Fantasy Righteous side of hell [RP]

[Moonshine]

BippityBoppityBoop

"Washing away all the signs that you drew,
The sharp marks that you left on me.
White and intense I'm living again
Breaching myself from that shell..."

Name: Katherine Victoria
Nick: Kat
Species: Vampire
Age: about 550 years
Turned: at age 20
Occupation: Elementary school teacher

Powers: inhuman speed and strength, enhanced senses, hypnosis, basic magic and telekinesis

Weaknesses: silver, holy water, garlic, direct sunlight, crucifixes, the bite of a werewolf


"I feel it deep within, it's just beneath the skin,
I must confess that I feel like a monster."

Name: Marcus Hellstorm
Nick: Monster
Species: human/mutant
Age: 27 years
Mutated: at age 19
Occupation: monster hunter

Powers: His skin color changes randomly whenever he sleeps- with the skin color, his powers change as well.
Red- X Ray vision
Yellow- invisibility when eyes are closed
Blue- invulnerability
Purple- enhanced sense of smelling
Grey- producing electricity (very painful!)

 

[BippityBoppityBoop]

Name: Simon Delrich
Nickname(s)?: None
FC: Timofei Rudenko
Age: 19
Occupation: 2nd year of college for English, also works as a waiter
Species: Human
———————————

Name: Aly Moris
Nickname(s)?: None
FC: Alina Kozyrka
Age: 23
Occupation: Hunter
Species: Human (or so she thinks)— actually a werewolf
Powers: Able to turn into a wolf when exposed to a moon stone, super strength, enhanced speed, enhanced senses
Weaknesses: Silver, vision becomes bad when there are bright lights
Wolf Form:

 

[BippityBoppityBoop]

Shit. So it was going to be one of those nights. Simon wasn't usually a habitually late person, but recently he hadn't been getting enough sleep and that had shown. Just yesterday his boss had yelled at him for not being on time for...let's see. The third day in a row? Well, tonight would be the fourth. Nightmares had been plaguing him since the beginning of this week and it was now beginning to affect him. Glancing at his phone, the large numbers informed that it was already 8:56.

'Four minutes to get to work. Awesome.' Simon thought bitterly, already thinking of places he had seen that might still be hiring. Walking outside, Simon turned to lock his apartment door and shivered. Winter was definitely coming, and he was definitely not ready for it. Simon was one of those people that preferred the hot summer sun and a nice tan to frostbitten toes and fingers. There was nothing to be done about it unfortunately.. A soft sigh escaped the young man's lips as he walked to his car and hopped in. Hurriedly putting his keys into the ignition and turned them, only to be greeted with a sickly sputtering.

"No..no no no." Another desperate turn, another failed attempt. He might as well kiss his job goodbye now.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"So.. a vampire huh? I'm assuming you've encountered them before?" Aly turned to her new partner and mentor, Marcus. They had been partnered for only four days, and today was their first mission together. She wouldn't deny that her nerves were pretty shot at the moment. She had never been on a hunt in her life, mostly wasting her life training for one. Marcus was much more experienced than her and was only four years older. He was also a mutant. Aly thought only a few years ago that mutants and monsters were one in the same. Seeing a mutant hunting monsters and otherwise not blinking an eye however really changed her perspective.

Making sure she had the crucifixes safely shut away in a small black box, Aly managed to muster up a smile.

"I'm not so sure I'm ready."

 

[Moonshine]

Her bright amber eyes opened as the first rays of moonlight tickled her pale skin.
No, she was not sleeping in a coffin, and her house was no dark fortress.
It actually was a beautiful, modern house with big windows and rooms bathed in light.
She didn't lurk in the darkness to drink the blood of innocent people either, and to be perfectly accurate, she didn't even attack bad people. Blood bags and animals did the job well enough.
So when Katherine awoke this night, she did not feel the urge to sink her fangs the neck of the man she heard outside.

Instead, she quickly threw some jeans and a comfortable black hoodie on, spelling in big white letters 'hug dealer', to go look what was going on.
She slipped into her favorite fluffy boots and headed outside, her skin pearl white in the light of the moon.
"Hey there!", she called, waving at -... Simon?
She had only moved here a week ago.
"Simon, right?", she asked, plopping down on the low wall seperating their driveways.
"got problems with your car? I'm heading into the city. If you need a ride, hop on."

---×-×-×---

A small smirk crossed Monster's face, revealing his sharp canines.
Today, he was blue - definitely his favorite ability, and, even though he'd originally hated the idea of working with a partner, he was surprised to find himself getting along with Aly far better than he'd imagined.
"I lost count of all the wooden stakes I drove into vampires", he chuckled wryly.
"Though there was one case that got a little rough - taught me to never underestimate an arch vampire."
He felt somewhat like an old man, sharing his stories like that. But he didn't mind it, really, as long as it helped his mentee.
"You see, vampires are usually fairly predictable. Show them blood and they'll lose their marbles. They're dangerous in that state- but mindlessness causes vulnerability."

He reached into the pocket of his leather jacket to produce a simple leather band with a small, seethrough vial from it. Something golden and liquid was contained within, looking as if it was boiling.
"here, see it as a gift for your first hunt."
His gaze turned serious as he raised one eyebrow at Aly warningly.
"Phoenix tears like these are almost impossible to come by, but they can heal a fatal injury within seconds. Only use them when your life depends on it."

He started the engine of his age-old Chevy impala, but gave his mentee a last, reassuring smile before he drove off.
"And I'm sure you're ready, partner."

 

[BippityBoppityBoop]

Simon rested his head against the steering wheel, his hands combing roughly through his brunette hair. He was about to pick his phone up to text his boss, hopefully being able to pass off some bullshit excuse for not coming into work when a small, feminine voice sounded from the wall that separated his yard from his neighbor’s. He had no idea who his neighbor was, but he assumed it was this lady. She wasn’t bad looking though. Her skin was incredibly pale in the moonlight and it contrasted nicely with her red hair.

He smiled at her warmly and stepped out of his car, feeling a bit awkward.

“Uh, yea, that would be great actually! I’m already late, think you could get me to the bar near the courthouse like, fast..?” He gave her a crooked, awkward smile.
————————————-
Taking the bracelet, Aly gazed at it, mesmerized. The Phoenix tear bubbled and moved soothingly, and it gave off a comforting amber glow. She glanced back up at Marcus’ now very serious face.

“Thank you. It’s very nice. I’ll make sure to keep it...safe.” She wrapped it securely on her wrist and covered it back up with her army green jacket sleeve. Everything Marcus had informed her about vampires didn’t exactly make her feel better, but if Aly was anything she was determined. She would see this through, especially if it meant keeping Marcus from doing it by himself.

Sure, she hadn’t known him for very long but she certainly knew the importance of being partners with someone. The number one rule was having each other’s back, and Aly was not going to mess this up.

“So um. If you don’t mind me asking, what does blue skin mean again?” She still felt a bit awkward around the older hunter, so she hoped making small talk would ease her nerves. When the two had first met, he had informed her about what all of his different skin colors meant. She remembered being very fascinated by it, but couldn’t for the life of her remember what they all meant.

 

[Moonshine]

Kat gave her neighbor a bright, sunny smile upon seeing how on edge he seemed to be.
Understandable; she herself hated being late, and often ended up apologizing a thousand times when she - once in a hundred years - wasn't on time.

She probably was the exact opposite of how most people imagined vampires.
She was sweet, funny, helpful... A real golden child and an absolute pacifist. She hated violence. Ironic, minding that a life as a vampire meant kill or be killed.
Luckily she was very good at staying low, always flying under the radar of those nasty hunters... Or so she thought.
The only thing that really was unusual about her were her sharp fangs.
But most of the time she could just play it off as her teeth just having grown that way.
Sometimes she even made a joke about being a vampire when others asked about them- she'd discovered that, the less desperate she seemed to justify herself, the less it was weird to anyone; sometimes the best hiding spot was right under the enemy's nose.

"sure, no problem", she said at her neighbor's question, trying to somewhat cheer him up.
"come on over, car's open. Don't worry, I'll get you there in time."
As she hopped off the little wall and walked towards her car, she looked back at the man over her shoulder. "Nice to meet you, by the way- I'm Katherine, the new neighbor."

---***---

Monster took a long breath, his empty, yellow eyes on the road in front of him.
This was the part that mostly got complicated, and the reason he'd spent the last five years hunting alone.
It wasn't like he was that much of a loner, but, well, things had happened... And having a partner on the passengers seat brought a lot of it up again.
Gripping the steering wheel tighter, his knuckles turned white from the pressure.
He silently cleared his raw throat.
"blue means invulnerability", he explained, sighing shortly afterwards.
Eyes still on the street, he spoke on.

"Aly." the sound of his voice had changed a little, and even though he gave his best, a little hint of a crack in his voice was still there.
"The area where we are expecting the vampire to be hiding is hotspot for Cryptos. I don't know if the city was built on an old graveyard or if they're just plain unlucky, doesn't matter in the end.
The whole place is tunneled. old catacombs from hundreds of years ago. If this vampire knows about them, it might try to flee into that underground labyrinth."

He stopped at a red traffic light, turning his head to look his new partner straight in the eye. "I've been down there, and trust me when I say don't follow it if it goes there. Seriously, I need you to promise me that. You don't go into the catacombs. Not if you want to live."

 

[BippityBoppityBoop]

Katherine's smile was infectious, and it immediately brought a smile to Simon's own lips.

"Thanks so much. I promise I'll pay you back somehow!" He exclaimed before following the redhead to her car. He hopped in, temporarily forgetting how uncomfortable he usually felt about getting in someone else's car. It was nice in here he thought. At least, nicer than his.

