Sylvari was keenly aware of the compromised state that Videl put himself in, leaning against her like he did: a fact he must have known given his knowledge of her curse. The tender flesh of his neck seemingly longed to be pierced, and Sylvari's dark thirst rose up mightily within her breast. Still, his words grounded her and made it possible to resist her instincts.

She figured it was only the natural reaction to have such frustration at her oath. Even she felt frustration and despair herself, at times, and she had received the feelings of tranquility that such an ascetic lifestyle provided. She owed him the truth, however: if he truly could not accept her as she was bound to live, she would let him go and hope fervently he could forget her entirely, her own feelings be damned. Sylvari slowly disentangled herself form the embrace and turned her head to the side, in a futile attempt to hide the well of tears within her crimson eyes.

"I understand your feelings, Videl. It is unfair of me to act as if nothing happened between us. As I cannot ask you to submit yourself to the whims of justice as I have, I will depart from you, if you should wish, and do my best to avoid ever crossing your path again."

As the water of her eyes began to flow freely down her face, Sylvari continued in a whispered tone. "Whatever I once was, 'innocent' is no longer a phrase that can apply to me. I must repay my debt, and serve the good I have subverted..."

Despite the two having reconvened with one another, delving into the depths of their emotions and speaking on the matters of the past, Sylvari had gone on to mention the one thing that had pushed Videl away in the first place. That she would depart and do her best to avoid ever coming across him again. This time around, however, she had made it seem as though this was something that she would only do if he had sought it. To which he most assuredly hadn't.

"No matter what things you have done in the past, the actions that I have seen you accomplish are more than enough to warrant the fact that you are bringing in more good than evil. You've saved the lives of countless others, assisted those that are searching for the truth behind mysterious creatures, and have gone out of your way to show love to someone that hadn't really ever encountered such a thing before. It may sound biased coming from me but in my eyes, Syl, you've long since repaid whatever debt it is that you are holding onto."

Raising up one of his hands so that he could brush the tears away from his own cheeks, Videl would start to pull from out of Sylvari's embrace. In doing so, he would catch a glimpse of the tears that had cascaded so gently down the vampiress' cheeks. His spare hand would proceed to reach upwards before gently brushing away Sylvari's tears. Only then would he fully remove himself from his companion.

"I.. I need some time to think, okay? About everything. So let's.. Let's just head to where we have to go. We can always discuss things come the next morning." Once that was said and done, Videl would remount Lumi and wait for Sylvari to to prepare herself. Once it was clear to the T'saya that Sylvari had been ready to set out, Videl would request that Lumi continue on her journey. The two would continue on their path towards the Ribbinynh village from that point, arriving a few hours afterwards.

Sylvari bit down hard on her tongue, so hard she began to sense the metallic taste of blood in her mouth, to avoid the torrent of arguments that threatened to spill from her mouth. She felt a familiar voice rise up in her mind, a darkened version of the worst of her negative emotions: one that taunted and accused her at every turn.

'But Videl, don't you know what I am? I am a wretched undead spawn that kills people when I don't drink often enough. Hate me, fear me, but for the love of gods PITY ME.' That's all you really want, isn't it, wretch? The tragic heroine struggling against her inner darkness; what a joke! As if you have no culpability in this whatsoever. Being a slave to justice is all that you're good for. You should just stop subjecting others to the pain of your company, else you'll never repay the bottomless debt. Pathetic.

Sylvari huffed and followed Videl wordlessly. Her inner demons had only gotten louder in her exile. Wallowing in misery was a sure way to dull the blade of justice, but Sylvari could not bring herself to cope any other way. Her frayed edges were such that if she tried to bend any further, she would surely break. Sylvari noted with dispassion that they had arrived at the village an indeterminate amount of time later. She still bore the same empty expression as before.

