Ari watched as Auovin walked away from the hearth and tried to head to the door leading to the outside. He leaned against the stone walls for support and almost fell to the ground if not for Cyrus catching him when he had. Ari looked away and narrowed his eyes in on Freir and Rein as they looked on. They were scheming something, Ari knew that. With Auovin in this weakened state, Ari could not help but think the worst of them.

"Cyrus, we cannot stay here. We must leave further into Dantic."

"I know," Cyrus replied, "but not in your condition."

Ari looked at Rein and stood in his way just as he took another step forward.

"Not another step," Ari said.

"Oh, you have grown insolent," Rein growled, but Freir pushed Rein behind himself.

"Because I will not listen to your lies any longer?" Ari hissed.

"Rein, leave the boy alone." Freir turned to look at Ari. "We are not planning to do anything but take you home back with us to see Nolan. That is all."

The tension was rising in the room and Inge's unexpected entrance through the door seemed to cool it down. He brought in a dead seere along with two wyhils still struggling to stay alive. His hair looked washed and combed along with his face and clothes. As Ari stared a bit closer, Ari began to realize how much of a feminine appeal he had, but he shook the thought away.

"Dinner is served," Inge grinned, but the smile soon faded from his face as he saw everyone's look on their face, especially Rein's and Freir's.

"What? Do you not like meat?" Inge walked up to Rein and smiled. "If you prefer something else, I can surely get it for you."

"You stay away from him," Freir hissed but Inge ignored his demand and pressed closer.

"Inge, enough!" Auovin shouted. "Come and help Cyrus in the kitchen."

Ari covered the side of his face with his hands and walked over to Auovin helping him to the ground. They were not going anywhere and being in such a small cabin with people who despised one another made Ari realize that it was going to be a very long day.

"If you do not keep your people in line," Freir warned. "I will put them there myself."

Cyrus stalked towards him, but Auovin put a hand up. "No need for such violence, pet. Leave him be. Sate Inge's appetite. She is looking at the other human as food."

Cyrus sighed and nodded following Inge into the kitchen.

"Humans, if you want to eat, grab a carcass and follow me in the kitchen," Cyrus groveled. As soon as Ari saw them disappear into the bigger room, he turned his attention back to Auovin.

"She... " Ari mumbled, "... no, he is a he...

"She is a woman."

"Was, I am sure, but he is a man now. It is best if you learn to respect that. He is your friend and I am sure he does not want to hear your blatant disrespect of his choice coming from you as well." Ari had a bit of familiarity with such things. Though women were accepted in the Khaeo, they were not treated with the greatest respect, so some cross-dressed. Others defined themselves as men, but many of his brothers never paid much thought to it and laughed. To them, they were not "real" men. Ari stared at his own hands and furrowed his brows finally coming to understand how they may have felt even just a little bit. He did not want to be what he was either.

Auovin looked at him and lowered his eyes as he smiled.

"And I am to be lectured by you now? You who did not know who he was just a couple days ago?"

Ari swallowed as his eyes met his. It made his heart race and he could do nothing but stare back at him. As he looked closely, something was growing from the sides of his head. He loomed near him until he was propped up on his knees wanting to touch and sift through his hair. There was definitely something there. As he brought his hand up to touch it, Ari hissed out in pain as Auovin's nails bit through his wrist until blood poured from it. Something wet and warm licked up his arm causing Ari to shudder.

He bit down on his bottom lip as Auovin pulled him close causing Ari to try and wriggle away. Even though his strength had waned, Auovin was still stronger than him pushing him to the ground as he sat on top of him.

"You are quite delectable. You make me want to eat you with how cute you are. It is a shame... that I cannot taste you now."

Ari's eyes were wide. His heartbeat was drumming through his ears and Ari could not take his eyes off the demon seeming to set his body on fire. Everything was burning. Was it because he wanted to kiss him? Was this the kinds of feelings a kiss would bring forth? If so, he did not like it.

"Taste me? Have you not already? You have taken my blood... "

The look in Auovin's eyes silenced him. It was lust. Nothing but lust.

"No, Little Ari, it is quite a different experience. We like blood, but we like warm bodies as well. To touch, to feel, to taste," Auovin whispered in his ear.

Ari looked on in confusion as Auovin laughed and got from over him. He saw it then. They were stumps from horns. Ari did not care for politeness. He was curious. Instead of asking, Ari pressed a hand against one of them. It was smooth and hard like marble, but as he let his fingertips touch around the edges it felt like chopped wood.

"What is... "

Auovin grabbed Ari's hand entwining his fingers through his. "So many questions coming from you. You have no sense of tact, do you now?"

"As you have none."

Auovin smiled. "In time, you shall come to know everything. Too much too soon could overwhelm you, and I do not want that. You are quite precious." Auovin cupped his face in his hands. "I do not want to lose you."

Just as Ari was about to take it away, Auovin's lips pressed onto his knuckles causing Ari's breath to lodge into the back of his throat. "It is time to learn about your own kind and who you really are and what this really is one step at a time."

Ari nodded just as Freir stepped into the room.

