Whisker||Part 1 of 3
At least, I'm planning on this fic having three parts. Who knows? The first part is rather short, but the other two are pretty long, which is why I decided to do it this way. The overall rating for this fic is NC-17. The first part is a friendly PG rating. The second part is a little high PG-13 (PG-16??) due to certain amounts of squick that's mentioned. And the third is just hardcore. I never claimed to be one for light smut.
Enjoy!
Oh, and I've also noticed while I was writing that this starts out a little on the angsty side. Ultimately, this fic is supposed to be borderline crack. XD
Title: Whisker (1/3?)
Fandom: Majutsushi Orphen
Pairing: Orphen x Cleao
Part Rating: PG
Overall Rating: NC-17
Genre: Humor/Smut
Word Count: 2,715
Warnings: language, explicit sexuality, squick, hints of bestiality
Summary: When Cleao gets hit head-on with an odd spell, the side-effects are rather on the fuzzy side. What’s worse is that her slowly changing psyche reminds Orphen of a deep secret he’s spent years trying to hide.
Note: An OC by the name of Ediie is used, a nerdy sorcerer with a crush on Krylancelo (one of many). I've been led to understand that this is also a fair description of Komikron. Unfortunately, I am not too familiar with Komikron's character to be comfortable using him. Sorry. ^^;; Besides, from what little I do know of him, I'm too respectful to use him in this light, anyway.
Prompts to gilshalos for the made-up town's name and Ediie's name. Because I suck at making up names. X3
***
Three hours ago, it was just a normal day, like any other. Orphen was well aware of the ancient belief that ordinary days made life boring, but it was these days, so few and far between, that he cherished most. Three hours ago, he would’ve believed this day to be one of those rare ones that he lived for when all he did was sleep, eat, and sleep some more.
Three hours later, he found himself racing back to the hotel room, clutching the limp body of Cleao close to him. She wasn’t waking up. Bastard! If he hadn‘t been so overly concerned with her wellbeing, he would’ve ripped that incompetent sorcerer apart with his bare hands! Instead he had to settle for blasting said sorcerer full on with his trusty Sword of Light spell and hoping that would finish the ass off. It helped that the adversary got a dosage of Deep Dragon power as well; nobody touched Leki’s mistress and got away with it.
“Master!” Majic gasped heavily from behind him. “Why…why are we going back to the hotel!?”
“Where the hell else are we gonna go!?” Orphen shot back.
“Can’t we just take her to a clinic or something?”
“Don’t be a moron, Majic! This isn’t your typical emergency!”
“Can’t you just heal her!?”
“Shut up! I have to figure out what the hell is wrong with her first!”
If was even still still alive.
The patrons of the tavern inn stared up in surprise as the two young men, one of them holding a lifeless girl in his arms, burst into the bar and raced up the stairs to the rooms. In a normal town, the innkeeper and perhaps more than a few of his customers would’ve followed to see what the problem was. But this place was Malvagitan, where it was not uncommon for someone to turn up half-dead, beaten to a pulp or finding themselves on the wrong end of a rather nasty spell or whatever the case may be. This town was particularly unfriendly to strangers, so it came as no surprise when the newcomers stormed in carrying their unfortunate friend. Nobody moved from their seats, continuing on with their routines as if they hadn’t been interrupted, ignoring the thunderous feet that raced for their designated room. Nobody wanted to get involved; they had their own violent issues to deal with.
Orphen laid Cleao gently upon the bed, expression etched with worry. That smoke-spell or whatever it was that sorcerer had used was not something Orphen was familiar with. Probably nothing but a puff of crap, but spells affected non-sorcerers far differently than their magic-using cousins. Where a certain spell might have been useless against someone like Orphen, it could mean critical condition for someone like Cleao.
He had checked to be sure Cleao was still breathing back at heap of rubble that once been a building before Orphen went on his rampage, and he reached down again to make certain she hadn’t literally died in his arms. Her pulse seemed okay to him, albeit a tad faint. Her breathing seemed normal, too, soft and deep, as though she were only in a deep sleep. Which, maybe, that was all the spell did to her, at least he hoped so.
