[It's hard to hear anything over the breeze and gentle snuffling of the horse, but Ishikirimaru closes his eyes to focus even better. A few seconds pass and when he opens his mouth to call out again, he hears something, just audible enough.
Coughing. Horrible, pained coughing.
It has to be Nikkari.]
Nikkari-san! Hold on!
[He urges the horse to make the short trip closer toward the source of the coughing, but pulls it to a stop before the trees prove too difficult to traverse. He calmly asks the horse to stay put for now, then dismounts and heads in. And almost immediately notices the bright yellow petals on the ground, in stark contrast to the duller shades of undergrowth. If the coughing hadn't clued him in as a general location, then those definitely would have.
But it's strange. They're just petals, like someone had been plucking them from a flower, only the rest of the plant doesn't seem to have been discarded as he follows the trail. Does such a flower even bloom this time of year?
All of those thoughts are shoved from his mind when he catches sight of Nikkari hunched over, still coughing. He's nearly surrounded by those petals, like someone has been half-heartedly playing at haloing him in light. But this isn't a game, something that becomes heart-wrenchingly evident when Nikkari coughs again and...expels some of those same petals.
Oh...no...
But he can't just stand in shock. With some uncharacteristic speed, Ishikirimaru goes to kneel in front of Nikkari and reaches out for his shoulders.]
Nikkari-san, we need to get you back to the Citadel.
[If this illness is what he thinks it is, then there may not be much he can do either here or back at the Citadel, but surely Nikkari would be more comfortable in a bed and in the warmth.]
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Coughing. Horrible, pained coughing.
It has to be Nikkari.]
Nikkari-san! Hold on!
[He urges the horse to make the short trip closer toward the source of the coughing, but pulls it to a stop before the trees prove too difficult to traverse. He calmly asks the horse to stay put for now, then dismounts and heads in. And almost immediately notices the bright yellow petals on the ground, in stark contrast to the duller shades of undergrowth. If the coughing hadn't clued him in as a general location, then those definitely would have.
But it's strange. They're just petals, like someone had been plucking them from a flower, only the rest of the plant doesn't seem to have been discarded as he follows the trail. Does such a flower even bloom this time of year?
All of those thoughts are shoved from his mind when he catches sight of Nikkari hunched over, still coughing. He's nearly surrounded by those petals, like someone has been half-heartedly playing at haloing him in light. But this isn't a game, something that becomes heart-wrenchingly evident when Nikkari coughs again and...expels some of those same petals.
Oh...no...
But he can't just stand in shock. With some uncharacteristic speed, Ishikirimaru goes to kneel in front of Nikkari and reaches out for his shoulders.]
Nikkari-san, we need to get you back to the Citadel.
[If this illness is what he thinks it is, then there may not be much he can do either here or back at the Citadel, but surely Nikkari would be more comfortable in a bed and in the warmth.]