the allure of his next meal drags the wolf through unfamiliar lands until he stands infront of a lake.
his eyes dart to the source of the temptation. his stomach lurches, it screams at him to remind him why his senses brought him here. though he could swear theres something more familiar in the air than the scent of the abandoned salmon he has laid his eyes on.
he isnt one for reasoning. food is food, and food is what he needs. what he deserves for deciding to wake up today. what he deserves for making it past winter. the dust-ridden slob scampers to it, heart racing with each step.
and quickly, he gets to work. pristine pink flesh is gobbled up and ruined between yellowing teeth to the sounds of grunts.
An awful odor runs through her nostrils and takes over the rest of her poor senses—taste, sight, smell, even touch. She swears she can recall such a bad experience from the good old times when whenever it happened to intoxicate the air, she ended up gaging. Stomach twists now as well however; heavy and blood boils in addition. She knows what she is facing, praying to every living god and its fortune she is not in front of what she thinks she is.
She is.
That loser Janus and his terrible behavioral tendencies—here he stands, as if not caring she is literally there, open-mouthed with her ears back, growling and hissing in disgust. That’s her salmon, that’s her spot to be at. Anger takes over more; she wants him dead.
You
A breath filled with determination, her form stands tall, gaze fixated, no fear. She never fears. How dare you.
Oh god, the smell… the smell is killing her as much as the fleas nibbling on the bald spots on his ass.
half way through tearing another hole in the salmon, the man glances up to the so-called owner of the salmon. the woman envelopes the sun, blocking it with her presence alone. long legs, beautiful, silky fur of the purest white he'd ever seen. but he has seen her before.
he blinks, and returns to his meal. she was a sight for sore eyes but she wouldn't fill his belly. if she did, he'd be a cannibal.
ehh? fiesty. if it was yours why'd ya leave it?
he asks as he smacks his lips on the meat. if it wasn't me taking it then it would've been the birds, or the coyotes, or the foxes, or even the bears!
he gulps down another chunk. listen toots, there's plenty of fishies for ya to damn fish out like ya did for this one. would ya mind going away? i don't wanna roughhouse with a lil lady.
the mangy wolf sneers.
Blood boils quickly, so hot that she can feel her veins popping underneath the pressure of warmth and yet still, she pursues the conversation with the light-headed foolish wolf (asshole). Oh, wow and how much he got her upset.
I owe you no explanation, who do you think you are?!
She says, asks. No senseful reply will be given to her, she feels.
And then she wanted to continue her monologue, rotten with blame and disappointment but instead, an action was better to be done. As tall as she could stand, she hovered over him. Leave, now.
who do i think i am?
he scratches behind his ear, chewing as loud as he could between words.
i'm bard!
his face twists, he gazes at her through slit eyes. he's found whats been itching at him this whole time and is keen to scratch his ear raw until he's satisfied. luckily for him and her, the itch surrenders.
leave?
the bard sits upright now, eyes wide. a laugh sputters out, and he reaches for the catch he decided was his. well don't mind if i do~
his voice comes like a ragged melody before sinking his canines into the last of the plump on the fish. as soon as he feels he has a good grip on the quarry he makes a beeline past the once towering woman, wild and desperate to make a run for it.
she never said he couldn't take the salmon with him, afterall. so he is absolutely in the right.
Shiver takes over Hiemis and she closes her eyes, turning around as if to stop him when he was just urged to leave. Bard, what an ugly name he is going by now (given one any better—hating it was her passion).
Where do you think you are going?!
She claims, shouts in addition. Her voice cold, serious, unfortunately not indimidating apparently. …With the salmon!!
Silence, the thundering of her heart too loud.
…Quit giving yourself these awkward nicknames!! Who even you think you are playing to be?! Leave it here and begone! You can’t even catch yourself your own salmon!
(No, the salmon won’t end up in her mouth afterwards; she’d rather pulled her teeth out if it meant eating meal that came with the smell of this asshole.)
the bard runs, fish flailing in his clutch. with each step, chunks of loose salmon meat trickle behind a messy trail. he ignores her demands, infact his tail wags as his sprint turns into a glorious prance.
i thought ya wanted me to leave! what changed?
he comes to a halt on the opposite side of the lake. she'd catch up but he couldn't care less. it's the chase that's fun, anyways. the snow white maiden behind him fruitlessly commands that he let it go, but the mangy bard prefers the chase over the climax. aw c'mon.. your mama never taught ya that sharing is caring? i'll let ya take the tail and the other side of the belly if ya can agree to play nice.
a promise he didn't intend to keep.
time may have passed, but one thing hasn't changed — he still loves to fuck with her.
Hiemis doesn’t want the salmon; she doesn’t want to play this game of his which makes her look like a foolish little girl—the one she has always been, yet for some reason chasing him down gave her sense of challenge according to her obsession with power and winning. This girl doesn’t lose to a wolf who has no manners nor doesn’t jump into a lake every once in a while; thoughts run very wild through her head.
Realizing how pathetic she is, yet still speeding up, she rushes towards him and bites his tail—ew! Paws quickly take over the matter, rubbing and wiping off the terrible idea of dirt and bacteria possibly gathering on her snot, suddenly itchy upon realizing what actions were done. Smell so bad and fleas covered wolf taunting stands in front of her.
Whining and so, she wipes it against the ground and then it finally gets better. Sigh. Don’t involve my mother in this, at least she taught me what basic hygiene is and how unworthy you are.
