The most innocent of evils [ Zero ]

[SanctifiedSavage]

It was moments like this when Yaotzin should have probably done some self-reflection. What had brought him to the middle of the town, with a handful of men squaring off with him, swords drawn, in the middle of what he believed to be a rather lovely, sunny afternoon?

The last time Yaotzin had bought an entire town round after round of alcohol, he'd wandered out everyone's friend. They'd smiled and cheered, waved merrily as he sauntered off down the street. Wearing his soldier skin, so they didn't think he was actually some manner of immortal monster, but still.

He wore that same persona now. Pretty blonde hair gave way to sharp blue eyes and perfect cream skin. He looked physically fit, with a sword at his hip and expensive armor wrapped around him. Chain and leather. It wasn't just the armor that made him feel stifled, though, it was the entire persona, but he'd suffered through it for a good time. Or... what he'd thought was a good time.

Right up until what he believed was the local blacksmith storming in and dragging him out, tossing him into the main street. The man was furious, spouting off something about his daughter. No names, so that wasn't particularly helpful, and all the women had been ushered into their homes. At least, all the attached ones. "Really, gentlemen, I don't know what all the fuss is about..." he said, though Yaotzin was starting to suspect he was speaking a foreign language. Even with his arms out to the side, palms up in what he thought was a peaceful gesture, their faces kept getting redder and the blacksmith jabbed his hammer in Yaotzin's direction menacingly.

"You came into town and you bright this evil with you!"

Yaotzin wasn't sure what evil, but he wasn't sure asking would help. A chorus of agreement rang around him though, so the situation was souring quickly. He was beginning to suspect he'd have to play dead after they pretend beat him up.

"Emptying the tavern of alcohol, tempting our wives, sisters, sons and daughters with your wiles!"

He still wasn't hearing the bad part. Was the man working up to it?

[Zero]

The town wasn't huge or remarkable in any real way – not that it mattered. People had been friendly and welcoming enough, especially when they learned she was a healer. Sahara had spent the last several days caring for an elderly man who was unwell. Everything about this town had been really quiet, until it wasn't. She didn't know what the fuss had been about, but it seemed like some kind of party or celebration, at least for a while.

Sahara could tell that the commotion had changed significantly. It was why she had finally ventured away from the bedside of her ailing patient – he was doing much better and she had instructed one of his daughters in how to prepare the medicine he needed. Her presence wasn't really necessary anymore so she could spare a bit of time to find out what the fuss was about this afternoon.

It didn't take long for her to find the angry mob of people surrounding a young soldier. She could hear them shouting several streets away, and she didn't like the tone or the words she was hearing. Sahara had a scowl on her face as she looked around angrily. From what she could gather, the young man was a stranger visiting town and certainly had caused a ruckus, but his mischief didn't sound like it was completely on his head. It certainly didn't sound like they needed to be mobbing him with makeshift weapons!

"What is the meaning of all this?" Her tone was sharp as she pushed her way through the mob to stand in front of the accused young scoundrel, putting her back to him and fixing the men in front of them with her sternest disapproving mother stare. "If some people were tempted by this man, then they are just as guilty as he is, how dare you all throw all the blame on the only outsider."

[SanctifiedSavage]

In all honesty, the devil had been on this side of a conversation plenty of times. Something had happened, people were upset, and the blame ultimately fell on him. He was the new comer to the area, the unknown factor that had been the match to the powder keg, so to speak. He understood about that much of it. Not the whole reason for the anger. Not why he was to blame, exactly. He just knew he was.

Yaotzin never took blame for anything that wasn't actually his fault.

When he went to open his mouth and say something to that effect, he was cut off by some very indignant, sweet girl that marched through the crowd. At first, he expected it to be one of the village women come to lecture him on... something. One thing or another. She was walking at him, after all. That is, until she planted herself firmly in front of him and squared off with what he supposed was a menacing blacksmith. Well, menacing to others like him. Mortal. Fleshy and easy to bruise.

He smiled. How adorable. This was definitely new. He liked new.

