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There were not triumphant howls for the victorious, nor a carpet of fine furs to grace the travel worn paws of the refined hunter. But there was the soft whisper of the wind and the gentle kiss of the soft grasses as she crossed onto familiar lands. This was a welcome appreciated by the Nomad on return from her hunt, rather than the extravagant welcomes the Evan'ules of the Nomads were known to receive. She hadn't understood then why such measures were taken, to pride the hunters, she imagined but still found the displays showy and unnecessary. It was enough to see the faces of her family and their smiles for her return, better that than endure the pomp for a mandatory part of life.

Though she had yet to see anyone on her return to the Valley, her face was still adorned in a smile. Her anticipation was on high and her spirits were just as peaked, carrying the fruits of her labors upon her shoulders and trailing behind her on a make-shift pull. The scent of meat had been a divine temptation along her journey but for the most part had remained untouched, saving the succulent interior for the family awaiting a hearty meal. Her muscles ached from the pull of the carcass and her shoulders slumped from the heavy weight of its hide, but still she pressed on wearing nothing but the look of satisfaction upon her face. Although she could not escape the reality that when she least expected it, the pain and strain she was meant to feel would come soon enough, rendering her useless for at least a day. But she was fine with that and truthfully looked forward to a day of rest.

But first... Family.

Though she was quite surprised not to see anyone as she tread the well travelled ground into the Wentworth. At the very least she had anticipated the pups, the smell of meat taking them from their hiding places ready to bombard her at a moment's notice. And in thinking of them, she thought of her dear friend as well. Surely her absence would have warranted his attention... or at the very least his worry. While it would have made sense to announce herself, she felt her throat grow tight with worry, making it useless when it was needed . He hadn't left... had he? The elated smile upon her lips quickly gave way to concern as that silent fear set in and dampened her mood. Her triumphant march slowed to a timid crawl, jerking the meat along as she felt her strength dwindling away til fear stilled her steps entirely.

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It was unlike her to fear the worst when there were better feelings to revel in. As often as they talked of bringing this family to another home and instigated the plans to be set in motion, she should have thought better than of him leaving without a word… abandoning her as her mate had. He said he would stay with her and show her the beauty that this land had to offer again. She trusted in him to help her see this through. But still… she could not shake the distressing feeling that those promises were all for naught. Perhaps she shouldn’t have left…

Sighing softly, she shrugged the hide from her shoulders and set it beside the meat. A hand came to touch her newly grazed shoulder in an absent thought, testing the tenderness of the wound but found it disturbingly numb. Her fault for applying to much weight to it without letting her wound rest. No doubt there was cleaning to be done to it. Though troubled, she managed to garner back a bit of optimism as to the reason of her absent family. Perhaps Jaden was busy… and the pups with him. No doubt Chara was tending to her sister insuring her happiness until they were all called together again to feast. Yes… this was better to ponder on rather than the dark thoughts that her negligence had again left her alone. Yes, a small smile curled the corner of her maw. This was more pleasant to think about.

Finally allowing herself to stretch, she pulled her arms above her head to coaxed her shoulder into feeling something. An itch, a prick as the muscles were pulled, something to wake the dormant wound to the pain it was supposed to feel. But when her meager stretch brought little to no result, something more drastic did.

She should have known better than to let her guard down, but what reason was there to make herself alert when coming to her own home? The attack was swift, not accompanied by tooth or claw but a whole form crashing into hers. She yelped indignantly as she was taken clear off her feet and onto the ground in a tangled mess of rolling limbs. What registered was first the pain as her shoulder connected the ground, then of the familiar scent the graced her nose and caused her heart to quicken its pace. Had her tail not been crushed beneath her it would have wagged excitedly at this comical but none the less desired greeting.

“That wasn’t fair!” she growled but with a smile playing on her weathered lips. All accumulated fears she had had disappeared the instant she was able to see him clearly. She combed the wild strands of red from her eyes as she pushed herself off the ground to stand covered in the debris of crushed grasses and twigs from their roll. “I had only just returned… and at least my hunt was successful.” Proudly, she motioned to the skinned carcass and its hide, wincing slightly as her wounded arm began to ‘feel’ again. “You must have missed me if you would greet me like this…as I recall, it was I take surprised you at one point,” the corner of her maw curled in a knowing smile. “But you reacted rather violently. Does nostalgia urge you to have a repeat performance?”

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Sizing prey of a different kind, her gaze did not miss the purposefully calculated sway of his tail. The posture of a beast lying in wait, anticipating the move of a yet to be claimed assailant. X'yrin felt a different kind of smile work its way to her muzzle, peeling back her lips subtly to flash only a hint of bloodstained teeth before her expression seamlessly morphed into a facade of calm.

