Behind the Façade

[Packgoater]

Beck's eyes widened. Then he grinned, still rather surprised she asked him to.

 

"Yeah, sure. Yeah, guess it's hard on both of us. So. You're actually attracted to me, not fooling around? Yeah? I'll give you my answer," he said, leaning over the table to kiss her. She might pull back, she probably would hesitate, but here he would find out what kind of girl he was dealing with here. He was casual about it, but in a sly way. Oh he really did want to kiss her, don't get that wrong. He wanted that more than he wanted to evaluate what kind of girl he was dealing with. They just kind of went hand in hand.

 

Tioga shifted into a human, put on the clothes she handed to him and then started to answer he question.

 

"We have to leave here by 10. In the morning. And when I get my stuff from Italy... where exactly am I going to put it? I can't put my bed or anything in a hotel. I don't exactly own that. If there's a cheap place to rent or... if you want...." he said, knowing the last part didn't really have to be spoken. He just sort of smiled, a definitely wolfish smile that was lopsided and was half spoken in his eyes.

[SkySong278]

"Alright and you can stay here," Ziva said in reply with a responding smile back at him. "There's a few guest rooms upstairs near my room or you could stay in my room with me." The last statement was said without a hint of a blush on her cheeks. She was getting better and not being embarrassed by saying stuff like that around him. She was also sincere about the offer/suggestion and wasn't embarrassed about saying it.

 

"Okay and yeah I guess it is," Des said in reply to his first two statements before hearing the rest that he said. "Yes I'm attracted to you and no I'm not fooling around," she said in reply to his questions before he leaned across the table as if to kiss her. She met him the rest of the way and kissed him softly on the lips. After a few minutes or so, she pulled back with a light blush on her cheeks as well as a smile on her face. She was proud of herself for not hesitating since she had wanted to do that shortly after giving him her cell phone number when they met earlier that day.

[LeopardDragon]

Kirin nodded and got up to follow him, and indicated for Jeremiah to do the same. Good grief, how she hated this... wanting to be free to make her own choices, and yet, somehow; perhaps because the wolf instinct in her craved solidarity wih her own kind... with the pack, she found that she liked the idea of having another werwolf nearby for moral support. She had never had to explain the truth about herself to any human before, and as she thought of it, it did seem to be a dunting project; how would Jeremiah respond, would he see her as a monster, too? Also, she hadn't ever seen the Alpha's personal office , and she had to admit that the idea intrigued her. She had often found that someones personal effects often said a great deal more about them than their words ever did. As he showed them to his car, Kirin saw or thought she did, just the smallest traces of sadness on the Alpha's face...whaat could the ruler of the whole pack, and someone who was obvoiusly that rich and powerful among humans as well have to be unhappy about she mused. the car itself was exactly the sort Kirin could imagine Adelbrecht driving... sporty but elegant, and eyecatching without being overly flashy. She grinned as she glanced over at Jeremiah." Shotgun!" she called playfully, and they all got into the car

 

Jeremiah had noddded as he listened to the werewolf man talking... he had heard of the company at least; even had one chess set made from their crystals. They had a reputation for mainly two things, one- an extremely good quality product and two- always seeming to be one step ahead of the competition. As Kirin motioned for him to follow her, he did, though the idea of being in close quarters with a wolf made him somewhat anxoius... Kirin didn't seem to be terribly concerned, though... perhap she just didn't know? Somehow he doubtecd that this was the truth. Part of him was excited to learn something new, though he had ssecretly hoped that Kirin would tell him her secret herself. How on earth did a werewolf come to be the leader of a large company, he mused to himself as he slipped into the back seat of the stylish blue corvette Kirin's "boss" owned.

Edited June 5, 2011 by LeopardDragon

[Packgoater]

Adelbrecht grinned. He was beginning to like this, beginning to like just shutting Alpha off, just being Adelbrecht. He revved the engine and drove a few miles above the speed limit. It didn't take long to get to the modern-furnished towering glass office. He opened his door, went over to Jeremiah'd did a curt bow and then opened his.

 

"I suppose I should show you utmost courtesy as you are my guest, no?" he spoke with his thick German accent coming to front. "I see I make you.... unsettled. There are things you want to ask me. Ask away. I assure you we are in privacy," he said as he walked into the nice glass office. He went over to the elevator and pressed the highest level. He motioned his hand for them to come in. The stainless steel elevator carried them far up, past offices until they got to a floor that was created to Adelbrecht's taste. This was Adelbrecht's home in the human city. It had a small bed, almost never used, plenty of space and other furnishings. Adelbrecht led them to a chair and a couch, him taking the white chair.

 

"Mm... I suppose it's not really an office, is it? But I thought you might rather talk in here than in my office," he said. Oh yes, Adelbrecht was being himself today, right now until he could hold onto himself no longer. Until Alpha took over. But that wouldn't be today. He would show Kirin that he would make sacrifices for her. He wouldn't tell the council about this. About the human knowing. That would be his secret. His and Kirin's. And Jeremiah too.

