Nothing Is As It Seems

A grin appeared on her face at the idea of him looking through her wares for any reason, let alone as presents for his sister. She loved when people bought her items as gifts for others. “What is she like? I might have a few pieces I can show you if you would like?” While all she wanted to do was sit here, drink some tea and talk to this man, she was running a business. Plus if his sister liked it she may want him to find her more items. Leather? Millie made a mental note to look into some leatherworking tools. She hadn’t dabbled in it before but he brought up a fair point. It could open another avenue for customers she didn’t know she needed. “I’ll make something out of leather for you so if you come by again I have something suited to your tastes,” she decided with a nod of her head. Yes, she would get to work on that right away. After brewing the tea and bringing over an array of things to put into it, Millie handed him the tea cup and sat down on the chair across from the sofa. “Did you spend a lot of time with your sister?” Millie found herself asking without realizing. A small flush to her cheeks as she took a sip and clarified. “Sorry, you’ve mentioned her a few times and I’ve always been close with my sisters so I was curious.”

While hiding it had not been her intention, Millie was surprised to find that Wesley picked up on the word pack in her sentence. At least he didn’t seem too concerned that she was mentally unstable which bode well for him being a true witch. Though his words confused her. Misplaced? Was that a bad thing? “I get that a lot,” she offered up with a warm smile from above the rim of her cup. “I’m probably the weakest link in my bloodline. I’ve never been the best at the whole werewolf part of my life. Not that I mind being a werewolf! I don’t try to avoid it or anything.” It was hard to explain how Millie felt about being a wolf. The trait was just that: a trait. She grew up knowing that one day she would turn into a wolf every full moon as a fact of life. “Feel free to ask any questions you have and I’ll try to give you a proper answer but I may want to ask some witch related questions in return.” A rush of relief filled Millie as Wesley confirmed that Las Vegas was not really his ideal destination but rather he had come with a friend. “Where is your friend now?” She tilted her head as she asked, looking towards the door to see if someone was lurking outside of her shop. “I’ll meet him at some point? Does that mean you’re planning on coming around again?”

“Gianna is — sunshine somehow placed inside of a human and released into the world,” he said with a light chuckle as he thought of his baby sister. “She’s very artistic, free spirited, and caring. Right now she’s off in Ireland her boyfriend. I’m due to send her another care package soon, so perhaps a gander into your selection is needed.” Typically he sent her the most random assortment of trinkets, but she seemed to love them all the same. A smile appeared on his face at the thought of having another excuse to stop by the shop. That was splendid. Surely he’d think of something, but her having something he’d want to purchase made much more sense. “I’ll drop by again for sure.” Wesley shook his head after he swallowed another sip of tea in an attempt to dismiss the apology. “No need to apologize. How else will we get to know each other if we don’t ask questions. Before she left to travel we were very much attached at the hip. Even though she lives far away now though, we still manage to talk multiple times a week. I think she’d call the National Guard if she didn’t hear from me for too long.” Wesley used to ask just when he’d become the one to be worried about, but he let it go. It was his sister’s way of showing she cared, and she was always concerned that their situation robbed him of too much. 

He frowned at her choice of words and racked his mind for a different way to phrase what she meant. Having any negative association tied to the woman didn’t please him at all for some reason. “I wouldn’t say weakest. The universe works in mysterious ways. You are exactly as you were meant to be. Perhaps one day all that doesn’t seem to make sense or fit will end up being your biggest strength or advantage. Besides, I’m quite pleased with where you wound up sorting if that matters much.” If she were more along the lines of a “typical” werewolf, he doubted that they would have as much in common. Very few people clicked with him so easily and so quickly. “Ask me whatever you’d like. Are you colorblind when you shift? I know that most likely seems like the oddest of questions, but it’s believed about dogs which are your distant cousins. Is that the right phrasing? Cousins? I don’t know. Still, the meaning is the same. I’ve just always been curious.” Wesley’s mind could go off in a million directions with tangents, but he didn’t mind. Eventually his words wound up on the path he initially wanted. They just took a small detour. “Right now I imagine he’s still sleeping off his wild evening back at the hotel. I was getting quite fidgety, so I decided on exploring. As for my reappearance, of course. Although, next time I may ask that our conversation occur outside of your workspace.” 

