed the bone to Qingcheng so he could snap it near enough to Nalanda that he could inhale a good whiff.
Everything went well--up until the point that the smoke made it to Nalanda's lungs. He felt fire, itching and burning and scratching, and his body seized up. The fact was, he couldn't breathe. Everything stopped. His body rejected what he'd inhaled and he suddenly found himself coughing, wheezing. It burned his throat, burned his eyes.
He couldn't hear for a moment; everything was just a dull ringing in his ears. Much of the smoke from the bone dissipated in a haze around him, and what had worked its way into his body had caused a reaction he hadn't anticipated. And yet--despite it all--he felt the warmth coursing through his body. He was dizzied by it, even as he reached a hand to his chest as if to stabilize himself.
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Posted: Fri Dec 04, 2020 6:01 pm
Reaching out, Qingcheng made to steady Nalanda, concerned by his coughing. Carefully, he rubbed the male’s back, flashing a worried glance to Soleiyu. “Nalanda, you okay? Slow breaths, I’m still here.” Perhaps it would have simply been better if he would have just eaten the bone...maybe he wouldn’t have had such a bad reaction if it had simply been ingested...but. How would it have been baked into a pie?
His thoughts felt so chaotic. This was a strange place, they were dealing with strange…magic, and now Priam was having some kind of an allergic reaction to a bone that he had broken right in front of his face because a cat told him to.
Sometimes, Sterling honestly wondered if perhaps he had simply died in the parking garage, and this whole second life. This whole powered life was simply a strange dream that he was living out. At this point...it wouldn’t surprise him.
“Is he supposed to react like this, Soleiyu? I thought...this would help him…”
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Posted: Fri Dec 04, 2020 6:39 pm
"No! It's supposed to heal him!" Soleiyu said, frantic.
Nalanda waved his hand dismissively, reassuringly, as the coughs tapered. "I'm okay," he rasped, and it took a few seconds before the coughs faded enough that he genuinely sounded like he was improving.
"I'm sorry, my lungs aren't always agreeable," he said, but Soleiyu just shook his head. "I'm sorry," the Mauvian countered. "If I'd known, I would have tried to find something else!"
"No," Priam insisted, and reached a hand to wipe up at his eyes. "I'm sore," he admitted, "But whatever that was, it helped. My back doesn't feel like it's on fire, I don't feel like there are screws in my hips."
Soleiyu seemed like he doubted this and pressed, "So you feel better?"
"I do," he said softly. "Oh," he leaned back so he could lay flat on the rock, knees hooked over the edge. "...Oh, that feels so much better, thank you..."
He was still sore, but it was leagues above where he'd been--where he should be.
He almost felt normal again.
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Posted: Fri Dec 04, 2020 7:13 pm
Oh. Cool. Soleiyu sounded like he was on the verge of panicking as well. For some reason, that almost seemed to steady Qingcheng, this wasn’t normal...and it might not have been something that he did...and then Priam was saying that he felt better.
He laid down and the Squire watched him, hesitating and laying down beside him, lacing fingers with the male. “...You really are feeling better?” He wanted to hear it said to him. Not just in general. “...So the magic actually worked?” He bit his lip, hope filling him and just a little extra excitement. “...On a scale from one to ten, what do you think you were at before the bone...and what are you at now?”
If he was really feeling better...the holidays would be so much nicer…
“...Even...even if you are better, you’ll still stay with us through New Years, right? Please? I want to spend the holidays with you and...ah. Yu.”
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Posted: Fri Dec 04, 2020 7:44 pm
Soleiyu let out a steady breath, slumping on the rock and letting the two Squires talk.
Nalanda squeezed Qingcheng's hand in response. "A five, before," Nalanda answered after a thoughtful moment. "Maybe a two or three now. You want me to stay that long?" he asked, tilting his head just slightly so he could look at him.
"I don't want to be a burden, Sterling. I know it's been so difficult, with the dogs, with me bumping into things, with my appointments. I enjoy being close to you two."
He managed a soft, almost nervous laugh. "...As long as we're not moving too fast, I'd like to stay. It would be suspicious if I didn't. I'm supposed to take weeks, months, to heal. If I'm just wandering back home and acting like everything's all right, someone might notice. You can be the only one who knows my secret. Well--you and Soleiyu. If that's okay."
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Posted: Fri Dec 04, 2020 7:53 pm
Qingcheng hesitated. “...So...you were better before? Or the...pain was worse? I should have...given an actual scale, and I’m simply going to assume that you mean the pain is down to a two or a three, since that’s the better alternative.”
He turned his head and caught Nalanda’s gaze, giving a warm smile. “Of course I want you to stay that long...it’s our first holiday season together...besides, I think Yu and I have gotten used to you being there with us...I know I sleep better knowing you’re under the same roof as me...I...would worry about you all the time if you weren’t. I know you’ll have to go eventually...but if I could keep you for the rest of the year...it would make me happy…”
There was a small bit of uncertainty in his voice at the confession. Like he wasn’t sure if things would stay the same when Priam went home. Wasn’t sure if the three of them would still…
But…
He mentioned moving too fast, and that worried him a lot. That was simply what he did, wasn’t it? Fell in love and planned a future without worrying about consequences. “But, if you aren’t comfortable, if you think we’re moving too fast, I won’t push! Honest. I don’t want to lose you, and of course I’ll keep this a secret. I’ll keep all of the secrets you tell me, Priam. It’s my job. And my honor.”
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Posted: Fri Dec 04, 2020 8:19 pm
Nalanda looked at him and laughed. "I used the pain scale we use at the hospital. Ten is bad. One is good." He didn't release Qingcheng's hand and instead just stroked the back of it a bit.
Soleiyu was forgotten, but he didn't mind; he was just relieved that they were both doing better--the Nalanda was still alive and feeling better.
"I'll stay," he promised. "...It's not like they'll let me back to work, and if we're being honest, with this cast? I think I'd probably wind up getting stuck in my clothes more often if I was home alone. And the dogs--how could I walk them by myself? ...And it's getting so cold! What would I do if I couldn't just find one of you to snuggle up with?"
He wore a soft smile, something real and genuine.
"...I'd like to stay. If it's not an imposition. It feels as much a home as my own. Maybe even nicer, if we're being honest. But my home doesn't have the two of you, so really, how could it even compare?"
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