(Oh, that's interesting! I chuckle I can do that. Lore twisting is a specialty of mine.)
Christina gets up to answer the door. As soon as she pulls it open, the smell of scales is overpowering. She looks at the delivery man.
"There wouldn't happen to be a tall, handsome, European looking man out of the view of the door, would there?" she asks.
(Thumbs-up. Yeah, I remember, lol!)
The guy blinked, confused for a moment. He then pointed at Jonathan.
“You mean him? He said he was looking for a friend, so…”the guy shrugged.
Jonathan cleared his throat,“I may have exaggerated the ‘friend’ part, yet nonetheless.”
The guy looked at Jonathan, then sighed.
“Anyway, here’s your stuff, miss. If you let me in, I’ll unload it. Then, I’ll grab his tea and leave you two alone,”the man said.
(I smile a bit This'll be fun.)
Christina scowls. "Yes, him. Who else would I be talking about?"
She waves the man in, then sighs.
"Jonathan." she says, her voice snapping out like a whip. "Wait there."
She lets the delivery guy out, then gets on a loose sleeveless top that bares a shoulder, and some shorts. She goes back to the door and opens it.
"Enter."
(Too late, lmao!)
The guy didn’t react to Christina’s snap. He then unloaded the cart and left to fetch Jonathan’s tea.
Jonathan watched without moving. He was still scolding himself for coming over, but he liked Chamomile. And, he still wanted to figure out what creature Christina could possibly be.
When Christina told him to enter, he jolted slightly, startled from his thoughts. He sighed, calming himself, then entered the room. He still tensed up despite his efforts.
“I have no idea why I came in here. Thus, forget asking,”Jonathan abruptly said. That was a lie technically, but it got the point across.
Christina sighs and tuts.
"Spare me the stories and lies." she says in a bored voice. "Since I know why you came. I want to hear you say it."
She turns away and starts in on the food. For someone with her beauty to tear into a whole turkey and pick the bones clean in a matter of minutes. . . well, it would put anyone off.
Jonathan rolled his eyes at her words. He then deliberately stayed quiet, watching Christina. The sight of her eating a whole turkey more inspired him than anything. He had a small breakfast before coming to the hotel, and he was starting to feel it. Though, it also gave him a clue that she was most likely carnivorous, much like himself.
Then someone knocked on the door. Jonathan stood and opened it, seeing the room service guy with a tray holding a teapot, two cups, and some additional things like sugar. The guy set the tray down on the counter and left.
The moment the door was shut, Jonathan was making himself a cup of that Chamomile Tea, inwardly berating himself for it. He then sat back down, casually drinking his scolding hot tea. He quickly finished the cup and stared at it.
“I miss my coffee mug. It’s so much bigger,”Jonathan commented. He then got up to fetch himself another cup of tea before sitting back down.
He sighed after a long moment, muttering to himself about just getting this whole encounter over with.
“Three questions. What the hell are you? Why do you smell like herbs and tea? And, how were you able to control that lass earlier? Not many folks here have any sort of magic or sorcery, and I know most of them,”Jonathan asked.
Christina senses his gaze on her, but ignores that while she moves on to the fruit platter. After she's done eating, she trains her piercing eyes on Jonathan and listens.
After a moment of silence, she snorts, trying to hold back laughter, then fails. She bursts into amused laughter. She had a nice laugh, just like she had a nice voice - whenever she wasn't snapping at you, at least. She suddenly stops laughing and narrows her eyes at Jonathan. Her pupils turned slitted, almost catlike - no, they were foxlike. The next moment, she was a melanistic red fox. She stays like that for a minute, then becomes human again. "Does that answer your questions, Jonathan?"
A shrewd look enters her eyes. "But you are far more interesting, lizard boy. What are you?"
Jonathan’s eyes narrowed slightly in thought as she ate the fruit. So, she wasn’t carnivorous, but omnivorous. Interesting.
