Out of place (MCSM Romeo and Author story) [Discontinued]

22. [R] Peaceful Mode

I'm not even sure what to say. I've never seen Aneesah so...afraid. I mean yeah I could understand her panic but on that end, I've never seen here in a state so...weakened. It broke me honestly. When I started living with her she told me how she tended to have emotional problems at times. I found it hard to believe at first considering how dauntless she was fighting drowned zombies, handling an injury and harvesting honey like a pro, but I've kept what she told me in mind. I've never seen her break down before, until that moment. I didn't know how to react, all the times she gave me comfort in my time or pain, I had no idea how to do the same. I tried to return the embrace but something stopped me, that nightmare. Seeing her so terrified of me was what got me then, seeing here break down like that...I didn't know if I felt right comforting her. Thinking she wasn't just afraid of me in that hellish dream, she was afraid I'd kill her. I promised her nothing like that would happen, so why does none of it reassure me? Eventually I held her tighter, almost afraid to let go. I....care a great deal for her, she's special to me.

So I guess we're calling those strange things 'Wardens' now. Well, good thing MY warden was never like that, If anything that creature DEFINITELY looks like something the old me would fancy. A sharp listener, terrifying, tough and dangerous. Just maybe give them a more ME-esc look. You know, red magma like. Well, sunshine institute did have the prison golems but those were just extra muscle. Okay enough about that. Aneesah's theory about these 'Wardens' just had to make me blurt out that stupid sentence did it? *sigh* Romeo you idiot, I scolded myself

Well, at least we're out of there and now we're...here. Whatever it is, it's amazing. The cave had greenery growing in it. There were vines growing some kind of berries that glowed, grassy blocks...there were flowers on the ceiling, bright and pink. "This place..." Aneesah started, her voice filled with wonder. As if for the first time she's seen anything that surprised her. "It's so alive...so majestic...so...so.." "Beautiful." I let the word escape my lips softly, distant from worry or anything before that. This place is so calming that I can practically feel my worries wash away. "Yeah, yeah it is." I hear Aneesah's voice almost at a whisper. I look over to her, she looks so peaceful, fascinated by all her new surroundings. I don't know what to say. Despite how different she looks, this place almost suits her. She goes to sit by the pool. My first guess is that she's feeling the water. I walk over to look at the glowing berries, carefully feeling the handing plant they're growing from. I pick some of them, trying one of them and seeing how they taste. They aren't that bad, they're quite good actually. Hehe, Xara probably would have told me it could be poisonous and I would have just put them in my mouth after I had a bucket of milk ready, but luckily, they're just ordinary berries...ordinary GLOWING Berries.

I walk over to where Aneesah sits, noticing something in the water. A small pink creature with frills on it's head and a big tail. Awe, it's so adorable. Looks like my friend here was playing with this little fellow. It's so cute. I hand the berries to Aneesah, who looks at me almost in wonder.  There's something I've never seen before dancing in her eyes. I can't get it properly, it's beyond happiness, a lot of caring, I can't seem to find the right words to describe it.

Aneesah takes the berries and looks at them. She looks up at me again with the same mysterious emotion, cheeks rosey red once again. I really shouldn't tell her this but it's really precious when she blushes. Eventually she notices me staring at her and I give her a small toothy smile...then she snickers. "Wha..what's so funny?" I ask, confused. "You um..." she starts before another giggle comes along. "Y-uh, hehehe y-your mouth is glowing." "What?" Curiously, I lift my hand to my face and open my mouth, seeing light being reflected onto my hand. At once i started trying to spit the glow out on the side. Aneesah only chuckled fondly before eating a berry. There's still that unknown emotion in her eyes, I wonder what she's thinking. Then, the little pink creature is at the ledge making little squeaks I've never heard before. I reach over and pet him slowly and carefully. I'm not sure how any of this can be more calming than this. The strange pink creature is then joined by two more of it's kind. They're so precious. I look to Aneesah curiously. "Hey, by any chance do you know what they're called?" I ask awkwardly. She puts a 'finger' to her chin in thought. "Hm, I'm not sure but I think they're called Axelotls." She tells me. "From what I can remember, they can't stay on land too long, they're aquatic creatures, there are many types of them." I turn to look at the three little axelotls, all beaming at me. If I wasn't at such a tranquil state  I probably would have dawed my head off at them.

