Disclaimer: Sadly, I do not own Blood and Chocolate or any of its characters. In addition, Wendy Rose owns the poem "Drum Song".
Chapter 12:
The Sweet Moon's Call
Vivian woke up in the middle of the night with the strong moon light pouring into her room. The moon called to her and she felt so alive. She felt so in tune with her surroundings- more so then she had been in a long time. She could hear an owl "perch, on vertical earth, of tree bark and, branch". And hear it hoot, while turning its nocturnal head around and around.
She could feel a rabbit wait, tensely, in tall grass, for a bush, that was rustled in the wind, to stop so it could continue about its way. She could hear the soft trickle of water as it slid from stone to stone in the river only yards away. In the other room, Vivian could feel Esme's sleeping self turn over on her side. Vivian breathed in deeply, smelling the fresh night air that was nowhere to be found in her room- she could just feel it lingering outside, which somehow made her able to be part of it and breathe it. She even shivered as a friendly whisper of wind wound itself around her being.
She snaked her legs out from underneath her warm comforter and went over to the window bathed in moon light. Her pale, clammy human hands rapidly changed into the paw of a wolf with elongated fingers and razor sharp talons. Her arm that was swarmed with goose bumps was transformed into an arm covered with tawny colored fur. Vivian could hear the rough pop as said transformation took place on her arms and simpered at the delight of the change. She could barely remember the last time she had a traditional run, not the one that she had when she lured the Four to her prank.
As quietly as possible she slid her window open far enough to let her body through. As she stepped onto the roof the last of her transformation was complete with another pop. She glanced back into her room and stared at her clothes that were torn on her floor hating herself for not thinking to take them off first. Vivian dismissed her ignorance with a grunt and jumped off the roof. She could sense the Four and a few others from the pack roaming through the woods.
She calmed herself to try to find where Gabriel was. She wanted to finalize the stupid quarrel that had gone unresolved. She hated fighting with him, but she knew that he was only acting the way he was because he cared for her. Vivian ran into the forest towards Gabriel's house. When she finally arrived at the plain house she looked at herself; fur all sodden and muddy from gallivanting where she didn't have to.
She cursed to herself once more for not thinking, though, it was thinking too much that had caused her to become muddy. The whole way over to Gabriel's house all Vivian thought about was resolving the conflict that had barricaded itself between them. Vivian trudged to the shadows of the front door while quickly changing form. In the dim light, Vivian could make out her toes that sported a single blade of grass and several splashes of mud, which traveled up her glossy smooth legs.
Her hands were red from the driving run and also splashed with mud and clumps of dirt. Even her fingernails were teeming with earth, making them look black. Frustrated, Vivian tried the knob finding, to her surprise, it was open. She put the door ajar and stained the mat with her muddy feet, which were now clean. When she was inside she stood on the cold tile and looked around.
Furniture was sparse, but boxes were not. She fumbled up the stairs and looked for the bathroom. It was small and only had the necessities; a small hand mirror, one bottle of Aussie shampoo, a thick bar of soap, a towel, a tooth brush, a tube of tooth paste, a razor for shaving (for Gabriel of course), and a roll of toilet paper. Vivian rummaged in the two boxes that were lined against the tiled wall and produced a towel of her own and a body wash that was in a cute little clear plastic container. With that she plopped the towel on a hook and brought the body wash into the confines of the shower with her.
Then she turned the knob to activate the water and scrubbed her stingy self. When she finished showering, she wrapped the mint green towel around her now beautifully scented body and stalked off to find Gabriel. When she walked into his room all she saw were sheets tangled in a heap on his bed and boxes piled high. So, instead of looking for Gabriel, Vivian stalked over to a box labeled "SHIRTS" and took out one of Gabriel's tight fitting gray ones. Then she closed the box and went on to look for anything that might be suitable to wear with the shirt.
As she made a round on all the boxes with the towel still held around her body and Gabriel's gray shirt, she spotted him out of the corner of her eye standing in the door frame. She stood up and stared straight back at him simpering.
"I thought you might need some clothes," said Gabriel walking into the room and taking a seat on the edge of his bed.
"Thank you," was Vivian's reply, tucking his shirt back in the box.
"Not so fast," he held the apparel behind his back, away from her, when she tried to take it from him.
