Outsiders -- Rahal / Errol

[clementine]

Errol was frozen to the spot as he squinted his eyes, trying to locate the creature in the darkness. He could hear the thing snuffling around. A strange scent hit his nose as well, resembling something like grass and fetid meat. What in the sevens hells was this thing? Gasping sharply, Errol stumbled when Rahal pushed him to run. That broke him from his frightened stupor not a moment too so for the beast rose up out of the dark, the white creature as exactly as it had been described.

"C'mon," he hissed at Rahal, touching the youth's arm before he darted off into the dark. Majikadai could climb trees, or so he'd read. Rahal would be fine if he did that. Errol was worried for the boy, but also for himself. If he didn't find a body of water somehow, he was going to be toast. The yeti-like creature was huge and hellish looking. Those sharp teeth looked perfect for tearing flesh and bone apart. Errol shuddered as he ran and jumped over fallen trees and bushes. It looked like his research was done at least. The weird thing DID exist. Perhaps when he was more prepared he'd look for the beast again.

Errol glanced a look behind him and yelled for Rahal, just as the creature's roar shook the forest as it took off after them.

[Ephemerality]

This was definitely a new creature, even to Rahal. While he didn't exactly wander into the forests very often, and only when absolutely necessary, he'd been sure up to this point that he'd known about everything that lived in his tribe's territory. But this huge, white, foul-smelling beast? He hadn't even heard of it, though that was unsurprising. Considering his relationship with the tribe, it was likely that there were at least rumors about the creature that no one cared to share with him.

Now that he could actually see the beast, it was obvious that his small knife wasn't going to be of any use. He gritted his teeth as he stashed it again, turning to run as soon as the thing gave chase. But it was fast, and even though the Majikadai was swift and practiced at navigating through the forests, keeping himself between the creature and Errol was slowing him down. He needed to slow it down.

He'd made it a fair distance before hastily pulling his bow from his back as he ran, followed by an arrow. Rah kept running until he was sure he'd have a clear shot behind him, before suddenly coming to a stop and spinning around. Even though it only took a small handful of seconds to draw his arrow and aim, it was quite the risk. But it had to be done, or else there was scarcely any way the two would make it before the beast caught up with them. Quickly, the albino boy took aim and loosed his arrow, aiming for the creature's face or neck. He didn't really care what, and he didn't have the time to properly aim. As long as it slowed the creature just long enough..

(By the way, I'll try to get up a Luc post in a little bit. For some reason, he's not cooperating with me today so far. D: )

[clementine]

The beast roared at is pounded after its fleetfooted prey. It was hungry for this easy catch and not even a little arrow would slow it down. The weapon sank into the creatures shoulder, merely causing it to stumble clumsily before pressing on. It limped, but it hadn't slowed very much. It knew an opening when it saw one and fought through the pain in its shoulder. The majikadai would make a good meal. With another snarling roar, the creature came at Rahal with surprising speed and strength, swiping out a claw hand. If Rahal didn't someone manage to get out of the way, those claws would tears into his flesh and send him to the ground.

Errol watched in horror as the beast charged Rahal. He shouted out a desperate warning and skidded to a halt before running straight back towards the majikadai. Errol scooped up a large rock as he ran and hefted it at the beast, trying to keep it off Rahal.

((no worries! <3))

[Ephemerality]

Rah was stunned when the arrow hit its mark but didn't have quite the desired effect. It didn't slow the beast at all, and probably only just made it angrier. He should've turned and run as soon as the arrow was loosed, but now, he was just stunned. Only for a split second, but that hesitation was enough to find the surprisingly quick creature bearing down on him and lashing out. He'd been in a few close encounters with beasts of the forests before, but he'd never been afraid before. Not truly. Fear was what got hit people killed. But now, it seemed like an eternity as the monster closed the distance.

Only at the last second did the Majikadai finally turn to flee, but too late. The beast's claws caught him as he turned, raking deep gashes across his right arm and shoulderblades. The pain sent a surprised cry from his throat as he was thrown by the force of the blow, actually sent rolling a couple feet away. He'd thought for sure that the beast would be on top of him half a second later when he looked up to meet his fate, just in time to see the rock hitting its mark and providing him just enough of an opportunity to scramble up.

