The Fawn and The Wolf

[ChordTerias]

Reserved for Flick

Slipping away from Luke’s increasingly concerned gaze, Rohan’s form melded with the shadows of the alley and manifested once again only once he was securely out of sight. He rustled around the nook where the pair kept supplies for trips into the hedge, finding his messenger bag within its depths. He slung it over a shoulder and opened the out of place garden fence, transitioning into the hedge.

As he entered the Hedge, he noticed the familiar falling leaves of Autumn around him. Placing his clothes in the bag, Rohan slipped into his cervine form, allowing the magic around to shape him. He was usually large and intimidating — standing tall as a trophy buck. Not today, however. His appearance mimicked his mental state: vulnerability displaying in the soft brown fur of a fawn. The bag around his body was too unwieldy for his current form, so he commanded vines to life and had its strap adjusted to fit.

His round amber eyes observed the area. He knew it was never safe to mindlessly wander through hedge, even with his title, so he decided on the park in the city for a middle ground between the familiar forests and the safety of the city. He found the gate that leads to Pisky — a tree with the ornate carving of a door etched into it. He placed his nose against the unnaturally warm wood, it swung open in response.

His breathing had begun to calm as he stepped out of the impossibly thin tree into the park, four legs trotting along as he made his way through the darkness. The instinctual prickling of fur upon his neck was the first sign of a nearby predator as he turned to see the hulking form of a white wolf eyeing him with obvious interest. The glare of its glowing red eyes seemed to invite its meal to run for sport, and Rohan took off without thought. He used the fae magic of his title to find a path that would be tough for the bigger predator to traverse — low, thorny bushes that Rohan easily dove under in a sprint, crags with small footholds that his nimble hooves easily found purchase.

No matter the tricks, the wolf found a way to catch up to him. Rohan worried that he’d exhaust himself before losing the beast. He swapped instead into his human form. Crouching into a defensive stance, bone extended from his palm. It broke free, holding the makeshift hilt in his hand where the far end sharpened into a blade.

There was an unmistakable tremble in his hand, but he placed the blade of bone between him and the wolf and said in a low voice, “You’ll need to find new prey if you wanna eat tonight.”

[Black Philip]

The white wolf had become a dark wolf, and now trotted along the tranquil and quiet grass of Pisky Memorial Park. The Gangrel had warmed to his new wolf family, but had been a loner most of his life, and so had come to Pisky for a chance for some private time. He hoped to hunt, and maybe to play. It also wouldn't be bad if he saw Digital again, or even the kind sea-foam witch! He jumped up onto his back legs, circling his front paws in a forward motion before landing flat on the soft earth. The wolf moved about through the trees and brush, the late hour minimizing the chances a human would see him. His red eyes could be unnerving to the uninformed, and not everyone was as understanding as the sea-foam witch. Flick had long forgotten her name. He wasn't even sure Digital's title was actually Digital. Flick thought it might be because he liked the wires so much.

When it looked like the night was over, and Flick would be going back to tell Ex that he hadn't had any real fun, he caught sight of a mysterious fawn. Flick could sense the beast in all animals, and yet when he looked for this one, he found the soul of something greater. Flick knew he had to drink from this fawn, and maybe even make it's acquaintance. Before he could speak, the fawn ran off leaving the wolf with a need to chase him. Flick was at first concerned, but quickly came to the conclusion that this was a game! He loved chasey, and would show the fawn-person how good at it he was. All the practice with Wrage, Ex, and Digital had made Flick that much better, and so despite the trickery the deer showcased, Flick stayed right on his tail. When the deer transformed, Flick was delighted, but the blade of bone made him wary. At the fawn/man's threat, Flick transformed into his homid form, his golden hair and naked skin still managing to shine in the moonlight.

"I wasn't going to eat you," he said, as if this was obvious. "I was just trying to play with you, mostly!"

He sniffed at the deer. "You smell different," he observed, looking at Rohan like their wasn't a weapon between them. He smiled easily.

[ChordTerias]

Rohan nearly dropped his weapon as the wolf transformed, getting whiplash at the sudden change in atmosphere. “Play with me?! With what your mouth?!” He did a double take. Then another.

The weapon was completely discarded as he realized that a very attractive, very... healthy young man was in front of him and the pair were entirely nude in the woods.

“Oh my god, that’s not what I meant. You were a wolf!” Rohan took his bag and covered himself in an attempt at modesty. “What the fuck is happening tonight?”

