300+

Noise was coming from upstairs; a whole lot of noise actually. Alexey’s eyes of honey were glued to the ceiling in an attempt to decipher what the Lillium was up to. He was up to no good; that much was obvious. The Caregiver didn’t want to go up there; her relationship with the chocolate male was bad enough under normal circumstances. Annoying him now would only make things worse. However, she couldn’t help but worry about the male. He’d been holed up in that room for days without any food or water. Conor would often question his father’s strange behavior, and Alexey was running out of things to tell him. She too, spent a lot of time wondering what was going on. This wasn’t just an ordinary illness. It was more than just chills and fever. The man was literally going insane.

Luckily, both of the pups had grown accustomed to the ruckus. Emwe was fast asleep on the couch. It had taken Conor a little longer to do the same, but Alexey had worked her magic on him. She’d held him in her arms until sleep finally overtook his little body. They were so different from each other. Emwe barely wanted anything to do with her; he was independent and full of energy. Conor, on the other hand, sought Lexey’s comforting touch at any given moment and he never strayed too far away from home. She didn’t mind it one bit. If anything, his neediness made her love him even more.

The house was quiet now. Alexey had set little Conor down beside his brother, both of them were sleeping peacefully on the sofa. Haku had suddenly stopped making noise too, which was a little strange. Before long, the tawny girl found herself climbing up the stairs to his room. She hadn’t been up there in a while. Not since Conor had explained how “daddy” had kicked the door off its hinges. What she saw next only confirmed the pup’s extravagant story. The bedroom door was on the floor, bathing in what seemed to be a pool of Conor’s urine.

Alexey shook her head, wondering how a grown male could behave like such a delusional child. Carefully avoiding the yellow puddle, she stepped inside the Lillium’s room. What a mess. Pieces of tapestry were all over the place. And in the middle of it all was Haku with a bleak look in his eyes. "What are you? 3 months old? You didn’t have to tear the place apart just to get some attention,” she murmured, moving over to his bed side.

500+

Alexey did not like what she saw; the way her Lillium stared her down as if she was some kind of prey. There was a hunger in his icy blue eyes and it sent chills up her spine. His strange behavior was enough to make her take a step back, just to be on the safe side. It was the first time she’d felt fear in her leader’s presence, and it probably wouldn't be the last time. Part of her knew the chocolate male would never do anything to harm a fellow pack mate, but that was under normal circumstances. His fever was reaching new heights and Lexey feared that his sickness would drive him on the verge of insanity.

It wasn’t her safety she was worried about; the two boys sleeping downstairs were her main concern. The Caregiver watched as the male dug his sharp talons into the mattress, hoping she would not become his next scratching post. His face contortioned into a grimace, as if possessed by some kind of demon. Alexey grew tense with every passing second, wondering what would come next. His eyes closed, and a comment passed his lips. Hurts? Needless to say, the tawny girl was baffled. She’d expected him to become enraged and lash out at her for invading his personal space. But he didn’t. He did just the opposite, as a matter of fact.

His voice was nowhere near as harsh as she’d expected it to be. She remained quiet, at a loss of words. Haku was not someone you could easily approach, she knew that much. He was nothing like Conor. He was hurting, yes, and although Lexey wanted his pain to go away, she couldn’t simply take him into her arms and soothe him like she often did with Conor. He was a dangerous man. And now that this sickness had poisoned his mind, his actions were unpredictable.

Then he said something else: don’t be angry. Alexey held her breath, keeping her amber-colored eyes on his face. What was he talking about? She wasn’t angry. A little put off by the mess he’d just made, but that was his problem. It was his house, not hers. “I’m not angry,” she answered hesitantly, wondering just what was going through his twisted mind.

Another puzzling sentence reached her ears. Was he hallucinating? A frown creased her forehead as she attempted to decipher his cryptic words. Was he subconsciously feeling guilty over something he’d done in the past? Who was his aunt? “What didn’t you do?” she questioned, moving forward this time.

Alexey glanced down at the wet cloth in her hands before carefully applying it to his forehead. It would cool his temperature down. At least, she hoped so. The three-year-old femme knew next to nothing when it came to illnesses. She’d go find a healer if her attempt at lowering his temperature did not work. Lexey took a seat on the edge of the mattress, scrutinizing the male’s every movement, waiting to see if the wet cloth would help any.

300

There was a lot erased from the child’s memory, but he knew the woman had every reason to be angry if his aunt had already told her what had happened. She would never believe that he could not remember. She stared at him and said that she was not angry. Baby blue orbs glared at her, uncertain if this was one of those times when someone said they were not angry, but secretly was. That was the worst kind of angry, and the thought made his fur slightly stand up, clearly uncomfortable. She then asked the horrible question, and the male recoiled, wishing it could creep back into the dark blindness again. The darkness was a fearsome thing, but at this moment he would rather choose that above his mother’s anger and disappointment.

