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 Posted: Tue Dec 09, 2014 5:34 pm
For
Myself and Yushika
Shop
Modifoxes
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Posted: Tue Dec 09, 2014 7:18 pm
Erebus grazed his fingers across the metal bracelet that adorned his wrist, black nails tapping against the metal. Jet black hair fell to his elbows, loosely tied back by a simple band in the middle, a hair-style he adopted from his father. Where was he? The woods, of course. Where else would he be? The city was a place he wasn't yet comfortable to wiggle into, despite how he claimed he simply hated the scent. He was afraid, in a way, to be stuck in a place he knew nothing of, without the safety of the trees.
So here he was, curled up on a boulder and pulling his legs into his chest, pale fingers tapping against strong knees. He was well built, which is slightly tight t-shirt showed. Tall, as well, something he inherited from Sin, the male was probably more like his father than mother in all regards. Tch. That only reminded him how much of a disappointment he knew he happened to be, constantly hearing the words: "Calm down." "Stop being so violent." "You're being a fool by attacking everything that angers you." To be exact, he was more like Sin's younger years, full of anger he wasn't sure how to fix and a need to lash out at things that frightened him.
His hands rubbed his head, a low, soft sigh escaping him. /********/ he was in a bad mood. The only idea he had to fix any of this was spar with someone, but Nyx had a mate and was busy frolicking with him, and Phanes was in absolutely no mood to at least mentally spar. She was far too depressed for that. Lamia and Sin were busy doing, ********…. like he knew. Like he /ever/ knew. And Silver was busy being a ******** d**k about /everything/.
Dammit.
Rosella was hunting. Not meat, but plants. Some were good for food, others were good for medicine. Sometimes she even used certain plants as bait, knowing that she could reach things some animals found choice but could not reach for themselves. That was a hit-and-miss strategy, so she preferred to put the plants to other uses for the most part. She kept a basic stock on hand at all times, but it was running low. Of course anytime she found anything useful it went into the bag on her hip. The bag was made of burlap, stained in a few places from all the plants that had been in it over the course of its existence and always smelling of herbs even after it was washed, deep and able to hold quite a bit. The bottom had a slight bulge to it, showing that Rosella had had some luck already today.
She didn't look at all like someone you'd except to see out foraging in the woods. Her hair, snowy white with blue tips, was cut short and spiked. She wore a white tank top with a somewhat feminine-looking skull emblazoned in bright pink and blue on the front. She wore jean pants, black and covered in rips around the knees and thigh, with pink and blue stripes that started in a regular pattern at the ankles and they went up the pattern became a little more random. Over the pants was a black skirt, dotted in more blue and pink, held up by a white belt that was accented in more black. She wore brown and white sneakers and had brown, finger-less gloves on her hand. Her nails looked sharp and well-cared for, but had no polish on them, nor did she wear any makeup. Her only other accessories was a series of bracelets on both wrists, mostly black and white but with spattering of pink and blue. Her skin was lightly tanned, indicating at least a moderate amount of time spent in the sun. Teal-colored eyes appeared all the brighter next to her skin and white hair. Strangest of all was a set of sharp canines poking out from her bottom lip, like upside-down vampire teeth.
She rounded a corner, heading to a place she was familiar with and had gathered from before, and instantly noticed a difference. These woods might be dark, but she wasn't so blind as to not notice when someone else was around, even when they were dressed to blend with shadows. Her eyes were hard and showed no sense of fear. She went on this route often and it was the best way to where she wanted to be. Some stranger wasn't going to prevent that. She looked past the stranger as though taking no more notice of him after that first glance, but all her senses were on alert. It was foolish to assume everyone you met would be friendly.
Jinx: Hair based on:
http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/736x/cd/51/3a/cd513aa23958c1ddd3ac43fa793717e1.jpg
Clothes based on:
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-m8MiV9heHx8/TbNp4jNto2I/AAAAAAAAAP8/IABZrauR75M/s1600/punk-girl-cg-channel-1.jpg
Erebus heard sounds, his head jerking up immediately and body freezing, limbs loose in case he needed to strike out. Black eyes hid within the shadows as he spotted the other, a female, fingers twitching against his bracelet before he slipped it off, placing it elsewhere for the time being. Without thinking, as he was an impulsive man (or brat, if you wanted to use Sin's terms), he used one hand to leap off the boulder, landing on his knees and hands in-front of the woman.
"Who are you?" His gruff, deep voice vibrated as the tall male stood, a hand on his hip as he eyed the woman in /his/ forest. Cruor forest. Hell, This reminded him of the time Silver first came here.
Rosella didn't back down, didn't even seem startled. Her expression and demeanor were both a calm that bordered on boredom, as though the man in front of her was nothing more than an inconvenient delay rather than an actual threat. Looks were deceiving though. The tells were in her posture, subtle things that you could only see if you were looking for them. How her feet were braced, posture perfectly balanced and compensating for the bag on her right hip. Her mother had been tall, her father just slightly above average, and she reflected that with a height of 5' 10". Taller than most women she met and easily on par with several men, but this stranger managed to tower above her. That didn't bother her though. Big or small, she'd still take him down if she had to.
"I'm me. Who else would I be," she asked in deadpan tones. It was impossible to tell if she was serious or mocking the man in front of her.
His cold eyes looked down at her, unmoving. He had never been able to adopt that monotone way of life some of his family had, so that brief twitch of his eyebrow betrayed the irritated feeling he held."That isn't answering my question, stranger."
"Oh, right. Well there's not much to tell. Been thinking of starting an autobiography, but I've been too busy with other things." She quirked an eyebrow up. "So if that's all will you excuse me now? Errands to run and all that. Gotta use the daylight while it's here." She shifted her posture slightly, still balanced, but moving a half-step closer as though she meant to simply walk past him.
The male snorted briefly at the response. Right. A sarcastic one. He stepped in-front of her as she moved, an arm extended to block the path. "That is not a good idea." He mused back. Eying her with that inherited bird-like stare, the male glanced back at the woods, arm still raised. "The clan of foxes who live here tend to kill before asking questions, and they dislike intruders."
She looked calmly at the arm blocking her path, then tilted her head back to look the stranger in the eye. "If you don't want to start something, I suggest you move your arm. You're in my way." Her voice was completely calm, like she was commenting on the weather, but there was no shortage of steel in her gaze that let the stranger no she wasn't making an idle threat.
"Hm?" And then the challenge was offered. He couldn't help that little boy side of him going 'YES FINALLY PLEASE.' So. Despite all the training in the world he had, despite the lessons and careful talks, and despite the skills he clearly had, the male did one stupid thing. He simply raised one hand, and jabbed her in the shoulder.
"I suggest you go home, girl." His tone became deadly, nursing a violent purr as the blood-lust settled in, something that would later cause the male to curl into a ball. He hated this side of him, and yet that wonderful little side of him that he had inherited didn't. It relished in the fact his blood was boiling and he was seeing red. It reminded him, carefully, that he was a ******** up little man.
Just like daddy dearest.
Quick as thought Rosella's hand came up. The back of her wrist hit the male's wrist and she used the momentum of her blow to shove his arm away. She didn't push far, not wanting her arm to get too far from her body. Once it reached about as far as her shoulder her arm curved down towards her side so she could get it into a fight stance. Simultaneously, even as her wrist hit the strangers, her leg came forward. Since she took that half-step her stance had widened. That meant more ground to cover, but if her knee struck there would be a lot more force behind it. And she /was/ striking with her knee, not her leg or foot. The force of the blow would still be strong, if not stronger than if spread out over the area of her leg, and recovery would be easier than if she was hoping to land a blow with her foot. Balance was crucial in a fight.
He hadn't expected the movement, briefly stumbling before his training kicked in. He actually managed to dodge the kick, dodging to the ground and immediately reaching up, attempting to use he momentum to push the kicked leg and send her to the ground. He had learned that tripping an opponent was always the first thing he should attempt, and dammit, he was going to do it. He could already tell she was a fast one, and would be driving him insane.
Rosella hasn't quite stopped moving when the stranger dodged her kick, but that part didn't bother her. She rarely put her full weight into something unless she was either positive it would connect or completely desperate. He didn't move completely out of the way though, going down to the ground and twisting to avoid the path her leg was on. His hands flew out and smacked into her leg. Rather than fight it to try and get back into stance, she used her standing leg and leapt in the direction the man had pushed her. Her kicking leg, still bent to deliver a blow with the knee, snapped out as she tried to kick the man with her foot. She didn't have high hopes it would connect since the leg wasn't pointing in the direction she was leaping. Though she moved it around to face the proper direction before she kicked, it wouldn't have the same force and if the guy was any kind smart he could dodge by ducking or leaning far back. She was hoping his reflexes would be a little slow though.
She landed on the ground, standing leg hitting first as she skidded back a bit, raising a small cloud of dust. Not much grew around the floor of this forest, not unless you could find the rare spots where trees had fallen to let light down. The leg she'd used for kicking soon touched the ground and she worked on setting her stance again. Her balance wasn't where she'd like it to be yet, but she doubted the man could rush her from his position on the ground and even if he did her arms were more than ready to deliver a punch.
Again, she missed, however he had managed another stumble. ********, he hadn't expected her to be /good/ at this. He stepped back, bending his knees and preparing to either leap away or send a blow at her. He wasn't about to make the first move, dark eyes analyzing her every move. His heart pounded, temper flaring as slowly he felt that mood kick in. That desire to break something. That primal need that he had inherited and was so ashamed of.
And then, without even thinking, he leapt at her, a feral growl escaping his throat as he clearly made an effort to knock her over.
Rosella felt annoyed. The man was persistent and he seemed strong enough, but he seemed to be fueled by pointless rage. It was highly irritating to be held up by something like this. Rather than dodge she came right at the man. She feigned moving straight for him, arm raising slightly as though she meant to hit him. At the last second she pivoted to the side and brought her leg up, slamming it into his lower back as her momentum carried her past him. She worked to get her footing back under her. She knew she'd got a good, solid connection, but the guy was big. She didn't know whether the one hit would take him down, but if it did then he was far weaker than he looked. She wasn't sure about his stance; it could knock him down to the ground, or just cause him to stumble. She didn't know anything about his recovery abilities, but this would at least give her a clue. Whatever happened, she knew she wanted to be ready in case he exceeded all her expectations and came right after her. His size would likely give him an advantage in a grappling match, assuming he was any good.
She had managed to make him stop moving forward at least, but he didn't fall. He stumbled and hit the ground without grace, but remained on his feet. Quickly, he rebounded, immediately moving to the side and aiming for her back this time, whipping a leg back for a kick to the back of her knees. His strategy was either to knock her down and pin her to the ground, or knock her out completely.
She was facing the man thanks to the pivot she'd had to do to land the blow to his back. She saw the kick coming and made a decision. It was risky, but she gave it a shot anyway. Rather than jumping back and dodging his sweeping kick she fell to the ground...and planting her hands firmly on the ground she spun her body, keeping as low as she could, attempting to duck under the kick, while her leg was straight out, aiming a sweeping kick at the man's standing leg. With him in the middle of his own kick his balance would be off and he likely wouldn't be able to react in time.
And then it happened, he fell. A grunt followed and he scampered to pull himself back up in time, but her kick had sent him right to the ground. A feral snarl escaped him as he made a move to get back up before she attacked, arms crossed to block his face should she attack him during the process.
Rosella used what movement she had and shoved with her arms, pushing herself up off the ground. She quickly got her feet under her and skipped back a step. She wish she could have taken advantage of the male's fall, but that kind of kick was meant more to knock the opponent down. It rarely left the user in a position to make a follow-up attack, given how low to the ground it was and how much power went behind it in the first place. No, she'd have to be satisfied that she bought herself time to get back up and sink back into a ready stance. If she was lucky it would have knocked the wind out of the guy, at least a little.
"Hmph." She let a bit of her disdain show on her face. "Your balance is way off. Do you go attacking everything you see, like some berserker? I can't think much of this 'group of killers' if this is how they taught you to fight." Her words were calm, observations rather than mocking, though some of the disdain on her face probably leaked into her voice. She wasn't sure which one of them would win though, to be honest. She was obviously more skilled, or at least more disciplined, but this guy seemed to have good endurance if nothing else. As she spoke her eyes roamed his body, watching how he moved and looking for any weakness she could use. If she had to close with him again she'd try to get a good hit with her elbow to his shoulder. If she could immobilize, or at the very least weaken, his arms, the fight would instantly tip in her favor. She had no doubt that of the two of them her leg work was better, given what she'd observed so far.
He grunted in response, eyes flicking up and locking on her. Calmly, he stood, relaxing every single muscle and cracking his neck. "I'm not like the others. I'm the failure, so I guess you're lucky." He admitted, never one for lies. Failure or not, he was still strong. "I'm the emotional one. The one who lashes out too fast." He shrugged absently, eyebrow cocking at her. "I suppose the merciful one, since I'm fighting a complete ******** stranger to prevent her from entering the woods and having her limbs torn off."
Sucking his teeth, the male twitched once more, slowly trying to calm down. ********. That blood lust, that familiar need that pooled in his chest. ******** genetics.
Rosella's expression didn't change. There was no way to tell exactly what she was thinking. "I've taken my chances before this. If I get caught them it's my problem. I didn't need a babysitter." The last sentence held a hint of annoyance, though it didn't show in her face. Her eyes were alert, watching the male's face and body. She wasn't an expert, but she could spot most tells that would signal an attack. She didn't trust this stranger to back off, not just yet. She spared a brief moment of though to wish she was better dressed for a fight, but let that regret go as quick as it had come. "If I might be excused now," she asked, a hint of sarcasm in her voice.
He scowled at the woman, brushing hair from his face and quickly undoing his ponytail before slipping it back into place, correct stray strands. Shrugging at the woman, he glanced over at her, head shaking. "If you want to get something so bad then I'm coming with. I rather not have to deal with the after math when you're found."
Rosella sighed softly. For a brief second something shimmered in the air behind her. It was faint, like the shadow of a shadow, and only certain eyes could see it. The flick of a tail. It would look odd even to those used to seeing such things though, because it was more than just one tail. "I honestly have no clue what kind of game you're trying to play. It's like meeting Dum or Dee. You don't have a twin, do you?"
She shook her head, not expecting an answer. She was a fan of manga, though she didn't put that out there much. This guy reminded her of the Bloody Twins, like some mass-murdering gatekeeper. With that in mind, though she patted the bag at her side and made sure her sense of direction was correct, she kept a close watch on the stranger and made sure to keep her body in a semi-ready stance. "Well come on then, if you're following." She set off. She didn't go completely into the dark forest. Really she didn't go far in this place at all. It was too dark for much besides certain kinds of fungi. It was just between her and the lighter areas she was heading for, and it was easier to pass through the small section rather than go around.
He caught that odd flick, blinking. Two? His own tail snapped to the side, and then a slow smirk crossed his face. "Nah." He mused back, a hand waving. "They're too childish, anyway." Why yes, he knew manga. He had once found a few manga's but they had vanished. He suspected one of Nyx's kids had taken them when they were little, Eisheth had been known to be taken to art.
Clicking his tongue, the male kept a distance from her. Erebus didn't speak much, especially after a blood lust. He was tense, mouth tight as he grit his teeth together. ********. He still felt shaky from the recent fight, hands gripping his shoulders to remind himself that right that minute he was /okay/. He wasn't his father. He wasn't anyone but himself at that very second. His sarcastic, temperamental self. Clearing his throat, the dark male cast a glance at the woman. "If you smell lavender tell me."
"You won't find any of that here. Too dark," she replied automatically. Not that she was any kind of gardener herself, but you tended to pick things up from foraging. She also owned a few books, mostly to help with identification and uses, but she hadn't needed to open them in a while. Already watching him from the corner of her eyes, she lifted an eyebrow. What did this person need with lavender anyway?
"Not that." He mused back, shrugging. She wouldn't know, anyway. Lavender was the scent most of his uncle's children, and he knew that his uncle was most likely to be prowling around at this time of night. Which also meant his father would be close by. His uncle never went anywhere without his father being near. Erebus had inherited Sin's inability to smell, and he was sure that overbearing scent would reach the other's nose should they come across the pair.
Rosella mentally shrugged off the words. She didn't expect to smell anything like lavender around here anyway. She never had before. This guy was probably thinking of some other kind of plant, but if he couldn't figure it out on his own then that was his problem.
She was content to let the walk pass in silence, having never been one for idle chatter. Probably something she got from her mother, since her father never stopped talking. All that could be heard was the faint brush of cloth against cloth from where the rough bag brushed against her outer thigh. Some people found her quietness to be disconcerting at times. When others might be buzzing with questions, she just moved on with whatever she'd been doing. It wasn't that she couldn't be inquisitive, but trivial things didn't mean much to her. All she really noticed was that her joints were still a little sore from all the shocks of their fight and that the attention she could have placed on watching for interesting things had to be divided because she didn't really trust this person to behave. It was mildly surprising that he'd seemed to get her reference, but at least she hadn't had to explain. That was nice.
_____________________
She gave a soft snort and tossed her head, short hair falling ever so slight into her face from where it had gotten mussed up from the fight, rolling her eyes. "After all these fights, now you want to show regret. If you can't stand by what you've done, what the hell is the point. Be a man, already." She shrugged and ran a hand through her hair, pushing it out of her face. "I should have moved faster, that's all. If it bothers you so much, then next time we fight I'll be sure to mark you too."
"Watch your tongue." He groaned, rubbing at his face with a low sigh. "It isn't that simple, woman." What would she know? She wasn't plagued with this…. curse? That's what he'd like to call it, but he was sure Sin just had something ******** up in his brain that passed onto Erebus. The twins didn't seem to have it, and he didn't know about Phrixos. He was busy with his woman, anyway. Frustrated, the long haired male groaned again. "It has nothing to do with being a man."
