Beauty of Immortality (FINISHED)

[Trisha Morello]

The uncertainty of it all was almost overwhelming her. A new city and a new home. She was getting away from a life she used to know, trying so hard to forget everything she'd seen. Two months ago she would have been experiencing her first year of college, but instead she was moving into a shitty ghetto with just the clothes on her back. Was this what her life was going to be from now on? She didn't know anyone in the city and she wanted so desperately to go home and sleep in her own bed. Instead she followed an old woman up a few flights of stairs, listening to her list off the general rules of the building. The old hag coughed and choked on her own breath and Trisha couldn't help but wonder just how old this landlady was.

Rent. Rent. Rent. That's all she kept talking about. Rent had to be on time. Rent had to be in the right amount. If in the form of a check, the moment it bounced, she'd bounce your ass right on the street. Then Trisha started to wonder just how she was going to pay for this apartment. She'd been in the city for only a few days and she looked around desperately for a place to live first. Now she had to start searching for a job.

The thought of living on her own all of a sudden and without warning made her stomach churn.

The old woman opened a door and led Trisha to her new apartment. It was tiny and the air was thick with dust. She had to bring her sleeve to her mouth to keep from choking. The woman didn't seem to mind the dank smell. She just kept going on with her tour, every so often referring back to the rent. Trisha moved into the apartment and noticed the already furnished rooms. She glanced over to the woman curiously and she seemed to read the young girl's mind. "The previous owners disappeared. I was gonna sell all this junk, but, eh." She shrugged. A stroke of good luck finally fell on Trisha. But she was anything but grateful. The young girl couldn't help the look of disgust from crossing her face. These people slept in that bed and who knows what else they did. The old woman laughed contemptuously. "Don't like it? Throw it away and buy your own shit." Trisha narrowed her eyes in response as the woman waved nonchalantly and left the girl to her own devices.

What was she going to do now?

"Stupid old hag..." she said bitterly as she tossed her bag to the ground spitefully.

[Viktor Romanov]

Viktor walked past the old woman as she waddled down the corridor, she gave him a look filled with distain probably something to do with the fact his shoes cost more than her house. The ghetto was not a location where the Alpha would usually wander but he made an exception in this case. He had been visiting one of his whelps who moved in on the ground floor when he caught the scent of another, a converted Lycan nearby. Naturally he went exploring the building, it was filled with the scent of sickly humans, cattle that he wouldn't even feed to a fang, well maybe. He stepped through the doorway just as the girl yelled something about an old hag, he turned to spot the woman rounding a corner and had to agree the fitting was apt, if not the most creative he had heard.

"I have to ask what that poor bag did to deserve such derisory treatment? First you bring it to a place not fit to hold a fang head and now you throw it so fiercely, what's wrong child, freedom not all it's cracked up to be?" He smiled his usual smile, mouth filled with pearly whites as he watched her movements, he had left his escort down the stairs, not sure what he would find but knowing he would more than be a match for it. His eyes scanned the room once more, truly she would have been better off sleeping in one of the sewer pipes outside of the compound but she was a stray wolf, running free more than likely rescenting her kind for the actions of the one that turned her. That stubborn pride was something he had to admire, it was like looking into a mirror and seeing a younger version of himself, She was attempting to ignore the inherent need for pack behaviour, it was a fight that all the turned Lycan's went through, attempting to reconcile their old human feelings with the new animalistic tendencies. She would learn in time as they all did. He felt the need to offer the girl the chance to join the pack, but knew he would have to be careful and take it slowly. When he noticed the anger encased in her eyes, he realised he was right to keep his guard downstairs, if anything happened they would have put her down, for good.

"I would have brought you a fern, or some sort of plant to christen your new apartment but the bloomin thing would have died on the way over here. At least tell me you have something to drink, otherwise this is a sad tale indeed. He had a way with words, usually he would have attempted to sweet talk a new wolf, ensuring he could ensnare their loyalty later but he chose a less subtle tact with this one, something told him no amount of sweet talk would hide the fact she was living in a shit hole. " So tell me child how long has it been since you were bitten?"

