#thread: hazel

So much had happened since Cairn had last seen Hazel. She’d been drenched in the blood of something strange, helped put a twisted creation to rest, and even survived an attack in the water that had left her own blood spilled. Luckily, her wounds had long since scabbed over and were healing normally. The sun beat down in the middle of a scorching summer day, but Cairn barely noticed, her focus entirely on preparing what she could for the picnic—a small collection of berries she’d foraged, some mushrooms she recognized as safe, and a few pieces of dried fish. Probably not the most conventional summer picnic fare, but Cairn wasn’t aware of what was expected. Her nerves hummed quietly beneath her calm exterior, a restless energy she couldn’t name.

When they met at the agreed-upon spot, Cairn led the way. She wasn’t one for idle chatter, but today her mouth itched with words she didn’t quite know how to say. That thought alone made her pause. The walk wasn’t long, but it carried a gentle anticipation. The faint murmur of the river grew as they moved closer, the sun flickering through the leaves in warm, dappled patterns. Cairn glanced at Hazel, her eyes soft, a small curl of a smile threatening at the edge of her lips. 

“We can sit over here,” Cairn said finally, motioning to a shaded spot beneath a large oak. Her arm swept lazily across the clearing, and for a moment her gaze lingered on Hazel, waiting to see her reaction. The satchel shifted slightly at her side as she adjusted her grip, the weight of it grounding her in the moment, yet doing nothing to ease the quiet tension that had settled between them.

—

When the plans had been set in motion for Hazel to meet up with Cairn for a picnic, the young berserker’s heart had beat harder in her chest than it had in a long time. The space between them recently had left something to be desired, so when they finally agreed upon a place to meet, Hazel was as giddy as a school girl showing off her new shoes to her classmates. Had this been puppy love or something more? She wasn’t quite sure. It certainly felt somewhat similar to Caden, but completely different at the same time, which had left Hazel even more confused. And as the days inched closer to their established time, Hazel couldn’t help but mark off her calendar with excitement.

As she made her way through the woods taking in the trees and her surroundings as a means of comfort and because she had never been this far out before, Hazel carried along a basket filled with a blanket, other customary picnic fare, and the promised macaroni and cheese; something Hazel still couldn’t fully wrap her head around. Who had never had macaroni and cheese? It was a staple in most households and such an easy thing to fix. But it also meant that Hazel was getting to introduce Cairn to something special, and she was excited.

As the familiar voice guided her to their resting spot, Hazel’s eyes grew wide at the beauty surrounding them. It was everything Cairn had said it was and more. The gentle sound of water trickling along just beyond the small river bank. The large tree hanging overhead. It was like something out of a painting, and the smile that was poised on Hazel’s face held so much wonderment and awe, that when she looked back at Cairn, tears threatened to escape just from the brims of the brunette’s eyes, “It’s beautiful.” She looked to her friend and back to their surroundings before blinking a few times and looking down to the basket in her hand, “Shall we? I want you to try this mac and cheese, before it gets cold.”

—

Cairn lingered on Hazel’s face longer than she meant to, the sight of her eyes shining in the filtered light tugging at something she still didn’t have the words for. Beautiful, Hazel said, but Cairn wasn’t sure if Hazel meant the river or something else. Her chest felt too small all at once. It was strange but not unfamiliar. She’d felt it before, crouched low in the brush with a deer just a breath away, when silence seemed to press in from all sides. It was the feeling of something about to happen, something that could go either way.

She shifted the satchel from her shoulder and crouched down near the tree roots, nodding once. “Yeah… we should.” Her voice was low, careful, as if she might startle the air itself. That one wrong move, one unregulated breath, would startle Hazel and make her leave… and Cairn didn’t want her to go.

Unfastening the flap, she pulled free a bundle wrapped in cloth. Its contents contained dried fish, a few handfuls of berries. Not much, but it was what she knew. She hesitated, glancing at Hazel’s basket like it was something strange and precious. “Mac and cheese,” she repeated quietly, testing the words on her tongue. A beat passed. “I’d like to know what it is.”

—

Hazel watched as Cairn crouched down and pulled out her own picnic goodies, before realizing they needed something to sit on. Placing the basket down in the grass, she opened it up and pulled out a large blanket with wolves on it. She had found it at a truckstop during her travels and was drawn to it for some odd reason. But now had been the perfect time to use it for something other than curling up in it on long, cold winter nights. Now, she got to use it on a more special occasion. A nice meal with someone that made butterflies dance in her belly. She hadn’t experienced that feeling since high school, “Gotta have somethin’ to sit on.”

Moving away from the tree and a bit closer to the water, Hazel spread the blanket out making sure it was free of wrinkles before grabbing the picnic basket and kneeling down to take out the other contents of the basket. Fried chicken, potato salad, banana pudding, a jug of lemonade, paper plates, napkins, forks and spoons, and of course, the coveted mac and cheese. It might’ve been overkill, but Hazel wanted the day to be extra special. But when she looked at what Cairn had brought, she could feel her cheeks turning a bright red, “I’m sorry. I think I might’ve over done it just a bit…I-I can put away most of this stuff. We can just have mac and cheese.” Hazel looked down, hoping she hadn’t ruined the day. What was it her momma always told her? Less is more, and what she brought definitely wasn’t less.

—

Cairn’s eyes flicked over Hazel’s spread, lingering on the bright colors and rich smells before drifting back to the satchel at her side. She tilted her head, a faint curiosity threading through the quiet. The only other person she’d ever eaten with was her pama, and it had never been anything like this. So much food… just for them? Cairn had always survived with very little—not by choice, and not even aware there was such a thing as excess. The scent alone made her stomach tighten with hunger. “No… it’s fine,” she said softly, voice low and careful. “I think it’s… good.”

She shifted a little closer to the blanket, lowering herself onto it with an ease that came from years of moving through uneven ground. The tightness in her chest prickled again, subtle, not quite fear, not quite excitement—still indefinable. Cairn unpacked her own simple offerings, the dried fish, berries, a handful of mushrooms. “I brought what I could.” Her blue eyes met Hazel’s briefly, then flicked to her own spread, trying to ground herself in something familiar. Sharing, giving, offering… it felt different with Hazel. Somehow heavier. Somehow soft.

