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Threads of Fate - Cyndel and Kegokec
Setting: Old timey fantasy England type place.
Characters: Nanashi the half Dragon, half human and Kegokec the Elf. ~Kegokec wandered around aimlessly in the cobblestone streets of her town. She was horribly bored and had nothing better to do. She smiled at the people she passed, memorizing their faces for no reason other than she loved the way different people looked, how no two people were the same and how much better everyone looked when they smiled. Everyone returned her friendly smile and everyone around town knew her due to her frequent walks. People always said she was a bit strange because she never really talked to anyone but the animals, but no one spoke unkindly about her. Kegokec felt the air shivering with excitement that day. Something was going to happen and she was just biding her time until it did.~ |
Just making his way into town was a young man who looked as if he couldn't have been much older than 19. Apple red hair poked out from beneath and over top of a black headband placed directly over the center of his forehead and distant ruby eyes stared at the ground as he moved forward. He would make eye contact nor would he speak to anyone. His long pointed ears twitched occasionally as he picked up bits and peaces of outraged whispered about the monstrosity that dared walk down the street in broad daylight.
He wore only a tight threadbare black shirt, and very worn black pants with filthy brown shoes. His white coat was missing one sleeve where it appeared to have been ripped away and the ends that dangled near his ankles were shredded and stained brownish with dirt. Barely visible under the many sheds of his coattail was a slender tail, covered all over with deep red scales and tipped with black fur and a pair of leathery red wings with black scales around the bones lay folded tightly against his back. His skin was a deep coppery tone like one that spent a lot of time int he sun, though his skin was mostly just dark by nature considering that he originated from a dessert region. He realized that these people would not be find of having one such as himself wandering their streets, but he was hungry and tired, and very near just falling on his face where he walked. |
~Kegokec caught the whispers before she saw the creature everyone was talking about. Her long, pointed elven ears were sensitive enough to pick out things humans couldn't. Her waist length platinum blonde hair glistened in the sunlight as she stepped up her pace to see the creature.
There weren't many half breeds and pure bloods of anything other than the humans around, so there was no one Kegokec could really relate to and talk to. Her parents had both been murdered by foot soldiers from a far away place when she was a baby, so one of the local human families had taken the poor Elf orphan in. She was full blooded elf, but even in this town full of creature haters, everyone loved her. Kegokec's green eyes flashed with joy as she rounded a corner and the creature came into view. She could tell right off he was half and half and that he was very handsome, if somewhat a little worn from his travels, and that he would get no kindness in the town other than from her family due to his wings, tail and horns. His clothes were a little tattered and dirty, but that could be remedied. He also looked hungry. Kegokec stepped up her pace a bit more, headed in his direction and waved in a friendly way, smiling at him.~ |
((LoL Invisible horns. >.> I took those off, remember? XD))
Nanashi's eyes remained on the ground as he walked, refusing to look up to meet the hateful gazes that greeted him. He didn't understand with the problem with him was other than his bloodline, but he was more or less used to it. He was still a little too far away to notice the girl waving to him. It wasn't until he felt something grab his tail that he stopped and whirled around to see two children behind him. "What is he, a lizard-man?" asked a boy probably not much older than 10. He was still holding Nanashi's tail as if Nanashi weren't even attached to it. Nanashi was good natured at least and let the kid examine his scales for a second before trying to pull his tail away. "...May I have my tail back, please?" He asked softly, though his voice was a bit hoarse. The boy stared at him for a moment and then dropped his tail. "Ahh! I can talk!" A little girl stood beside him looking at him as if he were a complete idiot. A moment later her eyes landed on the large fang necklace that hung by a leather cord around Nanashi's neck and smiled. She was probably only about seven with little idea of what she was talking to. "I like your necklace." she said shyly. Nanashi smiled ever so slightly at the girl and bent over a little, opening his mouth to prepare to thank her though he was cut off when the boy suddenly reached up and snatched the necklace and jerked it off of his neck before running off back toward a building. Nanashi straightened quickly and looked after him with wide eyes. "H-hey! Give that back!" He called, starting to chase after the boy, though skidded to a halt when a fairly burly woman wielding a broom came to the door swinging at him. He ducked back and avoided the first hit, though his foot slipped out from under him and he fell to the ground on his ass. "W-wait, I ju--OW--Please I--stop it!" He pleaded as he tried to back away from her while the smacked him with the broom like she was trying to keep a stray dog out of her house. |
