-Stay here. Try and snap yourself out of it.
No. You can't lose yourself here. You're still panicking but there's something there. You can feel it; you're on the very edge of passing out, entering a catatonic state and being lost in a spiral of your own darkest thoughts. But you don't reach there. You're holding yourself away from that threshold. You're being held back by one thing.
Pain.
Your fingernails digging into your skin give you just enough immediate sensation to keep you with some control over your actions, to keep some awareness. There's just one thing for it then. More.
You dig in harder, your body almost moving on it's own to drag your nails down your face. You gasp, finally interrupting your coughing and incoherent whispers, clawing back awareness of the world around you. There's a faint murmur of voices in your ears. More.
You take advantage of that moment of control of your mouth to bite your hand, an animal in a trap trying to chew away anything holding it in place. More pain, the iron of blood staining your tongue. Properly feeling your body again, slumped on the floor against the chapel wall.
MORE
Something sparks inside you. Circuits flare into life again, the cracked spiderweb that appeared on your body when you summoned ruler glowing once more, even if your eyes don't really see it. Mana crackles, and for an instant, every single pain receptor in your body switches on.
It's agony.
Pure, refined pain across the entirety of your body.
Something so physical, so immediate that no delusion can withstand it..
You snap back to awareness to find yourself screaming, your eyes wide and blood dripping from your hand. Your shirts ragged and torn up, giving you a glimpse of the glowing spidercracks faintly visible across your chest, as well as the fading, bruises on your shoulders. Ruler's kneeling next to you, torn between trying to hold you and keeping an eye on the others. Kiara has retreated back to her lectern, and Flats party have… backed off? They're talking among themselves quietly. The hooded girl- Gray, that's her name isn't it, seems to be the one showing the most animation of the group. Eventually, he nods, and Gray moves off, having a quick talk with Kiara.
You're just gasping for air, most of your attention just fixed on the ceiling; you're only seeing the others at the corners of your vision. Ruler pokes her head in front of yours. Seeing your reaction to that, she gives a relieved smile, gently dabbing sweat off your forehead with a ripped off piece of her sarashi, before standing up and striding towards Gray, who's calmly walking towards you, holding a small green box.
Gray doesn't flinch away from Rulers approach, not even when Ruler bends down to look her dead in the eye, pulling her hood back in the process. There's a whispered word between them. Ruler straightens up, before stepping back and sitting down beside you, taking your unbitten hand. "It's okay Master. She's a good person. If I had to say… I'd let her catch a glimpse of me if she really tried. I wouldn't do that for anyone."
Even so, you flinch away just a bit when Gray approaches you, sitting down a couple of meters away, laying the first aid kit she was carrying down in front of you. And then, she just does nothing. She just sits there, not moving a muscle. Your eyes flicker between her and the case and the rest of the chapel. You feel Ruler next to you, still holding your hand.
Minutes pass with nothing happening, the adrenaline flood finally beginning to die away. Gray's still not moved an inch.
"What do you want?" Your voice is hoarse from the scream. You don't realise you were the one who broke the silence for a moment. Beneath the hood, you can see Gray smile just a little.
"You're hurt. Here." Her voice is quiet and soft as she opens up the first aid kit, taking out some disinfectant wipes and a bandage. "May I?"
You tense for a moment… then nod ever so slightly as Ruler gives your hand a reassuring squeeze. She can't do anything to you if Ruler's here, and Ruler seems to think she's okay. You catch a better glimpse of Grays face as she shuffles forwards towards you. Pale green eyes, near-white gray hair, in a pretty, almost androgynous face. She looks… almost mournful. Even with Rulers comforting presence, you still tremble just a bit as she reaches out to you, feeling the sting of antiseptic on cuts as she begins to wipe down the scratches on your face.
The silence is thick. You need something to distract you. You broke it before.
[] Why are you helping me?
[] Who's side are you on?
[] Did you see it?
