So he headed back inside, hearing a high-pitched squeal in the kitchen, he raced down the hall only to come to a halt in the doorway. Ducking quickly as a yellow bolt of foam flew past his head, Orion scowled, frowning with confusion at the war zone now laid out before him. Luke was bunkered down behind the kitchen bench, holding a nerf gun in one quivering hand as he fired aimlessly at the lounge room behind him. Orion still standing well in the line of fire, moved awkwardly through the small dining area and stood there for a moment surveying the damage, there were yellow foam bullets scattered everywhere. Not understanding this game of hide-and-seek, Orion scanned the room for Phay but he couldn't see where she was hiding on first glance and had to duck again to avoid being shot at by Luke's trigger happy reaction to being discovered.
"Psst, Orion... get over here!" Phay called, suddenly springing up from behind the upturned sofa to drag him down by the wrist to sit beside her. Shoving a nerf gun in his hands she gestured rather crudely in Luke's direction, looking down at the gun now in his hands and then back up at Phay as though she were completely nuts to give him such a weapon, he waited for a lull in Luke's firing his back leaning up against the sofa with surprising clarity. It was almost as if he belonged in the middle of all this, and in some ways he was probably most at home on the battlefield but right now his eyes sparkled with such a malevolent intensity, that it was hard to tell exactly what he was thinking. Leaping up from his position, Orion fired off a shot then sank back down next to Phay with military precision, his bolt of yellow foam went hurtling through the room with amazing accuracy until it collided with Fiddletwitch's mass of thick fur and bounced off to lie uselessly on the floor.
"I think mine's broken..." Orion pouted, looking a little like a disappointed child as he examined the gun carefully. It didn't even have real bullets.
"No its not, silly... You just have to distract them for me, until I can get over there..." Phay replied, one hand resting reassuringly on his shoulder.
"You want me to cover you?..." He asked, looking even more puzzled than before.
"Yes. Cover me... I'm going in" Phay added with a determined growl, looking somewhat like a Rambo reincarnation with her hair all mussed up, and her red cloak billowing out behind her as she ducked and then rolled towards the kitchen. Orion was a little surprised she trusted him so much, he was quite sure he didn't deserve her trust or her sympathy but he was more than willing to earn it. Especially if it meant having fun at the same time, it had been so long since he'd had fun, or a friend of any kind that he didn't seem to care how silly he looked firing off several rounds in Luke's direction whilst following Phay around the corner of the sofa.
With practiced expertise, he made sure Phay reached the kitchen unharmed, taking the game a little more seriously than either of them had intended. He even borrowed Phay's gun, firing off rounds in every direction as they made a break for the kitchen bench, storming through with just enough enthusiasm to finish Luke off. Orion glanced down at the male triumphantly, shifting both nerf guns into one hand so that he could help Luke up off the floor whilst Phay helped Fiddletwitch out of a nearby basket that had fallen over.
"I thought you didn't know how to play this game?..." Luke murmured, freeing a dart that had become stuck to his forehead.
"Guess I did..." Orion answered quietly, looking considerably paler than he had all afternoon. His heart was beating rapidly, something he thought was merely a by-product of so much adrenaline and excitement, in conjunction with his shallow gasps for air though something was definitely wrong.
"Hey, you don't look so good..." Phay said, both of them looked more concerned than they had a right to but Orion wasn't about to shove them away, he couldn't even tell which direction that might have been. The nausea and dizziness had suddenly come back worse than ever, and he hit the floor with a resounding thud, not realizing exactly what was wrong until it was too late. Darkness shrouded his vision, and pressed against his mind like a thick fog, forcing him to retreat further inside his own mind to escape the pain now circulating his body.
Orion's body seemed to have gone into shock, if it hadn't been already that is. The shock seemed to pass quickly though, and by the time he came around again, Orion was lying in the bed he'd woken up in this morning. He didn't have the energy to speak though, and every part of his body felt so heavy he doubted he could move very far on his own, on top of all that his chest and arms felt like they were on fire and he knew then he was at least suffering a fever of some kind. Struggling to sit up even with help, he felt like he was going to be sick, confused and feeling worse than ever before, he groaned loudly. He had been sick quite a lot as a child, and certainly didn't look forward to it now. Especially considering this mystery illness would set his plans on hold indefinitely, not to mention making his current situation with these kind strangers even worse, his only silver lining was that being a vampire meant that whatever illness he had was more likely to burn off quickly and not hang around. Of course that still meant staying here, where he was probably going to be discovered any day now, and that was something he didn't want anyone to have to deal with, least of all Luke and Phay. Focusing his attention on the floor, to try and stop the spinning, he noticed all the clothes he'd scattered about earlier were now in a neat little pile. It still amused him to find he had something to call his own, the only thing he'd owned before now, was an old necklace his wife had given him. He couldn't take it off, not that he wanted to but it was the last thing he had of his old life, made of some strange black metal it clung to the base of his throat. A soft, white glow seemed to emanate from it at the moment. Although the pendant itself was shaped like a crescent moon, the soft glow seemed to suit it just fine, contrasting with the smooth black metal band binding it to his neck. Even the soft light though was searing Orion's flesh, and although it wasn't uncomfortable, at least not to him. It was noticeable; especially to those attentive enough to discover it wasn't glowing just for decorative purposes.
