Private--Home on the Range

The heartbeat of the hoofs could be heard in the distance, all the information was there that she needed to know. He was coming, as she had hoped he would follow stalling only for a few more moments as the beats sounded closer. Squeezing her thighs against the mare, she would start forward, curling her legs back holding them at a slightly arched angle she waited. Breathless whispers counted… “I….2….3…..” with a quick kick inward with her heels the mare would take off. Giving him only a second to care her, the game reminded her of one she used to play with her twin brother all the time.

A very gentle expression swept over her face as the locks of her hair dusted freely against the wind. She enjoyed the feeling of riding the horse; it has been far too long since she took to the stables. Keeping her thoughts clear she wanted to show Gunnar some of the more beautiful parts of the country side. They would eventually head down towards the village, but for now they would enjoy the serenity of nature. The hoof beats of the horse picked up as she continued to kick her heels into the mare, leaning forward just a bit to offset her weight. She did not look behind her, for he was there she could feel it, she knew he followed.

The thought caused a smile to linger a little bit longer on her lips than it should. She would not use any type of charm on the old ranch hand. There was a hunger deep within her being, she wanted him to understand. The country side passed them with every gallop she headed due east. Looking over at the lowering sun, she did not wait. This was home to her, she had nothing to fear.

A lone willow tree on the hill stood ever tall, its branches only inches away from the ground. She smile as she rose up on the bare back of the mare and headed up the hill. Resting back against the horse once more as they reached the top only to lead the mare onwards to the tree, reaching her arms out she would brush a doorway through the branches only to drop them and reside inside. Turning she would wait to see if the ranch hand cowboy would be coming in with his stead.

As he rode, Gunnar became one with his horse. Heartbeat and hoof beat blended, a quick tempo that drove them onward. The ex-ranch hand leaned into the wind, the horse’s mane whipping against his neck as he craned it forward. Master and mount, head side by side, equal in their desire, their need to run. As one, they galloped after the vampiress. Both Ailis and Gunnar tested the speed of their steeds, and their own skill and control.

The chase was both familiar and strange to the former hunter. How many times had he on horseback run down similar monsters? But yet, his goal tonight was to understand, not destroy.

At least if the nagging suspicions at the back of his mind, the paranoia that had kept him alive all his years as a hunter, was wrong. Just in case old instincts were right, old lessons true, Gunnar still has his twin revolvers holstered at his hips, the straps keeping them settled and still along his thighs as he rode. If things turned ugly, she wouldn’t be the first vampire he put down. Even as the aged gunman considered the possibility killing Ailis, his former weariness returned. He’d spent too many years as both predator and prey. He had hoped to find in Caislin Hallows a peaceful haven. Unfortunately, it seemed the school was anything but that, given its populace.

Gunnar slowed his steed, his pulse slowing as well as the thrill of pursuit diminished, as he neared the vampiress leading her horse up the hill. The ex-hunter’s joints popped as he swung a leg over the horse and dismounted, so that he could join at the crest of the knoll with its lonely willow tree. Even though he had questions, Gunnar kept his silence for the moment, allowing her to continue to lead.

The beats of the horse’s drum told her all that she needed to know, it was amazing that the vampire could overcome so many temptations. Even sitting upon her own mare she could feel the blood coursing through the horse’s life line. For a brief moment you could see the density of her eyes shift, but it lasted mere seconds before returning to their natural state. As much as royalty was in her blood riding a horse western style instead of English would cause her father to roll over in his own grave so to speak. A smirk spread across the cresting moon lips that turned upwards at the thought.

Complete control was something that you could see in her, she always knew what was going on and always had the final say in the matters of the college. Yet, it was rare that she would take the time away from the college as she had just chosen to do with ex ranch hand. Grabbing the horse’s mane in a quick fluid sweep of her right leg she would dismount the horse on the left side. Landing perfectly alongside the mare, the horse’s nostrils flared innocent pinks as she pressed her palm against its nose.

A single hand would rise and stroke the mare’s neck as her eyes were set on the branches of the willow tree that ever swayed in the light breeze. Long tresses of hair fell around her shoulders only a smile would remain on her lips, seeing him come into the shield of the tree. Watching his stance it was slightly rigid she knew that despite his maybe too soon to call it trust on her he was on his guard. With this time away she hoped to gain his trust in her, for what she was and could become.

With poise she would continue to stand with her mare and rub her hand over the pelt of the horse lightly, keeping her own stance very relaxed. Though, she knew if he wanted he could harm her, but she did not think he would unless pushed over the edge. In a noble and yet alluring tone she would speak to him, as her eyes returned to the horse in hopes he would move a little closer.

“I see that you know how to in truth be one with the horse. How to feel what the horse feels, which I might add is a very rare trait. You have proven that to me by being able to keep up with me. Now you are here…. Where would you like me to begin?”

