Desire

Okay, so now he realised that Opal hadn't sent them back a few years. From the torch to the man's clothing, Ember realised that they were hundreds of years in the past, stuck at a certain point of ancient history that lacked all the modern comforts Ember had come to take for granted. Essentially, they were fucked, and he had no way of taking his mind off it with TV. If they were stuck in the 60s or 70s, he'd at least have music and TV and things to take his mind off where he was stuck.

From what he could tell, this was so far in the past that he really had no idea about anything. It was fair to say he didn't take interest in history lessons much.

"...We're not from here, sure. Let's go with that. I'm definitely not from here," grimaced Ember, scratching at his tattooed arms. "Look, pal, I ain't saying we aren't appreciating the interest and stuff, but we're kinda bummed out at the minute, so could you, y'know, give us a minute?"
 
"....Give ya a minute? Sure, I'll give ya a minute if you want to wind up as wolf chow, go for it." Chuckled the man, his eyes wide on the tattoos. He went to touch it, trying to wipe it off. Of course, he thought it was painted onto his arm. But it didn't budge. His eyes widened from shock and backed up. He didn't understand those markings, but surely they couldn't be good. But the poor folks looked...Frightened out of their minds.

Devin looked at the torch, and the way this man was dressed. She began to panic. This was a joke...Some sick prank. She randomly stood up frantically, moving to grip her own hair. "...This...This can't be....Where...Where are we?!"

"Oi! Don't go yelling, the wolves will find us if ya do that!" Hissed the man, looking around the dark forest. "Lad, I suggest you shut yer woman's mouth. Learn to control her."

Rudolph slowly stood up, his eyes on something in the dark. "....Guys..." He whispered, his body trembling.

The strong man looked over at him, before following his eyes. He instantly cursed, and got out his arrow, before quickly shooting the wolf that was growling in the dark. With a yelp the wolf died, meaning the man shot it in the head "....We got to get moving. They never attack alone, meaning the pack is close. So if you three are coming with me, I suggest coming now."
 
"My woman's mouth-- that's mighty misogynistic of 'ya. My woman, like I own her. Gosh," snorted the halfling as he cracked his knuckles casually. Unlike this stranger, who was confused, and unlike his friends, who were more than confused and scared, he really... well, wasn't. He was sure his cousin would send them back to their right time when she'd had her fun, so it was just a matter of being patient-- and he didn't care that being patient in the woods might mean getting attacked by wolves.

If he was human, he'd be fretting out and utterly in danger-- but he wasn't human. He could quite easily kill a few wolves with his hand tied behind his back and, if they did hurt him, he'd heal instantaneously. However, he wasn't going to explain to Rudolph and Devin who and what he was in the middle of the forest, where they could run away from him. He wanted to tell them in some house or cabin, or just anywhere where they could sit down and take in what he was saying.

"We're coming with you, are we? My Papa told me not to trust strangers-- but hey, you're handsome as hell and you have a great fashion style going on, considering the century we're presumably in. I trust 'ya," he beamed, though didn't climb onto the horse. Instead, he gestured his friends to do so. "Go on, you guys get on first, yeah? Wolves don't scare me. I'm basically invincible."
 
"...Don't you own her? She is your woman, ain't she? Or is she his woman?" He asked, looking over at the smaller boy. "...You seem far too young and far too little to have a woman...How would you build your woman a sturdy home." He mumbled as he held the two onto the horse.

Rudolph grimaced as he held onto the horse. He didn't like he judged on how little he was. He wasn't so small. In modern time he was just fine. But...They were in the tenth century. You'd have to be big and strong and know how to build a nice sturdy home in order to have a woman. Devin didn't say anything. She was still freaking out, but she would like to be away from the wolves.

The curly haired man took his horse reins and walked beside the horse. He had his bow ready, just in case. The horse could only fit two people, besides he would rather be protecting them. "...By the way, I'm called Murdo. What shall I call you three strange travelers?" He asked smiling at them to lighten their moods.

Rudolph, who was a bit calmer than Devin wiped his eyes. "...I'm Rudolph." He whispered.

"Rudolph?....Strange." He mumbled, before looking at the woman. "And you?"

"...Devin."

