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True Calling (Atroxa x Effigy)

Lilura was optimistic that her finding Durihan in the forest was a fortuitous turn of events, having to evade her guard had been a growing inconvenience. The forest was not only the best place for her to get the materials she needed, it was also the safest place for her to practice, but getting there in secret as often as she would have liked had been nearly impossible. Now though with Durihan as her guard, she could go whenever she pleased, and now she had some one to help her. He was surprisingly compliant with her requests and demands, usually they weren't too bad though, when at the castle she mostly wished to be left alone anyway. It was only when they went into the forest that she had any real need of him.

Even then though, the first few times he had been more of an annoyance than anything else, getting in her way, stepping on plants, pissing off the wolves and other creatures. He was learning though, and now he could make it up to her by bringing her a corpse for her to practice one. Tonight Lilura went into the forest on her own while she waited for him, she had some meat wrapped up in her pack, and she took it out and laid it on the ground before retreating a ways. It didn't take long for a wolf to appear, they were always watching her, and strangely enough had started to learn to trust her. So this wolf gobbled up the meat without so much as a thought. Within minutes, it passed out, and Lilura grabbed it by one of it's hind legs, dragging it back the way she had come.

“Ah, good,” she said as she approached, wearing her black cloak and her long hair pulled back in a braid to keep it out of her face. She dropped the wolf near by and peered into the back of the wagon, frowning slightly, “It's so badly decomposed...” she muttered, then sighed, “But it will have to do.” She practiced mostly on animal corpses and before she'd resurrected those raiders she'd found the corpse of homeless man who had died of what had looked like starvation. She needed to keep progressing, working on humans. Of course, the fresher the better, but how fresh could she expect any corpse from the cemetery to be?

She walked away a bit and then motioned for Durihan, going to the unconscious wolf and tying some rope to one of it's legs then tying it to a nearby tree, “Bring it over here.”
 
Durihan was going to say something once Lilura had appeared from the darkness. But found himself silent when he saw what she was dragging behind her. It was a wolf, one that was breathing but most definitely not awake. The man had assumed she was just going to try and make another zombie... So what was the wolf for? He was both curious and a little disgusted but of course that wasn't going to stop him now. Lilura commented on the corpse he dug up and Durihan couldn't help but glare at her.

“Well excuse me, corpses are usually buried a good six feet into the ground. Next time i'll just ask someone who was buried last.” Durihan stated, rolling his eyes as Lilura obviously showed how little she cared for what Durihan was saying. She was focused on her task at hand and for that Durihan would have to compliment her for. The girl saw whatever she did through, no matter how jarring it might be. Well not so jarring to her obviously.

She asked for him to bring the corpse over so Durihan did, having wrapped it in a cloth so he didn't have to touch it's decaying flesh directly. He would uncover the corpse for Lilura, placing it where she asked before stepping back. As “evil” and “wrong” as this was, Durihan couldn't forget what he had seen when she raised those sixteen men. That ery yet strangely inviting glow. As if this death magic was inviting it's viewers to join the damned. But just because he was willing to watch didn't mean he would be a part of it, hand on the end of his sword he would stand back by the wagon. Then again he was a part of this already since he provided the corpse.
 
Lilura didn't put too much stock into the concept of 'good' and 'evil', sin and virtue, it all seemed like a bunch of sentimental rubbish to her. People spoke of heaven and hell, reward for being good and punishment for being bad, and they said that defiling the dead was among the worst things that anyone could do. She thought they were all just a bunch of judgmental hypocrites. They could sentence people to death, torture them, imprison them, sit in their castles and eat fine meals while others starved, but people like her were evil. In her opinion, it was only fear and jealousy that marked necromancy as 'evil'.

All people craved power, she had yet to meet anyone who didn't seek to advance themselves over others. And there was nothing more infuriating and terrifying than others having control over you. The thought of some one having power over your corpse was the most terrifying at all. And of course, not everyone could do it, so it was the mentality of if they couldn't do it, then nobody should. If everyone was able to perform necromancy then it would be more common, less taboo. So was it really evil? She didn't think so. So while most would consider Lilura's soul to be damned for sure, she would have to disagree.

She had more important things to worry about right now though. Once Durihan set the corpse down, she set to work in a similar fashion to what she'd done the other night, the same sinister yet inviting glow, though this time it was the wolf's blood she used to finish the spell. “Any blood will do as long as it's from a living creature,” she explained to her new guard as she stood, “But the blood of humans is more potent. I would have to spill all of this wolf's blood to resurrect as many as I did the other night.” Lilura stepped back as the zombie struggled to rise, it's decomposed muscles and tissues straining to work. The wolf began to come around as well, shaking it's head.

“Really though, it's good that this corpse is in such bad shape, it'll let me see the real difference this makes,” she turned her attention to the wolf, who had regained itself enough to notice them and immediately tried to run. Lilura muttered a spell and the creature slowed to the point that it looked like it was struggling under water, still able to move, but sluggishly so. The zombie immediately moved to attack but the girl restrained it, making it stay still. She lifted her hands, drawing in a deep breath, holding one hand out towards the zombie, palm down, the other towards the wolf, palm up. Her hands began to glow with that sickly green light and her eyes turned milky again, glowing white. Slowing she rotated her hands, and as she did so, both creatures began to glow.

The wolf glowed far more brightly, the zombie only the dimmest light emitted from it, but as she rotated her hands, the glow from the wolf began to dim, leaking away until there was a visible line going from it to the zombie. It's life force was drained away, transferred to the zombie, who began to glow brighter. Lilura's hands ended up flipped, with her hand towards the wolf pointing down, and the one towards the zombie facing up. The wolf lay on the ground, alive, but only just, and the zombie glowed brightly. She smirked and released it, the zombie rushing forward with power it hadn't possessed before, falling on the wolf and ripping it apart viciously. The sight and sound would have turned most anyone's stomach but Lilura just watched, pleased with her handy work.

“That spell can make any undead creature more powerful, but once I'm experienced enough with it, I can transfer life force between two living creatures as well,” She glanced over her shoulder at Durihan, “I could bring some one from the brink of death to full health with the sacrifice of another. Imagine what people would do to save their own pathetic lives.” She looked back to the zombie, which was finishing it's 'meal' it was so decomposed that all the flesh it had been eating just fell back out onto the earth in a big mess. “Cut it's head off and we can leave.”
 
Lilura took it upon herself to explain some aspect of what she was doing. It was nice to hear some sort of explanation but at the same time it wasn't like he was going to be casting spells anytime soon. It was rare for humans to actually be able to tap into such magics, even rarer to be able to do dark magic. Durihan was one of the many humans who were shut off to the world of magic. Not by choice mind you, who wouldn't want to summon an elemental, cast fire balls, and do all sorts of things with just the flick of the wrist? Sure that was an understatement on the complexities of actual spell casting, but that was besides the point now.

