Brooklyn took off running after Cora. Hearing but not really hearing the forest sounds around him. Seeing but not really seeing or focusing on the deep woods, turning from a dark green over head of pines to the scanter canopy of hardwood forest. Some trees still holding onto their colors. Others half gone and dormant, allowing bits of the navy blue night sky to peak through. All he could focus on was the sound of Cora breathing. The sound of her footfalls in the crunching leaves. The smell of her hair as the air whipped through it. His more base instincts coming out he growled and dropped to all fours to catch up to her more quickly. He had every intention of catching her and carrying her out somewhere deep in the forest to be completely alone. When suddenly Cora slammed on the breaks. Holding both arms out to the sides indicating that she wanted Brooklyn to stop as well.
Brooklyn wasn't sure if she was sensing danger or just more of her clan members or family. He scrambled to a stop and crouched beside her. Ready in case it wasn't her family.
"What is it?" He hissed.
"Someone else ran through here. I don't know them." Cora whispered back. Her voice slightly angry.
"Don't know as in not your clan or the Harkers clan?" Brooklyn asked.
"Yes, But I can sense that whoever it is has crisscrossed paths with several younglings from my clan and the Harkers. Jonathan specifically." Cora replied.
"And what if its not one of their friends? Could someone from another clan make it in here? And go after them?" He asked again.
Coras eyes went huge at that. Her head whipping back to look at him so fast that her dark hair whirled around her in a shiny tornado. Her hearth rate even picked up before she paused and spoke.
"Extremely unlikely and monumentally stupid. There are so many Harkers at home with friends and extended family visiting castle Harker that it would be insane. A suicide run." Cora said calming down, her explanation to herself as well as Brooklyn.
"So it's mostly likely someones boyfriend that you haven't met yet" Brooklyn said dryly.
"Girlfriend" Cora corrected him. "Wait, you can't tell?" Reaching out to touch him on the arm in amusement.
Brooklyn shrugged, he didn't want to say that he was so preoccupied with chasing her that he wasn't really paying attention. Closing his eyes he took a deep breath in and out a few times. He could scent something... different. And he guessed it was female. It had some sort of female hormones along with some sense of magic and woods. Sort of like Gisle or even Sile. But not. And nothing like Cora at all. Or at least he felt no biological pull at all towards it. Opening his eyes he scanned around them. The tracks and trail would be leading down hill.
"Its not like you, or even like the Merrows. And certainly not gargoyle. What is it?" He asked.
"Some sort of wood witch. Even I haven't met every kind of witch there is. Patrick and I have avoided clan gatherings for years. Otherwise its pretty easy to not run into each other." Cora told him. Something in her voice was vaguely upset? No, forlorn?
"What's wrong?" He wondered. Reaching out and pulling her closer to him.
"Sometimes I wonder if avoiding so much hasn't done the younglings any good. Not going out and meeting enough of their own kind" Cora said with a humph at the end.
"I don't think they had any problems getting out and finding their own mates and getting laid now did they?" Brooklyn laughed. Cora pushing him away from her in half annoyance and rolling her eyes.
"What? I'm laughing at myself too. I didn't exactly have a great track record with females before I met you. Even with my own kind" He laughed again.
"You aught to stop digging any deeper" Cora snorted.
Brooklyn grabbed her and pulled her in tightly. Kissing her and pulling her up off her feet to do so. Wrapping his wings around her in a gesture of affection. Cora sighed and leaned into him. Wrapping her arms around his neck and winding a strand of his hair in one of her hands. It made him jump slightly, for him that was a sign of affection and intense intimacy between a male and female. Grunting and pulling back from her slightly he wondered if it meant the same to her as it did to him.
"You can't do that every time you get on my nerves you know." She said softly.
"Oh yes I can" He chuckled. "Or at least after we are... well. When we plan on telling our?" he finished with a question.
"When I pick you and you pick me?" Cora teased. Running a soft hand along the edge of his jaw and starting to run her fingers down his neck.
He snatched her hand quickly to stop her. She tilted her head in question. The colors of her eyes starting to wash over in inky black like a diluted water color.