"Tempted? You mean bewitched! Bespelled! No way the people of this town would do what they would unless he were here!" The blacksmith's voice rose, rallying those around him.

Yaotzin supposed that was technically true and granted him as much. No one likely had the funds to buy out the tavern. "I was just trying to loosen everyone up..." he quipped, lifting a finger as if that was an actual point in this conversation.

"So you put something in the alcohol!" one of the men shouted behind the blacksmith, which immediately sent a ripple of outrage through the crowd.

"What, no!" he protested, though it was drowned out by the villagers.

[Zero]

Sahara was both short and slight, but she didn't hesitate to place herself between the accused man and the blacksmith who had brandished the hammer. With hands on her hips she stood fearlessly, green eyes blazing with scorn as the blacksmith's voice rose higher, she didn't take her eyes off him to spare a glance for the other mobbing men who were being riled by the smith, who seemed to be the ring leader in this whole attempt to gang up on the out of towner.

It was only when the man behind her spoke up that she let her attention move from the blacksmith, looking over her shoulder at him with a scowl. He was not helping, but the confession of his intentions made his mischief seem far from nefarious. Not malicious at all, simply misguided and poorly executed.

Even more wild accusations started flying around. Trying to say he had put something in all the alcohol in town? That was just ridiculous. These small town folk were ignorant, angry, and looking for someone to blame for their own shortcomings. Just because one man instigated misbehavior didn't mean that anyone had to follow along with it. They had made the conscious choice to join him in his debauchery.

Of course actual guilt or innocence was irrelevant by this point. Sahara realized that the mob was not going to listen to reason from anyone. They had been stirred into frenzy and now they were looking for someone to take it all out on. Right now that was the man she had tried to defend. It occurred to her that she was also an outsider to these people, and that putting herself in the middle of this angry crowd had been unwise. She gritted her teeth, green eyes darting between the people around them, trying to judge an escape route. It wasn't that she regretted coming to the soldier's defense, she felt it had been the right thing to do, but she would rather not find out what these men might try to do to her either.

[SanctifiedSavage]

Right. So. If it had just been Yaotzin, he'd have let them bash at him, play the part of the beaten soldier, and wait until they tossed his battered but ultimately uninjured body elsewhere then walk off. However, he had a savior now which changed things up a bit. He suspected she was not wearing a skin suit that she could easily shed nor was she likely immortal like he was.

Yaotzin obviously had no idea how to talk his way out of this one, because they were all quite mad. Instead, he encouraged two of the roofs behind them to alight. Just a little. Well, enough that it'd certainly draw their attention right quick and he could hook his arm through his new found friend's and promptly start running down the street.

Not exactly the most glamorous of exists, but Yaotzin would much rather harm a building or two then have to interfere directly with people because they had misplaced anger. He was also pretty quick on his feet, as though running were something he'd become quite proficient at.

The mob was quite torn. The blamed him for the fire, though they didn't know how he'd done it. While some did want to pursue, and did for a moment, none of them bothered to do so out of town. They didn't want the fire to spread, after all.

[Zero]

There really had been no expectation for him, or anyone, to help her. Given their position of being surrounded she hadn't considered that there could be much help to be given. Sahara was as surprised as the mob when some nearby roofs caught fire, and just as surprised when the strange man hooked arms with her and dragged her along in his bid to run for it. What an unexpectedly exciting day it was turning out to be, not what she would call a good kind of exciting, but far from boring.

Despite being much shorter, with not nearly as long of a stride, Sahara didn't have trouble keeping up as they ran from the town. As a wolf she loved to run, at least when she was in her wolf form – running as a human wasn't nearly as fun, definitely not when you were being chased.

Thankfully the townsfolk gave up pretty quickly. She shouldn't be surprised. They were little yapping dogs, all bark and no real bite. At least not when they had fires to also contend with, and that was too convenient not to have been caused by the man still pulling her along as they put distance between themselves and the trouble that he had stirred up.

