As morning came and the sun chose to shine through the windows, Alistar stretched and yawned finally waking up. It was so very comfortable in this bed with a warm body next to hers. Shifting slightly to look up at Drake, she was a bit surprised to find him still in bed with her. As much as she wanted to stay there and bask in his glory, the thought to surprise him with breakfast also crossed her mind. Slipping from the bed carefully, the goddess dressed in comfortable clothes and made her way out to the kitchen.

Even deciding to pick out one of the less ugly aprons the school provided for him and put it on. Tying her hair back, she set to work making muffin-tin scrambled eggs with ham, cheese, and mushrooms in them. Next were air-fryer cinnamon breakfast bites. Really just breakfast biscuits cut into smaller bites and tossed in cinnamon and sugar. All with a side of hashbrowns and some sliced fruit. All in all, Alistar was quite happy to make breakfast for Drake for once. Maybe this is why he got up so early every morning cook for her?

-----

Drake would lay there having gotten pretty mentally worn out from worrying over Alistar in the temple. So this morning he was enjoying sleeping in their new cabin with Alistar in his arms. It would be a bit till he started to stir from sleep once she had left his brain telling him something was missing. Slowly opening his eyes Drake sat up in bed Seeing Alistar was gone and for a moment he was worried that the school was up to something before smelling food. Drake would look a little surprised before smiling as he got out of the bed making his way to the kitchen. What greeted him was Alistar in an apron and hair pulled back working hard it seemed on breakfast. Drake would walk up behind her giving her a loving hug and a soft kiss on the neck “ good morning, Thank you for making breakfast.” he said in a whisper, moving his lips to be close to her ear.

—

Grinning as she felt his arms around her, the goddess leaned back into him and turned her face up to his for a kiss. ”Good morning handsome. Did you sleep well? I hope you’re hungry. I made a lot.” laughing she pointed at her apron. ”I even wore one of your aprons to feel fancy while doing it.” It was very obvious she was in a good mood and quite happy to be in his arms. Reaching up, she opened a cabinet and pulled down two plates for them.

----

Drake would kiss her when it was obvious she desired it. He would then hear her question and nodded “I did, I am sure you're the reason.” he said before looking over to her apron chuckling “ They are fun, like i told you.” he said smiling. Letting go of her and moving to the dining table he found the scene he was in like a dream. “ I am hungry.” he said to her as he sat down and looked around “ and greedier than I ever knew.” he said, letting out a content sigh. Drake had dreamed of moments like this the last few months. Having a home, waking up to someone who would always be there for him, and most of all a sense of ease. Drake had mixed feelings about it but moments like these had him lowering his guard and relaxing. There was a part of his mind that worried that it would lead to either him or her ending up in peril or hurt but he couldn't help it. She made him feel at ease in the weirdest ways at the most surprising of times.It was not an exaggeration to say Alistar had a power over him that not even the other world could stand up against.

—-

Fixing them both plates, she brought them over along with coffee and juice for them to drink. Taking off the apron, Alistar sat down across from him. ”Well, it’s natural to be greedy about things in life. But it’s not normal for you to feel that way. What do you mean?” Picking up her fork, she speared one of the cinnamon balls and held it out for him to eat. ”By the way, I have something I want to discuss with you after class today. Why don’t we meet up in the park area? Moonlit something I think the school calls it. Don’t worry it’s not a bad thing, at least I don’t think it is. By the way, did you ward this place like our last room?” she asked curiously.

----

Drake would lean forward and take the bite she offered blushing a little without realizing from being fed. “ well…I want this…” he said,taking a pause and motioning to the area around them. “ ..All the time. A peaceful home with you in it. A place where when we are ready we can start a family. Where we can find friends, hobbies, our favorite restaurants.” he said thinking about it deeply. “ A life…I don't just wish to have a life with you…I demand it.” he said looking serious “ After all the shit we have gone through…We deserve that. It is owed to both of us.” he said his words being his honest feelings “ don't you feel that. The greed…the expectation…that it is our right to finally live?” he asked her. He frowned “ sorry, between the dream i had and this morning its making me think about some serious stuff and how I…I am done having to suffer. I have done it enough i think.” he said looking into her eyes feeling his love fill his mind “ so have you. I refuse to let us be victims anymore and I will give my all to keep us from suffering again…no matter what.” he said holding out his hand for her “ Just another selfish promise I feel I want to make to you.” he said smiling.

—-

Smiling softly, she paused in her eating and listened to him closely. Looking around the room as he gestured that way, Alistar took a deep breath and sighed thoughtfully. Staying silent once he finished, she needed a moment to collect her thoughts and what she wanted to say. Golden eyes turned back to his blue and crinkled with joy at the edges. ”I understand what you mean, and this is one of the differences for us.” Laughing softly, she shook her head. ”Drake, you are always living in the future and seeing what could be. I don’t want to suffer anymore either, but I’m not. I have you. Unless you are taken from me, I will never suffer again.” Thinking about what he said, it made sense that he would want those things. ”It’s a difference in how we’ve suffered too I think. Silent HIll deprived you of a lot of things. I was able to have a lot of it… but I didn’t have that person I could share it with… You did.” Shrugging, she reached out a hand to take one of his. ”I’ll make sure you experience all of the things you want. So be sure to think about where you want to live.”

----

Drake would nod blushing “ I…have a hard time not trying to think ahead. Reacting only got you so far, could only make you so successful. I needed to plan and move and adapt my plans if anything changed but everything I did always had an endpoint. An A to B methodology. This…just being is new and confusing even now. Not being able to plan something is different and hard since I know enough. We have to deal with Ra, we have to keep the other world from taking me, and then everything that comes after this. I am not suffering now either and that's also because I have you. Almost all of my new life experiences have been shared with you.” he said looking at their two hands. “ I have no clue where places are in the world.” he admitted, looking a bit shy about admitting that.

—-

Squeezing his hand when he finished talking, she gently took her own back. ”Well, why don’t we plan out what you would like to do when we get back. There are things we can plan for. It’s actually why I wanted to meet up in the park after class. But while it’s just the two of us sharing a moment, I would appreciate it if we could be right here and now. Not twenty years in the future…. Which…. How do you age now?” would he continue to age slowly? Had he completely stopped or would he age normally? That thought terrified her as it meant that she would lose him in only a few short years.

——

Drake nodded “ right…we can plan it out later.” he said relaxing as he ate some of his food “ I will be here and now.” he said before looking up and stared at her with a bewildered look at her as if she had just spoken nonsense at him. He would just sort of stare at her while his mouth hung open like he was going to say something but no sound came out. Closing his mouth he looked away looking now a mixture of confused and annoyed before he spoke again. “ I…Have absolutely no idea. I never thought about how I age in the confines of the real world. I know I am not like I was before the other world.” he said, taking a few bites as he mulled over everything he remembered to try to see if there was an answer to it. “ Yeah, I have absolutely no idea. I don't even know how to check that really. Huh…” he said, scratching the side of his head looking very befuddled at the moment.

—-

Finishing off her plate, she tried hard not to laugh at the look on his face. Coughing, she smiled at him encouragingly. ”Well, isn’t your friend Toni like super smart with medical stuff? Maybe she could help figure it out?” Alistar hadn’t talked to Toni often but she did hear about the things the android woman did.

”Would it help for the planning stuff if we picked a direction together? Like a specific thing or two that we know we need to plan out? Would that help? Hmmm you could make a scrap book for ideas or I don’t know something crafty and visual.” she knew he liked making things with his hands, maybe that would help him?

----

Drake nodded “ yeah…maybe toni can do a test on my skin or something…something.” he said, still looking bewildered. When she brought up a direction he excitedly slammed his fists down. “ A JOB! I need to figure out a job! If we are gonna move forward we should figure out jobs to help support us. I learned at least that much. jobs are important for living a good life since it's how you earn money and not look like a bum in society.” he would say with a vigorous head nod as he was obviously reciting something he learned when he was younger.

----

Watching him carefully, she pushed her finished plate away smiling. The look on his face was adorable really. Had she ever seen him so confused before? Jumping slightly when he slammed his fist onto the table, she instinctively recoiled from him and frowned hard. ”First sir, you need to be nicer to the table. Two, you need to figure out a job. I’ll be fine. I’ve been alive long enough to already have everything I need and plenty of pocket money.” Realistically, she could retire completely and live for a very long time if she wanted to. Covering her mouth, Alistar tried hard not to laugh at Drake.

----

Drake would blush a bit when she told him to be nicer to the table giving her a nod before thinking about his own job. “So i need to think of a job…which means i need to think of what my skill sets are and how to apply them into a market and such..” he would say his voice slowly going quieter as he began mumbling to himself obviously lost in deep thought. There were the assassin skills, survival skills, and lastly and newest of all was his growing cooking skills. “The easiest one for a normal job might be my cooking skills, wouldn't you agree?” he asked her, curious as to her input.

