Here we are, folks. The final chapter to Beastly.
This story was co-written by TinyShinny (aka MistyVoid48 from FanFiction). Please, enjoy the story and read the notes at the end for more!
|chapter thirteen: the end|
The station's lamp lit their way back to the parking lot.
Sonic wanted to kiss the pavement the moment he saw it. His hands still shook and his body ached. He followed loyally now, without hesitation. For the most part, the walk back was quiet.
They had all kept silent in order to hear the shrieks of the dogman. It was far away now, as it took a lot to hear the sounds. But Blaze claimed she could still hear it - and she hoped she was right. She hoped it wasn't her imagination.
She wanted the creature to be far away, out there and suffering.
It was pure evil. It shouldn't exist.
"We need to follow the trail," Silver spoke a little calmer as Sarah opened her car door. They'd fit snuggly, but they'd all fit. At least, if Blaze sat on Silver's lap. "We can't have something like that roaming in the park, Shadow. We need to know it's dead. Report this to someone."
"I know." Shadow gripped the passenger door as Silver got in the back behind Shadow. Blaze got in Silver's lap as Amy and Sonic took the rest of the back row. Sarah was the obvious driver.
She locked the doors and started the car, trying to get out of the parking lot as quickly as possible. If the thing came back, there were stories it was capable of keeping up with a car. Despite its severe injuries, she wasn't taking the chance. She wanted to give Shadow a look though, during the time everyone got in and they left. "You're not going out there in the morning, are you?"
He was quiet, leaning his head up against the window as he thought. His mind didn't know how to process the news. The others just hung onto each other in the back - everyone just wanted to rest in safety. "I…Silver's right. We need to make sure that it's dead. Close the trails."
"Close the trails?" Sarah scoffed as she gripped the steering wheel. They were headed into the small town. "Oh, Richwells is going to riot if we don't explain this to him. Even then, he won't believe us if we tell him the truth. What are we going to tell him?" She couldn't even begin to think of a lie.
"Richwells can go fuck himself," Shadow growled under his breath. "Especially if he knew that thing was out there the whole time."
"What makes you say that?" Blaze whispered from the back.
They stopped at the four-way.
Shadow glared at the darkness of the outside world. "Because he was so adamant that the tower and its trail remained shut down for years. He claimed it was unusable."
"That means nothing," Sarah gave their supervisor the benefit of the doubt. "It was a useless tower when one would be more helpful at Dew Point. No one really went up there according to past reports when you submitted reasons to the board."
"And we wonder why."
"It couldn't have been existing for that long, could it?" Silver asked.
"Maybe. Who knows," she responded.
Amy and Sonic were quiet. They didn't know how to wrap their heads around the situation or conversation. They had come to Glace for a completely different reason than why they were about to leave it.
"Where are we going?" Amy leaned forward in hopes to clarify that at least.
"Sorry. Shadow's." Sarah turned a little in her seat to address Amy better. "Did you two want to be dropped off at Sonic's?"
"No."
It was Sonic that answered. He was dull again - especially at the thought. "If we go back now, with no belongings, even my car, my parents are going to raise questions. They're not going to let up. I can't…I can't face that right now."
"Shadow's is fine," Amy agreed. "It'd be for the best."
"Blaze? Silver?"
"Already figured that's where we were going," Silver mumbled as he leaned his head against Blaze's shoulder. She wasn't comfortable in his lap, but she let him settle. "It's the closest. And I want four walls and a locked door."
Sarah didn't want to crush his safety net by saying that some stories with the supposed dogman didn't have a locked house as being much of a deterrent for it. But for now, she'd just keep that little nugget to herself and let them have their peace.
Shadow couldn't even lift his head from the window. Even as they drove through the small town to his place, all he could see past the familiar store neon and lamp posts were those yellow eyes. But he didn't dare close his eyes just yet.
He was scared of what he might see then.
~.~
Amy wasn't sure what she was expecting when they pulled into Shadow's driveway.
He lived in the small neighborhood on the south side of the lake, part of the town more than either estates were. It was…homey.
She wasn't expecting the lights to be on already, though. "Um, is someone in there?"
Sarah shut off the car. "What do you want to tell Knuckles?" She ignored Amy and looked at Shadow.
He was staring at his house, unsure of what to do. "I don't know. He and Rouge will know something is up though. It's still late."
Silver, on the other hand, shoved his face between the two to look out the window. Amy and Sonic tried to ignore the pushing. Blaze was already uncomfortable. "What the hell are they doing up at this hour? It's like three. Or two. Hell, does anyone have the time? Sarah, why doesn't your clock work?" he pointed to the dash.
"Would you calm down?" Sarah chided.
"Rouge manages to work from home more often than not. She's a bit of a night owl - er, bat."
"So, this won't be weird for her at all," Silver hoped in only slight sarcasm.
"Can we please get out?" Blaze muttered.
Shadow sighed and opened the passenger door. It was now or never, he decided. But he wasn't sure how he was going to explain everyone showing up and wanting sanctuary. The group made their way quickly to the front door, huddled tightly with one another. Sarah didn't know the last time she was this close to people - so in each other's spaces but no one cared. It was the only comfort they had when the darkness felt like it would swallow them whole.
Taking out his keys, he unlocked the door.
"Do we tell Knuckles?" Sarah asked again. "He'd understand out of anyone right now-"
"Sarah." Shadow spoke firmly as the door unlocked. "I need to think."
He needed quiet. She figured remaining silent was the best she could do as Shadow opened the door and the group slowly walked in. They at least hoped that their sudden appearance wouldn't alarm the house-sitters too badly.
"Rouge?" he called out, trying to ignore the shakiness in his breath.
The light was coming from the kitchen, and he figured that's where she was - at the high set kitchen table with her laptop, probably. The sudden padding of feet confirmed his thoughts. Rouge came around the corner of a wall from the kitchen and jumped a little. Sure, she heard Shadow - she wasn't expecting five more Mobians to pop up, though.
"Shadow?" she whispered, clearly worried when she saw the sight of everyone. Their clothes looked roughed up, Shadow had a bit of blood on him, and they all smelled awful. "What's going on?"
"We, uh…Just." Shadow didn't know what to say to the white bat. So, instead, he turned to the cadets. "This is Rouge. A friend. Rouge, this is Sonic and Amy. Cadets."
