Bangin' Scrunchie

Cold stone pressed into her skin at odd angles. Dark shapes swam through her clouded mind. A soreness in her jaw struggled to pull her from the churning depths of dizzying sleep. Bangin’ Scrunchie groaned, dragging herself into awareness to address her various discomforts, her inability to move slow to register in her mind. She shifted her weight, trying to sit up, only to find her forelegs secured between her rear hooves by some form of metal bar. She sluggishly pulled at her forelegs, gradually becoming more aware of her entrapment with a growing dread.

“Mm...Mm? Mm. Mm! Mm-mm!”

A thick bridle muted her panic, its rubbery texture making it difficult to move her tongue. She blinked the blur from her eyes, trying to look around, but found the periphery of vision blocked by blinders. She shook her head violently and clenched her eyes in an attempt to finally bring herself into full awareness.

“You’re gonna be fucked in the head for a while, girly,” a voice calmly sighed from Scrunchie’s blinded left. “And in other places for a while longer,” the voice chuckled. “Just sit tight for now. Don’t want you breaking anything without me.”

Scrunchie began to hyperventilate, her slurred and sluggish mind racing as the words repeated themselves in her mind. ‘What does that mean? Without them? They’re going to break me?’ With her thoughts so scrambled and the voice so androgynous, it was impossible to tell its gender, not that knowing would improve her situation any. Still, the unknown was frightening.  Any information that could help her understand her situation, or hinder her from doing so, was useful information. To be restrained, gagged, and partially blinded as she was...

‘Maybe I don’t want to know what’s happening...’

   She heard movement, the soft patter of what was most certainly not hooves against stone. It meandered around her left side, too far for her to see even with her head turned, and casually approached her from behind.

‘Oh no.’ she whimpered in her thoughts. ‘No no no, please don’t.’

The movement stopped, Scrunchie tensing in anticipation of what might happen. Whatever was behind her was still for a moment, the cave she assumed she was in falling quiet. Seconds passed in heavy silence before a jolt ran up Scrunchie’s spine as a hand pressed into her flank, clawed fingers gently raking her rump in a circular motion. She let out a muffled protest, wiggling her rear to try and push the hand away, then squealed as a sharp pain shot up her body from the other side.

“Shut up,” the voice said calmly, pressing harder with the stroking hand. “Save your energy. I want big, loud, energetic screams when things finally get going, so don’t wear yourself out now.”

The stinging pain left a strange sensation in Scrunchie’s mouth, her wide eyes tearing up as it persisted. Something long and rubbery was placed on her back as her captor’s other hand took hold of her stinging flank and squeezed her. Thumbs slid along her rump, sliding into the crease that separated her haunches, and spread them apart, making Scrunchie twitch as she resisted the urge to protest. The left hand released her, taking a moment to sweep her tail aside, then returned and spread her more forcefully, the clawed thumbs sliding into her private flesh and opening her to her captor’s prying eyes.

“Wow. Don’t see many like this,” the voice mused, shifting its thumb slightly. “Almost wish I could get at that myself.”

Scrunchie had determined that the voice was female, though it only just sounded like it. The clawed hands and quiet footsteps meant she was not a pony, likely a griffon, and the size of those hands lead her to think that she wasn’t a particularly large griffon. All in all, she herself didn’t seem to be a cause for concern.

What she was doing, on the other hoof, was a major cause for concern. Binding, blinding, gagging, massaging her rump, spreading her open...

Not to mention that thing laying over her back...

‘I’m in serious bucking trouble, aren’t I?’

Scrunchie twitched at a rush of cold air around her muff, wincing as she heard the griffon let out a long sigh.

“Even smells nice,” the griffon commented, releasing Scrunchie’s haunches. The length of rubber lifted off the bound pony’s hide, making her twitch as she braced for whatever the griffon was planning, then she relaxed as the griffon continued to circle her.  Scrunchie listened to her quiet footfalls as she swaggered around her right side, slowly making her way into her prisoner pony’s line of sight.

