Magical Menagerie (18+)(Sathenus & Alicihino)

[Sathenus]

Hazle eyes glanced around the cluttered and practically empty book store, arms ladened with a pile of books that needed to be shelved in their appropriate spots. Walking through the rows of books he easily slipped each book in his arms into the appropriate spot until his arms were finally free and he stood by the cart of new arrivals to the shop. Pushing the cart along he reached for a book without truly looking to see which one he had grabbed. Not until he was already climbing up the ladder to reach the shelves that towered up to the ceiling of the small shop. At this point did Luca spare a look at the book in his hand and he was stunned by the appearance of it.

 

"What the...?" He questioned observing the cover better through the lens of his glasses. He absolutely adored books and reading, that was one of the reasons why he had applied to work in the little book shop. It had so many great and exotic books in it's possession and so many interesting people came through those doors that he couldn't even imagine working somewhere else. But this book... this was odd even for the little shop. Glancing around he tried to find the owner, the ancient looking man was nowhere in sight though. Figuring he must be in the back he slowly made his way back down the ladder not shelving the strange book. Just as he turned to head to the back and see if the old man was there he was stopped by the bell telling him someone had entered the shop. Without a second thought he set the book down on the counter and went to greet the customer.

 

"Hello, can I help you find something?" He asked his voice was friendly and engaging just as it always was. Hearing that they were there to pick up an order he got the young woman's name and moved behind the counter to collect the books. It wasn't long before he had her out of the store and returned to shelving their new arrivals. The strange book sitting near the register practically forgotten at this point. It wasn't until hours later when he was closing that he remembered it. Reaching over he grabbed it and made his way to the back inspecting the cover as he did so. It was odd, the markings on the cover. It looks super old, older than any of the books that had previously come and left through those doors.

 

Upon entering he must have tripped over something as the book fell from his hands and opened to a random page. He didn't even look at it at first turning to see what he was just tripped by. There didn't seem to be anything there, and though Luca would never admit that he tended to be clumsy he'd be lying to say he wasn't. Grumbling to himself he bent down to grab the book freezing for a moment when he discovered the page it had opened to upon hitting the floor. There were more weird symbols sketched onto the page but there was writing underneath the symbols. Luca tried to make out what it was saying, reading it to himself a few different times but he still couldn't understand what the words were supposed to be. Shrugging he set the book down still open to that page on one of the desks and called out for the owner.

 

"Mr. Jameson!" He called looking around for the man. "Where has that man wandered off to..." He questioned when there seemed to be no sign of him. Since his back was turned to the old book he didn't notice that the pages were turning on their own or the light that was coming from it. The book suddenly stopped on a page and the light got brighter and larger causing Luca to turn to face it. Trying to block his eyes from the light he moved closer to it until he was suddenly engulfed by it and his feet were no longer on the floor.

 

A cry of surprise escaped him as he felt like he was falling before he collided hard with the ground, the air being knocked out of his lungs. For a moment he just laid there trying to get his breath back. Unfortunately his glasses had fallen off leaving him almost completely blind, he could barely see anything when he wasn't wearing his glasses. Finally pushing himself up it was then he realized there was grass under his hands. That was the first hint that he was not in the bookstore anymore. Fumbling around he tried to feel for where his glasses could have possibly landed.

 

"Please don't be broken!" He groaned as he hunted for them trying his best to see but everything was just blurry blobs without them. Finally his hand connected with something that felt liked his glasses. After grabbing them he was pleased to discover that they indeed were his glasses. Slipping them back on he glanced around where he was, finding that he was in the middle of a forest. The grass was cool beneath his hands, the trees seemed close together, and rocks and boulders could be seen here and there. Getting slowly to his feet he could feel the ache already from colliding with the forest floor.

 

Luca had absolutely no idea how he had gotten here, running a hand through his short auburn hair he swore under his breath. "You have got to be kidding me." He groaned trying to figure out where he was and how he was going to get out of here. It seemed strange that his biggest concern would be not making it to work tomorrow if he could not get out of wherever he was. Looking up at the sky he saw it was late in the day, the sun would be setting soon and he knew he would have no way of getting out of here once the sun had set.

 

Taking a calming breath he decided to think about this logically. Here he was, standing in the middle of nowhere with no idea what direction to travel in. Surely there had to be some sort of hint as to where he should go. Hazel eyes scanning everything, it was already getting darker under the canopy of the trees. Not good. Deciding that it didn't really matter at this point he decided to just travel in the direction he was already facing. It wasn't easy going, stumbling over tree roots, getting scratched here and there from long hanging branches, or snagged on bushes. One miss step and he tripped over a large root once more landing on his face. "If I ever get out of here I never want to see another tree." He muttered to himself frustrated as he pushed himself back up.

 

It was then that he noticed something strange, a rock seemed to have suddenly come out of nowhere. He was sure it had not been there when he fell yet... it was only three feet in front of him. "That's weird..." Luca was at this point sitting on his knees staring at the rock before him. Not noticing that more "rocks" were moving closer behind him and from the sides while he was distracted. At least not until he noticed something reach towards him. He turned suddenly to realize that what had reached for him was no rock and he had almost fallen into another one of the creatures when he moved.

 

Fear hit him as he looked around watching as they seemed to transform before his eyes. They still very much looked like large rocks and boulders but they were alive with stubby legs and arms and had eyes trained on him. Realizing what was happening he screamed, his scream echoing throughout the trees as he tried to put distance between him and whatever these creatures were. The more he tried to get away from one the closer he actually ended up towards another.

[Alichino]

If there was two rules you had to follow while you were moving in a big forest like the one Aizik was walking in right now was, 1. Never go out when it was dark, and 2. Never stop moving. The sun was going down faster than what the magician had anticipated and the darkness was now happily embracing each corner of every tree. Aizik looked around to get a slight idea of where he was, how far he was from his safe house and most of all where the enemies were. Although, the latter was always a harder one to keep track on since in this forest, the enemy was never in same place as before. As soon as the forest was completely covered in the dark night sky, the rocks around him started to move closer. They were slow, they were silent and they were hungry.

 

Aizik's orange eyes sought out every single one of them, but he knew that no matter how hard he tried, he wouldn't be able to spot them all. That's what they did, they kept you focused on one them while the other's were moving in and even if they kept their glowing eyes hidden, the magician knew they could see him, sense his footsteps in the ground, hear his breath as he tried to quicken his pace to get home faster. He really didn't like to be out in the night. Sure, he had his powers, his black tattoo that covered half of his body and half of his face reminded him enough of that, but he didn't like to use it. He wanted to avoid resorting into violence since he was afraid it could turn him into one of those creatures, loosing control of his thoughts, his common sense and only be able to resort to instincts... He didn't want to be like that. So instead, he kept on moving, giving these trolls no time to gather around him, surrounding him. Keeping his distance well enough in order to just slip by and not get eaten by moving rocks.

 

As Aizik kept moving towards his home he started to notice some signs that something was going on. You could always tell when the trolls had a pray surrounded. That was when other creatures started to gather towards that same spot. Scavengers, flying over the treetops, only coming down to land when they sensed some food were in the making. Aizik stopped for a second and looked to where they were landing and thought he saw something. There was definitely trolls surrounding a pray, but... the magician hadn't seen that many trolls in one spot since... since..

 

Without finishing that thought he started to quickly move towards where everyone else was gathering. The scavengers, looking like regular birds at first glance was patiently watching the scene take place underneath them. A scream suddenly echoed through the otherwise quiet forest and that scream was powerful enough to send chills through the magicians body. He had to act fast. There was no time to loose and definitely no time to hesitate. Aizik managed to get close enough in time to see the trolls closing in on their pray and grabbing him from every direction, quickly drawing him into their trap, but before any troll had time to take the first bite, something came out of the ground and swiped through the trolls arms. It took a moment for them to realize what had just happened, but it was clear that when something thudded to the ground, the arms that had grabbed the man was completely off.

 

Aizik didn't give the trolls any time to realize what had just hit him and before either of them could react on what had happened something was starting to pull them through the ground. The dark forest didn't reveal anything what was going on, other than those brightly lit eyes was sinking closer to the dirt and the silent screams the trolls let out. A few of them that still stood close still tried to grab the man, tried to pull him down with him, but before they could hold onto anything, something cut through their fingers leading the troll to sink alone under the surface. However, the magician was starting to feel that everything was about to go horribly wrong and he needed to get the man into safety.

 

The scavengers were still waiting in the trees, waiting until the danger was completely over to pick up the cut off limbs from the trolls. Hoping that something more will be added so it would be enough to go around to everyone. Anything with meat on it, they would eat, didn't matter if it were trolls or any kind of creature that happened to cross the path of the dangerous forest. Aizik just hoped he wasn't going to end up on the menu, neither would this man. Determined about that, he strolled up to the stranger and grabbed his wrist in order to get away from there, keeping him clear from all the hands that were grabbing through the dirt. However, in the midst of it all he stepped too close to one of them just as they were reaching the end of the hoop and his foot got stuck together with one of the trolls. Frustrated, he let go of the stranger and tried to get his foot loose, but as he did he could feel how something sharp was scraping against it. If it was a root or the trolls claws he had no idea. He just knew that he really wanted to get out of there and that was enough for it to go horribly wrong.

 

Suddenly, the troll that was holding him was lifted from the ground, slightly hovering above it and there was something that seemed to have a strong grip around it. It was hard to make out in the dark since it looked to be as dark as the night sky, but there was no doubt about whatever was holding the troll it was strong. Stronger than the troll and before you knew it managed to pop the troll like it was nothing more than a zit. Black blood splattered everywhere, making the scavengers flee the scene and that was Aizik's cue to leave right away.

 

He quickly got up on his feet again and he grabbed the stranger's wrist once again and started to move away from that place. However, he didn't want to run since he really didn't want to be stuck in another one of those trolls trap. As soon as he figured they were a little bit out of the danger, since you were never fully out of danger in this place, Aizik slowed down until he came to a complete stop just so he could look at the man he had just saved. Only one question came into his mind and he wasn't too shy about sharing it.

 

"What the hell were you doing back there?! Don't you know how dangerous it is to not keep moving in this forest?"

[Sathenus]

Luca didn’t know what to do. Stubby arms and hands had grabbed ahold of him and he could see that this was not about to end well. His eyes shut tightly when suddenly he felt the hands release him just to be followed by thuds all around. His eyes opened only for him to see that the creatures’ arms had somehow been cut off, instantly his stomach churned and he was sure he was going to be sick. A hand went straight for his mouth but before it made it there those that did still have their arms reached out towards him. Attempting to scurry away he watched in slight horror as their fingers too were removed much in the same fashion as he assumed the arms of the others have been.

 

A man he hadn’t noticed before appeared and moved quickly towards him grabbing his wrist and pulling him up to his feet. Luca didn’t even have an attempt to argue especially since the creatures were still reaching for them despite being dragged into the ground by something. One of these creatures seemed to catch the man’s foot as they suddenly came to a halt. Completely unsure what was going on or what he should do Luca just stood there shaking. Suddenly the creature seemed to be lifted by something else out of the ground just to be squished. That was all it took for what was in his stomach to come out turning quickly to avoid getting any on the other man. Before he had a chance to find out if his stomach was done emptying its contents his wrist was grabbed again and he was once more dragged along by the mysterious man.

 

He had no idea who had come to his rescue but one thing was for sure he wanted some answer. What he wasn’t expecting was for them to come to a stop only for him to speak. Luca looked at the man stunned, the man was acting as if whatever had just trapped him and tried to do who knew what was normal! This was insane, those… whatever they were had just tried to eat him. Or at least that was what Luca thought they had been about to do. Removing his glasses, he tried to clean them the best he could so he could see better. When he put them back on his face they were smudged but at least they weren’t splattered anymore.

 

Now that he could see at least a tad bit better he looked the man over and spoke, “I-I don’t even know where there is… or here.” His voice shook when he spoke, he was still shaking from shock, his hands unable to be still. His mind was racing, part of him wanted to think this was just some really bad and realistic dream. Another part of him knew that wasn’t true, especially with how scratched up he was from stumbling through the woods on his own and the way he was sure to be bruised in the morning from hitting the ground like he had. Though he truly didn’t understand how he had got here or what just happened he knew he had to find a way home. If there even was a way home.

 

That thought alone made him panic on the inside. Fearfully he glanced around his arms wrapped tightly around his chest in an attempt to stay warm. It was getting darker, and with the dark came the cold. Glancing back to the man he spoke again, “W-what were those things?” Luca truly didn’t know if he wanted to know the answer, but he couldn’t stop himself from asking.

