Not pretty in pink!

Preston Forest Shopping Center


The Preston Forest Shopping Center is large and classy. The entrance is open and spacious, a rectangular fountain surrounded by potted trees leading up the middle of the mall, with pathways on either side for shoppers. One can easily see both floors from here and the lighting is amazing - beside the typical electric bulbs, the roof is comprised of glass allowing the sunlight to filter in.
Shops and businesses spread out here both east and west as well as to the back of the mall. Hidden away in the back corner one can find the escalator to the second story, as well as washrooms and a bank of payphones.


~~

Darkness is all over the city. Like a plague of darkness or something. It's not a decent hour to be out. In fact, most sane businesses except for the ones that like staying open twenty-four-hours a day are closed.
Including the Preston Forest Shopping Center.
The problem with the Preston Forest Shopping Center, is that someone totally had to take refuge in the tunnels below the mall in order to stay out of the sun when the morning came.
Well okay. Ronnie didn't really have to go hide in the sunless tunnels. She probably had enough time to make it back to the Sheriff's Estate, or cut through to the hotel with her majorly wicked movie-theatre screen MTV.
But now that she's locked in until the janitor comes around four o'clock, she's having some fun. She broke into one of the kiosks in the food court and found some True Blood, which she's drinking cold as she rollerskates through the empty hallways.
"I like to shoooop~! The stores are closed at night, but when the suns rays hit the mall, everything will be open and bright!" Twirling around and around the fountain, she keeps singing this very horrible song — one that was a hit of her very own back in the 80's.

~~

After hours at a mall. It's kinda spooky in a way; there aren't any of the bright flourescents burning, but rather the emergency lights that give minimal illumination, causing great shadows.
The older Coleman is called in to the Cerebral Deli to fetch a couple of items left behind, and as he was on his way past anyway, it's an easy stop. Back door keys and knowing his way around proves easy enough.
Rustling around the shop, Brett pockets the items and reaches to turn the lights off once again, but sound catches his ear, and he pauses. He's not a were, so there's no extra-sensory bit there, no. He's on his own on that one.
Instead of simply leaving and locking up behind him, curiousity gets the better of him, and he unlocks the gate of the store, pulling it up slightly. It's lifted only a little before Brett takes a deep breath, and shifts his form, the clothing of the human form dropping away, briefly entangling the canid.
Kicking it away in annoyance, Why does he keep forgetting to prep for this?, he slips under the gate and pads along the side of the stores, keeping to the darkness, his nose down, ears alert…

~~

"— then we can party into the night! Everybody loves a mall! It's where they can find it all! Everybody loves to shop the day away~!" Ronnie does another loop around the fountain, pausing just long enough to suck down the cold synthetic blood.
The vampire part of her brain that's functioning tonight can hear that something, somewhere is being lifted, but she chalks it up to there being some night janitor around that will let her out before she gets into too much trouble with Wil Wheaton.
"Come out, come out, wherever you are! If you have the keys you can let me out so I can plaaaaaaay!" Her skating stills and she plunks herself down on the fountain to wait. Her pose? That of 'The Thinker'.

~~

Ears quirk up and a coyote's tan and white head rise, tilting at the sound as his footsteps cease. Tail out slightly, there comes an almost audible sigh from the animal as his head drops again, and glancing back at where his clothes lie and then beyond to where the vampire sits, a decision is made for better or worse, and he pads from the shadows.
click*click
The claws from his paws click on the marble and tile floor as he approaches. Hanging back slightly, his head is down and at first, he gives Ronnie a slightly wide berth. She likes eating animals, after all!
Once in a somewhat acceptable position, off to the side and near some cover where he may have something to put between himself and Ronnie, sits, ears up, and yaps sharply two times.

~~

Without moving an inch, without making a sound, Ronnie watches the doggy. She's from a big city in Ontario! It's not like they got a whole lot of coyotes wandering around downtown Toronto!
"PUPPY," she finally yells, tripping over her skates to get to it. "I always wanted a puppy! Now I totally have one! Hah! I bet Wil Wheaton is gonna love you!" Flailing on the skates, she tries to loop her arms about the coyotes neck, to give it a firm but adoring squeeze.
"I'm gonna name you Frankie!"

~~

Oh no…
From a 'good boy, sit' position to back-pedaling on all four paws on slippery ground in a couple of seconds, but when it comes in response to a vampire on rollerskates, even a flailing one, the coyote simply isn't able to get out of the way with enough agility or time.
As Ronnie's arms wrap around him, he tries to pull out backwards, that one final time and finds that there is simply no purchase on the ground beneath his feet.
Might as well be ice.
Wiggling in an attempt now, coyote-Brett is making it known that he doesn't really want to be held.. or more to the point, a pet named … Frankie?

