Erevan didn’t trust the new guy. Not one bit. He felt… violated. How did the human dare worm his slimy way into his mind? Erevan wanted to bathe in scalding water, scrubbing his skin until it was raw and an angry sort of red. Maybe that would help him get rid of feeling dirty somehow. And not the good kind of dirty either. The good kind when one got dirt and sweat smeared across one’s body due to a day of hard work. No, this one felt different. More emotionally grimy. Ugh, feelings again.

He blamed Nalion and Hama. The thought of Hama awakened faint tendrils of guilt and shame, casually stirring in his gut with no hurry to make their leave.

He pushed the feelings aside the best he could, which didn’t really work, and deepened his scowl. He really wanted a beer. Or a dozen. Not only was Hama suddenly gone, but he also loathed being put on babysitting duty. Besides, the teenager reminded him far too much of the bard - both blond, both flashing friendly smiles, both charming. He had learned that charming was just another word for a conniving, smarmy liar. So no, Erevan did not trust the new guy.

They were in the middle of the woods, which gave him a modicum of comfort. At least here he was in his element. He looked up at the heavens, a frown still marring his face. From in between the vivid green leaves and the branches he could see the deep blue of the sky. Slowly but steadily it was morphing into gentle hues of pink, gold and orange as the sun was bidding its farewell to the day that had passed. The shadows cast by the large trees were growing longer by the minute.

He didn’t really want to stop. The soreness of the freshly healed wound didn’t bother him that much. He didn’t want to camp with the stranger, yet he knew that Nalion would need to rest. The older mage had exerted himself in healing both him and Hama. It was obvious in the stumble of his steps, despite the elf very unconvincingly arguing otherwise. The human was stumbling too, not that Erevan cared about that.

He hummed absentmindedly as he thought of what a shit liar Nalion was. It made a flicker of warmth gather somewhere deep in his gut. Not that he’d ever admit it to anyone beside his diary. Nevertheless, Nalion might be a shit liar but Erevan was feeling like a shit travel companion. Not only had Nalion used a lot of his energy to help him, most likely saving his life, Erevan had also made the scrawny elf briskly walk the better part of the day due to his own feelings of righteous anger and genuine upset. He was being selfish. This was exactly why he despised being a part of a team.

And why he hated feelings. They only made him feel… Bad.

Erevan sighed wearily, spotting a small clearing ahead in the woods. That would do for the night. They’d have to set up shifts, meaning that Erevan would most likely have to take a double shift in case the newcomer would try something. A few nights of poor sleep wasn’t that bad, it’s not like it would kill him.

The incessant clenching in his stomach intensified. Frustrated with himself, the situation and the world, he aggressively threw down his backpack to the far side of the clearing. It landed with a heavy thump. Nalion gave him a concerned glance from the corner of his eye, making Erevan regret his actions. Great, now he was making matters worse again. He dropped down ungracefully, petulantly sulking and glaring at the grass as if it had personally offended his hairstyle.

Around him Nalion and the teenager started to make camp. He shook his head skeptically, as he saw the human lit their campfire with a flick of his wrist. Yep, he was definitely going to have to have a double shift.

Meanwhile Nalion was eagerly fishing out a book from his backpack, sitting down next to the fire in order to see what was written within as clearly as possible. He rolled his eyes. Mages. For a moment things felt more normal again and he could feel himself relax just slightly. He wouldn’t do it, not fully, until this stranger was gone.

And then their peace and quiet was disturbed by none other than Ilias. Because he just seemed to be the worst.

“What’s up with the creepy eye?” the human asked as he scrunched his eyebrows in slight disquiet.

Erevan couldn’t see any eyes anywhere. Except on the others of course. Maybe he talked about my eyes? His thoughts whispered, instantly making him feel self-conscious. As a thanks for it he glared at Ilias, making the other wilt a little. Almost as soon as it had happened, the human straightened his back again and plastered on a smile. If Erevan wasn’t paying such close attention to a potential threat, he would’ve surely missed it. He deepened his glare.

So now the human was actively insulting them? Or making up things just to sow the seed of discord? Or was he just a crazy person seeing stuff that didn’t exist? All of the options made him feel even more distrustful. He narrowed his eyes for good measure.

“What eye?” Nalion’s head peeked up from behind the book. The tired elf seemed genuinely curious. Erevan closed his eyes momentarily, resisting the growing urge to slap his forehead. The scholarly elf was far too trusting, the fool. Good thing he had Erevan to watch his back.

Ilias just blinked at them, as if they were being particularly stupid. As a counter-reaction Erevan intensified his scowl, hoping that the fire animosity within would be apparent in the sharp look he shot at this pathetic liar of a human. It didn’t seem to have the desired effect anymore. Maybe he had glared too much.

Naah, that couldn’t be it. The human was probably just good at acting and lying, just like the bard. Erevan narrowed his gaze even further, letting the anger burn within him. He might not be able to get back at the bard, but he could make sure Ilias knew just how unwanted he was. Maybe that would make him leave them alone.

