A viral YouTuber from California, Mateo has been making videos for about ten years, his topics ranging from “I Rate Every Candy by Color” to “How Many Sweaters Can I Wear At One Time?” to his most popular series, “Mateo Unsolved,” which feature his various investigations into supernatural mysteries.
He is mostly interested in ghostly hauntings and cryptids and has been looking everywhere for Big Foot. Little did he know that werewolves are totally real. Woah.
When he heard a rustling in the bushes the second he stepped into Lunar Cove, of course he had to follow it. And the thing bit him! Now why does he feel like howling at the full moon?
It’s all real! He can’t even vlog about this because of some stupid “accords” and a scary lady that told him no posting!
Just a super friendly, very high energy dude who loves everyone he meets and is a very good hype man! He would love to tell you how cool he thinks you are!
Does not drink alcohol or use any substances because his Body is a Temple, and he does Yoga in the park, but he promises not to tell you about how he’s a vegan...except ever since that bite he’s been really craving meat...
Obsessed with fashion. Unfortunately, it’s all bad fashion. Wears crocs unironically. Tends to wear see-through or cut-out shirts.
Possible Connections:
Wolves! Pack buddies! Let’s practice howling!!
Anyone who has sense and might keep him from accidentally exposing the whole town and getting himself and everyone else killed in the process.
On that note, someone who can teach him new habits that don’t involve social media, and who can fill the void left by the millions of fans he can’t tell about his new wolf skills. RIP.
Someone who recognizes him or watched his videos?
Anyone who wants to make stupid content with him. Since he can’t make videos about magic, he’ll need to keep making important content like “how many cherries can you catch in your mouth if i throw them at you while you’re blindfolded and hopping on one foot?”
Full Bio Under the Cut
Mateo was the son of two doctors--a renowned heart surgeon and a pediatrician who had met in medical school and never looked back. They had hoped that their son would continue their legacy, eager to pass on their wisdom and to see their love of healing continue. And while Mateo dressed proudly as a doctor for every Halloween and certainly had a passion for healing, often running into their house with an injured bird or bug, begging his mothers to fix it, he never quite showed the aptitude for science that they had hoped. When Mateo brought home his first D in math, they tutored him night and day to help him catch up. However, Mateo’s mothers valued his happiness over his grades, so when he grew frustrated with all their extra lessons, when they saw him daydreaming and staring out the window when he was supposed to be studying Pre-Algebra, they eventually learned to change their vision of the future and support his interests--which seemed to be everything else.
One day, a dancer, the next a stand up comedian. Most of all, Mateo loved people. Always one to entertain a crowd, Mateo considered nearly everyone he met to be his friend--and meant it. He fell in love--both romantic and friendly--hard and fast, frequently declaring that he had met his soulmate, whether platonic or otherwise, only to be devastated when relationships fell through. Every birthday party, he invited the entire school, horrified at the idea of anyone being left out, and he was always the first to greet the new kid. No one was uncool or unpopular in Mateo’s book. And when it came to animals, he was just as open hearted, often smuggling animals home until his mothers eventually caught him and insisted he bring at least some back to the Humane Society, as their house was bursting at the seams.
After high school, Mateo got a job as a door-to-door salesman in a pyramid scheme for cooking knives before becoming a secretary at a dentist’s office. It was during this time that he began making YouTube videos. It began as a hobby, just something he did for fun, usually streaming his play-throughs of various video games or his rantings about various supposed hauntings in nearby towns. Then one day, one of his videos went viral, and suddenly people were begging for more. Even more surprisingly, sponsorships began to roll in, and before he knew it, he was making videos as a full-time career, sponsored by various companies to do everything from investigating a ‘haunting’ in an old farmhouse off the highway, to seeing how many peppers he could eat in one sitting at various degrees of spiciness.
The haunting videos were by far Mateo’s most popular, so he eventually packed up his things and took the show on the road, videotaping his journey as well as his ‘investigations’ into each notorious location. Along the way, he received a call from an old high school friend who had moved to Rhode Island years ago and had largely fell out of touch. Mateo agreed to meet up in a town he’d never heard of before, and after fighting with his GPS for several miles, he finally pulled into Lunar Cove on the night of a bright full moon. As he was looking for parking outside some place called Joe’s Pasta & Pizzeria, a growling in the bushes caught his attention and so, naturally, he’d started up his phone camera and filmed himself heading toward the dangerous noise.
The bite came quick, a blur of teeth and hair. His phone was knocked out of his hand, he hit the ground, someone howled, and then it was over. He watched as brown fur disappeared into the woods, and as he slowly sat up, he noticed that his phone screen had cracked before he noticed the bleeding mark on his forearm. Shrugging it off as a good story to tell--and vlog about--he’d gone ahead to dinner, showing his friend the gnarly bite before cleaning it up in the restaurant bathroom. When the pain came, he was sure it was food poisoning. Eventually his friend, who was familiar with the supernatural and who recognized the signs of a werewolf bite, confessed to him what happened and brought him back home with him to wait out the change.
Over the next few days, Mateo was given a crash course in all things supernatural, all the real parts he’d never once captured in any of his investigative videos. Now, his first full moon is approaching, and the supernatural is about to become far more than just a hobby.
"Well, joining the pack isn't necessarily a tie to the place, so much as your packmates. It's—well, it's complicated." There was something especially heartbreaking about hearing the certainty in Mateo’s voice. Nico couldn’t help but remember the time his father had taken him out of Lunar Cove, when he was a kid. There wasn’t much he recalled except being introduced around to an extended family he’d never met before, and sensing the tension between his dad and his abuelo. Nico had been confused about the tone he’d used, but when he was older he understood that his father had left university at a run after he was bitten. Aurelio had never been able to give a full explanation for his disappearance to his family before turning up years later, with a son in tow from a marriage they’d never even known about, and no excuse that really held up under scrutiny.
