[Her ferocity gives him surprised pause. He stares at her for a moment and then sighs.] As if I wouldn’t simply ask someone else. [But he is silent again, his hands fisting, relaxing afterward.]
The conditions of the quest mean I’m required to ask you of all people in this God forsaken town. You’re just covering me in dirt. Nothing is going to happen.
[ She hates this. She absolutely hates this. Getting into danger with Damian, fine. Helping Damian with something embarrassing, fine. But burying him makes her own fists curl into tight balls, shaking. ]
[He opens his mouth only to not say anything. He shuts it again.]
Fine. It's true I don't know whether or not something will happen, but I can reasonably assume the probability is low. [So there. Furthermore: (and this takes a long moment or two of silence)] ...There isn't anyone else I trust enough to do this.
[Maybe Dextera, barring requirements. Possibly. But he doesn't want to have Dextera bury him after Guren... It's too soon.]
Come on. It's only a quest. They need to be completed to see which one restores color to the town. We're losing too much recently. [He steps down into the shallow hole.] It won't take long. You can cover me beginning at the feet.
[ It's all very kind to Dextera, but this is still a twelve-year-old being asked to bury her closest friend, and she still looks incredibly ill at ease about this whole thing.
But she also knows how Damian is, so after a very long moment, Kisa sighs silently. ]
[The thing is, this isn't easy for Damian either. Not as easy as he's letting on. Dying once already, being resurrected, having nightmares about it.
Stepping into the grave isn't as nerve-wracking as sitting down, seeing the rise of sides of dirt lift above the level of his head. He swallows. He's not scared, but it's uncomfortable.]
Fine.
[He hates to make her do this. Why did their bond have to be so strong, logically? Why did they have to kiss? She's the last person he'd want having to lift a shovel much less haul dirt on top of him in a grave. For a moment, he almost backs out, for her sake. But he wants to know what kind of reward a test like this would give, and he wants to restore color to the town to make up for what they've lost recently.
Slowly, he lies back, face a bit more ashy in its tanness than usual.] Start at the feet. [He said this once, but it's more for her than him. (Or is it?)] If you get tired, you can stop.
... Unless you tell me to... I want to get this done as quickly as I can.
[ And that's why she's biting her lip, taking one good look at how he's actually not his usual coloring, and picking up the shovel with shaking fingers. Her first toss goes a little awry, but the majority does end up over his feet.
What a fun activity that they both actually really hate a lot!! ]
[Right now, it's not quite so bad. The weight of the dirt on his feet and his calves doesn't disturb him as much as it would if the dirt was on his face or chest (he thinks).
He tries to lie as still as he can, being patient. He tries not to lose his cool and bolt out of the hole with rabbit in his blood. It's just a hole. It's just dirt. Kisa isn't actually burying him. Nothing is going to happen.]
Sorry. [His eyes are staring straight up at the sky, unwavering.] About making you do this.
[If he gets a cute maid outfit, he'll go drown himself in the harbor and pray he won't ever get resurrected again.] We don't know, but it's worth trying. It could give us information, or color, or clues that help us find the hen. [His eyes finally peer over at her, watching her scoop the dirt on him.]
[The fact his lips form a flat, displeased line means she's correct.] Just hurry up and cover me. I'm tired of the stupid games we have to play to please this God forsaken town.
Choking on the dirt and dying would be a merciful death. [He lies stiff in the hole for several long moments without replying or even looking away from his glare toward the sky.]
Keep going. [He's going to be sour to himself. Let him live his grumpy life.] Just because I'm willing to obtain the reward does not mean I condone this in the slightest.
I'm not even sure what fairy tale this is supposed to reference.
[Wow, it's almost like having dirt piled on top of him further up is like being buried alive!! Soft cobbles of dirt tumble into the spiraled dip of his tightly balled fists.
It's fine. It's fine! It's not even six foot deep. The dirt will just make him need a bath, and they even have a good place to do that now. He can soak all of the horror and irritation away.]
[He's sure about the fact he wants to do this to get the reward, but he's not sure about this in terms of being buried alive. And maybe a little about forcing Kisa to do it.]
Kisa doesn't say anything further, just keeps shoveling, fingers still trembling on the handle. It's a bit of a strain on her arms, but the faster she gets this done, the faster Damian can get unearthed again.
Okay, Damian, hold your breath, she's reached your face. ]
[Yeah, okay, wow. They're already at the head. He breathes out, steeling himself. Now that the dirt is on him, he has a strange sense of being both... comforted and strangled.
It's a weird sensation.
Slowly, he draws in a breath, and then he glances at Kisa and nods. Dirt his face, girl.]
It's only when his face is finally covered that he realizes he hates not knowing how long he's supposed to stay here. Maybe a minute is a minimum, but what if it has to be longer? What if his mouth is supposed to be uncovered because he's meant to stay here for a day?
Okay, stop.
He gives it almost two, but those two feel like he'll never come out. The dirt doesn't even budge; he's as still as stone. And then all at once, he surges forward like he's jumping out of his skin, sitting up and gasping. Dirt clings to his face and hair, his clothes, and he coughs as he tries to regulate his breathing.]
[ Kisa's already stretching out a hand to him, braced to help pull him out. It won't be of much help, but there's something terrifying about the thought of him staying under dirt like that. Even if that was only a minute. ]
[Once he can mostly see without dirt in his eyes, he reaches up without hesitation and clasps Kisa’s hand. The grip is firm, but there’s no pull or yank. He uses more of his own strength to get out than he does rely on her. At the top of the hole, he turns around and flops basically.
