Big Bad

[Lovely]

April 29, 2010
7:30pm
follows: Show me the way

Delaney had finally gotten to where she had a signal for a few minutes and called home to let Annia know what was going on and that she was stopping by the store for some beverages before she came home. Annia was pissed at Steve on her sister's behalf, what a jerk! She sighed and went into the kitchen to make a sandwich, she knew she needed to eat before Del came home and they sat down for the b*tch-fest. From what she could tell, her sister was ready to break up with the jerk and there would be much talking and drinking tonight. Annia laughed and shook her head, she had plenty of her own thoughts on Steve and would be glad to see Del dump him. Annia was wearing her pajamas, a cami-tank with soft pants and a light open sweater since it was cool still. She hummed as she spread the mayo onto her bread and stole a bite of the turkey.

He'd heard part of the conversation, at least the angry tone of voice as the conversation ended. She was expecting company, but he was a gate crasher, so were Taidgh and Cady who he'd sent around back. AJ wasn't going to take long on his errand, or didn't usually, but he was there when AJ had told Mitch about the millworker's girlfriend, this girl's sister. Iain smelled the air for himself, at first smelling only the turkey that was out to adorn her dinner, but then her scent followed. He nodded a faint approval behind the deep thoughts. AJ's taste wasn't as dispicable as he'd gathered by appearances, not if this girl and the sister were much alike. He tried the door once the others were out of view, ready to turn it against the wood grain and break it if he needed to. Anything of value here was leaving tonight.

He'd find the door wasn't locked, since Annia was up and about and expecting her sister home. The hinge was recently oiled so it swung open silently, leaving the girl with no warning that she was no longer alone. She piled the sandwich with turkey and veggies, using a knife to cut it in half and then turned to deposit the knife into the sink.

How very nice of her to have her back turned, he grinned to himself, his pace allowing him to take up the unguarded sandwich before she turned around again. "Needs mustard," he said around the mouthful he'd stolen of it. "You know your door's not locked?"

Annia jumped at the voice and the knife clattered into the sink as she turned back to see a tall dark haired man with amazng blue eyes, eating her sandwich. Her mouth was agape for a moment and then worked around several different replies to his comments as she tried to get over the shock with some sort of grace. "Ah.. that's mine and yeah, I was aware of that, about the door, actually. I was expecting someone... my boyfriend.." She totally lied on the last little bit, she wasn't expecting him at all but this guy didn't need to know that.

"Hm. I thought it was your sister, unless your boyfriend is coincidentally also named Del, but it isn't, is it? Good sandwich. Here," he said, giving her the untouched half back. He took another bite of the piece he had and set it down beside the first. He watched her intently, aware of the knife within reach, wondering how long it would take her to try and use it.

[Lovely]

She was already thinking of using the knife but was attempting to find a more rational way to deal with the strange man in her kitchen, who seemed to know alot about her plans for the evening. Annia didn't touch the sandwich, not because he'd started to eat one of the halves but because she wasn't sure why he was there or what he wanted. "Mmm no, his name is Tommy and you're right.. I am expecting my sister home.. but that doesn't mean my boyfriend isn't coming over." As far as she knew, he had no intention of being there tonight, though she suddenly wished he was. "You want some chips with that?" She half chuckled at the sandwich he'd set down and how he acted so.. casual about coming into her house. "So.. are you a friend of Del's?" Maybe her sister had told him to stop by.. he was better looking, than Steve.

He grinned and wet his lips as he leaned on the counter. "Not so much, but I'm about to be a very close friend of yours - once you stop lying to me, Annia. No chips, just answers... please," he said, flashing a wider grin for a moment. "How well did you know Steve.. Steve's friends? I suppose you're all like that, hm?" He lifted his fingers, twisting them around each other.

Alright, she was obviously a terrible liar or he 'knew' things that let him know she was fibbing about Tommy.. but how did he know if he wasn't a friend of Del's? "How well did I know him.. that makes it sound like he's gone. Del hasn't broken up with him yet. She will as soon as he answers his phone, the coward." She regarded Iain for a moment and then folded her arms, her head tipping to the side a bit. If all he wanted was to know something about Steve then she had no reason to go all stabby on him, yet she remained next to the sink - just in case. "Fine.. you want answers.. I'll do my best.. but fair is fair and if I ask you something.. you have to answer honestly too. Deal?"

He shrugged and set his hands forward, lacing them out in front of him where she could see them. He hardly seemed a threat, just more of a freeloader. "Sure. I don't see why not," he said, his eyes sparkling with an inner mischief. "So you.. your sister... Steve.. all really very close? Hm. Interesting. So for him to go all scatterbrained.. totally unlike him?"

