Floating along (Shalayna Davis)

[Zodiac]

After a week or two, she finally had a pattern of sorts. The child favored one empty apartment building, but also had a couple of deserted houses she used. She also used a couple of shady shops to trade in her stolen prizes for cash.

None of her eyes saw her at a bank, but that could be bad timing. She did not imagine the girl was that stupid but then again anything was possible.

Places she grabbed food were random. People were almost non existent in her life, except for targets to pilfer from. No long conversations.

Curious.

But the pattern was solid enough now to take a educated guess. As she slipped out for a round of night theft, it became possible to tell where she would end up by the directions she would take. After the third text telling her where she was, Zodiac thanked her eyes and told them to wait till they heard from her again and turned her phone off.

***

Zodiac wrapped herself in shadows as she drifted into the old apartment complex. Trusting her nose, she soon found the unit the girl had been camping out in. A few moments of searching found the empty hall closet. It’s placement in the place left it in total blackness and the door was missing. The mystic un-shouldered the bundle she had with her and sat it inside, and then entered herself to settle down and wait.

[Shalayna Davis (DELETED 12735)]

Shalayna walked in the apartment and collapsed on the floor. That stupid boy had stabbed her in her side. She crawled to the closet not paying attention and grabbed wrapping out of her bag. She began to breathe heavily in pain. She looked down. This will need stitches, she thought. She dug through her back to find a needle and some string. This should do.
She began stitching the wound shut letting the blood flow onto the floor. Why did there have to be so much? She sighed when she finished and wrapped the wound with a bandage.
She tried to get up only to fall back down. "Guess I'm sleeping on the floor tonight." She sighed and tried to sleep.

[Zodiac]

She heard someone enter. Not steady on their feet and surrounded by the sweet smell of life itself. Zodiac had sat away from the few things that were already in the closet, so the groping hand meant nothing to her. The only way her shadows could be broken was if she was touched or if she chose to do so. She watched from the darkness as the child tried to bind her wounds. The expression on her face anger and outrage as she worked said it all. Oh yes, how dare someone say no and fight back. It amazed her the entitled mindsets most thieves had. Her own life ran along similar lines, but she was from an older view of things. You won or you lost– simple. No crying or pouting because your prey dared to fight back.

She also smelled her properly now. So much blood. It over rode the stench of decay and ruin the room held. Almost cleansing it of all things reeking. Life, it screamed. Life slowly fading away.

A soft sigh cut the silence. If she would just leave now, the issue would resolve itself and this one could complain how unfair everything was to whatever was in charge in the next level of existence, but…

She emerged from the shadows and inspected the room. The door could be secured easily and a old blanket or two could keep the sun out from the windows. ‘What a whiney worm you are,’ she thought to herself as she looked down on the dying girl. ’But if you had what you wanted, would you stop whining and become more?’

Her fangs were in the girl’s throat before she could debate the matter further, taking her even closer to death’s door. Fingertips monitored the heartbeat as it began to fade. When she was close, the gypsy pulled away and bit her own wrist and let her own tainted blood begin to leak into the girl’s mouth. ’Swallow if you want to live.’ she hissed in the girl’s mind. When she was sure, she pulled her arm back and let a few drops fall on the wound in the girl’s side.

’The rest is up to you and nature now,’ Zodiac declared as she licked the wound in her wrist till it sealed. She then retrieved the bag from the closet. Inside was clothing, a winter coat, some cash and a few other things the girl could use. She sat it beside her and then moved a chair to block the main door and covered the window. Nothing would disturb this one till fate made its decision. Either she’d be reborn or die. Zodiac honestly did not care which for once in her life.

’You thought life was hard before? Perhaps you will learn now there is always worse.’ she laughed softly in the girl’s mind. ’Good luck. You will need it.’

With a gesture, she teleported herself elsewhere, leaving the girl alone in the darkness. It had been ages since she properly cursed someone.

[Shalayna Davis (DELETED 12735)]

She felt the fangs pierce her throat as she screamed. She didn't know what to do at that moment as her blood was drained. She felt hot liquid fill her mouth and heard the voice. She drank it as darkness consumed her.

*Few days later*

Shalayna groaned and looked around the room. It was her apartment. She felt different. She didn't know how, but she just felt different. She looked at her side. The wound was healed. What had happened? She was confused.