“Can we start with yours?” Cairn didn’t compare their offerings or feel any shame. Her words were driven by curiosity, by hunger. The smells were new, bright and sharp and enticing, and the textures were unfamiliar, promising something she had never experienced before. Her teeth itched for the taste, the brush of flavors, the way each bite might linger on her tongue.

—

Hazel let her eyes drift up to Cairn’s locking in on them. She could feel her heart beat a little harder as they held each other’s gaze for a moment. Between the sight of Cairn, the sound of the stream following behind them, and the warm breeze blowing gently across Hazel’s skin, the young berserker felt a peace she hadn’t imagined possible in quite a while. The feelings of inadequacy, in multiple ways, had melted into the moment and became no longer noticeable. All that mattered was sharing a meal of bounty and love with someone that made Hazel feel like she was enough. Odd, considering neither of them had actually spoken about what these feelings they shared, actually were.

“Um, thank you?” It was awkward, at best. The twenty-three year old was tongue tied as she looked to the fish, berries, and mushrooms, “And what you brought…it’s perfect. It’s honestly probably a lot healthier than all of this, but I was raised on Paula Dean recipes and butter, so…that’s all I got to offer.” She laughed nervously and shrugged, “M-Maybe you could show me how to forage berries and things. Never really learned when I was little. My momma always had supper for us or packed our school lunches.” She missed that. Missed all of it. And in some ways had been stuck at seventeen, unable to realize she was now a fully grown adult. Maybe that’s why Cairn was so special, because she brought Hazel’s youth out in her. Memories of being young and in love when things weren’t complicated and still so fresh and new.

“I think we should start with both. Maybe save the berries to go with the banana puddin’ though. Give it a little somethin’ extra, you know?” She smiled as she started to open up all the containers and spoon out food onto a plate for Cairn. Serving people had been second nature, and unfortunately, so had people pleasing, unless you pissed her off. Then she’d tell you to get your own damn food. But that rarely happened for multiple reasons, “I hope it’s okay I made your plate for you. It's a force of habit.” She put a plastic fork on Cairn’s plate before passing it over to her, and instead of making her own plate, she sat and watched, curious what her new friend’s reaction would be to the cooked food, especially the mac and cheese.

—

Butter she knew, something her pama would sometimes speak of when describing things Cairn couldn’t have. But “Paula Deen” was a name without weight, a foreign shape on Hazel’s tongue. Cairn tilted her head faintly at it, filing it away with the same quiet curiosity she gave to all the things she didn’t understand but wanted to. “I could show you,” she said at last, voice low, thoughtful. “How to find berries. Or which mushrooms don’t kill you.” Her eyes flicked up from the plate to Hazel’s face. “That part I know.” Cairn accepted the plate, the heat of it seeping through thin plastic into her palms. The smells rising off it were overwhelming, thick, heavy and rich in a way berries and dried fish never were. Her stomach betrayed her with a low rumble, and she pressed her lips together as if that might quiet it.

She eyed the fork, turning it once in her hand. She remembered being taught how to use these utensils, but years of clawing meals from the wild had stripped away that habit. Now it just looked like a little plastic tool. Cairn pinched it awkwardly, experimenting with the angle, then pressed the prongs into the macaroni, stirring first, almost testing the way it clung together before scooping some up. The first bite stilled her completely. It was soft and warm, heavy with salt and something else (butter? maybe) that made her chest ache in a way hunger never had. She blinked, slow, and let it sit on her tongue a moment longer than she needed to.

Her eyes lifted, searching Hazel’s across the blanket. The look wasn’t intentional, but it lingered. As if Hazel herself might explain what made this food so different, what made it feel like more than just food. Cairn swallowed, a little too carefully, and the fork settled against her plate. “…It’s so good,” she murmured, voice low, almost rough with how much it wasn’t saying.

—

The thing that Hazel could respect about Cairn was her innocence. A purity of not knowing all the harsh things that the world and society had to offer. Cairn may not have come from the same world Hazel had or had been raised the same way, but it was a blessing in disguise. And frankly, it had made Hazel a little jealous at times. To only know survival at its finest and not the cruel ways the world could be. It made her long to be in the other woman’s company more frequently than she probably should have wished for, “I would love to learn how to find berries and learn about mushrooms.” There were certain things that Hazel had learned when she was younger. Certain things her brothers had taught her when they’d go camping, but Cairn seemed so much more knowledgeable and truthful when it came to those sorts of things, and it made Hazel think back to the first time they had met with the flower.

Eyes trained on Cairn as she awkwardly worked towards holding the fork followed by scooping up the mac & cheese had made Hazel smile. It was soft and pure; like watching a small child do something for the first time. Hazel could remember the first time she had tasted her granny’s mac & cheese. It had sent a jolt through her body so deep that from then on out, every bite had felt like home. Being with her siblings on a summer day and being called in for supper, sweaty and dirty but gathered round the table with one another sinking her teeth into a homecooked meal. It felt like holidays together. Big family dinners followed by games or presents. Hugs. Tears. Laughter. All the things Hazel had wished she still had. And if the way Cairn was reacting was somewhat similar to Hazel’s reaction…a feeling of safety, warmth, comfort, and love, then the twenty-three year old had done what she had set out to accomplish.

“It’s my granny’s recipe. She used to make it for us all the time. Reminds me of home.” A soft but sad smile was aimed in Cairn’s direction, before she looked down and started fixing her own plate.

—

Cairn paused mid-bite, the fork still clutched in her hand like a small, strange tool. The warmth of the macaroni on her tongue and the rich, creamy texture had made her chest tighten in a way that had nothing to do with hunger alone. She let her eyes drift to Hazel, noting the way her smile carried something familiar and deep, even in its sadness. “Your granny’s recipe… sounds like it made a place for you,” Cairn said softly, voice low, almost a murmur. Food had always been about survival for her, and this… this was different. Something generous and warm and steady, like a hand held too long. “Thank you for letting me visit.”

