Reila admitted that she didn't know why she'd reacted in such a way, but assured Chimera that it wasn't him. The man released a contemplative rumble. "There's a lot that you have to un-learn," he spoke as they began walking back to camp. "There are still times when Alina and Dalila forget that they're no longer slaves." Perhaps sharing that bit of information would help the woman if only a little.

Back at camp, Reila took one of the furs and curled up in it while Chimera tended to their meal. The skin of the small pig had charred, but they weren't going to eat the skin. The insides had cooked nicely, though the meat was still on the rare side. Before having women in his life, Chimera wouldn't have dreamed of cooking his meat. These days, he quite liked it, though this pork wouldn't be spiced to perfection like Dalila was capable of.

Ripping the pig in half, the man placed the meat on a dish made of many wide grape leaves. He then sat it before Reila, then collected his own meal. The dire brute rested upon the fur that had been laid out for him, then began picking at his meal, peeling the charred skin away from the cooked flesh. He'd worked up quite an appetite.

"Chimera Klein"

Chimera set out a larger portion than she was really capable of but that was fine. She didn’t linger long over the meat, only waited for Chimera to settle in and take the first bite before she did. Maybe some form of respect.

She had picked her meat in silence, they were eating after all. And when she couldn’t take anymore from her full belly she quietly commented, "It was very good, thank you."Thanking him again like she couldn’t say so enough. She did somehow feel like she was still in her prior life. It was difficult to see much of a difference given the fact she had seen a number of different willed men and women on her journeys. But she could tell herself that she found good in Chimera. Maybe naive for not knowing him too well. But who surrounded him spoke volumes, the ones he cared about and their own pasts he had mentioned. She was comfortable with him but really not any differently than she would have a kind master.

A drizzle washed over the cathedral which had sheltered them from the unexpected light rains. A breeze blew in through the tunnel of the main path and rustled the damp leaves and vines above them, Reila lifted the pelt over her shoulders.

"Reila"

The wolves picked silently at their meal and, once Reila was finished, she thanked him again. Chimera nodded and continued eating. Even when the drizzle began sifting through the thickly laced canopy and dripping down upon him, he continued eating. A little rain on an already damp body wouldn't bother him. It would bother Reila though, it seemed. He noted that she pulled the fur more tightly around herself. Since it was his duty to protect her, Chimera quickly set up a game plan.

Standing, the brute tossed the bony, fatty remnants of his meal away from the camp, his pink tongue lashing over his lips to rid himself of clinging meat and grease. Far off, thunder shook the grove and the man's eyes narrowed for a moment. Already the falling rain was putting out the fire that he'd built. Hmm Hmm... Moving across the camp, the giant brute lifted the edge of the cart and backed it up into the nearest tree. He then took the oiled, water repellant fur from the ground where Reila had placed it for him and flung it over the edge of the cart and one branch of the tree, creating a little tent where they could seek shelter. Just in time, too. The thunder grew closer and soon the rain was pouring down through the nooks and crannies of the canopy.

Chimera ushered Reila beneath the cart tent, giving her the driest spot. He sat closer to the entrance, getting his back and tail rather wet, but they both wouldn't fit unless they were in very close proximity to one another.

"Chimera Klein"

Her gaze rose to Chimera as he stood and tossed his remaining meat off into the grounds of the grapevines. She too stood with the pelt over her back as he moved over to the cart.  The least she could do was hold it more steady as he set up the pelt as a canopy only little did she know that once they were inside he’d give her the most comfort.

With the rumbling skies above them, Reila started to get more on edge and tense and it only got worse as the thunder grew closer and louder. She went under the cart as Chimera gestured her to do, and easily noticed his massive form away from her and certainly outside in the rain. "Come in a little more." She asked while pulling the pelt she had off of herself and over the lower part of his back. Her paws shook as she did so, in fact her whole body was shaking gently. It wasn’t from the slight chill in the temperate weather though.

