Gamzee felt his chest weigh heavy as leaned over his saddle, feeling exhausted from the run he had to make. He hated the state that he left Karkat in and wanted to get back to him. It was very early in the night, dusk had just arrived and no one who did not have a day shift would awake soon. It would be an hour before Karkat was awake, at minimum. He wondered if he had slept at all, his emotional state was so fragile. Why did he have to lose his temper like that? It was only natural his matesprit would be interested in his past. Now that he was pondering the idea, he didn't know much about Karkat either. After living with him for so long, he knew what he preferred to eat, his habits, his sense of humor, but nothing about his past aside from his history as a rebel and his former partner. He grunted as he dismounted his horse, a stable handle came along and took it.

He pushed past the doors as they began to open, heading toward his chamber. He needed rest, he needed to hold Karkat and greet him when he awoke. He had to strive to share his past if he wanted to reconcile their relationship, even if he hated it. He never liked thinking about it, about how pathetic he used to be. Isn't that was matespritship was though? Exposing oneself to another troll with all their insecurities, weaknesses, and strengths was what a matesprit did. It was close to moiraillegence, if not for the high possibilities of infidelity; trust was not a common theme between the black and red quadrants, at least a dense amout of trust. Sentimentality did not require that much trust, only faith.

"Bro?" he whispered softly as he slipped into the mutant's Respite Block. There was no response, which only meant that his assumptions were right and Karkat was asleep. Stretching tiredly, he shut the door so he could remove his armor and other garments in privacy. He did not have a specified wardrobe for his armor in here, so he laid it down on one of the divans until he was just in his baggy pants and undershirt. Yawning, he approached the bed, stopping dead in his tracks at the sight. Karkat had a small smile on his face as Tavros cuddled close to him in his sleep. He instantly felt a heavy wave of jealousy overtake him. His matesprit had no right to cuddle with anyone else. His first reaction was to smack the brownblooded troll awake and away from his matesprit, but then he stopped to look them over. Karkat looked content, not flushed. If anything, this was the closest thing Karkat had to a moirail at this point.

He smiled softly, gently stroking Karkat's hair as he reached over. It was kind of cute. He walked over to the other side of the bed so he could crawl in. Once he was close enough he wrapped his arms around Karkat as well. He purred softly at the warmth his chilled flesh received as it permeated from the two lowbloods. They were so warm, and just what he needed.

Aradia tossed and turned in her quilt, holding her chest as she resisted the urge to cough. Fiery, cold pain crept its way into her lungs; this had gone on too long. She had hidden it well, the Devourance, but without Tavros to get her the medicinal herbs she so desperately needed, the symptoms were returning with a vengeance. It had only been a week, a week since her moirail was kidnapped, and already the fever returned. She would sometimes fall, only to save herself from being found out at the last minute. She found herself lying and saying she was merely tired from all the digging, her caste being rather fragile. It was becoming harder and harder though to hide the bloody evidence in her coughs; maroon liquid had been so close from splattering on her clothes.

She had never been ashamed of her caste, she was proud of herself as she was. She was a powerful person, but that was only her mind. Her body did not have the essential proteins to fight off this disease that was slowly eating her alive. For a sweep she had dealt fine with it, because of the herbs. They were near depletion though. She sat up, holding a handkerchief to her mouth as she coughed violently, breathing heavily. She nearly vomited as the taste of her rusty colored blood filled her mouth. She opened a small spot in the dirt next to her and buried the handkerchief before turning to the small sack in her small tent. She opened it and removed several small bags. She also pulled out a decently sized, alobone shell that served as a bowl. She removed several flower buds from each of the small bags, and lastly a large, dried, red blossom. This flower was the main component in her treatment; it was most effective when just plucked. Dried, however, its affect was greatly reduced. It would have to do for now. Setting the red blossom next to the bowl, she turned to the sack again and removed a small box; she unlocked it and removed a vile of what appeared to be some sort of oil. She crushed the buds in the bowl first before soaking them in the contents of the vile. This oil was easily acquired; it was made from the juice of a crushed root often found during diggings. The flowers could not. This would be her last treatment for a while. The small buds and oil helped soothe her lungs and throat, making it much easier to relax. It was the red flower that had the properties necessary to keep the infection in her lungs at bay,

Licking her blood stained lips she brought the blossom to her mouth, swallowing it whole in hopes that none of its healing properties would be caught in her sharp teeth. She then lit a match and set the buds inside the bowl aflame. The fire died out after a moment, leaving the rest to smolder like incense. She brought the bowl to her mouth, inhaling the soothing aspects of the herbal essence. She had hidden the Devourance well since she first realized she had it. Not even Sollux knew she had it, as he was immune. Only her caste was vulnerable to its deadly imbuement. Her team was already pained by the loss of Karkat and Tavros, it was sheer willpower alone that kept them going. She would not worry any of them with her disease; she did not want to be treated specially. She could contain the symptoms and live well with the disease. It was not impossible to beat; it took sweeps to kill the troll or to be killed itself. She knew what she had to do to save herself from death, and thus save her team. It was risky, but it had to be done. She would wander from the safe points in order to gather her herbs at dusk when it was her turn to gather water.

