I have a review already!!!! *SQUEE!!!!*
I'll tell you, that really made my day :P Thank you Kittie80!!!!!
Okay so anyway, sorry this chappie took a little while xD Exams are this week, *cringe*
It hasn't reached the, "OH! THAT'S WHAT HAPPENED!" part yet, but it's coming along pretty well
if I do say so myself :P For those Hartia fans out there, he's got a pretty important role to play
which will probably be introduced in the next chappie (when I have time to write that is anybody's guess XD)
Alright, that's about it. Thanks for reading EVERYONE!!!!
And before I forget: I don't own Orphen. If I did, I would make a third season. Or a movie. Or both. :P
Chapter 2
Present
Cleao Everlasting opened her eyes slowly, squinting against the startling brightness. When the stars finally cleared from her vision, she took in her surroundings.
Okay...Whatever I drank last night was definitely spiked...
A vast sea of white surrounded her, stretching for what looked like forever in all directions. She wondered how long she'd been here, wherever that was. And why she couldn't quite remember how she'd gotten there. In fact, she couldn't really remember much. Falling asleep on Orphen's shoulders was the last recollection she had, and the harder she tried to remember, the more vague everything became. Was this a dream? Maybe she was still asleep.
"Well this is probably the most boring dream I've ever experienced," she mused aloud, staring around glumly. "There's nothing. No people, no places...I mean, for God's sake, at least put in some damn colour." As soon as the demand had escaped her lips, everything around her seemed to change. What was once cool stone floor was now soft and hot against her feet; she looked down and frowned. It was sand.
Staring at the floor, she took a step forward. And another. Huh. It almost felt...real. With a curious shrug, she shifted her gaze to look once more at the toneless white walls surrounding her. At least, they used to be white.
A perfect blue sky greeted her, a soft warm breeze caressing her disbelieving face, tossing her hair gently about her shoulders. The sound of crashing waves caught her attention, and she turned to investigate. Once more she was astounded; the endless sea of white had been replaced by an actual sea.
"That explains the sand, I guess," she murmured to herself, awed. Who knew her imagination could be this good? And the detail... The feel of the wind in her hair, the warmth of the sand between her toes...
It was marvellous.
"Do you like it?"
She jumped at the sound, spinning around sharply to face her unexpected visitor. All this spinning was making her dizzy. But she hadn't needed to turn to know who it was. She knew that voice better than any other sound in the world.
Orphen was standing a few meters behind her, looking as if he was enjoying the view just as much as she. He wore an unbuttoned white dress shirt and black dress pants – squashing any stray thought of hers that this wasn't a dream. The wind blew his shirt open to reveal his chiselled chest, his rock hard abdomen...
"What the hell are you doing here?" She hissed, shooting icy glares in his direction to cover up her drooling. "This is my dream, and it just got interesting. Don't ruin it now!"
"First of all," he smirked slyly, walking across the sand toward her. Shit, he was gorgeous, his thick dark hair swaying in the wind, his dark, penetrating gaze sending a flush throughout every inch of her body. She noticed absently that he wasn't wearing his bandana, and that he looked so much different without it. She couldn't decide if she liked it or not. "There's no possible way I could ever ruin a dream of yours." He was close now, only a few feet away; she could smell him, her favourite scent in the whole world. Only, at first it smelled wrong, kind of gross, and she had the strangest wave of déjà vu. But as he got closer and she could really breathe him in, she changed her mind. Musky, woodsy...Just right. He was standing right in front of her now, his face inches from hers. Her heart was pounding in her chest, in her ears; she felt like she couldn't breathe. "And second," he murmured, bringing his face even closer to hers, "this isn't a dream."
She couldn't argue, she couldn't scoff. She could only stare at his lips, inches from her own, her heart hammering so hard in her chest she was sure it was going to pop right out of her.
His hand came up, rough against her skin as he gently pulled her face to his, their lips closing the distance...
Cleao....
"Wha?"
She jerked away, the familiar voice reverberating inside her skull. Spinning around for the millionth time, she searched the ocean shore for the speaker. "Shrimpy, you just ruined the best moment EVER. Get your ASS out here RIGHT NOW!" she hollered in no specific direction, fuming. She couldn't even pretend to hope for such a thing to happen in real life. Why did her dreams have to be interrupted?
Cleao...You must awaken...
"But I like this dream! I don't want to go yet!"
"I already told you, this isn't a dream." Hands gripped her shoulders roughly, spinning her around to face him.
And then it was screaming, his agonized yells filling her mind, forever embedded there. The sound of Orphen's agony, even though she knew that somehow this wasn't him, was almost too much to bear, and for a moment she felt herself letting go.