He wanted better than that for Mateo, wanted him to not have to give half-truths to those he cared about, but everything had only gotten harder out in the world since the Catalyst’s attacks. “I wish I could say it's safe for you to leave, but I'd be lying. There are people out there who won't hesitate to hurt you, just because you're one of us now. Right now you'd be an easy target for them. Like it or not, this is the last place that's relatively safe for our kind, and even here we're not—" He cut himself off before he rambled into something less than comforting. "It's gotten worse, let's leave it at that. But we can figure out how to keep you safe later,” he said, trying to keep the words gentle but honest, in a voice rusted with exhaustion. “Right now, all you have to focus on is tonight, and the change.” He gave Mateo a firm nod. "We should get ready," he said, and stood, stripping off his shirt without thinking, and belatedly realizing he had skipped a step in his carefully laid out Introductory Plan. "Oh, uh—I should've asked," he said, somewhat embarrassed, "how comfortable are you with pain, nudity, and eating red meat? Not necessarily in that order."
"Yeah, man, but I'll be a wolf, right? I'll be able to defend myself." This was said with a sense of false bravado, the smile that was usually plastered to Mateo's face not quite wiped away yet, but definitely starting to lose its genuine excitement. Mateo didn't really do fights--in fact, he'd never been in a fight. He'd always been a big guy, muscular, someone who looked like he could hold his own, and for the most part, no one had ever really messed with him--the few times it had happened, Mateo had tried to 'talk it out' only to be punched in the face. If someone really did try and hunt him, if the people who had come on Valentine's came after him next, he wouldn't know what to do about it. He didn't want to hurt anybody. "Man, nudity is cool. Bodies are beautiful, man. All of 'em." He didn't seem fazed at all when the alpha suddenly pulled off his shirt but simply followed suit, taking off his as well. "Oh, I don't eat meat. Vegan." He touched his chest to indicate himself. He tried not to talk about it too much--he'd learned that people didn't like it very much when vegans talked on and on about their lifestyles--but he'd tried meat only once in his life and vowed never to do it again. He'd been four and given chicken nuggets, happily munching away on them, until he'd been told what he was eating, burst into tears, and refused to come out of his room for two days.
"Alright man, come on, let's go. Let's do this." Mateo clapped his hands together, trying to maintain his air of confidence and excitement, telling himself again and again that this was simply the next big adventure in his life, that pain, nudity and red meat weren't the end of his life, just a new turn on the great path of all life had to offer. Minus the meat, of course. "Thanks, man," he added. "For being here with me. I feel real safe with you, dude. You're a good dude."
Having lived in Lunar Cove for quite a few years now, Madee was pretty good with recognizing the people around town. She studied the man standing next to her for a brief moment before deciding he must be new in town, she'd never seen him before. The thing with Lunar Cove was that it seemed like people were coming and going constantly. "Oh, yes, of course. Sorry," Madee smiled at him, nodding her head slightly before reaching towards the sugar packets. "How many?" She asked, her fingers already curled around two packets, which seemed to be the standard for most people. Something seemed to tell her that he liked a more sugary drink, and she slipped a third packet into her hand.
"A hat that looks like an alligator?" Madee questioned with a raised brow, "I don't think I've ever heard of such a thing." She laughed slightly, now picturing him with an alligator on his head. "Looks like they have a bunch of cool stuff out there, I'm just headed out to take a little gander myself. I definitely want to see you in that hat, if you want to accompany me for a little while." Usually, Madee wasn't one to ask a stranger to join her for anything, but she was a little nervous of being in a large crowd, and something about this guy felt safe to her.
"Dude, it's like you read my mind. Three's the way to go. Gotta get my energy up!" He took the three packets gratefully, bowing his head to her in thanks. Then his eyes grew wide, and pausing before he could even add one sugar to his coffee, he lowered his voice and asked her, "Yo, do you read minds? Is that a real power? Somebody told me that wolves could read each others minds when we're in the pack and all, wolfing out in the woods, running wild. Like a think tank. But like...wolf style. And somebody else told me the Boss Vampire can talk to the other vampires in their heads. But like, maybe witches can do that with all types of people, you know what I'm saying? You don't need to tell me if you don't want to," he added quickly, putting up both hands and in the process dropping one of the sugar packets--still in the paper--straight into the coffee. He quickly scooped it out. "But if you're reading my mind, like, that's okay. I can show you around if you want though. I got a system." Right now, if she did read his mind, she'd learn that he was thinking about a really good sandwich he'd seen someone eating earlier, and a picture of a cat with a rainbow he'd seen online, and how nice Caleb looked that morning when they were getting ready for the day, and how nice, she, this stranger with the sugar, was.
Once his coffee was sugared up and he put the lid back on, he looked up, face radiating excitement at the idea of trying on hats with her. "Oh hell yeah!" He said, putting up his hand to high-five. "Let's do it. I'll show you where it is. Man, I hope no one got to it first. But if they did, I hope they appreciate how dope it is." He reached for the cafe door and held it open for the both of them.
