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Post by Deleted on Dec 15, 2016 13:51:41 GMT -5
Day OneDisclaimer: All characters are mine. Meet the Cast: These are all characters from an unfinished project of mine. They're a breed of half-human shifters known as Vaof, which is why there are some words that may be unfamiliar and ages that seem unreal. Lance - Lance is the leader or Firstwolf of the pack; he's also the oldest. Tall (6') and lean, blonde hair and blue eyes. Rather stoic. Appears in his late 20s. Greg - Greg is the Secondwolf, the beta. A few generations younger than Lance, he's the second oldest in the pack. He's the tallest at 6'6", built like a tank. Close-cropped dark hair, usually has a decent amount of stubble on his chin. Sebastian - Australian. Shaggy, sandy blonde around his shoulders, clear blue eyes. 5'9". Mated to ____. _____ - Okay, I admit I'm kind of bad; she doesn't have a name yet. Seb and I have nicknamed her 'Princess', partly because of her backstory. She's Indian (not Native American) and was the daughter of a servant girl in a palace. She's the smallest of the pack at 5'1", with long dark hair, tanned skin, and dark eyes. Seb found her on the run from her past, and they've been together ever since. Casey - Casey's the 'runt' of the pack, according to Greg. He's thin and small, only 5'3". Not exactly lean, but thin. He's the second youngest, just under 200 years old. He's a scholar, takes every opportunity he can to learn. He's got several degrees under his belt, though he can't show them all off at once without revealing his true age or nature. Appears early 20s. Derik - Derik is the youngest, only 18. He's just shed his human skin for the first time and is thus the "Newskin" of the pack. As the newest member, he's still finding his place in the pack and still has a lot to learn about Vaof in general. 5'8", dark brown, almost black hair, brown eyes. Moderately built; not bodybuilder, but not thin. The Prompt: Christmas Caroling!The fire roared, warming the whole house, even as snow fell heavily outside. In the living room, the majority of the pack sat around the fire, lounging in various states of relaxation. Derik sat sideways in an armchair, legs dangling over one arm. Lance sat properly in another armchair, legs crossed at the knee, reading an ancient-looking leather-bound book. Greg lay sprawled on one couch, eyes staring blankly into the fire. Sebastian and _____ lay together on the other couch, covered with a blanket and whispering quietly to one another.
The room was quiet save for Sebastian and ____ hushed whispers and the crackling fire, the air relaxed and easy. Just then, the door swung open wide, letting in a blast of cold air and flurrying snow. Sebastian, ____, and Derik all turned their heads to look toward the door. A small form was struggling to push the door closed behind him, and after another draft blew the door open wide again, Derik jumped up to help. Derik pushed the door closed and Casey leaned against it with a tired smile. "Thanks Derik."
Derik smiled. "No problem. Whatcha got there?" He nodded to the bag Casey had slung over his shoulder. Casey glanced down. "Oh! Just a surprise for everyone." The pair walked into the living room to join the others. Casey stepped to the center of the area and smiled at everyone while Derik returned to his chair.
"So, since it's Christmastime, I thought we could spend some time as a pack and celebrate the season. What better way to celebrate Christmas than to go caroling!" Casey pulled his satchel around to the front, pulling out six packets of paper from the bag. He went around the room, handing everyone a packet; it was sheet music and lyrics for various Christmas songs. "Obviously, today isn't a very good day for tromping around and singing, but a group of people is meeting at the library this weekend to go caroling. I thought we could go join them. It'll be fun!"
Throughout his speach, Casey's face grew from nervous to excited to downright eager, until the silence that followed stretched on and his face began to fall. His eyes darted from one face to another, seeking any kind of approval.
Seeing the desperation beginning to form on Casey's face, ____ spoke up first. "I think that's a wonderful idea, Casey!" Casey's face lit up with a bright smile.
Sebastian smiled. "Sounds like fun. Pack bonding time, eh?" He glanced over to the others. "Derik, Greg, what do you say? Up for some singing?"
Derik, flipping through the songbook, nodded. "Sure, why not? I haven't gone caroling in years." He looked up and smiled at Sebastian, then Casey.
Greg didn't respond, barely even glancing at the papers Casey had handed him before placing them on the floor next to the sofa. Casey's shoulder's drooped a bit, and everyone's attention turned to Lance. As leader of the pack, his opinion held the most sway. He had the power to completely veto the idea or order everyone to go out and have fun, including Greg.
