Into the Lion's Den. [Hannibal]

[Crash]

[th][cs=3][rs=3][atrb=border,0,true][bg=000000] “Shall I carry you over the threshold?” Crash laughed, scooping Hannibal up into his arms as they entered Sewertown. It was almost surreal, being able to enter his home with Hannibal; they’d been a secret for so long, but now that the Carna and the Fallen had an alliance, the Carna Beta could finally bring his love home with him. Besides, most of the Carna wouldn’t even know her as a Fallen. She and Crash had been together ever since the war ended, and that had been many, many months ago now. She was as good as a Carna in his eyes; better, even. Crash felt eyes fall on him and Hannibal as he strolled through the wide open room that most of the Carna slept in; it was safer to be together, and warmer in these cold winter months. The Beta didn’t even bother to return a single glance. Hannibal had all of his attention, and not even the curious whispering of his ringmates could bother him now. He headed straight for his room, a luxury in the Menagerie, especially for a Carna. “Welcome home, Hanni.” Crash set her down and opened the door, revealing the small, yet comfortable space, which must have once been used to store tools or machinery in the sewer system. Up against one wall was his mattress, big enough for the two of them he realized happily, and he had just a few feet to spare on the other side of it. In the corner was his fishbowl, where Swimmy swam happily in circles around his castle. “Oh, Swimmy! You haven’t met him, huh?” Crash questioned, closing the door behind them. He loved that Goldfish, probably more than any man should love a fish. “Did you miss me, Swimmerz?” He questioned cheerily, picking up a bottle of colorful flakes and shaking a few into the fish’s bowl. “Man, he loves those flakes,” Crash added, turning back to face Hannibal. “Sooo, what do you think?” He questioned, settling down on his mattress, which though old and worn, was still surprisingly comfortable. “Not too shabby, right?” He had to admit it, this place was a million times better now that Hannibal was with him. Ooc; To other peeps I owe posts to,we just wanna do a quick Crash and Hanni plot. 8D I will post other stuffs tomorrow. ;D

[hannibal]

[atrb=width,473,true][atrb=border,0,true][bg=151515]     be the blanket for my bones                                                                                b e   a   p l a c e   t h a t   I   c a l l   h o m e As Crash swept her off her feet - literally and figuratively - Hannibal felt a happiness she hadn’t felt in...well, years. She was afraid to dig too deep past the wonderful layer of absolute joy she felt, a little unsure of how well she was handling the whole revelation in the caverns. But that didn’t matter now. She was going home. Home! With a happy sigh she wrapped her arms around Crash’s neck and snuggled into his chest, more to hide her face from the curious eyes of her new...Ringmates. Hannibal felt a flutter of fear in her stomach, wondering if anyone would recognize her as a Fallen. It had been so long since the war, so long since she’d even been near the Fallen territory, that all scent had been erased. She only hoped her rather...unusual and striking appearance wouldn’t betray her. The sewer was a new experience - there was very little light in the place, except for a few dim lanterns flickering about the tunnel system, though she had to admit it was quite warm. It was much warmer than the caverns, which had become unbearably cold due to the freezing wind that seemed to seep into the place. She shuddered at the thought of spending one more night in that horrible place. And it seemed it was all behind her, a soft shudder ran through her as she stepped across the threshold into the small, cozy room. “Welcome home, Hanni.” “Mesi, mon amour,” Thank you, my love. she said, pressing a kiss to his pale cheek. Violet eyes took in the alcove, the broad mattress fit just for two, at which point she tossed herself with an excited squeal, burying herself in the covers. It’d been so long since she’d been able to lay or even sit on something that comfortable. It was a sad thought - that her life had been reduced to relishing the comfort of having an old mattress in a closet-sized room in the depths of a sewer filled with smelly men. As she burrowed into the covers and mattress, snuggling against the soft sheets, she felt so much at home.“Omagad, Crash! It’s so comfy!” She squealed and sprawled luxuriously on her back, watching Crash feed his pet fish from an upside down world. “So this is the Swimmy I’ve heard so much about!” Hannibal laughed, thinking it utterly adorable that her big tough Carna man loved a tiny little goldfish so much. "What a cutie-pie." She mused, wondering if Crash could care so much for such a usually replaceable little pet...what else could he care for? As je settled on the mattress, Hannibal emerged from her temporary fortress of swathed cloth and wrapped her long arms around him, burying her face in his neck from behind. “It’s perfect,” she whispered, tousling a hand through his hair. She laid down, pulling him with her and snuggled against him. "Perfect." ooc; durdurdurrr ;3;

[Crash]

