The Halfling and the Exile

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Isaac watched her walk away, then just focused on his clothes again when she settled in without really paying him much attention. He was all right with the quiet. It was nice to work with just the stream and the breeze to hear, knowing there was another person nearby but not needing to speak with them. It made the work go by a bit quicker, a bit more peacefully. Somehow, the experience they'd gone through had made it easier to relax around her.

When he was done washing his clothes, Isaac pulled himself out of the water and walked them over to the line he'd hung to throw them over it and let them start drying in the sun. He'd gotten the angle and height right, so the clothes would remain in sunlight for as long as possible and would dry as quickly as he could set them up to. Meanwhile, he would simply wait around until they were done.

After a long moment for thought, Isaac wandered over to where Niari sat and laid out in the grass nearby to dry himself, sighing softly at the warmth of the sun and flopping his head to the side to look at what she was doing. He'd only glanced at what she'd drawn before he'd laid down and wasn't really sure what it was.

"Doodling?" He asked, breaking the quiet finally with a bit of curiosity in his voice. "What happened to your book?"
 
"Yeah," Niari murmured in response to his query about doodling. She poked at the Vampire drawing with her shoe, smudging it out with a bit of a frown. Only the Werewolf drawing remained. Could she do that in reality too? Squish out the fanged part of herself? No, she couldn't. She couldn't even ignore it for long. But, with Isaac's help, she had at least quieted that part of herself to manageable levels.

"I couldn't focus on reading," she admitted a moment later, looking over at Isaac. The faint bruise on her cheek was still there, but it was quickly fading as it healed. "I saw Tomas this morning. He.. he didn't want to talk."

She sighed and looked back down, tossing her doodling stick off to the side. Nothing here was giving her any peace like she had hoped. Sure, the sunshine was nice and the company could be worse, but she felt restless. Tomas had upset her and nobody else seemed eager to talk. She fidgeted for a few moments, then looked over at Isaac once more. The one person who knew her secret and didn't care.. apart from her lying, cheating Vampire-fucking mother, that is. Eugh. One subject at a time.

"Are you okay? You look better.."
 
Isaac's brow furrowed as Niari spoke, recognizing the quiet, tentative voice of abuse. He'd seen it in his pack longer than he'd understood it, seen it in his own mother, and eventually as he grew older even recognized it in himself. His father hadn't hurt him, not until almost the very end, but the fear and the loss of any feelings of safety had been there.

"He hit you." He said, something like anger in his voice. Pack shouldn't hurt pack, but it was even more important that family not hurt family. He could understand fear or even anger, but it didn't give the wolf a right to hit his own sister.

Irritated by the thought still, he gave a faint tch and looked up at the sky. "I'm fine. I needed food and rest and I got them."

He let the silence linger for a moment, let her have her peace, but it was clear that thought was gone for her now. "It's easier once you accept new realities." He murmured softly, and after a pause looked at her again, fingers laced together beneath his head. "I wander off on my own enough that meeting in secret every few days shouldn't be difficult. We can be better prepared next time."
 
Niari didn't say a word as Isaac pointed out the truth. Yes, Tomas had hit her, but he had every right. At least, in her mind he did. It wasn't as though she thought she was a miserable creature who deserved to be beaten, but she had attempted to attack Tomas while he was injured. Apart from that, she had bitten him several months ago. He had never forgiven her for that. Him lashing out should not have been a surprise, but the emotional pain was immense. She frowned sadly to herself, giving Isaac a single nod as he said he was fine. That was good. At least she had one less person to feel guilty about for the moment.

When he continued speaking, she blinked and looked over at him, not bothering to hide her stare. Next time. Every few days.. He was planning on still helping her. On a regular basis, from the sound of it. She wasn't sure what to think. It would be immensely helpful.. priceless, even. If nobody ever saw her bite anybody, the suspicion would die. Vampires had to feed. Everybody knew that. If she wasn't visibly feeding, then she couldn't be a Halfling. But at what cost would it be coming to Isaac? She had nearly drained him last night. What if she did that again?

"I don't know.." she said uneasily. "I don't want to hurt you.. and I don't know how Vampires change people. I think there's some big process to it, but what if I accidentally did? ... Can you change a Werewolf into a Vampire..? Would that make you a Halfling or like a MerWolf with furry legs like a Satyr?" she mused, not realizing she was speaking her own thoughts out loud as she pondered.

"Hm.. MerWolf.."
 
