Website Destroyer
Pie
IS OFFLINE
EST
Autumn comes when you're not yet done with the summer passing by
1,266 POSTS & 0 LIKES
|
Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 1:50:26 GMT
Linnet was frustrated, to say the least. It had been weeks since she was changed and felt like an eternity since she had last eaten, thought it had only been days. The days tended to drag on nonetheless. Due to her countless escape attempts, the house was fairly well locked down. The wind was blowing hard in just the right direction, making her jittery, her restlessness only compounded by the fact that she could think of no way to get out, to chase people and hunt down souls. Her hand trailed along the wall as she stomped through the house, no destination in mind because there was nowhere to go. She seemed not to notice Drake following her, though it was a common enough occurrence. Her irritation only built at the relentless wind, her mind unable to focus on much other than the tantalizing soul scents. When a jagged fingernail snagged on a wall tapestry, she was caught entirely off guard, jerking to a halt as the nail tore. With that, her irritation spilled over and she lashed out at the hanging, grabbing it firmly and jerking until the fragile old material tore slightly, then ripped off the wall. It fluttered down softly, and she beat her way out from under it, breaking into a run as soon as she was free. Linnie could not help but look back as she scampered away. She didn’t notice the inconveniently placed end table until it was in front of her. Without any chance to stop, she knocked the flimsy wooden piece to the ground along with the delicate vase that it displayed. The glass shattered, a couple pieces digging into her flesh as she fell onto her hands and knees over the toppled table. She took only a moment to figure out what had happened before she was up again, dodging the mess and fleeing toward the front of the house. It was too much, way too much. She knew what invariably happened after so much got broken. She would be trapped worse, stuck in a room whose walls she despised, even less able to try to get to the ever-teasing souls. Her mind drifted to one scent in particular. Though it wasn't as alluring as those souls she had eaten, it seemed so often to stay outside that little room, teasing her with its closeness. It didn't matter how much she chased or attacked, she simply could never get it. The frustration only heightened her desire. She was starting to breathe hard now, her legs pumping beneath frustratingly weighty skirts. She slid around a corner, skidding into the wall with a resounding thud that marked the halt of her progress. She stood panting a moment, before she realized there was a dent in the wall. She had broken through slightly with the impact of her body against the surface. She was suddenly entranced with the notion of the wall being broken. She mumbled at it, with faint exclamations of "Out?" and "Broke." She began pulling at it, breaking off bits until she found the splintered, partially rotted wood underneath. The demolition of the barrier began in earnest then, and bits of wood and plaster were flying everywhere. Dust kicked up unheeded, and Linnet soon had a hole wide enough to fit through, after she kicked through the bottom half as well. She stepped through the jagged hole and tried to do the same to the outer layer, but it was inconveniently solid. She stilled just in time to hear approaching steps. Frantic, she inched through the narrow space, pounding at the outer wall as she went. The way was narrow, and she had hardly forced herself a few paces down before she was stuck, wedged between two unyielding columns of wood. Her skirt snagged on a couple nails as she tried to squirm her way free. Ah, the familiar feeling of being stuck. She hated it, yet she always wedged herself into narrow spaces. Panic welled in her chest, the dust choking her breath. She started with a yipping, "Out! Out! Nooo, out!" Soon she was just struggling ineffectively and yowling, Oooouuuutt!" She let out a small sniffle, followed by a dramatic sneeze that reverberated in the small space.
|
|
Website Destroyer
Pie
IS OFFLINE
EST
Autumn comes when you're not yet done with the summer passing by
1,266 POSTS & 0 LIKES
|
Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 1:50:38 GMT
Linnet grew increasingly impatient and restless as the days passed, and Drake felt obligated to let her out more frequently. Partially to prevent her room from becoming even more in shambles than it already was from her unruly fits. So he trailed along behind her, hands tucked in his pockets and his eyes sleepy. Her footfalls were heavy, which tickled him. Such a grumpy little girl today. He himself didn't have much to say, due in no small part to the fact that he hadn't eaten since Linnet had been turned, since invariably she injured herself, and either James came home injured, or Linnet managed to injure him. But it was fine. Sure, if it kept up like this, he might have to let Linnet loose and have her hunt for the two of them, since James could only bring home one human at a time, and he couldn't leave Linnet by herself or with James nearby for too long. But he could handle it. Especially when she was in such a mood. It was precious.