"My name's Simon by the way. It's very nice to meet you too. I figured you had to be the new neighbor considering I've never seen you around before."

'Not that I know most of my neighbors anyways.' He thought to himself, realizing just then exactly how much of a lonely life he was digging himself into. Gazing back at Katherine, he couldn't help but notice her pale skin and fire-y red hair yet again. It was so prominent and a little mesmerizing even. When she turned to him he thought he noticed something odd about her teeth as well, but he had written that off as a trick of the light. Plus he wasn't about to make an impression by being known as the guy to ask about a girl's teeth. Checking his phone again he realized he was already 6 minutes late. It didn't seem like such a big deal however now that he was in a car with his new neighbor. He felt strangely comfortable around her.

"So where are you from?" He asked, deciding to pass the time getting to know her.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Aly's eyes lit up in interest just like the first time Marcus had explained his ability. However she was vaguely aware that her new fascination with mutants had to be kept silent, at least from her parents. They had been hunters as well. Very respected within the community. They were also known of their hatred and ruthlessness towards anyone that was less than human, which was where she probably got her notion before she had met her partner. The more time she spent with him, the more she could feel herself detaching from her parents, and she wasn't exactly sure whether it was a good thing or not.

Marcus' odd behavior had not gone unnoticed by Aly while she was deep in thought, and eventually she turned to him.

"What's wrong?" She asked carefully. She didn't know him well enough to know whether she should be asking stuff like that, but her question was quickly met with a response, although it wasn't any less puzzling.

"Marcus.. I don't want to read this situation wrong but I don't want you thinking you have to protect me or anything," Aly began, noting the bracelet she was just given and now this odd, somber statement. "Just because I haven't been on a real mission yet doesn't mean I can't take care of myself. Of course I don't want to die, but I'm also not letting you do any of this alone. I don't want to get all sappy, but we're partners now, and you and I both know that's not how that's supposed to work... I appreciate the gift and everything. Really I do... Just know I have your back now ok?" Aly wasn't aware of Marcus' past. To her he was the mysterious loner guy you see in movies. She was surprised when she was informed that he had been ok with being partnered with her to begin with. She didn't necessarily think he thought she was incapable. No, but maybe he viewed her as a kid because she was younger? Or maybe he really wasn't ok with having her as a partner and he was just pretending?!

Aly bit her lip, knowing she was overthinking this.

 

[Moonshine]

Thanks to her incredibly fine senses, Kat noticed every tiny detail about Simon and his behavior. He seemed nice, though there seemed to be something bothering him.
It was just a small movement in his features, a short faltering of his smile, but she had noticed it instantly, right after he had mentioned never having seen her around before.
Not wanting to pry, she just moved on, pushing her questions away for now.

When he asked where she was from, she smirked a little.
"I'm from Romania", she explained.
"I just moved here a little while ago, actually."

Well, that was a rather creative way to explain what had really happened, but what was she supposed to say? 'I'm running from a bunch of pissed off vampires that want to kill me'? That version of the truth would probably irritate him a little too much.
And she didn't want to scare him off. He seemed to be a nice person, someone to have a really good time with, and neither did she want to make him think that she was bonkers, nor did he deserve being that roughly exposed to the fact that the world he knew was just a tiny piece of the actual reality.

"Alright, the bat near the court...house...", she said to herself, recalling where she'd drop him off, while her gaze scanned the streets. Something was starting to put her on edge, but she couldn't figure out what it was... Just this gut feeling of something being not quite alright...
What was it, that was bugging her in the very back of her mind?
Her eyebrows knitted together by just a fraction.
Trying to not come off as weird, she gave Simon a smile. "So you're working at the bar? Sounds cool, really! I'm just a boring elementary school teacher", she chuckled softly.

---***---

Monster's gaze stayed glued to the street in front of him as Aly spoke.
His tongue ran over his predator teeth for a moment, actually looking a little aggressive.
He was far from that though, it was just the memories, haunting his restless mind like always... Just worse.
He was good at pushing things... And persons... Away, but a situation like this made it really hard to keep his self control. The fact that she called him 'Marcus' like he was still a real human didn't make it better. No one called him like that these days. They saw a monster and they called him Monster. If it would have been anyone else in her place, he would have snapped at them saying Marcus was dead. But it was Aly calling him like that... And somehow, that made a difference.

He just wanted to give a snarky answer, like he had done with every person he'd been partnered with ever since the incident, but when he turned to her to give her an annoyed glare, he noticed how she was biting her lip, looking everything but fine.
He sighed silently.
It wasn't like Monster was a bad person, no, he actually was quite the decent man, a typical case of hard on the outside, soft on the inside, but there rarely ever was space for being all sunshine and happiness in their business.

But he didn't want to ruin his new partner's first case either.
Okay well he'd doen that to a couple of previous partners, but something about Aly made him be a little less rough.

So he did what he hadn't done for years and gave his new partner a small, reassuring smile.
"I'm not trying to keep you away from any and all danger or something", he explained. Now he actually seemed to be a little awkward.
"I told you what my mutation does, but I never told you how it happened..."
He motioned towards the windshield, in a vague hint of the place he would be talking about.
"it happened there", he said, blood serious.
"I followed a vampire into the catacombs and was cornered by a basilisk. The poison should have killed me, but instead it did... This... To me. The thing is still down there, and while I'd normally say that experience is a hunter's greatest weapon, an encounter with a basilisk's fangs is something I'd rather spare you. "

 

[BippityBoppityBoop]

"Romania?" Simon repeated, astounded. He had only ever been to two other states in America and one was for a field trip in 4th grade, but out of the country? He was pretty sure you had to have a passport to be able to do that, which he did not. If Katherine was interesting before, she sure was a whole new experience now. Simon could only begin to imagine why someone would want to move from such an interesting place to somewhere like this sleepy little town. He supposed it would be different to her. She had probably experienced everything there was to experience in Romania, and now she was looking for something new. Anything new. He could relate to that for sure...

Simon's attention snapped back when Katherine spoke up, somewhat to herself.

"Yea, it's only like 5 minutes away." He assured her anyways, making sure she didn't get confused. He missed her slight shift in attitude, too caught up in the conversation to really notice. He had never been too in tune to detail. Ever since he was a kid Simon would almost always get into trouble at school or by his mother for not paying attention to the finer things which usually lead up to more important things such as grades. How he had gotten into college was really a wonder to everyone he knew. If he had noticed Katherine's tense demeanor however, he would have probably been put on edge. As well as being an airhead at times, he was also pretty paranoid, and her attitude wouldn't have helped. He felt a smile tug at his lips at her comment.

"Oh I don't know about that. I'm sure working with children can be just as interesting as dealing with drunk people." He laughed. A small buzz turned his attention to his phone that displayed "BOSS" on the screen. His grip tightened on the phone, but he ignored the call and kept his gaze on the road.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
For the first time in a while Aly didn't know what to say. She pursed her lips as she stared in the direction Marcus had indicated, resting her head on her hand. Was it really that bad in there? Did that really happen..? It didn't seem fair. That was the difference between monsters and mutants she had come to realize. Mutants were people who were turned, mostly by a monster like her partner had been. Monsters were creatures who were out to harm people. Basilisks, werewolves... vampires. Aly shivered involuntarily, picturing what it would have been like to be in his place in the catacombs.

"I'm sorry." Was all she could say. She wasn't sure whether it was because she had made him uncomfortable by the comments she had made, or because of what had happened to him all those years ago. Tucking her short brown hair behind her ear, the hunter was going to turn their attention to a lighter topic until a car a few feet ahead of them caught her attention. She sat up, noticing the car was similar to the car people had sighted their vampire in. Apparently this girl... or monster rather, was living a pretty normal life here in this little town right outside of the city. Risking a glance at Marcus, she spoke up,

"Is-is that...it?"

 

[Moonshine]

"Yeah, actually, I moved a lot", Kat explained with one of her typical, sunny smiles, hiding anxiousness and anger behind a perfect facade she rarely ever dropped. She preferred to stay as close to the truth as possible, without catching too much attention. Lying straight in someone face just... Didn't feel right, so she rather left Details out or chose her words carefully to make things sound differently. "I was born in Bulgaria, then moved to England when I was twelve, to Romania when I was sixteen... And found my home there. Well at least until I moved here." she chuckled softly. "I hope I've finally found a place to settle for a little longer here."

While Simon had a tendency to being an airhead, Kat was the very opposite.
That was one of the things that came with being a vampire - near impossibly fine senses, paired with the constant state of awareness of everything around. When everyone and their mother wants to impale you, you grow kinda weary.
She was just about give a comment about her job, when her attention, almost automatically, was dragged to the impala behind them.
Her eyes widened.
Every single inch of her body tensed; she knew that car; and she knew the smell emerging from it. A smell no human was able to sense, but that was as penetrant as the smell of a wet dog to her.
Werewolf.
That, plus that car, and that license plate...
It was him.
How could that man still live?!
She glanced into the rear view mirror, just to notice that a 0air of sulfur yellow eyes was staring right into hers. How was that even possible?!
She recognized his whole face, his stature, but he still looked so awfully different...
She was smarter than to shrug this off as a coincidence. Marcus never left anything to luck or coincidence.

"fuck...", she muttered under her breath -
And the next second her Panamera burst into action across three red traffic lights and onto the next highway, reaching 143mph as they shot down the roads, Kat's reaction time far beyond what was normal.
The car snaked through the mass of other cars at an insane speed.
"I'm sorry Simon", she said, her voice tense. "That car behind us means trouble... I'll try to lose them and drop you off as soon as I can."