—-

Laughing softly, she shrugged and leaned forward. ”Well, I could buy property for you and we could build you your own cafe. You’ve worked at the one here at the school enough to know damn near every position. You could start working on a menu and pay attention to what is ordered more often at the cafe now. There’s lots of things you could develop while you’re here.” chuckling, she sat back and took them back to an earlier conversation. ”You never said if you marked this room like you did our last one. As one of the safe spaces in Silent Hill. Are you ok to meet up after class? I didn’t know if you had plans again, work, or what.” 

----

Drake would listen and think about it. Would he be able to run it? He had worked at the Cafe a while now and had learned more than a few things from his time there. “That doesn't…sound bad actually. I might really enjoy doing that.” he said with a small smile to Alistar. When she asked if he had protected this place he shook his head “no, I haven't yet. I will try to do so as soon as possible. As for plans I dont think I had any today other than possibly checking in with Toni about the age test thing we discussed.” he said to her rubbing his chin “maybe we can go see her then do whatever we wish to after giving her whatever she needs to test that out.” he would say smiling to the lovely woman he had fallen for. Drake was trying to not think about too many things at the moment and just enjoy the moment with her like she asked him to.

—-

Smiling at him knowingly, Alistar nodded. ”I think you could. Of course, we could always hire people to help. You’ll have to consider a lot of things. What kind of staff do you want? When will you be open? What kind of menu do you want to have? Do you do catering at all? Loads of stuff. I bet you could even find books about business management in the school library, or ask a teacher for help.” shrugging, she stretched her arms above her head. ”Yeah, we can do that. Give her a text to make sure she’s available? Now come on let’s go get ready for class.”

Getting up the goddess sauntered towards the bathroom with her hands clasped behind her head. ”Who knows. If you open up that store, you could become the breadwinner for our household. Meaning I could just stay home all day with the kids while you’re out working.” she laughed at that idea as she called it over her shoulder. Knowing that at no point would they ever actually need to rely on Drake’s income once they went back to her world. She had been alive long enough to have a nicely lined pocket.

-----

Drake would nod taking all her words into consideration as he thought about opening his own cafe. He was so lost in those thoughts he almost didn't hear her say that he needed to get ready for class. Giving her a smile he would start to go get ready before stopping in his tracks. Blinking he would rush over and with amazing speed was behind her and would pin her to the wall. He began kissing her neck “Albi, you said our kids.” he said softly into her ear “you know what saying things like that does to me.” he said holding her tight. “You can't say things like that and expect me to just….go get ready for class.” he said nipping her earlobe “and another thing, you would make an amazing stay at home mother.” he would tell her while having her pinned like he did.

—

With an oof she found herself pinned to the closest wall and Drake pressed against her. Returning his kiss, the goddess purred at his actions no longer phased at how passionate he became when children were mentioned. ”I do, and you could always come with me if you wanted.” Nipping his nose she let him decide if he was going to follow her to the shower or not.

After the shower fun time was finished, they both dressed and headed to class. Alistar happily took Drake’s hand and held it the entire way. Once they arrived and received their assignment, she looked up at Drake. ”Should we partner for this class?”

----

Drake would enjoy the kiss as he listened to her and smiled as he nodded “i think i will.” he said to her and let her go from the wall. He followed after her and yes, a fun shower time did ensue. When they were done and dressed he would walk with her to class but his mind was thinking about kids with Alistar, his own cafe, and other such idle fantasies. He would get snapped back to reality when Alistar spoke asking if he and she should be partners for the class. “There isn't anyone else I wish to partner with so yes.” he said before taking in what the assignment was. Thinking for a moment what he would want he looked to Alistar “Why don't we make a potion for one another. It might be fun.” he said smiling to Alistar and waited for her response.

----

Laughing Alistar shrugged and contemplated what to do for Drake as their potion. ”I don’t know. I’m not sure what I would want to do for you. Do you know what kind of potion you would want to do for me?” she asked. Looking around she found a work station for them to get started. Following the directions that Myst showed them, the goddess tapped a well manicured nail on the table and chewed on her lower lip in thought.

----

Drake would look over to her when she said she wasn't sure what to do for her potion. He would look at her when she asked him if he knew what he was going to do and nodded “ yes i do.” he said bluntly and would join her at the workstation as he got started. “ As for what you want to do…Maybe a new hairstyle or different colored eyes? Just a slight change you have thought of before when looking at me.” he offered, trying to help her think up an idea.

—

Squinting hard as amber orbs studied him, Alistar had to tilt her head. ”I’ve not really thought of changing anything on you. You are you, if I couldn’t accept you as you are… then there’s not much reason for me to love you huh?” it made sense in her brain. ”But now that we’re being forced to think about it…” turning she looked at the ingredients and potion recipes that were about. ”Maybe short hair? I’ve seen you with longer hair before, I wonder what you would look like with a short haircut.” Not even a different color or anything, just a different cut. ”I guess it’s a good thing that the effects wear off if it’s something you don’t like.” Cautiously she started mixing together ingredients and mumbling to herself about how it was like cooking.

----

Drake looked at his hair and reached up, grabbing some thinking about her words. “ huh…never really thought about doing anything with my hair.” he said to her before going back to his potion and it wouldn't be too long before it was done. His potion looked black like ink but smelled like mint. “ Alright, here is my potion.” he said and would wait to receive his plan to take his along with her. He was looking at her hair and her in general finding her so beautiful and her comments about loving him hadn't gone unheard. Drake moved to stand a bit closer to her his hand gently rubbing her back as he watched her work with her potion.

—-

Alistar finally finished her own potion that swirled blue with glittering silver flakes smelling of cold. As for the flavor, that was yet to be seen as she hadn’t put that much thought into it. Holding it out to him, she waited until he gave her the one he had made for her. ”Alright. Shall we drink on three?” Counting with him, she laughed and drank the potion like a shot. Downing it in one go so she wouldn’t have to worry about the flavor. Feeling a vaguely uneasy feeling her scalp began to tingle and her hair turned black from the root down to the tips. It still retained a bit of a purple sheen to it, but was as dark as midnight. ”Well now. That’s interesting. Wanted to see me with darker hair huh?” a strange pang hit her. Didn’t his first love have dark hair?

----

Drake would drink in tandem with her and would feel a tingle in his head as he watched from his peripheral vision his hair shrinking upwards. When he was done moving he would take out his phone and use the camera and blinked, feeling like he looked a bit like someone he had met in silent hill before. Shaking the thought he looked to Alistar when she asked about him wanting to see her hair darker. “ Yes. I was curious about seeing you with the black hair Bastet was often depicted as having. I can say with certainty though that your normal hair color is a much better fit.” he said smiling, still being close to her. “ I will say it is a different feeling to have short hair. I don't think I have ever had it short like this ever.” he told her before chuckling “ I got threatened by Alessa once she would cut it though since me and Claudia both had blonde hair so from the back it was hard to tell who was who at first glance.” he chuckled remembering her making a couple pairs of scissors float and snip in a threatening manner while Alessa stood blushing with embarrassment from mixing him up with Claudia.

—

Listening to him, she looked at a lock of her hair thinking. ”You sure you weren’t trying to make me look like one of your companions?” she wasn’t going to outright ask him if he made her look like his first love. It even bothered her a little that he would change her hair to look like Bastet’s. ”Why make me look like someone else?” she mused. Her pride was a bit tarnished even if he had complimented her.

Looking up at him, she wrinkled her nose and cocked her head to the side. ”It looks strange on you. Not bad, but with your normal expression it’s even more like a serial killer.” Yeah, it was one they would probably need to avoid in the future. Unless she could teach him to smile regularly again.

----

Drake shook his head “ no I wasn't trying to do that. The reason I chose bastets hair color is because I had a thought. I know powers can sometimes change peoples appearances around here and I had the thought after seeing the assignment if one day your godhood would change your hair color to match the previous incarnations. This thought made me curious how it would look and since this is temporary I gave it a try.” he said looking at the hair “ But it is too ordinary for someone as amazing as you. I regret choosing it more by the second.” he said smiling before she said his looked strange as he tilted his head. “ Don't I smile a lot nowadays. You see me doing it often or am I just imagining that I am smiling.” he said looking a tad confused.

—-

Frowning, Alistar looked up at him with her head cocked. ”What do you mean? That.. How did you know whenever Bastet, Hathor, or Sekhmet took over? You always seemed to know that it wasn’t me you were speaking to.” Shifting her stance to cross her arms in front of her and watch him, the goddess scoffed lightly. ”You smile, but I’ve seen better ones on your face before. The ones you give right now don’t always reach your eyes. It’s like that place stole every ounce of light and life from your body, and even if you are happy now… you don’t seem to remember how to fully show it.” thinking about it she tried to remember a time when he had fully given a belly laugh that was as carefree as a child. ”I can tell when you are truly smiling, but others may think it’s a creepy sinister smirk.” Laughing, she touched his cheek lightly.

