(MxM) Tales Of A Shifter (P1) - The Meeting

Chapter 6- Big Brothers

Chapter 6 - Big Brothers

Ezekiel could sense the eyes within the darkness as he neared the path that would take him out of the pine forest and into the perimeter of his home.

Glaring, calculating and questioning, they burned into him, but more than him Ezekiel felt these eyes focused on his arms.

Looking at the stranger that he bore like a broken, bloody, sack nestled against his chest.

Ezekiel let the power of his beast take over and felt the power bleed into his eyes. He felt his pupils shrink sharply, until, darkness became more like light. Shadows gave way to him and there, not ten feet from him, Ezekiel could make out the shadows of three, very large, very animalistic outlines.

Ezekiel blinked slowly, then looked down at the stranger in his hands. "So...." He began talking to the new arrivals. But he didn't use words to speak. No. He growled, hissed and roared out his sentences. Speaking the language of the Shifter inside of him. "So I guess I need to explain this?"

A soft growl rolled off of all three of the shadows. And too Ezekiel, the growls and hisses that followed were as easy for him to understand as spoken word.

"We came when we herd you call." A voice snarled out of the darkness. The shadows of his brothers moved towards him from the pine woods. "We were concerned when you didn't meet up for the Check point, but now I know why. What have you done Ezekiel?"

At this question, Ezekiel felt a chill of worry nip him in the stomach. As his brothers snarled and howled and barked at him he knew that they were angry. But even though Ezekiel couldn't see their forms clearly he didn't feel the need to retreat. These animals were his brothers after all, he had no reason to fear them.

"What is THAT mortal doing here!?" The middle shadow snarled again. It was a deep familiar growl. His eldest brother Walter was speaking. "I thought that you understood the rules!" he said.

"I do understand the rules!" Ezekiel hissed back. "I know that we aren't supposed to let outsiders in. But I swear! I ran into this mortal out there in the woods. He's sickly Walter." Ezekiel shook his head, to shake away the guilt of lying, but he didn't dare tell his brothers the whole truth about his run in with the stranger. "I thought that we could take him into the village...?"

"No!" A new voice growled, cutting Ezekiel off. This voice was just a familiar to him as the others, but this voice belonged to none other than his second eldest brother Lander. "Outsiders don't belong here Ezekiel!!! You know that! What exactly are you trying to do!? Why cant you listen to the rules like everyone else!?" Lander roared at him from across the clearing.

"I'm trying to help! He's hurt!!" Ezekiel snarled back at them all. His throat shifting into an octave that no mortal could ever reach. "I had to....."

"You had to disobey the rules!?" Lander roared over him. "You had to go against the norm? You had to find some way to upset everyone. Once again!?" Lander growled again once more cutting him short. "Is that it? Is it so hard for you to stay out of trouble!? Lord knows you and your hot head have made things hard enough!"

Ezekiel snarled back in frustration.

"This is different!!" He barked at his Brothers. And somewhere deep inside he realized that he was telling the truth. This was different than the normal stunts that he pulled. Somehow....it just seemed important that he help the stranger. But Ezekiel shook that feeling off. He remained himself that he was just trying to do the right thing. This had nothing to do with him, his temper... his sickness!

"You can't be serious with this Ezekiel. We can't take a mortal into the village. It would cause an uproar!" The third shadow said. This snarling voice belonged to his third eldest brother Nate and it was a much calmer growl compared to the others.