Animals Within

Champion. The nickname warmed in his chest in a strange way, and he had to straighten his back just a tad. He'd never been called anything even close to such a word, but to hear it from hers was another world entirely. "Even if it were just for you, I'd still stick around." His grin stayed, and he took in the scents as well, trying to find the direction of such great aromas for a moment but still wanting his attentions on her. After all, she was more interesting than food, while it wasn't there before them. "But apparently so, it smells delicious. Everyone here is certainly spoiled with the culinary talent present here."

Aaliyah's insides felt like they ripped to their outsides as the slamming of the door shook the room around her, which now only seemed to close in around her. Her knees finally took a cue and knocked her down to the bed, the anger completely fleeing from her once and for all as it was replaced with internal pain, feeling a massive block in her throat preventing her from doing anything but allowing her vision to blur. What was there even to discuss? He no longer wished to pursue her. Ever since he had arrived at the manor, he was no longer the man she had longed for previously. What happened to him, what happened to her? Why was there such an invisible obstacle keeping them apart? The questions that rattled her brain she could not answer. He had made his opinion clear. He cared more about other people's opinions than his own, and would not fight for the both of them. The drawbridge had been pulled, and now a grand moat stood between them with no way of crossing. At least, not that she saw. Perhaps she would have been better off staying with Lythedh. For a split moment, she pondered on the fact, sitting upwards and staring out to the window diagonal from her. She could make up some grand story, return to him and at least manipulate her way around the manor to prevent seeing him and still keep her somewhat respected title. But from what she knew...things would only go downhill when he would continue to force his lineage. Her gut squeezing at the memory, she stood finally and had enough. Staying in this room was clouding her thoughts, and she no longer wanted to stay in a room where her - well, the it seemed now - stag spent his days. She walked to the said window and gave herself one final mental push before opening it and fleeing out into the wild, keeping along the trees of the forest. Her muscles ached quickly though, and she stumbled, gasping with the sudden pain that arrived but finally giving up and laying there on the ground when she stopped her tumbling, her tears soaking the ground adjacent to the rest of the town which had not a care in the world. A world she would never be accepted into, not any longer. She could stay here all evening for all she knew, starve to death and allow everyone to forget her. Finally leave a society that never wanted her in the first place.

((Timeskip - Some time in the future? Probably a day))

Aaliyah found it quite difficult to stay hidden within the town. She stayed outside of the village for the most part, perusing the buildings or carts or stands and keeping out of the limelight. Some had noticed her, and had struck up conversation, but she preferred her solitude life, at least for now. Nobody would live up enough to give her contentment in any conversation. Now patrolling the territory of the deer in her snow leopard form, she kept her head in her thoughts, making sure that small calves and fawns didn't stray too far for the most part. She didn't have anywhere else to go, or anything to do.

Theodemar sat outside one of the buildings of the town, making sure his sugar glider "captive" was within the coin pouch he had adorned earlier. He had been so focused on Angeline that he hardly had the time to talk with her or figure out anything. Letting out a sigh, he flipped open the top and glanced inside. "You still there, fluffbutt?" he asked, mostly to himself than anything.

The elk shift raised a brow, but was not surprised, by her attitude, chuckling softly as he picked her up and set her on his bent knee. By what she was eating, he was sure she was hungry. Perhaps there was a stand nearby, he was sure there was fruit or bread he could buy for her. "Hey, guards don't get permission to go off with the ladies when it comes to the Lords. I want to have fun. But I guess you make a point, I've abandoned my little captive." He grinned cheekily. "I could always ditch you far outside the town, make you find your way back to your tiger master that you seem obsessed with. But what does a creature like you even do for fun?" Closing his coin pouch, he pushed it off to the side of his waist again as he greeted a passing citizen with a wave of his hand. Such a quaint little town, he would enjoy staying here. The only obstacle so far was the pesky, loud-mouthed critter before him.

Theo was amused by her incessant hatred. Normally, negativity would roll right off his back when he came to the gigantic predators roaming the Estate, but this little critter had such a way about herself. He flicked her ear gently with a finger, just the tip. "You really want to be alone that much? I will arrange it then. Perhaps I'll make it torture for you, take my Angeline along on a walk and see how much you gag before I finally toss you out." His tone was lighthearted, his eyes seeming to smile at his prospect however. "I'll be sure to give you a couple torches to aid your arsonist desire. Oh wait...you're a bit too small for them, aren't you?"

He grinned with amusement still, but kept it in mind. He would need to gather the materials, likely buy them with the low cash on hand. Which reminded him...he would need a job. No way he would forever live poor, and he did not want to go back to the life he had before. And he would not live off of Angeline, she didn't deserve that. "What else will you be needing, my liege?" he teased, listing off a few things in his head. "Torches, maybe a blanket, but what else? You seem to know what you want to do better than I do, at the least."