Julian could tell that Mateo wasn’t exactly comfortable sitting still, and he couldn’t blame him. He was pretty sure he would be a little restless if in his situation. “You don’t have to sit super still, buddy, I can absolutely do this if you’re moving around and stuff. Just do what feels natural, even if that’s fidgeting,” he said after a moment, hoping to ease the other man into a more comfortable stance. Mateo was definitely one of the more recognizable faces in town so it wasn’t hard for him to jump into the caricature, eyes darting back and forth between the drawing and the man as he relayed his favorite memory to him. If there was one thing to say about Mateo, it was that the guy really knew how to tell a story. He had a very infectious attitude that had Julian brimming with joy as he related the story.
“Ice cream cake is bomb,” Julian mused, “You know what we should do? We should find the best ice cream cakes in town or just any types of cake — ice cream or not — and like, rate them. March Madness bracket style except instead of sports teams it’s cake. Inform the people what’s truly the best cake in all Lunar Cove.” If he wasn’t an artist, Julian thought maybe he could be a professional foodie. He listened intently as the other man told the story about his thirteenth birthday. “That’s amazing! That’s like a double celebration, then. You must have had so much fun. And that water park must have been going all out, just walk to wall excitement and stuff. Did you start doing like a combo birthday and pride thing for birthdays after that? Man, what a cool way to celebrate escaping the womb.”
"Nah, man, I gotta be a good model. Model citizen model. Gotta give you my good side." He froze entirely, striking a pose with his chin up and his hands on his hips, and held that for approximately twenty seconds before his shoulders drooped and he wiggled from head to toe. "Hoooy, that was hard. How do people do that?" His nose scrunched up as he grinned, marveling inwardly at the power and poise of models across the world. "Models got some like other worldly discipline, you know what I'm saying? That's crazy, man. Hey, you work with models a lot?" By the shining, excited expression on the werewolf's face, it was clear he did not mean this is in a sexual way, asking if he dated models or worked with nude models or whatever the usual, crude questions were. He was authentically interested in the profession--like he was with everything, it seemed. "People like holding an apple for you or something? Or like those fancy old-timey portraits with the families and the hand on the shoulder." He mimed this traditional pose, sitting up very straight again and pretending to grip some invisible shoulder like the patriarch of an old 1800s nobleman.
At Julian's idea, however, Mateo was completely sidetracked from issues of painting and instead lit up with enthusiasm. "Oh hell yeah, man!" He put out his hand to high-five. That was a video idea he could do without revealing his new supernatural status, and lately, he'd been struggling to think of ideas that would have been normal to him a few months ago because now everytime he saw a camera, he felt the overwhelming urge to yell 'I'm a werewolf! look at my tail!' He nodded. "Yeah, man, it was great. So much fun. What about you though? Tell me about your life, tell me your story, tell me your dreams and hopes."
"Now," Caleb took a dramatic pause as him and Mateo began to lead a rather large tour group around the corner of Joe's. "This next stop on our Ghost Bros Extravanganza of All Things Haunting and Otherwordly is about to get... personal. Come closer," He lowered his voice as he waited for the guests around them to circle around. "And I'm not just saying that because us blocking the street is a safety hazard. Come here. Gather around, make friends with your neighbors. What you may think is a subpar local pizza shop, is really the home of the very first- wait for it... Bigfoot sighting," He told the crowd, throwing his voice as he added in some 'ooohs' and 'aahs' for dramatic affect. "And who was the one to have this bizarre run-in with this potential Big Foot? None other than your own tour guide, Mateo Angel Ortega Rivera. Tell them, bro. Tell them how you were deprived a slice of pizza as the mysterious figure charged at you and, get this- even bite him."
"Man, you can't talk about Joe like that." Mateo shook his head solemnly, peering over Caleb's shoulder to look at the windows of the pizza shop which, luckily, revealed no Joe sighting. "He's got eyes everywhere." To the tour group he said, "Y'all, I hear the garlic knots are to die for. And I almost did. So after this, you go give Joe your business, tell him we sent you, and have a great meal. Note: I am not officially endorsed by Joe's Pizza." As a YouTuber, someone who made his living solely on sponsorship, this was a phrase Mateo was all too use to saying. He then lowered his voice seriously. "I didn't even get to try the knots though because..." He paused for dramatic effect. "I got bit before I could. Right there." He pointed to the a bush outside the pizza shop. "There I was, excited as all heck, coming to have a dope dinner with my BFF here," he slid his arm around Caleb's shoulder. "And then I hear growling. So I move a little closer, got to see what's going on, right? And I see a pair of eyes glowing. Yellow. And teeth. Sharp, white teeth. Fur covered his--or her or their--whole body. I'm getting chills, right? And bam!" He threw his arms over his head. "It's coming at me! I just barely made it out alive."
Event: The 20K Basket Opening
Location: The Town Green
Closed For: Mateo @mateoangelortegarivera
Luna riffled through her Barbie basket, Twizzler in her mouth (reminding her that Red Vines were superior) as she hunted for the reason she was ever interested in this auction. The piece of foil was quickly discarded as she got to the heart of it: the gel pens. With a childlike glee she pulled out the notebook and got to doodling as she sat in the grass. Happily humming through her doodles she remembered that she was supposed to do something else after buying this thing. Looking around, she caught sight of the wolf who made her gel pen basket. She whistled to get his attention and beckoned him over. "Hey, you! What are we supposed to do after this?" If she could just take her gel pens home and leave she'd be fine with that, frankly.