[Trisha Morello]

What a fucking dump. But what more could she expect? She was broke and she couldn't even afford to get a decent meal. She looked around the small, dank apartment and she was about to turn and head out the door just to clear her head, but as she turned around, someone was standing in her doorway. She recoiled and stepped back once. She listened to his words and a look of disgusted confusion crossed her featured. Who the fuck... did this guy think he was?

She crossed her arms over her chest and shifted her weight to one foot. She looked him up and down, assessing him. Nope. She couldn't give a rat's ass who the rich fuck was. He was dressed nicely, with shined shoes and a neatly pressed suit. What was he doing here? Visiting some whore because he couldn't stand his docile wife. What? Too boring for your fancy ass? She thought all this as she looked at him with disdain. And why did he think he could just talk to her so casually.

"I don't give a fuck about you bringing me a god damn fern, stranger," she hissed before turning her back to him and picking up her bag. She placed it on the arm of a chair before she opened the zipper and started removing the contents. It was mostly old clothes she'd grabbed along her travels. She didn't really take much when she left her parents. Her mind was in too much of a whirl and she grabbed nonessential things - things she ended up selling along her travels. She would sometimes use the money to buy food, but most of the time she spent it on drinks. She'd found the bottle more and more comforting lately. When she looked up, the man was still standing there. "Get lost, old man."

She started going through her things again when his last question caught her off guard. Her entire frame froze and her eyes widened. What? How did he- How could he possibly know what she was? It didn't even occur to her that he'd be able to smell her, sense her presence. She was a fledgling. She hadn't even begun to tap into these abilities. She didn't even want to. Her eyes flashed up to look at the man before she glowered at him. She crossed her arms back over her chest.

"It's none of your fucking business."

[Viktor Romanov]

He listened intently as she responded to what he had said, telling him that she had no fucks to give when it came to his imaginary fern. He should have found that hurtful, after all had he have went to the bother of getting her a fern and transporting it to her, she would have cared she had to. He almost smirked at the idea, what the hell was he thinking, he had drifted as she was ranting, he clearly had little interest in her childish rage. He was certain that the distain was evident on his face, he wasn't trying to hide the fact that he would rather be anywhere else in the world but standing in this doorway. And yet he still stood here, the only reason was that she had been bitten, probably by some lesser lycan who crawled the streets at night feeding on the homeless. He never understood why that type of creature chose the gutters rather than living with the pack, people who abandoned their pack without cause were the lowest of the low in his eyes.

He caught her telling him to leave as she ruffled through her bag looking through her stuff. He was about to speak just as she told him it was none of his fucking business, well that was just plain wrong in his eyes. She may not want his input, but she was a Lycan now and somewhere one of his pack had bitten her, so he saw her as his responsibility. "So the bastard that bit you, he didn't even have the decency to stick around and explain how things worked, he just left you there to rot. Let me guess, you've been through 3 maybe 4 moons now? I'm amazed that your still here, none of these macho hunters have crossed your path, but if you want me to leave then fine." He knew that his words alone weren't going to get through to her, so he removed his jacket and turned his back to her. A moment passed before his transformation began, he had decided to change into a wolf rather than a full blown Lycan, a trait that only pure bloods had mastered after many years. His clothes fell to the ground around him and he turned and growled, it was as friendly as he could sound in this form. he began to pad away from her, nudging his clothing out the door, after all if she had no need of him, then why should he hang around.?

He wasn't entirely sure if she would follow him or not, but either way he made his way down the apartment stairs and out towards the car where his men were waiting. When they saw him in his wolf form, they simply opened the door of the car and allowed him to crawl in. The driver immediately raised the tinted windows giving the alpha the privacy he may want. Once the windows were up Viktor transformed and opened his suitcase, removing a spare suit and putting it on. He told the driver to wait a moment, he wanted to see how curious the young whelp would be, had he intrigued her enough for her to seek him out, or would she stubbornly wallow in her room.