1 Week Later

Equius Zahhak had been sent out on a tracking mission with a band of Subjugglators he had been put in charge of. When Gamzee arrived back and awoke he had sent him out immediately. The mission was just what he needed, he felt refreshed as he set out alone to scope the landscape. Their strategist, Vriska Serket (who had strangely stayed behind on this mission,) drew them several diagrams over several maps. The most logical choice for the rebels' path was alongside rivers and streams; trolls could only go three days without water, the sea-dwellers would need to refresh their gills. Thus, three to four groups set out along the major rivers. His group had currently split to investigate any strange movements underground or sightings at any of the designated rivers.

It was a nice change of scenery; he thought idly as he road his horse through the forest. The fine smell of camphor and sap, dead leaves crunched beneath the hooves of his favored animal, the moonlight split into beams and fragments, and the gentle breeze felt heavenly against his face. Despite the tranquility his eyes were ever vigilant, scanning the landscape. He noted a faint glow in the distance, it appeared to be moving. Ah, it was the river. He could use a drink of water, despite having had some just an hour ago upon awakening. His thirst seemed unquenchable this evening, he was not too certain why. Perhaps all of the traveling wore him down, getting a drink of water while fulfilling his scouting duties would certain satisfy his dehydrated throat. He stopped at the edge of a slope leading down to the river. It seemed he would have to dismount his horse and walk down himself, he was not about to put his beloved hoofbeast in jeopardy.

He dismounted everso gently, before grabbing his canteen. He turned back for a moment, looking for a suitable tree to tie his hoofbeast to. He found one with an abundance of edible flowers at its roots; it would be a nice treat to his pet. He gently rubbed behind his ears, careful not to bruise him, after he tied the reins to a lowered branch. He then proceeded toward the slope, stopping dead in his tracks when a figure approached the water. He readied his bow and arrow, dropping his canteen, and pointed toward the troll. He was ready to the make shot before he automatically lowered the arrow, as well as his jaw. She was…beautiful…Her petite, curvaceous body was barely hidden by her long, thick curls; tresses cascaded down her body in the most beautiful display of a majestic mane he'd ever seen. Her skin was a pale shade of grey and her complexion was lovely, the maroon color around her eyes and waxed upon her thin, lovely lips did not take away from her splendor. She was elegant and so fragile at the same time, truly she was divine.

Why would he be so stunned though, she was a lowblood, was she not? The color of her eyes and the colors adorning her face proved that. It was the most unattractive shade he'd ever seen in his life, yet it was so beautiful and fulfilling, so disgustingly deep red. He wanted to vomit at the attraction he felt toward this troll, despite having no idea who she was. Perhaps it would be wise to stay and watch? She could be part of the rebels they were following; he would not apprehend an innocent troll though. Especially one who had taken his breath away so effortlessly, she was worth sparing at the moment. As he watched her she appeared to be doing nothing malicious. She was gathered some red flowers from the silt; these were flowers often used to treat infections. They also did not fall into full bloom, they did not need light to survive, only silt. It was the silt and water that provided them with such potent, healing abilities. She also gathered several other small buds a ways way from the bank, mainly on the slope which was quite dry. It was most likely she was just a nomad; nomads often lived off of these kinds of herbs. To add to his suspicions she also gathered water in several jugs and loaded them onto a small wagon with the flowers she collected. Well, he supposed she'd be leaving now…He'd follow just to be certain she was what he thought she was.

He made to move back into the shadows, assuming she'd start to pull the wagon along when she gathered a folded up towel from the wagon. What was she doing? She opened the towel and then folded it over the wagon after retrieving what appeared to be a jar of body oil? His eyes widened as she slipped out of her dress and lathered her skin with it. It was bathing oil…She then…Oh dear, how beautiful she looked with her thick hair plastered against her body. She began to bathe, small suds lathered against her skin and idly in her hair. She washed her face, the red creams and waxes over her eyes and lips going with the oil and water. She dived in, then out, and then back in order to rinse her body of the cleansing lotion. He bit his lip as she emerged from the water, skin and hair glowing in the moonlight; her bare form burned into his eyes. She appeared to be thinner than most female trolls were meant to be, but it only added to her lovely fragility. He lay down on his stomach, watching her with wide, blue eyes. He rolled over onto his back, closing his eyes. He felt so refreshed watching her; she moved in such grace, in such beauty…Maybe he could go down and introduce himself? No, that was a stupid idea! How would be approach her when she was still naked, and certainly she would assume he had been watching her!

Sighing, he turned back onto his stomach to watch her again. Something was wrong, he noted, as she began to obsess over a hand mirror. She reached into a satchel, pulling out a tube of lipstick and a jar of what appeared to be cream, maroon eyeshadow along with a cosmetic brush. She dried her face and body in haste before ringing out her hair. She then applied the maroon to her eyes and lips again. Such a horrible shade never looked so…tasteful.