The Wolf Girl

[EmilyHuene]

Finally they had arrived! Evelyn was giddy with joy and seemed to be dancing on the balls of her feet all day. She camped out as far forward on the ship as she could and let the water occasionally spray her in the face as they hit the waves. She giggled every time. The rocky waters and actual rocks were a difficult thing to navigate, but August would find for some strange and likely magical reason, the boat seemed to almost know where to go on its own. The water even seemed to steer them clear of the reefs and just like that they were on smooth waters with the large island in the background.

It took a lot of patience for Eve to wait for the ship to get close to the island. Had she not been with her friends she would have jumped ship an hour ago, teleporting in her line of sight and announcing their visit to the whole island. Instead, she stayed at the bow of the large vessel with Nuahki and Sylvia in her company. In the distance they'd see a crowd forming to greet them, a few of them armed with dangerous looking spears. But when they saw Evelyn at the front of the crowd they would disperse and the rest of the island came to greet them. Evelyn practically had tears in her eyes seeing them all.

The crowd was mostly fairies, though there were a few werewolves mixed in there too. No vampires had come out, they didn't traverse the daylight as August liked to. A few Elves were in there too, gnomes and goblins too. There were also no demons which might surprise the pirate captain. From all her stories they might have assumed demons flooded the place. In a way they did, but they had their own part of the island far away from the main village.

There was one person though that Eve wanted to see more than anyone. And she wasn't there. Evelyn knew her mother's red hair in a field of roses and yet she didn't seem to be anywhere. How could that be? Maybe she was just indisposed. Even still, it bothered the young girl and she pursed her lips as she thought of a million reasons why her mother wouldn't be available to see her daughter return.

"Yeah...sure," she'd reply to him as he welcomed her to her own. But she wasn't in any sort of celebratory mood anymore.

When the ship was finally docked they'd be greeted and welcomed by the host of locals who had no issue with the crew. August feared they'd treat him harshly for his past transgressions, yet none of them even batted an eye in his direction. They were too focused on Evelyn and their spirits lifted hers until she was back to being that giddy little girl again.

Finally after greeting everyone she would turn to a tiny little fairie with pink wings, "Misa? Where is my mother?"

"Miss Rose has gone away on a trip," the tiny yet high-pitched voice replied. "She left a few days after you did."

Evelyn seemed confused, "Wait...after me? It's been five years. Are you telling me she's been gone this whole time?"

Now everyone seemed confused. "Evie....it's barely been a year. Not even Accalia's crew has made their way back yet. Are you sure you aren't mixing up your numbers again?"

Probably at no surprise to August, Evelyn's bizarre attitude made it so her attention to learning and school wasn't at the top of her list. As such, she had a hard time with her numbers for many years. Still, Evelyn would look back at August for some sort of explanation. Evelyn was sure she'd been in Hell for five years. It felt longer to be honest, as a lot of it she'd lost time. Her....captor tried several ways to kill her off and a lot of that time she'd spent....dead. But even still, it had been years in his care. Now she was saying it had only been ten or so months? The answer was obvious, just not to her: Hell was on a different dimension and thus worked differently than their concept of time.

 

[KinkyPrawn]

August held onto the helm, but he felt the wheel move under his grip, eventually he let go and the ship steered itself safely through the dangerous waters. The closer they got, the more anxious August got. He saw the crowd gathering by the docks and was prepared for the worst, but soon they dispersed and a bigger group formed that weren't armed to the teeth. By thunder, if they tried anything he would turn his guns on the island and sink it himself.

He noticed that Evelyn didn't look nearly as lively as he had expected her to be. He brushed it aside as he watched his ship steer itself into the docks. The massive frigate barely fit in the small docks of the village but at least they were in. They lowered the boarding planks and tied the ship down. A lot of his crewmates stormed off and embraced, kissed or greeted people in the crowd in one way or another. August on the other hand, was on edge the entire way. As he walked down the plank, he pulled the wide brimmed hat lower over his face to try and conceal his identity. The smell of wet dog, pixie dust, trolls and various other creatures filled his nostrils as he moved through the crowd, following Evelyn. Strangely enough there was no strong scent of sulphur in the air, quite unusual if Evelyn's stories were anything to go by. The people looked happy to see her, seemingly restoring her spirits to the bratty, annoying, giddy little girl he'd come to expect from her.

