bsumone | Slightly less monstrous boys: prequel

"I can handle it. Anything is better than silver." He could say that with full confidence even as he winced and gritted his teeth while the damaged skin was gently cleaned. It would be so nice when those started to heal more. For now he'd just...have to live with it.

"Do your kind have weaknesses to things?" So he could make sure to not keep them around his place.

"I don't know any others like me to say with any certainty," he mused, hoping the conversation would help distract Silvio from even a little of the pain. "I haven't encountered anything I would call a weakness. I know that I'll grow very ill if I don't feed regularly. I'm pretty certain I'll die if I lose too much of my blood or viscera or if I'm beheaded. Other than that? I don't know of anything."

Others often called him a vampire, but he could walk in daylight, didn't have to worry about resting in the soil of his native land, crossing running water was no feat for him. The Greek Lamia were like him, but they were mostly female and seduced lovers for the sole purpose of satisfying both sexual and and physical hungers. The Greeks also had their Vrykolakas, but again... Su-jin didn't have to return to some grave on Saturdays.

"That'll make it easier to keep my place safe for my new friend."

Silvio smiled a bit but he seriously meant it. They'd only met a few days ago but this man had more than proven himself. He'd earned the right to be called a friend by him and he smiled a bit as he got more comfortable. Well, as comfortable as he could get. He was going to struggle until he was fully healed.

"Were you born as you are? Or made?" Werewolves could only be made as far as he knew.

He was careful to rewet the cloth frequently and move it gently over the wounded skin. He made his way across Silvio's neck, over his chest and shoulders, then down his arms to deal with the more minor burns there and the heavy ones at his wrists. Between that and the sight in the cellar, he could figure out how Silvio kept others safe while he was feral.

"I was born this way. The hunger didn't start until I was nearly a grown man. When my family suspected, they abandoned me. So I was on my own since then. When I came West, I was easily discovered and people with more knowledge and authority than me made the introduction between me and my partner. He's able to regenerate even lethal wounds. Being with him allows me live without killing anyone."

"The council right? I've heard of them." They usually left wolves alone because they weren't likely to be found in large populations. Anyone killed by them were idiots wandering too close to wolf territory during the full moon. It wasn't like all the creatures who lived in cities who had to figure out how to hide from the world around them.

"I'm glad you have someone who can help you manage the hunger. Going feral...it's not easy." And he had to do it every month. He knew how rough it was.

When that cloth tapped something particularly sensitive, he tensed but otherwise he stayed still. Su-jin didn't need him thrashing about when he was trying to help him.

Su-jin saw the tension and eased up on that gentle pressure. He kept his eyes on his work, even as he continued with the slightly uncomfortable conversation.

"Yes, the council. I'm sure by now their influence is all over the world, not just in Europe. Or groups like them." That's how monsters like him get dealt with to protect the rest. One rogue creature with a signature was all it might take to have humanity discover that they walk among them.

"I don't think there's a name for what I am."

"Then you don't need a name for what you are. You're Su-jin and that's what matters to me the most."

The person. Not the monster. Every monster had drawbacks but he wasn't going to focus on Su-jin's. He wanted to know the person instead. This person who was now a friend of his and one he hoped to have for many years to come.

"If I wasn't using silver chains I bet the council would want to keep me in check too. So we're doing our best."

"I'm grateful to them," he admitted as he rewet the cloth and continued on cleaning the sweat and dirt of Silvio's skin. "They gave me a chance for a real life." But he also understood they should be feared. The fate of people like him were always in their hands. What if there was someone else out there like him with no regenerative partner?

"It's my understanding that wolves aren't, generally speaking, a major threat to humans. I have only encountered a few like you before. I got the impression that I put them off." Maybe it was because of his scent? Or that he was another predator to compete with.

"We can smell what other creatures eat. So they probably shy away from you because they don't want to get problems with the council. Plus, all predators clash unless they find a balance between them."

Something that was a lot easier for him to do right now without a pack. His instincts were longing for companionship more than defending territory or packmates. "Pack tends to stick tightly together. It's how they maintain balance so no one gets hurt or lost."

"It sounds ideal," he mused wistfully. But he had Tiras for balance -- a wanton monster to his hesitant one. He'd be lost without Tiras... not to mention in a lot of danger. He could only imagine how difficult it must be for Silvio without his pack to see him through times like this.

He continued wiping Silvio's skin clean, especially careful around his wounds. He made his way down each arm, over his abdomen, and then jumped to his legs. No sense in making things uncomfortable. Once he was ready, Silvio would have a proper bath anyway.

"I feel like my partner provides that for me. Balance. I doubt I'd still be alive without him."

"It smells like it. I can smell the guilt you carry but I also smell that you're balanced and taking care of yourself."

Silvio opened his eyes to stare sightlessly at the ceiling above him. Mostly he was preparing himself for how much it was going to hurt soon to roll over and make it easier to do his back next. It wasn't like he could actually see after all.

"What's he like? Your partner."

Well, better care of himself. He should feed more often than he does, but he no longer starves himself to the brink. That's been a habit long since put to rest, thanks to Tiras.

"He's a handful," Su-jin offered with no hesitation. There's also a deep fondness in the words. Tiras was a brat, but that was only for Su-jin to know. "He's older than me and a wanton monster. In addition to his regenerative abilities, he's an incubus. I suppose it's easier to embrace what you are when you have to option not to kill those on whom you feed."