Majic stood next to the closed door, observing quietly as his master checked Cleao over for any abnormalities. He wanted to say something; heck, he was just as worried about her as Orphen was. But Orphen had displayed a shocking amount of rage when Cleao went down, and Majic wasn’t too certain if his master’s nerves were quite over it yet. Relief came over him when Orphen stood up straight and sighed softly in a way that indicated the crisis seemed to have passed.
“I think…I think she’ll be okay.”
There came a soft whine as Leki jumped onto the bed, rubbing his head against his mistress’s chin. Majic thought it safe to go near her as well, dropping his hand onto Cleao’s forehead. They might not have always gotten along, but that didn’t mean he didn’t care for her. He had been just as scared as Orphen was when she had suddenly been consumed by that strange blue smoke, choking violently before finally falling unconscious to the ground.
“Who was that guy, Master?” Majic inquired. Considering they had no idea of the sorcerer’s intentions until they had arrived at the abandoned mansion, there had not been any time for questions to be asked.
Orphen snorted, leaning against the window with his arms folded across his chest. “Ediie.” He spat out the name as if he couldn’t wait to get it out of his mouth.
“Ediie?”
“One of my classmates from the Tower of Fang.”
Sometimes, Majic had difficulty believing that his master was completely innocent as far as the situation with the Tower of Fang went, considering it seemed that everyone there had it out for him. When Orphen didn’t go into any further details, Majic recognized the beginning of the prodding game again.
“So, he was just a classmate?”
Orphen groaned loudly, tapping his head on the pane. “I really, really, don’t wanna talk about Ediie.”
Under normal circumstances, Majic would’ve pressed Orphen further and risk getting his head busted open in the process. But Majic had learned to read his master well. Orphen acted like he was relaxed, but closer inspection showed his shoulders were hutched close to his ears and his fingers gripped the skin of his crossed arms. He was still tense, still struggling to get over the shock. Granted, Majic was still tense himself, but Orphen had been downright shaken. The thought of Cleao dead must’ve hit him a lot harder than he’d thought it would, Majic concluded.
“I guess I’ll try to get us some dinner brought up,” Majic finally announced, heading for the door.
Nobody answered him.
***
The crisis had occurred fairly early that afternoon, but it wasn’t until mid-morning of the next day that Cleao finally stirred. Orphen, Majic, and Leki sat up the entire night in her room watching over her, none of them able to bring themselves to sleep. It was during that long period that Majic was able to get a little information about this “Ediie” guy, and what he heard disturbed him and even made him a little glad he decided to leave the Tower, admittedly.
“So Ediie was this nerd who had a crush on you while you were at the Tower,” Majic concluded.
“Majic, Ediie was just one in this whole group of nerds and weirdoes who had a crush on me,” Orphen snorted. “They made me a frickin’ fan club, for crying out loud! And out of all of them, Ediie was the most fanatical. Scared the crap out of me despite he was only half my size, in height and width.”
“So you got a restraining order put on him?” It was difficult to swallow that there existed a problem big enough to make someone like his master willingly seek help for.
“There was nothing else I could do at the time. If I had used a spell on him to make him leave me alone, I would’ve been expelled.”
“In spite of that kind of harassment?”
“I never said the Tower of Fang was fair,” Orphen snapped. “After what we’ve been through, I would think you figured that much out by now.”
“Okay, you don’t have to--”
“Nnn…”
The sound came from the bed, causing both sorcerers to practically jump to their feet. Leki yipped happily and bounced to her side as Cleao stirred, slowly opening her eyes. “Wha--what the heck…?” she muttered, her voice thick and groggy. She moved like she was about to sit up, then fell back against the pillow.
“Don’t do too much,” Majic instructed, laying a hand on her shoulder to prevent her from trying to sit up again. “You took quite a blow.”
Cleao blinked up at him. “Blow…? Huh…?”
“You got hit with a spell, you idiot!” Orphen hissed viciously. “It’s amazing that you’re not dead right now!”