Scrunchie lifted her chin off the stone floor to look up at her captor. Just as she’d thought, the griffon was small, hardly a head taller than she was, and most definitely female. The petite griffon crouched, taking Scrunchie by the chin and singlehandedly lifting her into a sitting position before turning her head left and right to examine her terrified face. Scrunchie winced at her rough handling, flinching as the griffon pried open her right eye and leaned close to her to peer into it as if it were a jewel.

“Not bad,” the griffon concluded, patting Scrunchie’s cheek as if to commend her. “Can’t believe he found one so ripe.” Scrunchie started to mutter a question around the bridle, but stopped with a flinch as the griffon stood up on her hind legs, shouldering the oversized dildo she carried like a sword. “We’re gonna have fun with this thing,” the griffon smirked, motioning to the dildo with her head. “Or, I am at least.”

Scrunchie shuddered to think of the massive rubbery cord getting anywhere near her rump again and resumed trying to speak, but stopped with a squeal as the griffon lazily tipped her back into her facedown position with a hind leg. Evidently there was nothing she could say to change whatever the griffon had planned for her.

It would take action to derail the situation.

Scrunchie tested her wings, finding, much to her surprise, that they were totally unrestrained. She furrowed her brow, spreading her wings and trying to figure out how to take off from her current position, then shrieked and dug her teeth into the bridle.

“The fuck did I say a minute ago?” the griffon asked in annoyance, tightening her grip on Scrunchie’s left wing. “Don’t do anything stupid, stupid. I don’t want to have to break anything,” she emphasized, twisting the wing and making Scrunchie yelp, “before the fun starts.” She released the wing, which Scrunchie quickly snapped back to her side with a whimper. The griffon leaned over her, lifting her head by her mane until they met eyes. “After that, you can be as stupid as you want,” she sneered. “It’s more fun if you struggle.”

Tears leaked out of Scrunchie’s eyes as the griffon released her hair and let her face fall to the floor, the throbbing pain in her wing making it hard to think. It was obvious that flying wasn’t an option now, but it was the only think she could think to do if she wanted to escape. She had guessed the griffon was waiting for something, otherwise she would’ve started this fun she repeatedly referred to. As long as her wing wasn’t broken, she had a chance. She just needed to find an opportunity to fly before whatever the griffon was waiting for—

“There you are!” the griffon suddenly shouted, making Scrunchie jump. “What the fuck took you?”

“I got hungry,” an apologetic voice answered. “I caught you somethi—“

The second voice was cut off with a loud smack, presumably from her fleshy saber.

“Don’t blue ball me like that,” the first griffon said flatly. “I’ll take your other nut off,” she threatened, “And I won’t give you any fucking anesthesia.”

“Sorry sis...” the other voice answered in a subdued tone.

Scrunchie felt a tinge of nausea. ‘Sis? She...partially castrated him? ‘Blue ball’? What the hay am I hearing??’

“I-is this her?” the male griffon asked, padding closer to the awkwardly bound pegasus.

“No, this is our cousin Fran, she’s visiting for the weekend,” the female sighed, slapping her brother again. “What the fuck kind of stupid question was that?”

The male was quiet for a few seconds, apparently nursing his increasingly sore face, then once again muttered, “Sorry sis.”

They were both silent for a moment before the female clicked her tongue and walked back around to Scrunchie’s front.

“Hey girly,” she sighed, sticking a paw under Scrunchie’s armpit. “Say hi to your new playmate.”

The griffon kicked Scrunchie in a circle, making her wince as the rough surface of the floor scratched her chest and forelegs. She gagged slightly as the stinging sensation shot up her throat and into her mouth, then more as her head was lifted off the floor by a pair of talons on either side of her face. She was rocked back into a sitting position, closing one eye as her rump pressed into a pointed rock, then whimpered as she realized how close her face was to the other griffon’s.

