whispers

Shaking her head in disbelief, Gia said “Humans have such tragic taste.” Honestly, what was wrong with people these days? “What ever happened to vampires being feared?” she asked. “We deserve some respect. Not to be turned into tacky trinkets.” She hid the decoration under a bag of candy. Out of sight, out of mind. “We’re looking for costumes that aren’t totally cheap and hideous” she reminded the blonde. “Something that doesn’t scream I’m made of polyester.”

“I haven’t the slightest clue.” Susana scoffed, shaking her head. “We’re the oldest creatures on this earth! I think they forget about that sometimes.” She shrugged, a small giggle escaping her as her companion decided to /hide/ the offensive decoration. “Oh, that’ll be impossible here. If we can’t find anything I’d be happy to make you something. I’m quite the seamstress.” Susana said proudly, sticking her chest out slightly in confidence. In fact, the intricate gown that she was wearing this evening had been handcrafted by her. “I always dress up as Marie Antoinette, I made my own dress and everything. It’s nearly an exact replica!” She giggled. 

“That makes me so happy to hear” said Eilis with a wide smile. She liked that they had something else in common, something else that they could do together. Then she nodded her head. “That sounds like a good idea.” She considered the redhead’s question before she answered. “How about zombies?” she suggested. “They’re peak pop culture right now, after all.” Plus, as a hunter, she felt instinctively drawn to the zombies. She’d much rather fight a hoard of zombies than a bunch of ghosts. “If things go south, just aim for the head” she teased, beginning to walk towards the line for the zombie house.

“Zombies it is then!” Venus hummed, reaching out to catch Eilis’ hand as they walked. Once they had made it to the line, Venus was relieved that they had a few groups of people to wait before they had to enter the haunt. She tried to chuckle at Eilis’ joke but it was hard when she was genuinely scared of things going south. She was never good at being scared. Even as a young girl her shadow often frightened her. “They probably don’t have real zombies in there, right?” She asked, trying to stay light-hearted but there was a fearful edge to her words. As they edged closer Venus kept her back towards the house which had turned out to be a big mistake. One of the scare actors had noticed her guard was down and snuck up behind the tall red head. He reached out for her and he let out a loud growl in her ear. A shrill scream ripped from Venus as she ducked down to try and hide from the scarer. When it dawned on her that this was still fake she tried to force a burst of high pitched laughter out of herself as she looked back at her date. “Ho boy, they start scaring you even when you’re in line I guess!” She said awkwardly as the scarer made his way down the line to try and scare someone else.

When you carried the past around with you, it should come as no surprise that their weight got heavy once in awhile. Tonight was just another one of those nights cursed to be filled with phantom’s, that what if’s, the blood on her hands, all of it coming to a head and filling her head with trouble. Maeson Kane had never been a simple wolf, not even when she was a girl. Everything was wound tight, complexity dripped from every corner, and now it was pure venom in her veins. 

That was probably the reason she hadn’t heard them approaching. One would think that with senses like hers, it’d be a hell of a lot harder to sneak up on her. Regardless, the feat was accomplished. Hard eyes were centered, squinting at the piece of paper in front of her - all of them, actually - spread across the desk in her office like she’d forgotten she was still in public, falling victim to her own overthinking. 

Hand reached up to find mouth, nervous fingers curling around mouth as realization that something was off sunk in, different. It demanded attention be taken from the mess and instead looking up, trying to chase the dangerous edge from her gaze when she did so. There was only so much one could soften, though, especially with that kind of demand. A moment is taken, breath pushed out, a welcomed sigh.

“I wasn’t expecting anyone.” Admitted more to herself than anyone else before pushing back her chair from the desk. “Why are you here so late?” 

The duties of being in a pack felt never-ending. Especially when you’re an empathetic omega like Clover. With that all being said, Clover couldn’t possibly imagine the pressures of being an alpha. If the way George acted was anything to go off, all the alphas in town were in desperate need of something to smile about. First up on the list, no one but her dear alpha Mae. Once she had closed up her shop for the night, Clover was headed over to where her alpha worked. It was a quick walk, made even quicker because of her walking quickly. It was terribly cold the night after all. When she made it to the building she easily let herself in. Walking up to her office door Clover observed sadly the poor state of the woman’s desk. Clearly a representation of her muddled mind. As she was about to announce herself, Mae spoke first. A slight heat rose to her cheeks as she looked away immediately.  “S-sorry Mae! I was making an emergency flower delivery to this address.” She mumbled. 

