#Deer Antler Spray

[thelampisaflashlight]

Since I’m on a Lampades/Lamb kick and had a smidge more energy than usual, here’s a more realistic version alongside my usual ghoul-dle style.

The joke I can make about this one, is that the left is what Lamb looks like when they’ve actually managed to take care of themself a bit, or Copia made them shower, and the right is when Lamb has been hanging out in the closet for 4+ days watching compilation videos and avoiding all contact with the outside world.

[Do Not Repost And/Or Use For RP Purposes]

[imperialpetco]

Blogger: User Profile:  Imperial Pet Co.

Marvelled by natural and holistic vets around the world, Imperial Pet Co. leads the pet market with the most natural canine health supplements. Taking their cue from nature, Imperial Pet Co. is giving dogs and dog owners hope for a natural solution to canine health.

[speedycoffeedelight]

An Animalistic Disaster

Summery:A bloody fight of survival begins between you and the wolves

CH-6: A bloody fight

The wolf bared its fangs at you, creeping closer, inch by inch. Your feet felt like it was made out of bricks as you just stared at it. Finally the wolf jumped at you,with its mouth open wide. But before the wolf could come into contact with your skin, it was shoved away to the ground with a headbutt from Charlie.

You were snapped out of your daze when you heard your ewe shout at you. You quickly reached into your bag to find the pepper spray and knife you packed. The wolf was about to jump onto Charlie, but you were faster.

Holding the pepper spray in one hand and the knife with other, you lunged onto the wolf. Was this absolute stupidity? Maybe. But the ewe just saved your life and no way in hell you were going to let it get eaten now. You quickly sprayed in the wolf's face, making it temporarily blind, before shoving the pocket knife in its throat. Blood sprayed across your cheeks from the impact. The wolf was pushed back and your knife remained stuck inside the wolf. Its neck now bleeding as it was now limping and began to retreat.

While you were fighting, Niffty quickly rushed up to the the wolf closing in on Alastor. They couldn't forget the fear they felt when husk, who was now a cat, told them about the dire situation Alastor was in. It was a miracle that Husk recognised them even in this form. It was probably one of his bartender's specialties he's so proud of. But they were glad that you followed along, cause they didn't know what to do by themselves.

Niffty quickly bit The wolf's leg as it was about to bite alastor. The wolf let out a painted grunt as it looked at its attacker. You were just finished with your own fight at the moment. Huffing, you turned to look at the deer's situation.

Alastor used this moment of distraction of the wolf to pull himself up and swing his antlers through the wolf, piercing it. More blood sprayed the ground as the wolf's now dead body fell to the ground. Exhaustion and pain finally caught up to Alastor as he now laid on the ground with a thud.

You were still breathing heavily. Fear and exhaustion setting in your body as the adrenaline slowly went away. The ewe ran to you nuzzled your hand a little before running to the deer. All of your animals seemed to surround the deer as the deer was observing all of you with its red piercing eyes. Finally all of the animals eyes fell on you, it was like they were pleading you to help the deer.

You slowly got up, almost stumbling and falling down, before slowly reaching up to the deer. It was staring at you quite intensely. You slowly sat beside it and held out your hand towards its body to examine it's injuries. But the deer let out a grunt as its body tensed up, startling you before you could touch it.

'Alastor, she just wants to help! Let her examine your wounds you radio freak!' Vaggie scolded Alastor. She was feeling really pathetic for not being able to help. 'Vaggie, you don't have shout at him, he'll understand...' Charlie said while looking at Alastor with concern. '..Why do you all trust this girl so much..?' Alastor inquired before letting out a painted moan. 'Well she is the one taking care of us now and she's a really nice girl,sir!' Niffty said chipping in.

'Fine..' Alastor really didn't like when other people touched him. But he didn't really have a choice right now. He couldn't let himself die as a deer of all things, not when he has so much planned for the future. Alastor looked at you as you gently guided your hands again towards his wounds, now taking extra precaution to not startle him.

It looked like the deer hadn't suffered that much wounds. But there are some cuts and gashes that'll need to be sewn up. Most of the blood covering it's body was from the wolves. But unless the wounds were sewn up, it might get worse.

You looked at the deer to find it already staring at you. "Looks like you aren't in that much of a bad shape buddy..." You awkwardly said towards the deer. "But we might need to get you patched up..." Your voice trailed off in the end, wondering how the hell you'll be able to sew wounds of a deer. It might run away as soon as it gets it's strength to move.

You decided the best course of action would be to do that before it gained the strength to move then. There was still some time before light would go away. "Stay here, I'll be right back" standing quickly, you dashed towards your cabin. Grabbing your first aid kits and some clean towel, you again rushed back. You knew your legs will probably cry tomorrow but you couldn't care less.

"Hold still okay..?" You said as you prepared to sew the wounds. You were prepared for a lot of thrashing or even the deer to ran away from the pain. But the deer surprisingly let itself be sewn up like a champ. "Now that's my good boy.." you said as you finished sewing. Then you took the towel and wiped as much blood and guts from its body as you could. You could feel your stomach turning at the sight but you held it in.

It was already evening when you were finished. All the animals, including the cat now was just sitting behind you as you worked. 'Ya know, didn't take you for the type to care for Alastor husky. Even if he was dying ' Angel said, resting on Charlie's wool. Husk and Alastor were both told of the whole ordeal by now. 'I fucking don't! But we got lost on earth and I don't know what would have happened to me if he died here!' Husk said with venom. 'Now,now.. don't fight guys..' Charlie awkwardly said.

"Stop following me"

You turned around and told to the deer who was just behind you. After you finished cleaning what you could, the deer stood up. You were happy it could walk so quickly. You smiled and hoped it could go back to its flock quickly and not get targeted by any other wolves in its way. You began to go back to the cabin with your animals. But for some reason the deer wouldn't stop following you.

The deer just stared at you, tilting it's head. You sighed, not knowing what to do. You didn't want to try scaring it away knowing what it did to the wolf. You just kept walking towards you cabin. Hoping it will go away by itself.

It didn't. You were opening the lock of your door while you could feel it breathing down behind your back. Unlocking your door you quickly let the small animals in and got inside yourself. Just as you were about to close the door quickly, the deer stopped it with its hoof. Then it easily pushed the door open with its antlers and let itself inside.

"Wow, okay, I have a deer inside my cabin right now, alright..." You mumbled to yourself as the deer walked into the room beside your own with the bookshelves and plopped itself down on the ground. Seemingly resting.

"God I definitely need a warm bath right now.." you desperately wanted to clean yourself after all that blood and gore. You decided to clean all the bloody footprints of the animals on the floor later and pray that the deer doesn't destroy the cabin when you come back.

After your bath, you came to find the floors squeaky clean. The puppy sat on the now clean floor as it looked up at you and barked happily. You were too tired to question anything at the moment so you just crouched down and pat the puppy

"You did a great job protecting the deer. Now let's get you some food" You said as you stood up and went to kitchen.

As you were putting niffty's food on a bowl, you suddenly heard some meowing coming from around your leg. Being surprised, you looked down to see the grumpy cat from earlier. You didn't even notice that it followed you home. You crouched down to pat it too. It scooted away from your touch at first. But then it looked at the puppy then just let itself be petted?

