The Black Forest | Sensory Deprivation | {BYOA}

[healsforjustice]

It should not have surprised her at all, really. This sort of occurrence had been far too common in her family for as long as she could remember, and even held some personal grief over the matter. And yet, she still found it hard to come to terms with; was the Seyruun throne that big of a draw?

The answer seemed to be yes, considering her situation

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[meteorlogic]

There outside her door stood a cloaked figure wearing a hood, face obscured from sight. The figure reached up and knocked at the door in a series of beats: three, two, and five. It was meant to carry significance, meaning that the person standing there had been sent by Philonel himself. Of course a simple knock wouldn't be completely enough, given the sensitive nature of the matter at hand, so a hand rose up, clenched in a horizontal fist. A golden seal was clear to see upon the ring finger of that hand, the royal seal of Seyruun's neighbor Zefielia. The figure would make no other moves until being addressed by the occupant of the safehouse.

[healsforjustice]

Unfortunately, the knock was all she had to go by. She supposed her father had hoped that he'd be able to send someone before her vision was lost, but since no one knew a lot about the time span of the poison, it was no wonder. In a way she had been lucky it hadn't killed her within minutes, but that did not ease her suffering that much.

After a few moments, she somehow got the latch open, letting the door swing open, leaving her only able to wait for the person to come in, not trusting her voice right now.

[meteorlogic]

Unfortunately for Kazuki, he'd not been fully briefed on the possible symptoms Amelia might present. He stood there awkwardly with his hand out before finally realizing she couldn't see him there. Whatever it was that had happened, he wasn't about to let it kill her. The healers had worked around the clock, but their only solution was now tucked safely in a leather pouch he carried on his belt. The problem was, it was a part of a greater process.

Stepping inside, he reached out his hand to take hold of hers, both to let her feel the seal he wore, and because he wanted to hold. "Amelia, it's Kazuki," he said, closing the door behind him. "I've come to help you."

[healsforjustice]

She knew something was there, though she couldn't really feel what, her fingers no longer able to really register touch. Thankfully, the voice of the other royal was enough recognition for her. Amelia was unsure of what to do; of all the people to come, why had the other heir been sent to find her?

"Daddy...told you about this?" she enquired quietly, still not willing to let him see her empty eyes for the moment. Even so, she didn't move her hand away, desperate for something familiar and trusting. "What do you mean help me?"

[meteorlogic]

If he'd known the full extend of her condition he'd have tried to find other ways to communicate and properly declare who he was. Fortunately she seemed to remember his voice, which admittedly made his heat beat a little faster. He smiled and rubbed his thumb over the back of her hand, walking her over to the couch to sit.

"Yes, but I think he missed a few details. He said since we were friends, and he wasn't sure who could be trusted in his own cabinet, that it was best to send someone from outside the royal court." There had been no hesitation when Kazuki agreed to it, and it wasn't just because Amelia's dad kind of scared him. "He said the healers came up with something, but even he didn't know what it was. They wrote down the details and sealed the package so no one could interfere with it. I brought it with me."

[healsforjustice]

Considering what had happened between them, it would have been a callous and horrid thing to forget his voice, especially since it was so nice to listen to regardless of the situation. It was lucky too he had the sense to guide her to sit down, since she was now rather limited in moving too much herself, hence why she hadn't left the cottage since becoming fully blind.

Nodding as she listened, realizing this was probably the safer option due to the circumstances, not to mention the fact that having someone she did care for be there was a comfort, even if she didn't wish him to see her in such a state. "So...what do we need to do?" she finally asked, thinking more on the final part that she hadn't gotten to read about in time, her anxiousness making her temporarily forget the bottle sitting a short distance away. She could bring it up when needed, this was important, her last survival instinct making her shake a little as she waited.

[meteorlogic]

Voices were a tricky thing though, especially if he'd had a cold or ate some hot food that made him all wheezy. That's why he didn't eat, didn't travel with anyone, and avoided breathing in much smoke from the fire he'd made the night before. It did make his clothes smell nice, like a camping trip.

Sitting with her on the couch, he reached into the leather pouch on his belt and held up a vial. He reached for her hand, letting her touch the small glass item with a glowing purple liquid inside. "Here, hold this. Where's the other bottle? We need to mix the two together first." That's what the directions said, which he had also retrieved from the sealed pouch. He had yet to flip it over to read the final steps. "It says to mix the two, stir slowly, and drink a full glass of water immediately after drinking the potion mixture."

[healsforjustice]

It could sometimes be hard ro recognise a voice, but with Amelia losing two of her senses, she paid much more attention with the ones she had left. Thus, she very quickly knew it was Kazuki who had come for her.

On feeling a dull pressure from the touch, and slight weight in her hands, she curled her fingers around the object, almost fearful her numb hands would make her drop the vial. She nodded as she listened to him, hoping she was looking in the right direction, even if her large empty eyes were lingering on him. "I see. Will you do it? I'm afraid I'm not much use at the moment." she said quietly, voice trailing off as her head hung low. It was horrible feeling so useless, and no doubt causing worry for the people who cared for her.

