tampered | Log; Ongoing

When; Before the snowstorm hits
Rating; PG for now
Characters; Ritsu (

regal_reptile)
Summary; Draco sets out to rescue a... ahem, damsel in distress. :D;; And gets a faceful of snow. Mmmhm. ♥
Log;

He was curled up on the stoop beneath an old, boarded-up door, shivering and half-soaked in his thin kimono as he tried his best not to attract the attention of the passersby in the square--already a lost cause, considering the extremes his screaming apologies had reached just moments ago. One or two people still gave him dirty looks... No doubt they'd heard him blocks away, and Ritsu could only whimper out an incoherent apology that turned their glares derisive. He hunched over further and tried not to show his face or look at anyone--his now very tangled hair helped with that.

He tried not to hope that... that the kind youth who'd promised to help him would arrive sooner; after all, the boy had no obligation whatsoever. He didn't even know his name... Ritsu bit his knuckles and railed at his own inability to keep up any form of normal or decent conversation; he knew, he knew apologizing all the time wasn't the way, but he couldn't seem to stop himself. It just slipped out on its own and then all his composure would come tumbling down like a house of cards.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Grumbling under his breath more for effect than in any real irritation, Draco wrapped his arm tighter around the thin, shaking shoulders in an attempt to keep them warm, hidden in his haste to get somewhere sheltered. It was really coming down now, blurring the vision and already packing on the ground underneath their feet. A vision flashed in his mind of the dirty blood-soaked figure of the Pyramid head, shuddered, and sped up, nearly dragging Ritsu along.

"We have to find somewhere to go inside."

The trouble was, by the time they got to the circle of habitable buildings, they couldn't even see the numbers over the doors.

"Y-Yes," Ritsu managed, grateful for the warmth of the one at his side, which helped steady and orient him in the blinding drifts of snow and gale that threatened to topple him right over and leave him bereft of any inkling of direction. He thought they might have reached the houses by now, but...

There was nothing for it but to plunge ahead; and so with a sudden burst of energy he managed to keep up with the accelerated pace, only to nearly trip over the other when he stopped abruptly, seemingly to redirect himself. "A-Ahh! I'm so sorry! I didn't--Are you all right?!" Unheeding of the fact that his entire lower body had gone numb, Ritsu dropped to his knees and tried frantically to check for injuries, although he could barely see.

Startled for a moment as Ritsu dropped to his knees unexpectedly, Draco caught himself from another blush and grabbed him by one arm firmly. Unfortunately, they were mostly of a size, however Draco was much stronger - strong enough to drag Ritsu back to his feet.

"Get up you bloody idiot, if you freeze in this snow it'll be all your own fault!"

He was dragging Ritsu by the arm towards the nearest wall when his own stupidity made him want to hit himself in the head. He definitely had been away from home for too long.

"Stand still," he ordered in his no-arguments voice, quite sure that it would be effective. Drawing out his wand, he waved it over his own head and felt the collecting snow melt away and warmth suffuse his clothes, drying them momentarily. The charm would only last for a little while, but it would be better than nothing while they were wandering around out here. He quickly did the same for his new aquaintance.

Ritsu staggered at the sudden tug and nearly fell--he couldn't feel his ankles anymore and couldn't tell if he was actually walking or simply being dragged through the drifts like a rather disheveled, colorful bobsled. He attempted to make the motions to help out, unsure if he was actually doing anything useful... But then again, all he could really do was try. He was so focused on his feet, in fact, that he almost missed Draco's new spell.

His knees nearly gave out after the thaw, as tingles ran all the way up to his waist and feeling stabbed back into his legs. Wincing, he did his best to smile from his precarious, half-falling position. "Th-Thank you... I-I-I'm so sorry to impose like this... Using your power all the time must be burdensome." With that Ritsu tried a step forward, wobbled and nearly fell over, but he quickly took another before that could happen--yes, he could do this, at least--the sliver of monkey that resided in his consciousness could somehow catch those weakening, wayward limbs before they gave out on him.

Draco frowned at the continued weakness of his companion and wrapped his arm not reluctantly around his shoulders once again, mentally thinking that it was only what was to be expected of a pretty muggle girl half-undressed in the middle of a snowstorm. As if he had experience in this area or something.

"It's not burdensome at all, so just keep moving until we can find somewhere warm to sit down. This spell won't last forever."

The snow was already starting into drifts, and the wind was blowing hard enough to cut to the skin. With one eye on the wall, he followed it, hoping to find the entrence somewhere soon.

Ritsu leaned gratefully against the wall as he dragged himself onward at what seemed a snail's pace, not daring to look up or vary his pace for fear of breaking his focus as well as the little bit of momentum he had gathered that was all that kept him going forward. His eyes kept trying to drift shut in the new warmth, so that more than once he had to catch himself...

And on one of these occasions his hand met air, so that he toppled over completely, sliding to a stop in a relatively dark open area that was littered with melting slush and puddles of various sizes. For a moment he was blind, not knowing where he was. "A-Ah... Um, Angel-san...?" One hand reached out, trying to encounter something, anything solid, meeting air--he was starting to panic. "I-I-I'm sorry to whoever l-lives here! I'm so sorry to intrude! Um... um...!"

"My name isn't 'Angel-san'," the youngest Malfoy complained as he grabbed the helplessly waving arms for what seemed like the millionth time in their very brief aquaintance. As much as Draco appreciated a good servant as much as the next noble-born first son, he didn't like for them to be apologising all the time. 'Speak when spoken to' had been a large rule in the young Draco's life, along with 'Never back down, because you are always right'.

"And you're not 'intruding'. It's an apartment building, you're supposed to share it." Or so he was told. He, personally, had never lived in one, but then again it seemed as though this young, pale androgynous figure was even less knowlegable than himself when it came to all this Muggle stuff.

"Come on," he sighed, stomping up to the elevator and pressing the button in the most regal air he could manage. He didn't look back at the feable figure - if it was coming, it was coming. He was loosing his temper, and he only did so much nice in one day. The time was running out.

"I-I'm so sorry..." I don't know your name... The mumbled, barely audible apology trailed off into a breath as Ritsu fisted both hands hard into the front of his kimono, which was now soaked through and threatening to slip from his shoulders, and followed Draco with hung head. He... He could see all the little signs of irritation that he was accustomed to--the stiffness in the shoulders and the speech, and the irritable dismissal... Well, it was just something that a graceless, useless monkey living with the Sohmas grew used to seeing.

He was so tired--Mother, forgive your son for not being able to apologize in yours and Father's stead at this moment. I...--he would have happily spent his night there in the hallway, but before he could offer to do so, and take himself off the charitable boy's hands, the other had already gone on ahead. After a moment, Ritsu trailed silently after, staring dispiritedly at the floor.

Well. It wasn't any fun to fight with someone who wasn't even trying to fight back. Draco Malfoy was one who thrived on contest, and Ritsu Sohma was anything if not unconfruntational.

"Stop apologising," he said brisquely, entering the well-light cube and waiting for Ritsu to follow him in before pressing a randomly numbered button. The floors weren't even numbered in order. "And didn't I introduce myself? Draco Malfoy, at your service, Miss Sohma."

He was obliged to turn towards his companion for the introduction and his trademark smirk slid over his lips, but then dropped into a frown when he acknowleged how unhappy Ritsu looked. Sure, no one was happy to arrive in the city, especially during a snow storm, but if he kept looking like that he would be eaten up.

Log; Ongoing

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