A ticking time bomb...[Open]

[william]

The fire within William was burning up, boiling his blood and making his life a misery. However, this fire wasn't real. It was his Jackal. The creature was coming closer and closer to the surface with each coming day, threatening to force Will over the edge and to shift. This meant that Will was a ticking time bomb. With each breath, Will became closer and closer to losing control, and when he did, everyone had to stand back and run, or they were going to get hurt...or worse.

That was probably one of many good reasons why Will was alone in the forest. He'd only been on the Island for little over a week and he was already hating it. Everyone here was a shifter, he knew that, but he didn't get how they accepted their other side so easily. It was like second nature to them. To him, it was a nature he didn't want anything to do with. He felt like he didn't belong there. All the students were open and so carefree, like everything in the world was wonderful. No it wasn't! How can they be so calm when they can change into an animal?! Will shook his head in frustration, wondering if maybe the problem didn't lie with them, but with him. Or maybe he was the only sane person there!

Sighing, Will walked on, following a well worn trail. He didn't fancy going off trail, just in case something happened. He didn't trust himself...or his Jackal. Walking helped, though, it seemed to calm his Jackal a bit and it calmed him as well. He was under a lot of stress, what with trying to fit in, making sure he did all the work and keeping his Jackal at bay, no wonder he was so tired! It seemed sleep had been a luxury that he could no longer afford.

After a while, though, Will's Jackal began to stir once more. He hated when this happened, when he was so close to shifting that it hurt, but he resisted all the way and began to run. He ran as fast as he could. He didn't turn around. Didn't think. Simply ran and ran and ran until his legs were going to collapse beneath him, and still he ran. However, he wasn't just running to keep his Jackal controlled, he was running from his past. Running from the blood, the flesh, the horror of it all. He ran from the shadows that were forever chasing him, taunting him. He ran and ran and he didn't stop.

[kalianne]

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Today had been worse than most. Sometimes it was difficult for Kali to control her emotions, so chaotic they became, warped and twisted. They felt like barbed wire coiled in her crania, puncturing her brain and sending shards of unwanted pain, stress, and confusion. More than anything did Kalianne hate to be confused. The odd thing about today was that there was absolutely no trigger. The sun was brilliant over head in a cloudless blue sky, she’d had all of her work done for class, no problems at home. Nothing. And yet there was this overwhelming anxiety that caused her heartbeat to accelerate and her nervous system to buzz like it’d been electrocuted. There was no reason, no rhyme, nothing to correspond these feelings with her outer being.

Perhaps it was because she was still such an outsider. Kalianne had been her for a year, and still had yet to meet anyone she would call and “intimate” friend. Sure, she had dozens of acquaintances and a few people who would call her to chill; but no one was ever really there all the time, and no one definitely understood Kali. As if a sudden epiphany occurred, while throwing on a pair of black Underarmer shorts and crawling around on the floor of her dorm searching for her sneakers, she realized that this thought was the one to have been bugging her all along. Upon finding the multi colored sneakers, she sat down against her bed with a long sigh. Was it worth missing another day of running to go and try to make a friend that truly understood?

Within moments she had a white and black hoodie on, her sneakers laced, and was out the door and headed for the forest. It was the only place she felt more at home. Having been raised near (and basically on) Yellowstone National Park, Kali missed the topography. So she would stumble and race through the forest with no direction and no purpose. With her ipod playing random music into her ears, she let her mind go blank and just… felt. Felt the firm earth beneath her feet, the pounding and flexing of her muscles, the soft breeze she created. Sunlight dappled through the emerald canopy of leaves overhead, creating an almost warped sense of reality in its own precious (and pristine way).

And of course she wasn’t paying attention to anything but what she was doing. And slammed into something solid, which seemed to have almost an equal velocity as what she had. Kali flew backwards into a shrub, landing on her butt and palms of her hands. Wincing gold-hazel eyes, she looked around for whatever it was she ran into. A boy, roughly her age. Jumping up quickly she brushed off her hands and hurried forward; a worried look on her face. “I am so sorry! I can’t believe that just happened! Are you okay?” She asked as she reached out a dirty hand to help him up from the ground.

[william]

Will didn't know how long he'd been running. But, it must have been a while since the sky had turned from a light, greyish blue colour to a soft, light blue which meant it was at least nine in the morning. It seemed to be a lovely morning, with beams of sun light streaming down onto the forest floor. As Will past, his feet barely making a sound on the ground, he heard the sounds of animals scuttling away, no doubt sensing a larger and mre dangerous predator about. It was amazing just how much better animals were at sensing danger. He could remember the days before he shifted for the first time, and looking back now, he didn't know how he had survived without this...sense. How humans had evolved and survived was beyond him.

