Realistic or Modern A Night Bleeds (Closed)

[Out Of Words]

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words​

Out Of Words

Tags: Vinegar Bees KodakWolf Silver- | Location: Secret in the Garden ​

Chase had drifted off to sleep, lulled by the blood draining, and a lack of anything else to do. And for a while, it was peaceful, and quiet. Time passed, but how much could not be determined. However, at one point as Leif stared at the different patterns in the ceiling, it sure sounded like a little girl had murmured, 'Papa'. There wasn't any sign of a little girl, of Turid, but it felt like she had been there a moment ago.

Chase started wuffling in his sleep, then it turned into whining before he grew still again. He was back to slumbering, and the occasional wuffle still slipped free. But it wasn't the only sound Leif heard. Somewhere, he could hear, and feel the vibrations of stone grinding on stone, only it wasn't in their room.

Someone had just entered the garden area.

The vibration was also felt on the other side of the garden, where Rhevens, Silver and Foster were. Foster's eyes went wide at the vibration, and the sound of stone upon stone. He had the good sense to mumble, "What the fuck was that?"

For Maylee, she'd find a myriad of scents drifted to her, once Razial opened up the door to the garden area for her. He explained, "Our minotaur keeps this area. It's rather.. quaint, has an appeal I suppose. Think he has fish, too." The way he held his chin up, and looked down his nose as he talked said he didn't really care much for plants, or gardens.

Maylee could smell a rather recent gathering of scents, two wolves, the mouse, and a human who mingled with one of the wolves. They were near a cluster of plants, and then the scent moves toward one of the surrounding garden walls where it just stops.

There was also an older, nearly faded scent of something, no, someone. Someone Maylee knew, the scent was too old to tell which direction it went, all she could tell is they had been there sometime in the last week.

Leif.

coded by natasha.

 

[Vinegar Bees]

What greeted her inside the garden was far more than just a mouse.

Maylee glanced cautiously around the interior as soon as Razial allowed her entry, and she frowned, still trying to pick up any clues she could as to her whereabouts. Wherever this place was, it was somewhere that could support plant life, so being underground was unlikely—right? Then again, magic was clearly and profusely at play, and if it was within Razial's capabilities to dress her up with magic, surely it wouldn't be difficult to apparate a few plants.

Though this didn't seem to be Razial's garden, judging by his scornful reaction, and then he revealed that it was their minotaur's private area. An alarm bell rang in her mind: The minotaur—! This seemed to confirm what she had suspected when she first awoke to Sage's gentle touch and Razial's gleeful torment: that this coven, indeed, was the very same one Cillian had spoken of, the one that had seized some of his former master's other prisoners—

And now they had him, too. But why, exactly? Why was Razial amassing a collection of supernatural beings he pushed around like servants?

Any attempts to reason out the situation were swiftly staunched when Maylee breathed in the air of the garden, swiftly flooding her nose with the scent of flowers, grasses, fish-laden water, and—

No, it couldn't be...

But it was, unmistakably so; even when she had been nothing more than a little human girl, she had spent enough time around Leif to grow familiar with his scent: the musk of leather mingled with a trace of pine and embers jumping across wood. The exhilaration that flooded her—Leif was here!—quickly cemented into dread—Leif was here, in this nightmarish underworld where magicians smiled while they threatened to destroy you, which meant he could be enduring any number of tortures right now...

Or, rather, he had been here. The smell was musty and faded, diffused faintly around the place rather than suffused in a clear trail, and frustratingly, she couldn't pinpoint any specific location. He had been here, but he was gone, and there was no indication as to where.

Her heart was racing, and she willed herself to mold her face into a steely, focused mask. It stood out to her, quite clearly, that Leif's name had not been one of the two Razial had specifically mentioned when running down his list, which meant there was a possibility he didn't know Leif was around. Panic twisted through her at the conflict that swirled in her mind: disobeying Razial would invite his wrath upon herself and, more importantly, Cillian, but alerting to Leif's scent would put the vampire in danger. Razial hadn't asked, of course, for her to track a vampire, only a mouse. If she could simply pretend she had not detected any unexpected scents...

She breathed in again and noted the far more concentrated, more pungent smell of the mouse combined with a few companions: two wolves and a human. They had been here far more recently, recently enough to leave a trail, but...

Who were these wolves, this mouse, and this human? Their scents did not seem familiar to her, and so it was unlikely they were anyone from her dream—unless, of course, the scents she had picked up in the dream were themselves illusory, not to be trusted. But familiar or not, she did not want to lead an innocent (or four) straight into Razial's hands. There was no indication, of course, that the mouse and its companions were innocent, but almost anyone could appear to be a saint next to Razial...

She followed the trail and felt a gratifying flash of what could only be relief when she discovered it to cut off abruptly at one of the garden walls. The relief abruptly fled, however, when she recalled that it was her current job to hunt down this mouse: if she failed in her endeavor, even if it was merely because she lost the scent, would Cillian pay for her shortcomings?

Steeling herself, Maylee turned to face Razial and report in on her findings. "The scent goes here, but... it also stops here. Maybe the mouse burrowed underground to get past the wall?" There. Vague enough for plausible deniability, right? She hadn't been told to look for the scent of a wolf or a human any more than she had been told to look for that of a vampire, so there was no need to mention them, right? She lowered herself to a crouch, then, and began to inspect the grasses and dirt flanking the wall for any sign of disturbance, though there was none to be seen: no stalks of grass pulled from their roots, no dirt scattered in a haphazard pile. It was as if the mouse and his companions had simply vanished.

( Tags: Out Of Words | KodakWolf | Silver- )

maylee song.

hunter | werewolf

 

[AsherMasher]

Clementine Holt​

Clementine eyes the soup handed to her suspiciously. Her stomach, however, protested against the better judgement of taking food from strangers. “I can manage,” she murmured quietly as she tried not to dig in too enthusiastically. As the soup hit her mouth, Clementine’s body relaxed. She sighed happily and continued eating as she listened carefully to the man.

“So Lew is real then.” Clementine smiled around the spoon. “I’m glad that I’m not crazy. I won’t lie I’m a bit worried how much you know about me,” she stutters. “But, I trust Lew.” Clementine sits up in the bed confidently and looks down into the bowl. “I’ve never heard of The Coven, nor do I know any of the others you’re talking about. I barley knew my mother. My Magic’s are weak. Even with Lew’s training I doubt I can help much.” She continues shoveling soup into her mouth and frowns.

The spoon clinks against the empty bowl as Clementine drops her spoon into it. “ I don’t think I can help you,” she says quietly. “But I can try, right? I don’t want anyone to die. I want to protect my grandparents and Lew.” She offers her bowl to Dusk with a smile, tentative smile. “I’m here. So I guess why not try. Not like I have a lot to lose.”

 

[KodakWolf]

Maddox Ward (Life Hjalkarssen)
Location: Thankfully not in the garden
Tags: Chase Moon, Monster ( Out Of Words ), Maylee Song ( Vinegar Bees )​

Leif had long ago learned the value of silence and solitude, so that sitting in the quiet room for however long had passed was most definitely not a difficult endeavor, and more like a soothing experience for his distressed mind. The patterns in the ceiling had twisted and twirled, of course not literally, to depict countless things: a few scenes of the dreams he’d had, the vision up at Devil’s Tower, old stories and legends, scenes and things he’d seen and lived through throughout the centuries. He wasn’t trying to make much sense of them, as whenever he did, feelings of distress seemed to emerge again, so he was content to only contemplate the scenes for now.

‘Papa’.

The sweet whisper welled up from within his head instead of somewhere he could pinpoint in the room, yet it felt as if the little girl was right there, if only for a split second. The image of her face flashed before his eyes, but disappeared just as quick as the whisper had, gone in the blink of an eye. Eyes that widened with a huff, in an attempt to open and wake up from yet another dream, only Leif hadn’t drifted off, and that wasn’t a dream.

