Second Chances [MR AZ]

[Domovoi]

This is a private RolePlay about college life between myself and MR AZ.
Please don't post. Please do follow along if you're interested.​

In yet another example of truth rivaling fiction, Landon University housed an encyclopedia's worth of secrets along the pristinely waxed floors of its parallel hallways. So long as money was flowing in, questions weren't coming out as to why some students' filed paperwork was sketchy, at best, and downright impossible at worst. If the kids completed the work presented to them, the school board didn't give a damn - their wallets were full and their stomachs round, and the reputation of their university untarnished. Why should they care about the legitimacy of their pupils? Their money would be accepted by the banks regardless, and as such, they were welcome.

Several days had passed since students began trickling in. Dorms were assigned and settled into. Schedules were dispersed. On this particular Monday morning, the daily schedule contained only the welcoming assembly, a short introduction of the school's core beliefs and goals alongside a rundown of lackadaisical rules. Tuition was mentioned no fewer than seven times. Classes didn't start until the following day; it gave students who lived off-campus (rare, due to the two hour bus ride to and from the school) the same chance to acquaint with their new surroundings as their live-in peers had already gotten.

Many groups gathered to begin socializing, chattering and making new friends, taking full advantage of the opportunity to network with others sharing their interests. Previous friends and acquaintances who'd met outside of the university, whether as classmates or otherwise, enjoyed catching up on each others' lives, and talk of lovers, grades, and fields of study defying past expectations flew back and forth. Some preferred to get a head start on their studies - nerds and geeks with books permanently glued to their noses - and found the muggy, overcast day a perfect occasion to park on a library chair and pore over a textbook.

Ava Bailey was one such geek.

Having taken a peek at the class's syllabus, she could easily discern the pages her class would be assigned through deductive reasoning. Line by line, she took efficient notes, neglecting to notice that lunchtime had come and passed; work to be done translated to lack of hunger, thirst, or other petty human needs. The only thing she noticed was a slight chill biting at her legs, covered only by pantyhose beneath her simple black skirt. Rubbing her calves together to stave it off, she sighed softly; her peripheral vision caught a figure moving in her direction, whose goal was clearly to socialize.

"Hi," The blonde girl beamed as Ava raised her head, and, just as chipper, gestured to a chair across the table. "Mind if I sit here?" The answer was yes, in honesty. However, being blatantly rude to a stranger would be detrimental long-run; it was impossible to know who she might need in the future. Taking a plaintive glance to the countless empty tables around the room, attempting to get her unwanted visitor to take the hint, the brunette sniffed.

"If you're quiet, I have no reason to decline," Content to leave it at that, her book received her attention once more. The twisting in her gut left no doubt that it would not end so easily, a gut feeling which instantly proved correct.

Still bubbly, the girl added, "Well, I actually wanted to get to know you! I don't know anyone here, and you --"

Despite initial caution, her irritation quickly got the better of her diplomatic façade. "Not interested in what you're selling," Deadpan, she didn't bother to look up. The stranger's crestfallen face was practically audible, eliminating the need.

With a tiny, confused groan, the guest continued. "No, no, I don't want to sell you anything, I just wanted to be friends, I'd never be a good salesman anyway!" She laughed, awkwardly rubbing at the back of her neck, a fitting gesture for a clueless ditz. Cliché blondes were boring, not amusing, else Ava might've cracked a smirk. "O-or, a saleswoman, I guess!"

"Pushy enough to succeed as one, for certain," In fact, her inability to sense an unspoken 'no' would be a boon in said career. The fact that her honey brown eyes remained cast over her book seemed to do the trick, and the disappointed pest gave up and walked off. Finally. Her notes wouldn't write themselves.

 

[MRAZ]

The place wasn’t half bad, really, lots of hotties to check up, willingly ignorant teachers and authorities, a wide place without surveillance cameras anywhere. A bit too peaceful though, everyone seemed well behaved, skittish even. They looked like young scared cats, all of them. Well, most of them. The scents mixed once over another but there were hints of something interesting going on just below the surface and it caught the dark haired tall youngster for a moment. Still, being unable to pinpoint the origins of those scents in the sea of faces and bodies made her shrug and just enjoy the first show they were given.

The opening ceremony was funny, “here, give us your cash, we’ll promise you the future” how many times had she heard that before? Give us your hope, give us your vote, give us your time, give us your life, your sons, your blood, your souls, yourself, and you will live for longer than the others out there. You’ll be happy, or at least you’ll be wise, strong, and smart, you’ll be more than those you despise.

Same ol’ story, repeated over and over, just as it would always be. It was quite amusing to see it in action, then again, humans were always worth of observing, of mixing with and living with.

After the show, the dark haired young woman had gone off until she was sure there was no one around, no one seeing, no one listening. The transformation was quick, as it had always been, and the reception when she returned to the group of teens was just the same. Girls cooing and whistling at her, others wanting to keep her, boys trying to make her stay in order to get some of the spotlight directed at them. It was fun but soon the German shepherd had to run off.

Time to follow people individually, first it was this red haired dreamboat with some amazing bazoongas, sadly she didn’t seem fond of a big dog following her around as soon she began to walk faster and even took one of the hoses that were near the building, wetting the canine in an attempt of getting her away.

Bad luck, nothing else, Aedan thought while shaking herself off after running from the undesired and premature shower. Scents could tell her a lot, but with everyone wearing brand new clothes and perfumes that stunk to high heaven, it was hard to discern those who loved animals and those who didn’t. Either way, she had a long time to worry about that, and a little water had never hurt anyone.

The dog went straight back to the chase, for hours to come she was chased and she chased, got to see beautiful young women who petted her and nuzzled her until they couldn’t do so anymore, as well as she got kicked out of the cafeteria, near the rooms and even from the parking lot. It was all in good fun and a great way to see her new peers in a different light; locate the jocks, the clowns, the know-it-alls, the nerds and so on.

