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The Wheel of Dawn [Draconian]

Started by Cheesigator, October 31, 2016, 06:14:11 PM

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Cheesigator

The chill of the early morning threatened to send shivers down Kirkley's spine as he padded through the trees on the steep mountainside. His breath formed soft clouds of white mist in front of his muzzle with every puff, the light shimmering and playing through it, what few golden and lilac rays could break through the branches.

In the light of recent events, he'd seen it fit to put as much distance between themselves and the tragedy that had unfolded what felt like forever ago and like five minutes ago. He paused, flicking an ear and glancing over his shoulder at the companion on his back. He'd tried to make the traveling as easy on Bifrost as he could--a creature as old as him, he was used to spending many long hours traveling with little time spent sleeping. What breaks he allowed himself were spent to catch food for the two of them, and perhaps take short naps. The quicker they got away from Connlaoth, the better. But they still had a long way to go.

He kept his gait as smooth as he could so Bifrost's sleeping went undisturbed, carefully ducking under any low-hanging branches. They'd stuck to the woods, avoiding beaten paths and only searching for them when necessary to maintain their direction of travel. Serendipity was likely the first place Bifrost would be able to seek any kind of solace. If a bounty was on his head, there was no doubt in Kirkley's mind that it would most certainly not be forwarded to Connlaoth's counterpart.

It had certainly been an interesting journey so far; despite the horrific tragedy that his companion had suffered, Kirkley could almost swear that it'd been like they had been together before, like they had known each other for centuries. He knew that it wasn't true of course--he didn't remember much, but he certainly knew that Bifrost was far too young, a relatively new creation in this world, and therefor nobody that Kirkley would have spent any particular amount of time with before today.

He paused a moment, scanning the slope of the land downwards as the descent grew a bit more treacherous, and far harder to keep the walk as smooth as it had been thus far. He tried to be careful in picking his steps, but there were a few places where his paws slipped on damp ground, jostling his bag and the precious cargo on his back.

It made his mind itch, though, the longer they spent together. He tried to push it to the back of his mind--it was easier when Bifrost was awake and they could talk of other things that worked as a distraction, but in the early mornings or late nights when Kirkley was left to his own devices and a sleeping thief on his back, it got a little hard to fight back the nagging thoughts. Thoughts that Bifrost was more than what he seemed to be, and that Kirkley should know that, and the fact that he couldn't figure it out only frustrated him further.

It was during one of these downward spirals of thoughts that he wasn't paying attention; he pulled his paw back to regain his balance and a twig he'd been standing on snapped him across the nose in retaliation, making him jump a little bit.

He might've been big and frightening but nobody ever implied that he was graceful by any means.

Draconian

Bifrost jolted awake.

A groggy confused look and Bifrost's fingers tightened in Kirkley's fur. A weary look around and he nuzzled into the fur, giving a sigh and moving to sit up. The dream was lingering. Blood. Plants. Vines. Pain and sadness and death.Bifrost rubbed at his face before scratching at his chin.

"Kirkley?" His voice was rough with sleep, fingers stroking through his fur. Another heavy sigh, "You okay? What happened?" He looked around, frowning before pushed his hair over his shoulder. Bifrost had taken to wearing it without the bandanna, sometimes even unbraided. "Do you need to rest? I'm okay with walking now."

Cheesigator

Whoops. He'd woken the sleeping prince.

His ears flicked back as Bifrost's voice reached him and he shook his head a little. He looked over his shoulder at the man, swiping a tongue over his nose to catch some blood from the laceration. It wasn't anything serious, just kinda surprised him more than anything.

The thief suggested he'd be alright to walk now, so Kirkley sat down to let the man off his back, letting his bag slide off of his neck to land on the ground with a soft thump. Once Bifrost was off he changed back, grabbing his pants from his bag and shimmying into them.

"I'm alright, just startled me a bit. That plant hit me." He pouted a little, rubbing at the now much smaller-looking slice across his nose.

"Sleep well?" He asked, stretching and rolling his shoulders to work out the oddball knots and kinks that didn't transition well from four legs to two.

