And then there was Fire [DragonSong]

[Goldie]

The rage, the despair, the hatred, it all just slowly went away. He felt his chest loosen and the tears in his eyes dry up and everything felt easier. Moment by moment his worries just melted away and left him...empty.

Blissfully empty.

Marigold didn't matter any more. Her friends didn't matter. The lies and deceit  meant nothing.

Nothing.

He felt nothing.

And it was incredible. His violet eyes had shifted to a stormy gray and he looked up at Adrianna for the first time. Really looked at her. Sure he'd seen her in passing, but he'd been so focused on himself and his future and his own selfish worldly woes and yet here she was just instantly offering to help him.

"You're amazing." He said in awe.

[DragonSong]

Adrianna sat back, head tipped up and eyes closed as she allowed the last drips of emotion she'd drained to wash through her.

She felt—gods. She felt.

She chuckled a bit and looked at Idris with eyes that suddenly sparkling with life that just hadn't been there before. "I mean, don't get too excited." She shrugged. "Like I said, it'll come back soon enough. But hopefully you'll have some time to get your head on straight about what just happened, so it won't be so overwhelming."

Another shrug as she got to her feet and dusted off her skirts. "That's the idea, anyway. How do you feel?"

She cocked her head at him, lavender hair brushing over her cheek as she smiled faintly. He should still feel the dregs of all those negative emotions, but nothing so intense as what he'd been dealing with before. Maybe there was even room for something else now, some joy or curiosity or...well, something nice, she hoped.

[Goldie]

"No, don't do that." He urged, "Don't diminish what you just did. I..." he paused feeling somewhat ashamed but continued anyways because she had obviously seen what had happened. She knew what he had been feeling in the moment, "You saved my life and I think you know that."

[DragonSong]

Her cheeks colored. She couldn't say her...abilities had ever been credited with something like that before.

"Well." She cleared her throat and glanced away, still a little flushed. "I didn't—I mean I couldn't just leave you there."

She had felt the darkness threatening to swamp him. She just hoped having a bit of breathing space would help him better process it.

After a moment, she mumbled toward the ground, "I'm sure nothing I can say will really make it better, but...from what I saw, you're too good for her."

[Goldie]

He deflated a bit at her words but was pleasantly surprised when the despair didn't creep up to swallow him again at the mention of Marigold.

"I disagree. Or...that's what I used to think....it's all just embarassing and I'm an idiot for believing her all this time. But you? I mean it....you're incredible. Have you always been able to do that? To take away feelings? Does it hurt you or anything? Where do they go?"

[DragonSong]

"You're not an idiot," Adri told him firmly. Her mouth twisted sourly. "I've known people like her. They get a kick out of manipulating people. They like an audience."

She blushed a little deeper when he insisted she was "incredible". She cleared her throat and reached up to tug at a lock of hair hair bashfully.

"I...yeah. Always. As long as I can remember, anyway." She shrugged. "And it definitely doesn't hurt me. I mean, I feel whatever it is I'm...drinking. So with you I felt the—the heartache, and the other stuff. But I only feel it for a second or two, then it's just..." She trailed off, spreading her hands out.

She didn't know how to explain. Not without sharing much more about herself than she was comfortable with a near stranger. She'd already shared more with him than almost anyone else just by offering to help.

"I...don't know where it all goes," she mumbled. "It...fades, eventually."

That was true. It was as much of the truth as she was willing to share just then, anyway.

[Goldie]

He listened, truly intrigued by what she had to say. They weren't exactly from a world where magic was new or surprising but this? He had never encountered anyone with this kind of magic. There were so many questions he wanted to ask, but was afraid of stepping over the line - this was the first real conversation they had ever had after all and she seemed almost calculated in her responses. Made sense, though, he couldn't fault her for wanting to piece out her information. If he had any control over what others new about it, what had just happened would definitely never see the light of day.

But that wasn't going to happen. It was grossly public. Everyone would know soon enough about the whole thing and there'd be no way to escape it.

"So...you felt it all...?" he asked, his face suddenly flushing with embarrassment, but a healthy kind - not like what she had just taken away, "I'm sorry...that was...selfish of me, to just put that all on you."

[DragonSong]

Adri shook her head quickly. "No, don't apologize—I offered, remember? I knew what I was getting into."

She gave him a quick, bright smile before kneeling among the flowers again. She started to pluck a few blooms, laying them in a careful pile beside her since she no longer had a basket for them. She could sell by armfuls, it was just more tedious; although she did feel like she might have the energy for it now.

"Sure you don't want a refund for those flowers?" she asked after a moment with a glance up at Idris. A hint of mischief sparked in her eyes and she fished out the coin purse she'd filched from Marigold. "I could probably even give you interest, with this."

[Goldie]

Iris' mouth dropped practically to the floor when the coin purse flashed in Adri's hands. Of all the tricky little stunts to pull...and he laughed. A pure, unfiltered and uncontrolled laugh that shook him to his core.

"Stop...you..." he gasped for breath, "When?"

[DragonSong]

Adri grinned. "Bumped into her on my way to you. And I've got...sticky fingers." She shrugged—it was hardly the worst thing she could have admitted to him.

Still, she felt the need to defend, "I don't make a habit of it. But honestly, you can't tell me Little Lady Asshat didn't have it coming."

She shrugged and dug into the coin purse, then flicked two silvers in his direction. "I'll have to spend it soon, and ditch the purse. Keep that."