He stood a little in front of the crowd, eyeing Evelyn from under his hat as she spoke to a small fairy. The fact that no one was even batting an eye at him only put him more on edge, like a criminal trying to hide in a bar full of bounty hunters. His eyes met hers as she looked over to him in a face pleading for help. He simply looked on in confusion, cocking his head slightly to the side as he listened in on the conversation. As much as he wanted to help her out, he didn't know what they were talking about. Only that she had supposedly spent five years in hell while here on earth not even a year had passed.

He shook his head slightly in confusion as he looked at her. He was a fish out of water on the island and if she was now lost and confused it didn't bode well for him.

 

[EmilyHuene]

While Evelyn was embraced by the locals of the island, August tried to hide from them. It worked to an extent because they were mostly excited to see their favorite girl. But questions quickly resounded as to her change in appearance. "Why do you have horns now?" "What happened to your eyes?" Evelyn tried to give them reassuring smiles but in truth she didn't want to tell them. So instead she merely said it was a new fashion statement, all the rage over seas. They believed that for she'd never lied to them before.

Turning back to August she would wave them on and inform the locals they were going to head back home for a moment. The fairies and the like would offer to make a feast for the night and would all rush off to prepare a big big party for them. Evelyn's face and mood dropped like a sudden rainstorm. Sylvia would put her hand on Evelyn's shoulder as they walked. Even Nuahki was bothered as she tried nuzzling the girl's hand as she walked and tried licking her fingers. Eve would rub the girl's head between her ears but it didn't change her mood any.

The walk to her mother's house took them through the village. The homes were made out of wood and stone, some more so than others. A few here and there were actually strictly made of wood and were made into the tall trees that surrounded the edge of this village. It was very well kept, gardens in place and tiny picket fences. A gentle river by a watermill streamed through the paths and tiny bridges made of rock allowed for them to walk over it while crossing through. They'd reach the back of the village which turned more into the forest before entering into a long clearing with fields of flowers in the yard behind the wooden home.

The manor had a wrap around porch and what appeared to be a single floor house made of logs like a cabin. But as they walked through the front door they were instantly transported into something much larger. The inside of the home had at least four floors, two of which above them and another down below. It was one of those weird pocket-dimensions that made things bigger on the inside. It was basic practice for a witch (or other magical creature) to create, though doing so for long periods of time would be strenuous. The fact that someone had a home like this was to be applauded.

Evelyn would sigh again as she entered the empty house. It was clear she'd hoped Rose was just hiding away. But that was not the case. Sylvia would look around and move further in while Nuahki scrambled to smell everything she could reach in her sights.

"She really is gone isn't she?" she said softly to herself.

 

[KinkyPrawn]

August didn't hesitate when Evelyn motioned to follow. He walked a few feet behind the trio of girls, eyeing the town. It was peaceful, serene, calm...it was all a lie. What he hated about this place most was not just his history with the downworld society, but the fact that he was the one who hunted creatures down when the were exposed to humans, the one who ended them because there's no way to just make them disappear from the world. Yet these pompous villagers can laze about in their little paradise while the rest of their kind could only wish for a safe haven such as this and not know what it means to suffer.

In his mind the people of Sanctuary were ungrateful.

He followed along as they walked deeper into the village. The villagers said that they would prepare a feast. Unless they were breeding human cattle somewhere he doubted that there would be much need for him at this 'feast'. Safe to say he was not having a good day at all.

They finally reached an old cabin, but his eyes went wide inside the building. "Wow. Can't say I've seen a spell this big before." he muttered to himself. Sylvia and Nuahki both started searching the place for something...or someone.

August stood next to Evelyn as he looked around. "I take it this is your mother's place?" he spoke softly as he scratched the back of his head.

 

[EmilyHuene]

Inside the home August would ask if this belonged to her mother and she would nod, "Yeah. My childhood home."

Hanging from the walls were several pictures of Evelyn and a woman with red hair. Evelyn was smiling in every picture (save for the ones where she had her back to the camera: like the one of her on a beach playing in the sand as a toddler). It was a loving home for sure as the various Evelyn's all varying in age seemed perfectly happy. He'd see a few pics of her and her summoned wolves, one in particular where Rose was helping the young girl mount one of the wolves to ride it. But August would notice that not in one single picture did she have horns or demonic eyes. She almost seemed human.

"I just...can't believe she's not here. How am I supposed to do that spell now?"