He blinked several times, looking around the room and taking in again the now familiar shapes of the rock that formed it, the cot (Chase was thankfully still there), the box beside it and the blankets on the floor. Nothing had changed, and that realization sparked a wave of mixed feelings within him, ranging from frustration disguised as simmering anger to anxiety. Would those dreams, nightmares, visions, continue to haunt him from now on? Gosh, he didn’t want to forget her face, not again. Yet how was he expected to live, not only survive, but actually live another thousand years with such a vivid but ultimately unreachable image painfully flashing before his eyes continually? Was she perhaps a spirit, trapped in the world of the living? If so, why had she waited so long to manifest herself? The jumble of feelings boiled to make him whip his head back, violently slamming it against the cold rock behind him, the blunt pain assaulting his skull in a wave and sending a shudder through his body.

It was only when the pain subsided that he opened his eyes again and let out the breath he’d been holding, pulling his knees closer to his chest and reaching up to rub the back of his head with a sigh. Another glance around, and everything still seemed absolutely normal, all things considered. Only the wuffles that had been mostly background noise until then, evolved into whining, drawing Leif’s gaze. Apparently, he wasn’t the only one being plagued by nightmares, and he could only wonder what sort was plaguing his friend. Yes, friend. It’d been such a short time, but the word was only appropriate.

He’d barely had the time to consider waking Chase up before he grew still again, back to peaceful slumbering and occasional wuffling, it seemed. Only shortly after, another sound filled Leif’s ears. Not just a sound as much as it was also a vibration, gritting, stone grinding on stone just like when the minotaur opened himself a passage into their room, only this time it was further away. Had he returned already? Hard to tell how long had passed. He pressed an ear against the rock, and the muffled sounds in the garden made him freeze, teeth gritted in apprehension. That wasn’t Sage.

He couldn’t make out any words except for ‘minotaur’, which again proved the friendly creature had done a good job, but the male voice was definitely not familiar. Had something happened to Sage? Eyes closed, he focused, trying to pick up anything else through the thick layer of stone. The faint sounds of heartbeats made themselves heard, felt. Heartbeats, in the plural. Whoever was speaking wasn’t alone, and Leif held back a frustrated sigh at not being able to pick up any smells coming from the garden.

More time focusing, breath held, and he managed to pick up the also faint sounds and vibrations the blood made during its rushed passage through veins, arteries, heart chambers. Sounds that should be well known, only they weren’t. One of the individuals in the garden was human, or something similar - a shifter, a dwarf, an elf, a being whose blood flowed in a rhythm similar to that of a human. The other one’s blood, however, flowed with rough noises, as if constantly twirling within blood vessels that were arranged in unnatural ways. A monster? The thought sent shivers down his spine, not so much because of the supposed monster, but because of who the person beside it might be.

Leif could sense them stepping away, towards another wall, further away from where he was, though when the second voice spoke, it took him less than a split second to recognize it. Maylee. She, too, was real, and he felt a pang of relief, only interrupted by the fact that even though she was real, her current situation was likely not something to be celebrated. He needed about a minute to guess some of the words she spoke: scent, mouse, underground. Was she sniffing something out? She was a shifter, after all. Were they training her to be a tracking dog? What about her magic? A mouse? He must've misheard that. Questions twirled in his mind, but he kept his focus by keeping one thing in mind: she sounded alright. No torture, no physical pain, at least not now. She was standing beside whatever that other thing was, and it wasn’t hurting her, so he continued to listen.

 

[Out Of Words]

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words​

Sage

Tags Thropian Maeteris KodakWolf Location: Labyrinth Secret Guest Room ​

Sage stopped at a wall and laid his hands upon the stone. Ears twirled and the rock began to move. Much like he had with the waiting room they were in, an opening formed, revealing another room. This one was a bit more hospitable. There were four cot sized beds with blankets and pillows, another side room with a regular type of door that opened on hinges, and behind it was a modest bathroom with a shower, but no tub.

A lamp was powered by magic, the orb pulsing off and on with a quiet thrumming sound. And along one wall were shelves with various boxes and crates holding dry goods, and extra clothes for both men and women in various sizes. "You safe here for longer. Sage have others to bring. Might have to make bigger."

Sage seemed to be eyeing the wall without anything on it or against it, but then his ears abruptly stopped twirling. "What?" He laid his hands flat to the wall, closing his eyes, as if listening to something else. "Oh. Oh. Not good. Sage have to help. Uh.." He started to look up at the ceiling and gestured with one hand for the two of them to go by the wall with normal door.

Ears flicked now and then, turning as he listened to something. "Yes, Sage hear. Oh. Here, not hear as in hear with ears. Sorry, yes. Sage do. Thank you rocks." He stretched his arms up to the ceiling, able to touch it with his fingers, as tall as he was. The stone moved down to meet it, and then it started to take on a shape similar to the chute Edwin and Evelyn went down. It turned around in a circle, ending at one of the cots with blankets.

In the room with Leif and Chase, the floor developed a hole, only not just a hole, but a hole with a chute winding around. Sage quietly called up the opening, "Slide down. It okay. Safer here."

coded by natasha.

 

[Out Of Words]

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words​

Griffin Banks

Tags: Vinegar Bees (via Discord) | Location: Winnie's New Room ​

Key gave a nod of his head and closed the door. Banks relaxed with the door closed, no threats remained behind, so he was able to relax. Unfortunately, relaxing meant he essentially crumbled to the floor with a dull thud. The amber of his eye faded slightly, but still pulsed every now and then.

Winnie was about to let out a sigh of relief when Key, at long last, left the room, but before she could so much as exhale, Banks had hit the floor with a louder noise than seemed comfortable. Startled, Winnie scampered to his side and hesitated before landing a hand on his shoulder, shaking lightly in an effort to draw his attention. Why were his eyes fading in color? Was he going to—?

"Banks," she cried out, alarmed, "Banks, are you okay? What's going on?" She hesitated again, skin prickling—the thought of physical touch was still an uncomfortable one, even if Banks had won over her trust—and then she reached out and cupped her hands on either side of his face, turning his head in her direction.

"Banks, can you... hear me?" Communicating with him had been a strange, unclear endeavor ever since he awoke with that ear-rending screech. "Can you... talk...?"

The eye glow grew a little in strength, blinking a few times before Banks seemed to focus on her. The corners of his mouth turned into a small smile, and he answered. Only, it wasn't with words. It was some sort of mental connection. It felt light, like a feather, and sounded soft as if weak, but there.

"Like... this. Yes."

Winnie leapt what had to be at least a few inches into the air, and she had to look around the room in flustered bewilderment for a moment before she was able to pinpoint the sound as having come from between her ears, not outside of them. At once, a plethora of new questions entered her mind: how had the connection formed? Was Banks all right? It seemed he could communicate, at least, but... why couldn't he talk? What had happened to his voice...?

There were far too many questions to ask him all at once, and so Winnie withdrew her hands from Banks's face and clapped herself on either side of her cheeks, trying to will herself to focus and calm down.

Start with what's most important.

She shut her eyes and took a few slow breaths, trying to tame the anxiety quivering within her, and then she looked at Banks with earnest and pleading concern.

"I... I see. How... how are you feeling, Banks? Are you okay...?"

Banks moved his left arm, fingers reaching to make contact with her skin. Only then could she hear him again. "Okay. Do not... feel." His touch was warm when he had something to feed to Winnie, cool when he didn't have anything to share. It was a little on the cool side.

"Winnie o-kay?" The voice was a little halting, like he had to remember the words he wanted to 'say'. It was still his voice Winnie heard in her head.