"Reila"

As the rain poured down around them, Reila seemed to notice that he was getting rather drenched. She asked him to come in further and gave him the fur that she'd had wrapped around herself. Thunder crashed loudly and the world turned black around them. Rain began coming down in sheets. Had they not been on a bit of a rise in the land, the pair might very well have been washed away. It was as though nature had flipped a switch. One moment the world was peaceful and they were enjoying a nice meal, the next, the world was being blown to pieces by rain, thunder, wind and lightning.

The area was illuminated by a strike of lightning and, even through the haze of rain, Chimera could see the sparks of a smoldering tree. The man grimaced and, ducking, squeezed under the cart. There was no choice now. They would have to be squished together under there. The giant man wrapped a foreleg around the small fae, only then realizing just how much she was shivering. Chimera draped them both in the oiled fur as best as he could, trying to keep most of the rain away from them. The cart provided some decent shelter, but the skin that he'd hung up above was being whipped back and forth by the wind. Reaching up, Chimera jerked it down off of the tree branch. The skin hooked over the edge of the cart and the man tucked it around the wheels. The wind held it tightly against the cart and the wolves were mostly trapped in darkness.

"It will be alright," he assured the quaking woman, holding her against him protectively. Storm or no storm, she was under his protection and he wouldn't let anything happen to her.

"Chimera Klein"

Chimera's gentle hold around her didn't unsettle her or make her uncomfortable, but it didn't make her feel any sort of intimacy either. She had never been close to him like this before, but it was something she had been used to with others. It was new with him, but not new to her. Her front paws slid down the length of his chest as he pulled her in, gently falling over his barrel just under his own arms. Her cheek too had laid on his chest carefully without thinking much of it. The rain and wind form outside was intense, but also sheltered by the bulk of the cathedral. It couldn't keep everything out though.

Chimera comforted her which she took graciously. But she didn't want him to feel like he had to. Only her face drew back to look up at him. "The storms out at sea," She mentioned giving him the insight, "It's fine, it's just physical." And really she was just fine. A lot of the slaves on the ship had been traumatized by the swaying, rocking, sometimes the cages would be thrown off their positions. Reila and as did many more had learned to just give in to it, and it's why she couldn't help her shaking right now but really, inside the storm meant nothing to her. It was locked away somewhere.

Through the dark of the late evening or maybe it had been night now and under the cart, her eyes carefully searched around Chimera's face and muzzle. Being this close to him made her see just how handsome and strong he was, not that she let herself think too much of it.

"Reila"

The small woman settled comfortably against him, knowing just how to position herself to fit the pair of them together like pieces of a puzzle. Chimera again pulled the fur around them once they were finished adjusting. When his comfort was offered, she let him in on the reason for her shaking. The man released a low rumble in his chest, acknowledging her fear. "I imagine that's terrifying." Being at the mercy of the ocean, not knowing if the small wooden craft you were on would make it through the storm. And being a piece of merchandise on top of it? Terrifying indeed.

Outside the storm continued to rage. Normally, a storm so harsh didn't last long, but this one lasted longer than Chimera imagined it had any right to last. Gradually the wind died down, however, leaving only hard rain coming down in a steady hiss all around them. It wasn't nearly as torrential as it had been in the thickest bit of storm, but it was still steady enough to keep them trapped beneath the cart unless they wanted to be soaked to the bone. At least under the cart they were mostly warm and dry, though they were a bit cramped.

Chimera didn't notice right away when the woman began looking at him. When he did, he arched one brow, though didn't say anything to dissuade her from doing so. If she wanted to look, she could look. As long as she didn't mind him looking in turn. The woman was pretty in her own way. The delicate speckling across the grey of her cheeks accented the brightness of her eyes which seemed to be luminous even in the dark. Again that familiar pang of lust struck the man low in his body, but he could push it away. What man in his right mind wouldn't feel a little something being pressed this tightly against a woman so fair?