She placed her hands on her hips, ignoring the mess of her left arm. The scratches were shallow and had already stopped bleeding, but they'd covered her arm in a web of crimson before then. "Well then figure out what it is and get a grip on it." She frowned. Her frowns always looked scarier than they were meant to, because of her strange bottom canine teeth, but she doubted he was at all intimidated. "Honestly you could be so much better. You /should/ be. You just keep making these wild mistakes. I'm not saying they don't help you on occasion-," her eyes briefly glanced at her arm, "-but mostly they just leave you wide open and allow me to kick your butt."
#534B4F"Would if I could." Erebus hissed back, not amused at her know-it-all attitude about this issue. And then he snapped, black eyes flicking to glower at her and teeth baring, hands extending to point at her arm. "Wanna know how you got that?" He lowly snarled, seeing red once more. /********/. He withdrew into himself, hands rubbing at his temples as he slumped to the ground. "I can't help being wild. I can't help my temper. My father has an issue. I inherited it. I can't control it as well as he can."
Rosella made a soft hmph sound. "I got this because I was careless. You don't get to take the blame for it, because I'm going to use my mistake and make myself stronger." She eyed him for a second and decided he was probably gonna sit like that for a while. She went to where she hung her bag on a tree. It was something she did now, knowing people were probably in the forest who wanted to pick fights. She took her bracelets off and stowed them in the bag along with whatever else she had, so she could just set it to the side and keep it out of her way. She reached in and dug around until her fingers touched cool metal. She pulled out a flask and opened the top, and began to carefully wash the blood off her arm. She didn't want to open the cuts again so her arm was still a bit bloody-looking around the cuts, but it looked much better than it had before. She screwed the top on the half-empty canteen and put it back in the bag.
"You can't grow if you're convinced everything that happens to you is beyond your power to correct," she said, as though continuing the conversation on her own abilities. "I've been practicing how to fight for almost my whole life, and I still am not good enough." She frowned and lightly probed the scratch. At least it wasn't in too inconvenient of a spot. It should give her no trouble after she bandaged it.
Erebus listened to her move, quietly lifting his eyed to view her cleaning her wounds. During their times together the male had grown somewhat used to her, and perhaps had a slight fondness for her. It was nice having company that wasn't constantly rattling questions, like Silver. The male shook his head, sending a hateful glare to the dirt by his feet.
"I've tried since I was a child. I snap. Things turn red, I need to hurt someone. My father explained it as blood lust, and it took him the better half of his life to shut it off. By then he'd already…." And then he stopped, mouth slamming shut. By then his father had murdered countless innocents. His blood ran cold, skin turning an unhealthy pale as he curled his legs back into himself, murmuring against cloth. "Is your arm okay?"
Rosella held up her arm. Water dripped from the tips of her fingers. She shook her hand, flicking them off, and lowered her arm. "Hardly more than an inconvenience. I couldn't avoid the hit, but I was pulling back so the blow didn't land as hard as it might have." She idlely wondered if she should start bringing bandages with her on her outtings. It wasn't like they fought all the time, but things still happened. She had plenty of herbs at home she could use to disinfect it later, but nothing on her at the moment.
"Maybe you should try yoga. I hear that's good for temper." She ran a hand through her hair again. "Or a defensive martial art class. I was looking into a few back home. You know, something controlled and disciplined that involves avoiding damage rather than inflicting it." She shrugged. "It never hurts to know several styles, even if you only ever use the moves once or twice while fighting."
He eyed the wound, reaching out and slowly, carefully, tapping his fingers over her arm. "I know herbs that can fix that. My cousin taught me years ago." He seemed vaguely apologetic, though his pride stood in the way. Black eyes did gaze at her with a brief sadness. He wanted a fight, yes, but he feared the day he couldn't snap out of it and ended this woman's life. That was the last thing he wanted.
Her suggestion left him quiet, and than he twitched. That'd mean leaving the forest. His tail flicked violently, a nervous tic. "I assume the classes are in the city, mm?"
Rosella nodded. "Mostly downtown. I've been going to a community center. It's a little run-down, but it's not in too bad a part of the neighborhood. Kids hang out there and sometimes adults go there for workouts. They've got a few regular instructors who do classes, then sometimes guest instructors come in and do special classes. This would be one of those special classes. I don't recognize the name of the sensei, but I've been told he's pretty good at what he does. I figure if I find the classes interesting I'll see if he's got a dojo or something and continue into more advanced lessons." That was probably the most she'd ever said at one time, but the silence that filled the air between them didn't feel awkward. She'd come to learn that neither was particularly chatty.
He frowned, not exactly pleased by the "downtown" bit. Shrugging absently, the male twitched his tail. "I don't like the city." He admitted, deep voice vibrating in disgust. "Too much cement, and the smell of toxins." His parents didn't approach the city much, especially Sin. Sin had spent too long trying to convince the children the city was a disgusting place, and Erebus had left with a healthy disgust for it.
Rosella wasn't much surprised. She'd never encountered him anywhere outside this forest of eternal twilight. She was pretty sure anything that involved people or direct lighting would make him hiss and scuttle for cover like an old-fashion vampire. He even looked a bit like one...
She gave the scratches on her arm a misgiving look, but quickly dismissed her thoughts as fanciful and just plain silly.
"It's not all bad," was all she said. Truthfully she was of mixed minds on cities. She liked visiting. She knew all sorts of places and could go find venues to suit her mood. There was always a lot of variety. Still it was a bit busy. That was why she lived outside of it, in her simple little cottage-like house at the forest edge. Not this forest, one a bit more open with light. If she had to guess her house was almost inbetween this dark forest and the city.
"Probably for the best. If I brought you with me and you lost control of your temper, they might kick me out. I like that place, it's convenient." She sighed softly, at a loss. "Well, do whatever you think you need to. Sorry for sticking my nose in when you didn't even ask."
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Rosella's feet fell quietly on the forest floor. She was learning to walk far more silently. Not that she'd ever been loud or blundering to start with, but as her ghosting ability improved she'd had to admit that she hadn't been as good as she could have been. She kept an eye out on her surroundings. It was around this point that she usually ran into Erebus if he was going to show up. He never appeared towards the beginning of her journeys, and she noticed that when she reached a certain point towards the end that if she hadn't seem him he wouldn't show. She wasn't sure if it was conscious or subconscious, but he just never appeared when she was close to the forest edge.
If she hadn't been looking she would have missed it. A shadowy smudge buried in the shadows of the forest. It was enough to make her slow, her feet directing her towards the sight so that she could see better. The shape resolved slowly. It was indeed Erebus. His dark clothes and dark hair made him difficult to pick out sometimes. Rosella frowned and moved a bit closer. Something was just off. She approached slowly, staring. Suddenly her eyes made sense of what she was seeing, and her pace instantly picked up. She hadn't immediately recognized Erebus because his body was bent in a way she had never seen before, huddled and twisted in ways that didn't look healthy. The copper stink of blood hit her in the face as she neared.
Once at his side Rosella dropped into a squat, balancing on the balls of her feet as she looked Erebus over. She could see his chest rise and fall, though the movement looked too shallow and labored. His hair was splayed messily across his face rather than pulled back in the usual neat tail. She could see cuts and the beginnings of bruises blooming against his pale skin, but he was so liberally splashed with blood both dry and still damp that it was not much of his skin was visible at all. It took her only seconds to see all of this. She bit her lower lip, not liking the implications, then released her lip and sighed. "Damn," she said softly, voice calm and matter-of-fact but tinged with worry. "Something really ******** you over. Hope the other guy looks as bad."
He barely remembered how it happened. He had been moving to protect someone. A woman. Her glowing eyes hadn't held fear, and yet he couldn't stop himself at that moment from reaching out and shoving her out of reach of the large, dark-haired man. Faint memories of the woman hissing an insult and the man cursing flickered within his brain, yet nothing was solid. Nothing explained the agony he had endured, or the flashes of red he kept seeing whenever he tried to remember.
He remembered hiding, crawling weakly into the darker parts of the forest and curling up within himself, limbs protesting, probably either broken or damaged. He had been numb, his tail curled into his body, trying to somehow protect the broken body it belonged to. His breath was ragged, struggling to keep a rhythm as black eyes grew dim. By the time he had realized someone was near him it was too late, his sight growing darker by the minute. This wasn't a memory. This was reality. He was awake, or as close as it as he could get.
"Hnnn." He moaned in response, her words melding together, unable to be understood. The long-haired male weakly tossed a hand at her, missing and limply falling back to the ground. "Get the ******** away." He whimpered, a sound so unlike him. "Trash. b***h." He coughed, blood escaping his mouth and legs curling feebly into himself. ********. She needed to get away. Was the monster still here? Was he watching them, waiting? "Not safe. Go."
Rosella ignored his words (she usually did anyway) and took a moment to look at their surroundings. This piece of forest looked the same as all the rest. Thick coniferous trees, looking like so many irritated animals with their puffs of sharp needles sticking out. It was always dark here, the little light that managed to filter through all the layers of needles didn't make a huge difference. The whole place smelled musty, either damp or dried up foliage mixing with subtle pine tones. All her senses were on alert, but there was nothing. That didn't mean it would stay so though. They weren't the only creatures here who moved like ghosts.
She turned her focus back to Erebus, wondering if he could move. He looked broken, but just how much so? "Anything important broken, or can you stand? If anything's still bleeding let me see so I can tape it up. Better if we don't leave a blood trail." She rummaged in the pouch she carried at her waist, digging for the bandages she kept there.
Erebus hissed at her, a feral sound. Even now, he felt that savage blood lust, wanting nothing more than to tear out her throat. He wasn't weak. He didn't need her, or anyone for that damn matter. If he was going to die he didn't want her to interfere. He obviously was too weak for this world, might as well bleed out.
And yet he squirmed closer, his instinct to survive biting through that rapidly increasing fear. She was seeing his broken, and it terrified him. Yet, still, his arm weakly raised, exposing a gaping wound. A hand lifted his shirt, revealing a torn side and destroyed chest. Black eyes demonstrated a fear, raw and animalistic as he watched her. "Leg." He croaked. "I can't move it." He admitted, unaware that he had broken the lower half of it. It was heavy, he knew this, but he had yet to glance down at it. He watched her, placing the hand that had exposed his chest on her arm. "Hurry." He demanded, eyes frantically flicking around to ensure the beast wasn't here.
"This is going to hurt," she warned, then got to work. She tried her best to be gentle and jostle his wounds as little as possible. She knew he would thank her for taking that kind of care, rather he would likely just curse at her some more. She wove the bandage deftly around his chest, using both rolls she had with her. She would have liked to have had more. If there was something broken inside the bandaging would have helped to hold it still while she moved him, but she couldn't do that and still apply appropriate pressure to the wounds. She'd had to skimp a bit on both; it would be useless to stop the bleeding if a cracked or broken rib got jostled and stabbed something internal. Anyway, if her mental calculations were correct, he wouldn't bleed through the bandage until they were well out of the forest and close to her house, and then the bleeding would likely be so slow that they could easily get to her house and it's more abundant access of supplies.
"That'll do," she said, closing her pouch with blood-stained hands as she straightened up. She reached down and grasped the wrist of the healthiest-looking arm. "Ready? 1... 2... 3!" Grunting with the effort, she braced herself and pulled. She carefully controlled her strength, trying to act like a line of tension rather than a separate force. She didn't want to make any of his wounds worse by moving him too suddenly. As soon as he was on his good leg she braced his weight with her body. It wasn't even his weight that made the task difficult, it was controlling her strength to be exactly what was needed and no more to prevent causing further injury. She ducked under his arm on the side of his bad leg, easing her support away from his body so that he could catch himself on his good side while she took all his weight on his bad side. Briefly she took a moment to thank the deities that she was so tall, or this would be way more difficult and painful. "Can you move?"
He knew it'd hurt before she spoke, gritting his teeth immediately. And she was right, it /did/ hurt, leaving a horrific shudder down his spine and a curse masked behind clenched teeth. He barely had time to respond when suddenly she touched his arm and urged him to move. He managed to stand, stumbling into her, and almost falling when he made the mistake of trying to catch himself with his broken leg. A quick cry of pain was cut off as he forced his mouth shut, trembling violently as she eased herself onto his bad side. He felt weak, about to faint any second.
No. He had to stay awake. She was taking him somewhere, and to hell was he going to be useless the entire way. His head fell, unable to stop himself from putting most of his weight on her, the trembling continuing. "Mm." He grunted back affirmatively. He could move, for now. He wasn't going to allow himself to let this woman carry him the entire way, hell no.
Rosella's teal eyes darkened slightly, expression unreadable as she looked at Erebus. "Warn me if you're about to fall," she said, then placing gentle pressure against his back she steered him in the direction of home and took the first step.
The little cottage that sat by itself at the edge of the woods looked very storybook-esque. The forest at its back was also largely coniferous, tall giants that cast the ground beneath in eternal dusk. The spaces between the trunks were wide, little aside from scraggly bushes and vines growing there in the sparse light. It did not give off a dark aura though. The air beneath those pines was ancient and spoke of the passage of time. The chattering of squirrels and birds could be heard echoing throughout the air. The clearing where the house sat had once been part of the forest as well, long ago, before a terrible storm had rolled through and knocked down several of the pine giants. They had long since rotted away, allowing grass and flowers to spring up in the open space. A herd of deer grazed in the meadow by the forest edge. It was a peaceful place. For some.
Rosella kicked the door of her cottage open, the calm of the warm afternoon sunlight lost on her. "-old you to tell me if you were about to fall, damn it," bounced the savage mutterings off the stone walls. With a soft grunt Rosella deposited Erebus on her bed, the only one in the cottage, and turned to head right back outside, pausing only to grab a bucket. She went to the water pump and filled the bucket, then returned with it inside. She took a moment to poke the fire up, then started hunting down supplies. Soon the bucket at her side was so bloody she had to dump it out and get a new one. Erebus looked better without all that blood over him, but it revealed just how banged up he was. Taking advantage of his unconscious state she tended his wounds throughout the rest of the afternoon and well into evening twilight. Sighing with exhaustion she stepped back to survey her work. Erebus was covered in bandages, the most prominent ones being on his chest and left leg. He actually looked a bit worse than he was, since she had dipped bandages in a concoction she made for bruises and wrapped it around the worse-off ones to help them heal faster. The sharp, pungent oder of herbs hung about him. She bent down and gathered up his clothes, tossing them in a stout barrel and lighting up the copper boiler beneath it. Once she was sure it was ready she turned a knob, releasing hot water into the barrel. While it filled she tossed in some herbs that would help removed the scent, glad that Erebus largely wore black clothing. She turned off the stream of water and extinguished the fire in the boiler. Adding her own blood-stained clothing to the water, she climbed up a vertical ladder to the cottage's loft to grab a spare outfit.
Of course he fainted, despite how desperately he hadn't wanted to be a burden, or weak. They had been halfway there and then everything went dark, mouth unable to create the warning she had desired. He was out the entire time she patched him up, vaguely hearing the sound of water.
He groaned lowly, black eyes fluttering open, slamming shut immediately. /********/, his head hurt. Hell, his body ******** hurt. He made a move to get up, groaning loudly and flopping back down. Mistake. ********…. why was he so restricted? Ah. bandages. And where the hell was he? Rose had brought him here, right? He remembered that much… Groaning once more, the male tested his bandages, wincing briefly. Well, he'd never make fun of her healing abilities, huh?
"Awake? Well keep your a** in bed. I didn't haul you here just so you could try to stand on a busted leg and crack your head open on my floor when you fell." Rosella came sliding down from the loft, squeezing the rail and applying some pressure with her feet to slow her descent, then hopping lightly to the floor. She walked over to the steaming vat of water and pulling a paddled made of carved wood from the wall, poking at the contents. "Hope you don't mind that I stripped you. I promise it was all purely for medical purposes." She stirred at the barrel, a pleasant floral aroma wafting up with the warm mist from the water's surface.
"Need anything? Food, water, pain fighters. Directions to the bathroom?"
And then he realized she had stripped him. The pale male's cheeks turned bright red, head turning away from her. Then she saw the scars, probably. He sucked his teeth, humming in response. "I'm fine." He stated, his tail tiredly resting over his hip. "Where did you put my clothes?"
She dipped the stick in the barrel and fished around, then lifted up a very sodden piece of black clothing. Probably his shirt, though she wondered if the garment was worth saving. It had taken quite a bit of damage itself. He wasn't looking at her, but he could probably hear the splashing and dripping. She lowered it back into the water and continued stirring. "Not sure if you remember, but you were covered in blood. Quite a bit." She let go of the stick and lifted the hem of her plain, dark brown shirt, one she wore for house and garden work, turning her back to Erebus and hiking the shirt up around her shoulders so he could see her entire back, craning her own head around to look. She'd been wearing her usual tank top (also in the barrel), so when she'd had to carry Erebus on her back she'd gotten a lot of his blood on her. Most of her was covered with smears, even her legs. She'd wiped away the worst of it, but in anticipation of getting messy again while cleaning, she'd left most of the stuff covered by her clothing just dry. She'd bathe later. Large splotches of dried red covered her lower back, with a few smaller smears around her shoulders. She let her shirt fall and turned back around.
"I had to get at your wounds anyway, so I'm just washing everything." She raised an eyebrow. "If you're worried I peeked, don't. Like I said, purely medical.
He turned to view her back, wincing briefly. Weak. He had bled that much? What use was he if he was just draining liquid and fainting everywhere? He snorted slightly, a lazy smirk crossing his features.
