Chapter Text
Vyncent has fought many tough battles. He has faced many strong villains, he has stared death straight in the eyes many times— and he isn’t just talking about his best friend's tired gaze. Vyncent was raised a warrior, a fighter, ready to challenge whatever opponent fate may bring him. He has slain monsters, beaten bad guys and demons. From Le Frog to the Lich that terrorized his home the Prime Defenders have fought them all. Hell, they even managed to defeat the Trickster without getting Ashe killed!
And yet.
Nothing truly prepared him for what he has to face now….
College.
“Ughhh…” Vyncent slams his head into the desk in front of him, smushing his face into the piles of the notes that he has somehow managed to make during the past month.
They are… something . Definitely better than nothing, but after spending the last two hours trying to decipher what he scribbled down, Vyncent may have started to consider whether dropping out would be a viable option.
He’s never finished high school after all, so who would care if he also didn’t finish college?
“Why did I think college was a good idea? I'd literally rather fight another Lich…” Vyncent mumbles into the paper.
He closes his eyes, hoping that maybe when he opens them again, all the information from the notes magically will have transported into his brain.
Maybe there's a spell for that…
“Oh come on, it can't be that bad,” a familiar voice comes from the speakers that sat on his desk.
Vyncent lifts his head just enough to send a tired glare at his brand new but already battered laptop. On its bright and slightly cracked screen, he can see the face of his best friend.
William looks dead, which isn’t unusual for him, but somehow the quality of the discord call makes him look drained. Somehow, he looks even more dead than how Vyncent feels right now. William’s white skin seems even paler than it usually does, which emphasizes his dark under-eye shadows, and even darker eyes. His half black, half white hair falls messily on his face and neck, covering his ears where Vyncent knows William has multiple earrings. He's wearing one of his oversized hoodies, dark just like almost everything in William's closet, decorated with a logo. It’s a white text written in a scratchy font, saying ‘My Chemical Romance’. Vyncent suspects it might be of one of those “emo” bands that Dakota teases William about, but he isn’t sure. For all he knows, romance on Prime could be based on some chemical reaction, and Will is just a big fan of that. He wouldn’t put it past his best friend.
The only thing that breaks the monochromatic color palette of his best friend is a small pendant hung on his neck. It’s a small steel medallion of a wolf's head, with a small blue gem embedded between its canines. The two of them found the necklace just as Vyncent was about to start his hell ride in college, so they decided to buy the two of them as a token of friendship. Vyncent has a matching one with a violet gem instead of blue, that lays propped nicely on his small dresser. It sits right next to his small pile of earrings he managed to collect on Prime.
Usually the sight of William wearing their wolf necklace made him feel warm inside, but today he feels like the wolf gaze is mocking him more than anything.
“Uhhh, Prime to Vyncent?” William waves his hand, snapping Vyncent out of his impromptu staring contest with the pendant. “You okay? Or did all the studying finally fry your brain?” He says, a soft smirk dancing on his lips, as he looks almost fondly at Vyncent.
William often looks at Vyncent like that. He doesn't know why.
“Maybe it did,” he grumbles back, sending a small, but clearly fake, glare at the ghostly boy on his screen. “Maybe I'm dying, and you’re laughing at me like a meanie.”
“Okay, you are not dying-”
“Well, how would you know?!”
William gives him an unimpressed look, before flickering his hand. A small blue flame lights up in his palm and then swiftly moves up to the teen’s knuckles, where he lets the wisp gracefully twirl between his slender fingers. Vyncent can’t help but stare for a few seconds, enthralled by the dancing lights. William’s powers have always fascinated him.They seem to be ethereal, incomprehensible— and yet Vyncent can’t help but feel a sense of familiarity, the blue wisps reminding him of the magic of Fauna.
Speaking of William’s powers.
“Oh. Right. Wisperer powers. Death sensor and shit.”
William bursts out laughing at Vyncent’s response, letting go of the wisp, which quickly dissipates into nothingness.Vyncent can feel his ears burn in embarrassment.
“Okay, okay. So maybe I’m not dying,” he continues, ignoring how hot his ears feel, “But I am in hell.”
William wipes away a small tear that formed in the corner of his eye. “Oh yeah? You know that hell isn't real, right?” He says teasingly, raising one of his dark eyebrows.
Vyncent stares at the piles of notes in front of him. “Oh no— it's real. But it's not in the spirit world. It’s on Prime.” Vyncent theatrically gestures to his desk. “And its name is ‘Introduction to Hero Law and Regulations.’”
William snorts and giggles again, which makes Vyncent smile a bit. He likes making William laugh, even if it's at his expense.
“Okay, okay—” William props up his chin on his hand, inching closer to the camera, as if he were trying to lean over the screen and look at Vyncent's desk. “What’s the biggest problem here?”
Vyncent raises his eyebrows in surprise.
“You're going to help me?” He asks.
William shrugs. “Why not? It’s not as if I have anything better to do.”
The elf furrows his brows. “Don't you have, like… a shit ton of souls to help pass on peacefully?”
William shushes him, waving his hand dismissively.
“That’s… not important. Let’s say, I'm on a break. Besides,” He looks at Vyncent with a soft smile, “It's gonna be like the old times.”
Vyncent's mind is instantly flooded with memories of countless nights. William would sit with Vyncent in his room, back in the old Prime Defenders base, trying to figure out their homework, or rather trying to figure out how to explain the homework to Vyncent. There were countless evenings that they spent sitting on the floor, surrounded by math homework, arguing whether dividing by zero was possible or not.
He can't help but smile at that.
“Okay then.” Vyncent starts shuffling through his notes, trying to find the part that broke him the most. “But I'm warning you— This isn't fun.”
“Yeah, yeah— now. What's troubling you, Vynce?”
“An act establishing the proper legislation of registering Heroes as a semi-autonomous body/force/agent with governmental oversight—”
“What the fuck-”
This is going to be a long evening.
And so the two of them spend another few hours reading over piles of notes and textbooks filled with legal jargon that neither of them can understand. Vyncent has hoped that, because William worked so much with the police, maybe he’d have a better understanding of the legal systems of Prime. That hope quickly dwindles as even he has trouble understanding the complex maze of laws that apparently they were supposed to be following this whole time. It reaches the point where William starts searching up simple words, just to make sure that they at least understand those correctly.
Needless to say, the offered help turns out to be almost completely useless.
