Who: Orin and Will What: Will’s secret is out Where: Aubade 406 When: Monday afternoon Warnings: Nope
Will still wasn't completely sure what exactly had happened with Hayley on the way out of the building, but he hoped they'd sorted it out enough that he wouldn't be ambushed by a hug again. It was just... awkward.
Most of his journey to Aubade was filled with him worrying about what was to come. He knew just from the passing comment that Orin had seen something regarding Lizzie, but depending on what moment it was, the results could range from bad to awful. One of the most minor consequences could be losing his job. As it was, he was mostly hoping to not be shot on sight.
The doorman at the front allowed him inside, and Will climbed the stairs to Orin's apartment. For better or worse, it was time to come clean.
He knocked.
The apartment was a wreck, working having started to turn it into a home instead of a bachelor pad, but Orin looked nonplussed in the center of the chaos. A maid (a new addition) opened the door, and Orin asked her to take her lunch break when Will walked in. He was dressed in khakis and a white button-down, and his expression was nowhere as casual as his attire.
Orin led Will to the living room, where the couch was undisturbed among the chaos, and he took a seat in the adjacent chair. “How about you tell me what happened to the woman,” he said, not easing into it.
Will sank onto the couch with a sigh, rubbing at his face with a tired hand. He knew Orin well enough now to know that there was no reason to expect any sort of chasing around the topic at hand. He looked over and kept his voice soft but firm. “Can you tell me what you saw? So I know where I have to start?”
“You being hungry, you changing, you waking some woman that became dinner,” Orin says, as plainly as he can. His expression is dead serious, even if he isn’t moving and his fingers are steepled in front of him harmlessly, elbow on his knees.
Will nodded, even though it was a memory that didn’t sound completely familiar, the set-up of it did. “That was Lizzie. She’s still alive. ...She lives on the east coast with some of her family.” He paused before continuing, figuring he’d already begun to share the information, and a little more wasn’t going to make much of a difference. “It was my first month here. The first time I shifted.”
There wasn’t any real indication that Orin was tense until he relaxed, and then it was so visible that it was almost impossible to imagine you’d missed it. “She injured bad?” he asked, but it wasn’t with the intensity from before. “And does it happen often?” A pause. “Or just near the moon?”
Will noticed the slight relaxation and responded in kind, some of the tension going out of his shoulders. He nodded, not wanting to talk about it, but forcing the words out. “She... yes. She was injured badly. It took her quite a while to recover.” He went quiet for a moment, remembering trying to find news about her while she was in the hospital, without subjecting her to his presence. It took another bit before he continued, focusing on the practical questions.
“It happens at least once a month on the full moon itself. It’s pretty likely to happen in the few days around it. And for the week or so leading up and after, it’s less likely, but it’s happened. In certain situations.” Like getting mugged.
“Was it you that chased Valerie?” Orin asked.
Will paused, not wanting to betray Connor’s trust, but he also wasn’t going to take responsibility for something that wasn’t him. He shook his head. “It wasn’t. I got her memory of it, and I know it wasn’t me.”
That was telling, and Orin realized it meant there was someone else out there like Will. Someone who might have less control over their ability than Will did. He wasn’t done with that part of the conversation, but he put it aside for now. “And you want the area of the lab for yourself for when this happens from now on,” he said, no question in it. “Was that what happened when I saw you with Hayley?”
“I’m trying to find a way to stop it, if I can. Nothing so far, but... I need the lab space for testing. And to give myself a safer space.” He gave a wry half-smile. “Sorry to burst your matchmaking bubble, but yes. That’s what happened that night. She... wandered in on me afterwards. Even though I’d locked the door and left a note for no one to come in.”
“We got to get somewhere safe before the moon. The lab won’t be done in time,” Orin said, immediately moving to the practical. “I got some warehouse space. They’re empty now, but we can probably get them fixed up before next month.” It was a leap of faith, the offer. Something that said he trusted Will enough to believe him about not killing anyone.
Will blinked in surprise at the offer, it being completely unexpected. It took him a bit to realize that not only was he not being fired, but that Orin was actually giving an offer of help. “That... is appreciated. At least for the moon itself. And it’s much more under control than it probably seemed in what you saw. He’s been fairly docile lately, not that I want to tempt fate.” The division between Will and the Wolf was subtle in his mind, but definite.
“If someone else has this problem” Orin said, leading into it carefully. “We should do something about them running loose, too. They could kill someone, Will.”
