The Stumble Inn

Taban bared his fangs at Hal and slowly backed away. "You. . . isk. . . " he shook his head, finding it difficult to think of the right words in his current state. "Fire. You. KRANAKO." He snarled the last word.

Mel closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and grabbed the towel. "I don't know what you are talking about. I have no scars." She stood and turned her back on him, covering herself up the best she could. No scars, she told herself. None. He was lying. Her eyes was lying. The world was lying. She bit her lip, remembering the lengths she had gone to fix her face and hands, the only parts of her skin ever visible when she was dressed. She was not proud of what she had had to do. But no, she told herself. She still had her beautiful, snow white skin. Perfect and unmarred. No marks of torture.

Denton forced a smile. "You're right, I don't know what I was thinking." He turned around, revealing the scars he had copied from her. "You're flawless... My mistake." He rubbed the back of his neck. "Are you going to be alright, then? That flash didn't hurt your eyes?"

Hal held up the universal translator. "Say again?" He gulped, wondering just how angry this alien was. "...Are you mad about me setting off the Insecurity System?"

Mel gave him a cold look. "Are you mocking me? I told you, I don't have any scars!" She dared him with her eyes to tell her differently. "A-and, my eyes are fine too!"

"YOU SLIMY PIECE OF SHIT, YOU FUCKING BASTARD, HOW DARE YOU?! YOU COULD HAVE KILLED ME! YOU COULD HAVE KILLED HER!" He flattened his ears and pressed his hand to his chest, ready to pull out his blade if need be.

Hal tried to inch back, but was stopped by the support rail. "I... Erm... Sorry? I didn't even know I had that..." He regained his resolve. "Taban... Calm down, buddy. Just, I made a mistake, that was my bad. But there is no need to get violent."

Denton shook his head, and looked at her eyes. He stared for a few moments, and slowly widened his smile. "Yeah, your are fine. Beautiful, in fact." He stepped back, not wanting to feel the brunt of her attacks. "Just like your singing voice."

Taban hissed. "I am not your buddy! YOU TRIED TO SET ME ON FIRE!"

Melanie looked away from him and hurried out of the bathroom and back into her room to get dressed.

Hal paused, and looked at Taban incredulously. "Tried to set you on fire? Why would I do that? By all accounts, you're a nice enough guy. I don't just try to wantonly murder people, you know. It was an accident. I'm sorry, alright? But you have someone you love who could be in danger right now. So go to her and be MAD AT ME LATER."

Kasei-La looked at Mel, still resting against the doorframe. "Hey, Mel. So, what did the blue flash do to you?" She looked down at the ruffley dress. "Heheh... Yeah, this is embarassing... Well, I can't see anything different about you, so I suppose you're fine, huh?"

Denton sighed, and sat at a table, humming Arirang to himself.

Taban glared at him, his tail still thrashing. "Wesa is fine. I know she is."

"Nothing. Nothing happened." Mel straightened her hair in the mirror.

"Well, sorry for not wanting violate your bond and try to have you check on her." He sighed, and pulled out a cigarette, then remembered Taban's fear of fire, and put it back in his pocket. "I guess I really am a meathead, huh? But, can you try to forgive me, Taban? I didn't mean you any harm."

Kasei-La nodded, and hugged her. "Alright. Thanks for being so nice to us, Mel. I really think you're groovy'." She smiled up at her, before going off to her own room. "Now I'm off to get out of this thing!"

Denton sighed, and walked up the stairs, going to Mel. "Okay, before you shriek or hit or do whatever harmful thing you're going to do, hear me out. I can't let a person be hurt in good conscience, and you're obviously shaken. My brain tells me you're going to say that you're hurt beyond repair or you don't need help or you don't want help or something else, but listen; If you're so worried about your looks, don't be. You're gorgeous. Every incha you. If you're not, I'll just shut up about that and say something funny, like how I'm trying to find a segue into this story about me and my friend Lenny 345."

Mel gave him a questioning look. "There's nothing wrong with my appearance. I'm perfectly normal. I really have no idea what you are talking about."

"If I die, she dies." Taban stated, looking at Hal. "Do you understand that? My death is her death. *I* can die. Permanently. If she dies, she will come back. I don't want her in pain, obviously, but of our soul, I am the weakest link. I could kill her. One little flame is all it takes."

"...Interessssting." Hal thought about the ramifications of that. "I do have a forcefield I could try to tweak. It wuoldn't protect you from very hot flames... Like, nothing about a candle flame. Touch a fire place and you would be doomed... But something is better than nothing, right?" He looked at the ground. "Eh, listen... IS there ANY way I can make it up to you?"

Denton raised an eyebrow. "Okay, now you're just going into denial. I was given some training in mental health... Although it's more for violent people than whatever you have, and one of the options we are given is "shoot them in the head", but you get my point. Listen, whatever you've been through, you shouldn't have to hide it. I won't think less of you, no matter where you got those..." He looked to see Kasei-La peaking at them from the door way. "...Lovely hair-extensions! Simply amazing, really." When Kasei-La stopped listening, he turned back to her. "...Did someone hit you, or something? You shouldn't be ashamed. It happens to a lot of people." He looked at her with concern, wishing he could stop himself but his desire to be a help only digging him deeper. "...Now you're gonna say something like "I'm perfectly fine! FUCK off!" or something else and you'll let your hurt fester and you'll just hurt more and more and more. Or you'll just turn around and lock the door, or something."

