Thread: Bats in Broom Closets

The way he peaked his head out, like she was the threatening one. Sure, she was well aware of the pain that could be inflicted by a fire poker, but he was the one that had the ability to turn into a wolf. She wasnt the dangerous one there. When he finally came all the way out she had her chance to really get a look at him. It seemed that at least half his story was true. She knew what a fight looked like when she saw it, though it seemed like he had been on the losing end of things. She wondered if it was really possible that his story was true. They beat him and took his cloths, but to go so far, and why run to the second floor? No, she needed to focus. She looked him over, taking in all the details in case she needed to recall later. Audreys recall skills always made school easy for her. She could have gone anywhere, done anything she wanted, but she met Paul first, he wanted to be the one to take care of her. At the time, she had loved him so much she was content to just hang out and party. Why rush life after all? If her boyfriend wanted to take care of her, that just meant more time to pursue her passions. She could almost hear doors closing as she thought about it. She pushed those thoughts form her mind and focused on the man as he emerged. Tall and skinny, he was taller than her by four inches. She wished briefly she had her heels. She had a pair with pointed toes that gave a dangerous kick. Her eyes wandered over his form, taking note and interest in his tattoos, especially the one over his heart. It appeared somehow symbolic but she didnt have the slightest idea what it could be. Her eyes glanced up to his face and she noticed that he was not the only one staring. She stopped herself from touching her face. She hadnt put on make-up yet. She hadnt been expecting to see anyone. With her bruises in sight she felt exposed and she didnt like it. Her gaze hardened, a smoldering temper flared, as if daring him to try and say something. He wisely kept his mouth shut. She followed him down the stairs, keeping the poker at the ready. He was insisting he was just a man? As if she wasnt suspicious enough. It wasnt until he made a beeline for the front door that a thought occurred to her. Wait you shouldnt- but he was already gone. She stood there for a few minutes, waiting to see if he would come back. She couldnt believe she had gotten out of it so easy. When she finally snapped out of it she ran and locked the door. Now that he was finally gone she raced back upstairs to the bathroom. She wasnt going to be caught faceless again. She just had time to finish applying her make up when there was a knock at the door. Audrey froze. Could he have come back? No. He wasnt going to come back. She told herself he ran off to go live in the woods where he belonged, threw on a jacket and jeans, and answered her door. There was a woman on the other side with a pot. This was the pattern for the rest of the day. She didnt know if it was some welcome to the neighborhood tradition or if there was an ulterior motive. It was the same with everyone that arrived. Theyd bring some food with a name she couldnt pronounce, come right in to bring it to her kitchen, scoff at the state of the house, and then ask her about the man they had either heard of or seen coming from the house. She hated lying to them but the truth wasnt really an option. She finally decided that it would be a stay at home day and accepted the cycle of visitors. She stuck with the same story, so that things wouldnt get confused. She didnt need a reputation as a liar. She didnt need to go food shopping by the end of the night either. The following morning she was determined to make better use of the day. She woke up with the sun shining in her window, happy to have chosen a room with the window still intact. The thought reminded her that she needed to find someone to make her new windows, so she got ready to go into town. She wanted to keep things simple and low key today, so she slipped into a comfortable pair of beige wedge booties with a two inch heel and a pair of washed out blue skinny jeans. On top of that she added a gray tank top and a small white mini-jacket with three quarter sleeves. A red handkerchief tied around her wrist both added color to the outfit and hid her bruise. Shed done her make up to cover her eye so she went without the sun glasses today. She had to stop by a few different places before she finally found the man she needed to find and convinced him to go back to the house. At least all the gossip gave her a chance to learn about the place. Apparently there was a reason the people left it alone. The believed the place home to a monster. It was mid-afternoon before she could convince the half sober man to come by and see what he could do about her desperate need for windows. She was coming around the corner of the house when she saw him again. The man was tall with broad shoulders. He was an older man, a little well fed, but otherwise still strong and able. He was carrying boards for the windows, Audrey was carrying the hammer. Are you sure you cant get any before the end of the week? She hated living in a boarded house, but she wasnt going to take the chance, someone had already gotten in once. Ja, apologies Mdchen. She sighed. The man was still explaining why when she saw Mickel trying to fold the bed sheet. Her arm twitched and her grip on the hammer tightened and she restrained herself from following her first instinct, which was to throw the hammer at him. She took the man by the shoulder, trying to steer him away before he spotted Mickel, but she had no such luck. Ah, you must be der fabeled schnen Bettlaken Jungen, with the bettlaken I see. The man smiled wide and nudged Audrey who didnt look the slightest bit comfortable with the situation. Why had he come back? Sure it couldnt be to just return the sheet could it? Her mind ran through a long list of possibilities, none of them seemed good. Well Frulein, your Liebhaber has returned to keep you company. the man laughed heartily. I should be off, let you two finish, how you say, christening the house, ja? He winked at the pair of them, oblivious to the panic that was slowly creeping into Audreys heart. Then the man turned to her and it was curtain call. Like the flip of a switch her face changed, the panic vanished, leaving behind a sweet smile. Her voice and movements were calm and relaxed, she even managed a chuckle. No, no, I told you its not like that. He is just here to return the sheet. He isnt staying. She kindly assured the man who seemed almost disappointed by the news. What? But you should relax, enjoy your liebhaber. Audrey still had no idea what that meant so she kept up her smile. Im far too busy. So much to do in an old house like this. Then let the jugen help. Im sure Mikel has better things to do, hes really rather busy. That was a bold faced lie, she had no idea what he was up to. She could spot expensive cloths when she saw them, it made her wonder more about him. The wild man image he had the night before was gone, and now there was a well groomed attractive man fumbling with a bedsheet. Unsinn! the man snapped. A proper jugen is never too busy for his mdchen! With that the man snatched the bed sheet from Mickel and pushed it into Audreys arms. Before Mickel had a chance to protest hed find his arms full of the boards that the man had been carrying. Now huschen inside! he wasnt giving the pair of them much of a choice in the matter. He opened the door for them and gave Mickel a pat on the back that was a little too hard. The man shooed them in before Audrey had another chance to protest, cutting her off with German she didnt understand. When the door slammed behind them it sounded to her as if someone had brought down the axe. In a moment she had tossed aside the bed sheet onto one of the couches. I thought you wanted to go? Thats why I need a new closet door. Just another thing to add to the list of what needs to be repaired around here. She didnt raise the hammer in her hand, but her fingers gripped it so tightly her knuckles were white. Her arm was tense. She was obviously ready to strike should he try anything. Sure she was scared, but she was done cowering and begging. Why did you come back? And dont say the bed sheet because people dont make special trips for faded linens.