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for all you know - Remi - 11-22-2021
Ronin was off to Stormbreak, and Remi was off into the woods. During the night Remi had all but shredded the bandages Ronin had worked so hard on, and were it not for the blood that acted as a glue, the pair would have woken up covered in more blood than they had been before they went to sleep. Declining the Huntsman's offer to re-bandage him given that Vai would likely just remove everything, it's with a freshly-bleeding arm that he trudges through the Greatwood, occasionally growing under his breath at the predators brought near by the scent of blood.
Plucking a few wildflowers along the way, the alchemist silently prays that his twins are out and about that he won't have to explain what happened to him more than once. Mateo was old enough to understand the life he and Ronin led, but Flora and Enzo? They weren't old enough for that talk quite yet.
[say]'Oh Nonna Vai—'[/say] Remi sings out, knocking gently at the witch's door.
RE: for all you know - Vervain - 11-22-2021
Remi is lucky - his twins are out and about, having been set on a scavenger hunt by Vai that should take them, with any luck, up until lunch time. (They're hunting for Felix, not that they know that just yet). This, of course, gives Vai time to actually make lunch, and even before Remi knocks the door, he'll be able to smell herbs and roasting vegetables and venison. Indeed, as the witch answers, there's a cloud of steam that precedes her.
Vai looks good these days. A combination of the Greatwood and taking care of children has made the witch all she was meant to be and then some, and she seems both stronger and younger somehow. With that being said, her cheerful grin fades almost instantly as she emerges from the steam, able to see all too easily the stark red that streaks Remi's arm.
[say]"Oh gods, what has happened?"[/say] she asks, ushering him inside.
RE: for all you know - Remi - 11-22-2021
[say]"Hello to you too."[/say] Remi chuckles, blinking into the steam and finding that the herb-and-meat moisture on his face was shockingly pleasant. [say]"I brought these for you."[/say] Holding out the chaotic assortment of wildflowers he'd plucked along the way, Remi hazards a crooked smile.
[say]"I, uhm...got bit. I was hoping you could stitch it up for me."[/say] He explains, holding out his arm that the witch might see the extent of the damage. Much more swollen than the night before, dried blood and bits of bandage have fused themselves together up the side of Remi's arm, with clumps of hair and dust compliments of sleeping in an unclean bed. [say]"Ronin tried last night, but...it's pretty bad."[/say] The Lullaby adds with an apologetic sigh, his gaze low and guilty.
RE: for all you know - Vervain - 11-22-2021
[say]"Oh, I am sorry,"[/say] Vai says, raising her eyebrows at Remi. [say]"Hello, sweetie. Thank you for the lovely flowers. What the fuck happened to your arm? Is that better?"[/say] For all of her complaints and concern, though, the witch is still smiling to her adopted son as she closes the door behind him. Accepting the wildflowers and setting them to one side for now, she pushes open the cottage shutters to let in some fresh air and steps in to inspect Remi's offered arm.
[say]"Bitten by what?"[/say] she breathes, her blue eyes growing wide at the state of his hand and his flayed arm, the injury bad enough without even looking at the awful way it's been treated thus far. (Not that the boys hadn't tried, to their credit). [say]"It is pretty bad,"[/say] she agrees. [say]"Alright, come and sit at the table. I'll have to wash it first, otherwise it'll only get worse..."[/say]
RE: for all you know - Remi - 11-22-2021
Grinning, the pain forgotten in the face of Vai's sarcasm and affection, Remi nods. [say]"That is better, yes."[/say] He agrees chipperly, inhaling the familiar (and delicious) smells of the witch's cabin. In the warm light let in by the shutters, Vai seems to shine amidst the dust motes that circle around her. Beautiful as ever, the alchemist finds himself suddenly distracted by just how fragile he and everything else in this world was, despite how very often he acted as if it wasn't. Reaching out with his good arm to tug her close, Remi nuzzles his cheek against the top of her head, holding her as tightly as he dared. [say]"I acted very stupidly yesterday."[/say] He murmurs into her wild curls. [say]"And I love you. I want you to know that."[/say]
Extracting himself from her gingerly, Remi sits down at the table, though keeps his arm aloft so as not to bleed everywhere.
