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Meeting back up with the rest of the group was a relief. Dealing with Lizzy wasn’t fun but MacTavish had done far worse and, besides, Daryl and Carol finally reuniting was a balm to frayed nerves. Hell, even Merle was smiling at them. Sophia was over the moon and for that Riley and MacTavish were relieved. Rick was happy to see them all as were Carl and Michonne, especially when Judith was with them. Once everyone was caught up they started toward Terminus. MacTavish and Riley had warned them that this probably wasn’t going to be good but they followed along even if it was just for their own entertainment.
Before they entered Terminus MacTavish, Riley and Rick had opted to hide some of their stuff. Extra weapons and food mostly; MacTavish wasn’t leaving his coat and no one blamed him. Riley wouldn’t let anyone take it even if they tried. Once dropping off everything they circled back around and finally went to the gates. Inside was dead silent leading to MacTavish and Riley sharing a look. Once in they were greeted and an intense feeling of wrongness permeated the air, especially noticeable to the two experienced men. Riley froze momentarily and discreetly sniffed the air before zeroing in on a few bowls of food others were eating.
MacTavish gave him a look as they seemed to communicate silently for a moment. The Dixons, seeing this, also shared a look before bracketing Carol and Sophia. Judith was being held tightly by Rick who also seemed to get the message. Riley took the lead then and seemed damn near in his element, not unlike when they were stalking through the woods. Rick and MacTavish looked around once more and spotted all too familiar items. However, before Riley could do anything drastic, a man stepped up to them and introduced himself.
“I’m Garth. Welcome to Terminus.” His smile was off and Rick wanted to kill him because everything about this place screamed badwrongbad . ”Y’all can sign in and get some food if you want.” Before Rick could protest MacTavish laid a hand on his shoulder and minutely shook his head.
Riley just walked up to him and offered a hand. “Cheers mate, name’s Ghost.” Garth’s eyebrows raised. “You ain"t from around here are ya? Also, Ghost, that"s an interesting name.” Riley chuckled lightly.
“From across the pond, same as that one,” Riley said before throwing a thumb over his shoulder in MacTavish’s direction. “And Ghost is my callsign.”
Garth paused and nodded, “Thought you were a soldier, you definitely hold yourself like one.” Garth didn’t wait for Riley to speak again; rather he gestured to the coat over Riley’s shoulders. “Where did you get something like that in an apocalypse? It"s not very….tactical compared to what you could carry around in a time like this.”
Behind the two of them, the rest of the group shared a worried look, unsure how Riley would react while MacTavish just stiffened. “I have my reasons but that isn’t important. No, I just have one question for you.”
Garth raised an eyebrow “And what is that?”
Riley flatly asked, ”Yous eat people, why did you start doing that?” Garth’s eyes went wide as did everyone else’s, everyone except Mactavish. Garth looked a moment away from pulling out a gun but Riley raised a placating hand. "No, I don"t care. I"m just curious because, well, it’s taboo and people don"t usually do that willingly. I know I didn"t."
Garth pauses, "Didn"t? That implies you"ve done it."
Riley nods "I have and I do, but I have my reasoning. What"s yours?"
Garth’s eyes are wide but he answers. "Food is scarce."
Riley nods along "Sure but humans are also scarce, you"ll run out of food eventually. You need something more sustainable; why humans?"
Garth gives him a hard glance over and then MacTavish one as well. "How did you know it was human, you haven"t even tasted it?”
Riley chuckles lightly "I can smell it. It"s unmistakable. But it"s cooked so you fucked up a perfectly good meal."
Garth’s eyes go wide before he stares in disbelief."You eat it raw?!"
"Of course I do, cooking any meat is disgusting." Riley scoffs in disgust and something seems to click with Garth, "You"re not human."
"Obviously. But the question is,” Riley laughs at him, “do you know what I am?"
Garth pauses but shakes his head no. Riley just smiles, "Of course, you don"t. Well, I"ll tell you: I"m what you"re going to end up becoming." Garth looks even more confused at that. Riley continues undeterred, "Has anyone around here been more hostile than normal? Hungrier even?" Garth nods tentatively. Riley and MacTavish share a look, "Huh I wonder what the turning point was." MacTavish muttered half to himself
Garth looks upset now, "What are you talking about?"
This time Riley’s laugh is mean , "Yous have no idea what you"ve done."
