[PRP] Frienemies

[Snarky Rogue]

Another beautiful day in Faetasia had come and gone. The moon had just begun it's long awaited ascent into the sky. The oncoming of summer filled the air with the thick scent of budding flowers. A heavy, healthy scent. One that many creatures of Faetasia, good and evil alike, embraced with open arms.

For those that were of a cheerful nature it meant that they could frolic gaily through the fields and pick their sweetie the prettiest of pretty flowers. For those that were of a darker nature it meant that the grounds could spread wide again, cause for less brutal brawls over the scarcity of food.

But for those that were of the most sinister nature, those that had lead hearts, if any at all, it meant the hunt could begin. A particular unholykat that recently began to ravage the lands belonged to this category. Throughout winter he had set aside the hunt and fell into a hibernation. It had not been by his own choice, but it had been forced upon him.

The game he preferred to hunt shut themselves inside their homes, hardly stepped foot outside. When they had, it was under the safety of the sun. By nightfall, they were all locked away in their cozy little homes once more. Safe by day and safe by night. Those that did dare to set foot outside at night were of a foul taste. Vampires, Demons, Werewolves. Then Choas had unleashed a little bout of madness upon the world, stirred everything up, made everything difficult. Made them all make terrible decisions, made him make a terrible decision. So he had forced himself away, to sleep, to escape any further madness.

He allowed them to fight among each other while he slept. He dreamed of hate. It filled him, fueled him, replenished him. As the moon rose high into midnight sky, a thunderous, thirsty cry cracked through the calm night and still air. The beast had finally woken, and he had begun the start of a new hunt.  

[Yayoi]

The cold nights had driven the female Unholykat deep into the darkest parts of the forest. Where few would tread. The unlucky ones though, if they drew close enough, were never heard from again. But with winter's harsh grasp upon the world there were fewer and fewer to fall unsuspectingly into her claws.

But now the days were warmer. The nights no longer chilled. Even still few ventured this far into the darkness. Perhaps she needed a new location. Ever since Pet had run away she had mostly kept to herself. Lulling in a lack luster state.

Tonight though, something about tonight had drawn her out. The flickering light of a fire cast deep shadows that danced across the trees that encircled her little grove. Dark chants and the strong smell of blood, seared flesh filled the air. Her dark, slender form writhing as she spoke words that very few still 'alive' would understand as blood covered fingers traced symbols against the bark of a tree she happened to be half wrapped around.

Nothing like a little bit of the dark arts to get one excited about the prospect of coming days.

Pandie Andie

 

[Snarky Rogue]

The Unholykat had merged from his primitive shelter, built from twigs and animal hides that he had skinned himself. He had ventured further out of the forest leaving a trail of dead or dying animals in his wake. None were eaten, not a single bite had been taken from their flesh. The Beast killed because he had been deprived of such actions for months during his time of hibernation.

Almost to the forest edge, his nose wrinkled and his lips curled back at the scent of flowers. It was then that another scent caught his attention. The thick, pleasant scent of scorched flesh. His body turned and twisted, he growled deeply while pale colored eyes searched the darkness behind him.

Something within the forest tugged at him. Hunched down low, he began his journey back into the forest. He felt something deep within it beckoning him to come forth. It was not the scent that drew him in, but the chant. That dark chanting called to him, pushed him into the darkest parts of the forests. He felt a great power washing over him, his muscles rippled beneath his skin and fur.

He stood in the dark of the shadows, careful to keep out of the light that flickered over the grove. Pale eyes eyed the fire as he paced back and forth just outside it's reach until finally, he saw her. Half wrapped around the tree, leaving blood traced symbols on the tree. Speaking words he had almost forgotten. He sat hunched over, eyes fixated on the dark, slender form, waiting to be acknowledged.

Yayoi

 

[Yayoi]

She could feel him as he drew close. A familiar power that those of her own kind possessed. But she did not know who it was that it was attached to. Axis had met few of her kind during her entire cursed life.

Continuing to chant and draw on the tree until she could finally feel his presence at the edge of her circle. Long claws dug into the tree until dark sap ran onto her finger tips.

With the movement of a snap she unwound herself from it's base, laying with her belly against the ground on all fours. Her long tail moving back and forth slowly as she crawled along the ground, her hair dragging twigs and leaves along with her, until she reached the edge of the trees in which he had stopped.

Arching her back, her one good red eye narrowed into a slit as her mouth opened and she let out a long, slow hiss. The fur along her back and tail standing on edge before a high pitched yowl erupted from deep within her chest.

Pandie Andie

 

[Snarky Rogue]

A growl rumbled deep within his chest, moving from his hunched sitting position. He rose onto all fours, holding himself high rather than low to the ground the way she did. In turn, he arched his back and lifted one paw slightly off the ground, flexing his claws and returning a slow, but shorter hiss.

Eyeing the female cautiously, knowing how lethal his kind was by nature, he began to move in a slow circle around her. He arched wide, putting necessary space between the Unholy female and himself. His lips curled back to bare long fangs, snarling as another deep growl erupted.

