LUMI COME AND SAVE ME. [Lumi.]

Quinn was a total mess. A total emotional mess. His eyes were bloodshot, because he practically cried 24/7. He would feel numb, all the time, and that scared him. So to remind himself that he was alive, that he was there, he would cut himself. He felt so much relief when he felt the pain. It ment that he was alive.

Rhiannon had tried talking him out of what he was planning on doing today, but it didn't work because he ignored her, completely, it was as if he didn't even have a daemon.

He brought a rope with him today, that he had tied into a perfect noose. When he arrived at Froom, he started looking for the perfect tree.

"Good thing it's winter, or I wouldn't be able to find the perfect tree," he said outloud.

(Dark Humorish.)

Finally he found one, a branch high enough, and strong enough to hold him. He felt bad for the clio who would find him, but he didn't care anymore. He climbed the tree, and started to tie his noose around the branch.

As much as Lumi hated to go out alone now, she just had to get away from Dian and all the clio trying to "help" her and get her to say what was wrong. They all thought they could help. They were belittling her. No one could help. No one could undo what had already been done.

Froom Valley seemed like it might be a safe haven. There were usually other clio there. As far as she knew no one had ever been attacked there. It was where everyone went to relax.

Nonetheless she had dozens of weapons hidden in her winter coat. Just in case...

Although she usually walked with her head down and didn't pay much attention to the world around her, she happened to look up and notice something. Was...was that...Quinn?

What was he--OH GOD.

Lumi reacted fast, pulling out a silver dagger she had been concealing and threw it just as Quinn stepped off the branch. It cut the rope just before he was hung, making him fall safely to the ground instead.

Lumi staggered backwards, her mind reeling. Froom Valley started to spin and suddenly she couldn't feel her legs anymore.

Quinn had the noose tied tightly around the tree branch. Rhiannon had given up all hope, there's no turning back now. He slipped the noose over his head, looked at the sky, closed his eyes, and jumped off.

He didn't feel pain in his neck. He didn't sufficate so much that he blacked out. No, instead, he fell to the ground.

He opened his eyes. He was severely confused. Why wasn't he hanging from the tree? His rope was strong, his branch was strong. What the hell?

He grabbed his rope, and followed it with his hands until he found out what happened. Somebody cut it. He looked up. It. Was. Lumi.

At first, he was overjoyed to see that she "saved" him. But his joy turned back to despair when he remember why he was even doing this.

"Why did you do that," he called out to her, "Why are you mocking me?!"

The strength returned to Lumi's legs. Her vision had stopped spinning and was now clouded with red.

"MOCKING YOU!?" she screamed. "YOU THINK I'M MOCKING YOU!!?"

He was out to ruin her life even more than it was. To make her hate and fear everything even more than she did. To drag her down further than she'd already been dragged.

Rage surged through her. She wasn't going to let anyone tear her apart. Not again.

Quinn didn't move from his spot. He didn't even stand up.

Maybe after she leaves I can try again.

"First, you tell me that you never want to see me again, now you're stopping me from killing myself?! I thought this would make you happy! You'd never see me again if I wasn't alive anymore!" he yelled.

He wasn't sad anymore, but he wasn't angry either. He didn't know what he was. He had no feeling.

No feeling.

"AUGH!" he screamed, while hitting himself in the forhead.

Please feel it, pleae feel it, PLEASE FEEL IT!

"THAT DOESN'T MEAN I WANT YOU DEAD!" she screamed so loud her throat hurt. "I DON'T WANT ANYONE DEAD! NOT BECAUSE OF ME! NOT YOU! NOT ANYONE! NOT EVEN...NOT EVEN..."

She couldn't say it. It was too much. The most she could do was manage to whisper, "not even him."

She took just a few steps towards him. "Why do you want to die!?" she yelled, keeping her distance.

Quinn stood up. He still had the noose around his neck. He didn't feel it though. If he didn't get the feeling in his body back soon, he might hyperventilate. He stumbled backwards, then regained his posture.

Not even who?

"I want to die because," he sucked in air, "Because I'm a horrible man. You were the only reason that kept me from not doing it before, but now I don't have you anymore..."

He choked and coughed.

"If you feel guilty why don't you just confess!?" Lumi yelled, her voice shaking with anger. "You'd rather die than have clio know the truth about you!? Yes, you're a horrible person! But at least you're not a fucking coward!! Or at least...I thought you weren't."

Quinn fell back and start leaning on the tree. His was breathing deeper, but not faster. His hands were hanging limply at his sides.

"I am a coward. A big, horrible coward," he mumbled.

He hated himself. He hated everything about himself. His looks, his personality, his politeness, his kindness, he hated how his clio in Ughdarras loved him, he hated being an Overloridian, he hated loving Cray, he hated Triston, he hated EV.URY.THING. He put one hand to his forehead, as if he was checking his temperature. He wasn't hot, but he was sweating.