********
"Orion!?" Phay watched the male fall to the ground unconscious, she was next to him in a second and on his forehead. "Luke he's burning up bad." Luke copied her actions touching Orion's forehead a frown on his face.
"Help me get him up." Phay nodded slinging a dead weighted arm over his shoulder, pulling Orion up off the floor, they both carried him back to his room. Carefully place them on the bed Phay looked up at Luke with worry.
"What's wrong with him Luke?" Luke gave a soft frown.
" I don't know, I think we should take him to the hospital." Luke murmured pulling out his cell only to have Phay grab his hand.
"No, we can't." Luke gave a puzzled look.
"Why not?" Phay looked away as if not completely sure on what to say.
"I just have a bad feeling."
Luke smiled. "Alright, we'll find out don't worry." Ruffling her hair. He inspected Orion's ears, mouth, skin and fingernails. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary.
"Maybe it's his wounds, they could be infected." The male had been tearing at himself rather harshly today. Pulling up Orion's shirt, he could see that a wound had reopened.
"I'll go grab the first aid kit." Luke nodded pulling away the bandages as Phay left, a slight relief swept over him. Reopened wound but at least not infected, he caught a bit blood escaping the open wound with the cloth before discarding in a waste bin. As he glanced up again he noticed a sudden slight shift in Orion's jawline, eyes narrowing he pulled up Orion's upper lip, what Luke saw made his jaw drop; fangs.
Orion was a vampire...it certainly explained a lot but nothing about this sudden illness. As if to heed him on his searching for his answer something began to glow from underneath Orion's shirt. Pulling it back Luke gaze caught the soft glowing pendant, eyes widening. What was a vampire doing wearing something like this? And how long had it been since he'd seen anything like this type of pendant. Considering the glow Luke now had a fair idea of what was wrong with their new vampire friend, Orion required treatment of a different kind. Phay rushed back in with the first aid kit.
"Was it his wounds?"
Luke gave her a small smile. "No, but I know what it is now." Phay's eyes lit up as she passed the first aid kit to Luke, allowing the male to re-bandage Orion as he explained.
"He has some sort of internal infection, nothing fatal but we need to treat it as soon as possible." Phay nodded.
"How though, what kind of medicine do we need?" Once he was finished he got up Phay following him out into the hallway and down into his cellar.
"It's a tonic, which will fight off whatever type of infection it is. A home remedy if you will." Opening up a trunk that looked like it had seen better days Luke rummaged around till he pulled out a large red leather book, the pages had long since yellowed and the book looked out of it time.
"Where did you get this?" Phay asked curiously touch the leather as Luke opened the contents.
"Been handed down through the family." Luke answered cryptically, flipping through pages at an alarming rate.
"What kind of language is that?" Phay raised an eyebrow at the letters. Luke said nothing giving a rather perplexed look.
"Latin..." A lie, but Phay seemed convinced. Luke flipped through the pages, eyes scanning the words till he found the recipe he was looking for.
"Ah- ha here it is." He smirked with glee, grabbing a crate he dropped it down next to a cluster of shelves. All lined with an assortment of boxes and jars, weird dried plants hung from the ceiling. He looked over to see that Phay had her interest in the book. Good, he didn't really want to explain some of the things he was about to pull out.
First it was some herbs, mostly elf grass and pixie seeds. The recipe called for Fairy nectar along with some dried mushrooms. Several powders were added to the crate, he turned over to an old looking fridge opening it. Taking out several plasma packs full of blood, and throwing them into the box he returned picking up what looked like meat wrapped up in brown paper. The meat was mostly demon flesh and hell hound organs though. Placing them inside the crate he picked it up.
"Alright I think I have everything, can you grab the book?" Phay nodded making sure she didn't lose the page as they both made it back up the stairs with haste. Placing the crate on the island, Luke pulled out a large earthen pot out from under the cabinets, placing it on the stove and turning on the burner.
Cracking his fingers, he first poured in the blood. Phay crinkled her noise as it came to a boil, watching him chop up what looked like meat.
"Are you sure this will help Orion? It smells terrible." Luke nodded adding the meat to the pot.
"It will for sure." Grinding up the seeds he added them into the soup the herbs were soon stirred in after wards.
"Do you think the city is making him sick?" Phay asked playing with a loose string on her shirt as Luke continued to stir, he looked thoughtful mulling over her words.
"Yeah it might, he doesn't seem like the type to like crowded places." Luke replied, busy mixing his strange stew.
Phay hummed in reply, too deep in thought to come up with a proper response.
"Alright we're done." Luke chirped pouring some of the steamy red liquid into a cup. They both entered Orion's room, happy to see him at least awake.
"Hey, Orion how are you feeling?" Phay asked softly, feeling his head like a mother would.
"Here we made you something it'll help with your sickness." Luke spoke but he quickly saw the disgusted look in Orion's eyes, the vampire gave him a: you do, you die look.
"Come on man, this is for your own good." He seemed skeptical of what was in the contents.
