Langston M. Worthington is a fast mofo (_coalition) wrote in light_of_may, @ 2012-03-31 10:39:00 |
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Entry tags: | #group scene, 2009-09-04, andy, gavin, langston |
No light, no light in your bright blue eyes
Who: Gavin, Langston, and later, Andy
Where: their apartment above Kaleidoscope
When: hours before moonrise, so late afternoon/early evening
No amount of preparation, nor research, nor asking friends for advice could have prepared Langston for just how much he was capable of shaking. It was impossible to pace himself out; after about an hour of it, and Gavin telling him he needed to stop, to relax, he had simply stopped, his whole body shuddering. He needed to get out, to run, to do something. The muscles in his neck were bulging in his efforts to remain in one place. The were-whatever inside him did not want to remain still, it wanted to run. To run and to never stop. The calm he’d felt the day prior -- after much coaxing and reassurance from Gavin -- was gone, fled with the daylight. The sun hadn’t even set yet, but the mounting tension had gotten so bad that Langston was sure he would snap, his brain would just cease functioning. Wasn’t that how it happened, though? The change would come and everything that made him Langston would be gone -- the boisterous loud mouth would be replaced with some sort of monster, all claws and ferocity. Now that the moments leading up to the time when he’d have to actually get in the cage were mere hours away, Langston was not ready, and never could be. He was a breath away from bolting, he could feel it. Turning around in a slow, careful circle, Langston faced the cage. Reaching out, his hands shaking violently, he grasped the metal, his fists clenching around it, biting into his flesh. It was not painful, but the grip gave him something to anchor himself with, a touchstone to keep him grounded. There was not much else he could do -- no amount of breathing or attempting to think of anything else could help him now.
Instinct. That was what was kicking in, and Langston was still so unused to it. His human instincts were still there, that was true -- after all, every creature had the drive for survival -- but they were overlapped and smothered by the wildcat inside. It took him a long moment before he formed the thoughts, the words that he wanted to speak. Anything to distract him. He tried out the sounds, his mouth finding that words were somehow strikingly foreign to him in this state -- a sound like a growl came out where he was sure he’d tried to ask something about the time. Shaking his head, Langston took a deep breath in, his nostrils blown wide with the effort of sucking the air in and out. “Is it time yet?” His voice, the thing that he’d always counted on to be loud and heard, was suddenly so quiet. Too quiet. If there was anything that was startling about the impending transformation, it was that it was already begun. Langston could feel the edge of true, blind panic working its way through his veins. His hands clenched down harder on the metal, forcing himself to focus on it. He wasn’t ready, he couldn’t face this without some sort of reassurance that he wouldn’t change completely. He needed to see for himself the look he imagined on his brother’s face -- would Gavin be shocked? Upset? Langston could barely keep his thoughts in order, so how in the world was his brother staying calm? He had always been the rock of their family, the steadfast one. Would he crumble under the pressure? Langston hoped not. He needed him, so badly he had not truly realized just how much. He turned back around, keeping one hand firmly on the cage, his eyes searching Gavin’s face. The fear scent in the air was definitely his, but there wasn’t anything he could do about that now. His pupils were narrowed down to pinpricks, even in the fading light of the apartment. “I’m scared.” As much as he’d tried to force the words out with his signature volume, it didn’t happen. The tone of his voice was much like it had been years and years ago, when Gavin was the only thing in the world that could protect him -- in as much as he was able -- from all the bad things they’d been through.
A child’s voice.
Knowing that his brother wouldn’t leave him was something he needed reinforced, no matter how many times Gavin had assured him of it. “Don’t leave me.” Something stung at his eyes and Langston blinked, feeling the glimmer of tears rolling down his cheeks. That he had gotten scared enough to cry was just the measure of how out of his depth he truly was. His joking, cocky manner was thrown straight to the wind; all that was left was a broken child, afraid of the dark and what the moon would bring.
It didn’t help that Gavin was no more prepared for this than Langston was. The only way it was “easier” was that he wasn’t the one in the cage. Gavin would have preferred it was him, actually. That way his little brother wouldn’t have to go through this. But there was nothing that could be done to change it now. The moon was here, Lang was going to shift, and Gavin was going to watch over him, just like he promised. And it hurt, seeing Langston like this, very much like the little boy he’d been when their dad walked out. If Gavin could have, he would have taken this all away for him. Only one of them needed to deal with all the bad things in life.
