Broken Fairy Tales

Prologue: Beauty And Beasts

Something had happened in Fae. Something so big that it broke the number one rule and the effects spilled over into the human world. The human news did it's very best to string together narratives of why the Earth itself seemed to vibrate for a day while some of the most influential poltical and business leaders, in every country all dropped dead, or died in accidents. Whatever was happening, even humans knew something was up.

I had been sat, trying to eat a decent breakfast at the rough roadside diner I saw from down the blacktop on the straight away after the last hill. The very boards and bones of the spot looked old and weathered. But the windows were clean and more than half the tables were full. For how remote and out of the way I was, that was as good as a sign that I was going to get that the food was decent. As I parked my well used Norton motorcycle by what looked like a recreation of a hitching post, I noticed a sign, 'Ma Webbs, Est. 1986. Come in and let Ma take care of you'. Cute. I shook my hair trying to make it look anything but the greasy mess it was after wearing the helmet for too long, too many days.

I scrunched my nose up like something smelled bad after reading the cheesy sign. But my foul mood evaporated as I walked through the glass entryway, opening the second door and being hit with a wall of comforting smells. Steak and burgers. Fries and apple pie. It wasn't a large dining room, but as more of the tables were seated than empty, the chatter was lively while a handful of cute servers weaved their way around the room and in and out from the kitchen. I sat myself at the far corner of the counter. Away from the busy pass between the kitchen and most of the dining room, also away from the windows, and where most of the other guests had chosen to sit.I was several days into my ride, and significantly less than fresh.

No, you reek. Terribly. Dusty too. How did you get so dusty driving?

Shut up wolf. Stinky is better than dead.

He had no retort to that and was silent in my head again. Secretly I was glad to hear him. Even making fun of me. Anything to hear that he was still there. He was quiet. He didn't like that I was running. He had the heart of a hero like any wolf. But we could feel something happening, and whatever it was, it was going to hit populous places first, shit always did. So I was bugging out and heading for the hills. Literally. It was a long drive, but I was planning to nestle myself deep inside one of the rocky mountains. It was spring still, so if I got there quick, I might have enough time to build a decent one room log cabin to get me through the winter. Then I could improve over the next few years until I had a comfortable homestead. A comfortable place to ride out the impending apocalypse.

The willowy waitress stopped at my table. Immediately I could sense her wolf, just as she did mine in such close proximity. She controlled herself well, but I could feel her heckles rise as she scented me for what I was.

Rogue.

"What can I get you Stranger." She stressed stranger as she said it, and a number of heads turned.

Shit, I didn't feel any pack boarders, but I must be awful fucking close considering the glares heading my way now.

"Two trucker specials, extra bacon, extra sausage. On both. Coffee, orange juice, apple juice, and ah, one of the apple pies when they're ready." I said, keeping my voice bright and breezy, the voice my mom had taught me to use to be polite with people we needed to impress. Or people we needed ask a favor from. Usually we were asking for favors. I could be charming. Would be better if I wasn't in dire need of a bath, but I decided to give it my all. I lowered it to a whisper, just loud enough that I knew the pretty wolf would hear me, but maybe not the others, "Really, just food, and then I'm on the road and will be long gone before the sun sets." Soft, disarming, lets make the eyes sparkle just a little bit, it was manipulative, needs must though.