[th][cs=3][rs=3][atrb=border,0,true][bg=000000] Ooc:// LOL TIME SKIP DUE TO BAD PLANNING. 8D One week latur: The dawn patrol had been a long one, or at least it had seemed like it to Crash. Nowadays he preferred to be giving orders around Sewertown instead of accompanying patrols; Hannibal was still asleep in his cozy Sewertown room. He sighed at the thought as he trudged back through the snow with Adison and the scouts, even his thickly-padded paws frozen from the cold . Adi was an intense Head of Border Patrol, Crash noted, but a good one. The scouts had never been in better shape, though it was hard to appreciate the boy’s dedication so early in the morning. The pale-furred lion shook his thick mane, sending powdery snow flying at the Alpha’s son. “Hey, watch it!” Adison snapped, playfully shoving Crash’s massive head away from him. The Beta let out an amused purr and swung back, head-butting the boy so hard that he tumbled into a nearby snowdrift. “Crash!” Adi complained as the group of scouts laughed, unable to hold back their chuckles. His face flushed an embarrassed pink, and he scowled at them, quickly silencing most of them— at least those that didn’t want to take an extra lap around the territory. “Oh, lighten up, kid,” Crash said, his voice deeper and growly in his lion form. He batted an enormous paw at Adison’s head, which the quick scout dodged. Adison jumped up and brushed the traces of snow from his clothes, pulling his jacket tighter around his lean body— Crash noted that somehow, he’d come home without a shirt. The kid was gonna have a long winter without one of those! “Let’s head back, Scouts,” Adison called, sending the group on ahead. He shifted into his strawberry tiger form to keep out the cold, and Crash padded back to Sewertown beside him. Once inside the warm tunnels again, Crash was able to shift back into his human form. This place was always the perfect temperature, he realized, with it being much warmer than the outside in the winter, yet cooler in the summer. “Finally,” He sighed, stretching. The Beta headed straight for his room, too tired to even speak to anyone else. The past week had been the best he’d ever had in the Menagerie. It was still hard to believe that Hannibal was really with him, wanting to stay with him for good. Crash was so used to every good thing in his life falling through, leaving him with nothing but his Ring, but he knew that this was different. He and Hanni were forever, and the Beta felt hopeful that he’d never be lonely again. “…Hanni?” Crash entered his room to find her tossing in her sleep, a distressed expression etched onto her face. He immediately fell to his knees beside her on the mattress, strong arms reaching to grab her shoulders. “Hanni, Hanni! Wake up, you’re having a nightmare!” He shook her thin frame gently, hoping to rouse her from her troubled sleep. ooc: 8D Crash and Hanni, sittin in a tree~

[hannibal]

[atrb=width,473,true][atrb=border,0,true][bg=151515]     be the blanket for my bones                                                                                b e   a   p l a c e   t h a t   I   c a l l   h o m e A young boy’s cold, lifeless eyes staring and stark white in the moonlight, a black pool still bubbling as blood spilled from his throat in last desperate spurts. A hulking shadow loomed over the boy, eyes like chips of ice glowing in the surreal darkness. The light faded and she surged into a world void of life or color, panic settling in. Her chest felt heavy and she felt as if she was burdened with something, some weight in her arms – the breath was knocked out of her lungs and she heard a terrified scream ripping from her mouth, those same blue eyes piercing her very soul, this time glaring out from the face of a vicious beast, a , a…a lion! She heard another scream, a baby! Oh, gods! She felt warm blood spilling from her body, long raven curls saturated with blood as she fell against the wall and felt the life seeping from her. She saw...a man. With a scarred mouth - his face contorted in a grimace of emotional agony, tears streaming down in tiny, shimmering rivulets as he cradled the boy’s head - then brushed a hand against the woman’s cheek...a soft sob as he cradled the child in his arms. A last deafening roar was all she heard; the next few faces were a blur of screams and blood-curdling roars; all the while those same, hardened eyes followed her, and slowly the outline of a face made itself known. Not again...God, not again! Hannibal felt hard hands around her shoulder, claws digging into her flesh. Blinking awake she saw those eyes...that face! She writhed beneath the nightmarish figure, a terrible scream ripping from her as she struggled in absolute terror, striking out at the beastly thing that held her. “Hanni! You’re having a nightmare!” Oh...Oh God. Chest heaving, hands barely managing to grip the width of his upper arms “C...Crash?” She gasped, barely able to catch her breath. She pulled him into a fierce hug, burying her face in his neck. “I was so scared.” She murmured, body still shaking. Pulling away she wrapped herself in the blanket, as if to protect herself from the chills that seeped from within. A shuddering sigh and she reached to touch the back of his hand, finger tracing the word etched there in his pale flesh. “Who...who is the man who gave you these scars?” She whispered, attempting to swallow the knot of foreboding in her throat. She had a feeling, an inkling, that she knew who it was. That man...the one in her dream. The one with such a terrible sorrow written on his mournfully scarred face. ooc; DON’T JUDGE ME, I’M SAVING THE ENVIRONMENT.

