Ill Met By Moonlight (Starfire and Io)

[Japanesestarfire]

CasϨandra •❀•ʅaruzxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

❀The stranger's actions puzzled her. How long had he been out of civilization? He seemed to act.... part animal. Cassie found it strange, and made her a bit curious as well. Who was he, and where was he from? She supposed he had as many questions for her as she did.

She thought carefully of what she should say to him. The truth was out of the question, she wouldn't say that. But still, he deserved an answer of some kind. She finished her pie finally and brushed herself of the crumbs that had fallen. Living like this would definitely take some getting used to. "I left home. I couldn't live there anymore. Here seemed like a better option than going back there." She replied. There were bits of truth in it, but she didn't think it was wise to go into any more detail.

io3121

 

[Lunoh]

Kaine

Kaine stared at her when she answered, not sure what to think. "Leaving a place where no horrors or monsters are, where food is everywhere and it never gets cold, to come out here where there are monsters and it's cold and dangerous, where everything wants to eat you, and there is hardly anything to eat... I don't understand." He came back to sit across from her. His eyes were confused, brow furrowed. "Explain please, how there is worse than here."

He sat and waited, his arms crossed on the limb, attentive. Was it sickness? Did he just go into a den of plague without knowing. Did he just eat something that was going to do to him what food did to his kingdom? To his family?! There was a tinge of fear now in his sapphires, but he remained still, waiting for her to answer.

Japanesestarfire

 

[Japanesestarfire]

CasϨandra •❀•ʅaruzxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

❀Cassie shrugged in response. "I didn't think to thoroughly about my plan, actually." She said a bit embarrassingly. Oh, why didn't she think these things through? "I was being forced into something, something I didn't want. So I left. And here I am."

She knew she couldn't go to any other towns or neighboring kingdoms, surely they would discover who she truly was. And going back wasn't an option. She may love her parents, but not enough to get married off to a stranger. That thought strengthened her will to not return. Maybe forge her own home in the forest, just as this boy did. She could do it. Sure, she wasn't the strongest in the world, and didn't know how to get food or water out there, but she would manage. Somehow. "Could you show me how to live here? I am not going back." She said firmly.

io3121

 

[Lunoh]

Kaine

Again Kaine just stared at her. She had left because she was going to have to do something she didn't want to? Kaine didn't want to kill things to eat, but he did it anyway. "Sounds terrible." He commented sarcastically. He rolled his eyes and laid his head down on the table, tired. At her question, he was still for a moment, wondering if he had heard her right. He slowly lifted his head, just enough to see over his arm at her, and blinked twice before answering. "You want me to teach you how to survive?" he sat up straight. "Are you joking? I have a hard enough time surviving myself, let alone teaching a spoiled brat how to! Have you ever walked a whole day straight? Ever gone hungry for more than three days? Ever killed something just to end that hunger for a few hours? There's no way. Impossible, I won't. You're going back in the morning. I'll even take you back, and that's the last I want to see of you. Don't throw away a good thing just because there's one thing about it you don't like."

He stood and went to the railing, looking out through the forest. He would give anything to have his kingdom back, his family, his home. And here was this girl, throwing it all away for nothing. He looked up at the moon. Three nights till it was full. That was the best time to hunt, when the moon was brightest. If only he could control... He sighed, dropping his head.

Japanesestarfire

 

[Japanesestarfire]

CasϨandra •❀•ʅaruzxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

❀Cassie bit her cheek, doing her best not to reply. She couldn't tell him her life may had been spoiled, but it was also full of predetermined schedules, lessons, tutors, and being forced to things she didn't want. The marriage was the last straw. She understood it was for a good cause, whatever it may be, but she wanted no parts of it. What she really wanted, was freedom.

But obviously he didn't want her there. She understood she was a burden; it wasn't like she was taught to survive. Up till then she had someone to help with anything, no matter how simple. Finally, she decided. There was no way she was going back in the morning. Just a bit more time, at least to figure out where she was going next. She stood up and adjusted her dress, then approached the stranger again.

