A girl sat on an old lounge chair, its fabric coated in dust and age. Although, she didn't seem to mind. Her eyes were held taunt on the book, only blinking for every few pages or so. The fire in the hearth crackled, startling her and breaking the book's trance. With a yawn and a stretch, she sat limply on the couch -- not unlike a rag doll. Her eyes wandered around the rustic room, settling on the window. There was the slightest bit of daylight left. Enough, she decided, to be able to take a walk. She lazily rolled off the couch, setting the book down on a nearby coffee table. Taking a step in the doors direction, she swung on a green jacket, getting her arms entangled in the sleeves in time for her body to crash to the ground. She groaned, holding her nose in her hands. After deciding that it was not broken, she pulled on some combat boots and made her way out of the door.

The outside autumn air was cold, making her shiver and pull the jacket tighter around her small frame. Exhaling, she watched her breath swirl in a small cloud. Back at her boarding school, they had called it "Dragon's Breath," making her smile at the name. For a while, she walked along the forest floor, the light fading with each step. Finally, she reached her destination.

The sunset was in full view; its colors stark and natural. She held her arms outwards at her sides, as if she were branching out to hug the sun. She smiled, her bright teeth reflecting in the sunlight. The girl stayed in that position, until the sun had to duck under the horizon for the night. Breathing in deeply, she turned around and began her trek back to the small cabin she called home. As the sky became darker, the forest darkened by tenfold. She kept a quick, hasty pace.

Suddenly, the girl froze mid-step. Fully alerted, she looked around warily. The girl didn't know herself why she stopped. Perhaps it was the feeling of being partcially lost in a forest, or maybe it was that something was off. Or... perhaps it was something else... Something like her inhuman instincts. She tilted her head to get better ranges on any sounds.

Eyes widening, she turned on a dime and bolted to her left. She had heard it. A soft, feeble whimper and a hiss of pain. Nearing the area she had heard it originate from, she looked around numbly: Her sense of smell was being over written by the aroma of blood. She turned her head, and saw the cause of such sounds of pain and the metallic scent of blood.

On the ground was a boy -- not much older than her -- with a large slash down his torso; the crimson liquid flowing out like niagara falls. If the girl had been normal, she would've puked. Instead of puking she sighed, wrapped her trench coat around the boy and hooked his arms over her shoulders. With him being much taller than her, she was forced to drag his feet. And with one labored step after another, she began the trek home.

~&~

The boy jerked up from the bed, his hands reaching out for something unseeable and unreachable. Immediately feeling a crushing pain in his midsection, he slowly shrank back into the bed. Being unable to move much due to pain, he used his hands to explore whatever it was that was wrapped around his torso. He felt something made of fabric and sticky. Realizing that the fabric must be a gauze, he lifted his gray-blue hand in front of his face, seeing a bright crimson color trickle down his fingers. Putting his hand down, he looked around in curiosity, his eyeless sockets taking in his surroundings.

He was in a wood cabin, the walls being made out of a wood with a pristine finish. The bed frame was handmade, judging by the age from chips in the wood. He craned his neck, trying to peer at the floor. It was wooden -- big surprise -- and an old fuzzy carpet covered up most of it. He reached on top of the blanket, feeling the soft embroidered cloth; and decided that it was also handmade. To his left in a corner was a plain dresser with a dark finish, a bookshelf jammed full of books sported the same rustic style. The only source of light in the room was a dim lamp. And next to that lamp, in the same style as the bed frame, was a chair--

The boy hissed, his muscles tensing as he noticed a small frame in the chair. Its legs were pulled up to its chest. Its soft, even breathing suggested that it was asleep. He let his muscles relax, realizing that the sleeping figure was no threat.

For now, anyway.

Immediately realizing the familiar and comforting weight on his head was missing, his hands flashed up to his face. His worst fears were confirmed: His mask was gone. The boy suddenly started to hyperventilate, realizing that his horrendous face was visible. His eyes dashed around the room, hoping to find it; then it hit him that the figure in the chair -- whomever it was -- helped him -- And possibly saved his life -- even when being able to see his face. The figure mumbled something soft, making him tilt his head so that he could hear it. Even with his heightened senses, he picked up only bits and pieces of what it was mumbling.

Don't... Last time... Die... Live or... Trust... Past... Living in... a world... Don't pretend...

It seemed as if it was having a conversation with itself, one that seemed like an argument. The boy shuddered, which surprised him. He never felt uneasy. Yet, he did. Vulnerable, even. Whatever the figure was, it made his predatory nature feel wary. He hadn't felt something human, like fear, in... He couldn't recall. Too long, he supposed. His sockets widened in happiness; was this figure like him? A monster? Something turned from human into something else? His mind wandered off, dreaming of possibilities of finding someone like him. However, his ears snagged onto the last couple of words it mumbled in its sleep-like state, making his blood run cold.

Wake up... The Dark One has awoken...

And with that, the figure's breathing hitched and it shot up, its eyes looking around like a trapped animal. When its eyes landed on him, they both froze, not looking away from one another. Something fell off of its lap, ending the trance that both were trapped in. The figure blinked, its long hair sliding off of its shoulders as it stood up. The boy stiffened, not liking being vulnerable in front of a complete stranger. It walked over to the door, switching on a light, which temporarily blinded him. He shielded his face with his hands, unused to the sudden brightness. When he opened his eyes, the figure was messing around in the drawers in a nightstand next to him. He frowned slightly, his brows furrowed in confusion for what it was doing. Suddenly, it stiffened, sensing his stare. It slowly turned its head upwards, almost as if trying to remember what had been happening moments before.

Immediately, a polite smile appeared on its face.

"Hello," it said in a soft but sweetly stern voice, "you must be confused." It stared expectantly at him. Catching on to what it meant, he nodded. "I figured. Long story short: I found you bleeding out in the middle of the woods. I decided that since I'd rather not have someone's preventable death weighing on my conscious, I hulled you back here." It said quickly, standing up. After a few moments of silence, its face contorted in confusion, wondering why he wouldn't answer. He would if he could, but the figure's appereance stole his breath.

It was a human female with an athletic and boyish figure. Her unkept, straight long hair was a black at the roots that faded into a white, reaching almost down to her rear end. She was wearing a black turtleneck top that seemed warm and fuzzy. Her sweatpants were grey, making her look monochrome; and as if to add to her strange appearance, she wore black bunny slippers. Her porcelain skin contrasted greatly against her dark roots and black shirt, making her pale skin almost completely bleached of color. Her teeth were a perfect white, showing that she valued hygiene along with everything else. Although he noted these things, those weren't what took his voice away.

Her eyes were a bright green, darkening into a darker green the further you got from her pupil. The green in her eyes seemed to be moving, forever swirling in her iris. The intensity of her gaze drove him speechless, caught in pure awe. His eyeless sockets continued to stare at her, driving well past the level that meant "creep."

Quickly realizing this, he felt his cheeks flush a bit and he forcefully tore himself away from her eyes, cursing himself. She chuckled, then stopped and put her hands over her eyes. 

"I'm sorry," she mumbled, walking back over to the chair and feeling around it. The boy was confused; why was she apologizing? Finding whatever she was looking for, she stood up. She held up a small scarf, as if investigating it for something. After deeming it free of whatever she was looking for, she tied it around her eyes. Turning back around, the boy let out and inaudible sigh. Suddenly he made a small noise of surprise, on full alert. 

"What did you do to me?!" He growled, not being able to move much from the pain. The tips of her lips tilted in a small frown, her brow furrowed in concentration.