harley westward

No black magic can control me and no curse can let you own me

A sound of amusement slipped from her lips, a partial laugh that seemed prematurely plucked and stolen from her that she would later want back. She shook her head slowly allowing that topic to recede and fade as the vampire returned his attention to pasta like he hadn't seen it before. He went on different random topics after that, like his mind couldn't quite settle on just one. In truth, it was strange to witness him being so damn chatty. A new side of Darcy that had been hidden by those darker tendencies. As if one could remove all that deadly, impatient rage... and those were somehow his true, unfiltered thoughts. How curious it was to objectively study him in this state, like he was someone beneath her microscope... to know that any question that left her lips would be forgotten. Anything that she had to say.. Anything she had wanted to know she could pry from him. She knew she shouldn't have been so intrigued by it. So fascinated with this monster that could cause so much undeniable havoc in her life... How strange it was that for a moment that it almost seemed... cordial between them. Even though she could see those limits still existed. Even as he was. She could hardly help the way she grew lax, way too lax even when surrounded by the reminder that Darcy's true nature was still existent within this much more amicable form. After all, his lack of concern for his so-called allies was an all too blatant sign. Yet, hadn't she always never quite shied away from the forbidden? At the very least, he wouldn't remember any of this. To have such knowledge, she was sure would only piss off the permanently pissed off vamp even more.

However, it was odd that even in this calm state, it was Harley that was the first to crumble. She could resent herself for falling apart so quickly to rile and rebel against the mere topic of claim and ownership. This was one topic he seemed all but content to have and yet how very starkly different their opinions were on the matter. It, undoubtedly rubbed her wrong. Agitated her as her mind began to reject the fact that once more, she was or would be reduced to nothing but a form of property. How she had seen those signs, brands, collars, chains before... but it was like her mind rejected the thought and symbolism. A defiant fire pulsed within her like something tangible but it was only her spirit. Her violet stare became glowering as she became possessed by the anger of that invisible oppression forced down her throat. She could feel that frustration start to grow and swell within her like it wanted to burst free from her skin, much like her inner feline that always seemed to raise its head whenever she let that anger get the best of her. She drew to her feet, like there was anything she might say or do that might find some kind of delusional loop hole within her predicament.

Of all the times that she'd poorly bit her tongue, she didn't bother to now. Her slender arms folded across her chest, a posture along with her obvious anger was like armour. As if that ever truly protected her against the injustices in her world. She lost it... for a few short moments...and all it earned her was a vacant stare of the cowboy who still sat below her... his expression eventually grew into one of wonder. Not even in the good way. No, more like the wonder one gets when they are curious what crazy pills a person had taken that day. But that expression was fleeting.. At least before burst of laughter barked from his open mouth, like nothing she'd heard from him before. His eyes even crinkled with pure unfettered amusement. Like what she had said was the most hilarious joke he had ever heard in his far-too-long life time. Displeasure and that volatile need to reject his words gripped her and yet... she knew there was no way to barter out of it... to find that something she'd wanted to hear..

To find some way out of the mess she was in.

He offered her a brutal pill to swallow. A harsh reality that she so desperately wanted to reject. It would have been easier to be dealt with a sharp blow of his hand. But he didn't need to. He knew it. Truth was worse in that very moment. Even if he seemed oddly kind about it.. as kind as a being like him could be. Thank fuck for that Arlo venom. Thank goodness for the memories of that moment would be wiped away. But she still turned his words over in her mind.. even though that frustration she'd felt never truly left her. Especially the way that being called a pet made her bristle. She hated that word. The only fortunate thing was that Darcy said it clinically despite the cockiness of his tone and not as a deranged pet name that she could still recall in that only too familiar voice of her worst monster of all.

He looked at her like she was a moron and she was reminded of the vampire he was. That look said she should have known this. The sooner she knew it, the better it would be for her, he'd said. She gritted her teeth together like she might bare her own blunt teeth at him like an animal and yet she hated that he was right. Anger simmered within her blood and yet she said nothing.. There was nothing to say. She knew it was a losing battle. That she had lost a battle she had lost from the moment she tried to rebel against it. Yet even then, her mind began to grasp at those straws and twist the narrative.

In that time, Harley had lost eye contact with Darcy as the vampire thought it was an excellent idea to rise to his feet with a struggle... He barely made it too. But still he managed to stand. It was way better when he was a speaking, harmless fixture of the floor. Even at his wobbly height... he was much taller than her. Fortunately, it seemed like a mercy that his attention was not focused on her as he ambled off down that alley on unsteady feet leaving her standing there, surrounded by the unconscious bodies of his so-called allies.

