The Wolf Girl

[EmilyHuene]

The moment August's shot hit the raven it exploded into feathers that all slowly turned to smoke before ever hitting the ground. This was no ordinary bird. August then mentioned something about a pistol with multiple shots but Eve wasn't listening. She was currently invested in looking around the woods from where she was standing to see if another raven was watching them. It wasn't.

She shook her head as August asked her what the hell she was wasting his ammo on then proceeded to step down from the porch onto the grass. Evelyn looked ready to fight something as her hair was almost standing on edge. Had she been anything like a feline it would have been possible. Her hands seemed twitchy and her head looked left and right searching for something not of this world.

"I must say, you are a terrible shot."

Behind August, leaning against the side of the house so only part of his body was shown, was a man in a long cape of black feathers. Although the cape covered most of his clothes, he was wearing a black shirt that was torn covered in ash; the pants were much the same. His arms were crossed showing off a decorated tattoo of a raven spreading its wings across the man's back. His hair was somewhat long but had that sort of messy-controlled look which made him look all the sexier. From his forehead, two tiny horns poked upwards resembling a sort of crown (if they would have gone all the way around his head). On his back (also covered by the cape) was a long sword nearly as long as his body. Only the pure black hilt of the weapon was visible over his shoulder.

"But then again. You've always been more of a melee fighter. I can respect that."

Evelyn turned and tossed a knife that seemingly came out of nowhere. "EDEN!" she screamed at the tops of her lungs.

The knife soared past August with deadly accuracy and hit the cape of feathers before the whole thing fell apart just as the raven did a moment ago. But out from the cape exploded hundreds of ravens that swarmed like one big mass until reshaping into a flesh body of Eden once more now behind where Evelyn was standing.

"Will you please stop. I'm not here to hurt you, Evelyn."

 

[KinkyPrawn]

A voice spoke up behind August, making him spin around. The guy was big, August would give him that. Not too bad looking either, but already he didn't like the guy. The long hilt sticking out from behind him also had a familiar look to it but August couldn't place it immediately. A dagger hurled past him towards the stranger. He looked back at Evelyn who seemed to be the one who threw it.

Suddenly the man burst into a bunch of ravens before the dagger could land and materialised behind Evelyn and August could sneak a peak at the enormous sword on his back. He knew those blades. Extremely dangerous and a dark artefact from the deepest pits of hell. August's left hand glided down to grasp the hilt of his longsword that was tied to his belt. Sure it wasn't nearly as big or deadly...frankly his trusty soul-trapper looked like a joke compared to that monstrosity. But he knew how to dance with it, especially when it came to demons. And while his blade might not kill angels, it's enchantment was most likely a lot more damning than simply killing someone...

"I enjoyed a good claymore or zweihander as much as the next guy in the renaissance...but that's a bit much don't you think?" August said flatly to the man, supposedly named Eden. He claimed to not want to hurt Evelyn, but with her reaction he was either lying or it was something else. "Then what are you here for?" his voice didn't change one note.

 

[EmilyHuene]

August would speak up now, taunting the man for his over-sized sword. Eden smirked, but said nothing. Instead he focused on Evelyn who quickly summoned her large scythe in her hands like it weighted nothing at all. "And I told you to leave me alone..."

"Eve..." he'd say in an authoritative tone.

"My name is Evelyn!" she screamed back and grabbed the hilt of her weapon with both hands now. "You have no right to be here!"

Eden seemed unfazed by her anger and instead would hold his hands out to the side, "I'm trying to apologize. You know what he's like. There was nothing I could do. Please, let me help you."

 

[KinkyPrawn]

Evelyn clearly didn't want to give him the time of day and he was starting to feel a little pushed aside by the guy. It seemed as if she and him have some history. History that ended up with her clearly pissed at him. When her scythe materialised in her hand August slightly drew his sword but still kept it in its scabbard. He took a step to the side to get a better look at the guy.

