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Corin rarely ever gets commissions requested for her, and even rarer do they ever request for her all by herself. Typically it’s her and Ellen together, maybe, Rina if she’s lucky, or Lycaon if she’s unlucky. And it’s not that she’s ungrateful to have a commission with him! Really she isn’t! It’s just… Intimidating to be with him all alone.
But perhaps now as an unusual dizziness clouds her mind she really wishes he had come with her. She feels woozy, and not the kind that comes with her usual bouts of panic but one that makes her body feel like lead and mind full of cotton.
She stumbled over her feet as the shadows roared and growled at her, it sounded like their chests were full of chains and nails they had swallowed. Eyes stared at her unblinkingly and all she wanted to do was hide away from them all, but she couldn’t move, her limbs were restricted. They were restricted? When did that happen? She didn’t remember.
Corin stifled out a sob as she struggled, curling in on herself as much as she could as the world spun around her, noises ringing out, loud and deafening. She didn’t understand, what did she do wrong?
Footsteps approached her and she cowered further in her chair, unable to stop trembling. With a loud noise, whatever had been keeping her there was gone and she collapsed into a firm yet somehow impossibly soft surface.
She let out a soft murmur as her head lolled to the side, digging deep into the soft fur. Tears limply fell from her cheeks and further dampened his coat and hair, yet he only clutched her further against him.
“You’re safe now Corin.” The man’s voice resonated deep from within his chest, rumbling and firm yet calming at the same time, making her further ease into his arms. “You’re safe now.” And perhaps the repeated reassurance was more for himself than it was for Corin, especially after she suddenly became heavier.
Lycaon looked down at the girl, watching at that exact moment as her body fell limp in his arms, her head lolling backwards against his chest. A surge of worry and protectiveness ran through his veins as he kneeled down, laying her gently on the carpeted floor and checking her pulse. It was sluggish but still there. The thiren let out a huff he hadn’t known he had been holding in, recollected himself, and picked up the girl again, this time, holding her closer to his chest.
“You’re safe now Corin.” And this time the words were indubitably for himself.
Corin is taken to the Victoria Housekeeping Co, for that is her home regardless of what her horrid parents say, not that he allows them to have a say in it after what they’ve done.
The manor is quiet, there’s a few lingers here and there but otherwise it's mostly empty. It’s exactly what Lycaon could wish for as her he closes the door behind him, the sound echoing throughout the vacant halls. There’s no questioning to distract him from his goal which is currently to get Corin to bed.
It was a longer walk then he remembered it to be, but it was also not a walk he took often, they’re paths typically diverged at the stairwell, yet here he stood doing the exact opposite of his norm. All in good reason he supposed, in great reason even.
By the time he reaches her room the crescent moon has started to rise in the distance. He shut the door behind him with his foot, using his shoulder to turn on the light switch. He walked over to her bed and, using one hand to support her weight he used the other to peel back the covers. And ever so gently, he laid her down on the bed and tucked her in.
He watched her for a few seconds before letting out a sigh from a deep pit in his chest as he ran a hand through his hair. It was all no good. Huffing, he sat on the edge of the girls bed and looked over at her.
He was good at tending to physical wounds, but mental ones were not his forte. He’s sure this situation would make the girl’s anxiety worse.
With a frown he brushes her bangs to the sides as he worries his bottom lip between his teeth.
“You’re safe now…” He tells her, threading his hands through her hair, undoing the ponytails. “You’re safe now Corin.”
But this time he knows for certain he’s only saying that to reassure himself.