"If I remember right, incubi have to teach themselves to do that by having a powerful will. My alpha knew one and wouldn't let the pack near him because he couldn't control his appetites and when he saw someone he liked he would just drain in full without thinking about. Pretty sure most incubi have to be contained. The fact that your partner can actually control himself?"

Silvio let out a laugh before he regretted it and groaned. Shit, that hurt. "He must be scary."

"I'm sure he can be." No, Su-jin has no doubt of it. The way Tiras is able to take sips of his human partners, such small sips that they're able to walk out the door when he's done with them. And he knows for a fact that what Tiras takes from him would kill a normal human.

"Neither of us socialize much with other non-humans. Tiras more than me. I've known a few others in my time. I wouldn't really call them friends. It's more like a wary meeting of rivals when we come across each other. You're one of the first I've met who hasn't fled at, forgive the turn of phrase, the sight of me." Or the scent, in this case.

"Let me help you turn over, okay?"

"Maybe I'm lonely," he joked. "But no. I could tell you were safe when I smelled you so I ran with that."

All the way home honestly because here was Su-jin in his home helping him after the full moon. This was when he was at his most vulnerable but he only felt safe and protected. Enough to be ready to expose his back to him. Literally.

"Thanks."

It was still painful to do so and he growled at how it felt but soon relaxed again on his stomach.

How could Su-jin, in good conscience, leave this lone wolf to fend for himself after dealing with the full moon and its consequences? He couldn't. He was careful in helping Silvio to move onto his stomach. He could've lifted the wolf himself, but he wanted to cause the least harm to whatever aching and strained muscles he was also suffering from.

He waited a moment for Silvio to settle and get as comfortable as he could and started the process all over. He wiped away sweat and dirt, dabbed at the worst of the burns, working from Silvio's shoulders to his toes. Once he was done, he got up to go find the bag he'd left the medicines in, returning with more pills and a pan of ointment.

"Will it be okay to apply the medicine now?"

"Yeah."

It would hopefully help to speed up the healing process. At the very least it would avoid the annoying infection process. He offered him a little smile but stayed where he was, content to let Su-jin do what he needed to do and only move as the guy told him to. No point making this harder on him.

"I'm really glad you came back."

Su-jin smiled to himself as he opened the pan of ointment. He coated his first two fingertips with the soft paraffin and gently dabbed it on the burns around Silvio's ankles. It was easy enough with the wolf on his stomach; he could simply lift his limbs as needed. He also treated some of the lesser wounds he saw as he made his way from Silvio's feet upward.

"I only knew what I've read about werewolves. From that alone, I knew I couldn't leave you by yourself." Whether what he knew was patently false or exaggerated, he knew one thing: Silvio would be in need of aid. "It's not in my nature to leave an injured person to fend for themselves."

"You weren't wrong. There's a reason most wolves aren't without a pack." Wolves generally needed each other to survive. Otherwise they had to resort to drastic measures like the ones he was using now. Silver and being too weak to eat for around a week every month. Not a good situation for one of his kind.

He'd been surviving though. Getting by somehow. But knowing that Su-jin was there meant a lot.

"If there's anything you want to know though I don't mind telling you. About my kind I mean."

"All I've ever learned is that you change on the full moon and that silver can hurt you. That part I can see is true. But about the moon... is it for all three nights or just when the moon is fullest?"

"All three. But it's worse at the fullest. The first and last day it's like you're sort of aware that you can't control yourself but there's nothing you can do. The night of the fullest though? It's just emptiness and you don't remember anything until the next morning."

Which was never a comfortable experience for any wolf. Having a pack helped to lessen that and provide comfort because when feral you just wanted to stay near family. The world was too big, too scary otherwise. It was why a lone wolf could be so dangerous. More so than an entire pack.

That didn't sound like a comfortable experience, period. But Su-jin could relate. There was a time when he'd starve himself to the point of being a true danger to anyone around him. He remembered the feeling, the uncontrollable urge, until the moment his mind went blank. It was like losing consciousness except his body moved of its own volition and when his senses finally returned, he was elbow-deep in someone's abdominal cavity.

Yes, he understood that horror all too well.

"How long does it usually take you to recover from... all this." There's no judgment in his voice. He understood entirely why Silvio's extreme measures were necessary. Cruel as they were, they kept the wolf and the people living nearby him safe when the monster came out.

"The first couple days are the worst because I can't hunt. But after I start getting protein in me it speeds things up. Once I can start walking around on day four then I'm okay. Not fully healed but okay. In total it takes around a week for all this to fully go away."

Not convenient but it was what he was used to. He was lucky he was a monster because no human could survive what he went through every full moon. That was for sure. Sometimes he wondered how he even survived it.

He kept applying the salve as he turned over the information Silvio gave in his mind. He couldn't imagine being so vulnerable for the whole of a week while also being alone. Su-jin spent more time with Tiras the closer his feeding times came. He should eat more frequently, Tiras even encouraged it, but he won't. So he starts to feel weaker and sick. And he starts to spend more time with his partner. Then after, he stayed while the incubus recovered. Usually it was only a matter of days for that, but he couldn't dream of leaving him alone when he's not at full strength. If something ever happened to Tiras, it would be a death sentence for Su-jin.

"That's a long time to be so vulnerable..." As if Silvio wasn't well aware of the fact.

"Good thing I'm out here alone where I'm not likely to deal with dangerous during that time."

It was barely a comfort and he knew that. It was barely a comfort for him either and he was the one who had to live this life now. A lot of lone wolves would rather take their own lives than live like this. But he owed it to his pack to keep on living.

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