A Beautiful Day

He stood tall, wore a jacket over his t-shirt and jeans faded from being worn too much. 


His clothes were nondescript, gray, like an old movie with no sound. He walked down the stairs while pulling out a set of keys from his pocket. A flash of color, a bright yellow key chain dangled.

As he opened the door and inhaled the fresh air, the cold rushed into his lungs, wiping away the last remaining vestiges of sleep. A beautiful morning. A shadow of a smile played on his face, almost not even there. His eyes closed as he remembered those moments past that kept pushing him along. All those moments past.

His eyes opened slowly, reluctant to face the real world. The smile vanished, washed away by pain.All those moments past, now lost.

At least it was still a beautiful morning. It was early, too early for the sun. It was that time between Night and Day, the dark is gone and the sun lies just beyond our sight. You look around and you can see, but its not day yet,rather the entire world lies in the Shadow, and is lit by an ethereal blue light.


He walked to his bike,putting on a pair of shades. As he sat down and turned the key in the ignition, he placed his hand on the throttle. Worn but well maintained, he had restored this 89 model bike to his preference,and it was reassuring to the touch.He had bought it with money he saved up from his first job, which made it even more precious.As he kick started the bike and revved the throttle, the silence ,so deep around him, was broken by the steady throbbing of the 500 cc engine.

He rode out.

The city is still asleep,save for a few. He rode through the scant traffic,to where the concrete gave way to the wet ground,where the buildings were replaced by trees. 


Here,the world was Green.

He opened up the throttle,and the bike replied. The engine roared as he sped past, filling the air with the rhythmic beat of his ride.He changed gears with a satisfying click,and accelerated. The wind whipped around him, as the whistling in his ear turned into a scream.The road melted away...

She stands at the edge of the lake, the fading rays of the sun caught in her hair. The light reflects off the water and shines bright, gently lapping the rocks , and we are surrounded by green fields on all sides. There stands a tree to the side,its branches hanging over the water, its base surrounded by small yellow flowers, and I knew this was a little piece of heaven.

She was still the most beautiful thing there

It is the 14^th of March,2011,and I am in love.

As she took in the landscape, I hold her from behind, my arms around her slender waist, and kiss her neck .She places her hand against my cheek before playfully slapping me away. She turns and put her arms around my neck and asks me if I love her. I kissed her nose and tell her that i do, and always will. She pushed me away in mock anger and called me a liar. I smile and shake my head, as she laughs and runs to the bike. It’s a beautiful day.

He slows down, his journey has come to a close.He cuts the engine,and the sudden silence envelops him. He is surrounded by fog,as he tramples through the wild underbrush.He walks to the edge of the water and gazes for a while, his head slightly cocked to the side. The fog hangs over the water, like a haunting presence. It was still dark here.There was a sense of foreboding around this place now.

He walked towards the tree. The flowers are gone now, dead. He stands a few feet away,and pulls the jacket closer around him.He stares at the tree.He is lighting a smoke now,and the ember illuminates his face with a deep orange glow each time he takes a drag. He never looks away.

The sun breaks over the horizon,and slowly the light falls strong, driving the Shadow away. The tree is bathed in the light,and the lake is no longer dark.

He puts out the cigarette,and walks away with his hands in his pockets,only to come again the next day,like so many days past.

The birds are chirping as he reaches his bike.The sun shines bright,and there are green pastures all around him

It's a beautiful day.

Chapter II

The first rays of the morning sun shone playfully through the curtain. A light breeze fluttered the windows, as the rain fell lightly on the ground outside. She shivered against him,as her arm drew tighter around,rubbing against his beard.He smiled down at her,and kissed her forehead lightly.

He whispered ,quietly,like the rustling of leaves as they sway to the slow music of the breeze. She slowly opened her eyes and smiled back. As she blinked at the light,she opened her mouth to say-

His eyes flew open. His hands searched for her, empty hopes,fed by memories that were fading into oblivion. Memories that were being buried.

He sat upright on the bed,and shrugged off the blanket. He winced as he stretched, the bruises of last night making themselves apparent now,begging for attention and care.

No time.

He opened his bag and pulled out a switchblade.He had cleaned it last night when he got back-

-his face and clothes were splattered, his hands and the blade covered in it,still dripping to the grass-

-and now he examined it with a clinical eye. It opened with a satisfying click. The blade was serrated and long,the base strong enough to not break if it strikes bone.

The door bell broke his reverie.

He was alert now,quiet.

It rang again.

