Merule

When the Roar Falls ~ PopeAlessandros x Raafling

When Viltez slowly relaxes, Autharyx feels a tension slip away from his own shoulders that he hadn't noticed until it was gone. It was a slightly disconcerting to find himself caring this much for the state of mind of another, let alone a mortal. He supposes it's just a part of pretending to be mortal, to have this body of his behave in ways that are strange and alien to his more reasonable self. It's probably perfectly normal for squishy mortal bodies to care about what happens to other squishy mortal bodies, lest they are left behind without the protection of numbers. Well, if this is to be an experiment in being a mortal, he should probably just follow along with it, right?

So he smiles when Viltez does and leaves his hand resting in the crook of his host's neck just because he enjoys the feeling of warm skin against his own. Viltez' tail comes up to curl around his shoulders, seemingly to mimic the point of contact he had created himself. Autharyx feels his smile widen on its own accord as the lethal blade presses against his cheek. See, perfectly normal contact that normal mortals shared. Well, at least if you ignore the part where apparently the tail has a mind of his own.

"There is no need to be thankful- or feel foolish for that matter. There is always sense in being cautious, and also in being fearful where it is needed." The humans that weren't at least a little fearful in his presence were always the one that ended up doing foolish things. Like trying to help themselves to his treasure or attacking him in his rest in the hope of gaining fame or fortune. Needless to say, it hadn't ended well for them. Viltez, however, has little to fear from common peasants. Even less so now that Autharyx is by his side.

"Only the foolish pride themselves on being without fear or caution. But I think that in this case it is clear that you have the advantage over farmers and traders," he says earnestly, trying to make Viltez feel better in his own, slightly misguided, way. "I have no doubts you could slay a score of them in combat should they ever be foolish enough to attack you." It feels a bit weird to compliment a mere mortal in this way, but Autharyx had seen him slice clean through pine cones as if they were made of butter. A few layers of cloth or leather will not protect their flesh for even a moment. If he were inclined to do so, Autharyx is sure Viltez would be able to defend a sizeable piece of territory.

When the Roar Falls ~ PopeAlessandros x Raafling

After the surprise wears off, Autharyx finds it easier and easier to simply relax in his host's presence. The other seems to be blushing as well, even though Autharyx can think of nothing that might be embarassing him. It might have something to do with the tail that is coiling around his arm, but Autharyx hardly minds that so he says nothing. It is... strange to hear a mortal speak about loneliness like that, as they always seemed to bunch together seen from the distance. As for himself, Autharyx has never been bothered by a lack of company. In fact, he had always preferred to have less disruptions to his existence rather than more. He supposes it is different, though, when you keep to yourself out of fear rather than out of your own descision. At least Autharyx could be relatively sure he would be able to either fight or shake off anyone that might mean him harm, but if a village were ever to turn against Viltez... Best not to think about it, really, since he seemed to be taking pretty good care of himself so far. When his host speaks again, it is with a wistful voice that has Autharyx lean in slightly without planning to. From what he had seen so far, Viltez seemed to be both liked and respected in town. If he really thought that could all change on a whim just because of the was he was born... It can't be a very comforting idea. "I understand the need to be careful, " he says as he tries to ignore the sense of loss when he pulls his tail away, "but in my experience at least, humans can be very versatile. It might be surprising just how much can be 'normal' in- What's wrong? " he cuts himself off as Viltez' whole body suddenly seems hunch in on itself. Within moments he is on his feet as well, scanning the surroundings for anything that might be a source of danger. At Viltez' words he realises the danger is not immediate, and he makes sure to let his body fall into a relaxed, none-threatening stance before turning closer to the half-breed. "Viltez," he says tentatively, unsure how to approach this. On the one hand he had chased him off before, but on the other hand the man did seem to find comfort in his touch occasionally. In the end he slowly reaches out to cup the side of his neck with a hand, mimicking the touch that he had earlier used to ground him. "Viltez, look at me, there is no one here now. It's okay. " It will be anyway. Autharyx makes sure to keep his attention on the woods around them, feeling out the air currents for any sign of an approach. If anyone is out to get Viltez, they will need to go through him first.

Who Will Break? ~ PopeAlessandros x Raafling

Zach smiles at the priest, making sure to let genuine warmth into the expression.