[Trisha Morello]

He spoke to her and she looked as if she had less than no fucks to give about what he was telling her. However, his words had actually stirred something inside her. He knew what she was and he sounded like he... was the same as her? But he didn't come right out and say it so she really had no idea what he meant. And she was never aware of the term Hunters. She'd read about them in those vampire stories she sometimes read when she was younger but they were always thrown in as a last resort to conflict. But why should she be so surprised that there were people out there who thought that she was a monster? Hell, she thought of herself as a monster. She would want herself dead as well. If she had known about the existence of werewolves when she was still human, what would she have done? Would she have joined the ranks of the Hunters and vowed to kill all the monsters that roamed the world?

Probably.

She only narrowed her eyes at him as he guessed her situation. He was far off and that only pissed her off because he tried to act like he knew her, but he knew nothing. He had no idea what happened to her and he tried to spout some falsehood of experience. What did he know anyway?

The seemed to know a lot though as he nonchalantly turned into a wolf. Trisha's eyes widened and she blinked a few times. She'd never seen that before. She saw the one who turned her become a large monster, but not something as elegant as a mere wolf. But he turned just as quickly as he changed and left. She shook her head and glowered at his retreating form.

As he turned to leave, Trisha turned her head to the side and spit as if the man had left a bad taste in her mouth. She started to unpack and as she looked out the window, she saw the man entering a fancy car. Growling angrily, Trisha ran to her door and grabbed the large rock that had been used as a doorstop. She ran back to her window, opened it, climbed onto the fire escape and took aim.

She sent the rock straight for his car door window.

The sound of shattering glass was incredibly satisfying.

"I killed the bastard that did this to me!" she shouted loud enough for him to hear her, not caring if other people heard. "And I'll do the same to you."

[Viktor Romanov]

Viktor heard the glass shatter and felt the car shake as the brick impacted the driver seat. Viktor slowly moved out of the car and ripped the car door open, his first concern was for the health of his driver. He knew that the man would regenerate from the wounds over time but still, he was a member of his pack and Viktor felt responsible for him. He almost ripped the door from its hinges, the anger was coursing through his veins and he momentarily lost track of his strength before regaining his composure. He heard her yell about killing the bastard that turned her and how she would kill him to, he would have smirked if he hadn't been busy pulling his driver from the front of the car. Once he held the man in his arms, he noticed the blood and point of impact where the rock had slammed into his chest. The injury was serious enough but Viktor knew the man would recover, he was thankful there was no damage to his head. With the right amount of force a blow to the head would carry with it the potential to decapitate him and in doing so end the whelps life.

Before he responded to the girl, he dragged his driver into the back of the car and lay him on the seat. He removed his jacket and placed it over the wounds, Viktor stepped back out of the back of the car and looked up at her window. "What is it that your hoping to achieve here? Prove that you're a bad ass and you don't care if you live or die? Listen to me little girl, because I don't intend to repeat myself, I'm more than happy to protect any members of my pack. Right now, I consider you a whelp, no more than a pup, in fact that's the only reason you're still alive. " He cracked his neck, moving his head from side to side considering what he would say next. He had to remember that he was more than likely being watched, he always was, whether it be some ambitious whelp who wanted to overthrow him, a fang or some hunter, he was being watched.

"How about you come down here and we continue this conversation like adults, rather than screaming at each other like animals. I wouldn't mind a civilized conversation, unless you have any more rocks to throw, because then by all means, feel free to aim at me." He had calmed significantly in just a few moments as it dawned on him that he was in fact the Alpha, he couldn't afford to be a slave to his emotions, he had to be calculating and be perceived to always be in control. Slowly he ran his hands down the front of his shirt, smoothing out any wrinkles before removing the brick from the car and tossing it aside. Using a towel that had been in the back of the car earlier he cleared the glass from the seat, for the briefest of moments he was planning on driving the car himself until he realised he would draw more unwanted attention by driving a car with a shattered windscreen. Instead he lifted his phone from his pocket and called one of his other drivers, Once he had ordered a new car and reported the situation, he slid the phone back into his pocket and awaited her response.

[Trisha Morello]

Trisha really had no intention of hurting anyone when she threw the large rock at the car. While the shattering glass had been incredibly satisfying, she also noticed that she had hit the driver - not what she'd been aiming for. She just wanted to commit a little vandalism - maybe piss the smug bastard off. When she saw the man take the driver out and saw the blood, Trisha's heart sunk into her stomach. But she wasn't going to apologize. No. That wasn't her style. Instead, her jaw set into a hard line as she watched the man put the driver in the back seat.