He’s still coughing some, but mostly starts trying to knock dirt off himself.]
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I-if you want someone else to do it, then-- just... don't ask me to bury you!
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The conditions of the quest mean I’m required to ask you of all people in this God forsaken town. You’re just covering me in dirt. Nothing is going to happen.
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[ She hates this. She absolutely hates this. Getting into danger with Damian, fine. Helping Damian with something embarrassing, fine. But burying him makes her own fists curl into tight balls, shaking. ]
You don't know that something won't go wrong...!
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Fine. It's true I don't know whether or not something will happen, but I can reasonably assume the probability is low. [So there. Furthermore: (and this takes a long moment or two of silence)] ...There isn't anyone else I trust enough to do this.
[Maybe Dextera, barring requirements. Possibly. But he doesn't want to have Dextera bury him after Guren... It's too soon.]
Come on. It's only a quest. They need to be completed to see which one restores color to the town. We're losing too much recently. [He steps down into the shallow hole.] It won't take long. You can cover me beginning at the feet.
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But she also knows how Damian is, so after a very long moment, Kisa sighs silently. ]
Tell me at any point if you need me to stop.
[ RATHER, SHE MIGHT NEED THOSE MOMENTS. ]
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Stepping into the grave isn't as nerve-wracking as sitting down, seeing the rise of sides of dirt lift above the level of his head. He swallows. He's not scared, but it's uncomfortable.]
Fine.
[He hates to make her do this. Why did their bond have to be so strong, logically? Why did they have to kiss? She's the last person he'd want having to lift a shovel much less haul dirt on top of him in a grave. For a moment, he almost backs out, for her sake. But he wants to know what kind of reward a test like this would give, and he wants to restore color to the town to make up for what they've lost recently.
Slowly, he lies back, face a bit more ashy in its tanness than usual.] Start at the feet. [He said this once, but it's more for her than him. (Or is it?)] If you get tired, you can stop.
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[ And that's why she's biting her lip, taking one good look at how he's actually not his usual coloring, and picking up the shovel with shaking fingers. Her first toss goes a little awry, but the majority does end up over his feet.
What a fun activity that they both actually really hate a lot!! ]
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[Right now, it's not quite so bad. The weight of the dirt on his feet and his calves doesn't disturb him as much as it would if the dirt was on his face or chest (he thinks).
He tries to lie as still as he can, being patient. He tries not to lose his cool and bolt out of the hole with rabbit in his blood. It's just a hole. It's just dirt. Kisa isn't actually burying him. Nothing is going to happen.]
Sorry. [His eyes are staring straight up at the sky, unwavering.] About making you do this.
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Slowly covering him up and hating every minute of it. ]
... Are you really sure... that it's worth it? We don't even know what the reward will be.
[ And if she buried him alive just so Damian could get a cute maid outfit or something, she's never doing a quest again. ]
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[If he gets a cute maid outfit, he'll go drown himself in the harbor and pray he won't ever get resurrected again.] We don't know, but it's worth trying. It could give us information, or color, or clues that help us find the hen. [His eyes finally peer over at her, watching her scoop the dirt on him.]
It's not as bad as it seems.
[It is. IT IS.]
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[ Because he's doing a lot of reassuring that he normally wouldn't do, and it's not hard to notice. ]
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Choking on the dirt and dying would be a merciful death. [He lies stiff in the hole for several long moments without replying or even looking away from his glare toward the sky.]
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[ But she's doing her best.
To. Cover... him... no, she still hates this a lot. ]
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I'm not even sure what fairy tale this is supposed to reference.
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I don't know, either... but I don't like it.
[ At all. ]
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It's fine. It's fine! It's not even six foot deep. The dirt will just make him need a bath, and they even have a good place to do that now. He can soak all of the horror and irritation away.]
Keep going.
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[ THIS IS FINE, DAMIAN, YOU STILL HAVE TIME. ]
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[He's sure about the fact he wants to do this to get the reward, but he's not sure about this in terms of being buried alive. And maybe a little about forcing Kisa to do it.]
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Kisa doesn't say anything further, just keeps shoveling, fingers still trembling on the handle. It's a bit of a strain on her arms, but the faster she gets this done, the faster Damian can get unearthed again.
Okay, Damian, hold your breath, she's reached your face. ]
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It's a weird sensation.
Slowly, he draws in a breath, and then he glances at Kisa and nods. Dirt his face, girl.]
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She is also absolutely poised to try and haul him out at any given second. ]
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It's only when his face is finally covered that he realizes he hates not knowing how long he's supposed to stay here. Maybe a minute is a minimum, but what if it has to be longer? What if his mouth is supposed to be uncovered because he's meant to stay here for a day?
Okay, stop.
He gives it almost two, but those two feel like he'll never come out. The dirt doesn't even budge; he's as still as stone. And then all at once, he surges forward like he's jumping out of his skin, sitting up and gasping. Dirt clings to his face and hair, his clothes, and he coughs as he tries to regulate his breathing.]
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[ Kisa's already stretching out a hand to him, braced to help pull him out. It won't be of much help, but there's something terrifying about the thought of him staying under dirt like that. Even if that was only a minute. ]
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He’s still coughing some, but mostly starts trying to knock dirt off himself.]
Never again.
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[ Which is why she, herself, is now shaking like a leaf poised to free-fall from its branch, even as she reaches out to help dust him off. ]
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