Fede’s intentions were good; she didn’t want to hurt anyone. That was the main reason she was so far away from humanity, far from the beaten trail. She walked briskly along the bank of the Lacroix for a little over fifteen minutes to find a nice secluded site. The moon was full and hung high in the clear sky. The moon shimmered eerily off the dark, cold water of the Lacroix River. After her brisk walk, Fede soon found a secluded spot next to a small waterfall. There were a few rocks and boulders scattered around the area at the base of the waterfall; Fede made her way towards them. She could feel the moisture as she approached.

She was dressed in her usual attire consisting of a pair of torn denim blue jeans that were a few sizes too big for her; they were held up by a long, soft leather belt which extended down to her knees. A faded black Nike t-shirt was covered by a washed out jean jacket. Fede wore a pair of well used Converse trainers and a faded black baseball cap. Apart from all these clothes being well used and tattered, they were all burnt to some degree. Fede pulled a hand from her coat pocket and forced the baseball cap further in front of her eyes. Tuffs of bright orange hair stuck out from beneath her hat. These tuffs of hair were various lengths and most probably cut with a pen knife. Fede walked across to the boulders and rested beside them.

Fede sat with her legs crossed in front of her, her hands resting in her lap. She looked around, taking in the area before she started. Her eyes fell to the waterfall on her left. Fede believed this was a good thing for what she was about to do. Water was always good when one was playing with fire. Finally she closed her depressing jade eyes and took a deep breath.

Uriel's intentions were... well, if he had any intentions, most likely they'd be good, too. Uriel thought he was alone, staring into the cold blue water of the Lacroix, that appeared black and shimmered beautifully in the moonlight. He leaned over the pool of water, running his claws atop it, causing it to ripple.

His multi-colored hair fell around him like a velvety, thin and for once, brushed curtain, a mix of the darkest of blues, the sootiest of blacks, and the most crimson of reds. It was long, cut in the most feathery of layers, (though a little jagged, because he cut it himself) and fell to the middle of his back at the longest point.

In the front, it was also just jaggedly, but his hair was so soft, thin and light it was hard to tell hair-cutting wasn't exactly his forte. It hung in his pink-colored eyes (which in this moonlight glowed) and in his face, as if he hadn't intended it to be that way. But the problem was... was that Uriel had intended it to be that way.

He was dressed in his casual attire, which really was anything he could find that wasn't wrinkled, dirty, on his floor, or all three of those. Uriel didn't have a lot of clothes that fit into that particular category, so he opted for the lesser dirty, wrinkled, on the floor clothes of the ones he had.

In this case, it happened to be a pair of wrinkled, grass-stained, filled with holes, looked like they belonged in a garbage denim-blue jeans, and a long-sleeved mint green t-shirt with an avacodo colored neck. It was made of baby cotton, and was only slightly wrinkled and baggy. He found it to be very comfortable, and perhaps his favorite shirt.

Around his right wrist he wore a... leather band that looked like a thick belt that went around his slender wrist.

He blended in fairly well with his surrounding, and if you weren't looking for him, you probably couldn't find him.

Not too far away from the girl, the halfling lie on his stomach, watching the water and running his claws through it. Feathers silently ruffled underneath that shirt of his, and he looked up to the girl with silent... amusment.

OOC: Thank you for joining ^_^

BIC:
Her eyes scrunched up and her brow furrowed. Fede was breathing deeply, her chest moving slowing in and out as she tried to concentrate. She didn’t have any idea that anyone was watching her, she was trying so hard not to loose it all. Fede shuffled uncomfortably on the ground, pushing her spine hard against the boulder behind her. A single eye snapped open and glanced around quickly. Her eye closed just as fast as it had opened. She wasn’t concerned with anyone watching her any more; she was more concerned with burning this place to the ground.

Slowly but surely the area around Fede began to increase in temperature. She was trying with all her might to control the influx of heat and not let it get out of hand. Fede looked like she was in a state of distress. Her hands grasped hold of the denim jeans tightly, forming fists with white knuckles. The heat began to increase more quickly, radiating out from Fede in waves. She seemed to still be in control, but only barely. Her eye opened again, this time for far longer. Fede was making doubly sure that nothing was burning.

The heat felt good to Fede, it was like a reunion with a long lost friend. But Fede had an inkling that such a reunion would end tragically. The heat had increased to at least one hundred degrees Fahrenheit and didn’t show any signs of diminishing.

As Fede shuffled and opened one eye, Uriel remained silent and seemed to never blink, intent on watching the human, or whatever it was. It seemed human enough, and it looked human enough. But those firey like waves of heat... they were amazing, but definitely not human.

And then it was hot... so hot, where it hadn't even been that warm before. He was guessing that was her doing as well, and against his instincts, did something that might've attracted attention to himself.

