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 Posted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 10:54 pm
Nick abruptly stopped pacing, instead closing his eyes and taking a deep breath and trying to clear his mind. None, outside of his own kind, would appreciate the self-control that Nick exhibited. For a moment he felt the demon inside him, the ever present darkness, call to him to be released and end the torment he put himself through day by day. He was glad he was young for his kind, that the demon was not as strong as the stories told it would be should he continue on his path. Pushing the dark thoughts aside, he turned towards the cave, questing to find Nori's presence, wishing he could finally utter the words he longed to say, but knowing he could not, not till Nori trusted him completely.
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Posted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 11:13 pm
His master was displeased. He could sense it. Hell, anyone could. But then, he didn't know what to do to please him. His current master was simply the most perplexing individual Nori had yet to encounter. He made sure his master's home was clean and comfy, throwing out loose rocks and placing down soft bedding of grasses and leaves. Vermin weren't a problem, not with most creatures fleeing from the scent of such a creature that his master was.
That was another oh so joyous fact. With his master being vampire he had no real reason to hunt. His master preferred his prey alive. ...And appearantly didn't want to damage his new slave with a bite. His ears drooped, flakes touching the ground, as he paced the expanse of the cave for the umpteenth time. No pebbles had escaped him, but there was little else to do. His master's bedding was fresh, and wouldn't be used until dawn anyway, when his master finally slept. Then he'd feed himself and keep watch over him. Never to leave his side like the good little slave he was.
Nori sighed and sat back on his haunches, his bright eyes staring at the floor without really seeing it.
His master had no real need of him. He couldn't so much as please him. Nothing he did was... right. And his master seemed confused over just what use a slave was for anyway. He really couldn't fathom why he still wanted him around... Or at least didn't just drain him of his blood and moved on...
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Posted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 11:32 pm
The fact that Nori was far from happy wasn't lost on Nick either. The fact of the matter was that Nick didn't have the heart to order him about, he wasn't of a domineering personality to begin with, but neither was he about to give up what would become his anchor in the future....if Nori could learn to accept him as he was. Technically, he wasn't truly a vampire as they were dark and fearsome creatures that killed their prey, while his kind preferred to leave their prey alive and in good health...if with less blood. There were plenty of nights that as he hunted, he debated the human adage 'it you love it, set it free and if it comes back to you, then it was always yours from the start.' However, it wouldn't work, not when Nori had been trained as a slave his whole life. Loyalty, if one could call it that, was ingrained in his mind and literally on his body. It was the only life he knew, and it hurt Nick that there was little he could do to ease his burden. Hell, he'd even set Nori free from the binding enchantments that existed around him when he bought him, and told him he could do as he pleased, yet day after day all he mainly did was pace the cave. He didn't have to be there to see the well-worn paths on the floor in his mind.
Finally reaching the cave entrance, he ducked silently inside, watching his lifemate-to-be pacing, such a sad and dejected look to his features that broke Nick's heart, yet he could do nothing to truly comfort him. He touched Nori's mind lightly, finding thoughts of failure most prominent and sighed lightly...if anyone was a failure, he was. He had little use for the normal needs of Nori's kind, and that left little for one such as he to do. Trying to put a better light on things, he said softly, amusement in his blue eyes, "If you keep this up, you'll wear out the floor."
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Posted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 11:45 pm
For a moment his eyes widened and his fur stood on end. He'd been caught off guard...again. His master was silence incarnate. He took a breath and calmed himself. Was he ever going to get used to this? Probably not...at least not for a while. He stood and bowed his head low to the ground. "Welcome home, master. While I believe we're still a few eons away from wearing out the floor, I will no less promise to fix it if it indeed shows such damage. Did you have a successful hunt this evening?"
He kept his eyes lowered. The only reason he dared to even speak like he did was because Nick seemed to worry over how quiet he was. A trait he didn't share with his predecessors. Hell, he'd almost been killed once for simply voicing his pain. But if this made his master more at ease, then so be it.
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Posted: Fri Jan 02, 2009 12:05 am
Nick chuckled, "Nori, it was a joke....you need to lighten up. You look like your about ready to jump out of your skin right now..." His voiced was a soft purr as he studied Nori closely, wishing he'd not drop his gaze or be so subservient all the time, but let it go for the moment. Moving towards the soft bed that had been gathered for his needs, he laid down, curling his tail round his legs, the end flickling lightly. It was a moment of silence before Nick replied softly with an edge of sadness, "Nori, why do you persist in pacing in here day after day? You're clearly not happy here. I appreciate all you have done and all you do, and I'm sorry I cannot be the master you wish me to be, and I accept my failure in such a role. It's why I gave you the freedom I did, to come and go, do as you wish when you want...what will make you happy, Nori?"
