The Spy[m]aster

[Kei]

Evanna was busy pulling her hair back up into a proper ponytail when she sensed the first signs of her companion waking before he spoke to her. She turned to him, green eyes full of quiet awareness as she shook her head and returned to his side. "Try not to move too much, silly male, your body is still healing itself. It's fine, by the way. It wasn't like you came here because I was here in the first place to disrupt me. Also, I'm relieved to have been near when...that happened. You were very much not yourself."

She remembered with crystal clarity the strength and power of him as he changed into his true shape. That he had no control of it was cause for concern but moreso was the feeling of his magic against her own. It was...not unpleasant but just...troubling. Honestly she didn't know what to make of it and that was what worried her the most. Pushing the thoughts from her mind she refocused her attention on the man that was, for the moment, her patient. He seemed concerned and then thanked her for saving him. She only shrugged. "I only did the right thing, there's no need to thank me for it."

Life debts were a serious thing amongst her people, yes, but only if both parties agreed to such. She would never put someone unknowing of such things through that, it just wasn't who she was. She regarded Isao for a long moment in quiet contemplation before she blinked and carefully stretched to test the boundaries of movement in her body now that she was injured. This led to more than a few moments where she winced at the tight pull but that was fine at least now she knew her own limits.

She knew he was likely worried about what he had become, being human originally meant he fought against such things as losing control to instinct after all, so the least she could do was help him a bit while he recovered enough to bring himself home. "If you're worried about before, don't be. The only ones harmed were the ones that deserved it most. Their deaths will not be mourned. That aside...thank you for helping save the children." She inclined her head in quiet respect before turning her gaze outward towards the sky and listening to the distant Gif as he informed her of his travels.

She sighed, pushing a hand through her short-cropped hair. "Gif tells me there is a storm coming quickly, so it will be best for us to remain here until it passes. I don't mind rain, but we both are injured and I'd rather not risk it. A few days should be more than enough for both of us to be adequately recovered from our injuries as well." For her that was the truth but Isao was a mystery so she would have to wait and see.

[PendragonXeno94]

Isao nodded. "Yes, I... am not myself when I transform. I get provoked fairly easily whenever I'm trying to fight off whoever." It certainly brought back some unpleasant memories from when he served the warlord. He reached up slightly when she winced from pulling a muscle.

As she thanked him for saving some of the children, he smiled softly. "I only did what I thought was right." Settling into the bed some, he sighed to himself. "I still have nightmares about what I've done. When I change... and I have strange dreams from time to time. I don't know how to describe them."

He had never told anyone about his dreams before. It was something he considered personal. But the strange dreams he had... he never recognized where he was. Some of the buildings' structure always looked familiar to him. The language he spoke sounded similar to his native tongue. Even a few faces in the dreams looked familiar. But he could never describe what he saw exactly.

He sighed when he heard that a storm was coming. "I suppose this gives us a chance to get to know each other better..." He turned away for a moment. "If that's alright with you."

As he tried to stretch his back, he winced and let out a soft hiss.

[Kei]

Evanna regards her companion quietly for a long moment as he comments about not being himself in his other shape. She supposed that would be so to someone that was once human but really she'd told him it was that he feared it so that caused the problems. Perhaps he needed to hear it more to understand, but somehow she felt he'd be stubborn about it. "It makes sense you wouldn't be yourself in that state. Besides the fact you don't have a grounding force to help you keep steady, the more you fear a thing the harder it is to control. I could help you, if you'd like."

She nodded in respect over his comment about saving the children. She did appreciate it and she understood about the nightmares killing others could cause; though the dreams caused by his transformation seemed a bit odd. She considered him again and shook her head before settling down against the far wall away from him. He seemed pleased about getting to know her more, but honestly she was still hesitant in his presence. Nothing to do for it though since they'd be stuck here for the next few days. Besides that, she wouldn't abandon someone that couldn't even stand.

She shifted and glowered at him when he winced and hissed in pain when he stretched the wrong way. "Do try not to pull out those stitches, male. I don't want you bleeding out again before I could fix it. So take it easy, won't you?" She paused for a long moment then shook her head carefully. "Dreams are often our mind's way of trying to tell us something, in this case it might be because your human mind is trying to understand the changes caused to you because you are now Oni. It is a trait I've seen many times that those that fear what they do not understand cause themselves many undue problems."

She looked up at him again and made certain to be clear so she didn't offend him unless she intended to. "That is not me saying your feelings regarding this are invalid, it's just my opinion on the problem itself." She ran a firm hand through her short cropped hair and carefully stretched herself within the boundaries she'd found with her injuries. She'd speak with him if she had to, but she wasn't going to get too personal with it since she didn't trust this man. Still...something about the situation brought about in instinct in her that was impossible to ignore.

She stared at Isao for a long while, considering her feelings and what her instinct was telling her. She supposed he'd earned this much from her since he'd done as she'd asked - for the most part - so far. So she shifted carefully up next to him and touched his arm lightly to gain his full attention then as her eyes met his she gave him a little piece of herself that he had earned. "Don't share it with others, but you can call me Evanna. It's my first name." She gave him a tired half smile before dropping her hand away from him and moving backwards carefully until she could rest against the far wall again where she was comfortable.

