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 Posted: Mon May 20, 2013 2:54 pm
Autumn Pheonix awoke with a start, her heart beating against her ribcage as her nightmares faded. As she slowly calmed down her eyes began searching her surroundings, trying to recall where she was. Then her memories crashed down on her from the previous day and she whipped her head to the warmth radiating at her side and saw that Latcho had stayed and was still sleeping next to her.
Taking the opportunity to look him over without him noticing, she glanced at his mane. She had seen the tentacles the previous day and now she regained her curiosity. Though now she couldn't see them and wondered if they were under his hair. She was centimeters away from moving his hair about before she regained her senses. You don't just mess with others hair while they're sleeping...scowling at herself her gaze locked onto his curled horn admiring it before sending her gaze to travel down his face. She felt her stomach flutter with unfamiliar feelings as she took in his features. He was very handsome, and it was hard, looking at him now, to imagine the ferocious fighter he had been yesterday...had it been yesterday? Honestly there wasn't much to go by on how long they had slept.
There was no real reason to be worried about the time lapse, so she brought her attention back to Latcho, noticing a strand of brown hair that had to be tickling his nose, it would tickle hers, she gently moved it out of his face, noticing in detail, his mouth markings and smirking, even if he frowned he would still be smiling...
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Posted: Mon May 20, 2013 3:55 pm
Latcho startles at a strange touch on his face. Jumping up instantly, his wings flaring and tentacles writhing, he looks around. Heart pounding, he takes in huge gulps of air, his stance set, looking for an enemy.
He can go from sleep to battle ready in an instant, but sleep to thinking takes just a bit longer. When nothing attacked, Latcho blinked and looked around. Seeing Pheonix, the memories of the previous day rush back and he feels a great chagrin.
He knew he must look a sight. His tentacles moving about his head, his hair tumbling down, long now that it isn't held up by those same tentacles, with a snake skull swinging from one lock. His wings mantled, tail fluffed out, and eyes just a bit red.
Blinking, the red fades from his eyes and the fur of his tail settles quickly. He folds his wings against his side as his tentacles gather his mane back up and away from his face. He keeps his gaze averted, hoping that the darkness of the cave hides the blush creeping up his neck and onto his pale cheeks.
"Um . . ." Latcho closes his eyes to contemplate his brilliance for a moment before clearing his throat and trying again. "Morning. If you want breakfast, there's pinecones in the back of the cave." His voice again harsh, but he was trying. At least his brain was starting to work again.
One thing he could say for his strange diet, when he had 'eaten' a kill, it helped him heal faster. And while there was still a wound in his side, the scrapes from the trees were mostly gone and the wound itself was well on its way to healing.
But Pheonix didn't have that benefit, so, as his thoughts started moving again, he looked her over. Latcho stopped for a moment as his breath caught on her loveliness. That odd tightening in his belly reminding him to move his gaze from her gentle face. With a huffed breath or two he managed to return his thoughts to a clinical observation as he looks over her wound.
It was farther along than he had anticipated, and belatedly he remembers the energy he felt moving from himself to her as he managed his first actual healing. A glow of pride swells for a moment before he brings himself back to earth with a reminder that she still carries a wound. He wasn't a healer yet.
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Posted: Mon May 20, 2013 10:47 pm
Pheonix flinched and gasped when Latcho darted away from her and it was probably a good thing she had, or they both would be complaining of headaches. She stayed down for a few minutes, to give him time to recover, then took her time standing up, stretching her muscles as she went, trying to appear very nonthreatening. Though as small as she was, she was sure there wasn't too much she was threatening towards. "Well then, good morning to you too." She stayed quiet as he offered her pinecones, deciding to pretend not to notice his blushing by looking outside. The snow was reflecting the morning light and made her squint to see clearly, she could see the tree's and figured that was most likely where they had come out of, but couldn't be sure.
Pheonix brought her attention back to Latcho and her gaze followed him as he looked at her leg, she too was curious and peered at it. She was surprised to see that Latcho had healed her pretty good, for his second attempt and first actual healing. She held out her leg for closer inspection and grinned. "Hey, that's not too bad! Actually," She put her hoof back down and applied pressure, happy when no shooting pain met her, just a slight throb. "That's really good!"
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Posted: Tue Jul 02, 2013 1:07 pm
Latcho shakes his head and turns away. "You're still wounded. You shouldn't strain it too much, it might open back up." He could kick himself, hearing the tone of his voice. She must surely think he was a real brute.
