private The Mute And the Outcasted (1x1 With The Ceberus)

[Catpone Cerberus 23,426]

Not knowing how to respond, Speechless as a reply smiled a warm and caring smile at Maple.

It would have been a lie if one would have said that Speechless wasn't worried about the idea of being target for a changelings, but he didn't show that or wasn't going to give it any power, after all, because of his living place, he was in risk of injury or worse every time he left his 'house', and then there was the vampire-hunters, sure he had never seen one, but he was still half vampire, so the risk was there.

Edited October 25, 2017 by The Cerberus

[Maple Bat 3,568]

"Come on... Let's go to your house." Maple said brushing away her own worries and sorrow "I didn't mean to dump that on you... I've been doing that a lot..." Maple chuckled "I... Noticed you said but... however you didn't put anything after it? Should I worry about that?" Speechless knew that even though she was a Fruit-Vampire. She too still was a Vampire and one that was well known.

[Catpone Cerberus 23,426]

Speechless shook his head smiling and wrote, "No need to worry, I just lost my line of thought." He had planned to write something along the lines 'but you have it lot worse', but he had decided that it wasn't something he wanted to say, so he didn't. He added "Do you have something more to ask, or will we take flight towards Everfree?" He wanted to ask it since he couldn't write while flying. 

Edited October 25, 2017 by The Cerberus

[Maple Bat 3,568]

"Let's go ahead and just head to everfree." Maple said opening her wings "If I want to ask anything I'll..." Maple's ear twitched as she thought she heard something "I'll... as you any questions I might have when we get to your house. Maple looked behind her but waited for Speechless to take off before she started to fly.

[Catpone Cerberus 23,426]

Speechless nodded and put his notebook to its back. Being used to look for such things with animals, Speechless did notice Maple's ear twitch, but didn't point it out because it alone didn't necessary mean anything. Speechless took flight and stopped to wait for Maple. 

Edited October 25, 2017 by The Cerberus

[Maple Bat 3,568]

Maple kept looking around before taking off she heard another sound but nothing else happened. She flew up and said to him "It's probably nothing... If it follows us then it is something and I can deal with it then, for now, lets just go before something DOES happen." Maple said gliding some distance forward before stopping to be sure speechless was following.

[Catpone Cerberus 23,426]

Speechless hadn't heard anything, so he wasn't sure what Maple meant, but he replied with agreeing sound, because if she had noticed something, there was no time to start asking details. He was indeed following when Maple stopped to check. 

[Maple Bat 3,568]

Eventually, the two of them made it to the clearing were they landed before and Maple touched down a bit softer than last time not tripping over anything or falling since she knew the exact terrain better. She held completely still and listened to see if they where followed

[Catpone Cerberus 23,426]

Speechless landed smoothly as always, he could land there his eyes closed, and after landing, he checked that Maple had made the landing.
Speechless wasn't worried about the possible follower, he trusted that if somepony was brave enough to follow them to deep into the Everfree, they would accidentally cause a some animal to get scared and send out alarm, or even annoy some Timberwolfs, since there was a family of them living relatively close. He waited for Maple to start walking before he headed towards his 'house'. 

Edited October 26, 2017 by The Cerberus

[Maple Bat 3,568]

Maple nodded, content that there was no one who followed them that far. She then started to walk to speechless' house She got by the door and waited outside it "You go on ahead and get whatever you needed to get I'll just wait right out here." She told him. Her ear twitched as she heard some bushes rustling and Maple tensed up but she saw it was only a rabbit and Maple relaxed

[Catpone Cerberus 23,426]

Speechless nodded and walked in to his 'house', leaving the door open since he wasn't going to be there for long. When inside, Speechless started flying and went closer to the top of the tree-'house', and from somewhere up there he took out some bits, putting them into a small pouch he had grabbed when he came in. He then landed and proceeded to the storage-area, grabbing an empty saddlebag and then taking one of the boxes and moving stuff from the box to the saddlebag.