It's not him, she screamed at herself. It's not him, It's not him, It's not him,
"It's not you. It's not you! Get away from me!" She shouted, the memories suddenly starting to come back to her. The terror she'd felt when she'd ripped off its face-
Fight it, Cleao...Wake up...
"Let me out! LET ME OUT!" she thrashed in its arms, desperately trying to pull away.
Gotta get out gotta get out gotta get
But this time it wasn't letting go. It tightened its hold on her, its fingers digging into her skin painfully. His- no, it wasn't him – eyes darkened, black with rage, and she felt her feet lift off the ground.
She squeezed her eyes shut, willing herself to wake up, to get the fuck out of this nightmare. But she couldn't. No matter how hard she tried, she wasn't waking up.
"How many times do I have to tell you?" It whispered in her ear, that familiar, putrid stench entering her nostrils, suffocating her. "This is no dream."
It flung her away with excruciating force; she felt her body sail through the air, the wind whipping through her like shards of glass.
Hartia...
She crashed into the ocean, the chilling water encompassing her as she sank lower and lower into its depths.
Help me...
2 nights earlier...
"We'll take two, please."
Orphen, still carrying a sleeping Cleao, stood with Majic at the front desk of some dingy hotel. In the dark of the night, they'd finally come across a run-down, cheap building that tried to pass itself off as homey. The old wooden walls weren't sanded down, with splinters and rusted nails sticking out here and there. The floor was coated in such a thick layer of dust, at first glance it looked like carpeting. And to top it all off, it was run by some creepy old guy with wandering hands- and eyes.
If he looks at Cleao like that one more time...
"Right this way, fellas, hehehe," the owner wheezed, chuckling cheerfully to himself. Muttering darkly under his breath, Orphen trudged ahead, leaving Majic- as usual- to carry their baggage.
"We don't get many customers, as you can probably see," the old man was saying, leading them down a short hallway. He moved slowly, hobbling toward the first of 3 doors on the right. "So I don't usually keep all of the rooms ready for guests. This one should be fine," he gestured to the now open room before hobbling down to the next door. "These are my quarters, so gimme a shout if you need anything." One more hobble and they'd reached the last door. "And this one is free as well." He glanced at the sleeping girl keenly, making Orphen's skin crawl. "It's got a more feminine touch to it, I'm sure she'll love it. Oh, and before I forget," he pointed to the two doors on the opposite walls. "The plumbing's been a little, well, broken for the last few days. I haven't really needed it, so I didn't bother fixing it up for any guests. We don't get them much, you see," he mentioned once more, scratching his head.
Haven't needed to use the bathroom? What the hell did he use?
"There's a pond a few minutes into the forest, that way," he continued, gesturing to the west. "For all your hygiene necessities. And that's about it. I'll leave you to your rooms. Have a wonderful stay!"
Without another word, Orphen shuffled Cleao inside the 'feminine' room. It wasn't quite as dusty as the front foyer, and the bed looked comfortable enough. It would just have to do- besides, she'd been through worse. Making his way toward the bed, he started to shimmy Cleao off of his back and into his arms, trying carefully not to wake her as he lay her down. Pulling the covers over her still form, he watched her for a moment before turning to leave.
Something glinted in the corner of his eye, and he turned to face what he thought had been an empty wall across from the bed.
A nearly concealed door handle shone guiltily at him, revealing a door separating the owner's room and Cleao's.
"Feminine touch, my ass," he growled, a spell already forming on his lips. "I'll give your walls a nice finish, dirty perv-"
"Orphen..."
He turned around slowly, the bluish glow of the spell fading away. Glancing at the bed, for a moment he thought he'd woken her up; she'd spoken with such startling clarity. On a closer inspection, he realized she was just talking in her sleep. Something she did quite often these days.
He had to admit, it was a cute habit- but also extremely infuriating. Especially when she said his name...
Why it bothered him so much was beyond him, but whenever she called out in the night, saying his name, there'd always be a strange tightening in his stomach, like someone had socked him good. And then, she'd just shut up – the one time he actually wanted her to talk – and he'd find himself restless. He would lie awake, watching the fire dance, the flames seeming so alive as they flickered, seamlessly blending into each other. Sometimes he would just give up on sleep altogether, going for walks through whatever area they'd decided to camp in. He'd try to clear his head, to get her voice out of it, through whatever means necessary. And it really wasn't working out for him. She was driving him absolutely insane.
She tossed about, a deep frown wrinkling her sleeping face. Eventually she heaved a long sigh before relaxing against the sheets.
