It had been about three weeks since the attack, and Steven knew that Zack needed to make his decision soon. The full moon was coming up way too quickly for his tastes. He called Lorissa, and waited for her to answer. "Hey babe, I'm gonna come pick you up. I'm heading over to Zack's, so that we can see if he's made up his mind just yet."
As she gave her consent, he headed on over to her house in the green BMW, and kissed her cheek when she got in. "Hey, sexy." He put the car in drive again, and made his way to Zack's apartment, calling him through the onboard bluetooth on the way. "Zack, it's Steven and Lori. We're taking you out to lunch, bro. The jeopardy music's almost finished."
When Zack would get in the car, he drove them to a small bistro he had found that served all sorts of things. He ordered a Reuben sandwich, and a Dr. Pepper. After the other two would make their orders, he glanced at them. "Alright. You both know why we're here, and I don't like it any more than you, Zack. But, we need to know what you're gonna do about this issue."
He waited for them to speak, but motioned for them to pause while the waitress brought their food. The Elementalist thanked her, and waited for her to retreat again, before listening to the rest of the beginning of the conversation.
Zack knew perfectly well just how much time had passed, and how little time there was left. As much as he wanted to get this new power under control, he wanted to feel caged even less. He wouldn't consider what he was doing now much of a life, though, sitting around the house most of the day and answering calls from Owen and Steven like they were a couple worried parents checking up on their college kid.
One such call came while Zack was having a small fit of nostalgia over Ren & Stimpy. This time, however, Steven sounded rather serious, wanting to take him out to lunch with Lori and discuss his future. More than happy to have an excuse to get out of the house, the young wolf threw on some more street-worthy clothes and met the two outside, smelling them long before seeing them. Just another one of the little things he'd have to get used to.
He was silent for most of the car ride, saving what he had to say until they reached the diner. He ordered a ham and cheese sandwich, with loads of extra ham, with some fries and a Mountain Dew. “Look, man, I know...” Zack began after taking a sip from his drink. “...Don't push me on this, alright?”
Once the food was on the table and the waitress was gone, Zack continued speaking to the two. He didn't want to make the decision at all, he was nervous. But time was running short. “I really don't want to do this, guys. I know she's your friend and all, but Silent just fucking rubs me the wrong way. Maybe her telling you to kill me if I try anything had something to do with it.” He paused, taking a huge bite from his sandwich. The fries would likely go untouched, as he was only interested in the meat at the moment. “Really, though...” Another pause, this time for another drink to wash it all down. “I ain't got no choice in the matter. It's not like it'll be bad for me, having her and the other wolves around.”
With a defeated shrug, he looked around at Steven and Lori, his face not showing the desperation he was feeling. “It's not like there's any better options, though...right?”
It was at that moment that another option walked through the door, although the possibility of the option was slim to none. This one was decked out in a pair of worn out dark blue jeans tailored to fit her long legs, topped with a light blue man's button up covered with a bomber jacket that had seen better days in World War II. Chapman's boots thudded very lightly across the tile of the bistro for a woman of her stature. People who stood as tall as she was(an Amazonian 6'2), were more like a herd of elephants when moving about, but Chapman could hear herself stomp across a floor better than any with her heightened senses, and it disturbed her to even hear others breathing. Talking was an entirely different matter, for when she talked, she could be really loud. It was part of that Chapman gene that gave her a big mouth. The wild red hair that was pulled back into a tight French braid was another gift from her dad's side.
"No Lyl I'm not mad...I just wish you'd called or something." Llidya had a phone up to her ear, holding it in place with her right hand. She had a bluetooth, but felt like a pretentious bitch when she used it sometimes, and this was one of those times. "Ok, calling now doesn't count. I meant before." Sunglasses hid her Bahamas-clear water hues from the world as she glanced around, tensing up a bit as she sensed a new wolf in the immediate vicinity. The wolf had noticed immediately and was honed in on the individual, but Llidya was concentrating on talking to the ten-year old on the other end of the line. "No I'm not trying to tell you that you did the wrong thing. It's your money, do whatever. I just don't know why you decided to come to New Orleans. Why did you decide to come to New Orleans?"