He was pretty cute standing there like that, looking unthreatening. Tommy, Tommy, Tommy! She repeated in her head to remind herself that she had a boyfriend and shouldn't be checking out other guys.. well, there was no harm in admiring. "First of all, no - we're not all very close. I don't really like him all that much but he's my sister's boyfriend and they've been together awhile.. Tommy works with him at the mill but isn't really part of his circle of friends. I am very close to my sister, however." She clarified for him, so he would understand that Steve wasn't really her friend 'like that'. Annia licked lightly at her lips and shrugged. "It's not totally unlike Steve to be thoughtless or scattered but he's usually pretty predictable. Why does that matter?"

Again he shrugged. "It doesn't if you're not going to miss him. He never made it home. I suppose he'll turn up eventually, but don't expect to hear from him soon. It could be that hiding out while people are looking for him fits with thoughtless, but this seems a little more... permanent," he suggested. "You're very right, what you said that she's better without him. How about Tommy? Does he treat you well?"

[Lovely]

She got a chill when he said 'this seems a little more permanent', though she didn't care for Steve, she didn't wish him harm.. at least not most of the time. "I won't miss him.. but Del might.. she'll probably feel guilty for wanting to break up with him when.. well he didn't blow her off like she thought. There is a big difference between not making it home and not calling cause you're a jerk." Annia looked down for a moment, letting that sort of sink in before she brought her gaze back to Iain. "It's not really your business how Tommy treats me.. why are you asking that about him?"

"Would really hate to see anything happen to him, that's all." He said, shaking his head a little. "I went to Steve's and waited, but he never showed up. I'm not big on patience, myself, so I can't blame your sister for being a little quick on the trigger. Cut him loose anyway. He's not worthy of her. Anyway, no Steve, so I came here to see if Tommy was around. How strange he's not here, hm?"

She regarded him with a slightly narrowed gaze, he'd know by her scent she was protective of the man he was now speaking of and she didn't like too much what he said. "Why would anything happen to him?" She asked first, her eyes sparked with a bit of fire as if she'd try to get between Tommy and anything trying to get to him. It was part of who she was, a very strong protective instinct. "It's not strange that Tommy's not here. We're not attached at the hip.. we have what you call healthy time apart. He went to his grandmother's, he does that sometimes to help her with things around the house that she cant do herself."

"Wow, defensive much? It was only an observation. Little Tom Riding Hood is safe if he's at Grannie's with the goodies and all that, right? Just makes me wonder... if he's there, then... where's the big bad wolf?" He looked around, as if expecting to see a big, meaty man lurking around her in Tommy's absence.

"Defensive?" She started off as if offended that he'd said so, but she sighed and shrugged. "..maybe a little." She agreed but hadn't liked the way he'd said what he said about Tommy before. Annia laughed quietly as he asked about the big bad wolf, her head shook slightly. "The big bad wolf wouldn't come here. He knows better."

He tilted his head as if trying to hear her more clearly and understand. He'd been teasing a little, but perhaps he was onto something. He smiled and his eyes brightened further. "Never met one that knew better than anyone if he thought he had it made. What makes you think he knows better and wouldn't show up, hm?" He moved around the counter now and looked out the window into the dark.

Annia watched him with an arched brow but chuckled again and shrugged, letting her arm drift out in the general direction of 'up the road' as she spoke. "Well I figure big bad has to be a pretty smart guy or maybe just all those animal instincts.. there is a house a couple miles up the road that gives out tail to just about anyone who wants it.. he'd probably have a heck of alot more fun there and never even make it here.. That and I bite back."

"Oh, I'm really hoping you do," he said. "It's not tail I want."

"Well.. I guess you won't be going to that house.. and it's good that you don't want it, since you're here and I have a boyfriend.. so no tail for you." She was teasing a little but paused in her light laugh to look at him again. "Are you trying to say you're the big bad wolf?"

"I'd rather show you," he said, raising an eyebrow before his browline billowed out and his features changed before her eyes. The charming young man with dark hair had become a black and silver wolf, standing on its hind legs and fixing on her with the same icy blue stare.

She started to ask what he meant but before the words could be voiced he started to change, her eyes went wide and her mouth was left hanging open again. Her knees felt weak and she reached for the edge of the counter behind her to steady herself, the tempo of her breath was slightly quicker. "Me and my big mouth.." She whispered when she could manage to say anything at all. Her eyes darted to the side just before she did, trying to make a run for it around this side of the counter and into the livingroom.

[Lovely]

He was fast even on two feet, darting to get between her and the next room. She knew the layout of the place a little better but he was a quick study. She got past him, but he leapt through the doorway to catch her in the next room, diving in front of her then to block her exit through the front door at least. Not completely in wolf form, he could still speak a little. "You stand a better chance in here. Make me chase you and you'll lose."

There was a quiet yelp as he was suddenly in front of her again, damn he was fast! "A better chance of what.. getting eaten?" She asked as her eyes darted around the room, looking for an escape or something she could use as a weapon. "So if I don't make you chase me, do I win?"

"I chase you, I get pissed off. Not mad yet," he said, offering an eerily human lift of his eyebrow again. "Just want answers, so stay put," he suggested. He watched how her eyes tracked around the room in search of something to help her.