He is absolutely mocking Garth now and the man clearly knows it, sneering. "Yeah and what have I done?"
Riley pulls up his mask so it rests on his nose and gives Garth a bloody, manic smile."You"ve created a breeding ground for wendigos. The only issue is it"s a small enclosed area with not near enough food." The other man looks uneasy and Riley just smiles wider, blood dripping from his chewed-off lips. “You have no idea what you’ve done.”
Garth pulls out his gun. Riley raises his hands in surrender, MacTavish and he having spotted the snipers on the roofs of the surrounding buildings from the start and not wanting to risk the lives of the others. “Look we won"t fight, swear it, cross my heart, but that means the others don’t get hurt. Deal?”
Garth sneered at them before they are marched to waiting train cars. MacTavish had whispered to them to not fight and that they had a plan. Their weapons were removed but when they reached for the coat Riley let out a wobbly warning noise, every instinct screaming. They didn’t get the coat.
Eventually, they are marched into the train car, not causing any issues, only to see the rest of their group in the car already. As the door was closed Riley let out a bone-chilling cackle. “Oh, it’s been a while since I"ve had a good meal.” Riley all but purred as he removed his mask and glasses. MacTavish chuckled as well, smile too wide, teeth too sharp. The others in the train car who hadn’t met them yet looked scared but Glenn just smiled.
“Yous ready to have some fun, m" anam?” Riley asked his mate. MacTavish just walked over to him and repositioned his coat on the man, “Always, mo chridhe.“
“Uhh, what the dicks is going on?” A redheaded man asked as he moved forward protectively, not terribly fond of the newcomers. Riley looks at him with a tilt of his head.
“Who are yous?” Riley asked.
The man raised an eyebrow at the ….man? In front of him. “Abraham. US Army. Sergeant. I’m protecting this guy.” He points to a dark-haired man behind him. “Who has the cure for this shit show. We are trying to get him to DC.”
Merle laughs before gesturing to them “If you were army, you tellin’ me you don’t recognise ‘em? I sure as hell did when I spotted them the first time.”
Abraham froze and looked them over again before shaking his head no. MacTavish smiled again as he stepped up to him and offered his hand, “Captain MacTavish of the 141.”
Abraham’s eyes went wide as he shook the Captain"s hand dumbly. “I’ll be damned, yeah, I recognize you now.” He sounds breathless then he looks back over to Riley as he puts everything together. “You’re Ghost. The Ghost. Aren’t you?” Riley just steps up next to the Captain and shakes the man"s hand as well.
“That would be me.” He agreed.
“Well, Captain, what"s the plan and what is going on?” Abraham asked, allowing Glenn, Maggie, and the others to greet MacTavish and Riley again.
“They"re cannibals and we are food. Jokes on them though because I am far better at it than they are.” Riley laughs, his mismatched eyes glinting in mania. Behind Abraham, another woman stepped up beside him, crossed her arms, and raised an eyebrow at him. “And exactly what does that mean?”
Riley looks far too happy as he answers, bowing with a flourish, “Wendigo, at your service.”
Behind them the dark-haired man makes a shocked noise and Riley goes back to MacTavish’s side. “Wendigo? If that is the case as you say then why are we not all dead right now?”
Mactavish lets out a pleased purr as he drapes himself over Riley, stroking over where his coat lies against his throat. “My mate is not your typical mindless beast but the rest of this place, well, it won’t take much longer for them to turn. Then…then the real fun will begin.”
The dark-haired man backs even further into the wall. MacTavish lets out a low chuckle, “Don’t worry, we won"t hurt ye, but we do plan to have a nice meal tonight. It"s been far too long since we have been able to indulge.”
The dark-haired woman speaks up now, “Are you a wendigo too then?”
MacTavish gives a sharp grin. “No, I’m a selkie who just likes to indulge in my mate"s interests.”
“You and I both know that"s not it.” Riley purrs and MacTavish playfully bops him on the nose. “Riley, there are children here, watch yourself.”
The wendigo snaps cheekily at his fingers, grinning with hunger and something else, “You’re as much a predator as I am, Love.”
Abraham lets out a booming laugh before grinning “Oh, I think I’m gonna like you two.”
