The Thrill of the Chase

[Predatory Alfred]

He treaded lightly without sound, a considerable feat if you took into account all of the twigs and brush that littered the canopied floor around him. Even the slightest of sounds would be out of place by now. The forest had gone eerily quiet, as if everything had already conspired together and had been alerted that the game had already been started. Because it had. Oh, it certainly had.

Everything was just a game, or, at least that's what he made it out to be. Hunting? No! He was stalking and spying and using all prior knowledge in order to complete a task. Food and nourishment were simply an outcome and a well deserved prize. A game to starve off boredom... and starvation. It was a perfect solution to everything monotonous, routine and utterly mind-numbing tasks to survive in this lovely ecosystem.

...Well, near perfect. He had to have been having a rough night... day... Whatever! It was rough. It wasn't as if nothing at all had come up. That wasn't the case. What had come up, however, only amounted to small game and a far cry from the challenge the wolf drastically yearned for. Not to mention, he had advantages--thumbs were handy things, after all--and squirrel simply wasn't anything fantastical at all.

And as he trekked on, Alfred found himself not even jumping at the chance for anything smaller than a sixth of his size, which narrowed down the field a bit. Why did the elk have to migrate? Alfred could practically feel himself whining in disappointment and wouldn't have been surprised if the sound had actually managed to pass his lips. Now elk, elk were at least fun! Sure, it often took a few pack members as well, but nothing was more exciting than taking something big down and working together.

He let out a frustrated sigh as he had stepped on a branch, resulting in its snapping, and causing a small brown rabbit to flee off.

He had to catch something, though. Even if he was bored and full, there were several other mouths to feed, not to mention it was rare that they let him off on his own without a fuss the way it was. If he came back empty-handed, he'd never hear the end of it.

It wasn't as if he didn't like the other wolves. He loved them. They were his family, his protection, their protector, his rock, his place, his home... It was just the fact that they were actual wolves; fur, teeth, claws and all. Not that Alfred didn't consider himself a wolf (he did, as did his pack, he supposed), but wrestling, and howling and grunting only went so far.

He had his own sense of freedom out here 'hunting' on his own. He could do as he please and search... He wasn't quite sure what for, but something out here called for him. A new challenge, a new obstacle.... Something

Which meant if he wanted to keep having this freedom of his, he had to make it seem as if he were actually hunting and providing... Rabbit was big enough to feed the pups at least, right? Yeah. It'd do.

Not a second after the small creature had sped off was Alfred up and after it, grin blazing as a small spark of thrill let up inside of his chest. All right, so hunting wasn't all that boring when your opponent was a quick little guy.

Weaving in and out of trees, jumping over brush and avoiding branches, Alfred slowly saw the distance begin to close, the gap getting smaller and smaller. And if he was correct, the silly little thing was actually headed towards a flat clearing. It'd never make it past there. It was a simple acceleration of speed and then, 'game over.'

Bursting through the brush, though, into the meadow, Alfred suddenly willed himself to stop, watching his furry little adversary scamper quickly behind an ankle. An almost human ankle. The wolf let out a small chuckle as his eyes met with the shocked expression of the other. His grin spread to new bounds as clover colored eyes blinked at him.

Oh. Oh. Now this was something.

[Arthur Rabbit]

Arthur was bored.

Not bored in the sense that he had nothing to do- no, he had plenty of things to keep him occupied. Just leaving the warren to find food was an undertaking in itself, what with constantly having to be on the look out for predators. It didn't help that he usually left to graze on his own, meaning that there was no one around to warn him of danger should he let his guard down. Not that he wanted anyone with him; he preferred to go off on his own, despite the dangers involved in doing so. It wasn't for lack of willing company, as many of the younger, furrier members of the warren always seemed strangely eager to accompany him, and he would often have to carefully sneak away lest they follow him. No, it was simply that he didn't feel a strong social connection to his family. He loved them of course, and did what he could to contribute, but the fact was was that he was very much an introvert, an unusual (and often detrimental) trait for a rabbit.

And so, as he often was, Arthur was out alone, relaxing in a clearing not too far away from the warren. It was an absolutely perfect day; the sun was shining, the air was warm, there were no predators in sight (or hearing distance)...and he was horribly, horribly bored.

Arthur was never much one for excitement or adventure, but he did enjoy a bit of change every so often. Unfortunately, there wasn't much change to be had in the life of a rabbit. Each day was based solely on survival and life in the warren. The only time things were ever different was...well, mating season, and frankly he just wasn't interested in any of the females available to him.

He wanted something to change. For something to happen. Nothing dangerous of course, just...different.

Sighing, he stood up and decided to make his way back home. But before he could make it more than two steps he heard sounds from the woods; his ears swiveled towards the noise as he quickly tried to identify just what he was hearing. Their was the constant sound of foliage rustling, and from two different places quite close to each other...was something being chased? He sniffed the air, trying to catch the scent of whatever creatures were in the woods, but unfortunately the commotion was upwind from him. Shifting nervously, he was about to turn and bolt back to the warren when out of the woods bolted a small figure he quickly recognized as one of his fellow rabbits. He believed it was...one of his mother's sister's cousin's niece's kits, maybe? Either way, the little one was clearly heading for Arthur, and dived behind his feet the moment it reached him.

A sense of dread filled him as he raised his eyes, terrified to see whatever it was that had been chasing the kit. And his fears were well-founded; stalking towards him with one of the most frightening grins he had ever seen, was a wolf.

Like him, the wolf had human features, the most striking of which was a beautiful (horrifying, paralyzing) pair of bright blue eyes. Staring into them he found himself frozen, both physically and emotionally. This was dangerous, so, so dangerous. He gave a hard swallow, watching as the wolf's eyes followed the bob of his Adam's apple.

He needed to get away, that was certain. But first, the little one. Arthur knew he had a better chance of surviving this encounter than the young rabbit did, so slowly and carefully, he raised one of his feet and gave a simple two stomps on the ground. The wolf watched his every move, and as the little kit sprinted away he could only hope the wolf chose to stay with him. Yet at the same time, a part of him deep down wanted the wolf to choose the child, to take those ice blue eyes off of him and leave him be. Trembling, he stared at the wolf, awaiting its decision.

The wolf stayed.

[Predatory Alfred]

What luck! Alfred could hardly contain the excitement that was building and bubbling up in his chest. He wanted to snicker, or chuckle or roll around or something. He was giddiest he had been in the longest of times, but he didn't dare to do anything more than let out a low chuckle to start. No, in times like these rash movements would hinder the experience, after all, the poor thing seemed to just be quaking.

But it was so hard. This was new. He, Alfred duly noted the smaller animal's scent and looks, was new; absolutely foreign. A rabbit, yes; sure, it was easy to depict from the other's long ears and the fact that the smaller rabbit Alfred had been chasing was so willing to run to him, but that was only half of it. He didn't have to be a rabbit, though that did make things appealing. He could have been anything at all. It was his other features, the distinctly human ones, that caught Alfred.

So different, yet the same.

His eyes roamed the other's small figure, watching with interest as other swallowed hard. Human. How long had it been since he had seen anyone remotely close to being like him? It was a rare sight, and yet here they were, the two of them; ears and tails, but also fingers and thumbs.

So many questions whirled through his mind. Did Bunny just have smaller rabbits like Alfred simply had his pack... or were there others? Was he alone? Did he ever meet any others like them? Or was Alfred the first? Did the little guy really live in those...burrows? Rabbits lived in burrows, right? He thought they did... How could one actually like living underground? And sure, he was small but compared to the bunny cowering at his ankle, he was a giant! There was no way that he could fit nicely in their burrows. Besides, he didn't really look any dirtier than Alfred did... Okay perhaps a tad cleaner. So he forgot to roll around in a stream this morning, it wasn't a big deal! Who had the time to wash every day. Besides, he was sure someone would clean him up whenever he got back (the Mamas did like to take care of him too). It wasn't like he was filthy, just not entirely pristine. A little dirt never hurt anyone.

And it wasn't like----...

A sudden realization and instinct washed over him. Burrow, or no burrow, family or others like him or not, all cleanliness aside; really, what did it matter in the end? The little blond bunny.... was just that. A rabbit. A creature small in comparison to him. Twitchy noses, floppy ears, quick, agile, paranoid. Easy to catch, to hunt, to trap. As Alfred fully considered himself a wolf, and part of his pack, Bunny-Boy probably felt the same in regards to his own lifestyle.

Hell, Alfred felt laugher blossoming again, but held it back, the little guy even thumped his foot on the ground like those hares did when danger was around (an familiarity and trait Alfred had only observed when he went hunting with inexperienced pups). It was hilarious. What sorts of other silly actions did the other do based on instincts? So new, so curious.

Not even a glance was made towards the smaller fleeing animal. It was so insignificant in comparison at the moment. After all, he could just catch something later, on his way back. They had probably already gotten annoyed and impatient with his return and went out to find something for themselves. They were capable, after all.

Which meant he had plenty of time to play.

The prospects were already great... But first, what was a game if you didn't know your opponent?

"Awh," Alfred cooed out to the other, knowing that his ears would pick up his voice. "What a lovely bunny, taking care of the little one first."

He let his grin turn into a small, tentative smile as he, took an experimental step forward, another followed smoothly afterward seeing as the other seemed to remain frozen on the spot. Only a short distance away from the other but he didn't want to push anything. Instead he started to circle the other slightly, wondering if the other truly had a cute little tail like his smaller counter parts.

"Sooooooo," he said laughing to himself slightly. "Does Bunny have a name? I'm Alfred, by the way. What're you doing out here anyway? Meadows leave you so exposed. Aren't you guys paranoid little things? I'd imagine you would avoid open spaces out here alone. And don't you travel in pac--... hmm. Not packs. Don't you guys come in groups though? Less likely to get picked off anyway right?... What's your name?"

He couldn't help it. The words just kept spewing out in his excitement. A bunny. A bunny like him. Someone he could actually talk to and play with for real and relate to and have fun and play with and chase and maybe nibble on a bit, but not much because you don't eat your friends even if instincts said to pounce and chase and eat. But it would be awesome none-the-less. His heart was beating a mile a minute as a new thrill washed over him. So much fun; a cute little bunny that would be his. His... and only his.

What luck indeed.

[Arthur Rabbit]

Arthur remained completely still as the wolf continued to observe him, unsure of what he should do. He wasn't familiar with these sort of situations, he was usually too careful for them to occur. What had happened? Had he grown too lax? Why hadn't he run as soon as he'd heard noises, he was such an idiot! He didn't even have a weapon on him, not bothering to grab one with the thought that he wouldn't be gone particularly long. Normally he would condemn such stupidity as practically suicidal, but now he was the one who'd made the mistake; so hypocritical.

