Post by Miss Pixie on Aug 26, 2015 17:26:33 GMT -8
Chapter Two
Stunned, the girl shook her head again. “Sorry, Zeke, but I am home,” she stated bluntly, spitting his name out like it was poison.
“I’m prepared to wait as long as I have to. You were right this afternoon, pup. Everything is changing. Things are going to happen that you can’t explain. You’ll want answers, and I have them. There is a history awaiting for you to be ready for it to be unveiled. Very soon, you won’t be able to bear not knowing the truth, and when that happens, I’ll be there. Until we next meet, goodnight,” he said, amusement alight in his unnatural eyes. Before Dria could question him further, Zeke stood, turning away and melting into the shadows of her furniture. This, she decided firmly, was the strangest thing to happen in her life to date. From what she understood, it was only going to get stranger.
The next morning, Dria awoke to find a note on the couch from Keira, claiming that she had left for work and wishing her friend a better day. Dria stretched, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. The night had been long and strange. She was looking forward to having a quiet, normal day. Golden rays of sunshine were already filtering in through the window, heating the room and the world outside. As she began to get ready for the day, Dria ransacked her closet for her swim suit. Iron’s Park was a large park for the small town, and right through the center ran a branch of the rifle river. That was where she planned to spend the better half of her day.
Around eleven, she arrived at the park, carrying a pink and black striped backpack with a few lunch items in it. Dropping her bag by the bank, Dria slipped off her t-shirt and shoes, lying back in the sun to try to catch a tan. Ear buds pumped music into her ears from her phone. Closing her eyes, she could have happily stayed in that blissful place forever, sun drunk and jamming out.
She might have stayed there that long, if her peace hadn’t been disturbed. After a few, short hours, a shadow fell across her face, forcing her to open her eyes and remove one headphone. A boy with a streak of platinum blonde jetting through spikey black hair grinned down at her.
“You look a little calmer today,” he mused, chuckling. In a fluid movement, he dropped beside her, legs folded. Something about him felt eerily familiar to the brunette.
“We’ve met?” Dria frowned. Despite the familiarity, she was almost certain she had never met this boy before. Maybe she’d passed him by in the store or something. The girl believed that she would have remembered someone who looked like him. He was shirtless, revealing red tribal tattoos on his collar bones. On his wrists were three inch thick metal cuffs, pressed firmly to the skin. His complexion was even, and he was well tanned, almost causing him to appear to be Native American.
“Yeah, actually. I believe I told you I’d be around to answer your questions as things started changing for you,” he recalled lazily, tilting his head slightly as he spoke.
Rolling to her stomach and propping up on her elbows, Dria raised an eyebrow at him. “You’re trying to tell me that you’re Zeke? The enormous black wolf that magically appeared in my apartment last night? Well, where’s your tail?”
“Expect nothing to be what it appears at first glance, Dria. My family and I can change shape. Why else would you be able to speak with a wolf?”
In spite of his insane claim, they sat in amicable silence, soaking up the sun together as if they were old friends. Dria thought that she should be more careful around this boy. He was claiming to be the creature that had invaded her home the night before, which was insane. She should be afraid of him, like the fear she had felt last night.
“So, do you often just hang out with the girls you stalk, or am I a special case?” she asked, yawning.
“Nah. Usually I just club them over the head and take them back to the clan.”
Giving the boy a sideways glance, she chuckled. “That definitely puts me at ease.”
“No one said I was trying to put you at ease,” he teased. “Really though, I usually just stay in hiding until they come looking for me.” Abruptly, he stood and offered her a hand. “Come on, I’ve got something to show you.”
She accepted the offered hand, curious. She didn’t feel the need to question him. For some reason, she was important to him. If the need arose, Zeke would keep her safe. He led her down the twisting path through the park, up the steep hill and over to the cemetery. It wasn’t a long walk, and when they stopped it was at a vacant bench. He motioned for her to sit, doing so himself, and watching the empty grounds. They sat in silence for nearly half an hour before she spoke.
“What am I supposed to see here, Zeke?”
“Just wait. You’ll understand when you stop letting your mind be so busy.”
She nodded, turning away from him to stare out at the headstones once more. From the corner of her eye, her attention was caught by movement. It was brief, but she saw a flash of bright blue go whizzing by. As she watched, more colors hurtled by, one by one filtering into existence. With a soft gasp, she looked to Zeke once more.
