Heart of Gold || Dappled

Just as it was most mornings, it was difficult for Eris to wake up. The faint sunlight drifting through his window blinds though caused the boy to open his eyes just for a moment and it was through that cue that the souls started to rouse themselves in his mind as well. It had always been a strange thing for him to understand from how Gaia always tried to explain it to him. It seemed as if sometimes when he would sleep that the souls would sleep as well, after all they were technically a part of his mind. Other times though, they would remain active and sometimes be involved with his dreams. The types of dreams he had though often caused the young man to feel even more confused. It felt like every night he was living five different lives through flashes of scenarios and images among many other things. He suspected that was mostly why he always woke up tired. Rubbing his eyes finally and taking the movements of getting himself ready to leave his room, it only took the young man about ten minutes before he was out of his dorm and soon enough walking outside the school.

During this walk of his though, Eris had not carried his dolls with him this time and instead had left his messenger bag in his room. The silence in his mind had prompted him to do that after concluding that the souls were still rousing themselves out of some sort of mind slumber. Shaking his head, Eris soon found himself in a meadow. The young man was briefly surprised about this, but not so much to show any sort of resemblance of surprise on his face. Stepping through some snow toward the tree in the middle of the meadow, the crunch seemed almost relaxing as the silence of the day moved around him. Upon reaching his destination, Eris placed his hand against it and looked out at the ice and snow that covered the expanse area. "Peaceful," he mumbled to himself in a relaxed manner.

Although Iris had been laying upon her bed, she'd been unable to sleep throughout the night as a result of the stress she'd been experiencing. From her last encounter with Eris and the mysterious couple in the coffee shop, the girl felt incredibly disconcerted. Dark rims had formed around her eyes, displaying just how little rest she'd received, however writhing fervently in her bed wasn't going to solve her problems anytime soon. Before she knew it, Iris was readying herself with a green sweater, leggings and her brown combat boots, brushing her hair a bit to smooth out any pestilent knots, and heading out the door.

Her fingers already had adorned themselves in blood, since she'd attempted to terminate the apprehension with self-harm, as usual. She'd blamed herself for causing Eris disquiet, thinking that something she'd said had upset him and resulted him leaving quickly. For now, the girl had no other choice but to apologize to him, if she ever saw him again, at that. Without the reassurance that she was acting as she should, shame and humility fell upon her shoulders, and she became desperate to restore the other person's comfort. Iris exerted a soft sigh as she continued to shuffle through the halls and out the door, met with a chilly breeze of air that weaved past her. If she had been at the foster home, she would've gone to the forest with Minnie at a time like this, however she didn't have anyone of the sort to rely on like that, and after what Lon had told her, travelling into the forest alone would be too dangerous. Instead, she resorted to seeking out the frost-coated meadow, which still satisfied her purpose to an extent. She moved slowly, her eyes surveying the incredibly bland landscape. Even with a monochromatic background, snow had never been especially colorful anyways, creating a dull picture for Iris.

But, she wasn't the only person present. A splotch of color tainted the grays and whites of the scene, causing Iris to tilt her head and gradually walk towards them. As she drew nearer, she recognized the silhouette to be masculine, however it wasn't until she was about ten feet away from him that each of his individual hues and patterns revealed themselves. "E-Eris?" she murmured, mainly to herself to verify that it was, indeed, him. Her throat constricted with emotion, unable to speak for a few moments, holding her bloodied hands inwards towards her sternum. Even her voice sounded unfamiliar and raspy to her, holding a raggedness to it that she'd never heard before. "I," she began, fishing for the right words to express her feelings correctly, "U-Um, I-I'm.. I-I'm sorry f-for.. Wh-What I said b-before, a-and it b-brought you d-displeasure, s-so... S-So I w-will n-not speak o-of m-myself, o-or... O-Or anything th-that you do n-not like.." Her eyes grew lidded as she said this, gazing distantly at the ground. The wording of her apology was atrocious, however, she'd always had difficulty expressing just what she was trying to say. Her hands fumbled with the quartz around her neck, inhaling shakily as the warmth of her own blood slipped down onto her palms in an attempt to calm herself. A few droplets slid onto the ground in a scarlet streamline, staining the ice below her. Iris considered leaving right then and there, however she would wait until Eris replied to do so.