At the man’s unblinking expression of curiosity, he added, “Stop staring, let me put on clothes!” Humiliation creeped up his neck in blotches of red for the second time tonight as he pleadingly motioned for Flick to look away.

[Black Philip]

"Why put on clothes," Flick said in surprise, his smile more suggestive than his tone. Rohan was a cute deer, and an ever cuter man! Flick also hadn't met a non-wolf shifter in a long time. This was turning into quite the occasion! His own naked form had a distinct level of earth, his feet and hands covered in mud. His face was remarkably clean though, and his hair rested neatly and without tangle. He moved towards the fawn.

"I'm Flick, and yeah! Sometimes I'm a wolf. Sometimes I'm a boy, but I'm always a vampire. Oh. Ummmm."

He'd blurted that out way sooner than he'd intended, and looked down at his feet in embarrassment. Now he suddenly wished for clothes. Beings of nature rarely regarded him as one of their own. They sensed the aura of a stopped heart, and denied his connection to nature. He'd met exceptions, the dark wolves being the most recent. However, he was afraid of what would happen if Rohan didn't like vampires for some reason.

[ChordTerias]

Rohan could never control his first reaction. It just wasn’t in his nature. So when he saw the overexcited man practically bounce around with that handsome smile upon his face, he couldn’t help but think:

What a cute little puppy.

He smiled despite himself, quickly trying to tame the corners of his lips back down to a more neutral expression. He went to answer Flick’s initial question, nearly launching into a stammering explanation of the only things he knew naked people did, but stopped himself as the man continued to speak.

When Flick introduced himself, Rohan saw the metamorphosis from carefree and flirty to self-conscious and measured. Rohan could practically see his ears drooping and the non-existent tail tucking between his legs — but he was decidedly not allowing his eyes to avert below chest height to confirm that suspicion.

Glamour twisted and pooled around Flick, his anxiety and embarrassment kicking up emotional energy into a frenzy. With one hand, Rohan reached out and grasped the glamour, willing it to form and become corporeal. His other hand threw the bag behind him over his shoulder, and he attempted to appear unflummoxed by the momentary exposure.

He secured the resulting soft blue fabric around his waist, taking a step forward and leaning slightly to meet Flick’s downcast gaze. “I don’t know what just made you so embarrassed, but uh. I’m Rohan. Sometimes I’m a man, too. Other times I’m a buck...” his words trailed off before spilling out of his lips far too quickly, “... like a big buck though, I’m normally not a little deer. I’m just going through a lot and my form is kinda tied into how I’m feeling so...” he trailed off again.

“Oh, and I guess sometimes I’m a shadow and a beast.” He used two fingers on either hand to mimic fangs in his mouth, cocking his head to the side, kinda hoping the silliness would bring the smile back to Flick’s face.

[Black Philip]

"You don't care I'm a vampire," Flick clarified, his invisible tail wagging at the prospect. So this fawn was a buck, and his form was dependant on his mood. He thought shifters were bound to one form, and that made Rohan a new discovery! Nature had so many wonderful secrets, and Flick had stumbled upon one. It was why he didn't like the concrete and steel of most cities. There were normally no fawns or bucks to be found.

This fawn/buck was also a hunk, and Flick almost blushed for the first time when Rohan said he could be a beast. He laughed a small laugh, and closed the distance between them.

"Don't worry," he said softly, eyes looking down at where pant's had been placed. "I can tell you're a big buck." After a brief pause, Flick's distracted brain changed topics. "Hey, so how come you're a fawn if you're a buck? Something got you down?"

[ChordTerias]

Flick’s abrupt mood change threw him for a loop. Rohan’s mouth was so dry, and yet when he closed his lips, he could almost feel himself salivate as the man advanced.

“I don’t care if you’re a vamp,” Rohan repeated, mouth continuing to stay agape as the man advanced. “Oh. No, I uh,” Rohan’s brain began to catch up to what Flick was asking. “It doesn’t bother me or make you any less. Um.” His brain searched for the right word. “You’re uh pretty.”

Smooth.

“But you probably shouldn’t feed from me,” Rohan bit his lower lip, his eyes not exactly matching his conviction absent from his words. “Our blood can be a bit offputting.” Rohan didn’t want the vamp to taste his blood and leave. But as their eyes met after Flick’s obvious gaze slid up his body and heat pooled once more in Rohan’s stomach, he wasn’t sure that he didn’t want a taste of Flick himself.