He was scared to move. As irrational as it was, he couldn't help but to want to believe that as long as he held still, the wolf wouldn't be able to see him. As it was he was fighting the urge to lay flat on the ground in some pathetic, instinctive attempt at making himself less noticeable. Should he flee? He wanted to, so bad; his legs were itching to run, far far away from this frightening predator; but he didn't know if he could make it. He may have been fast, but so were wolves. Though maybe this wolf wouldn't be as fast, slowed down by his human features. After all, Arthur was at least small; the wolf was obviously bigger than him, and perhaps that could cause some problems with speed. His eyes traveled along the others features, trying to judge agility by them. Powerful arms, hard chest, broad shoulders; it must have been so easy for the wolf to keep a hold of other animals, to overpower them and tear them apart. So terrifyingly strong; but certainly not as fast as Arthur. Then again, those legs were particularly long and looked like they could be rather muscular...no, no, no! He was still too big, too lumbering. He'd never catch him.

He rarely came across predators of his sort; it was much more common to run into other prey animals. The only predators he'd seen with human features he had seen from a distance, and he certainly wasn't stupid enough to approach them. Appearance tended to matter little in matters of survival. If a predator was hungry, it would go after you, human features or none. To them, prey was prey, no matter how similar it looked to themselves.

And now this horrible creature had found him with his guard down and-- oh God, it was approaching him. And speaking. Arthur almost had a full-blown panic attack at that, too shocked to consider running. The wolf stopped before reaching him, but this only frightened Arthur more. It was going to play with him, wasn't it? Mess around before finally ending him. He fought down an urge to squeal as it began to slowly circle him. Was the damn thing trying to intimidate him? Because if that was the case, it was doing an excellant job.

As much as he wanted to, he refused to turn as well in order to keep an eye on the wolf. Instead he strained his ears, listening carefully for any sounds that could signal an attack-- a sudden intake of breath, a growl, tensing muscles-- anything.

"Sooooooo. Does Bunny have a name? I'm Alfred, by the way. What're you doing out here anyway? Meadows leave you so exposed. Aren't you guys paranoid little things? I'd imagine you would avoid open spaces out here alone. And don't you travel in pac--... hmm. Not packs. Don't you guys come in groups though? Less likely to get picked off anyway right?... What's your name?"

None of your goddamn business, Arthur wanted to respond. But he knew better than that. What reason would this wolf- this Alfred, if that was his real name- really have for wanting to know such things? Playing, just playing with him. Trying to get him to let his guard down, trying to frighten him by pointing out his foolishness and vulnerability (as if he wasn't terrified enough as it was). Well he wouldn't fall for it. Refusing to answer, his eyes darted around the clearing as his ears judged the distance between him and the wolf. He would have to run for it, he didn't see any other way he could survive.

He just needed to wait for the right moment.

[Predatory Alfred]

And....hmm.... Yep! There it was, all small and fluffy and cute, and a little twitchy, but he definitely had one. Alfred felt his own tail swishing without his consent (not that he really minded either way) as he evaluated the other's. So, if the other's ears, which were now raised in and at attention rather than lax and floppy like they had been, weren't a dead give-away the short fluffy tail that was sticking out of the other's trousers were.

Clothing... It made sense, after all, he supposed that like him, Bunny was mostly furless and when it came down to harsh weather, winter and just the coolness of night, it was hard to keep body heat in. Clothing was a necessity for them but... Alfred's brow wrinkled for a moment. He had, over time, managed to piece most of his clothing together from furs and skin of animals he had hunted. Bunny, however, most definitely wouldn't hunt. Besides, the material looked different than that of his own. Plants, perhaps? That would make sense, he nodded to himself. And different colors and dyes for better camouflage could come from a multitude of different things, flowers or fruits.

Oh! Bunny was so peculiar and new and interesting and so many question kept spilling into his already buzzing mind that it was starting to give him a headache... and he hadn't even answered any of his questions yet! What was he waiting for? The wolf wanted to know. Curious, he was so curious about the new animal. Was he trying to build up suspense? It wasn't needed. Alfred's heart was already beating fast with some sort of joy that hadn't graced him in quite a while...

And yet, Bunny just stood there, motionless apart from his highly raised ear which swiveled as much as they could with Alfred's movements. A frown graced his lips as he slowly tacked back around in front of the other... Afraid? Alfred tried to note the other's somewhat stiff expression but he wasn't used to reading human features. He was greeted with a look that he would label almost as calm, but didn't rabbits listen with their ears up like that for danger? Surely the other one wasn't afraid of something out there if Alfred was here to protect him! But then again, he wasn't really entirely sure of how exactly rabbits acted.

Seconds ticked by and Alfred grew impatient and a small whine left his mouth as he still hadn't gotten a reply.

"Hey," He said taking a step closer only to see the other flinch and quickly move back a step, confirming the wolf's suspicions. Ah, so he was a tad frightened then? Alfred would have huffed a little but, perhaps that would have been no good as well. Bunny was new to him but... but he was new to Bunny as well. Perhaps he misunderstood something and, 'What's your name?' translated to 'I'm aggressive, and you're in my territory,' or something like that and...!

It suddenly donned on him. There was certainly a major reason as to why Bunny hadn't spoken to him at all yet and he felt so silly and dumb for not realizing it until now! Why hadn't it occurred to him before?

He probably couldn't speak!... Or at least human speak, that is. It made so much sense now! Alfred definitely would have been a little freaked out if someone just randomly came up to him and started babbling off in some foreign mumbo jumbo and speaking excitedly to him. Not to mention that he didn't even know if Bunny had met others like him before. He could be totally new to this sort of thing!

Alfred hummed and paced back and forth, rubbing his chin and glancing over at Bunny every so often to gage his expression, which wasn't quite terrible to read. How did one show that they were no harm to another without using any language at all, of motions? He wasn't sure if the actions he was able to communicate through with his pack meant the same for rabbits...but he wasn't about ready to roll over on his belly for the other either. He wasn't giving up any sort of pride just because Bunny couldn't speak human. He knew for a fact that the belly thing certainly translated into submission of some variety with every animal, but he liked having control and authority...

He let out a small sigh and turned back to glance at the other, ready to speak and coo in soft tones that would hopefully be soothing and calm and hopefully not distress the other creature. His eyes, however, met nothing but empty space, and his ears barely heard the audible, soft, but distinct, sound of scurrying feet against underbrush.

The wolf blinked and couldn't help the snarl that left his lips not a moment before he took off after the sound.

[Arthur Rabbit]

This wolf was...rather peculiar. Or maybe just a moron. What in the world was he thinking about, pacing back and forth and rubbing his chin like that? Maybe...oh God, maybe he was thinking of the best way to kill him, or eat him, or something like that? Arthur shuddered. Either way, the wolf seemed to be thinking so hard that he was actually letting his guard down, giving Arthur a prime chance to escape. And he would have been just as much a moron as the wolf if he didn't take it.

The moment the wolf's eyes were off of him he slowly backed away into the bushes on the edge of the woods, careful not to make any sound that would alert the predator to what he was doing. Once out of the clearing, he fled, running away as fast as he could, trying to gain enough of an edge over the wolf that he wouldn't be able to catch him.

But where should he go? His first thought was to head back to the warren, but what if the wolf managed to track him all the way there? Worse, what if he led the rest of his pack there as well? There was no chance of his warren being able to fight off an entire pack of wolves. Though...regular wolves, he wondered, or human-like wolves? Or both? If the pack was mostly regulars they might stand a better chance at defense, otherwise...

No, he couldn't do that. Even a successful defense would cost lives, and he refused to be responsible for causing deaths in his family just because...well technically it'd be that little kit's fault, but still. Same outcome, same risk. He just couldn't do it.

So where to go instead? His speed would only last so long before he tired, and he didn't know how much stamina the wolf possessed. For all he knew the predator would be able to chase him for miles, miles that Arthur wasn't sure he could last.

He fought down a sob, trying to just keep moving, to not panic. But...he didn't know what to do. Everything he'd been taught, all the lessons he'd had about what to do in this sort of situation, he couldn't recall them. He didn't even know where he was running anymore. He was lost, in all senses of the word.

And then, to his horror, the worse thing that could have happened in his circumstances did. He tripped.

His body toppled hard into the ground, but he refused to quit moving, scrambling forward on his hands as knees as he tried to regain his momentum and propel himself back to his feet. But it wasn't meant to be.

Slammed back into the ground, a large weight keeping him pinned there, Arthur was terror-stricken. No, he thought. This can't be it.

"GET OFF OF ME!!!" he yelled hysterically to the wolf above him, hitting and kicking for all he was worth. The wolf adjusted so that his legs were pinned, and snatched his wrists, holding his arms down. Still not willing to give up, he continued trying to buck the creature off him, shouting and sobbing and begging not to be killed, to be released, please please don't kill him--

And in this panicked state of mind, everything sounded so much more threatening, so much that even an exasperated growl could be taken as threatening, as a last warning before he was killed.

And so Arthur, pinned and frightened and expecting to die, did what his instincts and his fear dictated he do. He screamed. Maybe to warn other rabbits, maybe to try and surprise the predator into freeing him, even he didn't know. But his scream was loud, desperate, and absolutely terrified.

[Predatory Alfred]

He couldn't help the growls and snarls that left his mouth as he ran full speed into the brush and after his target. It was something much more instinctual and controlling than a willing clear-headed response. Alfred wasn't that angry, per se, simply a little hurt. Instinct, however, and usual mannerisms simply overthrew whatever Alfred would normally think was right in such a social situation.

But what was right in such a situation? His new playmate fled without even saying good-bye let alone making some sort of effort to communicate. What was so important that he had to get back? Why would he leave? Another growl left his throat as he jumped over several tree roots and his head began to find little resolve in whatever answers it came up for its own questions. A few mere seconds later, the reason hadn't mattered at all as his blood began to boil and his heart sting a bit with hurt.

It didn't matter, none of it mattered at all. What would matter would be actually catching up with the rude little bunny. His brain wasn't working far into the future, but he certainly wasn't going to let this one go, not at all. Not only for the fact that Bunny was the only human face he had seen in a while, but also the fact that such defiance when Alfred was only trying to be nice was more than a tad infuriating. This wasn't something that he was going to take lightly. He wanted Bunny, but he wanted him to know that he wasn't some complete fool either. He didn't just offer his friendship up to anyone! Messing with him on this sort of emotional level was low. And when things of this nature happened, the best way to resolve would to display to the smaller creature that he certainly wasn't anything close to a pushover.

Luckily for him, in his haste to leave, Bunny happened to run directly into the wind, leaving his scent and trail quite easy to follow as air currents seemed to breeze the other's scent directly into his face. That combined with the fact that he had been scouting this general area for prey within the past week, made this an almost perfect chase for him. As long as he could keep pace, his stamina would remain for a long time. After a while the rabbit surely would have tired out and would be easy to catch.

The land and terrain whizzed past him unnoticed, now completely focused on his goal. Brush against his feet, stung but did not deter, branches were either dodged completely or blown through while adrenaline made itself known once again, ebbing his angry away just a little and replacing it with slight excitement. He couldn't help the feeling as his pulse quickened and he felt a spark of desire run through him. He hadn't wanted anything more in such a long time.

