Not what it seems

[Lovely]

December 10, 2009
Evening
Onmadia - Pack's caverns
runs alongside: The revered ones and Kiss the cook


This uncle he was told about didn't impress him in the slightest. Big, well-to-do houses bored him with their servants and forced manners. He wasn't much for manners regardless and didn't have much cause to practice them. Antony followed the others, but steered away from the house for now, content to stroll the grounds and wait for them to return. The gardens were well kept and he found a few ripe carrots to amuse himself with as he walked along the mud-splashed stones on the paths. Hadn't the man heard them? Hadn't he seen them? Antony chuckled quietly to himself as he approached the gardener, gnawing on one of the carrots and spitting out the pulp as he walked. His own ears pricked to the sounds beyond the doors. He'd come closer to them than he'd intended but he heard what he'd thought was Nance in one of the rooms nearby. Leaky windows, undoubtedly, but the scent and sounds were intoxicating, even at a distance. He'd found something far better than carrots to amuse himself with, apparently. Antony's attention turned to the roses the man tended. The carrots were spat and discarded. That scent... overpowering the pleasing ones... turned his expression sour and turned his stomach as well. The man was busy carving, it seemed, chipping bones into the dirt around the brilliant blooms that soaked the moonlight into their deep red hearts. What he was carving was unmistakable... and unforgivable. It smelled wholly of wolf, one of his brethren Antony realized, and it was clearly a recent acquisition, still soft and dark for the man's knife to whittle away for his flowers. He tossed his carrot into the man's lap to garner his attention. No sooner had the gardner turned with a start than he was staring into fangs and anger with little more than a chance to yelp. Antony discussed his anger usually in one way. There would be no counter-argument from the man. Judged and destroyed, he was left to feed the flowers with his own bones now. Antony turned from the roses to see the shadow of Nance carting off something in his own arms. Dead or alive, it smelled nicer than this pile of rot he stepped away from. He wondered if the lordly confines would have something less putrid to wash his mouth out with and only now brought himself in his bloodied clothes to the doors to wander inside where Nance had skirted out.

The master's sister had arrived unexpectedly this evening and the very small staff of the house was working quickly to set up for the guest. While Savy attended to some things in the kitchen, her sister Tre was making up a room suitable for the lady, clean linens and all little extras they could manage to impress the sister, per order of master of the house. Tre never liked the lord much but working for him provided her husband, her sister, and herself with a roof over thier heads and meger rations. Tre's husband had worked for the lord for years before they'd been married, her father accepting the proposal on the condition he also take in Tre's younger sister, thinking it was a great opprotunity for both the girls to have a better life. Tre's husband had never been cruel to her or Savy and she was fond of him but thier marriage lacked passion, it was more of a comfortable arrangement for them both and they had not yet had children of thier own. This was likely due to his love of the hunt with the lord and 'his' roses, sometimes she was sure he loved his roses and wondered whether he loved her. Tre was the sort of person who made the best she could of any situation and as long as she had Savy with her, she was happy enough not to make a fuss. Tre hummed softly as she tucked the crisp sheets beneath the mattress, fluffed the pillows, and smoothed the quilt. Her motions stilled and she went quiet as she thought she heard some noise coming from downstairs, she chuckled after a moment, thinking Savy had dropped something. She continued to hear noises as she finished up in the room and was growing concerned, it sounded more like a scuffle but where she was in relation to the kitchen it was hard to tell. As she stepped into the hall something chilled her, told her things were not right, and she found herself rushing down the stairs and calling out softly to her sister. "Savy.. Savanah? Is everything alr..." Her words were silenced as she reached the kitchen and discovered the mess, the shock led to a small cry of fright and worry, not quite a scream but loud enough that someone close by might hear it. Tre saw the open door at the other side of the kitchen and started to rush toward it, not quite thinking but with the urge to find her sister and whomever had done this. "Sav.." She started to call out and was cut off once again, this time by the solid form she collided with at the door. She'd been nearly running and the form didn't even move at the impact though Tre had the breath knocked from her for a few seconds as she stumbled back a step or two.

[Lovely]

The form she collided with left more than a stunning mark in her breath, smearing the front of her dress with fresh streaks of staining red. The figure, still in the midst of regaining his more human side, brushed down the front of his shirt where she'd struck against him. "In a hurry... miss?" His pale eyes seemed to harbor the moon's very light, the milky silver shinining as he chuckled at her and followed her into the kitchen.

The shock took a moment to wear off but once it did, Tre was more worried for her sister and angry at this man for whatever he'd done to hurt her. The blood on him and now smeared on her, convinced Tre that he'd been the one to cause the noise, this mess, and that he dragged her sister off into the night.. he may have already killed her! That thought caused a pain in her that was nearly unbearable and she saw red.. Without thinking it through she launched herself at him, a womanly fury of smacks and claws, hoping to tear him apart or at least make him bleed and tell her what he'd done with Savy.

Antony reached out to her hands that struck like hammers pounding wheat into flour against his chest and face. Her own tiny claws were no match for his own, though he kept his sheathed as he pulled one hand into his. She'd left a few small marks on him enough to make her fingers red with some of his own blood. He licked the fingertips clean. "I need that," he chuckled about the blood she'd taken from him without asking. "We haven't even been introduced, yet." He smiled a little sharply as he took in her scent. It had been on the gardener's cheek and collar. If she also felt about the wolves as that man had, Antony was going to enjoy taking her apart, albeit a little more slowly. She was a pretty woman and fought nicely.

Tre was a little surprised at how easily he seemed to catch and hold her hand, she was stronger than other women she knew, her husband sometimes complained she was too strong and that it made her less feminine and desirable. She watched this man lick her bloodied fingertips, stunned enough not to struggle for a couple of minutes. His chuckle and words snapped her from the shock of his display and she seethed at him. "I will take every last drop! What have you done to my sister?" Tre demanded with a swift hard kick aimed at his shin since he held her hand preventing her from pummelling him at the moment.

