Dim's grey eyes rested on Aurora's face. He was completely put off by the way she acted as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened at all. Her face showed pure happiness, it would have convinced anyone, but his mind reached out and he felt her concern and fear like clouds around her. He was touched by how she reeled all her emotions in just to try and comfort him. A large cloud had covered the bright sun and a gust of wind blew through. Dim's tunic and trousers, drenched and stained, became cold against his body. His eyes drifted off to the side of Aurora and focused in on the arrow imbedded in the dirt. The corner of his mouth twitched up. She shivered in the wind, her gaze following Dim's. "I think I know the answer." She had a bit of a laugh to her voice. The wind blew again, particularly strong this time and goosebumps rose on Aurora's arms. "Hey...you wanna go get hot chocolate or something? It's a bit cold out. I could help find you some new clothes too- if you'd like that." Dim hugged himself for warmth, his white hair floating in the wind. The smallest of grins formed on his face. He nodded. Aurora smiled a bit, standing up. She held out her hand to help him up. "Come on-" He began to reach out for Aurora's hand, but immediately withdrew his own as it came into his line of sight. His hands were covered in the slimy dark liquid. He tried to wipe his hand off on his tunic, only succeeding in making things messier, so he stuffed his hands in his pockets and awkwardly stood to his feet alone. She frowned a tinsy bit, picking up her stuff. "Come on-" she began to lead him to her house- knowing that she should have some other clothes that would fit him. As they made their way towards Aurora's house they passed someone who was out for a stroll. Dim tried to make himself as small as possible as they walked by, but could feel the man's eyes drilling into him. He felt his face burning with shame, and his heart was thumping in a weird way. Aurora tried her best to walk in front of Dim, attempting to protect him from the gazes of everyone else. He noticed Aurora kept trying to block him from the view of strangers they'd pass. At first he thought she was ashamed of him, but when he reached his mind out he found that the waves of her emotions were not sharp, dark ones, but smooth and gentle ones. She simply wanted to help him. His hands nervously clenched and unclenched in his baggy pockets, his hair fell in front of his eyes. Why? Why would she help him? He'd been told his whole life he was to hide, that no one would except him... Yet here was a girl he didn't even know, leading him to her house to lend him her clothes, and treating him like he was the most normal being in all of Everoam. Aurora didn't think much of what she was doing- she just loved helping people. By the time they reached her home, the sun was getting somewhat low. She opened the door, holding it open for Dim. Dim slipped inside. It was much warmer inside, and he was extremely cold at this point. She locked the door after them. "Hot chocolate or clothes first?" Dim looked down at his damp clothes and then back up at Aurora. "Probably clothes," he said. "Clothes it is. I'll be right back." Aurora slipped into another room and pulled out a cardboard box. Her hands began to shake slightly as she pulled a pair of her ex's jeans and a t-shirt. He'd forgotten them when he dumped Aurora after accusing her of cheating- although she didn't. She still doesn't know why he thought she did. The clothes seemed like they would be a bit big for Dim, but not bad. She brought them back out. As Aurora walked back into the room Dim almost winced as strong negative waves rammed up against his mind. She was carrying a bundle of wrinkled up clothes. Aurora's hands were still shaking as she held the clothes out to him. "The bathroom's right over there-" She pointed down the hall to the room. "You can wash up and wear these clothes. There's fresh towels in the cupboard under the sink." As Dim took the clothes into his hands (staining them slightly) he noticed Aurora's own hands shaking. The clothes were clearly men's clothes, and Dim wondered who they'd belonged to. It didn't seem as though Aurora lived with anyone else; Dim would've felt a separate flow of mind waves if someone did. Even if they'd left hours ago he'd feel the mind waves still lingering in the air. No one else had been here in a while. Dim silently walked off to the bathroom. She let out a shaky breath when he left and began making hot chocolate, but she dropped a mug. It shattered into pieces.
