Big Wolf, Big Problem

[ahowltolightthedark]

WHO: Remi and Fluttershy
WHERE: Remi's Forest, outside Birchpointe
WHEN: A time long past
OPEN/CLOSED: Closed
WARNINGS: little bit of blood in the opening here


"A werewolf can't heal from silver."

The words of the hunter echoed in the werewolf's mind as his eyes opened to a sky filled with stars. Remiel lay on his side, breathing heavily as blood seeped from a wound to his ribs. He silently cursed himself for letting that hunter get away - nothing in this forest could simply be taken, as if it were mere sport. He was their protector, and that hunter had overcome him.

"I'm sorry..."

The huge wolf's softly whimpered words stirred sleeping birds, prowling owls, and small nocturnal rodents scurrying about on the forest floor. After so long under his protection, even if he scared them, they couldn't let it end like this. They were going to find whoever they could to get him help. It wouldn't be long before the whole forest was abuzz with worry.

Comments

[strengthinkindness]

To most people, the noise in the forest was just that; noise. And while it seemed strange that there was so much commotion going on through the trees, most people wouldn't assume anything was going wrong.

But a certain fae, who just happened to be walking along the road by the woods, could hear the all the excitement for what it really was - cries of distress.

And she knew it was dangerous at night, especially for someone traveling alone as she was. But she couldn't just pass by, knowing that someone or something might be hurt. So pulling her cloak closer to her, she diverted away from the road and headed into the woods.

It's a little hard to make out what the animals were saying, especially with all of them talking at once the way they were. But she follows the direction most of them seem to be coming from, running until she comes across the injured werewolf lying on the ground.

With a soft gasp she crouches beside him, doing her best to see through the darkness as she tries to check on him.

[ahowltolightthedark]

The soft light makes it hard to see, so the figure approaching only fills Remiel with dread. With the very little strength he has, he tries to push himself away from whatever is coming toward him, growling in pain as his wound compresses and then opens further. He can't breathe well enough to speak, or even to growl. All he can do is grimace as he uses his arms to get barely inches further back.

Beaten, humiliated...and now...who even knows...

[strengthinkindness]

"Shh..." She places a gentle hand on his arm, hoping to calm him. "P-Please, don't move...I-It's okay...I'm not going to hurt you..."

Once she's finally located his wound, she tears a long piece of her cloak, pressing it against the wound to slow the blood flow.

[ahowltolightthedark]

When she touches his arm, he tries to bite her, he tries, as hard as he can, but his jaw won't even open. All he can do is whimper as she staunches the blood from his wound, as his body reflexively flinches from the pain.

[strengthinkindness]

"Shh...I-I know...I know it hurts...b-but don't worry...I-I'll do my best to be careful..."

Her mind is rapidly going through some of the herbs she'd learned about, something to help with healing a wound like this. Would they be available in these woods?

[ahowltolightthedark]

All he can manage in response is to gasp, shortly before his body collapses. Relief floods him, just as the exhaustion from his wounds overtakes him. His hulking frame is clearly still breathing, although not as deeply as he should be.

[strengthinkindness]

With a soft, worried noise, Fluttershy then asked the animals to try and find some of the herbs she needed as she continued to tend to the now-unconscious werewolf. It takes a while, but soon some of the animals return with what she needs, and she's able to properly dress his wounds, using more pieces of her cloak.

The rest of the night is spent caring for him, using the remains of her cloak as a blanket as she starts a small fire to keep them warm. The nocturnal animals provided good company to sit with her as she sat watch over the werewolf, helping to make him as comfortable as she could manage.

And despite how tired she was starting to feel, she somehow managed to stay awake through it all, sitting with him for however long it would take.

[ahowltolightthedark]

As the sun rises, Remiel opens his eyes, only to find himself in a rather vulnerable state, laying on the ground on his back, stomach exposed to any opportunistic animal to come along and eviscerate him while he slept. But the thought calls up memories of the night before, reminding him that he should already be in pain, but he's surprised to find that he's hardly feeling anything.

"Wh...what...?" His voice is still weak, the wound to his side keeping him from breathing well. Gingerly, he strays a hand down to the bandages that bind it, then looks to the girl who had come to his aid. "Y...you..."

A mistaken attempt to sit up results in a whimper of pain, Remiel suddenly clutching his side as he realizes that he hasn't healed from the hunter's silvered weapon yet - and that bandages and herbs can only do so much before there's simply more pain than they can help with.

[strengthinkindness]

Hearing him awaken, she quickly goes to his side, gently urging him to lie back down.

"O-Oh, careful...Y-Your wound hasn't completely healed yet..."

[ahowltolightthedark]

When she touches him, Remi grunts, but lets her push him to his back.

