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cakeMind if this is set on the 20th?
'cause all i ever had,
cakeOpposable thumbs and ingenuity kept the black wolf alive, as it had in the past, as it would in the future. Even with his under-par eyesight. He had been through worse and would not become mad with starvation like the cougar had some nights ago. Death came to those who were too weak to avoid it. That wasn't to say he wasn't hungry -- his stomach growled at him and he answered it finally after the haze of the past day wore off. Sometimes an absence of everything was a better reality than reality itself.
cakeHe set a steel trap and slept off the demons. When he awoke to a bright sunrise the following morning, a rabbit was caught in the teeth. The wolf quickly broke its neck and limped back to camp with his prize. It had been three days since he had eaten - or was it five? Bane didn't remember - and he felt weak. The coal-black wolf had to focus to control the shaking in his hands. Maybe it was the lack of food, maybe it was the lack of narcotics. Semantics, the doctor thought, grinning briefly, mirthlessly, to himself.
cakeThe fire he had started in his haze the night before had dwindled down a bit and he stoked it as he prepared his meal. His butterfly knife served the dual purpose of a skinning knife as well as a weapon, and he was careful with the rabbit hide, figuring that there may be a trade system around here for fur or other goods. Something as common as rabbit wouldn't be worth much, but it was a start. Balancing his broken leg awkwardly in front of him, the dark werewolf impaled his meal on a stick let it sit over the fire. If he had less self-restraint, he would have eaten it raw.
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[html]  That's fine :] And Ember's got some deep bite marks where Hybrid got her collarbone, and a crumpled-looking hand on the same bad arm.
She was pretty sure that something was infected, but she wasn't sure which part. Everything felt about the same, pain-wise...just different levels. Some places it felt a little sharper, some it felt numb...she didn't know any more. Ember had spent so much time outside that she didn't know what it felt like to be inside, warm, relaxed. She should have never left Tayui--she couldn't remember the way back to where her ex-leader was staying. Wherever it was, though, it was probably warm.
A girl had to eat, though, that part was a necessity. Ember had learned fishing from Naniko a long time ago and she'd kept the rod with her through all of the moves, from pack to pack. The dark, green-eyed wolf had risen with the sun and had started fishing around that time, and now she carried a long string of fish with her good arm. The other one she wasn't sure that she could move; every time she tried, she felt a stabbing pain near her neck.
The smell of something roasting caught her attention after a few minutes more of walking, and she looked toward the area from which the smell was the strongest. She didn't know who was out there or what they were cooking...but she couldn't help but be drawn toward the area. It smelled wonderful. Ember paused when the small fire came into view, her ears flicking back. She didn't recognize whoever was sitting there. She began backing up a little, keeping the flames in view. Maybe when they left she'd be able to start it back up and cook her fish. They tasted better that way.
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[html] cake:]
'cause all i ever had,
cakeThe fire seared the rabbit-meat as Bane wiped clean his balisong of the dead animal's blood and entrails. It was a blur, but he knew what he was doing. He flipped it closed once it was clean enough for his liking. The man was compulsive, but his hunger currently overrode most of his other urges, from the obsessive to the more primal ones that never really went away. The knife found its way into the pocket of his jeans, always within arms' reach. Food was almost ready. The surly male adjusted his makeshift spit to cook the other side of his prey. The smell would have driven him crazy if he hadn't learned long ago how to ignore the madness.
cakeSomething hid on the edges of his subconscious; Bane could feel it before he could hear it, smell it, and lastly see it. It was always that way, a ghost in the peripheral vision of his mind, fading from the shadows into reality. Patiently the doctor waited, watching the rabbit as it cooked, finally adjusting his vision to the figure that stood through the fire in the distance. Her, he could see clearly, as obvious as the trees, the sky. She was a black wolf with green eyes, no ghost, this one. Alive and breathing. His food was ready.
cake"What are you afraid of?" Gingerly the broad-shouldered werewolf reached out as he spoke, grasping the stick and pulling it from the ground. The scabs along his chest and right arm stretched despite the care he took. Later in the day, there would be more painkillers. He didn't necessarily need them. "Come sit with me, specter." Blue eyes focused wholly on the stranger, Bane took a bite of the meat, not waiting for it to cool. It burned his tongue, but he would barely notice.