[Goldie]

He caught the coins she tossed his way and didn't argue. Apprentice work certainly didn't give him much by the way of extra spending money, but he also wasn't exactly poor either because his apprenticeship allowed him a little cot in the forge so he didn't have to pay rent or buy a house or anything crazy.

When Adri drew attention to the purse, a wild grin spread across his face.

"Oh. I have the perfect place to ditch it. C'mon!" Without thinking, he grabbed her hand.

[DragonSong]

She drew in a sharp breath when he grabbed her hand, and had to work for a moment not to sip at his sudden cheer and excitement. But she let him pull her along, tucking the purse back into one of the pockets hidden in the fold of her skirt.

"Where exactly are we going?" she asked with an arched brow. She may have taken something of a liking to the apprentice, but they were still practically strangers; her free hand moved to another hidden pocket of her skirt--this one with a hole in the bottom that allowed her to reach the knife sheathed to her thigh.

Because it never hurt to be cautious.

[Goldie]

"The forge." he told her with a grin, "There's more than one thing that I think could do with a good firing today."

[DragonSong]

"Oh boy." Adri chuckled quietly and relaxed her grip on her knife. She knew where Herald's forge was, and it was not so secluded that she was over worried about Idris having any nefarious intentions--not that she really had been before, but those sorts of habits didn't shake easy.

A thought occurred to her and she asked somewhat cautiously, "This, ah, this piece Lady Whatsit ordered from you--do you still think you'll finish it?"

[Goldie]

A sinister grin spread across Idris' face and he dropped her hand pausing just long enough to say, "Oh, it'll be finished. And Herald will get all the glory."

And he continued to lead the way until the forge roof appear on the top of the hill just on the outskirts of town.

[DragonSong]

"Well, that certainly sounds ominous," Adri joked. She couldn't deny that she appreciated he didn't feel the need to hang onto her hand as he led her to the forge; maybe it was her being sensitive about a slight stature, but she never much liked feeling condescended to when it came to stuff like that.

A thought occurred, and she frowned. "Ah--a bit late to be considering this, but, um...what are the odds she thinks you stole her purse?" He hadn't had the opportunity of course, and there had--unfortunately--been plenty of witnesses to the scene. But logic didn't always win out in these situations.

[Goldie]

He lead them into the heat of the forge and, naturally, Herald was nowhere to be seen. Probably off taking a nap or propositioning some brothel or another with the coin his apprentice earned his shop. It was hot. The heat met them even before they got close to the ever burning coals. Idris had years of experience, but he was suddenly aware that Adri probably did not.

"If it gets too hot, you don't have to stay." he let her know and then held out his hand for the purse, "And she won't have any proof, will she?" he added.

[DragonSong]

Oh, the heat. It was godsdamned intoxicating.

This...might be a problem.

Adrianna's eternal chill meant that she was very susceptible to any sort of rise in temperature, while at the same time she absolutely craved it. It was something she'd learned--more than once--could be painful if she wasn't careful. While she loved the heat of a fire, it could still burn her.

She seemed a little dazed as she handed over the purse--emptying out the coins into her pocket first00but gave him a small smile. "I'm fine," she assured, resisting the desperate urge to stand right in the direct heat of the forge itself. "Honestly, been a bit chilly today. This is...nice."

[Goldie]

Idris flipped it over and made sure they hadn't missed any coins - not that he expected there to be any left, but the forge wouldn't care if it was empty or not. It's main purpose was to melt metal and a little bit of silver would melt away fairly quickly.

With a slightly too-excited grin he gave the purse a squeeze and then tossed it onto the coals. Instantly the fire flared and danced as the threads snapped and burned while the expensive inks used to color them sent colorful sparks into the air. In that moment he felt a waive of calm wash over him.

Then, too quickly, it was gone and all that remained were a few smoldering pieces of coal that consumed the last bits of thread before returning to their gentle glow.

Without a word, Idris climbed up a small rickety ladder to the loft on the other side of the forge - his little bedroom, if you could call it that, and returned a few minutes later with a piece of black velvet careful folded into 3rds length-wise. He placed it on the working table and gently started pulling back the sides to reveal the bracelet he had been making for Marigold.

A few silver and gold links remained in another bag that he emptied carefully onto the larger piece of cloth before studying his work silently. He was staring at months of work...the clear crystals had just been set into their prongs yesterday and just the few bits of chain to finalize the clasp were needed now. The interlocking mechanisms were of his own invention and as he lifted his work, the spirals of silver and gold worked in tandem to look like waves crashing around those tiny clear gems.

"I was going to melt it down." he frowned at his work and chewed on the side of his tongue, "Ruin it in some way." Gods it was so much work. He took a breath and blew gently onto the gems which began to glow softly with a gentle, white light that seemed to be kindle from their very core. Another breath made them even brighter until the entire piece looked like stars on a gentle sea.

[DragonSong]

"Don't—"

The word was out of her kith the moment he said "ruin" as she stared at the intricate work laid out before him. It just didn't seem fair for something so lovely to be destroyed all for spite. For one woman's petty spite.

Then he breathed light into the crystals, and her breath caught. Something in her stomach went tight and she stared, lips slightly parted and eyes wide.

On her shoulder, the handprint burned. Even in the warmth of the forge, in the flush of a full feeding, she could feel it surge with heat. Like it was responding to something.

She shook her head slowly. "Don't ruin it," she murmured, still staring at the bracelet. "You put so much work into it, so much love." She glanced up at him sidelong. "Maybe she never deserved it, but that doesn't mean it was wasted. You—you made something so beautiful. Don't destroy it."