Blind Love ( Kosmik_Khaos × Tiny Dino )

[Tiny Dino]

"Only a fool would steal from a god, And since you're one such fool I shall steal your sight away until you return the eyes you have stolen!"

The words echoed in her mind as she wandered, lost in what she thought was a deep forest. She'd been a great warrior once, a soon to be general in the great Athens army. She was born and raised under the goddess Athena, raised to follow everything the goddess believed in. Law, order, wisdom and strategic warfare. The city believed heavily in these tea things and punished anyone who went against them.

Iris had trained all her life believing that there was no order without law and no law without order. It was a double edged sword that guided her every move. But when her commanding officer had given a task that sat like a rock in the pit of her stomach she should have listened to her gut. Steal the eyes from the Ares temple, the eyes once lived in Athena's grant temple and were stolen during one of the many raids, now it was time to return them to their rightful home.

She had made her way to Sparta, keeping to herself and never speaking of her task. After all, who would boast about stealing from a god? She had managed to make her way through the city easily, keeping to the alleyways and traveling at night toward the temple. The guards were relaxed, unaware of what was about to happen, she climbed the massive statue and used a dagger to pluck the eyes from their home, stashing them in her bag and sliding down the statue. When she managed to slip past the guards and get to her steed she road hard and fast, never once checking to see if someone was following her.

When she arrived back at Athens she reported her victory to her commanding officer, handing him the eyes. Only to watch the man laugh, gripping the eyes and looking at Iris one last time before vanishing in a cloud of black smoke. Iris felt a cold hand grip her heart as fear ran through her body, she'd been tricked... she had done a horrible deed in the name of Athena and knew she would be punished when someone found out. She knew she had to pray to the goddess for forgiveness.

She'd made her way to the temple, had fallen to her knees and begged for forgiveness to the goddess of wisdom, but a voice carried itself on the wind, it sounded like it was laughing. The fires went out as the very statue of Athena came alive, her eyes glowing in the dark as she looked down at Iris.

"Only a fool would steal from a god, And since you're one such fool I shall steal your sight away until you return the eyes you have stolen!"

The flash of light had been quick, striking her eyes and causing smoke to rise into the air as the sight was burned from her pupils, the once emerald green coloring fading to a dull empty gray. She screamed, her screams echoed through the temple as Athena watched, her face cold as her jaw tightened.

“You will also be banished from Athens, sent to find your way out of the forests. You will not be welcome here until you return the eyes, if you can find them that is” The wind around Iris swirled as she looked around, she could see nothing but she could feel everything, the wind swirled around her and lifted her from the ground. She was flying, being thrown out of the temple and sent away, when she fell from the sky, hitting branches and the ground with a earth shaking thud.

Pushing herself off of the ground she tried to get up, her body shook as the weight of everything that had happened hit her. The pain was too much and soon she felt faint, the noise of the forest echoing around her as she forced herself to stand, her legs shaking as she started walking, each step was slow and tentative as she tried to feel her way through the forest, how was she supposed to find the eyes and return them when she could no longer see!?

 

[Kosmik_Khaos]

A faint whisper was the only sound in the forest, a whisper made of smooth scales gliding over grass and leaves as the serpentine body of Medusa traversed through the trees. She carried with her a longbow and quiver which to hunt with. Her hair, usually calm, moved around her head in a nebulous cloud of living snakes. Dozens of heads looking in dozens of directions, each tasting the air, each searching for her prey. They caught the scent of her quarry and most turned to focus in that direction to better hone in on their meal, while the rest stayed alert to any potential dangers. Though not much could endanger a woman that could turn to stone anything that gazed upon her eyes.

Following the scent of her prey Medusa quickly came into sight of a large stag. It's head was down grazing and she was down wind of it. Her olive green lips pulled up into a predatory smile. Raising her bow she drew an arrow and with expert accuracy hitting just behind it's shoulder allowing the arrowhead to pierce through it's heart and lung. The beast made a single flailing jump as it's last movement before crashing into the ground dead. Slithering over to her kill she smiled down over it, proud of her shot and the clean kill. Slinging her bow over her shoulder she grabbed the large animal and lifted it with relative ease despite it easily weighing near two hundred pounds.