Mateo hadn't really expected his basket to go for that much money. The gel pens were dope and the flashlight was awesome (in a really dangerous sort of way), and he was excited to go ghost hunting with whoever purchased the basket, but $20,000 was...a lot of money. Which meant that the charity event had gone off perfectly. Practically bouncing in excitement, Mateo hurried over as the scary lady whistled for his attention. "Hey, you're the lady from the massacre!" He said, putting up his hand to high-five her as if this was a cool memory they shared, and not something that absolutely terrified him and made him want to throw up again every time he thought about it. Mateo had never seen a dead body before that, and he was hoping he never would again. But in the wise words of Bastille, he had asked himself, 'how am i going to be an optimist about this?' and had decided that hanging out with the scary lady was a good opportunity to learn more about this town and the people that were his neighbors for the time being. "Thanks for buying the basket. That was like crazy generous of you. You rock."
Mateo scooped the tinfoil off the ground as he reached her. "Yo, you dropped this. You're going to need this. Safety first, you know what I'm saying? We're going to go ghost hunting! But you gotta be prepared in case there's aliens too." He handed her the tinfoil hat. "You're going to want to put this on as soon as it gets dark. Then we're going to use the flashlight, and we're going to find the oldest, scariest looking building in town and then real polite like, we're going to talk to the ghosts."
“You too, man. Happy you’re here.” Giving a sharp nod, JC grimaced because no, he was not actually thrilled that an unwitting human had found himself turned in this manner. If a mortal had approached the pack, in earnest, sought them out, asked for this life, well, perhaps that would be a noble and worthy thing. But he did not like to think of his own nature as a curse or affliction that might be hoisted onto others. Still, however, with the developments as of late, Júlio César was, to some degree, genuinely glad Mateo was here. The world was now all the more dangerous for young, lone wolves; Lunar Cove was, really, the absolute best place for them to be. And it remained the place he was grateful to have waiting for his own return so many years ago.
He raised an eyebrow. “No, not like CrossFit,” he replied dully. “I do, uh, respect that, though. I was a professional athlete myself back in the day. And you shouldn’t stop training. Discipline is going to be one the most important things for you to try and hold onto.” He smiled weakly. Discipline could keep a focused head, keep the inner wolf controlled when it was not time to come out. “What I mean is, it’s not exactly like the movies. The full moon will cause you to shift, yes. But it’s not necessarily a one-day-a-month-thing.” He seemed to realize this sounded somehow dire. “It’s not as daunting as it might seem. Especially not with a pack to boost you up. But lone wolves…I’ve heard tell of them getting stuck in animal form. I think you should plan to stay in Lunar Cove for a bit.” He said this bluntly.
Settling down, though, JC gave a low hum, meeting Mateo’s gaze. “You can tell a lot about a wolf from its eyes. You were bitten by a Beta. That’s what I am. And that makes you an Omega, not that I expected otherwise. I’m afraid you don’t get cool eyes.” This came as lightly as it could, but the display of post-it notes at least earned a short laugh, maybe of disbelief. Although, Júlio César was not judging; he knew his fair share about glitter. He waited for Mateo to finish before trying to answer the tidbits he remembered. “You can live wherever you want. The hypothetical den isn’t, like, a cave,” he replied. “And sure, you can get fleas, bug bites, poison ivy, any other hazards that could affect a human in the woods.” He hummed.
“What else? You can shift any time. I can do it on-command. You might be able to learn to.” He furrowed up his brow. “Don’t bow to Nico. I don’t know what he’d do. You don’t need to bring a gift, but sure, I think you’d make friends if you showed up with a six-pack of beer or something. And if there were a password, it wouldn’t really be like the magic door I think you’re thinking of. Is that fair? Do you, uh, want to…meet the Alpha? Consider packing up?”
"Yo, man. Hell yeah." Mateo clapped JC on the shoulder as he confessed to being a professional athlete. "What'd you do, bro? Would I have seen you on TV? Hey, should I be getting your autograph, man? If you sign a napkin, is it going to pay for a penthouse in Manhattan?" He was joking, just glad to be in the company of someone who seemed to have so much life to him, so many layers. An athlete, a werewolf, a leader in his community. How lucky had Mateo gotten bumping into this man, of all people, in line?
His expression sobered, however, when JC told him about wolves who had been stuck in their furry forms, of lone wolves and problem stories. He didn't like to say horror stories because horror stories almost never ended well, and he didn't want to think about the rest of his life--or any of the pack's lives--in that way. This was an adventure, sure, but it was going to be a good adventure. An awesome, new way of living. New experiences. New company. Practicing his howling at the moon.
He nodded along, tapping lightly at the side of his coffee cup. "Man, I gotta call my moms. Tell 'em I won't be home for my birthday before they get the ice cream cake." He was trying to stay positive--positive was his default state, his focused state--but he missed his home already. He missed his friends, his job, his camera. He missed the schedule he'd dedicated himself to for so many years: a video a day, the gym, creative projects he was flying in and out of LA to film and produce. Now, he felt stranded, restless, stuck in a tiny town where he knew no one, about to become not just a different person, but a different species.
"Omega," he repeated. "That's a bummer, man. I was looking forward to some glowing eyes. But alright, alright. Pa'lante." Roll with the punches. Keep up the good vibes. "Omega it is. I can be an omega." He noted the way JC emphasized 'human.' "So I am still human?" He whistled. "That's a relief. I've always liked being human, you know?" Not that he'd ever known there was a different way to be. "Never been really into that furry stuff." He continued to nod and nod and nod, absorbing all the information that the man was giving him. "Hell yeah, man. I can do beer. Take me to your leader, right?" He put out his hand to shake. "You're a good dude, you know that. Like the wise mentor the hero meets on the trials. Oh, but you're a hero too man. You're a hero too."