 

"Well as I don't have much stuff, I think I like number three the best," he said, his gold eyes sparkling. He grinned, his wolfish smile playing upon his mouth again. Only then did he check his watch and see how late it was. But that was impossible. How did they spend that much time in the forest? How come it didn't show any darkness at all? Only now did e see the darkness of the sky. It was strange, very strange and he wasn't sure he liked it.

 

"God, what am I getting myself into? I fall in love with the girl who helped to cause this? And yet, as I'm saying that, I'm not regretting it one bit," he whispered, clearly meaning his condition of werewolf-ness. He slowly sat up, just staring at his hands as if they were going to shift into werewolves too. He backed away until he hit a wall, slowly sliding down it until he was sitting with his back to the wall. What was he going to tell his parents? What was he going to do? Adelbrecht would probably kill them once he found out he had them. Everything was going wrong. Was the girl standing before him worth all this? No. If she was she would've tried to stop Adelbrecht. But she hadn't. She'd run away to a mountain. Run away to hide while he was forced to change. To change into a monster. He was a monster. He pulled his away from his sides and ran them through his hair. How could they do this to him? Why? Why had she run away while he was in pain? The other girl at least was there. There were probably a thousand girls like the one before him. Cowardly. Afraid. Beck shook all over. He shook as if it was winter. Beck was angry and he was riling himself up. He wanted to get out of here. He wanted to get out of himself. He wanted to be human again, to change this whole day. Why hadn't he taken the girl at the cafe's number? Then he could've just walked home. But he hadn't. What did he do now? Where could he go? Could he at least tell everybody about Crystal City? Then maybe he would be allowed to continue law school. Be allowed to continue a degree instead of being unemployed like all the other nut-jobs. Beck sighed. He wasn't helping himself or anyone by doing this. He slowly stood up, but still leaned against the wall. There was no mistaking the look on his face. It was that of a caged animal. Of a fox in a hunter's trap. It was haunting, disturbing. Yet he could not leave. He had nowhere to go.

[SkySong278]

"Hm I think I do too," Ziva said in reply as she looked into his sparkling eyes with her own sparkling ones. Then she yawned, noticing how late it was and went over to the couch that she had slept on the night before and laid down on it again. "Goodnight," she said softly before closing her eyes and falling fast asleep. She hoped that while she and Tioga were in Italy, they wouldn't run into any trouble. If we do run into any trouble while there we'll just cross that bridge when we get to it, she thought to herself as she slept.

 

Des stayed where she was when Beck got up and went to stand against the nearest wall to the table. She heard what he whispered to himself and just looked at the tabletop. "I didn't help the cause of you being a werewolf," she said softly but still loud enough for him to hear her. "My meeting you had nothing to do with the fact of what you are now. That was Adelbrecht's doing, not mine." She then got up and said as she went over to one of the windows, "I'm sorry for running like I did before he had Kirin bite you. I don't like seeing people in pain when they're forced to be bitten but I did come back to see if I could help you transform but by that time you had already transformed into a wolf. If you think I'm a coward because of that, then maybe you would be better off with a non-cowardly girl who isn't a werewolf."

Edited June 5, 2011 by Dragonpelt

[LeopardDragon]

JeKirin nodded to Jeremiah as the two of them sat on the couch acrossed from the Alpha. It was time... time to tell him the reason for bringing him here... time to tell him the truth... "What do you know about werewolves?" she asked him, hoping to ease him into the conversation. She shifted in her seat uncomfortably as she waited to see what he would say. She expected him tobe surprised of course, ut hopefully.nce she showed him and explained everything... Somehow , though, it DID make hr more at ease to have Adelbrecht there, and to have him acting so human... " And actually, sir, I have a few questions for you as well, but more about those in a moment", she said, adressing the Alpha.

 

"Jeremiah was thoroughly puzzled by the question... werewolves? " You mean, other than those old stories that my grandmother used to tell me?" he asked with a grin, as his mind was thinking Where are you going with this , Kirin? Surely she or he wasn't going crazy?

She looked at him seriously, "I mean it, what do you know about them, do you believe they exist?" she asked.

 

Jeremiah became thoughtful for a moment..." Not until recently he said, casting a meaningful look at Adelbrecht. "Sir..., I..., are you a werwolf?" he finally blurted out. He fervently hoped that he hadnot offended him by being so personal with the question. He instantly saw the surprise on Kirin's face as his question registered... interesting... evidently she hadn't expected that.

Edited June 6, 2011 by LeopardDragon

[Packgoater]

((Beck cusses a lot (not any of the really bad ones, just s*** and d***) but its kinda because of his situation. In his place I would've done the same thing. I wouldn't have just said things like "Gosh, you really dont get it!" or "God, don't you get it, my brother has some issues?" which Beck is also hinting at if you didn't catch that. Just saying.))