She made her way though the forest, deeper into the trees to a personal nest of hers. She had many places she could stay, this was essentially her forest after all but this cave was comfortable, well hidden from plain view and near a source of water but not so close as to be flooded by it during periods of heavy rain. It was her personal sanctuary that she took great lengths to make comfortable for herself. Arriving at the small brook near her cave she strung her kill up from a branch that she had to lift herself up to with her lower body to reach. It was a good ten feet from the ground, no other predator would be able to reach it, if any were foolhardy enough to enter her territory that was. Using her sharpened nails she slit the deer's throat with a flick of her wrist and let it bleed out. While she let that happen she went to her cave.

The entrance was not visible until you were almost on top of it, a gently sloping hole into the stone of the earth. The ceiling was high enough for a person to walk in without having to stoop, but could be touched by bringing ones hand just inches above their head. It moved at a steady downwards incline before leveling out for a few feet. The path was curtained off with hanging furs which Medusa pushed past and into the main chamber of the cave. It was a rough oblong shape, longer than it was wide, a decent twenty feet across at it widest, thirty at it's longest. The top of the cave was fifteen feet high at it's tallest, ten at it's lowest. Radiant green eyes scanned the darkness of the room, able to seen in the near total darkness. On one side of the cave she had constructed herself a simplistic kitchen of sorts, there was a long prep table, racks to hang herbs, and a collection of basic cooking utensils. Beside the prep area she had a simple stone and mortar stove she made to burn wood for the duel purpose of heating and cooking. With the height of the ceiling and some apparently unseen ventilation that didn't leak in the rain, the smoke from the stove was a non issue. Across the cavern was her sleeping area, a large pile of dried grasses that she kept regularly changed out, covered in a multitude of furs, all inside a slight indentation in the floor. It was simple but it sufficed, and that was all she could ask for anymore.

Crossing the cavern floor to the very back of the cave she deposited her bow and quiver of arrows in their proper spot with the other weapons and tools she had acquired over the years. Gathering up a skinning knife, carving knife, and two large leather satchels and a water skein and several other tools needed for the job ahead, she left the comfort of her cave and returned to the brook. The deer had finished bleeding out, so she set to work dressing her kill. She found peace in the act of keeping her hands busy. It kept her mind from dwelling on things better left in the past. It didn't take long her to skillful skin, gut and section the carcass. The choice organs were kept, as well as nearly eighty pounds of venison. This would hold her over for a couple of weeks before she had to hunt again. Setting to work she strung up the skin to dry, and packed away the meat in the large satchels. Filling the skein from the brook she started back to her cave to begin prepping the venison when she heard a crash from deeper in the forest.

All her hair came to attention and whipped into the direction of the disturbance. Her forest was a place of serene sounds, the silence that could never be replicated in a city but still filled with the voices of nature. For that to be so drastically broken she knew something was not right. Dropping everything she raced to the source of the disturbance, slowing only when she caught a familiar scent on the air that sent her hair into a writhing mass of hatred. It took a great deal of restraint to keep from hissing as the scent invaded her nose and the noses of her hair. Cautiously she slithered closer to the scent her rage building as she drew nearer.

It didn't take long for her to find what was carrying the stench she so loathed. There was a woman stumbling through her forest. Something was off in the way she moved and Medusa couldn't pin down what exactly. Tilting her head to the side, the motion being mimicked by several of her snakes she breathed in and her face pinched at the scent. It was coming from that woman.