She was running her fingers along the wall, which, with the multitude of wall hangings, was already rather dangerous. She managed to snag herself on a tapestry. "Hey now," he started to say, hands up to calm her down as her face began to twist up. And then the tapestry fluttered down directly onto Linnet, clipping him as it fell.
"Linnet," he said, his voice tinged with annoyance as he tried to pick the tapestry back up and prevent her from ripping it any more. But she was already off again, looking over her shoulder at him. He managed to half-roll the thing up and push it against the wall as she tumbled over yet another object, sending shards of vase and wood everywhere.
"Linnet," he said again, only this time louder and with more disappointment. But again she was running. He paused to set the table upright again, even though it was now leaning at a rather jaunty angle.
"Come back here!" Now his voice was exasperated as he chased after the girl. Pursuit was going rather well, even though he could no longer see her, until he came across the hole in the wall. He stopped, staring at it for a moment. Then the yowling started.
'What," he said softly, squinting a little. There was plaster dust hanging in the air, and bits of wall and wood on the floor. "Linnet, why?" He had to admit, it was pretty funny though. Only she would dig a hole into the wall and then promptly get herself trapped in there.
So he did the only thing that seemed logical. He stuck the top half of his body in the hole--he couldn't manage more because he was significantly larger than said hole. "I swear to all that is holy, Linnet, if you bite me, I'm going to leave you in there." He started cautiously reaching out for her. She didn't seem to like that much. There was a piece of wood on his side of her, and he was pretty sure there was one on the other side, but he couldn't just bend it and let her free. That would potentially weaken the integrity of the house as a whole. Plus he couldn't be bothered to try and fix more than he already had to thanks to her roving adventures today.
He wedged himself further into the hole, plaster and dust raining down on his head as he tried to make room. eventually he managed to get a hold on Linnet's torso and start pulling her towards him. He tried to be gentle, but he wasn't sure what else she was snagged on. If she was smart, she'd pick up her feet so he could just lift her out from between the beams, but he wasn't about to pass judgement about whatever it was running through her wild little mind.
Once he got her out of there, he held her out for a second, examining her ripped up attire, before setting her down so he could dust all the debris off her with one hand, the other firmly on her upper arm so she couldn't get away.
"I swear, Linnet, you're going to bring this whole house down by yourself one of these days. You need to calm down a little. Is that so much to ask? Don't you have any sense of responsibility? You live here too, you know? What are you going to do if our house falls down? Nothing, that's right. So don't do anything to destroy it either, yes?" His voice was stern as he finished brushing rubble off the struggling girl, then he moved his hand to tap the end of her nose, as he often did to James after lecturing him.
|
|
Website Destroyer
Pie
IS OFFLINE
EST
Autumn comes when you're not yet done with the summer passing by
1,266 POSTS & 0 LIKES
|
Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 1:50:48 GMT
Linnet's actions seemed contradictory. As soon as the hand grabbed at her, her yowling halted, once again replaced with senseless, unhappy grumbling. She tried to pull away at first, her palms beating at the wall before her like a child throwing a tantrum. She proceeded to rock back and forth, struggling to pull herself back toward the opening, toward Drake, just to brace with her feet and resist a moment later. Still, all the struggling had an effect. With her next bout of cooperation, her skirts finally tore with a satisfying rip. Her torso jerked toward Drake, her feet dragged along whether she liked it or not. Now that she was no longer trapped, it didn’t take long for Drake to pull her the rest of the way out. By now, she had firmly decided she was unhappy with the situation and wriggled to get free, muttering in an angry, constant stream of words. Only few of them actually fit together, but it didn't seem to bother her. She scowled, but avoided looking directly at his face as he complained. She did not appreciate the contact in the slightest, but Drake had too strong of a hold on her shoulder. Drake moved his hand close to her face, and it was suddenly all too much. Her head snapped forward, and she bit down on the offending fingers before Drake could retract them. She only held on, grinding down with her teeth, for an instant. As soon as Drake released his hold on her shoulder, she was gone, scurrying down the hallway as fast as she could run. She spat a couple times to get rid of the foul taste of Drake’s blood, and scrambled up the stairs, her heart pounding from adrenaline and fear of pursuit. She did not want to be shoved in that room again. Not at all.