She must eat. The voice didn't usually speak except to pull him from his blood lust. Surprised to hear it now, Latcho's head comes up, eyes a bit wild. But the voice didn't repeat itself. Of course, it was right, she did need to eat. It took him a moment to realize he should bring the food to her, since her leg was wounded.
"Right." Lacho turns and heads to the back of the cave, forgetting that Pheonix hadn't heard the voice or understood his thoughts. But in a moment he was back, dragging an old and tattered blanket with pine cones piled upon it. And towards the back, a few dried apples.
A single tentacle reached out to snag a dried apple and bring it to his mouth to crunch down upon. Latcho didn't even think about what he was doing, or he wouldn't have shown his oddities so prominently. But still more than half asleep, he forgot for a moment that it wasn't one of his family in the cave with him.
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Posted: Sun Jul 28, 2013 2:16 pm
Pheonix rolled her golden eyes and huffed. "Sure, don't give yourself credit for accomplishing something, just beat yourself up over it." She watched curiously as he abruptly turned from her and went to the back of the cave, returning promptly with a blanket of pinecones and apples. It was becoming increasingly more difficult to not stare at him, and even more so to keep her cheeks from flaming. She made her way to the blanket and chose a pinecone, chewing it slowly, and when finished she deliberately watched him eat his apple with a brow arched. "Thats a curious way to eat an apple, though, it looks helpful."
Pheonix didn't wait for a reply or indeed wait to see what his reaction was, but instead moved a bit closer to him, using the ruse of getting to an apple for herself as an excuse. While nibbling on her food, her mind wandered, wondering if he had ever met a stranger who didn't care about his oddities? Indeed she herself found them most interesting and not the least bit frightening, and while the previous day had shown her his carnal side, her interest had only rose.
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Posted: Tue Jul 30, 2013 12:09 pm
Latcho drops the apple, startled. He hadn't realized what he was doing, but having his attention brought to it, he pulls his tentacles back in, closer this time. He couldn't completely hide them without some effort, but he did what he could.
"Ah . . . " Brilliant, he was just brilliant. Latcho hadn't wanted to remind her he was a monster first thing in the morning. He spent a moment silently berating himself before he even noticed she had moved. Not just moved, Pheonix was eating calmly. And she had moved closer.
Something was clearly wrong. She was eating, not insisting that he leave. He puzzled, trying to figure out what had happened. Maybe when he used his twisted horn it made her brain melt or something. Surely if she had been herself, she'd be leaving, not staying closed up in a cave with a predator like him.
Blinking, Latcho shakes his head. "Are you . . . " Asking if she was alright seemed stupid, clearly her brain was melted. And he had no idea what to do about it.
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Posted: Sat Nov 02, 2013 11:26 am
Pheonix played ignorance at his puzzlement and tried to hide her smile. When he spoke, but cut himself off, she tilted her head slightly, a look of curiosity on her face as she looked at the apple, then back to Latcho. "Aren't you hungry after all the rescuing-me you did?" She gave him a grin, picked up the apple he dropped, and offered it back to him. "Ur tentacols on't boder e, so u sould eet." She must have looked quite silly, with a half eaten apple in her mouth and a devious grin on her face, but she hoped it would ease Latcho's worries. Or he would see that at least she didn't care how he ate his apples.
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Posted: Thu Nov 21, 2013 12:32 pm
Yes, clearly her brain was melted. Latcho looked at the apple in her mouth and blinked. "Ah . . . yes. Um, I . . . I just . . ."
Shaking his head Latcho tried to get his thoughts ordered again. That strange pull in his belly was back, looking at his half eaten apple as she offered it. He wanted very much to take it back, to taste her lips and feel her warmth. And it didn't have much of anything to do with the blood he could sense pulsing close under her skin.
A deep breath and closing his eyes seem to help. "I . . . Pheonix, I . . . I didn't really, I mean, I don't want you to feel like you have to . . . " He shakes his head with a sigh. His eyes open to look at her again for a moment before he sighs and turns away.
Latcho's voice lowers to the gravely and harsh sound that he hates, but that seems to come when he's talking to her so often. "You don't have to be nice to me. I'll leave as soon as I know you will be alright on your own."
That was it, that had to be it. She was trying to be nice so he wouldn't hurt her, or because she thought he would demand it. Latcho knew there were those who would take such thanks, by force if necessary.
