Fantasy Chosen by Gods (Me x TheDarkButterfly)

[TheDarkButterfly]

Rayne blinked as Azure fled out of his sight. He rubbed the back of his head and went back into his room, still reeling a little at the fact that he had finally found Azure again. He sat on the bed and looked around the room. It was very different from his room in the...real world? Though he supposed that this world was also a real place. He and Azure were physically here after all. After those thoughts he just kind of....let it all slowly hit him.

The fact that he had gotten hit by a bus of all things. It was something that he was still struggling to wrap his head around, not that he had had much time to come to terms with it. All he knew for sure was that he had been in the right and it hadn't been his fault that he had gotten hit. His next thoughts were on his mom and sister. They must be worried sick, maybe absolute wreak if he had actually died. He supposed there was no way to determine if he had actually died in that world. He pinched himself to make sure he was actually there. No change, but now his arm hurt a little.

The fact that he had found Azure, in this place no less, was still a bit beyond him. They had said that they had been here for a year already. How scary and lonely it must have been, to suddenly be dropped here with no one to help them like they had helped him. Even if they hadn't been his friend, he would still be eternally grateful that they had been there. He didn't want to think about what would have happened to him if Azure hadn't been there.

He felt that something stir in himself and he flinched away from it. It wasn't something he was ready to face just yet.

 

[Shy2Infinity]

The 'business' they had to tend to ended up being next to nothing. Indeed, for a while they hid beside the stairs on the first floor and buried their face into their knees, as if they could ever truly hide the affect that so few words had on them. It wasn't like no one else had shown them such kindness in their world, it was just... Here, they were a 'Chosen One', and that alone was isolating enough. Most people put them up on a pedestal, expecting them to apparently save the world. Over time, they'd began to think that maybe they should keep their worries hidden. The people needed a savior.

And they figured... Why not give them that?

But they weren't infallible. They were human at the end of the day. A human with admittedly OP powers, but a human nonetheless. And with that thought, they glance around the corner to make sure that no one was coming. Finding their self safe, they turn back to their gloved hands. Their burning gaze bores into their right hand, a trickle of nerves breaking through their tough exterior for just an instant. Then they take in a deep breath, grip the fingers of the glove and pull it off -- all the while hoping that it would just disappear.

Their entire right hand was charcoal black, and emitting a very soft smoky essence. It had reached their wrist now and they frowned at it. That had happened a few months ago, when an unlucky strike from a monster had caught them unawares. It had burned agonizingly when it first happened, with a pain that seemed to set every nerve on fire. Their mentor had called it a 'corruption' of sorts. Usually when monsters so much as touched people, the corruption was so thorough that people turned into monsters just with one touch.

They supposed that the corruption was so slow for them because whatever power coursed through them kept the curse at bay. But even so, the corruption was still spreading. But no matter how much they looked, there seemed to be no way to stop it!

They grit their teeth and rose to their feet, donning the glove with a flourish. One step at a time. For now, they'd let Rayne rest for the day and tell him of their plans tomorrow. Nodding to their self, they took the stairs back to their room.

 

[TheDarkButterfly]

Rayne eventually laid down on the bed, just staring at the wall for a while. He supposed that the first steps they would have to take would be him figuring out his powers and how to actually use them. He had never been in a fight before, but he couldn't just let Azure go out there by themself, even if they had such a strong power. He wouldn't forgive himself if they got hurt on his watch. It wasn't that he thought they couldn't handle themself. The fact that they had been here for a year already proved that they could. He just didn't like the thought of them going out alone while he stayed behind, useless.

He moved his gaze to his hand and slowly closed his fingers into a fist. If he was being honest with himself he was scared, no, terrified. He had to fight monsters if he ever wanted some hope of going home. If he wanted hope for both of them to go home. He supposed there was no use in wondering why them. He doubted any answers would come anyways.

At least Azure had gotten some indication of what was happening to them before being dropped into this place. He sighed and closed his eyes. Maybe things would be more clear in the morning. As the room darkened and he faded off to sleep, he never noticed the faintest of glows that dimly lit the area around him.