"I gathered," Rouge noted as she slowly walked to the group in caution. She was wearing a thick gray robe and no make-up. Not particularly her usual look upon meeting new people, but considering the situation looked grim, she didn't think twice about it. "They look green. Shadow, what's going on?"
"We…um, there was, uh," he blinked a little too much when he spoke - clearly not sure of what words he should say. Rouge could see that, too.
"Oh, hun." She got a little closer but stopped and wrinkled her nose. "You all stink."
"Thanks," Silver always enjoyed seeing the bat. "Since Shadow can't comprehend anything right now, we'll let Sarah do the talking," he spoke so rapidly that it caught Rouge off guard, especially as he pushed Sarah forward in front of them. When the sage hedgehog didn't move, he pushed her a little further. "Go on," he whispered.
"Um, uh - well," Sarah cleared her throat. "We…Is Knuckles around? Because he'd be easier to explain this to."
"Knuckles? He's asleep," Rouge didn't really know this hedgehog in front of her. "What happened?" she put her hands on her hips. "Something bad? Did someone get hurt? I mean, Shadow's got blood on him, I think," she pointed to him.
He looked down at his shirt. Sure enough - blood splatters. He hadn't even noticed the entire time. "Oh. I shot it," he patted the shirt down, as if trying to wipe the blood away when it was already well dried into the fabric.
"You shot something?" Rouge's eyes widened. "Shot what? What does this have to do with Knuckles?"
"You two would get along - you both ask so many questions," Sonic muttered to Amy but everyone heard it.
Amy glowered a little at him. "I'm still rehearsing my fury-inspired monologue for you, Sonic. Pipe it."
He put his hands up in defense but looked at the bat. "We fought off a rabid wolf."
Blue eyes stared at the group in concern. Rouge didn't know quite what to say. She turned slowly to Shadow. "Are you okay?"
He swallowed heavily. "We'll be fine."
"You sure? What happened that caused you all to come back here instead of the station?"
"It wasn't normal," Sarah tried her best once more. "It-please. Rouge. Just…"
"I'll make some tea," Rouge said as she turned to the kitchen. "Try to sit down and take some breaths, okay? I'll get Knuckles."
She didn't really want to know anything after Sarah had spoken. Knuckles could figure out what the group was trying to say, but if it involved a wolf that wasn't a wolf, then Rouge wanted no part. She knew better than that to ask - Knuckles didn't speak of the legends much to her but he was spiritualistic.
Rouge was a journalist, though. Things could be explained with logic and fact checking. There was always something. Having a boyfriend that thought some things couldn't easily be explained from just "this dimension" was sometimes hard to wrap her brain around.
By the time she got the water boiling and had woken up a grumpy echidna, the group was in Shadow's living room.
Knuckles straightened up when she hurriedly explained the situation in the kitchen. Rouge grabbed the mugs she'd need and hoped that they'd all enjoy the one tea flavor Shadow had - the man didn't have much taste.
"They what?" he whispered in confusion, blinking away sleep. "Shadow's here?"
"Yeah. Look, did he say anything to you about the tower?"
"Just that they were doing an overnighter. That's why we were going to stay for the weekend," Knuckles shook his head and tried to help with the mugs. Best he could do was get the tea bags in the mugs she laid out.
"They?"
"Silver and Shadow."
"Well, something happened and it's got them all here, including the new cadets."
"Seriously?" he looked to the living room. "And they asked for me?"
"Wolf but not normal," was all Rouge said as she shrugged. "I'm not going to ask any further."
She didn't need to look at him to know he had a sudden understanding in his gaze. Knuckles waited for her a moment longer before all six mugs were ready. He grabbed three and slowly walked out of the kitchen towards the living room. There were several pairs of muddy shoes and boots at the front door that hadn't been there when he went to bed. He locked the front door that had been forgotten and turned another corner around the wall.
They were just…sitting there. In the dark. Most of them were on the floor.
Silver and Blaze were the only ones huddled up on the loveseat. Blaze leaned into Silver and Silver rested his cheek against her forehead. They looked tired, but Blaze looked like she had been crying.
Sarah was on the carpet, leaned up against the couch in front of the couple. She looked the "best" out of everyone, if there was such a term for the moment, but she was busy keeping an eye on Amy and Sonic.
The two hedgehogs, unfamiliar to Knuckles, sat on the carpet also. They were oddly placed far away from the group, in the open space - not leaned up against anything except each other. Knuckles thought for a second that these two were more than just cadets that knew each other, but he remembered Shadow's texts and Rouge's constant wondering about this new "good-looking" cadet. He had to hand it to Shadow and his taste - the pink hedgehog was kinda cute. Not that he'd say that to anyone out loud ever in fear of Rouge's wrath.
Shadow was the loner.
He was sitting up against his armchair on the opposite side of the room. His living room space was terribly interior designed and didn't make much sense, but Knuckles wasn't about to go moving his furniture. Especially when the hedgehog he'd known for a couple years now looked like he was half-dead. Dazed. Blank. Something. Or the lack of anything, really.
Knuckles cleared his throat and handed a tea each to Silver, Blaze, and Sarah. Rouge came in shortly with the rest and passed the mugs around. Rouge looked each one of them up and down before crossing her arms. "Well. I'll…go get some blankets."
It looked like the six were staying the night. They'd need pillows and blankets at the least, but the blankets were more on the thought that some of them looked like they were in shock, especially Blaze. Rouge had seen some people in shock before, out and about in her daily job life when she wasn't staying up late to do her work. She didn't have shock blankets, but something of the sort would help.
She left the room shortly, rummaging around the house.
Shadow wasn't surprised when Knuckles got down on his level and sat beside him on the ground.
The red echidna was warm to them. Amy had never met him before, but she already felt a safer presence with this guy. Like he was willing to guard them from what evils were outside. She wasn't about to call him a guardian by any means, but the realization she wasn't alone in the room made her feel better. Sonic felt the same.
"Knuckles. This is Amy. And Sonic," Shadow repeated his quiet introduction he'd done for Rouge.
"Hey." Knuckles got nods back from the cadets. He looked at Silver and then back at Shadow. "The overnighter didn't go well?"
"No." Shadow's voice was shakier than Knuckles had ever heard it. It unnerved the echidna just how much his friend seemed…terrified.
"What happened, Shadow?" he spoke softly. Whatever Rouge described to him didn't make sense, but Knuckles knew it had to have been something significant if all six of the rangers were in Shadow's house this late at night. Shadow never skipped out on his duties, either. He never ever came home early like this. He certainly never got rattled by anything either.