Where the hell was he going? Especially like that. That curiousity was seemingly enough to have her forget about the anger that coiled within her gut. The world didn't seem like a safe place for him to be. It had less to do out of concern for him and more so for concern to the world at large. He was unpredictable.... And he called to her like the pet he believed her to be. A groan slipped from her lips as she considered giving him the slip... and yet Darcy had other ideas. He became a man on a mission. Only she had no clue what that mission was. He nearly got hit on the road as he crossed it with little care for traffic and its laws, he all but ignored the cars that were sent squealing and swerving in an afford to avoid him. Harley, however, took far better care picking her way across the road, impervious to the impatient honking. It was only as she reached the cowboy that she was surprised to get an answer at all to her question of where they were going. Not that somewhere important. Like that was an answer at all.

Harley, against that desire to find her escape plan, remained close, far too curious of that new topic that he'd brought up. Oh, he had her complete attention at a mention of a cat that had been freed. Tobias. She knew that name. She knew that were-cat. Intrigue over self-preservation won out. Was he giving her a hint to her freedom? How she knew he must have baited her on purpose... and she bit regardless of the consequences. She hung off the southerner's words, as if she forgot of everything else, self-preservation included. Darcy's drunk gait had left her wondering if he might actually trip over his own feet and yet by some miracle he managed to keep upright. He all but stumbled down the sidewalk while Harley forced to follow, refusing to let that topic die... as if she could find some vital knowledge within that story. The path that he led them down was fortunately, for the most part, unpopulated. He seemed to know exactly where he wanted go while Harley knew so little.

She quipped about Risque GPS tracking her cats and yet it would seem like she was closer than she thought.. only the reality of it was much worse. Darcy exclaimed that Risque could feel them like invisible leashes attached to each one of her felines. Well, that explained a lot... and made shit a whole lot worse. She could always find her? How she desperately wanted to reject that idea. That they knew where she lived, where she worked. It had shattered the illusions she had forged around herself, like a shield of lies. A frown formed upon her features, deepening with every passing moment. Surely those powers had limits. The idea that she knew where her felines were at all times... seemed somehow worse than a gps tracker. Sarcasm laced within that final word, her lips forming into a grim line. "Of course she does." She commented wryly, her lips pursing into a disappointed line. Concluding that dismal thought was a pervading silence between the pair once more as they suddenly ended up further and further away from that alley. She couldn't help but notice how quiet it was. He wasn't planning on murdering her was he? Why now when he could have done so any number of times? They drew closer and closer toward the water, the smells shifted to that dense salty sea air. Darcy all but one track minded as he ignored anything she had the mind ask. That heavy silence seemed to thicken and restrict like a noose around her throat. She silently followed across a near empty road with only one car that passed without incident. The were-woman eyed her surroundings with a sudden wariness she didn't show, truth be told she was far too busy ruminating on the topic of that chaotic leopard escapee. What was so special about that odd cat?

Darcy easily informed her that he was broken. What the hell did that mean? She couldn't control him like the others? How did he manage that? With renewed vigor, Harley kept up with Darcy, her violet eyes watching him curiously try to sort through his thoughts upon the only feline that had escaped his mate clutches.

Ruben not wanting a cat was even stranger to her. That mention that he was haunted only caused a baffled expression to settle as her mind tried to process all the cowboy had said. Ruben not wanting a cat, that didn't seem to add up. Apparently, it was. That creepy vampire had an utter fascination with Risque's felines... perhaps even all felines. It was beyond disturbed and only left someone to wonder how far that fascination went. That man was strange and unsettling. Yet... not even he wanted Tobias. Something did not add up. Hm. But Darcy didn't even let her so much as say another word as they continued on that mysterious route to who the hell knows where. This somehow felt more important. Like she as on the cusp of something earth changing. Harley's words fell on deaf ears as he continued prattling on about Tobias, before admitting that he bit her. Surprise flashed behind her purple gaze. "How is he alive after all that? What is so special about Tobias? Any other cat would be dead if they pulled that shit." None of it made any sense. But that was not all. What could be worse than raising a claw or using a fang against the feline queen? If keeping her on a perpetual cliffhanger was his purpose, he was succeeding. She had to know. What did he do that could be worse than all that? His attention span was no better than a goldfish.

It was almost immediate that the pair that promenaded through the city ran out of sidewalk. That pathway led to sandy beaches formed and led out to the sprawling seaside. How long had they been walking for? She slipped her hands into her pockets, eyeing their surroundings, listening to the crashing waves and looked out into the inky black vastness of the ocean. The crescent moon over head seemed hardly as vivid as it did on a full moon, but still offered plenty light to illuminate those sandy shores. The water seemed to shimmer beneath that silvery glow, the sands pale and inviting. If she were here on her own... she would consider stripping off her clothes and going into the inky waters with waves capped in white. How she felt her inner feline almost wanting, itching for the chance to run, full tilt through those waves. A feeling she pushed down and yet somehow still nagged within her chest like a continual yearning she fought against.