As the pair had arrived at the Ribbinynh village, Videl would find himself in awe of the area in which they had just stepped into. Truly a breathtaking marvel hidden within the treetops. The grotto, comprised of multiple islands, exudes an ethereal beauty with massive swaths of trees that serve as both the homes of the Ribbinynh and the canvases for vibrant Lantern Flowers. These islands are connected by gnarled vines adorned with bioluminescent moss and mushrooms, forming bridges across ravines of sparkling water that flow in layered pools and waterfalls. With such a sight lingering before his very eyes, Videl couldn't help but lose track of everything that had occurred just short of appearing her, his mind being absorbed by the landscape itself.

"...wow..." That single word was all that would come to both mind and his lips as he had found himself lost in the beauty of it all. Once he had managed to get a hold of himself, however, Videl would once again dismount from Lumi. "I'm going to try and speak with the inhabitants to see if there's a place that we can rest for the night. You two stay here." Without waiting to see if there would be any agreeance from the pair, Videl would head off into the village. If either of the two were to keep an eye on him as he had made his way throughout the village, they would come to note that at some point, Videl would have to climb up a set of vines to reach the canopies up above.

After about ten to fifteen minutes, Videl would return to his Frigid Steed and vampiress companion with a couple of Ribbinynh in tow. One of Ribbinynh, whom had held a spear and a shield in hand, had been wearing a vibrant pink, tall flower hat. The other had donned a snail atop their head! "Sylvari, these two shall escort us to our place of rest for the night." Gesturing towards the Ribbinynh that had had a snail atop their head, Videl would continue. "This is the Hanakara. They'll be the one to tend to your wounds once we make it to our room."

After the introductions had been made, the group would find their way off in the direction of one of the nearby trees. The group would have to climb up the vines so that they could reach the canopies overhead, so Lumi was going to have to remain on the ground below. Knowing that his companion would have to reside below for the time being, Videl would gift Lumi a great big hug before softly kissing her on the bridge of her nose. "If you come across Mercy while your down here, please be sure to keep her nearby. I want Sylvari to be able to see her companion again at some point. The same goes for Noe please."

Ruffling up Lumi's mane once more before he had to depart, Videl would continue on with following after the Ribbinynh. The two would soon arrive at one of several treetop bungalows. It was this bungalow that the pair had been assigned to, and where the Hanakara was to tend to Sylvari's wounds. A bit of a close quarters living space but it was only meant to be temporary for the two. "I'll step outside until you are patched up.. Please inform me of when I can come back in."

Sylvari's harsh internal monologue sapped much of the sense of wonder for the exquisite harmony of civilization and nature that the Ribbinynh espoused. At present, her mind could only think about practical obstacles for this visit: namely the people's distrust of the arcane, which extended to vampires such as her, no doubt. She quickly affixed her veil over her eyes as Videl headed off to make arrangements for their stay. The poor eye covering had seen much better times: far from the fine garment it once was, it was now stained with mud and frayed at the ends. Still, Sylvari wore it for practical reasons rather than aesthetic ones, despite how her heart broke at how soiled the lovely gift that Romarii had given her was.

As she waited for Videl to return, she attempted to reach out and stroke Lumi's side. However, whether it was due to Sylvari's poor state of cleanliness of some personal animus the steed held for her, Lumi shied away from her and counted with her hoof, agitated. Sylvari withdrew her hand and stood in dampened silence until Videl returned, with two locals in tow.

Sylvari looked alarmed as Videl proclaimed one of them would treat her wounds, a fruitless enterprise that she attempted to convey to Videl, but her friend seemed oblivious to her non-verbal cues. Oh well, if they don't practice magic, the very worst they will suffer is wasted bandages and ointments. I'll make sure to donate to their medical funding as recompense.

The pair were led to a small domicile as the one guide, named Hanakara ushered her inside to tend to her. Much to Sylvari's expectations, the kindly apothecary tended to her with oils and bandages, but not before bathing her thoroughly and washing her hair. Sylvari felt emotional at such an outpouring of care for a stranger, but held back her tears to avoid burdening this kind woman with unnecessary worry.

After a fair bit of time, Hanakara left and Sylvari called Videl to come in, looking much closer to her usual self, less her typical imposing armor, which was taken to be repaired. Instead, Sylvari stood in a fresh robe made of woven leaves, deceptively soft and comfortable. The burns and bruises still coated her body, clearly seen where they poked out of the bandages, as they would until she claimed necromantic energy or had a proper drink, but Sylvari felt a million times better just being clean. She had forgotten how much she missed the feeling.

