Contritis {Iris}

  Silas started up at the pale blue sky and the wonderful dance the clouds were doing. The tall grass easily hid him, though no one was like to be searching for him anyways these days. Silas had yet to meet more people and he didn't care to, his mind was stuck on Iris...and Eris. Silas understood his feelings for Iris and had a strong feeling that Eris was feeling the same way about her. He couldn't help but fear that Eris was better for her than he was, or that he wasn't and that Iris wouldn't see that.

  Silas moaned in frustration, his head would surely burst if he kept worrying about such stupid things. His fingers ran anxiously through his curly blonde hair, a new habit that was coming from this new emotion towards Iris. He sat up and held his head in his hands, a constant throbbing was coming from all this anxiety he was dealing with. And it wasn't just from Iris. Silas was finding incredible pain when using his powers; he would get nose bleeds that would last for long periods of time, his head would ache for a whole day and his arms would shake. He had wanted to see a nurse some time but feared that what she would tell him would end with him being sent home without any powers.

   He was constantly running through what the little visit to the nurses would look like; he would walk in and wait for her to come in, leg shaking violently. She would examine him and run tests, shaking her head the whole time. Then she would walk over to him and make a sad face as she would tell him that his powers were fading away, that he would have to leave Foresta. That he would have to leave Iris. 

  Silas felt the fear inside his head fly out of his ears and pour into an unwanted illusion. Flames formed before his eyes, he could almost smell the smoke and feel the heat of the fire; but it was just all just another illusion. 

( WORDS ) 645 ( TAGGED ) @silas  ( MUSE ) here She was shell-shocked. Ever since her encounter with Eris, Iris had been stunned at what had occurred. She'd permitted him to kiss her neck, and then she'd nearly done the same to him, had not her common sense and fear kicked in. It had seemed logical at the time, seeing that he appeared incredibly downhearted when she didn't permit him to kiss her neck. The way he spoke suggested that it was supposed to happen, and being as naive as she was, Iris presumed that it'd be a quick peck on her throat, and then the ordeal would've been over... But oh no, this certainly wasn't the case. It had been much more than that. In a desperate attempt to clear her mind, the young woman had fled to the serene meadow, comforted by the natural landscape and grasses. It was secluded, far away from the other students back at the Academy and, sadly, Eris. She couldn't bear facing him now, for even just lingering upon him in thought brought a rosy hue to her cheeks. Would their relationship ever be the same? Or could they just brush the event under the rug and go on living as they had? For some reason, things felt different, and since she'd never been confronted with this type of issue before, she chose to shove it off to the side until she could properly deal with it. In some respects, she truly wanted to vent it out to someone who might be able to help her, but with her choice of friends limited to but a few and Minnie's illness, she was left to remain utterly silent until she could properly talk it out with someone she trusted. Clad in an over-the-shoulder white blouse and short, high-waisted shorts, finished off with her signature combat boots, she strolled through the swaying grasses with slow, quivering steps. Even out here, emptying her mind seemed next to impossible, and she just wished for the agony of thought to come to an end. Her hair was gently tugged by a passing breeze, its strands woven into a loose braid off to her right, and fastened with a small, blue ribbon at her navel. Iris anxiously felt her fingers across the few tendrils of hair that framed her face in small, curled waves, unable to forget the frighteningly intimate moment she'd shared with Eris. However, it was only when the sight of flames caught her attention did her mind go completely blank. Though it wasn't sensible for a fire to spontaneously start and grow to that intensity in such a short span of time, fear brimmed in her heart, combated by panic. It wasn't necessarily the color that captured her attention, since she couldn't view them, but who lurked within them. She was already on-edge from both her previous anxiety attack and the encounter with Eris, and spotting a familiar head of a friendly, yellow hue amongst the inferno, she resisted the urge to break down into a mass of hysteria and fright. "S-Silas?" she called out, striding towards the fire with a brisk pace. Soon, though, she found herself sprinting towards the wall of flames, her breathing somewhat labored due to more terror than fatigue. Iris shakily began to raise up her palms, then, conjuring a frantic and pulsating, light blue energy in her palms, before shooting it into the ground, right where the flames should've been connecting with the ground. The earth splintered beneath the force of the blast, sending small chunks of dirt, grass and other debris through the air. But, oddly enough, the fire seemed to be completely unaffected, as if it was never there in the first place. She frowned slightly, wondering if her jolting energy had somehow malfunctioned, but peered up at Silas from the grasses depths, her eyes and tone filled with fear, "A-Are you o-okay?" I JUST WANT YOU TO KNOW WHO I AM