As soon as she made it to the second floor, she stumbled into Drake's rooms, tripping over her skirts in the usual fashion. She slammed the door behind her, her hand moving to lock it based purely on muscle memory. The motion caused her to pause a moment, trying to discern what she did, but she soon disregarded it. She ignored the contents of the sitting room, focused only on getting out, repeating that very word over and over under her breath. She flung the door to the study open, and it jarred a table that happened to be too close. A pale statue clattered and tipped, the delicate featured face smashing to the floor. Linnet ignored it, rushing into the room. She brushed around the desk in a wide arc, her foot getting caught on the spindly leg of a globe stand. She jerked forward and fell to her knees as the entire assembly crashed over, the heavy, solid globe cracking wood and rolling over the floor. That and a sudden clap of thunder startled her out of her panic. The wind continued to gust, even as the storm broke, large drops of rain plunking against the window. Linnet calmly regained her feet, pacing over to the window as though she wanted to watch the raging storm. Really, she was attracted by the strong scents. Her brow furrowed in concentration. She wanted to be out there, but this window stood in her way. She already had discovered the hard way that windows were not the best escape route, yet there was something that bothered her about this one. Senseless words fell from her lips, unnoticed. Her eyes roved over the surface a moment before she noticed. No bars. There was a small ledge over the front door, and then freedom. Almost as soon as it hit her, her hand began slamming against the glass. When this wasn't immediately enough, she whirled on the room, taking in what was around her. She scurried back around the desk, picking up the damaged globe stand, and returned to the window. Bracing herself firmly, she swung it, satisfied as cracks sprung into being. With a couple more swings, the pane shattered.
She dropped the stand, already struggling to get through the window, ignoring the painful shards of glass covering the sill. She lowered herself carefully to the ledge, then hopped down, landing in a crouch. She was drenched within seconds, but she savored every bit of her freedom as she ran down toward the gate. She was out before any could reach her. A clap of thunder accompanied her first steps out the gate and she flashed away toward the town, veering slightly toward a nearby human without realizing it.
|
|
Website Destroyer
Pie
IS OFFLINE
EST
Autumn comes when you're not yet done with the summer passing by
1,266 POSTS & 0 LIKES
|
Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 1:51:09 GMT
Okay, okay, so he deserved that one. He'd forgotten who he was dealing with. He could feel her teeth scritching across his bones. The hand that had gripped her shoulder popped up to push her face away, and she released his hand. He drew the wounded digits back towards his chest, shaking the blood off them as the flesh knitted back together. He didn't immediately realize that Linnet was gone again, her skirts the only thing he could see whipping around the corner as she made yet another escape.
"Linnet, come back, where are you going?" he called out after her, exasperated. He just couldn't win today, could he? And they were currently three for three on irreparable damage--he didn't want to increase that number.
He jogged up the stairs after her. Why did she always go upstairs? Was she going to jump off the roof again? Hadn't she learned from last time? Anyway, James couldn't possibly be home this soon unless he was empty-handed. All the more reason to catch her before she injured herself.
And then he heard the door slam. He turned around to see the door to his room shut where it previously had not been. "Oh, come on, can we not do this today?" he said, throwing his hands in the air. "Come out, Linnet, I'm not going to hurt you." An entreaty.
He wiggled the handle. The door was locked. The door was locked. She had locked the door. Drake muttered a few choice words, trying harder to open the door. Maybe it was just jammed from how hard she'd slammed it? Nope. It was locked.
Drake backed up a few paces, then approached again to kick the door down. He just needed to be careful to actually open the door, rather than just smash his foot through the wood, which was equally likely but not quite as desirable. He aimed for a spot just under the doorknob, and there was a considerable tearing sound as the doorframe ripped. The door swung away, smashing into the wall beside it, and Drake hurried through. Just what did she think she was doing?
Apparently, she thought she was going to get out again. She had a globe stand in her hand and was currently smashing the window. "Hey," he shouted, striding into the room, but she was already out the window. He could just see her bleeding hand clinging to the frame as she climbed down.
Drake dithered for a moment, unsure of exactly how to go about this. He took a few steps forward to see that Linnet had made it safely to the ground and was now racing towards the gate. "Hey," he shouted again, but she ignored him. Her presence had also alerted the dogs, which were barking now. And it was raining. Wasn't this all just wonderful.