"There was this…wolf," it was Sarah that spoke.
Knuckles had maybe spoken to the sage hedgehog before at the station when he and Rouge hiked there. But considering Rouge wasn't an avid hiker, he didn't get to the park much. He didn't even live in Glace regularly. He watched the female as she spoke - her movements were calmer than Shadow's but she still looked scared of something.
"We caught it on the cameras a few nights back. At the station. It didn't show up for a while, but it…it's not normal, Knuckles."
He felt bad that he didn't remember her name at the moment. "Okay. How so?"
"We had her bring up the brightness on the photo," Blaze paused between words as she explained. She looked up at the ceiling as she spoke - which Knuckles thought odd until he realized the cat was trying not to cry. Her voice betrayed her as it strained every word. "It was this wolf that looked too tall to be a wolf and…creepy."
"A mouth full of teeth that didn't fit in its mouth," Sonic mumbled as he stared at the carpet.
Knuckles narrowed his eyes at the blue hedgehog. By the sound of his voice and the choice of his words, Knuckles didn't take too long to piece together that Sonic wasn't recalling some photo. He was recalling a memory. "You…saw this wolf in person?"
"Yes," Sarah nodded slowly. "Silver and Shadow were out at Half Point camping. Blaze and I were at the station keeping a look out for this…thing. Sonic and Amy were told to stay home for the weekend - have the time off because the night before this thing showed up at the station while Blaze and Shadow were on night watch."
"It gave us a scare, I'll admit," Shadow found himself saying the words. He couldn't run from them now. It was true - anytime he thought of the wolf, he couldn't help but get a shiver down his spine. It had a sort of power of the group. Over him. "So, we thought it best to send the cadets home."
"But not the rest of the park attendees," Sonic made the snide remark, still staring blankly at the carpet.
"So, Sonic stupidly showed up at night to get to the tower and help with the restoration," Amy shut her friend up. "And I…even more stupidly followed after by sneaking into his car before he left."
"Blaze and I noticed his vehicle in the parking lot not long before he had to have started hiking," Sarah continued. "So, Blaze went after him in hopes of getting him back before this thing showed up. It always seemed to be about the same time,between two or two-thirty - and it was only eleven maybe."
"Okay."
"And then Amy popped up and we both went after Blaze."
"Instead of just staying at the station?" Knuckles asked her.
Amy responded for Sarah, "That's my fault. I talked her into it. Said that if she wouldn't come with me, I'd go myself, basically. I wanted to stop Sonic before he did something foolish. And he didn't listen to me when we were back at his parents' house."
"So…Go on."
"Blaze caught up to me. We argued," Sonic shrugged as if it didn't matter anymore. "When we turned around this…"
"It was there?"
"Yes." Blaze had tears in her eyes once more as she remembered the first look at the wolf staring at her. The way it had been hunting her. Stalking. The way its mouth was always forced into a grin, and the way its yellow eyes glowed with evil. "It just stared. Then it stood."
"Whoa, whoa," Knuckles felt the hair on the back of his neck rise. "Stood?"
"You have to believe us," Sarah said as she shut her eyes tightly. "It howled this god awful howl. Blaze and Sonic ran to the tower. Shadow and Silver were already up and heard the screaming and radio calls from Blaze."
"It chased us to the tower," Blaze whispered in between Sarah's explanation, but the words barely made it out before she was sobbing into Silver's chest. Silver could do nothing but hush her and hold her tightly.
"They somehow jumped up on the tower," Silver continued. "Shadow and I got to them while we thought Sarah and Amy were headed back to the station for safety. But Sarah was actually headed to Half Point to grab Shadow's other gun. Which…we're glad for."
"Why? You didn't actually try to shoot it, did you?" Knuckles thought the story ridiculous but for other reasons.
"By the time we got them off the tower, it showed up. Made some terrible coyote screaming sounds for a bit as it circled us in the tall bush that's up there. We couldn't see it until we were about to leave - after it was quiet for a bit," Silver tried to reason. "And then it…appeared. We were facing down this thing that didn't even look real, Knuckles."
He listened with his mouth agape now.
"I tried…" Shadow muttered. "I should have shot it. But I couldn't. It just had this hold on me. I froze. I froze."
"It's okay, Shadow," Sarah tried to console. "Everyone did at some point."
"Sarah and Amy showed up, and Sarah shot it in the back. It ran away. We got out of there and made it to Half Point when we saw the camp destroyed. No doubt thanks to the creature but we aren't exactly sure when," Silver softly continued. Blaze was buried so deep in his shirt now that he worried she might suffocate herself. "Then we got a little ways out of Half Point…some arguments ensued and we had a raccoon distraction. Then it showed up again and actually tried to fight a little this time. Shadow and Sarah unloaded on this thing and it didn't die."
Knuckles felt his chest tighten.
"They tried to run back up the hill, Shadow tripped, and he turned around in time to shoot it in its face."
"Well, the neck," Sarah corrected. "But it bled out a little before running off. It still didn't die there. We kept hearing it until we got to the station, pretty much. Even when we couldn't anymore, Blaze thought she could." Brown eyes steadied on Knuckles knowingly. "Listen, I tried to explain to them what this thing is, and I know they have their doubts, but if you could just explain to them - "
"No." Knuckles stood. He folded his arms against his chest and looked down at Sarah. "You actually spoke about this thing?"
"They had a right to know - "
"That only brings it on more."
"Is it real?"
The question came from Shadow. It was demanding but quiet.
Knuckles faltered for a minute before turning to his close friend. "Yes. These things exist. The stories of Tikal mention these things from tribes of echidnas. Bad things. Bad omens. They're nothing but evil entities that no one should cross."
"Or they're something else," Sarah argued. "It bled, Knuckles. It could die out there, and we need to make sure it does. For the sake of the campers that are still out there."
The red echidna didn't know how to react to that thought the more he mulled it over in his mind. "Well…look," he sighed as he sat back down. "I've only ever heard stories from my mother's side. They're real strict about those kinds of things. Not mentioning stuff or stories, but that didn't stop some of the grandparents from scaring us younger kids with stories. I never heard of anyone actually hurting the damn thing."
"A dogman?" Sonic wanted to scoff as the name spilled out of his mouth. It was the only time he stared Knuckles in the eyes. Just for confirmation that they were indeed all insane.
