(Lunetta & Yenpointfive) Fangs & Claws

[o-Lunetta-o]

How long has this war gone on?

Vivienne Moore has lost count. For as long as she has been alive, the wolves of the region had fought with the undead or nightwalker's as they preferred calling them. They kept their conflict away from humans as best as possible, but there were occasions where it was unavoidable, that innocent blood was spilled. The wolves of the region distrusted the reigning family of vampires, just as the distrust was reciprocated for them. One thing that the Alpha scorned was the nightwalker's need for blood, most preferring humans. The wolves felt tasked with defending the human's from these 'bloodsuckers' as they were crudely called. Rather than question the conflict, she obediently followed the suggestion of her pack leader, who was fearless and a strong leader, alongside with his mate, the Alpha female.

The night had intended to be like any other, save that she was hunting on her own after the rest of her pack had been called away to investigate suspicious activities. She transformed, allowing the surge of energy to flow through her as she resumed her lupine state she preferred to hunt it. There were three forms her kind could assume: human, total wolf, and a hybrid between the first, but the final form was for special occasions and drained the most out of them. Her pelt, a rustic almost auburn brown, shimmered beneath the moonlight as she silently stalked her prey, a doe that quietly foraged in a meadow.

Everything was quiet, still, until she was suddenly ambushed. It happened so quickly, she was more preoccupied with how she hadn't even heard them. The stabs were relentless on her, tearing through her pelt. She yelped in surprise, growling and snarling, snapping at the nearest arm she could before crushing down with her powerful jaws, shaking her large head back and forth before she lunged at the nearest one, fighting with tooth and claw. They were fledgling nightwalkers, young with a savage thirst for blood. It took some dancing around, but they got the hint that she wasn't simply going to roll over. Vivienne held her own, but sustained several open wounds and was left, panting and shaking with fatigue in her dire wolf form.

She concealed herself underneath some brush, deciding to take a moment to recuperate before she attempted to return back to the den.

 

[Yenpointfive]

They were up wind from her. The scent of ash would reach her before he did. It might even help him catch her. An English werewolf no doubt knew what dead vampires smelled like and the scent might be enough to slow her down, to think that her kin had done the deed. The fact that she couldn't smell fur on the wind would be worrying, but a realization that would come a bit too late. A werewolf could escape a vampire in the woods without too much trouble, unless they were bleeding, and she was, rather a lot.

It wasn't from behind that the figure emerged, but rather from the front. He smiled at her warmly and for a brief moment she might even believe he was human. He didn't have any fangs and his skin had a faint blush of life to it. He was still pale, mind you, but only so much as anyone else who never stepped foot in the sun. It was the way he moved that gave him away. Any werewolf worth her salt could see what he was. The man ran nimble fingers through his brunette hair and spoke. "Guten abend, frauline." She might have been a wolf right then but he obviously knew who she was.

"Deutsche?" He asked before shaking his head. "No. Nevermind." He decided, switching languages with little difficulty. The figure was a handsome young man, probably a little short of 25, with slightly shaggy brown hair and eyes a much darker shade of brown. He wore simple garments, including a leather chestpiece, but no other armor. On his back was a massive German zweihander, though his hands never strayed near it. "You seem to be wounded. By the same men who took offense when I called out to them in my native tongue?" He asked, seeming not to have grasped that he was a vampire and she a werewolf.

 

[o-Lunetta-o]

Vivienne focused on licking her wounds clean while she tried to recover as quickly. In this form, wounds healed rather slower than her other one, but at a decently quicker pace. They would be healed and nothing but scars in a few hours, but she needed to rest and find some sort of shelter to focus on the regeneration. Her golden eyes lifted at the sight of the figure, narrowing as her lips curled up in a snarl, fangs bared as a growl rumbled low in her throat, a warning.

The way he moved, it was unmistakable he was one of them. Perhaps a straggler from the group that took their chance with her. Clearly he didn't get the message. He spoke with an accent, clearly not from here. Even in this state, she held some kind of semblance of her human self, some kind of consciousness, better control. But in this state, she couldn't actively communicate, and the last thing she was going to do was revert to her weaker, human form.

Her head lifted, hackles raised on pinpoints, she hoped he would get the message and simply be off. Vivienne was slightly disarmed by his intention of making conversation. Clearly not from these parts. He didn't look like a member of the reigning nightwalker's of these parts, he was dressed differently with an accent.