He needed to get to her immediately. And that meant taking her route, as much as he didn't care for ledge jumping. Drake pulled himself through the window, grimacing as the glass shards still stuck to the frame ripped into his clothes. Now Linnet wasn't only destroying her own outfits, she was ruining his as well. Just great.
Impact jarred his knees a little, but he recovered and started running after her. The dogs that had started pursuit saw him and immediately turned around, uneasy. Linnet had already made it past the gate, and though he was faster than she was, her distance promised a long chase. Not only that, his shoes were not exactly meant for running in the mud, which the path had started to become the moment the rain began.
"Come back!" He shouted after Linnet as she veered into the woods beside the path.
She didn't.
Drake couldn't tell if she'd gone into the woods because it would be easier to dodge him-- she was significantly shorter and he had to duck under low hanging branches in his pursuit that she could lope beneath easily-- or because she was tracking something. Or someone.
He made a few more fruitless calls for her to stop before he was close enough to tackle her again. This time he aimed for her middle, landing on her back so he could grab at her face with both hands, fingers carefully arranged so she couldn't sink her teeth into them again. He covered her eyes with one hand and grabbed her jaw with the other, fingers squeezing her cheeks, jerking her head back as he knelt on her back, one knee pressed against her sacrum as he leaned forward to speak in her ear.
"Listen to me." His voice lower, slightly breathless, a tinge of snarled annoyance at the edges. "If you don't settle down right now, I--I don't know what I'm going to do to you, but it won't be fun, got it?"
It was at this point Drake realized, in no small part thanks to Linnet's continued struggling, that they had an audience. It was a young looking man, dressed in riding clothes, looking rather drenched already. He was fair skinned, obviously rather wealthy, and he had a small revolving gun pointed at the pale-haired man.
"I heard shouting. Get off that girl before I shoot you, sir," the human said, cutting a brave figure with his free hand at his waist. Such an honorable man. Such a stupid, stupid human.
Drake stared blankly at him for a long second. "What? This girl? Well, if you insist," he said, lowering Linnet's head slowly, though he didn't loosen his grip on her yet.
He had no idea how the girl would react to being shot, so he'd need to distract the human while she made her move. Since she obviously had no ability to make plans, considering the chaos of the prior events, he'd have to plan this one out carefully to accommodate her blunt tactics.
So he stood up, gripping the wild girl by the back of her dress as he'd found was a very effective move, and tossed her a few metres to one side, into the man's peripheral vision. The human followed her with his eyes, but his attention snapped back to Drake as the demon took a step forward, smiling his shark smile genially.
"There, are you happy now, my friend?" He lifted his hands in the air by his head, showing that he was completely unarmed. But he continued walking forward slowly, not looking at Linnet, daring the human to shoot him.
Humans hadn't owned guns back when James was like this, when they hunted together like this, but it was still entertaining. Good memories.
|
|
Website Destroyer
Pie
IS OFFLINE
EST
Autumn comes when you're not yet done with the summer passing by
1,266 POSTS & 0 LIKES
|
Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 1:51:20 GMT
Linnet was excited to say the least. She tore through the long grass, heading for the narrow rim of trees that stood between her and the town. She had not realized she was heading toward one soul in particular, too distracted by the overwhelming closeness of many people. She had just started angling away from the solitary man at the road, aiming for the town, when she was tackled to the muddy ground. She squirmed under the pressure, only succeeding in digging herself deeper into the muck. Her head was jerked up, one hand covering her eyes and the other supporting her jaw, both out of reach of her teeth. She stilled, more from how she was confined than as a response to Drake's words.
Linnet sensed the man a few seconds before he spoke. Even with a hand still fixed over her eyes, she jerked her head toward the human, senses keenly pinpointing him. He made his demands and Drake slowly lowered her head. Released from the pressure, she started scrabbling again, fingers digging jagged furrows into the soft earth. Drake shifted, lifting her by the back of her clothing. Her eyes focused on the man's face only a moment before she was tossed away. She landed hard on her side and shook herself slightly, dislodging some of the mud that coated her form. Her eyes once again locked on the human, and she pulled herself to her feet, hunched slightly as she stalked toward him.
His eyes were still fixed on Drake, and Linnet ghosted forward, the rain covering the noise of her movements. The man seemed hesitant to shoot, backing slightly as Drake approached. After only a couple steps, he suddenly straightened, aiming the weapon directly at Drake's chest as he struggled regained his composure. "Stop right there. I am warning you, I will shoot if I must."
