RP:Trustworthy Untrustables

From HollowWiki

Summary: A day or two after RP:An Unmasking, Krice and Dominic cross paths again.


Near the Pass

Krice appeared not from the north, south, east, or west, but from above; a few scattered leaves twisted languidly toward the earth before the warrior appeared, falling into an unsteady crouch below. His body leaned as soon as both feet hit the ground, and he caught himself on his left arm. Though he harboured no visible injuries, the warrior appeared as if he had been in some kind of battle, if only because he looked tired. With a grunt, he steadied himself in that crouch and waited a moment, resting but poised to move when necessary.


Dominic was heading up a faint path, arms laden with some bulky, irregularly shaped burden, when off the path and up ahead to one side he sighted … oh, seven hells. He cast a rapid glance around at the surrounding terrain before he chose a large, fallen tree to duck behind. Maybe Krice hadn’t spotted him. Although… maybe he didn’t -have- to spot him to know he was there. Why, of all the -frakking- people…? But he didn’t allow himself to finish the thought. There was little point. He carefully set his load down beside him and contorted his body so he could peer over the top of his hiding spot. Curiosity at least marginally overruled whatever amalgam of emotions had led him to dive behind the thing.


Krice indeed had not spotted Dominic, and after a moment, he pushed himself to his feet and lifted his chin, stretching his shoulders back to gain his full height. Half-lidded eyes scanned his surroundings as he remained in place, and right before he took a step eastward, he grumbled out a slightly impatient, " Your stealth skills are severely lacking." After a quiet sigh, the warrior lifted a hand to wipe at his chin as he moved.


Dominic could have imploded on the spot from sheer embarrassment. He did the next closest thing and slid his back down the trunk of the fallen tree before curling himself into a ball. “I… S-sorry…” His voice was muffled; he was trying to speak with his mouth pressed to his knees.


Krice slowed to a halt and glanced over at the tree behind which Dominic was hiding. Though he was naturally stealthy and almost invisibly quiet as he moved, there was a hint of shuffling beneath the warrior's feet as he approached. He halted at the end of the fallen tree and glanced around it at the almost diminutive young man. " Oh... The kid," he said, amending his attitude for the sake of the more innocent, less-potentially-irritating persona of the two. " Why are you hiding?" Was his question, asked with the same firmness that was usual of the warrior, but without any of the -hardness- he projected at Brand only a night or two ago.


Dominic picked his face up out from between his kneecaps long enough to shoot an exasperated look at Krice. “ ‘Dominic’ is fine.” He turned his gaze downward and picked at the bandages wrapped around the same leg and foot Brand had been limping on the other night. After a pause just long enough to look like he might not answer the question, he added, “I dunno.” More silence, more playing with the bandages. “Sorry,” he repeated.


Krice acknowledged Dominic's name with a simple nod, followed by the lifting of his left hand in a 'stop' gesture. " No more apologizing," he muttered, letting the male know that his apologies were unnecessary. " I know who attacked you the other night." Cue a nod. " Injured your leg."


Dominic || The statement was enough to draw Dominic out of his pitiful expression a little, an adequate distraction from his own tumultuous brain. He uncurled a little and rested the uninjured leg flat. “You do?” He was still awful at keeping eye contact, but he at least made a brief attempt.


Krice was either uncomfortable talking to Dominic from so high a position--him standing, the other seated--or maybe he simply was tired of standing, because he lowered himself into a crouch and folded his arms over his thighs, fingers loosely interlocked. " Desparrow. He's a lycan, fancies himself all-powerful. He's more irritating than dangerous--to me. He's definitely dangerous to you, so if you see him again, try to avoid him. Don't make eye contact--with him--and get out of sight."


Dominic || “Oh,” Dominic replied, dimly. “Uh, thanks.” He stared holes into his raised knee before snorting out a short, mirthless bark of a laugh to a joke no one told. Except maybe Brand. “I’m surprised you’d give me the time of day after last time,” Dominic added, hugging his arms to his chest.


Krice squinted slightly at Dominic following that small stint of laughter, and it was clear in the warrior's eyes that he suspected Brand beneath the surface. " I don't have a problem with -you-, kid," he murmured, the left corner of his mouth curling upward slightly. Noting the other male's diminutive body language, he nodded to indicate Dominic's folded arms. " Try not to sit like that. You look like a victim."