The growl shouldn’t have surprised him, but it did, and Gavin blinked, shaking his head as if to clear it. Lang, this was Lang, no matter what he turned into in the next few minutes. “It’s close.” Gavin’s voice was quiet, even for him. He couldn’t force Langston into the cage, but he was starting to wonder if he’d have to. Gavin would be strong, for Langston. They’d weathered worse before, they could handle this too. They had to.
Seeing Langston almost start crying, though, that damn near broke him. Gavin came forward to hold his brother, just like how one would soothe a child after a nightmare. He rocked the taller man back and forth, keeping Langston close. “I’m right here,” he whispered, “right here, all night, not going anywhere. I promise.” He’d promise him that a thousand times over if he thought it would help. “Lang, look at me.” He brushed his brother’s hair out of his face. “You need to get in the cage. Before you shift on me.” Judging by the way Lang was acting, it was probably closer than Gavin knew.
It didn’t matter. Lang was still his brother and if this was what had to be done, then so be it.
Seeing as he’d never gone through this before, Langston had no idea how close the change was from seizing him -- never mind that the moon’s rise was still hours away. He could feel his body shaking and he could keenly feel the call of the moon, but he had no ability to gauge just when he should be getting in the cage. Soon. That was all he knew. In the stark silence of the apartment, Gavin’s quiet voice was both a shock and a relief. So, it was not just Langston whose voice had been blown silent. Langston merely nodded, not wanting to voice anything else lest he break. Is this what a full breakdown feels like? He shoved the thought away, it would do him no good to lose it completely. The hold he had on the metal of the cage felt like it was only a tenuous lifeline to the miasma of emotions that were building inside Lang’s skin. A shudder went through him, from the top of his spine to his toes. It scared him, how he had not been able to stop his body from moving with it. Another tremor hit him, but this one was different; it was like some big cat had just shook out its coat, from the inside out. “Gavin...” This was seriously freaking him the fuck out, and the anxiety and strain in just the way he said his brother’s name spoke volumes.
It was an immense relief when Gavin came up to hold him, and Langston let himself be comforted. It brought him back to all those nights when their mother was too busy with her clients to be there for them. How their world had been comprised of just the two of them, and just how easy it had been to get through things with Gavin around. Tears slipped past his closed eyelids as his brother rocked him, and Langston clenched his teeth against any and all sounds that might come forth from crying. He was not going to sob, he would be alright, Gavin promised him so. He clung to his brother for a moment, his eyes blinking open when he brushed the hair out of his face, asking him to look at him. You need to get in the cage. Before you shift on me. Such a simple request, really. Except it seemed as though Langston couldn’t comply, his one hand staying clenched to the metal. He forced his hand to open, to withdraw his hand from the cage. Just take a step. And then another. Slowly, so slowly, his entire body vibrating with the effort to stay calm, Lang made his way to the cage. Just a few more steps. Right at the front of the cage, another, more intense tremor rocked through him, his spine curling in a way his human body was not made to. The movement brought him bodily against the door, his hands coming up to catch him. The cage banged shut, the shuddering movements of his bones hitting him faster, making it harder for him to move. Langston frantically made a pass at opening the cage back up, a strange sound that was half human and half animal catching in his throat. The door swung open but it might as well have done so to a blind man.
The change was beginning to happen in earnest, and Langston was not even in the cage. He was too panicked to stay calm, to let the change come with the moon. A strange cry leapt up and out as Lang fought to make himself understood in a body that was shifting rapidly. Human vocal chords were replaced by the ones that were made for snarling and hissing. Where he had meant to shout out a warning for Gavin to get the fuck out of there, another terrified animal scream sounded in its place. The bones in his body startled to ripple and shift, and Langston was not prepared -- could have never been prepared -- for how painful it was to have his joints floating and grinding, moving to different positions. A garbled scream was bubbling up from his lips, the sound making his own hair stand on end along his body. When had Langston dropped to the floor? A feeble movement saw him trying to get himself into the cage -- he wasn’t supposed to shift outside of it! -- but he was jarred again when the joints in his legs separated, coming back together backwards. Or, backwards for a normal human body. A fine itching sensation started all over his skin as fur exploded forth from his flesh, his whole body making gross popping and ripping sounds to accompany the painful and terrifying sensations. Langston tried not to fight the change, but it was hard to just let it happen, and he could feel his new body protesting the fact that he had clenched down on his muscles. Pain shot along the length of his spine and he felt a strange pulling sensation, his vertebrae lengthening to form a tail which began twisting and flickering about the moment it was fully formed. Searing pain filled his skull as his teeth shifted and lengthened, his jaw repositioning to form the muzzle of a wildcat.
