Don't Sit Under the Apple Tree (Koh & Hadrian)

[Hadrian]

Hadrian shrugged his shoulders with a vague sort of smile and turned to lead the way. If Koh was going to walk directly behind him, it would certainly be odd. Hopefully he would just catch up and walk beside him, allowing Hadrian to do the leading. Given a little time and space to breathe, he let his vision shift into the aural spectrum and glanced at the Dhani male to see how his energy signature differed from that of the average human. Just a glance here and there, forming a patchwork picture that gradually filled out. When not looking directly at him, he watched how the djed flowed around him, responding to a different species. It was, to him, quite interesting. That vague smile remained a ghostly thing on his face as he led the way to a market that should have a few live animals if that was what Koh required.

[Koh]

Koh followed behind hadrian for a bit of the ways and then started picking up the pace to walk just a few feet away from his back. His hood still covered his eyes and his arms slipped out of the sleeves of the coat, seeming to search and move strangely. Stumbling twice, Koh finally stopped moving his arms in such a way and began bringing his arms back through the sleeves. His hands were now covered, by what looked to be metal gauntlets, jagged in multiple directions but with a leather palms and what looked to be a belt in the underarm section to hold it together. The scales that were on his arms were no longer visible at all, combined with his hidden eyes, he seemed mostly human.

"Not easy trying to pass off as human. Can't see well with this hood over my face and it's a pain to have to cover up my scales." he said, almost as a whisper to himself, "Sorry about making you lead. Honestly I tend to just bump into everything when I walk around like this." This explained a lot in itself. He wasn't following because he was untrusting or wanted to intimidate Hadrian, but because so long as he tried so hard to hide his appearance, he would be uncomfortably blind. At least with Hadrian leading, Koh could watch his feet at be slightly more at ease.

After just a minute of walking he smelled something of interest. Animals. One of them was a cow, remembering the smell from his long lost friend, Mince. He gripped at his coat, a large smile growing on his face, the thoughts of a decent meal breaking down his will power. "Hadrian. How much he after for that cow?" he said in a whispering.

[Hadrian]

Hadrian had stopped when Koh did, and took that opportunity to turn his augmented vision on the Dhani. There was something serpentine about it, cool and collected, though he imagined it might blaze with cold-blooded passion under the correct circumstances. When Koh admitted to his trouble walking while concealed, several questions came to mind, but died on his lips with the final question. Blinking, he looked over at the cow, whose aura was calm and simple. "Stay here," he said, patting Koh's arm. "Hullo, sir," he said, walking over to the man with the cow. When he returned to Koh, he said: "Fifteen golden nilos, but she's old and probably won't be of much use to him in making milk anymore so you might be able to bargain him down."

[Koh]

Koh looked towards Hadrian, shaking his head, "I respect the merchants of this city." He said, pulling the amount from a pocket. His mind filled with the thought of the old merchant who took care of him at hatching so long ago. He handed Hadrian the coins with a smile, "Please pay him the demanded price." With that he stepped back to allow Hadrian to take care of business, sighing after a second with his wracked up thoughts.

You may have sold me off so many time. But I still respect your trade. Especially after all you did for me. he thought to himself, swimming in memory.

[Hadrian]

Nodding in return, Hadrian took the coin and walked back over to the farmer-cum-merchant and made the simple transaction. Was that avarice that flared up in his aura, or fear as he glanced over at the hooded Dhani? With a quick shake of his head, Hadrian banished his other-sight before it spent too much of his energy. After all, he had a rather important project coming up and he needed to be on top of his game. The trade made, he tugged on the rope, but the cow wouldn't come. "Oh my gods, seriously?" He sighed. Tugged. Tugged again. "Cow, my friend here wants to meet you... Come on." So he doesn't change his mind and eat me, dammit. Hadrian's father likely would have sneered at him for taking a first offer like that without bargaining. No son of Trajan Aelius should pay full price for some falling apart livestock to feed his new pet snake... With one pleading look to the farmer, he earned an amused chuckle and a slap on the cow's rump. "Go on, you dried up old cuss," the farmer said to the cow, who began to move forward like some cud-chewing automaton. "Thank you, sir. Thank you." Hadrian didn't manage to speed her up with his tugging, but he did manage to steer her in Koh's direction. Perhaps the domesticated cow lacked an edge to its instincts for self-preservation, because she didn't yet see the threat. "Cow achieved," he reported to Koh.

