In the Wake of Giants

Three days passed since the dragons made their appearance, putting the town on edge in the following days. Would the dragon come back? Why were the dragons even near the town? Where they in danger? Many people caught each other taking glances towards the forest, just waiting for a roar to pierce the uneasy silence within the forest's borders.

Janine was tired as hell, even after three days. Not necessarily from the events from before - she was well rested after a day and a half of sleeping and eating - but because she was picking up all the nervous energy from the entire town. She had her own stuff to worry about, and she didn't have time to feel everyone else's anxiety. She was still worried about the man that she saved; sure he was in the hands of trained nurses, but those wounds looked bad, and she didn't know how long he'd been like that. Even so, something told her that he would be fine, and that a strong man like him would pull through.

It was late morning when Janine stepped outside to tend to Venus and the new horse she rode on horseback for a brief time. Her leg hissed at her with a dulled pain, which was more of an annoyance than anything, and thanks to her demonic half, she was almost healed, whereas a normal person would've taken about three times as long to get over a small slash in the leg.
But Janine had to play the part, which she didn't mind at all. She'd limp a little if it kept the more prodding questions off her back. With a bucket in her hand, Janine went to Venus with an apple and a couple of carrots amongst her barley as treats. She also slipped a sugar ball to her - a treat she liked to spoil Venus with every now and again. She then went to the other horse and did the same thing with her; she hoped that a good meal would keep the horse's mind from anything worrying. But then again, the mare kew that she was without her original rider, so she had to have been exhibiting some signs or stress.

"Don't worry. Your human is fine. He just had a bad day.... A very bad day. I promise once he's better I'll reunite you two," Janine she as she patted the mare on the shoulder. She gave a sugar ball to the mare before walking away, going back in the house where it was more comfortable.

"I fed the horses. The new one is worried about her owner, I can tell. That, or she just hates being tied up for so long," Janine said as she rubbed the side of her head.

"How do you know? All that damn horse has been doing is stomping her feet and beating up the post," her mother retorted. Janine scoffed and shook her head.

"Of course she's doing that, she most likely isn't used to being tied up so long. And with her owner being holed up, she can't be by herself.... Not to mention that I don't trust her being with the other Knights," Janine said with a snort.

Her mother blinked in surprise. "Bite your tongue! What makes you say that?" Her mother asked.

Janine chuckled a little. "Not like that mom. I trust the Order, but I'm talking about the younger Knights - they sometimes try to ride other Knight's horses when nobody is looking, and I don't want to risk anyone being in trouble for trying to ride such a strong-willed horse. I'd rather sit it out and wait for her owner to feel better," Janine said as she sat down.

"Hmmm... Sounds reasonable. I just don't want you to get in trouble. You get very aggressive when you're angry or threatened, and the other day, you got kicked by Venus. What if you were seen? How would you defend yourself if -"

"Mom, calm down. Nobody saw me as anything else but a wounded woman. And I wasn't even that hurt. I was walking along just fine,"Janine said as she rubbed her leg lightly across her bandages.

The mother sighed and took her small cup of water to her lips. She then looked over to Janine with a raised eybrow.

"So tell me about this... Man. When did you get so worked up about a man's well-being? Have you gotten to know him?" The mother said with a prying voice.

Janine gasped and stood on her feet with a huff.
"Mom! I can't belive that you'd even go there! I only met him that day in the tavern. And besides, he's a member of the Order - I'd be hard to not see him if we're in the same profession," Janine said with conviction.

"That doesn't mean anything. You could've met this man on some other occasion and not pay too much attention to him at the time. It happens when there are a lot of people in the same occupation," the woman said as she sipped her cup.

Janine sighed and rubbed her face. "That may be true, but even if that was the case, I don't remember any other time. Perhaps if we bumped into each other while walking down the road, maybe, but I couldn't tell you - if I did know, I'd tell you," Janine said with a slight tap to her mom's leg.

The other woman chuckled a little. "Hmmhmm.... Alright then. Fine. But how did you know he was in danger?"

"His horse came to me when I was in trouble. I recognised her to be the man's horse, and that he wasn't on her. When there was blood on the man's armor, it was the only indication that he was in trouble."

"If he was in trouble, then why didn't you tell the others? Surely they would've helped."

"I was the only one to know for certain that he was in trouble, and when the dragons got too close to the town, everyone was occupied with defending the town. If I had told them, they would've either dismissed me or told me to wait until more Knights were available to make a search party. If I had waited any longer, that man wouldn't have made it past sundown, especially with the pack of wolves that had found us in that moment."

Janine huffed at the events that had happened. She was sure that the man would've died had she not found him in time. It honestly was the most fulfilling thing she'd done in her entire time as a Knight. She never thought she'd directly save another person's life, let along another Knight.
With a nod of her head, Janine walked to the door and wrapped herself in a fur coat.

"Where are you going Janine?" Her mother asked as she put her cup down.

Janine turned and shrugged her shoulders. "I'm going to check up on him. I might not be the only one to see if he's alright, but I just want to be sure." Janine said as she walked out the door.

Janine's mom gave a teasing smirk. Janine may have given a good argument, but she just wasn't going to believe it just yet.

"Hmmhmm.... Checking up on him."
 
Chestnut was in a very bad mood. She kept tabs on Raban constantly till he told her to leave off for a while and then she had heard nothing from him since then. That had been three days back and she knew the other had gone to sleep in all of it. Good for him, she supposed and she supposed another reason was to heal. His internal damage, he would already have started mending through his unnatural being. It wasn't like her own, it was slower but it was certainly still faster than of a normal human being's rate of healing. She knew he had to watch that. If those damned nurses realised he was healing too quickly, they'd get suspicious.

Riding into town had been suspicious enough without adding the rest of it into question. She pawed the ground again until she heard movement and tensed up before she saw the girl from before. She snorted, nostrils flaring.

She watched idly as the woman tended to her flightier horse, a horse much smaller than herself. Made her look like a giant of all things. She sensed a presence approach her and then a hand. She was about to rear and protest when she remembered she had to play dumb and nice. She sniffed at the woman and exhaled deeply, air blowing outwards in a huff. Something about this woman was hinky, but for the moment, she wasn't sure as to what it was.

Her food bucket was added to and Chestnut had mixed feelings about it. It was humiliating she could not hunt her own food down but on the flip side, it was a perk to her state of being. She had rather come to like the carrots and other treats Raban had offered to her. He always asked if she wanted it rather than enforcing it but she was not like to say no.

She peered at Janine when she spoke and snorted. 'A bad day' only just about covered it and she would have replied with 'just be sure that you do' but course, no human spoke equine. A white ball was offered and she sniffed at it dubiously before accepting it, her velvety lips having no problems whipping it away and settling it to the large pinkish tongue inside.

----

Raban was bored.

He wanted to get up. Do something. Even to just walk would be nice.

The nurses had put a very fine stop to that and he sighed, his hands patting the bed with signs of his impatience. He couldn't heal at the rate he wanted to or else he'd draw suspicion and the wrath of either the Nurses or his Order. He wasn't too sure about their views on werefolk, and he had been too fearful to ask around. There was only one way to keep something secret and that was to tell no one but yourself. If you really had to tell someone, be sure it was someone you could trust. He had that in Chestnut but she would have no way to tell anyone unless she broke connection with him and joined someone else. He didn't think that likely to be a problem. She had just as much to hide.

