Laurel had been working late that night on organizing some things for the current case she had spent her whole evening on. After she was done she had headed for her car and drove home. Her drive home was a normal one with her singing to the radio and dancing in her car. The only difference was that she hadn't stopped for food since she had spent some time earlier that night eating some things from a nearby vending machine. Which she knew couldn't exactly be considered as a healthy meal since what all she had eaten could be classified as junk food, but she hadn't really cared. No, during that moment in time she was more focused on her work. Work that she liked doing and enjoyed doing. Work that made her feel like she was helping give those who could no longer speak a voice and tell others what had happened to them. Maybe that was why she often worked late nights similar to this one. Once she had gotten to the parking lot where her apartment was, she parked her car before gathering her things and getting out of it. She was on her way to her apartment building when it happened. When she was attacked. Seconds before the first initial hit, she had been distracted by searching for her vibrating phone in her purse. When that first hit to her happened, she had fallen to the ground and her thoughts of what had just happened didn't actually catch up to what she had seen before her eyes. The next hit, or maybe it was a bite, was at her shoulder. Her hands went out to try and stop the animal, the wolf, from attacking her more, but she had quickly failed to do so. What it didn't fail to do though was cause her to try to scream more for help, though something inside her had a feeling that even if anyone heard her then they would be too late. That feeling seemed to be even more confirmed when the wolf had gone for her throat next. The pain she felt had caused one more scream to come from her before her hands left the animal and went to touch her neck. Her eyes were filled with panic and the fear she felt was more than any she had ever felt before. She was scared and her thoughts about what might happen next seemed to pull her from focusing on the other scratches and bits that were dealt to her. As the seconds ticked by and blood seeped out from different wounds on her body, her mind seemed to somehow be able to think about how she needed to try to scream again. Although, somewhere inside of her knew that screaming wouldn't help soothe the fear she felt. During that time she hadn't noticed that the attack happening to her had stopped or that the wolf had gone to leave. No, all she noticed was the pain and the fear that continued to rise inside her as she laid there. A quick thought crossing her mind about how this is how she would die, alone and in an alleyway next to her apartment. Tears streamed from her eyes then as the sound of a sob escaped her faint burgundy painted lips. As was often the case, he couldn’t shake the feeling that this was where he needed to be. Something was drawing him. A thinning of the Veil between worlds, and the sense of life ebbing away. He picked up the pace, winding through shops and apartment buildings, until he reached an alley between two buildings. There was a woman lying at the other end, and Charles didn’t have to get much closer to scent the blood in the air. He hurried toward her, folding himself down next to her, heedless of the filth and blood on the alley floor. “Cherie,” he murmured. “Cherie, can you hear me? What did this to you?” Yes, what, not who. Charles didn’t know of a human attacker that could do this, not with extenuating circumstances. It was after that ran through her thoughts that a question of which one of her colleagues would end up doing that for her came to her mind. Another sob came from her mere seconds after it. The sob was one that could have been more because of the pain rather than the question and all the other random thoughts that, for some reason, were going through her mind. But nonetheless, it had come from her. It seemed to be the only sounds that were coming from her at that point. And when the sound of a voice hit her, panic along with fear happened inside of her as a little whimper escaped her lips. Her mind screaming as a thought of how the wolf that had attacked her was back and that it had actually been a shifter. She knew it could possibly be that it was one who'd attacked her because of oddities of the attacks that had been happening in the city for months now. Attacks that she had helped out on and even delivered the files of to the Mayor. Her eyes squeezed shut then, her body seeming to try to move, though all that happened was a small shake of her head and a brief kick from her legs before more pain ran through her. A thought soon coming to her mind asking for them to leave. Or to just end it now so all the pain and fear could stop. However, it wasn't until she heard his question asking what did this to her that she thought maybe, just maybe, this wasn't the one, if it was a shifter, who had attacked her. That it wasn't them coming back to witness her in the moments before death took her. Her colored lips parted, but it was another sound of a whimper, one that seemed to help signify the pain she was feeling, that came from her when she tried to speak. Her eyes opening a second later for her tear-blurred vision to try to look at the person who had come, the one who was now causing a thought of how she wouldn't be dying alone anymore to come to her