She reached out for the bundled mushrooms, spreading them out gently with her finger. “When you forage, watch for these—see how the gills are tight, the cap firm? You don’t want them soft or spotted. That usually means they’re past it. Some can be… not good.” She turned the piece slightly, holding it up for Hazel to see, almost like showing off a treasure before setting it back down. Cairn tried stabbing at some macaroni noodles with her fork again, trying to steady her hand, and ended up just scooping a bite into her mouth.

Cairn’s gaze flicked up to Hazel, lingering longer than she might have if she’d known the rules. Her fingers wrapped around the fork awkwardly and she lifted a bite of her macaroni, letting it hover a moment as her eyes followed Hazel’s movements. Cairn noticed it, the way her hand moved, the subtle shift in her posture, the soft attention she gave the food. Cairn’s eyes traced the motion, not to mimic, but because it drew her in, made her pause. Their eyes met briefly, and Cairn didn’t look away. She didn’t understand why holding someone’s gaze for a beat could feel like something else entirely, but it did. Cairn’s thoughts wandered, trying to name the feeling in her chest and failing, as if the newness of the food and the closeness of Hazel were knotting together into something she hadn’t yet experienced.

—

“Yeah, my granny was a great lady, and her recipes always remind me of a little taste of home.” Well, when home was good. When home felt wholesome and right. When her family loved her and didn’t have doubts or fears about her and what she apparently was. “You’re mighty kind to say that, Cairn.” A soft smile fell across her lips along with a light blush on her cheeks.

Noticing Cairn take the mushrooms, she focused in on the fungi. Hazel listened intently as her friend had explained how to forage and what to look for. Though Hazel had been nature savvy, the ins and outs of food in the wild still bewildered her at times. What was poisonous. What wasn’t poisonous. Her devil would consume anything if it smelled of blood, but the young woman usually got the brunt end of the deal, when she was human again, “I’ll keep all of that in mind. Thank you.” 

Hazel had resumed spooning out food onto her plate, but the moment her eyes had locked with Cairn's, her gaze lingered. She focused, getting lost in the other woman’s soul. Wondering what went on in her mind. How she viewed the world wholly, and not just what was outwardly presented. The eyes were truly the window to the soul. Giving you a glimpse into someone else’s life, but not the entire picture. Leaving it up to you to figure out who they were. What their beliefs were. All that they had been through. And at that moment, Hazel knew Cairn had been through a lot. There was a certain mysteriousness, but sadness. Had the crinkled lines that gently sat resting next to each of the other person’s eyes been because of joy or sadness. So much that Hazel had wanted to know at that moment, but couldn’t.

And on the other hand, she had wondered what did Cairn see? Could she see all the nights Hazel had laid in bed crying. Or the way her whole spirit came alive when she was outside gardening and a butterfly landed gently atop her hand as she pruned back some of the tomato plants she was growing. Could she see the tears that violently streamed down her face the day her granny died? It was funny how people had so much history to their lives, but most of the time, people only got a small portion of it, and an even smaller one gazed back longingly.

—

Cairn had interacted with plenty of people since coming into town. Faces, voices, reactions—she’d learned to read them the way she read tracks in mud or weather in the wind. Some mirrored her pama’s expressions, ones she understood in her bones. Others she’d puzzled together slowly, piece by piece. But Hazel… Hazel carried expressions Cairn didn’t have names for. Some of them struck her the way spotting winter berries had… sudden, bright, a sharp little quickening in her chest. Hazel smiling was easy enough to place—pleased, warm, content. But the faint pink along Hazel’s cheeks… that was different. Unfamiliar. And the unfamiliar had a way of speeding Cairn’s pulse.

She tried to anchor herself by looking down at her meal, finishing what was on her plate. When she picked up a piece of fried chicken, the warmth of it surprised her. The first bite made the crisp shell crack softly between her teeth, and then the juice hit—rich, salty, warm in a way that seemed to move through her whole body. The tenderness of the meat, the crunch of the crust, the rush of flavor all at once drew a small sound from her throat before she could stop it. She didn’t know food could do this. And Hazel had made it. Her chest warmed again, not with hunger, but with awe.

So much for trying to steer her thoughts elsewhere.

Cairn took another bite, slower this time. Another quiet sound slipped from her, half breath, half wonder, her body answering before she could think. “This is so… different,” she murmured, eyes  lifting to Hazel as though the meaning might be found in her face. “It changes something inside.” Her gaze fell to the plate, then back to Hazel, steady and unblinking, without the instinct to look away. Shyness and embarrassment were languages she had never been taught. “If all your food feels like this…” she said softly, pausing as if tasting the words themselves, “I want to know what else tastes this good.”

__

Hazel blinked a few times, snapping out of the daze Cairn had put her in. It had been a long time since she had felt like this around anybody. She had almost forgotten how having someone else’s full attention could feel. It was addicting in its own right. Knowing that in that moment, in time, they only noticed you. Only looked at you and wanted to know more. Like nothing else mattered in the world, but that feeling was quickly subdued as Hazel heard the crunch of teeth biting into fried chicken, and it reminded her to finish making her plate, so she too, could enjoy the feast in front of them. But Hazel seemed to be enjoying something more.

As she put the finishing touches on her plate, Hazel sat the food on her lap and picked up the piece of chicken she had picked out. Pulling it up to her lips, she took a bite of the tender, white breast meat, taking in the flavors, realizing she could’ve added a little more salt. But that’s not what Cairn was tasting. To the person sitting in front of her, this was euphoric, and Hazel almost choked on her own food when Cairn innocently poised the question of wanting to know what else tasted that good.

It was like a fire had ignited in Hazel’s body. Not rage. Nothing like her devil. This was different. This was what she had felt with her first and only boyfriend, but nothing this strong, “I think I know of somethin’.” Sitting her plate to the side, Hazel moved over next to Cairn, before leaning in and gently pushing a stray bit of hair behind the other woman’s ear, “Do you trust me?”

—

Cairn watched Hazel with cautious curiosity, unsure what she was about to do. She had set her plate aside, and Cairn mirrored her, wondering if Hazel had another surprise, another taste, another new experience she’d never known. Hazel moved closer, and Cairn straightened instinctively, remembering the last time they’d been this near. That had been inside a cramped space, a tent. This was outside, open, the world stretching around them, but Hazel wanted to close that space anyway, her fingers brushing Cairn’s hair aside.