“In the case that a publicly appointed hero (hereafter referred to as Hero) has reasonable suspicion that a person or persons is about to commit a criminal act the Hero can detain the person or persons for questioning without a warrant nor evidence. If the person or persons are found guilty, they are to be sentenced— bro what the hell?!” William almost yells, reading Vyncent’s scan of the textbook with bewilderment. “You mean to tell me that I, as a hero, can just take in people because they look evil? ”
Vyncent thinks for a moment, staring blankly at the wall behind his laptop. It’s covered in notes from Vyncent’s other study sessions, as well as some photos that Dakota put up when they helped him move in. It was a sweet gesture to make him feel less lonely during his time at college, but as the teen stares at the smiling faces of the past adventures he can’t help but to feel mocked.. It feels like they’re laughing at him for being stuck studying, and not being out having fun with other Prime Defenders.
He then realizes that he's been glaring at the wall for quite some time, without actually answering William.
“I guess so?” He finally says, shaking off his random dispute with photos, focusing back on his best friend instead.
“What the fuck?” William mumbles, hands tangled in his hair that had been put up in a tiny ponytail, messing it up even more. “Vyncent, this is wild and so wrong. This is just asking to be abused, and for heroes to start putting people away for their own grudges!”
The tired elf just nods, rubbing his eyes in the hopes that it might wake him up. He really needs to sleep more.
“Yeah…”
“And they don’t even hide it! It’s straight up here: ‘Hey, the heroes can just vibe check you into being arrested, because they don't like you!’ This is insane!” The dark haired boy throws his arms up in the air with disbelief. “This can not just be left like that!”
Vyncent quickly raises his hand to stop his friend before he goes on another rant.
“Yes, Will, I agree, the legal system is broken and works against those who often need the most protection.” He looks up at his best friend with the most pleading look his tired eyes can muster. “But can we wait with the revolution a little bit, at least after I pass this class?”
The ghostly teen's lips quirk up in a smirk. “Okay, so you finish the class, and then we burn down the government?”
“Sounds like a plan to me.”
Vyncent leans back in his chair, stretching his stiffened body. He winces slightly as his spine cracks from staying hunched for so long. Gods, college was truly making him fall apart.
“Really,” William says, his head cocking to the side, hands moving to his pendant and fiddling with it. “You’re willing to commit treason with me just because I asked you?”
“One — I have no clue what ‘treason ’ actually is,” Vyncent mumbles, massaging his neck to relax the stiffened muscles before turning his full attention back to the screen. He straightens up, and looks into the camera with a more serious gaze. “And two — I've told you this already, wherever you’re going — I'm going as well.”
He sees William’s eyes widen at that, with his mouth opening slightly in what Vyncent assumes is shock. He notices the pale skin darken a bit, flush spreading from the teen’s cheeks down to his neck, the blue color contrasting wildly with William’s otherwise bleak color scheme. It almost looks like a wisp is dancing on his best friend’s skin again, this time choosing his face as its stage. But even though there is no otherworldly soul caressing William’s cheeks, Vyncent can’t help but feel just as enthralled by him as he was with the wisp just a few hours ago. He studies the soft features of the man on the screen, noting how his eyes despite being so dark, looking almost black, glimmered with an almost other-wordly shine.
Like a night sky filled with stars…
“I…” William speaks up, his gaze turning from shock into something more unreadable. It's more intense, making Vyncent almost shiver from how strong it is, but at the same time Vyncent can’t help but notice how soft it feels at the same time. It reminded him of his mother’s hugs — strong yet comforting. “You know that I’ll do the same right?”
Vyncent has to blink a few times, to break away from the fog that William’s gaze seems to put on his mind. “What?”
William looks away for a moment, his blush deepening even more, before exclaiming. “I’ll go with you. You don’t even have to ask me, really. Like you said, where you go, I’m going.” Corners of his lips turn up a bit in a shy smile. “Whether it’s to Fauna, a burning building, or other dangerous place you’ll get in trouble. I’ll follow you to hell and back if I have to.”
“No more running away. Especially not from you.” William’s eyes meet his and Vyncent suddenly feels as if the air got punched out of his lungs.
His chest constricts, his best friend’s words squeezing his lungs, making him feel breathless. He takes a sharp breath in, but he still feels like choking.
He coughs nervously, breaking the heavy eye contact.
“Even if hell is this?” Glancing down at his desk, he gestures to the now long abandoned notes sprawled on his desk with a nervous laugh. “Are you going to follow me to class then?”
William’s gaze drops down to where Vyncent is pointing and snorts.
“Well,” He says with a chuckle, running his hand through his black and white hair. “I don’t know if campus security will just let me in, but I will try my best.”
Vyncent can’t help but burst out laughing at that and William joins him, his giggles ringing through the speakers. The idea of William just sneaking his way into Vyncent’s classes seems so ridiculous but then Vyncent realizes that William would for sure do that for him if he ever asked. He laughs even harder, this time less at the ridiculous scenario and more at the fact how ridiculous and great his best friend is.
He might be tired, confused, and overwhelmed with the amount of studies he still has to do. But at least he’s got William to make him feel better, even if he’s not really the greatest studying help.
The elf looks at his laughing best friend on the screen, feeling a warmth spread through his body. It felt like home and Vyncent was so grateful that he found that in his friends.
But as he relaxes in his chair, he notices a strange itch in the back of his throat. It scratches at his throat unpleasantly, making him want to cough. Vyncent furrows his brows but then shrugs. Maybe the autumn’s winds finally got to him. He did forget to wear a scarf more than a few times, after all.
Oh well, Tide will chew him out for being irresponsible later. Now, Vyncent just wants to chill out on the call with his best friend.
—
The following days are quite uneventful, at least in Vyncent’s opinion.
Sure, he is basically drowning in the amount of studying he has to do for all the classes, which usually means crying over the notes into the late hours of the night. Not to mention the fact that he has to meet a whole lot of new people and try to be social by himself for once in his time on Prime. He’s also just started one of the practical hero training classes — which is basically a few hours of him and the other students beating each other up, pretending as if it was the same as a fight with a villain.
This all might seem like a lot, especially for him, but after all the stress of the past year — Tide getting depowered, Ashe being gone, the Lich, whole Belltech thing, the fight with Trickster and much more — Vyncent is actually glad to face some of the less “life or death” problems in his life.
His social skills aren’t the best, at first he was worried that no one would like him and he would be alone for the next few months for sure. But after a few days, he managed to actually befriend some people from his classes. Turns out that people in a hero college are less judgemental of his weirdness, probably because often they are just as, if not more, weird than him. That isn’t even a joke, as he did meet a guy whose power was to make others shit themselves. He is cool though, as the two often spar in the training classes, although without using their powers.
