At the sound of the door unlocking, she pushed it open, letting it swing on the hinges as she made her way inside, lightly throwing the keys off to the side where they came to a landing in the large bowl on the side cabinet. The ride home had been… awkward to say the least; and that had nothing to do with the fact that her brother had been sitting on the back of her bike, hugging her tightly around the waist as they rode towards her home. Removing her leather gloves, she threw them into the bowl with the keys, her hands lifting up so that she could remove her bike helmet, placing it down on the top of the cabinet before she began to make her way further into the house, her feet carrying her towards the kitchen as she took off her jacket, draping it lightly over the back of one of the chairs as she went.
“..close the door behind you…”
Shooting a quick glance at her brother from over her shoulder, she frowned, holding his gaze for only a few moments before she turned her attention back to where she was going, her boots making soft ‘thuds’ over the ground as she made her way through the rooms and into the kitchen, her pace not stopping until she had rounded the bench and opened the fridge, “..you want a beer..?”
Damien did as he was told and shut the door behind him, the click of the door seeming to echo throughout the whole front portion of the house. He stepped further inside, standing in the living room while his sister stripped her motorcycle gear and took those moments to look around.
It was very much the same as when he had come to visit a few years back. The house was big - far too big for just a single person. But Zoé loved her house despite it’s size and lack of occupants. He wasn’t about to bring that argument up again.
”Would you shoot me if I asked for a Modelo?” he asked, half joking. ”Yeah. A beer sounds great, thanks.”
“You’re lucky I happen to enjoy one every now and then…” Taking out a couple of bottles, Zoé closed the fridge door behind her as she turned back to the bench, her free hand reaching down into one of the draws as she searched for a bottle opener. Modelo was a beer she didn’t drink very often… but when she did, it was usually when her brother was around. He was the only reason she even bought it; the only reason she drank it in the first place.
Popping the top off once she had found what she had been looking for, she put the bottle opener down on the counter, sliding it in his direction before she lifted the beer up to her lips, taking a sizable swig from it before she placed it down, her dark eyes flicking about the kitchen; this place was about to become a lot more crowded now that she had her family back… between her new sons and the pack… her brother coming back into her life… her sister and nephew… She was going to have to go grocery shopping sometime real soon.
Shoving the thought out of her mind for now, she let her attention turn back to her brother, her gaze a little weary… a little bit skeptical as she once more began to lift the beer up to her mouth, “..so… magic huh..? You wanna explain how you suddenly ended up a warlock..?”
Damien graciously accepted the beer, his eyes staring down the label as though it were a lost lover before he brought the bottle neck to his lips and took a good, healthy drink. Hearing her question, Damien was about to put the beer down but ended up smirking against the rim and took another swig for good measure.
"Druid, actually." he corrected, swallowing again to let the remaining foam from the quickly gulped beer pass down his throat. "And funny story... it happened because I was thinking about you. Now... how about the story of when you became a Werewolf. Wait. Pause. Not just a Werewolf... But an Alpha? News to me until I got here."
“News that would have been received over a year ago, if you hadn’t of left me hanging... I told you I needed you…” Tearing her gaze away from his, Zoé let her attention fall down to the marble bench top. She didn’t want to have this argument again… she couldn’t have this argument again. It was bad enough that they had to have it the first time round.
Lifting the beer once more to her lips, she took another swig, allowing the alcohol to fill her mouth before disappearing down her throat. Really, she should be eating. Not even having time to take a bite of the sandwich that had been made for her, she slipped it into the fridge for safe keeping; it was the better of the two options. Leaning her body forward, she let her forearms rest lightly on marble, a gentle sigh falling out through her lips before she closed her eyes completely, her head dropping down for only a few moments before her gaze once more flicked over to him, “..so, if you’re a Druid, I’m assuming you have a pack you serve… how nice of them to let you come see your little sister…”
“I don’t have a pack.” Damien said almost instantly, matching the bitter tone she delivered in her first statement. “Actually… I’m fresh out of training. And by training, I mean that my ‘special time’ in Russia felt like a maldito vacation!” Damien shut his eyes tightly, substituting an English vulgar term with a Spanish one out of habit. Why was it that he had to compare everything to Russia? And still she failed to see just how much he had been through, or even if she did, failed to acknowledge it. He lifted a hand to rub his shaved head, buying him time to calm down some before he decided that he simply just needed to tell her everything before he could expect her to understand anything.