The menu had a variety of sandwiches available, and Chapman tilted the phone's microphone from her mouth as she ordered a turkey panini. Her attention turned back to the phone as she moved to a booth and settled her gaze on the three, one of which reeked of un-initiated lycan. "How do you do that? Yes, I'm at that little bistro. No..." She scanned the three and realized she recognized the woman, Lorissa. Well damn, did everyone from a long lost past decide to catch up with her. "No, no you don't have to come here-no-stay-damn it." At the latter two words she pulled the phone from her ear, glaring at it. She wasn't sure if Lyliyana would actually show up at the bistro, but who knew what she was ever thinking besides that little grey stuffed bunny of hers?
Her gaze shifted back to the three at the table and she leaned back in her booth, deciding that the guy who was infected would only be her problem if he started to go into an uncontrolled shift. It was unlikely, but Llidya had seen and experienced more whacked out things.
She remembered being like that oh so many years ago. Crap it was so long ago she didn't even want to think about it. All of that inability of control was behind her. If there was anything Llidya could easily compliment herself on, it was the tenacity to excel at control over anything she couldn't but needed to, whether it was a small group of ex-military or a stubborn wolf. It had taken almost three years, but she had no problem with control or pain with shifting. It wasn't like she had anything else to do in all that time. Bartenders had a night life of six busy hours and then the rest of the day was free. Since she wasn't a cop, she'd had no cold cases or serial killers with which to be obsessed. That would change now, with any luck(good or bad), but she was appreciative of that hiatus with human areas of her life, as now she was more connected with her inner animal than she'd ever been. She'd accepted that neither she nor the wolf was in charge, and they had a mutually benificial symbiotic relationship. Now she couldn't imagine like without her. Speaking of the wolf, she settled in her space on that supernatural plane, keeping her head pointed towards the new one out of sheer instinct, and Llidya gave the waitress a smile when she brought out her sandwich.
-- Edited by LLIDYA CHAPMAN on Monday 25th of April 2011 11:49:55 PM
-- Edited by LLIDYA CHAPMAN on Monday 25th of April 2011 11:53:05 PM
The day had been rather uneventful, and annoying. Things were not going well at work, and Silent had seemed rather distant. The petite pixie could not put her finger on what was bothering her friend, but she had an idea. Of course, without actually talking to her, which they had both seemed to be unable to find a moment to do so, there was nothing that she'd been able to do about it yet. When her phone starting ringing out, she blinked, looking down at it as if a snake were about to bite her. Giving her head a shake, she recognized the ringtone soon enough and a small smile tugged at her lips and she answered, hearing Steven on the other end about picking her up and going to Zack's. "Alrighty, I'm at the Hookah."
She was standing outside, smoking a cigarette and waiting for him when blue-green eyes watched the car pull up. Dressed casually in a pair of blue-jeans, a black t-shirt that read 'I'm Lost! Please, take me home with you?' and a pair of elbow length black gloves, she slid easily into the passenger seat, giving the driver a quick kiss on the cheek, before situating herself and fastening her seat belt. Lori listened as he called Zack, telling him that they were picking him up and taking them out, and the smallest of frowns tugged at her lips. She'd been worried about the man, not that she could say anything really to anyone. The situation was a right mess, one that she unfortunately didn't know how to fix. When they stopped and Zack jumped into the car, she gave him a small smile, but otherwise stayed quiet, not wanting to add any unwanted pressure to an already sore subject.