[Crash]

[th][cs=3][rs=3][atrb=border,0,true][bg=000000] Crash sighed with relief as Hannibal finally realized where she was. Her hands gripped his arm shakily, but he let her, not wanting to startle her any more. “It’s okay, Hanni. I’m here now,” Crash’s voice rumbled soothingly, his muscular arms wrapping around her body, surprisingly gentle. He held Hannibal close, resting his face in her thick snowy white hair for a moment, pressing a soft kiss to the top of her head. Despite his rough exterior, Crash really did care about Hannibal. His guard went down around her, and he turned into a softer, kinder version of himself, one that Crash hardly knew existed before. When she finally pulled away from the hug, Crash helped her wrap the blanket around her body, before wrapping his arms around her again. “C’mere you!” He laughed, pulling the bundled-up woman into his lap. Crash rested his head on her shoulder, blue eyes still half-lidded from his long morning patrol. “Mmm, I love you, Hanni,” He sighed softly, nuzzling his face into her neck. Crash had no idea how scared she really was, or that the creature that plagued her nightmares was currently holding her in his arms. Just as he was about ready to drift back to sleep, he felt her soft fingers tracing along the back of his hand. Crash flinched, as he always did when he touched his scars. No matter how much she told him that they didn’t matter to her, they still brought up painful memories that Crash didn’t prefer to face again. Every time she took notice of them, he felt like that Fulsi scum was torturing him all over again, dominating him as he seeped into his life. No, he wasn’t supposed to be here! Not when Crash was so happy, alone with Hannibal like this. He tried to pull his hand away from her without her noticing, but the words had already escaped her lips. ‘Who...who is the man who gave you these scars?’ Crash felt a flicker of rage ignite in the pit of his stomach as he pictured Bonifacio, the man’s own scarred face, glaring down at him… His accented words rang in Crash’s head, and he struggled to think of anything else. Anything! But his thoughts remained trained on the Italian, though this time Crash imagined him as he’d last saw him; On fire and screaming in agony as he burned alive. Oh, how Crash hoped that he was dead. “Some Fulsi,” Crash hissed into her ear, all softness erased from his voice. “But he doesn’t matter now. Last time I saw him, he was burning in the raid,” he added before realizing how twisted he sounded. Crash winced as he noticed how much pleasure just those words had given him; He’d never been sadistic before, and even when he killed other people for the Carna, he took no pleasure in it… But exacting his revenge on that Fulsi just felt so good. “Let’s not worry about those things, hm?” He questioned. Crash leaned over and gently pressed his lips to Hannibal’s cheek, hoping that somehow he could kiss away everything he’d just told her.

[hannibal]

[atrb=width,473,true][atrb=border,0,true][bg=151515]     be the blanket for my bones                                                                                b e   a   p l a c e   t h a t   I   c a l l   h o m e She felt wretchedly wonderful in his arms, wrapped in a swath of cloth and warmth, and for a moment felt as if she could forget everything. All her troubles - she felt as sif she oculd shake of the nightmare as if nothing had happened. As if she wasn’t wrapped in the arms of a killer who she both loved and feared. She held him so close to her heart tht she felt he could do no wrong, but as he whispered those three sacred, beloved words, she felt a hollow emptiness in the pit of her stomach. She loved him, yes - but was beginning to doubt if that was enough. This nightmare - this hadn’t been the first time she’d had it. It had plagued her dreams for weeks now, before she had even moved into the sewers with him. An ache settled in her heart as she whispered a soft, trembling ‘I love you,’ in reply, hiding her face in his chest. She couldn’t bear to look at him - not when she was so desperately torn. It seemed as if these emotions came upon her suddenly. But they had been like a silent, lurking beast, whispering dark little doubts into her mind till they grew and grew and became a chorus of shouts and fears. A tear rolled down her cheek as his words slipped like steel from his lips, the gentle coo of comfort gone. She could feel his heart beat solidly beneath his shirt, and she lifted a tremulous hand to touch his cheek as she pulled his face closer, pressing her forehead against his. Turning his words over and over in her mind till she was reeling, a wave of nausea washing over her. She pulled away slowly, violet eyes flashing in alarm as the doubts became roaring certainty. “You...you killed him.” Her lips drew into a thin line, eyes wide in disbelief. “And his...his...” A knot tied itself in her throat, btu she oculdn’t say the words. She couldn’t say what she’d seen in her nightmares. That Crash had killed someone the man had loved dearly - a mother. Mother to his infant child. Her heart twisted in two, wrenching her first one way, then the other. This man whom Crash seemed to hate so dearly - perhaps, perhaps he was deserving. Perhaps he deserved to die for what he did, cutting Crash. Scarring him. But even as she thought it, bile rose in her throat. No one deserved to die for such a thing as that. Such a petty thing. “You killed him for that?” She jabbed a finger at the scar on his face, a slight edge to her voice - though it was still a low whisper. She wrenched herself away from him, scrambling toward the door. As far as she could get from him in this confined space, suddenly unsure of everything he had ever said. “Murderer. Petty, selfish murderer.” She breathed, more to herself than anything, trembling with indecision and trepidation. She felt a loathing build within her - a loathing for herself for ever having trusted him. Or loved him. She hid her face, but could not deny the fact that she loved him, and that her heart was breaking in two.