Dominic looked down at his arms, back up to Krice, back down to his arms… then clasped his hands together in his lap. They were visibly shaking. “Sor--” He snapped his mouth shut and didn’t finish the apology. Some small progress, at least. Instead, he murmured, “You’re the only person who knows. Wait -- no, you’re the second person who knows.” He raised his eyes back up for another attempt at eye contact. It lingered, this time, but he looked terrified. His last sentence came out in a whisper: “I didn’t want to tell anyone.”


Krice tried to consciously lessen the intensity of his naturally sharp gaze when Dominic at last made eye contact, but it was difficult; he had never been one to pander to others. This other male seemed to need it, though. At the revelation that he was only the second one to know of Brand's existence, the silver-haired enigma nodded again, not making a big deal of it. Dominic's desire to keep his dual personality a secret earned him a simple, honest, "No one'll hear it from me."


Dominic swallowed hard and nodded in return, a quick, sharp jerk of the head. He unclasped his hands and let one rest in the dirt, drawing a small repetitive circle in it. His eyes followed the motion. A while passed without him saying anything; these long periods of silence seemed common for him. When at last he spoke again, it was to change the subject entirely. “Brand is trying to teach me to fight. So I can --” he broke off and cast a glance to the bundle he’d been carrying earlier before turning back to Krice. “Anyway, he’s not all bad. So, uh. If you -- if you need anything, I … want to help.”


Krice seemed relatively comfortable in the silence as well, and took the time to glance at their surroundings, checking for sign of drow or lycan danger. He saw none, and thus was able to remain relatively relaxed in Dominic's company. He turned his gaze upon the other male once conversation was initiated anew, and though Dominic had trailed off, ceasing one thought in favour of a more evasive second one, the warrior did not question him about it. Instead, he nodded to acknowledge the offer of help and then said, "Help yourself, first. Let Brand teach you how to defend yourself." Nodding again, this time to indicate the diminutive male, Krice added, "A good way to start is by projecting strength, even if you don't feel strong. Huddling and holding your arms to your chest, and hugging your knees - they're all signs of weakness and vulnerability." A beat. "Can you tell me why Desparrow attacked you? Not that he needs a reason, really..." Cue a wry smirk, though the expression faded fairly soon after it appeared. "What were you doing?"


Dominic darted his eyes to the bundle and back before pointing a thumb back at it. “Target dummy. Brand’s idea. He wanted to teach me but I … I didn’t want to fight around people. So we set it up in the woods.” Dominic furrowed his brow and switched up the pattern he was drawing on the ground. It was a series of cross marks, now. “Every other time it was fine. But… I don’t know. We crossed paths on the way. I didn’t think he’d seen me, but I guess he did.”


Krice glanced at the bundle per Dominic's indication before looking at Dominic himself, another nod following in acknowledgment of the Desparrow encounter retold. By the end of the other male's conclusion, the warrior glanced up and to the northwest, in the direction from whence he had come - though above it - as he said, "Nothing wrong with a target dummy..." Returning those gold-streaked red eyes to the diminutive male, the enigmatic swordsman said, " Maybe you should try learning how to fight in smaller ways, some place inside - where you're safer. Suggest that to Brand next time." Cue a smirk, wry. "Unless he can hear me through you." That was more muttered than directly told to the man's alter-ego. "There are plenty of creatures around who can smell blood, even just broken skin - a wound that's healing. Keep to the public when you can." Wandering into dangerous forests wasn't exactly the best option to take, but Krice wasn't going to argue it. " I'm going, but if you need an escort to a place that's on my way, y'can walk with me." Pushing against his knees, the warrior found his full height once more and huffed out a quiet breath, shaking off the tiredness that had plagued him when he fell out of the tree.


Dominic || “Eheheh…” Dominic gave Krice a sheepish, uncomfortable half-smile and an awkward laugh at the idea that Brand was listening. When Krice rose, Dominic braced his back to the fallen tree and used it to move to a standing position while putting minimal weight on the injured leg. He hoisted up the bundle with a soft grunt and then turned to peer at the other man over the top of it. “Not really sure where I was going with this, to be honest.” He glanced over one shoulder in the direction of southwest Sage, considering the other’s words about finding somewhere safer. “Uh, somewhere not here. M-maybe there’s a field somewhere closer to Kelay? Some empty spot on the outskirts somewhere? Or…” He turned back to Krice, his countenance one hunting for approval. “Or maybe I could fight inside... but there’s people and there’s things and what if Brand hurts someone or someone sees and figures it out and --” The last string of words came out in a rushed blather and ended in a few hyperventilated breaths before he regained his baseline level of composure. He gripped his burden harder and shuddered.


