White Wolf

[Aziza]

A oneXone.

 

[Aziza]

Mercy walked in long strides, not pausing or breaking or even looking around. His sharp ice blue gaze kept forward through his helmet.


Mercy had been traveling for months now, seeking out and slaying many demons. Each fight was a struggle, each fight worth the value of another demon added to is list of the slain brought him near his death. Mercy was often irritated, exhausted, and just healing from his last battle. And then there were the many useless demons he would slay on the ray to his journey to earn his fathers approval.


However, the small amount of graze in his life was due to the human who had become soul bound to him. His village offered to boy up to the grand demon begging him to slay a demon that had been slaying children and women during the night in rather horrific dreams. It had been out of the demons way but he accepted the offer and the boy as a sacrifice. Now the human bound to him was immortal but by no means offered any mercy, slack, or freedom. He would live as long as Mercy allowed it. For now the boy held two of his swords, and a few of his supplies.


They had been walking for several hours now without a break, the demon prince needing very few of them. However the human was starting to fall behind.


" Pick up your feed." He called without bothering to look back at the boy. He was starting to slack behind. While Mercy wasn't necessarily cruel, he was very stern, hated nonsense and would punish defiance.

 

[Tsukiyama]

Howl considered himself somewhere between cursed and blessed. Considering that he was sacrificed, it was supposed to mean good things for him in the afterlife but the sacrifice wasn't merely so the demon could kill or eat him or something along those lines. He was soul bound to Mercy and apparently he was immortal. So obviously he wasn't having a pleasant afterlife; there wasn't one.


So yeah, cursed seemed about right.


At some point his legs started to ache from the non-stop travel, continuously following behind his...soulmate? Seemed cliche, but he wasn't sure what else he was considered.


"I'm coming, I'm coming," Howl called in a raspy tone, trying to pick up the pace. He was still only human through all of this and didn't have the stamina Mercy had. "Do you think we can stop for a moment at the next stream?" Howl asked carefully when he'd finally caught up again, panting slightly.

 

[Aziza]

Mercy graced the boy with very short glance, looking back at him over his shoulder for a moment before turning his gaze forward once more. After a short consideration of the humans plea he responded.


" I will allow you to rest for the night in a short while" At times when they stopped for the night, that didn't mean Howls obligations were over. At times he needed to help re-wrap some of the demons wounds, polish his sword, or even cook for him. But this night Mercy would allow him rest. He himself was even starting to feel a bit winded and wanted to spoke his pipe.


Though Mercy wasn't very empathetic, he did show some awareness and courteousness time to time to his human. Howl was still a human and still needed more caring than demons. Humans were much slower, weaker, and needed to eat more often. This was something Mercy was aware of any never allowed Howl to truly be run ragged.

 

[Tsukiyama]

Howl sighed in relief, trying a little bit harder to keep up with the other man despite how his legs screamed in protest. He was thankful sometimes that Mercy was considerate of his needs and didn't push him to keeling over in exhaustion like he probably could, though he did keep Howl going until he absolutely needed to rest. But at this point Howl could only be thankful for the little things.


"Do you need anything from me when we stop?" Howl asked, trying to distract himself from his exhaustion and keep him aware.


The dark haired human hoped he didn't need to be made dinner or anything along those lines. Howl wanted to curl up (hopefully near a warm fire) and rest more than anything else.

 

[Aziza]

" If I were to need anything I would inform you." Mercy responded shortly. Being a high prince demons, Mercy was rather anti social. He wanted being talked to, being asked questions, or anything that involved him having to listen to someone else. He often was wrapped up in his own thoughts which were often much too big for humans to understand. They struggled to feed their families, to stay warm at night, to keep safe, but Mercy's struggles though not as painful, were much larger and involved the lives of many more than just a few family members.


After just over a mile, Mercy finally slowed as they grew near a loan creek just at the ends of the woods. Mercy stepped over to a very large tree and sat beneath it, allowing his sore bones to rest against the trunk.

 

[Tsukiyama]

"Ah, of course." Howl replied, a bit disheartened. Over his time spent with Mercy, he learned that the demon didn't care for conversation which depressed him a bit. More often than not Howl was making up enough chatter for the two of them with Mercy's few acknowledgements in between.


Upon reaching the creek Howl collapsed at its edge, cupping his hands and reaching in for a cool sip of water. Once he decided he had his fill, he wiped stray drops away from his lips and returned to Mercy's side.