Settling into the new form, the control was gone from his movements and given way to the instinctual mind of the big cat he’d become. The animal lifted its head, scenting the air. The scent of man filled the animal’s nostrils as it turned around to face its new prey. Without a second’s hesitation, the hybrid cheetah crouched and lunged, a scream tearing up in its throat as it collided bodily with the man.
Gavin hadn’t seen Langston like this in years. Not even when he’d woken up in the hospital and Lang had to tell him what happened to Anthony, and he knew how much that had hurt his brother to do. But Gavin had given him his word, and tomorrow morning when this was all over, they’d know exactly what to expect for next time. They just had to get through the night first, and then it would be over. Gavin, at least, would not judge his brother for crying, and he wouldn’t dare tell a soul what happened tonight, either. It was none of their business, anyway. Gavin was about to tell Langston again that he had to get into the cage, and even gone so far as to start to guide him in, when Langston started to move on his own. Good, the more he accepted this, the better it would be, right?
And then it was too late.
It wasn’t like Gavin was entirely unprepared to see his brother change. He knew it was coming, he knew it was going to happen, and yet - yeah, there were no words to describe it. There was a sort of feral beauty to it, even while it was grotesque too, because it sounded as painful as it had to be. If this is natural, why does it look like it’s going to kill him? Gavin’s feet seemed cemented to the floor as he stood there in shock, taking in the sight before him. Langston had gotten the cage door open... but he was no longer focused on the cage. Now he was shifting, bones moving, joints rearranging, fur and skin merging into one. Half beast, half man. And from the markings, it looked like Langston might be a cheetah. Or, half cheetah. And it wasn’t until the creature stopped and started sniffing the air that Gavin realized how fucked he actually was.
He should have ran. He should have tried to get Langston in the cage sooner. He should have done something besides stand there and just take the creature in, Gavin’s fingers curling together and unfolding again, unable to make his body move. Lang’s still in there somewhere. He has to be able to hear me. I promised him I wouldn’t leave him. But if his brother’s consciousness was still in there, it was gone now. This beast was not the crying man from a second ago, it was all teeth and claws - and it came right at Gavin.
Gavin had gotten the shit kicked out of him a lot as a kid. He came home with more black eyes and split lips and bruises than he cared to remember. He’d learned self defense so it would never happen again. But being thrown to the ground by a hybrid were-cheetah? Gavin’s brain had no idea how to process that. The claws ripped through his shirt and into his chest, and Gavin bit back the scream that wanted to get out. He didn’t want to hurt Langston, but this wasn’t Langston right now. He had to remember that. Lang would forgive him, wouldn’t he? It took a moment of struggling to get his legs up enough so he could kick the thing off him, a futile move to try and buy himself some time.
Everything that made Langston Langston was gone, fled in the wake of the hybrid form that had claimed him. A form with instincts that said that he needed to hunt, to run over and catch this appetizing smelling bit of prey. The act of lunging at the human was invigorating, the claws raking out to caress the soft, supple flesh. The scent of blood as it hit the air made the beast growl in hunger. Just as quickly as the hybrid were-cheetah had struck against its intended meal, it was met with resistance. Resistance in the form of a well placed kick to his underbelly, causing the animal to scream in rage and just a little bit of pain. The short tumble it took to the ground off and away from the prey scented thing was disorienting and angering to the beast. It scrambled back up to its feet, its lip curled up in a snarl. It circled in closer, assessing through scent the damage it had done to the man. The second time it crouched down was more calculated, the eyes gleaming brightly in the low light of the apartment. Muscles bulged and a telltale growl erupted from the beast before it lunged again, pushing off towards the wounded man. The disorienting kick it had received was just enough to slow the speed of the beast’s lunge a fraction, its progress much easier to gauge as it came hurtling at its prey.