RE: for all you know - Vervain - 11-22-2021
[say]"I am glad you think so,"[/say] Vai tells him with a grin, and she's about to turn away so she might be able to fill a basin with hot water when Remi is suddenly stepping in to embrace her. She reaches out her arms around him carefully, her warmth seeming more than today, though it's likely a result of the meat and vegetables roasing in the oven nearby. [say]"Would it make you feel better if I told you that I'm not surprised any more if you act stupidly?"[/say] she says affectionately.
[say]"I love you too, Remi. And I'm glad you made it out of your stupid so you could come here and let me deal with it."[/say] Vai gives him a squeeze before letting him go at last, kissing his cheek and heading to the sink to fill the basin. [say]"Do you want to talk about it? Or I can just heal you up and feed you dinner,"[/say] she suggests, carrying over the bowl of hot water and grabbing a clean cloth as well. [say]"I can make you something to numb it all as well, if you want? It might make you a bit dozy, though."[/say]
RE: for all you know - Remi - 11-22-2021
Wishing he could bottle whatever it was that made Vai feel so warm and ethereal in his arms such that he could drink it in when next he felt inclined to be stupid, the alchemist smiles wryly and gives his head a shake. [say]"Yes and no."[/say] He muses with a sigh, reluctantly letting her go if only because he knew how unpleasant this next bit would be.
Grimacing at the bowl and cloth, Remi shakes his head slightly. [say]"There isn't much to talk about, really. We went after a relic. There was a dinosaur beneath the sea of glass that the ascended had found as well. It wasn't so much that I saw red, as it was that I saw nothing. Even after I killed the dinosaur it wasn't enough."[/say] Really, it all might have been okay had Wessex not possessed the magic she did.
Shaking his head to indicate he didn't want to be drugged, the Lullaby sits up straighter in the chair and swallows. [say]"I will do my best to sit still."[/say] He promises. And not to claw through anything.
RE: for all you know - Vervain - 11-22-2021
[say]"I still find it endearing, at least. So you can sleep soundly knowing that you're not a bother to me,"[/say] Vai says with a wink, carefully soaking the cloth in the hot water and adding a few drops of something that smells like peppermint bark, but undoubtedly has more medicinal qualities than that. The witch falls appropriately silent to hear his story regarding what had happened, her brow furrowing a little. [say]"Those relics are going to kill people before the war even starts,"[/say] she mumbles, leaning in to kiss his forehead.
[say]"I'm sorry,"[/say] she says, though whether she's sorry that Remi lost control of himself or just sorry that he just got hurt is unclear. [say]"Alright, just... let me know if you need a break."[/say] Sitting back, Vai doesn't waste any time. There's no way to clean off the dry blood and gunk stuck to the injury other than to carefully press and soak it off, but that's neither going to be quick or painless.
[say]"Once this is clean I'll do what I can with my magic, to chase away the infection that has started. I might need to stitch your hand manually though,"[/say] she mutters.
RE: for all you know - Remi - 11-22-2021
[say]"I think you are probably the only one. I really hurt Ronin, this time."[/say] Remi admits, not ashamed to speak so candidly to Vai, but ashamed of his actions just the same. [say]"I was hoping to collect as many of them as I could. Not so that I would be stronger, but to try and prevent a build up of power. If these relics are so important to the war, without them...maybe the war won't start."[/say] It's feeble reasoning and he knows it, but at this point, it feels better to do something than to simply sit about.
As Vai begins to scrub, feathers and bits of tawny hair appear in his curls and snarl up Remi's forearm. Clenching his left hand together to keep the claws suddenly protruding from carving his upset into the witch's table, the alchemist presses his teeth together and glares up at the ceiling. [say]'Mmmm.'[/say] He agrees unhappily. Despite Vai's gentle and skilled hands, every swipe of the cloth feels like fresh agony and without the numbing chill from the sea of glass, Remi finds that this hurts more than the initial wound had.
RE: for all you know - Vervain - 11-22-2021
[say]"Oh, I see... I hope he didn't get too badly hurt in the fight on top of that,"[/say] Vai murmurs, assuming the Huntsman to be fine based on the fact that he's not here in the cottage too. Or perhaps he's so injured that he couldn't make it, but then Remi has never put his own needs before his husband's, so she doubts that too.
[say]"We will need to get you a rubber band for your wrist,"[/say] she says offhandedly. [say]"You can ping it whenever you feel yourself getting a bit monstrous."[/say] It's ridiculous and she's smiling even as she says it, but it's the only thing she can offer Remi in the moment. Especially given what she's about to do next.
