I don't Wanna Battle from Beginning to End

[redlightgreenlight]

Characters: Valdis and Open
Date: Month of November
Location: Various
Situation: Various
Warnings/Rating: In headers


It felt like the walls were closing in. As if the sporadic mixing of the planes meant that the end was near. Valdis supposed it wasn’t strange for her to be there at the end, she’d just hoped she would find an end before everyone else did. There was nothing she could do to stop it, all she could do was live until it was over, one way or another.

Comments

[iseeall]

All seeing eyes were really helpful for not only avoiding ghosts, but also a very overprotective Klaus, who had been hovering over him since the blood breed ghost had attacked him.

Really, now that Leo knew to avoid them, he wasn't going to take any second chances. What he did find was someone he'd met before. Leo's eyes had long since healed from that instance, but he still hesitated in case whatever that was was still floating around.

The death serpent didn't appear, but the wolf and a new white cat did next to her on the bench. "Oh, hello again. Are you all right?"

[redlightgreenlight]

Valdis looked up when Leo approached, silently cursing herself for not noticing him sooner. Hila didn't look at him, but Anani stirred, yawning and uncurling himself so he could sit up and look at the newcomer.

"I'm fine," Valdis replied, dropping her sleeve to cover the new bandages, "Just changing the dressings. You seem better."

Better than last time at least.

[iseeall]

"You don't seem the type to get randomly injured." Leo was fine, and definitely not going to stare at her again. His attention was drawn to the kitty, who had woken up when Leo got closer. "I'm perfectly fine, though. Ms. Raine knows what she's doing."

He kneeled down and stretched out a hand for the cat to sniff, giving a cursory glance to the big wolf to see if she cared at all. "Did someone attack you?"

[redlightgreenlight]

Anani didn't bother sniffing Leo's hand, simply shoved his head under the outstretched hand and began purring madly. Hila ignored them both.

"I'm glad you are alright," Valdis said, reaching down to rub Hila's ear since Anani was now occupied with Leo, "It seems the ghosts can now move things, one of the people I killed took advantage of his new ability, but I'm fine." And steps had been taken to prevent it from happening again.

[iseeall]

Leo smiled at the friendly cat, scratching it behind the ears as it purred loudly. Such a cute kitty.~

He did however, tilt his head up in surprise when Valdis mentioned the ghosts. "You too? I was with Mr. Klaus when one of his ghosts attacked me. Mr. Klaus stopped him from doing any damage, but..."

Leo's hand drifted up to his neck. No marks were left there, but it felt almost like there should've been. He kept seeing the flash of vampire teeth. "That's not a good sign, with all the clashing of the planes I'm seeing."

[redlightgreenlight]

"Klaus is a good man," Valdis sighed, "And very skilled. Unfortunately, my situation is a bit unique and this particular ghost knew exactly what to do. I was caught off guard, it won't happen again."

Hila moved her tail, but otherwise didn't respond to Valdis' attention.

"The clash is definitely concerning, for multiple reasons. Have you noticed anything that might help us figure out what it going on?"

[iseeall]

Leo had situated himself on the ground so he could talk to Valdis and pet the cat at the same time, as well as check for any ghosts. He really didn't want to to have another 'nice surprise'.

"Well, I probably would've gotten bitten if Mr. Klaus hadn't acted fast enough. Still, I'm glad you're okay too," Leo said, burying his fingers into the white cat's fluff. "We should probably warn other people that ghosts are getting more harmful. As for the planes...."

Leo looked up and around, but that didn't change much at all. "I can see things distorting and happening, but there's a difference between seeing what's happening and understanding it."

[redlightgreenlight]

Anani purred madly, shoving his head and back against Leo's hands, demanding more attention.

"If the ghosts are becoming dangerous, then yes, people need to be warned."

Though Valdis suspected that those with dangerous ghosts were already aware of the problem. Valdis looked around the area with her own sight, but nothing stood out so she let the drab colors flood back in.

"Yeah....seeing can only help so much."

[iseeall]

"Aww, you're cute." Leo said, actually genuinely smiling at the cat, who was extremely demanding for attention. It reminded him of Sonic a little bit, whom he was missing. Leo could only hope that he was also frozen in time while Leo was here on the turtle.

"Do you know anyone trying to investigate this stuff? I dunno how much help my eyes will be, but maybe they can understand what's going on better than I can." He could at least not be a burden here, too.

