Jump to content
SITE NEWS
  • EXCITING NEW PLOTS COMING SOON, LOOK FOR UPCOMING POSTS IN THE PLOTTING AREA THAT WILL HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR ALL ON THE SITE TO JOIN!!
  • Cat and Mouse


    Ishsa Nestra

    Recommended Posts

    July 3, 2019.

     

    Ishsa wandered North of the Tree and North again, then West. Led by sighing leaves and the erratic floating of moths, the Fae needed not plans or purpose to guide her, only the union with nature mattered. The birds and rodents, and weeds were a part of her; all had a place in the Wood and in her heart. Sunset passed, golden-pink colors vanished as night progressed. For a considerable time, Ishsa rested upon a rock near a nameless creek bed and listened to the insects and frogs as they sang. She sat in darkness alone, stars muted and silent. This suited her, immersed as she was within the quiet and often deadly shadows of the Park. A cockroach scuttled across Ishsa’s foot and crawled beneath a fallen branch marked with the beginnings of decay. Indolently she watched it, unconcerned. But… there was something – something hidden beneath the shadow of branch. A roundish shape, like a lump… it did not belong there! If not for the beneficial insect, the Fae might not have noticed, for cockroaches, as a rule, liked to keep secrets to themselves.

    The lump was not alive, nor was it magic, buried as it was with brush and dry leaves. Ishsa watched it and the moon continued upon its path through the sky. Lazily, the bare toes of a foot reached out to tap it, softly as a ballerina might. But from her pokings, she could not discern the contents. It was a pack, left behind no doubt by a Traveler or a Visitor, though none were here now; she would have heard otherwise. Curiosity constricted the Fae’s thoughts in an ever tightening circle around her. Sliding to her knees, Ishsa leaned forward to sniff at the thing and then traced a finger along its length. From where it lied partially buried, dirt dusted to the ground. This was a new kind of Game, played silently and solitary. A purring rumble filled the little clearing. “Are you a lost and forgotten little thing?” she cooed, though the pack did not answer or deem to reply. “Fear not. Ishsa will free you from dreaded confinement.” Pulling it closer, her hands found the zipper. How long had it been since she had used one? She frowned mightily. Business suits. Casual Fridays with jeans. Bride-maid dresses. But this zipper was better than those. This was novelty. This one held an unknown prize within! Deliberately slow, as if to prolong much looked forward to pleasure, Ishsa pulled the tab and the bag opened, ready to divulge its treasures.

    Clap! Clap! Clap! Small hands clapped in unrestrained excitement. She bent low and her hair swung downwards to partially conceal the enchanted expression that lit her features. Inside, a neatly folded cloth met her fingers, and Ishsa pulled it free; it was a t-shirt. With both hands she brought it to her face and pressed it against her nose to inhale deeply. The odor was masculine and earthy, but faint from too long left alone. Running the fabric upon her cheek, the softness of cotton greeted her. But it could not hold her attention so she discarded it carelessly into the dirt near her. A pair of pants also fell at her knees before she then drew out a tennis shoe. It was clean, its laces tidy. She smelled this too, but was not rewarded with more than the barest of smells. Almost the Fae put her small foot inside one tennis shoe, but it was too large, so she tossed it and then its pair away from her. They landed near the creek forgotten.

    Bending forward again, her hands found a bottle of water, which she opened and brought to her lips to drink greedily. But the action was uneventful and the Ishsa moved onward to pick up a small box. She held it cupped in her hands tenderly, as if it were a hummingbird injured. Opening the lid, her nose wrinkled as she saw what it contained. Clinical and cold! It was a shot of some kind. Memories floated by. Alcohol swabbed onto a shoulder by a middle aged nurse that smelled of cigarettes. Hard tile floors and bars upon a bed when her appendix was removed. No! She would not remember those things! Quickly, Ishsa pushed memories and the box away from her as if they might contaminate everything, and it too fell unwanted onto the dirt.

    There was one item more. Greedy, her hand clasped around it and drew it out into her eyesight. This was treasure! The Fae could smell it already and her wings beat wildly at this fortune. Dizzy with want, Ishsa knew what manner of thing this was. Sugar! Viciously she ripped through the packaging and stuffed a portion into her mouth. Eyes fluttered closed as Ishsa held the food upon her tongue and tasted the sudden rush of sweetness. The treat melted upon her tongue and she licked each finger elegantly to not lose a drop of taste. But like an animal starved, she could not stop and ravenously worked to eat the rest.
     

    Link to comment

    Late.

     

    The world had long since found its way nestled into sleep, the “normal” world he wanted to be a part of anyway. Particularly rough day, large amount of physical abuse cases over the course of his appointments. His receptionist was usually pretty good at scheduling them spread out throughout the week. The rough cases were locked tight today, seemed to be more and more common. Either the world was becoming more aggressive, or he was developing a following and reputation for being effective.

     

    It took its toll on the Were. Pace had not changed in almost an hour, the rhythmic hit of his stride on the treadmill enviable. An exquisitely fit runner by human standards, his physique was not that of a runner, it was built for strength. He should have been tired long ago, but he was the only one in the building to hoard his secret. His physical training space was locked and powered down, one light in the back illuminating the room of exercise equipment, punching bags and floor mats as his eyes were fixated on the television mounted high on the front wall. He normally didn’t watch television. Something was irritating him lately, itching at the back of his brain. Extra stimulation SHOULD have bothered him- his mind was racing and the cat couldn’t keep up with it. That was unheard of. On the rare occasions the cat was rampaging under his skin, he would train, usually all night. Tonight the stationary was not doing it.

     

    The last thing he wanted to do was go home and find Mack there.

     

    Well he did, but not like this. This was dangerous, he’d known that for several hours.

     

    TV was clicked off with the remote and tossed into the treadmill’s water cup holder. Switch was hit; stride halting as he hopped off the back when the belt slid backward. He didn’t pause, closet, to grab his shoulder harness, single key for the office on a lanyard over his head and tucked into the neck of his gray teeshirt. Navy beanie pulled down over his ears, he locked up and headed toward Central Park, sliding his shoulder harness on as he ran. To run this late, was asinine, because there were people like him around. A risk to be seen and questioned, sure, but it was incredibly rare to see anyone in Central Park this late. It just wasn’t safe, again… from people like him, hence the shoulder harness. It looked like he was expertly carrying a gun, the small black case slid under his arm was anything but. Tranquilizers. For himself. He knew what the risks were.

