The Divergence

Lavinia gently wiped her fingers with a napkin before folding it once and setting it lightly against the edge of her plate. 

Half of her sandwich remained, along with scattered pieces of vegetables and a small amount of sauce, but she felt no particular urge to finish it.

Across from her, Evangeline idly nudged a fry that had fallen onto the table before pushing it back toward her plate. 

She tousled a hand through her long red hair and leaned back in her chair with a faintly dissatisfied expression. ”The food was good, but I want to do something fun now.”

Lavinia glanced around the table.

Most of the plates looked much the same as hers.

To a human, the amount of food left behind might have seemed wasteful. 

A few meals had been eaten almost completely, but others were only half finished, and Evelyn’s pie still had a sizable portion remaining despite the repeated theft attempts from Celestine and Adelaide.

For vampires, food simply wasn’t necessary.

They ate because flavors were enjoyable, because textures were interesting, and because sitting around a table with people you liked was pleasant. 

Lavinia could probably continue eating for quite some time if she wanted to, but there wasn’t a familiar human point where her stomach gradually tightened and informed her that she’d had enough.

She wasn’t hungry.

She wasn’t full.

She had simply eaten until the taste stopped being interesting enough to justify another bite.

Valerie idly balanced a butter knife on the tip of one finger. 

Every few seconds she shifted that finger slightly, giving another tiny burst of momentum while keeping the utensil spinning almost perfectly in place. ”We could keep shopping, or we could leave the mall and find something else to do.”

Rosaline watched the knife rotate. ”You’re going to fling that at someone.”

”I am not.” Valerie adjusted her finger again without looking at it. ”I have excellent control.”

Lavinia eyed the spinning knife. ”That is exactly what someone says before throwing a butter knife through a window.”

Valerie smiled. ”Then I’ll make sure it doesn’t happen.”

Cordelia shifted in her chair, her exposed stomach making her current outfit feel far less familiar than the gothic dress tucked safely inside one of their bags.

”Part of the problem is that a lot of things we might have done before happened during the day. Now we can only really emerge after sunset, so I can understand why we keep reaching the point where nobody knows what to suggest.”

Adelaide rested both forearms against the table, the oversized sleeves of her gray hoodie bunching around her wrists. 

She glanced toward the werewolf table across the restaurant before saying, ”We could simply go back. Nothing has happened tonight, and if we return now, then nothing else can happen either.”

The werewolves had received their meals some time ago and were eating while talking among themselves. 

Whatever irritation had existed earlier appeared to have settled, and one of the female wolves was laughing about something while another tore through a portion of grilled meat.

Lavinia followed Adelaide’s gaze before lightly clapping her hands together. 

”We’re not looking for trouble, but we’re also not going to leave just because somebody else is sitting in the same restaurant. We have as much right to be here as anyone else.”

Several wolf ears across the room twitched.

Lavinia noticed and ignored them.

Evelyn nodded softly in agreement while absently pulling at one of her blouse sleeves.

”We could wander around for another few hours. Maybe we’ll see something interesting, and if not, we can think of somewhere outside the mall afterward.”

Rosaline pushed her chair back and got to her feet. ”I don’t mind wandering around, but I do want to leave this restaurant. I can almost taste a few scents I’d rather not have clinging to me.”

One of the wolves looked over.

Rosaline smiled pleasantly at them.

Lavinia suppressed a laugh and pushed her plate farther inward with one finger before rising as well. ”I’m fine with whatever. Walking around sounds easy enough.”

The others began gathering themselves.

Then a chair scraped violently across the floor.

Lavinia looked over.

One of the male wolves had gotten to his feet so quickly that his chair shot backward into the occupied table behind him. 

The wooden back struck hard against the edge, jostling everything on top and knocking a drink into the lap of a young man who looked to be in his early twenties.

His companion, a woman around the same age, jerked backward as another cup tipped toward her.

For half a second, irritation flashed across the man’s face.

Then he looked up and realized who had caused it.

The expression changed immediately.

The werewolf ignored the spilled drink and glared toward the vampires. ”Do you think we’re deaf?”

Lavinia stared at him for a moment before spreading her arms helplessly. ”Why are you so agitated?”

The question was sincere.

She genuinely didn’t understand it.

Humans did the same thing sometimes. 

Someone would whisper to a friend, another person would overhear, and suddenly the fact they’d been capable of hearing something apparently made the conversation their business.