"You don't seem the type to peek." He mused dryly, a deep and raspy cough escaping him. The male winced, hands raising slowly to his hands, nails digging through loose hair. ********, his head hurt like a b***h! He squirmed, turning his back to her (and wincing in response, but he was too stubborn to turn back over). ********. ******** ******** ******** style="color: darkviolet">Rosella chuckled. "Disappointed," she asked, propping the paddle in a corner and moving over to the stove. She lived too far away for electricity or plumbing, so everything in the cottage had that feeling of oldness, like stepping back in time. It fit with the feel from the forest, and she rather liked living this way. It felt simpler. In any case, her love of the solitude this place gave her trumped any lure of "civilization" that could be gained from moving closer to other people. She was saving up to buy some supplies to tap into her water pump and run a line right into the house. It would be nice not to have to go outside for water, though she did have rain collectors.
She nabbed an old black pot sitting on the stove and moved over to the fire, hanging it up with a quick ease that spoke of a lot of practice. She grabbed a bucket (a different one, meant for food rather than cleaning!) and went out to get water. She had to make three trips, and had a little water left over in the bottom of the bucket once the cauldron was full. That done she began moving around the cottage, putting out vegetables and dried meat, cutting and peeling and adding things to the soup forming above the fire.
"It's not really fancy or impressive. Most people would think this place is hardly more than a vacation hut for a crappy camping adventure." Rosella shrugged. "Still, it's home." She wasn't sure what Erebus was used to. Given some of his comments it sounds like he and his family lived just out in the woods, but you never knew. She wasn't even sure why she was bringing the topic up, except that Erebus would be here at least a week while his leg healed and she wanted to prepare him for any nasty surprises he might get if he was used to living better.
Erebus flicked his eyes to Rosella, head shaking quietly. "No." His low voice rumbled back, not offering any response after. Black eyes slowly closed, hands reaching up to fold behind him, but not without minimal discomfort. The man seemed uncomfortable, and he was. This was a strangers house, and he had been taught well. Still, it was /Rosella/, and she…. wasn't a threat. He wasn't an idiot, he still was tense around her and ready to snap her neck if she ever switched on him, but for the time being her body posture read neutral. Besides, he wasn't as uptight as his father was. Why would Rosella put up with his behavior for so long if she had intentions to harm him? She could have offed him while he was unconscious, too.
There he went again, arguing in his head to appease the voice that sounded too much like his dad. Narrowing dark eyes, he rolled onto his side, exposing his back to Rosella, a rare position. A sign he trusted her enough. His tail flicked around his hip, tapping gently against bone.
"It's fine." He finally grunted. Her home wasn't crappy, no. It was her home, and had touches that indicated so. If anything, it was better than those stone boxes people called home. Disgusting.
Rosella hummed softly in the back of her throat to indicate that she had heard Erebus, but otherwise didn't encroach on him for conversation. Silence suited her better anyway, as she lacked her father's gold tongue. It had gotten him in more than his fair share of trouble, though. She walked across the room with the board in her hand, adding the chopped items to the pot of water with soft splashes. The air, scented with herbs already from the various dried bundles hanging from the ceiling, took on a slightly savory scent as the water began to softly bubble.
The silence of the cottage was a comfortable one to Rosella. It was strange, sure, that she could call anything comfortable involving having a half-dead man who tried to kill and/or maim her on a regular basis in her house, on her bed, and more than half naked. Her father would bust a vein, and just the thought caused Rosella to smile a bit in amusement. She added more items to the stew, the scent of which began to fill the air and increase in strength. She made sure to chop everything finely so that it would either dissolve or be very soft when it was done, and therefore require little energy to eat. She wasn't even sure if Erebus was still awake since all she could see was his back. It wouldn't surprise her if he did fall asleep again. He'd been in pretty rough shape.
Erebus listened to her cook, finding it vaguely comforting as the scents reached him. He hadn't planned to fall asleep, but slowly his body eased into relaxation. The silence was something he was used to, and grateful that Rosella seemed to enjoy it as well.
Heh. Silver would be pissed if she saw this. She still was uptight over Erebus not returning her romantic feelings, and had recently gone at his throat (literally, too!) when he last visited her. She had always been too chatty, and too needy. He hoped the two never met. Rosella was the only non-family being he could actually tolerate for extended periods of times. Slowly, he drifted into a silent slumber, though could be easily roused if need be. He just needed a little more rest...
Rosella managed to get several things done that day. Once everything was in the stew and cooking she poked at the laundry and added a handful more of the dried herbal mix she used for her clothing. Then she went outside and proceeded to wash her kitchen tools, put those back, then scrubbed out the bucket she'd used to wash Erebus' wounds. She waded into the sun-warmed soil of her small garden, wiggling her bare toes in the earth as she plucked up the tiny weed shoots that invaded the beds and added them to her compost heap. She returned to the house using her shirt like a basket, filled with tomatoes, carrots, and peas. She put them away, revealing that an otherwise overlooked corner of the floor was actually a hatch. The cellar barely warranted the name, a hole in the ground about as deep as Rosella's legs were long, with several niches dug into the walls and the whole thing lined with stone and scrubbed clean. She stepped in and squatted down to tuck the vegetables away. One day she hoped to dig an actual cellar, but she had other more important projects awaiting her.
After that she went back to the wash, determined it was done, and began the arduous process of removing the articles of clothing to a bin, taking them outside to wring out, then hanging the damp items up to dry. That began the equally annoying process of emptying the washer, bucket by bucket. Normally she did laundry outside and could just pull out a plug to let it drain, but she'd been distracted and hadn't remembered to drag the thing out until it was too late. By the time everything was emptied and scrubbed the soup smelled more than done. Rosella began pulling bowls and spoons out of her cupboard, debating her next move. Erebus was still in the same position, and she was fairly sure he had indeed fallen asleep. Should she wait for him to wake up or wake him up now? She'd rather he get food in him, but if he had no appetite then sleep would be better for now. How would she even wake him? Touching seemed out of the question, since he was wary of it even when fully conscious, clothed, and in good shape. Startling him seemed just too mean. "Erebus," she called out softly, feeling slightly silly.
He hated dreaming.
They always revolved around two things: His blood lust and his father. Perhaps he had a father complex, but he'd never admit it. He wasn't as strong as him, or skilled. His father had mastered controlling that need for blood, but it had taken him such a long time. His dreams were plagued with a long haired father who smirked at each failure. Blood poured, infecting his sight, tainting it a dark red. Laughter flickered into his ears, taunting and vicious.
Discomfort washed through his entire body. He didn't whimper, nor did he twitch, but a tension creeped into his bones. He felt trapped, trapped within a body he never wanted and a family he loved and yet didn't feel he truly gave justice to. His body ached, needing to wake, yet trapped within this dark dream that had repeated for years.
'Erebus'. An ear flicked, hands tightening slightly. It was a soft voice, familiar to the ears. An eye fluttered open, relief washing through him. Awake. Finally awake. Slowly, he turned his head, an eye visible to Rosella. "Rosella." He croaked, voice rough from sleep.
Rosella quirked her head to the side, examining Erebus. "You look like hell," she observed. It seemed that the sleep made him look worse, though she supposed it was because bruises had more time to form and no one looked their best when they just woke up. She picked up a bowl and moved to the pot over the fire, spooning some of the thick liquid into the bowl. "Think you can stomach something," she asked, looking him over again. There was no point putting food in his stomach if it would come right back up again.
He grunted in response, moving to show his back to her once again. "Thanks." He mused back, lifting his head once again when she mentioned food. Slowly and with a wince he squirmed into a sitting position, eyes flicking to the bowl and then her. "Yes." His fingers criss-crossed over one another, having to remember his manners. Being beaten up and broken made it hard to remember the few manners he had. "You didn't have to…. do all this."
"Call me sentimental, but I'd have problems leaving someone I spar with on a regular basis to become a roadside skeleton. That forest is gloomy enough, it doesn't need the help." She went to grab the second bowl off the counter and filled it up, then moved to sit in the single chair in the cottage pushed up to a tiny table, snagging a spoon as she did so. She settled down and ate a few bites of stew, gently blowing on each spoonful to avoid burning her tongue. It was still quite warm. After giving herself and Erebus to get a bit of food inside themselves she looked back up at him. "Not like it's something that's ever had to come up before now. I've never seen you get worse than bumps, bruises, and scratches." She waved a hand to indicate the mass of bandages covering Erebus' chest, visible since he was sitting up and the blanket had pooled in his lap. Of course she knew his lower half was just as bad, if not many levels worse. "Seriously, how did you get so thoroughly thrashed?"
A slight gruff laugh escaped him. He held his bowl, taking a few bites before setting it down. He needed time to eat it, he wasn't about to scarf it down and make himself feel worse. "It's good." He admitted before offering a response to her last question. His hand twitched into a fist, head turning to the side.
"I was an idiot." He grumbled. "A woman was about to be murdered. I stepped in front of her. She didn't seem so pleased and left immediately."
"So someone is about to murder a woman. You stick your neck out and get beaten to within an inch of your life. And this woman just....walks off?" She quirked an eyebrow upward. Even knowing how odd and dangerous that forest could be, it was the first she'd heard of something like this. "You know, maybe you should move. If you aren't living in a forest that seems to beckon killers to it's shadows, maybe your temper would settle down." She was teasing, of course, though most would have to know her to realize it since she was always deadpan with her tones. She was knew that if it was as simple as a bit of sunlight and change of scenery then Erebus could have gotten things under control ages ago. She sipped on her stew, shaking her head slightly at the ridiculousness of all the danger that lurked in the dark forest.
"Still, that had to be a heck of a first blow. You're pretty fast for your size, and it's hard enough to take you down that I'm pretty sure you've got a skull twice as think as the average person." She honestly didn't want to meet the thing that could shred Erebus like it was nothing.
"Sounds about right." Erebus mumbled, moving to take another bite of dinner. Glancing up at her, he stared at the woman, about to retort back when instead he simply went back to eating. He had learned to decipher when she was joking, however the idea of moving left him unsettled. Would that be betrayal? Leaving his family? Would his father be able to let go of one of his children?
Her next words caused a slight prideful smile on his face. "He had wings." He stated, black eyes flicking up. "He's slow. But his wingspan was massive. He knocked me over after about fifteen minutes of me dodging his blows."
"Did you ever consider just running away?" She shrugged, tapping her spoon against her mostly empty bowl. "It doesn't really give you a good feeling, but it's still valid and sometimes the only thing you cam do." Tap tap tap. "My dad taught me that one when I was little, after I got into a fight and lost bad." She smiled slightly. "He said if you're defending someone you stand your ground, because if you fall the one you're protecting will get hurt. But if it's just you, there's no shame in running away. I could understand if the chick was still there, but sounds like she took off pretty quick." She tried to picture something with huge wings living in that forest, and couldn't. Not unless he didn't mind never being able to use them much. You saw the sky infrequently in that place, and the trees got really thick sometimes. Even she felt a bit claustrophobic there, but then she was used to open spaces.
"I was trying to once the wing hit me, but his claws found my ribs and the world went black." Erebus poked his bowl, slowly looking up at her. "Sometimes I want to run." He admitted, his voice soft despite its usual rough undertone. "I can't." He didn't comment further, going back to his meal in peace.
Rosella left him alone at that, and finished eating the rest of her meal in silence. For the most part she was able to put it out of mind. It wasn't like it was her nature to want to run round fixing things. She knew she wouldn't want someone else poking their nose into her life and trying to tell her what she needed to do. She rather liked the terminology she'd once heard from a show, when a girl told her father that he couldn't ride in on a white horse wearing a suit of armor to rescue her. That she had to rescue herself. That was how she viewed a lot of problems. Sure, sometimes help was needed but the individual couldn't bring themselves to ask, but she was sure if there was anything she could do to help that Erebus would have asked.
Meal finished, she stood and went to the sink to wash her bowl. A glance at Erebus made her wonder if the clothes were dry yet; she wasn't sure she had anything here that would fit him. "So your family's not going to come for blood for me kidnapping you, I hope," she commented, mostly joking but partially serious. He never talked directly about them, but she was still pretty sure they were people she didn't want hunting her down.
Erebus flicked his eyes up to view her, head shaking halfway. "I doubt it." He commented, though he wasn't sure. "Maybe one of them." He knew Sin wouldn't want to bring the entire family, that would be too dangerous for his family. He probably would end up trying to track him down, but Sin couldn't smell. Though, the blood-trail… he was sure he probably dripped blood everywhere as they walked.
s**t. Well, lucky for Rosella and partially himself, Sin wasn't as violent as before. He'd ask questions before flipping, for sure.
"Well that's comforting. I'll just sleep with an eye open, that should do it." She dried the clean bowl with a towel and put it away. "Thankfully none of my family lives nearby. I'm pretty sure you're the kind of person that would find my dad a continual pain, though my step mom's pretty cheerful most of the time." She turned and leaned against the counter, arms crossed over her chest as she watched Erebus. "But seriously, if you need me to contact your family somehow so they can get you I'll figure something out. You can't be on that leg for a least a week, and that's pushing things." She paused to let him consider that, then continued, "I mean you're welcome to stay here until then. I just figured maybe you'd feel more comfortable around people you trust."
Erebus eyed her, not offering a response when she spoke at first. He couldn't blame her, his family were frightening. Not to him, but to others. If he was in her shoes he'd feel the same. Tapping his nail against the bowl, he finally finished his meal and set the bowl down.
Go home? No. He knew how'd that go. Quietly, he shifted back onto his side. "I trust you."
Rosella hummed softly under her breath. "You sure? We're talking about living in close quarters with someone you see only on an infrequent basis, who routinely never stays in one place for too long. That's bound to make most people a bit twitchy." She just didn't want Erebus to confuse trust with tolerance. These next few days would put a strain even on trust, as new as it seemed to be between them. Tolerance it would outright break.
"I am sure." Erebus stated, voice firm. It seemed like that was all he needed to say, leaning into his pillow. Silence overcame the two for a period of time before he finally seemed actually willing to start a conversation for once. "What do I owe you?"
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Posted: Tue Dec 09, 2014 9:41 pm
"Well there's always weeds that need pulling. Or chopping up herbs and tying them in cheesecloth bundles for later. You should stay away from stuff that'll put a strain on your leg, but there's always little things around here that can be done." She thought of the single outfit Erebus owned, all of it (with the exception of a single piece), currently hanging on a pole that exposed it to the breeze. She immediately resolved to make a trip into town soon.
"I actually have some things I need to do tomorrow and I won't be back 'til late. The food will keep 'til then so you won't have to cook anything. You should probably rest most of tomorrow anyway, if you can." Silently she wondered how long Erebus would be able to put up with staying cooped inside the cottage. Hopefully he healed fast!
Erebus made a face. Not to the helping, no, but he obviously wasn't interested in resting all day. He was a restless man, and Rosella would be lucky if he stayed in the bed for tonight! Sighing grumpily, he folded his arms, grunted, and looked away.
"I'll try and sit pretty." He mumbled, though it was clear in his tone that was a complete lie.
Rosella just laughed, a quick, short laugh. "Now would be the perfect time to practice meditation. I can even show you how if you've never done it before." A wicked gleam flashed through her eyes. "I could also show you how to do other things, like sewing and knitting, drying and grinding herbs, pickling and canning food. There's all sorts of fun stuff like that that doesn't require you to move around."
The man saw that gleam, watching her with narrow eyes. "Are you trying to make me into a housewife?" He whispered with a slight grump, fingers plucking at the covers. He couldn't imagine himself sewing or knitting. Grinding herbs, sure. But…. Eh.
She chuckled. "Nah. You probably wouldn't look at all adorable in an apron, after all." Her expression grew more serious. "Just offering alternatives to being bored out of your mind. I also own books, if you prefer to read to pass the time. Most of the stuff to be done around here requires the legs be strong. I'd rather not see us get halfway through this and then you snap the bone again." Her words might have been a bit gruff, but the way she shifted her gaze away showed she really did care. She just didn't know how to express that care in a traditional caring fashion.
Erebus watched her, cracking a half-smile. "You'd be surprised." He sunk into the bed, clearly exhausted once more. Tugging the blanket over himself, the long male grimaced as he realized he couldn't curl up in his usual sleeping position.
He seemed briefly awkward, watching Rosella through tired eyes. Finally, he whispered one last thing before he would try and go back to much needed sleep. "Thank you."
Rosella smiled slightly and straightened. "You don't have to thank me. I'm just doing what I feel like." With that awkward reply, she slipped outside to check on the laundry.
_____________________
Rosella sighed and readjusted the straps of her very full pack, glad to see the little cottage looming up before her. Last night she'd made a bed among the crates in her loft, using the few spare blankets she owned to create a nest. Luckily it was still warm at night, since all the blankets were a bit light. Erebus appeared to still be sleeping when she slipped out early that morning, the sky still the dark steel grey of predawn. She'd left a couple books within easy reach, in case he did want to look something, then set off towards town. The sun was well in the sky by the time she made it there. She'd gone for new medical supplies first, since she knew where to go. That was the easiest part of her day. After that she wandered from store to store in the city, looking for clothing for Erebus. It was tough going. The dude was so tall that she couldn't find things that would fit him, and of the few things she did find they were outrageously priced. She ended the day in a thrift shop and went for the biggest clothing she could find. She could easily tailor it to properly fit him later, just so long as the clothing was long enough to cover him. The results were...pretty mixed. With all that shoved into her bag she'd begun the trek home later than she'd hoped. Already the sun was dipping to the horizon, about to vanish entirely.
She turned the latch and pushed the door open, stepping inside. "I'm back," she mumbled, feeling very silly. She'd been living alone for so long that the concept of having someone to come home to was just a bit awkward.
And when she came back she would find Erebus on the floor, attempting to stand with a snarl escaping clenched teeth.
Lets go back to the beginning. He had indeed been asleep when she left, but woke an hour later. He had sat there, fidgeting. Eventually, the need to /move/ infected his brain. He had wanted to do something, /anything/. Of course, the second a long limb touched the ground and the muscular male rose he collapsed. That hadn't stopped him. He had tried to, with great injured pride, to crawl closer to the door. He hadn't been trying to escape, not at all. His intention was to see if he could repair anything.