“Noted...” Durihan stated as Lilura shared what was going on. At least she was sharing, this obviously was a passion to Lilura and to share such a thing. It made Durihan smirk a little, did this make the two friends? Lilura didn't exactly strike Durihan as the friendship kind of girl. But to actually label Lilura as something would be a challenge within itself. Before long that sinister glow would show itself and Durihan was left fascinated once more.

In some strange way Lilura was giving life. Sure this was all death. Death of the wolf, the undead walking. But she took the abundance that was the wolf and simply placed it elsewhere. She did grab his attention though when she said it could be used to save someone from the brink of death. Well she had done that without magic for Durihan a week ago, but the magic was in how quickly this spell would do it. And all it required was a sacrifice. What a price.

Durihan got the ok to kill the zombie so he would quickly walk over to where it was feasting, drawing his sword before raising it over his head. One quick and percise slash and the zombie's head would fall next to the horrid display of carnage it had just created. Durihan swinging his sword once or twice to get the blood off of it before sheathing.

With Lilura's experiment taken care of the two would be off once more to Castle Balfour. Since the little lady hadn't drained herself for this spell she was more then capable of getting into the wagon herself. Even if Durihan had offered to help she would of course refuse him. So Durihan had simply gotten back on the wagon as well before the two were on their way. “You know, I remember sharing a few nights like this with your mother.” Durihan said, looking up at the trees that blocked their view of the night sky, how they slowly started to thin till he could see stars and the moon.

“Now we weren't sneaking off to cast spells. But often times at royal balls your father would be too busy socializing and your mother had found herself outside, gazing at the capital beneath the royal castle. I'll admit there were few women that could compare to your mother's beauty. Dressed in only the finest silk or most elaborate colors...” Durihan smiled, remembering such things. “I never would of guessed she was a witch. Well I guess a necromancer? Regardless just how much did she teach you Lilura?”
 
No, she knew this information was relatively useless to Durihan, but then again it could come in handy one day if he had to help her with something. It would make it much easier to assist her if he already had a basic concept of necromancy, she wouldn't have to take the time to explain everything to him first. Besides, this was the first time she'd been able to be open about her abilities with anyone, a small part of her was glad to be able to do so for once. Lilura didn't consider him a friend though, more of an ally she supposed, though not quite. He was some one of use to her.

She didn't really have friends, they had moved out here when she was still young, and the only people around here age out here were commoners. Her father hadn't wanted her to be friends with them, and they hadn't wanted to be friends with her thanks to her mother being burned for being a dark witch. So Lilura's social skills were a little stunted, which was obvious to anyone who talked to her for more than a few moments.

Once the zombie was disposed of she climbed up into the wagon with Durihan, sitting beside him quietly as they made their way back to the castle. She wasn't as exhausted as last time, but she was a bit tired. Magic took it out of you, it was possible to kill yourself if you tried something too advanced for your skills. Magic used your own energy, no matter what kind it was, it was perfectly possible to use more than you actually possessed and get yourself killed. Necromancy was even more dangerous in that regard.

The silence was broken though when he spoke up, Lilura looking at him with narrowed eyes as he mentioned her mother. She looked away though as he looked at the trees in a pause. “My mother wasn't as interested in socializing as my father, but then again you wouldn't be either if you had to sit and listen to a bunch of idiotic women talking about fashion and gossip,” she told him. Durihan's comment about her mother's beauty drew a bit of a glare from the girl though, her full lips pursed. She was often told how beautiful her mother was, and that people had found it hard to believe that she practiced dark magic.

“Performing necromancy doesn't make warts appear on your skin or make your nose grow longer,” She told him snidely, obviously disliking this subject. Really it had nothing to do with the subject and everything to do with the fact that Lilura didn't know how to really talk to people in a friendly manner, conversations had never had much of a place in her life. And no one ever spoke of her mother except to insult her in some way or form, so she was immediately defensive. She sighed though as she began to realize that that was not what he was doing, “My mother only dabbled, and she did it because it is a form of magic that needs to be kept alive. So many wish to eradicate necromancy, but knowledge should never be lost simply because people fear it.”

Lilura's tone grew less combative, though you couldn't exactly all it friendly either, but about as close as she came with anyone, “She taught me only the basics, concepts more than anything else. I was too young to really perform serious magic, so instead she would do so and have me watch.”
 
Durihan would look to Lilura once she spat at him about how necromancy didn't cause it's user to grow ugly. It was funny in a way at how defensive she had gotten, but then again it started to show some humanity inside of the girl. Durihan could only imagine how difficult it was for Lilura to deal with her mother's execution. Put aside the witch title, disregard the act of burning... Just imagine a child losing their mother. That would shatter anyone. Just how shattered was Lilura now?

“That must have been special to you then.” Durihan added, where she was defensive Durihan kept refined and rather compassionate in this moment. Not going for the quick social jabs or insults that the two had grown accustom to using on one another in conversation. “If anything I remember how passionate and proud your mother was of her children. Where your father spoke of his legacy your mother often spoke of her daughter's smile and laughter. I envy you, my parents were killed before I could even remember their faces.” Durihan stated, looking back to the road then.

“Did you know that there is no record of the House Aldwin prior to me? The title of nobility and knighthood was given to me by my deeds. When I came of age I searched for what killed my parents. I didn't know if it was by sickness or by someone's blade but I know that desire for revenge. It can drive one's actions, make them do things they didn't know possible. Like kill a giant.” Durihan smirked when he spoke of this giant. He wasn't quite sure if Lilura knew of his exploits before his dishonor, but people had once spoke of the Knight Durihan having slain the Giant of the Mountains. “Do you seek revenge for your mother's execution Lilura?” The man asked, not sugar coating the word execution in anyway.
 
Lilura would never openly admit that her mother's death had traumatized her, even though it was an understandable thing, she had only been a child after all. Emotions were weak points in her mind, which was why she had cut hers off. So to admit that she had been effected by her mother's execution, to say that she was sad that she hadn't grown up with a mother, that she missed her, would be the same as admitting that she was weak. Which was preposterous of course, but Lilura was still young, something else she didn't like to acknowledge, she wasn't as wise as she liked to think she was. If Durihan were to imply that she were still broken or shattered over her mother's death though, he wouldn't be walking on thin ice, he'd be putting his foot right through it.