He slunk into the water with easy grace, seeming to slither in with only the quietest of noises. It was a flowing, surreal sounding splash that disturbed the peace. It was a mass eruption of ripples where the water had once been dark and clear, reflecting the moon on its shimmery substance.

Uriel's head peeked out from where it had rippled, and his mouth was opened in mild awe, filtering water in and out of the small pool as he breathed.

It was only now that Fede had the slightest suspicion that she wasn’t alone. Almost instantly she began to panic. A thousand thoughts rushed through her mind, shattering her concentration. Her eyes snapped open and her rate of breathing had vastly increased, she was almost hyperventilating. Fede had just lost what little control she had over her abilities. The figurative dome of heat expanded rapidly, increasing in temperature. Embers and ash began to swish around in the heated air. Fede keeled over to the right, bringing her knees tightly into her chest. Her arms were wrapped around tightly with her thin fingers pressed firmly into her cranium.

Small fires began to erupt around Fede, the grass, the trees, the shrubbery, all began to burn. Even Fede was on fire, flames licked from the back of her jean jacket. Her jade eyes were open wide, tears welling in the corners. She was trying desperately to regain control and stifle the flames. Fede mumbled in dread, her words slurred together in panic. The pleading was something like ‘please stop’ over and over again.

Uriel's first thought was to recoil and sink back under the water, where it wasn't so hot. It was so hot it was making him sick... but right before he reacted, he had second thoughts. That girl was pleading... that girl was going to be in hurt, and was in danger.

You could say what Uriel did next could be considered leaping (yes, leaping) out of the water to tackle the woman to the ground, spraying the flames with the liquid from his clothes in a half-hearted attempt to douse the flames, or something similar.

Fede struggled with the flames, trying to regain control and extinguish them. The only thought on her mind was how much of a mistake this was. She shouldn’t have come out here, she was a danger to society. Fede could feel the lukewarm water seeping through her clothes. Slowly she rolled her eyes, turning them in the direction of the water. She saw a figure standing over her. Fede was in such a panic at this point she couldn’t focus and could only see Uriel’s outline.

Fede had to regain control, she was endangering others now. Her eyes scrunched closed, a tear trickled from the corner. She continued to plead with the flames to subside. The heat quickly dissipated into the atmosphere and soon it returned to the ambient temperature. The flames were doused, reducing their mass to a mere flicker before they were extinguished. The landscape was charred, smoke rose slowly from the ground.

Oddly enough, Fede didn’t have a mark on her. But she did look very exhausted. She stayed on the floor, smoke rising from her singed, damp clothing. Fede’s breathing slowly calmed down as she regained control. Her heart was pounding inside her chest and her eyes were still closed tightly, fearing to look out upon the world.

Diving into those flames was a stupid idea. A stupid idea, and a stupid risk, that Uriel shouldn't have taken. But he did anyway... even though it probably didn't help the young girl.

He rolled off once the flames subsided, cringed slightly and shook Fede's shoulder a little, seeming a little jittery, and mildly panicked.

"Miss..., are you all right?" He asked, his voice no more than a slightly hoarse but mostly smooth-sounding whisper.

Fede pushed herself from the ground, back to a sitting position. She still had her knees high into her chest. She looked towards Uriel, her eyes regaining focus. Fede couldn’t help but think how odd he looked. She stared unwavering into his pink eyes for a moment before blinking. Fede nodded, still exhausted and breathing heavily.
“Yeah… I’m fine.” She said in a slightly put out tone, her eyes drifted around Uriel’s body, it was only now that she realised what he had done.

Fede cleared her throat as she continued to stare, trying to see if he had been hurt.
“Umm, you? A-are you okay?” Fede asked hesitantly, fearing the answer.
She did sound genuine in her concern for Uriel’s wellbeing.

If Uriel had been burned, it wasn't that badly. He still had one hand on her shoulder, his gaze soft and steady, trying to be comforting. "Are you sure?" He asked, softly. Uriel was far too nice for his own good..

"I'm fine." He reassured her. Even if he weren't, he could handle pain and was something of a masochist, so it wouldn't have really mattered. "I'm sorry... I must've broke your concentration. Forgive me, this is my fault.."

Fede’s eyes opened wide, it had just dawned on her that Uriel had seen everything. She cleared her throat trying to think of some cover story, something that would explain all of this in rational easy to understand science.

“Oh umm… this? This wasn’t me… I erm, can’t…” She laughed nervously realising how fruitless of a lie this was.
Fede and Uriel were the only ones around. For a brief moment, Fede considered blaming Uriel for all of this. Her eyes slowly cast down to the scorched earth and she shook her head.

“No, it’s my fault. I can’t do this very well. I shouldn’t of been out here.” She glanced up towards Uriel and began to wonder.
He was taking all of this very well. Most normal people would of run away screaming ‘witch’ or something along those lines. And yet, Uriel seemed to almost understand. Her head bowed once again, she could be in a lot of trouble here.
“Please don’t tell anyone…” Her words were fearful and quivered as they escaped her lips.