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Posted: Fri Jan 02, 2009 12:27 am
Nori's ears drooped again at the familiar words. He kept his eyes averted as he sat back down. "I know my place, master. I will not leave your side. You tell me to come and go as I wish, and I do. I do not wish to leave. You are my master, and where you are is where I wish to be. While you may have no real use for me, I am still here if you suddenly wish to use me." There were obvious uses he could still be used for, but that depended on one's choice. ...And he was sure Nick wasn't interested in using him like he was used to.
Hey, not every slave master wanted to purchase concubines. Least of all Nick. Why he'd taken on Nori was still an incredible mystery.
He sighed and raised his head a bit, but didn't dare meet his master's gaze. "It is not a slave's place to be happy. It is a slave's place to serve. You are not a failure at anything. If there has been any sort of failure it has been upon my part. I am unable to please you, unable to be of use to you. If I could fill some sort of role for you then I would have some purpose. I persist in placing these floors to at least keep your lair clean. So that I can at least do that much for you." He lay down, with another sigh, placing his head on his paws. "I just don't know what to do. You've turned down every service I could provide you with."
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Posted: Fri Jan 02, 2009 1:27 pm
Nick's own ears drooped and face saddened further at Nori's words, and the fact he refused to look him in the eyes. Again, he touched the other's mind, wishing for once that they had done at least the first blood exchange so that he could comfort him like he wished, but knew Nori wouldn't like the suggestion of drinking a vampire's blood...though he'd do it if ordered (or even compelled, as he kind could do that without Nori fully ever realizing what happened) but felt to do such would violate the trust he was trying to engender within the slave.
The thought that did flicker across that Nick caught a glimpse of was of him becoming Nick's concubine, and he hastily drew out of Nori's mind. The idea of them being together was highly appealing in the sense that they were supposed to be together, Nick knew it full well in his soul, but there was no way he'd take Nori without it being HIS choice. He wished he could explain away the confusion, show Nori why he'd been chosen, but feared his abandonment if he did. Granted, there would come a point either he'd have to tell Nori, or take his own life when the demon inside became too much to bear...however, if he persisted in waiting that long, it wouldn't happen till long after Nori was dead, so time in a sense was limited.
The fact was, Nick DID have a purpose, a role, for Nori to fill but how did one explain to another what it would entail, the exchanges, the conversion process, the pain and hell that Nori would end up going through without totally frighenting him to death? Sure, he could force him to undergo the process anyways, but Nori would never forgive him, would forever resent him and he couldn't bear bringing anymore unhappiness in his lifemate's life. He could barely stand seeing Nori laying there so pitifully and finally stood up and padded over to him.
Lifting his chin with his paw so Nick could look in his eyes, he said softly, "You serve me well and faithfully, and for that I am grateful, but moreso for your companionship. That alone is priceless to me. I know that there is much you don't understand, and even more that I cannot explain, about why I chose you. I assure you, you WILL find your purpose in time, but it's something that I can't tell you....you have to discover it for yourself. You have never failed me, I only wish I could prove that to you."
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Posted: Fri Jan 02, 2009 2:08 pm
Companionship? He was as companion-like as a sack of rather gloomy dry leaves. He pulled himself away, his aversion to contact only one reason he did so. He needed to break the contact. There was always a strange pull when he looked at him. It was something he couldn't explain and didn't want to test.
He sighed. "If it's up to me, then I'm afraid we're going to be sitting here like this for the next few centuries. Don't suppose you have that sort of patience, do you?" He curled his tail around himself and stared at the floor. "You are, by far, the most perplexing master I have ever served. .....If you obtained me just to free me, I'm afraid you've purchased the wrong slave. I've been at this longer than you possibly imagine and I have nothing, absolutely nothing, left for me out there."
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Posted: Fri Jan 02, 2009 6:11 pm
NIck had felt the same pull as well, sorta like electricity sparking between them, and knew exactly what it meant. He winced slightly as Nori pulled away, as if it was a slight to him, hesitating a second before turning to lay back down on his bed, his head on his paws while his eyes gazed upon his future. You may have nothing left, but if only you could truly see your future and how happy you really could be... Aloud he said, "Actually....I do. For a Carpathian, I'm actually fairly young, the ancients of my race would say I'm not much more than a very young child. Time isn't an issue...patience might be, but there is no true worry." He turned his gaze the dark entrance before adding in a softer tone, "At least that's what I'd like to believe.."