[redlightgreenlight]

Anani mewed, dropping to the ground and rolling over to show his belly, tail flicking as he demanded more attention.

"Raine is," Valdis replied, "You've met her. Her husband was looking into the planes quite a bit, she still has his research."

Much as she disliked the man, Solomon would probably have been very useful right now.

[iseeall]

"Huh? She's married? I didn't know that." Well, he didn't get to know Raine all that well, since they mostly just talked about his eyes and what he could see. The cat meowing at him caused him to look down and use his hand to 'attack' the cat's belly. "I...we're already trying to find out what my eyes can do. I can just ask her about the planes clashing."

[redlightgreenlight]

"She was," Valdis replied, not offering details.

Anani batted at Leo's hands with soft paws, purring all the while. Hila finally looked over at them, released a huff and then looked back out down the foggy path.

"Your eyes, where did they come from?"

Valdis assumed they weren't natural.

[iseeall]

Leo was playing with the cat's paws, but got very still when Valdis asked her question. Really, he should've expected someone to ask eventually because people were curious and it wasn't unreasonable but, he really, really didn't want to answer.

"I didn't have them until about a year ago." Leo's voice came out sounding strangled.

[redlightgreenlight]

Anani was not amused by Leo's sudden stillness, he reached up with his head and nipped at the boy's sleeve.

"A year?" That wasn't very long, but by the fear and hesitation, it was an unpleasant memory.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you."

[iseeall]

"..ow. Kitty, no." Anani's prompting got Leo to start moving his hands and burying them into the fluff as a sort of comfort, though he had to try hard not to bury his whole face.


"It's okay. It's just ironic that the-the only thing useful about me came from my biggest mistake," Leo said, trying to pass it off with a smile, but it just ended up as a sort of grimace instead.

[redlightgreenlight]

The fluffy cat resumed purring as if nothing was wrong with the world and perhaps to him, there wasn't.

"We all make mistakes." Valdis pointed out, stroking Hila again as she thought, "And your eyes surely aren't the only thing that gives your life value."

[iseeall]

"You'd be surprised," he said harshly, finally making the decision to lift up Anani if he let Leo and hug the fluffy cat. He definitely needed it. It wasn't fair to Valdis, though, and definitely not to Klaus either.

"Mr. Klaus says that all the time and it's hard not to believe him but-he's just one person. Like, what if the rest of the world doesn't think that way? What if the rest of my friends don't?"

[redlightgreenlight]

"I can't say I know you well enough to be your friend," Valdis replied slowly, "But if you truly believe that your life holds no value aside from your eyes...then find new value. Keeliai is a place for second chances, take it and keep moving forward."

[iseeall]

Leo continued to hug Anani, softly stroking the fluffy ears as he tried not to get too emotional. "What good is that if I don't remember any of my time here? I'll just go back to being the same Leo I was before."

[redlightgreenlight]

"It's like muscle memory, Leo," Valdis said, watching him snuggle her cat, "Even if you don't remember, the things your learn here, what you think of yourself...it doesn't have to go away."

[iseeall]

He was absolutely snuggling the cat and really didn't want to stop as long as Anani didn't object. "Do you think that could happen? Even if I somehow learned how to fight here I'd still remember it? Or I found a way to help my sister?"

[redlightgreenlight]

Anani continued to purr, turning his head to lick Leo's nose with his tongue.

"Nothing's impossible," though she was talking about instinct, not knowledge. "What's wrong with your sister?"

[iseeall]

"Ah-kitty, that tickles." But Leo let the cat continue to groom him because the attention felt weirdly nice. And it distracted him from turning into a slime ball of tears for like the eighth time.

"She. Can't walk. She also got her eyesight stolen from her as well, and I need to find a way to restore it."

[redlightgreenlight]

So his sister couldn't walk and was blind, things that would seem to be beyond his control, but Leo had clearly said 'stolen' when it came to her vision.

"Why is that your responsibility?"

[iseeall]

Well, that wasn't keeping the tears away, but at least he didn't break down and start sobbing like he did in front of Devin, which was much worse. Leo just imagined like he was talking to the cat.

"These eyes...I told you they were the eyes of the gods, right? For someone to receive them, another person's eyesight must be taken away. That's what both me and my sister understood as-as that thing appeared in the sky," Leo said.

"I-I-couldn't speak. I was so scared I couldn't say anything. And Michella, she just-she told the thing to take from her. I couldn't speak up so she had her happiness taken from her!!!"