     

    Stomach had been unstable. He should have stayed at the office and checked himself in for the night in the basement vaults… it was too soon. There was no reason for him to be concerned, but the Were just didn’t feel right so he took more precautions than usual.

     

    Normal route was run, up and over walls, fences, through buildings and onto rooftops. The cross-training meant to completely exhaust the beast inside him, and that was incredibly hard to do. Pausing at a nearby deserted football field, he hoisted one of the normal tires onto his shoulders that he left there for exactly this reason, running up the aluminum bleachers before jumping back down two at a time to do it again.

     

    Tire dropped, there was the beginnings of a forced breath in his lungs. Heart rate was going up. Good. He bee-lined for the park, up and over the sidewalk to hit one of the paths for a bit, then veer off into places nobody ventured- which made it perfect for him; rugged, hard to traverse, up and over low hanging tree limbs, leaps that a mere human couldn’t attempt over streams.

     

    His chest felt the first signs of slowing, the slight cramp at his side next.

     

    A clap brought a growled snap from his throat. Movement in his quiet run was like a bird suddenly in front of a feral and hungry big feline...

     

    … shivering up his spine, the metaphoric cat in his gut bristled, hackles raking upward. The scent, strange, mingled with things of his he knew were around the park. Form slid to a halt in the wet grass with the power and grace of a lethal animal. Teeth grit together, the visibly pronounced canines even for a human pressed against his lower lip.

     

    Was he being followed?

     

    It felt like…

     

    Fractured green flicked through the darkness. Morrison. He hadn’t felt that -odd- sensation since the cop had invaded his space with questions that were notably “questionable” about the disappearance of his former receptionist.

     

    Air was drawn in.

     

    Food.

     

    Sugar.

     

    Lashes flicked closer together. A bounce off one rock changing direction to spring from another and catch the low branch of a tree to get above it, standing on the limb to scan the area again before jumping down. Next to her. Dammit. Someone had found one of his packs. Might as well retrieve what was salvageable and give her the rest if she needed it. The cat, may have been out for blood, but the man could be reasoned with.

    Link to comment

    Attuned to the cycles and sounds of nature, Ishsa’s senses were sharpened and honed like a hidden dagger. Unaccustomed noise and foreign odors caused immediate vigilance in the Fae; she would know who intruded in her immediate vicinity! For all her outward frivolity, the Fae could also be a cautious and secretive creature; it took little to encourage her attention or her distrust. Not often was she was caught unawares - but this night, as she stood triumphant in the circle of scattered booty, with a sugar bar in hand, Ishsa was preoccupied beyond measure.

    She had been alone and more than content when shock caught her. Sudden movement! Too near! A man appeared, from nowhere he came to land next to her. Ishsa had not heard his approach or witnessed his descent. Startled, the Fae jumped away and landed in a high crouch wary and angry, at the suddenness of his interruption. Ishsa hissed ominously.

    It was easy to see why he had come... She knew why he was here! But he couldn’t take it from her! She wouldn’t allow it! Greedy, this prize was not for a stranger and the Fae was in no mood to share with a Human. Too tightly her fist clinched around the sugar bar, almost it broke into pieces. There was a feral quality to the Fae, an anger that raged within the small body. Her eyes flashed fire-like. Swallowing her last bite quickly, Ishsa spat words at him, “It’s mine! It’s mine! I was the finder! I was shown it first by the cockroach! I will not give it up!” And she drew the food closer to her small torso, as if she might hide it from him if it were out of sight.

    Her wings beat a furious pace and her hair lifted feather-soft in the sudden rhythmic breeze. Strands floated upwards into a white mantle, so like a lion’s mane about her head. Her knees bent, ready to push off, to fly and flit away from this disturbance, but before Ishsa could take off, her foot touched up one of the discarded tennis shoes. Upon a whim the Fae mind changed abruptly. She was here first! She should not depart! It mattered not his size, this was her prize, her new-found place. Quickly she bent and grabbed at the shoe, and threw it as hard as she might, straight at the man that threatened to steal her treat.

    “Go!” She demanded with a low growl of her high pitched voice, “This place is not for you… Vorovka (thief)!”
     

    Link to comment

    There was always a risk people would flail when come upon without warning. He wasn’t used to them still being on their own accord when he did it; they had a knife in their throat at this point and were more concerned with trying to breathe. She was different, and she hadn’t done anything other than find his pack and eat his power bars. He really should get the anti-virals back though…

     

    …but hissing?

     

    That he was not expecting.

     

    Pupils flushed out wide, her feline-like reaction irritating already painfully prone metaphorical hackles. She had different qualities, something he’d only sensed while passing through the city over the years. He'd never been able to place or put a name to it. As he returned from Africa through Europe after the Resonance, he’d encountered it there as well. It was an odd scent… earthy splashed with magic. If he had to explain to anyone what magic “smelled like”, it would be as impossible as explaining why cats always landed on their feet. Reflex. You couldn’t smell reflex either… it just was in the air, or their energy.

     

    “It’s mine! It’s mine! I was the finder! I was shown it first by the cockroach! I will not give it up!”

     

    Eyes narrowed.

     

    That did it.

     

    Top lip sheared from his human teeth, exposing the unusually prominent canines as a feral snap licked in his throat. Warning. A vicious one.

     

    He blinked at himself. Teeth clicked together as he reeled in the provoked Were buzzing hard under his skin. That was weird, his human consciousness even releasing the tension in his expression, hands still neutral at his sides. Muscles had tried to move, hairtrigger themselves forward. Attack mode. It'd been a really long time since he’d had a meltdown. As a human, he was still prone to violence, hence why he trained so hard he couldn’t stand. Tonight? Particularly agitated for no reason. His best choice was to back away and leave the woman to her vices. She obviously needed it more than he did.

     

    Hands came up slightly to show her he had no ill intent. She was something he’d not encountered yet, and even though he wanted to ask questions because he might actually have one walk in his door one day… it was better to leave- for her sake.

     

    …and then she threw something at him.

     

    Unhinged.

