Where The Wild Things Hide

Chapter 2

I stare at my reflection in the aged mirror that hangs from the wall. It's simple frame of vine like designs and elegant flowers embracing it's corners. I run a hand down the edge of it, feeling the week old dust lightly stick to my fingers. A reminder for later this week to clean... joy.
Anyways, Jane had lent me one of her dresses and I have to admit I was starting to like it. The dress was plain white with 3/4 length sleeves, and had a skirt that stopped just before my knee. At the base of the skirt was a simple lining of black lace, that climbed a little bit up on the skirt making it not entirely boring and plain. I had my hair up in a half pony tail with small French braids on the sides of it, adding a little white flower at the end. To finish it up, I put on a single charmed amethyst necklace that Luca got me last year for a birthday gift, and slip on some plain white flats.
A piece of paper slips off the little old table next to me and I catch it before it rests to the floor. I small smile appears in my face as I read the note that Jane had sent me with her dress.
"Lils,
You probably didn't read the note before opening the package, you impatient child. XD Anyways I hope you like the dress! You'll look absolutely gorgeous, and I can't wait to see you in it!
Love,
Jane"
I fold up the cream colored note, and set it on the table again as I grab the opened package wrapping to throw it away. Walking over to the half filled trash bin a knock is heard from my bedroom door and I quickly toss the now balled up packaging into the bin. I glide over to the door and when I open it I see Luca dressed up in suit. His eyes widen at the sight of me then a smirk replaces his features a few seconds after.
"You look beautiful, but do you know where Lils is?" He pretends to look over me to scan the room and I lightly punch his arm.
"And here I thought I was going to compliment on how good you looked too." I crack a smile as I fold my arms in a sassy way.
"I take it back, I want that compliment instead. Please?" he puts up his hands in a begging way and I push them aside.
"Oh alright, but next time I won't be so nice." I smile at him. "You look very handsome Luca."
"Why thank you. I have to look nice to go with a beautiful girl."
"Well congratulations I think you just got one." We both laugh as I loop my arm in his.
"Shall we?" He asks, gesturing towards the door.
"We shall!" I respond as we go to exit the little house's entrance.
When we step outside the sound of the town reaches my ear. Fancy ladies in fancy dresses walk alongside fancy men in fancy suits. Their chatter and gossip fill the air along with music that plays in the center of town towards the grand fountain. The warm melody that plays goes along with the string of warm glowing lights that outline the little town, and its shops. A peaceful and cozy atmosphere is placed across the the whole town, almost like a blanket lulling you to sleep. We walk among some of the townspeople and I spot an elderly woman next to us. I reach out and tap her shoulder, and she turns around slowly with a smile of recognition on her face. Her crinkled old eyes twinkle with wisdom and her movements are slow.
"My if it isn't Lilly! You look beautiful darling." she hugs me and pulls away to look up at Luca. "And who is this handsome fellow with you? Luca you've grown into a fine gentlemen. Gracious, you two just won't stop growing. I'm beginning to feel old." she nudges my arm and laughs a little bit.
"Thank you, it is nice to see you too Mrs. Gray." Luca responds with a slight nod of his head, and a gentle smile.
"Where's Mr. Gray at?" I ask, concerned she is walking by herself.
"Oh he went to get in line for some drinks. He'll be back soon." she waves it off as we near the fountain, the music slowly getting more audible. "Well I won't hold you two any longer. Go have fun and enjoy the festival." She smiles sweetly at us as she waves good bye, heading towards the food table where an elderly man stands.
I smile and wave at her, watching her safely get to the table before leaving. We head over to the crowd as a new song begins. Its melody is played cheerful and light as people laugh and begin to dance.
"Lils!" I turn my head abruptly towards whoever called my name, and see Jane dragging Zale over to us. She wore a navy blue lace dress with long sleeves that stopped perfectly at her wrists. Her dress was a little longer than mine and had a little bow wrapped in the front, accenting her waist. Her blonde hair was now in a messy bun with little jewels circling around its circumference. I almost stopped breathing when she tripped in her navy blue heels, but Zale caught her before she landed on the ground. He stands back up and straightens out his suit, he then backs up suddenly when Jane starts fiddling with his now messy hair. I laugh when they finally approach us after what seemed like a whole hour.
"You look amazing Lils!" Her eyes shine like a kid in a candy shop who just discovered there was a chocolate section. We all know how amazing chocolate is, don't lie.