"Stop, they're not following us." Sahara dug her heels in and tried to pull her arm away now that the immediate danger had passed.

[SanctifiedSavage]

When it became readily apparent she was right, and there was no need to run, Yaotzin released her when she tried to pull away. He even took a step back to give her some space. More than that, though, he wanted out of his soldier 'suit'. The devil bodily shook and the physical illusion fell away. His tail unfurled, his horns became visible, and he stretched his now cloven feet.

Better.

Much better.

His clothes had transformed into the layered, fine silk and leather get up he normally wore, too. "Right. Well. That was awfully nice of you to put yourself in harm's way for me. My name is Yaotzin and it seems I owe you." He dipped into a proper bow, from the waist, and straightened into a smile. Hopefully the fact he was quite devilish looking hadn't off put her too much. He was smiling and his voice, while smooth and rich, was quite nonthreatening.

[Zero]

 A little huff escaped her when the man let go and she promptly started trying to smooth any wrinkles from her linen dress. The deep green fabric wasn't fancy or expensive, but Sahara didn't like to look unkempt, and the action was a bit soothing as she tried to process and take stock of what had just happened. It wasn't as if she had a true connection to the town and the old man she had been carrying for was on the mend, so having to move on wasn't upsetting, but leaving behind her belongings was a bit annoying. At least she hadn't carried anything of particular value or sentimentality with her.

All those thoughts only took a few moments, with her paying little mind to her unintentional companion, until he simply shook off his...disguise? Her first instinct was to freeze as the soldier before her turned into something else entirely. Something not human, for sure, and in all the rush of that excitement of angry mobs and fleeing she hadn't even noticed that his smell wasn't that of a human. It was surprising, and Sahara wasn't sure what to make of it.

The little she-wolf took a step back as he bowed to her with a rather formal introduction. Her green eyes were wide as she stared at him for a moment, evaluating the odd creature before her and trying to decide if a flight or fight response was necessary. He didn't seem interested in harming her, and had not left her behind, so she decided this was okay.

Sort of.

"I'm Sahara, but you really don't owe me. I only did what I thought was right." She couldn't stand by and let someone be ganged up on in such a way – even if he was guilty of causing a little trouble he hadn't deserved what the mob had been ready to throw at him.

[SanctifiedSavage]

"Sahara? What a beautiful name," he quipped, smiling still. His tail flicked lazily while he regarded her, stance casual and relaxed. It didn't occur to him that he should be anything but around her. It wasn't like she'd save him only to then maul him... right?

Who knew? Other people confused him sometimes.

Even so, he did lift a finger as though to prove a point while he added, "You might not think what you did had any sort of impact, but it is very rare that anyone comes to my aid. So, I do very much so feel indebt to you." Then, his smile a tad sly, he added, "And who wouldn't want a devil owing them besides?"

While one of his kind might try to wiggle their way out of deals and debts, Yaotzin was generally quite the opposite. Especially when he felt it was legitimately due. Giving people what they wanted and deserved was what he enjoyed doing. Sometimes much to their chagrin. Granted, it wasn't always nice what people deserved, but in this case he happened to think him owing someone was a good thing.

[Zero]

Completely ignoring the compliment to her name, Sahara frowned slightly as she crossed her arms and look at him with a wary sort of curiosity. He was smiling and relaxed, but she felt anxious and tense. She didn't want people feeling like they owed her anything. That had always been true of the humans she encountered, and now it extended also to this devil. What even was a devil? She had never heard of such a thing. Was it a demon or something like it? Those the she-wolf had at least heard of, even if she hadn't actually encountered one – to her knowledge.

"Getting chased out of town hardly seems like I provided any aid at all." Sahara had accomplished nothing with her interference. If he could cause a distraction like fire to run away and avoid being beaten or killed, then he hadn't needed her help at all. "If anything I feel like my actions complicated matters."

