A/N: If you guys fell like you've seen this story before you might have. Sam and I have been writing this and she has been publishing it on Tumblr. I wanted to post it on here and with her permission! Hope you enjoy!
- Ahj
Chapter one: Captured
Be John Egbert
Your name is John Egbert, and you're beginning to think you are the biggest idiot that ever existed.
Ok, back it up. You aren't quite sure how you ended up in this predicament, so you rack your mind and try recall previous events. You are the Prince of the Forest, Son of the Stag, etcetera etcetera. Your dad is basically the ruler of your forest Kingdom, stretching all across the land until it hits the borderline to the enemy avian kingdom. So, of course, like all royalty, it goes without saying that you should be under careful watch at all times. It was a rule which you despise. Which all teenage kids despise, really. Not being able to have any privacy or freedom.
You decided you needed some space from the Glade. That isn't the only reason, though. The Glade's also always filled with the strong scent of wildflowers, courtesy of your doe-eyed sister Jane. She's always bringing bushels and bushels of heavily scented plants, and though you love her dearly, you wish she would keep your home a little less... decorative. As a young deer yourself, you decided to rebel against the rules and leave. Just a little adventure. For fun. You had taken on half form, with only your hind legs hooved and deer ears peeking up from your wild hair. You thought you'd be fine; if you didn't stray too far...
Oh how wrong you were.
You are John Egbert, and you should have your name officially changed to dead meat by now.
Being jumped at by a creature from the enemy kingdom frightened you into taking full form, and you bolted through the trees in a blur. You saw a flurry of orange feathers, a flash of red, and now, somehow, you are pinned against a thick line of trees you can't wiggle past. You are stuck, and you are soon to be dead.
You feel the adrenaline rushing through you. God damn it, you are so stupid! Thinking you could handle yourself out of the Glade... Your stupid antlers still haven't grown in yet either. There is no way you can fight him off. He is from the avian kingdom. His kind hunts your kind. His kind kills your kind for fun! You don't know what to do...
John: Observe Enemy
Your animal instincts kick in, and you try to find a weak point; an opening. The creature is about 2 meters away, hunched over in what you believe is it's half form. Oh look, it's prowling towards you; that's just great. As it inched closer, you press yourself up against the trees as far as you can go, and cautiously watch it- Him. You can see as he nears you.
The first thing you notice are the eyes. In the dim, shaded light of the forest, his eyes seemed to glow a vibrant, feline red as he watches you. Like a deer in the headlights. Only, instead of a car's headlights, it's his eyes. And instead of a deer, you are a- well, ok, there's not much of a difference between a doe, a deer, a stag or a buck, but that's not the point! The point is, you are currently frozen in fear. And yet, curiosity still prods at you. You continue your assessment.
He inches closer to you, and you can both hear his team off in the distance disturbing the forest in their hunt. You don't focus on them though. You focus on the one eyeing you like you were dinner. His orange spotted wings are rigid behind him, but the tips drip like satin against the dirt ground. He grabs the black tinted goggles on his face and pulls them up to sit at his hairline, so that you can see freckles dust from cheek to cheek across his nose bridge, and his red irises burn into your wide, and slightly terrified blue ones.
You want to turn back to human form in order to talk to him, try to negotiate with him and prevent him from cooking you over a blazing fire. But the adrenaline coursing through your blood says otherwise. Great. You close your eyes as a taloned hand reaches out to your face, ready to accept your death. Here we go, you're gonna die. Look at that, he's so close, one swipe and you'd be gone. Just embrace it, John, accept that Death wants to take you to back his place. You make it your goal to crash on Death's couch and something. You can show up and be like-
Oh.
Wait- what?
Tentatively, you blink an eye open and realize you are laying with your dainty deer legs tucked beneath you, and the bird boy is stroking you. He- An enemy- was ... petting your head? You admit it feels nice, and your body unwillingly relaxes into his touch, but your heart still pounds. You are about to question him (as much as you can do to get the point across in full animal form), when his troop calls to him from the brush and are heard walking towards the two of you. Hearing a harsh gasp, you have no time to think when suddenly he tackles you to the ground on your side and his claws grip around your slender neck.
Shit.
God damn it! It's official. This is why you are starting to think you are the biggest idiot that ever existed. All he was doing was leading you into a false sense of security! YOu were a fool to think he wouldn't kill you. so STUPID! You wait for the hair to leave your lungs, but once the initial shock wears off, you realize he's not actually strangling you. Like, seriously, can he make up his mind on if he wants to kill you and not? You are even more confused than ever! Just then, your long, spotted ears flick against your head as they pick up a soft, sultry tone.
It's him. "Stay. Down."
He says it quietly and slowly, drawing out the vowels, as if he doesn't know that full forms can still fully comprehend human language.
You notice one talon is on your flank while the other is by your neck, both of which were gentle with the skin they were pressed against. You look up at him and notice that there's not a hint of deception or insincerity in those red irises. Growing tired from lack of oxygen getting to your brain, or the rush of adrenaline, you just lay on your side and nod. You aren't trusting him, but what else could you do but play along?
He understands your answer, and he starts wiping something slimy along your freshly groomed chestnut coat. Ew. What is that? He seems to know what you're thinking, so he lets out a chuckle before looking over his wing to see if his team was there yet. "Name's Dave. Here, play dead for me." He apparently notices your confusion. "I'm not like the others... Prince John."
He flinches back when his hunting troop finally breaks through the brush and file into sight. Dave sends you a knowing look, which you take as your queue to act dead. Pushing your questions to the back of your thoughts, you still your breathing and lay limp on your side.
"Nice catch, lil man." An older, taller man in half-form praises Dave, fluffing up the feathers around the red-eyed boy's neck. You peek your eyes open just slightly, taking in his piercing orange gaze and raven colored feathers. "This will definitely keep our king satisfied for a while."
Dave just nods and pulls his goggles down to hide his eyes again. A full form girl flutters around his head before landing on his shoulder. She makes a series of chirping noises, her purple-tipped wings moving in some gesture you suppose Dave can understand. The other boy looks confused, before he shakes his head and starts walking towards you.
You panic- your dad must be worried sick! What if you don't ever see him again? or Jane?! Or your little sister Jade?! What if you'll never make it back to the Glade? You try to reign in your frenzied thoughts and swipe a look at Dave. He... he said he wasn't like the others. That's really all you can go on right now.
"Dirk, I can do it." The smokey schemed full form speaks as she changes to her human setting. Her short blond hair bobs as she makes her way towards Dirk. What? Do what? You didn't think your heart could take any more heavy thumping. Total workout going on in your chest.
She is handed something from Dirk's hip satchel, and you see her pass a knowing look to Dave. The object in question is some sort of injection gun, from what you observe. "Let's see... here we are; preservation potion. Should keep you big lump of meat fresh for another four days." A blue vial is withdrawn from her own carrier and attached to the gun. She presses it up against your shoulder joint, and you have to force yourself to stay still.
"Alright, Rose. Let's fly this sucker home." Dirk grins, his pointed goggles already set on his face. He glances over at Dave, who withholds such enthusiasm. "You wanna lead, lil bro?" Dave seems to be lost in thought but nods anyways, shooting up into the air. You sense that Rose and Dirk lift you up into the hair as well, but you feel your eyelids flutter shut. What... was that potion? You want to fight it, you want to stay awake and keep your guard up, but sleep just seems so... so desireable at the moment. A concerned, red pair of eyes is the last thing you catch sight of before darkness shrouds your mind, and you fall to the potion.