While the hug took him by surprise, Ralph returned it all the same, patting Mateo’s back and actually giving something of a grunt, a noise suitable for masculine bonding, one he supposed he might have made in a locker room at some point. “Well, it shows, pal. It shows. Just wait until those proper wolf muscles come in. You’ll be unstoppable. Pickin’ up cars. Tearin’ phone books in half. The whole shebang.” As the other dropped his voice, Ralph raised an eyebrow, allowing a wide smile to spread across his features. He laughed. “Big strappin’ fella like you? Golly, I could just eat you up.” He was flirting, collecting werewolves apparently becoming a hobby, but after a beat, Ralph dropped his voice very seriously. “But don’t worry. I won’t. Scout’s honor. I’m pretty full right now,” the vampire assured him. “That’s real kind of you, though, pal. Bein’ considerate of a poor bloodsucker. Vampires and wolves are natural enemies, ya know, and you and me, bein’ best friends already and all, we’re just…turnin’ over a new leaf. Changin’ history right here, right now. Powerful shit, ya feel me?” He clutched his heart, tugging back a shit-eating grin.
“Wait, really? You wanna, like, have a band with me? Damn. Ya know, I was gonna go to Woodstock back in '69, but then…well, vampire. I don’t actually play any instruments, but I think we could be a real hit, ya dig it?” This prospect did seem to genuinely excite Ralph. Maybe he did deserve a chance to be a rock…gospel star for once in his afterlife. Eternity, after all, offered plenty of opportunities for reinvention. Either way, he was relishing the compliments. He beamed, wrinkling up his nose. “Man, you’re pretty damn smart. Mind like an iron trap. You just see things how they are, don’t ya? I’m real glad you’re here in Lunar Cove. It’s meant to be. I mean, I’m gorgeous. You’re gorgeous. We should hang out all the time. TV don’t deserve either of us.”
He shook Mateo’s hand with gusto. “I think I will call you Mateo.” This was privately hilarious, and Ralph was once again biting back a smile. “Oh, yeah. All my senses are real heightened. So when I say ya look like ya work out, I mean it. On account of my super eyes,” he explained completely seriously. Ralph laughed. “Nah, I can have as much garlic as I want. I don’t really gotta eat, though, in general, ya dig it? But I still do. Oh! Ya know what is true? I can’t go into places without an invite. So make sure ya invite me proper to your pad, my guy.”
Mateo grinned brightly. It was always fun to meet someone who matched his energy, someone with the same excitement for life and enthusiasm for anything coming their way. It didn't hurt that the man was attractive and funny and a frigging real life vampire, like everything Mateo had been hunting around with his video camera for the last ten years come to life. Only, this man was nothing like the vampires Mateo had read about or seen in movies. He didn't seem to glitter. He didn't have bat ears. He hadn't popped out of a coffin. "Man, you really think I'll be able to do that?" He looked at his hands, imagining claws, imagining bulging muscles that could tear phone books apart. "I wouldn't though," he assured him, seriously. "People work hard on those phone books. Lot of paper, you know? Trees." He didn't know why people would work hard on phone books, had sort of figured phone books were obsolete, but he didn't want to question the immortal super-cool not-so-batman in front of him.
Mateo's eyebrows raised up. "Yo, no kidding? For real? Nah, man. Nah. We're going to be friends." He put out his fist to bump with Ralph's. Of course he really knew nothing about what it meant to be a werewolf, nothing about the history between their species, nothing about what a wolf's bite could do to a vampire. "We're all in this together, right? Supernaturals United. Yo--" He froze as the idea came to him. "Is there a club? Like a super people's book club? Do they have pins?" He really wanted to ask if Ralph had ever met Big Foot, but he'd save that for once he got to know him better, once Ralph knew he could trust him with such a big and important secret.
"Yeah, man. Of course. I can sing. You can play triangle or something. Or you sing too? We could be a duet." Music had always been a part of Mateo's life--singing in his church choir growing up, then at graduations at school, playing his guitar in cafes--but he'd never done too much with it, spending most of his time jumping off roofs or eating too many eggs in front of a camera instead.
As they settled into one of the cafe tables, Mateo cradled his face in his hands and listened with wrapt attention to the insider's take on vampire life. "Can eat garlic," he repeated to himself, writing this down on his sticky note list with one of his glittery gel pens. "Can you turn into a bat? And do you glitter in the sun like Edward?" There was absolute no joking in his serious expression as he looked at Ralph, eager to know everything. "Can't come in without invitation," he repeated under his breath, writing this down too before looking up again, immediately grinning. "Oh hell yeah, man. You can come over! I'm staying with a friend right now, but I don't think he'd mind if you came over. Yo--" He clapped his hands together as he made up his mind. "You should come over tonight. I'll give Caleb a call, make sure it's okay, but then you should totally come and hang."
Nico paused, regarding Mateo evenly. He was beginning to follow the patterns of his rapid-fire optimism a little better, and hear the understanding beyond the waterfall of words. JC's remarks about respect echoed in his memory, but he offered Mateo an easy grin in return. "It's good practice to not hold grudges, I'm with you on that. But," he added with a careful gentleness, "bad day or not, that wolf risked your life by biting you. If the Change hadn't taken, it would've killed you. That's why it's one of our most serious rules, and one of the last you'd ever want to break." He met Mateo's eyes and held them, trying to impress on him the gravity of what had happened. "You got very lucky." His expression softened, and he gave the guy a light nudge in the shoulder. "And luckier still, to be here in town when it happened. You got us right here to help you, most new wolves don't really get to have that when they first change."
