• This is hell. The young man thought as he trudged up the mountainside. Battle-worn and weary, the blazing sun beating down on his bare scarred back. He glanced up, squinting at the looming castle, his destination. Tado was going to be angry with him. He’d, once again, failed to carry out his assignment.
    Finally, he arrived at the castle gates, about ready to collapse. The gates swung open, seemingly of their own accord, and he stumbled in. he basked in the cool air within the halls glad to be out of the blazing heat. A large red wolf bounded up to him, tongue lolling out, and tail wagging excitedly.
    “Hey Frei, you damned mutt,” he said affectionately and, taking a knee, buried his hands deep into the thick fur around the wolf’s neck and scratched him fiercely. Frei whined and growled happily, rubbing his wet nose all over his young master and licking his face.
    “Alright, alright, that’s enough,” he pushed the wolf away, wiping the trails of slobber of his neck and face. Frei whined and lied on his stomach, staring up at him with large pleading eyes.
    “Nope, that’s not going to work,” the young man said, crossing his arms and trying to look as stern as possible, though a smile started to spread across his face. The wolf growled, sitting back on its haunches, and pouting. The young man chuckled.
    “Reaper,” a raspy voice called out behind him. The young man, reaper, stood stiffly and turned as a figure detached itself from the shadows. Frei growled, stepping in front of his master protectively. Reaper laid a hand on the wolf’s head, silencing him.
    “Saki, what do you want?” Reaper asked, watching the figure warily. He’d never liked this shadow man. He liked the way he moved around even less.
    “It’s not what I want. It’s what mistress Tado wants.” Saki paused, eyeing this young man called reaper disdainfully, “she requests your appearance.” Reaper grunted in reply knowing that would be the case. Tado had exceptional ears and eyes at her command, and it was no surprise to him that she had already heard of his most recent failure.
    “She’s in the throne room I assume, like always,” he said sighing. Saki nodded and dissolved back into the shadows.
    Reaper shivered, “creep.” Frei barked in agreement. He began to make his way through the castle, with Frei following beside him. He walked through corridor after corridor, knowing exactly where he’s going having had to walk these halls many a time. His sword clanked familiarly against his leg, his hands in his pockets, and his best mate by his side. He thought about all the things he could be doing, besides about to be facing the wrath of a bitchy Tado.
    Eat, rest, maybe take a nice, long, hot shower. He walked out into the castle gardens, his own little shortcut, and the sun pounded down on him again. He squinted up at it, wishing to the gods it wasn’t so blistering hot. As he was about to turn away and continue on he saw something that froze him to the spot. A young girl was standing on the balcony on the other side of the small garden. She was raven haired, pale skinned, and blue eyed. She possessed a beauty the likes of which he had never seen before, and she was staring at him. Her Elbows rested on the railing, her cheek rested on her hand, and she was staring at him. Reaper took a step forward. The girl smiled, eyes twinkling.
    Before he could stop himself, he was at the foot of the balcony, looking up into those crystal blue eyes. Frei followed behind him, head cocked to the side. Reaper jumped swiftly up onto the balcony. The girl stumbled back and he caught her by the hand before she fell.
    “Who are you?” he asked, his hand still holding onto hers. Her cheeks turned a pale shade of pink.
    “Isn’t it polite to introduce oneself before asking for someone’s name,” she said, a smile playing about her full, pale pink, lips. He stared, her lips hypnotized him.