Red indicated blood, and he remembered being full of it, the stench of something diseased lingering together with a vague scent of Dahlia flowers. The tracks had been cleaned up from the child’s memory, but it did not mean that it was inaccessible. There were small traces there, still fresh in Haku’s mind. The woman came closer, but his focus was out of order, so she became a slurred form of light brown. His mother was not light brown, was she? He stayed still when she placed the wet cloth on his forehead, and some of the tension in his body fled. It was a caring thing to do, and his head did hurt quite a lot, so it helped. She was being very nice. He felt warmth for the woman, but there was also something underneath the surface that he could not understand, but it was dark and dangerous.

He bit his lip carefully, trying to think back. He wanted to help, but he did not know how. He was certain that he had not done anything wrong, but blood had to come from somewhere. Who was she if she was not his parent? Where was Iskata and where was he? The questions took quite some space and encouraged waves of pain to dull him down. He was confused. ”Blood from a mother and a baby.” Yes, that was it. It was a fearsome image that flashed before the child’s eyes. A woman strung up with her head almost completely separated from her body, her intestines spread all over with a few remaining pieces hanging from her freshly slaughtered body. The child’s neck embraced by a rope, its body slowly waving in the gentle breeze. His eyes watered, the guilt overwhelming.

300+


Alexey was unaware of what she’d done wrong. He was glaring at her now, as if he could see right through her. The Koios girl felt bare, like her soul was an open book and he was the dreaded monster feeding off her fear and anxiety. It wasn’t a good feeling. She could deal with many things but this was too much. Common sense told her to just walk away before it was too late, but she didn’t. Alexey kept trying to convince herself that his eerie behavior was caused by his high temperature. She’d heard something like that before, how fever could alter personalities. Haku was a creepy man to begin with, so maybe this was normal.

He didn’t move when the cloth was applied to his forehead, and Lexey was relieved. She’d expected him to grow even more agitated, but that wasn’t the case. If anything, the damp cloth seemed to soothe him. Amber-colored eyes studied the man’s facial expression with great interest, hoping to find some coherence in his baby blue orbs. It was no use trying to understand what he was talking about. Alexey brushed a strand of hair away from his eyes, feeling compassion for the Lillium. She was unaware of it, but she was scrutinizing his every movement.

She noticed the confusion in his eyes and the way he bit his lip, struggling to think back. Then he finally said something. One little sentence was all it took to make her hair stand on end. Alexey jerked her hand away from his forehead, as if she’d been stung by the sudden realization of what he’d done. “Why?” she murmured, bringing a hand up to cover her mouth. Was he truly capable of such a cruel act? It was her turn to be confused now. Her eyes did not leave his. She noticed the unshed tears. He clearly regretted his actions, but was that enough?

300+

He could not understand who she was or why she was here, yet he knew that she was supposed to be here, though maybe not exactly here, together with him. The mother had been alive when his claws had ripped her open. No, not his claws. It was an odd sensation. Haku looked down on his front claws. He knew that these sharp things had done the deed, yet he was positive that he had had nothing to do with this. If this was so, how could he know what had happened? There had been a time and place where he had been merely the boy he was supposed to be. He had been happy. Now there was darkness, screams and the scent of death all around. The darkness had lost its hold for now, but he was still burdened with the nightmares. Her hand soothed him silently as she slowly brushed his forehead, but he could not make out their relationship. More than anything he wanted his basic needs to be fulfilled. He wanted to be safe, he wanted to be loved, and he wanted his body to find peace.

He could feel multiple violent emotions moving under the delicate surface, but they would not get him again. When his words reached her pretty latte ears, she made his world crumble. She removed her hand as if she realized she had been touching something disgusting, and her fur rose in something the child always took as anger. He lost his nerve to go on and completely ignored her question. Her behaviour, her fear scared him. The grown up man’s body finally moved, but it was not towards the woman. He pressed himself backwards into the corner, oversized claws ruining the mattress completely in order to get some distance between the two Dahlians as quickly as possible. He attempted to choke the desperate whine that forced itself out between tightened jaws, but obviously failed. His blue orbs shot away from her, unable to bear the eye-contact any longer. It was horrible. He was horrible.

In lack of any other obvious moves, he pressed his face against a poor piece of mattress and applied two large and heavy paws on top. If he had been someone else in another scenario doing this, the sight could probably have been funny. A grown up man acting like a confused child. Yet, Haku was normally a horrible man, and those around him that knew only a fraction of what he was capable of were uncomfortable. This was what made the scene so terrible. There was no logic, no explanation.

