Nevin had managed to get some food - in this case, meat from a roasted duck along with a small selection of vegetables that he arranged neatly on his plate as he sat down and began to eat. By this time he had confirmed that his new ability worked on more than just who were touched by a divine being in some way - everyone he had seen actually had some of the strange red ribbons leading away from them, fraying apart in the air. The only time it hadn’t was when he saw the young boy that was in the kitchen before.
The boy had come into the room bearing a hot tray of fresh bread that he set on the side table where the food was served from. As he came within Nevin’s somewhat arbitrary range, Nevin noticed a faint red connection that reached out and latched onto the alchemist himself. It was surprising - why had this happened? What was the difference between this boy and the other servants that he had seen so far?
Wait. Could it be - the boy was the only one who knew him at all. None of the others did - not beyond his name and that he was apparently a guest of Stare’s, so not to bother him unnecessarily. But the boy, the boy had been there when Nevin worked on the truth serum earlier, and had been asking Nevin questions. It wasn’t much, but it was enough for the boy to recognize the Alchemist. Was that…? Nevin abruptly stood up and walked over to the window and stared out, watching people in the yard. It wasn’t until he saw two of the garden staff walk by, talking amicably with each other, that Nevin’s sudden thought was confirmed.
He wasn’t seeing divine influence like he had been wondering. He was seeing the connections between people. His eyes widened and he looked down at one hand, as crimson threads emerged from beneath his skin. Nevin had heard about this before, who hadn’t? He just hadn’t expected, his well, blood based powers to somehow connect to that. Just what on earth? How much of the Crimson was actually an allegory for souls?
The Red Strings of Fate that bound people together. It seemed the Great Flow of Crimson was more than just a giant river of eternal blood. He was still staring at his hand, trying to work this out, when one of the doors was shoved open, and a rather angry young woman stormed in. Ebony hair whipped around her face as the petite Elven woman looked around the room, then snarled in aggravation when she saw Nevin.
“You! It’s all your fault that she came back here and now he’s all squirreled away with her, caring for her and carrying her around!” She stormed over to Nevin, and went to jab him in the chest with a finger. Nevin casually deflected it, not that the girl noticed in her anger. She continued ranting in his face. “If you hadn’t come back, she’d still be stuck doing whatever it was that had her out in that damn forest, where she should have been eaten! Then I would have had him all-” She stopped cold, apparently realizing that Nevin had stood up and was now looming over her, his glowing red eyes locked onto her.
Hey, if it startled Vitruvion and Stare, who were both very powerful in their own rights, it had to be terrifying to this little Elf, right? He took a long, slow breath, and when Mer tried to back away he glared at her again, locking her in place.
“It seems I need to make a few things clear to you. First off. Stare is my oldest friend. If you say she should be dead again, I will personally deliver your flayed carcass to Vitruvion and explain to him. Secondly. The bond between the two of them is something you can never, ever hope to match. It would be better for you to settle your eyes elsewhere, little Elf, because vying for that man will just end up with you sleeping in a cold and lonely bed.” Mer let out a squeak and fled when Nevin turned and sat down, picking up his fork and knife and finally starting to eat the food on his plate. He didn’t particularly care that it had gotten cold as it sat there waiting for him.