Eris had been lost in his own thoughts, when the souls finally started to come to from their silence. I do despise the snow, ruining all the freshness of the world, Eris shook his head - lightly tapping his finger against the tree he was near. "It seems to manage fine through the season every time." It's still cold and not welcoming at all, Eris had just been about to respond when he heard his name being spoken. Turning around to see that Iris was there, the young girl started talking and acting as if he had been annoyed with her. "What are you talking about?" he asked her with an almost attempted look of confusion. Noticing the drops of blood on the ground, Eris walked forward and lightly took the hand that was bleeding. She likes to mutilate herself, "That's not what I want to hear." Eris mumbled as he watched her hand for a moment - briefly realizing that he had some napkins in his pockets the young man fished them out and wrapped them around her fingers so as to slow the bleeding down. "I thought you were going to try to not do this anymore." Eris said to her, in a somewhat quiet manner.

It was hard the man to sound accusing, even trying to sound accusatory just made him sound confused instead. Noticing that the bleeding slowed down slightly, Eris finally let go of Iris's hand and crumpled up the napkins he had used sticking them back into his pockets. Ew, that's gross. Don't do that. Pinching the bridge of his nose, Eris turned his full attention on Iris now instead of her bleeding hands. "Now, what are you talking about? What am I supposed to be upset about?" he asked her once more, trying to understand the situation that had been presented to him.

At Iris' outburst, the young man only appeared bewildered, which then reflected onto the female. Didn't he understand the circumstances of their situation? It had seemed blatantly obvious to the girl, however that wasn't mirrored in Eris in the least. "Wh-What? Th-The last t-time we met," she began, only to watch as he advanced upon her, causing her to fall silent and take a submissive step backwards. As he had done in the past, his hand grasped hers, gently reprimanding her in the same manner that Minnie always had whenever she cut herself, "S-Sorry, I-I g-guess I just got t-too a-anxious.." It was odd for anyone but her caretaker to even touch her hands, so of course this was a bit surprising. She protested softly, unsure of how else she could react, "W-Wait, you'll d-dirty yourself.." The moment he began to wrap her fingers to prevent the bleeding, she released a somewhat humiliated sigh, hating to have been taken care of like a careless child. But, in some respects, that's exactly how she was behaving, for injuring herself without a fully just reason could be considered immature.

Her eyes wandered to the napkins that now were stuffed into his pockets, having reached out her hand a bit to dispose of them herself, but recoiling at once. "U-Um... Th-Thank y-you," Iris murmured, still astounded that he didn't comprehend her apology's purpose. She hadn't come to be treated for her self-induced injuries, she was here to fully apologize, wasn't she? Shaking herself out of it, the girl spoke once more at his second question, noting how he squeezed the bridge of his nose in an almost vexed manner, "W-Well, when y-you l-left f-from the lounge, y-you seemed very uncomfortable, and.. A-And I th-think I c-caused th-that, because you w-were not l-like th-that when y-you f-first entered, a-and your t-tone i-indicated it... I-I wanted to a-apologize for making y-you feel th-that way, b-but I'm sorry i-if that o-offends you or s-something.." His light blue hues and underlying black tones were outmatched by their yellow counterpart, which had now inflamed with charisma and kindness. From her observations, Iris was able to see his friendly nature shine through most prominently. She glanced at the ground in slight discomfort, feeling a bit guilty for having him feel obliged to use his own materials for her. At that point, the girl made a mental note to purchase him some new napkins next time they met.

Having ignored most of her protesting at holding her hand and stopping the bleeding, Eris felt just a bit of color rise into his face as Iris managed to stutter out a small thank you. It was strange to him, experiencing these foreign emotions and having no idea how to actually express them. You just tell her how you feel, Eris. Eris frowned briefly, attempting to focus on Iris instead. "You did nothing wrong," Eris started off. Of course she did nothing - "I just had something to do," he then attempted to explain to her. Why are you making excuses? "I'm not -" Eris caught himself before responding completely to Erebus, the look of displeasure surprisingly obvious on his face.

"It's difficult for me to focus sometimes, because of the souls. Don't take it personally, there are usually two conversations going on at the same time when I talk to people. It's still something I have to get used too every now and then." It was even more strange explaining this to Iris. Why was he even bothering to let her know in the first place? It wasn't like she had asked him, after all she was just apologizing for something that she hadn't done.

Of course, Eris' reply surprised the girl, causing her to murmur in amazement, "... I-I didn't?" This whole time, she'd been unbelievably convinced that she'd made an error somewhere, something she'd done had truly wracked him, but he was denying everything she'd built herself up to be faithful in. The way that he paused and spoke in varying tones suggested that he wasn't just listening to her dialogue. This didn't irk her in the least, and now that she'd met a few of the souls, it hadn't confused her. With that said, he did appear unhappy about that, which was odd, seeing that he usually masked his feelings remarkably well. "O-Oh," she'd mumbled at his explanation, still finding it off-putting that he'd seemed so discomforted by something the last time he left. Nonetheless, she had faith in his answer, and decided to wholeheartedly believe him. So far, he'd shown her nothing but kindness, and it was about time she returned the sentiment.