The training is also something Vyncent enjoys greatly. It isn’t that demanding, at least not to him as he’s used to dealing with villains who were often out to kill him. Also the sparring sessions remind him of the old days when he would get his ass kicked by Dakota, and later when he trained William during their ten months break.
He still hates studying, though. Like, he understands that it’s important and he does actually enjoy most of the classes, especially those that talked about more supernatural parts of Prime, as well as few law oriented ones. But does Vyncent really need to remember every date in which a certain hero-related decree was signed? Because in his opinion that’s just using up his limited head space for useless stuff instead of literally anything else.
But alas, he isn’t the one who decides what’s on the finals and his lecturers clearly thought that it was all very importan t knowledge. So he is forced to suck it up and study everything, even the dumb stuff.
Maybe William is right. The revolution could possibly change not only the legal system, but the educational system as well!
Vyncent takes a mental note to later ask William whenever arson would be considered a crime if it would be done in the name of public wellbeing.
Speaking of being well, that’s something that Vyncent is not. Because despite having a relatively calm, although quite busy week, the elf can’t help but feel a bit more sick and tired than usual. His throat is sore, feeling more like sandpaper and itching constantly, making him want to cough all the time. At first he assumed that it was all just because he forgot to wear a scarf on a few occasions, something he remembers Tide warning him about. But after a couple of days of vigorous scarf wearing, the pain doesn't want to disappear. Quite the opposite, it seems to spread.
Vyncent notices it one day, as he walks between classes, texting William about their next discord call. Or rather the lack of it, as he has to cancel it to study for an upcoming test and as much as he enjoyed William’s company last time, they didn’t get much studying done. And just as he sends that message, checking seven times that he’s not accidentally sending it to Wordsmith again , he feels a surprising pang of pain hit his lungs.
He has to stop right in the middle of his tracks, as the tightness literally makes him choke on nothing. A few people look back at him with worry, as he coughs up loudly, almost folding onto himself with how much it crushes his chest. When he finally stops, he has to take a few deep breaths as the pressure slightly releases from his lungs.
One of his hands moves to his neck, where under his tightly wrapped scarf he can feel his throat burning. He winces before gently massaging the skin under his fingers, hoping that the warmth will help with the soreness. It doesn’t sadly and Vyncent can’t help but let out a tired sigh. He knows that he’s been having a bit of a cold recently, with all the coughing and all, but clearly he is coming down with something bigger than he expected.
It’s only been like a few weeks of living alone and I’ve already managed to catch some sickness! What kind of shit luck is that?
Vyncent curses under his breath. Now he has to figure out how to treat a cold on Prime.
Back on Fauna, his mom, as well as the Greats, taught him about first aid, including treating simple diseases using the magical herbs. They grew all-around the floating islands, but he doubts he can find any of them anywhere near him. Besides, despite being overall a non-magical place, Prime is quite advanced when it comes to medicine, at least from what Vyncent has gathered from years of living here, so for sure he can find something quick.
He can of course ask Tide, the man being basically his father figure while living on Prime. And with his complicated feelings about his father back in Fauna, Vyncent has no shame in admitting that Tide is more like a father to him than his actual dad. But that means worrying the poor man and also probably getting a lecture about the importance of taking care of himself. Which Vyncent is very much not planning on doing, looking at the amount of notes and textbooks that await him back at his dorm.
So Tide, despite winning the award for being the best (and in Vyncent’s eyes, the only) father figure in his life, is out of the question. Who else could know something about treating colds on Prime?
Plenty of names come to his mind, but he feels like asking them can be a bit weird. Like sure, Lightspeed is great and she would help him in a heartbeat, but after panic-asking her if she ever killed someone, Vyncent can’t help but feel awkward to ask her about something ever again. Especially something as simple as treating a cold.
Maybe he can take a gamble and try doing some research on the internet.
He then remembers the last time he tried to find something on the web. A picture of a chicken to be specific. That quick adventure ended with a frantic call to William about the amount of naked men that suddenly were all over his screen and how to get rid of them.
…yeah, that sounds like a horrible idea actually .
Vyncent and technology don’t mix well, hence why his laptop already looks the way it does, despite being brand new. But after extensive training from the Prime Defenders he manages to do most of the things he needs to do for college, such as opening emails, answerings Discord calls or opening books (people in college call them “pdf”s and Vyncent doesn’t know why, and at this point he is too afraid to ask), but anything else is above Vyncent’s abilities. The elf has a suspicion that the “ google ” being simply hates him, because whenever he tries to ask it a question it instead tries to automatically finish the question for him, confusing him even more than he already is on a daily basis.
So independent internet research was more of an emergency option. But maybe he can see in the library after the next class?
Oh shit, class!
He quickly starts walking again, moving through the rowdy corridors of the lecture building to where he thinks his next class is.
His hand moves a bit lower on his neck, as he continues to gently rub there, spreading the warmth through his skin to his sore throat, before feeling his finger tangle in a very familiar chain.
The elf looks down at the small wolf pendant that now lays on his hand.
Oh right, he can ask William!
He turns his attention back to his phone, still open at his conversation with his best friend. There's some new messages there, the phone probably buzzed in the middle of his coughing attack so he didn’t notice the notifications coming in. He quickly reads them.
WILLIAM: who are you and what have you done with vynce
WILLIAM: the real vyncent would never ditch me to study
WILLIAM: nah im kidding
WILLIAM: that really sucks actually :[[[
Vyncent frowns. He really hates doing this to his friends, especially considering how little time they now have to spend together.
Their weekly, if not almost daily, Discord calls really helped Vyncent during the first weeks here. William, Dakota, Ashe — they all called him often making sure he didn’t feel too lonely and lost. And while yes, they all also encourage him to put college as his priority (at least for now, when everything has calmed down for a moment), to explore who he is through classes and new friendships, Vyncent doesn’t want to make them feel that they aren’t that important to him as they were before. Because as much as he likes the new people he has met here, they cannot be compared to his best friends.
And yet here he is. Canceling a call with William to study.
Gods, who have I become…
He quickly types back a response. At first it’s incomprehensible, as he has trouble typing on the small keyboard on the screen. But then the autocorrect kicks in and turns his typos into a perfectly readable and grammatically correct message. Vyncent loves it.
ME: I know. I’m sorry.
WILLIAM: nooo dont worry
WILLIAM: ive seen how much work u have its fine
WILLIAM: i just miss hanging out with you
Vyncent feels his heart warm up at that. He also felt his chest tighten a bit, reading the text messages.
ME: Yeah.