mind. After that thought, she knew that she had to try again to say something. Even if it ended up being just one word. Which it was, along with small sounds of pain once she had finally spoke. "Wo… lf… Wolf." He settled himself onto the alley floor, not caring that he’d likely have to burn his pants afterward. He reached for one of her hands, feeling her fingers slowly growing colder as the life drained from her body. “Did you see what it looked like?” he asked, in a low, soothing tone. He had heard that there had been a spate of animal attacks around the city, perhaps this one was linked somehow. Then he shook his head. Silly question. It would probably only march her towards death faster, trying to come up with some information for him. “Never mind that,” he went on. “I’m Charles. Can you tell me your name?” He would do his best to keep her as calm as he could, since there was nothing else he could do. Even calling an ambulance would take too long, she’d likely bleed out on the way to the hospital. What a shame. She was so young, and beneath the blood, she was quite pretty. Charles hated to see anyone struck down in their prime. As he grabbed her hand that was loosely pressing to her neck, she tried to blink some tears away so she could at least get a better look than the blurry one she had. His question threw her off and for a quick second it almost seemed like her mind was going to try to flash back to the attack. However, his words of nevermind quickly stopped such a thing from happening. She knew that if this wasn't happening, if this had been not as bad of an attack as it was then she'd be thankful for not having to think about it. But this was not something like that. No, this was bad, was something that would come to kill her. Why would an animal attack like that? Why would a shifter, if it truly was one, attack someone? Her eyes closed briefly as she tried to tell herself not to think of that and to think of anything else. Did she not want to have such thoughts because of the fear that it could make her, in some way, relive the attack over again? Was such a thing even possible? She didn't know, but she did know that she wouldn't have the chance to try to think on such a thing. Her eyes opened then and she looked at him, she wasn't sure if she wouldn't be able to say hello or ask why he had come down that alley. Or why he was sitting there and holding her hand. Hell, she wasn't even sure if she'd be able to get her own name out. Not with the heavy feeling that was coming over her. Although that didn't seem to stop her from trying as her lips parted and a pain filled voice slowly came from her. "It's Laurel." Surprise seemed to quickly come and then go from her eyes when she had spoken her name. Part of her had been so certain she wouldn't be able to say it since she was feeling heavy along with tired just seconds before. Was she close to losing consciousness? Her eyes blinked as her hand gripping her neck loosened ever so slightly. Yes, the loss of consciousness would soon happen, but before it did, it seemed that she had the strength to speak one more time. "Hi, Charles." “I’m sorry we met like this,” he continued, his voice low and lilting. “I hate to meet someone only as their flame is going out, you know? People are so full of fire and life, I like to see that in its full glory.” He sighed again, more mournfully this time. “Still. I cannot change some things, no matter how much I might want to.” He placed his hand in his pocket, and even though it had been empty up until a moment ago, he could feel the familiar weight and shape of his spectacles. He placed them on his head one-handed, adjusting to the sight of both worlds at once, as he always did. The light around her continued to grow weaker, much to his chagrin. He started singing a soft song in Creole, a song meant to soothe a frightened child and help them go back to sleep. Laurel deserved as peaceful a surrounding as he could offer her. Half opened eyes looked at him as her head slightly nodded once in response to his words of one's flame going out. Was that what it looked like? Did it seem like the flame inside her was coming to an end with each breath she took? Her heart squeezed tight as pain ran through her body when she felt it move a little. Her lips parting for her to say something, but her voice didn't come out. In fact, nothing did. It seemed wrong, seemed like she wouldn't get to thank him for being there and holding her hand. To thank him for not ignoring whatever it was that led him to this alley. Her eyes closed some more as a scream inside her head told her to not succumb to the pull yet. However, it was no use since mere seconds after she screamed in her head, her eyes shut completely. The pull to death's door taking her more and more as each second ticked by, her breathing slowing until it came to a stop. It was almost forty-five seconds from the time her eyes fully closed to the time she had taken her last breath for that pull to finally take her from the world. A flicker of movement slightly behind him caught his attention, and he turned to see a spirit there. He had expected as much. This Laurel looked as she must have in life, unmarred by the bites that marked her physical body. Charles stood, turning to face her fully. He drew his hand from behind his back, now holding his slightly battered top hat. He placed it on his head and offered her his hand. “Come on, miss Laurel,” he said to her. “Come on now. I’ll take you home.” |