She shifted nervously on her feet, his sly smiles felt odd. The whole situation was now making her uneasy. Squaring off with the mob had been less uncomfortable than standing there alone with this devil Yaotzin. Sahara wasn't the most suspicious creature by nature, for most things, but hyper suspicious in other ways. At a young age she had been forced to act as mother for her younger siblings and any caretaker of children knew to always be suspicious of them, because young ones were very good at mischief.

Yaotzin kind of reminded her of a mischievous child.

"Well it was...interesting...meeting you, but I should probably be on my way now." It wasn't that she really had anywhere specific to be, but standing there close to all that commotion didn't seem very appealing to her. Who was to say they wouldn't decide to follow them once they got the fires under control? Besides, staying still made her restless.

[SanctifiedSavage]

He 'tutted' when she remarked that she'd complicated matters. While technically true, that wasn't the thing he felt he owed her for. It was incredibly rare that anyone came to his aid at all and such an action, no matter the outcome, should be rewarded. He was about to say as much, but then she made mention that she should be going on her way.

Well then! Adventure awaited! His time in the town already forgotten and put behind him, Yaotzin nodded a little and took a step in her direction. "Right, of course. No use staying around here, all things considering. Where shall we be going next? To be completely honest, I have no idea where we are and I don't have anything by way of a map. I usually just follow the roads until I find someone." Which was the devil's honest truth. It also sounded like the worst possible way to travel and, if he were anything less than the immortal creature he was, he'd likely have been mugged and murdered a long time ago.

He watched her expectantly, like it made complete and utter sense that he would now be traveling with her and he couldn't fathom another course of action. His tail flicked excitedly, as the start of something new was always thrilling, and he quite enjoyed company in anything he did.

[Zero]

Sahara had already turned away from the devil, figuring that the misunderstanding was settled and that her intention to leave him had been made clear. At first it seemed like he was giving a polite farewell.  It was hard to really process his question. She stopped and turned her head to look at him again, eyes wide as one of her hands moved up to fiddle with her hair. The multitude of braids seemed to still be in place, and she didn't think the loose, wavy strawberry blond curls were overly disheveled from running this far.

"Where we will be going next?" Repeating the question really didn't make it any more logical to the she-wolf. Why did he assume that he was welcome to join her on the road? He was a strange man, devil, person and she was a woman traveling alone. Being alone with him was understandably a concerning idea to wrap her mind around. He seemed harmless enough now but how quickly could that change?

"I think there's been another misunderstanding. I was saying goodbye. I plan on leaving. Alone." It really couldn't be said much clearer, could it?

[SanctifiedSavage]

When she turned, he took steps to fall in line with her. Not exactly next to her but almost just. They hadn't begun walking for him to take a place next to her. So when she drew up short, he was but a step away. Not exactly invading her personal space, but it was quite clear he'd been intending on walking with her.

Confusion writ itself across his expression and his black clawed hands clasped behind his back. His tail flicked idly while he mused, for just a moment, on what she had to say. Yaotzin didn't really think there was too much of a misunderstanding. "I appreciate that you were saying goodbye, but I really can't leave this debt unpaid. It is quite literally against my nature." Which was very true. The frown turned into a pleasant smile. "So, what would make you more comfortable about me walking in the same direction as you, next to you?"

Pretty much with her, just different words. Sometimes that worked better.

[Zero]

Sahara could feel a headache coming on – a tall, devil of a headache – and somehow she knew it would not be easily relieved. This is why she should have paid more attention to the alpha's advice before she left home. He had certainly cautioned her on getting involved in things that were none of her business.

"Well I can't very well stop you from walking wherever you like, can I?" Her tone was beyond a doubt full of annoyance as she turned on her heel and started walking again. She couldn't understand why he insisted on owing her anything when she clearly didn't want him to be in her debt. It was a puzzling and frustrating situation. "So if you feel so indebted to me, what would make us even?"

Sahara didn't bother to check if he was still following or beside her, she wouldn't be lucky enough to have him leave her alone. Hopefully this strange debt he felt obligated towards her could be cleared up quickly.

