text: She was crumbling before them, dirt and blood mingling with the scattered tears; ugly sobs escaping from her small, petite form. Her knees pressed harshly into the ground, the wind snapping at her clothes and hair. Bloody knuckles splayed towards the sky, white palms trying to stablize her trembling form. They watched her fall, head bowed, shoulders shaking. And he smiled. Arms crossed behind him, feet delicately dancing on the gravel to a silent beat, he approached her form. As he stood over her, she shook her head, finally tilting it up to look at him. He crouched down, taking her face between his thumb and forefinger. He dragged his thumb over her cheek, brushing away the blood, sweat, tears, dirt, and everything else that sat on her skin. She heaved through the sobs, trying to catch her breath through the tears. "Shh." He cooed, eyes tracing her face, memorizing every detail in his mind. She hiccuped, sobs pausing momentarily before picking up again. "There, there." He raised his other hand to comb through her hair, "Now, then. Let's take a deep breath, and try to calm down." He took an exaggerated breath in, leading her through various steps to stop the sobs so she could properly breath again. "In, and out. In... And out." He voice soft, he looked into her shiny eyes, his thumb tracing lazy circles over her cheek. Finally, her sobs quieted, breathes shaky, but slower than before. "Now, are we feeling a little bit better?" His tone was almost concerned. She gave a weak nod, the colour in her palms finally coming back as she leaned off them slightly. Tears still streamed down her face, albeit slower now. "Good... That's good." He murmured, his hand still absentmindedly dragging over her face and the other through her scalp. "Why?" She croaked out, glossy eyes burning into his own, searching for an answer, a reason, *anything*. "Because," He smiled, "We're just alike, you and I." That's when she pulled away, jerking her face from his hands, a scowl upon her trembling lips. His smile never faltered. "Broken. Damaged." He stood, fixing his cuffs and straightening his tie. "Unwanted. Unloved." She flinched, eyes taking refuge on the gravel, fingers picking at the tiny pebbles. "I know what you're going through-" He began. "No, you don't." She spat. "Yes, I do." He insisted, crouching low again. "I've been in your exact same shoes. I've had people chase me away, cry out at the blood on my hands," He reached his hand out to cup her face again, but hesitated. Curling the long fingers into a fist, he drew it away again. "Shiver away from my touch." His voice trembled this time, but he cleared his throat, looking up into her curious eyes. "You're not a monster." "I am." Her tone almost broke him, heavy with self guilt and blame and remorse. "You're *not*." He placed his hand atop hers, placing his knees on the gravel as well. "I can help you." She looked hopefully into his eyes, straining to see any lies. "I can. And I will. They'll love you again. They'll forget you ever did anything wrong." He spoke quicker, overcome with his own excitement. She flinched again, eyes fluttering away. "Not that you did. In my eyes, anyway." He dipped his head, locking eyes with her again. He brought his head up, leading hers with his own. "It was an accident, wasn't it? You didn't mean to, did you?" She shook her head, eyes pooling up with tears again. "O-of course not- I would... I would never-No!" "Shh, shh, shh. Its okay, I know you wouldn't." He pulled her into a hug, dragging his fingers through her hair, the others gathering the fabric of her shirt in the back. She let out another choked sob, arms tangling around his back, fingers grasping weakly at the fabric. He scooped her into his arms, carrying her away. Trudging through the smoke and ash, through the dead bodies, which were still smouldering and burning. She tucked her face into his shoulder, pulling slightly at the fabric of his jacket. He carried her away from the burning town, sweet nothings drowning out the cries of pain.