     

    He could never describe to anyone what it felt like when he completely lost control. It was terrifying, a sudden migraine unraveling and blasting in his head at the blink of an eye… the world seizing in on him, threatening to crush… bloodlust in a starving wild animal. It happened so fast his rational mind couldn’t grab the rabid beast to yank it back. Fingers caught the shoe with a decided slap, casting it aside as muscles exploded forward. He was going to kill her. Simple as that, and he couldn’t stop himself.

     

    “Go! This place is not for you… Vorovka (thief)!”

     

    The freight train simply stopped moving, looking as if he was going to change direction, slick night turf under his right foot allowing him to slide to a halt in an attack stance that had turned defensive… apprehensive. Face flinched, expression still hostile, but confused.

     

    Eyes crushed together as he shook his head out of the fog- opening again to glare at her.

     

    [kai]..what?![/kai] he breathed out, chest heaving.

     

    The man yanked the chain back under control at the break in aggression, breaths slow . Christ. What had happened? She was speaking Russian. It had engaged his rational brain. That language was something he rarely heard. Not many made it out of that area, and not many here knew how to speak it. It saved her life, for the moment.

     

    [kai]Ty govorish' po-russki? Kto ty?[/kai] it came out breathless, sounding absolutely native to Moscow. His languages were perfect, if they hadn't been he wouldn't have survived his pre-Resonance life.

     

    ((You speak Russian? Who are you?))

    Link to comment
    • 2 weeks later...

    Almost too fast to follow, the shoe flew into the brush. The man had batted it away as if it were nothing. Surprised by the force of it, Ishsa’s head turned sharply as her dark eyes attempted to follow its trajectory. But he moved forward, towards her. Too quickly he came! As if… as if to attack her! The surprise of this assault shocked her and for the smallest moment, she only stared uncomprehending at him. He was going to hurt her! Immediately her mood changed and shifted into thoughts of self-preservation. Her voice small as bird-song cried, “Ohh!” Instinct noted what her conscious thoughts could not piece together – she was in trouble. Her mind shrieked, Dart away! Dart far away! But before she could flee to safety, the man stopped where he was. Like the frightened deer, the Fae also froze in place, wide-eyed and unmoving. Breath held as Ishsa studied the man that had almost attacked her. Almost! He was violent - there was no doubt. The swirling of danger was there in the air and it descended upon the Fae’s nerves most heavily.

    “Ty govorish’po-russki? Kto ty?” ((You speak Russian? Who are you?))

    His words were as a vicious slap from Ishsa’s past. Russki? When had that tongue last been heard in her ears? The tone and sound were true and correct. It was a struggle to think. High pitched the Fae trilled, too many emotions raced across her face. The past threatened to overpower the present. But that past was not welcome here! Her fingers clinched tightly into fists. Had he come for her, to lure her with the old words? Had those old people, her lost family sent him to find her? The leaves whispered in her ears, “Use care… use care…” Never would she return there, to that Brooklyn brownstone in Greenspoint.

    Her Fae nature was at terrible odds! She wished to know more about this man, but her heart warned the need for retreat. It wasn’t safe! Inquisitiveness held Ishsa on the sharp edge of choice as nervous wings quivered behind her. Distance was needed, distance would help! A tree was near; she might climb it for protection. Slowly, as if the man would not notice, a pale, bare foot slid backwards. It was soon followed by the other foot. Three more steps followed, each measured and precise, as a choreographed dance while she retreated. Tree now at her side, her palms pressed against the old trunk. Energy ran the length of it, from tips of leaf to end of root, deep into the Earth. For the Fae, it was the current of life she felt, and the current of her own blood that beat in answer. Its strength buoyed the Fae, gave her courage and she pressed her body against the rough bark. The white hair made her seem a fickle and animated ghost in the night.

    “Russkiiiiiii… ya govoryu.” ((I speak it.)) Ishsa drawled in answer. “Ya ne vernus.'” ((I will not go back.)) She sniffed at him, but could detect neither alcohol nor the scent of drugs upon him. Something spurred him onward, but Ishsa could not place it. He was odd and seemed troubled. The man needed calming! Soothing! More for her sake than his… A Song needed weaving around him to lull him into tranquility. Then he would not threaten or hurt harmless creatures such as her. He was Russian - Ishsa thought she knew. And a Russian man must needs a Russian lullaby. A song came to mind that her Mother had sung often to lay her to sleep when she was a child; Babushka had also sung this when she was able. Those of other descents condemned the old songs and called them cruel and violent. But this man of the Motherland, he would know better! Relaxation he would find! Ishsa’s fingers gripped the trunk more tightly, though not once did she think to let go of the sugar bar. The words began slowly, tentatively. She had to believe he would not attack her outright. She was no threat… no threat… no threat… The song Bayu Bayushki Bayu, continued, the melody haunting and mysterious. Words she had thought long forgotten returned, even as the Fae wove her own Song of Magick within the evocative strains to ensnare and trap the man with a sense of calmness and serenity.


    Bayu Bayushki Bayu




    Simple translation:
    Bayu Bayushki Bayu Do not lie down near the edge of the bed The grey wolfie will come And grab you by your tiny side He'll grab you by your tiny side And drag you to the forest Drag you to the forest Down under a willow shrub Don't come round, wolfie, don't wake up our Masha. Bayu Bayushki Bayu Do not lie down near the edge of the bed The grey wolfie will come He'll grab you by your tiny side And drag you to the forest Down under a raspberry bush And then one raspberry will fall down Into Katenka's mouth. Bayu Bayushki Bayu Do not lie down near the edge of the bed The grey wolfie will come He'll grab you by your tiny side And drag you to the forest Drag you to the forest Down under an aspen tree Don't come round, wolfie, don't wake up our Masha. Bayu Bayushki Bayu Do not lie down near the edge of the bed The grey wolfie will come He'll grab you by your tiny side And drag you to the forest And drag you to the forest where Nana lives and bakes buns, And sells them to the little ones, and Venusha gets them free of charge.
     
    Link to comment

    His skin was vibrating, taking every shred of strength to not engage the instinct to chase, the violent urge to pounce and rip apart.  What the hell was running through his gut at the moment?  He was WAY too far off from the moon.  He knew exactly what it was, and needed to let the appropriate people know. This was being watched, and his blood could feel what other Weres perhaps could not. He was an anomaly, and with that came the responsibility to warn.  He'd promised.