"Nothing." He shrugged as she came at him with her feet. The shine in his eyes shimmered with amusment at her fury. The scents in the room were what he had sensed from outside and he glanced about, trying to understand what had happened. It had been Nance's doing, not his own and what his packmate had done revealed the man's less delicate nature. While he understood the story from the scents alone, this woman did not. "Should I have? She seems like a fun girl."

"Liar!" The word flew from her mouth as soon as he said nothing, the evidence in the room showed much more than nothing had been done. Tre swore she saw laughter in his eyes, what an evil, vile man to have hurt Savy and then laugh over it. She lashed at him again while pointing out the mess of the room and on him. "Where is she?" She nearly growled the words out in her purely human tone, though at the moment she acted more fierce and wild than most human girls. "She is a sweet girl and I will kill you with my bare hands for hurting her!" He might see that as an idle threat with his greater strength and advantage of being a wolf but Tre meant the words with all of her heart.. if he'd killed her sister, she would kill him.

"I didn't! I swear on my father's life, I have not so much as plucked a hair from her," he insisted, fending her off as she railed at him. He tried to step around her to the marks and dents that littered the kitchen and its walls. "She certainly does smell sweet, I'll give you that much. Just like her sister. The gardener, bless his poor soul, did know the fullest blossoms to pick."

[Lovely]

The way he spoke, swearing with such conviction canvinced Tre enough that she stopped swinging at him and let him walk about the kitchen, inspecting the damage. "She.. I smell sweet?" Her voice was not the hissing angry sound that had lashed out at him before, it faded to nearly nothing as she tried to understand as she felt overwhelmed by the things he said. "The gardener?" Her voice was barely there and she reached to the wall for support, staring at the stranger now as her color faded. The blood was not her sister's and she felt relief for that but was he saying it belonged to her husband?

"He made me angry, hurting one of my own. Difference is, the evidence was in his hands beneath his knife. I understand your anger, but... things are not what they seem here," he said, mopping down a mark of blood from the floor he brought to his nose and seemed to savor.

Her head swan and she swayed a bit even though she braced herself with one hand against the wall, her other arm wrapped around her waist. "Not what they seem.." The chuckle that came out was not an amused sound at all. "You didn't kill my sister... you killed my husband.." She whispered it, trying to somehow absorb that information and deal with herself, knowing she was more upset over her sister than over her husband, not that she wasn't upset about him. "Do you know what happened to my sister?"

He chuckled and rubbed his thumb against his fingers. That wasn't for polite company to discuss. Even with his poor manners, he filtered some of the details. "Oh, yes," he said, his grin lurid and his expression encompassing every bit of envy for Nance's conquest. The woman was a phenomenal, young, sweet and strong thing, and he suspected this woman was no less a goddess herself. The desire that built off the scent alone was enough to paint darker swirls of mischief into the silvery bright gaze as he looked her over against her wall. Antony shook his long hair back from his face as he regarded her. "She is not dead. Sore... yes, this is her blood, but she is being looked after very, very well."

It took her a few minutes of his explainations and studying his expressions for it to click in her head what he meant. "Are you saying.. someone ra.. please no.." She whispered, her insides twisting for her sister and tears burning her eyes. "Not her.. not her.. It should have been me.. I should have had her make the beds. I'm supposed to take care of her.. protect her.. " Her gaze snapped to him again, that furious fire in her eyes and her breath coming heavier as her hands clenched in fists. "How do you know that.. if you weren't part of it? How can you possibly know that from sniffing the blood?"

"The same way I would know you were her sister even if you hadn't yelled it at me. You smell like her. Your scent was on the man in the rose garden, too." It made sense to him, at least, as he explained. He turned away and looked for jugs or bowls with anything that would quench his own thirst, finding first a jug of vinegar from which he took too large a mouthful that he spat onto the floor. He corked the jug and looked for something else. At least the vinegar had taken the foul edge off the taste. "I don't know. I was born with it. I can always tell."

Tre nodded though she didn't fully understand how he knew but somehow the explaination calmed her a little. "It makes sense that it would be.. sort of.. I gave him a kiss earlier before he left.. but it's been a couple hours since I saw him.. He stays out all night sometimes... at least a few times a week, he loves his flowers." She spoke quietly, needing to fill the space, talking kept her thoughts focused so she didn't completely freak out. "You said.. Savy's alive.. you're sure.. and they're taking care of her?"

He nodded and uncorked the next jug he sniffed before drinking this time. He took a swig of the water and rinsed his mouth of the blood and then poured a little to rinse his hands before brushing his hair back from his face. "Alive, in very good hands and I can guarantee you no one else is going to touch her. They... He... won't let anyone near her now."

[Lovely]

"It's something I suppose.. a small comfort to know no one else will touch her.. " Tre watched him move around the kitchen, her gaze following him and then glancing off to the blood in the room, then back to what was on him. "Does anyone.. include me?" The first question led to others flowing out quickly. "Why us? Why her? Why did he attack her? Why did he take her?"

"Includes you, me, anyone he thinks will threaten to take his mate from him. That's why... for a mate. We hadn't intended on anything here. We came for Tullia's uncle, to tell him that there wasn't going to be any wedding. Heh, not with him, anyway," Antony said, offering her the water next, though she appeared to need something much stronger.

"His mate?... I'm not sure I understand.. " On some level she did but it was hard for her to believe what she was hearing or to accept it simply because this man said it was so. "He took her as his mate.. and I can't see her or know she's alright with him? Why her.. why did he take her as his mate?" She shook her head to the water he offered her, holding up her hand slightly to indicate she didn't want a drink, what she wanted was her sister.

"You can see her. She'll probably want you there near her. I know I would, but don't try to bring her home. Home's with him now," he said, corking the jug and putting it back. "He took her because, from what I can smell from her and see of you, she's beautiful and strong. A fine choice to have his pups, that's for sure."

