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Post by Kiba on Oct 2, 2008 17:44:09 GMT -5
((I forked it off since Kiba's basically finished with the pups.)) Continued from: Kennels%2C+territory%2C+forest--it%27s+all+the+same.Elsewhere, Sapphire paused to admire the way the soft light filtered through the trees, not very far from the Rouge and the dramas playing out there. She was, of course, completely unaware of these, though it was unlikely she would be terribly interested in the affairs of most others here. That was, after all, their business. Hearing something move, she took her hand off the wheel quickly and gasped, before realizing it was only a rabbit. "Silly thing, scared me half to death," she murmured, hearing the wind kick up and moan loudly in the forest air. Kiba, who'd been half-asleep near an open window, woke up to the sounds of a startled rabbit--and a startled human, as well. The rabbit, aside from its initial panic, apparently settled back into its routine after the human spoke. I haven't eaten in a while, he remarked, squeezing out of the window and bounding in the direction of the rabbit's noise. While he stopped to track its scent, he recalled the female human's voice and moved more quietly. As he got closer to both human and rabbit, he used his human disguise to keep the woman from getting too startled and actually scaring the rabbit away. Sure, he'd catch up with it, but still--three days with lots of running, his pack gone, and no food was starting to wear him out.
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Lady Caldin
- Masterful Virgin -
Future Duchess
Posts: 40
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Post by Lady Caldin on Oct 2, 2008 17:51:25 GMT -5
Now on alert, Sapphire could have sworn she felt something creeping up behind her, and she glanced around, getting gooseflesh. Still, nothing seemed to leap out at her immediately again, and in a moment she heard actual human-sounding footprints. Quietly--not wanting, as it happened, to startle the rabbit either, she called, "Er...is someone there?"
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Post by Kiba on Oct 2, 2008 19:23:59 GMT -5
((Actually, Kiba's human form is appearance-only, so his movements are virtually unchanged. But he IS being quiet, so I assume some of his footsteps wouldn't be heard.))
The woman realized he was there, so he stepped more forcefully for every other paw to make it sound more like a human's footsteps.
"Hello?" He asked. "What are you doing here?"
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Lady Caldin
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Future Duchess
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Post by Lady Caldin on Oct 2, 2008 19:28:55 GMT -5
((Ah, and interesting. She's also not too observant.))
Sapphire relaxed, hearing someone now approaching normally, and glanced over to see whom it might be.
"Why, I'm just enjoying the night. What are you doing here?" she turned the question around. A little superior, perhaps, but that was just her nature and she didn't even know she was doing it. The accent, a finely-polished Received Pronunciation, didn't help.
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Post by Kiba on Oct 2, 2008 20:49:24 GMT -5
"I... live here," he answered, mildly annoyed by her superior tone. She was crippled--what gave her the conceit to act like an alpha? Either she'd been in an accident and lost her status by default, or she was head of an even weaker pack than herself; neither possibility was helping his impression of her.
Still, at least she wasn't threatening. He'd let Brandi take care of her later if she wanted to stay here. "I'm hunting a rabbit--it's close to where you are."
((That's Kiba for you--not Politically Correct at all!))
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Lady Caldin
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Future Duchess
Posts: 40
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Post by Lady Caldin on Oct 2, 2008 21:48:23 GMT -5
For a moment Sapphire was a bit surprised, both by his answer and the way that he gave it. Then she realized he must mean he lived in the nearby inn which she had seen. "I see," she replied, lips pursed, and arched her fingers. She would, of course, be incensed to hear him--for one thing, so she had been a victim, so what? For another, just where did he get his justification for such an outdated mentality, older even than hers?
But he had an explanation, at least...though when he replied that he was hunting, she noticed that he did not have any weapon on him, at least not visible. "Ah..."
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Post by Kiba on Oct 2, 2008 23:13:46 GMT -5
"You should be careful around here," he told her. "There's a wolf who lives in the forest; we never know where he'll be or what he thinks of humans."
He could be right in front of her and strongly resisting the urge to attack on sight, by order of a human alpha that he grudgingly obeyed. This human was especially hard not to attack, as every instinct he had was to put her out of whatever misery she was in, physical or mental.
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Lady Caldin
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Future Duchess
Posts: 40
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Post by Lady Caldin on Oct 2, 2008 23:19:49 GMT -5
She rolled her eyes lightly, and, to demonstrate how unconcerned she was, drew out an emery board from the purse at her side in the chair, fixing her nails. "Oh, really? I'm afraid that I'm not terribly afraid of wolves around here. If there were any really dangerous ones around, I'm quite sure that the locals would already have taken action."