"Well, what do you think?" Sylvari inquired, spinning around to demonstrate her unorthodox garment for her friend.

With there being a bit of time between Sylvari getting her wounds dressed and her calling him back in, Videl had decided to pass the time by thinking on everything that had happened since their reunion. Dwelling on everything that had been said and how he had snapped at her earlier. Even when it had come to dealing with his family, he hadn't snapped like that. Albeit that was likely due to the fact that even with his protestations and complaints, that his family would continue to ignore him.

In truth, he had felt horrible for how he had acted. Regardless of how stressed he had been, and how irritable the situation between them had made him, he had no right to lash out in the way that he had. It was something that he would have to make up for in the future. Or so he had believed. The only question that had lingered in his mind, as he had finally been called to return back to Sylvari, had been how he was going to make it up to her.

That thought would quickly disperse as he had made his way into the bungalow. There, standing before him, had been the companion that he had come to know. With the dirt and grime having been washed away, and a unique set of clothing having been donned, Sylvari had seemingly returned to the woman that he had come to love in his own way. The garment that she had wore had been one that had caught him off guard, his cheeks taking on a cherry undertone as she had spun around to display it to him. "It- uh.." Taking a moment to blink several times, Videl would collect himself. "You look marvelous, Sylvari. It is positively becoming of you."

If Lumi had been here to witness the manner in which Videl had been acting, she would surely have batted at his shoulder with her nose to knock some sense into him. His anger had apparently dissipated in this moment, after all, and while he might have forgiven the vampiress, she had not. "Absolutely bewitching.."


So as to not get lost in this familiar array of feelings, Videl would gesture to the singular bed that had resided within the center of the room. "I uh.. Ahem. Anyways..! I figured that we would only be here for a night or two, so I've managed to secure us this single roomed bungalow. I am willing to rest on the floor so when the time comes, feel free to take the bed for yourself." An anxious cough would slip forth from the T'saya's lips as he had eyed the bed as opposed to Sylvari. "Come morning, I believe the two of us will be in a better mindset to talk about the future. After breakfast, presumably, we should try and figure out where to go from here.."

Sylvari smiled with a slight flush at Videl's praise, suddenly feeling much more confident in her new garb. She placed a hand over her mouth, and one on Videl's shoulder, as she began to giggle, relishing the joy coursing through her like an old friend that had been absent for some time.

"Come now, V, be reasonable. I have not much need for sleep, so it would be ludicrous for me to take the bed. It is yours. I think, perhaps, I might walk the village to take in the natural beauty of this place. It's been some time since I appreciated the beauty of the world instead of merely dealing with its ugliness." Sylvari's grin faded into a sad smile. "It helps to know what you're fighting for..."

Sylvari felt apprehensive about the promise to talk about the future, for she knew that she would not have an answer to his liking: nothing had changed since they last departed. While it was lovely to see her dear friend again and enjoy the solace he brought her, inevitably she would be called again to be justice's sword arm in the world. Despite her words, hers was not a position that could enjoy life's pleasantries; rather, she worked in darkness and despair so that others could enjoy the sun.

She did not trust herself to voice these concerns, after how poorly the conversation had gone on the journey over, not tonight anyway. Thus, she merely nodded, maintaining her sad smile as she looked at her beloved friend: her great stumbling block in pursuing her reason for being.

The cherry undertone that had coated Videl's cheeks would only continue to redden as Sylvari had placed a hand upon his shoulder and let out a giggle that Videl could only find adorable. As she had put on such a display for himself, Videl couldn't help but feel as though things had gone back to the way that they had used to be. He had wished for nothing more than for this to be true and yet.. It wasn't. The two had undergone immense changes in their time apart. So much so that Videl could only dream of things returning to the past. Either that or for their future to be better.

