Your Blood's Cursed, Kid

Theron's mouth had been halfway open to start a fiery retort to Alek's claims of a curse... but stopped and went silent when Nova spoke up suddenly. His eyes turned to watch her unwrap the brace on her hand, instantly falling to the trace of a scar that marked the girl's palm.

"I...I did this...to...myself...by trusting you completely I...I cursed myself. I've been blaming everyone else when I..."

It shouldn't have been possible, after all that the last several hours had put him through, all the shock and rejection, pain and despair, for Theron to once again feel like the entire world was falling out from under him... but as he looked at her, watched her reaction, and as revelation dawned as to what she was implying... everything else seemed to fall away. The Reckoning, the rejection, even Alek's crazy story and enigmatic reasoning. If she was right...

"I should only be blaming myself..."

"Can I truly do nothing right?"

Theron shot up from his seat suddenly, a hot spark of intensity in his eyes mixing oddly with the pallor of his half-dead expression. "No. Don't you dare... don't you DARE blame yourself after what I've put you through!" He grit his teeth and shrugged off Alek's hand as the older man placed it on his good shoulder, a silent warning that he was drawing too much attention. Theron didn't care. He continued. "I'm the one whose been false -- I'm the one who kept secrets and tried to play the odds for my own benefit. You did nothing, nothing wrong Nova. I... I dragged you into all this, even though I never intended to get you mixed up in it."

"Theron--" People were starting to stare.

"But I'll be damned before I let you share my fate. I may have failed as a Meister but I won't let my failures be yours to bear. I..." He visibly began to deflate, the fire in his eyes dimming as he looked regretfully to one side. "I owe you that much, at least. If there is a curse... if it's going to affect us both... then there has to be a way to break it! Somehow..."

"Kid, I really think this isn't--"

"I have a year; if I can't find a way to lift the curse by then, at least one of us will still have a chance. You deserve a better life than being the Weapon of a two-faced third-rate Meister anyway. When you go home, forget me. Forget the things I've put you through. That's... for the best."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Theron's reaction caught her by surprise, but eased not the hurt that had been caused. Alek attempted to shush him but it didn't work, and he'd have another problem in her retaliation. She grew angry at him, and, taking his lead in suddenly not caring about the attention they drew, stood to meet him, locking him dead in the eye. "Your failures?! If I recall right, I trusted you! That was my choice, my fault. I didn't have to team up with you, and even when I did I was told you were trouble. I let you do this, I. Trusted. You."

The demon weapon grabbed her Meister by the collar and with a violent tug brought him face to face with her, closed the gap to an uncomfortable distance and had bright sapphire eyes glare with disdain into his own. "And how dare you tell me to forget you and what you did do. Not all of us are like you, Theron. Not all of us forget that easily. I could never walk the streets of Death City if it were left like this. Unlike you, those who earn a place in my heart are never forgotten, and doublely so to those who break it."

Nova sighed painfully, and her grip on the fabric loosened, her body shook with rage, but was too tired to fight with it. She hung her head in shame. "I didn't have to come here...I didn't have to know what I know now. I had the choice to forget you and walk away. I'd regret either decision I made. If you came to me with the intention of breaking every promise you made, fine. If you came to me solely to use me, fine. If you couldn't care about what you have done to me, fine. I'm just a loyal weapon, and it will never matter what you do to me. I've no interest in trying to find the good in you, not when I can't tell what's a lie and what isn't."

"I'm staying. Because that's what I promised you. And a weapon should never break her promises to her Meister."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


I love roleplaying. Shit happens XD