~~

"Oh, Frankie! I'll love you and squeeze you, and name you Ge— I mean Frankie!" Ronnie runs her vampy little fingers through the fur on the doggie's neck and nuzzles at him ferociously. No fang involved, just lots of creepy vamp hugging.
"Let's go break into the pet store, Frankie! We can get you some kibble, and I can get a totally wicked collar." Though for her or the dog? It's not mentioned. "Dude! We can get you one'a them spikey leashes, and like, your own puppy skates, c'mon!"
There it is: crazy vampire dragging terrified coyote through a deserted mall. The tabloids would have a field day with this one.

~~

Nuzzling! Oh dear god, no..
The coyote isn't so much worried about getting bit, though that isn't a very happy prospect, but.. he's a little worried about the fact that he's got.. somethign else.. what was it.. was..
Oh!
The book store!
Must get back to the book store!
Pulling on the hold, and putting the brakes on so that, yes, he has to be dragged across the slick floor, he tries to shift the direction to the way in which he'd come.. out to the Cerebral Deli. Over one of the cracks in the tile, however, his paw catches and forces him to take a step, making it a easier for the vampire and a little harder to resist.
A sharp yip is made— maybe that'll get her attention?

~~

"It'll be a wickedly awesome skate-o-rama! C'mon, Frankie!" With the coyote's misstep, Ronnie can easily drag him across the expanse of hall toward the pet store. While one hand eases up on him, her vampiric strength will hopefully allow her to keep hold of him while she kicks in the window with a rollerskated foot. Then she reaches both hands down to hoist him up into her arms and cuddle him to her chest.
"Okay, Frankie! We're like, totally going in here and it'll be the bomb. You just gotta be careful of the glass, okay? I mean, like, don't cut your little feet. Pads. Paws. Whatever." Then she's making to jump in through the window, hoisting the coyote with her.
The yip? So totally ignored.

~~

There isn't much else that the coyote can do against a vampire, particularly one that is dead set (get it? Dead! set) on dragging the shifter across the mall. They arrive at the petshop, and the breaking of the shop glass reverberates through the empty mall. If there is a night janitor, how could he not hear the noise?
The moment Brett is foisted up in Ronnie's arms and cuddled, though awkwardly (in his book!), he yips again and makes the attempt to wiggle even as she prepares to make a jump through the window. Oh, if he doesn't get out of her grasp this time, this may hurt!

~~

They make it halfway through the window when 'Frankie' wriggles free. "Ack! Frankie, noooo~! Come back! I'll name you George then! I promise you totally don't have to be a Frankie! Where are you going?"
Ronnie sounds so distraught, she may as well have just lost her best friend.
She continues into the pet store though, all just to grab two collars and a leash. The spikier of the two collars is snapped around her neck, and the pretty pink flowery one is held out the window.
"Heeeere Frankie-I-mean-George! Here girl! C'mere Fra— George!"

~~

Free!!
Landing on his side, the coyote gets to his feet quickly and backsteps a couple of paces, trying to stay out of immediate reach, and yips a couple of times even as Ronnie calls out to him. Turning, he begins to run towards the other end of the mall, where the Cerebral Deli is.. or at least where he thinks it is.
The quiet that falls over the mall, however, causes a little concern. After reaching the Deli, the canid pauses at the partially open gate, his ears perked, waiting to hear a sound.
And there, in the middle distance, he's being called. Ohdeargod… George? Frankie?
Looking back at his clothes that lie just beyond the gate, he glances back out at where he knows Ronnie was, and then back at his clothes… and has to make that split decision.

~~

"Georgie Peorgie, puddin'n'pie… where'd you go?" Hopping out of the window, Ronnie starts to skate around the mall. "Here girl! C'mere! Wil Wheaton will wanna keep you! He likes pets…" A lie, since she doesn't think Wil Wheaton likes anything except being right.
"I won't eat'cha! I only eat bunnies! Bunnies are yummy in my tummy, but puppies aren't! They taste like indigo, and indigo isn't at all yummy. It tastes like refuse!"
Skating toward the fountain, she stops by the open shop. "Hellooooo~? Georgie? You in there, girl? C'mere! I totally got you a pretty collar!"

