Slave to the Moon [Goblin]

[Juno]

"Wards," she repeated thoughtfully, humming happily to see Wesser so pleased for her attentions. She tried her best to pet and pamper him despite his squirming. Lyra noticed that he'd avoided her other questions, though, and looked to him again once she'd given the wolf a good bit of love.

"How long have you lived here?" she ventured, uncertain if her thoughts about him being something besides human, or pure human at least, might be true after all.

[GoblinFae]

Rylan closed his eyes as if closing the doors to his soul that would allow him to recall just how long he had been living there. It was definitely as long as he could recall, although it was just as possible that he had been born elsewhere and had traveled down into the forest. The details though were all so hard to recall. Time was a fuzzy construct to one who lived so long and mostly alone. It was not something he relished explaining to a sapling of a human.

"A very long time," he finally answered, with a sardonic grin. "You needn't worry about your lands from me. If I had wanted them, they would have been taken long before you were born."

[Juno]

"Oh, it wasn't the land I was worried about," she smiled, though she was unable to hide the surprise from her eyes at his confirmation that he must have been far older than he looked face to face. "But what kept you from it?" she wondered. "Are you some spirit bound to the trees?" she guessed playfully.

[GoblinFae]

"I do not suffer from the affliction of greed like the rest of you humans," he informed her rather matter-of-factly without any sugar to sweeten the blow. "I do not leave because it is my choice to stay and none shall change that until I decide I want it changed. No bonds could drag me away just as none could tether me in place. My coming and going is of my choosing and no others. Are you satisfied now? Your home is safe. I have no interest in your kind, human."

[Juno]

Lyra averted her gaze to give Wesser the bulk of her attentions then, displeased that he felt the need to return a playful and curious question with such an bluntly opinionated answer. Again he spoke of the greed of humans. To her, it sounded like he'd been decidedly wronged by them in some way now he was not telling her of, not that it was any of her business.

"Fair enough," she acknowledged him, casting a glance his way before returning to petting and scratching and rubbing the wolf between them as if he were some domesticated farm dog. "I suppose...thank you? For not being greedy," she added after a bit of pause, the situation unusual to her for she was certain she'd never met a creature in all her life that might be as ancient as he might have been implying.

"I'll do by best to keep our animals from your land, but I must admit I'm quite fond of Wesser and I hope he'll come visit me from time to time. But only when it's safe," she scolded the wolf gently, giving him a final few pats before she moved to stand.

"I suppose my eyes can't be everywhere at once, so if you notice anything...strange happening with the cattle could you please let me know? I'm sure we could reward you in some way for the information," she offered.

[GoblinFae]

Rylan regarded her silently. Her desire for assistance from him with a promise of reward disgusted him. He did not need anything and the idea that he would was insulting. What good was riches when he had no one to share them with. All that he needed came from the earth, the very earth that the humans seemed intent on destroying.

"And what would you consider odd that I am supposed to observe from across my territory?"

[Juno]

"Attacks? Distress? Surely you could hear them call, they're quite loud." She could see he didn't seem particularly interested, though, and stepped away a bit to look back out at the buildings in the distance briefly before tilting her head to regard the cattle that were nearer to the treeline. "But don't worry yourself over it, might just be some cruel boys killing them for sport. We'll figure it out eventually," she assured him, though she was not all that confident in the search herself seeing as they'd had no leads thus far.

"Enjoy the rest of your day," she bid him, lifting a hand to wave before heading back out across the fields to the house.

[GoblinFae]

"Ah," he murmured. "Well I'm sure as their guardians you'd hear them long before me," Rylan reminded trying to be kind. He saw no reason to concern himself as long as the beasts kept out of the woods. Once there he might decide to assist but until then he had no reason to interfere in the lives of the humans and their livestock.

He tilted his head in a final nod before fading from her sight, blending once more into the shadows as if he had not been there at all. The moment she stood and moved to leave though Wesser was once more bouncing at her heels, yipping and jumping in hopes of either more belly rubs or some proper playtime.

[Juno]

Lyra smiled sadly at Wesser but tried not to encourage him. She twisted slightly to point back toward where she'd last seen Rylan but was surprised that he'd already vanished. "Go on, he'll be missing you if you follow me anymore," she reminded the young wolf, uncertain if he might even understand her. Thinking he might remain there she gave him a final pat and scratch of the ears before setting out, fully intending to leave him to the forest where he belonged.

[GoblinFae]

Undeterred by her attempts to shoo him back home to the woods behind them, the moment her back was turned to him, Wesser pounced. His teeth latched into her skirt again as he dug his paws into the dirt and pulled backwards against her forward momentum in hopes of dragging her back home to play with him. He growled loudly around the wad of fabric in his mouth and shook his head forcefully in persistence.

[Juno]

What she hadn't expected was to be staring up at the sky, but that was exactly what happened as she was caught off balance and pulled down easily enough by the determined wolf. With the wind knocked out of her Lyra struggled for air for a moment as she dizzily sat up, turning to glare at Wesser as she heard short tearing sounds with every shake of his head.