WILLIAM: its been like the longest weve been away from each other
WILLIAM: the separation anxiety is finally settling in lmao
The elf presses his lips in a thin line, suppressing the need to grimace. William is right, since being assigned as a team, the two had never separated for longer than a day. And Vyncent can’t pretend that he hasn’t been feeling the constant lack of his ghostly best friend at his side. He is embarrassed by the amount of times he turned to say something to William only to realize that the shorter man wasn’t there.
As much as he knows he needs this time to figure out himself, deep down he wishes William was here with him, instead miles away or in a completely different plane of existence.
ME: I wish I knew any teleportation spells. I would’ve just teleported to you and we would hang out during my breaks.
WILLIAM: yeaaah
WILLIAM: we could do so many sleepovers like that
A smidge of shame crosses through his mind. He really regrets not taking a bigger interest in magic back in his childhood. Due to his father’s insistence that he won’t ever need magic, Vyncent wasn’t really allowed to study the proper ways of it, even though his home was living and breathing it. He only knows a couple of simple spells, thanks to Min’s quick lessons back when he hung out with the Greats as a teenager.
Thanks, Dad.
A soft buzzing from his phone brings Vyncent’s attention back to his conversation with William.
WILLIAM: maybe professor cross might have some teleporter for us to borrow
WILLIAM: WAIT he did have one remember? i used it once
WILLIAM: …actually maybe lets not ask cross about a teleporter
Vyncent can’t help but laugh at that. As much as he would love to have William be able teleport right to his dorm at any given moment, he understands why his best friend might be hesitant. He remembers well all the times William used one of the professor’s inventions. It never ended that horribly, William always came out intact in the end, but from what he said the process was never pleasant.
His laughter quickly turned into another cough, burning though his throat as if someone just brushed it with sandpaper.
Right. The cold. He was going to ask William about treating his cold, but got distracted. Again. Gods, why does William always make Vyncent forget about the simplest things?
Another rough cough rattles through his chest.
ME: Hey.
WILLIAM: hi
ME: Stop that.
WILLIAM: then stop typing like my grandma
ME: I don’t even know your grandma?
ME: Doesn’t matter. I have a question.
WILLIAM: oh? okay shoot
ME: How do you treat a cold on Prime?
ME: Do you guys have some herbs to relieve sore throat, or is it like a hospital visit type thing?
Vyncent furrows his brows for a moment. What if colds are a more serious thing on Prime and William’s going to freak out? He doesn’t want William worried, so he quickly types again.
ME: Hypothetically speaking, of course.
Perfect. Now William for sure won’t think Vyncent got sick the second he was left to live alone.
William sends back a response almost immediately.
WILLIAM: vynce are you sick?
Fuck.
He forgot that William is a detective. And his best friend, which means he can read him like a book.
ME: No?
WILLIAM: vyncent
ME: Okay, maybe.
WILLIAM: lmao
WILLIAM: i leave u for 5 minutes…
WILLIAM: anyway whats wrong
Vyncent thinks for a moment. His throat has been hurting this past week and he’s been feeling more tired than usual. Surprisingly, when he last checked he didn’t seem to have a fever and as he checks again, lifting his hand to his forehead, it feels cool. He of course keeps coughing at random times, even once waking up in the middle of the night just to do so. It’s really annoying, as it makes him feel breathless and almost lightheaded at times. And now the added chest pains Vyncent really feels like shit.
He relays all of that to William and while being so focused on what his best friend is typing back, he accidentally walks into the door of his lecture hall.
Once he manages to go through it, feeling embarrassment burning in his ears, he quickly moves to his seat in the lecture hall where he promptly plops down and starts setting up his things to prepare for the class.
In the corner of his eye he notices William sending a few texts, so once he has everything set up, he grabs his phone to see what his best friend has advised him.
WILLIAM: oof that sucks
WILLIAM: did u forget to wear a scarf?
WILLIAM: u 100% forgot to wear a scarf
WILLIAM: tides gonna be maddddddd
WILLIAM: anyway that sounds like a typical coldish type of a bug, you need to rest as much as you can, dress up warmly, drink a lot of warm drink?
WILLIAM: maybe some tea with lemon and honey? thats what my mom gave me when i was sick
WILLIAM: when it comes to medication ill just send you some pics of things you can get from rustys
WILLIAM: if it wont go away with what i send u then we will see a doctor
WILLIAM: or cross cause i dont know if a normal doctor can treat you
WILLIAM: i dont even know if you should take this medication cause ur an elf
WILLIAM: oh well, we will see
ME: If I die, then at least we will know what did it.
WILLIAM: please dont die, dakotas gonna kill me and i dont think the excuse “it was in the name of science” is going to save me this time
Vyncent snorts. He can imagine William getting chased by furious Dakota, yelling something about scientific names and getting tackled almost instantly. He really misses their shenanigans.
But before he can dwell on that dullness that that thought brought him, his lecturer walks in, signaling that the class is going to start soon.
Vyncent quickly types back to William.
ME: My class is about to start!
ME: Thank you for everything, I'll try to get it later!!
ME: :D
WILLIAM: no problem
WILLIAM: have fun in class
WILLIAM: take care
WILLIAM: <3
Vyncent stares at the last message for a moment. Ashe once explained to him the different meanings of emoticons, so he knew it was a heart. Ashe also told him that it can be used in different contexts, sometimes being romantic but sometimes just meaning “hey, I care about you”. He knows that that's what his best friend means, as it’s not the first time William has sent it to him. And yet for some reason everytime he gets it, it makes him feel all warm on the inside. Just a small reminder that his friend appreciated and cared about him, even though they haven’t seen each other for some time.
Another cough falls from his lips, as his chest tightens in this crushing pain. He gasps for breath as he leans back in his chair, trying to relax a bit and calm down his aching lungs and throat.
Let’s just hope that the medication William suggested helps. Or at least doesn’t kill him.
He looks at the notes in front of him.
On second thought, death doesn’t seem that bad…
—
To Vyncent’s own surprise, he’s not dead by the end of the week. Not only that, but the weird tablets, which in his opinion look and taste more like candy than medicine, actually helped a bit. Sure, he is still plagued by the random coughing attacks from time to time, but at least his throat doesn’t feel like it’s made out of sandpaper and fire.
He listened to most of William’s advice; he wore a bit warmer clothes, drank a lot of water and even learned how to use an electric kettle that they had in their dorm kitchen. Before that he always asked William to make tea for him, but now he is a pro and only manages to burn himself like half of the times he uses it. He also tried to rest up a bit more, by going to bed earlier than usual and taking it easy on the training classes. Now, instead of taking on as many classmates as possible, he only takes on like four or five and the rest of the class he spends stretching and relaxing.