Talking about nerds, in her adventure through the campus she had detected this young woman with a rather peculiar smell, but since she had taken sanctuary in the library the dog had decided to leave her for later on. Now taking a walk on her way back to the rooms she had noticed how the brunette was still there, even when it was getting dark already.

Interesting…

Aedan took more time finding a place to shift back to her human form than doing so; her clothes were still in place even if rustled over and, finally, she could get in the library to stalk a bit. First there was this cute blondie with the woman, who evidentially couldn’t give fewer fucks about having said blondie near, so the once soldier took her role seriously and got herself a book. WWII: Onland by D. G Chandler and even sat down to “read” it.

She was a damn good hunter and wouldn’t pounce into a wary prey just like that, so she kept her icy blue gaze in the pages even if they were old history, literally and figuratively. What could they teach her about war? Well, a lot, in fact, since she had not been in those wars in this world, but it was a bit of the same ol’ mistakes and same ol’ techs.

Blondie smelt nice, of flowers and freshly growing plants, but it was not as interesting, not to mention that she looked way too innocent, not really the former soldier’s type, finally, the blondie left and the blue eyed girl tensed slightly, as if done with something, wait a bit more, just a bit more. The woman was still tense enough, her shoulders were a bit up, and her pen was still way too high.

One minute, two, three, four,

There was an apology nearby and silence, blondie had bumped against someone surely, another nerd was around? The remaining silence made the shifter ignore that happening and focus on her book, or at least pretend to.

Ten, twenty. NOW.

Aedan “charged” in, putting on her most charming smile. He used to love that smile, she, on the other hand, often rolled her eyes at it. And, carrying her book, slowly advanced towards the lady, noticing her very unique scent: The smell of someone old, of an important person, the smell of cotton and alcohol, of fear and anxiety, of science, science and death. Of death in service of science? Of science in service of death?

“Hey, babe.” She greeted her while taking a seat, her eyes boring deep into the brunette in front of her. Just what are you? “How’s it goin’?” Unique was a way to describe this nerdbag here, that step was not the best to take but it would either get the woman out of her reading or make her flee the library, both were good enough. “Got so inspired by that speech that you decided to be the nerdiest nerd around?” She half joked.

 

[Domovoi]

The passage of time was hardly on the ex-goddess's mind. Time was nothing. A construct of man. Immortality made the Earth's cycle around the sun useless to ponder; having seen its orbit from the outside, it wasn't the curiosity to her that typical mortals felt. Even if something happened to this mortal form, death was not part of her punishment, she would be reborn as she was.

As her mind followed this tangent, she forcibly snapped herself back into her book. The material was dull and common, and even incorrect at times - the real torture of her punishment was being forbidden to educate the humans on the truth. Ignorance made her sicker than anything. She had spent eons studying the many worlds' workings and laws, then examining knowledge tarnished by human arrogance. Insisting they were center of the universe (really, they once believed the sun revolved around them), so often they warped truth to better suit them. A vicious flood? Must be divine intervention. Our crops did well? The gods smile down. Horny? Clearly possessed by a demon, summon the priest.

Please.

They were so pathetic.

It was easy to tell night had fallen by the warm glow and penetrating silence that had overtaken the library. Because the university also offered night classes, it never closed, making her binge reading far easier. The blonde intruder had buzzed around a bit before getting bored and leaving, no doubt determined to pester some unwary soul into befriending her, and Ava was sure she'd have luck. Plenty of others would share her pushy, overly social personality, pleased to find someone as irritating as they to fraternize with, which was a blessing; they would remain in groups of nuisances and leave her be.

But there were always stragglers, like the woman at a separate table she'd paid little mind to, though something about her didn't match up with the bookworm type. Maybe the exceptional muscles, or the tiny smirk permanently etched into her features. Perhaps the bored glaze over her eyes that resembled a patient in the Emergency Room who had waited hours to be seen. Either way, she didn't fit in, but Ava didn't care enough to ponder it further.

Not that she'd get the opportunity. As with before, an unwanted visitor came to her table. A creature of habit - and one didn't believe in fixing something that wasn't broken - she deployed the same technique of refusing to glance up from her text. All necessary visual examinations were already complete. "Perhaps not all of us enjoy pretending to read," She stated blankly. "And just as such, actually wish to learn."

 

[MRAZ]

“Oh, really? Your bored pout could’ve fooled me.” Aedan said, prodding a bit further, her smirk widening. The light pain of the sutures, what was bringing that memory back, the smell of blood? No, the scent of antiseptics more likely, a repulsive one, yet very unique, and not fitting of a mere student. “I just thought you could use something to cheer you up a bit, or at least cheer the place up, this looks like a graveyard” More like a lab, though. The dark haired youngster leaned onto her hand, as if trying to get another perspective of this nerd. It was not that strange for humans to notice her prowling, but those humans were always much older than this: soldiers, scientists, elders.

You’re not from this bunch. She concluded and then leaned back again, stretching and cracking her back. Before she’d use her wounds of war, they were the best back in the day, sadly this was not her territory, and her body was not even her old one, so they could not be used to break the ice. “What are you even studying, babe? We haven’t gotten even the first class yet.” The girl asked as she reached for the book, taking it easily away from the woman and checking on it. “Anatomy, huh? I could give you some practical classes on this.”

The brunette woman did not seem that interest in what she was offering though, for she simply took another book from a pile that the shifter had not noticed before. Aedan should have left then and there, but curiosity got the best of her: She removed the new book from the foul smelling girl, waiting for her reaction and stacking both books near her arm, taking notice on if there was any shift on the air between them

 

[Domovoi]

Bored pout? Socially inept this girl was not. Or perhaps Ava simply overestimated her own poker face; statistically improbable, but possible.

Already she missed the quiet peace of her lab; the sun set six times since she'd dropped as a mortal, yet it felt longer than every millennium. There, freedom reigned, a sense of purpose driving every experiment, every line of study, every action, and now her home was this putrid planet, one empty of purpose and overflowing with sentient weeds. The other students had avoided her until now, a privilege she should've cherished, but with activity increasing as classes began, her solitude had come to an end. Damn.

