ㅤㅤRaemith had somehow managed to get the ring from Alexandria before he had been cursed by her mind warping techniques. It was in a neat little box, coloured lavender, with a nice black ribbon wrapped around it in a bow. When looking at the ring, he saw it was in perfect, prime condition. Everything was as he asked it to be. However, that wasn't where his mind was.
ㅤㅤNeo burst into his room with anger, leaving the door open wide as Daileth flew in behind him. The little pixie appeared worried, floating in front of his bed as Neo shed his jacket quickly and threw it at the pillows. He placed the ring box on the dresser and paced for a moment as he blew his overgrowing red hair from his mismatched eyes. Then, he turned to Daileth, his back to the door.
ㅤㅤ"And Christopher was mad at me, for threatening that bitch," He continued his explanation of the whole situation. "Like she didn't deserve to be scared shitless. She messed up Raemith real bad! Like, seriously, what the hells did he expect me to do?!"
ㅤㅤHe continued to pace then, not paying attention to his surroundings as he vented to Daileth. "Then he was all upset because of the present, and Raemith was surprised I wanted to know if he even got the gift. Like, come on, the whole reason I sent you was because of that!"
ㅤㅤ"Uh, Neo-" Daileth started, but was quickly cut off.
ㅤㅤ"And Chris was all pissed because I even got her something. Seriously, I asked him first! He said it was fine!"
ㅤㅤ"Neo-" The pixie tried a second time, but failed once more.
ㅤㅤ"You know, it makes sense!" Neo threw his arms in the air. "Chris, pissed. They nearly rhyme! No wonder he has a temper!"
ㅤㅤ"Neo!"
ㅤㅤ"What?!"
ㅤㅤDaileth pointed behind him with a wild look in his eyes, and Neo turned on his heel with a glower that immediately faded. Quilliene stood at the door, hands on her hips as she gave Neo a look. Brows raised, eyes unamused, and the corners of her lips were curling upward into what looked to be a smile - though she seemed to be doing that unintentionally. Just like whenever she saw him.
ㅤㅤ"I'm so sorry, sir," She said sarcastically. "But it seems that many of the staff can actually hear you halfway across the hall. I believe those are what doors are for?" She motioned to said entrance. "Now if you would so kindly lower your voice and hush up about my dear old brother, I won't tell him what you said. So in return, you can tell me who she is and what this something you got her is?"
ㅤㅤ"Uh..." Neo said quietly, swallowing. "Well... I, um..."
ㅤㅤ"Flowers!" Daileth fluttered in front of Neo, grinning. "He got flowers! For... Fleur..."
ㅤㅤ"Yeah...?" He looked at the pixie, then nodded. "Yeah. Flowers. Roses."
ㅤㅤHe swallowed again and looked away. What the hells would she think if he was using her as an excuse to keep a secret, for the girl he liked, no less? Daileth looked at the dresser, and Neo's gaze darted over, eyes widening before he saw the lavender jewellery box disappear along with Daileth. He looked at Quilliene, who simply sighed and shook her head as she walked over to his desk chair and sat down.
ㅤㅤ"Sit," She motioned for him to take a seat at the bed, and he hesitantly did so. "I guess I can take the flowers as an answer. Now, did my brother just so happen to tick you off so much or was something going on while I was busy with my new mentor? I swear, you two are the oddest combination."
ㅤㅤHe glanced at her, then to the ground. "If he won't tell you, then I guess I will." He mumbled, sighing as he looked back up. "We found Alexandria. She did some weird mind control on me so I forgot I met her, and then she got ahold of Raemith and started doing the same to him. We were able to snap him out of it, but she escaped."
ㅤㅤQuilliene was silent before she hummed, putting a hand to her chin. "Yes, it mentioned she had Command Inducement. It's a dangerous ability. If that is the full story... Well, I can't imagine Raemith being incapacitated making you that upset. You can't stand him. So, what happened? And what did she do to you?"
ㅤㅤNeo wrung his gloved hands as he glanced away. "She did a mind memory warp thing on me. She brought back some stuff I wish I'd... rather forget. Trauma, I guess you could say. It... pissed me off. Along with the way she was acting, and Chris was just brushing it all off like she had a right to do what she did. Just... made me mad, I guess."