"Nothing in here is gonna poison you." I hope... Luke added in his own mind. Phay frowned softly taking the cup from Luke.
"We want you to get better Orion, look." Phay took a gulp of the soup, visibly shuddering at the taste. Wiping her mouth she handed it to Orion.
"See, it's okay." She offered him a smile. Tilting the drink up to his mouth.
Somehow to Luke's surprise, Phay had managed to get the vampire to drink it all. Though much to Orion's disapproval Luke filled up the cup again only this time he sat it on the bed side table.
"You need more than one cup." Phay grabbed her duffel bag, slinging it over her shoulder.
"Where are you going?"
Phay smiled. "Just gonna head out to grab something. Orion that better be gone by the time I get back." She waved her finger like a mother scolding her child before heading out the door, Luke following behind her to give Orion some time to rest.
"Don't be gone too long." Luke called out from the front doorway. Phay nodded waving good bye before heading off, she walked off through the city back streets coming into an open field, kneeling down she began picking up several herbs.
Flashes of her doing this as a child appeared in her mind. Phay stopped, clenching her whole body frantically trying to hold onto the memory. She had done it for a someone, they had been sick...who though? The memories quickly hit a standstill and Phay could no longer remember beyond that part no matter how hard she tried. Kicking the dirt, she sighed heavily. Phay couldn't remember anything past waking up here in this city two years ago. Her past was a mystery to her, but something she desperately wanted to find. Sighing softly, she wouldn't give up hope yet. Her past was out there, possible a family as well. Smiling Phay packed the herbs away safely into her bag before jogging back towards Luke's house. Dark eyes followed her small frail frame as she ran down the empty street.
********
"She's heading back now." On the other side of the phone a man smiled, eyes glazing over several pictures of Phay as he shuffled through them.
"Follow her see if she goes anywhere else. I want to know how many people are involved with her. " The man spoke darkly his voice sickeningly sweet sounding as he place down the photo's.
"Right away Lucian." Lucian snapped his phone shut, staring up at the monitors of Phay as she ran, he had cameras all over the place watching her every move.
"Little fox, Little fox how pretty you are...nice and sweet with such a cute bow and prepped and ready for the show..." Chuckling lightly he leaned back into his chair cold citrus eyes watching his darling Phay.
"Won't be long now." His phone began to ring, another worker with more information.
********
Phay panted stepping into the door. "I'm back Luke." Luke smiled rolling out onto his chair into the hallway arms open for a hug. Phay chuckled patting his head much to his disappointment. She stepped into the kitchen boiling some water in a tea pot. Placing the herbs in the bottom of a mug underneath a strainer , pouring the hot water into the cup. Luke stepped over.
"Whatcha got there?" He spoke inspecting the mug only to have his hand smacked away by Phay.
"It's tea to help bring down Orion's fever." Luke gave her a puzzled look.
"Where did you learn that?"
Phay frowned lowering her head. "I'm not really sure a memory I guess." Luke gave her a sympathetic look, he knew her struggles with her memory. He had been with her since day one trying to recover those loss memories but with no avail. Most of Phay's information, whether it be birth, schools or family seemed wiped out or just never existed. It puzzled Luke greatly.
"Doesn't matter, it helped me learn of a way to help Orion." She smiled stepping past Luke and into Orion's room.
"Hey, how are you feeling?" She smiled softly sitting on a chair next to the bed.
"I made you some tea. It'll help with your fever and it doesn't taste as bad as Luke's soup." A hey could heard from the kitchen and Phay laughed happily handing the drink to Orion.
"Drink up." She said, adding nothing more as she let him finish his drink.
"Once your better I'm gonna take you out of the city, let you get some real fresh air! best yet you get to see my home! You can see the stars really well from where I live." She grinned, though a little worried of what he would think of her, Phay was pretty much homeless, though Luke often enough offered her a place to stay here, she felt like she was using him he already did so much for her. How would Orion react, would he care? She didn't even know if he'd bother sticking around. He was free to leave whenever he wished as long as he was better anyway.
********
Orion felt horrible, worse than he had ever felt as a sick child. He didn't know where they'd gone but for the first time since his escape from prison, he didn't want to be left alone either. Waking up in the bedroom yet again, this time in desolate oblivion (even if it was only for a few seconds), scared him more than he could ever have imagined. He felt too weak to move, it hurt to breathe and it hurt to do anything more than think but thinking was exactly what he didn't want to do, he'd done enough of that in prison and it hadn't gotten him anywhere. Sinking fast in his own dark thoughts, he was surprised when Phay hovered over him, checking his vital signs before asking him if he felt any better.