----

Drake would move his hand and gently brushed his thumb under her eyes " when that night happened there was a sign something changed. Their body language and tone yes but your eyes…they changed to have a different color in them. All that told me it wasn't actually you because I have tried my best to memorize all your little quirks and mannerisms." He said smiling " your unique, and I love all the things about you that are so." He said with a gentle smile before she brought up his smile and he thought about her words slowly taking his hand away. He wanted to say he was fine and that he was really happy but something kept those words from leaving him. He realized saying that would be lying to her and now he was standing there with that knowledge. Taking a breath he locked eyes with the goddess before him " Alistar…I am the happiest I have been in a long time." He said slowly taking her hands into his " and I know it bothers you but I promise I will heal. That place took a lot but I plan to take it all back." He said softly " so…sorry for worrying you. It feels like this is really worrying you and I feel guilty about it but know I am getting there better I have you." he said and gave a real big smile " and besides, no one else makes me as happy as you, maybe that's why my smiles are lesser for them."

—

Feeling his hand on her face, the goddess turned her cheek into it not minding the contact at all. ”So my eyes changed color and I acted a bit differently. You realize I can achieve the same thing by wearing contacts and acting a little right?” It didn’t bother her that he had tried to memorize everything she did, because it was something she herself did. The fact he had told her how unique she was so many times in such a short span of time worried her though. Who was he trying to convince? Her… or himself?

Alistar could tell that he was thinking deeply about something but not quite what until he spoke. Why did she feel so bereft when he took his hand away? Frowning as she watched his face, she could tell what he said had great importance to him. ”I hadn’t meant all of your smiles for others. Even some of your smiles for me seem hollow. I hate that place and I want to help you take it better. After class, let’s set the safe point in our new cabin and I want you to take me there.”

----

Drake would nod but smiled “ but there would be a hint of you in the act. It's hard for me to put into words but it was like it wasn't you looking at me anymore. There was a hint of unfamiliarity that was odd to feel.” he said, hoping he was explaining himself well and not making any unnecessary misunderstandings.

When she talked more about his smiles he felt a slight pang in his heart when she said some of his smiles seemed hollow and worry that she felt like he was faking his feelings rushed his mind. He would reach up and touch the corners of his mouth before hearing her bring up that place and how she wanted him to take her there. He blinked in confusion and stared like he had misheard her “ You…want to go back there?” he asked, looking confused by that “ is there something there you need to see?” he asked, trying to find some reason or something she mentioned that would explain this want of going back to the otherworld.

—--

Putting her hands on her hips the black faded from hair returning it to it’s normal purple luster. ”Yes. I want to go back there. That place is your Ra. It keeps pulling you back for some reason and I want to find out why. If we can learn to harness it and control it… use it to your advantage. There won’t be a need for us to fear it. How could I in good conscience bare a child of our making, knowing that place may come for them or you at any time. What if it yanked our child in after you before they could defend themselves?” Staring at him, she didn’t bother to hide the worry or fear from her gaze. ”I don’t care what we have to do. That place will yield!” her voice lowered and grew firm, sounding almost like a threatening growl. ”You want to help me with Ra… well I want to help you with this.” she said earnestly.

----

Drake watched as the purple returned to her hair before listening to her reasons. He remained silent but emotions flew across his face showing pain, worry, fear, anger, and at the end a sliver of hope. He would digest her words a moment before nodding " your right. We can't move forward with things as they are. Alright, we will go." He said, taking her hand " but we leave when I say it's time. I don't want us overstepping on this dangerous journey." he said in a calm but serious way.

—

Frowning at him hard, she squeezed his hand when he took hers. ”I didn’t mean for us to leave right this moment. We can’t because of the school, but tell me why… Why are you so afraid right now?” The assignment was finished for them and class would soon be over.

—-

Drake frowned and nodded “ I'm scared….of changing. Being in control of that place….being responsible for it…to have all that places power as my own..” he paused looking at his hands he sighed “ I don't like how it excites me. To be in control of it like you mentioned puts an odd sense of excitement that twisted into fear. I shouldn't be happy or excited to be in control of that place. To make it mine to bed and control…should i?” he asked her as he looked desperate for her to have an answer for this question. 

----

Staring at him meaningfully, she shrugged. ”I won’t allow you to be corrupted by that place, so why not? If it meant you could protect me easier; wouldn’t you use it? That place fucked with you for how long? Well, instead of letting it call the shots. Bend it to your will and take back control. It’s what you’re telling me to do with Ra isn’t it?” How many times had he pressed her about Ra and not being afraid of him.

----

Drake knew she was right. She usually was about things, especially about him. Even when they first met she seemed to see him clearer than he could at times. Taking in a calming breath and exhaling slowly he closed his eyes thinking about how he had trained and was still training to control the creatures he summoned from that place. Wouldn't it be the same as that if he could get control? Nothing about that place made full sense but his influence over the damn thing was an odd constant ever since Alessa darker half gave him these powers. Opening his eyes he was calm and looked at her “ your right.” he said softly and nodded “ I need to overcome it. Take from it as much as I can to pay it back for taking so much from me. Okay, We will start dealing with it and probably smarter to start doing so here then after we leave here. It does seem weaker here most of the time.”

—--

Amber orbs watched him carefully and smiled softly. ”And to protect those future children you want so badly.” laughing, she smirked and winked at him. Taking his hand as the bell rang, the goddess tugged on it gently to lead him out of the room. ”Come on. Unless you wanted to go to one of those weddings tonight; we can get started by making our new cabin one of those safe spaces. I want you to show me how it’s done, and then maybe a special treat after.” Grinning at him, she knew he may think a lustful thought, and while they could do that too, that actually wasn’t where her mind went this time.

----

Drake was having a hard time staying calm with all this talk of future kids. He would follow her but his mind was a torrent of different and very conflicting thoughts. “ You are curious about how I do it?” he asked, finding that a bit surprising but then again all this talk about the otherworld had him a bit surprised. When they arrived at the cabin he had calmed himself pretty good by this point before looking at her “ are you ready. We should be having any issues I would hope.” he said and when she agreed he would hold her before closing his eyes, letting his power to summon things from the other world spread around them.

When he opened his eyes again they were in their cabin but it was less new and looked more withered then it had while fog filled the world through the windows outside. Drake would let go of her and take out one of his daggers “ first…I find a spot to place the mark…usually somewhere central… like here.” he said and walked over to a wall in the living room. “ Then I carve the Halo of the sun…it takes a moment due to its complicated design.” He said carving it out “ each part has a meaning. Elements as they pertain to our faith, the stars that guide us, the sun that warms the souls of the believers…and much more that I can explain more later. This version of the Halo of the Sun is able to keep a place warded for a long time if not permanently but i havent how durable it truly is. There is a simpler version but it has failed me before.” he told Alistar and he moved with a practiced precision “ and it doesn't always work. It is like it can only live in places where people could rest and be safe. If I went outside and put it on a tree outside it would do nothing.” he went on to explain before getting quiet as he focused on finishing the symbol and about ten minutes later it was done.

“ Now it needs to be activated.” he told her as he cut his palm open and put it against the seal. What she would see happen next was his blood would move and begin filling the carving and once it was fully filled the blood began to glow showing the mark had come alive. “ And now it should be safe inside of here.” he told her, smiling a small and relieved smile.

----

Nodding to his question, she was indeed very curious how it worked and why he had to mark specific spaces the way he did. Humming appreciatively as he held her, the goddess didn’t even seem to mind the way his powers warped around them. Instead she nuzzled into him more and sighed contently. Looking around the cabin when he was finished, she instinctively looked for more of the creatures but was relieved when she didn’t find any.

Watching him carve the symbol and explain it, she asked, ”Does it have to be carved, or can it simply be drawn?” The more he continued though and eventually cut his palm, she understood why it may need to be carved into a space. ”How far out would this protect? Just this room or this entire cabin? If I were to carve it, would it have the same effect or is it because of your connection to the otherworld?” She wanted to know if it would be even useful for her to try and make a safe space if she needed one or if he was the only one who could do it. ”Is it stronger if it gets more than one person’s blood?” Reaching out, she took his palm and healed his wound.

Thinking, she tilted her head. She wondered if you could take the symbol with you, but then remembered how he explained it only protected certain spaces. Moving closer, she reached out to run her fingers over his carving curiously. Taking his dagger she moved just under his carving and etched out an integrated ankh and eye of Bast. The eye didn’t look any different from an eye of Ra, but the line that came down from the corner of the eye, was in the middle marking an ankh. Cutting her finger open, she traced the light carving with her own blood before flicking the dirt from her finger and handing him back his knife. Obviously she had no idea how this place would react to such a symbol or why she even felt the need to draw it. ”It’s an ankh and the eye of bast.” she explained holding up her wrist that had her birthmark on it. ”This isn’t an eye of Ra per say. Bastet was known as the left eye of Ra. It’s one of her symbols.”

-----

Drake would be surprised by the wave of questions but would focus on her words and thought about them. “ The carvings seemed to last longer. I have seen them drawn before but they tend to be weaker and work in tighter spaces.” he said before motioning “ the one i made should cover the entirety of this cabin's innards. But it will not affect anything outside. They will get close but they won't try to come in unless it's through the door.” he said pointing to the cabin’s entrance. “ And anyone can make them. Carving then adding your blood seems to serve the best for bigger rooms but in truth i have only met a few others who even used these marks and none of them I would consider an alley.” he said thinking of other order members using the symbols like he did to give themselves safe spaces inside of this other world and how he had found a few in his hunting. They may have been safe from the other world monsters but not from him. When she asked about blood he shook his head “ not from what I can tell. The blood is like a tribute to the marks' origins. Blood in my faith is a greater element above earth, wind, water and fire. Light, blood, and steel are the greater elements of my faith while the rest are just less.”