This new sensation earned a brief moment of respite as Flick changed the topic. Rohan felt the air become a bit cooler as he inhaled it into the warmth of his lungs. “My magic is all messed up lately. I’m a very long way from home and that comes with consequences. One of those is that my own...” he looked at Flick, deciding to make this as simple as he could put it, so he didnt lose them wolf’s attention, “emotions are diminishing my magic. Hence. Fawn.”

[Black Philip]

Flick would've blushed if he'd fed more recently. The good looking buck thought he was pretty? Flick had to admit Rohan was pretty too. He listened as Rohan said that he shouldn't drink from him, and nodded his understanding. Not everyone was meant for a snack. Besides, Flck only hunted animals, and even then never killed. Rohan was off the table as far as dinner.

The part about his emotions effecting his form was interesting, and new! Flick had met plenty of shifters, and none were like this one. Most had a single form and were bound to it. There mood was irrelevant to their ability to change. Even Flick still only had one form, his mastery over beasts taking the bulk of his power.

"I'm far from where I was born," Flick shared, "but I think of all nature as home. It's just as much mine as every other being. Hey, I bet I can cheer you up, make you a buck again! Let me try!"

His enthusiasm was pure puppy and he moved in and would attempt to wrap his arms around Rohan's shoulders. "I can bring your true self to the surface!" Rohan had nice eyes, and Flick wanted to taste his lips.

[ChordTerias]

Was Flick a chimera too? He was certainly emotionally driven enough to be some kind of fae.

"Far from where you're bo--" Rohan's question was cut short as Flick's arms wrapped around the back of his neck. He felt the warm touch of Flick's palm against the tender skin beneath his hairline. It ignited the flames building within his chest, threatening to bring them to life.

Rohan took a sobering breath. I should put space between us.

Rohan looked up to meet his gaze. He put a palm on Flick's chest. As he started to apply light pressure, Rohan saw a flicker of disappointment cross Flick's eyes.

Something popped within Rohan. It was palpable: a rubber band in his chest. That wasn't the look he wanted to see on Flick's face.

Why am I fighting so hard against something that I want?

One moment, he was using some manner of reason to take a step back and not be swept up by a handsome stranger.

The next moment, Rohan was sliding his hands up his chest, lacing his fingers through Flick's hair as his arms crossed behind his head. Rohan pulled the pair together, got on his tiptoes, and tilted his head to bring their lips together in Rohan's first kiss.

It was messy -- the two were covered in dirt, after all -- but it was much softer than he had imaginged his first kiss going. Rohan's eyes opened in surprise: both surprise at himself that he had taken the step, and surprise at how nice it felt. When his gaze met Flick's, Rohan couldn't help but smile through the lock of their lips as he closed his eyes and enjoyed the new experience.

[Black Philip]

Flick was disappointed at being potentially pushed away, but almost as soon as he was moving in the wrong direction, Rohan pulled him back into the right one. His smell made Flick's nose go electric, something going up his nostrils through his blood steam and into his groin. It was wise Rohan had told Flick not to feed before, because the smell of his skin suggested nothing better than biting down. He was able to resist his impulse, Flick finding a path towards goodness in the curse of Cain. He favored an empathetic view of the world, of nature, and of love. He'd never been in love of course, but the idea was a good one in his mind. He'd never had sex either, although he had managed a kiss or two.

This one was sloppy, wet, but soft and new. Rohan had just given himself to it, and so Flick responded by squeezing them tightly together. As the kiss ended, Flick ran a hand through Rohan's hair, and couldn't help but smell him again.

"Sorry I keep sniffing you," he clumsily said. "It's a wolf thing. We love smells."

What he didn't add was the Rohan was the best smelling thing Flick remembered smelling. It was quite an achievement. Flick placed his hand over Rohan's heart, and looked up with a more serious expression.

"Want me to bring back the beast," he said, his tone more suggestive than he'd originally intended.

[ChordTerias]

When the pair’s lips separated, Rohan’s entire body felt much too light. His head was bogged down by a blissful fog. His limbs felt loose, relaxed, the only tension in his muscles were his hands that had taken to exploring the skin of Flick’s upper body.

He relished the praise that Flick gave him, though it was entirely new. The vampires he met before had wildly different opinions about Rohan’s scent — indeed, he was a rather monstrous twist on a buck that had wandered into the hedge, so it wasn’t hard for him to imagine that he smelt extremely gamey and wild. But the way Flick drank in his scent caused goosebumps to ripple across Rohan’s skin. He leaned his neck to the side, bringing Flick’s nose and mouth tantalizingly close to his collarbone, where the scent of his blood should be strongest by his understanding.