He was walking on thin ice just talking about her mother at all, the girl sitting beside him with frown on her face, her expression a mixture of suspicion and apprehension. She felt a small twinge in her chest when he told her how her mother had spoken of her children, of her. “My brother barely remembers our mother,” she told him when he mentioned his own parents, not knowing them, “And he seems better for it.” Lilura sometimes envied her brother for not being effected by the loss of their mother, his innocent obliviousness seemed much more peaceful than her own painful awareness.

She listened to Durihan though as he spoke of his parents, his search for information about what had happened to them, and his revenge for their deaths. The girl's frown grew slowly deeper as he did, starting to suspect where this was going, and sure enough he finished by asked her if she was going to seek revenge for her mother's execution as well. Lilura glared at him, her eyes narrowed to slits, “That's none of your concern. Stay out of my business unless you want to end up like Galathe too,” she snapped at him, all but confirming his suspicions, just as he had done with her before when she'd asked about his fall from grace. But also just like him, she refused to give any details. The conversation ended there and she looked away to glare away from him, not speaking to him even when they got back to the castle and she left to go to her room.

A few more days passed, and Lilura continued practicing new spells in the forest at night, made easier with Durihan's help. She of course would never tell him anything along those lines, he had a big enough ego as it was, no need for her to go making it worse. Either way though, she pushed herself a little further each night, grew stronger, more skilled. Even if she had completely denied that she was seeking revenge for her mother, anyone could see that the girl was working towards a goal.

Tonight though she wouldn't be needing a corpse, so she went to find Durihan to let him know not to bother with a trip to the cemetery. She figured that would make him happy. To avoid raising too much suspicion he had been having to go to different cemeteries to dig up a body, tonight he wouldn't have to. Since his room was just next to hers she went there first, knocking on the door and waiting for him to tell her it was alright to come in.
 
When he heard Lilura spit back at him that this was none of his concern, Durihan would look down to the girl a little confused. If anything this conversation was quite civil, he didn't mean to throw insult yet here Lilura was on the defensive once more. Was revenge really that touchy of a topic for the girl? The girl that summoned zombies, killed off guards that dabbled in her personal affairs? It made Durihan smile though, she didn't have to say what was on her mind with that sort of reaction. The man knew it all too well that she had thought greatly on the matter. And just like a child she pretty much shut off any more questions into the matter. So Durihan would leave it at that, snapping at the reigns so their horse would go a little faster now that silence seemed to fall between the two.

After a few days Durihan was finally paid for his services. Sure it wasn't exactly much but seeing how his needs were provided on a daily basis this allowance would still be considered fair. All of which the man pretty much blew on ale. The inn had been rebuilt and a grand opening was going on, which meant cheap ale! So with a purse filled with gold coin Durihan had purchased himself a couple barrels of ale and had them brought back to his room. Lennox most certainly must have had wine somewhere in his damn castle but still Lilura seemed to see it fit not to accompany Durihan's meals with any sort of drink other then water. The man had needs after all!

The first cup was refreshing, the second soothing, the third quite enjoyable, the fourth amazing! The fifth, sixth, seventh, oh how Durihan had missed his ale! And now he had his own supply within arms reach, no more shitty meals downed with water. Just delicious ale. By the time Lilura had come knocking, Durihan was well past his limit. His face a solid bright red, his eyes half open with a ridiculous smirk on his face.

“Come in come in! Join me!!” Durihan shouted, which was completely unnecessary but who cared? He certainly didn't. “Why I wasn't expecting you till... Till... huh..” Durihan tried to remember what or when he was suppose to meet with Lilura, he knew he was suppose to do something with her but the actual plan seemed to elude him right now. His eyes looking from the girl to his cup before he lost interest in the present and sought to finish another delicious cup of ale. “Did you come to drink with me?” Durihan asked, still smirking as he sat there next to his barrels... On the floor no less.
 
Lilura gave the door in front of her a quizzical look when Durihan answered her, shouting in a rather uncharacteristic manner. She opened it anyway though and went inside, a confused and apprehensive look on her face as she looked for her guard. She spotted him sitting on the floor, and it didn't take a genius to figure out that he was absolutely plastered. Her gray eyes narrowed at him as he drained yet another cup of ale and then asked her if she had come to drink with him. “No I did not come to drink with you,” She snapped at him angrily, marching over to him and snatching the cup out of his hand.

“You damn fool! What do you think you're doing?” the girl snarled at him, “Your work for me is far too precious for you to be getting drunk like this!” She set the cup well out of Durihan's reach and turned to glare at him again. “You do realize that the reason my mother was caught was because one of her maids got drunk and blabbed about everything don't you?” Lilura hissed, “I won't have the same mistake repeated! I'll cut out your stupid fat tongue before I let that happen!” The girl snorted at him, clearly disgusted. “I never want to see you drunk again do you understand me?”

Lilura turned to leave then stopped, looking back to him, “Get that ale out of my castle or I'll have it burned, and you had better not show up in the forest drunk tonight if you want to live to see tomorrow. Thankfully for you, I don't need a body or I just might be tempted to use yours instead!” With that she turned and marched out of his room, slamming the heavy oak door behind her as she left.
 
“Then what in hell are you here for girl?” Durihan asked her, suddenly pissed off that she would come into his room with all her bad vibes and anger just to bring down his little parade. She could keep her damn self in any other room in this castle, why she have to come sour up Durihan's time? “H-HEY!” Durihan shouted again once Lilura snatched the cup of ale from him, reaching out for it but Lilura showed absolutely no remorse in her action.

“I think I was drinking my ale damn it!” The man shouted to Lilura, even if she was in front of him how dare she take what was his. Set aside from the roof over his head and what not that was his, he paid for it himself and he didn't know why she had such a problem with it. “HA! Digging up corpses is so important for you?” The man asked, however she continued on her rant as if his words meant nothing.. Or like she was trying to speak over them as he sat there.

Well the man didn't have to wait long before the real reason came out of Lilura's lips. So a maid got drunk and spoke of her mother's dealings. Well that sucked, he probably would forget it in a good three minutes as well. Some people couldn't hold their damn ale it seemed. Durihan was a veteran though, this wasn't his first trip down drunken lane after all! But that didn't seem to matter to Lilura. The girl soon marching off after she spoke her peace, after she demanded him to discard his ale.

“...Bitch.” Durihan muttered to himself, slowly getting up so he could retrieve his cup and get another round of ale. Of course he waited till Lilura slammed his door shut of course. He would down another cup and for some reason it just didn't taste as good... He would try again and the thrill of his ale seemed to elude him... Half way through another he threw the cup into the wall, as if Lilura's opinion mattered in all of this! What did she know, how dare she stop him.