Two could certainly play this game...

"Defeat?" she growled softly, with tail raising high and swaying in taunting sweeps. "You may have bested me the last time... but that was only because I was not used to this form." Feeling her towering form had hunched gradually, she returned her stature to its fullest height, raising her head in a proud display. "I assure you I would not make such an amateur mistake again. Actually..." she brought the tip of her claw to her nose in thought. Her eyes never leaving the tantalizing taunt of his tail. "As you are now... I would be more worried in defeating you. I have no intention of crippling you further." She accepted his challenge and rose to the occasion treading just as playful along this line of banter leading into the inevitable predators' game.

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Dancing on the razor's edge, but only one would remain on standing on the blade, and the one that fell would be ready for the other's taking. Too many times had she found herself in this situation among the Exultare, awaiting the first strike that inevitable led to a spar. Provoking the other into making the first move than attempting the upper hand herself. She was raised to defend, to be the suppressor... but it could not be denied the certain allure that came from playing the part of the aggressor. She smiled shamefully at the thought, feeling herself teeter off the razor line...

And with that final taunt, the recount of her defeat to him what felt like long ago, she slipped and embraced her aggressive role with a satisfied smile and lunged for his grinning face.

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She had fallen for his ploy but harbored no regrets for where it led. Her subconscious enjoyment towards sparring so carefully hidden by a calm facade had broken free with an unbridled savagery, she wore the smile proudly on her face, brandishing formidable fangs with every intent to sink into the flesh lavished in pristine obsidian fur.

But with such naked savagery came a mind driven by instinct, void of any sentient thought other than to obtain and much desired prize. Her mind anticipated a retreat from the predator's advance rather than a move toward her. For a moment she was at a loss and forced herself to assess what had happened, mistakenly giving an advantageous moment to her partner in this dangerous dance.

Despite their time apart, it was obvious his skill had not tarnished with time, but was as refined as she remembered... if not a bit slower. As he grabbed for her leg to set her off balance, her arm shot out to snatch for his throat. If she was to go down, then she would gladly take him with her. And with such a desire to come out the contender in this bout, she would not let go so easily it caught.

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Exhilaration flowed from one body to the other feeding into the growing ferocity of this skillful dance. Even as her claws clasped his throat and her jaws split with a victorious smile, the harnessed energy further fueled the procession of this age old ballad, increasing the tempo by the quickening pulse within her tightening grasp.

A sharp shot to the thigh, and the flow of energy had been reserved, coming not from the she-wolf but from the obsidian male as the more dominating energy fed their dance from henceforth. That slack in her grasp was all he needed to steal away from her hold to counter with one of his own. Pain shot through her wounded shoulder as her arm was wrenched forcefully behind, surely tearing apart the poorly healing wound and ushering down precious droplets of blood along her golden limb.

There was no voice of pain despite the insufferable throb of her wounded limb... but a surging growl of a secret pleasure as the energy pushed her mind toward a certain madness. She would not be forced into submission, not when this dance had only just begun. Her tail lashed wildly in anger at the very thought as a premature ending to a potentially invigorating exchange. Though ensnared and pain, her instinct demanded that she resist and utilized that skill harnessed through seasons of rigorous training. Ignoring the swelling pain, she moved, sliding back her leg to catch her captor in the shin while forcing her free arm around in an attempt to catch her claws into his side to encourage her release...

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Freedom was not awarded without its price and in this instance, it was with another's blood that she was released. Her claws met their mark with a bitter satisfaction and she sprang from the slackened grasp applying distance between herself and her partner.

Despite her bi-pedal form, she had digressed to all fours with tail anchored high in taunt and claws grasping at the earth. She could smell his blood upon her claws and lingering in the air between them, bringing her maw to salivate in carnal pleasure. Her mind further degraded from the civilized sanity the Luperci tended to pride themselves in, and embarked on the darkened path she had times before been warned never to take; that tempting path that enjoyed the exchange... and took great pleasure in the physical implications. Yet there was no Shepard here to stop her... only submission would call an end.

And she would have him submit.

Yet the smile on his face spoke of him wanting the same of her. There was no promise of an outcome in this dance... but he was certainly welcome to try and have his way. Her hackles raised and body shook with chill of his snarl, thrashing her tail wildly as excitement coursed through her heated form. She watched him carefully, waiting for the ripple of muscle beneath his dark fur to show his movement, but was not at all surprised to see him charge straight for her. They had gone beyond dexterous moves and carefully calculated counters. What had become of them was a digression to the most natural state driven by pure, unbridled instinct... just how she liked it. She did not make to dodge, but charged into him instead intending to meet him in a winding crashing of equally solid and wounded forms. Her only show of thought was the arm extended to again grab his throat and her dripping teeth splayed wide and ready to tear into his shoulder.