"L-let's go!" He cried to the daemon, the adrenaline coursing through his veins dulling the pain enough to allow him to run again, cradling his right arm against his chest to keep from injuring it further.

[clementine]

Something inside of Errol snapped when he saw Rahal go down. He saw the male's blood splatter the forest floor and then everything turned red for him. He could feel his fangs elongating and his grey eyes flashed golden as a stranger madness took him. Without a second thought he passed Rahal, protectively standing between him and the beast that was still trying to get at them. He should have been the one protecting Rahal, not the other way around!

Errol snarled at the beast, his demonic energies coursing through his veins, giving him enough power to conjure a whip made up of water from the moisture in the air. That's when he went at the beast, snapping his whip menacingly in its face. His weapon was weak and couldn't doll out much damage, but it was all about intimidation at this point. He stared down the white creature, snarling and growling back at it until it backed off. Errol feinted running, sending it running back the other way. It seemed that this dinner was much harder to get than it had anticipated.

For a moment, Errol stood there panting harshly, his water whip falling to the ground in a splash of water. When he finally regained himself, he whirled and went to Rahal and immediately scooped the smaller male into his arms. He was careful of the ragged cuts on the youth's back as he buried his nose in all of that white. "Rahal," he rasped, his voice still with a hit on a growl in it. "Are you alright?" He wasn't dead at least and for a moment, the fear that he'd been too late had gripped him.

((lolol hope this isn't a weird post. /shot))

[Ephemerality]

Rahal was about to panic when the other didn't run, his own stomach twisting into knots as he watched the other come between him and the beast. His mouth opened to ask what he was doing before he saw the way the other's eyes flashed and those fangs. The almost bestial snarl and that conjured whip finally connected all the dots for the Majikadai. So, Errol really was a daemon, and perhaps he wasn't as hopelessly defenseless as he'd thought he was. His mouth fell open as he watched the man do what he hadn't been able to -- scare the beast away. In fact, once the creature finally turned to run, Rah was too busy watching it retreat in amazement to realized Errol was coming towards him.. until, of course, he was scooped up in the other's arms.

"I'm.. fine," He answered, voice distant, with only a mild flinch. Still, he was too hopped up on adrenaline to really even feel most of the pain, but he could tell that the wounds were bad.. Perhaps not immediately life-threatening, but he would definitely be in pain later.

"We need to get out of here. The other creatures will smell the blood. A clearing or by water or something, where we're not surrounded by forest," He muttered as he stared down at one of the plants at their feet, splattered with thick droplets of blood. But it was only then that the boy even really seemed to notice he wasn't on his own two feet. He flushed again, darker this time, before looking back at Errol. "I can walk on my own," He insisted, "You can let me down."

(Pfff, of course not. xD And sorry it took so long, roomie was borrowing my laptop for a video call and I only just now got it back. D: )

[clementine]

Errol stood right where he was as he tried to regain himself. He held Rahal, taking in the male's scent as his breathing finally eased and his eyes regained their normal gray color. He wasn't sure why he'd gotten so frantic. It had been a long time since Errol had gone fully demonic and it had only happened when one of his younger brothers was being bullied at school.

"I'll carry you," Errol replied softly, shifting Rahal until he held the bearer more comfortably. He wasn't sure he was ready to put the youth down yet. With a scare like that, he wanted to reconnect and the bast way to do that was if he was cuddling Rahal. The majikadai's wound was a good excuse for that. As Errol started walking quickly through the trees, he was glad he'd packed a load of medical supplies. Hopefully he could get Rahal fixed to rights shortly.

It wasn't long before Errol sensed a small body of water and was delighted when he came upon a sheltered grove with a small clearing in the middle. The spring was burbling softly and Errol figured this was as good a place as any to stop. They were far from the place that they had been attacked and the beast shouldn't be popping up again any time soon.

