A Mysterious Stranger [Free, Sun]

[© freedom]

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[atrb=background,http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/nn15/stephers1995/Benji---MIDDLE.png] Benji heard Crouse snarling behind him, and a small smile played on his lips before he turned his head around to assess the threat that was directed at him. No, this was not a fairy tale, at least not yet, as far as the half bred could reckon. The good guy was going to hurt, in fact Benji highly doubted that he would come out of this with less than a battered and possibly broken body. But! If things played out the way that he wanted them to, there was also a very high chance that he was going to get out of here with the girl. Something was forcing Benji to do this, to risk his life for a wolf he had never met and clearly did not even like him. But it was his job, it was what he had wanted to become, a hero, a protector, and right now this female needed him more than anyone else. Before he had a chance to back out of the way though, Crouse hit him hard on the hip, sending him sprawling to the ground on his belly. A deep growl rose up in his throat, and though his instincts made he want to lunge and latch onto the bastard's throat, his body remained still. He could not beat Crouse, and he knew he sure as hell couldn't kill him. Benji was not a fighter, he enjoyed his life- often talking his way out of trouble with his playful attitude and child like innocence. No fighting was neither his strong suit nor did he enjoy it. So Benjamin remained where he was, his bright purple eyes keeping a close eye on Crouse. That was until he heard whining and the sound of running paws. "You better learn who you're fucking messing with. Get your ass out of here before it gets handed to you." Letting out a deep growl, his head turned slightly to the side and he was able to see the female whose name he still did not know, running and sliding into the brush. She was only a few more yard away from them, but the fear that was dripping off her body was enough to send the blood lust in Benjamin roaring forward. He was quickly to get onto his feet, his back toward the shrubs that Bal was hiding behind, and his snapping fangs pointed directly at Crouse's face. He wanted to say something quick and witty, but the usual comebacks that always floated around his mind were long since gone. He had never felt like this before and it irritated Benji almost as much as the pale two toned wolf did in front of him. "You can fight me if you want Crouse. In fact, if you do, I will probably get pretty fucked up. You're bigger, probably stronger, but sure as hell dumber than me. No matter how this ends, you will not get the girl. You are proving all the points I just made by letting your anger get a hold of you. Idiot." Benji's handsome face had turned ugly with the effort to hold his body back from the most basic of canine instincts. He had always had a better grip on his reality because of the dog blood that ran through his veins, but living as a wolf for so long had turned him much more quick to react then he had ever been as a puppy. Looking at Crouse, he heavily weighed his options on what he was going to do. The sound of the terrified woman behind him though made his head lift up higher and his jaws to snap at his enemy- though he had come no where close to actually catching him in his jaws. Looking at the anger and rage that was the brute in front of him Benji said a silent farewell to Lukari and Liam before jumping forward and using his tank like body to hit Crouse's chest- trying to send him back. "Get out of here Crouse. This fae does not deserve the sickness in your mind. Go back to your sluts, I'm sure they both miss their druggie." As he pushed back off of Crouse he could feel the rage bursting out of the wolf's chest and Benji ducked his head slightly. He had no clue if Crouse really was cheating on his mate. In fact he didn't really know what was going on. There had been talk of course of Crouse and Joaquin- another Revolt member, but Benji had not known about the weakness that was in this brute until he took a stab in the dark. The sad thing was, his attack had not been a shot in the dark. It was well known that most males, no matter if they loved their mate or not, would cheat if the opportunity presented itself. Though Benji never had, nor even held the thought, his own prejudges had made him believe that a bastard like Crouse would. Spacing his paws out shoulder width apart, Benji stared up at the creature that he was sure wanted to kill him. His mind was screaming at him to run, to snarl, to do something that would protect his life. But Benjamin did not none of these things. His head and curled tail were raised high in the air, his violet eyes showing no fear of the fate he had just put upon himself. Even if he died in this moment, it would be to protect someone else. Lukari would forgive him for such a fate, and Liam would have something to look up to about his father. Love filled his chest and the remaining fear disappeared. Suddenly his vocals rang out, clear as day, though this time they were for Balorik's sake. "Don't worry Madam! I will protect you!" Muse;; X( Word Count;; 975 Authors Notes;; I've been up since 3am. It's 5:30 now. Ugh. Copyright;; Benjamin and this post are both strictly © to Freedom. Table made and © to Virus of Dare to Dream. All theft will be found and dealt with strictly.