Eden proceeded to tell her that he wanted to help her. With how she was reacting to him that didn't seem like a stellar idea. "Yeah, not to get caught inbetween your business, but I'd say you need to work on your apologies a little bit." his eyes were locked onto the man, watching his every move. "Talk to me Evelyn. We let this guy go or put him down." he shot Evelyn a quick glance then returned to stare at Eden. At this point he just wanted to get a move on and stock up on supplies, but with her in distress he was willing to hang around a bit and back her up.

The grip on his sword tightened as he readied to react to anything the guy did with lightning quick speeds.

 

[EmilyHuene]

Not that Eden needed to defend himself to the vampire, but he would throw in a snarky response when August said he needed to work on his apology. "It's not that I haven't been trying. Miss temper over here won't give me the time of day."

"You know exactly why that is!" she yelled again at Eden.

He made an exasperated face and dropped his arms. "I told you. It was out of my control!" August then asked Evelyn what they were going to do with him when Eden added in, "I told you I'm here to help. Demons are still coming after you. If you leave this island, they will find you and I can't stand to let you die too."

"YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO BE WATCHING HER!" Evelyn screamed and teleported in front of him. Her scythe slashed at where he was, only to have the birds break apart, swarm around, and then reform on the porch to the right of August now.

 

[KinkyPrawn]

August's bored expression lightened up as he chuckled at Eden's response. Evelyn was not finding it funny whatsoever but he did. He wanted to drop a snarky comment when Evelyn screamed at him further. Eden went on to defend himself further, but their whole conversation went over his head. It seemed he wanted to protect her...rather insulting given the present company, but Evelyn would have none of it.

She tried to take a swing at Eden and he evaded in his feathery form, materialising to the right of August. August still had a smirk on his face as he turned to stare the man down. He sheathed his sword and his hands dropped to his side. "For the record, your evasion time is as slow as a mule." he spoke with a cheerful voice. He nodded towards the blade on his back. "If you feel like getting a good workout, take a rowboat, wait for a storm then go paddle with that thing around. I swear I actually felt my muscles slightly the next day. Would definitely help keep you ship shape so to speak." he went on to make fun of the dangerous weapon.

His face became more serious. "Now, mind filling the vampire in on the details? Or can we go ahead and leave already? We have a hell of a venture ahead of us and I need to stock up on food and water...and definitely some blood." he shot a quick look at Evelyn, almost pleading her to break off and let them leave. Not only was he getting tired of not knowing what they were talking about but it was clear she didn't want to see him. Though he was getting curious about who and what they were talking about.

 

[EmilyHuene]

Eden would turn his head to look at the man who was taunting him now about his sword. For the record, he wasn't trying to fight. Else this would have gone much differently. Instead, Eden just stared blankly throughout the whole speech. As August got no response whatsoever from the raven-demon, he'd then ask to be clued in on whatever was going on between them. Eden still said nothing, and neither would Evelyn. She turned and tossed her scythe away (it faded to smoke as it hit the ground). Continuing away from the cottage she bore into the forest's path stomping her feet as she went.

"I was being serious when I said I would protect her, mutt."

Before August could make some sort of remark about being compared to a dog, Nuahki would appear from the doorway growling at him. But she wasn't...growling, per se. She seemed to be talking. Though to August it was just a series of groans and vibrations. Eden would then continue, "She doesn't trust me. I know. But that doesn't mean I'm going to abandon her."

Turning away from August and now the wolf, Eden would start to follow after Evelyn with his hands dropped behind his cloak. Nuahki whimpered and then looked at the vampire and growled something to him; again, a mystery as to what. Eden it seemed was the only one who understood the demonic wolf. And despite all of this, he still didn't know what had happened.

Until the door opened again and Sylvia exited to join Nuahki. She patted his head and then shooed him off; the wolf ran to catch up to his master. "I don't know what happened down in Hell, but she claims its his fault that her daughter is dead. So I can't really blame her. I'd be pissed too."

 

[KinkyPrawn]

Evelyn threw her weapon away and stormed off into the jungle. Then Eden decided to poke fun at him as well. August slowly turned to look back at Eden when the wolf emerged and started growling and making all kinds of noises at the demon. It seemed to be speaking to him and he understood it perfectly. What sort of loopy land was he living in? Eden then went off after Evelyn, his hands behind his back. "I might be wearing a flashy outfit, but at least I'm not as childish as to wear a cape. Seriously, this isn't the medieval ages." he muttered to himself as he watched them disappear into the brush.