(Sorry about the invisi-horns. XP)
~Kegokec stopped for a moment as she saw the boy grab the older one's tail. She wondered what was going on. She saw the little girl smile at the young dragon man, saw him smile back and then the little boy run off and the woman start beating the young man. Kegokec dashed forward in anger as she saw something glint in the boy's hand. She knew what had just happened. As she raced by the woman and the young man, she snatched the broom away and tossed it about twenty feet from the woman, just far enough to where the young man could get away if he wanted. She caught up to the little brat who'd taken whatever it was, grabbed him by his collar, yanked him up and turned him to face her. She was only slightly taller than him, being five foot three at nearly eighteen years of age, but she held him with his feet off the ground and stuck out her hand. "Give me back whatever you took, Zachary. You know better!" she said sternly, but not meanly even though the brat deserved to be spanked. "But look at him!" Zachary cried. "He's.. weird! He's got a TAIL!" Kegokec's look hardened. "Have you forgotten," she started, "young one, that I am an Elf?" Here, Kegokec tossed her head a bit, freeing her hair from hanging in front of her ears. "If you think I'm weird too, then say it," she threatened. Zachary gave her a wilted look, stared at his feet and handed the necklace back. Kegokec sat him back on his feet and continued to glare at him. She handed the necklace back, shoved Zachary in the young man's direction and followed after him.~ |
(lol no problem. XD)
The instant that the broom was tossed Nanashi scrambled to his feet and took off, making his way halfway to the other side of the near empty street before looking back. He was shaking now worth from just nerves and frustration. This was more trouble than it was worth just to eat, he could sleep in a tree and chew on grass for all of this, but he wasn't leaving without that fang. That fang had been one of his mother's baby teeth that she had given him because he liked to look at it so much. The tooth was nearly two inches long even at that, and that was about all that he had left of her. He barely heard the ruckus inside the house as he looked around, trying to figure out some way of getting his things back without causing trouble. That was when he noticed the other young woman push the boy back out the door. He blinked and timidly took a step back as they came toward him. "L-look... I just...I just want the fang back..." He said quietly. It took him a moment to notice the small oddities about the girl that distinguished her as an elf, but he didn't comment. From his knowledge a pure blood of just about anything was going to detest a halbreed like him. |
~Kegokec noted how nervous and shaken the young man was as she guided Zachary back outside. She smiled warmly at him, noting he had ears similar to hers. She always figured dragons and half dragons would look...bigger and meaner. But, the half dragon was handsome and didn't look too mean at all.
She made sure Zachary gave back the necklace and then shooed him away. "Are you okay," she asked. "That looked like it hurt..."~ |
Nanashi took back the necklace and then looked away. He even thanked the little brat for giving it back as he took it from his hand. He looked down at the girl in front of him for a moment and then glanced away shyly. "I have had worse." He said quietly as he went to tie the string back around his neck.
Nanashi was small compared to a grown full-blood dragon, but he still still at a good five foot eleven. Part of what made his look so scrawny was his lack of body mass. He was extremely thin and had very little muscle, though he was still very strong...from a human's standpoint at least. Once the necklace was securely around his neck again he glanced back to the young elven woman. "...Thank you." He said quietly before turning in a rush, though he was no longer heading in the direction of the center of town. He'd changed his mind about that already. |
~Kegokec grabbed his arm gently and led him towards her family's cottage on the outskirts of town. She smiled at him.