Suddenly remembering the girl he had been trying to save, his eyes flickered over to check on her. His gaze darted back to the menacing, red-eyed man in front of him before he realized the spot had been empty. His eyes widening, he looked again, moving his focus entirely away from Drake. "Where did she--" His question cut off when he caught Linnet's movement in the corner of his vision. He pivoted toward her, moving to aim the gun at the threatening, predatory girl. Before he could properly aim, she dove forward, smashing him to the cobblestones.
He pulled the trigger, and pain exploded through Linnie's shoulder. She yelped,her momentum carrying her forward until her hands slapped the ground on either side of his head. As his arm struck the road, his grip on the gun released and it clattered out of reach. Linnet dove at his throat, and though he tried to hold her off, the struggle was soon over. The only reward for his valiant actions was the slowly growing pool of his blood on the stone.
As soon as the man was dead and Drake began to approach, Linnet scrambled off of him. She shifted impatiently from one foot to the next, holding her injured arm against her torso. She whimpered pitifully, but remained attentive, knowing what would come next. Her eyes darted from Drake to the corpse and back again as the demon drew closer.
|
|
Website Destroyer
Pie
IS OFFLINE
EST
Autumn comes when you're not yet done with the summer passing by
1,266 POSTS & 0 LIKES
|
Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 1:51:29 GMT
Drake clucked his tongue as the human noticed the girl and fully realized the trouble he was in. He tucked his hands into his pockets, watching cooly as Linnet tackled him. The shot rang muted, eliciting a wild sound from the girl, but she persisted. The demon had to give it to her, at least she was quick. And had no problems with ripping out the human's throat with her teeth. All good qualities for a junior soul hunter.
When he drew nearer, she stood, looking very pitiful. "Oh, don't give me that look, you've just destroyed half the manor, then escaped, and then got yourself shot. You seriously expect me to feed you after that escapade?" He chided as he squatted down next to the body, trying not to get anymore mud on his person. He was already rather drenched as it was.
Linnet was staring hard at the body. "You should suffer a bit, learn from your transgressions. Get, go back to the manor, you’re not getting any of this." He said, pointing in the direction of the manor. Her destruction for the day was quite the record. And not only did it include random bits of decor in his home, but his office itself, which was likely now starting to get wet from the swift, fat-bellied droplets raining down on them. Blast it all.
But her arm was injured, and she wasn’t really in any state to understand cause and effect, right? And she’d done so well with killing the human. And it wasn’t really her fault that her instincts had caused this.
He heaved a long sigh and moved towards her. “Here, let me check the wound, first off, in case you’ve got a bullet in you.” He reached out, trying to put himself between her in the body, just in case she decided to lunge for it and try to open it up herself.
|
|
Website Destroyer
Pie
IS OFFLINE
EST
Autumn comes when you're not yet done with the summer passing by
1,266 POSTS & 0 LIKES
|
Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 1:51:37 GMT
He reprimanded her, but she paid no heed, watching with keen interest as he squatted beside the body. Though her first instinct was to tear at the chest herself, anything to speed the process, she held back. She had learned over the past weeks that Drake preferred to take his time if she got too impatient, so she waited. She still found herself squatting on the other side of Drake, but made no move to touch the prone form between them. She kept forgetting she was injured and winced dramatically each time she tensed enough to jar the wound. Her chattering started again, quiet enough at first to be drowned out by the rain.
Instead of getting the soul, Drake rose, still speaking at her. She huffed and scowled up at him. He moved closer, interjecting himself between her and the body. She sprung up, giving a surprised yelp of pain from jarring her arm, and reluctantly gave ground. Uninterested in Drake or his words, she peered around him and began trying to edge around and stay out of his grasp. The more he tried to get between her and her goal, the more annoyed her grumbling became. Without warning, she lunged to get to the prone form.
|
|
Website Destroyer
Pie
IS OFFLINE
EST
Autumn comes when you're not yet done with the summer passing by
1,266 POSTS & 0 LIKES
|
Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 1:51:43 GMT
Frustratingly, but unsurprisingly, she backed up as he moved towards her. He let out an annoyed huff, holding his arms out as if to intercept her as she began to move, circling him to get to the body. Why didn’t she listen? If she was going to be so stubborn, maybe he should just leave the blasted thing in her.
