L
Little.Fox
Guest
Original poster
As Tegan drove into town the weather had shifted from cold to cold and rainy, she cursed mother nature for the downpour on the official first day of summer. Cold and rainy was great weather for nothing but keeping people indoors she thought to herself with a sigh realizing that meant her early shift at The White Albatross, a quaint bookstore and teashop at the very edge of town, would be slow if not completely dead all together.
The closer she got to the hub of the town the louder the wind howled and the faster the rain pummeled down on the old trucks windshield. She was already perched forward on the worn leather seats and now she had her face so close to the window her breath was causing small clouds to form. She knew she should have replaced the wipers last month but money was tight …. money was always tight though. She swore she would get them done today if she made it to work without driving into a tree.
Suddenly a dark shadow darted out into the road and she had to press both feet onto the breaks, gripping the steering wheel to keep the truck as straight as she could. As the truck tried to stop the tires screamed as they tried to find purchase on the slick road as the truck started to slowly drift toward to side. As Tegan watched the the shadow passed in front of the headlights illuminating yellow eyes set into dark fur watched her, never blinking even as the truck came dangerously close to the animal before it suddenly jerked to a stop as the rear tires bounced off the curb giving the truck just enough grip to finally stop.
Her eyes were still watching the animal, which she now realized was a dog.
"Though it is much too large to be a dog, a wolf perhaps? No it couldn't be, there were no wolves in the forest. Were there…?"
For a moment she could do nothing but sit and stare through the pouring rain, hands still gripping the wheel and her feet still pressing against the breaks with all her might. Still watching the beast until nothing was left but the dark chocolate tail disappearing around the corner of the old pharmacy.
She finally took a breath and relaxed her hands on the wheel and put the truck into park while quietly apologizing to mother nature and her sullen words about the weather earlier. Now she was just happy no one had been out of this could have turned out much worse she thought as she sighed in relief as she slumped back against the seat brushing her thick crimson bangs out of her eyes.
For a long while Tegan stared at the building where the creature had disappeared, finally she looked down at the clock and realized she was ten minutes late for her shift she put the car in drive and made the last of the journey with her head swirling, which didn't stop until she walked into the warm embrace of the bookstore and was greeted by the lovely smell of lavender which automatically brought her to the present and drew a smile across her lips. The lovely smell could only mean only one thing.
"Hello my lovely princess of the isles! Glad you shall grace us with your presence this morning."
The lovely sing song voice traveled from behind the soft green velvet curtain that blocked off the small store room and kitchen.
"Hello Camellia, I'm sorry I'm late …"
But that was all she could get out before Camellia made her grand entrance, fluttering out from behind the heavy curtain with two lovely white mugs seaming and emanating a lovely smell of lavender and honey, pure bliss in a cup.
Camellia was the daughter of Mr. Walton who owned the store, she had traveled the world acting in Shakespearian plays and had become the embodiment of an old tv actress because of it, though on her it wasn't forced. It was if her experience had transformed her into a living muse. Everything she did was grand wether it was just walking into a room to throwing the towns most lavish parties and her views and advice on life either wowed you from their obviousness to only her or their great depth of emotion and knowledge. In a way she had become a unconventional sort of mother to her since she arrived at the small town of Claigan.
"Oh Tegan, i'll forgive you because we were all young once. Young with a head full of stars and ideas."
She set the cups down on the glass counter which held an array of crystals and herbs arrayed to create calm and promote harmony. Though before Tegan could reach for the lovely steaming cup of heaven Camellia gasped and reached across the counter cupping her chin and lifting her head so their eyes met. Camellias piercing blue eyes bore into hers and she wondered what she could see in their moss green depths.
"What happened Sinopa?"
Camellia cooed as she dropped her hand from Tegan's chin and clutched both of her pale hands in her own warm, deeply tan ones. Looking down at their hands she realized again how different the two of them were, not just by personality but by looks as well. While Tegan was a petite girl with porcelain skin spattered with a delicate trail of freckles and long fiery hair, Camellia was taller with a frame that held all the curves of a woman, her long black hair was always pulled into a long braid that fell over her shoulder, and though Camellia would always stand out in a crowed she still looked like the towns folk. Where as when Tegan walked through town, even after the nearly year she's spent here, people still stared at the odd red headed girl, a color that was not see in the town … ever.
