The Setting of Boundaries

They walked through the woods in silence. Walter was far too tense to try making simple conversation while Briar was staring around at their surroundings in awe. She was happy that the forest was the first thing she was able to see in all her time in the darkness. As an immortal creature, she had seen the evolution of cities. With how fast they were able to grow, it was a surprise that this land had yet to be terrorized. 

"You're going to help me get used to this time period then?" He nodded, happy to have any sort of conversation with what his coven perceived to be their savior. Her mismatched eyes turned his way then - sharp and pointed. "What was your name?"

"Oh, my bad! It's Walter. Walter Louis." She narrowed her gaze on the hand he stretched out in greeting, one she dismissed with an exhausted sigh. Briar thought that, after so long being stuck underground in a comatose that she would be over the weary feeling in her bones. That her pains and aches from being alive for so long would have their peace and settle. This was proved wrong easily. "And you are Miss Briar Blythe."

With a huff, she glanced back at the man. "I know who I am, witch." He mumbled something under his breath, but it was hard to hear over the sounds of the forest. Everything was getting so overwhelming. "What year is it? How long have your people kept me under there waiting?"

The witch hesitated as if he could feel her murderous emotions flowing from her in waves. This was obviously a trap he saw coming. The longer she was kept asleep, the angrier she would be with them. If he was smart, he would look for a way to divert her attention. At least in an attempt, that is. Briar was much too stubborn to let anything that important go. 

"It is 2023 now. I won't lie to you, you've been sleeping for a long time." He surprised her by telling the truth. If she couldn't hear any irregularities in his heartbeat, she would have questioned if it was longer and he was trying to lessen his coven's punishment. That did give him some points in her mind. Not many, but she valued the truth above most things. 

"Sleeping…" He didn't say anything to her angry muttering, choosing not to dig himself into a deeper hole. 

To be fair, this witch was smarter than most she had encountered. This was the only witch she knew that would willingly keep his mouth shut. Witches tended to stick to their mindsets no matter the facts against it and no matter the threat in front of them. This man seemed to have developed much better than any of the witches she knew before her imprisonment. It had her wondering if he was forced into this by drawing a very unlucky short straw. 

She watched him stumble over an uplifted root and turn back to her with a blaming look. Her brows furrowed in confusion, "I am not a child, witch. I have no need to play silly games like causing you to trip." Perhaps he wasn't part of the smarter crowd. "I assume my attire isn't quite fitting for seventy years into the future." 

Her eyes flitted down to her nightgown. It was now dirty and worn from the long years underground. Not to mention the holes ripped through various parts of the dress that were shredded by the vines. A cruel joke; to have the one thing she was meant to have full reign over be the thing keeping her still. Either way, the gown was something she never wanted to be seen in public wearing. Especially when she was already going to be introduced to a whole new world. Even Walter grimaced at the look she was sporting. 

"My coven spared an allowance for me to take you shopping around town, but you might have to wear something of mine before we can get to that." It was not much of an offer, but she would have to make due. 

Her lips parted in the motion to continue the conversation, but they finally reached a gravel parking lot. There were two cars sitting only a few parking spaces apart. With a deep breath in, she could tell one was Walter's and the other was the man that she ate just moments before. "I do not plan on being in the eyes of your coven."

"Technically, you won't be." The witch led her to his vehicle, which was something she had never seen before. Cars must have lost their aesthetic appeal throughout the years. She opened her own door after he did the same on his side and slowly slid into the passenger seat. The seats in these new vehicles were also much less comfortable than the ones she was used to. "It was decided that - so you didn't get overwhelmed - you would be staying at my apartment. I have a spare bedroom that was prepared for you."

"You mean so I don't set ablaze to your coven's valuables," she corrected confidently. He even nodded in agreement, focusing solely on backing out of the space and starting down the winding back road. "Nonetheless, I have no reason to dilly dally here. I have work to get done and I have already lost so much time." 

He glanced over at her with a frown while she simply watched the road ahead. "There's no reason to run off to war so quickly. You should take time to recover so you're actually ready when it all begins to go down."

