When Yuume finishes, Roland feels he has a better grasp of what has to be done. He closes his eyes briefly, calm on the onset, before the book is opened with a careful hand, a page already dogeared for faster access. But he doesn't read from it just yet, keeping his gaze fixed on the woman who repairs souls for a living...
Shadows couldn't be the same as soulmates, though there's something tugging at his instincts anyway. All it takes is a brief return to a recent memory - though time passes so strangely in the void, he knows exactly when it happened. The tendrils of darkness that gripped his heart, the pain radiating in bursts traveling from his temples to his nape; the tell-tale sign Doloran was working hard to influence his other half without Roland's knowing at all. Where was Roland's influence on Doloran? Not even staving off his cursed hold could do much to Doloran; no, it was the woman, the kingmaker he loved that made him revert back. It was in Evan's final blow, a severing of light that made him see reason. It was never quite Roland himself, not the twin connection they supposedly existed in.
So, why?
Between Roland and Doloran, who was the shadow and who was the person? Or were they perhaps, both --
Yes, there's merit to this endeavor. There has to be. This couldn't be coincidence. And he rarely ignores his own gut. He knows he's made his decision before his better sense can catch up. He finally opens his eyes and quietly reads from the chapter he had marked earlier. The Sixth Tale of Wonder: My Other Self. With a steady tone, lilt even and controlled, Roland narrates of a little girl with bright red hair whose mother took illness. All seemed lost for her in her grief, until one day she meets another who looks precisely like her, with hair just as red as a ruby in the light. Their friend, the blue bird, could no longer fly, and so the girl decided to help this mysterious one by healing the bird with an herb. Soon after, the bird chirped back into the pink of health and flew away. The next day, after parting with the girl who looked like her mirror's reflection, she awakens to find her mother healed in a similar fashion. As if she had never been sick at all.
He pauses, before reading out the final line.
"...Every person in this world has a soul mate - a person in another world with whom they share a soul. Soul mates' destinies are intertwined and occasionally, they even overlap. So should you ever chance to step through a strange door, do not be surprised if you meet someone just like you."
Roland closes the book and lays it back down on the table. The way he faces Yuume now is of no surprise to anyone.
"I'm guessing I don't have to tell you that I'm asking you to diagnose me in particular, huh?" He smirks, though devoid of actual mirth. "Can you do it, Yuume? I'm ready, if you are."
no subject
Shadows couldn't be the same as soulmates, though there's something tugging at his instincts anyway. All it takes is a brief return to a recent memory - though time passes so strangely in the void, he knows exactly when it happened. The tendrils of darkness that gripped his heart, the pain radiating in bursts traveling from his temples to his nape; the tell-tale sign Doloran was working hard to influence his other half without Roland's knowing at all. Where was Roland's influence on Doloran? Not even staving off his cursed hold could do much to Doloran; no, it was the woman, the kingmaker he loved that made him revert back. It was in Evan's final blow, a severing of light that made him see reason. It was never quite Roland himself, not the twin connection they supposedly existed in.
So, why?
Between Roland and Doloran, who was the shadow and who was the person? Or were they perhaps, both --
Yes, there's merit to this endeavor. There has to be. This couldn't be coincidence. And he rarely ignores his own gut. He knows he's made his decision before his better sense can catch up. He finally opens his eyes and quietly reads from the chapter he had marked earlier. The Sixth Tale of Wonder: My Other Self. With a steady tone, lilt even and controlled, Roland narrates of a little girl with bright red hair whose mother took illness. All seemed lost for her in her grief, until one day she meets another who looks precisely like her, with hair just as red as a ruby in the light. Their friend, the blue bird, could no longer fly, and so the girl decided to help this mysterious one by healing the bird with an herb. Soon after, the bird chirped back into the pink of health and flew away. The next day, after parting with the girl who looked like her mirror's reflection, she awakens to find her mother healed in a similar fashion. As if she had never been sick at all.
He pauses, before reading out the final line.
"...Every person in this world has a soul mate - a person in another world with whom they share a soul. Soul mates' destinies are intertwined and occasionally, they even overlap. So should you ever chance to step through a strange door, do not be surprised if you meet someone just like you."
Roland closes the book and lays it back down on the table. The way he faces Yuume now is of no surprise to anyone.
"I'm guessing I don't have to tell you that I'm asking you to diagnose me in particular, huh?" He smirks, though devoid of actual mirth. "Can you do it, Yuume? I'm ready, if you are."