A Wolf Of A Time

II

So there we were, in the tavern. Besides Tristan ordering drinks, there wasn't much conversation. I sat there, mead in hand with the occasional sip. Tristan didn't seem to mind the silence. In fact, he seemed to be comfortable with it. I excused myself for the bathroom to avoid any more silence. I didn't bow to "nature's call" and instead just leaned on the sink, facing the mirror. Silence was all I heard for years. I could deal with anything but silence. I wiped my face with a damp disposable cloth and left the room. I accidentally took the wrong route back, allowing a group of catcallers to catch notice and beg for my attention.

"So used to the wolf calls you turn your nose up at them?" He asked quietly as he sipped his drink.
"Sorry, Princess, did you want some attention too?" I smirked.
"Princess?" He choked on his drink. "Those guys wouldn't have the guts to holler at me."
I shook my head and chuckled softly.
"They've been calling after every pair of legs that's walked by." He looked up and met my eyes. "Though you were the first they were right to admire."
"Thanks?" I didn't know how to respond to that. I gave him a questioning look and took another swig. After a few more moments I asked, "What are we doing here?"
"Maybe I'm here to stop you from having the worst night of your life?"
"By flirting with me?" I scoffed. "What are we really doing here, Tristan?"
He sighed and sat up straighter. "I'm trying to find my wolf, Fenrir. I tracked him to a dogfighting ring." He took a long drink of his alcohol and set down an empty bottle. "I need help getting him out."
I took a second to register what he was asking.
"Who runs the pit fights?"
His expression changed from slightly grumpy to extremely annoyed. "A group of bandit jack asses. Far as I know there's about seven of them including the idiots gambling their money. Normally I'd be able to do this myself but when Fenrir disappeared so did my weapons."
After another moment of registering I asked "Why me?"
"Last night you obviously had experience with avoiding law." He eyed me. "So it wasn't a big jump to assume you had a talent for fighting."
I nodded my head softly then he added, "Especially with the fake name."
I mock gasped. "My name isn't fake!" I gave him a playful slug on the arm from across the table.
"Uh huh," He looked at me incredulously. I thought in silence. He really could be someone who was tracking me, leading me to my death. I glanced at his attire and his body, sizing him up.
He wouldn't survive if we came head to head.
"What'll it be, Ladyship?"
I sighed and scratched the back of my head as I pondered on his predicament. I let loose another sigh before giving in. "I'll help."
Giving me a stoic, unbelieving, and unwavering look he said "Really? You'll help?"
I shrugged and sipped my mead. "Yeah."
"Wouldn't someone normally ask for a reward? What's in it for them?"
I blankly stared at my bottle. "Sometimes it's better to do service than reward." I had one more sip before I pushed the bottle away. It was obvious it was a rehearsed line but Tristen left well enough alone.
"When are we heading out?" I asked.
He stood quick enough to cause his chair to scrape the ground with a squeal. "Now."
He dropped a few coins on the table as I stood myself. I never took my pouch or anything else off to relax so I immediately followed him out the doors. We walked side by side out the gates, not worrying about the guards as much this time. It's a lot more suspicious to be alone than in a group.
I walked past the horse stables but Tristan stopped me and went to grab what I assumed was a horse. I watched him mount it and klop his way over to me.
He rode a chestnut tan horse. I was curious if the horse could tell the biological differences between me and any other human.
"Didn't bring a horse?" Tristan asked with a smirk.
I of course did not bring a horse due to the fact my traveling methods are a lot faster. I cursed under my breath before giving a simple "No."
He chuckled and held his hand out to me. "No need to worry, you can ride with me."
I grabbed his hand and hoisted myself up and behind him. I grumbled under my breath and he laughed once again in a softer manner.
"Hold on tight Ladyship."

After a long bumpy ride with lots of flirtatious remarks from Tristan (and me pinching his stomach with every one) we stopped to let his horse rest. He had made a fire and I sat, nibbling on a small piece of bread, watching him through the flames.
He noticed I was watching and kept eye contact. I didn't back down and continued to analyze his face. He had what I would call the classic bad boy look. A scar on his face, the nine a clock shadow and a chiseled jaw. The one thing that bought my attention was his gold eyes.
He wasn't unattrative at all. In fact, he was rather handsome. I had just a minute to look at those beautiful eyes before he broke eye contact and chuckled softly.
"Don't back down do you, Ladyship?"
I looked down and shrugged, "Why would I?"
"Maybe because of my animalistic magnitizim?" He said sarcastically.
I snorted and shook my head. If anyone there had animal magnetism, it would've been me.
We sat in a more comfortable silence as we thought to ourselves. I snuck another peak at him, still trying to decide who he was or what his capabilities were. Then, I had an idea
"Wanna make a bet?"
His eyebrow perked up in question.
"I bet I can shoot better than you."
"Ha!" He laughed, "I think I just heard a frog croak."
"Playing pretend are we?" I smiled, standing up. "I suppose that makes you a prince?"
"Still makes you the frog." He grumbled, standing himself.
I picked up my bow and pointed towards a small branch on a nearby tree. "That's our target."
He nodded and I pulled the string on my bow. I breathed in deep, aiming for the small twig. I released the string and in an instant my arrow hit the mark almost perfectly. I smiled proudly, turned to face him, and handed him the bow. "Your turn, hotshot."
He took the bow promptly, rolling his shoulders back before drawing the bow. He aimed and consentrated on my arrow. Only a moment he looked away at me but it caused him to tilt his wrist away when he let go of the string, effectivly loosing. I laughed loudly as he looked absolutely struck.

"That doesn't happen." He looked towards me.
"It just did Princess," I snorted and laughed. He shook his head and handed my bow back to me.
"I blame your bow."
"Sure," I smirked, sitting back down by the fire.
"Just wait, Ladyship." He said confidently as he followed suit.

I went back to analyzing the world around us. At an attempt in conversation I annoyed him.
"How far is the den, again?"
"More Northeast than I'd like. In between Raq and Wylldern, closer to Wylldern." He said absentmindedly as he picked something out of his nail.
I nodded as I thought.
There were five capitals in Telendril. Sjorn, Avae, Wylldren, Raq, and Maerak. Each culture different but all held under the same law. Then there were the cities. Frjae, Doyen, Grengajal, and Myrv. The towns weren't as well known, except for one...
"Did you hear about what happened to the town in between Frjae and Avae?" I asked softly.
His expression became grim.
"Haaken." He corrected. "The whole town was demolished."
While trying to be as discreet and respectful as possible I probed him for more answers. More reactions.
"Do you know what caused it?"
His eyes became swept by emotion just for a minute before it swept away just as fast. He stood up, stomped out the embers and mounted his horse. I followed after him worriedly.
"Tristan?" I climbed behind him.
"It was a dragon."
"What?"
"A dragon destroyed Haaken."