Majic instantly recognized the sapphire flare that gleamed in her eyes at the outburst. “Just ignore him, Cleao. He’s just hiding the fact he had been beside himself with worry.”
“Shut the hell up, Majic!”
Cleao had to admit that she did appreciate Majic was trying to keep her calm, but she didn’t think she could retaliate to Orphen’s usual bullshit this time. Her head was pounding, and she felt absolutely sick. She hadn’t died but it was enough pain to make her wish she had. “Whatever, Orphen,” she groaned, closing her eyes.
Majic glanced over at his master, and took a step back when he saw that Orphen was shaking visibly as if he was just itching to finish whatever Ediie had started. “That bitch,” he snarled. “I stayed up all night for her, trying to figure out what was wrong with her, and this is the thanks I get!?”
He received no reply. Cleao had either fallen asleep or passed out completely, and Majic knew better than to lecture his master when he got like this. Growling in his throat, Orphen stormed out of the room, taking out his anger by slamming the door as hard as he could.
***
Orphen had every intention of leaving town as soon as Cleao had woken up, but when she passed out once more, his plans had to wait. In fact, it wasn’t until the sun had already gone down when Cleao awoke again. This time, she was alone, save for Leki still sleeping soundly next to her head. She could barely remember the first time she had woken up, except that Orphen yelled at her like it was all her fault. And to top it off, she hadn’t been able to find out just what exactly happened to her.
She remembered, barely, about them receiving this letter that promised a handsome prize in the form of gold. Of course, Orphen set out in an instant, his constant hunger for money always outweighing his good sense…as if he possessed any sense at all. Then there had been this guy, a sorcerer that made Majic look like an expert spellcaster. Smoke…and then nothing. Absolutely nothing. And she woke up, Orphen was yelling at her.
Ooh, just thinking about him made her mad! Unfortunately, her anger only seemed to increase her headache, which seemed to not have gone away. What was that Orphen had yelled at her, anyway? Something about a spell of some kind…?
She grimaced in slight pain when the door opened, allowing a sliver of light to enter the comforting darkness of the room. Oh, God, it was him. She could try to pretend she was still unconscious, but she had already moved and Orphen was too observant not to catch it.
“Awake are you?” he muttered as if such a statement was anything but good news. “Apparently, there’s something to Majic’s intuition.”
She didn’t respond. Maybe if she just acted like he didn’t exist, then he would eventually go away. However, a bit her was curious about the tray Orphen was carrying.
“Majic thought you might be hungry, considering you hadn’t eaten anything in two days,” Orphen continued, setting the tray on the table next to her. “He asked me to bring you dinner, although I’m not sure why he just didn’t do it himself.”
Cleao was finally able to sit up this time without getting dizzy. Food? He brought her food? It didn’t help that her nausea had finally passed while she was asleep and now her stomach whined its need for sustenance of some kind. And she had been out for two days? Geez, she was an absolute mess, wasn’t she? She probably looked horrible, too.
“Well, are you hungry or not?” Orphen snapped peevishly when Cleao didn‘t say a word or make any further movement.
She glared up at him. For a moment, the two engaged in a silent stare-down before he finally sighed in disgust and moved the tray from the table to her lap. “There. Enjoy.” He was more than willing to make his absence and leave her to do with whatever she wanted with her meal, but a small part of him, a secret part, wanted to stay and make sure that she would be able to hold food down. He couldn’t tell in the darkness, but he remembered when she had first woken up how pale she had been. He was indeed still scared for her, even if everything that came out of his mouth claimed otherwise.
Cleao stirred the soup around in the bowl, inhaling the warm scent. The inn might have been rather sleazy, but at least the food was good, and she knew without tasting how delicious this meal was going to be, even if it was just some broth. Except…something was missing.
“Hey…Orphen…?” she spoke up quietly.
“What?” he spat.
“May I…have some milk?”
For some reason, it was the final tug that snapped the string. “You have water right there!” he yelled. “What the hell do you want milk for?”
“I just want a glass of milk, that’s all!” Cleao shouted back, angry enough to repress another dizzying wave that threatened to overwhelm her again.
