Sojourn of Shadow

[Tonash Drahow]

"I suppose this is the part where I play the surprised victim, love?" Dimitri said with a coy grin.

Dimitri saw her fangs. He saw her somewhat confused eyes and her pale white skin. She had changed, physically at least.

He was unafraid.

He placed a hand on her cold cheek and moved his thumb up and down. He stared into her eyes with a peaceful yet lamenting gaze.

"Gabrielle, I know you're stronger than anything that could cloud your judgment. Would you strike me down? Would you feed upon me so soon after this new chapter in your life? If that is the case, then do so quickly, I grow more aroused in this position," he ended with a lewd joke.  

[Zulma san]

Gabrielle blinked several times, slowly her eyes were gaining back their amber color. His voice was calming her and so was his caress so soft. She brought her cold hand on top of his and squeezed it gently. She recognized him, she knew who he was.

"Dimitri.." she whispered.

When she finally realized the position in which they were: she was fully lying on top of him, she felt a strange warmth growing to her cheek, but not only there. Her face turned bright red when she pulled away.
Something was strange thought, she had thought that as a vampire her heart would stop, but apparently not, for at that moment it was racing and pounding.

"I am sorry..." she managed to say.
"I need to...learn." she offered as an explanation.

She was trying to calm herself down for being so close to Dimitri was awaking different kinds of instinct which for the moment she was not able to control.
She smiled wearily at him. "Here I am." she said simply.  

[Tonash Drahow]

Dimitri couldn't deny that he felt very enticed. He could feel his own pulse quicken and a line of sweat crossed his brow. He loved this woman deeply but he could feel that this was not something natural.

She was experiencing a burst of instinctual emotions since her transformation. She could obviously only act and react on a primal level.

"Gabrielle," he smiled as he managed to lift himself up to her level with some effort, "You should get some rest. Your feelings are running rampant right now and it would not be right of me to take advantage of that. You should go back to camp and relax, I will attempt to find us some food."

With that, he pulled in close and simply kissed her cheek, despite his, and most likely her, desire for more.

"Come on."  

[Zulma san]

Gabrielle's senses were all in alert. Her sense of smell was bringing an scented picture of a surrounding, in the middle of which was Dimitri which she wanted and who wanted her. She dipped her fingers in her earth around her, as if she was trying to anchor herself in the ground and not jump on him.

As he made a movement forward and his lips brushed her cheek, she felt a shiver running along her spine and her eyes half closed despite herself. She swallowed with difficulty, wondering what would happen if he were to kiss her on the lips. After a mental fight against what they both wanted, she stood up.

"I will be at the camp." she managed to say, her voice was shadowed by longing but she pushed herself forwards and soon reached the fire. She had paid attention not to look back at him. She knew that something as innocent as crossing his eyes could make her run back in his arms. She felt warm, really warm, despite the coldness of her skin.

Gabrielle sat by the fire anyway, resting her back against a stone and trying to listen around her. It felt as if she was born again, as if she was hearing and smelling for the first time. Everything seemed so clear. She closed her eyes and calmed down slowly although she did not fall asleep.  

[Tonash Drahow]

It was less than an hour later that Dimitri returned with two rabbits. The knight sat by the fire and placed the first one on the spit and began cooking it, all the while occasionally glancing at Gabrielle.

It was so difficult for him to not stare. She was a new person. For better or worse, she had changed from the quiet, solitude-loving individual she once was, at least for the time being.

Rotating the rabbit as it was cooking, he called to her.

"I don't suppose you have a preference on whether it is cooked or not?" he said, half-jokingly.  

[Zulma san]

Gabrielle raised her eyes towards the Knight but stopped her gaze at his lips. She smiled bitterly. "I think I will know once I will try..." she answered. She already knew that she would probably not care for the cooked meat but she wanted to try.
For the time being she was working on controlling herself. She could almost feel two sides in her personality. Gabrielle, the Holy Knight, who was more than thirty years old and the vampire, a new born creature, who was discovering a new world around her and whose instincts were very strong.

The problem was when her mind and her instincts wanted the same thing, it was then very difficult to remain calm as Dimitri was both igniting her love, lust and need for blood. He was quite irresistible, especially with the firelight dancing on his face.
She hoped that her condition would not affect their relationship and yet she knew it already had. She knew that if she were to let her guard down, even if only for a minute, she would not be able to control herself. It would probably be a question of time, but how long? Could they wait so long? They had already been apart so many times.

Gabrielle decided to break the silence. "The nature seems different..." she was hoping that by sharing with him, it would be less painful and would bring them close again, mentally as physically was denied for the moment.
"It seems clear, detailed...I hear and see so much..." she smiled "...and smell too..." she chuckled softly "You cannot hide what your body wants..." she spoke and looked at the fire, but the mention aloud of their common desire seemed to relax a tension in the woman...or maybe even a tension between them. She thought that being as honest as she could would be their way of surviving what would come ahead.
 

