Jupiter gives the girl a cup of warm blood, hidden in a latte cup from the tourists. She puts her hands up trying to refuse.
"I don't like coffee, sir."
And then she seems to catch the smell of it and the black veins on her wrists embolden with her realization, her hunger clutching at her small, frail body. She takes the cup gratefully without Jupiter having to say anything and he comes back with a thoughtful look on his face.
I give him a triumphant glance. "We always knew I was the observant one."
He ruffles up my hair, pulling on my bun. "Yeah, but I'm the ancient one. Much, much smarter." He teases.
"Well, I need to write a thesis paper, I'll just cotinue."
(Can I join?)
Of course you can join! Just read the setting and describe your character!
Orion was soon back in the shop, breathing heavily from the quick run. He was back in his normal form and he glanced down, flicking his hand and his nails shrunk back to a normal length. He held his coffee and took a seat at a table near the back, deciding to drink it there instead of the convenience store where his boss could nag him.
(I already described my character up above here, so I guess I'll just… um…)
Lloyd was sitting alone at a table in the coffee shop, reading a science textbook. He was wearing an oversized hoodie that concealed his wings, and every once and a while he'd sip some coffee absently, keeping his eyes on the book. Sometimes he just liked to come here because it was quiet, and he liked the smell of coffee while he read. It was relaxing.
The calm looking teenage boy was back and Jupiter was back to being on his guard which made me dig my fingernails into my palms. With one decided movement, I made myself a small cappuccino and stuck some cash into the register, and sat down next to him at the booth.
Orion leaned back, stretching his legs out as he sipped his coffee. He scrolled on his phone, occasionally typing out responses to message, one being from his boss who was asking where he was. He set the phone, screen down, onto the table and continued to drink his sour tasting coffee.
"So, what's your name?" I ask politely. I was trying to prove to Jupiter that he wouldn't hurt me.
Orion glanced over at the girl and gave an almost too sweet smile. “Orion Harrison. And you are?” He asked, arching a dark brow. His eyes flicked to where the girl’s friend sat and he chuckled internally at his wary expression.
"Eugene." I stuck my hand out, suddenly a little wary too, at his sickly sweet charm. "Eugene Glasgow."
Lloyd observed the pair talking quietly from his table in the corner. He doubted they would really notice him, or acknowledge him if they did. He wasn't really a memorable person in general, and if they happened to look over he could just turn back to his book.
Myra walked over to Lloyd. "Hey, dude!"
Orion could already smell that she was not human. He didn’t know what she was, but it definetly wasn’t fully human. After considering it for a split second. He decided to give a tiny bit of a spook. He reached out to shake her hand with the one that she couldn’t see previously. Only when he did, his hand was bony and thin, his nails unlike any animals. When he took her hand and shook it, he stared her dead in the eye with the same smile as shadows sizzled on his hand. “It is great to meet you.”
"Likewise." I stutter, somewhat alarmed. Whoever this Orion was, he wanted me scared, obviously. I was somewhat curious, and somewhat afraid. I could see Jupiter staring at me dead on. "See you at school then? Tomorrow?"
Orion let go, and his hand almost immediately shifted back to a normal, human hand. “Of course, see you then.”
He looked away from her, finishing his coffee quickly. He stuffed his phone into his back pocket and stood, throwing his cup in the trash.
I walked back over to the counter to take orders, a little shaken up. Jupiter appeared a minute later, his hand on my shoulder. "As much as I adore you, Eugene, you need to be careful."
Orion messaged his boss, telling him that he wouldn’t be in. He felt too hungry to be around his boss, and just shifting into a wendigo creature made him hunger for human flesh. He left the coffee shop and walked to a nearby set of woods before shifting back into the horrifying creature to go hunt.
"Why?" I shake off his hand. "Nobody here is dangerous, Jupiter. The town's border control is too careful. He was just a loner."
Jupiter sighs, and then whispers in my ear. "Did you notice how tall that shifter was, Eugene? He was a Wendigo shifter, with that height. They eat human flesh, okay? You are part human. I can't lose you, not like that."
Orion tracked the smell of a buck and sprinted after the large animal. His height and speed gave him an advantage, and despite how week he looked, he was unnaturally strong. His sickly, sharp clawed hand reached out and grabbed the animals throat, taking it to the ground as he viscously ripped the animal apart, his hunger overwhelming. He ripped into the animals muscles with his sharp teeth, hungrily eating the meat.
After everyone had left the cafe I locked up for the night and shot Jupiter a quick I'm sorry text even though I didn't feel at fault, and then got inside my yellow Voltswagon bug and took the somewhat wet main road bag to my little white row house close to the edge of town.
Once I got home I took off my green apron and hung it on the coat rack, flipping on the lights even though I didn't need them to see, and walked into my living room. Inside was wall to wall books, with sparse furniture and the scent of black coffee and lavender hanging on the air.
Orion jogged out of the woods, now in his human form. Blood was splattered around his mouth and on his clothes from the buck and few other animals he had hunted. He didn’t feel satisfied, but it would get him by for a while. He walked the short distance back to his home, traveling along the outskirts to a place that looked almost like a refurbished cave of some sorts. Of course no one would sell him a house, no one wanted a dangerous creature living in their neighborhood, not even other inhumans or hybrids.