“Just because you’re bedridden, doesn’t mean that I’m obligated to wait on you hand-and-foot, you spoiled little brat!” He couldn’t stop himself; shouting at her could prove dangerous but he couldn’t stop. He had spent most of the day trying to figure out what kind of spell Ediie used on her, and still he had come up with nothing. And until he could figure that out, he wouldn’t be able to know what side-effects she might be experiencing.
There had yet to be a record of good things happening when a non-sorcerer was hit with a spell.
Cleao growled softly as she sipped her broth, all the while giving him her most heated glare. Orphen in turn did not look at her at all. She took another sip. And another. Soon, her stomach decided that it was far hungrier than first believed, and she found herself practically throwing the broth down her throat. She was more than halfway finished with the bowl when she remembered that she was not alone in the room. “What the hell are you still doing here?” she spat. If he was thinking of stealing her food, he had another thing coming.
He blinked at her once, then tilted his head. “Your manner of eating amuses me,” he replied sarcastically.
She snarled at him before returning to her meal. Who cared about what he did or what he thought, anyway? Sometimes she even wondered why she bothered to feel anything for him in the first place. There were better things out there to waste her time and limited energy on.
Orphen may not have been looking at her, but he was very much watching her. When it seemed apparent that she was not going to upchuck all over herself, Orphen decided it safe to finally make his leave.
“Mew?”
He stopped halfway to the door, turning to stare at her as if he hadn’t heard her right. “Excuse me?”
She stared up at him, her eyes looking unusually large in this dim light and almost pleading. “Milk?” she asked again. “Please?”
Perhaps it was because she was trying to be so darn nice about it that infuriated him all the more. “Get your own damn milk!” he snapped at her. He shut the door to prevent the bowl that had been thrown from shattering at its original target on the back of his head.
Majic had come up the stairs just in time to hear the unfortunate dish smash into a million pieces from within Cleao’s closed-off room. “I…take it she’s feeling okay,” he remarked.
“The same as always,” Orphen grunted. He wasn’t too sure if he wanted to consider this a good thing. In fact, he was seriously thinking of taking back having ever felt concerned for her at all. Because in the end, she remained the same ungrateful little brat.
And since when did she drink milk anyway? He thought she didn’t care for milk all that much.
***
End Part 1
Enjoy!
Oh, and I've also noticed while I was writing that this starts out a little on the angsty side. Ultimately, this fic is supposed to be borderline crack. XD
Title: Whisker (1/3?)
Fandom: Majutsushi Orphen
Pairing: Orphen x Cleao
Part Rating: PG
Overall Rating: NC-17
Genre: Humor/Smut
Word Count: 2,715
Warnings: language, explicit sexuality, squick, hints of bestiality
Summary: When Cleao gets hit head-on with an odd spell, the side-effects are rather on the fuzzy side. What’s worse is that her slowly changing psyche reminds Orphen of a deep secret he’s spent years trying to hide.
Note: An OC by the name of Ediie is used, a nerdy sorcerer with a crush on Krylancelo (one of many). I've been led to understand that this is also a fair description of Komikron. Unfortunately, I am not too familiar with Komikron's character to be comfortable using him. Sorry. ^^;; Besides, from what little I do know of him, I'm too respectful to use him in this light, anyway.
Prompts to gilshalos for the made-up town's name and Ediie's name. Because I suck at making up names. X3
***
Three hours ago, it was just a normal day, like any other. Orphen was well aware of the ancient belief that ordinary days made life boring, but it was these days, so few and far between, that he cherished most. Three hours ago, he would’ve believed this day to be one of those rare ones that he lived for when all he did was sleep, eat, and sleep some more.
Three hours later, he found himself racing back to the hotel room, clutching the limp body of Cleao close to him. She wasn’t waking up. Bastard! If he hadn‘t been so overly concerned with her wellbeing, he would’ve ripped that incompetent sorcerer apart with his bare hands! Instead he had to settle for blasting said sorcerer full on with his trusty Sword of Light spell and hoping that would finish the ass off. It helped that the adversary got a dosage of Deep Dragon power as well; nobody touched Leki’s mistress and got away with it.
