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[ He shakes off the concern but she will not have it, stubborn in her own way as she fixes him with a look that says I am in the middle of worrying, do not disturb me, thank you very much. Her hands remain with his, fingers still probing with their concern, their touch a strange mix of concern and something a bit more imploring, like his presence is a sudden comfort. ]

I— [ Are you okay? He asks and her first impulse is to say no and burst into tears (comfort has that affect on her, making her complacent and soft), but that's a weak response, a needy one. Everyone was doing their part and so was Alayne; she needed to be strong. Ivory, if not steel. Instead of crying she lets out a strained breath that sounds like unhappy laugh. ] This place is so strange, so very confusing, and I—

Lady is lost and I cannot find her, though I've dreamt about her sniffing amongst the dead. My dearest friend Marius has been overtaken by these medicines and— [ And there are so many dead, some of them children. And I am doing harm to others so that I may do right by those I love. And I pushed away someone I only wish to hold close. And I don't know who I'm meant to be anymore.

Alayne shakes her head dumbly. ] —it's all so much.

It seems to selfish to call upon you and have you come all this way under the threat of harm, but— I didn't know who else to talk to. Please forgive me.

[ Scott stops trying to take his hands away. Instead he turns them over to take hold of Alayne’s, and he takes a step closer to her. He’d been reacting to everything she said – worry and alarm when she mentioned Lady, along with recognition because of that phrase ’among the dead’, understanding and sympathy when she talked about her friend, and then as she finished, his face had become very serious.

Scott has no powers at the moment, he can’t access them. Not even passively, to heal the cuts on his hands. But that doesn’t stop him wanting to protect the people around him. That’s just his nature. He untangles one of his hands from hers and puts his arm around her, just like he’d do with anyone in this state. ]

Alayne, Alayne. It’s okay, you don’t have to be sorry. You can talk to me any time, I’ll do whatever I can to help.

Look, Lady…that place you were talking about, it sounds like the place I was in. I’ll look for her, okay? Maybe she’s there somewhere. And I’m sorry about your friend. It seems like everyone’s taking that stuff, it’s crazy. I’m really glad that you’re not. And I know it’s confusing, but I’ll help. I promise, okay?

[ It's not the sort of thing that she's used to having, even during her time on the Tranquility. Confidantes are rare and sacred things — dangerous as well, for the trust between friends must be explicit and complete in order for the very worst and the most damaging of secrets to be held in confidence forever. Maybe she's upset, maybe's lost, but this confession isn't something she would normally do. It makes her look weak and feeble, but there's nothing Alayne wants more than to feel protected in this moment as her mind scrambles in a dozen different directions to find ways to protect the people she cares about as they quickly spiral out of her grasp.

He puts his arm around her and she lets him, shrinking slightly against his side, feeling very young and very foolish (and, in so many ways helpless despite all of her efforts). ]

I don't want you to get hurt for my sake, Scott, please. Everyone's getting hurt and losing themselves. [ She shakes her head. ] And I don't know how to stop it.

[ He feels so sorry for her. It’s obvious that she’s worried about her friends. He can’t blame her; he’s worried about people too, and this city is a horrific and confusing enough place even for people who’ve been here from the start. She’d been thrown into the middle of it. Maybe if she’d arrived with the rest of them it would’ve been better. Either way he feels for her. He rubs her shoulder, his eyes all full of worry. ]

I know. I don’t think there is a way, except to stop them taking the drugs, and…well you’ve seen it. Whenever they don’t have the drugs, all they want is more. I swear, Alayne, any time I find any of it, I smash it. It’s horrible.

[ That's what I should have done, Alayne thinks. I should have trod on it with my shoe. I should have ground it into the dirt. Then there wouldn't be anyone taking it, not just the four she'd bargained for with Mr. Gold. (Marius Pontmercy. Dante, the younger. Isaac Clarke. Auraya.) It'd been a stupid thing to do, to have traded what she'd thought would be salvation for her friends in exchange for the damnation of everyone else. But Mr. Gold was so clever and she wanted to prove herself, to show him that she could be the mockingbird and the wolf.

The gods are punishing me, Alayne thinks and she covers her face with a hand in fear that she might cry. Boys Scott's age hated when girls cried and the last thing she wanted was for him to stop hugging her. ]

Why didn't I think of that? [ she sobs, a bit helplessly. (If he knew the truth, he'd hate me.) ] Why couldn't I have been that clever?

[ Oh, okay, well now she has him worried. People never call Scott clever. If the situation was better he'd probably be recording this for posterity, but the truth is her reaction scares him a little.

Because it hadn't been clever. All he'd done was get rid of something he thought was harmful, so why...why would that make her react so strongly? He turns a little, looking closely at her. ]

What do you mean? What did you do?

[ Alayne does not realize the mistake she's made until it's too late and Scott turns to look at her. Even though she knows he could not possibly see the breadth of her lie, he sees enough to even look at all. A seam of weakness, obvious enough to draw attention.

Her shoulders rising she looks away and shakes her head dumbly. ]

Nothing, [ Alayne insists (such a lie). ] I haven't done anything at all.

[ He watches her, frowning. She’s not meeting his eyes, which he knows is a warning sign, and suddenly he’s frustrated. If he still had his wolf powers, he would know if she was lying! He’d be able to hear it, and now he can’t tell! ]

…okay. Well look, just get rid of it if you find it. It’s not good for anyone, and they can’t inject it if it’s smashed on the ground. Sooner or later we’ll run out, and then people will have to come off it.

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