[Koh]

Koh stood there for a moment, silent, almost as though a shadow of himself. Quietly he stepped forward, almost too calmly, his hand carefully being placed over the cows head. As he spoke, his voice was gentle, and clean, "Thank you Hadrian." It was almost as a whisper as he stepped to the side of the cow, a gentle smile showing just under his hood. It was as though watching a completely different person take action. "Perhaps there's something you would like to eat as well? My treat of course." He then added, turning his head towards Hadrian though still blinded by the hood.

[Hadrian]

"I'm all right," he assured his Dhani companion. He glanced over his shoulder but saw that the cow's former owner had moved on. "But where are you going to go to swallow a cow whole?" he asked curiously.

[Koh]

Koh remained calm as ever, smiling, "That I don't know. I suppose we could head outside town though that would mean an ever so slight chance of danger. Maybe you know know of a quiet spot?" he asked, his hand still firmly placed over the cow, "Lets carry on, please lead the way." he said, his mind now slightly distracted by what he had at arms length.

[Hadrian]

Hadrian judged the cow, old and spavined though it may be, to be more of a meal than he would be, though he was curious to see just how the Dhani would feed upon it. Perhaps he was a truly monstrous snake in size and shape, but Hadrian had only seen his two more human forms. In the end he shrugged. Nothing ventured, nothing gained, his father used to say. He led Koh out the city gates and toward the foothills of the Zastoska Mountains, finding a copse of trees large and dense enough to hide whatever the Dhani might do that the townspeople might deem monstrous. It was mostly by his devices that the old cow was led and, thusly, Koh himself. It was strange to realize both Koh's lethality and his inherent weakness. In Zeltiva, he was also in danger of the human population with their mistrust and their sharp weapons and their hate. Was that compassion he felt? Perhaps. "Will this work?" he asked, prepared to leave if the dining ritual was a private one among the snake people.

[Koh]

Koh followed happily, still smiling as the ground shifted from the city streets to the wooden growth. After a minute of walking he felt it was safe, pulling back his hood, his smile disappearing, no longer having to keep a mask near town. He looked around eyeing the trees before giving a slight smirk.

"You really shouldn't follow a Dhani into a forest my friend." He said in a joking tune, before adding, "You've been studying me haven't you? Trying to better your understanding of us perhaps?" Before Hadrian could reply he laughed, not offended, but instead thrilled at this pursuit of knowledge.

"I hope you don't mind, but I am quiet ready to eat. If you wish to study our eating habbits, that is of course a choice I'll leave to you. However I will warn you. It is not a pretty sight for humans." With this last bit of words, he moved his arms back into his coat through the sleeves and began shifting under his coat. His face began distorting, legs becoming long, scaley, and joining together.

The process took about thirty seconds before a giant snake, measuring at what seemed to be forty feet, laid in a pile of clothes, laid out across the area. He moved quickly, attacking the cows legs and tipping it over before coiling around it. He then looked at Hadrian, giving pause to see if his friend was going to leave or not. Whether or not he did, he returned his attention to his meal, wrapping around the legs and neck.

Koh's body jerked, a horrid cracking sound coming from the creatures neck and then after a minute, four more cracking sounds from the leg, one after another. At the very least the cow was dead as Koh's mouth opened, numerous teeth showing from end to end, enveloping the cows face and then head.

It took him about four minutes, slowly devouring the cow over that period of time before finally it was gone. As a large lump slowly moved across the snakes body, it began shifting once more. This time it took longer, totaling about fifty seconds, having to take into account what remained in the body.

The Dhani stood in his half human form, slightly akward looking with the large lump in his body. Slowly he moved towards his cloths, grabbing them and slipping them on.