"You can't be serious. I have done everything you have ever asked… you can give me my grandson." Akira growled transforming into the white tigress before her. However; before she had a chance to leap, four teeth pierced her haunch damaging the muscle. She roared whipping around to find a large orange tiger licking her blood off his teeth. The four wounds streaming blood, perfectly placed to stop her from moving fast. Fighting would be a joke.
"Verone I don't know what hold this creature has over you but your better than this." Akira growled at him, wondering how things had gone so bloody wrong.
"Oh you don't need to worry about that. You should be worried about getting back to your precious daughter and telling her this sweet baby boy is alive. If she doesn't come for him soon… he won't be." Purred Primrose as she bounced the child to soothe him, but the baby didn't respond to the rough jostling this woman considered rocking.
"Damn you, Prim. If I hadn't saved you…" Akira growled and then the sharp sound of skin slapping skin silenced her. Her face snapped to the side from the force of Primrose's hand.
"I suggest you shut up or I will send you home with a piece of your grandson. I don't need his entire body as long as he's breathing." Prim warned her voice deadly low. Akira silenced her heart frozen as the snow she stood on. "Good girl. Now run along."
Akira turned and limped back toward the sled, hopping onto it so the wolf could carry her back. Prim grinned and raised a finger. The nearest man slashed the wolf's throat. If fell dead to the snow.
"Best show your sincerity by walking back on foot, Akira." Laughed Prim before turning to walk away. The baby screamed and whimpered in complete hysterics. They managed to ignore it for a while but finally Prim Screamed in the child's face. "How do you like it?" She demanded and the baby just kept crying. "I give up. You take him." She shoved the baby into her General's hands. He laughed.
"I'm a grandpa. All babies love me." He replied puffing his chest out in pride before bouncing the baby. Gale glared at this old man who smelled of poison and blood. Memories rushed back and bike rose in Gale's throat. He didn't bother to hold back as he spit white across the old man's chest. He sneered in anger at the child's blunt disrespect.
"If you two can't keep the child calm and alive, perhaps it would have been better to devise another plan." The normally lazy, annoyed tone of Verone was suddenly much sharper. He glared at both of them. "If we don't hurry and get back to the forest before she tracks us we are dragon fodder."
"We can't move fast while trying to quiet this creature." General snapped back and Prim nodded, looking a bit dejected from the anger shot her way.
"It isn't my fault, the brat is poor quality and thus whiny." Primrose replied folding her arms as Verone rolled his eyes.
"No you just don't know how to hold him or hide your malice. Give him here." Demanded Verone who took the child from the general without waiting for a response. Gale was ready to scream again but this stranger's hands were different. His blankets were shirked and it was suddenly cold but quickly replaced by warmth. A black and gold blanket was carefully wrapped around him in a tight swaddle. It was warm and smelled… Mommy. Gale nuzzled the warm cloth and looked up at this man warily.
There was no warmth or kindness in Verones steely blue eyes as he used the rest of the blanket to create a sling and tuck the toddler into it. "There now. Sleep." He ordered before turning to take off again. He barely heard the comment made behind him.
"He acts like the baby is his." Primrose's voice as thick with jealousy and rage.
"Well in a way, he should have been." The General replied and that was enough to cause another stinging pain through Verone's mind.
Children… he wanted them once. With her… his eyes shot down to the baby. Who was she? The beauty in his mind… he was sure it wasn't Prim anymore but… who?
The thought sent another searing pain through him as he ran faster, trying to outrun the questions in his mind. The baby fell asleep encased in his mother's scent.