[Open Post] "Cold-hearted orb that rules the night/Removes the colors from our sight"

[silvereyedphage]

Yet another loss, yet someone else snatched from him. This sense of emptiness has haunted Muraki too many times than he cares to recall. His nights, sleeping tangled in his sheets, have been sleepless. At least the days have been busy, running chemical analyses on the samples which that dark gent from the land of the Nile collected, or visiting

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[ohmaiden]

Iphigenia's been in mourning as well--she's figured that Titus is probably gone for good, and that hurts her deeply.

When she tries to escape this feeling by leaving her room and going elsewhere, it doesn't help. So when she stumbles upon Muraki and his writing, she's almost relieved to have found what she thinks is a kindred spirit.

She sighs and sits near him, in an old rocking chair.

[ohmaiden]

"Oh, I'm so sorry," she says sympathetically.

[silvereyedphage]

"Thank you: while it's terrible that you should be subject to tragedy, it helps to know that there are others who suffer in a similar way," he says. "Were you familiar with a woman by the name of Aramat? She...is the one whom fate has taken from me."

It's painful to talk about this, but it's the kind of pain that comes from lancing a wound that needs to be cleaned so that it can heal properly...

[ohmaiden]

"I've heard of her, I think, yes," she replies. "Was she kind to you?"

[silvereyedphage]

He smiles, and a slightly devilish glint passes through his good eye. "She was very good to me: we're both fond of similar things and we both had, to put it delicately, troubled pasts," he says. "It was that pain which brought us together, and we were able to form a very close connection, closer perhaps than friends or lovers."

[ohmaiden]

"That's good," she says softly. "But I'm sorry to see her gone, for your sake."

[silvereyedphage]

"As I am sorry that you lost your sweetheart," he says, and typist willing, presses her shoulder gently.

[ohmaiden]

She nods and looks down, trying not to cry.

"Thank you."

[silvereyedphage]

"It is an honor, to offer you what comfort I can," he says, and typist willing, he'll press her gently. "If you need to cry, don't hold back, not in my presence. I'm no stranger to tears, in the work that I do."

[ohmaiden]

She can't help but smile a little at his kindness, even though she looks like she's about to cry.

"I miss him so much," she says with a little sob.

[silvereyedphage]

"Go on and weep, there's no shame in it," he says, soothingly.

[ohmaiden]

She begins to sob quietly then, clinging a little to him.

"Yes--you see--it's so scary and sad--"

[silvereyedphage]

"I'm a surgeon: I've treated patients who were horribly injured in accidents, so there's little that jars me," he says, dryly. "If you're ready to talk about it, or you need to unburden your mind, don't hesitate to let it go."

[ohmaiden]

"I just miss him," she says with a heavy sigh. "So much. And I'm frightened, too."

[silvereyedphage]

"It's understandable, though rest assured, there are people here who are looking for Titus's killer: they've been looking for any bit of information they can find, so they can figure out who might have done this," he says. "They've had several notices posted in the main room recently."

[ohmaiden]

"That's good," she managed to say, sniffling. "I hope they catch whoever did it."