"I already answered your questions!" She snapped, mostly out of fear but a slight irritation that he wasn't done asking. She took a slow step backward, her chin tilted almost defiantly as she didn't run but didn't 'stay put'. Annia backed up a few steps as if to show him he couldn't boss her around but also to change her angle so she could see the room better. "What else do you want to know?"

"Why did you let him do it?" There was anger in his voice though he'd said he wasn't mad. Asking the question made the thought resurface. "Did you help him? Who else did?"

"Let who do what?" She asked, her voice was softer, his anger was easy to pick up on but there was something else she couldn't quite put her finger on. "I think I need the answer to my question before I can answer yours."

"Tommy, Steve, whoever else there was. They ripped him apart, Annia," he said. He glanced to the back of the house again, unsure if he'd heard anything outside. Wishful thinking perhaps. He looked back at her and softened his own expression, returning to the kind-faced man who'd come in uninvited. She was afraid of him doing the same to her - where was that justice if she had nothing to do with it? He didn't find anything in her scent that said she was hiding or lying now. "You weren't there, were you?"

She shook her head a little, she'd backed another couple of steps away from him and found the wall directly behind her, stopping her from going any further. "I don't know what you're talking about.. I wasn't there." She was eased a little by him shifting his appearance back to that of a man but she was still very frightened. "When.. and who did they rip apart?" Her lower lip trembled and she clasped it with her teeth to hold it still.

He took a deep breath to push the anger down in himself, his eyes closing briefly. He grinned, satisfied with her state of fear and still-rational thought that she was uninvolved and truly didn't know. "My brother," he said, sighing with a sting of the still-fresh pain as he opened his eyes to look at her backed up to her wall. "But I believe you. That you weren't there and knew nothing of it, but now here's the stickier question. What you do know now is what I am. What are we going to do about that?"

[Lovely]

"Your brother..?" She breathed it out, looking at him with a bit of horror reflected in her eyes, more so than what fear had been there when he transformed into the half wolf state. Annia couldn't imagine Tommy hurting someone, Steve maybe but she even had a little trouble picturing him ripping someone apart. "When did they..?" She asked again, wondering how recently this had happened and how long she'd been kissing and loving him since it had. "Why do we have to do anything.. about me knowing?"

"Word gets out sooner or later, then it becomes more than one loss, doesn't it? Hunters go hunting and the curious go looking for a fairytale. We're real... Annia. We have been here for ages and until a few weeks ago, no one knew or had any reason to come looking. They should have left him alone."

She nodded as he spoke, agreeing with his logic and that they should have left his brother alone, it was scary to think that there were things out there like him.. it gave a whole knew meaning to some of the local legends. "A few weeks ago? Wait.. you mean when the guys all went off together for the weekend?" Her head shook slightly, something sparking in her eyes as she spoke the words.

"The guys," he nodded, folding his arms and waiting to hear more. "Exactly who I'm trying to find now. Tommy likes to talk with his friends, it seems. I just don't know who all his friends are and that is what I want you to tell me."

Annia dared to give him a cool smile, the relief washed through her scent and the soft sigh that came out before she spoke. "Tommy wasn't with them.. he didn't go.." She almost laughed, happy to find that she hadn't been kissing him after he'd done such a horrible thing. "Steve and the others gave him so much crap for it.. and Julian but he's been off with his father, they used his truck.. it's still parked out back waiting for him to pick it up when he gets back.. but he and Tommy didn't go on that trip."

"No?" He was clearly skeptical and she was suddenly too relieved. "Well then we can simply start taking out anyone he talks to in town, then. Or, better answer, why not tell me just who went on the trip and we'll only talk to them, hm?"

"No." She confirmed quietly, feeling a little defensive again and like she needed to explain more to make him believe it though she was being completely honest in her answers. "I don't know everyone that went.. they were Steve's friends, guys who work at the mill.." Del would know better than she would but she was trying not to mention that little fact.. maybe she could get rid of him before Del even got home and her sister would never have to know or be hurt by this. That thought was what made Annia stop stalling and she looked this man in the eyes as she gave him the names. "Steve, Jason, Billy, Nick, KC, Harry, Lance, Kyle, Peter, Jerry, Noah, and Collin.. I think that's everyone." She ticked each one off on her fingers and nodded, knowing that by naming them she was going to get them hurt or worse but if it kept her sister out of it, then it was worth it.

"Smart girl," he said, running the names again in his head. He began to chuckle to himself a moment later. "They are a dirty dozen, aren't they? No Tommy, so you didn't slip there. Good girl. He'd be proud, I think. Not sure we'll ever find out though."

[Lovely]

Annia nodded again, it was brief this time, just recognising that he had the answers he wanted and she'd given him the correct information. She couldn't help how her color paled as he mentioned Tommy being proud but not ever finding out if he was. "Whatever you're going to do.. please just do it and go.." Her eyes closed as she tried to be braver than she'd ever had to be before. "..before my sister get's back.. please.. please leave her out it, she doesn't know anything.. don't hurt her."