"No..." He growled, wishing he could finally die having known someplace with as much warmth and feeling as his childhood had once held. Allowing himself to sink further into the bedclothes, Orion stared up at the ceiling a blank expression on his face as Luke tried explaining that his soup would be beneficial, Orion didn't trust the guy. This soup smelt disgusting, a mixture of blood from who knew where, and bits and pieces of other things Orion couldn't even begin to name. Glaring at Luke with a disgusted look on his face was about the only way to express his distaste of drinking whatever concoction the man had developed. He was only here because of Phay, and right now she was watching him with a strained look of expectation and concern, he didn't know why she cared so much but she looked so damn familiar that he hated to disappoint her. Besides, both of them had done more for him than he'd care to admit, and right now he still needed them. He was amazed when Phay took the first sip of Luke's soup, that no doubt wasn't meant to do a thing for a human, and he could only watch in amused horror as she visibly shuddered at the taste. Though his slight amusement was only for the fact that he hated the taste of medicine too, it was short lived when Phay tipped the cup to his lips, she didn't force him to drink but he did so anyway. The strange mixture of flavours curdling in his stomach until he thought he was definitely going to be sick, he wasn't though. For some strange reason, the soup seeped into his cold aching bones and set them on fire, and although it was terribly uncomfortable it did make him feel somewhat better. For a brief respite, it did little to make the dark thoughts still swirling about his head evaporate. He didn't understand these people, they knew nothing about him, and nothing about what he had done and yet still they refused to send him away. Well, that wasn't completely true. Luke had to know something about him to have made such a strange soup from blood. Shifting until he was a little more comfortable, he made sure to watch Phay leave before attempting to drink the second batch, it tasted worse than the first but he still managed to keep it down. Sleeping in short bursts whilst Phay was out; he was starting to get worried about her, when she returned quietly to his room carrying a cup of tea. His fever had gotten worse in the time she had been away, and he was barely conscious by the time she returned, his pale skin covered in a sheen of sweat. With her helping though, he managed to drink the tea, and then turned over to go back to sleep his body still racked with small tremors as he shivered seemingly cold despite the burning fever that refused to go away with Luke's soup.
His fever came and went with Phay's tea, giving him at least some time to rest but he refused to speak to anyone now that he was ill, only acknowledging that they were even there when they fed him. It was early on the second day, when Phay had gone to fetch more herbs, that Luke's concoction started showing its effect. Orion awoke with a loud groan, quickly flinging himself over the side of the bed, where he threw up all over Luke's carpet. Chunks of demon flesh, herbs and a peculiar yellow fluid, all littered the floor as he continued heaving despite the lack of substance. Luke walked in at that moment with yet another cup of soup, crying out with alarmed dismay at the state of his floor, though he seemed more worried about Orion's health the vampire doubted that was the true cause of his outburst. Orion feeling particularly worse for wear now that he'd used a lot of energy throwing up the contents of Luke's soup, fell back against the mattress, snarling as Luke approached and asked him to drink more.
"Why are you helping me?" He asked Luke quietly, sounding more forlorn than angry now. For a moment he wasn't even sure the other man had heard him, as Luke left the room briefly to gather some things to clean up the mess Orion had made.
"Because... It's the right thing to do." Luke answered vaguely, when he returned and began scrubbing at the floor, a rather puzzled look on his face.
"I've killed people... how is that 'right' to you?" Orion questioned, feeling like he was drowning in the black stains now masking his soul, he held his hands up seemingly inspecting the bloody marks that were there. Luke frowned, still scrubbing away and looking more confused by the minute.
"You're not killing anyone right now..." He countered peaceably, though Orion could tell by the emotions flickering across his face that he fully expected the vampire to kill again.
"Yet..." Orion corrected. "... Not killing anyone yet."
Luke hardly looked appeased but he wasn't giving up on Orion just yet either. "Well, you helped Phay didn't you?... If you were as bad as you claim, you would have turned her away." Luke answered, thinking it was a good thing the vampire hadn't done worse, in fact it still puzzled him that Orion hadn't done more to hurt Phay, rather than help her but he continued none the less.
"We don't turn anyone away Orion. No matter what their past is... everyone needs help once in a while." Luke added softly, trying to understand where all this was coming from.
Orion suddenly didn't feel much like talking about the past, or the present for that matter either so he abruptly changed the subject, feeling feverish again he knew he probably wasn't making any sense but he wanted to know what was going to happen to him and he didn't think anyone had the answers he was after.
"Phay said she'd show me her place... away from the city." He muttered, lifting himself up to hurl again. This time Luke was ready, shoving a bucket beneath the fresh torrent of debris.
"...I think I'd like that." Orion murmured, once he'd finished. Lying back against the pillows once more, Orion quickly fell sleep again, before he'd even had a chance to drink much more of Luke's soup. Phay's tea seemed to be doing him more good now than the soup, his fever broke by lunchtime the second day but he still seemed to lack enough energy to move around on his own, and slept almost constantly as his body continued to heal itself. The white glow of his pendant faded to a dull lustre the third day, and he finally managed to make it to the toilet on his own, moving as far as the toilet and back before falling asleep again. He hardly drank much of anything the third day, which worried Luke. The more Orion refused to drink, the longer it would take for him to heal, and given the strange discussion they'd had the day before he half wondered if Orion had given up on life altogether. It wasn't long though until Orion proved him wrong, he managed to get himself dressed and even drank some more of Luke's soup that night but just when it seemed he was well enough to leave the city with Phay, the good news came to an abrupt halt. Orion had eaten the soup, expelling everything but the blood which seemed to automatically evaporate in his system, and headed back to bed under Phay's instructions to drink more tea as it seemed to help him sleep. He'd avoided the tea though, leaving Phay and Luke to their own devices whilst he slept, that was the problem though. He didn't just sleep, he dreamed and those dreams were anything but friendly. A sharp, piercing scream of terror broke the silence that had enveloped the house since his departure for bed, both Phay and Luke jumped to their feet rushing to see what had happened. Luke thought the scream must have come from outside, and he rushed to the front door to scan the dark streets, it was Phay who ran to check on Orion. She found him clutching at the sheets, as wild convulsions wracked his body as he kept screaming, lost somewhere between being asleep and awake. Every muscle in Orion's body contracted, tightening with overwhelming pain, as he finally stopped convulsing and fell back panting heavily as though he'd just run for miles. Orion was awake though, his stormy blue eyes glittering with emotion, as Phay rushed to soothe him. Luke now stood next to Phay, with an expression much like a concerned parent, he sent Phay to get some more tea so that he could ask Orion what had happened. Orion knew Phay wouldn't go very far, and he was sure he could hear her listening in just outside the door but he answered Luke anyway.