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  His whole body jerked forward at the sound of his name, his arm even began to shake violently from being shocked. Silas felt his whole body retract a bit when he realized that it was Iris coming, her eyes would surely be on the illusion but he wasn't ready to face her yet. Not when he was still piecing things together about how he felt about her and what could happen with his severe pains from using his powers, if he would really have to leave Foresta. 

  Suddenly, a real explosion made him jump back a couple feet. His eyes locked onto Iris, watching her realize that the flames were just another illusion of his. But the worry in her voice wasn't an illusion, she was truly concerned; and he wouldn't let her know why, for now. His voice was shaky from both the explosion and having her appear at such an unexpected time like this, "I'm fine, Iris. Y-you should know by now that anything a-around me that's crazy is j-just an illusion." Silas pushed a smile onto his lips for her, trying to lessen the tension that had built when she had fired her energy at the false flames. 

  Out of habit, his hand flew up and ran through his hair again. His eyes moved away from Iris and he tried to think of something rational to say, but his mind was a cluttered mess that he could barely get through without stumbling. "Y-you could take a seat and watch the show, I can make it less menacing for you." As he spoke, a wave of nausea ran through him. Silas couldn't help but get the feeling that it came from him starting to change the illusion. Though he wouldn't let the pain show through, or else Iris would start asking questions that he would have to leave unanswered. 

 

  The flames before them burst into dozens of white doves, all of them flying around and dancing in circles. Then those white birds landed in the tall grass and disappeared, Silas being too tired to hold the illusion for much longer without showing how weak he was becoming. "Sorry for scaring you... again. I guess I should stop doing that to you now, huh?"

( WORDS ) 449 ( TAGGED ) @silas  ( MUSE ) here Hearing Silas stutter in a manner similar to her only deepened the young woman's concern, and she shakily lowered her arms to her sides. Was he afraid of her? He seemed to be smiling, but there was something darkly artificial about the way he grinned. It wasn't the jubilant, easygoing boy she'd encountered at the beach.. No, even she was blatantly aware of this. Her heart clenched in an unpleasant manner as she spoke hurriedly yet softly, slowly approaching him with tentative steps, "I-I'm sorry f-for... R-Releasing m-my energy a-at you, I-I thought i-it would g-get rid o-of the f-flames, b-but I was s-stupid not t-to realize th-they were a-an illusion.." She internally reprimanded herself for her idiocy, before returning to the situation at hand. As the fire dissipated into a flock of doves, Iris found herself beaming despite the current situation, for she could see the clarity of their white feathers more lucidly than ever before. But, she disregarded the pleasantries that Silas provided, instead focusing on his state, as any worried friend should. Even though it was against her principles, Iris couldn't help but emotionally probe at Silas. His typically buoyant, daisy-like hue had dissolved and was replaced with a few, pale-green streaks to paint along his sides. She frowned slightly, striding forwards to stand before the taller boy with a troubled expression. If he wasn't faring well, why didn't he just visit the nurse? Or, if she'd misinterpreted it as a mental ailment, he should be speaking to someone or talking to another about it. Either way, she yearned to help him from the bottom of her heart, for he'd shown her a considerable amount of kindness, and it was about time she did the same. She stepped forwards then, reaching forwards to gently clasp his hand within two of hers. "U-Um, S-Silas," she breathed, connecting her emerald gaze to his darker one, "I-If you're n-not feeling w-well o-or something, y-you should c-come to the n-nurse with m-me.. I-I was a-actually g-going to go v-visit her later t-today, so I-I wouldn't m-mind going a-a bit e-earlier.." Strategically, she held his hand in a manner that wouldn't display too much of her fingertips, for the scars upon them had grown a bit larger and more prominent upon her porcelain-like skin. "O-Or, we c-could j-just talk, i-if that w-will make you f-feel better.. Y-You seem t-troubled, a-and.. I-I can sense y-your emotions a bit," she explained, lightly squeezing his palm with both of her hands, "I-I'm just c-concerned about you.." It seemed to pain her on a far more emotional level that Silas was suffering, seeing how personally she could really connect with him if she so desired. I JUST WANT YOU TO KNOW WHO I AM