Rune was pleasantly full with the all the joys that alcohol had to offer. There was too much scotch dancing in his system, and one would think that this would make him a little bit more approachable. One would also think wrong. That would have broken the perfection in his brooding, the way that loneliness had become something of a security blanket for him. This was somewhat of a constant state for the wolf, but even the supernatural had their limits. That limit was the reason that usually predatory smirk seemed to give way to a more charming grin. He swung the empty glass in front of him, almost dramatic, before it would come to find a home on the top of the bar. 

It was only then that attention shifted, balanced out on the face that had saddled up beside him. It was taking a moment to register a name to accompany it, if there was one at all. Truth be told, he probably should have been handed his tab and sent on his merry way about five drinks ago. The problem was that people tended to feel sorry for him, a pity he despised. Regardless, it didn’t make much of a difference, not now at least.

“There are plenty of people here that you could be entertaining. Plenty of people who would probably be a hell of a lot more inviting, yet here you are. Why?”

The question was phrased as a demand, one that needed an answer. It was impossible to avoid, and that was when expression shifted. The brightness behind eyes shimmered with a little bit of deliberate deviance, maybe even suggestion, but there was always just a hint of a threat waiting there. He would always be this, the wolf, the predator.

A night out at the bar was always supposed to be a good time. Clover hadn’t expected this one to be any different than her other nights. She would usually hang out and after a while find some people to befriend and then that’d be that. When she walked into the bar she first picked up on the scent a wolf, one that didn’t quite smell like the wolves in town. It smelt different but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it. And, unfortunately, it wasn’t until she was sat next to him that the overwhelming smell of alcohol assaulted her senses.

 Her icy blue eyes narrowed in annoyance at how rude he was. It was simply uncalled for. “To be fair, you spoke first.” She bit out with a smirk. Looking at him with firm unwavering eyes. “Are you normally this big of an asshole or is it the booze talking?”

One would think that after so many years spent on earth, in the streets of this town, Pride wouldn’t be such a bitter pill to swallow. Perhaps she’d learned some decorum even, a little bit of sugar to make the fire of that spice easier to swallow, but tonight was not a night for growth. Instead, it was a night that took one too many steps backward, and made it feel like she was just banging her head against the wall trying to make a square peg desperately fit in a round hole.

The only thing that could properly distract from such a royal shit show was the promise of booze, intoxicated problems always seemed so much easier to solve. It was the distraction the bar promised that would be the grand prize though, something - anything that didn’t feel like drowning. It stopped her head from spinning, stopped she old habit of lungs grasping at breath they didn’t need from hurting so much. One, two, three glasses deep and shoulders were finally starting to relax, a smile soaked in bad intentions was currently climbing onto features, content to play there all night considering she’d barely ever let it.

“I can feel you staring at me.” Accusation was made in a tone that was hard to translate. Was she kidding, or might she actually be serious with the sorry attempt at a call out? If the way that the corner of mouth perked, grin hinting at replacing the smile that lingered there previously, it was very likely the first option rather than the last. “I’m going to count to five and at the end, if you still are, I’m calling Chris Hansen and he’s going to catch a predator in this bitch.” A threat made with half a heart, lip bitten to swallow her own chuckle - she still hadn’t bothered to look behind her to figure out how, if at all, she could put a name to the mystery face.

Venus hadn’t necessarily meant to be staring. She often didn’t mean to but it always seemed to be happening to her. She had a terrible habit of excessive people watching. Everybody was always doing something and maybe it was the journalist in her, but she always found a way to stick her nose in it. Today had been no different, as it was obvious something was wrong with the vampire and since she was fighting this war for her name…Venus felt like she had to interject. “Oh no, don’t bother with that.” She chuckled, walking over to take the empty seat next to her. “Anyone that’s drinking this much has got to be having a terrible day.” 

