Rough Start (Sharaku/Invite)

He wasn’t sure how long, he was laying there trying to get his bearings and get his body to cooperate with him. He just knew somewhere along the line, he felt like he was on the edge of passing out. His sight refused to clear up leaving him unable to make out the world around him outside of blurred shapes. He could hear to a degree, but not as well as he usually could his ears rather plugged. He could feel at least. He felt the plants under him, pain, and coldness. He felt his body slightly shivering constantly knowing he needed to get up, but his body was working on close to zero energy. It wanted rest, but he couldn’t stay out here and do that. No, he had to move and find somewhere else where he was less vulnerable. His mind told him that, but his body was not complying right now. It felt like a sac of heavy stones.

That aside, he would find that despite being jacked up in others areas his nose seemed to be working just fine. He could pick up the scent of grass and water nearby. There were animals around too, but nothing near by enough to be concerned about. What was concerning though was the more powerful scent of something that was not human. It smelled like a dog. Which one though? A domesticated one?...coyote? …No…that smelled more like a wolf…and yet something was off about the scent making it confusing to tell exactly what he was dealing with.

Either way, the fact that it was a wolf anything was enough to make him pull up enough energy to be more or less aware. The scent got closer until it was within a few feet of him. How close said few feet were he wasn’t too sure, but that didn’t matter as he used his sense of smell to find the direction it came from.

Pushing himself up a bit and looking to his left, he spotted a tall blur there that somehow shrunk down a bit. A being crouching? Probably, but he didn’t focus on that detail too much as he instead did his best to focus on the words that came from said blur.
He was quiet for a while as his eyes narrowed slightly trying to focus before with a soft sigh he gave up on the matter as he rested his head on the ground and closed his eyes, this position requiring less effort than trying to hold his head up.

“…Un…Unfortunate…events…” he managed to get out his voice strained and whispery making it hard to hear unless one paid attention. That aside, he would force his eyes open looking in the general direction of the figure with a tired expression. Even so, he forced himself to speak more. “Hoo..” he trail off as pain ran through him. He close his eyes as he winced and let it go through him.

He hated being like this in front of a stranger, especially since he was unsure if this was a threat or not, but there was no way he could pretend. Even if he could, he wouldn't. He wasn't one about hiding stuff or playing to be nice stranger or not. Still if whoever this was did try something, he would force himself to defend himself. There was no way in hell he was going to go down due to conditions. That aside as the pain subsided, his battered and gashed body relaxed only a bit as he tried his question again.

“Who…are you?” His voice was still weak, but at least that came out better than the last attempt.

Did he expect to be found by a medical expert? No. That would’ve been too convenient. Besides, he was aware the likelihood of someone like that finding him was pretty slim out here anyway. Hell, anyone finding him was luck considering this was a large expanse of land and he was a speck of many in it. On top of that, the likelihood of someone or something not looking to kill him was also pretty slim. The fact this being that was near hadn’t tried to hurt or kill him, could talk, and had found him was a miracle on its own. Did he expect the other to help him? No. In fact he was still unclear if this one was safe or not; however, he did find that whoever this guy was he was at least calm.

Whether that was due to curiosity or plotting he didn’t know and honestly he didn’t think too hard on it. Instead, he just went with what happened versus wasting his energy on what ifs. Either way despite his condition, he wasn’t going to die quickly…though without proper aid he could end up sick and potentially dying in a slow miserable way. Granted, he’d fight that to the end too. That aside, he would hear what the other had to say in regards to his question. Blinking slowly, he was quiet as he let it sink in and process.

A hunter. That could be worrisome considering they were not above using such a tactic to erase something they disliked completely. Still, this one wasn’t hunting him, but something else and just happen to come by. Did he believe the guy? Well maybe and then again maybe not. The guy could be lying to make him comfortable and then when his guard was down take him out. Though that could happen even if he told the truth. Either way, he would push away the possibility of this one being hired by them considering that sort of hunter would’ve pounced on him by now…unless of course they took pleasure in watching another suffer. That probably didn’t apply here though from what was given and being said, so the half breed remained neutral towards the guy's presence, his body neither tensing nor relaxing as he gave a tired nod. “I see…” he would whisper and then hearing the next set of words a small frown crossed his face.