She listened to his words and they appeared to bother her none, but there was a dark uncertainty growing in her heart. She was a welp. A pup. Trisha didn't really know what that meant, but it was easy for her to come to a conclusion. She was new to this. A couple months ago, she had no idea werewolves even existed and then before she knew it, she was one of them. It was all a sudden change and she was still wrapping her mind around it. She hated this new life. She hated wandering the country trying to find a way to survive while isolating herself on a full moon. But she didn't want help either.

But a conversation never hurt anyone... maybe. Crinkling her nose, Trisha huffed a bit before moving down the stairs of the fire escape. She jumped the last set of stairs and moved in front of Viktor. She crossed her arms over her chest.

"I'm listening," she said lowly, a slight growl tickling the back of her throat. She could smell the blood of the driver and it bothered her immensely. A side thought to the situation at hand.

[Viktor Romanov]

She growled at him as she proclaimed that she was listening, he had to admit that the whelp had guts, it was a trait that he looked for in recruits. The wildness about her intrigued him, the raw power that hid behind her innocent exterior drew him in. Even though he wanted nothing more than to squash her where she stood, he couldn't bring himself attack a uneducated pup, even one who had hurt one of his pack. The driver would recover, that fact was lingering in the back of his mind as he stood there examining her, judging how he would react to her brashness. Viktor stepped forward cutting the distance between them in half, his eyes matched her own as he glared at her so that she knew he meant business. He could no longer afford to mess around with this one, her anger whilst a trait he respected if left unchecked it could create a problem for his entire race. A single stray pup unable to control her changes left to roam the streets would reveal them to the world and start a whole new war, one that his people were not ready for.

"You have no idea of the power that lays within you, the ferocity that you can unleash in a heartbeat its truly astounding. No longer do you have to fear the darkness or the dangers that lurk there, you are the danger, should you choose to be. But understand this child, you are far from the biggest thing out there, there are others like me and you who would just as soon end your existence as help you. So you should count yourself fortunate that it's me standing here and not some rabid dog like the one that turned you. So I'll extend the offer once more, if you ever feel like you need somewhere to go or run out of money, come see me. I look after my own." He took out a business card from his jacket and handed it to her, it had all of his contact information but rather than stating what he was it was hid behind a shiny corporate logo.

"Or of course you could decide to go it alone, fearing every moon that passes, waking up drenched in blood not knowing who you fed on. You might get lucky every now and again and it could be someone that you really hated or it could be someone you cared for, the beast doesn't care whom it feeds on, at least when left to go unchecked. Of course that way, if I find that you are risking the secrecy of our people, then I'm going to have to hunt you down and tear you limb from limb. So it's your call, I can be your friend or your enemy. " He took a step back and ran his hands along his shirt attempting to fix his appearance.

[Trisha Morello]

She didn't want to say it, but all his words hit home for her. She was just a whelp and it never occurred to her that there were more powerful beasts out there. He was offering her protection, knowledge, money, security, the works. Why... she wasn't sure. He seemed so sure of himself. Had he been like her for a long time or something? She had so many questions, but her pride kept her tongue still. Even as he handed her a business card. Quirking a dark eyebrow, she took it reluctantly and looked down at it. It was a simple business card with a corporate logo. What was this? She furrowed her brow slightly, but he continued to speak.

His next words were laced with warning and threat. He would kill her if she endangered others like them. Her heart sank into her stomach and she had to swallow the lump forming in her throat. She wanted to break down and cry where she stood. She wanted to grab onto him and cry into his shoulder and tell him everything that had happened to her. She wanted someone to look after her, comfort her and tell her it was all going to be okay. It wasn't her fault. But her pride would never allow that. It was a side of herself she never acknowledged anymore. She kept that part of her in the dark, pretending it wasn't there and that she really didn't care about anything or anyone.

He put some distance between them and Trisha looked at him, her face betraying all her thoughts and emotions. She looked so cool and collected. "This will make great toilet paper. Thank you." She told herself she was just going to throw away his card, but when she got back to her room, she put on her dresser.