***Author's Note: This is my submission for the 2014 Halloween contest, so if you like the story, please give me your vote!***
Aaralyn walked into the Tooth and Nail tavern and sniffed the air, picking out the scent of several different species as she strolled through the room. She walked with the grace of a dancer, and all eyes were on her, if only briefly, as she made her way to the back, near the kitchen.
"Aaralyn, babe, how's it going?" Justin, a waiter, asked as he passed by. "Your usual table, sugar? Or I can move some wraiths around, if you prefer to sit at the bar..."
"My normal spot is fine, Justin," Aaralyn said, and she continued on to her normal table without a second glance at him. She sat down at the table closest to the kitchen, her back to the wall, so that she could see everyone in the room. This was her normal spot because near the kitchen, the scents from all the different foods wafted out and helped to mask Aaralyn's own scent from her enemies, if any of them happened to come in. Aaralyn had another sniff of the room and looked around, making sure there was no one nearby who might threaten her.
There were a couple of wraiths at the bar, as Justin had mentioned. There was a group of humans at two separate tables near the front of the room, their scent strong and spilling out into the street, no doubt attracting the attention of many monsters as they passed by, enticing them to come into the Tooth and Nail that night and try to get some easy prey.
There were no werewolves in the room yet, but there were a couple of vampire ladies in another dark corner, not very far from Aaralyn. She glanced at them and then looked away. Vampires were not her natural enemies as werewolves were, but still, as the only werecat in town, Aaralyn was not fond of mixing with their type.
"Hey, sweetie, here are your usual drinks--one glass of water, and one glass of milk," Justin said, placing the glasses in front of her. Aaralyn studied the young man for a moment before she took a sip of the water. Justin was about her age, somewhat muscular, with dark hair and deep brown eyes. He had sparkly white teeth that he flashed at her often, when he smiled. He was seven-eighths human and one-eighth something else, supposedly imp. He had told Aaralyn once that he was the seductive kind of imp, but she had promptly put him in his place by telling him that no imp was seductive, and she'd just as soon cut him into little bite-sized pieces and eat him as go home with him. Aaralyn had never really meant that, but it helped to keep Justin's flirting a bit more under control. He had always hit on her, but he had never really been serious about it since that discussion, knowing that Aaralyn was usually a loner.
"So, we have a couple of different types of fish on special tonight," Justin said.
"Fish?" Aaralyn said. "It's Halloween. Who eats fish on Halloween?"
"Actually, all the meats are on special, tonight," Justin said. "Steak, ribs, pork chops, chicken, you name it, if it originally had legs, it's on special tonight. Halloween is one of our busiest nights of the year."
"I can imagine," Aaralyn said. "It's the one night when all the monsters can just be themselves, in front of humans or anyone else, and no one thinks twice about it."
"Exactly," Justin said. "So what can I get for you?"
"I'll have tilapia tonight," Aaralyn said. "With my usual white rice and fried bananas on the side."
"Palate cleansers," Justin said, winking at her. He and the owner were the only people who knew what Aaralyn really was. She had never officially told them, 'Hey, by the way, my species is werecat,' but they had seen her around enough, and fed her enough times, that they had figured out some of her habits. For example, Justin knew that the glass of milk she drank, just one glass, never refilled, was her special treat that appealed to her cat side. And the glass of water, refilled often, was to clear out her mouth of the taste of her food so that she could keep her senses very alert. She was always quietly smelling the room and picking up the identity of people who walked in, always on the lookout for werewolves, her enemies, and exercising extreme caution around them. Fish was her favorite food, and she ate different kinds--catfish, tilapia, sea bass, whatever, depending on her mood. With it, she always had white rice and a few slices of fried bananas, palate cleansers, again to help keep her sense of taste and smell pure and alert.
Aaralyn watched the room again, noting how many of the creatures seemed to be pairing off. The two wraiths at the bar seemed to be a couple. The large group of humans was composed of a mixture of men and women, and many of them, as they got deeper into their drinks, seemed to be showing preferences toward certain members of the opposite sex. The two vampires in the corner were both female, but that didn't necessarily mean anything... There was just something about the freeing power of Halloween. It had all the monsters wanting to find kindred spirits and make a bond for the evening.
"Here's your fish, babe," Justin said, bringing Aaralyn her plate from the kitchen.
"Justin," Aaralyn said, touching his arm. "When is your shift over?"
"Not long," Justin said. "Why? Will you miss me when I go home and leave you here all alone?" He smiled with those dazzling white teeth.
"I just wondered if you might sit down with me," Aaralyn said. "It's been a while since we just had a meal together and talked."
"Awwww, babe, don't tease me," Justin said. "You don't like when I sit down with you. You always want to enjoy your meal in peace and quiet and watch out for that big werewolf with the leather jacket that you like to spy on."
"I'm not spying on him," Aaralyn said. "You know he eats humans sometimes. I watch him to make sure he doesn't walk off with any of your customers."
"I'm sure he's pretty busy elsewhere tonight," Justin said. "Halloween is probably his favorite time to go trolling for prey, but he doesn't have to come down to the local bar for that. He probably has his own favorite haunts somewhere."
"Exactly," Aaralyn said. "Which is why I don't have to worry about him tonight. Will you sit down with me or not?"
"Maybe later, babe," Justin said. "Right now I have to go take care of those two ladies in the corner. They have a lot of demands tonight."
Aaralyn watched Justin walk away. He chatted and laughed with the two vampire women and topped off their drinks. Aaralyn knew that Justin had worked at the Tooth and Nail since he was a kid, and he knew how to handle the monsters and weirdos who came in there. But something about the way the vampire women were looking at him unsettled her. They had meat, very rare, on their plates, but they weren't eating it. They had some kind of red drinks, but they weren't drinking them. When Justin came around, they smiled and touched his hands and arms and acted every bit as if they were mesmerized by Justin. Aaralyn was used to him flirting with her and giving her all his attention, so this made her a little jealous. Yet she was happy for Justin when other girls paid him genuine attention. However, this just didn't seem genuine to her.
As the hour got later, more people began flocking into the bar. Aaralyn had finished her fish, but she still sat at her table, not wanting to leave yet.