Girl, you're a hurricane with CLAWS.

“Did you hear?” he started, leaning forward to talk to the other. “Uh, one of the cabins… looks like a break in. I mean, I can’t say for sure. But I went to check it out with my dad. Looks like they were looking for something.”

Kora gave the other wolf an inquisitive look - as if she were trying to piece something together herself. After a moment she leans back, shrugging her shoulders. “It could have simply been a homeless person looking for shelter.” Gods know she herself has stayed in places with questionable legalities and had to leave in a hurry. “Did anything smell off to you?” Questioning whether his other senses could tell him more than sight alone. Sometimes its just this feeling in your gut. 

Holly hadn’t even considered that one would have to order this kind of stuff, or where you’d have to order it from. Some sort of witchy herb dealer? Her mind got lost wandering in these thoughts and she almost missed what Kora had said altogether. “Helping headache and pain sounds ideal.” She nodded, leaning on the counter. “I’m not sure much could scare me right now i’ve been having some pretty intense dreams.”

“I’m sorry.” Kora’s gentle tone was laced with genuine sympathy. “I too sometimes suffer from bad dreams and night terrors.” She had yet to find a cure that actually lasted more than a few days at a time, if that. She did not tell the other girl that, for their situations were more than likely far different. There were just some things Koras’ mind, nor her body could rightfully forget. “You can come to the back with me if you’d like and I’ll get that for you.” She offered. The girl might even find a little peace within the green house as she did. 

Amara smiled gently at the offer. “That’s okay, I didn’t think it would be. I just was avoiding my aunt but I’ll suck it up and go get some from her.” She was a witch, she knew about the craft well. She couldn’t get something out of her mind she’d seen and thought the cards might help ease it. “Do you believe in magic?” she found herself asking.

Kora stops in her tracks, glancing back at the other womans sudden question. Did she believe in magic? Yes, in all its many forms. The wolf nods her head. Maybe this witch was new to magic, she could not be sure - but she could sense a power within her. “I believe in a lot of things.  But magic especially, I’ve witnessed both create and destroy in equal measures.” Some believe it to be magics very curse that kept her bound to a wolf and enthralled by the moon. “I believe in faeries too, but many think that’s just silly.”

The grin that lit up his features exposed his fangs, the sharp canines. Ironic they were called that, when of the pair, he wasn’t the one with werewolf DNA. For someone who thought she kept things close to the chest, she wore so much of her emotions on her sleeve. The flush that coloured Kora’s cheeks was as intoxicating as the way her heart sounded when it skipped a beat. Delectable. A deep rumble of a laugh escaped him at her confession. “How else do I get my fix?” Not at all referring to the herbs in his pocket.

Hard muscle pressed against the fine shirt beneath his trench coat as he leaned forward, just that little bit more. Her scent was stronger this close, a mix of rain and night blooming roses. “If I were stalking you, you’d never see me Kora.” His voice so low, only she could hear it - not that there was anyone else in the shop with them. He wanted her to notice. The golden glow of her eyes had him suppressing a growl, loving the primal nature beneath the mirage of innocence. “What’s it going to cost me, little wolf?”

Teeth graze a plush bottom lip. If only he knew the things this little wolf was truly capable of. The dark things she's done at the sake of her own survival and those she cared about. How the beast within had ripped and tore her way through powerful men for far less than stalking. Sometimes it had simply been for the thrill. "True - I much prefer seeing you." As she speaks, her eyes travel to his face, his neck, his arms, to the tattoos on his hands. Further ink is hidden beneath his long coat, she just knows it. She wants to see it and she finds herself reaching out to touch the ink upon his chilled hand, trailing fingers over the professional ink. Curiosity always seems to get the best of her. 

“Hello Kora,” The vampire shot her a wink, a cheeky grin stretching across his lips. If he were being honest, the only reason he came here was to see her. There was something about her sweet innocence and gentle nature that took his attention. A reprieve from the usual type he mingled with. She was a werewolf, a species he fraternized with the least - but Kora wasn’t like the others, and well - that smile was just so damn distracting.

