Oh, uh... Hi....

[Klezmer Gryphon]

(( @CherryFlare ))
Rain was nothing new to Shamgar. It was just another part of nature, another thing that came and went whenever Fate decided. That didn't make it any less tolerable for the gryphon as his paws and talons trudged through the muddy trail of the mountain path. Thick sheets of water pouring down kept him confined to the ground, each drop that impacted his wings adding just that much more time he'd have to spend preening and drying his plumage before he'd be airworthy again.

Visibility was nil to none that night. The moon was hiding behind a thick sheet of clouds and the downpour made it seem the world at the moment was wearing a veil to hide itself from him; the only light Shamgar had was the occasional flicker of lightning in the night. The gryphon began to regret not listening to the innkeeper when she said there'd be a bad storm within the next few days, because she was more than right about that. Regardless of how stupid he felt, staying out in the deluge was not an option...

Whether through just blind luck, or fate, Shamgar soon found himself looking at the entrance of a rather sizable cave. With nothing to lose other than the rain, the soaked gryphon hurried inside his newfound sanctuary of stone, huddling down in a large ring of stalagmites and flowstone as his bed for the evening. While he would have done better to have first analyzed his new surroundings, Shamgar, drenched with rain and weary from travel, soon found himself drifting off to sleep to the voluminous echoes of the storm outside.

[CherryFlare]

Zyneth awoke to the sensation of a wet paw. Shaking sleep from her eyes, she could hear thunder from without her cave and the pitter-patter of rain. It was full dark but her internal clock told her that it hadn't been much time since she went to bed. But something in the air felt different that it prevented her from going back to her fitful rest. Through the sudden bursts of thunder, she could see her old cave still as bare as ever. But something was not right. A sudden gust of wind revealed to her exactly what was different-- the smell of a warm living flesh. She inhaled deep and smelled feathers and rain on cloth. A traveler then. A foolish traveler who dared trespass in her cave.

A clap of thunder followed a crack of lighting and in the place of the cerulean-onyx dragon stood a woman with long dark hair and bright green eyes. Her sharp slim features could be considered beautiful but there was a dangerous edge to that beauty. Her lips tightened in disgust at the prospect of having to deal with this nuisance but deal with it she had to. She walked slowly towards the outer portion of her cavern, careful not to alert her uninvited guest. Peering out from amongst the shadows, she saw that it was a very wet gryphon. Normally she did not care much about such creatures but this one had the smell that made her blood boil-- humans.

"Why is there a gryphon in my cave?" she demanded in a not so pleased voice. "and why does it smell like humans?"

[Klezmer Gryphon]

Shamgar's little nap had been a rather poor one. While he usually slept well during thunderstorms, he couldn't seem to get over something. He wearily opened his eyes and looked about the cave. So far, there was nothing in stone room, not that his half groggy eyes could see, anyway. The demanding voice coming from the back of the room, however, made him panic.

"Oh uh... hi... This is your cave?" Shamgar nervously questioned, quaking as he got up from where he was laying. He couldn't see the source of the voice, but the area was filled with dragons, and while most were friendly enough, some were... less than amicable. "I-I was just looking f-for a place to get out of the rain and stumbled in here."

While the gryphon could have easily just walked out right there, the storm outside seemed to be getting worse, with the wind howling, cracks of lightning and rolls of thunder growing more in frequency. Even the rain seemed to be getting heavier. Clearly Fate was being a cruel goddess this evening.

[CherryFlare]

Zyneth narrowed her eyes. "You still have not answered my question, gryphon. Why do you smell like humans?" Then Zyneth stalked over to him and circled him. "Answer correctly, Gryphon. I do not care much for humans" and here her eyes seemed to glow with the hatred she harbored for the two legged traitors.

[Klezmer Gryphon]

Shamgar was surprised to see a young woman emerge from the shadows, but then he remembered that some dragons were shapeshifters. Her current form did nothing to ease his trembling, since she could easily change back and maul him at any time.

"L-look, I'm just a wanderer. I had stopped in town for a c-couple days rest my weary self, and then departed," Shamgar whimpered, backing into his corner, "W-what does it matter to you?"

[CherryFlare]

"Why it matters to me matters not to you." she said, looking down at him. "You are in my cave. I do not just let anyone in here. Tell me, why should I let you stay?" she circled him again like a hungry beast ready to pounce at its meal.

[Klezmer Gryphon]

Shamgar just couldn't help but quake at every word as the dragon circled around him, every syllable that came from her lips hinting at some unknown threat she was more than capable of fulfilling. It seemed that the storm outside just kept getting worse the more scared he felt; the rain seemed to be pounding now, the thunder closer and louder, the lightning more chaotic and fiery...

"I-I..." the gryphon stammered, stumbling over a group of stalagmites as he took a step back, landing on his side, "I-I just n-need a place for the night... I'll be gone as soon as this storm passes!" His heart was pounding in his chest, his breath quick and short. Tears started to form in his eyes as he started whimpering... "P-please don't h-hurt me...."

[CherryFlare]

Seeing the little gryphon quaking and blubbering did nothing for her appetite; not that she wanted to eat the thing in the first place.

With a bored look, she turned to walk back into the cave. "Well then, little thing, walk this way."