[meteorlogic]

Kazuki didn't want her to feel useless, which was why he'd let her hold the vial. He'd help her, just like he kept his fingers around hers so she didn't drop the vial. He didn't want to have to travel all the way back, it might be too late. No, that was unacceptable!

Reaching over he took custody of the other bottle and uncorked it. It smelled like grapes, probably because wine had been used as a base. "Here, I'll help you pour it into the bottle," he said, popping the cork off the vial as well and guiding her hand over until the two glass containers touched. As they poured the two potions together, the smell changed to that of roses, filling the air around them with the scent. "Amelia, what else has happened to you since you left Seyruun?"

[healsforjustice]

Amelia was all too aware of how little time she had left, having felt her strength slowly fade over the last few weeks. This was without a doubt, her only chance to stay alive, so faltering now was not something she could do.

She nodded obediently as he guided her hands, inhaling the scent that came when the two potions mixed. Again, it might have been due to her sense of smell compensating for her loss of touch and sight, but it seemed so much stronger than she expected, almost comforting in a way. It was certainly nicer than the dampness that she had been surrounded by in the murky woods ever since she arrived at the cottage.

"Nothing really. I've simply stayed out of the way, attempting to find some way of curing myself, even when I stopped being able to feel things. Unfortunately, I had to stop that when my eyesight failed as well." she murmured sadly.

[meteorlogic]

He had no idea what went into the other mixture, since it had been sealed before he got there. It was magical, that's a ll he knew, and he knew that only because it glowed. Glowing things tended to be magical in his experience. Now that they had mixed the two chemicals, it was time to let her drink it, but first he needed to fetch a glass of water.

Kazuki set the bottle down in front of Amelia, guiding her hand down so she knew where it was. "I'm going to get you some water and I'll be right back," he said, standing up to go do that. "I know this will work! Then you can see, and touch and everything else again!"

[healsforjustice]

It made sense, considering how the poison had worked. It was too sophisticated to be a simple toxin, though it made her stomach churn to think someone high ranking in Seyruun, the capital for white magic, would make such a deadly concoction.

As she held the bottle tightly, she listened to his words, knowing her could easily find water in the basin nearby, which she had drawn from the stream outside a few days before. Still, there was something knawing at the back of her mind, something more to all this...

"But Kazuki, I think there's something else I have to do after drinking it. I know there was a part of the cure I didn't get to read. Shouldn't we check that before I take this?" she asked, tone giving away her concern and worry. She just didn't want to mess this up, not when she was so close to getting rid of the poison in her system.

[meteorlogic]

Kazuki fetched a cup of water for the princess and headed back to sit down beside her again. He set the glass down beside the bottle, thinking over the instructions he'd read. All it said was mix the two, drink water, and then... actually he did expect it to have something at the end, like a way to tell if it was working.

"Something else? Let me check the instructions," he said, taking out the small instruction card again. All it said was mix, drink, and... there were words on the back, too. Huh, he hadn't noticed that before! Kazuki flipped the card over and began to read. "Following the ingestion of the combined potions, specific aerobic activity must be undertaken to activate the final chemical reaction. Due to the nature of the reaction, only..." He trailed off, blushing deeply as he read the rest to himself. "Um... at least we have one hour to complete it."

[healsforjustice]

She nodded again, rather insistant. She recalled that there was more very vividly, mostly due to her frustration and anguish when she went blind before being ablt to read the final requirments to cure herself. This left her shifting uneasily as he read, waiting to see what was required for the curse to fully take effect. Therefore, when he stopped so abruptly, she was left concerned.

"An hour, why would we need an hour? Kazuki, is...the rest of it something bad?" she asked, unable to mask the fear in her voice. After all, she couldn't see him blushing, so she had no idea of what would cause such a reaction. Considering the situation, she had jumped to the worst conclusion.

[meteorlogic]

Kazuki felt himself breathing deeper. Maybe it was the scent of the roses, a side effect meant to help the process along. All he could think was how glad he was the instructions had been sealed, otherwise it would have been awkward meeting Phil earlier. How did the clerics come up with this sort of thing? Really, he wondered how they even tested it.

"No! It's not bad!" He reached out and held onto her hand, pulling himself a little closer to her. Kazuki settled his other hand at her cheek, cupping the warm skin gently. "It says we have to engage in sexual relations, to produce the appropriate amount of 'endorphins' to evoke a chemical reaction. Then the potion will activate. I'm sorry if I worried you, I didn't expect to read that."

[healsforjustice]

The scent was rather potent, but then again, with ehr condition Amelia couldn't tell what may have been a side effect of the poison or not anymore. Her dizziness might be a sign she was getting worse. It could just as easily be the aroma from the vial clouding her sense, who could say? Either way, she felt a little off