“Well, what are we going to do?” Rick asked and MacTavish straightened up. “Nothing, just me and Riley are dealing with this. Ain’t because ye are incompetent but rather this is going to turn bad quick and only I’m trained to fight and kill Wendigos. Trust me when I say it is nae easy.” All eyes land on Riley who looks smug. “Well, no, we will need ye to.” MacTavish corrects himself as he looks at the Dixons. “If ya would do us a favor and go grocery shopping that would be much appreciated.” Daryl and Merle share a look but nodded.
“Why them?” Rick asked and Riley answered, “They are the best at being silent and their weapons won’t make noise. They go in and grab me some food while Johnny and I deal with everyone.”
Abraham raised an eyebrow before asking, “Not saying you"re incompetent but that"s a lot of people for just two men.”
Merle laughed harshly as he corrected the man, “Not men, that’s the point. You haven’t seen them in action. I promise they are more than capable.”
“We will wait until tonight, everyone get some rest. I"ll keep guard.” MacTavish orders.
Everyone agrees and settles down. Carol and Daryl curled up with Sophia between them. Rick placed himself in a corner and made himself comfortable next to Daryl. Everyone else also made themselves a place. Riley plopped himself into MacTavish’s lap and curled into his mate, the coat being wrapped around them both.
It was hours later when MacTavish got them all up. He takes off his shirt and Riley, along with Carol and Michonne, let out whistles. MacTavish rolls his eyes as he grabs the coat off of Riley and drapes it over his shoulders. The coat merges with his back and Riley runs a gloved hand down his back in reverence, his eyes full of awe. The man doesn"t bother putting a shirt back on as he flexes his now-clawed hand.
“God I will never get over your half shift,” Riley muttered and MacTavish just gave him a soft smile. “Ready to go love?” MacTavish asked. Riley grabs his discarded mask and glasses, handing them to Carol before cracking his neck.
“How are we doing this?” Daryl asked.
“Wait 10 minutes after we leave before going to the main area, grab whatever plastic bags they have because I am sure there will be some. Grab everything yous can carry. We’ll also grab what we can.” Riley answered as he grabbed the door handle and wrenched it open with ease. Abraham"s eyes went wide but he remained silent. “We will bring yous back weapons but stay here and close the door to prevent anyone from figuring out what is going on.”
Everyone nodded and after 10 minutes after the pair had left, Daryl and Merle followed them out.
It took 30 minutes before Riley appeared outside the car and dropped off their weapons. Riley was covered in blood and he was chewing a mouthful of what was probably flesh or organs (or both), blood was dripping out of his mouth. His blue and brown eyes were manic and he smiled wide revealing the bloody mess inside his mouth. Carol shooed him off to spare the new people from his antics.
oO0Oo
Riley had just finished killing another man as the speakers blared with Garth’s voice. “WE HAVE AN ESCAPE IN PROGRESS! I NEED EVERYONE OUT AND ON PATROL! FIND THEM!”
He just smiled and continued his massacre. It only took an hour for him to finally find Garth and when he did it was far too much fun to watch as the blood drained from his face. “Thanks for the food, your men are delicious.” Garth tries to back away but before he can blink Riley has him by the throat. “Look mate, nearly all your men are dead and some are paralyzed and piled near an entrance for me to grab on the way out. So, it’s over.” Garth can’t speak as his spine is expertly snapped. All he can do is silently scream as he is thrown over Riley’s shoulder as further provisions.
It dawns on him how everything, their fight, their plans, everything is useless, as Riley makes his way back to the train car holding their people. MacTavish is there waiting with a man over his shoulders as well. “Dixon"s ken where we are exiting out of and are waitin’, it’s time to go.”
With that, they lead the group to the exit, freeing all the captives and telling them to “get the hell out of here!” on their way out. They meet Daryl and Merle with bags of human remains. Rick and others are directed to carry some of the still alive but paralyzed men and, with that, they take their leave and grab their hidden stuff.
They walk through the night and end up taking shelter in a cabin some way away. MacTavish takes the paralyzed men and makes his way back into the woods Riley tells them to rest and that they will be in later. It’s light out so there was no need to worry about them. Carol took it for what it was and wrangled them all inside and told them in no uncertain terms to “not go outside under any circumstances unless you want to be traumatized.”
Once finding a nice place deeper in the woods MacTavish removes his coat and places it on the ground for them to be comfortable as Riley strips his shirt off. Garth was grabbed first and MacTavish sliced his shirt off with a claw then leaned down and ripped out a chunk with his mouth before turning to Riley and offering it. The wendigo happily meets him and takes the chunk, eating it quickly. Finishing the piece and licking his chops he waits for his mate to feed him the next one. His mate doesn"t disappoint. Between feeding one another and feeding themselves, they systematically devour Garth. Flesh and organs and bone, nothing is left or skipped.