"Devin? You people have such odd names...Devin...Rudolph...And what's yours?"
 
"My name? Ember. Like the flames and fire, you know? I was born with these really rad orange eyes. My folks thought it was a cute name for me. Said it fit me like a glove," he joked, trying his best to keep the mood light. If he just got angry and thought too long and hard about his predicament, he would just end up getting severely annoyed and that wasn't helpful for annoying. There was literally nothing he could do, just hope that Opal got bored-- or that Cassy would notice his absence, remember Opal's threat and put two and two together.

Hopefully that happened sooner rather than later, because, as nice as this stranger was, this wasn't the place Ember wanted to be for more than two seconds. He wanted to be in bed, with his video games and a joint, maybe phoning up Savannah to spend the night with her just for a little pick-me-up.

"You know, Devin is my woman," he suddenly began with a light nod to his friend to go along with it. He didn't want any strange guy from this age to come across her and assume she was single for him to take. If he had to pretend that she was 'his' to protect her, he would. "And... this one's mine too. Rudolph. He's a guy but where we're from, that ain't an issue. Nobody touches 'em, alright?"
 
"....Alright." Murdo. Mumbled, blinking a bit. "So they're both yours...Well, you seem like a strong man, able to build a fine house. But why are you three out in the Shadowy Woodlands without a horse? Did your horse get spooked and run off?" He asked.

"....Y-Yeah...We were taking a break and or horse ran off..." He mumbled. He didn't know what this man would do if he found out they weren't from this time period. He would probably try and burn them at the stake or something crazy. He heard people of the dark ages were very violent. So he just went along with the handsome man.

Murdo glanced up at the boy before offering a kind smile then back at Ember. "...You don't punish your woman and man much, do you? They speak without spoken to...But I like that. My father used to punish my mother a lot when she would speak to another man without being spoken to." They were definitely in a different time. Soon were finally out of the woods, and not far off was a small home. Which was Murdo's home. It had a little stable next to the home, and obviously, that was for his horse. When they came up the home, he helped the two off the horse, before tying the horse up, petting her softly. "You did good girl." He whispered, kissing her side. He then led the three into his home. From the outside, it didn't look like much more than a shed but space was adequate enough to shelter a man and his small family. However, Murdo didn't seem to have a family of his own. It had a thatched roof patched so many times that it was hard to tell the original work from the repairs. The walls were knee-high, hand-worked stone set around timbers that were infilled with cobb. The entry door and single window provided lighting for the room within during the day while candles and the fireplace would serve as dim lighting at night. The floor was comprised of the largest and flattest rocks set nicely together. His home wasn't much, but in his time period, it was a fine home to raise a family. And he built it himself. He made a fire in the stone fireplace. Once the fire was burning, he stepped back and took off his wolf fur.

Devin looked around her eyes wide at the sight. They were...Really not home anymore. Nervously chewing on her lip, she sat down near the fireplace to warm herself up, finally realizing she was cold. Rudolph did the same nervously looking at Devin, seeing if she knew what might be going on. But all she did was silently shake her head.

Murdo ran his hand through his curly wild hair before looking at Ember. "Well, you can get comfortable. I'll be right back, I got to go feed my girl out there. We had a far run today to the village." He smiled, before walking out of the little home. Once he was gone, Rudolph looked at Ember.

"...What's going on?"
 
What's going on.

That was definitely a question that was inevitable, but one he'd been dreading nonetheless because, to explain properly, he had to explain what he was and, specifically, who he was. He couldn't feign innocence now, not after admitting that it was his cousin at fault. That statement sealed his fate - he had to admit to the truth, because clearly, the two needed answers before they lost their minds.

"...Look, for the record, my cousin is a little shit who thought this was funny. When she gets bored, she'll sort this out," he pointed out as he took a seat beside Devin on the mat, hunching his knees to his chest as he thought out a way that would be best to explain this-- but there was no easy way.