The male griffon was head and shoulders taller than his sister, almost seeming as though he’d be the griffon equivalent of a Clydesdale. While his sister’s coat and feathers were mostly black, his were varying shades of brown, and he seemed rather disheveled in comparison to her calm and confident demeanor. His face was swollen on the right side, apparently from the repeated slaps from the dildo, and he had a missing patch of feathers in his right wing, but otherwise he looked more unkempt than injured.

Despite his sister’s obvious disregard of Scrunchie’s comfort, his grip was gentle, only firm enough to hold her upright. His face was also much softer than hers, his bright yellow eyes scanning her minty green coat with what almost looked like concern. Scrunchie wondered briefly how the two could even be related before he smiled and lowered her head back to the floor.

“She’s so soft,” he murmured, running a hand down her back from her shoulders. Scrunchie flinched as he brushed his talons over the base of her sore wing, letting out a quiet noise of protest as he did. She noticed him react, lightening the pressure of his hand, and even thought she heard a muffled apology before his sister gathered up a handful of her rump and gave her a firm shake.

“Ain’t she?” she chuckled. “Ya did a good job pickin’ this one. I can’t wait to see her cute little face all screwed up in pain...” She wandered back to Scrunchie's front, smiling menacingly as she brandished the fleshy purple sword. She glanced at her brother, cocking an eyebrow, then sighed and slapped his chest, prompting him to stand up on his hind legs and making Scrunchie shiver as she saw how large he really was. The petite griffon looked down at his hips, staring for a moment, then groaned and lowered the dildo. “Seriously?”

Her brother recoiled. “Um...” he was quiet for several seconds before shrugging, making his sister palm her face.

“You can’t do anything by yourself, can you?” she sighed, shaking her head.

Her brother shied away from her slightly, evidently anticipating what was coming, then winced as she lifted a hand and snapped her fingers. The male griffon squirmed, bending his knees together as his hardening member snaked out of its sheath as if summoned by his sisters hand. Scrunchie’s eyes widened in shock and disgust, her eyebrows drawing together as the tip of the still spongy gender hung down inches away from her face. From what she could tell, it looked just like that of any pony, but the difference in size was cause enough for concern. As it continued to harden and rise, however, it began to balloon near the base, tiny rounded spines standing erect along its surface until it looked like some form of spiked, pink butt plug. The griffon shuddered as his penis finished inflating, his breathing labored as though he had had an orgasm, and turned a flustered expression away from his sister.

“I hate it when you use magic like that...” he muttered, crossing his arms.

“And I hate having to correct you every time I do,” she shot back, slapping his shoulder. “It ain’t magic, it’s conditioning.” She straightened up, focusing on the bound pegasus. “More importantly, you’re ready now, aren’t you?”

Her brother glanced sideways at her before sighing and lowering his hands. “Yeah.”

Scrunchie began to shake, terrified of what the maniacal little griffon was planning, then flinched as she pointed the rubber club at her rump.

“Good. Then fuck her asshole!”

Scrunchie seized,  all the muscles in her body clenching as the words hit her ears. Her eyes shot up to the wide ended club of a penis that loomed over her, panic flooding her taught body and making her start to struggle against the spreader bars around her ankles and wrists and shout into the bridle, desperately shaking her head in an attempt to appeal to the kind eyed male griffon.

“Why there?” he whined, turning a disappointed face to his sister. “It’s probably filthy...”

“I cleaned her out while she was all fucked up,” the smaller griffon said flatly, “cause I knew you’d bitch about it. She’s clear for takeoff, now get your ass over there and fuck ‘er up the butt!”

