Voice in my head || Dappled

tag; dappled

In the late afternoon of the day, Grayson found himself in the battle arena sweeping up some debris from the class that had just finished up. Even though he had been ready to go home, one of the teachers had asked him if he could clean up and the werewolf had nodded obligingly grabbing a broom and a dust pan that had a long handle attached to it so that he could easily carry it wherever he wanted.

A full moon was going to happen in the next two weeks and Gray could already start to feel its effects. His naturally grey eyes would flash yellow from time to time when he was feeling an extreme amount of emotion, it was a headache for the man - but he had learned over the years that if he fought the animal inside that it was only going to turn out worse for him in the long run.

Whistling an ancient tune that he couldn't quite remember where he had heard it from, Grayson let out a small sigh and moved his broom against the hard dirt - catching the occasional wadded up paper along with burnt pieces of straw. The lone immortal stood peacefully in the battle arena as he cleaned, clad in a loose fitting black hoodie, light blue jeans and grey tennis shoes. As the wind blew, Gray looked up briefly from his cleaning - noting the sun on the horizon and the occasional patch of melted slushy snow. Shaking his head, the werewolf went back to his sweeping.

chase

    Searching for some peace and quiet so he could transform, Chase had sought out the battle arena. Surely at this time at night, he'd be allowed to undergo the painful transition. And, even if it happened that the beast didn't want to emerge, he had to be ready. He'd armed himself with a disposable sweatshirt and pair of sweatpants that he knew would inevitably turn to shreds at some point, while his change of clothes was in a drawstring bag he slung over his right shoulder. The full moon was always an unusually active time for the creature, but Chase was pretty sure that he had some time before then. Not much, but enough to prepare himself and plan out a schedule.
    He loathed nights like these, nights when his senses were heightened and the thirst for a warm corpse was literally starting to drive him insane. The very heartbeats and distant smells of squirrels and birds were enough to set him on edge, as ridiculous as it sounded. Imagining their pulses running wild with fear and adrenaline caused him to involuntarily salivate at the thought of fresh blood sliding in thick waves down his throat... Chase snapped himself out of his the haze to observe his surroundings, wiping a bit of drool from the corner of his mouth. A few flecks of yellow dotted his iris as a visual indication of the beast's enhanced presence as he surveyed the landscape; vacant. A contented smile briefly flashed across his face. Finally, he thought, starting to exhale, before catching the distant scent of someone else. Someone with the similar, musty scents of Foresta Academy.
    Chase's disappointment was written all over his face. Of course, he had to happen on the arena when a janitor was there to sweep up. Well, there wasn't time for his awkward formalities, and he'd have to take the situation head on. That was exactly what he didn't need. As he slowly approached the man, his face became increasingly familiar... Oh. It was his guidance counselor, the man he'd been introduced to when he arrived at the academy. He'd made a point not to utilize him while he was attending the school. "Excuse me," he called out to the man, his voice betraying a slight wobble, "How much longer will you be? I need to use this space for training." The lie came to him pretty easily, and understandably so. It was the building energy and tension in his chest and muscles that posed as a threat to his guise.

Grayson was about halfway done with his sweeping when a male student called out to him, causing the werewolf to stop and look in the direction of the voice. Inhaling deeply through his nose, Gray recognized the student's scent as being something similar to his own. It was easy for the immortal to identify quickly that they both harbored beasts in their being. "You really think the beast in you can be trained?" Gray said to the boy then, not so much mockingly but as in he actually couldn't believe that the boy was wanting to train as all. "You'd be better off shooting an apple off a moving target with a bow and arrow, that is unless you have excellent aim." Grayson let out a little snort then - laughing at his own joke.

