"Sacrificial Lamb"

[TonyDeeDee]

"Sacrificial Lamb"​

Long ago; far away...

The Shepherd stood over the dead ewe, grimacing at the damage that had been done to it. Its neck was ripped out, the act that had killed it; and, once dead, its belly had been ripped open and several of its internal organs ripped out and taken.

It wasn't the first time he'd seen this, of course. The attacks came every three or four years, always at the start of lambing season. The Shepherd looked behind him, to the newborn lamb standing unsteadily in the four inch deep snow. Over the two hundred or more years that the Beast had been killing their stock animals, no one had ever been able to explain why it was that only those ewes which had already birthed their lambs were attacked.

"Take it to another ewe," the Shepherd told the small girl standing with the fragile little sheep. "If she won't accept it, try another until one does."

The little girl lifted the lamb in her arms and trudged through the snow toward the herd now huddled in the bottom of the field, far from where they'd seen and heard their sister bleating in fear and agony earlier.

As the Shepherd watched his daughter depart, a chill so painful that it caused him to grimace ran up his spine and out his limbs. Caring for lambs orphaned by the Beast's attacks was only one duty the female children of the village might someday be chosen to fulfill.

This Shepherd was lucky this year: his daughter and her two older sisters were all too young to be chosen...



That wasn't the case for Yuli Black, however. A few days after the third ewe was killed on the hill -- now at the end of the lambing season -- he awoke in the middle of the night to the sound of his dogs. They first barked the alarm of a person or animal intruding on their territory; and a minute or two later, began crying and yelping as they came under attack while trying to defend their Master's home.

"Is it a mountain lion?" his wife asked from their bed, the blankets held up to her face as if they could protect her from the evil that she knew was outside. "A bear?"

"You know what it is," Yuli said softly. He looked back to her with a desperate expression, then looked to the loft of the little highland hut. His children had been awakened by their dogs' howls, too, and his daughter -- closest to him in the bed she shared with her siblings -- was watching him with a questioning expression. "Go to sleep dear. There's nothing to worry about."

There was, of course, but he simply couldn't bring himself to confirm her daughter's thought.

The next day's morning chores, which always began well before dawn, were postponed by Yuli until the sun had cleared the mountains and bathed the little farm and ranch in orange light. He, his wife, and their four children sat before the stone fire place on bear skin rugs and little stools in near silence, eating and darning socks and whittling sharp parts for the rabbit snares they would set later ... with the three of them who were in the know -- Yuli, his wife, and his recently come of age daughter -- pretending that when they finally opened the door and went outside, they wouldn't find what Yuli was sure he'd find.

"It's time," he said softly to his wife, before glancing to his daughter. "Stay inside."

Yuli opened the door and looked to the field before the hut. About 50 yards away, hanging on the limb of a long dead tree, was the token he feared he'd find. He closed the door slowly and turned to face his family. His eyes were already glistening with the tears that would soon be falling.

He didn't speak the words, but his wife knew that her greatest fear had come to be: her daughter had been chosen by the Beast.

 

[Belvino]

Far in the little Scottish Highland town, before the development and advancement of modern technology there was a little village of only two hundred residents. Unfortunately, the village was haunted by a dark entity that lived in the woods surrounding the little town. No one knew what the creature looked like, but speculated that it may be a bear, a wolf, or even just some wild mountain man who wore the hides of animals. The townspeople were frightened of the beast, and rightfully so as it could wreak havoc on their peace. In order to appease the beast they ritually sacrificed a young woman who had often just come of age into her eighteenth winter.

However, that was as much control as they had over the situation for it was the beast that had started the tradition, and he would leave his token near the home of the next girl to be chosen. This gift being a thick bear-skin coat to be worn by the mother as a symbol of the sacrifice she had made. The people of the village did not know the beast, nor did they know what happened to the girls because they never returned. When the killings of the ewes began every three years or so the town knew what would come, and it was not long before a girl disappeared into the forest and a grieving mother wore the hallmark coat.

So it was on the evening of the end of lambing season that Yuli and his family discovered they had a visitor in the night. Ann, Yuli’s eldest daughter poked her head over the hole in the loft and caught her father’s eyes. Within them she saw worry, and fear, but he encouraged her to go back to bed. She laid back in the bed she shared with her younger sisters, and one brother watching them carefully. They were fast asleep and had not been disturbed by the noises outside.

