Hey people. I didn't take super long to update this time, that's a good thing. I will be for the next update though, since in case you haven't heard, I'm going to be doing NaNoWriMo this year for the first time and therefor won't be able to update any of my stories for the length of November. Sorry about this, but I'm really excited for it (the plot idea actually came to me as a possible AU about Keane, but I decided to warp it into something original instead).
Chapter 35 – Of Settling In and Setting Disaster
The next few days ended up going by rather fast, both boys starting to adjust to how the Kin-un-kur did things. They still hadn't told anyone what their decision was quite yet, even though Keane had pretty much made up his mind completely. He didn't want to force Straton into doing anything he didn't want to though, so he was willing to give the blond some time to really think it over and make sure that this was what he wanted to do as well.
The redhead couldn't help but think that this life style certainly suited Straton though, much more than being a prince ever did. He liked helping out the tribe people and putting in his own work, not being waited on hand and foot or anything like that.
Keane had even caught Naira showing him how to actually aim the little slingshot he'd made before. Truthfully, Keane had kind of forgotten that he'd done that. He wasn't really sure what use it would be of now though, but Straton had said that if he was able to get good enough at it he could hit birds out of the sky for food. It was weird thinking of Straton killing animals, but he guessed that it wasn't that bad if it was so that they could eat.
And besides, he wasn't quite that good with the sling yet, so hopefully it would be a little while longer before Keane saw the blond coming back with a couple of dead birds in his arms.
As for himself, he had to admit that while it was certainly different from the home he was used to, it definitely wasn't a bad way to live. Yes, he could do without Akule dragging him off to gut fish and an assortment of other types of small animals, but it was nice actually getting to eat regularly again. The teen seemed to be getting less irritable around him too as time went on, which was certainly a good thing. He didn't want to by lying to Straton when he said that Akule would calm down eventually.
It was about three days after Chief Shikoba had offered to let them stay now. Keane sat down on the mat in the back room where he and Straton had been sleeping for the past couple of nights. It was getting late now, the redhead actually feeling rather tired.
Even still, his mind was starting to wander slightly. The Chief had said that they could take their time deciding on what to do, but he didn't want to make the man wait too long for their answer.
"Hey, Strat?" Keane asked after a moment, catching the younger boy's attention. He was spreading out his own mat again after having shaken it out for the night. He didn't say anything though, simply looking over and waiting for Keane to continue.
"I was just thinking, I mean, you want to stay here, right?" he asked, not entirely sure how to bring up what he was thinking about. The blond was quiet for a moment before nodding slightly.
"Yeah, it's nice here, you still want to too, right?" he answered. Keane instantly nodded, not wanting Straton to start getting the wrong idea about why he was asking about this at all. Although he would probably never show it, since it was Keane's idea to stay here in the first place he could imagine the younger boy getting a bit frustrated if he started changing his mind and having second thoughts all the time.
"Of course, I was just wondering, I guess we should talk to Chief Shikoba soon and let him know. I just wanted to make sure that you really wanted to stay here before talking to him," Keane explained. Straton smiled slightly and nodded, sitting down on his mat afterwards.
"Oh, alright then, we can go talk to him tomorrow morning," the blond said. Keane couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief at this. It was really settled then; they were going to stay here from now on. He definitely didn't mind this at all. It was just a little weird thinking about how they wouldn't have to run anymore. He'd almost gotten used to the constant moving.
Of course, that didn't mean that he was going to miss it at all. Not by a long shot.
When they talked to the Chief the next morning he said that he was happy to hear their decision. He told them that they would be treated as a part of the tribe from now on, and that as long as they helped out and did their part then there shouldn't be anything they needed to worry about. And if they ever decided to change their mind and go to Asteria instead they would still help them across the mountains. Keane didn't think they really had to worry about that though, he didn't see them changing their minds any time soon.
It still hadn't quite set in for the next week that this was going to be where they were going to live for apparently the rest of their lives. It still seemed like it was a temporary stop before they had to keep moving once again.
Despite the way everyone was being kind and helping them adjust, the redhead was still a bit on edge with the idea that somehow someone was still going to recognize who they really were. They were still very close to Sailand, even with how hidden away the little village was after all. It wasn't crazy to think that they would be able to get some news from the country about them.
After two weeks, the paranoia started to ease away. He kept telling himself that there wasn't any way they would be able to recognize them, especially with the way they looked now. It had definitely taken some time to get used to wearing Kim-un-kur styled clothing, but it really wasn't that bad. They hadn't made them wear any beads in their hair though (partly because Straton's was still too short, and Keane just couldn't figure out how to get them to actually stay in). The biggest plus was mainly that the clothes were clean and they were able to keep them like that by washing them regularly.
This had been the longest they'd gone without picking up and moving once again since leaving the palace. Before this they hadn't stayed in the same place for longer than a few days. It was strange waking up in the same room everyday again and seeing the same people. It didn't make the place feel quite like home yet, but it was certainly much less tiring.