When finally they reached the bistro the tiny goth girl took her seat, her eyes scanning over the menu while the boys ordered their food. She looked up at the waitress when it was her turn, and gave the woman a grin, "I'd like the pot roast sandwich, extra gravy, fries and also a mountain dew." The minutes ticked by while they waited, and it seemed that nobody really wanted to talk about why they'd really come. Her fingers started drumming nervously across the table before Steven finally spoke and Zack gave the beginning of his own little speech. Of course, before he could get very far into it they were interrupted by the waitress bringing over the food, and Lori immediately grabbed a fry, dipping it in the gravy from her sandwich that she would need to eat with a fork. Not that she minded much.
She was chewing on the gravy-soaked french fry, giving Zack the time he needed to speak again, before giving out a sigh. "Look, not everyone understands Silent, and I don't expect either of you two to. I know she said some pretty harsh things, and I'm sorry for that. She just wanted to make sure I didn't get hurt. It's been known to happen with someone in your condition." She said honestly, staring at Zack with those blue-green eyes. She would have reached out a hand to give his a comforting squeeze, but she wasn't exactly sure how well that would be taken, so instead, she grabbed another french fry and dipped it in the gravy. "I told you before you have a choice. It's your life. No matter what anyone else says."
As Zack asked his questions about other options, it just so happened that Llidya walked into the small bistro. The bell tinkling over the door had the little pixie's gaze shifting, moving to the amazon woman, and blinking for a moment. She fell silent, thinking while a hand reached for a fork so she could dig into her sandwich. The woman was on the phone, but Lori could not help the feeling that she knew her. A frown tugged at her lips as she set the fork down, struggling to remember while memories other than the ones she wanted tried to force themselves to the surface as she tried to realize why she recognized the red-haired woman's face.
Her eyes blinked rapidly for a few seconds and she gasped, before her eyes went somehow dull and then unfocused. It had happened to her before, being swamped by so many memories, mostly none of her own. It was why she chose to drink so much and medicate so heavily, too bad she'd forgotten to bring a bottle with her on this little trip. If they started speaking to her at that point in time, she couldn't hear them, she was lost in the deluge of so many things trying to take over, fighting for the forefront of her thoughts. Her chest started heaving, damn near hyperventilating as she sat their frozen, unable to say even a word.
-- Edited by LORISSA MCDERMOTT on Thursday 28th of April 2011 07:09:55 AM
The elementalist listened to the conversation with more than a little interest. He actually cared what happened to Zack, even only knowing him for such a short time. The new wolf had balls, that's for sure. He was probably scared out of his wits, but he stood up and faced it all like a man, and that earned him some points in Steven's book. Lori spoke about Silent, and he bristled a little. Pulling a cell phone from his pocket, he gave it to the tiny pixie.
"Some girl named Alex dropped this outside the bar the other day. Silent called, told me quite brusquely to give it to you."
Giving a shrug, he let his hues wander over to the extremely tall woman who had just entered the bistro. Something seemed familiar about her, but of course he couldn't know this woman. He'd been in New Orleans less than a full month, and hadn't met her, he was sure of it. Taking a sip of his drink, letting the liquid wet his mouth and throat, he turned back to Zack.
"Look, if Lori says Silent isn't all that bad, then I believe her. But if you choose to go with her, I want you to give me your word you'll keep your eyes open. You get a bad vibe, you come get me, and we'll deal with it all. Lori, I know she's your friend, but- Lori?"
The girl had gone blank, and he could see she was hyperventilating. "Fuckin' 'ell!" He hurried to the counter and demanded a paper bag. As soon as the cashier started to hand it over, he snatched it and went back to Lori. He put the bag to her lips, and started talking to her in soothing but firm tones.
"Lori. Stop this now, come on. Lori, it's Steven. What's wrong? I can't help if I don't know what's wrong." Amid his pleading for her to come back to reality, his hand lightly patted her cheek, trying to bring her back by a physical conductor. If only he knew how to help, he would do it.