Ann could not fall back to sleep, and laid with her eyes wide open. She was nervous. The ewes had been found murdered, and she knew that the cycle had started again. The beast would leave his token at the house of the girl he chose. As Ann had recently come of age she knew that she could be the next sacrifice. The thought was frightening, but she did not want to think too much about it, and eventually drifted off into a fitful sleep.

With the arrival of morning the sunlight warmed the small hut, and illuminated the scene before it. The family was gathered around their fire, trying as hard as they could to resume their normal duties. Eventually Yuli opened the door, and stood staring at the field before the home, and when he turned back his face was as white as snow. Ann didn’t have to guess why, because there over his shoulder, draped across a branch outside was the bear skin coat.

The girl’s mother burst into tears and covered her face as her sobs rang throughout the small little hut. The other children looked confused and were switching their gaze from their mother, to their father, and back to their sister. They too eventually burst into tears frightened by the turn of events. Ann went to them and comforted them as best she could. After a time the whole family calmed again and determined what they were to do…..

It was late afternoon by the time Ann was ready. Her father had taken the other children out to do their chores while Ann and her mother worked together. Ann was forced to bathe with the assistance of her mother who started crying again.
“Please mum, don’t,” she tried to smile at her mother but felt it quickly wavering. She couldn’t blame her mother for crying. This would be the last time she would see her daughter and they both knew it well.

Her father and the other children had returned shortly after her bath. Ann was wearing nothing but a quite thin white gown. It barely skimmed the tops of her thighs and was designed specifically for the night she was to marry. Now she wore the little dress to what may possibly be her death.

The family said their goodbyes, and Ann turned away from her past towards her uncertain future. She could hear her siblings crying behind her, but bit her lip to resist from running back. If she did not do this everyone in the town would eventually die. Her life was not worth risking the peace of the town. She took one last look behind her, and turned forward once more to venture off into the forest.

Her feet led her down a small trail. She was unsure of where she was heading, and could feel the chill in the forest. The spring air was not forgiving, especially not for a girl dressed in such revealing clothing. Fear, and curiosity were equal partners within her. She breathed slowly trying to keep her calm, because she knew that if she grew too nervous she would not hesitate to turn around, and leave. For the first time Ann realized that there were no birds, and no other noises typical of the forest. Everything was still as if poised for some great event.

 

[TonyDeeDee]

(OOC: For the picture of the cabin, you have to imagine that the only lighting is the flame of the fire place.)


The Beast knew Ann was coming even before her family had seen her disappear into the woods. It wasn't because he saw her approach: he could smell her on the light breeze that was weaving its way from the open valley through the thick underbrush that no Villager dared enter during the lambing season.

It waited patiently at a junction in the path, hidden so completely in the underbrush that Ann was less than ten feet away -- ignorant of its proximity, carefully stepping bare footed through the twigs and pebbles -- when it surged forward.

It struck her so solidly and quickly that all she was able to see was a dark blur. The wind was knocked out of her, sending her into a state of near-unconsciousness. But she didn't fall or tumble back onto the path, for the Beast caught her in one powerful arm, swept her over his back and ran on three legs, deep into the dark forest with his Sacrifice...



It was almost sundown when Ann stirred and sat up. She was laying alone atop the thick blankets of a bed the size of the one she shared with her three siblings, looking out into a cabin that was larger than any she'd ever seen, short of that in which her Village Elder lived.

A fire crackled across the room, and steam rose from a large pot atop the also burning wood stove. The cabin seemed to have every thing in it a large family would need, from a butter churn to china plates to a baby's crib. Only, there didn't seem to be any sign of the family.

Ann was given a long moment to orient herself before her Host stepped out of the shadows and greeted her.

"My name is Gregor," he said in a deep voice. "You are in no danger here, my child."

He moved across the room, took a china bowl from the cupboard, and filled it with stew from the pot. He crossed slowly to Ann, snagging a spoon from the table as he passed it, and offered it out before him.