MacTavish can"t eat as much as he used to, his body not used to the abundance of food anymore. He has to tap out far too early for Riley’s taste; his stomach is obscenely swollen, distended out in front of him. It looks tight and unconfortable as MacTavish heaves breath, his lungs constricted. He feels like he can barely move as he lies rubbing his extended gut drunkenly. “F-fuck I missed th-” he burps quietly as air desperately tries to escape his far too-tight gut.”This. Bein’ so full, God there is nothin’ better.” He had undone his pants a while ago needing to free his expanding belly from its restrictive and limiting confines.
As soon as he had undone his belt his stomach had forcefully unbuttoned his pants and undid the zipper allowing his gut to expand further. Riley’s pants were tight as well and he too would soon need to undo them. He grabbed the next man as he palmed himself. MacTavish too was hard as a rock, his boxers even tighter than normal and digging into his gut but he couldn"t force himself to do anything other than rub his belly. He was surely a pathetic site but he was too focused on breathing to care.
Riley reached over and started to massage his extended gut causing him to let out a few more burps and high keens. “If I continue to massage your gut will yous eat more?” Riley asked. In response, MacTavish let out another small burp. Riley takes it as a yes, rips out another chunk and hand-feeds it to his mate. MacTavish eats it without fuss besides small noises of protest. He could stop him but doesn’t, as much as he pitches a fit he does love it. MacTavish falls into a daze as he is fed beyond his limits.
“If I stretch myself you better fuck me, sir.” MacTavish just whimpers and nods his head as Riley’s hand travels to his straining cock. Riley uses his other hand to unbuckle his pants and take them off before he begins to stretch himself with the blood covering them while he continues to eat the man under him. Halfway through the second man, Riley has decided he was stretched enough as he barked at MacTavish to fuck him. MacTavish manages to get himself to mount his mate somehow as he pants and moans. Riley has to position MacTavish’s dick so he can sink onto it.
As he does, MacTavish completely collapses onto him and Riley is left to manage both of their weight. The selkie occasionally thrusts but for the most part, it’s Riley’s show. It isn’t common that RIley is in charge but every once in a while he is. Usually in situations like this when MacTavish indulges himself to excess. Riley is lost to the feeding and fucking as he satisfies himself in a way he hasn’t been able to in far, far too long. Shuffling caught his attention as he looked up through bleary eyes and spotted a walker shambling over. Riley snarls as he reaches for a throwing knife he had prepared for something like this. He threw the knife and watched with satisfaction as the thing fell onto the forest floor.
Riley looked around once more but not seeing any more he went back to his meal. MacTavish was incoherent above him as Riley continued to use him for their pleasure. It didn’t take much longer for both men to cum. Mactavish latched onto his neck and Riley muffled his scream into the body below him.
Eventually, MacTavish managed to pull himself out of Riley before collapsing back to the forest floor. The wendigo let him rest as he continued to eat happily until he too was uncomfortably full. It took the whole second man and most of the third until Riley had to stop, only for MacTavish to crawl his way to him and begin feeding him as Riley had him. MacTavish also had to massage his mate’s stomach to make room for the rest.
"Don"t want tae waste any dae we?” He slurred. In the end, Riley finished the third man, somehow, despite his overextended stomach looking a moment away from bursting. He was now just as bad off as his mate. He had to fight to stand upright again, having to counterbalance the new weight by leaning back. He would eat more later, if he finished the rest right now he would explode. For now, he needed to sleep and let himself digest the massive amount of food he ate.
He put back on his boxers and pants, not buttoning them knowing full well he couldn"t. He threw on his shirt and ignored how tight it was and that it didn"t cover him completely. He wraps the coat around himself for an extra layer, not comfortable with so much skin on display. Riley took pity on his mate; he helped the selkie get to his feet and dressed again. He too was stuffed uncomfortably back into his clothes.
