His fingers trailed upward with mock gentleness, tickling the flesh of her cheek. In a few moments, the softness of his hand was gone, and he was burying his fingers deep into her flesh. "Leave?" The reality of that one word struck him as if it were a bolt of lightning, and his hand dropped. Bony digits found his bronze hair, rumpling the damp strands visibly. What was he doing to his own flesh and blood? "I-- I'm sorry," he whispers, and mostly to himself. It was as if his voice was as weak and trembling as his fingers after he'd realized he hurt one of the last things he'd have left: his sibling. Auden's palm brushed against the bruises starting to form on her face, which he seemed to be regretful of now. Slow, cool strokes against that lightly tanned skin, and it seemed as if it would all disappear, but stroke after stroke, the faded purple lines just darkened. Thin lips pursed, pulling into a taut line as his mind wandered to and fro. As if agreeing on something unknown, Auden nodded to himself before placing a soft kiss on her cheek, as if a silent command. He had kissed the cheek he had wounded with his own fingers, and despite his cool aura, his body shook. It was as if he was the little boy once again, the one he wanted to forget...<br/><br/>Auden had left that dreaded house as if his life depended on it. No more would he suffer, no more would he want to know... He knew now, and as his car shifted into gear, he was home free.