~~

Ah.. okay.. so far, so..
Ah, hell. No time.
Wiggling under the gate, the coyote grabs the cloths and pulls them back from the front of the shop. Now, the best (and only) thing that can be done for this would probably be getting the vampire out of the mall. Then, well.. then comes the decision as to exactly how to handle this.
Here goes nothing.
Another high pitched bark is given, and taking the jeans (with the keys in the pocket) into his mouth makes to move back towards the back door.
Hasn't this vampire EVER watched Lassie? Sheesh!!
Dropping the pants from his mouth again, he yips a call again. Not that he's particularly enamoured with the idea of a collar, no.. he'd never, ever hear the end of that one from Cor.. or Summer. But, moreso his brother.

~~

Stomping her rollerskated foot on the ground, the agile vampire actually slips and falls under the door. Were she human, there would undoubtedly be the proverbial 'oomph' noise issuing as all the air expels from her lungs. As it is, Ronnie simply wriggles under the door and into the dark shop.
"Georgie! C'mere! It's pretty and pink with flowers! You like flowers, don't you? They're like, totally cool-o-rama! I mean, like, you'll be the niftiest doggie out there!"
When the yip comes further back in the shop, she draws herself back up to her feet and starts to skate toward the coyote.
"Where are you going, Georgie? The food is at the pet store!"

~~

Pink?! Flowers?!?
There.. she's getting closer, though, which is sorta good. At least according to plan. Ish. The coyote gathers up the blue jeans into his mouth and backs up the couple of remaining steps to the emergency door. Bumping his hind end on the door, it takes him a moment to realize that he's not on the same level as the door release. His nose rises, dragging fabric with it, and stares with wide eyes at the push handle of the door leading out.
What to do? Only the one thing that he's pretty sure she'd understand. He paws at the door, though a leg of the pants gets in the way.. and paws at the base, digging as if his nails could cut through the metal and concrete between himself and the outside.

~~

"Gotcha," Ronnie says, having perfect vision in the dark. Down she drops to snap the pink flowery collar onto the coyote's neck.
"You're going to be the most beautiful puppy in all of… uhh… what city are we in again? Well like, totally whatever city that is! When we get back on the tour bus, I'll kick the drummer out and you can like, totally have his bed okay?"
When the only answer she gets is pawing at the door, she frowns. It takes her a good five minutes before she realizes, "Oh! You like, totally have to go, right? I mean, like woah. You have the world's tiniest bladder or somethin', but here!" She pushes on the handle and lets him out the door, but not before trying to snap the leash onto the pretty pink collar.

~~

No!
Aw… hell.
It's… pink. Pink!
The jeans! It almost makes him want to put a paw over his nose. But, what did he really expect?
With the fabric still in his mouth, the tan and white coyote lurches out the door, wriggling and yapping, hoping to get out of the vampire's grasp before a leash is put on! He's accomplished, in an odd way, what he'd set out to do— namely, he'd acquired what he needed from the store to get to Summer and he'd let the vampire out of the closed mall, though getting a pink stolen collar?
Later on, when he gets to curl up in his own bed, he'll probably feel a little flattered that he'd rated the drummer's bed…

~~

"Georgie, no!"
Ronnie lurches after the doggie, and ends up smacking into the door. It causes a little trickle of blood from her nose, but it's enough so that the doggie gets away with the pretty pink collar and no leash.
"Awww!" Running out into the parking lot after him, she yelps, "Georgie! C'mere, Georgie! I wouldn't make you eat bunnies unless you wanted! I'd like, totally buy you kibble. I mean, I'd need a job for that first, but'cha know, that's a sacrifice I'm willin' to make!"
Only, he's got a bit of a headstart on her, and she's running straight forward not bothering to look to either side. Just going in a path she'd take to get away from a crazed person.

~~

No cars to dodge and duck under; not that it would do much good. Instead, then, Brett takes to the side of the building, his jeans still held firmly in his jaws. Sliding into the shadows around the corner, the coyote can hear the direction Ronnie's taken. Slowing, he begins the shift back. As legs elongate, arms shorten in comparison to the growing torso.. soon enough, after stopping, he's back into his human form, though it's a great deal draftier at the moment than his canid form. But for the pink floral collar that he still sports around his neck.
Quickly, one leg is thrust into the leg of his pants, followed by the other… and a quick zip.. and he's done. Not comfortable by any stretch of the imagination, but.. dressed somewhat for modesty (and Dallas laws of decency), at least.
Pulling at the collar, he finds the clasp and takes it off.. and leaves it in hand.

~~

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