This is intended to run with the "Beetlejuice Afterlife" series of mine, which includes the stories : A New Beginning and Dark Shadows.

The grouping this story belongs to is the "Key Saga", wherein there are several stories documenting some events that took place while my original characters, Kyle and Endri, were traveling Earth, looking for the Worm Gate Keys to take to the Neitherworld. This story and any other previous or subsequent stories in the Key Saga all are set before the events that occur in BJA - A New Beginning.

This story is set in the third year of Endri and Kyle's partnership on Earth. This is an important part of their story of finding the keys to open the six Worm Gates in the Neitherworld. It's a pivotal moment in their partnership when things take a drastic turn, and the two come out different in the end. It's what changed them to how they are seen in BJA - A New Beginning.

AUTHOR'S NOTE (8-6-10): My deepest apologies to those that have been reading this story for not updating in a long time. I am VERY picky about my writing, and when I read through this story and found pieces that I no longer wanted to have in it, I had to rewrite them. And that's what took me so long. So I hate to be annoying about it, but I did change some things in every chapter, whether they are noticeable to others or not. That is why I am re-uploading the first three chapters. My apologies again for taking so long, and I hope that you enjoy this story. Thank you for being patient!

Also, if you notice formatting errors, it is because FanFiction dot net is finicky about that, and I didn't nitpick it a lot this time.

— — —

—Key Saga—

Forest Folly

Spencers13 (Lacey G) © June 9, 2003–2005 / Revised 2006—Revised 2009-2010

PG-13 (Language, Violence) / Angst; Drama

"Goodbye Blue Sky" lyrics from the album "The Wall" © Pink Floyd 1979 / "Alone I Break" lyrics from the album "Untouchables" © KoRn 2002

TimeBase : Key Saga circa August, 1995; Episode 04

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Chapter One – Anger

Kssssh—"Endri…"—Ksh

Kssssh—"Endri."—Ksh

Kssssh—"Hey, Endri."—Ksh

Kssssh—"Endri, answer me, you jackass!"—Ksh

A pale hand slowly reached down for the walkee-talkee lying in the grass. The hand took hold of the black communications device and lifted it to a set of full, pale lips.

Ksh—"I'm right here, Kyle," Endri sighed, not taking the slightest offense.

Ksssh—"What the hell're you doin'? Takin' a dump?" the unusually grouchy voice asked from the other end.

Ksh—"Ha-ha," the blonde retorted, deadpan.

Ksssh—"Well, whatever you're doin', get your ass over to my coordinates. I'm gettin' close."—Ksh

Endri took a moment to pull the walkee-talkee from his mouth and gaze at its sophisticated LED screen. There, was displayed the date and time of day, a power indicator, a reception meter, a battery meter, an electronic compass, and two sets of longitude and latitude coordinates. One set was the location of Endri's walkee-talkee, and the other was the location of his working partner, Kyle. Endri figured his white and grey-haired partner was about a quarter mile off to the left of his current position, high atop a cliff. He could take the long way around by walking down the backside of the high bluff, then rounding the entire thing, but that would take far too long. Another way was to climb down the rock face right below where he sat. It would be quicker, but would still take too long for his liking. So, there was only one solution left.

Standing, Endri gazed off into the distance over the treetops of the forest below. His eyes, as always, remained covered by a pair of dark sunglasses, but they didn't prevent him from seeing the vast beauty of the landscape. He took rare comfort from the view and soft breeze that played with his long, blonde hair and black, calf-length coat.

Inhaling deeply, the man reached his muscled arms to the sky and stretched to his fullest, tightening every sculpted muscle and sinew in his body to the limit. He exhaled and released the tension, then simply tipped over the edge of the cliff. His body fell like a stone, head first toward the rapidly approaching land below. Just before he hit, however, his momentum slowed, his body ceased its decent, and Endri swiveled in mid air to land perfectly on his feet.

The man wasted no time, did not even look back the way he had fallen, and simply headed off in his partner's direction.