And then, literally, his goal was in sight, scampering on the ground; a victim of gravity and misplaced footwork. Alfred couldn't help the grin that had materialized on his face and was only growing. The smaller creature tried to lift himself off the ground once more only to be pressed right back down into it, a direct result of Alfred pouncing on him, officially capturing his target. However, what happened next would have had Alfred jumping off the other in such surprise that he probably would have fallen backwards if not for that fact that his brain was still a tad hazy with adrenaline and in a hunting mind set.

"GET OFF ME!!!" the hysterical scream sounded and reached his ears as the body beneath him began thrashing about and kicking furiously. Arms and legs flailed about kicking and hitting him at times, but not enough to push him off. The words hadn't even registered in Alfred's head as he instinctually shifted, affectively pinning the other's legs down, grabbing his wrists and doing the same, simply concentrated on getting the other to stop moving so much, as slight confusion washing over his system.

He hadn't planned on the other totally submitting to him once being caught, but this was extreme. Worry filled his system as the other's movements became more mechanical and desperate, his voice increasing in volume as words and choked sobs and shouts filled the air to please be released; to pleasepleaseplease not kill him. His brain skipped over the fact that he certainly did speak human and locked on everything else.

This was real to the smaller animal, as in real, like Alfred had actually caught him because he was truly hunting. Everything suddenly clicked, making complete sense of Bunny's actions. He had been terrified of him from the beginning, not moving or having anxiety because Alfred was new and different, but because he had a predator's features along with his human. Had he really came off as menacing, Alfred wondered this as he tried to lay his body weight onto the other fully to stop his bucking and perhaps force him into a calm, or to at least give up long enough to explain himself. It made him feel sick. He had hardly any intentions of truly doing harm to the smaller animal, and yet they were mistaken and took for some sort of murderous intent.

Words formed on his tongue to repeat this to the other, sighing in frustration slightly over the bunny's shouts and getting ready to coo out his case to the other. He shouldn't yell, it'd only scare the rabbit further and nothing would get accomplished. He needed to say these things softly to the other in hopes of calming him just a little but these words never left his lips.

Not a moment before he started speaking had Bunny let out this absolutely horrible sound. Alfred flinched, ears tucking down flat against his head as he willed himself not to let go of the other entirely. It was terrible, awful, and he heard every ounce of fear in it. The smaller creature had honestly thought itself a goner.

Alfred quickly shifted the other's small wrists to be pinned down by one hand as he tried to rub small, soothing circles into the Bunny's back. Soothing words and coos were said into his ear, 'Hey. Hey Bunny. Shhh. Shhh, it's all right, please calm down. I'm not going to hurt you, shhh shhh. You're going to be all right, please be quite. Hush, Bunny.' but their effect wasn't even noticeable if there was one at all.

The other was shrieking much too loudly and Alfred began to feel himself panicking. Stress and anxiety reared their ugly heads. What to do? What could he do? Oh no, oh no. He had managed to terrify his Bunny without meaning and now he just would be quiet. Please be quiet, pleasepleaseplease! Alfred whined a little as his heart beat loudly against his ribcage as he looked down at the smaller form, his eyes darting back and forth, not entirely sure what he was supposed to do, but he had to do something! With his free hand Alfred reached around and placed it over the other's mouth, muffling the sound but by no means stopping it.

"Please, Bunny! Please calm down, I really mean no harm at all. Not gonna eat you. You're safe. Please calm down," he repeated the same phrases similarly over and over again like a mantra and, to his surprise, he felt the other's efforts soon begin to die as the body beneath him began to go lax. A sigh of relief escaped the wolf's lips as his hand slipped away from the other's mouth.

"I-I'm really sorry, Bunny," he cooed quietly next to the other's ears, nuzzling down into him in apology. "I didn't mean to scare ya. I thought you... I just thought you were shy. I... I had no intentions of hurting you, really. I just... I'm not good at reading other human features yet, I guess. I don't see very many of us, you know?"

The small rabbit remained quiet, in fact, he hadn't even moved a muscle to shift under Alfred's weight once which didn't register quite right with Alfred. The wolf quickly rolled off of the other's smaller figure and flipped him around, seeing that his pretty green eyes were now hidden and shut.

There was a moment, a beat before Alfred just stared at the other. His stomach lurched.

Oh god. I've killed him. Alfred let out a small gasp and dropped the other's lifeless body, staring at it in horror. Oh no, oh no, oh no! He'd suffocated the poor thing! He really hadn't meant to kill him, he hadn't! It was just that he wouldn't stop screaming! If he had quieted down, Alfred wouldn't have had to--- Oh crap.

Alfred's lungs heaved. He couldn't believe this. The first human-like creature he meets in years and he had managed to kill him in not even an hour! He traced a finger down the side of the bunny's face and sighed. Sorry, he was so, so sorry. Green eyes would never open again... he looked, somewhat peaceful at least, if you got over how furrowed his... surprisingly large eyebrows were. With his eyes closed like that, and his chest rising and falling in little puffs, it was like he was sleeping rather than....

Wait... Alfred's head quickly lowered to the other's chest, almost instantly hearing a heartbeat and a giddy feeling washed all over him once more. It seemed as though his little Bunny had passed out at some point and hadn't died on him (luckily). An air of relief surrounded him as he let out a shaky laugh. He'd have to make it all up to the other once he woke up. He'd have to explain it all, that Bunny had been silly and it was all a misunderstanding and---

And then sounding from few miles or so away was a howl that caused Alfred to stiffen as his ears poked up. Shit! Alfred groaned, ears straining as a chorus of other howls followed and he debated answering or not. His pack; they were looking for him now, no longer impatient with him, but worried about his whereabouts and hoping he was safe.

This wouldn't do at all, no, no, no.

"Bunny! Bunny wake up," He said a bit too loudly, but received no response nonetheless. He gently slapped the other's cheeks next and then, when that hadn't worked, he tugged on a few strands of his hair. A loud groan was the final result and it only came from Alfred, who looked down at the other with a soft expression. He couldn't just leave him here. That'd be silly. Bunny was alone and defenseless and who knew what scary sort of predator could come through here next. Not to mention that... that this was sort of Alfred's fault. He had to take responsibility for Bunny now that he wasn't conscious. He couldn't just leave him here for dead.

It was a little bit of a risk, but there really was no good options here. Scooping up the other, Alfred took in a large breath and howled back in response to the others, telling them that he'd be home eventually.

_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

Eventually indeed, it wasn't too long of a long run back, but when he had managed to get there Alfred felt a tired strain all over his muscles, not used to the extra carried weight and crashing from all of the excitement of what had happened.

Home was four miles north and three miles west of where he had (literally) picked up Bunny. And home was a loose term for it simply because that it was the place in which Mama had decided to have her pups; a cavern up the slight slope of a mountain. It wasn't high enough to cause danger to the rest of the pack and the newborns but it was high enough that they could view the surrounding area for trouble easily.

He was greeted almost immediately as he made it back, several older members of the pack letting out warnings and snarls for such disobedience and scolding him for his foolishness, but also giving him inquiring looks, staring at Bunny with curiosity and excitement. A whole bunch of confusion and excitement was brought up and after what felt like the longest time of growling and barking (and eventually over-apologizing and a few sorry looks at his alpha) assuring the other's that Bunny wasn't food, but rather a... a playmate of sorts and not to be killed for a later meal.

It didn't go over so well, and he was sure he was in a whole bunch of trouble, but he had eventually gotten Alpha's approval that Bunny could stay here safely until he was up and that no harm would come to him. He supposed it may have been out of a tad bit of pity on him, and knowing that Bunny was indeed somewhat connected to Alfred, but it really didn't matter. Bunny was safe here and it was accepted regardless of the snarls he kept getting as he made his way back to his makeshift bed.

It was darker back there but Alfred found a lovely spot between the den's rocks where he could lay furs and skins and make something not only comfortable but able to keep him very warm at night. Sitting down himself, he laid his Bunny down on most of the blankets so none of him could come in contact with the stone, rock and dirt floor which could get quite cold at times. Humming for a moment Alfred decided to lay down as well. Most of the pack was cross with him and he wasn't allowed to leave for a while anyway. This way, when Bunny finally woke up, he'd be close by and there to explain everything.

But sitting in the dark, with a source of extra heat could only keep the wolf stirring for so long. Alfred tried to stifle a yawn as he moved closer to his Bunny, snuggling him a tad closer as his eyes began to feel heavier. He had to stay awake so that he could make sure Bunny was truly safe... but... but maybe closing his eyes for just a moment wouldn't hurt.

[Arthur Rabbit]

Arthur came to slowly, feeling unpleasantly sore, the cuts on his legs and feet stinging. What had happened? It felt like he'd run for miles...

He was amazingly warm, the feeling of soft fur surrounding him. He kept his eyes close, not willing to fully wake up, giving a contented hum at how comfortable he was despite his soreness. He must have found a lovely spot to settle down between some of the other rabbits. It seemed he'd even managed to claim some blankets, something that was usually very difficult to do. Blankets were made from anything soft; cotton, milkweed fluff, shedded fur. It could take quite a long time to collect enough material to make an entire blanket, so usually they were reserved for the...the kits...

Kits could be such silly little things. Always so cute and innocent, but highly vulnerable to predators. They were simply too unexperienced, too naive. He remembered when he was a kit, everything was so much more simple. No hierarchy, not preoccupied with worries of predators...

Kits and predators. Why did that...remind him of something? He frowned, eyes still closed, trying to remember what had happened before he went to sleep. As he did so he felt someone next to him shift, long arms coming to wrap around and pull him closer to them. He felt them nuzzle into his hair, sleepily mumbling and giving a soft sigh. Had his eyes been open, he would have rolled them. Clearly he had ended up near someone particularly cuddly; not the first time such a thing had happened, and probably wouldn't be the last. Besides, he didn't really mind all that much. The extra warmth they provided was nice, and he felt himself curling into them without thinking.

But....huh. This someone...had quite a good bit of height. Rather unusual for a rabbit. Was there really someone this tall in the warren? He wracked his mind, trying to go through every member and figure out who was cuddling him. If he remembered correctly, even the dominant male wasn't as tall as this. So...who in the world...?

The arms around him shifted, causing him to feel sharp indents through the back of his shirt. Were they holding something, like a weapon of sorts? But, why would they carry it to bed...?

They groaned again, but this time, it was different. It was less a groan and more like a sleepy...growl. And not a rabbit growl; no, this was much, much different.

He froze, mind now desperately trying to recall what had happened before he'd gone to sleep. He remembered leaving the warren, grazing in a nearby meadow...deciding that it was time to head back...and then, then......

.......the kit.

A little kit, being chased by a horrible predator, running to Arthur for cover and then managing to escape but not Arthur who was left behind to stare into those frightening blue eyes and that sharp grin and oh God he was going to die and he fled but he was caught and then the horrible thing began to suffocate him and he couldn't get away it was all over over over--!