The sense of alarm within Winnie widened rapidly into a huge gulf at the sound of Banks’s voice—if that was the proper term for the sound she heard ringing in her head. It was Banks’s voice, yes—the same voice that had told her how he liked to play video games—but the stilted, halting way it formed words seemed to suggest some sort of impairment. And what of the fact that he could not, apparently, feel anything? Why was his skin chilly...?

Before she could properly formulate any questions or reassurances with her tongue, Winnie found herself bursting into a messy display of tears, her face running hot from distress. God, the world had been frightening before, but she had thought she knew, at least, its particular brand of cruelty; all of these strange circumstances that had befallen Banks were as puzzling as they were troubling.

“I’m sorry, Banks,” she choked out between shuddering sobs, gripping the sleeve of his shirt with loosely-curled fists. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I don’t know—I don’t know what I did—did to you. I’m sorry. I’m sorry—“

There were so many things she could say, should say to him: questions, expressions of gratitude, concerns—but ultimately, she could only dumbly repeat apologies like a damaged tape stuck on a purgatorial loop.

Banks moved, sitting up and trying to draw Winnie against his chest. One arm wrapped around, followed by the sense of his phantom arm as he attempted to hug her while she cried. "Shhh, am.. okay. Now can.. keep.. Winnie.. safe."

Winnie pressed closer to Banks as he attempted a hug, surprising herself with how receptive she was to it, now—how she seemed to crave it, even. Ever since her childhood, physical touch of any kind—a tap on the shoulder, a handshake, a hug—had been repellent, terrifying to her, but Banks had become such a fixture in her mind of protection and safety that he was beginning to ebb away at her deep-seated fears.

She gripped the front of his shirt, now, as she soaked it with tears. “No, no, that’s not—“ Winnie shook her head vehemently, struggling to get out the words through her sobs. “I was—I was supposed to be just a—a temporary job. I—I don’t want you to live just to protect me, Banks. I want you to live your own life... the life you wanted to live...”

His left hand patted her back gently, "Always.. wanted to... protect... someone. Do... good." The phantom arm did fade after a short while, not having the magic needed to sustain it for a longer period of time.

Sniffling, Winnie pulled back enough to look up at Banks, his image blurred by her tears. He had protected her, but... was it worth all of the suffering he had gone through? Was it worth this strange, unnatural transformation she had subjected him to? She hadn’t intended to hurt him, of course—all she had wanted was to save him from death—but there was no question that his new existence must be more painful than his previous life as a human.

And, of course, if he had not been assigned to guard her in the first place, he would not have been there in that dungeon for the half-demon to unleash his rage on...

...and why had the vicious brute Coda attacked Banks, specifically? She could tell from the frenzied look in his eyes—a similar feeling to the hunger that had roiled within her just after she was turned—that he would have attacked whoever stood in front of him, but Key had singled out Banks specifically. Why? What on earth had the kind cop done to deserve it?

“You’ve done good. You’ve done a lot of it,” she said, tears flinging from her cheeks as she shook her head again. “You’ve been very good to me, Banks. Better than I deserve...” Another thick sniffle. “Thank you. I just wish... I wish I could do something good for you, too.”

Banks let out this low sound, a rumbling of sorts, almost a purring. No, definitely a purring. It just started out rocky, like an engine trying to start on a cold winter morning. He had seen how much enjoyment Winnie had with Morgan when he was a kitten.

As long as he kept in contact with her skin, she could hear him talk. "When... have more.. magic, think can do... more. But.. now.. rest. Will know, when.. you need me." His left hand patted Winnie again, and he rested his forehead against hers before helping her to get up off the floor.

Banks moved to sit against the wall so he was facing the area of the door. Ready in case it opened unexpectedly.

coded by natasha.

 

[Out Of Words]

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words​

Alyce Wright

Tags: Coda Vinegar Bees Roje Britt-21 | Location: Hunting Season ​

Alyce tilted her head far to one side, so far it almost looked like some bent neck lady. She was quiet for a moment, watching as the other cloven members in the room ran about like chickens with their heads cut off. And just for funsies, to feel better, her right hand lifted, and another coven member went poof. Only this time, she let them scream a little.

Alyce did a slow turn on a heel until she was facing Roje, Coda and kitty. Only then did she straighten her neck and grin. "Well, do you know what this means?" The grin turned downright evil, not like darkity dark dark evil, but bat shit crazy evil. The best Joker ever evil.

"We get to start a hunt!" She gave a small squee and clapped her hands. Might have bounced up and down a couple of times as well. Addressing Roje, she asked, "Would you mind terribly keeping an eye on kitty kitty? I wouldn't want kitty witty getting caughty waughty in the destruction wuction." The last said in an obvious baby speak tone as she looked at the clouded leopard.

She dropped it a moment later to talk to Roje more than the cat. "But you should come with, it will be a great adventure!" And then she started to head back the way they came, her fingers moving as she sang out a spell. Her voice soft, tinkling with malice and merriment.

"Moxt ir, moxt ir, svaklar tepoha wux gethrisja? Moxt ir, moxt ir, si jatil wux levnim. Wux shilta ti zhaan de ve, wux shilta ti jutosh, ocuir? Malrak wux geou qe sini, si geou ehtah wux, coi ui tairais."

Alyce held her hands in front of her then, palms pushed together at the base, fingers spread out. Bright red tendrils of magic weaved and writhed like some blood serpents in front of her hands. When they turned in a direction, so did she, repeating the draconic words again and again.

coded by natasha.

 

[Vinegar Bees]

Winnie peered up at Banks in alarm at the rumbling sound that issued from him—for a fleeting, horrifying moment, she wondered if he was going to start screaming and vomiting again as he had when he had first awoken to his new life, but moments passed, and he remained calm and still. It was a soothing noise, she decided after giving it some thought, a gentle rumble like—

Oh—Oh, no—

An ache split through her chest. He was purring, wasn't he? Purring like a kitten. She remembered how immediately comforting it had been to hold Morgan after he had shifted to kitten form, how it had, for the moment, given her peace. Banks must have seen it, too, and in playing his role as her protector, he must be drawing on things he knew to be reassuring to her. I don't deserve it, she thought mournfully, I don't deserve such kindness. And yet she selfishly appreciated it all the same.

The reminder of Morgan, though, drove a thorn through her heart. That poor boy (strange for her to be calling him a 'boy' when she was so much smaller, but he was younger) had been so frightened by everything going on around him, and now... where was he now? What was he going through? Key had said he wouldn't be harmed, but could she really trust anything Key said?

And what of the others? Roje had gone off with that horrifying half-demon, Coda, to do what? It was difficult to discern whether Roje was in as much danger as the others. In fact, it was difficult to tell whether the half-demon loved or loathed her, but he had already inflicted violence on her, and being in close quarters with him couldn't be anything but frightening...

And then, despite her enduring fear, Winnie found herself wondering about the demon boy, too. If she was small next to Morgan, she was a mere speck beside Coda, but when she had looked into his eyes and forged that brief empathy connection, boy was the only word for what she saw. Frightened, angry, alone, biting any hand that strayed near him because he expected a blow—Winnie had taught herself to flinch, to cower away instead of fighting back, but those feelings bubbling within him were permanent tenants in her own mind. That vision she had glimpsed of his sister—it was so gentle, a soft yearning, and she had become certain in that moment that the creature who was capable of such nauseating violence was also capable of fervent love. What sort of person would he be if not for Key's toxins poisoning his mind...?

And for that matter—

Winnie clenched a hand painfully to her chest. Her sister—her dear little Wendy—was not only alive, but very, very angry herself at having been abandoned, and Key had clearly sunk his claws into her, too... Winnie bit her lip and shook her head, chastising herself for attempting to blame her own failures as a sister on Key. Whatever damage had been done to Wendy had been sealed long before she strayed into Key's path, her scars sustained from untold years in that hellish pressure cooker of a house. Any violence within her had already been sown by the time Key swooped in; he had merely nurtured the seeds...