Instead, he discovered standing wasn't working. So, when Rosella walked in he was caught gripping the table, trying to pull himself up. He froze there, eyeing her, looking much like a caught child. Clearing his throat, the male glanced at her backpack briefly. "Hey."
Rosella paused. The corner of her mouth twitched. Probably because she couldn't decide whether to frown at Erebus attempting to stand and move around already or to smile at the ridiculous expression that flashed over his face. He looked like a child who expected a scolding, maybe even a spanking, was imminent. She did neither, of course, just set the bag down, and, sighing, walked over to Erebus and ducked under his arm, pulling it around her shoulders and hoisting it up. "Back to bed with you. You break something else, I'm duct taping you down whenever I have to leave."
After getting him back on the bed she went over to the table and grabbed her bag. The medical stuff she removed, then she took the bag over to Erebus and set it on the bed next to him. "Here, look through that. It was hard to find stuff your size, so I had to guess. I can alter stuff that's too baggy. Oh, and if the package in there is the wrong size don't open it. I'll just return it later."
Erebus groaned lowly as she approached, going limp the second she touched him so as to resist the fighting his body wanted to do. Back to the bed? Really? He nestled back into the god forsaken bed, casting it a skin-crawling glare before settling in. His eyes trailed after her as she approached, viewing the bag with a raised eyebrow. Pawing through it, he grimaced slightly.
"They smell weird." Oh, wasn't he so good at words?
"Your own fault for being such a giant. Tall people are hard to shop for," she responded. Clearly he wasn't going to win any sympathy from her. "They just smell like the store. They're clean though. If it bugs you so bad I've got herbs that'll make it smell better. Unless you like walking around in just your underthings. We have to change your bandages anyway, which means cleaning the wounds." She looked him over. "Think you can handle it if I get you in the wash room, or do you need help to reach?"
"My father's fault, actually." He mumbled back, setting the bag down. Nodding, the male flicked his gaze up her, giving a challenging twitch of his mouth. "Am I going to get sponge-bathed?"
Rosella met Erebus' challenging look with an equally challenging gaze and set of her eyebrows. "If you're unable to reach all of your wounds, then yes. And with your ribs how they are, I question if you can or not."
"You question if I can wash myself." And there it was, that competitive gaze in his eyes. "Obviously I can wash myself."
"Oh? Well since you can do that, why don't you go ahead and remove the bandages while I warm up some water. Just a bucket and sponge for now, you can have a proper bath once your wounds have all properly sealed shut." With that she moved over to the little stove and started poking at the wood-burning section, placing tinder and small bits of wood in and setting them ablaze, then ducking out briefly and scooping a bucket of water from a rain catcher. Soon the water sat on the stove, heating up so it would at least be a warm wash.
"Alright." He grunted back, and began working on his bandages. The second he bent down he had to fight back a yelp. /********/. That hurt. Glowering, he spent a few minutes trying to yank off his bandages, only to find it futile. This ******** sucked. He wasn't used to being so helpless! This wasn't like him, at all. Sighing, he prepared to have to let go of his ego and ask for help.
Rosella raised an eyebrow. "Having trouble are we?" She refrained from the I told you so; it would probably only make Erebus pissy. Still, she wasn't going to step in and help 'til he asked.
"Mm." Erebus grunted, staring down at his body. Sucking it in, the male looked up, shoulders visibly tensing as he was about to speak. "…….I need help."
Rosella nodded and went over to Erebus. She tried to be careful not to jostle the wounds as she unwound the bandage from his chest, especially when they got closer to the bare skin. Blood had glued the bandage down in places and she tried to removed them as cleanly as possibly, but she still caused a few trickles of blood to start flowing again. The leg at least was more internally injured and did not have so many scratches, but she was just as careful, if not more so, in removing the bandages.
"Alright, up now," she said, pulling his arm over her shoulder and hoisting up. She managed to get him in the wash room and sat him down on a stool. The room contained an actual tub. She had set up a rain-collecting tub so that she could easily fill the tub, but for the most part she only used it when a hot soak was needed. It was just easier and required less water to use the bathing method she was about to put Erebus through. "Wait right there, I'll be back with the water."
He couldn't help wincing, recoiling into himself a bit. When she pulled his arm he shifted to try and help her, resting on the stool once they moved him in their with a low sigh. Eyeing the tub, he felt grateful she had one. He desperately wanted to clean his body, especially after he noticed just how dirty he was.
Rosella came back with a bucket filled with water that steamed slightly. She set it down then went over to a small cabinet, pulling out a sponge. She eyed Erebus, then the sponge, the bucket, and Erebus again. "You going to behave or do we have to go through the same conversation," she asked. She didn't want to make it that much harder on him, but this was equally embarrassing for her.
Erebus grimaced when she looked at him. He didn't want to do this, at all. He hated the idea of being taken care of like a baby. Still, he slowly moved closer to her, head turning away, perhaps a tiny of red sneaking into his cheeks. "Just….. get it over with."
"You should only be so lucky," she responded, not really caring if he understood the statement or not. She walked over to the bucket, dipped the sponge in, and started cleaning Erebus' body. She tried to be impersonal about it, focusing on the task rather than Erebus himself. She had to be careful, going over his chest wound, but soon was scrubbing the rest of his body. She went all the way down to his waist, then moved to get his legs; he wasn't /that/ helpless that he needed cleaning those areas. Once she finished his legs she handed him the sponge. "Get anything else I missed. I'll be right back." She made sure to close the door to the room, and waited several minutes before tapping on the door again. Upon receiving positive affirmation she reentered the room, carrying another steaming bucket of water; there was enough on the stove that she could pour half a bucket of boiling water into half a bucket of cool water, and get two buckets of perfect temperature bathing water. She had another bucket heating up on the stove, since most of her bathing required four buckets. She went over to Erebus.
"Close your eyes and hold you breath," she warned, then dumped the bucket of water in a flow over his head, washing away the dirt scrubbed loose by the sponge and wetting his hair. She set the empty bucket down and poured out the one with the sponge water, then went back to her cupboard and pulled out a bottle of mystery liquid. She poured this into Erebus' hair, and began working it in. A gentle lather worked itself up, but it was far less than the usual store-bought shampoos. A very herbal scent filled the air. Finally she'd gotten all of his long hair. "Okay, be right back." She took both buckets and left the room.
Erebus refused to look at her, intensely relieved when she handed the sponge to him and headed off. He finished the job, grunting in a mildly affirmative response when she knocked, which meant just a slightly higher pitched grunt. Barely.
He was intensely disappointed he couldn't /be/ in the tub, closing his eyes when commanded. The hot water was dumped on him and the male leaned into the flow of water, releasing a low, content sigh once it had all ran down his aching body. For one second, his tail wagged, stiffening seconds later. When she grabbed the mystery liquid and approached his hair his ears flipped back, clearly not amused. However, like a rarely touched dog, he subconsciously leaned into her touch. Just like his father, he loved his hair being touched. When she stood to leave he had to catch the disappointed sigh that wanted to escape. Maybe later he'd somehow trick her into rubbing his head again.
Rosella came back with both buckets, each steaming slightly. Little bundles floated in them, and the steam rising from the buckets had the faintest of herbal smells, slightly different from the herbal smell of the shampoo and much weaker. "Alright, eyes and breath again." She didn't pour the entire bucket in one go. Instead she would pour a little, set the bucket down and run her hands through Erebus' hair, working the shampoo up again, and the pick the bucket back up and pour more water over his head. It took the entire bucket and part of the second one to work all the lather out of his hair. "Now I remember why I cut mine short. This stuff must be a maintenance nightmare," she commented.
She held up the rest of the second bucket, the herbal smell a bit more pungent since the bundle had more time to steep. "You need to scrub anything else before I dump this on you?"
When she returned he immediately smelled the herbal scents, looking up at her with an expression that read 'you and your herbal s**t.' Still, he obediently closed his eyes, flashing them open briefly when she touched his hair. He couldn't help once more leaning into the touch, just giving a slight hum when she spoke about his hair.
What was it with this woman and her magic ******** fingers? Now he understood why animals loved their heads being rubbed. "No. I got everything." He responded, preparing his body for the bucket.
Rosella couldn't help a silent chuckle. Erebus reminded her of some of the stray cats in town. They were always so aloof and wanted pretty much nothing to do with people aside from their food, but she'd lured a few close before with canned food. Initially they'd been startled at being touched, but then they had melted under the caresses she'd given them. Of course there was always a point when it was time to pull back before they decided to scratch the person. She carefully poured the rest of the warm water over Erebus' head, catching the herbal bag before it landed on his head. She held it up. "Good for the hair and skin. My hair is naturally this color, but white hair always look frail if you don't care for it properly." She tossed the soggy bundle in the bucket with the other one, then pulled out a drying cloth. She gave his body a brisk patting down, then wrapped his hair in the cloth in a roll on his head. "Be right back."
She vanished, then reappeared with a package. While it did smell a bit like the thrift store, the packaging clearly spoke of never being opened before. "Hopefully the waist size is good. If it is go ahead and see if you can pull a pair on." Her look clearly stated a wish that he could manage this on his own while she ducked out of the washroom and closed the door.
Erebus wasn't the type to like being taken care of, however, Rosella had made it a bit enjoyable. However, he was pleased when it was over. She left, returning with clothes. His own looked clearly told her he rather drop dead then have her help him get his lower parts covered. Luckily, she left, and he was left to struggle. Which he did, but eventually the object found their places.
Yes, their were wide around the waists, but hell, it was something.. Tugging on the waist slightly, he reminded himself to somehow repay the favor. He wasn't one who liked to leave favors open for long…. or even be in debt.
While Erebus (hopefully) got everything under control, Rosella went to dig in her bag for some of the clothes she had bought him. His original clothing was dry by now, but was so shredded that the shirt was going to have to be scrapped. The pants could maybe be saved. Maybe. When she left Erebus to scrub himself she'd dumped most of the clothing out of the bag, taking it to hang on the pole outside the door that she used for small things. Now she went back and sorted through the pile she'd made. Everything still smelled like thrift shop, but at least a little less. She grabbed two items, shook them out and beat them against the side of the cottage, then brought them in. She laid lavender (she could almost feel Erebus rolling his eyes when her fingers touched the herbs) on the clothing and folded them, leaving them to sit while she grabbed the medical supplies she bought and went to the washroom, tapping on the door. "You done changing or did you keel over trying to pull them on?"
He KNEW she was playing with herbs. He sensed it. What was with that woman and herbs? When she tapped on the door he tossed the packaging to the ground, grunting. "I managed. I'm not completely helpless. If I ever get to that point please just kill me." And hell, he was partially making an honest request.
"Too late. You opened the underwear and I can't take it back, so no choice but to live now." She picked up the package and set it on the shelf. She didn't know what he'd need with three pairs of boxes, but that was the lowest pack size she could find. With another drying cloth she set to making sure his wounds were completely dry before she began bandaging the scratches on his leg with simple bandaids. "Well now you know why I'm going through the forest so often. And that's just for a couple kinds of herbs. Most of what I use I can find or grow here." Next she pulled a brace forward, fixing Erebus with a stern look. "This is going to restrict movement, but that's what your leg needs right now. Make sure to leave it on, even when it's uncomfortable, or we're going with a cast. And those can't be removed, which means very awkward baths."
She gently fitted the brace to his leg, then turned her attention to his torso. The wound got cleaned with a disinfectant, left for a moment to dry, then she pulled out the rolls of bandage and started wrapping him up. "We're gonna have to clean this daily. If it goes sour then I'll have to drag you to a hospital. With a busted leg, that'll be a fun walk."
He sighed dramatically, though his low voice and clear humor behind it ruined the effect. God damn it, though. Here he was, in ******** /boxers/, letting some woman take care of him. He'd need to keep that thought to himself, he was sure she'd punish him with more herbs. He allowed her to tend to him, eyeing the brace with disgust.
As she fitted the brace and then tended to his wounds he watched, suddenly twitching at the mention of a hospital. "No. I'm not going to a hospital."
"Then keep the brace on and no more stumbling around like a hatchling," she said firmly, tying off the bandage. "If you need to go outside wait 'til I'm around to help." She tapped his arm, indicating it was time to get up again. She helped him back to the bed, getting him in a sitting position, then turned and got the clothing off the table. She shook the lavender out; at least the clothing smelled a bit better. She handed the items over to him. "I got some more if those don't work out, but see if they fit."
He sighed, nodding in response. Fine, he'd be a good boy. When he finally was settled in the bed he watched her, watching the lavender fall out. It smelled like his uncle, weird. Why'd she pick lavender of all things? Accepting the items, he knew putting them on would be an epic struggle, but hey, finally clothes.
Rosella watched him examine the clothes, noting the slight face he pulled at the lavender. It reminded her of a conversation that seemed like forever ago when he warned her about the smell. He'd never elaborated and she never asked. Hopefully he wasn't allergic. That didn't seem to be the case though, thankfully. He eyed the clothes like he was debating the best plan of attack. "Need help with the shirt," she offered. It was a button-up so he didn't have to pull it on, but stretching seemed to be painful for him right now.
"No." He mused back, and for once he was right. He wiggled the shirt on and seemed immediately relieved that he had /some/ ability to dress himself. Of course he flinched, even wincing as he put it on, but the shirt found its way on his body.
He tugged on the seams of the shirt, clearly not impressed. But he rested, not wanting to complain and lose the shirt. It was better than the alternative, which was half-naked and exposed vulnerably to the other.
Rosella's brows twitched in amusement, but she didn't comment. Well, it wasn't like she had been trying to dress him up like he was some kind of doll. She'd just looked for clothing that was sturdy and would fit. Apparently he was unimpressed.
"So, did you want to do anything today?" The question felt somewhat awkward in her mouth. Despite her knowledge of medical care she didn't really look after others. The knowledge had been absorbed for the intention of healing any of her own wounds. She certainly wasn't used to waiting on others anymore than Erebus was likely used to being waited on, but she'd spent pretty much the entire day out and doing stuff, leaving him on his own when he couldn't yet move about properly. It seemed only decent to offer. Of course the sun was now completely down, the sky velvety black and dotted with stars while crickets serenaded, fireflies put on a show, and nocturnal creatures scuffled about in the woods. She didn't even know if Erebus wanted to do anything at all, or just rest.
Erebus nodded quietly, feeling like a caged animal allowed out of his confinement with a leash. "I want to sit outside." He mused. Erebus was an outdoors man, and hadn't ever been in a house as long as this. He was anxious, wanting to feel the dirt underneath his hands and the cool, autumn breeze. He /needed/ to, or he'd go insane sitting here.
His tail lashed loosely like an aggravated cat, twitching gently against the bed. He wanted to heal /now/, but he knew the limits of the physical body.
Rosella nodded. She walked over to him and helped him stand, feeling a bit odd as she did so because of how familiar the gesture felt. She resolved to make him a walking stick. At least then he could move around the house and garden outside on his own without putting too much stress on his leg. Together they managed to get outside. Rosella steered him over towards her little garden. Since she lived in an open area at the forest edge there wasn't a whole lot of vegetation, just wild grass and the occasional hearty shrub. When Spring came around again the ground wildflowers, but at the moment there wasn't much variety. Her garden held a great deal for it's small size. A few herbs, yes, but it was largely made up of food plants. Nothing ornamental; those few plants were in tiny gardens of their own by her front door.
She left Erebus by the short fence she deter rabbits and other small rodents and went back inside, coming out with a chair and a basket. She set the chair down, wiggling it a bit to make sure it was steady in the soft earth, then vanished into the foliage and gloom, the plants rustled softly as she moved among them.
Erebus was intensely relieved when she helped him up and set him down. Erebus rested against the ground, sighing happily as he flopped onto his back, a brief wince following. Aaah. This was much better, /this/ felt like home. It felt right, rather than stifled in a box. Sure, Rosella's place wasn't offensive at all, but it was just…. too much. If he ever lived in a house he'd need plenty of time outside before he'd settle down properly.
Rosella had gone somewhere, yet he didn't really notice. She was quiet, anyway, just like him. She'd return soon. She always did.
_____________________
And so the two fell into a strange life together. Erebus preferred to spend as much time as he could outside, which Rosella understood. Most of the food she cooked was in quantity to last them a day or two. If they didn't have anything warm to eat in the morning she would just make a cold meal from bread, butter and vegetables. She'd help Erebus outside and they'd eat breakfast, then she would vanish into her garden to tend to it. Erebus did his own thing. Sometimes she'd find him where she left him, sometimes he'd be sitting in the chair she left outside, and sometimes he'd have moved around to a different spot. One day she'd presented him with a carving knife and a long, stout piece of wood she'd found in the forest, instructing him to make something he could use to hobble around on his own. After that she didn't need to help him outside, and while he didn't stray too far from the cottage she did find him around the grassy field or forest edge from time to time. Neither were huge talkers, so on days she was gone to forage she wasn't sure exactly what he got up to. She knew he was exploring the cottage. Nothing was really messy or out of place, but food from the cellar would be missing or small things would appear to have been moved. She considered telling him off the day she'd found indications he'd been climbing up into the loft, but decided to let it go. He might be a little reckless, but she doubted he would have risked his neck if he didn't think he could make it up and down the loft ladder.
After a week she noticed Erebus was a bit more fidgety. She'd find evidence that he'd pulled a weed or two out of the garden, though he never messed with the plants that were supposed to grow there beyond pulling the occasional bit of ripe produce to eat. Rosella had started collecting wood when she was in the forest now, bringing back good pieces of varying sizes that he could carve. She never asked him for anything since it was just to give him something to do, but small things began to appear around the house. Sculptures, rough at first but striking because of their simplicity. They grew in detail, and sometimes she'd find Erebus had gone back to smooth out his earliest creations. Then one day a new chair had appeared. Now they could both sit down at the table and eat a meal together, though Rosella was gone most of the time. It wasn't always the forest she went to. She would go into the city to practice at the community center and buy supplies. Some days she brought home food, tasty treats made from things that weren't easy to come by at her cottage. Some days she would share things she had learned with Erebus, though since he was still recovering they could only do simple stuff.