---***---

Monster waved his hand dismissively, cracking a wry smile to push away the hint of bitterness.
"Ah please. I've had so many 'I'm sorry' or 'my condolences' and a hundred variations of that. It's polite, but that's that. As soon as they think you don't hear them they change their attitude unsurprisingly fast."
He just shrugged.
"I'm not saying you are like that. If you were, I wouldn't be working with you."
For both their sake he didn't mention that every time she called him by his name it sent shivers down his spine. The last person who had called him like that...

Honestly it felt really really weird.
Sure, he had proved to the other hunters that he was still a hunter and trustworthy, no matter his skin color, but he felt their gazes when they thought he wouldn't notice.
He heard them talking.
And he knew why it was always only newbies who wanted to work with him.
Some changed their mind the second they saw him; others stayed and made everything just more complicated because they were busier minding him that the actual monsters.
They saw him as a monster - so that had become his name.

And suddenly the world sped up to twice its pace.
The car.
"it's her", he snarled, and if one would look closely enough they'd notice that his eyes actually started gleaming a little.
Her car suddenly sped down the road, right onto the Highway, but he was on her heels at an instant.
"She's trying to shake us off."

 

[BippityBoppityBoop]

The minute Katherine had muttered under her breath Simon realized something was wrong. Then when the car shot forward, that was the moment he figured he would die tonight. Still, that didn’t stop him from panicking as they slid dangerously yet effortlessly through the traffic.

“Whoah whoah Katherine what the hell are you doing? What do you mean trouble?” He shifted a wide, nervous gaze onto his neighbor. “Are.. are you a drug dealer? Is that what’s going on because I’ll be honest with you uh, I- I wasn’t really looking to get shot tonight. I’ve never even smoked before!” The curly haired boy risked a glance behind them and caught sight of the Chevy Impala that seemed to be easily catching up with them.

“Oh my God. Oh my God.” He slid back into the seat, his knuckles white from squeezing the door handle. If one were to see his face, it would easily be described as having a sickly green hue to it. Needless to say Simon was definitely not equipped for handling these types of situations. Not that he had ever had to before. The sounds of angry people honking at them sounded almost every second it seemed, which set him more on edge.

“I have to call my mom. I haven’t made things right with her and-and... I have a little brother. I need to tell him I love him and to not mess with my shit even when I’m gone because I’m pretty sure that’s still disrespectful.” His phone began ringing, again displaying the words “BOSS” on screen. He was nearly on the verge of tears now. At this point he felt almost sure that getting yelled at and fired was better than this. Almost.
———————————
Aly turned her gaze to the car ahead as it sped forward at an incredibly fast and very dangerous pace. She tried not to panic when the Impala had sped up as well and focused her attention on the car’s back window. She could make out two people: the vampire who she assumed was the driver and a passenger.

“Someone’s in their with her.” Aly informed, knowing Marcus probably already knew that. The hunter reached behind her, grabbing for whatever weapon they had packed for this occasion just in case. They obviously wouldn’t be able to reach her now, but it was best to be prepared.

“Ouch!” Aly hissed under her breath, retracting her hand quickly. Glancing in the back seat she noticed the shards of silver laying securely in a small black case. She had had a strange allergy to silver since she could remember, which somewhat hindered her ability to hunt werewolves and vampires. It felt like a burn, then her skin would usually become irritated. Aly absolutely hated it, especially because that was a trait that the aforementioned monsters had as well. She tried again, this time reaching carefully for the holy water.

“Ok, what’s the plan? Chase them until they pull over?”

 

[Moonshine]

Well shit.
No matter whether Simon would know about what she was or not- she'd have to move again.
Yet again another country, another place she couldn't call home.
She longed for a life in peace, but peace was something creatures like her didn't seem to be worthy of.
Amber eyes glued to the windshield, her wild, red locks framing her face with features as pale as the moonlight she'd never looked more inhuman... Or more dangerous.
Deep within, she was a wild animal that would fight when cornered.
"Simon, Simon... Shh..."
She comfortingly placed her hand on his forearm, her voice so unfittingly calm.
"You will not die. You won't. I promise you that. You will be fine, and you will talk to your mother and tell your brother you love him."
For someone who was chased by a blue man with an undying hate for monsters and her especially, she seemed oddly calm. Cold, even.

A glance into the rear view mirror told her that he was still on her tail, but maneuvering through the traffic was easier for her than for him.
A flick of her hand and three cars behind her suddenly came to a slithering halt, motors smoking.
She used the distraction to take a turn into a side road, hoping the smoke had blocked the hunter's view.

"I promise I'll explain it all to you, once I got rid of him."
She sighed, but soon enough a sarcastic chuckle made it past her lips.
"Thazs typically him, turning against his own family and putting the blame on everyone but himself. It's always the others with him."
There was something dark in her voice, something deadly and cold as pure hate.
No wonder. They had a past. And while a common enemy was something that brought people together, it always seemed to be love that made them turn against each other. What a cruel, almost laughably ironic wink of fate.
Just like the fact that he was working with a monster. She'd never been a fan of werewolves, but that was treason of the finest.
How come Marcus was even voluntarily working with one of them? And since when did they accept that?
Weird times...
That was when realization struck her- she couldn't return to the city, amd she had no blood bottles here. Normally she snatched a few from the hospital every few weeks, but that would be too risky now...
She grumbled some annoyed curses under her breath.
She hated having to hunt her prey...

---***---

Monster's gaze flicked towards Aly when he heard her silent curse.
Her hand looked irritated from what he could see from giving her a short side glance.
He slightly narrowed his eyes, but lastly pushed it away.
He knew that it was impossible to be allergic to pure silver.
If some reacted to it it was because of alloys of different metals that were used to harden the silver, but he only used the absolutely pure stuff.
He also knew that, pretending it was an allergy, a reaction wouldn't be that fast.
He knew something was very wrong...
And he pushed it all away. Not even awarely, honestly, but his tired and bitter mind was so sick of having to turn against his partners. He had other things to worry about right now.

He gave a short scoff at Aly's question, not even meaning to sound mean or anything.
"She will never pull over unless I provoke her enough", he mumbled. Unlike the vampire in front of him, he didn't have inhuman senses, so maneuvering through the traffic was a lot harder for him.
He was on the shorter end of the lever, that much was clear.

"Let's say she and I- we have a past", he growled. "I got into the hunting buisness because of her. You see, she's been undead for a long time. She's experienced, intelligent and a natural in just disappearing. Seems to be calling herself Katherine this time, but I've tracked down her history. She was born over five hundred years ago, as Miss Victoria Petrova. What makes her dangerous is her heart. Press the right buttons and she'll let the wrath of five hundred years of suffering loose on you. She seems sweet and all, but don't be fooled- she's a monster on the inside."

 

[BippityBoppityBoop]

Katherine’s cool touch on his arm seemed to snap Simon out of his panicked state of mind. He slid his gaze back to her, her features contorted with something close to rage and hatred. It was clear even to him. From this angle he could see something different within her. It bubbled itself to her surface, changing her features until they seemed almost inhuman. For the first time since meeting her, he felt afraid of the young women.

Clearing his throat, Simon sat carefully up in the seat, taking a deep, steady breath.

“Right. Ok.” Despite his efforts to calm himself, his voice shook intensely. Not even realizing it, he moved further away from the redhead until his side was pressed against the door. What was he going to do? He couldn’t call anyone for help without notifying Katherine. She said she would get him to safety as soon as whoever was following them got lost, but was that true..? He barely knew her...

“Wh-who... who’s following us Katherine? Who is that guy? How do you know him?” If there was any chance he could get information out of her now he would take it. He needed to ease his mind, even if just a little. He glanced behind them to see three cars stalled in the middle of the road, seemingly shut down because of the engine. They pulled off quickly into a side road and it seemed they had lost whoever was following the pair.
———————————
Aly couldn’t help but give Marcus a questioning look. They knew each other?! Before she could ask more about it, the car screeched to a near halt as three cars in front of them seemed to shut down. Aly knew instantly it was the vampire’s doing, trying to lose them. Black smoke from the engines filled the air, and suddenly Aly felt angry. The feeling was so sudden that it surprised her a bit.

“Fooled? By a vampire? That’s doesn’t sound like me.” She said, her tone dripping with anger. Not at Marcus, no, but the monster who called herself Katherine. That damned vampire thought she was so smart.

Turning to her partner her eyes seemed to gleam with vengeance. Aly could feel the ugly feeling in her stomach, in her chest... it seemed to fill her whole person. She wasn’t exactly sure what had set her off. Maybe Marcus’ feelings were being rubbed off onto her, or maybe it was her hatred for monsters. Maybe it was the fact that Katherine thought she could get away so easily, but either way, Aly needed to see this thing dead.

“So let’s provoke her.” She suggested simply. She had faith in her partner, and she was sure he could get them back on track. Since he seemed to have a history with her, he would know how best to take her down. Aly turned now to look at the people who’s cars had stalled as they got out of their vehicles, looking perplexed.

They didn’t concern the hunters though. Not now at least. Aly took a deep breath, squeezing the spot where she had accidentally touched the silver. It helped ground her, and she felt the bad feeling slowly fade.

 

[Moonshine]

There was a rumbling deep inside her chest, something between a lion growling and the depths of hell opening up.
She hated this hate, the cold, hard want to wipe him out on the spot.
She knew that wasn't her, just the pain of her past, so she suppressed it and pushed it away, but having that man near her again made it much harder, of course.
Right now something in the back of her mind wanted sweet revenge. To pay him back for what he had done to her. He called her a monster, but the true monster here was him....

