“it’ll only hurt a second.”
Danger Meme
“Miss Haine?”
Amber eyes flicked up to lock on eyes of sky blue. Innocence. Any qualms were silenced and Haine could not help but be far kinder to Ayari than others she would encounter. The raen always had that effect. A momentary pause and Haine inquired politely, “Ayari?”
The raen’s smile tugged to the surface, kind and determined as always. “Did you hurt your hand? I can be of help to you.” Haine arched a brow and with the sight of sangria locks standing behind the raen - her culprit was confirmed. That cat. Q’donis peeked over Ayari’s shoulder and smiled weakly in Haine’s direction and that just confirmed it. The lavender midlander inclined her head to Ayari, if not a bit more disgruntled, “I did.”
Ayari was not deterred in the slightest by Haine’s unusual aversion to aid. Afterall, Haine had not said no, right? The raen moved to kneel by Haine’s side and readily began digging into the small bag fastened around her lithe frame. While Ayari was busy, Haine shifted her harsh gaze onto the sheepish miqo’te that moved to kneel on her other side. “How kind of you.” Haine bit in tone in his direction and Q’donis brightened under her scrutiny. A twitch of his ears and a confidence that began to radiate no matter the circumstances. “This is kind for you.”
Haine merely scoffed at his optimism no matter how fond of it she was. The distraction was a welcome company. Haine felt Ayari gently turn her palm face up and with a delicate touch peel back her fingers to slowly flatten her hand out. Each stretch felt like her skin was far too tight. A burning that accompanied the pain of the glass shards that remained stubbornly rooted into her skin. The blood had clotted about the glass but Haine had made no attempt to remove any of the pieces herself with no means to pluck them safely. Yet this was where Ayari came in, wasn’t it? Ready to help others with her vast array of knowledge and good faith.
Good faith in others was hard to come by. Often others wanted something in return for the things they did, but Ayari was never like that. Never once did Haine suspect that of her either. However, Haine recalled Ayari being far more sheepish once upon a time. Compared to now, Ayari appeared to demonstrate a confidence in the words she spoke and the things she wanted to do- she seemed more sure of herself. Nothing short of admirable, despite Haine never conveying it. There was a trust that was simply brought by nature and encouraged by actions.
Haine turned her head to look at Ayari, a decisive raise of a brow as she saw Ayari produce a pair of tweezers. Noticing Haine’s inquisitive concern, Ayari lifted her head to smile reassuringly. “It’ll only hurt a second.” Oh, how she doubted that. Ayari latched her tweezers onto the end of the biggest shard of glass and with a gentle precision she pulled the piece free. Haine slowly exhaled her discomfort at the sharp pinch that radiated in the middle of her hand. It made her fingers want to curl as much as her skin crawled with the dull ache that accompanied the small empty gash.
“One down.” Ayari confirmed as she dropped the piece of glass into the open handkerchief in her lap.
“Forty-nine to go.” Haine replied dryly, to which Q’donis and Ayari exchanged amused gazes despite their pity. Though after a moment, Haine looked out towards the sunlight that shone into the clearing through the scattered treetops. A peace that settled over the land now that a presence no longer loomed. Fathomed words lingered on the tip of the midlander’s tongue in hesitation. To find the necessity to say them was never easy, but for the raen and miqo’te at her side- perhaps this was worth the trouble.
“Thank you.”
Part One
Thank you for the ask @impure-ivory!
Soft mention: @sangria-fangs
