The Island of Clouds

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Saraph noticed that she was holding her shirt tightly, but he said nothing. She was sad, and she only had a few ways to show that. She wasn't hurting him anyway, so there was no real reason to stop her. Still, she was upset, and he wanted to help that. He held her there for some time until he gently extracted himself. "I think you should rest. You have had a long day, as have I. While the Life-fire may have helped along your injuries, you are still not completely healed."

Saraph kept his hand in hers as he led her back to her bed. Once she was seated, he disappeared for a few seconds, coming back with the amati, the stringed instrument similar to the violin. "Would you like anything? I can prepare a drink to help you rest, if you so desire."
 
Lyra sighed when he let go of her, then let him lead her away to her room and to her bed. Missing his body heat and wings, she wrapped the blanket around herself before he stepped back into the room with the violin thing.
"No it's alright. I'm tired enough."
 
Saraph moved the chair so it was closer to the side of the bed before he sat down beside her. His music always seemed to help her sleep, so he wanted to soothe her. However, she responded in a tired manner, and Saraph's bow hand lowered before it even reached the strings. Maybe she would fall asleep without his aid.

The tips of his ears twitched, the motion propelled by thoughtfulness or a more crestfallen nature. "Do you wish for me to play? If you would rather sleep, I understand."
 
Lyra watched him closely. Saraph's movements are always so graceful, especially his wings. She laid down under the covers and yawned before he asked his question.
"You don't have to play. I know it's been a long day for you too." Lyra closed her bronze eyes. "Goodnight.." she whispered. "Sweet dreams."

((Leave room for her to have a nightmare?))
 
Lyra didn't see the sad expression cross Saraph's face, but he stood up regardless. "Good night, Lyra," he said back to her, but she was already asleep. He set the amati down beside the bed and took his leave.

However, he didn't sleep. He paced around his home and fixed anything that looked slightly off. He wanted to take a flight around, but he couldn't leave Lyra alone. He finally settled on his bed, sitting down and removing his shirt. He lay on his side, thinking about what he'd done that day. He would have to go back to Pallick alone and tell him about his trip to the well of the Life-fire. Saraph fell into a light and uneasy doze, his thoughts swirling in his mind like a mighty whirlpool.
 
Ariel and Simon held onto Lyra one hand each. They were in a big hurry to get home because they weren't in a very safe area. The lamp lights flickered and convenience stores were closing around them. Thirteen year old Lyra asked her parents why they were walking through such a sketchy street, but the honking at the end of the road interrupted anything they would have said. The small family turned toward the bright headlights and before she knew it, Lyra was tripping between her parents as they burst into an unexpected sprint. She hadn't seen the gun. The nightmare went mute as the jeep drove by her parents in slow motion, spewing bullets looking for blood. Lyra was screaming but nothing was coming out of her mouth. Her long hair obscured her vision for a moment as her parents suddenly crushed her between them. Warm blood poured onto her shoulders. Her parents' blood. ​
Lyra was shaking under the soft comforter, whimpering and squirming as the jeep roared down the street and Ariel's heartbeat stopped. Simon whispered a last three words to Lyra or Ariel or both. She couldn't tell through the blur of her tears. "I love you.."
Lyra jolted up into a sitting position, screaming as she went. Tears streamed down her cheeks both at the memory and the flare of pain in her midsection. She buried her face in her knees and wrapped her arms around her ribs. It was painful, but nothing compared to agony in her heart.
 
If Saraph had first heard her soft whimpers, he didn't stir from his light slumber. However, the scream shocked him awake and in an instant, he knew it was Lyra. His long strides were quick as he shot into the other room. He found her curled upon herself, quaking with unseen fear and sorrow.

The Cloudi wasn't really sure what to say, but he knew she wasn't okay. He sat near the end of the bed, crossing his legs, for he intended to be there with her until she felt better.

"Lyra?" His voice was low and gentle, his hand reaching forward to lightly rest on her leg.
 
Lyra unwound the ribbon around her wrist to clutch it to her chest as if that would somehow bring her mommy back. Then she felt the bed sink and Saraph's gentle voice, full of concern. Lyra lifted her head only slightly, enough to see her crying eyes above her knees. "I'm s-sorry I woke you..." She sniffed, shaking like a leaf with the effort of keeping the bloody memories out of her head. They refused to be buried, so intense were they flashing behind her retinas. Lyra winced and ignored the stabbing pain in her ribs. But that was nothing compared to the agony in her heart.
 
"No, do not worry about me," he said, hoping to hush her. She needed to cry and release her emotions, not apologize. He scooted on the bed closer to her, his wings unfurling from behind him to curl around her. "Do not be sorry." His hand reached over, his thumb swiping her cheek to help keep her skin clear with the gushing of tears.

He had an idea of what was going on inside her head, but he didn't know how to address it. "I am here if you wish to speak to me," he said. Comforting someone who had lost something was not his strongest point.
 
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Lyra coughed, letting her tears fall with only a few hiccups now and then. Her body was still shaking in Saraph's wings as he wiped away her tears and offered her someone to talk to. A friend. Someone she could trust. She hadn't been able to trust anyone for such a long time. Until now.
"Thanks Saraph..." She sniffed and buried her head back in her knees. The dark didn't help her though. "So much blood..I couldn't-I should have done something.." She mumbled, nearly vibrating in his silky wings.
 
It took some effort, but Saraph's wings were strong enough to move her just a little closer. He was able to then shift her into his lap. His hand began to rub her back in a slow and gentle motion, fingers catching in her hair every now and then. Her parents must have been taken from her violently, for she mentioned blood. Saraph's parents had departed due to old age. Hardly any Cloudi parents died from sickness or violent means.