"My pleasure," he said as her eyes closed and he again became the wolf that had scared her. He wasn't going to rip her apart, but he would make it more than difficult for her to simply blurt out to anyone what she knew about him or his family. He growled a warning at first, knowing her quickened heartrate would serve his purpose well, then she would feel the heat of his breath on her leg.

She felt his breath on her, it was warm enough to feel even through her pajama pants and her eyes fluttered but she squeezed them closed. Whatever it was, she didn't want to see it coming, it would be better if it just happened and she didn't know it. Her heart started beating even faster with the anticipation of -something- happening, she assumed he meant to kill her.

He could almost hear her heart racing and the scent was beautiful, more beautiful than any doe he'd had the pleasure of running down. AJ had his new favorite and now Iain was beginning to take a liking to this one the more he savored her scent. He hadn't thought of himself as jealous until then and the thought amused him deeply. Who caught whom, he wondered, admiring the girl's bravery. Without much fanfare and anticipating the scream, hit bit sharply, high up on her thigh and tugged her to the floor, pulling her down along the wall so her head would not hit quite as hard. He let go only to rip away the pantleg and bite again.

The scream was was everything the bite felt like, the sound was ripped from her and her fingers clawed into anything she could get a grip on as he dragged her down to his level. She couldn't stop herself from kicking at him, her uninjured leg thrashing wildly as he bit her yet again. She didn't scream as loud the second time, it came from behind her clenched teeth as her body arched from the pain. Tears wet her cheeks though she barely noticed them beyond the agony she felt in her thigh. She swore out in panted breaths between the soft sobs that she couldn't control.

If reason returned to her, she might find that he did not break the bone or bite her anywhere else. The kicks from her other leg were dodged and pawed back. Though she had hit him several times, he did not relent with his grip on the other leg, letting the toxin in his saliva seep in the deep wound while his teeth stayed in place, keeping her from bleeding to death. If he intended to kill her, surely she'd know he would have in the first instant. He released the pressure now, slowly, as his tongue slipped behind his teeth over the series of holes. The blood in them had turned nearly the color of ink and began to thicken, soon stopping as his tongue passed over them again and again once more. The pain now would be the rest of her heart's own work, pulsing rapidly to flood her body with the fluid of his bite. A searing heat, a fever unlike no other, would break the beads of sweat on her brow in moments. She was accelerated by her fear and the change would take her quicker than most. Perhaps it was a blessing for a small girl like her to endure it and end the worst of it so quickly. No alarms were brought from the others outside. He had time. His tongue ran over the bite once more and soon she would find it becoming numb, either in comparison to the rest, or simply that the marks were being reversed, healed gently while he still watched her with the icy blue stare.

[Lovely]

As each moment passed and he held onto her leg without biting anywhere else, she slowly realized he wasn't going to kill her quickly as she first thought he would. She didn't know what he was doing, it didn't make sense in her dazed state that he would try to tear her leg off and bite her so harshly only to stop. She tried to clear her thoughts but it wasn't working and they became more confused as his toxin worked through her, bringing with it a burning like nothing she'd ever felt. The pain of her leg seemed distant compared to what she felt now, like the worst fever times a hundred. Annia moaned, her body arched again and then she tried to curl into a ball, her cheeks were still dampened by the tears that continued to spill.

"Such a beautiful girl you are. Shhh," he muttered, returned to the visage of a simple man though his face and clothes were still stained. He stroked her hair as she writhed and convulsed against the changes. "Soon you'll understand everything."

She heard him through the haze and she opened her eyes, trying to see where he was, she could feel him touching her hair. He called her beautiful and told her she'd understand soon, but that didn't make her feel better now and she had a promise to keep. She fought the pain and though her eyes closed against it, she reached out for him.. any part of him that he would bring closer so she could bite him back.

She pulled herself up against his arm and found her way to return the bite with a generous amount of pressure in her own right. He didn't pull away, finding the gesture endearing and helpful to spur the changes as she broke the skin and tasted the flow of his own blood. He winced against the pinch that held him awkwardly, however, as he strained against a contained laugh and straining to hear the others outside. Someone had arrived. The laugh broke loose and he tried to pry her off his arm. "Your spirit is more than willing but you need to rest. Next time you try that, you'll rip an arm off - hopefully not mine."

She hadn't expected to break his skin but held on as long as he let her, only to be shocked when he pulled her off his arm and she realized her mouth was stained with his blood. She was disgusted but at the same time intrigued by it and by what he said to her, her eyebrow arched up. "Rest? Why.. so you can eat the other thigh later?" She felt tired and drained, much like she did when she had an actual fever but this felt very different. She groaned and closed her eyes again, bringing her hand up to cover her face. "I'll just rest here.." She murmured beneath her hand with a quiet chuckle, there was no way she was getting up on her own right now. "Why did you bite me like that?.. Why do I feel.. ill?"

