bad moon rising

[imisspadfoot.livejournal.com]

Remus has been restless.

He knows the phases of the moon like he knows his own name, and he knows . . . it's tonight.

The hope, all along, was that a place like Fandom High would be more understanding of someone like him, but he'll know for certain tomorrow how they all really feel.

Because he can't stop it. He can't control it. He can't do anything but . . . change.



aaaarroooooowwwwllll . . .

Comments

[imisspadfoot.livejournal.com]

There is rustling in the bushes, the sound of an animal sniffing the wind.

A growl.

[imisspadfoot.livejournal.com]

The growling rises in volume and pitch and there's the sound of running--something large and four-legged and fierce.

[imisspadfoot.livejournal.com]

The shape is large and dark, running close to the ground. Its head snaps at the motion of the rock, following it. It growls.

[imisspadfoot.livejournal.com]

The wolf's head snaps back towards the movement, teeth bared. It growls, and then raises its head to the sky and howls.

[imisspadfoot.livejournal.com]

The wolf leaps, jaws snapping at her feet.

[imisspadfoot.livejournal.com]

The wolf yelps as the girl's foot connects with his eye.

[imisspadfoot.livejournal.com]

The wolf howls, then circles the tree trunk, sniffing at the roots. It whimpers a few times with hunger and frustration.

[imisspadfoot.livejournal.com]

The wolf howls.

[river-dancing.livejournal.com]

River comes tearing out of the dorm's doors at breakneck speed, shucking the paper bag as she goes. Behind her, a pierced rose and a gutted teddy bear fall to the dew-dampened grass... and the moonlight glitters off the paired blades clutched in her hands.

Faster, faster, faster --

Heartbeat pounding in her ears.

-- can't lose her -- not when we've only just met --

Breath rasping like dry sand through her throat.

-- I've got to do whatever I can --

Vision interpreting the fall of shadow and light across the rolling lawn, and she sidesteps a gopher hole with all the agility she can muster.

-- if only I can get there in time --

[carter-i-am.livejournal.com]

Sam fixes her eyes on the thin figure of the girl in front and pelts along after, dodging the discarded items.

Her sidearm is out, just a .22 pistol but it'll do the job of stopping the wolf-creature. A zat'nik'atel would be nice about now.

She scans the twilight landscape, remembering Buffy's warnings and advice and looking for betraying movement.

For some reason, the running refrain in her head is:
Werewolves, vampires and demons, oh my!

Damn Colonel and his damn movies.

The tree begins to loom large in their sights, the pawing creature slavering at the pale girl in the branches.

She fires a warning shot in the air. The retort sounds hideously loud in the nighttime.

[bent-bender.livejournal.com]

*stomps quickly after the kinda crazy girl cause he likes her for some reason*

*yells*

I got a laser gun... you want it? I've been trying to give it to people but they're all *high girly voice while he runs* oh no I'm too good to take your weapon, it's too killing machine... *flails his robot arms out all girly like*

[river-dancing.livejournal.com]

River hears the report of the gunshot from behind her and, a fraction of a second later, the echo off the treeline. Ahead of her, the creature looms up in the moonlight, an huge lean abomination of wolf and man that towers over her.

There's no way for me to intimidate this thing. I just have to act, and pray that I succeed. And in this, mobility will be my greatest asset.

With that thought repeating inside her head, she leaps at the beast, aiming precise vicious slashes at its flank and the back of its knee. She twists in midair to avoid running fult-tilt into the thing, somersaults as she hits the ground, and comes back to her feet with blades held at the ready.

[carter-i-am.livejournal.com]

Sam swears as River leaps directly for the animal. Is the girl insane?

And she can't get a clear shot at the beast while River's attacking it. Too dark, too unpredictable, and the first thing she learned about guns from her Dad was that you don't play about with them. Ever.

But the girl up in the tree has a moment's respite.

"Hey!" She yells up at the girl, keeping her gun trained on the general area of River and the beast. "Can you jump?"

[bent-bender.livejournal.com]

*eyes go thin as he takes in the situation*

*mutters to himself* Good thing no one took my weapon... that guy comes up on my robodetector as human...ish. I bet we'd like get detention or something if we killed him.

*guzzles down a beer and stomps into the situation, putting his weapon away, and just doing what he does best... being obnoxious*

Bender rules and you are a wolf yeah yeah
there's a dog on my door
i've been waiting for you
bender's distracting your ass
la de da de de da
kisses are hers and hers and its
benders distracting your ass... arrrrrrrroooooooooooooooooo

[river-dancing.livejournal.com]

River's on the far side of the creature now, and she thinks -- she hopes -- that she's attracted its attention. She weaves the blades in a bewildering pattern, feinting and dodging towards and away from it with a dancer's grace.

If I'm fortunate, this will work. If not --

That doesn't bear thinking about.

She lunges again, blades flashing silver-blue in the moonlight, trying to keep its attention. "Chiana, run for it! While I've got it focussed on me!"

[carter-i-am.livejournal.com]

Sam reaches out a hand to touch the girl's shoulder as she runs past. A reassurance of sorts.

"River!" She yells at the girl still engaged in a deadly dance with the wolf. "Can you hold it a few seconds more?"

[river-dancing.livejournal.com]

"I think so --" But the sound of her voice is desperate.

[carter-i-am.livejournal.com]

Sam swears to herself. Not the answer she wanted.

She glances back towards the lights of the school, and sees the pale girl make it to the edge of the oval.

"River!"