"Speech"

His sympathy was admired, he could have berated her instead. She wouldn't have expected it of him though. Having his affiliation and his queens of the same background, he was able to relate or at least see in some way. If Reila was really honest with herself, it was quite attractive outside of his physical looks, being able to understand the troubles of trauma and proceed in a kindly and understanding manner the best he could. Though she wouldn't have dismissed him either way, that was not in her nature. It wasn't a part of her to want to explore real emotions either, not right now in her life.

As the wind and thunder let up some, the storm seemed to be passing and Reila's shivering died down as she relaxed more. The sound of the rain was much more easing and the natural world around them was calming as time went on. Reila's paws pulled up from under Chimera's arms and made herself more comfortable in his grasp by bending them between their chests. Her cheek dropped down onto the ground under them as she looked up at him gently still in silence while he did the same. She could fall asleep here with him now after the long day of travelling and hunting. She'd do just that if he didn't do or say anything else.

"Reila"

Reila repositioned herself and Chimera did the same, laying his blocky skull down upon one thick foreleg. The warmth of their bodies pressed together beneath the skin and the steady thrum of rainfall was quickly lulling the giant brute to sleep. He was rather comfortable and it would most likely rain all night, so why not just sleep and make the best of it?

In the distance, the retreating thunderstorm rumbled here and there but mostly the night was filled with rain and the singing of slowly emerging frogs. It was like a midnight lullaby just for them. A long sigh pulled from Chimera and he finally allowed his eyes to close. He wasn't asleep just yet, but if things continued the way that they were, he soon would be.

"Speech"

The lands grew quiet as the night went on. The rains blew by and left behind the sounds of crickets and frogs off in the distance as everything settled. Still the drops from the rain ran down the grapevines and the dense foliage. Reila was completely knocked out from the day and nestled here with Chimera. She couldn't even really remember falling asleep, only seeing him before everything went completely dark.

Late in the night her body twitched lightly in her dreams, nothing quite out of the ordinary or that would seem alarming. But really deep down inside her mind she was fighting and plagued by her past traumas. Everything was still too fresh for her. She could smell the pigs blood still whether that was from them being stocked on top of them or just reminiscent of when she was looking down at them bleeding on the stakes. She groaned nearly silently as she went to turn in Chimera's grasp under the cart with her belly more up than facing him.

She was not awake, but inside her head panicked as she felt the brute's arms around her. Everything she was seeing in her mind along with what was real all combined into a sense of fatal danger of the tournaments to her. Without much warning her jaws split opened and went to grasp Chimera from underneath his chin and cheeks. Her eyes may have been slightly opened now, but she was still lost somewhere inside her head ready to fight for her life. She couldn't remember this was Chimera, or where she was or anything about Fenmyre. She was just in this almost empty shell of herself.

"Reila"

Always a light sleeper, Chimera was pulled from sleep as Reila shifted in his arms. This wouldn't have roused him fully, but the groan that slid from her brought the man's eyes blinking sleepily open. Just in time, too. The bobtailed fae began to struggle a bit before her jaws parted, which he heard and felt more than saw. Reila's teeth bit into the side of his neck, just grazing his jaw. Reflexively, the giant pushed to his paws, but they were beneath the damn cart and his head thunked hard off of the wooden bottom.

A growl on his lips, Chimera slid a paw between his body and Reilas. With his wide paw on her chest, the man pushed hard, tearing her teeth out of his flesh. His paw slid up to grip her throat and he held her down, though not entirely trying to choke her out. If it happened, it happened. Frankly, she deserved it. The brute could feel blood seeping from wounds in his neck. Lifting the edge of the skin, Chimera tossed the woman out of the makeshift shelter and into a puddle just outside. Served her right.

Sliding out from beneath the cart, Chimera looked towards the fae, making sure that she wouldn't drown herself in the puddle. He then moved to the back of the cart and used the pool of water atop the waterproof skin to clean the wound in his neck.

"Speech"

Reila fought and struggled with him as he ripped her off of his neck and held her down on the ground. She was really no match for his strength but the ghost of her wouldn't let up in the moment. She started gasping for air, getting weak from the struggle and how he held her down. She started to come to as she was short on air and looking at him with fear glazing over her dark eyes.

