𝔩𝔦𝔤𝔥𝔱 𝔟𝔢𝔱𝔴𝔢𝔢𝔫 𝔶𝔬𝔲𝔯 𝔰𝔥𝔞𝔡𝔬𝔴𝔰 - H&S

Nico stood, gasping, right outside the door. He had managed to break it down, but it didn’t really matter if he couldn’t actually go inside. He needed an invitation. Technically, the howl had been a call for help, not an invitation. Nico cursed under his breath, then gave a loud sigh of relief as he realized that Kelsier hadn’t been trapped in a specific room or anything. He gave a quiet laugh as the wolf began bounding around him, clearly excited both to be rescued, and to be rescued by a friend.
“Hello to you, too,” he said quietly, then tossed the steak in front of him. “I figured you might want something to eat. It’s been a while since you’ve had any food, hasn’t it?”
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Nico rolled his eyes affectionately as Kelsier practically devoured the steak. It was impressive, in a way, but also a reminder that he was a wild animal, not a dog. No… he wasn’t even technically a wild animal. By all accounts, he was a monster. Nico just found it difficult to see him that way. As far as Nico was concerned, he was a friend. But what merit did the opinion of another monster have? They were both inhuman. At least Kelsier could pretend for most of the month.
Nico shook the thought away, plopping down on the grass outside and waiting for Kelsier to come join him. He had an idea of what to do for the evening, the issue was whether Kelsier would be willing to follow him to see.

Nico’s lip quirked up into a smile as he watched Kelsier’s tail wagging excitedly. It wasn’t as out of control as it had been when they were playing fetch, but there was no question that the wolf was excited. Good. Nico was excited, too, and it was nice to have confirmation that Kelsier enjoyed his company as much as Nico enjoyed Kel’s. He felt a little bit bad that he had learned his name from snooping through his mail, but it wasn’t like anyone had caught him. And it wasn’t like he had referred to the wolf as Kelsier… that felt like it was crossing a line. As long as he kept this wolf separate from the human he became for most of the month, he’d be fine.
Bracing a hand against Kelsier’s back, Nico pulled himself to his feet, then began walking. He gestured for Kelsier to follow him. It was going to take a while, but he did have a destination in mind.

Nico turned at the sound of the soft bark, eyes widening as he realized that Kelsier wasn’t following him. Oh… it probably looked like he was leaving, which hadn’t been his intention at all. An apologetic smile appeared on his face and he gently patted his thighs in what he hoped would be an understandable sign for “come here.” He should have brought more steak… that might have been the way to entice Kelsier to follow him… he would have tried a leash, but he didn’t want to incur the wolf’s wrath. He wasn’t a domestic dog, a collar and leash wouldn’t do anything other than irritate him. If Nico were planning on going farther than he was, though, he may have considered it regardless.
“Don’t worry,” he said, keeping his voice calm as he gestured once more for Kelsier to follow. “I have somewhere exciting for us to go. I’m not leaving you behind.”

Nico was relieved when it seemed Kelsier started to understand what he meant. He began walking again, reaching out a hand to bury in Kelsier’s thick pelt. It was a long walk, but they had the time for it. Besides, they were both stronger than the average human or wolf. They were also probably both faster – they would make pretty good time. Nico had angled them towards the mountains. They weren’t going to go all the way up – they would need a car for that – but there was a field at the top of the first visible peak. Nico thought it would e the perfect secluded space to spend a few hours. He just had to get Kelsier there first.

Nico’s sense of smell wasn’t as good as Kelsier’s, but it was moderately comparable. He could sense the humans nearby, at least, and he was grateful that they hadn’t seem to have caught Kelsier’s attention. Surely he knew they were there, but he hadn’t descended into bloodlust as he had before. He wasn’t stalking them, trying to figure out which was weakest. It seemed that the steak had been a good idea. Nico made a mental note to try to bring more next time. This one had been expensive, though, and he had been determined to pay for it instead of just stealing it, so… he would have to find a better way to fund it next time. It was difficult, being the age he was when he was turned. Nobody was willing to hire a kid who looked ten, no matter what his fake ID said.

Nico had little to no hope that they would make it to their destination with no distractions. He knew Kelsier well enough by now to know that if there happened to be a very interesting stick on the ground, they would be waylaid and unable to get back on track for at least an hour. Kelsier was very easily distractible, but once he found something to hold his attention, it held it for what felt like a very long time. Nico was prepared for that. He didn’t have a plan to get around it, but he didn’t think he would mind an interruption. The end point was just a goal, not a guarantee.
Still, Nico kept walking. He kept his pace quick, occasionally bursting into a jog so that Kelsier would have to bound beside him to keep up. He wanted to keep Kelsier as entertained as he possibly could on the walk there.

Nico gave a quiet laugh as Kelsier’s antics. The wolf was predictable, in a way. He was bound to do the most overdramatic thing possible. Not that Nico blamed him… being overdramatic was often quite fun. Still… he was distinctly aware of the fact that Kelsier didn’t know where they were going, so he did technically need to get ahead. He began to jog, using some of his vampire speed to boost his stride. It made him noticeably faster, but not inhumanly so. Perhaps the grace wasn’t normal, but the speed was that of an average sprinter. Kelsier could likely keep up. Nico’s intent wasn’t to make it a race, but he wouldn’t be surprised if Kelsier saw it as one. If he did… then they would both get closer to their destination before Kelsier got distracted again, at least.

