Glaring at him with continued suspicion and waning levels of hostility, Lacey eventually reaches the conclusion that the thing is being sincere in his conversation. He licks his thumb, and she's sure she knows what's coming next. She gets ready to struggle...and then is pleasantly surprised as he instead starts trying to clear the slime off of both herself and the tree she's stuck to. This is...certainly not what she's come to expect.

She listens to his plans. Cleaning up the forest...? "Is that...what you do then?" She asks hesitantly, suspicion and hostility forgotten for the moment. "You tend the woods? Sounds kind of...Tolkien." Ever a lover of fantasy, it doesn't take much for her to draw the connection...though she doesn't remember Ents having nanites. Whatever those are.

She looks around; the place IS pretty trashed. The little ambush site looks like a war zone, slime and scorch marks everywhere. Still, that's not really HER fault, is it? She isn't the one who started slinging fire around or went to capture someone against a tree...and Birch had said a moment ago that she's free to leave. All common sense tells her to get while the getting's good.

And then there's her conscience. Damnable ethics. After all, if she hadn't goaded Slarr into a rage, there'd be no scorch marks...not much she could have done about the slime on her own though. And besides that, Birch had saved her from Slarr...though unintentionally...and of course hadn't raped her afterward. Brownie points.

She battles with her conscience and common sense for a few more moments, then with an exasperated sigh, she walks over to the bag her first tormentor of the day had left behind earlier, and takes it behind a nearby tree. She finds a uniform that fits her, more or less, and some panties inside. Lacey tries hard not to think about where the slime appropriated the clothing from; at least it smells clean. She has to go braless, but that's not a huge issue; at least she has clothes.

No longer nude, the redhead steps back around the tree and approaches Birch. "I guess...it's really kind of my fault that the jungle looks like this. And you DID help me out of a jam back there so..." She sighs. "I can't believe I'm helping one of you, but...what can I do to help clean up?" All of her common sense tells her to turn and book it back to the safety of her dorm...but she'd feel wrong if she did that, and she knows it. Might as well help out with some campus beautification. That's a decent way to repay a favor, right?

Of course she's as suspicious as an animal being helped out of a trap but that comes with the territory. Still he makes no move against her and continues to clean up as she voices her questions. He pauses once as he gave it some brief thought then shook his head.

“The jungle would be too vast for me alone. When I see damage I seek to repair it if I can but generally speaking it is just the area that I have staked out as my own that I pay specific attention to.”

He continues to clean up as she gets dressed though he gives her a once over he does not leer at her, simply appraising her, something did no seem quite right but he dismissed it as unimportant then looked to the scorched jungle casually accessing the damage before glancing back to her. “Somehow I doubt you caused this inferno … you were restrained when I arrived and destruction is the norm, all this will be cleaned up before long but I prefer to tend to my home in my own way with minimal assistance.

“Slarr was so much easier to deal with before his metamorphosis … he was an Imp from my understanding and as such he was weak and easy to slap around, he could not use the flames as he does now as a Smoke Devil and can go insubstantial, which is somewhat annoying but he still has to be aware of an attack to defend against it in that way and in such an insubstantial state he cannot attack … but given that I can control any plant and can attack him with surprise I can still smack him about a little but he has two great weaknesses. I believe you discovered one of them.”

He moved to the strawberry plant and crouched down as he examined it and plucked a ripe strawberry. “Here. Eat. Eat all you wish, he must be punished after all so he doesn't think he can casually make a mess of my home. If you do not eat they will simply go to waste.” He did no care if she ate or not as he surveyed the land.

“Any broken branches or blown apart plants pile there any anything smeared with ooze there. The charred gooey stuff, while messy is easy to handle. You need not help if you do not wish to though. It is a moot point, all this will be cleaned up before long any way.”

Just his own area? Good Lord, how many territories has she bumbled through?! Four monsters at one point in time, and she's not even halfway home yet! She sighs again. For being an island, this place seems far too large and full of creatures...it's a little overwhelming, to say the least. "Well...I mean, I don't generally go around summoning up firestorms...but I DO tend to have a smart mouth. I think I freaked Slarr out when I tried to get at the strawberry plant...and considering I did it to spite him, that really does sort of make it my fault...a little. So you know...sorry about that."

Birch isn't so bad, she decides after a moment. He likes to talk it seems, and he isn't drooling and tearing her clothing off her body. What an odd turn of events coming here has provided for her life; once upon a time, that wouldn't have even registered as a thing. Since coming here it's almost the golden standard for whether someone is hostile or friendly. She gives another little sigh, adjusting her blouse...which feels uncomfortable against her with no bra, her peaks still sensitive from their recent teasing, a little sore from the day's events. They perk up against the blouse, and she scowls. Maybe no bra is going to be more trouble than she'd originally thought...

