Over the last season, Vaia had spent most of her time exploring the continent known as Boreas. She met new faces along the way, though none of them stuck with her which was unfortunate. Vaia was used to being alone though, so long as she found solace in the world around her. She easily became friends with the woodland creatures, happy to have their company even if they didn’t stay for long. She had learned so much during her time away from home… one of those lessons being to stay away from the north when it was the winter season.

Returning to her island and avoiding the snow should have been her decision. But now that she was so far north, she honestly had become lost. Braving the winter storms and going in what felt like endless circles, she couldn’t figure out which way was south. Even the stars were distorted by rolling waves of storm clouds, which diminished her means of navigation further. For now, she was forced to find refuge in this sparse forest, having bunkered down in an abandoned fox den for the last couple of days.

A blizzard had swept through the territory most of the night, but now at the mid-morning hour, the world outside of her temporary den was eerily silent. She emerged with an air of caution, sweeping her surroundings before exiting the den and shaking the dirt from her pelt. She only had a few moments of peace before a familiar sound caught her attention. The soft, pained wail of an animal in pain echoed nearby, bouncing off the pines in an eery fashion before it dissipated into the distance.

Vaia was drawn to the commotion, not out of predatory instinct but because she wanted to help. She found a young doe by herself, her leg caught between two jagged pieces of a fallen pine tree trunk. She approached with caution, softly calling to the doe in an attempt to soothe it “It’s o-okay, I’m here.” She hummed, trying to think of a way to free it. But, her presence sent the doe into a panicked frenzy, as it writhed and kicked until it pulled itself free with a sickening crack of a femur bone.

The girl dropped to the earth, terrified of the scene that unfolded in front of her, as she watched the doe whip around with a mangled leg to view its presumed attacker.“I-I won’t hurt you!”  She called out, trying to prove her case that she wasn’t a threat by showing submissive behavior and speaking in a soft tone. But it was no use.

A scream left her lips as the doe barred towards her, intent on fighting for its life by tramping her. She lept to the side, avoiding the hooves that were now trampling the ground where she had been lying down. “N-no, please!” She cried out, stumbling backward until her back hit the trunk of a pine tree. Fear washed over her, freezing her like a deer in headlights. How ironic!

"Vaia"

Code by Shelby

He hadn’t completely recovered in the days following his reunion with Sephiran, but the herbs he received from the encounter had certainly helped speed the process along. When he was well enough to travel, he was eager to get out of the mines and back into the world. There wasn’t a specific direction he initially had in mind, but it often seemed that he found himself wandering toward the forest that had once belonged to his father’s family. Not that he had any real attachment to the territory other than what had been described to him by one of his eldest half-siblings. That was Vulcan’s story, not his own. It still left him with questions of what could have been had he been born earlier in time.

The lingering thoughts of another time were unfortunately put aside as he heard a racket of something struggling followed by a vaguely familiar voice. Curious as to what was going on, he quietly drifted in the direction the commotion had originated from. What he saw was nearly unbelievable. A young doe with what appeared to be a broken leg had somehow managed to gain the higher ground in a scuffle with the mousy girl he had previously met near the willow trees. She behaved like prey then, and she was doing the exact same thing now. It was more annoying to watch than anything.

What he hadn’t expected, was the redirection towards him. As the girl- Vaia, he thought her name was- surrendered her space to the doeling, she attempted to evade it by sidestepping. He lingered ever closer to the pair, drawn in by the anticipation of a kill. He circled around behind her, weaving through the trees preparing to strike. The surprise came when she suddenly stumbled backward… straight into him. Bumping into wasn’t a terrible offense, it was the demeanor she carried that bothered him the most. “Move!” He barked at her before lunging over the top of the girl- if she got out of his way or not.

