An American Werewolf in Los Angeles Who: Brennan Bale & Lauren Caulfield Where: Brennan & Lauren's apartment When: Sunday, March 20th, evening Status: Complete Rating: PG
Brennan was lucky that his apartment building had a fire escape on the side, which his bedroom window overlooked. The wolf could easily shift in his room on a full moon and when he'd moved in earlier in the year, he'd rigged the window so that he could open and close it in his wolf form. Getting down the fire escape was fairly easy; It was getting up it that tended to be the tricky part. Luckily, almost no one ever looked into the alley at night, so Brennan was able to come and go as he pleased.
Of the handful of women Brennan had dated, only a couple actually any connection to the supernatural. The wolf had made it a point to tell them of his condition if anything between them were going to get serious, and he was quite sure things were getting serious with Lauren. If things were gong to progress any further than they were, she needed to know what he was once a month. Brennan was a little hesitant to tell her, simply because he felt that she didn't know that werewolves existed. Vampires, yes. Werewolves...that was still a question to be asked and answered.
When Lauren went out that night to patrol, Brennan shifted and slipped out the window. He was able to pick up her scent quickly and tracked her as she worked, taking down a few vamps along the back alley and streets.
Lauren went out for patrol. Her stakes in the top of her boots and a small knife at the small of her back. She was prepared to take out a few blood suckers that night. She walked though the city for a little while, before getting lost in a cemetery. She saw a pair of vampires and they came towards her. She let them approach, knowing they'd see her as tiny and incapable, and over all underestimate her. She was glad of that.
It was her that had underestimated things. Two other vampires came up on her from behind. She engaged the first two, slamming fists into their faces, and blocking. She was caught off guard whenever she was grabbed, looking up at the larger vampire male that had grabbed her wrist. She went to throw a punch and was grabbed by another of the vampires. They tugged at her, like a rag doll her head shaking back and forth.
The wolf found her just in time to find two vampires grabbing her and using her in a game of tug-o-war. At this, Brennan's hackles literally rose, and a growl rumbled in chest. His usually sweet visage twisted into something primal and all around angry as he shot forward and leapt onto one of the vampires. Knocking all three figures down, Brennan's fang sank into the meaty part where the shoulder met the neck and he pulled the vampire off of Lauren and if the girl had thought she'd been shaking like a ragdoll, the wolf's vicious whip of his head side-to-side put that to shame. The vampire's screams made it all the worse until an abrupt crack silenced the blood sucker. A second later, the creature exploded into dust.
Lauren fell with the vampires that had been shaking her, and looked around for what had caused that. She didn't have long to look around before the other vampire was back on her. She kicked him back and flipped off of her back, moving quickly to stake him before kicking the vampire that was coming up behind her.
Brennan pounced on the next vampire that approached Lauren from behind, going for the creature's ankles and missing them. His teeth caught the material of the vampire's jeans and he dragged it away from the blond so it couldn't attack her again before she was ready.
She looked around as the wolf dragged away the vampire. She staked the next vampire before she felt like she could really focus on what was in front of her. A wolf. Her brows furrowed. "Well you're a curious fellow." she said as she stooped down and held out her hand towards the animal. "I won't hurt you..." she said looking at it.
The wolf didn't step forward to pretend to investigate that hand quite yet. Brennan was still alert to their surroundings and his ears twitched in several directions as he listened to see if there were any other vampires in the cemetery. After a moment passed, his ears pricked forward at her outstretched hand and he took a hesitant step toward the blond, his tail twitching in a brief wag. The soap she used was stronger to his wolf senses and it made him sneeze.
She watched as he stepped forward and cocked her head to the side. "bless you," she said as the wolf sneezed. She moved carefully towards him an inch at a time. "I wont hurt you boy," she said softly.
Brennan sat on his haunches, letting Lauren approach him on her terms. Blood stained his muzzle where he'd sunk his teeth into the first vampire, his tongue darting out occasionally swipe at it. A breeze picked up in the cemetery and the wolf's attention was momentarily distracted as he sorted out the myriad of scents that the wind brought with it.
She touched the wolf's head tentatively. She worried that it would bite her. But she also knew that it helped save her life. "Thank you boy..." she said softly as she stroked it's head gently. "you kept me from being on the menu tonight..." she said quietly. She knew that she had to be more careful, one slip up could be her last.
At her words, a brief whine came from Brennan as he was relieved that she hadn't been on the menu that night. That cold nose of his touched her cheek and a tentative lick of his tongue to it quickly accompanied the cold touch.
