Merule

When the Roar Falls ~ PopeAlessandros x Raafling

Holidays are over, so I should have more time on my hands now :)

When the Roar Falls ~ PopeAlessandros x Raafling

Autharyx' eyes remain glued to Viltez as he slowly stands up and brushes himself off. As far as he can see, what he did seemed to have worked. Gone is the nervous jittery Viltez, and back is smiley, confident Viltez. Autharys approved of the transition. Did this mean the energy is grounded properly again? Is it gone or is it now flowing into the beast-man as it should, strengthening him and providing him with a more intimate connection to what Autharyx had come to think of as his territory? Maybehe should just-

Autharyx catches himself with a start before he can reach out to touch his host again. Where had that come from? He didn't actually need to touch him again, it was obvious he was much better. Hell, he's still debating whether he should have touched him without explanation to begin with. There is no logical reason for him to want to lay his hand on Viltez again. So he doesn't want to. Obviously.

He quickly puts the matter out of his mind in time to return the smile Viltez aims at him. See, everything as it should be, he assures himself, just in time to be caught of guard by a fierce surge of possesive jealousy when Viltez jokingly mentions being carried away by spirits. Luckily his host seems to have turned away just in time to miss the scowl drifting over Autharyx' face, followed by an expression of slightly baffled embarrassment. Viktez is his host, he doesn't even live in his territory. He doesn't have any kind of claim on him, and neither does he want one, he assures himself.

It probably has somehing to do with that brief moment of connection he'd accidentally forged, Autharyx muses as he follows the beast-man. Yes, that would make sense. Besides, he doesn't even believe in spirits from the sound of it, and it doesn't feel like there are any in this place. And if there were, none would try to take something away from a dragon as impressive as he is. Not that Viltez is his, but, you know, in a general sense of taking some random thing away from him.

"Back to the trail it is,"he says in order to distract himself from his thoughts. "The offer of pinecone-throwing still stands, if you want to train? I can stand out of reachif you think it will help?"

When the Roar Falls ~ PopeAlessandros x Raafling

Once again I have to warn you that I'll be busy for a while, this time for the next month or so. This is the only time I've been more busy during the holidays than outside of it. >_< I'll try and post every once in a while, but it won't be consistently I'm afraid...

When the Roar Falls ~ PopeAlessandros x Raafling

A weight he didn't quite acknowledge falls off his shoulders the moment Viltez answers. He still doesn't sound completely fine though, so Autharyx walk towards the source of the voice with caution, not willing to startle his host again. When he walks around a tree, he spots the dejected pile of limbs that is Viltez, tail lying limp on the forest floor. It is disheartening to see the man like that, and even more so to imagine that it is his own actions that put him in that state.

He shuffles his weight from foot to foot as the half-breed speaks, trying to make sense of what he is saying. He's talking about his tail like it has a mind of his own again, and it wants to... mate with him? He's not sure what's prompted it to think of him as a female, but at least it did not seem to be something he had done, so that was... good, he supposed? Honestly he wasn't sure what to think any more, as he could think of a lot worse things Viltez could have done that touch him with his tail. At least he hadn't accused him of being a thief, like the stall-human had, and neither had he shown him any discourtesy when Autharyx was unfamiliar with the human customs.

As his host kept talking, Autharyx found himself distracted by the hum of power in the air. The magic that was reacting to him, also seemed to be attracted to Viltez, dancing and buzzing around the half-breed in a way that would drive the dragon mad, had he been in his place. At least he'd used to letting energy ground itself to forge a connection with the surroundings. Viltez, on the other hand, seems consciously unaware of what is happening around him, causing the magic to surge in a chaotic manner. Well, that simply won't do, Autharyx decided as Viltez curls in on himself even further. He slowly steps closer to his host, squatting down once he reaches him.

