Between the shadows of the forest they flew, as silent as owls, as deadly as Men. A pack of wolves, so dark in colouring they could be shadows, so swift that only a blur from the corner of a watchers eye was ever caught, disturbing not a fallen leaf or blade of grass in their passage. Finding a suitable clearing the pack came to a halt, milling about the area expectantly, sniffing at the wind and keeping an eye on the direction they had come. stumbling into the same clearing, no less silent nor deadly than the beasts surrounding him, a lone figure sighed tiredly and sat down with a thud, laying back and spreading his arms much like a child would as they stared at the sky. Following the figure, a larger wolf entered, the gatehred pack members following this last wanderer with a fixed gaze, this stillness they behaved with marking this particular wolf as the unspoken leader of them all. Treading without a sound towards the figure, it stood at his shoulder and lowered its gaze, staring eye to eye with the man beneath it.

"What? It's not like we're in a rush here you know. Those ruins had been abandoned for years, you said so yourself." The man's voice showed no sign of exhaustion or any fatigue at all, just curiousity at the behaviour of his companion. He paused for a moment, seeming to be listening to something only he could hear, his gaze turning shifting to the sky beyond the wolfs head.

"I'm well aware of that, but I don't see why it has to be so sudden. It's not like we left any survivors of those Gnolls to track us here, did we?" The wolf snuffed, looking towards the pack and stalking off, the pack parting to let him pass as the man sat up with a grunt, glaring at the wolfs retreating form accusatorily.

"Oh don't give me that. You know damned well how long it's been since I had some fun, of course I was going to go overboard with it." His lips parted, the gleam of light on his fangs as the moon shone through the clouds the only visible change in the bearded ones features. Two long vampiric upper canines, and two robust, wolven lower canines making up the set. "Besides, you could smell the fear just pour off them when they realized who I was, I couldn't resist showing off a little. I'm sure the fires would have gone out by now."

Another pause as the seemingly one-sided conversation continued, the man rolling his eyes and getting to his feet, dusting himself off before pausing and looking down at himself curiously. "What's wrong with how I look? I mean sure I could find something better to wear than these old rags, but it's all that's left of what I was wearing when I left. I mean I already cut my hair and shaved my beard like you suggested I do, sheesh." A brief pause before the man glared at the lead wolf, his otherwise whimsical and melodious voice taking on a more serious and aggressive tone all of a sudden.

"Don't push your luck, whelp.  I can destroy you, borrowed or not, and you know this. My appearance remains how it is until we meet, and that is final.  Just because it is an act doesn't mean there's less reason to go through with it." The finality of his tone was a lot heavier than the words he spoke, but the message was delivered all the same.

As for the appearance in question, it was somewhat understandable why the argument was even happening. Choosing to wear nothing but the rags of his former attire, the man was dressed in a pair od ragged linen trousers, and and the now half sleeved remnants of what had been a black silk shirt. No buttons and barefoot, his black mane of wavy hair was tied in a simple ponytail high at the back of his head, its tips trailing down half his back. Adorning his cheeks and chin was a thick, dark beard, crudely trimmed to only reach his chest whenever he looked at his toes, twigs and leaves suck to both the beard and ponytail. At 5 foot 11 inches tall, his lean yet toned build suited him well, the shadows created by the moonlight filling in the hollows of his muscular torso and arms, his dark tanned flesh making him seem almost a living shadow in his own right. Even his eyes seemed dark, the deep blodshot red of the twin orbs was virtually impossible to see until he lifed his face to the sky, and even then it was only the subtle glow of crimson and gold mixed into his otherwise green-flecked brown irises that made them visible at all.

All in all, Bayne BlackRose looked no worse for wear than he ever did after a fight, save for the state of his usually midlength hair and clean-shaven, youthful features. Even the tips of his elven-like ears were barely visible. "A shame she's the only one we can track, but that's better than none I suppose." Lowering his face to look into the forest ahead of him, the being that had once been the commander of the BlackRose Coven Honor Guard, and source of the Lycanthropic 'taint' a few of its number bore ( with pride, as it turned out, ) couldn't resist a soft chuckle.

"I wonder how long it will take her to realize I'm in the area. Let's see who finds who first, shall we." Closing his eyes momentarily, Bayne increased the strength of the void about him, masking any trace of his existence even more than it had been already. Once ready, he opened his eyes, the pack launching itself into the forest with Bayne close on its heels, the summoned shadow-beasts, their true summon leader and the master of all, slipping through the trees like clouds across the moon, silent and dark, the only sign they had even been in the area, a patch of grass in the clearing, clearly marking where someone had, for a moment, laid out completely and stared at a sky they didn't know.