"Thank you, you look amazing as well!" I smile at her and turn to Luca and Zale who are having a glaring contest. "Would you two quit it? You act like you're gonna slit each other's throats, not saying that you wouldn't, but you get what I mean."
I cross my arms and Zale is the first to listen and stop, what a surprise. I smack Luca's chest as he finally snaps out of it and he looks down at me confused.
"Yes, I was talking to you too. Now be nice." I give him a warning glare and he cowers down a bit.
"Sorry, I got carried away." An apologetic look crosses his face.
Jane bursts out laughing and I smile at her.
"You're amazing Lils." she compliments me and wraps her arm around my waist, I do the same. "Well we didn't just come here for arguing, lets get dancing people and maybe have some fun!" We all laugh at how excited and careless she acts. Jane lets go of me and crosses over to Luca grabbing his hand. He gives her a scared look, "Lily needs a break so I'll dance with you for awhile." she beams and Luca gives me a "help me out here" look. I laugh until Jane nudges me towards Zale and we both freeze. We look at each other then back at the now grinning Jane.
"I don't think that's such a good idea." Luca pipes up with a hint of irritation in his voice as Zale gently grabs my hand.
I smile at Luca, "You don't have to be so jelly Luca. Zale won't bite me."
"How do you know? He mi-"
"Alright! Let's go!" Jane exclaims and drags Luca off. I laugh at them as I silently thank my crazy best friend.
Cutting off my thoughts I turn to Zale and give him a smile, "Ready to go with them?"
He cracks a smile and nods his head, "Sure." His low voice flows out.
We make our way to where Jane and Luca are as the music changes to another cheerful melody. When we stand by them Zale gently puts his hand around my waist and I feel the beat of the music through my feet. Many people dance around us, whooping and hollering as they dance at their own pace. The dresses sway as some of the women swing their hips and the men's' shoes tap as they keep the steady tempo. Zale extends his arm and twirls me around in a circle earning a giggle from me. The joyful music plays for awhile but like all fun things it comes to a close.
"Lady's and gentlemen we will be taking a short break, but please help yourself to the games and little shops around here!" A tall man booms over the crowd before he bows towards us all.
"Thank you for the dance Zale. It was very fun!" I give him a quick smile.
"I'm glad you liked it." he returns with a warm smile.
I feel a pair of hands around my waist as I am pulled back into a chest. Looking up I see Luca smiling down at me and I beam back up at him. Then, I hear Jane speak up.
"How about we check out the shops? I heard they're giving out free food." my attention is snapped towards her, and I jump up and down a little bit.
"Count me in! That food is practically calling my name as we speak." I feel Lucas' chest move as he chuckles at me. "What?" I look up at him and he shakes his head.
"Nothing, lets get you that food before you eat someone." he jokes as we start to walk towards the enormous crowds.
Shops line the streets as people gaze at the merchandise. People shout deals while others peacefully talk about new items at each shop. Kids run through the crowd towards games that are set up on the side, with tempting cool toys that hang around the tents' perimeter. Overall it is very lively on the streets. Jane runs off with Zale to a trading shop as she starts dealing with the owner.
"I wonder what they're trying to trade for..." I watch them as they both smile, assuming they're in agreement.
"Probably some old books or knickknacks. You know how they love collecting that kind of stuff." Luca nudges my shoulder and I look up at him. "You want to keep looking around?"
"Sure! I still haven't found that free food yet." I start walking with him, holding his hand since the crowd was getting thicker. Many people bump into me as I walk behind Luc, one man nearly bulldozed me just to get to a stand full of papers. Suddenly I lose grip of Luca's hand and almost stumble when someone runs into my back.
"Lils!" He turns around fast to grab my hand but the crowd shoves him back.
"Luca!" I yell out his name and reach for him, but the crowd was so thick that I couldn't see him anymore.
I quickly stumble out of the crowd hoping to find him, but I realize I'm alone. I had forgotten about how busy this festival gets. People from everywhere stop by the town just to attend this festival. I fiddle with the end of my skirt as I nervously scan the area, hoping anyone familiar I know pops out to help me. So far there was no luck....
"And I didn't even get any food..." I puff out my cheeks in annoyance. "Might as well just look at some shops as I walk back."
