forum Where is… here? (Closed)

Started December 26, 2022 by @emilyevewrites group

tune

"I only did what I know to be right," Anna whispered back, continuing to stroke the back of his hand gently with her thumb. "I'm so sorry that you've rarely been shown kindness before. No one should have to endure such treatment."

She had worried that taking his hand had been too much when he shuddered and gasped, but he hadn't pulled away or said anything. Her soft hand was small in his, but she gently squeezed it in her grip to hopefully give him confidence through the touch. Or at least, hope.

“You are clearly from a land that be far more peaceful than here,”De’Tearion said, sighing resignedly and shaking his head slightly.

After she squeezed his hand, he gently wrapped his long fingers around her hand, cradling it much like he was cradling her. He also started to unconsciously sway, rocking them back and forth without realizing it.

“Ákle-Ikli De’Tearion. My name. Yet, simply call me De’Tearion,”he said softly.

"I suppose my world is more peaceful than yours overall," Anna admitted quietly. "There aren't wars continuously… though I suppose even then that's wrong. There have been wars spanning centuries. Conflict is inevitable, no matter what universe we live in."

She watched his fingers take her hand and hold it gently. The rocking motion soothed her, and she even closed her eyes. But she quickly opened them when he told her his name. "Was that so hard?" she briefly teased before stroking his hand with her thumb gently to show she didn't really mean the words.

"Alright… De’Tearion. That is your last name?" she asked softly. "Ákle-Ikli is an interesting name. I've never heard anything like it before… though I've also never met anyone like you before."

De’Tearion sighed,”Battle be constant in the forests. Neverending. If ‘tis true battle not, then ‘tis the battle of politics. I have grown to despise both.”

He huffed irritably at her tease, almost growling at her. She wouldn’t be teasing him if she knew the significance of his name, both to himself and the forests. Though, he calmed slightly when she rubbed his hand. He then sighed heavily at her words.

“Aye. ‘De’Tearion’ be my family name. A damned curse upon me,”he said.

He didn’t respond to her comment about his first name though. He didn’t dare. The pain following his first name was just as bad as the pain swarming around his family name.

Anna nodded slowly. "I can understand that," she murmured, but she said nothing more on the topic.

She winced slightly at his huff. "I'm sorry, it was a gentle tease. I didn't mean to make you upset. And you'd prefer I call you by your damned and cursed family name?" she asked with a soft frown on her face. It didn't make sense to her, but she supposed it didn't have to. Nothing made sense since she'd fallen through her mirror.

De’Tearion chirped in acknowledgment of her apology, though he hesitated to speak after her question. A sigh escaped him, and, after a few minutes, he finally spoke.

“Being called by my family name be… less painful. Yet, there be great misery in both names,”he answered.

De’Tearion then went silent, just wanting to listen, even to hear her sing again. He closed his eyes and simply sat there, drowning in his neverending melancholy. What else could he do? Where else could he go?

"Oh," Anna murmured quietly. "I'm sorry to hear that. We don't have to talk about that if you don't want to. I suppose my family name is painful to me too." She didn't know why she had admitted it, but it had slipped from her lips before she could realize what she'd said. But it was true. Her own surname, Clayton, belonged to her ex-husband. And Harry was the last person she wanted to be thinking about out here. He always had the worst habit of distracting her from whatever she needed to be focusing on.

De’Tearion chirped, but stayed silent. He nuzzled into her shoulder again, his tears finally stopping. Though, as he rested there, his senses tuned in to her heartbeat. Her lovely, appetizing heartbeat, and the pumping blood that went with it.

He immediately fought the temptation of turning his head, letting his proboscis loose, hooking it in her neck, and sucking out her lovely, lovely blood. Blood… Her heart… Her flesh… So appealing. She wouldn’t be hard to subdue. Just one simple shove and she’d be an easy meal.

But, it would be too easy. Too simple. He wanted a challenge. And, Anna was most certainly not a challenge.