Watched. Observed. Noticed.

The warnings from Baynes heightened senses as well as the pack did not cause the traveler a moments hesitation. In fact he acted as if he hadn't registered the fact he had felt the gaze of someone or something upon him, moving swiftly and silently with the pack for a while longer. Without any sign from the leader or the master, several of the pack broke away, their shadowy forms darting off at tangents, spreading out in different directions, seeking that which had laid eye on him before he had raised his barrier. Bayne knew it had held no malice towards him, and would have shrugged it off if it had not been for the fact he was in unfamiliar territory, so every precautionary measure was used, needlessly or not. The pack would only observe from the shadows that formed them, letting their Alpha see through their eyes, and alert Bayne as needed.

No words passed between wolf and man, indeed none were ever truly needed, as summoner and summon had bonds that disregarded verbal commands. All the same, the Alpha picked up the pace the same moment Bayne's scalp began to tingle, the vague familiarity of the sensation guiding the party to their destination.

She is here.

The beast that went in search of her would find nothing. In fact not a creature did they come across. It seems even the birds and insects had abandoned the forest it was so still and silent. Even the autumn leaves seemed frozen, the breeze no longer stirred. The forest grew silent as if time had ceased. Yet the rest of the valley continued on. These beast would find no sign of life in the forbidden forest they dared to enter.

This room and balcony had become her haven, her refuge from the world she no longer had the patience to endure. She had secluded herself within these walls. She could not remember the last time the raven had stretched her wings. She could not remember the last time she felt the call of the beast or ran head long through the dense forest. She had grown weary of her very existence these days. When was the last time she fed? Oh she had eaten, the meals delivered to her by the silent servants of her stony mountain retreat. But when was the last time she had sank her fangs into the pulsing flesh of a living, breathing soul? She could not remember, the days had lost all sense of time for her, passing from darkness into light only to repeat it's pattern. There was a sadness about her, long gone was the carefree gypsy she had once been.

She sensed a change in the air, something had entered the valley. Something that called to her. She closed her silver blue eyes and let this feeling of deja-vu seize her for a moment. Enjoying the feeling of life that it seemed to bring. She could feel her own blood coursing through her veins, crying out for something long lost. Then slowly her eyes opened. and she released the balcony only to turn and move back into the shelter of the shadows. Her arms raised and wrapped around her as if pulling the shadows around her like a safe warm cloak.

The lack of existence was very telling indeed, Bayne simply grinning to himself as he continued following his summoned wolf and shadow pack. What ever it had been had hidden itself well, just not well enough for him to ignore their gaze entirely. Regardless of that, the wolves returned to the pack, gliding in from the shadows as if they had been waiting ahead of the silent runners. His destination not yet in sight, and still cloaked within the barrier he had conjured, Bayne let his mind wander just a little, a single thought, a pair of syllables, slipping past his wards to find his target, teasing, tantilizing, and as always generally annoying.

Sister...

Slowly she began to relax as she slipped back into the shadows, her nothingness. It was so quiet here, so peaceful, so dark. She was safe here, no one entered, so no one left. There was no betrayal, no wars, no lost. There was just nothingness. She had almost accepted this existence, her mind almost totally lost to this shadowy realm. That spark that she once was, almost darkness now. There was no fight left in her, no desire, nothing but shadows.

Her eyes closed, her lips slightly parted as she leaned against the wall in a cloak of shadows. So peaceful. So quiet was her darkness that she at first did not register the sound she had just heard. Her mind fought to deny it, her soul cried out for her to wake. Slowly her eyes fluttered open, they were as dark as the shadows around her. It was not the word, though it had been long since she had been called it. It was the teasing, tantalizing voice that delivered it. Had she truly gone mad? Had she finally lost all sense of sanity, had the darkness finally consumed the spark that once burned bright in her?

She listened hopefully, for a voice that she thought was lost, long ago. Slowly the darkness faded from her eyes and was replaced by a deep sapphire blue. She let her mind drift back to another time. How long had it been? A lifetime it seemed. Another place, odd she had named this place after the place where it all started. Another manor, another BlackRose manor. The place where her life had ended, only to begin again. Ironic how this place was also becoming her ending. They were all gone now, she knew where none had gone. He, she could not even bring her self to speak his name. He had disappeared from that happy home so long ago. Her first home, he had been her first since of family. Having lost hers in such a violent brutal way. He was everything she had hated, and then everything she had loved. He taught her to accept the hand that fate had dealt her, then he simply disappeared. So long she waited, so long she wondered. So much had changed, she had changed. Then time let her forget, but had she. She clearly was loosing her mind.