At first Tre felt somewhat comforted and a bit flattered by his words as he told her she would be able to see her sister and compared Savy to her.. then he got to the last part. "Have his what?" Her voice rose finally from the quiet tone she'd been using, though it still wasn't very loud. All of a sudden the realization widened her eyes and she knew what it was her husband had done to make him angry. "It's not... possible... "

"Excuse me? What's not possible?" He gave her a curious look as he found a sack of bread loaves and helped himself to one, tearing through the crust as he continued talking. "Oh, Nance is as possible as they get. Strong guy and one hell of a hunter," he said, chewing on the hard bread. "He gets a little wild sometimes, but I wouldn't have anyone else flanking me in a fight. Trust me, she's in good hands. You want some?" He offered her the chunk of bread after taking another bite.

She was clearly flustered as she rushed to try to take the bread from him. "Don't.. I can't.. the master will kill me if there's not the right amount with the meal." She tried to snatch the piece in his hand to put it back. "You're going to get me in trouble!" She hissed in a whisper, reaching to brush the crumbs from his chin. "My husband was a good hunter.. and I don't have any... puppies.. one does not beget the other." The last sounded as if she was a bit mad that he assumed the two were connected.

"You're worried about the master beating you over bread? It's bread," he said, letting her brush the crumbs away. He laughed and chewed more on the mouthful he still had. "Your husband -was- a good hunter, but not good enough. That's the kind of trouble you should fear, not worry over crumbs with soup. The kind of trouble his lordship needs to worry about if Mitch gets a hold of him."

"It's just bread to you.. you don't know him or his temper or.. my husband hunted things he should have left alone but he was so eager to please the master, he never listened to me." She sighed as she rewrapped the bread and turned to look at him. "Are you going to kill me or will this Mitch for the things my husband and the master have done?"

"Have you ever hunted a wolf? Killed a wolf? Given its bones to the blooms? Answer carefully. I might forgive you if you say it was at the master's bidding. If you have not, then my fight is not with you, but with your master," he said, the shimmering silver returning in his gaze.

[Lovely]

"No. I have never done any of those things. Unfortunately you've killed my husband so he can't tell you how I made him sleep on the floor after he did those things.. I didn't agree with that. It would be different if he were using the pieces from the animals we kill for food. Or if the wolves were harming us or our animals but that wasn't why they hunted them.." Her gaze drew to his eyes and her breath caught, halting her words as well, her hands stopped in thier tasks.

"Then, no, I have no quarrel with you. The wolves have never had a quarrel with you or others, but others still hunt us. Apparently his Lordship is no different than those. Thankfully you are. He should have listened to his wife," Antony said in a softer tone as his nose filled with the scent of her apprehension and dismay. He took the bread back out from the wrapper, clenching in with clawed fingers to show her how easily he could split the man apart. The hard crust splintered and fell to the floor from around his fingertips. "Instead he listened to a foolish man he made his master. Mitch will leave you alone, but the Lord of this house has more to concern him than his crusts and supper."

"How many men truly listen to thier wives?" She laughed softly, a little sadly, thinking of the man who she'd been fond of but never felt connected with. "Wolves.." She echoed softly, looking at his hand and the bread he clenched at, her hand rose toward his and she hesitated. "Is the man who took my sister.. a wolf? How will she survive.. ?" She gestured with her other hand to the blood and mess that had been left behind. "She's just a girl.. and he's so strong.. he'll hurt her."

"Yes. He will, but he will help her become stronger, too. You worry about many things. When do you worry about you?" He reached out the claws to her as they faded to a man's hand.

"She's my sister.. she came with me when I got married so I could help her have a better life. Our mother died giving birth to her, I have always taken care of her.. I'm supposed to worry about her and about what sort of a man would attack her and carry her off to be his mate. She'd do the same if it was me.. " She avoided his question in a way as she took his hand, her fingers brushing lightly over his. "My husband should worry over me.. shouldn't he?" She didn't look him in the eye as she asked the question but then brought her eyes up to his as she waited for his answer.

"And now he's not here. Well, he is staying with his flowers," he corrected, clasping her fingers. "I'll take you where Nance has taken your sister. You can't stay here right now."

"It's fitting in a way.. he always loved his flowers.. more than me." She took in a deep breath as if accepting that her husband was gone and being mostly alright with his place of rest. "What's going to happen to me? I've lost my husband.. my sister.. and now it seems I'll also lose my employment and shelter here.. all because of the things others have done. What did I do to deserve to lose everything?" She didn't realize how tightly her fingers clasped back at his, her head shaking slightly. "Who will protect me?"

"Your family," he said. "Your sister will become stronger in Nance's care and she will repay you for your worry. For now, trust me. Mitch and Keller will gather the others and deal with your mas-... former... master."

"I have no family left... This Nance has stolen my sister and from what you say will shred me if I even look like I'm thinking of taking her anywhere with me.. She's his family now... whether she wants to be or not! She is not supposed to grow stronger under the care of some man who carried her off in the middle of the night after attacking her and hurting her! I am her older sister I am supposed to take care of her. I'm supposed to protect her and claw the eyes out of any man who tries to do such things. Our father is not here and my husband is dead.. I am the only one left to defend her honor. I should kill him for what he did to her here!" Her voice broke and she let go of his hand. "You have killed my husband and ask me to trust you.. it is as if the world has gone all askew."

[Lovely]

"So what if it has? There's something holding you in place. I could have killed you six times for pleasure since I came in the door, but I haven't. Why?" He shook his hair back again like a proud horse and pulled her fingers to a soft kiss. "Because you don't belong here and you believe what I tell you. You want to be free of this place, so come with me."

Tre stared at him, there was truth in what he said - he could have killed her the instant she ran into him, or when she attacked him in her distress, or when he recognised her scent from the gardener.. and many times since. He kissed her fingers and she felt a pleasant tingle run through her, it made her blush softly. "Come with you... like my sister went with your friend?.. but without the.." She motioned with her free hand to the mess that had frightened her.