And then she lunged, catching him off guard for a moment. He returned the swift gesture, catching her and pulling her away from the corpse before she could start tearing at the poor thing. Her physiological artwork left much to be desired.
“Who said you’re getting any of that, huh?” he admonished, trying both to restrain her and prevent her from biting, kicking, or scratching him as much as possible. “You don’t deserve it after all the mess you’ve caused.” He began pinching at the entry site of the bullet, trying to figure out whether it would be easy to get it out with just his fingers or not.
|
|
Website Destroyer
Pie
IS OFFLINE
EST
Autumn comes when you're not yet done with the summer passing by
1,266 POSTS & 0 LIKES
|
Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 1:51:49 GMT
Linnie struggled desperately, using every trick in her arsenal. Anything unprotected was kicked, bitten, or scratched as she writhed. Still, her injury was a hindrance. As Drake began to prod at the wound, her panic only increased. A steady, quick stream of “Nonononono!” poured from her lips almost without pause.
|
|
Website Destroyer
Pie
IS OFFLINE
EST
Autumn comes when you're not yet done with the summer passing by
1,266 POSTS & 0 LIKES
|
Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 1:52:00 GMT
Drake sighed as her struggles increased. It would be impossible to get the bullet out of her if she was wriggling around like that. “Alright, alright, I’ll leave it alone.” He said, retracting the hand, though careful not to let her escape from his grip. He’d learned that one the hard way.
He set her down, pressing her feet into the muddy ground. “Stay. That one is mine. Mine. You got that? Not for you.” Not that she’d listen. Or care, likely. But still. It was the principle of the matter.
But she was injured. And if he left her like that, would she start plucking at the wound like she did the carpet and the wallpaper and anything in the reach of her grubby little hands? That’d make quite the mess. He held a hand out, telling her to stay before trying to switch from holding her down to kneeling before the body as quickly as possible. She usually sat still while he was opening them up, at least.
He made short work of the ribcage and fished around for the soul, making a face as he stuck his hand in. The rain made everything even more slick and generally squelchy and unpleasant. "Ah, here we are," He finally said, pulling out the soul. It was pale as well, almost translucent. Drake sighed. "What a gormless man he was," he muttered, holding the soul to the vague light from above. Not that there was much with the storm. Linnet was still fixated on the soul. Drake frowned and sighed. He wiggled the soul out, not close enough that she could lunge for it, but enough that he knew she was focused on it. “You want it, huh?” he asked, knowing he couldn’t tease her long before she just jumped at him. “This is the only time. Don’t think just because you’re injured, I’ll be rewarding your destructive habits in this future. Just this once.” He said sternly as he ripped the soul in half. After hastily swallowing his section--the warmth of which was certainly revitalizing in this cold rain--he held out hers. “I hope you’re happy with yourself, you little devil.” He groused, pulling his fingers away before she could chomp them too.
|
|
Website Destroyer
Pie
IS OFFLINE
EST
Autumn comes when you're not yet done with the summer passing by
1,266 POSTS & 0 LIKES
|
Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 1:52:08 GMT
It didn't take long for her to realise he was giving in. She immediately cooperated, quieting and being mostly patient. As soon as he pulled out the soul, her attention fixed on the pale orb. Her mutterings became more urgent. "Want. Me, me mine. Mine! Want." Drake tried teasing her, but she paid him no attention. She was far too busy staring at the weakly wriggling soul and chattering to herself. A pouty scowl was building on her face the longer he stood there, and she sniffled pitifully.
Finally, he gave in, holding part out to her even as he swallowed his half. She took it greedily, fully satisfied with herself as she gulped it down. Her face blanked to a look of total contentment as the pain and hunger disappeared. She stood completely still, as usual seeming to hardly know where she was, no goal or need pressing down on her for the moment. Drake started moving around, sorting out what to do with the body, but she took no notice. The rain dribbled down her face, making muddy streaks.
