Fireweed Rise Teeth

@Skoll lil skolly poly XD

hecate liar

i'm in love with a wicked man

Hecate loped elegantly through the red leaves, practically prancing. Today was the day she had arranged to meet Sköll for some practice. She had rested up and was currently full of energy, a soft smile placed on her face. The young woman hadn't sparred in since she was little, it was only nipping at her older bothers and rolling around with her sister. She had skirmishes with other pack members, protecting her place in line. It was all bark and no bite- but she could sure make it seem like one. She thought herself to be athletic, flexible muscle coiled around bone was what laid beneath her fur; matched with taunting speeds and agility. But in all honesty, she could easily be taken down- if she wasn't watching.

Her paws no longer were scuffling among dead leaves, they were met with soft red flowers. They wouldn't be here for long, winter was coming and they would perish. A slight frown edged on her muzzle. She liked these little plants, they reminded her of blood. This was a nice place to spar; it was flat and wouldn't hurt to bad to be smacked down on. She gave a short howl, signaling her coordinates. It would be heard by other pack members. A crease formed between her sharp brows.

the secrets that I hide, control us & it's just not fair

September 19th; Evening; Partly Cloudy; 40 ° F, 5 ° C

The "day after tomorrow" had finally come, but instead of that decidedly random place within the Drooping Willows, Skoll's own path had come to criss-cross upon Hecate's trail as it led towards the Rise. He could have easily carried himself with an eager step but seeing as the evening hours had only just arrived, he opted to see for himself just how patient his "pupil" could be. Almost lazily, he wove around the willows on the edges of the fireweed-covered meadow, stopping only when a howl was offered up to the darkening sky. She was calling for him and, for once, he found he couldn't resist.

He stepped beyond the tree line into the open and quietly scanned the area until he spotted that almost-abrupt dab of white against the backdrop of faded greens, tans, and bits of red. It was with apparent obedience that he came into her midst, offering a lopsided smile that told of his satisfaction for keeping their "date."

"Good evening," he offered. Had he been human he might have placed the gentlest of kisses upon the knuckles of her right hand, gloved or not. "Are you ready?" With a lift of each of his large paws he rolled his shoulders and studied her with an enthusiastic stare. "Where would you like to start?"

i'm a dreamer, i'm a man

i'm doing whatever i can to make the bad things go away

hecate liar

i'm in love with a wicked man

She watched the slight shuffle in the branches, the tall silhouette striding towards her. She raised her brows, a subtle exciting swirl growing in her stomach. He returned the same feeling with a toothed smile. She took lengthy steps towards him, their chests a mere foot away. Hecate enjoyed the closeness of being with someone, it was much warmer next to another. "An' t'you, Mr. Archer." She touched his chin with her nose, lingering for a moment before retreating to a normal distance.

He asked if she was ready, her lips tugging back to show him the whites of her teeth. "As I'll ever be." She tipped her skull to the side, listening to the satisfactory sound of bones clicking with a wave of relief. He was also tuning his muscles, but only the shoulders. She did several procedures; cracking her back, neck, shoulders and hips. It was sort of OCD really, the snapping sound didn't really do anything- it was just reassuring. "I guess beginners? I'm fast, b'I have issues pushin' m'weight around." She admitted, not really knowing tactics besides pressure points. She knew to go for the neck, back legs and- surprisingly, the paws. She could easily break several bones in a paw with a single crunch. What good was fighting when you have a broken paw- it fucks you up.

the armed queen

Ohhh, this is gonna get "dangerous" fast. xP I can feel it.

the secrets that I hide, control us & it's just not fair

He could almost feel each and every hair along the back of his neck stand up as she returned his greeting in kind, already the charge between them was starting to spark. As was expected, she touched her nose to his chin. While she lingered there for no more than a few seconds, he fought the urge to take her muzzle between his teeth in a dominant fashion; unlike Piety, Hecate was not something or someone to possess. She pulled away and the prince steeled himself.

He watched as she warmed up, stretching each limb and every black-nailed toe. She even cracked her neck and arched her back in a way that made desire pool in his gut. Seeing as he had been aimlessly wandering for a majority of the hour just before he arrived to meet her, his own muscles had been toned and readied for tonight. In the space behind his heels, his tail had relaxed enough in a gentle curve. "Fair enough," he commented.