The man didn't immediately dispose of the barrels, hell figuring out hot to get his boots on properly was eluding him. So the first order of business was passing out, right onto his bed. Childish really, not getting his way so he covered his face and hid from everything. When he awoke however now manner of hiding could save Durihan from what came after a binge of drinking. The hang over. His head was throbbing, his mouth dry, the man's eyes felt so irritated. His face was pressed up against something cold and hard, the man having fallen out of bed during his slumber. Slowly he would arise, making his way to the window of his room to find the night sky up above. It took him a few moments before he cursed, quick to stumble around his room for boots and a cloak. His sword was by the door so he grabbed that as well, running out of his room. He would late! He ran by two servants and shouted to them to remove the barrels of ale from his room. Not instructing them to do anything else.

Each step sent a ringing throb through out his body, all centering around his head. Trying to secure his sword to his side Durihan ran into a few servants. Apologizing he continued on his way, going to the stables to find a horse to ride to the forest. Quickly he rode the animal, right out of the castle and to the usual meeting place. Still his head was throbbing, he was so not in the mood to hear any of Lilura's crap tonight.
 
Lilura was in a bad mood for the rest of the day, so the servants happily left her alone holed up in her room for the rest of the night. She even took her dinner there, rather than joining her father and brother. Her father didn't come question her about it, since it wasn't uncommon for Lilura to eat in her room when she was busy with something. He only complained when she did it too often or if they had guests, which was pretty rare. She tried to study, preparing for that night, but it was hard to do so. She ended up going out and tacking up Bayard, going for a ride instead. She knew she was technically supposed to have a guard when she did this but her guard was busy being a drunkard. So if something happened to her then he could just deal with the consequences of not doing his damn job.

She rode until it was time for them to meet in the forest, riding Bayard there and hobbling him so he could graze while they waited, the girl taking a seat on a fallen tree on the edge of the clearing where they usually met. Lilura pulled out her book and read, studying some more as she waited. And waited. And waited. She finally closed her book sharply and glanced up at the sky with a frown, glaring at the stars. He was late. That useless, drunk, cowardly fool was late!

When Durihan did finally show up, she was livid, glaring at him angrily as he dismounted sloppily. He didn't look drunk, but he was definitely hung over. “Finally decided to show up I see,” she growled at him, standing up and giving him a disgusted look. “You're in no condition to help me, go back to the castle and sleep off your hang over,” Lilura snapped, “And I'll be taking tonight's pay out of your wages since you seem to have about as much self control with your ale as you do your cock. No wonder you're such a failure.”
 
Durihan let out a loud and audible groan when Lilura started up again. That's what he needed, to hear some child mouth off to him again. He had half a mind to tell her off, or hell back hand her. But this was the same little girl that summoned zombies and could manipulate life energy or whatever the hell that thing she did with the wolf and the zombie. Gods Durihan didn't know, his head still throbbing as he stood up straight. His hands even going to his lower back to push, the sound of popping coming from his spine.

The man was about to tell her to pipe down, or to give it a fucking rest. She shouted at him when he was drunk, he did what she asked he wasn't drunk now. What was her issue? Fine, drunk servants was a touchy subject for her but he wasn't drunk now. Why did she have to be such a child about this, though the thought would of made Durihan laugh it wasn't for the fact that Lilura made a comment about his cock. Sure, no big deal is she made fun of his member... But no, she had to make fun of his lack of self control. Calling him a failure because he had slept with the Princess.

“I'm in better condition then any of your previous piss ant guards!” Durihan snapped back at her, making a b line straight for the girl who had gotten up from her log. “And I showed up didn't I? Not drunk either! Excuse me for listening to what you fucking asked me to do? Oh I am sorry, it isn't oh so perfect. Exactly how you want things to go, how you just have to control every fucking little situation! Well excuse me my lady.” Durihan stepped back, obvious mockery in his tone as he bowed to Lilura. The man standing back up as he spat on the ground.
 
Lilura glared at him as the larger man marched over to her, obviously angry. She was still human and her immediate reflex was to back away from him, he was a good deal bigger than her after all, and could really hurt her if he wanted to. The girl stood her ground though, knowing that Durihan knew what she could do to him if he dared to hit her. Her hands curled into fists instead, her jaw setting itself stubbornly as she glared up at him. “Not my fault your idea of professional behavior is sleeping with the boss's daughter and showing up hung over!”

She snorted at him and gave him a disgusted look, like he was covered in pond scum. “You're pathetic, you ruined your life for what? A nice pair of tits? And you've been wallowing self pity over it for ten years!” Lilura shook her head and barked a short laugh at him, “You're just a bitter, lonely, pathetic old man who will probably die still wearing the same beaten up armor because he refuses to let go of the past. I bet you've sabotaged every opportunity you've had to get back up on your feet because you're too damn weak to make yourself get over what happened to you. So instead you just keep drinking and end up back on your ass in the mud where you belong!”

She had seen men like Durihan before, women too, plenty of people didn't have the strength to pull themselves out of the past and move on with their lives. The difference between them and him though was that Lilura didn't have to depend on them. She didn't like having to depend on anyone at all, but she had to, and she wasn't going to stand for him being such a weak link. He would break and drag her down with him and all her hard work would be for nothing. She'd either snap him out of it or kill him and find some one else, which of those that happened was entirely up to him though.
 
Durihan stood there and listened to Lilura spout off to him. The girl just as angry as he was from how she shouted, from how she glared at him. Every word she spoke was so true but who was she to speak them? What did she know of love? Or pain? What was Durihan doing thinking up all these questions or reasons. His eyes would glare at Lilura just as her's was glaring at him. Was never fun to beat a child but Durihan wasn't above that right now.

“I'm pathetic? Coming from the sad excuse of a noble? I live in the past? Well at least I live! What do you call all this!? The way you talk to people the way you react. Watching your mother burn must of tore you up inside. To the point where you refuse to feel anything anymore! Yes I fucked the Princess!” Durihan shouted that last bit a little louder then their conversation actually was, which was already shouting. It felt good to say it, but now wasn't exactly the time to revel in it.

“What do you know of that?! To love someone enough to serve them, to trust them with your body and be trusted with theirs!? You are too afraid to even share happiness! Everyone's just a pawn to you! You're pathetic! I might drink my pain away but I gladly would experience that pain then live in nothingness!” Durihan was livid. The usual answer to arguments was by the sword, a quick and easy way that Durihan had grown accustom to. Not this, not some avalanche of insults. Durihan didn't know where to start or where to end, he just let out what he had seen over the last two weeks. What erked him or saddened him about Lilura but he never spoke of.

