Finding Love Through Darkness Part. 1

      The night unfolded around her, as if she had just been born from a flower of darkness. She couldn't remember the last time she had felt this free, or this scared. But she knew what she had to do, gathering courage and holding it close to her as a child grasps its mother, Spotting the entrance to the castle through the fog and haze of the late night world that was New Orleans, she walked through the gates and up the stairs to face her destiny, even though her destiny only held death. At least she would get one last chance to look upon her lovers face once more........





                                        6 months earlier......





        The Sun shown down brightly on the town of New Orleans, the light casting a bright glaze on leaves of the nearby trees. The ocean made soft smacking sounds as it bounced against the sand of the shoreline.



        "Such beauty there is in this world, yet for the life of me, I can find no happiness in it." thought Lyrick, although a girl of only 20 years, the bags and dark circles under her eyes gave the impression of someone in their early forties. She was on her way to the music shop were she worked, a job she loved. Music was the only thing that kept her going these days, that, and her best friend Mystik. In personality, they were polar opposites, Lyrick being very much the loner, while Mystik was outgoing and seemed to never frown, But in looks, they were mistaken for sisters wherever they went.



      Lyrick continued walking as the streets started coming to life. Throngs of tourists and residents pouring out of hotels and homes. As the boardwalk filled with people pushing past one another, making their way to wherever it was they were going, Lyrick, feeling crowded, decided to veer of her original path into her favorite coffee shop. She reached the door, reaching for the handle when the door suddenly opened. "Go ahead miss," a crackly voice said, Lyrick looked into the face of a very elderly man that had to be in his nineties, "Thank you so much, Sir." she replied, stepping into the dimly lit coffee shop, the savory aroma of fresh brewed coffee and the sweet smell of the various cakes and cookies filling her nostrils, she breathed deep and let out a sigh of contentment.



      The Brew had only been in business a few months, but it was quickly becoming one of her favorite hang outs, besides the music store she worked at. The atmosphere in the shop was very welcoming and quite, a place where someone could sit down and think about life, dreams, bills, problems, whatever was plaguing them at the time, the main reason Lyrick loved coming here.



      She made her way towards the counter, giving a slight smile to the frail teenager behind the counter. "The usual, miss?", he asked, his soft voice almost lost in the buzz of the patrons talking amongst themselves. "Yes the usual," Lyrick replied, making her way to a table nestled in a corner of the shop.



        She sat silently waiting for her coffee, holding her head down, her long black hair covering her face. She was thinking about Mark, as she often did on days when she felt completely drained and lifeless. It had been 2 long years since she had returned to the appartment they shared, only to find Mark in bed with another woman, she still remembered the fight they had that night, the argument turning into abuse as he violently beat her, leaving the blackish purple bruises on her small frame, a parting gift he had called it. Even after 2 years, she still wondered what she had done wrong, what she could have done to stop it....



        He had never seen anything like it, the beauty behind the falling curtain of straight black hair. If only he could get a closer look, to make sure this woman across the room was real, to separate dream from reality. And the most confusing part is that he felt like he knew her, would recognize her anywhere. He knew that this was foolish, daydreaming about a human when he was the monster that hunted them. Sobering at this thought, he slowly moved his gaze to the window looking out over the bay to the ocean beyond.



        'Such a beautiful city', he thought, 'and yet it holds the darkest secret within it.' Most of the city was occupied by a predator race, yet no one knew it except for the race itself. Their secret, so smartly hidden, the darkness behind the beauty, a dark smudge on the clean city. The same secret that had forbidden him to ever love a human girl, even one with such beauty as this one girl had. As he thought, his eyes drifted back to the girl, who, to his surprise, was looking straight at him, her face finally completely free of the satiny black curtain of hair. She had the looks of an artists' muse, a heart-shaped face, soft curving chin, smooth, elegant cheek bones, a cute button nose, and big, beautiful violet eyes, unlike any he had ever had the pleasure of looking into. They stared at each other for what seemed like an eternity to both, time stopping for them so that, just for a moment, they could forget reality, and give in to their dreams of finding that one person. But, as all things do, the moment came to an end. As reality set in for the two, they both looked away, each one shunning themselves for fathoming such foolish dreams.



        Checking her watch, Lyrick's eyes widened, realizing she only had 5 minutes before she had to be at the music store. She hurriedly grabbed her purse and bolted for the door, throwing away her empty coffee cup in the trash on her way out. She reached the door and was about to open it and make her exit when someone bumped into her, knocking her purse to the floor. Muttering a curse, she bent to pick it up, clasping her hand around the strap when she felt her hand come into contact with a very cold, pale one. Looking up, she was shocked, staring into the face of the man she had spent the last ten minutes daydreaming about. "Thank you," she said breathlessly as she pulled the strap of her purse over her shoulder, starting to turn away and exit the coffee shop. "No problem, maybe you could return the favor," he replied coyly, smiling slightly. Lyrick turned towards the beautiful man, "return the favor?", she asked. "Yes," he replied, "by going out to dinner with me tonight."