Wolf in Shadows

Preston had been going through the marshes, looking to see if any of his men had been around. Finding himself alone, he did take advantage of that, what with everything going on around him. Everything was finally starting to roll into plae and with his big mission coming up he needed to mentally prepare. Though it was cut short when he heard a growl coming from up ahead. Raising an eyebrow, he slowed his steps, eyeing his surroundings. “Come out here! Either go willingly or I will have to make you submit.” He threatened as he listened more closely to the sounds and sights around him, looking for the owner of the growl.

Originally posted by stylesinthewild

He smelled the vampire, growling low as he stepped into sight, baring his teeth at the man. “I suggest you leave.” He snapped, snarling. He didn’t like this person just wandering into what he now considered his domain. “I’m not submitting to you, I’ve done nothing wrong, leave me alone.” He said sternly, hoping the man would just leave him be. 

“I am, yes,” he says as he takes a cautious step closer, keeping his hands raised in submission. “And it … can’t be your home. Do you know where we are? What island you’re on?” He glances to the side anxiously, before sighing softly. “I think it’s awful, but … Werewolves don’t get to own things here; or be their own people, you know,” he mumbles. “You’re slaves.”

Aris’ wings spread proudly behind him as he stood up to his full height commandingly “Now now, I am the last person you want to have a case against you so stand down.” the General sniped sardonically, meaningfully letting his right hand come to rest in the ornated hilt of his sword while his left hand raised palm-up towards the wolf “It is my duty to find out what a lone wolf is doing in these lands unsupervised and if you comply with me I promise no harm will come to you. Otherwise…” a cluster of menacing thorns rose from the ground to form a ring around them, effectively entrapping them both inside its limits as he spoke calmly but confidently “I think that this chat will be a lot easier if you shift back.” Aris added lightly, gesturing almost lazily towards the dog and waiting for it to give him a reason to unleash hell around them.

“My name is Caleb and I can’t fight you I mean I don’t have any weapons.” Caleb lifted his hands showing the other his waist and warms. There was no sword. Not even a dagger. “Is this…is this your home?” Caleb asked with a little tilt of his head looking around and frowning. This was no home for someone. It was dirty and smelled. It was a marsh. “I just want to go home. And maybe take a bath. Not be here. I don’t want to intrude on you I’m sorry.” Caleb bowed his golden head to the wolf a bit. A sign of his remorse. “I promise you I am not here to harm you.”

“N-Nothing, just a family name,” he murmurs, hands lowering as the other seems to back off on the offense. He watches the other shift back to his human form and a subtle blush passes through the fae’s face before he swallows all those thoughts down. Not now. “This—Well—” He didn’t exactly know how to explain this to the wolf, not without treading on his toes again. “I was looking for somewhere to spread my wings and take off from,” he mumbles honestly, “And there was nothing here that made it obvious that this land was private in any way.”

The marshes were a curious place for the High Fae and he sometimes took to wander them in the search for leeches unfortunate enough to run into him; sometimes he ended their pitiful lives where they stood but sometimes he enjoyed prolonging their suffering for his amusement and make them crave for the sweet rest that death brought. Aris walked almost soundlessly through the sinuous land with his large wings tucked carefully close to his body to avoid staining them with the marshes’ grime and soon his eyes found the out-of-place creature that had apparently been lounging on the dirt “Easy there, puppy.” he cooed amusedly, standing in front of the threatening creature without a hint of fear in his demeanor. Would the dog be foolish enough to attack someone like him without back-up? The simple thought caused him to grin sharply, already calling forth for the vines and thorns that thrived in the marsh ground. just in case.

Sterling let out a low growl at the coo from the man. He snapped, baring his teeth as he stayed tense but didn’t move to attack. “Who the fuck are you and what do you want?” He asked, on alert. He knew it would be foolish to attack the man, not knowing anything about him, but he wasn’t going to just lay down and act the puppy. 

The fae gives a few shocked blinks before he responds. “I’m Dantri … Dantri Arden,” though it seems that word has trouble slipping off of Dantri’s tongue. Whether or not he should share that he “belonged” to a high fae house was a mystery—then again, a master-less werewolf probably didn’t bother with that sort of thing. “Where did you come from? I don’t think you’re from here.”

I don’t know what that means. He said, in regards to the emphasized last name. He moved back towards the cave, backing away and keeping his eyes on the man. He shifted to his human form, feeling like he could probably take the man as a human, and slipped his pants on. “I don’t think...I have to tell you anything. Why are you trespassing on my home?” 

Dantri raises both hands open-palmed in a surrender of some sort, though he was definitely confused. Unfortunately, every werewolf he’d ever met in Avalon was a slave … but he saw no such collar or mark on this one. “Who … Who do you belong to? If you’re allowed to say?”

Sterling relaxed his stance as Dantri’s hands were lifted into the air. He frowned slightly at the question. Who do I what? Nobody. Who the fuck are you? He asked, demanding to know, although the bite in his voice was less now, since it seemed this man was not an immediate threat.

The marsh wasn’t normally a place Caleb would go. In fact he found it quite disgusting, despite the life that flourished in the area. Wings stretched out he hovered above the brackish water and the soft ground not waning to soil himself by touching it. Almost feeling like the witch’s that lived there tainted it a bit. It wasn’t the same kind of nature that prevailed in other parts of Avalon. He was however caught off guard when he turned around a tree, smacking some of the branches, and being faced with a wolf growling at him. Eyes wide he back up moving higher in the air. “Wow hey no. Ah. Good boy. I’m not here to hurt you I just. I needed air.” he said swallowing hard. He could always take off if he needed. Safety was in the clouds.

Sterling glanced around, seeing the man flying there. He let out a growl at the good boy comment, even though it wasn’t this stranger’s fault that he did look like a form of canine. Find your air elsewhere. This is not your home. He snapped, both figuratively and literally, at the fae. He couldn’t help but glance at the wings, he had only ever seen his parents once, the couple never daring to really let them out in case someone came upon them. Who are you?

Dantri hated Blackbriar, and even more than that, he hated how often he had to go there. For some god-forsaken reason, the queen saw him fit as a recruiter, at least temporarily. Maybe it was because of his non-threatening demeanor; maybe it was because she was still spiting him for his father’s actions. Either way, the ill-equipped Fae was trying to find his way to an open-enough clearing for him to take off for flight (one particular downside of being born with feathered wings). That’s when it happened: a misstep on a twig, a ferocious snarl. Dantri’s blue wings form from his back and give a singular, defensive flap, before he steps back. This was no ordinary wolf—which miraculously calms Dantri’s nerves enough for him to mutter, “Who are you?”

He eyed the wings, pausing slightly.The man didn’t seem too threatening, but he was still on edge. At the question, he all but rolled his eyes. As if he would actually answer. I get to ask the questions. You came to my home. Who the fuck are you? He snapped but didn’t move closer to Dantri, simply standing on edge, ready in case the man attacked.