A medical emergency

[fadingworld]

A deep navy cloak hides his features and the more ornate tunic the courtesan usually wears to greet his clients. Mal hunches his shoulders and slides through the crowds hoping to avoid notice. He keeps his head down until he reaches the home of the doctor and wraps smartly on the door. "Open up," he calls in a voice that expects to be listened to.

How much time did he have? He could not have a client bleeding out. Not this one. Not one who had come to him for help, to be treated privately.

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[fadingworld]

Mal nods in understanding. Still temporary was only good for a time, eventually everyone wanted something more long lasting. A companion at least to share happiness and hard times with.

He smiles, this also told him that Regis did not share his heart easily. He knew he was very lucky.

"I understand, there is a time and place for all kinds of connections with people." He gently runs a hand through Regis' hair. "Forgive me, but you fascinate me. And it fascinates me to find some parallels to each other in parts of our lives."

[mandragoraspiritus]

Regis hums, leaning against the side of the bed and tilting his head back into that hand in his hair, encouraging it to continue.

"Our races are exceedingly different to each other," he muses. "In how we are made, how we function. Our behavior, our customs. Yet, in some ways, we are almost achingly similar." At least Regis fins that in himself, but then he has chosen to live among people, rather than isolate himself like so many vampires does.

[fadingworld]

Mal keeps light pressure against the scalp as he continues the hair stroking. "We are," he says softly, "I think because we are capable of feeling and expressing the same emotions. The capacity to feel for others has always been at the heart of humanity for me."

[mandragoraspiritus]

Regis hums his agreement. In that way, they are indeed alike. Sitting there, simply talking like this, Regis feels a surge of deep affection for Mal. To think that this fragile human man caught his heart so securely that despite his concerns he has become so involved with him.

[fadingworld]

Mal feels it and a happy flush spreads over his cheeks. He half shuts his eyes again. The warmth from Regis leaves him feeling warm and safe.

"I am honestly glad," he says sleepily, "that there is not one client that I can think you remind me of, even in the slightest."

[mandragoraspiritus]

That is why Regis behaves the way he does in their intimate moments, to remind Mal as little as possible of his past life. It doesn't always work as intended but they are both still learning.

"I am glad of that too," Regis says softly before he turns and rises somewhat, to press a gentle kiss to Mal's forehead. "Go back to sleep, dear."

[fadingworld]

Mal's face relaxes towards sleep. "Hope nothing tries to get into night," he mumbles as he slowly dozes off.

[mandragoraspiritus]

As it turns out, there are things that goes bump in the night. Hours later when it has become fully dark, Regis sits listening to the sounds of paws on the ground outside. Heavy creatures by the sounds of it but still surprisingly light on their feet with the kind of gait he would associate with a predator. Or, predators, here. There are more than one. Four, maybe five.

He gets up and approaches the door. Before opening it he sniffs the night air that comes through the cracks and picks up the stench of rotting meat. Ah. Necrophages. Opening the door he sees them. Ghouls, three of them within his line of sight and he can hear more behind the cabin. Yet he isn't worried. He hisses at them, low and warningly, and that is all it takes. They gather and scuttle off, to find easier prey.

[fadingworld]

Mal stirs at the hiss. "What is it?" he says coming alert very quickly. Fear sharpening his mind. "Trouble?"

[mandragoraspiritus]

"No..." Regis responds, still standing in the doorway and gazing out into the night, the darkness not a hinder to his eyes. With the ghouls gone into the woods all seems calm. "No, they will not bother us."

[fadingworld]

"What were they?" Mal asks quietly propping himself up on his elbow, ignoring the dull ache in his body. "Would they have tried to come in if you weren't here?"

[mandragoraspiritus]

"They were ghouls." He closes the door and comes back over to the bed, sitting down on the edge of it and laying a hand to Mal's forehead, checking for fever but only finding him somewhat warm. That is good.

"And, yes. Most likely they would have," he confesses. "No doubt they have been drawn by the blood in the woods and picked up the scent here as well."

[fadingworld]

Mal shivers. He doesn't think he would make much of an adventurer. These encounters simply fill him with dread.

"Are most creatures scared of you?"

[mandragoraspiritus]

"No, not at all. There are quiet a few who would think nothing fo me, such at the chort we encountered, or any of the relicts really. But, lower beasts and monsters such as those necrophages and even lower vampires would wisely be cautious around me." He strokes his fingers down Mal's cheek. "You need not worry. You are quite safe."

[fadingworld]

Mal leans into the touch. "I must seem so fragile to you sometimes," he says quietly. "Even a small lower beast would be a threat to me if you were not around."

[mandragoraspiritus]

"Your body is fragile, if I compare to my own. You are human, that is the way it is. You are mortal and one day you will die." Where as he will not. It is a horrible truth, but one he has no choice but to accept. "However, I intend to have that be of old age - of very old age - rather than by some other cause."

[fadingworld]

A reasonable old age Mal thinks. He would not like to live as a bag of wrinkles unable to do anything for himself. But they are not going to have that conversation for a long time.

"And I intend to keep you company for as long as possible and then I will make sure you have at the very least a friend to spend some years with."

[mandragoraspiritus]

Regis doesn't think he will be wanting much company for a while after Mal has passed. Still, that is years in the future and there isn't much sense to dwell on that now. Certainly no sense at all in arguing about it.

"Still, in the ways of safeguarding your health... While you are awake, let me brew you a strengthening potion. How is the pain now?"

[fadingworld]

"It's a dull ache while I am lying still," he admits. There is no point in lying about it. He wants to be up and active as soon as possible without any complications.

"I can live with it though."

[mandragoraspiritus]

"There is no sense that you should, when there is help to be had." He leaves the bed to coax the embers back to life and stoke up the fire again, setting a pot of water to boil.

"The more you can relax the better it is," he explains as he sorts through his store of herbs for the ones he want. "The stress of ache and pain is not conductive to good healing."

[fadingworld]

"Is there a point where we have to get careful or I will come to rely on it?" Mal has seen it with the drugs others use to help them relax and deal with their job. "I don't want to find myself giving excuses to have relief for a little longer."

[mandragoraspiritus]

"There is no risk with what I have on hand here," he assures. "For some of the more potent things I have at home, yes, there is the risk of dependency."

He starts grinding up his chosen herbs, adding them to the pot. "These are nowhere near strong enough, and will not affect your mind as much, no more than the valerian might make you somewhat drowsy."

[fadingworld]

"Then I am glad they are not here," Mal says easily. He tries to recall the herbs Regis had told him earlier and is ashamed to find he only recall half of the list.

"Do many people get addicted to pain relief?"

[mandragoraspiritus]

"It happens," Regis admits, "but it isn't so terribly common. Most people manage just fine, and at least I for one am not so quick to give out large doses of it."

A why twist of his lips. "I do know what addiction is like." Even now he can smell Mal's blood and even now he feels the lure of it. It isn't so hard to resist but he does feel it like a constant presence of temptation.

[fadingworld]

A soft smile in return, "IS there anything I can do to help minimise the temptation besides trying not to get injured again?"