As the minutes passed, her gaze started to focus again as she began to sense the nearby souls. Her hunger returned in a sharp wave. She was indecisive for a moment, missing the peaceful feeling from eating that always faded too soon. Her mind was soon made up. Without much warning, other than the subtle tensing of her form, she was once again running up the road, hurtling toward the town, that ever-luring goal.
|
|
Website Destroyer
Pie
IS OFFLINE
EST
Autumn comes when you're not yet done with the summer passing by
1,266 POSTS & 0 LIKES
|
Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 1:52:16 GMT
Linnet settled down, as she always seemed to do after eating, and Drake turned his attention from her to the next most pressing issue with a long sigh. What to do with the body? He chewed aimlessly on his bottom lip as he weighed his options. Of course, it'd probably be easiest to just bury it, but with this rain, he'd have to dig deep to prevent it from being washed up again in the downpour. He could eat it, but that would take too long, and he wasn't sure if he could do it by himself after all the running around they'd been doing. He was also briefly entertained by the thought of finding the man's horse and putting his corpse back on it, to let it wander where it may, but no, that wouldn't be kind to the poor animal. Plus it'd be conspicuous, having a dead guy on a horse riding around near his home.
He eventually decided that burying the body would be the best route, and he'd just knelt down to start digging when Linnet decided to bolt again. He didn't notice right away, not until he looked up to tell her to help him and she was a few metres from where he thought she was supposed to be, her back facing him, racing away.
"Oh, for the love of--" he sighed, throwing his hands up as he hauled himself back to his feet to chase after the girl. He couldn't take this girl anywhere, could he. What a pain.
Soaked with rain, mud, and a bit of blood, the demon skidded through the deepening flood of precipitation in his pursuit, a scowl on his face. Where was she off to now? Couldn't she at least give a warning that she was going to run off?
This time, instead of tackling her, he waited until he was pacing her, and reached out to pluck her off the ground. Since there were no valuables out here in the forest, and he didn't care if she wanted to grab onto tree branches, he slung her over his shoulder and turned around. "I don't think so, Miss Mallory, we are not doing anymore running today." His voice verged on weary now, unsure of exactly how to feel. He appreciated her spunk, but her constant attempts to escape were just so stressful. She'd just eaten too! How hungry was this girl? For a small thing, she really was insatiable.
"You my friend, are going to have a bath, and then you are going to sit in your room for a very long time and think about what you did today," he muttered as they neared the site of their previous meal. There was the man's horse, standing impatiently, tied to a tree, shaking droplets of water from its mane occasionally. Drake pulled the knots restraining the creature free, and then smacked its haunch. The horse whinnied and then cantered off, head swiveling as if unsure of exactly what to do without a rider.
Now he just had to figure out how to bury the body with Linnet over his arm. Or maybe he could just bring the body back with him and leave it somewhere. The dogs could eat it. Or James might bury it when he returned.
"Naturally you'd pick a rainy day to run away, wouldn't you. You're a real little demon, you know that?" He picked the human up by the arm and dragged it along behind them as he headed back towards the manor. At this point, he looked rather like a plastered cat, his hair sticking slick to his face and his eyes narrowed with the displeasure of being quite muddy and soaked almost to the bone. What a day.
|
|
Website Destroyer
Pie
IS OFFLINE
EST
Autumn comes when you're not yet done with the summer passing by
1,266 POSTS & 0 LIKES
|
Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 1:52:26 GMT
As she ran she was rapidly processing, trying hard to pick out individual souls from the crowd. Her face was turned up toward the rain as she focused. She tripped slightly over the uneven stones, scrambling along on all fours until she could catch her balance again. The momentary delay gave Drake a bit more time to catch up. Soon he was running beside her, though she paid him no attention until he grabbed her.
She squeaked, caught off guard as he slung her over his shoulder, immediately starting to kick at his chest. She started off with her typical, often repeated 'Le' go's. She braced with her hands on his shoulder blades, trying to pull out of his grasp, straining to look down the road. There was nothing interesting to see, as the town was still concealed by the trees at this distance, but her determination to get there didn't seem to fade.
She was distracted momentarily by the sound of a slap as Drake released the horse. She turned to watch it trot off. Still, her attempts at escape renewed as they set off toward the manor. As always, that was not where she wanted to be, but Drake seemed not to care. He dragged the man behind them, but Linnet didn't spare a glance for the limp corpse. It held no interest to her now. All she wanted was a soul that would relieve her hunger, even if it was only for a moment.
|
|
Website Destroyer
Pie
IS OFFLINE
EST
Autumn comes when you're not yet done with the summer passing by
1,266 POSTS & 0 LIKES
|
Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 1:52:35 GMT
One month passed, then another, with few significant changes. Linnet's single minded determination to escape rarely wavered, and she evaded Drake whenever possible. Still, successful escapes became more limited as the manor was effectively "Linnet-proofed." As they proceeded into the beginning of the third month since she had been changed, small differences in her behavior slowly surfaced. Her chattering lessened somewhat, gaining a measure of coherence at times, like a toddler learning to communicate. She still only seemed to talk to herself, but at times she appeared as though she was listening to Drake's voice. She ended up ignoring what he said, but it was arguable that she was at least registering something.
