Amaryllis POV -
I heard Tamlin coming before I saw him and I could tell the Bogge did too. The stench of hunger and fear began to fill the air and its gliding footsteps slowed. A golden furred beast charged from the trees, drool dribbling from its snarling maw. Its eyes were shut tight. Tamlin was relying on his senses and his fine-tuned instincts to guide him. I couldn't do anything more than circle the pair, cawing softly as they prepared to fight. I couldn't even look at the pair directly, so as to not acknowledge the Bogge. I had to rely on the trees to tell me what they could see. The Bogge made the first move, its shadowy tendrils attempting to encircle Tam, reaching for his eyes, nose, ears.
Glittering claws raked through them, splitting the darkness. The Bogge shrieked in pain, an unearthly wail of anger. With a growl, Tamlin attempted to lunge forward and seize the creature's neck. Seeing its opportunity, the Bogge seemed to ripple before it manifested a wicked looking set of fangs and grabbed my twin's scruff in its maw, ripping at his skin. Tamlin roared in pain, shaking the earth as blood began to roll down his pelt. I couldn't let him be hurt, no matter how estranged we were. I ducked down towards the grappling pair and raked my talon over the creature's face, batting at it with my wings. The Bogge released its death grip to slash at me.
I could hardly duck out of the way of the razor-sharp shadows. Focusing my will, the roots beneath the Bogge's feet began to snake their way up its body, knitting together. Foolishly, the Bogge allowed its eyes to shift from Tamlin to the ground, attempting to free itself. The second's distraction was all Tamlin needed. His claws raked across the Bogge's body, tearing open its shadowy armor. An oily black substance began to spill from its ravaged flesh. A shuddering scream of pain echoed through the forest, piercing the trees. I was certain that the Bogge would finally die, but I was wrong. A smaller part of the writing shadows broke away. A Puca, the spawn born from a Bogge's essence. With a screech of pain, the Puca took flight, running swiftly from us.
Both Tamlin and myself gave chase, determined not to lose our quarry. But as we pursued it, I noticed that we seemed to be getting closer to the Manor, and the signs of the Puca began to disappear. We both searched the surrounding are for any trace of its presence. But the darkness of the night seemed to cover its tracks perfectly. The moons rise made us turn back to the Manor, I decided to fly ahead of Tamlin. But the sight that greeted me was something that I had not expected.
Feyre, clad in warm clothes and carrying a satchel that was bursting with supplies. Creeping towards the gates of the manor, towards the forest beyond. And what was waiting for her, but the prey we had lost. The Puca stood at the end of the path, taking the form of a man, hunched and pathetic-looking, Feyre's father. It had to be. But the easily-fooled human continued to sneak towards her doom, not seeing the small ripples and shudders that showed the true nature of the creature ahead.
I landed in the nearby garden, transforming quickly and running towards the human on soundless feet. As she went to go past me, I grabbed her and pulled hard. Feyre's body fell into me as she stumbled, I wrapped my arms tight around her. One of my hands covered her mouth as the other held her wrist. Tamlin's loping gait was audible, and his deep snarl rippled through the garden. I could feel Feyre's body tense as the Puca's form rippled and writhed. Tamlin's golden beast sent the creature fleeing towards the trees, form changing as it went. Once it couldn't be seen, I released the human. Tamlin shifted back to his fae form, glaring harshly at the human. "Going somewhere?" He sneered, chest heaving slightly as he caught his breath.
Feyre was frozen, body tense with gear. Her face was ashen as Tamlin's fangs peeked from the corners of his mouth. Her eyes were darting around, looking for somewhere to escape to or hide. "Please," she breathed, "I thought... I- my father." I couldn't help the snort that came from me. "From the looks of it Feyre, your father could barely walk across a room, let alone cross the wall. That creature nearly had you and there would have been nothing you could have done about it." I hissed.