By week three Erebus was getting around more easily. Rosella noticed more things happening around the cottage. The fireplace was often cleaned of ashes and new wood laid out so that it was ready for a new fire to be burned. For a while the newest things that kept appearing the house were buckets. There was always at least one filled with water by the stove. There was one near the fireplace filled with kindling. Several were in the washroom, stacked and awaiting use. Perhaps the thing that caused the biggest fight between them since she'd first brought Erebus home was the day she came back and found all the things from her root cellar piled neatly in several buckets sitting on the table, the door to the cellar open, a heap of dirt-smeared stones next to it, and buckets filled with earth all around it. And Erebus' leg brace propped against the wall. He'd protested that it was too hard to move around in the small space with it on. Rosella was pissed all the rest of that day and well into the next morning, but she did have to admit that the larger cellar was nice. Erebus gave her this smug look that made her want to be the one to initiate a fight for the first time and had removed herself from the house to keep from giving in to the temptation. She was mollified when she came home to find a trundle bed almost fully constructed; it would be nice to not have to sleep on the loft floor.
Not that Erebus was able to master all walks of domestic life. She learned his drive to cook extended only to grabbing ready-to-eat objects, so all warm meals came from her. Laundry was something else she did. There had been a day she'd stayed at the cottage all day and worked on the clothes she bought for Erebus, hemming sleeves and legs that were too long and taking in the waist so that his pants didn't fall off and his shirts didn't billow like dresses. Those with the most objectionable patterns she had bleached, then dyed to darker, plain colors. He rolled his eyes at her herbs still, so she was the one who made medicine and bathing products, along with tea or flavor packets for food and scent packets for stored clothing. Once the trundle bed was finished she'd made a mattress for it, stuffed with fragrant grasses.
It had now been five weeks. The cellar was covered with rock (it had taken her a while to find usable pieces) and required stairs (built by Erebus) to get to. She'd finally been able to buy some of the needed supplies and Erebus had started to build the offshoot from her pump well to the sink inside her house. There was an exposed trench of earth outside, mounds of dirt still here and there while he finished the project. It was something of a challenge to get him to keep his leg brace on by now, but since he still used the walking stick she didn't make as big a deal over it as she had the first time. Rosella was in the kitchen, the sound of sizzling meat and the tantalizing oder wafting through the air, listening to the soft clanks of metal caused by Erebus outside. The sun was already setting and she expected he'd come in soon enough. Another pot on the small stove bubbled merrily, the vegetables inside surfacing with the bubbles before being pushed back down. She couldn't get over how natural it all felt when it should feel strange. She wasn't used to sharing her living space this long. Maybe it was because they both spent as much time alone as they did together, but if anyone had told her she and Erebus would share a living space for this long without wanting to rip the other's throat out she'd have suspected that person to have been drinking. Of course they didn't get along perfectly. They still argued and got on each other's nerves plenty of times. But even that felt different. Like barbed and sarcastic banter as opposed to actual arguing. And weirdest of all to her was that it was hard now to picture what her life would be like without Erebus in it. Coming home to a cottage that was empty, and no matter how long she waited no one else would show up. No more little decorative carvings or functional pieces appearing. The wood and stone she collected building up instead of vanishing almost as soon as it hit the pile. She would have to remember to cook less food and there would be less dirt-smeared clothing in need of a wash. She poked once more at the venison steaks she cooked, lost in thought and feeling oddly forlorn.
Erebus had spent plenty of his time working. He couldn't sit still, and wouldn't. She had given him a bed and medicine, and by the time Erebus was given wood and a carving knife it was all over. The cane was created, and he was up and moving around like a hell-demon. He began to sneak around when she wasn't home, working on repairs here and there, fussing over things he had made before that just weren't up to standards. The cottage slowly became filled with touches of himself, and for once it didn't seem strange. He had never had many possessions, but seeing his sculptures resting on a table here and a chair he made placed over there gave him an odd sense of familiarity. The cottage became "home" for the time-being. It started out as a rare word, but slowly Erebus began to refer to the cottage as his home in conversation, however it didn't drown out the rare talks he had about his "true home", back in the woods.
Life at the cottage felt natural. Just as it felt normal for Rosella, he too felt right at the cottage. They began to mesh, doing their own projects and attending to what needed to be done. They'd relax together later in the evening, small playful banter and quiet stories interrupting the usual silence that had once fallen upon them during his first two weeks. While he was not much of a speaker, he offered more in conversations in week three. However, a new behavior took over: Paranoia. He began to twitch at every sound in the night. He'd silence Rosella when she spoke if a twig broke outside. He became worried his family had enough of awaiting his return and tracked him down. His worry over Rosella was obvious, however he'd never speak on it, or even announce it. It was a quiet feeling, and something he was not about to actually verbally reveal.
Week three had been the hardest, as Erebus had tried to do something nice. An inherent need to repay her services came over him, and he had remembered an off-hand comment she had made. And so, he wobbled to the cellar, and began work. Rosella hadn't been too pleased, and Erebus had immediately given her the silent-treatment. This was why he rarely did anything nice. Though, the two mended their arguing, especially when Rosella seemed pleased eventually by his progress on the cellar, in which he sent her a rather smug expression. Ha. He was right. She couldn't be too mad, now.
And now we come to today, where he was busy at work once more. Moving around was becoming far easier, and today was a day he rejected the brace. The sun was setting and the muscular male leaned back, letting out a warm, tired sigh. He was near finishing, but not close enough to where he felt comfortable taking a day to relax. Seizing up his cane and pushing off on it to stand, the male headed in-doors, smelling the delicious scent of food once he entered. Quiet as always, he slunk into the kitchen. He was slowly gaining back the ability to be that stealthy male he once was, and his footsteps were getting lighter and lighter by the day. It felt good, slowly returning to the man he was.
"Steak?" He mused, his deep voice vibrating lowly. Ah, /that/ was why it smelled so good.
Rosella started slightly. While it was difficult to actually hear Erebus moving around sometimes she could normally sense whenever he was in the room with her. This time she had been so lost in her preoccupations that his presence had gone entirely below her usual radars. Not a good habit to get in to, though by this point both had a great deal more trust for each other and weren't worried about coming to blows out of nowhere.
"Well there's only so many pots of soup and strips of dried jerky you can stand before it's nice to have something more fresh and substantial. Plus it's about that season, so might as well take advantage of the fresh meat while it's plentiful." Of course she could always buy meat in town if she seriously wanted to, but hunting was cheaper and left more money for things that were truly needed. She picked up a knife and stabbed at the vegetables in the pot. Good, the potatoes were just about done. She moved them from the heat so that they didn't overcook. The steaks had a good sear on them, so she moved the pan into the oven and set a new pot on the stove. Green beans didn't need nearly so long to cook as the other two ingredients. She then drained the water from the potatoes and began chopping them into bite-sized chunks, setting them aside. She was going to put those in the steak pan later, so that they soaked up the flavor and seasoning from the fat. Venison was pretty lean, but that was fine. No need to drown the potatoes with fat.
Rosella didn't even bother to frown at Erebus' braceless leg anymore. Not like her frowns did much good when he got stubborn about something. "How's the water pipe looking? If it works out I'm thinking about running a third line."
Erebus settled onto the ground, resting against the wall and setting his cane in his lap. "Fine." He hummed back, taking in the scents with a soft, pleased sigh. Man, that smelled great. "Should be done soon." By soon he meant another week, but hey, he had all the time in the world.
Or…. not. His leg was getting better, and that meant that odd question would come up: "What now?" What would they do once he was fully healed? He'd go home, probably. That was the right thing to do. For some reason he seemed unsettled with that thought, quickly casting it aside. He'd think about that later.
Rosella pulled the finished steaks out of the over and set them aside to rest, then began to work on the potatoes. They hissed and sizzled at she stirred them around the hot skillet. The light from outside dimmed as the sun sank further, so that soon the light from the cottage lanterns was brighter than anything outside. She pulled out plates and cutlery and started piling food on them. "Dinner's done." She set the plates on the table and settled down. She didn't offer to help Erebus stand from the floor, knowing he liked to be able to do so on his own.
The food was soon gone. Erebus inhaled his portion, but given that his body was still healing and he'd been working most of the day that was to be expected. At least the wound in his side was finally healed. The bandages had come off for good a week ago. She swirled the dirty dishes around in soapy water and glanced over at Erebus, a question on the tip of her tongue. She didn't really want to ask because it came close to another topic she was found strangely foreboding, but she felt she asked anyway. "How's your leg? The bone should be almost done healing up."
Erebus slowly rose off the floor, approaching the table with his eyes stared at the food eagerly. And he scarfed it right down, burning his tongue at first. He didn't even care, he lately had been ravenous, and it didn't helped he physically worked all day. When she took the plates and began to wash them he rose, heading over and offering his assistance, for once.
His hands twitched when she mentioned his legs, however his face stayed stoic. "It doesn't feel like it's getting much better." He suddenly lied, eyes briefly widening by a centimeter. Did he just lie to stay there longer? His tail flicked, mentally trying to shake it off.
"Maybe because you've been on it all day," Rosella retorted. She felt a bit lighter for some reason, as though something inside her had relaxed. "If it starts giving you trouble you should put the brace back on. I know you don't like it, but it helps keep things still." She handed a clean plate to Erebus so he could rinse and dry it
"The brace is restricting." He mumbled back, rinsing off the plate and drying it. If he wore the brace it'd quicken the healing, right? Well. Another reason to not wear it….. What the hell was he thinking, anyway? This wasn't Cruor lands. This was a cottage, made by hands. It wasn't home, it wasn't where he belonged… and yet here he was, lying about his healthy and cleaning plates without being forced to.
Rosella shook her head, but smiled all the same at the familiar refrain. A comfortable silence grew between them as she finished scrubbing dishes and cooking utensils, passing them over to Erebus who rinsed, dried, and put away. That wasn't hard to do since the kitchen area was small. With his long body he could lean and reach the dish cupboard and utensil hooks easily without having to move his feet. Even Rosella could do that, though she had to strain a bit when she reached.
As she handed the last pan to Erebus another thought crossed her mind. She bit her lower lip and worried it with her teeth, wondering if she should say anything. She at last reluctantly spoke up. "It's been five weeks now. Won't your family be worried that they haven't heard from you?" She'd even avoided the dark forest and took the long trek to get to some of the plants she needed, worried that Erebus' disappearance would cause the area to be a bit more active.
Erebus' fingers twitched as he held the pan, fumbling. It fell from his grasp, however his quick reflexes seized it back up with his other. He set it where it belonged, dark eyes locking on the sink as he helped dry the counter. She had a point, one he'd been worrying about for awhile.
"Yes." He finally admitted, stealing a glance at her. "Why?"
Rosella hefted up the bucket and took it outside, dumping the water into the flower garden. Like most everything else the soap she used was homemade, and wouldn't harm the plants in the least. She brought the bucket back and set it by the sink before looking Erebus in the eye and answering his question.
"Well-," she started out slowly, "-I get the impression your family's close. Not physically, though it sounds like you do still live near them, but connected. Like how my dad and I are. My dad..." She paused and shook her head a little. "Most people have the first impression that he's a bit immature. I'm not saying he can't be, but he's way more serious and observant than a lot of people give him credit for. If I went missing, like he could not find me and had no idea where I might be, he would stop at nothing to find me. Maybe I'm wrong, and I apologize if I am, but I get the feeling your family is kind of the same."
Erebus watched her leave, awaiting her return. When she did he had found a spot to lean on, arms folded. He listened to her, nodding gently after she finished. "We are." He glanced out the window, fingers tapping against his arms.
"That's the reason I get tense when I hear sounds. They aren't the listening kind, either." And then he paused, mentally putting it together. The longer he was here the more in-danger Rosella was in. Why was he trying to stay here when by doing so he was only hurting her? Perhaps he should leave soon, to ensure her safety. But…. he didn't /want/ to. ******** style="color: darkviolet">Rosella raised an eyebrow. "I get that they're pretty dangerous, but I can look after myself you know. Or at least you should know." And she did understand that he was just worrying; despite his temper Erebus was a huge worrywart. She didn't think she was overconfident, not entirely at least. It just stung a bit that he seemed to think she would fold faster than wet paper before his family. She liked to think it was because he figured there would be more than one of his family confronting her, and he had simply never seen her fight with multiple opponents. Maybe he needed to try the community center with her just once, though truthfully he probably wouldn't be impressed with any of her opponents.
"You know this isn't like an exile or anything," she said, ignoring the heaviness that made her chest clench. "This place isn't going anywhere and it's my home. You're always welcome into my home."
He went quiet, hands tensing briefly. He stayed quiet, watching her with dark eyes that portrayed no emotion. He had gone blank, mentally flipping through her words and his choices. He could stay, and endanger her. Or he could leave…. If Sin came he was sure he could handle it… but if Sin brought Lamia… His spine twitched slightly, glancing away to the side, eyes focused on the window.
"Do you want me to leave." It didn't come off as a question, his voice low and stiff. Why did this bother him? Why did he seem so unhappy with the idea of leaving the cottage? This was stupid.
"I didn't say that," Rosella instantly corrected. She didn't even have to think about it, and while later she might try to analyze how quickly the response came and what that meant she brushed it aside for now. "I said that if you leave you're always welcome back. You're allowed to stay here as long as you like." She didn't even have to think about that either. The words flowed freely and without hesitation from her mouth, yet she knew them to be the absolute truth. "I just think that at some point in the immediate future we need to schedule a trip for you to see your family and let them know you're alive."
He seemed to visibly relax, shoulders lowing and body slinking back into the counter he was resting on. She had said 'we'. As in, her and him. He wasn't too fond of her meeting his family, and it wasn't because he thought she was weak. His family was…. strong, and liked to huddle together at times. It didn't help that while Eisheth had moved out to be with her wife, Nyx had returned home with a violent and territorial male as her husband.
Nodding, he understood the reasoning. Moving away from the counter, he brushed past her quietly, heading to fix the chairs. "I suppose. They would be worried by now."
She smiled, then her expression grew slightly serious while a touch of worry and humor. "I should warn you though. The longer you stay here the more likely it is you'll run into my step mom, my dad, or both. They visit every now and then. I'm not saying he'll punch first and talk later, but he's likely to be a little....concerned if I happen to be out that day and you're the only one here." Thankfully Krylaris had a better head on her shoulders. Not that she wouldn't try to kick butt right along with her mate if she thought something was wrong, but she'd be a bit more reasonable.
Erebus cracked a smile, hand waving gently. "I can take a punch." He mused, watching her. Something twitched within him when he was reminded this couldn't last forever. The man grunted mentally, turning to eye his bed. "Are you afraid of anything?" He suddenly questioned, a rare moment for the two of them.
"Everyone's afraid of something. Did you mean a specific fear or were you asking about fears in general," Rosella asked, wondering what had prompted the question.
"Fears in general." He murmured, climbing into his bed and relaxing against the back of the wall. "You answer won't be unrewarded." He added, one eye closing, the other viewing her lazily.
Rosella took Erebus' spot leaning against the counter, arms crossed and brow furrowed as she thought. None of her fears ever seemed to be simple ones and she'd never given the matter thought before, so now she had to try to untangle all the motives behind those moments. "Being helpless," she said slowly, as though she was still thinking about the words as they came from her mouth. "That there might be times when everything is going wrong and I can't stop it. Especially if I might lose someone. I can't really think of much else. I'm not afraid of the dark, or storms, or spiders or clowns. I'm not afraid of monsters or things that go bump in the night. I'm not about to run up and confront all of that, but I'm not afraid of it." She shrugged. "I guess I'm just afraid that if I'm not strong enough I could lose everything and there'd be nothing I could do."
Erebus rocked his head side to side as she spoke, mildly disappointed. He /had/ hoped it'd be spiders, or something tangible. It'd make things more exciting, and a prank possible. However, he understood her. He feared the same thing, but he wouldn't say it was his top fear. Dark eyes blinked back at her, a soft, amused laugh escaping him.
"You could hardly be helpless." He hummed, glancing back at her cooking. "You've given me a good kick before. You're far stronger than most."
Rosella chuckled. "Well it could hardly be counted as a fear if it was something that could be rationalized away." She cocked her head to the side. "So, just what was this "your answer won't be unrewarded" thing you were talking about? You draw me up a hot bath while I wasn't paying attention or something?"
Erebus cocked an eyebrow at her, head shaking. Nah, he hadn't made a hot tub, yet. He could add that to things he could leave for her. He approached her, looming over the smaller woman with a crooked smile. "You are permitted to ask any favor of me." He promised, dragging lithe fingers over the counter. Man, he was hungry as hell.
"I'll keep that in mind," Rosella promised. She was pretty tall, but Erebus was taller. She didn't have to stand on the tips of her toes, though she did have to stretch a bit. She brought her face close to his, really close, then turned and brought her lips next to his ears, whispering in a low voice. "I can't tell. Are you attempting to seduce me or are you just hoping I'm hiding more food?"
Erebus, for the first time since staying with her (and probably the first time since he grew up) burst into laughter. His smile was broad, pulling away from her and rubbing at his eyes. Shaking his head, his laughter died into a low chuckle, head cocking to the side, sending waist long hair cascading off his shoulder.
"You guess." And then it hit him, what was the answer? Well, obviously he was hungry. He always was since he started working on the house. But a part of him seemed to entertain another idea. Smothering that the second he could with thoughts of steak, he immediately made a note to keep his brain out of that direction. Rosella would murder him, he was sure of it.