It wouldn't be right to dismiss her worries immediately, to make them seem invalid or useless, so
Isaac let Niari talk. He let her get out her doubts and worries, and let ten seconds or so of silence pass between them with only a little shake of the head in response. The idea of a 'merwolf' brought a little smile to his face, thinking it sounded like something a child might suggest. It was refreshing, meeting someone who still held that sort of innocence about them. Maybe with her help he might even find it lingering in himself one day.

"I won't change." He said finally, giving his head a little shake. "If that was going to happen I would have to drink your blood. And even if I lost my mind and decided to do it, I'm not even sure it would work." He'd thought only purebloods could change anyone and that werewolves couldn't be changed, but it wasn't as if halflings ever survived long enough to try. He was most definitely not going to be the first to test it.

"If you're worried about killing me, you shouldn't be." Isaac added, watching clouds drift by overhead. "If your hunger had you so far gone, you would never have stopped last night." He glanced at her sidelong. "It was your first feed . . . wasn't it?" She'd retained enough control not to kill him when she'd nearly been driven mad with hunger. When she was only just beginning to feel the craving for it, there would be significantly less danger. As long as he took proper care of himself afterwards, it would be fine.
 
"Oh.. right.."

Niari nodded a little, realizing that he was completely right and she had been worried about nothing. After all, that was what all Werewolves knew. You were bitten, then you fed from a Vampire, then there was the change. But she wasn't even a full Vampire, so even if he did do that, it would likely fail. She knew he wouldn't be willing to experiment on that front and she didn't blame him. It could kill him, maybe. She honestly had no idea.

"Yes, it was," she admitted softly, glancing at him and meeting his gaze for a moment before looking away. "Several months ago, I was wrestling with Tomas. I.. I don't know what came over me, but I bit him. Hard. It was on his shoulder. I made him bleed but he threw me off and ran for it. He never told anybody.. but he's been ignoring me since then. Now it's like I've died," she said, sighing. She had lost a brother.

"It doesn't matter. We can only move forward, right?"
 
It was strange. Halflings never survived long enough to learn these things, or isolated themselves so thoroughly and out of necessity that no one ever heard about them. Everything was knew. Everything was like being a child with no parent, a new vampire freshly changed and no sire around to guide them. They would have to make things up as they went, he was sure, and do their best to compare knowledge and lore of both werewolves and vampires to see what they could come up with. Some truths about each species should still be somewhat useful to her. At least the sun didn't make her ill.

"Mm," Isaac murmured softly, letting her know he'd heard but taking in everything for a moment. Her brother was frightened. He wasn't as resilient as some when it came to adaptation, and it would likely be difficult or impossible to change his mind. They would just have to work around him until he came around on his own.

"It's best to accept what has happened," he agreed quietly, watching a cloud shaped like a fish ambling slowly past, "And focus on what will happen. Too long bemoaning losses or mistakes and you'll drive yourself mad." As mad as me. He thought, but kept his lips sealed against the words. He wasn't a complete hypocrite, at least. He was trying to accept things, and he had somewhat succeeded in that he didn't regret his choices. It would just take time.
 
"I don't know if I want to focus on what will happen, though," Niari admitted. "Because I don't know what's going to happen. Am I supposed to feed in secret for the rest of my life and just hope nobody notices..?"

The thought made her frown. Sure, she was thankful for Isaac's help, but what if he tired of the process? She could not leech of him forever - he was not her blood bag, nor her slave. Besides, sneaking around for long periods of time was bound to be exhausting. She already missed the days when she could run naked through the trees for hours with her brothers, not a care in the world. Why couldn't she bring that back? Perhaps there was a way to just cut the Vampire half out of her. Tug the fangs out. That would help, she was certain of it. If there was some way to remove them..

"I-" she began, then she paused and tilted her head, listening. What was that? A twig. She frowned and looked around, scanning the trees carefully until she found the source. A hunter was ambling along, laughing and talking to somebody she couldn't see at first. Ah, wait. There was a second one behind him. They were both carrying long hunting rifles, with bags full of freshly-killed game. She frowned at the abundance of their hunting. So wasteful. They continued on, but the pair by the water didn't escape their notice.

"Oh, look here! Couple of hippie kids!" the first exclaimed, laughing. Niari tensed and narrowed her eyes at them, slowly closing her fingers around a rock at her side.

"Oh-ho, look at that one! She's got a right nasty expression. I think the bitch doesn't like your ugly face," the second pointed out with a grin.
 
Isaac made a little bit of a face, knowing the prospect wasn't a great one for the both of them, and shook his head. "Focus on what will happen soon, then." He amended, and growled low in his throat when he heard the rough treads of the hunters. "Like company."