A smirk plastered itself on his lips. Yes, being a ghost certainly had its advantages. It was just too bad he could never tell that to Kyle.

I I I I I

Kyle Bennington sat atop his 4-wheeler, arms crossed as he tapped an impatient, black boot against the foot rest. He checked his walkee-talkee again, seeing the numbers of the second set of coordinates change just slightly every other second.

With an irritated sigh, he plopped the device to the seat between his thighs and wrestled with his long coat, trying to take it off. It was turning out to be rather warm that day, sharply contrasting such a cool morning that was barely even over. Managing to remove the thin, auburn and brown leather coat, Kyle folded it loosely and stuffed it into a small storage compartment at the back of the vehicle. It was still a little too warm for him, so he rolled up the sleeves of his blue button-up shirt to above his elbows. When he was all finished squirming and adjusting, he again picked up his walkee-talkee and checked the coordinates. They were almost matched up with his by that time, and the distant sounds of leaves and twigs crunching caught his attention.

Endri took his time as he walked to meet up with his partner, touching the trunks of trees as he passed, feeling the rough bark against his slightly calloused fingers. He grasped limbs that hung low overhead and pulled them down only to release them and watch them bob back into position as he walked past. All too soon, however, he was standing next to Kyle while the man sat on his 4-wheeler, arms crossed again, boot tapping the foot rest, and fingers drumming against his upper arms.

"No wonder it took you so damn long. Where's your 4-wheeler?" he grumbled, eyeing his partner with a pair of piercing, sky-blue eyes.

The blonde merely shrugged, not laying his covered gaze to the irate man. "I left it back at the tent."

"Why? You can get around so much quicker with it. That's why we rented them."

Endri turned his head away from Kyle completely, looking off somewhere into the woods. "They're too fast sometimes. I'd just like to walk. I like the scenery."

His companion answered with silence, and the ghost became too curious. He finally locked gazes with the man, seeing his reaction to the statement he had just uttered. Kyle simply sat and stared, his mouth not quite shut but not quite gaping.

"You like the scenery," he said more than questioned.

"Yes. What's wrong with that?"

"You…of all people…are telling me you like the scenery."

"And I ask again, what is wrong with that?"

Kyle chuckled, reaching down to switch off his walkee-talkee since it was no longer needed at the time. "I just never pictured you to be the outdoors type."

Endri frowned behind his glasses and looked into the trees again. "I prefer this type of surrounding, actually."

Kyle just laughed again.

"What's so funny?"

"That phrase, coming out of someone's mouth like yours," the man responded, checking the gauges on his 4-wheeler and prepping it for departure.

"And how is that funny?" Endri asked again, whatever his partner was amused with lost on him.

Kyle shook his head, turning the key to start the vehicle. "Someone like you—a hard, emotionless bastard—likes the pretty trees? A-HA-ha!" he laughed above the roar of the compact engine below his seat.

Endri scowled at the insult, but chose not to reply. He simply climbed behind his partner, wrapped the bottom half of his lambskin coat over his legs to keep it away from the wheels, and held loosely to Kyle's slight waist.

Sighing softly with disappointment, Endri watched the trees he had taken so much time to walk through and observe serenely begin to blur past him, masking their beauty. It was such a shame.

I I I I I

They rode for about twenty minutes until the foliage became too thick for the 4-wheeler to pass, so they disembarked and continued along on foot. Kyle walked ahead of his partner, using a machete to carve their path, and Endri just tagged along at a safe distance behind.

The man was muttering about something or the other that seemed to be ticking him off, but the ghost just tuned him out, finding their surroundings much more enjoyable than irate ramblings. How long had it been since he had the pleasure of walking through the woods like this? Too long. The woods were his home. He belonged there. Contrast to whatever stereotype Kyle or others put to him, he was indeed an outdoorsman. He knew more about living off the land than any human could learn in years.

The trees and the light breeze through their leaves, the soil beneath his feet, the birds high above, and the animals down below all talked to him, all sang to his still blood, 'You are home. This is where you belong.'

