someone will come running

@holdenshephard

The good thing about this town was you could get blood almost anywhere. They catered to the masses, and vampires were fairly fuckin’ common, so blood was sold on the surplus and donated a lot, too. Still couldn’t get drunk, but at least she could come home satisfied after a long day of Evi’s migraines.

That is, until she sat at the bar and a woman was chatting up the busy-as-a-bee bartender. He kept gruffing at her and throwing his towel over his shoulder and turning his back to this mystery woman/talker. That is, until Penny stabbed her with her elbow. “Hey, he’s busy. Why don’t you tell me what’s on your mind instead? Let’s see if vampires can get migraines or not. Pop this myth with me, babe.”

Holden grinned as she slowly looked over at the other woman, chuckling in amusement. “Sure thing. Not that much, honestly, I was really just bragging about my sister and some kids I used to nanny,” she admitted. “I do that more than I should. We all had dinner tonight, or, they did, and it got me thinking about how great they all are.” even with the trauma she knew they had faced. “I’m Holden,” she offered, holding out her hand.

@holdenshephard

They both protested against the x-ray, it would just take extra time that neither of them had. They were still technically on the clock, but that didn’t matter to the doctor, the professional. The man took Deya in and James paced out of the waiting room, across the hall, into another room. He didn’t realize it was the children’s ward until a woman with a colorful stethoscope looked at him with the widest eyes he’d ever seen. “No, we’re not all heroes. Just doing our civil duty,” he stated blandly as if reading from a textbook. “I don’t do autographs, what are you looking at? Getting too much soot on your carpet? I don’t suppose this kid over here has allergies, do ya boy?”

Holden arched an eyebrow as he spoke. “Charming,” she said flatly, though she was smiling and not at all put-off. “I was going to ask if you’re alright. I’m figuring so, or they probably would have taken you back first.” She hesitated before venturing, “Were you at the...?” She trailed off, partly due to it being a stupid question and partly because she didn’t want to talk about it in front of the kid. She went back to cleaning up the wound on his knee that would be in danger of being infected if he hadn’t been brought in. Glancing down at the kid, she said, “Alright, Tucker, you are good to go, come on.” She helped him down and walked him out to his mother before returning, watching the man hesitantly. “Someone died tonight, didn’t they?”

Spencer had been dead for over a year and while a lot of things had been easier for him, there was still a lot of things he was coping with. He knew the older everyone else got the harder it would be. Once Ivy got older than him, Spencer knew it was going to mess with the Lich. It would only get worse after that. He had plenty of time, till then so he needed to find ways to just live despite being the literal walking dead. Having the occasional run in with Holden was helpful , but it was always around his kid sister. Rowan was still too young to listen to most of that so it was sort of a relief to hear she anted to hang out outside of her work. The Lich came somewhat casually dressed, not realizing it was colder out than it had been. Being dead really sort of messed with his temperature gauging. “Hey. Sorry it took me a second to get here. Rowan was hanging onto me  and wanted to come with” He chuckled. “ I worry she’s clinging too much but I know she needs to feel close to her family” 

Holden chuckled quietly and nodded her head. “I’m the oldest of several kids, I totally get it. Clingy kids are... I actually miss that.” She remembered when her siblings were like that, remembered when the Brennan girls were as well. It was the kind of attachment that she didn’t get when she was only a doctor. She offered him a small smile and hesitated before saying, “Feel free to tell me to bug out, but... You lost your parents recently, right? I wouldn’t say it’s too odd that she’s clingy to you, even without that. If you take care of her the most, you’re her comfort person. I had that with my youngest sister too. I was lucky to be a nanny so she could go to work with me.” Lucky to be a nanny? It felt odd to say, knowing what she knew now about how it ended, but- No, she had been lucky. She had been lucky to know the Brennan girls (the M&M’s as they called themselves) and she wouldn’t trade it, even if she missed being alive. They’d been worth it.