"For now. I can smell the strength in you and I may not be able to resist for long." He smiled wickedly as he stood this close and her scent was filled with confusion and wonder. "That was a joke. You've lost your husband and I'm not as cruel as you think. You need time with your thoughts and with your sister."

"But that is what you'd like.. for me to be your mate.. as she is his now?" She asked, trying to understand as much and as clearly as she could with so much happening and changing in her world in a single night. "I never said I thought you were cruel..."

"I'd like many things. Some good ale to wash down that bread... a clean shirt... a kind smile and a few others to start. By the moons, I would be lying if I said 'no', but it's not time. You need time," he said softly, letting go of her fingers to take more bread for the others at the den. "If not enough bread is a tragedy, then he won't have any bread at all. It's the tiniest gesture for whatever has been taken from my brothers."

"I can give you all of that." She promised, though she didn't smile yet, she fetched him a cup of ale first. "To wash down the bread." She held out the cup for him with a small smile. Then if he trusted her enough to let her out of his sight she would get him a clean shirt from the laundry she and Savy had washed earlier in the day.

He watched her weave and dart among duties to bring the ale he'd requested, though not expected. He chuckled and gently took the cup from her. The sip was soon a quick draining of the cup and a brush of his smudged sleeve over his lips. "Better, thank you. The ale helped as well," he said, referring first to her small smile.

"I think a clean shirt might make it a little better for both of us." She tried to smile more brightly since he'd had a positive reaction to the small one she'd given but it was difficult to do while looking at the mess over him. "Perhaps..." She motioned to the water jug and then to the collar of his shirt and the smears which had soaked through to his skin. "I don't mean to offend, it's just difficult to look at." She hoped he would understand and clean himself up some while she went to get a shirt that would fit over him, her eyes taking a moment to study his torso. "I'll just be a moment." Her first step was taken backward to ensure he'd let her go before she turned to dart into another room. When she came back this time, she had a soft towel for him to dry off with and a clean shirt for him to put on, along with that came another small nearly shy smile.

If she wished to run, it was her choice. Without direction, she wouldn't go far, and if she felt the need to alarm his lordship, she would have Mitch and Keller to answer to instead. He let her run where she would and slipped the shirt off his shoulders, only now seeing how much damage he must have done for the amount that had soaked it. Truly a strong woman - she had to be to see such remnants and not become faint or ill, or become more fiercely angered and saddened for her loss. He nearly swore he could sense an intrigue toward himself, but she may have been merely kind. The scent of her fingers under his nose on his lips from the kiss and the light brush of the breadcrumbs had him taking a deeping breath now that the blood of her former husband was further away. Sweet, strong, daring and phenomenal... perhaps he smelled more of her than the sister Nance had run off with. He turned the shirt for a clean patch to pour the water onto and had begun to mop his neck when she returned with the towel and clean shirt. He paused and reached for the towel, unaccustomed to them, but understanding her gesture. "So you do trust me, then? To follow me to see your sister?"

[Lovely]

Tre had felt a mild attraction as well as curiosity about this man while he was covered in the gore of his attack on her husband but she was not prepared for her own reaction to seeing him without his shirt and glistening with drops of the water he'd used to wash up. Her scent would be rich with the desire she felt so powerfully it pulled at her tummy and tightened her core, she gasped softly and found it hard to take her eyes off him as he reached for the towel. "I.." She began and then stopped, trying to keep her voice as normal as she could and her breathing under control. "I'd follow you anywhere if you're shirtless." Her cheeks flushed hotly at voicing the thought that had been in her head. She turned and put her hand on the counter, one to her tummy as she tried to deal with a level of attraction she'd never before felt and with the knowledge that she didn't want to wait long to become his mate.

One brief whiff was all he needed if the blush hadn't given her away along with the admission. She was flustered and trying to control herself. Antony smiled and draped the towel over his shoulder. "Careful. Maybe I should warn you about the dangers of turning your back on a very virile and wild wolf," he muttered, stepping behind her and wrapping his arm around her waist, his hand sliding over hers that held down her butterflies that were making her so nicely warm to lean against.

His voice alone did things to her and it made it that much harder to think logically and not simply sigh as she felt his warmth against her back. His hand covered hers and she leaned lightly into the embrace her fingers grasping at his as she made a slight sound of need that she tried to stifle but he'd hear it. "Maybe I don't want to be warned or careful.. of you." Her voice reflected the heavier breaths she was taking as her other hand came down to slip the ring from her finger that connected her to what remained of the man in the garden. She set the ring on the counter and let her hand drift back to rest over his.

He watched her leave the ring behind, nuzzling against her cheek as he turned his attention from it to the amazing scent he took in. He teased and taunted her with the caress and his warm whisper at her ear. "Not here and not right now. You need your sister and she needs you first, but I need you the rest of the night."

Oh but she wanted it right now and here.. she wanted to feel what it was like to be lost to the desire that rolled through her, the kind that had driven his packmate to take her sister. Tre had no desire to be hurt but to feel Antony's hands with hers and his breath in ear made her want more than this. What he said was true and she tried to focus on that, slowly nodding to his words. Her eyes focused on the shine of the ring and she knew what she needed and wanted to do in regard to the man she'd called husband for a few short years. "Will you do something for me?" She asked quietly of the man who held her now, she gestured to the ring. "Will you.. put it with him.. in the garden? It's seems fitting that it rest there with him."

He accepted the task, his nod another soft nuzzle against her neck as he took the ring in his hand and was gone, leaving a cool emptiness in less than blink or a breath. He moved almost silently, the creak of a single board near the door letting her know he'd left her there for the moment to her thoughts.

She was grateful that he did what she asked of him and gave no protest or insistance that she toss aside what she had shared with her husband. The absence of Antony's warmth was noticable and she missed him once he was gone. Left alone with her thoughts she felt at peace with the loss and with the hope for her future, eager to see her sister and know that she was also well. Tre gathered two fresher loaves of bread and wrapped them in a cloth to be taken back. Back where? She wondered about this as she moved about, hoping Antony would be pleased with the surprise of the bread. It wasn't much but she wanted to offer something. She began to hum softly again, a bit of a smile coming to her face as she awaited his return.