Endri sighed longingly and reached out to pluck a honeysuckle from its vine. He sniffed it genteelly and resisted the temptation to taste the sweet nectar hidden within the petals.

"—istening to a word I say?" Kyle's voice suddenly broke through.

The ghost blinked behind his glasses and lifted his nose from the white flower. His gaze rested to the human's flushed red face, and he wondered exactly how long he had been spacing out. "Pardon?"

"Did you even hear a word I just said?" Kyle hissed, his blue eyes flashing.

"I…uh…" Endri tilted his head a tad to the side, "no."

The human threw his arms up in defeat, growling loudly. "Argh! You see, this is exactly what I mean! You just do whatever you damn well please, and leave me to do the dirty work!"

The ghost frowned behind his glasses. It wasn't like his partner to blow up like that. "That isn't true."

"Isn't it? Who's the one who rigged his GPS to be able to locate all the keys? Who's the one who books the flights, trains, hotel rooms, rents the cars and other crap, runs errands, and stays up until ungodly hours working on his laptop to find the next key? I'll tell you. Me!" Kyle shouted, taking his machete and sinking it into a nearby tree with one swing of his arm. "And what do you do? Sit on your ass and take it easy while I do the rest!"

Endri let his hand holding the honeysuckle flower fall down to his side, releasing the blossom to let it drift slowly earthward. "You know that isn't true. So why are you so angry at me all of the sudden? What did I do to set you off?"

"Oh, believe me, Endri, this has been building for quite a while. I just never had the opportunity or quite frankly the guts to say anything. But now…now I'm just too pissed to care," Kyle growled, clenching his fists and crossing his arms. "I mean, after all, if I ever said the wrong thing, you could beat the living crap outta me with one hand."

"I'd never do that," Endri assured, taking a step forward.

Kyle retreated a step, keeping the distance equal between them. "No, you just stay over there."

"Kyle, wh—"

"I mean, I don't even know you! You could be some serial killer, and I wouldn't even know it until I'm the next in line! Dammit, Endri, I don't even know your full name! But you know so much about me, it's scary. What are you, the kind of killer that learns all he can about his victims before he off's 'em?"

Endri stood silently, simply staring across the way. Only about eight feet separated them, but the distance seemed impassible to him. He never even opened his mouth to assuage Kyle's accusations.

"Yeah. And this 'crusade' we're on. Your crusade that you dragged me into. Maybe—maybe, I don't wanna do this anymore. Revenge sounded sweet at first, but now its just becoming tiresome. And how'm I supposed to believe this ridiculous story of yours that we can go to a Neitherworld and use these keys we're finding to open gates to other dimensions. That's just ludicrous! It's insane if you think about it!… And I can't believe I was so weak-minded to let you convince me to do it. So now, here I am, out in the middle of nowhere with a stoic lunatic looking for little metal and stone balls to take to a place that probably doesn't even exist!"

Endri drew his full lips into a thin line, trying to hold his abundant anger in check. Kyle was just frustrated. All humans got like that on occasion when things weren't working out. Endri hadn't been paying attention when he was supposed to, and it had apparently lit a very shortened fuse. He should just let the man vent on him, and then things would be all right again. But still, being called a 'stoic lunatic' wasn't exactly flattering.

"So…is that what you think of me?" he asked, keeping his voice very carefully in check. He expressed nothing that could betray his emotions.

"Oh, you want to know what I think of you? All right, then." Kyle cracked his knuckles and psyched himself up for the battle that was sure to arise from his next words. Any normal person would want to beat him into a pulp for what he was about to say, and knowing Endri, Kyle would be in for one massive thrashing. But he went on anyway, just too angry to see reason.

"Here's what I think of you, Endri—if that's even your real name. I think you're an arrogant ass who couldn't show emotion to save his life. Did it ever once occur to you that I don't like feeling like crap all the time? Because that's how you make me feel. Every time you're around with your apathetic ass, you depress me. You never have anything exciting to say or do. You're boring, Endri."