Steven was right about one thing, at least: Zack sure as hell was scared out of his mind. Even with his little circle of friends, the pup felt lost, with no clear way to go. Nate had also spoken of a beast, a metaphysical form of a wolf that would appear and follow him around. Zack did feel like something was always around him, but he couldn't actually see anything yet. On top of that, the closeness of the full moon had him even more on the edge, and every little thing would swing him to an extreme emotion, whether it was being frightened or angered.
The sights and smells were still getting to him, too, like being able to discern who else was a shifter. The entrance of another caused Zack to pause just before taking another bite of his sandwich, and slowly turn to look. A woman in a booth by herself caught his eye...and she was staring at him, too. The look on his face was one of confusion, but he decided to let it be for now and turned back to his meal.
As he was looking back, Lori started speaking to the two of them, though her words were more towards him. Zack nodded towards her, staring straight back with his own sky-blue orbs. The young man understood that there was danger involved, no doubt about it. His only gripe was how it was all said, especially with the state he was in. “I understand that, Lori. No worries there.” Any physical contact then would have served as a great comfort to him, but none came.
A disgusted snort escaped him when she came to talking about choices again. Was the woman that naive? “It's bullshit and you know it, Lori.” Zack shot back, his voice starting to rise. He was so sick of hearing it. “There ain't no choice in the matter. It's either I go with her, or I'm stuck out on my own with no guidance where I'm a danger to everyone. Tell me where the choice is in there, would ya?!?” By the end, he may as well have been full out yelling. It wasn't like him to raise his voice at all, in fact he probably would have let the whole thing slide were the conditions different. But the bite and subsequent events changed him a bit. He never joked around anymore, and he was prone to frequent mood swings, this being one of them.
Any further arguing would have to wait, however, as Lori began to perform what Zack could only call a spazzing out. The young wolfs eyes went wide, but he remained motionless for a moment while Steven ran up to the counter. What the hell could he do? One second he was chewing her out for just trying to help, and the next, she looked like she was having a seizure. “Oh...shit. Lori!” When Steven returned, Zack reached out and grasped her hand, unsure of what else he could do. With his other hand, he dug into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone, flipping it open and ready to call 911 if need be. “Steven?” Zack looked from Lori to Steven, his face showing the sheer panic he was feeling right then. “What the hell's going on, man?”
The tension in the room kicked up a notch or two as Chapman finished off the second bite to her sandwich. The wolf she was keeping an eye on was getting excited, and she swung her gaze to their table to see what was going on. There was no hesitation as she stood and moved to their table, her Bahamas clear water hues laser focused on the girl.
"Lori. Focus on the sound of my voice." Llidya crouched in front of her, meeting her unseeing gaze. Llidya only knew very little about the abilities that Lori had, in fact she really only knew that Lori wore the gloves so she wouldn't be overwhelmed by them all the time, sort of like Evie's abilities, but not the same. "Concentrate on the sound of my voice. My voice encompasses the here and now, reality. I need you to come back to me. You're sitting in a bistro, and you're wearing a t-shirt that says I'm Lost, please take me home with you?" Llidya just continued talking, knowing that this was an anchor technique that had been used on herself when she was a little girl, about seven or eight in a monastary in the alps. Now that was going way back. She described the table and what was on the menu, keeping her voice even and steady, until Lori's eyes finally came into focus to her own. At the very same time, she was sending out a small wave of power to calm the new lycan so that he wasn't overwhelmed. It was interesting, as she had never done a power with her wolf while having to concentrate on something as her human counterpart. She found that it came more easily than she would have thought, being as she had never tried it before, but Llidya was a real when push comes to shove do it kind of person.
That trademark Chapman smirk curved her lips as she handed a glass of water to the pixie that had appeared on the table.
"Lost ya there for a minute. You okay kiddo?" It was only then that Llidya became aware that the other two men were still there.
Memories. Horrid flashes of things a person should never have to witness, let alone go through, and the little pixie had to deal with both. Trauma and torture ripped to the surface as she trembled in her seat, and she couldn't fight the tide that tried to carry her away. Gasping for air she couldn't see those surrounding her, the concern mixed with fear in their eyes. She couldn't hear them, or feel the touch they gave as they tried to comfort her, and pull her back from the knife's edge she'd been forced to with the strength of everything flooding into her mind.