[Lovely]

Her scent was changed ever so slightly when he returned. Perhaps it was the rose he brought in from the man's garden in exchange for the item left behind that sweetened the room. He hadn't intended to sneak but was still quiet as he returned to find her milling about and packing up a few things. He inquired with only the raise of his eyebrow as he held the flower, considering eating it since his appetite was still roaring after the little appetizer.

She'd splashed her own neck with a bit of the cool water left in the jug and run her fingers through her hair while awaiting him and when she turned now she'd look a bit refreshed. Her smile brightened as she saw him walk in, though she blushed lightly wondering if he'd heard the humming. She was happy to see him before noticing the raised eyebrow and the flower he held. "He never brought me any, though he spent hours tending them.." She was touched by the gesture and it showed in her soft expression and the sweet curve of her smile as she stepped closer to Antony and leaned to kiss his cheek. "It's very sweet." She meant the gesture and her cheeks were warmed by another light blush.

"Sweet? Really....?" He looked at the flower, then her, then began nibbling at the petals, tearing the delicate flower apart.

Tre gasped and made a slight noise in protest and as he started eating her flower, she didn't even think about it before she slapped his arm - mostly playfully. "That was mine!" She exclaimed, looking at the ruined flower that he'd pulled apart and chewed. It had been so beautiful a moment before when he'd offered it to her.

"What? You didn't want me to eat the bread! Hungry...," he pouted, though that wasn't the flower he truly wanted to devour at the moment. He flipped a bit of rose petal off his tooth and offered her the stem. "Hmm?"

"Well.. then I shall eat the two loaves I wrapped for you." Tre pointed to the careully wrapped bread she'd intended to surprise him with, since he had seemed to enjoy the other older loaf. With a soft sigh, she took the stem, only to use it to bop him on the forehead, pouting a little herself. "I don't expect you to understand.. you're a man.. but it's different for women - getting flowers. That was the first one you gave me.. it was special.." Not that she wouldn't adore any and every flower he might give her, just none would be quite as special as the first. He might see it in her eyes as she twirled the stem lightly in her fingers, brushing her thumb over a thorn.

"Mind the thorns," he said, taking her hand and truly pouted now as she threatened to eat the bread and give him none. "Save the bread. I'll give you something better," he murmured.

He truly didn't need to give her anything.. at least in the way of material gifts. Tre had never been wealthy and never expected to have anything like the nice things in the lord's home that she took such good care of. "You don't have to give me anything." She murmured back, leaning to kiss his cheek again. It felt so natural to do so. "..except something to call you." She whispered with a shy smile, as she realized she didn't yet know his name and he didn't know hers.. but still she'd promised to be his.

[Lovely]

"Antony Jericho... of nowhere special and no one in particular," he grinned, giving the names he knew, though no proper name of the father he no longer knew or the family he no longer had. The pack was his family. "Antony if you must, but AJ if you want to be up close and personal," he offered.

Treasa smiled and her chuckle was soft, her head tilting to the side a little as she reached to brush her fingers over his cheek. "You are special.. so anywhere you call home must be special as well. Antony when I must and AJ when I want..." She bit at her lower lip and turned her hand to curl her finger, beckoning him toward her. "..Treasa.. Corbin.." She gave him her maiden name rather than the one which belonged to the gardener. "Tre.. when you want to be up close and personal."

He moved slowly, guided by the predator housed within him. "AJ when I want... sounds really inviting from your lips, miss," he teased quietly, putting a level of meek quiver in his voice that was instantly betrayed by the milky bluish-silver glimmer in his eyes, a mixture of cleric's fire and moonlight. He clasped her hand down from his cheek, raking her fingertips down his shoulder and chest to where his heart beat strongly. "Can say I'm hungry for that more than for your bread."

Her own heart started to beat a little faster as she saw the fire in his eyes, more so when he brought her hand down and she felt his beating strongly in his chest. "AJ..." She whispered in a husky tone as she licked at her lips, there was warmth and desire in her eyes. "... I want..." Her fingers curled slightly against his chest and she shifted herself closer to him.

He was aware of time and how Nance had already left to head back toward the den. He'd be expected back soon, himself, but how soon was the question. He took a deep breath, finding it filled with her scent and the lingering essence from Nance and the other girl enough to make his thoughts swim and the shine in his gaze mix in deeper hues. "Please do," he offered with a smile that came to meet her lips, his tongue lining the edge of her lips where she'd licked them.

If she understood him right he was giving her permission to be bold and her other hand reached to his shoulder, trying to pull him even closer. She didn't want to wait... she just wanted him. Her husband had never run his tongue over her lips as AJ did now and she shivered slightly with the pleasant sensation. Her mouth reacted as well, parting and taking his kiss deeper as she leaned up to him.

He could sense the brief indecision and amazement that built from it as she shivered. He chuckled beneath the kiss and spun slowly with her, scanning the room for just the perfect thing. He had no intention of laying her down into the mess left by his packmate and decided on the table upon which their dough was kneaded and their meals set out on to set her down now. Careful of her dress for the moment, he slipped the knot free on the lacing as gently as he could manage. She was a widow and no doubt had learned a thing or two to please her former husband. He was sure he had a few new things for her to learn now as well.

There was nothing but his kiss for a few moments, until she felt the table beneath her as he set her down on top of it, even then it was only to be aware of the change in thier location. Her fingers explored his canvas and tangled in his long locks, she was now eager to share his passion as well as that which she felt within herself. Never before inspired to such abandon, she encouraged him to continue and her fingers searched for any laces on his clothes as she tried to help shift her own out of his way. His skin was warm like the fire she'd seen in his gaze and her scent would tell him without a doubt that she desired him and was more than willing to be claimed as his mate right then and there. Tre offered her own tantilizing nibbles over his neck and then sought his kiss again.