He met her eyes with his own unmoving ones, not fazed by the intensity of her gaze at all. He then rolled his eyes when she laughed. It didn’t surprise him that she would try to mock him.
The moment Christina stopped laughing, Jonathan knew something was going to happen. Though, he hadn’t expected her to just outright morph in front of him. Into a fox, no less.
When she spoke, Jonathan had his own bout of laughter. It was deep and sharp, like rocks beating against each other. A definite contrast to his quiet, suave voice.
Him, more interesting than a fox shapeshifter? Truly? His race, Ahkrethians, were common, and many visited the human realm. In secret of course, but still, there were many Ahkrethians around.
“I suppose it does, though I’ve honestly never encountered a fox shapeshifter before. Yet, I am afraid I can’t really share what I am. My situation is… complicated,”he mentioned.
In truth, he knew it was more polite to share his own form since she’d done so, but he had not morphed to his true form in over twenty years. He was used to being ‘human’, and he didn’t like showing any vulnerability, whether greif or awkwardness, in front of others.
Christina smirks. "Surprised? I thought you intelligent enough to figure it all out without me having to say anything, and yet, you appear to be no more intelligent than the average country skink."
"Fox shifters, or kitsune, are very common here in this world. Everyone knows what we are. You are. . . less common. I have lived quite a long time. After all, I have a full nine tails. I have travelled this entire world many times. And I have never once smelled your kind." she says, getting up and pouring herself a glass of gin.
"So that begs the question: What. . . are. . . you?" she says, sitting down again.
Jonathan snorted,”Lass, I’m no average lizard, I’ll tell you that. I have only been here a few decades, so I’m not acquainted with too many other creatures here.”
He listened to her, humming in thought. It seemed that Ahkrethians were far stealthier than he’d originally thought. Or, they were simply outnumbered, since most Ahkrethians in the human realm were rogues. He wasn’t sure, though. And, that bothered him.
“I generally only tell close friends what I am. It’s a habit of mine not to announce myself to everyone in the room. Unlike you,”he replied.
"I'm no lass either." Christina replies.
"And as for the rest of what you said. . ." she adds with a shrug, downing her glass in one gulp, ". . . I stopped paying attention."
She notes his expressions.
"I don't, actually. It's easy to recognise us by our unique scents." she smiles, getting up and pouring more gin. Something outside the window catches her attention, and her smile turns feral.
"Well, Jonathan, it appears we're going to have to run." she says, downing her glass right as the window explodes inwards. "Since we can't fight what we can't see or smell. Or hear, really."
She wraps an arm around Jonathan and lifts him up, disappearing out the window and starting the 10 story fall to the concrete below.
“I call everyone ‘lass’ or ‘lad’, unless I’m being polite, then it’s ‘sir’ or ‘madam’. It’s how I talk,”Jonathan snorted.
He rolled his eyes, not even bothering to reply. Afterward, he shrugged, then quickly noticed her feral look. He turned to the window just as it exploded, his senses telling him that Christina’s words to flee were quite accurate.
He flinched as Christina picked him up, then yelped when she jumped out the window. Instinct and memory took hold of him and he grabbed Christina’s shoulder and teleported.
They appeared on the ground where they would’ve landed. Jonathan then escaped Christina’s grip, grabbed her arm tightly, and teleported again.
This time, they appeared in a forested area with a walking trail and some benches. Jonathan quickly glanced around, finding no one in sight.
“Follow me if you want to get out of here. I know this park, and it’s very easy to get lost unless you know the right way,”he said.
Jonathan then took off running into the trees, completely ignoring the walking trail. His neighborhood was actually near this park, but if the thing that was after them came here, he wouldn’t leave a trail to his house. He had other places he could go. And, those places were also good spots to interrogate folks in private, because he was wondering if Christina had something to do with the creature.
(The first rule was made for the reason that the end of the response is a bit mature lol. And future responses will only get worse lmao!)
Christina snorts and mocks Jonathan. "Whatever, lad."