Riley killed the remaining men, dragged them back to the house and retrieved his knife from the downed walker as he went. All the while huffing and puffing trying to get a solid breath, “We will ‘ave whoever"s on the watch make sure no walkers get to them,” Riley muttered airly as he dragged the men behind him as they waddled slowly back to the house.MacTavish just nodded, not able to speak.
oO0Oo
Daryl perks up when the unmistakable voice of Riley sounds through the door, “It’s just us.” He goes to the door and unlocks it allowing them inside. Saying they look like a mess is an understatement; they reek of blood and look a moment away from falling asleep. They stuffed themselves to probably an unhealthy degree and the unmistakable smell of sex lingers around them.
Daryl steps aside and they nearly tumble into the house. “Room in the back’s open.” He gruffs and Riley nods. As they make their way to the waiting room Riley calls over his shoulder, “We killed the ones we didn"t eat, they"re outside. If yous could ‘ave whoever is on watch guard them that would be mint. I"ll eat the rest or butcher them tomorrow.”
“Will do,” Merle calls from the main area on his way out the door. Riley says nothing else as he and MacTavish enter the free room, presumably left for them, leaving Daryl and the rest of the group who are awake behind in the main area.
“How many did they eat? ‘cause,holy shit!” Abraham asks, looking over to Daryl.
Carol answers him, “Hard to say without checking, Riley can eat… a lot. I"ve never actually seen him fuly, honestly didn"t know if it was possible.”
Daryl snorted, “MacTavish can eat a shit ton too, we both saw him pack away 6 big fish and still want more at the quarry.”
“He"s a leopard seal selkie. It goes without saying, not even counting the selkie part, leopard seals are black holes.” Carol snorted, “I, however, am surprised with how out of it he was. We"ve never seen that.” She pointed out.
Daryl nods. “Before the other night, the last time Riley got actual food was probably when the Claimers had the misfortune of crossing them. Granted, he didn"t have a lot of time to eat considering they had to move. He’s probably trying to make the most of the food.” Daryl surmised.
Carol shook her head with a chuckle, “No it"s more than that they absolutely get off on it.” Daryl blushes and looks away, ears burning. Abraham barks out a laugh. Eugene looks uncomfortable and Rosita looks reluctantly amused.
“How did you find out what they were?” Eugene asks, looking interested despite himself.
“Well, we both figured out they weren"t human when Riley came up on the first night they were at camp and asked for all of the undesirable or inedible shit from the animals we brought in and butchered. He was also a butcher’s apprentice so he"s a lot of help.” Daryl answered as he gestured behind himself to the outside indicating Merle. “Riley would eat the extras and MacTavish would sometimes as well, but it was usually Riley.”
Carol butted in next. “It was very obvious MacTavish was a selkie, what with the coat Riley always had and the fact he damn near lived at the water in the quarry. The thing is, all the women at camp thought they had a chance with him.” She giggled to herself, “I asked him about it later and he laughed and told me he was gay, so, even if he wasn’t mated they didn’t have a shot.”
Daryl chuckled, “I vividly remember the time MacTavish had me and Merle guard the quarry as he and Riley went down. Looked over my shoulder and saw a huge ass seal and, later, he brought back a shit ton ‘o fish and a Riley who couldn"t walk straight. That"s when he ate the 6 fish and it dawned on everyone else that he was not human and actually a selkie.”
Carol spluttered, “That"s why he couldn"t walk! I never put that together.” Eugene’s eyes went wide but Carol and Daryl continued. “I figured he was a wendigo after just seeing how he acted and looked. He looks like a twig but he"s in the military and that"s just not how that works. So there had to be somethin’ stoppin’ muscle growth. Also, I saw his mouth. Not many things bite off their own lips. Don"t hurt that me and Merle grew up in the middle of bum fuck nowhere Georgia. You learn about the local legends, even those that ain"t from around there.”
Carol took over from there, “I figured it out when he straight out told me and asked if he could eat my abusive ex-husband or if I wanted to bash what was left of him into the ground. I compromised and let him eat everything but the head.”
Abraham let out a low whistle, “And the rest of yall?”
“The next morning. See, there was a walker herd and a lot of people died. That"s why he asked me the question in the first place. When the sun came up they caught him eating another family. All of them had died and they had no one left so he decided he would eat them. People weren"t happy.” Carol answered before leaning back into Daryl who curled an arm around her.
“People assumed he turned but when he started insultin’ them it was clear he hadn"t. MacTavish almost tore some people"s heads off that day. He"s a protective fuck, feels like there is a story there but I"m not gonna ask.” Daryl finished.
Rosita looked over to Sasha who had been listening in. “You mentioned to Abraham they were important and Abraham recognized them. So who exactly are they?”
