When I finally crawled from the depths of darkness and my eyes opened, I had no clue where I was. There was silky cloth beneath me and a warm cotton fabric engulfing me. A bed? It couldn't have been makeshift because I could feel the mattress gently conforming to my body.
I couldn't see anything at first. The blanket had been pulled all the way up to my forehead and beyond. Had I cuddled down beneath the blankets? I must have, because I was rolled in a ball, knees to my chest and hands at my heart. Light filtered down through the minisucle holes in the fabric so I knew it wasn't yet night...unless someone had turned on a light.
Pulling the blankets down, I straightened on the bed and peeked my head out. The room around me was a dark navy blue, almost black. Little trinkets, like a picture of a leopard in the wild sitting lazily in a tree, decorated the wall. Two mahogany dressers were pressed up against the wall on my right, near the far corner and away from the door. A night stand was resting next to the king sized bed I was lying on and a phone festooned it's platform. Besides a black rug, that was all that the room held.
No one else was in the room with me and I couldn't hear voices. The entire house was utterly silent. But, who's house was this? Why had I been brought here? My memories deceaved me. There just wasn't anything there that could help. All I remembered was my house, the arguement, then darkness.
This house was different than the other place Theodore had. It was bigger, and the things within more...homely. It wasn't like the hut where gaping holes shown within the walls and you could hear all the wild animals moving about on their daily buisness just outside. No, now you heard the roar of cars and the squeal of tires. Occasionally, a honk or two.
"Where the hell..?" I asked myself.
Kicking the blankets off my body, I slid out of bed and stood. By the look of the sky outside, it must have been either late afternoon or early evening. Did things really get that bad? Was I that shook up? Right now, I felt great, wonderful. Stress wasn't attacking me and making me tired, emotionally I seemed fine, and physically....well...I was alright too.
A draft caught me on the legs and arms. Blinking, I looked down at myself. Well...someone took it into their own hands to undress and then redress me. I wasn't sure who, but I guess I didn't care. The silky night gown felt great against my warm skin. A little touch of heaven, as the saying goes.
I made my way out of the room as silently as the leopard I had become. Being barefoot made slinking easier. I wasn't sure who's house I was in, so it felt right to move stealthily. Never know when someone would come at you with a bat...or something worse.
A bathroom stood open on my right while another door was to my left. There was a small hallway if you walked towards that door that probably lead to one other room, but I didn't take it. I saw stairs. I hated stairs, they unnerved me sometimes. But now I was faced with them and the only way down was the stairs. I could have leaped if I wanted to, but I wasn't completely sure I was ready to leap a flight of fourteen or so stairs. So, cautiously and still noislessly, I slinked down the stairs, my hand curled around the saftey bar the entire time.
When I reached the landing, I looked around again. The door to outside was directly in front of me. To my right, a closet...I think. To my left, a threshold leading into the living room. Silence still. If I dropped a pin on the carpet, I could have heard it despite the fact that my ears were ten times better than human's now. I moved through the furnished living room as slowly as I had taken the stairs. Everything just seemed weird.
The kitchen was next, a bright white room. The clock above the oven showed the time in big, green block numbers. Three thirty. Okay, so I had slept at least all of the afternoon away. But where was the pard? I knew they couldn't have just given me this house and walked away, especially if I was unconcious. Besides, whoever had dressed me had done it almost lovingly, or I would have most definitely awoken during it.
So, that leaves the only question on where they were hiding.
In the kitchen, a door stood to my right. I wasn't sure where it lead to, seeing that I had seen all the rooms, almost, and had noticed all the necessities. A bathroom, at least one bedroom big enough to hold four, a living room, a kitchen, and a closet. Those were really the only rooms you needed in a house. But this house must be holding more than a few Leopards from my new pard. Where did that door go?
Finally, I walked towards it and wrenched it open. Duh, I should have known. The basement. Twisting my head to look out the huge sliding glass doors, I saw the neighboring house and a pool. A pool! I loved to swim. Strange, I still held that pleasure even though most cats don't like water. Interesting. I'd have to see how my beast enjoyed water when and if I went swimming before it got too cold.