[☼ Sunstorm]

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[atrb=background,http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/nn15/stephers1995/Crouse-2---MIDDLE.png] He hadn't been in any type of defensive position, and I wasn't sure that he expected me to attack him, so when I dealt the heavy blow to his hips, he went sprawling forward. His sorry-ass was now on the ground, dust stirred up into the air from the sudden fall, and it was hard not to snicker at the pitiful position. I was too angry as it was, though, to even begin to laugh at this fool. He would learn his lesson by the time I got done with him, I would make sure of that. I was only vaguely aware that Balorik had darted away, and I glanced to the path that she had disappeared into. I was lucky because Benji glanced her way as well, so I wasn't falling into any vulnerable position by any means. My nostrils flared as her frame disappeared; first she runs off and gets me into this shit, and now she fucking runs away? I wanted to scream. I wasn't passing this up, though; Benji had a lesson to learn first. I glanced back at him to see him rising up onto his feet. He beared his teeth directly at me, and though he was now a fully menacing character, I had detected another side of him. How could I be afraid of this thing now, anyway? 'You can fight me if you want Crouse. In fact, if you do, I will probably get pretty fucked up.' Then why the fuck are you testing me? I thought with a small wave of exasperation, but I couldn't say that because he kept going. 'You're bigger, probably stronger, but sure as hell dumber than me. No matter how this ends, you will not get the girl. You are proving all the points I just made by letting your anger get a hold of you. Idiot.' "We'll see if you're still saying that after I get done with you, bitch," I said. I didn't think he knew exactly what he was in for. I mean, he had noted that he'd be on the bad end of the stick, but I don't think he really grasped the concept. That's okay, though, I'd teach him. Suddenly he leaped forward, and I tensed my hindquarters as he plowed into my chest. The force of it set my hind paws sliding back, but I held my ground. If he thought he was pushing me anywhere, he was dead wrong. 'Get out of here Crouse. This fae does not deserve the sickness in your mind. Go back to your sluts, I'm sure they both miss their druggie.' I lashed out at him, aiming my teeth for whatever purchase they could find; his muzzle, nose, ears, I didn't give a fuck. I just wanted him to bleed. "Don't you dare call Joaquin a slut," I snarled as he pushed off of me. It was a bad idea to let him know this extreme tender spot of mine, but I wasn't thinking properly. From a third person's perspective: I really was a dumb creature. "Back off and shut that mother fuckin' trap of yours before you get even deeper into this hole you've dug yourself into," I advised, though I really didn't want him to back off. I wanted to keep going until he was on his back, belly up. Maybe there would be a broken bone or two along the way, as well as a bloody nose. He wasn't getting out of this cleanly. He squared himself just as I threw myself at him, aiming my shoulder to hit at his and knock him of balance so I could wrestle him to the ground, to spit in his ear while I shoved his nose into dirt. He'd take back those nasty comments from earlier, I'd see to it.

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[atrb=background,http://i899.photobucket.com/albums/ac192/fireb4ashes/JesseBranch-MIDDLE.jpg] This was a bad idea. Jesse knew it as he slinked through the undergrowth, his head low and his legs bent into a crouch as he covered the terrain. He vividly remembered what Crouse had told him if he tried to escape again. He knew that he was putting Netyri's life on the line by leaving the spot Crouse had firmly put him in. But he had to try. He couldn't just sit there and wait for the War to kill him. He had to get home, and get help for Netyri. Once he found his way back to the Renegade lands, he could find Anakaros..... But his plan drastically failed when he spotted something. He was quite alert at the moment, and that was the only reason he spotted the female. His brow pulled forward in a curious way, and his head tilted just to complete the effect. She was covering her ears, and by instinct, Jesse could see how terrified she was. What in the world....? He slowly approached, and remembering the reactions of Azalea and Mirage, he knew better to alert her that he was coming. "Um...hello? Why are you hiding like that?" He stood a good distance away from her, an uncertain look in his eye. He needed to get going because he didn't know when Crouse would return, but he couldn't shake this curiousity, either.

