Chapter 303: Silent Burden
Ivan couldn’t comprehend the mixed signals he was getting from Alistair’s action, but even if he wanted to assume the worst of it, he trusted Alistair a bit too much to see him in that kind of light. Exhaling softly, he quietly dropped the herbal cream on the wooden table adjacent where he stood, whilst his gaze returned to the vampire who appeared mentally disturbed– from his perspective.
"You sound like an ungrateful wimp right now, do you know that?" Replied Ivan, "you should be thanking me, not forcing your irrational demands down my throat. Save your threats for someone who it horrifies, cause they have no effect on me." He softly tsked and turned to face the mirror. He took off his shirt and carefully applied the herbal mixture to the fresh scar on his shoulder.
"If you got hit, you would be dead. Be grateful we’re both alive instead." He added, stealing glances at Alistair whose eyes subtly narrowed from the reflection of the mirror. Ivan didn’t have that time to ponder on what has already happened, and the only thing he could think about was healing quickly so they can resume journey tonight. No matter what happens, he wasn’t going to let anything get in his way of finding Samantha, regardless of what the Shapeshifter had said to him.
"No, you don’t understand." Alistair murmured beneath his tone, his voice laden with what Ivan perceived to be a sense of regret, "if you died, I wouldn’t have been able to forgive myself. Listen, you need to stay alive till the end of this, that’s why I’m warning you not to try something this insane in the future. My death won’t be as significant as yours, it wouldn’t matter to anyone and it is only right that I remind you of that. It is my duty to keep you protected."
"I don’t need valid reasons to save someone I consider family." Ivan asserted sharply, "and as we speak, you’re being a nuisance. Now you listen, if I call you family, don’t take it lightly because at that moment, I just told you that I would die for you. You staying alive is as important as trying to keep me alive, and if you believe there’s no one out there who considers it significant, I’ll pour you hot water in your sleep, cause that’s an insult to me. If we’re done with this awkward conversation why don’t you make yourself useful and apply the herbs on my back. There a certain spots I can’t reach."
He picked up the small glass jar from the table and gave it to the bewildered Alistair, "here, you still owe me for saving you. I have some scratches below my spine if you could get to it quickly." He stood straight before the mirror, his eyes conveying that Alistair should begin with his treatment.
Asides this, he still had a format to complete before they can start leaving tonight. Thankfully, the wounds he incurred wasn’t the type that would hinder him from making any progress today– it also confirmed his suspicioun concerning the reason why he can’t die.
"Alistair." He drawled lazily, snapping the tranced vampire back to reality.
Alistair’s expression softened slightly, and there was a heavy weight in his heart that he could not bring himself to get rid off. When he was done attending to Ivan’s wounds, he stepped out of the tent in silence, not bothering to say a word to Ivan. The guards outside swallowed their fears as he walked past them, feeling the cold intensity that emanated from his being.