New Experiences, <+> Rhi <+>

[Eli Nimravus]

Eli led Rhi into the mall, going slowly to allow her to take in the sights. "C'mon, let's get you something to shop in," he said, leading her off to an Old Navy. Their stuff was generally preppy and cliche', but they had a lot of jeans and things, and her style was not the most important thing right now. He held up several pairs of jeans and some shirts to her, guessing at sizes, and then took her to the dressing rooms with them. "Go try these things on," he told her, then added, "One shirt and one pair of jeans at a time," just to be clear. "You can show me the outfits if you want, I'll help you make sure they fit, but it's up to you to pick what you like."

Once she was done, he payed for everything and led her to the next store. He'd noticed that some of the clothes she'd tried on had fit... differently than they should have, and he smirked in mirth when he realized why. They stopped outside of the Victoria's Secret, and he sighed, slightly uncomfortable, and led her inside. The nearest sales-minion assaulted them with "Hello! How can I help you today?" Still fixated on the floor, he motioned for the sales girl to step aside slightly with him, and he kept his voice low in the hopes that Rhia could not hear him.

"My, umm... sister just got out of the hospital. She was in a car-crash and hit her head real bad. She still has some sort of amnesia thing, but they say it's best for her to live at home now. All she has are those hospital clothes..." he indicated the odd outfit she was wearing, hoping it would pass, "Could you help her get some... under-things?" he felt slightly stupid, talking this way, "I'll be right outside, just come get me and I'll pay for everything, okay?" He passed Rhia on the way out, and explained to her, "I'll be right outside, Rhi, just go with her and she'll help you out, okay?"

He went and sat on a bench right outside the store, keeping his eyes on the ground and hoping no one would notice him. Especially not anyone who would recognize him. That would be a disaster. Feeling slightly paranoid, he pulled his hood down lower over his face, sinking into the bench, trying to hide.

[Rhia Vilkacis]

Rhia didn't understand Eli's discomfort at this new place, which he called a 'store'. How was it different than the last one? There were obvious things, like the colors, and the way it was layed out, but it all seemed pretty much the same to her. She was looking around the store as he and the new person talked. It was one of those human-things she didn't quite understand, so she looked around at the store instead, until Eli walked passed her and said, "I'll be right outside, Rhi, just go with her and she'll help you out, okay?"

She didn't like the thought of him leaving, but she did what she was told. She was mistrustful of this stranger, though, but if Eli had said she was alright, Rhia had no reason to doubt him. She didn't like the way she was being treated by this person, though. The kind and friendly tone in her voice was conflicted by the strange 'measuring' ritual she was doing. What was this for, exactly? She even snarled at the woman one time, though it didn't have the same effect without hackles to raise or the proper teeth to bare, and the woman only looked startled and worked slightly more carefully. Finally, it was over, and the woman helped her pick out some strange little clothing-things, and took her over to the counter. The woman left her there, and then went out to get Eli.

[Eli Nimravus]

Eli's head snapped up as he felt a tap on his shoulder. "We're ready, sir," The sales-lady told him. He nodded and followed her to the counter. He gave the girl his credit card and she rung it up. As she was looking at her screen, her eyes widened and she gasped. He winced. She looked up at him, gaping. "Eli Nimravus...?" He nodded a bit reluctantly. "Oh, I--- wow. I... Can I... Can I have your autograph, please?" She practically begged. Sighing in relief that she didn't completely freak out, he nodded, and signed the back of his receipt and gave it back to her. "I didn't know you had a sister," She added, trying to keep him near her as long as possible. "Yeah, it's..." He paused, trying to think of the right wording, "Not a well known fact. I have to go now, Rhi needs me," he said, jerking his thumb over his shoulder at the lone wolf. "Okay, well... It was so cool to meet you..." she said, and he gave a short wave and went back to Rhi, the underwear in his hands. "Hey, put a bra and panties on under your clothes, then put on this and this over it, okay?" He handed her a pair of jeans and a tee shirt.

When she was done (and her chest looked significantly less awkward), he smiled and took her by the hand, leading her out of the store. "Tell me when you get hungry, okay?"