She laughs a little at his olden-days story about Slarr being easy to slap around. "It doesn't look like you have too much trouble doing it now, even if he does do his vanishing act." She peers at the large tree-man curiously. He doesn't seem the sort to want to intimidate and subjugate, so she has to wonder..."There's a certain familiarity between you two isn't there? Weird to see someone like you hanging around with someone like him. Your personalities are completely different."

"Strawberries." She shakes her head as she puts two and two together. What is with this night and fruit? First peaches, now strawberries...the slender redhead takes the offered strawberry, taking a bite of it...and she squeaks in surprise. This is easily the best strawberry she's ever eaten! Juicy and tart and sweet all at once...it's plump and ripe and fantastic! And it makes her aware of the fact that she's hungry again...not surprising given earlier events. "That's amazing!"

She looks up at Birch as he looks around at the damage the earlier scuffle has caused. While she listens to him, she snitches a second strawberry, eating that one as well. "I can handle that." She nods, then starts dragging things together; slimed things go with other slimed things, charred things with other charred things, and the things that are crusty with burned slime are left alone.

She only just now realizes how widespread the damage is, and this was little more than a dust-up! How bad would the damage have been if anyone had been seriously intent on doing harm? She shudders to think about it, then turns to look at Birch again. "I'm...I'm really sorry about this...I mean, it's all so senseless..." Her green eyes are filled with sincerity, none of the earlier threat of hostility left in them, merely contrition. "I didn't mean to mess up your home like this...even if it wasn't JUST me, it's still pretty bad...so I'm really sorry, Birch."

There are actually tears in her eyes, though she chalks them up to her body letting off adrenaline as much as to feeling bad about the damage she's caused; she's spent the day moving from one trauma to the next, and while passing out a couple of times has helped, it doesn't really count as sleep. She's exhausted and her emotions are in absolute turmoil, so it's not all that odd she's crying over something like this.

“He's easy to freak out and he has his moments. Unfortunately he visits far to frequently like the old days. Nowadays he;s besting the blue skinned one but she's away.” He pointed skyward as if that was all he needed to say about that. He really didn't know all the details of that one and really didn't need to know.

“Still, Slarr unleashed the firestorm and he was specifically told not to do it. You may have egged him on but he was still the one to do this. Not surprising you will see that there is absolutely no damage to that area near the strawberry plant.”

He notice the lack of the undergarment thing and while he did look it was more an ah ha moment as it occurred to him what had seemed wrong about the uniform. It was identical to others he had seen after all but after that discovery he seemed to shift gears a bit and turn his mind away from looking. If he were going to pounce he probably would have done so. After all when he got here she was restrained to the tree.

Ah, the good old days, though there was nothing good about them it seemed. “No, I don't. But if there were ever a fight between us he'd probably go insubstantial then reign fire down from below … he is too predictable, well, he can be inventive when it comes to torment as any Belzar.

“He's off sulking right now like a child. I can often preempt him though. Sometimes I still help him out only because he's so annoying otherwise and at least I can dictate some terms to him. We used to work together, there was a third even more sadistic then Slarr who was a bit of a bastard but our leader. Fortunately he is gone now and I no longer have to deal with his blackmail but Slarr comes by often enough to be a nuisance even not. Sometimes he can be alright but his stories are … well … boring. I do not wish to hear the same pointless details again and again with the only difference being the girl. Nor do I want to here about him and Aegir, I am rather tired of his bitching but alas, I stick to my thing for the most part and he his ...”

“Do you see how I can keep Slarr in check? I could cause those very plants to wither too and so he listens, hence why he left. And not just these but island wide. So he listens. If not for that gift he may have stuck around earlier. I'm glad that you enjoy them. I will try to tighten Slarr's leash though I seriously doubt you need worry.” He contemplated some additional advice but dismissed it.

“Really, it is no bother. These things happened all the time when I was first awakened and had to stake out my own claim. You will see … by the time we get cleaned up this place will look as it did before. You might think that this is all pointless. There is a river not too far from here. We can get cleaned up there and I can escort you back to the edge of the jungle or you can spend the night is you so wish.

“In any case thank you for your assistance.”

"Thank you, Birch." Her gratitude for his reassurance and tolerance is simple and sincere. She continues to clean the area with the large tree man in silence as she considers her options; he'll escort her to the edge of the jungle if she wishes, which is a nice thought. She'd be that much closer to home, and likely free of future attacks...

But then there are the head girls and their prefects to worry about after that. She's heard snippets of stories about them; she's sure not all of them are that bad, but most of them seem to have zero-tolerance where any infraction of the rules is concerned. As for Lacey, she's out WAY past curfew, not in proper attire at all, wearing a uniform that's a little short even on her and no bra...she doubts they'd accept kidnapping as a viable excuse, any more than monster attacks. Likiely, they'll assume that she's been up to no good and take her in to...wherever they go. She's heard the basement is their popular place for 'correcting' students who stray, and from the stories, she wants little to do with that place. Iron-fisted police schoolgirls are NOT the way she wants to end the night.

