Stars and swords

 

 

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Ruger's eyes snapped open in a flash of amber yellow. Jolted upright, heart hammering, there were things about himself that he realized instantly.. ones he did not expect.

Immediately flocking to his neck, the intensity of his gaze burned into the fur there, staring as though the sight had been an impossibility. He blinked, chest inflating slowly between carefully measured breaths. The man remained completely stilled for another moment before his paw moved, almost cautiously to press against his throat, the result causing a heaviness to sink his brow.

Pristine tangles of charcoal fur met the calloused skin of his pads, dry, clean, and unmarred. Ruger swallowed, uncertain what to make of the tricks his mind had apparently been playing. However entertaining the idea of an afterlife was, his afterlife, it was not a thought he planned to put stock into, nor one at the forefront of his agenda. He would not idle like a fool in trying to contemplate why it was that he still breathed. Nothing useful would come of such a thing.

A plethora of scents swam in the air around him, dark nostrils flaring between inhales, expertly picking apart the useful bits of information. Prey had been plentiful, clean water gurgled in a stream at a reasonable distance, and a single pack had claimed territory near to him. When what he searched for hadn't pricked his attention however, he continued to scent the air, observing another moment longer before admitting the fact to himself. As it would turn out, there hadn't been anything that had registered with even the faintest nod of familiarity. Whatever place he had found himself in certainly didn't smell like any area he'd ever had cause to visit before.

Ruger stood then, the motions fluid as though waking from slumber had simply been a farce. His paws braced solidly beneath him, thighs tensing for support as he rose to his full enormity. The lines of muscle beneath thick fur flexed and stretched without incident as he moved about, experimentally testing each joint one by one until he felt certain he was in fact entirely unharmed. For someone who should have been dead and gone, the realization only served to increase his confusion. A thick tail flicked behind him, sweeping softly through the air as though to challenge such a notion.

Eyes turned skyward, finding it nearly impossible to gauge how much time had passed since he last recalled being conscious. He supposed it wouldn't really matter regardless, no amount of dawdling was going to get him home. Not only did he not know where he was, but there were questions nagging at him that demanded answers. Though it seemed with every question answered came another in its place, quickly giving rise to satiate the more important things.

A glance about alerted him to the landscape as he observed everything within his line of sight. It was strangely colorful, unlike the thick canopies of his own forest that swallowed up all but what lay directly ahead. The breeze that came across the male's muzzle carried on it fresh and potent scents of those living things closest to where he was. Prey, some unknown creatures, and other wolves just beyond the valley.

Something else nagged at the man however, something seemingly trivial if it had gone so unnoticed until this very moment. Had the male listened harder, truly attempted to hear past the natural ambiance of nature surrounding him, he would have noticed a complete lack of human activity. No engines rumbling in the distance, no muttering voices that he might strain to comprehend.

He needed to find out where exactly it was that he had found himself, and what that had meant for his particular circumstances.
 

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Speech

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There was a moment, a single fragile thing that sat within his hand like a crumbled bird wherein he could have sworn he'd hear the soft lilt of song. Crooned from off a woman's undoubtedly soft lips, it had sailed melodically on the carousel of a distant breeze, stopping his progress. And despite the way he refuted it, the sound had stirred something within him. Something he could not place, something he did not like. It had elicited feelings of another time, another world, a daunting aura that had settled around him, thick and suffocating. It cried out to a part of him he thought had long since burned, a part that he had wished had died with the memories. But no matter how he had tired to shut them out now, to quickly clasp the locks and close tight the shutters, the light of those remembrances flooded in through the darkness with blinding illumination. He was exposed and raw, writhing from behind eyes forced wide open, his vulnerabilities laid out as chess pieces thrown in rage across a losing board.

He sucked in a breath as the sound quieted, and for a moment, he had thought he had imagined it alltogether. It would have brought a laugh to him, painful and masochistic as it was, had his barrel not been stirred by the uncomfortable hammering of the erratic organ that beat within. He hadn't imagined it. No more fantastical than he had imagined his own death, as it would seem. Ruger inhaled once more, the scent of vanilla and something floral causing a muscle along his jaw to tighten. He hadn't had long to ponder how her scent had gone unnoticed up until then before a subtle movement drew his eye.