“MacTavish is the man who killed Vladimir Makarov and ended WW3.” Abraham answered. All eyes except Daryl"s and Carol"s went wide at that.
“THAT"S HIM?!” Rosita barked looking back towards the room the pair were in.
“Yep, him and Ghost, a man who has so many legends around him I"m not sure which are actually true. From taking down a whole cartel by himself, that hundreds of men had tried to destroy in many attempts before, to being the best sniper to ever hit the field and a million other stories. People don"t even know what he looks like or his name. The man doesn"t have an identity.” Abraham answered.
Daryl nodded along, “We rarely see his face, and the closest to a name we have is MacTavish calling him Si and, more commonly, Riley which is what we normally call him.”
Carol speaks then, “I think I know who he is but I"m not going to say anything, it"s not my business.” Everyone looks at her with wide eyes, “What? I have a good guess.”
“You"re going to have to tell me later,” Daryl whispers into her ear and she nods.
Later, Rick makes his way into the main area and looks around at them, “They inside?” Daryl and Carol nod and Rick nods back before sitting on the couch with the two.
“Doubt they will wake up for the next 8 hours, they wore themselves out,” Carol tells him with a smirk. Merle sticks his head in a moment later. “There are two men and the bags left.” He sounds amazed and everyone looks at one another.
“Three?!” Abraham breathes.
“Bones?” Daryl asked.
Merle laughs, “None, baby brother, found where they were. All that was left was blood and a walker with a knife wound about 3 yards away.”
Abraham spoke up then, “Bet it was Riley based on how MacTavish was acting.” Daryl nodded along.
“Well, it don’ matter now.” Merle surmised as he closed the door back.
Rick looked at them confused, “You didn"t see it, MacTavish was lost and barely cognizant. Riley didn"t look much better. Both looked like they ate enough to explode. I also saw more skin on Riley than ever before and he doesn"t show skin willingly.” Carol answers Rick"s unanswered question.
It was in fact around 8 hours until MacTavish and Riley emerged and they looked better. MacTavish still looked like he had had a hardy meal and even Riley looked like he had a normal stomach rather than a sunken pit. He was still maskless, showing off his scarred and sunken features. “I"ll be outside,” The wendigo announced. MacTavish was shirtless and he appeared to be in a half shift with his pelted back and claws on show. He collapsed back onto the couch with a groan.
“You have fun?” Carol asked with a smirk and MacTavish just buried his face in his hands. “I want tae sleep for another year.”
Everyone in the room laughs and the man just sighs. Merle leans over towards him and asks, “Was it good at least?” MacTavish looks up and snarls so hard the vibrations are visible in his throat. “My mate is always amazing, don"t insinuate otherwise if you prefer breathing.” Merle raises his hands in surrender and MacTavish backs down with a final warning growl.
Sophia from her place on the couch leans over and reaches for MacTavish’s hand. Carol goes to grab her but stops when she spots the Captain’s smile as he allows her to inspect it curiously, “Be careful pup the claws are sharp.” Sophia nods her understanding as she continues to twist his arm this way and that, poking at the claws. Carl joins her and MacTavish lets them poke and prod him without fuss. If anything he looks overjoyed.
Carol will later ask about this and MacTavish will reveal he had always wanted pups of his own but couldn"t have any due to the nature of his career, families were a dangerous weakness with their enemies. She tells him that he and Riley would be great dad"s and he blushes bright red and adverts his eyes.
An hour later Riley comes back inside looking quite full and munching on a bone as he curls up next to his mate. “Would you shift for me?” Riley asks with big puppy eyes. Everyone watches intently, also wanting to see him shifted from up close and others for the first time. “Only if you get me a blanket and food, you know how this works.” Riley nearly vanishes from the spot, using his enhanced speed to grab the requested items.
Moments later MacTavish is stripping under the blanket and in the next moment a giant leopard seal is in his place. Riley immediately jumps on him and curls around him to the best of his ability. The seal just purrs loudly as he bonks his head into his mate"s body before Riley moves back and grabs the bags Merle and Daryl had brought.
Everyone is watching enraptured as the seal galumphs forward and throws the blanket off himself. Sophia and Carl are quick to get to his level and stare in awe. He bonks them in greeting, unable to speak in this form. Funnily enough, he still has the Mohawk and the scar across his left eye. He allows everyone to look their fill until he lets out a bark directed at his mate. “I know, m" anam. I was waitin’ for yous to stop showin’ off.” MacTavish barks again and Riley just rolls his eyes, “Open up then and quit throwin’ a fit.” MacTavish let out another bark before opening his mouth impatiently.