That snarl scared Gavin more than he cared to admit to anyone. It was primal, it was an animal even though he could see hints of Langston’s features still there. Half-beast, half-man, and all of it was coming straight for him. Gavin tried to get back up to his feet, a struggle when his body was telling him to give up and run like hell - but Gavin couldn’t do that. He promised he wouldn’t leave Langston alone and he wasn’t stupid, he knew that if he left the hybrid were alone in the apartment, he would get out. He would hurt someone else. Gavin was going to have to fight this one alone. Shit. Shit shit shit SHIT. And in the time it took Gavin to reach that conclusion, the beast was coming for him again. He only had one option, and that was to knock Langston out, somehow. Then he could get him back in the cage and lock it up tight, and next full moon, Langston was getting his ass in there way before he had to, just to be safe. But still, the were was faster than the human, and the next thing Gavin knew he was down on the ground again, hands going up to its chest so he could try to pry it off him again.
That its prey didn’t do much more than lie there on the ground gave the were-cheetah the advantage. Even in the hybrid form, it was much faster than it was strong. And even then, it was a great deal stronger than the human who was so quickly beneath its paws again once the lunge was completed. The hands at its chest did nothing more than infuriate the beast -- and cause the range it had with its teeth to be slightly less than normal. Grappling with its prey for a moment, the beast snarled in frustration and rage. Its teeth clamped down on empty air once, twice, its muzzle going for the chest or the neck of the wounded man. With a wild burst of energy the cheetah braced forward, twisting its head to the side to catch the man in the upper arm on the left side. Blood filled the creature’s jaws and it clamped its teeth down harder, reflexively reacting to the sweet salt taste on its tongue. A sound that was half growl and half gurgle filled the air, the beast’s tongue laving at the wound for a moment, its claws digging in where they were braced on the man’s chest. Nothing was in its mind save for the act of beginning its feast -- no thoughts that it was in immediate danger were capable of reaching the creature through the dizzying certainty of instinct.
If nothing else, Gavin hadn’t expected just how fast the thing could move. It wasn’t like he didn’t realize that weres were stronger and had better senses, because Langston had told him as much, but the speed? Holy shit, that caught him off guard, and that was the only reason why he was able to deflect the first few snaps of its jaws. But it was short lived as Gavin couldn’t get out of the way quick enough, and the hybrid’s jaws caught his left arm. Gavin let out a sound that might have been a scream, or a shout, and in retrospect he wouldn’t know the difference either way. There was blood, he could feel it sticking to his clothes and the scent of it filling the room - oh my god, I’ve been bitten by the bitten. If that realization sunk in, then Gavin was going to freak out even more than he already was, and it would get worse the more he thought about it. Right now, he didn’t have time to think or cry about it. The hybrid was licking the blood off him, and it was going to kill him if he didn’t fight back. Lang, I’m so sorry. You’re going to have to forgive me. Gavin had to remember that this wasn’t Langston, not right now, and he had to keep his head on straight even while he was getting a little dizzy, thanks to the blood he was losing.
Gavin shifted until he could get his hands free, bringing his uninjured arm up - and thank god it was his good arm - and grabbing the thing by the throat and shoving it off him, aided by another well-timed kick to the chest. Then, his left arm lying more or less dead at his side, Gavin scrambled to his feet. The hybrid was stronger than him. Faster. And he was wounded. He had to get help, get out of here, do something. But what? Leaving the apartment would mean there was a chance Lang could get out and hurt someone else. Gavin couldn’t let that happen. His feet were moving before he could really stop himself, and he stumbled out of the apartment - suddenly thankful he’d yet to lock their front door - and down into his studio below.
Outside, the night was a little damp and a little humid, but that hadn’t stopped Andy from going out and enjoying the evening. She’d left the house without a real destination in mind, though she had promised her mother she’d be back before too late. Not that she was a child and thus needed a babysitter, but she didn’t want to worry anyone if she didn’t have to. She was walking down the street, passing by some sort of studio - Kaleidoscope, the sign said above the door - and she paused, trying to look inside to see some of the pictures posted on the walls.
