seeking sanctuary [sparoo w/meneman]

He'd smelt the blood, that much was for sure; the pungent scent shrouding the back alley was impossible to miss, especially with a shifter's acute senses. The metallic scent had long since overcome his thoughts, and as a result, he'd ended up simply abandoning his work, which likely wasn't the best move, if only due to the subtle familiarity endorsed somewhere within the captivating aroma. Not only was it to peak his interest, merely due to the notion of the crimson tinted liquid's spillage, but also to send shockwaves of apparent fear through his heart. Not only did the scent of many creatures (feline, reptilian, avian, you name it) shroud the air, but among the scene, his pale gaze promptly fell upon a few shredded feathers upon the faintly scarlet tinted concrete, the plumage tinted with blood. He didn't need to inspect them to know of which creature they belonged, and his mind immediately became consumed by a singular, overwhelming thought. Eponine.

It didn't take him long to reach her place of residence, having traversed the terrain at a run, rendered safe to curious eyes by the darkness. His fist desperately pounded on the surface of the door, his motions frantic, though only seconds later he shoved his weight against the door to barge it open, pale eye searching the room instantly. "Eponine? Dammit, answer me! Fuck!" Her scent was fresher here, though still boarded on stale; it merged with that of a strange mixture of creatures, similar to that of before. Had whatever attacked the feminine followed? Why the fuck had the coffee table been flipped over? Had some form of fight ensued? Within a matter of moments he was out the door again, slamming it shut in his wake, trailing after the scent of plumage and blood, both disturbingly familiar in their own rights, towards the woodland she so often sought to traverse.

"Fucking hell," he mumbled through gritted teeth, ignoring the snagging of thorns against his clothing, against his skin, far too focused on the task at hand. His gaze swept through the foliage, searching for any signs of her existence, of her presence. His drive lay purely upon the scent of her blood, so close and yet so far away, taunting him with it's familiarity, but as soon as the notion began to frustrate him fully, he lost the scent, ending up wandering aimlessly in the same direction in the hopes of stumbling upon the griffin, though his efforts seemed fruitless. The sound of the gunshot, though, he certainly could miss. That was what drove a stake of fear through his heart, more than the blood, more than the blood-stained feathers, more than her absence from her home. His weight twisted towards the sound, hesitating a few seconds, before scrambling towards it, refusing to allow the bear inside his heart to erupt, for the larger form would slow him down if anything, and prolong the uncovering of the griffin. A faint, masculine voice reached his audits,  and breathing in ragged rasps for oxygen, he eventually came upon the scene, his pale iris widening as he took it in. Gun. Eponine. Blood. 

Those few words registered in his mind, and without hesitation, he was charging forward once again from behind said hunter, newly formed rage rising promptly within his chest, overcoming every other thought but that of keeping the woman safe. Some attempt was made to grab the back of the unknown man's collar, and even before his form changed, he was making some effort to sink his teeth into the man's shoulder. His frame became bulkier, thick brown fur beginning to sprout from his skin, his spine releasing a sickening crack as it transformed, and alongside those changes, his ivories extended, and claws sprouted from where his nails formerly were. And no, he didn't spare any time in attempting to drive them into the man's chest.

W O R D S
God knows.

T A G
Eponine Graves played by RENDEZVOUS.

N O T E S
Crappy post is crappy but eh. He flipped his shit before he even saw the hunter omg xD

M U S E
Sinners, Me, You Can Be King Again, Love The Way You Lie, Animal I Have Become,

 

The singular operational iris the shifter still wielded appeared to brighten as the sickening cry erupted from the target at hand, the metallic scarlet liquid seeping into his jaw as his ivories drove into the shoulder, savouring the copper-like taste in the brief moment, the sweetness greater than that of life itself. He held no mercy within his heart, no form of regret, only violence. It was said that meeting violence with violence would only amplify it, adding a deeper darkness to a sky already devoid of stars. It never settled anything right, aside from injuring one's own soul, also injuring the best cause. It lingers on long after the object of hate has disappeared from the scene, only to plague the hearts of those that have employed it against their foes. However, at the current moment in time, there was no calculation to the consequence, acting if only to damn it, nor was their consideration to his motive. For once, though, his mind was not purely set upon slaughtering within cold blood; in fact, he was merely set upon defending the griffin shifter, defending Eponine, with everything he had. That being said, both motives would likely lead to the same fate for the hunter.

