run with wolves | open post.

[thelittleone]

Characters

Asil, The Moor
A very, very old wolf and a member of the Marrok's pack.

Jang Eun
Previously of Carmel Valley, sent to Aspen Creek by her former Alpha.

Jesse Hauptman
Daughter of the Alpha of the Columbia Basin Pack

Joshua Brennan
Burden-bound. A Sin-Eater paired with the ghost of a long-dead soldier.

PREMISE

All the stories are true. Years ago, the Fae came out because technology was making it harder and harder for them to hide, and it's been a couple of years since the werewolves did the same. The world is changing day by day. Humans and the paranormal live side by side, but it's not easy nor is it simple. While the Marrok has taken great lengths and care to preserve the werewolves' PR front, everyone - wolf, fae, vampire and other - know that it's only a matter of time before the humans start thinking that perhaps the other stories meant to warn of the dark are true.

This is an open post set in the universe of Patricia Briggs' Mercy Thompson series. The books are amazing and you should definitely check them out. More information via this Wiki link. The rules are simple: Drop a prompt, leave a tag, and let's play!

THREAD TRACKING

© tessisamess

Comments

[lastcall]

[Eun glances back at him as she reaches for the icing, already mixed, and uses one hand to lift the bowl and control the drizzle of icing over the rolls.]

Preferences aren't trivial. I do like sweet things, but I like most everything. I think most of what I bake tends to be on the sweeter side, pastries and desserts, but I do know some more savory recipes for some baked goods. [She nudges him gently with her hip.] I also liked my steak done rare even before I became a werewolf, don't enjoy wearing pastels except with rare, case-by-case exceptions, and...hm, to my parents' despair, I really dislike the texture of tofu.

What about you? Any preferences I might like to know about?

[nosco]

[ He settles at the island counter, elbows resting on the granite tile. ] You already know about my gardening. So I will tell you that I have a preference for music where they do not rely overmuch on electronics, which oftentimes feels there is little of in this decade.

[ He pauses, considering more. ] Documentaries interest me. But I seek out the fringe ones. More mainstream offerings tend to bore me. It can often feel like the same narratives are rehashed until they feel more like truth than truth itself, which I find dangerous.

I have been told that I have a taste for expensive cars, which is difficult for me to dispute given the vehicles I keep in my garage. I rarely read fiction - most of what I have are either loaned or gifted by others. But I enjoy essays that reveal the thought processes of their authors.

I appreciate the convenience of automation, but I do not like relying on it too much. Trial and error are useful tools for problem solving and I believe that we need enough of it lest we take the need for it for granted.

[lastcall]

[With both hands free, Eun takes better control of her bowl and continues to ice the rolls, clearly well-practiced with the process. She doesn't look at Asil, but her body language makes it clear that she is attentively listening.]

Would a reliance on electronics in music include electric guitars and keyboards? Or do you also enjoy that?

[nosco]

It depends on the setting. [ He smiles, amused. ] I suppose if there is a melody and lyrics I am amenable to trying.

Kara listens to an eclectic playlist. She says I tend to be conservative and share favorites akin to things her father says that his father used to listen to.

[lastcall]

[Eun's tastes are fairly varied, but she is not particularly passionate about it. However...]

Most of what I listen to veers more toward rock music and alternative rather than electronica, though there is some pop and R&B that I enjoy also. I like acoustic and I understand what you mean about needing melody and lyrics but...more often than not if I want to listen to music it's usually something with a heavy beat and good percussion with it.

[She sets the bowl down and uses a towel to turn the tray of rolls this way and that, to survey the icing distribution.]

I prefer documentaries about nature and history to more contemporary exposé types. Fiction and poetry to non-fiction, unless it's a particularly good memoir or travel book.

[She moves to the cupboards where, on second try, she finds small plates. Eun pulls down two and turns back.]

How many expensive cars do you have?

[nosco]

Three. [ The answer is placid and without discomfort. ] A Mercedes, a Subaru, and my Cayenne.

[ He can hardly hide his garage from her. And she has riddennin his SUV twice. ]

I only take the third out if I need to impress. More than often the Subaru is best for driving around these parts.