Riley sighed before dumping most of what was in the bags into his mate"s waiting maw. MacTavish swallowed down his meal before flopping back onto the floor with a snuffle. Riley joined him as he laid himself on MacTavish and the seal purred contently. Sophia and Carl shift as they watch. MacTavish looks at them before gesturing with his big head for them to join. They do so eagerly and MacTavish maneuvers Riley to where they can all cuddle together while allowing Riley to not be touched if he wishes.
Riley doesn"t complain when he is moved, he actually reaches out to the kids, pulling them closer with a muttered, “Come ‘aer pups.” Carol had to fight back her urge to awe at them hell even Rick’s eyes went incredibly soft.
Later Riley will come across Carl having a panic attack about how The Claimers almost assaulted him and how he was terrified but didn"t want to worry his dad. Riley would confide in him a light retelling of his own experience while with Roba. Reminding him it was something that never should have happened. He understood the fear and there was no shame whatsoever about anything that happened or anything he was feeling. Riley and Carl would talk for hours and, before heading back inside, he would tell the kid if he ever wanted to talk more about it his door was always open.
The next day they continued on after MacTavish had so helpfully pointed out Eugene was lying - it got him knocked out for the rest of the day by a pissed-off Abraham. They had been walking all day Riley and MacTavish carrying the remaining body parts in bags for later. It was near the end of the day before they heard screaming. Riley hands his bag to Mactavish and gestures for them all to stay put before sinking into the forest like a shadow. A few minutes later Riley’s voice called for them to, “Get over ‘ear.” and they made their way to him only to see a man on top of a rock looking like he had seen a demon. It wasn’t unreasonable, Riley was an… acquired taste. Dead walkers surrounded the bottom of the rock looking as if Riley tore them apart and he probably had.
“Riley, come here love,” MacTavish calls and Riley goes to his side, still eyeing the man on the rock. Rick took over from there and soon they were heading toward the man’s, Gabriel’s, church. Riley and MacTavish swept the area as Daryl, Carol, Merle, and Rick swept the inside. It was getting dark by the time the mates decided the place was safe enough while the bags were left with the others, much to Gabriel’s horror.
He had asked about it and Carol had taken it upon herself to answer, “Riley and MacTavish brought snacks.” Gabriel looked even more scared now but before he could ask another question The mates walked back in.
“Area’s clear, we’re safe,” MacTavish explained as he plopped himself on a pew. Riley followed him down and settled on his lap. He took the coat from his shoulders, draping it around them and MacTavish just purred loudly.
“Yall gonna eat the rest tonight?” Merle called, gesturing to the bags. MacTavish glared over Riley’s shoulder at him and Merle just raised an eyebrow in challenge. The selkie sighed and grumbled but Riley had hopped up out of his lap and grabbed the bags, “Fuck yeah I am starving.”
Gabriel looks terrified. MacTavish just sighs as he gets up and follows his mate outside. “You have CANNIBALS!?” Gabriel all but shouts and Daryl snorts, “Nah, they are eatin’ the cannibals, actually. They just ain’t human.”
That doesn’t seem to put the preacher at ease though. Most of the remaining people decided to call it a night and go to sleep. Gabriel stayed up curious despite himself as he slowly made his way outside.
The two men were near the steps feeding one another. Riley was being held close as MacTavish fed him by hand.
“Good boy, that hit the spot, Simon? Ye gettin’ full?” The Captain cooed and Riley just made wanting noises as he scrambled to hold his mate closer. Once Riley took another bite MacTavish pulled the limb back before leaning in and biting down on the remaining chunk hanging from Riley’s mouth. The Captain met Riley in the middle as they ate it and they began making out, heavily .
MacTavish dragged Riley onto his lap and let the smaller man grind down on him. “Good fuckin’ boy, Simon, you"re so good for me, my perfect mate.” MacTavish was growling now as he helped the other grind on him.
Gabriel high-tailed it back inside regretting his curiosity immensely. Merle was standing there waiting, “Catch an eye full?” He drawled and Gabriel averted his eyes. Merle chuckled.
“Yeah when they sequester themselves away that means ya don’t bother them unless you"re keen on being their next meal.”