[ She gives him an unimpressed look as she’s taking a bite from some dried fruit; of course she knows to stay quiet and keep a low profile. In some ways, she’s every bit the wild animal she looks in her other form, and she’s stayed alive this long. She knows how this works.
She genuinely does her best not to eat all of Peter’s food; she saves a chunk of the rations for him, rewrapping them in the cloth and setting them aside as she waits for him to return with a fresh kill. She feels— well, useless, if she’s honest. She’s been taking care of herself for so many years that being this hurt, this reliant, this vulnerable on any other person sets her on edge. She doesn’t know much about the human, and that makes her trust tenuous at best, but she also doesn’t think he’s going to kill her.
Which is largely the only guarantee she needs right now.
Time passes as the light continues to dim, and Yan keeps her ears open and her eyes peeled for signs of unwelcome company. She makes note of the sounds of the forest, the other animals going about their lives, and it’s… peaceful. Comfortable.
Until the fall of boots makes her head snap around to stare at the distant trees. At first, her instincts tell her it’s Peter, but—
It’s more than one pair stomping through the brush.
Her heartbeat thunders in her ribs, and she looks rapidly for cover. She first starts pushing herself up, only to fall back with the slightest weight on her ankle. Adrenaline makes the decision quickly for her, and her form immediately begins to shift and morph into the familiar fox. Peter’s jacket falls in a puddle on the grass, next to the cloth of food.
It’s not as easy, but hopping around on three legs lets her keep somewhat balanced as she starts to dart for the bushes, but—
She stops when she realizes she can’t just leave Peter’s coat in the open.
Fuck.
She rushes back, clamping her teeth around the leather collar as she starts to drag it into the bush with her, out of sight, away from prying eyes—
She only gets it mostly concealed when she hears men’s voices approaching the clearing.
As much as she wants to keep trying to hide the coat, she makes the desperate decision to let it go, turning to crawl as quietly as she can into the deeper brush.
She watches from behind branches and leaves, pressed low to the ground, as two men in leathers, one with a drawn bow and one with a sword, come into view. ]
You sure that sorcerer knew what he was talking about?
[ The low drawl of one of the hunters sounds annoyed. ]
He said she wouldn’t be able to get far. [ The other points out as he lowers his bow. ] If she’s injured, she’s going to wear herself out trying to run. One of us is bound to stumble onto her when she can’t keep going.
[ Yan’s breathing stops. ]
Well, fuck it, it’s gettin’ dark now. We’re not finding much until sun up.
Head back or stay here?
I’m bloody tired. We can just lay out here for the night.
[ Only the fact that Yan is plastered to the ground keeps her from shaking. ]
All right. Dig out some of that meat, would you? I’ll see about a fire.
[ The hunters put away their weapons, and they start to drop their packs. ]
Oy… [ The broader one pauses, before he starts walking towards where Yan had been sitting. ] The hells is this?
[ And he picks up the little cloth of rations she left behind.
Shit. ]
Someone’s been here.
[ Shit.
Both of the hunters straighten, and instead of starting to settle, they begin pouring over the clearing. Yan takes minuscule steps backwards, but it’s so hard not to drop too much weight on her only good rear paw.
She doesn’t make it far before one of the hunters is approaching where she’d mostly hidden Peter’s jacket. He lifts it up, frowning as he considers it in what’s left of the evening light. ]
no subject
She genuinely does her best not to eat all of Peter’s food; she saves a chunk of the rations for him, rewrapping them in the cloth and setting them aside as she waits for him to return with a fresh kill. She feels— well, useless, if she’s honest. She’s been taking care of herself for so many years that being this hurt, this reliant, this vulnerable on any other person sets her on edge. She doesn’t know much about the human, and that makes her trust tenuous at best, but she also doesn’t think he’s going to kill her.
Which is largely the only guarantee she needs right now.
Time passes as the light continues to dim, and Yan keeps her ears open and her eyes peeled for signs of unwelcome company. She makes note of the sounds of the forest, the other animals going about their lives, and it’s… peaceful. Comfortable.
Until the fall of boots makes her head snap around to stare at the distant trees. At first, her instincts tell her it’s Peter, but—
It’s more than one pair stomping through the brush.
Her heartbeat thunders in her ribs, and she looks rapidly for cover. She first starts pushing herself up, only to fall back with the slightest weight on her ankle. Adrenaline makes the decision quickly for her, and her form immediately begins to shift and morph into the familiar fox. Peter’s jacket falls in a puddle on the grass, next to the cloth of food.
It’s not as easy, but hopping around on three legs lets her keep somewhat balanced as she starts to dart for the bushes, but—
She stops when she realizes she can’t just leave Peter’s coat in the open.
Fuck.
She rushes back, clamping her teeth around the leather collar as she starts to drag it into the bush with her, out of sight, away from prying eyes—
She only gets it mostly concealed when she hears men’s voices approaching the clearing.
As much as she wants to keep trying to hide the coat, she makes the desperate decision to let it go, turning to crawl as quietly as she can into the deeper brush.
She watches from behind branches and leaves, pressed low to the ground, as two men in leathers, one with a drawn bow and one with a sword, come into view. ]
You sure that sorcerer knew what he was talking about?
[ The low drawl of one of the hunters sounds annoyed. ]
He said she wouldn’t be able to get far. [ The other points out as he lowers his bow. ] If she’s injured, she’s going to wear herself out trying to run. One of us is bound to stumble onto her when she can’t keep going.
[ Yan’s breathing stops. ]
Well, fuck it, it’s gettin’ dark now. We’re not finding much until sun up.
Head back or stay here?
I’m bloody tired. We can just lay out here for the night.
[ Only the fact that Yan is plastered to the ground keeps her from shaking. ]
All right. Dig out some of that meat, would you? I’ll see about a fire.
[ The hunters put away their weapons, and they start to drop their packs. ]
Oy… [ The broader one pauses, before he starts walking towards where Yan had been sitting. ] The hells is this?
[ And he picks up the little cloth of rations she left behind.
Shit. ]
Someone’s been here.
[ Shit.
Both of the hunters straighten, and instead of starting to settle, they begin pouring over the clearing. Yan takes minuscule steps backwards, but it’s so hard not to drop too much weight on her only good rear paw.
She doesn’t make it far before one of the hunters is approaching where she’d mostly hidden Peter’s jacket. He lifts it up, frowning as he considers it in what’s left of the evening light. ]
Well. Isn’t this nice?