One would think that after so many years spent on earth, in the streets of this town, Pride wouldn’t be such a bitter pill to swallow. Perhaps she’d learned some decorum even, a little bit of sugar to make the fire of that spice easier to swallow, but tonight was not a night for growth. Instead, it was a night that took one too many steps backward, and made it feel like she was just banging her head against the wall trying to make a square peg desperately fit in a round hole.

The only thing that could properly distract from such a royal shit show was the promise of booze, intoxicated problems always seemed so much easier to solve. It was the distraction the bar promised that would be the grand prize though, something - anything that didn’t feel like drowning. It stopped her head from spinning, stopped she old habit of lungs grasping at breath they didn’t need from hurting so much. One, two, three glasses deep and shoulders were finally starting to relax, a smile soaked in bad intentions was currently climbing onto features, content to play there all night considering she’d barely ever let it.

“I can feel you staring at me.” Accusation was made in a tone that was hard to translate. Was she kidding, or might she actually be serious with the sorry attempt at a call out? If the way that the corner of mouth perked, grin hinting at replacing the smile that lingered there previously, it was very likely the first option rather than the last. “I’m going to count to five and at the end, if you still are, I’m calling Chris Hansen and he’s going to catch a predator in this bitch.” A threat made with half a heart, lip bitten to swallow her own chuckle - she still hadn’t bothered to look behind her to figure out how, if at all, she could put a name to the mystery face.

He couldn’t help the chuckle that escaped him at her comment. It wasn’t every day you got threatened with the one and only pedo-slayer Chris Hansen. Leo pushed some of his hair out of his face before gesturing to her empty glasses. “Forgive my staring,” he began, shifting in his seat to look at her. “I just couldn’t help but notice your excessive drinking.” Leo hummed, dark eyes settling on her face as he spoke. “By the looks of it, it seems like you either need a friend or a therapist,” Leo said playfully winking at her. “Lucky for you, I offer both services for the low price of a few drinks.” He grinned, extending his hand out towards her. His dark eyes quickly darting towards the bartender and he grinned widely at him. “I’ll whatever she’s having and just as much too.” He called out to the man. 

Claire laughed gently, shaking her head as she took a sip of her coffee. “I think you know what I mean by a long night.” Albeit an emotional roller-coaster, but that seemed to be the common theme between most nights Marcus and she shared. “Have you ever been with someone and not actually know what you are doing? Not physically, but like understanding what sort of relationship it is?”

An excited grin stretched over Venus’ face and she hummed excitedly. “Oh sure. That was a good chunk of high school for me.” Venus grinned, pulling her coffee up to her ruby lips to sip it. “I’ve decided that sometimes it's just fun to live in the moment. Enjoy who you’re with because who knows how long it’ll last.” She shrugged while setting down her coffee. Placing her hands in her lap she looked at Claire with wide eyes. “So, when did you start talking to this mystery person?” Venus cooed excited to hear the gossip. 

After their fun night out together, Eilis had been feeling rather bold. So she had been quick to suggest a trip to a haunted house. For one thing, Eilis loved haunted houses. After the horrors of the real world, they seemed like harmless fun to her. For another, it meant a chance to be close to Venus. If she got scared, then she had a good excuse to grab the redhead’s hand. As she approached the spot where they had agreed to meet, she waved back at the other woman. “Hi” she said with a cheerful smile, quick to return the redhead’s hug. It felt good, being this close tot he other woman. She hoped it was just the start of how close they would get tonight. “I am” she admitted. “I love haunted houses. They’re usually so cheesy and predictable, but still good fun.” She finally broke the hug between the two of them, rather reluctantly. “How about you?”

Being that close to Eilis was almost intoxicating. Her scent was overwhelming when they were close and Venus loved it. Her smell was sweet and comforting, it took all of Venus’ will power to not pull her in for a second hug. She smiled down at her as she listened to her talk. Her stomach flipped uneasily inside of her as she looked back toward the houses. She tried to swallow her uneasy feeling and put on a bright smile. “Oh yeah, I love these places too! It’s all good fun!” She said, sure it was a lie but she couldn’t be a scaredy-cat in front of Eilis. “Well, we better go get in a line before they get too long!” Venus hummed, gesturing for Eilis to start following her. Her bright eyes scanned all the houses to try and find one that was interesting enough. “Okay…the haunted mansion one or that zombie one look pretty spooky. What do you think?” 

