ALL NOVEL Extras #10 – Supernatural Incidents
=::= Melanie's PoV =::=
"So who do y'all think's coming to the club meeting?" I asked my girlfriend as the two of us hung up our green vests then got our jackets out of the staff room lockers.
Cerys shrugged, "Cass wouldn't say. Only that she wanted to invite some guests."
As we made our way back out towards the grocery store exit I frowned, "I sure hope it's not those internet reporters. I get that they're sort of working with Cassandra, and maybe they've changed since they turned into a couple catgirls? But I haven't forgotten that they're basically the reason my dad took off on us."
"Yeah same," my girlfriend frowned. "I don't think Cass would spring them on the club though? She's pretty good about that sort of thing. If she had some reason for bringing them into a Club Luna meeting she'd say something first, instead of keeping it a surprise."
Then as we cut across the parking lot Cerys added, "Mind if I drive?"
"Nah," I shrugged. Then I grimaced, "I still can't believe you asked Cassandra to get us a sixty-seven Impala."
Cerys flashed me a cocky grin as she responded, "I can't believe she actually found us one!"
Sure enough the black four-door sedan looked like it just drove right out of the TV show. And my girlfriend kept that cocky confident smile as she slipped behind the wheel, while I took the passenger seat.
Her smile faded once we got moving, as her thoughts turned back to tonight's meeting. She commented, "I know who won't be there. Violet texted to apologize for her and her girlfriends. The three of them are busy again."
"Huh," I shrugged.
That wasn't really news, and neither of us were surprised. For all their talk last autumn our neighbours were a lot more interested in just hanging out and socializing, rather than doing any actual boots on the ground investigating. The only time Violet joined us for that was when that ghost was lurking around her woods at Island Lake.
She and her friends weren't very interested in the research side of things either. And after the first few months their attendance record for club meetings was pretty bad too.
"So that leaves you and me," I finally said, "Plus Nina and Willow."
Cerys pointed out, "Cass Kaylee and Sasha will all be there too. They never miss the meetings."
I reminded her, "That's because they live with us. But between college and university and Cassandra's chaos stuff they haven't had much time for the club lately. Last two incidents it was just the four of us."
"And I'm not sure how committed Nina and Willow are these days either," I added with a sigh.
By that point we were pulling into the driveway at home, and my girlfriend parked the Impala behind the mini-van as she frowned. "I get that. Willow's always had a bunch of other things going on, and she never really learned our way of doing things. And Nina's so far beyond us mortals, if she wasn't so shy she could just take over and solve incidents single-handed."
"Plus they both want to spend their free time with Sasha," I pointed out. "Which I can't really blame them. I like spending all my time with my girlfriend too."
That put a smile on her face as we both emerged from the car. It was about half past five on the first Sunday of April, and the next full moon was only a few days away. We'd stopped holding the club meetings on the Friday before the full moon like we used to, nowadays the meetings were just whenever it was convenient for everybody to attend. And even though me and Cerys both had to work today, it turned out this was still the best option for everyone else.
The moment we got in the house both of us reverted to our wolfgirl forms. As much as we wanted to be ears and tails out all the time, it still felt safer for now to blend in with the humans when we were in public.
We found everyone else waiting for us in the living-room. Cass and Kaylee were sitting together on one of the big chairs like usual, while Sasha Nina and Willow were all cuddling on one of the sofas. They all welcomed me and my girlfriend home, then as we sat together on the other sofa we all had a quick conversation about what to do for dinner.
That didn't take long, and soon enough Cass was placing an order at the wings place. She ordered more than usual, since according to her our guests tonight would enjoy wings as well.
"So when do we find out who these mystery guests are?" Cerys asked. "And for that matter, when are they coming over?"
It was Cassandra who answered, "If it's ok with you I can text them right now and let them know they can come at any time? Then we can get the introductions out of the way before dinner arrives."
My girlfriend shrugged, "Sure. Are we doing dinner first then official club business after? Or should we start the meeting right now, before the guests come?"
