James led the way back to the cottage in silence, continuing to lead Maahes by the hand. He stopped at the door and pushed it open stepping into the main room they'd been in just a few minutes ago. He stood in the doorway, holding the door open for the others to file in.
Maahes ran into the room and made a beeline for his tablet. Once he had grabbed it from its spot on the floor, he plopped himself down on the bed and started to eagerly played it. Odris let out a quiet groan as he followed Maahes in, though he made sure to thank James for keeping the door open.
He sat down beside Maahes.
The young spirit looked alarmed at this decision, and immediately tried to scoot away from him. But Odris was used to the djinni's antics, so he wrapped his arm around him and prevented him from slipping away again.
"I'm not sure," he admitted. Though the spirit had initially been unhappy with their close proximity, he was now thoroughly enjoying playing on the tablet. "I was in a meeting, and someone had just told me that Maahes had ran away again. The last thing I remember is trying to get out of the meeting so I could find him."
James took a seat at the table, sitting back down in his seat. The vision of Carter followed him, standing in the open doorway. He ignored it.
"And to your knowledge - was there or is there anything you're fleeing from or seeking shelter from? That seems to be the only common thread among us as to why we were brought here by whatever mysterious magic this is."
Odris had to think for a moment before he could figure out what exactly he had been fleeing from, since he hadn't exactly felt like he was being threatened-
But he had felt afraid.
He had been trying to get out of the meeting. He remembered exiting into the hallway, grateful that he had a reason to leave and terrified that something horrible was going to happen to Maahes. It was later in the day than when Maahes usually ran away; he could easily get lost out in the city or the woods. He had been hurrying down the hallway when one of the other people in the meeting - a politician he had always disliked - kept following him and demanding that he return. And he had hurried on ahead, almost breaking out into a sprint as he continued to worry about Maahes.
"There was," he confirmed with a nod. "I was trying to leave that meeting, and someone was following me out of it. I was worried I wouldn't be able to find Maahes."
Kratzer sat down with James and Odris, glancing towards Maahes and his toy. "So, what's the kid to you, then? Apprentice? Son? Ward?"
"All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost."
Odris's face flushed red at the suggestion that Maahes was his son, and frantically shook his head in denial of the suggestion. Maahes continued playing nearby, completely oblivious to what had just been suggested. "I think apprentice is the best way to describe it," he weakly said, trying to push aside the thought of Maahes being his child. "I've been teaching him how to be a diplomat and scholar like I am."
He didn't mention that part of his job was studying Maahes and learning more about his kind - it was impossible to tell how these people would react to learning what Maahes really looked like whenever he put his lenses on. But even though it would have been terrifying to someone not used to it, Odris did have to admit that there was something cute about the writhing mass of tentacles he was on the seventh plane.
Now Maahes noticed that he was being talked about, and he looked up to see Odris watching him. "What?" he asked, pursing his lips together and puffing out his cheeks in preparation of the scolding he still needed to give him at some point.
"Nothing," Odris said. "I was just explaining how we knew each other."
Maahes thought over it for a moment. "Oh," the little djinni said before nodding and ducking his head back down to focus on his game instead. "That makes sense."
"Ah." He nodded and glanced towards the window as he saw a movement. Initially, he dismissed it as a trick of the light or another apparition, but when it moved again he finally turned his head to get a better look.
A figure stood at the edge of the woods. He was brown-eyed and had close-cropped black hair. He was a little taller than Kratzer but not by much, though he was certainly muscular, and the scars down his arms were visible due to the fact that his leather armor only covered his torso. A sword rested on his back and long, curved knives almost identical to Kratzer's own were sheathed on his thighs.
He stood with such speed that the chair he was sitting on went clattering to the ground. It couldn't be...it had to be an illusion. It had to. He couldn't be alive...right? Kratzer had watched the man die himself.
The shock drowned out the wave of emotion that he knew he should've been feeling. Sorrow, fear, joy, anything - but all the vampire could do was stare, dumbfounded, at the figure at the edge of the woods who pulled up his cowl to hide his scarred face and started towards the cabin warily.
"All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost."
"I...must...it must be a mirage," he said softly, reaching for the chair.
Thunk. Knuckles rapped against the wood of the door. The vampire froze, watching it. The knock came again, louder this time, and he hurriedly went to the threshold, knocking in a quick, intricate pattern. Whoever was outside responded with a similar, seemingly coded rhythm. With wide eyes and a very confused and shocked countenance, he opened the door.
And, sure enough, there was his mentor standing before him, a shadow cast over his face by his hood. The same man who he'd seen...
"...Aurick...?" he asked softly, his voice hardly above a whisper, utterly disbelieving that this was happening.
"All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost."
Maahes had noticed the sudden change in mood, and had wisely put his tablet down beside him before scooting over to where Odris was. He instinctively wrapped his arms around his summoner. It was only when Odris wrapped his arm around Maahes's shoulder and pulled him even closer that Maahes realized what had happened, but by then it was too late - there was no chance of him getting out of Odris's grip in the near future.
Maahes pouted.
"You know him?" Odris asked. His fingers were digging into this guise's arm, so tight that Maahes gave a startled cry when he felt the pain. Odris just barely loosened his grip in response.
"Engel? What's wrong, lad? You look like you've seen a ghost!" the hooded man said with a sharp laugh.
He blinked, glancing towards Odris as he spoke and then back at Aurick, at a loss for words for a few moments. "I...you...we...uh..." he shook his head and turned to Odris. "Ja, I do. This is my mentor, Aurick. He apprenticed me when I was a kid." When he was still human. As he spoke, he stepped to the side to let Aurick in. "Aurick, this is Maahes, Odris, James, and Hali. They all stumbled in here just like you and me - on accident."
Aurick pulled down his hood as he stepped inside and looked over the group, switching languages into French. "Friends?
"Strangers, but seemingly friendly ones."
The newcomer nodded and returned to English. "Well, it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, all of you."
"All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost."
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