He walked stealthily towards the door,and his fist tightened around the dagger,blade pointing to the ground.He paused near the door,not wanting to give away anything to the person behind it.

A fist pounded on the door,and he jerked away a little,his senses heightened.

He stepped to the door and glanced through the keyhole,and was met by darkness.

A shiver went through him,as prepared himself.He was weak now,but would not go down easy.His fist tightened.He took a deep breath...

He jerked the door open,grabbed the man by the neck and kept the blade under his eye.

The man smiled at him,his eyes covered by knock off Aviators,and his black kurta slightly billowing around him.He was well built,lean and sinewy,and had the look of a man who had survived the streets.

And he had.

This was Baba.

Baba was a small time druglord. He had an entire slum under his thumb,a big deal for a man so young.He controlled the drugs that rose from the sewage of the city and dealt them around,and played around with other such activities of the illegal nature.Despite the sinister profile,he was a man of honor,and a friend who could help in dire times.

These were dire times.

He slowly took his hands away from Babas neck,and without another word retreated into the house.He came back shortly with an envelope and gave it to Baba.Without a second glance,the envelope disappeared and the slumlord turned away.

"Wait", he called after Baba

The man in black paused at the stairs.

He spoke softly,"The next name...When?"

Baba lowered his head a little,he seemed to consider for a moment, wondering for the third time if he would be sending the man to his death.When he finally spoke,there was regret in his voice.

"Soon."

Soon...

Loup Garou.

Vivian sat on the soft grass, bathed in the silver light of a full moon; her ethereal golden eyes fixed on her father as she immersed herself into the story he was telling- the story of how they came to be.

“Before the time of the Loup Garou there were only humans. Our human ancestors devoted themselves to the Moon Goddess, Selene. They gave their entire being to her and so, she gifted them with the ability to be more than just human. They were able to invoke the beast within them, the beast that is present in all of humanity, and bring it to the forefront. Whenever they desired they called upon the beast and turned into wolf-like creatures; beautiful, strong and powerful beings.”

“Selene is the mother of all Loup Garou; it is to honour her that we howl to the full moon.”

“Like our creator the night is our realm. It is at this time, under the watchful eyes of the Goddess, do we truly become Loup Garou.”

The moon, as though listening to his tale, shone more brightly than before and Ivan’s desire to leap into the surrounding forest and change into his wolf-form intensified. He could feel the fur rising on his back but he had to finish telling his daughter the story of the Loup Garou.

“Selene was a very passionate woman, driven by her emotions above all else. And so, her Loup Garou are slave to their emotions. We cannot fight our feelings Vivian; they are stronger and more compelling than those that even the most passionate human experiences.”

Ivan smiled as he watched his little girl widen her eyes and grin. She thought she understood what he was talking about but it would be some time before she understood his full meaning.

****

The star filled sky stretched above Vivian like an immense canopy. Tonight, the Moon Goddess had chosen to hide herself behind the glitter dusted black curtain, to watch her Loup Garou stealthily. Vivian sat perched on a massive boulder, face turned towards the sky, lost in the memory of her father’s story. At her feet lay the mangled corpse of Astrid. Astrid’s eyes were glazed over and her bloody and nearly-decapitated face was contorted with an expression of pure terror. Her body was torn and gashed and covered with deep red marks. She was covered in blood, she was surrounded by blood. Astrid looked nothing like the beauty she had always been.

Her red, fox-like fur was slowly receding as she returned to her human form. The Goddess’ gift was not for the dead. The dead could not be Loup Garou.

Vivian tried to rub off the blood from her muzzle and claws. Her mind was reeling.

“What had happened?”

The pack had met in the woods for the Ordeal, where the males fought for the right to lead the pack and the females fought for the right to be the leader’s mate, to be the ‘Queen Bitch’.

With his formidable strength and power it was no surprise that Gabriel won the Ordeal.

And then, the bitches’ ‘‘Dance’’ began. The females flew at each other- biting, clawing and tearing each other apart. They formed a mass of writhing fur- one indistinguishable from another. Slowly, they broke apart as one female after the other admitted defeat and fell back. Only the auburn Astrid and the honey-coloured Carmen were left and Carmen looked like she wouldn’t last much longer.

Vivian had no desire to take part in the “Dance”. She was fond of Gabriel but she did not desire him as a mate. Yet, at that moment when Astrid was so close to victory, so close to establishing herself as the ‘Queen Bitch’ something changed within Vivian. Emotions she had never known existed took control of her body and mind as she leapt onto Astrid, while Carmen beat a hasty retreat. Vivian fought as she had never fought before. Her claws sunk into Astrid and tore away at her flesh. Her sharp teeth left deep wounds whenever she bit Astrid. The auburn female howled and screamed like never before. As the two wolves fought that fatal battle they moved away from the clearing where the pack was assembled. Vivian beat Astrid mercilessly until she finally killed her.