"If you insist though, I'll be done here shortly. Just go sit on the bleachers or something," Grayson waved his hand at the boy dismissively then. Starting back up with his sweeping, Gray continued to hum to himself once more. The tune was old, to say the least - no matter how many times he hummed it though Gray couldn't remember the actual song. The werewolf had grown used to these sort of memory lapses though. Living on the island had offered him a slow pace sort of lifestyle, something that immortal had quickly grown used too.

chase

    So much for being inconspicuous. Chase was almost positive that his lie was convincing, but the other man's response argued otherwise, "You really think the beast in you can be trained?" Jeez. It was abrupt and to the point, but incredibly disarming. "Wh-What? How..?" the boy murmured, his brow knitted into befuddled frown. But, after a deep inhale, Chase realized what he'd done. Like himself, there was a subtle animal scent lingering on the man's clothes. Earthy and familiar, the smell was mildly comforting. Of course, the boy recognized that there were probably going to be a few other werebeasts in Foresta Academy's attendance, but he hadn't stumbled upon any of them yet. Besides, it wasn't likely that they were as ravenous and mundanely animalistic as he was, right? He probably had the dumbest beast of them all, and somehow that was even more demeaning than just having a beast in the first place.
    Regardless of his obliviousness, Chase was perturbed. This guy.. Understood. No amount of sympathy could amount to the empathy and true understanding that this janitor undoubtedly knew. "What do you know?" he asked rather abruptly, surprising himself at the rushed tone in his voice "I mean, uh... Do you know how to stop it? How to stop transformations? Or maybe how to get rid of it?" Words spilled out his mouth like bile, sour to think about but rather plain in content. Nobody, not a single person had he met that even could fathom what he experienced each day. The questions might've been simple, but if this man had somehow discovered the secrets behind them, Chase's life could be free from this hell. He waited with bated breath for the man's response, only half-hoping that his future lay in the balance.

{ooc: sorry for the shortness!! i wasn't sure how chase was gonna react, he's a little dumbfounded}

Gray wasn't really surprised at Chase's shock, he was after all just a pup. Pausing to think for a moment, Grayson shook his head at the thought - no, he wasn't a werewolf he knew that much. He did have a beast in him, he was able to smell it a mile away - it was just a different type, something very different compared his own.

Stopping his sweeping once more, Gray turned to the boy then "There is no stopping 'it'." Gray warned the boy in - putting emphasis on the word it. "Well taught witches may be your only salvation, but I highly doubt you'd find any experienced ones here. Witches who toy with beasts prefer to remain a mystery." Gray took a breath then, shaking his head at the thought.

"I believe the last time I came across a witch capable of dealing with hidden beasts was 150 years ago, honestly you're just better of learning about your beast then how to get rid of it." Looking thoughtful, the immortal shrugged - adjusting his hoodie momentarily. When he was younger, Gray did try and figure out how to get back to his normal life. The witch in question though had convinced him otherwise, she had looked into his soul - seeing the murder of his family by werewolves and how he and his sister were the only ones to survive. Gray had no idea where his sister was now, but he was sure that they would see each other again one day - looking nostalgic for a moment.

Shaking his head once more, Gray started to moved toward the entrance of the battle arena - there was a hidden storage room where various cleaning supplies were kept. "Just don't fight it," Gray said to the boy then quite simply. "Your life will be so much easier then."

chase

    Uplifting was the best word for it. This was surreal, unbelievable, even. Chase knew that he was probably putting all of his eggs in the wrong basket, but he was beyond desperate. If someone had even an inkling to restore his life, to prevent anyone from ever getting hurt by his hand ever again, it would be a miracle. And, perhaps one was standing right in front of him.  
    "There is no stopping 'it'."
    "You've got to be kidding me," Chase blurted out bitterly, dismissing whatever the man said about experienced witches and their lack of talent nowadays. As if that information was going to help him in the slightest. He felt a surge of rage rise and quickly fall in his chest, suppressing the emotion to maintain a front for the beast, "Why waste my time learning about this when it literally lives inside of me? What more do I have to learn?" He exhaled a humorless laugh, "How do you think my life will be easier by letting it win? I mean, c'mon, that has to be the most ridiculous logic!" Chase took a few steps backwards, running his hand through his hair as his dry smile widened considerably, "So you think that creatures like us should just be content with a living hell? Personally, that sounds much, much worse to me." A few splatters of yellow bled into his brown iris, and he could feel the beast stirring restlessly in his chest. He knew he shouldn't be getting so worked up over this, but it seemed wrong not to be. And, maybe he wanted to see just how on earth this man planned on defending his argument.

