Eromaug walked at a leisurely pace behind Orynn as they made their way to the servants quarters where both Orynn and now this little witchling would be staying.
It wasn't ideal as he had a sneaking suspicion that if he managed to restore her mind, she would try to escape and he knew damn well that punishing her would be next to impossible if she was as close to Lexi as he had been told.
He could still punish her, of course, but not without severe backlash from his reluctant eternal and he suspected that Orynn was also going to prove difficult to discipline if it came to it. He hadn't missed the disapproving and disgruntled noises the dragonling had made. Perhaps he would have to pay a visit to Bella and find out why her children were so disobedient…or perhaps this was another thing that he could blame Narcissa for.
The chirrups from the dragonling echoed in the corridor as they came to a stop in front of his quarters.
"Well? What are you waiting for?" Eromaug said impatiently as he gestured to the door, "Go inside and get started."
If he didn't know better, he could have sworn that the beast scowled at him and sighed, as he readjusted the witchling in his arms, freeing a hand to press down on the handle as he kicked it open.
He paused before entering the room and threw a look full of disdain in Eromaug's direction, making him snort at the audacity of it.
"You know, that attitude will get you in trouble if you aren't careful," Eromaug warned darkly, but the few short trills that he got in response gave Eromaug the distinct impression that he didn't care too much.
His entire being ached with the need to be at Lexi's side, but the more he delayed trying to fix this witchling's mind, the further Lexi's weak, fleshy body would descend into the grips of whatever infection plagued her.
So, he followed Orynn inside, much to the dragonlings obvious disgust, and stood quietly whilst he carefully ran a bath, added various herbs and oils to it, before removing the witchlings clothes and lowering her carefully into the bath.
It was a curious sight to behold, a being as well built as Orynn tending to the shell of a woman before him with such gentleness and care, even though she offered no response at all, simply allowing him to move her about like a doll. Most of his servants would have seen to this task far more brusquely, seeing it as a job to be done, rather than prioritizing the needs of the witchling and for some reason, it pulled a faint smile on Eromaug's lips.
"It's funny that most of your brethren are nothing but mindless killing machines and serve well in the units here, yet you are nothing like them at all…despite what they put you through." Eromaug mused, more to himself than to Orynn as he didn't really expect a reply, "It's a pity you never learned how to talk."
The hatred in Orynn's eyes as he flicked them up at Eromaug was difficult to miss and as Orynn carefully lifted a now clean Aoife from the tub and gently dried her before dressing her in very basic canvas pants and a plain cotton shirt, he wondered if allowing him here to serve Lexi was a good idea after all.
But what could a dragonling do against someone as powerful as he was? It was ridiculous to think that he even posed a threat, so Eromaug shook the thought off and moved over to where the little witchling now sat on the sofa.
Orynn watched like a hawk from the side, his arms crossed against his chest as Eromaug carefully moved her shock of wet curls back from her face and smiled softly, his eyes trailing down her body before settling back on her face.
"Such a shame those scars will stay with you," he murmured as he ran a finger lightly over the savage, jagged line that ran across her neck.
Aoife didn't flinch, staring straight ahead, her eyes seemingly looking through him as he placed his enormous hands on the side of her head and focused intently on her eyes. She stiffened under his touch, her body going as rigid as a board as he worked his way through her mind, swearing softly to himself.
There was nothing physically wrong with her brain per se…it was more her consciousness that had simply fragmented, fractured by her traumatic death and subsequent resurrection and broken into a million shards.
This was going to take more time than he had to put it back together completely, so perhaps a quick fix would suffice for now.
Very carefully, he sifted through the fragments of her memories and gathered the memory of death. He bundled them tightly and bound them together before carefully extracting it and storing it away inside a special glass orb that was designed specifically for this task.
Then, he dove back in, gathering the faint memory of her resurrection and grimaced as he watched Narcissa and Ely's botched attempt replay in glorious technicolor before him. Their ineptitude would be almost comical if it wasn't for the fact that each fuck up they made affected him directly. It was clear that her soul had been put back inside of her partially fragmented, and that was something that was beyond even his abilities.
Perhaps Ximena would have had an answer as to whether or not their pathetic magicks would be able to help, but he wouldn't be asking her anytime soon.
He deposited that memory in the orb too, and searched her eyes for some sign of life but still there was nothing. Eromaug sighed and flicked his eyes to Orynn, feeling the intense judgmental gaze on him as he worked to restore her mind.
"You know, that's pretty fucking distracting, dragonling," He scowled, "Can't you go some place else?"
A series of angry chirrups and trills followed and Eromaugs scowl deepened.
"I don't know what the fuck any of that means but just know that I could crush you with one hand if I so choose. The only reason you are here right now is because you somehow managed to keep Lexi alive and relieve her pain and you are the closest thing to a familiar face that I'm comfortable having around her while she adjusts to her new home."
Orynn raised an eyebrow and let out another series of sharp chirrups that sounded distinctly like he was telling Eromaug how unbothered he was, and Eromaug sighed in frustration.
"I'll deal with this insolence later," He scowled as he turned back to the woman before him and dove back in, angrily rampaging around her mind and pulling fractured pieces back together until she had a stream of coherent memories.
Thanks to his anger, in no time he had a solid bundle of coherent memories spanning from her childhood right the way up to adulthood. He had been especially vigilant in seeking out the memories that encapsulated her magickal training with her family, to ensure that she had the skills to actually benefit his Eternal, and finally, when he was satisfied there was enough for her to function again, he withdrew himself from her mind.
Humans were such frail little creatures, without their memories and their past, they were no better than animals relying on base instinct, so if returning her past to her didn't work, then there really was no hope that she could ever be brought back.
He sat back on his heels and pursed his lips. Sleep. Sleep was important to humans too if he remembered rightly.
"I'm going to put her to sleep now and you will watch over her." Eromaug stated coldly, "As soon as she wakes up I want to know."
He lifted a hand to put her to sleep but Orynn stepped in front of her and held a hand up with a scowl on his face.
"I suggest you move, my patience is not limitless." Eromaug growled as Orynn rolled his eyes and pointed to the bedroom door.
Eromaug laughed coldly as he realized what Orynn was objecting to.
"You mistake my intervention here as concern over her wellbeing." Eromaug snarled as he stood to his full height, towering over Orynn easily, "All I care about is getting Lexi well again.If this human or witchling or whatever the fuck she is dies, then I couldn't care less for her sake. It would only register as a mild annoyance as I would then be forced to find another who could heal her. I won't wait until she's safely tucked up in bed like a fucking child, that is your job. YOU are responsible for her care and wellbeing here, do you understand?" he continued furiously as he prodded Orynn hard in the chest.
Orynn's defiant stare was starting to grind on him and before Orynn realized what was happening, Eromaug had thrown him clear across the room.
"Do not test me again, dragonling. That was but a warning." He hissed as he waved his hand in the witchlings direction and her head fell back, her eyes closed as the net of sleep caught her and welcomed her into its embrace.