After sending her text our local goddess replied, "That's entirely up to you Cerys. Cass and I have an announcement we'd like to make, which is related to the people we've invited. But whether we do that before after or during dinner isn't that important."
"Then I guess let's start the meeting right now," Cerys decided. "Or actually give me a couple minutes to grab a drink. Then we'll get started."
That sounded like a good idea, and we all headed into the kitchen together. Nina and Sasha both got bottles of juice while Willow grabbed a can of cola. Kaylee got herself an orange soda and Cass just went for a bottle of water, but my girlfriend and I took a little extra time to make a couple lattes with the fancy coffee machine Cass got us last summer.
When everyone was finally seated again in the living-room my girlfriend kicked things off, "Ok welcome to another official Club Luna meeting. The usual stuff, full moon's coming up late Wednesday night. Or technically it peaks about a half hour into Thursday, but same difference."
"Nina and Willow already know about our last Incident," she continued after a sip of her drink. "We had some haunting activity reported at the old town cemetery. That was just one restless spirit looking to cause trouble, so after a few failed attempts to communicate we ended up laying her to rest."
Finally she added, "There's not much else going on at the moment. I saw some reports online about an alleged coven of witches doing 'unholy things' around the last full moon, but near as I can tell they're not a threat."
Willow asked, "When you say they're not a threat, do you mean they're not really a coven of witches? Or they are a coven, but you don't think they're dangerous? And are they really doing 'unholy things'?"
Cerys shrugged, "The 'reports' are a couple nosy neighbours gossiping on social media. What they described might be a coven of witches doing ritual magic, or it might be a bunch of women getting together to hang out around the full moon. Either way, whatever they're doing they keep it limited to their own private land."
"Is this somewhere in town?" Kaylee asked. "And have you and Melanie already sniffed around for signs of magic or the supernatural?"
My girlfriend shook her head, "It's a farm a few kilometres south-west of town. And no, we haven't gone looking into it on our own."
"Honestly it just sounds like some modern Wiccans doing their thing," she added with a shrug. "A group of adults dancing around naked under the moonlight isn't exactly Club Luna business, as long as they're not actually hurting anyone."
The little demonic foxgirl's tails all swished and her ears flicked as she smiled, "Wow Cerys. It wasn't that long ago you'd have stolen your family car and gone straight over there to stake the place out by yourself, just for the chance of finding a real incident to investigate."
"Yeah well," Cerys blushed and shrugged, "I guess being the club leader means I've grown up a bit. Or something. Whatever. Moving on, does anyone else have any news or anything to add?"
As if on cue there was a knock at the front door, and it was way too soon to be our dinner. Plus there was a distinct lack of fried food smells coming from that direction. On the other hand I could detect some supernatural scents, enough to identify at least one angel, and something even more divine.
"That will be our guests," Cassandra said as she got to her feet. "I'll let them in, then we can do the introductions."
A few moments later she was back with three people in tow. First was a petite young woman who looked to be in her early twenties. Her most remarkable features were her violet-coloured eyes and her long silvery hair, while her scent reminded me of May Hawthorne. Next came a tall confident-looking woman in her mid-twenties. She had bright red hair and vibrant green eyes, and some freckles on her cheeks. Her scent was more human-like than the other two, but definitely not a normal human. And finally there was a very goth-looking young woman of about the same age, with a scent that reminded me of Tanya and Julie Underwood.
Our guests looked a little surprised at Sasha's new bunny ears, but they didn't bat an eye at our tiny five-tailed demonic foxgirl, or the fact that my girlfriend and I were werewolfs.
"This is Amethyst," Cassandra introduced the silver-haired girl to the rest of us, "She's another Goddess, of trans, queer, and demi-human people."
"And this is her girlfriend and high priestess Theresa," our goddess continued as she indicated the tall redhead. Finally she motioned to the goth, "And this is Amethyst's angel, Ravenna."