[Alichino]

Aizik had only stopped in his tracks to let the man breath for a moment, something he would never had done if it weren't for the state the poor man was in. Seeing someone throw up like that was an unusual sight in these lands. With such a weak stomach there was no wonder that he had ended up in these woods since he really wouldn't have survived long outside of these trees. He was really shaken up over that event and sure, crushing that creature really was going too far, but it was still nothing compared to what Aizik had seen and experienced... No. And with that in mind he couldn't help but wonder where this stranger was coming from. What sort of sheltered upbringing had he lived before this event? Were there still places like that? Not to Aizik's knowledge. At least not this close to the forest.

 

There were more questions that kept buzzing inside of the magicians head, but he really couldn't bring them all up here. From a distance, he knew things were moving and they really should follow the other creatures in this forest and move. He moved aside questions of how the man couldn't possibly know where he was and why he didn't use his own magic to defend himself since they weren't important right now. They were still exposed to nearby danger and they couldn't stay here for long.

 

"How are you feeling?"

 

He asked, but wasn't really looking for anything specific. He just wondered if the man was well enough to get out of here, perhaps go back to his home.. But, he said that he didn't know where he was... Then was he lost? If you didn't know where you were you were obviously lost, which probably meant that even if he did have the strength to move, he would be wondering around this forest... until he got too tired to walk.. Aizik really didn't want to see another one fall into the grasp of the trolls, especially when he could do something about it.

 

"If you're lost I can offer you a temporary stay at my place. At least until the sun rises and the rocks have stopped hunting."

 

Aizik said and then glanced beside him for a moment. His orange colored eyes landed on a rock that were only a few meters away and he knew it hadn't been that close before. These trolls... They just never stopped. Of course, if you saw one the other's weren't far away and the magician really didn't have time to wait for the reply. So instead he started to walk, if the stranger wanted to take him up on the offer, he just had to follow him. Although, before he rudely walked off he did manage to catch the question the other one had. It struck him as strange that he wouldn't know about those creatures since everyone knew every type of enemy there were in these lands, even if they didn't live in this forest, they knew. So how come this man didn't know? Of course Aizik wasn't going to deny him an answer. Perhaps this just was his first time experiencing them and he just couldn't connect it to the creatures he had heard of? It was probably something as simple as that. The magician waited until the man was in earshot before he responded to his question.

 

"They're just trolls. They camouflage themselves as rocks and blends in with the environment so they can surround you and eat you. As long as you keep moving they can't snare you into their trap."

 

Even though Aizik lived in a forest, his looks hadn't been too affected with all the dirt he had to walk around every day. His clothes was as dark as the shadows around him, a knee length coat hung from his shoulders with a high collar that loosely wrapped around his neck. A black hood from the shirt underneath the coat covered his dark hair, but even with that on his pale skin almost shone in the darkness. Either his tight pants or shoes were stained with any dirt and they really looked to be brand new as he was walking confidently and determined towards his own home. Aizik was tall and looked to be strong, but still not as much as a body builder, just enough to get around in this dangerous forest.

[Sathenus]

“I’m okay.” Luca murmured in response to the question of how he was feeling. His voice wasn’t strong though, and it didn’t sound remotely convincing. Still, it was all he could say considering all the events that had taken place in such a short amount of time. He was still in shock, it was still hard for him to come to terms with what had just happened to him. Taking in a very shaky breath his eyes darted up to the man noticing the way he was watching him. He was sure that he was a bit paler than normal, but he felt like it was a completely normal reaction taking everything into account.

 

His eyes moved down towards his feet, hands still shaking a little as he looked over just how dirty he looked. ’Well… in my defense I did land on the ground quite a few times today.’ he thought to himself with a soft sigh. When he heard the man speak again his eyes moved back to him. The offer of somewhere to stay was greatly appreciated though he was not unaware of the fact that he was told that it would be at least until morning. What was he going to do then? He had no idea where he was, how he got here or how to get home. So in simple terms he was indeed lost, but he felt like he was truly much more than that. Luca instantly made to follow him as he noticed that he was heading off again, making sure to keep up as best he could without falling flat on his face again.

 

That was a lot easier said than done, and he was mentally cursing his clumsiness with every step he took. Luca didn’t say another word as he wandered along after the other man, keeping his eyes as much on the other as he did on the ground knowing one misstep on his part would end in him truly just dragging the other down. The last thing he wanted was for the man to decide that he was too much of a hassle and leave him behind. What he wasn’t expecting was to be told that those “rocks” were actually trolls. ’He’s joking, right?’ he questioned himself stunned eyes on the other man. For a moment he hadn’t realized he had stopped moving and upon noticing he scurried after him trying to catch up. Managing to do so but not without stumbling and scraping his palms against the rough tree bark of the tree he had used to regain his balance.

 

Cursing under his breath as they seemed to travel further and further. They had to be getting closer to where the other man lived right? Luca truly wasn’t sure how much further he could travel before he just couldn’t go any further. Having already done enough traveling for one day he really just wanted to sit down and never move again. An ache had already set into his body, and each step made the muscles in his legs ache even more. After what felt like hours but he was sure was actually much less than that he finally decided to question how much further they had to travel. “I don’t mean to sound ungrateful or anything… but are we getting close to where you live?” He tried to sound patient, understanding and grateful. Not wanting to come off as needy or impatient.

 

The last thing he wanted was for the man to regret helping him and offering a place for him to stay the night. In the morning he would have to figure out just where he was and then try to plan how to get home.

[Alichino]

Aizik could see very well for himself that the man wasn't feeling to great at the moment. Considering that he was all scratched up and covered with dirt, not to mention that he was shaking and had just emptied his lunch on the ground just a minute ago... yeah, who the hell would be feeling great after all that? However, with that said, the man still answered that he was Okay. Either he himself hadn't taken in the state he was in or.. he was stronger than Aizik had first thought. Either way he was still fit to travel which was good news since it meant that the magician didn't have to carry this person to his home.

 

As they walked, he managed to follow his steps quite well. Sure, he stumbled a few times and probably scratched up more skin on that fine body of his, but at least he wasn't falling too far behind. To be honest, seeing that man stumble through the forest om all kinds of things was kind of... cute. It wasn't at all often that Aizik came across someone who lost their footing like that. The creatures who resembled the humans in their looks was too agile to let a simple root be their fall. Just like Aizik himself, they moved with grace and with such perfect balance, that even if they did stumble, you would never notice since they would've picked themselves up before anything happened. So to witness such disgrace and clumsiness was such a delightful sight that Aizik couldn't help but to find it all indeed cute.

 

He wasn't the only one though since they were being watched. From every corner there were more creatures that find the strangers clumsiness appealing. The scavengers had returned and with every distance they were followed by that sound of flapping wings. Even the trolls kept hunting them from behind, just waiting for either of them to slip, however, thanks to Aizik's magic they were keeping a distance from him so as long as the man stayed beside him he should be safe. If they could just get home so they finally could relax and Aizik could finally ask who this man he just saved was. Then, just as he thought about it he noticed the entrance to his house, around the same time as the other asked if they were there yet. The magician couldn't help but to smile at that.

 

"Indeed we are."

 

From a distance it just looked like any other tree. Hell, from up close it looked like any other tree, but it was big. The trunk of the tree was thick and held majestically the big crown of leaves above it. It really was big enough to fit a person through it and that was the tree that Aizik walked up to. He glanced behind him and watched how the trolls were trying their best to surround them and do what their instincts were telling them to. He didn't want the man to hesitate before following him, not really sure why he thought the man would hesitate, but nevertheless he grabbed his wrist again and forced him to follow through the darkest part of the tree. It probably looked like they disappeared into the trunk itself, but in reality they walked through a hole that was protective with Aizik's dark magic. Well inside the trunk followed even more darkness, but Aizik knew his way well in there so he knew that the next step would lead him to the staircase that would take them to where the real entrance were. Even if Aizik had enjoyed seeing the man stumble outside he really didn't want to see him fall down the stair since it would most definitely cause him more pain and the magician wanted to present him with something safe, not painful. Therefore, he held on to wrist in a gentle grip and did his best to guide him down the stairs and if he fell, he would be there to catch him. Lucky for them the stairs wasn't too long for them to maneuver.

 

Slowly but surely making their way towards the end of the long trip the warm light start to shine through from the entrance and when they finally reached it they were welcomed through a large opening under the dirt and rocks that lay under the surface. The roots of the trees followed the round shaped ceiling and small lights twinkled through every part of them. The floor was covered with rugs in a warm dark red color which made the otherwise stone ground gentle to walk on. The first room that greeted them looked to be similar to a kitchen, with a stove, workbenches, cabins and a wall filled with different growing greens. From the opposite side of the door stood a small round table with two chairs sitting across from each other. Every furniture in the room was built with a dark brown wood, identical to the trees in the forest. Beside the table was another opening leading to two different bedrooms. It wasn't a very big place to call home, but it was a place where it was safe to actually stand still on.

 

Aizik moved through the room, still holding on to the other's wrist and leading him through before he pulled out one of the chairs for him. He commanded him to sit down before he finally let go of him and then moved to the wall of herbs and greens. He pulled out something from his coat pocket and let the small leaves join the other's before he grabbed something else from his collection and then he moved to the stove where he started to prepare some boiling water. While it was boiling he glanced at the man for a second, really observing the scratches on him before he grabbed a box on one of the shelves high above everything else. He walked up to the other and asked to look at his wounds before he took a little bit of what the box contained into his own hand. It looked to be something resembling scratched bark from the trees, but it was too soft to be anything like that.

 

Aizik held onto the other's hand while he gently moved his other palm over it, letting the substance settle into his scratched skin before disappearing into it completely. He did the same thing to the other hand and gave his face another look before he decided that yeah, this man was really cute... Although he really didn't understand what he had in front of his eyes, but either way that couldn't conceal his cuteness. Getting back to reality when he heard the water boiling behind him he moved away from the other and returned to what he was doing in the first place... which was? Oh yeah. He put the herbs into the water and let them settle for a moment before he took the pot away from the warm platform, turned off the stove and then fetching two fresh mugs from the cabinet. He poured the hot water in them and then gave one of them to the stranger before settling down on the chair across from him.

 

"Drinking that will help with relaxing and the pain while you're telling me who you are."

 

Aizik said while he started to drink from his own mug. It may look to be boiling water with leaves in it, but the taste of it was something quite different. It tasted just like tea, but sweeter and it did had a calming effect to anyone who drank it. It could reduce the feeling of any pain like a painkiller would, but the effect of it would ware off after a while. The contents from the box wouldn't heal the wounds instantly, but it helped the process tremendously and also made the skin smooth and soft.

[Sathenus]

Luca couldn’t begin to express how happy he was to hear that they had indeed arrived too the man’s home. His excitement was almost through the roof. Yet when he saw what he was being lead to he felt himself deflate again. A tree. The man lived… in a tree. That wasn’t remotely appealing, and he suddenly felt like he would be better off taking his chances out in the woods where at least he wasn’t cornered inside of a tree. Yet before he could really make that decision his hand was grabbed and he was pulled forward and into the tree. Shock hit him first as he had been sure he was going to be pulled right into the trunk where he was bound to be knocked out and yet they somehow seemed to melt into the tree.

 

The fact that it was dark made him even more anxious as he was lead forward, the first step made him stumble after that his hand flew forward and grabbed ahold of the man’s shoulder to keep him steady as his other hand was kept in the stranger’s grasp. It didn’t take them long to reach the bottom and for him to see light. A rush of relief swept through him as they walked into the open space his eyes taking in the area around him as he was still lead forward. It wasn’t until he was ordered into a chair at the table and was sitting before his wrist was released. At this point Luca was taking in where he was, and how something like this could possibly exist. “Those… trolls? They really won’t find us here?” He asked nervously as his eyes returned to the man watching as he seemed to prepare something on the stove. He hadn’t expected the other to grab another item, a box and walk back towards him.

 

Peering into it as it was set down he watched as some of whatever was in it was gathered by the man before his hand was taken up once more and the stuff rubbed into his palm and over the scratches. Luca was a bit surprised that it didn’t hurt, in fact, he felt kind of better after it was rubbed in even if the scratches were still there. Inspecting his palm, he didn’t even pay attention as the same was done to his other hand. The other was standing so close as their eyes met once more, and he was for the first time able to take in his attractiveness. The man was handsome, and he was suddenly even more happy that it had been this man who had come to his aide. Having almost fallen into a trance he was broken from it when the other stood up as the water on the stove started to boil. It wasn’t long before he returned to the table with two glasses and placed one before him. Luca hesitantly looked it over as he was told that drinking it would help him relax and with the pain.