Nico wasn’t going to waste his energy blurring when this speed seemed to keep Kelsier occupied perfectly well on his own. He gave a shy smile as he sped up just a little bit, trying to keep Kelsier on his toes. He needed to be close enough to the wolf that he could guide which direction he was going, but far enough behind that Kelsier thought he had an actual chance of getting there first. It was a delicate game they were playing, and Nico wanted to walk the line perfectly. He sped ahead just a little bit, making sure that Kelsier took the right path where the road forked.
It was becoming more of a trail than an actual road. Nico flashed a grin at Kelsier as he slowed down just a little bit. The field he had been aiming for was within view now. They had made it, much to Nico’s surprise.
The entire city could be seen from the very edge of the field – they were up high enough that it seemed as though they were looking down on it all.

There were a variety of reasons Nico had chosen the spot he did. It was secluded, for one, so there was little chance of Kelsier trying to hurt anyone because he scented humans. It had a beautiful view, which Nico certainly appreciated. It was large enough that if Nico found a nice stick he would be able to throw it, and there were enough trees around the perimeter of the field that he thought they could play hide and seek if Kelsier grasped the rules of the game. That one might be a little bit more complicated, though he thought it would be fun to try. Maybe not this month, but next month at the very least.
“Do you like it here?” Nico asked, voice soft as he began to approach the very edge of the field. He didn’t know why it was easier to speak to Kel in Italian, but it was. It was more comfortable, for one. And it felt a little bit like a secret. Kelsier may not have understood what he said, but he was able to pick up on the tone. Nobody else would be able to understand him either, unless they spoke Italian.
“Careful of the edge,” Nico warned, plopping down when he was about a foot away from it. He absentmindedly picked a blade of grass, tearing it into sections as he looked out over the city.

Nico was perfectly content to let Kelsier explore. He was a wild animal who had been trapped in the middle of a city. He couldn’t say for sure whether Kelsier belonged out here, but it certainly gave him more freedom than a cramped city did. Besides, he wouldn’t have to worry about encountering people here. The temptation to eat wouldn’t be so profound.
“Don’t fall,” Nico warned idly, but it wasn’t as though Kelsier was particularly clumsy. Well… he wasn’t clumsy as long as he wasn’t dragging around a tree branch that was nearly twice his size. The thought brought a gentle smile to Nico’s face, and he let himself fall back into the grass, gaze focusing on the stars. It was off to him, that they were made of the same things as the sun, but it was only the sun that burned him. He was grateful he couldn’t be set alight by the stars. Physically, at least. They worked wonders on his mind.
“It’s nice out here,” Nico whispered, just loudly enough that Kelsier could hear him. “Quiet. It just.. feels more natural. I guess it feels safer, too.” He sighed quietly, one hand reaching up to trace patterns in the stars. He was young, as far as vampires went. He knew that eventually there would be people with different names for these same constellations. Would they still be the same stars if they were called by unfamiliar titles? The universe felt so big. Nico wished he could shrink it down to just this moment.

Nico didn’t like not having Kelsier in eyeshot, but he could still hear his heartbeat. As long as that continued as it should, Nico felt pretty safe leaving Kelsier to his own devices. He would get up and play with him in a few minutes, but Kelsier seemed calmer than Nico had ever seen him. It was actually rather nice, knowing that Kelsier was content and happy to amuse himself for a little while. Not that Nico disliked spending time with him, but… he was enjoying the freedom to just lay where he was and not have to worry about his friend.
Eventually Nico lifted his head up, then pushed himself back into a standing position. He didn’t want to fall asleep there, not when there was still so much night left to enjoy. He wasn’t going to waste his time with Kelsier – he was all too aware of the fact that he didn’t get much of it.
“Did you find anything interesting?” Nico asked as he began to approach the wolf, keeping his voice quiet so as not to startle him.

Nico managed to catch up to Kelsier, uncertain what he was looking at. He wasn’t terribly concerned – as long as no humans caught Kelsier’s eye, they would be fine. There were, of course, the ethical considerations about whether or not Kelsier was vegan, but he had already given him a full-sized steak, so… maybe not being vegan while your body was a carnivore wasn’t really an ethical dilemma. It was much easier to think of Kelsier the Wolf and Kelsier the Human as two separate beings. The same way someone might say ‘Well, you’ve never seen me in the same room as Superman, so…’ One couldn’t exist in the same space as the other, but that didn’t necessarily mean they were the same being.
Slowly, Nico settled to the ground to observe Kelsier’s digging. He didn’t know what the wolf had found, but he was intrigued to see what had compelled him to dig. Part of him wondered if Kelsier knew that himself, or if he was digging because he was curious, too. Nico couldn’t hear or feel anything under the ground, but that didn’t mean anything.

That… wasn’t what Nico had been expecting to come out of the hole. He had thought there might be some kind of buried treasure, or perhaps even some animal bones, but… real human bones were a concern. He looked around to make sure they weren’t in a graveyard of any sort, but it didn’t seem they were. This was a body dump, though he couldn’t tell how long the bones had been in the earth. He wished he knew what to do in this situation. If he were a normal human being, he would call the police and let them take care of it. He wasn’t human, though… they would question him, and if he was here when the sun rose, he would die. They would want to take Kelsier into custody, and how was Nico supposed to explain to them that he was a werewolf? What would Kelsier the human do if he were to wake up in a jail cell?
It seemed almost better to leave it alone, but then they would find Kelsier’s DNA on the skull, because that was something humanity could do, now…
“Is it… real?” Nico asked after a moment, though he knew it was. His mind had gone into overdrive trying to think up a brilliant solution to keep them both out of trouble. He had nothing.