“A few months before I was supposed to come visit, I had a job.” He kept talking straight through, not wanting the eyes or even the negative feeling he knew that came with the family’s feelings on his choice of profession. His oldest sister was the Chief of Police… his baby sister running her own brewery and restaurant. And Damien… Damien worked whenever people wanted to hire him to build or fix things. He knew straight away that he was the disappointment in the family; his mother never failed to mention it. He just didn’t need any reminding from Zoé.
“I took out this wall and was ripping up some old flooring and with a bit of digging, I came across this little wooden box and inside the box, a necklace I thought would be perfect for you. So I spent some time and money getting it restored- the perfect gift for my baby sister when I came back to America. Except the necklace had a mind of it’s own. I started getting sick after I found it. Fever, dry heaving, explosions from both ends… I could have passed it off as just an ordinary flu except for the dreams that visited me every night…” He shook his head.
“Zoé it was terrible. I was back in hell. Nothing was getting better and I felt like my own body was forced to do things I couldn’t control. Next thing I knew, I had used up the money I had saved to come visit and I was in Mexico. There was this woman… I never saw her before but I somehow knew that I had to find her. She was the one driving me crazy and I needed to tell her to stop. I was driven by something I can’t even explain. I went from Mexico to Argentina, all of my money was gone, but I found her. And that was enough for me. I didn’t have a concept of time or anything else, I just knew that she was the answer to what was happening, why things were changing in my life. But she threw me flat on my back without even blinking an eye and told me that I had been chosen, and needed to fulfill a prophecy. Madness. I was sure. I fought it. I tried to fight her. But each and every time I found myself back in the dirt, one way or another. It was humiliating; my pride was stripped from me one moment after the next…” Damien trailed off, his eyes somewhere distant as he seemed to be staring somewhere past Zoé’s shoulder. Not even the buzz of quiet seemed to irk him in the slightest. Then, finally, after what seemed like hours, “I’ll spare you the details. But when I was finally allowed to leave… I would have put my own life against anything betting that I had lost at least ten years there… All I knew is that I had a promise to keep. And that promise was coming to see you. So… here I am.”
Unsure what to say, Zoé remained silent… listening carefully to what he was telling her. All this time… she’ just been under the impression that he’d abandoned her, just like her niece had done, but it seemed as though it wasn’t the case. Once again he’d been forced to suffer through another bad situation- he’d already survived his time in Russia… Damien didn’t want this, and he didn’t deserve this… and yet, he’d been put through hell, only to wind up back here… standing at her kitchen bench… ready to keep the promise he had made her all those years ago...
“..Damien…”
Dropping her gaze back down, she stared once more at the marble, seeming to think for a few moments before finally, she made a move. Placing her beer down on the bench, she pushed away from it, her boots making soft ‘thuds’ over the ground as she made her way around to where he stood, barely giving him a chance to respond as she wrapped her arms tightly around his body, her dark eyes closing as she pressed herself against him in a hug, “..I’m sorry… I-... I should have known something was up…”
His brows raising at the sudden show of affection, Damien quickly swallowed his last gulp of beer before he set the empty bottle down on the counter closest to him so that his arms were free to wrap around his little sister. Damien issued out a sigh, letting his chin rest on top of her head. This was the way that it was supposed to be - the way it was going to be if he hadn’t been interrupted with… life. His hold around her tightened, almost as if he needed to know that she was actually there.
“Late or not, I always keep my promises.” he told her, trying to console her despite the fact that he might have been the one needing it. “I love you, Zoé. I’m sorry… I’m so sorry…”
This was the Damien she knew… the Damien she loved. Pressing herself closer against his body as she felt his arms tightening around her own, Zoé gently nuzzled against his chest, her soft lips parting ever so slightly as she continued to hug her brother for what felt like the first time in forever. Gods she had missed him… so damn much. As much as she had denied it over the last year, as much as she had done her best to keep herself together; she needed her big brother… she was always going to need her big brother…
“..I love you too, Damien… and I’ve missed you so much…”
Shutting her eyes tighter than before, she hesitated, not caring that she was tearing up as she lifted her head, allowing her gaze to meet with his, “..there’s-... there’s a lot we have to talk about… you’ve missed a lot more than you think. Whatever you want to know; ask, I’ll do my best to answer, just-... just please don’t leave again…”
“Just… start from the beginning.” Damien pulled his arms away from her, resting his hands on each of her upper arms and took half a step back so that he could look at her properly. It would be easier that way, he believed. She had much to tell him, and he, her. He could ask questions as she went along. “Tell me everything, Zoé.”