 

[KinkyPrawn]

August walked forward slowly, gliding his hand against the wall as he looked at the paintings lining it. All with a red haired woman and what could only be Evelyn throughout all the stages of her life. Whoever painted these clearly knew what they were doing, the paintings were marvellous. Only thing odd about all the paintings were that Evelyn didn't look like a demon in any of them. Frankly she looked just like a normal little human girl. He was sure that this Rose woman didn't just forget that details in family pictures on purpose.

He turned to look back at Evelyn. "My apologies for prodding like this, but you look different in all these pictures. No horns, no golden eyes, nothing. You look like a human...why's that? Would your mother go so far to protect your secret that she won't even have them in family portraits?" he spoke in a confused tone. It was probably not the best time to ask questions like that but with such a significant detail like that being left out in family portraits there was clearly something up.

He walked back to her and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry about the spell. We'll figure something out for you." he spoke and then walked outside, taking a seat on a nearby bench in the shade and taking a good look around. The birds and beetles were flying around. The sound of the sea crashing against the shore could be heard clearly along with the sound of people laughing, cheering and enjoying themselves. How could these people live in such bliss? Britain and Spain are at each other's throats and pirates are looting and plundering like vultures in the two Superpowers' wake. Yet these people don't seem to have a care in the world about any of all that.

He clicked his tongue as he folded his arms across his chest and sat on the bench in peace as he waited for Evelyn and company to come out of the cabin-sized manor.

 

[EmilyHuene]

August would ask the question Evelyn didn't want to share with the members of the island. He brought to light the fact she didn't have her horns, or her beautiful yet terrifying demonic eyes. He then insinuated why her mother would hide it from view to everyone around them, even in the pictures. That wasn't exactly the case, as she'd get around to explaining. But he did have a point. Did her mother know...?

She sniffled, trying not to cry. She'd been through so much. And she knew it was a burden to everyone around her. Every night she drempt of Hell. Every night she woke up screaming or crying herself awake. Nuahki was always there to draw her fear out of her with one of her abilities, but it didn't change the fact she couldn't do anything about it until after the fact. And while no one on the ship asked her why she had so much trouble sleeping, Evelyn knew that it was no secret.

Her vampire friend must have seen her sadness in the way she carried herself as he'd come put a reassuring hand on her shoulder and say they'd find some way to track down her mother with the spell, or something else. She nodded, not responding yet because it was too painful. He'd then walk outside and Sylvia would come to her friend to hug her for a moment. August would hear the poor thing crying for a few minutes, quietly muffled in Sylvia's carrying arms.

Once she'd calmed down the front door would open and Evelyn would come out to join August. She sat next to him on the porch and tightened her hands together in her lap. Behind her, Sylvia would lean against the door as it closed and listen in to the conversation. Nuahki was lost somewhere inside going about doggie things.

"I wasn't always like this," she explained in that cliche' kind of way. "I was a normal girl all my life. Except for my powers. But my mother just told me it was part of my gift. Like how some people can control fire. I could control ghosts. That's what she called the spirits I summoned. When I was captured by....well the demon. That's when I changed. He um....-" Evelyn choked up for a moment. She'd never told anyone this story. "He beat me. A lot. To the point of death but not quite there. He hurt me so much that my body couldn't heal fast enough. I was exhausted. I had no energy. And I couldn't feel anything."

Tears would start pouring down her face and landing in her lap. "He put me in this special coffin. And filled it with blood. I drowned. I drowned in it. I drank it until I passed out with it in my lungs. It was...horrifying. When I came out, I started growing horns. It wasn't like...right away. But they formed tiny buds at first. Eventually turning into these awful things."

She would sniffle again and wipe her eyes before saying further, "I tried cutting them off. It hurt like hell. But they grew right back. They're a part of me. And I can't undo whatever it was that he did. That's why I was hoping Mother would be here. She...she..." And Evelyn broke. She couldn't speak anymore and would start sobbing hysterically again. Out of reflex, she leaned into August and coiled her arms around his desperately hoping for some comfort.

 

[KinkyPrawn]

August listened to the girl crying on the other side of the door. He felt bad for her, but what could he do? He was a vampire over a thousand years past his expiry date, not some god that could snap his fingers and make stuff happen immediately. Eventually she emerged from the door behind him and took a seat next to him. He looked at her out of the corner of his eye as she sobbed next to him. He simply sat back with his folded arms as he listened to her explain where she came from and what she went through.