His eyes shot open, a sharp breath being sucked in as he stared at the wolf next to him. He was dead. He had to be dead. The wolf had killed him and now he was just dreaming, or in some sort of purgatory--

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Calm, needed to calm down. The wolf was asleep. He still had a chance to get out of this, to go home and never leave the warren again.

Carefully, oh so carefully, he began sliding away from the wolf, the other's arms tightening around him for a moment before falling loose and letting him go. Moving away and slowly sitting up, he looked around, observing his surroundings.

And promptly fell in to another panic.

He was on...he was on a pile of death. Furs, so many furs. With shaking hands he reached down and lifted one, quickly dropping it and holding back frightened tears as he saw it was a rabbit's fur. The remains of so, so many poor animals who had been captured and murdered. The amount was staggering, and he fought down the urge to vomit, fearing the sound and smell would wake the horrible monster who had killed them.

He forced himself to look away, looking around and trying to figure out where he was. It was dark, though not enough for him to be unable to see that the walls were certainly not soil. It looked like he was in...probably a cavern of some sort. Wolves stayed in caverns sometimes, right? Standing on shaky legs, he walked further into the middle of the cave, away from the spot against the wall that held the wolf and his furs. Moving quietly towards the entrance (it was still slightly bright out, perhaps he could manage to get home before dark-!), he suddenly went motionless. Sleeping in small groups near the entrance to the cavern were what he assumed to be the rest of the first wolf's pack.

His hope plummeted to the bottom of his chest. Doomed. He was doomed, plain and simple. There was no way he could manage to sneak by all those wolves, they'd wake up and then tear him to pieces. On the other hand, he could go back to where the other wolf was, waiting for him to wake up and being torn to pieces...later.

But then, that prompted a very good question. Why had the wolf brought him back here? His first guess would be as some sort of cruel joke, but this was taking it rather far just to cause Arthur emotional distress, even for a wolf. He could have easily killed him in the woods, so he didn't think that it was for any sort of ease. Then...what...?

It didn't matter. Making his way back to where he had woken up, he glanced around, trying to see if the wolf has anything other than the furs. What he wanted was a weapon. He already had it planned out; if he could find one, he could use it to kill the wolf, and attempt to fight off the rest on the way out. It was an awful plan, he knew, with pathetically slim chances, but he didn't really have any other options. It was better than simply waiting to be killed.

Not finding any at a glance, he wondered if maybe there might be some...under the furs. Taking a great shuddering breath, Arthur began digging through them, fighting off nausea and trying not to lose his resolve each time he came across the remains of a rabbit.

However, with his focus completely on his task, he failed to notice when the wolf began to wake up, blinking tiredly before brightening up as he was noticed.

When he did realize that the wolf had awoken, he panicked, ears straight up as he pressed himself against the wall and stared with large, frightened eyes. Oh God, not again. He wasn't sure he could handle this stress again. Why, why did this cruel creature feel the need to stretch this out?

[Predatory Alfred]

It hadn't been too, too long. It couldn't have been. When the lovely warmth near him first stirred he still felt rather exhausted. He was still tired so... so it couldn't be well into the night or anything close to then. Why was the other leaving? Not wanting the warmth too leave he mumbled a plea or perhaps it was just garbled words that would perhaps convince the other to stay.

It wasn't quite so often that the others would come to cuddle with him. It wasn't as they wouldn't, but it wasn't often. There had been too many cases in which he would wake up to find most of his blankets shredded, the scent of the animal it was from not quite gone and enticing his pack mates to chew and bite at them. It wasn't as if furs were hard to find, just catch anything really and not only have food but cloth and warmth, but it was a pain to replace if a lot of them were lost. It was best to have more controlled member of the pay to cuddle with... which meant the older ones. They, however, never seemed to quite like him as much as the pups who'd gratefully cuddle. It just didn't work out right for him.

So when he felt the body next to him shift and begin to pull away he, in his sleepiness, tried to hold onto them, a small growl perhaps leaving his lips urging to let the other know how comfortable he was. In the end the other managed to pull away, his warmth leaving him, leaving Alfred to curl into himself slightly as per usual and hope the other would come back soon.

Five more minutes had always been the request, but, despite this, on most as soon as Alfred was stirred awake slightly himself, his brain would slowly come into coherency if anything interesting was going on; such as hearing someone bring back food, or the pups playing, or even the occasional fight that could transpire between any member. In this instance, it was the sound of feet treading away. It wasn't their movements, though they did have a 'lost' sort of feel to them maybe, it was their sound. They definitely weren't the typical paw against stone resonance once normal heard here. No, the movement itself was more spread out, and sort of cautious, no claws clicked against the floor either as the slowly came back as well.

The connection was drawn in a languid fashion and mostly resolved when the other had came back, resting on Alfred's bed once more. The full distinct smell of Bunny reiterated his senses once more and Alfred found himself slowly beginning to awake, remembering his cute new play mate who he had brought home. Blinking lethargically, Alfred's eyes fluttered open, peering at the new found object of his current fascination digging slightly into the furs underneath them.

Cute, so, so cute. Alfred couldn't help but smile as he watched Bunny dig through and rearrange how different furs laid. It was the main reason why he like smaller furs along with larger ones for bedding; they were easily arranged so if you wanted more padding somewhere it was easy to do. It was lovely to share something as simply as a bed and a nice thought that Bunny was trying to make himself comfortable (after all, getting comfortable meant he wouldn't mind staying longer).

He wasn't sure what happened, but one moment he was watching the other situate himself, or whatever, and the next the smaller figure was pressing his back completely against one of the den's cool walls, ears straight up and a panicked look on his face staring wide-eyed over at Alfred.

Paranoia really did get the better of the little guy. Did he really think that Alfred would be angry at him for moving around his things. His smile turned into a tried yawn as Alfred shook his head, implying that it was fine and he didn't really much care what the other did to stay comfortable. He patted the spot next to him once or twice and waiting a moment for Bunny to rejoin him. He was much too tired for much anything else and just wanted to other to go back to whatever he had been doing so sleep and cuddling could be underway once more.

He never came and Alfred shot the other a small look before speaking quietly through a yawn.

"I really don't mind, Bunny," he patted the spot again, eyes blinking shut. "Really... move 'round whever ya want.... I don't bite-" And as that phrase was uttered, Alfred's mind snapped away, shooting up straight into sitting position and watching as Bunny practically shot out of his skin, cringing at Alfred's sudden movement.

He had forgotten; stupid, stupid, stupid. Bunny really had no idea that he didn't bite! He had fallen asleep and... and now Bunny was up. Up before him and completely scared and probably thinking that this was the end or some horrible miscommunication like that.

"Sorry!" he quickly blurted out, a tad bit too loud making the other flinch. Minding his tone, he lowered his voice trying to sound softer. "Sorry... er... Not gonna hurt you Bunny, really not at all. It's a whole miscommunication. I never meant to scare you."

He fumbled awkwardly with his words giving the other a pleading look. "You... You really think I wanna eat you or something... I don't," he shakes his head trying not to make the movements sharp as to not scare the other. "I really just wanted to say hello.... and make nice and... and play. I've no pack mates to play with... well not any like us, you know? You're the first... one like us, this it, I've met in a long, long time. I suppose I may have gotten a bit too excited, but- but you are so cute and neat and I really wanted to meet you and play and it... it was really, really exciting. It still is."

He slowly crawled forward, slowly and carefully, reaching a hand out and placing his hand timidly on the top of the other's head, feeling the smaller body quivering. Alfred let out s soft sound, cooing slightly at him and slowly, gently, petting his blond locks.

"Shhh... See. Nice. Really I am. Not gonna hurt you, Bunny. Calm down."

[Arthur Rabbit]

He stared at the wolf in terrified confusion. Did it really expect him to come back, willingly give himself up to the predator's jaws? It...must have thought he was stupid. If he hadn't been so scared, he would have most certainly felt insulted.

He cringed as it suddenly sat up, oh God, his life was almost over, wasn't it? It was getting up to attack him and--

...And wait, what was it saying? It...didn't want to eat him?

...What a load of codswallop. It did think he was stupid, there was no other answer as to why it insisted on trying to trick him in such obvious ways. Though...it was true that it could be quite rare to find others like them outside one's own family. The fact that his family was made up only of regular wolves besides himself struck Arthur as very unusual. If that was the case, were in the world did he come from? Perhaps he was adopted, or his parents had passed on, or maybe the pack had split? He wasn't very familiar with how wolf packs worked, so maybe this dynamic was more normal than he thought. Personally, he couldn't imagine living in a warren with only regular rabbits. While the furries were sweet, they could be oh so simplistic, and being the only human-like member of a rabbit warren would get so boring and frustrating--

Wait. That was...what exactly what the wolf was saying, wasn't it? He was bored, and exasperated, and probably lonely as well. His reasonings did make sense....

But Arthur wasn't the only of his kind. His warren was filled with others like him. Certainly if the wolf knew that, his interest would fade, likely resulting in Arther's consumption. So basically, Arthur's survival depended on his ability to remain a novelty, at least until he could escape.

Fantastic.

He continued eyeing the wolf suspiciously, fighting the urge to flee at its every move. Running would only get him killed; just because this wolf seemed to hold some sort of perverse interest for him, didn't mean his pack members would. As much as he hated it, his best chance was to remain still and wait for the other to make a move.

This wasn't easy however, and Arthur had to work furiously to quash his instincts as the wolf began slowly crawling towards him. His whole body was shaking from fear, ears laying back as he tried desperately to press himself further into the wall. Oh no, what if he was wrong? What if the wolf was indeed trying to trick him and was getting ready to kill him and dear Lord he was reaching out towards him--!

He squeezed his eyes shut, tensing up slightly as he prepared to meet his demise, but instead of having his throat ripped out felt the hand gently petting him.

"Shhh... See. Nice. Really I am. Not gonna hurt you, Bunny. Calm down."

Lies, this wolf was anything but nice. He had chased Arthur down, smothered him unconscious, kidnapped and taken him to his den filled with other wolves, laid him on a pile consisting of the remains of other small, vulnerable animals like him, and was now trying to act like Arthur was the one overreacting...!

B-but the petting felt so nice. And those soft, careful words...it was so hard not to fall into them. Still trembling and leaning fully against the wall, Arthur stared up nervously at the wolf, unsure of what to do or say.

"I...I don't understand. Why am I here?" he asked, hating how small and scared he sounded, voice slightly raspy from all his earlier screaming. He could only hope the wolf was okay with him asking some questions, because he felt that he truly deserved some answers.

[Predatory Alfred]

It was amazing, but he tried not focus on it at the time, how soft Bunny's hair actually was; like feather, or something like that. The blond locks were so fine and smooth and felt just so nice against his fingers had he carded through the other's hair, hopefully placing reassurance in his words as he did so. It was much different from his own, which he suppose, had taken after more wolf traits as Bunny's did rabbit. He subconsciously ran his hand through his own, the feeling of thicker, coarser locks not as pleasant to him as the other's.

