Loona and the Stolen Sense-Feather - Chapter 6: A Dose of Humility
#6 of Loona and the Stolen Sense-Feather
Summary: Loona is tasked to retrieve an important magic item belonging to Stolas from Reynard the Trickster. She finds him in the misty woods of Limbo, where she is taught how agility and trickery can beat out brute force. However, this isn't the only lesson she learns...
I've been a writer for quite a few years, but this is the first story I've felt like I truly got right. If you enjoyed what you've read, it would mean the world to me if you would take the time to share it with one other person, and then ask them to do the same.
Chapter Notes: We finally get the chance to calm the raging beastie. Back in chapter three, Reynard uses a bit of this trick to get her to settle down some. I had to think, while writing, how to get Loona to actually stop and listen to her enemy. Sure, she can develop some respect for his skills, but if things are going to take an intimate turn, there needs to be a bigger shift than even that.
In my eyes, there's some sort of darkness in Loona's past. She's socially withdrawn and awkward, and an adoption at late-17 is a very strange circumstance. When placed alongside other hellhounds, Loona also seems to be relatively small, potentially causing problems for her. She has also been shown to respect or even admire strength in others. There's a lot under the surface, that's for sure. Maybe we can find some answers in Season 2.
Chapter 6 - A Dose of Humility
Loona thrashes at the end of her tether. " Raahhrgh!!" She is seething with agitation and embarrassment. Far from catching her quarry, she is the one strung up and defeated. Tensing her leg muscles, she attempts to swing closer to Reynard, reaching out with her arms and trying to lay even a single finger on him. His eyes look upon her with a patient sadness.
He persists on staying out of her range. He moves behind her and she grabs wildly towards her back, searching for even a hair to snatch from his pelt. Having lost sight of him, she once again tries to flex her torso and reach upward to sever her bonds; a challenging task under normal circumstances. In short order, however, the feather strikes her armpit, and the tension she held in her abdominals is released.
She's sent into another fit of laughter, wriggling her body to the side and causing herself to begin to spin around again. " Haaah -haha_ha_-hawwooo hoo-_ haah _-hah-oww, oof, arrgh! Let me go!" This has been going on for several minutes, now. Any time she reaches out, he backs away or vanishes. Any time she tries to cut herself down, he comes at her with the feather.
"You--, hahah, cheap sonnova'bitch, I'm not your toy! When I get free, I'm going to rip off your tail and shove it up your--" and when she gets too aggressive, "Hehhgh heh-_ tchooo ! Hah-gh'_tchhhhk. Hii_iiyeh_ iihk -tch-_ hooo _!!" He'd sneak through and shut her up. Feeling dizzy and light headed, the hellhound pants lightly, and for the moment at least, chooses to be silent. Thus far, when she has played along, Reynard has been much more forthcoming. There's sure to be something he wants after going through all this effort.
Her arms dangle towards the ground, her long silver hair swaying alongside them, the hairspray bonds soggy and weak from the moist air. Her penta-top is flipped downwards revealing the bottom of the bra cups, and her tail inverted showing the curves of her butt. She still has on the thick gloves, and things would likely be far worse without them, but they haven't given her anything she would call an advantage.
"Loona, please, be civilized. I've been telling you, I simply wish to have a conversation. If you go on shouting and cursing, we'll never be done here." He brushes his cane, once again sheathed, against her back. In doing so, he eases her once again into a neutral position so he can face her clearly. Stepping calmly in front of her, he waits before speaking, to ensure she is willing to actively listen to his words.
The hellhound glares down her muzzle, crossing her arms in front of her chest. Gaze pointing more towards the treetops, she stares at the underside of the fox's pointed snout. Its white point tilts downwards to meet her gaze, and without his top hat distracting her, she makes contact with his fierce eyes, a sparkling gold in a sea of black. The fur of his head is fluffy and thick, somewhat wavy. He leans slightly on his cane, holding the feather beside him and glancing at it, while watching Loona closely with his peripheral vision.
