“I did not mean to attack you, Reia human person.” He finally pulled away from his curled-up position to sit while leaning on an arm and hip. “I am sorry.”
“All good,” she said with a laugh because it definitely hadn’t been all good. “It’s not the first time I’ve been attacked by a Duskwalker.”
“He has attacked you?”
“Orpheus has tried to eat me multiple times.”
“And yet, you are his friend? I do not understand.”
Reia gave him a smile, knowing her eyes were glittering with the brightness of it.
“You did not mean to attack me, just as he didn’t mean to attack me. He has protected me multiple times, and he is very sweet which makes it easy to forgive him.”
He groaned as he continued to steady himself, touching his wounds on his chest to check them.
“But sweet is a taste. What does that mean?”
“It means he is very kind and gentle with me. He puts my needs first and wants to make me happy.”
“Hmm.”
He placed his hand on his snout and started tapping it in thought. She was beginning to wonder if he did it so much because he found it hard to think, like it was a difficult strain that required the help of an action.
He didn’t give her a reply before he started making his way to his feet, stumbling a step and using his hand to steady himself. He hissed in a breath that came out as snort through his nose.
“What are you doing?” she asked as she got up to stand as well.
He made his way to the flying Demon to drag it over the yard.
“Outside.” He pointed to the new Demons that had come and had already eaten the one she’d killed earlier. “They will help to get rid of its body. I will try to hide the smell of blood with dirt.”
He tossed its corpse through the barrier and the others descended upon it without hesitation, making wet, slurping sounds as they ate. She watched them with a cringe marring her features. Ew, gross.
The Duskwalker limped around while occasionally clawing into the ground to collect dirt and sprinkle it on the patches of blood.
“I have dirtied your hut.” He pointed to the bottom of the stairs where flecks of blood had managed to fling off his body and onto them when he’d been attacking the barrier. “They are inside your protections. I cannot hide them.”
Reia walked inside and grabbed a wet cloth to wipe it down and then threw it into the fireplace so it could be burned when she lit it at night.
“There, all gone.”
She clapped her hands together like she was brushing them of dirt as she came back outside to walk down the steps and out of barrier since she felt like it was safe to do so.
He’d calmed down, and she really wanted her sword back. She was also starving after the events of the day and could really use something to eat.
After her few hours of resting while watching him recover, her shoulder didn’t hurt so bad. It was still tender to touch so she tried not to move it too much.
She placed her hands on her hips while awkwardly holding the sword.
“I don’t have any food for you, but I do have water. Are you thirsty?”
He surprised her when he reached forward to place his clawed fingertips on her cheek.
“What is it you are doing with your face?”
“Hey!” She stepped back and smacked his hand away. “We spoke about this.”
His hand flung away, and he cupped it to his chest while his eyes turned white.
“I forgot.”
Unbelievable. She shook her head.
“I have never seen a human do this or make that strange sound you make.”
Reia opened her mouth to explain what a laugh and smile were, but his head suddenly turned to the side to peer in a certain direction.
“He is here. I smell his scent on the wind.”
He looked around and then at his body that was still heavily wounded, but at least no longer bleeding. Her eyes widened as she turned her head the way he had.
“Then you should at least get out of the salt circle,” she said quietly.
Why does it feel like I’m about to be caught doing the wrong thing? Like she was cheating talking to this Duskwalker.
“I will be attacked if I leave now.”
He was wounded and covered in blood. No doubt the Demons would try to eat him. The key word here was try.
“Okay, okay, um.” This wasn’t good. She knew just because he sprinkled dirt everywhere that the scent of blood wasn’t gone, and she currently had a strange Duskwalker in the salt circle near her. “Just… I don’t know. Go stand on the other side of the clearing, near the salt circle or something.”