She could stay the night, but she has no illusions about what that means; Birch may have no designs on her body, but other creatures might. She's not going to trick herself into believing the tree-man will help her fight them off if they come for her. Likely the only action he'll take is if his territory is threatened; she's allowed to stay in his territory, and while she has no doubt that he'd be a powerful deterrent to any threats, she doubts he has any more interest in playing bodyguard than she has in playing fucktoy. Still...

She finishes piling all the damaged things she can find in their appropriate piles and comes to a decision. True, she MIGHT be able to sneak past the head girls and prefects and anyone or anything else on campus...but then again she might not, as weary as she feels. She's positively drained after the day's events, and that's going to make sneaking anywhere hard, make her more likely to slip up and get caught...and she's not certain she can handle what they might dish out as punishment.

Better the devil you know...

"If...if it wouldn't be too much trouble...is it really alright if I stay in your territory for the night?" Preferably somewhere close to him at that; while she's not wild about bunking down near one of the inhuman inhabitants of the island, she's reasonably certain that if she sticks close enough to him, the others won't come after her. Maybe. If she's lucky. "I'll leave once the sun's up and I'm not likely to get caught going back to the dorms."

“Day, night, it tends not to matter I'm afraid. Most hunt during the night, some throughout the day too …” he frowned a little at that. “You may stay. In the morning I will take you as close as I can to the school. While you are safe in this region as normally myself or Slarr are the only ones here and Slarr only due to a loose invite.

“As stale as he is at times even I get bored from time to time so I put up with it. You must stay away when I tell you though should you have a reason to come out this way on a school trip or the like.” He had not explained why and wouldn't unless she asked.

To him most humans looked alike. He was learning subtle differences … she appeared to look like Ginger though their similarities ended with their red hair. Ginger had larger breasts and wore glasses so it was a bit easier to tell them apart because of that, mostly the glasses. But his hearing could distinguish what his eyes had a hard time with so just by speaking he should be able to identify her, even if she tried to disguise her voice.

“I am unaware of this slime creature though. It is likely that it was passing through but this territory is close to two others, the Demon to the South and the Spider to the East. I have not met the Spider but have encountered the Demon twice. He seems amicable. When our paths have crossed it has been in those shady areas where neither one of us has a real claim, our borders aren't etched in stone unlike the one with the Spider which is far more territorial …”

Birch considered. Only Ginger had spent time her with him over night so this was still somewhat new to him. Leading her to the river he had mentioned the cleans up the slimy sludge that got on his bark and even walked into the river part way so that his ankles had been submerged.

“If you follow this river you will end up in the Demon's territory if you go that way but following it upstream brings you right behind your sports field after a bit.

“Are you hungry Sap – Lacey? While you are here you are my guest. I am afraid I have no means of collecting water so if you are thirsty you would be advised to drink now.”

"I'm well aware of the fact that they don't hunt only at night..." Lacey suppresses a shudder. Twice so far, she's been accosted during the day, just earlier today being the second time. "Still, if nothing else...I feel a little better wandering around during the day. Who knows? Maybe I'll actually see one of them coming in time to escape." The sad smile she gives doesn't look as though she holds out much hope for that scenario...but anything's possible.

"I would greatly appreciate it." She says thankfully in reply to his hospitality and offer of guidance. Perhaps not ALL of the creatures on the island were evil. A sobering thought indeed...but then again, given the experiences she's had, it's probably better to just assume ill intent unless offered something else. It seems to have worked out in her favor here, at least.

She's curious at his cryptic statement, to be certain, but she doesn't pry; it could be something important and private. If he wants to share, he'll tell her. The question tickles in the back of her mind, though. "I understand. Although, I have to say...no offense, as you're without a doubt the kindest non-human entity I've met thus far, but I doubt I'll be wandering this direction much at all. I didn't come here by choice..." She pauses for a moment, then shakes the memories that come screaming into her mind into the back again. THIS one is going to take some time to get over.

She doesn't know anything about a spider, and the only demon she knows is someone she doesn't want to meet again; he's the one who'd showed her how useless her martial art is against the denizens of this island. She has no desire to feel helpless like that again...even as she thinks it, she has to brush aside the part of her that tells her she wishes for it very much. Regardless, she's not likely to visit either a demon or a spider by choice. "The slime...I think it's related to the one who brought me out here in the first place. The one who brought me lives in a boathouse off in that direction, I think..." She gestures vaguely in the direction they've come from. "I don't know if it has a territory of its own...that one doesn't seem to talk as much as the one that brought me here, so I'm not sure it claims any territory as its own so much as it just wanders." All conjecture, but she feels fairly confident in her ability to put things together.