Rosella stood there as Erebus laughed, arms crossed over her chest and a faint smile on her lips. She didn't think she'd ever heard Erebus laugh before, not an actual laugh. When he quieted a bit she responded, "Oh, I already did guess. I was just giving you a chance to put in your own two cents. She glanced at the stove, mentally gauging how much wood was still in there. "Well the deer is still hanging outside. I was going to salt and smoke the rest, maybe start a stew with some of the fresh stuff, but if you still want more go out and cut yourself off another portion." She picked up a knife and flipped it, catching the blade and offering Erebus the handle.
Erebus eyed the knife, considering his options. Stew was delicious, yes, and the other option sounded just as good. He waved the knife off, head shaking. "You know, deer jerky does sound good…" He hinted, suddenly turning away from Rosella and leaving the kitchen.
Fussing with one of the carved sculptures he had placed on the table, he flicked his gaze back towards the kitchen before returning his eyes to the sculpture. "Rosella." He called, voice low. "Have you ever eaten in the…." He faltered, having to stop himself from spitting the next word out with venom. "/City/?" Welp. It sounded less hateful than usual?
"Sure," she said, placing the knife back in its spot before turning and leaning back against the counter again. "There isn't electricity out here, so there's a lot of foods I can't keep. Some stuff requires special supplies to properly make. The stuff I make here is pretty plain and simple. City stuff can get expensive though. I usually get small things. Treats and that kind of stuff."
Erebus nodded to himself, viewing his sculpture again. Suddenly, it clicked. His tail flicked as he sat the sculpture down and approached his bed, flopping onto it. "How much would my carvings sell for, do you think?" He mused, pausing in thought before adding: "Also, do you have any nice dresses?"
Rosella had to mentally pause for a moment. She turned and slumped over the counter, face buried in her arms and shoulders shaking from suppressed laughter. It only took her a moment to regain her composure, but there were still signs of held-in laughter. "No, I don't own any dresses. The only things I have are those short skirts you've seen me wear with my pants." She was pretty sure the last time she'd worn a dress was when she was toddler and her dad was still dressing her. "I'm usually out doing a lot of physical stuff, and dresses are impractical for a lot of that. Not that there's anything wrong with pretty, impractical stuff, but I always had better things to spend money on. As for the carvings, I'm not sure. It depends on the buyer. I don't think you'll get rich off them, but you might fetch something decent if you sell them to the right people."
Erebus heard the laughter, slightly relieved. Oh? Well, this made it interesting. "If you were to get a dress what would it look like?" Was it too obvious now? Perhaps. First, Erebus naturally didn't talk this much, and second, he didn't give two shits what people wore. Still, she had housed him, fed him, and nursed him back to health. He might as well treat her to something nice.
Rosella shook her head. "I don't know. Simple, I suppose. Functional. I don't understand those dresses that are so tight around the legs that you can't even move around. Who would even make something like that?" She leaned against the counter. "Dad put me in dresses all the time when I was a kid, though I think he gave up on them ever looking nice after I proved I was the type to get into things. He gave up even trying to get me to wear dresses by the time I was 10."
Erebus nodded at her, mentally taking note of everything she had said. Perhaps he should play it safe and /take her/ dress shopping. First, he needed the money. No use taking her places and then finding he couldn't purchase anything for her. How lame of a da- adventure was that?
_____________________
Rosella peered in the single mirror she owned, a small thing that hung on the wall in the bathing room just to the left of door, next to a supply cabinet, playing with her hair. On first sight no one would have guessed that the snowy white locks wasn't the result of bleach or dye, but her natural color. Even the bright blue tips of her hair was completely natural. She'd never dyed her hair before, not even through the herbal products she frequented (too frequently, according to Erebus) used. She usually kept her hair cut short, but it had been growing out. She would need to see about having it cut again. It wasn't that she had anything against long hair. In the first few weeks of Erebus' healing process he hadn't had full range of motion with his arms due to his chest wound and broken bones, so she'd had to help him bathe. Nothing as extensive as the first time she had bathed him, usually just his back and his hair. She'd learned that she liked playing with his hair, though that probably had as much to do with how Erebus seemed to turn into a large cat anytime she messed with it as with a love of long hair in and of itself. Still, she didn't know how he stood it. Rosella was better at maintaining patience and keeping hold of her temper (though Ere had improved quite a bit), but if she had hair that long she'd end up pulling it out in frustration by the end of a week. Short hair was much easier to maintain and keep out of the way.
It was a bit too long to spike without some kind of stiff gel, which she preferred not to use because of how harsh it could be to one's hair, so all she could do was sweep it to the sides and hope her bangs stayed out of her eyes as much as possible. It was still a bit damp. She hadn't taken a full bath, but she had used buckets filled with warm water and a cleaning rag to give her hair a wash and her body a good scrub down. The scent of herbs lingered in the air and on her body. She hadn't been particularly dirty, but an unusual request from Erebus prompted the grooming. She had no idea what he was planning since he'd only told her to clean up and be ready to go somewhere. He hadn't elaborated on where exactly the somewhere was, even when she had inquired it of him. It made her a little suspicious, wondering what he was plotting.
She gave her hair one last finger-combing, then removed her towel from her body and hung it up neatly to dry. She put on her nicest jeans (no holes or tears) and a top she rarely wore. It was a tunic top, a gift from her step mother, and make of this material that felt a bit like silk. She thought it was nice, but it would have gotten shredded pretty quick if she wore it for everyday stuff so it usually stayed in storage in the loft. Plain, sturdy shoes were all she had in terms of footwear, so she donned those as well, slipped on a simple necklace, then opened the door to the bathing room. "Shame I don't have a camera. I could take a picture to send to Kryl, to prove I do wear the top from time to time."
Erebus rested on the bed, already fully dressed. He was wearing a slim suit, fitted to his figure and completely black. His hair was pulled up for once, still incredibly long. Dark eyes stared blankly at the wall ahead as his mind reeled. He was taking someone out. He was taking Rosella out. He was /treating/ Rosella. He was taking Rosella out and treating her. No matter how he worded the thought it felt strange, leaving the pale male with a brief frown as he considered how foolish this all was. He was sure Rosella would dislike this adventure, but on the off-chance she didn't….. Would he feel delighted? Would he be pleased if she was in return?
He heard her speak, however he didn't register the words. Standing up swiftly, he headed over to the table where he had laid his wallet, pocketing it immediately. Tonight would be a new experience, that was for sure.
Yushika: (( http://images6.fanpop.com/image/answers/3102000/3102615_1355587890909.94res_500_378.jpg His hair ))
Rosella heard a brief scuffling sound, but by the time she rounded the door frame Erebus was standing still. His posture was a bit stiff and awkward, like he was hiding something from her. She didn't think he'd broken anything though; that would have made a lot more noise. She leaned against the door frame, the bright colors of her shirt contrasting vividly with the blue tips of her hair.
"So you going to tell me what's going on before you twitch right out of your skin? You've been acting like you're working on some huge secret, and it's starting to make me nervous."
Erebus shook his head, watching her with a delicate smile that seemed to be practiced. He was supposed to smile, yes? Waving his hand at her, the male headed for the door, toying with his suit jacket with a low growl. Stupid thing.
"No. I'm not. You can just wait for the big reveal and pretend to be happy, even if you aren't."
"I could," Rosella replied evenly, "but this is you we're talking about. The only surprises you seem practiced with are ambushes." Not that Erebus couldn't pull off a nice surprise, but his last surprise had been the cellar and she'd been pissed about him removing his leg brace to work on it. Pleased and grateful for his work, sure, but only after her temper had cooled off. While she was more the type to radiate a chilly disapproval rather than yelling and causing a scene, her displeasure had nonetheless been felt at the time and she'd felt (only a little) bad that it seemed like she hadn't appreciated what Erebus had done for her. After that she preferred to know what he was going to be up to. Neither had the best of people skills.
"If it would make you happy though, I suppose I could affect a manner of suspense rather than apprehension." The corners of her mouth briefly twitched upward, indicating a more joking mood than sarcasm.
Erebus watched her with mild amusement. This could be considered an ambush, fine. He decided to just ignore her for now. He wasn't going to banter, not tonight. Tonight, he'd spoil her. Reward her for the good deeds she had done for him.
Still, he held his breath as the thought that perhaps she'd hate everything crossed his mind. He had worked hard, but what if she despised it? Mentally grumbling at realization that he actually /cared/ how she felt, the male waited for Rose to leave before closing the door.
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Posted: Tue Dec 23, 2014 6:06 pm
Rosella wasn't sure whether to be amused, grumpy, embarrassed, or touched, so she settled on a mix of all four. It helped that she was far more comfortable being in the city, if not in fancy places like this, than Erebus was. Even though it was he who steered her in here, the set of his posture indicated he wasn't a convert to city life. It was sweet that he cared, but if he took it in his head that he had to take her out to do "nice" things, she was going to have to show him around the nooks and crannies to the little places that were more comfortable. Or teach him how to do picnics. Hell, they could have had tons of picnics for the price of this one meal. The prices on the menu had caused Rosella's practical spirit to balk. Even if Erebus assured her he had it covered, it bugged her to spend so much on food.
"Okay, now I'm really nervous," Rosella said as soon as the waiter vanished with their food and drink orders. "I know you're not asking me to help you hide a body since you could probably handle that just fine on your own, but what brought all this on?" She waved a hand to indicate all the fancy settings, the dim lights, gleaming wooden tables, plush seats, fashionable flooring, and soft, sophisticated music.
Erebus was indeed uncomfortable.
His shoulders pulled up the second they entered the city, tail lashing like a pissed dog. Entering the restaurant had been almost too much, but, somehow, he settled into the table offered. He was alive. He had been distracted glancing about when Rose spoke, head snapping like a bird, a habit his father had passed onto him. Black eyes blinked at her as he tried to register what she had said, nails sliding across the tablecloth in thought.
"Hm?" Pale fingers toyed with the tablecloth, a nervous habit. Shaking his head, the male leaned back into his chair, staring at the others within the restaurant as his arm raised and rested on the top of the chair. "You saved my life." Was all he mused back, probably the closest to a verbal thank you she'd get.
"Is that why you look like you're maybe, oh, thirty seconds from jumping through a window in an attempt to escape?" She snorted softly, but bit back the remark that if this was what she got for saving him then she probably should have left him there. While he might have picked up the humor and found it laughable himself at another point, the tense set of Erebus' shoulders told her she should save that remark for another time.
"Really though, is that the only reason? You paid me back more than enough just helping me get some stuff done around the house. You just don't strike me as the fancy restaurant type of guy."
Erebus rolled his eyes, glancing briefly at the window and contemplating how long it'd take to run over and smash through it. He had glass before in his skin, he wasn't about to revisit that.
His head turned to view her again once she spoke a second time, eyebrow cocking. Did he have another reason? What reason did he even need? Why was she even asking? Couldn't he want to do something nice? Erebus was about to respond with just a shrug before deciding to give a verbal answer.
"I just wanted to treat you." He admitted, voice a bit hesitant. "I am allowed to want to pamper someone I ca- live with. It's fair, anyway."
Rosella's bright teal eyes still looked a little doubtful of Erebus' reasoning, but she didn't push it. It wasn't outside the realm of reasoning that he could do nice things, though this was pushing it just a little beyond the boundaries of what she thought he was capable of. Hell, given how happy he was to leave the city the few times she'd brought him here and showed him around to places that could be potential buyers for his carvings, he practically danced once they got back to the open plain area that separated the forest edge where her home sat from all the buildings. She didn't think there was any force on earth that could get him to come here more often than was strictly necessary.
About that time the first of their food showed up. Rosella had to admit that at least the presentation and flavor was excellent, though the price still seemed way too high. She didn't drink very often, so at least they had been able to opt with water rather than an equally expensive bottle of wine. Neither conversed much through the meal, except to offer bits of food to the other to try and to comment on the general flavor. As they finished dessert Rosella glanced expectantly at Erebus. "So anything else going on after this? I don't think you've ever been in the city after dark, unless you've been making trips I didn't know about. Might as well look around while we're here."
Of course, Erebus was easily won over by food. His eyes lit up when the food arrived, and silence followed as they began to eat. He did offer pieces of his food, occasionally making a gesture as if he'd actually feed her before, suddenly, he'd drop the food on her plate and return to staring at his food. He felt uncomfortable, but for more reasons than one. His skin felt cold lately, heart freezing and sending a shiver of what seemed so close to fear down his spine. It wasn't fear, though. What was it? Nerves? Was he /nervous/? What for?
Once he finished his steak (which he had ordered as raw as legally possible and would later beg Rose to try that recipe), he worked on the dessert, silence still heavy. He was almost grateful when she spoke up, glancing at her with a curious eyebrow raise. "If you want." He muttered, looking back at his food. Wait. That had been his plan, anyway. Quickly, he tried to fix his earlier response. "Yes. Lets look around." Smooth.
Rosella determinedly averted her eyes whenever the bill was presented. She was sure if she saw the amount she'd want to beat someone with the bottle of wine the waiter was presenting to the next table over and demand to know why on earth it was so expensive. Sure it was good, but she bet if she really tried she could make food just as delicious. Maybe even as pretty too, but that would require more patience than she usually had. Not that her food didn't look good, it just wasn't fancy.
The weather outside was pleasant. Although the air was slowly getting colder with the changing of the seasons it was still only comfortably cool at night. It was completely dark yet, though all the tall buildings blocked the view of the sunset and the lights all over the place made it hard to tell exactly what time it was unless you were near a clock. Rosella picked a direction and began to casually stroll forward, waiting for Erebus to catch up to her side and set their pace. If she recalled correctly there was a lovely park further up in this direction. It wasn't anything like the forests, but maybe a bit of greenery would help to ease Erebus' nerves.
Erebus didn't seem to flinch when the bill came out, he had already prepared himself. He could sense Rose's disapproval, quietly pondering if perhaps this had been a bad idea. He probably just pissed her off with this, hadn't he?
When they left he was relieved for the darkness that ate the city. Erebus caught up easily, long legs taking them at a slightly faster stride then she had started out with. He could smell greenery ahead and was eager to immerse himself in it.
Turned out her memory was good. Though it wasn't a part of the city she visited often, after walking a couple blocks and turning to go up another block, the smell of greenery was strong on the breeze. Several trees and decorative, shrub-like plants lined a pretty, black metal fence that was taller than even Erebus. Rosella had to lengthen her own stride a bit to keep up with Erebus, but given how much walking she was used to it was hardly taxing. She eyed the park through the fence as they walked around to find an entrance. The lamp posts were done in an old-fashion style, that or they really were old and were just excellently kept. They were set at regular intervals along the path. There were pavilions around the entrance strung with twinkling white lights. It was a pretty effect. Rosella was sure that once the holidays cropped up that even the trees would sport lights.
"Wanna walk around a bit," she asked, though thinking it was a bit unnecessary. Erebus looked like he could use some movement after sitting for all that time in the restaurant.
Erebus seemed to relax considerably once they reached the park, shoulders lowering and head raising slightly. He nodded at her question, pausing a bit in his steps before turning to her and cocking his head at the nearby shops.
"Want to walk down there?" He questioned, fingers running through his hair briefly before he shoved his hands into his suit pockets.
"Sure, if you want to," Rosella responded. She was a little surprised he didn't want to turn into the park itself, but perhaps he just wanted to look around a little. It wouldn't hurt for him to get more comfortable being here. She might even be able to convince him to come along to one of her fighting classes someday.
They crossed the street to the shop side and walked slowly down the sidewalk. Rosella glanced briefly into the windows. There was a pretty wide variety of shops that faced the park. Most of them were either popular chain stores or high end places, since this was a high traffic area and thus received more business. Nothing she was particularly interested in, though sometimes it was fun to just look.
Erebus watched her, eyes narrowing. She didn't seem invested in anything, sadly. Wait. Sadly? Jesus christ, he needed to get a grip. Still, he vaguely hoped she'd look at something and get that /expression/. The one that screamed: 'let that be mine someday'. Why was he even doing it? Because it made him feel like he had more power providing her things she may want? That'd be the right answer, right? Then why did he think that maybe he just wanted her to…. gross. He just wanted her happy. God.
They'd walked up the entire block facing one side of the park and had moved to the street that bordered the second side. Rosella wasn't sure if Erebus wanted to walk all four sides or not, but at the moment he seemed content to just be moving. He kept giving her little glances and seemed mildly put out though, so she wondered if he was waiting on her for something. Truthfully since it was already dark there was no point in having to hurry home, so she was good to walk around the city a bit longer. Maybe she could take Erebus to the places she frequented when she wanted food, so he had more places to go to than that really expensive restaurant.
As they walked a door opened ahead of them, releasing the strong scent of leather. It was a very pleasant smell, mixing with the outdoor scents. As they passed by the window she glanced inside and her steps slowed briefly. Mostly it was a lot of showy purses, things that were of little use to her. Just a bag for city girls to store all their makeup and accessories, but made of high quality materials with a brand name slapped on it. This store had a wide variety though. She noted several satchel-style bags that looked very useful. She sighed and kept moving though. Likely they were way too expensive, and she used her bags for messy tasks. Better to try making her own. It wouldn't look as good, but it didn't really need to.
It turned out they did walk the entire circumference of the park. A couple stores had caught Rosella's eye. A jewelry shop with some lovely native-style and punk-style pieces, a goth punk store with some really awesome skull shirts, a bed-and-bath store with very comfortable looking sheet sets and comforters, and an ice cream store. They hadn't gone in any of the stores but for the last one. It was a popular store so they were a bit more expensive, but the size of the cone they handed Rosella and the quality of the ice-cream made her figure it was well worth the price. She marked the store in her mind to potentially come back to later.
"Is there anything else you felt like doing," she asked as she nibbled on her frozen concoction of mint chocolate and peanut butter cup ice cream.
Erebus had watched her for awhile, and eventually her eyes spotted the unique jewelry shop. He moved to her other side, cocking his head towards the direction of the store. "Lets go back." He hummed lowly, trying to keep his voice void of emotion, eyes locked on his strawberry ice-cream (which was delicious, thank you).