 

Glancing back towards his savior when he heard the part about telling him who he was. What was he expected to say? “Who I am?” He repeated back in a question before taking a hesitant sip of the cups contents. It was sweet, and almost instantly he felt himself relaxing. After a moment he turned his gaze back to the man before he spoke, “Well… my name is Luca.” That seemed like a good start, right? Now came the hard part though. Trying to explain how he had come to be in the woods and how he truly didn’t know where he was or even how to begin trying to get home. But was this man going to believe his story? Thinking back onto what happened he didn’t even believe it. To Luca this all still seemed to be just some bad dream, after all apparently trolls had tried to eat him. That was absurd, crazy really.

 

Sighing he decided not to beat around the bush though and just come out and explain what happened. “I ah, really don’t know where I am… or what this place is for that matter. You see… I was working at a book store putting the new books on the shelves when I came across this weird book…” He trailed off once more recalling the way the book looked. “It had really weird symbols on the front of it. I put it aside to ask the store owner about it later, but I ended up forgetting about it until my shift was almost over when my eyes suddenly landed on it again. As I was taking it to the back room to find the old shop owner I tripped, and the book fell open to a page. When I read it I couldn’t make out what the words were, or even what language it was.”

 

At this point he hadn’t realized his eyes had fallen to the table, but when he did he raised his gaze back to the other man. “I set the open book down on the table and when I went to walk away there was suddenly really bright light and I felt like I was tugged back. The next thing I knew I was falling and landing hard on the ground in the middle of this forest. I have no idea where I am or how I’d even get home. I honestly don’t even know what happened. I mean… thinking about it and even after saying it all out loud it’s crazy.” At this point he felt like he was going to become hysterical at any moment. This was all way too much, and he doubted the man would even believe his story despite it all being real.

 

Sighing he rubbed at his eyes careful not to knock his glasses off when he did so. Once he was done he let the frames once more rest on his nose as he returned his attention to the other man. “Now that I have introduced myself and told my absolutely crazy story of how I got here, before you indeed call me crazy can I at least know your name? You did save me after all.” That was one thing that he realized too. He had no idea how he could ever repay the man for saving him, but he knew he would have to try his best.

 

“Thank you for that… saving me and all. If there is anything I can do to repay you, please don’t hesitate to ask. I really do owe you.” Luca said his voice making sure that the man knew he was sincere. He owed this man his life, and he would do whatever he could to repay him for that. Not to mention offering to let him stay even if it turned out to be just for the night was nice of the stranger as well considering they did not know each other. This man didn’t have to help him or offer a safe place for him to stay, but he had. That was a lot of kindness, something that Luca did not expect. Considering how rude people could be, he knew that it was truly special to meet someone who seemed to care enough to step in, especially when it was someone he didn’t know.

[Alichino]

For an outsider it probably didn't look like much protection when you lived inside of a tree. Considering the previous owner of this den, or whatever you'd call it, Aizik didn't take offence in the stranger's question about whether the trolls could find this place.

 

"Even if they did, they won't be able to pass the magic barrier that covers the entrance."

 

Aizik reassured. During the night it wasn't as clear to eye that a large shadow was covering a huge part of the trunk. It had been this shadow that both of them had passed unharmed, but every time an enemy tried to break in their met with excruciating pain. It won't work for people with powerful magic, but for the trolls it provided the safety they needed. They wouldn't be disturbed here... at least not from them.

 

As the man agreed on introducing himself, Aizik finally learned the cute man's name. Luca. It was a nice name and it suited the adorable man perfectly well. After that, the magician thought he would get a short explanation where the man, Luca, was coming from and what he was doing in this forest, just something brief. What he got instead was a detailed description of exactly how he ended up in here and what he had been doing before it. He could've said that he had found a book with some strange symbols in it and the next thing he knew he was here. But no. Apparently he had been in a... book store. Aizik wasn't sure what that was, but he figured such a detail wasn't important so he didn't question about it. The important thing was what the book looked like and that it was in another language than what they were speaking... or could it be that the man didn't know how to read? Ir probably would be pretty offensive if he asked, so for now he decided to put that detail on the side as well.

 

After hearing the whole and complete story about everything that happened before they met, surprised that he didn't opened with how he was born and then continued from there, but glad that he didn't, Aizik took another sip of his herb tea to relax his thoughts. He didn't really know how he would put this, there was so much to take in which meant that he didn't know where to start first with his response. So many ideas was rushing through his head that it was hard to put the puzzle together. The questions he knew he wasn't going to get an answer he put aside for now and instead tried to focus on the book Luca had been talking about.

 

"It's been a long time since anyone around here used symbol magic. Considering how every child is born with their own magic and if not they..."

 

Aizik went quiet before he could finish his sentence. Couldn't bring himself to say it. Not now, not like this. The fate of those who were born without magic... It lay to close to his heart for him to talk about it with someone he had just met. However, it did bring up another question that he had been thinking about ever since he saw Luca. If he didn't know anything about the trolls or about the symbol magic then where did he come from?

 

"I've heard about other dimensions before. Different realities that overlaps with each other, but I never thought they were actually real. That were just the imagination of humans and nothing more, but from what you're describing... and considering that there are things I don't understand about you and vice versa... it could be possible..."

 

But that's impossible! Even for a land with trolls trying to eat people and with magic that floated all around in the air, that was too far fetched. Different dimensions opened up a whole new world which Aizik didn't think was possible, something that perhaps shouldn't be possible. But then, here they were. Two people who thought the other one was the strange one simply because they knew nothing of each other's realities, but if you let the thought continue it couldn't just be this one place then. How many other dimensions and realities were there? Aizik really didn't want to think about it so again it would be a question for another time... if this Luca sitting across from him wasn't eager enough to ask about it, then they must talk about it, right? However, for the time he settled with defending himself if it turned out that the magician didn't believe him. Oh, he believed him all right. And he didn't think he was crazy. No, he was too sane for that.

 

"Trust me, I know crazy and you're not crazy. The name is Aizik and I'm glad I could help you out there."

 

Aizik said and he really was glad that he could help. It had been a long time since the magician could talk to someone like this. Living in a tree out in the forest with trolls all around didn't really lead to any pleasant conversations where you could just relax over some hot tea. Thinking of which he took another sip and it wasn't until now that he started to wonder if he should've offered Luca something else to. Something to eat perhaps? He had been so busy thinking about healing his wounds and making him relax after he had emptied his stomach that he hadn't thought about if he wanted a bite after that. Was the man even hungry?

 

Before he could ask him of anything like that, Luca thanked him more properly this time and thought that it was proper to offer some repayment after he saved him like that. Aizik hadn't done it to get a reward or something... Ok, maybe to some degree he had, but he really didn't expect it from Luca. Although, up until now he had thought that this person was going to be like everyone else in this world and something like 'I want to repay you for you kindness' really wasn't something you did around here. That died together with the weak ones. However, Aizik was intruiged by the offer and couldn't help his sudden curiosity.

 

"What do you have to offer?"

 

Aizik said with a small smile playing on his lips. He was aware that he could ask for anything he wanted in return, but he wanted to know just how much Luca was ready to pay. If he didn't kmow, then.. Well, the possibilities would be endless.

[Sathenus]

Well, Luca had to say he was glad that the man didn’t think he was crazy. That made him feel a little better about everything. Granted, something strange had still happened, and he still had to figure out how he was going to get home but this was a start. Now that he had the other’s name things would be much easier for him, he figured they could at least move forward in a more positive direction this way. With introductions out of the way he wasn’t really surprised when the conversation settled on how he could repay Aizik. What he wasn’t expecting was to be asked what he had to offer. Back home most people would refuse and insist that it wasn’t necessary to repay them, this wasn’t his home though.

 

This world… or dimension was not like his. Things here were different, and if Aizik wanted him to repay him then Luca would do so without complaint. Still, that brought the problem of what exactly he had to offer the other man. This stranger or acquaintance had magic and lived in a world that Luca had to admit he couldn’t even begin to understand. So what could he possibly offer the man? If he was being completely honest with himself Luca felt like there was nothing that he could offer him. At least not anything relevant.

 

Frowning slightly he took another sip of his tea before sighing; “Honestly I don’t know what I could offer you. I mean… you live in this interesting world and you have magic. What could I possible offer you that you don’t already have or can’t already do on your own?” It was an honest question. He would do whatever he could to make it up to the man; this definitely was not his attempt to get out of doing so. He had offered to make it up to him and Luca would honor his word and do so. “I will do whatever you want me to. I’m sure I can be helpful in some way.”

 

At that point his voice had taken a much softer tone. It was still hearable, but it was quieter for sure. The last thing that Luca wanted to think about is not being able to make it up to the other man. That truly wasn’t an option for him. Sitting there silently his gaze moved around the room once more. He would take Aizik’s word for it and believe that at the very least the trolls would not be able to get in here and he could relax even if it was only temporary.

 

After a moment a thought struck him though and he turned his gaze back to the other man. “Wait. You said that the trolls wouldn’t be able to get in, but that someone with magic could. Is… is magic a common thing here?” He wasn’t sure why something like that had not struck him until now but it had been said. How many people here had that ability? Could just anyone walk right into here? That unnerved him, and a moment later he was sipping at the tea in an attempt to ease his mind once more.

 

This was a lot to take in. Considering one minute he was home, the next he was in the woods almost getting eaten, and now here he was under a tree. It was confusing, and the more he tried to figure it out the more confused he got. Luca had of course noticed that Aizik had seemed to want to ask him something else but he hadn’t spoken. Was it up to him to try to pick the other man’s mind? For a moment he just watched the man before finally deciding to speak up.

 

“You ah… must be wondering about more than just what I can offer you. I’m sure I saw something flicker in your eyes when I was telling you that whole elaborate and probably overly detailed account of how I ended up in these woods. So… is there anything you’re wondering?” Alright, so Luca was not good at making conversation or speaking what was on his mind. It was going to be something he’d have to work on.

[Alichino]

It was amusing to see the other's reaction as he tried to think about something he could do for his saviour. This person obviously wasn't as strong as Aizik and with that there wasn't much for him that he could do since the magician could do it by himself. He knew that, yet he just had to ask the question just to see him try and come up with something. Anything, but no. He was defeated by the notion that he really was hopeless in the arms of his saviour and it left Aizik with a pleasing feeling of superiority, which was always a great feeling to have.

 

"I'll have to think about that, then."

 

He said, secretly wondering if this would mean that Luca would keep be in debt to him until he came up with something to repay him with? It was an amusing thought, but he knew what it would lead to which really wasn't a good thing. Luca was weak, and yes for the moment he ignored the small signs that told him that the person in front of him didn't have any magic of his own. In his mind he thought that of course he had magic, he must have something to defend himself otherwise he wouldn't be here. It was just that he was weak like some other magicians that were born here. Sure, Luca wasn't born here, but he still was here. Having no magic, it didn't really get into Aizik's thick head. So when Luca asked if magic was a common thing here, he couldn't help but to chuckle at that question.

 

"You could say that. If you don't have magic here, you won't survive. That's why humans tried the symbol magic, but that didn't last long. They were still not powerful enough to survive."

 

Aizik probably should've paid more attention to the hints that Luca was just like one of those humans that died hundred of years ago, but it just wouldn't sit right with him. Since, if it were true, then that would mean that Luca would die as easily as an uninvited fly. Aizik didn't want to think about that. He didn't want to believe it so he blocked everything like that from his mind. Luca was a weak magician just like his...

 

Aizik was interrupted in his thoughts when the person across from him started to speak again, this time to ask him if he had any more questions for him. His small smile returned to his lips when Luca looked at him with those considerate hazel eyes. Aizik was indeed curious about a lot of things concerning the other male, but to not only have him notice about it all, but actually ask about it was just something the magician wasn't used to. He really was a peculiar fellow, doing the most unusual things. Although, these things might not be as unusual in his world.

 

"Am I that easy to read? Guess I have to work on that. There are a few things I'd like to ask you, but I think I'll start with a simple question first. Are you by any chance hungry? I don't know what you're used to eat, but perhaps I can make you something nice?"

 

Aizik asked and tilted his head a little to the side as he again started to wonder where this man actually came from. Was this a bad time to bring it up? Or should he wait until his other question was answered before he asked him another one? It really had been a while for Aizik to be curious about something, it had been a while where he wasn't annoyed with the person he was talking to so even he had some conversation skills to work on. Taking another sip of the tea it helped him relax and not think so much about right or wrong and he managed to actually speak up about another question he was wondering about.

 

"What's it like, where you come from? And.. what is that in front of your eyes?"