He raised himself up just a little to peer at his side but there was nothing to see, he'd been wrapped up in linen bandaging, with a little tube poking out one side. It was a thin tube of hollowed wood or bone, he couldn't rightly tell but it was serving as a drain for the pus that formed.

The door opened and he glanced up caught in the act of raising himself. It wasn't a nurse though. It was one of the Order who chuckled as he closed the door and slid a stool over.

"Itching to get out of here already, I see,"
"You would too... Not even a book to read," Raban replied before letting himself back down again. His muscles were still tired it seemed.
"I hear you, brother," the man replied stroking a salt and pepper beard that was finely groomed. Raban remembered Sir Kriegal took pride in his appearance. "I've taken the liberty of having a steward of bringing you some clothes to wear when you're allowed to get up. Nurses say you're healing well, they're all in a hoot about saying healing too well for some but I think they're just chicken shitting me,"

"Appreciated,"
"I'm sure... You do have strange notions of dramatic entrances. Just what happened to your armour anyway,"
"I... I don't remember," he knew it was with Chestnut but he had no way of knowing where the woman lived or even how to get there. He suspected Chestnut kept that from him purely for this occasion and that was fair. "I remember a lot of running, being chucked about like a rag-doll and riding for my life though," he cough, clearing his throat.

"Uh huh, well, no getting that back I suppose... I'll have a new set commissioned for you. No doubt they'll order you to takes some weeks of rest and no riding."
"Really? Must I?" Raban realised he sounded like a petulant child but he liked being on the road, aiding where he could and what not. Being stuck in town was just... irksome.
"Yes. Don't make me make that an order. I realise you've been with us for a long time, but even you're not exempt from that," the man dictated and Raban sighed before nodding.

"Fine, I'll behave, sir"
"See that you do. You're almost breaking the record for longest serving Knight. Should hate for impatience to ruin that"
"You're not far off it either, if you don't mind me saying,"
"Pfft! Keep quiet you. I'm young enough yet," Kriegal grinned making Raban jealous about his beard for another time.

"I'll need your full report once you've recovered more. That was quite the dragon today, or so i've heard. Whatever this new one is... it needs a rethink on the tactics to take it down. "
"Yes... it's going to. That one... never seen anything like it before now,"
"I'll let you rest... I look forward to that report, Raban,"
"Yes sir,"

He watched the man leave and sighed. Back to his thoughts and four dismal walls.
 
Janine walked all the way down the streets of Amastad, around twists and turns of rowdy people. She limped here and there, but she had no real fear of any suspicious curiosity - the knights tried to take her to the nurse for her chest pain, but she adamantly declined, as her pains had nothing to do with that dragon. They somehow overlooked her cut, which was just fine since she could just hurry up and heal it before anyone noticed.

When she got to the building, Janine inhaled slowly before she stepped to the door.... But she was halted by a knight who was coming out the building himself.

"I'd say, watch where you're..... Oh... pardon me miss," the man said politely.

Janine gasped and fumbled with herself. She wasn't always rude towards others, but she also didn't really say much to others either. But she did know to say sorry to the man.

"Sir Keigal! I'm so sorry, I didn't know you were coming out," Janine said as she bowed her head a little. The man chuckled a little and shook his head, when he realized it to be one of the Knights. After all, how many woman were in this kind of business anyway?

"Ah, young woman. You're..... Janine are you not? I heard you were the one who rushed herself into the fray that day. A rather bold move don't you think?" The man asked.

Janine rose her head and paused. She didn't really think about what she was doing. She just wanted to prevent her comrades from dying in the hands of a vicious dragon.
"Well... Sir, to be honest, I was just concerned with driving the beast off. It is my duty as a Knight sir," Janine replied.

The seasoned man laughed heartily. "Don't be so modest! You didn't have to do what you did. You could've done something else, like, fight from afar, or run way for that matter. In any case, I appreciate what you did. I'm pretty sure that the beast would've taken us all out if you hadn't sealed its ungodly mouth shut."

Janine felt herself swell with a little pride. She couldn't recall if anyone complemented her with anything she did.

"However, I also heard that you ran off into the forest after the dragon had retreated. Some speculate that you were going after the dragon, while others think you were trying to chase the werewolf that was spotted near the dragon," Sir Keigal said with a thoughtful stroke of his beard.

Janine was knocked for a loop. A.... Werewolf? In the middle of the day? She stared blankly at the knight, which earned an amused chuckle from the older man.
"A... W-werewolf.... Sir?" Janine honestly questioned.

"Hmm. You don't seem to know anything about it. Yes, a werewolf was spotted near the beast. We speculate that it was somehow involved, but we just don't know how. But don't worry about it. You can tell me more about your mad dash to the forest in your report," the man said as he walked off.

"Have a nice day Janine."

".... Uh, you too sir....."

Janine had no idea what just happened. Such an encounter with a higher ranking officer is unusual.... But considering where she is, he probably just came to visit the injured knight, just like she was. Shaking the shock away, but still storing his words for later, Janine walked into the building.

She walked until she saw a nurse coming out of a room, and walked up to her with her more nicer tone of voice.

"Hi, excuse me, I was wondering if you could tell me where I can find the man that came in here a few days ago, on the day of the dragon attack. He's a big man, kinda burly, and he was pretty banged up," Janine described.

The nurse scrutinised Janine's body and narrowed her eyes. She harumphed as she folded a towel and stepped back a couple of inches. "Yes there's a man of that description here, but you aren't going to see him. We're not accepting any visitors at the moment," the woman said as she put the towel on her shoulder.

Janine blinked. What did she mean by 'no visitors'? She was sure that Sir Keigal had visited this man, and the day hasn't even reached its midpoint yet. Visiting hours were far from over. Janine cleared her throat and interlocked her fingers.

"What do you mean by that? I'm sure he's better enough to-"

"To do what? 'Talk' to you? Only Knights are aloud to speak to him at the moment," the woman said in a stone of voice that made it seem as if she was sure it would drive Janine away. But all it did was make her a little angry. She walked up to the woman with a small growl, her body facing towards the blocked room.

"This may come to you as a shock, but I am a Knight. And I don't appreciate you telling me otherwise. What exactly do you think I am?" Janine asked with a tilted head. The woman gave a sharp huff, and put her hands on her hips.

"Oh please, I've heard that one before. All of your kind is the same, trying to get into all the beds of every man you see... No respect for yourself or any decent man! No integrity at all!" The woman said before she smacked Janine in the face.

The blow came as a shock to Janine. She blinked as the anger bubbled up within her; her face slightly turned to the man laying on the far side of the room; she could smell him inside there, but she was being blocked by this infuriating nurse. Her eyes struggled between staying normal and changing to their serpentine shape, fluttering back and forth as Janine struggled to control herself.
She looked back at the woman when her eyes kept still, and she gave a deep breath.

