Day in Lunetta.

[fel]

Bright light filtered into the room through her window, illuminating part of the room, specially the part of the bed where Felicia lay. She closed her eyes shut against it trying desperately to fall back asleep. Deciding after a while that it wasn't happening she instead lay, feeling the warm sun on her face before trying to move roll over, only to find that she couldn't.

Curious, she sat up and looked down at her feet where a large wolf was curled up on her feet. Her eyes narrowed slightly as her face twisted with confusion. Seeing as she was still fighting off the effects of sleep, it didn't quite register to her who this wolf was. Her body froze and stiffened as slowly her mind started working through what had happened, and who this was.

Taking a deep breath she sat up completely and carefully started to pull her feet out from under him not wanting to disturb him if he still needed to sleep. Standing up from her bed she walked over to the window. It wasn't raining as it had been the previous night and the air had even warmed up a bit she noticed since even though she was barelegged she didn't feel chilled. Of course that could have also been an after effect of the furry heater she had had sitting on her feet all night. It was just day break and the sun was low in the sky but steadily climbing.

Thinking back she remembered that she actually had a mission to go check on possible vampire activity in the nearby Zyabeth forest. Her expression soured at the thought. As much as she would enjoy a run through the forest, it always took forever to get the vampires' scent out of her senses. Not always a pleasant experience.

Feeling her stomach grumble a bit she turned with a sigh and walked over a closet near her bathroom and dug around in it until she found a change of clothes. Quickly stripping out of the shirt she had slept in she pulled on the snug pants and loose shirt before heading out making sure to pull the door shut behind her. There was a inn up the road and she knew they would be serving something for breakfast around this time. The innkeeper was used to her popping in for food and leaving with it although he was a little confused when she asked for two sets. When she explained to him that she had company he jokingly remarked if it was "special male company", earning him a quick swat and glare from the small she-wolf. Never-the-less she was able to leave with fresh biscuits, sweet rolls and a variety of breakfast meats.

She had a little trouble with the door since her hands were slightly full, but after a min she got it up and made her way through her apartment to the kitchen where she placed the food on the table. Grabbing one of the warm sweetrolls she stuck it in her mouth before starting to sort through the rest of the food.

[rebirth]

Ran'Cris was awakened as she pulled her feet out from under him, he didn't move. He didn't want her to feel guilty for waking him. He had just gotten the most restful nights sleep he had gotten in recent memory. Even though he had only slept for a couple hours he felt recharged, when he was running he slept for less than that and not as well. Though his shoulder did still pain him, he could have been imagining it, but the pain seemed to have gotten worse.

He heard her changing and he heard her walk out the door, he wondered where she was off to so early in the morning. Closing his eyes again he drifted off to another dreamless sleep. He was out for what seemed only a few seconds when he smelled something. His stomach seemed angry and the gurgling was followed by a quick cramping he awoke with a start. He knew that scent... Bacon.

Ran'Cris rolled over and bodily slid off the bed, his shoulder was on fire. He landed lightly on his feet and yelped when his paw touched the ground. On three legs he limped his way into the kitchen. And looked up to Felicia who was standing with a plate of food. He was in agony but that could wait until after he ate. He hoped she had brought some for him.

[fel]

Hearing a yelp she turned around quickly to see Ran limp into the room. Her eyebrows lifted slightly with concern before narrowing slightly. Certainly there had to be something that could be done about his shoulder. It was already causing him serious issues now and would only get worse. She feared for him, that if this was left unattended to, he could lose use of that arm.

Taking the sweet roll out of her mouth she looked down at the wolf who was standing in her kitchen favoring his leg. Placing the plate in her hand on the table she looked over at him. "Are you going to eat like that..." one eyebrow lifted as she held his plate in her hand.

[rebirth]

Eat like what? he attempted to say, but all that came out was a few barks and yips and he cut the phrase short having heard himself. If a wolf could blush he would have been scarlet. Ran'Cris began trembling, bones cracking and fur retreating as he returned to his human form.

Throughout the transformation agony coursed through his entire right side, he took it in silence but as he rose slowly from the floor his eyes were watering. Realizing he had once again transformed right in front of her naked, he turned quickly and walked into the bedroom to retrieve his pants.

A couple moments later after having wiped his eyes he walked back out with a smile on his face and pants on his legs. "Sorry about that, I forget I'm a wolf sometimes and I was startled into transforming without thinking there was a female present. I Apologize sincerely,"

He made a slight bow, but even that agonized his tender shoulder, He had to get this fixed. He was being driven insane something must have happened to the arrow head. As he rose back up he smiled reasuringly.