An uneasy silence settled over the group as they waited for Lance's reply. He took his time reading over the carols, his face unreadable. After a few minutes, he looked up at Casey. "Are you sure you want to do this?" Casey, though nervous, nodded enthusiastically. Lance gave a single nod, glancing back down at the papers in his hand.
"Very well then." He looked up and gave a small smile. "We'll all go caroling this weekend.
Casey's face lit up again in excitement. His smile brought smiles to Derik, Sebastian, and ____. "Awesome! Okay, so everyone's meeting at four, and it's probably gonna be cold, so we'll want to bundle up. Gosh, I'm so excited! This is gonna be so fun!" Clutching at the papers in his hand, he gave an excited little shiver, causing Sebastian to chuckle. Casey bounced on the balls of his feet a moment, before a steady beeping went off from his pocket. He jumped, hand flying to his pocket and digging out his phone. "Oh! Um, I've gotta go...I've got a Skype study session with a couple classmates. I'll see you guys later." With that, he practically darted from the room, running up the stairs and down the hall to his bedroom.
Derik laughed. "And he's always been like that?"
Sebastian smiled. "Yep. For the hundred thirty years I've known him, at least. Kinda grows on you, though." He laughed. "You'll get used to it."
____ nudged her mate's shoulder. "Oh stop it. I think it's adorable."
"You think every stray we pick up is adorable, princess." Sebastian teased.
"I think it's annoying," Greg huffed, his deep voice quiet.
Lance spoke quietly against his second in Casey's defense. "You know this pack wouldn't be the same without him, Greg."
Greg grunted. "Yeah, but that doesn't mean I can't find him difficult to bear."
____ threw a throw pillow at Greg's head, giggling. "Oh hush. You know you love him as much as we all do. Even Derik's pretty attached, and he's only been here a few months."
For his part, Derik had been silently watching the conversation with a soft smile on his face. When his name was brought up, his eyes moved back to ____ and his smile faded a bit, then brightened. "What can I say? It's obvious how much you guys all love and even depend on each other. How can I not get attached to you guys?"
"That's the spirit, Newskin!" Sebastian smiled warmly. Derik made a face, and ____ laughed.
"Don't worry, Derik. We've all had our fair share of teasing. We were all newskins once." She smiled kindly. "Just give it a few years and it should stop."
Derik gave a wry smile. "Well, that's encouraging."
"Hey, at least I don't call you a runt," Sebastian said, looking pointedly at Greg.
Derik laughed. "This is true."
The grandfather clock chimed suddenly, and Lance looked up from the book he had resumed reading. In silence, be bookmarked his page, rose and left the room. The clock rang out nine times, and Lance's departure set off a chain reaction. Greg was next to rise, his footfalls heavy on the stairs. Sebastian and ____ left together, ____ giving Derik a hug goodnight. Sebastian clapped him on the shoulder and Derik smiled up at him.
Derik sat for a while, watching the fire beginning to die down. The clock chimed again, signalling ten o'clock, startling Derik from his thoughts. He glanced around, realizing that the room was dark and empty and the fire nearly dead. He yawned and stretched, slowly pulling himself to his feet. With a soft smile, he padded quietly up the stairs to the third floor. He made his way down the hall, pausing briefly at the library door. There was a light coming from under the door, and Derik hesitated. Taking a breath, he slowly turned the knob, cracking the door open and peeking in.
Lance sat in an armchair by the window, a small leather-bound book in his hand, different from the one he had been reading downstairs. However, he wasn't reading this one. The tall blonde's head was bowed, his hands still in his lap. A pen hung loosely from his right hand and Derik smiled softly. He stepped into the room quietly and walked over.
Lance was sleeping, and Derik carefully pulled the pen from his hand. The notebook was a little more difficult, but he managed to extract it from the firstwolf's hands without waking him. Using the pen to mark the page, he closed the book and placed it on the small table beside the chair. He glanced around, frowning slightly. Derik then quietly slipped out of the room, returning a few minutes later with one of the blankets from his bed. Lance hadn't moved, and Derik smiled again.
He carefully draped the blanket over Lance, pulling the edges up around his shoulders. Lance shifted, leaning back against the chair and lifting his head. Derik froze, thinking he'd been caught, but Lance's head fell back against the head and rolled slightly to the side. He was still asleep. Derik breathed a small sigh and backed away, leaving the room as quietly as he'd entered. He walked to his room at the end of the hall, giving one last glance back to the library door before turning in for the night. 1407 words.
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