"Thank you for explaining this to me," he said, feeling how the magic surged up slightly in response to his proximity. "I feared it was something I did. Rest assured that I do not take offence, though I would appreciate if you'd give a warning next time." He's not paying too much attention to what he's saying, but rather on bringing his hand up to Viltez' slumped form. He can feel the power at his fingertips- Viltez seemed to exert quite an influence- but he could not anchor it without touching the other man. Given what had happened when Viltez had touched him, Autharyx highly doubted that any touch would be welcomed at the moment, but neither did he wish for the other to suffer any more. Faced with a choice between attempting to explain, or fix things and hope for the best, Autharyx went for the one that did not have to involve a discussion about how a mere mortal could have any knowledge of or influence over the powers that made up the world.

"Besides, controlling these 'idle whims' as you call them is the very reason we are here in the first place, so if you would excuse me..." He brings his hand to rest on the side of Viltez' neck, thumb in the hollow behind his ear as his fingers curl around the back. The touch finally provides a conduit for the energies swirling around Viltez to ground themselves, and Autharyx sucks in a small breath as the magic uses him to establish a stable connection between the half-breed and the forest around them. For a moment there is a brilliant spark of connection between them, but then Autharyx pulls his hand away and the air is still again. From what he can tell, the buzzing should have stopped, but he still cautiously looks over at Viltez as he takes a reluctant step back out of his space.

"How are you feeling?"

When the Roar Falls ~ PopeAlessandros x Raafling

Autharyx falters when a stricken expression appears on VIltez' face.

"Er," he says, earlier annoyance draining away, "unless you don't-"

Before he can bring out another word, the half-breed snarls viciously before darting off into the forest. Autharyx surprises himself by don't feeling aggravated by the potential challenge, but rather... guilty? His host might have snarled, but nothing about him actually radiated challenge or even aggression. If anything, he seemed... frightened? Now normally Autharyx could deal with frightened, but this time he hadn't actually done anything to evoke that response. Not that he usually had to try very hard to instill fear in mortals, but this time he'd... He'd actually tried to make the other like him instead.

''tried and failed,' he reminds himself helpfully. Without thinking he is already following the trail Viltez had left as he trampled through the forest. Autharyx is no tracker, but this is hard to miss. And even if it hadn't been, he can still feel it in the air. He hadn't noticed it earlier in the city. but this place had been... neglected for a long time. Or if not neglected, at least left behind. There is power in the forest, in the air and everywhere around him. Only it isn't like the power that had infused his own territory, power that had bound him to the place so seamlessly that sometimes it was hard to sense where his territory ended and he began. The power here is.. disconnected. It isn't tied to the world as tightly as it would have been with a guardian to anchor it, but instead it had settled on the world almost like a thick layer of dust. Humans and animals were not nearly enough to stir it up, but as his own power reached out to sense the world around him, he could feel it surge and rise in response. The magic that had laid dormant in the woods was waking up, and to Autharyx it felt like a metaphorical face full of dust.

But he has no time for that now. He pushes the tingling at the edge of his senses to the back of his mind and sets off to find Viltez. He's feeling... something. There is some anger there, but it seemi to be run through with worry. Even though he knows he had no fault in this whatsoever, he can't get the look on Viltez' face when Autharyx had snapped at him out of his mind. What right does the mortal have making him feel... things about a perfectly reasonable response? It was his fault anyway, for... for... not wanting to touch him? Why does that bother him in the first place? He certainly never wanted to touch silly mortal humans before. Or ever. It's not about touching anyway. It's about respect. Surely Autharyx is owed some respect?

He frowns at his train of thought, and deliberately cuts it off. It doesn't matter anyway. He just needs to find Viltez and things will turn out alright.

"Viltez?" he says out loud when the trail seems to come to an end. "Are you there? I... I apologise if I caused you distress," he eventually brings out, with only a hint of reluctance. Logically he shouldn't give a second thought to how a mortal might feel, but he still feels affected. It's probably the magic in the air setting him off-balance. Yes, that must be it.

Who Will Break? ~ PopeAlessandros x Raafling

I'll be away from today until sunday, and after that I'll hope to have some more time to write. I apologise for the slow posting, I have quite a few things on my plate at the moment (all fun thankfully) but they leave me little time to write.