It embarrassed her how she perked up at the sound of snapping joints. Honey brown eyes raised to inspect the other from beneath her bangs. The sound echoed memories of experiments involving cutting and breaking bone, the glorious snapping that perfectly signified scientific knowledge. Evermore were there new species to dissect and mentally log, and everything cracked. Bones, shells, carapaces: they all could be broken. Quickly, attempting to hide the surge of interest, her head lowered... Only to find her book missing.

Without pause, she simply lifted the next from her pile and opened it to the index, scanning down rows with a well manicured, bony finger. Finding a relevant topic, her fingertips grazed the pages' edge, deftly flicking them to exactly where she wanted. Again, the hefty book was removed. A hefty sigh, to match. Briefly sucking her lower lip, she folded her hands on the table and stared blankly at the dark-haired woman. This childish game would not end, so the scientist could play along.

She'd just treat it as an experiment.

"I assure you, it would be you learning the wonders of the body," A gentle, but honest, tease; the stranger's low-key sexual intent was obvious, but intriguing coming from a human female. An outlier in the number line was always cause for study. Such brashness was a distinctly male trait, oft fueled by testosterone. Ava would never admit it, even to herself, but this was genuinely a thought provoking encounter. "Shame I'd not waste time on an uninteresting pupil," With a plastic smile, she held out her hand. "May I have my book? Or aren't you finished being bothersome?"

 

[MRAZ]

Okay, that was… so freaking cute yet somehow sexy. Usually girls that age would blush or try to badly reply with something stupid, it made Aedan’s smile widen. “Oh really, babe?” She said huskily while grabbing one of the two books, keeping the other under her arm and teasing the young woman with the anatomy one in her hand, keeping it just out of her reach for a few minutes before leaning closer to the brunette’s face, enjoying the aroma she gave off, wondering if normal humans would notice it. I can almost taste the alcohol. “I can assure you, you’d find me rather… passionate about learning.”

Her breathing was tickling the woman’s skin and she knew so, part of the former goddess of war wanted to give this nerd a peck, or maybe a full kiss, just to see her reaction, but she liked to leave surprises for later on. The punished goddess hated ruining her game by being too greedy, after all.

“I might even prove myself to you.” She said before lightly patting the woman’s head with the book, minding her strength even in this new body, this curious girl was something else, but she was not a warrior and that was visible from a mile away. The dark haired former soldier carefully did so again and then balanced said book on the nerdbag’s head before leaving it there. “Theeere you go.” The blue eyed shifter said before sliding the other book to the honey eyed girl’s hand. The tall woman got up then, walking to stand just at the side of the girl who had her interest.

“I haven’t really finished being “bothersome”, in fact, hot stuff, I think we’ll be seeing each other a lot.” Aedan assured. Even if you might not know it. “You really caught my eye.” Or, in this case, my nose. With that she grabbed her hand without fisting it and cracked her fingers, the last reaction had been something she liked, whether the sound had scared the nerd or fascinated her mattered little, it got a reaction and that was the important detail. “Be seeing ya, hottie.”

Aedan left the place quickly enough, the night was upon them and she debated for a while with herself, for one it was surely the time when girls would be changing themselves, or wondering about their lives, some would even be celebrating their entrance to the campus. But this nerd over here would probably try to go alone to her room, which, because of the celebrations and such could be dangerous.

Not to mention that the former soldier knew that someone like that brunette gal would refuse help from one who had tried to pull a move with her… It was shifting time, then!

A few moments later a German shepherd sat near the stairs of the library, waiting patiently, hoping that the damn nerdbag would get out of there already, it was not long before she lied down there, tail wagging faintly.

 

[Domovoi]

A flirt, openly interested in other females. The intricacies of human sexuality were not a topic she'd bothered studying, but now her scientific mind pondered the possibility that a boosted testosterone level might affect both her confidence - arrogance, really - and her sexual preference. She was curious about the woman's chromosomes and DNA down to the last molecule, wondering if getting away with spiriting this one away was possible after she regained her true powers.

Unflinchingly, Ava kept her gaze locked on those icy blues as her personal space was impinged on. "I guarantee I'd disillusion you of those pretentious notions," A book tapped on her head, a gesture she ignored and allowed it to thud loudly in front of her. Strange... The movement was calculated. Why?

"I certainly hope not," She huffed, opening to the page she'd left off before the intrusion. The last thing she needed was more distractions, particularly those by curiosities. Cracking fingers earned a soft, nearly inaudible hiss from the science goddess, coming from suction on her lower lip and her heart skipping a beat. By the gods, she loved that sound. It felt like home. It felt like progress. She counted herself lucky the response wasn't a moan.

Once left alone, her mental checklist began to flow smoothly once again. Eventually, however, her mortal form got the better of her; tiredness rang in her skull like autumn wind chimes lulling her to sleep. The library was silent and empty, the clock on the wall offering 11PM on its face. She yawned plaintively and began to put away the books she'd chosen, placing those she'd not yet read in her bag. Mortal checkout rules were pointless; she'd return them the next afternoon, anyway, no doubt before they'd be missed.

The library was left just so. Ava couldn't help but take a moment to push in chairs, re-align tables, and straighten up a few shelves of books on important topics. Only then could she begin the journey back to her room, dreading the fifteen minute walk to the dorms on drowsy feet. Hardly keeping her eyes open, she threw her heavy bag onto her shoulder and left through the library's glass doors.

Though she attempted to blink away the sleepiness and hallucinations several times, she was genuinely seeing... A dog. A very handsome German Shepherd, in fact. Slowly setting down the bag, she crouched and reached towards the animal, remaining at a distance in case its wagging tail wasn't denoting a friendly disposition. "Hey, there... You friendly?"