"Touch me like that again, and you'll find yourself in one of these beds.... And you won't be changing the sheets," Janine threatened.
 
The nurse stared at her with big eyes that held nothing but scrutiny and disdain for this woman who had come demanding visitation rights. She hook her head, "Of all the impudence! I tell you again, he is not open to visitors of your kind! Now, shoo, begone with you! Before I get the matr-"

She was interrupted by a sudden loud thump on the floorboards nearby and a pained grunt from the room behind. She stared at the doorway for a moment. The grunt had sounded strange but she must of just imagined the animal quality to it before she glared back at the woman giving her daggers.

"Don't you even think about following me, missy!" the nurse turned on her heel and opened the door to see the cause of the sound. "And just what do you think you're up, hm!? You're supposed to be resting, not crawling around on the floor."

Raban had a decency to look sheepish as he stared upwards, his head upside down before he caught sight of the woman who had more or less rescued him in the forest before. Without her or her horse... he wasn't quite so sure he would have made it alive. He grew distracted as the Nurse fussed, pulling him back up with the strength of one used to bossing her flock and lifting weight of the sick and injured around.

"Gods alive, woman... Ease up!" he hissed, grimacing and was not surprise to receive no sympathy from the nurse.
"Should have thought of that before you fell out. Just what were you trying to do anyway?" she snapped as she lowered his shoulders back down, shifting his head on the pillow and then shifting the sheet that covered his body back to its resting place a few centimetres from the wound to his chest.

He peered at her, "Trying to get more comfortable. Like there's anything else to do but sleep in here. A book wouldn't hur-"
"Would your eyes, don't be silly."

Raban frowned, it would be hard to explain he tended to see a little better in the dark than most. Admittedly not much better than humans could but enough to read in low light levels. He relented before he arched his head back, peering at Janine for a moment and then looked back at the Nurse as she continue to fuss with his bedding.

"Can I least talk with her?"
"That trollop? What do you need with her for?"

Raban peered at the nurse with a frown of confusion before he shook his head nonplussed.

"I'll ask you kindly, Nurse, to apologise for that remark. If not for her, I'd be dead. Do me the honour of letting me talk with the Knight and woman who saved my hide. I doubt Sir Kriegal would appreciate you thinking so low of one of the Order," he managed before he had to take a breather. Damn that dragon.

The nurse blinked and stared at him before she looked back at Janine, "That was -your- horse he rode in upon?" She seemed incredulous that this woman was a Knight.
 
Janine stood up straight when the nurse addressed her about her horse. Of all the high and mighty women....

"Yes, yes she is. Venus isn't the biggest or strongest, but she is faster than most of the horses. I'm happy that her speed once again proved useful," Janine said with a small bow of her head.

The nurse groaned inwardly as she looked back and forth between Raban and Janine. Eventually, she sighed - when it came down to it, she definitely didn't want to get into any kind of trouble with any of the higher ranking Knights that served for the kingdom. She had too many things to take care of to get in trouble.
With a sigh, the nurse conceded and extended an arm to signify that Janine could come in. Janine took a slightly hesitant step in the room, as if she was a wary animal that suspected a trap. She took a couple more steps in before actually walking, and she walked right past the nurse, who was quick to give her a warning glance.

"I'll leave you two to.... Talk... No funny business," the woman said as she glared directly at Janine, who gave her a threatening glance back. She wasn't scared of no woman wrapped in an apron.

When the doors shut, Janine suddenly felt nervous. She was alone with a man, and she barely knew him. But she was concerned about him, and she would remain so.... Hopefully, it would take some of the edge off.

She walked up to the man and sat down next to him on a stool, her hands placed on her lap. Janine eyed the areas where the bandages were placed and tilted her head a little.

"Hello again. Been a minute since we last saw each other. I see the nurses are treating you well?" Janine said as she gestured her head to the doors, talking about the nurse that she nearly put hands on.
 
Raban watched as the nurse clearly seemed to be reluctant to believe Janine was a Knight. He supposed there was some truth to doubting her word but he still found it rude that the Nurse forgot her courtesies. He nodded, Venus had been most speedy and he knew Chestnut was not the sprinter a lighter horse would be. He felt a presence in his mind and stifled the chuckle it almost produced.

"I could not have hoped for a speedier one," he voiced aloud, eyes on the woman for a moment before resting upon the belligerent nurse once more. Whatever this nurse believed Janine to be, it clearly had not been that of a Knight and Raban could feel some tension in the air.

The nurse seemed to eventually reach as decision before stepping aside and Raban nodded with gratitude, "Thank you, nurse."

He stared at the doorway a moment even after it had closed before the shifting of a stool caught his attention once more. He looked towards the woman, taking a moment to look at her properly now that he wasn't fatigued with exhaustion and adrenaline. He gained the same read as he had gained on their first meeting and he knew now that she was resourceful, certainly a woman of strength and character. Other than that, she was a stranger he had rarely glanced at before when Knight convened. Equally he knew he was next to a stranger to her.

He snorted after she spoke and coughed, wincing briefly before he smiled, "Hello... You could say that... That tree stump was certainly more comfortable than this bed is. Otherwise... all is good."

"I hope Chestnut isn't causing you too much trouble?" he asked, clearly understanding of how high spirited his demonic friend could prove herself to be.

Despite his wariness of what questions she might have for him, he extended a hand to her, "I'm Raban."
 
Janine chuckled when the man joked about how comfortable the tree stump was compared to the bed he was laying on. The beds must've been very uncomfortable.

She blinked when a name was mentioned - Chestnut. It took her a second, but she quickly surmised the name belonged to her equine guest. So that was the name for his horse; she liked the name very much.

"Ah, so that's the name for your head-strong partner. A strong mare. My Venus was the same way when I first got her - stubborn and all sorts of hell. She calmed down after a long while, but she still shows it from time to time.
I can tell that Chestnut is one of those horses - loyal to one owner. She doesn't really take to me very much, but I kept her well fed and groomed. Thankfully she hasn't bitten my hand off," Janine said with a small chuckle.

She paused when the man extended his hand and introduced himself. Raban. So that was his name. The name sounded as rough as this man did. She hesitated a little, but still gave her hand out to shake his hand as well.

"Nice to meet you Raban. I'm Janine. So, you're a Knight. I should've known from when we were in the tavern. You weren't as loud or as roudy as the other men... Then again, plenty of knights have their share of alcohol from time to time."

Janine let go of Raban's hand and pulled it back to its original spot in her lap. She had a couple of questions to ask out of sheer curiosity, but she figured that he wouldn't want to be bothered with them.

"I'm happy that you escaped the forest intact. Not a wolf bite on you. That's why I'm here. Besides, from the way Chestnut kept looking at me, she might've beaten me senseless if I didn't check up on you," Janine joked.
 
He smiled, "Head-strong' is certainly one way to describe her," he agreed wholeheartedly. Chestnut was a demon horse who knew what she wanted, and usually when she wanted it. "She's always been like that, but aye, she's a good one. Keeps me on the road, true and steady," and that enough was true in many respects.