At Simon's question, she gave him a hesitant glance. She'd only spill the beans if she absolutely had to, so for now, some half-truth would have to suffice.
This wasn't something to be talked about while racing a car down a dark road in the dead of night.
She couldn't see Marcus in the rear view mirror.
Had her distraction worked? She couldn't be sure for now, but what she was sure of was that she needed to get as many miles between that man and herself as possible.

Slowing down to the current speed limit, Kat watched the scenery for a little too long, thinking about what version of the truth to serve Simon.
Lastly, a halfway sigh made it past her lips as the road took a turn to pass through a dark forest.
The trees lined like soldiers on the left and right would be a sufficient cover for now, she hoped.

"That man is called Marcus Hellstorm", she explained, finally answering her passenger's question.
"One could say we destroyed each other's lifes."
At that sentence, grief crossed her features for just a moment before she smiled wistfully.
"it all happened years ago."
Yes. Yes she knew it would sound more than odd to Simon, minding that she didn't look older than twenty.
"Back then, I had... Some false friends. Back then, they sent me here to check something out."
Another wistful smile followed. She shook her head.
"I met his older brother Aspen and it was like gravity. See, these false friends, I thought I could just ghost on them and start a new life. They found us after a few months and left us the choice - either he would join us, or they would wipe him out. So he did. Marcus wasn't exactly happy about it, but he knew that this was Aspen's choice. We've spent a year in peace, but they didn't trust him. Said he was still too human."

Kat scoffed hatefully while the same cold hatte from before returned into her pale face.
"one night, they attacked his family, to cut his last ties to his old life. They killed them all. Marcus saw it all happen. And when they wanted to get to him, Aspen arrived to defend his family. They killed him too. When they left I managed to save Marcus, but it was too late for the others.
Marcus blames me for what happened. And ever since he's after people like me to his revenge. And I am his number one target."

---***---

Monster had a habit to always narrow his eyes, but right now they narrowed a little more at the smoking cars in front of him.
Typical Katherine.
The hate oozing from Sky surprised even him though, and he looked at her quizzically for a moment, before he steered the car past Katherine's makeshift barricade and pulled over into the emergency lane.
He should've known better than to think he could get his hands on that filthy bloodsucker like that.

And while he would have hesitated to play out that one trump card, Aly's blazing hate was fueling his own like dry hay thrown into a fire.
"I need to make a call."
He got out of the car, his phone lifted to his hear, and paced up and down like a lion while he was apparently discussing intensely with whoever was on the end of the line.

Marcus was about to cross a line he'd normally never have been able to. But the events of the past were unstoppably approaching their tenth anniversary, and, like every anniversary of that day, the monster in him got restless and vengeful.

Oh he didn't only call himself monster because he looked Ike one, or because some people called him like that.
Nobody knew, but he was probably as far away from being human as any other monster.
Something was stirring, a beast awakening, ready to wage a war against anything and everything... Or everyone who got in his its way.

When he got back into the car, he drove a fre more miles before he too ka turn to the left, blazing eyes glaring holes into the windshield.
His claws, adorning the tips of his fingers, were drumming on the steering wheel.
"We will hurt her at her weakest spot", he growled.
"And luckily I know exactly what that is."

 

[BippityBoppityBoop]

Simon stared blankly at her for a few solid seconds before finally deciding to speak up.

“So,” he closed his mouth and opened to try again, “so you were with some bad people. We’re just going to say the mafia because that’s exactly what this shit sounds like. Anyways, so you were chillin’ with them, decided to leave after they sent you somewhere for this crazy dude’s brother,” he motioned behind them, indicating that he was talking about Marcus, “and...and they ended up finding you and basically killing Aspen’s entire family except the angry guy. Because- ya know. You saved him.” He nodded, avoiding eye contact with his neighbor.

“Awesome. So... if you’ve been running from him all of these years- I’m assuming this is why you had to move so much- why did you think he wouldn’t be able to find you if he found you every other time?” He wasn’t sure whether to be angry at her for basically dragging him into this, or sympathetic because she couldn’t seem to get away from this guy.

“And- and why don’t you just call the cops? Get a restraining order on this Marcus dude. They could lock him up for a long time I think!” If Simon had known what they really were, he would have realized just how stupid he sounded. However, he probably would have fainted at that point. He could understand where this Marcus guy was coming from as well, but at the same time he found himself leaning more towards Katherine’s side. It wasn’t her fault. She didn’t know they would follow her, and he knew love could be a bitch.

“Well, whatever. I guess it’s too late for any of that considering it’s already been a couple of years.... Katherine,” turning to her, his face turned extremely serious, “I want to help you get rid of this guy. I mean listen, I’m not exactly happy about being in this situation now, but I also don’t want you to keep running. Sounds exhausting, really.” He nervously checked behind them again, but thankfully nobody was there still.

“What can I do to help?”
——————————
As Marcus stepped out of the car, Aly turned her attention to her hand. It was already growing red and extremely irritated, but the sting of it was dying down to a little tingle. She could actually remember when this started. It was around the same time her dad began to hate her. When she was little. She remembered her father used to give her shots to help heal her. At least, that’s what he said.

He told her that she used to be very sick as a child and would give her shots of medicine every few days. Funnily enough, Aly usually got even sicker after the shots. She absolutely hated taking them, but her father was so persistent.. there was one shot in particular that she hated the most. The one that gave her this embarrassing allergy. She hated it because it made her father turn on her, and made her the target of a few hateful jokes about her being a vampire or a werewolf.

The car door opening shoved her out of her thoughts, and she jumped a little. Turning to her partner she gave him a quizzical stare. She felt like asking who was on the phone was probably a bad idea, so she turned her attention to the window shield again.

Aly couldn’t help but smile at his words. So they were finally going to take her down for good?

“I feel kind of honored,” Aly teased, “that I get to be the one to be with you when you take her out. So, where are we headed?”

 

[Moonshine]

As even Kat with her fine senses couldn't smell the werewolf anymore and even the toxic, acid smell of the poison in Marcus' blood stopped stinging in her nose, she pulled over into the forest, the matte black paint of her car luckily blending well into the darkness.
She needed a plan.
And she needed to know what Marcus was going to do next. As she knew him, he hadn't lost her. He had just changed his strategy. And to be honest, that scared her more then still having him racing after her on a highway.
She had seen it in his eyes, the madness flaring up, a beast breaking loose.
Something had happened to him, and she had a distinct feeling that it wasn't just his hate. Something was going on with him, and if things would take a turn to the worst, whatever it was would mean destruction to them all.
But right now, she had to focus on the here and now.

"I thought he was dead", she finally said to answer Simon's question. "He found me shortly after the whole incident with Aspen. Back then I fled into the catacombs below the city. He followed me, but the basilisk living down there got him. The poison should have killed him.... I wonder why it made h mutate instead..."
She thoughtfully watched the leaves of the trees swaying softly in the nightly breeze, when Simon's next words caught her completely off-guard.

She stared at him with wide eyes, looking as if he had just suggested to fly to the moon on a cloud of glittering cotton candy.
It took her quite a moment to regain her ability to even think, before she slightly shook her head.
"Simon I- I can't accept that. You don't know what you're getting yourself into. This is so far bigger than you can imagine-"

Now more than ever, she felt alone. So very alone.
She stayed anonymous to anyone, had no friends, no one to turn to, and the one person who did know her she needed to stay away from... It was better that way.
With all those enemies on her heels she wouldn't dare to be obviously connected to anyone.
But she hadn't expected things to take a turn like this.

She thought of the look of insanity in Marcus eyes.
He looked like he was slowly losing all humanity... And what if that would drive him far enough to get a hold on Simon and threaten his life or wellbeing for informations about her?
It was so hard to tell what was wrong and what was right...
Lastly, she sighed silently.
"Listen, I-.... In the end it's your decision whether you will leave now and forget about everything that has happened today and just move on with your life or you'll stay... For whatever reason. But I need you to know that, if you stay, your life will never be the same. You'll be in danger every second of the day. And you'll learn about secrets some people are willing to kill for - either to make sure you'll never spill them, or to make you spill them. You'll never be sure who to trust, and sooner or later it might be kill or be killed."

Her amber eyes were seeking his, and somewhere deep within her gaze lingered a chaos of feelings. Loneliness, hope, fear...
"Please think this through before you make a decision. I don't want you to get into something you'll regret."

---***---

Monster just shook his head, his gaze so full of inhuman wrath.
"There's no honor in what we are about to do, but I need to see this monster dead", he snarled.
It actually sounded like his human side was fighting against whatever monster was trying to take control.
His eyes seemed to gleam even brighter as he basted his teeth in a deep, rumbling snarl before he smashed the accelerator down and sent the car shooting forwards, engine howling line a wolf.

To be honest he barely understood himself. Yes, he hated Victoria, alias Katherine, but till now there had always been things he wasn't willing to do to get to her.
But now all these inner borders seemed to fade.
Now he'd go so much farther to just see her dead.

"We're heading to Montana", he growled.
It would take them some time to arrive there, but once they'd be there they'd have their ultimate weapon against this God forsaken bitch. Hell, she'd die. And if it was the last thing he'd do.
What?
Something was going on with him, wasn't it? But maybe it was good... Maybe it would help him to finally get his hands on her. Maybe he'd finally shed the last fragments of humanity and become the monster they had made him.
What would it matter as long as it meant having her gone?
"She's hiding someone there. Someone very important to her. Imagine something would happen to them. We'll drive her to the breaking point. First, we'll get out hands on that person. Then we'll isolate her. And when she's almost breaking we'll make use of our captive."

