#dealfate

the squeak of pleather and rip of stuffing brings his attention to linger on the piece taken from his nice bench , a long sigh passing through his nose as he realizes that will be his task to mend later ; but , as clawed fingers fidget with the fabric , toy with the frayed edges , the frustration that had began to well inside of him extinguishes just as fast . she seemed scared . henrik feels his brow furrow , the sigh that had been leaving him cut short , and free hand reaching behind him to grab his desk chair to roll in front of mare . he sits , he hands her the clipboard , and allows him to see what his eyes saw . " i understand z'hat z'his is a raz'her difficult s'hing for you to be doing in z'he first place , but i v'ould be poor at my job to not give any push back to your claims , " henrik reaches out , tilting the clipboard so he can point to the areas causing mare's pain , " you are not getting anything substantial to support your means . z'his . . . unique diet you've chosen is actively working against you . " the way he looks at her is something muddled between concern and care , noting red sclera and lethargic body language , and carries on down the clipboard to what seemed to be an endless box of text giving suggestions on how to resolve even an iota of the creature's issues .

" now , i am unsure how v'ell you handle supplements , but z'his is a list of vitamins you need to be taking . or , you can sit v'ith me and discuss a dietary plan . or , you can allow me to give you somes'hing now to alleviate the discomfort ; although , z'hat option may be your least favorite . " rest . oh , and perhaps an orange or two ; but , from what henrik saw , everything pointed towards marionne's body being overworked , pulled taut , and he was now suffering the consequences . " truly , you have to start taking better care of yourself beyond eating your victims . i can't . . . " henrik slowly pulls the clipboard away with a murmured apology , gaze narrowing as he flips through inconclusive results on his anatomy that weren't proven from simple testing . it was corrosive , it was venomous , it was filled with a substance that could eat at skin , possibly even metal ; but , beyond that mare was an enigma . " i cannot do much more v'ith z'he current information i have . i can say v'ith certainty z'hat you feel z'his v'ay due to your seeming lack of interest in self care . is z'here a reason for z'his ? v'ere you never taught how to care for yourself ? " his tone sounds accusatory , something he can't help no matter the care welded to his bones , but it is a genuine question . if a lack of help was the problem , lord knows henrik knew how to fill those shoes .

her southern twang fills his ears in a way that makes him snicker and grin even bigger , giving her a firm and boisterous handshake . those eyes peer to the voices that chime from the back , unable to fight the titter that leaves him . " no ! please ! don't be sorry at all ! " the cleric unwinds his grip , wiping the remaining ichor from his palm onto his pants and giving a quiet apology to blood he'd smeared onto hers . " it is an absolute honor to meet you , evelyn ! no misters , honestly , marnan pacyne ; but , i'm happy to take any nicknames you have to offer . " hazel eyes glance to the corpse of the chimera behind them , pointing to it with his thumb . " that was kind of a crazy fight , yeah ? did . . . did you all need any helping getting patched up ? " his free hand comes to his paldron , tapping to the symbol of gond .

" not only did you happen to cross paths with a great fighter , but a devote man . " he titters at his own comment , knowing that this statement was worn to it's thinnest extent knowing his deity of choice . sure , he could heal , sure he could get a bit of retribution into his palms , but gond knew that most of his divine healing was being expended by one lone half-elf in the barren wastelands of barovia . " a devote man not expect pay , at that . maybe just a warm meal and a cozy bed for the night ! " he practically sings , lips pursing in thought as his gaze wanders playfully around the plains .

"Do you remember the last time we got. . . lit, as the kids say. . .? We almost made out until Omega came in, asking to 'download' a weed."

i know that you're wounded ; you know that i'm here to save you

you know i'm always here for you ; i know that you'll thank me later

marionet && nathan schmidt aes board .

i sold my soul to a three-piece , and he told me i was h o l y . he's got me down on both knees , but it's the devil that's tryna hold me down .

" i would do it whenever , wherever , however . " the hand with the cloth squeezes her forearm , trying equally to keep her awake and in his presence . " plus , i like my bed as un-bloody as possible when going to bed , so , that's another thing . " the raven's grin cracks even wider , humming lovingly at the kiss that is pressed to his skin . nathan truly loved her deeply , parts of him craved to be with her forever , the notion that she would be here without him at some point gnawing at his heels . doing actions like this made him realize he didn't care if the rest of his life was spent doing this together , BEING this together , anything to keep her safe and feel safe in return .

his head cranes to kiss the wet palm touching his skin , sighing against her as he subconsciously leans forward . " hey , i'm no stickler , at the end of the day i would still be getting clean either way . " his words trail at soft lips pressing to his neck , eyes fluttering closed as a sigh escapes through his nose . there it was AGAIN . that nagging feeling that hung on his mind to have her dig her fangs into his neck and make this permanent , fingers absentmindedly clinging to the vampire as if egging her on before a shaken sigh pulls him from his thoughts . nathan tries to cover it up with a scoff , pulling away to tsk at the redhead .