Arrival at the river almost has Lacey crying in relief. Clean water, running clear and free...a chance to bathe the touch of those slimy things off of her! Without hesitation or second thought, she pulls her clothing off, almost ripping it in her haste to be in the water. Finally free of clothing, she dashes in until she finds a spot deep enough to submerge herself. It's frigid of course, but she couldn't care less about that. Even modesty has escaped her at this moment as she scrubs herself vigorously, paying special attention to her hair, praying that whatever slime is in it will come loose easily. So eager is she for the water's cleansing touch that she stays down for several moments, long enough for her lungs to start burning and little black dots to appear in her vision, before she breaches the surface. "Oh God...." She pants. "I needed that so much..."

Looking upriver as the tree-man points, she realizes with a moment of dread that that's the exact direction she'd been running in her search of deeper water. "That...could have been bad...." She shudders, thinking that another encounter is NOT what she wants right now. Not in the least. She turns again to look at Birch as he asks if she's hungry. "GOD yes! Food would be wonderful, please and thank you!" Enthusiastic is an understatement; having literally lost her dinner, Her stomach has been reminding her at regular intervals that it's empty. Taking Birch's advice, she gulps down cold, clean water as though she's dying of thirst as well.

She looks up at the moonlit sky through the trees, the stars sparkling in the sky so far above, listening to the sound of the river flowing around her as she bathes. It would almost be easy to forget what a horrible place this is, seeing a sight like this from the untamed wilderness...if only she couldn't hear the growls and hunting cries of things that want to ravage and harm her and girls like her. That question tickles in her mind still, and without thinking she asks it finally. "What happens when you don't want anyone in your territory, Birch? Is it something that someone else's presence would interrupt? Or just a bad time to be around?" She shakes her head. "Sorry...I don't mean to pry, but I'm curious." She turns to regard the tree-man as he cleans himself in the river, staying in the ankle-deep area he'd first wandered into.

“Even the gazelle gets away from the cheetah from time to time.” It wasn't hopeless though the odds of the matter were far better for the monster in question it was not totally helpless either.

Birch was not evil, though there was a time he occasional fell victim to Thudd and Slarr's peer pursue, something he was not proud of but he could not change the past. Even then he wasn't so bad when the other two could be avoided.

“There are some that aren't so focused on matters … I know of one other that seems most, unusual, though I have spent a good deal of time with him teaching him, to imagine that I would have something that one as old as he needed to learn, wanted to learn ...”

He pointed at a red flower though it was closed up, an unusual flower that had not been native to Earth. “Still, though there are times of duress I suppose … the land has several flowers like these year that I have planted. Red means danger to most species. Near the boundaries of my territory you will find them in droves. If they are in full bloom stay away, if not then you are welcome … creatures with strong sense of smell are disorientated by their fragrance so if you encounter them elsewhere on the island you can use them but things like the Spider and various insects are attracted to them so it will not always work.”

He follows the path of her finger and nods. Her speculation is spot on there … “Ah, Ortix … I know him by name. His species or rather the one he was, the Ashen, Awakened me some eighteen years ago. I believe something went wrong when they tried to add that slime to a living Ashen but I'm not all tat in the know about it. I've only heard rumors while the other Aschen scientists were present. It was not important to m lessons so I never delved into it too deeply.”

At the river he is surprised when she strips off that bark and rushes forth. Of course, if he were hungrier knowing of her arousal earlier, those untapped juices that had him consider matters for a moment ten put a check on such thoughts before they got out of hand.

He would let her drink and dress first, he as in no hurry and he kept an assortments of nus and fruits in the event that anyone return he would be ready. She asks him that question though and he regards her for a moment, considering what to tell her for he did not wish to alarm her.

“I get moody before my control slips the last conscious thing I usually do is cause those flowers to bloom.

“You are the first I have told about them no one else has returned, save for Slarr … I need to feed and as a cruel twist my Ashen handlers let me acquire nutrients in only minimal ways from he sunlight and the water. But usually I am well … I can go a bit between meals, a week, sometimes two … but this is rape central I'm afraid.”

He did not draw any closer to her. Save for the flimsy plants in the river this was probably the safest place for her in eluding his supernatural control over plants.

“I am by no means close to needing sustenance though,” he added just to clear that matter up. Of course if he was he would have taken her by this point especially with his more bestial nature taking over.

She smiles a little at his likening her relationship to the monsters of the island to that of a gazelle and a cheetah. Apt and a little funny for some reason...and it makes her feel a little better because it's the truth, albeit a rare occurrence. Still it's something to hope for, and with the way her life is going lately she'd be a fool not to accept hope as it comes. This one is different, to be certain. Listening to him say there's another creature that isn't solely concerned with rape has her wondering quietly how many others like that there might be here...perhaps not everything on this island is rape-happy and interested in seeing her suffer. Another hopeful thought...though she makes a note not to get carried away with that one. That would be dangerous.

She finishes cleaning out her hair, relieved that the slime seems to be coming off easily enough. The rest of her is as clean as can be without the aid of soap and hot water, and she feels fairly satisfied with the result. The chill of the river doesn't bother her much; she spends much of her time in the mornings swimming in rivers like this one. Or at least, she had before Gersham. She brushes that thought away quickly, deciding that she'd rather not darken her already murky night with those memories, not right now. Time on another night to sit still and sort things out.