"Venus... I must get a little 'thank you' present. She ran as if the wind let her borrow its speed," he nodded. It was always the small things that had the greatest dent on a life or death situation. Whether an arm reach was too short or a horse too slow. The small details always had a final say about things of life and he had learned to never take them for granted. After all, had Janine arrived sooner, she could have caught him in mid-transformation. "They share in that. Determination as part of stubborn..." he grinned and shifted a little. The sheet tickled at his skin and the hair that began at his naval beneath it.

He shook firmly but gently and smiled, "Janine. A pleasure," he nodded, resting the hand back tenderly on his stomach. If he jostled the drain to his wound, not only would he be experiencing that pain but also the pain from being told off with an nurse's lecture. He chuckled softly and shook his head, "I don't tend to get drunk very often out of a personal preference. Never know when trouble strikes. Let them be rowdy, I shall quietly observe and learn all that they miss... That's what life's shown me thus far. That and my mentor," he nodded.

Sir Cadfiel had been as tough as old boots, a strict disciplinarian and next to a best friend as Raban could have hoped to have squired for. Cadfiel was another old name in the roster but Raban had no idea if the old man was still going. Probably recanting tales of 'the good old days', he mused.

He glanced at her and then laughed softly, "Oh, she's a firecracker, that one. Still, she knows when respect's due... else that poor post of yours would be out of the ground days ago," he returned even if he knew it was truth. He looked back at her for a moment and reached to scratch his chin.

"Besides, I can use someone else to talk to than these grey walls and that nurse," he frowned at that before his face resumed his usual outset. "I'm glad you made it out okay," he was genuine, it was a long walk from the forest to town after all.
 
Janine nodded when Raban talked about Chestnut. She knew the value of a good horse, whether they ran fast, had great strength, or even if they were a companion just for the hell of it.

And she chuckled when Raban commented about getting a thank you gift for Venus. How nice of the man to even think about it.
"You don't have to get her a present - but if you do, I'm sure she'll appreciate it. She loves it when I give her treats. I don't believe she's ran that fast before that day. Perhaps she knew she needed to push herself... Or then again, the wolves chasing your hides might've been motivation enough," the young woman commented as she rubbed the back of her head.

"Yes, alcohol is on the bottom of my preference list. I never touch the stuff, mostly because I can't stand the smell or taste of it. I accidentally tasted some ale once, and it was the worst thing my tongue had ever had to endure. My mom told me to swallow it as a punishment for drinking her cup without asking - I guess that was my lesson for the day," Janine said with a small laugh.

That was mostly how Janine learned what she did know - through personal lessons and occasional observation. But she was mostly one to learn things if she physically did it herself. It got her into trouble at times, so she had to learn to observe from a distance, and practice on her own. It took longer, but she would eventaully get it at some point. But only things she wanted to know and learn. There were also things that she just had to learn on her own. Things that her dad began teaching her, but never got to finish. Those lessons were of the more.... Violent sort, to put it nicely. Her violent tendencies did flare from time to time, but she had to put it under wraps, as her parents taught her.

Janine tisked and shook her head when Raban said that Chestnut would've taken down the post a long time ago.
"Oh damn. And here I thought that my post was strong enough to withstand anything. Then again, my post wasn't made for a horse of Chestnut's breed. Oh well then," Janine said with a shrug and a chuckle.

The fact that Raban even wanted to talk to someone else wasn't so much a shock to Janine - more like a curiosity. He seemed like a person of solitude, one who wouldn't mind to be around other people, but wouldn't interact with them unless he needed to. Or maybe he was exactly like that, but three days of nothing except for white walls and a bossy nurse was too much for him. She tilted her head a little, unable to understand it. She would've loved to be alone in the bed by herself - but she could do without a bossy nurse as well. It would've been as if she never left her mom's side.
Raban then commented about her 'making it out'. Again, it took her a moment to scan her brain for a match of subjects, and figured he was talking about her own mad dash out of the forest. That was right, he never got the chance to see her again after she sent Venus off with him on her back. She gave a nervous chuckle and rubbed her neck.

"Hehe.... Well, it wasn't easy, I'll tell you that. After I sent you off, two wolves jumped me. I thank the gods for me putting on my armor; they attacked my arm and shoulder, but it deflected most of their bites. Granted I felt the power of the bite, but their teeth didn't penetrate my skin, or it would've been all bad. But I bit one of the wolves, to give it a taste of their own medicine," Janine said with a small chuckle.

She purposely left out the part where the wolf suffered a lot worse from the bite than one would expect.

"After the one wolf was bitten, the other ran away like a little puppy. When all was said and done, I was just worried about you two and the three wolves that began chasing you. But I had to run back here before more wolves came about. Thankfully, no more did after the original five." Janine finished with a nod of her head.
 
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He smiled and nodded, "Most probably... Motivation for us both. I don't fancy a prospect of being ripped apart by them any more than I suspect she did. I shall treat her. It is only fair. Her legs worked more than mine at your behest."

Raban wasn't a fool, or at least for most of the time hoped he wasn't. He had extended himself too far and had done it at great risk. He had believed it worth the action as his duty and his oath commanded of him. He had pushed himself almost beyond his own limits and there was little question of the luck and reasoning involved in him being saved by Janine.

He looked at her for a moment, "I'd say having your wits about you is far more important, especially with what's expected of us." Raban had seen what drink could do to a man and that of his family around him. It had an innate power to ruin a man's reputation and his livelihood. It was a heart-wrenching thing to see, particularly in his case as he had lost his parents quite young before being taken on by Cadfiel. He didn't like seeing broken families and was another reason to fight so that they could stay together. he also rarely drank for another reason. It reminded him of how bad his curse could leave him. Being blind drunk was perhaps the human version of being a werewolf, incapable of remembering what one had done or had said, or said events being rather fuzzy... It reminded him too much of what he was like under a strong moon.

The moon had her ways of humbling him or mocking him when it could.

Raban gave a chuckle cut short with a wince as it moved his wound. He grinned a little after she spoke of her post, "Sorry.. but if it is loose... I shall help fix it again."

She seemed to find her own mind before she realised his not-quite-so subtle comment and he smiled and listened. He was not ready to admit just how tired he was still but that would lift in time. He just had to behave, mend and hope they had not seen what he could not explain away. Wolves... his kin and his enemy in some ways. They feared what he was, hated him to for it. He was curious when she spoke of biting it and found it strange. Wolves would not have run just from such a thing but perhaps something had spooked them, his scent perhaps. There was a lot of possibility in that and that the wolves could have been young. Young enough to know fear.

Raban smiled, "I am glad you made it back." He tried to stifle his tiredness but it soon undermined his attempts.
 
Janine nodded her head at Raban's comments. She noted at his own wisdoms, and that he tended to get inside his own thoughts, as she'd seen whenever he stared thoughtfully at himself. She did that as well. Raban seemed to recall something when she mentioned alcohol. Curious... Did something happen?

She shook her head a little and scolded herself - she shouldn't wonder about someone else's personal thoughts. There was a thin line between curiosity and nosiness, and she had to make sure that she didn't tread on the other side.

He mentioned his pleasantries concerning her making it back and she smiled a little. "Yes. I am as well." Janine softly said.

