(Untitled)

[stuperpowered]

[Okay, so Splendid's figured out by now that he doesn't have any powers. He's also learned that all hope is not lost- people can regain those things. And since he's a moron, he's already assumed that it's only a matter of time before his abilities come back. Furthermore, today seems like the perfect day to test that theory! Feel free to catch him

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[thelittlecanary]

[The fact that he is the one who injured them both is far from Garnet's mind - the only thing that seems to register in her brain now is that everything hurts and he's bleeding out on her lap, which she's absolutely powerless to stop. This is what angers her, not the fact that Splendid hurt her, but the fact that she can't heal them. Her hatred is directed at Mayfield.

He's getting so pale; her sweater is dyeing itself red in blood that she cannot stem the flow of. It dawns on her that Splendid is dying. This young man, who was charming and ever the gentleman, a friend to her in this unfamiliar, hostile place, was nearing death, and there was nothing she could do about it. There was no use in trying to drag him to the hospital. In her state, she could hardly manage sitting up.

So in the end, she brushes back his hair gently and scoops up his hand, which she notes is chilled. Garnet laces her trembling fingers around his, bowing her head so that he might not see her cry. She can't save him, and it's taking everything in her to comfort him without breaking down on the spot. The uselessness she feels is the worst pain of all. What good was she now without any of her powers?] I'm so s-sorry...there's nothing I can d-do...

[stuperpowered]

[Splendid's eyes are finally fully open, but they're cloudy and unseeing and one rolls into the crook of its socket to stare blindly off into the distance. His breaths are becoming slow, shuddering ordeals; distantly, he finds himself not minding. He's died before, he knows the feeling, and he can tell that this is a different sort of death than his last- when the Kryptonut Shifty and Lifty stole resulted in him exploding. No, now there's a creeping chill in his gut and throat and his thoughts are strange, fractured flickers flaring briefly into life before fading back into the black of his mind.

Dimly, he realizes that one of his hands is warm and that hand manages to curl a little, squeeze just slightly, wanting more of it. Maybe he's even trying to say it's all right, don't worry, I'll come back- I'm a superhero.]

[thelittlecanary]

[After laying her broken arm in her lap so that it encircles Splendid's head, Garnet remains rather still, because it's more comfortable this way for both of them. Still, she wishes she could stroke his hair, to perform a simple gesture that might comfort him in his final moments.

She's feeling a little dizzy from blood loss and brute shock, but she hangs onto consciousness despite how her body urges her to faint and allow sleep to dull all the hurt. Isn't that what princesses were supposed to do when they were in trouble? Instead, she curves her quivering lips and smiles down at him, assuring him that she won't leave his side until it's over.

The battered monarch gasps when Splendid squeezes her hand, and the pain that flares through her fractured ribs makes her grip him back more tightly. She lifts his hand and presses it to her collar bone, nestling it between her chest and her chin. She begins to hum her song, the same song she had been singing when they first met. It won't be long now.]

[stuperpowered]

[He could cry, if he still felt pain, simply because death is equated to failure. But Splendid is just not the type to do that- tomorrow he'll either forget this dreamy, ominous experience, or shift the blame, or perhaps never quite understand what just happened.

But that's for then, and now her melody reaches him on some soft and distant and fading shore. He sucks in a harsh breath- it whistles hauntingly over his teeth -and does his best to hum the superhero fanfare in return. But he can't, there's no strength left for that, and perhaps it's for the best that Garnet's song is left alone.

The hand that's held moves once more in Garnet's grasp, and then falls limp. Splendid is gone.]

Annnnnnnd cue breakdown.

[thelittlecanary]

[There's an instant of raw disbelief that blankets anything else she's thinking and feeling when his hand is suddenly so very cold and lifeless in hers. Garnet even forgets to breathe, and continues to hug his hand to her body even though her warmth won't and never will catch on

because

Splendid

is

dead.

A wail escapes her lips, expanding her lungs with a shuddering breath and etching her cry with pain. She falls forward like a child prepared to throw a tantrum, and makes contact against Splendid's stilled chest before she begins howling, overwhelmed by the utter betrayal of having to face death with no way to stop it, of being trapped in this horrible town that has taken everything from her with no explanation. On and on she sobs, sprawled out on top of Splendid's body, impelled by all the physical and psychological torture that has been inflicted on her thus far.]