Ilias continued, appearing to be unaware of Erevans inner monologue. Rude.

“That eye, the weird creepy one on the book? With a faint blue glow?”

Erevan looked at the book and then scoffed. There was no eye there.

Even Nalion was baffled as he looked down at the book's old leather cover and then back at Ilias. “There’s nothing there.”

Ilias’ brown eyes widened slightly.

“What are you talking about? It’s right there!”

Erevan pinched the bridge of his nose. He was beginning to get a headache. Why, oh why did he have to suffer through this? This must be some kind of punishment from getting Hama hurt. He couldn’t think what else he might’ve done to deserve it.

“No?” Nalion said slowly in an uncertain manner.

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A beat of silence passed as they all stared at each other. Then Nalion asked, “What does the eye look like?”

Erevan sighed again, feeling defeated. Nalion’s scientific curiosity was probably going to be the death of him. He rubbed his hands together to create some warmth as the cool of night slowly descended upon them.

A flash of uncertainty and… something, passed on Ilias’ face before it settled in a neutral expression. Erevan so didn’t trust him.

Ilias picked up a narrow stick from the ground and began to draw in the dirt near the fire. He began by drawing four sides, neatly connecting to each other, creating a diamond shape. Then on the inside he dragged a line from the top to the bottom, leaving some empty space between the other lines. Thus succeeding in drawing a somewhat realistic, if weird, eye. Though it did have a slit iris instead of a regular round one. Erevan felt the little hairs in the back of his neck stand up. It was slightly eerie in the flickering light of the campfire, as if it was watching them.

He let out a disbelieving scoff. He must be tired too, to be affected by such obvious lies.

“You really don’t see it?” The human was sounding unsure, voice small. Nalion shook his head as Erevan snarled, “Shut up.”

He was getting tired of the neverending talking. Thankfully, after his comment, silence fell down upon them like a heavy blanket. Some might’ve found it suffocating, but he was immensely relieved. Throwing one last glare at Ilias, Erevan walked from the fire back to where his backpack was. He was intent on getting to the edge of the warmth in order to pour his feelings into his diary unnoticed. Sure, he could've gone further as the darkness didn’t affect his vision that much, but he wanted to be close enough to keep an eye on the others.

Today had been a mess. He could feel how tense he was and was in desperate need of his outlet. He sat down with a huff and opened his bag only to find… A bunch of stones. What?

His confusion quickly gave way to anger as he began emptying his bag only to find there was nothing in it besides differently shaped rocks. After everything, he’d been the victim of a theft as well? When he was in his own element, in a camping spot that he chose?! Erevan's face twisted in a sneer. Within, he was slightly panicking in case whoever stole his stuff could read Elvish and would sneak a peek of his diary. They would probably laugh and mock him. Erevan gritted his teeth. Whoever had done that was going to regret it.

After all, it would be hard for the thief to mock him if they were dead.

The others took notice as he loudly and angrily dumped out the contents in his bag. Or, well, the human did. Nalions nose was buried deep in his book again. Ilias, however, had been sitting by the fire and staring into the flames after Erevan had stalked off. Apparently seeing the state he was in had made the human quickly scamper to his feet. And promptly fall.

Despite the theft, the anger and insecurity within him, the sight of it nearly made Erevan snicker. The human very narrowly avoided the fire, instead falling on top of Nalion while frantically waving his hands around in a doomed attempt to catch his balance. The book was flung away from Nalions grasp by the force of the impact and ended up landing on the moist grass.

Nalion cried out in surprise and distress, the cry turning into an umph as the elf was abruptly knocked to the ground. The hazel eyes sought out the book immediately, softening in relief to find it unharmed next to the fire.

He took a menacing step forward, ready to give the newcomer a piece of his mind. Something about respecting his elders, and watching where he was going. That was when he noticed how the human’s boots appeared to be laced together. He blinked. That was odd.

Then Nalion snapped his head to the side, looking into the woods. Something shiny was sparkling in Erevan peripheral vision, in the direction where Nalion was looking.

“What’s that?” The elf said in wonder and began stumbling with surprising speed towards the strange object. Yep, Erevan knew it. Nalion’s curiosity was definitely going to be the death of him.

He opened his mouth to warn Nalion, to order him to come back. Before any sound managed to leave his lips he saw something in the air. Something that was falling fast. Right on top of Nalion. He called out in alarm, but it was too late. Erevan took out his swords swiftly, the metal softly clingling in the silence. He knew he’d never make it in time but damn it if he wouldn’t try.

As Erevan reached Nalion it was, as he’d feared, too late. To his surprise and relief Nalion appeared unharmed. The only thing that was unusual was that the elf was completely covered in some kind of dark sludge. The older mage looked dazed as he lifted his fingers in front of his face, caught unaware by the sudden onslaught of what seemed to be… Mud? As Erevan stepped closer, he was sure. Definitely mud. Looking back towards the camp he saw Ilias trying, and utterly failing, to get back on his feet. It didn’t seem that he’d registered yet how he was trapped. Idiot.