Perhaps the Doe had been so entranced in its defense toward the smaller fae, it didn’t notice the true threat lingering in the shadows. However, there was very little that it could do for itself at that moment. Aresenn caught it head-on, gripping its throat and slamming the small injured deer to the ground. In reality, this was the greatest kindness it could be offered. If it didn’t struggle, he’d dispatch it quickly- saving it a drawn-out existence of agony. The Praetor clamped his jaws down over its jugular until the animal had gone still. In mere moments, its life had faded from existence.

Releasing his hold, he turned back to face Vaia with blood dripping from his jaws- down his face and chest, staining his already russet fur. His annoyance bubbled over into something beyond his control fueled by his temper and bloodlust. “How can something be so helpless!? You were being attacked by a deer! Not even a big deer! If I hadn’t witnessed it for myself, I wouldn’t have believed it.” He seethed at her, leaving the doe carcass behind him as he moved to close the distance between himself and the girl.

"Aresenn Praetor"

As she stumbled backward, she felt a hard, rugged, looming figure at her back. She assumed it was a neighboring pine tree, given she was alone with the doe. But suddenly, a masculine voice boomed from above her, sending a shockwave of terror through her body. She nearly jumped out of her skin, a gurgling scream leaving her jaws as she tried to scramble away. But before she could really avoid him, his massive frame was leaping over her body, which forced her to duck back down into a submissive position.

All she could do now was watch the horror unfold in front of her. The male, who she recognized from her first day away from home, viciously grabbed the doe by the throat before forcing it to the ground. “No, p-please!” Tears welled up in her eyes, panic filling her voice as she fought back the urge to sob. The doe let out a cry, struggling against the predator pinning it down. Vaia wanted to lurch forward, shove the male off, and help save the doe. But she couldn’t bring herself to move.

Tears were streaming down her face at this point, her rose-colored eyes tracking the final movements of the doe before it went still. She wanted to bury her face in her paws and pretend this wasn’t happening. But her instincts, the fear that beckoned in the back of her mind, told her she was unsafe in man’s presence. And her instincts were right. With a thud, the does head fell to the earth as he released his grip, swinging his head to face her with a crazed expression and a bloodied face. To her, he looked like a frenzied, rabid creature. And she was terrified.

He moved toward her, spitting insults with each step until he was looming over her. She sunk even farther down, her tail curling close to her abdomen as her body started to tremble out of fear. “S-she w-was a-afraid,” Even her voice trembled in the wake of his temper. She even kept her eyes straight, focusing on a bush that was behind him, not daring to look up at him. “A-and you k-killed her!” Her tone raised, but not in an act of defiance. It was riddled in agony and despair. “M-Murderer!” Her mind commanded her to run away, or she may turn into the next victim in this murder story. But she couldn’t bring herself to move.

"Vaia"

Code by Shelby

The fear that influenced this girl was clearly evident. She refused to look at him. The closer he got, the more she shrunk. If that wasn’t an invitation of trouble, he wasn’t sure what was. As he loomed over, blood dripping from his lips to her flame-kissed ivory coat, he nearly laughed as she made the excuse that the doe was just afraid. When she called him a murderer- that’s when he lost his resolve. If she thought this was bad … she’d probably pass out if she saw some of the other animals he played a part in mutilating with Sephiran. “What’s your point? A quick death was the greatest kindness she could have hoped for.” He answered as his cruel amusement momentarily subsided.

As he peered down at her, he couldn’t deny the desire to grab her pristine scruff … and do what? He wasn’t sure. Perhaps to simply terrorize in a game of cat and mouse. However, he managed to refrain for now. “Aren’t you afraid? Why don’t you fight like she did? Or maybe you just aren’t afraid enough?” Aresenn barked at her- attempting to roll her to her back with a shove of his paw to her shoulder. It annoyed him that she refused to look in his direction, he had hoped that forcing her into a different posture would hinder her ability to avoid him in such a manner. If she perceived him as such a monster, he could certainly give her a reason to think that.

"Aresenn Praetor"

The warmth of blood-tinged saliva melted into her coat, having dripped from his stained maw as he loomed over her. The closeness of his body made her an easy target, and should he choose to strike her down, she wouldn’t have been able to escape. Her instincts kept reminding her of that, screaming at her to run away. But her tumbling legs felt like dysfunctional, and she feared she would just tumble over the second she tried to crawl away. So she stayed, quivering beneath him just as prey would do in the face of a predator.

