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Post by D'rorah Philosophy on Oct 14, 2007 19:05:46 GMT -5
"You heard rumors about my cooking, Mister Cooper?" she asked teasing. "Honestly, I have not had the opportunity to kill anyone in quite some time. Luckily, all of my cooking is done for me at Hogwart's." She leaned forward and gave him a small kiss. "Fortunately, my cooking skills are much more developed than my herbology skills."
Feeling his hand at her side and the other whispering through her hair, she sighed quietly. "I will return as quickly as I can possibly manage," she whispered back, mirroring his tone of voice. She leaned forward and kissed him deeply one last time before reluctantly extracting herself from his arms. Leaning forward, she planted one last kiss on his forehead before straightening up. "Of course, you are welcome to anything in the apartment while I am away," she offered quietly. "But do try not to over-exert yourself."
Casting a smile in his direction, she turned to make her way from the room and down the hall to change back into a fresh set of robes before setting out for the market. "I shall return shortly," she called as she stepped through the front door into the corridor.
She returned shortly bearing several paper sacks filled with groceries, along with a pair of falafel wrap sandwiches. She went about putting away the groceries she had bought and then went to find Dylan.
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Post by Dylan Cooper on Oct 14, 2007 22:45:32 GMT -5
"Well then, I consider myself grateful. As long as you don't mix cooking and herbology, we'll be fine," he replied teasingly, accepting her kiss happily. Feeling her pull away slightly as she made to leave, he returned her next kiss hungrily and retracted his arms. Nodding subtly, he smiled at her slight concern for the effect activities might have on him and watched her leave, wishing she wouldn't.
Dylan detested the fact of having something happen simply because it must. Whenever he could, he tried to steer around these events as if they were insignificant matters; trifles in the all-round picture of things. As he waited for her, he briefly gazed into the window above him that revealed Tel Aviv. Smiling at the sight, he made to get up. Using primarily his arms, he raised himself quickly from the bed, his head spinning from the fast movements. Trying to steady himself, one hand reached out and grasped the nearest object. Finding nothing, his disorientation had lessened only slightly when he fell to the ground.
Having intended to ascertain where the bathroom was, this thought departed his mind rapidly due to the more pressing matters at hand. Falling with absolutely no grace whatsoever, Dylan's head fell back onto the bed which was luckily rather soft. The speed at which he hit it, however, as well as the impact, split open the wound that the doctor had only managed to make smaller. Feeling it open, he removed his head as fast as he could from the bed, somehow discerning enough to know that he did not want to bleed on the crisp white sheets of the bed. The fast-paced movement forward, however good his intentions may have been, only proved to cause him more of a headache and provide more nausea.
Stopping all movement for a minute or two, he finally managed to gain some semblance of co-ordination and crawled out of the room, not wishing to stand for fear of falling once more. Finding, ironically, the bathroom, he found some towels and a first aid kit. Now that the immediate action was over with, he managed to appreciate the fact that no-one had been around to see such a performance.
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Post by D'rorah Philosophy on Oct 14, 2007 23:02:18 GMT -5
D'rorah moved through the apartment, looking for Dylan. She paused in the bedroom, long enough to see that he was no longer in the bed. Moving through the room, she noticed that the door to the bathroom was slightly shut. "Dylan?" she asked, knocking quietly. "I have lunch for us." She carefully pushed the door open to find him working on the wound on his forehead and applying bandages.
Crossing the floor swiftly to where he was, she assessed the newly-dressed wound. "What happened? How did your wound reopen?" Her face was etched with concern as she watched him. "I believe Doctor Cohen may have left something that will help with the healing." She made no mention of the towels, they could be washed or new ones could be bought. She was concerned for Dylan, however. She really didn't think he looked as though he should be out of bed.
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Post by Dylan Cooper on Oct 14, 2007 23:25:44 GMT -5
Hearing a light knock at the door, he hastily attempted to hide what little he'd managed to do with his wound. Quickly giving up, he knew she would need to see it as she gently opened the door a fraction or two more. Sighing and throwing down the small towel in his hands, he looked up at D'rorah, his eyes not quite meeting hers. Wondering what exactly he should say, he decided with the truth to simply save both the time and effort of making something up that sounded less embarassing. In any case, he wasn't particularly up to forcing his mind to work that much in such a short amount of time.
