Face to Face With Your Demons

Ever so gently, Ikigai cleaned the blood from the slash marks in the purple mans face. Alastor had done a number on him. A little well deserved, but still she wished that he hadn't done so. She could have handled this in her own fashion. If anything, Alastor surely got his point across rather well. There was no denying that. It was written across Deimos' face. Ikigai had no idea what was running through the man's mind, but she hoped it was regret. She hoped for both of their sakes that it was regret.

As the woman began to draw the rag away to give it a rinse, she felt the large, wide paw of the injured man settle over her own. Marbled eyes rose to meet Deimos' blue gaze. Over their time together, her shyness around him had faded and, though he had forcefully taken her, she was able to maintain their gaze. Dark ears shifted to catch his rough but sincere words. He wanted to make it up to her. That was easy. All he had to do was be good to her. He continued, saying that he wanted to be the man that she deserved.

Gently, Ikigai extracted her paw from his grasp, allowing it to slide away from his chest and settle on the stone floor for just a moment before using both paws to rinse the bloodied rag in the water. The woman balanced on her haunches again as she made another pass over the wounds. "You'll have scars, but you'll heal just fine," she advised him, not yet responding to his words. Iki needed a moment to think and prepare her response. She hadn't brushed his words aside at all. They replayed in her mind as she worked, the rhythmic cleansing of the cuts calming her.

With the wounds clean, Iki draped the bloodied rag across the edge of the bowl. She then took up a small clay vessel full of ointment that she'd crafted herself. Dipping one obsidian pad within, she carefully but thoroughly coated the wounds in the substance. The thick salve would hold the healing against the wound, promoting quick healing. Much more quickly than just leaving it to open air untended. As she applied the salve, her face was rather close to his own and she could feel his slightly labored breaths against the shorter fur of her muzzle. "There is nothing more important to me than family," the woman began, her voice a soft whisper since they were so close to one another. Her gaze stayed locked on the wounds, not wavering for a moment as she worked. "When we agreed to become mates, you became my family, Deimos."

Ikigai let her words sink into the mans skull while she wiped the remnants of the fatty substance from her pads. Taking up a long stretch of thin, clean bandages, Ikigai began wrapping the side of Deimos' face, extending the bandage over his eye, around his ear and back around. He wouldn't be able to see for a few days once the wound began to heal and the tissue swelled, but she would do her best to keep it clean and prevent the scars from being too bad.

"Since you are my family, I will protect you as I protect them. Your best interests will always be in the forefront of my mind, Deimos." Iki tied the bandage in a gentle knot and sat back, both forepaws on the stone as she inspected her work. "My actions reflect upon you just as yours reflect upon me. I will never intentionally bring shame upon you. I will protect you," the woman reiterated, finally meeting his gaze, "but I need you to protect me in turn." A small shake of the head was given before Ikigai carried on speaking. "I know you're capable of being a better man than what you were last night. That's why I'm still here." Tall, obsidian ears flicked backwards for only a moment. "You may never come to love me, as this was a joining of convenience and duty, but please do your best to honor me, as I will do my best to honor you." Ever the epitome of grace and decorum, Ikigai meant every word.

"Ikigai"