This was only one slight difference, but it caught his attention so purely. This was exactly why he didn't want the other to be scared. He want to know and find out everything about the other, compare and contrast and revel in the fact that they were so the same while being so different. He didn't want the other to be scared, he wanted him to join in his curiosity, to see all of these things together and finally, finally, have someone else.

But perhaps this wasn't exactly that time. He had to tread carefully; this was apparent by the way the other still trembled. While he didn't pull away from Alfred's touch, he wasn't exactly leaning into it either. Calm Bunny first, play and be friends after all of the other's fears had been quelled.

After what felt like an eternity, Bunny finally squeaked something out, questioning Alfred's motives for bringing him back to the den, or at least that's how he took it, sounding hoarse and nervous. It wasn't the reaction he had been hoping for, but he would take it. Bunny wasn't shrieking or making that terrible, awful, sound, after all, and that's more than Alfred could have said for his first attempt at making nice with the other.

Perking up, regardless, at the other's voice, Alfred smiled, trying to keep his voice soft and soothing despite his excitement even at the little bit of progress of getting the other to speak.

"Well... you sorta passed out sometime after I caught you and... and I guess you were beyond reasoning then because your instincts got the better of you. So you were completely out of it. And then my pack-" he nods his head back towards the mouth of the cave. "they got worried about me... I was sorta dawdling so I guess it was reasonable that they were worried about me, but I'm not a pup! I can take care myself and go out on my own without them having to worry. It's not like I'm going to hurt myself and I can definitely reason my way out of anything if it really got down to that and---"

Alfred noticed the other cringe slightly as his voice grew louder with each word, straying off topic and in a tangent that really didn't concern Bunn much at all.

"Er.... Well... Anyway, they called and as it sounded I was going to be in enough trouble as it is for worrying them," Alfred continued, going back into his softer tone. "But you were knocked out and I couldn't just leave you in the middle of the woods without any form of protection. A bear or something big and scary might have came by and then who knows what would have happened. I had no idea when you'd wake up, or even if you were hurt. So I brought you back with me, because I had no idea where you live and didn't have enough time to sniff out the little one with you that had run off. So I felt it was my duty or something to make sure you stayed safe!"

A little bit of excitement escaped into his voice towards the end, grinning at Bunny as his tail wagged.

[Arthur Rabbit]

The wolf took a moment to answer him, simply continuing to run its fingers through his hair. It was making Arthur highly uncomfortable; while the petting felt nice, it was somewhat unnerving to have a predator stroking his fingers through Arthur's hair so...adoringly. The sudden tail wagging that began when Arthur had spoken didn't help.

Finally the other answered him, and Arthur couldn't help but to flinch as the wolf's voice began to get louder and...more off-topic. A wolf with a short attention span, he never would've dreamed. Though he supposed it was thanks to that he was able to flee earlier without the wolf's notice. Not that it got him anywhere.

Oh yes, his instincts had gotten the better of him. Says the wolf who chased him down and restrained him. Practically blaming Arthur for everything, so typical. Clearly this one didn't know how to take responsibility for his own actions.

"But...y-you suffocated me. I-I remember." Quite a feat, since most of what had happened was a blur for him after he'd started screaming.

The wolf stopped for a moment, seeming to notice his cringing, before resuming a softer tone and continuing again. Get into trouble with his pack? Seemed like he wasn't very high on the dominance ladder. Or maybe it was just his age, and they were still treating him like a pup. Arthur couldn't blame them; so far this wolf had not proven himself to be particularly mature.

Something big and scary. Like another wolf? he wanted to ask, but was worried such a comment might anger the wolf. Thank goodness he hadn't chased down the little one, then all of Arthur's actions would have been for naught. The wolf would have found his warren anyway, and upon seeing how numerous rabbits like Arthur were, probably wouldn't have hesitated to make a meal out of him.

Regardless, for now this wolf seemed very concerned with his well-being, even going out of his way to keep Arthur safe. Though of course this was for want of another creature like him, but even so...

That infuriating tail was wagging even harder now. The wolf was so pleased with himself, wasn't he? Well, his hopes for a "playmate" were about to be dashed.

"I...thank you, for n-not leaving me alone that is. B-but, I feel much better now, so if I could p-please return home...?" Though everyone probably assumed he was dead by now. He couldn't blame them; sometimes, at the end of the day, some rabbits just don't return to the burrow. It was a sad, but common occurrence of live, and one that Arthur had long ago learned to cope with. Now he was the rabbit who didn't return home, leaving everyone in a state or mourning for the night before quickly moving on.

But he could still return, everyone in the warren surprised but happy that he's still alive. He would head to the deeper rooms, find a nice place to curl up.....and then never, ever leave the warren again.

[Predatory Alfred]

Alfred pursed his lips a little, Bunny's comment about being suffocated only just reaching his ears and being fully processed as he tried to calm himself down from his excited state once more. Had he really...? No. Bunny was confused. Fear must have clouded his mind so much of the event that his move to simply quiet the other was taken as an act of smothering or something to that degree at least. He hadn't actually tried to suffocate the other.

He ignored the comment instead, still hearing the hesitancy and apprehension in his voice. It was best not to argue it right now, fearing it would only scare the smaller figure back into a state where he forgot he had words to even use.

Alfred's heart fell a little though as the other finally spoke up once more, his ears drooping and his tail stopping. He wanted to leave? So soon? They had barely met; barely talked, or shared stories, or played or had done anything but succumb to natural instincts and desires and fall into a state that was neither fun nor pleasing! He couldn't go just yet. Not this quickly.

Alfred shook his head, denying the request before even speaking.

"But it's still light out," he whined slightly, a growl sounding from somewhere in the cave to be quieter. It was tactfully ignored. "I wasn't even supposed to be out as late into the day as I was, let alone having to catch up with you about that misunderstanding and then having to bring you back. I'm tired."

Alfred flopped back down onto his blankets and rolled a bit, keeping a sharp eye on Bunn just to make sure the silly little guy didn't try and bolt again. A movement like that would surely disturb everyone and Bunn might accidently get himself snapped at (or something worse than that considering how instincts were only a natural drive to them). There was no reason to wake up the entire pack at such an hour and certainly no reason to scare and injure his new playmate more than he already was.

"Come back to bed. You might feel better, but you gotta be tired with all of that running. I wouldn't feel right making you walk all the way back if you're gonna be exhausted... not to mention you must be sore. That little topple you did looked like you might have bruised yourself or something!... Sorry that I didn't get a chance to look at'cha. I was concentrated on coming back here and then I had to convince everyone to let you stay and by the time I laid you down, you look all comfy that I kinda forgot and just wanted to join you..."

Letting out a yawn, Alfred patted the spot next to himself once more.

"So, after we're both fully rested and my brain isn't so fuzzy with sleep, I can make sure you're really okay and if you are, maybe we can play some before I take you back. Sound good?"

It wasn't really a question of course. Alfred was tired and wasn't about ready to let Bunny go off on his own to find his way back. That would be too dangerous and certainly not satisfying considering what little time they had together so far was spent on trying to calm the rabbit down. No, the other would stay a little longer; sleep, heal, talk and then, perhaps if Alfred felt their time was sufficient enough, then Bunny could go back home.

It was only fair, after all.

[Arthur Rabbit]

Arthur noticed the wolf's tail stop wagging and dropping ears, and fought the urge to roll his eyes. Really? He couldn't truly be surprised that Arthur wished to leave after everything that happened, and it's not like he had any real reason to stay--

...Had the wolf just refused his request? Arthur flinched as he heard a growl from one of the other wolves in the cave, his ears momentarily twitching towards the sound, but was too distracted and incredulous to pay much attention it to. He...he couldn't go home?

Arthur froze, unsure of how to take such information. That...no. That wasn't fair. He wanted, no, deserved to go home after all that the other had put him through. He didn't want to be here in this frightening, unfamiliar place with this intimidating wolf and his family of predators, small and vulnerable and unable to escape. He wanted to scream and shout at the wolf, demand that he be allowed to go home--!

But...he couldn't. The other was all claws and teeth and Arthur was only still alive by his mercy and fascination. He couldn't risk angering him, or making himself any sort of burden.

Instead Arthur slid down the wall into a sitting position, staring at the wolf in disbelief, hoping desperately that it was a joke and that the other would soon inform him that he was only kidding (it seemed like the sort of thing this wolf would do, at least). But as he continued to stare, he realized that the wolf was indeed serious.

Arthur held his head in his hands, ignoring the wolf's excuses and requests to lay back down in that pile of death. He was trapped.

"F-fine. Fine then," he replied softly to the other. "I'll stay. I expect you t-to let me leave as soon as we're both awake." Arthur didn't want to "play" with the wolf, whatever that entitled. With his luck it would want to play some sort of game of chase, and Arthur didn't think he could handle something like that against without having a completely panicked mental breakdown.

He laid down and curled himself up against and facing the wall, ears carefully tuned to the wolf's movement as he tried to ignore his shivers. This cave was truly freezing, but it was better than lying over with the wolf. If he was lucky, it would quickly fall asleep before him, and perhaps Arthur could resume his search for a weapon.

Though as it was, his chances looked bleak.

[Predatory Alfred]

Alfred tried not to frown as Bunny simply slid down the wall of the cave with that strange, peculiar expression. He really tried. He wanted to remain cheerful, trying to at least keep his own atmosphere light as to not scare or falsely alert the other of some sort of stress or impeding anger. He could quite keep it, however and felt the corners of sinking as Bunny cradled his head in his hands; agreeing to what was already fact, before lying down on the more-than-likely freezing ground.

The other just stayed there, curling into himself, making no move to come back and lay down where is was certainly more comfortable and warm. What... What was this? Had his actions been misinterpreted again? No. How could they? Alfred had clearly patted the spot next to himself. Bunny should have caught on, right? There was no real reason not to. Wasn't that a common motion? Surely it hadn't translated differently to rabbit... and even if it had, Bunny's human side should have at least recognized it.

... Unless he didn't want to sleep there with him. A thought like that was surely not pleasing at all and Alfred quickly threw it away, not wanting to think of such an option. Who would chose the chilly floor over being warm? Bunny... He was simply completely exhausted! Yes! That was it. Bunny had been running and screaming and frightened. It all must have all tolled up, and when Alfred had finally told him that they would rest before leaving, Bunny must have been hit with a wave of it!

That was reasonable! Bunny was just too tired to move back with Alfred! It wasn't as if he didn't like the wolf, he simply had no energy left and thought it easiest to lie on the floor! What a silly little guy. Alfred wouldn't have minded helping him. There was hardly any shame for Bunny in his fatigued state. After all, Alfred was feeling quite drowsy at the moment as well. All of that stress and excitement on Bunny's smaller form must be affecting him tenfold.

