The others dashed off into the woods and were out of sight almost before Ijemaru and Black had left the building. "A safe haven sounds good," Ijemaru decided, and Black thought that he'd rather that than another loud city. His head already hurt from this one. "Do you have any tracking ability?" the boy asked.<br/><br/>Black gave a nod; he could still hear their echoing footsteps no problem. "The footsteps of so many different races, traveling in the same direction.. It couldn't have been made easier."<br/><br/>"Well then, lead the way. But allow me to keep up with you, Black." Damn. That last part was an order. The demon took a moment to pin point the sounds and took off into the woods. He started slowly at first, then sped up gradually to test the human's speed.<span style="font-style: italic">Not bad...</span>the demon thought. "You're fast for a human," Black called.<br/><br/>"I'm a rogue and an assassin," Ijemaru said back, smirking. "Speed is an invaluable asset."<br/><br/>Black could hear the foot steps still far off in the distance. The elves' in particular were more difficult to catch, but he could tell they'd be running for quite a ways still. "This is going to turn into a marathon," Black said. "I'd rather do this the less taxing way." The demon pulled off his shirt and draped it over his arm, releasing his big, black, feathered wings. With one elegant flap he was drawn into a high, speed glide. Ijemaru had to pick up his pace even more to keep up, and by now was breathing heavily.<br/><br/>The human arched an eyebrow. "A partial transformation?" he asked between breaths.<br/><br/>"No," Black replied. "I can't transform. My wings are just retractable. I technically have no human form. My demon form just happens to be relatively humanoid."<br/><br/>Ijemaru turned to face forward again. "Hmm... Potentially convenient..." He didn't go on and the comment prompted a glance from his demon familiar.<br/><br/>***<br/><br/>They finally arrived and Black glided gracefully to a stop. His breathing was perfectly in check and he hadn't even broken a sweat. Upon landing, the demon quietly retracted his great wings and donned his shirt. He hated the garment, but his<span style="font-style: italic">master</span>had voiced that he<span style="font-style: italic">preferred</span>his familiar to be properly clothed. Cursed boy. Perhaps the order could be repealed later.<br/><br/>Upon entering the clearing, Ijemaru collapsed to his knees. He was positively gasping for breath and holding back bile from rising in his throat. Black thought he'd done exceptionally well for a human, they'd run more than a hundred miles, but it was still a sad shape to see his master it.<br/><br/>After a moment of regaining himself, Ijemaru shifted to a reclined seated position with his hands supporting him. "I can't feel my legs anymore," he said, smiling weakly. "But I suppose I'm grateful for it."<br/><br/>They heard the elves speak of healing and Ijemaru looked up to his demon. "Why not ask them about your hand?" Black paused and raised his blackened palm, examining the wound.<br/><br/>"It's a wound inflicted by light," he said darkly. "I'm not entirely sure more light will do anything to heal it."<br/><br/>"<span style="font-style: italic">You</span>'re not the healer here," the human insisted. The demon turned away, insisting on being stubborn where he was able. Ijemaru frowned and stood. He took Black's wrist and, before the demon could react, took a dagger and slit his wrist. The wound wasn't deep enough to be fatal, as the demon was necessary, but blood still trickled from the wound. The human stared at the lifeblood of the demon. It was deep, pitch black in color and the human seemed oddly fascinated by it.<br/><br/>Black pulled his wrist away, involuntarily giving a strange hissing sound. "What was that for?" he growled.<br/><br/>"Go have the healers tend to your wound," Ijemaru said, looking back up to the familiar, his smirk returned. "You may as well ask about your hand while you're there."<br/><br/>Black scowled, but there was no sense in doing otherwise. It wasn't an order, but it was the logical thing to do, and who was he to go against logic? Without a word, the demon turned, choosing to address the female elf rather than the male one. "Can you do anything for this?" he said, holding out his arm, face up, to show his cut, still oozing black blood. Then he uncurled his fist, revealing his blackened palm. "And perhaps for this..." he hesitated, "burn?"<br/><br/>Ijemaru went to sit against a tree, resting while his "pet" was healed.