His emerald irises lingered upon the dark crimson blood that still flowed down Darcy's shoulder. The mere color alone informed the Alpha of just how deep that wound he had inflicted was, even though it failed to sever the man's head from his shoulders. It was a shame, really, but Tetradore was more than satisfied at the damage he had done. His lips pressed together as he watched Darcy eye the lanky deviant that so begged to join them on the journey back to the metropolis. How it broke his heart, to hear his best friend in such a vulnerable state. He had thought they could avoid this. He'd thought it'd take days, at least, until Risque had noticed his absence within the city. How very wrong he was. The leash Risque had placed around his neck was far shorter than he had thought it was, oppressively so. His eyebrows furrowed as those keys were crumbled within Darcy's hand, simply thrown at the boy's feet with the insistence that Tobias should walk home. Tetradore could see that very panic within the depths of his best friend's chocolate gaze, that very fear of being left so particularly potent within his best friend and yet, tonight would not be like the last time Tetradore had been taken from him. Tonight was but a temporary separation, as painful as it was.

How innately well Tetradore knew his best friend, that frenzied glance between Darcy and the fellow were-creatures told him well of the boy's intent far before Tobias actually made any true move of aggression. The last thing he desired, tonight, was to see the leopard torn to pieces simply from an inability to stop, from that fear that was palpable even to Tetradore. The tenseness of the boy's muscles coaxed a command from Tetradore himself, despite how muffled his own words were. That very sound of his voice, however, seemed to prompt the leopard to abruptly pause as he considered the order given to him. That glimpse of contemplation was sluggishly replaced by bafflement before the boy shook his head. Those broken words tugged at his very soul as his gaze traced the interior of the vehicle. Without himself there, it was unlikely Tobias would make it back to the Ark in one piece. Any effort to try would likely render the boy dead with that gaping wound within Tobias' shoulder. The blood loss alone would see his childhood companion bleed out, abandoned and alone on the dark and dusty road of the desert. There had to be something he could do, a way out of that vehicle. He reached for those very shadows again, near desperate as he commanded them to answer his call and yet the darkness around him only stirred with the barest of wisps.

Any further efforts he might have made to free himself from the depths of the vehicle were cut short as the side door of the vehicle abruptly opened. His emerald eyes darted towards that glimpse of the outside world he was given and yet, before he could barely move an inch, a large hulking figure slid within his view. Any efforts to escape were all but obliterated as the man climbed into the back seat of the car at Tetradore's side. This Were, whoever he was, was undoubtedly new to Risque's little collection. His very scent was unrecognizable to the Were-King and yet, the confidence alone within his every moment suggested he had once been in a position of higher authority in whatever pack Risque had torn him from. The sudden opening of the other door caused his emerald gaze to shift and yet, the petite woman seemed to all but avoid his gaze in that state of terror and submission. She would have been a strikingly easy pushover and yet, with the fellow beside him, it was still unlikely Tetradore would get even out the vehicle before he was overtaken. Slowly, the man reached out to take those offered sweatpants. It was with a soft hiss on his lips, his features winced in pain as he slowly shifted in the confined area to pull those pants onto his bare hips. It was only after he was dressed that her petite frame settled beside him, boxing him into that vehicle.

Tetradore was hardly oblivious to the absence of the third feline and yet, with himself nestled between those two weres, seeing anything outside of those windows was...hardly easy in any sense. He leaned forward, prompting another sharp inhale all the same as he tried to catch a glimpse of Darcy and the man's muffled voice. His own hand returned to his side, clutching all too delicately at that wound in some effort to stop any further harm from his already shattered ribs. Tetradore shifted as Darcy moved to the back of the vehicle, that agony such a twist produced within him was hardly enough to stop him from moving, however, not when Tobias' life was still on the line. The very sound of that bullet being fired but moments later near reverberated in the stillness of the night. The loudness of it, much less the meaning behind it cause the woman at his side to burst into tears, her whole chest seeming to heave with each breath. A frown crossed Tetradore's features as he eyed her and yet, he cared distinctly little about her at the present moment. The only thing that mattered to him was that it hadn't been Tobias at the other end of that barrel. A soft breath of relief left his lips as he so easily located the still standing boy, Tobias' own gaze trained upon the ground as if he eyed the fallen form of someone. Quite likely, the third feline.

