undergrounds | you'll never know what hit you

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you'll never know what hit you

[ooc: This is the Kyle werewolf bite/curse log, plus random other stuff. Feel free to add a new thread or hit me up for plotting!]

i. WON'T SUSPECT A THING [CLOSED to Abigail] - backdated to earlier in March
Kyle arrived at the Widdowson Estate with relative calm. Where once the property was moderately intimidating, his previous chat with its owner had set him at ease and he now felt welcomed to the foreboding structure. Stepping up to the main stoop, he gave the door a few hard knocks and waited for either Abigail or one of her staff to open the door for him.

He wasn't expected and it didn't occur to him until standing at the door that she might not even be home. His concern for Alex was escalating, however, and if it was true that a witch could provide his friend with some kind of moon necklace, then he had to ask the most powerful witch he felt that he could ask. And then convince her that it was worth it, regardless of the price that he would need to pay.

ii. HURT YOU FROM INSIDE [OPEN to first response]
It was late into the evening when Kyle was out and about. While he hadn't exactly adapted the moniker of hunter, he had turned into something of a vigilante, keeping his eyes and ears out and trying to protect unsuspecting humans from vampires and other creatures of the night.

For once, it wasn't a vampire he stumbled onto, but a pair of injured people with what could only be animal scratches on their chests. Last he checked, there were no escaped wolves or rabid dogs in the area, which meant he was probably coming up on an actual werewolf. In wolf form. That would eat him alive.

He didn't pull his knife out yet, waiting for now as he followed the trail of blood. When he rounded the corner and came face-to-face with the werewolf, that's when he had a real problem. The thing was on him before he even had time to draw his weapon, teeth clamping down on his left shoulder while it clawed at his side. Kyle struggled to get the thing off of him, the air knocked out of him from hitting the ground.

[ooc: Feel free to jump in to fight it, scare it away, or find Kyle after it leaves!]

iii. THE POISON IN YOUR BONES [CLOSED to Nancy]
It wasn't the brightest idea. Nancy told him it was a less than ideal neighborhood and here he was, stumbling around it injured and desperate in the middle of the night. He found her building after some backtracking, disoriented and working off of a shit memory anyway, and ran his hand across all the buzzers. Someone finally let him in, while another tenant cursed him out for the late buzz and most didn't respond at all. Once inside, he made his way to Nancy's door and begin pounding on it.

His left arm was curled defensively against his body. Kyle had wrapped his t-shirt around the wound and tucked it under his hoodie, which he zipped up to hide his otherwise scratched and exposed torso as well. When Nancy finally opened the door, he practically fell against the doorway.

"Hi." A smile, red lips on a pale face. "I'm sorry. I didn't know where else to go."

The black of the hoodie hid the color of the blood, but there were still traces on his face and his hair that the hood couldn't hide. With more light, even the black hoodie would reveal the moisture it absorbed.

iv. THE LOVER TO YOUR NIGHTMARE [CLOSED to Alex] - forward-dated to tomorrow
Nancy had taken care of the bulk of his injuries, but it was the curse that worried him more than the injuries or the pain. When he found out that it was something that couldn't be immediately healed, he'd waited until he was alone and allowed himself to break down for a minute. Then he slept it off.

Not that he slept well, or very long. More nightmares, now of himself killing someone and transforming into the monster that Alex was so afraid of. He refused to kill a living person, yet he also refused to live with the threat hanging over his head, like Skip did. He wanted to go back to being a normal human. And while there was a possibility of that, right now, he was running late for a breakfast date of sorts. They were supposed to be cooking french toast.

Kyle followed someone into the building and knocked on Alex's door. His hoodie hid what damage remained, though it was very apparent on his face that he'd slept like shit and wasn't exactly in full health. As if nothing was wrong, he offered her a smile. "Sorry I'm late."

v. A HEAVY BURDEN THAT YOU CAN'T BEAR (Clubbing) [OPEN] - end of March anytime
Kyle wasn't running away exactly. He was biding his time, accepting his powerlessness while he waited for the witches that were helping him to do more. Since he couldn't do anything other than wait, he spent the time coping in his own way: loud music and alcohol.

He was on his fourth drink, already tipsy and trying to make his way to plastered. He spent equal time between the bar, ordering and drinking his shots and beer, and the dance floor, losing himself in whatever company he could find. It took him back to the days when he was the guy guys wanted to be and girls wanted to be with. When it was easy. Whatever could help him forget the rest of the shit for now, even if the ache in his shoulder was a constant reminder.

vi. WHAT YOU MADE OF ME (Hillingdon House) [OPEN] - end of March anytime
Although not exactly a hunter, Kyle had been accepted as part of Hillingdon and had made casual acquaintance there for information and resources. Now it was time to step it up. He spent hours for days on end at the House, trying to find people with information to chat with, to find out more about everything there was to know. Including the political bullshit, trying to figure out where Hillingdon stood and who was with who.