Silently she moved from the trees and towards the woman, the only sound she made was the whisper of scales on leaves that she normally made. Closing the distance she spoke to the woman, shattering the silence she held. "Why do you smell so strongly of Athena mortal?" She asked, hatred clean in her voice at the name of the Goddess. Medusa circled the woman letting the near twenty feet of serpent body form a loose coil around her without touching her. Being this close she could taste the touch of the Goddess on the woman, and it brought up memories long held at bay. "Why are you wandering my forest human? Did she send you?" Medusa hissed loathing clear in her voice. Her hair was snaking out towards the woman, tongues flickering, tasting the air around her, getting her scent and assessing. Medusa kept the human portion of her body behind the woman, not wishing to turn her to stone quite yet. She wanted answers first.

 

[Tiny Dino]

She hated nature, she hated how it was so unorganized and how creatures could come and go as they pleased, there was no order and the only law? Eat or be eaten. Iris sighed heavily as she ran her hand along one of the trees, the bark was almost smooth . The tree was still young, the rains hadn’t made path ways through it yet, the bark was also dry, almost brittle. It hadn’t rained in the area for some time, was it the dry season for the area or was it an area that rarely saw any rain? She would have to learn, she would have to find a way to tell the passage of time now. By taking her eyes Athena had take so much more.

Iris was slow in her movements, her eyes lids sliding shut as she focused on the sounds around her. There was a river near by, she could hear the rush of water crashing against the twigs and rocks. There were deer.. they seemed to be running away from something, the branches and twigs that snapped against their bodies as the rushed away meant a hunter was near by, the hunter had either caught its prize or had missed it target scaring away the herd.

Then the forest around her went silent, the birds took off and flew as fast as their wings could carry them. The small rodents fled into their burrows and even the trees seemed to go still, all that was heard was a whispering sound as something large… something long.. travelled across the forest, iris sound herself frozen in place. What monster was coming? What horrible creature had Athena released to rip her apart and then a voice, voice filled the heavy air as Iris felt herself circled, closing in on her.

“Athena… Athena has seemed fit to punish me by removing my eyesight, punishing me for running a fools errand. I don’t want any trouble and I don’t wish to stay in your forest, if you would direct me to the nearest road I will leave and never come back" she tried to stand tall, to puff out her chest and show that she wasn’t afraid even though she was completely terrified, she could hear the being moving around her, taking a deep breath as she tried to remain calm.

“Athena didn’t send e here, she threw me here with the wind, tossing me from her temple like common trash. I tried to explain that I had been tricked, but that wasn’t good enough for her. Only a follow would steal from a God, an so the goddess took my sight" she explained herself again not wanting to go into details, not wanting to be crushed or killed by the creature

 

[Kosmik_Khaos]

Medusa growled and all her snakes hissed at the injustice that his human spoke of. Whipping around to face the woman Medusa's piercing, cursed gaze fell on the woman's open, burnt out eyes. It wasn't often she got to look at a human who stayed flesh, and it was proof the woman was not lying to her. Slowly her coils wound around the woman's lower body holding her in place while not crushing her. Moving her face just inches from the woman's she stared into her eyes. Living eyes, even if blind. Something that she could only do with two other creatures. Reaching out she brushed her fingertips over the soft skin of her cheek and tingle jolting through her body. It was her first touch of human flesh, and the experience of something new excited her.

Seeing the woman stand tall and act brave made Medusa respect her. She could taste the terror of the woman, hear her heartbeat increase and feel the tension in her muscles through her coils that held her in place. This was a woman of great strength, one that had survived many things, and even being struck low, still defied her weakness and stood strong. Medusa was impressed with her and curious about what was able to trick this woman into acting against the gods to be punished in such a way.

Medusa's snakes sensed her curiosity and the more adventurous of them extended themselves out to glide over her arms and torso. Medusa parted her lips slightly and a long dark green tongue flicked out almost coming into contact with the woman's lips before flicking back in. Just as her snakes sensed, there was no lie in what she said. "You are not the only one that was punished and cast away for a crime you did not commit by that divine whore. I was raped by Poseidon in her temple and she punished it for me. Changed me into a monster, made it so anyone that laid eyes on me would turn to stone. All for something I could not have prevented." The venomous hatred in her voice was unmistakable, "Yes mortal, I am Medusa, and you are the first ever to be able to lay eyes on me without loosing your life."