You patted it a bit then stood up"You must be hungry too, let's get you something to eat as well" the cat's face almost lit up at your words. It made you think it probably let itself be petted cause of food. Now you didn't have any cat food with you but you supposed some fish will have to do.

You grabbed some fish and prepared it for the cat and gave both the puppy and the cat their food. You left some fruits out in case the moth wanted to eat and went to check in on the deer. The deer seemed to be resting closing its eyes. Your sheep and moth seemed to be there too. Your eyes wondered around the bruises of the deer's body. You felt bad for it but also surprised at how sturdy he was. You took a blanket and put it over it's body. You didn't notice the deer staring at you as you exited the room.

You decided to skip dinner and made sure everything was locked before returning to your room. You just plopped onto the bed, ready to call it a day. Suddenly you heard something shuffling into your bed. And then the head of your fluffy ewe came into your view. You smiled and held her closer. "Thank you for saving my life back there buddy" you gave it a small kiss on its forehead. The ewe nuzzled closer to you in response and let out a satisfying sound.

You finally thought back on all the events that took place in one day. 'I have a sheep, a moth, a puppy, a spider, a cat and a DEER of all things in my house. Who would have guessed..'

"What's next? A damn snake?"you mumbled.

You probably shouldn't have said that..

(A.N: So I wanted to give a shout-out to this one Alastor RP account on twitter who said he wouldn't mind if I was the one holding his leash and I-

Sjabhakak- hello????sir????😳😳😳)

Master list

[teeth-cable]

It bothers me that it has been really explained how or what determines a sinner's appearance when they enter Hell. I've heard it's based on how one dies or their personality, but it doesn't explain much.

Viv's Hell really is a land of confusion. 😵

Viv’s hell is the worst Hell I’ve ever seen, it’s just Earth spray-painted red with interesting worldbuilding concepts never touched upon again.

The whole sinners’ appearance is based on their life/death is such BS. Not only does Viv go back on her worldbuilding but also her sinners’ designs are filled with historical inaccuracy, useless details, and vague references of their possible human life, it’s impossible to tell.

Look at this man! Does he look like a Creole 1930 radio host with a deer theme? You can barely even see his antlers.

Or Niffty?

What about this design is supposed to tell the audience she’s supposed to be a Japanese woman from the 1950s who loves to clean?

This has alway annoyed me because this implies sinners who aren’t like Vaggie, not suffering with mental health etc would be more monster-like in appearance. (Which I doubt since you can make an argument all sinner’s self troubles are mental health related/stemmed and do reflect the real world because there’s someone with the exact struggles as them) Characters like Alastor, Katie Killjoy, Niffty, and Velvette all look very humanoid despite the fact they don’t look like they’re struggling with anything and in fact are enjoying because the worst people in Hell.

[jai-lovely]

Withered Evelynn

Warnings: blood, flesh, abandonment(Merle), Walker, gore, tell me if I missed any!

Chapter 4!

————————————————————————

.•.Tag gone wrong.•.

The feeling of fingers brushing through her hair disturb her from her dreams.

The blue tent was warm, and smelt like febreze mixed with sweat. Evelynn rolled over on the air mattress to see that it was her brother beside her. Evelynns yawns sitting up, rubbing her eyes to help herself wake up, "hey sleepy head" Gillian says as he brushes her bed head out of her face. The young girl looks over at him, her face puffy with sleep, "hi" she said quietly. Gillain smiles at her, before standing up as much as he could in the tent, "it's a warm day, so wear sunscreen and a hat, and Evelynn I mean it, put on sunscreen" he says putting his hands on his hips, acting like a tv show mom. 

"I will promise" the girl says looking up at him, Gillian nods before stepping out and zipping the tent closed.

The knots in her hair were deadly, every little move she would make with the brush would pull on her brown locks, making her whine. Evelynn throws the brush on the air mattress with a groan filled with frustration, before crawling over to her backpack resting against the blue fabric of the tent. 

The day where they were packing to leave the city, Evelynn just packed everything that she always uses daily, including; a hair brush, tooth brush, overalls, a few of her favourite striped shirts, coach smiths hat, deodorant, underwear, socks, her whale shark named; spot, and hopefully her detangling spray.

Reaching into the pink bag, the girl feels around, stopping when she feels a familiar bottle, she quickly pulls out the detangling spray and does a silent cheer, clutching the bottle in both hands.

As she grabs her hat putting it on her head, she looks over to the sunscreen. With a groan she grabs the sunscreen putting it all over her face and arms, before stepping out of the tent into the hot sun. Adjusting the overall straps on her shoulders, and looking around for her brother, only to see him standing with Glenn talking with him. 

Sighing she begins walking to a little spot in the shade. Her overalls being a little too big, causing them to drag on the ground, but she couldn't care less, all she wanted to do was sit in the shade, to protect herself from the hot sun.

Evelynn sits in the dirt, alone, drawing random stuff into the earth using a stick. Her mind wanders off, as she jabs the stick into the dirt.

Evelynn thinks about how much the world is like the movie 9, the one with the little dolls and they have to live, and try to defeat killer machines, but instead of killer machines, Evelynn got dead people coming back to life. 

A nudge on her shoulder broke her out her thoughts. She turns her head to see Carl standing behind her, "why are you alone?" He asks, Evelynn looks up at him shrugging "didn't wanna bother ya and Sophia" she says jabbing the stick into the ground.

Carl frowns, grabbing her hand pulling her off the ground, "come on!" He says loudly, before she can say anything, they're running past everyone in camp, headed to a little spot by the trees.

Eventually they run into Sophia and stop running, "wanna play hide and seek tag?" Carl asked the two girls, a big grin on his face, the girls nod, "not it" Sophia says putting her finger on her nose. Evelynn wastes no time putting her finger on her nose, only for Carl to do it after her.

The boys nose scrunches up, "No i'm not it! Evelynn did it after me" the boy says flaring his arms around, Sophia shakes her head at Carl, as her way of saying 'don't be a poor sport'. 

With a huff from Carl he turns around giving the girls a chance to run. Evelynn quickly takes off to the direction of a few tall trees. Her footsteps come to a stop though. There was a deer running in the woods, its beautiful antlers standing high, golden brown fur shining in the sun's glow. 

"Ready or not! Here I come!" Carl yells as he begins running around. Evelynn looks away from the deer, not wanting to disturb it, she runs the opposite direction, only to see Carl chasing Sophia to a little huddle of trees, she runs over with a big smile on her face, her shoes hitting the bumpy rocks underneath her, but stops as she sees Carl and Sophia stop in front of the huddle.

Evelynn quickly walks up to them "guys why aren't you playing any-", she pauses "more.." her voice gives out as she stands between Carl and Sophia. 

The deer she saw earlier, the beautiful golden brown deer, now laying in a bright red pool of its own blood, with a walker kneeling over it, gnawing on its flesh.

"Dad!" Carl yells backing up from the scene in front of him, "mom! mama!" Sophia shrieks running back to camp.

Evelynn freezes looking at the flesh eating monster. The deer, who was once living and breathing, now on the ground in the hands of the dead. She feels her chest tighten, her palms get sweaty and her breathing quicken. The walker turns to look at her but as soon as it stands up, a pole hits its head, making it fall on the ground.