If the words weren’t directed at you, why care?

Valerie snorted softly and folded her arms. ”He’s probably just that type. Quick to anger and a little brainless.”

Several vampires made amused sounds.

The werewolf’s ears flattened slightly.

Lavinia gave Valerie a warning glance before looking back toward the wolves. ”We didn’t mean anything by what we said earlier. They were observations and opinions, nothing more.”

She raised one hand toward the waiter and gestured for the bill.

The other male werewolf looked toward the one standing and reached out, lightly tugging at his arm. The golden-green eyes staring toward the vampires wavered for a moment.

Then a quiet voice came from the table his chair had struck.

”We should’ve just left when they came in.”

The young man who’d been splashed spoke under his breath to the woman beside him.

Unfortunately, the werewolf heard him perfectly.

He wheeled around. ”What did you say?”

The human stiffened.

The wolf stepped closer. ”A little bit of your drink gets spilled and you’re pissed off? If you’re angry, then do something about it instead of running your mouth.”

The vampires were already lifting the bags containing their original dresses. 

Rosaline had reached the portable payment terminal the waiter brought over and was tapping the government card against it when she heard the exchange.

She clicked her tongue.

The young man at the table had gone pale, but now that most of the restaurant was looking directly at him, embarrassment appeared to overcome caution.

He lifted his head. ”If I’d known some idiot was going to throw his chair into our table and dump our drinks all over us, then yeah, I would’ve eaten somewhere else.”

The restaurant went very quiet.

The young woman beside him stared at him.

He continued before she could stop him. ”And instead of apologizing, you’re getting mad at us.”

His companion immediately bumped her shoulder against his. ”We should just go.”

The werewolf slammed one palm down onto their table.

The impact was far too strong for ordinary furniture.

Plates jumped.

Glasses tipped.

One shattered on the floor while two plates slid off the opposite edge and broke beside it.

The young woman recoiled.

The man shot to his feet.

His heartbeat was so loud to Lavinia that it nearly felt tangible from across the room.

The werewolves could hear it even more clearly at this distance.

The standing wolf laughed incredulously as he stepped toward him. ”What, you’re showing off for your girl now?”

The human clenched his hands.

The wolf extended one arm. ”If you think you can actually do something, you’re a fool.”

His hand moved toward the human’s chest.

It never reached him.

Lavinia was suddenly there.

One moment she’d been several tables away, and the next her golden hair was settling around her shoulders as she pulled the young man backward by one arm. 

She steadied him without difficulty before releasing him.

”We’re all adults.” Lavinia glanced between them with a mildly exasperated expression. ”Physically attacking someone can end with you sitting in a cell. That seems like a lot of trouble over a spilled drink.”

The werewolf looked at his empty hand.

Then his gaze lifted.

His golden-green eyes met Lavinia’s empty red ones.

A growl entered his voice. ”Clearly it doesn’t end in prison. Some of you killed people and you’re walking around free.”

Lavinia spread her hands again. ”We were attacked.”

She gestured toward the ruined table behind her. ”Here, you bothered them first.”

Then a thought seemed to occur to her.

Lavinia turned around and looked between the humans. ”Are you actually a couple?”

The woman blinked.

Her face reddened instantly. ”Y-yes.”

Lavinia nodded. ”Okay.”

Across the room, several vampires smiled.

Valerie rolled her eyes affectionately. ”That is such a Lavinia thing to ask right now.”

Lavinia was about to respond when her ears caught the displacement of air behind her.

Not the clean, almost seamless motion of another vampire.

This was heavier.

More forceful.

Violent.

She sighed.

The werewolf’s fist was already traveling toward the back of her head when Lavinia tilted aside.

The punch passed her cheek.

Lavinia spun.

Her heel struck the wolf directly in the stomach.

A sharp crack sounded through the restaurant.

The werewolf was launched backward, crashing through one table before tumbling over another and hitting the floor amid splintered wood and scattered dishes.

Several humans screamed.

The remaining four werewolves rose immediately.

Their chairs scraped across the floor as golden-green eyes sharpened and expressions shifted from irritation to outright anger.

Lavinia raised both hands. ”I actually helped you.”

One of the wolves stared at her incredulously.

”If he’d hurt that human, wouldn’t that look terrible for werewolves?” Lavinia continued. ”I stopped him before he did something stupid.”