“What? No, I don’t want you. ‘Pediatrician’? I need internal medicine. Adults. I don’t have a…” Gesturing with one hand and the other straight down at his side, Ytel paused for a moment. Yes, he had a daughter. Of course he did. Child. Child is what he meant to say, but it was too late now so he stood there awkwardly for a moment until someone came up and held his hand down at his side. He scrunched his face up and looked at what had clung itself to his hand. There was a little girl who said ‘Hi Daddy!’ He jerked his head back. This was… not normal. Not supposed to be happening. This was weird and he pulled his hand away. “The fuck? This child with you?” he asked the woman in front of him. He turned on his heel and was about to spiel on about people keeping their children on actual leashes when a brunette came and yanked the little boy’s hand. Come to think of it, the child looked a lot like a Ytel Sturmer Mini-Me: white blonde hair, light complexion, piercing blue eyes. Weird. 

Holden gave a small laugh as she watched the child rush in and hug the stranger. The mother stared at them both in horror, uttering multiple apologies before pulling her child back into the waiting room. “Children are very forward,” she said with another chuckle. “But then I think you may have mixed up your numbers, I’m so sorry about that. That really does happen every now and again. I’m Dr. Shephard. Pediatrician. So I’m probably not the one you need.”

“Hmm, that’s certainly new.” Reginald hums as he takes a bite out of his ice cream. “Let’s see: I am remarkably talented in pissing people off, I know a few people in this town who are pissed at me, there are definitely violent people here because I’ve only been here a few days and several people have already threatened to kill me? Take your pick.” He counts his reasons with his free hand. “Are you a teacher, or do you simply stalk children? I may be morally questionable but I draw a line on pedophilia”

Holden laughed lightly and shook her head. “Wow, that is impressive. What have you done to deserve that?” she couldn’t help but ask, even though she knew there was a good chance that he wouldn’t want to answer. And she wouldn’t push; what would be the point of that? “No, I’m a pediatrician. And I was a nanny for a very long time. Trust me, I find pedophiles deplorable.”

The doctor was already about ten minutes late. Nat was a very punctual person and appreciated that trait in others, thus also disliking the lack thereof. The werewolf would have left already if it wasn’t for the fact it had been bothersome enough to clear her schedule an hour just to be able to come today. She couldn’t go through the trouble of doing it for some other occasion. So she sat there waiting, phone in hand as she read through emails and replied. The door finally opened and she looked up from the screen. “Hi” she greeted back, managing a polite smile that didn’t come from an genuine place. “It would seem that’s the case. But at least you’re here now- Dr. Shephard” Nat said after reading the embroidered name on the doctor’s white coat.

“Holden is fine,” she told the other woman with a small smile as she leaned against the table. “I’m very sorry; it wasn’t on my schedule. We must have had a misprint today.” She set her clipboard down on the table and took in the sight of the woman, wondering why there was no child present, or if she just had questions. “How may I help you today?”

“I didn’t use that word, asshole,” she called her sister in return, smiling with closed lips. It was still weird to get compliments and such from her sister, from anybody really, so she slightly ignored the fact. “He’s not a jerk, he’s… just stubborn, I guess.” She shook her head, wanting to change the subject. “Not bad, Holden. Now spill the beans about your own work. Anyone cute I should know about? Not kids! Oh my God! I mean cute nurses,” Aeryn chuckled at herself, knowing her sister was bound to make some joke. Aeryn could write until the cows came home but her vocal ability was much more limited, at least that’s how she felt. She was unsure of herself because of her youth and inexperience, but also knew she was smart and kind and dedicated. She stuffed the remainder of the bagel in her mouth and chewed, waiting for her sister to answer. 

Holden grinned at her younger sister, bringing her hand to her mouth and biting her knuckle lightly. The main thing she missed about being able to eat or drink was just the extra thing to do with your hands, really. “Fair enough, I guess you didn’t.” she propped her feet on the coffee table and thought for a moment as she smiled around her hand before dropping it to her lap again. “You’re adorable, you really are. But uh, yeah there’s plenty of attractive people at the hospital. No one anything’s happening with. That part of my life has been pretty dead for... Well. Almost as long as I’ve been,” she joked. The best part of being a lich was definitely the jokes surrounding being dead. God, it was a good thing she had a sense of humor. “Anyone you’ve got eyes on? Or anyone that has eyes on you? Because sometimes those are very different questions.”