Nuahki started growling at August and he just shrugged his shoulders. "What are you growling at me for? I didn't do anything." he spoke to the wolf. A few seconds later Sylvia emerged from the house as well and dropped one hell of a bombshell on him. He slowly turned with wide eyes to look at her. "Excuse me?! Her daughter?!" he almost shouted at her. He could think of a few ways to make a statement like that more subtle. The fact that a girl looking not a day over 15 had a child was also quite a strange sensation. He looked back to where they disappeared off to then back to Sylvia. "I guess I'll take my leave and get the ship ready." he said more calmly and started walking down the road. A talk like that was one he had no place in. That was their fight, not his.

After a few steps he turned around and looked back to Sylvia. "Want to help out?"

 

[EmilyHuene]

Sylvia nodded but then shrugged as she leaned back into the door frame. "As I said. I don't know much else. Just that she freaked out the same way after we rescued her. You'll have to ask them if you want more..." And the way she said that he knew it would be a challenge from either demon, like pulling teeth. Whatever the story, it didn't seem likely he'd get it in this lifetime.

With that, August apparently had enough with their "lovers' " spat so he started to walk off. To no surprise of Sylvia. But when he turned back to invite her she was taken aback a bit. She smirked and would shrug her shoulders, coming after him with a twist of her hips while she walked. "Well I thought you'd never ask. Being around all these monsters is just too weird." This being from the person who'd just spend a month and a few days on a ship full of them. But it was clear Sylvia was ready to return to some form of normalcy.

 

[KinkyPrawn]

August waited for her to catch up before walking on towards the docks and his ship. "Yeah well then let me be your saving grace this one time. Demons are always a handful." he said with a chuckle as they walked onward.

For the next couple of days the crew went over the entire ship, compiling a list of everything needed that they could get on the island. August worked with Sylvia to get everything in order, showing her a few tricks of managing a ship. When Evelyn returned August put her to work along the rest of the crew with a smile in an attempt to instil some sense of normalcy onto her and to get her mind off things. He wanted to ask about her and the argument with Eden, but figured it was too early for that now.

Finally the ship was ready and all they needed to do was wrap it all up. August managed to get a few kegs of blood from them, stored in an enchanted keg to keep it fresh. Where they got it was beyond him but he didn't complain. The night before they cast off August treated the crew to a round in the town's tavern for one last time.

 

[EmilyHuene]

The next couple of days were long and sort of...trippy. The days lasted longer than normal hours, the nighttime much of the same. It was like time passed even more differently on this place, but in reality it was just the way their minds adjusted to the island. It seemed almost impossible for them all not to enjoy themselves around the faeries and imps running about with giddy laughter. Evelyn was even starting to warm up to Eden of all things. Though every time she realized it she coughed awkwardly and gave him an angry, hateful glare which ended their conversations. Neither August, nor Sylvia, got much out of them about the mysterious daughter though.

When the ship was ready to leave port they were well stocked and on their way, with a new passenger ready to follow on board: Eden. Though, for argument's sake, he'd already been following them anyway in one form or another. All he really was now was just another mouth to feed. He kept his distance from Evelyn for the most part; actually, he kept his distance from just about everyone. He stayed up on the topmost deck and just slept or sharpened his blade which wasn't at all necessary based on the abilities it possessed. It was merely a way to pass the time. When asked to start pulling his own weight, he'd give that deadpan stare right back at August not making any attempt to agree or listen to the vampire.

So they got on the ship. And they were off. With a destination in mind the pirate vessel headed for the nearest post in the Caribbean with hopes of tracking down the illicit Flesh-Eater Pirates. A challenge that would prove very difficult for even this vampire captain.