He then proceeded to explain to her that he was having dual conversations, but, she was aware of this already. Nonetheless, she chose to listen intently and politely, her eyes fixated upon him in earnest. Silence ensued for a few moments, before she spoke quietly, a bit calmer now, "I-I understand, E-Eris, you don't h-have to e-explain. I-I'll wait as long a-as you need t-to t-talk to them o-or something.. I-I mean, you've... You've been p-patient with m-me a-and.. A-And the things I've d-done, so you d-deserve that s-same treatment. B-Besides, a-anyone that gets frustrated a-at something y-you c-can't control is j-just... J-Just ignorant, a-at least, that's wh-what I believe." Again, another unusual event occurred, for Iris permitted a brief smile to overtake her. If others weren't able to tolerate Eris, then they weren't worth his time, for she had the opportunity to see what a wonderful person he was turning out to be. "I-I guess I-I shouldn't have g-gotten so worked up o-over something s-so... S-So small," she then continued, swiveling the topic back to the origin of her apology, "I-I think I-I.. I-I was just a-afraid o-of losing a-a f-friend because of something I-I did, b-but next t-time, I p-promise I won't get too worried, I-I don't h-have a good reason t-to anymore." She felt empowered by knowing that he hadn't been bothered, for when her comrades were happy, as was she. Iris held up her hand, examining her now clean fingers for a moment with a wistful sigh, reminiscing for that short period of time, before shifting her jubilant gaze back up to Eris.

Eris awkwardly watched Iris as she spoke, the way she held herself just caused his eyes to drift from her body to the expressions she made with her lips and her eyes. It seemed as if she was growing more comfortable with him, due to the fact that her stuttering had been slowly but surely becoming a less and less type of thing. You should say something to her then. "Thank you for understanding," the young man replied to the girl, seeming to say very little as opposed to how much Iris was saying. You should be saying more. Feeling a bit of a chill as the wind blew by them for just a few seconds, if he was cold the expression wasn't shown on his face. "I don't think there is anything that can stop our... friendship." Eris hesitated for a moment as he said the word, feeling like he wanted more but still unsure as to how to ask much less express what he was feeling. You just say it, that's all you do, you just tell her How could he even be sure of anything in the first place?

Furrowing his brows, Eris tapped his fingers against the tree as he looked Iris in the eyes. "What brings you out here in the cold?" he asked the girl - his tone only sounded curious thanks to the fact that Eris was learning how to express questions. Maybe she found out you were out here and followed you. "That's just ridiculous thinking," Eris spoke out-loud for a moment as his eyes were turned from Iris's. Hey, I'm just guessing here. Eris shook his head with a light sigh, "I think someone might be mad at me for not bringing dolls with me today." Eris said the girl with a certain kind of light quality in his voice.

It was certainly another surprise to hear Eris say something so inspirational and kindhearted, but Iris was filled to the brim with an undeniable hope. "Y-You think so? I-I'm g-glad," she replied, "I-I am thankful f-for every day th-that my f-friends are here, because I-I never know i-if one day, th-they'll just l-leave because o-of a mistake I-I make, o-or something.. S-So thank y-you, I-I hope th-that we c-can be f-friends for a l-long time." Now, she was just stuttering more due to the excitement in her voice, unable to speak as fluidly as before due to her slightly increased enthusiasm. At the frigid breeze, Iris crossed her arms beneath her chest and promptly pressed her legs together as well, shuddering slightly to try and maintain her body heat by recoiling from the cold. As usual, she didn't adorn herself in a coat, for it was the cold that often kept her bitterly grounded to reality and snapped her out of any dismal and unsavory thoughts.