And now, was she inflicting that violence on Indy? Winnie knew the terrible anger her family was capable of, had seen it in her parents and brother and felt it buried deeply within herself like a venomous serpent devouring its own tail, and the thought of Indy being subjected to it—

She was startled from her thoughts when Banks again communicated. In his stilted, struggling manner, he informed Winnie that he needed to rest, and she nodded vigorously, accepting his aid as he lifted her to her feet. "O-Of course. Yes, please rest, Banks—you deserve a nice rest—"

She peered up at him as he stationed himself by the door, clearly guarding it, and pain twisted through her again. Everyone... everyone around her was suffering, and no one had sacrificed more for her personally than Banks. Tears welled up in her eyes, and she hastily dabbed them away with her wrist before tapping Banks on the shoulder.

"Um, you know," she murmured hesitantly, "when I was little, I... I wasn't very happy. I used to read storybooks about kings and queens and evil stepmothers and mighty dragons and... the knights who fought the dragons. I knew it wasn't real. Even back then, I knew they were just stories."

Shyly, she beckoned for him to lower his head, as if she wanted to whisper something in his ear. "Except, um... I was wrong about one thing, at least." She hesitated before planting a tiny kiss on his forehead.

"I guess knights are real, after all."

( Tags: Out Of Words )​

winnie sawyer.

psychic vampire

 

[Out Of Words]

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words​

Wendy Sawyer

Tags: Indy Rhyme | Location: Blue Room ​

Wendy gave Indy a small, obviously patronizing smile. "You'll see, Indigo." She drew out the name with a smirk. She opened her mouth to say more, but Key was there, contract rolled up in a scroll case, held in one hand. "Sorry, had to make sure we settled things with Winifred."

Key looked to Indy then, opening up the scroll case and moving to flatten out the contact in front of her on the table. He slid a pen on the table closer, but it wasn't a pen so much as a stick your finger with it to get the ink, aka blood, type of pen.

"Sign by the X. You'll get your own room, some privileges, and training to see if you have some magic capabilities somewhere in there. Most do. You'd be surprised." Key gave a bit of a smirk, "Then you can help us hunt down that little mouse friend of yours."

The coin seemed to still be watching, and singing, to Indy from it's spot in the display case. The tail on it moved and curled, and the longer Indy looked at it, the more it would seem to drip ocean water. But if she looked too long, either Wendy and Key might follow her line of sight.

coded by natasha.

 

[Maeteris]

Evelyn Harper

Sage took them through a labyrinth of sorts, she vaguely remembered a movie centered around one and strangely she remembered a minotaur as well. Sage apparently had made a decent quarters using his rockmade abode, she tried to make it too obvious she was examining the details.

The minotaur made a sudden move all of a sudden, Evelyn had been too busy scanning her environment to see what’d elicit the reaction but Sage was now against the wall and apparently talking to it. She walked over to the door the minotaur motioned at, seemingly in a hurry. He stretched, his stature easily reached for the ceiling for something

The creature then shouted up the contraption leading into the ceiling, calling for someone. It looked like this creature and the fairy was planning a revolution against this tyranny--whatever it was. She moved to grab clothes that would fit her, though it left a sour taste in her mouth.

location: ??? • tags • mood • Outfit: Hospital Gown• interactions

 

[Out Of Words]

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words​

Razial Hale

Tags: Maylee Vinegar Bees | Location: Gardens ​

Razial frowned a little, one hand coming up to curl around his chin, one finger tapping against his jaw. His other hand cupped the elbow of the first, giving him a rather regal thoughtful pose. "Hmm.. Well, burrowing under the wall would be impossible. Unless the thing can move rock."

He glanced around at all the many planters, the hand moving to do the flipping wrist turning thing. "And you don't smell it around any of the planters?" He studied the wall where the scent apparently stopped. "Maybe someone caught it. Do you smell any other scents, Miss Song?"

Razial used her name, trying to subconsciously reinforce the notion of her doing 'good' work for the coven, she would be recognized as someone worthy of having a name, much less a rank within the coven. Helping her to learn to be the mountain, to crave the notion of being a mountain.

Queen of the Hill.

"What would you believe happened? Tell me your thoughts on our wayward guest. And why the scent stopped here. Burrowing is not possible, sooooo.." One eyebrow lifted, and he gave an eager expression, paying rapt attention to her next words.

coded by natasha.

 

[Out Of Words]

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words​

Dusk

Tags Clementine AsherMasher | Location: Secret Hideout ​

Dusk grinned wide, "That's the spirit. And from what Lew says, you're underestimating your own capabilities. You have to trust in yourself, and you'll be surprised by the doors that will open." He stood up gesturing to her soup bowl. "Want a little more?" If she said yes, he took the bowl and gave her a modest second helping. He had a hearty helping himself.

"So, first off, have to realize we will not be able to save everyone. We're saving who we can. Those who seem to be still strong enough to move on their own, those we can probably get away with sneaking them out longer than others. But the time table is short. Some of us are going to stay behind because.." He snorted a bit, taking the time to get in a couple of bites with a rumble or two.

"The Coven has been around for a while. Some theories trace a couple back to the time of the Aztecs, and maybe that's why they setup their base here, in Ecuador. But.. they're really going too far this time." There was a growl to his tone, a grim determination to do what he can to stop them. "This time, the whole world is in very real danger of ending if they are not stopped."

More pausing to just drink the rest of the soup out of his bowl. He wiped his mouth on the back of a hand before finishing what he was going to say. "So, you can pick, do you want to help get others out, knowing that it might be for shit in the end if we can't stop the Coven, or do you want to help those who are going to stay behind and try to save the world?"

coded by natasha.

 

[Vinegar Bees]

Miss Song.

Maylee suppressed a shudder at the name. In a way, it was a sort of twisted reward—for her to have a name rather than a dehumanizing moniker—but it rang unpleasantly in her ears, a discordant note. In using such a formal address (surely in a patronizing manner), Razial was erasing the parts of her that were her own—she was not Maylee, she was merely a Song.

All that remained was the parts of her that her mother had built.

She drew her arms around herself, fingers squeezing into her shoulders. That was what Razial wanted, wasn't it? For her to throw away the girl who cried too much, the girl who loved a little too earnestly, and embrace the cold, ruthless warrior her mother would have been proud to call daughter? He had laid out his intentions clearly when he urged her to destroy Winkle, and she had done it. But—

No. I'm not like her, she thought firmly. Destroying Winkle... it had had to be done. It was, ultimately, an object, a shackle of sentimentality—her self-indulgence in preserving the stuffed rabbit was nothing more than displaced guilt. No matter how she had cared for Winkle, it wouldn't have brought her parents back; it was a distraction, a snag on her path to becoming strong enough to win justice for Dad and Papa. Stuffed toys were for little girls, and little girls didn't win battles.

But Razial wanted more. Her mother, if she were here, would want more. And that swing of the pendulum—from a sentimental little girl to a heartless, cold-blooded creature—was one Maylee could not condone. She needed to be stronger, but she could not forget the reason she was fighting. If she needed to destroy, she needed reason; that was how, for years, she had justified her violent existence as a hunter, wasn't it? If the creatures she was hunting were to suffer, it was only because they had caused so much suffering first.

But this... this wasn't quite the same. There would, indeed, be a great deal of suffering if she failed to apprehend the mouse—Cillian, again, would bear the abuse of a cruel master—but there was no certainty that this mouse was anything like the bloodthirsty creatures she hunted. The creature here, of course, was Razial, but fighting him was hopeless. The wards he armored himself with would not allow her to touch him; it would earn her nothing more than a painful death—or perhaps something worse—and a generous heap of agony for Cillian.

A bitter, unpleasant ache twisted in her chest. She did not want to hurt anyone, even if indirectly, but if it meant protecting Cillian...