"I.. hate to agree with you on this point but you speak the truth. In every regard. I shall take the bed for the night then.. Hopefully I can accompany you on your walks in the night soon enough." Videl would proceed to reach up one of his hands before resting it on her own, a soft smile on his lips. "Just promise me that you'll be here come morning. It's all that I ask." His hand would tighten around her own for a moment, as though he were afraid to let her run off once more, but eventually it would return back at his side.

Knowing that he had to reign in all of his thoughts, and hope that she would still be around come morning, Videl would make for the bed nearby. Once he had stood just before it, he would start to disrobe the clothing that he had worn, save for his undergarments. Unlike the robe that Sylvari had now wore, Videl's clothing had been dirtied from his weeks of travel. While the person that lay beneath it all had relatively clean, the same could not be said for his clothing. As such, once he had disrobed, Videl would climb into the bed and rest beneath the leafy covers. "Enjoy your walk, okay? I'm hoping to see you come morning.."

Videl's request hit Sylvari like a hammer blow, so serious an admonishment that he had repeated it twice. In truth, she hadn't even considered escaping into the night and leaving her friend behind... until Videl brought the idea to her.

Perhaps it would be better. The longer we stay together, the more fond memories we make, the more stained they will become when duty tears us apart again.

Such thoughts dominated Sylvari's mind as she wandered through the city, softly glowing with bioluminescent plants despite the darkness. She had no mental fortitude to restrain her neurotic worry and be present amongst the beauty of this place, and so, in fairly short order, she found herself wandering back to the little bungalow where her friend slept. She dared not enter, not when harbored thoughts of leaving still raced through her mind. She merely sat, with her legs dangling off the wooden platform, as she pondered life, duty, and love. She wished her father was here, to remind her of her oath. She wished her mother was here, to show her how to love.

She sat until the sun rose, unmoving, only the fact that she had not made up her mind forestalling her from fleeing in the night, to her growing guilt.

As he watched the vampiress depart from the bungalow, Videl would attempt to get some rest. It wasn't an easy task in the least, his mind constantly wandering to his companion. But as the night had gone on, and the dark had overtaken him, Videl would peacefully drift off to sleep. It wasn't until morning had come, soft rays of light peaking through the open windows, that Videl would come to.

After all those weeks on the road, such a thing as a comfortable night's rest had been enough to restore him to his prime capacity. His mind and body rested, Videl had felt as though he could take on the world. Upon glancing around the room, only to notice a lack of Sylvari however, worry had overtaken the man. Had she slipped away into the night? Or had she simply not come back to the bungalow yet? Unsure of the answer, Videl would rise from the bed, hurriedly throw on his clothes, and would make for the exit of the bungalow.

As he had stumbled on out of the door, Videl's gaze would fall upon the vampiress. A smile had formed upon his lips as he had watched her back from the distance. He wouldn't voice it but he had been thankful for the fact that she had remained nearby. So as to show her his gratefulness, he would come up behind her before dropping to his knees and wrapping his arms around her shoulders. "I'm sorry for everything that happened yesterday, Syl. I think that it's about time we had that talk."

His embrace would evolve into that of a soft hug before he pulled himself back from her and moved to sit beside her, his feet lightly bumping into her own as he had done so. He would then rest his head along her shoulder before speaking up. "Thought about this a lot last night so please don't shut my words down too quickly.. I thought about it and I honestly don't know anything about this oath of yours. I shit all over it and hadn't even bothered to learn what it truly was. So if you don't mind.. Could you please speak with me on the topic of your oath? And, well, there's one other topic as well that I would like to discuss.. but it can wait."

Sylvari sensed Videl before her hugged her ^{[Chaos Touched]}, of course; she had watched the arcana within him start as gentle as a small snowflake to rise to the great tempest of a blizzard in their time together. Still, she softly smiled feeling his embrace and hearing an apology that she wish she could have dismissed out of hand, but such a thing would have been more for her benefit than his. Thus, she listened patiently, not saying a word until he had finished with his question, and then not for some time afterwards. She merely watched the rising sun, basking in its radiance as it seemed to melt away the ice that had formed over her heart in the night.