“Not…a good time…to ask such things…” he would say and then pause as he gathered a bit of strength to try and push himself up, but the effort was futile, his body flopping back to the ground easily enough. Closing his eyes with a sigh, he’d speak slightly moody due to misery versus anything the other did. “Does th…that answer your question about how well I can make it on my own?”

He didn’t like to appear weak, but honestly at this point he had a choice: One: be an ass and potentially chase away what might be help and in turn suffer the consequences of such actions… none of which were pretty. Or two:0 he could just be honest and see what happened if he gave a bit of trust to a stranger that had no obligation to help him at all. Could this guy still leave after all was said and done? Oh yeah, but would he? That was another matter, wasn’t it?

“Heh..” An actual attempt at a laugh was made even though it was very weak and his smile very faint as he remained where he was on the ground. Even so, he still managed to seem amused despite his condition. And would you look at that? The poke actually got something small in return. “Does unfortunate…family issues…make it…better?” Well it seemed that despite his comment, he wasn’t afraid to share the details. Though at the moment that might be a strain on him considering he wasn’t exactly in his right mind or well enough to carry a proper conversation without something coming up to interrupt it. It was already hard enough just getting the words he was able to get out now.

As for that ‘demonstration’ he gave, well…

He’d give a sigh at what the other said. “I am aware…of that option and that…it wasn’t necessary…or wise… but…. to be frank…I don’t like being in this position…” He wanted to get up and move…even though at the moment his body just couldn’t. Being still was hard for him to do even more so when he simply wanted to get somewhere he could recover and get back to whatever the plan was from here. “Still…you are probably right…Pushing myself or rushing things…will probably worsen matters…” As much as he hated to admit that. He really didn’t have a choice in the matter, but to be patient if he wanted to heal properly and be able to follow through on his next actions fully. A pain in the neck, but if that is what it took to get better, that is what he’d have to do.

His eyes would narrow a bit as he saw the blur of a figure become a bit larger, the muffled sound of movement letting him know the guy had moved closer. From what the guy’s eyes could see, the male before him was nicely toned and of a medium frame. He would probably look fit enough, if it wasn’t for a the fact that at the moment he was a shivering mess. He wore light weight clothing that might’ve been white or some other light color that was hard to make out under all the red and stains of muck on him. The clothing was pressed against his body and torn all over exposing his sides, back, arms, and legs all of which were cut up pretty badly though the wounds didn’t appear to be just from a blade. In fact, a good chunk looked like they’ve could’ve been done from fangs or horns. While these cuts and bites littered his body along with bruises, the spot that seemed to be the worse and was currently still bleeding a good deal was a wound on his left side. The extent of the wound was unknown considering it looked like it was mostly on his lower stomach area which was currently covered thanks to him being on his stomach at that moment, leaving the wounds on the chest area also a mystery. His face also sported some cuts and bruises, but seemed to have faired better than the rest of his body. His hair was a whitish, damp, wavy mess, his head scarf he usually had gone probably lost in the chaos of things. His eyes were gold in color, bu definitely not focusing properly if one knew what to look for there. In a nutshell, he was a mess and the scent of blood and dampness probably didn’t help matters.

Not seeming to react to the fact that the guy was closer, he would hear the words spoken and blink slowly. “You could leave at… any point though…Ttill I don’t have many options…so ask away.” Yes he could be a pain in the ass and chase the guy away, but what good would that do him? None. Besides the guy seemed like he wanted to help and didn’t seem harmful thus far so why not?

“A grim…and…kirin mix…” It was true he had some healing abilities on his kirin side, but they weren’t the same as self generation and the likes some others had and considering which part of him was more dominate, he wasn’t even sure if he could use said healing properly anyway. “What about…you?” Was he looking for fair exchange? Not really, but it would be nice to know what he was dealing with since his nose wasn’t telling him anything outside of the fact the guy was maybe some sort of wolf. He’d liked the clarity in the situation.

It seemed the guy had accepted his still vague answer which was good for many reasons at the moment. Even so, if the guy did decide to poke into it deeper, he would probably give him some answers. He did understand the value of information, even more so when attempting to helping someone in his condition. He would not be surprised if the other had questions about more finer details or if he had to worry about hunters or other sorts of dangers just for being associated with him. There was also the matter of the reasoning behind his condition and location too. So he’d be surprise if the other kept quiet about that and not poke at all, but for now it seemed that conversation wasn’t going to happen.