Lauren smiled as the wolf licked her cheek. Her arms wrapped loosely around the animal. "Awe, you're affectionate. I'd take you home and keep you if Brennan would let me," she said as she continued to pet him.
Well, of course the wolf would be able stay! Brennan, after all, owned the apartment and little did Lauren know was that she was currently petting said apartment owner. The wolf's tail wagged briefly at her words both out of pleasure, but mostly out of amusement. If only she knew! Well, she would soon. It wouldn't take a rocket scientist to realize that the wolf knew the way back to Brennan's apartment.
Lauren smiled as she watched the wolf's tail wag. "I guess I better be getting home... She said rather reluctantly. She didn't want to leave her protector alone in the cemetery, but didn't know how Brennan would react.
Brennan certainly couldn't argue with that suggestion as evidenced by another brief wag of the tail. Already, the wolf was on his feet and oddly heading in the direction Lauren would need to go in to get back to the building.
Lauren watched the wolf heading in the direction she needed to go. She figured it was just a coincidence. She settled into step with the wolf, her hand scratching him occasionally as they walked together.
They'd gotten stopped a couple of times by a few of the more adventurous humans who wanted to pet the "really big dog." Although most gave Brennan a cautiously wide berth, which the wolf didn't mind in the least. While he was in full control of his wits during a full moon, accidents could happen and didn't want any happening that night.
No matter where Brennan stayed, he always made sure to rent an apartment that allowed pets. That way, it wouldn't look entirely odd for a "dog" to be seen going into and out of Brennan's apartment. It was his luck that Lauren was accompanying him back and he wouldn't have to get inventive on how to get on the fire escape from the alley.
When they got inside the building, Brennan immediately headed for the elevator. He sat, waiting for the cute blond to press the up button.
Lauren watched the wolf and her brows knit together. "Boy, I can't take you upstairs with me... I don't know how Brennan would feel about a pet." she said as she stooped down next to him.
The wolf whined, pawing the wall just under the elevator buttons. Brennan's paw dropped to her knee as a wolfish grin broke out his muzzle. He knew full well it would be perfectly okay from him to allowed into the apartment. Hopefully...she'd think the same way once she found out that he was actually the wolf that had helped her that evening.
Lauren pursed her lips and looked around. "Okay, okay... We'll see if Brennan can say no to your cute little face, because I sure can't." she said petting his head before pushing the button and walking into the elevator with him.
Brennan barked once and then sat in front of the bank of buttons that lead to all the floors, sitting up on his haunches and nosing the button that would take them to the correct floor before sitting back on his haunches again and looked at Lauren expectantly. Hrm...curiouser and curiouser...
Lauren's brows furrowed as the wolf pushed the right button. "what the he'll is going on?" she asked backing up from the wolf as the doors closed and locked her in with him.
The darkness of night and the varied light of the street had hidden Brennan's stained muzzle, but if anyone else had gotten into the elevator with them, one would have to be blind not to see the blood there. He patiently waited for the elevator to reach his floor, getting to his feet and slipping out the doors and they slid open, turning the right direction toward his apartment.
She watched as the dog walked to the door of their apartment. She bit her bottom lip. She stood by the elevator, her instincts tugging at her. She considered running.
Brennan whined at her hesitation, concern and fear filtering into his gut. He hadn't realized until that evening how badly he wanted Lauren to accept who he was, all of who he was, and it would be so...incredibly sad if she couldn't. The wolf nervously walked in a circle in front of the door and then scratched at the bottom left corner where the portal opened, whining again.
She watched the wolf and didn't know what to do. It hadn't hurt her at all. He had actually protected her. It still creeped her out that the wolf knew where she lived. She walked cautiously forward and opened the door and let the wolf walk in. She walked in behind it, and bit her bottom lip.
Once inside, the wolf headed down the short entrance hall before making the turn down the other hall that lead to the office he'd cleaned out and made into a bedroom for Lauren and at the end, his own room.
Nosing open the door, Brennan slipped into his own room. Pausing to grab his jeans from the foot of the bed, he dragged them into the bathroom with him and nosed the door closed so he could shift back into his human form.
Once the transformation was complete, Brennan slowly got to his feet. Using the counter to aide him, the wolf's attention was caught by a faded smear of red down his nose and across his mouth. Shit...he thought and scrambled to his feet despite the stiffness in his body. Transforming back into his human form always felt like he'd pulled every muscle in his body, but the feeling would be gone by the time he woke up in the morning. He scrambled to get his jeans on and started running water in the sink, scrubbing frantically at his face. If Laurie saw him like this...he knew from her hesitation that the blond saw him like this, she'd bolt. No questions asked.