When she started carving into the symbol he watched as she did it below his and when she added her blood he waited a moment and watched it begin glowing a soft gold and Drake blinked before smiling “ so I was right…no wonder they couldn't make it work like i could.” he said looking at her “ You just answered a very old question for me Albi, thank you.” he said gently touching her mark before looking to her “ now what? Should we leave or was there something else you wished to ask or try out?” he asked her, looking more relaxed.

—-

Looking up at him when he took her hand, Alistar smiled playfully. ”What question is that? You can’t say something like that and then not explain yourself mister.” Bringing his hand up to her lips, she kissed his knuckles before grabbing a piece of paper and copying the symbol that he had drawn onto it. Folding the paper, she stuck it in her pocket. ”Want to have that later so I can practice drawing it without needing to look at a reference. Anyway, I had two ideas. One.” she held up one finger. ”And both of these are going to be done at some point, but you get to pick the order. One, we can stay here and investigate this place to really get to the root of it. Figure out how to help you practice with it and embrace this place. Or two, we go and get those tattoos for your faith. I’ve been thinking of sketching up my own symbol. Since all of my predecessors had their own, I want one now.” wrinkling her nose she gave him a cute pout and shrugged. ”So which do you feel up to doing tonight? Because we both know you’ll be doing me later.” laughing softly she winked at him suggestively.

-----

Drake watched her make a copy while listening to what the two plans were. Hearing both options he was surprised by them both like everything else she had apparently planned out today…other than the doing her later bit since that was usually on their schedule. Drake thought for a moment and moved his head to look out the window “ I think investigating might be good. The other world here is weakened due to the school so it can’t exert its full willpower here but that is good since it will make adapting to this idea easier. Though I worry some of our desired answers won't be here but in the otherworld I am more familiar with.” he said to her before moving close to her and suddenly picked her up to hold her in his arms while also slightly pinning her to the wall “ and you were teasing me pretty meanly in class with all the talk of kids. I thought we weren't talking about future stuff yet.” he teased before kissing her real quick.

–

Letting out a loud laugh, she wrapped her legs around his waist and her arms around his shoulders. ”I wasn’t teasing you. I was merely mentioning a fact. You’ve made it abundantly clear that you want children. At least I wasn’t going out and picking out baby items and showing them off to you.” Giggling, she could only imagine the faces he would make if she gave him a onesie that said ‘Daddy’s little girl.’ on it with no context. Alistar was 95% certain she wouldn’t be able to walk for a week after that.

Running her hands through his hair, she couldn’t help the overwhelming feeling of love for the man. It still terrified her a bit but with the full understanding of who she was and with her memories unlocked; the purple haired goddess wasn’t afraid anymore. Knowing if she didn’t redirect them to leaving, they would end up naked and practicing making those babies he wanted so badly; Alistar kissed him while hugging him with her whole body. Letting go, she gently pushed at his broad shoulders. A tan hand drifting down to tangle her fingers with his. ”Lead the way my Knight. Oh, let me grab a few things first.” heading to their bedroom, she quickly grabbed a few more weapons to stow away on herself before rejoining him. ”Ok, now I’m ready.”

----

Drake smiled as she gently pushed him away knowing she wanted to do other things at the moment. Drake felt her hand entwined with his a moment before she called him her knight . He liked being called that and even more so that he was her knight as he was about to lead her on before she dashed away to get some things before returning to his side. Drake would lead them onward outside of the Cabin into the fog, his eyes slowly scanning around to see if he noticed anything in the fog. “ What way do you feel like going? Places in nature like this tend to be like a maze more than in the towns. Was there something specific you were hoping to see or interact with? I think having a focus might help us find it in this place.” he said to her while holding tightly to her hand, obviously not wanting her to get separated from him.

- —

Following him outside, she looked around at the fog and shrugged. ”Well the whole point to this was to make the place bend to your will. Part of that would be making it take you where you want to go wouldn’t it? I suppose understanding what you think that means, to you. Would be very important. Anytime I’ve been brought here, it’s always been subject to what this place wanted. What do you want. Also, if one of the creature things show up… are you able to do something about them? Not just kill them or run away, but again, make them do what you want? Think of this as a way for you to really practice exerting your control.” Squeezing his hand in hers, she hoped what she said made sense and that he would be willing to give her suggestions a go.

----

Drake listened to her words and thought for a moment. Holding out the free hand that wasn't holding hers, he closed his eyes and began to focus hard enough that it did show on his face. After a moment his hair grew longer and paler for a moment before the fog seemed to move out of the way slightly to make a path. “ Ok…lets see if this takes me where i want.” he said and began leading her down the unfogged path he had made. After some walking and the world looking the same with similar looking dead trees with fog all around them soon changed into a fogless clearing with a familiar looking tree. Drake looked pleasantly surprised as a small smile came over his face before looking at her. “ Recognize this place?” he asked her.

—

Watching him change, she smiled when it was only his hair. Walking with him, she at first didn’t recognize the place he brought them. Frowning, she scratched the side of her head thoughtfully. ”That looks like a comfy tree to take a nap in.” she laughed softly before it dawned on her. ”OH! Is this where you woke me up from my nap when we first met?”

Grinning at him, she quirked an eyebrow curiously. ”Come here, I want to do something with that beautiful hair of yours.” Waiting for him to turn, she combed her fingers through his hair and easily braided it and tied it off with a tie she had on her wrist. ”Just to keep it out of your way while we’re here. Is there a reason it gets this long when you use your powers?” she asked curiously. It didn’t seem to do that in the normal world.

----

Drake looked at her and nodded “ that it is.” he answered before letting her braid his hair and nodded as for her explanation on why she did it. “ Thanks Albi. As for why it grows…I am not sure. Whenever I really focus on my connection to this place I begin to change…as I told you that's what my real appearance is. Somehow I am able to suppress it and look normal but…Whenever I'm here and exerting myself I slip into it. You healed it some so maybe its like hiding scars. As for the hair…it looks healthier than it used to as well.” he said looking confused a bit. “ I know I got that appearance because I died and my personal horror for some reason melded with me which changed me but I'm not sure in what way.” he said before smiling “ but that's why we are here. We will learn about that as well.” he said before looking around and then closed his eyes, focusing.

“ Bend…to my will…make it do….what I desire.” he said and suddenly another Alistar would appear in the tree laying down in it while another drake came walking in. The original drake opened his eyes and smiled “ It worked. I am making it show us a memory.” he said as their first meeting played out. He smiled before sighing “ I had a dark thought when I first met and realized you were a killer like me. I wondered if maybe you would kill me.” he said in a calm but lifeless tone “ I wondered if I should offend you so that you would end my life and make sure I never ended up back in the otherworld back home.”

—-

Pulling his braid over his shoulder to look at it, Alistar hummed thoughtfully. ”Or, maybe like the rest of this place, it’s a perception? You think that you should look that way because you died. Do you think your goddess would really want someone who is as loyal and devout as you to suffer in that form?” Alistar didn’t think so. ”What do you think these horrors really are? They’re great at warping and showing us things, we fear but when I look at you in either form, I don’t fear you.” the point she was trying to make is that basically the world around them was showing them a mirror. So he only looked the way he did, because he expected it or thought it. His appearance was starting to change, because how he viewed himself was changing.

Amber eyes drifted back to the memory as it started playing out. Listening to him, she laughed. ”I thought about it. You recognized me for what I was when no one else could. That’s extremely dangerous in my line of work, but then I thought about toying with you. Which also was normal in what I did. Could I figure out how you knew it so quickly? Maybe have a little fun at the same time. Then I realized just how completely clueless you were to some things and that honestly just had me tickled to see how far I could push that envelope.” Looking up at him, she smiled knowingly. ”I’m glad I didn’t kill you.”

----

Drake thought about his perception and what his goddess would think. His thoughts then focused on a specific thing she said…what did he think the horrors of this place were? He knew what they were supposed to be didn't he? His eyes looked to her when she brought up that she had thought about killing him which got a nod understanding why she was saying what she was. “ I could tell from how you moved…I learned mainly things like how to see potential threats or targets. Not much else was left for me to know when they got done.” he said before chuckling “ and it sounds like I was just something to placate your boredom. Is that still partially true?” he asked, teasing her a bit as he moved to hug her from behind.

—-

Alistar laughed at him outright and shook her head. ”You basically pegged me as an assassin from how I got down from the tree. Any nimble person or acrobat could have done exactly what I did.” Huffing at him, she pouted and turned to observe the memory more. Seeing the two walk like they had as they conversed. ”You were. I was bored and you were something fun to play with.” Feeling his strong arms wrap around her shoulders, Alistar leaned back into him. ”Are you asking if I still find you interesting?”