 

Apparently he couldn't wait for a reply before another question had slipped with his new found courage. However, the last question didn't come without some embarrassment for not knowing something that probably was common for someone like Luca. Now it was his turn to feel dumb about something common.

[Sathenus]

Offering a small smile to show that he would be waiting to hear what he could do to repay the man Luca otherwise didn't respond. All he could do was wait to hear what Aizik would want from him in the way of repayment. Until such terms were figured out he would just be in the man's debt and would have to do his best to help out in any way he could. What he wasn't expecting was to be told that having magic meant survival. 'Shit... so even if I do repay him for saving my life I would only end up having to repay him again since I don't have magic.' It was a bit of a depressing thought. To realize that he would only get further and further in debt with the man if he stayed in this world. It meant that he truly felt like he was going to have to figure out a way to get home even more than he had originally. It was the only way.

 

"I wouldn't say you are easy to read, just under the circumstances it would only be natural for you to have questions." Luca responded trying to make the other man feel better about the fact that Luca had indeed noticed it in Aizik's eyes. It was natural though for someone to have questions when something as strange as this happened. So he was hoping his response would push aside the fact that he had been able to read Aizik's facial expression. If he lost that from the man working on it then he wouldn't have anything going for him anymore. The question of if he was hungry made him think for a moment, despite the grumbling of his stomach as his body's answer he didn't respond immediately. He was hungry, but he wasn't sure if he could hold down anything after all that had happened.

 

Deciding to be honest he hoped asking for something light would be better than refusing completely. "I am a little hungry... perhaps something light if you wouldn't mind?" His voice was gentle and clearly unsure. It was fair that neither of them knew what the other would normally eat so he was hesitant about that as well. Luca would however give the man a chance and try whatever was given to him. Drawn from his thoughts at the next question he looked up once more, "My glasses?" He asked focusing more on the last part about what was in front of his eyes.

 

"They help me see. Without them I am practically blind." Luca admitted with a small blush. It had never occurred to him that glasses either weren't a thing here or at least not a very common thing. A lot of people back home had glasses, even if most people still did not. That left the only other question to answer. How was he supposed to describe what his home was like? He'd have to give it his best shot that was all. "Back home... I lived in a big city. Buildings so tall that they seemed to touch the sky, everywhere you looked there were more and more buildings. Roads intersecting everywhere, tons of people. It was always really busy, but there was never a lack of anything to do."

 

Pausing in his explanation he looked up at Aizik again, "There were cars everywhere too, so you had to watch what you were doing. I guess... I should have implemented that here with the trolls..." Trailing off he frowned before pushing the thought aside. "I lived in a really small one bedroom apartment, the walls were so thin I could hear everything my neighbors were doing. All of their arguments, every slam of the door, every time something was thrown." His neighbors had been terrible and he knew he would not miss them. Maybe he'd actually get a good night sleep? It was a great thought if he was being completely honest.

 

Something occurred to him though, "The trolls... if they hunt at night then I take it as you don't get to enjoy the stars do you?" His voice sounded a bit longing. As much as Luca loved where he lived back home he had to admit living in the city had it's downsides. One of them being his inability to admire the stars at night. If the threat of being eaten by trolls here was greatest at night while the creatures were hunting, then he had a feeling even being here in the middle of the woods that he would still be incapable of seeing and admiring the stars.

 

Despite it being a depressing realization he knew he shouldn't complain. Aizik was doing a really nice thing to allow him to stay here and that was just one more thing he would have to repay the man for. Of course that realization also made him inwardly groan, he would never get out of debt to the other man. Sipping at his tea once more he decided to ask another question. That had to be fair right? They would take turn asking the other questions to get to know each other better. "Why do you live here in the forest if it's dangerous? Wouldn't you much rather live in a town yourself? Around other magicians or... whatever you guys call yourselves. It seems kind of like a lonely existence to live out here... unless you prefer to live away from others. I don't blame you if you do. That's your right after all." Okay, now he was rambling. At least he was aware of that and managed to shut himself up.

[Alichino]

Aizik wasn't sure if he could believe him, considering he did say that he saw his eyes twinkle like he wanted to say something earlier it was a bit difficult for him to swallow that Luca just guessed it by simple deduction. However, he didn't really want to argue with him since it seemed like he just wanted to make him feel better about himself and why would he argue with such a nice thought behind it? So for now he didn't say anything about it, but he did take note of it in case he really did have to work on it in the future. It really wasn't a good thing to be easy to read here. There were so many ways in which you could be killed that you had to watch everything you did. Yes, as simple as a pull of a facial muscle could mean the end of a life.

 

Aizik couldn't help but to notice that Luca's stomach started to grumble the minute the man started to think about food. He was obviously hungry, but he hesitated about asking about something. The magician didn't know if it were because of everything that had happened or if it were because he didn't trust his cooking skills yet. Either way, Aizik really couldn't blame him if both things happened to be accurate. Even so, Luca asked to be given something light and Aizik nodded before he got up from his chair and walked over to where he stored the food. He really didn't know what to give him, what do you give a person when they asked for something light? Something that would take away the worst of the hunger but wouldn't be enough for them to throw up again. Did Aizik even have that? He took a quick look around his small kitchen and hoped he would find something that would be edible enough to fit the description. He managed to find a plate he had stored for an occasion such as this and he brought it forward to the table. The wooden plate was filled with small white cubes that resembled very much like cubed cheese. The texture was the same, but it didn't taste like it at all. The taste was again sweet, like fresh strawberries but as they landed in the stomach it felt more satisfying like you've just taken a bite of a sandwich.

 

As Aizik sat down again he finally opened up his jacket a little to let his hoody fall over his shoulders and reveal his short, black frizzy hair breathe while he listened to Luca's explanation about his... glasses? Was that what they were called? To hear that he was technically blind without them the magician couldn't help but to be concerned for him. If they got destroyed then... he was technically screwed.

 

"They help you see? How? What happened to your sight that forced you to wear those?"

 

Aizik couldn't help but to ask two questions at once again. He was just too curious about it to be satisfied with only one question. This was interesting. He had never seen anyone with that before and to hear that his sight was damaged enough that he couldn't see without them... what could have happened? And what an amazing feature if you really thought about it. If you couldn't see here it meant death, like everything else that would seem to enable you, but where Luca lived they had overcome such an obstacle and just had to put a pair of windows in front of their eyes and they would see again. Granted, it wasn't curing the problem as much as putting a bandade on it, but still.. it was an accomplishment they didn't have here.

 

To hear more about where Luca was coming from and hearing him trying to explain it despite not knowing what Aizik was used to hear was an intersting experience. He knew what a city was since they did have a couple here too, but since Luca didn't know that he tried to explain the best he could what a building was. However, if Aizik didn't know what a city was he doubted he would've understand fully with that kind of explanation, but it was a pretty good attempt either way. There were a few things Aizik didn't understand, though and he thought an explanation would come, but it never did. Apparently the tall buildings was worth a detailed explanation while the creatures you had to avoid was not. Apparently Aizik had to ask the question himself if he wanted to know more about it.

 

"Are cars the most dangerous creature you have over there?"

 

He asked since Luca didn't say anything else that you had to avoid over there. He did say that there were people everywhere, but from the tone of his voice and the way he talked about it, it didn't sound like it was such a danger. If the cars could be compared to the trolls, then he figured that the danger was there and not with the people.

 

When Luca asked about the stars Aizik was a little surprised about that. Stars... Oh yeah... Those lights in the night sky that were supposed to be beautiful together with the moon which lit up the entire world just like the sun would, but not to the same extent... Seeing Luca's hopeful eyes about them Aizik could tell they meant something to him and he really didn't want to disappoint him, but he couldn't just lie about it.

 

"The stars kind of disappeared after the war. We threw the world in such an unbalance that the sky hasn't been the same after that. I've seen pictures and I've heard stories that if you travel far enough you can see them, but... I don't know if I can believe that."

 

Aizik had seen too much horrible things to believe that something as beautiful as those stars and even the moon could exist anywhere in this world. He really didn't want to see Luca's inner light dimmer since he really did seem to light up when he talked about where he came from and he seemed so hopeful for what wonder was in store for him here, but sadly, there was no such thing and the magician really didn't want to lie to him. He didn't want to get his hopes up any further because that would mean that his fall would be even greater and Aizik really didn't want to be a part of that. He wished there was something he could cheer him up with, but at the moment he couldn't think of anything. Perhaps if Luca stayed long enough... maybe he would see something fantastic... something that was still beautiful in this world.

 

For now though, he still asked questions about this place and about Aizik himself. He didn't care if the man started to ramble since it was refreshing to listen to his voice. He seemed to be as curious about this as Aizik was about him and again the word cute got plastered all over the other man. He didn't mind the question, even if it was painful to think about how he ended up under this tree.

 

"You probably won't believe me after everything that has happened to you since you got here, but this forest is the safest place to be in this world. Like I said, as long as you keep walking when you're out there you should be fine. However, in the city... you're not safe anywhere. Everything around here is designed to kill you... or worse. The magicians are the same. If you meet them one day you would understand why we fled to this forest. If you're considered to be weak..."

 

It was clear that Aizik didn't like to talk about it. He didn't like that it was so obvious for him since people could take it as a weakness and take advantage of it. Despite that, there was nothing he could do about it now. He still felt with all those people that had been judged as weak and he probably would continue to do so. Which was why he stayed here, alone where no one would bother him... Well, except that annoying supposed friend who always came uninvited.

[Sathenus]

For some reason Luca had a hard time answering the question. No one had ever asked him that before, but then again glasses were apparently a new concept to Aizik. Biting his lip gently he ended up shrugging, “I don’t know. I guess they have always been bad. I’ve been wearing glasses since I was a kid.” He admitted. Luca truly didn’t know what had happened to his eyes to make it so he needed glasses; he had worn them for as long as he could remember. To him they were normal; not having them would be strange. Not to mention not having his glasses would be detrimental to him; he’d be completely useless since everything would just look like big blobs if he wasn’t wearing his glasses.

 

Now came the trouble of trying to explain to Aizik how glasses worked. After a moment he just decided to explain it the best he could even if it might not be that well of an explanation. “It’s a bit hard to explain, but they bring the world into focus. Without my glasses all I see are big fuzzy blobs, so I’d walk into everything and not know what was in front of me. With them, they allow me to see what’s there bringing it into focus and giving it shape. So… I guess they kind of work how a magnifying glass does. Those things are small and blurry until you use a magnifying glass, then they are in focus and much more clear.” Did that even make sense to the other man? Did this world even have magnifying glasses? This was turning out to be harder than he originally thought. Without knowing and understanding this world he found himself in he didn’t know what they did and did not have.

 

“Well no…” Luca replied at the question about the cars. They weren’t even creatures really, more of creations. Objects to make their lives easier, that didn’t mean they weren’t dangerous. In fact he knew a lot of people died in either crashes or just from being hit by a car every year. Those were things he normally didn’t think about though. “There are numerous things that are dangerous there… like guns, other people, if you live in the country there are dangerous animals. Nowhere is every truly safe.”

 

There was a part of Luca who actually did believe Aizik when he was told that the forest was actually the safest place to be in this world. Had he been aware of trolls he wouldn’t have gotten into the situation that he had been in. It had been his own inexperience with this world and his own clumsiness that had led to such an encounter. “I believe you. But…” He paused as he trailed off looking back towards the other man, “I don’t think you’re weak.” Luca didn’t know if that meant anything to Aizik, but he felt like it was important to say. He had not missed that tidbit of information. Did it even matter that he didn’t think the other man was weak? Considering how weak and essentially defenseless he was in this world he wasn’t sure his opinion meant anything.

 

“Just keep walking…” Luca murmured a small smile crossing his face. “I don’t know if you can tell by how scratched up I am, or by what little you have seen but I’m a rather clumsy person. Walking can be difficult for me, especially here in the forest where there is so much to trip and stumble over.” Being the accident prone person that Luca was made it so he could joke about his own clumsiness, that and if Aizik hadn’t taken notice then he felt like it should be pointed out. After a moment of thought he spoke once more, “I mean… I’ve tripped over air before. Granted that was quite an embarrassing moment, but it has happened.”

 

His depression at being told there weren’t even any stars to see was evident for a moment. After a few seconds he sighed and shrugged, “I guess it’s not really a loss, since I can’t really see them back home either.” There really wasn’t a reason for him to get upset that he wouldn’t be able to see them here. Even if he really wished that he could, it wasn’t like it was a total loss. He would have been much more excited for his stay in this world if he had been able to see them, but with the dangers outside it was probably for the best anyway.