“Did they?” He asked with a cocked brow, couldn’t imagine who that might have been. They know better than to interfere with his dealings. Taking the bag from her slender hand, he motioned to the register. “Make sure you put it on my tab, little wolf.” Slipping the contents into the inside breast pocket of his worsted wool trench coat, he leaned casually against the other side of the counter. “Yes, actually, there was something else…” His grin widened, “tell me what it is you enjoy - outside of plants, and the four walls of this shop that is. I never see you with the packs, or anywhere else in town that is.”

There was something about the way the vampire said her name that was so damn distracting, and she knew better than to allow herself to fall within the trap of such attractive distractions. Getting comfortable with a vampire was never something she had planned. However, the familiarity and gentle flirtation only seemed to linger the longer they were in each other's presence. “Okay - okay.” She feels heat suddenly consume her cheeks and her hands go up in mock surrender. “I just…had a feeling that you would be here today.” He visited Hollow Health often and only when she seemed to be working. She liked keeping her secrets, and now he knew that she too kept tabs on him. Fuck.

“Well, tarot isn’t exactly our strong suit,” Kora laughs gently. “but we do have a shelf in the back with a handful of different decks and books on the craft.” She might not know much about the art of telling ones future - but the wolf respects it. “Here, I’ll show you where its at.” At her offer, Kora walks out from behind the front desk, gesturing for the woman to follow her down one of the isles. 

Holly didn’t practise her craft often. In fact she actively avoided it. But the headaches and the dreams had been getting worse and she’d been finding it harder and harder to get through a shift at the museum without having to lay down in a dark room. “Uh yeah i don’t know if these things are in season or… actually even have a season.” She paused, thinking about how she truly was a terrible witch. “I was looking for Valerian root and White willow park.”

The other girl was a witch, Kora could sense her ability even through the distance between them. She may lack skill, or the desire to hone them properly, but they were still there. It doesn’t just go away, and the she-wolf should know better than most. “Actually,” Kora’s eyes bounce about the shop for a moment before she continues. “I have some Valerian in the back. But we don’t have any Willow Bark available right now, the roots are on a back order. I’d suggest Devil’s Claw as an alternative? Both help with headaches and pain.” She was making an assumption, but it wasn’t one that was entirely unwarranted. “Don’t let its name scare you though. It’s pretty harmless.”

The little wolf that appeared from the back room had the same friendly smile and dirt smeared cheek she always wore. He wasn’t one for the wolves, often. Hadrian wouldn’t call it a distaste - or maybe he would, but she was different. For one thing, it was clear she bathed, despite her place of employment. For the other, she just seemed so quietly carefree. He didn’t know much about her, but there was a reason the Vampire elder chose this store to gather supplies for his elixir’s over some of the witches apothecaries.

“Actually, you could.” His voice was deep, a booming baritone he couldn’t escape. Standing at 6′3, his long, black wool trench coat reached his ankles, covering a fine three piece suit. The only glimpse of his double sleeved tattoos were the markings visible on his hands and fingers. “I’m after some Dandelion Root and Valerian. Do you have any in stick?”

Kora takes note of the large, intimidating presence within the shop, but a smile still spreads across her features. Hadrian was a member of the council, but one that often frequented this establishment. Within the six months that she has worked at Hollow Health, they have developed a bit of a rapport. “Hello, Hadrian.” She greets, attempting to clean the bit of dirt from her cheek and feeling far too silly now that someone was in her presence.

Kora had been hiding out in the little green house attached to the back of Hollow health, her hands deep in rich soil. Quietly she worked to nurse a dying plant back to health as she made space to replant it. The soil used here has magical properties that helped even the sickest of flowers grow strong once again. She may not be a witch, but she knew the earth and found peace among the greenery.

The little bell above the front door chimed just as she had finished, alerting her of a new customer. Rising up, she dusted the dirt from her jeans and made her way to the front of the building. "Hello, if there is anything you need, just let me know. I'd be happy to help."

K O R A  S T O R M