"Wh-!? You cant just leave me here like this!! Help me up you god forsaken woman-!! Or better yet!! If you arent going to finish the job, let me out so I can!!" He all but snarled against the floor, his cheek slightly pressed in and now marked by the layer of dirt on the boards.

His eyes were blazing with an unfiltered rage that would make anyone take a step back out of pure fear, his gaze piercing through her as he struggled in vain against the binds, the chair he was still attached to and the floor he was now being resigned to sleeping on for the night.

Loud, deep grunts and huffs left his chest as he strained once more, trying to at least nudge himself into a position that no longer resulted in him looking so humiliated, face first and stuck in a chair on the floor. He could feel the legs of the chair lifting a little, his spine twisting awkwardly, before the chair finally thunked over onto its side.

"What the hell does a bratty princess like you want with me anyways? You wont kill me. You won't let me go. Don't tell me you're enjoying the view that much?" He snarked, once again attempting to get beneath this girl's skin to get a rise from her. He knew he couldn't afford to remain here for long, not in this place, and not surrounded by the beings he was.

Hunting solo dragons was hard enough as is, but an entire flocks worth along with the possibility of more riders like his captor? Even he wasn't dumb enough to test those odds. The longer he remained here, the more time they had to formulate a plan, much less one he wouldn't like in the slightest.

His people would still be waiting for his hunting party's return... They'd be expecting the entire crew, the ship, and perhaps a mighty dragon slain and in tow. Instead, he would have to face them all. Without a ship. Without a crew. Without even a dragons scale.

It was selfish to think the way he was, and Lorcan was more than aware. Dreading the humiliation and the disappointment over the grief he should've felt for his men who were killed off whilst he survived. But he was a hunter. THE Dragon Hunter Chiefs Son, at that. He didn't have time to waste tears on men he hardly knew beyond their names, who he had wished he had nothing to do with due to their inexperience and young age. It was easy to get a big head from the hunting gig, the recognition such feats granted, most only joined his crew to show off and he knew it well.

Lorcan sighed, finally ceasing his struggles against the chair and his bindings as his body went a little more limp, not quite relaxed, but not as tense.

A skilled hunter knew well the ways of their prey. A chief knew well the ways of their people. And as a sinking feeling formed in his stomach, his throat growing dry as he closed his eyes for a moment, he accepted that he had failed in both aspects today.

By the divines, if this was truly to be his punishment...

They'd have to drag him kicking and biting all the way to hell themselves.

"Good morning!"

God, he couldn't stop the cringe that wracked his body at the sound of that familiar grating voice. His teeth clenched tightly together at the sing-song tone she used as she came downstairs. So it was morning now... There wasn't much else to try and go off of when it came to guessing what time it was or how long he'd been down here.

"I take it you slept great last night!" She continued. He immediately scoffed, tilting his head back a bit as he glared up at her with dulled eyes and dark bags.

"Oh, I slept the bloody dream. You'd have no idea. It was truly a marvel. You AND your dragons dead at my hands, I could've cried with joy." He drawled, rolling his eyes as he spoke with heavily laced sarcasm with an undertone of exhaustion.

No. Of course he hadn't slept well.

He hadn't slept a damn wink, and he'd made sure to try make sure he wasn't the only one. Yet here this woman was again, bright eyed, bushy tailed, as if none of his efforts had paid off.

The sight only served to piss him off more. The cold boards had made for a shoddy pillow, and given the chair he had been strapped to all night, he hadn't been given all the space to try and get comfortable.

In fact, he was certain he had slept so awfully, he didnt even know if he could move his neck properly without the aches and pains of the tense muscles protesting. The dirt along the boards had been his only companion during the night, and judging by the way it had smeared and clung to his cheek, they had become well acquainted.

He was ready to continue his sarcastic tirade, the words upon the tip of his tongue, when she did something he didn't expect. She disappeared from his line of sight as she went behind him, and before he could snap at her to ask what the hell the big idea was, he felt the ropes around his wrist give out. "...huh...?"

She was... Letting him go??