"More or less," Knuckles answered as he nodded. "It's got different names in different languages, but it reverts to the same thing. A wolf with our capabilities. Some people state that when they're in the presence of one, it just feels pure evil or doom. Nothing good comes of it. Others state that they've never felt like it was out to harm them. So, maybe there's something to the theory that it's not just a bad entity. Maybe they're creatures with differing personalities to them. But no story I ever heard ended up with the person wanting to go out and find another one, that's for sure."
He motioned to Blaze, who refused to be a part of the conversation any longer. "She gonna be alright?"
"I think…I think it's taken its toll on everyone," Sarah turned back to throw a sympathetic look to Silver before she motioned to Shadow with her head.
Knuckles glanced at his friend. Like Sonic had for most of the time, Shadow stared at the carpet. He just stared at it.
"Shadow? Are you okay?" Knuckles took the moment to grab his friend by the arm.
"I should've shot it. It should have died right there."
Knuckles frowned. "Shadow, what are you going to do?"
"I…"
"We need to make sure it's dead," Silver answered for him. "Right, Shadow?"
"Yes." Shadow didn't want to say that he thought the beast wouldn't be dead. He also didn't want to say that he wasn't sure if he was up for that challenge. Every fiber of his being was telling him not to go back to the park ever. Daylight or nighttime. That thing still roamed about, injured or not - it had been there the whole time.
Red eyes looked up at Knuckles. The latter wasn't sure if that was watery glint in his friend's eye or not, but he wasn't about to point it out.
"Would you come with me?"
Knuckles sighed. "I don't like the idea one bit, if what you've said is true. But I understand you all have a duty to that park and the people in it. But the matter still stands - what are you going to do after? Are you going to shut down the park for a bit? Explain it somehow to Richwells?"
"Explain it somehow to the guy that's coming in a few days?" Sarah reminded them with a question.
"I don't know," Shadow shook his head and looked at the other rangers. "What do you think should be done?"
Silver knew Blaze was in no right mind to respond. "I'm not entirely sure, Shadow. We call authorities and they think we're crazy. But if all of us tell the same story - maybe they'll believe us?"
"Up to you to take that chance," Knuckles chimed in.
"Do we even close the trails tomorrow? It's on the side of the park where hardly anyone is," Sarah mentioned. "Maybe we go out in the morning and see if we can track it."
Shadow nodded as he stood slowly. The others watched him. "I...need some sleep."
The rest of the Mobians didn't argue. Knuckles figured sleep would be the best thing for the group - or maybe the worst. Rouge had good timing, though. She'd found plenty of blankets for them. Standing in the doorway of the living room, Rouge held up the pile in her arms.
"Let's see if you guys can get some sleep. We can talk more in the morning," Knuckles stood and helped pass out the blankets.
He watched as Silver tucked Blaze in on the couch. He somehow managed to scoot in with her, holding her close as she refused to look at anyone or anything. Sarah chose the floor, despite Shadow's motion to the arm chair. She let Amy have it.
"You want the bed?" Knuckles asked Shadow.
"No. I'm fine out here. With them," he said a little firmer. It was the first time all night that he hadn't shaken. If one thing was for certain, it was that Shadow still wasn't going to leave any of them behind.
Knuckles nodded and let the rest figure out spots on the floor - not near one another but not too far from each other, either. The echidna saw how quickly some seemed to fall asleep compared to others.
The sage hedgehog stared up at the ceiling. Amy picked at the armchair fabric for a little bit. Sonic all but collapsed on the ground with a small pillow. Shadow was beside him - he had his eyes closed but one wouldn't be able to tell if the ebony hedgehog's gears were turning or not.
The echidna went back into the kitchen where Rouge was. He leaned up against the counter as the house became silent.
"What did they tell you?" she whispered in concern but with her back turned to him.
Knuckles stared at the tile floor. He shook his head slowly, as if still in disbelief. How could this have happened? He'd grown up with stories, but he never encountered anything himself. Hell, he still hadn't. But the fact that Shadow looked so caught off guard was all the proof Knuckles needed. He wasn't about to tell all six of them that they had imagined the whole thing.
But the question still remained: what was next for them?
"Knuckles?" Rouge turned her cheek a little to view him in her peripheral vision. Her ear bent back to him, waiting.
"Something happened. And there won't be a lot of people who will believe them." Knuckles clenched his jaw. "I've got to go out with them in the morning to check it out. At the park. Okay?"
"Be safe."
He walked forward and kissed her cheek. "Are you going to work some more?"
"Yes." They both knew the response was less about work and more about staying awake for the sake of the six in the living room. If one woke up in a fit, at least someone would be awake to keep things calm. Or try to.
Knuckles turned towards the bedroom down the hallway from the kitchen and left. Rouge made no movement in the kitchen - whether or not she had heard their entire conversation, he didn't know. He wasn't going to ask. His own thoughts were turning.
A part of him was still in disbelief. The best he could do, he figured, was pray that this thing could be killed. That it was already out there dying.
That by morning, it would be dead.
~.~
Only a few went.
Knuckles drove with Shadow and Silver in his truck. Sarah opted to take the others to their vehicles in the park's parking lot. At least the cadets could home, but Blaze was going to stay if Silver was.
Everyone, for the moment, was headed back to the station.
"I didn't sleep much," Silver said suddenly, breaking the silence. He wasn't sure why he said it. He figured it was obvious. "I don't think Blaze slept at all."
Shadow squinted out the window. He hadn't slept much either, but the world was twice as bright now - blinding him. He didn't miss the dark by any means, but now the world seemed unfit. There were things that raised questions in him.
"At least no one had nightmares," Knuckles tried to make conversation with Silver. "As far as we're aware, that is."
"Hn."
They both looked at the ebony hedgehog that had made the sound. He hadn't spoken much that morning - just made sounds if he tried to converse. Even then, though, it seemed like Shadow was off in a faraway land. He seemed so…out of it.
"Shadow? Are you sure you can do this right now?"
"Hmm."
It sounded like a yes.
Silver sighed. "We're not gonna be staying that long, are we?"
Shadow didn't know how to respond to that one. It didn't catch him completely off guard. He knew it had to have been coming. "Mmm. Maybe. You do what you want."
The way he hung on every word felt angry, but they weren't sure what he was angry at.
Knuckles decided to tread as lightly as possible. "Shadow…These things can carry this sort of violence with them. It was in your head, wasn't it?"
"What do you mean?"
"Did it speak?" The radio barely crackled as they spoke.
"No. Don't be stupid."
