[PRP] A hARMless Conversation (Melany & Horace)

[The Semblance of Unity]

"So, we might have a solution," Horace said one day, out of the blue, at breakfast, with no lead up and the same tone as it he were discussing the weather. He stabbed his waffle vigorously, watching strawberry jam ooze off of it. "-to the whole charter thing. Maybe. But, um, it might be kind of drastic?"

He looked up at Melany, blue eyes wide and a little nervous.

shibrogane

 

[shibrogane]

"Okay," said Melany patiently. She had a cup of coffee and a waffle that she was ignoring. "Is it more or less drastic than death?"  

[The Semblance of Unity]

"Less drastic than death." That got a small smile out of him. "First, if you'd be willing, we'd have to check your blood - like to check how far the spell is in you. And... if we take your arm and shoulder blade and destroy that when we destroy the paper bit, you'd be free." He paused, then rushed forward, because he'd forgotten the most important part.

"But we could get you a magic arm, or maybe try to regrow it. With the same functionality, of course."

shibrogane

 

[shibrogane]

Melany nodded. "Yeah, I mean, that sounds reasonable--" but then Horace said take your arm and she blanched.

She looked down at her coffee, fingertips gone white.

"Do you think... Do you think that's... like, a thing? That it could be fixed, after?"

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

"Yes. I didn't... I didn't want to even consider the possibility unless there was a solution. I didn't want to take dance from you." He looked at her hands, the way blood had drained from them. "Renard said we can either try to regrow you an arm, but medical magic is... strange, so I don't know it you'f want to try it." He tapped his fingers on the table.

"Or build you a magical construct for an arm. It would function in the same way as your regular arm. It would be your choice." Horace had debated not telling her every last bit, but she needed to know. "There's another option, which is to scrape your bone down, maybe remove part of it, and replace it with an epoxy. But that... might not get all the part that affected by the charter out."

shibrogane

 

[shibrogane]

"What if it doesn't grow back the same," Melany asked. She hadn't been able to do much practicing, but she'd kept up with her stretches, if occasional odd thumps were anything to go by. "What if it comes back horrible and then I can never dance again? I don't know, Horace, I think I'd rather--I'd rather just die than risk it. Not that I'm not confident in you guys, but I just, I don't want to lose my dancing."

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

"Melany," he said. He'd know she would panic - who wouldn't? "You know how magic works best? If you believe in it. And everyone who'd be helping you believes. And," he paused, taking a deep breath.

"You... you know, say there a twenty-five percent chance it won't work. If you die, Melany, you've thrown away a seventy-five percent chance of it working. Can you dance as you are now?" He felt kind of low bringing that up. "Please don't decide to die."

shibrogane

 

[shibrogane]

It was low. Melany flushed a deep purple, but didn't snap back. She would have, usually, turned it into a series of good-natured jibes. Instead she looked down into her coffee. "If we do it," she said, "and it doesn't work... If I can't dance anymore..." She waffled between what she wanted to say and what she knew she ought to. The conflict was obvious.

"It won't be your fault, you know?"

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

He winced at her change in color. But he waited as she ducked her head back down to her coffee and spoke. The words didn't come easily and Horace never expected her to say that. It almost made him want to laugh, because of course it would be his fault, because here he was, pressuring her to try it, to take a chance she wasn't sure she wanted to. It was kind of amazing that she knew him so well as to guess how'd he'd feel if it failed. Her words couldn't change that, but he knew that arguing with her over that would be pointless and frustrating. They couldn't fail.

"It'll work," was what he said instead. Because it had to work. "I'll make it work. Trust me?"

shibrogane

 

[shibrogane]

Melany swallowed. It took effort. She seemed to force herself to do it, her shoulders heaving like she was going to be sick. The word for it was convulsive. "I do," she said. "If I didn't, I would've taken Officer Kuroda up on his offer to kill me."

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

Horace's face flashed briefly into a mask of anger before he smoothed it away. Kuroda offered to kill her? Horrible.

"We're gonna change everything, Mels. We have to take the key off to do it, but it'll work." And if it didn't... he'd cross that bridge when they go there. He'd be there for Melany, however she needed him. But it would work and he refused to let himself believe in the possibility that it would not. He reached out and laid his hand over hers on the coffee mug. No shocks.

"Is it alright if I take a blood sample?" Than, after a moment. "Your coffee's getting a bit cold - I can make you a new cup if you want."

shibrogane

hey idk how the blood collection thing renard was talking about works haha
also, if you wanted, we could use this rp to show the blood @ renard and get result?

 

[shibrogane]

Renard had given Horace, Eli, and Oliver two things before they'd left his home. A chunk of opalescent rock, the indestructible object he'd mentioned, and a heavy piece of paper with an ash-ink spell circle drawn onto it. To use it, he'd explained, they simply had to p***k her finger and have her swipe blood over circle. Horace also had acquired Renard's personal cell phone number: if Horace sent him a picture, he'd answer. "Yeah," said Melany. "I can just microwave it, it's okay..."

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

Horace set the paper on the table along with a sharp x-acto knife. "If you p***k yourself, and then swipe the blood over the circle thing. Be careful, Mels, the knife is really sharp." He waited for her to do so. As soon as she did, he'd snap a picture for Renard. He was anxious about the results, but he needed to know.

"Microwaved coffee is somehow... so much blasphemy," he joked.

shibrogane

 

[shibrogane]

"Remind me to never invite you to the studio," said Melany, smiling just slightly. She took the xacto in her left hand, a little clumsily, and pricked her right thumb with the very point of it. She set the blade aside, and squeezed her thumb until red, red blood bubbled up between her pinching fingers.

She swiped it over the circle, and slid the thick paper over to Horace for whatever he wanted to do. Applying the age-old spit therapy technique, she stuck her thumb in her mouth and went back to poking at her waffle.

Once the picture was sent, Renard's response came quickly. She's fine. It doesn't seem to be in her marrow.

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

He wrinkled his nose at her. Coffee was sacred. But any attempt to talk was superseded by the anxiety that bubbled up in his gut upon seeing her blood on the circle. Thank ******** Renard was quick like lightning.

He looked at his phone and realized his hands were shaking a bit. Horace breathed out. "Hey, Melany. It's... the magic ain't in your blood. It's just only in your shoulder area." He grinned at her, blindingly white. "This is great! s**t, I'd hug you if it wouldn't hurt."

shibrogane