While he couldn't say that he'd been to hell before, he had gone through some suffering or baptism of fire that he could only chalk up to as some form of hell. He had some understanding of where she came from, that feeling of being useless and helpless as others beat you down, break you in mind, body and soul over a reason that you can't understand. Being so run into the ground that you had no strength left to get up and willing to do whatever it takes to escape, to survive.

He was snapped out of his thoughts as she grabbed hold of him, looking for some semblance or reassurance or support. He looked around quickly, making sure that none of his men were watching him...then wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into a hug. Careful not to catch himself onto one of her horns and to not shove her face into his pistols, he pulled her close. She needed it and he knew what it felt like, one tortured soul to another. He didn't say anything for a while, just holding her and letting her cry into his shirt and coat. Sometimes it was better to not say anything.

After a while, he broke the thick silence in the air. "While I can't do anything about your past, I can most definitely help with your future just maybe even help you get some closure." he spoke gently as he stared out in front of them, but he looked down at the crying little girl next to him as he still had his arm around her. "And if I had to be honest, the horns don't look so bad." he said with a smirk, trying to lighten her up a little.

He would never tell anyone what his life was like before the crusades. The things he did were beyond evil. But he carried the scars with him. Seeing this girl going through this without anyone having any way of understanding, it was almost like looking into a mirror. "Just...know. You're not alone." he said softly to her, making sure no one else could hear.

 

[EmilyHuene]

Although she'd just been crying inside, it seemed she had more tears left to shed. That seemed to be a common occurrence these days. Behind them, Nuahki would come to the door hearing her master's sobbing and try to get out the door but Sylvia would shake her head and shoo the dog away. This was something Evelyn needed to get out and not forget about like she usually did. The wolf would whimper but didn't push too hard as the both of them vanished further into the house leaving Evelyn pouring her soul into August's jacket.

After what felt like forever she'd finally start to calm down. She stopped with the actual tears, but her body still shook and shuddered with every breath. She felt so weak. All the time. She'd been through so much and no one knew about it. She wanted to share, but the truth of what happened to her was just too horrific. The thought of burdening anyone with that knowledge seemed cruel to even her. And she didn't want someone looking at her with that kind of pity. Which was another reason she tried to hide herself and not confide within others. The fact she'd done this now with August was a huge step for her.

His kind soul would be even more helpful to the girl as he gently assured her he could help her with her future. She'd look up at him behind her blurry eyes which were slightly red at the edges from the tears. He'd then comment on her horns which made her chuckle a little. She'd sit up and rub at her eyes while sniffling a few times before working up the courage to speak again.

"Thank you...August. That means a lot. I know it wasn't easy for you to say." For the first real time she was completely serious. No amount of childhood brattiness or sarcasm. Her words were sincere.

 

[KinkyPrawn]

August looked at her with soft eyes. This was not at all how he knew the annoying little demon. Strangely enough he actually preferred that side of her to this one. When she called him by his actual name he knew that she this was definitely not the Evelyn he was used to. "August? Oh no, you shall address me as Cap or Auggie. Is that clear, sailor?" he spoke in a mock stern voice as if he was giving her an order. It wasn't easy to say what he did at all, but he knew that sometimes it was necessary. "Anytime." he said softly. At least he succeeded in cheering her up just a bit.

He gave her a last tight hug before releasing her and standing up, straightening his shirt and jacket out with a clear of his throat. "So, where to? Shall we go find ourselves a wizard, grab a bite to drink...what's next in line for Evelyn Tenebris?" he spoke enthusiastically, attempting to get her mind off her terrible situation and back into their mission. "You know this place a lot better than me, anyway." he said with a shrug of his shoulders.

 

[EmilyHuene]

Hearing him pretend to be stern with her made her smirk and chuckle slightly. "Aye aye, Cappy." She knew it would bother him but that was part of her brattiness. August would then ask her what their next plan of action was. She thought about it for a moment as he joked about finding a wizard and some food. "There will be a feast later remember?"

Standing up she would grab his arm and start pulling him into the house. " We don't need a wizard. We have my mother's library."

Inside the house Evelyn would turn to a stairwell hidden behind the main wall from the door and that took them to the lower floor. It was a witches dream come true. Stores of books and scrolls were organized among the walls. A lovely alter was decorated by the main wall. Shelves and shelves of ingredients were set about and Evelyn began pulling things off and piling them into August's arms.

"Start with these. I'm sure we'll find something in all these goodies."

 

[KinkyPrawn]

He knew that she would jump at the chance to use one of her nicknames, but at this point he was just glad to have the old Evelyn back. She grabbed his arm and he just followed as she dragged him along into the house.

