I do not own Arc the Lad: Twilight of the Spirits or the characters, places, and items therein..although I wouldn't mind renting out Darc once in a while. Okay, all the time.
She crouched behind some bushes, squeezing her eyes shut and clasping her hands over her ears like a child. "Don't let him see me, don't let him find me," she muttered over and over.
"A human!", her pursuer cried, seeing her as he rounded the corner.
"A Deimos!", the girl replied, knees shaking. Before her panicked mind could tell her to run, though, another Deimos, a female, came running towards them. Without a word, the female Deimos sprung behind the male and sank her claws deep into his back. As he sank to the ground, bleeding and in shock, the attacker crowed her delight, taunting him. She was so busy praising herself for her treachery, she never noticed the human girl slipping back into the shadows mere inches away from her victim. The female Deimos departed, leaving the man facedown in the dirt and the girl shaken and confused.
"I can't just leave him like this..." She crept up to the Deimos' side, kneeling next to him to examine his wounds. Running her hands over his back, she marvelled at the sleek silvery scales that covered the back and sides of his well-muscled torso, the rest being more human and well-tanned. Shaking her head at how distracted she was, she set about bandaging his wounds. His attacker's weapons were well sharpened and had left a clean cut. The girl gently rolled him onto his side to make sure he hadn't been punctured straight through. Again, the sun glinting off his scales caught her eye, and she found herself tracing her fingertips gently across them. He stirred slightly in his sleep, his lips forming names she didn't recognize and her exploring hands froze, frightened again. She gazed at him silently, willing him to rest.
Where did the Deimos end and the Human begin? One of his arms was covered in scales and ended in a clawed hand, reminding her of a Drakyr. The scales ran up one side of his torso, ending in one small patch up his neck and on his cheek. His face was angular and handsome, his eyes dark and penetrating in that moment when he spotted her. Asleep, he still looked troubled, though perhaps that was the pain. She absently brushed a stray lock of his unruly chestnut hair out of his eyes. "What am I doing?" she whispered. Her chance to escape was slipping away from her, but she was transfixed by this man, this being, who could awaken at any moment and kill her! Once again, her traitorous hands found their way to him, stroking the nape of his neck, her heart thudding in her chest.
She stood up suddenly and took a few steps away, putting her back to him. As she muttered to herself, debating whether to stay near him or flee, he groaned and rose to his feet. "My wounds.." he rasped. "You did this? Why?"
"You were hurt," she replied.
"I'm a Deimos. Doesn't that matter to you? Aren't you scared?" His eyes narrowed dangerously, daring her to challenge him.
"Of course I'm scared. Terrified. But you were hurt. What does it matter if you're human or Deimos, you needed help!" As she spoke, she retreated a step. Even wounded, he was formidable.
He examined her for a moment, but she seemed to be speaking the truth. "Who are you anyway?"
"You know, it's polite to offer your own name when you ask for someone else's," she smiled.
He scoffed, "Oh, the Human way? Very well. I'm Darc. Who are you?"
"Nice to meet you Darc, I'm Lilia." She fluffed her hair and grinned at him.
"Lilia..Lilia! You're the one those humans were looking for!" He gaped at her. "Why are they looking for you?" They spoke briefly, about the army pursuing Lilia for the Stone that she held. Darc carefully avoided the topic of Delma, the Deimos who had made an attempt on his life. At first, Lilia's perky demeanor irritated him, but as she spoke he found himself being drawn in by her musical voice, and became loathe to let her walk away. He decided that she would be accompanying him back to Orcoth, his prisoner, and although she pleaded to be set free, it seemed false to him.
As he opened his mouth to order her to follow him back to town, a white-hot pain lanced through the wound in his back, dropping him to his knees. Lilia sped to his side, slipping her arm around his waist for support as he grimaced in pain. "Be still for a moment, trust me," she whispered into his ear, and gently lay one of her hands on his back, putting pressure on the wound. Before he could protest, a tingling warmth spread from her fingers, the muscles in his back knitting themselves together. As she pulled her hand away she paled and nearly fainted from the effort, sagging into his arms.