"I guess blowing this place up will be our goodbye present," he sighed, heading over to her side. "But for now, we're making a little change in plans." Gently, he lifted her out from under the covers, slinging her carefully over his shoulders again. "I can't leave you in here by yourself." he murmured protectively. Her head lolled forward on his shoulder in silent agreement, her bangs falling over her closed lids. His hand reached out instinctively, wanting to brush them away. Hesitating for just a moment, he sighed, letting his hand drop back to her leg, keeping her steadily on his back.
God, he was losing it.
Heading back to the room intended for him and Majic, for once she didn't utter a sound.
"So, you're going to sleep in the room attached to that handsy old man, and Cleao and I will stay here?"
Orphen had brought Cleao back to their room, plopped her maybe a wee bit too roughly – Majic had given him a horrified glance as she landed - onto one of the two cots, and started for the door. Now Majic was clarifying the new room arrangements, watching as Orphen grabbed his things and headed for the door. The two lanterns along the walls flickered, sending dark shapes scattering across his retreating form.
"You got a problem with that?"
Apparently he hadn't noticed the panicky pitch to his apprentice's voice.
Oh yes. He had a major problem with it.
"Well, I was just thinking..."
Orphen leaned heavily against the open doorframe, his nightbag hanging lazily at his side. "Were you, now? And how long does that usually take?"
"Aha..hah...Well, Master, it's just..." he took a deep breath and exhaled, blurting out the first excuse he could think of as quickly as possible. "If you're so worried about that old guy doing something to Cleao then maybe you should just stay in here instead of me!"
He cringed in the silence that followed, waiting for the expected beating- whether verbally or physically, it didn't matter. Both were somehow equally painful. And worth getting a room away from Cleao, after last time. Not that he'd ever bring it up. She'd been shooting him death-spewing glares since they'd left the damn hotel, and that'd been days ago.
After a few moments, he dared a peak at his master.
Still leaning against the doorframe, Orphen was casually swinging his bag in and out of the room, a curiously amused expression on his face. Leki had climbed up to snuggle against his owner, watching the two men curiously through emerald eyes.
Before Majic had time to summon up the courage to speak, a low chuckle rumbled from the sorcerer's chest.
"Waking up to find you here, she'd probably beat you senseless after last time. That what you're worried about?"
"Please Master," he begged, eying the sleeping girl with renowned horror. "She could kill me in my sleep. She could wake up and do it right now!" He blanched as she shifted in bed, looking for a moment like she might wake up.
Majic had been packing up his things, minding his own business when Cleao'd stormed into their room, having had the usual argument with Orphen. Trying to be as polite – and silent – as possible, he'd done his best to ignore her grumbling, keeping his back turned as he packed. Until, of course...
"Don't know where he gets off...And when the hell do I ever talk in my sleep? And about him, of all people. The nerve of him to even suggest it is just-" Of course, being the easy-going guy that he was, Majic had started to chuckle. He should have known better. "And what's so funny, Mister Chuckles?" "It's just that, well, you talk in your sleep. A lot. Every night, actually. Pants go here, toothbrush there..." She'd given him an angry glare, her eyes glinting furiously. "Oh really," she'd sneered, taking a haughty step toward him. Of course, being the foolish teen that he was, Majic was still chuckling. "And what, exactly, do I say during these lovely moments. Hmm?" "Well, when it first started happening, we had no clue what you were mumbling about. But then you said something to make it all pretty obvious. There it is!" He'd exclaimed suddenly, snatching a stray sock, his conversation momentarily forgotten. "Which was...?" She'd hinted through clenched teeth, her one eye starting to twitch dangerously as she continued to glare at him. It was as clear a warning as damn warning bells would've been. Of course, Majic was still packing his things, having not bothered to glance in her direction as he spoke. Had he seen her expression, he'd have made something up. Or called Orphen for help. Or for God's sake, stopped chuckling like a moron. "I said WHAT?!"
"It was actually really funny," he'd wheezed, now full - out laughing, folding his pajamas neatly before stacking them on top of the rest of his luggage. "How did you put it...I think it went...Oh, right: 'His eyes...So...dreamy...Hmmhh'. Really, the tone of voice, we were killing ourselves-"
And that was around the time the chuckles had stopped. To be replaced by screams of terror.
Cleao'd been waiting by the front door, ready to go, for a good twenty minutes before Orphen'd managed to untie him from the rafters.
"You still haven't told me what you said to piss her off," Orphen commented, eying his apprentice curiously. "And damn, she was pissed. I mean, usually she just blows you up, but that time...Not that I'm complaining; one less hotel to rebuild is fine with me." But, considering the look of sheer terror still plastered on the boy's face, he imagined it was going to stay a secret. At least for now.