He vaguely remembered hearing the differences in Bifrost's heartbeat when they'd been traveling, which was natural from dreams, but it had never seemed like his companion felt panicked or in danger, or at least not that Kirkley was aware of. It was really the only chance he got to see how Bifrost was actually doing since his brothers' death, in his sleep. He seemed to do a good job of hiding it for the most part when he was awake.

Draconian

The plant?

Bifrost looked around, smiling at the pout and tilting his head, eyes closing briefly in a sleepy manner. As usual when Kirkley was changing, Bifrost gave him his full attention. It hadnt been long since they've been travelling together and while Bifrost didnt know a whole lot about him he knew just about every curve of his body.

They didnt have a lot of time to study but Bifrodt had always been a quick learner when he found the subject interesting.

"Yeah, like a princess," he said softly, running his fingers through his hair, head tilted slightly, hair draped over his shoulder. "Do you need to rest?" He asked softly, moving his fingers over Kirkley's chest, fingers tracing over the tattoos and scars. They still fascinated him.

"You good to go? Take a sit down?" Bifrost teased, nudging his chest with a sleepy smile. It was still jarring, all the travelling they were doing. Bifrost being with someone not related to him for such an extended period of time. The other things, too.

Bifrost had never been full of feelings before and it was jarring that the strange giant of a man had his chest flutter. That the strange giant of a man could help ease the pain of losing his brothers. When he was awake with him, it didnt hurt so bad. "Need a hug?"

Cheesigator

Kirkley glanced over at the man right as he closed his eyes, smiling like a dork. It made Kirkley smile in return; just as Bifrost knew every curve of his body, he knew every detail of the other's--and knowing everything would certainly never stop him from looking at the man and just appreciating him.

To Kirkley, Bifrost was godlike and otherworldly in his beauty; he had an endless fascination with the green-haired, elf-eared mortal (though the mortal part might be questionable.) The fact that he consistently felt like he was at home no matter where the two of them went together just added to that fascination.

"Good to hear it." He rumbled quietly, voice low in their close proximity as he watched the other trace over his tattoos and scars.

Every touch from Bifrost sent warm, tingling reactions throughout his skin. It was a feeling that never truly went away, and he wasn't sure how to feel about it yet; so far, he supposed he liked it.

He smirked and looped an arm around his thief's waist, pulling him down to sit on the ground, Kirkley's back against a tree and Bifrost in his lap.

"I could always use a hug. I could always be up for other things, too." He teased back, giving the man soft and gentle pets on the head, running his fingers through the incredibly long, dark green hair. "Sounds like you just want to go back to sleep though."

Which he certainly wouldn't argue with. His body felt much heavier than he'd care to admit, and it'd been a while since he'd last napped.

Draconian

There was a startled gasp and being pulled down, Bifrost licked his lips and watched Kirkley for a moment before his eyes fell closed and he curled his arms around the other mans neck. A moment's pause and Bifrost nuzzled into Kirkley's neck, giving a sleepy sigh.

"Other things?" Bifrost murmured, smirking before he leaned back and tilting his head. Though quickly enough he simply snuggled back in against Kirkley's chest and muffled a yawn against his shoulder before closing his eyes again. "What can I say, I miss beds," he said softly, voice muffled.

Bifrost smirked, "any chance we can sleep on one of those some time?" Now it was a pipe dream. Bifrost had little money and it was useless here in the mountain anyway. He smoothed his hands up and down Kirkley's sides.

"You dont have to cart me around when I'm sleeping," he said softly, looking up at him, "We can just sleep at night, y'know, like normal people."

Cheesigator

Kirkley cracked a smile at the sleepy Bifrost's rambling and let out a soft sigh, allowing himself to close his eyes and lean his head back. It felt so good to just close them, it eased the stinging and the heaviness of his body almost seemed to melt away.

"We'll get to sleep in a normal bed when we reach Serendipity, but that's still a few days away." He rumbled, his chest vibrating with the sound.

He took in a deep breath and let it out nice and slow. "It's best to do it this way for now; I can survive on short naps until we get there--we're making good time."

He cracked an eye open (his one working one) to look down at Bifrost, god his eyelids felt like sandpaper. "The sooner we get you out of here, the better. The less danger you'll be in, then."