Evelynn is quickly pulled away by her arms and spun around to see her brother crouching in front of her. "Eve are ya okay? Ya ain't bit?" Gillian says frantically lifting the girls arms before dropping them and turning her head to check her neck, "I'm okay" she breathes out putting her hand on her chest "Im alr'ight".

Gillian looks at her, his eyebrows creased with concern, before quickly standing up and pulling the girl towards his side, to hold her there.

"Son of 'a bitch, that's ma deer!" A voice yells, the younger Dixon coming out of the forest, into Evelynns field of vision. "Look at it, all gnawed on by this," he stops himself, " Filthy, disease-bearing,, motherless proxy based!" Daryl yells kicking the carcass of the walker with each word, Making Evelynn cringe with disgust.

Dale raises his hands “calm down son that's not helping", Daryl raises his head to the old man, eyebrow twitching. "What do ya know'bout it old man, why don't ya take that stupid hat, and go back to 'on golden pond' huh" he growls, making Evelynn look up to her brother, mouthing 'what's a golden pond', Gillian shakes his head, rubbing her arm.

"What do ya think? Do ya think we can cut round this chewed up part right' er" Daryl says gesturing around the chewed up meat with his knife. 

"I wouldn't risk that" Shane says, putting his hands on his hips, making Daryl sigh "damn shame".

Suddenly the walker starts to silently move its jaw, despite it being decapitated, no one seems to notice except Evelynn, so she waves her hand slightly to get Daryl's attention before pointing at the walker.

Daryl looks at her, his expression the same as before, but then noticing her pointing to the walker. "Come on people what the hell" he says before raising his crossbow and shooting the walker in the head, "it's gotta be the brain, don't yall know nothin".

Daryl puts his crossbow back over his shoulder before walking away, his heavy boots hitting against the gravel below him.

"Merle! Get yer ugly ass out here! I got us some squirrel! Let's stew' em up!" Daryl yells walking up to the middle of the campsite by the fire pit.

Only to stop himself and look around for his older brother.

"Daryl, just slow up a bit, I need to talk to you" Shane says walking up to Daryl using his serious cop voice. "Bout what" the younger Dixon says, putting his rope of squirrels over his shoulder, and adjusting his crossbow.

Shane looks around, seeing others nodding at him urging him on, "About Merle.. there was a, there was a problem in Atlanta" he says his hands on his hips, "he dead?" Daryl asks.

Shane shakes his head "we don't know", this makes Daryl scrunch his face up, wiping his eyes with his fingers, "he either is or he ain't!" He yells, swinging his arm towards the cop.

The whole group stood behind Shane, including Evelynn, who was holding her brother's hand.

She couldn't imagine what it would be like to be alone without Gillian, not knowing if he's dead or alive.

Evelynn hears Rick, Carl's dad introduce himself  to Daryl, but she can't help but let her mind spiral, what if Gillian were to disappear? What would she do, she would be all alone, with no one. Evelynn subconsciously squeezes her brother's hand tighter, making him rub the back of her tiny hand with his thumb, watching the scene in front of him unfold.

The sound of struggle and gravel moving makes Evelynn look back up to the people in front of her.

Her eyes widen seeing Daryl in a chokehold by Shane, Rick standing in front of them both.

"I would like to have a calm discussion on this topic, do you think we can manage that?" Rick says putting his gun away, only being met by silence "do you think we can manage that" he repeats trying to get a confirmation. "Hmm?" Shane says trying to get Daryl to answer, "mhm yeah" Daryl grunts, making Shane let him go.

The archer quickly gets off his knees pushing himself away from Shane, grabbing his crossbow and putting it back on his shoulder "what I did was not on a whim, your brother does not work well with others" Rick says in a calm voice to not alarm anyone.

T-dog quickly steps up beside Rick, "it's not Rick's fault, I had the keep, I dropped it" he says putting his head down ashamed. Evelynn can't help but frown a bit, T-dog is a nice guy he wouldn't do anything to hurt anyone, even Merle.

"Ya couldn't pick it up?" Daryl questions raising an eyebrow at him, "well.." T-dog began "I dropped it down a drain" he says kicking the earth underneath his feet, "if it's supposed to make me feel better, it don't".

T-dog nods before speaking "well, maybe this will, look I chained the door to the roof.. so the geeks couldn't get at him, with a padlock, it's gotta count for something" he says rubbing his hands together.

"To Hell with all yall! Just tell me where he is so I can go get'em!" Daryl yells, swinging his arm at everyone as he paces. 'He likes swinging his arms a lot,' Evelynn thought as she watched everyone.

Lori stepped up looking at her husband "he'll show you, isn't that right?", Rick looks at her, nodding in confirmation, "I'm going back" and with that ending the conversation, Lori stomps back to the Rv, even though she's the one who basically recommended it.

Evelynn sits on a camping chair, the rough fabric surprisingly not too uncomfortable, she sits there watching the whole group gather around a truck, getting ready to go get Merle.

 Out of the corner of her eye, Evelynn sees a figure walking towards her, adjusting her hat, she sees Carl walking up with his hand behind her back.

"Here" Carl says handing Evelynn a flower, it was a simple daisy. "What's this for?" She asks him, reaching forward and taking it in between her fingers, Carl looks at the big group of people, before back at the young girl in front of him, "I saw how upset you were, y'know, when my dad came back, and, I don't know, I just, felt bad I guess" the boy shrugs at the end, looking at the ground before back to the flower in the girls hand.

Evelynns eyes start to sting, as she looks down at the flower in her hands, rolling it in between her fingers, "thanks Carl" she says quietly, not looking up at him.

Carl frowns, "I didn't mean to make you upset," he says, still looking at the girl. Evelynn shakes her head at the boy's statement "ya didn't".

Carl just nods before looking back at the group, "I'll talk to you later, see ya Evelynn" the boy says before walking away from the girl, to his dad.

Evelynn just continues looking at the flower in her hand, ignoring the harsh footsteps approaching her.

"Think he likes ya" the voice says from behind her. Evelynns eyes widen as she turns in the chair to see the man behind her.

Daryl looks at the small girl before looking at the group arguing by the truck, "no he don't" the girl says looking at him. The corner of Daryl's mouth twitches up for a second, but he quickly refrains himself from letting it happen anymore. "Whatever you say kid, whatever ya say" he says before walking past her beginning to walk to the group. 

"Wait!" The young girl says loudly, catching the archer's attention, "hm" he grunts, not angrily, but a sign that he's paying attention, "I'm sorry bout yer brother, I can't imagine being in yer shoes" the girl says from the chair, playing with her hands.

Daryl's eyes soften a bit while looking at the young girl, he's noticed the bond between her and Gillian, it's definitely a lot better than his and Merle's, but he's seen how much they rely on each other. "Thanks kid, yer wise for yer age" Daryl nods his head at the girl before turning back around and walking back to the group.

——————————————————————

Daryl and Eves first interaction!

Feeling a bit Evil, you guys aren't ready for the next chapter 😛

Feedback is appreciated!