"I am not your chew toy," she warned him, reaching out to latch onto what she could of her dress to pull back in a poor effort of dislodging it. The fabric had been so stretched by his previous play, though, that it was already dangerously stressed and practically ready to give way to the wolf's fangs if he gave it any more effort.

[GoblinFae]

Wesser panted in front of her, wiggling back and forth, thinking that her tugging was a game as he too tugged backwards, fighting to win their little game. A distinct shredding sound filled the air as Wesser gave one last mighty tug and effectively tore the woman's skirt to pieces. With a pleased howl he dropped it on the ground and danced about in victory moment's before he was tackling her once more, knocking her flat on her back. The wolf settled down on her chest, muddy paws leaving pawprints all over her dress from top to bottom that meant nothing to him as he licked happily at her face and nuzzled her with his snout and cheeks, marking her with his scent as he did so.

[Juno]

"No!" she groaned, whining pitifully at the distinct sound of tearing as she let the ruined fabric fall from her hands. Glaring at the wolf she was left scrambling to salvage what she she could to cover herself properly when he caught her off guard again and pounced. The weight of him upon her chest blocked the heaving sigh that would have accompanied her dramatic eye-roll, but she accepted his snuffling and nuzzling with little more fuss.

The dampness of muddy pawprints seeped through the fabric to make her skin crawl. The dress was decidedly ruined now and Lyra would consider it a miracle if she got home and changed without anyone noticing her sudden immodesty. "Wesser," she tried again, having trouble hiding her smile from the playful youngster.

"Get up," she ordered, though not as firmly as she would have liked to have sounded as she tried not to laugh at his ridiculous, puppy-like playfulness.

[GoblinFae]

With the lack of true authority in her voice, the wolf continued to ignore her and rest comfortably atop her. Wesser buried his nose in her neck, snuffling about and giving licks as he found the perfect spot to rest his head comfortably. His tail slowed some of its wagging but he was not any less enthusiastic about winning their little game. He lifted his head though and huffed in her face for all of her squirming about to unseat him. Out of spite he laid down more fully and heavily, his chin resting on her chest to stare into her eyes pleadingly. Wesser knew that even Rylan struggled to resist such a face.

[Juno]

She was unable to move him for all her flailing about and finally gave up when she saw the adorable puppy eyes he was giving her. "Okay... Okay," Lyra finally surrendered, bringing her hands to rest in the fur of his neck.

"You got me," she added despite being certain he had no concept of what her words meant. It was clear enough he'd had some sort of game going. That game, she hoped, would be over if she gave in.

[GoblinFae]

He yipped at her, licking her chin briefly before settling down for a nap. Wesser did not remain more than a moment though before his head and ears were lifted attentively, catching a sound on the wind. In an instant he was bounding off her again, racing towards the woods where a sharp, commanding whistle had beckoned him back homewards to Rylan. Together the pair moved deeper into the forest, leaving the young woman and her human home far behind them.

[Juno]

When at last Wesser ceased his affections she sat up quickly to watch him go. She thought she'd heard something, a whistle perhaps, but maybe it had just been the wind.

Returning home she was quick to hide her tattered clothing. She would have to get rid of it somehow, though, and she wondered if she might be able to use it as nesting material for the barn animals. The rest of the day was relatively normal, and it seemed like none of her family had been aware of her temporary absence.

Days passed without further incident. The cattle seemed safe, she was healing, and life seemed to be getting back to normal. The season was slowly changing, too, but the crisp air before the winter's first snow was making the animals restless. So too was the lurking black dragon that had left them in peace since Lyra's return.

The beast returned to taunt and tease them endlessly through the night and it was their cries for this that roused the young woman from sleep. The glowing, green eyes watching her approach from the sky were unsettling. It was like he was waiting for her.

The young woman had no weapons this time. She carried no sticks and had no wolves to protect her, though what they would do with a dragon she did not know.

'You would be wise to leave, human child,' he spoke in her mind, startling her for the intrusion.

"I'm not leaving. This is my land?" It shouldn't have been a question, but she was nervous. Xibalba could tell.

'And your boundaries mean nothing.' He dove to snatch one of the cows in defiance of her, easily flapping his mighty wings to carry it off.

"No!" Lyra screamed, the sound pained more than anything as she winced for the innocent animal's cries. The dragon paid her no mind and crossed the field with it to dine in relative privacy, spooking the rest of the herd to the treeline. Lyra watched in horror as they pushed into the trees and she gave chase without thought to get them back into their field. She did not follow, though.

She watched, frozen in horror for what little she could see in the darkness of the monster, the dragon. He was cruel and slow and she was helpless to stop a painful death for the animal he'd chosen. How were they to lure a dragon away from their farm? Away from their cattle?

Stepping back out into the field towards her home proved a mistake as a sudden, sharp roar echoed across to her. The dragon's eyes were upon her again and with a few quick flaps he was off and racing straight for her. He thought the defiant little human would be a nice toy. As far as he was concerned everything was his.