There was something inherently important about getting the thief to safety it seemed; it made every hair on Kirkley's body stand on end, and his nerves on constant pins and needles. It felt like the moment he let his guard down, he would lose him, and that was an idea that for some reason seemed to tear his heart to shreds just thinking about it.

It was a dull ache that grew into sharp pains in his chest the more he opened his mind to the idea--the idea of living without Bifrost around. But they'd only been together a few days.

His brain itched.
He opted to ignore it.

He closed his eyes again to let himself rest, and in the distance in the forest he heard twigs snap. It startled him, only enough to make his heart skip a beat, and it made all tiredness disappear in an instant. He didn't say anything yet though, just listening and drawing in deep breaths to taste the scent of the forest; he couldn't notice anything out of place yet. Might have just been some clumsy animal.

Draconian

We'll get to sleep in a normal bed, he said.

For some reason that had a shiver go down Bifrosts spine and he sucked in a breath. It had heat pool in his gut and he couldn't help the pleased little smile on his face. Sure, he probably meant just... In a bed. Collectively, they will be allowed to sleep in beds when they reach Serendipity -  Bifrost had only heard of the country and knew very little beyond 'it was full of evil magic using heathens'.

He supposed he was one of those now.

Bifrost opened his eyes, bringing his hand to his chest to look at it in the slowly growing light of dawn. His knuckles had healed from their ragged meeting with tree-bark in less than a day. The cloth had been stained with his blood and as soon as it had made contact with the earth it had sprouted into a sapling. Taking root like it had been there and growing for months.

He drew his thumb over his knuckles and tucked his head under Kirkley's chin while he looked at his hand. What a strange turn of events.

It took a lot of effort to not think while he was awake. Not think about his brothers. About his home.

Usually, Kirkley was good at distracting him, but it would be rude and selfish of him to demand attention and demand Kirkley keep him perky when the other man was exhausted like he was. Bifrost felt the slight movement. What had once been someone slowly lulling into sleep was now an aware body again. Bifrost moved his hands up and down Kirkley's sides, making shushing noises and snuggling closer, one knee on either side of his hips and he'd pretend it was just to keep the too-warm man warmer.

It was the thought that counted right?

"Get some sleep," Bifrost urged, "Don't want anymore plants attacking you, hmm?" His eyes closed again and he snuggled in, quite content with grabbing some more snoozes when the chance presented itself. He'd found himself so tired lately and he wasn't sure if it was the lose of his brothers or his new strange skill with plant growing.

Cheesigator

The shushing noises were instantly distracting; his body tensed a bit in reaction, he tried to resist it but the scent of Bifrost so close, the heat of the other man's body and the electric touch of his hands sliding up and down Kirkley's sides had him relaxing, almost instantly falling into a light sleep.

With his last bits of awareness, he wrapped his arms around the thief, holding him close like he was trying to shield his companion from the outside world via bear hug.

He nuzzled his face into soft green hair that smelled so distinctly familiar; it was relaxing, it warmed him from the inside out. Kirkley imagined it must be similar to a child in the arms of their mother--it felt safe, welcoming. Like home. Of course it was odd that he associated Bifrost with home, after all Bifrost was a mortal person, one he'd just met to boot.

And yet as he dozed, breaths evening out to deep draws in and long, slow exhales that slightly lifted the man on top of him with each movement before slowly letting him back down, he caught blurred images on the insides of his eyelids. He experienced colors, scents, tastes that were so different from now--it placed him in a different time. It almost felt like an out of body experience--like his mind was literally somewhere else, but Bifrost was still there. It was like a dream, and yet it wasn't. It was strangely soothing, like he was somewhere simpler, with so much less pain...

All creatures have different heart rates; if one took the time to listen and study them enough, a heart beat could be the only thing you need to tell what's nearby.

Squirrels, birds, foxes, deer--these were normalities in a forest on the mountainside, easy enough to ignore when you didn't focus on them and let them blend into the background.

But the heartbeat, or rather, heartbeats he heard, were suddenly different. They approached slowly, creeping into his range and almost slipping by unnoticed. Then he heard it, the thin twang of a bow's string being drawn. It was barely louder than a breath.

His eyes snapped open and he tightened his grip on Bifrost and rolled; a solid thunk followed. He came up on his knees, hovering over Bifrost as his single golden eye focused on an arrow embedded in the trunk of the tree, right where Bifrost's head had been on his shoulder.