"Though, weight isn't everything. Just like how speed and stamina isn't everything... It's how you use it all and how quick you are with your decisions." His right paw lifted and he splayed all of his digits stiffly to stretch them out. "Do tell me, Hecate," his voice had taken on a playful and strangely teasing tone that tried to tug at her ears, "If I asked you to choose one thing or another, could you make your verdict in a snap? If I asked you to jump, would you?"

He eyed her carefully, planting his forepaw back into the weeds, "Could you trust me?"

i'm a dreamer, i'm a man

i'm doing whatever i can to make the bad things go away

d00d, it just did XD

hecate liar

i'm in love with a wicked man

Hecate noticed the straining as she pulled away, and it reoccurred a few other times while he watched her. She wasn't a plaything, she was not an object and she sure as hell didn't belong to anybody. She kept her eyes on him, almost enjoying the little game he was playing. He added his piece about strength, nodding in strong agreement. He lifted a single paw, the bone and ligaments stretching with strength; pleasure shone in her green eyes. He brought her gaze up to his face, the sly suggesting voice slipping into his tone. Her heart rate increased double. This is what she loved about him, he was always thinking always scheming- except for when she took his mind off things.

He prompted her, a brow raising curiously. What was he up to? She thought she had passed his tests, she assumed the game was over. She was unconsciously leaning in, hanging on his words with fierce calculation. Then, he asked it. Could she trust him. Her ears perked, brows coming down heavy with deviousness. "I could." She said, sounding serious and earnest. A few moments passed before she added a follow up. "But I ain't sure if I want to yet." She reassumed her greeting position, listening to his close breath with her eyes starring into his. "So do tell m'Skoll, why should I?" Her voice adopting the same tone he had used only moments before, the look completed with brow raised playfully.

the armed queen

I believe, I believe you could love me

"I could," Hecate confided and it was all he wanted to hear. His heart clenched in his chest.

@Piety, he was so certain, just jumped right in without a thought. He was starting to believe that she probably didn't appreciate his guile. If not for his guile, what else was he good for? He thought her almost stupid for thinking that he was capable of only loving. With her, he needed only to say a word and she was his. There was no challenge there for him... No need to impress or dazzle or awe...

Hecate, here, gave him these obstacles and then some, what with her wit and her cheekiness...

After the "loss" of his "first love," all of his guards were up, the hedge mazes were constructed, and the iron gates were locked. Everything about himself, he had come to remember, was supposed to be a puzzle. A riddle to be solved. A mystery to discover. It dawned on him now that he figuratively had given Miss Santoro the keys and all the secret shortcuts and he thought it was what he had wanted...

No, this little game was not over yet. He wasn't going to make this easy on Hecate; she had come to him for his help with what he assumed was an actual "job." Job as in the definition of "disposing of someone undesirable." For all he knew in this moment, he could have been digging himself a grave, and it wasn't one that would be lovingly laid beside his Nonna Skana. All this precaution was to being laid out to ensure that he lived by the time he was done with her.

All the techniques he taught her would be expected. Each calculated move would be anticipated. Every tic of hers, he would learn in the process of training her. Every single charm he could offer her, he would use as bait to lure her into his trap. If he turned out to be her victim, he wanted to take her down with him. After Piety, he would not risk losing himself again so easily and this time he was ready to put up a fight.

She told him that she wasn't sure if she wanted to trust him, then artfully fished for the reasons why. He metaphorically rose to meet her lure, "You have to trust that I won't hurt you during the process of all this; and, I have to trust that you won't do the same to me. It's just how it works. Especially with me. Because if I wanted to hurt you, I would have done so before anything else; and, I don't play with my food." He sized her up again, specifically studying her face and her dark green eyes, "Surely, my reputation must have reached you somehow since you've come to Willow Ridge? Or is this the first time Angier has kept his big mouth shut?"

(This post was last modified: Oct 22, 2015, 09:00 AM by Skoll.)

i'm a dreamer, i'm a man

i'm doing whatever i can to make the bad things go away

HIT EM WITH THE FUCKIN FEELS DUDE

hecate liar

i'm in love with a wicked man

He seemed almost hurt, but not quite there. Her breath caught, eyes glinting with concern. She didn't mean to offend him for they were only figuring each other out. She was having difficulties with understanding him, the things he wanted to hear she tried to mimic- and the things she thought he didn't want to hear, he enjoyed. He made her twist and contort, warping how she assumed things would work. She felt tired but it was only minutes in and he hadn't laid a finger on her. Hecate originally thought of him as a trickster, a jack in the box with a broken spring. But maybe not. With each page she turned, he seemed to grow layers of feeling, doubt and yearn. She expected his book to be complex, but not intertwined. Maybe later today they needed to have a talk, after the sparring. She was generally curious in how he worked, but she didn't want to make him go through her taking him apart to know just how.