Lauren stood watching as he walked back towards the bedroom. She didn't understand what was going on. When she heard the sink running, her brows furrowed further. She was considering bolting as it was. She bit her bottom lip and wrapped her arms around herself. She wanted to know what was going on.
Satisfied that his appearance wasn't, well...frightening or scary, Brennan stepped out of the bathroom and grabbed his shirt. He called out as he approached his bedroom door, "Laurie?" Toeing open the door, he started pulling on a fresh t-shirt as he walked into the living room.
Lauren was standing in the hallway still, nothing between her and the front door. She heard his voice and opened her mouth, but nothing came out. Was he the wolf? Had she been talking to her Brennan the whole time, him wagging his tail at her....
He turned, seeing her in the front hall. Brennan's face was nothing but a mask of anxiousness and he gulped, tentatively repeating himself, "...Laurie?" The wolf cleared his throat, taking a deep breath as he scraped a hand through his hair, "I, uh...I think we need to talk about what happened." He crossed an arm over his torso as the other lifted toward his mouth, his teeth nervously gnawed on the tip of his thumb as he watched to see what she would do.
Lauren watched him and her face was a mask of confusion and a little anger and a little betrayal. He'd kept a very big secret from her. But she cared about him. So she wanted to give him the benefit of a doubt. "I think we do too." she said quietly.
"I'll, um...get some water." He stepped over to the kitchen and pulled down two glasses from the cupboard. As he stood in front of the sink, staring apprehensively at the wall, Brennan began to wonder if he'd jumped the gun. But he saw the anger, betrayal, the confusion on her face. Maybe he should have waited another month to see if things would last between them before...when water started flowing over his fingers, he set aside the one glass and filled the other. He set the glass that hadn't overflowed on the island for Laurie and then grabbed a dish towel to dry the exterior of the other one. Brennan's back was turned to the blond as he dried the glass, careful not to spill any water. As he did this, he spoke, quietly, "I don't know how much you know beyond vampires, but there are other things besides them." The wolf finally turned to look at Lauren a moment before his gaze dropped to the glass in his hands.
Lauren stepped into the kitchen and sat down quietly on one of the stools. She picked up the glass and sipped from it. "I don't know anything else..." she said quietly. "but apparently you're some sort of werewolf or shape shifter or something... because there was a wolf here and now there's you" she said her tone clipped
"I'm a werewolf," Brennan lifted his gaze, a corner of his mouth upturning just a tad, "Shapeshifters are an entirely different story." He tried to keep his tone light, but given the gravity of the conversation, it was probably not all that appropriate. Brennan sighed, setting his glass down on the island, untouched, and scrubbed his hand down his face, "Laurie, I know this can't be easy to hear. It isn't easy for me to explain why I didn't say anything until now, either." The previous two girlfriends that he had been able to tell, didn't take it too well when he had to put his life on hold three days a month.
Lauren frowned softly as she sat there with him. She didn't really appreciate his attempt to keep things light. She watched him and then sat down her glass. "I... I trusted you... I told you things about me... And all this time you're a werewolf... And you didn't tell me. I'm living with you, Brennan... In danger... And you couldn't tell me." she said wiping her cheek.
"No," he said firmly, shaking his head in protest against Lauren being in danger, "No, I would never hurt you. I've been in control of my wolf since I was 15 years old." Brennan looked at her, an earnest expression on his face as he instinctively reached a hand toward her cheek.
Lauren stilled as his hand reached towards her. Her eyes closing as she waited to be struck for speaking to him that way. She knew he'd never hurt her, but old ha it's die hard... Especially when they're beat into you.
The pad of his thumb gently wiped away the few tears that had slid down her cheek. Honestly, hitting Lauren had never crossed Brennan's mind and never would. The wolf murmured an apology, "I'm so sorry for not telling you sooner. I..." He paused briefly, gulping, "I just wanted to be sure."
Lauren felt how gentle his thumb slid against her skin. She closed her eyes and leaned into the familiar touch. It had soothed her before she even thought it possible to fall for him. Now it eased the ragged edges. "I understand, Bren..." she said quietly. "I just... It's a lot to swallow." she said softly.
Brennan sighed softly, pulling his hand away and replied, "I know." He shifted uncomfortably at the idea he was about to suggest; The wolf didn't want her to go, but..."Look, I'll understand if you don't want to stay here or..." Brennan paused to swallow the lump in his throat, "...Or see me."