The slam of Darcy's hand into the side of the vehicle caused the woman to swallow those tears, the sounds that reverberated within her throat were all but pathetic as she tried to stifle her crying in any way possible. Tetradore's gaze shifted from the woman and back towards Darcy himself as the vampire rose that revolver towards Tobias himself. He could hardly help the dread that raced through his veins, all but flooding his system with that adrenaline all over again. He knew just how little Darcy would think of pulling the trigger against the only soul he desired to protect. His own actions were driven by that fear, the Were-King hardly considering it as he reached over the Snow Leopard beside him for the door handle, the girl far too afraid of him to stop him in his efforts to climb over her. Tetradore was entirely inattentive to the pair's exchanged words, his thoughts entirely dedicated to escaping that vehicle and the hand that had suddenly enclosed around his arm. The Jaguar, it seemed, was all too keen to take Darcy's commands to heart as he pulled the Were-King back into that seat. Tetradore tried to pull his arm free, that tussle between the two was entirely short, however, before the Jaguar's elbow collided into the black and blue of his battered ribs. The very jolt sent Tetradore's whole body leaning forward, nearly curling in on himself as that cry of pain escaped his lips. His body was slack, making the man entirely easy to pull back into his seat and off of the panicked woman beside him.

For several moments Tetradore merely stayed there, simply coping with that pain and the stars that danced in front of his eyes. He had forgotten just how much those broken ribs hurt. The memory all but paled in comparison to the reality that now filled his frame. The sound of a second gunshot, however, only renewed that sense of both alarm and anguish within the man. "Tobias." That word was all but whispered on his lips as he sat upwards, twisting in his seat at the very protest of his injured ribs in some effort to see the boy he cherished so deeply. The hand upon his shoulder from the man beside him was ignored as the gun thudded in the back of the vehicle. The trunk was slammed shut, finally offering him a clear view of his own cherished Alegra and the clearly still alive man standing before it. Softly, Tetradore exhaled a breath he hadn't even realized he was holding. His emerald eyes met Tobias own darkened gaze and yet, the Were-King merely gave his Beta a small shake of his head, as if to further reinforce Tobias' decision to not make that effort to approach the vehicle again.

He shifted back into his seat as Darcy moved towards the driver's door. His own broken frame settled in the back of the car in some vain effort to get as comfortable as he could, sandwiched between the two Were's with his side all but throbbing in unending agony. Tetradore's gaze remained settled upon the vampire as Darcy's fingers effortlessly brushed over the radio's knob to find that country song that Tetradore all but detested. Briefly, his emerald eyes met those mismatched ones as Darcy shifted to eye him. The smooth caramel color of his skin had all but turned an ugly black, blue, and purple in that very location his ribs had shattered, that side even further irritated after his every effort to leave the vehicle near moments ago. The Alpha remained silent as he listened to the threat upon Darcy's lips, one that was followed quite abruptly by the stark reality of that situation. He shouldn't have let Tobias coax him out here. He should have told the boy no, and taken the consequences that came with his refusal to leave Sacrosanct, the Ark, and their pack behind. For several moments Tetradore merely dwelled upon those very things he wished he could have gone back and changed as the vehicle was thrown into drive, the vehicle all but skidding as the car was launched forward. "Darcy," He muttered, his baritone voice distinctly low and quiet and yet, he knew by the glance of those mismatched eyes in the rear view mirror that he had the vampire's attention. "If Tobias dies tonight, I will let my venom tear through every limb in your body till you're begging me to take your life." That threat was muttered with such a distinct lack of emotion that it seemed far more like a promise than anything else. Risque might punish him for it but oh how he might make that vampire suffer all the same. Softly, Tetradore exhaled, his features grimacing at every bump in the road. His head leaned back against the back of the vehicle's seat as his eyes flicked close. It was going to be a long drive back home.