"Did you know? This feather can do many, many things. Thus far you've only experienced a small sampling." He waits for a reaction. She continues to glare, her tail twitching slightly. "Perhaps I should demonstrate something new." He takes a step closer, and she immediately sets into a low growl. "Dear, I'm going to have to ask you to trust me. Thus far, have any of my words been untrue?" Her growl slows as she contemplates this.
She tries a few lines of thought, and in doing so, also recalls something Stolas said. It's not harmful. Finding nothing to immediately contest with, the rumble in her throat stops, and she tracks the fox with her eyes as he disappears behind her. Subconsciously, she tenses her tail in an effort to cover her rear. A short moment later, she feels the feather brushing down her back, as if he is trying to pet her with it. A ripple surges down her spine, and that small feeling quadruples, then quadruples again, like a thousand brushes are stroking her back all at once.
A lifetime of tension begins to release, and muscles all over her body relax and soften. Her jaw unclenches and her tail flops down, landing on the fox. She can feel him squeezing it with his hand, running his claws through it with a light pampering touch. He takes longer strokes now, going from her neck to the base of her tail, and then to the tip of it as he holds it up above him. It feels like the ultimate spa day. "Satan's Ba~a~a~alls..." she rumbles in approval.
Releasing her tail, he reaches up as high as he can manage and pushes back her leg stockings, to brush the feather along her leg muscles. "Hnng~." Loona lets out a small whine of pleasure, not even realizing she did so. At this point her arms have dropped, hanging outstretched. He slides the gloves off, as well as her fingerless ones, and applies the feather evenly to both. When he finishes, he moves back in front of her, and finds her expression has completely changed from earlier.
She is still holding her head forward, but her eyes are glazed over and somewhat vacant. Her cheeks are pulled back with a grin, showing the slightest amount of teeth. On her left side, the tip of her tongue is hanging out, which she slurps back inside as soon as her eyes acknowledge Reynard's presence and the extended touch of the feather fades. Stepping close and bending low down to match her eye level, he holds her hair back and strokes the feather across her forehead, back towards her ears.
The feeling that she had earlier, the one that brought forth the memory of her mother, returns to her. This time, she can remember her mom licking her face, cleaning off a mess of tears. A twinge of pain is tied to this memory, of being bullied for her size. But even then, the memory is a precious one, and she begins to cry.
Taken aback, Reynard stops the stroking immediately. "Oh dear, oh dear. Perhaps I did too much at once. Pretty Loona, don't cry." He wipes away the tears and muck that's developed over the course of the day with his thumbs. She sniffles and gives a swallow, but says nothing as she lets the sensation linger with her for just a little longer. Reynard steps back to arm's length, waiting patiently. When her mood holds, and she doesn't return to thrashing, he softly asks, "If I let you down, will you behave? It's much more pleasant this way."
Loona nods calmly, having accepted her defeat. She does happen to spot her gloves protruding from his belt, and understands that she's in no position to fight back now, even if she felt like it. "Right. Give me a moment then, and I'll cut you down." She expects him to fade away again, into the mists, but instead he walks past her. She can hear a scratching noise, and then he calls out to her, "Brace yourself, I'm going to cut it now. Three, two..."
The ground rushes up at her, and she tenses her arms. Careful to not land on her hair, she turns the fall into a forward roll. This ends with her sitting on the grass, thick tail laid out between her legs. She crosses them, encircling her tail, it sprouting from between like a fluffy plant. She leans forward, feeling slightly dizzy, and begins to massage her head as the blood flow shifts and returns to normal. Across from her, Reynard takes a seat, legs bent, long lower joints laid flat across the ground.
Still unsure of what he actually wants, but enjoying the lingering magical sense of calm, she decides to wait for him to speak. He's gone through a lot of trouble so far, and she can't help but find respect in the mastery he has shown. And, looking at him in the midday light as its beams filter through the treetops, without his silly costume, without being upside-down... She at last admits to herself, he's actually kind of cute...