Aneesah sighs heavily as she turns from the pond and plops her head down on the grass, hands behind her and legs outstretched. I turned to her as the trio of axelotls dive back into their pool, noticing something odd about the sudden change in her mood. "What's wrong?" I ask as I look at her eyes. She looks so tired, as if the whole calm scenario has caused exhaustion to catch up to her all at once. "I just wish we could stay here." She says silently but loud enough for me to hear. "It's so peacful here. We could play with the axelotls, live off the glow berries and just enjoy the scenery. But we have a home to go back to, and I know if we stay away too long we'll miss it. Before you came along I worked hard to build that place. It took almost the whole first moth I got here to not only make it big enough for me to fit in, but make it feel like home. I'd be abandoning it. if I stayed, but this place is so comforting that..." "...you don't want to leave." I say, understanding her statement.

I carefully scoot over so I can lay down in the grass too, placing my hands over my chest. Aneesah is just next to me, the two of us forming a T shape. "My friend, Fred...I....I couldn't bury his inventory as he had nothing on him at the time so I went to our old home made a memorial for him." I explain as I ponder the memory of that place. "I knew nothing fancy was going to work so I settled on a birch tree. Man he loved birch trees. But that place, home, it all calmed me down. It was like a place of comfort, I felt safe there, from myself especially. But I couldn't stay cooped up forever and not know what happens in the outside world. The thing is, I knew that if I went out there, I'd rarely come back. I wanted to stay, but what would I do there? Even as um..." do I tell her? Now? We're at such a peacful state and I want to bring that up? Oh well I do my best to swivel around it. "...someone who had a very special...gift, as one would say...I knew I couldn't just sit feeling sorry for myself, so I left. Even though it's different this time, it's this a case of 'what about the outside world'. If you stay at one place, you'll never get to experience the world around you. But that doesn't mean you can't come back. It's your choice after all." Aneesah looks from me to the cave ceiling. Then she sighs again, unsure of how to respond. After a moment of silence, she speaks up. "What do you mean gift?" "What?" "You've never mentioned anything about being gifted something, why are you telling me about it now?" Oh right, I was hoping she wouldn't press the subject further. I let out a sigh of my own as I continue, hoping to not give away too much information about my powers. "Well let's just say I was...different from everyone else, Xara and Fred we like me as well. Only thing is, they used their gifts wisely. Mine...I let it consume me, turned it from a gift into a curse. Once it was taken away from me I finally understood what I'd done. Honestly can't believe it took that the make me realize what a fool I was." Once I finish explaining, my eyes trail over to the pool where an axelotl pokes it's head out of the water. "You know, if you really were as bad of a person you say you were back then, I think from what you've told me, if Fred saw how much you've changed in the time I've known you, he'd be really proud of you." Aneesah tells me. My gaze moves over to her, quickly yet slowly. "You think so?" I ask "Well... yeah." I can't help but smile, she really is a gem. "Thanks."

After some lying down in the grass, I curiously take out the clock I made for myself and look at the time. "It's night"  I remark. It'd probably a be a bit dangerous if we find our out right now. Besides, Aneesah's told me about a mob called Phantoms, those who hunt insomniacs. I thought she was joking initially but I don't really want to find out. "Maybe we can rest here until morning." I suggest. Aneesah looks at me, then the clock, before nodding in agreement. "Yeah, I like that idea."

(Hoooooo boy, These sweet encounters are honestly just stuff that comes wnile I'm writing but I am on the verge of wanting to have these to get together. Also yeah, nice break from the drama.)