She pushed her self from the wall once more and went to the balcony. Leaning out over it's stony edge once more she looked out over the valley and her soft lips parted. One word sang softly on the breeze. One word drifted into the valley below. But a whisper it was...........

Bayne?

That single whispered word was all he needed to guide him, changing tack and heading for the goal with all his speed. The pack dissolved into mist, as dark as the shadows they came from, leaving only the solitary figure running flat out, grinning in a feral, amused fashion. Each step ate away yards, tens of yards even, carrying him with supernatural speed and grace towards the source of the whisper, yet giving away nothing in his passage through the forest. He may as well be the very embodiment of the forests wild nature; untamed, unruly, unbroken.

The closer he got, the faster he became, that faint sense of hope and yearning he could detect something Bayne could follow from half a world away. Running up a fallen trunk, he soon launched himself skyward, taking to the treetops to speed his passage even more, a living shadow on the wind, one thought at the forefront of his mind...

Raven..

Her long slender fingers gripped the stone of the balcony's edge with such force she felt the old stone begin to crumble beneath her hands. It was as if her soul was suddenly alive again, she could feel him. A feeling she had lost so long ago. The shadows still clung to her, trying to wrap their tendrils back around her. "Nooooo" she hissed and the shadows retreated back into the darkness of the balcony. It was at that moment that Luna burst from the clouds, once again the valley bathed in her light.

She could not hear him, she could not see him but she felt him grow nearer. Her own soul called out to his. Her sapphire blue eyes lightened until they were as silver as the glow of Luna above. It was then she dove off the balcony to free fall towards the valley below. The billowing black of her hair and skirts began to alter and change into the graceful body of a sleek black raven, one long caw filling the night. The raven made it's way towards the forest, it's piercing silver eyes scanning the landscape for what she knew was there. Drawn to each other by a blood bond that had been formed long ago. She spotted him and the raven called out to the rogue.

The call of the Raven reached those finely tuned Elven ears of the Rogue, a slight shift the shape of his vocal chords gave way to a long piercing howl ripping from his throat, the rest of his form soon following suit, the midnight black fur rippling out and coating him, moving in the breeze like fields of wheat do.

The Beast, all 8 to 10 feet of his massive frame, hurtled through the trees to the forest floor, his claws digging into the soft turf and tearing away as the brute force of his 'true' form unleashed itself, propelling him towards the Raven he had heard at break-neck speed. A final leap as he knew she was well within his range and he slipped form again, exploding from the forest canopy into the night sky, his mortal guise seeming to just glide up towards the stars, arms wide and that ever-ready devils grin smeared across his face as a pair of large, flaming dark violet wings spread from his shoulderblades, holding him aloft.

"Long time no see, Lover."

The sleek black raven paused in flight as she saw him glide up from the forest. What she saw before her set her heart racing. The flaming dark violet wings of the phoenix, the devils grin, the open arms. She dove towards him, long black hair and flowing silk replaced the wings as the raven haired beauty landed in his arms. Hers wrapped around him, she clung tightly to him. Repeating his name over and over. She though she would never hold him in her arms again. After a moment she raised her head and silvery blue eyes met his. Blood tears streaked down her cheeks, her lips met his and she kissed him with a passion she had thought long lost.

Passion long forgotten was met with desire long overdue. His arms wrapped around her like steel vines, holding her against that toned torso of his as the kiss was deepened even more. How ever long a time it had been for her, it had been many, many times longer for him since he had been near another living soul of any variety. The way his tongue invaded the cavity of her mouth, his hands daring to rub and glide over her frame as they embraced, supported entirely by those flaming phoenix wings and their undoubtedly shared desire to never let the other go.

The scent of blood on her tears was just starting to invoke his hunger a little, though he had fed to the point of gluttonous exhaustion on arrival back into the realms, yet all he did was embrace and kiss the woman before him. He would not be the first to break this hold, and given the fact she had started, he doubted she would either, much to his personal amusement.

I see I haven't been forgotten entirely atleast. I've missed you Raven.

Without speaking, his thoughts were made known to her, that teasing, mischievous, melodious tone of voice that hadn't been heard in who knows how long filling her mind with those few words, and the associated envisioned smirk they always carried along with them.

Their bodies pressed so tightly together they appeared as one flaming dark violet entity above the trees. She felt his desire, and it only strengthened her own. His arms wrapped around her and her body melted to his, their legs entwined. She accepted the invasion of his tongue, his hands. Suddenly she felt whole again, alive. He was truly her other half, their bond so strong. He was her lover, her brother,  her friend.