Let me know if u want to be in the tag list :)

Thank you for reading Withered Evelynn

Tag list:

@sysqzs

[fluffle-writes]

Fanmade entry based on the game Home Safety Hotline (my recreation of the UI isn't perfect but it's close enough lol.) To make the image I just mushed together some stock images and applied a bunch of shading layers and filters until it looked distorted enough to hide all my mistakes

WARNINGS: Horror, body horror, unreality, metamorphosis, referenced child harm

Text and separate image UTC

DESCRIPTION:

Deerfolk have the stature of bipedal deer, and t heir 'arms' appear to be almost human in structure, tipped with long, scythe-like claws. Their eyes also give off a faintly red glow. Looking at them for too long seems to warp a person's perception of their surroundings. Male Deerfolk often have antlers whereas female Deerfolk lack them.

DANGER:

Male Deerfolk are more aggressive, however they rarely hunt humans outside of winter months. They do pose a threat to pets and livestock year-round, leaving them as empty corpses on the outskirts of forests after any hunts.

Female Deerfolk have a peculiar behaviour where they may target human children, feeding them berries or flowers over the course of a week, which triggers a metamorphosis in the child that will eventually transform them into a young fawn.

Evidence of transformation may be higher amounts of energy, thicker hair, abnormal nonverbal behaviour, abnormal screaming when outdoors, insistence to go into the trees, and (in males) development of lumps around the top of the head or temples.

SOLUTION:

Deerfolk can be repelled by nailing a horseshoe to the outside of your house, as well as applying a capsaicin spray around the outskirts of any forested area near your home.

In the case of infected children, the change cannot be reversed, and it is advised that parents either release it into the forest or contact HSH pest removal services to handle the removal of an infected fawn.

[milkymarble]

land of honey

here is an ode to all those south of the mason-dixon line, on either side of the grand mississippi

i like the taste of wild honeysuckle, smell of maturing magnolias. there's warm spring days, with rolling thunderstorms at night, sidewalks still wet the next morning

there's ladies with big hair, bigger weddings, inviting half the town to watch them say "i love you i do I'll always love you"

neighbors gossip, hushed whispers and giggles, i like small talk with people in line at the grocery store, asking if they like that brand of bug spray

a cacophany of cicadas at night, whippoorwills and chick-a-dee-dee-dees, lullabies of croaking bullfrogs

i like faded churches on the side of single lane roads, you know they used to be just one big dusty room and i guess they always will be

i like red crosses and soup kitchens, storm shelters and booster drives

thanks for the casserole when my aunt died

i like peach cobbler, chess pie, country fried steak, loads of butter and eggs and flour and sugar

tea so sweet your mouth puckers, boiled peanuts sold from the side of the road, only $1.50 and you get free directions to the waterfall

i even like the people who hunt, i do. especially the ones who use all of the animal, who thank the deer for passing quickly and for gifting them a glorious dinner

the people who give antlers to their dogs

i like old women with hair so white its blue, with a smoker's rasp, with metallic lipstick and starched blouses, patent leather shoes and big red pocketbooks

i like driving through marshes and fields, cow pastures and blue ridge mountains, creeks falling to forests growing to gardens

i like square dancing, and slow dancing even more, and the little dark raves tucked in corners of empty downtowns filled with everyone like you

i like bluegrass and blues, jazz on corners in the french quarter, zydeco in acadiana, yes even country, i like singing country songs on the porch

i like slow guitar and crooning melodies of heartbreak and first love, of missing mom and hating dad

i like old faded trucks, the ones low to the ground without big engines, i like train tracks overrun with weeds

i like mardi gras, flashing beads thrown in smoky air, feathered up floats, stereos turned loud

i like the hundreds of peachtree streets and dozens of martin luther king jr. boulevards

there's buford highway, where you can eat food from every corner of the globe and still be right at home

pass by billboards in korean, spanish, english, all in three square miles

i like drag queens in sunday best, the same florals my grandmother likes

i like straw hats and creased-up boots, i like paper fans exchanged from hand to hand

i like hearing "yall stay safe now" i like how everyone is honey and baby and sweetheart, even if you've never met

i love you trailer park beauties

stay true, hillbilly rednecks

[madphantom]

Ding ding ding, new Sarah snippet

The night I met Sarah we had both stalked the streets alone. It had snowed, but she had worn a blue dress - that was the first thing I saw of her, that pale blue silk fluttering in the breeze like a ghost. Her skin was milky white; she did not leave the house often then. She was a walking dead girl imprisoned in an earthly body.

She wore no jewelry. She did not own any. I was taller than her, wearing my father's stolen grey suit, ill-fitting, and had my long hair in a braid.

Sarah's lips were crimson red; I later found out she had bitten her tongue and the blood on her mouth had made her kisses taste like salt water.

You and I are alike, she had whispered when we stood face to face. Too strange, too beautiful for them to understand. Queer.

I have never thought of myself as beautiful, but that night she began to worship my body. I was tall, thin, spider-fingered, like an odd crane, my nose was beak-like, my teeth bucked. The more of you there is the better, she had whispered. You have to fill out the space in the universe with beautiful things. And I worshiped her too, the dark shadows below her two-coloured eyes, the freckles on her chest, her dimples, the curve of her belly…she was not dainty, but I repeated her words right back at her. The more of you there is the better.

For two weeks we did not have names. Anonymous beauties, we met up in the darkness, worshiped each other's imperfections like young gods and made love in the snow until the ice stung and burned into our flesh. We became our own religion, our own deity and its priests. Afterwards, we rubbed each other's blue-white skin warm and whispered it over and over. I adore you.

I woke up with my arm wrapped around her naked shoulder.

Something pale red glowed in the window. At first I thought it was a distant fire. Then my vision began to clear and I realized it was eyes. An animal was sitting on the windowsill. In the midnight black I saw fur that seemed to glisten like tar. Claws scraped across the wood.

When I sat up the creature bared its teeth, glinting in the moonlight. Then, with a thud, it leaped down from the windowsill onto the front roof.

I rose from my bed and crept downstairs to the front door. Quietly, quietly, I opened it with a creak and peered outside.

The two-headed white deer was standing in the field, almost glowing in the light of the moon. It seemed tense. Its eyes glinted like a predator's.

Face to face with the deer a fox was standing in front of the house, teeth bared, snarling at it. Its muscles twitched beneath the orange fur. It looked truly frightening from this perspective.

I stared at the scene in bewilderment. Eventually, one of the deer's heads sensed my gaze on it and glanced up. Our eyes met and I felt a primal terror creep up my spine.

The fox turned to glance over its shoulder and in that moment, the deer kicked it aside. The fox whined, leaped right back, but the deer had already made its way towards me.

For a moment I thought it would simply impale me on its bone white antlers, but instead it stopped and stared at me. I got lost in those eyes. They seemed to contain galaxies, rose quartzes and sunsets, multitudinous, terrifyingly beautiful, a glimpse into the mind of a god, too much, too much to comprehend…COME AND SEE it seemed to say, delight in everything you see, an ant before a man, oh you poor, puny thing. You are looking at something you will never understand.

The deer flinched when the fox bit its leg. The smaller animal was whining and crying in pain, but persistent. Its teeth glistened pale white in the moonlight. I went down on my knees with tears spraying out of my eyes, my head burning and crackling from the inside, as if it had been struck by lightning.

The deer almost seemed to smile mockingly when it shook the fox off and ran off into the night. I lay curled up on the ground and cried and cried and cried.