“Master!” Majic gasped heavily from behind him. “Why…why are we going back to the hotel!?”
“Where the hell else are we gonna go!?” Orphen shot back.
“Can’t we just take her to a clinic or something?”
“Don’t be a moron, Majic! This isn’t your typical emergency!”
“Can’t you just heal her!?”
“Shut up! I have to figure out what the hell is wrong with her first!”
If was even still still alive.
The patrons of the tavern inn stared up in surprise as the two young men, one of them holding a lifeless girl in his arms, burst into the bar and raced up the stairs to the rooms. In a normal town, the innkeeper and perhaps more than a few of his customers would’ve followed to see what the problem was. But this place was Malvagitan, where it was not uncommon for someone to turn up half-dead, beaten to a pulp or finding themselves on the wrong end of a rather nasty spell or whatever the case may be. This town was particularly unfriendly to strangers, so it came as no surprise when the newcomers stormed in carrying their unfortunate friend. Nobody moved from their seats, continuing on with their routines as if they hadn’t been interrupted, ignoring the thunderous feet that raced for their designated room. Nobody wanted to get involved; they had their own violent issues to deal with.
Orphen laid Cleao gently upon the bed, expression etched with worry. That smoke-spell or whatever it was that sorcerer had used was not something Orphen was familiar with. Probably nothing but a puff of crap, but spells affected non-sorcerers far differently than their magic-using cousins. Where a certain spell might have been useless against someone like Orphen, it could mean critical condition for someone like Cleao.
He had checked to be sure Cleao was still breathing back at heap of rubble that once been a building before Orphen went on his rampage, and he reached down again to make certain she hadn’t literally died in his arms. Her pulse seemed okay to him, albeit a tad faint. Her breathing seemed normal, too, soft and deep, as though she were only in a deep sleep. Which, maybe, that was all the spell did to her, at least he hoped so.
Majic stood next to the closed door, observing quietly as his master checked Cleao over for any abnormalities. He wanted to say something; heck, he was just as worried about her as Orphen was. But Orphen had displayed a shocking amount of rage when Cleao went down, and Majic wasn’t too certain if his master’s nerves were quite over it yet. Relief came over him when Orphen stood up straight and sighed softly in a way that indicated the crisis seemed to have passed.
“I think…I think she’ll be okay.”
There came a soft whine as Leki jumped onto the bed, rubbing his head against his mistress’s chin. Majic thought it safe to go near her as well, dropping his hand onto Cleao’s forehead. They might not have always gotten along, but that didn’t mean he didn’t care for her. He had been just as scared as Orphen was when she had suddenly been consumed by that strange blue smoke, choking violently before finally falling unconscious to the ground.
“Who was that guy, Master?” Majic inquired. Considering they had no idea of the sorcerer’s intentions until they had arrived at the abandoned mansion, there had not been any time for questions to be asked.
Orphen snorted, leaning against the window with his arms folded across his chest. “Ediie.” He spat out the name as if he couldn’t wait to get it out of his mouth.
“Ediie?”
“One of my classmates from the Tower of Fang.”
Sometimes, Majic had difficulty believing that his master was completely innocent as far as the situation with the Tower of Fang went, considering it seemed that everyone there had it out for him. When Orphen didn’t go into any further details, Majic recognized the beginning of the prodding game again.
“So, he was just a classmate?”
Orphen groaned loudly, tapping his head on the pane. “I really, really, don’t wanna talk about Ediie.”
Under normal circumstances, Majic would’ve pressed Orphen further and risk getting his head busted open in the process. But Majic had learned to read his master well. Orphen acted like he was relaxed, but closer inspection showed his shoulders were hutched close to his ears and his fingers gripped the skin of his crossed arms. He was still tense, still struggling to get over the shock. Granted, Majic was still tense himself, but Orphen had been downright shaken. The thought of Cleao dead must’ve hit him a lot harder than he’d thought it would, Majic concluded.
“I guess I’ll try to get us some dinner brought up,” Majic finally announced, heading for the door.
Nobody answered him.