[PendragonXeno94]

As he settled back into the bed, Isao rested a hand on his chest. Hearing that Rose was willing to help him find some grounding in order to get over whatever it was that he feared, he turned to her briefly. "I would appreciate that." It was so odd that she distanced herself from him and yet she seemed to want to help him in some ways. Did something happen that would make her be this way?

He knew she wasn't overly eager to be stuck with him for a few days, but perhaps it qiuld ease some tension between them. For now, he kept himself in place as he was scolded about taking it easy before the stitches came out. "Sorry." He let her go on about what the dreams could have been caused by, though he doubted some of them were caused by his transformations.

He turned his head again when she touched his arm. He gave her a somewhat puzzled look when she gave him her real name. After a moment, he recalled that she would give him her proper name when she felt that he earned it. "That's a beautiful name," he said. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes. "I... I'm not sure if I can stay up long enough to try and explain what dreams I sometimes have."

[Kei]

Evanna watched her companion closely as he drifted in and out of consciousness from his exhaustion caused by both his injuries and his transformation. She slowly moved back next to him and grabbed a bit of moss growing outside the inn and returned back to him to use it to clean his face and neck to help make him more comfortable. She started humming lowly a healing song to help lull him to rest; her voice soft and melodic as she worked.

"Be easy and rest,  your work here is done for the moment. Sleep will aide in your healing and I will remain by your side until you wake are are well." She may not appreciate having to be there with him, but things were as they were so she would manage for however long she had to remain. It didn't help that this man made her nightmares return with a vicious wrath that she often couldn't shake easily. Looks like she wouldn't be sleeping any time soon.

[PendragonXeno94]

Feeling the moss on his dace and neck, Isao finally drifted off to sleep... only to be troubled by his dream.

He was running through some unknown city with strange buildings. Gunshots were ringing through the air as he barged his way through the doors, only to find a woman lying in a pool of blood. He sobbed, apologized over and over, and picked her up to cradle in his arms. He looked down, seeing Evanna in his arms.

Was this her? Her hair was longer and she looked so...

He jolted as he awoke, gasping softly as he opened his eyes. Another quick glance around the room indicated that he was still in the inn, and Evanna was against the wall. Why did he keep having these dreams? And why has Evanna suddenly begun to appear in them?

[Kei]

Evanna watched the man next to her carefully and quietly until finally he succumbed to sleep. She herself was exhausted and rested a bit only to be plagued by nightmares of betrayal and pain and bloodshed along with a heartbreak so deep there seemed no end to it but with her own death. She startled awake, alarmed and quickly worked to get her heartrate under control; using the strength of the distant Gif to steady herself as she felt his alarm and worry for her and reached to comfort him. That horrible nightmare again, she wondered if it was something she'd forgotten from before...Perhaps, those days hadn't been the best and her father wasn't exactly beyond using torture to get his children to listen and do what he wanted. She shook her head; knowing she'd die before becoming that dying bird in its gilded cage ever again.

She noticed Isao beginning to stir as well and he also seemed to be having a nightmare. Grabbing some more moss she quickly rinsed it with the rain from outside and placed it on his head to cool the fever there, hoping he wasn't getting an infection. She didn't want to remain longer than she had to, but an infection would force her to do just that. He'd helped save the children, so she couldn't just abandon him it went against everything she stood for. Focusing instead on her task, she spoke soft words in her native language to try and soothe his clearly frazzled nerves. "Breathe easy, male, no harm will find you here. You're safe, the nightmare is finished." She hummed quietly to him, the song an ancient lullaby taught to her by her grandmother ages ago. It had always soothed her, so perhaps it would do the same for him. She wasn't a cruel female, after all.

[PendragonXeno94]

Hearing soothing words and humming, Isao began to calm himself as he glanced up at Evanna. He soon took deep breaths as she dabbed the moss on his forehead. "I... I hate having the nightmares," he said, clearly sounding shaken. "It's like I know where I am, but I don't recognize where I am at all. They usually in pain and suffering." He brought his gaze up to meet hers. "That is not strange, is it?" There had to be some explanation for them. And there had to be one for Evanna suddenly popping up in his dreams. 

He felt so... odd. As he didn't want to say much more for fear that Evanna would find him more awkward than what he was.

[Kei]

Evanna took several deep breaths before continuing her quiet humming and soothing words even as her companion finally seemed to focus back on her and the here and now; asking about nightmares. She only gave him a sad smile, taking strength from Gif where he rested far away. "Nightmares are often our mind's way of telling us something important we have forgotten or left unresolved. Sometimes they tell us of the person we were in a previous life so we do not repeat those mistakes. I would take that to heart and not fight so much to remember if pain is what it gives you." Because anything that hurt so badly as her nightmares did wasn't something she ever wanted to remember or repeat in the here and now.