Form having developed into that of his animalistic counterpart, his extended ivories bored deeply into the flesh of the man's shoulder with apparent success, despite said attack being rather uncalculated, the metallic tinge of blood seeping into his jaw, and for a moment, he savoured the copper-like taste upon his tongue, the sweetness unrivalled by even that of life itself. However, as the hunter staggered in effort to get away from his frame, his teeth unhinged from the flesh, and his large paws (and thus, claws) fell away from the man's chest. A deep, glutteral snarl slipped through his maw when faced with the barrel of the gun, his singular, icy iris staring into the hunter's own eyes with a hatred unhindered by rational thinking, the sight of the weaponry barely phasing the shifter. Thick muscles bunched beneath his pelt in preparation, though the movement from beyond the hunter caught his attention, reluctantly twisting his irises towards the frame of the feminine as she transformed into that of her griffin counterpart. His gaze hazed from aggression into that of worry upon sighting the deep wounds that wove through the intricate plumage of her wings, though as his jaw opened as to say something to her, her found the mass of the presumed human being shoved back towards him, his attention redirecting.

Tensing his weight and allowing the snarl to form within his throat once more, the bear released a deep, glutteral bellow, and though the notion briefly entered his mind to go for the throat, he resisted it; he wanted this man to endure the pain he believed that the hunter had put Eponine through herself. He wanted him to feel every inch his ivories cut into his flesh, every bead of blood that wove down his skin, every pang of fear within his chest. Thus, again, he went for the shoulder of the man once again, large paws attempting to shove the frame of the humanoid down upon the terrain, powerful forepaws pressing forth, attempting to clamp his jaws down a little too eagerly. However, the faint whisper of his name within the familiar voice drew his attention, his skull raising and twisting towards her with confusion littering his gaze, alongside worry, leaving a brief moment in which he was essentially vulnerable.

W O R D S
God knows.

T A G
Eponine Graves played by RENDEZVOUS.

N O T E S
>:3

M U S E
Sinners, Me, You Can Be King Again, Love The Way You Lie, Animal I Have Become, Fools, Ugly Truth.

 

The bittersweet crimson had long since dulled his other senses, far too focused upon the tinge upon his tongue and the scent within his nares to focus on what was going on around him, for blood had the capability to set one's teeth on edge, or to control the chaos. If one was to introduce a little anarchy, a little blood, the upset of the established order would plummet society into chaos; the same went for the human mind. Distress the mind, amplify the fear, and everything became such sweet mayhem. Entropy was plenty like gravity, for all it required was a simple push, a disruption.

Captivated by such a thought, the beast's jaw split into an oddly human grin, accenting his words with a vicious snarl, though considering the species difference, the man likely wouldn't understand a word. "Now, give me one reason why I shouldn't tear your eyes out of their sockets and shove them down your throat, so you can see me tear your sorry carcass open." His claws pressed further against the man's frame, digging in to the flesh, savouring each fresh wound he managed to inflict. At this point, he had abandoned using his ivories, merely sneering down at the man with the strange grin plastered upon his facials. "Better make it a fucking good one, too."

However, upon casting the feminine a sideways glance, his operational iris briefly snagged her gaze, drawing his attention momentarily away from the hunter, observing her groggy, painful rise and slow approach. Still, the beast stubbornly snorted, and returned his attention to the man, tensing his limbs to that his claws drove deeper, twisting them, initially managing to completely block out the feminine's speech. His sides still heaved with the effort of his run, and thick fur was beaded with sweat, though the exhaustion barely set into his muscles due to the adrenaline seeping through him.