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Posted: Fri Jan 02, 2009 6:37 pm
Well that explained a bit. He was considered a child by his kind? No wonder he had no idea what to do with him. ....Not that Nori was any better off. His kind lived for quite a long time. Several hundred years, in fact. If one wasn't killed or fell ill or something...
He looked at him for a moment, then lay down, laying his head on is paws. "You really do wish to keep me. Why is far beyond me. I'm nothing more than an item, your property. If you lose patience with me just get rid of me. It's what they always do. Some have even gone so far as trying to kill me. Appearantly there's something out there making sure I don't die from my wounds before someone can get to help me." The last part was said mostly to himself. One paw was brought up to the bandages at his throat.
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Posted: Fri Jan 02, 2009 6:57 pm
Nick chuckled light, shaking his head. "No, I never meant I'd lose patience with you...." He put his head back on his paws, gaze thoughtful and bit longing. "The thing is, when the males of my race reach their 200th birthdays, they lose the abilities to see colors and feel emotions. All I'll have left to me is my honor and even that eventually goes away...that's what I mean by patience being an issue. The only thing that cures this is if I were to find my lifemate and bind myself to them for eternity." He hesitated a moment before quanitfying, "My lifemate provides the anchor that will keep me from turning into the true darkness that lurks in every male's life...eventually without them, I will either give in and become a true vampire of legend, living only for the 'high' that killing brings, or I can end my life myself. Not a great future to look forward to, huh?"
Looking to Nori, he added in a soothing voice, "You have no worries about me killing you, I would rather die than let anyone, much less myself, lay a paw on you. Anyone who harms a hair on your head will die at my paws." Again, he wished he could exchange blood to be able to share with Nori the depth of his feelings, and he wondered if Nori would see him (or perhaps already did) as a sort of monster and how much his speaking the truth would cost him.
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Posted: Fri Jan 02, 2009 7:15 pm
He paused a moment. "Huh...well, you're older than me. Not so much a child as you made yourself seem to be." He was right though. It wasn't exactly a pleasant future in store for him. At least Nori didn't have to worry about losing parts of himself. The whole sudden protective speech made him fidget for a moment as he thought.
After a moment he sighed. "Then perhaps it would be a better idea to continue moving? Search for this lifemate you need? It's rather worrying to know that each day that passes you can lose a part of yourself..." He canted his head. "How would you know her, anyway?"
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Posted: Fri Jan 02, 2009 7:55 pm
"Considering my race lives for centuries, I'm not much more than a newborn babe, though you are right I may be older than you. I think, though, in terms of our life spans, we're probably near the same age...not that I'm calling you a baby." Nick chuckled, trying to lighten the mood, though the next set of questions made his face fall slightly and all humor was gone. "To worry about something that's possibly inevitable is a bit fruitless...but as it stands, there is no real need to move or search. How I'll know them is when I see them..."
He thought for a few minutes over the question some more, trying to put it in the right words, while not trying to scare Nori completely away from him. "For me, the realization is fairly quick, moreso if I was over 200 years old. When an older Carpathain meets his lifemate, he knows it's her because as soon as he's in her presence he can see colors and feel emotion again. For me, because I'm too young to have the loss of color and emotion happen yet, it's more something I just know. My body and my soul tell me that it's other half is nearby, and craves to keep them close, to protect, comfort and love them and even die for them if I must. From what the stories say, a lifemate is simply the other half of my soul, and they go through much the same experience as I do, however most don't realize what it is at first... " His voice drifted off, he was having problems truly explaining what he knew without giving away the truth that he'd been hiding from Nori all this time.
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Posted: Fri Jan 02, 2009 8:08 pm
He was thoughtful for a time, thinking to himself. He could grasp the concepts he was talking about, but he couldn't help but find them weird. Then again, his lifestyle was probably incredibly strange to others... Not that he'd had much of a choice in the matter...
He shook his head. "I would be more worried about myself if I were in your position.... Then again, if I were in your position I'd never have been a slave." He plopped to the side, laying his head on the floor and stretching out his legs. "What you do is your business, master. I will follow you whether you wish to go find the other half of your soul or not. At least, for as long as you own me."
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Posted: Fri Jan 02, 2009 8:23 pm
Nick sighed and then chuckled lightly at the irony of this whole situation. "I don't need to find it because I already have." He continued on quickly as if what he'd just said should be nothing but a mere bit of news and of not much importance. "And you are right, in my position it is impossible to enslave one of my kind. Well, not impossible, but the chance is very low as you'd have to be an extremely powerful wizard able to face down a being who can control weather, shapeshift into anything from an animal to human to mere mist, and control the earth around him with but a thought and command, be able to weave magic spells, AND on top of all that my saliva has a healing agent in it. I can still be killed, mind you, just it's very hard to do."
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