     

    Teeth lit on edge at her sound. The itch to chase held only by shredded threads of snapped cables.  Twitch of her quivering wings echoed in his head the feline chatter of a predator watching a bird through a screen door it couldn’t go after.  The man was keeping the cat shoved down out of sight, and it was a horrible battle.

     

    “Russkiiiiiii… ya govoryu.” ((I speak it.))

     

    Words engaged the intelligent mind, the human mind.  Educated and not instinct.

     

    “Ya ne vernus.'” ((I will not go back.))

     

    Was she human once?  Changed as he was?  Go back?  Odd.

     

    The sniff at him brought another surge of hackles, rims of his eyes tightening a moment to hold back the need to pounce.  He was always fighting himself.  Always.  The gentle song she wove brought more questions to the front of his thoughts.  It did not perhaps put the hostile electricity of a Were brain at ease through the magic he could feel buzzing at his skin, but it did urge answers to come one at a time as they crossed his mind.

     

    Fae. She had to be.

     

    He’d not met one yet and his curiosity was peaked, especially her fluency in Russian. 

     

    She did answer questions, however cryptic.  He was a psychiatrist, a behavioral specialist.  Interpretation of behavior was his forte, helping the unique into a new world was his mission.  Interest was intense, but he’d also just almost ripped her to shreds.  He still couldn’t guarantee that he wouldn’t.  Every shred of his being told him to leave.  Instead, the large boulder he’d launched off of earlier became his seat, a careful distance from the bird ready to flee, elbows on his knees and fingers intertwined between them as he listened.  The Were couldn’t pass up this chance.  He waited, patient for the lullaby to end.  Maybe it did have a calming effect, in ways she hadn’t intended.

     

    He was no longer growling at her, and she was undoubtedly still alive.

     

    [kai]Feya. Vy FAE.[/kai] (Fairy.  You’re Fae.)  words were quiet.  [kai]Pochemu by vam ne khotite vernut'sya?[/kai] (Why would you not want to go back?)

     

    He leaned slightly and picked up the ransacked pack, it was a maze of zippers and pockets- utility. He unzipped a tiny one on the bottom under the strap, another crinkle of wrapper falling out. It was a bit smushed, but it would do. He dropped the bag, intertwining his fingers again with the silvery wrapped goodie tucked in them.

    Link to comment

    His eyes were the eyes of a predator and the Fae could not bring herself to look away. Unsettled, instinct flared hotly; it mattered little that the man’s mad rush had stopped. He looked at her oddly and prey mentality said - Stay Immobile, but Fae mentality despised the sudden feeling of confinement. Pulled in two directions, Ishsa’s body from toe tips to ears quivered with tiny shivers of agitation. Conflicted! Because Ishsa’s nature was more than simply prey; she was Fae, the energetic sum of the Wood. Bird and beast, both innocent and feral touched upon her energies and between these extremes she shifted rapidly, like a fickle turn of wind. Even Ishsa’s gently, hypnotic Song, while often used for protection, was just as often sung to gain control over others. Though small and unsubstantial as she appeared, she was also a predator with malicious intent.

    She Sang for protection and control; and the man upon the stone had listened. Her Fae heart thrilled to see him settle, even if his eyes had not… yet. This one was an anomaly to her; the edge they balanced upon was sharp, palpable and precarious. Neither of them tipped that dangerous scale. No longer did she tremble, but her gossamer wings opened at an excruciating slow rate, as if they were reined in by the weight of significance.

    Feya, Vy FAE.

    He named her. Ishsa’s chin lifted and her eyes turned to slits. Her gaze never left his - he was too unknown. [ishsa]Ya, ya chto. ((I am that)),[/ishsa] she said, words careful and untrusting.

    “Why would you not go back?”

    He thought to trick her with the Russian words, to make her listen and remember and want to return! But she understood more than his question! She knew why he asked! [ishsa]Ubiraysya Okhotnik! Vy tratite svoye vremya. ((Be gone Hunter! You waste your time.))[/ishsa] The words flowed in a torrent, a mix of both Russian and English. [ishsa]You cannot deceive me. Idti! ((Go!)) I will not live with kirpicha i steny i pravila. ((bricks and walls and rules.))[/ishsa]

    Already he had tricked her into losing the threads of the Song and soon she knew, the talk would begin of returning to her family. Ishsa snorted, the sound was small and contained as if it had come from one of the hares in the field. She would leave before that transpired! But the Fae had no wish to turn her back upon this man. Nerves on edge, the fine hairs upon her thin arms stood alert. [ishsa]Skazhite im, chto ya budu mertv. ((Tell them I am dead.))[/ishsa] Her voice had lowered. Hands upon the tree, Ishsa was ready to scramble up to safety, but the man picked up the pack. Had she missed something within it? Something of value? Climb delayed, she watched with jealous interest as he rummaged within. Her eyes widen as ears picked up the unmistakable sound of… a crinkle. From his hand to his eyes and then back to the mysterious prize he held, her gaze flickered. It was small, the thing he found… and glinted silver! Ishsa wanted it! It mattered not what it was! Shimmering with moon-glow, her wings fanned outward, driven by greed and curiosity both the Fae took a bold step forward.

    [ishsa]Give this to me! It is mine…[/ishsa]

     

    Link to comment

    He could rarely put into words what it felt like to be agitated. If not for his staunch control, drilled into his bones from birth, he probably would have gone completely crazy a long time ago. Holed up somewhere in the mountains, a complete frenzy of death swayed only in and out of severity by the pull of the moon. In this case, he was not. It still did its due diligence when it hit, the rest of days screwed so tightly within his ability he barely strayed: an alcoholic refusing a drink that was whiffed right under their nose, a heroin addict with the needle in their arm refusing to press the plunger. It still didn’t take away the fact the addiction was still there… the temptation was still scorching in the very blood that slid in his veins. Needles, pinpricks, the feel of nails on a chalkboard irritating the inside of his skin. Itchy wool that couldn’t be shed.

     

    Still, the Were sat with eerie calmness.