Sharp talons dug into the hard earth and left small craters behind in their path. He paused momentarily in his circle, lifting his head a little higher with one paw raised mid-step. The snarl slowly disappeared while his nose began to sway slowly back and forth, sniffing the air about her.

The Unholy male quickly shook his head, slammed his paw back to the earth, and released another slow hiss. The power that he felt surging from her was maddening.

Yayoi

 

[Yayoi]

Another yowl. Her tail giving a sharp flick, Axis lowered herself to the ground once more. Long claws digging deep into the ground. Dirt sticking to her sap covered fingers. The muscles in her back legs coiled as she crouched, fur still bristling.

She watched him closely as he circled. Her head turning almost all the way around before it snapped around to catch him on the approach. He was larger than her, could easily snap her in half and do some serious damage if he wanted to. Axis had no armor or weapons to defend against one such as him. Just her claws and perhaps if she were fast enough to get a spell off.

Claw to claw she stood no chance.

Knowing this, as he slammed his paw, she rolled onto her back. Exposing her belly, though giving him a good look at her claws as well. Her long tail flicking heavily against the ground, ears drawn back as she bared small, sharp fangs in a silent hiss.

Pandie Andie

 

[Snarky Rogue]

The male paused in his tracks once more, hesitated when she rolled onto her back and exposed both belly and claws. His pale blue eyes focused in on those sharp talons jutting from her fingertips, and shifted himself slightly to one side. His shift caused the armored cloak at his back to drape down over his left shoulder and part of his chest, giving himself a little more protection, forcing her potential attack to be accurate.

He lowered himself just a touch closer to the ground, shoulder blades pressing upwards against his back. He stalked forward slowly, his gaze remaining on her claws as he sniffed the air about her again. His knife, curved and perfect for gutting and skinning, was fastened to his waist, easy for him to grab if necessary.

He stopped when he was nearly standing over the top of her, leaving just enough space to act quickly if a fight broke out. Eyes trained on her claws, he lowered his head and sniffed at the soft underbelly that she exposed to him, then trailed up toward her face. Eye to eye with her, he once more bared his fangs and opened his mouth, releasing a low and guttural growl. He knew he left himself open for her to launch an attack, but he had not yet met another of his kind. They did well to keep away from each other. This was a rarity to be investigated.

Yayoi

 

[Yayoi]

The skin of her belly fluttered at his sniffs, the sound of her tail beating against the ground softened until it barely made a sound.

He should count himself lucky, this was the first time in a long time she had allowed anyone this close to her. Perhaps deep down inside she was lonely for some kind of interaction. Pet had abandoned her and she had seen hide nor hair of Bedlam.

A heavy sigh as she stared back at him with her one good eye. Fluid leaking from the rotting one. Slowly she trailed a claw up his arm before both hands came together to cradle his face. Axis jerked his head side to side as she looked him over with mild interest.

"Who are you? Hm? HM?! Trespasser. Defiler of this sacred space."

Pandie Andie

 

[Snarky Rogue]

His ears flicked and pinned back flat against his skull, releasing a short hiss of mild annoyance as she jerked his head. He tolerated the action, allowed it to last a moment before talons dug into the earth, muscled body pushing hard away from her. The length of his large body passed over the top of her, long tail flicking just above her face.

Beast turned around and examined the new, unfamiliar grove around him. For now he was willing to tolerate any behavior from the smaller female, be it physical or verbal. Curiosity swelled within him, temporarily drowning out everything else.

"Who am I? Trespasser and defiler in your eyes, Sorceress," he spoke roughly, giving a hard shake of his body until his cloak settled against his back once more. Names were dangerous to simply hand out. She didn't exactly ask for a name, anyway. "You brought me here, called to me." He glared down at her then, his scarred over eye nearly closing. "You are alone here," he then observed plainly. "Why are you alone?"

Yayoi

 

[Yayoi]

She had to suppress a grin when he called her Sorceress. Oh no, she was much more than any mere Sorceress. Axis could assure him of that.

As he moved away from her grasp, she turned onto her side. Slipping a long claw into her teeth and tugging at the dirt that clung to it. Dislodging a piece of dirt covered sap, she spit it to the ground where it hissed and sizzled for a few seconds. Watching him silently as she went to chew at her claw again.

Called to him? She had done no such thing. "Lies drip from your mouth like blood from my sores."

She grasped as her chest and heaved herself against the ground with a groaning breath, a wail before dragging herself back to the tree she had been drawing on.

Grasping a dead rabbit from a small pile she had collected, ripping it in half then smearing the blood all over her face. She wailed again, long and loud before throwing herself against the tree. Looking at him over a thin shoulder. "Alone. Alone. Alone! My Pet has left me. NO STOLEN! He was stolen from me!" Claws raked against the tree's bark.

Pandie Andie

 

[Snarky Rogue]

"Power. Power called me here," he hissed out, correcting himself. She had created the power that called him here and so he had been right the first time, but he needed to be specific with this one, lest she turn on him.

The large beast flattened his ears to his skull again at her sudden wailing, lowered himself to the ground, and scuttled towards the fire with a hiss. He circled in a spot before laying down, resting his tail close up against his body.