Smirking, the goddess shifted her gaze to look up at him. ”Yes, I do. You’re still very fun to tease and well the more I learned about you the more I saw the injustice of your life… I wanted to do something about it and help you.” shrugging she felt uncomfortable showing this rare caring side of herself.

----

Drake smiled at her “ it was more than that. The way you looked at me like you were tearing apart my weakness and strengths. Keeping a distance just in case I come at you. There were signs there.” he said smirking as he would nod when she asked if he was asking if she still found him interesting. When she spoke he tightened his hold on her a little bit. “ You were very different, I knew that from the start. You were blunt with me, took my words with stride, and understood how I saw things for the most part. Out of everyone I had met here you were someone I could relate to even if just a bit. It was nice. Then as I got to know you and enjoy your company I started realizing just how beautiful you were. How oddly kind, caring, thoughtful, protective. You were able to share so much with me and I won't lie it confused me since you had set up the no attachments rule.” he said smirking as he lowered his head to rest on her shoulder. “ You helped me remember what being alive even felt like. I started getting attached around then breaking your one rule.” he said softly before gently kissing just under her ear “ and no matter what happens I would do it all again a million times over.”

—

Chuckling at him, she hummed an ‘uh huh’ at him but let it go. Listening to what he thought about her in the beginning, a blush colored her tan cheeks. ”Oy. You were the one who wanted to hang out so often. Blunt was the only way to get you to understand anything, and I honestly think others just took you too seriously. It wasn’t hard to understand that there was more going on under the surface.” frowning, she thought about it. ”Then again not everyone thinks to listen for more. It’s one of the things that make my job so easy. People love to talk about themselves.” Laughing softly, she gave him an incredulous look. ”So you didn’t think I was beautiful until after we spent time together? Then why did you let me kiss you that first time? The curiosity about my ability couldn’t have been that strong.” Drake was an odd one that was for sure.

Frowning at him and looking back to the memory in front of them, she held herself still. ”I still hold myself to the no attachments rule. You’re an exception I’ve made, and one that may cost me quite a bit. I want you to think about why I had the rule Drake.” Looking up at him with sad eyes, it reflected just how old she truly was. ”You don’t know how you age. So for all we know. You age at a normal human rate and only have another maybe 50-60 years left. That means in 50-60 years, you’re going to die and I’ll be alone again.” Blinking, she held her breath and couldn’t look at him. It hurt too much to know that he may die and leave her. ”I have no idea if I could pull your soul from whatever resting place would be yours… if I’d be allowed to follow you, or what would even happen to this place once you’re gone.” Alistar could feel his kisses and affection but the weight of potentially losing him kept her from reacting.

----

Drake would listen to her worries and would think about what she was saying for a moment knowing that if the situations were flipped then he would feel the dread of losing them. Drake was silent before speaking “ Then what if we make sure I dont age right?” he asked her in a serious tone. Slowly letting go of her he moved to stand in front of her “ This place…the other world is able to bend time…maybe our answer is there. You talked about me taking control of it and maybe in doing so I could learn to keep myself from aging normally. If I have to abandon my humanity to do it then so be it as long as I can remain beside you.” he said, giving her a real and genuine smile. “ You told me not to worry about the future and enjoy our time now. I am sure we can find a way to extend my life.” he said gently, taking her hands “because I think we are both too stubborn to give up on this anymore.” he said, his tone being soft and happy.

—-

Staying silent, the goddess listened to him not really sure what to say to his suggestion. ”Stuff like this is the reason I don’t like thinking of the future. Think too much and you hurt your own feelings. Besides, you’re not giving up your humanity.” This whole subject was starting to make her uncomfortable. Looking around him, the memory had stopped a while ago. ”Why is this place behaving? You’re controlling it better, but I thought it would have put up more of a fight than this.” It was concerning that things were going so smoothly.

-----

Drake chuckled " I meant like physical humanity." He said gently stroking her hair. " But I have read many myths recently in preparation for fighting Ra. There are many many stories on immortality. I'm sure we can figure out something for me." He said before looking around. He realized she was right and slowly moved away from her and reached out " your right…its…responding to me rather easily…" he went silent, his eyes showing he was lost in thought. Then Drake moved his hand and as if appearing from a heat mirage was a large fat horror with a torn open stomach that had tendrils with barbs lashing out of the tear. " Kneel." He said and waited and to his surprise the horror knelt to him instantly. " That's…new" he said, scratching his head, then slowly looked to Ali turning his back to the horror " is…is it still behaving?" He asked her.

—

Of course she watched the man in front of her with guarded eyes. She knew he would probably fight to stay with her, just as hard as she would fight, to stay with him. The revelation that this place was listening to him seemed to surprise Drake. ”Why do I feel like it listening to you is not a good thing?” Alistar’s face turned hard and focused as she saw the creature he summoned. ”What the hell is that?” It was not one she wanted to deal with. She was obviously ready to dash around him as the man she loved turned to face her. ”Not sure how you can stomach putting your back to that thing.” Nodding though, she gave him an affirmative reply but kept her eyes trained on the creature.

----

Drake gave her an awkward smile “ I don't know but maybe we shouldn't ignore that feeling. Or maybe we are just so unused to things going the way we want them to.” he said before looking back at the horror “ They….they get worse and that one can't move without being noisy.” he told her. Walking over to it he didn't feel the strain he normally felt when using this power “ Hey…When i was trapped in silent hill…was there anything that happened that you think might have changed me permanently. This is my first time interacting with any of this since then…maybe something whatever may have happened altered my powers maybe?” he asked, trying to go through everything he could think of that would have made a change. He put a hand on the kneeling horror and it wasn't resisting or trying to break free of his command. In fact it was just calmly listening and waiting for its next command.

—-

Alistar frowned hard at him, worried about how close he was getting to the horror. Drake’s question caught her off guard and made her wrinkle her nose. ”Uh, the whole damn thing was pretty freaky.” With a sigh, she ran a hand over her face and thought about it. ”Uh, Well, your child self. The kid wanted to protect me and help me. He and the crazy one stuck with me through damn near the whole thing. The crazy one said that he was trying to get to you before the horror meshed with you though… it obviously didn’t work… I touched the horror that possessed you?” The goddess laughed slightly as she remembered the creature looking at it’s hand oddly afterwards. ”It didn’t seem to know what to think about me touching it. Almost every version of you I met remembered me and tried to help me.” Looking at him oddly, she had a thought. ”Didn’t you say I wouldn’t be able to see the kid again because he went back into you or something?” That part was a bit fuzzy to her because it had been at the end when she had passed out on him.

----

Drake thought about everything she said, piecing it together the best he could. He knew deep down a part of him had made sure his fractured bits all knew about Alistar but how had he managed that? From what he understood his psyche had been shattered long before meeting her so it didn't make sense how it seemed fine now. In fact he felt clear as the days before everything went to hell. Her last words stuck in his mind “ Went into me…made me whole…and the horror that possessed me, fused with me, or whatever we want to call what the horror did acted strange when you touched it…huh.” he said looking at the fat and tentacled horror that was still kneeling. It seemed so docile and it was odd being able to examine it this closely. “ Alistar…I am considering a few things right now. You have healed my other form partially I believe…and you affect the horrors nature most likely due to your godhood. My brain keeps looking at this like fixing a wound and giving someone medicine to feel better…what if i have been wrong…what if everyone who messed with the otherworld was wrong. I understand how it is right now…but I have no clue what it was like before I am now realizing at this moment.” he said the revelation, making him look confused and a bit worried. Even in this flustered state the beast remained docile and behaved which was starting to bug Drake now so he unsummoned it. “ Now I'm starting to question what I know…I wish this place would just be simple for once.” he said, sighing in annoyance. “ So I have better control, plus. We don't know how that happened, minus.” he said looking at her “ and thoughts to add to the plus/minus list?” he asked her.

—

Alistar stared at Drake like he had several heads. At this point he was just muttering to himself and not making a whole lot of sense to her. ”Well, those boss-like horrors seemed to react differently to me too didn’t they? The ones we saw in one of the first times this place pulled me in here. Have you ever tried talking to them? It’s not like we can ask your other selves anymore if they’re a part of you again.” Frowning hard at him, she sighed as she thought. ”Are you saying that me healing your other selves and touching your horror did something to you? I think I need to get a scorecard or something to keep track of all of this.”

Looking around at the place they were in, she wrinkled her nose again. ”You always mention a heart to this place. Is that like a core, or a central place? I mean it’s cool and all that you can summon the horrors and shift the area around us, but it feels… like there’s something more that should be done.”

----

Drake would nod in agreement when she brought up that those two boss like horrors were different then the rest. “ That's a valid point. I think I'm just trying to collect any possibilities at this point before narrowing them down. I'm not saying what is or isn't yet.” he said walking over to her around the time she asked about the core of the otherworld. “ Back where I got pulled from I found a way to get to what I believed was the heart of the otherworld. It seemed to be where everything poured out from so I'm certain that's what it was but in my attempt to get to it I was wounded then found myself in this school.” he told her looking around the small clearing “ should we keep moving on or go back to the cabin for now?” he asked her as he seemed to relax a bit from all this new info. He would take one of her hands into his and give her a small smile to show he was doing a bit better.