Kirkley's head felt thick, and his vision was swimming from the deep sleep he'd suddenly been pulled from. In the split second that followed he wondered many things--how long had he been out? What else had he missed? How many were there?

It took the biting burn of metal cutting through his shoulder to get him to move, to make his brain work. He grit his teeth against the pain; his ears caught the sounds of feet moving and he scrambled to his own, pulling Bifrost up with him if necessary, staying behind him to shield him from the attacks as he yelled at him, "Run!"

His pants ripped as his muscles stretched and contorted, the change taking less than a quarter of a second. He whipped around to face the bounty hunters with a snarl already tearing through his throat, another arrow slicing the side of his left cheekbone, sticky blood running through his fur.

Draconian

Bifrost fell asleep again quickly, snuggled in against warmth and easily made to feel safe. It was a strangely dangerous draw, he felt to Kirkley. As dangerous as it was wonderful and Bifrost had dreams of his own. They were much less pleasant though and his eyes snapped open to Kirkley above him. There was a biting comment on his lips about asking first before he realized that Kirkley looked... Worried? Frightened? Tired, for one.

It was a second too long for him to see the arrow.

Then his heart sunk and he looked at Kirkley again, ushered up and commanded to run.

What did he mean run.

Bifrost had never asked Kirkley to save him. Though he had no weapon. Bifrost gave the beast Kirkley turned into a hesitant look before another arrow whizzed past his head, violet eyes wide and he quickly ducked away into the forest. Listening to the trees. Ignoring the horrible wet pain coming from his ear. Bifrost moved his hand to his head to touch the painful spot and he hissed when his fingers came back wet with blood.

That'd be super sensitive for a while, he decided, before he did what Kirkley told him to and ran, quickly finding a tree and scurrying up it, leaving hand shaped patches of fresh leaves while he climbed for as long as the blood on his hand lasted.

Which left the few bounty hunters to deal with the angry shifter.

"What the fuck is this?" One shouted, looking at the ripped clothing before giving a pale look to the beast, "There wasn't a beast here a second ago, we should be able to take down a man but this. Alfred, you idiot, what did you get us into?" There was another arrow let loose, right at Kirkley's face but he didn't count on his hitting. They were going to get the monster, get the weird girly green haired guy, turn him in and get the bounty.

Well, turn him in after keeping him around for a few days.

"That your bitch?" Alfred snarled to the dog, taking out a dagger and a short sword, he was an average Connlaothian, shorter, broad shouldered with blonde hair. "I can see why, pretty thing like that," He fixed his handle on the sword before smirking, "Wanna know what we're gonna do to 'im after we catch him? Gonna use him til he breaks," Alfred laughed, "Gets mightly lonely up here in the wilderness and he's still gonna get us the bounty and broken and bloody."

It was good to make them too angry to think, right? That was how this worked, right?  "We just gotta take care of you, and then we can take care of 'im, tell me," Alfred continued readying his sword for a lunge or something, hopefully the two idiots he'd hired would take advantage of the distraction, "Does he cry out like a lady or does he just look like one?"

Cheesigator

He picked up the scent of Bifrost's blood moments after the man had run, the scent sending shivers down his spine and flashes of light and color behind his eyes, pain ripping through his chest. He couldn't tell if it was from the arrow in his shoulder or if it was something else buried deep.

Not that right now was a good time to be reminiscing about feelings; something else that was buried deep was already starting to rear its ugly head the more the bounty hunter mouthed off. He ducked under the arrow that whizzed past his head.

He called Bifrost a bitch, said that they were going to touch him. White hot anger bubbled up from the core of his being in milliseconds. The snarl turned into a roar and with the sudden elasticity of movement that only truly angry wild animals can produce, he pounced. He didn't care about the other two, all of his attention was on that one man, the one who'd opened his idiotic mouth and dared to utter a single word about Bifrost.

He felt hard iron bite his skin as the man's blade sliced over his chest briefly before Kirkley overtook him, gigantic paws pinning him and crushing bones with the force of his weight and the heavy claws that sunk in. The man's shoulders were crushed, arms now useless, though the boiling hot blood that dripped from Kirkley's wound was proof to say they'd done more than enough damage.