An ear flicked as he tracked her within his unyielding gaze. A dark butterfly, she moved with heightened purpose in either a means of fear or one of ambush. But of course, he wouldn't know for certain, wouldn't ask, though he would remain still against his backdrop. A patient observer. A flash of blue, pale yet striking met his own, an electric tendril reaching toward him just before the unknown maiden gathered herself out of eyesight and behind the brim of a well endowed trunk.

He'd watch her, or rather the tree she had concealed herself behind, for a long moment. Never once did the hard line of his eyes stray from the lichen trimmed bark. A new type of silence had settled over the land, one that felt like holding ones own breath while their pulse quickened beneath the threat of discovery. It had crept in as the fog would, echoing the silent press her paws had made into the emerald mounds of moss quilting the forest floor. Ruger would wonder if this woman's pulse had quickened in the same way, her back rigid against the tree that clutched her in uncertain throws. But he would not dwell on those thoughts, they weren't for him to understand, nor did they deserve the weight of his care.

Patient as he was, he wouldn't wait forever, even if having the time to do so was still a new and unexplained possibility. "Why do you hide, butterfly?" He hummed lowly, the calm timbre of his voice evenly cutting through the silence. Half expecting his voice to come out with a rasp from disuse, a book that gathered dust though its spine cracked with familiarity. However, the surprise he felt would never breach the surface. 
 

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Speech

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Deep aubergine petals that had been woven intricately throughout her fur stole his attention, the darker color clashing sharply with her lighter tones. It was unexpected, foreign, and though he wanted to say it suited her, he kept the thought to himself. The woman's eyes were the color of the moon, an icy shade of blue, sharp and calculating, but the rest of her, from her build to her expression, had betrayed the image they painted. There was a naivety there, a softness that the male doubted would have done her any favors in his own territory. Had she wandered the streets of his city, she would have been snatched up and eaten alive, or worse. But none of that mattered now, did it?

Wherever the pair of them had ended up, the rules were different, and the game was new. Ruger would need to relearn the pieces, the players, and the strategy. The problem was, he had never had much care for the game itself. He preferred a simple, direct approach. Straight forward, blunt, and unforgiving. A blade of sharpened steel, that was something he could trust, something he understood. His own kind, with their treachery and greed, that was not something he cared to comprehend. It had left a foul taste in his mouth, the sort that made his gut turn sour.

Amber eyes watched her every movement, tracking the length of her strides and the subtle shifting of her features. Even now, the muscles that formed her facial expressions were tense, pulled taunt with apprehension. The longer they remained, the less likely it was the woman would simply dart back off into the treeline, and he was growing impatient. It would do no good to wait her out, the time spent would be a waste and accomplish little. She wasn't a rabbit. As his ears fell flat, Ruger pushed himself forward. In a single step, he'd closed the distance between them, towering over the smaller canine. The scent of pine and spice had grown stronger, the air practically buzzing with it. For a brief moment, he thought he'd seen a spark of fear within the female's eyes. Good, perhaps it would serve her well should she decide to turn tail and run.

"Monsters don't hide. They hunt." The male spoke plainly, his words as straightforward as the hard set of his brow. There was a moment, a single instance in time that stretched between the two where he would have sworn his heart had ceased beating. A deafening hush had fallen over the forest, the birdsong fading and the wind stilled. The hairs along his neck stood on end and he felt the prickling sensation that crawled across his skin, raising the fur that blanketed his shoulders. But the moment had passed, and he had no answer to explain the feeling. With a curt flick of his tail, the man would move closer still. "Do you intend to hunt me, woman?" A whisper of a smirk played at the corners of his lips.

 

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Speech

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He had felt the tension. The unspoken words that hung heavy in the air between them like a saturated cloth dripping with ripened potential. It had settled deep, sinking into his bones with that telltale promise. It became an oppressive force that had been difficult to ignore. His ears had remained trained toward her, his every muscle pulled taut with the anticipation that something was coming. Whether it would have been the snap of teeth or a sharp retort, he wasn't sure. Regardless, Ruger had found himself waiting, listening, watching. The man had been prepared, he had told himself as much, but the moment that his senses had been assaulted by the sudden burst of her nearing scent.. Well, that had proven him wrong.