His other objective was to buy a rifle. The soldier was missing his old best friend and the security she provided. He knew the laws, which is why he'd put it off this long, but Alex was right to keep a gun with wooden bullets. Between the vampires and the werewolves, Kyle was getting to be uncomfortably in over his head and wanted to remedy that.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Alex's hand skated from his hair to his neck to his shoulder and back up to his neck, while the other ran down his chest, feeling the hard planes of muscle beneath his shirt. After months of dancing around him, she wanted to hold onto him as tightly as she could, every bit of him, and her hands ran over his body gently but insistently as though trying to touch all of him at once.

She stepped between his legs, but the couch arm still stopped her getting as close to him as she wanted. She pulled him up by the front of his shirt, trying not to break the kiss as she guided him over to the bed.

One of Kyle's hands slid up along her spine, feeling the curve of her, while the other dropped back outside of her clothes to unapologetically grab her ass. He pressed into her wanting to feel her against him and trying so hard to ignore the throbbing. He stood at her beckoning, moving with her into the bedroom and only stopping when finally at the edge of the bed.

"Mm. Mm-" He hummed before breaking the kiss between them, groaning and looking at her with the regret of an adventurer sacrificing the greatest treasure he'd ever known. "You're hot as hell and you know that any other day, I would absolutely do this without hesitation. But I have to tell you, I'm actually in a hell of a lot of pain right now and I don't even know if I could get you off with how fucked I feel. Not in the good way."

Pulling away from the kiss was almost like pulling herself back from drowning. Alex took a deep, shaky breath, reorienting herself.

For a moment, she didn't look at him, before her eyes flicked to his and she said, "Okay." She nodded, and gave him a small smile. She was disappointed, but it wasn't his fault, and him bleeding through his bandages and not having a full range of motion wasn't actually that sexy. "Yeah." She brushed her hair back and nodded again as her posture straightened, her demeanor becoming a little more formal in an attempt to make everything less awkward. "We can just get take-out."

Finally, she met his gaze fully, and relaxed. Even if she'd gone a little too fast, things between them still felt easy and comfortable. It didn't have to be awkward. She rested a hand against the side of his face and smiled before kissing him again, this time without the expectation of it being any more than a kiss.

Kyle dropped his hands to her waist and found himself worried when she wouldn't look at him. It was possible he was giving her whiplash, with the pushing while half-delirious this morning and then the hesitation now. The last thing he wanted was for her to doubt what was between them and he tensed as he waited for her 'okay, yeah' to turn into something resembling an actual reaction.

He relaxed as she did, his lips breaking into a smile to mirror her own. Kyle liked being with her and was glad that she seemed okay with his injuries, because they might become more common if he continued working with Hillingdon. He leaned into the kiss, deepening it with a softness that was far more romantic than passionate or lustful. "I'm sorry. Thanks for getting it."

Alex raised her other hand to the other side of his face, and gently stroked along his jaw with her thumbs as she pulled out of the kiss. It had been a long time since that first kiss weeks ago, and now that they were finally on the same page, she was impatient to do anything and everything she could with him. Who knew how much time they'd have together.

But she got it. He was in pain, and she wasn't interested in doing anything that they couldn't both enjoy.

"Alright." She dropped her hands to his shoulders. "You sit and find a burger place that delivers. I will go to the drug store on the corner and get you some pain meds and... first aid stuff." She didn't know what first aid stuff he might need, but she'd figure it out.

She smiled at him. Even if she was a bit disappointed, the prospect of a boring afternoon of eating take-out really was exciting. "Okay?"

"Have I told you today how great you are?" He asked with his trademark smile, the one he knew had a certain effect and which he used now without boundaries. Kyle was damn lucky to have Alex, especially with his darker side. If he could find a way to help distance her from the pack, or find a way to make the pack stop being shitty, it would be even better. But that was in the future. For now, he was content with a burger and some pain meds.

"Thanks, Alex," he offered sincerely, giving her another quick peck on the lips before moving around the bed to sit on the side with a light grimace, pulling her laptop into his lap. There was a very good chance that he would need those pain pills as soon as she returned.

Alex shook her head, narrowing her eyes but still smiling at him. "No. You said I looked great, but then you insulted my cooking, so I kinda feel like you owe me."