 

[MRAZ]

“About time, you dork!” It came like a heavy sigh from the working dog as she glanced at the nerd from the corner of her eye, really, this woman had to get a freaking watch or something, maybe later on Aedan would get her one, preferably with an annoying alarm to let her know how late it got outside of nerd’s haven place. The brown and dark hound stayed in place, fully expecting the dork woman to walk by her, ignoring her just as many did or avoiding her, because, really, someone who had such an antiseptic scent was not likely to like stray animals, even one with certain pedigree as it was her dog form.

To Aedan’s surprise, however, the woman crouched near her and reached towards her direction, making her perk her ears up and sniff the air then bark once, twice. “Really? Didn’t you just say you didn’t hope to see me again, cutie?”

The dog sighed exasperatedly but soon got up and stretched; careful not to crack this time else it would be too obvious, especially for someone like this gal who didn’t seem to lose any detail, no matter how minimal. Aedan waged her tail a bit, reassuring the nerd in front of her that she would not bite, and walked towards the brunette girl until she was in front of her, sniffing her insistently. It was the same scent, but now mixed with something else, something heavy, the body working slower than before.

Another bark, now followed by a light growling. “Tired, huh? Whose’ fault is that, nerdbag?” Still, she began to lick the tired young woman’s face carefully. “C’mon, babe, wake up, wake up, it’s a long walk for a cupcake like you.” Even more light whines that came from her throat. While licking the girl the dog wagged her tail one side to the other, evidentially happy. “Mmm, you taste so nice, babe.” That came as a whine too and the dog sat back down, panting lightly before licking her own muzzle.

It had been a move a bit too friendly, but really, who cared? The studious brunette girl was half asleep already, and the dog wouldn’t let her return to the campus’ rooms alone, so better to let her know that there was nothing to fear from her.

 

[Domovoi]

Though the large dog's barks at first set her at unease, she watched the creature's body language carefully. Frightening bark, relaxed posture. Just a greeting. As with most who didn't view animals with distaste, the urge to run her fingers through that luxurious fur was almost unbearable; Ava knew it was unwise to approach unfamiliar dogs, but cuuute puppyyyyy!!!!!!!! Pets and smooches and hugs and squeezes! So cute! She could just squish her into a ball and snuggle all dayyyy! Even she, the cynical scientist, wasn't immune to the power of cuteness.

Her eyes sparkled a bit at seeing the animal's languid stretch, appreciating the display of canine musculature; the bow-like motion was distinctly quadruped, something she was a tad jealous she could never experience for herself. There wasn't a soul in the universe who rivaled her love of biology. As the German Shepherd approached, she remained still, hand still offered for the creature to sniff - an offer it accepted and quickly moved on to her body and face. "Neh," A soft, silly sound of surprise at wearing slobber. "Neeh!" The scientist laughed, a feminine giggle that didn't match her stonewall personality. A different, softer woman began to peek out from a crusty shell of intolerance.

A concerned frown formed at the quiet whining. "What's wrong?" She asked softly, tipping her head. Briefly, she examined the dog at closer detail. Smooth, clean fur. Healthy weight. Physically strong. Beautiful blue eyes. ...No tags. "Are you lost? You must belong to someone. Who would allow you to roam without identification?" A somewhat unique characteristic of Ava was a lack of a 'baby-talk' voice for pets and animals. Instead, she chose to raise the pitch slightly and lower the volume, like a mother comforting a toddler with a scraped knee. "How irresponsible. Such a beautiful animal and they don't take care of you."

With a feather light touch, she gently petted the dog's head as she decided what to do. The dog must've thought its owner would pass by this spot, as she could sense it had been there a while. "How long have you waited here? I'm so sorry, if it wasn't so late, I could help you find your human," Clouded by an air of disappointment, she stood from her crouch and gave the dog a last pat. "But I'm afraid tonight I simply can't. Please be safe, alright? Good luck," Left no choice, she regretfully began her slow, sleepy walk back to the dorms.

 

[MRAZ]

Those sounds, so darn cute! Made even cuter and pleasant to hear due to the fact that this strange smelling woman, who had the analytical mind of a scientist, was the one making them just after nerding for hours in the library. Heck, listening to them felt like a personal victory of some kind. Aedan’s tail wagged more and she waited, they had to go so— sudden pleasure. Ooh, yeah, that spot right there, a bit harder, babe! The dog pressed onto Ava’s hand a bit more while the honey eyed woman patted her, relaxing to those motions only to see her standing up again and feel the brunette woman giving her a last pat.

Tag?… oh yeah, her dog tags. The canine shook herself to make them do some noise, only to find that her neck was silent and for a moment that gave her quite the fright, just like a mortal discovering their ID gone just when they needed it. Aedan shook herself again, harder, again with no results and then she sighed. Oh right, first day, no tags on my first day. It would have been weird to have people touching them, trying to remove them, or, worse, trying to make sense of their military codification and why they belonged to two different people who probably did not even exist on this world.

Well, less troubles for now at least. “I waited here for almost an hour cuz a nerd wouldn’t stop trying to step up her teacher’s pet game.” All that was said in a couple of light barks before the animal took into scratching her right ear with her hind paw. “And, well, hot stuff, you know how some people don’t appreciate what they have with ‘em until they lose it…” Or until it took the form of a fluffy war dog.

With the itch gone, Aedan turned to the sound of steps not far away from her, so her newly gotten nerd was leaving. “Hey!!!” The German shepherd barked roughly and speed up to follow Ava’s steps, now going to her side, just like she had done with other two humans, a life time ago. “There, there’s no chance I’m letting you go alone, nerdbag.” Light huffing and barking, still, her tail had not stopped its little dance.

 

[Domovoi]

"Shh, shh, shh!" She softly hissed, turning to see the barking dog chasing after her. Oh, dear. Perhaps stopping to say hello was a mistake. "Pets are forbidden on campus. Hush, you!" If management heard, the creature would surely be tossed off the grounds. They were lax, but rich bastards and animal hatred were too often intrinsically linked to take that risk; though the strange dog wasn't her own, allowing a beautiful, friendly animal to be captured by some fool and put down at a pound wasn't even a possibility.