She heard his unspoken word, words between them were not needed and she replied the same.

I've missed you lover, I just didn't realize how much until now.

Her long nails weaved their way through his dark, unruly mane. She truly felt alive. Something she had not felt since the last time she had held him in her embrace. The last words that teased through his mind, in her sensuous, musical voice were filled with love.

Welcome home Bayne.

He himself smiled without breaking the kiss, the strength of Ravens feelings mirrored by his own. Those last three words echoing inside his mind, tumbling over and over endlessly into the depths of his memory, an ache growing momentarily at all the years spend training in that other realm with no knowledge of what had happened to his kin and clan.

Home.. It has been so long... Am I truly back in the realms again? This isn't just another of a countless run of dreams?

That ache made itself known with those thoughts, brief glimpses of his memories of waking after such dreams, only to realize that was all it had been and he was still stuck in that training realm, and the sheer weight of the despair , depression and loneliness that had threatened to crush him time and again after each more poignant vision had. Small wonder he doubted, he had relived moments like this so many times only to awaken again and again.

She felt his smile and he would feel her own. She felt his pain, his longing, his memories. Slowly and reluctantly her lips left his, her hands found their way to his cheeks, cupping his face in her hands she looked deeply into his eyes. He would see such deep sadness there. This time she whispered the words against his lips. The pain in her voice so strong.

Gone, there all gone. The coven is no more Bayne.

She laid her forehead against his, seeking comfort.

"We survive, all is not lost dear one."

True as those words were, there was no hiding the mixture of relief, pain and confusion that washed through him at her response. That had been a scenario he had considered, but it still left him feeling a little sorrow. Lifting his head from hers, he gazed into those silvery depths she had for eyes, a soft smile curling the corners of his mouth.

"I can smell new kin on you Raven. Our family may have fallen, but it seems you have found another. That or you recently fed and forgot to bathe after."

That cheeky smirk returned, showing his spirit still had some lift within it despite all that he had been through and now been told. The scent of others on her didn't bother him, in fact it intrigued him that she had found people that she could be around. For the longest time she had seemed much as he used to be, a loner, off on their own, away from the main group. For her to have others around was both a relief and a sorrow, but one that would pass now that they had been reunited.

She gave a slight smile at his words of comfort. "Yes Bayne we survive. We always seem to......" she let the words trail off. She felt the mixture of emotions that washed through him. She caressed his cheek as he gazed into her eyes. She had so missed his gaze. She laughed at his taunt and softly nipped his lips. "Yes Bayne I have found family here, even sired one." she laughed. Then met his gaze. "He is young, but shows promise. He's a hybrid." she boasted proudly. "He has sired two more. But they did not inherit the hybrid gene." she shrugged. The name BlackRose lives on. But it is not as it once was. I have opened my home to any who seeks its shelter. Any race, any abomination, any who it calls to its doors.

She turned slightly in his embrace and motioned towards the manor built into the stone face of the mountain. "That is BlackRose Manor. This is Blackwulf Valley. This is my home now and if you wish it, yours also. Shall we go home lover?" she asked with a seductive smile.

He listened, rolling his eyes at her boasts and talks of siring others. There had been a time when neither of them wanted this curse of theirs spread. When she turned, he moved to caress her neck with his lips and the tips of his fangs, teasing her flesh as he took in her scent and the conversation.

"So, a new manor to call our own, only without the preening of Victor to sour the air? A shame Maliara isn't here to join us, she would enjoy it here I bet. Plenty for her to kill and destroy."

His voice had taken on a rougher tone, his hands resting almost lightly on her waist as he spoke. Gazing in the direction she indicated he just gave a soft flap of his wings, sending them coasting through the air to their destination at an easy pace, absolutely no hurry to find reason to let her go just yet.

"I noticed there is a distinct lack of Gnolls in this valley. How is it such a peaceful place remains so untouched?"

The caress of his lips on her neck, the brush of his fangs lit a fire that had lain hidden for too long. He held her in his arms and she felt complete. The tone of his voice, the touch of his hand. She nuzzled into him, she had no intention of letting go. Her mind wandered to their sires. She missed the drow.

The eye roll did not go unnoticed. She knew what he was thinking, though not because she had read his mind. Almost as in apology she frowned. "He was dying when I found him. I offered him my curse, over death. There are times I regret what I have done." she lowered her eyes, resting her head against him and whispered. "I have sired no other."