The wolf she’d kicked rolled back onto his feet.

His lips pulled away from his teeth.

A snarl escaped him.

Lavinia lowered her hands slightly. ”Apparently we’re continuing.”

He lunged.

Lavinia shifted back instinctively before stopping herself.

The humans were still directly behind her.

She could evade the rush without even thinking about it, but if the werewolf kept going, he would plow straight through the young couple.

Even if he didn’t intend to hit them, the impact alone could severely injure or kill an ordinary human.

Lavinia’s expression tightened.

”This is so stupid.”

She stepped forward instead of retreating.

Her leg snapped out.

The kick caught the charging wolf high in the chest, using just enough force to stop him and throw him backward without sending him across half the restaurant again.

He hit the floor and skidded.

Another werewolf moved at the same time.

A female wolf caught Lavinia’s extended leg before she could retract it.

Lavinia looked down at the hand around her ankle.

Then she laughed sharply. ”Oh?”

She jumped.

Her free leg rose nearly vertical before coming down hard.

Her heel struck the werewolf’s wrist.

Snap.

The bone broke with a crisp sound.

The woman snarled and released Lavinia’s leg, immediately cradling the injured wrist against herself.

Lavinia landed and punched her in the chest.

The werewolf flew backward through several tables, sending chairs and dishes scattering as she crashed to the floor.

Orange flashed beside Lavinia.

Valerie intercepted another charging wolf with a kick to the ribs, sending him sideways into an empty table. 

She spun lightly afterward, her gray halter dress shifting around her legs as she laughed.

”I was bored, but you really didn’t have to liven up the night this much.”

Lavinia nudged Valerie’s shoulder without taking her eyes off the werewolves. ”If they’d actually hurt those humans, wouldn’t all the progress toward coexistence go right back to how it was before?”

Valerie’s smile faded slightly. ”Probably.”

One of the remaining wolves stepped forward, anger tightening his features. ”Why did you interfere?”

Lavinia looked toward him.

”You attacked one of ours.” The werewolf glanced at the female wolf now crouched among broken tables, still holding her damaged wrist while regeneration slowly corrected the fracture. ”You even broke her wrist. Now we have to defend our own.”

Rosaline laughed as she approached from behind Lavinia, the black fabric of her outfit catching the restaurant light. ”I’d love to see you try.”

Lavinia glanced at her.

Rosaline smiled brightly at the wolves. ”There are more of us here, and you’re the ones who started this.”

”Rosaline,” Adelaide warned.

”What?” Rosaline spread her hands. ”It’s true.”

The humans in the restaurant had finally decided that remaining nearby was a terrible idea.

Chairs scraped.

People hurried away from tables.

Some grabbed bags and coats while others simply headed for the exits.

The young couple behind Lavinia lingered just long enough for the woman to touch Lavinia’s arm.

”Thank you.”

Lavinia glanced back and smiled. ”You’re welcome. Go.”

They didn’t need to be told twice.

As they hurried away, the remaining vampires moved.

Cordelia stepped to Lavinia’s right, long blue hair flowing around her shoulders while her expression lost most of its earlier softness. 

Celestine followed, the dark faux-fur stole around her arms shifting as she watched the wolves carefully.

Adelaide came up on the other side, gray hoodie loose around her body.

Evelyn remained slightly behind her, no longer fidgeting with her skirt now that the situation had become serious.

Evangeline rolled one shoulder and exhaled, bright red hair falling behind her. ”We couldn’t just have one quiet night.”

Valerie stood closest to Lavinia.

Rosaline stopped beside Cordelia.

Eight vampires now occupied the space between the wolves and the rest of the restaurant.

Five werewolves faced them.

Lavinia looked over the group and sighed. ”Can we just stop?”

The snarling wolf stared back.

”Nothing that bad has happened yet,” Lavinia continued. ”Your friend’s wrist will heal. Nobody’s dead. The humans are getting out. This wasn’t even a serious situation until everyone decided to make it one.”

One of the female werewolves shifted her stance.

Lavinia noticed.

Her fingers flexed.

”I mean it. We can literally just stop.”

A snarl answered her.

Then a werewolf lunged.

Lavinia’s shoulders dropped in exasperation. ”Of course.”

The restaurant collapsed into movement.

Werewolves rushed forward as vampires blurred to meet them, tables and chairs scattering beneath the first impacts as both groups clashed.