 

[BippityBoppityBoop]

Simon sat for what felt like hours, just listening to Katherine talk and sometimes mumble to herself about Marcus. He didn't know where to start honestly. The fact that she thought basilisks were living under the city? Or perhaps that the age old myth about the catacombs under the city was apparently real. For a brief moment Simon couldn't help but wonder if his neighbor needed more help than just trying to escape from some lunatic. Taking in a shuddering breath, he finally met the redhead's sharp, serious gaze. Her face conveyed confusion as well as..anger? Or was it sadness? He wasn't exactly sure, but he did know that it only made him want to stay with her more. Despite her warnings about getting dragged into this life, he couldn't help but feel obligated to help. Wasn't he technically dragged into this already? How much worse could it be?

"I think you and I both know I'm staying. I know you want me to think it over carefully but...I don't know. I think you can take care of yourself, don't get me wrong, but I also can tell it's taking its toll on you. Wouldn't you want a little company anyways? It seems so much more scary that you have to do it alone," he sighed, picking at the loose threads of his jeans, "I want to help you get away from this guy. You seem really nice from the time I've spent with you and nobody deserves to be on the run for the rest of their life. Besides, I could use a little adventure and some social interaction now and again." He teased, giving Katherine a crooked smile. In the back of his mind he knew there were some selfish reasons for staying as well. For one, he wouldn't have to feel guilty if he were to go home and "forget". He also wouldn't have to sit and wonder what ever happened to the girl he spent one night with running away from some dude who was out to get her.

"Also, a basilisk? You..you sure that's what it was? A huge snake living under the city?" He stared at his acquaintance, trying his best to not make it sound like he was calling her crazy. The fact that this Marcus guy was a mutant wasn't as crazy to believe, but still a bit strange. Everyone knew mutants were real, but it was odd to see one in real life. Simon supposed seeing one in this situation wasn't too much of a stretch. The fact that Marcus was chasing poor Katherine all around the world just to get revenge on something that happened years ago was one thing, but him being a mutant was another. Yes, Simon was no stranger to the labels and biases society put on mutants. He saw no wrongs with the ways of his thinking, and really this fact only made him want to get rid of Marcus more.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Aly nodded silently, the hatred now boiling down to annoyance. For the most part it was manageable, and she was able to turn her attention to something else. She was going to ask Marcus why he hadn't gone after this person before. It seemed odd that he had been chasing Victoria for years and hadn't thought of it until now. Or maybe he had, but something had held him back... these questions stuck in the back of her throat though considering that Marcus seemed to be in a bad mood. She didn't want to make him angrier, so she sat silently. Because she had only known Marcus for a little while, she was unaware that this was fairly unusual for him. Perhaps he always got this way while going after the vampire?

She couldn't blame him though. Going after monsters had an effect on you no matter who you were, and if you and said monster had a past? That would definitely make things a bit more stressful. The apprentice hunter turned her attention to the phoenix tear on the bracelet, the bubbles inside keeping her distracted for a while. Montana was a while away, so she would have to be prepared for a long road trip, possibly in silence. As much as she didn't like not talking, she didn't want Marcus to hate her already and decide to drop her as a partner on their first mission together. She felt like a kid who had just gotten in trouble by an angry parent. A soft sigh escaped her lips and after a few minutes decided it would be ok to turn his attention away from the task at hand.

"So maybe we should get to know each other a little more. I can start if you want?" She thought for a moment before gritting her teeth.

"Alright, I'm going to tell you something I've never told anyone before. My name is actually Alyson, not just Aly." She puffed her cheeks in annoyance, glancing away awkwardly. She hated that name. Not that Aly was much better, but it was a tiny improvement.

"I'm a Pisces- not that I care for that zodiac stuff. I'm more of a cat than a dog person, and I love the color green. I've never tried apple juice in my life even though my mother used to drink it constantly. Also I think you should know just in case it comes down to it, I can't drive for shit. I don't actually have my license." She shrugged and picked at her fingernails, waiting for him to tell her about himself.

 

[Moonshine]

Katherine smiled wistfully when Simon made it clear to her that he would be staying.
If she had learned something in her long life it was that it was that humans could be almost as pig-headed as vampires. Some even more.
If he wanted to stay she'd let him. In the end it was his decision; who was she to forbid him anything?
But what was also clear was that, if he was really staying with her, she wouldn't be able to hide her secret forever. She'd need food sometime, and if it wasn't for that, he'd find out once she'd have to defend herself against Marcus.

"Fine", she said, her sad smile turning into more of an excited smirk.
Keeping a secret like hers was exhausting, especially because it put a chasm between her and the world. Everyone seemed so far away, because she had to keep them at a distance to keep her secret.
And while it was scary to reveal herself... The thought of it actually felt relieving now.
"In that case there's something you should maybe know about me... And the whole world honestly."

She stepped out of the car and walked a few steps. While she was walking, her tattoo of a pair of black, feathered wings started to move, the tattoo turning into actual wings.
She turned back around to him, her wings carrying her up into the air with a few soft flaps.
"There's more than you can imagine out there", she said simply, landing again.
The moonlight was shining right on her fiery hair and pale skin.
Her eyes seemed to glow through hthe darkness.
"I'm a vampire. And I'm, like, really old", she chuckled. "Over five hundred years, actually."
She shrugged, her wings settling around her shoulders like a dark gown.
"But don't worry, I'm a pacifist! I don't hunt humans."

---***---

Once again, Aly struck Monster's comfortably somber wall of hate with a bazooka. Who was this little human to do something like that?!
It had been a hard piece of work, gaining that reputation of an unapproachable, cold hunter!
It wasn't fair!
She was just sitting there acting as if he was still Marcus. But Marcus was dead, he was long gone, had died long before the basilisk had even attacked him.
And Marcus couldn't come back.
Marcus meant weakness.
Monster was the strong one.
But right now it seemed like she had started a fire somewhere deep in his mind and kept fanning the flames while Monster was standing amidst them, staring at his beloved walls burning.

Fine.
He'd play along for now.

When he opened his mouth to reply to her explanations, realization struck him that he basically hadn't thought about anything like that in, what, a decade?

He blinked a few times, now actually looking quite clueless.

Though it probably was a little uncomfortable for Aly to wait him to say something for so long, he took a few minutes to think about what to say. Some questions, he still couldn't really answer when he finally spoke up, probably late enough to seem weird.
.... Oh well.

"Well, uh-...", he stuttered. This was probably the most humble and human he'd been in years.
"Well, fine..."
He couldn't believe he was really doing this.
He actually even turned a little red... Or, well, purple, in his case.
"Something I've never told anyone... I-..."
He cleared his throat.
"If you take a look in the trunk you'll see that there's a guitar... Because, you know, I eh- I can play the guitar... And sing-..."
He cleared his throat awkwardly.
Had he just really said that??!
Oh God...
Trying to somehow change topic, he just moved on to reply to the rest of her explanations.

"Uh... To be honest I don't know my star sign. To be even more honest... I'm not even sure when my own birthday is. Makes it hard to guess my age as well. Might be that I'm actually still 26 or already 28...no idea. My fake ID says it's October 15th... My second name is Jim, my favorite color orange and hey, I'm a cat person, too."
The silent laughter coming from him was probably the first one in years as he slightly shook his head.
When he looked at Aly, there actually was something like warmth in his gaze.
For a moment, there was only Marcus, smiling, laughing Marcus.
And it scared him. For the first time in years he was scared as well. Marcus was so weak...
"Ah and- sometimes my color changes to normal."
Smiling nervously, he rubbed the back of his neck with one hand.
"it hasn't happened in years, but when it happens, I'd love to... Forget, for just a day, that I'm a hunter, and just go to the city. I normally stay away from people. They are scared of me, so being just a normal person for once would be a blast, I think - "
The last part of what he had said actually sounded more like he was talking to himself.
He shook his head, brows knitting together a little.
"Ah what am I talking...sorry about that - eh-..."

 

[BippityBoppityBoop]

Because Simon was...well, Simon, he failed to notice Katherine's sad smile regarding his answer to stay with her. If he had noticed he may have overthought his decision. He definitely didn't want her to be sad about it. This was mostly for her, to help her get away from the mutant. Her excited smile seemed to be infectious anyways and soon Simon found himself mirroring it. However it quickly fell into a confused, blank stare, her next words more ominous than her smile lead him to think. He followed her outside, the sudden windchill of the night mixing with the light from the moon making for a very uncomfortable and almost frightening atmosphere. He went around the car to stand in front of Katherine, a shiver running down his spine.

As he watched her walk away from him, he noticed for the first time a tattoo of two large, black wings. The more he stared at them the more they almost seemed to move, as if coming to life. In fact... Simon squinted in disbelief as the wings grew out from Katherine's back. The moonlight glinted eerily off of them as they lifted the petite redhead off of the ground effortlessly.

"What?!" The brunette clasped his hand over his mouth to keep from screaming. He fell back against the cement road and scrambled until his back hit the side of her car. Her words, which were supposed to comfort him most likely, did nothing to ease his already shot nerves.

'Vampires? Basilisks? What else is there...?' Simon put his head in his hands, vaguely aware of Katherine's presence next to him again. He felt so out of the loop of... really everything now. Everything he thought was just fiction turned out to hold a lot of truth to it. It felt like hours before he finally lifted his head back up. He couldn't bring himself to look at her, not yet. He couldn't blame her. She did warn him that he was getting into a lot of things that were beyond his understanding, and yet he didn't listen. A voice in the back of his mind told him that he wasn't exactly upset about it either.

Gathering up any courage he could find, he turned to face Katherine. His face was nearly as pale as hers.