"My father once told me that we bore the blood of the gods in our veins, from some distant ancestor, and as such, we were beholden to a divine mandate to become the hands of the heavens on the mortal plane. Some part of me questioned that, growing up, seeing some leave the People to pursue other ventures, but I was never able to shake the gravity of it entirely: maybe being the chief's daughter didn't really help with that." Sylvari gave a fond grin of remembrance before continuing.

"I was raised from the time I can remember to fulfill that holy calling: I never had thought of doing anything but that. Training in combat honed my skills to carry out punishment for the wicked, bringing aid to the needy strengthened my heart to provide solace for the downtrodden. It's hard to want for something else when your way of life is all you've ever known. Had events not been as they were, I would still be on the Crescent Isles, blissfully ignorant of the larger world. Perhaps that's the greatest irony: the gods found their greatest worker, or at least their most far-traveled, in one who had been exiled.

"Once I was cursed, however, I knew in my bones that my life would never be the same. I fought against fate, I bitterly struggled to conceal and refuse my nature, but that only made my inevitable fall so much worse. A fellow justiciar, Banbraith was his name, was assigned to investigate a village overrun with undead with me. At that point, I had starved myself to the point of wavering between coma and frenzy. When we were overwhelmed... I had not the presence of mind to defend his flank as was my duty. When he hit the ground wounded, I was not able to resist how his blood called to me. I killed him in my dark thirst. It was, in fact, a great mercy that my clan had me exiled instead of killed."

Sylvari turned to look at Videl, lifting her veil to gaze at him with uncovered eyes. "You wish to know the nature of my oath, why I stubbornly cling to it as my life goes up in flames around me? There it is. It is the only connection I have to my past, to my family. It is the only absolution I can ever attempt for Banbraith's death, and all those after him that I have failed to restrain my curse for. When it drives anguish into my heart, I find relief from the accusers, from the ghosts of the people I've slaughtered. Only in service can I absolve the stain of my existence on the world."

While Sylvari had gone on to speak on the matters of her oath, and why it was that she had followed it so stringently, Videl had been sure to keep his lips shut. Being that this was a core part of whom Sylvari had been, the T'saya could feel that interrupting her here would only spell trouble. And it was a good thing that he had remained so quiet. The farther into her story that Sylvari had gotten, the more Videl could understand her reasonings. There were parts that he could never understand.. but he would do his best to accept. More specifically the bits about her family and upbringing.

Once Sylvari had finished speaking, her eyes on full display to him as she lifted up her veil, Videl would lock eyes with the vampiress before lightly nudging his head up against her shoulder. "That's.. I wish that we would have discussed all of this in the past. Before everything had gone to shit. At the same time, however, I can understand why you wouldn't have felt all that inclined to do so. When it comes to our upbringing, the two of us are night and day. In all seriousness, Sylvari.. I'm really sorry for everything that's happened to you. And for my part in everything."

A soft sigh would escape the mans lips as he continued to gaze fondly at the woman by his side. It might appear as though there was a hint of pity within his eyes, as he had focused on Sylvari, but in truth it was nothing more than worry. Worry for his companion and guilt at the things that he had said to her the day before. Now that he had a deeper understanding of her oath, there was in no acceptable way that he could believe her oath to be stupid. If nothing else, he could only blame himself for putting her into such a compromised state.

"I know that I have no right to say this but.. I really don't want to lose you again, Sylvari. You are my greatest friend and the one person that I care deeply enough for. My time away from you was far more difficult than I care to admit and quite frankly, I don't wish to experience it again.. If you would allow it, I would gladly pull myself away from Frost Gale just to remain by your side. Until the days that I find myself growing old and frail, I am willing to stand by your side and help you complete this oath of yours. There isn't a way to rid the world of all of its evils.. but at the very least, with someone by your side, it'll feel as though the world is just a little brighter."

Sylvari's heart melted at such loving words, but at the same time, there arose a seed of doubt and worry. Surely, he couldn't mean the things he said; surely, he couldn't know the implications of his pledge. She knew he didn't speak from a place of deception but of naivety, and she would do her best to open his eyes to the realities of carrying out that promise. She drew a delicate hand under Videl's chin to draw his gaze upward to her own eyes, brimming with compassion and gratitude.