 

[KinkyPrawn]

They were once again sailing through the open sees. The August Rain was gliding over the blue at full sail. August stood at the helm with Sam leaning against a railing next to him. He flipped open his compass and the needle clicked a few degrees left. He gently adjusted course and took in a deep breath of the salty spray kissing his exposed skin. His eyes wandered the main deck, making sure everyone was doing their job. He spotted Higgins in the rigging, seeming to have some trouble with a rope getting stuck. He pointed it out and Sam ordered a nearby crewman to help the guy out. Ivy was in the crow's nest of the main mast. She gave him a wave and he shot her an inconspicuous wink and a smirk as to not let anyone else see...

He looked back down and the small smirk disappeared. Eden was sitting around as usual doing nothing. He had been trying for a whole week now to get the guy to either turn into a raven to save food or pull his weight and only got a stare in response. He was getting tired of him. At least Evelyn tried to mingle with the crew or help out here and there. He just...sits. The most frustrating part is he doesn't even do anything. How bored must the guy be? August let out a sigh and looked out to the sea ahead of the ship to try and calm down. No need to work himself up over the other guy's frustrations.

Finally night came and the evening watch took over. He surrendered the helm and retired to his cabin. They had about a month or so of travel to get where they needed to. And with their extra passenger it wasn't going to be a fun month. He decided to go over his charts again to make sure everything was in order. Of course they were...it was probably the 4th time he went over them. He threw his pencil down and leaned back into his chair, staring at his door. While he wasn't staring at anything in particular, he was paying attention to the doorknob, secretly hoping someone would come through the door to provide some relief.

 

[EmilyHuene]

And just like the devil, there she came. The door opened and Evelyn spilled into it giggling wildly with a mug of rum in her hands and spilling it every which way she stepped. For pretending to be drunk, she was rather good at it. "Cappy!!" she exclaimed when she saw him. "What are you doing in my room?"

Eve giggled and set down the drink and stumbled her way over to him. She would start trying to sit on his lap unless he did something about it. "I knew you were warming up to me. I can't say I blame you."

 

[KinkyPrawn]

The door opened and in waltzed Evelyn. She appeared to be drunk and spilled her rum all over, but he knew better. He was rather annoyed that she would dirty his floor like this on purpose. "Evelyn. I seemed to have missed the eviction notice." he spoke casually as she walked over to him. She put her drink down and tried to sit in his lap. He waited for her to sit down before picking her up by her armpits and placing her down on his desk in front of him as if she were a toddler.

"Who says I'm warming up? Maybe I'm just looking out for you because no one else is." It might not be the best choice of words, but oh well. He looked her supposedly drunken figure over and chuckled lightly. "What's with the act, Evelyn? We both know you're not drunk right now..." he reached over and took her mug in his hand and downed the last of the hard liquor. "What's going on?" he said a bit more gently, resting his hand on his desk, still holding onto the empty mug.

 

[EmilyHuene]

Hearing his joke made her snort and she laughed with a long giggle. But when he picked her up like she weighed nothing she looked around and then leaned back against the desk, not carrying what was behind her she could spill over. "What do you mean?" she'd ask after hiccuping. "The big feathery meanie out there is watching me. It's like...creepy."

She hiccuped again while he then asked her what was up with her act. Snorting again she rolled over and fell off his desk only to poof and appear on his bed. Her clothes were lacking in stains and her hair which was wind-torn from being outside was back in its perfect place. "Oh chill out, Cap. I'm just avoiding Eden. Figured if he thought we were sleeping together he'd get off my back about wanting to protect me."

Going by her sudden sobered up speech, it was clear she was in fact not drunk like he already knew. She'd then roll over and lie back on the bed while looking up at the ceiling. "Either that, or come defend my honor. Would love to see you two deck it out and kill one another. No one's ever fought for me before. Could be fun."

 

[KinkyPrawn]

As she leaned in to fall off the desk he raised his hands to catch her, but she disappeared in a puff of smoke onto his bed. She explained that she was hiding from Eden. A smile crept onto his face. Her explanation left a bit to be desired, though. He wasn't sure on how to react to that. She rolled onto her back and elaborated further. Her second option sounded a lot worse than her first. Not that he was afraid in the slightest, but he wasn't sure what the repercussions would be if he actually killed the demon.