[Rhia Vilkacis]

Rhia didn't understand the whole interaction between Eli and the sales lady. She seemed excited to see him, acting like he was someone important and special. Another point for the Eli-is-an-alpha argument. She followed his directions regarding dressing and emerged dressed convincingly as a normal human.

((See picture below. XD))

He smiled at her and took her by the hand, leading her out of the store, and she smiled too. She found she liked holding hands. Besides, she was glad to be leaving that stranger-woman. She found herself strangely... jealous of his attention. "Tell me when you get hungry, okay?"

"Okay," she agreed. He led her around other stores, showing her things that he'd told her about yesterday and teaching her about ones he'd left out. They'd still barely scratched the surface, though they'd been through many stores, when Rhia realized she was hungry. She was used to going long periods without food, but he'd said... and food seemed to work differently here. "Eli... I'm kind of hungry."

[Eli Nimravus]

"Eli..."

"Hmm?"

"I'm kind of hungry."

"Okay, let's go get fed, then." He led her towards the food court, still holding her hand. If she got lost in here.... He didn't even want to think about it. He got in line at Sbarro's, planning on just getting them pizza. Pizza was simple enough, nothing too bizarre, like ethnic foods. She'd probably flip if they ate Chinese food... He chuckled quietly to himself, amused at the idea. "Two slices of meat lover's, please" He ordered, head bowed to avoid any further recognition. This time he dug around for change to pay, it was not half as expensive as Victoria's Secret. Then again, nothing was too expensive for him, but he didn't like to flaunt it.

He took the tray of food and led Rhi over to a table for two, and set the food down. "Okay, eating pizza is a little different than how we ate breakfast. Just... watch what I do, I guess," He shrugged, and picked up his slice and took a bite, watching her. He was almost starting to get attached... He'd try not to, though. That was dangerous.

[Rhia Vilkacis]

"Okay, let's go get fed, then." he was still holding her hand, and he led her off to the food court. When they came within range of a center full of strange smells, Rhia's eyes went wide with wonder. She'd detected the edges of it in some of the places they'd walked through, but it hadn't been this strong. They were obviously nearing the source and even her dulled human senses were overwhelmed.

He held her hand, leading her through the line and ordering food, and then over to a table, sitting down across from her. "Okay, eating pizza is a little different than how we ate breakfast. Just... watch what I do, I guess," He shrugged, and picked up his slice and took a bite, watching her. She watched carefully, studying what he did, and then took her slice awkwardly and managed to get a bite and only get a little sauce on her face. The burst of flavor was intense and like nothing she'd experienced since... well, breakfast. It was its own wonder, though, a whole new world of taste. It was amazing. "Wow... what is this?" she asked, voice full of wonder.

[Eli Nimravus]

"Wow... what is this?"

Eli smiled and shrugged, "Just pizza. It's probably the most common food. Everyone eats it around here..." Without thinking, he pulled his hood down. The heat was bugging him, and he wondered why he hadn't pulled it down earlier. As he heard a squealing shriek, he remembered why he had left it on. Oh, no... He knew it was too late to save face, so he just took the hoodie off. It was hot, anyway.

A split second after he was topless, he got practically mauled by screaming fans, both boys and girls. "Ohmigosh, it's Eli!" "Eli! Eli! I want to have your babies!" "Eli! Will you hold my cock, please?!" "Eli!" "Eli! You're so hot!" "Ohmigosh, can we have sex?!" "I know you like to have sex with everyone, and I'm available!" "I'm horny, fuck me!" "Eli!"

"Augh!" He couldn't even curse, he was being completely bombarded. He couldn't even move. He threw his sweatshirt at a particularly frisky fangirl, who squealed with glee and ran off with it. A few followed, but he still couldn't get to his friend. "Gah, RHI!" He yelled, pushing heads down, trying to see her over the heads of people. Sure, he was tall, but there were so many people touching him fervently, like they'd never seen a person before. She better not get lost or hurt in this mess, I'll have to kick some ass...

[Rhia Vilkacis]

Eli had just explained about the pizza and pulled his hood down when an ear-splitting scream pierced the air and Rhia's ear-drums. He looked defeated and pulled the hoodie off, just before he was surrounded by a horde of screaming people. "Ohmigosh, it's Eli!" "Eli! Eli! I want to have your babies!" "Eli! Will you hold my cock, please?!" "Eli!" "Eli! You're so hot!" "Ohmigosh, can we have sex?!" "I know you like to have sex with everyone, and I'm available!" "I'm horny, fuck me!" "Eli!"