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[html] Your writing is so awesome. And it's funny that you would mention ghosts; Ember thinks that she hears them sometimes. XD Like in my thread with Pendez.
It felt strange to not be a part of a pack again, to not have it matter where she went home to at night. She was free again. But at the same time, Ember hadn't really stuck around any particular packlands after she had left Storm anyway, even when she had become fully accepted into the next pack...so it was a feeling that was harshly familiar. She watched the wolf near the fire carefully as she stepped backwards, trying not to make any noise. It seemed that she was running out of luck, though; just when she thought that she was out of view he spoke. But was it to her? Or...well, he wouldn't be talking to the dead rabbit. It was already dead. He wasn't looking up, though, which she thought was a little strange.
He was wearing clothing, she noticed. Ember had looked for something in the human city that would keep her a little warmer, but she hadn't been able to find anything. And then she'd gotten hurt. She doubted that she would even be able to get anything on any more, clothing-wise, with her body hurting the way it did anyway. Ember wasn't a doctor, she wasn't into medicine. She wasn't Naniko. And the few weeks that she had spent in the territory that was Twilight Vale hadn't improved her knowledge of it. She had shadowed her sister, listening to the names of the herbs and their uses, but she hadn't soaked much of it up. And she couldn't bother Naniko now; the large white wolf had four pups to look after and probably didn't have the time to spare.
She was considering just turning and trying to run, but then the stranger opened his mouth again. He wanted her to sit with him. Ember walked out slowly, letting the end of her line drag along the ground. She'd been discovered, so she really didn't have another choice. The loner sat down with a small noise of discomfort, putting the heavy fish down in front of her feet. The fire was already starting to warm her front, but with the warmth came a brand new kind of pain. Her body had been numbed from the cold for such a long time that it caused more pain than pleasure."Ow."
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[html] cakeThank you! I've had characters who can see/hear ghosts also... it's a fun trait to mess around with. :]
'cause all i ever had,
cakeThe black wolf split his focus between the stranger and the rabbit. Multi-tasking had never been a problem for him. A part of his mind was always separate from all else, capable of watching and analyzing whatever was going on around him. This wolf, this fire-specter standing on the other side of the roasting pit Bane had built, came closer when he called and he saw the wounds, the mangled hand; she'd been in a fight recently. She seemed twitchy, almost as if she were nervous. He ripped another large chunk of hot rabbit-meat from the dead animal in his hands, swallowing it, barely having chewed. Through his painful hunger was a pondering curiosity; both things needed to be sated.
cakeBane didn't deal in herbs and plants. He had spent many of his younger days on battlefields, during and after the bloodshed; first to fight, secondly to learn. How many corpses had he dragged home to his knife? How many illegal autopsies had he performed to learn about canine anatomy? None of it bothered him. The dead were dead, what was done was done. Prescriptions and pills were his things. Drugs mankind had created and abused. One day Bane hoped to donate his body to science. It was, after all, just a vessel.
cakeThe noises the quiet specter made as she sat down were further proof to a proven end. Blue eyes phased from her fish to her face to her wounds, which had long begun to heal. She hadn't seen anyone about it. "You should have a cast on that hand," he stated simply, pausing from his food. A little hypocritical -- his own leg needed a cast, but without his supplies, the best the man could do was the makeshift splint. The break wasn't horrible. It would heal, in time. "It'll heal wrong without one. Do you have a doctor?"
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"Why, are you one?" She asked, curling and uncurling the fingers on her good hand. Now that she was getting the feeling back in her limbs she felt more comfortable and was able to focus on the wolf beside her better. It wasn't normal for Ember to approach anyone, really, not without a good reason. She wasn't the type to go up to a stranger and just strike up a conversation. But he had the fire...so she would stay. He didn't seem alarmed by her presence, just thoughtful.
"I read about medicine once. When I knew how to read. But I don't remember much of that any more--it was a long time ago." In the old lands she'd done a lot of exploring, and had found a hospital in Citta Umana. There had been many medical textbooks there, but she hadn't thought to bring any of them back with her. "Can I put my fish on?" She motioned toward the fire. She could cook a few at a time, if he would allow it.