“Fool? Heh…no…I am not trying to…do that….No point.” Oh he was well aware of how deep he was into this situation alright and to be frank the 'demonstration' wasn’t an effort to fool or try to act tough in the face of the thing. He had just given one last attempt to actually try to move on his own…and well the fact he failed proved he couldn’t and was the final strike to make him give up for now. As much as he disliked the facts, he couldn’t fight them or try to paint over them to make the picture what it was not. It was what it was. He’d just deal with it.

Speaking of dealing, it would seem he would have to deal with touch and movement too. When the guy’s hand touched him, he could probably feel that the body despite being damp was way warmer than usual suggesting a fever. On top of this, the touch caused him to jump slightly startled by the action, but he didn’t resist. Even when the guy began moving him and it hurt like hell and caused him to shut his eyes tightly, he did not scream out in pain. Though the pained groans and warped facial expression was probably sign of enough of just how much pain he was in. Once on his back and the movement had stopped, he would keep his eyes closed as he took in air letting the pain pass. As for the other, he would get a good look at the rest of the damage.

So that bleeding wound on his left side showed itself to be a rather deep stab wound that had been pulled across a bit as if someone was trying to gut him and failed. There was a lot more bruising and cuts here and some other smaller gashes on his upper chest that was bleeding still too, but no where nearly as bad as the side wound. There also seemed to be scarring from older wounds there still fresh, but not as fresh as the new ones. Outside of that there was signs that he had been hit in the chest by something hot considering some of the skin was a bit raw and burned. It was truly questionable how he managed to escape, let alone was still alive, but somehow he was despite the hellish story his wounds told.

That aside, his breathing began to stabilize as the pain began to die down again. He would hear the other's words and give a faint smile. “I try to be good…” he whisper as he kept his eyes closed for now. He wasn’t a criminal nor bad per se. He just had a different way of handling things that didn’t go with the flow others had and so he was typically the one fussed at or given a negative label. Not that it mattered considering the way the others he had been around never saw him in a good light anyway.

That all so fun thought aside, he would hear the silence and open his eyes a bit. He would slid his golden orbs over in the direction the other’s blur was as he blinked tiredly not saying anything for a moment. When the other did speak, his eye brows would raise slightly. “…Yay for me…” A weak playful cheer, but at least he was showing that despite the situation or how he might’ve felt about what he was, he was at least trying to see it all in a positive light. It would be alright in the end. It would be.

As if to prove that, the answer that he received about what the guy actually was actually caused him to relax a bit more. “That’s good…” he’d whisper the tone seemingly relieved and why was that? Well for one, he now could definitely throw out any suspicion that this guy was with them. There was no way in hell or beyond that they would even think of hiring either of those species to hunt for them and a mixed breed of the two? Oh please, the guy would be lucky if they even "blessed" him with looking at him. Yes this was good and took a chunk of worry off him just leaving him with the usual cautious he had for strangers. On top of this, he appreciated the fair exchange and the fact the guy told him what he was. Considering he couldn’t judge for himself due to the situation, he was a lot calmer knowing what type of creature he was dealing with. Now they were on even ground. Was it worrisome this was a predator? Not really. If the guy wanted to hurt or kill him, he probably would’ve done so already. Yet he hadn’t. Instead, the guy was displaying only his willingness to help. All things considered, the half-breed decide that for now it was okay to give lean on this one. So he would.

As for that last question, he’d consider it for a while knowing what moving would do, but still anywhere was better than the open right? “You may…carry me….” He would give the permission and this time could prepare himself for movement if the guy decided to go through with it all. Though “…Where are…we going to?”

He’d give a soft snort at that one. “Not one… to celebrate the… small victories, eh? Though…I can see….your point…” Let’s hope that did not happen at all. The last thing he wanted was to be fighting against some infection or other complication that could potentially off him without the right treatment.

That aside, he would feel the guy moving him and focus on not wiggling or causing issues that would make the guy's job more difficult. Yes, there were still the faces and the groans of pain, but outside of that the other would find him relatively easy to pick up and not very heavy at all. Once in the guy’s arms, he tried to get his body to relax as much as he could in his state. The pain was still there and was agitated by the movement, but at least he wasn’t coughing up blood and nothing inwardly felt off so the likelihood of something internal being damaged was pretty low…and that was a good thing. He didn’t need any more complications in this situation. Now if only he could stop shivering…

Staring at the nothing in particular thanks to blurred vision, he could see the blurs moving about them as they moved telling him they were moving past things, but honestly he had no way of figuring out direction or marking anything of use to help if he for some reason or another needed to track the path to where they were going. Speaking of location, he would listen to what the other had to offer to the question.