After months of being on the receiving end of that smile of his, it should have been old and boring, but it still made butterflies appear in her stomach like she was seeing it for the first time. She had the sudden urge to kiss him again. Her instinct was to resist that urge, but she reminded herself that she didn't have to, she could kiss him now. When he gave her that quick peck, she returned the kiss with a little more passion, one hand moving up from his shoulder until her fingertips lightly brushed his cheek.

And then he was gone again.

She grabbed her keys and some cash, and paused on her way out as a potentially awkward question occurred to her.

"Are you staying the night?" she demanded, a little brusque to offset the embarrassment she'd feel if he said no. "I'll get you a toothbrush."

"Well, you're amazing," he murmured before the peck that turned into a kiss. He wanted to keep kissing her for hours, to act like teenagers again and waste away the time with base groping and mouths mashed against one another. But they were adults, better than that, and he watched wistfully as she moved for the door. Even knowing she would be back soon, Kyle already missed her.

At her question, he froze, straightening his back and ignoring the pain in his side for his effort. "You tell me."

Last night at Nancy's, tonight at Alex's. He really needed to get his own place, to stop his aunt and uncle from worrying. And to save him a hell of a lot of explaining.

"You should," she said quickly. It wasn't just that she wanted to spend more time with him, though that was definitely part of it. "Somebody's gotta keep on eye on those bites."

His aunt and uncle were probably more qualified to take care of him than she was. He could tell them he got bitten by a dog or something. But she was worried about him, and if he left she wouldn't know whether he was alright, and she'd just worry more.

"Bite," he corrected lightly. "One bite, one scratch."

Kyle indicated his shoulder and side respectively. He wasn't sure why it mattered to him to note that there was only one bite, as if that would somehow make him less cursed.

But he nodded, giving her a casual smile from his place on the bed. "Then I'll stay tonight, let my aunt and uncle know. But don't think I'm going to spend the whole day shirtless just so you can keep an eye on my bandages. If you want shirtless Sutton, you're going to have to earn it."

Alex's eyes rolled sideways and her jaw locked as she tried very hard not to smile at him.

"I need to keep on eye on the scratch and the bite," she said, being very specific about his wounds to tease him, "for medical reasons." She finally got her expression under control and frowned at him, as though completely disbelieving that he could in any way question her medical integrity.

"You want anything else while I'm out?"

Kyle faked a pout at her deliberate mockery, though it disintegrated fairly quickly with the amusement in her eyes. He couldn't help but smile and think again how grateful he was that he was finally beginning to feel like maybe he could fit in here. It was a lot less lonely now, even if he wasn't convinced that she knew what she was getting into.

He made a display of contemplating for a few seconds before smiling. "Do they have Slurpees here?"

That wasn't the kind of request she'd been expecting. It was slightly ridiculous and weirdly sweet that he wanted, of all things, a Slurpee. She thought about it for a second before shaking her head.

"I don't think so. Just order a milkshake with your burger. That's kind of the same thing, right?" Alex didn't have the most discerning palate.

"No, Alex. It's not the same at all." The disappointment with her inability to recognize how different those two things are is almost palpable. He sighs dramatically, setting the computer aside and planting his hands on either side of him as he thought for a minute. He probably would get a milkshake anyway, but it wasn't the same.

"Gummy bears? The staler, the better."

That was an even less expected request, and she couldn't help but grin at him. "Stale? Gross." She nodded towards the laptop. "Order me whatever looks good. I'll be back really soon."

Once outside, Alex paused and took a breath before moving quickly and purposefully towards the store. This morning, she'd been looking forward to another slightly strained cooking lesson in which she spent more time reminding herself that she and Kyle were just friends than actually learning how to cook. Now all of a sudden he had the curse that she'd hated since she was old enough to understand it, and they were... what? Boyfriend and girlfriend? It was a lot to have happened so fast.

He didn't even know her real name. The last guy she'd been with hadn't either, and she'd never gotten around to telling him. He'd freaked out and left somewhere between 'trained killer' and 'werewolf.'

If Kyle was going to freak out and leave, she'd rather he do it now rather than later. Besides, she didn't like the feeling that she was still lying to him, even if he knew she had a lot of secrets. He deserved the truth. When she got back to the apartment, she decided, she'd tell him.

It was only a minute or two to the little drug store on the corner, and another minute or two to find the pain pills, some extra bandages and tape, and an antiseptic cream. As promised, she also picked up a toothbrush and a bag of gummy bears.

She paused again outside her front door, fumbling to unlock it. It didn't even occur to her to rehearse what she was going to tell him. She'd much rather just rip the band-aid off. She opened the door and moved towards him, offering him the shopping bag so he could take the gummy bears or the pills, whichever he wanted first.