"I have... a lot of questions... first of all... h-how? Were you born like this or..?" He couldn't finish the thought. This was a lot to take in for someone like him, so he figured he was allowed to freak out a bit.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Aly forced her gaze to stay on her hands as if there were something about them that were much more interesting than the conversation they were having. Inside however she almost burst with excitement. She had never heard anything remotely personal about Marcus really and honestly didn't even think her attempt to get him to talk about himself would work. She had definitely caught him off guard though and it took everything in her not to smile at her accomplishment. For a minute she thought that perhaps she really had upset him he took so long to answer, but when he finally spoke up Aly was a bit surprised herself. She listened to her partner intently as he stumbled his way through explanations about himself, nodding every now and again to let him know she was listening.

Her dark brown gaze snapped quickly up to him after hearing his small apology.

"You don't have to apologize," she laughed, now sitting criss-crossed in her seat, "now we can say we are better friends! Also I vote on getting us a cat partner. Like on Scooby Doo, how they have a dog?" She giggled at the thought, somewhat wishing it to be true. Finally her face fell into a more serious expression.

"You know, we could always make up a date? For your birthday I mean. We could celebrate it in the city once we find out what made you look...human. I can show you around! There are a lot of places I think you would like. Well, I guess I really don't know what you would like, but I'm sure there would be something." Aly fell silent again. Not only was it society who made Marcus look less than human, but Aly was beginning to see that maybe Marcus himself agreed a little too much with them.

"Also I hope you know that I will force you to play a song for me one of these days."

 

[Moonshine]

Kat was watching him in silence as Simon was going through the whole process of surprise, shock, realization and acceptance... In a time so short it really left her impressed.
Most people reacted far worse when they found out that there were things far beyond what they knew.
She'd seen people running away screaming, reaching for the next pointy wooden thing to impale her, run to the kitchen to search for garlic, shaping an improvised crucifix with whatever they had within reach... Two cucumbers, just to mention one example, or start mumbling exorcisms in Latin or even Enochian.
They had the wildest ideas regarding vampires, especially that lady who had made a whole generation imagine vampires as glittering, broody guys who had cgi-babies with human girls that were apparently missing the ability to show facial expressions.
Simon's reaction to her vampirism was almost professional, compared to them.

She slightly narrowed one eye, watching the man in front of her with a mixture of surprise and confusion written clearly in her amber gaze.
"I-"
Katherine blinked a couple of times.
To be honest she had expected she'd have to run after Simon now, to try and stop him from telling the next official that he'd been kidnapped by a vampire.
Not that any normal person would have believed something like that, but, being what she was, caution was the number one priority.
You could never be sure whether or not someone was a hunter in disguise.
Every other vampire would have probably lynched her for even telling Simon about her secret, but... For some reason she had a distinct feeling that she could trust him...

Talking about trust - she figured that, if she wanted to be able to trust Simon, she should be fair enough to be trustworthy as well.
So, as risky as it was, she'd only serve him the truth.
And maybe leave a detail or two out to tell him later, when he'd have adjusted to this situation.

She took a seat on the ground next to him, giving him a tentative smile as he bombarded her with a few questions.
"You can ask me whatever you want", she said gently. "I will answer all of them truthfully. That much I can promise you."
At his question about how, she shrugged, smirking a little helplessly.
"Well... Pretty much like every other vampire?", she explained. "I was born a little over 500 years ago in Bulgaria, under the name of Victoria Petrova. I lived there until I was fifteen, then I ran away and worked in a bar. The owners offered me board and lodging for my work.
And 5 years later I met Lord Harkon. He saw something in me, I guess, and asked me to marry him that very evening we first met. Marriage... Was not a matter of love back then. You married for profit, for business...
Well and in our wedding night, he revealed to me what he really was. A vampire. He offered to turn me and I agreed. I had... Some bones to pick, and the power of a vampire was my chance."
She thoughtfully picked her fingernails, taking a moment until she continued her explanations.
"You see, Lord Harkon is the leader of the Coven, a group of vampires including almost all bigger vampire clans out there. But then the thing with Aspen happened and I started thinking everything over. He showed me that I, although I am a vampire, I can still decide what I want my fate to be, and when Harkon and his Coven of monsters attacked... I left.
The ultimate insult for Harkon. Well and now I am on my own, with my ex-husband and his marionettes chasing me across the globe to punish me for my 'betrayal' and a crazed out hunter trying to kill me for revenge. While I actually just wanna live in peace after all this time."
She shrugged once more.
"So eh, summed up, I was turned by my crazy husband without thinking about what I was getting into."

---***---

Monster didn't really know what to say.
There was one thing he was aware of though- her way of talking to him and acting towards him made his human side show more.
The monster inside him was a silent as it hadn't been for years, and he wasn't sure what to make of it.
On the one hand it was unsettling...
He knew how fragile his human side actually was, after all his monstrous side was only there for exactly that one reason - self-protection.
On the other hand it somehow was... A relief, to feel normal for the first time in so long.
Or, well, as normal as a blue man with pointy ears, claws, fangs and a tail could be.
In her presence, he felt like there was no tail protruding from his spine though.
He felt... Relaxed.
Just relaxed and easy.

The first laugh in years emerged from his chest at her comment about adopting a cat. He reached into the back of his car to get the notepad and ripped one page out.
It took him a few minutes to remember all the steps, but after a few tries, he handed Aly an origami cat, a wide, wolfish grin adorning his face.
"There you go. Your very own cat", he chuckled, raising an eyebrow afterwards,when she suggested just making up a birthday for him.
"I- do you think that would be possible?", he asked a little sheepishly.

It was way past midnight by now, and he slowly felt it getting to him.
He was starting to tire a little; a yawn roared up his throat, actually sounding somewhat like a lion.
"That... Sounds nice, actually", he mumbled, quite silently as he still felt quite insecure about how much humanity and friendliness he should show.
Jeez he felt like he'd been living under a rock for the past few years.

"Uh, I might be a little rusty, regarding social skills", he chuckled, awkwardly running his hand through his hair before he focused his sulfur eyes on the road again, taking a moment to think about what else Aly had suggested.
Something he'd like to do in the city...
Hm...
"Well, I've actually never thought about what I'd like to do in the city", he admitted after a while. "Maybe just... You said you know a lot of places. Maybe just go see those. I'm not picky, I guess."

Silence settled over the hunters as both fell silent, and while Monster mostly preferred that silence, his mind was running hot trying to come up with something to say right now.
He sighed thankfully when Aly was the first to speak up again, but groaned in response, grinning uneasily.
"Oh no...", he chuckled. "You won't let me get away that easily on that one, huh?"
He slightly shook his head, laughing silently.
"Fine, fine. I'm getting tired anyway. What about we stop at the next gas station, get us some snacks for dinner and camp in the car?"

 

[BippityBoppityBoop]

Simon watched Katherine's every facial and body movement, suddenly more attentive than ever. Her shocked expression (something he couldn't place) slowly faded into a relaxed, almost sympathetic smile. She took a seat next to him and he suddenly felt like a child being comforted by a parent. He laid his head down on his arms that were crossed on his knees, feeling a wave a nausea come over him again. The fear had settled into more of a numb feeling now, and all the curly haired boy could do was sit and listen. And listen. And listen. Her story went on for ages, but he was immersed. He could see it all happening behind his eyelids, and the feelings that burned so intensely in the redhead next to him were felt like an echo in his own chest. He could certainly sympathize with her, but how? Wasn't she just the same as those dirty mutants that ran around town? The same as Marcus? Simon couldn't bring himself to look at her like that. Somehow she was different, and when he opened his eyes he could feel hot tears running down his cheek.

Katherine's- or perhaps Victoria's- and his own lives were not the same in any way shape or form. She had experienced so much of the world (of course not in the way one would probably think ideal) and he had lived here his whole life. Hell, his mother only lived a few blocks away from him, although of course they never spoke. Not after their fight. Katherine- Victoria- was something inhumane while Simon was probably the closest thing you could get to human. Somehow though he managed to understand her. Understand her pain, her fear, her frustrations, and that only made him want to see justice done more than ever. The more she spoke the more he was sure he made the right decision in staying.

"I'm sorry that happened to you," He offered the apology and smiled lightly at her, "I guess that answers my next question then. There are more like you? And...not just vampires but giant snakes and- and other things I'm guessing." He wondered how many fairy tales were actually true and which humans had twisted to fit their views. He ran a trembling hand through his hair even though the fear had completely depleted. He supposed he was just getting the after-gitters.

Finally he stood up, his legs wobbling so badly that he had to hold onto the car for support. He offered his free hand to Katherine to help her up.

"So I guess I do have one more important question. Why don't we fight back?"
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Aly cracked a wide smile at hearing Marcus laugh. It was a laugh that could've made even the most hardened and cold-hearted person grin. She couldn't imagine how anyone could think this man so inhumane when every move and every look was the most human thing she had ever experienced. She felt happy and free, nearly forgetting the mission they were on and the reason for heading in their direction. She couldn't remember ever laughing with someone like this before, not even her own family. The young hunter shifted her eyes to the backseat when Marcus had reached behind them and pulled out a piece of paper. She glanced at him quizzically as he began folding the paper into complex designs that eventually she had to give up figuring out what the hell it was. A small, excited gasp escaped her lips when he brought up a small origami cat and handed it to her. She took it delicately and brought it up close to inspect it.

"So is there anything you can't do? You're making me feel inferior!" She teased as she set the small cat down on her lap.

"I'll name him AJ after apple juice because my two things on my bucket list I just made up is trying some apple juice for the first time and getting a cat when I get old and live alone." She laughed and held the little cat close, making sure it didn't fall. Marcus grew serious then, wondering if she meant everything about his birthday. This time it was her turn to laugh.

"Of course it's possible. I'll make sure you have the greatest birthday ever, whenever you decide it to be." She smiled at him, and suddenly his yawn found it's way over to her. She suddenly realized just how late it was, and at the mention of snacks her stomach rumbled.