 

Adelbrecht had a strange look on his face, the kind of look like "Why the hell did you do that?" before he let Alpha take over. Standing right before Jeremiah was a 15' long wolf the hight of a very tall man. He walked over to Jeremiah and the Adelbrecht in him had to stop Alpha from killing or biting Jeremiah. Adelbrecht forced Alpha to turn around and go into a side room where all his clothes were. A minute later Adelbrecht came out wearing a navy hoodie, jeans and the expensive silver-soled black leather shoes he wore in case of combat.

 

"You really shouldn't do that. The wolf me is very dangerous. Very. Half of the time I'm stuck with the wolf in my body. Do you have any idea how obnoxious that is? To find yourself being an absolute jerk? An absolute jerk who kills people? Like I said, the wolf in me is very dangerous. I apologize for anything I said while at the chess tourny. That would be one of those instances. It took all the restrain I had not to kill every one of you. Oh an yes, clearly I'm a werewolf. That's been established. I think I might know one of your questions. How did I, a werewolf, become the head of a huge crystal company, known all around the world? Easy. I'm the Alpha of the UK pack. Where I get the crystal from.... I can't tell you unless you want to be a werewolf. But let's just say, my supply isn't running out. Nor is my money. I have more than enough to retire," he said, gritting his teeth and speaking firmly when he spoke of the UK pack. He breathed slowly and deeply, trying to press Alpha down. This would not be a good time for Alpha to take over, so he would not allow it.

"Dammit, I don't know what I think. I don't know what or who I want, Des. I wanted somebody different. That was you, for sure. But.... god, I just really don't know. Can you even grasp what this is going to do to me? You might not have parents, brothers, sisters. But I do. And they are going to wonder when I quit law school. An expensive law school I got into purely with scholorship. My family is poor. I was going to support them. I was going to be their hope. How am I going to take care of my older brother now? I was going to get him into a good facility! He wasn't going to have just s*** anymore! Don't you get it? Now he's gonna keep on getting the same old s***! They're gonna keep going through those weeks when they have so little money they can't buy any food. All because of all you stupid werewolves who should be dead! BECAUSE OF YOU DAMNED WEREWOLVES!!!" He was crying now. She really didn't get it. She thought it was about HIM. It wasn't. It was about THEM. THEY were the ones that mattered. Now he had failed them.

 

Tioga softly walked over and stroked Ziva's hair while she was asleep. He was tired too, so he kissed her head and went over to the other couch. It was soft, and he was soon asleep. He dreamed on Venice, of Pompeii too. Of the wonderful places to see and the things to do. He dreamed of home. He dreamed of Italy.

 

 

[LeopardDragon]

"And there is something else you should know, that is what I wanted to tell you about..."said Kirin standing up. "There is a good reason we really can't be more than friends, Jeremiah..." she told him, and how it pained her to hurt him, but he DID need to know, deserve to know. She paused here..." I am one too." she told him as she shifted into a wolf right before his very eyes. She seemed to be in better control over her wolf nature than the Alpha was, which was interesting... as she trotted over to a closet to shift back, and when she retyrned she could see that Jeremiah was clearly thunderstruck by this revelation.

 

Jeremiah was shocked... if he hadn't seen it with his very own eyes he wouldn't have beieved it, himself. Kirin... a WEREWOLF? How had it happened? Then he remembered... that tourny in Germany, he groaned, he had hought it strange that she had dissappeared like that, and now he knew why she had. All this time, the truth had been right there... her altered behaviour... her sudden turn to more agressive openings at the chessboard... yes, it all made sense now. What did this mean, was he able to trust her, if she was a wolf? He pondered this carefully... she had shared the truth with him when she could just as easily have coninued to hide her secret, which was an act of faith on her part... and he decided that he would have to trust her.

 

"You could be one, too" she continued," If you so chose, and not unless". As she said this last bit she cast a glance at the Alpha which plainly said that she was willing to fight him, if need be, to protect her friend. Even at the thought she could feel her Alpha blood burning with delight at the idea... which disturbed her slightly. Though, she supected that she wouldn't be able to defeat Adelbrecht, she did guess that she could buy Jeremiah enough time to get away if it came to it."But I do warn you, that that could be dangerous if either I or Adelbrecht were to turn you... , we.. are somewhat different than ordinary werewolves, and if you are turned by either of us, you would become like us, but there is a good chance that you might die." she explained. At this point she left Jeremiah to think about wha she had already told him, and turned her attention to the Alpha," Now for my questions for you", she said," I need to know, what exactly does having 'Alpha blood' mean," She looked at him seriously, " That young man you forced me to turn nearly died because of my ignorance, so I NEED to know so that nothing like that happens again,... what has this done to me?"