"I fell," he said shortly, not eager to go over the details. "And I hit my head... I wanted to have it patched up before you got home," he admitted quietly, feeling slightly embarassed. His ego wasn't doing too well over the past few days. Finally meeting her gaze, he lifted an arm up to her. "I might need some help getting up," he said quietly, not trusting his head to allow him to raise himself without any aid.
Eager to simply get back between a pair of warm sheets and underneath a nice, light duvet, he smiled half-heartedly at her.
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Post by D'rorah Philosophy on Oct 14, 2007 23:38:22 GMT -5
Seeing the embarassment in his eyes, D'rorah did not push the issue any further than she had so. She looked at the towel that had been thrown to the floor and back to Dylan. While she appreciated his need to be independent and tend to his own wound, she couldn't help but be concerned at finding him on the floor.
"Of course I will help," she replied quietly. "Here you are, manufacturing situations for me to hold close to you when you really do not need to," she teased, as she helped him to his feet, holding him close so that she could support him back to the bed. Slowly, she began walking toward the bedroom, "I believe we should have a nice, quiet lunch and then a bit more sleep. I bought things to make dinner with tonight as well," she added, trying for a somewhat normal conversation, one that wouldn't focus solely on his injuries and make him feel even more self-conscious about them.
Carefully, she helped Dylan down onto the mattress and lingered over him for a moment. She planted a soft kiss on his lips before pulling back. "Lunch is in the kitchen. I will be right back with it," she remarked quietly. She rose and headed back out through the bedroom door, returning just moments later with two styrofoam containers holding falafel wraps and salad on a small bed tray. "My apologies for the fine china," she remarked with a slight laugh. "I did not think you would mind too much passing on the dishes for the time being."
She set the tray over his lap and took a seat on the bed beside him, helping him to sit up enough to eat his lunch. "Are you comfortable now?"
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Post by Dylan Cooper on Oct 15, 2007 0:01:50 GMT -5
Laughing slightly at her comment, he got to his feet and leant into her for support, his head still spinning ever-so-slightly. "It's good to know that I'm so desired," he responded quietly, moving with her back to the bedroom. Taking his time and wishing he didn't have to, he smiled happily at her comments, glad that she was not making an issue of the situation.
Feeling a soft surface to lie on once more, he lowered himself gratefully, with D'rorah's help, of course. Refusing to nod his acceptance of the fact, he watched her leave and attempted to make himself comfortable. Wincing slightly as, once more, he moved a bit too fast, he found her returning. Smirking at her comments, he laughed. "I think I'll just manage to cope with it," he replied, a small hint of laughter in his voice.
With her help, he finally resumed a comfortable position in which he could easily consume lunch. Putting his arms around D'rorah, he drew her closer and planted a soft, loving kiss on her lips. Pulling back only slightly, he smiled and gazed into her eyes, loving her absolutely. "Quite comfortable," he remarked quietly, his eyes dancing.
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Post by D'rorah Philosophy on Oct 15, 2007 0:17:45 GMT -5
Feeling herself drawn closer and a tender kiss upon her lips, D'rorah felt a moment of breathlessness. Had the situation been a bit different, she would have eagerly reciprocated; however at the moment, she was more concerned with tending to his medical needs. Leaning forward ever so slightly, she placed a feather-light kiss upon his lips. "I am relieved to hear you are comfortable, Mister Cooper," she teased back. She settled back onto her pillow, making her seat beside him as she began opening the styrofoam containers. "This particular vendor was my father's favorite. I do hope you enjoy it," she said as she began partially unwrapping their sandwiches and handed one over to Dylan.
She took a respectably-sized bite from her own sandwich as she looked around the room. "Is there anyone else I should contact regarding your absence? Anyone who might be expecting you?" she asked, not sure if his mother was the only one she should contact. "I brought dessert as well, if you are up for it," she added after another moment's thought.
She looked over at Dylan with a warm smile gracing her features. Anyone who could sustain such extensive damage and still wish to tend to his own wounds was remarkable as far as she was concerned. Of course, she rather thought Dylan was remarkable in his own right. Though she wasn't particularly pleased with the way the weekend had progressed, she was rather enjoying the thought of waking up in his arms again, as she had done earlier.