"Then it just felt like it had a powerful hold over you - a malicious one."
"...Maybe. At times."
Silver raised his brow. Shadow certainly hadn't made this apparent last night. Knuckles must've been savvy enough in the unknown to just understand these things could happen.
"So, definitely not a friendly entity."
"There are friendly entities?" Shadow made the snide remark in return.
Knuckles glowered a little. "Look, man, I'm helping you out here. You have to take a breath."
The ebony hedgehog did just that and leaned back in his seat. Taking a deep breath in and then out, when he opened his eyes they were in the parking lot at the station.
Sarah had already parked her car. She was unlocking the front door of the station. It was about 6:30 in the morning. Everything was quiet when Shadow got out of the truck. Birds barely chirped as they started to wake up.
He took in another breath.
The smell of the forest brought him back to his senses.
Sonic shut Sarah's car door and that brought him back to reality. He looked over at the ranger and put his hands on hips. "So, you're just going to check it out?"
"Yes." Shadow responded as he walked towards the station. He'd need more gun ammo. He was not about to walk back into the forest without it. "You're going home."
"Yeah." Sonic didn't make a move to follow him. He stood outside and watched Knuckles and Silver walk into the station. Blaze had gone in too - to grab her things. That left only Amy.
She leaned against Sarah's car, watching him. "You're upset."
He scoffed. "What an observation, Ames."
"I mean, you're upset that any of this happened because now…you're going to quit, aren't you?"
"Well, I'm not going out there again," Sonic shook his head to the trees. "Even if it is dead. I just…can't. Not right now."
"We get it. All of them do. I know I'm not coming back," she said as she stared at the woods. She almost expected the dogman to come running out. But it was quiet and serene - as it had been all week before. Now whatever beauty that the park showed her before was tainted. She hadn't been able to close her eyes for the remainder of the night, despite how much sleep wanted to take hold of her. She only saw the wolf - snapping its jaws at Shadow. Howling and screeching in pain.
Sonic sighed as he took a spot beside her. He folded his arms as they both leaned against the car. "I don't even know what I'm going to tell Mom and Dad."
"Right…Even if we said that the station let us go, your parents would call here just to figure it out." Amy didn't see a reason for it.
"I…I don't even want to stay here for the rest of the summer," Sonic scoffed a laugh. "I want to be as far from this place as possible, and yet at the same time…I don't want to leave feeling like I've been chased out. I feel upset with myself, mostly. I wished I had just stayed home." He looked at the pavement and sighed, eyes closed. "I'm sorry, Amy."
"Neither of us are in the right here," Amy reasoned. "You should have listened to me, and I should have spoken sooner when I was in your car. You would have turned around."
"Probably."
"Hopefully," she softly smiled as she nudged him a little. "So…are we going to quit?"
Green eyes looked up at the sound of doors shutting. Knuckles, Silver, and Shadow were as ready as they'd ever be. They planned for a quick trip based on their pack load, which only reminded Sonic that he had left his backpack in the woods. Maybe they'd find it and return it to him. He frowned a little.
"I don't know. But…we might as well stick around for them."
Silver walked up to the duo while Knuckles and Shadow waited at the trailhead. The two were speaking by the looks of it, but Silver wanted to talk to the cadets. "Hey, Blaze said your backpack is still out on the trail. I'm gonna try and find it if you - "
"We'll stick around," Amy confirmed as she waved at him. "Be safe. Please."
He gave her a curt nod and a half-smile. Walking back to Knuckles and Shadow, Silver glanced back at the cadets only once. They seemed okay for now. Comparatively at least, Shadow and Blaze were on his worry-about-list. He stopped beside the dark Mobian.
"Ready?"
"Ready," Shadow growled more to the forest than to his companions.
~.~
The blood trail wasn't difficult to find.
Surely, there would be hikers commenting on it within a day or two. Shadow and Silver weren't phased by the area - but Knuckles was.
The echidna felt the negative energy radiate off the trees, still. Even as they followed the trail of blood, Knuckles felt nothing but anger and evil around him. He tried to shut it out, but he could see how this thing would easily manipulate Shadow or any of the other rangers.
Putting anger into Shadow. Creating so much fear in Blaze just from its presence that she might die of fright.
It's dangerous, and the more we follow this trail, the more inclined I am to believe their story.
Knuckles didn't understand how the trail just kept going. The blood spattered unevenly at times against the ground or the surrounding foliage. At points, it looked like the wolf had nearly bled out, and other times, they almost lost the trail.
Was it healing somehow?
The echidna didn't like what they were walking into, but the longer they walked, the more confident Shadow and Silver seemed. Perhaps the daylight gave them a false sense of security, or maybe it was the lack of activity from anything but the birds.
"How long are we going to go?" Silver asked as the trail led away from the park. They had nearly gone up and around Half Point to the west. "It's going out of the park borders."
"A day's worth is all we have," Shadow looked at the sun. "We still have plenty of time left. And if it goes out of the park, we still follow it."
"It's not concerning to any of you that the trail has no sign of letting up?" Knuckles questioned from the pack of the line. He stopped. "Seriously, how far are we going to go, Shadow? All the way to the next park?"
"As long as it takes until I find a body."
"Well, you won't."
Shadow turned sharply to look at his friend. "Why are you so certain?" he asked slowly.
"Because there are things outside of this world that you clearly can't grasp yet," Knuckles responded as calmly as he could. "I know…this was traumatic for all of you, and you want nothing more than to make sure that this thing is dead so it can't terrorize you anymore, Shadow. Your mind is all sorts of jumbled from this, but the best thing we can do right now? Walk away."
"No." Shadow glared. He was going to ignore his right eye welling up. The idea of the wolf being out there and coming back - he wasn't going to even think about it. "I'm going to find it."
"Then you'll be searching forever. Or you'll find it alive," Knuckles held his hands out. "Shadow, please. Don't go down this hole."
The ebony hedgehog paused. "Then what would you like us to do, Knuckles?"
Silver swallowed heavily. Tensions were high from Shadow, but Knuckles was yielding. He was merely trying to stop his friend from walking into something that he couldn't handle mentally or physically. Silver saw that, and was a little more open-minded to it.
"We go back."
"And tell them what? If we say we stopped, Blaze will live in constant fear. Sonic will. Amy will," Shadow countered. "Everything we've worked towards will be taken away from us and stripped bare. We won't be able to walk in these woods without feeling hunted ever again. What of our jobs? Our livelihoods? You want us to walk away from this," he pointed to the trail of blood, "and in doing so, walk away from ourselves? It's taken from me, and I want myself back."