Little did she suspect that she was in any danger, though she should probably have been frightened--though in this case, the suggestion that attacking her would be a mercy killing would have made her angry enough to forget the fear. Still, she most likely wouldn't find out.
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Post by Kiba on Oct 3, 2008 11:06:33 GMT -5
A slight growl escaped Kiba as she filed down her nails, in complete disregard for her own welfare. Did she think wolves were dogs? Was her only experience with the captive wolves that humans put on display, or the ones who ran from humans at first sight?
Am I growling? He stopped himself as soon as possible; humans growled, obviously, but only a few were able to reach the bass tones, and fewer still tried to emulate the wild quality of a wolf's growl. I hope she didn't hear that. Doesn't seem too bright anyway...
"He's smart," Kiba told her. "Some of Le Rouge's visitors ran into him. They said he's a huge white wolf--and he's not afraid of humans."
In the usual context, this might be interpreted as a tame wolf who'd been turned loose by a terrified or fed-up owner, but Kiba's tone signified a much darker reason for such atypical boldness... and why nobody had taken action yet.
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Lady Caldin
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Future Duchess
Posts: 40
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Post by Lady Caldin on Oct 3, 2008 13:28:37 GMT -5
As a matter of fact, Sapphire had not, in fact, met any wolves that posed a threat; of course she hadn't, considering how completely safe she was kept at home. Still, they were in fact entertaining to watch at the London Zoo.
It wasn't that she wasn't bright--as a matter of fact, she was extremely intelligent. It was just that she was rather lacking in practical, as opposed to academic, knowledge. Still, even she caught something about his tone that confused her, and she gave him a sidelong glance.
"Ah. I see, then. Well, they're all right, then, aren't they? If they could make it back to the Rouge, then I doubt we have anything to worry about. Still, I'm prepared to defend myself...and to warn somebody." She talked about it as if it were barely worth noting, a problem that only academically interested her.
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Post by Kiba on Oct 3, 2008 17:06:06 GMT -5
Well if she was going to be THAT conceited, he might as well leave her for someone else to get rid of. As Kiba had no concept of academic versus practical knowledge, he considered her to have totally abandoned all self-preservation and left the matter at that.
The rabbit, on the other hand, had realized there was a predator nearby; he could hear its heart rate jumping as it either heard or smelled him. Damn it--he shouldn't have lost control like that!
"One minute--the rabbit's gotten spooked," he told her, bounding a few yards past her and intercepting the rabbit in a few moments. Distracted, he let his disguise slip for a moment to reveal a large white wolf, shaking the same rabbit by the neck.
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Lady Caldin
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Future Duchess
Posts: 40
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Post by Lady Caldin on Oct 3, 2008 17:42:49 GMT -5
As it happened, she hadn't entirely abandoned self-preservation, even by his standards...but that she kept to herself unless it was needed.
For the moment, she merely sighed and slipped the emery board away, running her hand through her hair now. "Alright," she murmured, at ad confused, and glanced away for a moment. What was he goign to do, catch it with his bare hands or some--
"Merciful heavens!"
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Post by Kiba on Oct 3, 2008 19:39:34 GMT -5
He froze upon hearing her exclamation, startled but not quite enough to turn on her or run.
Hell with it--she already knew he was hunting, and she deserved a good shock after acting so high-and-mighty. He sat down with a whuff, dropped the rabbit between his front paws, and resumed his human form; unfortunately, he couldn't do anything about his bloody jaws.
"Can't say I didn't warn you," he grumbled.
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Lady Caldin
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Future Duchess
Posts: 40
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Post by Lady Caldin on Oct 3, 2008 21:45:02 GMT -5
One gloved hand immediately gripped the handle of her chair, and she shivered; the other tightened its grasp inside the purse, though on seeing at first his not immediate attack, it relaxed; still, seeing his sudden transformation, she was more than a little unnerved.
"So...you are, what? A werewolf? A wolfwere?" She was startled, yes, but being as Victorian as she was, she determined to approach this scientifically. There had to be a logical explanation for the existence of such creatures.
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Post by Kiba on Oct 3, 2008 22:50:23 GMT -5
A werewolf? She thought he was one of those half-human freaks?!
For once he couldn't hold it against her, to his dismay; instead he answered as coherently as possible.
"I'm not one of those freaks of nature, whatever you call them!" He told her indignantly. "I am a wolf. This is only an illusion."
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