"I want to tell you something. But it could put you in danger if you know it, are you ready for that?" She knew he hated her keeping secrets for his protection, but she didn't want to drag him into her problems without fair warning.

Edited 2016-04-29 02:31 (UTC)

Kyle remained unmoving after the door closed, counting out a minute before he finally flopped back onto the bed. The attack, the pain, the curse, Nancy, Alex. The potentially fatal experience had definitely given him a new perspective on certain things, things like being honest about his feelings, but he was putting on a brave face and now he had his first real moments alone to process.

He easily wiped the moisture from his eyes in the couple minutes that followed, appreciating the silence. But that was it. That was all the time he allowed himself, afraid that any more would lead him to a darker place that he couldn't afford right now. Instead, he sat back up and set to ordering them food; a couple burgers, fries- chips, and a milkshake.

He was barely done ordering when he heard Alex at the door and stood, moving to go unlock it for her. Kyle only made it halfway before she let herself in, a hand unconsciously resting on his side. His lips formed a smile at the sight of her, perhaps more so because she seemed randomly distressed.

"My shoulder would argue I'm already in danger," he joked with a light smile. It helped soothe the wounds of another sort. "Lay it on me."

Seeing him standing there, smiling despite the pain he must be in, almost made her change her mind. Instead of confessing her whole tortured past, she could ask him to leave with her, run off to some beach somewhere and never worry about vampires or other werewolves or one of them getting killed.

But even if she did ask him that, he had to know the truth first.

"I'm not really Alex Winslow. My name, my real name, is Alexandra Udinov." She didn't expect him to recognize the name since he'd only just learned werewolves existed, so she plowed right ahead. "My parents didn't die in a car crash, they were murdered. My father was the alpha of this pack in Moscow. His second in command wanted him dead, so he hired mercenaries to kill my parents. I was supposed to die too, but this woman saved me. She's the one who taught me how to fight."

She paused, watching him expectantly and a little nervously, waiting for his reaction.

At first, it seemed like a joke or prank of some kind. Then a concern. By the end, Kyle didn't know how to feel. He was angry, worried for her, wondering if this was some betrayal or if they were good. He understood keeping secrets and, to be fair, she was telling him now. But she had lied to him, about a lot.

His expression tightened into a concerned scowl and his muscles tensed without him willing them to. He remained statue still, listening, watching her, silent. He was waiting for the rest of the story. It was clear there was so much more to be said.

Alex's stomach knotted at Kyle's tight expression, but she kept talking because she wasn't sure what else to do. She'd made up her mind to tell him the truth, and even if there were some things she still didn't want to talk about, the time between her parents' deaths and Nikita finding her again, she would tell him everything that mattered.

"Nikita. She... she used to work for them, the mercenaries, but she went rogue. She was trying to take them down."

She turned to drop the shopping bag on the counter and took a breath before turning back to him. "Division." She practically spit the word out. "They were called Division. She told me that they killed my parents, so I... I helped her fight them. I went undercover..."

She could feel tears prick the corners of her eyes, but she frowned harder, willing herself not to cry. Despite everything, she missed Nikita.

"I don't know if it's still there, if the man in charge is dead or locked up or what. I left. I found out... Nikita's the one who killed my father. So I left. I made a plan to get back into Russia and kill Semak. He's the one who ordered my parents' deaths. And then..." She'd never thought about 'and then' before, but maybe it could involve her and Kyle running off to that beach together. Her expression turned almost pleading. She hoped, even expected, that he'd understand why she'd kept all this from him.

Kyle was silent for a long stretch, trying to make sense of the information.

"Your parents were hot shot pack leaders and this guy Say-mock hired Division, which means Nikita, to kill them. Which she did. And then.. she saved you by not killing you, so you trusted her enough to let her turn you into a ninja and to go undercover for her in this assassin squad to.. what? I don't get that."

A beat.

"And then after whatever-the-hell you were doing with the A-Team and Nikita darling, you went back to Russia and killed Say-mock to turn around and move to London so you could.. play house with an ex-soldier, because I'm not already fucked enough? So when did you kill the guy that held you as a slave? Or was that some bullshit cover story? Have you ever even lived in the U.S.?"

His frown deepened, but he still didn't move. Hand on his side, standing there before her, trying to understand what the hell she was and why she lied and why she was telling him the truth now. In fact, he didn't understand.

"Why the hell are you even telling me?"

During the long silence after she'd finished talking, Alex started to move towards him, but stopped when he began to speak. When he finally fell silent again, she crossed the last distance between them and reached for his arm.

"Because I want to be with you! But not if you don't know the truth."