Now, sitting on the boulder Vivian could not understand what she had done. She was filled with loathing- she hated herself for killing one of her own kind. She hated the killer that lurked within her. For the first time in her life she hated being Loup Garou.

She was “Queen Bitch” now- ‘how fitting’, she thought to herself, bitterly and sarcastically.

A rustle in the bushes to her right caught her attention. From its black middle two ice blue eyes that somehow always radiated warmth peered out at her. There was only one member of the pack who had eyes like that. Gabriel.

Her heart began to beat so fast that Vivian felt that her chest would explode. She was gripped with desire so strong that it took all her willpower to control the urge to howl. Her fur stood on its edge. Vivian’s blood sang in her veins as she was engulfed by Gabe’s heady and spicy scent. She wanted Gabriel.

At that moment Vivian heard her deceased father’s voice, a whisper in her ear, reminding her of a story she had long forgotten. “The Ordeal is won by the two wolves that are the strongest and the most powerful; the two wolves who are soul mates- meant to walk this earth side-by-side and lead the pack together. Selene brings them together- she unearths those emotions buried deep within us.” Vivian finally understood her father’s stories.

She held herself upright, leapt off the boulder and moved towards Gabriel.

Her father. He and her mother had led the pack to great heights. Vivian was his legacy, his heir. She owed this to him, to his memory. Selene had shown her where she was meant to be- by Gabriel’s side, leading the pack; just as her parents had done.

Vivian threw back her head and howled. She howled for Gabriel. Gabriel howled for her too and the night was filled with their howls that blended together in perfect symphony.

(A Blood and Chocolate FanFiction. All credit to Annette Curtis Klause for creating these characters but this is what I wish had happened in the book)

Calm under the waves

The gentle lapping of the waters calms my thoughts. I blink a few times, letting the salt seep out of my eyes. The sun shines bright against my eyes, but a part of me convinces me that it is ok to look at it. I feel the water rocking me gently, the wind running across my chest before leaping into the sky.

I'm not sure where I am. But it seems absolutely perfect. Like it is where I am meant to be for all eternity. Like I had to be there or else the world would collapse. Like my very purpose for life was the drift across the surface of these waves.

But my life? How did i even get here?

I let my thoughts drift away from the profound serenity of the waters and bring myself to reality. I try to ignore the muffled chaos of the undersea. The chaos that calms me inexplicably.

I try to ignore the velvet warmth of the sun. The warmth that lulls my skin to melt into my body.

Instead I let my mind awaken from this blissful oblivion and feel reality.

In the midst of the wind and waves, I hear distant cries. The breeze that runs wild carries along a voice of a woman. She seems desperate, her voice laced infectious fear. A faint conscious inside of me confirms that she is in trouble. I see her bronzed arms flailing in the distance, a flash of red hair bursting through the waves before crashing back under.

I try to care. But my will only gets me so far. The tranquility of this world, devoid of humanity, is compelling.

The cries weaken, slowly acquiring the rhythm of the waters. The red hair surfaces for a final time in vain. I slip back towards the calm under the waves. I open my eyes, once again to the immutable sun. They are pleased. I feel complete.

My drifting arms brush against another as I allow myself a glance to the right.

I smile curiously as I stare directly into the eyes of a woman, her flaming red hair blossoming out against the surface of the waters.

Her eyelids flicker open, staring sleepily at me. I smile, letting a hand drift towards her.

My searching fingers find hers.

I pull her bronzed arms towards me, comforting her.

Despite the deafening silence, despite the inexplicable chaos, she understands.

The Road To Valhalla,Hall Of the Slain

A whisper over the hill
and the Moon shines down.
Her Glory, Her marred Beauty,
lost on the Dead.

The Moon shines down on us,
So few of us left.
The Grass bathes in the Blood of our Brothers,
So many Dead.

The Living live on,
cursed by the Fates,
To survive,
To live for a few more moments longer in Pain,
in Suffering.

But not Long now,
They are here.
They bear fruits of Destruction,
Death
And Salvation?

The Dawn will Come,

But till the Rise,

We hold our Ground,

And Sacrifice.
For the Greater Good.


I Rise up, Valiant, only to Die.
And Now,

Valhalla.