Krice regarded Dominic as he rose to his feet, neither offering assistance nor forcing it upon the other male; he seemed to find his feet without too much trouble. Glancing eastward, and then more north toward Kelay Way, the warrior said, " There aren't really too many fields around here." A beat, and then he slid his gaze over to the other man once more. " You should stay near people as best you can. Look for some kind of training ground. And if If Brand hurts anyone, he'll answer to me." The warrior concluded with a note of finality and sincerity, neither arrogant nor aggressive in his promise that Brand's behaviour would not go unpunished if necessary.


Dominic was quick to defend the other sharing his form. “He wouldn’t mean to! I… I don’t think. Not anymore. He’s…” Dominic seemed to suffer from a poverty of words; he trailed off and finally sighed. “Anyway, I’ll go with you if it’s toward Kelay, I guess. Where were you going?”


Krice turned to move eastward, seemingly unconcerned with Dominic's defence of Brand. " I'm going east. Past Kelay." Therefore, if Dominic was going -to- Kelay, then that would ensure that the apprehensive male had a stronger, calmer escort for his entire journey. " I won't hurt Brand... But that is up to him."


The Pass through Xalious

Dominic just nodded and fell into step by Krice’s side. His gait was uneven but no worse than Brand’s had been the night or two before. But this was a much quieter walk. Dominic seemed absorbed in his own thoughts for a while, until they were out of their previous area and hit a path running through from Kelay to Xalious and beyond. Stopping on the road and turning to face Krice directly, he asked, “What… what were you doing back there?” There was a brief hesitation before the next words came out in a nervous stream again. “Um, not that you have to tell me, I thought Brand made you angry when he was asking you things so I don’t--” he broke himself off with a sharp exhale. “I’m bad at this.” It was another apology in different words.


Krice was perfectly comfortable in the silence that ensued between himself and Dominic. Though the other male had experienced quite lengthy phrases from the warrior to this point, the silence seemed to fit him better. When asked about his activities in the forest when first they encountered one another this evening, the enigmatic swordsman glanced sideways at the other, parting his lips to answer - but hesitating because of the addendum that followed. He stared coolly at his temporary charge and dismissed talk of Brand in favour of asking for an elaboration: "What do you mean, 'what was I doing'?"


Dominic stammered. “I-I dunno, you seemed… something seems different about you today. And when I first saw you, you weren’t standing, you were low to the ground. I thought maybe…” he shook his head. “I don’t know. I’m just curious. Maybe I shouldn’t be trying to pry.” He gave Krice a soft, hesitant smile. “You seem to like that better. It really annoys Brand, though. You’re…” he narrowed his eyes, “he doesn’t trust you, I guess.”


Krice 's left brow lowered a little, subtle but enough to considerably change his expression; portraying a hint of exasperation at Dominic's observation of him earlier. Something seems different... Blinking his gaze off the other man, the warrior looked east to the path ahead and held his silence for a time, clearly not willing to go into the particulars of his mood or condition. Upon hearing that Brand didn't trust him, something that wasn't news, the silver-haired enigma shook his head just once. " He doesn't have to trust me. Nor do you."


Town in the Trees

Dominic twisted his lips in thought. “Well… you haven’t done anything but be helpful and kind so far. That’s enough for me. For Brand… ugh, I don’t think he trusts anyone. Don’t take it personally,” he side-eyed Krice, “uhh, n-not that you were probably going to, I guess. But him not trusting people is I think most of the reason I’m still alive.” The last sentence was a low mumble.


Krice, contrary to Dominic's worry that he was offended, actually agreed with Brand's philosophy. " People in general are untrustworthy. Trust is something that has to be earned. You don't just give it out freely." As they moved eastward, the warrior looked at their surroundings, blinking away the stinging sensation of tiredness. " I don't take it personally."


Kelay Town Square

Dominic || “Oh… I guess.” Dominic didn’t sound entirely convinced, but he kept any difference of opinion he had to himself. He fell back into silence but walked a little more closely to Krice as they headed into the busier center of the town, and his steps were paired with a small flinch whenever any passers-by came too close.


Krice glanced back at Dominic in response to his reply and asked, " What? You think differently about it?" His tone was not one of aggression or confrontation; he just wanted to hear what Dominic's opinion on the matter was.


