To Valhalla and Back Ch. 02

"You need to loosen up." Francesca gave Sylvi a pat on her shoulder as she found her seat at the bar. "For as long as I've known you I don't think I've ever seen you drink."

Sylvi sighed as she pointed out her water bottle. "I drink. I don't eat but I drink."

Francesca laughed and ordered herself a whiskey. "You choose a weird lifestyle, my friend. You don't eat because it feels weird, you don't drink because it feels weird, you don't have sex because it feels weird. What is it you do for fun?"

"I wouldn't go there, Fran. For a vampire you're pretty weird yourself." Sylvi took as swig of her water. She didn't really need the water, but it made the others feel more relaxed around her.

Francesca's drink arrived and she downed it immediately. "You just say that cause I was the first vampire you ever met. And to be quite honest, I'm the best."

"You're the only vampire I've met."

"And when other's decided to come to town I will be sure to let you know. But as you know—"

"Yes, I remember, vampires are very territorial towards other vampires. And yet, you're so welcoming." Sylvi stood. "Thank you for renewing my license for me."

"I can't believe it's been a year since you arrived. Don't worry about it, as the owner for the bar it's my job to keep us hidden." Fran stood up with a new drink in hand. Even as a vampire she was still shorter than Sylvi. To be fair, most are shorter than Sylvi. "Just do me a favor, okay? Learn to trust others. It's been over a year since you've joined our community. And you're, like, my best friend. But you need more company than the sexy vampire at La Maldita Sangre."

"I'm fine, Fran," Sylvi placed her hands on Fran's dainty shoulders. "But I give you my promise I will try."

"Good, that will have to do. I need to go now I have an appointment with a donor." Francesca sauntered away from the bar to the back room where her office hides.

A young, blond man was standing by the door looking very nervous. Her blood donor, the poor young men were always nervous. The danger was real when you played with a vampire. Thankfully Francesca's persuasion was very effective and they never remember what happened. It was for the best.

After living on Earth for a year Sylvi noticed when someone was human or not. Back in Valhalla, when all she could do was watch, it was hard to see the differences. But the immortals on Earth had a unique...scent? No, it wasn't a scent but definitely a vibe. They just felt different from humans.

As far as she could tell the humans didn't see the differences. And if they did, it was more instinctual. Humans were often uncomfortable with Sylvi. Francesca thought it was Sylvi's height because other than that she looked like a typical human. Golden hair, blue eyes, pale skin, but she was taller than most human men. And her muscular build was intimidating.

Are you telling me to make friends, Fran? I sit alone at your bar most nights and no one approaches me. I scare them. It was fine, she didn't need friends. She had her job, she had Fran and she had her plants. That was enough.

Even still, that night as she lay in her bed she felt alone. In Valhalla, if she felt lonely or wanted physical company all she had to do was ask. Though she rarely ever shared a bed with others, sex just felt...weird to her. She couldn't explain it.

*

She woke up to the sound of her cell phone buzzing uncontrollably.

"Safe Guarding services, this is Sylvi," she answered. She tried to keep her voice professional but really she just wanted to go back to sleep.

"Um, I think I'm being stalked. Do you think you could...help me? For a while?" The voice was soft and light. Stalkers meant longer job security than the usual transport jobs she took. She didn't have any other jobs booked for the next few weeks.

"How long are you thinking?" She asked as she crawled out of bed. It was 5 in the morning. She squinted at the alarm clock in annoyance. The sun wasn't even up yet.

"I don't really know," the voice said. "But if we could meet as soon as possible I would really appreciate it."

"Look, I know you're scared but I am not cheap," she warned. She walked to her kitchen to get her watering can ready. "Have you thought that maybe the police might be better?"

"No, it's fine, I will pay whatever you want. Please, just meet me at the Starbucks on Main Street at noon." The voice was about to hang up. She didn't have a name or anything. It wasn't unusual for clients to be secretive at first, especially if they were being stalked. But she wasn't sure how she'd even identify this client.

"How will I know to approach you?" She quickly spit out. What could she say? A job was a job.