—-

Worried, she listened to him and watched his face. Before she answered, she looked around and considered how she did things versus how Drake tended to handle things. Was she pushing him too hard? With a sigh, she brought his hand up to her lips, kissing his knuckles. ”I’ll follow your lead. So if you want to go home, we can do that. I don’t want to push you too hard Drake. I know this place isn’t pleasant for you and that it can’t be easy. The way we deal with things is different, that's all. When I see a clear path or a task to be done… I do it. I get it out of the way because it would eat at me to not. It’s like when we’re given a mission. You complete it and get it over with. If roles were reversed, I would want to know what all of this meant… just how far my limits were… but you may not be there yet, and that’s ok.” Shifting his hand to her cheek, the goddess smiled up at him encouragingly. She really didn’t mind doing whatever he wanted. She knew she would protect him no matter what came their way, and in the case of Ra…. she had never intended to have his powers to begin with. So they would just be a bonus regardless.

----

Drake nodded as he listened thinking about what he wanted to do. This was all worrying in an odd way but at the same time he felt like there was a strong opportunity here for him to see what he could actually do. Silently having this talk with himself he looked into his loves eyes thinking more before speaking " I want to see how much more control I have over the summoning. Let's test that here and we can see the extent of my control over the otherworld later." He said with a nod liking this plan.

—

Nodding, she agreed with whatever he decided to do. It made sense to see just how far he could control his summons. ”You don’t like summoning them do you?” He always seemed hesitant to do so, especially when she was around. Giving him some space to work, she moved over to a log that was on the ground and sat down to watch. ”Alrighty, let’s see what you can do.”

----

Drake shook his head “ It was…and still kind of is a bitter power. They are horrors I have fought and seen kill those I tried protecting only to fail. They were hard to control and it was a constant struggle to keep them from going wild. I also didn't like that summoning them made others feel the terrible emotions they manifested from. There was a lot to not like and there might still be.” he said softly before watching her move away as Drake looked to his hands then the open area in front of him. He began focusing on the power he touched on that allowed him to summon the horrors but this time he was gathering as much as he could. Soon before Drake reality seemed to rip & tear as a horrible unfinished amalgamation of man & deer the size of a two story building if not a bit bigger and stood menacingly there but Drake only felt fatigued from the massive effort he put in and not the control over this titanic monster. Drake looked amazed but also a bit shocked how well he was doing. “ Kneel.” he said like he had with the last one and the monster obeyed him kneeling in front of him with a slight shaking of the earth around them as it did..

—

Warm honey eyes stared at Drake while Alistar rested her chin on her hands. ”Sometimes we have to wield terrible powers to do amazing things. I imagine your goddess picked you for this task because she knew you could handle it.” Everything that had happened to him, had shaped Drake into the man he was. Lesser creatures would have crumpled under the weight of what he’d had to do, and really, he had too. Drake just had enough of a reason and will… to keep fighting and doing more. That strength inside of him that she saw, was really what drew her to him. Well, that and the pure innocent drive he had. His body wasn’t a bad thing either. While his other world form wasn’t exactly the greatest thing to look at, she didn’t really see the scars when she looked at him. She saw the soul and character within him.

”Seems like you got a big one there. Kinda creepy looking not gunna lie. Glad I didn’t come across this guy when I was here before.” Looking at the monster, she tilted her head thoughtfully. ”Do these talk? Like the other ones, the boss guys?” She really didn’t think he had ever thought to speak to the horrors.

----

Drake nodded, finding her words made sense. Obviously his goddess loved him and had been with him in some form or another during his trials and tribulations but had she chosen him. The weight of that was both exciting and a bit nerve wracking. Focusing on the now though he summoned the horror and looked back to Alistar who asked her question and Drake thought about it looking unsure. Then he looked to the giant horror thinking for a moment before he would issue a command. “ Speak.” he said and would instantly regret it as both the skeletal deer head and the half formed man coming from its exposed guts both just let out wailing screams. Drake covered his ears since it was rather loud and piercing “ STOP SPEAKING!” he yelled and the horror fell silent. “ Um…not this one.” he said and began checking to make sure his ears were not bleeding.

—-

Wincing hard, Alistar clapped her hands over her ears grimacing at the sound they produced. Feeling her ears ringing as Drake told them to stop, the goddess couldn’t hear a word he said. Getting up she moved closer to Drake and covered his ears with her hands, she smiled gently and healed any wound he would have received. ”SORRY, DIDN’T THINK THEY WOULD START SCREAMING IF YOU LET THEM SPEAK.” she said loudly, still not able to fully hear. Although it wasn’t that surprising that they would want to start screaming now that she thought about it. The horrors were products of pain. ”AT LEAST NOW YOU KNOW YOU HAVE AN EFFECTIVE ATTACK IF YOU EVER NEED TO SCARE THE TAR OUT OF SOMEONE WHO’S NOT ALREADY AFRAID OF THEM.” Laughing, she scratched the side of her head in thought. Healing a horror wouldn’t help… ”I DON’T THINK I COULD DO ANYTHING FOR THE POOR CREATURE. IT’S A BEING BUILT FROM RESIDUAL FEELINGS AND DESIRES FROM WHAT YOU’VE TOLD ME. ARE THERE NOT ONES THAT CAME FROM LIVING CREATURES?” Clearing her throat, she rubbed at it frowning. 

----

Drake had to really bite his lip hard from having her shouting like that but damn was it not funny hearing her yelling like this that even Drake was nearly busting a gut laughing. Drake would take her hand and nodded slowly walking her back towards the cabin as he thought about her last question. There were some people who did become monsters either having died in silent hill and having their souls warped by it or members of the cult that twisted themselves into the monsters by choice. When Alistar was able to hear again he would start explaining that. “ It is rare but there are a few…I might now be considered one. The ones I met were either cult members who willingly embraced the corruption of this place or the souls of those who died here and got warped that way. I have stopped people from dying and have even helped souls leave the other world. So some do remember not being monsters while others are born of that place and its connection to nightmares.” he told her.

—-

Staring at him funny as he laughed at her, she wrinkled her nose at him with a pout. Why was he laughing at her? Shaking her hand from his, she put it in a pocket while they walked back. Had she done something that funny? Granted, the goddess wasn’t sure she had ever seen Drake laugh like that before. As they walked into the cabin the ringing in her ears finally started to fade enough so that she could hear Drake.

Glancing over at him, she went to get a drink while she listened. ”Sounds like we’ll have to try several different ones then.” Realizing they were still in the other world and that the drink she wanted, wouldn’t be exactly the way she wanted it… she frowned and looked around. ”So how do we activate the safe thing to make us shift back to the normal world?” She was still a little peeved that he had laughed at her but not terribly so.

-—

Drake would smile “ I agree. This…this went a lot better than it normally does and I think you are a big part of why that is. Thank you Albi.” he said, taking her hand before hearing her question. “ Well the seal keeps monsters out and lets you wait out the incursion of the other world. For us though who entered by choice using my connection I believe I can just take us back.” he said and closed his eyes. Once again he reached out to that connection to this place like he normally did when using his powers but found it a smoother ordeal like before. The world around them seemed to waver and fade to reveal their normal cabin with good lighting and a much livelier feel to it. Opening his eyes he was looking like his usual self hair and all but oddly enough still had a braid just now a bit shorter.

“ How are your ears? I have to say I have never seen you yell like that and I couldn't help finding it a bit funny. Thinking though, I probably shouldn't have laughed so I'm sorry about that and I want to make sure you don't have a ruptured eardrum or any blood sitting in your ears.” he said and moved to check on her ears.

—

Shrugging, Alistar didn’t reply until he had shifted them back to their version of the world. ”You say it’s because of me and I say it’s because you’re finally growing. You’re not letting yourself be stuck in the past.” He had a thing for taking her hand even if she obviously didn’t want to hold his hand. It irked her faintly, but she ignored it while he checked her ears. This was no different than when she had healed him without asking him first. It was a natural thing to want to check on the person you cared for. ”They hurt obviously, but they’ll be fine. The ringing is going away. You laughing at me was not a good feeling. Don’t get me wrong, it was nice to see you laughing, but I couldn’t hear it. And I could tell that you were laughing at me but I had no idea what I had done that would make you laugh like that.”

Brushing his hands away she made a beeline for the kitchen to get a drink. ”So what now? I’m trying not to push you too much on this stuff. I do care about what you want and don’t want to force you to do things you’re not ready for.”

----

Drake nodded but there was an odd bubbliness in his body at the moment. “ Right. I don't know after today I feel…less worried.” he said to her before feeling a bit worried that she seemed upset. “ We can try once a day to see where the limits are and once we find them we work from there. We learn what I am actually capable of and what I can't do. When we find something dangerous or hard we take a step back and make a new plan. Does that make sense?” He asked, giving her some space but there was a strong sense of accomplishment with how things went today. No issues, no fuckups, it all worked out. That was an amazing achievement for him and was in a really good mood but now wanted to make sure Alistar’s mood was good as well if it wasn't.