Rhia, surprised and admittedly scared by the mob, was about to jump up and save him, believing him to be under attack, when she registered what they were saying. AHA! She knew it! He was an alpha! But, why had he lied to her? Lying was something completely foreign to her, she didn't understand it. But she really appreciated that he wanted her to be comfortable around him.

"Augh!" The situation at hand was more pressing, however, than whether or not he was an alpha (though he clearly WAS). "Gah, RHI!" he was trying to fight his way back to her and she was doing her best to shove through the crowd. Scared and a little lost in the throng of people, she cried out, "Eli!" though it was doubtful she could be heard amid the masses of screaming fangirls who were shrieking the same thing. She finally managed to push and shove her way through the crowd, growling at people (though few could hear her) and biting occasionally when she had to. She had an advantage, being small, in that wriggling through the crowd was not so hard. She was in constant danger of being crushed, though. She finally made it to him, gasping and panting with the effort, and held on to him, determined not to get separated again. She snarled at some of the crowd, though the most attention she got was the people trying to get her out of the way. She was oblivious to the tabloids any pictures of this scene would end up in.

[Eli Nimravus]

He was about to start throwing some punches when he felt a small body cling to him. Annoyed, he was about to pry the person off when he realized it was Rhi. "Thank God..." He muttered, inaudible against the screams of fans. He groaned when flashes and clicking noises attacked. This was not good. Now she was going to get attacked in public, too. Trying to keep her from noticing, he kicked and punched a few people, but mostly shoved them to clear a path. He grabbed her hand and held on tight, running as fast as he could to get away from the mob. Since her body was smaller, and his legs were long, he picked her up bridal style (she wasn't keeping up), and ran faster, holding on tightly but carefully.

When they finally escaped, the mob lost in the big city, they returned to his apartment. He set her down and unlocked the door, letting her go in ahead of him. After they were both in, he turned and locked the door behind them, and led her to the living room so they could sit on the couch. Feeling a bit sheepish, he awkwardly scratched the back of his head as he confessed, "Er, I haven't exactly been completely honest with you..."

[Rhia Vilkacis]

Rhia could hear the camera clicks and see the flashes through the crowd. Was that a storm? That was the last thing they needed. She didn't feel any rain, though. She shuddered at the thought. She hated storms, the lightning and thunder didn't exactly scare her, but it made her nervous and uncomfortable.

Eli fought a path through the crowd, holding onto her hand. They started running, but she could not keep up well in this form, and he soon scooped her up and carried her. If she'd been thinking, she would have shifted, but the excitement of the crowd confused her so she was not thinking clearly. They lost the crowd, finally, and arrived at his house, where he made the most obvious statement she'd ever heard.

"Er, I haven't exactly been completely honest with you..."

"I knew it! I knew you were an alpha!" she was excited to have figured out one thing in this confusing new world she'd entered. It all led to more questions, though, more confusion. "But... why did you tell me you weren't?" There was a pathetic, almost pleading, tone to her voice that she had not intended. The confusion was getting to her. She didn't understand lying, and she really didn't understand Eli and his status. This, combined with the overwhelming experience of a whole new culture was starting to get to her a little. It was too much at once, and she realized her head was starting to hurt... not like she'd hit it, but from the inside, and she put a hand to her head without being consciously aware of it, as she listened to Eli.




((You can totally ignore the pathetic, confused Rhia and respond as if she were simply sounding confused. Give her an ibuprofen and explain things. XD This post got more emo than I intended. She's fine.

By the way, I misspelled 'ibuprofen' as I was typing this, and one of Firefox's recommended words was 'necrophilia'. O.o I thought that was worth sharing... ^^ ))

[Eli Nimravus]

"I knew it! I knew you were an alpha!"

I give up! He almost moaned in irritation, but he was able to keep it to himself. Fine, if she was so intent on believing he was an alpha, fine, he'd let her believe it. He was getting pretty tired of explaining things, and there was no way he'd be able to explain the whole 'supermodel' issue to her. She had no idea how this culture worked, and it would only serve to confuse her more. If it would keep both of them sane, he'd be an alpha.