Then she noticed that there was something else going on inside the building - a man coming down the stairs, covered in blood, one arm looking seriously injured. Andy might not be a doctor like her brothers were, but she knew a fair amount of white magic, and she didn’t want to see anyone suffer if she might be able to help. “Hello?” she called, knocking on the door to the studio. “Can you hear me? Are you okay? Do you need help?” Walking away had, at this point, never occurred to her. Fear was not an emotion Curiosity felt all that often, and she wasn’t about to start now.
The taste of blood in the creature’s mouth greatly distracted the beast from any and all other senses -- even the hybrid’s sight was a little dim in the wake of the sweet, sweet taste of blood. That its prey was making any sort of attempt to get away came to the creature in a dim, sort of bloody haze. The pressure at its throat startled the beast and it gave a strangled scream, barely having much time to react at all before the kick landed in its chest. It wasn’t so much hurt as it was disoriented -- prey was not supposed to fight back -- as it crashed to the floor. And then suddenly the deliciously scented thing was running away! Getting up to its feet, the hybrid cheetah lunged after it, practically collapsing down the strangely constructed little space -- stairs were not something the beast was capable of navigating. Shaking its head to clear it once the were had stopped its frantic tumble down to the ground floor level, it quickly sighted the man again. A low, almost pained growl echoed out as it gathered its energy to lunge again. The percussive sound of banging caught its attention momentarily as it swiveled its ears and then its head towards the noise. A strange, bereft sound filled its chest as it turned back to its prey, crouching down to pounce again. With a strong push off with its hind legs, the creature launched itself at the man, toppling him over as he crashed into him.
Gavin didn’t have time to react to the girl standing outside the door. If he did, he might have told her to run. Or to get help. To do something besides just stand there, because did it look like he was all right? No, no it did not and thankfully there was more adrenaline and fear in his body that kept him from looking at how bad his wounds really were. He was trying to get towards the door when the hybrid came crashing down the stairs. He tried to spin around to face him when the creature - Langston - caught him again, pinning him to the floor and hitting the back of his head, hard. This time, Gavin wasn’t so sure he was going to get back up. Too weak, and the hybrid was too strong, and any semblance that the creature and his brother were one and the same was gone now. Though he struggled, his vision was going black as his body was starting to give out on him.
Langston. Lang, I’m sorry, I should have protected you. This never should have happened to you. I’m sorry, I’m so sorry...
And outside, Andy gasped and took a step back. She’d never actually seen a hybrid were before, though she did know of them, and she’d completely forgotten that tonight was the full moon. If she’d thought about it, then she wouldn’t have been out this late at night alone... but the moon wasn’t completely up yet, was it? Weres didn’t usually shift early, did they? Before her brain could process all of that, the were had taken the injured man down again, and this time it didn’t look like he was getting back up. In that moment, Andy’s mind was made up.
A few tugs on the door, along with using her telekinesis to fiddle with the lock, soon had her inside the building. “Hey!” She was an angel, surely she’d be able to take down a were, shouldn’t she? She’d fought demons before. And somewhere inside the beast there was a person and surely a person would not want to do this to someone else. At least, Andy hoped so. When she couldn’t get the hybrid’s attention right away, she reached out with her powers, ripped a couple of pictures off the walls - and it was a pity, because they were really pretty - and hurdled them into the hybrid. “I’m talking to you! Leave him alone!”
Bending its neck down to sniff at its prey, the creature snarled softly as it snuffled at the wound on the man’s arm. It had just been about to sink its fangs in again when something happened that caused the hybrid to look up. Someone else was inside now and the scent that wafted into the studio gave the creature pause for a moment. It smelled wonderful, but the blood smell coming from the man was winning out. Just as the beast was about to bite the man again, the female made a loud noise that the creature didn’t seem to be able to register as anything other than a nuisance. And then, all of a sudden, things off the walls came hurtling at the beast and it had no time to react before glass shattered against it. An angry yowl echoed out of the beast as he backed off slightly, jumping a little ways away from the glass and the front of the studio. Never mind the loud female that had come in, the hybrid didn’t want to be anywhere near the shards of stuff that had definitely cut into its flesh. It backed away a few paces before it shook itself, refocusing its attention on the woman that smelled so much better than the bleeding man did. Stalking around to one side, the creature growled and made to lunge at the female, its teeth baring in a freakish half-man, half-cheetah snarl.