Voices turned my attention back to the open door. Hushed, whispering voices. Blinking, I stood there like an idiot while holding the cold door knob. I even looked like one, struck dumb in my pajamas, staring down into the basement. Okay, they weren't my pajamas, but I was still struck dumb.
I eased the door shut and turned the knob so no click could be heard. Holding my breath, I let the door knob go gently and was satisfied when no click ensued. When that was all said and done, I walked back into the living room, back to the stairs. I didn't climb all of them, but some, and this time I slinked as silently as I could. I didn't want them to hear me yet. When I reached the middle, I stood and walked as I normally would, skipping down the stairs. I didn't want to skip, but that would make my light footsteps a little more noticable. When I reached the living room, I felt my face scrunch up in fake confusion. Best to play the part as well as sound it.
"Hello? Is...er...anyone here? Nathaniel? Master Theodore?" I called out as loud as I dared, my voice dripping confusion. It wasn't all that hard, since I was actually confused. Why were they in the basement?
A door opened and I jumped, slightly startled. I didn't think they would have heard me already, because it was so hard to hear them through the floor. Though it was a possibility that they hadn't heard me, but had completed whatever they had been doing down there.
Nathaniel came through the kitchen, looking about himself curiously until he saw me standing in the living room. Trailing behind him were a few more leopard lycanthropes and each had a small smile on their faces. I knew the smiles were real because their eyes shone slightly. Some of the women in the small group waved to me slightly and I could only smile back. I felt kind of...insignificant with them there.
But it was Nathaniel's radiant smile that made the insignifance instantly leave to be replaced with something different. I'm not sure what it was. I'm horrid at guessing my own heart. "Just the girl we've been waiting to see. How are you feeling after your four and a half our nap?"
I shrugged, but a smile played across my lips to try and match his own. "Fine, I guess. Just a bit too much drama for me. I hate drama, that's why I don't watch it on TV." I wasn't joking, just serious. "Why've you been waiting to see me?"
Nathaniel looked over his shoulder at the other people in the kitchen. I didn't know them by name, but by faces I could tell they were there the day Nathaniel turned me. "We need to speak with you, Melody."
I folded my arms protectively over my bosom. Suddenly, I felt uncomfortable and slightly exposed in the dark black gown. "What, did I do something wrong already?" I asked and there must have been some tone in my voice that was funny because Nathaniel laughed. I was tempted to ask him what was so funny, but he cut me off before I could open my mouth.
"No, you've done nothing to wrong anyone. We just need to...lay a few rules I guess you could say." He grasped my elbow gently and walked me towards the patient group of men and women...all older than I was. I kept my arms locked around my torso.
Everyone moved aside and allowed us easy passage to the kitchen table. It was large enough to fit twelve comfortably and the six that were here, including Nathaniel and I, filled half the table. I took the seat offered to me by him and he sat in the chair across from me. A woman with dark red hair took the chair beside me and gave me a slight nod. I nodded back, a mutual greeting. The rest sat across from the woman and I.
"First things first. The moon has already passed, so we don't have to worry about that yet," A few people murmered in the group. Yes, I had experienced my first Change and it was...quite painful the first time to say the least. That's why I stayed away from my old home so long. "This place will be your new home, with the five of us, Melody. Master Theodore lives a few streets away. There are more of our homes spread out across Port Jervis and farther on, but we think you should first get accustomed to your own and the master's first."
I blinked feverently. I was going to be room mates with five other people. Not that I minded, their power that rolled off their bodies made me feel soothed, almost comforted. I even allowed my arms to fall to my lap. These people were closer to me than family, especially Nathaniel.
A man suddenly stood up. He had extremely long blonde hair that fell to his knees. He kept the heavy bundle tied back with a leather thong. His intense blue eyes sparkled at me and a small smile touched his lips. He wore a comfortable looking pair of jeans and a plain white shirt that did his eyes no justice, nor his muscular body.
