Beauty and the Beast (Rallan the beauty, lol)

[Redclaws]

Crick awoke to the sound of something moving across the ground above his head. Giving a loud yawn and poking his head out of his underground den, he took a look. A couple of fighting wolves. Typical. They were always fighting around here, where food was so scarce. Crick would've normally left them to it, but they were blatantly ignoring his scent markers, and they were about to cross them. He waited to see if they'd turn back. They didn't. He let loose a howl and charged towards the two brutes, eyes blazing and paws thudding against the harsh, unforgiving earth. "What the balls are you freaks doing on my territory?" There were two wolves, a grey one and a brownish one, who looked more like a fox. The gray one turned to him and yelled "Stay out of this! This isn't your fight! You're not involved here!" He was cut off by the brown wolf digging his teeth into his neck. The gray wolf slumped to the ground, dead. "Thanks Crick. I owe ya one." The panting brown wolf said. Crick snarled at him. Acquaintance or not, he was still on his turf. "Oh, right, sorry. I just had to get him over here so you could-" Crick snapped at his nose, the other wolf barely got out of the way. "Don't make petty excuses. Get out of here." The other wolf yipped and ran off.

That taken care of, Crick looked around. It was about noon, and nothing to serious was going on. He smelled another wolf nearby, a female. She was lucky he wasn't in the mood for rape or seduction. He would've seized the opportunity otherwise. He ignored her and lumbered back into his den.

[Rallan]

A sigh of pity and a shake of her head. That was what this land got from Luna. The place was like a wasteland, with no food in sight and the water all but gone from the desolate, arid lakebed. In fact, had this place been lush, her paws would've been falling on cool, clear water. Instead, she tread carefully over the hard, almost jagged rocky ground, constantly keeping her eyes up. She had caught the scent markers of a brute a little while back, and though it was usually her nature to leave others at peace, she had to cross the barren lands to continue on through the rest of the Forest. And that's the way it was.

Stumbling a bit and catching herself before she fell, Luna padded cautiously along, having not scented another wolf for a long time. This place was dead, for one reason or another, and it gave her the chills. Fumbling up a small mound of earth, she cast her glance toward the sky, hoping to catch sight of a raincloud to deliver some form of life to this terrain - but her hopes were dashed, as the sky remained clear, not even overcast in the least. I knew it would be too good to be true... Luna thought to herself, reaching the apex of the mound and making her way back down, But, I can still hop-.

Her thoughts were cut short as the ground suddenly disappeared beneath her paws, and Luna went tumbling down into a dark hole with a loud thud, a pile of rock, and cloud of dust. Slowly rising to her paws again, she shook the reddish clay dust from her snowy white fur, clearing her head from the fall as she tried to figure out what she'd fallen into. It was too well formed to be a ditch, and too big to be a fox burrow, but was warm like a... It hit her - she'd fallen into a den, and the warmth felt like someone was recently here... or still there.

[Redclaws]

Crick was sleeping when Luna crashed in. He'd had this problem before. Wolves and other creatures were always falling in. While this was annoying and a nuisance, his underground den was the only thing that sheilded him from the harsh sun above. It consisted of a little tunnel leading down to the main cave, where he slept, a separate chamber for prisoners who trespassed. (He never killed them, just kept them in there long enough to beg, or if they were faes, long enough to comply.) A separate cave for his stored up food to go, and a smaller cave to make dirt in. Not a bad little home at all, but considering the owner, it was best to stay away. He quietly got up and hid in the dirt tunnel, where his scent would be masked better. She wandered down into his main cave and started looking around. She was a beautiful wolf with fluffy white fur. It was a shame he was going to have to rip it off of her, for she was fairly pretty. However, she was wandering his cave, and this definately made her a trespasser. When she went into his food tunnel, he made his move.

He quietly got up and snuck in behind her. She was chewing on a skinny little shrew. His kill pile wasn't full, for he couldn't hunt well, and, in this barren place, that was bad. Luckily, some of his "friends" paid him in food for protection from others. If they didn't pay, they were stuck in his prison room with no food or water until they were barely alive. They were then given to whoever he was protecting them from, so that he didn't have to deal with the killing.

"Taste good, Precious?" He said in a deep, frightening voice. She whirled around quickly, eyes wide in terror at his enourmous size, intensified by the blackness around him, so he looked even bigger. "I think someone's stealing my food. Can you imagine that?"