He sat up as the hunters approached, gesturing behind his back at her to hold on, to not go on the offensive so quickly. If these men wanted to think they were hippies, that was fine. He had washed his clothes in the river and was lying around in his underwear, drying in the sun, so it wasn't really a far leap. It was easier to let them think what they wanted and move on than to convince them they were trespassing on werewolf land. It was better for a pack to do its best to ignore hunters, so long as they never came to close to the main living land, or killed any wolves whether they were natural or werewolf.

"Good morning!" Isaac called, giving them a sunny, innocent smile, and waved rather than get up to try and go greet them like a fool. "Looks like a good haul today. Happy hunting!"

If they were smart they would leave. If they weren't, they would learn.
 
Niari growled quietly, but the hunters did not seem to notice the faint warning. She glanced at Isaac, watching as he played the part of a happy idiot. Well, she wasn't about to pretend to be some cheerful hippie girl just to get a couple of damned hunters to go away. She maintained her scowl, looking back up at the hunters as they nodded in agreement to Isaac's assessment. They spoke to each other for a moment, then laughed and turned away to leave.

"Wait!" Niari called out, spotting something at the last moment. "Your boots are very pretty. Where did you get them?"

"I've had these things for years!" the hunter said, rolling his eyes. "Just lined 'em up with wolf fur this morning though. Nice and warm! Mangy thing wasn't good for anything else, not enough meat for jerky!"

"The other one will be good, though," the second hunter laughed, hefting his bag higher on his shoulder. That was all it took. Niari heard a faint whimper from the bag and immediately felt both sick and enraged. They had a pup and had skinned another. She stood and looked to Isaac. There was no way they could let these men just walk away. Right?
 
Isaac had to fight not to lose his smile when he noticed what Niari pointed out. Wolf fur. None of their pack could have gone missing so soon, but there were always wild wolves around and there was no missing the slight chance that it could be one of theirs. They couldn't stand for that. They couldn't just let these idiots kill so senselessly and walk away without learning from their mistakes.

"Don't kill them." He murmured under his breath, so only she would hear, and started to get to his feet. "You know, I got these scars from a wolf." He said waving around an arm and letting them see the marks on his side, even from the short distance between them. "We had a good scuffle, he and I - but Ive still got one of his paws! Here, come see!" He walked quickly over to where his clothes hung, as if eager to show them, and made a show of rifling around behind a tree. "I keep it for good luck."

As he got back up, in time for the curious hunters to wander just a bit closer to see his hideous prize, Isaac raised a hand like he would show them. Instead, when his arm came back down his knife went flying, and sunk cleanly into one of the hunters' hands. The surprise of the gesture and of the injured man's shouts gave Isaac enough time to sprint towards them, and as the second man fumbled with his hunting burden and his weapon, Isaac threw himself bodily into the man. As a wolf, Isaac was stronger, and he came out of it sitting atop the man with the rifle in his hands, the muzzle of it pressed firmly to the man's forehead. Isaac's father had been a violent, twisted man, but he had still taught his son how to be an enforcer.

"Niari." He said firmly, eyes on the man beneath him and trusting her to have gotten to the other weapon lying nearby so the injured hunter couldn't attempt to reclaim it. "Get the bag."

"You're in luck, boys." He cocked the gun to get it ready to fire, to show them just how serious he was and how well he knew how to use it. "You get to see an Alpha today."
 
Niari disliked being told what to do, but she nodded once. Don't kill them. Fine. That did not mean she could not maim or otherwise seriously injure the fools. She walked off to the side, her movements slow but deliberate as the hunters turned all of their focus to Isaac. As they came closer, she moved around until she was right behind them. Isaac's attack came at the perfect time, allowing her to grab the injured man and throw him on the ground. She pressed her knees into his back and grabbed his hair with one hand, using the other to pull the knife out of his palm.

"Be thankful I'm not sucking you dry, you useless meat sack," she hissed in his ear. She was about to slam the blade into his ribs when Isaac said her name. Annoyed, she looked up with a vicious glare, but he wasn't looking at her. She looked over at the bag and straightened up, still kneeling on the man firmly as she reached for the bag. The blade cut through the ties easily and she pulled out a perfectly white pup. It was whining and crying, clawing at Niari in a desperate attempt to be held.

She soothed the pup, snuggling it close and giving it comforting nuzzles until it calmed to silence. The display shocked both of the hunters, who clearly did not think a wolf could be so easily calmed. Then again, they had no idea what they were dealing with.

"He's not ours," she assured Isaac, still furious. "Where is the mother?" she demanded of the hunters.