"Our last guest is a bit shy," our local goddess added, "But the small one back there is called Siggy."
Sure enough there was a fourth arrival. Hanging back and hiding behind the angel's legs was a cute little cat with dark tortoiseshell fur. That surprised me a little, since I hadn't actually noticed a feline scent. Although it's possible that was lost under all the supernatural scents in the air.
Meanwhile Cassandra went on to introduce Cerys and Willow and me, but apparently our guests already knew everyone else. Then as we all exchanged greetings the other goddess asked us to call her Amy, while her girlfriend said we could call her Tess. And the angel was ok with Raven.
I was a little confused why they thought it was a good idea to bring their cat along, but while the others were sorting out some extra chairs the little fuzzball made Nina happy by hopping up onto the shy demon's lap. Then both the cat and the demon looked like they were in heaven as Nina practically spoiled the thing with pets and scritches and cuddles.
There was another little delay before we could resume the meeting, while Kaylee got some drinks for our guests. Then the wings arrived just as we were about to find out why we had another goddess sitting in on our club meeting, which led to an even longer delay as we got all that sorted out.
Eventually we had food spread out across the coffee table, with a few dozen wings in various flavours plus potato wedges and onion rings, and even some veggie sticks. There were also a bunch of paper plates and a whole lot of napkins.
As we all got started on the food Cerys asked, "So Cassandra did you want to talk about your announcement while we eat? Or are you saving that until afterwards?"
Cass had a couple wings and some wedges on her plate, but after munching on a wedge her goddess half took over. Then Cassandra replied, "I can talk now while we're eating."
There was a slight pause while she set her plate aside and had a sip of water. Then she began, "As you all know, Cass and I have spent the past few months focusing on our work to undermine the status quo and return magic to the world. Kaylee and Sasha have been helping with that, as has Nina."
Sasha and Kaylee both nodded quietly when their names came up, while Nina looked embarrassed and focused on the chicken wing she was eating. She'd finally released the little torty so she could fit a plate of food on her lap, now the cat was hanging around next to the other goddess and her girlfriend.
Meanwhile Cassandra continued, "We've also made friends with Amy and her group, and we're hoping to enlist their help in more active roles going forward. Assuming we can find ways to do so without endangering any of them. Speaking of that, we've had some small successes, and some setbacks, but we knew from the start this would be a long slow process."
After a brief hesitation she added, "Anyways what I'm trying to say is -"
"Yoink!" a small voice interrupted, as the little torty suddenly snatched a chicken wing from the silver-haired goddess's plate. Then the cat ducked under Amethyst's chair and started munching on the stolen food.
For the next couple seconds everyone was quiet, and most of us were looking at each other in surprise.
"Did that cat just say 'yoink'?" I asked.
"Sorry," the torty replied. "I didn't mean to interrupt the meeting. I just really like chicken."
Amy rolled her eyes, "I take it that means you're ready to join the conversation, Siggy?"
The cat was eating again but paused to respond, "Mhmm."
"Siggy's shy around new people," Theresa explained. "But they're also a goddess. And they're interested in working with Cassandra, same as us."
Cerys and I exchanged a surprised look, then my girlfriend asked "Siggy's a cat goddess? Goddess of cats?"
The little torty responded, "No, I'm goddess to neurodivergent folks. I just like being a cat more than being person-shaped."
"I used to be a Norse warrior goddess," they added, "And yoink!"
With that another wing was snatched from Amy's plate, while Kaylee Nina and Tess all grinned. And the rest of us were quiet again. I couldn't speak for Willow or Cerys, but I was kind of confused about where all this was going.
Sure enough my girlfriend was wondering the same thing since she asked, "Ok Cassandra. So you're building a whole team of goddesses and demons and angels to help you. What's that got to do with Club Luna?"
"Very little," Cassandra admitted. Then she sighed, "I'm sure you've already noticed that Cass and I haven't been active with the club lately? After much internal debate, we've decided it's probably best if we officially resign. We'll still be living here with all of you, and naturally you can call on us for any help you might need. But after two and a half amazing years, we think it's time we stepped back and focused our energies on our other project."
