Hunting the Night.

[DoF Archive]

Date: 12/18/1998 4:02 AM Central Daylight Time
From: Maetel Cat

((Authoress' note: While *technically* part of a much larger storyline, I couldn't resist posting this here, too, for everyone's enjoyment.))

Maetel crept silently across the frosted grass, moving in a slow, stalking pattern as she approached the large building. The spells and wards surrounding the area seemed to slide right off her without her being aware of them. There was no magic in the tiger-woman, nor any thoughts of malice or intent. Her mind was purely focused on her approach, and the spells simply mistook her for some random beast, and not the intelligent killer she was.

Maetel easily avoided the guards scattered around. She could scent them easily, and avoiding their eyes in the darkness was simple as well, nearly instinctual. Nearer to the building, she caught the scent of woodsmoke.

The one she sought was inside, there were traces of his scent in the area, faint, but there. Once she reached the wall of the building itself, her eyes searched the gloom for her best way in. Normal seeming claws dug themselves with absolute silence into the wall, allowing her to scale to a darkened second story window faster than a man could cover the same distance over level ground, and perfectly silently as well.

Testing the window, she wiggled the frame until she was certain she knew where the catch was. Pushing her fingertip/claw into the wood frame, she quickly flicked her finger, her claw slicing the iron latch as if it were paper. Though she had to wait for a guard to pass by below before she could open the window, she was soon inside.

The room was a bedroom, a woman sleeping soundly in the bed it's only occupant. Sniffing at the air, Maetel's whiskers twitched as she closed the window again. The woman was not who she was looking for, but the scent was stronger, as if he had been there, and another man's scent was there also, stronger by the door.

Her ears twitching, she approached the door. He was out there, and that would make it harder for Maetel to find the one she sought without a cry of alarm being raised.

Taking the doorknob in hand, she slowly turned it, twisting despite the resistance of the lock until with a quiet groan of protesting steel, followed by a sharp *ping* of the bolt breaking, the door came open. The guard outside the door stared in surprise as the door swung open, not even having a chance to raise his weapon before Maetel's foot flew from the darkness of the room and caught him upside his head. The reversed spin-kick sending him
tumbling into her, Maetel caught him and lowered him to the floor inside the room. She hadn't snapped his neck, but without her pulling her attack as she so often did when play-fighting, he certainly wasn't waking up anytime soon.

Padding silently into the hall, she sniffed again. The scent she knew so well was coming from the left, so she started in that direction. When she heard voices from around the next corner, she sprang up, digging first her hand/claws, then her foot/claws into the ceiling and continued around, right over the heads of the healer and the other guard, who appeared to be having a quiet arguement.

Continuing on, she came to a balcony overlooking the main room, and stairs leading down. The scent was strongest here, the one she sought was below, she was sure of it. Inching forward until she could see the entire room she crept, utterly silent, her ears laid back against her skull. There he was, and alone.

Springing off the ceiling, she landed infront of the chair he was in with a soft *thump* and sprang into his lap.

"Story-man for to tell Maetel story?"

Andre just sat stock still for a good two minutes before he could breath again, so surprised was he by Maetel's sudden appearance.

"Don't *do* that lass." he finally managed to chuckle out.




Maetel

Truth is but an illusion... illusion, truth.