    “I…Damien. My name’s Damien,” he finally managed to say. She grinned.
    “Rhiannon,” she replied, slipping her hand out of his and walking a few paces into the cool of the castle. “It’s kind of hot out here, let’s go inside,” she said flippantly, turning her back to him. He stared at the tail; obviously it was a living appendage and not a fake, which was growing out of the area above her arse. It swished back and forth, proving further that it wasn’t a hoax. She noticed and cocked an eyebrow.
    “Do you like it?” she asked, teasingly. He opened his mouth to speak and blushed profusely.
    “I…I didn’t mean to stare, sorry.” He looked away, uncomfortable, as he rubbed the back of his neck. She giggled a lovely sound.
    “Not to worry, I don’t mind at all,” she said, flashing him a brilliant smile. He blinked and shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts.
    "Why are you here?" he asked, walking into the shade of the castle, closer to the beauty before him.
    "I was invited," she replied, turning to face him. Damien looked at her, confusion written all over his face.
    "Invited?" he said disbelieving.
    "uh-huh." she took a step towards him. "By Tado, I’m a....acquaintance of hers, I guess you could say." she took another step towards him. Damien grimaced, her words reminding him of what he was supposed to be doing.
    "Speaking of Tado, I should be on my way to the throne room to see her." he turned, walking back onto the balcony and back into the scorching heat.
    "Wait," she called out, running forward and placing a hand on his shoulder. That light touch sent a shock running through his entire being, mind, body, heart, and soul.
    "What," he said, trying to pull himself together, "what is it?" she smiled up at him radiantly, hooking her arm with his.
    "I’m going there as well, so why don't you take the long way around with me. I find it to be a lot more pleasant," she said innocently. I don't doubt that it is. Damien thought, looking down at the beautiful young girl. "Sure," he replied. She flashed him another smile as they started walking down a corridor.
    A loud barking started up from outside below the balcony. Damien rolled his eyes, growling slightly. Rhiannon looked at him with a confused expression. He noticed.
    “Just a sec,” he said and turned towards the balcony. Rhiannon turned as well. “Frei, stop being’ a wuss and get your a** up here,” Damien yelled. A very sulky looking Frei leapt up onto the balcony and padded over to him.
    “Aww, he’s adorable,” Rhiannon exclaimed and reached down to scratch Frei behind the ears. The wolf wagged his tail happily.
    “Hah, you call this thing adorable?” Damien said, shoving Frei over with his foot. Frei growled and snapped at him. “Hey, don’t be mean,” Rhiannon chided. Frei made a noise that could be recognized as laughter. The wolf rolled onto his back, paws up in the air, tail wagging on the ground. Rhiannon giggled and rubbed his belly.
    Damien glared daggers at the wolf. He was surprised, however, by the amount of jealousy he felt. Why should he be jealous, he’d just met this girl? This very, very beautiful girl. He thought.
    Frei gave the disgruntled young man a wink. He rolled over, sat back on his haunches, and licked Rhiannon’s cheek. Damien fumed silently. His hand gripped the hilt of his sword tightly, his knuckles going white. Frei, obviously amused by his reaction, attacked Rhiannon’s ear in a flurry of wet wolf kisses. I’M GONNA KILL HIM!!! Damien’s mind screamed. Rhiannon laughed.
    “Stop it, that tickles,” she said and half-heartedly pushed the affectionate (lecherous) wolf away. Damien was a boiling entity of scorching jealousy by this time, when he suddenly felt something thump against his leg repeatedly. The cause of this, he realized when he looked down, was Rhiannon’s raven black tail.

