Path of the Hunters - NSFW

He chuckled, mood lightening some. "Even if it did work, who'd take his place? Not me; I'm no leader. It's only a matter of time before they discover Amile's origin, so not her..." He then blinked, eyes widening. "Wait..."

She lifted a brow. "Mm?"

"Amile has Laroche blood in her veins. That would explain why she's the best in the clan at knife combat, and why she'd rather kill than capture..."

The dog smiled slightly. "Then she can do what I do."

"Maybe. If she's constantly pushed herself past her limits as per the Baudoin way, then maybe..." The wolf smiled, a familiar glean in his eyes. "We'll just have to test her. If she's gonna hang with us, she'll have to be in top form."

"Test 'er 'ow?"

"Well, since she's so good at knife combat, I thought you could challenge her. See how much she can improve."

Aurélie smiled slowly. "That should be interesting."

"I'll say. She might've had an army to hide behind, but she's no pushover on her own. She bested the knife combat instructor there in under a week, and has been undefeated since. And she's even more ferocious at night. That's how she got her nickname, Lune de Sang."

Her smile was slow. "It will be fun to beat 'er, then."

He chuckled. "Try not to go overboard, okay. I'd like my cousin in one working piece, if ya don't mind."

She licked his cheek, smirked. "I know 'ow to 'andle myself in combat."

"I'm sure you do. After what you went through in the past, you should be able to do just about anything."

She smiled, tucking her head beneath his chin. "I am able to do anything. Whatever I want, I can do." Her eyes were starting to close.

He smiled, running a hand through her soft hair. "Yeah. You can do anything." He could feel his own eyelids grow heavy.

"As can you." She snuggled close, fingers curling into a light fist on his chest. "Nova," she murmured and fell asleep.

He chuckled softly, feeling his eyelids shut completely. "Yeah... We can do anything..." He concluded, falling into slumber as well.

...Anything except fall in love...

When Aurélie awoke the next morning, she looked around and quickly realized that she was in bed. Oddly enough, she was rather disappointed to not be in his...

"Mm..." She rose, stretching, and strode across the hall to correct that minor issue.

"Lookin' for something?" Nova was leaning on the wall just outside her room, fully dressed, and a bit more neatly groomed than usual.

"Maybe." She studied him, smiling. "'Ave plans?"

"We're back on the hunt, today." He flashed a wanted poster with a panther's face on it. "A gentleman thief, supposed to be after a priceless diamond collection on display downtown. Seven million for capture, another five for finding his stash, which is also rumored to be in town."

She smiled. "I will get dressed."

He nodded. "Take your time. He won't make a move until later tonight."

She didn't bother closing her door as she went to her suitcase. "And where will this move be, do you think?"

"The collection's being showcased at Starlight Jewelers tonight at 7:30, and auctioned off at 9:42. He checks on his stash exactly 52 minutes before auction time, and moves out 12 minutes later. We secure the stash, then take him."