"And it won't...for a long while..." he breathes, removing his hand from the injury. "But you..."

He looks at her carefully, his yellow eyes examining her as if he could see more than just the way she appears, before a calm look of puzzlement replaces the soul-piercing gaze. "...Why...?"

[strengthinkindness]

"I know...it'll take some time...B-But you will get better, don't worry..."

His question has her confused for a moment. "Wh-Why not...? You were injured...Y-You needed help...Wh-Why wouldn't I...?"

[ahowltolightthedark]

He sighs at her initial answer, but doesn't respond till she asks a question of her own.

"Most spirits...would leave me be..." Other spirits and magical creatures couldn't possibly tell if a werewolf had been wounded by silver, and their ability to regenerate from normal wounds is well known.

"...But...if you weren't..." His breath fails him, sending him into a coughing fit - which makes him grimace in pain as his ribs expand and retract under the bandages.

[strengthinkindness]

She winces a little as he starts coughing, and tries her best to make him comfortable.

"Shh...You should save your strength and get some rest..."

Some Time Later...

[ahowltolightthedark]

Remiel takes a moment to yawn wide and stretch, then shakes out his neck full of fluffy fur before standing up from the bed of leaves that he's been resting on. It's amazing what a few weeks with proper care can do for healing, he thinks as he reaches his arms up over his head, feeling his powerful muscles flexing strong for the first time since the hunter injured him.

There's a nice scar over his ribs from the wound, he notices, but his fur will grow in over that, and make it much more difficult to see. He was hardly one to be concerned about his appearance anyway, since it's the forest that's most important.

"Fluttershy? Are you still sleeping?" Remi's ears swivel, trying to listen for any sign of the fae who'd aided in his convalescence. She was often out when he awoke, either making new friends among the animals, gathering food, water, and herbs, or simply enjoying the quietude of the forest.

[strengthinkindness]

This morning seemed to be a rare one, where Fluttershy was actually in fact still asleep, curled in her own bed of leaves nearby. The sound of his voice though had her stirring, curling a bit more under her cloak that was using as a blanket before stretching.

"H-Hmm...?"

[ahowltolightthedark]

"Still sleeping? I could find food while you rest," the werewolf offers. He feels more than well enough to hunt and gather now, and over the past weeks he's learned that the animals are happy to give him aid.

[strengthinkindness]

She yawns softly, rubbing her eyes as she tries to wake herself up more. "M-Mm...N-No, I'm okay...I-I can..." She's cut off as another yawn interrupts her.

[ahowltolightthedark]

Remiel smiles. It's no wonder she took such good care of him. She might not see it, but she's waking in a very similar way to many of the forest's animals.

"I'll be back soon."

He doesn't give her much chance to argue, knowing how well he's healed by now. The animals have been much more helpful to him as of late too, and he can ask them to get some of the food too.

It's not long before he's back, and he's carrying quite a bit with him. Those strong muscles are good for more than just hunting, and they're being put to use carrying plenty of greens and fruits, and some meat for himself too.

[strengthinkindness]

She doesn't get a chance to stop him before he heads off, and so spends the rest of the time just waking up, as well as getting some fresh water for them to drink.

She's sitting by their campfire site when he returns, boiling some water to mix with more herbs she'd gotten. Even though he was pretty well healed, it couldn't hurt to make sure he had a little more strength.

[ahowltolightthedark]

"Good morning, Fluttershy," Remiel says with a smile as he comes back. He gently sets the food on a few leaves they'd placed just for this, then sniffs the air. After wrinkling his nose, he whines a little.

"More of those? I really am feeling better now..." He wouldn't mind, honest, but they're so bitter, and they smell so strong, it's hard for him to stomach them.

[strengthinkindness]

She returns the smile with a nod of her head. "Good morning..."

She couldn't help a soft giggle at that. She understood his dislike of them, but also knew it was better in the long run.

"I know...this will be the last time, I promise. It's just a precautionary measure..."

[ahowltolightthedark]

"I'll hold you to that."

He growls a little, then tears into a bite of his meat, chewing with gusto to enjoy it before he has to swallow the bitter herbal mixture.

[strengthinkindness]

She gives a small smile, beginning with her own breakfast. "It's good to be careful...Even though you're on the mend, you need all the strength you can get..."

[ahowltolightthedark]

"You'd be surprised how quickly a werewolf can recover, even when injured by silver."

Again he rips into his meat.

"Is it done yet? I want to get this over with."

[strengthinkindness]

"That doesn't mean you can't have a bit of help now and then."

She knew his attitude was mostly because of the bitter medicine. But she meant what she said, it would be the last he'd have to take of it.

Once she was finished, she handed it to him. "Here..."