[unicornmachine]

Dumping my Huntbunny brain rot from X here so I remember to come back to it and write it one day

Imagine an AU where Hunter Wizard is trapped in Human World living in Hunter and Fionna’s apartment while they try to figure out how to get him home without magic… 🤣

“AGH! You cannot hunt squirrels here!! They did nothing wrong!” 😱

“Gross, HW! No dead animals in the house!” 😖

Fi: “WHAT ARE YOU DOING HW?!?- THAT’S MY BOSS YOU CAN’T BEAT HIM AND TIE HIM UP FOR ‘DISRESPECTING’ ME, YOU’RE GOING TO GET ME FIRED AGAIN 😫😫😫”

Human Hunter has wanted to do this for a long time, he cannot be that mad about it

Fionna and Human Hunter cooking 🧑🏻‍🍳 a deluxe, five-star dinner for HW just to finish setting the table and finding him gnawing on a raw, dripping deer leg

Trying to get him to take a shower 😩 he wouldn’t trust it, and the perfumed soap would make his nose twitch 🧼🚿

Fionna would make him up a nice, comfy bed with fluffy pillows and cozy blankets he wouldn’t sleep in, they would find him out front passed out in the hedges

“Oh my god… a bird has made a nest in his antlers… we shouldn’t disturb them…”

Cake brings inside a dead chipmunk

Fi: “ewww I’ll get it…” 🤢

Before she can do anything HW gobbles it up.

Fi: 😨

HW: “I like the little furry hunter…”

Cake purrs and roosts on him

They are friends ever since 😭



H. Hunter: “I’m sorry he’s causing such chaos”

Fi: “it’s okay, I’m getting used to it, and look how nice him and Cake get along… they’re running around outside together chasing birds, how cute… oH MY GOD THEY’VE CAUGHT AN EAGLE! NOO HW THEY’RE ENDANGERED!!” -grabs spray bottle-

[narvan-jester]

From The Pinnacle: Ch.8

WC: 2,519

Chapter one here

Read under the cut or on AO3

Phantom and Aurora my lovelies :)

Phantom sighed deeply and rested their head against the cool wall for a moment. A rag and small spray bottle dangled from their hand, rag damp and dirty.

“It could be worse,” they reminded themselves under their breath. Their voice was absorbed into the empty space of the hall. “It could be floors.”

“Phantom?”

They jumped at the sudden voice echoing through the empty hall, frantically pulling back and dusting with their rag once more. “Yes?” They asked, dull pain radiating through their arm as they stretched it to clean the dust off the horns of a deer bust above them.

Their chest ached with the panic of being caught potentially “lacking”, their heartbeat jumping and racing. They had to be perfect. They shouldn't have allowed themselves that moment of breathing room.

“Phantom.” Again it sounded through the room. Painful, aching, accusatory, bouncing from wall to wall and making it much louder than it needed to be.

They finished dusting the antlers of the deer, turning to face the source of the voice and immediately tensing. Anxieties rushed through them without abandon, slithering up and through their bloodstream like a venomous snake.

Pale pink eyes stared out at them from a shining silver mask, much like the one they were wearing. Her eyes locked on theirs, not allowing them to tear away with the sheer ferocity of the gaze. Even so, they could smell a dart of nerves before she forced it to dampen.

Their eyes widened as she lifted her booted foot and stepped forward, just once. Her foot fell sounded loudly on the hardwood, before she was swinging the other one around and stepping forward again.

She was going to kill them. That's the only thing she could do, would do. They had posed a threat, and a threat needed to be neutralized.

Another step, and another. Their heart rate increased, beating powerfully against their ribs, powered by their fear.

Their claws scrabbled at the wall behind them for purchase as they pressed themselves completely and totally into it, trying to get as far away from her as possible. They felt their head hit against the plaque underneath the bust of the deer, and they squeezed their eyes shut, panic racing through them.

“Stop.” The word slipped and bubbled from their lips, strained and involuntary. Their ears twitched as they heard the footsteps halt, a faint sound of shuffling accompanying it. They waited a few seconds, making sure that she wasn't moving anymore, before relaxing slightly.

“Phantom.” A third time, their name sounded through the hall. They hesitantly blinked open their eyes to meet the ones of the ghoul in front of them.

“Listen, I-” Aurora's head dropped, voice shaking slightly as she stumbled over her words. “Cumulus and Cirrus- or, sorry. I'm…” she just trailed off and shrugged, lifting her gaze again. Phantom nodded hesitantly to her, encouraging her to continue, back still press tightly against the wall behind them.

“I'm sorry for getting scared of you,” she finished, voice quiet, dropping to the ground limply and blanketing it in a thin layer of snow.

Phantom cleared their throat, eyes locked on hers. “You don't have to be sorry. I'm the one who scared you.”

Aurora's eyes darted over their masked face, down to the rag and bottle held in their hands. “It's past four.”

The three words were spoken soft, but only as soft as toxic, crawling mold. It crawled up and encircled Phantom's chest, squeezing tight enough to pop.

“I have to finish this hall.” The words were too big for the room. They felt too small for their body.

Aurora's eyes darted up to the deer, antlers worn proud, encircling his head like a crown. Fake glass eyes gazed back, as bright as anything lifeless can be. His horns gleamed, all eight sharp points displayed. She blinked. It stared back.

“I think the hall can wait until tomorrow.”

Phantom wasn't sure why, but her words forced them into action. They trailed towards, and then past her, not saying a word. She followed after them, standing patiently behind them as they put their supplies back where they belonged.

The silence wasn't awkward, nor was it comfortable. It was simply there, always present, blanketing the space between them in a warm layer of dappled sunlight.

Neither of them really registered the humans milling around them. Their boots clicked on the floors, buried under the sound of those around them. Busy halls turned into lonely ones, and the smell of humans faded until the smell of ghoul overpowered it.

Phantom rummaged for their key, fitting it into the rusty lock and taking one, two, three tries to turn it before it clicked faintly and opened.

The silence wasn't shattered, per say, however it became sharper, lined with eggshells and sandpaper.

Cirrus sat with Cumulus cuddled close to her asleep on the couch. Her gaze was somewhat cold, calculating. It darted from them, down to Cumulus, then to the hallway. She furrowed her brow at them and lifted one finger to her lips as a sign of “quiet”.

Aurora nodded back, passing the common room and stepping instead into the kitchen. Phantom trailed behind her, stopping in a moment as they realized just whose head was pressed flush into the table.

His arms curled around his head. Only his chest could be seen moving up and down faintly with his breaths, pausing when they got caught in his throat. Only one long, sharp horn stuck out from the safe cushion of his arms.

One breath in.

They were distracted by Aurora bumping gently into them, holding two plates loaded with food. She looked up, and they looked down.

Everything seemed so very far away.

They reached out, taking the plate from her with a small smile. They looked up and gave a nod to Rain where he stood at the counter. He simply nodded back tensely.

Phantom felt far disconnected from their body as they wandered after Aurora as she beckoned them into her room.

She sat on the bed with a flourish, so they took the desk, beginning to feel their consciousness floated back to them with something solid beneath them.

Their eyes darted around her room. It was much the same as theirs, but they noticed thick, fluffy pink blankets coating the bed rather than the usual white. “Your bed is pink.” The words were too quiet for the big room.

Aurora looked up, swallowing quickly and wiping her lip. “Yeah. Is yours not?”