"I'm fine..." Orion breathed, reaching up to touch his forehead, as though he needed the affirmation that he was indeed still there.
"You're not fine... Is it the soup? Maybe I can change it to better suit your tastes..." Luke retorted, wondering if he could change his concoction without affecting Orion's sensitive stomach.
"I said it's nothing!..." Orion snapped, throwing back the covers.
"I'm well enough to stand, I'm well enough to move around... this isn't anything you can fix..." He added, furious that Luke kept treating him like a child, or someone who needed help. As far as Orion was concerned, he didn't need anyone, or anything to get better.
"It's not nothing... Phay and I have put a lot effort into getting you better. So don't give up just yet Orion, let us help you..." Luke added solemnly, trying to ease Orion back into his shell. At least there, the vampire was less likely to react out of fear, right now he almost looked like he was panicking. Orion stormed over to the doorway but froze a few feet from it as though he'd forgotten something.
"You've helped me enough already and this has nothing to do with you... Or Phay." Orion snarled in finality without glancing back at Luke, still feeling irritated by his nightmares but much better than he had felt the last few days.
Phay pressed her ear up against the door, listening to the fight. She'd seen Orion, when he had been in such a fit of misery. A pit of sorrow had welled in her chest, the overwhelming feeling of utter helplessness as she watched Orion struggle with his invisible demons, with no aid to come for him. Phay did the best she could to soothe him; to in some way heal at least some of his wounds but what could she do? Pressing her head hard-up against the door as Orion screamed out his retorts to Luke's calm inquiry. A look of hurt crossed her eyes and she pulled her hood up, hiding her face; a common thing she did while sad. Was she doing the right thing keeping him here? Helping him? Maybe he hated her for it...only going along because he had no choice. Phay was sure once he was all better he would leave... and probably never say goodbye. When the door finally snapped open, Phay flinched away...she could feel Orion's angry gaze on her even though her hood and bangs covered her drooping eyes. She clutched her cloak protectively, for a moment she looked as though she might even burst into tears. In an instant though, Phay's head snapped up. A determined frown plastered on her face, as she glared at Orion.
"Tough!" She shouted lightly, to both of them, their confused expressions only fuelling her sudden and completely random outburst.
"Suck it up princess; you're stuck with us till you're completely and utterly better." She pouted folding her arms giving Orion a rather non-menacing glare despite the tone of her voice.
"Now come on were going to my place and I don't wanna hear any of your whining along the way." She pointed for him to move.
"Now?" Luke blinked as she forced Orion to march forward before grabbing some of his stuff and placing it in a bag.
"Are you sure you wanna take him anywhere he seems really angry." Phay stopped what she had been doing, zipping up the bag.
"Well if you had to drink that soup for three days wouldn't you be grumpy too?"
Luke nodded a little. "I guess your right..."
Phay smiled softly hugging Luke. "It's okay he's just throwing a tantrum. He'll cool off, he just needs some fresh air." Slinging the bag over her shoulder, she walked out into the hallway to meet Orion.
Smiling brightly she handed him his bag. "Ready to go?" She chirped happily, excitement clearly in her voice as she opened the door, jumping out into the night air.
"Adventure time!" She hopped down the stairs running down the small pathway turning back to see Orion still in the door way.
"Come on Orion!" Phay called, eager to get going.
Luke turned to Orion a serious look suddenly his face. "Keep an eye on her...I mean it."
He didn't directly say it but he was sure Orion got the hidden meaning in his words. 'Please don't hurt her...' He thought, hoping that maybe vampires were telepathic as well as blood thirsty, he smiled though patting Orion's shoulder in farewell.
"I'll see ya around, hopefully you'll feel better soon." Luke added waving once more to Phay, before shutting the door. Phay stood on the footpath, beaming up at Orion as he joined her, before she pointed the way and started walking.
"So Orion, what were you dreaming about?" She couldn't help but ask, what could have been so terrifying to a full grown man.
"You were shaking so much, I thought you might have been having a seizure." Phay looked up at him worriedly, she couldn't help it.
"Well you don't really have to tell me..." She spoke almost sadly remembering his words from earlier.
