i hope you don't disappear

Aurelia

I want to know where I can go
when you're not around

The sun here is warm and welcoming, nothing like the torrential rains and harrowing winds that plague Torchline at this very moment. She doesn't know them personally, but she heard about how bad the monsoon season got in Flowerbirth. Part of her is guilty for not being there at a time where help is probably needed.

Another part of her, a much bigger, more selfish part of her, is glad to be away from it all. Call her an escapist, that's what she is. It's not the first time she's set out into the great, big wilderness to run from everything. And trust that it won't be the last time. This is different from all the rest, though.

She blazes a trail as they walk through the thinning treeline, but she halts at its edge before they go any further. It opens up into the wide, open space of King's End, miles deep and silhouetted by hauntingly tall hills. She leans against a nearby tree, hand on her hip, and narrows her eyes at the vast expanse.

Her expression relaxes, though, as she turns to look at Milo. Her gaze lingers over his hair as a strong breeze pushes past the two of them. "Hmm," she says, thoughtful. I'm glad you came after all, she wants to admit, but her throat tightens around the words.

"So, Red," She smiles up at him cleverly. A pet name. It's a first, but now that she's tried it on for size, she thinks she likes it. "What do you think? Ready to conquer the world yet?"

and I'm feeling down
so won't you stay for a moment

code credits go to Skylark!<3

MILO

island smiles and cardigans
these nights that we've been drinking in

It was a strange thing to leave everything you’ve known for the unknown. Unknown to him, of course. He’s sure everyone else is more than excited to explore and yet Milo? Milo has some reservations. The furthest he’d gone was a brief stint in Halo followed by the Climb and he’d crawled his way back home with the quiet promise of never needing to leave.

But that was before her.

That was before Jack had offered a spot on the Ark.

That was before Milo had decided to take a chance.

So here he is. Walking through King’s End with his girlfriend, a few weapons on him that he hasn’t used in quite some time (something he chastises himself internally for), before he’s finally looking back over at Aurelia when she looks back. His bronze gaze drifts along her face as she inspects him in return. An easy over confident smile meets her before he’s raising a red brow at the nickname. “Oy-” He comments, cutting himself off when she speaks further.

“’Spose so. Ain’t able t’do much else, yeah?” He offers with a hum of a laugh, moving forward to wrap his arm around her shoulders and pull her in for a hug. “Y’can take th’lead though. Yer the one with experience.” He tips a wink her way as he pulls away, allowing her to.

we're here to help you kill all of this hurt
that you've been harboring

Aurelia

I want to know where I can go
when you're not around

His presence is warming and bright as always, and so she has to fight the urge to melt into it. Her hand wraps around his hip to keep him there just a little longer, unperturbed by the weaponry he carries. She looks up at him with that same wry look. "Mhm," she pulls herself a little closer into his side. "Experience, huh? I'll make an adventurer of you yet, don't worry," she quirks a single brow up and nibbles at her bottom lip, but whatever flirty joke she has stirring in the back of her mind is dropped in favor of taking this a bit more serious.

"I've been here once, before Longnight - after those storms went away. You'll be glad to know it's nothing like the Climb," thanks to Melita, she's privvy to his last venture out of Torchline, "Don't think we have too much to worry about... except maybe a witch," she shrugs nonchalantly, letting him go to move towards a taller tree she's already scoped out. It's one of the tallest ones along the outskirts of the hills, and though its branches are not the biggest, it has quite a lot of them.

"With this much open space, it's easier to get a good look around," she gazes up the length of the trunk with a determined little frown on her face, "just gotta get someplace high up. Wanna gimme a hand?" She asks, glancing over toward him hopefully. The first branches are a little too high for her to reach herself.

and I'm feeling down
so won't you stay for a moment

code credits go to Skylark!<3

MILO

island smiles and cardigans
these nights that we've been drinking in

“Don’ doubt that fer a second, Relia.” He chimes with a playful laugh, a bright grin shot her way as she keeps him close to her. Touch was an easy way for Aurelia to communicate to him what she wanted without having to say the words for it, so he’ll linger for however long she wants him to. He’s happy to, in fact.