"...gifted torturer, that's what she is... hanging from the ceiling for half an hour...what kind of sweet girl thinks of that..."
Worrying about his possible demise being close at hand, Majic hadn't noticed Orphen drag himself slowly back into the room, set down his things and walk over to sit on the uninhabited bed.
"Alright, alright, get outta here. Before I change my mind." He muttered grumpily, breaking the teen's worried trance. After receiving a grateful look, followed by promises of hard work put towards his studies and their travelling, Majic finally finished gathering his things for the night. After one last expression of his gratitude, the young apprentice left, closing the door with a fateful thump.
It's just you and me, kiddo, Orphen thought, glancing glumly at the still figure across the room from him and suddenly regretting his rare moment of generosity. And the darling wolven, of course. Glowing green eyes met his for a moment and he sighed.
"Relax, you little mut," he assured the pet, emptying his bag onto the bed. "I'm here to keep her safe, remember?"
Kicking off his boots, he glanced through the mess of clothing, trying to find what was most comfortable. Rummaging around for a moment, he pulled out a pair of dark slacks, decidedly more comfortable than his travel attire. Pulling off his pants, he quickly changed. He shrugged out of his vest and started to pull off his shirt – and stopped. He glanced Cleao's way once more, feeling uncharacteristically, well, modest. She'd probably freak if she found him without a shirt on, no matter the fact that he'd be in an entirely different bed.
Thinking of her predictable reaction, he shed the shirt, dropping his things carelessly on the floor before blowing out the lamps, immersing the room in darkness. Shuffling to the wall furthest from the exit, he reached out, searching for curtains. His hands running against something soft, he silently pulled them open, moonlight illuminating the darkened room.
Let her freak, he thought angrily, finally climbing into bed. It's her own fault I'm here anyway. Beating up Majic...God, she's a headache and a half. And she'd better not start talking again. Like I don't get enough of her while I'm awake...
A soft whimper, almost inaudible, shattered his train of thought. He rolled to the side, his back to the window, and glared into the dark room. Scattered patches of moonlight illuminated a path across the floor, pooling at the foot of Cleao's bed.
Just when he was beginning to think he'd imagined it, there it was again. A tiny moan of – was it fear? Sadness? He couldn't tell, but it was definitely her.
"Alright already, spit it out."
Silence. Of course, the one time he wants her to speak and she shuts up.
Stubborn little-
She bolted out of bed, a cry of despair popping out of her trembling lips. And she was trembling; the pool of light shuddered as she let out another sniffle. Orphen hadn't moved from his position in the bed, lying on his side, his back to the window. Now he was watching her, slightly anxious, as she tried to muffle the growing sniffling. He started to sit up, open his mouth to say something.
Was she alright? What the hell was she crying for?
A low growl rumbled from somewhere on the floor, distracting him. Green eyes flashed from the end of her bed, flying up to her face. She let out a pathetic sob, her voice thick with unshed tears, before scooping him into her arms.
"I'm sorry, Leki. I didn't mean to knock you over."
The wolven whimpered in response, and it sounded almost like a question. Was it...Could he be asking what was wrong?
Shit. I guess they are smart animals.
"Just a dream...Nothing to worry about..." She rasped half heartedly. As soon as she finished denying it, however, she sighed, shaking her head. "Oh, who am I kidding? You're too smart to buy that, aren't you?" He barked sharply, sitting up in her arms. As she stared at him, he started to whine, his ears flat against his head to show his worry. She pulled the wolf close to her chest, burying her face in his dark blue fur. "They started a few days ago. The nightmares. " She shuddered, and to Orphen she suddenly looked small, fragile. He had the overwhelming urge to cross the room and wrap his arms around her, tell her that everything was okay. That he would protect her, like he always did. It took all of his strength to stay in his bed and listen.
"It's always the same. I'm standing on a beach. Everyone's with me, and we're all just enjoying the time together, not having to worry about dragons or Heavenly Beings or sorcerers or runes... And then, it changes. Everyone starts...disappearing." The pup whimpered again, sticking his paw up to her face in a very human gesture of comfort. She pet him absently, her mind far away. "I'm left alone on the beach. And eventually that goes, too; the water dries up, leaving a cracked desert behind. I wander it alone, trying to understand where everyone else went. Why I..." her voice cracked and she had to clear her throat several times before continuing. "Why I can't go with them. And then I wake up." And then the tears fell, her face shining wetly in the moonlight. Leki climbed up onto her shoulder, licking her cheeks in an attempt to wash them away. She stifled another sob, pulling him close to her. "You sweet little thing. What would I do without you?"
