Who: Derek & Meg What: Checking up on the soon-to-be werewolf with caffeine When: Late May Where: Derek's college pad Rating/Warning: Low Status: Complete!
Derek led a fairly simple life. He went to work and classes. Spent his free time either studying or going for a run. There wasn’t much time for social interaction apart from his classmates and coworkers. However he did have a few friends. The main being his brother of course. But Simon wasn’t in Orange County. The only person that came close here was Meg.
Like Derek, Meg was usually busy with her own career, running errands for her boss. Right now was a particularly busy time for Derek with finals just around the corner. Med school was definitely no joke. So when there was a knock at the door to his studio apartment the last person he was expecting to see was Meg. “Uh, hey,” he greeted with a half smile in his usual jeans and oversized t-shirt that hid just how toned he truly was.
Friends weren’t something she had an abundance of, and with the very few she did have she would cultivate that relationship with friendly snark and camaraderie - otherwise it’d be her and Netflix, together forever. And her job, which she didn’t hate in the slightest, but sometimes her infamous boss could grate her nerves and test her patience when he was in a mood. That friendship felt more like marriage sometimes, just without the benefits.
But when one of those friends discovered he was apparently doomed for lycanthropy, Megara couldn’t find a Hallmark card or a gift basket to express her condolences. Instead?
Caffeine. An ‘I’m sorry you're turning into a Twilight Character’ latte.
“I bring you an offering,” she smirked, and his was hot and steaming while hers was in plastic and heavy with ice cubes. She preferred her coffee cold. “I was in the area, figured your nose was in a textbook while you neglected your grim reality of turning into a mythological puppy, and could use some coffee?”
“My favorite kind of offering,” Derek replied accepting the latte with a half smile. He led Meg over to the table where they could both sit. His apartment didn’t have a ton of seating. It was small, cramped. There were two chairs at his small kitchen table, a chair at his desk and his bed. Those were the only options.
“I do have finals coming up,” he reminded her. “Changing to a werewolf seems far off. Not next week. From what I’ve heard at least. How long did it take your cousin to turn into a witch,” he paused as he took a seat the table. “Excuse me, pythoness.”
Pythoness had a certain charm to it, didn’t it? The internet defined it as a woman who practices divination, which was the essence of her cousin - laugh away, Derek, but if the shoe fits. “Over time,” Megara explained, sitting across from him. His place was quaint with the bachelor charm, and she wouldn’t be surprised if he lived the college student diet (which meant an abundance of ramen in his pantry, perhaps?). “More she dreamt, the more the knowledge and everything else carried over. I guess that’s better than a rude awakening?”
All she knew was what she’d read; hours were spent on her laptop scrolling through previous entries, and to help Hades make sure his kids weren’t talking to suspicious internet folk. Through the mundane entries there were some gems, about sorcery and aliens, fairytales and death. How this entire experience had escaped her thus far, Meg didn’t know, but she could consider herself fortunate for once.
Her friend? Not so much.
A sip of iced coffee from the straw. “From what it sounds like, give it a month? Maybe two? What do you know so far, about being a werewolf in your dreams?”
Pythoness still reminded Derek of someone who charmed snakes. Pythons in particular, obviously. “I don’t know if it will work like that for werewolves,” he frowned. Changing species felt like you would wake up one day human and the next whatever your dreamself was. But with powers that didn’t essentially change your DNA? That seemed like something that could slowly change over time as Meg had said.
“Not much. I was adopted so I didn’t grow up with other werewolves. Both my brother and dad are sorcerers.” Adoptive in both worlds but it was Derek’s family and he always referred to them as much. “I’ve only had two sets but I’ve basically dreamed my entire childhood so far,” he frowned at the thought. “Dad taught us everything he knew which was less for me. Basically we change sometime after puberty. And the full moon has no effect.” Those were the main aspects he knew at the moment. The full moon thing scared the shit out of him, it wasn’t like he would have any warning with the moon cycle. It could happen at any moment.
As for food Meg was right. It was the basic college diet. Lots of ramen, there were a ton of chips too. Sadly no left over takeout. Derek could eat so whenever he ordered in her usually finished his meal in one sitting. Still he should offer something to Meg. It was the polite thing to do. “Want some chips? I have some cereal too.”
Megara had to wince at that - transitioning into a werewolf sounded much worse than puberty, but what did she know? Everyone seemed to be cursed with the ‘supernatural gene’ in some form thanks to this place, and so far she’d dodged the bullet. And really fucking hoped it’d stay that way, chriiiiiiiist. “A full moon would at least give you some kind of deadline,” she mumbled around her straw. “Chips, suuure. I brought you a beverage, repay me with your college food staples.”
Derek was a ticking bomb of werewolfism. Sounded super, and her black nails drummed against the tabletop in thought. “I’m only going by Hollywood fiction here, but do you think you’ll get dangerous? To other people?”
Derek got up grabbing a bag of Doritos to bring back over to the table. It would make their fingers change color but that was all part of the deliciousness. “It’s the least I can do,” Derek flashed one of the rare smiles as he sat back down opening up the bag and placing it on the table. “Fresh bag too. Only the best for you,” he teased.