There's no speeding the process up, for all the tawny fur and feathers that peek through Remi's skin, and by the time she's managed to properly clean out the wound on his arm and hand, there's a sheen of sweat on Vai's brow. [say]"That,"[/say] she says, sitting back both to clean up and to give him a break, [say]"is a bitch of an injury. I hope you made that dinosaur pay for it."[/say]
Wiping down the table and rising to her feet, Vai goes to rinse out the cloth and the basin.
RE: for all you know - Remi - 11-22-2021
[say]"He was alright."[/say] Remi says with a sigh. Not great, not the worst, but somewhere unhappily in the middle. Raising a brow at the thought of having an elastic on his wrist, the alchemist imagines what it might be like and immediately shakes his head. [say]"It would have to be one strong elastic."[/say] He murmurs, smirking.
By the end of it Vai isn't the only one sweating. A few of Remi's curls have plastered themselves against his forehead, and his shirt has grown clammy and moist beneath his arms and against his lower back. There are punctures in his good hand from where he's dug his claws against his palm, but so long as he hasn't damaged anything of Vai's, Remi considers it a win.
[say]"Had it been my other hand, I would have turned it inside out."[/say] Exhaling with relief once Vai ceased her scrubbing, Remi waggles his wedding ring in her direction to provide context. [say]"In the end I just..."[/say] The sound of bones cracking, made low and ominous by the water, echoes in his ears. [say]"...broke its head apart, I suppose."[/say]
RE: for all you know - Vervain - 11-22-2021
[say]"I will see if there's anything in the Greatwood that's stronger than regular rubber,"[/say] Vai chirps with a grin, taking a moment after the basin is clean to check on dinner. Content that things are still roasting away nicely and aren't close to burning (and filling the cottage anew with delicious aromas), she returns to the table with a cool, damp cloth to swipe it across Remi's forehead.
Tilting her head at his wedding ring, Vai smiles her understanding and nods, rubbing her hands together. [say]"I would expect nothing less from you,"[/say] she admits, her healing magic generating a warm glow between her fingers. [say]"Alright, let's see if we can't help you to feel a little better..."[/say]
Holding her hands over his arm, she works on healing the flayed skin first, trying to encourage the injury to close. There's little to be done for the missing fingers, but she can at least coax the wound to behave itself, to reduce the swelling to his arm and to chase away the beginnings of a nasty infection. [say]"Do you want me to explain things to the twins, for you?"[/say]
RE: for all you know - Remi - 11-22-2021
[say]'You're too good to me.'[/say] Remi murmurs gratefully as Vai mops his brow. [say]"I was just thinking about a magic that made it so I could not feel pain, but..."[/say] Shaking his head and rolling his eyes at himself, he sighs. [say]"I don't think that would be good for me."[/say]
Finding Vai's magic much more tolerable, Remi watches as his skin considers knitting itself back together. Resisting the urge to scratch, it's the removal of the infection that makes him exhale with relief. Rotating his shoulder slightly to ease the stiffness, Remi flexes his remaining fingers experimentally. [say]"Now I will only be able to count to 8."[/say] He laments, before grinning.
Mention of the twins gives him pause. [say]"Explain what? That their father is a reckless idiot who will likely get himself killed one day, but don't worry, he won't actually die?"[/say]
RE: for all you know - Vervain - 11-22-2021
[say]"I am as good to you as any mother would be to their child,"[/say] Vai objects, smiling and setting down the cloth before she gets to work, though she can't help but agree with his second point. [say]"I think pain is as important as pleasure in keeping us human,"[/say] she says with a nod. [say]"Keep your emotions as they are, mm? They'll be good to you, as long as you take care of yourself."[/say]
She's silent so she can concentrate, up until Remi's lament; at this, Vai does let out a giggle and shakes her head to the alchemist. [say]"You'll have to start using your toes,"[/say] she suggests. [say]"Or just use two of Ronin's fingers to complete the set instead."[/say] She sits back once more to examine his arm here and there, satisfied that she'll be able to bandage him up and he'll be able to heal properly by himself going forward.
[say]"I was more thinking that their father might look a little bit different when they see him next,"[/say] she suggests. [say]"But that he's okay, and that it doesn't mean that he's any less him."[/say] Winking to Remi, she nods at his fingers now. [say]"This will be the hardest bit. You ready?"[/say]