The library was stunning to say the least. He was curious over what wealth of knowledge lined the shelves of the witch's personal library. Evelyn shoved a bunch of tomes into his arms, but he knew what he was looking for. Granted he couldn't remember all the parts of the ancient spell but they could most probably find it in these old tomes. "Like I said on the ship, I know the spell sort of. But we'll have to be sure of what we're doing. That spell is incredibly powerful and lifting the essence out of that sword won't be easy. It's purpose is to trap souls. If something goes wrong the results could be catastrophic." he spoke as he balanced the pile of books in his arms.

He set them down on a nearby table, put his hat down and scratched his head. After looking over the books in front of him he opened one of them and started reading through them. And this is where a millennia worth of dead languages would aid him. These books were old and some of them weren't even in English. He read through Latin, old English that hadn't been used since the Romans invaded Britain, and a bunch of other languages that hadn't been seen in centuries. "Yeah...this might take a while." he said to Evelyn, taking the red bandana on his head off and running his fingers through his hair.

 

[EmilyHuene]

"Well if you know what you are looking for, then chop chop. Hurry to it."

Once she gave him the tomes she'd go to find her own stacks and start flipping through the pages hurriedly. She knew what she was looking for herself, and most of it was pretty discernible in terms of what the spell did. So she could make her way through with ease. Sylvia would start looking through things too but she really didn't have any clue what to look for so she very well could have found the right thing and not known it. Instead, she found the books she could actually read and started there.

It took them longer than Evelyn would have liked, but faster than August expected. When Evelyn found what she was looking for she cheered and brought the book to August and slammed it on the table. "Here! This is it. This will use the essence in the blade to bring us right to the source!" She then added a little less enthusiastically, "How we...get it out of the blade....I still need time to work out...."

This is what took the time to figure out. Evelyn didn't have the slightest clue what sort of draining spell, absorption spell, separating spell, etc could do what they needed and so it made this process go even slower. After a few hours of digging around they were called upon for dinner and set the library on hold. They'd break bread with everyone who came to the party and the lot of them got drunk and merry before long. The vampires even came out to greet them and August would be reunited with some old acquaintances while also meet knew members of his breed. It was a fun night and Evelyn seemed incredibly drunk.

But her joyful spirit was simply that. The liquor did nothing for her as her body healed its cells before the brain would get all fuzzy from the drug. When they returned to her home she sobered up real quick as if she'd been faking it the whole time. But her cheery attitude was still there; it wasn't like she'd gotten depressed or anything. The group would go back to it (minus Sylvia who went to bed after a long day). For several more hours they searched and scanned with the hope of finding their prize that much further away. In the end, it seemed August would be able to piece together what they needed and Evelyn sighed with an exhausted groan. That took way to long. She should have just called her mother for advice but couldn't come to facing her yet.

The next morning after breakfast they decided to give this a try. With all the ingredients prepared and mixed together, they were on their way. Evelyn had her locator spell on stand by; the only missing ingredient was the essence from the sword. Evelyn had the book in her lap -sitting cross legged- with the mixing bowls in front of her and August's sword over a stone tablet they'd taken from outside. Chanting the ritual, she placed a flicker of fire over the blade and it engulfed the steel while turning blue. Evelyn reached her hand into the fire while still chanting and would slowly start to draw out a silvery mist.

As soon as the trail of the mist ended August would pull the blade away and drop it in a bucket of water to cool the flame and not let out any of the other spirits trapped inside. Eve would then drop the mist into the bowl she had in front of her and change spells. Her dialect changed while moving into a different language. The bowl would glow and the insides of the mush would turn purple. Closing her eyes, she finished the chant and then poured the bowl into another that was filled with water. The mixture swirled into the bowl and diluted itself into an image that got clearer with each second. Once finished, it would show them the person they were looking for.

Unless something went wrong. The image becoming clearer and clearer was that of Evelyn. She looked confused, until she pulled her head back and noticed the reflection was not her own. It was her alright, making the same faces as she was currently, only viewed from some other point in the room. Eve looked down again at the bowl and was staring back at herself with confusion.

"Uhhh.....August? I think I did it wrong."

 

[KinkyPrawn]

It want much quicker than expected, but finally Evelyn found the spell. Now all that was left was to figure out how to lift the essence from the blade without unleashing the modern day equivalent of Pandora's Box onto the earth.