***
The crisis had occurred fairly early that afternoon, but it wasn’t until mid-morning of the next day that Cleao finally stirred. Orphen, Majic, and Leki sat up the entire night in her room watching over her, none of them able to bring themselves to sleep. It was during that long period that Majic was able to get a little information about this “Ediie” guy, and what he heard disturbed him and even made him a little glad he decided to leave the Tower, admittedly.
“So Ediie was this nerd who had a crush on you while you were at the Tower,” Majic concluded.
“Majic, Ediie was just one in this whole group of nerds and weirdoes who had a crush on me,” Orphen snorted. “They made me a frickin’ fan club, for crying out loud! And out of all of them, Ediie was the most fanatical. Scared the crap out of me despite he was only half my size, in height and width.”
“So you got a restraining order put on him?” It was difficult to swallow that there existed a problem big enough to make someone like his master willingly seek help for.
“There was nothing else I could do at the time. If I had used a spell on him to make him leave me alone, I would’ve been expelled.”
“In spite of that kind of harassment?”
“I never said the Tower of Fang was fair,” Orphen snapped. “After what we’ve been through, I would think you figured that much out by now.”
“Okay, you don’t have to--”
“Nnn…”
The sound came from the bed, causing both sorcerers to practically jump to their feet. Leki yipped happily and bounced to her side as Cleao stirred, slowly opening her eyes. “Wha--what the heck…?” she muttered, her voice thick and groggy. She moved like she was about to sit up, then fell back against the pillow.
“Don’t do too much,” Majic instructed, laying a hand on her shoulder to prevent her from trying to sit up again. “You took quite a blow.”
Cleao blinked up at him. “Blow…? Huh…?”
“You got hit with a spell, you idiot!” Orphen hissed viciously. “It’s amazing that you’re not dead right now!”
Majic instantly recognized the sapphire flare that gleamed in her eyes at the outburst. “Just ignore him, Cleao. He’s just hiding the fact he had been beside himself with worry.”
“Shut the hell up, Majic!”
Cleao had to admit that she did appreciate Majic was trying to keep her calm, but she didn’t think she could retaliate to Orphen’s usual bullshit this time. Her head was pounding, and she felt absolutely sick. She hadn’t died but it was enough pain to make her wish she had. “Whatever, Orphen,” she groaned, closing her eyes.
Majic glanced over at his master, and took a step back when he saw that Orphen was shaking visibly as if he was just itching to finish whatever Ediie had started. “That bitch,” he snarled. “I stayed up all night for her, trying to figure out what was wrong with her, and this is the thanks I get!?”
He received no reply. Cleao had either fallen asleep or passed out completely, and Majic knew better than to lecture his master when he got like this. Growling in his throat, Orphen stormed out of the room, taking out his anger by slamming the door as hard as he could.
***
Orphen had every intention of leaving town as soon as Cleao had woken up, but when she passed out once more, his plans had to wait. In fact, it wasn’t until the sun had already gone down when Cleao awoke again. This time, she was alone, save for Leki still sleeping soundly next to her head. She could barely remember the first time she had woken up, except that Orphen yelled at her like it was all her fault. And to top it off, she hadn’t been able to find out just what exactly happened to her.
She remembered, barely, about them receiving this letter that promised a handsome prize in the form of gold. Of course, Orphen set out in an instant, his constant hunger for money always outweighing his good sense…as if he possessed any sense at all. Then there had been this guy, a sorcerer that made Majic look like an expert spellcaster. Smoke…and then nothing. Absolutely nothing. And she woke up, Orphen was yelling at her.
Ooh, just thinking about him made her mad! Unfortunately, her anger only seemed to increase her headache, which seemed to not have gone away. What was that Orphen had yelled at her, anyway? Something about a spell of some kind…?
She grimaced in slight pain when the door opened, allowing a sliver of light to enter the comforting darkness of the room. Oh, God, it was him. She could try to pretend she was still unconscious, but she had already moved and Orphen was too observant not to catch it.
“Awake are you?” he muttered as if such a statement was anything but good news. “Apparently, there’s something to Majic’s intuition.”