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Post by Dylan Cooper on Oct 15, 2007 2:14:49 GMT -5
"One thing you might learn about me, is that i'm not awfully picky when it comes to food, Miss Philosophy," he said lightly, giving her another light kiss. Releasing his hold on her reluctantly, Dylan took his sandwich from her, his fingers brushing over hers lightly as he did so. Not even bothering to inspect the contents, he took a not-too-dainty bite and chewed happily, glad that he was filling his stomach once more. His stomach appeared rather happy, too.
"No-one else, no," he replied quietly, not one single person coming to mind. Wondering how Professor Choi was taking their extended absense and missing of classes, he continued to consume his rather tasty lunch. Hearing about dessert, he became rather excited. Somehow a meal never seemed complete without dessert.
He quickly finished his sandwich and, absently eyeing D'rorah up, he saw her look towards him with a gorgeous smile. Returning it, his eyes lit up like they could never do even with thoughts of dessert. A charming smile rising onto his features, one arm snaking across her stomach and landing on the bed, resting across her. Leaning over her, he placed a small kiss on her lips, aiming to leave her wanting more. Pulling back slightly, his lips hovering inches away from hers, he smiled lovingly.
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Post by D'rorah Philosophy on Oct 15, 2007 21:23:26 GMT -5
D'rorah found an arm reached over her as Dylan returned her smile with a warm light in his eyes. Feeling his lips meet her own in a soft kiss, her breath stuttered for a moment as he pulled back. She looked into his eyes as he pulled back slightly and smiled. She started to lean forward, to kiss him, but held herself back, afraid she might hurt him or aggravate his injuries. Her mind grasping for anything else to think about, she blinked a few times. "Professor Choi expects that we shall return this evening," she said quietly. "If you are recovered enough to travel, we should return. I... I cannot risk doing anything which might lead to my expulsion. We have much to do at Hogwart's."
She scooted across the bed and lowered her feet to the floor to stand. "I... we should return later this day." She felt the pull between want and duty tugging at her powerfully. "Yes," she nodded her head, her voice becoming firmer. "We should return to Hogwart's."
What did she think she was doing anyway? Taking up in her own personal pleasures when there were so many things she should be doing instead... research to conduct... a war to wage. She felt as though she had been living in a dream world for the past weeks, lost in the whims of her own desires. "You should rest," she finished quietly before turning and heading from the room, her head slightly bowed. She suddenly realized that, by indulging herself now, she could very well lose everything that had come to matter to her... this was no game to be taken lightly. If the Shadow Mage could capture her and torture her, if she could so easily kill another student, she could well do the same to any of them, to Dylan. That thought propelled her into the living room to gather her thoughts.
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Post by Dylan Cooper on Oct 16, 2007 2:44:37 GMT -5
Becoming slightly confused at her choice of words, his smile faltered slightly and he nodded slowly in response. Watching blankly as she pulled away, he noted the hesitancy in her voice, along with the fact that she seemed to be almost convincing herself of her words. "Whatever you think, Dee," he said quietly, leaving her to her thoughts as she departed from the room. It wasn't like he could follow her anyway.
Resting back onto the bed, Dylan worried if perhaps he'd done something wrong; something to upset her. Tossing the thought aside, he assumed that D'rorah's thoughts had simply been triggered at that particular moment. Knowing there was little, if anything, that he could do for her at that moment, he clenched his jaw and focused his thoughts on the tray before him. Picking it up gently, he slid it carefully onto the bedside table and took up the vial he knew to contain a sleeping potion.
Swallowing only a small amount, he promptly replaced it and lay back, shuffling down the bed slightly so that he could sleep comfortably. Shutting his eyes, he felt the effects take hold almost immediately and drifted off, thoughts of D'rorah nagging at his mind that were quickly forgotten with his dreamless sleep taking hold.