His operational iris once again tauntingly surveyed the throat of the downed human, ignoring the frantic hands shoving and pounding at his throat, shoulders and facials, instead refocusing his grip upon the shoulder, digging his teeth into flesh and muscle alike, fully intending to prolong the suffering as a pose to end it quickly. His audit twitched lightly upon the unwanted closeness of the feminine, hesitating briefly and loosening his grip upon the shoulder to snarl a low, "no, Eponine! It's not okay!" The feminine's hands upon his maw caused a slight hesitance in the beast, though the rattling growl within his throat amplified. Reluctantly, he cast the feminine a questioning glance, before returning his gaze to the man beneath him. Hell, this human had been fully intending to do god knows what with her, sell her, hunt her down, slaughter her like a common pig purely for the sake of his own sick pleasure and needs. And yet, she wanted to spare his life? No, he wouldn't allow for it. He was a threat to her, to Eponine, and thus needed to be removed. However, upon her limbs wrapping around his neck, the beast relinquished his grip upon the shoulder with an irritated snort, though the pained gasp immediately silenced him, casting a worried gaze down upon her. Was it truly what she desired? To have this hunter, a danger to her life and very existence, roam the woods freely? To survive? Though, looking down upon the man, it was highly unlikely that he'd make it back to civilization alive. A light huff left the beast, gently nudging the side of her skull with his maw, though keeping a deathly intense stare upon the downed human. His limbs ached violently from the intense run, though he ignored the protesting, merely focusing upon the feminine as of now. 

Her apology, though, was especially unfounded, nevermind her unwillingness to allow him to slaughter her hunter, drawing a disbelieving snort from the brute. "Nonsense, darlin. None of this is your fault." His partial gaze searched her pained facials, iris softening slightly, easily supporting her against his shoulder, settling his thick skull over her own, drawing her close to his frame. "I know it does, I know... You'll be fine... I'm here, I won't let anything happen to you..." She needed to go to the hospital, somewhere she could receive proper treatment; unlike her, he bore no knowledge of herbs, though even so, her strange healing concoctions likely wouldn't remedy the deep wounds that she sported. However, relinquishing her to the hospital could mean unveiling their abilities to mankind, and not only would that be disastrous to them, but to the whole second side of the city. The side considered unnatural, beast-like, irregularities to the casual human life. What was he supposed to do? He could bandage them, sure, but that would mean transporting her to his own household, which was a distance she might not make. He had to risk it.

With that thought in mind, and a deep frown plastered upon his facials, the form of the bear morphed back into that of the man, swiftly moving into a crouch to steady her with his hands. "Jesus, Eponine..." he mumbled gently, gaze trailing upwards to meet her own, "I..." He didn't honestly know what to say that could be of comfort to the feminine, surveying her with uncertainty for a few seconds, before moving to gently lift her into his arms as he had done previously, taking care to avoid her wounds as much as he could. He briefly looked over her frame, before beginning to move forward, keeping his movement smooth in effort to reduce the pain during the apparent journey that faced them. He cared not for the blood that shrouded his mouth, nor his limbs, wanting nothing more than to secure her safety.

However, it would seem the world would have other plans, for as quickly as the man had left the scene of the bleeding human, a darkly toned form shifted among the foliage and burst forth from the greenery, tacking the bear shifter's frame to the ground, his arms loosing their grip of the blonde feminine. Before he knew it, he was staring up into the infuriated blue irises of a feathered creature very similar in essence to Eponine, especially on terms of the hues within the griffin's irises. Slowly, the image registered in his mind, familiarity settling and seeming to strike it's way through the griffin's gaze in turn. His mouth split into a cruel grin, spitting the words, "fancy seeing you here." And with that, his frame morphed once more into his beastly counterpart, sinking his jaws into the griffin's limb, in turn having sharp talons raked down his shoulder blade and back. The pair certainly wasted no time in being at each other's throats, apparently with no attention to spare for the blonde feminine.

W O R D S
1138 WOOT

T A G
Eponine Graves played by RENDEZVOUS.

N O T E S
>:3 here comes chaira

M U S E
Sinners, Me, You Can Be King Again, Love The Way You Lie, Animal I Have Become, Fools, Ugly Truth.