—-

Alistar frowned hard at him and took a long swig of her drink. ”Why once a day, why stop? You don’t learn to walk if you only take one step a day. If I had played it that way when that place took you… You would probably still be there and I’d probably be dead.” Her frown deepened into a very concerned and worried look. Her shoulders slumped as she shook her head and brought her drink to her forehead. ”We’ll do whatever makes you happy regarding your control. However, you will not be upset with me for trying my own things for my abilities then. Does that sound fair?” She would purify every last inch of that place if she had to… the anger she felt towards it was palpable in her heart.

”I really am glad that it’s easy for you and that you’re gaining so much control where you didn’t have it before. I feel like for my sake… I need to train harder and do more than what you’re suggesting. I’m not accustomed to so much stillness. If I had a mission… I dove straight into it and didn’t look back. Whatever it was I needed to do, it got done and as quickly as possible. Being prepared I get, waiting out of fear… I don’t. Does that place still scare you?” It would be a very bad thing for that place if it did…

----

Drake would listen to her and his smile would fade and in its place became an old expression. It wasn't emotionless but it was calm and serious. Walking over to where they could face one another he nodded “ It does. It always will. It has taken and done things to me that wont change. The fear will exist even in a small way forever.” he said as he looked to where he had carved the mark in the otherworld “ and I never once argued with you using your powers there I don't believe. This whole thing is something we're doing together. I wouldn't feel as comfortable doing it if i didn't have you beside me. I know you have my back, will fight with me, and make sure I don't push myself too far into a bad way. These powers I have and my connection to that place all come from similar origins. Pain, revenge, hatred, and sorrow. They are odd and honestly weird powers but they are mine and there is no changing that.” he said thinking about her words when she mentioned a mission. He knew she was right but this wasn't a mission.

“ We can go back in. I have no qualms about that I was merely showing you how returning works but..” he paused looking back at her “ How do you feel after being there for the time we were there? How are your emotions and condition after? I know it was short but that place has an effect on people. Besides, there was something we needed to test out here and that's my control over the horrors in the real world where it was always the most difficult.” he said before relaxing his expression and giving her a small smile.

“ We want the same thing, I know that. I'm sorry if it feels like I don't want to jump in and start teaching that place who is in charge but I really do. I have also been fucked over by that place by going in too focused and not being patient. I might be being too cautious but if I start dragging my feet too much I have you to light a fire under my ass.” he said and his smile grew. “ You made every step easier today. If you want to start attacking it more then let's do it even if you have to drag me along because no matter what my actions may seem like I do want the same as you. But I also will be there to stop you before you charge into something we either shouldnt or aren't ready for. We are a team and we will succeed as one.” he said before moving to getting the same drink as her and would clink it together.

“ So we will go back in but first I want to test a few things out here. Maybe we can try your power on the nightmare ones. Maybe it will do something who knows and maybe your purification will be stronger not surrounded by a realm that is itself corrup…ted.” he blinked as he had a thought “ Its corrupted. I always said that and understood that but…I never thought what it was like before…” he then went wide eyed “ by the goddess…HOLY SHIT ALBI THATS IT!!!” He said and suddenly he had picked her up above his head and was swinging her around.

—

Looking up at him as he stood in front of her, the goddess sighed. She really enjoyed being able to look at his face and while it had strange expressions on it every now and then; it was still the face of the man she loved. Cold anger beat in time with her heart as he admitted to still fearing that place. No one should ever have to go through the things he went through and still fear them happening again. He was right though; he had never argued with her using her powers there. Even if he had warned about how she used them. Could that be counted as him though if it had been one of his incarnations? Such a puzzling thought.

Smirking, she rolled her eyes at him nodding. ”It’s not just that you have me watching your back Drake. I’ll be there fighting right beside you. I don’t want to go back in right now, but soon.” Looking at him strangely, she thought about how she felt. ”Maybe a tad angrier than normal? The mere thought of that place makes me angry though. Other than that, I’m fine. Generally, the feelings that I get from the creatures and places there are like this weird itch I can’t scratch. I know they’re there or I can recognize they are heightened feelings that I normally wouldn’t be feeling.” So he wanted to test the horrors here too, not just in the other realm? Well, that made sense. Listening to him, she knew they had different ways to do things and would have to learn compromise before to long. Seeing his smile, she vaguely wondered how she could make him smile like that all the time? Clinking her drink with his, she hummed softly and took a drink. Tilting her head, Alistar looked up at him with a raised eyebrow as he trailed off. Startled a little when he yelled, she laughed as he picked her up. ”What’s it?! I thought you said my power couldn’t work like that?” Maybe she had misunderstood or he had thought of something new?

----

Drake smiled big before hugging her tight and then set her down. “ Okay. So I just realized something while talking. We can fix things or if not fix them, make them somewhat better. That place was brought here and corrupted but that doesnt mean that's how it always was. It is festering and becoming worse like a wound because that's what it is, a wound.” he said laughing in a way to show he was shocked she hadn't figured this out before “ It is wrong…but it wasn't always. Your power was the hint I needed for this. The other world is just that, another world but it wasn't supposed to be like it is. But what if we healed it? What would happen to it then?” he asked but it was a bit rhetorical. “ If you got to the core of the corruption, that place’s heart, then healed it…I don't think it would fix everything but it would be spreading and getting worse.” he said, smiling big “ we together can end the threat that is that place.”

—-

Wrapping her arms around him, she laughed and hugged him back tightly. Tilting her head, she looked up at him confused. ”My power?” Hearing his question about her power, she leaned into him. ”It depends on what the wound is like. If it’s an infection it may take a bit of work to heal it. Which would actually make sense given the way that place works. We could heal the infected part of the world that’s attached to the school, but we’d have to wait until we left before we could heal all of it I think.” Lifting a hand to his cheek, she smiled at him lovingly.

----

Drake laughed again obviously still in a happy shock “ I..I cant believe an answer like that has been there but i never thought of it. Probably because I had no way of healing it myself so the thought never came. It's…” he paused and shook his head “ no, It just so happens you can do it. I refuse to believe that we had no choice in our love because it was fated. I love you because I love you, nothing makes me love you other than you.” he said, smiling happily. He held her tight and kissed her lovingly before breaking the kiss and relaxed with her in his arms “ You're the best thing to ever come into my life Albi.”

—--

Alistar understood his meaning, thinking that maybe they were fated to meet. ”Yeah, I don’t think that would have been the case. My soul has been around for much longer than that place.” With a soft laugh, she returned his kiss. Pulling him close to her and nuzzling her face into his chest with a content sigh. ”Yeah, well, you’re pretty amazing yourself, حياتي (hayati).”

As she stood there listening to his heart an idea started forming in her mind that wouldn’t have been there before she knew she was a goddess. All three of her previous incarnations had some form of tie to the underworld and had guided lost souls or protected people. Squinting as she thought, a plan started percolating in her mind. ”Drake? Once we heal the other world… and you are comfortable with your abilities…. Will Silent Hill go away? It does serve a purpose right? You said bad people are drawn to it.” It would be quite obvious to him that an idea had struck her and that she was trying to check facts before telling him the full details.

----

Drake smiled at her complement gently rubbing her back as he held her. When she brought up Silent Hill he thought for a moment. " Well the regular town if it lost the otherworld is a ghost town from what I was told by people who were there before getting pulled into its real version. And kind of. It attracts those with darkness in their souls which also extends to guilt or sadness if it's strong enough. Revenge sometimes beckons it as well. But for the most part it did attract the worst sort, yes." He said, curious as to what she had come up with. " As for its purpose…if I was being honest I feel it lost its purpose and is just existing the only way it can."

—

A cruel and sadistic smile came to her lips the more she listened to him. ”Then why don’t we give it it’s purpose back? One of my tasks as a goddess was to guide souls in the underworld… I wonder if we can stitch Silent Hill to the afterlife, using it’s own love of the dead, and let it have it’s fill of the ones it loves. That way it will leave the innocent alone, and it will have a way to release them easily if they do get trapped there by accident.”

Thinking about it more, an excited grin played with the corners of her mouth but the sadistic look didn’t leave her eyes. ”...If it works… We can use that realm to take care of Ra. He has to go to the afterlife every day as part of his rebirth… We can lure him into the new part… or Silent Hill. I can kill him there with your help, and that place can have him to play with.” it was frightening even for her, how much her idea excited her. ”Do you think that would work?” Looking up at him, hope shone in her amber eyes with a new light.

----

Drake thought about her words thinking and she would be able to tell that he was going through everything he knew about what she was saying. “ If we find a way to connect them…I don't see why they couldn't be connected. It would be like changing where the door to that place connects to. I also could see it being used to help us fight him since it wouldn't be his realm and you said he is weaker in places that aren’t his domain or something like that, right? If we lead him into the other world version of silent hill I might be able to really do some damage and keep him from escaping out of it. If his immortality remains, we might be able to cast him into the deepest parts of the otherworld where he could be lost forever.” he said with a nod, smiling “ Yeah, it could really work.”