She notes his refusal to respond and smirks. "It's also very effective at entrancing people. That entire stunt in the lobby was. . . well, let's say I've still got it."
Christina laughs the entire time this is happening, altering her aura and thoughts so that she looks drunk.
"Mr. Lizard is a bad, scary man. He plans on doing naughty things to me!" she giggles, her words sounding childish; she was slurring her words slightly. Her cheeks were flushed.
(Lol. I’m of age, otherwise I wouldn’t have joined. And, I think Ōn’nyosh is proof of that, lmao!)
Jonathan ignored her mocking words, and deliberately didn’t respond to her added comment about her scent. But, it did explain why he was all of a sudden obsessed with Chamomile.
As Jonathan disappeared into the trees, he skidded to a stop. A guttural growl echoed from his throat, a sound that he shouldn’t have been able to make as a human.
For several long seconds, Jonathan fought to keep himself from going into a rage, then he turned around and walked back to Christina, his pace fast and his eyes glaring with a malevolence that he hadn’t let loose in decades.
Jonathan snatched her by the throat, his grip tight as scales grew on his fingers and claws replaced his nails.
“I can deal with you mocking my words and actions. But, the fact that you mock my honor is something I cannot abide. Besides, you are not worth wasting the time to grope, yet alone anything else! So, quit acting, before I get the idea to skin you alive, tails first,”he snarled.
He dropped her, inspecting the scales on his fingers. They were a bronze color, highlighted with different shades of green. Those scales brought back foul memories of a rebellion he had helped start, and of the one he had helped, the friend who proved false.
“What is after us? Or, is it simply after you? Or… did you call it?”Jonathan questioned, his fingers changing back to human skin and nails.
(I chuckle I know. Just an explanation, m'lady. And yeah, lmao! Never leave Christina and On'nyosh in a room alone. Nothing good will come of it XD)
Christina looks even smugger when Jonathan ignores her.
She giggles and doesn't even flinch.
"Oh my!" she exclaims as he lifts her up, then drops the act. She smirks and her tails appear. "Be careful of who your grabbing, shithead. Next time you touch me, you lose that hand."
The last sentence was said with a level of venom and violence impossible to fake. She really meant it.
When he drops her, she lands in a light crouch. Her tails don't disappear yet.
"Sure, I may have a contract for your head. But that creature? No clue what it is. Could be a shitstick for all we know." she shrugs, opting for the truth.
"And don't bother asking why I told you that," she adds.
(Thumbs-up. Then, pauses a moment before bursting into laughter. Good thing Ōn’nyosh is based in a medieval world and not a modern one, lmao! Though, that may not save us, snickers)
The fact that Christina was unfazed by his grip startled him. As did her tails. But, her words quickly brought Jonathan back to his anger. He didn’t back down easily.
When she announced her contract on him, he shrieked in anger, raising his once more scaly hand to cut her throat. However, he quickly caught himself, remembering what he was taught, and also what he has done.
Jonathan focused on her other words. She didn’t know what the creature was. That didn’t bode well. He sighed, breathing deep and lowering his hand.
“Give me one good reason why I should not leave you dead in a ditch somewhere,”he growled.
(I laugh There's nothing that can stop either one from meeting the other. {Btw, weird sidenote, is Anna a good nickname for you? What I mean is, would it be okay to call you that?})
(Btw, Christina wasn't lying about not having met Jonathan's kind before. She never said anything about Lucitius, now did she? I smile slightly)
"And if you think you can just scare me or do something to make me back down, know that it won't work. There're worse fates than death. Just ask Lucitius." Christina says with an unreadable look.
Again, she doesn't flinch. When he starts being rational again, she smiles.
"Because no matter how much I may loathe you and your existence, I hate being controlled more. I figured my best bet was with an outcast dragon shifter that gets easily provoked by a fox girl." she says casually, not putting any particular emphasis on any words.
