[ORP] The Tiger's Den

[Nenrael]

Nenrael had not been this intrigued by anyone he had met in a long time. And certainly no one on this world. He was drawn to wanting to stay and get to know this mysterious woman better, but also was conscious of the fact that he had interrupted her evening with his curiosity.

Looking at her, he felt himself nod in agreement as she echoed what he felt. "But very rarely are those beauties seen or truly appreciated." As they stood there talking, with the shadows growing about them, he began to feel the edge of a cool breeze, and as he watched, saw Lady Laxmi wrap her arms about herself and shiver slightly.

Lifting his face a bit, he judged where the wind was blowing from and with a slight side step to one side, spread out his wings so as to block some of it blowing upon Laxmi. "Forgive me, I know it grows late, and I know that I interrupted your plans for this evening. Is there any way that I can make it up to you?" There was something about this woman that drew him, almost like a moth to a flame. He smiled quietly at his own analogy, and yet he could not shake the feeling either.

[Laxmi]

She was curious why he was moving and was about to ask him, but when she suddenly felt mildly warmer, she knew. She blushed a little and offered him the tenderest of smiles. She wanted to thank him, but it seemed the words, "Thank you" were thrown around so often that they even began to lose their meaning and importance. But, if she did not thank him, she would appear and feel rude and ungrateful. So, while she struggled with her inner battle regarding whether or not to voice her appreciation, she barely registered him speaking again.

Laxmi stared up at him for a few heartbeats as she realized what he had said. She had the choice here as to how the evening would progress, how their future encounters would take shape. She was in charge and in control of this hunt. With a coy little smile, she stepped just a touch closer to him. Her head was tilted slightly and she drew her hair over her shoulder and in front to fingercomb through it as if she were grooming herself. "There is nothing for which you need to make up, Nenrael, but, if you truly feel the need to make it up to you then you can promise to see me again soon."

[Nenrael]

As Laxmi gave him a little smile and then stepped closer within the shelter of his wings, Nenrael tilted his head down and watched as she stroked her hair, almost combing it with her fingers. She seemed to ponder him before she spoke up. "There is nothing for which you need to make up, Nenrael, but, if you truly feel the need to make it up to you then you can promise to see me again soon."

Nenrael tilted his head a bit to one side, as if contemplating what she said. Truth be told, he felt a small shiver of pleasure rush through him at her request. He had to admit to himself that he found her beautiful, and very intriguing. There was something about this young lady... tigress... that seemed to draw him, and again the analogy of a moth being drawn to a flame rose in his thoughts. 'Well, if I'm going to be burned, at least it won't be boring!' he thought to himself with a small chuckle.

Smiling a bit brighter down at her, he nodded. "Lady Laxmi, that is indeed a promise I can make to you. One that I find myself looking forward to fulfilling."

[Laxmi]

The old Laxmi, the one who believed for years and years that she was nothing more than a simple human girl who was greatly limited by the time the gods gave her, would have rushed headfirst into this. She would have told him when and where to meet her. She would have been aggressive. But her new understanding about her life told her to play it cool and simple and she was going to do just that. There was no need to rush things and patience was a great part of the hunt sometimes.

She wondered what his chuckle was about, but did not ask. Sometimes the mystery was more entertaining. But at his bright smile, she gave him one that matched. She bowed her head again and then smiled coyly as she turned on her heel. As if the thought just struck her suddenly, she looked at him over her shoulder and murmured, "Goodbye, Farishta*. I hope you enjoy your evening as much as I will." She winked softly and shifted into a tiger immediately afterwards, then ran off deeper into the forests.

Laxmi knew that whether she caught food for this evening's dinner, she had a new goal in her hunt and one that she would dearly enjoy pursuing.

((*Farishta means Angel in Laxmi's language))

[Nenrael]

Nenrael stood there, feelings slightly bemused, as Laxmi wished him a good evening, turned with a smile, and then ran off, morphing into the great tiger again before disappearing through the grasses into the night. He stood there for a few moments as silence descended about him. Giving his head a slight shake, he smiled and thought to himself again, 'Moth indeed! This shall prove to be most interesting.'

Turning to find the wind, Nenrael spread his wings out, and crouching down a bit, launched his body into the air as his wings exploded with a downward thrust. He rose into the night sky, the land quickly falling away. As he reached sufficient heights to hang on the wind currents, 'Rael's head turned and scanned the immediate area. He smiled to himself as his eyes sought out the tigress, but nothing was revealed to him. With a chuckle and a shake of his head, he deliberately dropped his left shoulder, and winged himself back towards the town. "Soon enough, Laxmi, I am certain we shall meet soon enough again."

Nenrael drifted through the night sky, his thoughts swirling, the stars brilliant over his head.

[Laxmi]

The tigress was distracted that night. She wasn't quite sure how she managed the success on the hunt that she did. She could not focus on what she was doing and her thoughts kept drifting to the angel. She liked him very much and knew they would have an interesting relationship with each other, no matter what form that relationship happened to take. And, for whatever reason, she knew beyond a doubt that she could consider him a friend and ally and she hoped he felt the same about her. But she needed to push his eyes, his smile, his wings out of her mind and focus on the chase. She couldn't waste time thinking about the way he smelled or his kindness or laugh. No, she needed to think about dinner.