The larger griffon watched Scrunchie fight against the restraints for a moment, straining to look up at him and plea for his empathy, then sighed and walked around her to her rear. Scrunchie began to cry, struggling to turn at pace with him, but in a second he was behind her, gingerly placing his hands on either side of her shaking rump. She looked around in panic, pushing at the bridle with her tongue to try and force it out of her mouth, tears streaming down her face as the griffon took a brief moment to tenderly massage her haunches before spreading her open. She felt the flat tip of his cock press against her anus, cringing in anticipation and clenching her rear as best she could, then squealed as the tips of his clawed thumbs wedged their way into the tight sphincter and pried it open. He brought his cock back to her rear, pressing against the opening he’d made, and the pegasus’ supple anus folded under the pressure, allowing him to push the tip of his dong into her.

Scrunchie clenched her eyes shut, moaning angrily into the bridle as the large griffon forced more of his swollen cock into her ass, then screamed as he suddenly rammed his hips into hers, ramming his barbed dick into her intestine. He bent over her, letting out a long moan as her muscles spasmed around his stellated meat club, and slid his hands up the sides of her body to her chest. Scrunchie bit down on the bridle until her jaw hurt, her rear searing with pain at the massive object that had been thrust inside. She tensed her wings, doing everything she could to distract herself from the pain in her rectum, then whimpered as she felt the griffon start to shift his wait and realized what was coming. She shook her head, desperately trying to free her hooves from the restraints, then shrieked again as the griffon started to move his hips.

The griffon grunted as he moved his hips, stretching Scrunchie’s asshole open as the thick base of his cock slid back out, the thick, rounded barbs raking her innards as he did. Scrunchie wailed into the bridle, pulling her forelegs nearly out of their sockets as she struggled to free herself from the bar. Her insides were burning, stretched and raked in painful and unfamiliar ways, and her eyes began to hurt from her tight clenching of her eyelids. She cracked her eyes open, laying her head on her cheek, and felt her eyes twitch as she realized the smaller griffon was sitting beside her. She grimaced, turning her head to face the other direction as she realized the griffon was occupying her own rear with the dildo she’d carried so fondly before.

Another thrust from the male made her dig her teeth into the bridle again, spreading her wings and starting to flap them randomly. She slapped her rapist in the face repeatedly, the weak strikes of her wings evidently doing nothing to deter him. He pulled her close again, pushing the bulbous hilt of his thickness into her ass, then quickly extracted it again. He began to pump his hips, making the anguished pony in his grip scream and squeal in short bursts in rhythm with his thrusting. He let out a long sigh, sliding his arms around the front of her body and hugging her close as he forcefully fucked her rear. He nipped at her ear, Scrunchie jerking it away from him, then set about liking the tears from her face.

Scrunchie clenched her eyes shut again, now trying only to shut the pain out of her mind. She could feel the pointless barbs digging into her tense intestine, rubbing her raw and burning up her insides. She was bleeding now, a thin stream of red dribbling from her elevated derriere down the front of her body. She scrunched her nose, pained almost as much by the smell of her blood as the act that drew it from her.

The griffon wined, pumping his hips faster and drawing an agonized squeal from the green pegasus. He hugged her tight, fucking her at a furious pace, and bit down on the straps holding the blinders to her face. Scrunchie whimpered, ignoring a squeaky moan from the smaller griffon as she pounded her own rear with the purple dong.

The male suddenly came to a stop and whimpered, “Lola...”

“Her face!” the smaller griffon answered, “Cum on her face!”

He quickly pulled himself out of Scrunchie’s rear, drawing a pained squeal from the captive pony, then leapt around her and lifted her by her face again. Scrunchie jerked her head, trying to free herself from his grip, but he held her much more forcefully this time. He placed her face at his waist, aiming his cock at her, then whined as he waited for his sister’s input. The smaller griffon extracted the oversized dildo from her rear then quickly shoved it down her own throat and flopped onto her back, frantically snapping her fingers and watching her brother seize as he started to cum.