Actually, Hell, the pompous pricks that ran Landon U would skin her to make a genuine-fur stole for their lazy, overfed wives. The thought sparked a surge of anger coursing through her veins.

"You mustn't follow me," Ava warned, talking to the dog beside her as if it could understand while holding up an instructionally pointed finger. Little did she know. "I can't keep you with me," With a double-wave gesture of her hands that silently spoke 'shoo!', she turned away and began walking once again. All she could do was hope her shadow would become bored and wander off to find a more interesting person - or, hopefully, her owner.

The late hour and her foggy mind briefly wished she'd stayed to sleep at a table in the library. Slumbering facedown in a book was close to habitual for the science goddess, occasionally traded for papers or whatever experiment currently held her interest, even despite her thus far short span of mortality. It had taken a few weeks for the semester to start after she was cast out of her world, and they'd been merciful enough to leave her with toys to keep her entertained. Becoming accustomed to requiring sleep had been a strange learning experience; she'd made a mental note to eventually test the effects of long-term sleep deprivation, but was waiting for a time when the detrimental side effects wouldn't disrupt her new life.

 

[MRAZ]

“They can’t catch me, babe. Don’t worry.” A light, very light whining before Aedan just kept walking alongside of the brunette nerd. Due to the force of habit, the canine sniffed the grass a couple times, half expecting to feel the rough scent of gunpowder and metal, or hear the silence breaking with the whistle of bullets, but there was none of that, only wet grass and plastic mixed with the woman’s faint aroma and maybe remainders of other dogs that passed by. No pets allowed, really. The military dog huffed and caught up to her new acquisition, taking upon licking her fingers whenever the woman seemed as if about to fall asleep in her spot. “Wake up, nerd, wake up.” More quiet whining and the continuation of their trip, it brought back old memories of travelling across forests in the middle of the night, ready to protect her favorite jerk from any ambush that their enemy threw at them.

Being a mortal was so much different, yet, at the same time, there were many coincidences between one life and another. The canine tried to simply focus on the cold air around them, the lack of other human’s scent, and the briskness of this unique girl’s scent.

Wounds being stitched shut, bullets pulled from muscle and bones, teeth being filled with metal, clothes being torn open, bites, kisses, the taste of blood in each of them, fear, regret and yet life. More life than many could even try to have.

Humans were so fascinating, their wars were perfect machines built to make the humanity march onward under any excuse. The scent of blood and the feeling of life, there were not many places where one could really appreciate them at the same time. The dog yawned and kept following the nerd through the night, walking her to the door and sitting down while she waited this weirdo to open it.

A nerd delivered, sir, mission accomplished. Aedan shook herself a bit at that thought and gave a last tail wave at the woman’s direction. Sleep well, cupcake, dream of me.

 

[Domovoi]

Was the campus always so large? The walk back felt like hours, with nothing but the tapping of her short heels and the pitter-patter of dog feet alongside her own. The faithful pup seemed caught up in her own world, doggishly checking for scents while trotting down the paths. Her shift from fully focused to spacing out was curious.

What did dogs think about, anyway? Would it be possible to devise a machine to --

...

She was definitely overtired.

Finally, the dormitories. Knowing she'd have to close the door to disallow the dog from entering the lobby, Ava paused for a hasty goodbye. Crouching in front of her Shepherd pal, a few pettings were given. More. Several more, too. Okay, just one last pet! "You be good. Don't be seen," Her brows lowered worriedly. Maybe her human was a faculty member? It would explain the lack of concern. Bah! Not her problem. ...Easier said than acted out.

With a huff of distaste for leaving the dog out in the cold, Ava finished her pettings with a gentle scratch behind the ear and a kiss on the dog's velvety snout. "Goodnight, you," As the autumn wind picked up, she pulled her cardigan tighter around her body and stood. It seemed a good cue to get to her room and crawl under the covers, so she, at last, left her companion behind. No time to shower, but it couldn't be helped; hopefully one day wouldn't make too large a difference... Though the neat freak's eye began twitching just the same.

Thoroughly exhausted, she changed into comfortable clothes and silently slipped herself underneath her blankets, proud for not waking her roommate. Dealing with the obnoxious purplette was not the ending she wanted for the night. Within moments of her head touching the pillow, she was out like a light.

 

[MRAZ]

The next was not really what the canine expected, but heck if she wouldn’t enjoy it, so many pettings and soon she was feeling as if she could melt, only stopping her leaning against her new nerd and wagging her tail to lick at her face and hand, then she sat down obediently and allowed the brunette woman to scratch her, it made her hind leg tap a bit on the floor as if she was trying to scratch an itch in the same ear. “A bit more to the end, there…” Her whine was quiet, so very quiet now. Aedan wanted to stay with her new acquisition, but then again the next day would be Hell if she did so, and she was also getting hungry (a strange and rather unwelcome feeling) and sleepy (that it was a bit like going into battle in the rain: confusing, annoying and just not nice).

So she needed to dig into something and sl… the woman kissed her. Well, not kissed her like humans did, but that was a kiss either way! The canine stared at the nerd for a couple of seconds before folding her ears back and giving out a bark: “Hey, I do the kissing here, nerdie!” And with that the military dog went back to the darkness of the campus.

A few moments later a dark haired, muscular woman stumbled into the rooms and sighed, for a moment she wondered what room was the girl’s but soon she shrugged it off, meh, time for bed either way. She entered her private haven and trudged to bed, trying to ignore the bitch fit that sprung like a railed jack-in-the-box, her roommate was upset about her being so darn late, but really, it was not her fault and it was not the pampered woman’s business. “C’mon, Lennie, let me sleep already.” She grumbled and lay down in bed, trying to block the tirade that the woman gave. Another foul scent but not an interesting one, this reeked of new things, of plastic and chemicals, but not nice chemicals like the tear gas or gunpowder, but bleach and perfumes. Skunk’s juice and laundry rooms.