"In our bellies!" the one she was kneeling on dared. She growled and slammed the knife in the back of his thigh, getting a pained scream for her efforts.
 
Isaac tsked at her when she used vampire threats on the man, but they would have to work on that later. He didn't want her slipping up and saying things where others could hear. For now their focus had to be the hunters, and the little pup they had with them. He had already suspected the mother would be dead, or else they would never have gotten away with her pup and lived to tell about it. Isaac was only glad the poor thing could be soothed for now. If her family was truly gone, he would take her in himself.

"Ugh," Isaac complained, even as he got slowly to his feet, gun still aimed at the man beneath him. "You know, you're going to ruin the blade if you hit bone. I like that knife." He had no concern for the man's injuries. The both of them had deserved it.

"All right, on your feet." He gestured up with the gun, standing back so the man could get up and not be within striking range. "Niari." He glanced at her, briefly, and finally nodded back towards where the pack would be. "Make him walk with it." It would keep him from bleeding out if anything important had been severed, and it would surely hurt more.

When everyone was standing, he pointed them both the right direction and shoved the mostly uninsured man forward with his own gun. "Walk. Time to see the Alpha." He scooped up the other gun as they started walking, slung it over a shoulder and took it with him so no children would find it.

"You live or you die when she says so."
 
"I'll make you a new one," Niari retorted in response to Isaac's complaining about his blade.

She was tempted to start twisting the knife to make the man scream more, but she resisted. Being angry coupled with her inclination toward blood would not do well in this situation. Instead, she stood and used her free hand to drag the hunter up as well. In her other arm rested the pup, now asleep. Poor thing was exhausted from being terrified for so long. She frowned, freshly infuriated, but she kept it contained.

For now.

"You're lucky I'm not the Alpha yet," she growled, glaring at the hunter with the knife sticking out of his thigh. She pushed him, making him yelp and start walking. Hopefully her mother would not be feeling merciful today. She frowned and looked down at the pup once more. This little boy was all alone now.. unless.. she blinked and glanced at the hunters. They skinned one and captured another. Two? That was an awfully small litter.. There had to be more that they hadn't found. She glanced back in the trees thoughtfully. Perhaps after this, she would have to go pup-hunting..
 
"You can't make me a new one." Isaac shot back as they started to walk, bantering idly because it wasn't as if they had anything else to do. The hunters were walking on their own, the pace slow for the one man's injuries, but acceptable for now. "That knife was purchased, thank you. And I don't exactly have a bank account." It was good for a pack to keep some money, in case of emergencies, but he'd left all of that to his mother.

After a pause, he looked the hunters over and shrugged. "Well, I'm sure they have wallets. But I like that one, in particular." That knife was one more thing his father had given him before drifting too far off into insanity. It was one more thing he held on to.

There was a worry for his things, in the back of his mind, though he knew all of this was more important. No one had taken his belongings from out of his shed that didn't have locks, so he had to assume his clothes and the line he'd used for them would still be there when he came back. It wasn't as if someone would have any use for them. Most were hand-me-downs already when he'd recieved them, and as much as he'd worn them no amount of washing would take his scent out of them.

There was a sudden spark of interest from anyone in sight when they reached the pack's living space, the pack worried and angry at seeing human's in their home, and Isaac made sure to keep the gun firmly trained on the men in front of him, guiding them towards the Alpha's house. She would be judge and jury, and if she deemed it necessary he would be executioner.
 
"Just because one was bought doesn't mean another can't be made."

Niari stuck her tongue out at Isaac before continuing along. This was almost enjoyable. Almost. If it wasn't for the constant sight of those fur-lined boots.. Oh, how she wanted to skin the man. Skinning a wolf was bad enough, but a pup? A little helpless baby? That was just damned cruel. She growled slightly at the thought, accidentally rousing the pup in her arms, so she soon silenced herself and rocked him back to a light snooze.

As they walked into sight, she saw the pack perk up and take notice immediately. The scent of Human was unmistakable. It wasn't long before the Alpha was fetched, and she eyed the group. Two hunters, both injured, one with a gun in his face and the other with a knife in his thigh. There was Isaac standing in his underwear and Niari standing with a lone pup in her arms. Surely it was an odd sight, but the Alpha appeared calm as ever as she examined them all.

"Niari," she finally said, turning to her daughter. "Why have you brought Humans here?"

"They skinned a pup and kidnapped another," Niari said with a frown, causing several frowns and glares through the gathered pack members. "He wears the fur to line his boots. There are likely other pups of the litter still out there. I would look for them, with your permission."

The Alpha looked at the boots in question, then looked up at the men with a thoughtful expression.