His gaze dropped to the body, barely hidden by the thin gown her mother had rightfully chosen for the occasion. The lust in his eyes was more than apparent by the length of time it took for him to look back up into her own eyes and say, "You should eat. You will need your energy if you are to serve the Beast."

 

[Belvino]

Ann woke slowly, having remembered getting hit by something in the forest. She had no idea what had happened as she had been wondering why all the animals had grown silent. Now she laid in a bed her eyes studying the surroundings before she moved a muscle. She thought that was her death, and in this large cabin she realized that something entirely different had occurred. Whatever it was that had hit her, had taken her into this house and placed her on this bed.

Ann pushed herself up with one arm and studied her surroundings. She noticed the pot on the stove, the fire burning in the hearth, the table, chairs, and the baby crib. The baby crib? Ann stared at the odd object wondering why that sort of thing would even be necessary in a beast’s lair. Then she wondered why any of this would be necessary. It didn’t seem like the living arrangements of a wolf, bear, man thing. Ann had half expected a dark cave littered with the bones of her predecessors.

A figure emerged from the darkness of one corner, and nearly gave Ann a fright. She noticed the man was wearing a similar fur coat to the one that had been draped over the branch outside her home. As he approached she couldn’t help, but shrink away from him.

My name is Gregor. You are in no danger here child.

Ann thought otherwise as she stared at the man before her. He was rather tall, much more so than her father and had a more rugged appearance. Ann couldn’t help but notice that he was handsome as well. She blushed furiously and looked away still not saying anything to the man who had suddenly moved away from her. He gathered a bowl of stew for her and when he brought it to Ann she took it from his hands.

Despite her initial fear Ann could not argue with her hunger. She had not eaten anything all day and now that she realized she wasn’t going to be eaten herself she felt immensely hungry. Taking a small spoonful of the stew Ann’s gaze rose and she realized that the man was staring at her.

“I’m sorry. I did not mention my name. It’s Ann,” she said thinking that he was looking at her because she had been rude. “Are you the bea… the thing that kills the sheep?”

 

[TonyDeeDee]

Gregor didn't respond to the question, instead turning back to the wood stove. He pulled a huge knife from a scabbard on his hip and stabbed it into the pot, pulling out a large chunk of meat. He turned back to look upon Ann, blowing on the steaming piece of meat for a long moment before skillfully pulling the entire piece from the sharp blade without cutting his lips.

He chewed on the piece slowly, never taking his eyes off the young woman on his bed. He studied every part of her: the fresh face, the firm breasts, the hour glass figure, the long legs. When he gulped down the last of the meat he said, "When you are ready to learn the rules, I will teach them to you. Rule number one I will tell you right now: don't try to escape. The Beast will not harm you here, near the cabin. I will not allow it to. But out there..."

He looked to and nodded his chin toward one of the glassless windows. "...you will surely be killed."

He stabbed at another piece of meat, lifted it before his lips, and as he blew the steam away from it, he asked, "Do you remember the lambs...?"

 

[Belvino]

Ann wondered why there were rules in this place. It was strange and as he mentioned stepping outside she glanced out the windows too. A shiver ran up her spine, despite the warmth within the large cabin. She could feel her nipples grow taut, and blushed again raising her knees and trying to cover herself as much as possible. It had only now dawned on her that she was wearing this damned thin gown, and Gregor could see as much of her as he so pleased.

She watched him chew the meat, fascinated by his somewhat strange eating habit. She had never seen her father eat that way and was sure that he would not do so if given the opportunity. It was somewhat barbaric and left Ann wondering when the last time this Gregor had human contact. Was he responsible for the sacrifices? She stared again at the empty crib, wondering what had happened to the family that had lived here recently. Her thoughts went to the missing girls as well.

Do you remember the lambs?

Of course. Ann could never forget. The lambs were what was left of the slaughter. They remained completely untouched although sometimes bloody while they watched their mothers die. It was only the lamb’s that knew of the true shape of the beast. They were the only ones to know the horrible secret that haunted the Scottish village.

“Yes, I cannot forget those poor creatures,” Ann said watching Gregor with intent.

 

[TonyDeeDee]

(OOC: Sorry, I meant the ewes, not the lambs. My error. It was meant to imply that if she left, she would end up like one them.)

