Work Text:
Mary and her guardian had not been in this world very long, but it had been long enough for Mary to realize the skies were a golden hue most of the day. The trees were all angular and sparse in their brown leaves, but the tall grass seemed to make up for it. If only the rocks embedded in the soil were more visible so Mary could plan her steps easier. She had never been the athletic type, and she certainly wasn't as young as she used to be, so the weight of her pack was becoming heavier with each uncomfortable step.
"Any chance you can take some of the load?" Mary asked her companion, trying to stretch her shoulders beneath the weight of her backpack. It had been some time since they'd last spoken, and Mary was starting to worry she'd been left on her own.
"No." Xaphania's voice was low beside both of her ears, a humming that rolled within her mind like wind sifting through grassy hills. Mary was still getting used to the shivers it sent over her skin, but at least Xaph didn't make her get out the I Ching to decipher her unwillingness to cooperate this time.
"Because you physically aren't capable of it?" Mary asked curiously, squinting at the shifting air around her. Her eyes weren't as sharp as they probably would've been if she hadn't spent so many years staring at computer screens and books. Xaphania's form was like a haze slightly blurring the space in front of her, but making out her silhouette was like pinpointing the outline of a new moon; that is, if moons had… a currently undetermined number of wings. Mary wondered if there was any way to get a better look. "Or because you want me to do all the heavy lifting?"
No reply.
"Well, I'm going to take a rest, then, if you don't mind." She set down her pack with a thud and sunk herself down onto a flat-topped rock. Her back was feeling better already.
But Xaphania's reply made her muscles tense up again: "We must continue."
"I’m sorry to break it to you," said Mary, unzipping her pack to find something to eat. As easy it was to believe she'd been the wrong choice, she did have to admit she was one of the only people in her world who could do… whatever it is Xaphania wanted her to do. And that gave her some ground to stand on, even in the indecipherable face of an angel. "But maybe you should've chosen someone with a bit more stamina."
Before Xaphania could respond, if she had even intended to, something rustled in the bush behind the rock. Mary leapt off, eyes wide, until she noticed the small boar-like creature poking his head from the leaves.
She gasped once she caught her breath. "Aw, hello there! What a cute little thing."
"Mary," Xaphania said sternly.
"It's just a baby, look." She held her hand out to the creature. It made little grunts as it approached from its shelter, eyeing her with an innocent curiosity. Soon, its snout nuzzled against her palm, probably looking for whatever snack it had smelled.
At the shriek of a caw, something stabbed Mary's palm. "Ow!"
The creature fled from the shadow of… whatever had made that sound, leaving its tooth impaled in her hand. She clutched it, trying not to pay attention to the fairly intense pain radiating from the spot. Mary looked up because it was a bit less dizzying than looking at her bleeding hand and noticed a reptilian creature soaring away.
"I told you to leave it be!" Xaphania scolded.
"It didn't mean to hurt me!" Mary winced as she pried the tooth from her palm. It just made her bleed more, prompting a tight fist. "It was… it was just scared."
"Your hand bleeds and yet you keep your faith." Although there was a slight intrigue to Xaphania's tone, Mary was certain she was rolling her eyes. (She was less certain, however, of if Xaphania even had eyes.) Mary searched through her pack with her uninjured hand for a bandage. She was making a mess of things, snack wrappers and bandanas littering the ground...
After half the bag had been dumped out, Xaphania finally spoke up. "There is an easier solution."
"And what might that be?" Xaphania was hardly one to lend a helping hand, so Mary continued searching while she waited for Xaphania’s answer. Instead, Mary’s brow furrowed when a warm sensation washed over her nerves, most prominently those in her hand. She unclosed her fist and… her skin was healing before her very eyes. A faint glow sealed her wound shut and… the blood was as good as gone. "Xaph?"
"You know I detest that name."
"How did you…" Although she still couldn't see Xaphania very well, Mary looked up at her and smiled. Xaphania had no real need to heal her, but… she did, and skillfully, too. There wasn't even a scar. "Thank you.”
There was a silence, and then, in a pace that was a bit faster than Xaphania's usual droning, she spoke: "It is in our best interest that you remain unharmed."
"Ah, so that's what it is, is it?" Mary's grin refused to lose shape. Xaphania, a literal angel, cared. "And that is why, in your best interest, I'm going to continue my rest."
Xaphania sighed. "Mary--"
"Unless," she said, holding up a finger. "You tell me how you did that."
"No."
Mary pouted. Then, she remembered all the clothes scattered around her bag. She pointed with the thumb of her now uninjured hand. "Any chance you'll help me clean up, then?"
There was no reply.