 

[Yenpointfive]

He laughed when she barred her fangs at him, stepping closer rather than further away. "I was told that the English wolves hated my kind with a vengeance but to see it with mine own two eyes..." He mused as he approached her, taking stock of her wounds. "There are others nearby. It would seem that maybe one of my kin decided to turn many at once. The ones I met clearly spent much more of their lives as Englishmen than vampires. So sad that they won't be around to give up such petty prejudices." He said, watching as her hackles raised.

He gave a sigh and shrugged. "If you are going to run I won't chase you but if you try to bite me I should have you know that I can crush you as easily as a..." The word caught in his mouth. "A schmetterling. Whatever it is you call those tiny flying insects with colorful wings." He said, waving the word aside as its English counterpart clearly wouldn't come to him. Without warning he clapped his hands together sharply, having clearly just realized something. "My apologies, frauline. My name is Johan Sauber, and I assure you that your feud with vampires is quite foreign to me. Would you like me to mend your wounds. I doubt you'll outrun those that are chasing you without my help. Seeing as you can't answer and waiting any longer wastes time I don't believe you have let's make it simple. If you turn around and leave I won't pursue you. If not I shall assume you agree to not bite me in exchange for my aid." He said.

Johan spoke as if her was a bored noble on holiday, simply doing as he pleased because he could and that wasn't entirely the wrong impression. When a vampire grew old they grew powerful, often in strange ways, gaining weird magicks that set them apart from their peers. Whether or not Johan was quite that powerful his demeanor certainly set him apart from most any vampire Vivienne might have met.

 

[o-Lunetta-o]

Vivienne had no doubt there were others nearby. With the wolves away, she could've called out to her kin and pack, but that would force them to leave their territory, it would leave the group vulnerable. The need of the many often overshadowed the need of one, it was all about pack mentality, and she kept firm with that belief system. They watched out for each other through thick and thin, and made decisions carefully to benefit all.

She was in no condition to try her bet at running away. He was an older vampire, stronger if she planned on trying something funny. The fact he has remained standing so long without attacking was highly unusual to her. Vivienne was taught never to trust his kind, it was a deep rooted belief and feeling, but if he had intended to attack, he should have by now. Instead he stood there, conversing with her as if they were mere acquaintances and not enemies. It was simply bizarre and practically unheard of. He was a friendly fellow, she gave him that much, and certainly didn't belong here, amongst vampires she has come across.

The growling slowly subsided, the hackles flattened but her ears remained pinned back as she watched him, her eyes never leaving him. Johan... you are one unusual nightwalker, she thought. The female wolf didn't move, simply remaining where she was.

 

[Yenpointfive]

Johan waited to see what the wolf would do. If she did choose to run she might get lucky. If the vampires chasing her bumped into him first and took offense to a Germanic vampire on English lands she might get lucky, though that was unlikely given that Johan's interest in her would probably wane as soon as she left and he could easily get himself out of the way of her pursuers.

When she chose not to run and let her growls die away he smiled again. His smile looked a bit more natural, or at least more human, given that he didn't seem to have fangs to get in the way when he did so. "Wunderbar." He concluded as he stepped up to her, kneeling down next to her. "I should warn you. This next bit is going to seem strange and rather unpleasant. Try not to be alarmed though, it's not like I could turn you if I tried." He said simply. Given that there was blood on her jaws she obviously knew that werewolves didn't turn by ingesting vampiric blood like a human would but given what came next the point bore repeating.

Johan lifted his left hand to his mouth and opened his jaws again. The question of where his fangs were answered itself before her eyes as they began to extend. Well, not really fangs, more accurately each tooth in his mouth sharpened to a point, growing triangular and serrated, more like a shark than a vampire. In one quick motion he bit into the palm of his hand, causing crimson to flow down his wrist and chin. He lightly smeared the bloody hand over her fur and there was a strange and disconcerting sensation, like maggots crawling on her fur and into her wounds. It didn't hurt. In fact, as soon as whatever was crawling into her wounds did so the pain quickly went away. It was probably for the best that this form couldn't turn her head to see what was going on.

The whole process only took a moment and when he pulled his hand back she could watch the bite in his palm knit itself closed. His arms no longer matched. The left one lacked the muscle definition of the right, looking gaunt with the flesh stretched a bit too tight over the bone. "All done." He declared, his accent changing slightly due to the fact that he hadn't gotten rid of his now pointed teeth. He stood comfortably, glanced at his left hand and sliding it into his pocket, clearly finding the skeletal look a bit distasteful. "I believe we should be going. If it's not too inconvenient could I trouble you for a place to wait out the sun? Lodging might prove harder to find than usual, given my current state." He said, wiggling his left arm for a moment and snapping his teeth once to illustrate that he could no longer pass as a human.