 

[Shy2Infinity]

For once, their dreams had nothing to do with fighting monsters, or turning into a monster their self, or running from a fate that they couldn't fight. Instead, their dreams were frighteningly mundane. One thing about the dreams were different: In them, they were still in contact with Rayne. He was there waiting for them after college. They'd ask him how their day was and he'd ask them the same in return. They'd laugh at something the other had said and talk about getting something to eat.

It was strangely surreal, in the way that it felt more dream-like than their actual reality.

When they came to, the sunlight fell through the curtains and stabbed into their eyes. They hissed and rolled over, digging the pads of their fingers into their eyes. Remembering the dream from the night before, they huffed a sarcastic laugh. Just because Rayne had shown up, that suddenly meant that they would find a way back to their world? What a joke.

Hopping to their feet, they hurried to get dressed, snapping on buckles and tying off certain accessories. And then they left the room with a flap of their cloak.

 

[TheDarkButterfly]

Rayne's night was restless, to say the least. Between nightmares of watching the bus coming towards him over and over and the sight of the monsters looming closer he maybe caught about 3 hours of sleep total. Now the sun was up and he supposed he should be as well. He sat up, fixing his hair with his fingers. He would have to remember to ask for a brush or comb. He pushed the shirt back up onto his shoulder, it having fallen during all his tossing and turning during the night. He sighed and rubbed his face. He had a feeling this would be a very long first day. At least he had Azure by his side again.

He eventually stood up and ventured out of his given room, coming down the stairs a little awkwardly. At least it didn't seem like it was too far into the day. He saw Miss Jude behind the counter and cast his gaze around, looking for Azure. They would more than likely be able to point him in the right direction in all of this. The thought was very reassuring.

He came the rest of the way down the stairs. Even after a night it was still a little hard to come to terms with everything that had happened so far. It would probably take a long time, if he was being honest with himself. He doubted most people in this kind of situation would just take it in stride.

 

[Shy2Infinity]

When Rayne came down stairs, Miss Jude was happily scrubbing down the counter, talking off the ear of the (mostly) zoning out Azure. Their shoulders were hunched, a look of deep contemplation on their face as they gazed into the outside. They were slowly nibbling and picking their way through a sandwich, the fingers on their other hand tapping away on the table. An ever so vague aura of power coated them, lifting the hem of the cloak up from the floor.

And then Miss Jude looked up, a wide smile cracking across her face at the sight of Rayne coming down the stairs. "Look who's awake! How did ya sleep, hon? I know our beds aren't the most luxurious but our inn has the best arrangements for miles!" And then something caught her attention and she turned away with a, "Good heavens! Need to do something about your hair! Not that it's your fault, really, it's mine! I should've given you a comb yesterday... I'll be right back!" She hurried off with all the harried steps of a tornado.

The moment Miss Jude had spoken, Azure whipped around to stare with wide eyes at the sight of Rayne. They had half expected for him to just be a figment of their delusional dreams, but now they saw that wasn't the case... And, wow, that meant that they had really just freaked out on him yesterday and ran away. They'd been living in an entirely different world for a year, fighting monsters, and been dealing with all manner of courtly intrigue and they were STILL embarrassed.

The tips of their ears burned and they had to resist looking away, even as they tried to look more casual. "H - Hey. Yeah, uh... She's normally like that."

 

[TheDarkButterfly]

"Noted." He unconsciously patted at one particularly stubborn cow lick, unsuccessful in flattening it. If he was being honest, Miss Jude's mother henning would be a source of comfort for him. His mother was also that type of person, especially after his father had passed. She had turned her grief to good, something that Rayne truly admired her for. A pang of homesickness washed over him. He had no way of knowing how his mother and sister were holding up. If time moved the same way then they already knew of the accident. That is assuming that he hadn't just altogether vanished after being struck by that bus.

Thinking on it more, he hadn't, as he remembered vaguely people touching him and flashing lights. Which lead to either him being dead or in a hospital somewhere and that's not good because there's no way that they could afford the hospital bills and- He shook himself free of his spiraling thoughts and moved so he was sitting next to Azure.

"So-" His voice broke a little so he cleared it and started again. "So, uh....what's next?" He gestured vaguely. "Like, what do I do from here on?"

