Chapter Text
The cold crisp autumn breeze froze against Rafaela's warm face as she walked out of her small apartment on Bakers St. It was a lovely afternoon on the 29th of October and she was on her way to her shift at a local bookstore after a quick break at home. She was a tall, lanky lady, with tan skin and a huge frizzy cotton ball of auburn hair tied back in a black ribbon. She loved fall, it was the only time of year she wouldn't get funny looks as she walked down the street from wearing her favorite kind of clothes. Today it was a sage green turtleneck shirt, a black skirt that was once a pair of shorts, brown tights, a pair of chunky mary janes that she thrifted, and on top of it all a long, dark brown trench coat tied at her waist, that had patches handsewn on the arms and pockets. It was typically too warm for that kind of outfit, so she cherished the nicer days even more when she could.
As she worked, cleaning counters and tables,organizing returned books and returning them to their places, she imagined what she would write about. Her most recent idea was something about werewolves, but every time she tried to put it to paper she had to stop, getting stuck. ‘Something was missing’ she thought to herself ‘I wonder what it could be’. She had on her desk numerous books on the history and folklore of werewolves, currently there was a folklore book open to a page describing how in one instance, calling out a werewolves christian name could turn them back to a human,but she didn’t have many ideas of what to do with that.
Just as she wondered that, a new face wandered onto the premises. She couldn’t be that much older than her, although she is quite a bit shorter, no way she’s taller than 5,2. She was wearing large black circular glasses, a dark blue dress that went to her knees, some chunky combat boots and a chunky crochet black sweater, the colors complimenting her beige skin. She had dark brown hair with blonde highlights, blown out all big and curled,but still smooth. Antonia tucked a strand of frizz behind her ear unconsciously. ‘I wonder what she does to get it like that?’ she pondered before her eyes looked down to her neck, where a small chain held a little strand of 20-sized dice,all a variety of shades of blue. ‘NO FUCKING WAY SHE PLAYS DND’ she screamed in her head. Then multiple people turned towards her, a mix of laughter and concern. As she collected the dots in her head, the other girl approached her.
“..were you talking to me?” she asked, an eyebrow raised in confusion.
Rafaela was mortified, her mouth suddenly incredibly dry and her face more red than the cover of The Catcher In The Rye she was scanning back into the library.
“Did I say that out loud? Fuck- I am so so sorry” she immediately apologized “I am so sorry,I was so sure I only thought that I- it’s just that I noticed your necklace and it’s really pretty I-”
But she stopped herself because what she heard in response was not a witty, cruel remark but laughter. Loud, genuine, contagious laughter.
“Oh my gosh,you got so nervous!” the now giddy woman replied “it’s fine don’t worry, I didn’t mean to freak you out or anything.”
“Oh thank goodness, I was so scared that I weirded you out or something. Hi I’m um,I’m Rafaela.” she grinned
“Marceline.”she replied with a smile “so you play dnd?”
Rafaela's eyes lit up “I love dnd. I just finished a campaign at my old college with some friends. I'm a level 21 wizard dragonborn, Rhaenys Stonehead is my character's name.”
“Rhaenys as in Rhaenys Targaryan? I love House Of The Dragon!” she grinned “I haven’t played in a while but my character was a level 16 half-elf bard named Selphie Pines who had a speciality of being a bit of a black widow.” she hummed
“Oh really? How so?” Rafaela chuckled
“Oh the usual way, rolling for persuasion,distracting while another party member would attack from behind, then we’d loot the body of valuables, harvest the organs for meals, all that jazz.” Marceline hummed.
They continued to talk for a little while, a few minutes led to a few hours and the next thing they knew, Rafaela was getting scolded by her manager because she was supposed to clock out 2 hours ago. Rafaela blinked in surprise,looking outside shocked to see it was now dark outside, the only light being on the streetlights now dim,and the slow blinking of the traffic lights on the end of the street.
“Oh my goodness, I can’t believe it’s so dark already..”muttered Marceline “I should head out,sorry for keeping you so late.” She stood up from the table they were sitting,fixing her sweater.
“Don’t be,I really enjoyed this.” hummed Rafaela “as a matter of fact, would you be comfortable with me walking you home? Just to make sure you get back safe.”
“Oh how sweet, I didn’t guess you to be the chivalrous type.” she chuckled, “Okay,as long as you don’t mind the distance, it’s a little long.”
The night was warm, and thankfully not windy. It was sort of cinematic, since the town was so urban there weren't a lot of lights, so all the stars were visible. As they walked down the street Paige and Marceline took turns pointing at the sky,gesturing to their favorite constellations. Where they were, they could see Draco, the Big Dipper, and Orions Belt. Before they realized it Marceline stopped in front of a small brick home.
“This is me.” she uttered.
It was a nice home, really pretty. It had a little stone pathway and two small gardens on either side. On the left there were small vines of tomatoes growing,along with cucumbers, potatoes, and peppers. On the right, a row of lavender grows alongside the gate. Next to it were white tulips and black dahlias.
“I didn’t see you as much of a gardener..” Rafaela let out a low whistle,impressed.
Marceline let out a quiet laugh “Most people don’t, I’m not offended.” She took a step closer now about six inches away from her.
“Thank you,for walking me home. You’re really sweet.”
Suddenly clouds began to cover the night sky and it started to rain.
“I don’t suppose you’d let me stay with you awhile longer? At least till the rain dies down?” Rafaela asked hesitantly, now bright red and a bit embarrassed.