"Oh—there's a couple of other scents," she said, tilting back her head and breathing in as if she had just noticed them. "Two wolves and a human. The wolves could have been hunting the mouse, maybe, but... their scents cut off here, too."

Indeed, the wolves' and human's scents mingled with that of the mouse, suggesting a sort of association, but that other scent—Leif's scent—it was faint, scattered; he couldn't have been with the mouse's party. His scent was too separated.

If nothing else, she would not reveal Leif.

"I guess... any number of things could have happened, though, with magic involved. Maybe the human is a magician? When you used your magic to transport me to that training course..." She turned her head to address Razial and willed herself to look him in the eye, even though the way his gaze scanned and probed her made her skin crawl. "...Maybe something similar happened here. Something like that would explain why the scent cuts off so abruptly."

She frowned, hesitated. God, she really was throwing herself into hunting this mouse, wasn't she?

What choice do you have? a little voice within her whispered. Would you rather stand by and watch Cillian hurting, just like you watched Dad and Papa die?

Bile burned in her throat. No. No, she couldn't let that happen.

"This mouse—" She blurted it out before her mind could properly form the question, and so she snapped her mouth shut and frowned, holding a fist to her mouth as her brain scrambled to assemble the words. After a moment, she managed to wrangle her tongue. "Why do you need to catch it? You said... 'before they get into some real trouble.' So this mouse is... up to something...?"

Maybe the mouse was a villainous sort, a creature who caused suffering like any other she had hunted. Maybe this could be buried within her conscience as another case of necessarily dispatching an evildoer to protect an innocent—

The alternative, that she had to choose between an innocent she loved and an innocent she had never met, made her shiver as much as Razial's penetrating gaze.

( Tags: Out Of Words )​

maylee song.

hunter | werewolf

 

[KodakWolf]

Maddox Ward (Leif Hjalkarssen)
Location: Sage's playground
Tags: Out Of Words Maeteris Thropian ​

Grinding stone, again; this time definitely in their room. But hadn’t the immediate threats just moved away to the opposite wall? It wasn’t possible that Leif had missed another presence in the garden. Though if he had in fact missed it, he wouldn’t be able to double check, as all the concentration he’d managed to gather had just gone down the drain.

He didn’t move, ears picking up only the sound of moving stone and his own accelerated heartbeats, and shot Chase a brief glance only to confirm he still slept. Eyes then resumed watching as what seemed to be a hole formed on the floor, though nothing seemed to come out of it. Nothing he could see, that is, because it wasn’t long before a few known scents reached his nostrils. While the minotaur’s wasn’t the most striking one, it was the one that made Leif breathe in relief to realize it was Sage who’d created that opening, and that nothing had happened to him after all.

Crawling over to peek through the opening only to find what seemed like a chute instead of Sage and the others, Leif was met with Sage’s voice quietly calling through the passage for them to slide down. The minotaur probably knew something wasn’t right in the garden.

Leif stood up and silent steps carried him over to kneel by the cot and touch Chase lightly on the shoulder.

“Hey sleeping beauty, time to go.” It was unlikely that anyone in the garden would be able to hear them, but just in case, his voice was almost a whisper. Who knew what kind of monster that thing was, and what it was capable of. It was also unlikely that Chase would wake up screaming, but if he did, Leif had a hand ready to cover his mouth to shut him up. “There’s someone in the garden. Sage has another room set up.” He added.

He waited until Chase was minimally awake, although still groggy, to help him off the cot and to the start of the chute, or carry him there if it came to it. No time to lose, and adrenaline made up for any lack of strength he was still experiencing.

“Evelyn and Edwin are there too.” he spoke once Chase was sitting at the edge of the chute, still quietly, as suddenly the thick rock walls felt paper thin now that he was aware of the presences on the other side, in the garden. Though he couldn’t sense them from where they were in the room anymore, it felt like he could, more like a product of his imagination.The scents coming from the room below, however, were as real as… hard to find a good parameter of ‘real’ at this point, but they were the same as the ones in the dream, and could belong to no one else other than the elven woman and the bear shifter. A good sign, two more that were real and alive.

“Scoot out of the way at the bottom.” A brief glance to Chase before his gaze stared back into the chute, and a hand on the shifter’s shoulder would give him a small push in case he didn’t go by himself.

Leif listened carefully to determine when Chase had reached the end of the chute, only then moving his gaze back up to stare at the rock wall that separated them from the garden for a little longer. He’d wanted to find Maylee so bad, and now she was so close and yet he had to run away and hide from her. Cruel fate. At least it seemed to confirm she wasn't dead or being physically tortured. A sigh, and he hopped into the opening.

The chute spiralled down for a short time only, and ended at a cot similar to the one they had in the room upstairs. Chase had managed to scoot out of the way, and landing wasn’t as disastrous as it could’ve been, though it wasn’t graceful either.

“What’s going on?” The words escaped his lips before anything else, as soon as he laid eyes upon Sage, his tone carrying concern. Only then did he pay attention to the other strong scents in the room, and looked around till he spotted Edwin and Evelyn. The sight of them flashed some of the dream memories in his mind, though only briefly. How he wished circumstances were different.

“Good to see you two.” A small wave and a nod that even for him felt too casual in that whole context, but he wasn’t lying about being glad to see them.

 

[Out Of Words]

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words​

Out Of Words

Tags: KodakWolf Thropian Maeteris | Location: Under the Gardens ​

Chase wasn't feeling the best, but he was coherent enough to understand what was going on, and the instructions Leif gave him. He opted to head down head first rather than feet first, since he wouldn't be able to brace any landing with his legs. Thankfully, it was on a cot, and he quickly slipped off the edge and dragged himself out of the way.

Chase propped himself up against the wall and then grinned at Evenlyn and Edwin. Wuffle wuffle. "Hey." A bit of a hand wave, and then Leif was there, too. Sage didn't waste any time, shaping the stone back to the solid floor and ceiling it had been before.

The minotaur gave them a quick glance over, before mumbling, "Have to move to the other side, gotta save the others, too. Stay here, please." And that was about all the warning they got before he was moving to the far wall. Rock began to move, forming a corridor large enough for Sage to move though.

Chase wuffled and rubbed at his face, trying to wake up more fully. "Well, dibs on a cot?" There were four, but he wasn't sure if others were expected to join them in this room or not. Though that's when they heard another voice. Familiar for the most part, but something was different.

"MY DIBS FIRST!" The door to the bathroom area opened, and Bug stood in the frame. "I was here first, that's my cot!" He pointed to one shoved up into a corner. Then he blinked, realizing who was actually in the room. "OH MY GOD! YOU GUYS!"

Bug made a cawing noise and moved to embrace Evelyn in an overly friendly hug of near epic proportions. "YOU'RE HERE! I MISSED YOU SO MUCH!" He drew back. "Even if it was all this weird dream and maybe you're not the same as in the dream, but it still feels like I've known you for a while and I missed you because I missed having friends. I mean."

Bug let Evelyn go, hands twirling into the hem of his 'I went to Ecuador and all I got was this lousy shirt' t-shirt. "I mean.. you are.. right? My friends? No matter what? Right? Cause I should know that before I give anyone else a hug and stuff." Caw.

coded by natasha.

 

[Vinegar Bees]

Coda's gaze darted sharply from Alyce, to the coven member she decided to engulf in deadly flames, and then back. It was clear in her movements, her mannerisms, her speech, that she was not quite... there, so to speak. The exaggerated tilt of her neck, the wide and unblinking stare, the musical little giggles she let out at the sound of the coven member burning to death in front of her—they all made it quite clear that she was, in a word, batshit.

And you're one to talk? he asked himself harshly. Are you supposed to be some bastion of sanity? As if on cue, then, a tide of sinister whispers swept through his skull:

Freak.
Freak.
Freak.