“Take your damn cloak.” Durihan stated, unclasping his cloak and throwing it to the ground, turning from Lilura and practically storming off. Right past the horses, right through the bushes and around trees headed straight for town... For the inn. Lilura could hear him mumbling, cursing, pretty much leaving her in the woods. If the man had gotten any hotter then steam would have been coming out from his ears for sure.
 
It was Lilura's turn now to stand and take the verbal onslaught coming her way, the girl glaring up at her guard angrily, trying to look and feel like everything he said just rolled off her. It didn't though, he was right and she knew it, they were both right, and they were both pissed off about it. She knew that she had been damaged by her mother's execution, but she didn't know how to handle it, she couldn't do it on her own but she refused to let anyone close enough to help her. And that was just how things had to be in her opinion. It was better this way, it meant she wouldn't get hurt.

Durihan spoke of love and pain as if they were some badge of honor, but she would much rather avoid both of those things. What use was love to her? She didn't need love. On the off chance that anyone did want to marry her, it wouldn't be for love. And she certainly didn't any more pain. So Lilura kept everyone safely at arm's distance where they belonged. Trust no one, and no one would let you down, and it would be easier to do something about it when they turned on you. Because she believed that eventually, one of the two would happen, people would either let you down or turn on you. Why would she want to only increase the damage that could do by caring about them?

Lilura didn't know what to say to all of that though, nothing that would sound very dignified anyway, just a bunch of denials. So when he threw his cloak down she just scoffed at him, “Fine! Run off and go get drunk again instead of dealing with reality!” She shouted at his retreating back. She stayed there for a few moments after he left, arms crossed and glaring at where he'd disappeared. She told herself she was just too angry to ride Bayard right now, as she'd always been told not to ride angry with how horses often took your moon on themselves, and refused to think that maybe she was waiting for him to come back. Finally though she let out a growl and grabbed his cloak, stomping over to the horse he'd left and grabbing the reins before going to Bayard and swinging into the saddle.

All the way back to the castle she muttered and cursed, mostly about Durihan, trying to poke holes in all the things he'd said, but she knew that they were true. Question was, why did she care? So what if she was emotionally closed off? And so what if he called her out on it? It didn't matter, he didn't matter, he could drown himself in ale for all she cared. And yet the next day when he still hadn't returned to the castle, Lilura sent a servant to the inn to look for him. The woman returned, apprehensively telling her that the former night was thoroughly sloshed at the inn and refusing to come back. She was livid over that, and told herself that she was glad he wasn't coming back, but yet again for another three days she sent servants to check on him and try to get him to return.

He refused though, and eventually Lilura had enough. If he wasn't going to come back, then she had to take care of him. He was a loose end and he knew too much. That was the reason she had firmly planted in her head anyway as she rode to town, refusing to even consider she might have some other motive, like that she might actually like Durihan despite his bad habits and bad attitude.
 
Tree branches and any manner of small plant stood no chance against Durihan's march. The man was brooding, why now? Why did her words seem to cut so deep. She was nothing but a girl! What the hell did she do except save his life? Give him a job? Even kill for him? The more and more Durihan thought about it the more and more Durihan saw that Lilura was the closet thing to a friend that he had had in quite some time. Hell the man wasn't even sure if he had thanked her. Like she would accept such a thing as thanks. He spat on the ground again once he had made it to the town, screw her. She thought what she saw in the castle was drunk, oh how Durihan was going to show her how wrong she was.

Durihan went right through the front doors, a smile on his face obviously for show. It was strange how the promise of ale had somehow helped with his hang over, he wasn't so concentrated on the throbbing in his head then the booze that was to come. “Barkeep I need your largest mug of ale!” Durihan proclaimed, everyone in the inn hollering and smacking mugs together. This was where Durihan should of gone this whole time. No little brat to pester him...

Drinking, gambling, fighting. The next four days for Durihan was filled to the brim with this. He ran out of gold the first day, winning his way to more through gambling and fighting seemed to be the only option. There was no way he was going back to castle Balfour. Each day it seemed however that he was called for, servants sent by that little brat telling Durihan that she demanded he return to his duties. Each and everyone one of them got the same response. They could go fuck themselves before Durihan would go back to whatever he was doing. However all the fighting and gambling wasn't going to get Durihan far...

On the fifth day, amongst all the drinking and fun, the barkeep would come up to Durihan to collect on his standing tab. “You owe me Durihan.” The barkeep stated, two rather large men behind him as he waited. Durihan was already wasted, a smile on his face that was all a consistent color of bright red. “Do I now? Don't be like that now I will have your money soon. I just need it to come from... you know.. Out of town.” Durihan stated, laughing as he turned back to the table he was seated.

“Oh no Durihan, I need a down payment now.” The Barkeep added, one of his thugs grabbing Durihan by the shoulder to force him back around. This got Durihan's full attention, he looked from the thug to the barkeep before clearing his throat. “Well, I am sure you are quite aware of what a tab is my good sir.” Durihan said, laughing a little as he drank some more from his mug. “You see you take my word of purchase as credit, and then in the future I come back and pay that credit.” Durihan added, giving the barkeep a look like he was some sort of idiot. “You're credits no good anymore. I'll take that sword though as a down payment.” The barkeep said, Durihan instinctively bringing his hand down to his weapon. “Now that you have to fight me for.” The former knight smirked, the barkeep nodding his head before the two thugs went to work.

Durihan was a good fighter, don't get the man wrong that was his life. But drunk? Not many could deal with two larger men in such a state. So after a few minutes of fighting Durihan had been knocked to the ground, tossed around, punched so hard in the stomach that he threw up whatever he had consumed that day, and practically flung to the front door. His sword stripped and now rested on the bar counter as the two thugs followed Durihan's practically lifeless body. “That all you got?” Durihan asked, the man slowly getting up on his hands and knees. Blood was slipping out from between his lips, the bottom one busted. His right eye was swollen too. One of the thugs came down hard on Durihan's back with his foot, causing Durihan to let out a cry of pain that just turned into a laugh once the man was able to turn onto his back. One of the thugs grabbed Durihan, throwing him right through the front doors and onto the dirt street. The other thug went to the barkeep, exchanging a few words before agreeing on something. He joining his other before both would follow Durihan out.

“Boss doesn't want this guy coming around anymore. We're to take him to the forest and kill him.” One of the thugs said, dragging Durihan by the wrists. Durihan was now just mumbling, unable to really do anything in his current situation. He willed his legs to move but they just stayed lifeless, he tried to pull up with his arms but there was no energy to spare. The man had to focus on breathing, as if lifting his chest and lowering it was some great burden. Every so often spitting up blood along the way.
 