"That is trauma." Knuckles shook his head. "Not the wolf alone. If the story you said is true, then you will not find it dead, Shadow."
"How do we kill it then?"
"You need to stop," Knuckles walked towards him and put a hand on Shadow's shoulder. Silver watched cautiously. "You need to sleep."
"We continue until we need to turn back. Please, Knuckles. I have to know."
Knuckles gave him a pitiful look. "Shadow. It's no use…We both know that."
"Please."
There was a dreadful silence as Shadow pleaded. He needed this. He had to know where the trail went.
"Okay," Silver stepped forward. "We'll go." He gave Knuckles a firm look. "We're going, Knuckles. Until we have to turn back before we lose daylight. Even if it's out of the park."
"It's pointless - "
"You may know the answers," Silver interjected the echidna and put his hand up to stop him, "You may believe whatever you want, Knuckles. And it may explain what we…experienced last night, but that doesn't mean we should just pretend like there's nothing we can do. There's always something we can do. We're still rangers - we should still do what's best for the attendees of the park. Finding where this trail leads is a part of the job."
Knuckles crossed his arms. "I get that, Silver. Fine…We'll do this your way."
Shadow and Silver continued on, following the blood as it went. Knuckles paused for a minute to listen to his surroundings.
Birds chirped.
That was his sign to follow.
~.~
"Do you think they'll find anything?"
Blaze wanted to ignore the sage hedgehog for most of the day.
She lied down on the couch of the station in the waiting room. The station was open and a few hikers came and went throughout the day. No campers came to check out yet, but they were inevitable as it was the end of the weekend.
The cat tried to stay indoors, did some reports - but she couldn't concentrate. Sarah seemed to go back into the work routine much better than her. She did her part and played receptionist well. Even as hikers came in to ask questions, Sarah seemed to pretend that the events of the night never happened.
It unnerved Blaze.
But what bothered her most was that the cadets were still there. She had told them to leave and maybe come back tomorrow for Sonic's pack. But one look in the cadets' eyes told her all she needed to know: they weren't coming back.
Short lived. But…I don't blame them.
She was on edge.
Blaze couldn't decide what to do next. She didn't even want to look at the forest. Looking outside meant seeing the trailboard where the creature once stood and stared at the camera. Thinking back on it, Blaze now knew that the wolf definitely knew it was staring at a camera. It had been aware the entire time.
It had been trying to get into the station.
"Here's to hoping," Sonic muttered in response to Sarah. He sat in Shadow's usual chair beside Sarah, ignoring anyone else that came in and not helping out much.
Amy, on the other hand, was trying to keep herself busy with anything Sarah or Blaze needed done. Blaze was currently on the couch, resting. Amy was tidying up in the office area, behind Sarah and Sonic. She thumbed through some reports. "Weren't you the one that said bullets probably didn't hurt it, Sarah?"
"They fed it so many bullets, it has to be dead," Sonic interrupted.
"Enough."
They all quieted like school kids being yelled at by a teacher. Sarah went back to typing, but she desperately wanted to voice her concern for Blaze. She had tried to recommend Blaze go home, but the cat wasn't leaving without Silver - that was clear.
"We're all just waiting for them, Blaze. It's okay to be worried."
"We don't need to worry anyone else that walks in, either," Blaze said as she put her hand to her forehead. She was laying down. She didn't feel well due to her nerves. Her stomach twisted in a bunch of knots just knowing that Silver was out there in the woods - potentially with that thing.
"No one's walked in for two hours - this place isn't exactly jumping with people," Sonic said.
"Why are you quitting?" Blaze lurched upwards and turned to stare at him.
He scooted the chair back to get a better view of her from around the front desk. "Why aren't you?"
"Because I have a duty - "
"That's real touching, Blaze. Considering you've worked here on and off for a couple of years, that makes sense. I've worked here for a week," Sonic pointed out. "You have some sort of responsibility to this park and that's nice. I have been here maybe a few times before I started working here, so I don't have that feeling of responsibility in me. I do, however, have the need to survive."
"Sonic, be nice," Sarah warned him. "Both of you be nice or don't talk to one another. It benefits no one for you two to be interrogating each other about what to do. If Amy and Sonic quit after this, that's their choice and it should continue to stay their choice - unjudged. Same goes for Blaze if she wants to stay."
"Are you?" Sonic asked the sage hedgehog. He softened a little near her.
"...I…No."
"What?!" Blaze stood up and marched to the front desk. "What do you mean?"
Sarah closed her eyes for a second and gave a large sigh, as if she knew this moment was coming. "Blaze, listen. I wasn't going to be here forever, anyway. My major is more architecturally inclined. This was just a job to pay off college. Now? It's not worth it. I know the stories, just like Knuckles, and I am not risking my life on this. Besides, has anyone thought about the campers?"
"What do you mean?"
"Richwells is going to find out one way or another. All the reports end up in his hands, anyway. He's still the Supervisor of this park. There are campers checking out today. I'd bet my whole life that at least one mentions the gunshots. The howling. The noise. We're not getting out of this without telling someone. Police won't listen. Richwells will replace us."
Blaze felt her chest tighten.
She's right. If the campers complain about gunshots of all things, Richwells is going to come asking questions and demanding answers. He'll know Shadow is the only one allowed to legally carry a firearm. That means if anyone reports hearing two guns go off, Sarah might be ratted out and be fired.
Or Richwells could be fooled into believing it was someone up to no good. But even then…Shadow wouldn't lie. Neither would Sarah.
"You're right."
"I'm toast either way," Sarah said. She already knew the consequences the moment she decided to go to Half Point for Shadow's gun.
"Right. The gun." Sonic seemed to be catching up. "Do you think…Richwells would just fire you guys, though?" he asked Blaze, referring to her, Silver, and Shadow. "I mean, Shadow's been around consistently compared to other rangers that work here."
Blaze shook her head, but in confusion. "He wouldn't. Couldn't. Could he?" She locked eyes with Sarah. "Shadow would be wrecked."
"He's already wrecked," Sarah snorted, as if Blaze missed the whole point. "The fact that you want to stay so badly, Blaze, I don't understand. I can't make you understand what I know and believe. It's not how the world works, but why would you be so loyal to this park who's Supervisor doesn't give a rat's ass about any of his employees?"
