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 Posted: Wed Dec 01, 2010 6:17 am
The snow still fell thick and heavy outside, a blizzard that made Isa wonder as to Mari's wisdom in heading out. She had woken in the morning to find Nikolai still asleep, and had headed to the kitchen to find her own guardian. To ask, to talk, to plan the next steps with the new visitor. Only to find a note on the kitchen counter with the words Stay in, I'll be right back scrawled in black ink.
Stay in? Well, where was she going to go with a patient for whom she had so many questions for?
Reheating the vegetable broth that sat in a small metal pot, she turned her back to slice some bread. Maybe not the best meals to feed a herald in the morning, but she was famished herself, and something hot and soupy would be better than anything she herself could make.
She wondered about their new guest. His story, his reason for being in the snow, for falling. She wondered what was going to happen now, and if he would open up, having spent the night at their house.
Ladling the soup into two bowls and placing the bread onto a plate, she looked around. It was quiet, today.
She preferred it this way.Preferred the quiet.
Humming slightly to herself, she hefted the tray, pausing for a moment to gain her balance. It wouldn't do to embarrass herself in front of the other herald and drop everything.
No, but this much she could carry.
Heading back into the study, she nudged the door open with her foot, peeking in.
Was he still asleep?
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Posted: Wed Dec 01, 2010 6:25 am
Through the night Nikolai slept like the dead. It had been so cold the night before, had he been out any longer the boy would have been expected to have a cold on top of his injuries. Now the warm house was pleasant and thoughts of his home in the Sanctum danced merrily through his head.
Footsteps?
When Isa had left him Nikolai was too far asleep to notice, but now as she returned the boy was starting to remember. No, there was no one else in the Sanctum. Nothing living besides him stayed there. Nothing else would make footsteps....
Blinking open his eyes Nikolai winced when he started sitting up. His dream world came crashing down around him when he looked down at the sling over his arm and the growing familiarity of pain returned. He flapped his wing a little to keep his balance and propped himself to sit up and leaned back against the chair.
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Posted: Wed Dec 01, 2010 6:58 am
Isa smiled as she saw that he was awake. Her small wings unfurled with relief, to know that at least he was not in so much pain as to still be asleep. Walking towards him, she knelt slowly, her gaze completely focused on the tray she held in her hands.
"Food." she said simply, letting out a slight sigh of relief when she managed to place it on the ground without mishap. Letting go of the tray, she looked back up at him and smiled, slightly uncertain. "Do you feel better?" she asked, handing him a bowl of soup. "It's not too hot." she hadn't wanted him to scald himself, but it was warm enough to be reassuring. "Not very breakfast-y but..." she shrugged.
Rest. Food. Then she would start with the questions.
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Posted: Wed Dec 01, 2010 7:14 am
Taking the bowl with one hand, Nikolai gave a hesitant smile in return. His arm still hurt quite a bit and it made such cheerful expressions a little difficult to manage.
"Thank you." He murmured quietly, sipping the soup. The soup warmed him the more he drank it, and slowly Nikolai had drained the bowl. He pondered when the last time he ate was; it'd been back in the sanctum, but while he was there he was never very hungry or thirsty and the fruit bearing trees kept him sustained on very little a day. This world was different, and the weight of it was finally starting to sink in.
The empty bowl was set back on the tray and Nikolai wiped his mouth with the back of a hand, glancing to his new friend. She said her name was Isa, wasn't it? Licking his lips to get the last of the soup, he tried to smile again. "Much better now... Thank you."
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Posted: Wed Dec 01, 2010 7:24 am
Isa smiled as she drank her own soup, watching as he finished the bowl. He looked better than he had yesterday. Not perfect yet, not completely healthy, but better. Placing her own bowl on the tray and pushing it to the side, she reached for his.
"Nikolai..." she started, pausing. What if this was too forward, coming right out and asking?
Isa didn't know how to be subtle. She hadn't practiced it enough yet, and they were alone enough that she didn't feel to embarrassed asking. A little clumsy maybe, but...
"Why were you out in the snow?" she came right out with the question that had been burning her mind since they had found him outside. She needed to know.
She wanted to ask so many other questions too. Had he been flying? Why was he alone? Where was his guardian? He didn't look old enough to be alone in the snow the way he had. She had never met him before, Michael being the only other Herald she knew. Was this normal? Was she supposed to leave Isa too? Why did he have a halo?
She'd get to the questions later.
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Posted: Wed Dec 01, 2010 11:59 am
Having picked up the bread to start eating, Nikolai glanced up when Isa said his name. He listened to the question as he chewed a large mouthful, taking his time to finish before saying anything at all. Even when he swallowed he was still quiet as he considered how to answer.
"I crashed." He murmured cryptically.
Having some more bread, Nikolai didn't glance up at her again until the bread was nearly gone. He could almost see her questions burning to come out when Nikolai glanced into her eyes and sighed.
"I came from the Sanctum looking for my friends.... I crashed into the light and you found me." Admitting what happened was like a small weight off his chest. He didn't want to tell people what had happened between his Guardian and himself, but if it meant he might be able to find his friends sooner then it was probably better to tell something.
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Posted: Thu Dec 02, 2010 8:19 am
Isa huffed out a breath as she began to pick at a slice of bread. She understood that much. But as he expanded on his answer, she found herself relaxing. From the Sanctum? Friends? Tearing the piece of bread into smaller pieces, she paused.
"Did your friends know you were coming back?" she asked, wondering. It would suck if they had taken him away and his friends were looking for him. "I can help you find them." she offered.
This was an adventure. A little bit of a crazy adventure, but she found herself wanting to help him. Wanting to know a little bit more about his story. Maybe he would tell her more if she was willing to help.
Maybe he'd refuse. But whatever it was, she knew it was the right thing to do by asking.
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Posted: Thu Dec 02, 2010 7:18 pm
"They don't know yet."
Sighing softly, Nikolai wasn't sure what to do. His friends weren't going to know he wasn't in the Sanctum looking for them when the stopped visiting. Maybe the whole trip was for nothing? He took another bite as he started to think it over.
He could stay with Isa until his arm got better, but that wouldn't help him find his friends. If anything else he was now more worried he wouldn't find them than before.
Lost in thought, Nikolai had been chewing the same mouthful for over a minute before realizing it.
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Posted: Fri Dec 03, 2010 6:43 am
Isa nodded her head. Well, at least she wouldn't have to worry about people looking for him, wondering where he had gone. Gathering the tiny shredded crumbs, she leaned over to dispose it into her empty bowl. Sometimes it helped just to do something with her hands. He hadn't turned down her offer either, and she she brushed her hands off over the bowl, she asked.
"Who are your friends?" she turned back to watch him, noting how silent he had been. What was he thinking about, to make him this way?
Settling back down and tugging over some of the blanket to cover her legs, she looked around the room. Mari hadn't come back yet, giving her some more time with the herald.
"You can stay here, until your arm gets better." she paused. "We can help look for you." were they heralds as well? She was curious to meet others like them, others like her.
It was a good excuse as any.
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