     

    But, certain things even he could not control. He could not control the changes, nor the way he smelled to those that could sense it. Small things…like the abnormal shifting of his pupils in brilliantly fractured green irises. As her eyes turned to slits at his question, his pupils grew larger without command, then focused again when they’d had their curiosity satiated.

     

    "Ya, ya chto. ((I am that)),"

     

    Blink was slow, the rigidity of her distrust slithering up his skin.

     

    "Ubiraysya Okhotnik! Vy tratite svoye vremya. ((Be gone Hunter! You waste your time.))" You cannot deceive me. Idti! ((Go!)) I will not live with kirpicha i steny i pravila. ((bricks and walls and rules.))"

     

    Bricks, walls, and rules.

     

    Lip quirked slightly, amused at the predicament she was in. Changed? Like he was? A former life in a former place, only to land here and have no desire to remember any of it because of a transformed consciousness. The prospect was intriguing. He didn’t want to agitate her, but in doing so he risked agitating himself. He could do this. He did this every day, sometimes working up until a few hours before he had to leave the city. It was only fair he smoothed things over, since it was indeed he that had come after the fae like a snarling lion.

     

    "Skazhite im, chto ya budu mertv. ((Tell them I am dead.))"

     

    Her sudden infatuation with what he was doing seemed almost… feline. Somewhere in the back of his brain it was calmly amusing to him, trying to make connections with another being in the same state of Resonance change as he was.

     

    "Give this to me! It is mine…"

     

    Fingertips tapped on it absently a few times, catching the step forward. Elbows leaned on his knees as he brought it between his fingers and slid the brown sleeve off to expose more of the twinkling silver that seemed to catch her eye. He was a sucker for sugar. The protein bars were great… but this. This… a remnant of the old world.

     

    A candy bar.

     

    [kai]YA nashel eto.[/kai] ((I found this one))

     

    Carefully the wrapper was opened, about to take a bite… seeming to change his mind, holding it out to her instead.

     

    [kai]YA budu torgovat’,[/kai] ((I’ll trade it.)) she was going to have to come to him. [kai] YA budu torgovat' yego dlya vashego imeni.[/kai] ((I’ll trade it for your name.)) He was ever so still, the candy bar- still in the wrapper, chocolately goodness so far beyond what she’d had in the last few moments wafting at his own keen sense of smell.. barely held out to her as the feline eyes watched. It was no trick. Just a name.

     

     

    [kai]Mne nuzhno znat' , chto pozvonit' vam , yesli vy ostanetes' zdes'.[/kai] ((I need to know what to call you if you stay here.)) lips pursed quietly, moving back to reality, [kai]I need to know who to ask for if I come back here with more... [/kai]

    Link to comment

    The man did not smell right; his scent was different than she had expected. The disparity was subtle, below the surface of the Fae’s experience. Questionable and taxing to Ishsa’s mind, he smelled like no other she had ever encountered within the Park. Vicious warning continued to sound in her thoughts, even as he sat quietly unassuming upon the rock. But every movement he made, she followed, attentive and alert.

    His hands moved and the Fae startled, ready to flee. Yet she held in place, for the man peeled away the brown wrapper and silver lining to fill the air with agonizing potency. Chocolate! Nothing compared to its power - the smell tantalized the Fae’s senses and transported Ishsa instantly into the past. Remembered tastes assaulted the little humanity left within her. Easters and holidays. Double layer birthday cakes drizzled with fudge. Candy bars… Candy bars wrapped in brown and silver. Candy bars just as this one! Ishsa remembered chocolate… Her fingers spread wide in wonder and the energy bar she held fell rejected into the dirt. It was nothing! Nothing compared to what he now possessed.

    Ishsa’s hands curled into trembling, small fists as the need for this thing overpowered all else. The smell of it replaced even the concern and interest in the man’s scent. Greed flared! She wanted it. She had need of it; he did not deserve it! The Fae licked suddenly bone-dry lips. The man would take it and eat it. Even now it lifted and Ishsa bemoaned the great loss. But he stopped and held the chocolate out to her. The Fae froze, unwilling be the catalyst that caused him to withdraw the chocolate once more.

    "Ya budu torgovat’ (I’ll trade it.) Ya budu torgovat’ yego dlya vashego imeni (I’ll trade it for your name.)"

    What words he spoke! The Fae didn’t dare move. Chocolate for nothing but a name in exchange? The price was skewed, for Ishsa would sing her name freely from the tops of the tallest tree for a sigh of wind or a newly budded flower. He was either a durachit' (fool) or it was a trick with which to ensnare her. Ishsa hesitated. Or… he deemed her name a grand thing and valued it greatly. Self-importantly Ishsa lifted her head with prideful spirit. She could not help but to smell the chocolatey air; its intensity had not diminished. With muscles taut, she could not look away. A softly pink tongue rested light upon her lips as her heart beat rapidly with the choice in front of her. Nostrils flared as her mouth watered and she swallowed with nervous want. Like a hummingbird whose wings shivered dramatically, it was impossible to stay motionless. When had she last tasted such a thing? Ishsa lamented further. When had she ever been truly happy! But this! This would soothe her poor soul! And it was here for the taking - offered freely with a price that was no price…

    The man was durachit'!(fool.)

    And while Ishsa rejoiced at her fortune, she did not trust him. Her first step forward was slowly done, as if the Fae moved at a different speed than the other creatures of the Wood. Another followed, uncertain, before she stopped again, her eyes holding his gaze, yet flickering uncontrolled to the chocolate he held. Nearer she drew, ready to dart away at any perceived or imagined threat.

    “Mne nuzhno znat’, chto pozvonit’ vam, yesli vy ostanetes’ zdes.” (I need to know what to call you if you stay here. I need to know who to ask for if I come back here with more…"

    More! Greedy creature that she was, the Fae believed him. Already he had appealed to her pride with his price. Why would he not return for more? Courage flared, and Ishsa whispered her name, as if it were a great secret held between them, [ishsa]Ishsa.[/ishsa] The ending was elongated, and stretched out to trail away like a gentle stream in winter mist. Then more loudly and with pride, [ishsa]Ishsa I am called.[/ishsa] Her thin and fragile arm reached out, palm and fingers held upon invisible currents of air. Obsessed with the prize, and without rational decision, the Fae trusted him in this one moment. And with coursing wings, she darted close to snatch the chocolate from his hand.
     

