Lucian gave a pathetic chuckle from the ground, leaving his arms and wings splayed out. They were talking about paying rent and keeping the apartment open for them. That was great and all but honestly, how were they going to get money? They couldn't stay in one place for too long. Hell, he was just having a conflict with trying to figure out how to keep the dogs so that Aneria could have her little pack around for longer than a small time. "We can't be paying these people. If we do get any cash, it'll have to go to food." He slowly sat up, his eyes lingering on the girl who flashed him a dazzling smile, which caused him to grimace slightly before he turned his eyes to the older gentleman. "Unless you're willing to give us this apartment for pennies on the dollar, we can't pay. Give us the day and probably night and we'll get out of your hair but we definitely can't do anything other than that." The gentleman stared down at Lucian, more out of thought before he grumbled and began to slowly pace in front of the door. It was obvious their situation troubled him quite a bit and he wanted to help in some way but couldn't just give them the apartment for free because of pack politics. Lucian looked over at Aneria from the corner of his eye, giving a light shrug before the man finally came to a stop and faced them. His eyes locked on Aneria and his frown deepened as he crossed his arms in front of his chest.

"We can't do anything for angel boy over here," he said, Lucian throwing his hands up in the air at the name calling but the man continued as if Lucian wasn't there at all,"but you are wolf and quite a capable one." The woman caught on what the gentleman was getting at and balked at the idea.

"You have got to be kidding me?! Her?"

"Hush," The man growled and she snapped her teeth closed with an audible clack before she growled, locking her eyes on Aneria and baring her teeth at her.

The man stepped forward, thumping on his chest loudly twice. "As alpha of this pack and controller of this territory, I formally invite you to join our pack. The pack lives free in this apartment complex and they can have any guests or roommates they want." He stuck the bottom of his palm into his mouth and dug his fangs into his palm, dragging them down and cutting along his palm and causing two deep gashes. He extended that now bloody palm out for her, his eyes flashing as he watched her, expecting her to do the same if she accepted his invite. The shewolf said nothing but just glared at Aneria from behind her alpha.

Lucian sat silent on the floor, unsure of what to say. It was up to Aneria on whether or not she accepted the offer or not. It woukd be incredibly helpful to have a wolf pack behind them but it could also put that pack in danger if the people who were ever after them came to get them. A frown was planted firmly on his face as he fixated on the bloody extended hand. Taking that hand meant a lot of things for them, good and bad. But ultimately, it was Aneria who was joining, not him. In the end, he could cut and run but she would be forever linked if she chose to take the deal.

So many things went through his mind as he sat there, waiting for her response.



"Please, please just let me go." An average looking man asked as he knelt on the cement, his eyes wide with panic and streaks of blood plastered along his cheeks. There were dark shadow tendrils that were coiled around his wrists and ankles, keeping him bound and held in place. A woman paced around him, a wispy black dress flowing around her like a brisk wind was blowing although the air was still. Her black hair ended in the same black tendrils that bound the man and it flowed much like her dress, smoking off and dissolving off into nothing. She circle around him and crouched in front of him, pitch black eyes peering into his steel grey ones.

"Why do you look so human?" She asked as she reached out to rest a hand gently on his cheek. "Gargoyles are supposed to be grisly creatures made of stone and yet you look human." A frown crossed her face before she whispered, "let's change that." Her fingers dug into his cheek, sinking into his skin as if it were quicksand. The man screamed put in agony as her hand dug deeper and deeper, her head tilting as if she were looking for something. Suddenly a grin crossed her face as she grabbed a hold of something under the skin. "There you are." She pulled and his gargoyle form was ripped to the surface. Within moments, a stone giant was kneeling before her, breathing heavy with large wings hanging limply behind him. She had a firm grip of his cheek and lip. She grinned wider and released him before giving him a firm pat on the cheek and standing up. She pulled a rag from her pocket and wiped her hand clean before she peered down at the large beast in front of her. "Just needed to make sure I had my mark. Now that I know I do, I can turn you in." She tapped the ground with her foot and the shadows under the gargoyle began to expand out from under him. He began to sink into the shadows, panic causing him to begin flailing as he sank.

"Oh no, no. We can have that." She grinned viciously as shadowly hands reached up and grasped a hold of the gargoyle and pulled him down faster. She walked up to the dark pit and watched him sink, smiling into his desperate gaze as he sank into the abyss. Once he vanished, she tool a moment to check her nails on the hand she had cleaned before she stepped into the shadows herself, disappearing into them herself.

She may be sitting on the ground, a puppy in her lap and hardwood beneath her thighs and palms. But she feels adrift and her head won't settle on a solid thought, eyes staring forward but not focusing on the bloody hand being held out. There's silence in the apartment, but her ears are roaring with the pounding of her own heart and nothing else.

She can't make that decision. She couldn't decide on something like this after literally just having faught against the pair not even ten minutes ago. She's not flailing right now because she's frozen where she's seated, Lucian's body heat a solid presence at her side. She swallows around a tight throat, fingers twitching against Echo's fur and her thigh.

A cool nose nudging agaisnt her cheek jolts Aneira into motion, little paws pressing against her collarbone has her eyes blinking rapidly. Pipper has her head tilted to the side, Echo looks unimpressed even as he lowers himself to his hunches once more. "I don't know what that means." She admits softly under her her breath, head lifting to focus on the older man and young woman with a frown pulling her lips down. There's a coil of emotions in her chest that scream at her, her head remains oddly quiet and it makes her jittery.

