For a moment, she thinks she failed. The shot is fired, and almost immediately after all she can see is black. Had she finally fallen unconscious? Had she missed her shot, failed to free her new friend from her curse and been killed by her as a result? No, she realized, she managed to take in a breath not long after, and realized the black she was seeing had a soft touch to it, and a shine as well. She takes a moment to process other feelings as the gunshot still rings in her ears. She feels a cold touch, sees a splash of purple and red. Ah. She knows this well. It's her phantom thieves. It's home. "Dark." She breaths a sigh of relief as the world comes back into focus. "You found me." She doesn't scold them for taking too long - if anything they came at just the right time. But still- "Where's-" Before she could speak the name that was on the tip of her tongue, she hears the commotion happening behind Dark. She tries to shift to see what is going on, but either Dark's hold is too tight, or perhaps she's too weak from the dangerous encounter. Or a mix of the two, perhaps. Regardless, she wasn't moving any time soon. She sighs softly, leaning into Dark's feathery embrace. "Where's my hat..." She mumbles, realizing it wasn't on her head. Of course she's more worried about her hat than her physical wellbeing-
@middleaxis
' vertin ... ! ' if he said her name , would he be able to keep her ? it's a gasp ; relief that springs into exhilaration , the melt and retreat of dark's form as daisuke flings his arms around the timekeeper's smaller shoulders , clutching her tight . beneath the bliss of finally reuniting , all of his worst feelings consolidate into a thick lump , and it's one that lands heavy at the bottom of his throat and chest as the tears start to push from behind his eyes .
' i'm so glad ... i was so worried ! ' he can't quite bring himself to finish no matter how clearly the words had been ringing in his head , an endless clamor for hours and days accompanying the shrill white noise that had pierced through his skull after the sao paulo ship had burst . ' i'd thought ... '
a timid whisper . even then , he can't , he doesn't dare to say it : i thought you were dead .
or rather , he had grappled with the uncertain verdict and irrefutable dread over and over in his mind as he searched and searched . his mother's training and reflexes might have saved him from any initial blast , but he had hopelessly scoured the waters and chaos of the late scene to no avail . various forms of commotion , hearsay and helpful villagers had been the only guidance in the following days , yet even then , what was out of sight felt perpetually at peril ---
because it was vertin . st. pavlov's fearless captain who fret more over a lost hat than any lost breath or blood .
' it'll --- be okay . i don't think you should try to talk . ' his head turns , and as it does , he gradually transforms again with his usual nocturnal shift . dark's eyes narrow further than their natural cut as they take in the scene behind them . succubi , he had thought , should have had a reputation for the sly , the sultry , and the seductive --- not something like this , which was an outright slaughter .
the sight was macabre and tasteless , but the reasons for it ... were well deserved . when his head turns again , he only smiles somewhat bitterly at vertin , and , carefully plucking the timekeeper's troublesome accessory , dusting it off and fixing its shape a little , he hands it over gently to vertin herself . ' here . but unless your real , beating heart is hidden in it , i'd try to worry about other things more . '
the stretch of a wing curtains them away in the alley . he's not so sure that he wants to let vertin see . of course , were he asked to move then he would obey , and there was ms. kimberly herself who might have pushed away black feathers with her own red-green glistening scales and claws . whatever the case , vertin's live warmth still felt as faint-yet-precious as porcelain that had been left out in the sun , surrounded by the sharp , acrid stench of spilling blood and death .
he tries to cushion her in her sigh and lean . a kind raven , a tender vulture made of his own marble . ' ... you know i'll always come find you . ' low , slow and reassuring words that belied the sudden anxious thump in his chest . he already knows what his heart was thinking : ( but that was terrifying . whatever happens , i don't want to be separated from you again . )