[Rallan]

Luna stayed tensed near the entrance for the longest time, fearing that someone was still residing within and was bound to come leaping out at the sound of her rude, accidental entrance. Yet, when no one came for her, she gathered up the courage to venture a little further into the den. Maybe it's just been recently abandoned... she reasoned as she entered a large underground chamber, looking around it for a good while as her ice-blue eyes adjusted to the darkness of the den. Her nose twitched lightly as she sniffed about, trying to get the scent of anyone. Nothing. Must've been abandoned then.

Then her nose picked up the scent of fresh meat. A soft grumble in her stomach reminded her that her last mean hand't been since midday yesterday, and she probably needed food now. Following the trail of the delicious odor, she came into another chamber, this one occupied by a small pile of meat. Taking one last quick glance around to make sure she was all alone, Luna dipped her muzzle and began chewing on one of the smaller pieces of kill.

She'd only managed a few bites of meat when a sudden deep voice rang out behind her, making her jump in fright and choke on the food a bit before she struggled to gulp it down, spinning around quickly. Her eyes widened in shock, horror, and apology as she saw the immensely large wolf suddenly behind her, the stocky build and musky scent telling her this wolf was very definitely a male, and quite a foreboding one at that. For a few long moments, time seemed to stand still for Luna, and she stood there, mouth agape, trying to get herself to say something. "I- I'm so sorry..." she stammered awkwardly, voice soft, keeping her body low so as not to challenge such a monstrous wolf, "I... I honestly had no idea anyone was still here... I-I- I couldn't smell anyone, and I just- I'm so sorry. Please don't hurt me; I'll leave right away."

[Redclaws]

Crick put on a smile. She seemed stupid and naive enough to believe he was nice. She seemed like one of the 'there's some good in everyone' wolves. She would be easy prey, and would pay dearly for stealing hers. "Oh why are you leaving? You seem so sensible! But this is only my garbage food pile!" He inwardly wished it was. Everything on it was so scrawny it could barely feed a mouse. "I can tell you're hungry, so do you want to see the bigger food pile I have?" Without waiting for a response, he led her to his prison cave. "Please. Step inside."

There was something about this wolf that almost made him feel bad for doing this. Some sort of innocence she had. He felt bad taking it away, but he knew it had to be done. She walked inside and he quickly pushed a large rock in front of the entrance. It would've taken a normal wolf forever to move, but with Crick's strength it was like a pebble. He left a tiny crack open so she could breathe, but that was all. She was blocked in. He heard her yelling and scratching on the other side, but he wasn't interested in listening. They'd always make some kind of deal and never hold their end. "Try as you might, you wont get out." He yelled. "Think about that next time you trespass." Not wanting to listen to her complain, he stepped outside.

[Rallan]

Not once did Luna ever raise her voice or her body against this massive brute; he could easily snap her in two if he wished it, and she didn't want to give him any reason to want that. And then he smiled. Still unsettling, but it took Luna off-guard, and she felt her worry lose some of its edge. He spoke, and his words confused her. For someone who appeared so menacing at first, now he was acting so hospitable. Why the sudden change of heart? Despite his personality shift, she still felt uncomfortable around him and didn't trust him, but when he offered her food, her stomach and instincts protested her doubts. Slowly she lifted her body up again, just enough so she could follow him, entering the tunnel he led her to without a second thought.

That was when common sense returned to her, and she heard the large stone move behind her and seal her in. Luna spun around and bounded back toward the now blocked entrance, scratching at the rock and the dirt around it, but everything held firm against her attempts at freedom. "Please! Let me go! I didn't know! It was an accident" she cried out desperately, "I'm sorry! Please, I'll leave you alone and never come back! Just let me out! Please!" But her pleas fell on deaf ears as she heard him pad away, still calling for some mercy even after he'd left, trying any way she could to find a way out - to no avail. She was successfully his prisoner.

[Redclaws]

OOC: I had an epic idea today... At some random point, we should break out into song! lol

Crick chuckled to himself as he heard her cries of terror and apology. He would either use her as a toy or let her go in a week or so, but for now she was his prisoner, and he felt like celebrating. He decided to try and hunt. Try was the key word. His hunting skills were mediocre at best. He could only catch weak or dying things, and what he did catch was ravenously gobbled up by his voracious appetite. He'd considered eating a wolf once, but after secretly grabbing a bite during a battle, he decided against it. His ears pricked as he heard a small creature running around behind a rock. He knew experienced hunters would be able to tell what type of animal it was from the noises it was making, but seeing as he was a terrible hunter, it could've been a bear for all he knew.

He slowly crept over the top of the rock. It was a plump, juicy mouse, who was rather fat for lving in such a place as the dried up lake. He pressed his belly against the rock and slid along it. The mouse heard him and darted away. Crick leaped after it, hoping to get lucky. He wasn't lucky. His jump was clumsy and he landed a few feet left from where the mouse started. Too bad the mouse had run right. He trudged back to his den, discouraged and hungry.