[lastcall]

[Icing complete, Eun lifts an eyebrow at the number he offers (which is not that many, actually) but also at his comment about the Cayenne. She swipes a finger through the icing and licks it off her finger, the picture of innocence.]

You don't need to impress me then?

[She gives him an intentionally wide-eyed look, having not even heard that he had the Cayenne until now.]

[nosco]

Would it? [ He counters sweetly, the words rolling off his tongue in a purr. ]

I might offer to take you on the night on the town, but I am not sure if the night life in Missoula offers as much as California.

[ He might drive her around just for the fun of it, however. ]

[lastcall]

[His response has Eun grinning, and she shakes her head, turning away again to get a spatula from nearby. The icing is set enough to serve the cinnamon rolls, she thinks. She plates one and slides it over to Asil before plating another for herself.]

I'd like a night on the town with you, and I don't care what car you drive as long as it won't break down on us. [Which she doubts they would.] And honestly, aside from hitting late night diners with friends after a shift, there isn't really anything from the night life in San Francisco I'd miss here. I danced but I don't love it, I can't get drunk, and I'm pretty sure I have no reason to be looking for hook-ups anymore.

[At this point, she meets his eyes again, and lifts the cinnamon roll to her mouth to take a healthy bite.]

I'd be happy with good food and maybe a pub or bar that has some good, live music.

[nosco]

I will keep that in mind. [ He turns his attention to the cinnamon roll and savors the first bite before turning his attention back to Eun.

There are places he could take her. His favorite restaurants, a café that he has accompanied Anna or Kara to. ]

[lastcall]

[Eun takes another bite, savoring the taste (they've turned out quite well, in her opinion) before turning her attention back to Asil.]

Good?

[nosco]

Excellent.

[ And because there is a bit of frosting at the corner of her mouth, he rises from his seat and crosses to her to steal a kiss; tongue flicking out teasingly just because. ]

[lastcall]

[She absolutely cannot fault him for joining her where she stands than simply pointing out that she has icing on her mouth. Her hand is still holding her roll which only leaves the other to wrap around behind his back as he kisses her. Teases.

Memories of last night are not that far away, but the demands of her stomach are loudest. With a flush to her cheeks and slightly darkened eyes, she leans against him...but the roll moves up between them. She offers him a bite of her own.]

If you tease me with your tongue again like that I'm going to forget all of my good intentions for this morning.

[nosco]

[ He laughs, and dips his head to take a bite from the roll. Chews. ]

We can indulge in both.

[ So very matter-of-fact. ] But I will behave. You had other questions?

[ About him. About Aspen Creek. About anything else under the bright sun above. ]

[lastcall]

[Eun continues to eat her cinnamon roll after he's had his bite, and pulls the tray closer to where he'd been sitting.

She did have other questions. Many of them. But a good half of them had to do with Him. His wolf. Them. Their relationship.

The nature of mating bonds.]

I do, but it would be premature to bring them up this morning, and I've probably put you on the spot enough last night. [Leaning up, she steals a kiss from him, no escalation of his previous one.] I think the others I have are more to do with general werewolf things and I may get those answers along the way the more time I spend here in Aspen Creek, talking with people.

[nosco]

That is true. [ But his curiosity is getting the better of him. And this morning, things are less emotionally charged in comparison to last night. ]

But ask me regardless? [ He settles back into his chair, a gesture that says yes, I will behave.

To set expectations however, he adds: ] As for questions about and directed to the pack. I think it is best that you know that beyond Charles, Anna, myself and Leah, the other wolves may elect to omit details for both your safety and theirs. At least, until they secure outright permission from Bran.

[lastcall]

[Eun follows him this time, taking the seat closest to him and dragging her plate with it. She finishes off her roll in another two bites, and pulls a second onto her plate. But after she licks her fingers free of icing, because the cinnamon rolls are in fact a messy business, and there is absolutely no reason to wipe good icing off on a napkin.]

I think anything else I might want to know about being a werewolf would at most fall into a category of "confidential to anyone not a werewolf" for the general things. And anything that falls outside of werewolf information I would likely bring to you, Anna, or Leah first anyway.