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[html]  cake
i'm just a boat on the ocean
cake"I am, actually." Once upon a time, the dark wolf had baffled the exiles and their Elders with his medical prowess. The medicine-wolves there had revered him with frantic fervor in their eyes, and they had sent some to the great city to find what he requested, and sent others to the barracks to build him a cabin for their injured. And he had done it, become their chief medic, seeking salvation for a life he had long begun to regret. It was funny how things turned out, funny to think where he was now.
cakeAs the dark lady spoke, Bane nodded in understanding, still preoccupied with his meal. Basic medicine was easy, as it was easily forgettable. When she made mention of her uncooked fish, he lifted his head to apologize for his lack of hospitality. "Oh, please do. I apologize, Miss Specter," he added as he grasped the makeshift spit and handed it to her. "The fire is yours." With a smile, the blue-eyed man put aside what was left of his prey, content with his mostly-full stomach. He could eat more. Unfortunately, he were but a weary traveller with a broken leg, and would gladly take what was offered to him. Lady Luck had found a way to teach the dark wolf what he needed to know.
cake"Might I ask what happened, and if it still pains you?" He motioned to her injuries as he spoke. In his bag were supplies enough to make a splint, and painkillers he would part with if necessary.
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Everyone had their own story to tell, even Ember. She had lived in Storm for most of her life, up until the fire. At that point she had joined Labrynth Glen until it had disbanded, then Dahlia de Mai, Shadowed Sun, and Esper Hollow. She had even lived in Twilight Vale for a short time, with her mate. The only group actually left out of those packs was Dahlia de Mai; even her sister's precious Twilight Vale had crumbled. "My older sister is a healer, but she put away all her herbs while she was pregnant...I didn't know if she had anything that could help me. My friend Tayui helped a bit...but everything still hurts a lot. My collarbone, I think..and my hand." She'd had broken bones; she knew that there was a more painful part and then a less painful part. She hadn't made the transition to the less painful part yet.
She took the spit when he handed it to her, setting one end on the ground and sliding the fish off the line and into it. She wasn't sure whether to put them on length-wise or width-wise, so she settled for shoving them on in more of a random fashion. She put all of the fish on, going until her line was empty. "I'm not sure exactly what's wrong. I don't know how to get rid of infection--Naniko told me that sometimes cuts can get infected, whatever that means, and that it makes them hurt more." She reached a hand up to trace over the slice on her chest absently. Hybrid had injured her there once before, and he'd gone through the scar tissue when he had gotten her this time. Of course, she couldn't complain about it...she'd literally asked for it.
"I thought everything would be so much easier than this." She hadn't expected to be rescued by Tayui; she'd thought that death would come and that she would finally be released from this world. Instead, she was alive...and in nearly constant pain. "I made a stupid mistake. It's okay if you can't do anything, or if you don't know enough to tell me what I can do. It's not your job." She put the spit over the fire, watching the flames lick at the fish. He'd called her specter before...but she wasn't sure what that meant. "It's Ember. Ember Phoenix. But Specter... I kind of like that."
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[html] cake
i'm just a boat on the ocean
cakeBane nodded as the lady spoke. His own pain was something he could easily ignore. Sometimes it was welcome, just to remind him he could still feel it. The majority of the doctor's time was spent in a haze thick enough to detach himself from these things, these petty things that distracted him from his truth. He was okay with that, and he was okay with the dull throb he felt in his freshly broken leg that day; his stomach was content, and his mind was alert. Soon he would continue his descent down the hole.
cakeThe Specter-wolf spoke of friends and relatives, and he could vaguely smell scents of strangers on her when he focused. There was a community here, as Bane had thought, and when he could walk again he would learn more of it. "Now what kind of doctor would I be if I didn't or couldn't help? I live a life of service, Miss Phoenix." A side pocket on Bane's bag contained a few small containers of antibiotic ointment. It was one of those he dug out then, tossing it across the fire towards the ground at the girl's feet. He wondered if she could read. "An infection could do worse than make it hurt more. Use that. It's antibiotic, it'll keep it clean, and a clean wound won't get infected. It would help to keep it covered as well." From the larger part of the bag, his hands easily found a roll of gauze bandages and a pillbox that contained a few extras.
cake"The pills will ease the pain if it's too much. No more than two a day, though." Morphine wasn't a child's drug. "The bandages won't be easy to use on your collarbone, but if you should make any more stupid mistakes in the future, they're there." He smiled when he said that. His tone was gentle and unobtrusive. "Life is rarely ever easy. My name is Bane, by the way. A pleasure, ma'am."