    Link to comment

    Feline eyes were a thing of beauty.  In a masculine face and the carriage of an athletic physique, they were the one identifier that made him stand out among the rest of the world.  As if, almost, the way he carried himself was not enough. A military life created a confidence that couldn't be faked.  He couldn’t hide them, he couldn’t shy away from using the mask he wore to project himself to the world as a normal, upstanding citizen of the new civilization. They stood out, a secret yet not a secret.  Advertising to the entirety of the population he wasn’t indeed the human he posed to be, though almost all accepted the brilliantly colored things as human without question as just a unique beauty that few possessed. 

     

    They were watching her now.  Fractured and mottled like green spindles on top of star filled galaxies.  He didn’t have to worry, didn’t have to hide from someone who already knew what most would never find out.  She was right to be suspicious, it had screamed at him since the moment he’d dropped into her sugar induced oblivious obsessiveness.  He was right to be cautious.  Having never descended upon anyone of her kind before, he wasn’t really familiar with what exactly she was capable of.  The Were did know his mind worked differently than humans or mages, if she had some kind of effect on him he hadn’t felt it. The cat however, was intrigued, pressing at his consciousness like an insistent feline petting itself along the side of a master's leg for attention… for permission… it had found a mouse, and was looking for owner’s permission to play with it.

     

    She was clearly struggling with the decision.  To trust him… he didn’t sometimes trust himself, at least her instincts were true.

     

    Lips pursed slightly as the wings quivered, still under the surface ready to pounce. It was a controllable urge, the cat did not feel threatened, and oddly no longer territorial.  It still burned, the agitation that had sent the man into a training frenzy to wear himself out had only succeeded in making the irritation not as strong- but it was still there.  Two seeming predators moved in a slow dance…  one excruciatingly slow step from her brought a slow blink from the eyes that betrayed he wasn’t human.  He too was capable of moving so slow, so elegantly that the world would never notice it was being stalked.

    "Ishsa."

     

    He nodded slightly.

     

    "Ishsa I am called."

     

    [kai]Kai,[/kai]  he offered quietly, letting go of the prize the moment her fingers came in contact with it; still not convinced he could touch her skin without something going awry.  Magic was magic, and with some a touch was enough to trigger things the magic or his own Were might decide not to like.  He was still a wild animal, and wild animals could turn on a dime no matter what kind of gentle petting they may have been receiving.  Teeth through skin, bone… into flesh. The cat continued to be curious, fingers intertwining together softly, but who knew if it would suddenly decide the whole situation wasn't to his liking.

     

    [kai]Are you always here, Ishsa?  Or is there somewhere else you call home…[/kai]

    Link to comment
    • 2 weeks later...

    With motion fluid and smooth, the chocolate slipped from the man’s hand into hers. The moment his fingers lifted, the Fae’s closed tightly and she bolted away with prize in hand, steps lightly quick. Among the leaves, a tiny whirlwind spiraled in her wake. In an effort to keep the man unprepared, Ishsa darted in the opposite direction from where she had originally come. A new tree would guard her as well as the other, and against its trunk she leaned, sheltered by ageless spirit. Ishsa drew the chocolate to her chest, as if to protect it from the world, and from him. The smell intoxicated the Fae; vertigo threatened to overwhelm her senses with its richness and she trilled high pitched for this great fortune. Like a thief, she wished to hoard this treasure alone. But the man did not move to leave. Kai. It was a name she would not forget for he had released the chocolate to her. Dark and deep woodland eyes glanced towards him before they dipped downward to view the chocolate once more.

    Are you always here, Ishsa? Or is there somewhere else you call home.”

    The Fae trusted no one and she held no trust for him either; traps and tricks she knew intimately. Did he lay one upon her now? This man, with his inhuman eyes and vicious ways, was not safe. It was known to be true! But he also was the deliverer of chocolate... Where would she ever find more? If not for this boon, she would have vanished into the green already. To the other side of the trunk she flitted, a hand upon the bark, [ishsa]I live in the Wood. The Wood lives in me. What is a home truly but this? This…[/ishsa] Her hand moved outwards to encompass the entirely of the Park. The Fae hesitated to name her Tree in the Ramble. Kai need not know! She wanted him nowhere near Endride, where he might sneak upon her as he had here. Ishsa looked at him askance, [ishsa]Of whom would you ask my whereabouts? The blades of grass or the hare hidden in the brambles? The bower leaves will not answer your questions. [/ishsa] Yet, uncertainty lingered; the Fae did not know this creature that looked and smelled almost as a Man. What was truly possible for one such as him? How would he find her? How would he bring the delicacies she so readily deserved? A schedule was not a thing she could adhere to, to even think upon a timeline taxed her thoughts.

    With eyes like no other she had seen, he regarded her. Primal energy swirled invisible upon the air currents of the clearing. Even as he sat, Ishsa could feel him, sense him. He moved with agility and grace, this was not a crude or rough man, but an Alpha. The space he occupied upon the rock was his, as if he had laid claim to it. His energy was like the Wood, yet wilder and more masculine. What was he truly? The Fae could not see the answer though she knew it was before her. The puzzle of his identity was fraught with danger, deadly and sharp. Ishsa’s eyes flicked in nervous anticipation and she stood straighter, lithe and small of bone. The wild and primal also coursed through the Fae’s blood, but without the man’s stanch control, impulsive and heady she flowed as one within nature’s freedoms.

    The energies balanced between them and waited, as the air about them stilled and settled. He was not afraid of her, this Alpha Kai. He did not fear. To the next tree, Ishsa moved, graceful with purpose as she circled him with instinctive curiosity, the chocolate still clutched to her curved chest. The leaves made no sound upon her passing and no twig snapped beneath her bare feet, perfectly placed. Around a sapling and beneath a low hanging branch she navigated with equanimity. Her voice lifted, [ishsa]Perhaps, I will be near this little stream… for a day, [/ishsa] she moved onward in her circling, and a soft hand trailed against a tree trunk. The lace of the thin dress she wore snagged a moment upon the rough bark before it tore away with the tiniest of ripping sounds. [ishsa]Perhaps even two. [/ishsa] If he were to come she wished not to wait overly long.

