His gaze bounces between her and the chair that she tries to get to before he helps lead her to it, kneeling in front of her as she speaks. And while Marek couldn’t claim to have known Meilin for long, he has known her long enough to know that this had a far worse effect on her than he initially noticed. But it isn’t until she mentions her inability to feel that he notices the empty feeling in his chest…as if something had been stolen from him. Something missing that he couldn’t quite place his finger on. But as he thinks over her words, it hits him.
Turning to look for something–anything to test on, he spots another chair in the corner, jaw clenched as he focuses–as nothing happens. That familiar pull of his power absent and dread takes its place. This wasn’t possible. Eyes are wide as he tries again, but the outcome is still the same. “…not just you.”
And while he had learned to live without relying on his powers, to have them suddenly ripped away? It felt wrong. But he’s quick to shove his own feelings aside, his attention snapping back to Meilin as he takes her hand.
“Hey–look at me.” A hand gently tilts her chin to look at him, eyes scanning her features. He recognized that look in her eye, he had seen it before in some of his fellow soldiers. That distance. “Don’t do that. Focus on here. Get out of your head.” It was easier said than done, he knew that, his fingers squeezing hers lightly, hoping the physical contact would be enough to ground her back to the here and now. “Nothing is wrong with you, alright? You need to breathe, Meilin.”
Meilin was so out of it, that she didn’t notice him helping her to get to the chair. Normally she would brush him off or push him away, she was a big girl, no need for his help, but this was not something she had experienced before. Her powers were gone, she was not dealing well, she was vulnerable. And he was there to see it. Yet it was better him than anyone else. For someone, who used to have emotion manipulation magic, Meilin wasn’t doing well, she knew it and it was one of the reasons that were not helping her case.
She focused long enough to see him try to use his magic, but it wasn’t working either. “Great. Now no one have powers,” she threw her hands in the air and tried to take a deep breath, but it was shaky and not deep at all. “We’re like sitting ducks now. What if there’s an attack again. We can’t defend. We have no advantage, this will be a slaughter,” she murmured under her breath, her gaze turning blank again. This was not good, not good at all. “I can’t feel anyone,” she whispered exhaling, tears starting to stream down her face without her even noticing. Meilin tried to do as she was told and breathe, but it wasn’t working, it felt like her lungs had no room, something was restricting her breathing. “I can’t, I can’t breathe, it’s the dress, this stupid fucking dress, I-I can’t,” she took shallow breaths as she tried to hook a finger behind her corset and pull it so it would become a bit more loose even though she knew very well it was useless, it was tightly laced on her back, after all she did it herself.
At his words Meilin looked at him, but her eyes couldn’t focus, her mind was not there, it was all over the place. She squeezed his hand back as hard as she could, it seemed to help for a moment, but her mind felt like it was floating away again. “I-I can’t, Marek, I can’t,” she stumbled over her words, not noticing how she called him by his name instead of an insult, like usual. “It hurts,” she coughed pressing a slightly shaky fist in her chest.