—-

Alistar would be positively buzzing the longer Drake spoke. ”I think we have our plan then. Which calls for a celebration don’t you think?” Giving him a sultry look, the goddess leaned against Drake’s chest. Planting a deep and passionate kiss on him while her arms wound around his shoulders and held him to her. ”Shall we move to the bedroom?” Alistar chuckled softly, nipping at his lower lip and brushing the tip of her nose against his affectionately.

----

Drake was a little surprised how happy Alistar seemed but smiled and would return the kiss back to her. Drake would open his eyes having closed them during the kiss and was now returning the sultry look back at her. “ I think that celebrating in our bedroom sounds like the perfect thing to do.” He said, enjoying the nips before slowly picking her up into his arms and carrying her bridal style towards their bedroom. 

----

The moment they made it into the bedroom, she wiggled to free herself from his arms. Tugging at his shirt and pulling him down to kiss her. “Don’t make me wait long.” She commanded as she pressed herself against him. Slipping a hand under his shirt, she pressed it into his side and curled her nails into his lower back.

----
Drake chuckled when she wiggled from his arms and would return her kiss. His hand came up to cup the side of her face for a  moment as his hand slowly moved down to her neck then her chest. His hand found its desired target and began massaging her breast while his other hand undid his pants “What? Dont feel like getting teased today?” he asked her being a bit playful with her. He let his pants fall down and pulled out his cock showing he was ready to go “This what you were wanting to see?” he asked softly moving to kiss on her neck.
—-

A soft moan would reach his ears, a product of his ministrations to her breast. “Maybe? Maybe I want to tease you.” The goddess laughed softly as she licked her lips and watched him push his pants down. Biting her lip, she pushed his underwear off as she knelt down in front of him. Desire glittered in her eyes as she nuzzled his manhood. Purring, Alistar kissed the base of his shaft and licked all the way to the tip with the look of a kitten who finally got her milk, on her face.

----
Drake smiled “yeah, i figured you would say that.” he said and enjoyed the way she reacted and watched her move to his manhood. He would reach down and pet her head lovingly as he softly sighed and gave her quiet moans “You always know how to excite me beyond belief. I don't think I will ever not find you the most erotic and desirable thing in the many universes we know exist.” he said softly with love in his eyes as he spoke, his member twitching with its want for more attention from her.
—

Amber eyes smiled happily as they looked up at him from his pelvis. “You say that almost like it’s a bad thing.” With a soft laugh, tan hands slid up his thighs and dragged their nails back down to his knees. Shifting her face, Alistar kissed his tip lovingly before pressing it to her lips and letting his girth push them apart. The soft wet tongue inside swept over his head in a warm caress.

----
Drake smiled and moaned as he slowly entered her warm and welcoming mouth. “It isn't, It is an amazing thing.” he told her his hand resting on top of her head as he kept moaning while she pleasured him. Drakes eyes looked down at her wanting more as his hands slowly grabbed the sides of her head and began helping her move her head as he moaned some more.
—-

Holding onto his thighs, her lips wrapped around him while her tongue stroked his length as it made it’s way in and out of her mouth. Moaning around him, her eyes slid closed as she enjoyed the taste of him and what he was doing. Relaxing her throat so he could slide all the way in and not choke her too bad. She wanted this with him, to please him, and have him please her. For Alistar, this wasn’t just about blowing him. It was about expressing how much he meant to her and how much she loved him.

----
Drake would moan as he slid deeper and deeper with his length and found the rhythm he liked the best. He desired her like he desired nothing else he knew of. With a quiver he moaned her name repeatedly as he felt himself creeping closer and closer to climax. “Albi, I'm coming!” he cried out as he released his load into her throat while holding her head.
—-

Suckling on him hard, she swallowed around him. Moaning happily at the taste he gave her and the pleasure in knowing she had made him feel good. Her fingers massaged his thighs as her eyes opened slowly to stare up at him lovingly.

----

Drake smiled as he saw her looking at him and he would push a few strands of hair away from her face before speaking. “That was awesome albi. You always make me feel amazing.” he said panting his eyes looking at her “I want to hang you from ropes and make sweet love to you like in that book i saw.” he said passionately and his voice even got a bit huskier “That way you would only feel me and the tethers holding you. Nothing else would be allowed to touch you, not even you. Just me.” he said, growing more aroused at the thought.
—--

Her eyebrows twitched as he voiced his desires. She had of course experienced him wanting to try out rope play before, but this seemed a bit different. Pulling back slowly so that he would make a popping sound as he left her mouth, the goddess swallowed once more and licked her lips. “Do you enjoy controlling me or rather, my body and reactions, that much?” She asked curiously. Standing, she pushed his shirt up and over his head to run her hands over his chest. “And I’m just returning the favor. You make me feel amazing all the time too.”

----
Drake smiled as he helped to take the shirt off and when she asked her question he decided to kiss her first before answering. Slowly breaking the kiss but not backing his face away he spoke. “I want to show you just how much I know how to please you on my own. To show you what I have learned and how much healthier I have truly become.” he told her, his hands moving suddenly and a bit violently ripped the shirt in half she was wearing before he took the bra off throwing both things to the side. “I want to give you all i can with as much intensity as i can muster tonight.” he said, firmly grabbing her breasts before leaning his head down and giving her breast a solid but not harmful bite.
—

Alistar smiled happily to herself, she was very proud of him and how far he’d come. “Oh? I know you’re healthier than you were. I’ve made sure that you’re eating better, and we both know that you’re getting more exercise.” With a chuckle and gasp, heat pooled between her thighs as he ripped her shirt away. “What did that shirt ever do to you?” The goddess asked with a laugh and moan as he bit her. Fisting her hand in his hair, she held him to her.

----
Drake would pull his mouth away when she asked what the shirt had done to him “it kept me from touching you.” he said before claiming her lips and forcefully put his tongue into her mouth hunting for hers to play with while his hand slid down her front and into her pants to start playing with her folds. He was being very assertive and aggressive at the moment and wasnt showing any signs of stopping any time soon. He was hard as a rock and ready to really have a night with her after everything they had done today.

—-

Lifting her arms, she wrapped them around him and moaned deeply. There was something incredibly sexy about the way he was dominating her that evening. Spreading her legs wider for him; her hips rocked against his hand as she sought release.

----
Drake would break the kiss and look around looking for a flat surface. He would smile seeing something and would slowly take his hand from her pants before grabbing the belt of her pants. He would then lift and put her on then lay her down on the coffee table before he would rip off her pants much like he did with her shirt before he began rubbing her over her panties. Drake smiled as he began kissing on her breasts again being passionate to the maximum now.
—

Laughs and yelps softly, feeling her pants being picked up the way they were. Suddenly her back was on the coffee table and her pants were ripped off. This was a rare side of Drake. She hadn’t even mentioned children this time. Laying back as he rubbed her, she started playing with her own breast and looking up at him with a playful smirk. “Careful, or we’ll break the coffee table.” She laughed.

----

Drake would keep rubbing her a serious but aroused expression on his face. “If it breaks it will repair itself.” he said and moved to kiss her as he kept rubbing her. After some rubbing that dominant side appeared again as he ripped the panties away and threw them away with abandon as his hand was quick to return so he could keep her mound warm. After some now skin to skin rubbing he would start to insert his fingers into her attacking her most sensitive of spots.

—-

Smirking and rolling her eyes at him, she held out her arms to him. “Depending on the school to repair things now? Don’t get too used to it because it won’t be there when we leave this place.” Moaning into his kiss, she giggled feeling the underwear ripping away from her body. Writhing as she felt his hand return and a finger find it’s way into her, she threaded a hand into his hair and gripped it.”More. I want more.” Grinning at him in challenge, she rocked against his hand without abandon.

----
Drake smiled as she told him she wanted more as if trying to challenge him. Well he was ready to fight and his hand really started going to town on her almost violently as he watched her “More huh, I wonder if I will make you regret that choice.” he said as he kissed her again just as passionately as he had before. Drake was currently thinking of how he could do the suspended fucking like he wanted so he could really give it to his woman. He had a few ideas but nothing concrete yet and if he was going have her hanging above the ground he didnt want anything that had a chance of fucking up.
—-

Giggling against his lips, she took her time kissing him. Returning his passion to him in equal volumes. Nipping his lower lip, she nuzzled his jaw and down his neck. Biting down on his shoulder, Alistar whimpered and arched against him as she came with a muffled cry. “I’ll never regret you or any choice with you.” 

----

Drake blushed at her words, not bothered at all as she bit into him. “That's sweet my love. But right now i'm not sweet.” he said and slowly made her lay back down before lifting her hips so only her shoulders were touching the coffee table. His face would then bury itself into her woman hood as he would eat her out like he had been starving and found food for the first time in months. He was relentless and his tongue was attacking her weak points much like his fingers had. Drake was enjoying his turn being the one to dominate her since it wasn't usually like that so he figured he might go all out with it since he was sure it would be a while before he was in the mood to be like this again. So every now and then he would take a break from being all up on her pussy with his mouth to just playfully nibble her clit. 

INCOMPLETE