She blinked a little when she caught the signs of tiredness, and decided it was time to go and let him rest for the rest of the day. She got up and folded her hands in front of her body, like a polite woman would do.

"I must apologize Raban. I can't really recall a time that I've been in your position - my tiredness would be only in the sense of staying up for hours upon hours as I read multitudes of books. Mom says that I will become a walking book yet, but I have yet to be as interesting as a book." Janine looked back at the doors behind her before speaking again.

"Well then, I shall make my leave to let you rest. I'll make sure to not tell Venus about your visit yet. And who knows, maybe she'd like to see you again -- with more clothes on your body of course. Besides, thanks to her quirks, I fear that Venus might try something against Chestnut. And while I have seen the wrath of a dragon up close, I'd more rather face it again than to face your wrath. I hope to see you when you're better Raban." Janine said as she made a minor bow.

She turned around and made her leave, walking at a medium pace towards the doors. And as she was about to push the doors, she heard small yelps on the other side of the doors. Janine frowned and paused for a second - Where those nurses eavesdropping on her conversation? She felt those wisps of anger threaten to become a roaring fire, but she immediately quelled those emotions - she couldn't put a bad name on the Knights and what they stood for.

With a deep breath, Janine pushed the doors and turned to the left to make her leave. The nurses scrambled to make it look as if they were working the entire time, but she wasn't a fool. It annoyed her to no end how people treated her sometimes, but she just had to deal with it. She didn't like it, but what could she do?

The young knight was happy to be out of the infirmary. She noticed it was maybe a couple of hours after midday and that she had a bit to do. Thankfully, she was able to do a bit more stuff before she dealt with business, and walked off on home.
 
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His breathing was starting to slow down, another sign and he knew that his Lycanthropism's natural healing process was trying to kick in and heal his wounds further. It was already trying to push the draining tube out of his body so that it could close the hole but he had restrained it. For it to be removed not by the nurse would raise some questions and eyebrows. He didn't fancy incurring that woman's wrath any more than he absolutely had to. he had already pushed it with vetting Janine into the room before.

Raban smiled, that was good. It settled his mind at least. He blinked when she rose to her feet and he turned his head slightly looking at her as she spoke. He nodded, "The power of exciting reads, I know that feeling," he agreed with a smile.

"Ha... " the lack of clothes comment got to him. He wasn't too sure if horses cared or minded how humans wore clothes. He figured they saw it as a way of putting fur on. "It's more Chestnut's wrath I'd fear, but Venus seems to be a valiant creature. And you will, when i come to retrieve my high spirited friend." he nodded, happy for her to take care of his demonic friend for reasons he couldn't quite explain.

"Because you know I know something's hinky ?"
"Wasn't going to put it that way,"
"Pfft!"

Raban nodded, the mental conversation thankfully not aired for the whole world to hear, "I thank you for the company, Janine. It's been a welcomed distraction from these walls," since he could not return the bow, he settled for inclining his head a little before he watched her leave, leaving him to the company of those four miserable walls again. He didn't have to face them for long. His need for sleep kicked in again and this time he was snoring.

---

It had been another two days before he was deemed fit enough for the tube to be removed and the hole stitched up completely. He had been lectured with the routine of keeping his wounds clean. the linen bandages itched and the clothes that Sir Kriegal had sent to him were a little on the baggy side but he took it all, just wishing to be out of that infirmary instead of being chained to a uncomfortable bed. Smelling fresh air again was something he had missed more than he realised and he grinned as he made his way through the streets and headed for the Knights' compound. It was for something he had been thinking of how to complete for the past several days and by now he just wanted to get it out of the way.

Raban eventually made his report, a man writing his words down as the Knight spoke, explaining it from the old Knight's tale in the tavern to events in the forest, a fight between two dragons. The only parts he left out were his true state of being and had exaggerated parts to explain his state of undress. His wounds had helped in some ways for that as he pinned it on the massive dragon's claws. Whilst he knew armour could fend off most things and was better to wear it than not, it was not useful against something so colossal that could exert so much equal force. He spoke of how he got back with thanks to Janine and had explained how she had saved him from a fate of being ripped to shreds by a pack of wolves. At the end of his report, as he asked for a commendation for Janine and Kriegal had said he would think on it.

He was asked about the werewolf that the Knight's had seen and Raban shook his head, "I couldn't be sure I saw one. They are fast, agile creatures and I doubt one would take on something so huge." He ask been asked many questions before he had been allowed to leave and find his horse, Chestnut. He did not need directions, the horse gave them to him as he walked and he soon saw his old friend,

"Ah, there you are. Post's still up, I see"
"I thought about it... but she's good with bribery."
 
A couple of days later, Janine had gone through the days reading and taking care of the horses. Her mom helped occasionally, but she stuck with tending to Venus while Janine went for Chestnut. It was strictly because Janine was more durable and suitable around stronger horse's -- that and she just didn't see eye to eye with that horse for some reason.

But the older woman sure did like to talk smack from a distance. Janine had to constantly remind her mother that smacking a horse's rump was unrealistic as a punishment, not to mention it was the quickest way to get a swift kick in the chest.

Thankfully, Venus' behavior wasn't as bad as she thought, even though she often scraped her hoof against the ground and glare at the more bulky mare. Janine figured she wasn't convinced that Chestnut was a female, which was strange since mares and stallions have different scents.

But before that, she had to give her report to Sir Keigal of the events of that day. She explained herself from the morning, to the moment she was in the forest, to the stressful events leading towards the actual fight.

She noticed the older knight pay extra attention when she began to talk about the rescue. He interrupted a couple of times to ask her to clarify her actions. She told the truth -- that she felt it was imperative that she went by herself, because she was the only one who had known he was in trouble before the dragons even fought. She didn't want to risk losing a Knight, or anyone she had reason to believe was in trouble, as their oath describes.

The events that entailed her shifting into a large demonic creature to save Venus and Raban were obviously omitted from her story.

When all was said and done, Sir Keigal kept quiet for a moment, as if gauging the credibility of her story. But before Janine even attempted to make her own observations, he got up and made a suggestion to at least say something to a fellow knight if something like that happened again. He said that if her rescue had backfired, then the Order would've needed to save two lives instead of one.

Or had lost two lives instead of one.

Other than that, he seemed somewhat pleased that Raban was saved.... Or maybe something else. Janine didn't want to question it.
He thanked her for her time and sent her off, where Janine had pondered on the last half of the report all the way home.

She was home for about a half an hour, and was just feeding Chestnut carrots and sugar balls before Raban came to her property. She looked up when he spoke and gasped. She didn't expect him to come to her, and so quickly.

"Raban! Well damn, I would've made Chestnut more presentable if I knew you were coming! And yeah, I had told Chestnut that if she kept my post up, she'd have more carrots and sugar balls to have in her bucket. I'm happy to know that my bribe worked," Janine said with a chuckle.

Venus perked her ears and trotted over to the gate to sniff Raban. "Venus, you remember Raban right?" Janine asked as she looked to her horse. Venus flipped her ears back and forth as she sniffed the man, and snorted softly. The horse then nosed Raban before she went to Janine.