[She shifts a little on her seat, considering his invitation to ask him questions regardless. For a while, she is quiet, considering her questions and the possible path a conversation could take from each of them. It is clear that she is being cautious and careful.]

Last night you said you'd answer any questions I had about mating bonds. And that you would not rush things with us. Yes?

[nosco]

[ He nods, listening, even as he pulls pieces of his own cinnamon roll apart to better savor each bite.

He can tell from the timbre of her voice and the pause she takes that she is weighing her thoughts. So he waits, and when she asks, he answers: ] Yes. On both counts.

[lastcall]

[There's more quiet from Eun as she stalls, taking a bite of her second roll now. She chews. Swallows.]

Will you tell me about mating bonds and how they differ from the pack bonds first?

[Implying that she will have more questions after. And it would not be a great leap of logic to assume they will have to do with their pacing and trajectory.]

[nosco]

[ No, it does not take much to assume where this might lead, but that she asks is important. And he will never shy from relaying the truth of things. ]

You have experienced pack bonds. You understand that there is a mystical connection that lets us know, with a mix of instinct and magic, who are pack and who are not. Pack is comfort and reassurance that you run with others like you.

A mate bond is similar. But deeper, and with characteristics that can vary from pair to pair.

It can be as simple as knowing where each other is at all times, with telepathy that allows you to communicate soul to soul.

For others, it can take an extreme slant. Where characteristics of one mate bleeds into the other and vice versa. There is a wolf who is mated to a blind woman who can see so long as her husband is in the same room. Another strange example is how Mercedes was able to draw out silver that was killing Adam and his pack through their connection.

[ He pauses, because that story made the rounds. And this is him confirming that it is far from embellished hype. ]

[lastcall]

[Eun eats, and listens, and is glad for sticky icing to give her an excuse for why she is not touching him as he explains. It's not that she is drawing back, nor that she fears what they discuss, but Asil is too distracting for his own good and for the moment Eun wants to be more clear headed as they talk.]

And while I'm sure there are exceptions...a mating bond happens between two people who make a serious commitment to each other, after which their wolves will generally follow suit and acknowledge it also. To recap what you said last night.

[She licks her lips, tasting icing and cinnamon, and looks steadily at Asil now.]

What's between us is far from casual, and I think last night I didn't fully put two and two together, but...you said we could go at my pace. More than once. I appreciated it then and I still do now. But does that mean you already know--would you go faster if that was an option?

[nosco]

[ He pauses, weighing his words with care. ]

Yes and no. [ He meets her gaze. ] My wolf would have you as ours. I would as well. But that does not mean I would choose to sacrifice the trust you have placed in me.

[lastcall]

[How she missed this particular nuance of last night's conversation, she's not entirely sure. But she thinks that perhaps when he talked about a day or five, perhaps this is what he'd been referring to.

She shakes a her head a little, not in rejection of him or his feelings, but at the thought of him sacrificing her trust.]

Of course you wouldn't. I know that. My wolf knows that. [Her eyes search his, for any sign that he regrets telling her this much. That he has doubts. Any wavering whatsoever. But there is none of that. He is steady even as the full truth comes to light.] But you just...you know. Both of you. You know that I'm the one you want.

[nosco]

We know that we believe you are a good match for us.

[ His voice is soft. And perhaps in that moment, he looks younger. Just like any other young man speaking with a girl without giving voice to the extent of his feelings. ]

It is not final unless you accept us. There is always a choice, Eun.

[lastcall]

[He talks about her choices, about her freedom to decide at her pace, and perhaps Eun isn't focusing on that because she knows deep down in her soul that he meant it when he said that even if she took ten years he would wait for her to be ready. That isn't the part she's focusing on, she does not feel pressured in the least. It is his conviction that her mind has stopped on. The certainty, even if he won't tell her yes, he knows.

The shift of his voice and the micro expressions on his face give way to something softer and more vulnerable, and it brings Eun up short.]

I'm being rude, aren't I. Pushing for answers when I don't completely have my own yet. [She swallows, reaching for him with a hand not covered in icing. Her fingers are light on his skin, as if momentarily uncertain of her right to touch him.] I'm sorry, Asil. Sometimes I'm too blunt of a hammer.

[Her cheeks color faintly with embarrassment at her pushing.]