Lovely and Darlin as close friends is very important to me. I just love the concept of Lovely being the first person after Sam Darlin let themselves get close to.
They first meet Lovely very close after their first Solstice back with the Shaw pack - Sam deciding he wants to share what little family he has with them too.
Lovely is immediately so desperate to be their friend upon meeting them, the coolest person they've ever seen.
Darlin feels a little intimidated at first, uncomfortable with the attention. But when Lovely looks up at them with shining eyes and asks them "what's the best way to kick some ass?", Darlin gets a wicked grin on their face and thinks that maybe this won't be so bad.
And I think the two will often hang out together, just doing things they can't do with their nocturnally inclined partners. Darlin calls them 'Baby Fangs' (they claimed it was bc Lovely's original teeth were sharp, it was not. It's another short joke, they're unoriginal) and Lovely calls them 'Moonflower' (and is the only one allowed such a sappy nickname, Milo is still nursing a bruise from when he tried to make a lighthearted joke about it).
One morning, early, the two explain their scars; I imagine both their necks are heavily scarred from Quinn and Adam respectively. Lovely is grateful that Darlin doesn't shoot them that pitying look that's usually saved for kicked puppies. And Darlin is touched at how much Lovely cares but doesn't push; just holds the space for them. There's solace in not being alone, especially when the sun is rising so softly over the forest clearing Darlin took them to.
Seeing newborn vampire Lovely felt like ice to their core. They hadn't meant to have seen Lovely like this, but Vincent had gone to talk to William (and was in desperate need of rest that Sam was having to trick him into). And Darlin's habit of dropping by unannounced meant Sam didn't have the chance to warn them.
They're pinned to the ground at speed by an unfamiliar vamp, and immediately start shifting before they recognise the face and freeze up, almost allowing Lovely to bite them before Sam pulls them off. He restrains them and quickly checks on Darlin, who is completely shut down. He worries for a second that it's because they're hurt, but instead it's that helpless feeling they had of cradling their friend, bloody and afraid, after Quinn's attack all those years ago.
But there's nothing to fight here. No enemy to take down, no blows to withstand, no evil gaze to meet while you stand between your friend and the devil.
Only Lovely, Sparky, Baby Fangs; eyes now a dull silver. No more sunrises to share, no more awed curses as they do something stupid at the skatepark, no more human eyes sparkling as they bring Darlin their latest baking project to try. They try to tell themselves it's not over, Lovely is at least still alive, and will soon be able to recognise them. But the familiar ache of 'it's all my fault' settles around them. They should've been there to watch the Games, to support Sam and Lovely and Vincent and protect their pack an-
Sam wraps his arms around them tightly, nails lightly tracing circles across their skin, grounding them. The two sit together and mourn, quiet on Sam's kitchen floor. And when Vincent returns, Darlin helps Sam drag him to the bedroom for rest.
Darlin will often catch Lovely sat by the window, curtains drawn tight, the sunlight tinting the edges of the fabric gold. And they don't say anything, just settle beside Lovely, shifting to wolf form and gently bumping their head against their hand. Their eyes are different, their neck more scarred, and the quiet underlying sadness simmers a little stronger nowadays; but they are still the image of life in Darlin's eyes. They love watching the way Lovely's eyes light up as they feel coarse wolf fur under their finger tips. And the two watch the sunset this time instead, welcoming the night.
It is quiet, and for now at least, the world is good.