"Why didn't you tell me?"
She jumped, emitting a tiny squeak as Leki hopped calmly out of her lap, resting against her legs. Orphen sat up, his torso a silhouette against the moonlight. She stared at him, shocked, the tears still slowly falling from her big, sad eyes.
"Wha...How long were you awake?"
"Long enough." He growled, his dark eyes flashing. He hadn't meant to sound so vicious, his words sharp as knives in the darkness, but he was fucking pissed off. She'd been keeping this from him. And it wasn't even that; he understood that sometimes things were just too personal to share – hell, it'd taken him forever to finally open up about Azalie, hadn't it? No, that wasn't what pissed the shit out of him. It was the fact that she was carrying this massive weight on her shoulders and he hadn't even goddamn noticed. He'd bitched her out for slowing them down, for complaining, for doing fucking anything, and she'd just taken it. Sure, occasionally she'd blown him up, or called him names. But, he was realizing now, her heart just hadn't been in it. She'd been quiet, closed off. Waking up screaming in the middle of the night.
And he'd had no clue.
How was he supposed to protect her if he couldn't even tell when she needed his protection?
"I...I didn't think anyone needed to know." She tried to put some force behind her words, always trying to prove that she wasn't weak. Little did she know that she'd proven that to him long ago. The problem was, she wasn't invincible either. "I can take care of myself."
He glared at her, already opening his mouth to spew out some form of insult, when he stopped himself. She didn't need him to yell at her. She needed him to be her friend. He sighed, hopping agilely off of his bed and sitting beside her on hers. Disregarding the fact that he had no shirt on – and the fact that Leki was eying him dangerously- he put a hand gently on her shoulder, pulling her awkwardly against him.
"I'm your friend, Cleao. I need to know when things are bothering you. And don't even bother telling me you can deal with your own problems," he warned as she lifted her head, her eyebrows furrowed in annoyance. "I already know. I'm not here to make your problems go away for you. I'm here to help you do that for yourself."
She'd leaned back into him as he was talking, her damp forehead furrowing into the crevice by his neck. For a moment, neither of them spoke. It wasn't until she let out another sniffle that he realized she was crying again.
You made her cry again. Nice. God you're a prick. "Come on Cleao, don't cry. It's not your style, remember?"
"I'm sorry...I didn't mean to keep it from you," she sniffled, ignoring his lame attempt to cheer her up. She pulled away from him, enough so that she could see his face. "I just didn't want to make a big deal out of it. It really isn't a big deal at all. In fact, it's a small deal. Tiny. Miniscule. Petite. Puny-"
"Okay, okay, I get it." He chuckled, mussing up her blonde hair affectionately. "To you, it's pretty small on the size scale." He wiped away the last remnants of her tears with his thumb, wishing desperately that they would be the last he'd ever cause her. "But to me," he whispered, almost too quietly for her to hear, "it's huge."
She rolled her eyes before giving him an indignant look. "Just can't agree with me on anything, can you?" But then she smiled, and he felt his spirits soar.
"As likely as that sounds," he grinned sheepishly at her knowing look, "that's not it at all."
"Then why?"
He looked at her for a moment, hesitating. He didn't know how to put it into words in a way that didn't sound like he was hitting on her. Because he wasn't. He didn't feel that way toward her. At all. Nope.
"Because I can't stand to see you cry." He admitted, staring her straight in the eye. "It..hurts me. When you're hurting." He finished lamely, shrugging his shoulders. He could pull off nonchalance better than anyone. Most of the time.
"So you're saying you care about me," she giggled, poking him in the ribs playfully. "That's probably the nicest thing you've ever said to me. Though that's not saying much, since you're probably the rudest, crudest person I know-"
He snagged one of the pillows off her bed and lightly bopped her over the head with it, ending her sentence for her with a sly grin. She stared at him in shock for a minute, before a similar smile spread across her own mouth. She grabbed her own pillow and wacked him *smack* across the face, giggling hysterically as he fell off the bed.
The rest of the night consisted of the two of them chasing each other around the room, pillows drawn threateningly. Eventually the pillows were forgotten; Orphen tackled her to the floor, encompassing her in his strong grasp. She laughed louder than ever, trying to squirm out of his grasp, and he simply rolled onto his back, steeling his arms against her back and pulling her on top of him. She eventually gave up the struggle, falling against him in hysterical giggles, and he chuckled, releasing his hold. But neither of them moved; they lay there together, her pressed against his bare chest, his arms wrapped protectively around her, until sleep eventually claimed them.
Tomorrow would be an interesting day, to say the least.
Good? Bad? Totally and completely lame? Let me know what you think!! :)
*FnI*