Alfred's smile had returned after a minute or two, disappointment disappearing and replaced with that same adoring curiosity he seemed to possess for the other. Bunny was shivering a bit but other wise the other's breathing seemed to have still quite a bit. He really didn't want to disturb the other if he was already asleep.... but staying on the chilly floor would certainly cause some sort of cold on the other. As well as he could, trying not to make a peep as not to bother the other, Alfred crept over to Bunny's figure and gently, easily, scooped him up with the intention of bringing him back to bed.

But as it went, Bunny hadn't actually been asleep, or, well, if he had he almost instantaneously awoke as Alfred was lifting him. Immediately, in sharp mechanical movement Bunny squirmed, fidgeting and being a general nuisance, resulting in Alfred accidentally releasing him, the smaller figure falling to the floor with an audible 'CLACK!'

The rabbit didn't even flinch from the fall, instincts taking over once more as his limbs began to move on their own. Alfred stared at the other somewhat shocked as Bunny scrambled once more, placing himself right against the wall, looking at him once more with those large, wide, green eyes.

Bunny... Was the other still that afraid of him? Hadn't... they surely had gone over the fact that Alfred meant no harm to him; that it was all a big misunderstanding and that Alfred hadn't even possessed a single desire to even nibble on the smaller creature (okay, perhaps a minute itching desire at the back of his mind, but that was easily pushed aside).

But.... that fall sounded like that hurt. It must have hurt, but Bunn didn't even seem to blink, concentrated solely on Alfred and his movements once again. Not focusing on his current pain for he was expecting even more to come. Alfred cursed mentally, wanting to reach out and see if the other was all right assure him his fears were silly and that he was harmless.

"I'm sorry! I'm so, so sorry, Bunny," His voiced cooed out truly concerned with the other right now. "I... I only wanted to bring you back over; didn't want you to catch a cold or be uncomfortable.... thought you were exhausted. So, so sorry...."

Alfred gulped, now feeling slightly nervous, breathing in hard as he asked a question his senses already knew the answer to. The new scent wafting in the air was plain and clear as day, he didn't even have to look at Bunny to know.

"You okay?... That fall looked like it hurt..."

[Arthur Rabbit]

Despite his suspicious, it seemed that the wolf was so far not making any move to come toward him. This relieved Arthur greatly; perhaps he really could just rest for now, without fear of the wolf attacking him. But then.....he was planning on waiting for the wolf to fall asleep before attacking. What if it was planning the same thing? Just waiting for him to fall asleep before calling the other wolves in, able to kill him without dealing with his screaming and struggling.

So perhaps Arthur was a bit...paranoid. Still, how could one blame him? His entire survival- and that of all rabbits- was based on knowing how to avoid danger, when and how to escape it, how to fight back against it. Rabbits were practically born paranoid, ready to flinch and flee at any sound or sudden movement. And while that could seem silly sometimes, most rabbits agreed that it was always better to be safe than sorry.

Arthur agreed.

Deciding to test his theory, Arthur began to slowly even out his breathing, relaxing his body as much as possible. He couldn't help but shiver slightly, not used to the cold, but hoped that the wolf would still believe his act.

And sure enough, he heard the wolf begin to approach him, his steps slightly hesitant. But after a moment they sped up, gaining resolve, and before Arthur could fully shoot up to defend himself he found himself lifted into the wolf's arms.

Oh God, don't scream, don't scream he begged himself, fighting off the instinctive reaction. Such a thing would certainly draw the attention to all of the other wolves. Screaming was meant to warn fellow rabbits, and if lucky, surprise the predator; however, the noise was also likely to attract other predators in the area, investigating to see if perhaps they could steal someone else's meal. Though perhaps the wolves would soon be in here anyway, ready to assist in the attack.

Instead of screaming, he struggled, fighting the wolf's grip on him as best he could. And to his surprise, it worked, as Arthur felt himself fall to the ground, his head smacking painfully against the cave floor.

But he couldn't focus on that now, instantly lifting himself to press against the wall, staring at the wolf with a look of both fear and slight betrayal. He knew it, knew it knew it knew it knew it. It was a trick all along, damn him for letting his guard down! He should have never believed any of it for a second! He was going to die now, die because he was so so stupid--!

"I'm sorry! I'm so, so sorry, Bunny. I... I only wanted to bring you back over; didn't want you to catch a cold or be uncomfortable.... thought you were exhausted. So, so sorry...."

Arthur frantically tried to fight off the tears forming in his eyes. "W-why? Why would you bring me back there?" he asked, voice whispery. "W-why would I ever want t-to lay in that pile of....that pile of murder?" This was it, he was going to die. Whether or not the wolf was telling the truth or not didn't matter, though even the truth was exceptionally cruel. More tears ran down his face as he felt the tiny trickle of blood run down his scalp from where he'd hit his head, the scent finally processing in his mind. Head wound, he realized. Probably only a scartch, but it was going to bleed so much, so much and then all the monsters around him would smell it. Who could control themselves when they could smell a meal ripe for the taking? Even if this wolf spoke true, that he just wanted a playmate and just wanted Arthur warm and all that poppycock, soon it wouldn't mean anything. No predator could be trusted to control their own desire.

He continued watching the wolf, the slightly hungry look in its eyes, pressing himself against the wall as though he could merge into it. He felt slightly woozy from the smell of blood, but it likely didn't matter. All he could hope was that this supposedly"kind" wolf was kind enough to make his death quick.

[Predatory Alfred]

Alfred watched with slight concern as Bunny's face flushed a terrible, distressed shade of red and his eyes looked watery as if tears were about to spill from them. Why? Alfred understood why the rabbit would cry from such a drop, but the other just seemed upset, as if he was simply ignoring the fact he had just rolled out of Alfred's arms . Why wouldn't he want to sleep on the comfortable, warm, lovely... pile of murder?

What in the world was that supposed to mean? He certainly wasn't gonna kill Bunny, if that's what he was implying. Alfred thought they had at least, partially got over that by now. It was just meant to be harmless cuddling! It wasn't gonna lead to Bunny's death! And there wasn't that much over on Alfred's bed that could have lead to any substantial harm to Bunny's person. Comfortable furs weren't deadly things. Just soft and fluffy and a good source of heat and padding. It was cozy.

He blinked, looking at Bunn. "W-....What do you mean? I've said I wasn't gonna hurt you Bunny. Just wanted to cuddle on my bed, is all. You'll catch a cold if you kept lying on the ground there."

His voice wasn't as quiet as it had been, normal speaking level being reached now as his ears picked up the sound of his pack shifting around; alert because of the noise... or... well... the smell. The oh-so delicious smell now just permeating off of Bunny. The one wafting over frenzying his thoughts, dilating his pupils and making his heart race, his senses and instincts starting to weasel into his mind, taking him away from the reality of the situation. Alfred let out a breath and shook his head trying to concentrate. He had control. Control and reason. That was one of the few things that distinguish his traits from his pack. He needed to think clearly.... not of Bunny or how delicious he smelled and how wonderful it would be to bite and rip into him.

But this was certainly going to get hard to do. Bunny was still clearly distressed now about.... something, but now, adding to that, he was also partially wounded. Alfred hardly had any idea of his current state of feeling either, Bunny seemed not to either hear his question or opted to ignore it. Either way, he was hurt in some way and if he continued bleeding like this, they would have a problem; maybe not from Alfred, but certainly from the pack.

A few growls and yips were beginning to sound and Alfred really needed to not be distracted by Bunny's smell. Pinching his nose, Alfred clenched his eyes shut for just a moment or two. Momentary relocation. It seemed like the best idea right now, until Bunny at least stopped bleeding. Even if he was still sore from before he needed him out of here immediately if he didn't want some sort of riot or confrontation with his family.

"Bunny, look, I'm... I'm really sorry for trying to move you when you were sleeping but I think we should, uh... er... go for a walk!" Alfred opened his eyes to look down and Bunny's own clenched ones, not telling him the true reason for his sudden wanting to leave despite his tiredness. If Bunny was afraid of him and he didn't truly want to eat him, then alerting the smaller creature of the fact that his pack may or may not be debating whether Bunny would be their next meal or not was certainly not the thing to do.

Alfred reached down and grabbed Bunny's hand, despite his rigid form and pose, and pulled him up to his feet, quickly tugging him along once seeing the other could indeed stand up fine on his own. He'd check the rabbit for injuries later, for now simply leaving was the main priority.

And main priority it was. As they got closer to the mouth of the cave Alfred could clearly see members stirring, sniffing the air as a few growled slightly. A few well placed growls from Alfred himself sent a few of the more bold members away when they had started approaching the pair. He could just hear their whines of protest. Why was Alfred taking the food away? He was so greedy. Look at him flaunting his food right in front of everyone like that and why couldn't he share like the rest when something big was caught. He ignored it, walking at a faster pace as Bunny shuffled with him, staying closer to him despite his still obvious discomfort with Alfred, but preferring him than getting close to the others.

'Luckily' they were only truly stopped once by a disgruntled Alpha who growled and snarled at both 'humans,' pacing back and forth, yelling at Alfred for not only disturbing everyone's sleep, worrying them before only to bring food back alive and not share, but now disturbing them once again and trying to leave when he had clearly told Alfred he wasn't to do so until the next day, if then even. There wasn't too much to do. Alfred let out a little whine, barking back at the other, begging for forgiveness and telling the other that he was simply taking Bunny out, that he didn't want his new play mate to be eaten and that Bunny had never meant to be food and that he was so, so sorry and that they'd be back soon and Alfred wouldn't wander off too much. There was a reluctant hesitancy and even before Alpha let him go, Alfred knew he wasn't going to be denied his request. He never was, after all.

But that wasn't something to dwell or even give a second thought to right at that moment. As soon as Alpha gave a small dismissal sign to Alfred, he took it. Still pulling Bunny along by his wrist, Alfred led them down the hill and eventually back to the forest's edge, wanting to put some distance between them and his home. He finally turned to Bunny after a few minutes of walking, a clear trail of (partially drying) blood running down the side of his pale face. He blinked, trying to regulate his breathing and push instincts to the back of his head.

"Are you all right?," He licked his own thumb before hesitantly, slowly and smoothly, reaching it up to Bunny's face, wiping at the substance. "You never answered. Woozy? I..er... just though some fresh air would make you feel better if you were. Do you need to sit down?"

[Arthur Rabbit]

...Really? Was it possible to be that stupid and oblivious? Arthur really wasn't sure whether the wolf was pretending or not, but he certainly felt as though he was being patronised.

But mostly, he felt scared, and he watched with morbid interest as the wolf seemed to be attempting to control itself, holding back from its obvious want to lunge at him. It should have been reassuring, but it really wasn't. If the wolf had to struggle to hold back than clearly it didn't have the best self-control in the first place, and God only knew how long before it lost control and snapped. Unconsciously, he began scraping one of his feet against the ground, wondering in hysterical amusement what his chances of digging his way out of this cave were.