Edited June 6, 2011 by LeopardDragon

[SkySong278]

((oh sorry ; i had a really bad headache yesterday when i typed that post up and sometimes i can't think correctly since it hurts so much...I'll remember that for next time, though and I'm only going to post as Des since i can't really do anything with Ziva since she's asleep; i guess I'll come up with a dream later that she can have for now, only posting as Des))

 

"Oh," Des said softly as she understood what he meant. She then heard everything else that he said without interrupting. When it seemed like he was done she went over to him and gently put a hand on his shoulder before saying, "I'm sorry that this had to happen to you and if there was a way that you could stay in law school I'd share it with you if I knew. For now, though, calm down and then we'll try to figure something out after you do." She then got up and went back to the window saying more to herself than to him, "This wouldn't have happened if he hadn't followed me from his apartment."

Edited June 6, 2011 by Dragonpelt

[Packgoater]

"Kirin. That's not fair. I really don't want to- and shouldn't- tell you. God, I can't just tell you no though. Kirin, please," he said, his eyes pleading. He knew the answer and continued, telling her what she wanted to know.

 

"Its dangerous. Most have side affects... me, I got Alpha. That or you die. You lived. If you're lucky you get neither. I've heard some stories. And Kirin, you have no idea how much I hope those stories are true, that you'll be fine. That you won't end up broken like me. I want you to be okay.

 

Anyway, there are pluses. Super-strength. Agility. Brains. And you'll be upped to rank Beta. That's not really a pro. You'll get to go to council meetings but you'll also have to fight your arguments out. To the death. The Betas are like police officers. They are really MY police officers. They keep me in check. They also are the ones who make sure I don't date anyone that isn't a Beta.

 

Tess. I tried to put it off, but they threatened me. Even sent one out the other night. To kill me, you know. He died and stained the crystal in my house. The seventh stain now, I think. My point is that they've been trying to get me to hook up with her since the beginning. Now she's a Beta, they could actually do it. I just hope she falls for Skry. That's why I hired him. He doesn't know it. I hope he never does.

 

Its dangerous, Kirin. That's why I haven't told anyone. They don't know. You can go and stay an Omega. Less danger. I don't want you doing that, Kirin. But I can't stop you. I'm helpless against you. If you pulled a gun to my head I couldn't stop you. I wouldn't stop you. I shouldn't stop you. Anyway, please just keep your safety in mind. Is there anything else about it? I've got a few bones to pick with you.

 

If Jeremiah turns into a werewolf you'll be able to date him. You will won't you? I hope you do, Kirin. Whatever you do, don't fall for me. No matter how much I want it, I'm dangerous. I won't let myself ruin you. I've already ruined myself. Jeremiah's a good man. Take him while you can, Kirin.

 

Jeremiah? Well, you human or not? You better not be otherwise I'm just going to carry on like this. I'll be wasting away, trying to do impressive things and not getting anywhere. You better love Kirin. If you don't you'll end up one of those stains on my wall. You really don't want that.

 

Kirin, I hope you're happy. Stay with the good guy. He's what you'll want. He'll be a good man for you. Not like me. I'm a bad man, Kirin. I could kill you. No, not me. Alpha. He'll kill you, he'll kill Jeremiah. He'll kill anyone you care about. You better watch out and keep your distance. I'm sorry. You probably wouldn't want me anyway. No matter, I need to do something. You guys should probably talk. Unless you have anymore questions?" he said, but his eyes were sad. He knew Kirin deserved better than him, no matter how much he hated it. He sat back down in his chair, both of his hands gripping the armrests. They were straining to keep himself cool. To keep Alpha down. Alpha wanted to throttle Jeremiah, to kill him and have Kirin all to himself. Adelbrecht's head snapped down, sweat pouring down his face. He had taken almost a whole day off of being Alpha and it took a huge toll on him. He started coughing, spitting silvery liquid everywhere. He raised his hand, signaling everything was okay. He stood up, stumbling over to his closet. He knew what he had to do. "I'm sorry, pardon everything I might do. Please," he said, his voice turning to a snarl at the end. He stopped spiting up blood, but locked himself in the closet from the outside, tossing the key to Kirin. "Don't leave me in here. Please." For several minutes the door looked like it was going to break and sounded like someone was throwing themselves against it. Then there was a slumping sound and all else stopped. Adelbrecht lay on the ground outside, silvery blood trickling out of his mouth. He was knocked out, the revenge of Alpha.

 

"I'm sorry, Des. I'm just saying... maybe you should find a good guy who isn't gonna do this. This thing I do. You deserve better. I cuss like a sailor, I drink, I don't smoke actually, but hey. Get a good guy. Hey, I'd love to be that guy, but that's up to you. If you don't mind all that. Now anyway, is there a place that sells some good beer around here? It's Ireland, they gotta sell some Guinness," he said, his casual tone still not hiding the slight bit of want in his eyes. No, not for a good beer. For a girl who might actually want him. Was she it? Maybe she was worth it. She could help him. She could help him with this problem. She could help him. But would she?