There were varying shades of blonde and brown with a peppering of white and black, red was a color that was not seen, nor desired she could only assume by the reactions from the older towns folk who would all but refuse to look her in the eye. Camellia always tried to console her with whispers of their deep jealousy, but there was always a little voice in the back of her head wondering if it was something more.
Tegan furrowed her brow wondering if she should tell Camellia what she had seen, the large shadow dog in the middle of town. Funny things like that worried her more then they should, like the time the towns cats started to slowly disappear a few years ago and Camellia had went camping for a week in the woods. But in the end the blue eyes and soft voice of concern won her over.
"Camellia … are there wolves in the woods?"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean are there wolves in the woods outside of town?"
"Why are you asking such odd questions this morning Tegan?"
She took a deep breath and with a small squeeze on her hands from Camellia continued.
"Cam I think I saw a .. a wolf in the center of town. I almost hit it with the truck as I was driving here, the rain was coming down so hard. I didn't see it until the last moment. I don't think it was hurt and Im okay but …"
Camellia didn't let her finish, at the mention of the wolf in town she had pulled her hands back and reached under the counter. Pulling a few small purple flowers from one of the herbs and crushing them softly in her fingers before sprinkling them on top of one of the cups which she then slid in her direction.
"Drink this dear, here have a seat, drink all of you're tea and relax. I'm glad you're okay hunny, but I have an appointment in town and must not be late. The weather should keep everyone inside so it should be a quiet morning. Ill be back in just an hour or so. Drink up"
She said the last bit as she finally shuffled her into the deep cushioned chair in front of the counter and gently nudged the cup in her direction as a sign to start drinking. She took a sip having a feeling Camellia wouldn't be satisfied until she did, and she was right. once she swallowed the first sip Camellia sent a kiss her way as she walked out the door with another guarantee she would be back as soon as she could,
And with that the door chimed shut behind her and Tegan was left alone to enjoy her morning in utter silence wondering about the odd nature of Camellia at the mention of wolves, though after a few sits of tea to settle her nerves she brushed off the mornings events and tried to settle in picking up a book someone had left on the counter Into the Wild. Tucking her feet underneath herself she settled in for a quiet morning, or so she thought …[/font]
The closer she got to the hub of the town the louder the wind howled and the faster the rain pummeled down on the old trucks windshield. She was already perched forward on the worn leather seats and now she had her face so close to the window her breath was causing small clouds to form. She knew she should have replaced the wipers last month but money was tight …. money was always tight though. She swore she would get them done today if she made it to work without driving into a tree.
Suddenly a dark shadow darted out into the road and she had to press both feet onto the breaks, gripping the steering wheel to keep the truck as straight as she could. As the truck tried to stop the tires screamed as they tried to find purchase on the slick road as the truck started to slowly drift toward to side. As Tegan watched the the shadow passed in front of the headlights illuminating yellow eyes set into dark fur watched her, never blinking even as the truck came dangerously close to the animal before it suddenly jerked to a stop as the rear tires bounced off the curb giving the truck just enough grip to finally stop.
Her eyes were still watching the animal, which she now realized was a dog.
"Though it is much too large to be a dog, a wolf perhaps? No it couldn't be, there were no wolves in the forest. Were there…?"
For a moment she could do nothing but sit and stare through the pouring rain, hands still gripping the wheel and her feet still pressing against the breaks with all her might. Still watching the beast until nothing was left but the dark chocolate tail disappearing around the corner of the old pharmacy.
She finally took a breath and relaxed her hands on the wheel and put the truck into park while quietly apologizing to mother nature and her sullen words about the weather earlier. Now she was just happy no one had been out of this could have turned out much worse she thought as she sighed in relief as she slumped back against the seat brushing her thick crimson bangs out of her eyes.
For a long while Tegan stared at the building where the creature had disappeared, finally she looked down at the clock and realized she was ten minutes late for her shift she put the car in drive and made the last of the journey with her head swirling, which didn't stop until she walked into the warm embrace of the bookstore and was greeted by the lovely smell of lavender which automatically brought her to the present and drew a smile across her lips. The lovely smell could only mean only one thing.