"I'm pretty sure we should introduce ourselves now. My name is Randall." He extended a hand to me and I shook it tentatively. His big hand engulfed mine. "Pleasure to have you in the pard, Melody."
I blinked as he sat and the woman next to him stood, extending her hand. "Leanne." She said simply, pumping my hand a few times before sitting. "Welcome."
Leanne was gorgeous in my opinion and I'm sure in a lot of men's as well. She had the body of a lithe acrobat, supple as well. Her face seemed to have been chiseled out of ivory. The shape of her jaw, her cheekbones, her forhead, all delicate. Her lilac eyes shined down at me from behind thick, radiant raven hair. She wore black leathers and I wouldn't have been surprised if she suddenly took out a whip. Dominatrix screamed through my head, but she seemed nice enough. Her dark red lips even smiled a bit.
She sat and another woman took her place. This woman seemed a bit timid and her almost obsidian eyes kept darting towards the sliding glass doors. Maybe it was only me, but she seemed to want to leave and badly. Her slender hand shook a bit in mine, but she managed a shaky smile. "I'm called Rosemary Dillard." Her voice was absurdly calm despite her demenor. "Pleasure to have you, Melody."
Rosemary sat though her eyes kept jumping, and the woman beside me stood up. "Lunar." She said and her voice was flat. Her eyes, on the other hand, were a misty neon green, as if she was always ready to start crying. "You're sure to get along just fine with us." She then sat.
I didn't know what to say. It seemed as if these people already knew me, probably actually did. I hadn't told them anything when they met me, nor had I even given my name. And yet, they knew more about me than I knew about myself. I remembered Theodore once stating that he knew me to be Wiccan, and Wiccan I was. Still a practicioner, but he found it good enough. Maybe that was why the group had been interested in me.
"It's a pleasure to finally...er...get acquainted with you." I said, directing my sentence to everyone in the room. Including Nathaniel, who I had known outside of the pard through school. I was a freshman when he was a senior and he had been quite taken to me...or so it seemed.
Nathaniel smiled while Randall stood back up and looked down at him. The smile slowly dissipated and a sigh gently escaped his lips. Curiously, I looked at him, tried to catch his eye. "And now we come to another part of our discussion. Because you are new to the pard and therefore don't exactly know all the rules, you are required to be a servant."
I felt my temper rise at that. Me, a servant? I was used to giving orders, not taking them. I was definitely not good at taking orders. My attitude problem wouldn't allow it. Nathaniel must have seen the look in my eye because he put up a hand before I could speak.
"Don't get all upity, Melody. It'd only be for a few decades at the most." I almost choked. A few decades?! Yes, I was immortal now, but it didn't make time go all the faster! "Besides, Theodore has already chosen who you'd serve under for the time being." His smile returned and I instantly knew who it would be. "Theodore thought it'd be safe if you served for me. He knows I'm one of those people who won't run you into the ground with errands or stupid idiotic little things I can do for myself."
I felt at a loss for words. I knew there was more to be said from him because of the looks he was receiving each time he hesitated, but I didn't care. Didn't being bound to the Nimir-Raj keep me from having to be bound under yet another person? I was so uneducated in almost all of preternatural things, even after the government had deemed it be taught in school.
That reminded me, tomorrow was Monday.
Nathaniel continued in a slightly lower tone than he did before. "To be my servant also means one other thing..." But he hesitated to say it. Instead, he looked at the skitzo girl named Rosemary who eyed me in turn nerviously.
"It means you need to tend to his needs, Melody." Rosemary finished the sentance in her strangely calm voice while her face betrayed the calm.
In a list
So Far So Good?
Comments
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OMG
babe this just keeps getting better and better but i think that the good guy ( whoever he is, the one you fall for) should be like be. j/k. well it is awesome. i love it and you.
WES
beginning: 5, language: 5, plot: 5, ending: 5, dialog: 5, characters: 5.
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