     

    Link to comment

    Senses itched, quick eyes watching the motions of the Fae with keen attention.  The flutter was enough to keep the cat on edge, but he wasn’t sure how much longer he could sit still.  Blood had long stopped pushing through his veins from exercise, and rampant thoughts were starting to creep in again even though he was focusing like a psychiatrist.  He also wasn’t sure how much more he would learn from this encounter.  Of course, he had no more chocolate, and that seemed to be the grease in the wheels that was producing some sort of communication.  Perhaps when he had time he would come back later with more.

     

    "I live in the Wood. The Wood lives in me. What is a home truly but this? This…"

     

    Head tilted slightly.

     

    "Of whom would you ask my whereabouts? The blades of grass or the hare hidden in the brambles? The bower leaves will not answer your questions. "

     

    Fingers that were slightly intertwined between his knees as elbows leaned on them flicked.  Riddles.  He spoke the language of riddles every day.  Truth was always hidden somewhere in one’s words.  Even flat out denials and lies held sprinkles of truth that could be deciphered and read, body language interpreted.  She lived here, but had not always done so.  She was like him, changed completely when the sky decided to swallow the world and remain there to taunt them of it every time they looked up.  Instead, he sought his old life, and she sought this… whatever this was.  He wasn’t really sure how safe she was here, or how safe others were that may fall into the paths.  He would have to do more research on Fae.

     

    Interesting.

     

    Eyes watched her until she moved out of sight behind him, then caught her again as she circled him.  As he was studying her, she was most definitely studying him.  His concern, was that the cat was also studying her.  If worse came to worse and he was unable to to get out of the city in time, there was no recourse for people that had caught the cat’s ire in the time inbetween.  He’d seen it happen too many times already, a client calling him in the middle of the night in tears, meeting him at the police station still covered in the stink of the asshole that had beaten her within an inch of life.  Suddenly, after a full moon… the man no longer could be found.  He didn’t need to figure out what had happened, he already knew.  The Were was also concerned that curiosity would happen, and just like a cat pouncing a bird, curiosity often turned into a strong paw to the ground and crunch of bone.  She'd done nothing to him, but the cat was curious.

     

    "Perhaps, I will be near this little stream… for a day, Perhaps even two. "

     

     

    [kai]Perhaps I will bring more chocolate and you will give me more answers.[/kai]

     

    He could stay still for an eternity, but the sky was itching at him yet again.  Eyes moved toward it to catch the twinkles among the purple rip.  There was something odd in it lately, something he could feel above all things.  The feline was connected to the eerie light like no other Were that roamed the earth that he knew of.  It concerned him, growing exponentially as the days moved closer to the full moon.  Something was happening with that damn sky, and it was not something good.

     

    He stood in one fluid motion.

     

    [kai]I will come again, tomorrow,[/kai] eyes brushed over all the things she had scattered about.  He’d gone to great lengths to hide the things, might not be a good idea for people to be finding bits and pieces of his things all over the park.  They’d start asking questions, only people up to something left changes of clothes in various places.  He was up to something, but he didn’t really want to have to explain that to anyone.  [kai]I will trade you chocolate for all the things in the backpack, put back in and hidden of course.[/kai]

     

    Hands easily slid in the pockets of his Adidas pants, waiting for some sort of confirmation.

     

    [kai]We can talk about the sky…[/kai]  He was absolutely curious if she felt it too, and there was a distinct lack of people in this city he could ask.

    Link to comment
    • 2 weeks later...

    “Perhaps, I will bring more chocolate and you will give me more answers.”

    The Fae did not think to hide her feelings or her selfish interest in this bargain. Too long had she done as she pleased. Kai watched her still, but Ishsa feared not the man’s observations, only his sudden movements. Observations would tell him none of her secrets! He was the foreigner here… a foreigner who searched for answers, but to what questions exactly? This caused her wonder. His was an odd request - answers for chocolate? Just as when he had given chocolate for her naming.

    Carefully Ishsa regarded Kai and deemed him oddly eccentric. She had no answers to his unasked questions, though she believed she might pluck one at a whim if she had cause, as simply as she might pick a flower from a field. For chocolate, she would trade words, even if it was not a fair trade - especially if it was not a fair exchange and she came out ahead. But what did Kai really seek? Leaning forward, Ishsa sniffed the oddity of his scent and her fingers tightened upon a small branch she had halfway pushed from her side. He stood then and the Fae startled and retreated to place a tree between them. Wings in a flutter, curiosity fought with self-preservation and Ishsa struggled, with her reactions. The edge of doubt this time was too sharp to sustain and the Fae readied herself to flee.

    “I will come again, tomorrow… I will trade you chocolate for all the things in the backpack, put back in and hidden of course…”

    Ishsa ceased to move. With a suddenly stony gaze, she looked askance at Kai. He demanded too much! Chocolate for answers. Chocolate for questions. Chocolate for packing bags. His requirements and mandates angered the flighty creature. A crushing weight descended upon Ishsa’s spirit. The world of obligations was eight years in the past. Pressures and plans and tasks were unfamiliar things and no longer something she could tolerate. It remained to be seen if the Fae would even remember to return the following evening.

    [ishsa]“I am no handmaid to do thy bidding![/ishsa] Her voice vibrated along the rocks and moss covered pebbles and the leaves dipped as if to listen. A petite foot stomped in place. It mattered not that she had been the one to scatter his belongings. That bag was in the past; Ishsa had forgotten it already. It was not important! [ishsa]I will accept chocolate for answers instead.[/ishsa] She said with a nod. A shimmer of wings punctuated her words. Like the bird that feigns disinterest while the cat is too many lengths away to harm it, Ishsa lifted her chin and looked away, as if she cared little about this exchange.