"Do you want to go check on the younglins and see what they are up to first. Because if you keep doing that we aren't going to end up seeing a single one of them for the rest of the night" Brooklyn told her. Trying to keep his tone serious and his mind out of the gutter. Which was becoming increasingly more difficult the longer he touched her.
"You're right of course. You... distract me" Cora told him ruefully.
"I don't want to hear shit on who is distracting who" Brooklyn replied with another laugh.
Cora lead him off along the path. Pulling him by the claw in the direction she wanted to go. He thought that they had been heading downhill, but instead they started heading uphill and the path getting more rocky.
"I have an idea of where they are all hanging out. There is a large gorge in this part of the forest. Its got a clearwater creek that goes down in a series of waterfalls. At the end there is a really beautiful pond. They are probably all down on the sandbars." Cora mused.
"Am I going to freak them out showing up with you?" He asked uneasily. He felt his wing tips shake slightly. Silent. But enough movement to get Coras attention and make her glance over. Great he thought. Does she know that means I am nervous?
"I guarantee my own clan and half if not most of Harkers younglings all know. You think Colin wouldn't have run and told his brothers and sisters in an instant? Patrick and Clarissa have been pushing me to find a mate for years. It should have been an expected reality. But I digress. I think most of them thought that I was going to turn into a old hag and die alone with a lot of housecats." Cora groused.
"You are anything but an old hag. As to the cats, if you must" Brooklyn told her with a grown.
"It was a joke. I would vastly rather live in the woods and fields and do magic and ride horses all day" She laughed.
"You are such a witch" He answered. Shaking his head. "I tried riding a horse. A long time ago. It didn't like the tail or wings very much."
Cora stopped and turned to him, looking like she couldn't decide if she was going to be shocked or laugh.
"When I take the boys riding we usually go during the day. Or at least they would shift to human forms. I can't imagine how much a horse would like a predator with wings and claws." She said shaking her head in amusement. "I can take you sometime during the day. I keep our pet horses here at the Harkers. The boys don't come riding with me as often as they get older." Cora explained.
"Other than Bronx and Elisa's cat we don't, or well didn't have a whole lot in the way of pets" Brooklyn told her as he helped her climb up a a boulder. Cora didn't really need a boost. But he gripped her by the waist and set her onto the rock. Closer to face height with him then she ever stood on the ground.
"Its not just as a pet. I do care for them, I've cared for them for generations of their family's. But to go ride, they can run even faster than me. Its like flying. Or the closet I will ever get to that" Cora explained softly. She had crossed her legs together as he stood in front of her with both hands on either side of her on the rough stone.
"So why not go flying?" Brooklyn asked.
With a slight snort she laughed and replied. "I hate having the younglings carry me. It feels so odd. I carried them around as an egg and tiny newborns. I had to put them in back packs as they got a little bigger. Its so weird to say hey take me flying."
"I mean use that spell you mentioned and grow wings." Brooklyn stated.
"The one I won't teach little Alex yet? Yeah its magic, but the skill doesn't come naturally to me. A sucubus is not born with wings and while I can manifest them I struggle in any way and the magic will just poof and vanish. And I fall. That's why I came up with the falling spell. But again. It does not come naturally to me. I have panicked and hit the ground pretty hard." She said with a grimace.
At that he growled low and his eyes lit up a bright white passingly.
"What?" Cora asked with a frown.
"If you were having trouble why didn't Patrick ever take you out and teach you. It is everyones responsibility to teach younglings to fly. He taught the boys to fly and never bothered with you? Hes the leader its ultimately his responsibility" Brooklyn said with another low growl.
"The fact does not escape me. I am just lucky he taught them. Patrick left a whole lot of their raising to me. Granted we have been busy in just about every other aspect. But I have had so many discussions I never wanted to have with the boys I totally never wanted" Cora said. Her hand gestures made him exactly sure what she was talking about.
Brooklyn took his claws and put them around her waist again. Her scent and the fall of her hair distracting. The dark brown silk of her hair a sharp contrast to the thick mass of his white hair. And thought about the warmth of her skin and body through even her warm clothing when he held her to glide somewhere. Suddenly he had a thought.
"Why don't I teach you?" Brooklyn said quickly and softly.
"Teach me...?" Cora asked in confusion.