"Are you in much pain?" Errol asked as he gently sat Rahal in the grass by the spring. "Give me a moment to get my things together and I can see to your injuries." At that, Errol started to unload is bag, pulling out blankets along with cooking and medical supplies.

[Ephemerality]

Rah wanted to complain when the other insisted on carrying him, but his opened mouth only shut again in silence a few seconds later. It was obvious that the daemon wasn't going to have it. The only way he was going to get down was to struggle, and the boy just didn't have the heart for it.. nor the strength. His back and arm were throbbing now, the pain getting worse as worse the further away they got, the adrenaline wearing off. By the time they even made it to the water, the albino boy's face was in a near-constant wince, his poor bottom lip drawn between his teeth.

"It's not that bad," The Majikadai insisted as he was placed down on the grass, turning his head to look at the cuts on his arm. Now that he could finally see them better, it only seemed to make his injuries hurt worse. But would he ever admit it? Absolutely not.

"You didn't have to save me," Rahal finally spoke up again after a long moment of silence, not looking up from his arm. But his tone was more neutral with only a hint of suspicion, rather than just filled with outright prideful stubbornness. It was just slightly unbelievable for him. If it had been anyone else in the tribe out with him, they would've left him for dead, if they hadn't been the ones to throw him to the beast in the first place. So, to be saved by a complete stranger was.. unexpected.

[clementine]

"You don't have to put on a brave face for me," Errol replied, lightly ruffling Rahal's hair. "If it hurts, then that's okay." He smiled at the youth, forcefully being reminded of his brothers when he took care of them. There was something more when it came to Rahal though. He just wanted to make the boy all better.

"Of course I had to. I wouldn't have left you for dead." Eying the wound discreetly, Errol hummed softly as he laid out his bed roll, motioning for Rahal to get comfortable on it. Whatever the boy chose, Errol was still going to start tending his wound. "I think I can get to everything better if you remain sitting. You can lay down as soon as I'm done. I'm sure you're tired." Errol's hands were gentle as he got behind Rahal to examine the long gashes across the male's arm and back. They were deep, but it didn't look like any of the deep muscle tissue had been injured. It would be sore for a while though, that was for sure.

Opening his medical box, Errol remove the antiseptic first, smearing it onto a thin cloth. "This will sting a bit, Rahal. Please bear with it." As tenderly as he could he began to disinfect Rahal's wounds, pleased that none of the cuts needed to be sewn up. He'd never been very good with stitches.

[Ephemerality]

"I'm not putting on any kind of face," Rah complained softly, even giving a soft huff of annoyance. And really, he wasn't even aware of it anymore. After years of the be-tough-or-die act, the whole act had all been internalize. He didn't even know of any other way to act. Nor did he know of any other way of being treated, other than badly. While part of him really did want to believe the other was being genuine in his response, the part of him that had hardened against abuse after all those years was still certain that he was after something. He just didn't know what.

Slowly, he got up when motioned over, strolling to the bed roll before sitting down slowly. After running from that hellacious monster, he just didn't have the energy to keep being stubborn. Besides, he knew he didn't want the wounds to become infected. So far out there where there were no hospitals, a bad infection meant almost certain death.

"I still don't trust you, by the way," The Majikadai added stubbornly, interrupted as he sucked a hissing breath through his teeth. This stuff stung more than the herbal rinses back at home! After a second, he finally spoke again, "I just don't have a choice at the moment. So don't get any ideas."

[clementine]

"Mmh, I'm not asking you to trust me," Errol replied as he steadily worked. "And don't worry, your gorgeous body is safe with me," he added teasingly as he applied a cool restorative salve to Rahal's wounds. With the disinfecting done, Errol removed gauze and bandages, slowly wrapping the stuff around Rahal's torso. He enjoyed that part a little too much as he was able to lean in and enjoy the boy's scent. Wrapping Rahal's arm wasn't nearly as interesting, but it had Errol smiling to himself nonetheless.