"You look hungry, tired and... like you could use a bath." she smiled and laughed in a friendly way, not meaning any harm by her comment. "I hate to say it, but that's about the only place you'll find any kindness. People here were harassed by halfbreeds about 50 years ago. They weren't dragons or anything... but people don't take kindly to anything but humans." She let go of his arm, smiled again and kept walking, hoping he'd follow her himself.~ |
Nanashi gasped quietly when the elf grabbed his arm and started to pull, but he followed with little resistance. He his cheeks burned red when she mentioned his need for a bath. He supposed that he could stand to have a decent one. He listened in silence as she explained to him what had happened to the town a while back and he sighed heavily. "I see..." He said quietly, though he knew that was not the case in most other places that he went. "...If I may ask... then why are you here?" He inquired. He stopped moving when she let go of him but after a moment he started forward again slowly, following her to the cottage. He looked around warily as they walked, sticking rather close to her since he somehow doubted that anyone would bother him if he was with her, though he half wondered what she wanted from him. She had to be after something, but he really had nothing to give.
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~Kegokec laughed softly at his question.
"My parents were murdered when I was a newborn. My mum and dad, the people I live with now, found me on the side of the road on the way home from trading with the village near here. They took me in even though I was an elf because, well...you can't just leave an infant to die, no matter what. That, and my mum and dad had never really had a problem with the half-breeds and pure-bloods. They've only lived here for about 20 years." she smiled and hoped he didn't mind her small rant. "So, how'd you end up here..uhm...?" she smiled once more, warmly. "I don't think I ever caught your name. And, mine is Kegokec." She turned and bowed perhaps an inch and held her hand to her heart, smiling, her eyes never leaving the young man's. The gesture was one of respect and friendship that was given upon meeting someone new who you thought would become a close friend.~ |
Nanashi's eyes widened slightly in surprise and then grew sympathetic. "I see... I'm sorry." He said softly. He knew how it felt to lose your parents, or parent in his case since he never knew his father. He was only three when he was left alone in the world and one of his relatives grudgingly took him in until he was old enough to fend for himself.
He tilted his head at her second question. "O-oh... My name... is Nanashi." He said quietly. Nanashi was not his real name, but he couldn't remember the name that his mother had given him. Nanashi was what everyone had called him, and basically meant one without a name. "I was just wandering... All I wanted to do was find something to eat..." He said quietly. When she stopped at gave him the bow he paused and stared down at her, though when their eyes connected he averted his gaze. In response all that he could bring himself to do was lean forward a tiny bit and bow his eyes with his eyes closed in a sigh of acknowledgment. He still found it too hard to believe that she was even talking to him. |
~Kegokec's smile fades a bit when she saw his face drop.
"I see from your change of expression," she started quietly, "that you too have lost a parent or two. But, I won't ask your story. Nor do I expect you to tell me." She stopped for a moment and looked thoughtful, as if she might have understood the meaning of his name. "Nanashi is a very nice name." She took his arm gently again and lead him the rest of the way to her parent's cottage, hoping a friendly touch would cheer him up, even if it was only a bit. "Oh and," she said, "you can stay with me as long as you like. My parents will be happy to have you. We actually have an extra room, plenty of food and..." she cut herself off in mid-sentence, looked around to make sure no one was listening, dropped her voice and continued "I found a way to heat our water before it comes into our house, so we don't have to boil pot after pot to take a hot bath!" She giggled a bit. "No one else knows about it though. My parents are scared that if someone finds out, they may try to run me out of town." Her ever present smile widened a bit. "I can mend and wash your clothes for you while you take a bath. And I'll fix you anything you would like to eat!" She dropped his arm and pushed him gently through the door of the small cottage they'd come to. It was bigger on the inside than it looked from the outside. The door opened to the family room. It was furnished for five people to sit comfortably. Off to the right was a small kitchen. Off to the left was a closed door, the master bedroom. To the back of the room, there were two closed doors, right beside each other, presumably the other two rooms, one of which was Kegokec's. "Oh, and, I only talk a lot when I first meet new people. I don't talk anywhere near as much afterwards. I just get really excited." She flashed Nanashi another friendly smile. "What would you like to do first?"~ |
Nanashi nodded weakly to confirm her assumption, though simply looked away again when she complimented his name. He was not all that fond of it himself. It was a careless name thrust upon him by those who never cared to learn his real one, but since now it was the only one that he could really remember he had little choice but to answer to it.