The once soldier sighed and stretched, cracking all over while thinking how she should have taken a shower, she stunk of wet dog… but thinking that again, at least it was something else than the scent of new clothes. Closing her eyes, the once war goddess thought on how she’d rather have paired with her roommate’s personal minion or whatever that other strange gal was, and she began to repeat that last trip in her head, along with the laughter of the brunette girl, until it lulled her into slumber.

---
The next day getting up was a torture, getting up and showering was even worse, really, did humans feel like this all the time? What a waste of life, really. It took her three over sugared coffees to get herself going and she still arrived late to the first class.

Classy, as always.

The day was painfully boring, with the probable exception of different mixing scents: There was a few noteworthy ones: Leather, blood and not period blood, ashes, steel and oxide, along with chemicals, roses and… and there was the one she was looking for!

As a human, Aedan located her nerdy gal and went towards her, smiling as always and trying to act as relaxed as before. “Hey, babe, whatcha doin’?”

 

[Domovoi]

She awoke groggy, but on time. Truthfully, a miracle.

Dragging herself to her dresser, she grabbed her shower caddy and the first clothes she saw before scuffling to the shower. Her roommate seemed to be up and gone already - another little miracle to start the day off right.

It felt good to let the hot water soak her aching head. The lack of sleep causing a tense feeling in her brain, curling up beneath the stream and taking a nap sounded far better than dragging herself to lectures. The material was old news to her, and her grades only mattered so far as her competitive streak. Failing a class would do little to affect her; once the punishment was up, she'd be shipped to her own world regardless of how she'd progressed. The only requirement was not being expelled.

Breakfast was for the weak, so straight to class she went, planting herself among the rows nearly a half hour early - earning her a funny eyebrow raise from the instructor. Ava wasn't ashamed of being an overachiever. Biotechnology was one of the classes she was most looking forward to, anyway. The man should be grateful for such an interested and dedicated pupil, the ignorant cuss.
So should the rest of her instructors, who shared the reaction of the first. Bastards.

Throughout the day, her thoughts would occasionally wander to her furry friend the night before. Was she safe? Did she find her owner? Whose was she? Partly believing she may have dreamt it, during her walks between classes her eyes scoured for any sign of the mysterious dog. Nothing.

Half-past noon. Lunch time, the point she'd finally be able to sate the gnawing in her stomach, and she was glad to do so. The cafeteria was swarmed with nosy mortals to weave through, but the miserable lunch ladies had made quite the menu of food. She and her tray of lemony chicken, strawberries, and a dollop of coconut pudding made their way into the courtyard, grabbing a bottle of water from a vending machine before sitting at an unoccupied picnic table. Pulling a small book from her bag, she read it as she ate.

Or attempted to. Before long, a familiar voice came from her right. Despite their short meeting, it was distinct enough to recognize immediately. No. Nope. Not today. Not again. Maybe if she ignored her, she would go away? Acting as though she'd not heard the dark haired woman at all, her focus remained on the pages, hand idly forking bits of chicken into her mouth.

 

[MRAZ]

Oh, really? Ignore me? That’s the thanks I get after I escorted you, bookworm? Aedan felt offended at first, it was strange, even with all her life going in between wars and even with her last relationship with the pair of soldiers, she had never gotten rid of the annoyance that crept up her back whenever her dog form would so something nice for a human and she would get attacked or ignored the day after. She knew it was not a logical way of thinking, but really, it just felt wrong.

A few seconds passed by and the tall woman just rolled her eyes and went to stand behind this brunette nerd, let her think she had won while at the same time getting at least the reward of closeness. “Really, what’s so…” Aedan cracked her back while stretching, only to crack her shoulder back in place in the next second, then reached to take the book from the smaller woman’s hands. “interesting about this as to ignore me?” While flipping a few pages she just sat down at the girl’s side and took a strawberry from her tray, eating it whole and frowning lightly at its sourness.

“Science, huh? What, gave up on the anatomy so early on? Prefer me teaching you?” The former soldier asked with a grin directed at her new acquisition, said grin, however, faded a bit as she took in how her nerd looked in the sun light. “It might be a surprise to you, nerdy, but you need to sleep if you want to survive college.” Or if you want to survive any battle at all.

Closing the book, the dark haired woman leaned back on her chair and kept it out of the girl’s reach. “You look like roadkill, babe.” And I probably don’t look that much better…

 

[Domovoi]

Killing one rat didn't eliminate the pest problem; the scientist didn't think for a moment the visitor was finished tormenting her. She kept reading, but sighed at the approach from behind. It was obvious the woman wasn't very bright, so her next move was predictable: plucking the book out of her hand, just like the night before. How original. So shocking. Never saw it coming.

What wasn't on the forecast was the return of that glorious crunch. A slow breath slid out her nose, eyes closed as the sound sent chills down her arms. Nngh. Still, Ava remained silent, frowning in distaste at the stolen strawberry, but choosing to focus solely on her food. Her fingers tugged off a few green leaves before sharp fingernails dug out brown spots on the fruit's skin. Yes, it was over the top. The goal here was appearing thoroughly invested in her lunch, as if the woman wasn't even there. As if the book had never existed.

More pathetic was the 'advice' of needing sleep. You don't say? There was a point to it, though... She was feeling the sleep deprivation. It wasn't the first night of late slumber and early rising, nor was it the first in succession. Fatigue made her mind cloudy and her muscles ache, but physical troubles she could deal with. She was a goddess, Ava damn it!

The thought of the lack of sleep triggered a yawn. Little thought went into her daily appearance, but she had pride. Lots of it. Roadkill? Was it that bad? Not a single glance had landed on a mirror since the prior day. She hoped the heat in her cheeks was just suntouch and not embarrassment at the wonder of what 'roadkill' referred to in this case.

 

[MRAZ]

Is she…blushing? How fucking, amazingly cute, it even brought some electricity to the former goddess of war’s back, it was always the women less likely to blush that did so in the cutest way. “Gotta give it to you, bookworm, you still can look cute even with those raccoon-like circles around your eyes, not everyone can do it.” And that makes you even more interesting. “What’s so important that has you so desperate as to avoid sleep?” For a moment, a split second, she had nearly asked why the woman was desperate enough to roam back to her room late, thankfully, the shifter managed to hold her tongue.