Of course, Will ran full pelt with his head down, so he wasn't watching where he was going. But he knew the forest well enough, and the path wasn't that hard to follow, even a blind moron could have followed it. The actual path was hard underfoot, from the compacted earth of people walking on it every day. Of course he hadn't taken into account of other people also running, and perhaps running in the opposite direction. So he was stunned when he heard the sound of another person's foot falls, so stunned in fact that he had no time to stop or slow down before he collided with the person.

The momentum of the collision was, if you were watching from afar, quite comical, in the fact that the two were flung from the ground and into bushes.However, Will didn't find it all that hilarious. He'd had finally learnt to fly, for a bit, before crashing to the ground in a heap. His head smashed against a tree behind him, leaving him stunned for the moment. There were a lot of colourful explosions behind his eyes and pain bloomed. Without thinking, a low growl escaped his lips, probably from his Jackal, that was so close to the surface it was painful. Will sucked a deep breath, forcing the predator backwards with a burst of strength. His whole body shook with shock at the violence of the crash to the earth. The ground wasn't as soft as some people thought.

Once Wil had managed to calm himself down, he looked over to see how he'd collided with, only to find a girl, about the same age as him, standing up, appologising and looking very worried. Will staggered to his feet, wincing slightly as the world spun. "I'm...well, I'll live," He answered in his very british accent and shrugged, wondering what he should say. His Jackal was furious that the girl for not looking where she was going, but he was also curious at who the girl might be. Will pushed a hand through his hair and smiled appologetically. "Ah, sorry about that. I wasn't watching where I was going. A bit stupid, I know, but it's me, so I'm not at all surprised. But...um, are you ok? I mean, I'm not exactly as soft as a cushion."

OOC: Sorry it took me so long to reply!

[kalianne]

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It didn‘t appear to be as much of a shock to Kali as it was for the young man sprawled before her. Murphy‘s Law hung about her like a bad perfume. Sometimes, it literally knocked her on her ass. A low pitched growl churned through his gut; deep and beastly, something almost scary. It would definitely have put the fear of god within her if she‘d been human. Being a shifter, and a predator at that, her natural instincts where to put up the defensive for a fight. When Kalianne‘s shifter senses where brought to the forefront, her stability and coordination where better than a squirrels. She hunched onto the pads of her feet, knees bent, and arms out stretched. Nervous systems short circuited and caused her muscles to become stiff with readiness as she watched the young mans body jerk. In the back of her mind, Kali realized he was fighting his change. This thought caused her to relax her stance and just study him wearily with hazel eyes.

His body quickly returned to its‘ equilibrium, and his eyes snapped open abruptly. His eyes where dark chocolate and, at the moment, sharp as they studied her. He staggered up to his feet looking far more wobbly than Kali could tolerate. She reached out her arm without though, catching his arm momentarily. He‘d grumbled something like, ‘I‘m fine,’ but she was still worried. “You sure you‘re okay?” The query left her lips just as she realized that she had her hand on someone whom she didn‘t even know, let alone could trust. Snatching her hand away, she met his eyes unabashedly with her own golden set. He ran a hand through his dark brown hair, and shrugged. The apologetic and relaxed smile that lit his face brought a quick grin from her.

And really, Kali barely understood what he said; she was far to busy listening to the British cadence of his voice. It was warm and something she‘d only heard rarely, but she really loved listening to people with accents. She had a enough confidence to process his words and return them with a set of her own, but she couldn‘t help being a little flirty in her own cadence. Stupid natural predatory feelings! However, she caught herself with just enough time. He was a predator too, so keeping him chasing would be a fun little game. But oh! Would that make her a tease? And she was looking for a legit friend… Thought raced through her head as she shrugged in return, and simply said. “Oh I‘m fine, promise. Probably have a few bruises in the morning. My name is Kali er… Well it‘s Kalianne but I prefer Kali.”

((no worries))

[william]

It seemed that the collision had been more of a shock to Will more than the girl, since she had been the first to stand. It was very foolish of him not to be looking where he was going, but he honestly hadn't expected anyone to be out so early in the morning. However, Will couldn't stop the growl erupting from his chest and he watched in curiosity and a little fear as the sweet and innocent girl turned into a deadly predator on the defence in the blink of an eye. It was amazing what shifters could do. His Jackal stirred, curious of this new and exciting predator. Will hadn't really been this close to another predator shifter, since his Grandma wasn't a predator shifter. Once Will managed to get his Jackal under some kind of control, he relaxed slightly. He leaned heavily against a nearby tree, his legs threatening to collapse under him.

