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1. [WEB] JP - Exiting Stage Left
From: "Greywolfe" <greywolfe@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
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Message: 1
Date: Mon, 13 Jun 2005 21:18:36 +1000
From: "Greywolfe" <greywolfe@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
Subject: [WEB] JP - Exiting Stage Left
****
To say the mood of the party had changed in his short absence would
have
been a major understatement.
Kayn stood just outside the door to the inner hall, surveying the room
through the slightly open door. This was definitely no longer a party
people
wished to be at. Well most of them anyway. The lights had been killed,
blanketing the room in darkness, only the various emergency bulbs
providing
any illumination. The power surge he'd felt earlier was obviously some
kind
of signal, since the various unpleasant characters he'd marked during
the
evening had revealed themselves, blanketing the room in the scent of
death
and decay.
The vamps were definitely out to play.
The werewolves, however, are never ones to be one-upped. Deliberately
or
not, Alorian's attendance had assured a large wolfen contingent at the
event
and at this deliberate sign of danger, the instinct to protect their
pack
took over and many had already shed their human skins and taken form,
laying
into the vampires without a regard for who saw it or not.
If Kayn had any opinions on this, he chose to keep them to himself. He
had
one reason to re-enter this fracas and it wasn't for idle amusement.
Despite
what Fi might vehemently state in regards to being able to keep herself
safe, this kind of arena was no place for a kitten. Or even a human for
that
matter.
"Oh well," he murmured to himself, "nothing else for it I suppose." He
****ged the door open and slipped inside, for the moment unseen by its
inhabitants. He let his ****rt slide down his arms, the fine silvery
hair on
his chest glinting in the dim light. Closing his eyes, he moved
forwards
into the fray, his lips reciting the words he always spoke when taking
the
form that had been forced on him so many, many years ago.
"Your will be done my lady."
His whole body began to ****mmer, then elongate in a seemingly
impossible
way. Limbs stretched and reformed with almost liquid elasticity,
bulking out
and gaining mass. In one smooth transition, he'd gone from being
mundanely
human to taking a form that one would unmistakably refer to as
'werewolf'.
His senses now in a stage of hyper alertness, Kayn easily distinguished
the
scent of the one he sought. He dashed forwards, dodging humans and
non-humans with practiced ease, ignoring the melee about him. It was
only a
familiar face or two that gave him pause for a moment.
Alorian had an interesting look in her eyes as she and another lady
stood to
the side as a werewolf and a vampire tussled in front of them. Her
boyfriend
was obviously doing his white knight duties, but to Kayn's sharp eyes,
it
was if she didn't want to admit that the bloodletting was exciting her.
Typical really.
Shedding his human form was always refre****ng for Kayn. He didn't have
to
bandy around those silly human concepts of 'tact' or 'niceties'. The
wolf
knew only black and white, kill or be killed. Here was a perfect
example. As
a human, Kayn would have been reluctant to interfere, this really not
being
any of his business.
However as the wolf, he recognized Alorian and noted that her wolf
friend
was having some trouble killing the vampire. Being so closely
associated
with the earth mother as he was, Kayn's sense of 'pack' often extended
itself far past what would be normally considered close company. Thus
the
wolf in him saw a practical solution to the situation and took it
without
hesitation. As the vampire's hands were busy and his back was to them,
it
was a relatively simple task of leaping towards it, one clawed hand
punching
a hole through the vampire's back with impossible strength and then
suddenly
withdrawing. The vampire screeched and fell back, lasting long enough
to
note that it's heart lay in the werewolf's hand.
"Now play nice kids," Kayn growled, dropping the heart at the feet of
Alorian. Grinning at her maliciously, he licked his lips and before she
could get a word out, he took off. Inwardly he was cursing himself for
getting distracted. He could still smell Fi close, but her scent was
being
mixed with that of a tainted one. If she were injured.
<Snip>
Keeping her attention riveted to the ...dear gods, it really WAS a
vampire
in front of her...Fi never noticed the grey shape slowly rise to full
height
behind her foe.