"But... why did you tell me you weren't?"

He changed her words in his mind a bit, to better suit his needs. 'Why didn't you tell me you were a famous supermodel?' So he answered her honestly: "I just... I wanted to be treated the same as everyone else, for once. Not like some kind of god. I wanted to be normal, I wanted to be on the same level as you, not above." He shrugged. There it was, that deep, profoundness he had been searching for lately, that he had been craving to delve into. He could finally be rid of his father's influence, all of it (at least for now).

[Rhia Vilkacis]

"I just... I wanted to be treated the same as everyone else, for once. Not like some kind of god. I wanted to be normal, I wanted to be on the same level as you, not above."

Oh.

She didn't quite understand why he'd want that, it was not a perspective she'd had any experience with. But she could respect his wishes, even if she didn't understand. It would be weird, but then so was this whole experience. She would never stop looking to him for guidance, but she'd do what she could in other situations.

"Oh... I'm sorry," she caught herself slipping back into submissive-wolf actions and forced herself to straighten up. It was harder than she'd thought it would be, but if this was what the alpha required of her, she'd do it. "So, umm... what now?" she asked, without realizing that she was asking him for leadership again. She didn't quite understand the difference between what he was talking about - celebrity - and her view of an alpha, which included a bit of celebrity and also a lot of leadership, but she was fortunate that in this case it didn't matter.


((Gah, sorry. I know that's like... nothing at all. >< ))

[Eli Nimravus]

"Oh... I'm sorry," He shrugged off her apology, not finding it significant. She hadn't really done anything to be sorry for. "So, umm... what now?" Eli shrugged, and practically shoved the shopping bags into her arms. Somehow, miraculously, he had managed to not lose anything in their mad dash for freedom. How he had even managed to do that, he had no idea, but he was very grateful that they didn't have to go back.

"I dunno, we could just sit around and talk, I guess..." He couldn't really think of anything else to do, and there was no way in hell he'd go back out there today, he knew they were looking for him. And he dreaded the next day, too, with the tabloids. God knew what kind of twisted, completely false stories they could come up with from those pictures. Hopefully it wouldn't be too horribly absurd...

"Besides," He said, "It's your turn to explain your culture to me." He offered her an encouraging smile, honestly wanting to learn more about where she came from and what it was like, and how it worked.

[Rhia Vilkacis]

"I dunno, we could just sit around and talk, I guess..." That seemed like a good enough idea to her, she'd had about as much adventure as she could handle for one day. "Besides," He said, "It's your turn to explain your culture to me." he smiled encouragingly, looking genuinely interested.

"Oh... okay, then." She was quite willing to tell him about where she'd come from, she just wasn't sure where to begin. She paused a moment to gather her thoughts and then started. "Well, umm... we live just like any other wolf pack, really. We're led by our alphas and we travel around our territory, protect our borders, you know. We hunt together, live together, and of course everyone helps raise the alpha's puppies. We only shift to human form occasionally 'cause we can't deny that part of ourselves, either. We don't spend much time that way, though. Oh, and we have musicians, for when we are in that form. The pack I came from was fairly large, we had a couple musicians." she paused here, as if hesitant to go on, and with a faint blush, added, "They let me study with them a little." She didn't like to brag.

Rhia ended her story there, not sure what else to tell him about, and deciding he'd ask questions if he was curious about anything.

[Eli Nimravus]

"Oh... okay, then. Well, umm... we live just like any other wolf pack, really. We're led by our alphas and we travel around our territory, protect our borders, you know. We hunt together, live together, and of course everyone helps raise the alpha's puppies. We only shift to human form occasionally 'cause we can't deny that part of ourselves, either. We don't spend much time that way, though. Oh, and we have musicians, for when we are in that form. The pack I came from was fairly large, we had a couple musicians. They let me study with them a little."

He smiled, truly intrigued. "You'll have to play for me sometime," He said with a wink.

They continued to talk about anything and everything far into the night, until Eli felt he was going to fall asleep right where he was. "C'mon, time to sleep." Exhausted, he tossed her some pajamas they had bought at the mall and went to put his own on. Immediately after he had changed and gotten ready for bed, he collapsed into the mattress, asleep before his head even hit the pillow.