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  Silas felt his heart fall; she had noticed. Even though he had tried to hide the pain from her, she could still see through his mask. He slowly pulled his knees closer to his chest and wrapped his arms around his legs, lost in thought. He couldn't even begin to think of what he was going to tell her, or if he could try lying to her so that he could find a better time to explain what was going on. Though he had never been good at lying to friends.

  Silas felt his eyes fall to where her two hands and embraced his own, no words fell from his lips as she tried to talk him into seeing the nurse. Even as she mentioned that she had wanted to go herself, he didn't find himself worried as he normally would have been. Her hands brought little comfort when it came to the headache that was growing, though the kind gesture made him feel better. At the mention of just talking Silas felt half of the burden fly away, knowing that he wouldn't be able to see the nurse without fearing the worst.

  Taking a deep breath he decided what to say next, "I think I would rather just talk with you... for now."  Silas fell onto his back again and wondered what he could say without having to tell her about his fears of having to leave the campus or about how he felt about her. "I've just b-been getting these awful headaches and I couldn't find any pills to make the pain go away." Silas had no idea whether the white lie would be enough to put her worrying to rest, having some truth in what he had had.  Silas had looked desperately for ibuprofen but was too shy to ask any of the girls around campus if they had any.  He quickly glanced at Iris and prayed that what he had said wouldn't bring up too many questions that would be hard for him to answer or have her pulling him to the nurses office.

( WORDS ) 427 ( TAGGED ) @silas  ( MUSE ) here Out of all people, Iris would certainly be one to understand anxiety about visiting the nurse, and this apprehension was incredibly abundant in her friend at this time. There was no way she was going to force something upon him that he didn't want, and if that meant not taking him to the nurse, she would strictly adhere to the indirect guidelines of their friendship. Her eyes still portrayed a great deal of worry when he laid on his back, and as a result, she crouched down, still keeping his hand within hers to try and offer as much comfort as she could without seeming overpowering. At his complaint about a headache, she sighed with resignation. Of course, she had a plethora of medications within her dorm room, ranging from anxiety pills to pain-relief pills, but whether or not Silas would be comfortable with taking medication from her was debatable. "I-I have p-painkillers a-at my d-dorm, I-I can g-grab th-them for y-you if y-you'd like, I-I don't w-want y-you to have t-to move i-if y-you're feeling u-unwell," she offered quietly, biting her lip as she leaned herself ever so slightly over his form. It bothered her to no end that her companion was suffering and she could do little to nothing to assist him in his time of need. Trying to conjure ways of comforting him within her head, the young woman continued on hesitantly, "A-And maybe i-if you r-rub your t-temples th-that might h-help.. S-Sometimes I-I try t-to do things th-that don't r-require t-too much concentration, b-but things th-that I r-really e-enjoy... It h-helps d-distract you f-from the d-discomfort." She slowly rubbed her thin, barely quivering fingers over his hand in a soothing manner, for she was stifling the urge to panic and use everything in her power to alleviate his distress, as she so often felt when her friends were hurting in one way or another. With her eyes flickering over his face worriedly, she kept talking in an attempt to give him either some background noise to doze off, if that would help him, or keep his mind from focusing on the pain, "B-But, d-do you have a-any ideas? I-I'd be m-more than h-happy to h-help you i-in any w-way that I-I can, y-you've been s-so nice t-to me, S-Silas, a-and I really d-don't deserve y-your kindness..." In hopes that he would suggest something that could rid his pain in the most efficient way, Iris continued to stoop over him just a bit, waiting with bated breath for a response after her incessant rambling. I JUST WANT YOU TO KNOW WHO I AM