[LeopardDragon]

After the noise and other commotion in the closet had stopped; Kirin took the key and unlocked the door. She could see the minute she did that he might be out for a ew minuts at least. What could possibly be more dangerous for me to know than to remain ignorant? She wondered to herself as Jeremiah helped her get an unconsious Adelbrecht onto the sofa. Then again her mother had always said that a person should be careful what they wish for, or they just might end up getting it. She glanced back at Jeremiah," Well...", she said, seeing he was still in shock over all he had been told," All that I told you is the complete truth, as best as I know it." She paused here to see what Jeremiah would say; when he didn't speak, she continued,"I told you al of this because... well, as Adelbrecht said, you are a decdent guy... I thought you deserved to know. As the Alpha said, if I were to change you, we could be together."

 

"Me, a werewolf?" Jeremiah laughed," I somehow can't picture that", he told her with a puzzled expression on his face.He would need to think about this... The Alpha werewolf appeared to be potetnially dangerous... though Kirin had never shown any signs of being so...

 

"I wouldn't have been able to either," she assured him. "But I can turn you, if you would have it that way." As she made this offer, Kirin thought of a plan... The Betas kept tabs on the Alpha. She would accept a post on the council as one of them... she could then protect the humans from Alpha, and Adelbrecht from himself, Perhaps she could even keep an eye on the other Betas, too... she had no doubt that the other wolves could be a treacherious lot at times, a sharp pair or two of chessplayer's eyes and equally sharp minds at council could be useful..." she mused.

 

"May I think about your... offer, Kirin? Jeremiah asked after a few moments of intense thought." He hoped he hadn't offended her... Still the stories he had always heard told always and inevitably portrayed the werewolves as monsters; creatures to be destroyed. Kirin..oh, Kirin... he thought, Why do you have to be a wolf.. what did you do that brought this upon yourself." His more reasonable brain instantly told him to quit being ridiculous... if Kirrin had been dangerous and a monster, hadn't she already had plenty of oportunity to hurt or kill him since that tournament where she had dissappeared and she hadn't."

Edited June 7, 2011 by LeopardDragon

[SkySong278]

"I don't want anyone else but you," Des said in reply as she looked over at him before hearing everything else he said. "I don't care if you cuss or drink; you're the first person besides my parents that actually cares about me. No one else in this pack does except for maybe my friends." In reply to his question she said, "Yeah there's a pub nearby. I can take you to it if you're interested."

[Packgoater]

((Earwig isn't doing this anymore, the time difference and how we get on way more than he does makes it difficult for himm to catch up. So Skry died and Nyko was killed by a guard. Got it?))

Alpha opened his eyes, their pale blue icy, so unlike Adelbrecht's. He sat up, sharp teeth showing in a grin. His eyes studied the scene before him. Jeremiah, a human? Sitting right beside Kirin? What had Adelbrecht done? Alpha did the things that made stuff happen. Alpha could get Kirin all to himself if Adelbrecht would just let him. Adelbrecht was the original one. Alpha hadn't always been here. It was when Adelbrecht was bitten. He was bitten on a full moon. It wasn't quite Ochi, no. He had the personalities of both the wolf, Alpha and the human, Adelbrecht. It wasn't just a split-personality disorder. There really was two people in his head.

 

"What's a pretty thing like you sitting next to him? I'm much better for you. More money, more fame. What's he have that I don't? He's got nothing compared to me. Noth-," he was cut off and then let out a blood curdling scream. Silvery liquid was spat out of his mouth. Once more, he slumped to the ground.

[LeopardDragon]

(Yep! That is sad, though...)

 

Kirin glanced over at the once more unconscious Adelbrecht... what had being Alpha done to him? He had been a human... once, she was sure of that. Yes, she finally decided, her plan was a good one. She would avoid conflict with the other Betas as much as possible... the idea of being challenged to a wolf's duel scared her a little, but it also made the Alpha blood in her veins race and burn in a way that truely surprsied her... was she decending into some sort of Alpha-wolf madness, too? She truely hoped not. But what had made her any different from Adelbrecht, what had happened to make him this way?

 

Jeremiah yelped in alarm and backed up a few steps when the werewolf had sat up again and started speaking... He didn't care to be within arm's reach of the Alpha when he was in the wrong mood, from what he had gathered. odd, though that Kirin never seeemed to get like this, if she also had Alpha blood, whatever that meant, and he meant to find out. He had seen the look she had given the Alpha... the Alpha wolf,no less when she had thought that he might try to change him against his will; he firmly believed that he could trust her with his life, somehow.

Edited June 7, 2011 by LeopardDragon

[Packgoater]

((I know... 'tis sad. I figure since there's two people in one head (Adelbrecht's), I ought to make him charrie sheet.

 

Forum Username: Packgoater

Character Name: Adelbrecht refers to him as 'Alpha', but his name is Sylver, not that anyone bothers to ask.

Using a Color?: Mm... I think I'll use pale blue.

Gender: Male... I guess.

Age: Hm... I guess he's been in Adelbrecht's head for... 11 years.

Category: N/A

Word of Claw: Halycon. I've memorized that.

