Reno growled as he was pushed into the fortune teller's tent by his drunken comrades; his unwillingness apparent in his struggles. "Get yer hands off me ya drunk bastards!" The regrettably sober red-head stumbled through the flap in the tent after a particularly uncoordinated shove from one of his fellow prison guards. "I will kick yer asses so hard ya won't sit for a week!" He snarled at the entrance of the tent as he prepared to walk out of it, straightening his suit with an angry huff. Reno's hand closed around the flapping canvas entrance just as a clammy and shriveled hand clasped his wrist with surprising strength and tugged him away from it. Reno ripped his arm out of the frail gypsies grasp and gave her a piercing glare. "Hands off ya old bat!" Reno's disdain for superstition, magic, and religion was well known and the main reason his comrades had tossed him into Elmyra's tent.
Elmyra took his insult in stride and continued to urge him to sit, her bangled arms clicking musically as she pulled out a chair before a table covered with various tricks of her trade. "Sit and let me cast the bones for you."
"I'm not about to be charged a fortune to receive my fortune! I'd rather not know it." Reno's voice dripped with cynicism as he tried to tear his eyes away from the milk white orb sitting on the table. The red-head had given up on all of the superstitious nonsense his fellow man believed in long ago; in his mind all deities were simply not worth all the hassle attached to believing in them and all myths were simply tales for children and foolish old women like the one sitting before him. He knew his drunken fair-weather friends would shove him back into the tent until he had some kind of prophetic sounding drabble to spout into their ears so he sat and glared at the table top, ignoring the whispers filled with superstition and drunken stupidity that flowed into the tent.
"I won't charge you nothing sir." Elmyra reached a withered hand into a thick purple bag and pulled out yellowing bones covered in symbols that Reno couldn't and didn't care to understand. She folded the bones in her hands and bent her wrinkled face over them and whispered gently, the strange words sounding like a mangled prayer to Reno's skeptical ears.
"Like I haven't heard that before." Reno huffed irritably, leaning his chin on his hand and examining the gypsy with something akin to disdain. The old woman was bent double by a large hump on her back and the years spent traveling with her caravan had stolen any beauty she may have possessed long ago. Her wispy hair was tucked beneath a thin purple veil that was speckled with flecks of gold, real gold or not Reno couldn't tell. She rocked back and forth as she whispered over the bones, the clinking of the many bangles she wore grating heavily on Reno's nerves. Finally she stopped and tossed the bones onto the table, the sudden move forcing Reno to sit up straight as bones clattered towards the area where his elbow had been resting.
Elmyra immediately became engrossed with the pale yellow bones, her fingers gliding over the pattern they made without touching. Reno rolled his eyes and stared longingly at the entrance of the tent, his desire to leave the camp overpowering. Why he had come in the first place he didn't remember, but he was fairly sure Zack's near incessant needling about him needing to go out and get a life had something to do with it. Reno's dark haired brother bothered him as much as any sibling would, but mostly because when Zack insisted that he do something he couldn't refuse for long. The older man knew how to make Reno do anything he wanted and Reno couldn't stand it. It was bad enough his brother had decided to marry one of the many gypsy women who traipsed through their town; he didn't have to make Reno get involved with them too.
The woman looked up at Reno after a time, her age clouded eyes searching his face intently. "I see many things here, things that are and things that aren't and things that will be if you continue living the way you do. It is a hard road you walk, but it is only going to get harder. Unforeseeable danger lies directly in your path and very little will change your course after you have dealt with this-"
Reno rolled his eyes and stood, his hand out to stop the woman's speech. "What you have to tell me is nothing I haven't heard before. You're not the first gypsy to try and read the bones for me and the fact that you both say exactly the same thing doesn't surprise or impress me."
Elmyra paled, her paper-thin skin wrinkling with worry. "Another gypsy has told you the same thing? Who is it boy?"
Reno bristled at being called a boy, in his mind he was very much a man and at twenty one years of age he felt the rest of the world should see him that way too. "Aerith, my brother's wife. She tries to convince me there's some meaning behind what she has to say but I don't buy any of this foolishness."
The gypsy stood, a gnarled finger pointing towards Reno's face. "You've had dealings with Aerith? She's one of the most gifted readers I've ever come across! If she has told you what I have to tell you then you are foolish if you don't listen! Tonight your life will change child, it will change in ways you can't even hope to comprehend! The only thing you can do is protect yourself from the evils you may face."