Keeping her face close to the woman's she fought back the urge to touch her again. Her snakes were doing that enough and she was more composed than that. "If you truly desire to cast aside once again to stumble blindly through the unforgiving world of man I will take you as far as I can and face you in the proper direction to walk blindly to your demise." She paused and gave into her urge and took the woman's chin in her fingers and directed her face to be level with her own. "You come with me for now, I feed you, and help you adjust to the suffering cast upon you by Athena. I can tell there is more to your story and I would hear it if at all possible." She finished giving the woman the choice of mercy, something neither were given by Athena.

 

[Tiny Dino]

When the creature started to growl Iris started to panic, what had see said wrong? Had she done something wrong? How could she have offended the creature by explaining her side of the story. Her body jerked when something coiled around her body holding her tightly in place, she tried to get free, jerking from side to side only to stop all of her attempts when she felt the woman’s hot breath on her face, staring straight ahead as if she was looking right into Medusa’s eyes, a shiver running down her spine as she felt the gentle touch against her cheek.

She was pulled from her stupor when she heard Medusa speak to her, clearing her throat she nodded lightly “That’s not the story they teach in Athens, the story that children are taught is you were a beautiful woman. One who claimed her very beauty rivalled the gods, Someone who graced the people with privilege of looking upon your beauty. Athena appeared and demanded you beg for forgiveness or suffer. You didn’t and you were punished, now no one would be allowed to look upon you and you can’t look upon any one else" she muttered as she jerked slightly ever time she felt a snake touch her, she wanted to ask them to stop but she didn’t know of she was suppose to ask the snakes themselves or if she was suppose to ask Medusa to get them to stop.


A soft cry escaped Iris's lip as her jaw was gripped and her face was directed to face Medusa, Iris blinked several times as she thought about Medusa’s offer, wander blindly and possibly be killed or raped by random men or even monsters or go with Medusa and be given a place to stay. “I.. I would like to go with you, if you could get your snakes to top.. licking me, it’s a little uncomfortable feeling several tongues licking my skins all over when I can’t see where all the tongues are coming from" he was trying to be polite, an when Medusa relaxed her hold Iris took a deep breath and felt her muscles relax.

When Medusa started slithering toward her laid Iris tried to follow after the woman, her feet weren’t sure of themselves but as she took each step she started to get more and more confident, but after fifteen or so steps she slammed herself right into a tree, cursing as she pulled away to rub her face with both of hands. Muttering under her breath as she shifted her place, following the sound of Medusa’s laughter, she refused to give up, she refused to let herself be weak. She was a mighty warrior, trained to survive on nothing but her instincts and for some reason her instincts were leading her into trees, over and over and over.

 

[Kosmik_Khaos]

Medusa smiled and with a thought pulled the snakes back giving the woman room to breath and think. She could only imagine how that would feel, not having sight but feeling a multitude of things touching you all over. "Very well, let us go." She said uncoiling form the blinded beauty and slithering away. It wasn't long before Medusa heard the first thump of a body against a tree. She allowed the woman to stubbornly try to navigate the woods, laughing at each time she slammed into a tree.

Slithering back she reached out and took the woman's hand. "As amusing it is to see you greet each tree so enthusiastically I want to get home and you are to pretty to keep hitting you face." Holding her hand Medusa gently guided her guest through the trees. "What is your name human?" She asked after a few minutes of silence. "I don't wish to just call you human." Medusa continued to guide her through the woods, taking a slight detour to gather up the dropped sacks of venison.

"We are almost there." She announced as they approached the cave. "It's not much but it will keep us dry and it isn't as though you can see how plain it is, but I still hope you find it comfortable. Now watch your step, we are walking down an incline." Medusa pulled Iris closer and a few of her snakes moved to wrap around her shoulder in added support even though she didn't command them to. They had behaved up to this point leaving the woman be as she walked but now that they were all home they could no longer control their curiosity of the woman that could remain alive around them.