"AHHHHHHH!"

He screamed into the air abrubtly, turned around and punch the tree so hard, he dented it. His knuckle was bloody now. It hurt.

Good. I feel it.

"Why!? WHAT COULD YOU POSSIBLY HAVE TO BE AFRAID OF!?" Lumi screamed. How in the hell could he know fear? How could he know helplessness? He couldn't. Not like she did. She wanted to hit him. Hurt him. Tear him to shreds. It was scary; is this what it was like to start going crazy?

Quinn didn't want to admit it, but he felt like he had to, "I'm afraid of...not being liked."

Lumi was right. He is selfish, he is horrible. Why did she use to love him at all? He turned around to face her. He shook his bloody hand. Little blood driplets flew to the ground. He deserved this. He deserved this pain. He deserved not to have Lumi. He deserved everything and anything that was bad, to happen to him.

"You're pathetic," Lumi whispered with disgust. "You want to kill yourself over not being liked? What the hell is wrong with you? I'm afraid of more than you could possibly imagine, and I'm not killing myself."

Deep down, she felt pretty pathetic herself.

"That's the biggest reason why I want to kill myself," Quinn agreed, "I hate everything that I have become. Look at me! I'm a murderer, a liar, a cutter, I'm a poor excuse for a man. It sickens me..." he finished.

He sighed, grabbed his hair in his fists, getting blood in it, and screamd through gritted teeth.

"Then why don't you try to fix yourself?!" Lumi demanded. "You still have power over your life. You have the power to confess. Some other clio will hate you. But you might not hate yourself as much."

She was right though, he should confess. It probably would make him better. Quinn stood there for a moment, thinking. Then a face familar face popped into his mind. Cray.

"I think," he told her, "I think there is somebody I can tell."

Lumi was mildly surprised. "Oh," she blinked. She had kind of expected more of an argument. "That's...that's good."

Maybe you should tell someone your secret too, Moxie suggested tentatively. She felt her clio's pain like it was her own, but couldn't understand it in the same way.

Lumi felt sick at the thought. That--that's completely different, she replied, suddenly unnerved again.

"Are you going to--to tell Cray?" she asked Quinn, trying to get her mind back on his situation. She couldn't figure out who else he would tell.

Quinn wasn't sure he should answer her question.

"Yes," he said with a slight nod.

He changed his mind. He was sick of all the lies. No more.

She hoped he really would and not chicken out, for his sake. She was glad she had been able to be there for him in his darkest hour to save him. She wished he had been there to save her when she'd needed him.

And now she was angry again. The anxiety was making her go through twenty emotions and hour and none of them were pleasant.

"Well I hope that works out for you," she said emotionlessly after a very long pause.

Quinn nodded, hoping it would too.

He turned and picked up the knife Lumi had use to cut the rope, and he cut the noose off of his neck. The was a red ring around it now. Then he used the bottle of water that he carried with him, to clean out his hair, hand, and any other bloody area on him.

He stepped towards Lumi, but only an arms distance from her, and held out the knife, "Here, this is yours."

Lumi nodded and took the knife back silently, putting it back with her other weapons. She hated having all these knives and things with her. She just wanted to feel safe again.

She looked at Quinn. He looked hurt and sad and scared. She shouldn't be blaming him for something she brought on herself. "I just want to say...about what I said at the Tavern," she said quietly, "I didn't really mean it. I was really upset about something. I still am. But it wasn't your fault. I don't really never want to see you again."

"I don't really never want to see you again."

Quinn started to wrap his hand up with a piece of his own shirt, when he stopped and looked back up at Lumi.

Did she just say what I think she said?

"Real-really?" he said, hopefully.

Lumi nodded solemnly. She knew it wouldn't be the same as before, at least not for a long time. She didn't know if they could ever make it back to normal (not that it had really been normal from the start.) But that was okay for now, as long as Quinn was willing to just be friends for a while.

"And sorry I hit you," she added apologetically. "You're not the one I should be angry at."

Quinn didn't care that she hit him, he didn't care about anything about that day anymore. He was just so happy!

"It's okay," he told her.

"I-I want to hug you, for a moment, but I'm not sure if I'm allowed..." he said.

Lumi was still anxious when it came to physical contact. Sometimes if people touched her the wrong way she'd suddenly get flashbacks and have a panic attack. But...maybe since she knew it was coming, and she'd been intimate with Quinn in the past, it would be okay.

"Go ahead," she said after some hesitation, trying to sound like she didn't care, but she ended up sounding scared anyways. She was suddenly very tense.

Quinn hesitated for a moment. She sounded scared, and she looked tense. Maybe she wasn't sorry after all? Quinn decided to hug her anyway. He took baby steps towards her, not making eye contact, and pulled her into a nice, gentle hug. She even felt tense.