Damn sleep deprivation. It confused both of the sides of her life, it had only happened once and the comment was made to her very drunk comrade, but she had to be careful with this one, she was neither drunk nor easy to let details go.

Crackety, crack. It was funny to see the girl tense, so Aedan cracked her fingers once more and shrugged. “So, since you’re so busy bullying the strawberries, then guess I’ll leave for now.” Aedan leaned close to the teacher's pet girl and gazed into her eyes. “Be seeing you soon, cupcake.” And with that, the former dog of war leaned a bit more and bumped her forehead to this currently unnamed girl’s. A very light and extremely calculated movement that lasted less than one second, then taking another berry only and just only to mess with the brunette quiet girl, Aedan left.

With the book.

Sooner than you think, since I bet you'll be in the library again, and I'll get Lennie throwing a fit again...

 

[Domovoi]

What?! Raccoon?!
...At least raccoons were cute. That was a tolerable comparison.

The mention of her being 'cute' made no difference, however. Hearing it from a female was an unusual experience, but men's advances made her numb to such comments. The difference with men was the perpetual 'more fish in the sea' attitude: one rejection and they moved on to riper fruit lower on the tree. A choice few enjoyed the chase, but the more she ignored, the quicker they'd follow suit and give up. It was funny to her; whether gods or humans, this pattern remained among all males she'd been forced to tolerate.

Most infuriating about the dark-haired nuisance - besides the apparent arthritis that made her a crack factory - was her lack of a concept of personal space. As her safety bubble was penetrated by a nosy face, she continued focusing on her food, expression blank, even after a very personal head bump causing such fierce tension that a mini-Charlie Horse formed in her shoulder. Truly, she was beginning to despise the woman. But damn, if she wasn't a fascinating specimen.

Besides, at least she left. Now, she could focus on her...
What? Where? ...Gods damn it. Her borrowed, or rather, stolen book was not only quite interesting, but needed to be returned. Quickly. Well, at least it wasn't linked to her, and it seemed unlikely its absence would be noted. There were other books to read, as well... So, no sweat off her back.

---

The rest of the day went smoothly, classes visited early, coursework completed almost in advance. Dinner was for the weak, so she chose to head straight to the library to work on her assignments, silently putting away the books she'd taken the night before once the librarian left at 9PM. Unsurprisingly, she had the library to herself. First day of classes meant minimal homework. Perfect.

 

[MRAZ]

The day was uneventful, the only highlight after seeing her nerd was bumping with Miss Minion 2000, with whom she shared a silent greeting, and got a softly spoken request about Plastic Princess, on top of that, after much prodding she finally got herself a training get-together. Really, something about that gal made Aedan want to wrestle her just to see who was the top dog out of them two, she had the feeling that this gal could take whatever she gave and that was a sweet treat to have.

Now, if only she could get her nerd out of the library quickly enough as to get a bit more of sleep…

The ring of the last bell woke her up and made her yawn widely, boring lecture about the spoils of war, really, who didn’t fucking know the spoils of war? War was everything for humans, it brought them death, life, balance, progress, and it decided history and evolution itself. War was what pushed the human race out of their self-destructive cycle while making them destroy themselves more, get rid of the thrash, jump start their hearts into wanting to be more and not only wanting to have more.

Ugh, I need sleep

Aedan shook herself and shivered at the cold metal rubbing on her abs, she now was wearing her dog tags. Ever since the pair had given those to her she had had to count the little metal balls that kept their chain together, in order to make a good size so she could use them as both a war dog and a warrior.

Food, food. Dinner time, something good and then something sweet, a few stolen glances at the cute girls who were wrestling with salads near her and some waiting, then off she went to find a hiding place. Moments later, in the dark of the night, a German Shepherd bounced towards the library, following the tracks of a very peculiar scent.

The place was empty now and from the crystal wall Aedan could see her nerdbag sitting with her books. Not this time, cutie… “Hey, nerdie!” She barked and leaned against the crystal, licking it and prodding it with her nose. C’mon, c’mon, c’mon, look up, I’m sleepy already!

 

[Domovoi]

With the remaining books put away, she had chosen another stack to work through next. The missing science guide kept tweaking her nerves, but retrieving it was equivalent to defeat, and losing to an arrogant hellion... Her pride couldn't bear it. She would not allow that vermin to get to her. Ava was above childish games.

Her homework done hours before, she'd continued taking notes from pages they hadn't yet covered. It allowed her to spend more time listening and refining her notes during lectures, rearranging the pages in her binders as needed to keep everything cohesive. The rote organization soothed her desire to return home. She pushed it down as weakness and kept busy to numb herself to it. Unhealthy, but fruitful.

As seemed to be tradition, she was pulled out of her textbooks and snapped back into reality by an external disturbance. Barking, scratching, and lines of slobbery nose prints on the door. Puppy friend! It was puppy friend? So, she hadn't dreamt it - and her owner was still a dead beat. Humanity was too predictable.

Chuckling at the dog's antics, a pitying smile tugged the corners of her lips. Being as dog hair indoors would be evidence enough that something was amiss, she shooed the creature far enough from the door to open it and scooched outside. The chilly night was uncomfortable, but tolerable enough with her jacket on. "Hey you!" She said, crouching down beside it and gently ruffling and scratching underneath the fur below its jaw. "Did you ever locate your human?" With a soft, curious sound, she reached for the chain around it. "New accessory, huh? Can I see?"

 

[MRAZ]

Shoo me? No way. The dog barked lightly before leaning all over the nerd as she ruffled her fur and scratched her jaw. Yeh, that’s the spooooot. The canine whined and shook herself. “My human? You are my human now, babe!” The young woman didn’t get much chance to see her old dog tags, as Aedan began to lick her face again, her face, her forehead, all of her! Tasty nerd, yumm. Then, with a jump, the war dog went back and bowed playfully at the brunette girl, her tail going back and forth as she did so.

