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Nanashi hurried to the tree with Kegokec and sighed, standing with his arms crossed tightly over his chest as he watch her, unsure of what she was doing with sticks. He knew they couldn't very well make a fire with those; they were drenched. He was shivering when she finally pulled him under the shelter.
He looked up at the blanket for a moment until Kegokec leaned against him. He closed his eyes when she said the word'cold' and responded very quietly with "J-just a l-little b-bit." It was all he could do to keep his teeth from chattering. He was as drenched as she was, his hair sticking to his head. He curled up beside her and put one arm around her to hold her close. He was trying to suppress his shivers and failing miserably. He was more than happy to accept the cloak from her and honestly could say that he was glad he wasn't on his own or he would still be getting rained on. He looked at the fruit when she offered it and blinked, slowly starting to nibble on a few pieces. He wasn't all that crazy about it, but it was better than nothing. Nanashi was typically more of a meat eater when he had the chance but he would literally eat anything he could get a hold of of it was eatable. |
~Kegokec laughed and gave him her cloak too, seeing as she wasn't all that cold. She snuggled against him to help him get warm and kissed his cheek.
"Is the fruit ok, Nanashi?" she asked. "If you want something hot, I can make a fire and make something. It's no trouble." She smiled. She gently pulled his hair back out of his face, as it was sticking to his skin. She tied it back with a piece of yarn and grabbed his wings gently. She scooted event closer to him and gently pulled his wings around the two of them even though they didn't do much good keeping the warmth in.~ |
Nanashi accepted the cloaks readily enough and curled up inside of them. HE blushed slightly when she kissed his cheek again and glanced away again. "It's fine..." he whispered. He wouldn't have minded having a fire, but everything was too wet to build one right now, and he didn't really want to give Kegokec up long enough to give her time to build one.
He blinked when she tied his hair back and let her maneuver his wings around. After a moment he leaned against her a little and leaned his head on top of hers, closing his eyes. Soon that soft purring sound could barely be heard above the beating of the rain. He was still shivering slightly from time to time, but he seemed content enough at least. |
~Kegokec closed her eyes and concentrated, trying not to giggle at Nanashi's cute purr. It was amusing that someone so tough purred.
She silently cursed herself for getting off track thinking about his purring and focused again. In a few minutes, the pair were completely dry and somewhat warm. Her power had worked in a different way and she was glad. But exhausted from the effort. Kegokec passed out not a minute after they were dry and warm, all her energy gone for the time being. Her head fell against Nanashi's chest as she slept.~ |
Nanashi continued to purr quietly, barely noticing any change until Kegokec's head fell against his chest. He blinked and looked down at her, his purr ceasing. He stared at her for a moment, wondering if all elves fell asleep that quickly. It took him a few minutes to realize that he was no longer drenched or shivering. He glanced down to her again and sighed softly, running his fingers through her hair gently. Is there anything you can't do? he thought as he looked at her.
He would let her sleep for the rest of the night if she needed and would stay right beside her where he was, even keeping his wing folded over her. Soon after he would follow her to sleep. It was still a few hours before morning when Nanashi did wake again with quite a start as a thunderous roar filled the light. The heavy rain was still falling, though now it was accompanied by lightning and loud, crackling thunder. Nanashi froze solid, his ears laying back at the sound. He really hated thunder, though it wasn't just because it was loud. He could barely remember why he hated it so much but for some reason whenever he heard it all he could think about was his mother...and blood. |
~Kegokec jerked awake as a particularly loud thunderclap sounded. She muffled a scream but ended up jumping all over Nanashi. She blushed and really hoped he'd been awake or he'd have just woken up to something horrible.
