InsaneJournal

Wednesday: December 19, 2007
Who: Adrienne and Danté
When: Afternoon
Where: Just a little outside Adrienne's cottage
What: Adrienne bumps into her new neighbor

The snow beckoned Adrienne to venture forth from her cottage. The frozen crystals shimmered like sequence upon the branches of the trees that surrounded the town cottages. It was beautiful out, and though it was cold Adrienne was never the type to stay inside because of it.

She had buttoned up the jacket that Zach had given her for her birthday, and wrapped a scarf around her neck. Her hands were protected within gloves though she probably didn't need it. Adrienne just liked the cozy feel of gloves on her hands, especially in the cold. The lycanthrope let out a long breath when she finally stepped outside, and watched with childlike glee as the steam rose into the air.

She began to walk down the path and away from her cottage. Adrienne made her way toward the stables, something she normally did during her afternoons.

Dante had kept close watch on Adrienne ever since he moved into the town cottages. She was the main reason he moved in the first place. He wanted to be near her. Wanted to study her every move and learn every small detail. He thought he learned it all before, but some things had changed since that time.

"Adrienne," he called out. He wore a false smile, but he was careful to not overdo it. Dante discovered early on that Adrienne was easily put on guard. "Hi!" He waved at her and jogged over toward her. "Long time no see." Casual conversation was a good way to keep down a person's suspicions.

Adrienne looked up when she heard her name. She was surprised to see Dante especially since she hadn't seen him in a while, but that didn't stop her from returning his smile. "Hey," she said with a raised hand. It wasn't a prolonged action, and she immediately let her hand drop back down to her side. "Yeah, it's been a while," she said in reply just as he came up to her. "How've you been?"

The girl didn't suspect ulterior motives from Danté's conversation, but that was only because it was very superficial at the moment.

Dante could keep up superficial if he had to, but he was beginning to feel more anxious than usual. He couldn't blame it on the moon like younger werewolves, so he chose to ignore it for now.

"I've been good. Just getting used to my new place over there." Dante turned around slightly and nodded his head toward his cottage. He wondered if Adrienne would notice just how close it really was to her own house, and if she did would she think anything of it? "What about you?"

"Oh, that's cool," she said with a grin. She looked over to where he pointed, and nodded. Adrienne did notice that it was close to hers, but she didn't think there was anything unusual about that fact. She certainly didn't think that Danté had moved in to get closer to her. Despite that Adrienne still got a weird feeling whenever she was around Danté. She had tried her best to get over it, telling herself that it was nothing, but even then she couldn't shake it.

"I've been the same," she said with a small laugh. "Just the same old stuff, really. I did start working at the stables, though. Like a month ago or so, I think."

Dante knew that Adrienne had started working at the stables, the same way he knew when she visited Zach, and what route she took on her morning jogs. He was an expert at following people around, though it was easier with some than others. Dione, for example, was very easy to follow around considering that she was blind. He had to be more careful around Adrienne since she was more likely to catch on to what he had been doing.

"The stables, huh? Do you like it?" He knew the answer to that, too. Adrienne was always smiling when she was there. She liked horses, apparently. Dante could never stand the smell.

Adrienne rocked back and forth on her feet, her hands shoved deep into the pockets of her coat. "Yeah, I like it. It gives me something to do besides sitting around on my ass." Adrienne laughed a little,and glanced at Danté from the corner of her eyes. She was actually on her way to the stables now, but she wasn't sure if she wanted the other werewolf to follow her.

"I was on my way to the library," she lied, though she would go that way if Danté insisted on accompanying her.

It always amused Dante when he caught someone in a lie. He knew she normally went to the stables during this time almost every day, but she changed her story because of him. Cute. "I wanted to stop by the Gift Shop." He countered her lie with one of his own.

The walk to town wouldn't give him a lot of time with Adrienne, but it was enough for now. Dante started to walk, slow at first, so that he wouldn't get too far ahead of her. She would follow him if only because it was the polite thing to do.

Sure enough, Adrienne started to follow Danté toward the town. She didn't mind walking him to town if it meant they would part ways there. The girl sighed inwardly - she hated that she didn't trust the man, and she felt a little guilty about it. Adrienne could at least give him the benefit of the doubt especially since he hadn't done anything particularly creepy.

Silence filled their walk for a few minutes. Adrienne didn't have anything to talk about, and she far too occupied with kicking at the snow to make decent conversation. Maybe Danté wouldn't mind walking along quietly? Adrienne certainly didn't.

The silence grated at Dante's nerves, like nails across a chalkboard. What he wouldn't give to be able to hear her screams echoing in his ears. It would bring back such fond memories of the first time they met.

"Hey," he said suddenly. He stopped in the middle of the trail and smiled broadly at Adrienne. "Won't you have been a werewolf for 1 year with this next full moon?"

Adrienne froze in her tracks. Danté's words had caught her off guard. Not because she didn't like to talk about her lycanthropy (she had grown to accept it after all this time), but at the fact that he knew this full moon would mark her twelfth shift. Technically, it was over a year, but being a werewolf made her count time in terms of full moons, not actual days.

She turned to face him, shock written all over her face. "How did you know?"

How did he know was the million dollar question, but Adrienne would have to live with disappointment for now. Dante shrugged. "Lucky guess?" He smiled at her, the rapid beat of her heart was like music to his ears. He could continue the ruse, or he could assuage her anxiety a little. "When we first met in the medical pavilion, you told me you had been a werewolf for around 9 months." He shrugged again. "I just did the math."

Adrienne couldn't help but be a little freaked out that Danté knew how long she had been a werewolf, but his explanation eased her mind a little. Still, something didn't sit right with her and she wasn't sure she believed his reason, as valid as it was.

"Oh... right. I remember now." She smiled at him, albeit shaky, and continued down the path. "Huh, I'm surprised you remembered that."

There were a lot of things that Dante knew and remembered about Adrienne, but he wouldn't reveal them just yet. He just shrugged again and made a funny face. "I remember a lot of random things." Dante then made a show of looking for something in his pockets. He let out a groan, and then rolled his eyes.

"Shit, I left something at my place." Dante turned around and began running back toward the town cottages. "I'll catch ya later, Adrienne," he said. And without another explanation, he was gone. He would come out once she continued toward her destination, though, and then he would follow her once more.

Adrienne barely had time to react to Danté leaving, but she let out a breath that she had been holding. A wave of relief passed over her as she watched him returning toward the cottages. The lycan turned around and headed toward the library, blivious to the fact that Danté was probably already following her every move.