Cairn’s blue eyes scanned Hazel’s face for a clue, a sign of discomfort, but found none. The warmth radiating from her was unfamiliar and… compelling. Her chest tightened, not with fear, but with the strange pull of curiosity. Closeness could be danger, could demand a reaction, but here, Cairn didn’t feel the need to defend, only to understand, to feel.

When Hazel’s voice asked the question, soft and deliberate, Cairn’s gaze held steady. She gave a slight nod, her mind trying to parse the words, the movement, the heat, the unspoken pull between them. And though she didn’t fully understand what Hazel meant by the question, she felt the unspoken promise hanging in the space between them. Her blue eyes didn’t look away, unguarded and open, trying to catch whatever Hazel might reveal next.

—

Everything in Hazel’s body was saying yes. Just a little closer. She could feel the warmth of Cairn’s body, and it was enticing. But her brain, and everything she had learned nearly every Sunday spent in church with her family was screaming for her to move the other way. But this wasn’t a Sunday. This wasn’t Tennessee. And Hazel wasn’t a kid under the watchful eye of her super religious parents anymore. She was an adult who had been on her own for nearly a decade. And as she leaned in closer and closer and closer, her eyes locked on Cairn, she finally shut them, letting nature guide her gently to Cairn’s soft lips.

The kiss lingered for a brief moment, and everything in Hazel’s body seemed to ignite. Her devil lay dormant thanks to her neighbor, but even if Ms. Betty hadn’t been involved in Hazel’s life there would’ve been no rage to find here. This was blissful. This was joy. This was hope. Softness. And more importantly love. This was everything. But she knew this couldn’t last forever nor their lips touching, so she gently pulled away feeling her heart flutter in her chest as she looked over the girl for a reaction. She wasn’t entirely sure if Cairn had understood what was happening, and she had hoped her impulse and need to express how she really felt for Cairn didn’t scare her away.

—

As Hazel closed her eyes, Cairn’s head tilted, the movement small and puzzled. She didn’t fully understand the gesture, but instinct kept her still. Hazel leaned in, closer and closer, and maybe Cairn should have stepped back, distance was safety—but this time she didn’t. The moment Hazel’s lips touched hers, Cairn’s eyes fell shut. The world narrowed to warmth and pressure and the sudden, overwhelming thrum in her chest. Her heart hammered so wildly that, any other time, it would have warned her to run. Whether by choice or stunned stillness, she stayed. Her body knew the moment mattered before her mind could catch up.

And then Hazel pulled away. Warmth receded. Air rushed in. Cairn opened her eyes slowly, as if she expected the world to look different now. Her fingers rose to her mouth, lightly pressing where Hazel’s lips had been, as though touch alone might confirm what had happened. Her pama’s voice drifted up from memory, old tales told by firelight, where kisses were spoken of like spells. People say a kiss reveals true love, her pama had said once, dismissive with a soft snort. But don’t worry about love, pebble. It’s just noise. Cairn had not understood it then. She didn’t understand it now… but something inside her stirred, deep and startling.

She might’ve stayed silent forever if not for the sudden movement nearby, a bird bursting from the brush, wings cracking through the quiet. The sound snapped her back into her body. She blinked, breath catching. She leaned in, not frightened—curious. “Hazel… what was that?”

__

The sound of the bird taking flight had pulled Hazel out of the fairytale moment she was living in, and when she realized what she had done, her cheeks instantly turned bright red. She had never felt a kiss like that before. Even with the boy she thought she would someday marry and settle down with. But in that moment, as reality flooded her brain, Hazel slowly started to panic. Was it too soon? Was it even okay? The feelings that had been tugging at her heart since the day she first met Cairn had only grown with time warranting some kind of action. But now she was afraid.

“Uh, I…I’m so sorry, Cairn. I-I don’t know what– Are you okay?” Hazel stammered. What had been such a nice picnic, she felt like she had instantly ruined though her heart longed to lean back in and pull the other woman in for another kiss. You’re so stupid, Hazel. You just ruined a perfectly good moment. The voice inside her head was screaming as she began to nervously gather up the picnic basket and the food; sloppily throwing it into the wicker container, before standing up and looking back down at Cairn one last time, “I enjoyed our lunch. Maybe we can do it again sometime. I’m just…suddenly feelin’ a little under the weather.”

Panic had set in, and instead of trying to talk things out, both her mother’s voice and her own voice battled in her head accusing her of things that, if she had been in a more sound mind, she knew wouldn’t have been true. And instead of waiting, she shot Cairn one last uneasy smile, “I-I’ll call you.” Before running off leaving her friend to her own devices.

—

A flicker of confusion shot through Cairn’s face, brows momentarily knitting together, trying to figure out what was happening. Hazel sped through her words, clearly distraught over what had happened. Cairn’s eyes flicked down, thinking through the kiss with what her pama had taught her. Slowly. Carefully. Like checking a snare to see where it failed. Kisses, in the stories, always came right before something ended or something broke. Her pama used to say the kiss wasn’t the reward. It was the warning.

Maybe she had taken too long to respond. Maybe her stillness had been wrong. Animals went still before they struck or fled. People might read that differently. Maybe Hazel thought she was afraid. Or worse—that she didn’t want it. Did she… want it? The thought made something tight curl in Cairn’s chest. “I… I’m fine,” she breathed, a mutter, a whisper into the air that eventually never reached Hazel’s ears because she already started to stand and collect her things. Cairn’s mouth opened as she took in a breath and her throat burned to say something, her hands itched to reach out, to stop, but nothing moved. She could only watch. Watch as Hazel threw a glance at her, yet didn’t quite reach her eyes, watch as Hazel walked away.

Cairn once again pressed her fingers to her lips, roughly now, caught between the memory and the aftermath. Her heart had raced and her breath had gone shallow at the contact. None of it felt quite like danger, which confused her even more. If it wasn’t danger, why had Hazel left? Her pama’s voice surfaced once more, this time uninvited. Fairy tales end when someone believes too hard in the wrong thing. Cairn frowned, looking at her hands. For so long she had felt like she was the wrong thing. And maybe that’s why Hazel stood up so quickly and walked away—like she needed distance from a fire that burned too close.