His head cocks a bit as she mentions she’s been here before, a smirk of relief spreading across his face. “Th’Climb was shitty ‘n too hot. That’s sayin’ somethin’ from bein’ from Torchline.” He snorts, shaking his head slightly and exhaling a long, slow sigh. “A witch though?” He raises a red brow in silent question, following her to the base of the tree she’s chosen.

Understanding blossoms in his head, over the idea of getting to higher ground. Like when he had spent time in the crows nest, how different could it be? So he hums a soft sound of agreement, Milo stepping forward to give her the boost she seeks – bending down enough to wrap his arms around her waist and hoisting her up so that she might be able to reach the branches – sure that once she was there she could help him climb up too – provided that was the plan. “What’re we lookin’ for? Jus’ anythin’?” He asks.

we're here to help you kill all of this hurt
that you've been harboring

Aurelia

I want to know where I can go
when you're not around

"Uh, yeah, it was," she agrees awkwardly. Her unintentional visit to the Climb is something she hasn't expressly told him about, nor the events that took place beforehand. She's kept it internalized so far, not wanting to weigh him down with such unnecessary burdens. It already feels like it didn't really happen.

Milo is curious about the witch and she figured it might catch his attention. "Yep, that's right," she nods, feeling humorous, "a witch. I'm on her good side though, so just... stick with me and you'll be fine," and she flashes him a wink over her shoulder as she approaches the tree.

He lifts her and, with the assistance, she's able to get to the branch. She grits her teeth with a hiss of pain as she puts pressure on her arm, which in turn strains the scabs built over her wound. Otherwise, she makes it with little issue from that point - and also pretends she didn't just make 'ouch that hurt' noises.

She waits until she's sure that she's got a good grip and balance before she turns toward him. "Yeah, basically," she heaves a deeper breath, pausing to explain, "it's mainly to get a lay of the land and make sure things look alright. We can identify landmarks for later.. and see if there's any animals around. Never hurts to get a bird's eye view," she trails off and shrugs down at him, assuming he gets the idea, "unless you're afraid of heights," she smirks as she reaches out to help him up with her good arm.

Once she helps him up, she'll start leading the way up the tree. She tries to ensure they take the safest path up, checking branches before she puts weight on them and steering away from those that appear too thin to hold them.

About halfway up she glances at him and asks curiously, "You don't happen to still have that spyglass, do you?" The one he'd used on the ship. It wouldn't be necessary but it would definitely be nice.

and I'm feeling down
so won't you stay for a moment

code credits go to Skylark!<3

MILO

island smiles and cardigans
these nights that we've been drinking in

The mention of the Climb being shitty and her response to it has Milo quirking his head a fraction, gaze skating over her curiously but putting a pause in it for the mention of witches, though, because truthfully that’s far more interesting. A red brow raises as he barks a laugh when she tells him she’s on her good side. “Y’sure about that?” He retorts, humming a laugh at the wink she shoots him.

The tree is soon above them and he’s adjusting to help hoist her up toward it. Her hiss of pain instantly has him a bit concerned, but he’s sure that she’ll tell him if something is wrong. For now, though, she has gotten ahold of the tree, and he stands down there peering up at her through the branches to listen to her explanation. “Me? ‘Fraid of heights?” He waggles his brows at her with a crooked grin. “Nah.”

She helps him up into the tree and he hops up after her with ease, making his way through the branches, following the ones she’s made sure were fine to stand on that wouldn’t falter beneath their feet. “Mm, yeah, I got th’spyglass.” He mutters, wrapping an arm around a branch to reach down around his waist, where the belt he wears has an extra leather loop, one that holds the glimmering silver spyglass.

But then his curiosity gets the best of him as he climbs up to meet her, nudging her with an elbow and with a serious look in his bronze gaze. “Y’doin’ alright, ‘Relia?” He asks, head angling toward her bad arm.

we're here to help you kill all of this hurt
that you've been harboring

Aurelia

I want to know where I can go
when you're not around

Aurelia chuckles softly at his retort. "Think so, she told me my fortune after all. And she told me to come back sometime," she shrugs, though, because thus far she's been unable to find the lady of the swamps. Of course, she knows where she lives, but she's not too sure about intruding just to say hi.