He paused, then, to steel his nerves enough to continue. Endri's blank stare was beginning to drill through his soul. "And the way you look at me—with those damn glasses on all the time. It creeps me out! I know you have a sensitivity to light, or so you say, but I've never once seen your eyes. What color are they? I shouldn't even ask, 'cause you probably won't tell me that either! You're one big mystery that I'll never be able to figure out, but, I'm happy to say, I don't want to try anymore." Kyle smiled, but it wasn't in high spirits; it was dripping with malice. "That's right. I'm sick of trying to work my way under your impenetrable exterior. I'm tired of trying time and time again to get you to loosen up. I'm fed up with trying to be your friend. It's obvious to me that isn't what you want anyway. You just want our partnership until I practically get all the keys for you, then you'll ditch me along the road and take off to your Neitherworld, leaving me in the dust." He eyed the blonde before him. "That's what you were going to do, wasn't it."

Endri lifted his head just a bit higher in acknowledgement of the question and paused for a few moments before giving an answer. "No."

Kyle huffed, crossing his arms again. "No? Pff! No? You see, that's exactly what I'm talking about! Listen to you! No emotion in your voice whatsoever. Do you even have inflexion at all? Have you always been such a stoic prick? Were you just born that way? 'Cause I find it hard to believe you could be such an ass as a little boy. Then again, there are little boys who're raised to be asses.

"And the crazy thing is, is that this whole ordeal doesn't even make sense! A while back, two years now, it felt like I was starting to get to know you. It took a while, over a year from the time we became partners. When Moorlan died." His voice wavered for just a moment before he caught himself and continued on. "I thought you had changed. I thought you were opening up. You started being nicer to me; you gave me that expensive ring—the only thing that hadn't been stolen from you. This ring right here." He reached down into his shirt and lifted out a silver chain hidden within, dangling the ring he had strung to it before Endri's gaze. "You said it was one of the last things that was important to you, and you gave it to me because you said I was important to you too. So I thought…I thought that meant that we were going to be friends.…" He looked at the ring in his hand with watery blue eyes, and, suddenly disgusted with it, tore the chain from his neck and threw it at his partner.

Endri lifted a hand and caught the item smoothly, the limp chain dangling from either side of his fist.

"But we haven't become friends! If anything, you've distanced yourself further from me than ever! Are you afraid? Afraid you'll be hurt again if something happens to me?" He huffed in disgusted amusement. "Of course, that's just me…being hopeful again. Deep down inside, I'm hoping you do give a crap about me. But the more sensible side of me knows you could care less. I bet you don't even care about anything at all. Nothing but your revenge, of course. That's first and foremost on your mind, isn't it? Do you even care? Do you care about anything else at all?"

Endri stood in silence, his hands long since drawn into tight fists, the discarded necklace still dangling from one. But what Kyle never took notice to was how tightly those fingers were drawn toward the ghost's palms or how his knuckles had gone bone-white instead of their usual deathly pale hue. And if the human would pause just a few moments in his ranting, he would be able to catch the light tremble that occasionally shook those fisted hands. Endri was good at keeping his emotions in check, but his blockade was wearing down with each new accusation and insult slung from his partner's lips.

"I bet you don't care," Kyle went on, oblivious to the ghost's growing anger. "Did it ever occur to you that I needed a friend? That I needed someone to talk to? Someone to listen to me and help me with my problems? Someone to put their arm over my shoulders and tell me everything would be all right again?" Sighing, Kyle let his head hang and shook it weakly. "I used to think you would be that person. I thought you would be different from the rest of the people I'd ever known—different from all the bastards in my hometown that blamed me…for them. All the jerks that saw only what they wanted to see, and were so quick to point fingers—all of them at me!" He thrust a finger toward his chest, emphasizing his words as he glared back over at the unmovable visage of his partner. "Well, you're just like them! You don't give a damn about me, and I highly doubt you ever will!"

He glared hatefully across the distance between them, noticing how Endri had barely even moved since his tirade began. "Look at you. Are you even listening to what I'm saying? Or are you spacing out again, looking at some dumb flower behind me? Do you even care about what I'm saying? Do you understand what I'm saying to you?"