"I'd love to draw some more, yeah," he says quietly, before tucking into his meal as well. The food tastes bland to him, but everything does when he's hungry, so he makes sure to eat with enough enthusiasm. *t might be a little harder to focus on habing fun now that he's realised he needs to 'feed', but if any of that shows it can probably be attributed to being tired.

After the food Zach leads them away from the larger press of people, so he can look at some of the fish without the constant hum of humans at the edge of his mind. He sketches some of the more interesting fish, but mostly he just wanders around in companiable silence with Zach.

He's just about to suggest heading back home, when they round a quiet corner to find a young couple using the dark spot for a round of making out. Zach can't help but freeze, the charge of lust in the air setting the hair on the back of his neck on end, even as he forces himself to take a step back so that he's half behind Kiel. Thinking fast, he turns his initial shock into an expression of embarassment, and gives an embarrased cough that has the couple breaking apart to glare at them.

When the Roar Falls ~ PopeAlessandros x Raafling

I love the rp, but real life isn't loving me at the moment... I'll just post when I can and promise to tell you if I'm ever dropping out completely. Of course if the breaks are too big for you to keep interested I understand...

When the Roar Falls ~ PopeAlessandros x Raafling

To make matters worse, Viltez actually catches him instead of jumping out of the way, and by the time Autharyx is sitting up his cheeks are stubbornly colouring pink even as his lips are drawn together in a tight line. Viltez starts laughing the moment he catches his expression, and even through the embarrassment Autharyx has to concede that he prefers that over the way the half-breed had flinched away from him earlier. His tail even sneaks around his arm, leaving the dragon unable to pull away in case he might spook his host again. At least, that's the reason he gives himself to explain why he's not immediately getting up again. At the half-breed's words, he even finds himself breaking into a small but genuine smile of his own.

"Yeah, me too," he says, sounding a bit surprised at the admission himself. "I've never really spent time with..." humans? "... other people." Of course he had always enjoyed himself well enough, not that 'fun' was a concept he was particularly acquainted with. Somehow the time he spent twisting in and out of thunderstorms wasn't quite comparable to the time he spent with Viltez. It wasn't better or worse per se, just... new. He hadn't thought there was a lot of new things for him to discover, but it turned out there was more to being human than he'd initially imagined.

He smiles at Viltez again, surprised to find the embarrassment he felt earlier had simply drained away.Perhaps this is something he can get used to. He can feel the forest around him clearer that he'd bothered to in perhaps decades, and he can feel Viltex as a warm presence against him. Did he ever feel so,,, alive in his real form? Maybe in the beginning when everything had been new to him, but the world had changed so much since then. This whole exercise in mortality had been a bit of a whim from the beginning, but it seemed to be turning out pretty well.

Who Will Break? ~ PopeAlessandros x Raafling

Zach smiles at what the priest is saying, finding it easy enough to focus on his current assignment over other distractions. Of course it helped that the priest was also an inherently interesting person. Zach supposed that some might find it odd a demon would be intrigued by a goody-two-shoes like Kiel, but there is a pure determination to his convictions that he can appreciate. It is rare to find a human who genuine tried to do what is best for others, without expecting something in return. Or perhaps that just says something about the company he usually keeps.

The question about the show catches him off guard, and he frowns consideringly before realising that he should probably be excited about something like that. The aquarium was nice, but he is far more interested in the wonders that the world has to offer, than the ability of humans to make animals jump through hoops for them. It is hard to imagine Kiel won't have noticed his hesitation though, so he doesn't bother to hide it.

"I don't know," he says slowly, looking away in a slightly nervous manner. "Won't it be really busy there? I would rather just stay with you for a while. I mean, unless you really want to go..." He quickly adds, as if to placate the priest in advance.

Who Will Break? ~ PopeAlessandros x Raafling

Now that he's sitting down. Zach is somewhat surprised to find he is actually feeling tired. It made sense of course. He'd spend pretty much all his time either laying low or working on the priest, and hadn't taken the time to go looking for something that would actually provide him with any lasting sustenance. He smiles and nods absent-mindedly at what the priest is saying, before taking the menu and staring at the letters without actually paying attention to any of it.