That was when she saw it: a deer standing peacefully. Alone. She crept silently toward it from behind so she would not be seen, pleased that she was downwind from it. As soon as she was within reach, she pounced. The kill was quick. She enjoyed chasing, not killing, and she did not want the creatures to suffer. She was tempted to eat it all now, but she remembered her potatoes waiting for her at home.

So, as carefully and quickly as she could, Laxmi dragged the deer as far as she could. Then, before anyone spotted a tiger, she changed to a woman. Although her senses were still heightened in this form and she was stronger than a human, she needed to keep up appearances. Laxmi did her best to look pathetic as she dragged the poor beast along the ground to her home. Unless someone stopped her and realized that she had no weapons on her with which to kill the deer, it could look relatively plausible that this petite woman was dragging an animal that weighed more than she did as long as she appeared to be struggling while doing so.

Dinner would be delicious. She grinned ferally to herself as she considered the way this evening had turned. It was a good night indeed.

[Nenrael]

For the rest of that evening, and for the next couple of days, Nenrael could not get his encounter with Lady Laxmi out of his head. He felt like he was walking around perpetually distracted. He had even apologized to a tree for having walked into it the next evening while strolling through the forest, and then flushed a bright red when he realized his error. Fortunately, no one had been around to see him.

Now, two days after having met her, Nenrael found his eyes searching through the town for a glimpse of Laxmi as he made his way to the market. Not spying her about, he sighed quietly and continued on his errands. He needed some food for this evening's meal, and preferred to get it fresh, rather than risk it spoiling in his home. Nenrael wound his way through town, his wings folded tightly along his back and with a heavy cloak draped over his shoulders to help conceal them. While he did not deliberately hide his nature, Nenrael also found that it was easier, at times, to conceal his nature when dealing with people rather than draw undue attention towards himself.

Arriving at the market square, 'Rael began to peruse the wares of the local farmers and merchants, looking for an inspiration for his evening's repast.

[Laxmi]

She missed Nenrael. It was a bit of a shock to her when she realized that, but just a few hours after meeting him and parting ways, she began to miss him and it only got worse over the following days. She tried hard to distract herself with other things and it worked, but those moments when her mind was free to wander were quite dangerous. They always found a way of wandering to him. Sometimes they were innocent thoughts, or loosely connected as she wondered what it would be like to fly. Other times they were exciting, passionate imaginings that entertained her. She had failed on a few small hunts because of it, but she did not mind. All she did was silently berate herself for not giving him a time and place to see her again. But she had no way of knowing if he was even interested. Perhaps he was just being polite or was merely curious about her.

Today was a day that her mind wandered a lot. She had nothing better to do than to wander through town aimlessly or perhaps shop in the market. She had managed to acquire some gems lately and had sold them for a lovely profit. There was no point in stockpiling money when one had something on which to spend it. She mused to herself as she examined a circlet and smiled a little. She wanted it, but it was not ideal yet. It was missing something. As she put it down and looked around her, trying to puzzle over what it needed, she saw him. Laxmi blinked a few times to be sure it was really him--her eyes had been playing tricks on her lately and he seemed to often be near her only to turn into a tree or a strange shadow or another person. But he was still there.

She giggled quietly to herself and then followed him at a distance. She hunted him, though not as seriously as she would for a meal. She didn't try to hide or stay downwind from him. She wanted to be noticed. But she wanted to know how swift he was and how long it would take him to realize she was stalking her new prey. A small smile stayed on her face the whole time as she watched the way the breeze blew his hair or his cloak. She watched his stride, one that was full of confidence but was not full of pride or arrogance. And she wondered what he was after in the market. She silently thanked the gods for letting their paths cross again today.

[Nenrael]

Nenrael had paused at one farmer's table to examine his wares. Carrots, potatoes, leaks, onions, tomatoes and a variety of pickled items were on display on the table. Reached out and lifting a tomato to smell it for it's freshness, he inhaled deeply and then paused. The tomato was still fresh, but that's not what distracted him. There was a momentary scent he caught before it was overwhelmed by the tomato. Lowering the tomato a bit, Nenrael took another deep draft of air through his nose, testing for the hint he had caught earlier.

There! A hint of a scent that had captured him a few days ago, which since then had left him distracted ever since meeting her. Turning his head first one way, then the other, he both scanned the crowds about and tested further at the air, trying to locate Laxmi. After a few seconds, 'Rael spotted her amongst the crowd of people some distance away, and felt a smile blossom on his face upon seeing her.

Forgetting that he still held the tomato in his hand, Nenrael started to turn and walk towards her, until he heard the farmer clear his throat and ask for the tomato back. Flushing a bit, he turned back briefly and placed it in the farmer's extended hand with a quiet, "Sorry. I see someone I want to talk to. I'll be back in a bit." With that, he turned back towards where Laxmi had been standing.