Will was suddenly feeling very tired and dangerously dizzy, the world lurching and spinning like a fairground ride. Fighting against another person was exhausting, especially when his opponent was the other half of his soul. He sucked in a deep breath and exhaled with a sigh, wincing at the slight pain at the back of his head. He felt something hot and wet drip down his neck. He gently probed the back of his head, his fingers coming back stained with red. He looked from his bloodied fingers to the girl and shrugged, as if trying to show her that he didn't care. However, his whole body tensed at the feel of her hand on his arm. He froze, eyes locked on hers. “Yeah, I'll be fine. It's only a scratch,” he lied, but he may as well have not spoke. They both knew it was more than just a scratch and his swaying form was enough proof of that. When the girl snatched her hand away from his arm, he relaxed a little more. But, he missed the contact. He hadn't been touched since he'd got there, and it was comforting. But, he wouldn't dare say that.

Will caught the girl's gaze, and he froze once more. This time, captivated by her brilliant and beautiful golden eyes. He couldn't take his eyes from hers, even as his Jackal began to stir and pace again, demanding attention. His Grandma had once said that the eyes were windows to a person's soul. Will didn't know if that was true, but looking at her eyes, he knew they were a window to something. He managed to force his eyes away and shook his head, wondering what was wrong with him. He cleared his throat, wincing as the noise jarred his already fragile head. The blood that was dripping down his neck was now forming into a steady stream, which worried him. So much so, that he barely heard the girl speek. “Are you sure you're okay? I didn't do too much damage, did I?” He blinked, trying to clear the haze that was forming at the edges of his vision. “Oh, that's a beautiful name. I'm William...but I prefer the name Will.” He needed help now, his vision becoming more and more blood tinted. He sucked in a deep breath and pushed himself away from the tree. Once he managed to some what stable himself, he looked to Kali for assistance. “Now I might need to some,” he said as the world lurched.

[kalianne]

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His reactions toward her made her uneasy. He seemed almost… loopy. Not a good sign for head traumas, thought Kali. She watched silently as he haphazardly rocked within his stability. The sun was still shifting through the canopy, and together, Kali and Will stood within a small patch of sunlight. IT caught Will in the warm soft light, making his dark hair appear lighter toward the tips; it also made her pay more attention to his physical appearance. Tall, she thought at first, tall and built. If embarrassment could overcome her fear for his injury, a bright blush would have mantled her cheeks. Handsome of course, and the sunlight made him all the more ethereal. Brown predator eyes curious; almost like Will‘s thoughts and characteristics mirrored her own.

It didn‘t take long for her mind to come back, especially after he pulled his hand away from the nape of his neck with bloody stains. Gold-hazel eyes of her own widened in shock as he shrugged again, even as his reeled atop his feet. At first she placed her hands on her hips, a readily sarcastic or cynical remark on her tongue. That was, until her looked up at her again. He watched her with such a steadiness that she was sure that the blood beneath her ivory skin was finally causing the blush to form. Then Will started rambling, and eventually admitted needing help. Kali could tell that he was struggling to maintain his balance, and her emergency training (two hours of moms nagging, to be precise) took effect. As gently as possible, Kali gripped his arms and said “Okay, you should sit down her for a sec.” She helped him lean against the tree trunk, and dropped to her knees beside him. Even on her knees, Will was almost too tall for her to see the back of his head.

Glancing around in rushed panic, she realized she had nothing to staunch the bleeding. So Kali did the only thing that she could think of and began pulling off her t-shirt. Luckily she’d decided to wear one of her darker sports bras, so she wasn’t too worried about… well any inappropriate distractions. Folding the cloth on her knees at an angle, she spoke as calmly as she could. “Okay, I‘m going to wrap this around your head to help with the bleeding. It may hurt, but I‘ll try to do it as quickly as possible, and then we‘ll start for the school.” Lifting the rolled up shirt, she placed a piece onto the large gash, and tied the ends near his left ear as tight as possible. Coincidently this kind of accident had happened to her little brother when they‘d gone hiking at Beartooth Pass, so in another auspicious form of luck the blood didn‘t make her sick. Lifting her gaze, she glanced around quickly, hoping to god that they could make it out of here without him feinting.

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(( so sorry it took so long! Was really busy for the holidays :/ ))