"Are you done!" Kemal started getting frustrated as Azul finally came back.
"I'm done!!" He cheered loudly sprinting towards Kemal's direction.
"I'll now bring you to my ship!" His voice boomed across the city while Kemal got off of the bench.
"I do want you to show me your powers." Kemal extended his hand and Azul leaned down to rest his head on his palm.
"Why?" The shifter's beady eyes were looking up at Kemal.
I never noticed.. he has blue hair but red eyes, are his eyes supposed to represent his element?
Kemal was lost in thought while his fingers began scratching under Azul's chin.
When he finally snapped out of it the fire man was smiling from ear to ear his eyes filled with content.
"Hm." Kemal removed his hand and was met with an immediate sad doe eyed expression.
It's almost too easy with him..
Kemal raised his hand back up and within seconds Azul's head was back on his palm.
"You'll show me your powers, right?" Kemal's voice came out almost hypnotic.
"Yes…" The other man's voice came out acquiesced.
—
"Do we have to be on the roof?" Azul asked curiously while the pair was out of sight on a wooden roof, his feet tapping.
Granted, they didn't have to. But azul seemed very on edge when talking about his powers around a big crowd.
And Kemal didn't wanna wait till they exited the place to see what he could do.
"It's easier, you wanna go to your ship as fast as possible, don't you?" At Kemal's suggestion Azul's eyes glowed once more.
"Okay! What do you wanna see?!"
"Surprise me."
He was left stumped. Surprise him? The man was left to ponder.
He paced back and forth his boots clacking against the wood beneath him.
A pair of flame ears form above Azul's head while leaning down to meet Kemal's face.
"You like the ears? I can do that!" He spins around a thin tail made of fire wagging behind him.
"A cat?" Kemal tilted his head while Azul shook his head. "A tiger!"
"That's not impressive.." The boy sighs, disappointment growing across his features causing the fire kitten to panic.
"Wait- I can do more!" He began morphing the tail and ears a few times but Kemal was only ever mildly impressed.
"I CAN!"
A large spree of fire bursts into the air causing some passersbys to look.
Kemal raised his hands to cover his face, when finally peeking out he saw a large fire wolf wagging its tail at him.
"IMPRESSIVE!" Kemal finally praised his abilities.
It was the same size as Azul's human form, simply on all 4's, which was still an impressive size.
"And I won't burn you if you touch me!!" His explanation was much louder and passive onlookers were not so passively watching the roof burn.
"Alright! Let's go dog!" Kemal threw himself onto Azul's back with a swift pounce.
"Dog!?" Azul was about to protest but the tantalising touch behind his ears had him submit.
"WOOF WOOF!" Azul barked while Kemal had to hold back his cackle.
Azul was fast, he sprinted across the roofs, no gap was too big for him. His fire didn't burn anything else and it was rather warm on his back, Kemal could only grab onto specific flames, the rest was going past his hands and simply vanishing with the breeze.
The wind was hot against his face since they went through Azul's flame's first but it wasn't anything unbearable.
Kemal experimented with a few grabs, Anything Azul wasn't aware of went through his hands. But anything he knew Kemal would hold onto was grabbable.
When they finally made it past the city Azul's flames burnt brighter and he was practically jumping from one fire platform to another since that was easier than running through the thick forest beneath them.
"I didn't know you can do that." Kemal exclaimed while Azul felt a surge of pride go through him.
"I basically shift fire! It's nothing compared to fire bending!" His tail wagged almost like a propeller.
"Fire benders?" Kemal asked.
"THE INFERIOR VERSION TO ME!" Azul howled. "I can bend their fire to follow me! My fathers genes are unstoppable!"
"I think you are… You're amazing, Azul." Each bit of praise went all the way to this creatures head.
"You think so.." His voice echoed ominously through the air. Azul?
"No." The wolf came to a halt tilting his head slightly and Kemal looked at him with an undeterred expression.
He didn't know why he felt the need to get harsh with him but something seemed out of place.
"Pal..?" Azul's voice came out in a quiver almost about to cry.
"It's alright, I was joking." Azul's head turned, his snout resting on Kemal's hand. His fire ears drooping low with his tail tugged between his hind legs.
What a switch up! Impressiv..
Kemal could only wonder what's going through Azul's head. Is he really that simple minded?
Azul slowly began to march once more the platforms less vibrant.
Unbeknownst to him Kemal started noticing his flames shifting back and forth unable to keep this shape.
"Azul." "Yes?" Azul didn't turn back but his ears perked up.
"Nothing." "Okay!"
—
"Let's land here.." Azul's voice rang as he carefully descended into a secluded area surrounded by trees.
From their height they could see a few ship docks with a few people roaming.
"Why?" Despite Kemal's question, Azul kept descending until he landed on the grass.
"I don't like showing my powers to others!" Azul looked back as Kemal slowly got off of him.
"Really?" Kemal kicked his legs to wake them up as Azul's flames diminished.
His voice came out double, but Kemal couldn't quite point it out, it was a rather faint change.
"Are you ready to meet my crew!!" He quickly got excited ignoring Kemal's question, his hand extending.
"I suppose so." With a shrug they went past the trees before approaching the ship Kemal keeping his hand to himself.