Pack (if applicable): He's Alpha of UK pack

Background and Reason for Category: He's in Adelbrecht's head. Once he was a wolf. A real wolf. He was the wolf Adelbrecht turned into. At the same time on the full moon they were both bitten by a werewolf. Why anybody decided to bite a wolf beats me. Now he shares a body with Adelbrecht. They hate each other.

Appearance (as human [and wolf, if applicable]): Same as Adelbrecdht, but he has icier eyes.

Introduction: [[a paragraph or two to set the scene of what your character is doing]]

 

 

'Adelbrecht! I had everything under control! Why did you not let me? Why did you do that?' he hissed mentally, his voice raspy, almost a woof. He pulled away from Adelbrecht's body, into the room. He was a pale blue wolf that seemed to shimmer before one's eye. If you looked at him at the corner of your eye, you couldn't see him. It was just Alpha's soul. He opened his mouth and spoke to Kirin.

 

"Really. You don't need Adelbrecht or Jeremiah or anyone. You just need me. I'm perfect for you. I know chess. I can play it, and play it well. Chess isn't an innocent girl's game. Chess isn't a stupid girl's game. I like that. I like it a lot," he hissed, even though he knew she couldn't hear him. His voice was too quiet in this form. Adelbrecht was lucky for that. Kirin would just be able to see him. He sighed, again unable to be heard, and sat on his haunches. ))

 

Adelbrecht slowly sat up, leaning on one arm. His eyes were unfocused, but it was him now, not Alpha. He shook his head, dark circles underneath his eyes. He was breathing hard, and continues to hack up his silvery blood. Finally it cleared and he was able to speak.

 

"What did he... what did he say? I'm sorry. I... I have no real control over this. I truly am sorry. I suppose you have some more questions for me, Kirin?" he sighed, his eyes still slightly cloudy. He did manage to see the pale form of Alpha's soul. This made his face darken and he glared at the wolf. He glanced apologetically at Jeremiah and could see that he might be afraid of him. He had all the reason to be. Adelbrecht didn't want that. He wanted Jeremiah to realize that Alpha was not Adelbrecht and Vice Versa. If that would ever happen was a different matter.

 

Beck grinned, his eyes glittering in the low light. "That's what I had hoped you'd say. Yeah, I'm interested. Can you take me today? As in, right now?" he asked, standing up. "I'm sorry I just flipped out... I'm going through quite a bit. As I probably just told you..."

[SkySong278]

"About there being a pub or about me wanting you instead of wanting someone else?" Des asked in reply to his first statement just to confirm what he meant. "Sure I can," she said in reply to his questions before hearing the rest of what he said. "It's fine," she said in reply as she started to head out of the house. "I kind of went through the same stuff when my parents were murdered. I was only ten and they did it right in front of me. Lots of nightmares I had for awhile." Edited June 7, 2011 by Dragonpelt

[LeopardDragon]

I guess, most important," she said after a moments hesitation to be sure she was talking to Adelbrecht and not Alpha, this time," what I need to know is if my Alpha blood will do to me what it has to you..." Her voice trailed off here, not intending to elaborate much on exactly what might happen should she suddenly go mad in the middle of a tournament hall full of people. " I did some thinking on it... and I think I will accept the responsibility of an Beta wolf of the pack...I might be able to help you keep tabs on the other betas" she said with a sly grin. " Jeremiah tells me that he needs some time to think about my offers" Somehow, though she understood how felt and would certainly have felt the same in his shoes, she wished that she could show him that being a werewolf wasn't all bad.It was then that she saw, or thought she did, the faint silvery outline of a ghostly wolf in the room with them... she tensed... could anyone else see it?

Jeremiah sat cautiously, watching the Alpha... or was it Adelbrecht , this time.. he wasn't sure, and while Adelbrecht was freindly enough, the Alpha seemed to like Kirin and he seemed to view him, as a rival. "What was all this Kirin was saying accepting the post of a Beta in the Pack? there were whole packs of werewolves? How were they able to keep themselves hidden enough that most humans were unaware of their existance? Interesting... he mused.Je had noticed the sad, sorry look that Adelbreht had sent him... it seemed he was humself, again for the moment. Poor guy... Jeremiah thought sombnerly what must it be like to change so suddenly... And Jeremiah suspected that he didn't lnow the half of it... He then noticed that Kirin appeared to be looking anxiously at... what? He looked but he couldn't seem to spot what was so obviously making her tense.

Edited June 8, 2011 by LeopardDragon

[Packgoater]

"Ah... both. An I'm sorry. About your parents. Look here. Two broken and lost souls, stuck having to stand alone. The horrors and pains of life," he sighed, following her out of her house into the busy street that was barely lit by dim, blue lights that seemed to glow like the moon. It was a beautiful night and little whispers of winter blew across the soft breezes into the cave. Late fall was a beautiful time and loved by the wolves, but not as much as winter. Snow was promised to the wolves and, with it, bare trees, exposing the werewolf hideout. Last year they had to kill a few humans who spotted it. How many would end up dead this year?