Overall, he is trying his best to beat the insistent cough. But despite his efforts it persists..
Maybe I do need to go to see someone.
He’s been really hoping that this cold would go away and he wouldn’t have to, but clearly his own body really wants him to. And it’s not like he doesn’t trust doctors, there have been many occasions when Prime’s healers helped him or his friends. But since one very unpleasant night in Belltech, Vyncent’s started to kinda avoid any place medically related. Just in case.
Besides, he wasn’t lying to William, he has a lot of studying to do, basically taking up most of his free time. So it’s not like Vyncent is actively avoiding talking to a healer, he’s just… busy . He has decided that he’ll go to someone after the test. Or maybe he’ll get lucky and he will be magically cured once he passes. Or rather if , because he has really been struggling with revisions, he really doubts he’ll actually pass.
That’s why he’s in this situation. Once again sitting alone in his room, desk overflowing with piles of scribbled down notes, surrounded by multiple textbooks and his laptop opened with a random document his classmate sent him. And just like the last time, Vyncent is on the brink of breakdown.
“If a Hero was to engage in a consensual romantic relationship with another Hero or Heroes, the two or more would need to file out a specific form and provide it to their supervisor? Why would I want to do that? Mind your own business, government…” He mumbles under his breath, staring daggers at the text in front of him. “If a Hero was to engage in a consensual relationship with a villain or a party of such background or past, said Hero is legally obliged to report that fact and have the relationship reevaluated, under a suspicion of a possible terrorist risk… Better send that one to Tide.”
He sighs deeply, dragging his hands down his face. He can feel his soul slowly leaving his body as he reads more and more of legal word spaghetti. It seemed to be much more simple when he was taking notes back in class, but somehow now when he is revising it all has somehow managed to turn to incomprehensible.
Besides, why do I even need to know that? It’s not like I’m gonna date anyone any time soon, not to mention a hero…
His chest squeezes slightly and a few coughs escape him.
This evening really sucks.
Just as he turns back to his mess of revision, his phone lights up with a notification. At first he considers ignoring it, so as to not get even more distracted, but in the end he can’t help but grab it and quickly check. A quick break can’t hurt after all.
He opens up his phone and clicks the small notification. A familiar chat opens up, the name “ THE PURPS — explosion emoji ” slapped on top of it. Like the name said, it’s his chat with Ashe, Dakota and William, filled mostly with “memes” and weird photos from Dakota. It’s also where Ashe documents weird things his dad, Mark, does, as well as their reactions, which are mostly hate and bullying of the ex-villain.
Now there’s a new message at the bottom, this time from William.
EL BI-SPERER: guess who just met up!!!!!!
Below the text there is an attached picture, on which Vyncent clicks. The screen fills with a photo of Ashe, shyly smiling at the camera, holding out a peace sign. Their long white hair is loose and under their familiar violet beanie that nicely contrasts with the dark sweater they are wearing. They seem to be sitting in some sort of a cafe, behind a table with a cup of what Vyncent can only assume to be coffee.
His phone buzzes again and a new picture gets sent to the chat.
This time it's a selfie of William, grinning widely at the camera, cheeks slightly flushed blue, his black and white hair messily falling around his face. He’s wearing black, like usual, this time wearing a turtleneck with a zip-up hoodie thrown on top. There’s a few new long earrings dangling from his ears and the all familiar wolf necklace shines on his chest.
Ashe and William met up?
Vyncent feels his chest tighten with surprising force. He takes a sharp breath in, trying to relax his tense muscles, before focusing back on chat.
1# MARK HATER: WHAT???
1# MARK HATER: YOU MET UP WIHOUT ME??????
Turns out that Vyncent isn’t the only one who wasn’t invited.
EL BI-SPERER: i literally told you about it yesterday
EL BI-SPERER: i even invited you
Oh. Guess only Vyncent wasn’t included in the plans then. That is fine .
He clears his throat, ignoring the itch that burns at it.
1# MARK HATER: I FORGOR
ASHE (DE-JOKERIFIED): i mean if you’re near you can always join us
1# MARK HATER: IM NOT
1# MARK HATER: NEAR
1# MARK HATER: IM AT TIDES
1# MARK HATER: BUT IL TRY
Vyncent furrows his brows at that. How is Dakota going to try to get from a secluded island, where Tide stationed their new base, to wherever Ashe and William are?
Clearly, he wasn’t the only one wondering.
ASHE (DE-JOKERIFIED): how???
EL BI-SPERER: please dont try and swim through the ocean again
1# MARK HATER: DOTN WORRY
ASHE (DE-JOKERIFIED): that literally makes us worry even more
1# MARK HATER: GONA USE THE JUMP THING MATSER COLE DOES
EL BI-SPERER: wait you can do that?
1# MARK HATER: WE WILL FIND OUT
There's a few minutes of silence, where Vyncent looks at the chat, waiting for whatever Dakota was trying to do to either succeed or fail spectacularly.
ASHE (DE-JOKERIFIED): hey do you think he died
EL BI-SPERER: if he did, he at least did it doing what he loved the most
LINK: Being stupid?
1# MARK HATER: VYCNET!!!!!!!11
ASHE (DE-JOKERIFIED): hi vyncent
EL BI-SPERER: vynce!!!
LINK: Hi.
1# MARK HATER: VYCNE HELP I RAN ITNO THE WALL AND NOW THERES A HOLE
LINK: Oh, LOL.
ASHE (DE-JOKERIFIED): god why do you type like mark
1# MARK HATER: FDGJEGFJDFGJ
1# MARK HATER: OH MY GOSF HE DOES
LINK: I still don't know what that means.
EL BI-SPERER: hey let him be
EL BI-SPERER: hes suffering in college
LINK: Thank you, yes I am very poor and sad.
LINK: Please give me money so I can get a new brain, this one is fried.
ASHE (DE-JOKERIFIED): that bad huh?
LINK: They make me learn laws.
1# MARK HATER: ew.
EL BI-SPERER: anyway
EL BI-SPERER: im guessing ur not joining us dakota
1# MARK HATER: I TRIED SO HARD
ASHE (DE-JOKERIFIED): and got so far
1# MARK HATER: IN THE END IT DOENST EVEN MATTERRRRRRRR
EL BI-SPERER: im not even gonna ask you vyncent
EL BI-SPERER: i know you cant come
Vyncent takes a sharp breath. The tense pain is back in his lungs, stabbing at his sides, making him slightly breathless. He coughs a few times, before typing back.
LINK: Yeah.
LINK: Have a test. Have to study.