[SanctifiedSavage]

He clapped his hands once, satisfied, when she caved. "No, you can't," he answered cheerily to what was most certainly a rhetorical question. When she began walking, he took the longer strides to fall is step next to her, then shortened them up so he would fall in pace next to the sweet lady.

Quite pleased with the way the day had played out, even if it had started out messily.

Yaotzin didn't expressly feel the need to fill every moment with noise, but he'd gladly answer whatever question she might have. "It's difficult to say," he mulled aloud, snake-like eyes wandering around their surrounding with idle interest. "I'll know when I no longer feel indebted." Simple as that. Or rather, simple enough to him. When his attention wandered to her, his gaze idly traced her before he asked, "Do you usually travel so light?"

[Zero]

I'll know when I no longer feel indebted.

That was his answer. What was she supposed to even do with that information? If he didn't even know what it would take how would he clear this frivolous debt? Sahara shot him a very perturbed glare. Did she always travel this light? It was his fault she was traveling at all. If he hadn't riled the whole town up with his antics she would still be sitting next to an old man's bed making sure he was getting stronger.

"No. I didn't exactly have time to retrieve my things, did I? It doesn't really matter. There was nothing important in my satchel, just some herbs and other inconsequential items." She was on a pilgrimage, moving constantly, it wasn't practical to carry along anything unnecessary. "Besides, I don't see you carrying anything either."

[SanctifiedSavage]

It took the devil a moment before he realized that she'd actually left her things behind. He startled some. "Oh! I'm so sorry. If there's anything I can do to make traveling easier for you, please let me know..." Then the devil smiled and, though it did look a bit sly given he was a devil, he chimed, "That's awfully thoughtful of you, looking out for me still. But I create things as I need them so I don't generally have to carry things. It's a bit burdensome."

He didn't allow for much of a pause between them. "Given that you do travel light, and you made mention of some herbs, might I guess as to your profession? Healer? Herbalist? Something along those lines? We have a commonality, then. Given that we both like to help people." What he was saying might've been a bit of a stretch, but he wasn't wrong either. At least, not how he saw it. Yaotzin really did feel like he was helping people. Especially when the actually struck a deal with him.

[Zero]

"Conjuring whatever you need is awfully convenient, but I really don't need much to travel other than my own feet." That was true enough. Sahara was well equipped to rough it in the wild. She could catch or find her own food, there was plenty of game in the forests and she had learned of many edible plants she could forage as well. When it was cold she could bunker down in her wolf from, the fur keeping her more than warm enough. Of course he didn't know she was a werewolf, and while there was no reason to really hide it from him, seeing as he wasn't human himself, the little she-wolf wasn't in a hurry to fill him in either.

"Both. I have been learning as I travel." Sahara wasn't all that impressed when he guessed her craft, but she wasn't sure if he was trying to impress her or not. Anyone could make a guess of healer or herbalist from someone who usually carried herbs when they traveled. She did scoff slightly at the idea that they had anything in common. He clearly caused trouble, she didn't really consider getting people drunk or convincing them to sleep around to be all that helpful.

[SanctifiedSavage]

Yaotzin watched her as they walked along. He did nod, though. "Oh, yes, it is quite convenient. So, if you do need something I only feel like it is fair that I provide if I can." He was being nice. She'd been nice to him, after all.

His tail idly swayed behind them as they walked and he scanned the area around them. Interested, not alert or on the look out. There wasn't much that could actually bother the devil, after all. "Is there a point to the learning?" he asked, not to be a bother but because he was genuinely curious. If there was a reason for her want to help people. He already knew his own, after all.

[Zero]

"I'll keep that in mind." Sahara didn't actually have any intention of taking him up on that offer. He claimed to be a devil, which she wasn't really sure what a Devil was, but trusting offers like that seemed like a bad idea to her. Maybe he was as friendly as he behaved, but it was better not to take the chance that he wasn't.

"I like helping people, taking care of them." The she-wolf shrugged her shoulders, not sure how else to explain it. Did it need more of an explanation? Helping and taking care of people that were sick or hurt made her feel good. It made her feel useful.