"What has gotten into you? There is nothing wrong with me! At all! Good day, sir!"



"No. Not really. Who cares about a blade of grass, right? Just forget it. Leave me alone. I should be locked up in some place without any oxygen at all or something."

Denton sighed, and grabbed her arm. Not caring what transformating he had next, he pulled up her sleeve and showed it to her. "Look."

Hal raised an eyebrow. "Oh, now you're just being stupid. You wouldn't have... Whatever you have with this Wesa girl if no one cared, right? And you seem like a nice enough... Asexual entity. So come on, let's get back to the Inn. I'm sure it's better than you moping up here."

Mel slapped his hand away and yanked down her sleeve. "No, stop! Stop it, stop it, dammit!"

Taban grunted and flicked his tail. "There's really no reason for me to go back until night time, unless she needs guarding." He looked over at Hal from the corner of his eyes. "And she might."

Denton sighed, and stepped back. "Fine. But you're only making it worse by bottling up whatever has happened." He turned away, clutching at his chest, and groaned. "Damniiiit..." Slowly, his form shifted, and he grunted as his Y chromosome became an X. He dropped to his knees, and then looked up at her. "Hurt a little less this time..." Shi looked back at Mel, her eyes a little sad "Sorry... I really am." Dent hiked up the towel to cover hir chest, and rubbed her forehead. "But I'm serious. You can't just pretend what has happened never did. All it does is drive you crazy." Dent walked down to the laundry room, and searched for some clothes.

Hal nodded briefly at Taban, and started to walk down the stairs. "Fine, go ahead and hate me then. But don't try to impede Kasei-La's friendship with her, or I will find a way to kick your ass without harming Wesa."

As the cat dissipated, R'ioth sighed and headed back to his own body. The blood magic was wearing him out slowly, and this place was still so confusing and unfamiliar. He grunted out his frustration, stood up, and looked down at the woman whom he had just helped. He cocked his head, knowing that she wouldn't understand a word he said, but attempting to ask her whether or not she was okay.

Molodi whimpered as the cat disappeared, and looked up at the man. She decided that she had to regain herself, and got up, put on her trademark scowl, and and coughed, holding out her hand for a shake. "Erm, thank you."

This was something the Niztic could understand, a formal touching of the hands. Based on her hand's position, she was romantically greeting him, but R'ioth doubted that anything was the same here. He felt awkward doing it, but he accepted the hand shake. Hopefully it didn't mean the same thing here that it did back where he came from, or else he'd just broken one of his tenants.

"Darsa." Rioth replied, using the expression 'charmed', which he felt was something that could apply to most situations.

Molodi nodded at him, and pulled away, walking up to her room to get changed out of the outfit. She stripped slowly, taking a look at what had been put on her, and felt the tears well up again for a few moments, before she turned her head away and held everything back. She looked through her suitcase. Only one outfit left for her. She pulled on the weathered jeans, and pulled a sweater over her head, sighing to herself.

R'ioth got an idea as soon as the woman left the room. He searched through the small satchel hidden under his robes and pulled from it a grainy sheet of parchment. He then removed an ink-well pen and dabbed the pen in some of the blood from his canteen. R'ioth set to work on drawing something that resembled a comic strip, detailing some questions he had and things he needed. It also showed that he carried with him a significant amount of gold.

As R'ioth was working, he dripped some blood on the floor and summoned a little bird. The bird had feathers made of snow, yet they some how did not melt. The bird landed upon R'ioth's shoulder and chirped in his ear. As R'ioth worked, he conversed with the bird in his native tongue.

Molodi brushed her hair out of her face, and looked at the rabbit ears headband still stuck to her head. It was rather persistent. Giving up, she walked back down the stairs, and looked at R'ioth. "Oh. You're still here... And you've got a new friend now, too. Interesting." She shrugged, and went to get some whiskey from the bar. "I need a drink."

R'ioth acknowledged her presence, but couldn't really respond in any manner until his 'art' was done. Instead, he sent his Raq over to her. The bird landed on the woman's shoulder and chirped lightheartedly, but not too loud, as Raqs are rather quiet creatures.

Molodi stared at the bird, glaring at it. She didn't like birds. She called them "flying shit-weasels". Still, she didn't want to offend this man, who looked like he could actually do some damage if he wanted to, so she just watched him draw in confusion.

R'ioth looked up when his drawing was done and slid the parchment over to Molodi. The bird left Molodi's shoulder, returned to R'ioth's, and dissipated. However, the drawing remained.

Depicted on the parchment was one scene of a man going to bed, alone. It acted out the whole process of the man going up to an Inn and entering, asking for a room, then paying for one and staying in it. The second clearly showed a man getting food from the Inn. The third showed the man obtaining blood, though it was from his own wrist, which was the only way R'ioth could think of displaying it. The fourth and final depiction was of a man finding his own home amongst a fog, entering, and making it his own.

"Qual?" R'ioth asked, looking into Molodi's eyes as if she would know the answer. "Qual otaino?"

Molodi cocked her head to the side, and analyzed the drawing. Finally, it clicked. "Ooooh, you want to... oh. Just a moment." She grabbed his arm. "Follow me." She led him up the stairs, looking around. "Melll? This new patron wants to sign in, here. Can you do that?"

Mel straightened her sleeves and nodded at Molodi, happy to have a distraction from the clearly insane man. "Yes, of course. It's no problem at all." She smiled, and walked towards the reception desk.