ASHE (DE-JOKERIFIED): oof
ASHE (DE-JOKERIFIED): feel u
ASHE (DE-JOKERIFIED): im currently ignoring my classes
1# MARK HATER: I ALSO FEEL YOUR PAIN
1# MARK HATER: ADN I DONT EVEN GO TO SCOOL
EL BI-SPERER: yeah cause me and you are filthy uneducated heroes
1# MARK HATER: HEHE YEAH
1# MARK HATER: I DIDNT EVEN FINISH HIGH SCOOL
ASHE (DE-JOKERIFIED): oh thats not. thats not good
1# MARK HATER: NAHHH ITS FINE
EL BI-SPERER: welp anyway me and ashe are going to go get some food
LINK: Have fun.
EL BI-SPERER: we will
EL BI-SPERER: have fun with studying
LINK: I won’t.
1# MARK HATER: LMAO
Vyncent turns off the screen of his phone. A reflection of himself stares at him from the dark glass. He looks tired, his purple hair messily put up in a bun, his bright eyes having dark circles under them. He can feel the weariness in his bones, not only physical one from all the work he has to do, but also mental one.
It’s a mashup of things. From the stress of class and new social interactions, to the simple homesickness that at this point feels more like a part of his soul than an emotion. He got used to the missing for Fauna, the constant feeling of not exactly fitting in, of always being a bit on the outside. As much as he often longs for the feeling of belonging he used to feel back at his home at the floating islands, he also understands that he will probably never feel it again. Not because he will never return to Fauna, he for sure will try sometime soon, maybe even bringing his friends with him again. But because he knows he's no longer the teen elf he was back then. He no longer is the young boy with a too big sword, who just wanted to impress his dad and his friends. Virion, who wanted to be just like his father, a future warrior, a fearless adventurer, ready for every fight.
He is now Vyncent Sol, a Prime Defender. A turning-twenty college student, with a sword that fits his hands almost too perfectly. An elf with no clue what he really wants to do in future. A young hero plagued by fears and nightmares of what he had seen. Just a guy.
He wouldn’t fit on Fauna almost as much as he doesn’t fit on Prime.
It used to not matter as much to him. Sure, he wasn’t from here, but it didn’t really seem to matter to William and Dakota. He remembers the heartwarming joy he felt when he realized that he had found his home again. But this time it wasn’t in his mothers hugs or the grassy hills and stones of the floating islands. Rather the joyous smiles, dumb jokes and petty squabbles of his best friends. His home was Tide’s warm words of encouragement and hard pats on the back, Ashe’s quiet compliments and gentle braiding of his hair, Dakota’s loud laughter and strong hugs, William’s soft gaze and cold hands that held his own during many movie nights.
Vyncent somehow managed to find his new home in the friendships he made on Prime.
And yet there he is, homesick again. His heart yearning for his friends that are so close and yet out of his reach.
He looks away from the reflection, leaning back in his desk chair. He had no one to blame but himself really. He was the one who decided that he should try college, that he needs to find himself, to finally see who he truly is and not who the others want him to be.
William warned him that it might be a bit tough for him, just going out on his own. He told Vyncent that if it ever got too overwhelming or he was feeling too lonely, to just hit him up. He promised to try and find a way to meet up as soon as possible. Vyncent considered doing that during many sleepless nights in his room, just calling his best friend, asking if he can come and just stay beside him for a moment. But that was a ridiculous request. As much as William pretended to be all fine, Vyncent noticed the weariness in his posture and how the dark circles under his eyes were now darker than before. Vyncent knew well that the role of the Wisperer took a toll on him, not to mention all the mental distress that was basically oozing from William when someone just mentioned Belltech or Cantrip.
He didn’t want to be another burden on William’s already overworked and stressed mind. So he stayed silent, waiting patiently for the upcoming break, when he’ll finally be able to see his friends again. For now he had other things to worry about, than the familiar feeling of loneliness.
A few coughs escape his mouth.
Damn it.
His phone lands softly at his bed, as he throws it there, before turning back to the abandoned notes. He needs to get back to work but his throat burns again with the harsh but now familiar pain. The elf winces and grabs one of the tablets, quickly putting it in his mouth, hoping it’ll ease it all. The familiar taste of a raspberry coats his tongue. William said that this flavor would suit him the best and clearly his best friend knows him all too well, because Vyncent really likes it.
Another cough rattles through his chest, almost making him choke on the tablet.
Alright, it’s back to work time. He sorts once again through his notes, finding where he last left off.
“Heroes who wish to marry their partners need to fill out all the necessary paperwork for the marriage certificate, and both parties need to also sign a legally binding agreement that obliges that both parties while allowed to discuss certain classified information are not allowed to discuss them with people outside of hero society and or this marriage- ”
Vyncent can feel his lungs burn as another cough squeezes through. His breaths turn into wheezes, as he struggles to get any air. It feels overwhelming, like he’s drowning but this time there’s no water, he’s completely dry, with something stuck in his lungs making him breathless.
He curls up on himself, one of his hands going to cover his mouth and the other wrapping around his chest like a hug. He keeps on coughing, turning into choking as he feels something leave his agonized lungs. It scratches at his throat, like water that comes up from the lungs of the drowned. Before he knows what's going on, this thing falls from his lips landing on his palm, finally allowing him to breathe again.
He takes a few shaky breaths, finally feeling the air hit his lungs, before finally glancing down at the thing he just basically hacked up.
In his hand lay a small bundle of pearly white petals
No…
Vycnent stares at the white husks. It’s just a few petals, small and crumpled. An unassuming thing if it isn’t for the fact that it just came from, Vycncent’s own lungs.
The realization of what that meant struck him like a lightning. His hand begins to tremble, and his entire body follows, eyes watering as his heart stutters. This can’t be what he thinks it is, right? It can’t be, Vyncent doesn’t understand it.
His hands shake violently, petals falling off his palm onto the floor. His breath stutters again, chest squeezing as he tries to breathe.
No, no, no, no! This… this can’t be real!
He squeezes his eyes shut, choking back a sob. The binding pain in his chest., the constant coughing, the scratches at his throat — it all made too much sense now.
“So… Is that like a normal thing for you or should we call an ambulance?”
Vyncent yelps and bolts from his chair, as a voice suddenly can be heard in his room. He plasters himself to the wall, heart pounding in his chest, frantically scanning his room for the sudden intruder. But he’s only met with the familiar empty walls of his dorm.
“Calm down idiot. It’s just me.”
Vyncent’s eyebrows furrow as he realizes that the voice is not exactly coming from his room. But rather it seems to appear in his head…
Wait a minute-
“ORIGAMI?” He yells, voice cracking from the strain.