Then they could hear a sound. It was the sound of birds chirping, that reminded him suspiciously of laughter. It was reverberating all around them, the source of it impossible to pinpoint. Erevan lifted his swords, ready for a fight. Someone was playing with them. Erevan brandished the swords, one on each side of him, while yelling, “Show yourself!”

The chirping laughter continued, mocking him, taunting him. He briefly wondered if whatever it was had read his diary and that’s why it was laughing. The thought filled him with icy dread. It was private. It kept all his insecurities. All his innermost thoughts and feelings, which he’d never share with anyone. It only served to make him angrier as he bared his teeth.

“Wait!” Ilias shouted.

Erevan sent a glance-glare in his direction. He didn’t have time for his nonsense right now. The human continued on, still struggling to stand but not heeding Erevans nonverbal warning. “It’s not attacking us, I don’t think it wants to hurt us.”

Erevan lifted a disbelieving eyebrow. So, to summarize: stealing their possessions, hurling bucketloads of mud on top of people and almost making people fall into fire didn’t count as wanting to hurt them. Idiot. He tightened his grip.

Nalion blinked, still soaked in mud, as he turned to look at Erevan.

“I think Ilias is right,” he said. Erevan couldn’t quite quell the sting of betrayal as the words left Nalion’s lips, but he reluctantly sheathed his swords nonetheless. He crossed his arms in front of his chest and tightly pressed his lips together. If they got hurt it was on them. It’s not like he wanted to spare Nalion the harm anyway.

This was the moment the culprit made its entrance. The movement made Erevan twitch, his hands automatically trying to make their way back to a weapon. Coming eye to eye with the creature was unexpected. Or more technically, the creature itself was not what Erevan had been imagining.

It was a small reptile, with red-brown scales and tiny horns on its head. Its golden eyes reminded Erevan a little bit of the yellow-eyed demon, yet on this creature they weren’t quite so horrific. It looked like a pocket-sized dragon, with a set of leathery small wings on either side of its body. Its tail was tipped with a barb which appeared sharp even from a distance.

Ereven didn’t know what to do. He had thought all the dragons were extinct, and had been extinct for a long time.

The little dragon curled around itself in mirth and the chirping sound returned. It was shockingly endearing.

As the thought entered Erevans mind, he could see the mud covering Nalion disappear. He turned his head slightly - cute or not the small dragon could still present a threat - and saw Ilias finally managing to fully stand again, the boots laced finally loosened. With urgency Erevan made his way to his bag, only to see that all of his possessions were chaotically shoved inside. Just the way he’d left them. For the briefest of moments, Erevan felt like he could have cried from relief. But he didn’t. If his eyes were a tiny bit moist, well, no one would see it if they didn’t dare to meet his gaze. He very deliberately deepened his frown.

He turned back, to see a thrilled Nalion hurrying to greet the creature. Because of course he did.

Erevan made his way to stand by Nalions side in case the dragon tried some funny business again. After all, it didn’t look like Ilias would be any help. The human was busy being seemingly star-strucked as he gazed upon the creature, wonder dancing in his eyes. The fool. Nalion might be blind to danger when he got eager like this and Ilias would probably be useless in a real fight, but Erevan was always ready. Even if a foe was cute it could still be lethal.

He scowled down at the tiny creature as Nalion carefully gave it a few pets. The dragon reached its head up to meet Nalions copper hand and purred. Honest to gods, purred. It then pushed itself against Nalions legs while the purring got louder. Damn. It was adorable.

Nalion rummaged around his bag, pulling out a bit of bread and offering it to the creature while chatting comfortably, “Here, you must be hungry. What are you? What should we call you?” The creature made some more animal sounds, which Nalion seemed to understand based on his eager nodding. “It’s nice to meet you, Spiro! What are you doing here all alone?”

Some more sounds followed, seeming a bit sad somehow. Nalions features softened in sympathy.

“I’m sorry to hear that,” he said softly. “If you feel lonely, you could always join us.”

The creature - Spiro? - made some happy sounds, whipping its tail from one side to the other. Great. Just what they needed. More sentient beings in their group. At least this one was cute.

Erevan sighed, slowly sitting down by the fire. He doubted he’d get a vote in the matter. He resigned himself to fishing out a small piece of bread to give to Spiro as Nalion explained what Spiro had told him. Apparently the dragon could communicate by telepathically sending images and emotions in addition to the various animal sounds. Maybe he could count Spiro as an animal instead, he’d always gotten along better with them than people. Animals were so much wiser, more loyal and trustworthy than people were. They didn’t make fun of his slightly pointy ears or his old and shabby clothes.

He looked as Spiro gladly chumped on the piece of bread he’d given it. It did seem hungry, the poor thing. He wondered, if later maybe he’d get to pet it too.