A Sisterly Meeting

Colleen was paranoid about the note. Of course, she was paranoid about everything, that’s why she was still alive.

World ended and you don't say hi to your big sis?

Meet me at the park 3pm. it'll be safe.

There was a stylized picture of an owl. The symbol of the Aves Minerva. Big Mama used that symbol. Colleen’s family was dead, but there was still someone who might call her a sister. The dog.

A note slipped into her safehouse mail slot didn't seem safe. It meant Levi could find her. Who else knew? It had to be a trap. But that symbol. That stupid bird compelled her. Mama's bird. Stupid, sentimental.

Levi “Free Dog” Birmingham waited in the park, casually eating a hot dog. The guy making them was just giving them away for free. Said there wasn't really a point when the world ended. Levi didn't really mind. The world was always ending. She'd never really expected it to happen like this, but her training prepared her. Not that there was really much to do. The Verges were weird. But the Flesh was strangely quiet, for now.

She took the last bites and sauntered around the park. Levi was a six foot tall trans woman, and owned it. Well muscled and lean as barbed wire, she cut an imposing figure. Even when she wasn't wearing a top that looked like a massive bandana stretched over her breasts and wranglers so low cut the fur on her stomach was visible. She was one of the taller people in the park, and not many folks in Ashcroft wore Stetsons. Colleen would have plenty of time to scope her out.

But as she walked around, chatting with the people who seemed much more inclined to spend the end of the world having a day at the park, even she was starting to wonder if little sis would make a show. It wasn't until around five fifteen and two more hotdogs later that she got a whiff of Colleen's scent. About time. Free Dog knew how skittish Leen could be, so she didn't make any moves or show she noticed. She just slipped her hands into her belt loops and headed to a rose garden. Line followed, Levi tracking her by scent.

Levi leaned against the railing of a bunch of flowers. She should take the kids here some time. The pack could use some time to stop and smell the flowers. But Line, much as Levi hated to say it, was dangerous. She didn't want the younger Wolves around her. Family is complicated…

A minute later, Levi felt a gun at her back. She knew it was coming, and anything less than silver would just be a nuisance, but years of Big Mama's training still had to be suppressed. The best way to get Colleen to start shooting was to make sudden moves.

“Hey, sis.” Levi didn't move, voice calm. She wasn't really worried about the firearm. Caliber felt too small. And Colleen wouldn't use silver again.

The woman behind her had a voice that was reedy and thin, a loud whisper. “Don't call me that, we're not sisters.”

Levi gave a shrug. “We could be. Big Mama raised us both. That isn't silver, is it?”

The gun pressed into her back, making Levi wince. She jumped as if it was just a branch or something equally awkward and inoffensively safe.

“Hey, ow, that's really uncomfortable.” She held her arms out slowly, keeping her head down. “Gonna turn around, Line. I'd really appreciate if you didn't shoot me on such a beautiful day.”

The gun moved away from Levi's back, and she turned around, still showing her hands. When she was all the way turned, she just leaned back against the railing, hands at her sides, holding onto the wrought iron. She gave Colleen what she hoped was a friendly smile, but you can never tell how the herd will react to a strong primal urge.

Colleen Line did not look like a killer, but fifteen years ago, neither did Levi. She was kind of short, with mousy brown hair that hadn't seen a comb, pulled back out of her eyes. She looked nervous, and wore cargo pants, a faded grey shirt, and a decades old military jacket that had several poorly patched bullet holes. Some of them were even from before Colleen. The pocket had the name Line on it, but it wasn't Colleen's.

“What do you want? Are the others watching me? How'd you find out where I'm living?” Her voice was a hushed whisper, the gun now down at her side, still pointed at Levi.

The wolf shrugged. “No, the pack doesn't know about you, and I'll keep it that way if you want. You wanna put the gun away, before people start gawkin’?”

Colleen slipped the gun into her pocket, but still kept it aimed at Levi. For her part, the wolf shrugged again.