Reno sighed heavily and batted away the accusatory hand floating inches away from his face. "Don't you get it? I don't believe in your nonsense!"
Elmyra snapped her fingers and suddenly Reno's upper arms were grasped tightly by two large gypsy men he had not seen enter the tent. Reno yelped loudly as he was picked up and hauled across the tent, his toes brushing across the grass covered dirt below him. He struggled and kicked out at the men holding him but they ignored his anger as they carried him along. "What the hell are you doing? Put me down!"
Elmyra instructed the men to set Reno down in a hard backed chair, her hands filled with implements Reno had only seen once before and had hoped not to see again. The last time he had seen so many needles was when Zack had allowed Aerith to tattoo a symbol of protection to his arm and his brother had nearly passed out from the pain involved. Aerith had offered to do the same for Reno but he had refused stubbornly, swearing that the only time she would be allowed near him with needles was when he was a dead man. Zack had laughed at his fear even though he refused to use his dye bruised arm for almost a week.
Reno struggled harder as his arms were pinned down against the chair and his head was held between the meaty hands of a large gypsy man. Elmyra held a needle against his hair and smiled as if satisfied with herself before jabbing him below the eye with the hot liquid coated piece of metal. Reno cried out and tried to pull away as she continued to pierce the skin below his eyes; any chance of escaping unscathed was now forfeit as the permanent dye was already settling itself into his skin. Soon Reno stopped struggling completely and simply sat and whimpered pathetically, not wishing to increase the pain further as Elmyra began reheating the needle before adding more dye.
"I am giving you a great gift my young friend." Elmyra mumbled as she finished off the second arc under Reno's eyes. "I am giving you the protection of the great Ifrit in these marks. It is obvious the Flamekeeper has bestowed special favor upon you, your red hair, fiery temper, and skeptical nature prove as much. Hopefully I am not too late in giving you the protection Aerith should have given you long ago." She frowned as she examined her work, mumbling words in her own tongue that confused Reno and distracted him from the burning sensation in his face. She cupped his chin in her hand and tilted his face to and fro, examining the long red lines she had forced onto his face. She released him and nodded sharply before reaching into her flowing robes and pulling out a handful of silver bullets, forcing them into Reno's hands with a frightened huff. "Whatever it is the bones say you are going to end up facing these will help you defeat it."
Reno growled and stuffed the bullets into his pocket before pressing his fingers to his cheeks warily. He let out a groan of distaste at the throbbing pulse he could feel heating up his chilled fingertips. "Didn't I stick out enough already? Wasn't the bright red hair enough?" He stood quickly when he realized that the men were no longer at his sides; their departure was as swift and noiseless as their entrance. Reno darted past the woman and went to the table she had foretold his future at, examining his angry reflection in the milky white crystal ball. He prodded the bright red marks gently, noting the swelling beneath them with extreme distaste.
Reno spun around to give her a piece of his mind only to find that Elmyra was gone, her frail body scampering away faster than he ever would have thought possible. He growled angrily and chased her out of the tent, ripping open the back entrance and scanning the nearby woods for some sign of the woman. He listened intently but couldn't hear the sound of her clinking bangles over the drunken laughter of the men enjoying the revelries of the camp. A low snarl ripped past his lips and he turned back into the tent, exiting through the front and passing all the people gathered in front of it without a word; shrugging off his friend's questions with anger. He didn't fail to notice some of the stares his freshly tattooed face was attracting, but he didn't care.
There were fewer men here to taunt him than normal, another thing Reno attributed to simple superstition and stupidity. There was a full moon out that night and in the past month four men and women had been found discarded in ditches with their throats slit and their blood drained. Most of the townsfolk, Zack and Aerith included, thought that this was the work of something mystical that needed to be feared. Reno was skeptical of any mystical qualities in these murders, in his opinion there was simply a madman on the loose who enjoyed cutting throats.
Either way, the opinions of superstitious drunken men around him wouldn't matter until the next day when they sobered up enough to realize that he had odd tattoos on his face. Zack and Aerith's opinion, however, would matter quite a bit once he got home. He was fairly sure Zack would be furious with him for allowing someone else to do something he had denied Aerith the privilege of doing and Reno knew that no matter how much he argued and repeated that he had been forcefully given the unwanted tattoos Zack would still be angry with him.