"Good idea. I've got some money with me so I'll pay for the snacks." She could feel her eyes begin to close and only about 15 minutes later when she felt the car slow to a stop did she open them again. The gas station lights made her squint as she hopped out, the sudden chill from the night air waking her up more than she would've liked. After getting Marcus' request for snacks she walked in and began looking.

 

[Moonshine]

Katherine watched her new, unexpected companion attentively.
She really didn't know what to make of all this. Sure, there were selfless people out there, or at least helpful ones, but it was like winning the lottery: you hear about people winning loads of money, but you'd never expect it to happen to yourself.
It seemed too unlikely, the chance was too small.
The more it confused her to see all this compassion packed into this mere human being.
It was sad to think that his life would end so very soon. Or, well, 'soon' for the eternal lifespan of a vampire. The world really needed more people like him.

Her eyes widened when he finally lifted his head off his arms and revealed his face covered in tears.
What?
Why?
This was all just so, so confusing.
"There's absolutely no reason for you to offer me any apology", she said gently. "The only one who should say sorry here is me,really. I didn't mean to drag you into this, you know? I had no idea Marcus is still alive..."

Then he mentioned his question about other vampires and creatures existing being answered, and the vampire nodded slowly.
If he just knew. There were so many things lurking out there in the in the dark, and just as many living among humans hidden in the bright light of day.
Sometimes she wondered if the world would be a better place - for everyone involved - if everyone just knew about all the Cryptos living among them.
She nodded, smirking faintly, not quite sure about how much knowledge she could burden him with.
"Oh yes", she chucked. "I'd almost go as far as to say that the field of cryptozoology is nearly as vast as terrestrial zoology. Although humanity has eh... their own take on some of those beings. At first it was only unicorns, but now you people go as far as to say vampires sparkle!"
Chuckling, she winked at Simon, hoping to somehow cheer him up a little.
"Though I have to admit that the... Borders... Between many crypto species are quite blurry."

For a second when Simon got up Katherine actually worried that he'd faint any second, seeing how wobbly his legs seemed to be right now.
But then he offered her his hand to help her stand up and she gave him another tentative smile.
Her slender, cool hand slipped into his; while her touch would feel cold to him, his felt almost scorchingly hot.
She got up, using the moment to think about the question he'd just just asked.
Well there wasn't really any need to think about why she didn't fight, but rather how to tell him without making everything sound like straight from a horror movie.
"Well, regarding Marcus, I thought he was dead", she reasoned. "And, I get him. I really get him and I hate the thought of killing him. I'm a pacifist, I don't just-..." she slightly shook her head. "there was way enough killing in my past. And the Coven, well, for once it would be two against fifty. We're outnumbered. Plus, you are human and I'm weak. The Coven still hunts humans, and the fresh blood, the souls of their victims fading at the edge of their fangs gives them power animal blood or blood bottles from a hospital can't even be remotely compared to. What I can do right now is just a shadow of what I could--and what the Coven is capable of. I don't see a single way we'd survive a fight against them, honestly..."

---***---

Marcus laughed at her comment of there being anything he couldn't do.
He grinned a little, grinning as if he was about to tell the best joke ever.
"Mmmhhh... I can't swim", he mentioned, lifting his index finger as if he was explaining something unbelievably important to an audience.
"Ah, and I'm scared as hell of goats. They once asked me to take on a case of a chimera running wild at a campsite. I politely turned that one down and risked being ripped to shreds by three yetis at a grocery store instead."

The look on his face as he turned to grin at his partner was one of affection, like they had been partners and best friends for years on end.
He felt so at ease just having fun and talking about the most random topics with her, and that very moment he realized that he really wouldn't want to miss her sitting there next to him. Maybe it distracted him from what he was actually here for, maybe it made him less effective in doing his job, but it also made him happy; and that was something he really didn't feel often these days.
As dumb as it sounded - it felt like family.
It felt normal.
And after all that had happened, maybe could really use some normality in his life. Normality... And a friend like Aly.
"I've taken some lessons on runes, during the year I've spent in hospital", he explained as Aly mentioned naming the cat AJ.
"There's one that calls upon restless spirits and allows them to possess whatever is marked with the rune. I once practiced that on a piece of paper, and suddenly it starts folding itself into a tiny little man- Chester. He effectively used the rest of my time recovering to teach me origami."
Yeah, that was one of the very few funny anecdotes he could tell about his misadventures, but he had a gut feeling that now that he had Aly as a partner, they'd make some great memories. She was like that little ray of light giving him a good mood.

He stayed silent for a while, wondering what to say to her promise... What S the right thing to say in a moment like this?
Thank you? Good, but trivial...
He really wasn't the best at interpersonal matters.
But just when he wanted to speak up and thank her, he noticed that her eyes were closed. So he just smiled and drove on, giving her some time to rest.
As he pulled over into the parking lot at the gas station he just wanted to get out of the car and go buy some snacks when Aly was quicker.
"um... Just some sandwiches and snickers", he said. Should he go with her? But she was gone so quickly he was left wondering what to now.
So he just decided he'd get out of the car and move a little. After walking across the parking lot a little, he settled to sit on the bonnet of his car, watching the Night sky. He sighed contently, for a moment with nothing on his mind that had anything to do with Cryptos.

 

[BippityBoppityBoop]

Simon shrugged, giving her a side smile as she stood beside him. He continued to keep a hand on the car for safety measures, but could feel the dizziness start to fade.

"I know I don't have to apologize it's just... I hate that for you. Running for all of your life. Sure you're...well, you're different,"
'That's an understatement'
"but nobody should have to go through that.." Even to himself he sounded like a hypocrite. How could he stand here saying all of that to her while on the other hand he was very aware of his ugly hatred for mutants. Why did he hate them exactly? He knew why. A mutant caused the distance with his mother and himself of course. Perhaps he had just fanned the flames the mutant had started, but even Simon wasn't prone to being in denial that he himself had anything to do with it.

"Plus you did try to give me warning. I can't be mad at you when I didn't listen." He grinned at her, then turned to lean his back against the driver's side door, looking out at the dense, dark forest on the other side of the road. With his newfound knowledge of monsters and creatures lurking around it was hard to not glance away in fear of seeing something in there looking at them.

"I don't blame you for any of this I hope you know," he offered after a few seconds of silence, "I mean you were just trying to be helpful I suppose." He sighed. No, he didn't blame her at all. He blamed fate. Fate decided that he should be the unlucky man tonight to learn that all of the things that go bump in the night are probably not just your imagination. Perhaps, though, it was relief for Simon. A relief from his average, boring life.

He found himself letting out a small chuckle at Katherine's not so subtle hint about Twilight, getting a bit embarrassed at his own species for making up something like that. Even worse now that he knew vampire's were real and also apparently very aware of the movies and books.

"Not a big fan myself honestly." He assured her, laughing. At the mention of her reasoning behind not fighting he grew serious again. He nodded slowly, then turned to her.

"Why don't you feed on humans? I mean, not kill them but just... just take some blood, you know? I mean, wouldn't you have to eventually get your powers back..?" He felt stupid for asking, but he had to know. There had to be some way to beat these people and get Katherine her own life back...
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
As Aly looked for Marcus' desired snacks, she couldn't shake the feeling of someone watching her. She didn't want to look stupid or suspicious by looking around, so she continued on as normal, now getting some chips for herself and going to find some apple juice. She was going to complete her one of two items on her bucket list tonight, and she felt oddly excited about something so minuscule. While she was looking for the drink she happened to glance at the reflection in the fridge door and managed to catch a tall guy near the cash register looking at her. Narrowing her eyes she turned to look at him, but he glanced away the minute she did so. Writing it off as someone just checking her out (she got it a lot more than she cared to admit), she turned to find her drink. After a few seconds of searching, she managed to find said drink and excitedly opened the door to grab it.

As she turned to head back to the cash register the strange man now stood right in front of her, glaring menacingly. She gasped at the sudden appearance and turned to walk past him but he stuck his arm out rudely so she couldn't pass. Without a word he grabbed her arm roughly and brought it to her face, causing her to drop her items.

"What are you?" He hissed at her. He held the hand with the burn on it, shoving it in her face as if she didn't know it was there.

"Get the fuck off of me!" She growled at him, pushing her whole body into him to get him to back up. Compared to his size though she was nowhere near his strength, so he didn't move very far.

"Werewolf. Is that it? This is a burn from silver right?" She stared at him, only then realizing that he was a hunter. She didn't need to explain anything to him though, especially with the way he was acting.

"I said get-"

"Is there a problem?" They both looked over to see the lady who was at the cash register now glaring at the man. He slowly put her hand down and stepped back from her.

"No. There's no problem." He said, and walked out without another word. The cashier glanced at Aly with a sympathetic look and picked her dropped items up to hand to her.

"Don't worry about paying dear. Just go ahead and get out of here." Aly thanked the lady and swiftly walked out, hesitating a bit before walking back to the Impala. There was no sign of the man, so she gathered her nerves and met up with Marcus.

"Here you go." She smiled, handing him the sandwich and snickers. There was no need to tell him what happened. It was over now. She opened apple juice and glanced at her partner.

"Ok this is my first time trying this. If it's not good I'm changing our cat's name. I like Chester." She said with a smile, referring to the little man that taught Marcus origami. She took a quick swig and paused, deciding she did like it. Nodding, she smiled.

"We are sticking with AJ." She laughed.