“Is that silver? I don't want to hurt you again.”

After a brief moment, Colleen let the aim of the gun down just slightly. “You tried to kill me.”

Levi let out a snort, and Colleen pointed the gun back at her. She just put a hand over her mouth and stifled the laughing. “Sorry, sorry. You did shoot me, sis.”

Colleen winced, but the gun tipped further down. “Don't call me that.”

“Sorry. Colleen. But you did fucking shoot me. If I weren't a werewolf, I'd be dead.”

“You're a monster.”

Levi shrugged. “My most monstrous aspects came from Big Mama, not from being a werewolf. If I were a monster, you'd be dead. A Rahu in kuruth would send trained soldiers pissing themselves. I know, because I've done it, right before I ripped them apart. I didn't hurt you, though. Because you're my sister.”

“Didn't hurt me!” Colleen hissed, finally letting the gun go so she could pull the collar of her shirt to show four long gashes extending down across her chest. She looked like she'd been skipping meals. Then again, those bags looked like she'd been skipping sleep as well.

Levi at least has the decency to look ashamed. “I mean relatively. I know you probably got worse with Mama… right?”

“I still wake up screaming because of you. Because of her.” She was struggling to keep her voice down, and she was pacing, running her hand through her hair. “Because of them. What the fuck do you want from me?”

“I want you to be okay.”

“The world fucking ended! There are…” she looked around the park, and then to the roofs of the buildings that flanked it in the distance. Her whisper got smaller. “There are Watchers.”

Levi frowned, following Colleen's gaze. Nothing there at the moment so and she could see much further. Then… there. Over a mile away. A faceless man—could have been a woman, could have been anything—standing on a rooftop. As soon as Levi noticed it, it stopped what it was looking at to turn towards her. She locked eyes. It was like staring at a statue.

She turned away.

“I know. And I'm looking into it. I'm goi—” Levi cut off as Colleen stumbled. Levi could smell fresh blood, and went to her side, pulling her shirt out of her pants to take a look at the bleeding. When had she been stabbed?

“No!” Colleen shouted, trying to shove Levi away. Her push was weak. “Vet on forty third. Stitches. Leeches hit me…”

She was losing blood fast. Levi bit her lip, but this wasn't the time. If Line wanted to hate her, she could do it better when she was alive. The Herd was starting to look, even they knew when one of theirs was hurt. She pulled the shirt up and could see the popped stitches. She couldn't go getting worried up like that. First putting the gun right against her back, where Levi could twist and easily—easily—control the weapon and turn it against her, now this. Line should know better, Mama taught her bet—no. No. Levi was better than this.

“Line, Line listen to me, we're on Percy.” Levi's voice was calm, but stern. A fucking rock. “I don't use a truck, there are still cars on the bridge. I cannot get you to your doc.”

Colleen whimpered, trying to get a knife from her belt. It was silver, but Levi easily grabbed Colleen's arm and twisted, knocking it to the ground. Levi kicked it away and eased Colleen to the cobblestone as well.

“I want to help you. Tell me you want to live and you're in. I'll be able to help you.” Pressure on wound. It had been years since she seriously needed to treat one of the Herd. They were starting to look. Levi picked one at random, “Get me a towel! Shirt, anything.” he rushed away, and the Herd was distracted.

“I don't want to die. Don't let them kill me,” Colleen’s eyes were unfocused, with tears in them. “Not like mom…”

Mom. Not Mama. She'd heard what happened to lead Colleen to become a Hunter.

“Sis. Line. Please. I need you to agree. Let me help you. I need to let you in.”

“Survive.” Mama's command. Her one iron clad rule. That was good enough for the Totem. Through it's connection with Levi, the spirit of Garden Gate understood. It bestowed the blessings of the Pack onto Line.