ㅤㅤHer expression seemed to soften as she scooted forward to get a better look at him. "I can only guess it was about Fleur. I can't imagine how hard that must have been to relive, so I can understand why you must have been so angry. But..." She paused. "That wasn't it, was it?"
ㅤㅤHe huffed - why did she have to be so good at reading him? Neo still wasn't looking at her. He tried to think... What exactly pissed him off so much that he went over the edge? His mind went back, trying to remember everything she said. The tone she used. Exactly how she worded it. There was no escaping what she meant, because she spelled it out.
ㅤㅤ"She said..." He mumbled, then spoke up in a half shaky voice. "She said I was a murderer. For killing her brother... even though he..." He pausing taking in a soft breath as he held his head in one hand. "I try to tell myself that he deserved it, but... after all that we found out..." He glanced up at her in distress. "Did he?"
ㅤㅤQuilliene frowned, realising how lost and confused he looked. "Hey, now... Don't think that way. I don't believe you are a murderer, Neo. People do awful things - make mistakes. I... I'm still trying to decide how I feel about my father after all this, but you're still here and you're still constantly proving to me that you want to do the right thing. Axelius..."
ㅤㅤShe took a breath. "Axelius didn't deserve his fate, that part is true. But," She help up a hand to stop that puppy expression from getting worse. "He would have killed thousands. Not just me. We made the only decision that we could - the one that meant protecting me, and I can't thank you enough for having to make that choice on your own."
ㅤㅤNeo stayed silent for a while, staring at her. "Yeah, but," He started, then sighed in confusion and stood up and began to pace between Quilliene and the bed. "He's not the only one I've killed. Thirty, at least, that I've... I've murdered! I killed people to steal, cheat, and lie. Hells, I even..."
ㅤㅤHe stopped in his tracks. "I even killed Fleur." He turned to Quilliene, desperate. "Did they deserve it? Was that the only choice I could make, too?" A silent pain was in his eyes. "What if, just by doing good things now, the bad things I've done won't go away? What if I'm forever haunted by... them?" He waved his hand beside him, as if a ghost stood there now.
ㅤㅤQuilliene hesitantly reached a hand to touch him, but pulled back, simply shaking her head. "Life is about making mistakes. They're always going to haunt you if you let them. It's not about if you deserve punishment... It's about if you feel guilty - and I think your guilt says enough about you to say that you are regretful.
ㅤㅤ"Perhaps they didn't deserve it. Perhaps not all of them may have been bad people, but... killing does not make you a killer unless you let it define you. It stands to reason that I simply refuse to let that be your definition. There are so many other words I'd use."
ㅤㅤNeo listened, then fell back to sit on the bed. "Like what? Traitor, criminal, failure... I could think of a thousand synonyms - just hand me that notepad." He motioned to the desk behind her.
ㅤㅤShe glanced, but didn't move for it. Instead, she stood and sat next to him, putting a hand on his shoulder. "No. I think maybe something less invasive and cruel - like hot headed." She chuckled softly. "Loyal, too. Honourable. Bad tempered... but kind. Smelly, like coal and roses. Compassionate. Not the most empathetic, but you are thoughtful and protective." She looked up to the ceiling, smiling lightly.
ㅤㅤNeo scoffed, glancing out of the corner of his eye at her as she spoke. He almost had to force himself to pay attention to what she was saying as he watched her. The sunlight shone in the room through one of the windows, gleaming off her almond eyes and mocha skin. Her dark brown gaze was shimmering, and he never thought he'd be enamoured by the colour brown.
ㅤㅤOnce he realised he was staring at her, he quickly looked away, smiling a bit. She looked at him, almost swearing she caught him watching her. Seeing his face and that small grin tugging at the corners of his mouth, she lost her words for a moment. Her own smile widened and she looked away, almost pleased to see that she had gotten through to him. The room started to feel much warmer.
ㅤㅤ"Bah," Neo muttered quite literally, laying down heavily and spreading his arms. "Nonsense."
ㅤㅤHe said it jokingly, obvious by the bigger grin as he closed his eyes. He was tired, and he heard Quilliene gasp and giggle lightly when he flopped back. He was used to not sleeping - but it had been quite a few days since he had closed his eyes to rest. He was able to spend a long time without it, for some reason. Quilliene simply watched him, and he felt her eyes - but it didn't bother him as he felt himself fall asleep.