Endri tilted his head just a tad upward again, acknowledging the new questions. His lips broke the thin line they had been in since his last statement and formed his new one. "I understand." And still, his voice was impassive, just like it had always been.

Kyle just shook his head in bewilderment, his piercing eyes locked to the ghost's dark shades. "And I rest my case. You emotionless, heartless, uncaring, selfish son of a bitch!" he cried. "I'm so sick of this! I am out of here, Endri! Find your own damn keys; I quit this lousy partnership. I'm quitting this lousy forest, I'm quitting this lousy country you dragged me to, and I'm quitting you, Endri! I don't ever want to see your sorry excuse for an ass again! I…" his voice caught in his throat for a split second, emphasizing his pain, "I hate you!"

Kyle spun on his heel and darted off into the dense brush, his entire body gone within two steps beyond the foliage. Only the hastened rustle of his moving through the leaves and branches gave any indication someone was still close by.

Endri released the breath he had been holding for the last five minutes, even while he spoke his short answers, and felt his body sag downward in defeat. There went another o—

"AAAUUGGGH!"

The echoing scream erupted from up ahead, and it was Kyle's voice, raised to an unnatural pitch and sounding like he was in terrible pain. Endri hesitated for a split second as what the scream could mean registered in his mind before pocketing the necklace he was still holding with a vice-like grip and taking off at a hastened pace, following the human's path through the thick foliage.

Was it a snake? Had he been bitten? Did he trip and hurt himself? Was his ankle sprained or broken? Was some wild animal attacking him? Did he need help? Would he even accept Endri's help with how much he…he hated him?

That word echoed throughout his being, sending another pang of discomfort through his chest with each reverberation. Hate. Kyle hated him. True, he never felt all that close to the man, but why did that phrase sting more than it ever had from someone else's lips? He had been told he was hated before, but the pain was never so deep. Could it be that he actually felt more for Kyle than he realized? Did he really consider the man his…friend?

Friend. The word was so foreign to him, it was almost another language he had yet to learn. But he wanted to learn. He wanted to learn everything he possibly could. Every time he ran across something new of interest, he had to learn about it. Maybe he should have tried more adamantly to learn how to be a good friend instead of concentrating on stowing his emotions away from everyone and everything…even himself.

Now, it seemed, he was too late. Kyle hated him, and he would probably never gain back what little trust they had to begin with. He just didn't know what he would do now, or where he would go. He was just getting used to the wily, white and grey-haired human, and now he was alone again. But not quite yet.

"AAUGH! AH! OH, SHIIIIT!" Kyle's voice screamed again. It almost sounded like he was…dying?

Endri swallowed and picked up his pace. No, Kyle shouldn't die. He wasn't supposed to die yet. He was far too young, still in his prime of life. Life was precious. Life needed to be harbored and encouraged to grow. And Endri could protect life without any concern for his own because he did not posses it himself, and so he could never lose it. That meant he would always be there to protect life. He would never waiver. He would never wink out of existence. He would always be a sturdy rock for life to hold onto, hide beneath, and prosper as it rode on his strong shoulders.

The thought of Kyle dying—it…stung. Why did it sting? Why would it? Why should it? It made no sense. Unless Endri did think of the human as his friend. Then it all made sense—perfect sense. But even still, he would not allow himself to believe he felt anything more than indifference for his partner. He couldn't afford it.

'Please don't be hurt,' the ghost thought against all the negativity as he pushed his body faster through the foliage. He had to find Kyle and fast! Just then, he burst from the brush and skidded to a halt just inches before he would have rammed into his partner's back. He backed away, mouth agape at the sight that befell his eyes.

Kyle had been running so fast and so blindly, fueled on by burning anger, that he had no time to stop before breaching the concealing leafage and impaling himself upon a tree branch extending out from a gnarled, dead tree. The cloth over the human's left shoulder in back protruded just slightly, but was not torn. The man was only so lucky that the branch hadn't penetrated the entire way through his shoulder. The circumference of the limb was about that of a screwdriver handle, and that extended into the front of Kyle's shoulder.