"Do you mind if I rest now?" Howl questioned with a tilt of his head, knowing better than to assume he could sleep. He preferred verbal consent.

 

[Aziza]

Mercy allowed his head to lean back against the tree, felling the muscles in his neck ache. Soon, he wold be fighting a demon known for his strength and brutality. His power was even to Mercy's, so really the question of strength would come into sheer desire to win. How badly did Mercy want to win as apposed to how much he wanted to win?


The small voice of the human found it's way into Mercy's mind. His eyes turned, fixing on the boy from behind his helmet before responding.


" You may." His tone was soft, quiet, and rather tired. Mercy had little energy for even his own personality.

 

[Tsukiyama]

The human could see that the demon Prince was exhausted himself and decided to spare him any more of his chatter aside from a nod and a soft-spoken, "Goodnight."


Howl made himself comfortable next to the demon, laying down on his side and facing away from Mercy. The forest was dark and Howl didn't want to stray very far from the demon he was soul bound to should things go awry.


Soon he was fast asleep, his breathing evening out as he lay curled up upon the grassy forest floor.

 

[Aziza]

The night went on, and the air grew cold. In fact it felt as though it was getting colder than it had any night this season. Winter was on it's way, and even as the demon slept, he could feel it and his mind grew concerned for Howl.


The troubling thoughts caused the demon to wake up from his slumber. And without bothering to open his eyes, he called to his human.


" Make a fire." He commanded in a cool tone, his voice able to piece through the deepest of sleeps and the loudest of dreams. Howl would hear him.

 

[Tsukiyama]

Howl most certainly could feel the cold, even if it hadn't woken him up. His body shivered where he lay, his back pressed against the demon from when he'd searched for warmth during his slumber.


"Make a fire."


The human awoke with a start as he always did when Mercy called him out of his sleep. The way his voice penetrated deep into his mind always managed to shake him.


With a nod he stood up, rubbing his hands together for warmth as he went about gathering some wood for a fire. Howl sniffed as he unloaded the materials a few feet away from the demon prince, beginning to craft the fire as quickly as possible.

 

[Aziza]

Eyes slipped open form behind the helmet, and Mercy watched in silence as his human begun to fashion himself a fire. The next night they would need to find a more suitable place to sleep if he wanted Howl to stay healthy. He was in no mood to take care of a sick human. Even though Howl was not bound by age, he would still grow sick and even die from it. And although Mercy didn't really need the human, he desired him. He was a selfish demon and wanted to keep all of his possessions close and maintained. Perhaps he would consider getting the human closed more suitable for the winter as well.

 

[Tsukiyama]

It took him a few more minutes to finally fashion a small fire, just enough to keep himself from freezing entirely. Howl sat close to the flames with his legs tucked against his chest, sniffling as his nose began to run. Thankfully it wasn't quite yet winter and Howl would be able to bear being without proper clothes or shelter for the time being.


His gaze flickered towards Mercy. "Can you feel the warmth? I can gather more wood if need be."

 

[Aziza]

" If it will keep you warm for this night, then it is satisfactory. I don't need natural heat to stay warm." Mercy, being a demon, was actually often, very naturally warm and didn't need any help from fires or clothes or other bodies. Howl on the other hand needed help staying warm, and this would be the first time this problem was made apparently to Mercy. This would be the first winter they spent together an he would have to be considerate to his humans needs.


For this night, even a nice warm fire would perhaps not be enough for the human. Mercy kept with him, a white pelt from a demon he slain many years ago. It was very thick, soft, and the fur kept out all rain. It was one of his most precious possessions but perhaps he would need to use it to keep another possession of his maintained.


" You may use my pelt" Mercy offered very graciously, lifting and arm and holding it up and out towards the human lazily.

 

[Tsukiyama]

The human nodded in response, his hands hovering close to the flames. These weren't his favorite circumstances, but he supposed it could be worse. He would have to figure something out for the dead of winter; perhaps he could convince Mercy to take shelter in a cave or something enclosed.


When the demon spoke again Howl was sure he'd heard wrong. He looked up to see Mercy offering his pelt, one of the few things Howl knew that the prince valued.


Howl carefully got to his feet and went around the fire back to Mercy's side, gingerly taking the end of the pelt in hand. It was softer than he imagined. In a brief moment of boldness, Howl got down and tucked himself against Mercy's side where his arm was extended, holding his breath. He had no idea how his invasion of Mercy's space would go over, but the warmth radiating from the demon's body itself was worth a try.

