Frankie sighed. ”It is terrible, but I wouldn't say we've grown used to not seeing them. Every once in a while, you’ll see a few of the brighter ones and people think they're beautiful but they seem to have no idea that it's supposed to be like this.” he gestured to the glowing tapestry that was the night sky. ”They think the night is supposed to be so dark but it really isn't as much as they make it out to be.”
She nodded, looking up to the sky, "The sky is one of the most beautiful sites out here, besides maybe sunrises. Do those look pretty from a city?"
Frankie nodded. ”Pretty much everything out here is beautiful but yeah, when you happen to see a sunrise or even a sunset in the city it is very nice.”
A small smile crossed her face and she finished off the rest of her second kebob, "So, Frankie, tell me more about yourself, it's not everyday I get to meet and talk to a human."
Frankie smiled with a light laugh. ”It's not every day I get to meet a werewolf, but sure. What would you like to know about me?” he asked, unsure where to start. He wasn't really that special, just a normal guy with a great love for the natural wilderness.
"Anything, about your life, did you grow up in a city? Just anything," She replied, her whole demeanor showing how curious and interested she was.
His smile grew at her expression and he nodded. ”Alright. Well, I do live in the city with my family but the house is, thankfully, not very close to the busier areas.” Frankie started. ”Um… I was a Boy Scout when I was younger, then I made it to Eagle Scout but I left after a few years of that because we did more stuff in the city than we did wilderness stuff. Boy Scouts and Eagle Scouts are kind of like a temporary pack for kids until they get to certain age then they have the option of moving to the next ”pack” level or leaving.” he tried to explain as he figured she wouldn't know what either of those were.
Selina smiled and nodded, "That sounds like a good childhood, how many siblings do you have?"
”Just the one.” Frankie smiled as he thought of his sister. ”Cora. She's 17 and doesn't mind the city as much as I do. I think she wants to be a marine biologist or whatever profession it is that helps save the oceans.”
"Your family sounds like a good family, not many people want to help the oceans or land," She replied, drumming her fingers against the ground and looking over at him. It was nice to see his smile, he looked really like he belonged out here in the wild.
”We try to be.” Frankie shrugged. ”Sometimes it doesn't feel like much, but it's a small start.” he sighed and propped himself up to look at her. ”So, what's your family like?”
Selina shrugged at the question of her family, trying to figure out where to start, "I'm not actually sure, I haven't seen any of my family since I joined the pack…I guess in a way my family now is good, since I consider the pack my family."
Frankie blinked in slight surprise. A part of him had thought she had been born into her pack. ”H-how old were you when you joined them?” he asked carefully. Does that mean she wasn't always a werewolf? He held back from asking that question for now… It was likely too personal to ask yet.
"Ten? If I still remember correctly. It's been a long time, so I might be off," She said, not seeming very phased by the question, "I wasn't terribly old, but I wasn't really a young kid either."
Frankie nodded in response. ”What do you remember before then? You don't have to answer… I just would like to know more about you, if you want to tell me.” he told her. ”If you don't want to talk about it then we can talk about life now.”
Selina glanced over at him, studying him and trying to figure out if she could trust him, "I remember quite a lot, though there's not much that I would actually like to remember." Her eyes flicked to the sky and she continued, "If I know I can trust you…I'll tell you.. but you have to give me your word that no one else will be told."
”I won't tell anyone. I swear.” Frankie gave her a small, slightly awkward, smile. ”Honestly, I don't really talk to many people back home anyway… Aside from my family and I won't tell them even if Cora meets a merperson or finds Atlantis. This is actually one of the longest, more comfortable, conversations I’ve ever had willingly.” he chuckled.
A small smile twitched at her lips and she nodded, "I feel honored to be one of those conversations." She went silent again for a minute and glanced around before focusing on the fire and starting, "The first thing I have to tell you is, I'm a natural werewolf, though my mother wasn't. Before she met my father, she was a scientist who worked for the government, and this information is important. My father was a natural werewolf as well, one who was captured and was being studied in my mother's division."
Frankie nodded encouraging for her to go on. He didn't want to interrupt her story. He tried not to scowl hearing about the government researching on her father. He wasn't a conspiracy theorist or anything… but he wasn't too surprised that they would do something like that. Don’t you dare make an Area 51 joke! This is serious to her. Don't apologize either. It's not your fault and it's just how they met. I doubt she would appreciate pity.
"You can guess what happened next, they fell in love, somehow, and that's where this gets sad." She cleared her throat, "My mother and father made a plan to get him out of the facility and it worked. She quit and they were on the run from the government, my parents made the decision for my mother to become a werewolf too and after that, they had me and my brother. They were still on the run too." She chuckled a little and shook her head, "Things went sour one night though, when the government finally caught them."
Frankie listened with rapt attention as she spoke. He had been expecting the romantic escape and them practically becoming fugitives, though he was a little surprised by the mention of her having a brother. He wanted to ask a few questions but instead, he nodded and softly encouraged, ”Go on.”
Selina looked towards the ground as she continued, trying to explain what had happened simply, "We were staying in an apartment, when we were found. My brother, father and I got away with a sacrifice from my mother, though we didn't get far…" She trailed off and her eyes met his to see what he thought of her past, "My brother was two years older than me and he raised me until they eventually got him too."
”I’m sorry.” Frankie looked at her sympathetically as they had both lost their mothers… Losing a sibling was something that he couldn't relate to, he didn't even want to imagine what that felt like. If Cora was ever in danger and there was something he could do to stop it, he would in a heartbeat. ”Your mother and brother were very brave. I'm sure they’d all be proud of you.” he said softly as he gently took her hand.
"Yeah, they were, extremely so," She said, freezing for half a second as he took her hand but relaxing again, "Tell me more about your family now that I bored you to death."
Frankie gave her a comforting smile. ”I don't think you could bore me. If anything I'm the boring one. You're incredible.” he told her truthfully. ”I don't know what else I have to tell you about my family. Cora’s the most interesting one because of her affinity for the oceans and I already told you about my mom.” he sighed at the thought. ”My dad… He’s a good guy and I know he loves me and my sister and he's proud of us for pursuing what we love but he works a lot. Sometimes, between work and school, we only see him for a few hours a day.”