"V, darling, you can't know the thing you promise. Believe me, my heart likewise shattered at our parting, but Frost Gale is your home. My oath may dictate that I don't return for years, if at all. Would you really be ok with abandoning your home, however dear I am to you? My mission will not 'complete' in either of our lifetimes. I will strive against evil until the day I fall in battle. Whether it is tomorrow or a hundred years from now, my journey's end will not be peaceful or pleasant. I have trained all my life to accept this, to be able to accept it. I wouldn't ask such a thing of a person who has so much to live for. I don't want you to suffer as I have, and to continue to do so until you either hate me or are killed..."

Sylvari trailed off, internally acknowledging the hypocrisy of allowing such a fate to befall herself, but she was being as truthful as she was able. She held herself to a different standard, one she would not expect of anyone else: her greatest handicap, her foremost arrogance.

Thu-thump. As Sylvari had placed her hand beneath Videl's chin and drawn his gaze towards her own, Videl would find that his heart had begun to pick up in pace. A familiar warmth would begin to burn away in his chest and he would feel as though his very breath had been stripped free from his lungs. The emotions that such an action would elicit with both foreign and familiar to the man, leaving him unsure of what to do in the moment. There was a singular action that he had wished to partake in in this moment but this hadn't felt like the place. As such, he would lock that feeling down and burry it, attempting to only focus on her words.

"My beloved companion, Syl, I've said this time and time again. While Frost Gale might be where I've resided the majority of my life, it serves as nothing more than housing. It is by your side that I find myself feeling as though I am home. If it means being by your side, I am willing to cast aside all that is Frost Gale. Surely I can convince Lumi that this is the correct thing to do. While we would likely need to stop by there from time to time, so as to ensure that Lumi and Mercy are comfortable, I am willing to leave it all behind for you. So long as you are by my side."

A soft smile would form upon the man's lips as he had leaned in towards her for only a fraction of an inch more. "Even if it means remaining by your side until you fall, I am more than willing to accept as much. If it comes to it, I shall find a way to continue on past my twilight years, so that I can aid you in this journey of yours. For in the grand scheme of things, after all that has transpired between the pair of us, I can only see myself existing with you by my side. Anything else.. Well I don't dare dwell on it."

He wouldn't come outright and say it, in this moment anyways, but she had truly been the only one to offer him such a caring relationship. The kindness and affection that she had shown him was more than even what his family had been willing to offer to him. In his eyes, the Videl that would exist outside of her was one that would accomplish nothing. With Sylvari by his side however, he was sure that he could accomplish any and everything. He hadn't cared if he was cursed or blessed when it had come to spending time alongside her. She was truly his only distraction. His only solace. His only friend.

Sylvari suppressed a sigh and kept her face carefully neutral as her eyes plunged into the depths of Videl's own, scanning them for intent. She wanted to scream, to rage against the infuriating nature of it all. Deep down, she knew her oath was neither kind nor easy, and many of her own clan had faltered in its pursuit. She believed truly in Videl's best intentions, but some part of her knew one had to hate themselves to subject their life to the dogged pursuit of justice. She didn't want that for her darling V, but what could she say? A thousand times she could try to convince him that this life wasn't worth the sacrifice, that she wasn't, and a thousand times he would refute her, or else conclude that she hated him. They were as two people without sight passing by each other, but never quite touching in understanding.

"I contest my worthiness for such devotion, but I can see we will remain steadfast in our own beliefs, so I digress. I certainly wouldn't restrict your exercise of free will to choose the life you want to lead, and some selfish part of me will be glad for your company. But Videl," Sylvari continued, her crimson eyes staring seemingly into the young mage's soul. "I will not hold you to this proclamation. You must promise me: if ever you tire of our travels, if ever you come to loathe the life you have chosen, that you will depart from me without delay or consideration for my feelings. You must promise me this, or I shall be away again in the night, and you shall never find me. As much as your parting would hurt, it would be far more terrible to learn that you had harbored and grown resentment for me. I don't want you to have regrets. I shoulder plenty enough for both of us..."