Hopelessly Lost

[actsonimpulse]

Melchior paused in one tree, knelt down, and jumped as high as his legs would take him. Shooting above the tree tops, he glided downwards, heading back in the trees. He was scanning the earth below him, looking for an escape route... Or his makeshift shelter that he had so cleverly disguised. Finally spotting the tree he had built the fort near, he increased his speed, landing hard on the cracking branch of an old sycamore. He felt the branch give way under the pressure, and he struggled for friction. The branch shifted downward again. Melchior jumped to the next tree in haste and slipped. Regaining his footing, he continued towards the tree. "You seem to lose faith in me at the wrong time," Balthasar sighed.......

Melchior jumped from the age old maple tree and dove through the hole in the bottom that had been hollowed out by animals in the past. He put Meyou down and pulled on a handle, lifting up a metal hatch, disguised as a patch of dirt. "Come on," he whispered in her ear calmly. He jumped down into the hole and landed about fifteen feet below the hatch. "Close the hatch as you jump down," he said in a low smooth voice. He walked out of Meyou's sight and turned on a light, revealing a roomy underground fortress. Melchior walked back to the entrance and held out his arms, flashing an open mouthed grin, his eyes sparkling in the dim light. "Ahhh... So... What do you think? Are you coming or not?" he asked as lightning shot through the sky, illuminating Meyou's face from above.

[aerdeu]

Meyou was surprised to find herself even standing, and smirked down at him as he jumped deeper into the ground. She looked behind her. She could still hear the hunters tracking her, they probably had some sort of hunting hound, that, or they were using their own noses. Meyou grimaced and looked back down at Melchior. She grabbed the handle to the hatch and swung herself into the hole, her ears pressing against her skull as the door slammed shut.
Meyou hung there for a moment with one hand, the other keeping the blanket tightly wrapped around her. She let go and dropped, landing gracefully on her feet, though stumbling for a moment. Her pupils widened in the dim light as she looked at him, then towards the ceiling. "Melchior . . isn't a traveler, is he? Meyou has never known a traveler who has knowledge of jumping so swiftly, like one could glide." Meyou looked back at his face, grinning.

[actsonimpulse]

Melchior smiled back, letting out an uncomfortable sigh. "You're right," he said smoothly. He walked over to a small pit that held simmering embers and threw on a log. He grabbed his sword and touched the hilt to the log. Surprisingly, the log sprang up into flames. He dropped into a circular concave chair, and offered Meyou a matching seat across from him. The flames illuminating his face, making his eyes dance. "Please, sit," he motioned.

[aerdeu]

She looked at him for a moment before bowing her head, raising it once again as she made her way to the chair. Meyou sat in it, her hands on her lap, her ears swinging from here to there, trying to catch every sound that was to hear from underground and above ground. She had no doubt they were safe, as this place was so intelligently built.
Meyou waited for him to speak, she looked into the fire. Indeed, was he a magician? Or perhaps someone trained in both combat and magic?

[actsonimpulse]

"Now," he started, looking at her quizzically from across the fire. "What is 'hybrid' and why are you so forbidden?" he asked her. He had to get a grip on things. He felt somewhat selfish for not giving her the whole answer about him not being a traveler, but the less she knew, the better. At least that's the way he felt. He shifted restlessly, trying to find a comfortable position. His muscles had been aching for days now. All the stress that had been harshly weighted on him was beginning to take its toll. When he got into town, he'd have to fix that. The sudden thought reminded him of food, which triggered his stomach to punish him for neglect. A long grueling howl droned through the silence, accompanied by the crackling fire. He looked down, hearing Balthasar roaring with laughter. Melchior pushed his way to his feet and walked over to a small doorway, concealing the contents of the room behind a silk curtain. The whole place was riddled with intricate, needless items. Making one wonder why he just wandered so much. The chairs were quite comfortable, the doorways covered with silk cloth. There was even lights in every room. The lights were most amazing. They weren't electric, or fire powered. They were simply orbs of light floating in a spheric container, made from bent and twisted metal bars. There were at least 20 of them on the one room alone, lining the walls, all different colors.

Melchior returned after a short wait with two bowls overflowing with steaming fried rice and two folding tables. He had placed tuna in Meyou's assuming she liked it, and chicken in his. "Hope you're hungry," he said, setting the bowl on a small table that he'd placed in front of her. He set up his table and put the bowl on its surface when he looked up. "Hold it!" he started. He reached into his pocket and pulled out two s p o o n s (no chopsticks!). He handed her the s p o o n, not knowing whether she'd need one or not and looked her in the eyes. "Forgot the s p o o n s."