Knowing she had no chance to outrun him in the open Lyra ducked back into the trees and darted away blindly into the darkness. The dragon's roar shook the very ground beneath her feet as she ran, the trees loud as they were buffeted by his wings. He kept trying to find an opening to dive in and grab her, but he wasn't finding any.

'Why do you run?' he taunted her.

Why? He was going to kill her and tear her to bits just like her poor animals! She didn't know how to communicate that without wasting her breath, but suddenly that choice was taken from her as she was yanked up by her hurt arm into the air.

She was tense and just waiting to be eaten, waiting for the searing pain of being bitten, but it never came. Instead he dangled her to drag against the treetops, bumping and bruising her along the way. When it seemed he'd tired of that, though, he dropped her and once she was on her feet she wasted no time in sprinting away blindly again despite the aching of her arm and cuts upon her body.

He let her get a bit of a lead, the chase was fun after all. He spurred her on by setting fire to a tree every now and then and causing the girl to shriek as they sizzled and popped. She was unknowingly being herded by the dragon, albeit lazily for he could have easily caught up to her.

With another roar he spouted a cone of fire that set a decent patch of trees ablaze. It was enough to make room for him as he dove once again to scoop her up. Lyra was left hanging and clawed at the dragon's paws even as he lifted her higher and higher. "Let go of me!" she growled fiercely, not realizing just how high above the trees he'd taken her.

'Let go? Are you sure?' He laughed and lowered his tormented little doll so she might turn and look down at the forest below her. She had but a moment to see the distance before she was thrown down and falling, the ground suddenly rising up to meet her before she skidded and rolled across it painfully.

All she felt was fire in her left leg as she struggled to stand with the wind knocked out of her. Xibalba lowered down to hover and watch, amused that his little toy was still alive and fighting to get up. Of course, he didn't warn her that she was crawling towards nothing and let out a cackling roar as Lyra once again fell. She was back in the hunter's pit, but she was far too dazed to realize it as that same flash of fire shot through her leg and a low burning coiled all around her. The hot wind buffeting across her back from the retreating dragon was the last thing she felt before she lost consciousness to the dark.

[GoblinFae]

Rylan and his pack remained oblivious to the day-to-day routines of the human woman and her kind as they went about their own lives at their own pace. The demon did not concern himself with the details of life outside of his woods and therefore did not pay much heed to the presence of a particularly well-known dragon as long as said creature kept from disturbing the forest's balance too drastically.

Xibalba's roar sent many small beasts scurrying to their burrows and dens though. Even the wolves retreated at the mighty sound, but not Rylan. He had no quarrel with the enormous dragon as the pair had a tenuous agreement. However, experience had taught the demon never to trust too deeply so he followed the sounds of destruction to their source in order to ensure that promises made long ago were upheld.

The flames that licked the bark of the trees displeased Rylan as he worked to smother what fires he could to keep them from spreading too dangerously. Others though were left to burn and replenish the forest with the decay and regrowth of the foliage. It was the screams and shrieks that spurred him onward to see what prey Xibalba had taken an interest in this time. Those sounds were almost human and Rylan was displeased to learn the dragon had chased yet another destructive creature into his territory.

The demon arrived at the scene just in time to see the black scaly beast toss down the human woman as if she was nothing more than a tiny ball that eventually rolled itself right into a very familiar hunter's pit. Rylan approached the edge of the hole slowly from the opposite side to also look down at the dragon's prey. Seeing the same human girl who had managed to befriend his Wesser sparked a bit of his curiosity but he did not voice it with the dragon present.

Instead he raised his gaze to meet Xibalba's as his arms crossed firmly over his chest. "Not your usual prey," he called up to the somewhat retreating beast. "We had an agreement Xibalba. Setting my territory aflame is not upholding it, last I recall. Nor do I appreciate you driving one of them," he motioned with his chin in disgust towards the pit, "here. You know it will mean more of them."

[Juno]

The dragon craned his neck, halting his retreat to look at the familiar demon who was speaking to him. He touched down to land on the forest floor with a smokey snort and ruffle of wings as they folded down against his body.

Looking across the crude pit he could only smile with his eyes. It was rare for Rylan to confront him, though he supposed he'd certainly earned the audience for the path of destruction he'd carved through his land.

'It is not my concern what humans choose to do with their time,' he reminded him, though he was amused at the thought that his play with the girl would inconvenience the demon so horribly. It was laughable to him that anyone might care enough for a farmer's daughter to disturb his peace and forest so much.

'The girl interfered so I did what I had to.' He bent his head over the pit to peer down at her crumpled body, green eyes shining with amusement by the moonlight. 'I believe I've eliminated the problem for us both. You really should be thanking me.'

[GoblinFae]

The demon refrained from commenting on the trouble humans could cause him as he knew the dragon would mock him for such weakness. However, he was not about to let every comment slide when Xibalba was just begging for trouble. "I must admit I find it hard to believe that such a tiny scrap of a nuisance could interfere in anything you did more than a common gnat. As it stands Xibalba you've broken my pack's favorite toy. I believe you have caused enough trouble for one visit. It is time for you to return home now. Toys can easily be replaced but dens less so and I'd rather not have to if it is all the same to you."