The human held onto the tree before him, one hand to the bark of the trunk, the other wrapping around the branch puncturing his shoulder. Three more inches to the right and down just a tad, and he would have pierced his heart. His entire body trembled with shock and pain, and his mouth gaped open in a silent cry of agony.

Endri rounded him quickly, taking in his partner's pained features and fearful look. He had to do something to help! "Kyle! A-Are you all right?" he asked stupidly, unable to think of anything else. For once, he was shocked into ignorance, and his brain couldn't think of what to do.

Kyle's eyes darted to the ghost's visage as if just then noticing his presence. His mouth shut, and his teeth ground together, producing a strained kk-k noise. "Bastard!" he spat, his face red from pain and anger. "This i-is all your fault! Ahhsss!" he hissed, closing his eyes tight. The act of speaking seemed to jostle his body painfully around the branch penetrating clean into his person. He tried to hold as still as possible, but he was practically hanging from his shoulder, his tiptoes the only part of himself touching the ground.

Endri finally regained his bearings and stepped around to stand directly behind his partner. He made no move to touch him, however. "Kyle. You need to calm down. You'll only make this worse by over-stressing yourself." He heard a strained growl from the man in front of him, but no other words. "Now, I'm going to count to three, then I'm going to pull you free. All right?"

Kyle hissed in pain again. "No! No, don't touch me! Just leave me alone! AHH! Oh, damn! Oh, damn, I'm gonna die!"

"You aren't going to die. Just calm down, and everything will be fine."

"Fine? Fine? I'm freakin' stuck to a freakin' tree, and you say things'll be fine? Kiss my ass, Endri! I bet you wanted it to happen!" the man shouted, trying his best not to move, but not succeeding. It was hard to keep his balance on his tiptoes and speak at the same time, and the pain was becoming overwhelming.

A pair of hands gripped Kyle's upper arms, and he screamed with the pain that jolted through his left shoulder. A voice spoke quietly and calmly into his ear, warm in tone, but still stoic.

"One…two…three!" Endri pulled straight back on his partner's arms, pulling the man's body away from the sharp branch with a sickening slush of tearing flesh.

"GNAHHHUUGHH!" Kyle screamed at the top of his lungs, feeling unbearable pain lace through his body like lightning, shocking his entire system. He collapsed limply into the ghost's strong arms and felt his body being laid to the ground.

Endri knelt next to his partner, cradling the man's head in his lap to keep his shoulder from hitting the forest floor. He quickly shrugged off his coat, trying not to jostle Kyle's body too much. The man grunted in pain as his body began to shake involuntarily, his eyes kept tightly shut against the blinding flashes of agony sparking behind his lids.

Endri eventually got his coat off and laid it to the ground beside himself, then drug Kyle's shuddering, half limp body over and placed him upon it. As soon as the man's shoulder rested to the ground, he couldn't contain a cry of pain that made even Endri wince.

"Shhhh…" the blonde hushed, quickly undoing the buttons on his partner's blue shirt.

Kyle hissed through his teeth and cracked open one eye. "Don't you dare shush me! Ssah! Watch it, bastard! I told you not to touch me!" He waved his good arm around, trying like a child to keep his partner away.

"Calm down or the pain will be even worse than it needs to be," Endri ordered, deftly working around he man's wormlike appendage to get the last of the buttons apart. He pulled the left half of the bloodstained shirt open to inspect the wound more clearly.

A ragged hole of mangled, bloody flesh greeted him, and he hissed quietly through his teeth. That was not good. That could easily get infected by the time they got back to civilization—about three day's journey away. Already, he saw dirt in the wound: flecks of bark and splinters from that damn branch. He would have to clean it quickly, but with what? The canteen of water was back on the 4-wheeler, but even if he had it with them, he knew he couldn't waste the precious liquid like that. It would be more valuable for Kyle to drink than to clean his wound. So what then? What could he use? Endri's mind worked a mile a minute as he knelt over his partner of three years. The man's head of white and grey hair rolled back and forth lazily, shudders raking through his body, his eyes screwed shut as he muttered curses, both to the tree he had impaled himself upon and to Endri for being the supposed cause. The ghost chose not to do anything about the man's anger for the time being, being more concerned with his health than anything else. He was surprised Kyle hadn't passed out by now. The shock alone was causing him to shake, and it was getting worse.