Gregor wiped his knife across his tongue, none too carefully yet skillfully enough that he didn't cut himself. "If you don't want to end up like one of them, you will follow the rules."

He noticed that the young woman -- barely more than a girl -- curled up her body to hide her womanly features. He was disappointed, of course. He was, after all, a man living alone in the woods. But he let it go, snatching up a heavy fur coat from the back of a chair, handing it to her, and saying, "Come with me. Time to learn about your new home.

He headed out the front door, a brisk breeze rushing through the open door. Outside, she got her first look at what Gregor called her new home. It had snowed another few inches between now and when she'd tramped up the snow free trail. All about them, the pure white hid the ugly danger that would rule her life for the days, weeks, maybe months or years to come.

The cabin sat in the middle of a roughly circular clearing that measured maybe 100 yards across. Although the snow masked much of it now, there was a garden, a fenced pasture for stock animals -- now absent due to the return of the Beast -- a berry patch, and more. If Ann hadn't known the reason behind her being here, she might have considered it just another Scottish farm, not the territory of a wild killing machine.

Beyond the clearing, the thick woods began so suddenly one might have thought it was a solid wall. Somewhere out there, beyond that wall, was Ann's village ... and her family.

"There," Gregor said, pointing to the tree line, "is the limit of your world from now on. This spring you may pick mushrooms at the edge of the forest, but you are not to enter it. If you cannot see the cabin, you are too far away and in danger. This fall, the forest edge will be ripe with berries. Again ... only as far in as you can see the cabin."

He was talking about a future months away, giving Ann the indication that she would be alive at least that long. Gregor couldn't know what her parents had told her before she sacrificed herself, and honestly, he didn't care. That world -- that family -- was her past: this was her present and future.

"I will bring you chickens ... goats," he continued, pointing at various animal shelters in the clearing as he spoke. He was assuming that as a peasant girl, she knew how to tend to animals, use what they produced, and more. "You only need ask and you will have it."

He looked to her and could see that even with the heavy fur coat Ann was shivering. She was such a small thing, petite and fragile. He'd seen many different types of women sacrificed to the Beast, from larger and more robust to tiny like Ann. The size of her body wasn't important, of course: what she could do with it, however, was.

He turned and entered the cabin, leaving her to study her the world that -- like her figure -- was tiny and, in his eyes, beautiful.

 

[Belvino]

Ann wrapped the cloak around her shoulders, grateful for its warmth and the shielding protection it gave her from Gregor’s gaze. She followed him outside and stood on the porch, listening carefully as he explained more rules of where she could go. She could see the thick forest in the distance and noticed the stark line between safety and death. The ground was covered with snow, and even the branches of the trees were beginning to weigh down with their heavy burden. It had not been snowing when Ann left her family’s home, and this made her wonder just how long she had been gone.

Could time have passed that quickly? She looked up at the sky and studied the thick gray clouds overhead. It had been cold, but she didn’t think it was cold enough to snow. She clutched the cloak a little tighter around her slim frame the chill beginning to nip at her bare skin. When she turned away from the snowy meadow she noticed that Gregor had returned to the cabin, but had left the door open for her. She followed him closing the door behind her.

She had not missed his subtle hints at the length of her stay, and decided if she was going to be forced to live here she might as well make the most of it. “I think it will be good to have a few chickens and a goat. I can make eggs to break our fast in the mornings, and we can use the goat’s milk.” Ann had been taking care of the few livestock her family owned since she was a little girl, this would be nothing new to her, and perhaps would make it feel more like home. Again her thoughts went to the girls before her.

“Who are you? What happened to the others?”

 

[TonyDeeDee]

"Who are you?" Ann asked. "What happened to the others?"

Those were difficult questions to answer, so Gregor didn't. He moved to the wood stove and fed it, then stoked the fire in the stone place, his back to the young woman. He looked to the window as the sun made a short lived showing through a gap in the gray just as it was falling behind the forbidding forest. In a flash, the cabin darkened, the only illumination being the flames of the fire.

Gregor lit the end of a long dry twig and moved to a dozen candles scattered about the room. It wasn't as bright as it would be with the sun spilling through open doors and windows this summer, but it was brighter than most of the hovels in Ann's village, where candles and lanterns were an expensive privilege of the few.