The feline struggled to find the words. "I…" Her ears flattened against her head. "I just felt like I was finally doing something with my life."
"We're in college. None of us will know that until we're thirty-five."
"Speak for yourself," Blaze snorted as she walked around the desk. She sat in the empty chair that she usually used. "I get your point. You're screwed if it gets out that you used a firearm. And if Richwells hears enough reports from campers and nothing from us? He's going to wonder what kind of ship we're running."
"And when he blows up, it's not going to be pretty."
Amy joined their conversation by coming over and sitting up on the desk. "So…Is there anything that can be done to avoid that happening?"
"Sure. Shred any and all reports that come in," Sarah shrugged nonchalantly. "Of course, that's illegal, but, if you don't tell, I won't tell," she glanced over at Blaze.
The cat knew she wasn't being serious. "No," she still said. "We deal with the punches that this brings us. We could come up with a story."
"Like what?"
"That it was Silver and Shadow. And it was in defense because of a wolf. I mean, the warden and Richwells already know there's a wolf issue," Blaze thought. "But they don't know anything else. We could get away with the disturbance, at least."
"And get away from being labeled insane."
"Exactly."
"So, we're all coming to an agreement that this is going to our graves?" Sonic glanced around the room.
He got nods in return.
Blaze leaned forward in her chair, elbows on her knees and hands clasped. Her tail twitched.
Sarah stared at her in curiosity. "So, what are you going to do, Blaze? Stay or go?"
"I think I want to see what Silver wants. Then make a decision."
"What about Shadow?" The question came from Amy. They had a feeling that the pink hedgehog wasn't just bringing up the ranger for fun. It was an honest inquiry.
Sarah frowned a bit before shaking her head, unsure. "Now that, no one knows."
"No one but Shadow," Sonic responded.
She dared to crack a smirk as she looked at the carpet, rubbing her shoe against a piece of loose fabric on the floor. It was more of a sad, unfortunate look. "No. I don't even think Shadow knows."
~.~
By the time the trio got back, the sunset was an hour away.
Most of the rangers were outside, leaning up against their vehicles and waiting for the trio to arrive. They greeted them rather warmly, which made Knuckles believe that they either got some rest or they had spoken about things at the station.
Silver returned Sonic's backpack. "For what it's worth, you pack well."
"Thanks," Sonic found a smile in him after all. It died quickly, though. "Look, Shadow - "
The ebony hedgehog put his hand up. "I understand if you and Amy are calling it quits. Things are about to get messy."
"Did you find it?"
There was a long pause while the four waited to hear an answer.
Blaze had her arms crossed over her stomach in fear. The waiting made her nauseous. Sarah gave Knuckles a knowing look, and she already understood where this was going. Amy fidgeted as Sonic put his backpack over his shoulder.
"No."
"Seriously?" a breath left Sonic as his eyes widened. "The thing was bleeding out."
"It got outside of park boundaries pretty early on, by the looks of it, and continued for miles," Silver shook his head. "We didn't find anything. I'm sorry, Blaze."
The cat looked down at the ground in defeat. "I can't…"
"I know." Silver grimaced as he went in to hug her. She didn't hug back, but she leaned against him as he patted her back. "I know."
"So." Sarah folded her arms as she addressed Shadow. "You good?"
The male was reserved. He shared a glance with Knuckles before stating, "No. Probably not. I needed to find it. I needed to know that we got it, but this…"
"It's not logical to you, I get it. But, that's the least of our worries right now. Campers checking out today? A few of them did leave reports remarking the gunshots."
"Fuck," Shadow closed his eyes and turned away. "I wasn't even thinking about those."
"Yeah. I'm. I'm sorry, Shadow. But I'm toast if I stay here - "
"No, no, we can figure something out." Shadow did his best to reassure her.
Sarah reached out to grab his arm. "Shadow. I'm good. I don't want to continue here, knowing what I know," she nodded to Knuckles. "This is the end of the road for me here either way. Blaze thought we could make something up when Richwells comes asking."
"That the wolf came and it was you and Silver in defense," Sonic responded for her and the cat, seeing as the latter was still busy hugging Silver. "None of them mentioned it being two guns going off. So, we're clear there."
Shadow hated that they had thought of all this. They had worried about this all day and thought of an excuse. He looked at Sarah, deeply and remorsefully. "I am sorry, Sarah."
"Don't be," she said as she playfully punched his shoulder. "I have a feeling this won't be the last time I see ya'll. But what about you? You staying or going?"
He shook his head slowly as he thought about the answer. "I'm not sure yet."
"Well, be safe. Whatever you do," Sarah smiled encouragingly as she patted his shoulder. "I'm leaving you with the task of telling Richwells that I quit. Effective immediately. Don't even think you're getting a two week notice out of me."
He smirked half-heartedly and nodded his head to her car. "Get out of here, then."
Sarah turned to the others. "Don't be strangers."
They watched as the sage hedgehog was the first to leave.
Knuckles paused awkwardly before rubbing the back of his neck. "I should go, too. Get packed so you can go home. Rouge took care of everything. I hope you got some…reassurance of some sort, Shadow. Blaze. I know this sort of thing is difficult to grasp for some people. Your whole world is being turned upside down from what you've been taught to believe. If you ever need me to talk to, I'm here," he nodded to both Shadow and Blaze. "See you."
"See you. Thanks, Knuckles," Shadow said as the echidna left as well.
"Shadow," Silver spoke softly as he held Blaze. "I…I don't think we can continue - "
"I wouldn't want her to," Shadow responded just as softly. He glanced down at Blaze, who still looked broken. "Take care, Silver. Like Sarah said - don't be a stranger."
Silver nodded to him, "Let me know what you plan on doing. You might get two weeks out of me."
Blaze straightened up and wiped away a single tear that she let slide. "I can help close things up. I just…During certain hours - "
"We can think of something, Blaze. Just go home. Rest."
She looked over at the cadets. "I understand your choice." Blaze did her best to smile at Amy but it was a pitiful attempt. "Please, keep in touch, Amy."
"Of course, Blaze." The pink hedgehog motioned to Silver. "Maybe we can even invite this one along."
Silver scoffed in humor as he shared warm looks with Sonic and Amy. "See ya around campus."
The couple left shortly after.
Sonic cleared his throat. "Well, I'll, uh. Wait in the car," he motioned to Amy. "Shadow," he gave a curt nod to the hedgehog. "Sorry for being a douche."