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   Silas felt a wave of peace wash over him; she had bought his partial lie and was willing to stay with him and not head towards the nurses quite yet. Though he was starting to prepare himself for such a trip, if it did come to that. Silas feared that he wouldn't be able to lie to Iris for much longer, but the idea of using some of her pain medications didn't sound to bad to him with the pain the was blossoming in his cranium. 

   Looking up he noticed her motioning for him to rub his temples and he happily mimicked the action. Though the pain was still there the terrible ache lessened a bit and he smiled for her. He felt bad for making her so tense, the way she was staring him down and how her eyebrows were creased in her attempt to think of things to make him feel better. It was kinda cute. Silas felt his free hand run through his hair again, eyes avoiding Iris's and that was when he knew that he needed to tell her about his ever growing fears. 

   Sitting up a bit, he opened his mouth to tell her but then she spoke up and said stuff about not deserving his kindness and a look fell over his face. His smile reached his eyes but a look that said oh-no-you-didn't was also upon his brow. Surely she didn't mean that. She had done nothing but be kind to him since they first met, shy as well but still kind and caring. Reaching forwards with his free hand he gently held her own, "You deserve every last bit of kindness in this world, you just don't see that you do." He took a deep breath and then let it go, Silas felt his tongue disobey him in this act of truth-telling. He simply couldn't do it... yet.

   Sitting silently, he watched one of the swans he had created walk up to him and loudly honk at them. His eyes widened as it hit his shoe with it's beak; it was no illusion. Silas jumped, Iris's hand still in his for some reason, and pulled her away from the bird. It's beady black eyes followed his and Silas felt it's death stare intensify greatly as he stared at it longer. "Dear god, I think it hates me!"

( WORDS ) 469 ( TAGGED ) @silas  ( MUSE ) here Thankfully, it seemed as though her advice to rub his temples had at least done something, for the young man smiled broadly up at her once he completed the action. Even though his discomfort was blatantly evident on an emotional level, the joyous, yellow streaks that donned his body perpetually outmatched the other colors, which brought a sense of relief to Iris. She let a bit of her tension dissolve with this, lessening her grip on his hand and managing a small smile back in his direction. It had been quite some time since she could say that she was being productive and helpful in a situation, and especially after dragging Eris into her panic attack, she was glad that she could finally give back to someone, even if it wasn't him directly. With an unexpected gesture, Silas gave her quite the grin, one that held a multitude of messages, and reached forwards to take her other hand. Her brows knitted together in slight confusion, but she listened intently to his words as he complimented her. She smiled weakly in response, letting her emerald gaze drop occasionally to the ground in a slightly flustered manner. "O-Oh, u-um, I d-don't know a-about th-that, b-but thank y-you," she replied softly, finding it only courteous that she should show her gratitude for his flattering words. It felt as though it'd been years since she was engaged in such a calm and caring atmosphere, though her mind seemed to have glossed over the countless encounters with Eris, though, that resembled this one. Hopefully, she'd be able to repay him for his generous compliments one day, when she herself could reciprocate them without a falter in her speech. It was then that her thought process was abruptly halted, for a swan that she'd previously thought was an illusion conjured by Silas, leaned forwards and pecked him roughly on the foot. She inhaled sharply at this action, cupping her free hand over her mouth in surprise. Was it possible that his illusions were capable of manifesting themselves in physical forms? However, it seemed as though her friend wasn't necessarily comfortable with this, and tugged her gently by the hand to a stand as they both positioned themselves farther away from the angry bird. Iris, as to be expected, squeaked softly as her body moved without her initial consent, and as she stood, instinctively pressed her trembling form against Silas's side, though it seemed as though the angle they'd moved had allowed this rather than her instigating the action. The young woman's eyes were fixated on the swan, and she found herself too distracted by the hostile animal to notice that her quivering bodice was against her friend's side. "D-Did you m-make it.. R-Real?" she breathed softly, unable to wrench her gaze from its lethal stare. I JUST WANT YOU TO KNOW WHO I AM