 

[o-Lunetta-o]

If any of her pack witnessed this, they would never let her live this down, and not in a good way. The hostility towards vampires was alarming, some not even knowing what the conflict was about yet they were born after the start of the way. The hate was taught into them, and they held onto it fast as if it were the solution to all the worlds problems. Part of it disgusted Vivienne, she tried to ask why they were still in conflict but never received a satisfactory answer. Most were curt and nonsensical. In her eyes, it all seemed pointless.

Vivienne drew her eyes up to his face, the smile on his face at her wordless acceptance of his aid. She wondered why he was so bent on helping it, it was disarming to her, considering she was taught to loathe his kind. She couldn't help but tense a bit when he neared, her eyes never leaving him as she watched ever bit of his movement. The wounds were still open, bloodied despite her interrupted clean up. They were slash wounds across her shoulder and side. His warning discomforted her, so much so that she growled low when he smeared the blood across her open wounds, the sensation foreign and alien to her.

It was in that instance, she wondered why he was helping her. In this form, she couldn't convey such a question, speech was only available when in her human form, and while he did help her, she didn't fully trust him. That was her most vulnerable state after all. So instead, she let him do what he offered, to heal her. It was amusing, she never associated vampiric abilities with healing. But they worked, her own blood flow staunched, the skin regenerated shut as if nothing had happened, and she was left in a state of wonder and awe. She was completely healed, she felt much better, like her old self.

His request wasn't absurd to her, she knew enough about nightwalker's that they were called that for a reason: they are weakened in the sun. After he so selflessly gave unto himself for her, the least she could do was return the favor. So, she stood up, giving her pelt a quick shimmy before she surveyed the forested area, ears pricked forward as she listened. She heard nothing, none of the group that had attacked her earlier, but now she had one of their kind for company, a strange sight she's sure of. With a soft grunt, she began to move, expecting him to follow her. Vivienne avoided heading towards her den, knowing of a rocky outcrop that had its own cave and would be safe for him, so long as it wasn't currently occupied. They will just have to wait and see.

It took a few minutes to arrive, but once they did, she listened and sniffed closely, inspecting it only to find it was unoccupied, much to their luck. Vivienne gestured him inside the cave, which was quite deep, one could reach the back without being touched by light. This was one of her hidden caves that she enjoyed retiring in during those long patrol nights, rather than returning to the den, or if she simply wanted to be alone. There was a floor mattress in the back for him to utilize, and some of her own personal items such as clothes. She made a soft grunt, gesturing him towards it before she settled by the mouth of the burrow, laying down comfortably.

 

[Yenpointfive]

Johan rather expected that she was still wondering why he had helped her but it was also possible that she didn't really care so long as he did. He didn't know anything about her at all yet and assuming what was going on in her mind seemed presumptuous so he held his tongue and waited to see what came next. She hadn't really given him any indication whether or not she was agreeing to help him at first so he just began following alongside her quietly. Since she neither growled at him or tried to outrun him he took that as acceptance of his company and an agreement to help.

Well, either that or she was leading him into an ambush. Now would have been the right time for it. She could probably tell he was weakened a bit by what he had done for her. It wasn't necessarily that Johan was particularly trusting, he was just very good at what he did. And for a while now 'not dying' was a feat he'd been excelling at, so he assumed that if he'd misjudged her from what little her direwolf form had conveyed he felt certain he could rectify any trouble he found himself in.

When he saw the cave his smile broadened and he stepped inside as she motioned for him to do so. The darkness probably bothered her more so than it did him. Even total darkness didn't deter the gaze of a vampire. He saw the mattress in back and walked over towards it before stopping to look back at her. When she again motioned him forward he took a seat on it, lightly tugging off his boots and slipping out of the sling that kept his scabbard on his back. He set the sword down beside of himself without any real fanfare, though it was on the opposite side of the mattress from her. He liked her so far but he wasn't about to tempt fate or hatred. "Guten nacht, fraulein. If you are planning on leaving during the morning, it was a pleasure to have known you, if not, I look forward to getting to know you without quite so much fur, though I must admit you do have quite a nice coat of it." He said before settling onto the bed. Most anyone without a coat of fur would have probably found the cave chilly but given that Johan was dead he simply laid back and shut his eyes, becoming still as the corpse he most definitely was.