"Hah! Perhaps she does. And she didn't bite you - it must mean she likes you," Janine said with a smile.
 
Raban smiled as he patted the broad neck of his shire, "She looks absolutely fine to me. Alive, well and mostly happy" he grinned, as he fussed over the shire who stood patiently now she was with her human again.

He turned and looked at Venus with a smile before he moves over to join her, letting her sniff him getting his scent. Some couldn't read between the lines, others picked up on the predator hiding within his skin. She didn't seemed to mind him too much. "Hello girl, I owe you a lot," he smiled when she nosed at him and moved to her owner. He nodded before he removed two items from a bag. He gave one to Chestnut who gobbled it up quickly with soft crunching. He then turned back and moved to join Janine

"I promised to get her a present," he said, lifting a rosy red apple in his hand. It was of a good size, almost filling the size of his palm, "I hope she likes apples... Chestnut likes them. Likes them a little too much." He looked at the apple for a moment before he offered it out to Venus for her to take.

"I hope she does. A biter? I am honoured," he smiled, "Very honoured."

He moved back to Chestnut once Venus had taken her reward from him and untied the reins from the post. Both horse and man turn back to Janine before he rested against the shoulders of his much larger horse. "You give your report yet?" he asked, wondering if she had been asked the same questions. He had hoped that they hadn't seen him in his dark form but they had and now they knew not only was there a dragon but a werewolf too.
 
Janine giggled when Raban commented on how Chestnut looked. She watched as he was examined by Venus, patting her when she moved to her side.
Raban then commented on him getting a present for Venus. Janine's eyes blinked in surprise - she forgot about his supposed - and now honored - gift for Venus. She smirked when Raban revealed a large red apple, and watched as Venus' eyes nearly leaped out of her head upon seeing an apple larger than what she was normally given. On top of that, she didn't expect to have one apple more than what she was used to. With an excited nicker, Venus took her gift and chewed it enthusiastically, trotting off to eat it amongst herself. Janine couldn't help but openly laugh at her horse's reaction to a big apple - Venus had her silly moments, and Janine loved it when she saw them.

Raban then asked if Janine had given a report. She sighed and nodded her head, leaning up against the fence as she spoke.

"Yeah I did. It was boring and time consuming. I don't even know why I had to say what I did for the whole day - I knew he wanted to know what I did after the dragon attack. What I did was to look for you.... Between you and me, I think he suspected that I went off to go hunt this supposed werewolf that supposedly was near the dragon," Janine said with a softer tone of voice.

Talk of werewolves often brought up unneeded anxiety that Janine didn't want to feel from the people. She still sensed some slivers of anxiety from the dragon fight that day. It puzzled her - talk of dragons tended to make people angry and worried, while talk of werewolves often brought fear and anxiety. That didn't mean that dragons didn't make people nervous either, but it just seems that werewolves are, in a way, more feared than other creatures. Why? A dragon could do the same damage as a werewolf, and a lot more. They can destroy a village. They could attack people at night. They could kill people as well. Not to mention that, hell, they even breathe fire. So it puzzled Janine when people fear such creatures, when dragons have proven to be smarter than the average werewolf.

But that seemed to be thoughts for another time.

"But I honestly don't understand it. I have never heard of a werewolf attack during the day. I never heard any barks or howls, nothing. And even if it was really there, I never even saw it, let alone chase after it. It would've made more sense if I was questioned of suspicion for chasing after the dragon after it accepted defeat - that is just asking for more trouble."

Janine might've said she didn't hear anything, but she was somewhat fibbing to herself. She knew she heard something when the dragon was attacked the first time, and it was damn close to barks and snarls a canine would've made. She couldn't see clearly, but the sounds were undeniably similar. She frowned to herself, her mind recalling the scene from that moment. She was about to decide on what she saw.... And then...

Janine suddenly remembered that she was talking to a guest and blinked her eyes to take herself back to the present. She chuckled sheepishly and rubbed the back of her head.

"I'm sorry. I pulled myself into my thoughts. And in the middle of a conversation too.... I don't really talk to people much," Janine said as she took a glance at a couple of chatting women that were walking down the street. She cleared her throat and looked to Raban with apologetic eyes. "Um.... But yeah, I gave a report. Did you?" Janine asked.​
 
Raban watched with a smile as Venus took her prize and evidently did it in such a way that it brought her owner amusement. He was happy for them both. Knight's who mistreated their mounts were often slower not just by mount speed but in themselves as well. There was no real incentive involved. He could see tat Janine and Venus held a bond. One he experienced through the speed at which she had got him to safety.

He fiddled with Chestnut's tack as he listened to her response about her report, making sure that nothing was out of sorts. His armour was still there which he would have to reason why it had suddenly appeared. He realised suddenly that she could refute his state of events had she mentioned seeing the armour on his horse and hoped that had not come into account.

The Knight looked at her as if to be surprised at the mention of a werewolf, "He asked me about that too... Everything happened so fast, I don't recall one." He knew the sight of one would now raise suspicions in people and it would also raise fear and in turn anger. They would be wary. Not without reason. He knew from the start that he was an oddity, even amongst werekind. He was considered inferior through their jealousy. Not that they would remember when they were human.

He breathed deeply then, he needed to recall the moon cycle... he was always wary around a full moon. Most of the time he could beat it but sometimes a full moon would have her way, reducing him to an angry ball of ferocious fur.

"It is most peculiar... They are nightborne... Even then, why a dragon. Why would it care to stop such a beast?" he returned ponderously and openly despite knowing the full reason why. As a human, he was outmatched and outclassed. As a werewolf however... it evened some of the playing field.

Raban gave a smile and shook his head, "That's quite all right."

"I did... I would have come to your aid if not for the interruptions," he replied nodding. "I have never known a day like it before now." he breathed before he sighed deeply. "I had entered a clearing... charred and blackened by fire. I saw a young dragon... hurt, it seemed to want to go and urgently. I saw the bigger one after that... and it knew where I was hiding."

"It may have recognised the sound of armour, I thought and whilst it became distracted... I had used the time to remove the source, tying it to Chestnut's tack. I sent her running and remained still. Chestnut's been trained for such moves... and it almost worked. It threw a claw down, got me then before the horse or the other dragon may have bought its attention. It was a matter of hiding from that point."

"Chestnut was supposed to have returned after a while... but I guess she found you first," he smiled after recanting his story. It was not quite the same as what had occurred but it seemed close enough without sharing distinct details.

"I shall take my leave of you now, Janine. I hope the rest goes well for you. Till we next meet," Raban nodded, taking Chestnut's reins before he gave Janine a bow. He have her a few moments before he waved his goodbyes for the day, turning and leading the bulky horse away from Janine's homestead.
 
Janine sighed as Raban replied to her question. He apparently didn't see the werewolf either, and he seemed pretty sure that werewolves didn't shift during the day. And even on the off chance that it was a werewolf that attacked that dragon, why would it? Surely it would've figured that it was overmatched by such a powerful beast.... Perhaps the primal desire of protecting what they figured was their territory triggered it to attack the dragon.

... So did Janine really believe that it was a werewolf?