He went to a book shelf and retrieved a large book, turning to hold it out toward Ann. "You will read to me now."

The last girl to live here had been the rare exception, a literate female -- or so Gregor had thought. In reality, she'd used the illustrations in the book and her ingenius imagination to make up a story that had pleased her new house mate. At some point Gregor had asked if literacy was now the norm, and the girl had lied, answering yes. Now, he presumed that Ann would also be able to read to him from the big book of tales from old.

Gregor set the book on the edge of the table and fell into a wooden chair he'd built. It was cushioned with a pillow of sheeps down and covered by a huge animal hide that, later, he could throw over his body to stay warm.

 

[Belvino]

Ann frowned as he studiously avoided her question again. How was she ever going to figure out what was going on if he wouldn’t tell her? Perhaps she wasn’t supposed to know, but that didn’t seem fair either. Ann was about to say something when he moved around the room lighting all the candles. This surprised her as they were not often something a peasant could buy. The wax candles were expensive and the oil for lanterns, were even more so.

This place, this man, the beast was a mystery. Ann could only hope she would eventually figure it all out. When he turned back to her and demanded that she read to him she almost refused, almost. There wasn’t much else to do, and by the size of him Ann did not want to see what harm he would cause her if she tried to resist. Fortunately for her, Yuli had taught her to read at a young age when they both worked together to read the Scottish folktales. The books had been borrowed from one of the wealthier families in town, but they had eventually gifted it to Ann’s family after seeing how much pleasure was derived from the stories.

Ann took the heavy leather bound book in her hand and pulled out a chair from the table to sit on. Her chair was not covered in furs, but she did not need it for the coat Gregor had given her earlier was still draped across her shoulders. Ann settled into the seat, curling her legs underneath her as she cracked the volume open.

“The Secrets of the Mountain Folk,” Ann read out loud realizing that this too was a folktale book.

 

[TonyDeeDee]

Gregor's gaze never left Ann as she read, watching her mouth as she spoke, her eyes as they swept back and forth, her fingers as they turned the pages and forced the stiffly bound book to remain open for her.

Her reading style was so different than that of the previous Sacrificial Lamb. She seemed to find more words to the page, seemed to read more consistently; she didn't hesitate as often as her predecessor, which made Gregor wonder if perhaps the earlier girl hadn't understood some of the words and had chosen to skip over them, or perhaps replace them with words that she knew and thought would fit the current line of text.

Of course, Gregor couldn't know that the other girl had been making up every word, not just a few.

He watched her read and turn page after page, and occasionally -- when an illustration was provided -- she turned it toward him or he asked to see it. It was a wonderful moment for Gregor: the girl's initial discomfort and fear seemed to fade away as she read on, though he couldn't know whether that was the truth or only his perception.

Either way, her sweet voice and good manner lulled him toward sleep. He pulled the huge fur up over his muscular figure, which only sped him toward slumber, and...

He was out.

 

[Belvino]

Ann was in another place. Reading had only served to take her away, and make her feel like she was home reading to her younger siblings. She had always done so for them, and they enjoyed it immensely often falling asleep when it was near their bedtime. Now with Gregor she knew when he had fallen asleep too, and looked up to confirm her suspicions. Sure enough his eyes were closed and his face had taken on a certain look of peace. She closed the book and stood up placing the book on table once more.

Ann watched Gregor for a while before she stepped even closer to him and bent forward to study his face. She looked at the lashes brushing his cheek, her eyes traced his strong jaw and noted his stubble, and she almost reached up to feel his face. He had shaven before, but not recently. Her hands grabbed at the edge of his furs and tugged it up as best she could. She tucked in the ends over his shoulders and noted just how broad they were. He was a large, strong man and could easily overtake her if it pleased him. Ann wondered if he had sewn the coats for the mothers, and whether it had been him to murder the ewes. She couldn’t doubt that it was entirely possible, but why?

Ann sighed as she stood up again and wrapped her own furs tightly around her shoulders. She was determined to find out what exactly was going on here, and why for so many years the town had been haunted. They had lost all their young woman to the beast, but they were most certainly not here. Ann glanced at the baby crib, and frowned. Perhaps it was time to test her boundaries? Taking one last look at Gregor Ann turned away and opened the front door again. She strode swiftly across the patio and into the snow covered yard.