Scrunchie yelped as a thick stream of cum struck her in the face, clenching her eyes shut as the griffon’s geyser-like orgasm continued to shoot out into the space between her blinders.  Lola frantically rubbed her muff, still pumping the dildo into her throat as she watched her brother fire stream after stream of hot semen onto the pitiful pegasus’ face. The male griffon let out a long, ragged sigh, shooting two more globs of cum onto Scrunchie’s face before collapsing onto his rump, still holding her face above the ground. He panted heavily, staring at the white plastered pony as she coughed on the thick semen that blocked her nose. He watched her a moment more, his stomach clenching as one more stream of cum leaked out of his softening cock, then leaned close to Scrunchie’s face and licked the slimy paste off of her snout to allow her to breathe.

Lola fell onto her back, her body wracked with the spasms of her orgasm as she watched her brother licking his mess of of their prisoner’s face. “Good boy,” she panted after pulling the dildo out of her throat. “Clean her up. Don’t miss anything,” she breathed, snapping her fingers.

The griffon slurped up the thick cum that coated the green pagasus’ head, wrapping his tongue around a lock of her hair and running it down its length, squeezing his paste from it as he went. He continued his tongue bath fro several minutes, gulping down as much of the semen as he could find, then gently lowered Scrunchie’s head to the floor and lying down next to her, tenderly running his talons through her mane.

Scrunchie shook weakly with quiet sobs, keeping her eyes closed as she cried in silence. Her ass stung, her insides burned, and entire head reeked of griffon spunk. Her fur was sticky with blood on her stomach and cum on her face and shoulders, the mixed smells making her nauseous. Had her mouth not been filled with the bridle, she might have let herself vomit. The male griffon tilted her head, kissing her cheek, then released her and stood, running his talons through her soft, fluffy hair one last time. Scrunchie sniffled, shutting her eyes tight, and pushed the ground with one wing until she tipped over and let herself fall onto her side with thud. The fall hurt, but not as much as her rump, and it felt good to take her weight off her neck and shoulders.

The male griffon wandered over to his sister, staring at the puddle by her lower body, then lowered his face to the floor and started to lap at her ejaculate.

“Stop that,” Lola, hissed, slapping him weakly with the dildo. “Don’t get a taste for me, stupid, that’s the point.”

He looked up at her, lingering over the damp rock, then nodded and rose to his talons and paws again, Lola following suit. She meandered over to the shaking pegasus pony, looming over her with a smirk, her fiery orange eyes sparkling with afterglow. Scrunchie stared at her talons, not wanting to turn her head to see past the blinders. With a quick motion, Lola sliced the strap holding them in place, then ripped the leather ribbons off of her head. Scrunchie winced, turning her eyes up to look at Lola, and muttered something through the bridle at her.

“Mm hm hm, to you too,” Lola chuckled, closing her hand over Scrunchie’s snout.

Scrunchie flinched, snorting to try and get the griffons hand off of her, but Lola simply sat back and rested her cheek on her free hand, watching Scrunchie begin to choke with a bemused grin. Scrunchie shook her head, her wing starting to flail in panic, and repeatedly snorted to try and disengage the claws clamping her nostrils shut. Lola’s grip was firm, unwavering, and her stoic smile never left her face as her captive’s movements became sluggish. The orange eyed pegasus moaned weakly, reaching out to the griffon with her wing, but never got to touch her with it. Blackness flooded into her vision from the edges of her eyes, her burning lungs feeling as though they’d given out, and soon the battered pony had fallen into the black waters of unconsciousness once again.

* * * * * *

Scrunchie’s head swam. Her sore limbs tingled with paresthesia. Her bottom stung terribly and, as she bounced, she thought she could feel a number of bruises on her flanks and back. The night air blew past her suddenly, making her shiver and pull her legs close to herself. She was slow to realize her freedom, so used to the feeling was she, and even more so to realize that she was moving.

The male griffon paused, carefully looking around, then crouched and shifted the limp pony from his shoulder, gently laying her on the rocky face of the mountain. He waited patiently, watching her blink her bleary eyes into focus and groan as she rolled her now unrestricted jaw.