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[html] I definitely want more threads with you :] And my post is kind of weird o.O sorry!
Much of what he was saying made sense to her, about life not being easy and about the medicine. She wasn't sure how bad her collarbone was, really, but understood that it would be painful for a while. You couldn't put a cast over a bone that was inside your body, anyway...not like an arm or a leg. Ember had her hands back out toward the fire again, though her left one remained in its crumpled position. She hadn't been able to move any of the fingers except for her thumb, and even when she moved her thumb it made something stretch and hurt.
"I didn't know if all doctors are like you are. Or if you're like all doctors. I don't know...I've only seen healers. But they're not the same thing, are they?" Probably not. Or he would have said that he was a healer. She moved a little closer and held her injured hand toward him next, without him even saying anything, so that he might look at it. "Something is broken, but I don't know what." She explained.
For the duration of their conversation her eyes had rested on various things. The fire, the ground, the bandages and medicine, but never really on Bane himself. At least, not for any period of time. Now, though, she took the opportunity to glance upwards. She couldn't tell what color his eyes were, exactly, or if his fur was a pitch black or if it had brownish tones like hers. But his voice was unlike anything she'd heard--very smooth and calm, even when faced with someone with injuries like hers.
He stopped speaking, though, and it took her a moment to recall what he said and think it over. "You're making fun of me" She stated, ears going back for a moment. But then he was smiling. Or...it looked like a smile. She couldn't quite tell with the firelight. "I'm going to try and stay out of trouble now. But it's hard. Hopefully the next time I see you it won't be because I'm hurt." Bane was an interesting name. She thought to ask where he'd gotten it, even where he had come from, but a retort to his comment came first. "I'm not old enough to be a 'ma'am'. Are you old enough to be a 'sir'?" She could figure out his age that way. Then she would ask about his heritage. Maybe.
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[html] cakeSounds good! :] And your post is fine. I like it. Shh.
i'm just a boat on the ocean
cakeBane had seen many worse injuries than hers. He had soaked his feet in blood while scouring fields of corpses for his dead. "I assume not. I haven't met many healers," he admitted. It sounded as if these healers studied a more primitive form of medicine. The New World was a much different place. When she offered him her hand, he took it and studied it. An ear remained swivelled towards Ember, listening.
cake"I would never make fun of a lady," Bane responded genuinely. "I'd just like to see my patients look after themselves." Although that would put him out of a job. Bane enjoyed what he did. It was easy respect, regardless of the fact he'd have killed any of his patients in a second if he needed to. He chuckled when she mentioned his formal tendencies in conversation, raising his blue eyes to meet hers. His smile remained. "I apologise if I've offended you. It's less in regard to age, Miss Phoenix, and more about respect. Where I come from, there are very strict rules about how a man should treat a woman. I do consider myself worthy of being called sir, as long as I maintain those standards." As he spoke, he gently flexed her fingers with his own. "Does this hurt?" If it were broken and healed wrong, he would have to re-break the hand.
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[html]  ^-^ <3
One could say that she had lived a comfortable life before the fire. Back then all she'd had to worry about was learning how to hunt and scout, how to read...normal werewolf things. The only time that Ember had really been involved in anything life-threatening had been when they'd had that avalanche; she'd been buried, and the entire pack had come together to try and find her. She could remember Dierdre pulling her out of the snow, and going back to the den to sit on her brother Moon's lap and warm up.
But now things were just...different. She got into trouble on purpose, just to try and make her feel like everything was worth it. Whenever she was doing something bad, it gave her a thrill--and she lived for those thrills. It was dangerous, but she didn't really care. Because without the thrills, what would she have? Nothing.
