The Puppet Assassin [TTR sequel]

The Puppet Assassin - Ch 5 [the dog -|- dizelde]

He dropped his head down onto my shoulder, breathing deeply. "Bloody, fubbing hell. Why couldn'd you cooberade? Ihs my nose is brogen and I miss oud on some draining, I mighd nod be allowed do blay de negs game." His speech was nearly incomprehensible and I got the image of his nose dripping with blood. I had hit it pretty hard. I had the beginnings of a bruise on the back of my head to prove it. now that I thought about it, my back, knees and palms were all throbbing with pain that I had blocked out during the fight. I pushed it away again.

Now to catch him off guard. I lifted my feet off the ground and I dropped down for an instant before his reflexes kicked in and he held me up off the floor. It was too late though, I had already planted my feet on the door and shoved off, slightly to the side. He stumbled slightly and I twisted my hands around his wrists, using his slight unpreparedness to force him to release my wrists. He slammed into a small table that sat next to the wall. Immediately I dropped and rolled away.

Another growl erupted from him, a rolling vibration that made the small hairs on my arms and the back of my neck stand up.

Run.

Run, run, run, and run.

So I did.

With house plans I'd studied before, exits were often found in laundry rooms. And laundries were found near the kitchen. The kitchen was second to the left so I would try the third door. I opened it a little, slipped in and slammed the door shut behind me. I couldn't hear him following and worried. What was he planning? I barely looked at the washing machine, my eyes set on the large door, a small piece of glass on it showing that it did lead outdoors. I leapt at it, rushed to unlock it and yanked it open. I was breathing raggedly and felt like I was back at training again.

I made my way to the huge willow tree and scrabbled up it, my muscles complaining at the exertion and my thighs getting grazed on the bark. The pain was nothing. I'd definitely known worse. I reached a branch about three metres up and used it to launch myself further up. I stopped on a thick branch about halfway up the enormous tree and looked down. Still no sight of Larkin. I hoped like hell that he wasn't looking for some kind of weapon, especially if it was a gun.

Movement caught my eye and I saw a big furry body exit the same door I had departed. Shaggy, maroon fur. No way. His animal shape was a wolf? A humungous wolf? He lifted his head, scenting the air, and turned to look right at me. Oh yeah, it was him. No pet could do that. He trotted over to my tree, paced around it for a bit and then sat on his haunches. That's right, wolves couldn't climb vertically. Sucker. I would wait up here until Garth returned.

I straddled the branch and settled down to wait, watching him carefully. At first, when his fur rippled and shortened, I thought it was a trick of the light. But it kept shortening, coarsening, and the shape beneath it stretching and condensing. Arms and legs thinning at the shoulder and haunches and thickening around his paws to form hands and feet. Oh gross, oh no. He was changing back into human. It was disgusting, it was horrifying. It was riveting. I couldn't look away. Even when I realised that his clothes weren't transforming back with him. The snout shrank back, his face reappearing. The fur disappeared, tan skin returning. His broad, defined back glistened with sweat, his shoulder bones jutting out.

And then there was a human on the ground below me. A naked, well-built, male human. Being close to guys, fighting them hand-to-hand, dealing with them every day were all natural to me. But, other than the occasional glimpse in a sex-scene during a movie or television show, I'd never seen one naked. And boy, it wasn't at all bad. I hit my forehead against the trunk of the tree and looked away. I was blushing, of course I was blushing. Damn! Why did the sight make my hormones go all crazy?

"Hello? Gardh, mate, dere's a... yeah, I'm ad home... my nose..."

I looked down. He had a wire connected to his ear, a tele-wire with the speaker hanging near his mouth. He was talking to Garth. That meant he would find out that I was brought here. Oh I couldn't wait to see his embarrassed face.

"Yeah! She... No, I didn'd. I DIDN'D! Fug you... Why is she here? ... Why de fug didn'd you dell me?!"

He swore several times more and hung up. He turned his head and glared up at me. His nose was hardly bleeding and was still straight. It didn't look broken. His speech impairment was probably from all the mucus and blood that filled it. Oh dear, I could see absolutely everything when he turned towards me like that. I looked away swiftly, feeling my face flush again.

"Come down!" he shouted up.

Oh no, no way in hell I was coming any closer.

"You heard dhad didn'd you? I god id wrong! If you come down, I will nod attag you, I swear! Drusd me, yeah? Gardh will gill me otherwise. And Luge'll dake my dead body and throw id into sewerage..."

I didn't look down. I didn't even move. I heard him blow his nose... and then swear from the pain.

"Are you hurd?" He cursed loudly. "Please come down. If you're hurt I need to help you. Please. Damn it! If you climb down to the lowest branch and then fall from there, I can catch you."

Was he joking? "Put some clothes on!" I called down, slightly hesitantly.

"What? Oh. Oh fuck! Okay. Okay, I'll go in and get some clothes on. Can you get down by yourself while I do that? Please?"

"Yes!" I shouted, looking up at the sky.

"Alright. Okay. I'm going inside now. Okay?"

"Just go," I whimpered to myself. He probably heard. I wasn't sure because the thing I heard next was a door slamming shut. I looked down and was relieved to see that there was no one below me. I slowly dropped down from branch to branch and then clambered down the trunk til I got to the bottom. I waited there for him to come back. I kinda preferred the thought of him not returning. I think I wouldn't be able to stop myself from blushing when I saw him again. And then he would notice my reaction... oh damn, I wanted grouchy Garth back, or scarily authoritive Luke. Anyone but the first guy I'd seen naked in my entire life.

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I don't usually do this but Larkin looks somewhat similar to Jamie Bamber so here's an idea of what he looks like...

http://www.imdb.com/media/rm531337728/nm0051397

Okay, don't ask me how I found Jamie... ah whatever... Captain Lee Adama... from Battlestar Gallactica.... BUT HE WAS THE ONLY REASON I WATCHED IT... oh, and Aaron Douglas (so cute) and Tahmoh Penikett (swoon a million times)... and the plot wasn't that bad...

And I have to say this, as I was writing this chapter I was chuckling to myself, thinking of people's reactions. Ah, I think Lark is my favourite character to write... mmm, delicious Scottish athlete. Yum, yum, yum ;) [Sorry Paige, I don't mean that Liam takes second place or anything. I just love the mischievous things that Larkin comes up with... ah, dream guy :)]

Sid x