As he spoke, the sloping wood beams of the Den emerged in sight, people meandering through their final preparations before moonrise. Nico got a few nods and cheery greetings from other pack members, and felt relief as he saw Mateo cap the lens back on his camera. "Thanks, man, I appreciate it." He indicated the distant wolves. "I asked everyone to give you some space, but you'll meet them all soon. We can chill here for now," he said, leading the way to the back yard. Around a cooling fire pit, worn chopped logs and a few ancient benches that had been arranged for seating, and Nico sat on one. "Have you given much thought to whether you want to join the pack tonight? I'll still be able to help you out, no matter what you choose. You probably won't remember much this first time, but it can make things easier. For one thing, there's the pack bond—you'll be able to sense us, reach out to any of us who are in wolf form if you get in trouble. And it can help share some of the stress of the transformation. But once you're part of it, it can be pretty life-altering. A pack is closer than family."
Mateo nodded. "I'm not going to bite anyone, if you're worried about that. Swear on everything." He held up his hands. Not exactly scout's honor--because he'd heard that phrase before but didn't actually know what it looked like--but palms open and expression sincere. But he also couldn't hold the alpha's seriousness, his dire attitude, either. He understood the importance of it, understood how quickly he'd come to death--he really did--but blaming the wolf for it, holding a grudge against someone he'd never even met...he just didn't have the heart for it. What had happened had happened. "Hell yeah, man." Lucky was the right word for it. If he hadn't been in this town, if he hadn't come to visit Caleb, what might have happened to him? Mateo didn't dwell much on 'what if's' but he could see clearly that he was lucky to have been in this town when his life--his identity, his species--was turned upside down. Lunar Cove was a strange and mysterious place, but it was clear they took care of their own.
Mateo took a seat on one of the benches. "I've been thinking about it. Bout uh--" What had JC called it? "Packing up. But this isn't my home, man." He gestured around. "It's great. It's all freaking awesome. I mean everyone's so friendly and helpful and this--this is dope. But I gotta get back home. I don't belong here, you know? And joining the pack sounds a lot like putting down roots in a soil that isn't mine." Mateo's roll with it attitude had a downside: he hadn't really come to terms with the fact that his life had changed. Changed forever. That there was no going back, not really. He kept telling himself he'd stay around here until he figured things out, got this wolf thing understood and well practiced. Then he'd leave. He'd go back to his own town, his own home, his own routine. He'd go back to 'normal.' He hadn't really let him understand yet that there was no more normal to go back to. "I appreciate y'all helping me out, I really do. But after tonight, I gotta go home."
setting: blank slate, monday
featuring: julian chandler & open
Twirling a double ended alcohol marker in his hand like it was a butterfly knife, Julian approached the large paper pad set on his easel, already set on a blank page, and settled into the stool before it. Angled perfectly so he had the sketch pad facing him while still being able to see his subject in perfect view, he offered a friendly dimpled grin at the customer seated across from him. “Just relax and get as comfortable as you can,” he said in a soft voice, pulling the cap off the chiseled nib of the marker and preparing to get to work on the piece. He loved drawing caricatures and jumped at the chance to be one of the artists contributing to the event when they mentioned it at work. It was one of the things he did back at school while ignoring lessons or after finishing a test to pass the time. Something to keep the artist in him alive when he swapped paint brushes for lacrosse sticks. “So, why don’t you tell me a bit about yourself,” he said after a moment of silence passed, when he was sure the other was well situated in their seat. “What is your favorite springtime memory?” He liked engaging his subjects in conversation while drawing them. Talking eased the awkwardness of him staring at them intently while working, but he also loved taking the opportunity to get to know the person a little. Their personality often came out when they talked about themselves or memories, and that often helped aid in the work. So Julian listened intently to the other, bringing the marker tip down onto the page and beginning his work.
After meeting Julian in line for tea--and almost immediately inviting the man to part of his production crew for his YouTube channel--Mateo already considered the artist his friend. A cool human who seemed friendly enough, eager to be a part of things just as much as Mateo was, and the fact that he could put people's images on paper with just his hand an a pen? Dope as heck. Of course, Mateo was also very used to eyes on him, used to being behind a camera, the center of attention. He was not, however, used to sitting still, and recording his YouTube videos were usually him alone or with a couple of friends at most. The eyes on him came later--after he'd edited the video, after he'd published it, eyes pouring in over a computer screen, people he didn't really meet. He'd done a couple of improv shows, a couple of stage events, but this was different: one person's eyes on him, fixed on him, to make him into art.
He shifted restlessly but did his best to stay still, trying to respect the art and the artist. His foot tapped on the floor, his hands folding and unfolding in his lap. "Springtime memory," he repeated to himself. "Springtime memory. Oh! Man, my birthday is the day before spring starts. Can't help but be a good time, right? My moms always threw me these great parties. All the ice-cream cake I could eat, and I got to invite everyone in my class. I mean everybody. So the house was full of people. But one year we went to the water park, right? And there was just...all these beautiful men. Beautiful, beautiful men in speedos. And they all seemed to know each other. So I went and asked one of them what was going on--and it was Pride, man, for my thirteenth birthday."
Cherry Blossom Festival
Who: Madee & Open (@lunarcovestarters)
When: Tuesday, April 18th, Mid-afternoon
Where: The Daily Drip
Madee had overslept, but she certainly wasn't upset about it. It had been a long time since she slept in and it felt nice to get a decent nights sleep for once. No sleepwalking, no disturbances, just a nice, good sleep. She took her time getting ready, wondering if she still had time to make it out to the festivities taking place throughout town, but decided she ultimately didn't really feel like going out to do anything. Instead, she found herself at The Daily Drip, sipping an iced latte as she watched people outside enjoying the festivities.