[river-dancing.livejournal.com]

All that can be seen in the moon's illumination is the interplay of light and shadow, constant motion deceiving the eye in the dimness... but from the midst of it all, River shouts at Sam and Chiana, "Go, damn you! Go!"

[carter-i-am.livejournal.com]

Sam doesn't feel comfortable with leaving River behind, it goes against what she was taught.

But there's Chiana to consider.

She turns and runs back towards the school, her hand still on her gun, grabbing at Chiana's arm as she pauses by her. "Come on! River will handle it."

She hopes the words are true.

[bent-bender.livejournal.com]

*squints his eyes angrily as his actions have been ignore by the humans and the kinda human dog thing, which bit a chunk of metal off of him*

well fine then!

*kicks some dirt in the wolf's eyes (blinding it for a couple seconds) and walks off angrily*

I'll show them to ignore Bender!

*guzzles more beers as he stomps off*

[carter-i-am.livejournal.com]

"When was the last time you saw a girl tangle with a wolf like that?" Sam snaps.

"The point of this mission was to get you out - and what kind of help are you going to be to her on that ankle?

"If you're safe, that's one less thing she has to worry about."

[river-dancing.livejournal.com]

[carter-i-am.livejournal.com]

[bent-bender.livejournal.com]

[ooc: it's all good, Bender's bent on killing all humans anyway ;)]

[river-dancing.livejournal.com]

[carter-i-am.livejournal.com]

[carter-i-am.livejournal.com]

Sam and Chiana head back to the common room (http://www.livejournal.com/community/fandomhighdorms/69427.html?thread=2030899#t2030899) on the second floor of the dorms.

[(Anonymous)]

kicks some dirt in the wolf's eyes (blinding it for a couple seconds)

not to be picky, isn't that godmodding, telling the receiver of the action what happened and not letting the receiver determine what happenend? Item 7, paragraph 2? (http://www.livejournal.com/community/fandomhigh_ooc/83649.html#cutid7)

otherwise, bender's here!

[imisspadfoot.livejournal.com]

[ooc: well. really, the whole scene kind of is, as I wasn't here to play it out.]

[river-dancing.livejournal.com]

[ OOC: *sigh* I'm on, and willing to play this out with you if you wish. I intentionally left it vague so as not to put you into anything irrevocable. ]

[death-n-binky.livejournal.com]

(ooc: DEATH just treated Chiana's foot and found out you were left there. He's stalked out to find you, but the mun here is not sure where to go with this, since Remus hasn't chimed in from there... any suggestions?)

[river-dancing.livejournal.com]

[ OOC: Heya. Just got back in after a long day spent away from the crack that is FH... :) Remus's player and I seem to have smoothed over the difficulties, so I'm going to post a start comment in that thread and we'll work it from there. ]

[river-dancing.livejournal.com]

"Hai!" River yells at the creature. "Look at me, you ugly gou cao de! At me!" She makes extravagant gestures to capture its attention, hoping that she now presents a somewhat more attractive target than Chiana does.

Careful, careful, she tells herself, keeping balanced and ready to move if it springs.

[imisspadfoot.livejournal.com]

The noise attracts the wolf's attention, all right--it crouches low to the ground, growling.

[river-dancing.livejournal.com]

River keeps one of the knives in guard position, ready to slash or parry, weaving it in what she hopes are random patterns. The other she flips in her hand and angles backwards against her forearm -- if she needs to block with that arm, she wants to be able to hurt this thing in the doing.

The thing is, she's not even sure she can. She would've sworn she felt the tips of the knives dig in when she dove past it, but she can see no sign of the wounds she thought she'd dealt.

And that is very, very worrisome.

Chiana's out of the tree now and moving away, but slowly, so slowly... and as River feints forward, then flashes one blade in a horizontal slash towards the beast, she sincerely hopes she hasn't chosen more trouble than she can handle.

Enough. Focus, or you'll regret it.

[river-dancing.livejournal.com]

The creature's fast and powerful, whatever it might be. And the lack of injury makes her wonder if the wiser choice might not simply be to try to evade, after giving Chiana and Sam a bit more time to get clear. Perhaps if I can tap into its surface thoughts, I'll be better able to anticipate its moti--

painhungerfuryragecoilsinsidetearingmeapart

River hisses in shock as its thoughts slam against hers, then furiously rallies to try to drive the contact away. But it's pernicious, hooking itself into her head, and she's dizzied by the sheer intensity of it and staggers back a step, off-balance.

[imisspadfoot.livejournal.com]

The wolf shakes its head and its eyes narrow.

Enormous paws clench. Its back hunches. The girl is too tasy a morsel to let get away, and it lifts its head and starts to howl--

There's a scent on the wind. A howl. A knowledge.

Another wolf.

another

The only thing that can distract a werewolf from its prey.


[ooc: I checked it in HPB: in the HP universe, if someone is bitten by a full werewolf during the full moon, they become a werewolf themselves. So Remus is distracted by the scent of Oz and lets River get away.

[river-dancing.livejournal.com]

River, disoriented and head filled with too many conflicting emotions to coherenly register, stumbles back away from the creature. It seems preoccupied, distracted by something else, but with the cacophany inside her head right now the last thing she can manage is any sort of structured attack. Operating more on instinct than plan or thought, she ducks into the underbrush and sprints away, head filled with only one endlessly cycling thought: Quiet as a mouse, quick as a sparrow, he won't see me, can't catch me.

[imisspadfoot.livejournal.com]

[ooc: works for me.]

[river-dancing.livejournal.com]

[imisspadfoot.livejournal.com]

[ooc: Funny how mysteries are always solved just as the summer begins . . .[