He grumbled under his breath, unable to hide the hint of relief that came through the exhaled breath of his sigh. His fingers flexed, his wrists still a little tender from where the ropes had thoroughly rubbed into his skin, but at least he was still intact.

Well. Most of him. His pride had definitely taken a decent beating thanks to this whole ordeal.

But his body immediately tensed again as she stepped back around to face him.

"Well, thanks to me capturing you, I have to still patrol the skies. But, you will have a babysitter watching you."

"Thanks to me?! Yeah! You're welcome! I've truly enjoyed the five star service you've given me here with a cold floor and a nasty chair!" Lorcan instantly snapped.

"And save the babysitter bullshit. You and I know damn well no matter who you bring in here, they won't be getting off easily. Neither will you-!" He continued, his voice raising as his agitation mounted substantially. But before he took a step towards her, his fingers just itching to deal some pay back, he took in a deep breath.

Sure. He had the size advantage. And the weight. And the strength too. But even he wasn't dumb enough to attack this woman here and now. Not while she had a weapon on her. And not while she probably had several more outside bearing wings and sharp fangs.

"...Tch. You're only delaying the inevitable princess. You'll be dead before the weeks end." He grumbled crossly, crossing his arms across his chest in a defiant gesture.

"The longer you keep me here, the higher the chances. But you already know that. Don't you, lil miss know-it-all?" He couldn't resist another chance to jab at her with another snarky comment.

Oh hell no.

There was no way in hell that she had let him free just to lump him with this sorry excuse of a man. His scowl reflected his displeasure as his pinkish red eyes flickered over the newcomers form.

How dare she treat him like a child?! He was a renowned dragon hunter! A man to be feared and respected! Not babysat like some misbehaving toddler! Just what the hell was their deal?!

He kept his arms tightly crossed over his chest in defiance as his chin tilted up ever so slightly, his gaze slanting down his nose to glare at the both of them.

"This is a BIG mistake Princess." He growled in warning, his voice turning gruff as he felt his patience for this situation wearing thin. At least he was no longer tied up, so he could potentially work up a plan now.

His gaze drifted from the newcomer back to the dreaded woman as she stepped closer to him. He was gonna do it. Oh boy, he was gonna do it. His fingers gave the slightest almost imperceptable twitch, as if itching to reach for his weapon... But he knew it wasn't there. He had failed to retrieve it from the ship before it crashed, and now the axe was probably lost until some nosy soul happened across the crash site. He suppressed a shudder as the thought of some low-life scoundrel touching his weapon crossed his mind.

His gaze briefly snapped back over the woman's shoulder to the man who lingered by the doorway. His hair was a deep auburn colour, the slightly messy locks upon his head making him look slightly scruffy and unkempt. He wore baggy pants, yet the shirt he wore seemed more tighter fitting, showcasing the decent amount of muscle around his upper arms and torso.

Lorcan found himself wondering more about the stranger. If he was a friend of this woman, then did he too have a dragon companion? How well versed was he in combat? His thoughts raced as he internally sized him up.

If he was going to be left here under his "care", then that made him the only immediate obstacle between Lorcan and his freedom.

It was a possibility. A risk that Lorcan would be happy to take. He had faced countless dragons before, and even fought off a decent few bandits and thieves during his time as a dragon hunter. Most had been much larger, wielded mighty weapons, and still he had come out on top.

He diverted his gaze back to the woman before him, carefully concealing his thoughts behind a well constructed look of indifference as he raised an eyebrow.

"What? Got something on my face Princess? It's rude to stare." He grumbled lowly as he fixed her with an intense look.

He was actually a little gobsmacked at how quickly she was able to quip back at him with that response. Surprise and a tiny bit of shock rendered him silent for a long few moments, his eyes widened the smallest fraction more as he stared down at her.

She certainly had quite the mouth on her. The levels of sass were almost alarming too. It wasn't often many could stand up to him and his banter without growing overly offended, and strangely... He found himself almost respecting it. ALMOST.

As if he would actually allow himself to respect someone who chose the side of the winged lizards looming around outside. He hunted them for a reason. They were beasts. They were predators. Dangerous killing machines that wiped out entire kingdoms and villages, plundered gold.