"Sorry!" Kegokec murmured. "Thunder frightens me. My ears are...sensitive." She quickly checked to make sure water wasn't gathering on the top of the blanket, made sure it wasn't getting wet and made sure their stuff was dry. She did anything to hide her face. "Should we...uhm..." she started sheepishly, "Take down the blankets and go or should we wait out the storm?" She secretly wanted to wait out the storm in the shelter, but she also wanted to keep going and put a lot of distance between the village and them.~ |
Nanashi's eyes widened when Kegokec jumped on him and he was glad that he was already awake or he might have smacked her. He just watched her as she fumbled around checking things just to avoid looking at him. He sighed and put his arm back around her to pull her back against him. "...Wait." He said quietly. He didn't want to get soaked again.
He cringed and let out a tiny squeak when the thunder clapped again and his grip on Kegokec tightened slightly for an instant. He closed his eyes and shivered, though not from the cold. "...I...I don't like it either..." He said quietly, his voice barely above a whisper. "I-it...it's..." He just shook his head. Frankly he felt terrified whenever he heard it. At least he had grown out of screaming, crying, and trying to crawl under the bed when he heard it. He had hated it ever since he was a child. |
~Kegokec nodded in an understanding way and curled back up against the handsome half breed. She wouldn't press him for answers and wouldn't ask questions. If he wanted to tell her something, she knew he would.
She cuddled close to him, enjoying his company, his arm around her and his scent. They waited out the storm, which raged for another three hours, cuddling and just being together. Kegokec didn't ask any questions and neither did Nanashi. Once the thunder and rain let up, Kegokec went about drying things out and packing things up. She handed Nanashi some cold meat in the process and smiled at him. "Better than fruit, hmm?" she winked playfully at him. Her mood was better since the thunder was gone. She shook the blankets out, the water rolling right off of them, and packed them away. She then sat on one of the tree roots that had been kept dry by their shelter and stared happily at Nanashi as he ate. She stood after a few minutes and shouldered her pack. She took his hand gently, kissed his cheek and walked off in the direction they'd been heading in the day before. "I won't press you for information, Nanashi." she started, speaking slowly and softly. "If you ever need to talk about it...about anything...I'm here." She flashed him a bright smile, her eyes glowing as she peeked at him out of the corner of her eye.~ |
Nanashi sat father stiffly until the storm subsided, but even then he looked distressed. He watched as Kegokec gathered things together and stood to help her after a bit to help.
He offered her a weak smile when she offered him the meat and nibbled on it half-heartedly as he stared off into the trees. Again he blushed when she kissed his cheek and glanced away, curling his fingers around her hand. He sighed softly when she mentioned his need to talk. "...There isn't much to be said." He replied quietly. "...I was orphaned like you were... when I was three years old. I never knew my father, he had left before I hatched, but..." he closed his eyes tightly, "My mother was a red dragon...as I suppose you could guess. ...She...she was slain by a hunter. I...I found her laying in a pool of her own blood... It was thundering then.... that's all I can think about every time I hear it." He glanced back to her sheepishly and then looked away. "...I can barely remember what she looks like now, but... I still remember that..." He had been just old enough to begin to be able to harbor more vivid memories. |
~Kegokec listened to the information Nanashi offered. She nodded sadly.
"That must be hard to deal with..." she whispered. "Maybe one day the memories will be pushed into the back of your mind by happier times." Her face flushed even as she realized what she'd obviously hinted at. She bit her lip and looked away from him. She stepped up the pace a little. After a while of gathering her courage, she ventured a question. Since it wasn't really about his past, she figured it might be ok to ask it. "So, Nanashi..." she fumbled over her words. No one had ever made her nervous before. "What exactly are you hiding?" She flicked her eyes to the bandanna around his head, not wanting to let go of his hand to gesture. "I understand if you don't want to talk about. Just like everything else." She smiled reassuringly. She was determined not to be like the prattling little air headed twits back in town who never shut up and bugged everyone to death. Her mind was elsewhere, but Kegokec suddenly noticed that the air was getting colder and a little wetter. They were getting higher up onto the mountain and were close to a giant waterfall. She briefly dropped Nanashi's hand to dig a cloak out of her pack for him. She simply draped it around his shoulders so she could put the pack back on and take hold of his delicate, warm hand again. He could put it on himself if he wanted. It was there if he needed it. She wasn't cold but she knew he was or would be shortly. Her ears perked up a little as she heard something like the low rumble of far off continuous thunder. They were getting even closer to the waterfall. She knew this meant danger of encountering people, as there were many trails that led to the beautiful area. Kegokec sighed softly and glanced over at Nanashi but didn't press him for an answer to her question.~ |
Nanashi closed his eyes and sighed. He didn't seem to catch Kegokec's hint. Honestly, he was probably the most ignorant person alive when it came to the opposite sex, or other people. "Maybe..." He agreed quietly.