Once again she raised her head and her eyes met his, she nipped his lower lip playfully, smiling. "The valley is enchanted, only those meant to, can find a way in or out. Like you." she nipped at him once more, one hand found it's way to the back of his neck and she teased through his long hair. "You look as if you could use a bath yourself, my rogue. And a shave." she teased, tugging at his beard with her other hand.

She did not have to point the way to her balcony, for she knew he would know where to go. She met his eyes, a slight spark of the old mischief he knew so well, sparkled in their depths. "No, I don't believe I've come across any Gnolls." she laughed teasingly. "Though there are all manner of creature in Blackwulf."

He didn't really comment as they flew, his gaze locked on his goal and her own from time to time. Hunger he had thought long dead was starting to awaken with his arms around his lovers frame, but time for such things would be found if they needed to.

"It's alright. I have no idea how long it has been for you all since I left, but time changes things regardless. What you do with your blood is your business Raven, you were sired by him directly, you have more right than I to pass our dark gifts on."

The playful nature was something he had definitely missed, a playful growl slipping at the talk of bathing and shaving. In truth he had shaved countless times over the centuries he had been training, but over time the closeness of that shave eventually began to slip farther and farther from his skin.

"Would you like the honours then Lover? Or have your skills with your daggers gotten rusty in my absense?"

He teased, but doubted she would have put those daggers down for any reason. He still had fond memories of her throwing them at him when ever he 'attempted' to steal them off her. Of course, things may have changed more than he could have imagined as well.

She only nodded at his mention of time and things changing. She had dealt with a lifetime in his absence and so many changes. She had never thought to see him again. Victor had drifted in and out of her life, mostly out. Only calling upon her when she was needed, or her blade to be more precise. "It has nothing to do with who sired me Bayne, I just know how hard it was for me to accept what we are. I do not wish that upon another. Simply for the sake of increasing our numbers." she replied.

She rose one dark brow at the playful growl, expecting no less from him. His words brightened the twinkle in her eyes. "I would be honored to run my dagger along your throat lover." she replied as she leaned in and let her fangs lightly tease across his neck. She whispered teasingly along his neck. "It would be just like old times."

Bayne chuckled darkly, Holding Raven tighter against him.

"We should probably land soon before we start drawing blood, don't want to fall out of the sky."

In truth he had already circled the manor at least twice now, having no particular need to go down to the balcony he knew she had propelled herself from. How he knew was something he'd be explaining if asked. He still made no move to approach the building, coasting well above its boundary, as if checking the perimeter at a distance. From here the village could be easily seen as well, a noteworthy destination once he had been made more civilized in appearance with the gypsys help.

People, settlements, shaving; He found he had actually missed such things while away, which wasn't too surprising given he had a mental list of things to do on his return to the realms.

She laughed lightly, the sound seemed strange to her ears. When was the last time laughter came so easily, it had been too long. She was content to remain in his arms, she felt safe there as she always had. She looked down at the manor below then met his eyes with a mischievous grin. "Well lover it is not going to come to us. Shall we?" she asked with a slight lift of dark brow and a nod of her head towards her balcony.

"Everything comes to those that wait, or so the saying goes. The ground is something I'm willing to wait a long time to come at me."

With a tuck of a wing and a slow lazy barrel roll, the Rogue started their descent, no so much falling out of the sky as diving, his wings not quite furled. As the balcony loomed his wings opened further, slowing them down until their feet were planted firmly and gently on the stone. With a silent explosion the wings dissipated, twin geysers of sparks rising up from Bayne's back and fading into the night sky.

"I do believe this is your exit M'lady."

Even though they had landed, still she did not release her arms from around his neck. Her body still molded to his, she was reluctant to let him go. Once again she smiled, then slowly let her arms slide from around his neck and her body part from his. Though she slipped her hand into his, entwining her long slender fingers with his. She leaned in and whispered teasingly against his ear. "Welcome home lover, I believe we have some catching up to do." Then she turned and led him into her chamber.

Freed of their embrace ever so momentarily, the Rogue followed the seductive Gypsy into her chambers, a wild grin on his lips and a violet glow coming to his eyes. The shadows in the room swirled as if stirred by a breeze, sliding around and gathering over the door and walls, leaving only the balcony as a point of entry. Completely sealed from outside interference, the pair retired for as long as it took them to reacquaint themselves with each other, and to their fullest satisfaction.

He said nothing more, saving his voice for other things, or perhaps already putting his mouth to better uses. Regardless, one thing was now and forever certain.

The Beast, her Rogue, the silver-tongued Demon, had returned to the realms once more.

FIN