Kaylee spoke up next. Her ears and tails were all drooping as she announced, "Same with me. I'm sticking with Cass and Cassandra, working with them on the status quo thing."
"Myself as well," Sasha went next. The newly-minted bunnygirl gave the rest of us an apologetic look as she added, "I'm forever in all your debt for accepting me as one of you, and allowing me to share your home. But my focus is with Cassandra and our efforts to restore magic to the world."
I figured that was it, until Nina chimed in. The small shy demon blushed a little as she mumbled, "I'll be sticking with Club Luna for the next couple months, until we all graduate? But after high school's over I'm um, going to be working more with Cass and Sasha and the others."
By that point it felt like there was only one left, and sure enough Willow was the last one to speak. "I'm kind of in the same boat? I know I haven't really been a ton of help with Club Luna anyways. So yeah, after we finish grade twelve I'm going to stick with my girlfriends and see what I can do to help Team Chaos."
From the looks on Cassandra's and Kaylee's faces I could tell they weren't expecting that from either Nina or Willow. But on the other hand they didn't look unhappy about it either. It left me feeling kind of gutted though, and I was sure my girlfriend felt the same. Because apart from us, it seemed like the rest of Club Luna all just quit.
Everybody was quiet after that, as the others were probably all thinking the same thing as me. Or maybe they were worrying how we'd take it or something. I was just about to ask Cerys how she felt about all that when she finally broke the silence.
"If folks were all moving out or moving away I'd probably be more emotional about this," our club leader stated. "But it sounds like you're all still going to be here, just focused on other things. And I appreciate that you'll all be available to help if we ever need it."
After another little pause Cerys continued, "It's kind of funny actually? I've been thinking about this sort of thing on and off over the past year, since we first talked about Paige and Kaylee and Cass all going off to college. At the time we didn't really know what might happen to the club, especially after Melanie and Nina and Willow and me finished high school."
"In a way this makes it a lot easier," my girlfriend admitted. "I'd been kind of thinking maybe it was time for the club to wind down, but I didn't want to be the one to make the decision. Now it feels like everyone's leaving anyways, so it's out of my hands."
At that point I wrapped an arm around her shoulders and said, "I'm still here babe. I'm not going anywhere."
She smiled and slipped an arm around me as well, "Me too Mel. So maybe that's how it'll be going forward? Just a couple werewolf-witches, out there investigating supernatural incidents on our own. In our cool sixty-seven Impala. And we'll have a whole support cast of powerful friends we can turn to for help, if any of those incidents turn out to be a little too much for the two of us to handle on our own."
I stifled a groan at that description, but I didn't argue and I didn't deny it. Not with how Cerys was grinning, I really didn't want to spoil her mood.
Then my girlfriend looked around the room before saying, "Kaylee, Cass and Cassandra, Melanie, Nina, Willow, and Sasha? Thank you all for being part of Club Luna. Thanks for making the past few years so amazing and incredible. And with that, I guess I'll bring this club meeting to an end."
She paused there so I gave my girlfriend a little supportive squeeze, followed by a kiss. She returned the kiss and the little squeeze, before turning her attention back to the rest of our friends.
"So if you want to start your own 'Team Chaos' meeting now go right ahead," Cerys told the others. "As long as you don't mind me and Mel sitting on it."
Cassandra gave us both a warm smile as she responded, "You and Melanie are always welcome, Cerys. As far as Cass and I are concerned you two are practically family. That goes for all our Club Luna friends, past and present."
That put a smile on my face, and my girlfriend's too. Nina and Sasha both looked happy about it as well. Even Amy and Tess looked happy, and the little torty started purring when the tall redhead reached down and scritched their ears.
Then with a twitch of her tails Kaylee grinned, "So let's go already! Let's break the status-quo and bring magic back to the world!"
~ The End ~