He looked over to her in surprise when she asked what he was hiding. For a moment he didn't know what she meant and then he caught her glance to his forehead. He looked away again and shook his head. "...Just a...deformity." He said quietly, "...It's...kinda hideous." Or at least that was what he had been told. Honestly, the eye was beautiful with it's golden color, even though it seemed to be sideways on his head since it opened vertically rather than horizontally like his other eyes. However it was odd to see an eye in the middle of someone's forehead. He blinked when she released his hand and sighed, closing his eyes. He should have seen that one coming. He blinked when he felt the cloak drape over his shoulders and then looked back to her as she took his hand again and then smiled weakly. He was getting a little chilly but he hadn't planned to complain. Apparently she had already picked up on the fact that he got cold easily. His ears pinned back slightly as he listened to the roar of the water fall reached them and he looked around a bit. "...There is a water fall here?" he asked simply. He hadn't really been on this path before today; he's just been all around it. |
~Kegokec smiled a little.
"Yes. There's a waterfall." She thought for a moment, chewing on her bottom lip. "Nanashi..." she said hesitantly, "What you think is a deformity and what I think is a deformity and what everyone else thinks is a deformity are three completely different views." She nodded at his wings and tail. "Like those. I'd give anything to have such beautiful wings. But, if you're determined to hide that from me too, then so be it." She only half stifled a laugh as she suddenly dropped his hand, tossed her pack aside and pounced on him playfully. She wanted him to know they could be friends and that she cared about him. She ruffled his hair playfully as she pinned him to the ground by sitting lighting on his chest. She'd made sure his wings and tail wouldn't be squished or pinned uncomfortably before she jumped him. She stuck her tongue out at him like a four year old would have and started laughing again, trying to lighten the mood with her sudden mood swing. She leaned down, kissed the tip of his nose and smiled again. "Brave dragon, would you rather we go around so you don't get wet?" she teased gently, smiling to let him know she was just playing.~ |
Nanashi just stared at Kegokec for a few moments, smiling weakly.
At least until she knocked him over backwards. His eyes bulged for a moment and he stared up at her with a shocked expression for a moment, wondering what he had done before she stuck out her tongue at him and started to mess up his hair. He smiled up at her and laughed softly, closing his eyes to keep her hair out of them when she leaned to kiss his nose. "We can go over if you like." He said lightly, seeming to relax considerably. He sat up, flipping her off of him carefully and stood, grabbing her pack from the ground and handing it to her. He grinned sheepishly before scooping her into his arms and making a run toward the water. He unfurled his massive wings as he ran, catching a bit of wind as he positioned them for take off. Moments before he reached the edge of the bank he jumped as high as he could and flapped hard, forcing them a bit higher into the air. Soon they were a good 20 feet over the water and Nanashi was looking down at Kegokec with a playful smile. "I can't give you my wings...but you can use them." He said simply. |
~Kegokec squealed and threw her arms around his neck in a panic. She knew he'd never drop her, but it still scared her nonetheless. She gasped softly when she looked down at the water, twenty feet below. The sun was shining beautifully on it. With the waterfall kicking up a mist and the sun shining off the droplets in a rainbow and all the green, it was absolutely breathtaking. Even more so with Nanashi.