"There, all done," he announced as he tapped the last bit of bandage together. "I can change your bandages again in the morning. Your wounds were still bleeding a bit." With a smile, Errol ruffled Rahal's hair again, reveling in the soft feel of it. "Now, Mr. Stubborn Pants, if you'll just rest easy, I can see about getting a fire going and start some dinner." And of course, Errol didn't even wait for a reply, having already deciding that he was going to do those things.

In no time, Errol had a merry fire going, hoping the flames would keep most of the lesser beasts away. He also had some meat left over as well as some greens, so he decided to make a stew of sorts. "So," he started, "are you gonna tell me why your were wandering around all alone yet?"

[Ephemerality]

"Are all your kind this shamless, or are you a special case?" The Majikadai boy asked, flushing once more with the other's compliments and the like. If only he could let himself actually accept them without thinking there was some kind of hidden abuse behind them. In all his years, not a single giver had ever said anything flattering to him. Over time, he'd accepted the idea that he would likely never find his mate, nor even find any other partner. Still, that didn't mean the loneliness didn't get to him sometimes. But here Errol was, as handsome as could be despite being a daemon and clearly city-borne, showering him with flirtation.

He flushed again as the thought passed through his head, before turning his attention away from the other. Rah didn't even so much as look at him again until the man ruffled his hair and spoke of dinner. Just the mention of food made his stomach give a soft whine or hunger, and it was quite ironic that the other would choose then to ask about what he'd been doing.

"Hunting," He stated simply, "until you scared off my doe." Rah didn't see it particularly necessary to divulge the other details, figuring the other might come to the conclusion that he was an outcast on his own, if he knew anything about his people at all. The fact that he'd been hunting alone was a good enough indicator without Rahal having to explain and run the risk of sounding weak and whining. "I guess it's only ftting that you're making me dinner, then," He mused aloud before shifting down onto his uninjured side, stretching out on the bed roll. Errol had been right.. He was tired.

[clementine]

"I think my brother is more shameless than I, but then again, he's a stripper." Errol laughed as he continued to stir the stew, adding ingredients here and there until there was a nice aroma coming from the pot. He eyed Rahal thoughtfully as he did this, not completely understanding why the gorgeous boy would be hunting alone. He was a bearer and looked to be of a strong stock. It didn't even cross Errol's mind that the boy was being rejected by his tribe. If anything, he simply thought that the youth was on a walkabout, which wasn't uncommon among the tribes.

"I saved you from that beast, didn't I? I say that more than makes up for scaring your doe," Errol replied teasingly. He smiled at Rahal as the boy laid down and reached out his hand to brush some of that white hair out of his face. "Food's almost ready though and then you can rest." Errol grabbed the end of one blanket and pulled it over Rahal to keep him warm. It would do for him to catch a chill in his injured state and Errol knew the deep Jeskaran nights could get a bit chilly.

[Ephemerality]

"Stripper?" Rahal questioned, quirking an eyebrow at the word.. But he didn't dwell on it. Such concepts were clearly unknown to the boy, nor did he seem that concerned with learning about them. Right now, he was just quite interested in the stew. Even before embarking on his hunting venture earlier in the day, he and his caretaker had been low on food. After hunting fruitlessly all day and nearly getting mauled, he was starving.

"I suppose so.." The albino boy began to answer, trailing when Errol brushed his hair away from his face. With flushed cheeks, the boy turned away, rolling onto his stomach and propping his chin up with his uninjured arm. "You're so.. touchy.." The majikadai grumped quietly, giving the other a sideways, suspicious look. "It's weird."

[clementine]

Errol blinked at Rahal, head cocked. "You mean, you don't like touching the people you like?" He reached out to run his fingers through Rahal's hair again, mostly to tease him, before running his hand down the boys neck and to his back. He massaged the knotted muscles there for a moment, being sure to avoid Rahal's injury.

"Isn't touching like this nice? Don't you do this kind of thing with your family?" Errol finally pulled back and returned to the stew. It was ready and he was spooning a large quantity into a bowl and offered it to Rahal. He then made one for himself before rummaging around in his pack, taking out a small bag of flat bread. He tore it open and set it between them to share.