Lacey's gaze is drawn to the flower that birch indicates. Even in the shadows, she can see the brilliant shade of red the alien flower proudly displays, though it's not in bloom at the moment. "Pretty..." She breathes softly as she looks at the blossom. She wouldn't mind having a few of those in her room. "You mean...it works like a repellant?!" Better and better...maybe she should go get something from the school store when she has money, some pots and fertilizer or something and...

Her thoughts on the matter come to a screeching halt as he tells her about the insects and the Spider he alludes to. "Not such a great repellant then..." Well, scratch that idea...still. The flowers ARE pretty. Too bad about only keeping certain monsters away while attracting others. She doesn't need anymore dorm room visits, the first being MORE than enough for her.

"Ortix, huh...? He wouldn't tell me his name when he took me...I ended up referring to him as Mistake. He was...unpleasant..." Mistake has a name that she won't soon forget. Despite Birch's tale of how Ortix came to be, she can't really scrounge much in the way of sympathy for the creature; he's sick and in her opinion, the world would be better off without him. But that's her own personal grievance, to be addressed another time. Probably while armed with liquid nitrogen, if she can get her hands on some at some point. Doubtful but there's a possibility nonetheless.

"Control...?" She starts to climb out of her deep area in the river, wringing her hair out a bit so it doesn't take forever to dry and leave her freezing in the night. What does he mean by...? Her green eyes widen and slide slowly to the tree-man, registering a threat. Nutrients...raping girls is food to even someone like Birch?! She steps slowly out of the pool into the shallower portion of the river, edging towards her clothes, ready to fight or flee as necessary, cursing herself for a fool the whole time. She should have KNOWN better, there's no such thing as hope in a place like this, with creatures like these and--

And she reigns her thoughts in sharply. He's not moving. He's not making any sort of motion towards her...and a quick glance around tells her that none of the plant life is making a move on her either. Big deal! The newly-paranoid portion of her thoughts screams. He's been luring you in, lulling you and getting you nice and ready! That's all! But another thought is busy working its way through her mind; why warn her at all? And for that matter...

"The flowers. 'Red is a warning to most species...' that's what you said, right? You weren't...you weren't talking about the other inhuman inhabitants. It's a warning...you chose the easiest flower to spot and set them up as warning signs around your territory." Even the paranoid part of her quiets at that. It makes sense, after all...and he's telling her about it. She listens to his tale, about the Ashen and how they awakened him and instilled the hunger inside him. Survival drive kicking in? Is that what happens when the flowers bloom...he takes his nutrients by force because of instinct?

It fits. It doesn't make it right...but she feels the things that warped the gentle tree-man's nature are more at fault than Birch himself. Ashen again...similar to Ortix. "Bastards..." She hisses in cold fury. Is nothing sacred to their sciences, then? "Twisted by them for...what? For their amusement? And now you have to bring something like that down on others in order to stay alive..." She shakes her head. "A crime where everyone involved is a victim. Except for the Ashen...whoever they are."

She gives Birch an even look, body un-tensing a little. He's not going to threaten her or force her into anything, she's fairly sure...although there is curiosity in her eyes. "A couple of weeks at best? And how long has it been since you've taken sustenance, Birch?" She asks. There's no edge to her voice, no judgement. Just a question. "Your eyes have wandered several times tonight. A few of those times were clinical, I know...like when you were looking me over for wounds or when you were freeing me from the tree. But before you freed me, your eyes were locked between my legs after that slime had run off...and that didn't feel clinical."

She walks towards the tree-man as she speaks, showing neither fear nor challenge. Part of her thinks it would be safer not to venture down this path...part of her thinks it would be safer for others and possibly herself if this issue is addressed immediately rather than when Birch loses control. And part of her whispers darkly that she should admit the fact that she's not entirely uninterested in seeing what this feeding feels like. She pushes that last part down; giving in to that voice would be madness. "It's obvious you're still in control. But for how much longer?"

“Actually … evasion has worked once that I am aware of. It slipped my mind. Slarr whine about it o much that I pushed it out of my mind though I wouldn't say it was a clean brake. There was a girl he tried to capture and another one saved her though she had been channeling Aegir's power.

“Either Aegir had a claim to her or just wanted to anger Slarr. The two do not like one another though by the way Slarr tells it he would be encountering Aegir at every turn.”

He addressed her question about the flowers. “Not quite a repellent but I have found that mammals with a keen sense of smell keep clear of them but could struggle and suffer under them, more like it gives creatures with a keen sense of smell allergies. They can stay near it if they don't mind watery eyes and all that sneezing.” But it was a double edged sword drawing in the insects to the scent.

“Unfortunately they are not all pleasant. Ortix was a bit of a sadist before his current state I here.” He dwelled on Ortix for a moment longer but let the matter fade not wishing to speak too much on unpleasant things.

