𝑵𝑶𝑰𝑹𝑾𝑰𝑫𝑶𝑾

joyce  doesn’t  have  much  time  to  read  these  days,  but  it’s  not  every  day  a  twice-published  author  comes  to  a  small,  sleepy  town  on  a  book  tour.  besides,  JONATHAN  had  bought  her  the  book  for  her  birthday  (  last  year  ?  the  year  before  ?  the  year  before  that  ?  ),  at  some  point,  &  she’d  thought  it  would  be  nice  if  she  was  able  to  get  her  copy  signed.  &  it  would  probably  be  the  first  time  the  book  is  opened,  anyway.  DR.  DIANA  BISHOP.  a  stark  reminder  of  how  little  (  in  the  grand  scheme  of  things  )  joyce  has  achieved  with  her  life.  she  stands  outside  the  bookstore,  book  tucked  under  her  arm,  &  bites  absently  at  the  skin  of  her  thumb.  everyone  else  here  looks  younger  than  her,  &  infinitely  more  put  together.  maybe  this  was  a  mistake  ?  ❛     excuse  me,    ❜  she  grabs  the  attention  of  a  woman  just  arriving,  &  gestures  to  the  line.  ❛     do  you  think  it’s,  uh,  worth  the  wait  ?    ❜

@cursedtrap  !

𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐨𝐧 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐚 𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐭𝐨𝐮𝐫 gave the young doctor a moment of relief. she still hasn’t coped with the accident which had happened in the oxford’s library. the fresh memory weights heavy even in her dreams. i’m not a witch. i can’t be. it’s not who i am.

oh, so he is pleasantly surprised after all.     he certainly wasn’t expecting the evening to take a turn like this.    ❛    mmm,   i get it now.   little miss witch, aren’t you somethin’ special   ?    ❜    he doesn’t dare move though, far too content within the shadows where he’s seated in the corner of the room.    ❛    what i wanted has just walked in.   but this is no way to speak to someone who could very easily           ❜    hand raises, index finger ghosting across his throat. lips upturned into that devilishly infamous smirk.    ❛    do something they won’t regret.    ❜

𝐝𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐚 𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐥𝐲, 𝐩𝐢𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐯𝐚𝐦𝐩𝐢𝐫𝐞’𝐬 eyes with her ocean blue stare. she’s calm. not even a tendril of her blonde hair is confident enough to twitch. she just waits. ❛ i am, indeed, something special. ❜ the young witch gives him a second to realize the weight of her words. ❛ the lack of your acting skills will not scare me. ❜  she tilts her head to a side. the edges of her rosy lips lifted upward. slowly. she’s not the one to start a fight. ❛ i feel like you won’t make it easy for me. fair enough. do tell me, though, why were you looking for me ? ❜ liar. diana bishop knows well why she’s in the centre of attention. everything because of the book of life. the book which reveals every secret about every species.

               WINTER SUITS HIS kind, always an available excuse for how cold they run to the touch. The wind cuts like a blade, buffeting them on every side. He may not feel its bite, but turns up his collar all the same. 

               Jonathan rises to his feet with all the caution of a cornered animal, standing a full head above her; his coat whipping around his calves like an errant shadow. His fingers flex at his side, poised for retaliation. He keeps his distance until she admits it was an accident. 

     ❝ I’m alright. Thank you. ❞  Aside from a few singes in his facial hair, he seems to have avoided most of the fire.  ❝ Excuse my forwardness but you look rather worse for wear than I feel. Are you in need of help? ❞  No wounds or disease, that much he’d be able to smell, but something else. Something old and powerful that makes his blood stir. 

             He dares a step closer, eyes lambent in the darkness.  ❝ I’m— not sure what you’re talking about. ❞  The library— there’s a faint memory of seeing a bright light fill the building’s many windows, then go completely dark. Does she have something to do with it?  ❝ I’m a guest lecturer. I didn’t come here for whatever happened to you in the library. I can help you… if you need. I’m a doctor. ❞  He smiles then, a bit of tooth in the gesture.  ❝ As well as a vampire. ❞  

𝐲𝐨𝐮’𝐫𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐚 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐜𝐡. 𝐲𝐨𝐮’𝐫𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐚 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐜𝐡. you’re not a witch. alarming voices weight heavy in her mind. she can’t escape from them. the whole situation remains bizarre, triggering the girl’s every muscle, provoking her body to shrivel. and yet she stands still, not afraid of the vampire’s moves towards her. it takes her a moment to finally speak up. the tone of her voice deep and confident.

❛  i … i think i’m fine. i don’t know, to be honest. ❜ she shook her head violently. the ground under her feet shook lightly, swinging her body. ❛ uh … i’m sorry. i just … it’s not me. my head is pounding. i think i need some rest. ❜ diana lifted her head upward. milky eyelids are way too heavy to remain still. she’s fighting to stay conscious. something stronger than her own will pushes her back and forth towards the vampire. as if she was taking part in a drunken waltz.

a displeased growl rumbles out of his chest as she does not do as he said, but he does not know her circumstances. not fully. russell takes another step closer, eyes flickering over her bent form to find anything that might be OUT OF PLACE, just as she is. out of place. the wolf chooses to believe in the calm of her, and is grateful that she hasn’t lashed out. she could. then he, too, would lash out. they could kill each other here and now.

❝   tell me why you’re here, first, witch. like this. have you just put my pack in danger?   ❞          intense worry snakes its way around his lungs, squeezing them until he can’t breathe. his pack, his family. with unknown elements at play the risk to them skyrockets, and leaves him spinning around in circles to defend them.          ❝   answer me — my wolves! have you put them in harm’s way?   ❞

❛ 𝐨𝐡, 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐦 𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧 ! ❜ she hides her face inside a pyramid, formed with her squeezed hands. moody dirt slowly attacks every part of her body. she’s still shaking from tiredness. i won’t close my eyes. i can’t. the other species’ smell keeps her focused, though.

i'm not a witch ! it's not me. i'm not a witch ! i'm a doctor. a normal human being. i'm just ... i'm just a girl. — with a disappointed sigh, doctor diana bishop looked at her reflection in the library's mirror. her body shrivels under the pressure of fear mixed with disbelief. slender-fingered hands still burn with unknown whips power. as if she was holding a boiling kettle.

A FEW DAYS LATER

the young girl decided to wait a few days more before returning to the library. with a generous help of her friend she was capable of collecting every necessary book to continue her work. with a soft tunes of calming jazz diana surrounded herself with dusty pages of hard-covered books. luckily, one of her favourite cafes is still open.

a sudden stroke hit her consciousness. diana immediatly lifted her head upward. pale nostrils widened widely. a vampire. she feels it perfectly. what surprsied her, though, was not fear nor embarrassment ... rather a heavy wave of curiosity. ❛ i know you. ❜ she whispered. still not confident enough to look back. ❛ you've been following me since the accident in the library. ❜ accident — that's how she decided to call it. only an accident.