forum Monster x Monster hunter thing (O/O) (Open)

Started April 15, 2020 by @Shadow_Knight group

tune

Vic blinked, then sighed. He lowered the gun, finding it proper to cease threatening them after they'd (sorta) done the same.

"Question of the year," he mumbled under his breath before refocusing his attention.

He wasn't entirely sure where to go from there, shifting his weight uncomfortably like this was some awkward first date.

"I don't really know," he finally answered. "Usually I just take out monsters, no questions asked, and turn in some sort of evidence so I get my bounty." He paused. "But you don't really seem like you're causing any chaos, and to be honest, I've never interacted with your kind before." Vic shrugged. "Guess I just acted on instinct when I saw you take off."

It wasn't an apology, but it was as close as he was going to get to giving one. That said, he still wasn't sure where to go from there. It wasn't really in his nature to just…let a monster go.

Sage relaxed slightly when he lowered the gun. She furrowed her brow as she looked him up and down, trying to decide if he was lying.
"Could I have my satchel back then?" She asked, holding out her hand. "It only has clothing in it."
That was mostly true. Her satchel held her old clothes, and a few magical items that she usually wore but hadn't put back on yet.

The hunter worried his bottom lip between his teeth as he considered it.

"…What I don't understand is, if there's really only clothes in this bag, why haven't you left already?" he finally asked, unfurling the satchel's strap and holding it out in front of him at arm's length. "Surely this isn't worth risking your life over? Which leaves me to believe that either there's something of value in this bag, or you're just a sentimental person. And considering the situation I've put us both in, I can't just trust that you'll just peacefully leave if I give this to you," he mused, the final words coming out as more of a mumble.

He sighed. "Besides, your abilities are pretty incredible. Being a hunter and all, I probably shouldn't be, but I'm a tad envious. Being able to turn into practically any animal or—or person? …Can you turn into other people? I think at least some can."

It was a little obvious at this point, but Vic needed to buy all the time he could in order to sort this out. Would his pride really let him release a monster when he had them right in front of him? …He was about to find out. Besides, he really was interested in learning all he could about shapeshifters. With other monsters, there was usually some sort of motivation rooted in evil. Like vampires drinking people dry, werewolves going on killing sprees when there was a full moon, the natural mischief every one of the fairy folk seemed addicted to, etc. He didn't recall something like that with shapeshifters, although he was keen to find out whether that was accurate.

Sage let out a frustrated sigh when he refused to give her the satchel, seeing that he could use it as a bargaining chip.
"Have you…never dealt with a Skinwalker before?" She asked tilting her head a bit at his questions, before deciding to answer them, not wanting to anger the person who had the gun.
"I can shift to many different animals, though some puts more strain on my body than others." She explained. "Though others can, and will, steal other peoples skin." This made her think of her fullblood, who was able to steal peoples skin as soon as they made eye contact with them. It was a surprisingly satisfying thing to watch.

"Did you miss the part where I said I'd never interacted with your kind before?" Vic retorted, channeling every ounce of his sass into the response in order to hide his embarrassment over not knowing. He let the arm holding their satchel drop, lowering his eyes along with it as he processed the rest of what they'd said.

"That's…interesting. I'll have to fact-check what you're saying, of course, but don't take that personally. For all I know, you could be lying to make it seem like you guys are stronger than you actually are," he said matter of factly, raising his eyes to their own. "Like a lizard!" he added eagerly.

Then he frowned. "How hard would it be to shift into a lizard?" he asked, mainly talking to himself before suddenly shaking his head. "Wait, that doesn't really matter. Scratch what I just said. Why didn't you answer my first question?" he asked, gesturing to the bag. "Why risk your life for this?"

Sage raised an eyebrow when he compared her to a lizard. "He really hasn't interacted with us before." She thought as she shifted back and forth on her feet, a habit she had picked up.
"I am a sentimental person." She confirmed, trying to reach down for her bag, before hooking her thumb in a pocket when she found it wasn't there. "And it's almost the only thing that is, officially, my own."

Vic hummed, forcing his expression to return back to neutral. His eyes tracked the way they'd reached to their side as if habit, and he sighed, finally coming to an ultimatum. It probably wasn't a very good one, but it was a decision, at the very least. Ah hell, this will bite me later, won't it? He clicked the safety on his gun off and tucked it back into his waistband.

The hunter glanced at the bag in his hand a final time, before flicking his wrist and tossing it towards the shapeshifter.

What could he say? He could relate to having barely anything of his own except a name. Even now, only twenty and struggling leave the control of the organization, the only thing he really owned was his jacket. Everything else, down to the very apartment he lived in, was monitored and paid for by the leader of the organization. Hell, he was monitored and paid for by the boss.

Here's to hoping there's not a weapon in there, after all, he thought. Should've probably checked it before giving it back, but whatever. I've wasted enough time as it is.

"…Consider this a peace offering, then. I won't get off lightly for letting you go, so you should probably hurry up and leave," he warned, glancing at the roof he'd previously jumped off to get to this point. It was too high to climb back to, but if he was careful, he could use the pipe serving as a gutter to slide down. If I hurry, I might be able to find another monster before curfew.

Before he moved, however, his eyes landed on the shapeshifter again. He didn't know what he was waiting for—maybe he just didn't want to admit to himself that watching them turn into another animal was an extremely enticing idea.

Sage caught the bag, quickly slipping it over her head. She watched him put his gun away, relaxing when he did. She was a bit confused why he was letting her go, but pushed it aside.
"Thank you." She said softly as she dug through her bag. "Here." She said as she tossed something at him. It was a coin with a greenish tint to it, most likely it used to be copper colored, but it didn't look like it could be use as currency,
"I owe you a favor." She explained. "You can use it to find me, if needed."
With that, Sage shifted into the form of an owl. She grabbed her bag in her beak before flying off.

_{(Ooh, shiny thing. Question, if you can answer it: How does it work? Oh, and do you want to do a time skip after this?)}

Pure reflex let him move his hand in time to catch it. He rotated his palm, examining the coin curiously. He opened his mouth to reply, but cut himself off when he saw the form the shapeshifter had taken. He watched as they flew away, pursing his lips slightly.

Vic didn't understand—was the coin some sort of trap? He'd heard rumors of some shapeshifters being able to wield black magic, but they'd seemed sincere enough when she tossed it to him. The coin didn't feel tainted by any sort of ill-intentioned magic.

What if it truly wasn't a trap? That was a lot of trust to give someone who was one decision away from killing them. For all they knew, he could be plotting to use the coin to gather some friends and track them down. A lot of trust indeed… And yet, if that were the case and the coin really was a favor, Vic didn't want to betray that trust, however flimsy it may be.

Not to mention, he had no clue how it worked.

That was…interesting, he thought to himself. Quickly, he stuffed the so-called favor inside one of the hidden pockets of his jacket. He could worry about it later. For now, all he could do was try to find another monster to "take care of" and hope the boss wouldn't be too furious.