She hadn’t realized she was the fire.

As she gathered her satchel and its contents, she moved slowly and deliberately, afraid moving too quickly might break whatever fragile understanding she had left. As she started to the trees, she made herself a promise, not aloud, but in instinct. Next time, she’d watch more closely. Next time, she would ask. Next time, she wouldn’t assume she knew the rules simply because she knew the stories.

It had been a minute since Hazel had seen Caleb. Ever since she had found a place of her own and moved out, life had just gotten busier, between working and somehow trying to stay out of trouble. She hadn’t even been in Wicked’s Rest a year and already, Hazel was finding this town hard to get used to. But her devil seemed to thrive. With the multitude of deaths, whether it be animals or humans, the berserker found food sources popping up left and right. While poor Hazel seemed to find herself keeping The Generic Store in business by the amount of soap and bleach she was purchasing weekly. Suspicious in any other town, but not so much here.

“I don’t get why people would constantly want to trash such a peaceful old cemetery.” As she picked up the remaining pieces of a headstone that had been destroyed, Hazel tossed them into the rubble pile. “Is there any way this can be stopped?” Her attention turned to Caleb. She respected what he did; taking care of the dead and all. It really took a special person, and she wasn’t sure she could do it, especially because though she didn’t have the full story most of the time, she was responsible for a lot of deaths. A thought that never really sat well with her, and something she mostly tried to push out of her mind for the fear of what kind of mental breakdown it would cause.

Moving to the next busted headstone, Hazel caught sight of the death date year, “Wow. This headstone is from the early 1900s. How do you even replace somethin’ this valuable? Let alone, remember who all these belong to?” It was a job she didn’t want to be responsible for, but she would help Caleb as best as she could. He was her first friend in Wicked’s Rest after all.

There was a question that Caleb kept having to ask himself; How was he supposed to grow thicker skin when people as soft as Hazel were part of his life? Or Jonas? Or Oliver? It was something that kept plaguing him over and over. The need for survival in the paranormal world, the need for a backbone, it all kept being outweighed by the need to hold on to the people he cared for. He didn’t know how to balance the two at all. Becoming cold while a friend wanted to help do a job that she didn’t have to help with? It didn’t go together too well but he couldn’t help saying yes when she had offered. The power imbalance of his two worlds shifted back to the ‘normal’ side the moment she reached out and picked up the first piece of broken headstone and Caleb found himself smiling softly at her words, retreating into the comfort ‘normal’ provided.

He needed to stop letting that happen. There was too much at stake - his business, his life…his battered heart.

It was too late to stop it that night, though, and so all he could do was let his world continue to shift back even if her statement did concern his other one. He knew why it kept happening. Caleb knew that Eluria was very popular among the undead and that all of this vandalism was a result of the fighting that came with that. Peaceful was not the right word to describe this place. Wasn’t like he could tell her that, though. “I couldn’t tell you why. I don’t think it’ll stop, unfortunately. From what I hear, this has been happening for a long time.” 

Looking up from the wheelbarrow he was placing a few pieces in, he took in the old headstone, shaking his head at the thought of it all. “There are different ways to get them replaced but it all comes down to money and who was buried there. Because that stuff matters even in death, I guess.” Which…was so damn sad. “You know, you don’t have to help me with this. It’s a lot sometimes.” Not to mention, the cemetery wasn’t exactly safe. For all he knew there was a vampire watching them waiting for their moment to strike Hazel. Crazy to think that he assumed he was the only type of supernatural thing out there only a few short years ago and now he couldn’t seem to get away from it all. 

Hazel continued to pick up the busted headstones as she listened to Caleb speak. It was sad to think that people didn’t care about the resting place of the dead or how a piece of etched stone was the only thing that a lot of these people had left to remind the ever changing world that they had once existed. How many people still spoke of memories about Little Johnny or Mrs. Davis? Or had they just become another casualty to time moving on? Hazel feared that’s what she would become, or, in the case of her life back in Tennessee, had already become. Did anyone really care that she was gone? It made her sad thinking about it. And with a slow, deep sigh, trying to catch herself before the tears set in, she put her sight back on Caleb, “Well, I think what you’re doin’ is admirable. You’re allowin’ the memory of these people to live on, even if just by a headstone being replaced. I hope that when I’m dead and buried, if somethin’ happens to my final restin’ place, there will be someone like you to take good care of it.”

She stepped over and tossed another chunk of rock into the wheelbarrow, “Sometimes I think money is the devil’s work. Barterin’ is one thing, but overchargin’ at the expense of someone’s grief or even their demise is another. That’s just my opinion though.” Hazel had a lot of opinions, she just usually never spoke up about them. But Caleb, she was comfortable around, because he had been one of the first people she had met in Wicked’s Rest. Someone who gave her a chance to get her bearings before going off in the world to live on her own again, so speaking her mind and being honest about certain things, she hadn’t minded as much.

“I want to. You helped me out when I really needed it, so I’m here to help you out. That’s what friends do, right?” She shot him a quick smile as she grabbed more random pieces of headstone, “‘Sides, I ain’t got nothin’ better to do today. And I already finished my shift at Video Vault. Beats goin’ back home to an empty cabin.”

“I think you’re giving me more credit than I deserve.” Because this was his job. He wasn’t the one paying to have these things replaced. In fact, there were more than a few places in the cemetery where there were no funds to actually replace the stones. They were nothing more than jagged pieces sanded down to not stick out of the ground too much. The ones he’d had to gloss over like that while he worked there were on a list he was keeping up with, the names of the dead on each location, but Caleb was hardly the saint she was making him out to be. “If it wasn’t me doing it, it would be someone else. It’s a big place with a few different caretakers.” She was far kinder than was comfortable for him. Even with people like his niece in his life he’d gotten to a point where his comfort came from within the anger and intolerance of others. It was what he knew and what he was trying to learn to navigate.

Navigating kindness? It was getting more and more difficult. But he couldn’t help the silent appreciation he held for people who showed it.