He stared at her, a swirl of emotions tightening his chest. On impulse, he ran a hand through her hair, letting it rest on the back of her neck. She stirred slightly, resting her head on his shoulder, her breath sighing gently against the scales on his throat. "Lilia..? Are you alright?" Strange to be worried about her..stranger still to be lifting her into his arms and carrying her to a secluded grove near the springs, lying her down carefully in the grass. He leaned close to her, listening to her breathing, and her eyes fluttered open suddenly, her deep blue eyes locking his. She reached for him, weaving her fingers into his hair, and pulled him to her, kissing him. As their lips met, the tight confusion in his chest was replaced by a terrible longing, and he pulled away from her sharply, suddenly afraid.
"I'm sorry.." she stammered. "I shouldn't have..I don't know.." Her cheeks grew crimson as he stared at her, that flush setting his heart racing once more.
"What was that?" he demanded. He interpreted her downcast eyes as rejection, and all the pain and loneliness of his youth came creeping back to haunt him again. He had thought, for that one moment...but no. She hated him. Feared him. Like all the others. He let go of her and turned away, angry that he had let himself feel vulnerable once again.
Her heart was racing, her mind spinning. Who was this Darc, to affect her like this? Lilia had never felt so strongly about a man, and who would imagine these circumstances? She was lost in herself, trying to come up with something, anything to say when he pushed her aside and turned away angrily. "Darc..Darc wait, don't go.." she pleaded, rising to her knees and reaching for his hand.
He spun back to face her, fury darkening his eyes. "Is this funny to you? Are you mocking me?"
She flinched, tears springing to her eyes. "Mocking? No! When you stopped I thought..I thought I had offended you...that I disgusted you..I didn't mean for this to happen, but...I couldn't help myself. You...fascinate me, Darc. I haven't been able to take my eyes off of you since you found me. I feel like I'm not in control around you, and I don't care.." She strayed off, searching his eyes.
His expression softened as she spoke, his clawed hand instinctively clutching the birthmark on his arm. "Lilia.." he whispered, "I..." He froze, at a loss for words again, and she slipped behind him, running her fingertips slowly down his sides, letting them rest on his hips. He turned and pulled her into his lap, kissing her deeply, his arms crushing her to his chest. She gasped as his lips found her neck, and let her head fall back, her body trembling in his arms. She slid her hands up his back again, fumbling at the clasps of his breastplate and he pulled back again, narrowing his eyes. "No...this isn't.." He frowned, confused. "What are you doing to me? I have to think."
"Still don't trust me?" She fluffed her hair, considering. "I couldn't possibly hurt you, you know. Nor would I want to..."
"I know that!" he snapped. "You're just...doing this so I'll let you go. That's it. You think if you trick me, and make me drop my guard, you can just go. Is that it?"
She sighed softly, appraising him. "How many times have you been hurt, Darc? I'm not her, you know. I'm not the one who has betrayed you. But, if you'd rather just push me away before I have the chance to hurt you, I guess you'll never find out."
He scowled again, gazing out over the gently rippling waters of the spring. "The one? Which one?" he growled. "Everyone leaves me, or tries to kill me. Everyone. Why should you be so different? Why should I believe you?"
"Look in my eyes. See if I lie. If you doubt me, kill me now and have done with it." She bit her lip. "I just wanted some comfort..I thought you did too. And...that armor stinks, you should really rinse your enemies off of it every now and again."
He barked a laugh and then glanced at her in surprise. A joke?
"Please come back..leave that thing on if you must, I'll just try not to breathe through my nose." She grinned at him, twisting her fingers in his hair. He failed to resist, so she pulled him over for a kiss again. This time, he removed the armor himself (although he left his sword belted on, which Lilia made no objection to), and her hands resumed their gentle exploration of him. The scarred lumps on his back gave her pause and he flinched, but she murmured words of comfort in his ear until he relaxed again. She traced the scars on his chest as she spoke and he shivered slightly, but he didn't fight her. Patience, she thought, it just takes time. He'll come around. Darc's hands left trails of goosebumps down her arms. She guided his scaled hand under her vest, moaning softly when he lightly traced the swell of her breasts with his claws. "Oh, Darc..." she breathed, nuzzling his neck.
"Delma!" he said abruptly.
"No...I'm Lilia." She nipped at his ear playfully.
"No...I need to stop Delma. I know where she's gone. We have to go!" He stood up, unceremoniously dumping the girl out of his lap and began collecting his armor.
Lilia sat on the ground, shaking her head at him in amusement. Cathena wasn't built in a day, she thought. I'll get through to him in time. She stood up, brushing grass and leaves from her skirt, and followed him back to the forest.