In all reality, it wasn’t in Andy’s nature to hurt someone. She never wanted to see blood, or death, or destruction, but right now if she didn’t step in, that man was going to die. That would be worse, so she had to do something about it. In the back of her mind, she knew she probably should have waited to get one of her siblings - any of them would have known what to do better than she did, and she knew they’d all freak out once she told them what happened. Well, it was a bit late for that now, as the glass in the frames broke and sliced into the hybrid. Andy’s entire body tensed, waiting for the attack that was to come. And when it did, she had a secret weapon: her wings. Anyone watching the fight from outside the studio would have had quite the show as pale silver and blue wings sprouted from the back of her dress, the fabric tearing where it was in the way, and she flew out of the way of the beast’s lunge. The ceilings weren’t all that high, and she knew flight wasn’t a great advantage in such little space, but at least it was something. She was sure she’d hear that snarl in her dreams for a good long while, and it took everything she had not to flinch and run away. Now, there wasn’t any place for fear, too much adrenaline in her system. With another flick of her hand, she called up all the broken pieces of glass, trying to avoid the injured man as she did so, making a little tornado via telekinesis to fling at the monster. She needed to find some way to knock it out cold, and then she could see about helping the man - as well as locking up the were, who wouldn’t be shifting out of this form any time soon, given what tonight was.
Were it possible for the hybrid cheetah to skid to a stop when its lunge proved fruitless, it would have. Its claws scrambled on the floor but it couldn’t find purchase and instead went sliding into the wall, colliding with a sickening crash and a strangled cry. Getting up to its feet, it looked up at the woman creature, not being able to process much of anything beyond the fact that it couldn’t reach her anymore. It paced the floor, somewhat groggily for having smacked into the wall, but still pretty powerfully. It had just about figured out to jump up on one of the counters to try to jump at the female when it heard a strange sound that drew its attention. There were shining lights reflected in the dying sunlight, and the sound of glass clinking together. A strange tornado looking thing formed and hurtled at the creature. Could a hybrid looked stunned? Instinct told the creature it needed to get out of the way of the dervish coming after it but it had very little room to run. It took off in one direction, knocking over another photo display, more glass shattering under its paws before the glass tornado hit it. Yowling, the beast could feel its skin pierced in several spots from the glass, the scent of blood coming heavy on the air as it began to coat its fur. It shook its coat out and ran blindly into a counter, smacking full in the face against it, paws scrabbling against the surface before it slumped to the ground, a wailing cry filling the shop. It tried getting back to its feet but had somehow picked up some glass in its paws and gave a sharp scream as the shards forced their way deeper into its flesh. Mindless with pain and fury, the hybrid gave a plaintive chuffing sound, as it got unsteadily to its feet. Rage filled its feeble mind as it ran full tilt at the female, leaping for her and coming down hard on the ground with nothing. Its landing soundly was complicated by the blood that coated its paws and it slid smoothly, its head making a thick sound as it fell to the side and connected with some debris on the floor. It finally seemed to slow the animal down, and it was a long time before it seemed as though it might get up, laying there panting and bleeding on the floor.
Oh good lord, the were was strong. Having never faced one before, Andy wasn’t sure what to expect, and she could have sworn the building shook when it hit the wall like that. Part of her wanted to reach out, to make sure the person buried within the monster was all right, but that wasn’t possible when it was also trying to tear her throat out, much like it had already started to do to the man laying on the ground. He was still breathing, Andy could tell that much, and she was going to take that as a good sign. She couldn’t worry about him now, not when the were was still coming for her. She left her wings unfurled, not sure when she’d need to fly, and as she set off the little glass tornado, a few pieces caught her too, clipping her arms and leaving more than a few cuts behind. Andy ignored it for now, knowing the wounds weren’t deep, not like what she’d inflicted upon the were. But it was slowing down, and that was a good thing. She couldn’t do anything to help either of these two until the were was no longer a threat. When it came at her again, Andy dodged, only to see the were slide and collide with some of the wreckage they’d created in the course of their fight. The angel crouched, waiting for it to get back up and come back at her again, but it lay there, breathing heavy, bleeding everywhere. Andy didn’t have the option of hesitating. Reaching out with her telekinesis - scared to get too close for fear that it was all just a ploy to catch her off guard, if there was enough of a conscience in there to think about strategy - she took one of the tripod stands leaning in the corner and flung it as hard as she could at the beast. “I’m sorry,” she whispered, hoping that would be enough to knock it out.