'Maybe she's part of one herself?' He thought to himself with the barest hint of a smirk.

'It would explain a lot.'

His gaze soon shifted back, settling back upon the boy who stood nearby. Lorcan still found himself wondering more about the man, was he strong? Was his dragon nearby? Or was this some kind of unholy mistake the woman was making. Perhaps they were simply friends, or he owed her a favour? No matter the reasoning, Lorcan was not staying here a second longer than he needed to. His people would be wondering where he was, if he was even still alive..

He was snapped from his thoughts at the sound of the others raised voices.. Seriously? Were they fighting? Because of him? The thought brought him a twisted sense of satisfaction as he smugly watched from afar, listening to the exchange.

"Please, just this once. I'm planning on letting him be released tonight."

"It's not right keeping him cooped up in a stuffy basement."

"Then you are going soft, El. Who cares about his well-being? I don't."

"You might not care, but I do! I'm not a kidnapper, Elijah. I don't keep hostages."

"Since when do you care about these people?! They kill dragons, they kill YOUR dragons!"

"I know-"

"You know? Then why the fuck do you care!"

Now this was just juicy. His red gaze flickered back and forth between them as they shouted at one another, getting up into each other's faces.

'Heh. This shits going to be easier than I thought...' Lorcan smirked subtly to himself before quickly schooling his expression back to a more neutral one.

The woman left not long after without another word, leaving the other boy seething in his anger and frustration.

Lorcan let out a small huff, a breath of a laugh as he tilted his head slightly to the side, glaring down at the boy.

"Trouble in paradise eh? She's stupid to not listen to your reasoning. I mean, hey, I'm totally with you on everything you just said. Shes quite... What's the word...? Naive?" Lorcan decided to play it cool.

"Bringing me here, talking of letting me go whilst knowing what im capable of..." He drawled on, taking a step towards the boy.

"Don't worry though. She'll regret it~"

The smile that graced his lips was anything but sincere. His eyes held a gleam that promised violence, his entire body tensed and ready to strike as he fixed the other boy with a steely and intense look, like a predator closing in on its prey.

There was that look again... The slight gleam in Lorcan's eyes as his head tilted downwards slightly, casting his face in shadows that seemed to make even the room grow colder.

"Sit down... Talk civilly? Sounds like a dream. However, you're overlooking a few crucial details." He took another step, almost getting right up in the boys face as he slammed a fist against the wall beside his head, caging him in.

"One. I'm not a fucking guest here now, am I? Why the hell would I sit down, sipping tea and have a chit chat with scum like you?!" He snarled right in the boys face, snatching up the collar of his shirt as Lorcan forcefully tugged the boy towards him.

"AND SECOND. I'm a hunter. You think ill happily "wait" until you and your little girlfriend CHOOSE to let me go? You've held me up long enough." Lorcans words were sharp, his voice a threatening grumble in his throat as he furrowed his brows and narrowed his eyes into a look that promised hurt. That promised violence.

He wasn't asking for permission anything. Not from the one's who had killed his crew and forced him back here against his will. If they weren't going to kill him, then that was their biggest mistake.

Because in all the years Lorcan had been honing his skills, training, leading his villages people, he found out something important. He didn't HAVE to ask for permission for anything.

If he wanted to go hunt a fucking dragon, he'd go hunt a fucking dragon.

And if he wanted to beat this boy before him halfway to deaths doorstep in a small wrapped up parcel with a bow on its top?

HE DAMN WELL WOULD.

"I have a fucking job to do. But don't worry..." He trailed off, gripping the boys face with one of his hands, forcing him to meet his gaze.

"I NEVER, forget a face. No matter how black, blue and bloody it might get~" Lorcan drawled, his smirk vanishing into a hardened expression as he suddenly shoved the boy back, following up the shove with a sharp jab to the face.

It had been a long time since Lorcan had been able to let out some of his frustrations, and feeling the satisfying connection of his fist and this annoying guys face?

Made all the hell thus far just the smallest bit worth it.