[Lovely]

**************************


Time was not his master and likely would never be. AJ's fingers ran over the holes his claws had dug deeply into the wooden table during his lingering attention with the widow he'd claimed for himself. His gaze ran over the marks he'd not meant to leave behind on her tender skin as well and he languished now over the deepest he'd made upon her shoulder. It was small in comparison to the mark he would soon leave that would ensure he would keep her for an age or more as beautiful as she was now beside him. That was a discussion for sometime soon, a time other than now which would be ruined by her fear. She held no fear at all in her scent, only a sweet wonder and pleased calm, if his interpretation was correct. Perhaps it was wishful thinking that such a creature could, or would, desire and endure him for longer than this encounter. Would she truly stay, or slay him in his sleep for his own murderous deeds and for every moment he'd enjoyed with her? His eyes were filled with his questions and his smirk returned as he lay back from her to let her rest, his finger running gently over the mark he'd left damp from his tongue.

Treasa found him to be a wonderous creature and she could hardly believe he wanted her to be his mate.. He was so passionate, strong, fierce and at the same time tender and gentle as he demonstrated now with his light touch. His fingers tickled over the mark as the feeling slowly started to come back to it after being numbed a little with his healing. Her thoughts wandered as she lay, spent and relaxed, on the table with him. She didn't want to move, she didn't care that where they were was completely improper - she only cared that they were together. "I'm almost sad." She voiced the thought out loud with a soft sigh, gazing up at the ceiling and letting her fingers drift to stroke gently over his arm.

Roused from his own thoughts, his head tilted, his mouth moving over words that had no sound at first. He leaned up on his elbow to look down into her eyes that searched the room, not him. "What did I do wrong?" He didn't want to know and hadn't wanted to ask so blatently, but the words escaped before he could bite them back.

Aj moved and her eyes shifted to him as he hovered, propped on his elbow, and she shook her head slightly. Lifting herself up on her arm, she reached for him with the other and sought to kiss him tenderly. "You did everything right." She reassured him with the warmth in her small smile and her blue eyes.

"I don't understand.. why you're sad," he said, trying to gather the information from the taste of the kiss and her scent.

"Almost sad.." She corrected quietly with a brush of her thumb over his lower lip. ".. for the years spent with a man who never made me feel a tenth of what I have felt in these moments with you. Though the years were not many, they were empty of passion, of spark or fire.. a look from you can make me shiver.. the sound of your voice, the brush of you fingers.. you stir me in ways I never knew were possible, just by being near me. I am almost sad for the past.. Had you not come here tonight, I might have spent my entire life never knowing what this feels like.. never knowing you."

"Ignore the past," he suggested, reaching out to embrace her. "I have for years. Regret or rejoice... personally, I'm really fond of rejoice. It just feels so much better, hm?" He chuckled a little and chased after the fingers that played at his lips.

"I don't wish to ignore it.. I'd rather learn from it and use the memory to help shape a more promising future.. one with passion.. with you." She chuckled softly and shook her head, letting him catch the fingers he chased after.

[Lovely]

"Really fond of your fingers, too," he teased, speaking around the fingertip he held in his teeth. He let go and shook his head a little to move his hair from his eyes. "With me? Really? You're not planning on running away? Well... then you better pack before you change your mind."

"Yes with you, silly! I'm really fond of your everything.. why would I want to run away?" She laughed softly and gently pushed herself more upright, nipping playfully at his shoulder. "I don't have much to pack but I will have to get dressed properly to go out to the servants quarters."

"No one is here.. do you have to? Dress, I mean. I'm really, really fond of ... well, I -am- a wolf," he shrugged, realizing he sounded vile and lecherous to request that she run around without the dress in the now-empty house. To have that freedom was enticing enough to him to want to explore the other rooms and more of her in each of them.

"It's cold outside and there is still snow on the ground.. I am not a wolf.." She pouted a little at disappointing him when he seemed so pleased by the thought. "We don't live in the house, it's a small seperate building.. it looks much like a storage shack.. you probably passed it on your way in."

"That hovel? It's scarcely enough to hold a flower's stem!" His ire over the lord and his treatment of others was deepening by the moment. Not a wolf, she pointed out as well. "Hmm... not yet," he muttered, pushing himself up on arms that would welcome more rest. "So be it. Pack what is yours. I'd as soon burn the rest down."

"Might I also pack my sister's things? We don't have much and I will carry hers along with mine." Each girl had two dresses, including the ones they were wearing on this night, and only a few small personal items. Tre voiced the question as she began to pull her clothes back in order, there was a slight limp in her movements.

"Your things are your things. Bring what you need, what she needs, leave what you don't," he shrugged gently and pushed himself off the table to search for the towel she'd given him to clean up with earlier. He was in no such hurry to put his items back on yet. Mention of her sister brought the reality back to mind that Mitch would come looking for him if he didn't return to the den soon and he wondered if Nance had returned there already or if her sister was lost with him in the wilds of the forest instead. "You could keep anything you want," he mentioned, knowing Mitch was not likely to allow the lord of the house to enjoy his riches for much longer, either. Mitch collected shiny, useful items that would barter well and AJ suspected the lord had many such things that would bring a good price in trade for food and anything else they could want. What life was he offering her in trade for having known the warmth and security of such a home, he wondered, even if her own room was divided from it?

Tre paused for only a moment as he mentioned that she could keep anything she wanted, she wondered what he meant by that as she'd only asked to bring her sister's things as well. AJ appeared to be in no rush to get dressed himself and she was left faltering for a moment of whether she should go on to get her things or wait until he made himself ready.

