Fairspell Meadow the twice-invoked

@Qiao

Leshen slunk, slithered, and skittered his way back into the wilds of his birth.

He maintained a low prowl until he came upon a stretch of land that offered no cover at all. A meadow in the clutches of winter — no trees nor shelter to speak of. The raider turned his carmine gaze to and fro, finding nothing of note, before loping into the bracing openness at a steady clip. His head and ears turned about as if on swivels; an air of caution plaguing his every move.

It would be dark here soon, and the snow had started again, coming down with mesmerizing frailty, featherlight and slow. Each flake would melt quickly after settling upon the hollow wolf’s spine. Still, his skin twitched at nearly every drop.

it was this open, coverless meadow qiao sought. she measured the span of the sky, watching as the sun began to sink behind a drift of falling snow. 

soon it would be nightfall. in those starlit hours she would begin her search for owls and their discarded pellets. 

a lanky form stole across the meadow in a pantherine slink. qiao regarded the wolf with a moment’s pause before she began following after in light steps.

As watchful and paranoid as he was, it was no small wonder when Leshen’s stalker did not go unnoticed. He turned abruptly to face the one who approached in the dying light and was immediately set on edge, for it should have been him doing the investigating – certainly not the other way around. Our raider was offended.

The quills that dressed his back lifted and rippled in baleful waves; his bloody gaze zeroed in on the canid shape’s face. He became rigid, like a startled feline, but made no threatening sound or effort to retreat. He presented no welcome either, since the spy was so brave. He wondered how far they would hazard to come near, while his wild eyes dared the stranger to come within reach.

how loners reacted to an old lady slinking in the woods behind them often said much about their character. qiao stopped the moment leshen turned, admiring the flourish of athleticism shown in doing so.

in the thinning light she could make out little about his person, save the cunning gleam of redwine eyes. oh, she had always loved the color. sharp thing you are, lad. qiao set upon her heels much in the manner a matronly woman might rest upon a knottled cane. care to make an easy meal?

Her praise washed over Leshen, welcome though unfamiliar. He was glad she recognized him for the great predator he was, but it also let him know that she would not be deceived by any beguiling. There would be no impersonating harmlessness around her, and she made this known by not coming any closer.

Leshen tilted his head at her question, contemplative in the growing dark. He stalked forward, coming as near as she would allow, and his tail lifted, waving slowly back and forth, back and forth. He licked his chops, appearing eager. Yes.

He was always hungry.

the drifter came closer yet spoke nothing. his body language was clear by the light sway of his tail and perk of his ears.

qiao liked silence in a man. it spoke of an innermost determination, one she saw glinting in leshen's eyes. her gaze afforded a brief flash of approval before she looked to the darkening treeline behind leshen.

i am looking for owl pellets. her head bowed, the greenbriar torc slipping from a thin neck. from its deerskin pouch qiao proferred a dried turkey leg. its meat was lean yet spiced by foreign scents. you will be given a piece of meat for every two you find. find me six, and i will bring you a fat hare.

forgive me but i have let the intrusive thoughts win xD

When she bowed her head, a curious object slipped from her neck. He could not fathom what devilry it was, and the purple-orange twilight had hidden the possession from his view, but once the hide had been parted, exposing its contents to the open air, he could smell the meat without question.

Leshen’s hungry snake-tongue caressed his blanched chin, while his nose worked to identify the type of fare beneath the strange, herbaceous aromas. He seemed to consider her proposal, working through all the words in his head with a calculating expression. Then suddenly, he lunged forward, snarling as he aimed to snatch the turkey leg from its place at her feet.

If successful, he would turn tail and run.

LMAAAO i cauldron-cackled when i read it

for a moment, leshen looked as if he might oblige qiao's request. her dancing eyes went from bright with hope to dark with fury as she realized his intentions far too late to deal reprisal.

she jerked her head through the greenbriar in a resounding snarl, lips curled around pointed teeth. you come back when you become curled around your stomach and foaming at the mouth. the herbalist called to the receding figure. whether it was truth or simply a bluff, only qiao knew.

muttering a deep curse after leshen, qiao placed a crowfeather in the snow that disappeared in a tangle of black fumes.

qiao:


leshen:

Success!

Leshen scampered off with his stolen goods to devour it in privacy. Her warning rang in his ears, though he did not allow the words to daunt him. He was so proud of himself that he hardly noticed when his lips started to tingle.

The applied spices tickled his nose and felt strange on his tongue, going so far as to make his mouth feel a bit numb, but he was too stubborn not to enjoy his prize despite the foreignness of it. Fortunately for him, the leg was terribly delicious, spicy and exotic, hastily consumed. He ate every scrap of the lean offering, bone and all. The raider had never tasted anything like it.

Smugly satisfied, he laid down, licking his chops free of the prickling aftertaste. His eyes had been closed for half an hour when he awoke with a sudden need to evacuate. Yet even as he blew a hot hole in the snow, he couldn’t stop thinking about how the taste had been worth it.