Taking aimless walks around town had been a habit Juliet developed as a child ( much to her father’s chagrin, though with him gone it seemed there was no one left to wonder where she was when she felt the urge to be alone flood through her ). With the constant chaos raging in her mind on any given day it was one of the few moments she considered herself to be entirely at peace. Her wolf wasn’t railing against every decision she made that inadvertently or intentionally suppressed her more animalistic urges, and she wasn’t being pestered to do some thing or another at her mother’s behest— a blessing if ever she’d been offered one. It served another purpose, of course, that of allowing her to wander around in relative anonymity; she was allowed to be a relatively regular twenty-something in a town that was brimming with people her age who might genuinely be willing to build a connection with her if she could just manage to keep her family name entirely to herself. 

As caught up in her own thoughts as she was, she was only dimly aware of the feeling of water splashing over her sneakers, and only slightly more aware of the feeling as the water soaked into a leg of her jeans. Hazel eyes shifted immediately to the all-too-flustered woman in front of her and Jules couldn’t help the smile that curled across her mouth between thinking the blonde was entirely too adorable for her own good, and that the scent of another wolf was, as it often tended to be, quite comforting in the grand scheme of things. “No, no— I wasn’t paying any attention either and between a poor little caterpillar and my jeans, I think I’d rather take the caterpillar.” Her smile widened as she approached the front of Clover’s shop and glanced at the storefront with an open appreciation, “Besides— it’s kind of a good conversation starter, right? Usually I have to pour on the charm before cute girls pay attention to me, so this kind of cuts out the middle man,” She joked, her nose scrunching as she smiled.

Clover let out a relieved sigh when she realized the woman wasn’t completely furious with her. A bubbly giggle erupted from Clover when the stupidity of the scene hit her. This poor woman got wet just so she could save the life of a little insect. How typical for Clover. “I would too if we’re being honest!” Clover giggled, moving to set the little caterpillar down on another plant. “Do you want a towel for your nice shoes?” She asked while sticking her bottom lip out to pout.

 The girl’s comment made a flush of heat rise to Clover’s cheeks. Icy blue eyes visibly widening as another Burt of shy giggles left her. She looked away shyly, hiding behind her messy bangs. “Oh, I doubt you have to use much charm to get girls to talk to you,” Clover said back playfully, swiping a dismissive hand towards her. “For me, it’s usually the flowers that are a good conversation starter.” She hummed, looking back at the brunette shyly. “But if the water helps…I can’t complain.” Clove said softly.

Gale chuckled under his breath and nodded. “Fire does that,” he said very nonchalantly, letting his gaze drift back to the flames for a moment to watch them dance. “There’s always something mesmerizing about fire. But, then again, that might just because all of us have a little bit of pyro in us, don’t we?” This was probably the longest he had spent sober and felt the need to get a drink. “You want a drink? I think there’s got to be some alcohol floating around here somewhere.”

“I definitely was. I’ve started quite a few fires back in my day.” She teased, a gentle hum of a giggle coming from her lips. “Oh sure, I’d love one. I was on my way home anyway to do that, so might as well get the party started.” She said while raising her eyebrows in excitement. She stuck her hands inside her jacket pocket while she waited around the drink. The fire was nice against the crisp nighttime air. It felt like each day that passed it was getting colder and colder. “So, any reason for the fire or is it just for fun?” She asked, raising an eyebrow at him. 

Although she had turned her back on her family, Dominique still felt a deep sense of connection whenever she visited the cemetery where her ancestors were buried. After all, her powers were derived from ancestral magic. As she saw Leo stumble, she put a hand out to help steady him. “Are you okay?” she asked him. He didn’t seem to be in a great state of mind at the moment. “I want to check out my family crypt, and I figure there’s not likely to be anybody else around right now.” She hadn’t been there since returning to Catskill, too afraid of running into a member of her former coven. Maybe it would help her get some closer over the pain her parents’ had caused her.