It was normal to not know where one was if it was a dream of who they were before, but she didn't need him to know she had the nightmares too; especially as it was the reason - one of them - she was so wary of him. She disliked him, true, but more that she felt threatened in his presence as if her life were always in danger and she hated that feeling. Taking another deep breath, she offered him the cool moss to wipe his face with so she could stop doing so now that he was awake. "Here, it'll help cool you off. Don't try and sit up it'll hurt your injuries, just lay where you are and focus on breathing. You have a strong heartbeat, so follow that to steady yourself. You're safe here, after all, I owe  you enough not to let harm befall you while under my care."

She finally removed herself from his side and looked out the window at the raging storm beyond. She'd rather be out in it with Gif than stuck inside like there where she felt so trapped but her sense of honor wouldn't allow for it while this male was still so injured. She'd wait him out, then she'd leave. It wouldn't be too long considering how quickly Oni healed.  He'd be fine, then things could go back to how they were before. It was much easier to deal with him through letters than in person, at least then he didn't make her feel as if here life were constantly in danger. How she hated the nightmares.

[PendragonXeno94]

As Isao cast his eyes down, he listened to what Evanna had to say and nodded. He wasn't sure what mistakes he shouldn't repeat if it were true. All he knew was that he shared enough of what he saw in his dreams, and perhaps once they were more comfortable with each other, he would be more open about it. He knew she didn't exactly like him, but she seemed to have softened some since the incident with the slavers.

He took the cool moss and gently moved it around his face and neck. Nodding, he tried his best to focused on his heartbeat and breathing. The storm outside seemed to distract him some as Evanna moved away from his side. It would likely be another day or two before he recovered enough to be able to move about on his own and return home. Though, a part of him was concerned for Evanna.

What if he inadvertently put her in harm's way? Was that what his nightmare was telling him?

[Kei]

Evanna watched the storm raging outside quietly, green eyes glowing slightly in reflection of the storm's power. The raindrops seemed to chase her fingertips on the windows as if begging for her to come out and join them in delighting in the storm overhead. She wanted to, badly so, but with someone to watch over she didn't dare to give into the screaming inside her that begged to be out there in her element. It would be alright, it wasn't the first time she'd denied herself something her very being wanted like this.

She still felt Isao's presence nearby and knew he was struggling internally with whatever his nightmare had shown him. It was up to him to figure out what his mind was trying to tell him, she had no way to help him that she was willing to give. The silence wasn't uncomfortable at least, so that was something, but she had to wonder how they were going to handle each other in the coming days. He was still way too attached to her and she'd rather forget he existed if she could. Still, for now it couldn't be helped so she would have to deal with it.

[PendragonXeno94]

He turned to the storm outside. As he moved the cool moss over him, Isao sensed that Evanna would rather be in the thick of it than stuck in an inn with him. And he felt that it was his fault. What would their relationship be like if he wasn't so awkward around her? It was something he mulled over for a moment before finally turning to Evanna again. He could see it in her eyes that she was saddened by the fact that she couldn't be out there with her crew.

"Um..." he started, thinking over his next words carefully. "I haven't said this yet, but you fought beautifully." While he was far from his old charming self, he hoped that it was a start despite how stupid he must ave sounded just now.

[Kei]

Evanna blinked slowly as she heard Isao speaking from behind her. After mentally bracing herself to deal with him she turned and realized the man had just accidently stumbled across an acceptable compliment. She rolled her eyes at herself before turning to deal with him. "No you haven't said so, but thank you for the compliment. A lady does like to know she's appreciate for more than how she looks, after all."

Her words were cool but still politely pleased and she gave him a tiny smile before turning back towards the window. She was beginning to physically ache from the separation from Gif as usually they weren't so far apart for longer than a few hours. She'd been through worse, but it was grating on her a bit. She sighed and tried again without looking at the man that confounded her so with his need to be near her.

Surely if his nightmares were anywhere near like her own were it was best to stay well away from each other, so why do otherwise? Because he found her attractive perhaps but that really was ridiculous. Regardless it didn't change her opinion of him. She told him so. "I don't understand you, you know. You insist on knowing me but at the same time you know I'm uncomfortable around you. Awkwardness aside, why go through so much trouble? It doesn't seem worth it to me."

She wasn't being mean, more that she honestly didn't understand and was honestly trying to. Turning to him, she gave him the full weight of her starlit sparked green eyes and waited to see if he'd tell her the truth or just give her another 'just because' answer. Dreams said to stay away from each other for risk of death and pain, so why bother?

[PendragonXeno94]

Isao slowly shifted to where he could sit up without risking his stitches coming out. "Well, it's important to let a woman know that there is more to her than her beauty." As much as he knee to stay away, he just... couldn't. It was like there was a risk getting too close to her, but the risk seemed worth it. When asked why he continued to pursue getting to know her, he sighed.

"Honestly, I don't know. There's just someyhing about you. I don't know what it is. But it's like... I don't know how to explain it." He wasn't about to tell her that he felt that they were supposed to be together. No need to make things more awkward than they already were. "There's just something about your aura..."