“Foul beast-,”
Romul’s accusations were nothing new to me and though I tended to brush them aside, I was suddenly more inclined to hear them… as cold and thoughtless as they were. I’d always been a skeptical creature, a real master of the art… Yet, I couldn’t seem to find a good way to deal with this dapper, young fellow. I was almost convinced that even the sun would find ways to avert its rays from such a beast, but somehow I was incapable of heeding my own advice. Leaving would have been the right thing to do, the correct answer to any of his questions, but maybe I needed a little darkness in my life. Or maybe a swift kick to the head.
Becoming a Sleuth had done something to my ego… there was certainly no denying that. It had transformed innocence into arrogance and allowed me to climb a pedestal that even my Father would commend. Of course, his “holier than thou” attitude deserved no seat at my table and I would see to it that our situation remained that way. On some other plane, one that existed solely in my head, this was just another way of transforming myself into an independent, self-efficient machine.
Yet somehow it was hard to escape my own emotions as they were an overpowering force that flooded me and infiltrated my defenses. Fear, anger, happiness, and hate all melded and joined together to create the perfect storm. Despite my being unable to see it, I was becoming a hurricane incapable of slowing down… Somehow the downward spiral was comforting though; I was tired of grappling along the cusp of honor and deceit.
I was happy to leave my morals behind in favor of losing myself to the unforeseen and this man’s easy smile. Call me predictable, call me what you will, but I was certain that dancing along the edge of right and wrong was the only way I could find release anymore. Once again I was playing with a fire that, given the opportunity, would consume me… and I was perfectly fine with going down in flames.
My eyes followed the hard ridges of the male’s broad shoulders as he shifted and finally the beast graced me with the rough cadence of his voice. It was not as cold and unyielding as I’d imagined, but more so a fine silk that seemed out of place upon his lips. However, his calculating stare did little to soothe the racing of my heart or the way Romul hedged menacingly in the back of my mind. The wolf was certainly more privy to the stallion’s desires than I and yet I still had trouble deciphering what exactly spurred his curiously attentive gaze. “Not bothered per say, just…-” I trailed reluctantly. “-out of breath.
Was there truly any good reason to pretend that the brute didn't made me tense, nervous? After all, his observant nature had already assisted in revealing not only my wariness, but my place of refuge as well. There was little doubt in my mind that he had not come from the Falls and that fact sent a warm tremor down my spine, one comprised of fascination and the chilling barbs of fear. “It’s strange… you seem to ask questions you already know the answer to,” I replied candidly and without hesitation. “But you’re correct… I come from the Falls.
The quivering of his chest came just before the vibrant tune of his laughter and I couldn’t help but smile softly at the sound. It felt almost unnatural for such a creature to possess wit and humor in the wake of so many other menacing qualities, but of course who was I to pass judgment on the man? Despite the way he made me feel, there was something mysterious about him that I couldn’t quite reach and couldn’t quite name.
My nerves were spiked and electric despite Romul’s reassuring presence at my side. I was glad that I had at least one defense against the man, whose name was shared shortly after what appeared to be a nearly genuine apology for rushing headlong into my private life. Reginald. I tried to detect whether or not the information he revealed was false, but no amount of pressing was able to turn up a lie within his introduction. It was disconcerting.
“I’m Essetia… and this is Romul.” |
.svg/2000px-Google_Chrome_icon_(2011).svg.png){kind=icon}
