Faust

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Faust is a member of an aristocratic family family renowned for hunting, while Gwyn is an elf from the deep forest surrounding Faust's secluded family estate. The two's entanglement began when the man lured the elf into his estate and trapped them there. This is actually something of a family tradition; the hunters will keep magical creatures from the forest as "pets" until they bore of them. What is done with the creatures then is somewhat ambiguous, but the plethora of taxidermy trophies isn't exactly reassuring. But Faust didn't grow bored; in fact, his fascination with Gwyn only grew. His family's disapproval followed suit. Gwyn was not as Faust had anticipated. The elf bore a sharp tongue and no desire to please him. They set traps and broke furniture while the family was away hunting during the day, and Faust had to shepherd dinner party guests away when they were near. In the forest, Gwyn had been an artificer, so here they resolved to only destroy. They expected to be confronted by Faust in a conflict that would lead to the end of their life in the manor one way or the other. But it didn't happen. They were left to their own devices all day and only saw Faust in the manor at night. Faust protected them from his family. When they argued they both treated it like a game. Gwyn chased Faust but hesitated to hurt him, and Faust left gifts and books for them to find. In time they became lovers. When the family grew irate with Gwyn for this, calling them "little serpent", they attempted to poison them. Learning this, Faust snuck Gwyn out of the house. Gwyn was gone for weeks. Faust didn't follow.

The elf grew perplexed with this, eventually deciding to return, with warning to their community to stay away from the hunters. Before dawn three weeks after their departure, Gwyn broke back in and explored the estate while the family was drowsing from a recent party. In a chamber beneath the manor, Gwyn found Faust. He begged them to leave, but they broke him free. As dawn's light touched the home, Faust transformed. He became a vicious sighthound, larger than any such beast should have been. And they were discovered, trapped underground by Faust's father -- then a dog, too. The two beasts fought and Gwyn escaped. Having seen the rest of the family's feral forms on the way, they concluded that this was a family curse. Gwyn sought out reclusive mages in the forest to find the truth. The family bore the curse for an ancestor killing a sacred deer they had thought to be ordinary. They all became hunting hounds at dawn, and while older members could often turn back by noon using magical acuity they'd honed, those Faust's age or younger were usually dogs all day. Instead of seeking to break the curse, the family had leaned into it; their home deep in the forest and their reputation for hunting were proof of that. The prey they caught during the day was not killed with skill, but with a kind of madness. Their magical pets seemed an assertion of their irreverence toward the power of the forest. The forest had made even their descendants monstrous for a mistake, so monsters they would be.

Gwyn returned to the manor again. Faust was nursing wounds, and his father had been ousted by the family for now. The patriarch has imprisoned his son without Faust's mother knowing, claiming that Faust had gone out in search of Gwyn. This was something the family would not abide, despite their own reservations about the elf. Bedridden, Faust was shocked to see Gwyn again. It was not his last surprise from them. For the first time, Gwyn had created something for him -- an amulet that prevented him from turning. Now, the two could see each other in the light of day. Gwyn insisted on teaching Faust to control his shifting so that he would not be dependent on the charm. Faust pledged to earn their goodwill, and Gwyn scoffed. The elf had returned because they wanted to, and they would stay because they wanted to. Their will, not his bargain.

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