"Now you're the one with questions, hm? Lay still. I'll be right back." He only went far enough to find the nearest pillow and bring it back quickly for her. "I'm not biting you again, at least not like that. It's what I needed to do. It's my guarantee that you're on our side. A handshake isn't good enough."

"I've had questions since I turned to find you in my kitchen." She countered, hearing him move and then feeling the pillow he brought to her. She opened her eyes and looked at him through the spaces in between her fingers. "So I'm on your side because I can't run away? What sort of twisted logic is that?" She shook her head but then arched with a painful spasm, it felt like her muscles and bones were being twisted inside her, it took her breath and voice away.

[Lovely]

"Pretty sound logic when the alternative was me killing you outright. I don't have time for blackmail and babysitting to keep you at your word. You don't have time to worry about it much longer anyway. You are a quick learner," he said, leaning over her, awed by how rapidly she was metabolising the changes and trying to help ease her through the convulsions. "You're becoming one of us.'

"I thought you were going to kill me." She admitted when she could speak again, she shifted her hand away from her face so she could see him as he hovered over her. "I have plenty of time to worry.. if you're not going to kill me." She pointed out, her head didn't want to wrap around the part about 'becoming one of us' but it still sank in and she felt her eyes blur with tears. "You didn't have to bite me, or blackmail or babysit me.. I wouldn't have told anyone. I was trying to protect my sister from all of this.. and now you've ruined that.."

"Mmm, no. Not exactly, but my other brother will," he admitted, rubbing his chin with his finger. "And yes, I did have to bite you, so you can keep up with the rest of us. You're a bigger part than you even realize."

"Who said I wanted to keep up with you?" She snapped, she had never liked being ill and the way she was feeling right now was much like that, it made her cranky. "I don't want to be a part.. I wanted you to go away and leave me and my sister alone!" Her eyes flared with a faint red as her gaze locked on him. "What is your brother going to do to my sister?" Her voice sounded funny to her, deeper and nearly like she was growling.

"The same thing if he hasn't already. He's already made sure that Steve's out of her life. Isn't that what you wanted, hm?" He moved back now to give her room.

"No.. I didn't want her to go through anything like what I'm going through right now. I don't want her to be scared, bullied, hurt, confused or to be whatever you decided I needed to be!" She pushed herself up and glared at him, she really was growling now and the intensity of her anger scared her, though the protective instinct she'd always had was stronger than ever. She would kill to protect her family.

"Take a deep breath, Annia. Not to calm down, but to tell me what it tells you," he suggested, circling away from her immediate reach. "I don't know if she's scared or bullied, but she will hurt just like that. For how long, I can't say. Not long if she's much like you and knowing my brother, he'll take very, very good care of her to lessen it. If you still want me to kill you, go ahead and try to stop me." If she was keen on her senses, the information would bring her fear to her awareness and soon after the attraction to her in his own scent, made stronger by the challenges she kept giving him with her questions, her thirst for understanding similar to his own.

"Don't tell me what to do.." She warned him in a quiet voice, she was glaring at him but trying to calm herself down, her hands clenched in fists. "Try to stop you from doing what?" She asked with an arch of her brow, he was moving away from her, did he really think she'd try to stop that? She moved to try to get up and took in a deep breath to hold against the pain she was sure she'd feel. It wasn't as bad as she expected though it still hurt and she reached for the wall and a nearby table to help her up. Her narrowed gaze swung back to him as she tried to understand what it was she could smell in the air, she leaned on her good leg and stared at him.

[Lovely]

"I didn't think so. You don't want me to try to kill you now. You know I don't want to," he said as she gathered herself slowly to her feet. She questionned now only with her stare that he returned. "You can smell it, can't you? That's fear, bewilderment. There's a sweetness to it you never noticed before. Then there's me. Something you can't place but it's getting the gears working, probably like they do when you're around Tommy. That's my way of telling you why I don't want to kill you, that there are so many more things that I want to share with you, it's not a logical choice at all. I like you, Annia. I knew that the moment I came to your door."

"I didn't want you to kill me before! Sheesh.. I was going to let you because I had this stupid idea if I did, it would save my sister.. obviously I was wrong on that whole plan." She straightened herself up more, keeping her arm braced on the wall and most of her weight off the leg he'd bitten. "I can smell alot of stuff I don't understand and never could before." She sighed, trying to be anything but angry right now. "I'm not usually this angry when I'm around Tommy.. he doesn't chew half my thigh off and then tell me he likes me.. The smell is.. I don't know.. I thought you were cute when you stole my sandwich and I still think that.. even though I want to hit you in the face with this table." She shook her head a bit and tried again to clear her it and make sense of everything that had happened and the infrmation she was getting from scents she never knew existed. "I have a boyfriend.. so you can take your smell and go home." She'd had to remind herself that she had a boyfriend earlier, before she had the added disadvantage of being blasted with the scent that actually made her mouth water.. it was much worse now.

