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 Posted: Tue Nov 22, 2005 6:31 pm
Ambrose gave a growling swear under his breath. Things were NOT going well.
He took a breath. IF he couldn't fix his own problems right now... maybe he could at least help this new person's.
He quietly, and with as much dignity as he could summon walked to where her tophat had fallen from her head. Wordlessly he bent down, wishing that he couldn't smell her fear as pungently as he did, and picked it up.
Then, coming to a kneel besides the fallen woman he held it out to her.
"Please.... miss.... I'm not going to hurt you. Depite.... appearances to the contrary." He winced.
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Posted: Tue Nov 22, 2005 6:40 pm
Maybe... maybe she was right... maybe he's telling me the truth...
Maybe this is all Loki's fault.
Rayanya kept her face hidden in the tree roots for a few moments til she could wrestle her way out of her coat (it was far too hot for it anyways) and get to the black tattered sleeve of the strange shirt she wore beneath. She moved this to her nose to catch the blood, trying to wipe away as much of it as she could. Slowly raising her head, Rayanya turned her head slowly towards Ambrose. As her eyes came into view, it was easy to see that they now lacked most of the fear that had occupied them... they were intense, watchful.
"If you even try anything on me..." Her hands were curled into fists, and her nose still bled.
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Posted: Tue Nov 22, 2005 6:51 pm
Ambrose sighed, a frown crossing his features that still had a lot of human expression despite the short muzzle, combining with the very lupine mix with his ears adding to his expressiveness.
"I have no desire to hurt you... I assure you." An ear flicked back in irritation. "Besides... even if I were a beast of the woods.... no healthy wolf has ever been recorded as having attacked a person, despite fairy tales to the contrary."
He extended his other pawed hand, while still holdering her hat in the other, crouched in a squatting position.
"Can I help you to your feet...?"
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Posted: Tue Nov 22, 2005 7:09 pm
"No, no. I'm fine." Rayanya got to her feet, albeit a bit too quickly. She swayed a bit and finally caught her center of balance, lifting her sleeve to her face and again wiping away the blood that was still pouring from her nose. She hoped she hadn't broken it...
Rayanya now took a moment to look over Ambrose now... how she had thought him to be a werewolf, she didn't quite know. He definately did not fit her own personal description of a werewolf, not even close.
After a few minutes of staring at him, Rayanya finally spoke again. "What... what are you?"
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Posted: Tue Nov 22, 2005 7:16 pm
Ambrose pulled his hand back and put it into his pocket, feeling just a bit stiffed.... not that he could blame the woman. Wouldnt' he have been equally as freaked out were the situation reversed? If the first time he had wandered this island after coming here for a 'medical study' that he ran into a monster, despite how friendly it might be acting.
He eyed her nose, ears crumpling down. "Are you alright..?" He ventured. "That... spill looked painful." His tail gave a few nervous wags behind him.
He swallowed at the directness of the question. "By... the sound of things... you haven't been given the real explanation of the island." He shifted awkwardly from foot to foot. But, as he reminded himself - as hard as this was - telling a total stranger, even one that viewed him as a monster, was a thousand times easier than telling Angelina, who had recognised him. And much, much better than dealing with the fresh wound of Emelyn.
"I..." He breathed. "My name is Ambrose. And... not four months ago.. I was as human as you are."
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Posted: Tue Nov 22, 2005 7:30 pm
"I'm fine, I'm fine. I've taken worse than this in my life." By now Ray was just holding her sleeve over her nose, and the blood was finally starting to slow. She couldn't quite comprehend why she was so calm right now... perhaps because she was faced with something potentially dangerous (or so he looked) and trying to calculate how he could have come into being, her mind was forcing fear away in order to think.
"The real explanation of the island?" Ray raised a brow. "You mean the story Joliette told me about the shot I got eventually turning me into an animal?" Surprisingly, Rayanya scoffed and furrowed her brow at Ambrose. "Please. She got you in on this too, didn't she? You're just wearing some sort of a costume, aren't you?"
Rayanya folded her arms across her chest and gave Ambrose a glare that seemed to be able to peel paint off of a wall.
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Posted: Tue Nov 22, 2005 7:36 pm
Ambrose frowned doubtfully at her claims to wellbeing. He was still overwhelmed by how sensitive his nose had become, and the scent of blood was overpowering even the smells of the jungle and her earlier fear that still clung to the small clearing.
His furry eyebrows raised. "So you've met Joliette? She... she's rather new here as well. Well, I presume you're new here...." He trailed off as she had yet to give him her name. At least, now, she seemed relatively calm enough.
"And as much as I hate to say it... from the sounds of it she told you the truth. And I have yet to see a costume as convincing as 'this'." He said, gesturing to the fur that clung to his body, that rippled with the passing breezes through the trees.
"As much as I would love to peel all of this off and confirm your doubts... I can't."
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Posted: Tue Nov 22, 2005 7:43 pm
Rayanya pulled her sleeve away from her face to check the flow of blood, satisfied to see that it had gone down quite a bit. Everything was fine, and it didn't seem broken... thank the gods for that.