Phantom shook their head, eyes then darting around the room and landing on small, simple differences. A little glass trinket sitting proudly on the dresser. A ribbon looped around the lamp shade. A chain of beads hanging from the curtain rod.

Their eyes flashed back up to Aurora’s. They were bright, and she sported a mischievous grin. “Oh no,” they echoed.

“Oh yes,” Aurora answered, grin somehow growing even wider.

Aurora began scarfing down her food, and they had to race to eat theirs as well. It was yellow, stringy and chewy, a little sweet and a little salty. They wished they had more time to savor the taste, but the race spurred them onwards.

“Trust me,” Aurora said between bites. “Cumulus showed me.”

“Aurora, I don't-” they blurted, but she cut them off and they raced to shovel another spoonful into their mouth.

“Nope. It'll be fun, you're coming with me.” She wiped her mouth quickly and swallowed her last bite, Phantom racing to follow her lead as they stood, shoving the last bit of food in their mouth as they did so.

“Aurora, come on, I don't need anything special!” They half walked, half ran out of the room after her, dumping their plate into the sink after her.

“Yes you do!” Her voice was joyful as she skipped past them, tapping them on their shoulder playfully as she did.

A faint hiss sounded from the table and Phantom only half turned around to locate its origin. Fiery orange eyes locked on their own and squinted threateningly.

They hurried after Aurora as fast as they could, trying to squash the feeling of guilt that began to bubble up in their gut.

“You're so slow,” she jeered over her shoulder at them as she opened the door.

“I am not Aurora!” Phantom said back, rushing through the door and jogging to be by her side as she began speed walking in a seemingly random direction. “Do you even know where you're going?”

Aurora giggled at that. “A little bit. Come on, it's like an adventure!”

“What if we get lost?” Phantom asked, turning their head to face her.

She shrugged. “It's an adventure.”

Phantom sighed. “Fine. Please don't get lost.”

“I won't!” Aurora's voice squeaked as it got caught up on her words.

Her pace kept changing, sometimes going unreasonably fast, sometimes slowing to a normal walking speed, and Phantom had to scramble to match it. So much of their attention was used to keep up with Aurora's rapid pace that they didn't keep track of any of their surroundings.

“Aurora, are you sure-” Phantom asked, breaking the silence between them.

“Of course I am!” Her voice wavered slightly as she spoke, and Phantom immediately picked up on her nervous energy.

They stopped in their tracks and took in the empty and unfamiliar halls around them, unease begining to prickle at their skin.

“Ugh, Phantom!” Aurora whined, stopping and turning several meters away from them. She crossed her arms in front of her chest and glared at them.

“No, no, Aurora, I-” Phantom frantically tried to gather their thoughts and form them into words. Cobwebs hung in dark corners, and the walls and floor seemed to be buried in a solid layer of dust.

“Do you happen to be lost?”

A deep, slithering voice sounded from behind them, crawliing up their spine. They whipped around as a hand was placed on their shoulder, eyes meeting a solid chest before slowly tracking upwards until it met deep blue eyes set deep within a dark, featureless face.

“Who are you?” They tried to keep their voice from wavering as they spoke, taking a step back from the ghoul.

“Oh, thank Satan!” Aurora chimed, and they could feel her come up behind them. “Yes, we did get lost.”

“Well what are you looking for?” Phantom narrowed their eyes, catching the deep and corrupted scent, unmistakeably ghoul.

“We're looking for the bins that have the bedding and clothes in them that ghouls can take,” Aurora described, grinning up at the ghoul in front of her.

“Are you Delta?” Phantom asked, immediately causing the ghoul to whip their head towards them.

Phantom cowered under their gaze, before they barked a laugh. “Delta? No, Lucifer! I'm Chain, little ghoul, and who might you be?”

They relaxed slightly, relieved that the ghoul wasn't who they were warned about. “I'm Phantom. I'm the new quintessence ghoul.”

Chain whistled lowly, placing his hands on his hips. “Hm. Shame. And you?”

He was moving on before Phantom had the chance to comprehend what he meant, leaving them reeling in his wake.

“I'm Aurora!” Aurora introduced joyfully.

Chain sniffed the air audibly, eyes widening slightly. “You're a hybrid!”

Aurora tilted her head. “Yeah?”

Chain shrugged it off, looking over his left shoulder as he did so. “Nothing. Just that we never had any hybrids when I was in the band.”

He began walking and they both had no choice to follow. “You were in the band?” Aurora asked, voice chipper.

Chain laughed, low and loud. “Yes, I was. A long time ago.”

“Well, what do you do now?” Phantom asked, trailing behind the two.

Aurora looked at him expectantly, but he didn't answer their question. “What do you do now?” Aurora tried again.

“Oh, I handle contaminants and work ceremonies. My water magic is very strong,” Chain bragged, flourishing his hand with a splash of water.

Phantom stumbled, feeling themself become unnaturally parched suddenly. Chain glanced back at them, eyes glinting dangerously in the low light for a moment, before he turned his attention back to Aurora, menace radiating from him.

“Whoa! That's amazing! Most of my elements are really weak except for my air and my earth,” Aurora lamented. Phantom blinked rapidly as the pair began to trail further away from them. Their instincts flared, and they hurried ahead to push themselves in between Aurora and Chain before he had the chance to say anything more.

“Aurora,” they stated, scenting her as strong as they could, brushing their hand over hers. Their eyes darted to Chain, his eyes swirling with anger.

Phantom knew exactly how dangerous this was as they glared at the much larger ghoul. They couldn't find it in them to care, instincts on overdrive.

“Phantom, what-?” Aurora squeaked, taking in the situation between the two.

Phantom ignored her. “Chain.” He didn't reply. “Where are you taking us.”

Chain tilted his head. “Where you asked to go, the charity bins. It's just a little longer this way.”

“I don't believe you,” Phantom hissed, pushing Aurora behind them more.

The grin in Chain’s voice was apparent. “Do you want to come with me, or take your chances finding Special back that way?” He tossed his chin in the direction they had come.

“That depends,” Phantom growled. “Where are you really taking us?” They felt static gather and pop dangerously around them.

Chain sighed, shaking his head. “You really don't believe me?”

“No,” Phantom hissed. “I don't.”

He grinned. “There's no shame in a little hazing, come on now,” Chain chastised, voice playful but dripping with threats.

“What are you actually doing, Chain?” Aurora piped up behind Phantom, pushing forward to stand more at their side.

“Quit with the redundant questions,” Chain growled, waving his hand in the air. “Just having a little fun. I'm sorry. Earth?”

Phantom glanced around, becoming suddenly painfully aware of another presence in the hall. They whipped their head around the way they had come, a spark of quint alighting from the tip of their ear as it twitched.

A ghoul stood at the end of the hallway, blocking it. He was massive and hooded, face as hidden in shadow as Chain’s was. His claw twitched.

“Hey!” Aurora's screech forced them to turn the other way. Their eyes widened even more as Chain slipped further down the hall and blocked the space.

“Come on, Earth, one for each of us,” Chain called in a sing-song voice, before looking down at Aurora in front of him, cooing. “Don't worry, we'll take you right to the charity bins when we're done. Now are you ready for your rite of passage?”

Phantom grabbed Aurora's arm, dragging her away from Chain and pressing their back to hers in a quick moment. “Aurora,” they said.

“Phantom,” she answered.