August blinked a few times then stood up to take a chair and sit next to his bed by the foot-side, looking at Evelyn. "I wouldn't exactly describe it to be a fun idea. Plus if his reaction time stays that slow then it will be a very short fight." he said rather confidently, but his smile would fade and he would look at Evelyn with gentle eyes. "Evelyn...my apologies if I'm prying, but mind telling me what that argument was about on Sanctuary?" His voice met the gentleness of his eyes as he sat forward, resting his arms on his knees as he looked at her.

 

[EmilyHuene]

When August tried to take a stab at Eden's dodging tactics Evelyn just groaned and replied "It only looks that way because he's already done it." Whatever that was supposed to me. But she blew past it so fast it obviously didn't make much sense. Instead they got to the question at hand. The argument.

Evelyn rolled her, turning her shoulder to him, "No." And that was all she said. She curled up a little and sighed. "No..." she'd say for a second time. Then finally another longer sigh and she'd open up. Predictable.

"It happened when I was in Hell. I was....he did.....he used me. A lot. And I got pregnant. He wanted me to have his offspring. I......never even got to hold her." Eve began to shudder as she continued. "Eden pulled me out of there while Balal was focused on my daughter. And he promised me he'd look after her. But escaping now was my only chance to get away. I...didn't want to leave her."

Evelyn was now crying again and the awful feeling in the pit of one's stomach listening to someone cry would be painful to watch for August. "But it was the only way. If I escaped I could get my mother to help and rescue her. But then Eden came and told me it was already too late. He killed her. My baby....is dead. Because of me. Because I left her..." Eve tugged his pillow to her body and sunk her head into it crying furiously at her failure.

 

[KinkyPrawn]

August wouldn't push her when she said no the first time, but when she rolled over and said it the second time, he waited for it. Finally she opened up. It was terrible. August couldn't imagine the pain she must have went through. And to him it seemed that she had every right to be angry at Eden. But she didn't fail. Not a chance. As she cried into his pillow he gently stroked her back and rested a hand on her shoulder. "You didn't kill anyone. He did. That was outside of anyone's power. In a position like that, there was nothing you could do. You did nothing wrong." he spoke softly and kindly. But he knew she would not listen to that. After all what did he know about children?

He sighed as he stared out in front of him. "I might not be able to relate to the loss of a child...but I can tell you this. Having the reassurance that you did nothing wrong is a lot more comforting than knowing you killed the love of your life yourself." he played with the silver ring on his left ring finger, spinning it around. He wouldn't say anything further. This wasn't an argument over who's life was worse. Unless she asked he would not say anything more on the matter.

He looked back at Evelyn. "You can sleep in my bed tonight. I'll be at the desk, reading. You won't have to face him tonight." he gave a reassuring smile. If she was okay with the idea, he would proceed to tuck her into his warm, soft bed and dim the light of the lamp on his desk to only cast a slight warm light to help her sleep.

He sat back into his seat, opened a drawer and took out a book to start reading. His night vision adjusted and he was reading as if it were daylight.

 

[EmilyHuene]

Eve continued to cry letting out another series of sobs of her traumatic life and all the pain she could never escape from. August's hand stroked her back and she moved her tiny frame closer to him hoping that any sort of connection would help her cope. He assured her that it wasn't her fault, but what did he know? She could have done something. Anything. Instead she ran. She fled and left her tiny infant in the hands of that demon. It never stood a chance.

He continued on trying to calm her mind by sharing a little bit of his own history to her. Not that she asked for it, or understood it. Sure one day she might feel the way he did: that the demon was the only one responsible, but for now that all fell on her shoulders. For being a horrible mother. Even if she'd never wanted to have kids, or to carry the child to term, she owed it to the life growing inside her to be there for her and she fled without looking back. She deserved this fate.

When he offered her the bed she nodded her head and curled the pillow tighter to her chest and her horns further into the fabric. She hated having those things on her head; Evelyn didn't think she'd ever get used to them. She said nothing else that night except the sounds of her cries. She had to let it all out and it wasn't until there came a scratching at the door that she'd finally stop for a moment. Upon opening the door, Nuahki would shove past August and hop up onto the bed with Evelyn despite whatever protests he gave.