Walking into her office, Holden was too in her own head to even begin to speculate if she should expect anyone or not. In fact, she had assumed that no one would be there, but when she looked up there was someone and she was stuck wondering if she had forgotten an appointment. In her defense, it had been a crazy day already with young Terra Frost’s flu and house visit. “Hi,” she said slowly, blinking as she tried to work out if she had forgotten something. “I’m so sorry, did I forget an appointment?”

Date: September 2020 Time: 03:42 PM Location: Irving Plaza

The trouble of dealing with nigh-immortals: the people you fucked over don’t die out in a couple of years, unfortunately. It has only been a few days since Reginald entered Lethe, and already three people has tried to kill him. Only tried because he dissuaded them like a civilized vampire. As he sits on a bench and enjoys his ice cream, he spies another angry looking person approaching him. Before they can say anything, he goes, “I’m sorry, whatever grievance you’ve got with me, I’m sure it’s justified and I know, it was an unfortunate circumstance– I’m sure I’m very sorry for the inconvenience. But counterargument: can I just finish my ice cream first before you punch me?” 

Holden arched an eyebrow. “I uh... No? I really was not going to punch you and I have absolutely no grievance.” She shook her head with a small grin, slightly amused that he had lept to that conclusion. “Is there a reason you’re expecting to get hit? Because so far this town doesn’t seem particularly violent, but that could be just my experience. And, in all honesty, half of my interactions are with kids so...”

“No, I’m a fae–” her breath caught in her throat when she looked up and saw the familiar brown skin, eyes and hair. Her childhood best friend. Was it really? There weren’t shapeshifters in Lethe, were there? “H-Holden?” she inquired disbelievingly. She took a step back, not trusting herself, her eyes, her judgment. A tear ran down her cheek accidentally. “I saw it happen. I saw you die.” Maya wasn’t familiar with liches yet, though she did see a little paleness to her old babysitter, something off about her, but not enough to set off alarms. 

If she were human, she would be crying, but it wasn’t quite possible for her now, which still felt entirely wrong. “Yeah, honey...” She reached out and gently rubbed away the falling tear. She wanted to hug her so badly, but instead, she just looked at her and took in the adult features now present. How had so much time passed? It felt like it shouldn’t be possible, even though every day had felt like some kind of prison. “I know. There’s... I’m a lich. It’s... I basically came back and I wanted to tell you, I wanted to tell you girls every day but..” She didn’t know how to say but I couldn’t risk your father knowing or him becoming angry at you two for hiding it. “I couldn’t,” she said finally, softly, half begging the girl to forgive her for it.

Being a lich was a lot more complicated than just being a witch, she had learned that much over the years. You really didn’t grasp just how much time was occupied by eating, sleeping, drinking, and so on. So you had to learn to build up things to do with yourself.

It was a nice thought that she might be able to help a struggling lich, particularly given that he was so much newer at it. Not that Holden didn’t still struggle or get frustrated or depressed. So when Spencer Sloane had come in to bring Rowan for a checkup, she was quick to suggest them meeting up to talk. They’d seen each other around, she’d been their pediatricians for a couple of years now, but they hadn’t had a discussion about what it was like being a lich. In a lot of ways it was isolating, and she had to wonder if he had anyone who understood in his everyday life. She hadn’t and it had only made things harder.

So she was sitting in the park waiting for him to meet her and when she saw him, she smiled and lifted a hand in greeting. “Hey, Spencer. How you doing?”

