#sun and moon @ leopardtaur y/n: pssst pssst pssst

[naffeclipse]

*slides leopardtaur Y/N to you across the table like a seedy casino*

*picks leopardtaur Y/N up and slips them into my inner jacket pocket*

You escaped Fazco's jungle park the moment it fell, darting to the outer regions of dense forest and tangled vegetation to soak in the untouched tropics. Your lower body takes after a leopard with a tawny coat and beautiful black rosettes. You're sleek, swift, and dangerous but not the biggest threat.

While in captivity, you caught whiffs off handlers of strange scents and heard gossip from those feeding you about the other monsters. You don't see any now, but you know to avoid conflict is to avoid encounters. You hunt at different times than might be typical for other beasts and avoid taking prey that might be missed. Usually, you rest in trees and hope to go unnoticed. You enjoy your newfound freedom. You hope to never see another human again.

Unfortunately, you're not alone. You realize that when you catch distant hisses and the echoes of slithering in the undergrowth. There are also the bones left from meals picked clean that you occasionally stumble upon. Massive paw tracks are left in the moist dirt. When you step into it with your paws, the imprint engulfs yours.

You'd rather not find out who those belong to. You're fierce but small. If anything big catches you in its teeth, it's over.

That doesn't mean you're never found. One lazy evening, just after nightfall, you wake up from a cozy nap along a thick tree branch. You yawn, opening your jaws and flashing your sharp teeth, stretching your arms and four legs and flicking your tail, only to realize that there's something above you. Wide, red eyes, caught off guard, stare down at you from higher branches. A naga, deep blue and hooded, dotted with diamonds of red and yellow scales, stares back. He must have been slithering along, not realizing the tree was already occupied. He starts to say something. You've already dashed down the tree trunk and bounded away faster than a bird disappearing into the forest.

That was too close, but not as close as your next encounter. The waterside is dangerous—you have to go there for a cool drink when the afternoon sun is hot. You venture forward, furry ears pricked, eyes scanning the verdant trees until you reach the babbling river's side. The noise is dangerous. It can conceal threats you might otherwise hear before they get too close, but you fold your four legs underneath you and cup your hands to drink delicious sweet water. It runs down your chin before you register another presence. The soft hiss of surprise that echoes.

You jump into the water. Splashing furiously, you turn around to face the intruder only to be met with wide blue eyes and open hands, just as stunned to see you as you are to see him. A naga of golden colors and red patches. He doesn't have a hood, not like the other one. Bright frills frame his head like a crown of beaming gold. He smiles reassuringly, almost too excited, and says, "Hello, friend." You spare him not a word as you swim across the river and disappear into the other end of the forest, ignoring his pleas to wait a moment.

The third encounter is too close for comfort. You don't realize you're being stalked until it's too late. The tall grass made you feel safe and hidden, but it only concealed who lurked here. You spy two gleaming orange eyes between blades of grass moments before the tigertaur leaps on you—and in a second, you're pinned. His paws hold your leopard body down, easily dwarfing you, as his hands grab your wrists. His strength puts an end to your attempts to fight back or wriggle free. He coos at you, much to your dismay. When he leans in close, you brace for his teeth to sink into you. Instead, he licks your cheek and tells you how sweet it is to finally get a proper eyeful of you. You're always running or hiding or sleeping. He wants to know your name. He wants you to know his name. He wants to see you again very soon, ignoring your confusion and disbelief that you're still alive.

He finally lets you up. He grabs your wrist when you try to flee. His striped tail whips about like he's playing while your own snaps in feral agitation. He tells you that you can trust him, especially over those snakes. You break free (did he let you break free?) and race back to the shadowy shelter of the jungle trees, breathing hard and frazzled.

You hide harder, staying in trees more and avoiding moving too much in the middle of the day and at midnight. Your paranoia grows when you notice little offers left under the tree where you had a nap at dawn and dusk: small morsels of meat, berries, nuts, and even flowers that hold no nutritional value but are gorgeous. You hear the nagas more, feel their presence, even catch sight of them as they catch sight of you, calling out, urging you to stop for a moment, please.

The tigertaur finds you when he pleases. He catches you bathing in the river one night and proceeds to help you groom your coat and hair despite your raised hackles, and he tells you that you should hunt food together; it would be far more efficient to share meals, and you need more meat. No matter where you go, where you hide, he finds you. You're certain he takes delight in catching you by surprise by how eagerly he snatches you up each time.

You don't like the offerings left by the nagas but you do take them, even the useless flowers. You don't like the tigertaur dragging a large carcass out, dropping it at your feet, and telling you to indulge, but you do eat. You don't know how to handle the attention of so many large predators, much less what to say when you drop by the babbling waterside to find the yellow naga smiling at you and telling you that it's safe, they won't hurt you. You don't know how to respond when you wake up to a soft hum in the middle of the night and find the blue naga a tree over, coiled up and watching you with a ruby gleam and a soft request to come over to his tree. He doesn't bite.

You don't know what to do but you want to survive, and you don't know if you can with the nagas and tigertaur beckoning you closer.