When the Roar Falls ~ PopeAlessandros x Raafling

When the tail suddenly snaps around him to pull him close, Autharyxs can only freeze. Had he been in his proper body, such an act would have been... ill-advised no matter how fond he might have been of the other, but in this frail human body he simply hasn't developed the appropriate reflexes yet. Before he can even think to react, Viltez flinches and retreats as if the proximity burned him. Autharyx might not approve of the contact, but the violent way in which VIltez flinches away is slightly insulting. If he had hackles, they would be up in indignation. In his human form, however, he just raises his chin ever-so-slightly as he tries to regain the balance in their interaction.

"Good to know you at least try not to sound insulting I guess," he mutters. It's not that he even wants to touch the other man or anything, but couldn't he at least pretend the very idea of it wasn't completely distasteful. He doesn't quite get the meaning of 'liberties' in this context, but 'insulting' tells him pretty much all he needs to know. Do humans enjoy insulting people in general, or was it just once-formidable dragons they enjoy insulting?

"Well, I'm sorry your tail is so lonely it forced you to telerate my proximity, but rest assured that I won't just up and leave. I enjoy your company, and as long as your permit me, I enjoy your hospitality as well. You don't have to fear that I won't be able to properly repay you, either." Autharyx realises he sounds kind of petulant, so he figures it is a good time to change the subject.

"But anyway, we wanted to test your reflexes, right? I could throw pinecones and we can see how many you can hit?"

Who Will Break? ~ PopeAlessandros x Raafling

Zach just nods, busy with gathering up his drawing supplies. As soon as the priest closes the door, though, he stills and tilts his head as he tries to figure out what the man is doing. Usually he would make an effort to allow Zach to keep him in sight, probably something he learned to make the street kids he works with more comfortable in his presence. He hears the scrape of wood on wood, followed after a while by the distinctive sound of a keypad being operated. For a moment Zach was intrigued, but he can't hear anything big. If pressed, he might just hear some rustling, so his guess is that the priest keeps a safe with his money hidden in his bedroom. Money, of course, is of no interest to him, but it still pays to know about some kind of secret compartment. He probably won't have the luck of finding a diary with his deepest and darkest secrets, but it won't hurt to check it out if he gets the chance.

By the time the priest come out of the room, he is bent over his backpack again, carefully arranging his drawing supplies in a way that won't have them rattling against each other when they walk. As they leave the house, there is a spring in his step that he doesn't bother to try and hide. This trip is a welcome surprise, especially since he'd been roughing it for the past few weeks. Life at the priest's house is considerably easier, but it also gets boring when the man is out. It's not in his job description to enjoy what he's doing, but he's not going to deny himself the opportunity to do so either.

For most of the trip he manages to keep from asking questions, but he does try to figure it out from the list of stops the bus makes. He's not familiar enough with the area to recognise anything, so in the end he ends up looking intently out of the window, trying to see a sign pointing to a possible attraction, his bag hugged to his chests as he sits in the bus seat.

When the Roar Falls ~ PopeAlessandros x Raafling

Autharyx watches the play of emotions on his host's face, happy to see that he seems to feel secure enough to 'let it out to play'. It is still rather strange to hear him speak about the appendage as if it has a mind of its own, but he doesn't say anything about it. He's pretty sure Viltez indulges him where he does not know human customs well enough, so the last thing he can do is let the half-breed act however he please in regards to his own body.

Though when the tail slipped around his arms once more, the stricken expression on Viltez' face made him wonder if it didn't have a mind of its own after all. His host obviously did not like what it was doing, so it must act on some other impulse altogether.

"You do not wish to touch me then- or rather, for it to touch me?" Autharyx inquired quiriously. He debated taking the opportunity to run his fingers through the soft fur again, but based on that had gone the last time he tried, he decided against it.

"Perhaps it is some sort of instinct?" he ventured, though he couldn't for the life of him think of what purpose this behaviour could serve. "Perhaps it sees me as a... threat or something and in this way the blade is close enough to do some damage?" It didn't feel like a threat, but what else could it be?

"Maybe if I..." rather than welcoming the touch as he had done before, this time he carefully tried to pull his arm away, just to see what would happen.

When the Roar Falls ~ PopeAlessandros x Raafling

aw, it's ok. I hope you at least had fun? :p