Reno sighed bitterly and gave his faithful horse a pat on the neck before hoisting himself into the driver's seat of the large metal cage she dragged behind her. Reno had won the metal carriage in a poker game against the warden of the town prison and since it was the only carriage he had and he was a prison guard it seemed fitting for him to use it often. He couldn't remember a time since he had won it where he had gone out without the rolling cage; his excuse to his brother was that one never knew when they would need to lock someone up. Besides; the hard seat he rode on was far more comfortable than the rolling back of his treasured Bethany.
The warm brown mare was one of the few things Reno had ever bought on his own; almost all of his physical possessions had been won in a game of chance and luck at one point or another or had been purchased for him without his consent by a concerned Zack and Aerith who thought he didn't have enough to entertain himself. Zack had a great deal of pride in how his family looked and he made sure to keep Reno and Aerith clothed in the most stylish garments he could find, whether they wanted the clothes or not. Aerith had learned to tolerate his brother's need for physical possessions early on in their marriage and had embraced his attention to physical things when it was possible for her to pawn whatever object it was off onto Reno. Reno hated the fact that whenever they got the chance they pushed another worthless piece of art into his crowded room or added another gun to his steadily growing collection, but he had forced himself to keep his thoughts wordless. He had learned early on in life that starting fights with Zack had only ever ended with his head in the dirt.
Reno clicked his tongue and with a flick of the thin whip held in his hand Bethany was carting him and the cage back towards the town and away from the indulgences of the gypsy camp at a steady trot. It was customary for the men of the town to go and entertain themselves with the women in the gypsy camp as there was no brothel in town, but for some strange reason Reno couldn't participate in the same festivities his comrades did. Every week a new caravan rolled into the woods and every week Zack forced him to go spend time in the camp in the hopes that he would fall in love with one of the beautiful gypsies the way he had, but Reno felt no attraction to any of them no matter how beautiful they were or how talented they claimed to be. Zack had fallen in love with Aerith when she had first offered to cast the bones for him and he knew they both wished the same kind of love at first sight match for him, but between the dour girls of the town and the underdressed women of the caravans he was hard pressed to find someone that would suit his tastes. He wasn't even sure it was a woman he wanted, from the dealings he had had with them he had found them all to be far too demanding to give him any desire to spend more time with them than what was strictly necessary. Zack simply insisted that he hadn't met the right one yet and Aerith tried to unravel his love life in her cards and bones, but Reno simply didn't care as much as they did. The life of a bachelor seemed to suit him just fine and at the moment he saw no reason to rush things.
Reno was so lost in his thoughts that he didn't see the large shaggy object trailing him behind the tree line until the thing launched itself at his horse, her frightened whinnies and startled gallop bringing his mind back to the present. He quickly reached for the rifle seated next to him as he tried to get Bethany back under control, her fear quickening her pace to an unreasonable speed. Reno pulled hard on the reins and forced the bit back into her mouth until he could see blood flecking the foam at the corners of her muzzle, but still she ran. He could see a shaggy red creature matching pace with the horse, its clawed feet tearing up the ground below it. He couldn't identify the beast, but he didn't care to try and give it a name as he took aim with his rifle and shot it. His aim was close to perfect even though the metal cage was rocking violently and his target was moving; the shot a testament to the uncounted hours Zack made him spend shooting. The beast howled with anger as the bullet ripped through its shoulder and sent it tumbling off of the path, thick blood flecking the road.
Satisfied that he had scared the creature off Reno turned his attention back to getting his frightened equine back under control. With a few loud swears and sharp tugs on the reins her pace slowed and she stood panting and trembling on the edge of the road. Reno clambered down from his perch to comfort the creature, gun still in hand in case the beast came back. He gave her sweaty body a quick check with his hands and what little his eyes could see by the moonlight and didn't like what he found. Long claws had torn through the skin of her left flank and blood was dripping from the marks in steady streams as the flesh quivered with pain. He growled angrily and turned back towards the woods where he had shot the creature, a yell piercing the night. "You hurt my horse you bastard!"
The woods, of course, paid Reno's angry outburst no heed; but it seemed the creature deigned to recognize his challenge. The beast pulled itself back onto the road, limping and bleeding over the dirt path. Reno felt terror strike his heart as he met the yellow eyes of the wolfish creature, its fangs bared in his direction as it curled an oddly human-like hand into the dirt. Reno backed down the path in fright, his hands fumbling with his gun as Bethany trembled beside him, her energy to flee gone after the frightened race through the woods. With a loud and feral snarl the creature ran towards Reno, its mouth open and its gait unsteady as it was hindered by its injured shoulder. Reno raised his gun to try and defend himself but couldn't pull the trigger fast enough to spare him the creatures wrath. It lunged at him, its mouth missing his head by mere inches and its claws tearing through his shirt and jacket to drag across his sensitive white flesh, the skin parting easily.