"Just give me a few days. Enough to cool down. And then I'll be out of your hair. I'll do any work you want me to do. I'll even sleep on the floor! Just don't make me go back. Not quite yet." She asked, hope plain in her voice. She knew it may not work, but she had to try. She was determined to stay away from home. "I know my reasoning for leaving seems petty, and I know I don't know how to live a hard life. But a few days out here is all I'm asking."

io3121

 

[Lunoh]

Kaine

Kaine lifted his head when he heard her approach, but he kept his eyes on the forest. The indigo mist was thick, but it never rose above six feet from the ground. They were a good fifteen feet up in that tree. He was silent as the girl spoke, listening. When she finished, he was silent still for many moments. With a sigh, he looked at her, icy eyes locked on hers. "You do everything I say, no question, no complaints. Three days, and you're on your own." He kept his eyes locked with hers for a moment longer, intense, then turned and went to the main trunk of the tree. In a few quick moves, he was aloft in the branches above, perched comfortably on a limb, braced against the thick trunk. He would sleep there for the night.

He watched her from above, through the branches. No one had ever lasted this long over night in the forest before, but then again, no one had ever had his help before either. He didn't know why he didn't just let her die like those stupid merchants. Was it because she was a girl? Because she was young? Or because she actually knew he was there. Had he been too afraid to expose himself to the others before? Was that why he had never bothered to help? Whatever the case may have been, he was now saddled with this girl for the next three days. What was he going to do?

Japanesestarfire

 

[Japanesestarfire]

CasϨandra •❀•ʅaruzxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

❀Before she could say anything to reply, Cassie watched him climb up onto a larger branch. A part of her wondered if that was even remotely comfortable, then pushed it away. This was a forest; there wasn't any satin sheets or down pillows. Out here, you made due with what you had. Sighing, she turned and watched the forest through the ledge. What was she going to do after these three days? Surely not go back, but to where? She supposed she would just walk, settle wherever seemed fit.

But she didn't have to worry about that now. Better to focus on what was going on at the moment, that was all. Like what would happen tomorrow. Would she have to help him with things? She wasn't even sure what 'things' could even be. But she would do them, she had to if she wanted to stay. And she was set on that. Finally, Cassie turned and made her way to the leaf and animal skinned bed, and climbed in. It was a bit strange, although not entirely uncomfortable. It was something to get used to for sure. She draped her cloak around her as a blanket and listened to the strange sounds of the forest until finally falling into an uneasy sleep.

io3121

 

[Lunoh]

Kaine

Kaine watched her mosey on over to his bed. When she seemed to be asleep, he relaxed. He was so unused to company that the fact that there was someone else in his tree dwelling, awake and moving about, made him a certain degree of nervous. Now that she was asleep, he closed his eyes and drifted off too.

The sound of birds chirping woke Kaine, opening his eyes and taking a deep breath of the clean morning air. He turned his head sideways to crack his neck, then silently slid down to the main platform of his dwelling. He went to the railing and looked down at the forest floor, relieved to see that the mist was long gone. The forest had accepted the new being, at least for the moment. Hopefully , she wouldn't do anything to change it's mind. He looked over his shoulder at her, remembering the deal he had made with her. With a low grumble, he went to her and nudged her with his foot.

Japanesestarfire

 

[Japanesestarfire]

io3121

CasϨandra •❀•ʅaruzxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

❀Cassie was halfway between sleep and consciousness when she felt something touch her. Refusing to get up quite yet, she squeezed her eyes shut for a moment. Sleeping out in the forest was something she definitely had to get used to, especially if she planned to get any sleep at all. During the night, she would just drift in and out, always being awakened by a new noise. It was such a contrast from her old life.

She finally opened her eyes, blinking a few times to adjust her eyes to the light, then saw the source of the touch that woke her up. Slowly she sat up and started fixing her hair, hating to feel it so messy. "Good morning." She said simply before getting up and fixing her clothes. She really should have thought to wear lighter ones, the skirts of her dress were starting to grow heavy.

A rumble in her stomach reminded her how little she had eaten the day before. When in the forest, she supposed she wouldn't eat as often as she used to. May as well get used to it. "Breakfast? Or do we have to go out for it?"She asked, wondering what exactly he did for food out there, other than steal from the market.

io3121

 

[Lunoh]

Kaine

Kaine was already a patient man, learning to be patient was one of the many lessons the forest taught. He stood there as the girl went through the process of waking up. When she was finally awake, he walked over to his bag and dumped the remaining pies out of the table branch. Two were still intact, the rest damaged, but edible, and whatever was left was stuck onto the inside of his bag.He would have to clean it out. When she mentioned breakfast, he pointed to the pies on the table.