Her hunger was becoming less desperate, and she was satisfied slightly longer after feeding, though she would still dart off unpredictably. Even then, she would sporadically pause in her flight, bewildered and blank, and would calmly allow Drake to lead her back to where he wanted her. There were an increasing amount of times where her gaze would become vacant, or she would stare at her surroundings in complete confusion. At times, when Drake approached, she would not simply disregard his presence; instead, she backed away with a fearful expression, though it always drained quickly. For Linnet, those times felt as though she was trying to not to drown in a raging river. She could breach the surface and drag in a gasping breath, but the current kept pulling her back down. It was terribly disorienting.
Finally, one day she wasn't immediately dragged back down. Linnet was wandering the grounds with Drake supervising from nearby. She drifted for a time, not actively trying to escape but still glaring at the walls that confined her. The wind wasn't blowing, but she could vaguely sense a few souls on the very periphery of her awareness. Drake had already caught her a few times this particular outing, dragging her back to the center of the greenspace. Her gaze flickered to him momentarily, trying to decide if he was paying attention. She slowly drifted farther, then repeated the cycle a couple times until she felt that she had a chance.
Without warning, she burst into motion, once again making her move toward the walls. Within seconds, she was jumping at the wall, her hands grabing desperately for purchase as she attempted to pull herself up. Her mind blanked without warning. Linnet hesitated, her arms and chest awkwardly braced by the top of the wall. She had no idea where she was or why. As Drake grabbed her, her head whipped around to him. As soon as Linnet saw that pale face, those red eyes, terrifying memories surfaced, filling her mind with pictures of fire and rage and pain. An ear-splitting scream burst from her lips, filled with fright as he pulled her down.
"Don't hurt me. Let me go! Oh God. Let me go! Please!" She tried to escape his grasp, fear filling her as she shrieked once more.
|
|
Website Destroyer
Pie
IS OFFLINE
EST
Autumn comes when you're not yet done with the summer passing by
1,266 POSTS & 0 LIKES
|
Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 1:52:42 GMT
He hadn't told James that Linnet seemed to be getting better as the weeks passed. He didn't want to give the boy any false hope and then ruin it all by hanging around her too much and riling her up again. But she was coming back, he could tell. He was just hoping she wouldn't stay in this in-between place for too long, where he couldn't tell if she was going to run off or if she was just in the middle of what seemed to be an existential crisis. Or both. Sometimes it was both.
The outdoors was the best place to take her. Sure, she ran more frequently, but there was less to destroy, and it was easier to wear her out chasing endless loops around the manor as she perpetually wandered away from him. As long as she didn't climb over the fence, she'd be fine. Well, she'd be fine either way, it would be him who had to chase her down before she ran into more humans. One occasionally was fine, but he didn't know what a multitude of souls nearby would do to her already fragile psyche. As much as he enjoyed watching the gears turn in her hungry mind, things would settle down once she woke up. And James would stop looking so morose whenever he came back home. Poor boy.
When she darted away yet again, focus entirely on the walls, he strode after her, sharply saying, "Linnet, no, get down from there." She didn't listen. He didn't expect her to. But then...she froze? Strange. Was she trying to decide where to go next?
"Hey," he said, softer now, as he reached up to grab her. "You aren't supposed to be up there, now a--"
She started screaming? She was looking right at him, a rarity in itself, and she was screaming. And now she was struggling, her cries to be let go completely coherent for a surprisingly long time before she started shrieking again.
Drake turned the girl around in his hands so he was looking at her face, holding her out at a distance. Something he had tried his best to stop doing, since that was the time where she practiced her kicking. Her face... if nothing else, her face told him everything he needed to know. Linnet was back. And she was afraid. The demon hastily set her down, lifting his hands, palms forward in a calming motion. There wasn't much he could say over her screeching, not until she cooled off, but he could wait. Goodness knew he'd been waiting for three months for this. He couldn't wait to tell James.
|
|