Face to Face With Your Demons

With her wounds tended to and her coat clean and tidy once more, Ikigai dried herself as best as she could so that she didn't drip all the way back to the cave. In her haste to cover up the scene, she hadn't brought her comb with her and, if she didn't get the tangles out of her long coat while it was damp, it would be a mess. She had no choice but to head back to the cave and could only hope that Deimos was still passed out from the drink.

Before she even reached the spacious cave, Ikigai could smell blood on the air and it wasn't her own. She hurried towards the den and noted the smatterings of blood on the stones outside. The fae's brow furrowed and she moved into the den, following the droplets like a crumb trail. Iki dropped the wet furs just inside the door, going still and allowing her mercuric gaze to adjust to the change in lighting. Her eyes adjusted just in time to see Deimos stumble and seat himself hard. Again her brows furrowed and she could feel the dull thud of stress and anxiety thumping inside her skull. What to do...

Any other woman might leave the man to tend to himself after what he'd done. She would have been well within her rights to let him bleed and work through his own pain just as he'd allowed her to do. Granted, she hadn't inflicted these wounds upon him. Or had she? She'd seen the look on Alastor's face when they'd parted ways. Who else but a dire could overcome another dire? The anxiety within her spiked and the pale fae internally waged war with herself.

In the end, she couldn't let him suffer.

Without a word, Iki moved towards her healing supplies. She collected clean squares of soft skins, pain killing herbs and a homemade antiseptic that would burn like hell, but would sufficiently clean the wounds. With all of the items placed in a little bucket, Iki sat them beside Deimos and fetch a small bowl of water. She then sat before him, looking silently at the man for any signs of aggression. Looking for any signs that he would turn her away rather than let her tend to his wounds.

"Ikigai"