 

[Shy2Infinity]

As they ate, they allowed him to have his own space for his thoughts. That meant that they could ignore the red staining their face. And truthfully, they wanted the opportunity to study him. It was hard to tell if him being stuck in another world was having an adverse effect on him yet but, in their experience, it usually took a while for the realization to fully set in. Remembering how they'd reacted at first, the highs of that first months... They almost treated it like a game. Or a dream. Acted like they couldn't possibly get hurt since there 'was no way any of it was real'.

Then they got hurt for real and saw the truth of the matter for the first time. Their hand twitched and they curled it into a fist.

Rayne's voice breaking the silence made them wince, though they quickly covered it up as they turned to him. He had valid questions and, thankfully, they'd thought a fair bit about it the day before. "First of all, you'll eat." They jerked a finger at him, the corners of their lips twitching as they noticed a distinct lack of Miss Jude. "When she comes back, at least. But later..." They hesitated, brows furrowing. Looking up a scant moment later they suddenly questioned, "You probably can't ride horses, can you?"

 

[TheDarkButterfly]

He blinked at her and then shook his head. "I don't think I've even been close to one before. I mean....mom would take Mira on the pony rides but-" He stopped a moment. "Right. She wasn't around before you left. Mira is my little sister. She was born about three years after you moved away. A-anyways, the short answer is no, no I have never ridden a horse. I'm assuming you're not asking just for the hell of it either?" He ventured, almost a little nervously. He wasn't so sure that he liked where this was going. Azure wouldn't ask if he could ride a horse unless he was expected to do exactly that. A city boy. On a horse. Yeah, that'd go over well.

Now he wasn't so sure that he even had the stomach to eat. Riding a horse meant that they were going somewhere that wasn't within walking distance. Meaning it was outside of the village, and maybe even beyond where Azure had found him. That also put them in a position of danger but it likely wouldn't be a problem with Azure's abilities. He remembered how they had seemingly effortlessly dispatched those monsters. Something that he very likely could not do on his own, even if he did have powers himself (something he still doubted even now). He ignored that little thing stirring within him again. He just wouldn't think about it.

 

[Shy2Infinity]

Ah, right. How could they have expected him to have so much as been near a horse? When they ended up on this world for the first time, they hadn't ever ridden a horse. They were suddenly expected to learn how to ride a horse, because that was pretty much the only way to get around. Not being able to drive cars and the like had been agonizing at first, but they'd had to learn how to adapt. They refused to think about how hard it'd be to settle back in once they returned back to their world.

They had to take it all one step at a time.

It was hard not to give a wry smile at Rayne's attempt to comfort himself. They were half tempted to let him think that he'd just have to learn in a trial by fire. But they weren't that cruel. Waving away his worries, they chuckled, "Don't worry about it. You can ride behind me!" Biting the inside of their cheek, they shot him an odd look. He apparently had a little sister... Who was born just three years after they moved away. A bittersweet melancholy lingered over them as they wondered what else they'd missed.

But before they could say anything, Miss Jude was back with a plate of food in one hand, and a comb in the other. She laid both before him, continuing to hold a brilliant smile. "Do you need anything else, darlin'? If not, let me know if ya do~!"

 

[TheDarkButterfly]

Rayne did his best to muster a smile for Miss Jude's sake. "Thank you for the meal. Um, if it's not too much trouble, do you think you could point me somewhere where I could find some more clothes? These ones are a bit...big." He awkwardly pushed the shirt back up onto his shoulder. It had fallen while he and Azure had been speaking. He quietly tucked into the breakfast given to him, not wanting to be rude. It wasn't what he was used to, but it wasn't bad either. In fact, it was pretty good. After he was done eating would come fixing his hair with something other than his fingers and then hopefully clothes that he didn't have to keep adjusting. His own clothes fit fine, but they didn't fit in here and he couldn't exactly wear them all the time.

After that was probably...the horses. He really didn't think that riding behind someone would make much a difference, but at least it would be behind Azure. He knew that they wouldn't steer him wrong at least. Or he hoped. They hadn't seen each other in years, and a lot happened in that time too. He knew that he was not the person that Azure used to know. He had a thought that felt like ice water had been dumped on him.