Raban then explained why his armor was off his body when the dragon attacked. So he saw it first? A clearing, blackened by fire, and he saw the two dragons? The bigger one actually attacked him? Janine widened her eyes and blinked in surprise - so the dragon left him in his hiding place? Why? Did it believe it killed Raban? Perhaps it didn't know it was there, and was just blindly attacking the bush... But she had seen the vicious cunning the dragon displayed.... Maybe.... Just maybe... It actually did know where the man was, and was leaving him for another day...

Janine shuddered at the thought. Such a dangerous creature roaming around the forest like it owned the whole place. Maybe it did....

Raban's story seemed to integrate with Janine's on why he didn't immediately take to action. With a beating like his, it would be near impossible to move efficiently.

He then excused himself, bowing t to her as he took his leave.

"Until we meet again, Raban. Farewell. Goodbye Chestnut," Janine said with a friendly wave of her hand.

She watched as the knight and horse took their leave, putting her smile back to its more solemn neutral expression. The front door then opened, making Janine gasp as she suddenly faced her mother.

"Mom! What are you doing scaring me like that?!" Janine huffed.

"Oh be quiet. You scared yourself.... He looked like a nice man," the woman said with a teasing smile. Janine scrunched her lips together and shook her head.

"No, mom. We're not doing this. He is the man I told you about. You know, the one who I've barely met. He was just coming here for his horse," Janine said with a head gesture. She walked over to the house and shooed her mother inside, where they could talk more in private.

"Hmmmhmm. You seemed real friendly towards him. And just to remind you, he's a grown man.... It's okay to tell me anything, I'm your mother. There's nothing you can say that I haven't heard," the mother said as she folded some clothes.

Janine groaned and covered her hands over her face with embarrassment. "Mooom! Seriously, why must you say stuff like that? He's like, a good ten years older than me."

"That didn't stop your father from getting with me. And he had a damn good head start on the age difference."

"Mom! He doesn't even count! And I'll say this again - he's just a fellow knight who's had an extremely unfortunate turn of events happen to him. He was apparently attacked by the larger dragon even before it found me and the dragon I was with. It would explain why he was so banged up when I found him.... But... Something's been bothering me," Janine said as she turned around.

Janine's mother paused in her folding and tilted her head curiously. "What is it baby?"

"Just.... I saw something when the dragon was about to attack me... Members of the Order are claiming a werewolf. I didn't see anything, but when that dragon was about to attack me, something attacked it first. If it wasn't for that thing, I would surely be a lot worse by now. Maybe even dead."

"So? What's your point?" asked the mom.

Janine sighed and shook her head. "I don't know yet. I need to do some research." Janine then turned around and grabbed a coat once more, and opened the door to go outside.

"Where are you going now?!"

"I need to look something up. I'm going to the bookkeeper. Don't wait up on me if it gets too late!" Janine shouted.

"Janine! You better stay safe while you're out there! You already know how you are!"

"Yes mom! Love you!" Janine said with bared teeth. She knew her mother loved her and was just looking out for her when she says those things, but sometimes the woman was utterly unbearable and embarassing at times. She wasn't thirteen anymore....

But she was something that could get her into huge trouble. So maybe she did need some reminder every once in a while. The young woman began her walk to the bookkeeper, where she would begin hours of reading.
 
Raban's first port of call was to find somewhere to ditch his armour and have a new set commissioned. His story had involved him having lost it after all and so it would be strange for most of the town who had seen him to realise how much of a hole in his story that was. It did get to him that he had to know and rely on the darker half of humanity in such times but without them, he could not get away with half of what he could. He wrinkled his nose as he turned off a side street which fed into others and eventually onto those where good members of society would not be caught dead going down.

It was a little less strange for a Knight to go down this way. Once in a blue moon, they aided in cleaning the riff-raff out but sure enough, it never worked and the dark dregs returned to wallow back where they always had since the city's founding. He found his destination easily enough, leaving Chestnut outside untethered not in the least bit worried about someone trying to steal her. People who had frequented the place soon had learned their lesson. The armour clinked and clanked as he removed it sighing as he had done so. He had grown a little attached to it by now as he turned for the blacksmith's. On the outside, it was above board but they were not above melting down old armour without receipt or trace.

"It's been a while, Knight," the voice was raspy, like a cat's tongue. Raban turned, and nodded at the shorter man who stood by his workshop's door.

"I had hoped it would have been longer," he replied before he moved past the other. The man smirked before he glanced around and shut the door behind him. The Knight dumped the armour on the counter-top and looked at the smaller man. "Will you take it? Work your magic?"

"You I will, bud," the man replied as he began looking at the armour over with a cold eye and touch that made the Knight wince. "Exquisite stuff... Isn't this Travian's work? Yes, yes, it is... A shame... Melted down right?"

"Yeah,"
"Sorry. Guess you're partial..."
"One way to describe it... but no matter. Has to go. The usual?"
"Yeah... the usual,"

Raban nodded as the other finished looking over Travian's work before moving to his desk. From a drawer he counted out coin and fed them into a small bag before tossing it to the waiting male. Raban caught it and felt its weight before pocketing it.

"Thank you."
"no, no, no, Thank you" the male nodded with a smirk.

The Knight frowned but he didn't ask the man questions in the same way the other didn't ask him any. It profited both better that way and thus, Raban left and went back the way he had come before, leading Chestnut through the streets with a heavy mind unsure of what future his, Janine's and the others reports would hold for him.

That was not from a selfish need but one of hope and a need to help others. He knew if they thought a werewolf in the vicinity was a real threat, they would have nothing to stop them from trying to deal with it. Dragons or not... he knew they would reason a werewolf to be more dangerous. A werewolf could be anyone they knew. A friend, a brother, mother even a lover. It held no distinctions of who it would affect. At a full moon, their secret, a secret they themselves did not know about but one that would be unleashed with a total ferocity and thirst for blood upon those they loved. That was what made them dangerous. That was what made them so feared.

A dragon was a far more obvious and maintainable threat.

He would maintain a low profile, have a new suit commissioned and wait it out. That's all he could do.
 
"So I'm assuming that you've found something interesting?" A male voice quipped behind Janine.

She gasped softly and looked back to see a colored man with a handful of books. Janine sheepishly chuckled and nodded her head.
"Oh hi Mr. Coger. Yeah. I'm just doing some research and whatnot.

"Oh? Well, may I ask what you're researching?"

"Um.... Creatures from legends and stories. You know, like dragons and the like.

"Hmm. Okay then, why not read this book? It talks about unicorns and shapeshifters and the like. Or maybe you want to read a book about the most foul entity: demons. I think they're something that needs to be eradicated from this world. Don't you agree?" The man asked as he walked over to the young woman.

Janine shifted uncomfortably in her seat, the thought of demons making her think of her own life. Being a half-demon, she had to be extra careful about everything she did - she had to make sure to not attract attention to herself, raise any kind of suspicion, or do anything that would even suggest a demon was amomg them. She feared what the citizens would do to her mother of they found out that she was the birth mother of a spawn of Hell. She couldn't bear to even think about what the people would do to her - she'd seen how the people were when a simple thief was punished; the thought of being killed - or worse - for just being someone's mother was too much.