"She can... time travel now, I guess. Look, she can do that because she ain't human. I ain't human. None of my family is. We're not... human. You know, I live in Hell. There's a reason you ain't been to my house, Devin. It's in Hell. My... grandparents are the rulers there. It's-- this sounds fucking crazy, I get it, but look 'round. We're in the past. I'm not lying about any of this-- but my cousin's a kid. She's 10. She'll get bored soon and we can go home and I'll wipe your memories of this so it'll be fine. Besides, I ain't gonna hurt either of you. I ain't a bad guy."
 
"....This is insane." Devin whispered with wide eyes, looking back down at the fire. "...So you're from Hell...And your shitty little cousin...Played a prank on us and sent us....Where ever the fuck we are...This is so fucked up." She whispered moving to bury her face in her hands.

Rudolph sat in his spot...His eyes wide on the fire. "...Well...When will she get bored I mean...I..I wanna go home...My parents...Probably won't notice I'm gone I mean..They aren't even alive right now, no one I know is...This is crazy...We're in the Dark Ages, I know that for sure..." He mumbled as he looked around the one-room home.

Soon Murdo came back, shutting his small door. "Your woman and your man can sleep over there on my bed. I don't have a problem sleeping on the floor." He mumbled as he pointed to his bed that he made. It was made from various of furs and hay, so it should be very warm and not so bad to sleep on. "So, you guys heading to the village tomorrow? I could get you there. Maybe people saw your horse...But um...You three are going to need to change...If they saw you like the way you are...They'll claim your witches or demons." He chuckled lightly.

Rudolph didn't know how long they would be with this man, but he knew he wanted to stick by him. Murdo seemed nice, and he was helping them so much. Would it hurt to stay by this handsome man while they were here?
 
"I was an ass to my cousin, it might take a while-- but hey, it'll be fine. We can't stay here forever, my folks will notice eventually. Just... hang on in there, yeah? That guy seems trustworthy, he says he'll help us. We'll be fine," grinned Ember, at leas thankful neither of the two seemed to hate him after his confession. Granted, they were both completely out of it with shock right now, so that played in his favour when he piled more shock onto them that he wasn't strictly... human.

Though he hoped they would realise that, as an inhuman being, he could protect them from any danger they came across better than anybody could.

"Dude, take the damn bed. We ain't pushing you outta your own bed. We'll take the floor, it's all cool. I've slept in worst places," shrugged the dragon as he casually stretched out his arms. "I'm naturally hot, I'm like a fire, y'know? I can keep my man and my woman warm~"
 
"I don't doubt your ability to keep them warm, Ember. But I don't mind sleeping on the floor. I want my house guest to be comfortable. Besides, look at how tired they appear. They should take the bed." Chuckled the man, going to his folded pile of extra furs. Making a cot on the floor, he got comfortable, leaving no room for them to say no to the bed. "Now, tell me where you are heading. And where you guys are from." Smiled Murdo. "I love a good story."


"Gypsies. We're gypsies. We travel a lot you see because that's part of our ways." Rudolph quickly mumbled. Obviously, he knew a thing or two about the past. He was pretty smart.

"Ah, gypsies. I thought so...Your clothing is so strange. I mean you guys should really change before leaving tomorrow...Some people in the village don't like strangers in weird clothing...They kill. Well, most Vikings are like that. Have you ran into any besides me?"

"...You're a Viking?" Asked Devin, surprised. He didn't seem...Like the drunk image of a Viking, she had in her head.

"Yes, born to a Vikings by blood." Chuckled the handsome man, stroking his beard. "Left me family a ways back though."
 
Honestly, it wasn't like Murdo was boring. On the contrary, even Ember had to admit that he was cool, talking to a Viking from the past and being able to socialise with him like this. Nobody else had ever really gotten this chance before, not someone from his time at least, so he really ought to be soaking in the experience--

But he was tired, grumpy and downright irritated at the moment, especially with his cousin for thrusting this on him, so none of the conversation was really sinking in-- and what he was hearing barely interested him enough to warrant him batting away his tiredness to join in.

"Look, can we sleep now? We'll get changed in the morning, come into town, do whatever. Just... I'm really fucking tired right now. Today's been a pain in the ass."
 
Murdo looked at the angry man, before nodding. "Sure, sleep away." He mumbled before settling himself down after he took off all his weapons, settling them to the side. Rudolph watched, before moving to settle on the bed. This was crazy. This was super crazy. He was...In a small home of a Viking with...Ember who wasn't human apparently and Devin who hated him...This was crazy. Laying down on the bed, he could hardly force himself to sleep.