A strange feeling came over him as he fought his internal battle. He needed a meal, desperately. But, he couldn’t find anything of interest. What could he do? What…

De’Tearion’s eyes flickered closed and his body started wilting to the side. The pain of his hunger started to slip away, replaced by exhaustion.

“Agatha… why… why am I cold?”De’Tearion mumbled.

He slid off the tree, flopping to the ground on his side in a half-asleep daze. He was unaware of Anna’s presence. His eyes were also much dimmer than before, to the point where their natural glow was barely visible. His skin had become frighteningly cold, compared to its usual coolness.

Anna inhaled slowly as he nuzzled into her again. It reminded her of Daisy, when her daughter was still a little girl. Whenever she'd been afraid or scared, she would jump into Anna's lap and bury her face in her shoulder. Anna would always promise her that everything would be okay.

She had no idea the thoughts and temptations that De'Tearion was fighting. All she knew was that she needed to convince him it would be okay, just like she'd done with Daisy.

But before she could speak, she felt him lean into her even more as his body began to wilt with exhaustion. And then he called her Agatha. His sister…

"I don't know," she whispered meekly. Suddenly he was on the ground, looking incredibly frail and weak. Anna panicked. She had no idea what to do. "De'Tearion?" she asked worriedly, cupping his cheek. The coolness of his skin under her fingers frightened her. "What's the matter? Are you alright? De'Tearion?"

(I may have done this whole incident too soon, but fuck it, lol)

---

De’Tearion flinched when she touched his cheek, but otherwise barely reacted. His eyes flickered, fighting to stay open despite the obvious exhaustion in them. He then chirped repeatedly, making strange sounds that slowly formed speech.

“C… Co… old… Cold. T… Too cold.”

He shivered, slowly curling up. His lower pair of arms wrapped around his abdomen, while his upper pair folded against his chest. Though, one of his human hands grabbed the amulet hanging around his neck, cradling the pendant close with a shaking hand.

A few moments later, his eyes finally fluttered closed. His body continued to shiver occasionally, his lower arms tightening around his scrawny belly as if trying to ease some sort of pain there, even though he was unconscious.

Not long after he passed out, the sound of hooves and squeaky wooden wheels, like from a carriage, approached. The sound was slowly passing by, but it wasn’t far from the pair. Jovial whistling could also be heard.

Anna retracted her hand as he flinched away from the touch. "De'Tearion?" she asked again, growing more and more worried by the second. She observed the amulet around his neck and reached her fingers hesitantly toward it, but she didn't touch it. She didn't dare.

When his eyes finally closed, Anna began to tremble. She was alone and utterly defenseless against anything that would come out of the woods. Her own fingers began to grow cold while her heart raced, and she clutched her head, trying to calm herself down.

Think rationally, she told herself. You need help. You need to find De'Tearion help. Do something!

Anna's head jerked up at the sound of some kind of carriage heading down the road right beside the woods. While she wasn't guaranteed the person would be kind, she figured it was better than scraping through the woods with useless hope.

"Hey!" she called out, rising to her feet and hurrying in the direction of the sounds. "Wait!" Her bare feet carried her faster than she thought possible, and she scrambled to a halt at the edge of the road, looking wildly around for any sign of another person.

De’Tearion noticed her hand just before his eyes closed and his fingers tightened around the pendant of his amulet. If she wanted his prized necklace, she’d have to cut his hand off, if not kill him. Or, she could just wait… Mercy, the cruel bitch, would take him sometime…

---

The driver of the currently empty carriage, a portly man with dark brown hair, blue eyes, and fine clothes, stopped whistling when he heard a voice calling him. He pulled on the reins, the two horses pulling the carriage coming to a stop.

“Who’s a calling?”he shouted, looking around cautiously.

A few moments later, the sight of a barefoot woman dressed in strange clothes appeared from the woods. She seemed frenzied. Was something chasing her?

“My good lady, if you’re being hunted, then hop in. My horses will carry us far before those damned forest demons can catch us!”he said to her, quickly motioning to carriage door closest to her.