His lips lifted softly, Caleb’s views on money and greed were plentiful but he couldn’t say much for a guy who was charging to feed the undead. “I think those opinions are something that most could agree on. Anyone who doesn’t have tons of money anyway.” Which was the majority of the world. 

‘That’s what friends do, right?’ He looked up at that while crouching next to the largest piece of stone on the ground. Looking up at her, he was silent for a minute, his thoughts hanging on the word ‘friend.’ It wasn’t that he didn’t think they were friends, it was more the fact that he thought she deserved better. He might have helped her in the beginning, sure, but there were so many things about him that would end up pushing her away in the end. Was the pain of that worth it? He wasn’t sure anymore. 

Deciding to ignore the words, he started to lift the piece of rock, his words strained as he replied. “You could go out and have fun.” Rich, coming from him. “I hear there’s a few clubs that are nice around here.”

“No, I think I’m givin’ you the right credit you deserve. Ain’t nobody else out here pickin’ up pieces of somebody else’s life tryin’ to keep things lookin’ decent. Take a little pride in yourself, Caleb. You’re a good guy.” Hazel didn’t know everything about Caleb’s life. In fact, she barely knew the man, but from just the few months she had spent living with him and getting to know him better, it seemed like he genuinely cared for people. And not once did she ever feel unsafe, but also Hazel rarely felt unsafe. In fact, she was usually more concerned for the people around her than she was for her own well being. Her devil made sure of that.

Hazel grabbed a few more jagged pieces and tossed them in the wheelbarrow, before wiping the sweat off of her brow and moving to a nearby tree to lean up against it. While she had been impossibly strong when her devil came out to play, most days she was constantly reminded of how skinny and scrawny she really was, but she did have some muscles and she made sure to flex what she had, “First off, Caleb Ellsworth, you know I don’t go clubin’. Ain’t never stepped foot in one, and ain’t about to. And second, who said this hangin’ out with my best friend ain’t fun? Hard work, yes. Not fun? No.” She narrowed her eyes and glared at him for two seconds to let him know she wasn’t playing, before her expression loosened up, “And hey, maybe we can go get an ice cream or somethin’ after all this hard work. Your treat.” Hazel let out a laugh as she let her body slide down the tree into a sitting position; her legs pulled in close to give him room to keep working.

He was just staring at her again, a little taken aback by how assertive she was being. His tongue was poised to argue but Caleb stopped himself when he realized that she wasn’t going to let him do so. She would just come back with more reasons as to why he was a good man and he would get more and more uncomfortable. Eventually it would lead to him blurting out that he was a murderer and it probably wouldn’t end well. So instead he just nodded his head at her. “Heard you, loud and bright.” Would he actually gain a little pride? Probably not. But at least he could move on and not feel like he wanted to bury himself under one of the headstones.

Now they were ‘best friends?’ Hearing that, Caleb promptly dropped the heavy stone right on top of his foot. He had the good sense to grimace at the slight shock of pain but not as much as a man should have with that much weight coming down on his toes. God, he wouldn’t be surprised if one popped off. But he was too busy trying to process the words again. He felt like that video of a woman trying to calculate things going through the timeline of their friendship and wondering how that had happened. Again, the zombie wasn’t against it, he just hadn’t realized she felt like he was worthy enough to be called that. 

He supposed he did give her a place to stay. And yea, they hung out frequently even if it was crap like this. Okay, so maybe it wasn’t so far-fetched. Bending down to pick up the rock again, he nodded at her. “Yea, I’ll get you some ice cream. I know a good place for it.” He was finally able to toss the thing in the wheelbarrow and wipe his hands on his jeans, turning to face her again until he spotted something in the near distance; something that was coming straight towards them. Fast. 

“Hazel, get up now.” It was the most forceful he had ever been with anyone. His voice cut through the night air, Caleb moving towards her as he looked back at the approaching figure. It almost looked like a dog from there but the way it was running meant it was anything but. “I need you to run, don’t worry about me, just go.” Because there was no way they were both outrunning it and he wasn’t letting it get to her if he could help it.

The day Hazel met Caleb was the day things had started to feel right. It was like the universe was telling her this is where she needed to be. That there was someone here who was willing to accept her and be her friend. And while Hazel had sometimes found that in the other places she had traveled, things here had just genuinely felt different. Granted Caleb didn’t exactly know what Hazel was or that she was harboring something evil inside of her often made her wonder if he would still want to be her friend or accept her was a question she often asked herself, but as of right now, she was going to ride with the fact that she had actually found someone again who wanted to be around her and wasn’t afraid of her.

“Oh son of a biscuit, that looked like it hurt! Are you okay?” She had watched as the slab of stone had fallen right on top of his foot knowing it had to have done some damage, but before she could shift her weight and get back up, he seemed to be going about his business even talking about getting her ice cream. Must not’ve hurt as bad as I thought.

Brushing it off, she leaned back against the tree getting settled again noticing that the sun had already set without her realizing it, “Wow. A hard day's work can really distract a girl. I didn’t even notice the sun had set.” A cool breeze through the trees and headstones caused Hazel to shiver slightly despite her body temperature usually running higher than normal as the scent of something rotten drifted up her nose, “You smell that.” Before she could get another word out, she heard Caleb’s sharp warning to get up off the ground, and without hesitating, Hazel scrambled to her feet and turned around to see the dead creature running towards them, “Oh c’mon. What in the holy buckets is this? Can’t I ever catch a damn break in this town?!”

Her eyes shifting between Caleb and the monster coming at them, she grabbed Caleb by the arm, “If I’m runnin’, you’re runnin’!”

Son of a biscuit? The hell- No! No time to worry about that. There was a monster to outrun and Hazel apparently wasn’t going to leave him behind. “Dammit, Hazel. You have to go.” But Caleb started to run with her instead of staying behind, the dog-like creature not far behind them. If it caught up, which it most definitely would, he would just do what needed to be done in the moment. 

