Oh hey, guess what? Another one!

De’Tearion woke at dawn. He got up, and managed to walk to the door of the little cottage without falling over. He then opened the door and walked around some more, testing his limits. Surprisingly, the more he walked, the better he felt.

With a thoughtful chirp, De’Tearion decided to return to the site where he’d battled Jackie. He concentrated a moment, remembering what the place looked like, then teleported. After a minute to inspect the place, finding nothing of interest, De’Tearion sighed in boredom. He then inhaled deeply, closing his eyes, seeking out Jackie’s scent.

It came to him quickly and he found the trail she’d made while walking into the forest. He opened his eyes, following that trail.

Eventually, he found where Jackie was staying. He kept to the shadows, but it seemed like she wasn’t at home. So, he followed the freshest trail he could find and discovered her bathing in a stream.

He moved to a place downwind of Jackie, in case her sense of smell was as good as his. He also kept his distance, to avoid being spotted by sight or hearing. Then, he watched her, spying on his current nemesis as much as admiring the scene in front of him. He couldn’t help but stare at Jackie’s long, gorgeous hair.

(Lol)

De’Tearion noticed the way her ears moved, and knew that he’d somehow been caught. But, he was curious how she’d react, so he stayed. He quickly regretted it, because all Jackie did was annoy him.

Without even responding, De’Tearion teleported away, appearing on the far side of the cottage Jackie was staying in. He peeked in one of the windows, studying the place. With a bit of concentration, his entire body turned into a cloud of gas. He then slipped through the small cracks and crevices of the window, moving to stand in the middle of the floor before materializing again.

De’Tearion wandered through the cottage, quiet as a ghost, inspecting everything. Jackie wasn’t the usual kind of person he dealt with, and he wanted to figure out who she was and why. He had already faced a similar situation with a previous nemesis, and it had nearly killed him three times. He wasn’t going to let that happen again.

De’Tearion had been looking through all of Jackie’s clothes, searching for hidden weapons or items of interest. He then neatly folded all of her clothes. He glanced to the side at Jackie as he folded the last pair of her underwear.

“I know not what these are, yet I am a tidy individual. It would be rude to leave a mess,”he snorted.

He returned the underwear to its place, pondering why they were called ‘under-wear’. It sounded like a human name. And, the way humans named things had always confused him.

“Your ‘modesty’? Mercy have me. I despise riddles, woman. And, I doubt you are blind as well. My hands are human,”De’Tearion hissed.

He raised one of his hands, showing off his fairly clean, long fingered, human hands. They were pale skinned, just like his face.

“The only thing I have touched be trees since our last battle. As I said, I am tidy,”he mentioned.

He watched her cautiously, then leaned against the wall. The way his hair settled on his shoulders framed his handsome face, the pitch black hue highlighting his deep blue eyes. His expression was stone as she questioned him, though he honestly had no idea what he wanted. Or why he was actually there.

“No. That battle be over. And, I wish not for another battle either,”he replied.

De’Tearion snorted, rolling his eyes. He had already known what she’d meant. He had just been annoyed by her poor choice of description. Unfortunately, he didn’t know the right human words to accurately describe his annoyance.

“I am no child. I knew what you spoke of,”he huffed.

“Very well,”he replied, not denying the truth of her words.

De’Tearion watched her, confused by how relaxed she was around him. Though, considering that she had won a battle against him, and their second battle had been a draw, it honestly wasn’t too surprising. That, and her damn steel weapons.

He turned away, staring into oblivion. For some strange reason, he just wasn’t in the mood to leave. Maybe it was the loneliness that had been plaguing him since… he’d been forced to leave what had become his home. Maybe it was something else. But, he didn’t… want to be alone, even despite the fact that his current choice of company was an unbearable bitch.

Minutes passed as he was drawn deeper into his thoughts, and he unconsciously started picking at the crust on his arms that had formed during his first battle with Jackie. It cracked and crunched as he picked at it, and he crushed whatever he pulled off. It disintegrated into black ash in his fingers, revealing healed skin beneath the crust.

De’Tearion jolted out of his thoughts, then sighed, his demeanor becoming melancholic for a moment. He then breathed deeply, straightening and returning to his typical stony expression.