He crushed the man's head in his jaws, teeth sinking into his skull, blood and brains popping and oozing forth like a meat pie exploding in the oven. His screams were cut off too short, he really should've played with him longer, his anger wasn't anywhere near satisfied.

How dare they.

He turned to the other two remaining men, eyes flashing in the light, blood running down his muzzle, staining his teeth, matting the blonde hair still trapped in his maw. The growling sound in his throat was bubbly from the sticky blood oozing down, coating his tongue. It tasted like salt and iron. He dropped the man's body and the two men took off running, screaming for their lives.

Despite his wounds, Kirkley did the angry, idiotic man thing and tore off after them.

He might've been gone for only five minutes; it was easy to overtake them, his longer, powerful legs naturally covering more ground. Their screams made the leaves shiver, they echoed off the tree bark, before they were cut off abruptly, first one, then immediately succeeded by the other.

The forest fell deathly silent.

It took a bit of tearing at the corpses before he calmed down; the arrow in his shoulder was burning, his flesh so hot it felt feverish, and the same went for the wound across his chest that stopped dangerously close to his stomach. He limped back, following Bifrost's scent, fur matted with sticky, already drying blood, from his own wounds and the guts of men awash on his muzzle.

He flopped down beneath Bifrost's tree, laying his heavy head on his large paws and letting out a wheezing sigh.

Fuckers got what they deserved.

Only problem was that that wouldn't be the last of them; whatever the bounty they put on Bifrost's head was... It had to be a lot for the amount of effort these hunters were going to to try and get it. He couldn't really comprehend much more than that though, because his mind was hazy and his vision was swimming even more now than it had been before.

Draconian

Bifrost didn't look.

He didn't want to look. Didn't want to know. The sounds were enough and while he knew Kirkley was a beast of a man, he didn't really want to watch. In all honesty, Bifrost was a lover. Not a fighter. He pressed his cheek to the tree, careful to keep his bleeding ear away from the bark, though he felt it drip down his neck and he was sure some was smudged on his cheek. The sounds were awful and he could hear the trees whisper to him what was happening.

Bifrost squeezed his eyes shut but gave a hesitant look down when he heard Kirkley return.

The smell was bad, it left an unpleasant tang in the air and Bifrost held back a gag. It was one thing to see dead bodies. It was another to see dead body-bits on someone he lo... Was with for the time being. Bifrost dropped out of the tree swiftly, landing beside Kirkley's head and staring down at him with wide eyes. Going pale before he pressed his fist to his mouth and tried not to retch.

Of course he was grateful to Kirkley.

For everything the man had been doing for him. And to him, on the right occasion.

"Kittykirk," Bifrost whispered, swallowing thickly and reaching forward for a moment before he pulled his pant back. He didn't want to touch him, covered in so much gore. He bit his lip and reached for the arrow sticking out of him and examined it. It seemed to be superficial, wasn't in too deep and Bifrost squeezed his eyes shut and found a Less Bloodied patch of fur to press his fingers into before he ripped the arrow out and put in on the ground.

"Hey, we gotta get out cleaned up okay?" He leaned to look at Kirkley, "I'll go find some more water," He patted at his pocket, a half empty canteen rested in it and he quickly opened it up and quietly commanded Kirkley to close his eyes before he did his best to wash off the gross.

Bifrost assumed he'd rather not be covered in other peoples insidey bits. A quick brush of his ears and Bifrost stood up, tilting his head and listening to the trees whisper. They would know where water is, "I'll be right back, okay? We'll be fine for now, you need to rest. Okay?" Bifrost was a little frantic, he was pale and shaking but he needed to help. At least a little bit, "The trees will tell me if something else happens, okay?" Why didn't he ever listen to the trees?

Maybe the forest didn't want to talk to him while he was curled up against a man beast that ate people. Bifrost bit back a dry heave before he looked down at his bloodied savior. He wanted to ask so many questions. Was he okay? Was he hurt? - Well, besides the obvious, but as far as he knew, Kittykirk couldn't talk which meant he'd just... Take care of him until he was less bloodied and felt better.  "So I'm going to go but I'll come right back," His voice was soft again and Bifrost turned to follow the trees.