But he gritted his teeth and did his best to tune them out. Sure, his brain was about as broken as brains could get, but that didn't mean he was blind to crazy when he saw it. And Alyce, indeed, was practically radiating with it, sending up all sorts of alarm signals in his head. She was powerful beyond belief: that much had been made abundantly clear in the short time he had known her, but if she wasn't operating with a clear mind, how did he know he could trust her? Could she really deliver on the power she had promised, or would she just as soon light him up with those deadly flames?

Admittedly, the idea didn't bother him as much as it should. Fear of pain and death were hallmarks of a functioning, well-reasoning brain, and Coda had long ago relinquished his, if he had ever had one to begin with. Still, though, there was no guarantee he could trust Alyce not to turn her flames on, say, Roje, and that bothered him quite a bit more.

The fact that it bothered him bothered him, too.

Give it up, schoolboy. She'd rather fuck a dead slug than you.

With a hiss, Coda ground his teeth harder together. Fucking hell—that wasn't what it was, this disorienting feeling that framed all of his thoughts of Roje. Sure, it was part of it—that physical, sickening desire—but there was something else there, too: an attachment, a certain sense of belonging. He wanted to protect her, he realized, and he hadn't wanted to protect anyone since Maylee.

It was dangerous. Stupid, really. Latching onto someone would do nothing but destroy them both—wasn't that how it had ended with Maylee?—but control was, as ever, out of reach. As much as Coda tried in vain to fend off his violent, animal impulses, he fought an uphill battle in trying to silence his protective ones, too.

You'll regret this, he told himself, and he knew it was true, but he kept his place standing stiffly between Alyce and Roje, covering the latter in case the former should decide to let loose another barrage of flames. When Alyce announced they would be going for a hunt, a pinch of relief shot through him—good, something to do other than stand around and wrestle with his thoughts—but suspicion edged his relief. A hunt for whom, exactly? Foster was the most likely answer, of course, but he had just mentioned Key, too. Not that he particularly cared about either of them, but he hated stumbling forward in the dark, a blind man.

Alyce began to speak, then, her tongue twisting in myriad unfamiliar sounds Coda focused fiercely on, as if he could somehow decode them simply by paying close enough attention. No such luck. It was probably that same language she had been speaking during their bonding ceremony, and he hadn't had a clue what she had been saying then, either. All he could guess at was her tone: whimsical, almost musical, as if she were playing a game.

Several reddish shapes—snakes, he thought at first glance—erupted suddenly from Alyce's fingers, and Coda stiffened, instinctively inching in front of Roje to cover her—but then he blinked and focused and saw that they were merely moving, not living. It was some sort of magical energy, leading Alyce (and, by proxy, all of them) in the direction of her target.

He clenched his jaw and followed, irritated with how swiftly his body acted to protect Roje. Alyce, indeed, was a dragon, and in that moment, there were two dragons locked in combat within him: the hunter, the creature slavering at the jaws as it smelled the burning flesh of the many heroes it had torched; and the guardian, the creature that fervently guarded its horde of treasures, sparse and stolen but his alone, his treasures he would not relinquish without a fight.

There was power in both of them, he knew, and at the moment, they were deadlocked—the tide of the battle would be turned, he realized, once he decided which dragon to feed.

( Tags: Out Of Words | Britt-21 )​

coda.

half-demon

 

[Britt-21]

Tags: Out Of Words Vinegar Bees | Location: Arkham Asylum

Roje didn't even realize that Coda had glanced at her, just because her attention was so fixated on the insanity in front of them. That was the threat. She is the threat in the room. Despite the rampant emotions, the sight of Coda standing in front of her to block the view of Alyce had snapped Roje from her rampant thoughts and allowed her to gaze at the white messy locks he possessed. The stance he took seemed to be almost like if he would take charge of the situation. Or to even protect her, or stop Alyce from attacking her. Either way, not seeing the insanity beyond his frame had relaxed her some. But the air was growing pretty thick with it. Listening to his words, a slight smirk tugged her lips Yeah. Blame that dick for everything going on. If Alyce could leave the trio on their own, that would work too. Makes it easier for them to skedaddle and find a way out. The bond had no more priority, it was survival now.

It didn't take long for her ears to pick up the sounds of something igniting, followed by screaming not a moment later. This woman was just straight up lighting people up without a care in the world. Who the hell is going to be strong enough to take on a dragon lady with powers that can light up people on the spot? There's no way to dodge it. Only way would be magic but...Can magic even stop that? she thought, shaking her head a little bit while adjusting the cat slightly on her back. Luckily for the Vampire, she still couldn't see Alyce, but she heard that tone. It wasn't so sweet. What followed after that, had confirmed it all. A hunt... A hunt for who? she asked before she was addressed, causing Roje to react and move slightly into Alyce's view, though instantly regretting it as she started to talk in a baby tone. Which honestly could have pissed Roje off if she was more on the stressful and already-pissed side of her emotions. She was scared, her need to survive was kicking in, blood was rushing through her veins and causing adrenaline to zoom through.

"Yeah...A great adventure..." she said softly, but it was clear she wasn't excited for this 'adventure' Not long after, she began to walk away, talking in some other language that she couldn't understand. Slowly, following with Coda and Alyce, but kept her distance and pace slow. Coda still had placed himself between herself and Alyce, she still didn't know what to really think. Fear like this hadn't come before, and here it was, present as could be, making it hard for her to focus and keep herself together. Anger clouds the judgement but...Fear makes it hard to do anything and causes you to be cautious. she concluded. Watching as Alyce turned a corner and spotted the red tendrils coming from her hands. You're fucking joking me right? This is just getting worse. Coda, just, come back here and snap my neck please. Put me out of my misery for a few fucking hours. Quietly she continued to follow, before speaking so hushed that she hoped that Coda could hear her "Coda..." her jaw seemed to clench after she said his name, but her tone was different from any other.

She didn't know if he was paying attention to her reactions, but he would know she wanted out. That she was afraid. Slowly accepting the fact that she was going to become a damsel for the second time today.​

 

[Out Of Words]

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words​

Out Of Words

Tags: Hayley Britt-21 (via Discord) | Location: Hayley's Room ​

Rune was behind the toilet, having been too small to get into the tub himself. It looked like he had gotten hot and needed something cool to lay in or on. The bathroom floor was cool and he had laid as flat as possible upon it to cool down. When he heard his name being called, he bleated and made old goat noises in answer.

The sea lion lifted a front fin and slapped it on the floor three times in greeting. He looked safe, well, just a bit tired. BLEAT BLEAT!

Upon hearing Rune, she let out a sigh of relief and moved further inside "You scared me, Rune." moving toward the toilet, she crouched down and took a look behind the toilet "I thought someone took you." she said softly, her iris's turning back to their normal hazel color. "You could have just slapped me awake if you wanted down, silly." reaching out, she gently brushed her finger against his fur "Did you want to do something? One noise yes, two no." just as a reminder.

Rune waddled around, well, more like wriggled as if wagging his tail, but his whole lower body moved instead. Bright round eyes watched her as she talked, head tilting far to one side before the answer came.

BLEAT.

Hayley let out a small laugh and reached for him, gently holding him within her hands and looking at him "Do you want to swim while I get ready? There's someone I want you to meet before I go off for my Dinner Meeting."

This brought a flurry of activity in response. Both fins slapped the floor, one at a time, his tail end wriggled and wraggled. And Rune let out a series of loud bleats and old man goat coughs.

Hayley then laughed and lifted her small friend, bringing him to the tub where the water from earlier was still there. Placing him inside, she watched him swim around for a while "I hope you slept well, Rune..." she pursed her lips, sitting by the tub and putting her arms on the edge, resting her chin on her arms. "You wouldn't believe what kind of nightmare I had...It felt too real." she could remember it clear as day, it scared her, had her blood hot and her magic ready to go on the offensive.