He watched her with a sideways glance as she looked over her shoulder at him, sputtered something about a pet. He closed his eyes and sighed. "Stolen?" He spat out the word, snarled for a moment and then rested his head lazily to the ground. The warmth of the fire was a welcomed change. He was an Unholy, he was never warm by himself. Always cold.

"You are of my kind. Hunt him down. Bring him back. You are strong, very few are stronger. If you are alone, go find your pet... You should not be alone," he advised quietly. If he had been another, or in a different mood, he could have caused her great pain. She would have fought back, perhaps given a few good injuries of her own, but in the end a male as large as he, armored and with weapon. There were males of their kind larger than him still, that could snap him in half if they pleased.

Yayoi

 

[Yayoi]

A low, deep laugh began to shake her body. It rolled out slow at first until it finally turned hysterical and she whipped around, away from the tree. Pounding her fists against the ground near the fire, it's blaze growing nearly engulfing her as it danced green, purple and then blood red before it crackled and died down once more.

"Power? Yes! I have power, more than you can imagine. I make the trees weep blood, the ground barren, the crops wither and DIE." Throwing her arms up into the air, she stopped moving. Holding blood covered paws up towards the dark sky before slowly bringing them down to her face. Running her fingers over her cheeks, slowly stretching her skin.

Suddenly her face changed. A beautiful face with enchanting red eyes, large pouty lips. "I can make any fool hearty man tremble with just a whisper, a look." Her jaw jutted to the side with a snap as if it had become dislocated and her face was her own again.

The expression on her face was flat. "I do not want him back. Better he rot in the ground where he should have been placed at birth than for him to return to me." She turned her back to the male, crossing her arms over her chest. "I do not care if I am alone. Let them come if they so choose. I will send them to their death."

Pandie Andie-

 

[Snarky Rogue]

Beast lifted his lazy head from the ground and watched with mild interest as the fire erupted, changed colors, and settled back down. His lips curled in a half-hearted snarl when her face changed. He did not like that. He did not like that at all. He grew unnerved at the sight of it, starting to stir from his lazy position, sitting upright with his shoulders bunched tight against his neck as if ready to attack.

The snap of her jaw sent a sense of relief to wash through him, that lazy calmness returning as his shoulders relaxed. His sharp claws dug at the earth beneath him, his eyes so pale that the light of the fire turned them orange. He preferred her true face to that... whatever it was that she showed him. What most others liked, he did not.

"Do you prefer it?" He suddenly spoke in a hushed, ragged voice. He stood to all fours once more, lazily making his way around the fire. He circled her, sat, and stared upwards at her. "To be alone?" He brushed his head against her legs, returned to all fours. His side followed brushing against her legs, his back arching upwards, like a kitten in need of attention. "To have no one to talk to but yourself?"

He circled once more, lazily heading away from her with his back turned. Heading back towards the shadows that the fire of her grove could not reach, his voice growing quieter with every few steps. "No one at all but yourself? All alone."

Yayoi

 

[Yayoi]

Lips twisted in what appeared to be a pained grimace as he rubbed up against her.

When he moved away, she grasped her tail. Hugging it to her chest as her ears twisted and turned. Her red eye shifting back and forth as thoughts raced through her brain.

She had been alone for a long time. Bedlam gone. Her Pet gone. All gone. Gone gone gone.

"Wait!" The Unholy female whipped around to the other side of the fire like lightening. Placing herself between him and the trees, she pushed on his chest. "You won't leave me alone will you? You can't. Yes, see. Stay. Stay with Axis don't leave her alone. I have rabbits if you are hungry, fire is nice yes?" A light purr was in her voice as her fingers kneaded at his fur. Claws pricking his skin as she not so subtly tried to maneuver him back towards the fire.

Pandie Andie-

 

[Snarky Rogue]

Beast stood upright when the female bolted in front of him, blocking his path. He peered over her shoulder towards the shadowed woods behind her, then looked her square in the eye. For a moment, his gaze shifted down towards the hands pushing against his chest, fingers kneading into his fur, and claws pricking at his skin.

The light purr in her voice made his head tilt a little too far to the side, looking as if it were about to roll off of his shoulders. "Stay with Axis?" He closed his good eye and sighed, then looked back over his broad shoulder at the fire. It was nice. And she was nice, when she wasn't doing that... thing with her face.

"Fire is nice, yes," he repeated slowly. "I will stay," he decided out loud, nodding his head once. Better he be in the company of another Unholy, they were even stronger that way. He was certain they would have their fights, but that was their nature. His eyes snapped wide open and he stared coldly at her, forcing a step forward, closer to her. "Not a trespasser, not a defiler," he growled out before his mood shifted back to the relaxed and lazy way he had been before.

He began to take small steps backwards towards the fire again, an unheard purr causing his chest to rumble beneath her kneading fingers. Oh yes, two of their kind would be better than one. He would stay, and he would keep a careful eye for others of their kind intruding on her sacred grove. Perhaps he could learn a thing or two in watching her wield her magic. He himself had little magic that he was able to use. He possessed it as all Unholy did, but he relied more on brute strength. He knew little about how to use what he was gifted with, other than a little curse here or there.

Yayoi