The way that Azure had fled last night....maybe he had made them uncomfortable at the fact that he had kept looking for them. Sure, they had been best friends but they were children at the time, and it had been brief. Maybe he was just clinging onto something that Azure had wanted to leave in the past.

 

[Shy2Infinity]

Miss Jude bounced in place, eyes twinkling. "It's no trouble at all, darlin'!" She turned away and hurried back to the counter, but she immediately came back with a map. "Now, our town isn't too big, but we still have these old things around just in case we get travelers." As she spread it out against the table, Azure nabbed their plate and pulled it out of reach. Miss Jude pointed at a building on the northwest side of the map, "That's where we are! Unfortunately, we only have the one clothing store but..." She trailed her finger on further down south until it landed on another place. "That's the Aura Tailors. Really gifted tailors, those two." Stepping back, she clasped her hands together. "You can keep the map, heavens knows we already have more than enough."

Up until that point Azure hadn't noticed Rayne's plight, that his shirt was... Uh... Having trouble staying up. Now they were astutely refusing to look up, as if they could ignore it by sheer will alone. And even if he had noticed and remedied the situation, they were still far too embarrassed. Their heart thumped too harshly in their chest as they set aside their sandwich. "Th - That's lovely, Miss Jude. But, umm... We kind of need to discuss some things, so if you could please give us a moment alone?"

Too perceptive for her own good, Miss Jude noticed the change in their voice, and she blinked at them in confusion. But when she saw the way their face colored and they kept their gaze resolutely pinned to the table, her eyes sparkled impishly. "Mhmm, I know exactly what you're going through Azure, I went through it myself once, you know!"

Their mouth flopped open and they choked out a, "What?!" Miss Jude giggled and turned away, humming under her breath as she wandered off. They cleared their throat, struggling to ignore how flustered they were. "Um... Anyways." They coughed into their arm. "We'll go to the tailors, get you a few changes of clothes and then... Well." They hesitated. It suddenly occurred to them just how much they would have to explain to him. "... We're going to this land's kingdom. There's a court mage there who once helped me with my powers. She could help you too and she's one of my only true ally in this world, so it'd be good to meet up with her.

 

[TheDarkButterfly]

"A...mage. Right." Well, Azure has powers and supposedly so did he so he really shouldn't be that shocked that there were mages running around too. And Kingdom implied there was also a King too so- "Wait, court mage? As in....you've been to a castle and like, talked with the King and stuff?" He blinked at her a little owlishly. "Is...is that the same mage that you mentioned had sealed your powers before you learned to control them?"

Okay, now he really felt himself getting in over his head. It was more like he had fallen into some fantasy novel. Kings, mages, monsters....really, he would think it was some sick joke that his dying brain was playing on him if it didn't feel so....real. At that thought, the little thing in him squirmed insistently and he squashed it down even further. Now was not the time to be dealing with strange little flutterings in a location that he would approximately call his soul. Under normal circumstances, he wouldn't consider that to be its location, but this whole thing was far from normal and the feeling certainly wasn't a physical one.

Granted he and his professors had been digging into the metaphysical for giggles in between the wild what-ifs of theoreticals, so maybe he shouldn't be so surprised.

 

[Shy2Infinity]

They took a sip of their drink to mask the wince. They had never known that another person would appear in this world alongside them. It had been a whole year since they'd ended up here and, at first, they had certainly been waiting for someone else to show up. But as time went on, they'd lost hope that there would ever be anyone else. And besides, they had the storms to worry about, why hope for something that may or may not happen? But now there was someone here. More than that though, someone that they'd once known. And they were finding that they were immensely unprepared.

"Ah... Ha. Yeah. Mages are very much a thing in this world," they smiled sheepishly, only to hide their face behind the rim of their cup once he continued on. The blush continued to travel up their face the longer he talked. Their life had become supernaturally normal, the longer they stayed here. To the point that the life they'd led before felt like the dream. There were moments that they had to remind their self that this wasn't their actual world. "The one and the same," they sheepishly scratched their cheek. "It turns out that if you're the Chosen one, the people are just desperate enough for any kind of hope that they'll practically throw their selves at your feet."

