Lucyfer
Said you'd die for me, well -- there's the ground
It was going to be another long night at LaCroix Animal Hospital, Asher could feel it in his bones as he shrugged off his jacket after stepping in from the back at the employee’s entrance, revealing the navy scrubs. “Hey, Asher!” he hadn’t even been there five seconds. The man let out a deep sigh as he fixed his dark eyes upon Veronica, one of his coworkers, “Lily called in sick – we’re going to have to all play receptionist today.”
He frowned at the news, not exactly known for his stellar ability to deal with people. He preferred just dealing with the animals, “First or last shift are open.”
“First,” he’d get it out of the way.
“I figured,” she said, “good luck!”
She was always too cheerful, but it wasn’t terrible. He made his way to the front, and as soon as they opened, someone was already walking in with a dalmatian. Asher was efficient at getting people seen, and triaging the serious needs compared to the questionably serious ones. Some times, he really wished people would just wait until morning to see a regular vet, but he understood.
If he had a pet, he’d be a wreck over the small things, too. ‘Doubt I can keep a pet right now.’ Pia had no pets. He didn’t know if she’d allow one. Not that he planned to stay there his entire life, he knew this situation was temporary, but two years had flown by in the blink of an eye, and he wasn’t even looking at buying his own place yet.
He had the money.
He wasn’t sure what stopped him, other than his own sense of security. He knew Pia would let him use the vault whenever he needed it.
His shift at reception was coming to an end, when a woman walked in, so pale he almost wondered if she was a vampire. He didn’t notice the tell-tale signs he’d learned to look for, though, as the black haired woman entered.
There was no waiting at the desk so he gestured her forward, “Come on up,” he said, “what’s the emergency?” he looked for the pet to try and see what sort it was and what state it was in, as Greg began to approach for his shift at reception.
Asher figured he could finish getting her checked in and then take on the next patient.
~***~
“Salve, Trystan.”
A groan on the other end of the line brought just a hint of a smile to the vampiress's lips as she walked across the campus lawn of the University of Louisiana in LaCroix, one of the offshoots from the main campus, and a place where Pia spent every Tuesday and Thursday evening in a class about the Divine Comedy, with careful attention as well to Virgil’s Aeneid.
“Why are you speaking Latin?” Trystan knew it. He was the oldest vampire in the town, older than Rome – and he loathed Latin on principal.
“I’m being tailed,” she continued in Latin.
“So call your watchdog,” Trystan scoffed.
“Mm, I’m planning to head Adrianne’s way,” she said, keeping her blue eyes from ever glancing back or considering the faces around her much, “it’s not a stupid one, which is…interesting.” Only stupid hunters looking to make a name for themselves hunted her. She had working agreements with several hunters and hunting families, because she tried to keep the peace as much as they did.
Hunters who were a bit jaded and world weary understood they had to live alongside supernatural beasts.
Young ones, or fools out for revenge, were the ones who tried for genocide, and so tried their hand at people far out of their league, like her. This hunter, however, was not out of her league. She had noticed him following, blending into the crowd, and Pia was too familiar with hunters not to recognize when one was looking for an opening.
“What do you want from me?” he sighed at last, relenting his frustration to force the point. “You could be calling Adrianne. She’s always bloodthirsty.”
‘No, no she is not.’ Not compared to Pia herself, but she tried to leave that behind her. That didn’t mean the urges left her. Gods, no. They were a daily, hourly, secondly, struggle. What she wouldn’t do to just…hells, she didn’t even know anymore. She only knew she had confined herself into a neat little box, and she couldn’t step outside of it.
“I want you to alert Adrianne, and I want you to speak with Felix about doing a sweep of LaCroix. Hunters like this rarely act alone, we may have a problem. I’ll see what I can find,” with that, she hung up. The entire conversation had been in Latin on her side, anticipating the hunter may try and listen, and she hardly needed him aware she knew, as she took a turn into the downtown area of LaCroix, only too familiar with the shady alleys and questionable routes that existed, that only those with knowledge of the shortcuts would dare to use at this late hour.
