More to the animal AU so I hope you guys have been enjoying it. I am loving this story so far.
Ch 5: Settled In
After a month, things have been going well. Heart had settled into her new home. She made her den, her own and she was actually enjoying her life how it was now. It was a hard adjustment at first but slowly she was getting the hang of being on her own. She was becoming more familiar with the land as well. There were times she got lost but she eventually found her way. It was all coming together.
The demons she met when she first arrived, she got to know a little more too. Jazz stopped to say hi to her since Heart's den was on her route, she liked to take every day. So, it was nice to wake up in the morning to be greeted by the jaguar almost every other day. Olivia was still pretty distant from her, but she did see the panther now and then. They only made small talk, but she felt it was progress.
She also stopped by to talk to Veronica twice, in all honesty it was to talk about dragons. The arctic fox seemed to know a little about them, so Heart was going to her to ask questions. It was only little things here and there, but that was probably because she was so close to the border of the dragons. So not everything would be fully correct.
Heart was just glad that some of the demons in the territory were getting used to her, but some still had a small grudge and didn't want to talk to her at all. Was difficult to get used to, but slowly the hybrid was accepting that not everyone was going to like her.
If anyone enjoyed her new company, it was Alastor. The deer Lord came to visit her quite often. The deer did his rounds around the territory every day. So, every day the deer stopped to make quick chat with her before going back to work. Heart enjoyed the deer's company and she looked forward to his visit. She usually was in her den ninety percent of the time when the Lord came by.
Chicka came to check on her almost every day as well. That and the bird was trying to teach Heart to fly. She was still having trouble learning. It was hard for her since she was an adult wolf who has never used her wings once in her life. It was honestly making Heart upset that she couldn't get a hang of the flying. Chicka just told her that it would just take time. The hybrid wouldn't give up.
Even though she was fitting into her new land and gaining friends, or at least demons she was considering friends, she missed home. She missed her adopted mother. She wanted to see her. Maybe soon she could go to the border and try to see her again.
This morning it was wet from a rain that fell last night. Dew left on the grass. The rocks were a little slippery. The rain had calmed Heart into her sleep last night. She was glad she was in her den when it started. She just stayed at the entrance of her den, looking out into the rain. Was calming and relaxing.
Heart lifted her head and gave a yawn. She stood up from her makeshift bed and stretched. She blinked a few times and rubbed a paw against her eyes. She looked around the den and gave a happy sigh. Even though Alastor hasn't been in her den, she made sure it was big enough for him to fit. At the thought of him being in her den again made her heart flutter. She still couldn't understand this feeling towards the deer Lord but hopefully it would go away soon.
She walked out of her den and stretched again. Shaking her fur flat and looking up into the sky to see the morning sun still rising. She sat down a moment as she watched the moon disappear when the sun rose.
The hybrid then heard some rustling hear by and looked over to the sound. Soon enough Jazz came out of the brush and was padding across the small opening. Heart smiled as she saw the big cat and her tail wagged.
"Good morning Jazz." Heart called to her.
The jaguar stopped and looked up to her with a smile. "Good morning. I hope you slept well and out of the rain."
"I was fine. I watched it though. I love the rain." Heart answered as she walked up to the cat.
"I think the rain can be beautiful as well." Jazz said as she sat down for the moment. "How have you been settling in? I have been meaning to ask you."
Heart smiled as she wagged her tail. "Honestly, it's been a lot better than I thought. I will also say thank you to you Jazz for making me feel so welcomed."
The cat then smiled. "Well, I am glad that I have done so. I will admit, it's been different having you around but in a good way. Plus, Lord Alastor seems to always be in a better mood."
The wolf tilted her head slightly. "Really? How so?"
Jazz gave a small shrug. "He just seemed happier than normal. Lot more social. Talkative. Just seems all around good." She told her.
Heart chuckled. "I highly doubt it all because of me, but I'm glad to hear that he has been in a good mood."
Jazz nodded. "Time will tell." She winked at her.
There was then the rumble of Heart's stomach and she put her ears back in embarrassment. "Sorry." She whispered.
The jaguar gave a giggle. "It's ok. Tell you what, how about we hunt together today? Could take down a bigger piece of game if we work together."
"I think that would be a wonderful idea. I could have some extra meat saved up afterwards too." Heart answered.
"Wonderful. Let's head out then and see what we can find." Jazz said and started to walk.
Heart got up and started to follow the big feline. The two walked side by side as they tried to scan for some prey they could hunt down and share. They stayed in silence so that they didn't scary anything away if it was close by. Heart sniffed the air now and then to see if she could pick up on something.