I turn towards the direction Luca went and started looking at different shops. There was glass shops, rug stores and a few jewelry places, but none of them caught my eye. Then, I saw a shop with paintings of Bellators and random creatures. The owner looked to be around 50 years old with age showing on their face. His gnarled fingers elegantly flowed on paper as he was working on a piece of art at the moment. It was memorizing to watch as he worked his trade, so as not to disturb him I quietly looked at the other pieces of artwork. Most were in a single color of paint but flowed beautifully. The strokes were well defined, and portrayed his joy in the piece of work. What caught my eye next was breathtaking. It was a painting of a Bellator, peacefully gazing at you with a forested background behind it. The realism in it put me in a trance as I wanted to reach out, and somehow touch the Bellator that looked so real and alive. But before I could I was interrupted by a movement of someone standing beside me. I looked to the side and jumped at how close they were to me.
There stood a boy around my age, maybe a little older. He had warm chocolate brown eyes that sent a flutter down in my stomach. His hair started from black to purple in a sort of laid down Mohawk that relaxed down in the front of his face. The sides of his head were shaved slightly, and he wore a gray suit with black underneath. He looked human, but there was a peek of two white lines on the back of his neck that I'm assuming went down his whole back, meaning he was a Bellator. Every Bellator has a special marking in their human form that sets them apart, Luca has two red arrows on the side of each cheek on his face, this is how they're identified. The thing about him was that he looked oddly familiar and it nagged at my brain, so I spoke up and conversed with him.
"Beautiful isn't it?" I turned to the painting as he looked at me. There was a long pause and I turned to look at him, meeting his brown eyes.
"Ya..." He says in a low voice then turns his attention to the painting again, clenching his jaw. "But it's a Silverstris. They're monsters..."
"I don't think they're monsters. I think they're just as sane as everyone else, they just have different views."
He whips he's head around to look at me with a surprised expression. "They're not?"
"Of course not. Just because some are given that title doesn't mean they're all like that. Don't you think so?" I smile at him. "In fact I ran into one this morning... He wasn't as bad as people told me they were."
"Oh, well I never thought a human would understand a Silverstris.. That's a really clever thought, um..." He pauses since he doesn't know my name and I laugh.
"It's Lily, nice to meet you!" I put my hand out for him to shake and he cautiously grabs it.
"Theo." Is all he replies with, and I see him fight to keep a straight face and not smile back.
"I'm sorry to ask this but could you help me get back to the big fountain? I got separated from my friends." I give him an apologetic smile. I had just met the guy, so I didn't think he would help me.
"It's fine. I was planning to go there anyways. I believe they are starting the music back up again." As soon as he finishes his sentence the music starts playing softly.
I smile at him as he ducks out of the tent and turns to see if I'm following. I quickly run over next to him, determined to not get separated from anyone again tonight.
"Want to dance when we get there, and wait for your friends? I am looking for some people as well actually." He asks and looks down at me.
I look up at him surprised but soon I smile and nod my head, "Sure."
We stayed silent for awhile as we weaved through the crowd. Every time we were almost separated he would stop and wait for me, until I caught up. The crowd was big but more people were going towards the music. As we walked I silently picked at my brain to see where I remembered him from. His eyes were what reminded me of him the most. I stopped in my thoughts as I bumped into him when he stops abruptly.
"Sorry!" I quickly apologize as he turns around.
"I-it's fine." He raises his hand to somewhat calm me down. "Do you see your friends anywhere?" He moves his hand out to the crowd.
I stand on my tip toes and scan the area. I check for a couple minutes until my feet get tired and slowly go back down. I turn to look at him and shake my head.
"Nope." I respond and pop the "p."
"Here." He grabs my hand and drags us into the crowd. I look at him confused when he hesitantly puts his hand on the small of my back. "We can try to find them in here." He replies after reading the expression on my face.
"Do you see any of your friends?" I remembered he was looking for some people as well.
"No not yet. They're probably gonna come here later I believe..." He trails off as the song turns into a soft slow melody.
I try to avoid eye contact as the air begins to feel uncomfortable. I had just met this guy and I was already dancing with him to a song. Not just any song but a slow one. How weird is that?! As we make small chitchat we both scan the area, looking for our missing friends. The slow melody didn't help the issue in making it less awkward.
All of a sudden the chimes from the bell tower signaled it was 10 o' clock at night and I began to worry. Theo must have seen my worried expression because he cleared his throat and began to speak, to ease my mind.
"So tell me about the encounter you had with the Silverstris today. If you don't want to it's fine." He quickly adds to the end.
I shake my head,"It's fine, it wasn't traumatic." He nods his head and I begin telling him about the morning.