Will took a long moment to think of how to reply. Finally, he simply ended up sighing and shaking his head. “It’s not that easy though. I appreciate the situation, trust me, but it’s a difficult thing to handle. He makes his own plans for the moon, a lot like I do, but there are some times when you’re not able to stop it from happening. And short of keeping someone locked up for nearly the entire month, there’s not much else to do about it.”
Orin had an appreciation of life that went beyond the norm, and he knew that. This situation made it all come crashing back, and he dragged a hand through his messy blond hair in frustration. “He can’t be out there attacking women, Will. I understand you got solidarity with him, and I know it ain’t his fault. But if he can’t control it, we got to do something about it.”
Will shook his head, thinking about Connor, but also about the things he knew he’d done himself. “I can offer a place to him for the moon, but I doubt he’s going to take it. And the rest of the time isn’t an option if you expect people to still lead their own lives. He’s been here longer than I have, has dealt with it for a long longer than I have. It’s not about what you can or can’t control though. It’s out of your hands.”
Orin looked at the man across from him. He trusted Will, but he didn’t trust this other wolf, and he didn’t think leaving things out there that killed was an acceptable option. He was pretty damn sure Will wasn’t going to see it that way, though, and he was willing to leave it for now. They’d find the other wolf, and they’d watch him. If he didn’t hurt anyone, then nothing would happen. If he did, well, he’d worry about that when the time came.
Will watched Orin as he thought, and sighed when he realized that the topic wasn’t going to just go away. He could see the stubbornness in Orin’s expression, and figured it had to do with the other wolf. He knew the next words out of his own mouth would likely be the worst, most foolish thing he’d ever said, but... “The only reason you’re thinking of him as more dangerous is because he attacked Valerie. What would you be thinking if it had been me instead of him?”
“I’d be thinking you and I had to have a talk about keeping people safe. But it wasn’t you, and so we don’t have to have that discussion,” he said, the quirk of a brow indicating Will was welcome to say if they did have to have that discussion.
Will scowled at the quirked brow. “And would that discussion include the ‘solution’ of locking me in a room for over half the month? Because that would likely be the safest thing for people.” There was the slightest hint of an edge to his voice at the word ‘people’, as if he was so subtly removing himself from the category of those that needed safekeeping.
“Will,” Orin said, voice calm and steady. “If he can’t control it, how’s it any different than a killer on the loose? One who can’t control himself?”
Will met Orin’s gaze, suddenly very glad that they weren’t having this discussion closer to the full moon. “Neither of us can control it; it has to do with the moon.. And it’s different because the vast majority of the time, he’s human. He seems like a good kid. He’s not a maniac or a criminal.” He paused, stubborn. “He doesn’t want to hurt people, and neither do I.”
“I know, Will. But we still have to protect people,” Orin said, standing firm in that belief. “I’m not saying we lock him up, but I’m saying we got to find a way to keep him from attacking innocent folks.”
His next words came out low and frustrated as Will frowned. “What do you think I’ve been trying to do for the past year? There is no other way to stop it, other than locking yourself away. You get too close to the moon, and anything that scares you or stresses you or... angers you or anything is likely to set you off. He actually seems better at controlling it than I am.”
“So we spend less money on arrows and more money on finding a way to control it,” Orin said, thinking tactically. “In the meantime, we find him, and we keep tabs on him.”
Will sighed, knowing that Orin wasn’t going to let it drop, but he gave it one last try. “I’m not quite sure what you expect keeping tabs on him will accomplish. And I’m not going to just hand you his name. I’m not comfortable with that.”
“I’m not asking you for it,” Orin said, because he wasn’t; he didn’t expect that from Will. “But I’m being honest with you. If there are any reports of attacks or deaths, I’ll find him. You can warn him of that. If he can keep it in check, then we’re fine.”
Unless it’s me, Will thought, but just sighed. “Fine.” He was reluctant to bring up the warehouse again, now wondering if it would turn into a prison instead of a safety measure. He glanced at the door and figured it was far past the time for him to leave. “I probably should head back and reassure Hayley that you haven’t fired me yet...”
Orin stood, and he motioned to the door. “You’re just going to have to trust me on this one, Will. Just like I trust you.”
Will gave him a wry look that wasn’t quite a smile. “I was never very good at trusting people. Even less so now. But I’ll do my best, I suppose.” He headed for the door and let himself out, heading back for the lab.