 

[Aziza]

Mercy did't care for personal contact, nor did he care for assumptions by humans. They were often so prideful feeling like this owned everything, and that they deserved anything they didn't own. Mercy didn't think Howl was any different. And that could be proved by him pulling it close to him, hoping to share in his heat. But Mercy was not his friend, nor his lover, and would not accept shove behavior unless invited.


" Do not touch me Howl. Being cold would no longer be a problem comparatively if you have continue with an entitled attitude. You may use my pelt, but you have surly overstepped your bounds." Mercy informed in a soft, yet stern manner.

 

[Tsukiyama]

Howl felt his throat grow dry when he heard Mercy begin to speak. He moved away from the man like he'd been burned, averting his gaze back to the flames in front of them.


Honestly, he felt both idiotic and mortified. It was stupid of him to assume Mercy would allow such a thing, even if it was solely to warm himself up. Mercy was a demon, not a human, and obviously demons weren't interested in physical contact with humans. Howl berated himself, he was a slave, Mercy could care less about him.


"I--I'm sorry, I must have forgotten my place for a moment. I'll be fine by the fire. Thank you for the offer though." Howl could barely look at Mercy let alone borrow his pelt.

 

[Aziza]

It was up to him. If the human were to perhaps commit suicide by death of cold then that was up to him. But it was Mercy's responsibility to give him the most opportunity to live and live a healthier life. However, the problem was that Howl denied such a gracious offer, something that could be seen as extremely rude and prideful by a demon.


" You will accept it, or you will die." Mercy informed shortly, his soft tone laced with venom. He wouldn't have a prideful human under his esteem.

 

[Tsukiyama]

Howl tensed at the threat, figuring he should've known it was coming. He contemplated just asking Mercy to end his life now, but there wasn't any point in doing that. But he also contemplated the point of being soul bound to Mercy - he would follow the demon for the rest of his days, no option to find a loved one or settle down.


"I understand." Without much of a choice the human reached for the pelt once again, this time merely wrapping it around his shoulders, careful not to overstep his bounds once again.

 

[Aziza]

As it should me. Rejecting such a kind offer from the demon prince was highly disrespectful. And disrespecting a demon prince was often punishable by death. But the boy accepting his offering, and used it, more or less, to warm himself. At least for this night he would be take care of, but this brought up the wonder of other nights to come. Winter was on it's way and Mercy needed to make sure all was taken care of that needed to be taken care of.


The night was indeed chilly, but the good thing about nights was that they didn't last forever. In the early morning the sun was already starting to rise, finally offering rays of warmth.

 

[Tsukiyama]

Much to the human's pleasure he was kept warm by the pelt through the night and slept decently, his eyes finally fluttering open when the sun began shining through the trees.


He gray hues scanned the area, landing on his master briefly before he sat up. The fire had blown out during the night and the forest was becoming more lively. Howl made his way to his feet, wrapping the pelt tightly around him as he carefully approached Mercy. "My lord," Howl murmured, gently trying to wake him as he took the fur from around his shoulders, "your pelt. Thank you for it."

 

[Aziza]

Mercy had been awake for a few hours, but he felt the need to sit in silence for several hours further. It wasn't until Howl begun to stir when he mind begun to focus on the present. Flickering his deep blue eyes towards Howl, he watched as the human grew near him.


Without a word, Mercy lifted a lazy hand and accepting his pelt. Mercy wasn't one to share plans with his human. All Howl needed to know was where Mercy was so he could follow him and do as told.


It was still early in the morning so Mercy wasn't ready to leave yet, instead he removed his pipe from his belongings which Howl often carried and ran it against a root, lighting it before reaching up to remove his helmet. Taking the rim of the rare metal, he pulled it from his head, his long white hair falling freely over his shoulders as he did so. Then setting it aside, Mercy pulled the pipe to his lips and pulled in a relaxing breath of the soothing drug.

 

[Tsukiyama]

After returning the pelt the boy stood up, brushing off his pants before making his way over to the stream. He used his hands as a cup, sipping water from his palms slowly, enjoying the cool slide of the liquid down his throat. Howl wiped his mouth with his sleeve before looking back at the demon prince, musing to himself that chances were his master was going into another battle today.


"Did you sleep well?" Howl asked conversationally, taking his long dark hair into his hands and pulling it back, tying it into a ponytail as he got ready for the day's travel.