The thought of someone doing that to her brought a bit of red to his eyes, but he kept them averted. Look at her. There was the voice again. But Latcho couldn't do what it wanted. He shakes his head with an almost violent negative. His eyes are tightly shut as he tries to ignore it. Look at her.
If Latcho looked at her now, he knew she'd see the red in his eyes. And that he might not be able to keep from taking the apple, from tasting her lips and drinking her breath. And that would rightly scare her, terrify her. And if she was scared . . . right now, he could stay, and she was staying. He didn't want anything to jeopardize that.
The voice returned to its usual silence, but Latcho didn't move from where he was standing, half turned away from Pheonix, eyes tightly closed and head hung low.
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Posted: Fri Nov 22, 2013 12:00 am
So.....he thought she was......what? Timid? Afraid? Her mind reeled as to what was making him thing she felt like she had to be nice. Pheonix dropped the offered apple and snorted, a very unladylike thing to do, and stepped around the preserved food. Her honey colored eyes narrowed and her ears went back. "Okay...woah. First off I'll tell you I don't do anything I don't wanna do." Her hoof struck the floor, emphasizing her points as she went, closing the distance between them. "Second, my leg is feeling much better. Oh, it twinges, but I could have walked away from you when I woke up. I could have said, 'Oh! Thanks for saving me! Bye!' But I didn't. I'm still here."
Pheonix relaxed her posture and softened her tone, and gave his neck a little nuzzle. "Is it so strange that the reason I am still here is because I actually enjoy your company?" Her cheeks flamed in a blush, but she plowed on, if her words and actions now were received negatively...well that would be later. "Is it so strange that I could like just being around you? That, even though you throw up all these barriers and have your convenient apple-eating-apendages, that I just like you?" She backed away from him after all of that fell past her lips to give him a moment to process her words. There was much more to this stallion than what he was showing, or trying not to show, her. And that was what was keeping this spicy, stubborn mare very intrigued in this, perhaps equally stubborn stallion.
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Posted: Sat Nov 23, 2013 10:05 am
Latcho's head snaps up to stare at her, dumbfounded, eyes wide. For a very long while even after she stops speaking, he can't manage to say anything. Then the voice, so soft and surprising, Idiot and he knows it's talking about him.
"I . . . well, yes. Yes it's . . . strange. And . . . enjoy my company?" His voice breaks a bit on that.
Shaking his head Latcho takes a step back. His voice gruff again, "You don't know me. You . . . I'm not some project and you aren't going to 'redeem' me. I'm . . . I am what I am and if you're just . . . " He shakes his head as the voice, once more speaks to him, Idiot! Look at her.
This time he listens, still not sure why the voice keeps speaking. But hoping it will shut up, his thoughts too confused to process and the voice wasn't helping matters.
She was standing, strong and tall, if small of stature. A slight blush touched her cheeks and a fire lit her eyes. She wasn't afraid and she didn't seem to have a melted brain. And she wasn't just staring with some horrid fascination at his . . . oddities.
Latcho blinks with another slight shake of his head. "I . . . Pheonix . . . I . . . " His voice trails off as he realizes he has no idea what to say. He's not even sure he has a real idea what's going on.
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Posted: Mon Nov 25, 2013 9:25 am
Pheonix rolled her eyes, a smile on her face as she shook her head. "Latcho," Saying his name made butterflies swirl in her belly and she tried to hide it, continuing on. "Do I look like I'm trying to fix you, "redeem" you, as you put it?" She grinned and stepped closer, her heart stumbling. "In my experience, something first has to be broken before it can be fixed...and you don't seem to be broken, just....lonely." Amber eyes dropped to her hooves, suddenly feeling very shy, which wasn't like her.
Almost everything about this situation was very new to her, frightening in the most exciting of ways and she just couldn't seem to tear herself away from the vast majority of new feelings assaulting her heart. How was it that she was developing and feeling much more than friendship for this stallion she had known for all of...what? A day? A day and a half? She raised her eyes back to his, tilting her head slightly to see into his eyes. "I'm not afraid of you, I'm not going to run from you." A mixture of emotions tumbled through her body, making her shiver. "But....if you wish me to leave you to yourself, then I'll leave, and you can go back to....whatever you were doing before you saved me." A small smile touched her lips, but it was slightly sad and didn't reach her eyes.
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Posted: Tue Nov 26, 2013 1:57 pm
Latcho just stands and stares at her for a long moment, his brain slow in processing that a response is required.
"Pheonix, I . . ." without even thinking about it he takes a step forward. "I don't . . . I don't want you to leave. I . . ." Latcho looks at this little miracle, this mare who stands unafraid before him. She had seen him, seen what he was, but she wasn't afraid.