"I have a feeling you'll know when you see me." Click.

Well shit. This should be interesting.

*

Not having to eat had its perks. True people felt weird around her, it was unnatural to not eat. But it also meant that she saved plenty of money, which meant she could get whatever she wanted whenever she wanted it.

Her latest purchase was a Lincoln MKC. Her theory was fancy cars meant you got plenty of jobs, plenty of jobs meant you were good, being good meant no one dug through your history. Plus it was a nice car, she liked it.

She parked her vehicle and locked it as she walked to the coffee shop. She spent a few minutes surveying the area before she deemed it safe. No one was obviously staring through the windows searching for anyone. Always a good sign.

As she opened the door she swore she saw shockingly red hair in the crowed. It was familiar in the most interesting way. Almost like...

Is it..? No, why would she be here that doesn't make sense. Skadi wouldn't be on Earth, as far as Sylvi knew she was long gone. Skadi was sent to a different world, abandoned and alone.

It was a few minutes to noon, so Sylvi waited in the obnoxious line just so that she could order a water bottle. Would've been cheaper anywhere else, too. She wasn't sure if her client was going to be human or not, hence the water.

She did occasionally get human clients, usually people doing illegal things that needed money moved safely and quietly. Most immortals were fully capable of protecting themselves. Sylvi did her best not to judge her clients no matter the reason of her employment. A job was a job.

She did a quick look of the coffee seats, thankfully no sign of that redhead. But she did find a curious little creature sitting with her back rigid. The little thing had long caramel brown hair that reached just below the shoulders, slightly curly. Her eyes were an interesting shade of amber, tan skin, and she wouldn't be very tall if she were to stand. The little creature, however, was keeping very close eyes on the people surrounding her. She looked very anxious.

She walked over to her client and took a purposeful seat next to them. She smiled brightly and loudly said, "Oh, it's been such a long time! How have you been?"

The creature, startled at first, smiled back. Brilliantly. Sylvi found it hard to believe that this was the same creature that called her early this morning all but begging for help.

"I-I've been alright, how are you?"

"I've been doing just fine but I missed you terribly. Let's go for a ride, we can talk a bit more and I can drop you off." She grabbed her hand and almost dragged her out of the Starbucks and into the car.

Once settled she locked the doors and turned the car on. It was awkwardly quiet in the vehicle.

"The best thing to do in this situation is to tell me your name," Sylvi stated. "You obviously need my help. I need to know why."

It wasn't until Sylvi started to drive that her client decided to talk.

"My name is Dakota, and I think I'm being stalked." Dakota was fiddling with the seat belt. "You came highly recommended."

"Most immortals don't need help from me. Who are you?" Sylvi turned a corner.

"A-are you asking what I am?" Her face flushed, as if no one had ever asked that question before.

"I'm not from around here, please enlighten me. I'm still learning," Sylvi said.

The seat belt fidgeting continued. "I'm fae."

"Alright, so you have little self-defence magic? No claws or teeth I should be aware of?" She guessed.

"What? No, I specialize in environmental magic."

Sylvi nodded. She honestly had no idea what a fae was. Dakota looked a lot like a regular human, other than the strange vibe to her. And she wasn't too sure what she meant by environmental magic. But maybe she really did need someone to protect her. She was so small and nervous all the time, it almost seemed like a strong breeze would blow her over.

Either it was a just a tiny girl frightened by something some guy said or she was under a real threat.

"Why do you think you're being stalked? Why are you unsure?" Sylvi was stopped at a red light so she took the few minutes to watch her new client.

"I have a feeling." Dakota notice Sylvi watching her and started to elaborate. "I-I mean, the feeling follows me. I feel it when I wake up and go to work. I feel it when I'm out with my friends. I felt it when I was at the coffee shop. Sometimes the feeling is so strong that I get chills. I have no idea who it is though..."

"No idea? No ex-lover?"

"Um, no, I haven't had anyone in a long time..." Dakota whispered, red faced.