“Ah..a cave…and water…" he would say his voice still a whisper as he let his eyes close for now resting them. “That’s…that’s fine…” At least they would have a roof over their head so to speak and water could help both with cleanliness and his wounds and also was a source to drink and even get food from. Also water meant plants so yes…this was fine indeed.

Speaking of food, it seemed the other was either on the same thought pattern as him or just happened to be thinking through it all logically with the next question that came up.

“A sharp eye…and mind…How impressive…” he would begin before considering the question. On one hand giving out such information could be dangerous, but at this point he was willing to give the guy whatever information he needed to make this event easier for him. Besides, he was actually pretty impressed with how considerate this one was or perhaps how thorough he was. He didn’t take a gamble with the given information and just try to guess what could be given to him. Instead he had asked. Consideration or just preferring specific information...Hmm it was hard to tell.

“Anything that.. is not… meat or some form… of flesh…..I can be given….” Yeah him and meat were not the best of friends. While he could get away with a super small amount and not get too sick from it if he was fully healthy, he did not consume the stuff normally thanks to it wrecking havoc on his body. It wasn’t worth it…unless it was the only thing left to survive. Though, that would be a sucky existence though considering how it wasn’t even that great for giving his body what it needed to survive…Heh. Well that went places, didn’t it?

“Aww…no cheer? Alright…we can be realistic…” He was quiet aware of the situation and how it could end pretty badly if things decided to go down hill rather than up. Still even in the face of that reality and his situation, he kept his spirits as high as he could without wasting too much energy. Was he being too optimistic? Not really, but why be all frowns and seriousness over the ugly things in life? They would pass one way or another right? So why not deal with the issue one moment at a time? Did that mean don’t even consider the future or what ifs? No. All it meant was not to get so caught up those things that you became dragged into dark rabbit holes that their mysterious and often time mischievous rabbits could lead to. Besides the future wasn’t guaranteed anyway, so why be overly worried about it? Just focus on the present and go from there. Or at least that is what he used to not panic over all the possibilities out there and remain grounded so he could deal with the situation to the best of his abilities…even in a situation when said abilities were severely hampered by things.

“Mmm….I am not going to…complain. It gives us… a roof, a place near water…. and food sources….Why would it not be… fine for now? ….Though…just how far…. are we… from civilization?” Just what did he mean by hauling him very far? Did he somehow end up in the middle of nowhere through the chaos that had occurred before this point? Well it wasn’t like he was going to be finding that out any time soon unless his sight miraculously cleared all of a sudden. At least with sight he could tell if the place was familiar or not..though his nose was telling him it might not be. There was also the possibility the other could just tell him where they were if he was familiar with area. Either way that was an issue to resolve with some other things at later point. Right now he just needed to focus on healing up.

“Common sense…Heh…Few seem to…use it….or bother to be strategic….Either way…I am glad you aren’t…one of the…careless ones….” Now if the guy had not asked and had tried to give him something that simply could not be used on him or he could eat, he did have ways of saying no or letting the guy know it was an error. It would be extra work sure, but if it was needed he was willing to do it. Lucky for him though this guy was making it easy for him by asking questions and getting the facts straight from the start. One less struggle to worry about.

“All the…plants…huh? What…cha…gon..na... do with them?” he would ask softly as he heard the comment about needing just plants for the job. While his mind could think of some things that could be done with plants outside of food creations, he kind of wanted to know the details of what he was about to get into. The guy did say he didn’t have equipment on him for healing someone right? So did he simply know his plants well enough to use nature to his advantage then? It was a curious thing, but for now he would keep the questions relevant to the situation.

When they arrived at their destination some time later and he was sat down against the wall, he would wince a bit as he let his body settle before opening his eyes to mostly gloom. He could hear the water fall outside and felt the hardness of the rock against his body as more earthy tones replaced the grassy smell.

Blinking sleepily, he would shake his head. “Nothing comes…to mind except water….but I think I can hold out on that…until you return….” He was probably thirsty due to blood lost and other things. Even so as weak as he was he wasn’t too sure if he could get water up to his mouth without assistance just yet.