Placing a hand on MenTar1Literally men (lake) + tar (wind)’s forehead, Snow could feel that his skin felt abnormally cold and damp.
Closing his eyes, he cleared his mind and allowed his inner instinct to search the body lying before him. He allowed his consciousness to expand, feeling for something wrong, something out of place, something that went against what was supposed to be a living, healthy, human being.
He could feel it right away, the cold flowing inside his body. Even though he didn’t find the corrupting darkness he’d found inside ZaiWin2Literally zai (blade) + win (chaos)., it was as if, even though MenTar's heart kept beating and blood kept being pumped through his veins, something else equally important had simply stopped.
He didn’t know enough about what made a person a person, about the true nature of that inner energy that everyone kept talking about. Even during his practices, although he did make use of that energy, he still had a hard time explain it rationally. And yet, right now, the feeling he got could only be explained one way. MenTar’s inner flow of energy had stopped. He didn’t know why it had stopped, or how it should be moving. He only knew that the present situation wasn’t right.
Well, it didn’t matter how it wasn’t right, Snow thought to himself. What mattered was that he knew it wasn’t right, and that he knew how to make it better.
His first solution was to conjure a few more of those golden snowflakes, this time with restoration proprieties, maybe give him a bit of life force, like how he’d done to the village’s destroyed fields. But the moment he allowed his mind to dive into the golden wells that were his daitai3Literally dai (light) + tai (mark), or Holy Markings, considered Heavenly Blessings. They’re the source of power., he knew he’d never be able to use them. There was nothing left for him to give. Like before, he’d completely exhausted himself.
Opening his eyes, he looked at MenTar’s sleeping face.
Maybe he would really end up recovering by himself, like ZenTar4Literally zen (silent) + tar (wind). had told him. After all, they were brothers. And even though ZenTar was obviously worried, he didn’t look as distraught as he would have certainly been, should MenTar’s present condition be a permanent one. And yet, even though it might be so, seeing him like that, knowing that he was probably suffering, pained him greatly.
MenTar had always been nice to him. He was the only one who had always treated him without prejudice, as if he were just another person. He had always indulged him and answered Snow’s questions. He had even agreed to teach him archery, and had been patiently guiding him since then, even carving beautiful arrows for him to practice with. If he could ever bring himself to trust another human being enough to call him friend, he would like that person to be MenTar. And friends did not let their friends suffer when there was something they could do to stop it.
Making up his mind, Snow held MenTar’s face between his hands, turning his head his way, and bent forward, pressing his lips against his. Even if he could not use his daitai, even if his energy was completely spent, he could always use that to make things right again.
For a moment he just stayed like that, waiting for it to work, and then he could finally feel MenTar’s temperature rising, returning to normal. His breathing too, became stronger, exhaling warmth.
Figuring he’d done what needed to be done, Snow raised his head. But the moment he moved, a large hand grabbed him by the back of his neck and pressed him down again. The lips he had been kissing moved against his, a warm tongue invading his mouth, startling him and leaving him wide-eyed in alarm. He couldn’t move! He couldn’t breathe! Someone else was doing whatever they pleased with his body again! And it felt utterly disgusting!, he thought, nausea raising from his stomach.
“You stupid brat! Get your hands off of him!” an angry voice thundered and a strong hand grabbed Snow's arm, pulling him back.
Snow took a sharp breath, pressing a trembling hand against his now hot, numb lips, and watched in alarm as the unconscious man before him frowned and opened his eyes, looking around with a confused expression on his face.
“What the … What happened?” MenTar asked, sitting up, the fact that he could now move making Snow recoil in fear.
Scowling, this time with a pained expression, MenTar rubbed the top of his head.
“Did you just hit me?” he asked his brother with an accusatory glare. Right then, if looks could kill, ZenTar’s green eyes would have pierced him to death where he sat.
“Hit you?! I should have cut off your hand! You shameless brat! Maybe then you’d understand when I tell you that you’re playing with fire!” ZenTar growled back and MenTar blinked, still looking confused, looking from him to Snow, who was still staring at him with a frightened, suspicious expression on his face.
“What happened? That’s right! The explosion!” MenTar suddenly exclaimed, his green eyes widening in alarm as if he’d just remembered something really important. “Were you all right, Snow?” He tried to reach out for him but, before Snow could recoil further away to avoid his touch, ZenTar slapped his hand hard, hitting him over the head again.
“He’s fine! Go back to sleep!”
“But …”
“Shut it, MenTar! I hear another word out of that mouth and I’ll seriously knock you out!”
MenTar still opened his mouth ready to contest, but something on his brother’s face made him close it again. Looking back at Snow, at his pale, scared face, he wanted to ask what had happened, again. But he wisely opted to keep his mouth shut, an angry, disagreeing expression on his face.
Still holding his arm, ZenTar stood up and helped Snow to his feet, leading him back to his blanket on the other side of the fire. Clearly looking as if he’d just been the victim of a huge injustice, MenTar followed the both of them with his gaze.
“I’m really sorry …” ZenTar muttered embarrassedly.
Snow shook his head and bent down to grab his blanket, pulling it over his shoulders.
“It’s fine …” he whispered back, trying to convince himself of that same exact thing. After all, he’d kiss him of his own free will. It wasn’t as if he was tied up somewhere, unable to control what happened to him.
“And thank you. You really helped him.”
Looking up at him, Snow was able to produce a smile. ZenTar wasn’t all that bad after all, he thought, looking into his worried green eyes. At least he looked a bit less intimidating when he was being honest. The problem was that those moments were extremely rare, to say the least.
“You’re all always taking care of me. The least I can do is help whenever I can.”
ZenTar averted his gaze and nodded.
“Get some rest. It will be morning soon. And now that MenTar is practically recovered, we’ll probably be back on the road the moment ZaiWin wakes up.”
Snow nodded and sat back down when ZenTar returned to his brother’s side.
His lips still felt hot, he frowned, pressing them against his much cooler hand.
The next time you go around kissing other people like that I will sew your mouth shut!
The echo of that angry voice inside his head made him straighten his back with a jump. With a second thought, already fearing the worst, small nervous droplets of sweat forming over his forehead, Snow slowly turned his head to look at him. But what he saw allowed him to sigh in relief. Nox5Literally nox (night). Nox is the name of the Clan (family name), also the name of a Province. ZaiWin uses it because he is the Governor of Nox ZaiWin was still asleep, his face looking even paler framed by the long, dark mass that was his loose hair.
For a moment Snow wished he could sit closer to him. From where he sat now, he couldn’t help worrying if he was really okay, if he was really breathing, if Snow had really been able to get rid of all the darkness that had gathered around his heart. Above all, he couldn’t help worrying about that dark, purplish array he had used to destroy the feimao6Literally fei (raging / furious) + mao (beast / monster). Raving beasts that appear in unbalanced, ungoverned lands. They possess destructive markings that in turn corrupt the land even further. Hard to explain in just 2 lines -_-; Anyway. Bad, vicious things that need to be killed..
He had done something similar, the last time, but it had been on a much smaller scale. Back then, even though Snow had felt that something wasn’t right, he hadn’t been able to actually pinpoint what it was. Now, however, he had no doubts. He couldn’t understand how that was possible but, somehow, unlike his own daitai that could only harm those around him, Nox ZaiWin’s markings dealt as much damage to the outside world as to his own body. And ZenTar knew it. And if ZenTar knew it, ZaiWin probably knew it as well. And yet he kept using them, Snow concluded with an angry frown. Surely there were other ways, other daitai he could use besides those ones. For one thing he was sure of. If he kept using that array his life was bound to be a very short one.
