Bastard's Blood (Elden Ring)

Ch 5

The young boy licked his wounds as he crawled through the kennels of Leyendell. He wore a potato sack as a makeshift shirt and some baggy shorts as his only pieces of clothing. He had pale skin and the wounds consisted of dark bruises and cuts. His hair was black, shaggy and unkept as dirt and sticks where stuck in the mass of hair. His eyes were a pale blue that constantly scanned his surroundings, filled with fear rather than childish curiosity.

The young eleven year old slightly gasped when a dog thrashed against the cage beside him. Young Artorias calmed himself before continuing forward on all fours, bandages wrapped around his ankles. He soon came upon a small cage in the corner of the dark room, a small pile of hay in the center with some childish drawings on parchment, piled up beside the bed of hay. He made his way inside and circled his bed like a dog before laying down in a coil, closing his eyes as his hand subconsciously reached into the hay. His eyes opened frantically before he got on his knees and began searching for the object of his focus. He began breathing rapidly when he couldn't find the thing he was looking for.

"Looking for this?"

Artorias looked up at the sudden voice, spotting a small girl standing outside his cage, wearing a small white dress. She had pale skin, like him, and had short red hair pulled into a ponytail. Yellow eyes stared down at him as she smiled and held out something towards him. A small homemade toy that mostly consisted of white fur with a small amount of dark tree bark that was stringed onto it like armor, looking somewhat identical to a certain Shadow.

"Puppy!" The boy cried out, reaching out towards the young girl before halting himself. He didn't want to be hurt again, no that would've been bad. He stared at the toy in the girl's hands, fidgeting slightly as he struggled to contain himself. The girl smile and tossed it at him. Artorias scrambled towards the toy and grabbed it, inspecting it for any damage or alterations. He hugged it close with a sigh of relief before looking up at the girl, who appeared slightly younger than him. He looked down at the floor and muttered. "Thank you.....missy."

"Your quite welcome........though I must say I didn't expect Godwyn to be telling the truth." The young girl spoke up, speaking like those guards that patrolled the castle. The girl watched him with a smile as he hugged his toy close to his chest, unsure of what she wanted. He did know Godwyn however, he like him a lot, so maybe she wasn't so bad. The girl leaned down further and observed the slightly older boy. "A human dog in Leyendell........your almost as tall as my big brother, yet they make you sit in here......what happened to you dog, your bleeding."

"P-practice...." Artorias choked out, uncertain of the young girl's curiosity. A giant wolf had taken to training him when he was old enough to stand up on his feet. The girl reached out and poked a cut on his exposed arm, making the boy hiss, causing the girl to pull her hand away slowly. Artorias shook his head before lifting up his toy for the girl to see. "Puppy  says it'll make me tough for a job soon, protect tiny children."

"Interesting......" The girl hummed as she observed his sharp fangs that stuck out from his lips. Artorias watched as she walked forward and reached out, placing her hand on the side of his cheek. He froze for a moment, staring at the girl with uncertainty before she began scratching him. The sudden act made his mouth drop open before his left foot began shaking up and down.  She was very nice. She hummed with a small smirk as she began scratching under his chin, making the older boy fall to his side. "Hmm.....your muscles are big and your height is impressive for your age. Why don't you be my doggy?"

................................

Artorias groaned as he held his pillow tightly against him, not wanting to wake up. He was always a heavy sleeper but Sif was usually around to wake him up with some sloppy licks. But now he could sleep in for as long as he wanted, no one was in a rush. So he pulled his pillow even tighter against him, appreciating how soft and warm the small pillow was.