Green - a werewolf story

21. The Watering Hole

Vanessa stared at the crowd surrounding her. This was not a normal club.

"Are all of these people shifters?" she asked Green with a voice filled with suspicion.

"No, all magical creatures are allowed in here."

"Do the humans know?" Vanessa asked, watching a girl pass her with her arm around the waist of a... well, she didn't know what he was exactly but from his webbed hands and the shimmering scales on his neck and face she would place him firmly in the non-human category.

Green shrugged. "Some, maybe. Most think this place is dedicated to cosplay. This is San Francisco, after all."

He was right about that and Vanessa was glad she'd had the sense to put her necklace on. She'd come across as a human, whatever species the creatures sniffing her out belonged to. She wished Green had warned her, though.

"I thought I'd told you how I feel about being in a place with other... beings," she said as he ordered a drink for her.

"You did. That's why I didn't tell you."

"Wow. Thanks a lot," Vanessa said as she looked around at the interior of the aptly named club The Watering Hole. She was in the jungle, alright. A jungle with great lighting and an impressive-looking gilded balcony to one end and a DJ with four legs to the other.

"I didn't want you to not try it out simply because you're prejudiced."

"Prejudiced? Me?"

"You automatically believe everything magical that's not you is out to kill you."

Vanessa opened her mouth to protest, but realized he had a point.

"Fair enough," she said instead. "But when everyone's out to get you, paranoia's just good thinking."

"Then it's a good thing not everyone's out to get you," Green said and handed her her drink.

"Thank you," Vanessa said.

"You're welcome. And if you don't like it here, we can leave."

"Mm," she said, sipping her mojito. "I'll take that under consideration."

Looking out over the dance floor she didn't feel particularly inclined to leave, though. It was a mishmash of color and movement, the lights traveling over the crowd. She felt the bass of the music in her chest, the drums in her core. No way a human had recorded this.

"Want to dance?" Green mumbled in her ear.

She should say no, should stick to the sidelines, nurse her drink and content herself with people watching. That was the smart thing to do, the safe thing to do.

The music called out to her. She discovered she was already swaying in time with it, tapping her foot on the floor. No, this was not human music, it seemed to have a will of its own. Vanessa found herself draining her glass and putting it on the bar before reaching out to Green and pulling him out on the dance floor.

It had been a while since she'd let herself dance like this. She used to go clubbing with Jerome a lot back when she'd been convinced they were going to be together forever. Then after they broke up and she was doing her best to get over him. Dancing had always been her favorite way to make herself feel better. Then there had been that one incident that had made her quit New Orleans and stay away from crowds and dancing and anything... fun. That experience had taught her that it was common sense to stay away, stay in control. She wondered where she'd left her common sense tonight.

Green moved closer to her, surrounding her with the scent that was almost overwhelming even here on the crowded dance floor, even without her werewolf senses.