She was . . . blushing? Yes, that was definitely a blush. Latcho's eyes drawn to the pulse of heat and blood under her skin. His eyes tinge slightly red as it calls to something primal within him. He wanted to taste her blood, but in a way that had never been a part of him before. It wasn't a physical hunger that made his eyes crimson.
Stumbling back a few steps, Latcho shakes his head. Turned towards the entrance to the cave, his voice once again harsh, "You should. You should be afraid. You should run and run and . . ." His voice breaks and he moves out of the cave and into the snow. Hot tears blurring his vision but not falling.
He couldn't do this. He couldn't threaten her, and every moment he was with her was a threat to her life. When he was protecting, fighting for her, when the only choice was to care for her or watch her die, then he could control himself. But now, when they were alone, when there was nothing to fight but himself . . .
Latcho stops not far from the cave mouth. He couldn't bring himself to keep going, wanting too much what Pheonix offered. And yet he couldn't go back, couldn't endanger her. And he knew he was a danger to her. So he stood, trembling with conflicting desires, snow falling lazily around him and eyes burning red and tear filled.
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Posted: Tue Nov 26, 2013 8:00 pm
Pheonix saw the red in his eyes and while her mind screamed at her to run, her heart flip flopped in her chest, and shushed her warning bells. Goose-bumps broke out across her skin, making her a shiver run through her body that had nothing to do with the chill air, and everything to do with the stallion in front of her.
Her breath caught and she tried to contain herself when he spoke his tentative words, and held herself back, knowing it would not be wise for sudden movements. But when he walked away from her and his gruffness was back in his voice, her jaw set stubbornly and her eyes narrowed on his back.
"Run, should I?" She moved to follow him to the mouth of the cave, her split hooves causing dull echo's on the rocky cave walls. A coy smile played at her mouth as she rounded to face him, though she had to look up, she probably wasn't as impressive looking as she thought, but hey a girl had to try. "And if I ran, Latcho...." She turned her head to look out at the snowy scenery, then looked at him from the corner of her eye. "Would you chase me?" With one last glance at the scenery she turned back to Latcho and had stepped so close that her nose was mere centimeters from his, her gaze rivaling his in intensity.
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Posted: Wed Nov 27, 2013 10:49 am
Latcho trembles at her closeness, eyes closing as he tries not to move. His voice is low, almost a moan, "Please, I don't want to hurt you."
But she was so close, he could feel her heat, taste her scent on the air. His wings fluff slightly but he keeps them on his back through sheer force of will. Unable to stand it, he lowers his head to drink in her aroma.
"Pheonix, I . . . what do you want from me? I . . . " Finally he opens his eyes to look into hers. "I am not made of stone. I can not stand against temptation forever. It would be safer for you to be away from me. To be where I can not hurt you. I am trying . . . but I can not endure forever. Please Pheonix, please. I would hate myself if I hurt you, but it wouldn't undo the harm. I . . ."
He turns away again, eyes closed, nostrils flaring. His skin moves in waves as if to discourage flies. Then the trembling grows deeper, his muscles twitching as he tries to hold himself still. "Don't run. Walk, walk away, slow and calm and . . ." A low moan interrupts his words and he moves to kneel, then lay in the snow, careful to make his movements purposeful and slow. "If you run . . . I think I would chase you. I . . . " His voice breaks as he continues, "I want you too much. I want to taste you and keep you and . . . I've never felt anything like this before. It is a need stronger than hunger. Please . . . please. My hunger can make me a monster. I . . . I do not want . . . Please don't let me hurt you."
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Posted: Wed Nov 27, 2013 10:48 pm
Pheonix stood, watching his back, so many different emotions and thoughts swirling through her. She had tried her cards and he still asked, no, begged her to leave, and yet she couldn't bring her hooves to move. Her gaze moved to the ground and her ears lowered. When finally she spoke her voice was small and trembled with emotions she was unfamiliar with. "I know you're not made of stone...I just...I wish you weren't afraid of me."
Pheonix could feel the sting of traitorous tears on the verge of spilling over. What was this? Why was she exposing her heart and letting it rule? Clearly it was being painfully played with, and yet she stayed rooted to the spot. "What if I want you too? What if...What if I want you to keep me?" Amber eyes were bright with un-shed tears when she chanced a look at Latcho. "How can you tell me to go when what you're saying is only convincing me that I should stay?"
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