Faithy-Jane Smith's Story

Time had passed in silence, and the tension in the air had dissipated, leaving only the awareness of a brooding kitsune and a preoccupied vampire. While Gwen was swimming through his jumble of thoughts, Ren had taken to seeing how many different foods he could blend in a wineglass. Noticing this, Gwen scowled, but couldn’t help but feel that the demented mess of colors and substances in the glass resembled his own sentiments. It just increased his irritation towards the vampire. The last thing the kitsune needed was a reminder of his bewilderment.

Ren suddenly set down the glass and food. “This is boring,” he stated, drawing up his feet to now sit cross-legged on the table, ignoring disapproving stares from his companion. “They aren’t waking up.”

Well, for that, Gwen was grateful. He didn’t look forward to seeing the humans’ reactions to their… alterations. They would awaken soon enough, but what then? Anger? Sorrow? Gwen didn’t know what to expect, but surely it would all be directed towards him and Ren. How was he meant to react? How should he react should such circumstances arise? Brittle had assigned him an impossible task…

And then suddenly, there was movement.

Gwen noticed from the corner of his eye, a shift – one of the unconscious form moved, not in spasm from the changing, but seemingly of own will. The annoying mortal girl. The overemotional one. He watched intently as she pressed her fingers to her wrist and her eyes flickered open. They were unfocused, unclear, as he would have expected… but his concern was what would happen once she was fully aware. What was he meant to prepare himself for?

He very near flinched when the girl burst into sobs, but the kitsune somehow managed to maintain a calm, stoic manner. He noted how Ren peered down at the crying girl rather curiously from his perch on the table. Gwen didn’t like the expression on his face – comparing it to his previous blunder with shattering the wineglass, he seemed to have recovered far too quickly. There was a familiar mischief to the vampire’s eyes as he glanced at Gwen and gestured with an eager smile to the girl upon the ground.

The two otherworldly waiters watched as she staggered uncertainly on her feet. Gwen noticed how she immediately went to a different boy – the one whom he had deemed the irritating one. His gaze followed the girl’s motions as she propped the unconscious figure in a chair and stared at him. The kitsune was just a little appalled. Didn’t she notice the strange alterations? Or had she actually managed to ignore the new appendages?

Another girl for sure, most certainly had not. A loud clatter alerted Gwen, his ears pricking up before flattening at the jarring noise. Abruptly turning, he saw that a different orphan had awakened in a slightly more hysterical manner… it was the newly-changed kitsune. Both waiters shifted their gaze just in time to see a chair topple to the ground, and the girl catch sight of her new reflection. Gwen took in her expression, seeming far calmer than he felt. In fact, his true sentiments resembled her expression. Confusion. Fright.

In her altered form, the girl was just slightly more menacing than before when she clenched a fist and glared at the two waiters. “What have you done to me?!” she shrieked, her voice loud enough to grate at Gwen’s sensitive ears. He managed to keep cool in demeanor, but inside he was a little jostled... and completely unsure of how to react. Anger. He had realized this would be the most obvious emotion to deal with… but he didn’t know how to handle it. Seeing as Ren had managed to keep a level head through the night’s events, green eyes flitted in the vampire’s direction to see if the other waiter had even an inkling of what to do.

Gwen noticed with dismay, that the vampire seemed rather excited by the new exchange. “The change turned out nicely,” Ren mused, and Gwen was struck by the urge to hit the other waiter with a tray. Of all the possible things to say, that was clearly one of the least acceptable options. However, with conflicting impulses, Gwen wasn’t at all sure what to do himself. Sympathy – despite himself, he remembered his own moments after changing, and found a small, fleeting urge to offer comfort. Unease – he wanted to avoid these turned humans completely because of this unwanted sympathy.

After moment’s hesitation, he managed to say, “Explanations will take place after everyone is conscious.” The tone came out colder than he had actually intended, but he couldn’t help that. Glancing once more at all the limp forms in the extravagant room, Gwen held back a sigh before quietly adding, “They will all awaken momentarily.”