300+


Haku Soul had morphed into something else; a seemingly helpless creature filled with culpability. The man she knew was gone; lost in his own fogged up mind. Alexey couldn’t relate to what he was going through, nor could she understand it. Fever couldn’t have driven him on the verge of insanity. This was beyond comprehension, and it scared Alexey even more. Thoughts of fleeing briefly crossed her mind, but she couldn’t leave now. The bedroom became a magnetic field, and he was the magnet. A strange theory, but it truly felt like something was pulling her toward the crazed Lillium.


Her throat felt dry, and swallowing became nearly impossible. “Haku,” Her voice was low, almost indistinguishable. She had no idea what to tell him, but found comfort in his name nonetheless. Perhaps hearing it would make him snap out of his trance. Wishful thinking. The way he backed away from her and buried his face into the mattress was a sorry sight indeed. She did not find it comical, far from it. Alexey was at his bed side once again, reaching out to touch him. She hesitated a moment before doing so, but finally decided to follow her nurturing instincts.

Her hand came in contact with one of the paws on top of his head, and she gingerly tugged on it. “Look at me,” she said firmly, refusing to let go until he obeyed her wishes. Alexey was aware of the risks she was taking by staying with him, but it was her duty to care for Dahlians. And he was a pack member in need, was he not? “Are you okay?” Questioning what he’d done in the past was pointless for the time being. Confusion had a firm grip on him, and there was no way they’d get to talk about it until he got better.

300

His name was softly spoken, and he felt his body shiver unpleasantly, carrying the guilt of something he was not certain what was. His body bathed in fever, he knew that, but there was another kind of misery that resided in him, filled him with dreadful regret and the taste of bile in the back of his throat. There were images he could recognize, but the soul currently present in the demonic Lilium’s body could not put all the pieces together flawlessly. Something terrible had happened, but both the scenery and the individual with him had changed, and truth be told he did not know where he was. The knowledge was there, but he did not know how to make use for it. He knew there were two boys downstairs that belonged to him by blood, but he could not grasp how this could be. Just like a child’s, Haku’s thoughts drifted from those images and facts that he could not understand.

She had come back to him. Her hand was cool upon his paw, and he gave a startled yelp in surprise. He had not expected ever to be touched again. He was a mean boy that needed to be punished. It was not his fault though, but he could not successfully explain why that was. The gentle voice told him to look at her, and the chocolate wolf did as he was told. He slowly removed his heavy paws from his face and let his baby blue gaze find her light honey orbs. There was always a dark shadow lurking in the depths of the male’s blue gaze, but together with the loss of control of the Lilium’s body, the shadow as well as the monster was absent for once. What the caregiver of Dahlia was looking at was what Haku once had been, what he could have become if not the corruption had gotten hold of him and turned him into something horrible.

He wasn’t okay. ”No,” the chocolate male whined pathetically, wanting nothing more to curl up against her and be protected from all the dangers that threatened him. ”It’s always so dark, I can’t see. I can't breathe” The man’s eyes drifted away from hers and rolled in towards his skull. He shouldn’t be here. He was certain there would be horrible consequences.

Alexey almost retracted her paw when the Lillium yelped in surprise. She hadn’t expected such a reation out of him. Had she done something wrong? Time went by, and his body relaxed. Her paw remained on top of his, in an attempt to bring him back to reality. When he finally turned to face her, the Caregiver did not back away. They were mere inches from each other. Her gaze met his, and for the first time, she saw no animosity in his eyes of blue. They were pure, like a newborn child’s. And for a fleeting moment, she saw Conor in his gaze.

It was an illusion, she knew that much. The monster was asleep for now, and he would surely come back. Being this close to him was dangerous; it was like tempting the devil. She did her best to hide her fear, choosing to believe in the goodness of his heart. Her ears drooped when he provided a reply to her question. She listened intently, and her eyes widened when he revealed that he couldn’t breathe. “Haku, snap out of it!” she exclaimed, not liking the tone of his voice. But it was too late. His eyes rolled back into his head as if he was about to lose consciousness, and Lexey braced herself for the worst. Her hands moved to his arms and she tightened her grip on him. “Wake up!” she whined, vigorously shaking him back and forth. He was officially giving her the creeps.

300+

It felt just like one of those nightmares that one can never properly recall. There was this feeling that there was something wrong, that he was fading. Something else too. A creature from within trying to claw itself out. A pathetic whimper that absolutely did not suit his person was carried along with every exhale. He could not see the room anymore, and he shook slightly, a horrible anticipation flowing through him as something else arrived. He couldn’t see. The female’s voice sounded so far away. It was his mother’s, but the words changed and brought other messages. For a moment white and gray mingled together before he lost his footing and tumbled down into the terrible darkness that always scared him so. There was no salvation for him. The light latte woman with the silky voice could not help him. No one could.