    [GAP]

    Damn it, where is she. Damien thought as he paced back and forth at the mouth of the cave. Rhia had gone to relieve herself, or so she said. That was an hour ago at least. Growling under his breath, he walked back into the cave, grabbed up his sword, and strapped it to his waist.
    “Bloody, stupid girl,” Damien grumbled to himself as he walked into the trees.

    [GAP]

    Damien stepped forward into the clearing, drawn by the gory sight before him. Rhia, at least he thought it was her, was hunched over the carcass of what appeared to be a stag. Blood covered everything, the trees, the ground, the stag, Rhia. It all seemed to have come from the many gashes littered across the stag’s carcass. Horrendous sound came from Rhia. She growled and snarled. Like a starving wolf. He thought. There was the disgusting sound of flesh being torn when her head jerked back sharply. Blood gushed from the gaping hole in the stag’s neck. She buried her mouth in the wound, gulping down blood. Damien took a step back revolted. Gods Rhia. He took another step back, this time he accidentally snapped a twig. Rhia’s head snapped up and she spun around, snarling and crouching low to the ground. He pulled his sword from its sheath, preparing himself for her to attack. Blood dripped from her chin and from her hair. His eyes met hers for an instant and he saw the deep levels of pain in her eyes. Damien dropped his sword to the ground and held out his arms a ways, palms up.
    “It’s okay, I won’t hurt you,” he said, scared shitless but trying not to show it. Rhia’s eyes widened and she took a few cautious steps towards him.
    “That’s it, nothing to be afraid of,” he said to reassure her and himself. She moved so fast it was like she disappeared for a moment and then was right before her prey. Damien flinched but held his ground, determined to help his friend. Rhia raised her hand and caressed his neck, her fingers ghosting across his skin. She leaned in close, her body against his, her lips mere inches away from the soft flesh of his neck. Damien closed his eyes, preparing himself for what was to come. Rhia stayed there and breathed quietly. Her breath was warm on his neck.
    “Do it,” he said after awhile when she still hadn’t advanced. A tiny gasp escaped her lips as he wrapped his arms tightly around her.
    “Bite me, Rhia. Take what you need from me, take everything I have,” he said as he placed his hand on the back of her head and pushed it forward until her lips touched his neck. Rhia sighed and her lips parted. One pale hand gripped Damien’s shoulder tightly the other rested on his chest. Damien’s heart beat wildly and he squeezed his eyes shut as her sharp teeth sank deep into the flesh of his throat. Blood filled her mouth and she drank it down. He gave a low hiss as her tongue ghosted over the wound. Blood spilled out of the corners of her mouth, down her chin and down her neck and chest. Damien held Rhia tightly against him. His hand, still holding her head, pressed her mouth more securely onto his throat. Rhia welcomed it and drank deeply. He began to feel light headed and staggered slightly. Rhia continued to drink. She’s taking too much. Damien thought. “Rhia,” he said and tried to pull her mouth away from his neck. She responded with a snarl and kept drinking. It was too much by then and he collapsed to the ground. Rhia lay on top of him, still drinking. His arms stayed locked firmly around her as his vision slowly began to blur and turn black around the edges. Rhiannon. He thought and he drifted into darkness.

    [GAP]

    Rhia stared down at Damien’s seemingly lifeless body.
    “No,” she whispered, shaking her head.
    “Not again.” She stood up and staggered away from Damien, into the trees. What have I done? She thought as tears ran unbidden down her face, mixed with the blood streaked across her jaw, and formed rivulets of pink down her neck. She found a hollow tree and curled up inside it. She could still taste Damien’s blood in her mouth. It had been delicious when she was gulping it down in mouthfuls, but now the taste made her sick with grief and guilt and regret. She sobbed uncontrollably. Howls of tortured anguish and loss tore from her throat as she let herself drown in her sorrow.

    [GAP]

    Damien turned to look at her as her dress slipped to the floor. He stared unable to turn away even though he was quite embarassed. Rhia's skin glowed like moonlight. The slim scars that ran across her bare back glowed even paler. She turned slowly towards Damien and blushed. Her raven locks tumbled down over her shoulders and covered her breasts. She wrapped her tail around her lower region self-conciously. Damien felt heat rise in his face....as well as in another area.
    "So am i still beautiful?" Rhia asked. Damien opened and closed his mouth, much like a fish out of water, unable to say anything. Embarrassed, Rhia looked down.
    "I-I'm sorry. this was a bad idea," she stammered and reached for the robe at the foot of her bed. Words finally formed on Damien's tongue as he walked forword and placed a hand over Rhia's.
    "Wait," he said. Rhia looked up at him and the color on her cheeks deepened. Damien placed a hand on her cheek and smiled down at her.
    "Beautiful doesn't even come close to what you are. Radient maybe, though that's not really adequate either." His hand slipped down to her neck and he caressed the edge of her jaw with his thumb as he thought. He stared out the window at the moon then looked back at her.
    "You're like embodied moonlight," he said quietly, staring into her eyes.
    "Pure, ethereal, and enchanting." And i don't deserve you. He thought. Rhia laughed and snaked her arms around Damien's waist, pressing herself against him as she lay her head against his chest.
    "I had no idea you were such a poet," she said teasingly. He smiled and placed his arms around her.
    "Neither did I," he whispered back softly.