The smell of the bleeding female was tantalizing, the scent so much more appetizing than the man that still lay crumpled on the floor. And yet, the beast was finding it very difficult to find any sort of strength to get up, most of its energy leaching out of it from the various cuts on its body, including the pieces of glass that were lodged in the creature’s paws and even parts of its back. It paw pads were reduced to a bloody ruin from putting continued pressure on the wounds, but there was still that mindless part of it that wanted to get up, that wanted that female in its teeth. Just as the hybrid was preparing to get back up to its feet, an object came flying at it. The creature had no time to dodge out of the way or even brace for impact, the tripod striking it against the side of its head. A low groan slipped out of the beast’s jaws as it sagged even further to the floor. Were it not for the many cuts, most of them deep, and the blood everywhere, the concussive blow to its head would have just angered the beast. Still, it was enough to offset all the bloody wounds and leave the creature incapable of getting to its feet. Slowly, as if drifting off into a natural sleep, the beast closed its eyes and lost itself to the oblivion.
For a few moments, all Andy could do was breathe, waiting for the creature to get back up. When it didn’t, and it stopped moving, she cautiously made her way over to the hybrid, checking it over, docking her wings as she did so. Both of them had lost a lot of blood, and she took off her now-ruined sweater and tore off pieces to patch up the cuts on her arms. She’d heal those properly later. With the were out, she went to the wounded man, passed out on the floor, breathing shallowly, but still breathing. From what she could tell, the were had torn into his shoulder, and there was no way those wounds were made by anything else but teeth. If he wasn’t a were before, after tonight, he would be.
Not knowing how much time she had until the sun went down and the moon was up completely, Andy knew she had to act fast. She brought the man upstairs first, finding an apartment upstairs - trashed, but still with a cage off to the side, which would serve to keep the hybrid under lock and key. With the man laying down in the first bedroom she found, she went back for the were. Even for an angel, carrying that much weight up the stairs was going to be a problem, so it was a combination of pulling and telekinesis that finally got it back it the cage. Now she could see that it was a male, and some sort of cheetah mix. She wondered who it was behind all the fur and teeth, if they’d be okay.
Only once the door was locked did she try to get the bigger pieces of glass out of the beast’s fur, thanks to her telekinesis. When this was all said and done, Andy was going to be exhausted and sleep for like the next four days, but it was worth it to try and repair some of the damage she’d done. For the man, there wasn’t much she could do, seeing the last slivers of sunlight start to disappear from the sky. She cast what magic she could, seeing that the bleeding had stopped, and his breathing seemed steady.
Leaning over the man’s body, she brushed back the hair from his forehead and gave him a chaste kiss there. “I’m so very sorry I didn’t get here sooner to help you,” she murmured, as if he could hear her, as if her words could mean anything to ease the pain he was about to go through. His entire life was going to change now, either he wanted it to or not, and that was why she was sorry. Andy never wanted to see someone in pain, and it killed her that she couldn’t do more for him, for either of them. The truth of the matter was, the moment the sun went down, there would be two hybrid weres and it wouldn’t be safe for her to be here, angel or not.
Before she left, she made sure the lock on the hybrid’s cage was secure, as well as reinforcing the bedroom door where she’d left the wounded man. Then, she did the same to the door to the apartment, hoping it was enough to keep them both locked down until the sun came back up. At some point, she’d have to return here to make sure the man was okay - assuming he lived here, that was, or that he knew who did. Andy wouldn’t feel right if she didn’t return at some point.
The sunlight was almost gone when she stepped out of the studio, and heard one faint howl from the building behind her. Biting her lip, Andy cast one last glance at Kaleidoscope before heading back to her house. She’d had enough adventure for one night.