"Yes, I've met Joliette. And what she told me can't even be close to true. Its not possible, and there is no way it ever will be. Just because it moves doesn't mean its not fake."
At this point, Rayanya took a very bold action. Extending her hand, she darted to the side and towards Ambrose. Her fingers opened wide, clutching to grab at his tail. "I'll prove it!"
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Posted: Tue Nov 22, 2005 7:50 pm
Ambrose crossed his arms, his eyebrows quirking further. Then he shook his head with a sigh. "I suppose I can't very well blame you. I would have thought the same as you had I been in your position. A prank is much more believable than the strange truth of this place. Had I not been the first to change, I probably would not have accepted anything until it happened to me-"
He stopped mid sentance as her hand darted out to his tail, only having a split second to brace himself for the impending tug. His ears flicked back and he winced, exposing long canines, but didn't pull away.
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Posted: Tue Nov 22, 2005 8:02 pm
Rayanya gave the tail a couple more desperate tugs in hopes that it would pull away, but they were much softer than the initial. Horror had struck her face again and tears were starting to fall from her eyes, though she didn't seem to notice them.
All she did was stare at Ambrose's tail.
"It... can't be..." Her voice finally sounded out of a form that had forgotten to breathe yet again, and it was weak, at least until she pulled in a deep, rattling breath. She had gone paler than she already was, especially once she started screaming.
"Impossible! No! This is not happening! NOT HAPPENING!" She was in hysterics, since the story had just been proven, and she was forced to realize the fact that she would have to change, too...
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Posted: Tue Nov 22, 2005 8:08 pm
The tail was... warm to the touch. And her hands wrapped around it revealed a structure of muscle and bone beneath the furry exterior. Certainly not a fake. Especially the way the muscles twitched with each subsequent tug.
Ambrose swallowed a whimper at the tugging.
He turned to her as the realization was seeping through her wall. His ears lowered, and his eyes turned sympathetic. "Miss.... I... I'm sorry. I wish it wasn't the truth..."
Flashes of Jamal's reaction flashed in his mind. And Ambrose began to realize that he was miserable at the whole "telling" part. Or was it just that there WAS no good way for some people. "Please... I... I'm sorry. I wish I didn't have to be the one to spring this on you... it hurts both parties" He frowned. Lovely day. Simply LOVELY.
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Posted: Tue Nov 22, 2005 8:15 pm
Rayanya finally let go of Ambrose's tail and moved her hands to her face, sobbing into her sleeves. Even the one that had been covered in blood. As a result, her face was now covered in blood and tears, but she found herself incapable of caring. A slight whimper was given as Ray once again settled to the forest floor, this time of her own will. She pulled her knees up and wrapped her arms around them, now burrowing her face in her skirt. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't stop her tears.
One thing, she could never go home again... Not that it entirely mattered, she only had two people back in the city that she considered friends. Another, she was going to turn into some animal, gods only know what... and how far would she change? Would she still be humanoid?
Finally, Rayanya felt a deep set pity for Ambrose... he had stated he was the first to change, and therefore, most likely the one closest to his doom.
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Posted: Tue Nov 22, 2005 8:19 pm
Ambrose finally moved to squat besides her, and moved a furry hand to her shoulder.
"I'm sorry... I truly am. No one deserves the fate that's been set for us here. Whatever lie they told you to bring you here." He squeezed her shoulder lightly. Despite all of the problems of the day, he couldn't bear to see a woman crying... couldn't bear not to try to help. At least, here, maybe he could. Unlike the problem he created earlier today.
"Shhhh... shh... I'm sorry... It... well... I wish I could say that it will be okay.... but at least I can promise you this. There will be others here to help you through all of this. ALthough I'm sure that right now that's probably little consolation."
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Posted: Tue Nov 22, 2005 8:33 pm
Rayanya didn't move when Ambrose put his hand on her shoulder, merely remained curled up and, now, silently sobbing. The only way one could tell that she was still crying was to feel the sobs rip through her narrow form.
Head still buried in her skirt, Rayanya tried her best to respond to Ambrose. Though her voice was a bit muffled by tears and fabric, her voice was still fairly easy to make out. "I'm so sorry... I don't want to know what's going to happen to me... to you... to everyone else... Dear gods, if there are as many people here as I noticed duplexes... even half as many..."
Rayanya refused to lift her head from her skirt, therefore it stayed where it was. After all, if she did, her face would be a MESS of make-up and blood.
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Posted: Tue Nov 22, 2005 8:37 pm
Ambrose didn't move from her sigh, but he felt helpless. The hand on her shoulder was little support against the weight of the world that was pressing down on her. The cold shock of the horror behind the beautiful facade of the Island.
"THey say.... they say we will keep our intellect... our voices.... at the very least... althought... this is all highly experimental if you hadn't surmised..." He swallowed. "By my count... I think there is somewhere in the neighborhood of thirty of us now. But... our numbers seem to be growing by the day."
He didn't sound happy with this fact. HE wished they'd stop bringing people here - they had ruined more than enough lives. "I... know how you feel. Honestly I do. I had a life back home... goals... dreams." He whispered.
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