Anna took in the man in front of her. He seemed to be kind. And he was offering to help her. Perhaps, she should take him up on the offer. She could easily get in his carriage, leave De"Tearion behind, and head to a human city. Maybe someone there could be someone there who could help her get back to Earth, and back to Daisy.

But she immediately shook her head at the thoughts. No. Her moral compass wouldn't allow her to leave a weak, frail creature alone to die in the woods. Not if there was the possibility that she could somehow help him live. And De'Tearion had saved her life, twice over. It was time she returned the favor as best she could.

"No, I'm not being hunted," she replied, still trying to catch her breath from running so fast. "Well, I was, but now I'm not. My friend. He needs help – warm clothes. Any you can spare. His life is in danger. Please, sir, I'm desperate."

(I may or may not have done research on carriages until now. So, I honestly have no clue what sort of carriage it is, because I have confused, at least, two, if not three or four different types of carriages/coaches. So… yeah. Full improv at the moment, because I don’t know what to do, lmao!)

---

The man shook his head in bewilderment until Anna clarified her situation. His eyes then widened in shock.

“Oh goodness, was he attacked? I’ve got a stash of clothes and blankets I keep for emergencies. Take what you need. Do you need a healer? I’m on my way to Hafgen, and I could take you there,”the man gasped.

He reached back behind him, where a small trunk was tied down. He opened it and started pulling out blankets and a few different outfits. He then hopped down to the ground and handed some of the stuff to Anna, so it would be easier for him to walk.

“So, where is he? Still in the woods?”he asked cautiously.

(That's fair lol)

Anna hesitated. "Uh, no… he wasn't attacked…" she murmured, suddenly having doubts. De'Tearion had said of the wars between humans and forest folk like him. What would this man do if he saw De'Tearion in the woods, weak, tired, and defenseless? Sure, he was kind to her, but she was human. And Anna was more than familiar with people seeming kind while having darkness hidden in them.

"Thank you," she said, taking the blankets and clothes that he handed her. "Yes, he's still in the woods. I can take them to him. Don't worry, you stay here."

The man blinked at her, confused by her reluctant answer.

“Is he ill? Oh dear, how long have you been in the forest? Can he walk? If not, I can help carry him!”he burst.

He paused again at her words. Concern grew on his face. Then, after a quick scan of the woods, he looked back at Anna.

“Are you sure? How close is he? The forests are so dangerous. There’s no telling what could be lurking in any of these trees. I’m worried that if you go back alone, something might happen to the both of you. I don’t wish that kind of fate on anyone,”he said.

"Not very long, I assure you," Anna replied quickly. The more concern that showed on his face, the more guilty Anna felt for lying to him. As far as she'd been taught, omission of the truth was as good as a lie. "You're very kind, sir, but I promise I'll be fine. I'm sure nothing will happen."

Before he could say any more to keep her from attending to De'Tearion or trying to come with her, Anna hurried off into the woods again. In no time, she found De'Tearion's unconscious form right where she'd left him to be. Quickly, she began to cover him with layers of clothing and blankets, anything to raise his body temperature again.

"Please work," she hissed, draping the last blanket in her arms over him so he was covered as much as possible. "Please."

(Incoming event that could potentially be either hilarious or interesting, or both, lol)

---

“Not long? How is that possible? You look like you’ve been in there for days, even a week!”the man burst.

He sputtered at her words, then watched her go, absolutely flustered by her actions. He had no idea what to do, and he still had blankets in his arms.

“Oh, by Hal’mayil’s warm grace, let them come out in one piece,”the man mumbled to himself.

~~

De’Tearion flinched slightly when Anna started covering him with blankets, but he otherwise didn’t stir.

It took a while before anything seemed to happen, but he eventually stopped shivering. He then started to occasionally chirp or click, like he was talking in his sleep.

After a few more minutes, black tears started to ooze from De’Tearion’s eyes. His clicks and chirps grew louder. Then, he jolted and finally stirred. His eyes slowly opened, their glow a little more back to normal.

He noticed the blankets first, caressing them with a nostalgic look in his dazed eyes. His eyes then drifted over to Anna, staring for a moment.