She took a breath, thinking through the questions he'd had. "The night my parents died, I didn't know what was happening. The Division team burned the den down, and half the pack was dead too. I saw someone kill my father, I ran down to the cellar and I must've passed out 'cause I woke up in a cabin miles away. Nikita wasn't there. I had no clue who she was til she found me years later. She..." There were a slew of excuses on the tip of her tongue, reasons why Nikita had lied, why she'd killed Alex's father, and Alex hated that her first instinct was to give him every excuse to defend Nikita. "She didn't tell me that she'd killed my father. She... she had her reasons to lie."

Her issues with Nikita weren't the point. "The guy I killed was the one who brought me to America. I got away from him in Michigan, okay? I was in Michigan til Nikita found me. I killed him last year. I haven't bullshitted you, Kyle. I told you I had secrets. I had to lie about my name and my parents because if Division or Semak found out I was here, they would kill me, and they'd go through you to do it."

Normally, she would have found his terrible pronunciation of Semak endearing, but right now she was much more concerned with making him understand.

"I haven't killed Semak yet. I was going to go weeks ago but I stayed because of you!" She tried to smile at him, still hopeful and nervous.

Kyle remained quiet, still. He didn't resist on encourage her hand on his arm. It wasn't that he was rejecting her and, truthfully, he wasn't all that angry at her for lying to him or holding back or whatever. He understood that. What he didn't understand was her convoluted story. And it unnerved him slightly that she was dumping it all on him now, now that he was a werewolf, wondering if that made a difference.

He thought through everything she was saying, giving the words far more weight than was characteristic for the ex-jock. Ex-jock, ex-student, ex-soldier. Kyle was racking up too many exes and the mere thought made her staying for him all the more annoying. What others might find endearing, he found almost insulting.

"Why the hell did you stay for me? It's not like I'm leaving, or I'd stop talking to you if you left." He huffed, his scowl deepening again, less sad and confused and more annoyed.

"And why the hell do you want to kill Se-mack anyway? I get the revenge fantasy. Been there, had that. But killing him won't actually help. And if you're so hell bent on it, why aren't you killing Nikita too?"

If the men who killed his family were sitting in front of him, there's no question Kyle would pull the trigger. But he wouldn't go searching for them. It was a waste of his life that they didn't deserve. "What's tying you there?"

"I wanted to spend more time with you. I didn't know how long I'd be gone." Alex couldn't figure out why he seemed annoyed by her staying.

"It wasn't Nikita's fault," she said slowly, frowning. Alex wasn't sure she could forgive Nikita for lying to her, but she wasn't sure she hated her either. "Semak's the one who ordered it," she continued, her voice gaining confidence. "He wanted everything my father had, so he took it. He's living the life that should have been my father's, I can't let him get away with that."

She wondered what he meant by 'been there, had that,' who he'd wanted revenge on. But she didn't ask.

Kyle couldn't figure out how to respond to the idea of her putting what sounded like her life's goal on hold for him. He had feelings for her, yeah, but they had only been together for less than a day and here she was acting like they were about to be engaged or something. It was unfamiliar, and seemed insincere in a way he couldn't begin to pinpoint.

"So you'll kill S-Man, but not Nikita? What about whoever takes over for him? Will you kill them too? What's the fucking point?" Fish didn't rot from the head, like the saying went. Cutting off the head didn't prevent the disease from spreading to the flesh. It sounded like a temporary solution to a larger problem. Unless her goal wasn't to end the pack. Would that be better or worse, he couldn't decide.

"If you want to go, fuckin' go. Don't stay for me. If I'm an obstacle, then I'll end this now.. I refuse to be a ball and chain."

"Semak. I don't care who takes over for him." She hoped Semak's replacement would be a good person, capable of leading the pack without following in her father's violent footsteps, but it wasn't her pack anymore. She had no say and she didn't really need one. "Semak's the one who ordered my father's death, he's the one who deserves to die." She opted not to address Nikita again. Nikita was confusing and upsetting, while Semak was simple and straightforward.

She squeezed his arm gently as she scanned his face for clues to why he was so upset about her staying. "You're not an obstacle. I was... having fun. With you."

Having fun had been a strange feeling, one she had, from time to time, wanted to lose herself in. She liked their cooking lessons, and doing touristy things with him, and watching movies together. It had all felt normal, and it had made her feel like she could have a future, something she'd rarely considered before. Going off on a potentially dangerous mission to Russia hadn't mattered to her when she hadn't had any friends or family, no one to miss her and nothing she'd miss. But she'd met Kyle, and suddenly it had mattered.

"I stayed because I like spending time with you. Why're you acting like that's a bad thing?"

you'll never know what hit you

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