    “We can talk about the sky…”

    Slowly she turned back to look at him with cunning eyes that narrowed. The sky… he wanted to know about the sky. One did not mention such things offhand, not in this new world. Whatever he was, he was still human… filled with human doubts and questions. Ishsa understood much. The Fae’s voice softened, as if they spoke of a hidden and secret thing. [ishsa]The nebo (sky)… you notice do you? Perhaps changes approach even now, even after all that has already transpired?[/ishsa] She watched for subtle confirmation in his stance and carriage. Ishsa had lost much; her memory was fog-filled at the best of times. But her grandmother’s tales sat freshly at the forefront, more akin and closely woven with her changed nature in this new world. Those memories had not vanished, entwined and magical as they were. Ishsa remembered a tale told in Nona’s shaking voice, where the hound trapped in Ursa Minor, escaped the goddesses’ chains to ultimately devour the heavens. This man Kai was Russian, she thought, he would know the story. Ishsa's words teased, but a strain of  truth lay within her words as well, [ishsa]Have the Zorja been lazy? Do you fear Simargl has fled the Littlest Bear and will consume all you know…?[/ishsa]

    And she turned away then, steps light and drifting to step away, her voice also drifted as if further away than it was, [ishsa]Yes… you and I might speak upon the sky. [/ishsa]
     

    Link to comment

    It was a noise he rarely made, deep in his throat, deeper than any human sound. There were times he had to remember he wasn’t human.  No matter how hard he tried, scrubbed away the itch of nerves… he would never be human again.  It was her odd sniff on the air at him that brought about the sound. A warning.  A growl to incredibly sensitive ears.  The cat was tolerant of the quivering and quick movements, but it was not to be trifled with.  There was a limit to his patience and prodding, even though he seemed to have it under control for the time being.  The strangeness in the air, made it impossible to tell whether or not that would remain for long.  Itching, waiting for something to irritate it.

     

    …like a stomp of protest.  Eyes narrowed to slits, licked only by the light when it peered through the trees. Calm.  A breath was drawn in, then let out with equal control.

     

    "The nebo (sky)… you notice do you? Perhaps changes approach even now, even after all that has already transpired?"

     

    Focus was still for a moment, then gaze rose to the trees above and the split in the sky.

     

    [kai]There is no perhaps.[/kai]

     

    It was definitive. Where she was content to speak in questions and riddles, he spoke in absolutes.  There WAS something happening, he could feel it in his blood.  The Were was a part of the Nevus, he was made by the rip, had one foot inside to see things no words in any language could describe. It was horror and joy at the same time. Weakness, feeble and yet succinctly powerful beyond measure. He could feel it even now, humming in his blood.  Pulling at the cat.

     

    Pulling at the cat.

     

    The moon was still too far off, but the sky pulled.  The thought was a terrifying one.

     

    "Have the Zorja been lazy? Do you fear Simargl has fled the Littlest Bear and will consume all you know…?"

     

    His lip quirked quietly up at the corners, cords that lined the back of his hands flicking slightly as his fingers moved to flex and return.  The man was formidable, lean and tall with a thickness that could only signal pure muscle lying beneath. The Were wasn’t at fault for that, the man was, the Were only adding to the effectiveness of the hunter.

     

    [kai]It already has begun.[/kai]

     

    When his voice fell below the normal speaking volume, it took on a timbre of fluidity.  Harsh but gentle, vulnerable and warm, yet dangerous to the core.  It was then he was contemplating, and then he was truly dangerous.  It wasn’t when the lion roared that people had to watch their throats, it was the silence that lay before and after.  In that time between times, decisions were made -sometimes in haste- that led to life or death.

     

    [kai]The changes are here, happening even now.  I can feel its vibration.[/kai]

     

    Another deep breath was drawn in, watching the footsteps move away, and relishing in the fact he’d averted almost certain bloodshed.  The cables however were wearing thin.  Snapping one by one.  Even he wasn’t sure how long it would be until the man no longer had control of the cat, and the sky would have everything to do with it.

    Link to comment
    • 1 month later...

    “It has already begun… The changes are here, happening even now. I can feel its vibration.”

    The man’s words, calm and low, carried to her ear. The masculine timber lulled the Fae into a false sense of security, and the Fae did not think to be fearful any longer. Before, his growl had made the fine hairs of her body stand straight, for that was not a sound that a normal man produced. But all was well now, even as the chaotic energies of the sky played above them and the veiled layers of unseen intrigue burned in the clearing behind her.

    Kai’s concern of the sky fascinated Ishsa and she smiled wickedly, as if she alone held the key to that particular puzzle. Buoyed by danger and impishness, Ishsa trilled, [ishsa]Such confident answers he speaks..., [/ishsa] as she continued to drift away in a weaving, undefined course through the overgrowth and trees. Of course the man was correct; change had enfolded the sky and even the air that surrounded them. If she but observed closely, the Fae could feel the shifting miasma of Mana along her skin, as if she and it were connected.

    Before she disappeared completely into shadowy bracken, Ishsa slowed near an old oak. Voice mingled among the rocks and pebbles, to carry near the man. [ishsa]You must be very powerful indeed - to feel the vibrations of Change, [/ishsa] the Fae mused and wondered upon Kai’s origins. What was he really, to read the sky – to feel it? [ishsa]Fetch your chocolates. And we shall see what Simargl wishes… perhaps your answers will be revealed then. [/ishsa] For good or ill, Ishsa would not interfere with the sky’s desires.

    And then the Fae was gone, camouflaged in dark shadow.

    ***********

    The next night, amid distractions of nocturnal bugs and one wayward fox, Ishsa made her way through the Park. At times she flitted, at times she danced, and once she gazed ardently into a puddle to commune with the tiny creatures that swum there. The hour was late, much later than the previous night’s visit to the small clearing. It was not that the Fae had forgotten – only the importance of punctuality was an ephemeral thought as best. Eventually though, she wound her way to the little stream once more and with feet splashing in the cool water, she followed the course towards the rock on which Kai had sat and made promises

    Link to comment

    Archived

    This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

    • CURRENT RESONANCE DATE

    • RESONANCE - 18+ 3/3/3

      • A modern/fantasy, intermediate+ collaborative writer's rp. Caters to an experienced player base (25+) with a slower, more relaxed pace.
    • HELP GETTING STARTED? TRY A CANON!

      • 41f3d9eb35f930d5dc44ad8ade983b8e.jpg   6d8f5289ec09a7848237ad4fd3a06e3f.jpg   007fff0d107209cabc4ba334e56e593d.png
        8bcb54940bfd412123dc5bf8b88660b8.gif   0524927e32365acf2423cae0ea7b74f1.png  360d172315c70289fec9fc00324ae36c.gif
    ×
    ×
    • Create New...