Seeing Red

DEAD DOVE: DO NOT EAT. HEED THE WARNINGS IN THE DESCRIPTION. ALL PERSONS ENGAGING ARE DEPICTED OF AGE. I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR INTERACTION WITH THIS WORK. ANY CORRELATION TO REAL SCOUT TROOPS IS PURELY COINCIDENTAL. POV CHANGES QUICKLY, BUT IS STILL COHERENT TO READ.
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Snap. Footsteps of a human, treading through the woods. The woods that were blanketed in darkness, even if the sun had been above the horizon, the thick canopy of deciduous and coniferous trees blocked most of the sunlight, the undergrowth fighting tooth and nail to grow with limited light, yet still covering the ground. The human, a man named Max, continued his trek through the dense forest, his clothes already torn from the brambles and spiked holly. Though he was struggling on his journey, it was a necessary sacrifice. Through the disappearance of his boyfriend and the continued verbal and emotional abuse from his family, he had finally broken and ran away.

With his knowledge of the woods from his past enrollment in the Mutton Scouts, he figured he could survive out in the woods until he got into contact with Miller's family and they could arrange for him to stay in Texas with him. His boyfriend Charlie had been AWOL for two weeks now, suddenly unresponsive to any texts or calls. Max had been worried beyond belief, with no clue as to where he lived other than San Antonio. He looked through available missing persons lists in the area, but none of the pictures matched up. While deep-diving however, Max found a case of sightings of a beast, dark and fleeting, trailing from Texarkana all the way to Lake Michigan. Some witnesses claim it was the black dog of death, an omen of tragedy and, of course, your demise. The black shuck.

Piercing golden eyes trailed the human struggling through the woods, gaze sharpening as they clocked the silhouette making their way through the underbrush. On silent paws, a semi-bipedal lycanthropic beast with fur of the darkest night followed the human, stalking the trespasser. The beast watched as the human stumbled over a rock hidden by a fireroot bush, its ears perked at the yelp of pain that escaped the human as it fell to the ground. It gently pushed aside a small branch of the cedar tree that was obscuring its vision with its snout and tensed up immediately, becoming as still as a rock.

Max cursed as he tripped over something for what seemed like the millionth time, this time falling flat on his face. This sucked. Max simply laid there for a few seconds, any tears that weren't already shed threatening to fall again. Then he heard it. The rustle of branches too close, the snap of a branch under a weight that was far too heavy to hold it. His head turned, and he saw it.
Two amber eyes, staring straight at him from the shadows, no body to be made out in the darkness.

His heart jumped in fear, adrenaline instantly shot through his body, setting his muscles on fire as he scrambled to his feet and ran as fast as he could, dodging trees and bushes just barely. He weaved through the shadowed forest as best he could in an attempt to get away from the monstrous eyes that he saw. The only thought on Max's mind was running, as he was crashing through the undergrowth.

The beast had only leaned forward a little bit more, just to get a better look. It hadn't noticed the fallen branch right below its paw, and it snapped. The smell of fear penetrated the air as the human slowly turned to look at the large beast, who was still as a statue. Pure, raw instinct took over as the smaller creature bolted like a deer, and the beast quickly gave chase, paws pounding against the earth as he followed the sickly sweet smell of the human's fear. Although, his excitement wasn't just from hunting another piece of prey.  'Tis the season, as they say.

At the sound of the beast giving chase, Max's fear somehow skyrocketed even further. He cried out in terror as he glanced behind and saw the hulking furred monster chasing him. "Please! Leave me alone!" he cried, closing his eyes as tears started falling out of fear and mental exhaustion.

At the sound of the human's voice, the beast came to a full stop. He recognized that voice. He'd spent so many hours aimlessly chatting and spending digital hours in the presence of that voice. Which absolutely did not help his other problem. The beast continued running, following the scent of fear and what he now knew was the smell of his lover. His mate.

Max paused, panting, at the lack of noise following him. He know he metaphorically wasn't out of the woods yet, but it was strange that the monster suddenly stopped chasing him.  He stopped for only a few breaths, trying to remember his training as a Mutton Scout when he was younger.  All thoughts escaped his mind however, when he heard growling. It was a deep, guttural sound, excited and hungry.  The monster had found him again. He turned slowly to face the beast, whose bulk was pushing ever slowly through the holly bushes, one lanky paw stopped midair as the two made eye contact.

Max's heart pounded nearly out of his chest,  frozen in fear.  The beast waited, unmoving, as it scanned the human's face. It grinned, revealing sharp teeth dripping with saliva and hints of blood from a recent meal.  Max's eyes were blown wide, studying the beast in front of him. Something about the monster was... familiar. For some reason, his mind went through memories of his missing partner. He regarded the huge wolf in a different manner.
"Charlie?"

The beast smiled. Without breaking eye contact, he sat and used his spindly, clawed hands coming up to sign in ASL, spelling out the French. "Hello, mon beaux garçon." He watched as Max's face both lit up and dropped at the same time. "Remember what we said we'd do when we met in person? Well, now's the perfect time for me. You can help me, and I can ravish you like you always wanted."