Another problem? Where the hell were they supposed to go? The crypt was too far away and his truck wouldn’t hold this monster back. His brain was trying to work overtime as he mapped out the cemetery in his head which left his common sense to suffer. Caleb tripped over one of the headstones, his gangly body toppling and rolling a little way away from the bastard stone. At least that one didn’t break though. He wouldn’t have to worry about-

Spoke too soon. The creature that was after them ran straight into the stone and pretty much obliterated it in its quest to get to the zombie. Its attention was solely on him, that much was clear as it slowed its movements and stalked his way. “Hazel, just go! I’ll be fine.” 

The first thing he really noticed was this creature was definitely not a dog. It mostly used its hind legs, had the head of a human, but that was the only trait they shared. It was ugly, with little spikes running down its body, and it seemed to have a taste for him. He probably wouldn’t be fine. But it didn’t want Hazel. She had a chance to get away from this. “Just go!”

Hazel took off running after Caleb. Whatever this thing was, it was determined to get them. Determined to make them a meal. Determined to…As soon as Hazel saw Caleb hit the tombstone, she cringed. Now, that really had to hurt! But she also realized that whatever this ugly shriveled looking barnacle licker was, it wasn’t actually after her. No, it had its dark eyes set on Caleb. Her friend. And she couldn’t have that.

Stopping mid run, Hazel bent over straining to catch her breath. She knew that just as a simple human alone, she wasn’t going to be able to help him. To stop whatever this thing was. Which, why was it solely after him? It was a question for later, but it did seem to linger in the back of her mind. “Okay, devil. Our friend needs our help. As much as I don’t want to do this right now and possibly lose his friendship. I’d rather lose it from a living person than a dead one.” Oh, the irony in the statement she had just made.

“Hey, you crusty lookin’ piece of shit! Over here!!!” Hazel started to jump up and down and wave her arms to get its attention, but it wasn’t working. “Plan B it is.” Grabbing a piece of yet another broken headstone, Hazel chucked it hard at the humanoid monster; her aim hitting it square in the back of the head. And as soon as it did, its eerie gaze turned onto her, “Well devil. It’s now or never.”

Hazel could feel her heart picking up and suddenly the all too familiar ringing in her ears began when the shift started to happen. Chest heaving up and down, the young woman collapsed to her knees on the verge of passing out, and as she did a loud and shrill cry released from her throat as the devil inside of her took control. Bones breaking. Head twisting in unnatural ways and grotesque images of fur, fangs, and claws coming out while unneeded bits of flesh shed from her body. And within a matter of minutes, Hazel, once a scrawny twenty-three year old now stood as a towering wolf looming over Caleb, the headstones, and the monster that was trying to kill her friend.

“Hazel stop!” She was going to get hurt. Sure, the monster’s focus was on Caleb and didn’t seem to sway even as she called out to it but eventually it was going to get tired of ignoring her. Probably after it ate him. Its razor sharp teeth were about to sink into his flesh when something hit the back of the thing's head causing both him and the monster to look her way. Her words didn’t make any sense. What devil was she talking about? Why was she just standing there? 

When he got his answer he wanted to take the questions back. He watched as his friend transformed, mutating into something he had never seen before. “There are werewolves too…?” He should have known, right? When there were vampires there were always werewolves. Besides, he knew other types of shifters, this just made so much sense. 

What didn’t make sense was one of the kindest people he knew actually being one. Any lore he had ever seen, which was mostly tv or books, had always made it seem like wolves had bad tempers. But she was too sweet, too kind, and now she was a monster in her own right. 

The monster standing over him was distracted enough that Caleb was able to kick it away from him. He scrambled back, finally getting back on his feet, but what was he supposed to do next? Hiding behind what Hazel had become felt too cowardly, even for him. So, when he spotted the rock she had thrown he dove for it and chucked it back behind him…only to hit the werewolf instead. “Fuck! Can’t I do anything right?”

The berserker bared her fangs snarling at the monster looming near Caleb and started to lower her body ready to pounce on it. Her target was clear. It was the thing that was threatening Caleb. The ugly grayish ghoul that was close to turning its attention back on her friend and taking a bite out of him, and she was ready to rip its head off. That is, until she felt the chunk of broken headstone hit her in the snout.

Growing quiet and standing there somewhat stunned, it took a moment for the berserker to realize what had happened, and when she did, she shifted her glowing red eyes from the ghoul to Caleb. Now, she had two targets. The ghoul AND Caleb. And the lingering feeling of the hard stone on her snout only further angered her leaving a low growl coming from her throat. The question was…which one did she want to take out first? But her answer came quickly when she felt a sudden swipe of sharp claws tearing through the fur and flesh on her leg.

Crimson eyes moving from Caleb, Hazel looked down at the ghoul and without hesitating, opened up her wide maw and chomped down on the monster's head and shoulders before she violently started shaking it and chewing on it like a chew toy. And when she had finished playing with it, she tossed the headless thing off to the side and put her laser sharp focus on Caleb as if something deep inside of her was stressing him to run.

He did not like the attention that the wolf had placed on him. It looked like he had pissed Hazel off with his bad aim and he cursed again under his breath. Now there were two things that wanted to kill him, huh? Caleb quickly considered whether he needed to say goodbye to anyone but he didn’t really have time for that, did he? No, he was about to be eaten by something and it would be too quick for a phone call. Maybe a text? He was a slow typer though. He’d hate to get half a message written only for him to be ripped apart before he could hit send.

He was pulled from his thoughts by a weird sound, the zombie looking up just in time to watch Hazel shake whatever it was that was trying to hurt them like it was nothing to her. “Holy…” This was almost incredible to watch. He would have been amazed if he wasn’t so scared out of his damn mind especially now that the other thing was dead and he had missed his opportunity to get the hell out of there.

Now Hazel’s red eyes were back on him and he got the feeling that she wasn’t quite done playing with her food. “Oh…here we go.” Quickly getting to his feet again, he turned and started sprinting back towards the direction they had just come from. “I’m sorry!” He called over his shoulder, still running full speed. His long legs were the only reason he hadn’t been caught yet but she was right on his heel. He could feel Hazel’s hot breath against his back, baring down on him, and he quickly veered left. “Hazel! It’s fucking me, stop! I am not your dinner!”