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Post by D'rorah Philosophy on Oct 16, 2007 3:12:18 GMT -5
D'rorah remained in the sitting room for what felt like a rather long time before finally rising from her seat. She took a deep breath, trying to figure out exactly what had propelled her from the other room. Feeling like she owed Dylan an explanation or apology of some sort, she turned to head back into the bedroom. Finding him deep asleep, she sighed quietly and stood in the door with her arms crossed, observing the way his face seemed so open and relaxed in sleep. So many things had happened, and happened so quickly this year that she felt a bit discombobulated by it all. Moving forward, she sat on the edge of the bed and pulled the cover higher over him. She sat there, watching his face, carefully brushing a few careless strands of hair that had fallen into his face away. "Oh Dylan," she whispered quietly, certain he was still asleep, "however will this work?"
She could feel that she loved him... but things were so complicated right now. Leaning forward, she planted a soft kiss on his forehead. "I feel guilty, as though I have set you up... it was never supposed to be this way. You were not supposed to be so wonderful." She gazed down upon him as she contemplated what would happen when their relationship became more public knowledge, as she considered how much danger she had put him in. Her fingertips gently traced the lines on his face as she considered him. "I love you so much," she whispered quietly. "Remember that if I have to leave soon. I will have to seek out my own Elemental Master before long if I intend to maintain my hold on the light flickering here in the darkness surrounding us." A tear slipped down her cheek at the thought of having to leave, to seek out Mordred wherever he might be hiding. She had felt her hold on her emotions slowly weakening. It had had no discernible effect yet... but that did not mean there would be no effect in the months ahead.
Her head a mixture of emtions, she curled up next to him and closed her eyes, intent on sleeping just a bit before they had to head off to Hogwart's, and back to the real world again.
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Post by Dylan Cooper on Oct 16, 2007 3:47:49 GMT -5
His thoughts, or lack thereof, drifted easily through the fog of his mind. Through it all, he felt his lips begin to tingle. Not able to quite join the dots, he continued to doze happily, his body gratefully accepting the undisturbed sleep. Feeling a small, tickling sensation around his face, he sighed softly and, after a while, stirred.
His eyes opening an inch or two, he found D'rorah beside him once more. She was curled up next to him and he made to place an arm around her. Halting his arm in mid-air, he retracted it, doubting himself slightly. Frowning that, after all they'd been through, he was now doubting his actions around D'rorah, he wished he could simply remove himself. Remove himself from her presence, from the room. It was not a thought of anger, nor of resentment. It was one of him resorting back to his old habits, of not being used to committment, or needing to consider others. The fact that D'rorah had seemed to doubt her thoughts earlier, had caused in him those feelings to resurface.
Resenting only the fact that he knew he should not stand and walk from this room, he sighed and turned on his back, staring at the ceiling and trying to make sense of what he was suddenly feeling.
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Post by D'rorah Philosophy on Oct 16, 2007 3:59:40 GMT -5
D'rorah's eyes opened slowly to see Dylan staring at the ceiling above him. "You are awake," she said quietly. "Do you feel any better?" As she watched him, he seemed far more distant than usual. Of course, considering her actions earlier, she figured she shouldn't really be surprised by that. Here she was, pushing away the only person at the moment who made her feel good about herself. At the time when she needed him the most, she had pushed the hardest.
She looked toward the window, seeing the sunlight of late afternoon. They were supposed to return to Hogwart's that evening. She had told Professor Choi they would return that night. At the moment, she would far rather remain where she was. "I... I had a thought," she remarked quietly. "Perhaps we could have Doctor Cohen write to Professor Choi and explain your injuries... so we do not have to return so quickly." There was quiet hope in her voice as she voiced the possibility. She hoped she had not pushed too hard... but somehow, she had a feeling he would decide to return to Hogwart's and she felt her stomach tie in a knot at the thought of how she might feel if he pushed away as well. Unvoiced, playing quite loudly in her mind, was the thought. I need you with me now.
She waited to see what might come of the afternoon.
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Post by Dylan Cooper on Oct 16, 2007 4:26:47 GMT -5
Slightly surprised to hear her speak, considering he had not noticed her wake, his eyes remained focused on the ceiling. "A little. I feel more rested, in any case. But I suspect my mind is tricking me into believing I can walk again, considering how long i've been lying down," he replied quietly, hoping she wouldn't believe him to be rambling on. Dylan was not someone that spoke often; he liked to make any words meaningful, and explaining things in such a round-about way was not a typical trait of his. Thinking maybe he was just being paranoid and overestimating the effect of his sentence, he closed his eyes briefly, wishing all of these thoughts to leave his already confused mind.