Kegokec blushed as she thought the last part. It was then that she knew, without a doubt, that she was in love with Nanashi. She quickly pointed to the waterfall and moved to were her lips were close to his ear. "There's a secret passage behind the waterfall, Nanashi." she whispered even though the thunder of the falls was loud. "We can take it to the other side of the mountain instead of taking the path." She clung to him a little more, hoping he would see it as fear and not that she just felt like she needed to be even closer to him. Her face flushed, so she buried her face in his neck so he couldn't see.~ |
Nanashi tightened his grip on Kegokec when she pressed herself to him. "Don't worry.... I won't drop you." He assured her quietly.
His gaze went back to the waterfall and he tilted his head slightly. Flying closer and narrowed his eyes, trying to see through the water. "Hmm..." He groaned when he saw the passage behind the water. "...I have to go through that?" After a moment of hovering he sighed and flew back the other way before turning around. "Hold on..." he said warily before starting to fly toward the water. He closed his eyes tightly and ducked his head as he shot through the water and into the opening of a cave. He tried to land, but his feet slipped on the rocks and he fell forward, completely flipping over even with Kegokec in his arms. "NYAAHG--OOF!" He grunted as he tumbled and hit the ground. "...Ow." He muttered quietly. "...Sorry..." |
~Kegokec was sprawled out a short distance from him. She sat up and her head swam with a wave of dizziness. She blinked and looked over at him, her face blank for a moment.
Then, she was laughing and crawling over to him. She sat down next to him and inspected his wings and other limbs to make sure he was ok. "You're alright?" she asked breathlessly, trying to hold back more laughter. It was more of a statement than a question. "I'm fine. That was fun." She kissed his cheek, near his lips. She laughed, stood up, grabbed her pack again and picked her way carefully to the back of the cave entrance. She squeezed an orb that was the size of an egg and pale blue light lit the darkness in front of them. Even though the light was blue, it was surprisingly easy to see every detail on the cave walls and ceiling. Kegokec smiled encouragingly at Nanashi. She was half afraid he might be scared of small, dark places like a cave. "You coming, brave dragon?" she teased. The cave would take them through the mountain, saving them time instead of having to use the trails and go up and over. She waited patiently for Nanashi.~ |
Nanashi sat up and rubbed the back of his head lightly, knocking his wet stringy hair free from the yarn that she had tied it back in. "Yes, I'm fine... I slipped on the rock." he muttered quietly as he glanced back toward the cave's entrance.
He stood and stretch before folding his wings and shaking some of the water from his head and flicking his tail, slinging tiny water droplets sailing from the furry turf at the end. After a moment he glanced to Kegokec again and then around the cave when she lit it before wandering over to her curiously, pulling the cloak around him a bit more tightly as he came event hough with it being wet it wasn't doing it's job very well. He was busy staring at the orb that she was holding when she asked him if he was coming. "Yes I am coming." he said simply. The dark was one of the few things that he really didn't have much of a problem with. If he couldn't see anything else then nothing could see him either, or at least that's what he liked to think. He started to walk ahead, glancing around the inside of the cave as he went. "How did oyu know about this place?" he asked simply. |
~She gave him a slightly confused look and then turned away.
"I...er..." she stammered. "I don't know. I've never been outside of the village or it's fields..." She hid the frightened look on her face and turned to him in the semi-dark. She smiled reassuringly. "But I'm sure it'll take us right to the other side." She stared at him for a moment, her head tilted to the side. She bit her lip and stared harder for almost a minute. She then reached out and touched Nanashi. A cloud of warm steam rose between the two but quickly faded. Kegokec stepped back and grinned at a now dry Nanashi. "Easier than last time." She turned on her heel and strode quickly into the tunnel.~ |
Nanashi glanced back to Kegokec and tilted his head slightly when she said that she didn't know. "...Well...I guess living with humans hasn't dulled your instincts... You are an elf, after all..." he said simply.