Dominic blinked, his expression one of mild confusion. It was as if he hadn’t considered being allowed an independent thought on many matters until that moment, much less being prompted to share them. They were another block down the road before he answered. “I don’t know. There’s different types of trust, I guess. Like…” he pointed with a nod down the road to a popular store. “I know the guy who runs that store will answer any questions I have about Kelay. And I can trust that he’ll have the right answer and give it to me kindly, or at least he hasn’t been wrong or rude or pried too much about anything I’ve asked so far. And I’ve had a -lot- of questions.” He laughed lightly. It was a pleasant, if rare sound. And he looked younger when anxiety and worry weren’t creasing lines in his face. “I can trust that he’s knowledgeable about the town he lives in. But I don’t know anything about his private life. I don’t if he’s a good husband to his partner, or if he even has one. I don’t know if his prices are fair or if he gossips about his customers behind their backs.” A pause. “All I know is that he’s a good person when it comes to this one thing, and maybe that means he’s also a good person in other ways, but I can trust him in some ways and still not trust him completely.” He looked at Krice sidelong again. “And even waiting to trust someone until you’ve decided they’ve ‘earned’ it doesn’t mean they can’t use it to hurt you later. People are rarely so predictable.” ...Phew. There was a lot going on in that quiet half-a-mind, it turned out. Dominic let his gaze linger a while longer and then dropped it back down to the road ahead.


Krice accepted the other male's answer with a thoughtful expression on his face, deepening the shadows in his tired eyes. He squinted into the distant east, where the forest and road of Milous were visible past the tavern. A shake of the head precipitated his reply. " Being a good shopkeeper doesn't make you a good person if you gossip about your customers, or overprice your items, or go home and abuse the people who love you.. Trusting someone to know the answers to your questions isn't trust at its truest." After this, Krice's words were in agreement with Dominic's conclusion. "And sometimes people -are- predictable. You can trust someone completely and he or she might still turn around and hurt you. It depends on your ability to read people, and their level of malicious intent. In -that- way, trust can change, but trust is -still- something that has to be -earned-, and after that -kept-. You don't magically earn trust and then bam, you're always trusted. You have to keep proving that you're a good person, someone who -is- trustworthy." A beat. " Not you, specifically. People in general." He thought it pertinent to clarify, and shrugged a shoulder in casual dismissal of his wordiness.


Dominic || There was that long silence again. “...Do -you- trust anyone here?” When he finally asked, it was with a solemn tone and barely above a whisper. He seemed almost afraid to be asking the question.


Krice didn't consciously give Dominic any reason to be afraid, but as he fell silent to consider the question, he projected a hard exterior and impenetrable demeanour. After a while, as he slowed before Kelay Tavern, the enigmatic swordsman said, " Yeah." It was a simple answer that was hopefully satisfactory for the other man, because the warrior wasn't going to elaborate. He halted and turned to face Dominic. " Where are you going?" Was he going to keep following Krice out of Kelay, or find somewhere within the town to practice or rest?


Dominic’s expression relaxed again a bit at Krice’s answer, the exact reason behind the tension unexplained and irrelevant now. And anyway, it was only a flash before Krice stopped and asked a question in return. Dominic stood in place and peered around at the nearby buildings. “Uh… I’d stopped thinking about it, to be perfectly honest. I still don’t really have any particular spot in mind. I think… I think there was a fountain around here somewhere, wasn’t there? Is that part of town very busy?”


Krice looked eastward and nodded. " Up that way. It's not too busy, but it's not secluded, either." As he continued along the road, he said, " You'll have to keep an eye out for the nearby temple, though. If you stay off temple grounds, you should be fine. Otherwise, I'm not sure what their policy is on 'violence' or 'aggressive' behaviour."


Dominic resumed a lightly limping pace beside Krice. He winced at the other’s words. “Right. I’ll keep out of the way. I don’t think temples and I get along very well, anyway.” There was probably a story behind that statement, but he didn’t seem keen on sharing it.


Fountain

Krice didn't push Dominic to elaborate on his temple comment, perhaps understanding that the story behind it was an intimate one. Once they arrived at the fountain, the warrior halted and gestured for the other male to move on, a nod indicating his farewell. "Try not to worry too much. Stay near people and find a safe place to rest overnight."


Dominic readjusted his grip on his burden so he could issue a small half-wave from underneath it. “Krice… thanks.” He stayed in place but turned his attention toward scrutinizing the surroundings, rather than watching for the other’s departure.


Krice nodded again to Dominic, acknowledging his gratitude, and further did so with a casual, "No problem," before he turned away to proceed eastward, leaving Kelay as stated before.