<end snip>
Snarling with rage, Kayn crash tackled the vampire, slamming it into
the
floor and away from Fi. It hissed, fangs bared as it tried to sink them
into
him. Dodging the attempted bites, Kayn managed to sink his own fangs
into
flesh, teeth
digging in and taking a grip on the creature's lower spine. Tussling
hard,
he managed to roll the vampire onto its back and gripping its neck and
legs,
began to slowly rip its spine out of its back. The vampire let out a
gurgling howl as he did so, right up until Kayn tore the head and spine
from
its shoulders.
The immediate threat disposed of, Kayn's eyes once again sought out Fi,
who
was now crouched against the wall. Her eyes were large and round and as
he
looked over at her, muzzle still dripping with vampire blood, she
gripped
the flimsy knife in her hand in what could be described as a death
grip,
knuckles white with the effort.
Fi stared in utter horror, her brain on complete whiteout overload. It
was
all too much. First, there was this...vampire...dear gods, really truly
a
VAMPIRE... real and as evil as all the legends suggested and trying to
kill
her.
All there was now was a bloody pile. Oblivious to the faint trickle
of...something at her forehead, she raised eyes to the new monster she
faced. Her stomach quivered and threatened revolt as she took in the
blood-covered, slavering beast.
Her rational mind ****ed away from what could NOT be denied. There was a
WEREWOLF in front of her - with the remains of a vampire on
his...muzzle.
Werewolves did NOT exist. Vampires did not exist. There was one
standing in
front of her with the other...ew.
With a whimper, her rational brain simply quit.
The instinct that Bast had been quietly urging surged forward, released
from
all bonds. Her senses overwhelmed with the feel of evil all around and
swimming with the scent and the taste of blood, could register only one
last
thing - the door was THAT way, and he was in the way. With a snarl far
more
animal than human, Fi brought the silver knife down hard and shoved
against
the beast, pu****ng towards the door and freedom.
With her rational mind gone, there was nothing to repress the surge of
satisfaction as the knife sunk deep with a tear of muscles Fi had no
trouble
recognizing. With a howl of victory, she let go the knife and darted
past.
Kayn swore loudly, his wolfish form ensuring it came out as a
frustrated
snarl. Spitting chunks of vampire onto the floor - he was never partial
to
undead flesh, it always tasted rancid to him - he ripped the flimsy
knife
from his chest and hurled it away. Why did she have to be so damn
DIFFICULT.
Across the room, a very surprised vampire suddenly found silver eating
away
at his brain, a silver dessert knife having buried itself four inches
in his
right ear.
Exceedingly annoyed, Kayn took off after his prey, darting in and out
of
skirmishes. The wolf would never understand
how emotional humans could be, but it certainly understood the flight
of a
startled animal. Thus the wolf took Fi's flight in his stride, catching
sight of her as she ducked under a werewolf being flung into a wall by
his
vampire opponent. Very aware the catching her before she made the door
was
essential, he bunched his hind legs and leapt high, catching a sup****t
beam
and flinging himself sideways.
The door was in sight when a grey form dropped in front of Fi. Reacting
on
instinct, she lashed out with her hand, fingers extended and using her
nails
like claws to rake at her opponent. However her attack was this time no
match for the seasoned hunter, who ducked under her arms and grabbed
her in
a bearhug. Feeling fur surrounding her, Fi thrashed about, screeching,
clawing and kicking as much as she could, even trying to bite down on
the
arm of the one who held her.
"Save the damn foreplay for later," growled Kayn harshly in her ear,
ignoring her antics. In this form the front door was *so* not an
option, so
instead he sprinted back down the side of the room, his captive held
tight,
if unwillingly, in his arms. Thankfully the emergency fire door was
unattended and a swift kick sent one side of it flying out. Kayn
followed
it, emerging into the cool night air. As an afterthought he clamped one
paw
across Fi's mouth to stop the noise.
A small line of tree's surrounded the hall and Kayn made for them, not
wanting to stay in full view for too long. Ensuring he wasn't followed,
he
unwrapped the still fighting Fionula from his arms and set her down
hard on
her feet. Gripping her shoulders tightly, he leant down and locked eyes
with
her, his muzzle only a few inches from her face.