Now having shuffled closer to Eris to hear him more accurately, she tilted her head at his question, rubbing her arm in discomfort as her gaze flickered onto the ground, "J-Just anxiety.. I h-have to find a w-way to distract m-myself from i-it, o-or else I d-don't know what I'll d-do to m-myself... I-It's pretty weird.." His second statement caused her to smile lightly once again, listening to him patiently. She wondered briefly which one of the souls was disconcerted with this, however based on the two she'd met, they both seemed to be cordially inviting and kind. Iris placed a finger upon her chin inquisitively, "Oh? Th-That's all right. Hopefully th-they're not g-giving you t-too much t-trouble, e-everyone forgets o-once in a while." For a moment, she remained quiet in thought, her eyes scanning the scenery around them. Minnie had always loved the snow, especially at the time near Valentine's Day, when it created a clash between the cool of the weather and the heat of love and friendship. It was then that Iris suddenly perked up, struck with an idea, "E-Eris, do people s-still give each other v-valentines on Valentine's D-Day? O-Or would that b-be unusual?" If she was able to get a favorable reply, then she would be able to properly thank the other that had shown her kindness in Foresta Academy, and it wouldn't appear out of the ordinary. She then continued on, "M-My caretaker, M-Minnie, and I usually g-gave each o-other valentines, and V-Valentine's Day is coming up, but I-I don't know i-if I'll be a-able to give one t-to her this year, b-but I-I thought I could m-make up for i-it by giving a few friends some g-gifts, l-like Sandra and L-Lon.. P-Perhaps it was a b-bad idea, th-though.." Doubt crept like dark tendrils into her voice, biting her lip as she gazed at the ground.

Listening to her talk about friendship, Eris was unsure as to what to say to her so the young man decided to stay silent. One of these days she's going to ask you what you're thinking. The excitement in her tone caused him to watch her more - realizing that she was probably colder than he was thanks to the fact that he was wearing a jacket and she was not. Carefully sliding his jacket off of himself as she spoke, Eris listened to the girl peacefully - moving to stand behind her for just a moment. "It's nothing out of the normal," he said to Iris with a significantly softer tone - his voice having a surprising amount of masculinity in it as he set his jacket on the girls shoulders. "You need this more than I do," he then said to her - ignoring the noises that Athena was making at him while he did this. Good move

"I think they do," he then said to Iris as he moved back toward the tree that he had been near before. At mention of someone from her past, Eris hesitated for a moment - even more unsure as to how to approach this topic of conversation with her. Ask her about this person, that's how you carry on a conversation. "I don't see anything wrong with giving gifts for a holiday," Eris then said to her with a somewhat carefree tone. Although the tone only lasted for a few seconds before Eris went back to his typical robotic sounding self. "I believe that the first idea that you have is usually the best." He then said to her - feeling as if he were speaking nonsense. Nonetheless though, Eris continued on with trying to speak nicely and with hope to the girl - it was almost as if he felt he could be happy if the girl herself smiled.

Iris' eyes followed him curiously as he positioned himself behind her briefly, causing the girl to hold up her hands, "O-Oh no, th-that's okay.." However, he'd already placed it on her shoulders by the time she finished, blinking a few times to register what had just transpired. "U-Um, thank you, E-Eris, y-you didn't have to," she murmured, her face having gained a slight tint of color at the gentlemanly gesture. Promptly, she pulled her hair out to fan over the back of the jacket, keeping it snug upon her shoulders akin to a blanket of sorts, due to it being another oversized article of clothing on her thin frame. She frowned as she fixated her strikingly green eyes on him, "Y-You won't be c-cold?"

As she stood before him, she noticed how his tone shifted throughout the course of the dialogue, tilting her head to the side ever so slightly, mimicking a puppy-like reaction to this. "Th-That's great news! I-I'm grateful it isn't prohibited or a-anything," she breathed with relief, dismissing Eris' fluctuating voice and listening to his words. Since she intended on trying to keep her gifts arrivals a secret to add an interesting element to them, she swiftly veered from the topic of her own gifts then, conjuring something from the top of her head, "D-Do you have a-anyone that y-you usually g-give valentines to? I-I could help y-you make some g-gifts or something, if y-you wanted." This could be suggesting that she assumed he may have a girlfriend, seeing that it wasn't too uncommon for highschool students to engage in romance, and Iris wouldn't be surprised if Eris had taken that initiative too. For some reason, she was unable to keep herself from at least beaming gently at the young man, her spirit elated with his supportive words and charitable demeanor, and she felt the undying urge to act just as subservient towards him.

Eris shook his head at the girl, despite the fact that he already felt the cold weather clinging to him like a needy person. Naturally though, Eris took his mind away from the thought of the cold - the thinking itself was not that difficult at all thanks to the several distractions he had before him. Distraction should be the last thing that you should be calling Iris. Eris frowned briefly before turning his attention once more on Iris. If he had been an expressive person he would have smiled at her in the instance that she had breathed in relief. It almost seemed silly to him in a way that she had though giving gifts might have been against some sort of rule. Eris didn't voice that thought though, suspecting that she might misinterpret what he was meaning to say. She's asking you a question. Eris paused as Iris asked him if he had anyone to give valentines gifts too.