"Hello my lovely princess of the isles! Glad you shall grace us with your presence this morning."
The lovely sing song voice traveled from behind the soft green velvet curtain that blocked off the small store room and kitchen.
"Hello Camellia, I'm sorry I'm late …"
But that was all she could get out before Camellia made her grand entrance, fluttering out from behind the heavy curtain with two lovely white mugs seaming and emanating a lovely smell of lavender and honey, pure bliss in a cup.
Camellia was the daughter of Mr. Walton who owned the store, she had traveled the world acting in Shakespearian plays and had become the embodiment of an old tv actress because of it, though on her it wasn't forced. It was if her experience had transformed her into a living muse. Everything she did was grand wether it was just walking into a room to throwing the towns most lavish parties and her views and advice on life either wowed you from their obviousness to only her or their great depth of emotion and knowledge. In a way she had become a unconventional sort of mother to her since she arrived at the small town of Claigan.
"Oh Tegan, i'll forgive you because we were all young once. Young with a head full of stars and ideas."
She set the cups down on the glass counter which held an array of crystals and herbs arrayed to create calm and promote harmony. Though before Tegan could reach for the lovely steaming cup of heaven Camellia gasped and reached across the counter cupping her chin and lifting her head so their eyes met. Camellias piercing blue eyes bore into hers and she wondered what she could see in their moss green depths.
"What happened Sinopa?"
Camellia cooed as she dropped her hand from Tegan's chin and clutched both of her pale hands in her own warm, deeply tan ones. Looking down at their hands she realized again how different the two of them were, not just by personality but by looks as well. While Tegan was a petite girl with porcelain skin spattered with a delicate trail of freckles and long fiery hair, Camellia was taller with a frame that held all the curves of a woman, her long black hair was always pulled into a long braid that fell over her shoulder, and though Camellia would always stand out in a crowed she still looked like the towns folk. Where as when Tegan walked through town, even after the nearly year she's spent here, people still stared at the odd red headed girl, a color that was not see in the town … ever.
There were varying shades of blonde and brown with a peppering of white and black, red was a color that was not seen, nor desired she could only assume by the reactions from the older towns folk who would all but refuse to look her in the eye. Camellia always tried to console her with whispers of their deep jealousy, but there was always a little voice in the back of her head wondering if it was something more.
Tegan furrowed her brow wondering if she should tell Camellia what she had seen, the large shadow dog in the middle of town. Funny things like that worried her more then they should, like the time the towns cats started to slowly disappear a few years ago and Camellia had went camping for a week in the woods. But in the end the blue eyes and soft voice of concern won her over.
"Camellia … are there wolves in the woods?"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean are there wolves in the woods outside of town?"
"Why are you asking such odd questions this morning Tegan?"
She took a deep breath and with a small squeeze on her hands from Camellia continued.
"Cam I think I saw a .. a wolf in the center of town. I almost hit it with the truck as I was driving here, the rain was coming down so hard. I didn't see it until the last moment. I don't think it was hurt and Im okay but …"
Camellia didn't let her finish, at the mention of the wolf in town she had pulled her hands back and reached under the counter. Pulling a few small purple flowers from one of the herbs and crushing them softly in her fingers before sprinkling them on top of one of the cups which she then slid in her direction.
"Drink this dear, here have a seat, drink all of you're tea and relax. I'm glad you're okay hunny, but I have an appointment in town and must not be late. The weather should keep everyone inside so it should be a quiet morning. Ill be back in just an hour or so. Drink up"
She said the last bit as she finally shuffled her into the deep cushioned chair in front of the counter and gently nudged the cup in her direction as a sign to start drinking. She took a sip having a feeling Camellia wouldn't be satisfied until she did, and she was right. once she swallowed the first sip Camellia sent a kiss her way as she walked out the door with another guarantee she would be back as soon as she could,
And with that the door chimed shut behind her and Tegan was left alone to enjoy her morning in utter silence wondering about the odd nature of Camellia at the mention of wolves, though after a few sits of tea to settle her nerves she brushed off the mornings events and tried to settle in picking up a book someone had left on the counter Into the Wild. Tucking her feet underneath herself she settled in for a quiet morning, or so she thought …[/font]
Tegan . Lillian . O'Mally