"Now, shut up."
The energy seemingly drained from her body, Fi slumped to the ground,
eyes
large and round and fixed on the.well, werewolf in front of her. He
stood
impossibly tall before her, all silvery grey with darker silver streaks
along his muzzle and down his tail. The eyes were golden yellow, almost
glowing in the dim light, yet there was something similar about them.
Something in the way it.he.looked at her that was strangely familiar,
that
almost possessive gaze, that glint of hunger in his eye. As if on cue,
he
grinned at her wolfishly, fangs large, sharp and prominent.
She knew it was ridiculous. All her screaming, thra****ng, biting,
kicking -
and anything else she could think of -hadn't stopped him, hadn't even
hurt
him. Of course not, she reminded herself. Only silver harms them,
remember?
True, the measly dessert knife hadn't done MUCH, but there was fresh
blood
in the silver fur...er, fresh WEREWOLF blood, she amended. Then amended
a
second time to fresh THIS werewolf blood. So, it was ridiculous. It
wasn't
going to work. But she had to try it anyway.
"Get the **** away from me," she snarled, in her best "Why, yes, I AM a
New
Yorker" voice.
It didn't work,
Damned if the... thing wasn't grinning at her. At least she THOUGHT
that
toothy (oh Bast help me, that's a lot of very big teeth) expression was
meant to be a grin. It could, of course, just be anticipation of a
lovely
meal.... Her nerve quailed at that thought and with an almost
suppressed
whimper she backed away. Then a sudden shocking thought occurred.
It spoke.
Not altogether clearly - how could it with a deformed great snout like
that
all filled with hideously outsized teeth? But clearly enough that she'd
heard and understood it telling her to shut up. Ignored too, but that
was a
separate issue. She'd heard it. Heard the voice.
Kayn's voice.
She shook her head. Too many shocks. Hell, this damned party was worse
than
dying had been. It was impossible,
"It's impossible," she muttered. "It just CAN'T be."
Kayn chuckled, regarding Fi with a look of amusement. She was just
beginning
to realise, yet she still tried to deny it. Oh well, perhaps it was
time to
show her the reality of things that were right in front of her nose.
Still grinning at her, he closed his eyes and stretched his arms above
his
head. His body began to ****mmer, its outline becoming blurred and
faint. Fi
started and scooted backwards, only stopping once she smacked into a
tree.
She cursed under her breath, unable to take her eyes off what was
occurring
in front of her.
His outline began to shrink slowly, reducing to human size, the claws
retracting and the muzzle shortening into his face. The ****mmer began
to
subside slowly, until a familiar figure revealed itself to Fi. Shaking
out
his hair and cracking his neck loudly, Kayn opened his now very human
eyes
and gazed at her, his recognisable grin all too evident.
"So kitten," he said softly, stepping towards her, placing each foot
deliberately and slowly, "are you going to thank me for saving you from
the
big bad vampire?" He stopped about a foot away from her, bracing
himself
against the tree with one hand and leaning down. His hair cascaded over
his
shoulders, its very tips tickling the side of Fi's face, his warm
breath
making her ****ver involuntarily. She was suddenly aware of how very
close
and very ****d he was, the musky smell of wolf and the coppery scent of
blood still clinging to his skin.
"I could have handled it, thank you," Fi managed tartly. The strain of
the
evening was getting to her...and with no one else to take it out on,
Kayn
seemed to be volunteering herself. Somewhere deep, deep within her, in
a
place she
couldn't acknowledge much less name, there was just the littlest bit of
relief that here was a man (well, or a reasonable facsimile thereof)
who she
could not possibly break, no matter how savage she got...
And the fact that Kayn was now chuckling in response to her was
bringing
that savage very close to the surface. Honestly, the ****d wasn't
helping
either. And neither horrifyingly was the tang of blood that surrounded
him.
She decided she could ignore that. Would ignore it. HAD TO ignore it.