She smiles at him with an approving look. "Good. Because we're going to the top," she declares, before heading off up into the tree.

Her pause is in part to ask him about the spyglass, but her shoulder is also starting to feel raw from the way the material of her shirt chafes against the bandages hidden beneath it. So she stops halfway up and glances across at him as he comes up beside her. The serious look in his eyes makes her stiffen. Her lips purse and she shifts uneasily beneath it, but quickly tries to brush it off with a confused furrow of her brow.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be? C'mon, we're almost there," she nudges him back and makes a move to continue their ascent with a bit more determination. She pauses again but only enough to ask, "Out of curiosity, is there anything you are afraid of?"

and I'm feeling down
so won't you stay for a moment

code credits go to Skylark!<3

MILO

island smiles and cardigans
these nights that we've been drinking in

“Oh shit.” Milo replies with a bark of a laugh at the idea of hearing a fortune. “Y’should take me sometime.” Flashing her a playfully crooked grin, he follows her along the branches as they climb up and up. “What was yer fortune? What’d she say?” He asks with all the boyish curiosity over what it could’ve been, before she announces they’re heading to the top.

Which is fine, Milo doesn’t mind. It isn’t heights that frightens him but simply the fall from such a distance.

He’s sure with his feet and hands though, attuned to Aurelia’s hisses of pain from earlier and the way she seems to pause – though he can’t tell if it’s because something hurts or because he’s asked her a question. She seems to brush right past it though and his bronze gaze narrows a fraction on her before they’re climbing up again. “I dunno. Seems like yer hurt or somethin’.” He offers her quietly – unable to shrug given the way his hands cling to the branches.

But they’re climbing up and he gives a fair bit of thought into Aurelia’s question. “Yeah, ‘course there are.” Milo barks a laugh. “Dumb things. Like lightnin’ ‘n thunder.” He flashes her a small smile.

we're here to help you kill all of this hurt
that you've been harboring

Aurelia

I want to know where I can go
when you're not around

"Sure, why not," she eyes his lopsided grin before continuing, unable to offer a smile in return. What she'd asked for - if she should have left, and would she have? If Mildew had told her a different answer, would she still be here? Would she have let those cards determine her fate? She likes to believe not, but at the time she wasn't as sure of anything as she is now.

"I uh... I asked her if I should stay in Torchline," she admits with an uneasy edge to her tone, glancing back down at him again to try and see his reaction, "she told me that if I did, I'd see horrible things," she raises her brows at this, "but that if I saw them through, I'd come out stronger for it." And the phrasing of it all had appealed to her desire to be more; stronger. "I don't know how right she was but it doesn't matter anymore. I'm here to stay," she adds on with a lot more heart in her words, hoping to reassure any doubts she's brought on. As long as he was there with her, she could probably see anything through - horrible or otherwise. Of course she doesn't know how to say that, and climbing a tree is serious business anyway.

Milo's eyes narrow at her and immediately she knows he's not satisfied with her answer. "I'm just uh.. sore, Milo - from the ship," she offers in very lackluster explanation, but she gives him a small smile with it, "nothin' a bit of stretching won't fix." I am a terrible liar, she decides, grimacing to herself as she pushes upward and onward.

She can start to see the top now that the branches have thinned out, and comes to a halt as near to it as they'll be able to get while still being relatively safe. Slowly, she brings herself to her full height on the branch so that she can peer out across the wide open space and the bright sky above them. Strangely enough she feels a little light-headed, and her fingers fumble to tighten their grip on the tree for a second. With a pang, she wonders at her injury, but ultimately she brushes it off.

"Lightning and thunder are scary, especially if you're out in a storm," she replies with a look of understanding, before tacking on with a scoff, "and nothing is as dumb as my fear of being eaten by plants."