Gunnar held the reins tight, using them as a lead rope, as he guided his steed up the hill, and approached the mysterious vampire maiden that had conked him on the head with a chest bound in chains weeks ago, who promised him answers to the questions that begged to be asked, nagged at him like the bite of a horsefly. Keeping the mount near, he stopped a few feet from the monster in the form of a woman. Worse come to worse, if it came down to him or the horse, the beast would have to be a shield.

Self-preservation—without that simple instinct, Gunnar would’ve already been six feet under or buzzard bait rotting on the prairie. Habit guided his free hand to one of the gun at his hip, fingers draped over the smooth wood of the handle, as he listened to her speak. Her compliment was answered without a flicker of emotion on his weathered face, just a simple struggle of his shoulders and a soft utterance of: “Know ‘nough tah get by.”

“Pa always said the best place tah start was the beginning, and he never steered me wrong,” answered the ex hunter, implying his suggestion with one of the few mentions of his past. Ready, waiting, for anything, Gunnar watched the vampiress as a gentle breeze fluttered her gown, spilling the cloth into the open air like a slow cascade. The allure of the woman was lost to him, all he saw was a monster, standing in front of him, offering an exchange of information for her life, for trust not so easily given.

“From the beginning” breathed softly, staring point blank at the ranch hand before her. The beginning was by far the happiest part of her memory, when she was considered normal and loved by her brother. Life so easily given and taken, very few understood what it truly was to live. There was no choice in the matter she had to have help being that Sarthas had gone astray for the time being. Information was power; therefore she would offer him just that.

Moving towards the trunk of the tree she was moving slow, away from the ranch hand giving him space so he would not feel threatened. The poise of her moment was prefect and the motion was almost undetected. Looking back over her shoulder as she stood there against the rough bark of the tree she would start.

“I was born and raised in this castle; I learned everything I know from within these walls. Which includes both life and death, including my own,” she would turn and look to him with golden eyes, as innocent as she appeared could really a creature such as she be trusted. “I once had a twin brother named Keegan, I loved him with my heart and soul. The night I lost my life to a stranger my entire world turned upside down. Keegan blamed himself for not protecting me…”

She would stop for a moment as if she needed time to collect herself, but the truth of the matter was she was ok with this truth. She has had years to cope with the idea, to cope with the hate. “He hunts me and those of my kind. He will stop at nothing to try and over throw the University because of the types that are bound to it.”
Folding her arms gently against her chest she would continue as she looked straight forward as the blowing willow trees.

As old as the gunman seemed, despite only being in his mid-thirties, as ancient as his ways were, he was no historian. Gunnar’s education was like his pistols, reliable but not very advanced. For his hard life, it’d been enough for him to get by—survival instincts had been more important than book learning. His education might be as simple as his revolvers, but just like the simple design, his intelligence never failed him. Even so, he was unsure of what time period the vampiress belonged to, even though she spoke of having been raised in the castle. For all he knew, she could date back half a millennia.

Gunnar gave a slow nod, acknowledging all that she said once she had explained her beginnings, the fact that she had a twin whose love had turned to hatred. Again, he wondered how ancient the vampiress was, as if her brother was still alive, and abhorred the unnatural, then she could not be too old, could she? Gunnar questioned Keegan’s motives and methods, but he exhaled, as if breathing out the questions before speaking one more pertinent: “So, yah brought me here to protect yah and yer kind?” Gunnar stared at the vampiress, emerald eyes following her as she positioned herself near the willow—he was not going to let her out of his sight, though he knew that as a creature of the night, she very well might be able to flit away before he could even so much as turn his head.

A breath lightly taken, and gently exhaled there was more to the story being written just the details over the years had collected some dust like the restricted section in the library. The maiden though only seemed grow even finer like wine sitting on a self, contemplating on how far she wanted this to go. She needed him more than he could ever comprehend or know, but to ask one to give their life for a cause that she almost believed was impossible was wrong. Good vs. Evil, so many times lately had only the evil survived.

The mystery of a woman was never to reveal her age, and she wouldn’t the only one within the castle walls that knew it was a beautiful maiden herself. The topic was closed and she kept it that way for various reasons, the same reasons that she kept the school grounds the way it was. Money did not matter, only memories for it was all that she had left. The look on her face was more than a simple expression, it was the tale of a lifelong lived, experiencing many things in her time.

“Keegan, is not dead that I do know and I am certain. I am not sure how he has survived so long but I can tell you that the reasons the hell hounds are attacking having something to do with it. There is a disturbance in the balance of good and evil, and there are very few left to stand for it.”

The flames of his eyes attempted to snuff hers out, but it was a dance all the same, and hers would never be extinguished by the hand of man. Keeping her back turned away from the ex- ranch hand she would continue to speak as her hand ran long side the bark of the tree.

“I need your help in protecting the students and the grounds. Caislin is no longer safe… a great wave of change is upon us. Asking for help is generally not in my nature, but experiencing the things in life that disrupt the balance. I need it.”

Turning she would appear almost child-like with her expressions, yet very firm. No tricks where played even though it was tempting she promised him that she wouldn’t. She was quite powerful indeed, but in an army of one, the turn of events would not be successful.