The hybrid picked up on a smell. It was familiar. It was deer. Heart was confused for a moment. It wasn't Alastor. She knew other deer were around in the forest, but were they allowed to eat them?
"Jazz, I have a quick question." Heart started, saying it softly to still not scare anything off.
"What?"
"Even though Lord Alastor is a deer are we allowed to hunt other deer that are in the territory?" They wolf-dragon asked.
Jazz paused and looked back at her. "We are allowed. Even Lord Alastor will eat the deer here. Don't tell anyone I told you this, but Lord Alastor is a cannibal. He eats his own kind from time to time." She explained.
Heart looked at the giant cat in disbelief. "Really?"
"He has those sharp teeth, remember. Plus, he isn't a normal deer. So, he doesn't' mind if we hunt the other deer around." Jazz told her.
"Well at least that makes me feel better." She sighed softly. "Well let's head this way." Heart pointed her paw northward. "I smell some that way."
Jazz nodded and the two headed in that direction. They walked a little way until Heart sniffed again and they were closer now. Soon enough they appeared around a bush and there were some deer in a small opening. They went into a crouch and looked at each other.
"You go to one side. I'll go to another. We can get them from both ends and lead one of them to us." Heart told her.
"Sounds like a plan." Jazz whispered back.
Jazz went ahead while Heart headed the other way. They circled the clearing slowly, looking to pick one off that they would want. Soon they were on opposite sides and they looked at each other before looking at the three deer in the clearing. After looking, Jazz started to walk forward and she was going to the one in the middle, who looked to be the oldest.
The deer's heads went up and they paused a moment. Soon they looked over and saw Jazz. They paused a moment before they started to run. They were lucky and they ran towards Heart. She stayed hidden until the right moment and jumped at the one in the middle. She went forward and managed to get her jaws around the deer's neck and took it down to the ground. She stayed locked onto it as it started to kick and twist. Jazz soon ran over and went over and big down a little higher on the neck.
After holding there for a while, the deer slowly started to die. Then it stopped moving. They had been successful. Heart let go of its neck and so did Jazz. Blood dripped from their fangs a moment before they licked their lips.
"Very nice kill." Jazz praised.
"Agreed. Made a good team." Heart said with a wag of her tail.
"I also agree." The feline said smiling.
"Well, let's dig in. We should be set for a while." Heart said and she looked over the prey to see where she wanted to sink her teeth in first.
"This is a lot for just the both of us." Jazz pointed out.
"We can share. If someone walks by then we can offer some." Heart told her.
"Ok, but let's hope if someone does, they don't cause trouble." The jaguar gave a wink. "Now let's eat."
Not having to be told twice the two started to dig into the prey. They laid down to enjoy the meal and had some small talk here and there. It was nice to get to know the jaguar more. As well as Heart telling the cat more about herself.
After a while they heard some movement not far away. Soon there was a black mass that appeared from the brush. Heart recognized that it was Olivia. The panther walked over to the two.
"I thought I smelled blood. What are you two doing?" Olivia asked.
Heart swallowed a piece. "Eating, what does it look like?"
"Together?" The black cat wondered as she tilted her head a moment.
"Well...yea. We caught it together." Jazz told her.
"You're more than welcome to join us. Have some if you're hungry." Heart said as she wagged her tail. "We said we would share with others since it's a lot for just the two of us."
Olivia stood there and looked at them a moment before she slanted her eyes at Heart. "I'm honestly surprised you're still here."
"Of course. Lord Alastor has been looking after me like he said he would." Heart told her. "He comes to check on me every day. I promise you I have no bad intentions while I am here."
"Come on Olivia, Heart isn't' that bad. I've been talking to her every other day myself. She isn't that bad." Jazz said to the other big cat.
The panther snorted. "I'll be the judge of that."
"Will you stop being so stubborn and just sit and eat? Maybe after some talking, you'll change your mind." The jaguar said annoyed and she ripped off another chunk of meat.
Olivia just paused a moment and just looked at the two of them and then down to the prey. She felt her stomach grumble a moment. She sighed and walked over to sit beside Jazz then dig into the flank.
There was some silence at first until Jazz started to pick up with conversation again. Olivia mainly stayed quiet as they ate. She just kind of sat and listened. Even while just eating it seemed to be a very calming atmosphere. The panther agreed that it seemed that the hybrid didn't seem to be that bad. At the same time part of her was still cautious. It would take a little more in order for the wolf to gain her trust.
As the three ate their fill, they decided to leave the carcass in case others needed to eat as well. Heart managed to take one of the legs off and planned to take it back to her den. She will eat it tomorrow. For now, she was content and full, being the best, she has eaten in the last month since leaving the pack.
"It was wonderful to hunt together. We should do it again." Jazz said as she cleaned her maw.