"Well I was training with my Familiaris friend, Luca, this morning when a herd of Silverstris came charging down the mountain side out of no where. I don't know if something was bothering them up there since they have recently been coming down for a while. Anyways, when we went to leave this big huge male Silverstris chased us." I explained to him what the Silverstris looked like and his eyes flash with fear, but only for a mere second. "When he got close I just remembered wanting to flee because of how close he was, and of coarse I didn't know how he acted. He chased us for probably a mile until he suddenly stopped when he made eye contact with me. It was weird because when we looked at each other it was like I- I don't know.... Felt something deep inside, ya know?" I laughed and he looked at me. " Sorry if I am boring you with this story."
"No, no it's actually quite interesting. I think I can relate to that." He speaks but then acts as if he said something he shouldn't have.
"You can relate to it? How?" I questioned but was interrupted when I voice shouts my name.
"Lily!"
I turn my head and see Luca running over to me before he stops and stares at me and Theo. We quickly separate and Theo looks the other way. I clear my throat and put on a smile.
"Luca! I was wondering where you were so Theo helped me look for you." I pointed my thumb at Theo and Luca gives him a glare.
"Ya because dancing with another guy helps find missing friends." He squints his eyes at Theo.
I see Theo clench his fist as he mumbles under his breath, "Damn Familiaris..."
"What?" I look at him but a blood curdling scream fills the air.
"It's the Silverstris! They're raiding the town!"
Luca and Theo stop their glaring contest and turn to me.
"You need to get out now!" Theo pushes me towards Luca in a rushed manner.
"B-but what about you?! You need to leave too! The Silverstris are too strong!" I yell at him, the anxiety building in my chest.
"I'll be fine, but you won't if you stay here any longer."
"But-!" He gives my a sympathetic look.
"Lily! Come on! He's right, we need to get out now!" Luca yells as he transforms into his Bellator form.
I stand frozen as I don't know what to do. Luca picks me up gently in his mouth and nudges me on his back the best he can. It's difficult for him since Bellator necks aren't built long. I quickly hold on to his fur as I look at Theo standing there. His chocolate brown eyes never breaking my gaze until Luca lurches forward towards the town entrance. I get the same feeling in my stomach as we race the other way, out of town. Watching as Theo slowly walks the other way towards the chaos, like the Silverstris from this morning.
Luca leaps over people as he tries to successfully flee and not hurt any one in the process. We stop by the house as I rush in and go through the drill mom always taught us to do, in case there was ever a raid. I never thought that I would ever have to do it but here I am, in one right now. I hear Luca stomp impatiently as I grab a few blankets and the safety kit from under the kitchen sink. Rustling comes from outside and I see Luca biting and kicking a female Silverstris. Her now soft pink and white coat was stained with thick white blood as Luca bites down on her neck and back. Here crystal blue eyes show fear and I can't take it anymore.
"Luca stop! We need to leave!" he snaps towards me and in a blur I'm on his back again.
I watch as the Silverstris lays there bleeding from the fresh wounds. I bury my face in Luca's mane, whispering an apology as we near the woods. With a few stumbles we make it into the woods safely and Luca crumples to the ground, exhausted and his shoulder has claw marks on it. They now seep with crimson blood and I quickly dig in the pack for the first aid kit. After a few minutes my hands find the small box and I quickly get the disinfectant, stitches and bandages out. Lucas eyes fill with fear as I start to work on his wound.
"Shhhh, You're not making it any better." I try to calm him down as he jerks every time I touch him.
After what seemed like 5 hours I sit back down and set the bandages next to me in the grass. I lean up against Luca's side and close my eyes as I hear the screams and cries from town. I prayed that Theo, Jane and Zale were okay and that they didn't get hurt or worse,  died. Luca startles me when he quickly tenses up and I look to see him glaring at something.
"Luca, what is it?" I look at him worried as I turn to see a figure of a Bellator limping our way. I go to stand up as soon as I recognize who it is. It's the male Silverstris who chased us today, but now he was hurt and was standing five feet in front of me. He steps closer to me and accidentally bumps/rests his head into me and collapses on the ground. His eyes show exhaustion as they stay half lidded. He breathes heavily and I kneel beside him, putting his head on my lap.
"Oh no!...." I breathe out.
What happens next was completely unexpected. When he transforms back Theo's face is the first thing I see. His eyes look up to me as tears threaten to spill from my eyes.
"Li-Lily... You-.. You're alright..." He croaks as he lets out a troubled breathe.
"Shhh. It's okay, you'll be better in the morning. Rest Theo." I try to quiet him down as I stroke the side of his face.
I look back at Luca as he passes me the kit. "Thanks Luca."
I gently open up the kit as Theo passes out, and I start to work on his wounds. My hands shaking as the screams slowly die down in the background.