"Why don't I teach you to fly. There's a huge gorge up ahead right? That would be a great take off spot." He said more strongly this time. Uncaping his wings and his eyes lit up in excitement.
"Brooklyn. Every time I try now I panic and my magic goes poof and I fall" Cora said uneasily.
"But I'll be right there to catch you" Brooklyn said trying to persuade her.
"And when I get up there freak out and fall you are going to be super disappointed. You do know that." Cora said uncomfortably.
Brooklyn could feel the tension and stress come off of her. She had her fully human persona laid over her real face. Even her tipped ears were rounded and smoothed over. If she was capable of hiding those when she was stressed maybe he really could teach her to fly.
"I would never be disappointed in you Cora" He said soothingly.
"Even if this goes badly? like comically bad?" She asked.
"I don't know why I would, but no. And I promise its not going to go badly." Brooklyn told her.
Cora said something under her breath. A grumble that Brooklyn couldn't even pick out. Then closing her eyes said some spell words he also couldn't pick out, aside from they seemed like they were in the same langue she used for some other spells. The noise the spell made and how they unfurled was totally unfamiliar to him. But the kind of wings Cora could manifest were not. She had feathered wings just like her younger cousins. And they matched her hair color just like theirs. Brooklyn stood in surprise as he watched her try and stretch them out. And he knew exactly what she meant when she said she was terrible at flying. She could manifest wings. But could barely control them. Hatchlings had more articulation than Cora did.
"No, try and stretch them like this" He explained. Holding his own out to show her.
Frowning in concentration Cora tried to hold them out. One wing flopping then the other. Brooklyn laughed and then reached a claw out to hold one up to show her. The feathers delicate at the edges and soft to the use to having wings or them being touched Cora shrieked and launched herself away from him in a scurry of movement. Brooklyn watched aghast as she fell over the back of the boulder. Wings dragging along as she flopped down in the leaves.
"Nope! nope nope nope. Why the hell does that feel so weird?" Cora sputtered. The dragging and bashing around of said wings was loud. Brooklyn would be surprised if someone else didn't notice they were up here.
"Because wings are sensitive? How else do you think a gargoyle feels the wind to glide?" Brooklyn told her. Still a little surprised and starring at her. He clawed up onto the rock so he could look down at her. Picking up a small pin feather that she had knocked loose.
"I think I'd rather throw my self off the cliff top. Land in the pond and swim over" Cora said grumpily. Getting up and standing on her feet brushing the crisp orange and gold toned leaf litter off her self. Then looking annoyed at all the leaves still stuck in her feathered wings.
"Try shaking them" Brooklyn said in amusement.
"You don't even have to worry about that with yours do you" she asked. Still very not amused.
"Not so much" He chuckled.
A hard and awkward shake later and she had most of them out. Still holding the small soft feather Brooklyn pocketed it on his belt. He didn't know why but he liked the idea of having a tiny part of her along with him.
"Come on. I'll hold you up while we glide down and you learn to fly." He told her.
"Learn to fall is more like it" Cora murmured.
Taking Cora by the hand and waist Brooklyn decided that asking forgiveness was going to be better than trying to keep talking her into it. He could feel her tense again before melting and shrinking into his arms slightly. Through the trees he could feel a cooler breeze. A few steps farther and they could see between the trees and into the open night sky. The very darkest of blue black now. With a scattering of glittering stars. Far across the gorge the other side side they could see the cliffs opposite them. Down below the sound of the falls floated up to them. And more faint the sounds of Coras family and friends rough housing and laughing on the beach far below. Glancing over at her to see what she was thinking. Frowning he could only guess. Holding onto to her tightly he spread his wings and launched them both into the air.
Cora squealed as the air rushed up at them. Brooklyn held onto her tightly. Using his own wings to catch the breeze and hold them both up. They glided over the edge of the cliffs and out into the open night air. Brooklyn had to carefully catch the currents and navigate. Cora didn't know how to bend and flex her wings in the breeze to turn or to rise or fall on it. She wasn't hard to hold up due to her slight weight even with them. Finally opening her eyes he caught her glancing over at his. And moved them in an attempt to copy him. She was doing fairly well until a strong up draft hit them. Bringing with it the scents and sounds of the beach below. The gust pushed them back higher in the air and Cora's manifested wings vanished with a pop. Brooklyn already had her by the hand and waist and he scooped her into his arms in a quick diving motion.