"There was a jewelry shop I wanted to check out." Lies. He didn't even care about jewelry, but she did. At least, by following her gaze earlier, she hadn't been gazing at those gaudy diamonds or insanely huge ruby rings. She had taste. Thankfully.
"Alright then," Rosella responded, though inside she pondered what had caught Erebus' eye. She usually didn't picture him as a jewelry kind of guy, but he did wear accessories. They actually had pretty similar taste in that regard.
Thankfully the store allowed them to take their food inside, though by the time they walked back they'd eaten through most of their ice cream. Rosella left Erebus to wander the store and look. There was a lot of stuff with expensive stones on it. Those she mostly passed over. Sure they were pretty, but she could find rocks that were just as pretty to look at in the forest, especially along the river. She lingered by the bracelets, admiring the tooling of the leather on some and the studs on others. There were also a lot of nice necklaces, some of which could be paired with the bracelets. It was surprising that the store had such a variety of styles; most went with either themed stuff or the purely expensive stuff.
Erebus kept a distance from her, watching her from the corner of his eye. He didn't approach, though he did make note if she found something in particular she seemed to want. He'd need to stealthily buy that without her knowing, but he was skilled at stealth. First… he'd need to find something for himself.
And he did. A solid silver ring with a black inside caught his eye. It was fairly cheap, and wouldn't get in the way of his work. Hmm....
Rosella noticed Erebus by the rings and came over to look, spying the silver one in his hand. "That's nice. So you find everything you were looking for or still browsing?"
Erebus cocked a smirk, waving a hand at her. "I did, I did." Of course, this was a lie, and as he headed to the counter his hands stealthily snatched up a leather bracelet he had seen Rose peeking at earlier. Alright. This was his big moment. Cocking his head back to look at her, the male gestured towards the door.
"Wait outside? I'll catch up in a minute."
Rosella was instantly suspicious of the request, but she didn't argue. With a wave of her hand and a murmured, "Sure, sure," she went outside.
She leaned against the side of the building and let thoughts of Erebus and whatever he was up to fade from her mind in favor of paying attention to her surroundings. It really was a pleasant night out, neither too warm nor cool, but there was a faint smell in the air that signaled the arrival of autumn was close at hand. She let her eyes drift to the park across the street, staring past the black metal fence to the trees beyond it. Though largely green, she thought she could see hints of color change here and there in the foliage. She wondered if Erebus had ever seen an autumn outside of that forest he lived in. The forest that ringed the little clearing her house resided in turned so many colors it was like fields of flowers stuck up in the trees. She wondered if Erebus would enjoy seeing something like that.
Erebus watched her leave, sighing gently before heading to the counter. Good, she complied. It took a few minutes, mostly because he spent a minute of fretting whether to wrap the bracelet or not, but eventually he headed out. Slipping close to her side, he clutched the tiny bag tightly, head jerking to the side.
"Ready to dip?" He questioned, stuffing his hands into his pockets, the bag hanging from his wrist.
Rosella tilted her head. "I suppose so, if that's all you wanted to do. No stroll through the park or any other errands you need to run?" She wasn't really sure what was on Erebus' mind. Him willingly venturing into the city, even being the one who brought her along instead of the other way around, went against the grain of what she knew of him. At the moment she wasn't sure what other kinds of surprises he might have hidden away.
Erebus cocked his head side to side, pondering. Well, actually, a walk through the park might make it even more ro- nice to reveal the present. Tail swishing, the male flicked black eyes towards her, nodding. "Sure, the park sounds fine, actually."
He fidgeted slightly, a new side of him showing as nerves got the best of him. Would she like the present? Was it too tacky? ******** style="color: darkviolet">In comparison Rosella's posture was very relaxed, face calm. She led them across the street, then a little ways down until the black metal fence gave way to an open arch, a path stretching before them. She turned onto the path and set a steady pace. As soon as they left behind the open areas meant for picnics and family gathering and entered the shadowy tunnel formed by the thick pressing of trees she slowed her walk to enjoyable stroll speed. It was impossible to completely escape that they were still in a city; the sounds of the night life kicking into gear and the subtle buzz of traffic would likely be audible even in the thickest areas with hearing like she and Erebus had. Still, it was a pleasant place to be and made a nice, if temporary, escape.
They walked side-by-side in the darkness in silence for a time. She noticed Erebus fidgeting from the corner of her eye, but chalked it up to his nerves being stretched thin, having been stuck in the city for a good many hours now. Of course he was a little fidgety by nature, especially when he was nervous or anticipating something. The rest of the time he was usually quite still, which only made his bird-like quick movements more disconcerting. She didn't pry though; if Erebus wanted to talk to her about whatever was making him twitchy, he would say something. They were about halfway down the trail now, if she remembered correctly. Once they made it through the park it would probably be best to head home from there.
If anything, Erebus was easy to read when he wasn't fighting. Fighting was simple, easy to switch into the other side he would try and smother so often. The red hot burning would linger in the corner of his heart, whispering sweet nothings whenever something so much as tickled his anger. He was getting better at masking it, and he was certain it was Rosella's influence. Her patience (and sometimes lack of) kept the red that would seep into the corner of his eyes running to the shadows. Sometimes, he feared he'd snap, but so far that was a distant fear.
Still, he was painfully easy to read. He inherited his father's sharp and sometimes eerie movements, lanky body often twitching at a rapid and bird-like speed that would catch others off-guard. Combine that with nerves and you had a twitchy and obvious male before you. Their walk was quiet, but not void of his twitches and jerks. A sound would cause his head to snap. A voice would make his shoulders twitch. The crunch of a leaf would make his tail snap. He was an active male, that was for sure.
Once they made it he felt his heart freeze. s**t. Well. They were here, might as well, right? His hand shot out, snatching a piece of her shirt and tugging gently to catch her attention. Black eyes flicked away, refusing to look at her as he suddenly raised the bag he had been holding towards her. "Here."
Rosella felt an eyebrow twitch momentarily upward at the way Erebus sought her attention. It was such a childish gesture. It was both strangely yet out of place, and yet it suited it. It was hard to think of him as a child in any way, just to look at him. His size alone was imposing, and combined with his attitude and the way he watched things... Rosella often fancied it was the look of someone considering the best ways to attack and defend, the best ways to kill, in the event things turned violent. She wasn't sure how on the mark she was, but in any case there were very few whose eyes lingered on Erebus after having met his gaze.
Yet he was just so vulnerable. She was pretty sure he realized that he had holes in his armor, but she wondered if he knew just how very riddled with holes it actually was. It was almost disconcerting to even consider, but Rosella was sure that if she wanted to hurt Erebus, really hurt him, that she could inflict damage that would linger for the rest of his life. Not physically, but mentally. Emotionally. It bothered her, the few times she'd ever stopped to think about it. Perhaps it was worse to consider because she herself was emotionally solid and mentally stable. She was in control. The though of anyone being able to use her, to twist things around in her head until she broke from the pressure, left her with a strong sense of revulsion and rebellion. It took a lot of trust before Rosella would even consider letting someone even vaguely close enough to do that to do. She'd never really wanted to have that kind of power over someone, and she certainly had never sought it out. But she couldn't help being observant, and Erebus was just so ridiculously open...
The wave of tangled emotions and thoughts passed through her in less than a second; she blinked, and everything was sorted out and she was back to her calm steadiness. She eyed the bag, feeling a mixture of apprehension, curiosity, and clarity; she'd thought Erebus was acting more nervous that usual. She reached out and took the bag, a faint whiff of leather coming from inside. She peeked in, then reached and pulled out a leather cuff bracelet. She traced her fingers over the leather, the scent much stronger out of the bag, feeling the bumps of cool metal from the decorations. "Thanks. It's nice." Rosella wasn't great with using words to convey emotion, so she didn't try to go for girly gushing or trying to force her voice up a couple octaves to prove her enthusiasm. She just looked up, a smile briefly pulling up the corners of her mouth, then looked back down and worked to put the bracelet on.
Erebus was open, but perhaps his size and stare was enough to deter anyone wishing to figure this out. How many times had he frightened another off with his eyes? How many had he even chased away? He hadn't allowed anyone close, and perhaps Rosella was only lucky because she had brought him in when he was on the brink of death. Otherwise, he'd never have stayed near her longer then two hours. He'd never have laughed for her, worked so honestly and hard on her home, or given her a gift. No. She wasn't Silvermaid, that was for sure.
Ah, Silvermaid. He was sure she'd despise Rosella should the two ever meet. She had been his childhood friend, and yet was unable to handle the violence which Erebus used to push her away. His hostile words, cruel gaze, and indifference to her had been enough to send her running, though not permanently. She had returned, even hinting at some unsavory emotion such as want for Erebus. At that time, he coldly dismissed her advances, and yet something lingered in the back on his head now that he was older. Regret? Pity? Perhaps he shouldn't have been that cold. Perhaps he should have treaded lighter on her fragile heart. Yes, she annoyed him with her persistent upbeat need to know anything everything Erebus did, but something new had developed to cause sympathy within the male. What if he had been her, craving another and so harshly rejected? Where had this sentiment come from? Surely he could never desire another as his own, right?
It was Rosella's voice that cut him off from his thoughts, head snapping to view her. He couldn't help the smirk that crossed his features, void of the normal cockiness he displayed and instead revealing relief. She liked it. He almost seemed gentle as he watched her, hand extending to touch her wrist gently, the other sweeping the bracelet from her grasp and swiftly assisting her. He closed it around her wrist, an intimate gesture he'd later ridicule himself for. Stepping back, the male returned the space he often gave her, already painfully aware he had been far too close to her. Intruding much?
"You're welcome." His hands slid back into his suit pockets, slightly pleased. His expression had returned to the normal blankness he seemed to use for comfort when he needed to hide an emotion he was embarrassed to share. He was glad she hadn't gushed over the bracelet. She was direct, and that small smile was enough to convey what he needed to know. He had done well.
Rosella's eyes gave a half roll, but there was still good humor on her face and she held back any quips she might have had, knowing that the act of giving her something like this was probably nerve-inducing enough without adding sarcasm to the mix, poor taste to showing thanks. It just went to show that she was never cut out for being a girly-girl, going out to fancy places and having jewelry bestowed upon her. At least it wasn't a fancy necklace with a metal clasp; that would have been just a bit too cliche for her to handle. "Ready to go back home," she asked, glancing up at the now-visible sky and looking towards Erebus from the corner of her eye.
"Yes." He mused back, ignoring her half roll and the snappy comment that almost escaped him. She always had something to offer, whether a comment or sarcasm. She was holding back, which meant gratitude in some way. He didn't want to ruin the da- evening, that itself was poor taste. He passed by her, already at an unusually fast speed. It was clear he had enough of the city, wanting nothing more then to crawl into the bed he had claimed as his own and nurture his leg. It was sore, and while mostly healed it still hadn't adapted to be used properly again. This was the closest to physical therapy they'd get to physical therapy.
_____________________
"You don't get to tell me what I can and can't do."
Rosella's teal eyes were like ice as she stared. Only her eyes and the slightest furrow of her brow gave any hint at her anger. The rest of her face was smooth, composed. Her voice was like a steel blade, hard and implacable with a dangerous edge. She wasn't the type for screaming or tantrums, but those who knew what signs to look for would recognize that Rosella was currently clinging to the last, frayed ends of her temper.
She and Erebus had semi-frequent squabbles about day-to-day things, but those could hardly be called fights. Their true fights were few and far between, and often ran along the same themes. Whenever Erebus treated her in ways that Rosella would consider "babying" she tried to grit her teeth and bare it, knowing his intentions were in the right place. It still grated on her nerves, and every once in a while it was like all the tension had finally wound itself too tight and she would snap. Sometimes Erebus would yell, sometimes his voice was full of quiet anger just like her's, but always their fights were terrifying for outsiders to behold. Thankfully they'd only had one semi-fight in a public place, and it was over quickly. Rosella hated when outsiders tried to stick their noses (or law enforcement) into something that wasn't any of their business.
"Maybe if you took better care of yourself I wouldn't have to."
Erebus the hypocrite glowered back at icy teal eyes, his own black ones void of the anger he felt, for now. This moment was one of his quiet rages, voice holding a harsh edge to it that wanted nothing more then to bite. What even started the fight? Something stupid, he was sure. She wanted to go somewhere not safe, again, or something of that magnitude.
The male was stronger now, finally at full strength. Finally healed. /Finally/ himself, and a new anger had sunk deep into the dark male. The anger was protective, and paranoia had twisted around the hot emotion. He'd stay up late at night, perched like a bird on his bed and /waiting/. Waiting for the monster to return. Ever since the crutch was thrown to the side and he was allowed to finally run again he had shifted. Hatred returned. He had heard stories of a massive man causing havoc in a nearby town, and now everything Rosella did she had to do with black eyes gazing at her and a towering male sitting in the corner, babysitting. He knew it was tiresome, but the nagging feeling that the monster would return ate away at his sense of reason. She wanted space, something he had used to be happy to give. He wanted to protect her. She wasn't prepared for this monster. He was a power all of its own. He wouldn't let it strike her.
And yet, despite his good intentions he had become nothing more then a nuisance. His anger hadn't helped, either. Pent up over the monster of his dreams and the lack of sleep he had been getting, he was easier to rile. Easier to cause a growl from. Today had been the snapping point, and suddenly the male was a quiet rage. Why are he angry at her? Did he even know? Was he just venting his anger and paranoia on her because she defied him and it was the easiest way to release it? His anger was nipping at the red he so feared, mind pushing it down. No. He would not slip into that blood-lusting monster his father had given him.
"You continue to act dangerously." He hissed, voice still calm and yet teetering on a deadly rage.
"I've can look after myself. Not sure if you've noticed, but I've done just fine all these years. I don't need a babysitter." Her voice twisted a little on the last word, like it left a bad taste in her mouth. She was aware her own behavior could have constituted as such when Erebus had first come here, but then again he'd had a busted leg and several other horrific injuries, and didn't seem to have the sense to listen to his own body when it sent pain signals in an attempt to tell him he shouldn't be moving around. She had no such things hindering her to warrant all the lurking Erebus had been doing of late.
It wasn't even his constant worrying and paranoia that bothered her. It was the feeling that she was being hovered over. Like she was a child who had no sense, no ability to exercise caution, no way to defend herself. Like she was completely incompetent. That, that was what really burrowed under her skin and caused her to uncharacteristically lose her temper.
"Your concern is noted. Unless you have something else you want to add, this discussion is over," Rosella said, a hint of ice leaking in to her voice.
Erebus finally glowered, heat rising into his chest. Her dismissive ending was enough to send his emotions amuck. He wanted to snap back, but his mind went numb with another horrible thing that desired to eek out. She didn't even get why he worried. She didn't even understand one bit, but, neither did he, to be fair. Balling his hands into fists, the male felt that familiar tremble run down his arms as his fists grew into insanely tight balls. No. Do not punch a wall. This was her home. /Their/ home, in a way. He wasn't childish enough to break it.
"Fine." He spat back, turning back from her and seizing the coat he had purchased a few weeks ago. Winter was amongst them and he was not about to get a cold. "Sorry for being a /babysitter/." He added, venom leaking into his words as the red began to seep into his eyesight. Why had that hurt some much? Why did her lack of understanding leave a stab in his chest. Suddenly, the rush of flames in his heart took over, body spinning around.
"You know what? Fine. I'll let you be. I'll let you do whatever dangerous activity you want to do while I wait at home. I'll stop worrying about the woman I lov-" And then he stopped, not even giving a moment of hesitation as he stormed out of the house and vanished into the dark. No. No he wouldn't stay still long enough for him or her to register what he said until he was far gone and able to mull over ******** she pissed him off!
Rosella watched him go, chest heavy with a mingling of emotions that were nearly impossible to untangle as they fed upon each other and one lead into another. All she could identify was the anger, lingering in the back of her throat and leaving an unpleasant taste and causing her muscles to lock up as she tried not to let it overwhelm her. She turned and snatched a bundle of herbs from the ceiling, going into the bathing room where she stored her tools. She pounded out her anger with a mortar and pestle, grinding the fragrant foliage into fine powder.
Many hours had passed, and Rosella's temper had finally calmed down. She didn't regret her words and still felt her points were all valid, but she did regret that she might have hurt Erebus in the process. Why couldn't he just trust that she was strong enough to look after herself? She wasn't so foolish to think she could take on anyone in the world and win, but she trusted her abilities enough to get her out of any situation she might find herself in. Was it so hard to ask Erebus to trust her as well. Her thoughts continued to whirl around as she pulled the clean bedding from the drying line. (Once the herbs were crushed she'd taken her anger out on laundry.) She supposed that Erebus once had similar thoughts about himself. Maybe his confidence had just been shaken after his own deadly encounter. That was...understandable, but it wasn't an excuse-all pass for the way he'd been acting. She wasn't going to stop living her life just because there was danger out there.
Another hour later, and Rosella looked out the little window above the kitchen sink as she scrubbed the counter, worry stirring in her chest. It was normal for Erebus to vanish for a bit of alone time (she wasn't his keeper and his leg was fine now), but he rarely left for too long. She hadn't wanted to bother him, wanted to give him a chance to walk off his anger, but perhaps letting it go for this long was a mistake. Her mind wandered back to the word Erebus had almost let slip. Her hands were still on the counter as she continued to stare out the window, deciding. It was wrong of her to leave things like this. Maybe she should go find him. If they just sat down and tried to talk things out... Neither was great at talking about feelings, but perhaps that was what this situation called for. Rosella chewed on her bottom lip, her lower fangs pressed against her upper lip, then made up her mind.
She turned and took her own coat off a peg next to the door, slipped it on, then went outside. Where could Erebus have gone? Her mind wandered to the dark forest where his family lived. That had been his life and shelter for a long time, he could have wandered in that direction. It was a place to start. She walked off into the gathering gloom, grateful for the full moon that was starting to form in the sky.