 

When there was food set down before him he investigated it hesitantly. It was weird and looked more like cheese something he had to admit he was not quite in the mood for. Still, he thought it was only fair for him to give it a try and what he tasted definitely was not cheese. It had a great and refreshing flavor to it, one that he really didn’t mind in the least. “This is actually pretty good.” He commented after eating a few pieces before he turned his attention once more to Aizik. Another question had come to him as he was munching on the food he had been given.

 

“What do you normally do day to day? I mean… I am sure you do more than just hide out in here right?” Luca questioned.

[Alichino]

Again Luca struggled to explain how things worked from where he came from, although this time it wasn't as amusing since now Aizik didn't have anything to compare it to. He really had no idea how glasses work or how eyesight worked. He had never met a human before, they were long gone before he came into the world so he only heard about them through stories. He had never heard of any of their inventions, didn't know if they really excited in this world since their science wasn't exactly the same. The humans had concentrated on their symbol magic, trying to survive the dangerous lands instead of building towns, cities, roads and glasses. Humans were nothing here so it wasn't strange that human inventions confused Aizik. Despite that, he did his best to follow Luca's vague explanation, but he wasn't sure he fully understood it. He wondered if this eyesight problem was common, but considering they had glasses it probably was something common. And he really had no idea what a magnifying glass was, but he didn't ask further about it. He figured he had tortured Luca enough with questions he couldn't answer so instead his curiosity moved from asking about it to experience it.

 

"Can I try them? I assure you, I won't break them, I just want to see for myself."

 

Aizik said, wondering if Luca was actually going to let him try them. Considering he couldn't see without them and if they got lost or if Aizik accidentally broke them, then he wouldn't get them back. He wouldn't be able to get new ones until he got home and that would actually be harder than the man thought. Aizik knew it, but he wasn't about to tell him about it. They were actually having a quite pleasant conversation, discovering their different worlds, he wasn't going to ruin it with more bad news. It was enough that he didn't have any stars to show him.

 

When Luca told him that the cars wasn't the most dangerous thing there he tilted his head a little to the side in a questionable manner, like a pet who was trying to listen closer to what you were saying. Apparently they had other things you needed to avoid and apparently one of those things were indeed other people. Aizik didn't know what guns were, but he was tired of sounding like a clueless child so he didn't ask about that. He just assumed it was something dangerous and that was enough for the moment. Luca ended his list about dangerous things with "nowhere is safe" and Aizik couldn't help but to sigh about that.

 

"So it's like here.."

 

He sighed and didn't really know what he had expected. Well, he just wanted to believe that there was a place somewhere that wasn't dangerous. Granted, it was safe under his tree, but he wanted something bigger, something with fresh air that wouldn't try and kill him every second he was there. He just wanted to relax without the help from the herb tea. And he wanted... he wanted to... reunite with something he lost.

 

"Can you bring back the dead from where you live?"

 

Before he could even think about the question, he had already asked it. He wasn't sure what kind of answer he wanted to hear. If a magic war was enough to get this world off balance then bringing back the dead would probably not be a good idea anywhere right? Even if there was a chance that it would work they still had the problem of getting there which really wouldn't be easy, if it was at all possible. Aizik didn't know so why in the hell had he just asked that question?

 

While he waited for an answer, Luca said something that really surprised him. He really hadn't expected the man to say that he wasn't weak, not just like that. Did he realize what a huge compliment that was in this world? Aizik couldn't help but to be moved by his words even if they did come from someone who actually was weak... no offence, but it didn't matter who it came from. To hear it was still enough to touch something inside of Aizik.

 

"I'm... not here because I'm weak. But thank you anyway. It means a lot to hear it from you."

 

He said and he gave the other a small thankful smile. It was true that when Aizik came here, he wasn't considered to be weak, but since he was now considered a traitor, things had changed for him... a lot of things had changed since he first came here, but he still wasn't as weak as the others. Still, it didn't matter how strong you were. There was only so much you could do. And apparently a thought like that was probably why Aizik was considered to be weak.

 

When Luca told him about his clumsy appearance Aizik couldn't help but to chuckle at it. It was kind of hard to miss the way he stumbled through his way here and the way he grabbed onto his shoulders on his way down the stairs before he actually sat down. Come to think of it, was he really OK to walk around in his own apartment? Or was is just the uneven ground that shook him?

 

"I actually did notice and I couldn't help but to find it a bit adorable. It's not a common thing here to see someone stumble.. or at least no one who lived to tell the tale. Speaking of which, how are your hands? I know it's hard to do magic when your hands are injured so I'm hoping you'll be well until morning."

 

Aizik said before he took the mug to his lips and drank the last of his tea. That was why Aizik had tended to his hands before looking over all the other scratches on Luca's body. The hands was the most important tool to a magician since it was there the power of their magic was coming from. Sure, it was mostly will power, but it was easier to navigate where you wanted the magic to go if you used your hands. Since magic really was an extension of yourself and your hands was the most moveable part of your body it made sense to use them when you felt like your magic was slipping out of your control.

 

As Aizik predicted he didn't like to see Luca depressed about not being able to see the stars and he really wished he could do something for him. However, Aizik magic didn't allow him to just create small lights in the sky, and he wasn't able to forge up any hallucinations either. His magic was concentrated to shadows and that was all he could do... make things dark. The only things they had that was even close to stars was probably the small lights in the roots of the trees, but they gave off a warm light and stars had a gold light to them. It was hopeless, Aizik couldn't do anything to bring back a night full of stars no matter how hard he wanted that frown to turn upside down. Even if Luca tried to dismiss his disappointment by shrugging and saying that he couldn't see his stars at home either, the magician still couldn't let those thoughts go... wait, what?

 

"What happened to your stars? Did you suffer through a war like ours?"

 

If they did suffer a war like theirs then wouldn't that mean that they had something in common? For a moment Aizik's head was spinning with thoughts of other historical things they had gone through. They did have symbol magic so perhaps in their world the humans won? To think about a world where the humans were ruling over the magicians or even better, if they had found a way to co-exist... But then Luca said that there still was dangerous where he lived.... No. It didn't matter. To see what would have happened if the humans won would've been an interesting thing to experience even with all the danger.

 

To see the man actually enjoy the food he had put out for him pleased Aizik. It meant he had managed to give him something he liked and to see him take a few bites and actually enjoying something that came from this world.

 

"I'm glad you like it."

 

Aizik said and gave him a pleasing smile before he too grabbed a couple of the sweet cubes and started to eat them. These were pretty hard to come by, but he knew that they were worth the trouble of getting them since they really did taste good. They weren't exactly healthy and they probably did pass as candy in their world, but it didn't matter. They were delicious and that was all you needed to know.

 

However, when Luca asked him what he did from day to day Aizik wasn't sure what to tell him. He did do things other than hiding out, but what he did wasn't something he wanted to share with someone he had just met. So he decided to just keep his answer vague for now and Luca really shouldn't have anything to complain about, seeing as how they had only known each other for a couple of minutes.

 

"From day to day... I don't really think about it. Don't really have a schedule to follow so i do what needs to be done."

[Sathenus]

Luca hesitated for a moment when Aizik asked if he could try his glasses. He was sure it was just to see how they worked for himself, but he knew if someone who didn’t have problems seeing looked through his glasses they would not see a focused world. In fact, they would probably see things how he sees the world without his glasses on. Still, it was a learning experience for the other man, so he reached up and removed them holding them out in the direction he knew Aizik was in. “Here you go. But fair warning, if you wear my glasses you’ll probably see the world how I see it without them. They after all are meant to improve my vision, not anyone else. Don’t keep them on for too long either or you’ll get a headache.” He was also aware that if something happened to happen to his glasses that he was screwed. Luca didn’t have a spare set and he relied heavily on the pair that he did have.

 

It was a risk he was willing to take to help Aizik understand more about them though. That and it wasn’t like he hadn’t had friends ask him to try them on back home just so they could see how bad his eyesight was. Right now, he really felt like one of those times, sitting at home with a friend and joking around about his poor vision. Even if the other man had not said anything about his eyesight being terrible yet once the other looked through his glasses he was sure that something would be said.

 

“I suppose in a sense it is.” Luca agreed when Aizik made the connection of his own home being like here. He figured that they weren’t technically safe anywhere here either. So, in a sense the two worlds were the same in that way. Blindly he ran his hand over the table before him gently until it came to touch his cup. He really was hopelessly blind without his glasses on, but he was not going to pressure Aizik to try them quick and give them back to him. Blinking he tried to get the world to focus but it was just a bunch of different colored blobs running into each other. Taking up his glass after making sure it was on his side of the table he sipped from it again. This seemed like the safest thing for him to do while he was temporarily blind. It was one of many reasons why anyone arriving at his home unexpectedly had to wait for a but for him to answer the door early in the morning or late at night. Once his glasses came off it wasn’t exactly easy for him to just grab them and put them back on. He had to feel out where they were just in case he managed to bump the nightstand they had been on and move them slightly.

 

The question about bringing back the dead made Luca frown. “No, I’m sorry.” He replied his eyes cast down. There was obviously a reason that the man wanted to know and he felt bad that he would be letting him down. They had made quite a few great medical advances, but bringing back the dead was not one of them and it was not something anyone was striving to do. It was just… creepy? Once a person was dead he had always figured that there wasn’t any point trying to figure out how to bring them back. Their time had come and they had lived the life they were supposed to live. Thinking about it now he felt like no one who had passed would even want to be brought back to life. Why would they? Despite not knowing what waited for someone after death if anything at all, he felt like they were better off than being in their world today. Did Aizik not feel that way himself? Even if he didn’t know who the man had lost he had to accept the fact that he didn’t really know who the man was.

 

His mind was reeling at this point but before long he heard Aizik comment on how he had noticed his clumsiness. A blush sprouted up across his face hearing that the other man had found it adorable. That was a response he hadn’t expected, in fact that alone threw him off and made it so he didn’t answer the man’s question right away. Clearing his throat he offered a shy smile, “They are okay but…” He trailed off for a moment, “I can’t do magic. Even if my hands were scratched up, that’s not an ability that I have.” Even though he was sure that deep down Aizik knew that he felt the need to make it known. He had absolutely no way of defending himself in this world, he didn’t possess magical abilities and he wasn’t some greatly skilled person. He was clumsy, practically blind and easily distracted by new things. Luca was sure that wasn’t a good combo especially in a world where he was already almost eaten thanks to his clumsiness and lack of knowledge of his new surroundings. “I’m glad that you don’t find my clumsiness annoying though. A few of my friends back home always got a bit annoyed by how easy it is for me to trip or stumble.”

 

“A war took your stars?” Luca questioned curious about the question he had received himself. That was interesting if he was being honest. But it made him wonder how a war could possibly have taken stars away. It wasn’t that easy… was it? “No, a war didn’t take our stars. You see… where I live the lights of the city shine so bright at night that you are unable to see the stars. They are still there, just not visible. When you go to the country, a place like your forest here for example… you know minus the trolls you can look up and see them twinkling in the sky. But… it’s not that often that I get to leave my home to see them. I’m not really an outdoor person, far to clumsy for that.” It sucked really, that he lived in the city and was unable to enjoy the stars at night, but there was nothing that could be done about it. That was how things were after all, and if there were no stars here to be seen then he would just have to accept that even if it was a bit depressing.

 

He had hoped there was a chance he would be able to see them, it would have made ending up in a new strange world slightly easier. But, there was nothing he could do about it. Things like that were out of his control. Silence fell between them for a moment as they both ate the cubes. They really were nice and sweet, and he had to admit he enjoyed them a lot. It was kind of peaceful just sitting there eating together and not feeling like they had to force a conversation. Maybe that was why the man’s rather vague response to his question caught him a bit off guard.

 

Had he crossed some unknown line? Or was his question just to personal? Luca wasn’t sure, but he didn’t push the matter any further of what Aizik did day to day. He figured if he was stuck in this world, at least until he found a way to get back to his own, then he would end up seeing and figuring it out anyway. A lot had happened in a really short time and he felt himself getting tired. It had been a long day, not just because he had been working back home and had just finished his shift when all of this happened, but because he had apparently traveled who knows how big of a distance. He had fumbled around in the forest, tripped more times than he could count, and ended up face first on the ground more times than he felt was appropriate to mention.

 

With that all on his mind he spoke, “Is there any chance you have somewhere I can clean up? It’s been a chaotic day and I am covered in dirt and who knows what else from stumbling around out there and falling more times than I can count.” It seemed like a logical question at this point. A shower would be really nice right now, really anything to get the dirt off of him would be really nice right now.