Edited October 26, 2017 by The Cerberus

[Maple Bat 3,568]

Maple kept waiting and herd another rustled. She tensed up again not relax until she saw whenever it appeared but she didn't see it appear. Her fear worsened Who would chase us this far? Changelings avoid Everfree at all costs... So that means that those sounds are creatures... Or it's a... Before Maple could finish that thought a bolt from a crossbow thudded against the tree she was leaning against she stared at it wondering what it was after she realized what it was, she looked around and saw something she thought she'd never see again the same hunter who nearly killed her before. Maple burst inside of Speechless' house and closed the door with a loud *bang*.

[Catpone Cerberus 23,426]

Speechless, and group of bats outside, got scared by the sudden bang, Speechless turned towards Maple with asking expression, it being obvious that she had scared him, and the bats outside started doing their alarm cry while flying away. Speechless could tell from Maple that something was obviously wrong. 

[Maple Bat 3,568]

Maple looked at him with nothing but fear in her eyes "I thought he... I thought he was gone... But... Vampire Hunter... Outside." To make matters worse Maple had left her weapons at Speechless' Parent's place, For once she thought she wasn't going to need them, She put her hoofs over her ears and slid to the floor, laying on the ground. Speechless was seeing something very few ponies knew about, The side of her when she feels completely helpless it was a reaction very similar to her mother when she was scared.

The vampire hunter outside didn't recognize the house nor did he know who lived in it so he simply knocked on the door.

[Catpone Cerberus 23,426]

After Maple told it was a Vampire Hunter, surprisingly, Speechless didn't seem scared, instead, behind his worry towards Maple, there was sort of sadness, like somepony faced with something they knew was inevitable. He acted quickly, getting a wooden board from the storage area and boarding the door with it, making sure to not accidentally hit Maple with it. He then looked out of the window that was next to the door and gave the Hunter a hostile look, then going next to Maple and simply hugging her, and making quiet sounds, like he was without words making a promise to her. 

The door and the window next to it were only way inside, and Everfree wood didn't burn, so only way for the Hunter to get them was to break through the door, since the window was too small for a pony to fit through, and Speechless knew that, and he was ready to act when that happened. 

Edited October 26, 2017 by The Cerberus

[Maple Bat 3,568]

The hunter tried to open the door and his attempt was stopped by the door, The purple cloak they wore failed to mask their disappointment at the fact. The hunter backed up, When he did Speechless saw them in the moonlight, a yed coated pegasus with Azure colored eyes but the eyes held what was so defining about this hunter, in particular, They had nocturnal eyes how and why was unknown. The hunter aimed the crossbow at Speechless through the window but hesitated to actually shoot him, not sure if he was a vampire-bat Pony.

[Catpone Cerberus 23,426]

Speechless ripped off one empty page from his notebook and wrote to it "Just leave." and put it on the window, before walking away from it back to Maple. Because Speechless put the paper on the window with his wing, experienced vampire hunter would have been able to tell his vampireness from the quick glimpse they got. When he was next to Maple, he gently tried to get her to move away from the door to the side where she would be mostly safe even if the pegasus got through the door. 

[Maple Bat 3,568]

When speechless moved his wing away from the window a bolt crashed through the window. The hunter could tell he missed and he reloaded. He sighed as he knew the only way he'd get to them now was through the door and he knew there would be... unwanted attention if he did that. From both media and the creatures of everfree. "Hmph. I'm not detered." Under his cloak was a sword in a leather sheath he drew it but wait to see if they thought he was gone He remained out of sight of the window, motionless.

Speechless managed to get Maple and himself far enough from the window so that when the bolt came through sending glass everywhere. After a few seconds Maple noticed that another bolt didn't come through "Is... Is he gone?" Maple asked him still scared.

[Catpone Cerberus 23,426]

Speechless covered Maple with his wings as a reaction when he heard the class breaking, and when he confirmed that it was just a bolt, he closed his wings again. To Maple's question he gestured her to wait and went for the window, staying low, and raised his notebook so it was visible from the window, that being of course to check if the hunter was aiming, ready to shoot when there was movement. When there was no bolt, Speechless carefully raised his head to look from the window, he didn't see the hunter, but he wasn't an idiot.

He got back to Maple and wrote "I can't see him but I would say he is not gone." "We couldn't hear any indication that he would have left, and you probably know as well as I that this kind of ponies don't give up that easily." But he also knew that they couldn't hide there for the whole night, he needed to go out in some point, but he needed a way to make sure Maple stayed inside.