He hadn't anticipated the reaction that her perfume would have caused, nor the way it would make him feel. It had taken him by surprise, caught him off guard. His eyes had widened imperceptibly, a quick breath drawing the taste of her deeper across a quivering tongue. It had been something else entirely, something he could not have named. Something painfully familiar though further than he could ever hope to reach. The wolf had recognized the floral scent, could trace the memory and the feelings associated with it, but there were things missing, gaps that had been filled with a thick fog that would not part. And try as he might, he would not be able to see through the shroud. But then he had blinked and the moment had passed, leaving him unsure as to why it had affected him so. It had not gone unnoticed. In fact, it was a thought that would linger with him, haunting the edges of his mind and refusing to release its grip no matter the ways in which he had tried to bury it.

And for a reason unknown, he had been equally unable to tear his gaze from her, watching the woman in an analytical sort of silence. She too had looked him over, had taken her time to examine him in a way wherein he could practically feel the sharp icy kiss of her attention on him. It was not something he was unfamiliar with, the eyes, the glances thrown his way. No matter the place, he was always watched, but there was a difference with this one. A distinct thing that had set her apart. What exactly that difference was, he did not know. And not knowing, not being able to pinpoint the specific detail that separated the woman before him from the others he'd known, that had left him frustrated, his patience waning. No more than the very tip of his tail gave way to his agitation, flicking subtly at the curve of his hocks.

The muscles of Ruger's shoulders flexed, and for the first time, he'd become truly aware of just how tightly the woman had held his attention. Every minuscule twitch of her muscles had been caught, every gentle, rhythmic flutter of her eyes. But, it had been the sound of her voice that had truly brought him the metaphoric slap to the senses. His ears had pinned flat to his skull as the sound had reached him, low and taunting.

He hadn't meant for the corner of his lips to twitch in response, though the gesture had been quickly stifled, his features carefully schooled back into a stoic facade. But it hadn't been enough, and his nostrils had flared in answer. The male would lean closer, the movement deliberate, as he had taken another breath. His brow had risen, a silent challenge as a muscle in his jaw visibly tightened. "I have never been anything but." Ruger had not raised his voice, nor had he needed to as he breathed out the reply. There was a certainty to his words, an arrogance. An unspoken demand, a threat, an assurance to the other that he would not be the one who ran.

"You are no monster," Ruger would remind her of that simple fact. "So what do you intend to do then, butterfly?" He asked, the amber of his gaze growing more intense as they darkened around his words. He could see the stubborn glint in her eye, the fire of challenge that burned steadily just beneath the surface. It was the same as the one that burned in his own. And yet, he wanted to snuff it out.

 

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Amusement sparked to life in those captivating pale blue eyes of hers. It danced and swayed like a woman moving to the beat of her own drum, and if such a woman had ever existed, surely she stood before him. Poised, ripe with indignation, and beneath it all in a small quiet voice, one that she had surely wished to curse out of existence, was something else. Something that had intrigued the gent to move his pieces across the board and draw out the queen residing at the other side. The corners of his mouth had twitched in a subtle manner that could have been mistaken for the shadow of a grin. He had felt the intensity in her words, the burning defiance that had shone in the icy depths of her eyes. There was something there, something more to the woman, and he was certain that were he given the time, it would surrender itself to the light.

The larger man had stood silent, his gaze hardening as his thoughts continued. His posture remained firm, broad chest expanding with measured breaths and a steady heart rate. There was a stillness that had overtaken the two, a palpable silence, though it was thick with tension. It was a familiar feeling, one that the man had welcomed. Though the details were foggy, the feelings themselves had remained. A single word would have shattered the tenuous hold they had over each other, and the longer they waited, the higher the anticipation grew. To break the stalemate was the last thing the male had intended. It was the woman, however, who had finally given in, the sound of her voice pulling him from his musings.

Ruger leaned closer, the distance between the two shortening as he moved. "Tell me then, do I scare you?" He had questioned, the tone of his voice dropping lower, the rumble of a growl hidden beneath the intensity of the husky timbre. The question was rhetorical, the man already knew the answer, his gaze resting briefly on the rapid swell of her chest as if to confirm with himself. If she were any other, perhaps she would have run, and yet, he was not surprised to see her stand her ground. Her defiance had only served to stoke the intrigue within him, and the corner of his lip had twitched once more, the faintest hint of a smirk forming. He had wondered, briefly, how she would have tasted had he bitten her.