He tossed her out from under the cart, she took a few moments to catch her breath, completely mortified of what had just happened. Still uneasy on air, she stood and made her way shyly back towards Chimera, "Are you alright?" Her voice was careful as she was worried to speak out to him, "Chimera... I'm sorry." There wasn't anything she could really say or do, she probably should have just stayed quiet. She went to move forward towards him, she didn't even know what she had done or if he was really hurt. She saw him using the rain water on his neck and was going towards him to help him.

"Reila"

Chimera continued to splash water onto the wounds and the bleeding was slowing, but not quite done yet. She'd caught him on the white side of his body, so the blood would be rather noticeable. The bite hadn't been terribly deep and she'd mostly had a mouthful of fur, but there would be a few puncture wounds. He'd made it worse when he tore her away, but... oh well. As the brute tended to his wound, he imagined he could have used the woman's silly word to call her off, but he had refused to do so. She would eventually learn to control herself, or she wouldn't.

Reila came in from the side, apologizing and asking after his well being. "I'm fine," he assured her. What kind of king would he be if he couldn't take a little bite here and there? "Just go back to sleep," he instructed.

The remnants of the rain dripped down through the canopy. Realistically, they could start their trek home since they were both awake and the rain had stopped, but pulling a fully loaded cart through mud didn't seem very ideal. Now wide awake, Chimera sighed and looked for a suitable place to rest. He wasn't getting back under the cart with Chomper there. One bite was enough.

"Chimera Klein"

Chimera had nearly dismissed her but not really in a rude way. Still she felt terrible. She was a fucking wreck. The lavender, the thunder, and now attacking him in the middle of the night. She felt like a huge screw up. It was probably well derived from her own self worth and image, but she wasn’t supposed to keep messing things up the way she was. Just the perfect little slave girl.

She carefully stepped forward even after he told her to go back to sleep, brushing her pads in the collected water before going to gently rub her soft paw against his chest and push some pressure there to get it to close up and stop bleeding. Her eyes flicked up towards his dark face before looking back down at his chest again, "I told you how to get me to stop." It was in no way meant to backlash, just a reminder as her tone was apologetic and worried. Honestly she didn’t want to take another trip like this with him. She kept feeling herself slipping through every moment.

"Reila"

From their interactions together so far, Chimera had expected Reila to obey his order and just go back to sleep. If she didn't it was entirely her choice, but he assumed that she would. When she came forward to help staunch the bleeding, he was a little surprised, but in a good way. A bit of progress, as he saw it.

The woman's words brought an airy huff from the giant and he shook his head. "You aren't a slave anymore, Reila, and I won't use your control words." Curling his neck, he looked the fae straight in her big, blue eyes. "This will keep happening until you learn to control yourself. You need to undo what they did and break that invisible color around your throat." He had claimed that she wasn't a slave, but she still was, in a way. She would be until she could become her own master.

With a sigh, the man ripped off a chunk of the skin that they'd been using under the cart. He pressed it against his wounds until the bleeding stopped. Then he slid into the yoke connected to the cart and began to pull it through the mud, intent on making it back home since they were clearly both awake.

"Chimera Klein"

Reila wanted to plead with him the importance of using the haze on her. For him, maybe for her, for the pack it was crucial if only to herself to be locked into her submission when she went into these violent episodes. It was really so unlike her to behave this way, but she couldn’t help if she believed she was back fighting in the tournaments. And it seemed to just be getting worse. She bit her tongue, obviously holding back from what she would tell him. She couldn’t just forget everything that happened prior to Fenmyre.

He went to patch the small wound and then went to strap himself to the cart and drag it through the mud. She approached him from the side, her paw reaching up to wrap around one of his own to get him to stop. "We should wait until morning. I can find you something for the wound and the grounds will be drier." She hoped he would take her advice but she supposed she couldn’t stop him. "You can stay by the cart." She offered, not wanting to risk another attack on him.