Lilura rode to town at a slow trot, she couldn't decide if she was in a hurry to get there or not, so this was a good enough medium. As she rode, she thought about all the things she was going to say to Durihan when she saw him, she wanted him to feel ashamed for his behavior, to beg for her forgiveness and the chance to return to her service. And she told herself that if he didn't, then she would have to kill him. She was surprised to find that she didn't want to kill him. Durihan was about as close a thing to a friend as she'd gotten in a very long time, since her mother had been killed she supposed. The fact that she didn't want to kill him was all the more of a reason to do so, it was dangerous to form that kind of attachment. He'd already proven himself untrustworthy, she would be better off killing him now.

Bayard heard something before she did, the horse turning his head and pricking his ears off towards their left, though he didn't pause in his trot until his rider reined him in. “What is it?” She murmured, peering off into the trees just before the sound of struggling reached her, muttered voices, grunts, and the commotion of something being dragged trough the underbrush. Lilura frown and turned Bayard into the trees, walking him closer to the source of the noises, wondering what people were doing out in the forest at this time of night. Usually they avoided it like the plague.

The girl slid out of her saddle to walk on foot, holding Bayard's reins as she picked her way through the trees carefully. Lilura looked around the curve of a tree's trunk curiously as they drew close, spotting two men dragging a third. In the dark, she didn't recognize any of them, but she could hear the two talking. “Why couldn't we wait till daylight to drag this drunkard out here and kill him? Not like he'd be sober then either,” one of them griped, “I hear that Balfour girl comes out here at night, doing gods know what with that witch's blood in her.”

“Because the boss said so that's why. Besides, we've got her guard, surely she's not stupid enough to come out here alone,” the other answered, “Even if she is a witch, the wolves will still eat her if they can.”

Lilura's eyes widened a little as she realized that the third man they were dragging was Durihan, then narrowed, gritting her teeth in anger as she realized that they had dragged him out here to kill him. The girl stepped out from behind the tree, “The wolves don't bother me, but I'm sure they'd be happy to feed on your corpses. Drop my guard and I'll let you leave unharmed.”

The two men jumped visibly when she stepped into view, immediately drawing their weapons and turning towards her. When they saw who it was, the one relaxed a bit and glared at her, the other though looked even more nervous. “Go home girl, you playing witch doesn't scare us, your man here has made himself a nuisance and we've got orders to take care of him.”

Lilura glared at him, taking a small step forward, “Last chance, leave now, or your bodies will feed the beasts.”

“You can tell this little bitch's mother died before she could teach her any manners,” The man chuckled, earning a hateful glare from Lilura as he stepped towards her as well, “I think we should rectify that, what do you say Barl? Bet she tastes sweet even with that witch's blood in her.” Bar didn't look nearly as confident, and hung back nervously as his companion took yet another step towards the girl, who stood her ground.

“I'm done giving you chances,” she snarled at him and suddenly flung her hand out, sending a spray of ice shards at his face. The man let out a pained scream and dropped his sword, falling back and clutching at his face as he stumbled over Durihan and fell to the forest floor, writhing in pain as the shards worked their way even deeper into his flesh. The other man stared in wide eyed shock before he dropped his sword and raised his hands before he turned to run. He let out a scream and fell though as a blade of ice sprouted through his neck, dropping him to the forest floor to bleed out quickly.

Most magic uses could wield two elements, a primary and a secondary, and no one could say they were surprised that one of the elements that Lilura could control was ice, given her personality. That darkness was her primary element was the rarity.

She walked over to Durihan, kneeling down beside him to check his pulse, relieved to find he was at least a live before she shook his shoulder. “Durihan, wake up,” She told him irritably, only sound irritated because she was worried and she didn't like it. He looked pretty beaten up, even worse than the last time, only this time it looked more like internal damage, which was difficult for the physical medicine of the nurses and physicians to heal. Lilura frowned, glancing at the still living thug as he managed to get onto his hands and knees, groaning and whimpering in pain. She knew what she should do, but she wasn't sure if she would be able to. She had to try though.

The girl stood and left Durihan's side to go after the thug as he tried to crawl away, kicking him in the side hard enough to make him fall back over. “How sweet does that taste hmm?” She asked him angrily before she reached into her pack and pulled out a vial with what looked like shimmering green sand in it. Speaking in that strange old language, she murmered the spell she needed and sprinkled the green sand on him and then went to Durihan, doing the same for him. This was between two living souls, working differently than when she'd done it with the wolf and the zombie, more preparation was needed, more concentration since she was working with pure life.

Lilura stepped back and took a deep breath, holding her hands up like before, the one towards Durihan palm down, the one towards the thug palm down. Muttering the spell, the sand began to glow bright green, and her eyes turned milky, glowing softly as both men began to glow themselves. Durihan's glow was fainter than she would like and her worry made her falter before she regained control and continued. Continuing to recite the spell, she rotated her hands, the glow form the thug dimming and the glow around Durihan brightening as she did so. The glow of energy became visible, a soft but steady green glowing stream between the two men, transferring the life of the thug to Durihan until the other man's light went out completely.

She let out a gasp as the thug died, dropping to her knees as exhaustion washed over to her, sitting there for a few long moments, panting softly. When she regained some of her strength she stood and walked back to Durihan, kneeling beside him and checking to see how he had healed. It seemed to have worked, he wasn't dead anyway, so she stood back up and went to get to Bayard. It took a lot of effort and cursing but she finally got the unconscious man onto her horse, and began leading him back to the castle, thinking about how this was strangely familiar.
 
The only response that Lilura got from Durihan was the sudden spitting of blood as he tried to cough or say something. What eye wasn't swollen was shut of it's own accord. Durihan would of liked to watch her work her magic again, to see that green light that sent chills down his spine yet seemed to warm him so. There was actually a similar sensation going on after a few moments, the man couldn't put it before he suddenly felt exceedingly warm. On that thread of consciousness he did his best to open his eyes but to no avail.. He was done fighting, the man passing out as Lilura started healing him.

What dreams followed were foreign to Durihan. A dark forest, filled with eyes of red and sharp white teeth. The man found himself bare foot, stepping on twig and fallen branches. But there was a voice, a soft and soothing voice amongst the trees. Deeper Durihan traveled, the trees growing thick. It was day yet the sun would slowly be blocked by the leaves up above. That voice growing stronger and stronger as the man pressed on until a clearing appeared before him. As if in contrast to the dark forest a meadow awaited, the sun shining down to a woman. Hair a vibrant blonde, curled to perfection. A long flowing pink dress adorned with all manner of golden tassels. Durihan would take another step towards the woman but would sudden fall, as if the ground was never there. Down and down into some sort of trap hole. The ground beneath coming at him faster and faster till, nothing.