“It is meant for the students though there are a few rare female monsters. I have met one though most stick to their domains or the joint hunting areas were no one ma claim for themselves.” He nearly said campus here but didn't wish to get her thinking of such things unaware that she had been attacked at the campus already.

“Boredom I believe. I suppose one of them got to thinking that 'yeah is there any way a plant might find a human desirable, their different species … why not tie it into survival and see' or some other lame fascination that someone considered. Not that I find you unattractive mind you.

“The Ashen are super genius' that have all manner of ancient fantastical devices though one of their creations, the Ashlyn are at war with them, I have heard so much and the team working on me was recalled.

“There are few of them now and I do not know if I was deemed a failure or an incomplete weapon to battle the Ashlyn.”

When talk turned to his feeding he had wondered if she was making some sort of judgment, well she was regardless of what she did but she did not flee to her credit and he kept his distance. “Tonight makes day four, I have at least three though perhaps as many as ten. It is not a sudden change, one that happens gradually.” She wasn't going to wake up with him atop her after all.

“Some of the earlier stuff was checking wounds and such, and with a clear head I can still refrain from drinking but the smell, the look, it's ...” he thinks tapping his chin as he searched for a good example. “Think of a plate of food set before you, the longer you just sit there the more your hunger increases even if you edon't like it eventually you will eat. The meal looks good but I still choose whether or not to ea save for when I am ravenous.”

She was getting closer and still he remained where he was allowing her to dictate how close she drew to him. He had not been aware of her considering other matters. “I still have three days at least. There are no warning hunger pains so I am good for the moment.”

Lacey laughs a little at his assurance that she's not unattractive. "Thanks, I think." She manages a little grin. "Geniuses..." She snorts out a derisive laugh. "Interstellar geniuses with a fascination for inter-species sex between their weapons and whatever female they come across. With a penchant for creating life and then labeling it a weapon in the first place." She shakes her head. "It's awful when intellect runs free of morals and ethics."

She can't help another sad smile as Birch explains his attraction to the girls around the campus. Food. That's a horrible way to be forced to look at another living, breathing being. Throughout humanity's own history, it's been argued whether or not people should partake of other living creatures as food, but somehow the arguments take on a whole new perspective when one finds herself as the meal on the platter. She understands well enough that what must be done will be done, even as she walks closer still to Birch...for him, she feels sorrow that he's had his nature so twisted by hateful creators. For his creators there's only rage.

"I...don't like it. God, I don't like anything about this situation...about this island. It's been a nightmare since I came here. I don't like being a toy...a plaything..." She looks up at the gentle tree-man. "I don't like being food. I don't..." She pauses within easy reach of Birch's limbs now, thinking of what she wants to say. She doesn't want to judge him; what he does is not his fault, anymore than it's her fault she has to eat to survive. It's the way they're both built, though their concepts of eating differ greatly from one another.

She laughs, the sound a little bitter, a little forlorn. "It's not your fault that you do what you do. If what you say is true, then you try your best to deny that part of your nature...but nature always has a say in the end, doesn't it?" She shrugs. "I've been raped three times now. My first time was in my mind, as I slept." She takes another step closer. "My second was while I was out for a morning swim, just practicing and keeping myself in shape. And the third..." Another step. "The third was just this afternoon. By the creature you call Ortix. He didn't rape me at first...first he asked whether I wanted pain or pleasure once he caught me. I resisted him...chose pain, saying that he could never please me...and he decided to see how long it would take to beat me into submission. And he did just that...beat me and hurt me until I was unconscious."

Another step still, close enough now that she could almost reach out and touch the tree-man herself, though not quite. "And once I passed out, he dragged me out here, to his boathouse...and I found myself tied up and in a strange place and hurting so much...but the most horrifying thing was that he was healing me. You'd think I'd be overjoyed, right? Healed off all the terrible things he'd done to me...but no. All that meant to me was that he could keep me on the edge of life and death for as long as he pleased, unable to fight back or escape. Unable to do anything but beg for whatever I wanted, through the pain and torment...and I broke. Just at the thought of it...at the thought of being crushed into unconsciousness again and again, I broke."

Tears spill freely from the redhead's eyes. It hurts a great deal to talk about the events, to relive them like this...but it's necessary. She knows it is, for the sake of her mental and emotional health. Besides, there's a point to her recounting of recent events. "When I came to...I asked for pleasure. I begged for it. I couldn't stand the thought of being put through that agony again and again...but the bad part? The bad part isn't that I broke...it's that part of me wanted the pleasure he ravaged me with. It was against my will...and at the same time, it wasn't. I didn't want it...and at the same time, I did. It makes no sense to me...how could anyone WANT something like that...?"