Cheesigator

Somewhere in his mind, he registered that Bifrost was there, touching him, and he could sense the discomfort--the urge to gag, the urge to run. The fear was still there. That tore at him, it made his heart hurt far worse than the arrow being ripped out of his shoulder, though he still yiped in pain at that.

He strained to get up but the gash was deeper than he'd originally thought; his blood was smearing the ground he was laying on, and his shoulder hurt even worse now after the arrowhead was ripped out of it. Bifrost had done the right thing, but damn.

He opened his mouth to protest but Bifrost was already leaving, and after a few moments of trying to struggle to make himself get up, he finally gave in. Sleep deprivation and these wounds weren't going to let him get anywhere right now. Panic washed over him as he remembered that they needed to be constantly moving, on the run so his thief would be safe, safe from people like them. He needed to protect him.

He had to.

And these wounds weren't going to let any of that happen.

He tensed and did another dumb thing--forced himself to change back, the pain from his wounded muscles contorting actually putting him into a brief moment of shock as he lay there, curled up and wheezing on the ground. He tried desperately to wipe away the remains of other mens' blood and guts from his face, throwing it to the bushes. He leaned himself up against Bifrost's tree, looking down at the gash that started in the middle of his sternum and went down towards his belly button, dark blood only visible against the darkness of his own skin due to the hue and shine when it caught the light.

His mouth felt dry and it felt like the whole world was spinning and tilting way too fast. He let his head tilt back and hit the tree with a soft thump, closing his eyes and reaching up with his good arm to hold the wound on his shoulder, trying to stifle what bleeding he could.

It'd just... Been so long since he'd gotten that angry. That irrational. He'd almost forgotten entirely what it was like, and how stupid he could be when he wasn't thinking first. He'd fucked up pretty badly, there. He felt like a young kid learning the ropes all over again, and he wasn't quite sure yet how he felt about it.

Draconian

Bifrost ran as quickly as he could, pulling the scarf he wore off and rushing to where the whisperes led him to. The soft sound of water was a balm on his nerves and he filled the canteen up and dunked the scarf in the water. Kirkley was hurt. That was a thing. The bounty hunters were clearly dead and - Oh gods - Bifrost hoped Kirkley hadn't ate them. That was... Gross. Another dry heave at the idea and he pressed the back of his hand to his mouth while his eyes watered and he forced himself to think of puppies and kittens and rainbows.  Once the scarf was dripping he held the soaking cloth in his hand and rushed back.

There was a strange familiar feeling about the forest and he let his gut guide him back to the tree.

It was easy once he was within 'smelling' range because the tang of blood and gore was heavy and he was worried when he didn't see a bloodied snout poking out from behind the tree.

"What..." He said softly before he moved back and kneeled beside the naked man. Bifrost looked at the mess Kirkley was, heart in his throat. Why was he so concerned? Was it because this guy had just... Taken to... Taking care of him? Bifrost didn't want to admit to any feelings - he was plenty done with caring for people only to lose them, but he couldn't help it. The mix of concern and the inappropriate surge of lust - because hey, sure the dude was bloodied and hurt but he was naked.

Taking the scarf, he pressed it over Kirkley's skin to wipe away the blood and gore, taking a clean edge and wiping Kirkley's face. "You didn't have to do that," Bifrost whispered after cleaning off Kirkley's face and examining the awful looking wound on his chest, pressing his fingers gently against his torso and shaking his head. He wasn't a healer and he certainly didn't know how to deal with this.  "I don't know how to fix you," Bifrost whispered, shaking his head and moving his hands to cup Kickley's cheeks before leaning in and presses a kiss to his lips.

It was more of Bifrost than anything. Apparently the only way he believed that his savior was still alive and well was to put his lips on him. "Help? What do you need? How can I help?" He shook his head, "Do you heal like I do? Do I need to make a camp?" Bifrost chewed on his lip and smoothing his fingers over Kirkley's jaw in an effort to calm himself down.

Cheesigator

Kirkley had lost track of time in the haze that fogged his mind. Everything was throbbing pain and a migraine from Hell, it was impossible to focus on anything else until Bifrost returned.

At first he just barely sensed the other man's presence, which earned Bifrost a minimal stir for reaction, but then the ice cold of water touched his skin and it jumpstarted everything again.