(Lmao! [Shrugs. Sure. I have no problems with being called Anna])
(Mhm… the plot thickens I see, lol. Though, technically, Lucitius is the Creator of Ahkrethians. So, if she’s met him, then she’s met an Ahkrethian. Lucitius is just… unique… has no discernible scent… and is blue, very blue, lmao!)
(Also, I’m adding a plot twist that’s related to a canon event in my stories, lol)
Jonathan sighed in annoyance, then froze. He looked at her, stunned.
“How… how do you know him?”Jonathan asked quietly. There was a hint of reverence in his eyes, though it was toward Lucitius, not Christina.
He snorted at her words.
“You are being controlled? I call bullshit on that! And, I figured it was a good call not to show my true form. You already know what I am. Goddamn tricksters, can’t trust a one! So, fuck off. If it wasn’t for you and your damn Chamomile pheromones, I would not be here!”Jonathan snapped.
He teleported away, appearing in one of his hideouts in the woods. It was deeper in the trees than the one he had been originally heading for, but the park wasn’t huge.
Jonathan sat down against one of the trees, seething but also shaking. Christina knew Lucitius. Did she know that he had vanished? That he was missing? Did she know where he was? Probably not, considering that no Ahkrethian knew what happened, and they were more attuned to Lucitius than any other race.
But, Lucitius was a minor concern at the moment. How did Christina know he was an outcast? How did she even know he was Ahkrethian? Or was she guessing?
“Why does she have to make things so complicated?”he moaned under his breath.
Hopefully, this would all pass, and tomorrow would bring back some semblance of normalcy. Jonathan already spent his life looking over his shoulder. He didn’t want more reasons to be paranoid.
({Okay, good to know. I smile It kinda suits you. In my experience, Anna is the best name for someone like you. And that's a compliment.})
(I shrug God made humans. Does that make Him one?)
(Thumbs up That's fine. But don't think that the plot will stay like that XD)
"Just who did you think you were dealing with?" Christina glares. "You don't know anything about me. Nothing. I am called the Princess Without a Kingdom and the Knowing Fox for a very good reason."
She chuckles. "Yeah, yeah. But I can be controlled. And yeah, it was easy to tell. Especially your way of speaking. Nobody talks like that anymore. And chamomile, huh? That's what caught your attention. Good to know."
She huffs when he teleports away. Really, what a pain in the ass.
She sniffs, then makes her silent way towards Jonathan. She examines him for a moment.
"Because wherever I show up, it means times are changing." she replies. "I showed up when your Clans fell. And when your Great Creator disappeared. When Rome started its decline, I was there. I was also there when you Ahkrethians were created. When Rome became an actual empire, there I was. I wasn't there when Lucitius appeared. After all, I was just born myself."
She tilts her head now. "The world is changing again. You seem to be the center of it. You must remember a fox when you were banished, no?"
She grins now. "But enough of that. Where in this park are we?"
(Huh, that’s neat. Thumbs-up, grin)
Jonathan stared at her with wide eyes for a second, then growled.
“I know you are an insufferable bitch!”he snapped.
“My accent is light! What, because I have a formal tone, it’s obvious that I am Ahkrethian?”
He sputtered at her comment about the Chamomile and shook his head.
The moment she entered the hideout, Jonathan started to growl. He glanced up at her, glaring.
“Get the fuck away from me,”he hissed.
He then rolled his eyes as she spoke.
“Tribes. Ahkrethians are tribal, not clannish,”he corrected irritably.
He simply glared at her as she listed off the events she’s seen. He then snorted.
“No, unless you refer to a corrupt bastard that betrayed me the moment my purpose was done. And why in the hell am I the center of change? I am not that damn important! I am no royal, I have no noble bloodline, and I was banished and meant to be forgotten. I make my way how I can, nothing more,”he snarled.
He huffed at her question, not bothering to give Christina their location. Why should he? She had just turned his whole day upside down, and she seemed to be quite happy with herself for doing that.
(I chuckle Like Anna Herondale from Chain of Gold.)
(I grin Who said anything about books? I'm talking God, from a Biblical or Torahcal sense. Abraham's God.)
