post of shame

[psycholawgy]

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[sortileges]

[ Well he's happy... but the embrace makes him hiss slightly as her arms aggravate the cuts and bruises across his skin. He holds her tightly though, just bites his lip so he can feel this even in his soul. ]

I love you too. [ He's still holding the frame tightly, not wanting to drop it. ]

[psycholawgy]

Oh - [ ah, she did not consider his wounds at all. ] Sorry! Sorry!

[ things seem back to normal, at least. and it's better this way. it's so much better, especially for athena. ]

Are you— [ okay? ]

[sortileges]

[ He doesn't let her pull away though, arms holding tight. ]

It's fine. Just... [ He shifts himself a bit, leaning back just enough to give her a sheepish smile. ] It's just a few cuts and bruises. I didn't want to keep Shigeru worrying the entire time, he already had to listen to me for two days.

[psycholawgy]

[ she just flops on him, then, resting her head on his shoulder, her knees folded on the couch as she's embracing him.

after a deep breath, she asks: ] Do you want me to look at them?

[ she's no medic, but she can at least put bandaids on or povidone-iodine on wounds. ]

[sortileges]

[ He missed her warmth, that's the first thing he's noticing with this. Her head rests against him, and in turn he nuzzles her hair a little. ]

It managed to do the front, but I'm not sure what my back is like. I used anti-septic wipes though. [ And the sting that caused told him enough that he had something there.

...Really, he doesn't want to worry her either, but ... hiding them seem like a bad idea right now. ]

[psycholawgy]

[ a hand moves to his back to massage it a little, hoping she doesn't hit any of his cuts or bruises to make the stinging worse. what she does want is to make him feel better, and rest would be the best option, but she doesn't want to leave him alone.

not right now, not when they're together again like this. ]

I promise I won't throw up if I see it.

[ she's joking, she swears. ]

[sortileges]

[ It aches a bit, but it could be much worse. ]

That's reassuring. [ He's also joking though, as he finally pulls his hand back to lightly brush her cheek. He shifts forward a bit, no longer twisting towards her as he reaches for the bag he took with him. The medicines and bandages he'd packed were still left inside. There wasn't much else in there. ]

...Just in case. [ He adds, before she thinks that he's changed his mind and definitely might need helping. He hesitates then, reaching to give her hand that had been on his back a gentle squeeze. ]

Here. [ It's much quieter before he reaches for the corners of his top, pulling it up over his head.

It probably looks more worrying than it is, especially as there are teeth marks along his side.

Why is this the first time she gets his shirt off.......... ]

[psycholawgy]

[ she tries her best to hide her surprise when she sees all those wounds. and the first thought that occurs to her is that she feels so sorry for him. she's experienced fighting the monsters in the labyrinth too, but having to do it a second time...

this guy really is an idiot.

her fingers run through some of the bite marks and the cuts before anything else, just tracing through them lightly. they don't seem to be serious injuries, though, and that gives her relief. she'd cry otherwise.

she makes way for the bag and puts some anti-septic on some cotton and starts dabbing them on the wounds. she doesn't say anything to him, mostly because she has nothing to tell him right now. she's already told him what she wanted to say, as well as the fact that she loves him. that's all she wants to tell him for now, really. ]

[sortileges]

[ He is, but-- the pay off was worth it. After clearing his head, after learning that even Excalibur couldn't cut down those creatures on the upper levels and after creating a small earthquake.

It was worth it.

He shivers slightly when her fingers touch over the bites and cuts, eyes fluttering slightly. It still stings a little, but his body is fighting to heal already. The biggest threat is infection. ]

There's something I told you in that-- [ He hisses softly when she starts dabbing at the wounds. Really he hasn't done anything since he showered so it probably needed updating anyway. ] --letter. The sword. I wanted to see if it worked on something over there.

[psycholawgy]

Let me guess, [ dab. dab. ] you wanted to beat those golems?

[ she already knows that they're unbeatable, even though she does have one part of it in her room, but after reading his letter, she understands better.]

What was it like over there?

[sortileges]

I wanted to see if a blade that is supposed to kill anything immortal would work. I don't think... they have a life force though.

[ He goes quiet for a moment, just letting her keep dabbing. His eyes close, though it isn't out of tiredness, but remembering the past few days. ]

Empty. I forgot how dead it felt there. [ He tilts his head back to peek at her. ] I managed to open the ground though.