"Something is wrong here...Toward the end of my nightmare...there was an alter...people holding onto possible shifters like you...But upon that alter was...fur and blood..." eyebrows furrowed, her voice quiet "Then a fairy came to me and tried to kill me...telling me I was one of them." biting her lip, she sighed "I'm going to take you to someone I can trust. I'm not going to lose you like I did in my dream."

Rune bleated a few times, then splashed about in the tub, purposefully moving a fin to splash water toward Hayley. ARF ORF ORF! It was with great enthusiasm before he did his very best to swim around in the tub.

Hayley flinched when water came at her but she didn't mind it much. "His name is Sage. A minotaur here. Very sweet. I'd protect him with my life. I've been trying to get him under my wing so he's not treated so rotten." moving her one arm, she reached in and splashed Rune whenever he came up from the water "I wish I could understand you in this form, Rune... It would be far easier to talk to you."

Rune flipped over onto his back to better splash water briefly. Then he spun, like some crocodile doing a death roll. Only Rune's was much cuter, and much less death was involved. He was done a minute later and arfed and orfed at her to be taken out of the tub. He couldn't quite do it himself.

The Pyromancer blinked as he stared at her, arfing and orfing at her. When she realized he wasn't doing much after that, she took him out and put him on the tile. Getting up and going into the closet for a towel before returning and sitting on the floor "Let's dry you up, feed you, and brush you, yeah?"

The sea lion was happy to be toweled off and brushed, though he kept nudging a hand to get pets. Sometimes he even burrowed his face into the crook of an arm for hugs, oorfing and bleating on a regular basis. As if he was talking.

Hayley tried her best to comply with the pets while brushing him, as well as giving him hugs from time to time. Glad that he seemed to be happy about not being where he once was. But she couldn't shake what happened in her dream. 'I'm not sure what to do, or even think. The dream was so chaotic but seemed so real and logical at the same time." She thought with a slight sigh "Rune, if anything bad happens. You hide, or you run, okay? As fast as your little flippers can carry you. Don't worry about me."

Rune bleated long and hard, slapping his fins on the floor to show he understood. And then he waddled off, moving as fast as he could to show Hayley he could get away and hide, as fast as his little flippers worked. Only he bleated the whole time.

Shaking her head with a laugh, she watched him waddle off with his bleats 'I haven't had a nightmare being here. Especially one so detailed but vague. I cant go to anyone about this. Or else things may take a turn for the worst.'

"I'll give you a fish and then we can go see Sage"

coded by natasha.

 

[Out Of Words]

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words​

Out Of Words

Tags: Winnie Vinegar Bees | Location: Winnie's Room ​

There was a pounding on the door, which caused Banks to stand at attention just a few feet in front of the door. Banks made sure he was between whatever was at the door, and Winnie. Always protecting Winnie. The voice wasn't familiar, but definitely male. "Winnifred and uh.. Griffon? I have supplies. Please stand clear of the door."

Banks had to process the words, but he did understand and moved exactly two steps back, still ensuring Winnie remained behind him. There was a pause of about a minute before the door opened, and a man with mutton chops stood there, a large box balanced with one hand. He gave them a bit of a wolfish grin, apparently having been told about Winnie's bodyguard. "Hey, so... I'm going to bring this in and set it on the table there."

He waited for Banks or Winnie to nod or say something, otherwise he'd move slowly after a minute of silence. He kept a close eye on Banks while trying to show he wasn't keeping a close eye on Banks. The box was set down on the table, and he had started to reach to open the box, but Banks growled. "Yeah, okay. I'll let you two sort through it."

He headed back toward the door. "My name's Mack. If you need anything, you ask for me, yeah? Uh, it's just some general supplies you might need while here. And oh.. your bags from the plane. Should be all in there."

Back to the door, never once exposing his back to them, and he was giving them a small wave. "Yeah, so uh.. enjoy!" And then the door would close if neither had any questions or took too long to ask them.

coded by natasha.

 

[AsherMasher]

Clementine Holt​

Clementine happily accepted seconds and ate it slower the next time around. A headache began to blossom behind her tired eyes as Dusk continued speaking. Ecuador? How long had she been out? How did she even get here? The information hit her like bricks and her stomach sank. Clementine wasn’t sure about whom she was trying to save, but she knew in her heart that she had become an important factor in stopping this evil. She had been kidnapped from her home, left her loved ones, and was still completely in the dark as to whom was behind it.

She swallowed the remaining bits of her food and fiddled with the spoon. Turning her hand over, she examined her palm. The necklace around her neck pulsed warmly against her, seemingly in a reassuring manner. Maybe I am stronger than I see myself, she thought hopefully. Clementine wasn’t use to being powerful, nor was it in her character to pride herself on feats such as this. Feeling a wave of anxiety, she closed her eyes and balled her hand into a tight fist. I am strong. Lew taught me to be strong. I have to be strong for her, for my grandparents.

The clenched palm radiated warmth similar to sensation she could feel from the necklace. Upon opening her eyes Clementine opened her palm and saw the same glow as when she practiced with Lew. Confidence swelled in her chest as she looked up towards Dusk. “I want to stay and fight back. Whatever way I can.” She smiles and brings the brightened hand to the necklace, lovingly caressing it. “Whatever it takes.”

 

[Thropian]

Edwin Blut
Location: BBQ Reunion
Tags: Maeteris KodakWolf ​

Sage guided them through a labyrinth, and neither Edwin nor Bear could tell if they were going outwards, or deeper into the coven lair. Though the fae trusted Sage, his motives were as of yet unclear. He seemed fearful, and friendly, but his size and strength suggested both could be a facade.

He carved open a wall, revealing or creating, a room on the other side. After ushering them in, Sage spoke to the rocks, and from them formed a slide. He called into the hole, informing some unseen persons that it was safe. Of all the people it coule be, he never expected familiar faces.

First came down the winter wolf's host, Chase, and shortly after came the elder vampire, Leif. The pair gave only short introductions before another revealed themselves. The swarm born, Bug, stepped from the bathroom and proclaimed what within the room was his.

"It is good to meet you finally. I am Bear Spirit. It is strange to see you, and Chase, without your respective spirits. Perhaps Edwin is meeting them, hopefully it is as joyous a meeting as this one." Bear spoke formally, greeting the newcoming three at once. "Though, you do seem different than you were in the dream, sound so different. Are you well?"

 

[Rhyme]

Indy
Tags: Out Of Words
​

"Sure thing, Miss Darling." Indy matched the patronizing smile, the smarmy words dripping from her pressed lips. For a moment, it appeared as though Wendy had more to say, yet the sound of approaching footsteps cut her off as Dollar Store Neo entered the room with all the grace of an exhausted retail manager. Indy could feel a shiver run down her spine as he mentioned Winnie off-hand, making her out to be a trivial nuisance to be "settled." A stray lavender bush among a field of thistles, ripped from the ground and shredded by cold hands. Indy could practically see Winnie's eyes, wide and innocent as they ballooned outward with the force of her exploding skull, a river of blood and brain matter pouring out of her nose as her skin split open. Indy dug her fingers into the wooden desk as she pressed her lips tighter together. He could be referring to the demon that was formerly Banks, too. Hopefully, that is what he meant by "settled." Hopefully, Winnie still stood, a physical being as opposed to a stain on the wall.

And nothing of Roje. Hopefully, no news was good news; yet, her chest ached.

Key seemed apathetic enough as he droned on, literally laying out his sales pitch as he unfurled the scroll across the table in front of Indy. As her fear grew colder in her chest, her focus wavered, allowing the soft song which had been dancing in the background of her mind to come forward and once again beckon her gaze toward the coin. She hoped Key and Wendy mistook her tense expression as apprehension rather than focus as Indy forced her gaze to stay trained on the scroll in front of her, rather than allow it to be swayed toward the coin.