Now at the bottom of her cup, Madee thought that maybe she should go down to the sidewalk sale. It had been quite some time since she'd gone shopping, and having everything heavily discounted was a definite bonus. But surely it was busy, and people could be brutal when they wanted something. Thoughts whirled through her mind as she walked across the coffee shop, completely distracted as she approached the recycle bin. So many thoughts were in her head, that she didn't even acknowledge that somebody was speaking to her until she felt their eyes staring at her. "Oh, sorry, were you talking to me?"
Truthfully, Mateo didn't really need coffee, probably shouldn't drink it. He had so much energy, his moms had learned their lesson and stopped giving him candy when he was four. Halloween had become an even more important day of the year, exciting and overwhelming, because he was allowed all the candy he collected and spent the next 48 hours bouncing off the walls--often literally, though only after wrapping himself fully in bubble wrap. As he grew older, that energy had hardly waned, and as a new werewolf, he seemed to have more energy than ever before. And yet here he was, getting coffee, ready to kick it up to the next level, buzzing and ready to see all the town had to offer during these holiday events.
He cradled his cup of coffee near him but, not wanting to get the personal bubble of the person next to him, politely cleared his throat and pointed to the sugar packets. She didn't seem to hear him until she asked for him to repeat his question. "Yeah, yeah, sorry, I was hoping you could hand me some of those." He gestured vaguely at the packets closest to her and in a small box above the recycling can. "Gotta get caffeinated then go hit up the sales, you know what I'm saying?" He nodded toward the sidewalk sale outside, grinning excitedly. "Had my eye on a cool hat that looked like an alligator. Dope as hell."
for: open @lunarcovestarters
location: random street Downtown
‘Goooood Afternoonnnn Lunar Cove! You’re listening to the M&M show on Siren Sounds, I’m the Siren, joined by our lovely Sound on the field today! A treat for our favourite listeners, because we know this is your favourite show. Mason, my dude, whatcha got for me today?’
With two fingers to their ear and microphone in the other hand, Mason, beamed at the introduction and the imagined invisible camera placed in front. A radio show host but they’d be damned if anything less than their best was delivered, of course the outfit and mannerisms had to be overlooked, it was still radio, but that didn’t deter the news anchor voice that followed, “The sound for today is Triangle!” they said and sounded off a little ding, “Folks my soothing voice is not the special treat for you today! Nuh-uh! Today! I’m out among you, ditching the airwaves for street views to find out some sweet talent! Let’s kick it!” True to word, Mason ran around the streets of Downtown stopping random passersby, asking them if they were willing to share their stories with potentially all of Lunar Cove, “Yo, yo! Hold up!” Waving at them to stop, Mason ran to catch up to the person exiting a store, “Congrats! You’ve been randomly selected to be on my radio show! Question time! Do you have any hidden talents you wanna unhide?”
Mateo stepped outside with an ice-cream cone in one hand and a camera in the other. He tilted his head to lick up a bit of the ice-cream trying to drip off onto the ground then said to the camera, "Yoooo, everybody we've got a celebrity sighting--hold on one minute. No peeking." Mateo had only been in town for little over a month, but that was more than enough time to get familiar with the local celebrities, and Mason was one of them. Mateo beamed. "Yo, that's awesome, dude. I'd high five you but I don't have any hands. Hold up." He put the whole ice cream in his mouth so the tip of the cone stuck out between his lips and then covered his camera with one hand and used the other to offer Mason a high-five. "Yeah, dude, sure. I can rub my stomach and pat my head at the same time." Again, not a feat he could accomplish with his hands full--nor particularly stimulating for a radio interview. "Hey, can I get you on camera? I'm sort of doing a live stream here. And you'd be like a VIP guest."
Nico compensated quickly for the surprise of the high-five, and was going to congratulate himself for not leaving Mateo hanging when the newcomer pulled Nico into a hug. He felt his body stiffen involuntarily, something that never would have happened before—his wolf was near the surface before moonrise, and still on edge from everything that had happened with the hunters. He managed a half smile that he hoped came off as sincere and encouraging, but it took an inordinate amount of effort, feeling like he had to search to regain equilibrium. At hearing himself addressed as boss, he almost coughed. "Uh, definitely not the boss, think of me more like... I dunno, a team captain? Sort of? I won't ask you to do something I wouldn't do myself, for instance..." He didn't know if there was a better way to get Mateo caught up other than jumping right in. In his bones he could tell the man before him wasn't prepared—but then, no one really was. At least he didn't have to go through this alone. "I wanted to say," Nico added, leading Mateo down the path towards the Den, "We’re still looking for the wolf who bit you, and we will be until we find them. Usually something like that would be met with a strict punishment, but circumstances are… different now than they’ve ever been before."
He looked dubiously at the tripod, but stopped short of telling him he couldn't use it at all, and instead took a gentler approach. "Are you just wanting a personal record of what happens? 'Cause I can't let you take anything that could give away the location of the Den, or the pack members' identities. It's important that people have somewhere they know they're safe." If this became more difficult, he might have to resort to breaking the equipment, but he'd rather not. This evening would be hard enough, he wasn't going to make it more painful by stomping on the bubbling enthusiasm on display. "Mat-Wolf-eo..." He chuckled, and rubbed at the scruff on his chin thoughtfully. "Not bad—doesn't quite roll of the tongue. Mate-awoo?" He snapped his fingers and pointed at Mateo. "Moonteo."