Again he folded his arms and stood still. "No. Can't exactly do that. We're still waiting for your sister and if I'm not mistaken, the owner of the truck in your drive that still smells like my brother's bloody remains. Ergo, if I leave now, no one will tell my siblings to keep either of them alive."

She glared at him again, she didn't like that she liked him or that the gears were turning within even though she'd all but denied it. "Fine." She growled softly then let go of the wall and turned to limp toward the stairs. "I thought you said your brother was going to take care of my sister?" She asked over her shoulder as she moved away from him.

"Antony will, but I have more than one brother," he pointed out as she tried to hobble out of the room and the conversation. "Where are you going?"

"To my bedroom.. I need new pants." She glanced back at him as she got to the first step, this was going to be painful but she was stubborn. "These were my favorite set.. thanks for shredding them."

"Careful not to pull your wounds open. I'm sure your noticed it's not stitches that healed them this far," he said, taking a step or two to follow her in case she stumbled.

She stopped and looked up the stairs, this was so frustrating, not to mention confusing and with him close to her it was more so. "I noticed.. but my room is upstairs and I don't want to sit here in torn pants.. I already feel crappy enough."

[Lovely]

He took another few steps. "Go on up. I'm just going to follow you to make sure you're alright. Antony's not the only one capable of taking care of his girl."

She closed her eyes and took in a couple of deep breaths to keep herself calm but he had moved closer and his scent was stronger. "But I'm not... your girl." She spoke quietly without opening her eyes, letting him move closer if he wanted to, the more she breathed in his scent the more she liked it. It was as he'd said to her before, it wasn't logical at all.

"Don't be so sure," he said, suddenly beside her and holding his arm around her gently to ensure she didn't fall. He wasn't certain if the catch in her breath was dizziness or simple confusion.

She felt his touch and her eyes opened, searching his face for some kind of answer to questions she hadn't yet asked. "Why is it like this? It's not me.. I don't play around or date more than one guy.. I have a boyfriend.. but I can't stop this feeling.. it's exactly like you said.. it's not logical.. I can't think myself out of it."

"Instinct has been around for millions of years longer than beer or GQ. It's not something that makes sense with the eyes or the brain or upbringing. It simply is," he said, offering a slight shrug. "I don't really know what causes it, but I can say I like the choices it makes," he said, attempting to steal her kiss.

The logical part of her didn't want to kiss him but the instinct won out and she leaned into the brush of his lips against hers, her hand left the rail to reach up to his cheek to hold him to the kiss for a little longer. She winced only a little as she put more weight on her injured leg, still trying to be careful of it. She pulled back slowly to look into his eyes. "Instinct." She whispered with a small nod, that made sense even if it didn't. "What.. about Tommy.. what do I do about him?"

"Anything you want. Stay with him or don't, I can't force you, but I also can't make you deny what you're feeling. He can't know what's happened, no matter what you decide. First, do you really think he would believe you? Second, if you show him, he'll kill my entire family."

She didn't move away from him, but shifted slightly closer, attempting to let her head rest against his shoulder. "Instinct and logic don't always go together too well, do they?" Her sigh was soft as she tried to think but kept getting over ridden by what she felt and by the scent which filled her senses at the moment. "Will I feel like this with him? Can you feel this way for more than one person when it's instinct? Or will it only feel this way with you?"

"I've never felt it before meeting you, so I can't answer for certain," he said honestly, wondering what turmoil he'd cause her if she felt similarly for the other man. "Fate is cruel, but I'm not. I can't fault you for what your instincts do tell you, if it's the same for us both or not. I know what I hope. I know what I feel," he said, chuckling a little, almost sounding shy and faltering unlike the direct and bold man he'd first appeared to be.

She lifted her head, her eyes narrowed slightly but in question rather than a glare this time. "It's in the other person's scent.. that's how you know?" She asked quietly, wanting to be certain she knew how to tell before trying to figure it out further.

[Lovely]

He nodded. "It sounds crass and disturbing, but yes. I can't even begin to put in words what yours has been doing to me, but it's keeping logic from working very well. It's keeping a lot from working very well right now. Bloodflow," he said, trying to gently suggest the physical effects, not just the emotional ones she was having on him.

She smiled a little, leaning almost enough to kiss him again but barely held back from doing so. "I don't want to make it worse..." She whispered and slowly pulled herself back to reach for the railing again. "I have an idea but I need to get to my room." She explained, more determined now to get up the stairs.

"Do you? Lead on," he said, being the curious one now and sensing her determination not to strike out at him now. "Not sure how you can help making it worse, though."