Ann winced as she crossed the yard. The snow was cold, and it most certainly did not help that she had no shoes. She could feel her toes beginning to ache as if to protest the torturous treatment she was giving them, but this was not Ann’s focus. Her gaze was directed on the line between the meadow and the thickly overgrown forest. When she reached the boundary Ann hesitated, fear holding her in its arms. She swallowed back her nerves, and carefully stepped forward through the boundary and into the forest. It was immediately darker here the light from the moon unable to breach through the trees. In some spots a stream of light got through, but those were not too many to count. Ann leaned against a tree as her eyes adjusted to the darkness, and she listened carefully for any other noises. If the beast existed, and she could see it just this once, perhaps some of the mystery would be solved.

 

[TonyDeeDee]

The quiet of the forest was disturbed by a low, deep sound that seemed like something between that of a wolf's growl and a freakishly large cat's purr. Movement, definitely from something large and four legged, sounded here, then there, then over there, so quickly that it seemed impossible that it could have been only one creature. But the growl -- practically on top of Ann but with its source totally unseen in the darkness -- indicated just one animal.

Then, after more rapid movement of the creature -- the Beast or something else...? -- a loud, frightening howl split open the night from the opposite side of Ann of where it had been.

 

[Belvino]

Ann heard the noises but could see nothing. She felt her heart pounding in her chest and fought the urge to scream. She had come here for a purpose and she would be damned if the creature was going to ruin that now. The last howl startled her so bad she had turn to run in the opposite direction, but her feet caught on tree roots sticking up from the ground. Her hand stretched outwards as she felt herself falling. She could see earth rushing to her face, but it stopped when her fingers grasped onto a branch jutting out from the tree next to her. Ann clung to the branch and righted herself, looking up the length of the tree. She could see several branches in just the right positions if she could reach the next highest one.

Ann placed her foot on the branch lowest to the ground and stood stretching her length upwards. Her hands grasped on the next branch, and in conjunction with her legs she kicked upwards until she had pulled herself onto that branch. In her effort to climb the tree she had not noticed her fur coat had slipped over her delicate frame and landed on the soft earth below. She was too focused, and kept climbing until she felt that she was a safe enough distance off the ground. She shivered as the frigid air moved freely through the branches and carried her scent through the trees.

For the first time Ann looked down at herself and noticed that she had lost her coat and to add to her misery the thin white gown was flapping awkwardly in the wind. Ann frowned as she picked at the hem, a branch must have caught it on the way up because it had ripped almost all the way up one side. She had even sustained a matching scratch which was not deep, but stung noticeably. Another howl echoed from below taking Ann’s thoughts away from her gown, and back to the creature. It sounded much closer this time.

 

[TonyDeeDee]

The form circling around the bottom of the tree was as large as a grizzly but moving like a wolf. It circled the trunk quickly, its eyes -- occasionally catching a small bit of moonlight -- flashing wildly, like fiery balls of hell.

It changed directions twice, then paused, looking jp at the prey it had treed. It crouched and sprang, nearly reaching Ann with an outstretched, sharp clawed paw before hitting a strong branch, which held it back.

It leaped again, then again, but it didn't seem able to negotiate the branches, nor did it seem inclined to actually climb the tree.

Then, just as suddenly as the creature had begun its attack, it ended it. It found the fur coat a few yards from the trunk, sniffed at it, then sniffed into the wind, catching a scent that seemed to mean something to it. It howled long and loud, a sad sort of sound, like a wolf missing its mate.

And then ... it was gone ... and the night, again, was silent.

 

[Belvino]

The beast watched her from the ground. Ann couldn’t immediately tell what the creature was other than it was huge. It was much larger than any animal she had ever seen, and its eyes caught the light in such a way that they glowed. Ann could feel her heart fluttering in her chest, and was sure that if the creature did not kill her, her heart just might. The thing lunged for her and knocked all its weight against the tree. The vibrations ran all the way up the bark and wildly shook the branch she sat on.