"Yes, Captain, my Captain." Mateo saluted the man, his expression entirely serious and making it clear that, despite the ridiculousness of the gesture, it was no bit. He might not know much about what it meant to be a werewolf or very much about this town, but he knew the word 'alpha' and he knew that was something you didn't mess around with. As they walked together, Mateo matched Nico's serious tone with a few serious nods of his own. "Nah, man, it's okay. I was outside the pizza shop. I bet the wolf just got a smell of the mozzarella and was hungry, you know? Plus, holding grudges gives you wrinkles, and I gotta take care of the money maker, you know?" He grinned. In all honesty, Mateo didn't necessarily want to be a werewolf, and he still didn't truly understand the ways in which his life had now changed forever, but he saw no purpose in holding what had happened over the head of whatever wolf had made him this way. "Everybody has bad days sometimes. I get it."
Mateo took a look at his camera. He was so used to putting his whole life on camera, from videos of him crying, drugged out of his mind after getting his wisdom teeth pulled, to random videos of him petting dogs at the park, that the idea of something like this--something so life shattering and monumental--not being on camera was, frankly, heart breaking. But he also understood what Nico was saying. He knew plenty of people who didn't want to be on camera, and he respected that. "Aye, aye, Captain," he said, putting the cap on the camera. "Understood. It's a no camera space. Got it." His sad expression, however, lit up immediately when Nico suggested Moon-teo. "Hell yeah, man! That's dope!" He high-fived Nico, back to grinning like there'd been no problem at all. "Moonteo. I love it. Yo, I get it man. This is why you're the top dog. Brain works like woah." He touched his head then mimed it exploding. "Sick."
Ralph beamed at that, an ell-encompassing expression that lit up his face. His reply was sincere “Thanks, man! Hell yeah, I am. Look at you, though, boss. Full warm-blooded hunk-and-a-half. You could be in adventure pictures. Whatta ya bench?” The blood reference was purposeful, for Mateo’s benefit, and the vampire smacked his hand with ease, truthfully glad to find his own energy matched. “I appreciate that, pal. I do. The vampire life can be pretty swell. Bee’s knees. I dunno about modeling’ sadly, on account of me havin’ a lousy shoe size. Ain’t that a bite?” he replied very seriously, giving a short nod. Motivational speaker, however, was a vocation he had not considered. Maybe. “Well! I did learn to sermonize with the best. It ain’t quite the same or nothing, but I had a two-week stint in the Barry McGill Congregation. We were a seventeen-member gospel band and supposed to make our debut on The Glen Campbell Good Time Hour. But then we got canned when Darcy Lou Hummel got food poisoning. She was our lead girl.” This was an entirely made-up story. “It’s tough, though, yeah. Television. Film. Even goddamn books. Livin’ underground, bein’ a poor lil’ ol’ supernatural something. Can’t get found out, ya dig it?” He clapped Mateo’s shoulder, fully putting his arm around the other as though they were old friends. Looking up at him, then, Ralphie quirked an eyebrow. “Oh, yeah, of course. Lotta the stuff ya hear about us vamps is all made-up. I show up in pictures and mirrors and all that. My hair just looks like this on its own all the time, though. The secret? Mineral oil and beeswax.” He grinned. “Thanks, pal. I dig it. You’re pretty swell yourself. I can tell you got a good head on your shoulders. Put ‘er there proper. I didn’t get yer name. You can call me Little Mouse,” he said, extending a hand to shake, taking his drink as he moved to sit down. And while the drink itself had been his goal, Ralph was now having a good time. “Sure. Sure. I’m a saintly, helpful soul, ya dig it? I can tell ya everything about everything. For example, did ya know I can sense who’s magic by touch? All vampires can. Knew you were a wolf from the moment we slapped five. Could feel it.”
Mateo, not knowing what 'adventure pictures' were, assumed Ralph meant Adventure Time but was too polite to correct him or to point out that this was a cartoon and therefore the only 'hunky' part of him that would be on display would be his voice. But a compliment was a compliment, whether he understood it or not, and so his smile didn't falter for a second. Taking Ralph's hand in a high-five, Mateo moved in for the bro hug, clapping the man on the back and bumping chests. "Aw man." Mateo blushed at the compliment. "230 man, 230. Been working hard. But hey--" He lowered his voice conspiratorially and looked around. "You hungry? Am I making you hungry? How do I be less bloody? If I got a paper cut or something, would that take the edge off?"
Again, Mateo had no idea what Ralph was saying, unable to track the story or know what The Glen Campbell Good Time Hour was, but that all hardly mattered. What he saw and heard was a man excited about his past and showing off his skills, and that earned him another high five in Mateo's book. "Man, we gotta get you your second chance! This town got a gospel band? Yo, we can start one! What do you need? Like some singers, some triangle, a flute?" Mateo's expression, quick as ever, switched back to serious, as Ralph wrapped an arm around his shoulders and told him of the woes of being a secret supernatural. "Nah, man. That's a bummer. You're so much fun, bro. I mean, you're gorgeous, and you're cool as heck. And that's more important. Fame's not everything, you know what I'm saying? TV doesn't deserve you, man."
Mateo enthusiastically and energetically shook Ralph's hand. "Hell yeah, man. Nice to meet you, Little Mouse. Mateo," he introduced himself. "But you can call me Mateo." Mateo's eyes went wide. "Yoooo," he said, shaking his head in amazement. "You got vamp senses, man? That's dope as heck." He put his elbows on the table and his head in his hands as he gazed at Little Mouse. "So can you really not have garlic?" An important first question.