"AZUL!" A burly man beamed in excitement as they both approached.
The man was a beastman Looking like a White wolf as far as Kemal could tell. He ran to give Azul a big bear hug.
"Came here later than usual!! Where have you been!!"
Their voices are both loud. How noisy..
A few more shipmen called for Azul, their voices filled with delight.
And none of them wanted to go with Azul? Really?
Kemal suddenly spotted a familiar man from afar. The winged man who interrogated him at the restaurant, he must've chased Azul and tried to get Kemal off of his back.
The boy shot the winged creature a Grin. His wings were folded behind his back but his white hair was messy and he had faint eye bags.
He definitely lost sleep. How fast did he fly? Did he watch us all the way? He certainly looks upset.
"MEET MY NEW FRIEND!" All eyes were on Kemal now.
OH!
Kemal took a step behind Azul.
Keep all that attention on yourself, I don't need it..
"He's a bit shy!! But he's amazing!! He's smart, sweet! And caring!"
Sweet? Where'd you get that from? Smart? Caring!?
Kemal shot him a side eye while Azul was grinning from ear to ear.
"Well nice to meet you!!" The beastman extended his hand and Kemal reluctantly reached out to shake it.
Fluffy!
His hand stayed on the Beastman's hand for just a bit longer before retreating back.
"I need your help." Azul's voice turned serious, the Wolf's expression hardened giving Azul a knowing expression.
"Are we keeping him?" The beastman whispered and Azul nodded.
"Let's find the boss quickly." Azul whispered back but the whispers did not fail to reach Kemal's ears.
They're both made from the same bark. Why didn't his friend go with him?
He could only glance at the whispering pair until their attention finally went back to him.
"Let me bring you up the ship!" The beastman's tail wagged while Azul ran off ahead.
"Sure." Kemal's response was lackluster, it caught the man off guard but he decided to shake it off.
The ship was docked further away than the most ; it had a large plank connecting it to the bottom dock, its sails were rolled in and there was some vibrant chatter along the hard work.
It took a hot minute for them to get up. Kemal was following from a distance and he could feel the displeased expressions from afar. The surface of the ship was pretty empty, there were some stairs leading up what Kemal assumed was the front of the ship, it had two large lookout posts on each half.
There was a lot of room to walk on there was a large square looking thing at the back with a door, clearly it would lead to other places on the ship.
"Okay!" This is the surface! Very bland, I know… But our captain doesn't like extra stuff! Yet this is still our home!" His laughter echoed through the air making some of his shipmates smile as a response.
"You're a bit rougher looking aren't you?" "Rougher?" Kemal raised an eyebrow but the Beastman could only point at his hair.
"Your hair, it looks torn and ripped, that's not very healthy! Your face looks unhappy! You keep squinting! And worst of all your hair is so thin from all the stress. At least your skin looks healthy enough, the sunlight made it nice and tan!"
My looks… I never saw my reflection.
His mind swayed between reality and thoughts until he finally snapped out of it.
"How about I bring you a bucket to wash your hair in, I'm sure all that dirt isn't helping it flourish." His smile seemed genuine despite the harsh nature of his voice.
"Maybe later." Kemal dismissed him, watching the beast's wagging tail turn stiff.
"O..oh! I get it, you're waiting for Azul!" His fingers began fidgeting nervously. Kemal didn't seem as friendly as the fire shifter made him out to be.
His mood keeps switching back and forth? Is he hiding something?
The boy's eyes narrowed suspiciously but the Beastman caught on and turned away.
"How about you wait here at the side of the ship… Azul can find you there and you won't be in anyone's way."
"I see." Kemal raised his eyebrow at those last few words.
The beastman was about to turn around to lead the stranger, but Kemal already made his move to station himself to the side.
He could feel a few curious glances but nothing too outrageous. The only stare that was hostile was the one of the feathered man he met.
He was part of the crew and clearly was trailing Azul and him.
He must not like me, too bad.
Kemal reached for the pouch of candy Azul gave him a while back.
He finally decided to take a bite.
It's squishy..
Chewing for just a bit gave him a sweet taste all over his tongue, replacing that dry and distasteful taste he had been having all this time.
It wasn't anything too great but calling it bad would be an overstatement.
Kemal decided to lean up against the ships railing, his head leaned back lazily until his eyes landed on the water beneath him.
His heart stopped.
From far away there was a man with long black messy hair and eye bags staring up at him, his eyes were brown and his skin was crystal clear if not a few freckles.
His reflection stared back the same way he started at it.
There was no scuffed hair, no tan skin and no short hair.
His hair looked far more well kept but at the cost of incredibly pale skin.
Kemal's jaw dropped, his reflection's jaw dropped as well.
He stumbled back supporting himself on the wooden railing.
When he finally felt his heart calm down he took another glance. 'His' reflection was still there staring back at him.
What the hell..
He spent a good chunk of his time staring at his own reflection. When he reached for his hair his hand simply went through but if he touched his face it would perfectly align.
The voices surrounding him slowly blurred into the background while he was left with nothing but 'himself'.
He could only stare at the man in the water while slowly putting away his candied goods.
"PAL!!" Azul's voice startled Kemal out of his terror. "Yeah?"
It was best to avoid letting anyone see this.