The winds blew slightly, carrying the scent of freshly smoked meat into the forest. The scent brought about the presence of wild animals closer to its source. But none seemed bold enough to approach the steaming meat before them.
Two humans sat around a made up hearth, a fragile looking woman sat on a log of wood while she drew things on the ground, she seemed bored and tired.
The other man wore his cloak, his eyes never leaving the forest, his gaze remained on the animals that approached them slowly. He let out a deathly aura, strong enough to keep the weak animals away from him.
Liora threw the piece of wood she had been playing with in the fire, the flames licked at the wood hungrily, raising the flames as it roasted the meat that hung above it.
"You're an asshole, you know that right?" Liora's voice exclaimed. She sat up and looked at Shadow square in the face, seemingly not afraid of her captor.
"I've been called worse" he responded as he unsheathed his twin daggers, he drove them into the meat and hefted the steaming meat onto a pile of leaves he was washed and managed to keep clean to eat with.
"Why did you kidnap me? Who the hell are you anyway?" She raised her voice a little louder than intended.
A loud howl rang through the forest.
"If you raise your voice that much again, I'll send your dead body back to your father" Shadows said not looking up as he focused on the meat.
Carefully, he cut the meat into different sizable portions, they seemed just the right size to eat without soiling the hands too much. He cut up a small amount of meat and passed it to Liora.
"You want me to eat that? With no platter or serving knives?" She looked appalled, disappointed to say the least, as though Shadow's act of gesture was nothing short of insulting.
"You're not going to eat?" He asked her patiently.
"Put it on a plate, then I'll consider" she replied stubbornly.
"Do you see a kitchen nearby? Fool!" He cursed and took back his meat, stuffing his mouth full whilst he turned his attention back to the forest.
Liora looked disappointed, but her pride wouldn't let her ask him for meat.
"Are we still being chased?" She changed the topic, trying not to focus on the food.
"Hmmm" Shadow took a few more bites and turned to her.
"No, we lost them a few hours ago. So we should be safe for now, we'll resume when the sun comes up" he answered and looked at the girl, observing her face.
A ghastly silence held the air. The tensions grew stronger as Shadow didn't know what to say. He had kidnapped her on a whim but hadn't thought about the consequences.
'Never been good at talking with women, unless we shared similar interests… Like killing?'.
He shook his head regrettably and turned his attention back to the forest.
"Who are you, really?" Liora's voice sounded soft, gentle, as though she was suddenly conscious of the forest and the beasts that lurked around.
"Hmm, well, I'm your bastard brother." Shadow replied with practiced nonchalance. Spending time alone with her had pulled on his emotions, his… Desires.
'She's your sister, damn it!'
"Then why haven't I heard of you before? I know my other half siblings that my father has birthed, so why not you?" She seemed genuinely curious, the type of curiosity that came with unrivalled innocence.
"Because I'm the disgrace that he never cared about, the one who suddenly appeared because he fucked a maiden at his disposal. He didn't really consider me to be his own, just a child of a maid. I have no status, no riches or wealth. Just a thing to be discarded".
Shadow picked up a flat stone and threw it one of the animals that had wandered too close. He could see perfectly clear at night, if anything. The night was his domain.
The silence lingered longer than usual. Shadow thought the girl had no more questions and had fallen asleep.
He considered leaving the girl to be found by the guards in the morning, but she would be torn apart by then.
'I have to take responsibility for the damn girl, don't I?' he sighed at himself while rubbing the furrows between his eyes.
"Do you hate him?… Father I mean. Is that why you threatened to kill him and everyone else if they didn't let you go?" Her voice had a tinge of sympathy on it. Shadow hated being sympathized with, but there was nothing he could do about it.
"Where do I start from…" He stood up and brushed his hind quarters free from the dirt. "I don't hate your father, I simply needed to be free. I hate being used and would rather die than to be controlled and used again" he said firmly, the words bore the hate and pain from a different life, a past life in another world.
"Hmmm, I understand. But I have just one more question before I stop pestering you" she smiled warmly at Shadow.
Shadow nodded feeling a bit relieved. He didn't know how to go about emotional conversations, especially with girls. Even worse, with abducted girls.
"Where the fuck do I come in between you and my father? Why the hell did you drag me and jump out of a freaking window huh!" She shouted with all her strength, pulling at her hair.
"Ever since then we've been running nonstop. I'm a woman for God's sake, I can't keep up with your insane long legs and masculine build. This is the first food I've eaten for the past two days since my abduction and its burnt meat rolled in dirt? Really?"
"If you're ever going to kidnap a woman, make sure you cater for her needs, feed her properly and give her a reasonable amount of comfort!"
"Aaaarrgh, I hate my stupid life" she screamed. She picked at the pile of leaves that Shadow had gathered earlier and pulled at her hair some more.
"You! Make sure I'm alive by the time the sun is up. I don't care how you do it because you brought me out here. I'm going to bed" she flung her hair to the side and sat back on the log of wood.
Shadow watched her gather some leaves together, then she walked over to Shadow, pulled his cloak from him, wrapped it around herself and laid on the ground.
"Goodnight!" Her voice was firm and final.
Shadow rubbed at his forehead. "What the actual fuck, she's a psychopath!" And he had to take care of this mad woman.