Darcy abruptly stopped, eyeing the sand as if it held some more significance, remaining firmly upon the concrete as if unwilling to touch that sand at all with his boot. The aversion struck her as odd.. But not as odd as he began to remove each boot from his feet, followed shortly by his socks until his ghostly pale feet were on display. She did nothing more than eye this unusual behaviour as he placed his boots aside against a wall before demanding she took off her own boots with an alarming boyish expression.

It was only boots and his request, as bizarre as it was.... Seemed harmless. Just a simple walk on the beach. That was not at all how she imagined her night ending up. She leaned down to unzip those black leather combat boots and placed them beside his own, her socks stuffed securely inside the boot before joining him into the sand that he already stood within. She drew a breath of that air into her lungs, savouring that single breath that escaped her and left her only with the question of why they were here of all places. What was so important about that beach? She knew how those horror movies ended and yet she already chosen to ride that crazy train, not that there was a way off it. The point of no return had been reached long ago. His contentment struck her as odd and yet she didn't comment on it. Unwilling to press her luck anymore than she had. His mismatched eyes seemed to lower down to eye her bare feet in the sand before commenting about their size. That had to be the only observation of her appearance that he'd ever made about her out loud. Was that compliment? Which caused her own gaze to look down, wiggling her toes that were on display. Were they really that tiny? They looked like normal feet to her. She shook her head, narrowing her eyes in suspicion at any compliment coming from that vampire's mouth. She bit the sarcastic remark that threatened to leave her about Darcy's strange fascination with feet. Yet anything that she had finally settled on was silenced by Darcy meandered away toward the water's edge where the ocean lapped at the land like it was hungry to swallow more than it had but couldn't quite reach. He wasn't even finished telling her about Tobias.. She groaned at the distracted vampire. He was really making her work for every word.

Darcy simply stood by the water's edge, unmoving, like he was in a deep trance with the ocean covering his pale feet. It was almost like he enjoyed it. She kept space between them, even as she approached the vampire that led her here. Still unsure if it was for her demise or not. The verdict was still out on that one.

It was Darcy that broke that quiet first, as she knew he would. The sound of his voice rumbling like thunder that caused her head to eye that uncharacteristically serene expression upon his usually harsh features. He seemed almost seemed like an amicable human. It was easier when she could hate him, hell she knew she still did. But it was hard not to see the man that could have been, maybe, no that didn't seem right. Or maybe it was the man without all the rage? No trace of that hellish vampire seemed to stir within him at all, it should have gnawed at her more than it did.

She had almost expected him to speak about the leopard but she was regaled by a story of the vampire couple... sharing what seemed such a tender moment she swore they were incapable of. He spoke about Risque like she was the moon and stars that his world revolved around. He claimed it all started at the beach. How... sweet. Almost. His mind seemed to work in overtime before he finished that story with a comment about his father.. his 'da', it took a second to realize what he meant. Well, that took a turn. A real surprising turn that seemed to explain Darcy in a nutshell. Didn't it always start with an abusive family? The world before Risque, she assumed. She tried to imagine him human then... daring herself to put herself in his shoes... or lack thereof so to speak. Was Darcy once oppressed? Why was it after one fucking mention of his dad it made her think of her own? She missed him. She forced the thought away in a nanosecond, a thought that was usually followed up by the gruesome scene of the last time she saw him. Nope, she refused. Not here, certainly not with him. Besides, he gave her way too much to unpack here. Her naturally black hair ruffled within the wind, strands falling into her face that caused her to place them behind her ear.

"Sounds like a real bastard, parents are supposed to want more for their kids." She commented honestly, a simple fact that should been and often wasn't the case. But not everyone who came from a shitty situation turned into a raging dick. She was lucky, she had parents that gave a shit. Yet it still didn't make a single bit of difference. He was already brushing by her like she didn't even exist at all, like she was the figment in his mind and his ghosts were real. It was like he couldn't even hear her words, or he simply ignored her. Just like that... he began walking down that isolated beach by the water's edge. A hum that was surprisingly in tune came from within himself before he actually sang. She probably looked like a moron staring at him, her mouth opening and closing like a dying fish on land. The words barely held any semblance of his accent save for a few select words. She knew that song... Queen. As if this night couldn't become any more bizarre. She barely stopped herself from adding the final word of that verse. 'Anytime.' She kept to herself, although she sang that cursed word in her mind with fervor. It was impossible not to. There was no way she was adding to his weird sing along about what she could only assume was a song to his mate. Maybe this version of high Darcy should go back to Syn and just chase Risque around, seemed like way less fallout.

She would have never pegged him as a queen fan. But perhaps what was more shocking was the fact that he had a good singing voice. She hated that he did. She hated that he was good at anything. It would have been better if he sounded like shit like those drunks on karaoke night, bleating like horny alley cats.

"So why exactly was it so important to come here? As much as I ..... 'Enjoy' being serenaded by a good voice on a moonlit beach." She questioned after a moment between the crashing waves that to some would appear turbulent... but to her they seemed consistent. Consistent wasn't exactly existent in her world.