Ann’s heart leapt in her throat she was sliding sideways. Her fingers gripped tightly to the branch but found no purpose. In a desperate attempt Ann threw her whole body against the branch and tried to wrap her arms around it. The momentum the beast had started could not be stopped and she swung downwards, hanging upside down with her legs and arms wrapped around the branch. Ann risked tilting her head down as she watched the creature lunging for her. It was close, but could not climb high enough to get its jaws on her.

The creature’s mournful howl reverberated through her causing a fresh set of goosebumps to sprout all over her skin. After that he was gone. Ann almost breathed a sigh of relief, but realized she still had to get herself out of this predicament before the thing returned. Her fingers were quickly losing their ground again. She had to reach the next branch before she slipped. Ann released her legs from around the tree and carefully lowered them trying desperately to reach the branch below her. It was just off to her left and almost out of reach. She stretched her leg across and felt her foot just touch the bark when her world slipped out of her grasp and she was seeing her branch grow farther away.

Umph!

All the air was knocked out of Ann’s lungs when her body met the ground again. She laid there for a moment, shocked, and tried to take stock of any injuries she may have sustained. Thankfully, she had landed on the thick fur coat and the ground was a lot softer for its layer of soft earth and pine needles. Ann pushed herself up and felt a stabbing pain in her side. She winced and gently brought her hand to her side. The ribs did not feel broken, but would certainly sustain a bruise. Ann stood slowly taking the coat with her. It did not take her long to find her way back to the meadow. She had not gone that far into the forest when the beast had found her. As she reached the border she tripped over another root, and stumbled into the meadow. Ann looked up to see the lights still shining in the cabin and that the door was wide open.

 

[TonyDeeDee]

Coming from out of no where, Gregor snatched at Ann's wrist and spun her violently around to face him, asking with an anger that she'd likely never heard in her life, "What are you doing here...? What did I tell you...?"

He shoved her toward the cabin, causing her to tumble to tbe ground as he commanded, "Go! Get inside!"

At some point during his fury toward her, Ann was likely to notice that he was naked to the skin!

 

[Belvino]

Ann felt a fist close around her small wrist as she was jerked upward by the person attached to it. She was turned suddenly to face its owner and stared straight into Gregor’s angry gaze. The look in his eyes was frightening and his voice was equally so. He pushed her in the direction of the cabin, but she had not had enough time to gather her feet beneath her, and thus tripped into the snow. She stood swiftly not wanting to anger him anymore than she already had.

When she turned around to look at him he was completely naked! Ann’s eyes grew wide with surprise and she quickly looked away. Ann had never before seen a man naked, and never such a man as intimidating as Gregor. Her feet carried her into the cabin again, her own thoughts still focused on what she had seen. The beast, and Gregor as naked as a babe. She stared at the chair she had left him in when he had been fully clothed, and fast asleep. What on earth had caused him to be naked?

 

[TonyDeeDee]

It was nearly an hour before Gregor returned to the cabin, and when be did, he was draped in yet another large fur. In all of her life, Ann had probably never seen as many of the very valuable, large animal furs as she had in the pass two days. They were usually the purview of the rich and wealthy, royals and nobles, not forest hermits with connections to a fierce beast that had haunted a village for generations.

(OOC: If she says nothing to him, the following will happen over about a 5 minute time frame.)

He didn't make eye contact with her for quite some time. The fury that had been in his eyes earlier was gone. It was almost as if nothing had happened between the two of them. He simply wandered about the cabin, clutching the fur to his body, serving up a hot liquid in a wooden mug which he sipped cautiously until it was gone, and finally turning to Ann to tell her, "Go to bed."

It was such a simple and polite command, almost like her father had so often commanded her when he saw he eyes drooping at night with her books in her hands. He gestured her to the bed she'd be in earlier that day, then turned his back to her to simply stare at the fire...

(OOC: Cut it off up tbere at any point if you wish. I don't k.ow whether she would have questioned him immediately or kept quiet 'til the end of time. )

 

[Belvino]

(OOC: End of time? Sounds ominous…)

Ann had searched for something to mend her dress when she realized that Gregor was not returning. For some reason she did not fear that he would be harmed out there. It was just one of the many mysteries she had yet to solve. She pulled open many cupboards taking her time to marvel at the fine workmanship that had gone into making them. The more she searched the more questions she had, and still she did not find a needle or thread. With all these fur coats Ann could have sworn that Gregor would have something lying around, but there was nothing.