A moment afterwards he was recoiling into the wall, clenching his eyes as he began hearing sounds from the rest of the wolves. Oh God, they're waking up. Just like he thought, they could smell him and were waking up and the noises they were making sounded so scary and predatory--!

His eyes quickly shot back open, however, as his hand was suddenly snatched and he was pulled to his feet, the wolf insisting they should go for a walk. They.....what? What sort of moment was this to--

But before he could fully process his own confusion, he was dragged along, stumbling for a moment before regaining his footing and having little else to do but go along with the wolf. Where was it taking him? Wh-what if it was taking him to the rest of the pack, so that they didn't have to come and get him? O-or taking him outside because the wolves didn't want to get their cave bloody or or--

Or maybe he was going to growl at any other wolves that came towards them. Arthur flinched a bit, an automatic reaction at the threatening noise, but he quickly followed it by pressing closer to the wolf. For some strange, incomprehensible reason, this wolf....at the very least didn't want to share. And while that was still a disconcerting though Arthur felt that, at the moment, his chances were better staying with the wolf. After all, it seemed as though he was really being taken outside. And that meant another possible attempt to run, to flee, to get away.

As they reached the cave entrance another wolf blocked their path, but the wolf guiding him didn't growl and instead came to a stop, Arthur quickly stopping to stand beside it as well.

The wolf in front of them stood tall and proud, large in size and particularly healthy looking. They may have been a different species but Arthur could recognise those sorts of characteristics anywhere; this was clearly the dominant wolf, the leader of the pack, and it didn't seem interested in letting Arthur and the other wolf leave, if the snarling and growling were anything to go by.

Arthur cowered at these angry noises, watching with lowered eyes as the dominant paced back and forth in front of them, most of its noises directed at the wolf beside him, who in turn replied with whines and desperate sounding barks. He fidgeted, uncomfortable, wondering what it was that they were talking about, hoping desperately it had nothing to do with him being killed. But then wouldn't they have that planned out beforehand? Unless they were changing their minds and oh, that was it, the dominant probably wanted to make the kill and was annoyed that the wolf with him was trying to keep him for itself--

Suddenly though he was being pulled forward once more, the wolf's grip on his wrist tightening as it quickly continued away from the cave while the dominant stayed behind. Looking around, he realised that the cave was on a rather steep hill up against a mountain, and that the wolf was quickly pulling him down the hill towards what appeared to be the forest's edge.

This was...not going how he thought. Certainly this would not be a preferable place to kill and eat him--

"Are you all right?"

He blinked, the two of them coming to a sudden stop. Was he...certainly it was...!

Arthur squealed, backing away from the wolf so fast that he fell down on his behind. How dare it touch him with its disgusting, germ ridden, contaminated by blood-and-murder salvia! How dare it chase him down and bring him to its den and pretend everything was peachy keen! How dare it keep acting kind then cruel then some sort of inhumane combination of the two! How dare it...how dare it...!

"What do you want?" he growled, patience completely lost. He was tired of this. He couldn't stand the stress and the terror and the confusion, he just wanted to know his fate and be done with it. It was so unfair of this large, terrifying, and completely idiotic predator to treat him this way, to leave him in such awful suspense, constantly making him doubt his own conclusions. He was done with it, completely done with it, even if that meant worsening his chances of survival by showing his anger to the stupid wolf.

"You are absolutely the most infuriating, moronic, bewildering creature I have ever had the misfortune of spending time with! Just who the hell do you think you are? What makes you think that your actions, kidnap and assault under the pretense of wanting friendship-which is of course a bunch of ridiculous and unbelievable rubbish in itself- are in any way justified, you goddamn berk? If you want to eat me, just fucking eat me! Don't play around with me and make me wonder and--!" Arthur cut himself off, taking deep breaths and glaring angrily at the object of his fury, fighting off the temptation to lunge and bite the offending creature wherever he could reach. He took one more breath, unaware of the frustrated tears running down his face, his wound all but forgotten. "Just do something," he whispered, uncertain and defeated and so, so very tired. "Please."

[Predatory Alfred]

Alfred couldn't hold back the growl that escaped his throat. He couldn't help it. While the actual sound of Bunny's voice sent excitement coursing through him, as this was certainly the most words he had gotten from the smaller creature, his actual words rung loud and clear... and most, if not all, weren't pleasant or the least bit nice or thankful at all. So it really was a natural reaction, even as the other sat on the ground, voice growing softer with some sort of unneeded defeat, Alfred couldn't stop himself. He felt insulted, and with good reason. Bunny had insulted him, his words the loudest they had been and the most scathing. He wouldn't have pegged for such a creature of his sort for such a tone.

It was actually sort of funny, not that he would admit it, but it was almost laughable that Bunny had yelled at him. Something deep down in him wanted to chuckle at the poor thing. Poor thing indeed. Not that he didn't want to keep their friendship on some sort of equal field as that would only be right, but who was Bunny kidding, insulting him in such a way, and then begging for him to do something. He was inviting Alfred to himself; inviting him to end his life.

Hadn't he gotten the message yet? How many times would he have to repeat himself before the other took his words seriously. If he wanted to eat the other, he surely would have done so by now, as he had ample amount of time and plenty of situations to do so. And while chasing was fun, that was the extent in which he 'played' with his food.

Another growl of frustration left his lips as he crouched down to where Bunny had fallen. As his hand reached out the other flinched, even more so when his fingers found purchase in those soft sandy colored locks of his. He could feel the other's body shaking as he pulled his face closer, keeping a tight grip on him. Bunny wasn't weak, he could certainly tell that from the way he ran and even when he struggle before. He had strong legs and was lean. Alfred almost wanted to curse instincts or... or something like that. Alfred wasn't that much different from the other and yet, with the way the other was acting, the way he had trembled and pleaded, it was almost as if they were miles away. Certainly, there were differences, but not this wide.. right? He had control. They both did to an extent. Didn't Bunny see that? Didn't he see that he didn't have to worry about being eaten? Obviously not.

Now, holding Bunn's head firmly as the other probably thought he was going to break his neck, or bite his throat, or something to that extent, Alfred licked his thumb once more and cleaned at the other's wound, giving the other no choice in the matter.

"Look. I'm not going to eat you. I'd imagine with such big ears you'd be able to actually hear me and understand me when I repetitively say that, Bunny. But I'll say it again to reinforce my point," Alfred stuck his thumb back in his mouth, trying not to focus on the other's taste before taking it back out and rubbing it smoothly against the drying trail of Bunny's wound. "I am not going to eat you. And because I do actually want to be friends, I'm going to just assume that everything you said was out of fear and that you didn't actually mean to insult me."

He tugs a little more at Bunn's hair for measure.

"I mean, if you truly want me to eat you, that would certainly be the way to go. Simply insult me and then offer yourself up to me because that's best way to get a death wish granted... But I'mma guess your instincts are going haywire now or something? Am I right? Because I really don't think you want me to kill you. It'd be easy to do of course if you really did, but I don't think that's what's going on here."

Alfred laughs once more before pulling Bunny even closer, nuzzling his face against the side of Bunn's, perhaps a more intimate gesture but he wanted to make up for Bunn's fear, after all.

" So let's try and start this over a little better, yeah?" Alfred pulled away, hand slipping away from Bunny's hair, finally letting him go, but not taking his eyes off of him. "Hiya! I'm Alfred."

He hummed for a minute.

"You know... You never did tell me your name!... Or is it really just Bunny? That's sorta cute, I guess."

[Arthur Rabbit]

Arthur flinched back at the sound of the wolf's growling. He had done it, he had angered it. He expected such a thing would happen but now that it was, he was quickly regretting his outburst. Oh God. He didn't want to die, he really didn't. But what else could he do at this point? How else was he supposed to respond?

He quickly recoiled when the wolf lowered itself to his level, even more so when its hand reached up and tangled into his hair, pulling him closer. He trembled, eyes lowered in fright, not wanting to see its anger and perhaps hunger as he was killed. He held his breath in anticipation, wondering how the wolf would choose to kill him, when he jolted at the feeling of something wet trailing against his face. He looked up in surprise, shocked to see it licking its thumb and continuing to clean the blood trailing down his face from his wound.

It began speaking, explaining once again its disinterest in eating Arthur, cleaning his wound all the while. Arthur shuddered a tad when it stuck its thumb back into its mouth, no doubt getting a good taste of him, but otherwise frowned and stared back suspiciously. The wolf may have repeated itself multiple times, but if Arthur didn't believe the words earlier what made it think he would believe them now? Perhaps...simply all the time that had passed? But how was he ever supposed to let his guard down, ever think the wolf was telling the truth? Why would the stupid thing ever want to be his friend? He couldn't really be the only one of their kind he had come across lately...right?

He whimpered a tad when the wolf pulled his hair, quickly lowering his eyes again. Of course he didn't really want to be eaten. But could it really have taken that much offense to his words? Had it never felt fear before? Arthur pondered, a bit hysterically that maybe, the wolf had really wanted to be friends with him. But now after seeing how unpleasant he was it was hoping that Arthur's pleading for it to do something gave it an excuse to eat him, so that it wouldn't have to deal with him anymore. He could certainly see that train of thought prevailing over just letting him go.

What the wolf didn't seem to understand was that nature was nature. It was treating him like he had no control, that instincts were completely controlling his actions. And to an extent, they were. But it wasn't as if Arthur was trying to fight against them; he could, if he wanted to, but in this situation he saw no need. Instincts were there to keep one alive; why would he ever fight against them in the presence of a wolf?

At the very least it seemed to understand its power over him. He bit his lip at what he interpreted as an unspoken threat, but soon let out a small squeak as he was pulled furthur forward, the wolf...n-nuzzling him. What in the world did it think it was-- he didn't even know this wolf! All that had happened and then it just went ahead and...God this creature was frustrating as all hell.

He sighed as once again the wolf introduced itself to him, again claiming its name as Alfred. Of course his name wasn't Bunny, that would be ridiculous, and likely confusing in a warren of other rabbits. Did he dare give his name in return?

Legs coming up against his chest, arms wrapping around them, Arthur kept his eyes downward as exhaustion began truly catching up with him. He wasn't sure he could run or panic or really do anything anymore, no matter how hard he tried. His energy reserves were all used up, not having eaten since before being confronted by his current problem. He remained sitting tiredly, all the fight draining from his body, giving himself to the situation.

"Arthur," he replied in a small voice, still not looking up at the wolf, at Alfred. "My name is Arthur."

[Predatory Alfred]

As soon as he let go, the smaller creature seemed to, once again, withdraw itself, bringing its legs up against its chest and cuddling against them, as if he really needed to do so, as if he still didn't quite believe that Alfred wasn't going to eat him. The wolf resisted the urge to sigh loudly. Well, at least he didn't run. That had to say something, right? Bunny didn't run, so he must just be.... suspicious or.... or cold! It was chilly out still, the night not retaining enough warmth to merit frolicking about so leisurely. And even if it wasn't the cold, the moon was starting to rise and, as Alfred had heard on many occasions (or at least figured out on his own) rabbits seemed to like sleeping at this time! Bunny must have been tired. That was it! Of course!