"Thank you very much for breakfast, but after we eat do you know any healers? I want someone to look at my shoulder."

Ran'Cris took his plate and began eating hungrily, he hadn't eaten a meal since he left the forsaken lands. And that had been a moose that he pulled down, and he hadn't bothered to cook it.

He looked over at the beautiful she wolf and smiled, "Why do you spend so much time in your human form? Isn't that uncomfortable?"

He shook his head, and continued eating. The bacon was delicious, they never had bacon in the forsaken lands. There were no pigs, and swine wasn't exactly something that flew onto your plate in the arctic climate.

[fel]

Felicia just stared at the wolf in confusion as he barked at her. Seeing him start to transform her face flush slightly and she turned to place the plate on the table. To say that she didn't want to see him naked again, would have been a lie but she didn't trust her face not to give away her emotions.

Sitting in one of the chairs she pulled her feet up so she could sit cross-legged in the chair. Hearing his footsteps in the room again she looked up, only a slight blush lingering on her cheeks. Hearing him apologize she waved a hand in dismissal. Her eyes followed him as he moved and she returned his smile.

There were several healers in the city. She was on good terms with a few of them. It wouldn't be out of her way to bring him over there when they were finished. She was about to open her mouth to tell him so when he spoke again.

"Why do you spend so much time in your human form? Isn't that uncomfortable?"

A little startled by his questions she looked down at her hands. "Well, not everything in the city is exactly...wolf accessible." holding up her hands and extended her thumbs she continued "Opposable thumbs come in handy around here. So, i'm guess i'm just used to it by necessity." She took a few bites of her food to quiet her stomach before continuing. "There are a good number of healers in the city. I need to leave later to go out to the forest later on...business. I can bring you by the healer district on my way out, no problem." she finished.

[rebirth]

Ran thought for a moment, and contemplated her options, "The forest?" Concern flashed across his face briefly, "You wouldn't be going to investigate the vampire rumors would you?"

He took a bite of ham and shewed it slowly, savoring the salty meat as it slid down his throat. Tasting things in human form truly did dull down the taste of everything. No wonder humans added so many spices to their cuisine. Though he did have to give them credit, eating their food as a wolf was like having an orgasm ripple across his spine.

The thought of anything rippling across his spine made his stomach hurt along with his shoulder. Maybe it was best that he had stopped in the city instead of staying in the forest. And he was truly starting to be happy with meeting Felicia. She had been a blessing in disguise. Ran didn't realize it but he was gazing enamored into her big blue eyes.

[fel]

"The forest? You wouldn't be going to investigate the vampire rumors would you?" Something about the way he said that through her off a bit and she looked over at him curiously before turning back to her food.

"Yes those rumors. So far there hasn't been any trouble from them. If the rumors of their sites are true then they've lingered long enough near our borders to rouse suspicion. It's purely a recon mission." she added nonchalantly.

Looking up from her food she noticed him staring at her and she leaned a way a bit a bit. Already slightly uncomfortable with her feelings towards him she could feel her heartbeat speed up a bit under his gaze. Not that she didn't like the attention, it was more of the uncertainty of how to proceed that bothered her.

[rebirth]

Ran didn't stop looking, he still wasn't aware he was. He continue to think about her. She was Smart, kind, had a strong will, and was undeniably beautiful. He had come to Lunetta the night before seeking shelter and a warm place to sleep. He never expected to discover a she wolf he stole his heart away to a special place. He felt odd, strangely connected to her. And he knew she didn't need protected but he was smitten by a strong desire to do so.

He hadn't touched his food for the past minute or so, he was seemingly lost in thought, and his thoughts read through on his scent and was obvious in his eyes. Werewolves were naturally in tune with emotion they were laden with it and the ability to smell it always led to deeper connections. And as Ran'Cris smelled the air, under the food he smelled confusion, along with a conflicted emotion that was a little to muddled to be made out.

When he looked at her the pain in his shoulder seemed to disappear, it seemed like it belonged to someone else and he felt a sympathy pain. He was a different person and he couldn't draw his eyes away from her it was as though she possessed some sort of force that was drawing him and he leaned a little toward her, only a fraction but still toward her.

[fel]

As he leaned forward towards her as she leaned back she felt her face flush a little. The scent on the air had changed. It hadn't been obvious to her before, but now that she was focusing in on it and trying to figure out the source of his sudden lack of attention on food, which he had been rather preoccupied with before, and on her was coming from. Even if she didn't have the ability to sense his emotions through scents, it wouldn't have been hard to see them through his green eyes. Her heart beat sped up a little more realizing what it was. Attraction. As she keep eye contact with him she would have been lying if she told herself it wasn't a mutual attraction.