After another couple minutes, De’Tearion groggily sat up, his weakening arms shaking. He reached forward, tenderly cupping her cheek, then kissed her. It was warm and kind, but there seemed to be a deep sadness in it.

When he moved back after a long moment, De’Tearion gazed at her with pleading eyes.

“Forgive me, Mileena. For everything…”he breathed.

His hand finally slid off of her cheek, though he didn’t even seem to realize it. Nor did he realize who he was actually talking to.

~~

The man had put up his armful of blankets and clothes, then waited in the spot where he’d talked to the strange woman. After some time, he started to pace, growing worried.

Then, when he finally couldn’t take it anymore, he moved back to his carriage, retrieved a sword that was stashed in the bottom of the trunk of blankets, and headed into the forest.

He snuck through the trees with the ease of a trained soldier. A bit later, he found the strange woman and her ‘friend’, just as he kissed her. His pale skin, somewhat glowing eyes, and chirping accent was a big clue that this ‘man’ was no human. His eyes widened in shock.

Anna nearly doubled over as De’Tearion reacted to the blankets. “Please,” she whispered sitting beside him and resting her hand on his shoulder. “Please wake up, De’Tearion…”

As he stopped shivering and began to “talk,” Anna’s inner hope swelled up. She told it not to, but it did anyway. And when his eyes opened, despite his tears, she laughed quietly with pure relief.

She stayed with him as he slowly began to wake and gently smiled at him as he gazed at her. He wasn’t dead. But her eyes widened slightly as he cupped her cheek and drew her in for a soft kiss. She gasped into his mouth, but after a moment, she leaned into him and kissed him back in equal measure.

Her lips were parted and beginning to turn pink as he drew back, and her eyes reopened. Anna wasn’t sure when exactly they closed, but it felt right. And the way he looked at her. Pleading. Desperate.

She waited for whatever he was going to say, but she instantly regretted it when he did speak. There is was again, that other name. The other woman. Mileena.

A wave of sadness crashed over Anna so suddenly that she rose to her feet and took a step back. Tears began to well up in her eyes. She was completely humiliated. Of course De’Tearion didn’t think he was kissing her. She was just a stand-in for whoever this ‘Mileena’ was.

“I’m Anna,” she finally said, trying not to look and sound as hurt as she felt. However, her voice shook despite her best efforts. A clear tear trickled down her cheek, and she quickly wiped it away.

De’Tearion flinched again when she touched his shoulder, this time a bit more harshly.

He didn’t register her laugh, nor her smile. But, when she gasped and kissed him back, a relieved chirp echoed in his throat. He even seemed to relax a bit, a seed of hope building in the haze of his barely conscious mind.

However, it was ripped away from him when she abruptly stood and moved away, tears in her eyes. She then spoke, but he didn’t get what she meant. Anna? Why was she calling herself Anna? And, the way she sounded…

“Mileena? A… Anna? Why… What more have I done? I beg… I… I cannot do this again!”De’Tearion whimpered.

He flopped on his side, hiding his face as he started to cry.

---

The man watched, confused by the Forestfolk’s actions. He then listened to him beg for ‘Mileena’s’ forgiveness. Queen Mileena? Of Hēmalhim? Was this Forestfolk… No… Impossible…

The man slipped away, hurrying back to his carriage. He dug through the trunk, finding a small box in the bottom, next to where his sword had been stashed. He opened the box, searching through a stack of papers until he found what he was looking for. He gasped as his suspicions were confirmed.

The paper was a Wanted poster from the Kingdom of Hēmalhim, describing a reward for a Forestfolk, specifically a Goliathan, named Ákle-Ikli De’Tearion. Ten thousand gold for him alive, three thousand dead. The portrait was undeniably similar to the Forestfolk the strange woman had been kissing. He was a little haggard, a little more sickly, but he was certain that it was De’Tearion.

“Your Good Majesty Mileena, why do you want him alive after everything he did to you? And, why is he so desperate for your forgiveness? No forest demon knows mercy,”the man mumbled.