Speaking of Bunny, his voice, it wasn't quite a coo or anything of the sort, but it was so, so quite. He was talking to Alfred, actually replying to his question! See! He must have just been sleepy and/or cold! He was actually replying to his questions now, which was nice... though, he supposed, instead of much talking to Alfred, it was more like he was whispering to his knees. His ears, however did pick up the soft rhythm of the others words. Bunny, of course, was not really Bunny, but rather, Arthur.

... Arthur? Alfred wiggled his nose a little. Well that was hardly a cute, small and fluffy name at all! Who named a rabbit Arthur?... Although, he wasn't much of one to talk. Alfred the Wolf meet Arthur the Rabbit, both of your names sorta are terrible at describing what you are. Not that names couldn't be misleading, which he supposed was... the whole point? Whose point? What point? Wait...

Alfred only allowed himself to ponder the misgivings of both of their names for just a moment. As it was, like in most things, he would probably just ignore the name anyway. Names were such trivial things, and the fluffy little guy in front of him would always be, at least somewhat, simply 'Bunny' in his mind. But that wasn't what he should have been thinking about right now!

He grinned over at the rabbit who still didn't seem to want to meet his gaze. Fine, that was fine. Alfred reached out again, fingers much gentler this time, brushing through the other's so very soft hair (he ignore the other's flinch, of course).

"Arthur, huh? That's pretty cute, for a bunny, I guess,"

It was just a small pointless lie. Who could have really known or cared whether or not such an unfluffy, not quite adorable name would be the one of his new Bunny? No one. Besides! He was trying to make nice here, and pointing out such a thing would be like... backtracking. Insulting his bunny's plain name would not get him anywhere... besides.. Artie was kinda cute. He could work with that, maybe.

He smiled again, hand leaving Arthur's hair once more before standing up. Stretching a bit, trying not to feel as tense as he had just been, he peered up at the sky, yawning and feeling much more tired for the day's events then he should have.

"It's getting pretty late out now, though, isn't it, Artie ?" Alfred's hand went to his bunny's arm and tugged a bit, signaling he wanted him up too. "Ready to go back up and try to sleep more? You look exhausted, definitely no playing tonight... and your head seems better, can't smell it nearly as much. Hardly were in danger before, just wanted you out in case you panicked or something."

He tugged Arthur's arm once more, pulling him to his feet and started walking them around and leading them back up the slope to the cave and his den.

[Arthur Rabbit]

Ugh, it was touching him again. Why did it always have to insist on touching him? He didn't want to be pet or nuzzled or anything of the sort, he just wanted to be given some space. It wasn't so much all the touching that bothered him really, as it was the unfamiliarity. He wouldn't classify himself as being touchy feely, but he certainly wasn't...distant. He was just more accustomed to the touches of other rabbits, whether it was cuddling during sleep or just brushing against one another when passing through the tunnels. Not the feeling of clawed hands running through his hair like he was a fucking juvenile that just needed to be calmed down.

And now it, well, Alfred really (maybe he should start calling it by it's name? But that too implied familiarity that he certainly didn't want...) was telling him that his name was cute. What did that even mean? How is a name supposed to be cute? He wasn't a kit or a female, thank you very much, he was a grown male and...wait why was it-- HE, standing up?

Arthur stood up on shaky legs, pulling his arm away from the grip of the other. Artie? Had it just...it must have misheard him, that was all. He would just have to tell his name again, since this wolf must not have very good hearing. But yes, it was getting late; usually he would just be curling to sleep with the others in one of the sleeping chambers by now. He really needed to be getting back, especially to let everyone know that he was still alive.

But of course of course of course the moronic predator couldn't just let it be that way. It still wanted to take Arthur home, even after the disaster with the head wound. Not in any danger his arse; the other wolves must have just been growling in concern for his well being. Absolute bollocks.

He tugged back on his arm as the wolf grabbed it again and began pulling him back up the hill to the den. He shook his head when the wolf turned back to give him a questioning look, staying rooted to the spot. He wasn't going back there, he wasn't going to play with the wolf or anything ridiculous like that come morning. He was going home.

"No, I'm not...why can't I just go home? I'm not sleeping in that death trap, in your disgusting pile of..." He licked his lips nervously, not wanting to insult the wolf again but not wanting to go back to its den, either. "Please, I just want to go home. You saw what happened when I hurt my head. What if something worse happens? It doesn't matter what you want, th-they'll kill me and, and you know it."

[Predatory Alfred]

Ugh, he was on about that again. Why did it seem like his bunny (he supposed he really should start calling him by his actual name) always, even within their short time together, seemed on insisting his ideas were so totally not awesome? It wasn't as if he didn't take any regard to Arthur's general safety or feelings. He took that into account plenty!... Really! He did. He just happened to like the idea of keeping the rabbit around longer, rather than letting him go... Because he seemed so fatigued! He'd be a terrible friend or playmate or host, or whatever just sending the other back to his home so worn and weary.

Not to mention that in their decided time, they hardly accomplished any bonding at all. Silly Arthur and his paranoia and prey instincts. Alfred would laugh if it wasn't for the fact that it was hindering this relationship to its fullest. As a new friend it would be his duty now to send the poor thing back up for a good night's rest, maybe feed him in the morning and make sure of some friendly play or bonding before taking the rabbit back to... to wherever he lived.

With the affronted look on his face that Alfred had gotten the moment Arthur stole his hands back and refused his guidance, the wolf let out a big over-exaggerated sigh, hopefully letting the other know how over-exaggeratedly maybe frustrating his plea was.

"They won't kill you, Artie. Really. They just got a little... er... well they thought I was and all and were mad that I wasn't sharing, but that totally wasn't what was going on! And I explained that to Alpha back there, er, the one who stopped us at the entrance to the den, that you're my new friend and not food for anyone. A misunderstanding is all! And they only got like that because they could really smell you! They hardly cared when I brought you back the first time and didn't bother us at all while napping."

He gave Arthur a smile before, very quickly, snatching back Arthur's hand and tugging, all the while talking and giving Arthur a look as if this was such an obvious fact.

"You're healing up nicely and the blood has at least stopped for the most part so I think you'll be absolutely fine so long as I'm there," With a tug of his arm, Alfred forced gently pulled Arthur closer to himself. "I'll keep you safe, no problem. Besides, you shouldn't be walking home now. You look like you're about to fall over asleep here. You're staying the night at least. Not 'but's will be taken!"

As a side note Alfred suddenly remembered a continual on of Arthur's qualm's while more or less pulling the other up the steep climb to the den.

"Oh..." the wolf said with a little wrinkle of his nose of how fickle his bunny seemed to be. "And I really don't drool, okay, so my bed isn't all that gross as you make it out to be. Not to mention I wash often! Mmhmm!... but... er... if you really have a problem with it, I usually put a whole bunch of grasses underneath everything to make it a bit more cushioned.. I suppose I could pull those out for you to sleep on it you prefer."

[Arthur Rabbit]

Arthur frowned, the sigh from the wolf not sitting well with him. What sort of reaction was that supposed to be? Did he not take Arthur seriously? He...it seemed he didn't. Excuse upon excuse, but that didn't truly answer Arthur's worries. And off-handedly explaining them as though they were silly surely wasn't going to quell them.

"But...that doesn't..." he shook his head. "It doesn't matter if they understand what you want, when I bled earlier you saw how they reacted. What if something happens? Something more serious than--"

Arthur was cut off from his words with a (rather embarrassing) squeak as the wolf suddenly reached out and seized his hand, tugging him closer and giving him an overly patronising look that made Arthur bristle inside.

"If you can keep me safe so well than why did we have to leave so fast last time?" The wolf pulled him even closer, and Arthur began nervously trying to tug his hand back away, not appreciating the other's pushiness. "I'm really not that tired, and if your words are true I would be completely fine walking home as long as you were with me..." Since blunt, obvious logic wasn't seeming to work very well, he hoped that maybe he could convince Alfred through simple persuasion. He didn't really want to be escorted home, and he would certainly need to find a way to part with him before completely reaching the burrow, but as he was so intent on keeping him safe maybe Arthur could appeal to his obviously over-inflated ego.

He blinked a bit in confusion at Alfred's next words, taking a moment to make a connection between drooling and the pile of death that the wolf called a bed. Once he had however, he found himself fighting the urge to reach up with his free hand and rub at his temples, his heels digging into the ground but doing little to keep the wolf from continuing to pull him along. "It's not any amount of drool or filth that's disgusting," Arthur sighed, the unspoken "you idiot" hanging in the air. "It's--" he stopped then, shaking his head and deciding that there was no point in this explanation. "The grasses would be lovely, thank you, except for the fact that I really, really do need to get home. There are things I need to do...I don't have time to take a "night off" or whatever it is you're asking me to do." There was a small pause of consideration. "And my name isn't Artie. It's Arthur."

[Predatory Alfred]

Alfred sighed again. This was so frustrating. All he wanted to do now was have a simple little... oh what were they called? Er, Sleepover! Yes! He just wanted to have a new sleep over with his new bunny. He wasn't asking him to live there with him (though having a friend constantly by his side would be rather awesome) nor was he asking if he could sink his teeth into his flesh on occasion and eat him alive (such a thought was rather disturbing, but a lingering curiosity still wondered what the other really tasted like besides just blood), so there was hardly any reason for his bunny to be acting this way!

"I know what your name is, Arthur, but I thought I'd call you Artie. It's cute, don'tcha think?"

The wolf laughed a little but wouldn't give the rabbit any leeway on his tugging, keeping a firm hold on the other's arms.

"But, uh, nothing more serious is gonna happen than your cut! Honestly. That was just because of some misunderstanding you had, but there's nothing to worry about now! You understand now and it's all good. Not to mention that the only reason I practically pushed you out here before was because I didn't want you to get too nervous and pull that shrieky thing you did before, because that probably wouldn't be so good. They wouldn't have tried to attack if I was there, honest!"

Alfred stopped tugging and looked at his companion. He really looked! He searched his face and saw the discomfort and exasperation and how tired he was. He looked into his eyes and let out a little sound.

"And I'm tired too; have hardly slept at all in the past day and am just as worn. Pleeease, stay?" Alfred's ears twitched, moving downward as he tried to make himself look as pathetic as he could muster. "It's just a night. It'll be nice and I'll protect you if anything happens, cause that's what friends do. Just the night and no longer and I'll take you home tomorrow like promised, okay? No worries, you'll be safe, honestly. Please, please, please stay?"

He figured this approach might as well be worth a shot. All he knew was that he certainly wasn't going to take no for an answer, because he wanted this! He wanted this more than anything in a long while, and just because his bunny was a little reluctant towards his friendship didn't mean he would let this be compromised.

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