She didn’t respond. Maybe if she just acted like he didn’t exist, then he would eventually go away. However, a bit her was curious about the tray Orphen was carrying.
“Majic thought you might be hungry, considering you hadn’t eaten anything in two days,” Orphen continued, setting the tray on the table next to her. “He asked me to bring you dinner, although I’m not sure why he just didn’t do it himself.”
Cleao was finally able to sit up this time without getting dizzy. Food? He brought her food? It didn’t help that her nausea had finally passed while she was asleep and now her stomach whined its need for sustenance of some kind. And she had been out for two days? Geez, she was an absolute mess, wasn’t she? She probably looked horrible, too.
“Well, are you hungry or not?” Orphen snapped peevishly when Cleao didn‘t say a word or make any further movement.
She glared up at him. For a moment, the two engaged in a silent stare-down before he finally sighed in disgust and moved the tray from the table to her lap. “There. Enjoy.” He was more than willing to make his absence and leave her to do with whatever she wanted with her meal, but a small part of him, a secret part, wanted to stay and make sure that she would be able to hold food down. He couldn’t tell in the darkness, but he remembered when she had first woken up how pale she had been. He was indeed still scared for her, even if everything that came out of his mouth claimed otherwise.
Cleao stirred the soup around in the bowl, inhaling the warm scent. The inn might have been rather sleazy, but at least the food was good, and she knew without tasting how delicious this meal was going to be, even if it was just some broth. Except…something was missing.
“Hey…Orphen…?” she spoke up quietly.
“What?” he spat.
“May I…have some milk?”
For some reason, it was the final tug that snapped the string. “You have water right there!” he yelled. “What the hell do you want milk for?”
“I just want a glass of milk, that’s all!” Cleao shouted back, angry enough to repress another dizzying wave that threatened to overwhelm her again.
“Just because you’re bedridden, doesn’t mean that I’m obligated to wait on you hand-and-foot, you spoiled little brat!” He couldn’t stop himself; shouting at her could prove dangerous but he couldn’t stop. He had spent most of the day trying to figure out what kind of spell Ediie used on her, and still he had come up with nothing. And until he could figure that out, he wouldn’t be able to know what side-effects she might be experiencing.
There had yet to be a record of good things happening when a non-sorcerer was hit with a spell.
Cleao growled softly as she sipped her broth, all the while giving him her most heated glare. Orphen in turn did not look at her at all. She took another sip. And another. Soon, her stomach decided that it was far hungrier than first believed, and she found herself practically throwing the broth down her throat. She was more than halfway finished with the bowl when she remembered that she was not alone in the room. “What the hell are you still doing here?” she spat. If he was thinking of stealing her food, he had another thing coming.
He blinked at her once, then tilted his head. “Your manner of eating amuses me,” he replied sarcastically.
She snarled at him before returning to her meal. Who cared about what he did or what he thought, anyway? Sometimes she even wondered why she bothered to feel anything for him in the first place. There were better things out there to waste her time and limited energy on.
Orphen may not have been looking at her, but he was very much watching her. When it seemed apparent that she was not going to upchuck all over herself, Orphen decided it safe to finally make his leave.
“Mew?”
He stopped halfway to the door, turning to stare at her as if he hadn’t heard her right. “Excuse me?”
She stared up at him, her eyes looking unusually large in this dim light and almost pleading. “Milk?” she asked again. “Please?”
Perhaps it was because she was trying to be so darn nice about it that infuriated him all the more. “Get your own damn milk!” he snapped at her. He shut the door to prevent the bowl that had been thrown from shattering at its original target on the back of his head.
Majic had come up the stairs just in time to hear the unfortunate dish smash into a million pieces from within Cleao’s closed-off room. “I…take it she’s feeling okay,” he remarked.
“The same as always,” Orphen grunted. He wasn’t too sure if he wanted to consider this a good thing. In fact, he was seriously thinking of taking back having ever felt concerned for her at all. Because in the end, she remained the same ungrateful little brat.
And since when did she drink milk anyway? He thought she didn’t care for milk all that much.
***
End Part 1