Medusa lead her to the bed of furs and helped lower her onto them. "You rest here. I will make us some food. While I do that, you can tell me more about what lead you here. I don't often get to talk with anyone so this will be a very rare treat for me."

 

[Tiny Dino]

Every tree she slammed into was another blow to her already broken ego, she once had been one of the quietest warriors in the Athens army. Able to move and steal anything without a sound. But now, now she sounded like a war elephant, her steps loud as if she was slamming her foot down with each step. She was trying to be confident, trying to keep her with about her. But the trees just seemed to be that much smarter. She had lost count when she hard Medusa coming back to her, the soft slithering sound becoming louder. Her pride broken as she hung her head when Medusa took her hand and started to lead her.

But Medusa thought she was pretty? She was told he looked to manish. Her strong jaw line, her well earn muscles and the fact that she refused to submit to a man. She wasn’t going to let some thick headed fool order her around, not when she could easily destroy him. But that didn’t matter now.. now she was going to have to settle for what ever fool would be willing to have her, what ever fool would be willing to take care of her and help her learn how to survive blind. “My name.. my name is Iris, no last name. I was an orphan taken in my the athenian army when I was seven, so I have no land or titles to my name" she muttered as she follow beside Medusa, surprise at how gentle the woman was being with her.

When they arrived at the cave Iris flinched when she felt the snakes wrapping around her again, taking a deep breath as she was guided to the furs, slowly settling into her seat as she tried to think of her next move. “Well… as I told you I was raised in the army, taught by some of the top scholars of the city. The beliefs run thick in Athens, you must be as smart as you are strong. Brute force means nothing if you don’t know how to properly use it.” She explained as she reached down to remove her sandals, placing her feet on the cold stone, maybe walking barefoot would help her. She would have to try.

“I was grunt for three years, then I started rising in rank. I’ve seen several battle and even managed to kill one of the top generals of the spartan army. I was in line to become one of the high ranking commanders if I played my cards right. Which all changed in one evening of me own stupidity.. I should of questioned things more, I should of listened to my gut. But my pride and greed to rise in ranks caused me to fall flat on my face" she muttered as she gripped her elbows, hugging herself as she tried to keep herself from crying in both sadness and anger.

 

[Kosmik_Khaos]

"Iris." Medusa said the name, testing it out and finding she liked it. Medusa let out a soft laugh at Iris' comment about having no lands or titles to her name. "I have a cave and whatever I can hunt, scavenge, or craft. So you will find yourself in good company in that aspect of having nothing of value to the world of man." She said in a way that was dismissive of said world of man. To her it was non important, she would never be a part of it again so it's trappings were meaningless to her.

Moving to the food prep area of the cave she unloaded the bags onto the table before putting some wood into the stove and starting a fire. She would cook some for Iris and herself now, and smoke the rest to be eaten later. "That is impressive that you were able to come from nothing and rise to that level before someone feared you enough to cause you to fall." Grabbing a large knife Medusa started to carve the venison, something that usually held the attention of her snakes, but all of them were busy looking at Iris watching the woman curl in on herself. "As much of a tragedy it is, you can look at it as a new chance, and that you were powerful enough that someone had to use the gods to get you out of their way. You truly must have been a force to reckon with."

Having carved enough for the two of them, or what she though should be enough as she could eat several pounds of meat per sitting, she laid the steaks out on the stove to cook and put the remaining venison into the oven to be smoked. With her task complete she turned her attention to Iris. Slithering across the cave she 'sat' beside her and coiled her tail around the outer rim of the bed. She wasn't exactly sure how she was supposed to comfort the woman, but she wanted to. Before she could think to do anything one of her snakes reached out and caressed the top of its head against Iris' shoulder. Smiling at the snake she took the cue and reached to rub the distraught woman's back. "It is okay to be upset, you have had much taken from you."