Durihan's eyes opened wide as he sat up in the infirmary bed once more. Body covered in sweat, his breath heavy. His hands were gripping tightly at his sheets, and his teeth gritted against one another. Here he was again in the infirmary, a nurse off to the side looking both shocked and concerned with Durihan's sudden awakening. The man could see out of both eyes, so that was good. And even though his memory was very spotty about his little drinking week, he remembered more of the end. How two men from the inn handed his ass to him... How he was dragged somewhere... And then nothing, just some warm feeling coursing through his body. Well fun memories aside Durihan quickly leaned to the side, throwing up what was left in his stomach onto the floor.

The nurse would get him to lay back in bed, his vision quickly starting to blur and grow dark after his sudden rush of movement. Lilura had been given progress reports here and there about Durihan, and she was to be notified to moment he woke back up. However for the man to pass right back out was troubling to say the least. So once Durihan was settled in bed the nurse would leave to inform Lilura of what had happened. The rest of that day would follow with nothing more then heavy breathing and sweating. On the outside Durihan was perfectly fine, Lilura had seen to it with her magic that he wasn't in any state of dying. But the work that Durihan had done over the years with his ale, and now with this last week of binge drinking... His body was well on it's way to catching up to the man.

Durihan wouldn't be so lucky the following day to have just having breathing or sweating. As if on queue at the crack of dawn the man would start to shake, his sheets damp with his sweat. His skin was practically on fire, at first the nurse tried to force water down Durihan's mouth but he just spat it up in seconds. She would call for help and before long two men were doing their best to hold Durihan down in bed. There was no time to go inform Lilura but the woman usually checked in on Durihan after she had awoken and gotten herself presentable. Boy would she be in for a surprise once she got to the infirmary that morning.
 
The nurse had been rather flabbergasted when two guards had shown up in the middle of the night carrying Durihan and deposited him back on a bed. Lilura explained that he'd been binge drinking for nearly a week and she'd found him passed out near the road, but mentioned nothing else. After checking him over, the nurse confirmed that physically, the man was fine, but the heavy drinking had taken a toll and that it would take time for him to physically and mentally recover. Alcohol was actually a poison after all, drinking too much damaged the body, and though Lilura's spell had healed his injuries, she wasn't strong enough to heal the long term damage done to him.

So while he recovered, he would stay in the infirmary, Lilura checking on him from time to time as she went about her day. He went in and out of conscious, but seemed ill in general; he kept throwing up and couldn't seem to keep anything down, ran a high fever, tossed and turned in his sleep, no doubt from vivid fever dreams, and just over all displayed all the symptoms of some one suffering from the side effects of their body purging itself of toxins. Every time he woke the nurse was instructed to inform Lilura but of course by the time she came to check on him he was passed out again.

This time though, as she neared the infirmary she ould hear the sounds of arguing and struggling. So she picked up her skirts to get them out of her way and hurried inside to see two guards trying to keep Durihan down on his bed. “What's going on?” She asked with a frown as she approached.

“He needs to drink water or he'll get dehydrated, but he keeps fighting me every time I try!” The nurse told her, obviously frustrated.

Lilura frowned and pushed one of the guards out of the way, “Go on, go back to your posts, I'll shout if I need you.” She shooed the nurse away as well, her hands busy trying to sooth the sickly man, “Calm down Durihan, it's just me you old fool,” she murmured, tone surprisingly gently despite the words she'd chosen to use.
 
There was obvious pain painted across Durihan's face as he laid there. His hands gripping at the sheets to the point where his knuckles grew white from the strain. Whenever his eyes opened they would quickly roll back, the whites of his eyes almost comparing to how Lilura got when she would cast her spells. The only way to describe his movements was spasms. A sudden shift to the left, his head jerking to the right. His breathing never seemed to lessen, like each breath was the last the man was going to take in this life.

Durihan would try to speak but the only thing that came out of his mouth was mumbles and half words as he laid there. He wasn't aware of Lilura coming into the picture but before long he felt someone's hands on him. And not like before where they had been large and forceful to keep him in place either. There was a familiarity to them. And it wasn't like Lilura had touched Durihan before, or at least to his knowledge but that warmth had come back. Whatever had happened to him before on that night, Lilura's touch almost felt like it would come again. A strange warmth that for the most part would stop Durihan from jerking about like some fish out of water.

“Li...Lil” He would try to say her name but even getting close he would start to cough, start to spit as his body would override his need to speak with the need to breath. His hand coming up to grab Lilura by the wrist. At first a rather intimidating grip, one that might even bruise the woman. But he would quickly lighten up till he was just holding onto her.. The way a child might hold their parents hand when they were scared. The man's lips were dry, any water in his body being used to try and sweat off this fevor. He was mess, there was no other way to see him right now then like this...
 
Lilura released a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding as the troubled man seemed to calm a little, not shaking or convulsing so violently, though he was obviously still in pain and discomfort. “It's alright, you're okay,” She assured him, feeling awkward. She wasn't used to being... nice. She frowned as Durihan attempted to say her name, relieved that he at least seemed to know it was her, but then gasped as he grabbed her wrists roughly. The girl instinctively tried to pull free, but after a moment his grip eased, though he continued to hold onto her, clinging almost like a child seeking comfort.

She sighed, a resigned sound, accepting that she was now relegated to his care taker. “You're supposed to be looking after me, not the other way around you know,” She muttered at him, gently working her wrists our of his grasped but taking one of his hands in her own. At least this way she had one hand free. She frowned at Durihan, irritated with him. This was just a big waste of time and none of it would have happened if he had just stopped being such a stubborn fool. She didn't like this whole situation one bit, she disliked that she was having to take care of him, that he was hindering her training, and that she was apparently starting to actually grow attached to the brute. It was all a bunch of nonsense.

Lilura sat on the edge of his bed, still letting him hold onto her, and sighed again, looking down at him. She frowned at the former knight, knowing in the back of her mind that this meant she was stuck with him for good. “Alright Durihan, I've put too much time and effort into you for you to die of dehydration so come on,” she told him as gently as she could, sliding her hand from his to help him hold his head up while her other hand took the cup of water the nurse had been trying to get him to drink and holding it to his lips. “Drink and you'll feel better, or be a stubborn fool, your choice,” the teasing insults made her feel better, it was how the two of them usually talked after all, so it felt more normal than this coddling business.
 