[Tonash Drahow]

Dimitri smiled as he pulled the first rabbit off the spit and set it to the side to cool a bit as the last remark was made by Gabrielle.

"Haha. I cannot deny that I enjoy the new persona, you seem to live far more in the moment than you used to. And I certainly cannot deny that I am still a red-blooded male with the same desires as any my age, or younger hah. However, as I said before, you are slowly re-adapting to life and the world in general. If we were to act on our emotions right now, we would undoubtedly regret it in one way or another."

He pulled the uncooked rabit and the coney with him, one in each hand then brought them to Gabrielle.

"Try both and let me know which you prefer. If you still prefer the cooked method, I will take the uncooked one back and attempt to salvage it."

He chuckled as he handed them to her.

"Take heart, we'll have our moment in due time."  

[Zulma san]

Gabrielle listened to Dimtri's voice with delight. His ton was warm and caring, and she could feel the relief in his voice that she had chosen to live by his side. She smiled at his comment about her new self. At least it makes one of us... she thought bitterly, but her face was smiling.

The woman took the cooked rabbit first and bite into it. She detached a piece and chewed on it. She felt like eating sand or earth. Quite disgusting. She was not a huge fan of eating and delicious dishes, but at that moment she realized that nothing would ever have flavor for her anymore..but blood she assumed. She spitted the morsel in the fire. "Not a success." she smirked and handed the cooked rabbit back to Dimitri in exchange for the dead one.

She immediately noticed how her body was reacting to the touch of blood and the smell so close. This was not as enticing as being close to Dimitri but the allure was definitely there. She did not bite into the flesh, but licked it. The motion grossed her out and yet, she somehow enjoyed it. The red liquid had now lost its warmth but still it was...refreshing. She hated herself at that moment. What would it be with human blood...? her eyes raised despite herself on Dimtri's face. What would his blood be? probably the most delicious nectar... she looked away.

"This lollipop is much more to my new taste..." she admitted with a joking smile. As she sipped out all the blood she could, an idea crept into her mind. Rightnow it was night, but what of tomorrow.

"Dimitri, I think we should try to reach the cave next to the waterfall before the morning...if you can." she suddenly realized how much carrying her and fighting the twins had probably tired him. She scowled herself for her selfishness. The blood seemed to have brought back strength in her and her new abilities to sense her surrounded gave her a feeling of power.
"I do not know how much protection I need under the sunlight..." she explained. "Do you think you could make it to that cave?" she asked and her voice was filled with worry and love for him.  

[Tonash Drahow]

Dimitri said nothing but nodded in response and took the cooked rabbit and began eating the remnants. The food did replenish much of his energy, as they had been fighting for nearly two days without end and while this was merely a drop in the bucket as far as restoring his strength to its former bounds, it was a start.

He had foregone his manners as he ate, his hunger finally being addressed, his stomach was asking for more as soon as he bit into the tender cooked meat. It must have looked a bit barbaric to Gabrielle, but Dimitri was too caught up in restoring his energy to notice.

After devouring the coney, he tossed the stick to the side and let out a contented sigh. Turning to Gabrielle, he chuckled.

"Pardon my fervor, I had forgotten just how starved I was. As for the cave, we'll leave as soon as you are ready. I have everything that cannot be left behind still strapped to my back," he said, referring to the three swords secured well underneath his cloak.  

[Zulma san]

Gabrielle chuckled at Dimitri's appetite. "It's alright." How could she blame him after what they both had endured during the war...

She tossed the rabbit meat now dried of any blood in the fire. She stood up and stretched. She looked at Dimitri and the swords, his sword and her katanas.
She hesitated, without them, she felt somehow naked but she knew that she would be able to defend herself without. She decided that it would be safer for Dimitri to be the one carrying the swords.

"I am ready." she said softly.

Without another word, she threw some earth on the fire, to prevent anything around from catching fire. Once the fire was killed, she started walking away.
She thought that if she was walking first, she would be less tempted, than if Dimitri was ahead of her, his back to her... She chuckled silently at the thought. She was calmer now, but all her thoughts were trying to lead her back to him...  

[Tonash Drahow]

They made their way steadily to the waterfall pronounced cave in the remote region of the foothills. Dimitri followed behind Gabrielle like a lost dog, simply pleased to be nearby. He admired just how much more forward and decisive she had become. It was an added perk to her dark form, but one that he believed she would not fully appreciate until she learned to control her new found emotions.

As they entered the cave behind the waterfall, Dimitri sighed with relief as he pulled the weapons from his back and un-strapped his breastplate "Deep Thunder" and set them to the side, releasing nearly a hundred pounds from his weary shoulders.

Dimitri asked Gabrielle to turn around for a moment as he removed his torn shirt that had been damaged badly from the battles with the Twins. She had seen his bare chest a few times before, though he did not want to tempt her more than the desires they already faced. He tossed the shirt onto the floor of the cave and with one hand, he ignited it by manipulating the heat from his body and that of the air, creating a calm, albeit small, campfire similar to the one they had left so shortly ago.

