Secret Falls Troublemakers

It was rare that he found himself in such pleasing company. The wolves of Oak Tree Bend were mostly practical, blunt creatures, with little sense of wit and no appreciation for the game of words. He generally didn't blame them for it, they were honest, good wolves, and several of them were family to the ebony scout; But it is nice to know that I haven't lost ALL ability in this sport! And even nicer to interact with someone who not only appreciated the joke, but even played along. Drestig watched the woman closely, a curious, delighted expression on his face while he studied her reaction. She was no easy read, which intrigued him, her dark eyes glowing with mystery and charm. And her question made him smile widely, brows lifting as if in defeat; "Ah, yes, awfully good." He admitted, running his eyes slowly along her frame with a small, appreciative snicker.

The atmosphere was effectively ruined by her blunt statement though, Drestig's smile freezing on his lips as he looked back to her face, searching for the joke in her eyes that he hadn't heard in her voice. It wasn't there. All humor had dissipated, her expression somber as she stared, almost blankly, at him, waiting silently. A nervous chuckle passed the silver-tipped man's dark lips; "Oh, uhm..." Admittedly, her blunt declaration had rattled him a bit, the air around them suddenly heavy. Dark tail twitched behind him, tongue slipping out to run along his muzzle. With furrowed brows he looked at the dun-pelted shewolf, head titling ever so slightly as he turned over her statement in his head; So cold... Really, the somberness was what ticked him the most, how matter-of-fact she had stated it. He had his share of experience with killing, but that had been very different; The memory still made him tremble slightly. But she seemed so unmoved.

Finally, with carefully measured movements, the raven chap lowered his hunches to the ground, expression thoughtful as he mumbled: "I see." There was no easy comeback this time, no snide remark to move along the game and return the move to her. Their little play had ended, and now he sat in front of a stranger with more information than he had ever expected to get; More than I have of many wolves I know better... He was so used to secrets, so wrapped up in a world of half-truths and omissions, that this apparent  honesty left him speechless. That was when his smile returned, splitting his mouth slowly as his eyes trailed down for a moment, laughing internally. If there was one thing he never experienced, it was speechlessness. With a fresh twinkle in his bright embers, he looked back up at her, ears waving amusedly; "I'll admit, you got me there." His voice was low, cautious, but warm, and his brows cocked s he continued; "I wasn't exactly expecting such an... honest answer." His lips med again as his smile disappeared, though his expression remained favorable, eyes meeting hers with openness when he said: "I'm sure you had you reasons?" The questioning tone was a prompt sure, but he didn't truly expect her to elaborate, she had already divulged more than he would ever have to any random loner; No matter how charming. But he was curious, he rather liked the witty woman and he would very much like to know what had made her take such drastic action.

Word count: 575

"Speech" Thoughts

WHEN YOUR DREAMS ALL FAIL,

AND THE ONES WE HAIL,

Drestig Avalon

ARE THE WORST OF ALL,

AND THE BLOOD'S RUN STALE.

Her eyes darted over his face, taking in every doubting flicker, every nervous shuffle and questioning look. She almost smiled at his nervous laugh as she seemed to have taken the words of his artful tongue. She probably was one of few although the reason was nothing to be joking about.

The silence was thick like ice and just as chilling. He could walk away, wondering if she was in her right mind to murder someone let alone admit it so openly. She was well aware her confession was no light topic nor some insignificant 'hey did you know?' kind of thing. She was a murderer. A wolf killed, it was in their nature to kill, yet another of their own was not the first logical thought. Maybe he thought she was some crazy psychopath. She wouldn't be surprised if he did. In the few times she had actually conversed with her own kind and told them what had happened, not every result was pretty. And as she looked at Drestig, as he struggled to give a decent reply, response to her loaded words, she expected nothing. She hoped. Hoped that the man would not shun away from her bloodied paws. For once she could actually say she was fond of this guy. This oddball that knew the play of words and the playful tease. It would be a loss to seem him go.

Her eyes flickered a moment of sadness as she looked at the undeniable handsome man before her. There was no reason to be sad, she told herself. He was nobody, a stranger but she knew it was a lie. She was sure had they met earlier they would have been good friends. He was the kind of wolf she genuinely liked. Cornelia almost readied herself to simply sigh and turn around, save herself the painful moment. Her ears lifted as she noticed the new look in his eyes. Hope she should kill but stubbornly remained jumped in her head.

His voice had a new cautious tone she hadn't heard before. Fortunately and quite surprising too, he held a warm tone in his voice. A smile of relief bloomed on her face before she knew it. He wasn't turning his back on her.

On his question she shrugged slightly. "I know I'm not bloodthirsty, I simply got my revenge. He took my family, I took his life." She didn't elaborate more, the topic of her betrayed family still felt like a thorn in her side. There was no day she prayed she would soon forget about those days.