He blinked when she touched his arm and saw the cloud of steam and then looked down at himself and at her. "...Last time?" He didn't even remember the last time. "...How did you do that?" he asked, tilting his head to the side to stare at her. "...that...was interesting." At least he wasn't so cold now. He gave her a slight smile as he followed her into the tunnel and reached out to take her hand loosely. We he was starting to wonder how long this tunnel was going to be, but it wasn't like it really mattered. They were going to be going all the way no matter how long it was. |
~She laughed softly and nodded.
"I guess. Elves do sort of have built in compasses..." she murmured. Kegokec held the little orb aloft and started walking quickly through the tunnel, her hand holding tightly to Nanashi's. Her green eyes pierced the darkness easily, even without the light and she figured Nanashi's eyes would be just as good. She dodged a few loose rocks, some slippery moss, and random other odds and ends one would find in a cave. They traveled for about an two and a half hours, time slipping by unnoticed as they went swiftly through the cave, enjoying each other's company. Suddenly, she stopped dead. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end and she heard Nanashi growl, low in his throat. He must sense it too. Why he didn't pick it up before her was a mystery though. They weren't alone in the cave. Something big was approaching from in front of them. Something that was too big to pass them by in the small cave. And it would be angry to see them. It was a cave Dragon. Much smaller than the ordinary dragon, it could breathe hotter flames than the ones who were seen outside. It had to be able to clear itself a tunnel somehow, right? Kegokec gasped and held her breathe, looking to Nanashi for help. "What do we do?" she gasped in a strangled voice. "I don't know how to deal with dragons!" She gave him a meaningful look in the blue light that meant 'other than you' and a smile touched her eyes, even as fear started to make her heart pound faster.~ |
Nanashi could see just fine in the dark as well, though his vision was not quite as good as Kegokec's; he needed the light. He was making way easily through the tunnel. His worn boots made walking fairly easy and comfortable.
All at once he stopped in his tracks, and narrowed his eyes. Glancing to the side he saw that Kegokec had stopped as well. He stared ahead in the darkness and growled lowly before shifting closer to Kegokec. He looked down to her when she asked him what to do and just gave her an almost helpless expression. "Do you think I do?" he asked quietly. He put his arm around her and moved her to the side a bit, though he knew there was probably no way they were going to just be passed up. Cave dragons, he knew were another form of Earth dragons though they tended to be loners unlike the others. In general, the earth clan tended to be the most massive of the dragons and liked to stick together. These were sort of outcasts, or more accurately little hermits of the clan. He also knew that the earth clan and the fire clan hardly got along at all except for on special occasions. He gulped as the dragon drew closer and he heard it stop and sniff the air. Is ears laid back slightly and he shifted in front of Kegokec as if ready to shield her from something. A few moments later blue flames shot through the cave toward them and Nanashi quickly brought his wings around in front of him and tried to block the flames. They burned slightly, but his wings were very well equipped to deal with high temperatures. He winced and then called out to the other dragon in a language that really only dragons could understand. "Pok! Yth re ergriff xoal'ja ekess dolruth erekess!!!" The flames died away; that at least seemed to get the dragon's attention. Nanashi lowered his wings slightly and looked out toward the dragon again. Full blooded dragons had one particular gift; the gift of tongues. They could speak and understand any language. It was uncommon for anything but a full dragon to know Dragonic, but Nanashi had been raised around the language with both his mother and then his aunt after his mother had died. She didn't realize that he could understand her almost perfectly when she talked about him in that language since she assumed that his mother had only taught him to speak in the human tongue since she was one that saw him as hardly worthy to breath. |
~Kegokec kept perfectly still, not wanting to attract attention to herself. She pushed back her fear, half wondering if Dragons could sense it. She rooted herself to the spot, her eyes flickering from Nanashi to the Dragon nervously.