"Ow. Yes. I think it might be because of the cuts, though--they're hard to see, with me being dark colored. And one of em hurts worse than the other ones--mostly when I move one of the other fingers. It's like they all have to react together...I can't just move one without the other ones hurting." She didn't know anything about anatomy, or about how any of that was supposed to work.
He certainly did speak strangely, but she didn't really mind it. It was just become a "Bane" thing, the way that he talked; it made him unique. He spoke of standards. She didn't really have any of those, so she definitely couldn't be called one of those fancy, polite words. But she would keep quiet and let him think whatever he wanted. "So...now that I'm one of your patients, will you come back to check up on me?"
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[html] cakeLol Ember is funny. XD
i'm just a boat on the ocean
cakeIf they were to speak of addiction, they would have found a common ground to stand on. If Ember's drug of choice was adrenaline -- and it was a drug -- Bane's was morphine. He had originally started taking the painkillers for an injury that had healed long before he could even have called himself a real doctor. It had been the answer to his youthful anger and rebellion, to the child's fear and uncertainty. These things had long ago left him, but the addiction had stayed. He was stable now, but nor was he in denial. Bane lied to nobody, not even himself, and his honesty was something refused to fear: he was a drug addict, and one day it would take his life. Or worse, his mind. He knew that, better than anyone else. Everyone had their demons.
cakeBane relaxed his grip a little in response to her expression of pain. He nodded as she spoke; he listened well, as any doctor should. Under her dark fur, he could feel the wounds. It made him curious about who she had fought, who would do this to a lady. Letting go, he lifted his blue eyes to meet hers again and spoke. "You can move your fingers, though? If you can, they're likely not broken. Flex your hand for me." Her injuries looked painful, but shallow in the sense that they would leave no lasting damage provided she took care of herself. If someone had caused those wounds on her hand with their teeth, then she was lucky to still have all five fingers.
cakeHe smiled a genial smile as she spoke of future check-ups. "If you'd like me to, my lady, I shall." The man took pride in his work.
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[html] Bane is awesome x3
"I don't really live anywhere yet...but there's a tribe to the West that I might join up with. If the leader lets me." She made her hand into a fist for him, biting her lip. All of the pain was horrible...but she couldn't blame anyone but herself. It wasn't even Hybrid's fault; she'd gone looking for him. But now that she had gotten a bit of medical attention she could at least look forward to tomorrow, when it might not hurt quite as badly. Or the next day, even.
The fish were probably done. She reached for them, pulling them off the fire and tossing half of them toward Bane. They were the only thing that she had been able to catch, with her collarbone and hand the way that they were. "They're kind of hot...but after a few minutes."
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[html]  OoC
Thanks!  End thread here? We could say they ate fish then Ember went home or something. :O IC
The pain she felt wasn't as bad as it could have been. Nonetheless, Bane had attended to women in the past who would have fainted at the sight of a needle, or of blood, and Ember was holding up quite well. Bane knew pain well enough to sympathize with her. He knew pain well enough to know it was as rooted in instinct as the urge to eat, to sleep, to bear children and carry on the bloodline. He knew it was a warning system, developed to keep the mind aware of what was going on with the body. Designed, ultimately like everything else, to keep the body alive. As a result, it could be ignored. It was that simple.
So he let go of the girl's hand and straightened his leg. It was uncomfortable in the splint. A minor inconvenience. "It should heal on its own. And I'm sure I can find you," he responded, breathing in the scent of the cooking fish. The rabbit hadn't filled his stomach, it had merely sated him. As a child, the dark wolf had virtually always been hungry, and even as an adult he had yet to outgrow that. Months ago, war had kept him thin, and his body seemed determined to make up for that. "I'm a fairly good tracker." He smiled as he said this. He was a better trapper, but it depended on the weather.
As she offered him the fish, he continued speaking. "Thank you, Miss Phoenix." Where he had come from, giving up food to another person was a sacred thing, a thing involved in many mating and bonding ceremonies and religious rituals and such. It was an insult to the bearer to turn it down. Here, where food was less scarce, he knew it was a simpler gesture. Nonetheless, he was thankful for it.
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