No one should look at it, aside from herself. The coin had her alone.

Carefully, Indy reached for the pen, rolling the cool metal in her hands as she studied the sharp tip. Evidentally, Bic pens weren't elite enough for the prestigious Coven. As she turned the pen upward and pressed the tip against her palm, she paused.

She had told herself she was tired of playing chess; but wasn't that what she was doing, just now? Attempting to outsmart the Devil, signing her life away for a fraction of hope? Queen to A4, she had liked to think she had been dancing across the board, but truly, their pieces had been pushing her along the entire game.

Now, her own desire was to not drag the others down into the fire with her. Hopefully, maybe, she could instead stand as a guard and swallow the flames for them, absorb the burns. If she wasn't going to play chess, she could at least try to flip the board.

Streaks of thin pain spread across her glass palm as she pressed down on the pen, watching the blood seep out to spread across the creases of her skin. The tip of the pen blossomed with a red hue as the blood traveled up to fill the well.

The lyrics of the ever-present song were louder now, drumming in her veins as her hands jerked to the beat, the pen shaking in her hand as she carefully traced a finger to the X on the scroll and scrawling Indy beside it. Only 'Indy.'

Indigo Sunshine Sanderson, her mother's daughter, had no place in this deal.

With the signature finished she quickly dropped the pen to the table, wiping her bloody palm on her white cotton shirt as she shoved her chair back with her heels, the wood screeching across the floor. She needed to leave the room, before the draw of the song pulled her closer--beckoned her hands upward, wrapped around Wendy's neck as Indy dove for the display case behind her...

"Here's your Faustian bargin," Indy slapped her bloody palm on the scroll. "Can I take my clothes off now?"

 

[Vinegar Bees]

Winnie flinched and immediately flattened herself against the nearest wall at the sound of a fist pounding on the door. Already—? Had Key changed his mind, decided she wasn't worth this second chance after all, and returned to dispatch her as he had to the limousine driver who had outlived his usefulness? Already, she had begun to tremble, her teeth chattering in her skull. When Banks moved in front of her—protecting her again—she felt a pinch of guilty relief. That same pinprick popped the tension within her like a balloon when the voice at the door—a gruff, male voice—announced he had come bearing supplies.

Of course. Stupid. You scare too easily. If only she could be brave, like Banks was for her sake...

"U-um, yes," she called meekly out, and a moment later the stone door rolled open (briefly, she thought of the boulder at the mouth of the cave that was Christ's final resting place rolling aside to reveal an eerie emptiness), revealing a burly man with strangely-manicured facial hair and a box clutched in his hand. Winnie stood dutifully back as he entered the room, though a shot of adrenaline ran through her when Banks let out a warning growl. For a split second, she was terror-stricken by the thought that another living human would turn to dust in front of her eyes, but thankfully, the man backed off, sidestepping Banks's territorial instincts.

Her hand was clenched to her chest, she realized, resting atop her pounding heart, and she was squeezing it into a fist. Consciously, she loosened her fingers.

The man at the door identified himself as Mack and offered his assistance if needed. Winnie nodded, admittedly ambivalent about this Mack—he seemed amiable enough, and he had indeed helped them by bringing their supplies over, but there was something almost predatory about him, a glint in his eyes like a wolf staring down a steak.

"Th-thank you, Mack," she mumbled, but by that point the door had already shut behind him, and she wondered mournfully whether he had even heard her. How ungrateful she would seem if he hadn't...

Her mind was racing, and so Winnie swiftly channeled the energy into her well-practice persona of manic caretaking, flittering to the box on the table like a bird and running her hands carefully over it.

"Um, he said our things are in here," she said to Banks brightly and cheerfully—a little too brightly and cheerfully, perhaps. "I'm sure you're wanting a change of clothes, right?" Indeed, she was eager to change, herself—this oversized sweatshirt that hung down to her knees like a dress now contained far too many terrible memories to feel like a layer of protection. Smiling at Banks, she heaved the two bags from inside the box and then peeled one open, reaching inside to discern whether it was hers or Banks's—

—But when she pulled out a black shirt made of a thin, flexible fabric, she frowned and knitted her brows together in confusion. This couldn't be Banks's—that much was obvious—it appeared to be a woman's shirt, much too small for him. On the other hand, it was much too large to be hers, and neither the style nor the color matched anything in her own limited wardrobe. Sure, Winnie wore grays on occasion, but black on its own was far too strong of a statement for someone who wished to fade into the background as much as she did.

For a moment, she studied the shape and size of the shirt in bewilderment until an idea flashed in her brain. After carefully folding the shirt and setting it back in the bag, she pulled the zipper on the other bag and plucked out the first article of clothing she found—a pair of blue jeans, faded from age and wear, clearly discernible beneath the wrinkles as a fit for a woman.

Anxiously, Winnie chewed her lip. Ah... that's what I thought. Does that mean they have our things...? She should get this fixed as soon as possible—for the others' sake, of course—but the thought of calling Mack back so soon gave her a sense of frightened guilt.

She felt Banks's eyes on her, then, and hurriedly straightened, offering him a nervous smile. "Um... I'm sorry, Banks. It'll be a little longer for that change of clothes," she murmured. "I think, um... there's been a little bit of a mix-up. They... they gave us Indy and Roje's things instead."

( Tags: Out Of Words )​

winnie sawyer.

psychic vampire

 

[Out Of Words]

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words​

Razial Hale

Tags: Maylee Vinegar Bees | Location: Gardens ​

"Two wolves and a human? Interesting." Razial's eyes narrowed as he suddenly started studying the wall. He was quiet, letting Maylee talk as he pondered the stone in front of them. When she asked about why they were hunting the mouse, he gave her a small, but every so charming smile. "Well, it was really more of a... mollifying gift of sorts. See, it isn't just a mouse, but capable of being a number of different small animals."

His eyes glowed suddenly as a thought occurred to him. "Tell me, were any of the animals' scents, or the human, the same scent? Like a shifter?" By now he had laid his hands flat to the rock, fingers spread as he leaned in and pressed an ear to the wall, obviously listening.

As soon as Maylee answered him though, he gestured for her to come next to the wall, though he held a finger in front of his lips to indicate silence. He gestured for her to place an ear to the stone as well. The way his eyes widened mixed with his expression indicated he wanted to know what she heard on the other side.

There was a faint sound, similar to the way opening the stone doors, rock upon rock, a low, rumbling grinding noise.

coded by natasha.

 

[Out Of Words]

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words​

Out Of Words

Tags: Hayley Britt-21 | Location: To the Gardens ​

Rune was happy and continued to bleat, and make orf sounds, occasionally showing how fast he could waddle and how well he could hide. When he was given a fish, the sea lion tossed it in the air a couple of times, slipping and sliding along the stone floor in pursuit until he caught it and wolfed it down.

Rune was capable of keeping himself occupied while Hayley got ready, but soon as she was, he slapped a fin against the floor to be picked up. He was quite the cuddler, burrowing into the crook of an elbow. He seemed to enjoy the higher vantage point quite a lot.

As Hayley went down the halls, toward the gardens, there were a couple of members who rushed by with great urgency. Another had a pair of dogs who were sniffing around, and some rumblings drifted her way from conversations father down a corridor out of her line of sight.

"....set them on fire."

"If we don't find.."

"Two. Two... Poof!"

"...find the mouse!"

When she arrived at the doorway to the gardens, the door was open, allowing her to peek inside. A man and young woman were inside, near the far stone wall. Parts of their conversation could be heard.

"Well, it was really more of a... mollifying gift of sorts. See, it isn't just a mouse, but capable of being a number of different small animals." It wasn't long before the man moved to listen at the wall, indicating for the young girl to do the same. "Tell me, were any of the animals' scents, or the human, the same scent? Like a shifter?"

coded by natasha.