Without knowing the details, Saraph said softly, "I am sure you did all you could, but they should not have been taken from you." Like before, his lips rested on her head, warm breath huffing through the strands of her hair.

"If you wish to speak about it, what occurred? I understand if you do not wish to tell me."
 
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Lyra rested against Saraph, letting him shift her small body onto his lap. Eventually her shaking subsided as she relaxed against Saraph's chest. She tried to concentrate on matching his steady breaths rather than the gunshots in her head, but until he started running his hands through her hair and pressing his lips to her scalp, she wasn't successful.
Saraph offered to hear her story and Lyra decided she'd givevtalking about it as try. She'd never done it before because she didn't make any friends at the orphanage, so now seemed like as good a time as any.
Lyra let out a shaky breath and explained to the angel her parents' deaths. "I was 13 and my parents were taking me on a shortcut through a shady neighborhood because we were in a rush to get home. I remember they looked really worried..." Lyra let a few more tears out before continuing. "Then this car came around the corner...and I didn't see the gun--do you know what a gun is?--I didn't see the danger until they'd pressed me between them, protecting me from the shooters in the car...I was so helpless as they..as they died. Their blood...was everywhere... I remember the people at the hospital telling me I was an orphan and I kept denying it, screaming until they had to sedate me. Then I woke up in the hospital with this around my wrist." Lyra lifted her right arm and let him see the ribbon trapped in her fist. "It was my mother's. The only thing I have left..."
Having let everything out, she felt like an empty shell, staring forward and relying on Saraph's wings and heartbeat to distract herself. "It isn't fair..and I couldn't do anything.." She winced
 
Saraph didn't still his hand, but his wings curled tighter around her frame, shielding her from her invisible nightmares. He was completely silent while she spoke, and he didn't answer her question because she kept explaining. He knew they had more advanced projectile weapons, and given her choice of words, he could deduce that a gun had been the cause of death for both of her parents.

His ears flicked in sadness as she spoke about how she didn't want to believe her parents had been gone. He knew what that felt like. Several times, he had called for his mother, only to remember that she wasn't with him. His father outlived her by a mere five years, a short time for someone who lived for almost a millennium.

When she stopped, he feared that she wouldn't speak again. "Thank you for telling me. I understand that it is... quite a lot for you." Her tale was full of sorrow, and Saraph was beginning to see why she didn't want to return home. It made him sigh into her hair. Now he was more inclined to convince Pallick to let her stay, but he couldn't guarantee anything. So Saraph kept his mouth shut, instead focusing on her and helping her sleep again.
 
Lyra didn't want to say anymore. She didn't reply to his thanks. It was a quite a lot for her of course, but she didn't wanna say it. She hiccuped, an aftereffect of the many tears she'd shed, and it was painful. She'd put too much strain on her fractures even if they were close to healing because of the Life-fire. Saraph's wings curled tighter around her and she was glad to be this close to him. He saves her. From everything. Her injuries, the cold, her nightmares, everything. Could she ever be grateful enough to deserve that?
Saraph sighed into her hair and she coughed, grimacing at the consequent complaint from her irritated bones. She rubbed at them with her free hand, wondering when Saraph believed it would be the right time to pull the bandage off.
 
Saraph held her, his mouth closed and his arms gentle. She had to be in pain, but she hadn't said a word. He thought to release her, but he knew she might have been scared to let him go. "You should rest," he said lightly against her hair. His wings stretched slightly, but they still formed a shield around her.

"If you wish, I will remain here with you while you rest. You deserve the sleep. I do not know if you are in pain or not, but if you are, I may be able to help you."
 
Lyra relaxed against him a little more and nodded her head in agreement to his offer. It would be nice to have some company as she slept and maybe he really could ease her pain even if she didn't want to verbally admit that it was there.
 
Saraph began to hum. The sounds didn't seem to be in any particular order, but they were still melodic in a way. The harmony was soft and absorbed by his wings, so nothing else was disturbed. Saraph didn't want to move or wake her if she was beginning to nod off. He kept up his humming throughout the night, only stopping a few times to take breaths.
 
Lyra listened to Saraph's heartbeat and his beautiful voice. The two rhythms created such a perfect lullaby that she couldn't help but fall into a peaceful, dreamless sleep in his wings. The music continued in her head and every so often, Lyra whispered as she slept. This night, all she said was his name. "Saraph.." Sh nuzzled against him subconsciously, content in his warm embrace
 
Saraph dozed a few times, but Lyra never woke. Eventually, he had to rest his wings, but she didn't stir from her slumber. His hand continued to run across her back and head, when he was awake at least. Morning seemed to come too soon, but Saraph didn't move. He couldn't move until Lyra woke up. He had, after all, promised her that he would stay with her until she felt better.

As he waited, he reflected on how her bare cheek felt against his equally bare chest. His skin tingled, but it was sort of pleasant. He hadn't felt anything like it before. He had heard her whisper his name a few times, something else he'd never experienced. Was she dreaming about him? From her body movements and uttering his name as she slept, it was a fair assumption. However, he didn't count on it. Nightmares weren't often followed by good dreams.
 
Lyra's eyelids fluttered with the onset of morning light. She was aware of a bird's heartbeat, fingers through her hair and a spark of warmth lighting up her heart. Saraph.
She let out a raspy sort of moan at the prominent ache in her ribs. Little strands of her hair stuck to her cheeks where her tears had left tracks. Lyra gulped and kept her eyes closed. She didn't want to move away from his chest, the way his skin felt bare against hers. Her cheeks went crimson at the realization she'd been to upset to pay attention to before. She knew she should be embarrassed, but she didn't want to put space between them.
Her injury had to ruin it though. The sobbing last night surely upset her bones more than she'd anticipated. She whimpered at the periodic stabs of pain in her abdomen, holding tight to the ribbon in her hands
 
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