"If I know whether or not I feel this way for him.. I'll know whether or not it's okay to kiss you and just let what I feel toward you, the instincts I guess, guide me. Does that make sense?" She went more quickly than she'd first intended, ignoring her leg as much as she could though she stopped talking as she got to the landing. She nearly hopped on her good leg down the hall and into her room where Tommy's scent would be the strongest since he spent alot of time there, specifically in her bed. Long before the bite, while still fully human, she'd noticed the scent on the pillow he always used and often curled up with it when he wasn't with her. She sat heavily on 'his side' of the bed, panting a little from her efforts to get up here and how it aggrivated the bite wound. She could smell Tommy in the room but there was no instant magic spark or anything more than a pleasant recognition. She reached for his pillow and pulled it up to her face, burrying her nose in it and staying like that for several moments. She was disappointed in herself for not feeling that way about her boyfriend, but that was the logical part of her brain, the rest was elated to know it was only one person who made her feel that specific way. Annia hugged the pillow against her middle and sighed quietly.

Iain understood the moment she hobbled into her bedroom. He stayed at the stairs a long moment before following her further, hopeful that she didn't grasp entirely the spark of jealousy that ran through him again. This time it was not because his brother had been blessed to find this woman's sister before he'd been so graced, but that he might not be her choice, or worse that she could not make a choice between them, leaving her confused and hurt. He took a deep breath and came to her door slowly, peeking in to find her huddled around the pillow. "Did it work?"

"I think so." She didn't look up at him at first, staring at the floor with a slight pout, but slowly her gaze lifted and she offered him a seat on the bed beside her, patting the cushion with her hand. "You can smell him in here.. it's enough to know, isn't it? If I was going to feel it.. I'd feel it, right?" She played with the edge of the pillow absently. "I don't feel anything.. just, like a fond memory.. no spark, no fire, no pull."

[Lovely]

"Is that what you would describe what you felt out there? Fire? I suppose that's a good way to explain it, too, definitely pull. What are you thinking about it?" He entered the room slowly, taking in the scent of the other man, himself, noting nothing hostile or dark or particularly notable at all about it, just average, not even passionate or driven, though he wasn't sure how long the man had been out of the room.

"For you? Definitely fire.. and pull.. and sparks.. all the things I don't feel for him." She watched Iain slowly move into the room and gently set the pillow aside. "I'm thinking you should come closer." She beckoned him to join her again and hoped he would. "I'm thinking I need to have your scent in here instead of Tommy's.. I'm also thinking you should tell me your name, since you already knew mine."

"Big bad wolf doesn't work?" He chuckled and looked skyward a moment. How had he forgotten to mention his name? "You're very right.. on all counts. It's Iain, and I think I better take another look at that mark."

"Sure.. I'll just call you B.B. for short." She teased with a slight grin, what anger she'd felt earlier had faded and was replaced by something else, an emotion it was hard to believe she could feel for someone she'd known less than an hour. "Iain.. mmm I like that better." He'd torn her pants and she reached down to finish the job, surprised at how easily the fabric tore. She shifted the pants down over her other leg and then tossed them in the corner to clean up later. "Will I have a scar from this?" She asked, curious as her fingers hovered over the wound though she didn't touch it.

"No. Not as long as I keep tending it. You'll soon find some of your other scars, small ones, changing and fading as well, especially once you learn to change your form. It's different on this side of the rainbow," he said as he sat beside her, as if that explained it all for her. Different was something she would need to become accustomed to quickly and so far she was doing very well.

"So.. you have to keep licking my thigh? Wow.. thats just weird to hear myself say.." Her head shook a little and she chuckled, she felt better like the fever had broken and she was on the other side, past the worst though not quite done. "Well.. lick away. I'm thinking shorts instead of pants for now.." She rambled and tried to stretch her muscles a little, the spasms and changes had tensed her up quite a bit. She was actually pretty tired to be honest but didn't want to sleep, her mind and senses buzzing with everything that was new and different.

"If you insist on the shorts," he said with a sigh and shrug, teasing her and becoming more curious about the rest of what she'd said about his scent and filling the room with it.

[Lovely]

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

April 30, 2010
5 a.m.


He was certain she would be ravenous but reluctant to attempt any of his normal fare. He let her rest as he went back to her kitchen where her sandwich had been left behind. It would be a start. He gathered some of the chips and something for her to drink to bring to her. The bite mark was nearly non-existent now and he didn't need to tend it but he didn't mind continuing to do so. He'd only been gone a moment, quickly returning to put her food in reach but himself that much closer, kissing her awake.

She didn't remember falling asleep and really had no idea what time she'd finally done so, only that she was sleeping deeply and completely relaxed. At the same time she was aware of everything around her, sharper senses and ones she'd never known before brought information to her that she processed by instinct. She knew Iain moved out and back into the room, she could smell the sandwich, and even better - she could smell him as he slipped up beside her. Smell him, feel the heat of his skin, and finally taste him as he kissed her and she began to stir, her hand lifting to his cheek and her eyes slowly fluttering open. "Mmmm... morning.."

"Still night, actually, but I thought you might be hungry," he said. "How's the leg feel?" He settled beside her, putting his hand over where the mark had been.

She lay back, stretching lightly and smiling playfully when she rested still against the pillow again, her warm brown eyes gazing at him. "Feels really.. really.. niice with your hand on it."