Even though he had been a hunter, a slayer of all the demons and wraiths in the night, Gunnar understood that the world wasn’t as simple as good and evil. They were just words, ideas, meant for philosophers and not suited for the harshness of reality. The world was as gray as the sky before the dawn or dusk, and the shades were just as difficult to differentiate from first glance. His own life had been one shrouded in the hues of twilight, walking the border between day and night, as he murdered monsters to protect others for money. He had been nothing but a mercenary, killing for pay, and claiming his work was right. Too often had he stared in the frightful eye of a beast before pulling the trigger. Too often had he worked for men as evil as the monsters he killed. And here, again, the woman, a vampire, stood before him, offering him shelter and employment as her weapon against the evils she feared. And what of the evil that Keegan fears? wondered Gunnar as he met her gaze.

But money was money; a bed, a bed; and Gunnar could not survive without them. He had intended to leave the life of a gunman behind, back in the States, but his reputation kept him a target, danger a curse that fell upon any close to him, so he’d had no option but to flee or fight, and he was so very wary of the latter. With a heavy sigh, exhaling into the cool night air, Gunnar gave a nod. “Guess I’ll be needing to keep my guns after all—had hoped to hang ‘em up finally,” he stated in his slow drawl. Gunnar’s lids lowered and he shook his head, when the motion stopped, his eyes opened and he stared up to the moon above, visible through the leaves and limbs of the tree. “Too bad, would’ve been nice to retire here.”

Wishful thinking was something she gave up as a child having gone through many tragedies in her life. Death was something, that did not haunt her anymore, she had seen so many go on before her, and protected those that she could. A maiden she was one of a dying breed and perhaps her end was more near that she expected. Death was untimely and always arrived in the black shroud in the night to steal away the tainted and innocent souls alike.

The question she presented Gunnar with had weighed very heavy on her mind from some time. She had not had a partner in crime so to speak, but this time they would be fighting the balance, and one of them she knew wouldn’t come back from it. The balance has a sacrifice, and it is never something simple. The strength within his gaze she felt it, he was reluctant and yet he was certain. Two traits that normally do not go hand in hand, but they seemed to suit him well.

The honey dipped voice coated her words as her own gaze did not pull back from his. She maintained a distance, the fact she was a monster she was unsure how much the man actually trusted her.

“I am a monster. I cannot change what I am. I am that which has to take a life to live. There are no lies, I am the living dead. Yet, I promise I will never attack those that are in our walls for protection. Even in my weakest moments as you recall, I have great control.”

Pausing for a moment she would begin to step towards the light that the canopy provided, as her facial features started to change in the light. Slowly the human features would melt away, even the beauty still remained, but it was a different type of beauty. The face of a killer, she waited for him to think it was a trick and move for his handguns, she anticipated it.

This would not be the first or the last time the man would see her true form if he joined her.

“'Nd what ah those outside ah Caislin Hallows? Do yah hunt ‘em freely?” Even as Gunnar asked his question, he looked upon the mask of the vampire, the drawn out features that still remained some almost alien beauty. It was a face he’d seen before, not quite human, not quite beast, but definitely monster. He quelled the instinct that was already guiding his hands back to his twin guns. The ex-hunter wasn’t particularly sure for what reason she was putting on her little show, but he let her do it all the same, since he’d yielded to her lead. It wasn’t like he could stop her, short of a good bullet between the eyes, even then that might not do it, much less it’d be hard to do.

When he realized she was waiting for his reaction, the gunman gave a subdued shrug of his shoulders. There wasn’t anything for him to say or really do in response. Their conversation seemed to amount to little more than each making statements about himself or herself and gauging the other’s reaction. It was hardly an enjoyable or productive discussion.

Turning from him she would rest her hand against the tree leaving herself open, yet she doubted that he would. A moment would pass and she would turn around just as beautiful as before, she would move carefully with each step towards the ex-ranch hand.

Reaching her hand up towards his cheek in an attempt to braces it with the chill of her hand. She would use the power of charm against him once more just to smooth him around the ridges.

“How about if you wish to retire you do so? You can live in the stable house for as long as you like. I do not require your services, I only wished to have them.”A gentle smile would succumb to her lips as she stared at him for a moment later. Leaning forward she would attempt to press the chill of her lips against the warmth of his cheek.

“You are a brave man Gunnar, lay your guns to rest for a change. If I ever need you I know how to find you.”

In the distance her mare would neigh lightly as she started to walk towards her, holding up her hand the large beast would move towards her placing its nose against the palm of her hand. Raising her hand towards its neck she would look back over towards the man. Curious to see what kind of stance she left him in. He could chose for himself but it was her duty to head back towards the Castle and oversea the grounds.

“I leave you with your choice.”
Grasping the hair of the mare once more she would hoist herself upon its bare back.

With the weight upon its back it would snort a few times and then take off in a gallop the way that they had come. A smile remained on her lips as if she knew the choice he would make.

(Begins to exit the thread unless stopped)