“...I’m not comfortable with you staying the night. But you can stay for some tea for a bit if you’d like.” Marceline counteroffered.
“I would really appreciate that, thank you.” Rafaela nodded, following after her as Marceline unlocked the door and entered her home.
The interior of her home was the epitome of Practical Magic. She walked into a small
living room with at least six hanging plants, strangely designed purple lamps and a velvet sofa-where did she even find that? Despite two or three lamps being on and a cinnamon scented candle being lit on her wood coffee table it still looked vaguely dim.
“You can sit wherever you want, or stand, either are fine. But this is sort of a shoes off house, keeps things clean,ya know.” She waved Rafaela in as she took off her Doc Martens. Rafaela stumbled against the door as she took off her shoes as well.
“What um, kind of tea would you like?” Marceline asked, walking into the kitchen.
“What kind of tea do you have?” Rafaela replied, following her.
Marceline opened a cabinet,reading the flavors out loud, “Green Tea both with or without caffeine, English Breakfast, Earl Grey, Raspberry Leaf, Chamomile, Mint, and Cinnamon Apple Spice.”
“I’ll have um..Cinnamon Apple Spice please.” Rafaela replied, taking a seat at the kitchen island.
“Do you want honey with that or not?” Marceline asked.
“No thank you.” Rafaela replied
They continued to talk,sipping tea until their mugs were empty and the clock struck midnight.
“I should head out, I’d hate to think I kept you up too late.” Rafaela stood up.
“Come over more often and maybe I wouldn’t mind you keeping me up.” Marceline chuckled, giving a wink.
Rafaela froze a little, blushing hard. “I um..I can’t tell if that's a joke or not.”
“..Do you want to find out?” She murmured walking closer, now toe to toe with her. Rafaela couldn’t breath, standing completely still, her eyes staring at Marceline's then glancing at her lips. ‘They look so soft..’ she thought to herself. That thought and every other thought in her head completely vanished when she felt those lips meet hers. Rafaela brought her hand up to Marceline's face, cupping it gently as she pressed her lips back against hers. Marceline wrapped her arm around Rafaela’s waist, holding her closer.
After a moment, Rafaela broke away.
“..I stayed really late, I should go.” she murmured hesitantly.
Marceline looked mildly disappointed but nodded,loosening her grip on Rafaela’s waist.
I understand, I won’t force you to stay longer than you’re comfortable with.” and with that she returned her hands to her pockets.
The night felt colder as Rafaela walked out of the warmth of Marceline’s house, the cold rain and sudden wind whipping her hair over her face. She looked at her watch, 12:19 in the morning. The street was completely silent, with the exception of the streetlights flickering or the occasional cat in an alleyway. She popped in some earbuds, listening to music on her walk home. Despite the fact that it typically wasn’t the smartest move listening to headphones walking home alone at night, she wasn’t worried because in her mind this town was a second home, she knew it like the back of her hand.
She continued walking,stopping at a stop sign. Strangely, she thought she heard footsteps behind her. She took out her headphones and looked behind her. Standing before her were three women a bit shorter than her,all in identical black dresses paired with a gold necklace with a wolf head pendant.
“Hello!” the woman in the middle smiled a bit too big and nearly shouted despite being two feet away. “How are you this morning?”
“I’m…okay.”she responded “Can I help you?” she took a step back
“Oh well no we’re just fine!” she replied “But we would love to help you. Do you have a minute?”
“Oh um.. Sure.” she muttered hesitantly
“We unfortunately are victims of..sexual harassment. Everyone in our community are.” the girl on the left began,stepping up. “We come from a community of women building each other up after traumatic experiences, and we just feel awful about this but due to a slight business mishap,many of the people working in our space that help us get back on our feet have quit. We have resorted to asking people on the street for…volunteer services.” she explained “would you be willing to join us?”
“Oh my goodness,of course I would love to help.” Rafaela nodded, the story tugging at her heartstrings a bit. “What is the..what’s the location?” she asked. But she got no answer, before she realized she was following the girls to a van and getting in without thinking twice.
“We are The Children Of The Wolf. as well as being a support system for women and children who have been..hurt,by men.. We are a religious group. The pastor tells a story of a mighty she-wolf who comes down from the moon and kills all who abuse and protects the innocent.” The third girl hums as she buckles her seat and the van takes off.
“Are you religiously affiliated?” she asked
“I’m um..undecided. I used to be pagan but it didn’t work out with me.” Rafaela shrugged.
“Well, no matter what you believe I hope you’ll enjoy your time here.” The third girl chuckled, although nothing seemed funny at the time.
After some time in the van,they reach a large building seemingly abandoned in a wooded area. ‘Why hadn't I seen it before..’ Rafaela wondered. They got out of the van and opened the door. Inside the building were about 30 women and a few kids in a circle, deep in meditation. Everyone was wearing what the three girls were wearing to a tea. The same black dress and necklace, the only differences were slightly older people seemed to be allowed to wear bracelets.
“They are in mediation right now, you will begin with meeting The Pastor in the morning.” whispered the third girl, grabbing her hand and leading her to a simple room with black sheets, a pillow, a blanket and a dresser with a wolf head on top. The girl closed the door behind her and let Rafaela be alone. Rafaela hesitantly laid down in the bed, falling asleep wondering what the pastor was like and what exactly she agreed to.