"Curious...How often would you like me around?" Sylvi was actually interested. It wasn't very often that something like this happened. When someone lives long enough it's hard to scare them. If Dakota couldn't find her stalker that meant something, fae or not. It could be a ghost, but those were rare, after all the death would've had to have been extremely tragic and violent. Sylvi wasn't about to dismiss it.

"Dakota, can you feel it now?"

"No, it disappeared when you sat down next to me. It was like a breath of fresh air." She seemed to relax a little. "I hadn't felt like that in a while."

"Okay, well, let me know if you feel like that again." Sylvi was already trying to figure out how she could solve this problem.

"So, um, can you stay with me at work? And at my house?" Dakota was looking out the window. She seemed calmer, but still nervous.

"Dakota, if you need me I will be there. That's why you're paying me." She started to drive again. "You tell me where you need me to be. That being said, I need a few things from my place."

*

Once the apartment door was open she ushered Dakota into her living room. It was small but functional. The kitchen was attached to the small room, which made it seem larger than it actually was. Her place came with a fridge and stove, but she never used them, both were unplugged. She used the counter space for some small potted plants and a few interesting art pieces that reminded her of home.

The living room itself was interesting. It had a couch, a small blanket thrown over the back, and a large TV in front. Just below that was her DVD player, and beside the TV was a tall book shelf filled with DVDs. Along the windows were some larger plants that covered most of the window. Sylvi had drapes but felt she didn't really need them because of the foliage.

"Please have a seat while I gather what I need," Sylvi said as she walked to her bedroom.

"You have so many plants," Dakota said. "I didn't realize you liked them."

"Oh, yeah, they remind me of home. I enjoy them, they make it feel good here," she yelled from the bedroom.

Dakota walked to the largest plant, elephant foot palm, and gently brushed a leaf. Dakota smiled and blew on the plant. It almost seemed to grow a little.

"I'm sorry, my friend, but I will be taking her attention for a little while," Dakota said.

"Pardon?" Sylvi said, she walked back into the living room with a backpack slung on one shoulder and a long oak pole in one hand. "Are you talking to my plants?"

Dakota smiled. "Yes, I am. They are very happy. Especially this one, you've had it the longest. You take good care of it. It feels happiest when you sing."

"How did you...how did you know I sing to them?" Sylvi struggled not to blush. She hopped she was doing a good job.

Dakota shrugged as she walked. "I told you, I have environmental magic. I'm not sure how I can talk to the plants but I can. I can also manipulate the environment I'm in. I hope you don't mind but I helped your plant grow just a little bit."

Sylvi stared at Dakota for a few moments. She can talk to plants and help them grow. Well then, alright...

"Sure, that's fine. It's time to leave now. Let's go, you need to go on with your day." Sylvi opened the door to the hall. As Dakota made her way over she smiled to the plants, and they seemed just a little bit brighter than usual.

*

"You have such a fancy car, but you live in such a small apartment. Why?" Dakota asked as she buckled up.

Sylvi raised her eyebrow. "That's a personal question."

Dakota blushed, looking scared. "I-I'm sorry! I didn't mean it like that I just wanted to get to know you, I'm sorry."

"It's fine, Dakota. It's a valid question." Sylvi started out of the garage. "Where are we going?"

"It's a little shop on 5th called The Finer Greens. It's a plant store," Dakota said. She seemed embarrassed about her question.

"I'm a Valkyrie, Dakota, which means I don't need to eat. I live in the small apartment because it's cheaper. They also didn't require much ID when I was looking to rent. There are a few other immortals that live in that building, so it's quieter than other places."

"Oh, okay." She was looking down at her lap. "I've never met a Valkyrie before. You're tall."

"That's fine," Sylvi smiled, "I've never met a fae before. You're tiny."

Dakota stiffened for a moment. She was quiet. For a second Sylvi thought that she had offended the fae.

"Look, Dakota, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that. I'm just so tall that everyone seems small—"

"Sylvi, I have that feeling again." Dakota looked at Sylvi, but her eyes were red and tears were streaming down her face.

"Please make it go away." She started to cry.

*