"What do you mean you don't know what that means?" The woman asks around a huff, manicured hand settling on her hip. She shifts and leans against the wall, hair spilling over her shoulder as she focuses her eyes on them. "A Pack is family, we make the initial bond through blood." She gestures with her chin towards the man who still has his hand out, fingers lifting to card them through chestnut-brown hair.

"But I'm not like you." Aneira adds with a shake of her head, lifting an arm to gesture to both herself and Lucian who hasn't moved or retracted his wings. "I'm not a full-blooded Werewolf by nature so this doesn't- I can't-" She falls silent with her teeth digging into her lip, what feels like a hysterical laugh bubbling within her throat.

"Why don't we give them a day, boss?" The woman asks after a beat, gaze flicking between the two of them before shifting away. Her tone is nonchalant and almoat flippant, like this isn't something time sensitive and important. Aneira swallows again and flicks her gaze to the older man, who hasn't once taken his eyes off of her and has his head slightly tilted now.

She can't just choose without taking it all in, without doing some research. This isn't just for herself afrer all, she has others to take into consideration.

"Tomorrow morning." She blurts out, knee beginning a slow bounce against the floor. "I'll have answer in the morning." Aneira adds with her tongue darting out to wet dry lips, free hand itching to reach for Lucian's shirt to grip onto. She won't force her winged-companion to call his friend when he's hesitant to do so, but she also won't go into this blind and with no knowledge either.

She just hopes they accept, and give them some breathing room.

Lucian watched the wolves as Aneria declined their invite, at least for the moment. The older gentleman pulled his hand back and wiped the blood off his palm, exposing a completely healed hand once more. The younger female wolf, though, seemed to be taking it poorly. She was interrogating Aneria and being rather rude. When the words 'Tomorrow morning' left Aneria, the two wolves looked to each other and stared for a moment as if they were having a mental conversation that Lucian and Aneria weren't privy to. Lucian frowned as he reached out to place a soothing hand on Aneria's bouncing knee. He peered at his friend, flashing her a goofy smile before he turned serious eyes back on the wolves. The two finally turned away from each other and the older gentleman turned on his heels and headed towards the door. He grabbed a hold of the knob before speaking. “Tomorrow morning, we require an answer. There must be a solution to a lone wolf in our territory.” And with that, he opened the door and walked out of the apartment. The female lingered a moment, eyeing Aneria before she turned a bright smile onto Lucian and blew him a kiss.

“Tomorrow then,” she said as she bounced off after her alpha. Lucian watched them go, standing to go close the door behind the wolves. He sighed as he rested his forehead against the cool door for a moment as he gathered his thoughts. They had a day to get this shit sorted and either join the pack, find a way to pay rent, or leave. That meant he had no more time to spare. He needed to call Jessie right now and get things moving. He sighed before he turned to face Aneria with a sad smile.

“That solves that issue for a bit.” He walked into the kitchen and picked up the phone. He turned it over in his hands as he rested his hip against the counter. He knew time was limited and he knew he had to call now but he still couldn't seem to bring himself to actually make the call. He sighed before he walked over to Aneria and handed her the phone. “I really can't bring myself to dial the number.” His eyes were locked on the phone, too ashamed to look Aneria in the face as he continued. “I really need you to dial the number for me.” Who had ever heard of a man who couldn't bring himself to dial the number of a friend he had known for years? Shame made his chest tight and he began his shift back to his human form as he rattled off the number for her.

As his magic dissolved into wispy smoke and the markings retracted back to their place before disappearing, he silently held his hand out for the phone. He had to be the person to talk to Jessie. She didn't know Aneria at all and would be nothing but confused if it wasn't Lucian who made the initial contact but man did he hate the thought of it.

"I'm sorry." Aneira whispered softly into the silence, heart still pounding like a drum against her temples. She's not really sure what exactly just happened, but with the two wolves gone all she can feel is relief. Her stomach which had been in knots without her knowledge, relaxes and with it her entire body. She feels like a puppet with its strings cut as she falls back onto the floor, head lightly thumping on the wooden floor as her eyes focus on the ceiling above. Within her mind the wolf that's she's slowly realizing is her other half, fidgets and whines softly. The ghost of Lucian's hand on her knee lingers even as he moves away from the door towards the kitchen, tension leaks out of her with a long silent sigh until she feels like she's more settled.

She's not sure what a Pack is, but the way the older man had spoken about it gave her the impression that it was something important. It had her mind racing even as she remained sprawled out on the floor, ears tracking Lucian despite him still be close enough to follow with her eyes. The pups grow bored of her and move away to follow the man in hopes of getting food possibly, Aneira slowly sits up and then rolls her shoulders. Footsteps and a unique breeze of a mix of scents drew her gaze up, eyes blinking as Lucian hovered over her. The phone feels odd in her hands as it's handed to her, brows knitting together at Lucian's words and his lack of eye contact.

She reaches out without conscious thought, arms winding around his shoulders even as her heels lift up from the floor. A low rumbling sound comes from deep within her chest as she gently, carefully squeezes him in a hug, uncaring that she has to reach so high to do so. His scent has soured into something that makes her uneasy, plus she thinks they may both need this small act of comfort right now. Pulling away after a few moments, Aneira silently dials the number that Lucian gives on keys that feel far too small until she's done.

She presses 'Call' without hesitation seconds after, eyes flicking up to her companion as the dial tone echoes in the silence. Impulsively she hip checks him and then darts away on silent feet, phone in hand and a small smile curling her lips as two furry bodies scamper around her heels.