However the smile quickly fell from his face as they were back on the werewolf topic. “Yes,” he replied solemnly. He honestly had no idea what he would actually be like in wolf form. He didn’t know any only other werewolves. He had been taken from his pack or parents or they had abandoned him in the lab as a child. He had no idea. There were so many mysteries still. But besides he had hurt someone with his strength in both dreams and real life.
“Fresh bag, hn? You spoil me,” she chuckled husky, shimmying in the seat to lean over the table and dig her hand into the bag. Crunch went the first chip right between her teeth, and Meg watched him with narrowed eyes. Nothing menacing, simply - well, concerned. “But don’t too down there, kiddo, you’ll learn more once you dream.”
That was usually the way it went, right? According to her research - she knew Hazel was going through the dream motions, and she wanted to help Hades be prepared for whatever his kids were going through. “Guess all you can do is brown nose your books and try to focus on your studies until then. And hope to hell you don’t bomb school because of werewolfism.”
Those words came out all ugh - not comforting at all, and she sighed.
“I’m sorry. I don’t know how the hell to soothe someone with this - I still don’t really get it.”
Derek shoved his hand into the bag next, pulling out a handful of chips. He leaned back in this seat popping one into his mouth. Meg did have a point. He would learn more once he dreamed more. Jumping to conclusions wasn’t going to do him any good now. Still he hated not knowing things. Part of the reason he spent so much time studying.
“Well…” Derek said after processing Meg’s rambling. “At least you’re trying.” He popped a few more chips in his mouth. “So, I guess the question is. How do you feel about having a werewolf for a friend?” He said it lightly, but honestly if she no longer wanted anything to do with him, he’d understand. Couldn’t blame her really.
There was no choice but to try to understand - it was like a disease that was festering, with no cure, some perks, and change no one was prepared for. All Megara could do was roll with the punches, assist in whatever mundane manner she could, and not ditch the few friends she had because they might have a flea problem soon. Another crunch of a potato chip, eyes cast upward at his ceiling in the act of thought.
“Worse things could happen?” Shruuuuuuug. “You’re you, whether you shed fur everywhere or not, and why bother making friends with anyone if running right when things get tough is the first option?” Meg hoped the same courtesy would be extended if things were in reverse - she’d been burned in the past, scars from a man she loved and people she thought were her friends. Rebuilding from those ashes was hard, but the alternative was loneliness.
Derek finished off the handful of chips in his hand washing it down with a few sips of coffee before going in for more. “You say that now…” he mumbled between bites. It wasn’t that he had little faith in Megara. It was that he just thought so little of himself. He was working on it though, along with his anger issues, with Dr. Trevelyan now. He had been through so many shrinks in his lifetime. Well he had to find a new one each time he moved which always took some time. Dr. Trevelyan was the first one that had stuck in Orange County.
Of course if the tables were turned Derek would do the same for Meg. He didn’t have many friends. In fact Meg might just be his only true friend other than his brother. And he was fiercely loyal to the both of them. Once you got past Derek’s walls he would do anything for you. Hell, he’d probably accidentally paralyze a guy for attacking Meg too. But that was something he didn’t like thinking about. “So, no dreams for you yet?”
You say that… Did she sense a little bit of disbelief there, Souza? A mahogany brow distinctly quirked, and she swung her foot from beneath the table to hit his. “I mean it,” Meg promised - ideally she’d love to have some kind of plan of action for a scenario, but that wouldn’t jive with the whole sadistic vibe Orange County had. She had a feeling that whenever Derek’s time of change did come, it’d be a suuuuuuuuuprise, here’s fur and teeth, good luck on not chewing on a human like a boooone.
“Just focus on studying, kiddo, there’s not much you can do otherwise until you dream more and things fall into place,” she advised. It seemed like a sensible suggestion? “None on my end, but when this place turns me into a victim of it’s crazy, I’ll be sure you shoot you a text.”
Megara winked. It was whatever, and she couldn’t exactly say worse things have happened, but people around here learned to live with it somehow. If anything, she’d adapt.
Derek would love to have a plan for becoming a werewolf too. At least he knew it would be coming at some point. Just the when was the problem. Still there had to be someway he could prepare. Meg was right though he’d find out with more dreams. Hopefully. For now he would just continue to live his life as normal. What other choice did he have really?
“I don’t care if it’s the middle of the night. I expect a text right away.” The words came out harsher than Derek meant them too, but that always seemed to happen with Derek. Really he just cared about Meg and wanted to be there for her as well.
“So bossy,” she smirked, a tilt of those plum-colored lips, and she pressed two fingers together for the gesture of a salute. “Assume that the lack of frantic texts in the middle of the night is a good thing.” Meg appreciated the concern, though - Derek was a good egg, she wouldn’t hold the ding-dong of his manhood against him.
Then she stood, grabbing the crinkly bag of chips and coffee cup wet in condensation. “C’mon, go back to studying. I’ll keep you company. Quietly.” Play scrabble on her phone if Hades was dicking around on his phone too, or watch something atrociously mind-rotting on MTV with the volume low. “I’ll be out of your hair before you know it.”
Watching Derek study probably wasn’t all that fun. But he wasn’t going to say no to the company. With Simon in another state, he did get lonely sometimes. “Alright,” he mumbled in agreement. “Help yourself to whatever’s in the fridge and cupboards.” She had chips and coffee but still she was more than welcome to make herself at home. And with that, Derek went back to studying.