“Shut your eyes.” Phantom sent a quick prayer to Lord Lucifer below that she listened.

In a moment, they let loose all the bubbling and churning quintessence that was sitting thickly on the surface of their skin and the hall went white.

[deer-xing-png]

Sooo I identify as therian now lol, here's this:

My favorite things to do as a deerkin 

꧁❆»--•--«❆꧂

Movies, TV and other visual media

Bambi 1 & 2 (Disney +) - Movie

Sweet Tooth (Netflix) - Show

Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer (1964) - Movie

Deer TV (Youtube) - Video

Beastars (Netflix) - Anime show

Elliot the Littlest Reindeer (Netflix) - Movie

Niko and the Way to the Stars (Amazon Prime or Youtube) - Movie

A Christmas Reindeer (Youtube) - Short film

꧁❆»--•--«❆꧂

Snacks

(Make sure to supplement your diet with protein too!)

Fruit, nut, oat, and/or seed bars

Dried okra pods

Dried fruit

Trail mix

Oatmeal

Apples, berries, mushrooms, spinach or any leafy greens, vegetables like broccoli or carrots

Floral beverages, jams, or candied flowers

Any tea with honey and/or lemon

Cucumber tea sandwiches

Salads

Floral or herb dessert breads

Bread and seasoned olive oil (spicy or not)

Bisques or soups with your favorite veggie or nut ingredients (Potato, hazelnut, walnut, kale, etc!)

꧁❆»--•--«❆꧂

Activities

Frolicking, jumping, running, trotting around outside

Weaving baskets, macrame, knitting, crocheting

Foraging responsibly 

Making deer ears, antlers, or a tail out of yarn, felt, or fur fabrics

Light candles and get cozy!

Painting your theriotype or your habitat (watercolor, oil, acrylic, etc)

Hiking or camping

Go on a picnic!

Dancing to your favorite genre of music

Decorating with acorns, pinecones, mushrooms, and other plant-themed items

Baking unique breads and desserts

Make a room spray that smells like your habitat

꧁❆»--•--«❆꧂

Fashion

Anything brown, grey, black, white… Natural colors

Sweaters if it’s cold where you live

Cottagecore aesthetic is always a good choice too!

I also think of the light academia aesthetic for deer 

Skirts

Messenger bags

Comfy socks with lace

Mushroom, acorn, or pinecone themed clothing

Shoes that make a satisfying “clip-clop” sound when you walk

Anything with deer actually on the article of clothing itself

Shawls, capes or bandanas

꧁❆»--•--«❆꧂

Remember, you don't NEED to do any of these things to be a valid deer therian! These are just suggestions I have come up with that I like to do to feel closer to my theriotype!

Enjoy!!

[imperialpetco]

Imperial Pet Co. | Trello

Imperial Pet Co. is an Australian based holistic canine health Supplement Company. They produce the most natural and effective canine joint and oral health products in the world! - https://imperialpetco.com

[limbless-art]

Drawing Deer Species 16/50

Sambar Deer

Very closely related to the Javan Rusa Deer, they can interbreed with them and produce fertile hybrid deer!

Sambar deer have a red gland in their neck that looks like an arrow wound. It can excrete a white liquid in with an unknown purpose in breeding season, and people commonly mistake it for an injury.

Though does can live in large groups, some prefer to live only with their family and not prefer a full herd, unlike most deer.

Bucks spray their territory, and themselves, in the face, with their urine. They will also scrape urine-soaked earth onto their antlers and rub them on trees.

[spiritus-malum]

Below is prose about roadkill, there's no images but the descriptions used may be found unpleasant.

To sum; don't open, dead deer.

You lay there on the side of the road, a largely unused one. Four houses with great distances between their properties join you on this small stretch, and nothing else.

It juts out of the side of the state highway, 89 not that you'd understand human concepts, and is an old dirt path that connects to another slab of mighty asphalt, uncomfortably great in length.

I pull over on my drive, technically running late for my meeting, but entranced by you. And there your body lay, unharmed on the outside, perfectly still.

I kneel down and stroke your fur, it's rough, snaps apart at my touch, and is dried out. I rub the nubs that would have been your antlers if you'd made it longer, and I wonder if you would've liked me.

A great many of your kind like me, they come to me when I am alone, sniffing my hand and butting their heads against my shoulder.

Some of them let me scratch, either just above the nose between the eyes, or just under the chin. Others will approach me and nod their heads, like they recognize me from somewhere and just want to say hi.

I admire the way rot has started to take you, but the cold weather and the position you rest in have given you shelter from the worst of it.

I don't smell decay, I don't see maggots, but your dry fur tells me what I need to know, and your eyes are cloudy white and pocked with dry black flecks. Infection, blood vessels ruptured.

Is it still an infection if you're dead? I don't know, maybe it isn't.

I stroke from the top of your head down your back, and I shed tears for you, they let out little pops of sound as they hit your fur.

There is no traffic on old 89, there is only stillness, save for the cold breeze that acts as traffic for the leaves of the maple trees.

I rise to my feet, and drag a handful of large fell branches from the ditch upto you. I lay them across your lifeless, beautiful body, and then sanitize my hands with my pocket spray, twice.

I turn to look at my car and I see another of your kind standing across the street, alone, staring.

The doe looks at me, eyes wet like they always are, but with some underlying emotional quality. The doe is mourning you, just like I am.

Perhaps you knew this doe, perhaps she knew you, now we all know eachother.

I bow, she bows back, I step towards my car and she watches me go. She does not bolt from me, even as my roaring car slides past her noisily on the old dirt road.

I drive the rest of the way to the meeting, and neither on the way there, nor the way back, do I see another deer along the side of the road. Dead or alive.

[sarahowritesostucky]

(Don't mind me. Just some shameless self promotion.)

Lucas:

"That First, Thrilling, Arterial Spray"

Lucas was in the lead this time, he knew it!

He raced through the forest’s underbrush, tearing through thickets and thorns that were barely more than whispers against his fur, his padded paws equally impervious to the rough terrain. He’d become consumed by his senses at this point, vision narrowed down to only the shades of blues and yellows that his wolf could see, relying on his nose and ears to lead the way. And now he was so close to their prey that he could practically taste the blood in his mouth already. He was going to win this time.

Verne was going to be so pissed. They’d bet quarterly poop duty on this run. The loser was going to have to take out all the shit from the cabin’s composting toilet and move it into the garden.

Lucas would’ve been cackling like a loon at the victory if he could. Instead, he panted and snarled, teeth bared as he lunged over soggy patches of earth and closed in on the deer they’d been terrorizing for the past ten minutes. He and Verne were stronger and faster than most living things, so hunting never took them long. It had been an impromptu decision this time, the buck bolting out of sight while they’d both happened to be working out in the yard. Verne had dropped his watering can and grinned slyly at Lucas, and Lucas had nodded and thrown down the bet. Instead of answering verbally, Verne had hunkered down and slipped his skin. Game on.

Up ahead, Lucas finally caught sight of it, the pale underside of the deer’s tail flashing in the waning twilight and giving it away. He ran harder, heart beating gleefully inside his wolf’s body as he went in for the kill, anticipating that first, thrilling arterial spray.