Their brows furrow and they bite their bottom lip, "It's like pulling teeth to make them NOT give me free stuff. I mean, it's fine at first... But then you just feel guilty after a while. So, uh... Any other questions?"

 

[TheDarkButterfly]

Rayne caught himself before he scoffed. Where to even start? "Well, uh, I guess not at the moment?" He ventured instead. "I suppose that more will come as we run into things that I just...don't know? I can just ask questions as that happens?" He shrugged a little. It's not like he expected Azure to be able to answer everything anyways. Some of those would be for who ever brought them here in the first place.

He shrugged a little before finishing his meal and grabbing the comb, taking a moment to wrestle his hair into the sembalence of tidy again. Next was getting him clothes of his own and then....to a castle he guessed. To meet a King....and a mage.....Maybe if he didn't think about it too hard, it wouldn't make his head hurt so much...

"Right. Well.....onto the next adventure?" He joked a little weakly. Yeah, maybe he should keep away from the jokes of that nature....

 

[Shy2Infinity]

They relaxed somewhat as Rayne decided against presenting them with any questions. Honestly, they weren't quite looking forward to having to explain a bunch of this stuff to him! It was nerve wracking enough being presented with someone that they used to know. They nodded in response to his words and finished off their food and, without quite thinking about it, licked their fingers clean.

Azure wiped their fingers clean on their napkin and hopped up. Though they couldn't help but hesitate, with the odd way he was acting. Tilting their chin away, they thought for a moment. To suddenly be dropped into a world you never thought existed, with no idea how your family would react... He was probably going through a lot. They didn't even know what their own family thought of their disappearance.
It took everyone they had to ignore the way their heart squeezed painfully.

"... Everything will be okay." It sounded so weak, and they couldn't help but wonder if that was really the only thing they had. They squeezed their eyes shut for a moment, balled their fists, and when they looked up again a sparkle of determination filled their gaze. "I'll get you home. You can count on it."

 

[TheDarkButterfly]

Rayne drew in a sharp breath at their words. They sounded weak and maybe even rang a little hollow. After all, Azure had already been here for a whole year so what made them think they could successfully find him a way home? The sentiment was appreciated, though, as was their determination. He just....he just wanted to stop thinking about home right now. He knew it would do him no good to dwell on the possibilities of what was happening to his family in that place. What they could be going through with him either severely injured or even dead. It probably was best to not dwell on the accident either. He didn't want to start recalling just how injured he really would be.

Something in him dared to try and start listing all the bones he would have likely broken. He shook it off.

There was also another dilemma. "If I go, you're going too, right?" He didn't want to be the only one going back. He was sure that Azure had their own life to get back to on the other side and he didn't want to be the only one. No, maybe he just didn't want to abandon them here. Maybe he just didn't want to leave them alone anymore.

"I...I know that we haven't talked in..." He chuckled weakly." "A very very long time, but...but I don't want to be the only one going back. I don't know what you've gone through, and I don't know how you've turned into the person you are and I know it's the same for you when it comes to me-" He stopped, taking a breath to try and calm the shaking in his voice. Somehow Azure had always been the more stable of the two of them. "But...but who you used to be matters as much to me as who you are now and....and I don't want to lose you again."

He looked them dead in the eyes then, something faint glowing in between the fear and the uncertainty. Maybe he was risking their continued friendship over this, but it was important to him. He never wanted to lose such a dear part of himself again.

 

[Shy2Infinity]

Their own words had rang hollow even to them, but those fragile words were all they had. All this time, they'd only really had their self. The only person who could really come close was the court mage, Mari. She certainly knew that they had come from a different world. She was working in her own way to try and send them back. But she still was a denizen of this world. She couldn't truly understand what it was like to find yourself lost in a completely different world. They didn't even want to befriend anyone in this world, so that they could avoid the eventual heart ache when they finally left.