He nearly jumped when she took his arm again, but relaxed after a moment as they made their way to the cottage. He listened to her silently as she spoke, glad that she was doing most of the talking and not expecting him to carry on a grand conversation. His pointed ears fell back slightly when she mentioned her parents' fear that she would be run out of town. Over hot water? He thought, disgusted at the ignorance of these people. Why run someone out of town for developing something that could be beneficial to everyone? He thought that everything she was offering sounded great. ...a little too great. Once she led him inside and he took a quick glance around before looking back to Kegokec when she started to speak again. "..I see." He said quietly in response to her comment about talking a lot. When posed with the question he just looked at her. What did he want to do first? How in the world was he to know what he wanted to do first, he was just glad that she wasn't beating him. Finally he sighed and moved away from her a bit, looking down at her silently. "...What is it that you want?" He asked softly, "...I have nothing to give you." He knew that she hadn't asked for anything...at least not yet, but he couldn't help but feel that it was there somewhere. He made it a practice to know what he was getting into and what to expect whenever he accepted anything from anyone. |
~Kegokec gave him a confused look for a moment. She hesitated before speaking up.
"A...friend." She smiled in a sad way before moving toward him. She took his shirt and coat in one swift movement, not giving him time to react to her Elf-swiftness. She knew the type of person he was and knew her comment would have caught him off guard even though that wasn't what was intended. She laughed softly and shoved him gently into the kitchen and through a small door that lead to an indoor bathroom. She tossed a towel and cloth at him and walked away, leaving the door open for fear he'd freak out if she closed it on him. "Just toss out the rest of your clothing once you're in." she yelled back. "I'll wash and mend them while the soup is on. You do like soup, don't you?" She glanced in the direction of the door while waiting for his answer, his shirt and coat slung over one of her narrow shoulders.~ |
Nanashi blinked when she told him that she only wanted a friend. He opened his mouth to prepare to speak, though he hardly had time to say anything before he was suddenly standing there completely topless. He gaped for a moment before suddenly crossing his arms over his torso self-consciously.
Nanashi was thin to the point that one could count his ribs if they chose to and his bronze skin was covered in ghastly scars, most of which were on his back, though many were also on his torso as well and a few smaller ones lined his arms. His wings fanned out slightly for a moment and then pressed tightly against his bare back. He looked at Kegokec with wide ruby eyes that quickly tarted to dart as if he were looking for an escape route. He was half ready to snatch his clothes back and run when she practically shoved him into the bathroom. He snatched the towel and cloth and looked at her a she left him. He closed the door and glanced around, taking in the tub and other objects in the room before he sighed and finally kicked off his shoes to finish undressing. He heard her voice through the door and sighed. "...I...I guess so..." He said quietly, his voice probably barely audible from the other side of the door. He stood well behind the door and cracked it just enough to flick his pants outside before closing it again and latching it himself. |
~Kegokec blinked at the door as she stooped down to pick up the rest of his clothing. Now that he was behind a closed door, she allowed herself to 'see' what she had seen of him. He'd been heavily scarred on his arms, torso and back.