Wesley’s face scrunched as he tried to put together everything the woman was saying to him. He remembered hearing something similar when it came to children, but then again, he wasn’t big on sweets. “I think I see or hear of that happening most on Halloween. It’s smart for you to stay away from sugar after that thought. It doesn’t sound pleasant.” Wesley also found the names of candy odd. Take nerds for example. What about the little sugar dots reminded people of an academic? It made no sense. “Not a candy, it’s a drug, and you have to promise me you’ll stay away from it. It seems like you’re new to a lot of customs, and I’d hate for someone to take advantage of you.” 

“That’s usually how I do things. Lysander, my roommate and best friend, helps when he can. Well, he helps by telling me what he’s in the mood for which is good since I can be terrible at making decisions. I don’t spend too much time thinking about food. I see it as fuel, and I just eat what is easily accessible in order to function. It can make prepping hard.” If he hadn’t had to step up in order to take care of Gianna, Wesley was positive he wouldn’t have learned to cook anything beyond the basic essentials. Thankfully, his sister helped make him a touch more normal. “I’m not a man who generally receives a lot of touches. Not that I have something against them, but I think people don’t see me as approachable. Those that do know me are quite affectionate though,” he said with a shrug. It didn’t really bother him, but it did confuse him. To his knowledge there wasn’t anything about him that screamed unwelcoming. He didn’t have what many called a “bitch face,” so the whole thing was just flummoxing. He smiled at the offered hand and grasped it in his own happily. “That is nice, although, I imagine just about everything about you is. You have a very warm demeanor.” Unexpectedly he started laughing once the words were out of his mouth. Unintended puns were really the best. “Sorry, warm demeanor after you just made yourself warm just got me.” 

Luca visibly relaxed when he heard that a vampire had been the cause of the bleeding, and that it was consensual. That officially made things not his concern. As long as the person was content and happy, that’s all that mattered. “Oh, well then, this changes things entirely,” he said as he reappraised her. “For someone who is coming back from having an obviously great time, and I’m guessing didn’t have access to a change of clothes, you’re looking good. One of the best walk of shame attires I’ve seen really.” 

The man playfully rolled his eyes as he took off his sports coat and hung it on the back of one of the nearby chairs. He then proceeded to roll up his sleeves just above his elbows before moving towards the offending appliance. “You know, people typically have paid labor for these kinds of things,” he teased lightly. “What’s the problem exactly? Don’t you just put in your raw baked delicacy and then wait for it to cook? What is the oven not doing exactly?” If the giant hotbox wasn’t allowing him to get his morning fix of delicious carbohydrates, Luca may have to make a donation to the bakery to get it fixed. It was less charity and more necessity really. The accusation made him grin and shrug his shoulders. “Maybe I did, maybe I didn’t. This look though, totally something only you could pull off.” 

For everything that was wonderful and new about the human world, which seemed to be forever changing throughout the years that she had been coming here, there was one thing Briar hated more than anything: her size. Ever since the first time they came through here and Briar messed up her height, Luca had never let her live it down. How was it her fault that she didn’t know the correct proportions of people? The girl was barely three inches tall in her pixie state. It was hard enough hiding the wings from people! After a terrible day where someone told her she bigger than they imagined for a part, Briar was in a terrible mood. Huffing as she sat down on the sofa and propped her feet on the table, she crossed her arms and waited for Luca to come home. “Can you believe that people say I’m too big! Luca, this is what I was afraid of! It hit a nerve today, Luca, a nerve I say.” They were in the comfort of their own home so why Briar hadn’t thought to switch back to her usual size was a mystery that would never be solved. “You said you brought pizza?

Even though the man loved teasing his best friend about her height, he knew when to cool it if she was seriously upset. The fae wasn’t completely tactless. He did love Briar like family after all. “You’re gorgeous, B,” he said honestly as he moved around the kitchen to grab them each a plate. They wouldn’t eat pizza like savages if he could help it. “There are literally models your height. Models. You’ll find the right part sooner rather than later, and until then I’ll just have to clap for you every night or hire an ensemble to do so.” As he talked he wore his usual cheeky grin as he pulled out a seat at their small table within the kitchen breakfast nook. “Come on. I even got your favorite.” 

