MonsterVille
Sixteen

Mellie was waiting for them to return home and from her expression she already knew what had happened. She slapped River so hard his head rocked back and he was spitting blood on the door step.

“What were you thinking you stupid human?” she screamed, “You attacked a monster? You’ve doomed us both!”

“Mellie,” Katie-Cam said softly, “If you’re angry with anyone you should be angry with me, I was the one who took him to the party.”

“Don’t get me started on you!” Mellie hissed, she clenched her fists and shoved Katie-Cam who took a step back, it looked more like a polite step rather than Mellie actually having any impact on her. Mellie shoved her again, and again, and as she went to push her she started crying as she folded into Katie’s arms and started flailing weakly against her friend’s chest.

“I’m sorry,” Katie whispered, “I am truly sorry, I didn’t mean to do this. I was just trying to help you.”

Mellie buried her head in Katie’s shoulder to hide her tears, she was speaking but the words were muffled. Katie-Cam just continued to soothe her like everything was going to be alright.

“I’m never going to see you again,” Mellie whispered, “You’re the only friend I have…”

“I’m sorry,” Katie-Cam murmured back, “I will come back, one day.”

“But I won’t be here to see it.”

“And I promise you whichever one of those miscreant freaks lays a hand on you will know my wrath, I can’t save you but I will deliver tortures the likes of which they can’t comprehend to any one that thinks you’re easy prey.” Katie-Cam turned towards the empty street and raised her voice, “Do you hear that you vermin and pathetic wretches, tell your masters and your packs and every little monster out there that they will have me to reckon with when I return and I don’t give a damn if that means I have to tear every last monster in this town apart. If she is harmed I will do it!” She roared the last part into the night, a roar of fury and rage, of desperation, fear and regret, a roar of such wrath whatever lurked in the shadows scurried away.

Mellie’s arms were still wrapped around Katie-Cam, and she had buried her head in Katie’s chest as she cried, so Katie had to settle for turning her head in the woman’s grasp to look back at River.

“I think I might actually miss you, so a piece of parting advice, when you’re taken? Find something sharp and open a vein, it’ll be a far better fate than what will otherwise befall you.”

Katie pulled back from Mellie and cupped her friend’s cheek, “I didn’t think I could still feel this,” she confessed, “I didn’t think I could feel anything but hunger any more. Guess I was wrong.” Katie-Cam leant in swiftly and placed a long kiss on her friend’s lips, a kiss of goodbye. The kind of parting when they knew they would never see each other again.

“Live well my friend and make the bastards pay for every inch.”

Katie-Cam vanished in a wisp of displaced wind and a stretch of shadows. Mellie fell forwards and River stepped forward to catch her out of reflex. He looked down into her teary eyes and blotchy cheeks and as one they looked away into the shadows of the dark surrounding them, as the chills began to creep up their spines.