She walked outside, her mind already working as she started to wash his clothing. Every now and then, Kegokec would wash and mend clothes for other townspeople for a small fee due to the fact they swore she could get any stain or spot out better than anyone else. Since she was practiced at it, she got all Nanashi's clothes clean in a little under fifteen minutes. She let them hang in the warm sun and air for another ten. She went back in, washed up and started the soup. She then sat down in one of the chairs and started to mend all the rips, tears and cuts in the semi-dry clothing Nanashi had given her. After a bit, she got an idea. Kegokec put her mending aside, got up and knocked softly on the bathroom door. "Nanashi...uhm," she started, nervously, afraid he'd take offense in what she was about to say, "I have some ointment that I can put on your scars. It'll make them go away a bit. Unfortunately not completely, but it'll help." She waited nervously for his reply, shifting her balance from one foot to the other.~ |
Nanashi filled the tub with warm water and climbed in. Being half fire dragon he was not very fond of water, but so long as it was very warm, he was alright. He crawled in to soak for a few moments before starting to wash himself thoroughly, scrubbing away dirt, dead skin, and more dirt as best as he could. He removed his bandanna as he washed his apple hair, scrubbing his scalp until it almost hurt, and then rinsed himself off before putting the bandanna right back on to cover the golden eye that marked the center of his forehead. By the time he'd gotten himself mostly clean the water was brown so he let it out and filled the tub again to try to get the rest.
Soon enough he was clean and drying himself off while sitting on the edge of the tub. He was busy ruffling his hair with the towel to get it dry when he heard the tap at the door. He raised his head and lowered the towel as he listened to her suggestion and then sighed, looking at the floor again. "...It's...alright. It doesn't matter. There will only be more to replace them." He said simply. He wouldn't mind getting rid of them, but it almost seemed like a waste to him. He shook his head to allow his damn, stringy hair to fall where it would before standing to wrap the towel around his waist, though he only looked at the door since he had no desire to go out like this. |
~Kegokec frowned on the other side of the door, something she very rarely did. She sighed softly, sadly, as she ran off to get a pair of her extra clothes Nanashi could wear while his others were drying and being mended. She often took her father's old clothes for work clothes. They were loose on her, but they worked for getting dirty. Since her father and mother were out visiting family in another part of town for a while, they'd both taken all their clothing, which wasn't much, with them. She sat the plain black garments in front of the door and knocked again.
"Your clothes aren't done, so I sat some that should fit you in front of the door. You can make holes in them for your wings and stuff if you need to." she said softly. "I'm walking away now so you can get them." With that, she walked back into the main room, sat down and started mending again, humming a wordless tune she knew but didn't know where it was from. Kegokec was happy to have someone else to talk to. Someone else who was like her. Someone who seemed to need her.~ |
"Thank you..." He called quietly as he moved to the door, giving her plenty of time to get away from it before he opened it and snatched the clothes from the ground. He looked at the clothes for a moment and then sighed as he clawed at the seat of the pants with his hard nails until he made a decent hole in them he before putting them on. He knew a knife or scissors would have made things easier, but since he didn't feel right searching her bathroom for either his claws sufficed.
He then looked at the shirt and started to claw at the back similarly until there were long slits in the back. He then slipped it over his head and fumbled until he could get his wings thought the holes. Finally he turned and started out the door. He stood there for a few moments and then walked silently across the kitchen and back into the sitting room. He looked at Kegokec silently and then went to stand in front of another chair, though he hesitated before sitting down. The clothes were almost too small for him, though even at that they were loose...just short. |
~Kegokec laughed softly and smiled when he came out.
"I'm sorry," she giggled, "I thought they'd fit. They're all I have at the moment, or I'd offer you something that wasn't so short. And I could have brought you something to cut the holes with. I didn't think." She motioned for him to sit down and kept mending his clothing. "How'd you end up here?" she asked. "In a place like this..." She sat the mending down again and went to get Nanashi a bowl of soup. She came back and handed it to him, along with a spoon. "What would you like to drink, Nanashi?" she smiled.~ |
Nanashi shrugged slightly when Kegokec apologized for the clothes being small. He didn't mind, it was better than nothing. As long as he was clothed, he was happy. He had left his shoes in the bathroom for the time being, so he just flexed his clawed toes slightly as he tried to relax.