[psycholawgy]

They don't, [ her voice is quiet, agreeing with him as she continues to practically paint his back with anti-septic.

but she only knows this because she never heard a heartbeat from those golems, even though they were alive. ]

Why did you open the ground? Did anything-- [ bad happen? did you go insane, merlin. you need to tell her these things. ]

[sortileges]

[ "Alive". He still doesn't get how that works. He'd considered magic. A spirit. Now it just baffles him. But he looks confused at her when she says that, finally finishing with a smile. ]

Earth magic. I wanted to practice where it wouldn't accidentally hurt someone. Nimueh did something once. I wasn't really with it... because I was dying, you know. But I could see what she was doing to Arthur. She made the ground collapse and I thought... it might be useful?

[psycholawgy]

You can pull down your shirt now, [ she says as she finishes up, getting up to get rid of the cotton balls she's used in the bin somewhere close. shigeru likes keeping things tidy, doesn't he? hopefully there's a bin nearby.

she listened, though, but just doesn't know what to say to it. or how to react. except-- she does have a question. ]

So you were practising? Something like that?

[sortileges]

[ He tugs it back on into place, this time letting the hood drop. The bin, thankfully, is just to the side though it has a foot pedal to lift the lid. ]

Something like that, yes. I mean, not only that, but the earth part of it was. ViViD isn't the same, you can't really feel the elements there in the same way. So it's more accurate to practice somewhere outside of it. Here.

[ He pulls out a set of wet wipes from the bag to offer it to her, just to get the antiseptic from her hands. ]

[psycholawgy]

[ she takes the wipes as she sits back down, wiping her hands clean now.

she really wonders what it would be like to use magic, now. it must feel so different. while merlin felt lonely, if she could use magic, then that would be something else she can help him with. to keep him company. but alas, it's not something that can be taught - or so she's told. she'll never be able to learn, but at least this makes her continue to be astonished by the different things that he can do. ]

What else did you do there?

[sortileges]

[ It isn't, or well it is but the grounding that a person would need for it... doesn't really exist here or he can't teach it anyway. Gaius probably could, but for Merlin it's always been natural instinct. With her hands cleaned up he moves to entwine their fingers, holding her hand.

The photo frame should be safe on the side by now, anyway, and glancing at that makes him smile faintly. ]

What else? The rest was probably similar to before. Though... I talked to Shigeru properly. Finally. We've talked a little before but not really about everything.

[psycholawgy]

[ once they're holding hands, she rests her head on his arm, just kind of flopping there next to him because of how tired she is. but being with him is relaxing. she isn't so sleepy anymore, and it really does feel that her worries have gone away. ]

Boy talk, then. [ she says jokingly, though who knows, she might be right. ]

[sortileges]

[ He lets go after a moment, but it's more to twist so his arm curls around her shoulders, pulling her into him. ]

I'm not really sure Shigeru is capable of that. He just mostly listened to me as I tried to sort out my thoughts, actually.

[psycholawgy]

[ he's getting another tight hug, nuzzling his chest with her head like a baby bird, too. ]

I'm glad you got somebody to listen to you.

[ considering she. usually blacks out when things get real bad. ah... gomen, merlin. :( ]

[sortileges]

[ It still aches when she shifts to hug him tightly, but he really can't complain when he's missed this as well. His hand slides through her hair, mouth dropping to press a kiss against her forehead. ]

Yeah.

[ He leaves it at that though, letting his other hand slide to cup her cheek, rubbing his thumb over her skin. He wants to ask if she's been sleeping badly, but maybe he's stupid for that too. Expecting her to carry on as normal or something. ]

Did you want to nap?

[psycholawgy]

[ she does want to rest like this, in his arms. she doesn't even think about his condition or anything, though, but instead, asks this question instead. . . ]

You won't leave me?

[ because the last time she did fall asleep... ]

[sortileges]

[ He feels guilty for that. Knowing he shouldn't have done it, but at the time he didn't know how else to fix it unless he started writing everything down to get it to her sooner. Now though? ]

Never again. [ He slithers down a bit, keeps his hand on her face as he tilts it to kiss her properly since before he left for the Labyrinth. This time, it's a lot softer, slower but deeper. The speed of it is actually a lot more sensual, more about trying to get her to see that he really won't leave her now. ]

[psycholawgy]

[ never again... the words ring in her ears as he kisses her, and she melts into it, closing her eyes and cupping his cheek at the same time. the kisses she returns are much softer yet playful, like rabbit slowly nibbling on a carrot. this is probably the strangest comparison for it, but ah...

there's even more relief passing through her entire body now, though. if he won't leave her, then she has nothing else to worry about. ]

[sortileges]

[ His lips part slightly to let her nibble, though after a beat or two he concentrates on her upper lip, sucking it lightly, flicking his tongue over the skin and this time it is teasing.

Really, he just wants to ensure she feels loved now. Especially after what he's put her through. ]