Lauren opened her eyes as he pulled his hand back and a soft frown settled on her lips. "I don't want to leave... And I want to see you... I wish you had told me... But I care about you, Brennan... I'm a little scared... But that will fade with time."
Relief flooded him at her words, but he apologized again, "I'm sorry." Brennan fiddled with the glass of water on the counter and explained, "I...got burned the last two times I admitted what I was to previous girlfriends. They couldn't handle it and...I...I just wanted to make sure you were the one that could."
She watched him as he fiddled with his glass of water. She reached over and slid her hand over his and sighed softly. "It will be odd at first," she said shrugging, but you put up with my need to hunt..." she said quietly as she looked down. "this makes twice that you've rescued me."
He chuckled softly, turning his hand beneath hers and curling his fingers around the blond's hand. Brennan gave it a gently squeeze, "One thing I've learned about hunters; You don't stand in their way." His thumb played over her knuckles and he admitted, "I feel...protective of you." The wolf lifted his gaze to study her face.
She smiled as he held her hand. It just felt right. Maybe that was because he was the one. She shrugged. "I have saved a lot of lives..." she said softly. "and you're allowed to be protective of me... You're bigger than me, and probably considering you're a werewolf, you're probably stronger than me." she said as she gave his hand a gentle squeeze back.
"Hey," he said gently, shifting to catch her gaze, "You're stronger than you think." Brennan smiled and he lightly chucked a finger under her chin. He glanced to the clock radio that was attached to the underside of one of the cupboards and reluctantly said, "I should probably get to bed. I'll be sleeping most of the day tomorrow."
Lauren nodded her head softly. "Is that pretty normal after you shift?" she asked. She wished that she could suggest her curling up with him, but figured he'd want to be alone
The wolf nodded, a tired grin curving his lips, "Yeah. Shifting and running around for most of the night can be pretty exhausting."
She reached up with her hand and caressed his face softly. "I guess I'll see you later then," she said softly. She leaned over and pressed a soft kiss against his lips. "I'm tempted to curl up with you..." she admitted.
Brennan leaned into the caress, his eyes closing at the touch. He returned the soft kiss with one of his own, his lips curving into a small smile as he eyes opened at her small confession. Touching his forehead to hers, he murmured, "Well, I wouldn't complain if you did."
Lauren looked up at him, a soft smile on her lips. "Then I think that I will..." she said softly. "I want to curl up with you... I'm tired too." She said softly.
"Okay," Brennan murmured, a soft smile of his own on his face. The wolf placed his glass of untouched water by the sink and turned off all the lights except the one he usually left on over the sink. As he headed toward his room, Brennan lifted his arms above his head to work out the kinks and tried to stretch the muscles that were stiff from shifting back. Upon entering his room, the wolf kicked off his shoes and flopped face first onto his bed, not even bothering to get into any sort of PJs.
Lauren went to her bedroom and changed into her pajamas, the soft material clung to her hips and curves as she walked into his bedroom. She smiled and shook her head as she looked at him, sprawled out on the bed. She climbed onto the bed and bit her bottom lip as she laid facing him.
Brennan was already dozing off when he felt the bed dip. Cracking an eye open, it rolled to see the blond settling onto the bed and a sleepy smile curved his lips, "I suddenly feel overdressed," teased the wolf. Shifting, Brennan nosed her shoulder, much like a dog looking for attention.
She smiled as he nosed her shoulder. She slid her arms around him, kissing his forehead softly. "you can get dressed down if you wanna... I don't mind this," she said softly.
Sighing, Brennan gave a throaty chuckle, "I would, but I'm too tired to move," he admitted as he slid arm around her waist and pulled her closer.
She giggled as he pulled hen over closer to him and kissed his temple. "then stay like that baby," she said as she cuddled as closely as she could against him.
Were it any other night, Brennan might take slight advantage to make out with Lauren, but it wasn't any other night. Instead, the wolf cuddled back and buried his face in the crook of the blond's neck. Some of the anxiousness and tension from their talk started to drain away and Brennan relaxed in her arms.
Lauren smiled as he cuddled into her and held him close to her. She trailed her fingers up and down his back softly. She relaxed against him, her eyes growing heavy as she started drifting off.
Her scent, which pleasantly filled his nose, mixed with those fingers running up and down his back was the icing on Brennan's cake, so to speak. The wolf was soon out like a light, wrapped up in Lauren's arms, his own having sought the warmth of her skin just before he drifted off.
Lauren fell asleep curled up in the warmth of his arms. She slept as if nothing was going to wake her up, short of him moving.