[Lovely]

The remains of the man in the flowers deserved no respect. Let the scavengers find him and pick apart what was left. Keller could have easily raised his leg for the only honor befitting him, but that seemed more than even the remaining corpse deserved. He turned away from the scene and focused on the manor. Would Antony have gone inside? He'd been told not to and to stay on the grounds to patrol, but Antony was as good at listening as he was when his stomach spoke louder. Here at the door it became very clear what had happened and Keller's thoughts reeled again with the scents here at the entry that suddenly came to him. His nose moved down the door frame, one inhale at a time snorted out before the next. Nance had been here. There had been one girl hurt and there was another nearby. Hurt, he scoffed... Hurt in every good way imaginable, though her scent held a fear and bewilderment of pain that explained why Nance was gone. Antony had gone in but not come out as far as he could tell. The other girl remained inside somewhere as well or had left through another door. Perhaps he dined with the girl alone, her not knowing him to be a wolf at her table?

When Keller came through the doorway, he was low to the scents upon the ground, though he watched ahead into the room around him. There had been one amazing display of his packbrothers' charms in the room as evidenced by the smears and stains of eager embraces and intrusions upon nearly every fixture and floorboard. Whether they were loving embraces or merely hungered ones was not clear, but it was clear that Nance had stolen away with the bit of flesh he'd had a very large taste of here. He stopped short of another step and sat back, staring at the girl who was definitely sharing treats with Antony, though not of the sort shared with his packmates. Her skirts were not yet back in place and Antony strode around her like a proud rooster around a prized hen. He hoped he showed no display like that around Lola, himself. Once the girl's dress was slipped back modestly into place, Keller whimpered quietly and ran his tongue over his nose again. He hadn't needed to smell all of Antony's exploits when he hadn't even finished his own.

AJ may have been too absorbed in his own thoughts or pride to yet notice her limping as she gathered herself and her dress back together but she was sure if she noticed the whimper anf the large pale wolf that was now in the room with them, AJ must also. Her fingers grasped her dress where she had not finished lacing it and she gasped softly in surprise, her eyes on the animal and her scent would reflect that she was more shocked than afraid. For one she had AJ to protect her and for another she had learned some about his kind and pack in the short time theyd been together so she didn't merely assume the creature meant her any harm. "AJ.. I believe we have.. company." She licked at her lips and gestured to Keller though AJ might have already turned to know he was there.

"Mmmhmm... ignore him. He's just here to ruin my fun. Guess it's time to go now." AJ paid attention only to her and kept about his business of cleaning up a little more first now that he'd found the towel again, though he was still singing all over from entertaining her and not in any hurry to dress.

Keller licked his lips again and lowered to the floor on his knees. Bread! He could smell both of them, but he could also smell the bread and again he whimpered a little, glaring at Antony. He wasn't changing back just to beg for food.

"Thief says he wants your loaves. So do I," AJ said, teasing her with a glance at her laces, though he meant the translation literally. "Runs in the family.. thieves and food."

[Lovely]

Tre shook her head a little as she chuckled and swatted at AJ, while moving closer to steal a kiss. "Be nice.. you've already had some, you should be in a good mood.. share with your family." For effect she tugged her laces tighter as if to hide herself from him because he was being mean to Keller. "He can have a loaf, there is plenty of food here. That is one thing the mas.. former master always made sure he had plenty of. He didn't share, but I will." She kissed AJ's cheek gently and motioned for Keller to come over to the counter where she'd wrapped the loaves of bread. She limped a bit but tried to walk as normally as she could - even if it was a little slow. "Here." She untied the cloth and took out the bread and held it out toward Keller.

Rather than concern her with the fear of biting her, he stretched out his paw to tap it gently, asking for her to set it down and he'd take it. His eyes were warm and pale like Antony's but tired now and his head was overwhelmed with the scents around him from her and his brothers and all that had happened here.

"I am in a good mood," AJ countered, his hands out as she left him with only a kiss in passing. He sponged a little more then tossed down the towel in the bowl of water. "If I whimper do I get another nibble, too? That's sad. That's just very sad, Keller. You owe me. Wait, there's more than just bread? What do you have?"

Tre placed the bread down on the floor after Keller swated at it but didn't try to take it from her hand. "There you go, that's a start." She brushed her fingers off and stepped away from the wolf and his food, moving toward the one she'd just accepted at her mate. "Plenty.. potatoes, carrots, corn, ham, beef.. the pantry is full. It's only been the master here and as I said he doesn't like to share, so we only recieved meger rations of his stock."

Both the boys' heads turned as she mentioned meat, though the roots would be just as welcomed. Keller whimpered again and gnawed at the bread, snapping through it easily with his teeth. He watched them both, curious to see some soft side of Antony he was unfamiliar with.

"He says his thanks, really," AJ chuckled as Keller whined quietly. He couldn't help that his own stomach growled as well at the mention of tangy, savory meat. "Well if you insist on sharing, don't let us stop you. We'll carry what we can and come back later for the rest."

Keller's whine turned into some form of gutteral growl and yip together, almost speaking though not in a way Tre would recognize. He relayed the message about the horses and the ability to haul a little more if they could pack it up.

AJ stopped a moment. "Horses? Your guest... she's got horses." He wasn't sure what else to make of the offer, not sure how much there truly was to take back.

Tre laughed softly at first as AJ joked with her about Keller and she simply smiled at the wolf who was enjoying the bread she'd given him. "He's more than welcome and his enjoyment of the bread is thanks enough." She gestured toward the pantry which was full and beyond another heavy door a cool stone room where meat was stored and kept cool so it would last longer. When Tre had said plenty, she had meant it. "My gue.. oh! She had gone to the stable to speak with the master.. " Tre paused and bit at her lower lip, thinking of what he'd told her about the master of the house. "Will she be going back with us?" She didn't quite know how to ask what had happened to the other woman, considering what had happened to her husband, sister, and herself on this night.

[Lovely]

Keller's tail swept the floor once or twice as his head rose. The murmuring was nearly like talking again as he affirmed she was definitely returning with -him-. He glanced pointedly at Antony and began to lick the crumbs from his paws.

AJ was distracted by his brother's utterance. "I.. well, I guess I should say so," he shrugged, looking at Keller strangely. He had not seen him eager for a playmate before, either, and he was certainly eager if the tone and scent told AJ anything at all. "I guess... she would be with the horses now since he's here - and ruining that fun I mentioned. Pantry, pack up and go?"