Lacey shakes her head again, wiping the tears from her eyes. She takes another step. "This torment...be it pain or pleasure...it breaks you down over time, you know? It hurts, losing yourself in it, knowing you're losing yourself...having no clue how to stop it. I don't want anyone to have to suffer through this sort of pain, ever. I wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy; our bodies are supposed to be given of our own free will. Not out of fear or pain, but because we WANT to give them, for whatever reason. But this place...these creatures...they take that freedom from us. With drugs, with mind control, sometimes with just a working knowledge of how a girl's body works, and sometimes with no care for anything but their own wants or needs....they take the freedom to choose from us. And it's awful. Even if we manage to reach a climax during the act...it hurts inside."

A final step. The redhead lays a hand gently on Birch's chest and looks up at him, that sad smile in place. "We're toys here. We're food. And I think the saddest of it is that there are creatures like you...who don't want us to be used as food but have no choice but to follow their nature." A deep, shaky breath enters the girl's lungs as she closes her eyes. She lets oout the breath a moment later, and when her eyes open, there's only resolve left. No tears, no doubt. "It's not much...it's a small and pitiful gesture...but it's something to me...and hopefully something to you. If I offer myself to you...would you take your nutrition from me?" She shakes her head, continuing before she allows him to answer. "This isn't payment; I don't pay for things with my body. This isn't belonging to you; I'm not an object, I'm a living, reasoning being. This is...the one way I can see myself having a choice. We both know you could take me against my will, if you wanted to...but you don't. So the choice is mine."

Her eyes lock onto his with a steel-hard stare. "I don't like it. I don't like being food...but I hate being without a choice more. So I'll give myself to you, this once...so that you don't have to become ravenous. So that you don't have to fall into a state you clearly don't want to be in. And so that, for a little while at least, the other girls will be safe." No doubt in her voice, no hesitation. "That's my choice for this night. I'll give myself to you, rather than being taken or forced. So what's your choice, Birch?" She asks because this is a two-way street; if she forced herself on him, it would be little different than what the monsters of this island do to the girls here, save for different motivation.

He did not eat those he had attacked though the whole process was akin to that in his mind. It was a compulsion he had just had to do. Reinforced by the fact that none had returned after their initial encounter with him.

To some it would make sense to have given up on the students, on this compulsion and merely indulge himself without regret. But that had gone against his gentler nature. Perhaps he didn't have the mind set that his creators had desired. There was a reason he was the only Yengal in existence after all.

But that did not seem to matter to him. He focused on his planets and occasionally like now got to indulge in a small bit of conversation. Sometimes there was rape but he was neither hungry and saw that she had been through enough as it were. He was not famished ye, nor did he move in an aggressive fashion.

He could not blink, hi eyes appearing like knots in the wood but he shifted his gaze from side to side on occasion so as not to stare.

“This island is all I know … well … I have been taught other things though I have been to the beach but once for under two minutes, the labs I was born in and all throughout these jungles.” She was growing closer as she relieved her ordeals on this island.

He had wished that here was something else, something to look forward too but he could not see it. Nor ad he been aware of many elements like some of the other guests that dwelled her. He was born here and would die here. He would not see the stars above though he had no desire to ever see them.

Why was she drawing near? Was it to display that she was not afraid? She went on to explain her hardships, what she had suffered through in her short time here. Three attacks, their were students here that had more then thirty but this showed what he island did to the students, some quick, some slow, some adapted and some went insane.

Nin he recalled was fresh from an attack and was rather frantic about matters. He did not know what to say in order to make it better. No offers of false hope, though she broke down in tears and yet she continued to close that gap. It was made clear what she was getting at though.

Choice … it was about choice … He set an arm at he small of her back holding her close against him. Her question had been posed to him though he had not answered her straight away.

“Adapting is all that one can do,” This situation was exceedingly rare and and most times a student needed a little encouragement. It was clear that she was hurting because of the island and what it instilled upon the students here.

But suffice it to say that he was not going to deny her such a request. His hand stroked her back as he considered the matter that had been placed before him. “Very well … I graciously accept your offer. Though not here of course,” he considered quickly. The cave was in the spider's territory not that he could brave it.

Near his garden was probably the best place though there was probably others that worked as well. “That is, if you are up to a small adjustment that I.”

There's no sign of tension or resistance as the arm goes around her; she doesn't mind. She's already committed to her choice. Birch pulls her against him, and she rests her cheek on him. His skin feels like rough tree bark, as she expects...but it's not unpleasant to the touch. Rather it's a little calming; between the texture of his skin and the scent of him, she's reminded of a relaxing summer day. He smells earthy, wild...like the jungle around them. Plants and soil and flowers and wind are all present in that scent.

"The laws of nature apply to everything, I guess." She says in soft response to his statement. Either one adapts and learns to deal with their environment...or one withers away to nothing. She hates the idea of survival of the fittest, but she can't deny that at some points, it's true. The redhead gives a soft murmur as his hand strokes over her back, gentle in its touch, not demanding anything in return. A vast difference from all the other touches she's recieved up to this point. But then, that's why she's here, isn't it? Because there IS no demand. Because it's a choice she's made, one that has meaning because it's not the only one open to her...just the one she feels she can live best with, the one she feels that she can get to sleep at night with, once it's over.