The previous few day's hunts had been an absolute bore. Wildlife seemed to have scattered, even though he had dozens of acres of land to peruse and delight himself with a feast. There had only been a stray horse that he got to chase, but eventually he was far too underwhelmed by the excitement that he gave up, and returned to his Estate. Only to find that it had caught fire, of course. They were not able to find the culprit, but it was rumored it was his pet that did it. Now, he knew of her arsonist tendencies, but he would have never expected her to actually commit it on the place he welcomed her into. It really put a damper on his already terrible mood. To put the cherry on top, his well-bred horses had escaped and were missing, and so was his mate. For some reason, the guards left their posts to deal with a pathetic fire than to actually chase after the woman he had claimed. He was oh so tempted to use them for his feast. Pathetic, outrageous guards. Now he had to do everything himself. After sending a letter for supplies to fix the kitchen filled with ashes, he assigned every guard he could manage to look for the missing girl. He was not going to have her vanish when she held far too much value. He was back in the forests, this time following the horse's trail from a few days ago. The scents were few and far between, but he was determined to find wherever she went. With multiple horses it seemed, obviously he would be able to follow a solid track at some point. He continued along the path until a striking new scent crossed his path and sent him stumbling back. Some type of other big cat had stumbled across his territory. Not his leopard, but...something else. Immediately he felt a fume of rage boil inside him and he followed the scent, determined to find this beast and show him what for. There was no way he would have somebody claiming his territory like it was his.

The tiger growled under his breath as the scent faded in and out. Was he going mental?! Probably, if he couldn't track a trespasser. He would have to be out here more often to keep his skills up, or he would never keep his reputation among the Lords. He followed the tracks he could pick up, minutes passing as he searched the one area until he ran across a tree that had the rich-and absolutely wretched-stench of the cat that decided to come across his territory. His face wrinkled in disgust as he saw the claw marks, and he lifted on his hind legs, ripping through the bark with his own claws to mark his own handsome scent overtop of the disgrace. There. That would show them, for certain. They must be nearby, with how fresh it was, but he was wondering how far he had gone. Where was the pathetic morsel? He probably ran, the coward. His tail flicked in annoyance as he thought, looking around. No paw prints, so he was probably lightweight. An ocelot, maybe? A fisher cat? Obviously not a snow leopard, sadly, or he'd have the best drink of blood that he would have had in a long time. Speaking of which, wasn't there a pint of blood in the kitchen? Maybe it burned. The Lord's brows furrowed with utter exasperation. Everything was against him, he was certain.

The tiger Lord was ready to follow another path when a voice slithered down into his fur, chilling his spine. A.....female. A female?! What was any female doing here, other than the leopard? He backed up a step and looked into the tree, but he only saw a shadow, not a full figure. Would have been nice if she didn't hide, he thought to himself, but bared his teeth in warning, having a feeling she was watching nonetheless. "As much as I appreciate the bribing compliment," he began, "yes, you are trespassing on my territory. You would make an extraordinary addition to my dinner, but I can only assume that you would rather not end up on a silver platter." His tail lashed from side to side now, rather than the calm flicking of the end. Even his pelt seemed to ripple with the anger that flowed through him. "I am the Lord of this territory, and have every right to hang your head on my wall, like many other delightful prey I have captured over the years. So come down, kitty, and maybe I'll spare your precious hide." Was she behind the capture of his mate? A thought flashed through his mind that maybe this was her replacement, and the thought amused him, but he didn't let it show. It was never really the leopard he was after anyways in the grand scheme of things...

Lythedh continued to lash his tail, but the girls words played intriguingly in his ears and he enjoyed it, beyond his better nature. He was sure no Lord could resist being told the obvious however. “I don’t know whether to accept your apology or not. I’d have to see that cowardly muzzle of yours to really know if you’re sincere,” he said with a slight sneer. But all of a sudden, she leapt down more, and he paused as he gazed over her. Interesting...a black panther. Something he had always wanted within his guards, but nobody ever seemed to find one. Pathetic beings, the more he thought about his worthless protection the more he wanted to be rid of all of them. But perhaps she had some skills hidden beneath that skin of hers that would prove useful to him, one way or another. “I tend to not trust anyone I come across for the first time, comes with the title.” He closed his mouth, his teeth being hidden once more but his eyes still narrowed as he watched her for any sudden movements. He was probably twice the size she was, but he wouldn’t take any risks nonetheless. “If you’re so bold as to banter with a Lord though, come and meet me face to face. Then I’ll judge for certain whether you’re even worthy of blessing my wall with that skull of yours. Maybe you really are better between my teeth.”