“C’mon nerd, let’s go home!” Aedan ran a bit towards the rooms and looked back to the girl, then returned to her and leaned her front paws on her. “C’mon already!” She ran back again and returned, again leaning to her and whining, this time, however, she let the woman check her tags this time, it wasn’t as if she would find anything useful there: Name, service number, blood type, spec number and religion of two people, a woman and a man. Two people who were nonexistent in this realm of reality.

“Knock that off. Let’s go already.” Aedan growled softly and gave the woman another lick before separating from her and looking at her expectantly for a moment before yawning and stretching. Taking care of girls like this one was kind of tiring as a mortal, in another life she would have been able to go without food or sleep for days, even weeks, but her "punishment" didn't only separate her from her two favorite mortals and left them without memory of her, but also made her go through all the mortal body's experience.

It wasn't that bad... At least they were still together and happy, and such, and well, she had gotten herself a nerd quickly enough, right?

 

[Domovoi]

The geeky "young adult" scrunched her nose in response to the sea of slobber she was drowning in after the dog got its paws on her, not appreciating the sticky feeling but unable to be angry at the lumbering, hyperactive furball. Gross as it was, it was endearing! Puppy love! She was giggling all the while.

Once the dog calmed enough to see the tags, she read them over. They apparently belonged to two different people. A couples' dog? Theoretically, she could check the school directory to find out the owners... Hypothetically, it would be quite a tale if two lovers used their military benefits to enroll at the same university, however doubtful that even military discounts would allow them to. Quickly memorizing the names and numbers, she gave the dog another small ruffling before standing up. Moments later, the creature was bounding off again.

Another small chuckle, then she headed back into the library. Her canine companion seemed more than comfortable, so she would leave her be. She still had work to do, no time to be playing fetch, or Frisbee, or tag, or whatever else the dog might be trying to entice her into. Though she worried for her safety, it wasn't her place to reunite them, and with the Shepherd the free spirit it was, Ava wondered if its escapades weren't its own doing.

Back to the books. It was difficult to get into them after an interruption, but she found the line she'd ended with and picked up again.

 

[MRAZ]

The youngster was… returning to the library, for real?! “Hey, no!!” The dog barked, only to see the girl going back to her seat. Those doggone books, I swear to me dad I want to tear them apart. Just me-damnit. Sitting in front of the glass wall, the dog began to bark softly, paw at the crystal and “draw” random things with her nose. Nerd, at least let me in! It’s kinda cold out here! Perhaps she should simply leave, the nerd was going to get into her books again and she would shut out the world whenever she did that.

But… Aedan barked again and whined, then put her best puppy eyes, looking as heartbreaking as she could for a while before lowering her ears and walking away from the door, going to the stairs and lying down there. I’m sleepy already, what the fuck, humans, is this how it is? Her tail kept going one side to the other as she thought on what to do next; maybe she should go back to the rooms? It was still somehow early; it would save her Lennie’s bitch fit. Yeh, she’d do that.

Getting up, the dog stretched, yawned and ran off. Damn, I wanted to play a bit more, nerd. So that game was over, killjoy, really, she’d get her back other day. A few moments later, the human emerged from her hiding spot and combed her hair with her fingers while she thought on what was next: A semester or so of boring lectures, a nerd who trapped herself in the library and a gal who threw a fit at her. War was more entertaining… Still, she could do something about the two gals, but how?

That was the question: how…

Some gods are not meant to be worshipped, but feared.

It was stupid, all of this, a goddess among humans, and so far her days had been uneventful, it was a sharp contrast to be living as a student than to have been roaming as a soldier, as a dog of war, as a god of war. Then again, it was still alike, there were some rules, there were some boring things and, at first, the only entertainment came from stalking.

Aedan got into the rooms and looked around for Lenara, then just went to sit on her bed, then lying down. “Lennie.” She called while looking up at the ceiling, noticing how she felt somehow trapped in here; after all she had been used to the open skies, even in the trenches, there was always the open sky above them, no matter how trapped they were by the enemy.

 

[Domovoi]

Lenara Edhelbor. Snooty aristocrat type. A little bit lazy, a lot self-entitled, she fully intended to do the bare minimum to get by - while she was plenty intelligent enough to do the work and then some, why waste precious time and energy to appease or impress mortals? They were beneath her in every sense of the term.

She had invited Meike Dietrich, her personal pet from the world before, into her dorm room; essentially the servant of the lanky blonde goddess, there were few places she didn't go with her. Clean and showered with a bit of help from Meike (a spare set of hands for a good back scrubbing was heavenly), she parked her naked self in front of the small vanity in their dorm room's private bathroom, slathering thick moisturizing creams on practically every inch of skin. The smells of juniper and rosewater filled the air.

The long routine continued; a special scrub for her face, then a mask. Once it dried, she peeled it off, briefly sharing visual similarities with a severe burn victim. Afterward, toner and moisturizer.

Nearly every part of her body had a multi-step process to it, and, from start to finish, it took her nearly three hours on that particular night.

See, before she had been spoiled. As a goddess, all it took was genetics to determine her appearance. Fair skin, blonde hair, crystalline blue eyes, tall and lanky. Now, it was a struggle to keep looking that way; her skin could dry out or wrinkle, hair could split and fade. Her eyes could dull and redden from lack of sleep or allergic irritation. Worst of all, her figure could fail. She found herself terrified to eat or drink, for fear of gaining weight and no longer being beautiful. It was bad enough to have her subjects hate her... But her pride would be irreparably damaged if mortals looked upon her with distaste due to her appearance.

Aedan arrived as she was conditioning her hair, a leave-in treatment to make it shiny and full. The time goddess sat on her bed in naught but her underthings, lacy pink garments that fit her form well, combing her fingers through her long locks. Her lip curled in distaste as her name was spoken. Ugh.

"At least you don't reek of wet dog this evening, Aedan," She huffed, stopping briefly to move her hair to the opposite side. "What is it?" The question was grudging, but genuine. Kind of.