Ohdeargods, pleasepleaseplease, ANYgods, letmeignoreit.
Between the hair tickling her face, the scents she was desperately
ignoring,
and a heated awareness, Fi could feel all the self-control she had
always so
prided herself on sliding away like the silent tide. In an effort to
regain
that control, she closed her eyes and took a deep calming breath.
Well, it was supposed to be calming anyway. But it brought far too much
sense in with it. Scents of the city - calming in their way, if noxious
-
but also unnervingly scent of ****d warm male and scents of blood -
blood
from INSIDE the building that she should NOT be able to smell....- and
noises from the reassuring honks, swearing and distant violence that
were
the hallmark of this city to the screams and growing panic inside the
art
museum.
There was a fight going inside. A fight of good versus evil. A fight
that
Bast had brought her back from the dead to fight in - and that she
absolutely could NOT. The frustration - both hers and Bast's, working
for
once tonight in absolute unity - built to a low growl, which oddly
restored
enough of her self-control to start dealing with smaller issues.
Not that 6-foot-plus was really a SMALLER issue....
Her eyes snapped open, filled with the fire that made her Bast's chosen
and
she managed a quite respectable glare and the full icy tone that had
both
alienated and terrified her co-workers.
"Were you aware, Mr..." there was an infinitesimal pause as she
realized she
didn't even know his last name, hastily converting the 'Mr' into a
simple
"Mister" before continuing on, "that there are several laws in this
city
against public ****ity?"
Kayn chuckled softly. "Always the police girl aren't you miss
MacCreavey,"
he said with a smile. "One wonders what you value more; your self
control or
your sanity." He looked at her for a moment then turned, walking away
from
her, each step seemingly a deliberate attempt to distract her.
"And where are you going?"
"I'm going to get dressed," Kayn replied, pausing and looking at her
over
his shoulder. "Or would you rather I stayed ****d?" His eyes positively
glowed in the dark, still that icy blue but oh so clear and bright in
the
crisp air. Fi seemed primed to reply to his barb but it died on her
lips,
all she managed to get out was a quiet "you wish". Kayn grinned at
her,
reaching up and unhooking the bag hanging from one of the branches of a
nearby tree. Kayn's employees knew him well and were smart enough to
anticipate situations such as this. It made things just that little
easier.
"And now kitten," he said, eliciting a soft squeal and making her jump
a
foot in the air by appearing beside her without her even realising he'd
moved. "Would you accept my offer to take you home? After all, this
party
has definitely gone downhill."
"What, you going call a cab? At this hour? Good luck." Her tone was one
of
distain, covering the slight ****ver
she'd experienced when he'd snuck up on her like that.
"Not quite," Kayn replied blandly, a nod of his head indicating where
his
car had just pulled over to the side of the road. He extended a hand, a
human hand at that, out to her. "Shall we my dear?"
Against her better judgement and with some trepidation, Fi took the
offered
hand and let him escort her across the grass and into the back of the
waiting limo. Surprisingly for Fi, there were no werewolves sitting in
the
back seat, nor was the driver one. It all looked suspiciously.normal.
"I think I need a drink." Kayn chuckled softly - knowingly - and for a
moment Fi wanted to scratch his eyes out. Since, however, he followed
the
chuckle with movement to the limo's well-stocked mini-bar, she decided
to
let it go.
Just this once of course.
"A whiskey, like earlier?" He questioned softly, hands poised over the
bottle.
Fi simply nodded, fighting off a rising hysteria. She wanted
desperately to
believe that nothing out of the ordinary had happened tonight. She
forced
herself instead to catalogue the details of the limo, as though it were
a
crime scene, shoving panic under the strict discipline of her
profession.
She frowned suddenly. "How did you know I had a few, er, drink
earlier?" Her
eyes narrowed. "Were you following me?"
Kayn grinned - and fleetingly Fi hoped devoutly that maybe being a
mummy
meant she COULD hurt him - and tapped his nose gently. "Wolf senses, my
dear."