The moment Levi felt that ephemeral connection, she burned Essence and took Colleen’s wounds onto herself. Line’s bleeding stopped and when the sheep with the towels came back, it was Levi who was bleeding.

“Fuck, Line, that's a fucking kidney or something.” It wasn't, but Levi didn't need to know the anatomy to feel it healing as more essence knit her flesh and merged internal organs back together.

Already, Colleen was starting to realize her knife wound was gone. Levi did it. Was it a trick? Was she working with the bloodsuckers? No. No, Levi wouldn't do that. She was a sister. She was—no. No, this was something else.

“What did you do,” she accused, feeling Levi work at her with the towel. It felt good. It felt like family. This wasn't right. “Why do I like you now?”

Levi winced, and kept toweling them both off. Murmuring was going through the Herd. Was that magic? No more bleeding, no injuries?

“Line, we gotta get out of here, the straights are looking at us.” She helped Colleen to her feet, and kept a tight grip on her arm. Colleen noticed, but didn't try to break away. She was gripped with new feelings of belonging. Feelings Big Mama tried, in her own way to give, but never could. That feeling Colleen thought she'd lost.

Family.

Levi, turned to the crowd, bold as brass. “Nothing to see here. Everything's fine. World ended a week and a half ago. Strange shit keeps happening. Little bit of magic shouldn't surprise you anymore.”

“Need to leave,” Colleen muttered, trying to hide her face. She grabbed the towel from Levi.

Good girl. No trail, just like Mama taught. The blood on the ground shouldn't be an issue, but that towel could be used for any manner of voodoo. “Cafe down the road, come on. Can you walk yet?”

Colleen finally jerked her arm away. Levi could have held her tight, but let it go. “Cafe.”

The two of them headed out of the park, Levi making sure to keep Colleen in her perception. She didn't walk behind her, that would be too obvious. But even more than usual Line was her responsibility.

Colleen in the other hand tried to piece through emotions. She'd felt vampires control her mind before, she'd felt a false memory. Hell, she doubted most of her memories as is. This sense of family felt so real. She felt kinship. And the traitorous little part of her mind that still had hope, the part she didn't know still existed, could tell Levi felt it as well. Towards her. She hated that. She wanted the security of indignation. Mama didn't teach them to love.

They walked in silence through the park and down a few blocks. It was a little further than Levi—that long legged bitch—had said, but Colleen didn't complain. They had blood on them, but in the last week or so there were stranger things going on. Outside the cafe, Colleen stopped dead. She just stared at the shop windows.

“I know this place.” She kept her voice calm, but had the urge to run. Only that curiosity about what Levi did to her kept her fixed.

“Hm? Storybrooke? You've been here before”

Colleen shook her head. “This is where the monsters go.”

“Line, it's safe.” Levi felt safe, even if Colleen hated that. “I promise.”

Colleen fought the lies. “I’m not going in there.” They were already at a second location. How could she do this? What would Mama say? Not that she had any backup. She started walking backwards. “No.”

She didn’t run away, even though she wanted to. There was something tying her to Levi. Something fucking magical. She fucking hated it. She reached for the gun in her pocket and gripped it. She didn’t take it out, she just held it. For comfort. She didn’t have the knife anymore. Not that she wanted to use it. A shiver ran through her spine, deep in her bones as she remembered Levi tearing the room apart, a hideous voice telling her to run as the Wolf tore into things.

Only things. No, shut up. Traitor. Not me. It wasn’t right.

“Line, Line I can’t have you shooting up the street. You pull that out, I’m going to stop you.”

Colleen almost said yes ma’am. That was the tone Mama used. Did Levi even know what she was doing? Colleen could feel herself wanting to be deferent. Instead she just slowly took her hand away and mumbled something.

“Good. Alright.” Levi kept her voice level. “We don’t have to go to Storybrooke. We’ll go where you feel safe.”

“I don’t feel safe with you.” Finally Colleen was able to say something smart. But she felt like she was lying.