Reno cried out as he was knocked backwards, the creature rolling over him to land with a whimper farther down the road. Reno rolled over and got back up, his hands holding the gun aloft as the creature charged again. He shot again but missed the creature completely, the pain in his chest distracting him and making his arms tremble. The creature tried to bite him again, but the rifle diverted its attack, the long barrel pressing into its chest and pushing the beast to the side as it tried to close its jaws around Reno's shoulder. Reno stumbled backwards until his back hit the cage, the cold metal behind him giving his pain filled mind an idea. He grabbed the door to the cage and heaved it open as the creature ran forward. The creature charged into his rifle yet again, the gun teetering to the side and using the creature's momentum to propel it through the door of the cage.
Reno slammed the metal door shut with a loud clang and locked it securely, the previously unused padlock snapping together with a satisfying click. He quickly backed away from the cage, his heart hammering with fear as he watched an unnaturally long arm reach out to grab the area where his body had been only moments before. Long claws curled around air as the creature tried to grasp Reno's just barely out of reach legs, its prey scooting farther and farther away to ensure its safety. Reno watched as the creature snarled fiercely and began throwing itself against the sides of the cage, its efforts wasted on the heavy metal bars designed to withstand any force short of a cannon blast. Reno looked around for his rifle, determined to finish the frightening beast before it found a way to escape, but gave a loud moan of despair as he realized that he had dropped his gun so that he could lock the door of the cage. The beast's outraged snarls seemed to mock him as the cage creaked in protest to the treatment it received, the grasping claws that reached towards him putting his gun out of reach.
Reno pulled himself to his feet with a pained whimper, the thin gashes in his chest making motion difficult. He pulled open his shirt to examine the wounds and growled when he saw the bloody state his chest was in. Blue eyes glared at the snarling beast in the cage and a blood tipped finger pointed at the thin scratches. "You see what you did? That was uncalled for!" The beast sniffed the air eagerly as it caught sight of Reno's blood, a thin red tongue lolling out of its foaming mouth. Reno growled and tore his already ripped shirts into shreds so that he could make makeshift bandages to cover his wounds. "Yeah yeah you wanna eat me, get over it! I'm not on the menu tonight pal." The dark red creature growled back, its fangs barred at Reno's outrage. Reno rolled his eyes and walked towards his still shivering Bethany, her eyes rolling with fear in their sockets. "Shut up beastie, yer scarin' my horse." Reno threw his ruined jacket over Bethany's trembling and bloody flank and began rubbing her nose to try and soothe her frantic breathing.
Reno spent the rest of the night patting his thoroughly upset horse and throwing angry insults at the creature in the cage, his arguments one sided and accompanied by growls from both of them. After a while the creature exhausted itself trying to escape and simply curled up on the floor of the cage to lick at its quickly healing wound, its bright yellow eyes trained on Reno as the red-head lost the energy to taunt it. No matter how relaxed and tired the creature seemed to be Reno refused to get close enough to retrieve his gun or unhook Bethany from the cage.
Sometime after midnight Reno started to doze, his eyelids growing heavy as he leaned against Bethany's side, his legs shaking with the effort needed to keep him upright. He was still mumbling quiet reassurances to Bethany who had been ignoring him since the beast had stopped his furious thrashing. Reno let out a large yawn at the same time the creature did, its wolfish eyes still trained on his face. Reno stared at the creature while his eyelids drooped and he continued to mumble nonsensically at it while his fingers curled in Bethany's mane, his words meaningless and vague. His eyes finally beat him in the heated war for consciousness and his lashes touched his cheeks as he sunk to the ground near Bethany's hooves when sleep overtook him.
A pained howl crashed through Reno's sleep fogged brain and he jerked upright immediately, fear gripping his cloudy senses. He stumbled to his feet, Bethany's hooves missing his body by inches as she began to kick out in fear. Reno grabbed a hold of her bridle as her head thrashed and he pulled her body back to the ground as another howl tore through the morning air. Bethany's eyes rolled in fear as Reno tried to comfort her, his efforts wasted as the beast continued to moan, the noise a horrible pained keening that pulled at Reno's heartstrings through his undeniable fear. Reno moved closer to the cage, his fear turning to disbelief as he watched the creature thrash.