She didn’t put her phone away, but acted distracted, brushing light hair back over her shoulder, and looking at her financial portfolio and her Disney shorts, which were paying off in spades. Sometimes, it worked to bet against the mouse.
He frowned at the news, not exactly known for his stellar ability to deal with people. He preferred just dealing with the animals, “First or last shift are open.”
“First,” he’d get it out of the way.
“I figured,” she said, “good luck!”
She was always too cheerful, but it wasn’t terrible. He made his way to the front, and as soon as they opened, someone was already walking in with a dalmatian. Asher was efficient at getting people seen, and triaging the serious needs compared to the questionably serious ones. Some times, he really wished people would just wait until morning to see a regular vet, but he understood.
If he had a pet, he’d be a wreck over the small things, too. ‘Doubt I can keep a pet right now.’ Pia had no pets. He didn’t know if she’d allow one. Not that he planned to stay there his entire life, he knew this situation was temporary, but two years had flown by in the blink of an eye, and he wasn’t even looking at buying his own place yet.
He had the money.
He wasn’t sure what stopped him, other than his own sense of security. He knew Pia would let him use the vault whenever he needed it.
His shift at reception was coming to an end, when a woman walked in, so pale he almost wondered if she was a vampire. He didn’t notice the tell-tale signs he’d learned to look for, though, as the black haired woman entered.
There was no waiting at the desk so he gestured her forward, “Come on up,” he said, “what’s the emergency?” he looked for the pet to try and see what sort it was and what state it was in, as Greg began to approach for his shift at reception.
Asher figured he could finish getting her checked in and then take on the next patient.
~***~
“Salve, Trystan.”
A groan on the other end of the line brought just a hint of a smile to the vampiress's lips as she walked across the campus lawn of the University of Louisiana in LaCroix, one of the offshoots from the main campus, and a place where Pia spent every Tuesday and Thursday evening in a class about the Divine Comedy, with careful attention as well to Virgil’s Aeneid.
“Why are you speaking Latin?” Trystan knew it. He was the oldest vampire in the town, older than Rome – and he loathed Latin on principal.
“I’m being tailed,” she continued in Latin.
“So call your watchdog,” Trystan scoffed.
“Mm, I’m planning to head Adrianne’s way,” she said, keeping her blue eyes from ever glancing back or considering the faces around her much, “it’s not a stupid one, which is…interesting.” Only stupid hunters looking to make a name for themselves hunted her. She had working agreements with several hunters and hunting families, because she tried to keep the peace as much as they did.
Hunters who were a bit jaded and world weary understood they had to live alongside supernatural beasts.
Young ones, or fools out for revenge, were the ones who tried for genocide, and so tried their hand at people far out of their league, like her. This hunter, however, was not out of her league. She had noticed him following, blending into the crowd, and Pia was too familiar with hunters not to recognize when one was looking for an opening.
“What do you want from me?” he sighed at last, relenting his frustration to force the point. “You could be calling Adrianne. She’s always bloodthirsty.”
‘No, no she is not.’ Not compared to Pia herself, but she tried to leave that behind her. That didn’t mean the urges left her. Gods, no. They were a daily, hourly, secondly, struggle. What she wouldn’t do to just…hells, she didn’t even know anymore. She only knew she had confined herself into a neat little box, and she couldn’t step outside of it.
“I want you to alert Adrianne, and I want you to speak with Felix about doing a sweep of LaCroix. Hunters like this rarely act alone, we may have a problem. I’ll see what I can find,” with that, she hung up. The entire conversation had been in Latin on her side, anticipating the hunter may try and listen, and she hardly needed him aware she knew, as she took a turn into the downtown area of LaCroix, only too familiar with the shady alleys and questionable routes that existed, that only those with knowledge of the shortcuts would dare to use at this late hour.
She didn’t put her phone away, but acted distracted, brushing light hair back over her shoulder, and looking at her financial portfolio and her Disney shorts, which were paying off in spades. Sometimes, it worked to bet against the mouse.