There was a moment of laughter, or a chuckle, or some sort of noise like Durihan was amused. The part where Lilura said he was suppose to be looking after her and not the other way around. Even now she seemed to throw insult his way, but there wasn't that sting of disgust or anger behind these words. It was nice to hear that social jabbery coming back between the two... Well at least form Lilura right now. First time in awhile he actually found himself regretting taking such a liking to ale.

It was never a pretty sight to see a grown man cry, and even though Durihan wasn't balling, even though sweat was falling from across his body. Tears were definitely running down the sides of his face every now and then. His hand almost reached out to grab Lilura again but the girl had come back simply to hold his hand properly. It must of felt gross to hold Durihan's sweaty palm but bless that necromancer's heart for putting up with it.

Who knew where the strength was coming from to actually move properly, to slowly move his head up. His eyes even moving back down to their proper position. Eyes half shut however as he looked at whatever Lilura was doing. She was trying to get him to drink, at first Durihan felt disgusted by the thought but he gave in, moving forward to try and drink from the cup. One gulp down, good.. Two gulps, better. The third however would result in him coughing, spitting up the third amount of water back into the cup before he started to go off on a fit of coughs, turning from Lilura as he did so.

The following few days showed much improvement since Durihan seemed to respond better to Lilura. Sure in between spitting up food and water and the occasional spasm, all the sweating had gone down and his breathing had started to lighten. Everything was going well into the night in fact before Durihan had woken. “Lilura....Lilura!” Durihan started out soft, soon shouting though as he laid there on the bed. It took a few times before a nurse would come in, obviously sleeping in a nearby room. She tried to help but Durihan wouldn't let her, actually stringing together a good sentence to tell her to get Lilura. So the nurse left quickly, a little concerned with waking Lilura up this late into the night but she was told that she could do so if anything happened. So the nurse quickly got to Lilura's room. Knocking repeatedly, even going to open the door and speak in order to wake Lilura. “He is calling for you my lady...” the nurse stated from the door, never actually going into her room, or even opening the door more then a crack.
 
His hands had certainly been unpleasant to hold, and his head was no different, both were saturated with sweat, but she suffered through it, holding the cup to his lips. Lilura was glad when he managed one gulp, then another, but winced when he spit up the third and fell into a coughing fit. The girl sighed and set aside the cup, motioning for the nurse to take it away, it wouldn't do for him to drink water he'd spit up. She stayed sitting beside Durihan though, trying to soothe him as best she could while he coughed and convulsed. She didn't really know what to do though so she only awkwardly patted his shoulders and back. She was trained to inflict harm, not to heal, but she did the best she could.

At least he began to recover after that, even if it meant that she had to start spending more time in the infirmary since he responded best to her. The girl tried not to let that go to her head, she was just more familiar than the nurse, nothing more than that. It was already hard not to let herself get even more attached, that would be impossible if she thought he saw her as anything special. Lilura told herself that it probably had something to do with when she had healed him, she'd put a lot of herself into that spell to make it work, no doubt there were some lingering effects there. Still, secretly she enjoyed feeling needed, sitting beside Durihan letting him hold onto her hand and helping him eat and drink so he could get his strength back. She tried to keep the emotional investment to a minimum, but she'd already sliding down that slope and there wasn't much she could do to stop.

Lilura was still less than impressed when the nurse came knocking on her door in the middle of the night to tell her that Durihan was calling for her. She crawled out of her bed and went to her door, nodding groggily, “I'll be down in a bit,” and pulled on a pair of slippers and a robe, her long hair pulled back in a braid though it was a little messy now from sleeping on it. Sighing, she went down to the infirmary, sitting beside him on the edge of his bed again and shooing the nurse away. “I've got him, go on back to bed,” she told her and looked back to Durihan, “So what, if you can't sleep I'm not allow to either?” Lilura asked him with a yawn, still trying very hard not to seem too... soft with him.
 
Durihan smiled once Lilura had entered the infirmary. There was something enchanting about her, jokes aside from all the magic she practiced but seeing her come to him in the dimly lit Infirmary.. It gave her some sort of allure that Durihan just found comforting in this moment. He paid no heed to the nurse who was soon told she could leave by Lilura. Durihan looked much better, color returning to his face, his eyes set normally. He had a wash cloth next to himself, any sweating now just at the brow that he or another could easily dab away with the cloth.

“Sound's about right.” Durihan said softly, laughing a little but that only served to bring up some coughing. Nothing horrid like he had been doing days before. Just enough to clear his throat. Be it through instinct now or just a need for normality Durihan would reach out to Lilura's resting on top of her own before sighing softly in content. “You keep putting me back together I might start thinking you like me or somethin..” The man stated, smirking as he kept looking at Lilura.

“When's the last time you cared for anyone like this?” He would ask her out of the blue. That question had popped up here and there in his head whenever he was conscious and not writhing in pain. So now that he was well for lack of a better term stable he found himself asking her such things.
 
Lilura rolled her eyes when he answered her, before looking back to him when he started coughing. It wasn't bad though so she didn't worry or move to help him, he could handle it, he was a big boy after all. Not that you would guess it with how she'd been having to baby him so damn much here of late. She glanced at her hands, which had been clasped in her lap, when Durihan placed his own on top of hers, looking back up at him when he spoke again. She frowned a little, “Keep dreaming old man,” she muttered at him, but let him keep his hand where it was, even if it made her a little uncomfortable.

And the reason why it mad her uncomfortable made her feel even more agitated. She didn't find it awkward because his touch was unwanted, quite the opposite in fact, which bothered her a lot. Yet again, Lilura refused to acknowledge she was human and therefor had human needs. People needed physical contact, that was just a fact, but physical contact also facilitated attachment, and that was something she'd avoided for a long time. And she'd been doing rather well at it until Durihan came along. She didn't even know why she was attached to him, he was rude, stubborn, bitter, selfish, and a myriad of other bad attitudes, and he was a drunk. Funnily enough it was probably all those things, except the drinking part maybe, that had endeared him to her, since she was of course very similar, she just didn't like to admit it. They were both damaged, finally seeking to be mended after years of stubbornly in self-imposed isolation to wallow in their pain. They both handled it very differently, but they were still very alike.

Lilura blinked at him though when he asked her when was the last time she'd cared about anyone like this, implying that she cared about him. She just stared at him for a moment in surprise before she glared at Durihan and pulled her hands away from his, scoffing slightly. “I don't care about you,” she growled at him. Lilura assumed the fever and withdrawals still had him acting a little weird, the question was so out of nowhere, but it had her heart jumping a little in anxiety anyway. She didn't feel ready to talk about this at all. “You're fine, go back to sleep,” She told him tensely as she started to stand, just wanting to get away from him right now.
 
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