[Alichino]

Aizik wasn't surprised that the man hesitated for a moment after he asked if he could try the glasses. He really wasn't going to break them, he just wanted to see how they worked for himself since he clearly wouldn't understand it unless he held them in his hands. He needed more experience with them and talking about it wouldn't help in this situation. The only thing that would help would try them on. He wasn't sure what to expect from them, but logically speaking he wouldn't be able to see the same thing Luca did since his eyesight was better than his. But when he heard that he would see the world like he saw it without the glasses he got more intrigued by it all. He could actually experience how Luca saw the world? This things were amazing. They improved the man's sight, but still had the ability to show other people his actual eyesight. How incredible.

 

With that in mind he accepted the glasses into his hand and took a quick look on how they were constructed before gently putting them on. He was glad that Luca couldn't see him in those glasses since he probably looked ridiculous in them. He couldn't see anything with them on though, it was an unfocused blurry mess and he really didn't recognize his own home. He looked onto the ceiling where he knew the roots of the tree would be, but all he saw was the light reflecting through the glasses. He looked to where he had his precious stack of herbs and delicates, but he couldn't make out any of it. Just a green blurry mess. Aizik didn't like how the world looked through them so he quickly took them off and glanced over at Luca. If this was what he saw without these, then he really felt sorry for him.

 

While he was looking the glasses over their conversation continued and Luca responded to everything Aizik had asked and told him. He was sad to hear that they couldn't revive the dead, but he quickly accepted it. It had just been wishful thinking, probably foolish from his part anyway, so he wasn't too bummed about it. However, what did grab his attention was when Luca told him that he couldn't do magic and it finally got stuck inside of Aizik's head. He couldn't do magic.... He couldn't do magic?! How the hell could he end up in a world like this and not be able to do magic?! This was serious. This was more serious than Aizik thought... This was... Aizik didn't really want to say it out loud, he didn't want to tell this adorable person that he wasn't going to survive without magic in this world... But he had to. He had to warn him like he had warned him about the glasses. But how? The opportunity to tell him presented itself when he asked if a war took their stars.

 

"Yes. The war between humans and magicians and that wasn't it all it took from this world. You see... In the beginning it was all just a plan to survive in this world. The creatures we have here are strong and magical and a simple human can't defeat them. So they learned how to draw power from the magic around them. Creating symbols that could protect them, give them power and defeat their enemies. However, there were some magicians that didn't like how powerful they were becoming. Every magician think incredibly high of themselves, we thought we were better than everyone else because we had the knowledge about magic and we could use it without the humans symbols. So we went to war with them. Wanted to show them their rightful place and kill anyone who stood in our way. They defended themselves of course."

 

Aizik hadn't been present in any of this, but it was kind of difficult to get passed this history lesson since every magician was proud to talk about how they defeated the humans at that time. The war that took our stars wasn't as impressive as the war that showed our power. Yeah, because that was what war was all about... to show how inferior everyone is. That's so worth killing off other lives for.

 

"The history says the war went on for months. They could have ended it quickly, but the magicians were toying with them, to further prove their point that we were stronger. Then.. one day, one human made a fatal mistake. He went out to battle with only one thought in mind, to protect his people no matter how high the price was. He cast a powerful spell that was meant to wipe out everything around him, humans, magicians alike, but the spell destroyed more than that. A whole section of our world is missing. He wiped out everything, nature, creatures, all the humans and the magicians that fought in that battle. They say that spell through the whole world off balance because after that there were no stars. The rest of the magicians, those who were left to defend their honor was of course furious and the next day they rounded up all the humans, destroyed every symbol that was placed in this world. Books, houses, parchment, clothes, anywhere there was a symbol got destroyed...."

 

Even if Luca couldn't see the expression Aizik had on his face, he could probably hear how his voice started to hesitate and he clearly felt with all the lives that had been lost that day. This part really was difficult for him to talk about, but he knew that Luca deserved to know what had been going on here since this really concerned him in a way, now that he was going to survive here at least until they brought him home again.

 

"And the humans... Became sacrifices for the creatures in the forests. Women and children... were tortured before they were sent off to be eaten by either trolls or scavengers or worse. And that was the end of the human race. Now a days, the magicians sacrifices their own children if they are looked upon as weak... Just so they can continue to be strongest living thing in this world."

 

Aizik finished the history lesson and he glanced over to Luca to see how he was taking in everything that had just been told to him, but he probably only squinted his eyes since Aizik still held in his glasses. Glad to be distracted by something else than what he had just told the other he gave the glasses another look before he rose from his seat. He walked up to the other as he unfolded the spectacles and then carefully put them on and adjusted them to sit perfectly over the nose.

 

"Don't tell anyone that you're not magic.... and take care of those glasses."

 

Aizik said with a bit of concern in his voice. Still wanting to distract himself from the horrible history this world had he decided to listen to Luca's request about wanting to clean himself from the dirt.

 

"I'll show you to the bathroom."

 

He said without a hint of a smile before he turned to walk into the direction of the bedrooms. There was a narrow tunnel to the right side of the opening beside the dinner table that hadn't been visible from the entrance that Aizik quickly disappeared through. If you followed that tunnel, straight forward you were met by a long curtain that stretched from the ceiling down to the floor. Apparently that was what served as a door to the bathroom because once you pulled that away you were met by another room, lit by the same roots as the one in the kitchen, but this room had it's own waterfall in it. It was like walking in to an underground onsen, with the waterfall running down into a small area of water. It was a little bigger than a round hot tub, and was completely made of the smooth stone the floor was in. However, another red carpet was placed on the floor just to prevent slipping on it. On a chair beside the pool of water lay a few towels and beside it was a wall where it looked like water was dripping from the ceiling, but beneath it was a breath of hot air. Aizik instructed Luca to put his clothes there while he cleaned himself and they would be as new when he got out and they really wouldn't be wet. Once he figured Luca could take care of himself he left the room and pulled the curtain close before he disappeared into the kitchen again. There he sighed as he sat back in the chair once more and grabbed a few fresh cubes to get his thoughts straight while his guest was cleaning himself in the bathroom.

[Sathenus]

Being practically blind made it so Luca was much more careful with his movements. His hands stayed wrapped around his cup of tea to ensure he didn’t forget where it was and knock it over attempting to find it again. It also meant that his eyes remained forward, even if he wasn’t one hundred percent sure what he was looking at he was almost positive it was Aizik. The longer he went without his glasses on the more his head started to hurt as his eyes struggled to bring the world into focus and continuously fail. Yet he didn’t press for the man to give his glasses back to him, Aizik would return them when he was done looking at them. No sooner, no later and he was alright with that. He could perfectly understand the man’s curiosity about them considering he had never seen anything like glasses before.

 

Luca listened as the man spoke telling him that it was a war between humans and magicians that had taken the stars away from this world. That was a bit depressing, but the more that Aizik spoke the more Luca felt his heart ache and drop into his stomach. If the humans had been wiped out from this world then he knew he stood no chance in it either especially without having magic. That was all that he needed to know, he didn’t really need Aizik to reconfirm that as he approached him. Luca naturally turned to face the direction he had heard the steps approach in to have Aizik rather gently place his glasses back on his face. He hadn’t expected such a gesture, he had truly expected Aizik to just hand them back to him and leave him to blindly reach for them. The nice and caring gesture from the other man was much appreciated though especially with his words even if they still made his heart sink.

 

“Okay.” He replied watching the other now that he could actually see the other man. He had heard the concern in Aizik’s voice, but he tried to ignore it. He’d have to figure something out. But suddenly a thought struck him as his eyes dropped back to his hands, “Won’t people realize that I’m not magic when they see my glasses? I mean… if you’ve never seen them before than that probably means no one else here has either… right?” He asked a little worried now. How was he possibly going to survive in such a world? Luca truly had no way of defending himself, and it was only a matter of time before this world caught up with him. The fear that maybe he never would make it out of this world alive was a scary one. Even if he was happy to have met someone as nice as Aizik he knew that it may not be enough.

 

Getting up he followed Aizik as he was lead into the bathroom, he was surprised by how it looked on the other side of the curtain. Even if he had to admit he was a little nervous about the lack of privacy that a curtain would provide versus a door. He didn’t feel like he had a right to complain though, Aizik was doing enough opening his home to him and being so nice considering how weak he turned out to be. Granted he wasn’t a strong person back home either, but he didn’t quite feel this weak until now and it wasn’t a great feeling. Looking around the room he waited until Aizik left before he slipped out of his clothes and put them where the other had indicated. For a moment he just stared at the waterfall and the pool that acted as a shower and tub. Hesitantly he dipped his foot in finding that the water was actually warm, feeling much better about it he slipped into the water and allowed himself to relax eyes drifting shut.

 

It was nice to be able to just lay back and relax, not worrying about anything. Luca didn’t know how long he spent washing up and relaxing in the water before he finally pulled himself up and out of the water. Grabbing a towel, he wrapped it around his waist before he returned to his clothes and looked them over. Sure enough they did look clean and they felt dry which was a huge improvement. Drying himself off Luca redressed and took care of the towel he had used before leaving the bathroom and heading back towards the kitchen to see Aizik once more. “Thank you.” Luca said giving the man a smile, he was so much happier now that he was clean and he felt really relaxed and comfortable.

 

Feeling much better he felt like he could get over the fact that he did not have what it took to survive in this world, even if only for the night. “I’m sorry you happened to run into me. I’m sure having someone around like me who can’t protect themselves is a bit stressful.” The last thing he wanted to do was be a burden to Aizik. The man had already done more than enough for him. So adding stress or making the man feel like he had to look after him were all things he didn’t want to happen. “I’ll do my best to stay out of your way and not drag you down at all.” Luca didn’t know how long Aizik would allow him to stay here, but he was going to take advantage of it and make sure he learned as much about his new surroundings and the dangers awaiting him as he could. It was the only chance he had.

[Alichino]

Aizik was a little surprised that the human didn't have a bigger reaction than 'okay' to everything he had just told him. He had just explained to him that a portion of their world had been wiped out from existence and the stars had disappeared with it and all he had to say for himself was 'okay'? But then again, what was there to say? Did he even believe him? ... Yeah, his eyes told him that he probably would believe anything he told him after the things he had seen tonight. Hell, he probably could tell him that there was a giant squid making rounds at night trying to find the water that was lost that night, and he would probably believe him. However, he didn't feel like making something up and be all sarcastic and mock Luca's ignorance. It wasn't his fault and he didn't deserve to be mocked like that. He had a rough night after all.

 

When Luca mentioned that the people here probably would notice that he wasn't magical because of his glasses and Aizik took that into consideration for a moment. Would they notice just like that? Aizik didn't notice until he was told about it, but then again, he didn't want to see the weak in other's. Would someone else notice? ... To be perfectly honest, he didn't think so. Sure, they were always looking for weaklings to sacrifice to the creatures of the forest, but he didn't think they needed to be worried about that.

 

"The glasses just proves that you're not from this world. It doesn't make you less magical."

 

Aizik told him and gave him a reassuring smile, not realizing at first that what he said could be taken as something flirtatious. However, once he did notice he couldn't help but to get a little self conscious about it and tried to dismiss it as something accidental. Even though he had just recently called this person adorable so that excuse probably wouldn't fly since it was pretty obvious that Aizik was attracted to him. Attracted to someone who wasn't capable of surviving in this world by himself... Like a stray animal you picked up to bring home and take care of.

 

What a day. While Luca cleaned up in the bath Aizik got his chance to take everything in that had just happened. It had seemed to be like any other day, but on the way home he had picked up a stray.. He had managed to help him out there and he was alive. Scratched and bruised, but alive nontheless. Aizik wasn't sure what to make of everything. He was thinking about those symbols and that book Luca had described. The thing was, as the magician had told him, every symbol in this world had been destroyed. If a symbol brought him here, then a symbol would get him back, but how would they find it if everything was gone? There wasn't a book like that left in this world and Aizik really wasn't sure if you really could jump through dimensions like that. Hell, before he met Luca, he didn't even know other dimension existed. Without that symbol.. How were they going to get Luca back?

 

Another sigh left the magician since he was starting to get tired. He was exhausted by everything he had learned about glasses, cars and other worlds that he just didn't have the energy to think about finding things that were lost. Besides, he had his own mission too that he needed to do first. For now, he had to settle for putting away the dishes and putting back the fresh cubes for another time. He got up from his seat in order to clear the table from the dishes. He managed to clean up and once that was done he put back the box with the healing herbs before he started to actually make himself comfortable in his own home. He took off his long coat to reveal an armless sweatshirt, showing off his strong muscular arms and the tattoo that continued from his face down over his left shoulder. He sat down on the chair again to take off one of his boots and now he finally checked to see how his own wounds were doing. The troll had been grabbing his wrist and pulled him down towards the ground and the boots had done a nice job to protect him from any scratches or deep wounds. All he got were some bruises and that would heal. He had been dealing with much worse things than this so he put his boot back on and continued to ignore the pain.