 

One could not truly ever force love; it is simply there, or it isn't. In it's absence, one must be able to honestly admit it, though if it was to be there, one simply had to do whatever it took to protect those that they love. Perhaps he could easily be considered one to easily overprotect, cutting off the psychological knees and handicapping them with his inability to trust both their external and internal strength; his prior life had crafted him in such a manner, it having had amplified his distrust of others. He couldn't trust them to protect themselves, let alone his own wellbeing, hence he relied on none other than himself to handle each thing that got thrown his way. He didn't need to condolences of others. He simply had to protect the one thing that he couldn't live without. With such a notion in mind, the beast's thickly muscled frame edged closer to the feminine, relishing in the faint warmth that radiated from her, dulled slightly by the thickness of his pelt. That was, until her gaze transferred to the human gradually bleeding out, his own pale irises following to look upon him. Instinctively, the aggressive growl reverberated within his throat, pupils dilating slightly, though it faded into a light snort upon her own words. "If anyone's fault, it is of this inutile bipedal. Do not blame yourself for man's stupidity, constantly placing himself in harm's way for his fatuous causes..." However, the brutish shifter promptly silenced himself upon the next words leaving the feminine's mouth, only grunting lightly, perhaps in agreement, perhaps in acknowledgement.

The bear's audits perked forward once again upon her hushed laugh, laced with the faint traces of pain, his singular iris softening slightly. The otherwise brutish male's maw gently rubbed the side of her skull, releasing a gentle huff within the process, before choosing to revert to his human form. Though attempting to shift her small frame carefully into his arms, the soft gasp the feminine gave had him promptly readjusting his grip and slackening it slightly, his single operational orb surveying her facials for a moment, before rising to his full height. With sides still heaving from the frantic run, the brute progressed through the woods with immense care to keep her movements slight so as not to cause the woman too much discomfort. However, as her irises began to flutter slightly, her eyelids drooping, the man provided her upper arm with a gentle squeeze, releasing a hushed murmur, "Eponine, darlin', try to keep your eyes open." His sides still violently heaved from his rather unexpected rush, though his attention still remained purely upon the griffin shifter, his gaze transferring downwards and sweeping over her wounded frame every once in a while to ensure she still took dainty breaths, that her heart still pounded within her chest, that her eyes still held that familiar living light.

With senses still shrouded by the lasting scent and taste of blood, the man failed to notice the presence of the beast until it charged from the foliage towards him, the woman slipping from his grasp as the unknown beast tackled him to the ground. His teeth gritted in agitation upon the woman's pained gasp, though he made no abrupt movements, merely staring up into the irises of the creature above him. Remaining silent, his singular operational iris scrolled over the otherwise visually dull griffin's features, immediately drawn to the blue hues positioned upon her facials, studying the eyes of the creature carefully. It certainly didn't take him long to piece the puzzle together. The grin promptly enlarged upon his own facials, a slow chuckle rising from his throat. Chaira.

They said that through life as a mother tried to teach a child of the world, the child would teach the mother what the world was all about, and as such, it had very much been that way for the aged feminine. They were her greatest blessings, her light within the cold world; sometimes the smallest things filled the greatest room within one's heart. She prayed for nothing more than their health, their safety, their happiness, and loved them unconditionally, just as any mother should. Even Braille, of whom she was forced to abandon for the sake of the fragile young male's safety; she longed to see his face once again. Naturally, the combination of her daughter's blood, a scent she would never forget, and the familiar man, of whom she thought to be nothing more than a murderous bastard with a black heart, she had come running, her defences on alert, and had acted upon the violent notion as soon as the pair fell into vision, acting and damning the consequence. Eponine's safety meant everything, and as the woman slipped from the man's arms with a pained wince, the griffin's gaze briefly faltered to her daughter, before refocusing upon the man beneath her. Slowly, she studied him, her frame bracing, eyes widening upon his grin. And before she knew, ivories were clamping down upon her forelimb, prompting her to rake the other across his own shoulder.