Dim heard the noise, and worried, swung the door open and ran into the kitchen where Aurora had gone. He saw the broken mug on the floor and slightly relaxed. In his rush Dim had run out of the bathroom without his shirt, and now visible we're long black scars along his chest and back. "... Sorry," he said awkwardly, "I thought something might be wrong." Then after a short pause he added, "Is something wrong?" "I'm... it's-" She looked down at a small cut on her hand. "It's fine-" She barely even noticed he was shirtless. Her whole body was shaking now. Aurora's mind waves were like a storm, Dim had to block them out or they'd overpower him. She was shaking uncontrollably. Dim's eyes fogged. He remembered the queasy feeling that crept up in his stomach, like some kind of horrible worm ripping through his insides, that brought him writhing to the floor and leaving him powerless. Dim reached out a hand and grabbed Aurora's shoulder tightly. His jaw clenched, his heartbeat quickened. He tightened his grip on her shoulder. "... You've got this. You can push through," he said softly through his clenched teeth. "Wh-what?" She whispered, looking up at him. She realized he wasn't doing so good and immediately began re-reigning her emotions in- it was a struggle though. Dim looked directly into Aurora's eyes, but he looked distant. He repeated, "You can push through..." "Y-yeah..." She choked back her emotions. They quickly were mostly hidden. "I'm fine-" she turned away and began cleaning the shards, forgetting about the blood. The only thing that was left of the situation was her slightly trembling body. Dark red blood was spilling from the cut on Aurora's and slowly dripping to the ground. Dim felt something deep inside him stir. Aurora needed help, and he wasn't helping. Dim quickly snatched up a dishtowel from the counter top. He grabbed Aurora's arm, a little too roughly, and wrapped her hand in the towel. "Wait here. I have some bandage in my pack," he said, walking off to the bathroom. She yelped softly at the grasp of her arm and then watched him walk away. He quickly rummaged through his bag and eventually pulled out a roll of bandage. He was about to rush back out when he caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror and realized he still wasn't wearing a shirt. He snatched the t-shirt out of the bundle of clothes and roughly pulled it over his head. It was loose on him, loose enough that half his shoulder peeked out the neck. He ran back out to the kitchen. Aurora was on the floor, her head between her legs, slightly lightheaded. She didn't even notice Dim reentering the room. Dim kneeled down on the floor in front of Aurora. Her mind waves were still in chaos and Dim once again fought to block them out. "Here... Let me bandage your hand," he said in a low voice. He put his hand out to take Aurora's. Aurora didn't move, the nausea growing. Dim reached out and grabbed her arm, this time a little more gently. He examined the cut. It was a small cut, yet Aurora sempt very lightheaded. He began to carefully bandage her hand. She was still shaking, the build up from years of holding in her emotions escaping. When he'd finished Dim stood up and proceeded to finish cleaning the shards of mug. It felt wrong to just leave Aurora on the floor, but he didn't know what else to do. She seemed so unhappy and broken... So much different than the girl who's hair shone like gold, who'd stood like a a sturdy pole shooting arrow after arrow into the center of her target. Dim threw the small handful of shards into the trash bin. He stood for a moment, his back facing Aurora. Then he turned back to her. "Would you like me to help you unto the sofa?" he asked. She brushed away some tears and stood up through the trembling. "I'm fine-" she pulled out a new mug and began making Dim's hot chocolate- almost dropping the mug multiple times. Dim breathed in deeply through his nose. He held his breath for a moment before he softly let it out. "You're not fine," he said gently as his raspy voice would allow him. "Please, relax. I'll make the hot chocolate." Aurora almost dropped the mug again & set it on the counter, sucking in deep breaths. He hesitated before he reached out a hand and placed it on Aurora's shoulder. He then carefully began to lead her with his hand towards the living room. "C'mon... It'll be okay. You need to relax." She slowly sank onto the couch, her face falling into her hands. Dim then walked of to the kitchen to prepare the hot chocolate. He had no idea what he was doing, but he did his best. Eventually he immerged from the kitchen with two dirty mugs of hot cocoa. Aurora hadn't moved at all Dim crouched down next to the couch. "Aurora," he whispered. The smell of hot chocolate wafted in the air. Her eyes flicked up, but she didn't move otherwise . Dim held out a mug for her. "Here. It might make you feel a bit better," he said. She took it, her touch light. She didn't drink.