[smartboyathome]

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[atrb=background,http://i899.photobucket.com/albums/ac192/fireb4ashes/Balorik---MIDDLE.png] Balorik just laid there, shivering in fear as she plunged further into confusion by overworking her mind with what few experiences she actually had. She was sure that Crouse had been helping her, but how he was acting now was very different from what she had seen of him since she had awakened. Her mind kept circling these thoughts, going back and forth with no resolve in sight as tears streamed down her face and whines issued from her maw. Her world as she knew it had literally just been shattered in one sweep, and she didn't know what to believe, whom to trust, or even who she really was. Perhaps everything she thought she knew was a lie, in which case she knew nothing, a thought that her brain could not handle since that was what she had come from. Her attempt to block what they were saying with her paws over her ears was in vain as she continued to hear the conversation between the two. Their words were absorbed into her like a sponge, she couldn't help but not hear them though she very much wished she couldn't at that point. Apparently Crouse was just doing what Benji wanted, but she couldn't stop thinking that this could just be Benji's plan to take control over her since he was a bad wolf. Yet, perhaps Benji really was defending her, after all he had told her that he would protect her, though she didn't know why exactly she did need protecting. Either way, she didn't know how to take what they were saying, what she was hearing despite her best efforts not to, what she hoped would go away if she kept her eyes closed. As she heard the two fighting, her heart and mind sank further into herself once more, darkness starting to take over again. Everything was her fault, if she hadn't run off then perhaps she'd be Home right now, if she hadn't found this wolf then perhaps Crouse wouldn't be fighting. Yet, from what she could see now, the world was cruel, and she could not comprehend it as a flood of new things flooded her mind, even worse than when she had awoken from darkness. She hated what she was feeling, she wanted it to go away, and slowly she could feel it as she furthered herself into her mind, into the tranquil nothingness from which she had emerged. She didn't want to hear how righteous that Benji seemed to be, or how mean Crouse seemed, she just wanted everything to stop for a moment. Suddenly a new voice rang through everything, and all thoughts seemed to evaporate as a new fear developed inside her mind. Perhaps this was yet another bad wolf, and if so then it could be trying to take her from either of the two wolves which were fighting not too far away. She had been found, but she had thought she had hid very good, though apparently she hadn't, and this was yet another crack that emerged in her reality. It was crumbling under her paws, and she couldn't put it back together in a way which would work, as if nothing actually made sense. Her mind constantly grasping for memories which were not there only made things worse for her, failing to find any type of grounding. Slowly, she opened her eyes and looked toward the new wolf that had come out, instinctively using her nose to take in its scent though she didn't know what to do with it. It didn't seem that it was evil, and her instincts backed this up, but at the same time her world had been shattered, she couldn't trust any of this. If he was evil then he could have the same goal as Aice, and it could want to kill her since Crouse wasn't actually there like he was with Aice. Yet, perhaps it was as she saw it, and she could be looking at someone whom would only help her put things back together. She so hoped that it was the latter, though at this point, again, she didn't know who to trust, and didn't know anyone which she could look up to in order to help her. She got to her feet and backed up, keeping herself low, once more instinctively though she didn't know why, and looking up at the stranger. She felt like she was in between a rock and a hard place, the fight was behind her and this new wolf was in front of her, and now she was worse off than before. Her head continued to swirl with thoughts as she tried to think of how to respond, or even if she should respond, to his greeting and question. She couldn't think, she just had to act, that was all that was left to her since she couldn't trust herself any longer. Still shivering, she replied, "I d-don't know... I j-just don't know anymore..." That wasn't an answer, but she couldn't think, she didn't know what to say, she didn't even know who she really was at this point.

[© freedom]

Sorry guys! I will try to reply Saturday!

[¡§LUNAR✮OASIS¡§&#]

freeee~ i know your deathly busy but I though I'd bump this one last time for you <3

[© freedom]

Hey guys. I'm really really sorry, but I'm going to have to drop out of this one. I just do not have the muse for much of anything right now- not to mention the whole Benji dying thread is going to be happening quite soon. I'm sorry. X(