He smiled a little bit, removing his hand from her shoulder for just a moment to get onto his knees and sit on his heels. "It's okay, I understand... you don't have to explain."

He traced a claw in the dirt, making random scratches in the earth, and looked down for a moment, just listening, and simply that.

"It's quite all right." He nodded a little. "Consider my lips sealed." His words were still soft as ever.. reassuring, calm, and understanding. Uriel knew what it was like to be a freak. Just look at him... pink eyes, claws, only part of wings... the list goes on.

It was no wonder he understood.

As her eyes were downcast, she noticed Uriel’s finger making tracings in the earth. Her eyes narrowed as she focused on it. Fede raised her head gazing into Uriel’s pink eyes. Her moment of confusion passed swiftly and she smiled reluctantly. She didn’t know what or who this person was in front of her, but she did know he was different, different like her.

“Thanks” Fede said, feeling reassured by Uriel’s words.
She still didn’t trust him, Fede had learnt that trust was a luxury she couldn’t afford. She shrugged her shoulder and placed her hands on the ground. Fede pushed herself to her feet and took a short walk. She wanted to put some distance between Uriel and herself. She looked around and sighed. Almost a twenty metre radius had been scorched.

"It's not a problem. Anybody would've done the same." He nodded, carefully placing his hands between his legs and letting them dangle there. He let his gaze wander, careful not to stare at her, or seem to stare, anyway.

Then he fell back onto his behind and turned, looking back into the water.

Fede scoffed as Uriel mentioned ‘anybody would’ve done the same’. She didn’t believe that, she could never believe that. People get mugged in broad daylight without anyone as much as batting an eyelid. Why would someone go out of their way to help another? The only reason Fede could think of was some form of reward. She glanced at Uriel, wondering if he had any ulterior motives for helping her. She stayed silent for a good few minutes.

“So, you got a name?” She asked bluntly, returning to her aloof attitude.

Well, at least Uriel would've done the same for anybody in trouble. It was just in his nature, and some day that very nicneness might get him in trouble, or something of the such.

He smiled weakly, inching over to the water's edge, allowing his feet to sink into the cool water.

"Yeah, it's Uriel. Uriel Alcohol. And you?"

Fede nodded with a sad smile.
“That’s a unique name.” she mumbled, “I’m Fede Ricci.” She knew her name wasn’t exactly commonplace.
She wondered back to the large boulder and rested against it. Fede glanced around with a sigh. Her breathing had returned to normal and she had calmed down for the most part. She didn’t know what to say and simply watched Uriel from behind. Fede didn’t know if the light was playing tricks with her, but she could have sworn there was something shuffling underneath Uriel’s shirt.

And indeed, there was something shuffling underneath Uriel's shirt. And just to confirm her suspicions, he peeled off the wet shirt, leaving it on the ground as he slipped into the cold water, looking back at Fede. What was left of his wings continued to shift and flutter, although it was silent.

"Thanks." So what if that hadn't been a compliment? That didn't mean Uriel couldn't take it as one.

"Yours is nice too. I've never met a person named Fede in my life."

Fede gasped quietly as Uriel removed his shirt. She stared at the remnants of his wings in shock and awe. She knew it was rude to stare, but she couldn’t draw her eyes away. Finally she moved her head to the left, forcing her eyes to move. She didn’t know what to think and her mind was suddenly blank. She was brought back to reality as Uriel spoke.

“Hmm? Yeah, it’s Italian… means faith.” Fede said nonchalantly.
She found herself watching Uriel again. She had never seen anything like him before and her mind was filled with thousands of questions.

"..hn, really? I didn't know that." And Uriel slipped under the water again, feeling himself submerge under the icy cold liquid. He came back up, his hair appearing black because it was thoroughly soaked but still thin, straight, and untangled. His mouth was left open some ways, the water filtering in and out of his mouth again.

The moon reflected on his face and his features, each shadow playing over the darker areas. Uriel truly was a very beautiful creature, if you took the time to look. He had the effect on people that from viewed faraway, most thought, 'wow.. he's pretty' and when viewed from close up, 'wow, he's gorgeous.'

He looked at Fede now, pink gaze never wavering, looking to her as if she were the most interesting thing in the world.

"You learn something new every day."

He brought his hands up over the edge of water and onto the cold ground, claws raking against soil once more.

Fede had always hated people staring at her, they normally did as well. It wasn’t because she was exceptionally beautiful or talented. Her naturally bright orange hair got a lot of attention, hence she kept it short and beneath a baseball cap. On top of that, Fede was quite plane. She didn’t take any pride in her appearance and tried her best to blend in. She felt out of place with Uriel’s eyes on her. Fede began to blush and quickly turned her head away. She knew Uriel was hansom, she wasn’t totally blind to that kind of thing. Fede always kept her distance from others. Lacking any self confidence and her suspicious nature about everything, Fede had never had a date. Even if one of the boys asked her out, she simply frowned and insulted him. That made sure others wouldn’t attempt to get close to her.