“Hi there,” he whispered, smiling softly. Scrunchie responded with a moan. “Try not to make a lot of noise,” he cautioned. “Lola keeps weird hours. She could wake up at any time.”

Scrunchie stretched her sore forelegs and reached up to rub her face. She took a deep breath, trying to steady herself, then looked up at the griffon with a confused frown.

“What are you gonna do to me?” she asked weakly, drawing her hind legs close to her body.

The griffon nodded to his left and Scrunchie looked over at the forest that spread out from the mountain’s base. Her frown deepened as she recognized the landscape, trying to place herself in her mind, but the griffon gently turned her face back to his.

“There’s a lake in the woods over there. You should get a drink there before going anywhere else.”

Scrunchie stared at him, unsure if she understood what he meant.

“Y...You’re letting me go?”

The griffon held her gaze in silence, apparently hesitant, then lifted a hand to her face and gently slid it back to her mane.

“N-not yet,” he admitted, placing his left hand on her chest.

Scrunchie tensed as he said that, worry flashing across her face. “No. No, please, not again.”

The griffon winced as if hurt, moving the hand on her chest around her shoulder and pinning down her wing. “I never get to take them like this though,” he said quietly, stroking Scrunchie’s cheek with his thumb. “I want to try it. At least once.”

Scrunchie’s eyes filled with tears, her free wing flapping weakly as she searched his eyes for some sign of mercy. “Please...” she whispered. “No. Help,” she said, turning to look at the forest. “Help!”

Scrunchie gagged, the griffon turning her face back to his with his thumb as he gave her neck a gentle squeeze. “Please be quiet,” he whispered, almost pressing his beak against her snout. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

Scrunchie pleaded with the griffon silently, her breath short and ragged, then closed her eyes as she saw there would be no reasoning with him. He smiled, closing the distance between their faces and kissing her clenched lips, then slid the hand at her neck down the front of her body, pausing to stroke her belly, then moved his hand to his rapidly hardening gender. Scrunchie felt it lay on her stomach and squirmed,  covering her mouth as the motion caused her wing to stretch painfully under her oppressor’s weight.

The griffon had no trouble getting hard this time, his cock throbbing as he tenderly kissed Scrunchie’s chest and neck. He wasted no time, guiding its tip to her vulva and pushing it inside. Once in, though, he hesitated, pulling back his head to look at the scared pegasus’ face. He winced at her pained expression, almost seeming as though he’d back down, then slid his arm around her neck and lowered his face to her ear, hugging her close.

“I’ll try to be gentle,” he whispered apologetically.

Scrunchie clenched her eyes in anticipation, pushing out a fresh wave of tears, and gasped as the griffon leaned his hips forward, pressing his spined knob into her muff. He paused, releasing her wing and sliding the once restraining hand under the small of her back, and pulled her body up to his, pressing in further and drawing a scared breath from his captive. Scrunchie opened her eyes, her teeth becoming sore from her tight clenching, and found the griffon shaking over her.

“It’s so soft...” she heard him hiss. “Unf...”

He was moving much slower this time, hesitating before moving, then pressed further, stretching Scrunchie open with his wide ended cock and making her teeth grind. It hurt, but not as much as before.

Of course, the spines on his gender were angled toward the base. It may not be so painful going in, but coming out...

Scrunchie shut her eyes, bracing her hooves against the griffon’s chest, and squeaked as she felt his hips start to move back. She could feel them, the spines. They dug into the soft flesh of her vagina, raking their way through her as they slid across the supple inside of her body. As the griffon’s back arched, his cock came to a stop, just barely held inside Scrunchie’s body. She cracked an eye, about to say something, then quickly bit her lip as the griffon thrusted again, slowly stretching her lips open as he reinserted his cock.