[Crash]

[th][cs=3][rs=3][atrb=border,0,true][bg=000000] Crash froze, his breath catching in his throat as he heard those dreadful words slip from Hannibal’s lips. Murderer. Petty, selfish murderer. His normally handsome face twisted into a frightening scowl, more animal than human. He felt so betrayed! How could she bring this up again? Emotions rushed through him faster than Crash could keep up with them, leaving him feeling flustered and attacked. Hadn’t they already gotten over this? To have it come up again was more than a surprise, and Crash didn’t like it. Crash jumped to his feet as Hannibal rushed to the doorway, swiftly catching her by the arm in his steely grip. He turned her around and pressed her back against the door, placing one hand on either side of her face so that it was harder to escape. Crash loomed over her, soft blue eyes now like slivers of ice. “I thought you said you loved me!” He roared, unable to hold back his monstrous temper. The hurt she’d inflicted had set the beast free of its chains, and now it was on a rampage. “What does it matter what happens to some filthy Fulsi?! He doesn’t matter, Hannibal, we do!” Crash snarled, pounding his fist into the door, right next to her terrified face, leaving a splintered dent. “God, why did you have to go there, Hanni, why?!” He demanded, taking a step away from her. Crash couldn’t take the anguish and guilt that crept up on him whenever she reminded him of the things he’d done. The Carna Beta had forgotten those things for a reason, but no matter how much she said she loved him, she still called him a murderer and ran from him like he was some kind of monster. Well, if that’s what she thought of him, then perhaps she was right. Everyone else Crash had ever known in the Menagerie had seen his potential for danger and regarded him as either threat or asset… but he hadn’t been those things with Hannibal! For just a little while, he’d just been Crash… He’d been in love. But had he? Crash was beginning to question all of it. “Damn it Hannibal! You felt like this the whole time, didn’t you?!” He cried, wondering if she’d ever loved him at all. In an instant, Crash shifted into his lion form, whose fur bristled angrily and whose claws tore at the thin mattress on the floor with brute force. “Leave me then!” Crash snapped, before turning on her with fangs bared. “Get OUT!” He roared, the blood-curdling sound echoing through the tunnels of Sewertown. With that, he turned back to the mangled pile of fabric and cotton on the floor and collapsed upon it. The lion heaved a deep sigh and covered his face with his massive paws. Perhaps he was destined to be alone after all. Ooc: lol fail. D8 But sadddd. And I think Hanni can end the thread then?

[hannibal]

[atrb=width,473,true][atrb=border,0,true][bg=151515]     be the blanket for my bones                                                                                b e   a   p l a c e   t h a t   I   c a l l   h o m e His anger was swift and undeniable, his rage seemed to take him over in a rush, his voice thunderous and horrible as it rang in her ears and left her trembling. It happened so quickly, her terror sweeping her away in a rush of fear and the fact that she had betrayed him and his trust. She could see the hurt in his eyes, see it even through the anger and the bud of hatred, the inky black bloom she could feel gathering and ready to sprout and flourish. She could feel it, see it - and she couldn't stand it. Couldn't stand that she'd said such a thing, such a terrible thing. But he'd done it. Done so much more terrible things than she. She couldn't stand to think that he was a murderer, that even amongst all that love and gentleness she saw. There was always that fact - he was a killer. And she could see it in him now, that coldness that burned in the depths of his rage. And she was terrified. Her body trembled, tears spilling down her tattooed cheeks as he pinned her against the wall and trapped her there, his contorted face inches from her own as he bellowed in his terrible rage. She couldn't muster a sound, not even the slightest whimper as his fists slammed into the wall on either side of her. Hannibal tried to shrink away from him but he seemed everywhere and she couldn't escape him. She felt like it would never end, with his accusations hurling her through a world of confusion and hurt mixed with fear and a little anger of her own - but she dare not say anything back. She wasn't strong enough to face him. She wasn't strong enough to look him in the eye as he shifted into his massive lion and roared his last words, screaming at her to leave. Terrified, she herself shifted and burst her way through the door, lumbering through the sewers, checking over her shoulder every now and again to make sure he wasn't following to attack or harm her. The polar bear burst frantically from the exit to escape the thundering roars that echoed down the tunnels. Hannibal got out of the warehouse guarding the tunnel entrance and with one long last look back, headed for the Fallen territory. “”