Eventually Ann gave up and sank into his chair running her fingers absentmindedly through the fur coat still draped there. She had almost drifted off when the door opened and Gregor stepped inside. He was clad in a new fur coat which left Ann wondering if he was still naked underneath. Ann flushed at the memory and tried to look away from him. He did not say a word to her, and for a while neither did she. Finally he spoke, and once again it was an order for her to do something.

“No,” Ann said standing and walking over to him.

“I will not! I saw it! I saw the beast and it was huge!” Ann stated reaching for Gregor’s arm. She wanted to turn him around to face her, but she was small and couldn’t make him move against his will. He just stood there staring into the fire. “It wanted to eat me, and it would have if I had not climbed the tree. I thought for sure that it would just jump and reach me, but it didn’t. It stopped and it left just like that, but it had knocked me from the branch and I fell, and it hurt. I did not move for a while and it could have eaten me then, but it was gone. That’s when I got up and ran out of the forest only to stumble into you naked!”

Ann did not blush this time, but had a look of anger on her face. She wanted answers. If she was doomed to live here for the rest of her days, however short that may be, she needed to know. “Why were you naked?”

 

[TonyDeeDee]

Why were you naked?

That was yet another fine question Gregor would have had a hard time answering ... if he'd chosen to answer it. Instead, he turned to Ann, leaned into her, and swept her up into his arms. The big fur fell from his shoulders, revealing that he had in fact still been naked underneath.

He carried her to the bed and tossed her onto it, saying, "If you will not go to bed to sleep, then we will find another use for it."

He crawled onto his knees, towering above her, and while he said nothing of his intent, the rapid swelling of his cock was all Ann needed to see to understand -- assuming that the girl knew anything about what a man such as him would want with a young woman such as her...

 

[Belvino]

Ann was swept up into Gregor’s arms and for a moment she wanted to scream. From the sudden fright of seeing that he was indeed still naked, and the fact that he had grabbed her in the very spot she had fallen. Her ribs protested his touch, but even still she knew they were just bruised. When he finally dropped her onto the bed she balled her fists and lunged towards him pounding them against his chest.

“You’re such a brute!” Ann exclaimed glaring at him before she realized that something hard was pressing between the two of them. She glanced down and saw his erection growing thicker and longer as she watched. Ann felt herself blush a fierce rosy red, and she fell back against the bed scrambling towards the head.

“No,” Ann said shaking her head, “I am supposed to be saved for my husband.” That was when Ann realized the absurdity of her own comment, and laughed nervously. She was not going anywhere. She had always known that. The sight of Gregor naked, and ready for her only confused her. She was inexperienced with these things. It was the way of their culture. The girls would save their maidenhead for the men they were to marry. Yet here she was almost naked herself with Gregor looking hungrily at her.

 

[TonyDeeDee]

"You've been saved for me," Gregor said, manhandling Ann to gain control of her. "You all have ... all been saved for..."

He stopped there. He didn't normally explain about himself, the beast, or the connection between the two.

With easy and full control over Ann, Gregor turned her over pressing her face down to the mattress as he pulled at the little panties now twisted about her waist and firm buttocks. He didn't mean to ruin them, but the sheer force with which he jerked at them caused them to rip and easily pull away from her body.

Gregor tossed the cloth aide, grasped Ann's hips, and lifted her to her knees, placing her buttocks just before his raging hard on.

 

[Belvino]

You’ve been saved for me… you all have been saved for

The words ran like a continuous loop in Ann’s head as she tried to process what he was saying. Everything he said to her lead to more questions, and really he had not said much so it was a very confusing thing. Ann wanted so desperately to know, but had no time to think or even begin to question him as he had other things on his mind.

She felt, and heard her panties tear briefly mourning another article of clothing. She was frightened and rightfully so. Gregor was a strong man, and now he held her down onto his bed, ready to take away the most precious thing she had. Ann tried to wiggle away from him, but he held her still and she could feel his erection pressing into her. Her own heart raced within her chest, her breath coming out labored and slow. Perhaps if she just closed her eyes and pictured herself at home this would all go away?

 

[Belvino]

(OOC: Apparently it double posted )