[ the sound makes him sick, and yet, it’s somehow easier to divorce himself from what he’s doing to a friend if he places it all in the context of protecting howl. he’s purifying him. this monstrous form may be howl’s own creation rather than the kenoma, but so are cancer cells, so is one’s baroque. fighting back is dextera’s kindness. howl’s anguish still hurts him worse, more deeply, than the physical pain of the fight.
howl’s talons take dextera with the movement of his body, each one alone sharper than any blade dextera has ever held in his hands. his power comes from light, after all, even the sword he’s now thrust into howl only a conduit for that power. he’s aware that if he moves or if howl decides to make it happen, he’ll be gutted and his shard fished out from his human corpse until the body disappears; he doesn’t understand why it hasn’t already happened.
dextera tries. whether he realizes howl is wavering or not has no bearing on the attempt. he just doesn’t want to die, and he doesn’t want howl to be the one to kill him. it would be easy to assume each gasp as the purification flows in and the kenoma fights back are just wordless sounds of pain, but there’s a roundness in the way he ends one such breath.
perhaps, a name. as close as he can get to one with his limitations. ]
no subject
howl’s talons take dextera with the movement of his body, each one alone sharper than any blade dextera has ever held in his hands. his power comes from light, after all, even the sword he’s now thrust into howl only a conduit for that power. he’s aware that if he moves or if howl decides to make it happen, he’ll be gutted and his shard fished out from his human corpse until the body disappears; he doesn’t understand why it hasn’t already happened.
dextera tries. whether he realizes howl is wavering or not has no bearing on the attempt. he just doesn’t want to die, and he doesn’t want howl to be the one to kill him. it would be easy to assume each gasp as the purification flows in and the kenoma fights back are just wordless sounds of pain, but there’s a roundness in the way he ends one such breath.
perhaps, a name. as close as he can get to one with his limitations. ]
H… ow…