The novelty seemed to wear off quickly, the griffon gradually moving his hips faster and faster. Scrunchie whimpered as she felt the first of the spines break the skin of her canal, clenching the muscles in her shoulders as she tried her best not to let those in her nether region seize up. The more relaxed she was, the easier it would be, she reasoned; the more pressure she took off of the spines that rubbed her raw from within, the better. She squeaked as a second and third barb rubbed through her flesh, hoping against hope that the griffon would soon finish his dirty deed.

The griffon panted heavily, contorting his neck to bend down and kiss Scrunchie’s face, whining as he felt his pent up frustrations culminating into a tingling sensation at the base of his cock. He grunted, squeezing the neon maned pegasus tight, and gave his member a final forceful thrust into her supple flesh before the tingling at its base fired up through the barbed club and made him lose his breath.

Scrunchie felt the surge of heat inside her, squealing as the griffon hugged her tighter and tighter as his hot cum spewed into her. She opened her mouth, breathless and anguished, and bit down on the griffon’s chest to stop herself from screaming. The griffon grunted again, pushing himself as far into her as possible, then let out a long moan as his thick semen began to distend Scrunchie’s belly, trapped as it was within her by his swollen plug of a cock.

They were still for several minutes after the griffon came, both panting heavily. After what felt like hours, the griffon relaxed his grip, the pegasus in his arms gasping as the pressure on her lungs was lifted. He lifted his body slightly, his cock still wedged inside her, and placed a hand beside her head as he shifted his hip to pull himself out. Scrunchie tensed, whimpering as the thick, rounded base of the penis stretched her vulva, then again as it slid out and the thick mess of white paste it had held in place began to pour out. The griffon let out a long breath, watching silently as his gooey mess streamed out of the panting pegasus, and shivered as the sight made his neck tingle. Scrunchie lay in wait, pushing briefly to help her body empty herself of the foreign substance. As it ran thin, swirls of red and pink began to mix into the milky white, making the griffon wince and stand, taking a final breath and deep whiff of the smell of sex that lingered in the air before turning and starting to clamber back up to the cave in which his sister slept.

Scrunchie watched him go through tear filled eyes, still breathing heavily as her silent sobs persisted beyond her torture. After another minute, she pushed herself onto her shaky hooves, swaying for a moment, then took off from the rock face and steered herself into the forest below to find the lake the griffon had told her about.

• + + + + +

The griffon padded silently into the gaping mouth of the cave, glancing over his shoulder as a neon green dot vanished into the foliage of the forest.

“Having fun, Leo?”

The griffon jumped backward, shrinking away from his petite counterpart as she silently flicked her tail, her dark coat blending into the dark of the cave like a shadow in the shade.

“L-Lola...” he stammered. “Y...you...”

The smaller griffon cut him off with a raised hand, the scent from which instantly alleviating Leo’s fears.

“Can it,” Lola said flatly. She sighed, straightening up from her leaning position against the wall of the cave, then turned and motioned for him to follow her. “Not sure why you couldn’t wait,” she muttered. “We were gonna let her go tomorrow anyway.”

Leo lowered his head. “I know. I just...wanted to try it.”

“You point her toward the city?”

Leo shook his head. “The lake in the woods.”

Lola stopped, prompting her brother to do the same, and looked back at him in surprise.

“...You sent her into the woods? Tonight?” she asked in astonishment. Leo nodded meekly, shying away from her slightly. “It’s the new moon, Leo, you know what kinds of things are crawling around out there. She’ll be dead in an hour.”

Leo opened his mouth, holding it that way for a moment, then looked down.

“I think...she’d prefer that...” he said quietly.

Lola stared at him in silence, her bright orange eyes glowing in the dark, then gave him a faint nod and started to walk again.

“You’re probably right,” she sighed. “You’re good at reading people like that.”

Leo looked up, watching his sister round a corner, then looked back at the mouth of the cave. He lingered by the opening of the mountain, watching the trees below sway quietly with a breeze, then turned and continued into the cave, vanishing like smoke into the dark.