pyrighteous | [OOC] Folkmore IC Inbox

[Casey fidgets a little at that, gaze shifting downwards.]

When we talked for the first time... I was only thinking of Hunter. I didn't- or I couldn't... see you as a person yet. Or not enough of a person to look for another way of dealing with this. I wanted to save him, but the only solutions I could think of were kind of just getting rid of you. Letting you rest, or putting you back in a portrait... that's all it boils down to either way.

[He shakes his head.]

It was really thoughtless of me. I should've realized this was an option, that there was a way you could both live. So... I'm sorry.

[ Well. The staring at Casey like he grew an extra head is certainly coming to a middle. ]

Of course that's what you thought. You prioritized Hunter - that was correct.

[ Like what else was he supposed to do! ]

I didn't think there was an alternate way out either.

I mean... maybe. [Correct, yes. He should always prioritize Hunter. They're dating, he loves him- there are many reasons.

But.] I didn't... feel good about that, though. After. And I've been thinking about it a lot since Master Draxum suggested finding another body for you. It isn't like you asked for any of this. [He swallows hard.] I don't want to be like Belos. Throwing people away when they're inconvenient. That isn't me.

[ Oh. Well. Ah. The guard sees it now. It took him a moment, but...

He swallows rather thickly. ]

I don't think you could possibly be like him. He would never have even tried to help.

[Casey looks at him for a moment, then offers up a tentative smile.]

He wouldn't have apologized, either.

[The distinction is important. To recognize he messed up in a big way, even thinking the way he did, and to make amends by choosing this third path and doing everything he can to make it happen... well. Actions do speak a lot louder than words.]

[ That gets the tiniest hint of a smile in return, barely visible. ]

... No. He wouldn't have. I don't think I ever saw him apologize once.

[A smile from the guard! That's a victory, small or not.]

Not surprised. You need to have a heart to care enough. [A jerk. What a huge jerk!] Anyway, if you really want to thank me, you'll promise to fly with me sometime.

I can promise that. Yeah.

[ He says it quite seriously - then again he says everything seriously. ]

I'm ... looking forward to it. Now that I can see what I'm going to look like.

[ he keeps sneaking shy little peeks at the bird. ]

[So very serious... he wonders if finally getting to live again will eventually lighten the guy up. Though it had taken Hunter some time too, so it's no wonder.]

I figured it would be important for you to see it, yeah. Draxum said that once you're out of Hunter's body, you might get confused and not know where to go, so we'll all have some kind of talisman to avoid being possessed. But if you know what your body's supposed to look like, then maybe it'll be easier for you to find it during the ritual.

[ The guard looks dimly ill at the thought. Wandering around as some kind of ghost, struggling to find his way, maybe ending up in someone else's body ... He shivers a little. ]

I'm glad you thought of it. That ... alternative is horrifying.

That was all Master Draxum. I never knew about that part...

[Pretty horrifying for him, too. It would be the same problem all over again, except he's not sure the rest of them could have managed it half as well as Hunter has.]

... He knows what he's doing, I'll give him that. He knew what to do in Hunter's head too.

[Casey makes a face at that. He's still trying not to be angry with that man, but a little bit still lingers.]

He doesn't always know as much as he thinks he does.

[ The guard cocks his head a little at that. ]

What do you mean?

[He hesitates, then. The fight's over and done with, Draxum won't do it again- that's enough, right? Now it's just a matter of Draxum learning how to do better, and Casey figuring out how to gradually trust him again. (Hopefully. Eventually.) And Hunter... well, he learned plenty too. They're all good.

On the other hand, he'd want his big brother to look out for him, if he had one.]

Did he tell you any of what happened? With Draxum and his galdorstone.

[ The guard slowly shakes his head. ]

Nothing at all, aside from the fact that he bought one specifically to chip off for me.

[ Unsurprisingly, Hunter hadn't really wanted to relay his fight with Casey - or bad decisions with Draxum - to the guard. ]

[Well, he can't blame Hunter for that. Hopefully he won't get mad that it's getting shared now, but... Casey hadn't told anyone else, and he kind of wants someone to hear about it, if only so he has someone else to help him keep an eye on Draxum's poor decisions. And to rant a little. (Mostly just in case, though.)]

Draxum wanted to open a portal to our world to send a message, but he needed more energy to try it. Hunter offered his galdorstone as a power source.

[ The guard's eyes IMMEDIATELY go wide with horror. ]

What? Doesn't he know what that would do to him? To us?

I don't think he does. I could only guess. What would happen?

[Because context clues are there - if his heart runs out of power, how would he stay alive? - but it sounds like the guard is more certain with his knowledge than a guess.]

[ Oh yes. This is the utter, grim certainty of someone who witnessed it first hand. ]

It powers us. It's what keeps us alive.

[ Nothing Casey hasn't assumed so far, most likely. The guard's hand flinches towards his chest. ]

If the stone's in good shape, it'll recharge. But if it's not, then it can't replenish any magic. You lose your mind first, and then your body falls apart.

[ Here, the guard's voice wavers just a moment. This memory hurts to dredge back up. ]

... Belos had me do it to the guard before me. One with a different stone. Except he didn't tell me who I was actually destroying - he told me I was fighting a monster. And I believed him.

[Casey's eyes widen at that, horrified. He'd felt it, right to his core, that it was bad, but he never thought it was like that. His fear had been Hunter's death. This is... beyond that. Awful. What if Draxum had pushed too far? What if his failsafe hadn't worked and the stone wouldn't recharge? So much could have gone wrong. He could've lost himself... lost everything.]

I'm so sorry... that's horrible. [Add that to the list of wretched things Belos has done.] Do... do you know what kind of state the galdorstone is in?

[It's been used for so many guards before, and now this. Is he going to be okay?]

[ Here, the guard hesitates. Can he know for certain? No. Not really. But he has good reason to assume that his logic is correct, given he's seen the opposite play out already. ]

... The fact that we can talk like this means it's probably still fine. I'd be lost first if it were in danger.

[ Put simply, bluntly. An ailing galdorstone couldn't possibly hold a fully realized guard like this. ]

[Some of the tension that had been rising in Casey's body language bleeds out at that; his shoulders slump, and he presses his face into his hands. God but he really didn't want to start stressing about this situation again. Can it still be okay? Can everything be fine, be allowed to be fine, after everything?]

Probably fine... [It isn't enough, but it has to be enough. The discrepancy is going to be the end of him one day.] He promised he wouldn't do it again. That extra galdorsone he got is proof of that. So he won't be tempted to use his like that, ever.

Nothing's ever definitely fine. [ The guard pairs this with a faint shrug. Like. Sorry Casey, you'll never get unqualified reassurance from THIS guy.] But that's a good idea. Yeah. Hunter is ...

[ Baby brother darling he is trying so hard not to dunk on you. He really can't say anything that wouldn't be rude, so he doesn't. ]

Anyway. The fact I'm here is proof the galdorstone is okay. And if he's acting normally - including stupid, boneheaded decisions - the galdorstone is still okay.

[ Okay fine a little rudeness as a treat. ]

[Casey's lived a life of perpetual Not-Fine-ness, he knows it well. He nods along with the response, though it's the last comment that makes a smile creep back onto his lips, weak and worried, but grateful. It was a stupid, bonehead decision. He'll remember that one.]

Don't worry, I really let him have it. Probably too much. If he does anything like that again he's so doomed.

[He doesn't think Hunter will, though. He'll trust in that promise, as long as he can. Anyway, they have two other galdorstones if one is needed. That should be plenty.]

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