An idea sprung to his mind just then, and right away, he knew Kyle would never approve. But it was almost literally do or die, and Endri certainly didn't want the human to pass on quite yet, especially since he hadn't fixed the hard feelings between them. He would hate to end things on a sour note.

"Kyle, just hold still. I need to clean your wound before I can dress it. It'll probably hurt," he said, his voice softer than usual, but still holding no real tone, no caring inflexion.

Kyle growled at him, cracking that same glaring eye open again. "The hell you will. You keep your filthy hands offa me. Just get the hell away from me!" He tried to squirm and get up, crawl away, anything to get away from that infuriating blonde, but Endri just smirked down at him, placing one hand to either side of the man's body, keeping him pinned without really touching him.

"I don't think you mean that. Especially since I could very well be saving your life right now." He leaned down and lifted his left hand to Kyle's upper right arm, holding him in place. "This will probably seem awkward, but just try to remain calm."

Kyle growled at him again, both eyes open now and his lips curled into a feral snarl. He felt like a helpless, injured animal under the hungry gaze of a lion.

Endri leaned his face lower and brought his lips to the gushing wound. His tongue snaked out and ran over the scored flesh, licking up large amounts of blood and a few pieces of dirt from the wound. He rolled the warm liquid over his tongue and gathered the bits of bark toward the front, then turned his head to the side and spat them out. The blood, he swallowed.

"AHHGH!AH, you sick bastard! I can't believe you!" Kyle shouted, wincing in absolute pain, his body on the verge of all-out convulsions. "That's disgusting—SSHAH!"

"Shut up," Endri growled, leaning close again. His tongue slid over the human's wound again, gathering only blood that time. He swallowed that down almost hungrily, then went back for more, digging his cleaning organ past the surface of Kyle's flesh and into the puncture, weeding out the bits of dirt stuck there.

All the while, the human writhed and screamed beneath him, both of his hands digging into his muscled sides, trying for all he was worth to tear into the white fabric of Endri's shirt and dig trenches in his pale skin. The pain, the absolute pain—it was too much to bear!

"Stoooop!" he cried finally, tears pricking his eyes and exhaustion dragging his strength away at a dead run. "No more, please! That's enough.…"

Endri backed away, indeed finding not much else to clean from the ragged wound. He licked his lips clean of Kyle's blood as he sat back to his haunches and pulled his white cotton shirt from the waistband of his jeans. Grabbing a seam, he tore upward about two inches, then ripped a strip of the material off all the way around the bottom of his shirt. He pulled the makeshift bandage around Kyle's shoulder about three times then tied it securely in place, making the man wince and groan with each jostle to his body.

"There," Endri said, sitting back to his haunches again and pulling the man's heavy arms to lay crossed over his stomach. "That should hold for a little while, but it'll need cleaning again in few hours since we don't have the proper medicine with us to take care of you. It's starting to get late in the day, so we'll leave for town tomorrow morning to get in a full day of traveling. Right now, we need to get you back to the tent. You need rest and something to eat."

Kyle scowled at him the entire time he lay there. He said not a word as the ghost drew his oversized coat around his smaller body and tied the arms over his chest, keeping the coat in place like a protective sheath. The man did hiss in pain, however, when his body was lifted almost roughly into Endri's arms and toted back through the thick foliage. He held his vocalization of pain in the entire walk back to the 4-wheeler and said not a word as the ghost positioned his body in front of his, facing him, his legs overlapping Endri's, and his chin propped to the ghost's shoulder. Endri started the engine and turned the vehicle around, then propelled it forward, back toward their small camp and shelter for the evening, one hand driving and the other holding a seething, trembling, pain-ridden Kyle against himself.