missed

Aurora + Relationships 1/?

Tell Me Tuesday

Tell Me Tuesday 

Getting back to Alia Terra was Axel’s only plan these days and he sure as hell wasn’t planning on being any bargaining chip if he had a say in the matter. So he was just trying to lay low, heal up a bit before risking the adventure back to the gates. Which meant he needed to be able to run, and with his knee all jacked up and ribs that weren’t quite whole, he wasn’t moving very fast any time soon. 

“Oh now, what’s that? A bit of worry for little old me? Or just absently curious?” He shifts, tugging on the front of the neck of his shirt. “Black, blue, purple, green - not sure what color I’m not to be honest but it would certainly be a shorter list.” 

She couldn’t help but roll her eyes. Obviously she cared, at least a little, about the guard. Cared enough to risk reprimand to save him. Alia Terran might have feared exile, but at least they could plead a case with Silver and possibly join their ranks. Being exiled from the Outsiders typically meant death. Even she couldn’t explain why, seeing a half-dead Alia Terran, she’d wanted more for him than a fate of being dino food. He might just be her first sign of weakness, of letting herself care now that the portal was gone, because SHE got to decide her priorities and who she wanted to be. And that... that was something she was invested in.

                            SURVIVAL IS NOT THE ONLY THING CRESSIDA LEARNED—the desire to be alone and an intense disillusionment are lessons from philipe and bernice. cressida does not seem to be wired like most people—not afraid of danger, not afraid of blood, and not afraid of LONELINESS. most people like to be loved and validated, most people like to have somebody to come home to—not cressida.  if the young woman could have each and every whim played into reality? everyone would DISAPPEAR until called for. the jungle outside the gates is perfect—who the fuck wants to live there? voluntarily? not a lot of people—WELL, not a lot of friendly and cheery people. cressida wants no company, but as far as sharing the jungle goes? things could be a lot worse than sharing with the outsiders; most of them want to be left alone too. 

                            eyebrows crease into a genuine look of concern, “ are you fucking DAFT? ” cressida questions with a low and serious tone—the look of concern isn’t for aurora and that much is clear: it is a look of concern that someone could be THAT reckless. “ what kind of a death wish do you have? i don’t know what the hell a BARBIE is, but i know what a BITCH is and listen… ” the words come to a drawl as cressida pins aurora under a dark stare before the thought comes to a finish with a wink, “ no rules outside the gates—nothing stopping me from MAIMING you in that bed you told me about unless you want to, y’know, get the fuck away. ” 

She didn’t know what a Barbie was? Of course she didn’t. Aurora only knew because her grandmother had a collection, well worth a million dollars. It was the sort of thing people of the Danes’ status had. An entire room dedicated to plastic-encased Barbie dolls, ones a granddaughter would never be allowed to touch. Something anyone who wasn’t in the 1% wouldn’t have experience with. Toys of the past rarely maintained a real presence in the present in anythign other than collectibles. What a stupid mistake, drawing on a childhood memory just to make an insult. Shit.

But then Cressida went in on the threats, and Aurora knew her error wasn’t as serious as she’d thought. No, Cressida was on a rampage to blow off steam now, and it was only going to get more fun between the two brunettes.

“Ohhh…alright, alright…” Axel soothed, sensing the tone behind those muttered words, the defense that raised around them like retracted claws extending. He made a mental note not to offend her; she may have a calm, cool, and collected exterior, but he had no doubt she could raise hell if she needed to. Disrespecting the place she called home may fit that bill. She seemed nice enough, he supposed. Better to stay on the good side of his ‘savior’ if he had the option to do so…

A shake of his head denied her accusation, though the grimace that he couldn’t conceal quickly countered that. “’Broken puppy dog’ routine, my ass. I’m just buying myself some time, love.” 

“That’s cute, pollito. Stop me before I pinch your cheek.”  If Axel could throw out some pet names, so could she- Aurora wasn’t a stranger to sarcastic endearment. In truth, she wasn’t sure why he was still there. From what she could tell, the man was stable enough- healing, even- and that meant he could be transported. Silver could trade him back to Alia Terra at any time, probably for guns, bullets, medicine...Unless Silver had some ulterior motives for keeping him. And that... was something she didn’t really want to think about. Maybe Axel was worth something to someone back in Alia terra. Maybe holding him hostage would give them an edge.

One thing she was sure of was that Axel wouldn’t be leaving until Silver determined it appropriate.

“And where did you receive your medical training?” she asked, tossing Aurora a pointed look. It was the same one she used to give people who diagnosed themselves with severe, rare ailments and came to her with printed off pages of symptoms. She was grateful that Alia Terra was without internet for that reason. 

Luckily, Aurora came around faster than her former patients had. She took the girl’s wrist, searching her skin for bruises and swelling. Finding none, she gingerly moved the joint up and down, listening for popping. “It looks okay. I still think you should take it easy today.”

Aurora didn’t even flinch as the medic worked. She been injured far worse than this before, and would be again eventually; in truth, she only changed her mind because she knew what could happen when an untreated broken bone got infected. Safe was better than sorry, even if her ego took a hit. It was probably more bruised than her wrist at the moment.

“Nope, no gun. Just me!” A smile tore across her features, relishing in the familiar, much more comfortable presence of Aurora. Now that she had put her knife back into it’s holster, Mariella felt herself relax considerably. While she had the tendency to see the best in most, if not all people, she was quietly thankful that she hadn’t ran into someone from Alia Terra. Though she had allies on that side, sometimes that wasn’t enough; she could just as easily have bumped into someone with resentment towards the Outsiders, and she would’ve be screwed. 

 “You don’t seem fine.” She lifted a finger and pointed to the other girl’s ankle, noting how she was currently favoring one side, careful not to put too much weight on the injured foot. “If you don’t mind, I’d really like to take a look at it. It could be sprained, and that’s no good to be rushing back on.”

Aurora shouldn’t have been surprised. Outsiders wandered where they liked at times, even when it was dangerous. Silver probably wished their leadership held a tighter leash on their people; far more Outsiders  went missing than Alia Terrans, Aurora was sure of it. And that could mean anything- being eaten, getting lost and hurt, getting captured... defecting. Besides that, the scavengers and hunters didn’t need anyone accidentally falling into a baited trap, or scaring off their game (if they happened to have any.) Between all of that, and the embarrassment of such a stupid, minor injury, Aurora was feeling a bit frustrated. Her fight or flight was on HIGH, and her body had chosen fight.