Location: anywhere indoors (councilman’s chambers, cafe, shops, etc)

Time: 11am-3pm

Date: late August, 2020

Status: open

Javi kept her busy, and sometimes she wondered if he just didn’t want an assistant at all. She thought they got on rather well, and he had a hot son after all. However, he kept her doing busywork and running errands, doing dry cleaning and picking up lunches for the entire council it seemed. Maybe he wanted her to meet the town, maybe he wanted her out of his hair, maybe he just wanted her to earn her salary. Whatever it was, as she ran around today, she nearly bumped into somebody. “Oh, hey, you’ve got a little, well, I dunno if that’s dirt or coffee or dribble or what… Right here,” she gestured to her own chin. She placed her coffee on the counter/table and went to pick up something from the floor. As she did, her thumb caught under the stapler and, with a snap–thanks electric staplers–got punctured that went through her nail, rupturing the nail plate as blood spilled out. “Fuck,” she muttered, dropping the books back onto the floor in a mess. “Don’t. I’ve got it,” she said sharply, sucking on her thumb. When it came back, the blood had been licked clean and the small cut healed. It was so minor, so she forced a smile, trying to keep the mood light. 

She really missed sleeping, but maybe it was best with her current profession. She didn’t have to sleep now, it couldn’t get in the way. What she really missed though was coffee. Oh, and alcohol. No, the truth was that she missed being alive. But at least she could still take care of Aeryn, could still be in her life, even if there was nothing she could do for the Brennan girls.

But that was what she had thought before she saw Maya Brennan through the window of city hall. She turned and went inside quickly, staring as Maya stapled herself. She knew the girl had seen her and knew, knew in her heart and right to her core, that Maya knew it was her. “Want a bandaid? I probably have some.” She offered a watery smile as she remembered the years of giving the girls bandaid after bandaid, remembering the countless Disney and superhero bandaids she had always had in her purse or even pockets (mostly because of Mack on the latter). She wanted to hug her, wanted to hold the girl to her chest, but kept herself still, not wanting to overwhelm Maya. not when Maya hadn’t known she was alive.

@holdenshephard

“He got mad at me the other day,” she complained, chewing her cream cheese-covered bagel. “’M beginning to think changing careers was the wrong way to go, but waitressing didn’t seem right. It’s not like anthropologists are needed in such small towns, not like doctors are at least,” Aeryn said, gesturing with her breakfast. As an insomniac and a sister who didn’t sleep, they had a lot of time together. She’d woken up early this morning accidentally, and still had time to spare after shaving her legs and taking a long, hot shower. Typical. Hence why she was celebrating with food. “I dunno, I’m so against the grain, I had to see for myself if Hugh Stewart was the hardass everyone says he is. He has a nice side, one that wants to teach, but he is a very stressed man. You’d hate him,” she grinned. 

Holden laughed loudly, leaning back in her chair and propping her feet on the edge of the table.  “Hey, if you want to be an anthropologist, you do it. You know you can. You can do anything, even if he’s an asshole.” Which it sounded like he just might be. As a rule, Holden didn’t like anyone who yelled at her sister. “Mmhm. Probably. If he’s ever a jerk to you because of “stress”, you’re right. I would definitely hate him.” The truth was, she didn’t like people who were too stressed to be decent. It reminded her too much of Mrs. Brennan, which reminded her of Mr. Brennan, which made her skin crawl. Determinedly turning her thoughts away from the disgusting excuse of a fae who was too lucky to know what he even had in his children, she focused her gaze back on her sister. “Do you think you’ll end up getting along with him or? Like how bad is it?”

Date:Late August Location: The Sweet Spot

Lenore was sitting outside the bakery as she went through several lists that she was trying to cut down. She was still relatively new in town and due to a past of leaving a bad impression she was trying to get off to a good start in Lethe. Even if the positive feedback she got came from her students. “ Can you look at this real quick? It’s the reading list for the year. I’m worried it’s a little too advanced, but then again I could always give them the option to pick some books they want to read this year too? I might be nice to give them the chance to read something that is their decision”

"Oh, absolutely. Are you a teacher?" Holden took the list and looked it over carefully, a small smile pulling at her lips. This was good, familiar, something that she knew well and had been good at. A pang of longing shot through her heart as she handed it back. “I think it’s great, but what grade do you teach? I think asking them for input will be wonderful. Not enough adults ask for the input of the kids they take care of, it will mean a lot to them I think.”