Upon arriving, he noticed that the screaming had stopped. He checked the boulder to make sure she hadn't escaped. She hadn't. Angry, he stalked over to his kill pile, picked up a bony mouse, and crunched on it. His eyes went back to the boulder. Maybe his new prisoner could be of some use. He walked over to it. "Want to get out?" No response. "If you can teach me how to hunt, I'll let you go." He heard movement on the other side. Good. She'd heard.

[Rallan]

Luna's screams continued long after her captor had left her in the silence and darkness of his trap-riddled den. For the longest time she shouted for him to come back, to talk things over, show mercy, and let her go on her way. After all, he had no purpose for keeping her here. It made no sense whatsoever. When that didn't work after a long while, she screamed for anyone to help, hoping with everything she had that some wolf walking by would hear her cries of need and set her free. But, of course, life is never that simple or easy, and her shouts went unheard.

When her throat became dry from screaming, Luna collapsed to a pile on the floor, sobbing quietly to herself and trembling in fear. What would she do now? Would she ever get out? Would she even live through this whole ordeal? That much, she doubted. This is going to be my tomb... she was sure in her mind, the depressing thought making her cry harder. Still her captor didn't return. She cried herself into distraught silence, curling up into a small ball of white fur, closing her eyes and praying that this was all a terrible nightmare she was dreaming.

And then she heard the soft scrape of claws and paws on the floor outside...

He had returned again. But this time, instead of calling out to him and trying to reason again, Luna lay quiet, her eyes clenched shut tight as she tried to ignore him and tune him out. She didn't even move a muscle when the sounds of footsteps came to the rock door blocking her in, her ears picking up the sounds of his heavier breathing as he stood near the blockage. His first comment made her tense and bare her teeth silently out of sight, sure he was just toying with her again. She said nothing. He waited. Still she remained silent. And then he continued on with his offer.

This caught Luna's interest, and she shifted a little bit in curiosity. Her blue eyes opened again, and she stared at the wall for a while as she tossed his words around in her head. Then, slowly, she rolled over and looked back at the blocked entryway, knowing he was still standing there. "You're lying to me," she snapped coldly, not believing his words, "Why would a grown wolf need me to teach him how to hunt? Please stop toying with me…"

[Redclaws]

Enraged that she suggested he was toying with her, and that she thought every wolf could hunt, or must be stupid otherwise, he took a deep breath and shoved her boulder out of place. Before she could react, he grabbed her scruff in his mouth and growled, "Not all of us have had a pampered life, princess. Some of us had to work to get where they are today, with no help from family or anything. I'm lucky to be alive because of my hunting, and if you think I'm lying, then you're simply going to rot in here, and I'll have no problem with that." He tossed her to the ground. "Think about my offer. It's your only chance to see the sun again." Crick turned around, kicked dirt at her, and strode out of the cave. Pleased to see that he was still in control. He'd had prisoners that messed with his mind and had escaped by switching who was in charge. This wolf was rather weak and scared though. The perfect hostage. He shoved the boulder back into place, and went back outside.

He tried hunting again, since he was absolutely starving. Of course it didnt help that he lived in what seemed like a desert in the middle of a forest, but he didnt dare go into the forest. He'd heard stories about the wolves that lived there. Ravenous savage wolves that always took the opportunity to feed on each other. He was strong, but he'd be no match for those freaks. He tried to remember who warned him of that, but he couldn't place the wolf. He heard a noise off to his left, and he spun around, eager to see something worth catching. It was the same mouse from earlier. Better yet, it was asleep. Crick licked his lips and dropped down into a crouch. however, he hit the ground in doing so, and woke up the mouse. "Shick!" He dashed forward, chasing the little mouse across the sun-stroked wasteland, running out of stamina in mere seconds. The mouse scampered away down a hole. Furious, Crick started pawing at the hole the mouse had crawled into. The hole was too deep, and he was dehydrated. He trudged back to his home, feeling a little more depressed than angry. Why did his parents have to leave him with no good reason? They couldn't even stay around long enough to teach him how to hunt. Depressed and alone, he crawled back into his den. Feeling sorry for the way he'd treated the fae earlier, he called out to the boulder. "Hey, you okay in there? I'll let you out if you promise not to run..." He knew she'd try and run anyways, and who was he to stop her? He didn't like being mean anymore. Why should he after how his parents had treated him? Just because they were mean didnt mean he had to be. He shook his head. What was he saying?! Give up his prisoner? No. He'd let her out, but there was no way she was escaping.