MADE BY VEL OF GS

His eyes locked onto the animal, he wondered if Iris was right or if he had just been there all along. Being angry with their presence on its turf. The swan was making strange sounds now and had its wings spread out, looking ready to attack them at any second. Silas's breath caught in his throat before a solution arrived in his mind; he could just make an illusion of a beautiful swan to draw its attention away. That was, if he could muster the strength to do even that.

Silas prepared to create something when he realized that his hand was still in hers and that they were much closer than they had ever been. His face flushed bright red and suddenly the sea monster reappeared in front of them instead of a lovely swan that he had had in mind. The beast was long and serpent like with bright green scales, it was facing away from them at the time being but Silas feared that Iris would scream again at being so close to it. His whole mind was in a jumbled mess and he was sure that he would not be able to control this illusion of his.

Calming himself down, he squeezed Iris's hand in an attempt to let her know that things would be okay. He focused on the beast and tried to make it change but all he got was red dripping down his nose. His head was pounding but he didn't stop trying; after trying a few more times the beast fell away and turned into a small kitten. Silas fell to the ground and began to rub his temples angrily. Now that Iris had seen him struggle to control the illusion that he had accidentally created and then try to change it with blood falling from his nose, she would surely take him to the nurses office. Though he now knew that he needed to go, he couldn't help but fear the results that he could get. "Iris, I... I think I would like to go to the nurses office now."

( WORDS ) 320 ( TAGGED ) @silas  ( MUSE ) here Iris was far too absorbed in the swan to notice the excess color staining her friend's cheeks, but what she was able to realize was how close she was to him. A flush filled her cheeks as she stepped tentatively away from him, but her hand remained within his, "O-Oh, u-um.. I-I'm v-very very sorry a-about th-that.." She was sure that she'd certainly brought him discomfort, and glancing up at his features, she assumed that his blush was sheer displeasure with the circumstances he was placed in. All Iris could do was internally chide herself for being so fearful of nothing but a bird, but even now, the large swan still appeared fairly intimidating. Now, though she watched as blood streamed from the young man's nose, causing her to emit a squeak of fright. Her hand instinctively tightened around his, and though she noticed the large serpentine figure from before, there was no way she'd prioritize that above Silas's well-being. Within what seemed to be a few seconds, he collapsed onto the ground with the blood continuing to flow from his nose. She joined him at his side, kneeling down as fear coursed through her. Was he going to pass out? Or perhaps vomit? Both thoughts frightened her as she placed a tentative hand onto his back, unable to stop trembling. His statement could be heard lucidly in her terrified state, and she nodded fervently in response, "O-Of course.. A-Are you w-well enough to s-stand? O-Or should I g-get help? I-I'm not v-very strong, b-but you can try l-leaning onto me.." She hooked her arm around the back of his ribcage in hopes that he'd try to stand with her support. In situations like these, she showed a surprising amount of calm, even though if given the chance, she'd unravel into a frantic mess. As long as he remained conscious, she could at least help him back to the nurse's. I JUST WANT YOU TO KNOW WHO I AM

MADE BY VEL OF GS