She barely flinched when the dragon spewed flames at them. She trusted Nanashi with her life. She glanced at him in surprise when he shouted in what she figured was Draconic. When the dragon stopped it's fire, she took a deep breath, locked her eyes on one of it's and hummed a single note, holding it for a few seconds before it got higher in pitch, then lower again. She kept her eyes focused on the Dragon, forcing her will into her notes. It was mostly to calm the beast, but she also told it they just wanted to pass, like Nanashi had said. She feared the Dragon would get angry again though, seeing an Elf and half-breed not only alive but together...~ |
Nanashi glanced back to Kegokec briefly when she started to hum and then looked back to the dragon again. "Please, origato udoka dolruth." he said softly, bowing his head humbly.
He could feel the dragon's eyes on him as it listened to Kegokec's hums, barely seeming to calm as the notes came to him. He heard the dragon huff and felt hot air blowing in their direction and then a deep gravelly voice answered him. "Xihuuli nou'ara..." he grumbled and then began to speak in a language that both of them would understand. "What business does an elf and a filthy halfbreed have traveling through my cave?" Nanashi lowered his head again and spoke softly, ignoring his rude comments. "We only wish to get to the other side of the mountain without going over. I was no aware this cave was occupied. I ask your apologies." he glanced back up again, "But since we are already well over halfway through... it would seem pointless to turn back." He pointed out, trying to be reasonable with him. |
~Kegokec sighed and bit her lip.
"This isn't working. He hardly calmed down at all." she whispered in Nanashi's ear. She thought for a moment, chewing on her lip. After a little, she pushed gently past Nanashi and walked slowly towards the giant creature, staring him down in a polite way. She bowed her head as she reached a point close to his nose. "Great Dragon, please allow us passage through here?" Kegokec spoke slowly, filling her words with truth and respect while sounding regal at the same time. "We mean you no harm. We simply wished to pass quickly to the valley on the other side." Kegokec bowed her head again and whispered to the Dragon, acting as if Nanashi wouldn't be able to hear so the Dragon would think a little harder. "Grand Dragon, if you let us pass safely, it is within my power to be able to cloak both exits of your cave so no one else will find them. If you let us pass, I will be most grateful and will reward your kindness by doing so." She smiled sweetly at the Dragon, her words full of truth, the echos still ringing gently in the small cave. Earth Dragons weren't known for being as smart as the other types of Dragons, so Kegokec hoped her offer to hide his cave would trigger the thought 'protection' for him. The Dragon thought for a few minutes, his breath scorching Kegokec, but she held still, ignoring the pain. "origato udoka dolruth?" she whispered softly after the silence stretched out. The Dragon was slightly shocked to hear an Elf speak Dragonic and he answered quickly then. "You may pass," he rumbled, "But if you do not do as you have said, I will find you and I will have my revenge!" Kegokec nodded quickly and stepped back a few paces to give the Dragon a curtsy worthy of the High King, her head bowed low. "Greatest Dragon," she murmured sweetly, "I shall do as you have commanded!" The Dragon wriggled backwards and soon disappeared into the cave, seeming to have taken another path to get out of their way. Kegokec looked back at Nanashi and smiled weakly as she dropped to her knees in fear, shaking.~ |
Nanashi stood back, ready to dash forward at any given second if the dragon started to attack. He was surprised when she repeated the Dragonic words that he had spoken before. He hated seeing her treat this dragon with so much more respect than he deserved, but he bowed to him as well. He had no trouble belittling himself before a dragon like that if it would make the dragon feel important, but he didn't want Kegokec to have to do it.
Once the dragon had gone he looked to Kegokec with concerned eyes and hurried to her side when she fell. He gently put his arms around her shoulders and rubbed them lightly. "...It's alright." He whispered, his voice suddenly less formal than it had been. He was shaking slightly himself though not quite as badly as she was. After a moment he stood, pulling her up with him and sighed quietly. "...Good thinking..." he whispered as he placed his arm around her again. "...Are you alright?" he asked quietly. |
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