And then... Rayne turns it on them. "If I go, you're going too, right?" They wince, surprised to hear him saying that. Maybe they shouldn't have been surprised. After all, this was Rayne they were talking about. He'd always been stupidly kind to them, even at their most spoiled and selfish. They curl their fingers around their arms, trying to figure out what his words meant to them. There was that stupidly childish part of them that huffed at the very notion, that they had been fine without him for a whole year even though that wasn't the case. There was also another part of them, the smaller part that was... Scared. And stars, they were scared of that part.

They couldn't answer. Not for a long moment.

When he met their gaze, it took them everything they had to hold it. Their lips flattened into a thin line as they balled their hands into fists. He was an open book. Everything was laid open in his gaze and they weren't quite sure how to deal with that. They were no longer used to it. They take in a deep breath and pull the cloak tighter around them, as if the very action could hide their self from his all too open gaze. "You... Probably won't like the person that I am now. It'd probably be good if you forgot the person I used to be."

And with that, they turned their back on him.

 

[TheDarkButterfly]

Rayne paused, sensing something deeper in Azure's words. Hurt, maybe. Somehow he didn't think it was directed at him, though. "Don't you think that's up to me to decide, Azure?" He said gently. "I may not know much about the world, but I do know this: the is no way I wouldn't ever like who you are." Their back may have been to him, but he smiled softly anyways.

"Look at me, Azure." He coaxed. "Look me in the eyes. You know I'm a terrible liar. I know you can read me like an open book. Look me in the eyes and I'll repeat what I just said. I'll say it as many times as it takes for you to believe me. I will never give up on you, so please, don't give up on me. I'm begging you. Don't give up before we've even started."

He knew there was a lot to be said between them, but this he felt was the most important. Maybe they were different, but so what? Why did that matter? Because at the core of them both, they knew each other. The things around that center didn't matter as long as they had that. He wanted to help them. Protect them. Maybe he couldn't when it came physically, but he certainly could do his damndest to protect their heart.

He didn't even notice the faint glow that started on his skin as if he had been sprinkled with stardust. "Look at me."

 

[Shy2Infinity]

They weren't fragile. At least, they liked to pretend that they weren't. But being around him somehow made their carefully constructed walls feel all the more easy to break. It was infuriating. They hated this sense of vulnerability. They'd spent so long building up their strength only to have this one person come along, their childhood friend at that, and it suddenly felt like all of their strength became flimsy within minutes. They couldn't look at him as the flush trailed slowly up their face.

They weren't embarrassed. They weren't!

Their fingers curled and uncurled, trying in vain to ignore him. But every time he said to 'look' at him, it made them flinch. Stars, why was he so persistent in the worst moment?! All they'd said was that he should forget the person they used to be. Remembering them as they used to be would only invite disappointment. They couldn't go back to that, after all. It wasn't like I said I didn't want to be friends... They stared hard at the ground, pressing their lips sharply together.

Slowly, ever so slowly, they turned around. But they couldn't stare him in the eyes, flustered beyond all recognition as they were. But in the corner of their eyes, they noticed something. Looking at his skin they saw an ever so faint glow, like it had been sprinkled with stardust. It was enchanting and before they knew it they whispered, "Rayne..."

 

[TheDarkButterfly]

"Yes, Azure?" He asked before his gaze followed theirs, wondering what could have caught their attention during such a serious discussion. He gasped and jerked back as if he could move away from his own skin. In doing so he threw himself off where he was sitting and hit the ground with a thump and a grunt of pain. The glow snuffed out as if it had never been there in the first place.

"Please tell me this is a joke." His voice was shaking far more than he would have liked but he had been glowing. He stared at every inch of bare skin he could find but the glow was gone. He sighed in relief. "Please tell me that isn't the symptom of a bizarre disease that's only found in this world." He mumbled. "I don't know if I could really handle that right now."

Their discussion was completely forgotten at this point. Glowing was a little more important of a topic at the moment.

 

[Shy2Infinity]

Perhaps it was cruel of them, but they couldn't help but feel relieved when he grew more distracted with the fact that his skin was glowing than their own serious conversation. As he threw himself back, they winced and went to use their power to catch him. But it was already too late and he hit the ground. When he landed with a grunt of pain, that glow was immediately snuffed out. They were disappointed, after all, they'd wanted to study it for a while longer.