In the weeks before he'd come to the priest the pickings had been plentiful, but not particularly... satisfactory. It will take quite a bit more time for him to weaken to a significant degree, of course, but if he wanted to to be at his best, he would need to figure something out. It shouldn't be too difficult. After all, with all the sexually repressed priests and such around, there are bound to be a couple that don't have Kiel's integrity and will be easy enough to coax over in a dream. It's not ideal, but he's not going to risk physically running off when he's just starting to gain a bit of trust from the priest.

When the time comes to order, he just goes for the cheapest item on the menu, not really feeling like putting an effort into his choice. Now that he is aware of the urge in the back of his mind, it is hard not to notice the press of humans around him. Usually he enjoys the company of humans, playing tricks on them not so much a job as a way of life. But now the crowd just felt as a distraction.

"So how did you learn of this place?" he asks Kiel after ordering, in an attempt to distract himself.

When the Roar Falls ~ PopeAlessandros x Raafling

Autharyx is... slightly miffed to find the game does not come as easy to him as it seems to do to Viltez. Where the other darts around the forest floor as if he was born to it, whipping cones back as fast as he can throw them, the dragon-turned-man actually has to pay attention where he's going. He even manages to miss a couple of cones before he is properly tunes in to the whizz of air just before they close in on him. With only two limbs at his disposal he has to work double time to keep up with Viltez' efforts.

All in all it is pretty good training, and not just for the half-breed. In order to both stay on his feet and actually catch something, Autharyx has to trust his body to get him around so he can focus his mind on anticipating the pine cones. It is not something he is accustomed to, but after a few missed catches he eases into it almost automatically. His legs seek out the best path with very little input from his conscious mind, and after a while his natural grace starts to show through in his movements. It's different from being a creature made up mostly from raw power and will, but even in this shape his core remains the same and it shines through in the sinuous movements his limbs make as they whip out to catch a cone and throw it back.

Of course, pride becomes before the fall, and it takes only a small lapse of attention for him to miss a branch half-buried in the fallen leaves. It is still slippery from the night's rain, and he regrets putting his foot down the moment his leg slides out from under him. The regret comes too late to save him, though, and Autharyx falls over with an undignified yelp, cones scattering to the forest floor as he tumbles and slides off the incline he was about to chase Viltez down.

When the Roar Falls ~ PopeAlessandros x Raafling

In his true form, Autharyx had always been aware of the impression he was making on the mortals he dealt with, and had done everything he could to shape that impression into what he wanted it to be. In this human body, however, it is getting more and more clear that it likes to act directly on his feelings, with no input from his conscious mind at all. If this is how humans do it, it is probably a good idea to let it happen, lest he be seen as 'inhuman' when he's just trying to fit in. At least, that is the excuse he gives himself when he lets a smile flit over his face with every bit of excitement Viltez shows so easily. Even when the beast man closes his eyes, the dragon still regards him with a smile that could only be described as fond.

Loath to admit it as he might be, he is rapidly getting attached to the mortal. He might be able to write it off as 'fascination', but what good is lying to yourself if you are very much aware that you are doing it? It's not like it actually matters, he tells himself as he listens idly to Viltez' musings about the workings of his tail. It's just some fleeting human emotion that comes with inhabiting such a weak form. If anything, it will help him be more convincing when he needs to be, and when it gets too tedious he'll just leave and shed the mortal coil that causes the weakness. It's not like this entire expedition will actually mean anything to him in a few decade's time, and while he's here he might as well immerse himself in his role fully, so to speak.Whatever he might feel around the half-breed, it's just his body being pesky and mortal, not something he actually needs to analyse and think about. Why bother to put thoughts into something that is probably both irrelevant and irrational?

Decision made, it is very easy for him to smile back at Viltez when he invites him to join in something he calls 'catch'. He doubts it can be more complicated than throwing and catching stuff, so he doesn't bother to ask for the specifics.

"Don't you sound confident all of a sudden?" Viltez asks, not bothering to hide the slight smirk that seems to want to be on his face. "Well, far be it from me to deny you what you want," he says, keeping his pose relaxed before suddenly aiming a pinecone at his forehead. Dragons are nothing if not competitive, and this is all still in the guise of 'training' in the end. Let's see if he can't trick that tail into slicing up some cones it ought to be catching.