He then folded the paper, putting it back, then putting the box back where it went. Afterward, he debated whether to simply wait, or to go back into the forest to watch some more. After all, this strange woman was either protecting De’Tearion or was oblivious to his prominence in Hēmalhim. It wasn’t clear which one.

Anna willed herself not to cry as De'Tearion was. Maybe it was heartless. Maybe she was being cruel. But he'd been cruel to her too. Just now, he'd tricked her into thinking that he actually might… No. That was foolish. They'd only just met, and Anna knew nothing about him. How could they have fallen in love so quickly? Why would he love her? There was no other reason than perhaps, somehow, she reminded him of this 'Mileena,' whoever she was. It had been her imagination. Obviously. She had been nothing more to him than 'a potential meal.'

She took another step back and lifted her chin in the air. Maybe she was being cruel, but too many other people had been cruel to her. She deserved a chance to fight for herself.

"You've done nothing more than lead me on," she replied shortly. "Maybe it was my fault, being in the most horribly wrong place at the wrong time, but it's not fair. I'm not who you think I am, but I know I don't deserve to be treated like this. Letting you kiss me and speak to me as if I'm someone else. I can't replace what you've lost. I can only be myself. I'm sorry to disappoint you."

A carriage ride to the nearest city with the kind man wasn't sounding so bad after all.

De’Tearion listened, stricken by her words. He visibly trembled, shaking his head. He had known she would be angered, but he hadn’t realized how badly, or how harsh she would be to him.

“All I ask be forgiveness. I… I never intended to hurt you,”he breathed.

He then coiled, hiding his face in his arms. After a few minutes, his body slowly relaxed until he was clearly asleep again. One of his arms slipped down, smearing the black tears still marking his face.

---

The man watched the trees for a bit, deciding to just wait. Goliathans had keen senses, even the sickly ones, and he didn’t want to risk getting caught.

Though, after some time, he became restless. So, he decided to check the horses, then the carriage. He also did some more mundane tasks to keep himself busy while he waited.

Anna watched him tremble and shake his head. She listened to his words and closed her eyes to keep from seeing the damage that her words had caused.

This was so unlike her. Anna was naturally a woman of compassion and kindness and understanding. It was something that far too many people had taken advantage of in her, and now, she was used to it. Her innocence and naïve ways of thinking as she tried to 'see the best in people' had been the reason for the most traumatic experience of her life. It caused her guard to be up all the time, especially with matters concerning her daughter. Daisy had almost died, and Anna had been forced to watch it happen. If it hadn't been for Harry…

But it was Harry who had been the one to put Anna in the situation that she and Daisy had been in in the first place. It was essentially his fault, but Anna didn't want to be thinking about that right now. It was something she never wanted to think about again if she could get that lucky. Unfortunately, luck was not something Anna Clayton believed in. Not now, not ever.

Her eyes opened, taking in the sight of De'Tearion's weak body once more, and before she could stop herself, the question blurted from her lips. "Are you talking to me or Mileena?"

De’Tearion jolted awake at her question, lifting up to his elbows in an instant. His eyes darted around, assessing the area, then narrowed in confusion.

He grabbed the top blanket covering him, recognizing the material as a high quality cloth, one that only Rehnethrigard was known for. Then, he noticed the drying tears on his face and he wiped his cheeks, staring at the flakes in bewilderment. He then saw Anna, standing a bit away from him, quite upset.

“Mercy have me,”De’Tearion gasped quietly.

What had happened? He remembered nothing, except for a horrid dream about Mileena refusing to forgive him, but he had clearly just been ‘awake’. Also, where had the blankets come from? Only a Matataran human would have them. Was there someone waiting for them on the road? Were they aware of him? Of who he was? And, why was Anna so upset? What had he done, or said?

“I apologize, yet I missed your question. Also, might I ask what recently happened? Whatever it was, I was awake not. I… I sometimes act awake, yet I am truly still asleep. I believe this was one of those times,”he said warily.

“And, who gave you these blankets?”he added.