 

[o-Lunetta-o]

Vivienne still reeled a bit at the current situation and how odd it was. If anyone of her pack mates caught wind of what was happening, she could only imagine the crazy look she would receive. She forced herself to think of other things, such as how comfortable a night it was, and how she was mere feet from a vampire that had expend some of his energy into healing her. Such altruism wasn't expected, but not unwelcome. He seemed like a genuine vampire, if such thing existed, raised with a different mindset than the ones she had come across.

Heck, he was even proper. Calling me miss, she mused, even in this furry form. She made a soft noise, almost as if she were bidding him good night, before she settled her chin on her laws, inhaling deeply before exhaling a sigh as she lay there. Vivienne fell asleep after a few minutes, a vulnerable position to her. Sometime during the transition of night to dawn, falling asleep for a few hours. Sometime during the day, she awoke, leaving the cave to forage and find a meal before meeting up at her den, after extensively masking the scent of the nightwalker from her pelt.

The majority of her pack had yet to return, so she simply made her rounds there before returning to the cave some time before sundown. Yet, rather than remain in her wolf form, she transformed herself into her human state. She was garbed in a sleeveless suede corset, a light colored top underneath and a pair of fitted breeches with a pair of worn in boots. Vivienne preferred practical over conforming to societies attire for women. She simply sat there, leaning against the wall as she waited for her guest to awake.

 

[Yenpointfive]

Johan was in essentially the same position as before when Vivienne awoke the next day. Vampires didn't toss and turn, snore, or really do anything else that suggested they were anything other than a corpse while they slept. It was much the same way when she decided to depart the cave and then again when she returned. That was, up until she started to draw a bit closer to the slumbering vampire. The hand nearest the sword flashed over to it, gripping the hilt as his head tilted towards her. His gaze would have been pinned on her if his eyes were actually open. When she didn't draw any closer he remained motionless in that position until a little before sundown.

Most humans took a little bit to wake up but for a vampire it was an effortless thing. He simply sat up and opened his eyes when he was ready to do so. He looked her over for a moment and a smile settled across his features. He realized at about that same time that he was still holding onto the hilt of his zweihander and gently released it. "Ahh, fraulein. So good to see you again." He said, clearly recognizing her regardless of which form she took. "I must admit, had I anyone to place a bet with I would not have made money off the prospect of your return, though I'm glad all the same. I'm sure you have questions that you couldn't ask last night and judging by the way the mouth of this cave is lit up I'd say I have time to answer them before I go searching for a meal."

 

[o-Lunetta-o]

Vivienne heard soft movement, not that Johan shifted a lot, it was very subtle, much more than what she was used to, but she heard it. She looked over at him just as he was about to speak, the fading daylight giving her a better glimpse at him and his features. His politeness was something she was still trying to get used to. Why did she feel the need to even get used to it? The wolf doubted she would be seeing him again after this. She paid her dues, the obligation she felt in assisting him as he did her. She did a good thing, right? She wanted to exhale a snort, who was she trying to convince exactly?

"Well, I wanted to be sure that I returned the favor after what you did last night," she admitted, honey hazel hues lifting to meet his gaze. He was incredibly good looking, she gave him that, easy on the eyes, for a nightwalker. "As you can see, it is highly unusual for someone your... status to aid one such as myself. Our kinds don't exactly see eye to eye in this region. What strikes me with curiosity is to know what exactly brought you to these parts," she bade, shifting to fully face him, legs tucked beneath her.

 

[Yenpointfive]

"And I am most appreciative of the aid." He responded. No matter how powerful a vampire got sunlight was still deadly. Strength and age just meant you could survive a few more moments in the accursed light. Though anyone so old as Johan tended to have a way to escape the sun's rays if they were caught out. In his case any way he had to do so wasn't nearly as comfortable as the lodgings provided by Vivienne.

He shrugged a bit and laughed when she suggested it was unusual for him to help her. "I must admit it's an unusual trick even by the standards of my kind. It's unnecessary on other vampires and lending my flesh to a wounded human would simply turn them. I might be prone to showing off when I find a wounded werewolf that can benefit from my aid." He admitted freely, though the explanation begged the question of just when he'd decided to practice healing wounded werewolves.