 

[Moonshine]

Katherine couldn't help but laugh a little at Simon's way of calling her different.
That was like saying that explaining the String Theory to a monkey was a little tricky.
Fact was, she was supposed to be dead for far more than four hundred years and still she was here, talking, eating, optionally breathing...
And despite all this she probably was the only vampire so close to being a human.
It was ironic, in a weird kind of way.

Though, about one thing, she absolutely could agree with him.
No one should go through that.
If he'd known the full story of her time with the Coven he'd probably change his mind and say that she deserved it, but she really didn't want to start a fight now, or lose what was her only friend.
Maybe she'd tell him sometime... Maybe not.
Keeping things to herself had become a part of her nature in all this time.
After all, secrecy was her way to survive.

"And now imagine you've only scratched the surface.", she said silently as Simon was looking at the forest, her own eyes spotting clearly what was hiding among the shadows.
A few does, rabbits, an Ent... For a human it only looked like a regular tree, but she could see the microscopic movements of its breath.
Luckily, they usually were very friendly creatures, only attacking when they absolutely had to.
Basically the exact opposite of her own kind.
The swaying of its leaves was almost hypnotical to her fine senses.
She just watched in silence, letting her thoughts drift off.
It was a warm summer night, like that night she had left Volikhar castle, her husband, her brothers and sisters and her whole life behind.
The weather had been unfitting for an escape like that, she'd already thought that back then. In a movie it would have rained.
Her thoughts drifted even further, to a day before she'd been turned by Harkon. She had been sixteen or something... Her crying had rung loud in her ears. She hadn't looked at her, had avoided to look into her face for she knew she'd never see her again.
Her crying faded as they brought her away and left her empty, weak and full of anger.
What a mistake to underestimate the power of her hate.
She'd never forgotten... And four years later... They all were dead.
And while she regretted a lot of what she'd done, she still felt nothing for their murders. A constant reminder of what she could do and could be.

Simon's question distracted her and brought her back into the here and now.
She blinked a couple of times, focusing on him instead of her memories.
"Well-"
She took a moment to think about his question. How to explain something that was a matter of nothing but personal moral?
"You see, I've been like that, feeding on humans, for many hundred years, but it just... Doesn't feel right for me anymore, you know?", she tried to explain herself.
"You probably imagine me just sneaking up on a sleeping person and go have a snack without them even noticing, but that's just how the stories make it seem. The bite of a vampire is one of the most painful things you can go through, it feels like your whole body's been set on fire. And even if I would, in some miraculous way, get rid of the entire Coven, I'd have to move regularly anyway. People get suspicious when you don't age at all. I just don't really see any good enough reasons for putting someone through so much pain."

---***---

Marcus had been sitting on the bonnet of his impala, watching the Night sky in perfect relaxation.
He had been thinking about what he'd like to do on his birthday, wondering whether or not there was any way of influencing the color change of his skin, and if so, what it would be like to spend a day in the city with Aly.
Apparently, not only as partners but as friends.
However, those thoughts had been interrupted quite soon by a weathered, dark green pick up truck pulling into the parking lot a couple of feet away.
At first he watched just the tiniest bit curious, but when he saw the men leaving the vehicle, his sulfur eyes narrowed.

"Monster? Hey!", one of them, a bulky, dark-skinned guy with a plaid flannel called, and said mutant instantly felt every single hair of the line tracing down his neck, back and tail like a dog's, standing up.
Eyes still narrowed, he ran the tip of his tongue over his sharp canines.
"Gordon", he said, the huskiness in his voice clearly indicating that he was holding back a lot of what he actually thought of this man. He continued on his way into the shop, but, much to Marcus' dismay, the other guy he didn't know settled to take a seat right next to him.
He could just suppress a growl rumbling up his throat.
That jerk planted his ass on his car like he had any right or reason.
"So you are the famous Monster, eh?", he asked, and Marcus pointy ears flattened against his head.
"mh. And you are-"
"Oh I'm Gordon's new partner, Carter."
He just didn't say anything, hoping the guy would move his disturbing presence someplace else. But he stayed right there, still grinning like a complete moron.
"So Gordon told me that he'd almost died on that case with you."
Wrong topic.
"Said he'd just managed to make it out of there alive and get away from that basilisk."
Very wrong topic.
"But you were so mindlessly after that vampire that you tried to fight that snake. Did you seri-"
OH. So. Very. Wrong. Topic.
Marcus' hand flew to the guy's collar, pulling him close enough to see the patterns in his yellow eyes. His hot breath tickled his face.
"I don't see in which version of this universe any of that would be your business", he snarled, but looked up when he saw Gordon rushing out of the store towards him.
He let go of that idiot and raised one eyebrow.

And then Gordon poked his finger into his chest.
"in what epic kind of way did you fuck up this time?", the hunter snarled, whereas Marcus just threatening raised one eyebrow.
"What the hell are you talking about?"
"that girl in there. Hawaii Sandwiches and two Snickers bars. That's what you always eat on a case."
By now, Marcus was frowning. "What's with her?"
"so she is your partner!"
"get to the point, Gordon."
"the burns on her hand. You know what they mean. What, now you're working with monsters?"
For some reason that comment made something inside him snap. He grabbed Gordon by his collar like he'd done with the other guy, snarling viciously. If he'd ever seemed like a monster it was in this very moment. He knew Gordon well enough to know that this hunter didn't hesitate or wait for any proof until he drove a wooden stake into a suspect.
"What have you done to her you asshole?!"
"she's fine yet. But you shouldn't let her cross my path again. You know I have a shaky trigger finger near werewolves."
"I have no idea what you're talking about", Marcus hissed and shoved the man back, his tail swishing behind him furiously. The tuft of fur on its end was split by a long bone blade prodruding from it, while two small slits on his forehead opened to reveal a pair of horns.
He was in rage mode.
"But I suggest you leave and don't dare cross my path ever again."

When he saw Aly moving towards the entrance door of the shop he slowly normalized, not wanting her to see the true reason they called him Monster.
Instead, he growled some silent insults while he watched Gordon and his bootlicker leave.

Relief settled over him as she took a seat next to him and seemed ever so easy. She really was okay.
"Thanks", he said with a smile as she gave him his sandwich and snickers, giving the burns on her hand a quick glance.
Nah, Gordon was talking shit.
"Alright, AJ it is", he laughed along with her, taking a bite of his sandwich. "Hey uh-" he grew a little more serious now. "That guy with the flannel shirt didn't bother you, did he? He's a colleague, but a complete nutcase suspecting everyone to be a Crypto. He just came yelling at me talking shit about you being a werewolf." he shook his head. "Hell this job cracks you up. Idjit..."

 

[BippityBoppityBoop]

Simon gave a hesitant laugh at Katherine's ominous words.

"I-I don't think I would like to imagine that actually." He said, rubbing his arms as a chill ran through his body. It was odd to think that the woman standing next to him was a real vampire. Something that, until now, the college student didn't think really existed. Looking at her, it made sense. Pale skin, the teeth, the cold that basically rolled off of her skin... but just talking to her he wouldn't have even guessed at something so absurd. He gave his new friend a sad smile as she talked about her feelings towards hurting others. Her kindness only reinforced his feelings towards her. He was comfortable around her. He understood her in a way he didn't think was possible. Fate had chosen him to be in her corner now, and he couldn't have felt more grateful.

"I admire that," he said after her explanation, "your kindness towards others I mean. Nobody would really expect that from a vampire, like you said." The word slipped out so easily, as if nothing about this situation seemed off in any way.

"Not that they would expect a vampire," he laughed. He gave her a soft smile before straightening up, relieved the dizziness did not come back.

"I- I think I'm ok now... not saying I won't have more questions but... I'm ok for now. We should get going, it's late. It doesn't look like Marcus is going to find us anytime soon, so we should go back to town and sleep..." pausing, he gave her a bashful yet somewhat curious look.

"Uh...do you sleep?"
———————————
Aly tensed the moment Marcus had mentioned that guy. Subconsciously she placed her hand around the place he had grabbed her, frowning.

“I should’ve guessed you knew him.” She said quietly. It wasn’t the fact he had assaulted her in a store, but the fact he had called her a werewolf. She was so tired of that accusation. Her mind flashed briefly back to when she was a kid, constantly getting made fun of for her allergy. She couldn’t help but laugh bitterly at the thought. Her and Marcus were kind of in the same boat. Both of them weren’t actually monsters, yet that’s how they were perceived. She suspected Marcus more so than herself.

She sighed. “No, he... I don’t know how he saw it. I guess good sight comes with being a hunter,” she joked, “but for the record I’m not... I’m not a werewolf.” She glanced at her partner, knowing full well he didn’t think that.

“I guess we are just going to spill all of the embarrassing secrets tonight huh? Alright so this kind of started when I was a kid. Have no idea what age, but... I used to get sick. A lot. I don’t really remember being sick, but I know my dad used to give me shots a lot to keep fevers down, keep the sickness from getting worse and what have you... I’m not sure, but I vaguely remember getting this weird allergy to silver a little after one of the shots he gave me. I’m sure it was a coincidence, but I’m kind of petrified of medicine now.” She laughed, sitting back and taking another swig of the apple juice.

“I’ve been called werewolf and vampire for most of my life by people who think it’s funny to... to compare me to one of them.” She nearly spat the word. “I suppose you know what it’s like...” Aly added a bit quieter now. She fiddled with the cap of the juice for a few seconds, feeling herself blush. She couldn’t believe she was telling him this. Somehow Marcus made her feel ok though. She knew he of all people wouldn't judge her for her oddities. He was worse off than her, and she couldn't stop herself from feeling a pang of sympathy for him again.

Her face grew stern however as she thought of the man.

"I'm surprised you even used to talk to that guy. He seemed like a real asshole. How do you know him?" She asked, taking less precaution than before about asking him questions.