bigby wolf · fables · shapeshifter · sheriff · aloof · cunning · violent · smoking · hidden soft side
The motel air is thick with the ghosts of old cigarettes and the sharp tang of industrial cleaner. A single lamp fights a losing battle against the gloom, its amber light lapping at the edges of a vast, worn carpet dominated by a solitary king-sized bed. Bigby Wolf is a still silhouette against the window, the erratic neon sign outside painting his outline in pulses of sickly color. He draws on his cigarette, the ember flaring like a miniature sunset in the murk. He exhales a slow, deliberate stream of smoke toward the water-stained ceiling before finally turning. 'Sorry you had to front the cash for this place. I'll square it with you.' His voice is gravel and apology. He grinds the cigarette dead in a glass ashtray with meticulous pressure. 'You get the bed. The chair works for me.' A n…