"We should. Take down bigger kill that way." Heart then looked to the other big cat. "Plus, if Olivia joined us then we could take down something bigger."
"I'll pass thanks. I hunt alone." Olivia huffed and started to walk off.
"Well thanks for joining us today." Heart called after her.
Olivia said nothing as she jumped over a log and disappeared into the trees.
Heart sighed but then looked to Jazz. "Well, I better be off. I have my flying lesson with Chicka soon."
"No problem. I'll see you later then?" The jaguar asked.
"Yep. The meeting is tonight isn't it?" Heart made sure.
"Oh, yea that's right. We'll be able to sit together during the meeting then." Jazz said happily.
"Sounds like a plan." Heart smiled with a tail wag. "I'll see you later."
Heart picked up the deer leg and started to trot off back towards her den. She really did enjoy her hunt with Jazz that morning. Was nice to have someone to hunt with. Share a kill with. Was a very warming feeling that she didn't want to lose. She really was liking it here.
She got back to her den and put the leg in a small hole she had dug and covered it with some leaves. She then went back out of the den and stretched a moment before shaking her fur. The sun was now overhead so she laid down in a nice open spot and decided to sun soak for a little bit. The sun warmed her dark fur and it calmed her. She had a full stomach as well, so it was making her extremely sleepy. She yawned and closed her eyes for a moment. A small nap won't hurt anything.
She laid there and dreamed. It was an interesting one for sure. The deer Lord invading her dreams now and then and today was no different. She didn't understand why she dreamed about him, but in the end, she didn't care because she liked it. For reasons she could not understand.
This was innocent at least as it was the two of them as they laid in her den. Snuggles and love licks were shared and honestly it was a wonderful feeling. She smiled in her sleep as she enjoyed the feeling of his warm body next to hers. His fur brushed against hers and she rubbed her muzzle under his jaw. Her tail wagged happily as she slept.
Soon her dreams were invaded as she felt her nose being tickled. She was pulled out of her dreamy state and she slowly blinked open her eyes. She lifted her head and looked down. There stood Chicka as she had watched the hybrid sleep.
"Sorry, didn't mean to disturb you." Chicka apologized. "I wasn't sure if you were asleep or just resting your eyes."
Heart gave a yawn. "It's ok. Was having a weird dream anyway so I'm glad you woke me."
"You are welcome then. Are you ready to continue today?" Chicka asked.
Heart nodded. "Of course. I feel I'm slowly getting the hang of everything."
"Have you been doing your wing exercise?" The bird wondered as she looked at the hybrid sternly. "If you haven't used them you need to build up the mussels."
Heart sat up more, "Yep! Twice a day just like you said." She answered as she spread her wings out.
"Good. Now let's go through everything to see how you do." Chicka said excitedly.
Heart nodded and stood up and went up the small hill above her den. She then headed to the end of the rock that hung there. She stood there looking down and spread her wings out. Flapping them a few times to get them loose. Stretching one at a time out beside her.
Chicka then flew up to be in front of her in the air. "Remember to try and glide first. If you can at least glide, then it's a start. Do you remember what to do?"
"Yep!" Heart answered as she jumped a moment. "Running start!"
The dragon hybrid went running to the back part of the rock and quickly turned around. She then started to run and by the time she got to the end of the rock she kicked off and spread her wings out. She managed to jump high and the wind caught her wings as she started to fall. She started to glide through the trees, making sure to shift her weight as Chicka has shown her.
After a few weeks of training and doing it almost every day or every other day, Heart was getting the hang of the flying. She hasn't gone above the tree line yet, but something was better than nothing. She tried to flap her wings to get them used to doing this and keeping her aloft, but it was a slow process.
Chicka flew next to her as she gilded. "Nice work Heart. You have improved a lot."
Heart turned her head to look at the bird. "Thank you." She turned back forward. "This has been so fun. So much faster than running. It's an amazing feeling."
"Now Heart you still have a lot to do." Chicka said sternly. "You have been gliding and that with a jumping start from a high place. You have to learn to take off from the ground. You have to work your wings." The bird informed her.
"I can kind of get myself off the ground. I tried yesterday." Heart told her.
"Well let's see what you can do. Let's land." She said as she headed to a small clearing.
Heart gilded down and managed to land. She has been a little rough with it, but she was getting better. She managed to just trip a little as she went to land and managed to be a little softer than she did when first starting.
Chicka hopped over to her. "Alright. Now that we are on the ground let's see you get yourself off the ground."
Heart let out a breath. "Ok. I can do this." She whispered to herself.