"I would rather you not try to use my own feelings to keep myself under your coven's thumb." She never truly liked driving. It wasn't that she disliked the motion of it or the smoothness of the ride. It was simply that while being stuck within the walls of a vehicle like this everything around her felt dead. It was like sitting in a graveyard as everything came out to play. "I know very well that you do not care whether I die at the end of this fight as long as your people have a chance to win in the end."

There was a moment of silence between the pair. Briar would rather that than him attempt to convince her to fight for them. "I didn't think this was a good idea in the first place." She turned over with a look of surprise. Then her look narrowed in suspicion. "You're uncontrollable. And from the stories I heard? A menace. They couldn't have reasonably thought you would just go with this willingly."

"Perhaps I should apologize. You are much smarter than I gave you credit for."

"But now I understand that, either way, you're going to do what they want you to. There's no need for me to push you into anything. You will fight the council. You will weaken them and you will fall to them. And, when they are on their final leg, my coven will swoop in to finish the job." He seemed rather pleased with himself. Briar watched that satisfied grin with an unhappy frown. She would have to teach this witchling that she was not to be trifled with.

Her head rolled as she looked back to the window, "The stories you speak about, they should have taught you better than to speak to me like that." She rolled her wrist as it laid against her leg, breathing out in a slow manner. 

"I'm just stating what I already see happening." He must have noticed her newly tense posture since his voice began to quiver. "With that determined look in your eyes, it's obvious you won't be letting this go anytime soon."

"I will be surviving anything they try to throw at me, witch. And, when I'm through with the council, I will switch my sights on your coven for even the thought of me falling victim to those pesky little rats." As she neared the end of her sentence, her voice turned into more of a snarling tone. She was sick of people underestimating her. She was an immortal being for goodness sake. She was going to do whatever she pleased and nothing could get into her way.

He started to drum his fingers on the steering wheel while peeking over at her several times, "You don't mean that."

She grinned at him, "If you think I will be dying, then why look so nervous all of a sudden? Your people were the ones to specifically trap me in that cave. Your coven in specific. You thought I was going to let something so large slide?" Briar laughed, hiding the maniacal grin behind her dirt stained hand. "You are lucky to have this time to prepare for me. I usually don't give such an honor to my enemies."

"I don't want you to think of us as enemies, Briar!" Her head cocked to the side, no longer hiding the plotting grin. 

"You just told me that you didn't care what happened to me," she reminded him, "That you were ready for me to die." The nymph forgot how one-sided things seemed to be when you were talking to a witch. He could threaten and mock her but when it was the other way around it was uncalled for? It was clear his coven would be the same.

His fingers stopped drumming and they gripped the wheel until they turned white. All the while the vampire watched on in fascination at his inner battle. "That's not what I was trying to say. I only meant that - with or without my help - you were going to do what you set your mind to back when you got turned." He looked back her way and she could see the electric pulse of magic radiating from his dark blue gaze. "I didn't mean for you to take it that way."

"Calm yourself, witchling, or you'll burn yourself out before we get to your home." She sighed, letting a neutral facade straighten her features. She wondered if everyone in this time was temperamental or if it was only him. "You will have time to find a way to survive. Or perhaps you will prove yourself useful enough not to be grouped with your coven? I haven't quite decided."

If she were going to be stuck with anyone at all, the nymph was happy that it was at least someone that looked reasonably pleasing to the eyes. Briar was never one to have much interest in anyone besides her sire so it was intriguing to know that he was capable of drawing her in. Not that she would let any of those pesky feelings get in the way of her plans. She had far too many things to do still and having a witchy toy was low on that list.

"How long am I going to be stuck in this death trap with you?" It was clear he wasn't ready to move on in the conversation yet, but there were better things to do than run circles around each other. She was going to have the last word and the sooner he realized that the better it would be for him. 

He frowned, taking a deep breath in then out again. "Too damn long."

On that, they could both agree. She was ready to get out of this place before he could rile her up any further.