He didn’t respond to her though. Instead, De’Tearion looked around, studying the room some more. His hand unconsciously drifted up to the collar of his robe, pulling his amulet out and cradling the pendant again.

De’Tearion turned back to Jackie, his face emotionless but stern. There was something dark in his eyes, even threatening.

“Why be it of any importance to you?”he hissed.

His hand held his amulet tighter, though he was still mostly unaware of it.

De’Tearion chirped irritably at her words. He didn’t want to admit that she’d hit a nerve, but she did. A really, really sensitive nerve that had haunted him for a good while now.

“Again. Why be it of any importance to you?”he asked emotionlessly.

De’Tearion snorted disdainfully.

“Nerves, aye. You are otherwise wrong. I could have had a large harem all to myself. Yet, the women I knew were much like you. Unbearable. They only desired my bed, my bloodline, not me,”De’Tearion replied.

De’Tearion snorted again.

“My attitude be why they desired me not. I had been rather hateful in my youth. And, underestimate my intelligence not. I have done far more than you will likely ever know,”he stated.

He wasn’t going deny the part about his looks though. He had always been a prized male, among his species, and among humans.

De’Tearion sighed at her question, turning away. He didn’t want to talk about why his mood was always foul. Primarily, because it wasn’t. He was melancholic, not angry, despite how both of those emotions coincided within him. His rage was his sorrow, and vice versa. But, the reasons behind that… was something he wanted to avoid.

De’Tearion snorted, not even bothering to verbally respond. He hated her constant rude attitude. Maybe later, he could eat her tongue first.

He watched her, scanning the fire pit for weapons. A faint sigh escaped him when he heard her question.

“I shall politely decline,”he answered.

De’Tearion had never eaten offered food, particularly if it was cooked. But… if Jackie was offering herself as a willing meal, then De’Tearion would quickly change his mind on that offer.

De’Tearion rolled his eyes at her words, then watched her leave. He looked around the room just before he slid down the wall, sitting down on the floor with his long legs stretched out before him.

When Jackie came back in, he watched her again. He didn’t react to what she showed him. The only thing he’d be able to eat anyway was the venison, but he preferred it fresh from the deer.

As she prepared to cook, De’Tearion closed his eyes, seeming as if he was falling asleep. However, he was very conscious, and listening closely to Jackie.

After a moment of beautiful quiet, De’Tearion’s mind became plagued with memories. So, he opened his eyes to avoid them, his gaze settling on Jackie. She was definitely better to focus on than his past, even though he despised her as much as he was fascinated by her.

As he watched, his fascination took over. She seemed to truly enjoy cooking. De’Tearion had never known or understood the appeal of it, but he understood the passion and precision behind it.

He then noticed the fur on her body and his eyes widened just barely. How had he missed that she was completely furred? He had touched her, fought her, even held her down! And he’d missed that! How?

Unconsciously, De’Tearion leaned forward, one of his knees rising as he studied Jackie more closely. His foot, all two feet of flexibility, was flat on the floor, or at least, as flat as it could get. Two long tibial spurs extended from the large armor plate on his heel, and they propped up his foot slightly. But, the large pair of claws serving as his toes balanced his foot quite well.

De’Tearion chuckled at her reaction, a cruel delight flashing in his eyes. He then looked down at the floor, nostalgia replacing sadism, then sorrow replacing nostalgia. With a sigh, De’Tearion turned back to Jackie. He didn’t move though, not even to hide the eerie sight of his long foot.

“You are quite passionate about cooking, aye? ‘Tis obvious. I am glad to see that you actually enjoy other things besides provoking everyone around you. Reminds me of an old ally,”he remarked.

De’Tearion barely registered Jackie’s words when he saw her shaking hands. Instantly, his own bad memories resurfaced. His own shaking hands, and then the shaking hands of his dearest sister, Agatha.

How many times had he found Agatha scared and crying in the trees, hiding from her attackers? How many times had he comforted her for this reason or that? He had stopped counting after the first few years, and he’d watched over her for over a millennium.

“I… I apologize,”he breathed, a slight tremor in his voice.

He turned away, curling up. For the massive individual that he was, he could seem quite small when he wanted to be. And, he did now.