Obsession.

Oasis.

Regardless, you snapped your book shut after you marked the page and meandered over to the hatch, pulling it open and locking eyes with the orange haired deity that had been bolting up the staircase. He froze like a deer in headlights, just looking up at you. His face held a panicked expression, glowing jade eyes mere pinpricks compared to how they usually are. His teeth were exposed in a grimace, his lip curled in displeasure. He blinked a few times before starting to move again, dropping his expression in favor of a more neutral flat line. He still had his front teeth exposed as always, how they haven't gotten damaged from constant exposure was beyond you.

"Where were you? Why'd you leave?" The questions were almost instantaneous as he reanimated, like they were asked on instinct. As he climbed into the observatory, his fingers instantly grasped the necklace, thumb rubbing over the pearl to cease the bright pillar of light emanating from it.

"First up, didn't leave. Second, couldn't if I wanted to. You made that point Very clear, with the whole magic tracker that I can't remove." You grimaced, pulling the pearl out of his grasp and looking down at it. It had a different color sheen to it, like it had been enchanted with a separate spell. "I had woken up before you did, saw that you were still unconscious, and decided to let you rest your remaining injuries off. Speaking of which, come here."

You waved him a little closer so you could look over the scar tissue along his side. He obliged, letting you puppet his limbs so you had a good viewing angle at the long valley of reddish-brown skin.

You could see tiny speckles of purple had bubbled to the surface, leaking out of the slit that remained of the gash and coagulating into what you could only describe as a gelatinous slime of bacteria. Naturion sure had created a monster of a venom in the last spurts of power she had, being unable to be absorbed by even a deity's immune system.

"Besides magic, do you even know how to treat a wound?" You grumbled as you wiped your finger down over the wound, causing the muscles beneath your touch to undulate in a strange manner. Letting go of the arm you lifted, you stepped back and got a good look at the venom that had been in his wound. It swirled like smoke underneath the iridescent surface, almost feeling like acid where it touched the skin of your fingertips.

"No, not really. Though, you seem to have a fair amount of knowledge in the subject." He hummed as he lowered his arm and shrugged. "I should be fine, shouldn't I?"

You looked back up to the deity that was smiling slightly before you, the same strange emotion he always held around you present in his eyes. You couldn't see it with your weak eyes, but you could feel it. The malice he held within him, surrounding him like a cloak, coupling with the warm aura to create a noxious atmosphere; choking and thick. You didn't like it, so you took a step backwards and away from him.

"Yeah, I guess. But don't count on that being a given, my first aid only goes so far when it comes to... I don't know.. deity organs." You tried to ignore his staring, turning your head to break eye contact with him and staring out the window.

"That will do just fine, my Pearl. You managed to save me after all, did you not?" He tilted his head, a trail of hair following his movements. You saw him step forward, diminishing the distance you subtly tried to put between you and him. You grumbled, taking another step backwards, causing his eyes to flicker down to your feet and then back to your face. He squinted. "Why are you backing up? Is something wrong?"

You didn't answer, staring at him. Just.. something felt wrong, like he wasn't in the right mindset today. He grew silent, returning your gaze. The two of you stood there for a moment, not letting out a single sound. He came to the realization that you were starting to grow suspect of him, and started frowning.