luck of the draw // neve & dante
Aurelia’s capital. The fact that she was setting foot here at all had Neve’s skin crawling. One accidental foray back over the border had been enough to ruin her years-long streak of relative happiness. Now she was coming here on purpose, and the thought made her stomach curl on itself a few times. So long as she could keep her wits about her and stay on target, she could have this settled quickly. She just needed to find Jocelyn. But this was a task easier said than done.
The streets were packed with people. Vendors selling food and party favors and anything they thought would go well during such a festival had to vie with musicians and street performers for attention. Neve refused to make eye contact with anyone, just darted between bodies and groups as she scanned for any sign of her ward. But in these crowds it was impossible. There were too many people. Keep it together, girl.
Finally, she had to step down a less-crowded side street and try to regroup. She didn’t have the benefit of the tall Sansorian lord she’d encountered again; she figured he was off trying to find whoever he’d lost as well. She was on her own here, firmly in enemy territory where she very much didn’t want to be. She closed her eyes and breathed deeply, relaxing as much as possible and pulling at her wolf instincts to give her some kind of guidance. Maybe if she just looped around a few times, tried to catch Jocelyn’s scent. That would help. Almost as soon as the thought occurred to her, she caught it. It was faint, but present and very familiar. Jocelyn had been past here recently, very recently if her scent was still this distinct in these crowds.
Neve followed it through the throngs, heart racing every time she thought she’d lost it, breathing evening out when she picked it up again. There, ahead of her, was that…? The scent was stronger as she approached another high street and spotted a familiar blonde braided head bobbing through the crowd, accompanied by a shorter darker-haired one. Finally! Neve started forward, but froze as she heard a distinctive laugh. Oh you are FUCKING kidding me… Sure enough, though, there he was, unmistakably Dante, stalking towards Jocelyn and the other girl. Neve sped up, knocking a few people aside in her haste to get to the girls first. She was just close enough to hear his question, and Jocelyn’s confused stammer of “I… I’m sorry? You… you know Neve?”
“Right here, thanks for asking,” she chimed in, inserting herself firmly in front of Jocelyn and her date. After their moonlit encounter, which had been bad enough, it was bizarre seeing his face again. He only barely looked older, still handsome, but the way that smile twisted his mouth was nothing like the smiles she’d grown up with. And it sure as hell wasn’t enough to elicit anything but a glare from her. “And now we’re leaving. Cheerio.”
"Ah ah ah, puppy," Dante's nearly fanged smiled flashed in the beta's direction. "Oh, why do you look at me like that, Neve? We are all friends here, are we not?" He gave the two young women behind him a lazy shrug, using a large hand to push Neve out of the way, while his other hand moved to fish several coins of silver from his satchel. Dante had never been one to flaunt his wealth -his status, yes- but his child hood friend being there simply made him want to get her skin crawling. She deserved it, the little rat. She'd betrayed him in the most horrific way possible, and Dante was sure as hell going to make her pay for it. By one way or another, he would become a plague that haunted the back of her mind.
"Neve and I's history goes back further than time, bella. We are the best of friends, you see, and it has been a long time since we have gotten to...catch up." In human form, that was. She'd matured in her wolf form, yes, but as a human...the clumsy little girl who wanted nothing other than to be one of the boys had melted away into curves and the face of a young woman. She still had the same damn attitude, it seemed. Dante would be surprised the day that went away for good. Someone needed to sew her lips shut, once and for all. "Why don't you two take these coins and have some fun. Have an adventure." His smiled gleamed in the fire light. "While Neve and I-"
He looped his arm around her, grip like iron. "-have a chat that's well needed." His intentions were clear; he didn't need to speak the words allowed. If Neve defied him, he wouldn't even blink before blood was spilled on the cobble stone ground.