 

[Tiny Dino]

“I love hunting, setting traps and stalking my prey. I was excited to enter the tournament this year, every year hey whole the grand tournament where a select few get to go out and hunt some of the gods great elks, only warriors who have proven themselves on the battle field get a chance. This year was my year, I want to kill one of the elks and prove myself to my leaders and the gods. Plus, I’ve heard stories about the elks who belong to the gods. They're suppose to taste amazing” she muttered as her nose started to twitch, she could smell the heavy scent of blood her mind started to wander. What was Medusa cooking… she could only pray it was some kind of horrible monster meat.

As the scent filled the air her stomach growled slightly “You’re.. you’re cooking elk.. there’s elk in this forest?” she was surprised, she was surprised there was any kind of wild life in the forest with Medusa in the area. Unless the animals didn’t fear her like man kind did. “it smells really good.. she muttered as she felt a snake rubbing against her, slowly Iris moved and gently took hold of the snake. Bringing the creature down a little lower she started to pet it, her fingers gently tracing the creatures scales. A blush staining her cheeks as she felt Medusa rubbing her back.

They talked, they talked for what seemed like hours, even through their meal. Iris had been surprised when she found a small plate placed into her hands and found the meat had already been cut into small bite sized pieces. The meat had tasted wonderful and it was filling, when then finished though Iris kept talking revealing how much of a odd ball she was, her love of reading, her love of crafting and her love of hunting and cooking her kill. But when Medusa set about cleaning Iris started to fall asleep, leaning against Medusa’s large body, one of her hands tracing the creatures scales as she tried to stay awake.

“I was…” a soft yawn escaped her as she rubbed her cheek into Medusa’s soft scales, her eyes sliding shut as she took a deep breath. “I was about to read the book of all greek monsters, I wanted to learn about your kind and minotaurs… and..other..su..” her words trained off as she fell asleep, snoring softly as she curled deeply into Medusa’s body

 

[Kosmik_Khaos]

"Yes, there is plenty of game in my forest. Humans alone treat me as a monster, nature just sees me as another of her predators." Medusa explained smiling at complement on her cooking. It was honestly the compliment she had received since she lost her humanity. Medusa listened intently as Iris spoke. She was fascinated by the woman's stories, asking questions about her life, her adventures and devouring every word. It had been ages since she had someone to talk with about anything new.

When she moved to clean up and store the smoked meat she left near half of her coils still around Iris. A shiver ran the full length of her body, an impressive feat in of itself from the tender touch on her scales. Again Medusa had to smile at the attention her snakes were giving Iris, all of them reaching out towards her while Medusa worked. Hearing the woman yawn she looked over her shoulder as Iris' final words faded away into sleep. Finishing up with her work she returned to the bed and encircled herself around Iris, leaving the woman sleeping in an open ring of her coils. Laying behind her Medusa wrapped her arms around the woman and pressed her torso against her back.

The warmth was comforting in a way Medusa hadn't realized she had missed from back in her human days. Without realizing she was smiling she nuzzled her face into Iris' hair, she smelled nice, and her hair was so soft. Hugging the woman a bit tighter she started to fade into sleep herself, the mixture of Iris' warmth, scent, sound of her soft snoring and the feel of her rising and falling chest lulled Medusa into a calm she never remembered feeling.

 

[Tiny Dino]

Iris was warm, she was very warm and where ever she was it was comfy as hell. Slowly her eyes slid open, ear gripped her heart as she realized she couldn't see. It took a few moments, a few moments that caused her to cry. Tears rolling down the sides of her cheeks, the fear of never being able to see gripped her heart, reaching up to wipe her cheek her hand ran into something smal and mouth,a tongue flicking into her hand.

Then it hit her, she had fallen asleep against Medusa's body. She had hugged herself to the womans snake like body, she could feel the womans arm around her waist, Medusa was nuzzling the back of her head and all of the snakes were floating around her, their tiny tongues flicking against her. Slowly reaching up she gently stroked the top of one of the snakes heads, tracing the creatures scales with the tip of a fingers. "You have little circle scales.. like little bubbles.." she whispered to herself as she felt the snake weaving around her fingers. "I think I'm going to call you bubbles.. " she murmured as she felt the snake wrap around her wrist. "You like that? Or do you have a different name?"