She says, frowning. He got her good, and so she cannot leave… has to however.
the woman approaches, and quickly. she's on a warpath towards him. the bard is many things, but cocksure isn't one of them. if it were any other woman he wouldve crumpled to the floor and groveled at her feet and beg forgiveness, for it was just the air of springtime that made him daee to disrespect such a fine specimen of a woman. but he knows this woman, and she just bit his tail.
he winces, but finds delight in how she wretches from her own attack. so ya wanna roughhouse?
he spits. vindicated he drops the salmon and pounces, the bard's canines set to plunge into her flesh instead.
Oh poor Hiemis squeals like a cub in her response. Her reaction is quick although, she flinches and then yanks herself to the side, immediately lashing after the stinky Janus afterwards. The nature to defend herself and the quick reflexes fortunately don’t dissolve over night.
What the fuck are you doing?! Did your filthy mother not teach you how to talk to a lady?!
She barks, her teeth are bared at this point and she is on her back, knowing she should get up to gain her might back… be less vulnerable, looking like she is not giving up. You are pathetic and waste of my time, there is no way of winning in this for you!! I am not fighting unworthy dogs!
And yet, Hiemis continues laying on her back. This was an overreaction so her body drags itself up slowly, growling, cracking. She doesn’t want to touch him—the idea makes her shiver; she fears him. The condition he is in does more than the fact he might win. She doesn’t lose and fights filthy dogs.
the bard caught on that his sheer proximity to the woman makes her squeal and run like a little girl — or a rat if he wants to be even less charitable. so he teases her, running circles around her as if she were a graceful white doe at her wit's end.
and didn't your mama tell you not to approach and bite strangers? all i'm doing is defending myself, haha!
he snaps his jaws at her tail, hoping to yank on it the same way he did to her. i'm just giving you a taste of your own medicine!
She panics. What do I do, what do I do; where do I go? How do I fight? Questions take over her yet overwhelmed mind.
That was a second bite, in fact. So he wants more. He really wants to spare and watch her lose her sanity and maybe even the fight. Who even is this wolf she was supposed to once marry; she thinks.
Stop touching me, you filthy asshole! I didn’t even bite you! You are gonna lose this!
Hiemis barks in defense, finally standing on all four and shaking the dirt off her body. Forgetting what her mama told her once, she circles around the wolf as well, contemplating about whether or not to fight, and then—
—she lashes forward. Being a loser is not in her nature.
her pounce lands, and he falls onto his back. a snort is forced out of him as he snarls, canines sinking into ankles. though, his fangs barely pricked her skin.
the real damage came from his hindlegs repeatedly kicking her stomach to get her off.
i thought i was stinky! i thought you think i'm gross, hah! and now you're hugging me!
his voice comes out hoarse.
Hiemis then fights him harder. How embarrassing! Her attempts to get underneath his skin to rip his throat off don’t cease and worsen her frustration every miss she takes. How embarrassing! The ache in her stomach however increases, leading up to her chest even—Janus is about to break her rib at this point and she doesn’t register it even. Rush of adrelaine makes not one wolf stupid.
Their bodies roll over many times in the process until Hiemis winces, yelping. This one particular kick hurt a lot and she doesn’t know why. I can’t stop! I can’t stop! She chokes, eventually standing on his chest without a sign of success to take him down. At least her teeth find his leg before she falls back.
The only hug you will get is from your friends fleas, dumb fuck! I don’t even feel bad for you!
a trail of grass is left behind after their tumble. even bard is left panting. this is why he runs, it was stupid of him to even try to take her on. well, you'll probably some creepy-crawlies on you too if ya don't let go..
he shuts his eyes, but not before shaking the leg hiemis has clamped on.
actually, from this angle. she looks a little cute.
but that time has long since passed, he can't ever go back to stand with her on that alter and the night they'd have shared. the family they might've had. it's too late.
besides. after everything, janus knows she deserves better.
Hiemis blinks. Her long lashes flutter like butterfly wings and the intense staring conquest they are both a part of continues.
Instead of gratitude, she picks up the fight again. Is that all? Are you giving up?
It comes out as a choked growl—her chest is tight and the pursuing sting worsens.
She never has liked him as a wolf, or a lover. His fur has always been sticky and dirty, stinky too. His spooky looking eyes could keep her awake at night and those damn fleas will soon be a problem she will have to deal with. It has remained a wonder of hers why her parents chose him over anyone else.
Still, in the name of her family, Hiemis would never run away from the altar to embarrass her relatives. Marrying him was a duty.
the bard staggers upright after her weight is lifted off his weak body. she's heavier than he remembered. and now she speaks to him, but her voice — one that scrapes against his senses, doesn't register. not easily.
he turns around, scruffy tail tucked between unnaturally thin legs.
..yea.
the sardonic bard huffs.
of course i am, woman! you knocked the wind out of me! i can't even sing!
Hiemis finds it a little suspicious. She stares at him, judging, legs trembling and threatening to break. Why is Janus giving up if he has her perfectly wrapped around his paw and can simply pull, yank and throw her down on her back again. She squints then and raises eyebrows, nodding.
Good, it better be that way for your own sake. You are a loser for even thinking you could win against me.
Given the irony of that, Hiemis refuses to show her weakness. With a broken rib that finally speaks out loud to her, she continues. What now? Are you just gonna run away like you did back then? With a tail between your legs?
this woman insists on talking. with a snarl, bard uses the last of his strength to toss the fish directly at her — maybe then with her pretty coat all dirty with fish guts he'd get to be left alone.
yea. have a nice life, hiemis.
and with that, janus runs away for the second time from his bride.