"Please?" Vivian pouted, but instead Gabriel just laughed.
"You can't fool me, trying to look cute like that, you're gonna have to do a lot better then that, sweetie," he finished with another laugh giving her a kiss on her wrinkled forehead, "it is a temptation though. You smell absolutely delectable."
"Is that supposed to be an insult?" Gabriel laughed again.
"Of course not, but that watermelon smells great on your skin. Your other one is nice too, but the watermelon wash makes me want to eat you up."
"I was surprised to see that you had that. You have to admit it's a little strange," said Vivian sitting besides Gabriel and snuggling with him. Her head was under his chin and his protective arms wound around her fragile looking frame. Gabriel kissed the top of her wet head and rocked her back and forth. They stayed like that for a while; just enjoying their time together.
"Gabriel…," whispered Vivian.
"Hmm?"
"Can we just forget about the whole prank? We're causing more trouble then its worth and it wasn't the Four's fault, it was mine."
"Of course, but you have to promise me that you'll never put yourself in danger again, okay?"
"Deal," she said leaning back in his arms to kiss him on the lips.
"I love you Vivian. I don't know what I would do without you and just thinking that you would put yourself in danger scares me."
"You, scared? Get outta town!" jested Vivian, but then she saw the seriousness on Gabriel's face, "I promise. I love you too." They shared another passionate kiss, with hands becoming tangled in hair.
"Now, can I go get changed? I think that was redemption enough." Gabriel handed the clothes over and swatted Vivian away like a fly. She later returned wearing a kaki jean mini skirt and a floral halter top with her hair blown dried in a very appealing way. Gabriel let out a low whistle as she flounced into the room and snuggled up with him under the covers of the bed.
She gingerly placed her head on his chest and Gabriel wrapped his arm around her once more.
"I didn't know you have such good taste in fashion," said Vivian, thinking how Gabriel knew to put together an outfit so well.
"It wasn't that hard to find an outfit for you when everything you have matches together. You're the one with the good style," Vivian blushed at the comment and nuzzled her nose against his chest breathing in the wonderful scent of his shirt.
"I'm gonna miss it here," said Vivian.
"I know," he soothed stroking her forearm, "but I really think you're going to like it in Canada. Just wait until you see the houses that Rudy picked for us. They're amazing; you're going to love it."
"Maybe," she said skeptically.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing……it's just that…after I finish this year of high school…I mean…what about college? I want to make something of myself, unlike Esme who's been waiting tables since Moon knows when. And if I do decide to go to college then I'll probably end up coming back here because that's where I applied."
"Vivian, it'll be alright. We just have to take one step at a time. And if you don't go to college you could help me start up an inn in Canada. What's the pack going to prosper on if less then half of us work? You would be a big asset to the company. And it's not at all like bar tending, you can hire people for that. I can even show you all the ropes."
"Maybe."
"Aw, it'll be alright, baby. You'll see, everything will fall in place."
"I hope so," Vivian sighed, "I haven't even started packing yet."
"Well guess what we're going to do today then?"
"Pack?"
"How did you know?"
"You could call it a lucky guess."
"Do you think Esme's up yet?" asked Gabriel craning his neck to see the digital clock that read 6:02.
"No, I don't feel like packing right this minute anyways, it's too early."
"Okay, later." Vivian closed her eyes and fell asleep on Gabriel all cuddled up. She couldn't deny it any long, but she was going to move and there was nothing she could do about it except but on a happy face. But she would be brave for Gabriel's sake if not her own.
Okay, if you're wondering why I had that whole "I don't own the poem Drum Song" thing up top, it's cuz in the first " " that was a line from (you guessed it) Drum Song. I also have a joke for all of you, but you probably don't want to hear it, but GUESS WHAT! (you all think i'm gonna say i'm gonna tell you anyways, but guess what ! im not cuz im tooooo toooo tired!) Anyways, if you've also been wondering about my slow update its cuz school has been CRAZEE (i have to take these state tests and they're driving me craze), theres a lot of family stuff going on, and cuz i've been plain ole lazee, with the ocassional laspe of writers block. Well there ya go.Maybe if your reviews are good i'll tell you a joke next chapter! lol. only joking, unless you really want one. Review and tell me!! Please review and tell me! Either way pretty please review!!