He tackled the animal within the span of ten paces, lunging for its neck to drag it down and incapacitate it quickly. With the defense of their antlers, bucks were more dangerous than does to take down, but the motions of jumping and grabbing, of swinging himself around and using his momentum to tear out the jugular, were all but body memory for Lucas at this point. He had the thing dead and its flesh on his snout by the time Verne skidded into view.

Verne froze, then he growled and pounced. But Lucas had won fair and square, and he snarled back and pinned his mate to the ground. Verne allowed it. Lucas grabbed him by the scruff and shook triumphantly, standing over Verne’s body in a show of dominance. Ha, his wolf said. Me. I win.

Verne chuffed and let it be for a few seconds, then shrugged him off so that he could get up and go sniff at the deer. He lapped at its neck, then looked over at Lucas. Their eyes met. Good job, the wolf said. Good food. Good providing.

It wasn’t often that Lucas got to preen over such things. He and Verne were both alpha, but Verne was by far the more dominant male, his wolf even more so. He naturally fell into the lead in most things. Lucas’ wolf knew its place in the pack, and it wasn’t on top.

Well, not usually. He panted happily and danced around Verne, scratching at the dirt and lowering his front half playfully. I won. Verne ignored him and Lucas whined in annoyance until he got another snarl from his mate.

Alright. Shut up about it already.

Lucas did. Mostly because he was hungry, and if he kept goading the other alpha about his loss, Verne would get fed up and decide to reassert his dominance. Lucas would wind up getting fucked on the forest floor before he could have the chance to eat what he’d so rightfully caught. And he was too damned hungry for that.

They tore happily at the deer together for a solid few minutes before the scent hit them. Verne had taken a break to lick his bloody paws and Lucas had his snout buried in the deer’s belly. Then the wind shifted. Verne twitched in the direction of the scent just as Lucas pulled his head up. He lifted his nose higher and sniffed. He tensed.

There was another wolf not far away.

Both of them stood stock still but for their swiveling ears, listening and scenting the air. No movement came through the trees, just that smell: unmistakably were. Lucas whined sub vocally and looked at his mate for direction. There weren’t supposed to be any other shifters for miles and miles. Hundreds of miles. This was Verne’s territory. The closest pack they knew of was up north in Coeur D’Alene. Lucas sniffed the air again and came back with only the one scent, no others. That was also alarming. What would one wolf be doing out here alone?

Lucas’ wolf’s first ideas were sick, or hurt. Those were the only two reasons it could fathom for a shifter to be this far out in unfamiliar territory. He whined again and looked to Verne. Verne was still scenting the air. All the fur on his neck and down the center of his back stood up as he assessed the threat and what they should do. Eventually he grunted and loped off, and Lucas followed him as they trotted through the underbrush, this time more cautiously and being sure to stay quiet.

They tracked the scent through the woods. Their hunt had taken them down towards the southern end of Verne’s territory, and they were moving back north now, closer to the cabin. That made both wolves more agitated, as it meant a threat to their den. But the wind hadn’t carried the scent very far, and it was only minutes before they found her.

It was right at one of the old trapper paths. There was a van, crashed in against the trees and tilted at a severe angle from where it rested along the embankment. The smell of blood hung in the air, a half dead animal not far away making pathetic noises as it struggled through the forest. Lucas would’ve gone after it, but there was something much more pressing. Or rather, someone.

The van’s front passenger door was open, and the female looked to have crawled out that way. Now she was lying in the middle of the dirt road. Verne crept over and sniffed her while Lucas watched. The female didn’t stir. Unconscious, but alive.

That was … well, that was problematic.

Excerpt from "Until the Snow Melts," coming October, 2024

Until the Snow Melts masterlist

Follow L.T. Swann on Amazon for book release updates

Fledgling authors need all the help we can get spreading the word about our projects, so reblogs are worth their weight in gold!

[skyrim-forever]

TES Summer Fest 23: Day 1

Hi everyone, here is my contribution to day one of tesfest using the prompt Beast.

Tagging: @tes-summer-fest

Words: 737

Warnings: hunting, slight gore, animal death, canon-typical violence

As the wind blew through the forests along the border of Whiterun, the creatures of the woods went into hiding. Even the sabrecats fled, for a much more dangerous creature was stalking the night. 

She felt it run through her veins, invigorating her, as she hunted. Unlike her shield-brother Vilkas, Aela saw the beast blood as a gift. To join Hircine in his great hunting grounds was her idea of an afterlife, though she’d hoped that Vilkas would find peace in Sovngarde. For she had no doubt he would reach it. 

Her nostrils flared as she picked up a scent, a deer was not far, just over the hill closer to the plains that surrounded the city. She runs, branches breaking underneath her weight; they crumble as her giant clawed limbs make contact with the ground. Weaving in between the trees, she does not need to be careful. In addition to the fact most are wary of the forests during the day, let alone at night; she had the benefit of being the strongest creature. Aela would save the fear for the rabbits in deer. 

Despite how long it had been since her first transformation, Aela still felt the same rush she had gotten that first night. Vilkas, Farkas, Skjor and her; running through the forests. They had been so young then, perhaps even too young, but Gods were they free. They had felt as invincible as they were, having transcended beyond the dichotomy of man or beast.  

But over time, the group slowly dwindled, Vilkas feeling cursed by his beast blood and Farkas taking on his brother’s sentiments. For a long time it was just her and Skjor. Aela loved all her shield-siblings, there was no doubt about that. When it came down to it she would not hesitate to give her life for theirs; and many times it had almost come down to that. But Skjor had been different, he had been the first one to welcome her when she joined the Companions and they had shared so much. They shared a home together in the halls of Jorrvaskr, the beast blood and on moonlight nights in the wild, they shared each other. 

Though she had gotten revenge for what the Silver hand had done to him, the fact still remained that he was gone. Off to join Hircine’s hunt in Oblivion. And now Aela runs alone, chasing a high that now only she knows. 

She spies the deer eating berries from the foliage, it’s larger than she was expecting, its antlers would make a great mantle piece. Waiting for a moment of opportunity, she gets it when the deer lays down, unaware of what lurks in the bushes. But Aela the Huntress is not cruel, she walks slowly, now becoming careful of the branches around her. With expert placement of her hands, she is able to snap its neck before any fear sets in. Her claws dig into its flesh, the blood spraying as she rips through a major artery. 

The meat is rich and she thanks Hircine for his gift which aided in her successful hunt. As she is eating she hears the sound of ruffled leaves, she is not alone. Emerging from the dense wood, is a wolf. Instinctively she moves her body forward, arms wide in the air in an attempt to make herself even larger. But the wolf is not scared. Instead, the wolf folds back its ears and gives her a pleading look in between eyeing her fresh kill. The wolf has dark fur, identical to her own in this form, and dark eyes that appear almost soulful in the moonlight. Ripping a chuck of liver, Aela throws the piece at the beast to which it begins chewing on immediately, though its eyes never leave hers. If she was sentimental like Vilkas, she would have believed there was a metaphor to be found here. Wolf and werewolf, sharing a kill underneath the moon. Although she was not as philosophical as her shield-brother, she couldn’t shake a thought that came to her as she watched the wolf watch her. What kind of creatures are we? This thought instead comes out as a long, low howl. One that sounds not of this realm. Looking into the eyes of the creature across from her, its mouth wet with blood, a white glow forming around it, it answers her call. “Well met Hunter.”