As she did... whatever she did in the morning... Fixating on her hair? HE began to gather supplies for the day. He still had his dagger, which he continued to carry. He got his bow from the corner it had been leaning up against, and strung it, testing the tautness of it, then nodding. His quiver, his cloak, two other daggers, a waterskin and some rope. He went to the trunk and climbed down, pausing to look at her, "Follow." He said then continued down, waiting for her at the bottom of the tree.

Japanesestarfire

 

[Japanesestarfire]

io3121

CasϨandra •❀•ʅaruzxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

❀Cassie began to eat the pie he had indicated. It was cold and a bit to her distaste, but she knew she couldn't be picky. It was either eat it or go hungry, and she needed energy for whatever was going on today. As she ate, she watched the boy gather things from around the room. Weapons? Rope and a waterskin? What was going on?

She was nowhere near finished with her pie when he told her to follow. Clearly learning to eat faster was something she needed to work on. Such a thing would be frowned upon in her home, seeing it as not proper. But it wasn't something that mattered now. Sighing to herself, Cassie abandoned her half eaten pie, quickly grabbed her own cloak and fastened it around her before following him down the tree.

io3121

 

[Lunoh]

Kaine

On the ground, the little house in the tree was completely hidden, the only indication that it actually might exist was the hidden notches in the trunk that allowed access. When the girl was down from the tree, he started off towards the rising sun. The forest was dark still, dense, but the darkness seemed to come from somewhere else. It was not just from the blockage of sunlight. There were birds here, but not many, and no signs of game or life aside from the strange weeds and mushrooms that poked up through the dead leaves they walked over.

About a half hour of walking and the forest seemed to lighten up, the sun reaching through and instead of weeds and mushrooms growing, there was green grass and flowers of many different colors. There were more birds singing here, and signs of animals, game trails and mole holes.

Kaine led her to a small pond with a little trickle of water feeding it, and handed her the waterskin. "Drink, then fill it up again." He told her as he shrugged off his empty pack and began to wash it a few feet away from her.

Japanesestarfire

 

[Japanesestarfire]

io3121

CasϨandra •❀•ʅaruzxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

❀Cassie took in her surroundings as she hurried to keep up with the stranger. The forest was certainly nicer looking in the daylight; no looming shadows and eerie feeling. Her dress snagged on every loose twig and bush around. Why hadn't she left in lighter and less burdening clothing? Not knowing what else to do, she picked up her skirts as best she could so they wouldn't drag and slow her down.

As they approached a small pond, she was surprised when the boy gave her the waterskin. "Oh, thank you." A slight sloshing was heard inside of it, but she decided not to drink it. Instead the poured it out, watching brownish liquid splash in the pond. She rinsed it out in the trickle, pouring whatever water inside out until the brown tint was gone. Satisfied, she filled the sack up partway and drank it's contents, then filled it the whole way and made her way back to the boy.

"It's filled." She informed him, handing the waterskin out. "Thirsty?"

io3121

 

[Lunoh]

Kaine

Kaine had scrubbed the remnants of the pies out of the fabric of his pack and stood to shake it out when the girl handed him the water skin. He took it and hung it on his belt. His bag was wet, but he had things to do, so it would have to dry as they walked. He looked at the girl again, "Follow." He repeated.

Back into the woods he led her, though they stayed in the nicer part of the forest. They came upon a shrub, and Kaine stopped, stooping. He took off his bag and held it for the girl to take and hold. Digging around under the bush, he pulled out a dead rabbit. It had been caught by a snare, and now, Kaine was releasing it from the snare and holding it up to put in the bag, it's body limp and it's eyes lifeless.

Japanesestarfire

 

[Japanesestarfire]

CasϨandra •❀•ʅaruzxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

❀Cassie's eyes widened slightly at the sight of the small dead body held in the boy's hand. Although it shouldn't be that surprising a sight. She'd seen dead carcasses of animals in the kitchen of the castle at times before, if she was around the kitchen at the time. It shouldn't bother her much, but maybe it was because the rabbit looked so helpless. She could swear she saw a hint of fear in it's lifeless eyes.

She watched as the boy placed the dead rabbit into his bag and then glanced around. A faint scent caught her attention and she walked away from where she was, towards a few large sprouts in the ground. She placed her hand around one of the stalks, then gingerly pulled it up, revealing little onion bulbs. A name registered into her mind, seemingly out of nowhere, and she glanced over her shoulder at the boy, holding up what she had found. "Shall we take these wild onions too?"

io3121