The shaggy red beast was contorting in pain and anguish, its long limbs shrinking to a more manageable size. The hair on its body fell off and dusted the bottom of the cage where a small breeze carried it away, the flesh beneath it white and trembling as it convulsed. The wolfish teeth retreated and the long nose pulled back into a shapely one, white nostrils flaring as the pained cries became more and more human. Yellow eyes grew wide with pain as the wolfish skull flowed back like liquid around them, their iris' slowly darkening to a breathtaking blue beneath a fringe of damp red hair.
Reno's fear of the beast was abandoned and he pressed his face up against the thick steel bars, his mouth gaping with silent astonishment as he took in the beautiful body trembling in front of him. Never in his life had he seen a creature so beautiful, every line and feature well defined and perfectly shaped. Reno could not have pictured a more perfect human being if he had tried and he suddenly understood why he had never been able to find any of the gypsies attractive. Not one of them had even a fraction of the beauty encompassed in the creature laying on the cold floor of the cage below him, the limbs perfect in their trembling frailty and alluring despite the fact that only moments before they had invoked terror. A groan passed parted pink lips as the man sat up and cradled his head in pain.
If the gods had a sense of irony it was encompassed in the man sitting on the floor of that cage, his strikingly attractive features giving no hint to the beast he had been the night before. A moment of confusion crossed the man's face as he took in his surroundings with foggy eyes that looked like they had just finished sleeping the night away, although Reno knew that was not the case. Blue eyes met and they regarded each other silently, awe marked in one face while fear began to register in the other. The once beast sprang to his feet and rushed towards Reno, grasping at the bars desperately. "Did I kill anyone?"
Reno backed away from the cage as the man rushed forward, a lump forming in his throat where before there had been nothing. He swallowed it down and did his best to give an acceptable answer. "As far as I know you didn't. You tried, but you didn't." Reno crossed his arms over the torn bits of shirt covering his chest as the man's eyes drifted over it, taking in the bloodied cloth with apparent guilt. "So, you're a…um…" Reno couldn't finish his question, the words dropping from his tongue before he got the chance to voice them.
The man gulped audibly, his eyes still full of fear. He shifted and caressed the bars of the cage with apparent awe. "How did you get me in here?"
"Opened the door and let you run inside." Reno chuckled, grabbing his rifle from the ground with a pained wince as the scabs on his chest cracked and fresh blood leaked out of them. "Now that you're not all fury would you like to come out of the cage? So long as you refrain from trying to eat me I think it'll be safe to let you out."
"You're safe for another month." The man chuckled nervously and looked down, noting his nakedness with a blush. "I don't mean to be needy but do you happen to have anything I might cover up with?"
Reno blushed as well, his eyes drifting despite his efforts to keep them on more civilized areas of the man. He moved to the front of the cage and rummaged around in a large canvas sack he kept in his seat, hunting for the large horse blanket he kept to chase away the chill on cold nights. He gave a small noise of triumph when he finally extricated it from the overflowing bag, climbing down from the seat and pushing it through the bars of the cage so that the very tempting creature in front of him could retain some sense of dignity.
The red-head took the blanket and wrapped it around himself; confusion painting his features a glossy shade of relief as Reno unlocked the large metal padlock. "Why didn't you kill me when I was a beast? I obviously tried to kill you."
Reno chuckled and helped the man out of the cage, shutting the heavy metal door behind him with a bang that echoed down the path. "Don't think I didn't try. I shot you once but after I got you in the cage I dropped my gun and there was no way in heaven or hell that I was going anywhere near you to get it back and finish the job. I figured you would probably be happy about that considering the fact that you're still alive. I'm guessing you won't mind coming home with me so that you can get some clothes?"
"I think I shall accept the offer." A musical chuckle sounded in the man's throat as Reno helped him into the driver's seat of the cage, the blanket wrapped tightly around his shivering frame. "I believe introductions are in order. My name is Genesis Rhapsodos."
Reno grinned as he peeled the sticky jacket from Bethany's flank and tossed it into the ditch, the tattered remains not worth saving. "Reno Hewley." He clambered back into the driver's seat and gave Bethany's uninjured flank a gentle tap with the whip, her feet pulling both cage and men forward up the path.
