She's waiting

It didn't take long for me to spot the familiar redhead waving and smiling at me, sitting at the back, in a quiet spot perfect for a private conversation.

"Already missed me, handsome~?" Dahlia teased, the same flirty grin she had last night plastered on her face.

It was hard to imagine that underneath that skin, there was a monster. She was small, thin, and cute. It was a far cry from the intimidating aura she exuded last night.

"No, not really, but I need answers that only you can provide." I flatly replied.

She pouted, which, despite my anger, I had to admit was cute with her face. "Aww, you're no fun."

A waiter quickly approached us. I ordered a cappuccino and a burger, and her an iced coffee and spaghetti. We probably looked like a couple in the eyes of bystanders, and I had the impression she was enjoying it.

Once he left, and after making sure no one was around to eavesdrop on us, I spoke. "So, what is a skinwalker exactly?"

"Straight to the point, hmm?" she mused, playing with her hair. "You may have an inkling already, but, to summarize, the spines we have allow us to turn humans into what I call skinsuits, absorbing their souls in the process."

I was taken aback and interrupted her. "T-their souls?"

She just shrugged and tapped her forehead. "Obviously, that's how we get their memories. It'd be hard to replace someone without it. After absorbing the soul and turning them into skinsuits, we can then wear them, fully becoming them inside and out, completely indistinguishable from the real person." she added as she gestured at her body.

It confirmed the feelings I had when I regained consciousness. Those were most likely my skinwalker instincts awakening.

"Of course, we can also leave a skin without issues, thanks to our ability to edit the memories of those we wear. We just need to focus on it and we can then freely hide all the dirty secrets we don't want them to remember."

There was a moment of silence before the waiter brought us our food.

The coldness I felt didn't vanish after the shower, it only seemed to get worse with time, and even the hot cappuccino wasn't enough to warm me up.

She smirked, apparently noticing my discomfort. "Already feeling it?"

"Feeling what? This cold?"

"Yes. It's what you're going to experience outside of a skin from now on. We don't wear skins because we like it, although I admit that we also really like it, but we do it because we have to. Burrowed inside a skin, with a soul inside us to warm us up, we feel safe and comfortable." she said that while hugging herself, clearly enjoying the skin she was wearing. "Outside of a skin, without any soul, we quickly start to feel cold, depressed, miserable."

I looked down, wondering how the heck I would be able to deal with that. I didn't want to skin someone.

Maybe I can just learn to endure it?

She then leaned closer, her grin returning. "There's something else worth mentioning, but I can't show it in public. You'll have to walk me home again like a gentleman first~"

I sighed. "Fine, but can you stop with the flirting?"

She stuck out her tongue playfully and simply said "No~" before giggling. "For real, though, don't worry, I prefer women over men. Although, if you do end up wearing a hot woman, then consider my flirting to be serious~"

I tilted my head in confusion. "Wearing a woman?"

"Did you believe you'd only be able to wear six foot tall men? We'd be bad at what we do if we weren't able to seamlessly slither inside whatever skin we want, no matter the size or gender. Don't try to find any scientific explanation for this ability, though, just consider it magical." She chuckled, caressing her face. "If I wasn't so possessive of Dahlia, I would have offered you to give her a spin. She's such a perfect skin, a cute bratty spoiled rich girl."

I held my head, trying to come to grips with the situation. I apparently now had the ability to turn people into skinsuits and wear them, impersonating them. And it wasn't limited to only men.

Dahlia looked back at me, staring me in the eyes as she smirked. "Being rich and powerful is so good, I don't understand why you gave up on that life, Arston."

I immediately glared at her. "How do you know?"

"I simply checked your ID while you were napping and did a bit of research. Your sister is really pretty, by the way."

I clenched my fists. "Don't you dare approach her."

She smiled, unphased by my anger. "Relax, I'm just saying she's my type, that's all, no need to get angry. I don't plan to wear her if that's what you're worried about, I already have my perfect cozy life and I have no intention of throwing it away anytime soon."

"I don't trust you enough to let you near my sister."

Strangely enough, my reply seemed to make her happy. "It's never a bad thing to be too careful."

"Is there anything else a skinwalker can do?"

"Yes, although I can't get into details. Most of us experience some… evolutions throughout our lives, but these evolutions are specific to each of us, as they are born from our desires. A certain skinwalker might develop the ability to charm someone just by touching them if they're a lustful one, another may learn how to feel the presence of other skinwalkers if they're lonely, and so on. I also have some tricks up my sleeves, but I won't tell you what. Just know that if you feel a deep desire for something, your powers may evolve to satiate that desire."

Despite the evidence of having bony spines in my fingers and these new instincts I got, it still seemed so far-fetched. "That sounds… unbelievable."

"Oh, trust me, it is real. But you'll understand better once we get to my place." she said, gesturing at the waiter.

She paid for our food, saying it was her treat, and I followed her. I didn't forget to text Claire to reassure her, telling her that I still was with Dahlia for the time being. I also saw Dahlia texting someone while we were walking, but she just said it was one of her friends.