“Yep.” The dead hero from his head responds, sounding very calm compared to the state in which Vyncent is in.
“WHAT THE FUCK?”
“That’s what I’m asking.”
Vyncent shakes off the initial shock, face scrunching up in confusion. “You're still here?” he asks, baffled at this sudden interaction.
“Oh yeah. Still here. Very boring, you don’t have much here, you know.”
The elf ignores the insult.
“...I thought you went back to the spirit world or something…’ He mumbles, more to himself rather than to Origami.
“Nah, you never released me. Which I’d like to happen sooner rather than later. Like I said, it’s really boring here and I’ve already watched all my movies.”
Vyncent leans back against the wall, tangling his hands in his hair and sliding down to sit on the floor.
“Why didn’t you tell me earlier, Jesus.” He rubs at his eyes, taking a few breaths trying to calm his rapidly beating heart. Each intake of air sends a shiver of pain in his lungs that he chooses to ignore for a moment.
“I don’t know who that Jesus guy is, but I tried! It’s you who was too busy with your… “friend”. William, or something, I don’t care”
The teen frowns at that. “What’s that supposed to mean? You have a problem with William?”
“I do, in fact. He’s a little shit and I hate him.” Origami says, distain basically dripping from his words. “But more importantly. Why the hell are you hacking up flowers all of the sudden?”
Shit…
Vyncent looks down at the flower. The few crumbled petals lay all around him, having fallen down during his small jumpscare. He feels his chest tighten at the sight.
“...fuck..” A choke out sob escapes him as he holds his head in his hands.
“That doesn’t sound good…”
A couple of tears escape down his cheeks. He tries to stop them, to maybe not immediately break down in front of the dead hero. But it’s a fruitless effort as he hiccups trying to take a breath, a small whine leaving his lips with it.
“Okay kid, calm down. What’s going on? Do you know what this is?” Origami’s usually harsh tone turns more gentle, Vyncent’s current state clearly making him take at pity at the elf.
“It-it’s-” He can’t help but stutter as the crying makes him hiccup even more. “It’s hanahaki.”
“...it’s hana-what?”
“Hanahaki.” Vyncent wipes away at his eyes, shoulders shaking slightly. “The sickness of the unloved. It’s from my home, Fauna…”
There’s a moment of silence in his head, as the room is only filled with the sounds of his choked sobs.
“Sickness of the unloved? Okay, what does that mean? You just start coughing up flowers suddenly, because you feel sad or-?” The older hero sounds confused and Vyncent can’t exactly blame him.
He takes a few breaths in, trying to calm himself down a bit, as the hot tears continue streaming down his face. “It’s not just coughing up flowers. There… there is a flower now growing in my lungs.”
“What.”
Vyncent swallows back sobs. “It’s caused by unrequited love. The flowers bloom in the lungs of those who love but aren’t… loved back. It’s supposed to represent the love that you can’t show because in the end it’s unwanted… “
His hands squeeze into fists, A sob escapes, rocking throughout his body. “And just like those feelings, the flower will slowly grow, making one choke on its petals until it…” he trails off, his heart arching not knowing if he should say it.
“Until what?” Origami basically whispers, probably sensing that what Vyncent is about to say is anything but good.
“Until it kills you from the inside.”
The silence that falls is so sickly stiff.
“...well shit, kid,” ” Origami finally says awkwardly.
“Yep,” Vyncent replies, just as awkwardly. He brings his knees to his chest, wrapping his arms around them, hugging them close to his shaken up and arching body.
“Well, ” Hero speaks again. “Who the fuck are you crushing on that badly? ” He sounds worried, which is unusual for Origami from Vyncent’s experience. “Maybe it’s not like that? Maybe they like you and you just need to confess or something?”
Vyncent opens up his mouth to quickly explain again that no, that's not how hanahaki works sadly, but then he closes as a daunting realization falls on him.
With whom is he in love?
“Well? Come on kid, I won’t laugh? …okay I’ll laugh a bit, but only if it's funny.” Origami chuckles, although more nervous than malicious.
“I— I-” Vyncent stutters, hands shaking as he begins to panic once again.
“You what?”
“I don’t know…” He finally manages to whisper.
“You WHAT?”
“I DON’T KNOW?” Vyncent’s voice cracks as the teen yells into the silent dorm. “I don’t know who I love! Oh my Gods, I don't know who I love… ”
He curls up on himself even more, gripping tightly at his forearms, nails digging into his skin breaking it. In his panic he doesn’t notice the small drops of the blood that start dripping.
“HOW DO YOU— okay let’s take a few deep breaths here.”
Vyncent rocks himself as his breaths quicken with the rising panic.
“How. How do you— How do you not know that?” Origami finally asks with exasperation. “Do you just not think about your feelings? Like ever?”
“I try not to?” Vyncents says back, his voice going up several notes higher than usual.
“God fucking damnit…”
“I’m sorry?” He whispers, a couple of tears escaping from his eyes. He can taste their saltiness on his trembling lips.
“No, kid, it's fine… Okay, it’s not fine. ” Origami sighs. “But… we will figure out something, okay? ”
Vyncent nods, his entire frame shaking from the sobs. He wants to believe the hero, but deep down he has this sinking feeling that there isn’t anything to figure out that can help him.
Hanahaki wasn’t that uncommon on Fauna and while Vyncent was lucky that no one he knew had to go through it, he had heard many stories from his family and friends. Tragic tales of young elven folk that never got old because the loves of their lives did not have them in their hearts. The bloodied flowers that would spill from their lips, apparently as beautiful as those who the cursed one loved. Many never revealing who their beloved was, as to not send their mourning families after them. All that pain until one day flowers just suffocate the unloved. A truly morbid fate.
A fate that apparently is Vyncent’s own.
Oh, Gods… I’m going to die.
A broken sob wrecks his body, as he quietly wails into his knees.
“Let’s think about it, ” Origami continues. “You are in love with someone, so at least maybe let’s figure out who that person is. ”
Vyncent just feels more nauseous at the thought of figuring that.
“Okay, you just started the new school year, so maybe it’s one of the classmates? Anyone caught your eye or something? ”
The elf thinks for a moment, before shaking his head. He had few new friends, sure. But there wasn’t really that deep of a connection with any of them. He was hoping that he would get to make them with time, but now…
He takes a shaky breath. His lungs burn at his every movement.