Something...very weird then happened. The aura around the wolf would change and a more powerful demonic aura would rise from the fur. Dark tendrils of shadow wormed out of the black and struck Eve in the head. She didn't even bother moving aside; in fact, she seemed like she was expecting it. For a moment they were frozen like that, with nothing moving but their breathing. Until the tendrils pulled away and Eve sunk into the bed with a sigh; her tears now gone and the palpable sorrow in the air gone. Nuahki would then shake herself off as the menacing aura went away. Turning about she did a few circles as a dog would while nesting and then curled into Eve and closed her tiny adorable little eyes.

And that's how they slept. Undisturbed. For a good several hours. Until Eve began to stir in her dreams and start to scream. August probably was still not used to that. Nuahki would rise and start pawing at the girl trying to wake her. She sat up hugging the dog and sobbing into her fur like she'd done the pillow. She said nothing to August; she practically didn't even know he was there. Like the first time, Nuahki would again take on that cruel aura and seemingly suck out the dark thoughts Eve was having until she calmed down and decided to lie back down for sleep. Was this what was happening every night? Nuahki was turning out to be more and more of a therapy dog it seemed. Literally.

Outside, once things calmed a second time, August would hear footsteps retracing from his door, and the smell of another demon outside. Apparently Eden had come running at the sounds of her screams....

 

[KinkyPrawn]

He sat in his chair, reading some book but he wasn't paying all that much attention. His attention was more on the pitiful cries of the broken girl in his bed. He wasn't sure what he could do to make her feel better. He adjusted the lamp to cast a bit of light more towards her. He wasn't sure if she was the type of person, but he knew that some people, especially children, preferred to have a dim light on at night.

After a while he heard a rapping on his cabin door. He stood up and made his way towards it. When he opened it, Nuahki burst past and got onto his bed. He was about to shoo the wolf away, to let Evelyn sleep in peace, until it morphed into some shadowy figure and tendrils emerged from it. The tendrils made their way into Evelyn and she didn't protest whatsoever. In fact she welcomed it. After a bit the wolf returned to normal and Evelyn calmed down completely. She laid down and Nuahki made herself comfortable next to her.

He let it slide. If it helped her sleep he would allow it, but that spell was peculiar. What did it do? Did it literally remove the bad thoughts from her head and leave her in blissful ignorance? The thought of that was a bit unsettling to him. He returned to his seat and just looked at their sleeping figures. After a few minutes he picked up his book and read further. Several hours passed until he heard Evelyn shuffling, whimpering, then finally erupted into horrid screams. He looked up with wide eyes, but saw Nuahki waking her up quickly enough. The rest of the crew had complained privately about her screaming and he had heard it many times by now. But this was the first time he saw it for himself. Now that he knew how to explain the situation, he knew how to address his crew with satisfactory explanations that they will listen to.

Evelyn embraced Nuahki, crying into her fur. After a few seconds the tendrils came again and released Evelyn to let her sleep. August was tempted to stop it. He might not comprehend what she went through down there, but he knew that having some magical wolf to take the bad thoughts away would not solve anything. Sure it was painful, but she had to make peace with her past. He shook his head, pushing the thoughts aside. It wasn't fair from him to force Evelyn to face her demons, no matter how much he believed it to be necessary. He came from a much different world than Evelyn. He had 1700 years to make his peace with his past, tame his demons and slay the ones he couldn't tame. He couldn't expect Evelyn to be on the same level as him.

Footsteps echoed from outside and the smell of sulphur increased. Eden. He took his special pistol from his drawer and rested it on his shoulder as he made for the door. He stepped outside and closed it behind him and faced the demon. A metallic click sounded off as his right thumb pulled back on the hammer of his pistol, levelling the gun with Eden's gut. "I promised her she wouldn't need to face you tonight. I also promised to help her find her mother. I always keep my promises." he spoke sternly and threateningly, but a second later he returned the hammer to resting position and holstered the pistol. "Start talking. Who are you? How did you meet? What happened down there?" he fired in rapid succession, but he kept his voice low to not disturb Evelyn's slumber.

Some of the midnight watch stopped to look for a few seconds at the two men, but returned to their duties quickly enough.