She accepted the glass he offered with a wry snort and decided she'd
ignore
the fact that he hadn't actually said he wasn't following her. Or the
fact
that despite retrieving a gym bag from the tree, he was still very
****d.
She could ignore it. She'd sit silently and stare at the floor until
she got
home.
"Still," she murmured, unable to stop herself, "I imagine I don't need
to
tell the driver my address, do I?"
"Wouldn't be much of wolf if I didn't know that much, now would I?"
Kayn
unzipped the bag he'd retrieved and pulled out a ****rt, slipping it
over his
torso. Fi was making a deliberate attempt not to look, although she
wasn't
doing a great job of it. A pair of dark grey slacks completed his
attire
before he poured himself a drink and settled back opposite, observing
her
body language closely.
"I wonder if Lucien is having fun," Kayn murmured softly with a slight
chuckle, making an obviously nervous Fi jump slightly. "He must be
going
insane trying to find Kysen right about now."
"Kysen?" Fi's response was sharp. "Why? Did anything happen to her?"
Kayn
shook his head.
"Don't worry, I made sure she got out okay. She's someplace safe." He
looked
at her over the rim of his glass. "You should thank her later. She was
most
insistent I went back and made sure you were safe."
"I can take care of myself," Fi mumbled, nursing her drink closely.
Kayn
sighed knowingly.
"Not tonight you couldn't. Mind you that's through no fault of your
own.
There are some things that are just too difficult for humans to handle
on
their own."
"You say 'humans' as if you aren't.one." Her tone was bittersweet, as
if she
had a hard time swallowing what she was saying. Kayn leaned forward,
deliberately invading her personal space, eyes level with hers.
"Why kitten, have you forgotten what you just saw? Or don't you want to
remember, is that it?" He grinned mischievously at her. "Or would you
like a
reminder? Don't be na=EFve kitten, it's so unbecoming."
"No," Fi responded tartly. "I want a do-over. I want to go back to
Kysen's
limo picking me up and do this without anything mystical or unnatural,
dammit." Hell, she thought sourly, I wanna go back and do the last 6
months
over.
I want to be able to say 'humans' as if I WAS one.
With Kayn still leaning deliberately close, what ELSE she wanted was
disturbingly within reach. With a mental reminder
about the virtues of self-control, she ignored Bast's urging to simply
TAKE
what she wanted and tossed back the rest of
her drink. A brief flicker of humour and she found herself
deliberately
meeting Kayn's level, knowing gaze while her
free hand slid along to find his. "I guess instead I'll have to
settle," she
purred softly, pressing the empty glass firmly into his hand, "for
another
drink."
"That I can give you," Kayn replied, dutifully filling her glass once
more.
"The other is a little harder." He
took her hand gently and wrapped it around the glass, his fingers
lingering
on hers before pulling back. "Besides,
it's not so bad once you get used to it. You're just experiencing a
little
culture shock."
"Culture shock?" Fi raised an eyebrow and smirked, sipping at her
drink.
"Vampires have culture now?" Kayn laughed.
"In there own way. I prefer to leave them alone. They have no respect
for
others sometimes."
"That's an interesting way of putting it," she murmured, settling back
into
her seat, crossing her legs and putting her feet up on the seat next to
Kayn. "And what about werewolves? Any culture I should know about?"
"You'd be surprised," he replied, his fingers idly tracing up and down
the
side of her ankle. "Wolves have a fairly complex society." He met her
eyes
once more and smiled, heat and a hint of amusement evident in them.
"I'll have you show you some time." That wasn't all that Kayn wanted to
show
her, but he was patient. The night was still relatively young after
all.
The somewhat relaxed mood in the car was interrupted when it came to a
halt,
unsurprisingly outside Fi's house. Kayn
placed his glass down and relieved Fi of hers, taking her hand in his.
"Let me escort you to your door." He grinned. "After all, you never
know who
might be out there, now do you?"
****
A joint post, submitted by:
Fionula MacCreavey aka Katrina
And
Kayn Silverman aka Michael T
------------------
Heed me:
If thou wouldst dress the dead and play amongst them;
Thou shalt join their ranks.
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