His different outlook on things was refreshing compared to what she was used to from all the males in the city. Instead of treating her as a weaker being that needed protection he had kept her on a equal level of respect. She had opened her home to him and despite his constant apology for his manors he had been nothing but a well behaved guest, and an enjoyable one at that. And as much as she hated to admit it, she was attracted to his obvious strength, most likely due to her lack there of. He was the opposite to her sleeker quick form and the compensation felt like it completed her.

Her uncertainty grew, never having been placed in a situation like this. All of the males she had interacted with thus far were like brothers to her since she generally ran with them instead of taking care of them. To find herself genuinely attracted to another male excited her and slightly confused her since she was unsure of where to go from here.

She decided to play it safe, for now since she was getting herself so worked up now, and he was leaving to complete his journey soon. Breaking away the eye contact she looked over at her food and noticed neither of them had eaten anything for good bit and she looked sidelong at him as she spoke. "Erm, if you're finished, we had better get you to that healer." her voice sounded alien to her as it cut through the silence.

[rebirth]

Her voice cut through his thoughts like a howl through a foggy night, it startled him out of his revelries and he looked down at his food and at her. He had been day dreaming he realized, he'd lost focus.

"I couldn't eat another bite if I tried," He lied smoothly, though he was satisfied.


He pushed away from the table with one arm easily his muscles flexing in his chest shoulder and arm. He was heavy after all though he was more than used to carrying his weight in his arms. He quickly stood up and stepped passed her slowing slightly by her side, he took in her scent and stopped.

"I'll... Be outside." As he stepped behind her unlatched the door and cracked it before stripping off his pants and tossed them on the table. His body contorted and the large silver wolf was standing in his place. Ignoring the searing pain in his shoulder he hobbled out the door and found himself in the bright early morning sun. It was cool but felt like summer to him. He was used to much, much colder, only a few puddles remained on the street.

He sat patiently by the door and waited for Felicia to exit. He hoped he wasn't hurting himself much by staying in his wolven form. He never walked anywhere as a human unless he had to. And there was little to no point into slipping into his monstrous bestial mode just to walk down the street. Besides, he might scare some overconfident males into attacking him. That would be funny, and entertaining. He would toss them aside like rag dolls in one hand even in there bestial forms. He let a smirk cross his internal face, he doubted there were any wolves in this city that could match him for strength. And very few in the world.

[fel]

"I'll... Be outside."

She nodded faintly before getting up to dispose of the food. Making her way back through the rooms and out the door. Ran was waiting in his wolf form. She thought briefly about shifting, but shook the idea away. The healers district wasn't far and she would just need to shift again so she could talk the the women. Despite Ran's , obvious affinity for the wolf form, to her it just wasn't practical in the city.

She locked the door behind her and nodded her head for him to follow her. The route took them past the inn where she had gotten the food before and around several other corners. The glances of the others on the streets didn't go unnoticed to her as they looked at Felicia walking along the street with a strange larger wolf at her side.

The building she took him to was owned by a older woman by the name of Virama. It had been her who had helped Felicia heal her back and she was known to be the best with the most difficult cases. As she opened the door, making sure to hold it open long enough for Ran to get in behind her, and walked into the clean room she looked around for the healer.

"Felicia, it's been a while since i've seen you around here. I was hoping it would stay that way." a woman with greying hair and kind eyes walked out from a hall way that Felicia knew led back to the working rooms. The woman looked Felicia over, a frown on her face. "You don't look hurt though. Is your back acting up?"

Felicia just smiled. "No, no, i'm fine." she motioned the larger wolf beside her. "He is the one with the problem. An arrowhead is embedded inside his shoulder muscles. From what he's told me it hasn't been removed so far because it rests close to an artery."

Virama looked thoughtfully at the wolf "I don't recognize him, he a friend of yours."

"Yes." Felicia replied before the woman waved her hand.

"It matters not of course, I was just wondering. Well come to the back young man, we'll have a look at the shoulder of yours."

[rebirth]

Ran'Cris never liked healers, they had always frightened him though he never dare admit it. As the healer beckoned him to follow he cast one look back at Felicia and whined his eyes pleading for her to come with, but he quickly turned and trotted into the backroom with the healer. The room wasn't small but it wasn't huge either, it had tall ceilings but it was decidedly rectangular favoring its height over its width.

