Breakable ((Moonie!))

[CastlesInTheSky]

Phoenix nodded absently. "Sure." She was sort of...cute in her own strange way. He wouldn't dare speak that silly word, cute, but he thought it. Just once. She was simply so naive, and it was a wonder she managed to stay that way with all the things that had happened in her life. He'd lost faith in humanity at age 14, and yet she seemed to think that everyone was good somehow. It confused him. He supposed, perhaps he was good somehow, but there were many others who weren't.

Just as he was about to say something more, there was a knock on the door.

Phoenix gently pushed her away as he did before, saying, "Sorry, Nisha. One minute." He went downstairs, and opened the door. Nisha could probably not hear their conversation from in the bedroom, but rather a collection of low whispers. The other person's voice was rough, and older woman. Soon, the whispers grew louder and more accusatory, and she could probably hear Phoenix throwing himself onto a chair in the living room carelessly. The woman spoke very quietly to him, then said more loudly, "It wasn't anyone's fault, and it's been for quite a while since it happened, anywho. You need anything?" Phoenix didn't answer her. "Phoenix...Well, I guess I'll stay here for now." She sat in a chair across from him. Her hair, long and red, fell down her back. There was something rough about not just her voice, but her character. She carried 2 daggers with her on her belt. "I'm sorry to bring you bad news, but you needed to know." Phoenix simply sat with his hands over his face, unmoving.

[Anonymous]

Nisha watched Phoenix disappear downstairs, that curious tilt to her head. Phoenix had a visitor, how wonderful! Of course, she had no idea at the time that something was very wrong. It would be rude to follow him, he'd implied that she should stay where she was. At first she couldn't hear anything, but then the voices drifted upstairs and it was a strange woman's voice. She was talking to Phoenix, but he wasn't talking to her. Something was wrong, she could sense it.

Creeping downstairs she peeked into the living room where the two were seated. There was a gut-wrenching feeling as she saw Phoenix sitting there with his face in his hands. Her heart went out to him. She had no idea what was wrong, but she felt that Phoenix needed her, so she couldn't just stand by idle. Staightening up and smoothing her dress she moved hesitantly to Phoenix's side, glancing nervously at the strange woman she didn't know.

Slowly she reached out and put a hand on his shoulder. "...Phoenix, what's wrong?"

[CastlesInTheSky]

Phoenix didn't reply. He seemed to be barely moving at all, his face covered by his hands. He didn't make a sound. It was as if he was frozen. He didn't even seem to feel her put her hand on his shoulder.

Meanwhile, the woman stared at Nisha watchfully. Who was this girl? She was strange, and couldn't be a mistress of his clearly. She didn't seem like that. A friend? He didn't have many. She couldn't figure who this girl was or why she was there. The woman looked at Phoenix, put a hand on his other shoulder and whispered something into his ear. Figuring he needed time to himself after the grave news of which the girl was ignorant to, she stepped away from him and looked at the girl. Judging by her clothes, she assumed she was lower class but not poor. "Come with me, he needs time." Her voice had a strange raspy sound to it. She led Nisha to a back room of the house, which had a desk and a few chairs in it, along with a shelf. She sat down and stared hard at the girl. "First, who're you?"

[Anonymous]

Nisha was growing more concerned by the moment. Phoenix looked so...crushed. She couldn't even describe properly how he looked. Crushed just didn't seem to be the right word, but she didn't know the right word. She really, really wanted to help him, but she just didn't know how. Feeling helpless was something that Nisha was accustomed to, but this time it hurt much worse. He was her friend and she couldn't do anything to help him right now, and she didn't even know what was wrong.

When she was told to follow, she gently squeezed Phoenix's shoulder, reluctent to leave him, but she moved to follow the stranger. She just didn't know what else to do at that point. When they entered the back room, Nisha looked about curiously for a moment. So far she hadn't really explored much of Phoenix's house and this room was unfamiliar to her.

At the sudden question, Nisha squirmed slightly, shrinking back form that hard stare, thoroughly intimidated. "Ah, I'm Nisha. Nisha Ulrich...is...is Phoenix going to be okay?" Her face fell, and her grey eyes were so sorrowful. It tore her up to see her friend so...despondant.

[CastlesInTheSky]

The woman seemed to be examining every small detail about her. When Nisha moved, her eyes followed her closely. It seemed like there was no moment in which the woman looked away or otherwise averted her eyes. She had grey eyes as well, very light grey eyes, seemingly washed of their previous colour. "Nisha, hm." There was a short pause. "Phoenix?...one of the only people he cares about on the face of the earth just died, so I'd suppose not." She sighed. "And I'm his mother, I would know."