"Mind if I see that?" she holds a hand out towards his spyglass. There's a pulse of blood she can feel rush through her head and she sways a little, moving that hand up suddenly to a branch above in order to steady herself. "Unless, uh, you want to take the first look?" She blinks, trying to will the feeling away. Very bad place to be getting light-headed.

and I'm feeling down
so won't you stay for a moment

code credits go to Skylark!<3

MILO

island smiles and cardigans
these nights that we've been drinking in

The answer to what Aurelia had asked of the witch is something that does draw a fraction of confusion from him as he peers up at her through the branches, red brows drawn together curiously. “What kinda horrible things?” He asks, though he imagines that the witch might not have elaborated. He hopes that it isn’t too horrible, of course. But then it might not be life changing and all of that.

But she tells him she’s here to stay and he flashes her a bit of a relieved smile. “’m glad, ‘Relia.” He offers, pulling himself up through the branches again, his hands reddening from where they’ve gripped the bark of the tree so tightly.

Her answer is one that Milo doesn’t quite believe, but he doesn’t know how to push it. “A’ight.” He half mutters, nodding up at her as the tree’s branches begin to thin out the closer to the top they get. He settles on a branch beside hers, one that he’s deemed sturdy enough too, and sits rather than stands.

“I mean, I guess. Th’stories y’ve told me tho… I don’ blame ya fer it.” He offers with a bright laugh, focusing on his belt loop that contains the spyglass. He unhooks it and moves to hand it to her, bending over the branches with ease, one arm wrapped around the trunk. “Y’can go first.” He wouldn’t even know what to start with looking for, anyway. Better to have someone that’s been around the block or two to check it out first, then point out the things of interest to him.

But he looks back at her as he notices her swaying slightly and he clutches the spyglass closer to his chest as he moves to climb up on the branch he’s chosen, reaching around to try and steady her arm. “Y’sure yer alright?” He'll keep asking if he has to.

we're here to help you kill all of this hurt
that you've been harboring

Aurelia

I want to know where I can go
when you're not around

She pauses for a moment, trying to remember if there was anything specific Mildew had said about what she might face. "Dunno, she didn't say, just that it would be horrible. Very cryptic," she shrugs her shoulders before reaching for the next branches. The bark is pretty splintery and rough on her hands, too, but hers are calloused and worn from years of things like this. She manages not to mind it too much, as she hesitates before adding a breathy but genuine, "Yeah, me too," in agreement.

She tries to settle on the branch she's chosen even though she feels bit out of whack, too much to sit at least. She chuckles with him at the mention of the stories she's shared with him, which brings a feeling of ease. It's nice, not having to explain. "Lucky for me you don't have anything like that here," she tilts her head to angle her gaze towards him where he sits and holds out the spyglass, but then her head's throbbing and her muscles suddenly feel fatigued and she has to right herself.

She tries to turn on the branch to pull away from him, though of course it's another attempt to reassure him and it seems like she'll manage at this point, no more swaying. "Yeah!" She sounds a bit defensive at first, but then sighs.

She does not notice the feeling of bark loosening beneath her feet from the way she's pressed on it. "It's just- woah-" Suddenly it slips and crumbles. Her boots skid with it. Whatever she was going to say will have to wait because the branch she's holding onto cannot handle her full weight, even though she tries to rebalance, and it snaps with a loud crack.

A startled outcry catches in her throat as she takes a completely unplanned dive. There is a very brief moment of 'oh fuck' that dawns on her face before she's snatched away by gravity. But her fall is fast and sudden, too sudden for Milo to have been able to snag her.

The tree itself, however, has thick enough branches that, rather than fall straight down to the ground, she sort of... tumbles through, gets kicked around by a bunch of branches and vines, until she's eventually spat out.

Any air in her lungs is cast out forcefully with a sharp gasp. Her hands immediately reach around her ribcage, as if that'll do anything, and she curls in on herself. A groan is muffled by gritted teeth, and her skin burns from a series of scrapes she collected on her way down.

After several excruciatingly long moments, her lungs relax and open up to her shuddering breaths, which do not help to ease the pain she's in. "Rgh- Fuuck-"

and I'm feeling down
so won't you stay for a moment

code credits go to Skylark!<3

MILO

island smiles and cardigans
these nights that we've been drinking in

He supposes cryptic certainly falls under the scope of a fortune told by a witch, but he doesn’t comment more on it. Because despite what the fortune was, she’d stayed and she’d stayed with him of all things – granted he doesn’t know if she’d seen the witch before or after they had their rendezvous, but it’s a question he doesn’t particularly want to ask about any further. So he doesn’t.