The room was empty except a shelf with an array of tools gracing it and a wooden chair that sat in the center of the room. He doubted he would shift into his human form for this woman, he was uncomfortable around her as it was. He had reluctantly asked the Felicia to take him here in the first place. And he found after getting here that he wasn't thrilled in the least.

[fel]

Felicia looked down hearing a whine and saw Ran looking up at her. He obviously wasn't comfortable and as he trotted off to follow Virama she reluctantly followed after him. Virama was looking through some drawers on the far side of the room. As she found what she was looking for she pulled them out and placed them on the counter; some bottles of liquid and curved knives mostly along with some towels. Shuddering slightly Felicia leaned up against the wall with her arms folded. Her eyebrows were knitted with concern, this wasn't going to be pleasant but as much as she would have preferred to be heading out to the forest already she could sense his discomfort and it would have plagued at her mind to leave him.

After Virama seemed satisfied with the equipment she had chosen she turned around and looked down at the wolf. Never taking her eyes off of him she spoke to Felicia. "You said it was lodged near an artery."

"From what he's told me, yes." Virama's eyes narrowed slightly at Felicia's words before turning to the wolf.

"Well if we are going to remove this, you are going to have to be you beast form. The shift might move the arrowhead further away from your artery." she commented. She started to turn around to the supplies she had laid out. As an afterthought she added. "Not to mention you'll heal quicker that way." Turning back around she looked over at the large wolf. Even as she spoke a man appeared in the door way.

He, like Virama, was aged but his age didn't do anything to detract from his size. While he was no where near the size of Ran, he was still larger than either of the women and it was clear what his purpose was. In case things got out of hand the male wolf would have a better time of handling the other male than the two woman would. It was merely a formality and he stood out in the hall never entering the room as a courtesy to the male wolf inside.

[rebirth]

Morning sunlight drifted in through the windows at the front of the building. The light silhouetted the large male standing at the doorway, Ran felt better having the Male around. But if he went into a rage there would be little anyone could do to stop him short of killing him. And there was nothing that put him into that bestial mindset faster than pain.

Ran'Cris looked to each of the people standing nearby and whined slightly, he lingered longer on Felicia, He didn't want anything to happen to her most of all. At least he knew she could easily outrun him in that massive form.

A single short bark made its way from his throat that could easily be understood as "Back"

The size difference between wolf and bestial was great, it would be agonizing, especially now with his shoulder in such a bad condition. He swore silently as his body began shaking that he would never give a human mercy again.

The contortion was rapid and violent Ran howled to the ceiling as his form grew and twisted. As his body changed, as did the howl settling somewhere between human and his beloved Lupine form.

He was a monster, he couldn't remember if he had told Felicia just how big he was but she would surely see now. He was the very embodiment of what his race was. In his pure form he felt the power of the moon even though it lay hidden, the nocturnal pulses of his heart sent torrents of the raw barely controlled rage racing through him. He had to clamp down on it before it got out of control. It took him effort but slowly he lay his massive dark form down upon the floor, his huge green eyes never left Felicia, looking at her helped him keep the rage in its place, hidden beneath the powerful mass of muscle and flesh.

In this form, he was certain none could best him. That not only included strength, speed, and cunning but self control as well. The thought strengthened his resolve, and with grim determination he awaited the cut of her knife.

[fel]

Felicia keep her eyes on his form as he shifted. She knew Landon, virama's husband, was standing in the hall way behind her. For one, she could smell him, and his concern for his mate and two, she knew he was always present anytime Virama worked on a male. Even though the older woman was as strong as an ox herself, she could easily be overpowered by an enraged male. And pain generally tended to make for upset customers.

Seeing him lay back down on the ground she bit her lip a little. Even if all three of them shifted to their beast form she wasn't sure they could get a good handle on him if he was truly enraged. If he did get out of control she would have to let Virama and Landon handle him while she ran to get help from some of the other sentinels. She keep her eyes on him, looking for any sign of his rage getting the better of him. Her face was twisted with concern, for all of those involved in this and her body posture was rigid with discomfort. Even though she had just met him, she had grown rather fond of Ran and didn't want to see him in such pain. However remembering how much irritation the wound was giving him, she told herself that this was the best for him in the long run.

Virama was concerned as well. She looked over at Felicia and her mate before turning around to pick up one of the straight knives as well as one of the curved ones. Kneeling down beside his form she placed one hand on his back as if to hold him down, or steady herself before using the straight knife to make a initial incision. Directly above where the arrowhead was. Her stuck her fingers in the cut to make sure she had cut deep enough down to the arrowhead she quickly picked up the curved knife and started trying to pry it away from the muscles that held it in place.