Eventually they were summoned for dinner and August hesitantly followed Evelyn. The party went pretty good. August was relaxing bit by bit as the more people didn't pay him any attention. He also met a bunch of new vampires who were clearly still very young. They shared a good laugh and August rather enjoyed the company of his own kind. The blood was surprisingly good. Either they had human cattle held on the island or the blood was conjured up in some way. Either way he didn't complain. As long as he had food he was happy. Evelyn seemed as if she was back to normal and drunk as a skunk. He knew she wasn't, but if he didn't know about her blood he would have thought she was completely wasted.

After the party they went back to the library and worked further. Eventually August managed to piece together enough to remember the spell and with that he left to go fetch his sword while Evelyn prepared for the ritual. Evelyn started the ritual and the blade started burning in a blue flame. As soon as she lifted the essence August shoved the sword into a barrel to kill the flame. He looked the blade over as Evelyn mixed up the essence with the ingredients. There was a clear line missing in the swirls of the Damascus Steel blade, indicating the piece of the soul that was housed within was missing. Thank goodness the thousands of other swirls in the pattern were still in place.

Evelyn spoke his name and he looked over to her. He looked down at the bowl as she spoke further. They were...looking at Evelyn. "What the hell?" he muttered softly. It didn't make sense to him. He remembered as clear as day stabbing that demon. How could Evelyn's essence be in the blade if she wasn't there? Unless...

"No. The spell worked fine." he spoke as he rested the flat side of the blade on his shoulder. "But it appears it wasn't your mother I hit. It was you." he looked at Evelyn with a blank face. "She was either the magic equivalent of pregnant with you or something else was going on that day that I have no knowledge of." He sheathed the sword and took a seat on a nearby chair. "Either way...I think we hit a dead end." his voice grew heavier as he looked at her with sympathy. "I'm...sorry, Evelyn."

 

[EmilyHuene]

"I...have no idea," she admitted as the odd reflection was looking around in the same way she was.

August knew something was up, but he didn't think anything was done incorrectly. He said that the spell worked, and somehow she'd gotten a piece of her own soul locked away into the blade. Whatever sense that made. Evelyn didn't feel any different. The way he made it sound she figured she'd feel like a piece of her had been missing. Oh, maybe if she absorbed the missing aura then maybe. She hadn't actually done that; it was mixed into the bowl and there was no way she was going to ingest that now.

Evelyn would look at him with confusion and then back to the bowl. It didn't make sense though. He'd fought her mother years and years ago. Right? That's what he said. There was no possible way her mother carried her in pregnancy that long. There had to be something more to it. And she was now even more determined to find the answer.

"No," she said as she stood, her tone fierce and unyielding. "I refuse to give up. There's still one person out there who can have answers about my real mother."

Moving away from the alter she began finding new bowls and tossing vials at him to catch while she made a new mixture of gross oddities around the witch's storehouse. This spell was far more simple and took no time at all to prepare. She'd sit down after kicking (sliding really) the rest of the things in her way off to the side. Like before she crossed her legs and began furiously mushing the ingredients together, taking them from August one at a time. When it was all finished she set a bowl of water in front of them, dropped the odd red goo into it, and began to swirl the water around while chanting a spell with yet another language. This one more common -as the Druidic she'd been speaking- that he'd recognize.

After several minutes of chanting (her tone growing more and more annoyed with every minute) a shape would begin to appear in the water. It was a werewolf....sort of. She had brown fur and her man was decorated in beautiful braids and beads. She had the most lovely shade of brown eyes that looked like pure honey. Now there were three known kinds of werewolves. The first being the most notable, albeit the more rare. Most considered it even a myth, even to their other brethren. This was the classic story of a man who would uncontrollably turn into the beast when the moon was full. While there were no proven cases that such a race existed, it was possible for the lupus virus to be so strong that it overtook the man and made him turn in such a way.

The second was the most popular of the species, and they were the ones the mortal man did not know about. Or rather, the secret was closely guarded. There was a pack who called themselves loup garou (( Lew Ga-Ruu )). They were skin walkers. Most of their kind could take on the shape of a mountainous beast such as a bear, a boar, a horse, etc. Or in their case...a wolf. With a single thought they would become the wolf. They were no bigger than ordinary wolves and typically hunted during the full moon. This is where the prior myth came from of man turning to beast. But these skin walkers kept to themselves and hid in plain sight, disguising themselves from man and his kind. They didn't trust other species either for that matter. Elves especially. Their eyes could see through the disguise and ruin any attempt at keeping their secret. So they tended to live in cities where Elves and other species were unwelcome. Others simply kept to the wilderness and avoided society altogether.

