Mani (bhookh) wrote in st_margarets, @ 2018-05-14 11:34:00 |
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Entry tags: | character: domino maddox, character: mani clarke, location: the woods |
thread: animal
WHO: Domino Maddox and Mani Clarke
WHEN: Sunday, May 13th, afternoon
WHERE: The woods
WARNING: Vague mentions of nudity, gore
The beginning of the weekend hadn’t been the worst time to arrive at a new school. Monday, and the start of classes, was still a couple of day away. Much of Saturday had been spent in meetings and orientation and tours. New information and sights were thrown at him in a flurry, much too quickly for him to process it all. As overwhelming as it was for him, Mani had to give his aunt Alisha a lot of credit. For being just a human, she took everything in stride. Eventually, Mani was left on his own in his dorm room in Ladon house. He called his parents to let them know he got there okay, chatting with them as he started to unpack and arrange his new space how he wanted it.
Sleep didn’t come easily or quickly that night, both because of being the first night in a new place and because of all the thoughts and questions he had about his new surroundings. Mani was curious, interested, wanted to know more about everything. He was tempted to just stay up, as he tended to be a night owl, but Mani knew he should try to have a productive day the next day, before he classes would start. After a few hours of laying down with his mind racing, Mani did eventually drift off to sleep.
He woke late the next morning, taking his time getting up and going. Mani spent a little more time fixing up his room, but by afternoon began to feel restless, wanting to explore beyond this space. His eyes were being drawn to the woods he could see from his bedroom window. He really wanted to explore. Properly explore. Mani had always had good luck finding some sort of carrion in the woods, so it was those thoughts that drove him outside. He tried not to think about his hunger, but it was difficult not to. It had been a few days since he’d had any ‘fresh food’, as he tended to think of it, and he did have a craving for it.
He tried to look casual as he walked out to the edge of the woods, strolling along the tree line for a few minutes before finally walking in, finding a narrow path to follow. He walked for a while, wanting to get deeper into the woods and to feel assured he was alone before taking on a different form. Mani stopped when he came across a large, fallen tree, recently downed from the looks of it. It would be an easy spot to find again. After looking around and listening to ensure that he was alone, Mani undressed, leaving his clothing in a pile atop some dried leaves beside the downed tree, out of sight, just in case. He bent over as he shifted from human shape to hyena, the process quick.
As his four feet hit the earth, Mani could immediately feel his heightened animal senses come to life. His head perked up and nose sniffed the air, right away he could smell something, a carcass, not far off. He waited a moment, listening and sniffing, wanting to be sure he was alone. He could only discern the noises of smaller creatures and birds, most trying to keep a generously safe distance from the new creature in the forest. Certain he was alone, Mani started to move. It didn’t take him long to find it, something in a hole that had been dug out under a tree. He had to dig a bit, widening the hole to get to it, but he managed to squeeze his head into the hole and grab the small animal with his teeth, pulling it out. It was a rabbit, he’d guess it had been mauled but not killed, and had stayed alive long enough to get into the hole. Overcome with the urge to consume the dead animal, Mani held it down and tore at it, hungrily consuming the meat. He feasted greedily, engrossed in his feeding. As he finished, his mind finally starting to disengage from his task, he realized with a start that he really hadn’t been paying attention to anything else. He paused, staying completely still as he listened and tried to sense if he was still alone. He seemed to be, but he couldn’t shake the feeling of uneasiness now. He slowly stood, still vigilant, and began to slowly move back toward where he’d left his clothes.