Her big eyes starred back painfully- it was like something traumatic had taken place and she was having flashbacks. 'You have to trust that I won't hurt you' He said quietly, a cold and clammy feeling crawling up her legs. "I- I do. An' I wouldn'-" Hecate stammered, her voice taking on a tone that she hadn't used in years- anguish. She realized how stupid she must sound, fumbling her words in front of him. He must think she didn't believe him, he was just tugging at her ear for nothing. She creased her brows deeply, regaining a stronger tone. "I hear bicker here an' there, h'mentioned something vague but, uh, thats all I know outside of you." She averted her eyes, suddenly feeling shattered. She needed something to take her mind off of where ever it had been drifting- her heart racing and her breathing shallow. Fuck Hecate, get it together. She pleaded silently, stifling a soft whimper.

(This post was last modified: Oct 22, 2015, 02:29 AM by Hecate.)

the armed queen

but I'm lost on the road to misery

When their eyes met, his stern gaze was met with one that was riddled with... was that discomfort? Torment? Sadness? For a while, his head and ears visibly shook. This was test. If she was not ready to trust him then there would be no sparring tonight, no opportunity to go further than this. She stuttered and his ears cupped forward. Was it something he had said? Usually, these days, it was, but for the first time in a long time he wondered just what he had uttered to manipulate her mood.

Hell, @Morganna maneuvered through this sort of gauntlet each and every single time they met. Angier dealt with him; @Elettra tolerated him and, on quite a number of occasions, put her son back in his proper place (for, who was he to heckle a queen, his very own mother?). Sköll expected nothing less of Hecate.

Within seconds, she seemed to regain herself and Sköll held his head a little higher than before. She looked away and the prince's ears drew back in apology. He winced. Where had the Hecate he had met just a couple days ago gone? Why had she stolen away into the deepest reaches of herself where he could not see her?

"If this is going to work, this is how it's going to have to be," he murmured, taking a step to the side as to fully look upon her face, wanting her to look back at him. He (desperately) wanted her to "reconnect," to stare at him directly, in what was the universal language of a challenge, with those grass green eyes. Frankly, he had not expected her to crumble so easily and so soon. There was a soft whine on his part as his gaze searched her. Come on, he wordlessly coaxed. Play... Banter with me like the other night... Please... Anything.

Now that he was aware of the effect of his words (and, at this point, he was actually unsure if he had actually fallen into her own emotional snare), he sniffed. Typically, by now, he would have lost his patience, but he actually longed for this sort of relationship to work. The practice would be beneficial to them both.

"If you're pulling my leg," he went on, concern lacing the gentle tone he still carried. "I'm being serious. I won't agree to all this until you give me your consent and you'll have to accept that this is how it will be between us if you want my help. Now, will you trust me or not?"

(This post was last modified: Oct 23, 2015, 05:59 PM by Rook.)

i'm a dreamer, i'm a man

i'm doing whatever i can to make the bad things go away

annnnnd back to cuddles

hecate liar

i'm in love with a wicked man

Hecate was being a child, with her little responses and indirect answers. An internal grimace grew, eyes narrowing fiercely. An angry fire lit in her stomach, furious in that she had fell so hard. She wanted to start yelling, screaming even. She was making him go through obstacles and it wasn't fair. He stepped off to the side, trying to force himself into her spectrum; slowly tugging her away from wherever she had gone. She glared back earnestly, listening carefully. Hecate closed her gleaming eyes, taking a deep breath and reaching out with her muzzle. He could deny it, but she doubted he would.

He went on, explaining her the terms and conditions to being his apprentice- and possible partner. She shuffled forward, opening her bubble just for him. Her pools cracked open again, the emerald burning holes into the grey abyss. "I trust y'wholly, Skoll Archer. An' fer Christ sake I don't know why, but I do." Her nose brushed the fur on his chest, breathing softly watching each black strand quiver with her steaming air.

the armed queen

There is a rabbit\'s nest nearby. +1 Health