Devin, who was completely tired, got on the bed. Shock took so much energy that she dropped to sleep as soon as her head hit the furs. Rudolph rolled over, looking at Ember. Rudolph's green eyes were obviously scared and worried but....He wasn't afraid of Ember. Ember was the only thing that could keep him alive. Cuddling close, he softly whispered, "Could you please hold me...I know I sound like a loser, but I'm scared..."
 
"You do. You sound like a big fucking loser right now, actually. God, I can't wait to rub this into your face when we get back to our time. I'm never going to let you forget that you practically begged me to cuddle you-- I swear you've got a huge fucking crush on me. It's fine, dude. You fancy me. It's fine, I get that I'm cute and now I'm even more irresistible because you think I'm so powerful and strong and shit. Just admit it, it'll make you feel better," came the characteristically cocky response from the dragon, though it didn't stop him from obediently wrapping his arms around the smaller boy and holding him up close for the warmth, which he easily provided.

"...Look, I get this is scary and weird, but I ain't scared so you shouldn't be. I'm used to freaky stuff. I live in Hell, you know? My parents are... one's a demon and the other one's basically an angel. My life's weird in general-- so I ain't letting any of us get hurt here. We'll be alright."
 
Of course, Rudolph glared at him for rubbing it on his face before he closed his eyes selling down. "I don't fancy you." He huffed lightly. "I'm just...A little scared." Rudolph mumbled as he nuzzled into his chest closing his eyes. "I trust you though." Slowly, the boy dropped to sleep, holding onto the dragon. He hated to admit it, but Ember did keep him warm and helped him easily sleep through the night.

Hours rolled by easily and soon it was dawn. Dawn was just brushings its fingers against the horizon. Little slivers of light performing it's morning stretches, as it reached through the only window of the small home. Murdo stirred in his sleep, awaking at dawn like every daybreak. Stretching himself, Murdo's topaz eyes looked around as he scratched his beard. Slowly he rose from the cot he was sleeping on. He knew he had to go get some water to boil to make breakfast for his guest, so as quietly as he could he began to gather his things he would need to go out to the lake.
 
Ember, though, was already awake at that point. He never got up early, of course, if he could help it. Even on school days, he'd lay and lounge about in bed until the very last second before swinging himself up with five minutes left to spare. Laziness and lethargy were his best friends sometimes, but today was different. He'd purposely forced himself awake at the crack of dawn, spurred on to do so because of the situation they were in. He couldn't lounge around when he was in this odd place with a practical stranger - as tired as he was, he made his eyes open and remain open until he heard the Viking stir and gather his things.

"...D'ya need any help? I could come with 'ya, if you need company or something. Like I said, dude, I'm basically invincible-- hey, you Vikings believe in Gods and stuff, right? Think of me like one of your Gods in... human form. That's the best way I can describe to you that I ain't normal without you freaking out on me," he casually drawled, pushing himself to his feet and cracking his knuckles with a satisfied grunt. "C'mon then, let's go-- these two will be fine. Devin can sleep through a hurricane and I'm sure Rudolph over here needs to catch up on his sleep too."
 
Murdo glanced over at the teen, before offering a small smile. "I supposed I could use a little help then." It wasn't until they were out of the home when the man's deep voice broke the morning silence. "So you're a God?" He asked, looking over at the man. "...It explains the strange markings on your skin and strange clothes...As well as those eyes." The handsome man with hair the color of flame went to touch the marks on his neck his eyes wide. He hadn't yet understood that they were just tattoos.

"This explains a lot about ya, Ember...You have a man and a woman...But having a man isn't exactly strange...As long as you still have a woman...You see, in the village, they call me 'he who flees from female organs.' Because I am approaching my twentieth year and I have yet to marry and have my own woman." He spoke as they walked down to the river. The morning breeze was cold, and the fog was still lingering on the ground. Murdo crouched down to the water, getting his wooden bucket and filling it with water.
 