They stepped into a smaller part of the city, lights from the shopping windows lighting the way. Phay hummed softly prancing along the tiles she had given up asking questions a while ago. Seeing as the most she got from him was a grunt or a snide comment like 'none of your business'. His harsh words didn't faze her too much, she was excited to be going home and looking forwards to seeing Zero and the others again. Something suddenly caught her eye, her mouth opened in awe, and she raced over to a window staring in at a dress, it was a snow white dress, roses of different sizes littered around the torso. She smiled up at Orion.
"Could you see me in something like that?" She did a little twirl.
"I'd look super fancy, even a prince would want to dance with me." She chuckled.
"It'd probably end horribly once he realised I had duck feet." Phay stared up at the dress her hand on the glass the bright smiled faded into a sad one.
"But...that's just silly dreaming." She laughed softly though it sounded a little strained.
"Hey!" A male voice yelled.
Phay flinched looking in the direction, yet already knowing who it was.
"I thought I told you to stay away from here, I don't need street brats scaring away my customers." The storekeeper added.
Phay backed away slightly a little scared as the man raised his hand throwing a glass bottle at her. She covered her eyes the glass shattering on her arm, cutting into her skin. She cried out softly before taking off in a sprint, too afraid to see if Orion had even followed her. Ducking into an alley she hid inside a crate that had been turned sideways huddling in the corner. Slowly and painfully she pulled out the glass still wedged into her arm tossing it aside. She didn't have anything to wrap it with at the moment not till she got home, not long after Orion found her; she crawled out of her hiding spot holding her bleeding her arm. Phay was almost surprised that he had bothered to even find her, she had figured he would have taken the chance to leave.
"I thought you would have left, must wanna see my home really bad huh?" She laughed happily walking back towards the main road, luckily for both of them they were almost out of the city.
********
Orion followed Phay, restlessly scanning the neighbourhood as they walked. He didn't like any of her questions but her first question was the worst of all, because he hadn't been dreaming, he'd been reliving a nightmare. Well, technically he'd been reliving it every night and day for thirteen years now; it still didn't change anything though, he didn't want to talk about it.
"It's nothing... nothing I want to discuss right now anyway" He explained quietly, seemingly having reviewed his earlier outburst, when she'd stated that he probably wouldn't confide in her anyway. 'Let her have something to hope for...' he thought, as they neared the window of a store. It seemed she'd already had something to hope for though, as Phay was practically drooling over the elegant frilly dress in the window. For the first time since his arrival, and probably for the first time since his wife's death, Orion was enjoying himself. When all at once, his amusement was shattered by the rude store owner, turning in time to see the man yelling and throwing a glass bottle at Phay, Orion glared in his direction with a raised eyebrow and a look that questioned the man's very integrity. Before immediately rushing to the man's side, shoving him back up against the stone wall of the store, as Phay disappeared from view either too frightened or too hurt to do much about it.
"Do anything like that, ever again. And I will personally crush your bones into sparkly glitter and throw it on a princess dress for her to wear... got it?" Orion snarled viciously, dumping the store owner in a quivering heap at his feet.
"Good." Orion commanded, waiting for the man to scramble back inside his little dress shop before he went to find Phay. He found her trail almost instantly, a smattering of fine glass fragments and blood that led all the way to a small crate, hidden in the back of a dark alleyway. He stood there in silence, just watching her come to terms with what had just happened, just when it seemed she wasn't going to return to him willingly, he broke his code of silence.
"Well, it's a little smaller than I imagined... your home I mean. But I think I like it." He said a small smile lightening the corners of his mouth, for some reason though the sadness never left his eyes.
They were sapphire pools of regret, self-loathing and hatred. Two identical oceans of tormented agony, each one a swirling torrent of misery and silent destruction, that no-one could escape from. Dark, stormy blue surrounded by even darker indigo rings that seemed to seamlessly blend into each other, so that only his dark pupils stood out amidst the crashing waves of emotion in his eyes. He outstretched a hand to help her up but she didn't take it, Phay was too busy trying to prevent the blood from seeping down her arm, it had already formed a dark stain on the leading edge of her cloak, though she seemed to ignore it for the most part. Her injuries were paramount in his mind, every drop was like searing acid in his stomach but if she could ignore her own pain, he could certainly overlook his own. Tearing a long thin strip of fabric from the clothes she'd found for him to wear, he took her injured arm and bound the seeping wound gently, blocking out everything but her face and those sparkling emerald eyes of hers that seemed so familiar.
Finally they reached a field and sitting at the edge of a forest was a small cabin, looking almost home made and like it had seen better days.
"There it is!" Phay laughed running down the small grassy hill towards it. She got near the door.
"Zero!" Within a second a large mass of fur bounced out of the little hut and into Phay's arms tackling her to the ground. Phay giggled as the dog licked her face, cuddling up against her. The dog however quickly caught wind of Orion, and her head went low and her tail stopped wagging. Phay petted her head looking over to Orion.
"This is Zero, my dog." Phay grabbed Orion's hand so Zero could inspect it. The dog sniffed his hand briefly before giving a quick lick and turning around and going back inside.