{ooc: sorry for the shortness! i have plans to make the posts onger soon}

Gray wasn't completely surprised at Chase's blatant disbelief, he had come across a lot of people afflicted with his curse or a curse similar to his own and most reactions to it stayed about the same - they didn't want it. Of course, who would want to turn into some animal against their will? Gray's brows raised up high for a moment and he let out a small breath of disappointment, at this point - he highly doubted there would be anything he could say that would really get across to this kid.

It was when Gray was staring at Chase that he noticed the monster inside him reveal itself briefly through the yellow in his eyes, "The longer you choose to ignore it the more of a shell you will become," Gray started off - standing up straighter and taking a step toward Chase. "The person you used to know will fade away and the beast will take over you, all you know and love if it hasn't already disappeared will be destroyed over and over again." Gray's voice started to get deeper as he spoke, almost as if there was a guttural growl coming from deep within his chest.

"If you want to be an animal, then by all means DO NOT bother separating yourself from it at all and fight it all day. Give in for all I care, go live in the forest and kill students at night and then get yourself killed because the way I see it kid you are on a losing streak."

chase

    Maybe it was the generation gap, but Chase had an inclination that this guy just didn't get it, which was pretty unbelievable for a werebeast like himself. If he had to guess, he'd probably blame the guy's lackadaisical outlook on age. Still, he found it pretty unforgivable. "Really, that's what you think?" he asked sardonically, "So, by ignoring it I'll have my life destroyed over and over again, but if I accept it I'll also have my life destroyed in exactly the same way. Well that just seems like a win-win to me!" Sarcasm tasted bitter and foreign on his tongue, but it fueled the animal now clawing at its mental restraints. And, as horrible as the creature was, the boy couldn't deny the sick satisfaction it brought to him. Hell, this guy was basically asking for it.
    "Well," he began, his anger coming to a terrifying boil the moment he was accused of being on a 'losing streak,' "I've been on that streak for as long as I remember, and I'm fucking sick of it. How can I believe you of all people, to preach to me about how to handle my abilities? Frankly, it looks like you haven't gotten very far with your methods. Isn't the goal to get away from Foresta so we can live our lives among non-magical people?" He was shouting by the time he'd finished his incredulous accusation, "You've just given up, and I don't see--" Just as he'd truly started to scream, Chase felt a distinct kick in his gut, and his eyes bled into a steady yellow. It was already too late. Without being able to form words without releasing an involuntary growl or two, he just put his hand over his mouth and turned away. His body trembled violently as the seizure grew closer, and the boy knew he only had a few minutes longer until a transformation took place. He made large, sweeping motions with his hands, as if to warn the janitor to get as far away from him as possible. Hopefully, being another werebeast, he'd take the hint.

Chase had started out on an extreme rant and it was a combination of not having the chance and not caring to interject that caused Gray to remain quiet all the way up until Chase suddenly stopped - and Gray recognized what was happening before Chase even started to wave his hands as if he were trying to shoo him away.

Letting out a sigh, Gray looked all around him in an attempt to figure out what he would do with the boy within the seconds or minutes it took for the young man to transform. It wasn't like he could just leave him to wreak havoc in the battle arena - any unassuming student who couldn't defend themselves could easily walk into the situation and get hurt.

Feeling some sort of responsibility for provoking the boy in the first place, Gray looked out toward the other entrance into the battle arena. If he had the boy follow him that way, he could virtually lead him out into the forest - away from a lot of students. Also looking toward the sky, Gray noted that the night was almost upon them - and the full moon definitely wasn't happening tonight.

It was better that way, Gray thought to himself then. He could take care of Chase and not have to worry about himself in the long run. He knew his powers were amplified right now though, which was the only reason he was considering baiting the beast Chase was about to turn into in the first place.

[ooc; We can put this idea on hold for another time, Dapp or just simply retcon it!!]