 

Tess stalked across a hard, crystal floor. She wore a black dress that went to the ground and covered her arms. Her face had a deadly scowl and any that crossed her was sure to end up on the floor. Her eyebrows slightly lifted as she saw Des and some man walk by her. She hadn't seen this one before.

 

"Who's he?" she said sharply, tear streaks still visible on her face from when Skry had died. He had died honorably and she had made sure the soldier payed his dues. That soldier was dead now. He had also been the soldier who had killed her boyfriend. She still stung and was hurt that she had to be the one to bring the news to Adelbrecht. She hated the man. He was attractive, yes. But he wouldn't let her have any power, not even if she was Alpha female. She wanted power and that wasn't the way to get it. Adelbrecht had recently promoted her to Beta, meaning she was now the respected one, most would bow to her, but she wouldn't push it with a sort-of friend, especially one who was with a guy right now.

 

[SkySong278]

"Okay and it's fine," Des said in reply as they walked in the city. "I got over it when I was thirteen." As they walked, she reveled in the cold winter air. They were almost out of the city when Tess came across them. "This is Beck," she said in reply to her question with a slight tilt of the head wondering what was wrong in order for her to have tear streaks on her cheeks and for her to be in the mood that she was in now. "He's a new recruit. Did something happen Tess?"

[Packgoater]

"What happened?! Why don't you find out! Why weren't you there? You had worked with him! You had worked with him before! But it was just me and him! No one else! Because no one else cares about what happens to me or him! BECAUSE NO ONE CARES!" she screamed. "Why the heck are you standing here with this guy when people are dying?" she shouted, kicking Beck hard enough in the gut that he fell to the ground, unable to get up from the pain. "Why am I the one who has to take the news to Alpha? Why?!" she shouted, stomping away to an SUV and driving hurriedly away. How could Des be hanging out with some guy while Skry died? How could she?

 

"No. There are... reasons I'm like this. It has nothing to do with alpha blood. Alpha blood just means you're the most likely candidate to be Alpha. But when there are other betas with it... nothing is positive. And yes, any werewolf can see Alpha. That right there is proof that I don't have split-personality disorder. What happened, 11 or 12 years ago, caused the wolf I turn into to be an actual wolf that was living. One day some idiot decided to bite a wolf at the same time I was bitten. Our souls combined into one creature, except he can get out of my body if he wants to. He can also solidify his form so that even Jeremiah can see him. Other humans have seen him before, assuming he's my dog. He's more the one who keeps me on a leash," he half laughed, half coughed, his face twisting in pain. He shook it off, deep circles beneath his eyes. Going back and forth between Adelbrecht and Alpha exhausted his body. He half smiled as Alpha solidified his form and walked over to the middle of the room, knocking over an expensive lamp as he did so. Adelbrecht silently groaned. Why was Alpha such a klutz?

[LeopardDragon]

Krin was shocked... she hadn't even realized such a thing was even possible... it seemed there was far more to being a werewolf than she had initially thought."That is, " she said, more softly this time," with your permission... sir." She emphasized the last word. This new revalation cemented her plans even more firmly in her mind... she would need to be careful, but then sh had known that already. Oddly enough she found that part of her was hurt... was it Alpha then, that liked her and not Adelbrecht at all... in fact... the mere fact that this did hurt her came a s a aurprise. She looked back at Jeremiah who seemed to be watching the whole conversation with much interest. She had to wonder what he must think of all this... probably not the best first impression of werewolves... She glanced back to the Adelbrecht to see if he was alright, because the physical toll of fighting Alpha had been so severe.

 

Jeremiah was watching the goings on... he actually felt a pang of pity now, for this man. On the surface, he appeared to have it all, money, power, even good looks, but... inside he was battling things noone should ever have to deal with.... perhaps Kirin had seen that , and that is why she had obviously taken an interest in Adelbrecht? And what should he choose? More than anything he wanted to be with Kirin, but he was deathly afraid of beicoming a werewolf, which he would have to to have that. He sighed to himself... why did life have to be so confusing.

Edited June 8, 2011 by LeopardDragon

[SkySong278]

"I had other orders," Des said in reply before she got really upset and kicked Beck really hard. When she walked away and then drove off she said softly as she helped Beck up, "I do care about him or rather I did." She sniffed as tears started to fall down her cheeks and she added, "I'm sorry that you got most of Tess's wrath. It usually only happens after someone she cares about dies and she really did care about Skry, our friend that died. She should've kicked me, though, instead of you since I deserved it."

[Packgoater]

"Oh yesss, you found out the truth. It's not Adelbrecht that's interested in you, just I. Adelbrecht could care less about you. He's into other women," Alpha hissed, only to yelp after Adelbrecht chucked a lamp at him. Alpha trotted back over to Kirin, sitting by her feet. "I'd take care of you. I'd love you. I'd give you anything you could ever wa-" he was cut off by Adelbrecht picking him up and throwing him against the nearest wall, which was made of glass. Alpha slid to the floor, the glass being bullet-proof. He slowly pried himself off the ground and turned to face Adelbrecht. Man against wolf. Before Adelbrecht could move, Alpha leaped upon him, tearing a huge gash in one shoulder. Adelbrecht pushed him into the ground and kicked him once, not too hard, in the shoulder. Alpha was down. For maybe an hour.