Easily drawing a sickly crimson from the feminine's limb, his weight jerked upon the feeling of her claws raking down his shoulder blade, his ivories loosing their grip of her flesh. Retracting his frame in a brisk movement, his weight drew upwards onto his hind legs, standing to his full height with a violently snarl, promptly countered by talons raking across his muzzle. He sunk his jaws into the first thing he could, which, between the flurry of fur, feathers, teeth, claws and talons, happened to be her back, right where the connection lay between her body and the feathered appendages that sprouted from her spine. With the flesh sensitive and the bones delicate, his sharp teeth easily ruptured the skin and muscle, tightening it promptly upon her pained hiss. Twisting her frame in effort to escape her grasp, the brute managed to tear her flesh and feathered away from the wing's point of bondage, though it barely phased the feminine. She was at him again, her wings flaring outwards with an agitated hiss, and she managed to get a brief grip on the fur surrounding his throat, though was promptly driven off, doing little damage to the vital region.

However, there was no time for another attack, for another form pressed its way into the mix, shoving the duelling pair apart. Drawing her skull back, the otherwise gnarled griffin cast the smaller being a hard look, breathing heavily. "You don't understand!" For once, it seemed as though the bear was in agreement, his skull butting roughly against the lightly toned feminine's neck in effort to usher her out of the way, his one pale iris staring up at her facials, fraught with desperation. The grey griffin merely stared down into her daughter's defiant eyes for a good few moments, searching their sky blue depths with a frown that only deepened, allowing her to speak, even through her returning to her human form. "Eponine," she began, her voice firm, caring not for the presence of the beast, "it is no more than a brute, a monster. He's a felonious, flagitious savage. He deserved nothing more than to be slaughtered. He's doing the earth a dishonour by laying his feet upon the soil," she spat the final note towards the bear, earning a violent snarl from him, fairly easily dodging his lunge. "He wants nothing more than to take your heart and crush it before your eyes. That's what people do. That's what men do."

With that final note, the bear shoved forward past the blonde feminine, barging his full weight into the griffin, topping her frame onto the ground, her feathered appendages trapped beneath her weight. His large paws settled against the barrel of her chest, maw tauntingly close to her throat, though his facials remained remarkably blank, especially for him. "... Perhaps you're right. Perhaps I am this despicably monstrous being you've crafted in that odd little mind of yours. But know this..." His muzzle shifted slightly closer to her ear, his darkly toned lips slipping back to reveal his ivories. "Never forget what you are. Wear it like armour; that way it can never be used to hurt you." His claws sunk slightly into the feathers and flesh of her chest, amusement evident in his irises as her frame writhed in pain beneath him. It was unexpected, however, for her frame to morph back into that of her frail human counterpart. His expression faded into that of confusion, blinking down at the feminine for a few moments. The fuck was she doing? Well... He expected more of a fight, to be honest. His maw drew hesitantly closer, frowning, ignoring Eponine's own hushed begging for him to take her away from this damn place. She was breathing, so why wasn't sh- Immense pain suddenly flew through his skull as her fingers pressed into his already injured eye, nails striking over the irritated flesh and drawing blood. Suddenly the feminine was of her griffin self again, talons digging in to the already useless orb, savouring the cry of pain from the man, his limbs striking out in effort to kick her off, the immense pain dragging through his frame causing his form to shift back into his human form, and when he finally succeeded, he scrambled back. "Fuck!" he hissed, hand raising to briefly touch the bludgeoned area, flinching. "Fucking bitch..." he mumbled, ignoring the bemused snort from the feminine. As his hand pulled away, his singular operational one looked upon the limb, which now had a darkly toned smear of crimson upon it.

W O R D S
1592 Yeeeee

T A G
Eponine Graves played by RENDEZVOUS.

N O T E S
It was absolutely perf hun <3 But oh snap son. Why is it always the eye omf x'D

M U S E
Sinners, Me, You Can Be King Again, Love The Way You Lie, Animal I Have Become, Fools, Ugly Truth.