He said a quick death was the greatest kindness the doe could have hoped for. But Vaia disagreed, internally of course. On the exterior, she shook her head from side to side, to signify disagreement without saying anything back. She could have helped the doe after it calmed down. She could have given it herbs to help with the pain, and could have led it to a river to wash its wounds. She could have helped it find its herd, so it could rely on its community to help it heal and thrive. But this man took those opportunities away from her. And now Vaia was left in the aftermath of his wavering temper.

He kept tormenting her, asking if she was afraid, wanting to know why she didn’t fight like the doe did. Maybe she wasn’t afraid enough. When backed into a corner, all creatures had fight-or-flight instinct within them. But Vaia wasn’t like others- deep down, far beyond her understanding, there was an internalized need for the terror. She just didn’t know it.

The shove of his paw caught her off guard, a gasp escaping her jaws and she was pinned onto her side. The momentum caused her to roll onto her back, her tail tucking against her abdomen to shield herself from whatever he had in mind. "H-hey, ouch!" She was forced to look up at him now, her gaze settling on his blood-stained chest, still avoiding those piercing ember eyes she knew were glaring down at her. One of her paws rose and she pushed against his chest, trying to be defiant. "Stop!” She cried out, raising her other paw until both of them were placed against his chest. “You w-wouldn't harm another wolf!” She voiced her disbelief at the situation while helplessly squirming beneath him, surely enticing the predator that lurked behind his gaze.

"Vaia"

Code by Shelby

Looking down at her- a trembling mess. Practically writhing in fear beneath his gaze. He was no longer certain if the saliva pooling in his mouth was from his kill, or from the anticipation.

The girl was so easily manipulated. There was very little challenge in flipping her over. She cried out in surprise or shock, he wasn't sure. It certainly wasn't pain. There was no way he had hurt her. He felt the pressure of her paws against his chest- an attempted barrier between their bodies. The resistance only made him want to push back that much harder. Her plea for reason was akin to mewling for mercy- and he could barely hear it under the blood rushing in his ears. “You have no idea who I am, or what I would or would not do.” His voice, a low grumble that reverberated from his chest. "Given your situation, I would think you'd be a little more interested in compliance." The brute couldn’t help the curl of his lip as he made unrelenting eye contact- though she refused to look back at him. Her blatant weakness was quite possibly the most irritating thing in the world, and it only further annoyed him that it bothered him so much.

After several long moments of looking her over through his narrowed gaze, a forced breath escaped his jaws- something like a frustrated sigh. “What a waste of time.” He huffed, turning away to leave her where she lay, belly up in the frost. He had to leave before his impulsive thoughts led him to do something that there might be an unforeseen consequence for later.

"Aresenn Praetor"

She kept her paws against his chest, trying to use the little strength sh had to push him away. But given his size, muscle mass, and overall prowess, her attempt was futile. She had put herself in a dangerous situation, depending on how the male would take advantage of it. But she couldn’t fathom that he would hurt her for no good reason, especially since they were the same species, and she hadn’t done anything to deserve it. But the undeserving were always the ones who got hurt. She still couldn’t bring herself to look up at him, even though she was sure he was staring down at her, baring his fangs while he grumbled that she didn’t know him. It was perceived as a threat, in which she visibly flinched beneath him. As if he were going to follow up with the threat.

But in the end, he needed up sparing her for now. He stepped away from her, spewing one last insult before vanishing into the forest until there was nothing left of him but paw prints in the frost. Vaia stayed where she was, belly up in he snow with her tail tucked against her abdomen. Flurries fell from the sky, slowly starting to cover up the prints he left behind.

All she could do in the wake of her fear was remain frozen in time. Because she was afraid he would came back for her if she ran.

-end-

"Vaia"

Code by Shelby