A low, barely audible growl caressed the man’s throat for a split moment, and was the only warning the Caretaker got before those terrible blue opened to gaze upon the creature that now saw something that she was not supposed to see. Eyes were red-edged, as if sleep was something foreign and strange, and not yet experienced. Teeth slightly parted in silent ponder whether or not this subordinate should be disposed of quickly. It was too early. The demon moved forwards, imitating a serpent, although only a few inches. The world was not black and white as the creature was used to. Several colours were immediately introduced, although the only colour it really knew was absent. The body ached with the hunger that could never be fully satisfied.

He blinked. Alexey was standing in the room, looking at him. What the fuck did she think she was doing? The headache pierced his head and threatened with blowing his brain up. The Lilium furrowed his brows and glared at her, silent for a few moments while gathering rage. How long had she been here? The chocolate secui hissed something under his breath and bared his fangs at the woman that stuck her nose into everything. ”Get the fuck out.” the man whispered, a dangerous tone dripping from his tenor voice. He should never have let the bitch into his house in the first place. The first sentence had not been bold enough. The man advanced and spat out, fully revealing his rage. ”Get out!”

300+

A low growl passed his lips, like the rumble of thunder before lightning strikes. She did not immediately hear it, her mind a little too focused on yanking him out of his stupor. It took two or three seconds at most for his eyes to change and retrieve their normal, dangerous glow. There was something more to them, though. Red veins extended over the white surrounding his blue orbs, little spider webs being weaved over the sclera. He looked high on drugs. And in this case, his thirst for blood was his addiction. Alexey let go of him, slowly backing up until she was on the edge of the bed.

A command reached her ears then, a hushed yet cruel warning. The Caregiver didn’t know what to do. A few seconds earlier, he’d acted like a helpless child. And now she was facing the devil himself. There was a reason why she did not flee; part of her believed the child would resurface. A silly thought indeed. He was inches from her face and she could only stare, wide-eyed. His fangs gleamed threateningly, and she could feel his hot breath on her face. “W-what?” she stammered, but then he lashed out towards her; resembling a viper going in for the kill.

His voice boomed, and her initial reaction was to back up some more. Bad idea, because it sent the Caregiver tumbling off the bed, her spinal column coming into contact the hardwood floor. There was pain, but nothing that disabled her body from functioning normally. She knew, at that very moment, how dangerous he could be. Regardless of the fear she felt, or the knot in her throat, Alexey expression narrowed into a glare. “You’re crazy,” she growled through clenched teeth, propping herself up with both hands and shakily adopting a sitting position.

Fail reply is fail D:

He could see and smell her horror, intoxicating. He wanted more of that fear. The woman fell backwards off the bed and hit the hard floor hard. He slowly followed, those terrible eyes staying on her form, his glare close to unnatural. He was kind, gave her several movements to rush out of the room, but the bitch only mumbled an insult and stayed on his goddamn floor. It was his goddamn floor! Did she not understand what his words had meant? Was she brain-dead or something? A growl exploded in his throat and he advanced again, determined to make her fucking uncomfortable. The air was thick with tension, and his eyes revealed that any outcome was possible. He felt fury hit the roof and blow it off and away.

”Stay and you will see exactly how insane I really am.” the man breathed, the threat everywhere and very real. He slowly bared his slowly yellowing teeth, the rumble in his throat increasing even further. He felt a sickening need to add a crazy laugh, just for the extra effect, but he managed to control himself at least that much. This game had already crossed all the boundaries he had set, but she had her deal of blame for not being able to use her fucking brains and leaving him alone.

300+

His growl was countered with one of her own. It had been purely out of instinct. Her mind and body were on the verge of entering survival mode; the Lilium was able to inflict a whole lot of damage and Alexey was just starting to realize it. Adrenaline and fear pumped through her veins as she scrambled to her feet, struggling to regain her composure. There was pain emanating from her spine on top of it all, as if dealing with an enraged psycho wasn't enough. He had her cornered and as a result, both of her ears were laid flat against her skull. Tail tucked in between her hind legs, Alexey cautiously backed away.

She hated him. Her upper lip twitched rhythmically, resembling the mesmerizing ticking of a time bomb. Not an ounce of dominance could be perceived in her behavior; she was acting out of despair, feeling as though her fate had been sealed. The Lilium’s jaws were too close for comfort and the sight of his yellowing fangs was enough to make her stomach churn. Alexey wanted to lash out at him when he least expected it, just to make him regret everything he’d done to his children. But it was obvious that she'd never do such a thing, and he knew it. Said actions would trigger dire repercussions, such as losing the right to see both Conor and Emwe.

A few choice words bubbled in the back of her throat, but she swallowed them along with her pride. There was nothing she could do. “Fine, you win,” she murmured, hanging her head low. Alexey side-stepped against the wall and moved right passed him, carefully avoiding those demented eyes of blue. She would grab the kids and bring them home with her, where they would be safe for a little while.