Erebus hadn't returned to the forest he was born in.
Instead, he had curled up deep within the forest Rosella's house resided in, body nestled high into a tree. He lazily laid there for hours, tail dangling from the branch he was sprawled on and an arm brushing against a lower branch as he was lost in thought. His anger had subsided hours ago, but now a deep regret had pooled into his chest. Lov? What word was that? What had he been trying to say? Love? /That/ word? That foreign word he was sure Rosella would dismiss had he waited long enough? Their relationship had never been anything more then housemates, and yet often Erebus caught himself slipping. A soft smile here, a tenderness that lasted a second when he'd assist her with her bracelet, a glance that lasted too long when he watched her cooking. He had long ago noticed things were off for him, and yet she remained the same. Her behavior never changed. Her attitude hadn't, either.
Was he truly enamored with her? He had never been confident in his emotions, and nor was he good at understanding them. Yet, a warm flush of shame rushed over him every time he remembered the word he almost spat out. Was it true? Did he…. want her? Want her as his father wanted Erebus' mother? Desire to keep her close to his side as someone he would give his entire being to? Body and soul? Pathetic. Those wants weakened a person. It made them dependent, and he had never wanted that.
And yet he found his cheeks growing warmer, an unfamiliar feeling. His heart panicked, fear finding it's way in. If it was true, if he truly wanted Rosella in that pathetic way, then what would he do? Surely she didn't want him. She had never made any action to suggest otherwise, though what would Erebus know? He wasn't good at that disgusting r word…. romance. He didn't know the signs. What if she cared for someone else?
That thought left him feeling sick to his stomach, evidence enough for him. He did. He did /want/ her. He didn't desire her to choose another as her partner. He wanted her to pick /him/. To find him worthy of her. An equal to her. Pathetic, and yet true. His hands rose, nails digging into his scalp as he groaned. ********. Of all the lessons he had been taught, this was not one of them. What was he to do? He still didn't quite understand how he felt other then a raw desire to have her want him back. Did he want a lasting relationship? Did he want to be…. a family with her? What did he want? Was sitting here going to help him understand it? No. Maybe… maybe he should talk to Rosella. She knew things better then he did when it came to emotions. She'd know what to do. She'd…. she'd understand. She was safety. Even if he was ashamed he knew she wouldn't laugh at his pathetic and childish feelings towards her. She wasn't him. She wasn't that nasty voice in the back of his head that hated himself more then anything.
She was Rosella.
Leaping out of the tree, Erebus shoved his hands into his pockets with a sulk, heading back home.
Rosella coughed, feeling a stabbing pain in her side. The warm, salty taste in her mouth grew strong. She turned her head to the side and weakly spit out a globule of dark crimson liquid. Her chest was full of a tangle of emotions again, but this time they were more easily sorted through. When the pain wasn't clouding her thoughts, at least...
There was fear as her immediate emotion. Fear for self, the body's reaction to try to continue to survive. It was an almost animalistic thing, but was in control of herself enough to keep it from turning into a panic attack. That would not be helpful to her current situation.
Satisfaction. That was perhaps the emotion that made the least amount of sense when taking her condition into account. But still, she was proud of herself. She gave an excellent reckoning of her skills. The stranger in the woods had cursed her many times when his hands closed on empty air as he tried to catch her, then, after he had caught her, he cursed her again for the painful blows she managed to land. None did much damage, she was sure. They were all little things meant to cause pain so that he would release her. The stranger had been beyond her ability to take down on her own, so fleeing was the only choice. Perhaps it was a little demented of her, to be proud that she had at least left marks and bruises when she herself was broken in so many places, but nonetheless the emotion persisted.
Chagrin, mixed heavily with remorse. She couldn't bring herself to say Erebus was right, not even now. There was risk in life everywhere. No matter what she did, even if she stayed at home all the time, there was always the risk that something would happen to her that would leave her greatly injured or dead. No matter how careful you were, bad things still happened. Doubtless he would still use this incident to prove he was right. Even if he didn't say it, she knew the thought would be there in his mind. And that was where the remorse kicked in. Though it didn't matter what he said, though nothing could have changed the fact that she would still wander the forests and places deemed dangerous, Erebus would feel guilt. Guilt that he didn't try harder to make her listen or that he wasn't there with her like he usually was. She wasn't sure what would motivate the guilt, but she was sure that it would be there. And that was the last thing she wanted. This was all on her. Her death shouldn't have to affect Erebus.
And she was dying, she was sure. It wouldn't happen for several hours at least, several torturous hours. She was sure at least one arm was broken; when she tried to drag herself away her left arm had just given out and refused to work. She hadn't gotten very far anyway. She wasn't sure if her legs were broken or not; she couldn't really feel them. She was willing to get the bones were at least fractured. Blood dripped from countless wounds. It was strange, her skin was so numb that she couldn't feel much but each wound burned like fire.
Rosella managed to drag herself several inches forward, towards a pile of leaves. The damp foliage felt pleasant against her tortured skin. She sighed softly into the soil, pressing her cheek against the ground and turning her eyes towards the sky. "Sorry," she mumbled softly, then passed into painless darkness.
Erebus couldn't find her.
The house was empty. It wasn't warm with the scent of her cooking, which usually would fill the home at this time. Nothing hinted at where she went. The house was empty but in-tact. Completely untouched. Pristine. Where was she? Why was his chest twisting? Had she gone outside? Was she lost? No, she was clever and the woods were here second home, she wouldn't get lost.
He slammed the door open, storming outside. Something was wrong. Something was /very/ wrong. He smelled blood, distant and faint. Blood never had caused fear. The scent was comforting. He had been born in a forest that reeked of blood, and it was a scent that always left him relaxed and comforted. Not now. No, the scent left his chest heaving as fear rushed through him. He was going to be sick, he knew it. The fear was overwhelming. He recognized the second scent that lingered, and it caused his body to lunge forward. He wasn't his father in this sense: he could smell.
He followed the scent, fingers tightening into fists as the blood grew stronger in the air. No. Please no. No no no. Why was /that/ scent also growing stronger? Why were they mixed? Help. Someone help him. He didn't want to find the source. He didn't want to know what it w–
No.
He found the source, legs giving in as he fell to his knees before a limp body. His hands slammed into the ground, body hunching over as a feral cry escaped him. Rosella. She was broken, as he had once been. She laid on the ground, bleeding profusely, limp. No. Not her. He knew this pain. He knew it well. He knew who did this. He knew it /all/.
He whimpered as his head raised, hands reaching out to touch her shoulder. "Rosella." He whispered, shaking gently. No response. "Rosella!" His voice shook, hands trembling as he hung them over her. Where did he touch? Where wasn't she broken? He trembled, large frame turned fragile at the figure before him. No. Get it together. She was breathing, barely. She was alive. Slowly, he delicately lifted her, afraid to break her further. He'd take her home. Stitch the wounds up. Try and replicate the splints she had made him once. He'd help her. He'd fix her, like she fixed him. He'd save her. He needed to. He couldn't let her die. No!
Erebus rushed home, kicking the door open once he had arrived and setting her in the bed he once slept in. It would be hers, now. Rushing off, Erebus began his search for the first aid kit, or something similar. First, she'd need stitches. Second, a cleaning. Third, he'd need to reset any bones that needed it, or make a splint. He… might need to wait for her to wake for the splint. He had no idea how to make one. She'd… she'd wake up? Right?
In the darkness time held little meaning for Rosella. She wasn't sure how long she drifted there. There were moments that stood out, times when her mind was pulled from the darkness. A feral cry, close, full of pain. Was it her, or someone else? The darkness reclaimed her before she could open her eyes to find out. Pain, flaring, intense, fiery. Movement. Had someone picked her up? She could feel a faint breeze against her cheeks, feel the tugging on her skin where the blood had dried. Was she still bleeding? She didn't know.
There were more moments like that, things that shouldn't be painful but were. Half the time she wasn't aware of what was going on. She only knew that she hurt.
When Rosella finally opened her eyes the pain was still there, but she was in control now. She blinked, staring upward, confused by the smooth wooden boards. Where were the stars? The light was all wrong. The ground beneath her wasn't cold and hard, it was warm and soft. She blinked again, the smells of herbs, wood, smoke, dust, and food registering in her brain. Ah. She was in a house. Hers? She turned her head to the side to look and hissed, squeezing her eyes shut against the pain. Her neck wasn't injured, but her head had taken a sharp blow at some point during the fight. Not when she'd been thrown on the ground (her muscles remembered how to fall properly even if her mind could not tell them to do so), but when the stranger had hit her. He had probably done so more than once, but she couldn't properly recall the memories.
Slowly, cautiously, Rosella opened her eyes again. Yes, this was her house. She wanted to look around more, confused. How had she got here? But every time she moved darkness would gather at the edge of her vision. She tried to isolate the pain, tried to pinpoint the sources, but everything burned a little bit with pain and she couldn't make her muddled train of thoughts straighten out.
Erebus was cooking. It wasn't something he was bad at, and while Rosella did most of the cooking he had been known to dabble here and there. Of course, he only cooked if meat was in the dish. He didn't care for vegetables, and would often find creative ways to get out of eating them. This time was different. The male was crouched before the fire, checking on the vegetable stew with a quiet and somber expression. He was exhausted, having stayed awake all night working on Rosella instead of resting. He hadn't slept yet and it showed as he sluggishly stood up.
Movement alerted him, head snapping and hand lifting a knife he apparently had been holding on to. He froze, noticing the awake but weak Rosella. His hand lowered, dropping the knife onto the floor as he sped to her side in a blur.
"You're awake."
Rosella flinched at a sudden movement and had to bite back a fresh moan of pain. She blinked, her eyes focusing on her housemate.
"Ere," she said, voice soft and trailing off halfway through his name. It hurt to breath, and thus talking was a little painful as well. So far it seemed the only movement available to her without the consequence of pain was blinking. Silence filled the space between them for a moment. She didn't have to ask what had happened; that much she could remember. She wasn't sure how he found her or when, but the story hardly mattered at the moment. She gathered her thoughts and asked the question that she herself couldn't quite figure out at the moment. "How bad," she asked, having to take a breath between the words. She winced at the scraping of air in her abused chest.
The male glanced down at her body. He had dressed her, which had been awkward at best. Erebus wasn't a high school boy, however, and had easily managed the task. A soft sigh escaped him, causing him to stand and take a step away from her.
"Bad." Came the blunt answer, fingers tapping against the table as he sunk into a chair. "I stitched your wounds up and cleaned what I could. I wasn't sure what to do with… with your arm."
The arm in question twitched slightly as though responding to the attention, sending a stab of pain that felt like it traveled through her shoulder and to her neck. Rosella shifted her head, trying to get a look at her broken limb, but it was covered with a blanket. Gritting her teeth she gathered herself, then sat up. It didn't go too well. She didn't even try to use her arms to push herself, relying instead on her abdominal muscles, but her ribs instantly protested. She ended up in a slumped position against the wall, teeth almost creaking from the force at which they were ground together, determined to keep control of her breath and not start gasping in pain. She couldn't move her body to sit up properly, and it likely wasn't a good idea anyway. Her bad arm was between her and the wall; thankfully her slumped position was slanted so that none of her weight was on it. She looked down. Though the limb was still half-hidden by the blanket, she could tell Erebus hadn't tried to set it yet. She looked away, glad that the bone at least hadn't broken through the skin. That was a small bit of luck.
"Stay down." Was all Erebus offered, watching her behind dark bangs as his head lowered. His hands wrung together, uncertainty flickering into his brain. He didn't know how to help anymore. He was ********, wasn't he? He wanted to leave. He wanted to go and get someone who could help, but he couldn't just leave her here. He couldn't abandon her. Not again.
His hands rose, running through hair that wasn't tied back for once. Long locks cascaded through his fingers, drifting against his shoulders as the male stayed silent. Quietly, almost with hesitation, he raised his head just an inch. "I have a relative who can help." Kithara. She was good at this. She was experienced. Didn't she run a hospital, anyway? Or something like that…
Rosella tried to lower herself back down using her right arm as a prop. The action hurt, but not as much as she feared. "Guess...I didn't teach...you how to set...bones last time you...were busted up," she said, having to pause for breath between most of the words. Breathing hurt, but she was getting a little better at it as her mind cleared slightly. Her eyes flickered to the left, but she didn't look down at her arm. "Probably better...not to teach you...now. I'd fix it...myself...but don't think...I could managed...to apply the proper...amount of force." She was sure she could walk Erebus through it if she really had to, but he was going to have to push bone back into the right spots and that would hurt quite a bit. He wasn't any kind of squeamish, but it seemed like it would be out of his comfort zone.
Erebus flinched at the idea of setting Rosella's bones, mostly because he was sure he'd ******** it up. Standing from his seat, he wordlessly eyed Rosella before heading into the kitchen, scooping his jacket along the way. He fetched the phone from his pocket, grateful he charged it on a fairly frequent basis whenever he went to the city, and that recently had been often thanks to his success with selling carvings.
Just… how did one use a phone? A good few minutes were spent fussing with the buttons before he finally figured out how to pound his cousin's number into the phone. Cursing quietly under his breath, he immediately snapped his mouth shut when the phone clicked and a soft voice greeted him on the other end. Soft chatter could be heard from the kitchen, abruptly ending with an awkward: "See you soon. Bye." Erebus returned shortly after, tossing the phone unceremoniously onto the table.
"My cousin is coming over." He stated, refusing to make eye-contact with Rosella.
Rosella's eyes followed Erebus as he walked out of the room, but the doorway prevented her from seeing where he was standing. By the kitchen table, if she was asked to guess. She closed her eyes and worked on controlling her breathing. From the kitchen she heard the rustling of fabric, soft metallic sounds, then the distinctive beeps of a phone. For a moment the mental image of Erebus working a phone caused enough amusement to block the pain. She knew she hadn't taught him; she pitied the salesperson who had sold him his device. There was soft speaking, but she returned to focusing on her breathing and wasn't paying attention, letting her eyes drift shut.
Her eyes drifted open again as the sound of returning footsteps stopped by the bed, followed soon after by a clunk of something hitting the small table in the little sleeping room. Her eyes narrowed ever so slightly at the mention of a cousin. Rosella had never been one to accept help lightly. It was doubtless one of, if not the main, reason she was so irritated with Erebus' protective behavior. The thought of anyone seeing her so injured brought on a stirring of temper, like a dog who curls in a corner and growls at anyone attempting to approach to help. Erebus was a rare exception, but it still made her a little twitchy.
"Don't need some...stranger fussing at me," she said in a low voice, roughened as through with sleep....though the blue-black bruises blossoming on her skin suggested other causes. "I'll fix it...myself if I...have to."
"Then try and fix it." He mused back, voice lazy and slow. "You can't. We both know you're too injured, and if it goes untreated it won't heal right. I can't fix it. I'll either make it worse, or put you in more pain then I'm willing to. My cousin – Kithara – runs her own hospital. She's incredibly talented, and has dealt with worse cases."
He paused, watching Rosella with the same expression she often gave him when he had refused help in the past. He set his head into his hand, looking at the door in silence. This was /his/ fault. Had he not left she'd be fine. Had he stopped being an incessant brat she'd have walked away from their argument with just a temper. He had ******** up, and the male was destroying himself for it. His tail lazily lashed back and forth, eyes staring down the door, almost willing it to open and reveal the monster who had hurt Rosella. He'd kill him. He'd murder the b*****d. He'd take those disgusting wings and hang them up on their wall.
This was his fault, and he flinched at the thought. Why? Why had he run away? Because he almost revealed something? Because of his anger? Because he was an idiot? All of them? Now here she was, broken in the bed. What had he done?
Rosella glared back for a quick instant, but it lacked any real power and it morphed into a grimace only a few instants later. She hated, hated with a true passion, feeling like her options were taken from her. It was a matter of stubborn pride, something she and Erebus seemed to share. It wasn't Erebus' fault though. He wasn't the one who had taken all her options. The only thing she could do now was heal, and even that she would not be able to do on her own. Oh, she probably /could/...if she was willing to either inflict a bit more damage on her body in the process or live life with an arm that was not capable of exerting its full potential. She wasn't nearly good enough at medicine to rebreak her arm and set it properly once she /was/ strong enough to do so, and in any case it would still weaken her arm to have the bone broken so often.
So there was only one thing she could do, and she was just going to have to grit her teeth and endure the unpleasantness.
She sighed, wincing a little as the air scraped through her abused throat, then looked over at Erebus. He was hiding his face, but she could tell from the set of his shoulders that he was upset, probably even angry.
"Mad at me," she asked. After all she'd been out, alone, at night, and near the dangerous forest that was his family home. All the kinds of things he was constantly warning her about.
He shook his head in response, briefly unwilling to vocalize his thoughts. His tail smacked violently against the chair he was sitting in, flipping into his lap finally to rest. "No." He grunted, still refusing to give her any form of eye-contact. He was ashamed. Ashamed and disgusted with himself and what he had done to cause this entire situation. He had ******** up. He had broken something. He had let her get hurt.
"I'm sorry." He finally mumbled, tilting his head so one eye was visible, finally gazing at her. He looked like a beaten puppy, practically cringing into himself when he looked her over.
"Nothing you could have done...to prevent it," Rosella said, rough voice a bit quiet. Her eyelids drooped a bit. "Can't...protect me...from everything. 'F you tried...I'd kick your a-" The last word was slurred, her eyes fluttering shut as she exhaled the air she had been about to use for speech out of her nose. It was quiet for a moment, then her breath picked up into a slow, steady pace. Though she had been ignoring the pain her body had continued to send its own signals. It needed to heal and sleep was a good start. She hadn't even noticed until her brain forcibly shut her down, protecting her from further damage so it could begin repairs on what was already inflicted.
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