[aerdeu]

She shook her head as he offered her the rice. Meyou'd been quiet all through the questions, pondering, and watching him carefully. She didn't have much of an appetite now, surprisingly. She'd already eaten what she needed today, why eat anymore? Indeed, the fried rice smelled good, and it probably would taste wonderful as well, but she really didn't want to eat it. Meyou didn't take the sthingy from him either, she just kept her hands on her lap and stared at him, her eyes glowing in the dim light.
"No, Meyou does not want to eat." She murmured, looking at him, her face not displaying any kind of emotion - well, except for a slight grimace. Meyou kept still and looked away, sighing.
"Anyway, Meyou told you, she's the daughter of a Fur Child and human. A hybrid. Fur Children, as Melchior should know, are humanoid type animals. Their anatomy is similar to a human's, but not quite. It's forbidden, the mating of a Fur Child and human, Meyou thinks. She's never met another one like her, well, not yet."

[actsonimpulse]

"Hmph," Melchior gave a muffled grunt of acknowledgment as he finished chewing his food. "Right..." he said after swallowing. It didn't take him long to finish his meal. He hadn't eaten in two days. But he'd gone far longer than that. Such intense demands he had put on his body. "Are you headed into town?" he asked, changing the subject. A family of rabbits scampered across his floor. He watched them intently. They were the occupants of the hollowed out tree before he'd built this pit. It was unusual to see someone like him show such compassion for the beings, seeing as he used to kill for a living... And continues to do so when the occassion arises. The rabbit sat up, cocking one ear to the left. Its whiskers twitched vigorously, catching wind of the rice that Meyou had left untouched. He realized that he'd already given her bread before, but she looked so neglected. He got up and placed the rice on the floor, as the rabbit meandered over and began to feed the rice to her young and herself. He laughed at the thing as it picked around the tuna, squinting at it as if it was diseased.

[aerdeu]

"No. Meyou only goes into towns or villages to steal food. Yes, she hunts. But only sometimes, 'cos she can easily break her own bones, and . ." She realised her own rambling, and stopped. Meyou glanced at him, seeing he was looking at something else, then she looked down. She smirked weakly at the rabbit family, watching the mother tend to her children when Melchior set down the rice. Oh, how lucky those children were to even have a mother who cared for them as they grew. Meyou frowned, and her teeth started to grind lighty, as she didn't feel like chipping a tooth with her fangs. They still had a mother, even if she was so trivial that they forgot about her later on. And, where was the father? Off mating with another rabbit?
Meyou whimpered at her own thoughts. How disgusting were they? She was jealous of a bunch of measely rabbits, why? Because they had parents? She looked away. Jealousy wouldn't bring her mother back. Jealousy was a sign of selfishness. But then, if Meyou always stole from merchants and charmed them in her cat-like enigma, wasn't that enough to deem her selfish? Again, she was thinking too much. She had to stop thinking, or she'd end up crazy.

[actsonimpulse]

Melchior sighed and looked at her with one raised eyebrow. "Huh... Well I'm heading into town soon. I was just curious as to whether you would like to go or not," he told her. He looked around silently before getting up. "I'm heading to town in the morning. You need sleep. Think it over I suppose, come I'll show you to your room," Melchior instructed her shortly. He turned on his heels and started, turning the corner to a hallway.

[aerdeu]

"Mh . ." Meyou grimaced, quickly getting up and following him. She didn't know what to think of this guy, he was weird. He never told her his profession, and maybe he was afraid to tell her, maybe it was . . confidential. She brushed some hair from her face, that had gotten into her view. She'd be sure to keep a careful eye on Melchior, just incase he tried to do anything 'funny'.

[actsonimpulse]

Melchior almost laughed. He knew it was immoral, but he can't control it. Try anything 'funny?' Why would he do that? And he certainly didn't think he was weird. He didn't even bother looking back to see if Meyou had followed. He simply kept walking until he arrived upon the third doorway on the left and stopped. He pulled on a string, untying a ribbon of silk, letting the curtain fall to cover the door. "There should be clean sheets on the bed. If you should get cold... or hot... there are more blankets under the bed," he directed her, holding the cloth back, showing her the room. "If there is a need for anything else... i'll be in the 2nd room down on your right," he turned on his heels and started back up the hallway. "OH! There should be a bathroom in the room next to you! I almost forgot!" he smiled sheepishly, still walking.
((Room description for reference: Soft mattress canopy bed in the far left corner, four light orbs, each in one corner of the room. Chest at the edge of a bed with a lock on it, mountain of pillows, quite expensive looking sheets. Closet in the middle of the right wall. Anything else you want to add, feel free, i just wanted to give a slight description so you wouldn't have to improvise or get stuck))