Hazel easily took off running after Caleb when he had finally decided to run. She had loved a good game of berserker and mouse, and knew that when she finally caught her kill, it was going to be well worth it. Long gangly legs to swing him around by. A cute little head to lick before gnawing on it. And boney arms to chew on for the final course. Speaking of arms…the way they had swung back and forth had her lunging ever so often trying to catch one. But just as she would nearly snip one with her snout, it would move forward again causing anger to spike through her massive body.

The brief consideration to pounce on him quickly crossed her mind, and she was just about ready to, but something stopped her in her tracks, because heading straight towards them were more of the ugly looking grayish ghouls ready to avenge their fallen comrade that had become Hazel’s meal earlier. And though her target still remained on Caleb, the familiar sight of what she had just taken out for scratching her meant four more had been added to the meal plan.

If he had to breathe, Caleb would have been a dead man. Like, an actual dead one that would never be able to run again. He’d never been a runner before. Every time he had tried something that was cardio related he’d always gotten too many of those stupid stitches in his sides and given up after his first go. And whenever he had run from things? It was a good thing he had long legs or else he never would have gotten away before.

But this? Running from a wolf that was behind him only to come up on more things that wanted to kill him? He wasn’t sure how he was going to get out of this. The only thing he could think of was those comical cartoons or bad tv where they made both enemies run into each other somehow and he felt like that was the only way to go here. It was a split second decision to keep running towards the other ugly ass monsters coming towards him and he could only hope that he could time it just right.

Just before he was close enough for the closest ugly thing to reach out and snap at him, he took a sharp turn, sliding in the soft grass but able to keep upright long enough to veer out of the way. He kept going, not bothering to look back to see if his plan to distract one with the other had worked, knowing that if it hadn’t and he took the time to check on it he would end up as their food. It wasn’t until he heard the sounds of fighting behind him that he slowed enough to turn and look.

The attention of the other four things was still on him but they were delayed. Not able to turn in time to go after him, they had all run into each other, the zombie marveling at how that had somehow worked. He was ready to celebrate, to throw his arms in the air, when he realized that only one was waving around in victory. The other? Missing in action. “Fuck!”

Success! Despite the distraction of the other things coming towards them, Hazel had managed to catch an arm, and when it was locked in her teeth, she yanked hard and fast. But only in the knick of time as Caleb somehow managed to veer off in the other direction. But her little treat would have to wait, because before she could lay down and enjoy her new fleshy chew toy, she was being bombarded by more of the ugly gray monsters left to face them on her own.

The fight was a rough one, and though she was determined to hang onto Caleb’s arm, she tossed it to the side for safekeeping and as a little treat to go back to when she was done. But the ghouls proved harder than she thought and as they scratched and clawed and she scratched and clawed, she let out a few yelps in the process for good measure to spite Caleb for leaving her to face these things on her own. Pain was nearly non-existent, but the berserker knew humans and the guilt they could feel, she was attached to one after all. But when all was said and done, Hazel had come out the victor, despite having to wrestle Caleb’s arm away from one of the final ghouls. But a job well done, meant a treat well done, and picking up the chew toy in her mouth, the overgrown dog happily trotted in Caleb’s direction despite not honing in on where he actually went.

It really was a sight to see. Caleb, with one arm, watching as Hazel chewed on the other before she was once again distracted by the nasty things that had joined their chase. The one good thing about that arm though? The four creatures were too distracted trying to get to it and leaving Caleb alone. It gave him the chance to slip away and try to hide behind one of the large crypts the cemetery held but it didn’t stop him from wincing every time he heard Hazel whimper. Cowering away behind stone as he let the huge wolf fight his battles didn’t quite sit right with him. Hazel was his friend after all and he should have been helping her. But what happens when the friend you try to help turns on you and makes your arm a chew toy?

Before he could decide to stupidly walk out there in the middle of the fight the noises died down. It got quiet for a second with Caleb trying to strain his ears…his ears that didn’t work too well. Not knowing what happened to Hazel, he peaked his head around the corner of the crypt and then looked up…and up…and up until he was looking up into the face of a wolf. His arm was between her teeth but she luckily looked content enough with just that. “...Hi Hazel. I want to say it’s good to see you…is it good to see you?”

Hazel was proud of her work. She defeated ugly ass monsters and had a reward to show for it. The only tinge of a threat she felt briefly spiked when she saw Caleb right in her face, but the berserker knew he meant no harm. She could sense it, and if he did, she’d rip his other arm off and then his head and two legs. It’d be an entire feast. Instead, she snorted a breathy snort sending hot air blowing straight into his face and resumed chewing on the arm placed delicately between her two front paws. The meat was a little tough and rancid, but it didn’t matter. It was still chewy and entertaining.

However, she had found herself slightly whimpering as a chill rushed over her body causing her to shiver, before resuming her light snack of arm jerky. Whatever those things were, their scratches had a bit of a kick, but it wasn’t anything she couldn’t handle. And when she finished her treat, she laid her big furry head down on her two front paws and closed her eyes knowing that the shift would soon happen again leaving human Hazel in berserker Hazel’s big furry place.

Despite the giant animal chewing on his arm right in front of him, Caleb didn’t feel like she was a threat anymore. Something had shifted in the time between her chasing him down and then taking out the hideous monsters. Maybe she felt like they were allies now or maybe she was biding her time but he did know one thing; Hazel would never have ripped his arm off on purpose. The zombie couldn’t blame her though. He understood not being able to control his own actions when his other side took over, a side of himself that was sure to make an appearance if he didn’t eat something soon. Healing always took a lot out of him. He’d never actually had to grow back something as large as an arm before but he assumed the recent meal he’d had wouldn’t be enough to keep him from fading into the monster.

Which meant he needed to leave her there. If he stayed and things went bad he was afraid of what would happen. Clearly she could take care of herself but it only took one bite or deep scratch for him to change the course of her life forever. “Hazel?” Caleb was cautious as he spoke up, not wanting to spook her but her attention was needed. His only hand left came up slowly to slightly graze her fur. “I have to leave. If I don't, something is going to happen that one of us isn’t going to survive.” His money was on him. “I didn’t want you to think I was leaving you alone for no good reason. I’m not scared of you.” Okay, maybe he was a little bit scared of her but he wasn’t going to say that with her sitting right there.