Edited October 26, 2017 by The Cerberus

[Maple Bat 3,568]

Maple didn't even want to stand up but she had an Idea "I... I've got an Idea... Just don't let him come in here, I'll see if there's anything in your storage I can use, I'll make a weapon if I-" Maple was cut off by a loud splintering noise of the hunter decided they knew he was still there so he was going to go inside the hard way.

The hunter would have just slashed the handle of the door but it seemed he had forgotten to sharpen the blade to that point. It was probably gonna take him a while to cut through such a heavy wood.

[Catpone Cerberus 23,426]

Speechless wrote quickly "Most weapon like things in here are tools, but I'm not letting you to get yourself hurt again." "It's my turn." He gently put his hoof on Maple's snout to stop her from protesting as he wrote more "I have a plan, but I need you to stay inside, and only participate in the fighting in self-defense."

His plan relied highly on assumptions. Assuming that the hunter would get even slightly tired from breaking the door with a sword, Speechless would be able to push him back out by charging at him immediately when the door broke, maybe even injuring him a little, and then Speechless would make a sound of injured Timberwolf, hopefully attracting the family of them that lived close. That of course assuming that he could hold on against the hunter long enough for the Timberwolfs to arrive, if they arrive, and assuming that they don't attack him if they do. 

But that was just a plan B, his first plan was to try to go for the pegasus's throat, a deadly move that some animals used, but easily stopped by simple armor. 

But whatever he did, he wasn't going to let the pegasus to get Maple, not as long as he could do anything to stop it. 

[Maple Bat 3,568]

"But..." Maple started "Alright... I trust you." She said as she ducked low so she'd have the least chance of getting attacked.

It wasn't easy for the hunter but they eventually broke the door open enough to see inside another slash to a part of the door created an opening large enough for him to safely get through so he tried his best to swiftly move through it, but before he tried to go through he readied a shot on his crossbow to be safe. He, however, didn't expect they'd attack him so quickly since they were afraid of his justice.

[Catpone Cerberus 23,426]

Speechless was waiting just next to the door, staying at the side that he couldn't be seen through the door, and when the opening was big enough for pony to go through, Speechless charged at the hunter, knowing well that he could get a direct hit from a sword or crossbow. He positioned his wings in a way that their claws would be the first thing that hit the hunter, right before they were followed by his forelegs hitting the hunter in attempt to knock him down, and his mouth going for the pegasus's throat, unaware if there was protection or not. At this point, Speechless stopped thinking, he had his plans, and he left rest for his instincts.

[Maple Bat 3,568]

The Hunter was knocked down by Speechless but his fangs hit a leather piece that was protecting his neck, they were dealing with vampires so they knew they'd try something like that. The pegasus kicked Speechless off of him and picked up his crossbow quickly aiming it at Speechless' heart and firing it all in a trained and swift motion the shot would've hit if the sword that the hunter used earlier didn't break the crossbow, The sword was thrown by Maple who then received a menacing glare from the hunter. He picked up his sword and decided to run after Maple ignoring speechless.

[Catpone Cerberus 23,426]

Speechless wasn't surprised that his throat attack didn't succeed, it wasn't a surprise that Vampire hunter would have protection against the sharp and strong fangs of a vampire, and Speechless having only normal batpony teeth, he had no change getting through it. But what surprised him was the sudden kick and it pushed the air out of his lungs leaving him gasping for air for a moment, and when he recovered the hunter was already going towards Maple.

His both plans had already failed, but he wasn't going to give up, the hunter was trained to fight again skilled vampires, but was he prepared to fight against an animal at its home territory? Because when it came to Speechless, he was exactly that at the moment, after all, it was a side effect of being with animals so much, he didn't only learn to understand the animals, he also learned to act like them, and now the pegasus was not only trespassing on his territory, but he was also threatening his pack.  

Speechless didn't leave himself time to think as he charged at the hunter again, again the claws of his wings going first and teeth following after, but this time he wasn't aiming any part of his body particular, he just wanted to get a hit. As he charged. he was making a rather animalistic sound, it was like growling, but there was hissing and other similar sounds mixed in. 

 

Edited October 27, 2017 by The Cerberus