"These men not only trespassed on our territory, but they have also broken Human laws. The trespass was likely unknown and easily forgiven.. however, it is against laws of any people to hunt infants of any species. Human law dictates a fine or possible jail time. Fortunate, we do not follow Human law here. These two men have seen where we live, as well as skinned a pup. I do believe we have a unanimous decision on her hands," she said, glancing around at the pack.

"Get rid of them."
 
Isaac ignored the looks that came their way, of which there were many, and focused on keeping the two humans in line. He had known in the back of his mind somewhere that taking them to the pack would ensure their deaths, but couldn't quite bring himself to care. These men obviously had no respect for life themselves, and would likely have had no qualms in killing or simply beating he and Niari for being in their way. It was what they deserved.

With the pack members around, it was safe for Isaac to step back and lower the gun to the ground, the wolves around them making it impossible for these humans to so much as flinch without being stopped. They were completely at the mercy of the pack now, and it was their own damn fault if their death wasn't a fast one.

"Yes, ma'am." Isaac responded, giving a slight bow of the head in deference to her judgement. "Would you have me carry it out myself, or would you rather I join the search for the rest of the pups? I could watch over this one while others look."

He would take them away from the pack and shoot them both in the head if she told him to, even dig their graves himself. But if she wanted him to stay with Niari, or would rather the honor of disposing of a threat go to one of her pack, he would follow her judgement. It was probably better that one of hers killed them, and could keep their guns for later use. No one would trust Isaac with weapons anyway. Perhaps his willingness to give them up would help with that.


((Leaving for work in about 45. Will get a reply on lunch like yesterday and will probably be back a tiny bit before you go to sleep haha))
 
"No leader should ever hand out a judgement that they are willing to carry out themselves," the Alpha said, shaking her head slightly. "I will take care of them. Leave them here. Isaac, Niari, go find the rest of the litter. Take the pup with you to get the scent. The others may not come willingly if you don't."

Niari nodded and wrenched the knife out of the hunter's thigh, making him scream. She wiped the blade clean on his shirt, then walked over and handed it to Isaac as the Alpha took the rifle and gestured for the other pack members to drag the men off to the side. No point making a mess right here while the children watched.

"Come on, little guy," Niari cooed to the pup, nudging him awake as she walked back to the forest. Once they were back to the area they had left, she stripped down naked and piled her clothes on top of her book that she had left behind. Good enough. She set the pup down and sat next to him, quickly shifting. Oh, that was sore. She should have stretched first. Oh well. She stretched out thoroughly, then gave the pup a good sniffing. Once satisfied, she licked him and looked over to Isaac to ensure he was ready to go.
 
Isaac bowed his head a bit to show he wouldn't contest the Alpha's will and carefully handed off the rifles to her and the other pack members. He made a face when Niari handed him his knife, wrinkling his nose at the remnants of human blood still on it, but did thank her as he watched the humans being dragged away. When they are out of sight, he turned and started to walk away with Niari.

When they were back to where they had started the whole issue, Isaac let Niari shift first and just sighed, looking a bit longingly at where his clothes still hung in the sun. They weren't dry yet, so he wouldn't be going on foot, even if he thought it would be better to have hands. Still, the pups would be receptive enough to them while they had paws, on that note Niari was right.

"I'm coming, I'm coming." He murmured. "Give me a minute."

He went to the water's edge and cleaned his knife, then tucked it into the tree next to where his clothes hung so no children or small animals were likely to find it, and it wouldn't dry with blood still on it. When he was done with that, he dropped the underwear he'd been wearing beneath his other clothes, got down to his hands and knees, and shifted. With a little shake of his fur, he trotted over to Niari and the pup, greeting the little one gently and then tossing his head to the side to indicate Niari could lead the way. They would be slow with the pup at their side, and they needed to find the others as fast as possible.
 
Niari dipped her head once in a nod, then stood and scooped the pup up by the back of the neck to carry him as a mother would. There was no point in wasting time until they had to. For now, she could track the scent of the hunters further into the woods. They would have to stop periodically and sniff around for the den, but it would be faster. The pup curled his legs up and blinked at Isaac, seeming perfectly cozy as Niari took off at a run.

She stopped half a mile later and sniffed a bit, slowly setting the pup down and looking around. The scent of the hunters was strong here, but she didn't see anything. Apparently, the pup didn't either. He just walked around in a small circle, then plopped down on his furry behind and stared at Niari as if waiting for something.

She huffed at him, then turned her head to look at Isaac with one ear cocked. Perhaps he saw or smelled something she didn't. If not, they had to continue on.
 
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