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She could not reach him. So close and yet his throat seemed so far. She needed to have it and claimed her dominance over him. Only then would this savagery be brought to a satisfying end and she could call the male defeated. Her mind registered only his fallen form rather than the wounds that caused it, and taking her advantage she encompassed his lower half between the crushing vice of her thighs, tightening her hold while pressing her weight into him.

Yet even as she sank harder onto him, literally forcing her whole down to reach him, the guard he had raised restraining her from his throat kept her just out of reach of her prize. And she could feel him moving beneath her, fighting against the inevitable with commendable defiance that in more than one instance nearly toppled her over. But she was resilient in her hold, and like a victorious beast baring down upon would-be prey, her wild eyes bore into the crazed blues beneath her, shrouding his snarling face in tresses of red with each futile bite she made for his neck. Encompassed by the private auburn veil, eyes interlocked with the reflection of the same degraded nature, a strange sense of calm gradually worked its way into her eyes. Badly, she wanted his submission, to be named victor of their bout and revel in that pride as a warrior should… yet a creeping thought had long since closed her frantically snapping maw though the snarl still lingered. If she could not take his throat, then she could at the very least state her rightful claim as it was too obvious in her eyes to ignore. With what sanity she could muster, she allowed a satisfied smirk to come to her lips, and ever so softly she uttered;

“I win.”

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In the course of their bout one could believe that time had come to a halt, preserving the hostile moment for them and them alone. But gradually the adrenaline began to seep away, the harnessed energy having reached a premature critical point was made to ebb away by the strangely unfulfilling end. The warrior female had achieved what she wanted… yet felt robbed by the end in the same instance.

The end had come with words instead of fangs and had left a bitter taste on her tongue. It was an intrusion of the civilized mind onto the primal’s territory and it was not happy at losing its opportunity to stake its claim. But it was too late to reclaim it as sanity filtered back into her eyes, dulling the radiant amber to soft subdued hues. Despite the futile struggles between her thighs, she lessened her hold over her subdued companion trusting him to honor to her claim and end their scuffle with dignity. “I did not cheat,” her voice trembled amidst her soft tone as she acknowledged for the first time the rampant beating of her heart. And the pain in her chest could not be ignored, brought on by each deep inhale of his scent til shallow breaths became the only means to fill her lungs. She was not yet ready for this pain, the pain of exerted muscles, of her now gaping wound pulled apart by her careless actions. But the numbing remedy of adrenaline was fading…

“We follow the path of the warrior,” quietly she continued while releasing him from his painful vice, but did not yet move from on top of him. With tender fingers, she took the arm still braced beneath her jaw and gently encouraged to descent to the grass. “It is instilled in us to do what we must to bring another to submission…” Her gaze wandered from his for just a moment, trailing the contour of his jaw to his neck, vulnerable and still very much unclaimed. “But only when we have to.”

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The tantalizing black was his throat beckoned for her to take it. Willingly offered, coupled with a spoken admittance to his defeated status… how could she deprive herself that simple, meaningful pleasure? The heat of the battle was nearly gone, yet still she was alight internally by a smolder; the small flame of desire roused by her unsatisfied instinct, begging that she take the offered gift of his unconditional submission and truly be appeased.

Caressing her muzzle from where his tongue left its kiss, she lowered her muzzle to her prize. His alluring musk teased her delicate sense as she nosed along the contour of seamless black. Her tail swayed contently as a pleasant whine escaped her parted maw as she fondly licked beneath his jaw. She could have taken his throat then as it resided just beneath her nose, ready and willing to be taken. But there was no struggle that demanded a vicious hold, but rather an offering that deserved a more gracious show than relentless fangs. In place of those formidable weapons that for a moment before sought his blood, her tongue was instead used to state her claim. Slowly, purposefully, she parted through the thick curls of black to the tender flesh beneath, deeply engraving her scent… her claim, until she was satisfied.

Then the veil that shrouded his face was lifted as she wholly withdrew both body and claim and sat contently beside him on folded knees. As she wet her maw, again remarking the place of his lick, she stared at him from behind the curtain of wild autumn bangs. She was not anxious nor anticipating some unknown feat to follow, but was oddly content adorned with such a smile basking under the afternoon light. What was there to say other than what had been spoken? True that he had underestimated her, there was no need to confirm it. Surely he would know better than to make the mistake again. But it mattered little to her in that moment. All else could fade away and still she would be found in this contented state, staring fondly, patiently at her friend… tail swaying with ease… as all was right in the world.