"You should take a look, I think. I promised you, no scars," he said, though he didn't want to move too far away. He leaned to kiss and moved his hand away.

Her arm had beem curled above her head and now it drifted so her fingers brushed his cheek and then gently trough his hair. "I trust you.. I don't need to look. Even if there is a scar - it's totally worth having." She smiled as she spoke, her eyes blinking in that heavy sleepy way, though she was begining to feel more awake with each passing moment.

"Hah, no, I'm not, but you... are an incredible find. Instinct... see? It knows what it's doing," he said, trailing his fingers over her skin lightly. "Tell me what's knew, what you hear, what's in the air, now that you've had a little time - how do you like it?"

"I disagree.. you are worth it.. that.." She arched her eyebrow and patted the pillow next to her where he'd been tangled with her for much of the past several hours. ".. was amazing." She sighed dreamily and stretched herself again. "Ohhh I like it." She wiggled her arched brow and then laughed softly. "Oh right.. you're trying to be all serious.. Everything feels new. I do like it."

Her laugh brought his own out a little. "Not trying to be all that serious. I just want to know if you think you're ready to learn more. Don't get me wrong, though. I'm happy with a little more recess time, first."

"Can it be a learning recess?" She asked with a playful grin, whatever fear she'd felt earlier had faded and was merely a distant memory, she trailed her fingers over his skin lightly. She loved the feel of it, of him beside her and the strength she knew was in them both.

[Lovely]

"Yes it can. Good, then you are ready," he nodded, pleased with the student more than his own teaching. "The next time I bite you, it will have to be much, much harder. Our skin doesn't break as easily after its changed. Don't imagine yourself to be a croc, mind you, but knives and needles will take a little more than you remember."

"Well good on that, surprisingly I'm not a huge fan of being stabbed or slashed." She half teased but nodded to his words, taking the information he offered and thinking it over some. "Why are you going to be biting me again?" She asked him curious now that he'd mentioned it in that way.

"Mmm... happens sometimes. Most couples throw dishes when they get into the mix, but wolves tend to bite and scratch, even when they're not mad," he said. "A girl not as strong as you, wouldn't have endured quite so.. elegantly. We may have to redo that lesson again, though, what do you think?"

She couldn't seem to stop herself from touching him, there was nothing like the feeling of him beneath her fingers, she was begining to think she was addicted. He seemed almost scrawny when she first saw him but everywhere she felt tight hard muscle.. it was nearly distracting. "Can I be honest? You may not like me saying this.. but I was so into Tommy.. and what I felt for him doesn't even compare to this. Being close to you, it's like a drug.. I can't get enough. If you think we need to repeat that last lesson again and again and again.. I'm all yours."

"No offense taken," he chuckled, stretching out under her touch. "But the real secret is that you really are and you can repeat that lesson as long or as often as you want. Well, you might want to eat once in a while," he suggested teasingly. "I chose you, so I'm not going anywhere. If Old Tom shows up, I'll give him his socks and take his house key."

He stretched and she took it as the okay to let her hand drift lazily over more of him, she shifted down to kiss his chest, curling herself against him and smiling. She let her eyes close to just enjoy the moment and the contact. "I'll eat.. every once in awhile." She teased back, taking in a deep breath, filled with his scent and hints of the sandwich he'd set aside for now. "Mmmm.. I really like how that sounds. The part about you not going anywhere and me being all yours.. I've never liked breaking up with someone.. so I'm not looking forward to that part."

How could he tell her that Tommy wasn't going to come back? It was too soon to explain the horrors beyond what he'd already said about his brother. That was enough for now but he would have to tell her - he owed her that if he was worthy of keeping her for himself. "Don't think about it as breaking up but.. moving up," he pondered, chuckling a little.

"True.. you are better and I love you.." The words flowed as naturally as breathing and were meant completely, without her stopping to think on it or stumbling over them once said. "I still feel bad ditching him like that. It's not like he even did anything to deserve it.. He's just not you.. and now that I have you, I don't want anyone else." She shrugged, it all seemed so simple - it was what it was and she couldn't change what instinct told her. "Nothing has ever felt as right as you do." She smiled and shook her head with a soft chuckle. "Tell me to shut up, will ya? I'm being such a.. girl!"

"Such a 'girl' that drew me in from blocks away," he reminded her. "Stop worrying about Tommy's broken heart and warm mine instead. There's someone I want you to meet later... after another lesson or two."

"I'm sorry." She murmured, he had pointed out, nicely, how she seemed more worried about the break up than she did giving her full attention to the man beside her now. She slid her hand to his chest where she could feel the beating of his heart and kissed him there, slowly moving her kisses up to his neck and then toward his mouth. She stopped by his ear to share a sigh and a light nip to his lobe, she whispered. "Better?"

"Much, thank you," he sighed, curling around her. "I was teasing but, yes, thank you very much." He was nearly purring as he turned her back to the pillows to begin a new lesson.