Yeah, he guessed that was a big part of what made him glad to stay here. He was just plain tired with having to move all the time. Even though he was working hard with the tribe –mainly just doing whatever Akule had decided to order he get done every so often- it wasn't anywhere as bad as having to just move and not know where he was going to end up the next day.
After three weeks Keane had actually managed to lose track of time. He didn't think that such a short amount of time could ever seem so long before.
"Hey Strat," he said when sitting down in their room. It was night once again. Another strange thing about living with the Kim-un-kurs was that he wasn't with Straton basically all of the time every day; instead they were able to actually go about and do their own things without being paranoid that the other was going to end up getting attacked or captured or some other horrible thing.
Not that Keane didn't want to spend time with Straton; it was just nice knowing that he could leave the younger boy alone without worrying that he'd never be able to see him again.
"Hello," the blond said, yawning slightly right afterwards. Keane just nodded, brushing out his mat before lying down. It didn't take long at all before the redhead had ended up falling asleep, having long since gotten used to the thin mat and blankets that they slept with. It was a million times better than what they'd had when in the desert, after all.
Keane felt himself get jolted awake a few hours later. Without even comprehending quite what it was that had woken him –some sort of huge bang or scream or something- he flung up, ears having transformed more on instinct than anything else to strain and hear whatever it was going on outside.
"Hey, hey Strat, wake up," the redhead said, not even looking over at the younger boy as he shook him, staring out at the curtained doorway to their room just in case anyone was going to come in. Hesitating a moment he allowed his hands to transformed, thing sharp claws forming on the tips of his fingers and hair growing up the front of his arms. If something was happening than he wanted to be able to at least try to defend himself and Straton.
"Hmm? What's going on, Keane?" Straton asked groggily, pushing himself up and rubbing at his eyes in an attempt to wake up a bit more.
"I don't know…" he answered, slowly starting to stand up and walk towards the door. He didn't actually hear anything out in the front room though, it sounded like whatever it was, it was happening outside. People were running around for some reason… and yelling…
"Something's happening outside, c'mon," he said after a moment. Straton quickly nodded, slipping on the closest pair of shoes he could find, which happened to be Keane's old ones he'd taken to wearing, as fast as he could before following closely behind the redhead. Keane didn't bother to get any shoes on, instead simply allowing his feet to shift as well.
Walking into the front room, there wasn't anybody around, not that it had surprised Keane any.
"What's going on outside? I hear people yelling," Straton asked, making sure to stay as close as he could to the older boy. Keane stopped before actually starting out, listening as best as he could to try to figure out exactly that. He could hear some voices yelling that he definitely didn't recognize at all intermixed within the now familiar ones of the people in the tribe. He couldn't actually make out what they were saying though, much to his annoyance and slight fear.
"There's people outside, but I don't think it's anyone from here though…" he said, starting to slink over to a small window in the wall in order to try and actually get a look outside without having to leave what was so far a safe area. Straton didn't follow him, instead staying by the door, making sure to watch it in case anyone tried to come in.
"You think it's an attack?" the blond asked, not quite able to keep the fear completely out of his voice. Keane didn't answer immediately, instead peeking out of the window and trying to look around as best as he could.
The redhead felt his breath hitch when his eyes adjusted to the darkness outside. There weren't really that many people out in the square, but he guessed that was probably because most the people were trying to hide. What he did see was some man up on a horse in the middle of the square, a bow and arrow in his hands as he shot at the few people who were out at the moment. It was mainly a few of the older men, their animas fully transformed as they attempted to dodge the arrows and attack back themselves.
Akule was out there as well, his feet having transformed into hooves, a pair of curved horns on his head as he attempted to use them to butt at the horse without getting trampled or shot at himself.
"We need to get out of here, now," the redhead said, quickly turning back over to Straton while he did. Straton instantly nodded, not bothering to ask him for an explanation. The blond didn't immediately think that it was the best idea to head out the front door though, with whatever it was that had caused Keane to act like that possibly being right out there.
Before their boy was able to quite think of a way outside besides the front door something started turning the knob, causing them both to freeze.
The door quickly opened, a large man not even hesitating to step inside of the building. A large bow was held taut in his hands, and his eyes quickly locked onto the two boys standing in shock in the center of the room. A look of confusion passing over his face for a second however, causing him to halt slightly before actually attempting let any of the arrows fly at them.
The second his mind started to work again Keane grabbed Straton's arm, not thinking about why in the world the man would be confused or hesitant to attack, instead just using that half a second of doubt to barrel past the man and outside.
The redhead had no idea where he was running to, instead just trying to get as far away from the people attacking –slavers, he guessed they had to be. Apparently a whole revolution and the demolishing of an entire ruling family wasn't harming the trade any- as he possibly could.