[aerdeu]

She pondered for why he had even emitted such a laugh, though flushed, a bit embarrassed -- she didn't know that he knew what she was thinking, Meyou couldn't of possibly known what he was thinking, though she looked at the ground in something of a shame as she followed him. She was weary, yes, though she wasn't regretting that she'd given up the meal he'd offered her. Well, atleast not yet.
Meyou didn't reply to his instructions, but instead looked around the room. Wasn't this a little bit too much for a "flea-bag" (or so Meyou was called, even if for a fact she was a precisely clean creature) such as herself?
"Thank you . ." She said quietly, her eyes avoiding his face, and she wasn't sure if she was to follow Melchior even more, though he was probably going to his own bedroom.

[actsonimpulse]

Melchior stripped down to his boxers before heading to the bathroom. He walked over to the wall opposite the bed and placed Balthasar on the shelf. "Goodnight old friend," he said. He could feel the warmth of the blade heating the palm of his hand. The sword seemed to move up and down as if the dragon was right there, breathing. The breath was slow, letting Melchior know that Balthasar had fallen asleep a time ago. He scratched the back of his neck and looked at his arm and chest. The battlewounds covering his body were like his trophies. Each one with their own story. It was crazy how he glorified them. They hurt every now and then, but its only to be expected with as critical as they were at the time. He brushed his teeth and stretched out his tense muscles slightly before getting into bed. He listened quietly to see if Meyou was still about. He knew she was weary and he hoped that she'd get a good night's sleep. 'I'll tell her in the morning...' he thought to himself before turning over and quietly embracing the wonderful bliss of sleep.

[aerdeu]

Meyou had sat on the bed, staring at the ground. The bed was comfortable -- something she hadn't encountered in a long period of time. She might feel sore in the morning, or maybe she'd wake up in the afternoon for her lack of sleep and comfort during the past weeks.
She layed back in the bed, neither cold nor hot -- the soft blankets sinking under her enough to last her warmth through blizzards. Meyou sighed, closing her eyes. Ahh, her whole body was sore, weathered and fragile, she remembered the nightmare she had had.
Mummy's dead . . .

[actsonimpulse]

Meyou's thoughts rang in Melchior's head. He tossed and turned in his sleep and her nightmare hit him like a slap in the face. He couldn't wake up, not until he saw everything. He hadn't tried to see her dreams on purpose and it wasn't her fault that they were connecting with him. Something had triggered it, he tried to stop like he could with any normal person, but something about this girl wasn't normal. He absorbed and retained her dreams. Almost like he was stealing it from her.
Melchior shot up in his sleep, his heart pounding in his chest. His hair was plastered to his forehead from the sweat. Someone was calling his name.... "Balthasar?" he got up and walked over to the sword. No reply rang out from the warm metal. He heard his name again, it was distant, but he heard his name. He walked carefully down the hallway, avoiding waking Meyou. He wandered further down into the hall. His body was already shaking because it was so cold. The draft crept up from the floor and wrapped its bony icy fingers around his legs. The voice was female. Musical and inhuman. He walked further back, observing his breath in the pale blue light emanating from the mystic orbs. He was losing himself, following the voice. The voice got louder and he was coming closer to it. It sounded familiar, but cold in its undertones. He stopped at the last doorway where the voice was protruding. It sang out to him. Whatever it was, it was calling for him. He stepped around the corner and his eyes grew with horror. His heart started racing with terror as he stood in utter shock. "Jehiro...." he choked. A tear slid down his cheek as the mysterious demon woman he called "Jehiro" shot towards him. Its cold hard hands wrapped around Melchior, stabbing him in the shoulder with a knife.







The sharpness of the pain jerked Melchior awake. He was crying. The sweat had plastered his hair to his face and he was short of breath. His left shoulder was stiff and Balthasar was awake. "Melchior, are you okay?" the might dragon asked concerned. Melchior swallowed hard, trying to get rid of the lingering knot in his throat. "Yea... I'm. I'm fine," he replied. "Just a bad dream," he said. Balthasar chuckled slightly. "Good to know. Sounded like you were dying over there. Don't do that or I'll never get out of this acursed sword. Besides, real men aren't scared of bad dreams... Goodnight Melchior."
"Goodnight Balthasar," Melchior replied warily. The lingering pain and the dream bothered him, but he rolled over and went back to sleep...