"Yeah.... Just despicable...." Janine solemnly muttered.

Mr. Coger happened to walk over Janine's shoulder and glanced at the book Janine was reading. He raised an eyebrow and made a sound from his mouth.

"Interesting. Werewolves. You're awfully eager to want to learn how to kill one of those. What peaks your interest? It's the stories isn't it?" The man asked with a smirk.

Janine briefly looked at the bookkeeper in confusion before she cleared her throat and nodded. "Oh. Um... Well. I'm not really trying to figure out how to kill one - more like just reading up on them. I heard someone talking about them, and it got me thinking about them, so I'm reading up on them."

The man sat some books down on the table and bunched his lips to the side. "Well little missy, all you got to know about them is that they're beast of darkness. They are monsters that won't care if you're a brother, a friend, or even their mother; it all ends the same with them - death. Or even worse.... Living to become one of them. They around in the night, trying to find their next victim to kill, like a ravenous monster that doesn't stop eating. That's why you kill them on sight. It won't be easy, but that's what you need to do, or else, the world would be overrun by monstrosities."

And with that, the man left to do his duties, taking his books with him. Janine frowned, sighing as she read the page again. Surely, that wasn't all there was to them was there? They're still people aren't they? Well.... Not fully human, but they weren't all wolf either.... Her inner conflict made her sigh.
So far, all she'd been reading were methods on how to kill them, paired with short paragraphs on various facts and tidbits about them. She read methods involving bullets, blades, blunt force, crushing them, and everything else that she could imagine to kill a werewolf.

Janine frowned again. She supposed that the human race was just as keen on killing werewolves as they are to killing dragons.

Then, something caught her attention: a book that talked about rare werewolf circumstances, all with varying degrees of how rare each occasion was to the other. One was that a werewolf would maintain their humanoid consciousness while having shifted, the second was that the person would eventually become insane by the beast within and go on a killing spree, the third was that the werewolf would shift into their beastly form and never shift back into a human again, and the last one was the idea that it was possible for the werewolf to shift at will, and not be completely at the mercy to the moon's influence.

Janine blinked at the last sentence with curiosity, and read the entire section. Basically, whoever wrote this book had suspicions that there was a chance that a werewolf could change to and fro from their beastly form and their human form at will. There would still be the risk of falling victim to the mysterious power of the moon if it was powerful enough, but otherwise the werewolf would have enough power to control their own transformations. It was considered the rarest instance out of the whole thing, right next to a werewolf keeping their conscious thoughts while they're in their infamous beast form.

The idea intrigued Janine. It this was true, then the idea that it was indeed a werewolf that had attacked that dragon was suddenly plausible. But the book only recalled only one of such an incident, and even then, it was disregarded because of the fact that a number of various spells and special herbs could force a transformation out of a werewolf.

This suddenly instilled fear within Janine -- if that could happen to a werewolf, then could it happen to her? Were there spells or plants that could force her to change into her other form? Was she even more of a liability to her mom than she suspected?
The young Knight panted softly and shook her head - she couldn't rile herself up here. She had to go home before she upset herself even more. But she was still going to read the books to find out more. She asked the man if she could borrow the books for a couple of days, and went out of the building to realize that she'd read off a good portion of the afternoon.

It was sundown - the sun was giving the sky a nice orange tint, and the clouds overhead were pink and purple. It would've been a nice scene if she was on a hill. Janine had to hurry home and get herself settled in, for she had a feeling that the night was going to be a bit cold.
 
He walked through the streets and reached the point where Chestnut could walk alongside him rather than having to follow in his wake. Given the very late hour there was hardly anyone around and that suited him just plenty. Less to realise where he had to once his visit to Janine's had concluded. His mind was in deep thought as man and horse, wolf and demon, made their way slowly, their feet leaving impressions in the mud. He was concerned the sighting of a werewolf would incite an investigation and he knew Sir Kriegal was a thorough individual.

Raban was so deep in thought that not only had he not realised the time, he had failed to remember the cycle of the moon or pay attention to the female voice trying to poke at his mind. Raban did not need a full scale investigation behind the presence of a werewolf. It would make his life extremely hard. There were times being what he truly was just as much an asset than a curse. However he was not going to disillusion himself into thinking they would appreciate the pros as opposed to the cons. He was a werewolf and that's all they would see.

The man sighed heavily before something tugged at him. Not mentally or even audibly but physically and it was a tug that he recognised. He frowned and rubbed at his chest, the tug was like an itch but one he could not hope to scratch even if he tore his chest open in the attempt.

He stopped mid-stride and frowned he noted the red shine on a puddle of water. It was low but there was no mistaking the shape of the sphere that rose higher into the night sky. It was the moon, full and round with a face slapped to it as if some kind of nursery rhyme joke. It was not for the fullness nor its roundness that he gave to staring. Even Chestnut stared at it now that she no longer had to keep jabbing at her little wolf's mind.

"Reminds me of home," Chestnut said with an edge of awe but Raban could not mistake the tone of concern at the edges. It was a full moon which had a chance of him turning against his will but for Raban this felt different to past forced transformations in the sense that his anger was rising quicker than was usual and he knew this would aid the transformation and his thirst for blood in such a state.

"We need to leave. Now."

The horse's head looked at him with all the intelligence of the Demon and none of the flighty equine she inhabited. She saw him rubbing his chest and knew it for what it meant. The pair walked more quickly with her guiding him.

"Not... now. Not now..." he muttered, his face a grimace as he tried to fight it knowing full well it was not a fight he could win. The wolf won every time and it would slay its thirst for blood and revenge. It was imperative he got to some place where he could not harm anyone. Chestnut snorted and tugged on his tunic sharply as she halted in front of him.

"Get on. You're slow," she said bluntly and Raban did not disobey her. He knew better than to in this situation and climbed upon her back, resting into the saddle. he held onto the saddle horn before she turned and launched into a canter, winding her way through the streets. "Almost there. Hold on," she gave encouragement before she shifted into a full gallop, her hooves thundering into the mud and sent it flying behind her.

He looked at the moon again and knew it was unlike the full moons that came before. This was something else. Something of a dark nature of a darker realm. It pulled at him like a seductress and he the smitten man attracted by the smell of lust and all its pleasures. He could not help the feeling it produced in him. It was so base, so much of need and anger, so very... primal. He could not help but fear it and what it could mean. He had lost his willingness at a change before but this was different.

He knew if they didn't reach where Chestnut was talking him soon, he would be the cause of a whole lot of bloodshed and repercussions from the Order whether he chose to or not.

Chestnut gave no regard for those in her way as she galloped through the city streets. She had to get her charge to somewhere that was safe for him to be and away from those he cared about. She couldn't care if he killed everyone in town but she also had to live inside his head and she knew she could live without the remorse such events brought him. A remorse of not knowing what he had done. Chestnut could also sense something different about this change in him. His mind voice was fading from her and that disconcerted her. She never recalled this happening before. This was new. If she lost contact with him altogether than she feared she could do little to control either man or beast.
 
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