"That wasn't terrible" Brooklyn said. Earning him a grunt and an eyeroll from Cora.
"It really wasn't sweetheart" He said, trying to nuzzle her.
"It is when I tell you I've tried dozens of times And I just can't freaking get it" Cora replied in a huff.
"Can't be any worse than Lex and Broadway as hatchlings. They bashed into everything. For years" Brooklyn told her. That at least made her crack a smile.
Drawing his wings in he landed them on the soft sand bar upstream with the group. Setting Cora on her own feet she walked a few steps. But not without pulling him along with her. Looking down at her hand in his claw she stopped and looked up.
"Don't be nervous. Is it gonna be any worse that walking into the beach house to a whole gang of my cousins?" Cora cajoled him.
"Oh that was just peachy" Brooklyn said with a laugh.
Walking up the sand towards the fire light they went unnoticed for a moment or too before some turned and called out to them. Gio bounded up to them with Sile trailing along behind him shyly. Gio drawing Cora into a hug and giving Brooklyn a nod in almost respect now? Brooklyn would have to ask Cora what that was about later. Sile looked like she wanted to say something to Cora. But was hesitant to say it.
"Hey Brooklyn, did you want something to eat?" Gio asked indicating towards the fire behind them. The other Macnamara younglings, along with Jonathan and several different Harkers that he could remember from before stood or kneeled and sat around the roaring fire. Cora put an arm through Sile's and walked off quickly. Eyes meeting Brooklyn's to assure that she would be back soon.
"What was that about?" Brooklyn asked. Trying to keep his stomach from growling at the smell of meat and fish roasting on sticks over the fire. It crackled and spit as bits of fat melted and dripped down onto to the glowing wood.
"Female stuff I can only guess" Gio answered.
Antoni hid a quiet smile and offered nothing to add to what his brother said. All of them looking up when a few terrific splashes and laughter made them look back to the pond water. Cora and the three Merrows were coming back up the beach out of the water. When the hell or what the hell were they doing in the water that quickly Brooklyn had no idea. Cora simply had wet cloths and hair. Sile was somehow totally dry. While Gisle helped Ciara up. No not up for a moment. Gisle had for a few moments a long dark shining green tail. And very much how Brooklyn had seen Colin and the others put their wings and claws away magically Ciara shifted her tail and fins into more human shaped legs. The four walked over to join them.
"What is that? I am starving" Ciara asked with a laugh. Helping herself to food.
The group talked and laughter and rambunctious horseplay broke out all around them. Cora eventually peeled off her wet coat and then sweater. Squeezing the water out of her silken dark hair she stood closer to the fire drying off. Occasionally reaching out to touch his arm or even a wing. This reminded him very much of what life was like when he was a young hatchling in the castle. The sense of clan and family and familiarity. Not in the castle with its ultra modernized rooms and computers and screens all over did he ever feel like he belonged. Like he was stepping back to a life he once had. It was an odd feeling. The modern conveniences were great, no doubt about that. But he literally didn't think that him and his brothers had gone out to spend a night in the woods since before they were turned to stone in scotland.
A slim and elegant young woman walked up to Cora and was talking to her, introducing herself. Jonathan coming over and sliding an arm around her waist. Cora didn't raise so much as eye as Brooklyn did. So Cora's younger cousin had a girlfriend too it would seem. He couldn't hear what was said but his feelings changed abruptly when the young woman turned her neck to call someone else over. A very tall and buff young male that Cora didn't seem to know either. And judging from Cora going red in the face and waving her hands in front of her self something was wrong. It took all he had to calmly walk over to hear what was going on.
"Are you sure Cora?" The young women asked. Twirling a strand of hair in her fingers. A beautiful chestnut brown head of hair. And a smattering of freckles across her skin could have almost made her pass for a Harker until Brooklyn caught scent of her. This was the wood witch that Cora and himself had come across the trail of earlier. Which made sense if this was a friend of Jonathan's.
"Very much sure, Brooklyn.." Cora said gesturing subtlety that she wanted him beside her. "This is Jonathan's friend Davina and her brother Oisin."
