With the fire going again in their small encampment Malkier settled upon the floor, wings stretching out to the sides as he rested back against a tree. Deryn continued to surprise him, perhaps he had been a little judgemental of her based upon where she was born, but his experience so far had told him that it was better to be safe than sorry, it would be his life at risk whenever he revealed his nature, surely she could understand that, he had to hide behind those half truths that she scolded him for, or maybe she didn’t, perhaps her naivety was such that she felt that even in the face of potential life threatening circumstances people should be completely honest, Malkier smiled at the rather odd notion.<br/><br/>He listened to her barrage of questions, face calm with a wry smile that crept in with some of her questions, he could tell she was conflicted, her ingrained fear of what he was, the breach of trust that she felt but also her quirky sense of humour and how she still jibed at him, she didn’t know what to think right now. He wanted to answer her truthfully, to set her mind at ease, it would not do to have his travelling companion nervous of him, but equally some of the things she asked would put him at risk if he gave her everything.<br/><br/>Shifting his weight, he scrubbed his hand through his dark hair and rubbed at the back of his neck with a sigh<b>“Okay, first of all, sit girl, rest. You’ve been walking all day and you were supposed to be resting instead of following me into the forest.”</b>The last seemed a little snappish even to him and wasn’t intended but it was said now,<b>“Second, I will answer your questions, but I will not put myself at risk, so they will not be answered about any specifics about me at this time, but just explain about what I am and correct the teachings of your homeland.”</b><br/><br/>Before continuing he bowed his head, tips of his fingers drew idle shapes in the dirt beside him, raising his gaze to find Deryn away from the fire, the amber glow of the flames reflecting off the dark orbs that were his eyes.<b>“We die in many of the same ways as you, with a couple exceptions, our bodies are immune to the effects of most diseases and many poisons, we do not age, we will not starve, we will not die of thirst or suffocate. But, we are vulnerable to faith, which is a little ironic for me, being of faith, but that in itself is no protection. Those individuals who wield the powers of the Ancestors have the power to unravel my pattern, to make me cease to exist on this plane and return my essence to the Plane of Unlife. How many individuals you need with that power depends upon the nature of the unliving they are trying to dismiss”</b><br/><br/>He chuckled as he began to address Deryn’s next question<b>“As for defending yourself, the same way you would against any other person who meant you harm, sword, spell, words or just running, we are still physical beings, if you mean me specifically; well then you need not worry about that, if I meant you harm I have had ample opportunity. I am not in the habit of spending out time, effort and money just to keep someone from harm that I wish to see harmed.” </b>The mirth in his voice lessened, returning to the nonchalant smile that often adorned his lips<b>“Our fragility depends upon the time of day Young One, for my kind at least, not all unliving are so, but Vampires have always been linked to the cycles of day and night. But equally, our personal frailties vary from person to person, just as it does for ‘<i>pathetic humans’</i> as you say. As you know, normal curative magics do not work on me, just as the curative magics I possess do not work on you, they are opposite sides of the same coin, as you also saw, I have other powers at my disposal too, which assist in some of the things I must do to blend in… and no, I did not kill that man, nor the goblin from the Starcraft hunting party that picked you up, I take only enough to sustain myself. There is also the benefit that feeding will restore me, heal my wounds, the side effect of that of course, the giver of the blood will end up unconscious for a while”</b><br/><br/>Resting his hand upon his chin, he stroked thoughtfully before continuing, how much of how he was ‘created’ did he want to reveal, he Brothers would not be happy if the blood-line’s secrets were revealed.<b>“I was created by another Vampire, as you likely knew or guessed. I was selected by my now ‘Brothers’ to join their family, it was seen as a gift to me from my Matron, to improve myself so I might better serve the House. I underwent a series of trials as part of my initiation and to begin to understand the tenets of the bloodline, thankfully having passed those I was gifted with the blood of my, now deceased, creator.” </b><br/><br/>Relaxing back once more against the tree, he released another large sigh,<b>“As for the points you raised as we returned to camp, think on this, if you were travelling alone and met a travelling party from a foreign nation that was well known for actively destroying your kind and one among their number intrigued you, their curiosity, their persona, they had so many questions for you, for one they the likes they had not seen before, would you tell them everything about yourself? Would you put your life at risk for the sake of being honest? Or would you tell them enough to satisfy that curiosity for a time until you knew them better, slowly revealing little bits of information about yourself as you grew to know them?”</b>Malkier paused in his hypothetical speech to smile once again, hoping that she would realise he was not lecturing her or saying she was wrong, but that not all things in existence were black and white,<b>“See for that is how true trust is built, in getting to know the individual, working with them, battling with them, proving your worth to each other and overcoming the trials of existence, fear comes from ignorance and the corruption of power by those who have the knowledge and twist it to their own ends. As for you not being like the rest of your nation, I believe that to be true in the most part, but when you asked me what I was but an hour after meeting, I did not.”</b><br/><br/>Resting his head against the trunk of the tree, looking across the small fire to Deryn he finished with one final question of his own<b>“So Deryn, am I the beast that you were raised to believe or am I a companion with a unique set of skills and requirements?” </b>He smiled broadly, before turning his gaze skyward to look upon the stars, the flickering light of the fire shining of his exposed fangs.<br/><br/>Tag:<a class="username" data-user-id="91" data-username="@Wren" data-xf-init="member-tooltip" href="https://blackdahliaroleplaying.com/members/91/">@Wren</a>