His eyes were forced open again to be greeted by the sight of a panicking Bifrost, lost and confused, unsure of what to do and asking a million questions Kirkley didn't have the current brain capacity to answer.

He nodded at the man's now ruined scarf, licking his lips before he grit his teeth against the pain. "You didn't have to do that." Fuck you I'm gonna protect you and take care of you however I want, dammit.

A kiss was pressed to his lips and he let out a soft snort, shaking his head at the man's questions. "S'fine, I'll be fine. Be fine by tomorrow." As he spoke he glanced down and pulled at some of the skin on his abs, seeing that it was already starting to weave itself back together. It would still hurt like hell for the next few days but he'd pull through just fine if they got back on the road sooner rather than later. They just needed to get their asses to Serendipity already.

Bifrost only had a few things he needed, the first being "Water." And the second being Bifrost himself; after he'd taken a long drink from the canteen he wrapped his solid good arm around the man's midsection and pulled him close so they were snuggling similar to the way they'd been before. "I'm going to sleep now." He growled, burying his face in Bifrost's hair and deciding that nope, that was that, it was fuckin naptime now bitches. And he was gonna snuggle the shit out of Bifrost.

Draconian

Bifrost wasnt one to argue.

He settled himself against Kirkley easily, careful of his wounds and drifting his hands up and down the big mans sides. Would it be out of place to mention he didnt have pants anymore? Bifrost wanted to comfort him.

His hands move to stroke Kirkleys cheeks and neck. Hand drifting to his side.

The tune came to him from no where. Perhaps the trees were whispering it to him, but he hummed the tune all the same and snuggled against his...

"Sleep," Bifrost agreed, nuzzling his lips against Kirkley's neck before he picked up the strange soothing tune again and snuggled close. Content to remain as they were while Kirkley recuperated.

Cheesigator

When out in the wilderness, and when one was injured out in the wilderness, your body wanted nothing but sleep. Sleep for days. But on the other hand, your body didn't want to get any more screwed up than it already was, so, you can sleep for days, but in spurts. Had he been in a bed, he'd have been out cold for probably the rest of the day, but as it was, the ground wasn't very comfortable against his bare ass (it wasn't even comfortable with pants on) and it was only after a few hours that he groggily forced himself awake.

His mouth was dry. He hurt everywhere. He had a very pretty man cuddled up with him. He was also ravenously hungry.

Kirkley glanced down at the wound on his stomach; the bleeding had stopped, it was now grotesquely scabbed over in the beginning stages of what would soon be a new scar. Boy if he didn't know that process like the back of his own hand.

(It was funny, see, because the backs of his hands were arguably some of the most scarred parts on his body. Ha. Haha.)

He slowly stretched, back arching as he grit his teeth and let out a grunt as the taught skin was stretched over his wound. It felt raw. His stomach ached.

He looked over at Bifrost, obviously grumpy based on his sour expression and lack of proper sleep.

"I'm gonna go get some food, if you want some speak now or forever hold your peace."

Draconian

Was it possible to feel awful after the fact?

Bifrost rubbed his chest, giving a blurry confused look to Kirkley. The mention of food just grossed him out and Bifrost shook his head gently before he got up and pulled away, hands at his sides. A few hesitant steps away and he rolled bis shoulders, stretching his arms up.

"I'm okay," he said softly offering a hesitant smile, " I'll be here. You... be careful?" He whispered before he moved to sit down away from Kirkley, eyes closed to listen to the trees whisper their secrets.

And for him to wallow in getting Kirkley hurt. In losing his brothers. Bifrost would save the questions for when Kirkley was back and not so grumpy looking.

Cheesigator

Oh. Fuck. He hadn't meant that. He hadn't meant to make him feel bad--

It was already too late though, Bifrost was already getting up and moving away, and the lack of warmth twisted his heart and made the rest of him hurt that much worse. It was too sudden and too cold and shit.

"Sorry," He said quickly, "It's not you," He wasn't really sure where to go after that and the sentence kind of trailed off. He was hungry? He was an angry dog because he got his ass beat a little more than normal by some stupid fuckwit with a sword? Yeah that had stung in more ways than one.