Her skin prickled with goose bumps, and she shivered even as beads of sweat started forming across her forehead. The tears came, unhindered by rational thought those blue-green eyes pooled with the salty-wetness that then poured down her cheeks in glistening trails. The images flashed so quickly through her mind, Lori couldn't stop them. She was being beaten, battered and bruised by the very person that should of taken care of her the most. Ribs were cracked, lip was split and her eye blackened as she was told it was for her own good. But when she looked up, the person beating her was not her father, it was not her memory.
The image flickered, changed, and she was surrounded by leering faces, men yelling, cheering each other on as they violated her. Her clothing was torn, leaving only scraps of cloth covering her broken form. She didn't know how long they'd been at it now, having gone numb from too many blows. She felt the hot breath, smelling a foul stench as another person climbed over her, grabbing her head and knocking it back against the hard concrete underneath her while more men laughed at another forceful intrusion.
Blackness surrounded her for a fleeting moment before more jumbled images tried to push to the forefront. Pain, agony, torture, and even death. So many dreadful things, she didn't want to see, didn't want to remember, and in the midst of it all something finally pushed through. Voices, both clear and strong trying to bring her back into the moment, and a hand latched to her own tightly. Her breathing started to decrease it's rapid pace, trying to take in longer, calmer inhalations.
The memories started to fade into the background, as the people continued to try and sooth her, and slowly, her eyes started to focus on the things around her. Thick black lashes fluttered up and down, blinking quickly as she came back to herself, staring into Llidya's eyes. It was then that the memory struck her, the one she had been searching for. Paradise, they'd been in a bar, and gotten thoroughly drunk with a man, who'd decided to drink thirty shots for the thirty years he'd been alive. The tiny goth girl hadn't been old enough to partake at the time, but she'd filched a few drinks anyway. After the binge, they'd gone to the amazon woman's hotel room and all passed out. But that wasn't the only place she knew her.
Another memory cropped up, of being in the mall in New York and accosted by a shifter. She'd been there too, running the man off before making sure she was ok. She blinked again, hearing the warm words, and a smile ghosted at her lips. "I know you...." What was her name!? Her mind couldn't grasp it, but she knew the woman, and she was sure that they had been introduced, probably even more than once. It was then that she realized there was still a grip on her hand, and even a paper bag over her mouth. Pulling away from the bag she used her free hand to get Steven to lower it. "I'm ok."
As she said it, she fidgeted the fingers of the hand Zack was still holding to give his a squeeze. Her cheeks started to heat with a crimson blush as she realized she'd probably just scared the heck out of most of the people at the table. "Sorry about that," she mumbled quietly as she grabbed for the glass of water that Llidya had offered, bringing it to her lips to take a few long gulps. She knew the questions would start soon, or at least figured they would, and nervously swallowed the water, not sure if she wanted to answer them.
-- Edited by LORISSA MCDERMOTT on Wednesday 4th of May 2011 02:27:02 AM
Steven bristled for a minute when the large woman came over to stand in front of Lori, edging him to the side. She knelt in front of his girlfriend, and started to speak in a clear fog cutting tone. She didn't put any emotion into it, but described what was here around her in vivid details. Steven should have known the strategy would work, however, Lori was too important to him, and he lost sight of reason due to his emotions.
As Lori's eyes slowly came back into focus, he sighed in deep relief. He wanted to help her control these fits, but he had never seen one while she was conscious. When she pushed the bag aside, he smiled wanly and shrugged. "Welcome back, stranger." He didn't press about what she had seen, since she had already told him once they were not pleasant memories. He set the bag aside, and watched as her lips took in the clear fluid.