"Ari, come and eat." Freir walked over to them, but Ari put a hand out stopping Freir in his tracks.

"I can get myself up. I need to help him up. Go in and wait for me."

"Ari," Frier growled, "you listen to me and not the other way around."

"You do not have much choice in the matter anymore, now do you?" He had obeyed them and their words as if they were the words of their gods for so long he had enough of it.

Freir stormed back inside the kitchen as Ari struggled to lift Auovin up to his feet. Why was he so weak when everyone else like him were strong? Was something wrong with him?

"Ari, it is fine." Auovin pushed him away. "I can stand and walk a short distance as this. I cannot look weak in front of your friends. They will try to take advantage of a situation that is not in their hands."

"They only... want what is best for me."

"Do they now?" Auovin laughed as he leaned against a wall. "No matter. Go on into the kitchen. I will be there."

Ari did as he wished and the moment he walked in there the tension in the air had soared to great heights. He smelled the food cooking being heated by the fire into a nice broth. Some of the demon's bodies were baked and stuffed with potatoes. Cyrus continued stuffing them inside and setting them on separate plates ignoring what was going on behind him.

"You are quite thin now. Eat some more," Inge said as he held a spoon to Rein's mouth. Surprisingly, Rein took it causing Freir to stand up and smack the spoon from out of Inge's hand.

"What in the darkest parts of hell do you think you are doing?" Freir roared.

"Feeding him since you cannot seem to do it yourself," Inge replied with a grin. Inge grabbed another spoon and dipped it into his bowl of broth and sipped some.

"Freir, settle down. Inge had been kind to us. He saved Rein's life. It is only natural for a doctor to care for the person they had treated." Even though Ari said that, it was quite the contrary. Inge liked Rein a lot more than what he was trying to admit and Freir saw it as clear as day.

Freir sat back down and clenched his jaw. Rein was his lover and he was... he was... envious? No, that was not the word he was searching for. Jealous, Freir was jealous. However, they had no time for it and Rein had been growing weaker. It was good that Inge was showing some emotion towards his brothers other than wanting to kill them like Cyrus. Freir would just have to cope with his emotions for little longer. No one had asked either of them to come along in the first place.

As Ari went to sit down, Inge wiped something from the corner of Rein's cheek causing Rein to move his hand away.

"You had a little something right there. Thought I would get it for you." Inge smiled again. This was not good.

Auovin came and leaned against the doorway causing Cyrus to drop down everything that he was doing and go over to him in a rush.

"I am fine, pet." Auovin kissed his cheek causing Ari to turn back around. He looked at Freir's face which seemed to mirror the same expression he had been wearing. It made his eyebrows furrow. He was not... jealous. He was not. He knew Auovin and Cyrus were close and he had no place between the two of them, no matter what Auovin said.

"Here," Freir said scooting his plate of food and bowl of broth over to him. "I am not hungry."

Ari scooted it back and shook his head.

"Neither am I... "

Ari looked back at them eyeing Cyrus trying to figure out what it was about him that made him so appealing. Was it his long golden hair or pretty green eyes? Maybe it was the softness of his skin. It looked smooth and unmarred, though Ari knew it was quite the contrary. His height and build were just about the same as Auovin's and he was much smaller. His hair was short and dark; only touching down to his neck. His eyes were gray and they did not shine as bright as other colored eyes. Was he even appealing? Ari's eyes lowered in thought before they rose to look at Freir's darkening expression.

Rein was getting along with Inge quite well which was good in its own ways. However, Ari could understand why he may see it differently. It was a bitter feeling.

"Freir... "

"Yes, Ari." Frier covered his eyes with his hand before pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Do I... Am I... "

"What is it, Ari?"

"Am I appealing?"

Freir closed his eyes and smiled before laughing. "Are you what?"

"Nothing."

"Ari, those things are not something you should ever care about. You are to serve our gods and only our gods. You need no other or nothing else. You are quite beautiful in their eyes and that is all that matters," Freir said as he took a swig of his drink.

"Then Rein... you do find him appealing. You do things with him because you find him appealing." Freir nearly spat his drink out on his face. Spittle splashed on it, but Ari wiped it away with the back of his sleeve. "So what is it that you find so appealing about him?"

"... Ari," Freir mumbled growing uncomfortable with the conversation. Ari could tell. Freir sighed and looked at Rein and Inge before setting his focus back on him. "I do not know whether it was his lofty smile or sharp tongue. Was it because of the many times he had saved my life or the way he carried himself? I cannot give you an answer. It was everything and it was nothing."

Ari watched as Cyrus and Auovin walked out of the kitchen and into the room he was in before.

"But it is something you should not worry yourself over. Do not become like me."

"If you think it is so wrong, why can you not stop it?"

"Because it feels right." Ari stared at him. "It feels right."

"Is that so...?"

"But, Ari, you are in wonderment over this demon. It is not right. It is wrong."

Ari shook his head. "You are wrong."

"You will learn soon enough. Your feelings will only grow bigger and stronger from here and the stronger they grow the more it will hurt." Frier threw his cup on the floor and walked out. Ari heard the door slam not long after causing an ill-feeling to nestle deep into his chest.

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