There’s a soft laugh that meets her when she agrees it’s good there weren’t people eating plants here, though, and he finds it to be just as relieving. But then she’s growing defensive over his concerns and all humor and amusement fades away into the background, Milo shooting up on the branch that holds him, reaching out for her just as she begins to fall – the fabric of her shirt slips through his fingers and his heart lurches. “Aurelia!” He gasps, surging forward to try and grab her but by then she’s already fallen through the branches.

“Fuck fuck fuck.” He hisses under his breath, pocketing the spyglass again and zipping through the branches. He misses one himself, landing hard on his side on the branch below it but he manages to catch himself to keep continuing his descent, ignoring the lining pain of the bruise that’s sure to form along his ribs. It wasn’t anything in comparison to her on the ground, having fallen through the branches from the very fucking top.

He drops to the ground, rushing to her and kneeling over her, hands already glowing for his healing. “Where’s it hurt, ‘Relia?” He breathes, pants, gasps as he tries to surge for his own air, moving to run his hands along where her hand curls around her ribcage. “It’s gonna b’okay.”

we're here to help you kill all of this hurt
that you've been harboring

Aurelia

I want to know where I can go
when you're not around

Each breath hitches on a wave of agony that strangles any words she tries to muster; words to try and stop him from rushing down the tree to get to her, to assure him that she's still fine(???), to prevent him from injuring himself. As much as she tries to speak, even as he hones in and crowds over her, she struggles to.

Finally, as the overwhelming feeling ebbs, she hisses out miserable profanities, "Shhhhit! Damn it!" Her head rocks back to look up at him. She snags desperately at his hand as he reaches for her, squeezing him firmly. She's not even thinking about his healing magic, not until she sees the glow of it.

"'m fine! I'll be-" Stubbornly, she attempts to get her bearings and force herself onto her feet. But as soon as she lifts herself up, she slumps back down, forced to give up on that idea pretty quick.

She huffs out a frustrated, pitiful sound, "Ugh- just- gimme a sec." Nothing is broken, at least, not that she can tell anyway. Maybe a cracked rib or two - bruised, definitely.

But her head feels pounds lighter and each movement is dizzying. As she casts a glance down at her shoulder, she turns her head away almost immediately with an exasperated groan. Puddling through her shirt is dark red blood; an explanation for her lightheadedness.

"Well, that s'not good," she remarks dryly, words slurring a bit at the end. "Y'wouldn't happenta have... a bandage, would ya, Red?" It's a half-hearted, ill-timed joke. She focuses back on him with a contorted expression, still trying to mask her pain in spite of it all. Now that she knows the wound has been reopened (and probably worsened) by her fall, her mind is hard-pressed to draw away from the searing pain.

and I'm feeling down
so won't you stay for a moment

code credits go to Skylark!<3

MILO

island smiles and cardigans
these nights that we've been drinking in

There’s one thing he considers and it’s the fact that she’s gotta get better at telling him when something is wrong. But they take it one step at a time, as Milo makes it down to her (even if he hits a branch on the way down). He makes it to her, and she begins to try and speak. “Fer Frey’s sake, Aurelia.” He hisses under his breath, his glowing hand held within her own as his gaze finds hers, pain and worry. “No. No, yer not okay.” He says just as stubbornly, getting into her space to keep her from getting up.

“No. ‘m not givin’ you a second.” He mutters, running his hands over her chest, pausing before his healing magic releases itself and notices the red splotch bleeding through her shirt. He turns his attention there instead, hearing her joke but he’s not in the joking mood. His hand rises to her shoulder, pouring his healing magic into it in the hopes of closing it up and burning off any infection before it had time to set in.

He sighs, placing both hands over her to pin her there between his arms as he scans her face, the shoulder he’d healed of hers, down her chest to her ribs. “Where’s it hurt?” He asks, voice thick as he focuses on her.

we're here to help you kill all of this hurt
that you've been harboring