He looked over at the tower of a woman, and his granite on limestone voice rasped out as he ran a hand through his hair, "Thank you. You a psychologist or something? You handled it pretty well, and that technique...I should have remembered to use it. Known it my whole life, pretty much, but she startled me. I can't lose her now, right when I've just found her." With the last sentence, he smiled warmly, and looked to Lori's eyes as he brought her free hand up, and kissed her palm.
“Oh, fucking hell! Come on, Lori!!!” Zack was in full on panic mode, his heart and breath going a mile a minute, and his grip on Lori's hand was involuntarily becoming stronger. He should have used the phone he had pulled out to call an ambulance, but the young man just couldn't think anymore. This woman, who had saved his life and been so kind and caring during his recovery, was doing god knows what across the table.
A bit of unlikely help appeared in the form of the strange woman that had been staring at them earlier. The pup simply sat there in his panic, listening to her psychological performance. At first, it didn't seem to be helping at all, and Zack just wanted to yell at the newcomer to get away. Soon after, however, a strange wave of calmness seemed to reach towards him. It was something like the power that Nike had given out that night, only this seemed to just put him more at ease than draw him in. Slowly, Zack eased back into his chair, keeping his gaze and hand on Lori.
After what seemed like forever, she seemed to have snapped out of it. There were so many questions that he wanted to ask, namely 'what the fuck just happened'. Steven wasn't asking them, though, and the wolf figured that bombarding her with questions after such an episode probably wasn't the best idea. “I'm...just glad you're alright.” His voice had gone soft and low again, now that the excitement was done and over with. The squeeze to his hand made him remember that he was still actually holding on to Lori, and he gradually pulled away once she looked to be alright.
Zack's gaze then turned to the woman who had come to their rescue. If there was any doubt to who else in the room was a wolf, there certainly wasn't now. “How did...what are...” Several different questions tried coming from the man's mouth at once, and the end result was little more than gibberish. After taking a deep breath to steady his nerves, he looked up at their rescuer towering above him. “...Who are you?”
"Yes, yes you do know me. They were pleasant memories so I'm not surprised it's not coming to you right now." She took the glass of water from Lori and set it on the table, straightening up. She glanced around, looking from Steven to Zach then to the rest of the patrons.
"Everything is all right folks, go about your business." Her attention moved back to the two men and the pixie. Steven looked oddly familiar to her, but she couldn't quite place him, and that bothered her. She was good with faces, had to be in her usual line of work.
"No, not a psychologist." But she had a degree in the field. "Just a bartender." In New York. What was she here? Right now she didn't have a job. Well, she had a sort of job, but it wasn't one she wanted to be public. She needed to keep herself busy with an actual dayjob. "Name's Chapman." She held out her hand to Zach, then Steven before glancing down at Lori. "Coming back to you yet?" She smiled, then turned her gaze to Zach. "My question is, who are you?"
He didn't smell like any other wolf, and it was close to the full moon. Llidya deduced he wasn't part of a pack, and maybe he didn't realize what he was about to go through.
That sounded a bit odd, that this new woman could remember Lori, but Lori couldn't remember her. Did her little freak out muddle up her memory a bit or something? When their rescuer looked between them, Zack ducked his head down, taking another small bite from the sandwich that was quickly growing cold. Sure, she had just come and saved Lori, and he was thankful for that, but the way she was looking at him earlier had the pup feeling a little uneasy.
“Well...” Zack finally spoke up after swallowing the chunk of sandwich down. “...I'm just glad you came around. ” When she extended her hand, the young man slowly reached up and returned the handshake, a bit weaker than it should have been. “Thanks for the help, Chapman. 'Name's Zack.” While he spoke, he motioned over to an empty seat at the table. “You can pull up a seat if you want...no sense in sittin' by your lonesome, you know?” Hell, might as well be polite to her, after what she had done. Whether she decided to accept the invitation or not, Zack managed a weak smile her way. “The way you were lookin' at me earlier...I'm that obvious, huh?”