"She's got puppies at the moment. So it's probably feeding time." Phay motioned him to come inside. The interior of Phay's home was made up of odds and ends of whatever she could find. Her bed was held together by an old wired frame, Blankets and old pillows covered every inch of the worn mattress. She had a small old fashioned wood stove in the corner along with a little table to put her food and some storage space. Grabbing a first aid kit from under the bed Phay wrapped up her arm not very well but at least it was done, looking up at Orion.
"You have to go into the woods to use the wash room and there's a lake over there for bathing." Phay stated awkwardly, she'd have to get him to shower once he was feeling a tad better, although she had brought some more tea just in case he became ill again.
"Also, you can stay up here if you like." She pointed to a small ladder, climbing up she showed him the small loft like space, were a mattress sat in the corner with a chest on the side.
"You can put your stuff in that if you want to sorry that there is no window." A yawn soon reached her lips and Phay stretched. She hadn't had much sleep since Orion had gotten sick, spending most of her time watching him sleep and checking up on him.
"I think I will call it a night. I'm beat." She smiled up at him before climbing down the ladder, eyes heavy she flopped into her bed kicking off her shoes. Zero came out of her hiding spot along with her pups all of them jumping up onto the bed curling up into Phay. She smiled lazily, she thought about offering Orion to join but she thought best to leave him alone for now, and within minutes she was asleep.
********
Orion followed Phay blindly the rest of the way, through the city limits and into a large forest, here the forest seemed to drown out almost all the fading sunlight. A thick soupy fog, plunging the woods into never ending mystery, still Orion followed her chosen path. His footfalls crept silently over the landscape, mimicking the very nature of the low lying fog, as Orion slowly opened his senses once again to take in the ageless beauty of the forest. Then abruptly and without much warning, the trees gave way to a grassy knoll and beyond that a small wooden shack surrounded by a semi-circle of old picket fencing. In fact the whole house seemed to be made from odds and ends, and he soon discovered that the inside was no different. Phay had a strange assortment of dogs, most appeared to be strays but the most interesting animal by far was the one she called Zero.
She was perceptive enough to understand he was a threat but backed down almost immediately at Phay's command. Orion flinched ever so slightly as Phay grabbed his hand as though, he was unused to anyone touching him let alone trying to forge a bond between vampire and animal, he remained perfectly calm trusting her to do most of the work, whilst he sat back on his heels and watched with increased curiosity. Seemingly having passed the test, Zero allowed him to continue inside to the little shack, which Orion was surprised to see was much larger than it appeared from the outside.
"Better than a wooden crate, I suppose..." He muttered, quietly following Phay from one end of the room to the other as she explained where everything was and merely nodded in response to her simple instructions of where to find the bathroom. Everything seemed to either be in plain view or near enough but he couldn't quite figure out where he was supposed to sleep until she showed him the small loft area above their heads.
Phay climbed up first, inspecting the loft with approval Orion soon followed, although he had to crouch slightly to fit in the small overhead area it was cosier than Luke's guestroom and he found that despite himself he quite liked it. The remote location meant endless privacy, not just for him to sleep in but also outside if he should need to wander about and cool off some more. Deciding he liked the place was the least of his worries though; he still needed a way to continue what he'd started, tracking down the sadistic creature that'd destroyed his life. Eventually, he'd have to contact with what remained of his family too, not that they'd done much to help him out whilst he was imprisoned. Still, he'd need whatever information they'd managed to gather in his absence, and if nothing could be done about it from there, he'd just have to go it alone... again.
Right now though he was content to let Phay rest, she clambered back down the ladder and flopped onto her bed, leaving him to get settled. Orion felt anything but settled though, clenching his fists and releasing them again as he examined every tiny detail of the loft, before walking over to the chest. Opening it gently, so as not to wake Phay, he placed the backpack with his things inside it and closed the lid. Silently descending the ladder back to the main floor, he then scanned the room for something to do, he'd always been good with his hands and although the shack didn't exactly look as good as it could have been, Orion found he didn't want to change anything without Phay's input.
So he tidied up, placing things back on shelves and washing the few dishes that remained sitting out on the small kitchenette, from whenever she'd last been here. Zero's puppies had made a mess too, leftover food lay scattered across the floor, along with a small water bowl they seemed to have knocked over. Orion refilled the water bowl and removed the scraps, before noticing that Phay had left a first aid kit out near her bed, he was reluctant to wake her especially after all she'd done to take care of him but he couldn't let her half-bandaged arm remain as it was. Gently lifting her arm from the bed sheet, he examined the wounds on the outer edge of her arm, the bloody lacerations invoking an age old hunger within him that he struggled to control. Dropping her arm, he backed away quickly nearly tripping over the first aid kit as he took a few long steadying breaths, the hunger raged within him clawing at his stomach with desire as he stood well away from her. With a soft growl, mostly at himself for allowing such a lapse in his carefully maintained level of control, he returned to her side unfazed by the slightest movement, Phay continued to sleep despite his reaction to her injuries.
