Little by little, the human was regaining an awareness of his surroundings. The first thing he did was wrap an arm around the neko and squeezed. "I'm here, no need to act so worried." He knew he'd nearly died, but he was trying to lighten the mood with his mumblings. Lethargy just wasn't the kind of feeling Slan wanted to linger for too long. "You make a really good pillow." He curled up against the neko's shoulder as he spoke, as if to emphasize his words.

Rai let his friend lie on him, purring loudly to soothe him. He seemed ok, but one never forgets a life or death experience. Rai still remembered all of his. "You are so lucky... I thought you were dead for good..." he spoke, his throat still sore from screaming. He closed his eyes, his ears still alert to any approaching danger. It seemed this small oasis in the mountains was safe and hidden, as Rai could hear all sorts of birds and other herbivores moving around without any fear.

Slan snorted, shifting his head to press a kiss to the neko's cheek. "I know I'm lucky. You keep sticking around, no matter what." Even if he had tried to hard to push Rai away in the beginning. He smiled happily, content despite what had just happened, or perhaps because of it. He did wonder about the mermaid, and about why she had saved him. Perhaps later they could ask her about her reasons, but for now Slan just wanted to savor the fact that he was alive.

"You can sleep, I'll keep a look out for any intruders," Rai said, licking his friend's check. "This place looks very secluded and the animals will alert us to anything suspicious." He adjusted himself to be more comfortable, curling his tail around the naked body of Slan. It was a warm night, so the human shouldn't be too cold. His clothes were still damp, hanging by the fire.

He mumbled. "Thanks. Love you Rai." His mind was in such a fog, Slan wasn't even realizing what he said. Slan did love the neko of course, but certainly hadn't thought about it over much. The still shivering young man twisted around, pressing himself close to his cat eared companion. So warm ... Slan yawned, his eyes closed and he drifted off to sleep. He'd never felt so safe before.

The sunlight was warm on the lakeside, heating up the rocks and sand around it. It was so pleasant you wouldn't even guess that it was up a mountain, near the snowline. Rai stretched and crawled from under the human, smiling at him before running to the trees to relieve himself. He then sniffed about for some food, catching a brightly coloured lizard and eating it as he searched for something a bit more.

He returned to the now dead fire and lit it again, making a makeshift spit roast out of a hare he had caught. He turned it around so it would cook evenly and sat back, waiting for Slan to wake up.

Wisps of his dreams remained with Slan, even when the scent of something being cooked roused him from his sleep. They couldn't be called dreams per say, they were more like memories, melding together and then dancing apart. Shaking his head, he moved to grab his clothes and hid behind some bushes to take care of business and dress himself. All the while the dark haired man wondered where they would go next. They could always stay where they were, but the human village still remained too close to his liking.

Slan couldn't chase the worry from his face as he sauntered over to Rai's side. He only relaxed once he leaned his shoulder against the neko's, finding some comfort in the warmth offered by the other man. It wasn't just a physical sensation either, but so much more then that. "Thank you Rai."

"So where to next?" Rai asked, finishing the roasted hare and setting it on a flat rock that he had cleaned. Using his sharp nails, he tore it to pieces and split the portions into two. He sat back next to his friend and started to eat his part, feeling starved. "We could stay here... There is cover, water and animals..." He shuddered when he remembered the mutant creature that he had fought earlier.

Slan sighed. "I don't know. This place, I don't feel safe staying here." There was too great a chance the villagers might find them. The mermaid seemed to be safe, but most of the humans probably didn't know that she even existed, hiding deep in the waters as she did.

"Can't we find someplace where people could accept us both?" He wanted friends, a family of sorts. The dark haired man was tired of living alone, or rather on the fringes of society.