 

Aizik had just started to relax in his own routine when Luca finally made it out of the bathroom and it was nice to see him all washed up and with clean clothes. It wasn't just the fact that he was clean and he could see his adorable features more clearly now, it was the fact that he looked much more relaxed than he did earlier. Aizik was pleased to see him like that and he couldn't hide that smile of his no matter how hard he tried. However, once Luca started to apologize for his intrusion, that smile slowly went away with every word he spoke. Actually Aizik didn't mind having someone like Luca around since it felt somewhat familiar, comforting even. He didn't know why that was, but it didn't matter. He didn't like that Luca apologized for things that wasn't his fault.

 

"I'm just glad that I could help, like I said. And if you stay out of my way, you might get yourself killed. I would advice you to stay close, but I can't force you to anything... just.. for now, you can stay here until we find a way to get you home."

 

Aizik said and he really did mean it. He wouldn't mind letting the man stay here for a while, not that he was going to delay his travel to get back home, but still.. it was nice having someone that could rely on him... or rather had to rely on him. Perhaps it was all about his instinct as a magician, but it still benefited both of them, so who cared where it came from?

 

"I don't think I would mind your company.."

 

The mumble escaped him since he felt like he couldn't hold it in and the look on Luca's face told him that he needed to hear something similar to that. Aizik was reminded that the man had been told that his clumsiness had been a bother to other people and he wanted him to know that he didn't see it that way. It truly was refreshingly adorable and the way Aizik had been acting around him he probably could tell that he wouldn't mind his company. He gave away a soft smile in an attempt to not seem so awkward anymore.

 

"You must be tired. We can't really do much until morning so I suggest you get some sleep. You can borrow my room since it's a bit cleaner."

 

Aizik said and gestured to one of the bedrooms. Both of them were the same in size, but, oh, how different they were. Aizik's room seemed to be simple. He didn't really need much in his bedroom since all he did there was sleep. However, it also looked slightly underused, like he hadn't been sleeping there for a while. The other room, was a bit messier with papers everywhere and you could barely make out the bed through the debris of every other trinket that seemed to occupy the room. Neither of the rooms seemed to be used for sleeping and yet they were indeed bedrooms. Aizik hoped that his room would due for the man since he really didn't feel like cleaning up the mess in the other.

[Sathenus]

There was a sense of relief that he felt knowing that his glasses most likely would not give off that he wasn’t magic, but would just give off that he wasn’t from this world. Luca didn’t know if that was a good thing or not that others would be able to easily tell he wasn’t from this world, but either way there was nothing he could do about it. He needed his glasses to see, so he would have to face whatever problems that would bring him as time passed. The smile he had been given in reassurance also seemed to help him relax even more, it had seemed a bit flirtatious. Considering how he had been told his stumbling had seemed adorable, and even the general mention of him being adorable made him even happier on the inside. He did good not to show just how happy he was to hear such comments. Even if he wasn’t sure if Aizik meant it in the way it was coming off, Luca knew he was going to enjoy the compliments anyways.

 

After returning from his bath his eyes landed on Aizik and the way he looked now. The man had removed the jacket he had been wearing, revealing his rather strong looking arms and the tattoo that continued along one half of him. It was interesting really, his eyes following the pattern on the other male’s skin. He was drawn from his thoughts when he heard Aizik speak and what really caught his attention was being told that if he did stay out of the others way it might end up in getting himself killed. It made his blood run cold. Despite how much he appreciated what Aizik was doing for him, he felt like staying by the man’s side constantly would only cause the other problems. Especially with how clumsy he was, but… hadn’t Aizik already told him he didn’t find his clumsiness as a problem? He had even called him adorable at that point as well, so maybe, just maybe he wasn’t a burden and he could stick close to the man without feeling like he was dragging him down. Luca hadn’t realized his gaze had fallen to the floor, but he raised his eyes when he heard the comment about how he must be tired.

 

Truly, he really was. Luca hadn’t realized just how tired until now and the idea of sleeping in a bed sounded really great. What he wasn’t expecting was for Aizik to offer his own bedroom to him. “But… where will you sleep if I sleep in your bed? I don’t want to take your room from you.” Luca said almost complaining. The last thing he wanted to do was to kick Aizik out of his own room, even if it was as the other had said and just borrowing the room. He didn’t want to do so. Luca was not the type to do such a thing and he was sure the man had to be tired as well. “You can’t tell me you aren’t tired yourself. I wouldn’t feel right if me staying in your room meant you couldn’t sleep in your own bed.” Luca was very close to offer that maybe they should share the man’s bed. If Aizik didn’t want to clean up the second bedroom, then it was the only way he felt like he could accept the offer to sleep in the man’s room.

 

Luca assumed it was him being difficult, and that there really wasn’t a reason for him to be acting in such a manner. The man was nice enough to offer him his home, and was now being even kinder to offer him his bed. He knew he should just accept and not complain or make this difficult, but it was just how he was. He already felt liked he owed Aizik to much, and he truly would do whatever he could to repay the man for all he was doing for him. But this was something that had to be figured out right now.

[Alichino]

Aizik couldn't help to notice the way Luca was looking at him now that he had removed his coat. Further inspecting his tattoo, it almost felt like he wanted to say something about it, but he never did. However, Aizik wasn't one to ask what was on a person's mind, he didn't have the same confidence to ask about it like Luca did. Aizik figured that if he really wanted to say something about it, he eventually would. If not, then it probably wasn't something that was worth sharing. Simple as that. Instead, he concentrated on the things that were worth enough to talk about. Like his offering of his own bed.

 

Aizik had a feeling Luca would resist the offer since he really didn't want to be a burden on the magician. However, he had slightly hoped that he would be too tired to resist him, but apparently that had just been his wishful thinking. There really was no problem in borrowing his bed, he probably would notice later that the bed really did look unused since Aizik didn't use his bed that much. Only when he was really injured did he use that, but he hadn't been that injured in a long time now and for now, Luca was more injured than him. It was only fair that he would take the bed, yet he still insisted that he would sleep somewhere else instead of Aizik's room. I wouldn’t feel right if me staying in your room meant you couldn’t sleep in your own bed.

 

"Would you feel better if I slept in the bed with you?"

 

Aizik couldn't help but to ask such a question. It probably was to ease the little tension the was between them... or did he just imagine that tension? Eitherway, he had only joked about it, but it didn't take him too long to return to his serious self again. It probably wasn't a surprise that Aizik didn't make joke that often.

 

"Don't worry about me. I don't really sleep much anyway and besides, I still have some things to do."

 

He said and gave the man another one of his reassuring smiles. He really was OK with him using his bed and he hoped this discussion wouldn't last for the whole night. He had some things he needed to do before the sun rose and he didn't really want to share it with his new companion. Not yet anyway. However, still uncertain that Luca would just take him up on his offer he tilted his head a little to the side as he thought about something. Would he actually be able to sleep alone in a foreign world? How did he usually sleep in his world? Would his bed satisfy him? Was he too scared of the trolls outside to be able to fall asleep? As Aizik looked the man over he tried to figure out the answer for all of these questions, but he couldn't find them anywhere. Did that mean they were all just in his head or was Luca just good at hiding them? Perhaps he was just scared that he would stumble and hurt himself on his way to the room. That thought made Aizik smile and he couldn't resist the urge to share it with the adorable man in front of him.

 

"Will you be able to make it to the bed yourself or do you need some assistance?"

 

Even though he wasn't good at them, Aizik still insisted in telling jokes. There was just something about Luca that made him want to tease him a little bit. This human managed to draw out a side out of the magician he wasn't really aware of himself.

[Sathenus]

“Yes.” Luca replied instantly not even caring that Aizik was probably joking about it. He would feel better if the man slept in the bed with him. It was for an innocent reason after all, even if Luca saw the other as attractive his true purpose behind his response was not wanting to feel like a burden. Not because it meant he’d have an attractive man beside him as he slept. Though he would be lying if he said that wasn’t a great bonus. It didn’t seem like that was going to happen though as he was told that the man didn’t really sleep much. “You don’t?” Luca questioned curious about that. He didn’t like to think that he slept a lot, but he did sleep every night. Yet how Aizik said that made it seem to him that the man didn’t do that.

 

Was sleeping every night not necessary to the people of this world like it was to those back home? Then again, Luca did know that some people stayed up for days on end and he didn’t really understand how they could do so. He never slept very long but he definitely needed to sleep every night. A frown crossed his face despite the reassuring smile he had been given. Something about it didn’t feel right with him and he opened his mouth to argue it more when he was asked if he would be able to make it to the bed himself or if he’d need help. His face flushed a dark shade of red in embarrassment but he was half tempted to try his luck and see what would happen if he tried to play that card. After a moment he decided to test it and see if he really could get Aizik to give him some assistance.

 

Holding his arms out like a child he spoke, “If you’re going to offer then you’re going to have to follow through with it. I won’t press the matter of sleeping in your bed anymore.” The last part was more of a promise. If Aizik would follow through with the offer he had made rather jokingly then he wouldn’t complain or resist any more about sleeping in the man’s bed. As Luca stood there waiting to see how Aizik would respond to his latest words his mind started to wander. What was the man possibly going to do all night if he wasn’t going to spend it sleeping? What did one do at night when the forest they called home was crawling with creatures wanting to kill them? Luca felt like these were all valid questions, but considering the vague answer he had received upon asking him how he spent his days then he knew it was better not to ask.

 

Luca knew he wouldn’t really receive much of an answer. He was a stranger after all, and Aizik had already done more than enough for him. Pestering the other and trying to figure out what he did day to day or even during the nights was not going to improve anything between them. He had learned from a young age when it was best to step back and leave people alone, he didn’t always listen but right now he felt like he should. If Aizik got frustrated with him and decided to throw him out, he’d be screwed after all. So it was for the best to do whatever he could to remain on the man’s good side and stay out of trouble. Blinking he brought his mind back to the present. “Carry me?” he asked as he tried to give the other man a slightly pathetic look.

 

Though he was sure he could make it to the bed without tripping and hurting himself he felt like this would be a much more interesting way to go to bed. That and it had been awhile since he had felt comfortable enough with someone to even try to get this sort of thing from them. Luca wasn’t big on dating back home, he had a few relationships that never seemed to last long. His clumsiness playing the biggest problem there. At first everyone found it cute or adorable, but after a while they all seemed to get frustrated by it. So it seemed as if that would be a safe assumption to make about Aizik as well. Though the man found it adorable right now, and cute enough to tease him with he knew as time passed the other might not see it that way anymore.

 

That was a depressing thought on its own. He did figure though with how blind Aizik had realized he was and with how clumsy the man had seen him be that he wouldn’t put up much of a fight. Or at least he hoped he wouldn’t. If Aizik did of course at least Luca could say he had given it a try. He’d rather try and be shut down then not try and miss his chance at getting to see the man even closer. The closest they had been being when the other had treated his hands and then again when he had placed his glasses back on his face. Both times though there was still quite a bit of distance. If he got what he wanted right now that distance wouldn’t exist, and he could admire Aizik from much closer. It was a pleasing thought, and he gave the man an innocent smile hoping that it would show he didn’t have any hidden intention by his words. It wasn’t a complete lie after all, he wasn’t going to try anything.

[Alichino]

Aizik couldn't say he wasn't surprised to hear the instant yes that came out of Luca when he asked about them sharing the bed. He didn't even try to hid his real thought about it since he really hadn't expected the man to be so blunt about it. Though, as his thoughts calmed down, perhaps it wasn't such a big deal for him. They were after all the same gender. Perhaps in his world guys weren't considered to have relationship with each other. Fair enough, since they weren't so popular here either, but the fact that Aizik was flirting with him was still a fact and he must have noticed it right? Still, if you weren't used to same sex attraktions then.. would you notice? This became really complicated fast, not knowing how either of their worlds worked. How different were they from each other? What experiences had they had, what future waited them? How did they see their own world? There was so much to go through and they really didn't have time nor the energy to go through it all tonight. So, what was the best decision to do at the moment?

 

With all those questions unanswered Aizik had no idea how to react when Luca reach out his arms and told him that if he offered then he better deliver on assisting him to the bed. He only had been teasing him, thinking that the embarrassment he knew damn well the other felt about that would be far to great to even act upon it. He had been wrong about that though, but he didn't regret offering it though. Seeing that innocence come to play as the other asked to be carried to the bed was just... cuteness overload. How could Aizik resist such a wonderful face?

