Wanderer Lost, Wanderer Found
Adelle Bastiel | Sakri | Eliana Shan | Kalic Daws | Darlyn Excron | Taozi Fuyuan | Maximar Fugold | Song
"...Okay."
The word sounded muffled and strange on Na'an's lips. The air on her skin felt strange, pressing as close and warm as the arms around her chest. She made no move to free herself from them; they supported her weight as she leaned forwards to reach for Daws again. As she brushed his hair aside, the Miraluka seemed to seep into her fingertips. The confusion and pain, the fear of the unknown, memory and pain and loss...she had to blink away another fresh bloom of tears from her eye as she pressed in closer.
"You never had time to come to terms with what was done to you," she said, in that same strange voice. "But it's okay."
Red (Darlyn, something in her sang, Darlyn, his name is Darlyn) was warm against her back. His concern, too, was warm, a smoky warmth like old embers red as his hair. Stay upright, it whispered, and Na'an shivered as it radiated up her shoulders, strengthening her spine. Stay standing, go slow. So full of empathy. Go gently.
"You're not alone."
Another pair of hands were on Na'an's shoulder: young hands, female hands. Rabbit (Taozi, TaoziTaoziTaozi, yet still in a soft velvety voice, a rabbit's voice) was true to her name, it seemed. Cautious and untrusting, unsure even as the power of this green planet helped her open up to new possibilities. But she was a healer, and the pain in Daw's heart was like a knife in her own. She had a healer's hands; even untrained, they knew where Na'an should touch on Daw's temple, how gently to press to feel his thrumming pulse.
"It doesn't have to hurt this much. It doesn't have to define you. You are alive, and that means your options are infinite."
The waterfall was so quiet. Her heartbeat was so loud. Heartbeats. Everything had blurred at the edges, as if the water swirling over their feet had washed away some invisible border. Which pulse was her pulse? Which thoughts her thoughts? Which name her name? Did it matter? There were so many now. All it meant was that sinking back into the cold place inside Daws took no effort at all.
"Even when she calls for you. You can decide."
In a moment of clarity, Na'an heard the voice coming from her. She smelled something sweet and musty, like tea leaves freshly used, and with it came a rush of satisfaction. Of course. Doc.
"It's gonna be ok."
Hands--warm hands, healer's hands, hands as deeply held in the Force as earth--touched the shard of ice in Daws' memory. A scarred thumb brushed at its edges...
and something inside of Kalic Daws melted, very slightly.