Genesis nodded once, as if he was satisfied with the name. "I wouldn't, by chance, happen to be anywhere near Kalm would I?" His voice was tinged with hope as he pulled the blanket higher around his shoulders.
"We're just outside of Kalm at the moment." Genesis sighed with relief at Reno's words, some of the anxiety leaving his face. Reno didn't question the happiness that lit up Genesis face and continued. "I was on my way home from a visit to the gypsy caravan visiting town when you attacked us." Reno fingered the tattoos on his cheek ruefully, having forgotten that they were there in the excitement of Genesis' attack.
Genesis noticed the move and pursed his lips slightly. "Those are fresh?" A nod from Reno confirmed his suspicion. "I'm guessing you went to see a batty old fortune teller by the name of Elmyra?"
Reno raised an eyebrow at Genesis as he guided Bethany up the well worn path before them. "How do you know Elmyra? Have you had dealings with her?"
Genesis' lips tightened into a thin line and he leaned back against the cage behind them. "She thought she had a cure for me. I tried it last night and it obviously failed. She's only good for reading fortunes I guess."
Reno chuckled and shook his head. "She read mine and then had two goons hold me down so she could stab my face with needles."
Genesis frowned at that, his beautiful face twisted in regretful anger. "She wanted to do the same to me but I told her I would bite her if she did. Sometimes being a werewolf has its advantages." Reno shivered at the mention of Genesis' form from the night before, his desire to dismiss the fact that he had just seen what he had thought was impossible overpowering in its insistence. He decided that for now he would completely ignore the fact that Genesis wasn't fully human as his sanity would hang by mere threads if he tried to wrap his mind around the concept. If werewolves were real, there was a good chance every superstitious thing he had dismissed as fantasy was real as well. Reno simply refused to believe that the deities he had been disrespecting and angering for the better part of his life were real.
"I wish I had thought of something like that to get her away from me. Zack and Aerith are going to be furious with me when we get home." Reno laughed as he imagined the look of pure confusion that would cross both of their faces when they saw that he was not only injured and tattooed, but that he also had a naked man riding home with him. He sat up quickly, a disconcerting thought springing into his mind. "What the hell am I supposed to tell them? I was supposed to get home last night! They must be worried sick! I can't tell them I was attacked by a werewolf that just happens to be coming home with me; they'll think I'm crazy and send me off to the asylum. They'd probably send you as well."
"That is a problem." Genesis sighed and his brow furrowed in thought, an expression mirrored by Reno. "Tell them you got attacked by a wolf, that much is easy to believe and it will explain your injuries. As for me, just tell them you found me lying naked on the side of the road. I'll tell them I was robbed while returning to the Inn after visiting the gypsy camp, that's close enough to the truth as it is. You can claim that you passed out from blood loss last night and found me after you woke up this morning. As for the tattoos, you're on your own with that explanation. I'm not entirely sure they won't approve of them though, they do lend your face a certain amount of extra attractiveness."
Reno's face brightened as he gave Bethany's reins a small tug in the direction he wanted, her hooves clacking gently on the cobbled path leading into Kalm. The fact that Genesis could come up with such a convincing string of falsifications in so short a time impressed him, he had thought he was one of the few people left who didn't mind selling lies for truth. "I'm sure I'll think of something. It won't be too hard to come up with a suitable lie. Don't be surprised when Zack gets angry though, it's normal and unavoidable. I suggest covering up as best as you can with the blanket. The women here aren't used to seeing so much bare flesh at one time and they might die from shock." Genesis laughter broke through the air once more as he adjusted the thick blanket to make sure he was as well covered as he could be. Reno grinned with him as he watched a few nearby faces drop in confusion, disgust, and a most satisfying jealousy as the townspeople took in his ragged appearance and the obvious nudity of the man beside him. He was sure news of his unorthodox arrival into town would reach Zack before he did and the look he imagined on Zack's face promised so much entertainment he couldn't help but smile. Armed with his lies and a naked man ready to verify his falsifications and help him create more Reno guided a limping Bethany towards the large estate on the edge of town, his grin growing wider with every stare they received.
Also; any vampires mentioned in this story will be sparkle free.
Author's Note: Well, this is my first step into the supernatural. I haven't done any vampire/werewolf/witchcraft stories yet and if anyone would like to make suggestions on how this story can be better or how I'm getting facts wrong I would like to hear what you have to say! If you have questions just shoot me a PM or ask in a review, I'll answer either way so long as I don't have to reveal copious amounts of plot.