[Anonymous]

Nisha continued to squirm and cower away from that look. She felt as if her very soul was being weighed and measured. However, when she mentioned that someohne that Phoenix cared about had died, her hands flew up to her mouth, covering it as her eyes went wide. Oh no! No, no, no! How awful! This could not be happening, not now. She had just gotten Phoenix in a little better mood, and now something this awful had happened.

A choked sob came from her as tears welled up in her eyes and spilled down her cheeks. She did not know who had died, she didn't need to. Someone that was important to Phoenix had died, and now he was undoubtedly horribly sad. How could she possibly help him? What if she had learned that Gavin died? Or her father? The only things that kept her going was the possibility that they were alive and well. If she knew they were dead? It would have devestated her beyond hope.

Nisha slumped to the floor and curled up, her entire body trembling. What could she do? What could she do? This helplessness...it was thouands upon thousands times worse than another. "I..I have to help him...somehow...oh please, how can I help him?" The words were spoken out, but not to anyone in particular. She needed guidance, she didn't know what to do. Oh how she wished Gavin were there, or her father...they would know what to do.

[CastlesInTheSky]

Phoenix's mother was extremely puzzled when the girl suddenly started crying and fell to the floor, shaking. She didn't even know who died! It was the most confusing thing that she had seen in quite a long time. Perhaps she was one of those sensitive types. But this seemed to extreme even for that. She heard the girl say something about helping Phoenix. She furrowed her brow. What was this girl to him? She didn't seem at all like his type. The woman shook her head. What a confusing girl. And skinny, too.

"Girl...Or, Nisha. Nisha, just calm down. That's why I'm here, to help him. I guess, if you're close to him, you can be with him when he's ready, but that's all he needs. We just need to be with him." She eyed Nisha, now not examining, but rather watching to see if she was alright.

[Anonymous]

Nisha heard the woman talking to her. She was right! They needed to be there for Phoenix, and she couldn't be there for him if she was letting herself get out of control. After a few moments she managed to calm herself down a little bit. Her heart was still beating too hard, but it was slowing down. A thousand thoughts were going through her mind.

"Okay...okay. I'll try to stay calm. Phoenix will need us, right? I can't need him right now." She frowned slightly. So far she had needed Phoenix quite a bit more than she would have liked to admit. She just hoped that she would be able to help him in some way.

[CastlesInTheSky]

Phoenix's mother was satisfied to see that Nisha was calming down. She didn't want to deal with some girl she didn't even know of before a few minutes ago hyperventilating along with her son as well. The girl seemed so fragile, just by looks.

"In a little while, yes. He should probably be given some time alone right now, but it a bit we can check on him." She looked at Nisha without the hard stare from before. Now she looked at her in a more simple way, done with studying and examining, gathered enough information. She seemed strangely apathetic on the outside about her son's loss, but on the inside she was as worried as Nisha, if not more. Her son had too many things to deal with even before. What kind of mother would she be if she didn't worry about her son?

"So, Nisha....what's brought you to this city?" She supposed a change of subject might aid Nisha in feeling better.

[Anonymous]

Nisha nodded her head slowly. Yes, they would leave him alone for now, but that didn't keep her from wanting to run back in there and hug him. She felt so bad for him. What if she had lost someone she cared about? Oh, she didn't want to think about it. That would be just awful. It was bad enough to know that someone Phoenix cared about was deceased.

At first she didn't realize she was asked a question, but blinking she looked up at the woman with her owlish grey eyes. "Oh, well, I've never actually been in a city before. I met Phoenix outside the city yesterday, he shared his lunch with me because I was hungry. Then he got me some more food. We talked...sorta...for a little while, then he left me there and I followed him home. I've been here since."

She frowned, that sounded really...dumb. Ah well, it was the truth. Still, Nisha couldn't help but shrug her shoulders uncomfortably. "I've tried to leave multiple times now, but he asked me to stay every time I tried to say goodbye."

[CastlesInTheSky]

She nodded, listening to her story calmly. It didn't make much sense to her, but she supposed it didn't really matter how she got there or why she stayed, but rather the fact that she was there and that she needed something to talk about to calm her nerves and focus her energy on something relatively productive.

Never been in a city? That was strange. Strange girl. Then again, her child wasn't very 'normal' either. Perhaps the girl came from some rural farming family. She didn't know and didn't particularly care, either. A poor girl, for sure.

"Interesting. So, you are friends with Phoenix, I see. Where do you live, Nisha?" Wherever she lived, Phoenix's mother planned to escort her there sooner or later and give Phoenix some time alone under her own care. Little did she know that wouldn't exactly work.