This time he forced himself to think only of her wounds and how best to help her, steeling his jaw against the renewed onslaught of his senses, he set to work re-bandaging her arm. His feather light touch, usually reserved for handling his latest victim, for once was being put to good use. He managed to bandage her arm quite firmly, despite the fact she lay surrounded by Zero and her puppies, the only thanks he managed to receive in the process was a warning growl from the loyal dog as he brushed her shoulder in the process of trying to help Phay.
He hadn't realised how truly exhausted she was, nor how much effort she'd put into keeping him alive but he definitely appreciated it nonetheless. His rough hands glided over her smooth milky skin as he let her arm slide from his grasp to return to its place on the bed beside her. Having done all he could for her at the moment, he let her sleep.
Leaving the shack behind him, as he made his way out into the crisp night air, sucking in the fresh forest air he committed what was left of her scent to his memory. For some reason even her scent seemed familiar to him, and he had to shake his head to dispel the theory that he must have met her somewhere before.
"You're too kind for your own good Phay... ". He muttered quietly, before introducing himself to the other scruffy inhabitants of Phay's make-shift shelter.
He then circled the shack, not wishing to move too far away from Phay in case she should have need of him, or simply panic when she woke up and couldn't find him. He wasn't entirely sure why he was even worried about the fact that she cared so much for his well-being but he found plenty to do around the place regardless. A part of her dainty little picket fence was broken and unpainted, the various cardboard boxes that sheltered dogs were soggy and crumbling on top of their heads, and even the shack's roof desperately needed some work. Shoving his hands into his jeans pocket, he sighed in resignation.
"Looks like I'll be here awhile..." he noted, knowing he couldn't possibly travel very far in his present condition didn't change the fact that he now owed Phay and even Luke for what they'd done for him.
"Better get to work then, hey?" He added, speaking to one of Phay's dogs as it followed him around the yard.
The funny thing was that it seemed Phay already had a lot of whatever she needed to finish these jobs, for whatever reason though she hadn't even started, leaving him to wonder just what she did all day. Realising he knew very little about her, or where she'd come from for that matter, he was determined to ask her some questions once she awoke. No doubt he'd be forced to reveal something of himself in the process though. He'd have to answer carefully, so she didn't get any ideas about him hanging around permanently, for the time being though he was quite happy to finish off her odd jobs, if only to kill time whilst he healed properly.
Trying not to overdo it, and not wake Phay at the same time, he fixed the fence and painted it a brilliant white to match the rest, before sawing through the remaining timber to make a couple of new dog houses and then he went searching for some more tools. Finding a hammer and a bucket of nails for the roof, as well as a ladder up against the side of the house, Orion figured he'd be better off fixing the roof of the shack before he used up all the nails. So climbing up the ladder to reach the roof, he removed his shirt, wrapping it tightly around the hammer's head to dull the sound of his progress. He'd almost finished when he heard Phay call out to him from below, at first he didn't acknowledge her at all, he was too preoccupied with his work, running the tip of a nail through his filthy hair to make it easier for the metal to sink into the wooden shingles. He hammered the last nail into place, the sound a dull thud rather than a loud banging sound, before he turned towards the ladder and carefully placed one foot after the other as he climbed down.
"Finished..." He announced rather proudly, hoping his handiwork would hold up against the elements until Phay got around to doing more with the shack herself.
"Hope I didn't wake you up though..." He added quietly, a concerned look crossing his face for an instant. Unwinding his new shirt from its position wrapped around the hammer, he inspected it for any damage then pleased he hadn't destroyed it, he slipped it back over his head with one arm whilst trying not to reopen his wounds with the other.
Phay shook her head. "No, but you shouldn't be working... you're injured remember?" She added, scooping up his hand as she dragged him back inside for another cup of the herbal tea she had created.
"Besides, it's nearly sunrise and I noticed you seem to prefer sleeping during the day." Phay added sternly, one hand on her hip as she poured the tea into a small white cup. Handing it to him, before she poured one for herself.
Now that he thought about it, he realised she was right. His internal clock seemed to need some time to readjust itself too.
"Thanks" he added a little sheepishly, taking a sip of the tea. How long had she been awake wondering what he was up to?
"You should sleep now, but don't forget about the Lake. You really should wash all that stuff off before you get sick again" Phay added carefully, indicating the grime and dried blood still covering his arms and neck.
There was more but he was grateful, she left it at that for now. He was tired after the small amount of work he'd done to patch the roof and fence. The dog houses would have to wait. Abandoning the cup on the small wooden table, Orion climbed back up the ladder and fell into bed. Gingerly pulling the shirt off over his head again, he examined the bandages Luke had covered him with and folded the shirt into a pillow for his head. At least the mattress seemed comfy.
"Hey, Orion?" Phay called, her head popping up over the edge of the loft space he'd crawled into.
"Yeah?" He asked, not sure what exactly she wanted.
"Nighty Night! Sleep tight." Phay beamed, and with a wave she slid back down the ladder fireman style and left him to it.
He listened to her moving about the yard, as she greeted all the dogs one by one and marvelled at the work he'd done on the fence. Before he nodded off, he thought he could hear her singing but quickly dismissed it as something he'd imagined, when confusing her with someone he'd known once before.
********
Dedicated to my followers, a new chapter for you to read!