WC: 815
As she lay there, thoughts firmly placed upon the nightmare in which she considered her life to be, the ebony predator had little clue as to the company which seemed to stalk her in shadows. She had not heard his steps into the room, nor had she picked up his scent. The thick smoke which wafted through her nostrils had obliterated that sense, and with her eyes clasped shut, she had not taken it upon herself to check if the building was in fact empty. In all honesty, she had little care if it was or wasn’t – being that she was on her own turf, an outsider or not, she had little to worry about. The most that could happen were a few bad words and perhaps the odd scrap here and there, but most of the coyotes just seemed to accept it. That, in itself, was a blessing, for the ebony wolf knew that things could have been a lot worse – after all, she was pure wolf, and that was a rarity in Inferni. Kaena had disclosed this information when she had been accepted, thus it was normal to be a bit paranoid.
Dragging her lips across the butt of the cigarette, Lucia inhaled deeply, a slight wheeze to her breath. The bruises on her skin throbbed, but she paid it little mind. If anything, they were a sign of her dedication to Snake. She had stood up to the madman who stalked her partner, and that was a brave thing to do. She didn’t know Snake’s thoughts on the matter, but she doubted it was anything bad. He was a good solider, and a good lover – she knew in her heart he was the one, and that’s all she needed to know.
It was then that the stranger who had been watching her spoke up. Sitting up with a great hurry, Lucia’s eyes fell over the tan-coloured male. A feeble excuse for a smile paused on her lips before she smothered it with her cigarette. Listening to his accent, she pegged him for German ancestry. That surprised her really, as she was yet to meet many that seemed further out than her. Despite his agitated tone, clearly based around her involvement in Inferni, he seemed pleasant enough, and he seemed to respect the clan’s decisions. That alone was good enough for the obsidian female, thus she left herself slightly less guarded. He didn’t seem dangerous, but then again, her lack of sleep did impair her judgement slightly – she hoped this wouldn’t bite her in the ass eventually. And, if it did… well, she would just deal with it as it came.
Parting her maw, she gave the male a slight nod of acknowledgement. She was polite when she wanted to be, and it appeared manners were highly regarded by some. It was no skin off her nose, but she gave as good as she got, so if things turned ugly… well, she would just have to return the favour twice as hard. “Alright, Cotl?” Her tone was flat, matching her expression perfectly. It was her famous blank canvass impersonation and whether it was intentional or not, she did not falter in hiding her emotions. That was her safeguard these days, and it worked a charm.
“I’m Lucia, Snake’s partner… That’s why I’ve come to Inferni… to be with him.” She watched his face carefully, trying to see some sort of reaction. It was different with different personalities – some understood and let it pass over their heads, others reacted badly and told her she should of found someone of her own ‘kind’. But, again, it was no bother – she loved him, and that’s all that came into it at the end of the day. They either accepted it, or they didn’t – either way, she was almost always left to her own devices. One of the upsides to being a wolf, she figured. The alone time did her good, well… most of the time anyway. Sometimes it killed her slowly. Loneliness could be a bitch, but hey, there wasn’t much she could do about that. She signed away her rights when she joined the coyote’s clan, and that’s just how things were.
“So you gonna stand there all night, or take a seat?” She gestured to the floor space next to her, crossing her legs and leaning back on one of her arms. She appeared perfectly relaxed, and that was how she wanted it to be. She didn’t want him to think she was afraid – that was not a rumour she wanted starting… the wolf afraid of the coyote? What a joke. No, she was not afraid. She was calm, collected, and for once in her life, she felt like she could take on the world – even if her own mind was a train wreck. She would deal with that later.
“I don’t bite… honest!”