"Not a God, just-- not human. I can't explain, you'd have a freak out, so let's just say I'm like one of your Norse gods or whatever," shrugged the dragon as he calmly took a seat on a nearby log, watching the other man collect water. Despite being separated by centuries, being from completely opposing cultures, he was struggling to find reasons to dislike this man. Hell, he barely flinched when he leaned in to touch his neck. He often flinched like that when he got hit on by meh who proceeded to touch him like that, but... well, it didn't really bother him to have Murdo touch him like that.

"Ah, fuck what they think, dude. You'll find a nice gal. I get times are... different. Your society's different to mine. Where I'm from, you can go your whole life not dating or marrying, there's no pressure. You can date a man, a woman-- it's not a huge deal," he quietly pointed out, grabbing a stick to absently shove into the mud to distract himself and keep his mind busy. "...What's your type then? I'm, like, great with this romance stuff-- maybe not romance. More sex, but it's all the same. Do you like blonde women? Brunettes? Do you like 'em tall, short, skinny...? Come on, you can talk to me~"
 
Murdo only chuckled, looking back at him with a slight smile. "Blonde? Blonde Vikings are those Vazlun cowards. At least around these parts, most of the blondes are from that damn clan. I rather stick to me own. Besides, I don't want a woman." Mumbled the man, running his fingers through his thick curly red hair.

Once he had enough water in his bucket, the man stood from his crouching position and scratched his beard. "Let's go boil this water so I can get some breakfast in ya's stomach. After breakfast, I need to head into the village. It's on the other side of the forest. We can look for the horse you left-" However he stopped talking as if his eyes squinted at a figure riding towards them on horseback. "...Put this own, cover your markings." He instructed quickly forcing him to but the fur he had on, around him, making sure all his tattoos were covered. As the figure came closer, it was obvious now it was a woman.

She got off her horse, glaring at Murdo. "Murdo." She greeted coldly. "Your father held a town meeting for our next battle. Of course you didn't show, coward."

"Ailsa." Murdo greeted cooly "I have no interest to fight a pointless war.

"Of course, as always you let everyone down. All that strength you let it go to waste because you're some man of peace. It's not the Viking way! It's not our people's way!"

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If there was one thing Ember liked in life more than alcohol, drugs and having a good time, it was flirting with women. He would be the first to hold his hand up and admit that he was as close to being described as a whore as you could get. He casually had sex and he didn't think once about making that into a committed relationship. He wasn't against the idea, but he'd yet to really meet someone that made him want to commit fully. He liked the idea of a relationship, but everyone he'd met thus far in his teenage life were just better off as casual lovers.

But he was fine with that too. He liked flirting with attractive women, even if they were sometimes older than him. A little flirtation brightened anyone's day, didn't it?

So when this woman made an appearance, his smile grew on his lips. It didn't matter to him that she seemed tough and closed off and deadly serious, nor that she was from this era. What did that matter? She was cute.

"Who's this, then? A friend of yours, Murdo?" He began slowly, his eyebrow arched perfectly as he unsubtly eyed this woman up. "...Mm, I'm sorta new around these parts, love."
 
Ailsa looked at the man, glowering as he eyed her up. Taking out her dagger and pointing it deadly close to his eye she growled lightly. "Look at me like that again and I promise I'll make it so you could never see again." She venomously retorted.

"Ailsa he's a friend, you know we don't treat friends that way." Hissed Murdo, stepping in front of Ember to protect him from the angry woman. Ailsa literally punched Murdo in the throat causing him to choke before she yanked him by the beard to bring him closer to her face. He easily dropped the bucket of water he had just got.

"Does it look like I give a shite who he is?! You coward...He obviously isn't Viking so he's no friend to me." She spat pushing Murdo away. She glared at Ember before getting back on her horse. "Be at the town meeting when the sun is at its highest peak. Don't embarrass me, remember you're supposed to be my husband." Spat the woman before riding off.

Murdo was rubbing his neck where she had punched him, coughing a bit. Groaning, he looked over at Ember, before down at the water all over the ground. "Great...Sorry about that. She's isn't friendly with strangers...That's...My supposed wife. She's angry with me. I haven't bedded her, and now I refuse to fight in battle. She believes I'm the saddest excuse for a husband."
 
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