Alpha sat in the chair again, wiping off silvery liquid from his wound. He took off one of his shoes, Showing them the silver soles.

 

"Just as effective against Alpha. And he's wrong, by the way. He's wrong about me. Of course I'm interested in you. I wouldn't have brought you here if I didn't. I wouldn't have shown Jeremiah my safe house, my secret. I wouldn't have fought Alpha off if I didn't care about how it would effect you if Jeremiah was turned against his will, or worse. He's wrong. Before I was giving you to Jeremiah because it's right. Because he's right. He'd be good for you. I wouldn't. My life is like this, Kirin. I'm constantly trying to get rid of Alpha. But I can't. I'm constantly fighting him. I'm constantly fighting off assassins of people who want me dead for something Alpha did. I don't want you wrapped up in that. They'd be targeting you next. Don't get me wrong, if I could have some way to be able to have you, I would find it. There just isn't a way," he said, walking briskly over to a wall and leaning against it, looking across at the night sky. How he wished there was a way...

 

"Who is she? Who is he? This is really confusing, you know. Why don't we talk about it at your place. I don't think I'm in the mood for beer," he said, standing up and still clutching his stomach. "Why is she so good at kicking? Or hurting people? Is everyone here a werewolf?"

 

 

[LeopardDragon]

Kirin nodded sadly, unfortunately, what Adelbrecht was telling her made altogether too much sense. She had seen , she guessed, only some of what Adelbrecht was capable of when Alpha took control, if even for a little while.She ddid fell sorry for him... what good were wealth and power when wasnt ever entirely in control of one's own mind? Though Adelbrecht didn't look like he was really in the mood to discuss the matter of Alpha any frther. She realized then that now was probably a very good time to strategically change the subject. " What about the other Beta wolves," she asked him curiously," I don't believe that I know any of them, and its probably best if I know before hand what I am getting myself into." Come to think of it there are so many basic things I still don't really know" she added with a look that might have been frustration, shame or perhaps a bit of both crossed her face. Would the other wolves even accept her as a Beta, as relatively recently as she had been turned and as inexperienced as she admittedly was? She wasn't at all sure, but she had to try... Alpha needed someone to keep him in line.

 

It was a relief to know that this was an unsusual case, and that she needn't worry about this happening to her as well. There were those wolf instincts, of course and those had a way of popping up at the most inopportune moments, but still, she had gotten very good at ignoring them or else finding a "safe way to indulge them". She grinned as she remembered the time she had ordered a steak rare at that fancy resteraunt where the tournament directors had been holding a party in Berlin shortly after she had returned from her dissapearance.She had honestly not meant to unerve him so badly; and admitedly she had always prefered her meat more well done bfore... well... the incident. She managed to wrangle her wandering brain back to the taks at hand, which was learning as much as she could about werewolves from Adelbrecht.

Edited June 9, 2011 by LeopardDragon

[Packgoater]

Adelbrecht looked sadly at Kirin. "Well, you do know one. Tess. I really didn't want her to be one, but things happen. And as I can judge, she'll be here any minute. Once you're beta, you are allowed to know about this place. She's come to tell me Skry is dead. Joy. That's another problem I have on my hands. The betas want Tess to be Alpha female, because she has different ideas about this whole thing than I do and she's more aggressive than I. She'd probably start running the whole organization. Skry was supposed to get her interested in him, that way I could have an excuse..... and, she's here." he said, slightly surprised at the black gown she was wearing. Was she really that close with Skry?

 

"So. You've got exactly what you wanted, Sir," she said mockingly, tossing her head and smiling thinly at Adelbrecht. "Skry's dead. And now I'm free. You probably put that soldier there yourself. So, you've got me. But I won't be happy. Not at all. I will never-"

 

"Shut up! What the h*** are you talking about? Me interested in you? You've got it all wrong, Tess. All wrong. I hired Skry so he would keep you away from me. You know how the Betas are."

 

"Probably at your command. I don't believe it. You're saying that the Betas all planned this?"

 

"That's exactly what I'm saying. Jeremiah, I need to know if you're with us or not. Now. If you aren't, you need to leave. As in the country. Something is terribly wrong and if they find out you're connected with Kirin, you're good as dead. If you want to be a werewolf, I can help you. You'll be stronger than you are right now and I could use an extra hand that I can trust. Kirin, either say goodbye to Jeremiah or get him bitten by Tess. She's an expert, she can do it painlessly. And Kirin, the Betas are people thirsty for power, who will do anything for it. They are highly trained and know how to kill. This is all about to get a lot more dangerous and a lot bigger than just the UK. Jeremiah, are you with us or not?"