"Reila"

As the man delivered his words, he could see the turmoil on Reila's face. He was laying a lot on her and was letting his expectations be known. As a wolf of his pack, he wanted her to be free from her invisible chains. Chimera was no fool. He knew that it wasn't that easy, but he did expect her to work on it. As long as she was making the effort, whether it took her forward or backward, that was all that he wanted. Perhaps if she saw that she was capable of change, it would speed up her progression. Reila was no dummy. She was no simpering fool, despite her upbringing. If she was determined and she wanted free of her shackles, then she eventually would be. Whether it took months, years, or until the end of her life, as long as she tried, he would be content.

Chimera had barely taken a step with the cart before Reila was trying to stop him. There was worry in her eyes and he sighed yet again. Why did women always have to be like this? He wasn't at risk of bleeding out. If he wanted to push himself, then he should be free to do so. Being the kind of beast that he was, the giant's pale pink eye narrowed as he looked down upon the pleading woman. He knew how to turn this to his advantage.

"I'll stop pulling the cart and we'll stay til morning, but in repayment you'll speak to both Aliana and Dalila about all of this. Deal?" It was no secret that Aliana and Dalila were healers and it was no secret that both were former slaves. Perhaps speaking together, they could come up with some sort of game plan for Reila. If anything, it would force the woman to mingle with others like her. Chi thought it was a decent trade. If she turned down the deal, he wouldn't stop pulling the damn cart until they were home again.

"Chimera Klein"

She was a bit surprised to his exchanging offer, but she wasn't unwilling to talk about herself or more so her past. "Oh, uh- yeah sure." It wasn't talking about it that was the problem. It was approaching them. It wasn't necessarily everyday conversation even to like minded individuals who may have suffered something similar. But she supposed using Chimera as the excuse to butt in and get to the point, that was okay with her.

She backed off of him and moved to the side of the cart, laying down and resting but not putting her head down to try and sleep. She was still awfully tired but really she couldn't make herself go back into that zone of no control. She'd fight it all the way back to Fenmyre where she could go behind closed doors and shield the rest of the pack from herself. It was probably a bit extreme, but she didn't want to cause harm to anyone or at least ever again. Hurting Chimera was really pushing her over the edge.

"Reila"

His request seemed to shock her, but Reila stammered out an agreement. It would do her well to speak to others with a similar past. Maybe Ali and Dal could give her something to help her sleep without fits. Maybe just talking through her ordeal would help somehow. Either way, Chimera wanted her doing all that she could to better herself and her situation.

Since the agreement was struck, the bloodied man shrugged out of the carts yoke. Reila had already moved away and settled down, though she looked as though she wouldn't be sleeping. The man huffed lightly. "Go back under the cart where it's somewhat dry," he instructed. The fur was still under there as well. He wouldn't be sleeping anytime soon though. Only an idiot pretended that a wound didn't hurt. After a while the pain would drift away, but it wasn't quite there yet. Instead of laying down, Chimera inspected the waterlogged remnants of the fire that he'd built, seeing if there was anything that he could salvage. There was not.

"Chimera Klein"

Reila had already offered the cart to Chimera, and while she was reluctant to do so, she wasn't going to go against his word again. She slowly rose off the somewhat wet ground and made her way under the cart as he told her. Silence had drawn between the two, whether that was because they weren't face to face anymore or something deeper Reila tried not to dwell on. But she found herself missing that suddenly large and empty space under the cart with her being filled by Chimera. It wasn't a feeling she was quite familiar with, and she had wished that it could have been different. That she could be different. She rested her chin on her paws though still wasn't willing to go back to sleep. When the morning came they would be heading back to Fenmyre.

Reila shuffled under the cart after a few long moments, poking her head out around the front of the cart and quietly calling, "Chimera?" Her voice was uneasy and uncertain, not wanting to ask, "Will you... come back under with me?" Not to sleep, but she was willing to expand what she wanted and what she felt when missing that warm body beside her. She could excuse wanting Chimera to have that dry spot too, but really the sole reason was because of her inner emotions. If he suggested otherwise given what had just occurred between them, she would go back under the cart without another word.

"Reila"