"One of the gargoyles from Manhattan that Jonathan told us about" Davina said in turn.
"Just a gargoyle. That's it?" Oisin interjected with a snort. Looking down at Brooklyn as he crouched next to Cora before turning to Cora again. "Look babe, are you sure you don't wanna go for a walk with me, tell me all about yourself. I've never met a succubus before."
The look on Coras face was shock quickly turning to anger... Brooklyn didn't say a word. Though the glowing white eyes might have been a fraction of a hint as he growled viciously.
Grunting Oisin shifted and with a roll of his head and neck his form changed like the other witches did. However he had a set of horns and fur and Brooklyn wasn't quite sure what the hell he actually was.
"Enough you two! Enough! Brooklyn doesn't know the etiquette but you sure as fuck do Oisin." Jonathan shouted at the both of them before turning back to the rest of the Macnamara clan. "Up to you Cora." He stated.
If they didn't have the whole beach staring at them before, just for the fun of watching the squabble. Now everyone was in rapt attention.
Cora's eyes had gone huge and she flailed her hands at Jonathan for a second.
"You have to say something Cora, or else its gonna keep happening till the next clan gathering." Jonathan told her, arms crossed over his chest.
"This is totally not our way at all and you know it" She spat back at him.
"She can talk to whomever she likes. But the next male.. or female that bothers her when she very obviously is not interested I will rip their head off their body. I don't care what you are either" Brooklyn growled. Referencing the insult that started the spat.
"And you?" Jonathan asked Cora.
"Obviously. And yes my younglings already know. All six of them." Cora said with a roll of her eyes.
Brooklyn hadn't been paying attention to them but the three younger males had moved in front of their own friends and were ready to back Brooklyn up if need be, however Oisin was not much of a match, even with magic for Brooklyn's age and fighting experience.
"Its settled then. No hard feelings" Jonathan said with a smirk. Davina smiling and shaking her head at him as she sidled up and took his arm. Oisin nodded and backed off rubbing his chest and went to talk to some of the other Harkers that he had come with.
Annoyed, keyed up and frustrated Brooklyn wanted nothing more than to take Cora and get the hell out of here.
"Do you want to go for a walk?" He asked her. Not amused when snorts and laughter broke out again.
"Oh my god" Cora half yelled and started walking up the beach and away from the noise. That included her own younglings. Ignoring them waving cheekily.
"What's wrong. Other than that guy being a dick and wanting to go for a walk with you. What the hell was that guy anyways?" Brooklyn asked. Following Cora as she now stomped up the beach and towards a chunk of woods.
Huffing she kept walking until the beach was out of site around a corner. Not quite out of ear shot so when she turned back to him her voice was somewhere between a hiss and a whisper. She hadn't looked this angry in a while.
"Brooklyn seriously think about it" She hiss whispered to him.
"What do you expect me to do? Just stand around while guys ask you out, when it very obviously makes you uncomfortable. I could tell from many feet away that something was wrong" He replied.
"One, he wasn't asking me to go for just a walk. And I am pretty sure your hormones know exactly what I am talking about. And two you just made it expressly clear what we are to each other ahead of a clan gathering." Cora snapped.
"He wanted you too go have sex with him..? And his fucking sister was encouraging it?" Brooklyn snapped back. His eyes lighting up a bright white and his wings shaking in his anger.
"Well now that you have very publicly asked me to go for a walk what the hell do you think they all think we are doing?" Cora asked exasperated.
"That was not a mating ceremony, or me asking you to marry me for fucks sake Cora." He grunted.
"Gee thanks, but remember our traditions are way way different than yours" She said in annoyance. While she started to stomp deeper off into the woods.
"That's not what I meant and you know it. Ugh don't walk off Cora" Brooklyn asked. Following her.
Snaking his tail out he wrapped it around her waist and pulled her in tight. He didn't wrap his wings around her and instead pulled her up into his arms.
"Hey what the hell are you doing?" Cora asked with a yelp.
"Taking you up stream a bit to some of those cliffs we saw so we can talk privately." Brooklyn told her half exasperated with her. She didn't reply but he thought she might have a whole lot more to say when he landed. And from the touch of her skin her hormones and personal feelings were ricocheting all over the place.