Once again, Eris was finding that he wanted to express amusement at the situation, but the expression was not quite coming out now that he actually wanted to use it. "I don't have anyone to give gifts too," he said to her simply considering whether or not he should tell her about his grandparents. Instead something else came out entirely that surprised even himself when he spoke, "I'm not familiar with the feelings associated with this holiday." This time Eris's surprise actually showed when his brows lifted slightly at what he had said. Great, scare her off why don't you. "I mean, I've never celebrated Valentines." At her gentle smile toward him, Eris felt his heart catch in his throat. Maybe it was the feeling he felt growing, or maybe it was just the cold sinking into his skin that made it happen - but within just a few seconds the corners of Eris's lips upturned toward Iris. The sensation was so strange though that it did not last too long and Eris was soon back to his somber looking expression.

Oddly enough, Eris stated that he didn't have anyone whom he exchanged presents with, only driving the girl to further her mental plot to change that for him. She nodded in understanding, however it was his next words that baffled her. He didn't comprehend what Valentine's Day was about, or that he didn't necessarily celebrate it, as he corrected himself. "I-If you're t-talking about l-love, I'm not all th-that familiar with i-it either," she said in an attempt to reassure him, "I-I don't really g-get to f-feel it th-that much n-now that I'm separated f-from M-Minnie, so n-no worries, y-you're not the only one.. I-It's too confusing.. But that's all r-right i-if you don't c-celebrate i-it, y-you shouldn't be forced t-to." The girl flickered her gaze upwards to meet his, examining his features with increased interest at a minuscule smile lighting up his expression. Amazement and surprise reflected upon her own countenance, Iris saying with a gentle but avid grin of her own, "I-I don't g-get to see you s-smile often, b-but y-you look very nice w-when you do, Eris! Y-You surprised me." For whatever reason, she'd always wanted to repay him with a compliment, trying to make up for all the times that she'd made mistakes and he was there to assist her through it without being asked. And, she thought she might as well state that it did shock her to see such a jubilant expression radiating from him, even if it was for a brief period.

"I-I may n-not be around th-the family I-I love, but it's nice to c-celebrate with f-friends," she explained, absent-mindedly permitting a streak of lavender energy to encircle her fingertips, flexing her fingers a bit out of habit. She pulled the baggy jacket over herself more securely as another bitter breeze weaved about them, her wavy hair billowing in the slight wind. "Wh-What were y-you doing o-out here? I-I can't imagine wanting t-to be o-outside for too l-long in this type o-of weather, b-but did the souls w-want to go out? I-I hope they're doing a-all right." she asked then, wondering briefly what the rest of the souls within Eris thought of her. But, she wouldn't be the one to press him to see them, for that would be deemed as rude in her mind.

Eris nodded at Iris's response to him about Valentine's day. His silence suggesting that he was just peacefully listening too Iris talking, what did it mean for him though that she wasn't familiar with the emotion called love as well? Just throw her over your shoulder and - Eris coughed lightly as they continued to talk outside in the cold. "Oh," he then replied to Iris. How else could the young man reply to a compliment? You could say thank you. Oh no, thanking someone is overrated The sudden use of her powers caught Eris's eyes then.

The colored form of energy making him lose focus before turning his attention back onto Iris's face. "I don't have their dolls with me today, actually." Eris replied to her. You just like to torture me, I would love to dance in the snow. "I just wanted to go for a walk," he then said to her. The longer they stood out here though, Eris found himself wanting to move inside since he had given up his jacket for Iris. It wasn't giving her his jacket that he regretted, it was feeling cold. "If you want too, we can start walking back inside." Eris then said to girl with a slight bit of a suggestive tone.

Iris listened to Eris' tone diminish a bit, presuming that he was tired from the weather. She nodded hastily to his suggestion, wincing slightly at his cough, "I-I don't want y-you getting s-sick o-or anything, l-let's go then.." Guilt crept into her heart like an aching poison as she watched him, the weight of his jacket evident upon her shoulders.

"S-Sorry for i-interrupting your walk," she breathed as she moved forwards, taking off his jacket with a small smile, "Th-Thank you f-for your j-jacket, but I-I'm warmed now." With that said, she crept behind him, having to reach up on the tips of her toes to sling his jacket over him, her hands upon his shoulders for support for a moment, "I-It's only f-fair that you g-get it now." With that said, she resumed her place at his side, beginning to make her way back to Foresta with Eris.

{Guessing the thread is dead now}