The hybrid crouched down; her wings outstretched bayside her. She took a breath and then soon jumped off the ground, flapping her wings as she tried to get higher. She seemed to be trying to flap them too hard, so it was faster, and it was exhausting to do so. Even though she stayed up in the air a little longer she feels back down quickly.
Chicka watched this happen and tried to help. "I think you are taking fast wing beats. It takes up a lot more energy to do so. You should try to do a little slower and longer strides of your wings. That way you can get big air lifting you up."
Heart nodded. "Ok I can give that a try."
She took some deep breaths before crouching down and lifting off again. She did as tell and tried to do longer and bigger strides of her wings. Then she seemed to be getting herself higher and higher and she noticed this and it made her excited. She was making progress.
"Chicka I think I'm doing it!" She cheered.
The bird flew up and was in front of the hybrid. "Wonderful Heart. You're doing it. See how high you can get."
Heart kept going and then she realized she was above the treetops. She could see so far and was amazing by how big the land was. She was seeing the world from a whole new angel and it was amazing.
"See if you can straighten yourself out so you can fly forward. Push your wings a different way." Chicka told her and it snapped the hybrid out of her trance.
Heart tried to do her best to follow what she said and soon enough she was flying…. actually fly. Her wings pushed her forward and she gilded through the air.
"Chicka…am I flying?" Heart wondered as she looked forward and her eyes were wide with wonder.
"Yes Heart, you're flying!" The bird answered her with an excited chirp of her own.
"I'm flying. I'm flying!" Heart said as she felt an adrenaline from her excitement.
She started to try and fly faster and flapped her wings to propel her.
"Heart calm down. Don't push yourself." Chicka called after her, trying to keep up.
The words flew into the wolf's ear and out the other. She was having too much fun. She was having a whole new experience and she was loving every moment of it. The smaller bird tried to keep up with the hybrid but with her bigger wings it was making it hard. Heart looked back to see Chicka and how the bird was struggling and falling behind. Heart frowned and then slowed down till she stopped in the air and tried to keep herself aloft.
"Sorry Chicka. I didn't mean to leave you behind like that. I got lost in the moment." Heart apologized sadly as the bird flew up to her.
She seemed out of breath. "It's...can we land...now?"
Heart nodded and glided down to a small nearby hole she saw through the trees. With being careful as she landed, she slid to a small stop. She put her head down with her ears back as she turned around to look at Chicka as the bird flew down.
"I'm sorry, Chicka. I really am. I guess I just got so excited." Heart apologized sadly.
"Heart it's ok. I can understand since it was your first time flying. Don't worry." Chicka reassured her.
"Are you sure. I felt back leaving you behind like that." Heart made sure.
"Of course. I think we had a very successful day today. I think we can call it quits for now. Besides the meeting is tonight and you want to make sure to be there" The small bird reminded her.
Heart gave a small sigh. "Yea I guess you're right. I don't want to be injuring myself or you for that matter. I know you are an important part to Alastor."
Chicka chuckled, "I mean if you say so. It's more than just me that helps Alastor. You haven't met them yet, but I think they'll be at the meeting tonight, so you'll get to see them."
Heart tilted her head. "Oh, well I guess I'm still learning a lot."
Chicka nodded. "Well, I guess I better be off. Have to go remind everyone of the meeting today."
Heart nodded in return. "Of course. Thank you so much for the lesson today Chicka. I appreciate it so much."
"No problem. Maybe we can meet again tomorrow to see how well you are doing still. Do it again if we can."
"Sounds like a plan."
Chicka gave a wing wave goodbye and took off to fly into the trees. Heart watched her go and then she looked back up into the sky. Putting out her wings she looked to each of them. She wanted to fly again. Fly back to her den at least. She wanted to practice on her own to show them that she can do it and keep working towards her goal.
"I can do this." Heart whispered to encourage herself.
She jumped off the ground and tried to get up into the air. Soon enough she was above the trees again and then she started to push herself forward. She was flying again. It was a free feeling. In all honesty she wishes she could fly forever.
Heart looked around; she knew she probably didn't go too far from her den. She looked down to see if she could spot it. After a few seconds of flying around, she soon saw the big rock that was on the top of her den. She gilded down and was soon padding into the small clearing.
"I'm getting the hang of it for sure." She said to herself happily.
She then gave a yawn. Maybe a nice nap before the meeting would be nice after all that flying. She went into her den and went over to her bed. She made it comfy and then laid down. She put her head on top of her paws and soon she was asleep.
Again, the hybrid's dreams are filled with the deer Lord, for reasons unknown to her. Didn't matter because slowly she was starting to feel something for him, but she didn't know what. These dreams never helped but she was enjoying them, nonetheless.
Oh boy. Heart seems to be putting herself in a pickle with her feelings. At least her flying skill are getting better.