The last of the wolf species was what August was now seeing in the water dish. The woman had the face of a wolf but was wearing normal clothes like that of a sailor (more specifically a pirate). These wolves were born as wolf cubs and as they grew took on more human traits like being able to stand on their hind legs. These wolves could swap skins just as easily as the loup garou, going from wolf, to true human form, to a half hybrid shape that would stand at ten feet tall. The tallest ever recorded was actually fourteen feet in height. Naturally he was a pack Alpha the time he lived.

"Accalia, I would have thought with a boat surrounded by water you could have found a mirror glass faster."

The woman in the bowl would look confused, "Evelyn...? Is that...you?"

"Yes yes," Eve said dismissing the comment about her looks. "I have some important questions for you. I need you to tell me the truth about my mother."

 

[KinkyPrawn]

"No". The word itself was to be expected, given the circumstances. But the way she said it is what made him look up at her. She seemed to have one last plan and he was willing to see his promise through. He placed the sword down next to him and followed Evelyn around the room. He caught vials, bottles and all kinds of things she threw as quickly as he could then followed her back to their spot. She started mixing the stuff together and he handed the ingredients to her as she asked.

She started to mix the potion with the bowl of water and chanting in a language he was surprised he could still understand. That language was ancient and so was the spell. After a bit an image appeared in the water like a mirror. An image of a...wolf? He leaned over Evelyn's shoulder to take a better look at the wolf. While he most certainly did not recognise her 'face' he did recognise her eyes and clothing. Most likely from a bar or tavern he visited a couple months ago. He brushed the thought aside as he kept looking at the wolf. Whether they be feral, those xenophobic ones that kept to themselves or these changelings that could switch between human and wolf form how they saw fit, he didn't like them one bit. He had more than his fair share of close calls with werewolves that tried to sink their teeth into him. The thought of going mad, losing your mind, hallucinating all manners of images in a fever and dying a slow, excruciating death was horrifying.

At least he knew that the feeling was mutual between werewolves and vampires. Some grudges could be sorted out or moved past, but the conflict between the two arch enemies would reign eternal. The season unending...

He kept looking down and awaited an answer from the wolf.

 

[EmilyHuene]

"Your mother?" the wolf replied confused. "I don't understand. Has something happened with Rose-"

Evelyn cut her off, "I know that Rose isn't my real mother." She really didn't, but she was taking a gamble. If anyone knew who her real mother was, Accalia did.

In the reflection of the bowl both August and Evelyn would see Accalia look away as if embarrassed to admit it. If wolves could blush, this would be it. "So you know huh....." So it was true! Accalia then continued, "Evey, you have to understand...Rose loves you very much-"

Again the annoying teen would cut the woman off, "Yeah yeah yeah. I know. That's not important right now. I need to figure out who she is and where she is. It's really important. Do you know or not?"

It was obvious that Evelyn was indeed in a hurry and this maybe sped things up faster than Accalia ever wanted to have talked about this subject. It was a conversation Eve needed to have with her adoptive mother, the one who raised her all this time. Not the wolf captain who was more of a distant aunt to the teen. Still, her impatience and worried tone opened the wolf up and she'd nod her head.

"I don't know where she is now. But I do know her name. Aeryun. Huene. I'll never forget it. She broke your mother's heart. Your real mother. Rose."

"Ok ok! I get it. Blah blah blah Rose will always be mommy dearest. But who's this A-Rin? What did she look like? How can I find her?"

Accalia scratched her chin for a moment then replied, "Well, she had black hair like you. Real dark. But her eyes were white like the moons. Your mother told me she used to be a demon hunter. But I don't know what happened to her after she left your home. If I remember correctly, Rose told me she sought out a pirate by the name of WrathSpike. He's lord of the Flesh Eater-Pirates, dreaded name, but their reputation is dangerous. They're scary things Evey. I don't want you-"

And for a third and final time Evelyn would interrupt the poor friend and say, "Thanks, Auntie Accalia. I'll handle it from here!" She then dumped the bowl over and the water fell through the wooden floorboards and into the ground below. "Excellent! Looks like we're looking for some more pirates!"