“You are a bit of a loser… ” Vyncent lets out a weak offended whine at that. “But that’s fine, that’s less people to suspect. Okay. Do you have any other friends? ”
Vyncent sniffles a bit and wipes away some of the snot that came from his nose. “Well, you’ve met most of them… There’s Dakota, William-”
“The dead asshole? ”
“Don’t call him that… but yes .”
“HA-”
“ Anyway , there’s Ashe, uhh , Summer? I don’t know if I would consider Doug a friend. And uhhh… that might be it? Like there’s Tide but he’s more like a dad so…”
“I was joking about you being a loser with no friends, but damn this is… sad. ”
Vyncent feels his ears burn in shame.
“Well at least I’m not dead,” he growls back, his sore throat crying in pain.
“...touché ” The older hero murmurs, before continuing. “Wait, isn’t one of your friends like a detective or something? Maybe they can help you, or I don’t know, a therapist?”
His heart stutters at Origami’s suggestion. Ask William for help with this? A basically unsolvable problem that will end with Vyncent’s death no matter what they do?
His mind shows him the scene of him telling William about the flowers. The sight of his best friend’s face falling, his big brown eyes filling with tears, as he begs Vyncent to somehow stop it, to survive.
To not die.
Another fit of coughs squeezes through his tight chest. Couple of petals fall, leaving a bittersweet aftertaste on his tongue. He stares down, vision blurry from the tears, as they land on the fabric of his sweatpants. They are crumpled, wet from his spit and pastel blue. Looking at them makes him want to throw up, but he knows he can’t because that would probably trigger more of them to come.
“I-” He croaks out, his voice wrecked from the flowery assault on his throat. “I’m not gonna ask William for that.”
“What! Why? ” Origami almost shouts in Vyncent’s head. “Wait. Did you say William? ”
Vyncent squeezes his eyes shut, trying to stop more of the tears from falling. He doesn’t succeed, as the hot streams continue pouring, spilling down his cheeks onto the coughed up petals.
“I am not telling William, or anyone really, about this,” he whispers, barely holding back himself from wailing. “They can’t know! Especially not William!”
“So you want to just what? Pretend that everything is fine? Even though it’s clearly not! ”
Vyncent heart burns at these words. He knows Origami is right, that he can’t hide it, not for long anyway. This secret is going to come out, either through the flowers or his own blood. But that won’t stop him from trying. His fate is sealed, but that doesn’t mean his friends, his family needs to know. He can delay that pain, give them the tragic news later, maybe when the flowers start truly suffocating him. To stop them from seeing his pathetic pain. From grieving him before he’s gone. Or worse — trying to save him.
“Besides, you said that the detective is William? That little brat is awful, but he seems smart from what I’ve seen. He clearly knows you best, so maybe use the short shithead”
Something in Vyncent snaps as he swallows back the petals that scratch at his lungs.
“Don’t call him that!” His throat sores in pain as he bellows into the dark and empty room.
“Why not? ” Origami sneers in his brain, voice dripping with mockery. “Why can't I call him what he is? ”
Vyncent’s hands bundle into fists as he clenches his jaw, fighting back the angry growl.
“You don’t get to insult my best friend!” he hisses back through his clenched teeth. “You and him might fucking hate each other because whatever dumb shit you did-”
“He insulted my movies! ”
“But one more insult from you about him and I’ll find a way to get you out just to punch you right into the spirit world!” He’s one the best people I know and I won’t let you just— just— UGH ” He screams into his knees, feeling the anger pulse through his blood. He doesn’t know why Origami insulting William bothers him that much, but he can’t just let it slide like that.
There’s a silence in his head for a few minutes, he assumes that the hero might be a bit shocked from his outburst. He takes this time to breathe, pain stabbing him in his chest, letting the flame of the sudden anger die down slowly.
Finally, Origami speaks again.
“Oh, goddamn it…. ”
“What!” Vyncent mutters out, although his previous rage simmering down. “Do you want to insult my best friend even more, asshole?”
“No, dickhead.” Origami sounds annoyed but also… bewildered? “I just realized something.”
Vyncent waits expectantly for a few moments.
“Okay? What is it?” He finally asks, after a minute of awkward silence.
The hero doesn’t respond at first, which annoys Vyncent. He can’t wait to let the asshole out of his head.
“Hello?”
“Actually… ” Origami finally speaks up slowly, as if thinking about something intensely. “Actually nevermind,” he finally says, clearly very smug about something.
“What?” Vyncent says, confused. He doesn’t like the sudden tone change. Whatever realization Origami just had, it seemed to amuse him, which was not a good sign in Vyncent’s opinion.
“Like I said, it’s nothing. ” The hero snickers slightly. “You’ll figure it out. Eventually. ”
Vyncent blinks a few times, feeling even more lost. What is the dead man hiding from him? And how is he supposed to figure it out if he doesn’t even know what the hero means?
“That being said, ” Origami continues, ignoring the teen's confusion. “You should go to sleep now, it’s late. ”
While it is dark outside, it is nowhere near being this late and they both know it. Vyncent’s gaze goes back to the abandoned notes on the desk. He was supposed to spend the evening studying, but now…
He glances back at the petals littering his floor and pants.
Is there even a sense in studying if I’m gonna die soon anyway?
Origami seems to sense Vyncent’s dilemma as he speaks up again. “Leave the books, you are in no state to study. Better get some rest. I mean, look at yourself. ”
The elf glances at the mirror that hangs on his dorm closet and winces at the sight. He looks miserable, hair even messier than before, his face red and swollen from all the crying. There's some blood on his hands and forearms from where he dug his nails into the skin. He basically looks like the mess that is his mind at the moment.
“You look like shit. Go to bed.”
Normally, he would be offended by the comment but the older hero was not lying, so he just nods back and gets up from the floor. His legs shake slightly, as the blue petals fall and join the white ones on the floor. He ignores them for now, he’ll clean them in the morning. He stumbles to his messy bed and just falls on it face first. Shuffling under the covers, he kicks off his socks and settles under the cold sheets. He should probably change into the sleep clothes he keeps under his pillow, but he can’t force himself to move.
The weariness from his bones envelops him and the hollowness settles in. His body feels numb, as he stares blankly at the slightly dirty wall next to his bed. The tears finally stop flowing, he’s too tired to cry anymore. He welcomes the emptiness that spills in his mind, the many racing thoughts and fears getting devoured by the hollow and empty feeling in his chest. There’s so many things he should do. So many things he needs to think about. His world flipped on his head, not even an hour ago and he knows his fate is sealed with deadly flowers in his aching lungs.
But for now he closes his eyes, letting sleep take over his tired mind. Deep down hoping that maybe none of it is real and he will wake up the next day safe, rested and loved.