why is it you always get to sit in the shade

[blackstarred]

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[notwitty]

[He shrugs, because he's not sure he has one. He's spent a lot of his adult life living out of suitcases in hotels.]

Haven't really had a chance to think about it. But when I last had a room of my own, it was pretty simple. Solid color, bed, dresser, closet, my lacrosse trophies.

[moralitypolice]

Lacrosse trophies.

( He was an athlete. )

Am I dating a jock?

( Totally Caroline's style more than hers, but she can joke all the same. Isaac is much more than just a jock. He's thoughtful. He has a short temper and even shorter patience. But, they ground each other. It works.

Is it weird that it works? She bookmarks girl talk for a little later. )

[notwitty]

[He laughs, before giving a shrug.]

Not since high school. But it was a good outlet for my anger issues.

[Of which he had many.]

I definitely wasn't one of the popular jocks, though. Way more on the loner side.

[moralitypolice]

A werewolf loner.

( Now she's seen everything.

When Tyler would skip town on his own, he always fell into one pack or another, or was sired into yet another. If there was one thing about being a werewolf, it's that the community was consistent. )

I thought you and Scott were in the same pack back in high school.

[notwitty]

Yeah. Sort of.

[It's hard to explain the rise and fall of the Hale Pack without getting into sad things that would definitely make this conversation heavier than it needed to be, but he gets why she would find that strange.]

Derek didn't bite me until I was a sophmore and by then, Scott was more of his own thing, but he would ally himself with Derek when he needed to. But Derek wasn't really a great alpha. Like he tried but he had his own shit to work out, and he couldn't do that and protect us the way he was supposed to. So a lot of that Scott stepped up for. He was probably one of the first real friends I ever had.

[moralitypolice]

Was?

( She doesn't want to get into the sad, but she is here to listen. She's trying not to read too much into tenses. But, tenses are what they are, right? )

[notwitty]

No, I mean. We're still friends. It's just a little different now since he's also my alpha.

[But Scott is still great, it's just weird werewolf politics.]

But I had two packmates, with Derek. Erica and Boyd. We were real friends too, but they both died. And before that, my dad was killed and before I even became a werewolf, my dad ... let's just say he wasn't the easiest guy to live with. Especially after we lost my mom and my brother.

[A beat.]

... Which is a lot, so. Sorry.

[moralitypolice]

Isaac. You don't have to apologize for telling me who you are. You've met my friends? You spent a week in Mystic Falls. It's a lot. Our lives are a lot. You have to be able to talk about it or it consumes you.

( Or, you gain your freedom, explore the world and work through your pain. )

Believe me, this is coming from the girl who used to leave town for weeks at a time. I also died. You see? A lot.

[notwitty]

It doesn't really bother me a lot of the time.

[He's come a long way from the person he used to be, bitter and sarcastic, though he certainly has that sarcastic edge to him still.]

It's just when you list it out all at once, it's kind of a wonder that I ended up the well adjusted person that I am now, rather than one of the monsters Beacon Hills had to put down. And really, I owe a lot of that to Scott. He believed the best in me when no one else would, and he protected me even when I didn't deserve it.

[moralitypolice]

Well, count me in for that, too. I believe the best in you. Granted, you haven't exactly shown me the worst -- Not that I'm asking you to. But. I can handle it when it comes.

( Because it always comes. )

We should get some sleep.

[notwitty]

[Isaac nods, because that's probably a good idea.]

Yeah, we have a long way to go to get to Kansas.

[Kansas. Ugh. But with that, he will curl up next to her, and the lights go out as they drift off to sleep. Perception checks for everyone, as well as a witchy woo check for Bon-Bon.]

[moralitypolice]

( Perception Checks:

Bonnie (10)
Ryan (20)

Witchy Woo Check:

Bonnie (16) )

[vampireboulevard]

[Bonnie's perception check isn't enough to wake her, but what does is something like an itch, like ants running under her skin and all of her witchy senses going off at once. Isaac doesn't seem to notice (6), sleeping soundly next to her when she wakes.

On the other hand, Ryan definitely wakes to the sound of a door being slammed in the hallway, and voices. He can't make out any words, even with the natural 20, but something is definitely happening in the hallway. Caroline is still a sleep, but she stirs somewhat when he wakes (10), giving a small grumble of surprise.]

[moralitypolice]

( It's a sensation she doesn't like, one she remembers having when she was a young, less practiced witch. It means there is something here, something is happening, and that something is magic. Her eyes shoot open as she pulls herself up, arm still under the pillow. )

Isaac.

[notwitty]

Hmm?

[He's easy enough to rouse, picking up to look at her and frowning when he realizes something's off.]

What's wrong?

[moralitypolice]

( She turns, her whole body turning with her under the covers. )

Old magic. I feel it. It woke me up.

[notwitty]

Old magic is never good.

[Old magic is always the kind of stuff that involves making sacrifices or bad things coming back that should have stayed dead.]

Can you tell what it wants?

[Can witches do that?]

[moralitypolice]

No, I just - I feel it. Like an itch.

( She leans over to turn the light on beside her, bringing her feed in so she can sit up.

She tries to concentrate, choosing to sense magic to get more of a clue. (12) )

[notwitty]

[She doesn't get much, but she does get the sense that it's not coming from the floor that they're on - instead, it seems to be coming from below them, deeper in the B&B.

Isaac gets to his feet and grabs some shoes. He has a feeling that they're going to need to be on the move.]

[widenecked]

( Ryan lets Caroline try and sleep before pushing himself out of bed and over to the door. He gives a look back at Caroline before trying to stealthily crack the door open. (Nat 20) )

[vampireboulevard]

[At a room slightly angled down the hall from him is the frazzled, eccentric B&B owner and a large, oddly shaped man(?) carrying a large suitcase. There's something off about the way he moves, but Ryan can't see his face from where he's standing.

"Be careful with that! We don't want anything to break."

As the owner is reprimanding the bellhop(?), she spots that the Ryan's room is open (20), and jerks a little too suddenly in front to block the suitcase.

"So sorry, have we disturbed you? A guest needed help checking out early."

She's blocking the view of the suitcase now, but Ryan's vampire senses wouldn't miss the smell of blood.]

[widenecked]

( He cracks the door open wider, trying not to let too much light into the room and trying not to look like he was spying. Still, his eyes fall where the suitcase is being blocked from his view. But, if anyone can play it cool, it's Ryan Atwood (18) at keeping it cool. )

I heard the door slamming. You allow your guests to check out in the middle of the night?

[vampireboulevard]

["Not normally no, but poor dear had a terrible family emergency and needed to leave right away. We're putting her in a taxi to the airport right now." The woman looks at him pleadingly. "Please go back to bed. Everything'll be fine."]

[widenecked]

( Intending to not go back to bed, Ryan closes the door, but instead moves over to the table to put his shoes on. His every intention is to follow them and the smell of blood. )

[vampireboulevard]

[The door closing finally rouses Caroline (15), and she blinks over at him when she sees him getting his shoes on.]

What's going on?