Lacey gives a small smile as Birch makes his own choice. She has to admit to herself that she feels a little relief at his answer; it would have been embarrassing to be shot down by him after being forced into the act by others. "Makes sense," she nods at his choice to relocate. Outside in the open probably isn't the best place for this sort of thing, not on this island. She gives a little laugh, this one actually amused and not bitter in the least. "Considering the huge adjustments required just to keep my sanity once I came to this island, I think I can handle a change of scenery. Where did you have in mind?"

She has no clue as to the lay of the land, having never been this deep into the jungle before now, so naturally she has to rely on Birch's working knowledge of the area. She doesn't mind that too much, though; she likes exploring places and seeing new things, and he'd said earlier he'd help her back to the campus grounds in the morning. Why not see what there is to see? "Ah!" She gives a sudden exclamation, remembering her clothing. "Just a second before we start out, though..." She goes to the bank to retrieve her temporary outfit and her shoes. Walking onto campus in the nude would get her into the basement regardless of if she was caught by a head girl; EVERYONE would hear about that in about half an hour of the occurrence. She doesn't bother putting them on, though. Not yet; that's for later. "So which way are we heading?"

The island was madness. At first stages it would be he worse though from what he saw people just adjusted to this. They had no choice but to do so after all. She was close, her naked body soft lacking the protection of a bark.

Her sent is not unpleasant but lacks the perfumes and ointments, those washed or suppressed from the arduous ordeals she had been through without reapplying any. It was good though. Those that hunted by scent would have a tougher time tracking her down though when he left her she wouldn't be too far from the campus.

Birch was patient though, perhaps why he had put up with Slarr for so long though even he grew annoyed from time to time.

He was not going to pass up an opportunity to feed even though he was still good for a few days though he was not going to press her into it either, not unless ravenous anyway. “Out from the river for one. Perhaps, yes my garden.”

Birch let her gather her clothing, he would have grabbed it himself if she did not grab it herself. Though since she was not getting dressed he scooped her up so that she did not have to mind her step so much.

As he walked a path opened up in the vegetation and she would realize that he just didn't control plants but they moved in unnatural ways or reshaped themselves as he wished it.

If that were not odd enough when they got back to the initial area that she had encountered him at the jungle had been full restored. No broken branches, slime or even scorch marks but Birch pressed on, as if this were normal.

Soon he was putting her down a the garden, an assortment of exotic plants had been collect here and their was a faint scent of honey in the air. “Oh, it's ready?" He set he down, and regarded the yellow floor.

“Do no wander from here. I will only be a short distance away gathering you food … unless you wish to wait on that now.”

He has a garden? Of course he has a garden. He has control of nature; why wouldn't he have a garden? Still one has to wonder; "Is it a hobby garden? Cause I have to say, given the whole 'make plants bloom' edge...if it's your hobby, then you're cheating." She teases him lightly. She feels better already, having told her story. Just a little communication does wonders for her; the memories still hurt a great deal, but they no longer press against the inside of her skull, threatening to break her mind to tiny gibbering pieces. And that's an improvement.

The nude student squeaks in surprise as she's scooped up by the tree-man, carried off with ease. "I know I'm not all that heavy or anything, but...wow." She murmurs from the crook of an arm. Travel by tree-man...scratch THAT off the list of improbable modes of transportation.

She can't help but laugh a little at the sight of the plant life parting to let Birch pass. "Like I said...cheating." She looks around as they move, feeling a tingle of familiarity. Isn't this...? Yes it is! It's the place he'd found her slimed to a tree. "Where's...everything?!" She asks, a little bewildered. The piles of scorched and slimed things, the things that had been both scorched AND slimed...it's all gone. The place looks exactly as it had when she'd first stumbled into the ambush. "How does THAT work?" She wonders. It's a little surprising, to say the least. How far DOES his ability to control vegetation extend, anyway?

It's not long before her questions are forgotten in favor of awe. The garden is gorgeous! A riot of colors and smells that somehow manages to be peaceful rather than chaotic. Everywhere she looks, she sees plants she's never even heard of before, somehow managing to blend the order of a garden with the wild feel of flowers and plants growing naturally without the touch of someone to guide them. Overall was the scent of...honey? She thinks so, anyway.

She takes a moment to look around the garden when he puts her down, staying where he tells her. "What's ready? What's going on?" Her stomach growls a little, between the scent of honey and the thought of food. "No, something to eat would be...possibly the best thing in the world. Please." It wouldn't do to forget manners. Besides...now that the moment at the river is past, she's feeling a little nervous. She's never actually given herself to anyone of her own accord...not without the aid of torment or aphrodisiac...or sometimes both. Eating something will give her time to calm her nerves and feel less awkward about it. There's no chance of her backing out of it; she's not the sort to go back on her word. But some time to prepare is a good idea, in her mind.