" hey now , let's at least get you clean before you start making another mess , yeah ? did you get nicked anywhere else ? "

is what elias says for the first time in seemingly hours, his head still nestled in between phantom's arm and chest. his intonation is as monotone as ever, said as a simple factoid rather than a complaint. his eyes can't seem to decide whether or not they want to stay open or closed, but it seems that eli's exhaustion was starting to have more of an influence on the fight. he presses himself closer to the dokkaebi, his strong arms wrapping around his waist gently as he tries to listen to every soft crackle and thump within their chest. his voice slowly ebbs off as he speaks again, warbled from his sleepiness.

"it's nice to listen to. very calming. thought you should know that."

( i reread some of the phantom/elias stuff while trying to reply to things and ....... i figured elias would find zadkiels little noises captivating :3c )

painted nails card through raven hair , faux breathing causing the demon's chest to rise and fall as the beginnings of nightfall filtered in through large character windows . sleep had never been necessary for zadkiel once he'd become the monster he now began to love , simply a facet he could partake in to make time drift by faster . it was a nice tool in the beginning , a way to make business deals arrive faster and clients leave sooner ; but , now he found that sleep was no longer his best friend . it meant less time with the human , less chances to watch as dreams and nightmares alike danced in his skull , less moments in deep slumber where eli looked genuinely at ease . in some moments , phantom couldn't help it . the comfort elias brought outweighed the desire to cling to consciousness ; and , now was no different . he finds his eyes had started to slide shut when they snap open to zone in on what his lover had said .

as if on cue , the roaring flames in his torso crackle beneath the surface , that comforting sound reverberating off of his bones and muscles , only grows louder . those painted nails dance to coast along the expanse of elias' neck and collarbones , a deep sigh passing through his nose as he all but melds into the human at his side . phantom buries his noise into eli's hair , taking in everything that was his partner . despite years away from the battlefield , it seemed the smell of ichor and metal could never be washed from the human's skin , a grim reminder that only served to being phantom more ease . his fighter . his winner . his diligent and beautiful guard dog .

" it's because i like you , sha . " zad hums , eyes fluttering closed once more . " my kind ain't built for these big emotions physically . at one point , i'd blushed and felt my heart thunder in my chest , but now i got this . . . " sleep and the urge to find the right words cause his statement to drift , clearing his throat to bring himself back to attention . " this purr . underneath all of this skin and muscle is just fire and smoke . . . that ' noise ' is the closest thing t' a heart i've got , my engine . " a beaming smile comes across his face , tilting his chin to look down at elias . " and you've had engine purring from the second i saw you , cher . "

niel HATED getting sick . it meant days where he couldn't work , days where he couldn't move , and days where annalise would have to take care of him ; and , whilst the later shouldn't be a negative , for nathaniel ( someone unwilling to take help ) this was a death sentence . he'd felt it starting after ending his shift , a nagging presence that loomed over him as he said ' bye bye ' to freddy's and hello to anna's nice , warm bed . he couldn't escape it for long , although . the second his tired frame hit the doorway of his apartment , eyes landing upon the 7:03 AM blinking back at him from the oven , it was every ounce of sick hit him at once . his shoulders slumped with a profound ache , frown etched into his features as he practically dragged his body to her bedroom . nate had barely even noticed how hot his face and head had become , assuming it was his suffocating uniform he almost entirely discarded save for underwear , and unceremoniously crumpled himself into her bed .

usually he would of cuddled her and said good morning , but this time he can't help the genuine want for rest as he clings to pillows and blankets , groaning and huffing as each turn makes his joints feel as if they're on fire . he isn't even sure how much time had passed when he felt an icy hand land onto his forehead , whining in his half asleep state as he almost tried to fight and turn away ; but , her voice cuts through his promises of a dream , brown eyes drearily opening so he can turn his head back to look at lee . " hey , " his voice has a warble , something niel tries desperately to swallow down as a means to save face , " no , no , i'm fine , jus' -- " niel goes to turn and lay on his back , but feels how his face pulls into discomfort at the action alone . " jus' come lay back down , i'mma be okay . . . rest will help me . " hopefully , if GOD was good , niel would get out of being coddled like a child , and his girlfriend could go to work without worrying about him being left at home .

" sorry for wakin' y' , , , now , c'mon , you got like an hour before you gotta leave . " he mumbles , scorching palms laying on top of annalise's hands . " don' wanna waste time worryin' 'bout me . . . "