Tre watched the reply from the wolf and how AJ reacted to it as he translated to her. Her eyebrow arched up a little and she motioned between herself and AJ and then to Keller. "Are she... and he..." She cleared her throat and blushed, it wasn't proper at all to say such a thing about a lady. "... together as we are now?" She smiled as she compared Keller and the other woman to herself and AJ, she was very happy to now be his mate and was even starting to feel optimistic for her sister's pairing as well. It was strange how quickly everything in her world had changed, and how hopeful she felt for the future. "Anything you think we should take with us.." She gestured toward the pantry and the food for his family. "Just horses or can we take the cart?"

AJ brushed around her to look into this panty, whispering in passing, "Limping, you mean? Knowing him, probably worse than you are," he teased her, moving his hand close along the back of her skirt. He peeked in for a quick inventory. "Cart if you have one. Sounds... and smells like celebration is in order tonight and this looks like a celebration waiting for us in here. Too much to leave unattended long, but too much for us to store well at home. So... looks like a feast to me."

Tre's cheeks were heated with the deeper blush though she smiled and leaned to nip at AJ's shoulder as he passed and reached to touch her in ways that excited her all over again. "I meant .. together.. mates, like we have chosen to be.. her limping whether more or less than my own is not really my business. I only hope she is as happy about her limp as I am about mine.. you really need to put some clothes on. I can't be held accountable for my actions if you don't." She kept her voice a quiet whisper as she shared the teasing remarks with him, her fingers brushed lightly against his hip. "There is a cart around the side of the house."

"I don't see a problem with that, do you? Alright, if you're going to burst out of your skin otherwise, I'll put on clothes." AJ sighed then and remembered they'd seen a lot of soiling. "Non bloody ones, I suppose, though I don't really see a problem with those, either. Or, I travel like him."

Keller rose to his feet and shook down his coat. There was a problem with traveling like he was? It was the most comfortable for him, and the most freeing. The rumble he uttered as he turned to go out would tell AJ not to take too much time and he'd be outside waiting for them.

Keller turned to go and Tre spun herself gingerly to face AJ and reached to pull him closer, she smiled softly and brushed her hands down his arms. "I like you just as you are now, but we'll never leave if you don't change.. you're far too tempting.. even when you are dressed." She sighed and leaned in to kiss his neck. "Wear anything but the shirt that is covered in.. the gardener.. that's all I ask.. if you wish to travel in your other form, I won't object." She'd given him a clean shirt earlier but she was not sure where it ended up in thier romping.

"I'll put on the clothes. Can't tease you as well otherwise and seeing you squirm... well I like it when you squirm," he laughed and looked for the shirt she'd brought an the rest. "Bags or crates, start loading them up and I'll get the cart and send Keller for the horses."

[Lovely]

"I like when you make me squirm." She whispered under her breath, though he would likely hear it as clearly as if she'd spoken it normally. Tre was reminded with each step of the time they'd spent tangled and how great the pleasure had been to be with him in that way. There was no denying that they were quite compatible and she looked forward to being strong like him so they could more fully explore the possibilities. She did her best to move as quickly and normally as possible but the limp was visible and her cheeks kept a near constant light blush as her thoughts wandered though she kept herself on task packing up the food. Meats were wrapped and set into bags and the vegtables into sacks for AJ to carry out to the cart.

AJ scouted the corners of the kitchen and pantry, finding the clean shirt still partly folded and safe. He pulled it over his shoulders and found it uncomfortably snug around them. He pulled a claw through the fabric, venting it around his thicker arms and allowing a little more movement. The raw edges could be sewn later, but it covered enough for now. He chuckled to himself about the smaller man he'd borrowed it from who never had a chance against him. He left Tre to the packing and followed Keller to the cart.

*****************

The master's horses were less well behaved and understanding, perhaps from having been near the stables with the artifacts that AJ would soon learn about that smelled so strongly of angry wolves. He eventually had them similarly harnessed and ready, bringing the cart to Tre's door to load. He hopped down, grimacing slightly. Perhaps he'd amused his fate with the comments about preferring a kick, though thankfully it was only his leg that had been struck and not his face. "Hope that didn't take too long. Are you alright in here?" He poked his head into the kitchen area, wondering if she needed more help.

Tre came from the other room, carrying a stack of folded blankets and quilts, she smiled brightly at AJ and shook her head. "I've gotten quite a bit of the food ready and I thought perhaps we could sneak a little of this back as well... some comforts for those who might need them. There is plenty to be had.. when we return if it's something your family needs or wants." She was still limping and trying not to show it much as she came up to offer him the linens and a kiss. "I kept myself busy while you were gone.. but noticed your absense.. " It was strange for her to have noticed and missed him in the time he was gone since she was used to her former husband who was often gone for hours and she barely noticed it.

"You did?" AJ grinned, unfamiliar with anyone ever missing him when most tried to send him out to get him away. He took the stack of linens in one hand and reached for her with the other. "We'll have to talk about those needs and wants a little later," he said, trying to keep her close and not hobble after her until the sting from the bruise softened. "Linens in the carriage then, and the food with us.. if that's okay?"

Tre smiled sweety at AJ's teasing and curled around his side, sprinkling kisses over his cheek and neck, she felt a little silly wanting to be this affectionate with him but it also felt wonderful at the same time. Everything was new and so much different than what she'd had before, her blue eyes sparkled with delight. "In the carriage? The lady has two chests that we should bring.. do you suppose there might be room for our things since we have the cart and carriage? The cart should carry most of the food.. is there anything else you think we should bring?" She motioned around the master's house, not knowing what his family had or might need and want from the things here.

"What's here worth taking back besides you and the food?" AJ was sincere in the question, not sure what the master of the house had for treasures. The linens were nice and Lola's crates would be helpful for her to have with her, especially since Keller had left her dress in poor shape with his lack of patience.