“Oh, I see. Is too much sugar for you a bad thing?” Perhaps she was a diabetic, or one of those women that counted calories. He never understood the point of dieting or any of that. Yes, he thought it was important to be healthy and confident, but he still believed the human society was far too vain. When she asked what coke was, Wesley whistled to himself because there was one innocent, but still not healthy option, and another much more dangerous one. He had to be careful. “The coke I’m talking about is Coca-Cola. It’s a soda. It’s fizzy, dark brown, and a sweet liquid. This coke is totally safe to drink. If anyone offers you a coke that’s a white powder substance, stay away.” Hopefully that would get the point across. He didn’t want anyone taking advantage of the nice lady. 

A sigh escaped Wesley as he took a sip of his tea. Nothing quite warmed his bones like a nice cup. If only he’d remembered to bring one of his spell books to scan, but fortunately, it seemed like the bartender was fine keeping him company. “Ask as many questions as you’d like. Curiosity should always be encouraged as long as people are prepared for what their questions might lead them to,” he said with a shrug. “My dating app Follow Your Stars mixes astrology as well as crafted questionnaires to help match people together. I was very much afraid of people with dark intentions using my app as a means to prey on people, so we do extensive background checks. You also can only become a part of the app if invited.” At first he was worried if that would keep the app from flourishing, but it appeared that people loved the exclusivity of it. The harder something was to attain, the more people wanted it. “It’s also very interactive. Once you get to the point of chatting with someone, suggestions and small activities pop up in the chat for you both to do. Half of the battle is just getting through the awkward first couple of messages with someone, so we try to mitigate that,” he said with a shrug. He figured that was a good starter. If the man had anymore questions, he’d elaborate more if needed. 

“Meal prepping is the only way I keep track of stuff,” he said with a shrug. “It’s something that I picked up when raising my sister, and it just stuck. Having things set up helps when I’m being super indecisive.” If he left dinner for the night of, he’d be terrible. Between him and Lysander, it would take them at least an hour to figure out what they wanted. “Oh, no. No judgement. Plus, how would you have stuff to eventually give away if you never bought anything? No extremes. Just a happy middle. I check if the Buy Nothing group has something I need, if not, then I go get it.” While Wesley had his quirks and belief he was set in, he wasn’t someone who judged people for not doing what he did. That wasn’t kind. “It could be. Having a wall of fire around yourself would make it hard for people to get you. You do that on your own? How?” 

“I fortunately am not usually in the need of caffeine,” he said with a shrug of his shoulders. “I’m naturally pretty alert. If I need to nap, I nap. I think people should follow the philosophy of cats more often. Name a more authentic animal that just does whatever it pleases without a care.” His cat Sage was the greatest. He was huge, and sometimes could be a brat, but Wesley appreciated how he didn’t alter his mood just because the witch wanted to cuddle with him. “Oh, I was debating heading back to Las Vegas to see if Lysander wandered back over there. I need to make sure he’s not waiting for me to bail him out of some jail. I’d ask what brings you here, but well, money money money.” 

Luca had a bit of spare time in his day, and he decided to spend it walking around the quirky town he called home. Well, one of his homes. He walked through the streets with his hands in his pocket and took in the mundane things people were doing in their daily lives. He was contemplating popping back home for a little before he spotted his cousin. A smile grew on his face as he approached Atticus from behind and threw an arm around his shoulder. “Hey Atti,” he said with happiness lacing his tone. Family always meant a lot to him. “What are you up to? What’s new?” 

Luca walked into the cabin carrying a box of pizza in one hand and a bottle of wine in the other. It was custom for him to spend at least two to three nights with his best friend, or else she would get quite cranky. How he’d gotten such a soft spot for a brat he’d never know. “B,” he called out into the space. “I got pizza. Where are you, giant?” The last bit was said affectionately because he found it so hilarious how tall Briar was in the human realm. She’d definitely gotten her spell a bit mixed up. “You’d think you’d be easier to find now. You’re almost my height.”