He didn't know how they had managed to end up in the forest, but he didn't stop running for a full ten minutes in the dense undergrowth. He would have tried to keep going farther, but Straton kept getting caught up in the weeds and bushes, nearly falling to the ground several times and slowing down a lot faster than Keane was.
Finally Keane came to a stop, letting go of the blonde's arm, his body shaking slightly from a combination of the fear and adrenalin.
"H-hey, are you okay?" the redhead asked, turning back to Straton. The younger boy nodded slightly, but his eyes were closed in what seemed to be pain as he held the arm Keane had been pulling up to his chest in such a way that it looked like he was trying to shield him from actually seeing it.
"What's wrong?" Keane immediately asked, fear starting to bubble up inside of him even worse. The blond quickly opened his eyes to look at him, attempting a smile as he continued to hide his arm from view.
"N-nothing. You just kind of… cut my arm a bit, with your claws. It's fine, really," he answered, the hesitance in his voice very clear, a slight hint of pain underlying it as well.
The fear in Keane's stomach instantly transformed into a puddle of guilt. He'd forgotten he'd had his claws out this whole time, and he'd been pulling the younger boy so hard…
"Let me see it," he said, very gently grabbing the boy's arm –making sure that his claws didn't do any more damage than they already had- and pulling it away from his chest. There was a bit of reluctance from Straton, but not enough to actually keep Keane from seeing just how bad it was.
Several streams of sticky red blood were running down his arm out of the thin gashes Keane had made. The redhead immediately felt his stomach flip at the sight. It was a lot worse than the scratches that he'd given him that first night when pulling him away from the slaver's cart he'd been trapped.
"Oh shoot. Damn it, I'm so sorry. I swear I didn't mean to, I forgot I had my claws out, I'm really, really sorry," Keane started apologizing very quickly. Once again Straton forced himself to smile despite the stinging pain from the cuts, shaking his head as he pulled his arm away from the older boy, hiding the worst of the gashes up against his chest so that Keane couldn't see.
"I said don't worry, it's fine, I promise. I know you didn't mean to, it's okay," the younger boy reassured. Reluctantly Keane allowed himself to nod, although he definitely didn't believe that it was really okay. He was trying to protect Straton and he was the one who'd ended up hurting him! That wasn't the way it was supposed to work.
"What do you think we should do now?" Straton asked after a moment, breaking the small silence that had fallen over them. Keane thought for a moment, looking back towards where the small village was currently being attacked by slavers.
He knew it was illogical. It was a Kim-un-kur tribe so close to the Sailand border after all, chances were that they'd been attacked multiple times before, and the survivors always just picked up afterwards and moved to a safer location until that was found too and they had to repeat. This attack didn't have anything to do with them; they were just unlucky enough to be here.
That didn't make the feeling that disaster just seemed to follow them everywhere they went any less real and haunting in his mind, however.
Finally he turned away, sighing as he started heading a bit farther into the forest.
"We need to find somewhere to hide and wait out the attack, we can go back in the morning and see who's left," the redhead said. He came to a stop when he didn't hear Straton following though, looking back in confusion at the younger boy.
"You don't think we should try to go help?" he asked, surprising Keane. It wasn't that Keane didn't want to help, but what were the supposed to do? He wasn't willing to put Straton in danger in order to fight those slavers.
"I do want to help them, but that's just not something we can risk right now. We need to just put our own safety first, okay? And the Kim-un-kur are smart, I'm sure they've had to deal with things like this before, they'll be fine," he assured. Straton seemed hesitant for a moment before nodding slightly and starting to follow him once again.
Despite what he'd said though, Keane wasn't sure if they really would be fine. He couldn't let Straton see that though. He was supposed to be the strong, older one when it came to things like this.
The two ended up curling behind some dense bushes, making sure there weren't any actual animals there first. As soon as they sat down Keane demanded to see Straton's arm again, which was still bleeding quite a bit. Tearing some of the fabric off of his pants he wrapped it around the gashes in order to stop it some. Once morning came they could find something better.
"Try to get some sleep, okay?" Keane said, to which Straton nodded very slightly.
"You too," the blond said, having actually knocked out very quickly afterwards. Keane didn't fall to sleep quite that fast, taking this time to examine the younger boy.
His arm wasn't the only thing cut, scratches and numerous bruises starting to form on his arms and legs from being dragged through the forest. Keane was sure he probably looked pretty similar, but didn't worry about that very much.
He just had to keep telling himself that they were going to be okay. The slavers couldn't possibly destroy the whole tribe; they would be able to fight them off just fine. It was going to be okay.
None of that helped him fall asleep until well after the sun had started staining the sky with streaks of light, nor stop the few tears that had managed to force their way past his eyes.
Yes, I was able to finish before November. I was kind of worried there for a second that I wouldn't be able to. I'm very sorry to be leaving you for a month with a sort of cliffhanger, but I needed to! It was too good to not end there (plus, if I had the next scene then I really wouldn't be able to finish in time, and it'd be way too long).
I hope you all liked the chapter though, and as always please review.