“So umm…” Fede tried to think of something to break the silence, “What were you doing so far out here? … You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to…” She said in a depressing tone.

He noticed her blush and look away, so he did the same, not wanting to offend her by staring. But, really, he couldn't help it. It was just his natural innocent fascination with anything and everything that made him want to study her and remember all of her features... down to every last detail. He was a painter, too, so maybe that had something to do with it.

He smiled faintly. "Just enjoying the moonlight and the silence... looking at the water. It's just to peaceful out here."

He almost laughed. "I'd ask the same of you, but I'm not quite sure you'd want to answer that..?"

Hmm… right.” Fede mumbled as she looked back at Uriel, “Guess I ruined that for you then… Sorry”
Her cheeks were still flushed, but not as badly as before. She looked away again, glancing around her surroundings. Fede thought about Uriel’s question for some time. So far he had been very accepting of Fede and didn’t once seem to mock or patronise her.

“Well, I guess I was practicing or something. I don’t know what I expected really. As I said before, I’m not very good at it.” She smiled in spite of herself, “This kinda thing happens more than you’d expect.” Fede said with a brief, fleeting grin.

"That's all right. I'm not going to hold it against you." He pushed against an edge where the water and ground met and pushed up against it, seeming to swim backwards.

"Who said fires weren't beautiful, anyway?"

He sank back into the water, submerging briefly and appearing in a different spot when he came back up.

"Well, all the power to you, then. What is it they say... practice makes perfect? OR at least better, hm?" He toyed with a strand of his wet hair, seeming to contemplate this.

"Rome wasn't built in a day, you know."

Fede nodded in agreement, there wasn’t anything as beautiful as a fire, at least to her there wasn’t. She took a few steps backwards, away from Uriel. Fede knew she was getting too close to him. Even if he understood her, she was still a dangerous person to be around. She didn’t want to hurt him, or anyone for that matter.

“No, it wasn’t built in a day… but it burnt down in one.”
She glanced around anxiously, planning her leave. Fede didn’t want to go, she would have preferred to stay beside the banks of the Lacroix and get to know Uriel better. However, what Fede wanted what she knew she had to do were two different things entirely. It was best for both parties involved if Fede left.

“Perhaps it was, but that’s not the point, now is it? Why be so morose about it...? It only dampens the spirits, you know. You shouldn’t discourage yourself the way you do.”

Uriel submerged again under the icy pool of water, and stayed under much longer than one would expect him to do. He was thinking… and wading, somewhat in this water. Then he came back up, his expression the one of a man who doesn’t know what expression he should display.

“The only way to ever get better is to try. If you don’t believe, then what’s the use of doing anything at all?” He played around with the water for a moment, tracing it with his claws once more. The same thing goes for friends… Fede could never make them if she didn’t trust herself more.

Fede frowned in contempt. She knew Uriel was correct, she just didn’t like to admit it. She also knew bad things happened when she became confident. This caused her to severely doubt herself and her control. It was a cycle she had become trapped in. She tried to think of an excuse, a comeback, anything, but her mind was blank. Fede slumped down to the floor, crossing her legs as she fell. She hunched over with her elbows digging into her thighs while her hands supported her chin.
“Guess your right…” She mumbled sardonically.

"You don't have to sound so... enthusiastic about it." He said softly and only mildly sarcastically, bringing himself up from the water's edge up onto dry land with effortless practiced ease. He watched her as he ran his claws through his hair, frowning only slightly.

"But then again, it must be hard. I'm sorry."

He ran his hands through his hair in a different motion now, sort of shaking it out.

Fede smiled sadly, reminded on how hard it has been for her. She didn’t like to talk about it, or think about it for that matter.
“What about you…?” She indicated with a limp hand towards Uriel’s leathery wings.
She frowned, watching Uriel coming out of the water, it must have been quite cold, but he didn’t seem to feel it.

Uriel felt it. Though a demon, he felt it. But he liked the shock of the icy cold water in comparison to the cool night air, and he thrived off of the feeling in it. He felt like thrashing around and destroying things afterward, in a fit of morbid desire. Quieting this insanity, he shook his head violently, shaking off water as if he were a dog.

"I can't say it's been easy... after all, if I did I'd be lying." He stopped shaking his head and looked back at Fede. He'd been hated, adopted and thrown away at birth, unwanted, beaten, and had taken more drugs than a normal person should've. It's a miracle he's as laidback, calm and sociable as he is.

He leaned over the water and ran his claws over top of it with a gentle sigh.

(Sorry it took so long to post.)