He blinked, looking up to her when she asked him how he got here. "...I just...walked." He said simply, glancing away, "This is just where I stopped." He didn't have a home where he could stay, so he just wandered aimlessly from one place to the next until he was chased out or just told to leave. Most of the time he spent the night in a cave or in the woods, just somewhere where other creatures and humans were scarce. Once she brought back the soup he tanked her quietly as he took it, though he stared for a moment as if inspecting it for something vial. He looked up when she asked him what he wanted to drink and thought. "...Water is fine." He said quietly. That was the simplest and least expensive thing to drink at any rate. He finally dipped the spoon into the soup and took a small bite. It was good, even if a bit hot, though that hardly bothered him. He took another bite eagerly and then another. He could probably have the entire bowl gone before she got back with the water. He hadn't had anything to eat in a good three days, so he was pretty famished. |
~Kegokec smiled at him, nodded and went to get a glass of water. She returned shortly with a cold glass of water from their well and handed it to him. She noticed that he'd eaten almost all of the soup, so she playfully grabbed the bowl away in a swift, graceful movement and took it to the pot, ladling out more. She smiled once more as she handed it to him.
"You look half starved, Nanashi. Please, eat as much as you want." she giggled a little. "I made way too much. I forgot that I wasn't cooking for my parents and I." She picked the mending back up to put some finishing touches on it, after which she laid the clothing out across the other three seats to dry. Kegokec tried not to watch Nanashi for fear of making him nervous, but his eyes, wings and the gracefulness of his movements made her heart leap with joy. The pure beauty in it made her want to cry. Nanashi symbolized freedom. She wanted freedom from the town she'd grown up in. She wanted freedom to explore the world and meet new people. She was tired of being cooped up. She hoped she'd make good enough friends with Nanashi, and prove herself useful enough, to ask him if she could go with him when he left.~ |
Nanashi accepted the water gratefully, thought he blinked when she snatched the rest of his food away, his ears lowering slightly in disappointment, but he didn't say a word. He tipped the water to his lips intending to take a sip, but the water was good and refreshing, so he couldn't bring himself to put it down until the glass was empty. At best he was lucky to get a drink from a lake or stream, and he had gotten a little sick more than once for drinking stagnated water.
He perked up a bit when she returned his bowl full and actually managed a weak smile which revealed his pearly teeth. "Thank you..." he said softly. His teeth were set like a human's though the canines were a bit loner and sharper than one would expect and would probably put many in the mind of a vampire. He set the empty glass aside on the table and resumed eating, though he made a point to eat a little more slowly. He was hungry, but the last time he had access to a lot of food after not eating for a while, he had eaten way to much too fast and lost most of it in the bushes soon after his stomach objected. Now that he was clean, he looked much better at least. The light glinted off of his apple red hair which now shined cleanly though badly in need of a comb, and his skin was smooth and even toned. Without the dirt his skin seemed just a little lighter colored, though it was still near bronze. His crimson scales also shimmered whenever the light touched them just right as the tip lightly brushed against the floor. |
~Kegokec took the glass and filled it again too. She put it back where Nanashi'd lain it and stood off a little way, her eyes glowing with amazement. Since he was busy eating, she took the chance to look him over a bit better.
He was tall, thin and very handsome. She had to resist the urge to reach out and stroke his apple colored hair or a beautiful wing. She watched his tail for a while, like a cat. She was completely amazed by him, having seen only the occasional half-breed and full-blood pass through. Even then, she'd seen them only at a distance as they hurried by without stopping. She blinked and shook herself out of her thoughts and went to her bedroom for a brush. She came back to find his bowl empty again. She filled it up once more and while he was distracted with the full bowl, she went around behind him and started to brush his hair from the tips up to get the tangles out easily and so as to not pull his hair. She was so wrapped up in her own thoughts how beautiful his hair was that she'd forgotten about the personal space the half-breed obviously was used to and loved to keep.~ |
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