He wasn’t reserved any longer, but a smattering of red accompanied the heat in his cheeks when he asked, “H-how are you going to do that?” His voice was a combination of a nervous whisper and an unspoken dare.

[Black Philip]

Flick didn't know how to explain the exact mechanisms of Animalism, the first gift Cain passed to his descendants. He had trouble articulating himself in official ways, preferring to rely on instinct, emotional connection, and trust. Trust. Yes, that what was missing. Flick placed his hand upon Rohan's heart once more. He had no second sight, no way to view beyond his physical senses, but those physical senses were strong, and he heard the tap, tap, tap of Rohan's heart.

"There is a beast that lives in all of us," he explained. "Do you trust me? I promise I won't hurt you. I like you too much to even contemplate that."

He wanted to kiss Rohan again, but realized he needed to wait for the fawn's answer.

[ChordTerias]

"Do you trust me?" 

Rohan felt the firm press of Flick's hand against the unconcealable flurry of his heartbeat as it hammered against his chest. He looked to Flick. His earnest stare would ordinarily be hard to meet, but in the heat of the moment, it was reassuring. Rohan closed his eyes, reaching out to feel the glamour that swelled around Flick. The way with which Flick wore his heart on his sleeve played in their favor, because the resulting glamour was intoxicating. Anyone with eyes would see the lust that resulted in Flick's erection pressing against Rohan as their skin met. Rohan was similarly affected, the fabric around him threatening to unhook from its haphazard tuck around his hips as his cock pressed against it. However, lust was not all that was present. Genuine threads of romantic yearning stitched together Flick's sexual desire, and a palpable pool of benevolence was rich in its colour in his glamour.

Rohan opened his eyes, meeting Flick's gaze once more. He nodded, leaning forward and taking another kiss before disconnecting and going along with Flick.

"I trust you."

I just hope you don't run away.

[Black Philip]

Once Rohan said the words, Flick moved his lips back in to kiss. His hand focused on Rohan's beating heart. He found the beast within, and sensed greatness within it. He pulled back from the kiss, revealing a neat looking pair of fangs. Biting down on his wrist, he took a few drops of blood and ran them along Rohan's chest. Now he focused, pulling at the hidden beast within. It slowly rose through the layers of emotion that had made Rohan a fawn, and then Flick felt a massive change. The park's earth seemed to fade away, and the shape of his companion began to alter. Flick didn't focus on any physical changes, as his mind was drawn to the growing animalistic energy of Rohan.

Flick too shifted, back to the form of the white wolf, and as the strange covenant with nature completed, Flick howled a ghostly howl. The change was easier than normal, faster, less bones popping, and less pain. It felt smoother than ever before, and all around him smelled like Rohan. He readjusted his eyes to behold the new creature before him. His howl changed, and became more reverent. While Rohan wouldn't understand the exact words being formed within the howl, the emotion behind the howl was clear, wonderment.

[ChordTerias]

Rohan started as Flick began to pull off his Mask. He doubted it was his intention, but Rohan wasn't sure he could keep Flick safe -- from himself or from the consequences of Unmasking in the Mortal World -- if he continued.

So, Rohan pulled the two somewhere safer. They slipped through the shadows, the corporeal world melting away and the outer edges of their vision swimming as the pair locked eyes. Verdant, lush forest shed perpetual layers of foliage that replaced a diminishing pile of leaves below them. As the steady rain of autumn leaves came down around them, Rohan felt Flick continue to draw off his Mask.

"I trust you." He whispered again, as he allowed it to come free.

His form became as shadow, twisting and extending as he dropped to all fours. He expanded and grew -- head easily clearing ten feet as the shadows began to wrap around him and replace their intangible form with hardened brown fur coating lean, rippling muscle. Two antlers sprung from either side of his head, splitting into sixteen branches, their impossibly large form splayed wide, dripping with shadow that distinctly smelled of blood. As his transformation completed, he looked beneath him and saw Flick's lupine form once again. Flick was giant for a wolf, but even his form was less than a third of that of the Fiend of the Autumn Hedge.

Towering over him, Rohan waited for Flick's response to his primary form, expecting fear or trepidation. When, instead, he was greeted with a clear, unflinching howl and an aura of wonder around the wolf, he was amazed.

Rohan's voice was everywhere, but nowhere at all. When he spoke, Flick could hear him as an audible whisper in the back of his mind. "You don't fear me, truly?"