Perhaps it was a distraction technique. Pondering this thought, he then realised that perhaps this in itself was also a distraction technique. Closing his eyes once more, he became slightly angry with himself for being so childish and attempting to stray his thoughts away from anything remotely challenging in the realm of emotions.
His eyes re-opened at her next comments and Dylan thought briefly about the options available. He did not wish to aggravate Professor Choi any more than he potentially had back in her office; in his grief, he knew that his temper had easily risen to the surface. Then again, he also knew that for the health of his body, he should rest for as long as possible. Making the trip back to Hogwarts would not only require either a lengthy plane ride or apparition, but thrust him once more into the general turmoil of school, students, professors and work. Being on school grounds, Dylan was the kind of boy that would attend classes, regardless of any physical disabilities.
After the nearly overwhelming grief he had endured through all of last week and the weekend, resulting in a severe lack of both sleep and food, his body had been weakened. The fight with John, the hasty trip to the train station that had only served to further aggravate his injuries, the apparition to Tel Aviv and the fall he'd suffered earlier that day, all combined with the already diminished physical condition of Dylan, had resulted in a very unhealthy young man. While the hours of dreamless sleep and food he'd received in Tel Aviv had aided him, not to mention the mended bones and healed cuts and bruises, which had improved his condition considerably, he was still weak. His head was still sore, no matter how much or little he moved it, and his emotions were still in turmoil over Aiden, John, Astraeus and now D'rorah and her recent actions.
Dylan had heard the tiniest trace of hope in her voice as she had spoken of delaying their return. He wondered what she hoped for. Yes, she had suggested forestalling their return, so one might naturally assume that was what she hoped for. But Dylan had lived with his mother and been around plenty of women all of his life; he knew they were complicated. He'd thought D'rorah was perhaps different, but the events of the past few hours had caused a nagging doubt in the back of his mind, some place that pain did not currently penetrate.
Completely unsure as to what to decide, his mind didn't seem to like the overwhelming nature of all of these thoughts. His headache gaining power and changing from a small, dull ache into a throbbing mess, he put his head in his hands and sighed. Having travelled no further in making a decision, his mind was made up for him as a thought entered his mind. One that was not his own, but one that did not seem directed toward him, either. Wondering if maybe she had intentionally let him hear her thoughts, he dismissed the notion quickly. D'rorah was not like that.
"Perhaps Doctor Cohen would like to pen that letter," he said quietly, his eyes a mystery as he met her gaze. "I still do not trust how much my head has recovered," he commented quietly.
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Post by D'rorah Philosophy on Oct 16, 2007 4:50:10 GMT -5
Seeing Dylan rest his head in his hands, she realized that she had pushed too hard. Quietly resigning herself to a return to Hogwart's, she squeezed her eyes shut for a moment. Needless to say, she was quite surprised when Dylan suggested having Dr. Cohen write a letter for them. She opened her eyes and looked up at him, searching his eyes for a meaning behind his words. She wondered whether he simply needed the time for recuperation... or... it was all so terribly confusing. She was quite certain life had been far simpler back when she had spent her days in her books, enjoying the simplicity of knowing that meanings were straightforward and unemotional.
She settled, as her mind ran through a cacophony of emotions, for simply allowing herself to feel relieved. Pulling closer, she wrapped her arms around him and rested her head on his chest. "Dylan," she whispered, her gaze falling across the room to the wall, her head pressed against his chest, listening to the beat of his heart. "You do know that I love you, right? I just... everything has been so confusing lately." She felt tears come to her eyes... she was annoyed with those tears for intruding on her carefully emotionally distant world. "Even if I have to leave for some reason, you would not forget?" she asked, her voice slowly decreasing in volume until her last statement was barely more than a whisper. She hated this neediness she felt in herself. She did not want to feel so attached to a person... especially not now. People were all too easily taken away or left of their own volition. She felt weakened by her own emotions and she loathed weakness within herself.
She held tighter, as though physical closeness might delay the separation she felt was imminent. Her tears became more insistent, a few particularly bothersome ones spilling over from her eyes and trailing down her cheeks. How she had ever allowed herself to come to this place, she had no idea. All she knew now was that she couldn't let go because she was quite certain she would lose herself if she did.
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