"I'm sorry too," Shadow shared the same sentiment."Thank you, by the way. For shoving me out of the way last night."
Sonic grinned a little as he gave him a thumbs up. "They don't call me the fastest thing on the track for nothing."
Shadow rolled his eyes a little as the blue blur walked back to his car, a few feet away.
The ebony hedgehog waited a few seconds before talking. He had to think of the words. "Amy, if any of this deters - "
"Shadow?"
"Yes?" He waited patiently for her to continue.
She took a little bit to look him in the eyes, but when she did, all he saw was understanding. Amy grabbed his arm and lifted herself up to kiss his cheek. "I think we all need some time to process this, but I would still like to go out with you. This situation doesn't define us, and we shouldn't let it. But I think we need to rest from it. Trauma bonds people, but I don't want to jump head first into this," Amy bit her bottom lip. "Everything is still replaying through my head, and I didn't even see most of it. I can't imagine how you or Blaze are doing, but if you ever need someone to talk to, please give me a call. I'll answer. I'll be waiting."
Shadow smiled only slightly at her words before he returned the favor with a kiss on her cheek - gentle and soft. He stepped back and she let go of his arm. "Until then, Amy."
He couldn't keep his eyes off the pink hedgehog as she walked to the car and got in. Sonic drove away, and Shadow was still watching. Eventually, there was nothing to stare at but the road. The parking lot was almost empty minus his vehicle and a few others.
A few campers that were still out there.
Shadow turned and looked around at the tall trees. He was struggling to wrap his mind around it - the fact that there was something out there that looked like a wolf and could walk on two legs, standing seven feet tall. That it felt evil in every way possible and its eyes seemed to stare into your soul and steal it away from you.
He knew it would take some time to get around the events of what happened, but he had a job to fulfill.
If it decides to come back after we shot it, then it's either itching for a fight or it's equally just as crazy as we are. I don't think it'll be back for a while.
Shadow sighed, breathing in the fresh air for one last time of the day. Hesitantly, he shifted a heavy foot to the station and walked towards it.
He had some reports to look at.
~.~
The rest of the summer was uneventful.
Richwells immediately questioned the reports on the gunfire, and Shadow explained himself just as Sarah had told him. At the time, Silver was the only one left besides Shadow. He had put in his two weeks notice, but Sarah and Blaze had quit immediately along with the cadets. Everything left Richwells rather confused, but each person gave different reasons. After the reports came in, though, and Silver's two week notice, Richwell called in some other rangers to fill the void.
Then he made the mistake of coming into the station himself. He tried to publicly humiliate Shadow in front of the new rangers and Silver by explaining the reports and the fact that four people quit all on the same day. While some of the rangers raised questions, Richwells didn't even try to look more into the reports and strictly tried to point the blame at Shadow.
Silver and Shadow walked out that day - and they weren't the only ones.
Richwells canceled the tower restoration - which didn't surprise Shadow. It saved the park money and it gave Shadow some sleep.
For a while, Shadow kept silent, but eventually he did his best to move on from what happened. He started by taking Amy out on a date.
The second date was a double date with Sonic and Sarah, who seemed to be going steady by the end of the summer. Shadow and Amy weren't too far behind. Shadow made plans to potentially move to Westwood, as Glace was no longer an option for him, and the town only reminded him of what happened.
Amy wasn't going to try to dissuade him considering college would soon start.
He was, however, in between jobs. Nothing ever quite stuck for longer than a few weeks. Nothing was quite like the park, but Knuckles was trying to convince him that the construction industry wasn't all that bad.
Silver and Blaze had moved by the end of June, back to Westwood. Blaze managed to get better, although Shadow could still see remnants of something bothering her. He never asked, but he knew he wasn't alone. Shadow saw them quite a bit more than he expected, mostly thanks to Amy. She was right about trauma being able to bond people. There were days that he found himself texting Sonic of all people, but even those two managed to become closer friends.
Shadow found a new circle of friends - something he hadn't had since college years at Kage. It felt nice.
He just wished it had been under different circumstances.
Especially any time he found himself having nightmares of that night. He'd wake up in a cold sweat and have to keep most of the lights on in the house. He'd keep the curtains closed. Looking into the dark made his heart rate skyrocket.
The events of the nightmares always changed and they always got worse. The wolf with its dark fur, matted with mud and blood, grinning at him. Blaze's crying echoing all around him - sometimes Amy's. Everybody yelling at him to shoot. He'd freeze even longer in his dreams, and sometimes he'd wake up just before the beast's teeth sunk into his skin.
One thing never changed though.
The yellow eyes that stared at him, as if speaking to him in a deep and guttural tone. It always told him the same thing.
"I'm not dead yet."
XXX
End of Beastly, part one of ten in the Encounters series. Please see "Notice for FanFiction. net" below for uploads.
Stay tuned for Part Two: Blackwater Ridge. Coming soon. :) Written by TinyShinyy. Co-written by Cozy Shadow.
Summary of Part Two: Blackwater Ridge: Amy invites Sarah, Shadow, Rouge, and Knuckles to help her aunt move to Blackwater Ridge, a smaller, older town in Mobius. Moving Maisie into the Victorian-esque house goes well, except until they find out the house is haunted. By more than one entity.
~.~
For those of you who might see this as an abrupt ending, keep in mind that this is a ten part series. The reality with trauma is that the brain will try to forget it and suppress it. It might not come back until years later. It's different with every person, especially when it comes to overcoming it. At the end of the day, the world keeps spinning though - and the person either has to learn how to deal with the trauma head-on, or how to run from it.
I hope this first part of Encounters was enjoyable! As a reminder, each part (or "story") will be following the previous one in a timeline. The series takes place over the span of a year for our characters, and there will be time-skips of months more often than not. I hope you all will continue to enjoy the series and follow along.
~.~
NOTICE FOR FANFICTION. NET: We will be solely posting the rest of this series (all of the nine other parts, yes) to Archive of Our Own. You may follow the Encounters series on Ao3 to keep up to date. We thought this to be the best decision so TinyShinyy's and my work can be posted on our separate accounts but still be linked. FanFiction does not have this capability to link authors with stories/series like Ao3 provides. As TinyShinyy and I are taking turns writing each part (not in any specific order, either) it felt weird to post a story that TinyShinyy would write onto my account because they are mostly on Ao3 now and no longer active on FF. So, please - treat this Beastly story as more of a teaser for the rest of the parts that can be found solely on Archive of Our Own. We hope to see you there! :)
