everyone has to pick on their saviors
#1
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     One hand was gripped around the limb of the bow, the other on the fletching of the arrow. His stance was nearly perfect, eyes locked on the target he had made for himself by the house. This was simple—a burlap sack stuffed with dried plants and pillow stuffing. The tawny male inhaled, breathed out, and let the arrow fly. It cut through the cold air and landed with a satisfying thump near the center of his bull’s-eye. Ezekiel frowned, and pulled another practice arrow from the ground near his feet.
     Tristan had always drilled it into his head that practice mattered, which was why he dedicated so much time to the matter at hand. His uncle (considering Fatin was his godmother) was one of the most skilled fighters the boy had ever seen. Knowing full and well that he would not grow to be much larger then he currently was, Ezekiel was intent on having an advantage with weapons.
     Another thump, though this time, the arrow hit home. Please, Ezekiel put down his bow and moved towards the target.






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#2
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Thump. The sound, though muffled, jolted the tan male to attention as he snuck down the hall of the mansion, toward the front door. He was tempted to turn back at that moment, to hide away in the basement and pack things in front of the door for his own safety, but after the moment of quiet that followed, he decided that it might be safe to continue on his way. It only took him a moment to slip out the door, shutting it quietly behind him, and sneak down the stairs of the mansion. It was as he was rounding the front, intending to make his way to the back of the building and cut through the forest there, that another thump resounded, louder than it had before.


He stopped in his tracks, eyes immediately falling on the figure that moved across a small distance just ahead of him. Jasper wasn't entirely sure what to think at first, though upon further inspection of the figure, he came to the conclusion that it was, in fact, a coyote and that he would be better off returning to the confines of his basement. Trying to be as quiet as possible, Jasper slid up closer to the building, turning his back to the stranger to begin creeping back toward the front of the mansion.

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#3
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     It was black that he saw out of the corner of his eye. Black moving against the no-color brown of the trees and the white snow. Instantly on alert, the young man grabbed the arrow and restrung the bow. If it was a wolf, or someone dangerous, he could surprise them. If it was a deer, it would be dinner. Either way, he chose against walking in unarmed. Keeping the arrow pointed low, he moved quickly, giving himself wide range.
     When he crossed the edge of the house, he spied the culprit. A peculiar looking fellow creeping away from him. Lifting the arrow, Ezekiel raised his voice (which, to his surprise, sounded remarkably adult). “Turn around and let me see who you are.”





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#4
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Once he turned the corner of the house, making a beeline for the porch and, with that, the door, Jasper assumed he was in the clear. He didn't even hear the younger male coming, so when he spoke Jasper froze mid-step, heart immediately racing. He stood there for a few moments, unsure of what to do, but knowing that running wouldn't do any good either. He pondered if dropping right there and begging for his life would do any good, but he doubted it, so he went with the only option that he had left. Jasper turned slowly, eyes sweeping across the ground, up the legs of the stranger, and straight to the armed bow in his hands.



Ears fell back then, and Jasper raised his hands in the air, as if the stranger was some cop who had him cornered at gun point. "I'm afraid of everyone and tried to run away" didn't seem like a viable excuse to someone who didn't know him, but there was obviously fear in him, the way that he shook while he stood and the sudden rush of nausea that had taken him. "I'm Gabriel's brother don't shoot me I live here!" It came quickly, one panicked sentence, which Jasper only realized would make him seem like a liar after it was all said and done. He was very obviously a wolf and, though Gabriel had that blood in him also, he would be hard pressed to convince any of them that it had even he slightest truth to it. On top of that, he'd let out the secret that he hadn't felt right doing, saying they were of any relation at all.

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#5
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     At first, Ezekiel was positive that the guy was going to have a heart attack. He looked positively panicked. That, of course, was perhaps due to the fact that a dreadlock-toting coyote was threatening him with a bow and arrow. It was the words that surprised him, and Zeke lowered the bow and slackened his grip. Gabriel’s brother. His eyebrows furrowed and he pursed his lips, moving forward without any trace of fear. If that was one fault in him, it was that.
     He cocked his head, ears forward and high. “I’m not gonna shoot you,” he said quickly. “Sorry if I scared you, I didn’t know who you were. I’m Ezekiel…and I suppose you’re my uncle.”





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#6
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The transition was a quick one. He could see the stranger considering him, his words, and just like everything else, they all seemed much better at it than Jasper was. Jasper was the panicky type, a very 'in the moment, right now' type, and the consideration of others when deciding what to think or do killed him, it always seemed like forever. This one though, he was quick to change. They'd gone from some sort of twisted stand off to something much more casual. Even as the young male approached, Jasper still kept his arms raised in the air (maybe he'd seen it in a book somewhere?) and only realized to take them down once the other male spoke again.



"You believe me?" He was astonished, to say the very least, that only his word was enough to convince the coyote that he wasn't some sneaky assassin making an attempt on Gabriel's life. (Not that Jasper could ever even pass himself off as a drunk assassin, or anything of that sort.) "That means you're Ezekiel?" Gabriel could have had more children since then, he supposed, but this one was older and his father would have likely mentioned them. "I'm Jasper. My dad is Corona and Gabriel's dad too." Just in case. There was always a just in case.

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#7
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     The boy rolled his eyes, baffled by the wolf’s mannerisms and questions. Despite this, he smiled broadly and honestly, and his eyes were roaring laughter because this lanky man was his uncle. Interesting. He knew he had relatives among the many strangers in the world, but this was just all too entertaining for him. Most of the world was entertaining to a boy, though.
     “Jasper, huh? So you’re one of my other uncles.” Considering he had only ever met the Lykoi side (and of course Hybrid), seeing the wolf-half of the family was something new. “Why were you hiding out? If you live here then what’s with the sneaking around?”




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