He watched her, closely, observing the way her eyes had traveled his frame, taking the opportunity to do the same. Her fur had a glossy appearance, a smooth, luxurious quality. It was a darker shade, a beautiful contrast against the lighter tones. He noted the way it seemed to shimmer, catching the reflection of light that had pierced through the cloud canopy above. Ruger could appreciate a beautiful sight. He was not immune to the charms of the feminine, though it was rare for him to allow the sentimentality to affect him. Still, there was a part of him, a smaller voice, that whispered in the recesses of his mind. But his attentions were elsewhere, and the whispers, too faint to be heard.

He could not deny that she had an air about her, a regal sort of beauty. It was in the way she moved, the way her voice held the subtle command. Even the way she stood, head tilted and chin proudly lifted. He was no fool however, and he had been careful to note the way her gaze had lingered, the slight hitch in her breath.  And so when she had spoken again, this time softer, his features had betrayed the smallest of reactions. A brow had risen, an almost imperceptible movement, a silent query laced with amusement. 

When she moved toward him on delicate toes whilst her nostrils flared like a dragon's, her lips speaking stories of monsters that danced and sang, he watched her in contemplative silence knowing full and well the only understanding the woman had of true evil resided in the stories from her puphood. Fantasies that were meant to coddle young ones in their whelping dens before their slumber. Yet the challenge was written across her eyes long before it ever left the velvety soft curve of those dark lips. His smirk had grown, and a dark, throaty chuckle had rumbled from his chest.

"And how, then, my little butterfly, would you intend to chase a man twice your size, hm?" His eyes had hummed with an ounce of amusement now, yet the intensity of his demeanor remained. A fire burning, lashing out from his irises as it leapt and swayed beneath the heat of her gaze. "I see no net.." His muzzle had drawn nearer, the scent of pine growing stronger, and for a moment, the world around them had fallen away. "No weapon.." Another step, and their muzzles had nearly touched, the proximity sending a wave of tension through him. "Nothing but words." His voice had lowered, the sound a husky murmur. "Do you have more? I am curious."

 

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The words were off her tongue in a moment's notice, the reply forced, instinctive, landing too quick and burning too hot. It was a lie. She'd insisted it, defended the tale with the steady unblinking weight of those gorgeous pale eyes. And for a moment, the mask he wore cracked, if only enough to allow a splintering of illuminating light through and into the darkness. It was just enough to unveil what was hidden beneath. The faintest suggestion of disappointment crossed the man's chiseled features, a muscle ticking in the angular curve of his jaw. But it had gone in an instant, the emotion buried and suffocated before its true self could have ever had the chance to fully be known or comprehended.

A simple stare would become her only true reply. Nothing more than a wordless acknowledgment as his mind sparked ablaze with a liaison of thoughts, tangled and mismatched, logic and desires falling out of step with one another in that of a desynchronized ballad. What he had thought right and what he wanted could no longer be held clutched tightly together in one hand, or embroidered neatly into the tapestries of silk he swore to himself that he had been capable of weaving.

Emboldened by her own game, she tightened the distance between them another step further. Laughter slipped from out her mouth, a breathless and passionate thing that screamed for him to leave just as much as it had beckoned him closer still. She'd offer her teeth, "Show me," he'd murmur, the words nothing more than a whisper in the evaporating space between them. The sudden warmth of her breath ghosted his fur, eclipsed by the telltale flash of alabaster.

He had expected the sharp retort. The biting remark, the flash of her pearly whites, the hiss and spit of her fiery disposition. Perhaps, a slap across the muzzle, a scratch, or even the quick snap of her jaws. What the male had not anticipated was the way her scent had invaded his senses, overwhelming the space between them and teasing lost memories to the surface once more. 

Then he had stiffened, a brief tightening of his muscles, a slight narrowing of his gaze. And despite the fact that her teeth were far less dangerous than his, he found himself leaning back, the motion deliberate, controlled in nature. A simple step had widened the gap between them, and it had taken the man a moment to clear his mind. He had blinked, the action slow, languid.

Ruger had not faltered, nor had the stonewall of his exterior slipped, and the cool look regarded within his eyes would have proved as much. His tail swept lowly behind him, the gesture casual, indifferent. "Do I appear to be someone who takes orders to you?" He asked, a single brow rising in question, his spine straightening himself taller. "You hide, you bark, and you demand. You speak, and yet, there is no action to follow." The male would tilt his head, watching her, the spark that ignited his amber gaze no more than a ghost. "Do not tell me how to behave, woman. I have no need."

 

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