He still had an undershirt available, pulling it from the inside of the chest plate and sliding it on, it revealed his muscled arms, but kept his chest covered. After he had situated everything to a more homely state, he spoke to Gabrielle.

"Alright. I think that should serve our purpose for now. Do you suppose it is time you got your rest? We know not what will occur when the morning sun rises."  

[Zulma san]

Gabrielle turned her back to Dimitri with a wide smile and a raised eyebrow, but she did not discuss his request. She knew why he was acting that way and that it was for the best for both of them. She waited in silence, but Dimitri could not do anything against the slight change of smell in the air when he removed his shirt. She closed her eyes and tasted his scent. It was having a stronger effect on her than she had imagined, stronger than just looking at him. She sighed with relief when the smell of fire spread across the cave, overpowering the man's scent and she turned back.

The vision he offered her was very pleasing. The clothes were hugging his muscles very nicely. She noticed how much his body had changed since the last time they were together. He looked stronger. "You are much more muscled than before..." she commented. She had to admit that he was the most attractive man she knew.

However the woman did not seat. "I feel fine for the moment and I think what I need is first to clean of. I will have all day tomorrow to rest. But you should probably stay here and rest." She smiled at him and for a brief instant allowed her eyes to cross his. Then she left the cave and headed down the waterfall where the water was calmer. She undressed herself quickly and jumped into the cold water. To her surprised she felt nothing, nor cold, nor warm. She just felt the liquid surrounding her, such a strange sensation. She dived to wet her hair. She needed to remove the dirt and blood which was covering her. She noted that she'd need to clean up her clothes too.  

[Tonash Drahow]

Dimitri left a quirky smile as she departed from him. He had to strongly deny his urges to go with her.

Dive beneath the water...

Meet within the waves...

He shook his head though, knowing such acts would be too much at the current time. He simply stoked the fire again and tore a shred of cloth from his cloak and fed it into the fire.

The fire glowed brightly again as his thoughts resounded in his mind. He lie down to rest but his consciousness was fully aware and awake.

How I long to see her as happy as she is now. I truly hope that when she does learn to control herself that she can still call upon this persona which so loves the intrigue of witty conversation and that of the web work of layered desires.

He sighed deeply and closed his eyes for a bit, lost in thought.  

[Zulma san]

Gabrielle was discovering so much. She was trying to slow herself down. She felt the strange wonder of a child who started understanding its surrounding and went on a discovery trip. She felt enthusiast and strong at the same time. But she was taming this sort of euphoria. She knew that soon thirst would creep into her and that the blood of a tiny rabbit would not be able to quench it. She would have to feed, but she could not accept that.

Enjoy yourself while you can... said a little voice in her mind. She accepted that advise. She wanted to forget about the years of fight against this creeping darkness within her mind and soul. She wanted to forget about the days of fight against the chaotic twins which had taken such a high toll on everyone. She wanted to forget who she was and be happy... She closed her eyes.

The knight let the caress of water bring her mind to other thoughts. But she was dreaming of other caresses and Dimitri's face and body were always appearing. She smiled. For the first time since she had met him years ago, she was fully accepting that she loved him and he loved her. She sighed and for once there was no sadness in her smile. They were given a second chance. She would have to deserve him.

The woman slowly swam to the border and grabbed her clothes. She soaked them several times in the water, trying to remove the stains, but she knew that the holes would remain. She hopped out of the water and was satisfied to notice that her water bending was untouched on the contrary, it seemed cleaner, more detailed. In a second she was dry and so were her clothes which she put on quickly before walking back towards the cave. It was now passed mid night and the night was at its coldest, but she did not seem to care much.

Gabrielled smiled and passed her hand to the base of her neck, just above her left shoulder. A habit since she had been bitten there ten years ago. The woman froze and passed her hand again. Nothing. She could not see the wound, but she knew that the bite had slowly spread and that her skin had taken a grey ton around it. She had always been able to feel the little holes underneath her fingers but at that moment, she could feel only a smooth yet cold skin. She rushed to the cave and noticed that now rushing met running at an impressive speed.

The black hair woman arrived at the cavern and quickly kneed next to Dimitri, panting. "Dimitri, tell me. What do you see?" she pulled her skirt down her shoulder revealing her neck and shoulder and waited impatiently. "Do you see anything?"  

[Tonash Drahow]

Dimitri was shaken from his reverie to find Gabrielle frantically asking for him to check her neck. He could only assume that she was searching for the bite marks that had plagued her for so many years since he had first encountered her. She had pulled down her garments to reveal her shoulder and his eyes focused on her gray skin, scanning for the scars.

Nothing.

"The scars are gone... I suppose this means that the transformation was a complete assimilation. I guess that's another advant-"

Her garment had been lowered a bit too far, revealing more than just her shoulder. Dimitri's face turned a bright red. He quickly turned his head away with some effort and bashfully rubbed the back of his neck, unable to find words to adequately describe his embarrassment for being incapable of averting his eyes faster.