(I laugh Part of the reason why he was banished?)
(Christina is very happy with herself right now lmao!)
"I know I am. But you're a stuck-up shit-stained vainglorius shitcabbage." Christina replies mildly.
What a bore. . . she thinks, now ignoring him. She looks at the entrance and sighs.
"Look. I took the time to get us out of there. At least stop being such a pain in the ass. If I wanted to kill you, I'd have already done so." she huffs.
(Chain of Gold? Hmm… I don’t think I know that one, but I’m curious)
(I noticed, lmao!)
(Lmao, I just noticed your username change! I know the feeling, lol!)
Jonathan couldn’t come up with a comeback that didn’t involve violence, but he definitely glared at Christina.
He rolled his eyes at her words, scoffing.
“By getting us out, you mean jumping out of a ten-story window. I am not afraid of death, yet you could have chosen anywhere else than the damn window. Also, I’m actually a very generous and laidback individual, yet you… you bring the fucking worst out of me. Trust me when I say that I have not wanted to hurt or kill anyone in decades, up until I met you,”he hissed.
Jonathan then stood and headed outside. The hideout consisted of three small huts set in a triangle. They had been in the northern one. He was heading for the southwestern one, which had a trapdoor inside leading down to a former animal hole that Jonathan had turned into a cave. There were supplies in there, and Jonathan severely needed a lunch, and hopefully some privacy.
(Cassandra Clare. I say this by way of explanation)
(I chuckle True.)
(I nod Oh. . . interesting.)
Christina smiles politely, knowing it would just piss him off more.
She shrugs. "It was the quickest route."
"'Laid back?' 'Generous?' You are neither. You helped that man with a revolution, after all. And he banished you for giving him what he wants. To me, you all sound like of petty children fighting over the best horse shit to bathe in. At least I don't betray the people close to me." she snarls, sounding for all the world like a pissed Ahkrethian with how low and grating her voice was. "I, the person who hates you more than any other, have staked my life and reputation to keep you alive for half a day longer. The least you could fucking do is thank me, you ungreatful shitstain."
She doesn't follow him as he leaves.
(Ah, okay, thumbs-up)
Christina had been right, because that smile nearly had him shrieking again.
Jonathan scoffed,”Quickest way, my ass.”
Christina’s words hit a very tender nerve, and Jonathan nearly lost control. And, the more she spoke, the harder it was to hold himself back. By the time she finished speaking, Jonathan was shaking with barely contained rage.
“I have never hit a lass, yet you are about to be the first,”he hissed through gritted teeth.
Jonathan headed down through the trapdoor, shutting it behind him. He then dropped to the floor, turned to the small training area, and brutally attacked one of the dummies with his bare fists. He wasn’t even aware that he had morphed fully into his true form until the dummy was completely decimated.
Jonathan stared down at the pile of hay and chopped wood for a long, long moment. He then turned away and headed for a chair. While he walked, his body became stiff and his mind fogged up like before.
A couple minutes later, Jonathan came out of the trance and noticed that he was sitting. He was mostly calm now after the trance, but the reminder of his greatest shame lingered.
He had been a fool to trust Traleketh, the heir he had helped. The youth turned out to be just like his foul father, and Jonathan had been too blind to see it. Too focused on Traleketh’s father, and the tribe’s anger toward him. Too focused on his own anger to realize that he was murdering his own people for the sake of a youth that meant to forsake him anyway.
As those horrid memories flowed through his head, Jonathan finally noticed his form. His bronze scales, the green highlights, the dozens of scars covering his arms. He reached up to his head and touched a horn, one of a pair that curved down the back of his head, their bases hidden by his shoulder-length brown hair. Even the black streaks in his hair remained.
“‘Tis a shock mine claws are not stained red,”he muttered, not really noticing, or caring, how thick his accent had become now that he was in his native form.