 

Knowing full well he would be playing into the other's hands if he actually did surrender to his wish, but then again, did he even care since it would be a win win situation for the both of them. If you want me to carry you, I'll carry you with all my strengthAizik thought to himself, but then again.... That teasing side of him wanted to see what else the human would do for him if it meant that there was a slight chance he would share his bed with him. The magician hesitated for a moment, although while he did he took full advantage of the position Luca was in and with his orange eyes he observed him. Really looked at him as if he was undressing him with his mind. He just wanted to see Luca even more embarrassed about what he was doing and he wanted those red cheeks to really show it's color. Then again, the best way to do that was probably to carry him like a princess or a bride to the bed.

 

"You really are too cute to resist."

 

Finally making up his mind on what to do, Aizik got up from his seat for the millionth time and got up to Luca. However, he still had one trick up his sleeve which the human probably didn't think about when he asked. The shadows from the walls seemed to drip down from each corner and then gather around Luca. As they rose from the floor, they became solid, though not sharp as when he had battled the trolls and they lifted the man up from the floor as they rose. They changed his position so that he really was being carried like a princess and they stopped growing when they were roughly at Aizik's height. The height would be as if Aizik himself carried him, but now it was the shadows that did it instead and the magician was watching him from a small distance away.

 

"Shall we continue towards the bed, or.. did you have something else in mind?"

 

Aizik asked and again didn't want to hide his teasing smile. He knew that this probably wasn't what the young man had in mind when he asked him to carry him and just to see that longing in his face... He wanted more of that. He wanted to embarrass the man and he wanted him to continue to be as adorable as when he had asked him to carry him. Ask again, pout about it, beg for it. It truly was fun to play along like this with the human and Aizik wished he could promise he would go on with it forever. The truth was he really didn't know. He didn't know if he would find this as adorable further along the way as he did now. He didn't even know how much longer the two of them would be together... So perhaps it was better to enjoy it now while they still had the chance to?

[Sathenus]

Luca couldn’t hide the happiness that brightened up his face when he was told that he was too cute to resist. He was almost bouncing where he stood quite pleased that the other man found him cute, and that he wasn’t going to refuse to carry him to bed. But what he wasn’t expecting was when he saw the shadows start to move towards him he was stunned when it was these that picked him up and moved him into a completely different position. Luca’s face turned an even darker shade of red as the shadows seemed to hold him at the exact height he would have been held at had Aizik actually picked him up. A pout crossed his face as his hazel eyes moved up to look at the other man once more holding his arms out to the man. As embarrassing as it was for his words to be turned around and used against him in this manner he didn’t want the shadows to carry him. Even if it was the other man’s magic it wasn’t what he had asked for.

 

“No! I want you to carry me!” Luca whined. “Not your magic.” He added making it clear this time that he wanted Aizik specifically to carry him. No shadows, no magic, just the other man. He wanted to be close to him in this manner not have some magic take over and carry him to bed even if Aizik followed only a few inches away. It wasn’t enough, and it wasn’t what he had asked for. “Please?” He begged softly giving the man another pout as if he was expecting this to be enough to get the man to give in to him. He tried to ignore his embarrassment at the position the shadows had moved him into, a position that many back home would have seen in a fairy tale as the way a prince would carry his princess, or a husband his bride. As much as Luca would have very much liked this situation to be close to any of those he knew it was not.

 

That didn’t mean he hadn’t noticed the way that Aizik flirted with him. He had noticed it from the start, but he wasn’t sure how to act. He had tried before to have relationships and they never ended well, so he had stopped trying. Now that someone was showing interest in him first he didn’t know what to do. He didn’t understand how he was supposed to act to show that the feelings were returned. So for now, he figured he would at least try to get Aizik to actually physically carry him to bed. He really wanted to feel the other’s arms around him, even if it was only temporary. There was a part of him that still wished the man would sleep with him in the bed tonight, but he couldn’t force the other to sleep if he was not tired or did not want to do so. It would be wrong of him to try to force the man to do something he didn’t want to do.

 

Luca’s hazel eyes had fallen to his own lap as his mind had drifted off. Still holding the pout he brought them back to Aizik as if he was truly going to be upset if the man didn’t agree to physically carry him to the bed. He would be disappointed for sure if Aizik refused, but he knew that if the other did it was for a reason. Though he was sure he couldn’t become anymore embarrassed than he already was in this very moment. He had still been red from when his clumsiness had been teased and the subject of carrying him had originally been brought up. He was even redder now that he was being held in such a manner even if it was by shadows. There was no way he could get even redder, at least that was what he thought.

 

There was a comfort that was to be found through actual contact, something he wasn’t currently getting and contact he hadn’t had in quite some time. Maybe that was why he was pushing it so hard for Aizik to carry him instead. The man was attractive and seemed to think he was worth flirting with and teasing, that had to stand for something. It made Luca desperate for more than what he was getting. Even if he wasn’t necessarily talking about more romantic feelings right now, he could at least test the waters. See if there was a chance of them ever becoming something. His mind tried telling him that wouldn’t happen. He was to weak to survive in this world and his brain was positive that Aizik would want a partner who could protect himself. But it didn’t hurt to hope at least a little bit that he might stand a true chance. So far the magician didn’t seem to have a problem with him and seemed to find him cute, there was a chance no matter how small that the other would continue to think that way about him.

[Alichino]

There was no mistaking it that Luca certainly was happy that Aizik agreed to carry him. That just made the payoff even more delicious as he watched his surprised and disappointed face when it was the shadows that picked him up and not the magician himself. He didn't know if Luca wouldn't sink so low as to beg and ask him to carry him once again seeing as how it would be really embarrassing and humiliating for the grown man. Perhaps he figured he had embarrassed himself enough when he held out his hands like a child and looked at him with that innocent face. However, Aizik got exactly what he wanted and he couldn't help but to shiver over the sight when Luca pouted and tried to reach after his touch. He was really not pleased with the way the magician had twisted his words just to humiliate him further with a position like that. Although, for Aizik it still wasn't enough.

 

That small 'please' wouldn't make him give in to his request, it wasn't that easy to get a magician do what you wanted. He had to beg for it more, the desperation need to be shown in his voice and in his eyes even if that pout was adorable and well suited on Luca. Oh, how Aizik truly wanted to hear him like that, but there was a part of him that thought if he was going to put the man through all of that, then the payoff needed to be greater than a simple carrying to the bed. Perhaps this could just be a taste of something more pleasurable later. So perhaps he needed to give in for the moment, just to play with him further at another time. That thought intrigued Aizik further and he figured that letting Luca think he had won this time wouldn't be so bad after all.

 

"I guess I have no choice then. Sine you were asking in such an adorable way."

 

Aizik said and walked up closer to Luca before he placed his arms under him and let the shadows gently place him in his grasp before they disappeared completely. Still in the same position the magician carried him towards the bed and as Aizik had expected, the short travel to the bed would not have been worth all that teasing since it would've been a lot of build up for such a short time of closeness. Even if he was walking pretty slowly, he still came to the final destination way too fast. For a moment, he didn't want to let him go even when he was standing right beside the bed. The feeling of his weight in his arms had been more comforting than Aizik would've ever thought, if he knew he would feel like this when he carried him then perhaps he would've done it on their way over here. He just wanted to hug Luca, hold him close, hold him tightly and... Was it even possible to feel this attracted to someone you had just known for a couple of hours? Did this even count as just appearance attraction? Aizik didn't know, but he didn't really want to know at the moment since that would just make things complicated and he didn't want to make things complicated at the moment. Simple thoughts. He had a very cute man in his arms and he was happy about that. Simple as that.

 

Although, that feeling had to end sometime since he couldn't very well just stand there and hold him forever. He slowly and gently put Luca down on the bed and his eyes lingered on his face for a moment. He really didn't want to end things here, but he didn't really have time for this and he knew the other was tired. He glanced down towards the rest of his body and wondered if he needed to be undressed for the night or not. Could he really sleep in those clothes? Either way, Aizik wasn't going to do much else for him. He had listened to his request of carrying him here and that was all he needed to do.

 

"I hope you can do the rest by yourself because I'm not tucking you in... this time."

 

He made a dramatic pause before he said the last two words and then another teasing smile came across his face. He wanted to leave Luca at least a little hopeful and a little lustful for something more. He hadn't had the best first time in this world so the least Aizik could promise him was a nice time with him. Not that he could possibly know that Luca wanted to be tucked in since that would probably embarrass the man further, but it wasn't just about that. The way Luca had expressed his happiness when he thought he could be close to Aizik had told him that he probably would be happy as long as he got to spend more time with the magician. So being tucked in meant something along the line with that.

 

Aizik looked at Luca as he lay in his own bed and it truly was a beautiful sight. It had been a long while since he had someone to care for, but he never had someone this adorable in his own bed. Never. How could he not just take a little advantage of the situation? He gently slipped his slender fingers through his washed hair and let the feeling of it sit with him for a moment. Then he leaned forward to give him a gentle kiss over his forehead, just as a kiss goodnight, but it lingered longer than what you gave your own child. It was something more along the lines with a goodnight kiss you gave your lover.

 

"Goodnight."

 

He whispered after he broke the kiss and right after that he straightened up and gave Luca a soft smile before he left him alone in the room.

[Sathenus]

Luca watched Aizik with questioning eyes, slightly worried that the man would once more refuse him what he actually wanted and insist on carrying him to bed like this instead. He wasn’t sure how long he had rested their arms held out waiting for a response, but finally Aizik spoke and moved closer to him a hopeful look flashing in Luca’s eyes. His excitement only seemed to grow when he actually felt himself being gently placed in Aizik’s strong arms and the shadows disappearing. This was definitely what he wanted, and he couldn’t be any happier that he was finally being carried by the magician versus being carried by the man’s magic. It was a rather comfortable feeling, resting in the other’s arms and being this close to him.

 

His eyes moved up to lock on the other’s as he was carried towards the bedroom and the bed. It wasn’t a far distance, and he honestly probably could have made it without any problems. That wasn’t really the point there. He never would have gotten the chance to be this close to Aizik if he hadn’t pushed to be carried. The warmth from being this close to another person was pleasing, and he really was a bit bummed out when it ended so quickly. For a moment they seemed to stay still before he was finally put down on the bed. A small smirk crossed his face when Aizik spoke again. As much as he would have loved to keep this childish atmosphere and have the man tuck him in, he was going to hold him to the fact that he had said this time. It meant he was going to be determined to get the man to do it at least once.

 

Giving a small pout as if he was going to complain again the smirk turned to a small smile, “That’s okay. I’ll tuck myself in this time.” He was stunned when he received a goodnight kiss pressed to his forehead. In fact he was so stunned that all he could do was lay there staring at the other man. It was a sweet gesture and one he was pleased about, he just hadn’t expected such a move. Even if it seemed more like something a parent would do to their child it was still appreciated especially after everything he had gone through today. It wasn’t long after that Aizik left the room leaving him alone. It took him a few minutes before he actually moved at that point deciding if he was really going to sleep in his clothes. Realizing they were all he had to wear he, slowly stripped out of them until he was sitting only in his boxers on the bed. This would have to do; he didn’t really have any other choice.

 

At that point he slipped under the blanket and got himself comfortable, reaching up to remove his glasses he set them aside on the nearby table. It was hard for him to fall asleep, tossing and turning. Everything that had happened to him today plaguing his mind, Luca didn’t know how long he laid there struggling to get to sleep before he finally managed to doze off. Once he was asleep he was able to sleep rather peacefully, only occasionally shifting to get more comfortable. His mind actually focusing on the magician who had saved him, the short moment they shared where he was carried and the goodnight kiss. His subconscious showing him just how much he wanted to hope that they could be more. It wasn’t until the early hours of the morning when his mind decided to show him all of the reasons it wouldn’t work out. How he wasn’t magical, he didn’t have any way to defend himself in this world and thus it was only a matter of time before he perished like all of the others before him.

 

Despite how he tried to tell himself that he wouldn’t be like all of the others his sleeping brain knew the truth. He couldn’t expect Aizik to protect him forever, and as of right now he had absolutely no idea how he was going to get home. It was as his mind played these scenarios out before him that he awoke taking in a shaky breath. Reaching blindly over to where he had put his glasses he slipped them back onto his face. Eyes finally able to adjust and take in the room, he had thought it had all been some crazy dream but it all came flooding back to him now. Glancing around the room he allowed himself to take it in for the first time, truly seeing how it was decorated and how bare it seemed to be. It truly did look as if it was unused for quite some time before he had even arrived.

 

Frowning he slipped out of the bed and slipped his clothes back on, deciding it was time to stay up and find Aizik. As he left the room he ran a hand through his bedhead, determined not to have it sticking up at every angle.