Not to mention... They couldn't be positive as they wouldn't fully look him in the eyes, but they were certain that his eyes were glowing.

"It's not a disease..." They muttered thoughtfully as they crossed their arms, all serious discussion completely forgotten. Maybe they were wrong, but it seemed like that glow appeared with their subconscious conviction, and that could only mean one thing. But glowing? What could that possibly have anything to do with his power? A soft sigh escaped them as they hopped forward and held their hands out to him. "C'mon, up and at 'em! We need to go to the tailors!"

 

[TheDarkButterfly]

"Not a disease? Good, good-" He stopped. "Wait. Wait wait wait, don't tell me. Doooon't tell me that it's what I think it is. Please do not tell me that you get cool gravity powers that let you fly and I get to fucking glow. Please tell me I'm wrong." He buried his head in his hands. Azure's distinct lack of freaking out at him glowing already told him the answer and that's not fair.

"You get to fly and I'm a light bulb." He said miserably, voice still muffled by his hands. "Fall into a world with powers and I'm a light bulb." Maybe a part of him was relieved though at how pathetic that power really was. Azure had said that they needed their powers sealed until they learned to control them. At least his wasn't dangerous to him or others. Maybe a minor inconvenience if he just started his whole....glowing thing at night. But also he was very embarrassed. Azure got cool combat powers and he was firmly sidelined with no fighting ability whatsoever. The only monsters he could fight would be the ones under the bed. Time to find a hole and crawl in it.

 

[Shy2Infinity]

Annnnd right on cue, he was freaking out. Not that they could blame him, considering... They were having trouble figuring out what glowing could possibly do with his power their self. Wasn't he just basically a light bulb? Maybe had this been a slightly less serious situation they would have been more nonchalant, but as it were... No. They sincerely doubted that the goddess that gave them their powers would have made that kind of a mistake. From what they could remember of their first meeting with her, she was desperate. Desperate to save this world.

There must have been more to Rayne's power than met the eye.

Miss Jude chose precisely that moment to pop in with an oddly mischievous smile curling her lips. They were instantly wary, after all, her jokes were the worst! They were readying their self for the punch line when she snickered and said, "Would you say that you're the 'light' of our lives~?"

Even after being in that town for a bit, staying in that SPECIFIC inn, they were still dumbfounded. Pinching their nose between their fingers they hissed, "Miss Jude..."

She backed off, continuing to cackle, "Alright, alright~ I'll just... Be over here!" She retreated back to her counter, continuing to look smug.

After making sure that she wouldn't come back with any more jokes, they turned back to Rayne. They weren't really good at making people feel better. It was hard figuring out what people wanted, but this was easy... Right? He wanted to know that his powers would have a use. They couldn't give him that, but there was something they could say. "Hey, I don't know what your powers are all about. But I doubt that you'd end up here without powers that're useful. Maybe they have to awaken? Or they grow the more you use them? Whatever the case, we're going to figure it out."

 

[TheDarkButterfly]

Rayne started to glow for a different reason at Miss Jude's words, face blazing red beneath his hands. Now he wanted to find that hole even more. The fact that he got glowing as a superpower probably would have been funny if it weren't for the fact that they found themselves in a bit of a situation. Glowing would never have been his first choice when it came to powers and abilities, especially when it meant that Azure was still alone when it came to battles. It wasn't his fault but he felt guilty for it all the same. This kind of power wasn't fair to either of them and now he was useless.

Azure's words did little to comfort him on that front either. It was easy for them to say, having been given amazing abilities right from the get-go. So not only he was likely either near death or dead, but he had also been dropped head first into a strange world with useless abilities while his best friend had been and would continue to be putting their life on the line for an indefinite future. Now it was his turn to be unable to look Azure in the eyes. He didn't think he would be able to stand what would likely be a pity. Not from them.

In the first place, he wasn't even sure he wanted to try to use these newfound powers of his, but now he really didn't want to try. Not when all it would bring would be embarrassment and guilt every time. The only use Azure would probably find in him tagging alone would be to be an over-glorified flashlight and a dim one at that. In both senses of the word, it seemed.