“What are they?”
“Sprites. They care for the trees and headstones here, keeping it nice for the dead.”
“What are you? Why would you know this? One minute you’re the largest, darkest creature I have ever seen, and the next you’re a boy hanging out in the park, seemingly as normal as anyone else! Why?”
He smiled, nodding. “You’re right to question me. I can see things you’ve never dreamed of. I know they exist, I know their stories, hell, I know their names. I am part of this world, hidden from the view of the average person,” he swept his arm toward the people down in the park. “You will see much more than just sprites and strange people that climb out of the shadows and appear to be wolves. We are just the beginning. The secrets of my world will open up to you at the most random of moments. Remember, nothing is what it seems.”
Dria scowled. He hadn’t actually answered her question. “But why? Why me? What do you mean your world?”
He stood, stretching lazily. “See you soon, Dria. Very soon,” he yawned, waving slightly. Then, he was gone. All her unanswered questions hung in the air as she seethed, marching back toward the park. She hurriedly packed her shirt and cell phone into her backpack, turned on her heel and left for home.
It was only three by the time she arrived at home, and Dria was determined not to allow her frustrations ruin her day. Taking a quick shower, she thought about what she could do to kill time until Keira was out of work. The thing about West Branch was that it was a small town. There really wasn’t much to do. Not only was it a small town, quite a bit of it was farming community, so by nine o’clock just about everything was closed for the night. The surrounding towns were just as bad.
Sighing, Dria towel dried her hair. Coming up with a way to spend her afternoon was proving to be rather difficult. The more she thought about possibilities, the more downtrodden she felt. Maybe, she would just walk the Victorian themed downtown. There were plenty of little shops and bakeries that she had never had the time to visit before. Nodding to her reflection as she dressed, Dria decided that seemed to be the best course of action. Popping her headphones in her ears once again, she laced up her shoes and took off.
Keira called around four thirty to say she wouldn’t be able to make it. It was okay, though. Dria had found her way to a second-hand book store. By the time nine rolled around, she had spent hours in the book store and purchased several. She also had discovered a vintage shop that gave free wine tastings. After a short stop inside, she purchased a bottle of local wine and a few antiquated items that she couldn’t resist, and hopped down the line to an artisan bakery. The girl loaded up on baked goods and fresh bread, taking only a mocha latte to consume on the walk home. The street lights blazed as she wandered down Fourth Street, laden with more bags than she should be able to carry. When dark fell, she called Keira to talk about the day.
“Then, I had to get a mocha latte. I think I’m addicted,” she recalled to her friend, laughing.
“What happened to your iced coffee? Wasn’t it only last week that you couldn’t get enough of them?” Ki snorted through the receiver.
“Well, I couldn’t help but try something new!”
“What else happened? I got stuck going to dinner with my over judgmental Aunt Cat. It was depressing.”
“When did she get into town? I thought she moved to Canada!” Dria shook her head, changing her mind. “On second thought, I don’t want to know. The last time she was around, I think I was planning to blow up her car. That lady irks me! All in all, Ki, my day was pretty good.” She had made sure to leave out all mention of her encounters with her new enigma friend. It wasn’t like he was anything to hide, other than the fact that she was pretty certain that no one else could see him, so she spent about half of her afternoon looking like a crazy woman.
She listened as Keira told her about her aunt’s visit, shouldering open her front door just enough to get inside. Finally home, she dropped her bags by the door and turned toward the living room. Reclining glibly on her couch was a familiar boy with striped hair.
“Hey, Ki, I just got home. Tomorrow we can chill, yeah?”
“Of course. Sorry for the rain check.”
“It’s whatever. You have a life, too,” she chuckled. “Talk to you later.” Hitting end, Dria looked back to Zeke. She shrugged out of her zip-up hoodie, draping it over her arm. “So, what are you doing here?”
“I was waiting for you. Earlier, I wasn’t sure how to answer you. Are you ready to hear it all? Or would you rather not know yet?” He sounded serious. The sober look on his face made her almost wish he were his normal, mocking self.
Nodding, she moved across the room to sit on the floor across from him. “Alright. Tell me everything.”