“Ah, yeah. I’m fine. In cemeteries, all of the spirits are trying to talk over one another and I can hear all of it.” He chuckled, running a nervous hand through his hair. It wasn’t unbearable but it was certainly annoying, and definitely wasn’t helping the pounding headache that was threatening to take over. “Family crypt, huh?” Leo mumbled in thought. He had heard some things here and there about the things that Dominque had to go through. What he had heard had made him disgusted and he had great sympathy for her. “Well if there’s anyone around, we can handle it.” He teased, elbowing her playfully and winking. He continued to shine the flashlight looking from crypt to crypt. Trying to find the familiar name. “Is it that one?” He asked, shining his light on an upcoming crypt. 

Leo hadn’t thought that he’d get such a quick response when he put out in the paper that he was hiring for ‘Imporium.’ It had been a spur of the moment decision to open up his shop to someone else. Shipments of things were coming in quicker and people were buying more potions that he was soon drowning in all of the products. While usually, he liked the cluttered and claustrophobic feeling of his shop but lately it had felt like too much. So, he was willing to admit to defeat and put an ad out in the paper about looking for a new employee. 

However, it seemed like the very next day he had someone calling in and asking about the job. Leo set up the interview and was now waiting for the man to stop by. While he was waiting, Leo began writing up a list of all the things he had to tell them about the store. He hadn’t realized there would be so much to talk about until he got completely distracted by it he almost didn’t hear the jingle of the front door. He snapped his head up quickly and grinned widely at the man. 

“Hey! Felix, right?” He called out, walking back from behind the counter. Sticking his hand out to greet the man. “You’re here about my ad, right?” 

Being able to score a second date with Eilis had been quite the victory for Venus. However, when Eilis has chosen where they were going for this date Venus wanted to run and hide. She hated haunted houses, Venus was, unfortunately, the easiest person to scare. It’s hard to be a big bad werewolf when your own shadow often scares you. Venus waited nervously by the front gate that leads into all the different houses that had set up for the month. She checked her phone anxiously, both to meet up with Ellie again but also to have to try and not be scared in front of her. Venus picked up on the smell of her way before she saw her. She visibly lit up at the sight of Ellie and she waved her hand to get the girl’s attention. “Ellie! Over here!” She called, grinning widely at the girl. She pulled her in for a tight hug when Ellie approached. “You excited?” 

Susana scrunched her nose up in disgust as she lifted up a terrible vampire decoration. “Oh, God…” Susana groaned, letting go of the decoration and wiping her hand off on her skirt. “You’d think given the majority population here in town, they wouldn’t continue to make these tacky little things.” She groaned, shaking her head and tried to get caught up with Gia. “So, what exactly are we looking for again?”

The crisp air stung Clover’s cheeks gently as she raked up piles of leaves. “Thanks for inviting me over Lennon, I’m glad I can help.” The wolf grinned, gently elbowing the older woman. It was nice to spend time with Lennon, she reminded Clover of her own mother. If she hadn’t been the party girl Clover’s mother always had been. It felt like she was filling a hole that Clover had forgotten needed filling. Not to mention it helped Clover get out of her usual routine and enjoy the fall weather a little more. 

Despite his gift to talk to be able to talk to the other side, Leo hated cemeteries. Maybe it was because they were like the equivalent to a bustling mall, only darker and colder. The constant sounds of different sad and tired souls always fill up his head whenever he steps foot in a cemetery. All of them desperately reaching for a chance to speak again and have their stories told. While he was walking with his blonde company Leo stumbled a little over his feet and fell into her slightly. “Ah…sorry, Dom, I’m having a hard time focusing.” He grumbled, reaching up to prince the bridge of his nose as a headache began to stir in his head. “So, what the hell are we looking for here again?” He asked, shinning the one flashlight they shared onto different headstones. 

A gentle hum escaped Venus as she pulled her long legs up onto the cushy chair that she was sitting on. It was nice to have a little bit of a girl's day, to just pretend that she and Claire had been life long friends. Maybe even college roommates at one point, instead of having to be allies in a terrible war. It was comforting in its own way. A devilish grin pulled at her lips as she leaned into Claire’s space. She grinned wickedly at Claire and she scrunched her nose up a little. “I think that’s a great idea.” She said dismissively, looking at Claire with a knowing smile. “What do you mean you had a “long night,” hmm?”