Being that August was a pirate himself, he would no doubt have heard of these Flesh-Eater Pirates. Captained by a dark green Saurian, it was no wonder why their reputation preceded them for calling themselves flesh-eaters. Aside from their unique tastes, the pirates themselves were also notorious thieves that each had large bounties over their heads for the F.E.P. made it their personal mission to down any Naval ship they came across, no matter the nation they sailed out of. Merchant ships and the like were safe from death, should they not put up a fight, but any military vessel was never left afloat.

 

[KinkyPrawn]

August stood over Evelyn, listening to and watching their exchange. Evelyn wasn't beating around the bush at all. It seemed the she-wolf wanted to take a much more delicate approach to the topic, but Evelyn just blasted right through it all, dragging answers out of her. He didn't harbour any love for werewolves, but he did pity this one. It was clear she cared about Evelyn.

They finally got a name out of her. Aeryun Huene. Finally he could put a face to the name. The description she gave matched what he remembered of her perfectly. The wolf also gave them a last whereabouts, but even August wasn't too keen on it. The she-wolf also tried to give Evelyn a warning but she was cut off by the little demon. Evelyn stood up and faced him with a smile, as if it was going to be a lovely stroll through the woods. And now she wanted to drag him along.

"Oh no. We are not looking for anyone. You clearly don't know what you're going up against. The Flesh-Eaters are dangerous. Not only do they have this sick tendency to devour their enemies, but they made a sport out of hunting warships of the British or Spanish. Royal. Navy...and even you should know what special kind of crazy it takes to go about that." he scolded her, like a father shouting at a daughter. "Don't get me wrong, I can take them on dry land. I've also dealt with them before on land. But I've only heard stories of how they fight. And while I can take them on, I'm not sure how my ship will fare. They clearly know how to take on ships bigger than their own." he sighed and looked away, trying to figure out what to do.

He had come this far, no way could he back out now. He looked back at Evelyn. "I hope this town has a marketplace. I need to unload a lot of cargo and for a journey like that we'll need food, water and ammo...a lot of ammo. And my stores are running low on all of those." his voice calmed somewhat. "If we can cover all those I'm willing to help out. No way am I helping without being prepared."

 

[EmilyHuene]

As Evelyn finished her call with Accalia, August would shake his head and start scolding the demon. Just because Eve ignored the wolf's warning didn't mean he was going to let her ignore his. He tried explaining just how dangerous those specific pirates were. But his words and overall tone changed as he started by saying there was no way he was going to help, turning into him saying he'd done it before, and finally ending with they were going to need supplies and the like so that they'd stand a chance. Evelyn's eyes lit up and she leaned over to give August a big hug.

"Excellent!" she shrieked. "It's all settled then!"

Not letting him change his mind she'd go to stand and start heading up out of the basement while talking to herself about where they could go to find weapons and such. They'd likely have to hit a port in the Caribbean for there wasn't anything of quality here on the island that could help them take down a pirate vessel. Even still, she ended up making her way outside and then stopped suddenly.

"I told you to leave me alone!" she outright screamed for no reason. It was enough to give August a fright as she'd practically yelled it at the top of her lungs.

As he came around to joining her outside she'd turn and swiftly take his pistol from him and point it into the woods before firing. The shot made several birds fly from their perches, one specifically: a raven. Evelyn followed it with her gun (which she was aiming horribly) and clicked the trigger several more times trying to shoot the bird down. Luckily for them she'd run out of bullets.

 

[KinkyPrawn]

Evelyn pulled him into a hug, thanking him happily. He gave her a hug back and followed her out. He doubted that the island would have weapons and ammo but they would most certainly have food....hopefully for him as well.

He followed her up the stairs, going over a quick list of stuff they needed that they could get on the island. Suddenly when they got outside Evelyn screamed to leave her alone, startling August a bit. He looked around, but saw no one. Before he could ask who she was screaming at she drew a pistol from his belt and fired into the woods. He wanted to fire a snarky remark about wasting his ammo when he saw her tracking a...raven? He was getting tired of seeing ravens everywhere.

He drew a pistol and nailed the raven centre mass as it flew past. He holstered his pistol and grabbed the one Evelyn had and holstered it as well. "The day someone invents a pistol with more than one shot in the barrel is the day I can die happy. Now you wanna go get the raven or something? It's right over there." his voice was flat as he pointed into the direction the raven fell. "Care to tell me what you were wasting my shot on?" he asked her as he looked in the direction she fired, not seeing anything.

Of course there was the chance that she was stir crazy, having spent so long in hell, but with the raven he just shot down he doubted it a bit.