Soon another snake started to run against her other hand, chuckling softly she started to pet the second snake, taking her to trace the creatures the scales. His snake had small points at the end of each scale, almost like barbed tips. "Getting a little jealous of your friend? Don't be I can name all of you, there can't be a ton of you" she whispered as she started to rub the snakes hin with her knuckle, she knew she should get up but a few more minutes being surrounded by such warmth was something she didn't want to pass up.

 

[Kosmik_Khaos]

The snakes enjoyed the new found attention given to them by the blind woman. It was something they never experienced, or even knew they wanted to experience. They each had partial autonomy with Medusa having the final say in what they did, but they were all individuals and each had their own personality to an extent. Iris giving Bubbles' it's name gave it another level of individualism and it made the snake happy, a feeling all the others could sense, as could their host. Medusa smiled in her sleep and nuzzled against Iris murmuring lightly in her sleep.

Medusa woke slowly and felt amazing. She was warm, and she felt happiness like never before. It was a like an echo of her own happiness compounded by the returning waves of happiness from somewhere else. It took her sleep addled mind a moment to realize that it was her snakes that were happy and she was feeling that atop her own joy. "Good morning Iris. I hope they haven't bothered you too much." She said softly considering letting the woman go but not quite ready for the loss of warmth that came with holding her.

"Did you sleep well?" She asked finally lifting her head from the furs to look at the beauty beside her. Her snakes didn't mind her movement and continued their attempts at getting attention. "That's quite enough. Let her have space." Medusa chided them causing them all to pull back, some more reluctantly than others. Unwinding herself Medusa finally let go of Iris and stretched with a soft whine of pleasure. "I think today we should see about getting you accustomed to the cave and surrounding area. That is if you want to stay longer. If not I can still lead you to the edge of the forest and let you go about your way."

 

[Tiny Dino]

As Medusa snuggled deeper into her all Iris could do was chuckled to herself. But when Medusa started to move and talk to her she slowly sat up "it's fine, they're curious about being near a human" she muttered as she rubbed the back of her neck, "But good morning to you as well" she smiled as she stretched, her back cracking in a few places.

"To be honest that was the best rest I've ever had. I'm use to sleeping on thin bed rolls on hard stone or frozen ground." She muttered as she felt Medusa pulling away, clearing her throat for a moment she bit her lower lip. "I think.. I think I would like to stay here, with you... if you're okay with that." She muttered as she swallowed the lump in her throat not sure that Medusa would allow her to stay.

"I mean, I'll leave if you want me too. I don't want to be invading your territory" she explained as she rubbed her elbow, she wasn't sure what she would do if Medusa demanded that she left. She would be useless in town, she would be nothing but a bum on the street begging for spare coins to buy her next meal.

 

[Kosmik_Khaos]

Medusa lit up at Iris' response. "No, I don't want you to leave." She said quickly, squashing the notion before it could even attempt to take root in her mind. "I, I like having you around. It's not very often I get to have company that can converse with me. It gets lonely out here." She spoke shyly as she hugged herself and rubbed her arms. It hadn't hit her until just then that she was lonely. She had long ago accepted being a solitary being, and grew comfortable in her own company without ever quite realizing that she went from being alone, to being lonely.

Pausing for a long moment Medusa gathered herself and spoke again. "So what would you like to do today? I have plenty of food so I don't need to hunt, but I can show you around the immediate area so you can get familiar with it. Or I can take you to the river so you can bathe if you want. I also wouldn't mind hearing more about you and the outside world. It's gotten so fascinating since I was ousted." Medusa blushed when she realized she was babbling and almost hid her face before remembering that she couldn't be seen.

"First, I will make us some breakfast." She declared and moved across the cave to start the fire in the stove. She sliced off thin strips of meat from on of the smoked haunches and laid them on the heating surface of the stone stove, as well as grabbing a basket of eggs she pilfered from some wild birds. She cracked a few and let them fry while the meat heated.