After taking a moment to muse on that specific application of his powers he turned his attention to the question that had been asked rather than implied. "I am here visiting England on a holiday of sorts. It's been a long while since I've tasted English blood and I hear English art is improved somewhat as of late. I'll be paying a visit to some nobility of my own kind, catching up with old friends and enemies. Oh yes, and I've been told I must attend a play by that Shakespear fellow you English all seem so proud of. I hear he's got a good one with some witches and a murdered king in it." He said, clearly not even a little phased by the fact that he'd decided to vacation in a country full of supernaturally strong wolves who might want to kill him.

 

[o-Lunetta-o]

Vivienne simply waved her hand in dismissal, she simply had been returning the favor after he had put the effort out for her. It was strange, she wasn't sure how she should feel about her predicament. One thing she was certain of was that she would need to be very careful, she doubted her pack mates would be keen on her associating with an undead, even if he had saved her life. The hate that their species bore for each other ran rather deep the longer the conflict progressed. Newer wolves didn't see the point but the older ones had seen to much, been through too much to let it go.

She sniffed at his response, crossing her arms. "I doubt you find too many werewolves to show off... so you are here on holiday? How peculiar of you to choose here of all places." Part of Vivienne hoped he would return home, finding it unsettled her to think of a pack finding this stray undead in their territory, an individual that wasn't entirely familiar with the ways between their kind. "I suppose there are sights to see, cities to visit and plays to see, if you are interested in that sort of thing." Rarely did pack mates ever participate in such outings, preferring more carnal things except for the rare few. She's been to a few plays a handful of times.

"Ah yes, Macbeth, it's his most recent work. They are playing it at the Globe Theater in London, I believe tomorrow night." London was unclaimed territory, the feud was between vampire and werwolved, they held a mutual agreement to keep the predominantly human inhabited city on its own accord.

 

[Yenpointfive]

He shrugged when she commented on how unusual his vacation destination was. It wasn't as if the feud between werewolves and vampires made England an appreciably more dangerous place to him. Sure, it was significantly more dangerous in theory, but given his absolute scale of what was truly a threat this was rather minor in his case. She seemed like she might be judging his idea of fun a bit when she "What can I say? I haven't killed a king in nearly a hundred years I'm a bit..." He paused for a second to come up with the right word in English. "Nostalgic." He remembered. "That's it."

"Then to London I should go." He said, standing up and dusting himself off a bit before starting to pick up what little gear he brought with him, along with that massive zweihander. "Besides, that trick from last night takes a bit out of me and I'm feeling a bit peckish." He said, looking her over slowly for a moment. It was as if someone had set a choice steak next to a man whose stomach was rumbling, yet who knew he should probably leave the dish alone. "I don't suppose you have any thoughts as to where I ought to stop for supper or how I might avoid your kind? The latter is more for their good than mine, mind you, but given this little peace you and I have found I'd feel rather hypocritical if any of your kind made me kill them so soon after I met you."

 

[o-Lunetta-o]

Vivienne chuckled softly, leaning back on her palms as she extended her legs out before her, crossing her ankles. "I bet," she murmured in response. She felt it, the urge to offer something to him. "Avoid the southern borders here, they expand a large range beyond the forest, to the coast even," she added. She moved to stand up committing to a full body stretch. "There are sporadic towns around here, but they are often mixed with the sort of crowd you may want to avoid."

"I'm not sure if you are the kind of vampire that prefers humans or animal blood. Forest is littered with creatures, but they tend to avoid wolf territory south so your best bet is north... You'll most likely find a sleepy town or two," she inquired, twirling a stray lock of hair around her finger. She stepped out to the mouth of the cave. "London is several miles north, quite a trip but you can make it in a single trip." Vivienne seemed rather confident he could. "I can lead you the way, if you'd like."

 

[Yenpointfive]

Johan listened carefully as Vivienne offered up her advice. It was a rather rare thing for a vampire as old as he was to sit patiently and listen. Generally speaking after you got to be a couple hundred years old you started to assume that you knew everything. That was one of the reasons Johan was traveling. Settling down in one location bred complacency and was, he'd decided, how most of the elders ended up working their century long schemes to accomplish who knows what. That was something he was hoping to avoid for as long as he could.

"Is there a vampire that prefers animal blood?" Johan asked with an eyebrow raised. "Venison is tolerable but that's about it." He added as he followed her out of the cave. The last rays of sunlight were just barely visible above the treeline, the shadows cast by the forest more than enough to protect him until the sun was fully set for the night. When she offered to lead him to London he smiled broadly. "I would like that quite a bit. Traveling is always better with companions."