Jonathan stood and headed for another part of the cave, where he kept a magically maintained chicken pen. Without hesitating, he picked one up and killed it with a simple flick of his wrist. He then went about plucking and cooking it, snacking on some raw pieces while he waited. It definitely improved his mood.
(Hi loves! I intend to stalk, Don’t mind me!)
(Lol! That’s fine with me, grin)
(I chuckle Yeah.)
(I grin Send them to me sometime. I'd love to read them.)
(Smile, thumbs up)
Christina flips him one last look before turning to look at the ceiling.
"Stairs and elevator would take to long. The closest route was the window."
She's glaring, tails twitching. Her ears have come out, as well as her claws.
"Do it." she hisses. "I fucking dare you, Betrayer."
She stays where she is and starts tearing the hut apart. She enters her own rage state, decimating everything slowly but thoroughly. The trees weren't even spared.
(Thumbs-up. Lol, I will when they’re finished!)
Jonathan huffed, ignoring her words.
“I betrayed no one! And you are not worth hitting!”he hissed.
Jonathan listened as Christina tore apart everything above him. He grunted, then slowly headed for the trapdoor. He hesitated at the bottom of the ladder, then climbed up and out of the hole.
“Christina. Before you completely destroy the forest and what little remains of this hideout, you want to… have a quiet cup of coffee or tea? Possibly a lunch? I only have meat here, yet ’tis better than nothing,”Jonathan asked.
He was mostly calm, but it was clear that he was a bit worn out from his earlier stress. He was also still in his Ahkrethian form, and the smell of cooking chicken emanating from the trapdoor made him periodically lick his lips with his blue forked tongue.
(Thank you!)
Christina sighs.
"You worked with Treleketh, whom you listened to in your madness, and slew thousands, hundreds of thousands. Friends, family, all left for the crows. If that is not betrayal, I know not what is." she growls.
She growled at him, waving a hand. The wave of force generated reduced a third of the surrounding trees to dust and splinters, decimating the second hut. But after that, she stops and stays still. She smells the scent of chicken, mixed with the odor of. . . salt.
He smells like salt. she notes.
"Fine."
(Big, goofy grin)
(I keep mistyping Jonathan’s accent, lmao!)
Jonathan huffed, rolling his eyes. He didn’t bother answering her then, as he was too pissed off.
As Christina destroyed the trees and the other hut, he sighed and shook his head. It was a waste of time getting pissed off again. He then waved for her to follow him down.
When he touched the floor, he went to check on the chicken, then walked around the cave to make sure nothing had been disturbed by the chaos.
The entire cave had a faint aroma of salt, as Jonathan had lined it with a variety of wards, some needing salt. But, there was also the smell of metal from the training area, which also had a forge for smithing weapons. Then, on the opposite side of the place, near the chicken pen, there was a tanning rack, with a pile of old hides next to it.
“This was mine first home when I arrived here. I have modified it over the years, yet it seems like it never changes,”Jonathan mumbled, rubbing those hides.
He then lifted a few of them, revealing a large bow made of black wood. It was worn, with runes carved all over it. Jonathan stared at it, but didn’t touch it.
“Traleketh was blinded by his own stupidity and greed. I simply did not see it in time. And, though I have indeed killed many, you confuse the war with the rebellion. Mine tribe numbered less than five thousand, and I did not kill any of mine bloodkin. Yet, I did kill many allies. Traleketh banished me to hide that he had been the start of the rebellion. That was the last time I saw mine sister and nephew. I can only hope they fare well in mine absence,”Jonathan quietly explained.
He dropped the hides and went back to the chicken, getting out two plates and splitting the food. He then got out two cups, filled them with hot water, and grabbed some dried tea leaves he had stashed, mixing it in.
He set the plates and cups on the nearby stone table and sat down. He didn’t touch his food immediately, instead busying himself with carving a rune into the side of his cup.
“Mine bloodline made bows for the tribe. I and mine sister followed the same tradition. Yet, now I can barely look at a bow without remembering that rebellion. Mine greatest shame,”he mumbled, staring at the rune on his cup.