He slowly got up, glancing down at his... Nakedness... And looking back up over at Bifrost. His head hurt like hell but he would be damned if he let his grumpiness get the better of him again right now. "I might need your help finding new pants later."

With that, he decided it'd be best if he just changed, so that was what he did. Once he was on all fours and furry, he padded over to Bifrost and nuzzled him, burying his snout in green hair and giving him a light chuffing noise of familiarity and affection. He wasn't mad at him, that was mainly what he wanted to get across.

He mozied on away after that, his movements stiff and his shoulder throbbing. It made him anxious knowing that he left Bifrost by his lonesome; something in his gut was nagging at him to say fuck the food, just go back and watch over him. Make sure he was okay. But his growling stomach made him stay and focus.

He caught a few small things--rabbits, squirrels and a fox. He ate them raw to save time, and returned to where he'd left his companion within the hour, trotting but taking it easy on his bum leg, which made it more of a limping gait than anything.

Immediately Kirkley pressed his cold wet nose onto the other's neck, tail wagging naturally at his already improved mood. It was getting fairly close to early evening now though, which meant that it was time to move, so he didn't sit down or make himself comfortable. It was time to get going, before more bounty hunters showed up.

Draconian

Was he always so...

Passive?

Bifrost went tense ever so slightly - the sound of a skull being crushed still fresh in his mind - when Kirkley nuzzled at him before he left. He wasn't afraid of Kirkley. More afraid of the thing that he could do when he was a giant angry beast. Top on the list of things to Never Do - Piss of Kirkley. Bifrost offered him a small smile and a pat on the head before he nodded him away and watched him go.

It was a strange mix of feelings, Bifrost decided. On one hand, being taken care of was nice. It was refreshing and while very odd it felt good to be... Safe. To have someone who would go batshit insane to keep him from harm's way. On the other hand... Had he always been such a little bitch? Sure, gore and blood had always grossed him out but... He should have picked up a weapon. Should have helped fight.

It wasn't Kirkley's battle. It wasn't Kirkley's job to keep him from being taken to jail. To keep him from being turned in for a bounty. Kirkley had made it his job but... Bifrost pushed a hand through his hair before he fixed his bandanna and put the scarf over a branch so it wouldn't dry all wrinkly. If Kirkley hadn't eaten them completely, they might still have clothing.

They also still might have other things too. Provisions. Money. Weapons.

Bifrost steeled himself while he followed the trail of blood and when he saw the cold dead mutilated bodies he turned his head behind a tree and retched until there was nothing in him and all he could do was dry heave until his eyes were watering and his gut hurt. Okay, he could do this.

The thought of taking a pair of paints from them for Kirkley was an idea until he remembered how huge Kirkley was and how short these men were. Well, compared to him. Everyone was short compared to the man-beast currently catching his dinner. Bifrost went about picking the pockets of the bodies, gagging and doing his best not to touch anything too gross. By the end of it, he'd gotten a clean backpack full of bits and ends (and jerky and another waterskin). Thank goodness they'd dropped their things behind a tree before they went in for the...

Bifrost squeezed his eyes shut and took a shallow breath. It smelled like blood and he could feel the trees getting itchy from feeding off it. He really hoped it rained soon.

By the time Kirkley had eaten his... Fill? His snack? Bifrost had picked the backpack, which he added his things to because this backpack was fancier, a bag of coin - it wasn't a life savings, but it was enough to last a week or two if they lived lean. Bifrost shuddered at the thought of the bodies and he - What was that?

Bifrost froze, going still because something cold and wet had touched him and what was that?!

"Oh, Gods," He panted out, pressing a hand to his neck and looking at his shoulder. He suspected few people could be so glad to see such a beast. Still, Bifrost's heart was pounding a million miles a second and he couldn't help the smile of relief. He swallowed carefully and moved his hand down Kirkley's cheek before standing up and swinging his backpack over his shoulder.

"I'm not riding you," He stated simply, "So lead the way and we'll get going. I'll pilfer you some pants when we get closer to civilization or I'll try to convince them you're my big scary dog and... I dunno." Bifrost shrugged and tried to smile, "Let me know if I can help," He paused, "Well, try to let me know. We're going to talk later, by the way, next time you're comfortable being... Two-legged you."

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