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Post by Vivian Nazarova on Apr 8, 2009 11:38:14 GMT 1
Argh!
At least tonight couldn’t get worse. There was no possible way. First she’d been molested by some creep, and then Ed had run in to help her only to get his face smashed in by the guy. Vivian and self loathing had never gotten on well, but ever since the whole vampire business it might as well have become her Siamese twin. Everywhere she went, drama followed. Everywhere. She was starting to suspect she may just be cursed. Hey, it was possible!
She suspected the night was cold. It had to be, the streets were emptier than usual for how close it was to Christmas. The streets around the Hog never got much attention to start with because it was away from the main shops, but usually around this time a person or two could be seen tracking across at intervals. Not so tonight.
For the billionth time Vivian found herself wishing she actually had a better sense of temperature, or even had a breath to cause a fog cloud in front of her face. That way she could get some sense of how far below zero they were slipping. She knew she must look odd, standing in the snow with her arms folded in just jeans and a t-shirt, but it didn’t matter. She was too shaken up to care what anyone thought and she couldn’t feel the chill anyway.
At least she hadn’t fallen into the trap of thinking the affair was her fault. If she ever met the stranger again she was strangling him with her bare hands. Or, maybe not. A glare? Why was she kidding herself? She wasn’t a fighter, and it was for the best. Never knew if she’d end up punching off someone’s head, let alone their lights. But still, the thought of what she’d like to yell at him, whoever he was, was calming her down somewhat.
A few more minutes and she’d be relaxed enough to go check how Ed was. The only reason she wasn’t with him already was because she didn’t trust herself to stick around him when he was bleeding so much. That was just asking for disaster.
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Dacian
Vampire (A)
Creature of the Night
Posts: 330
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Post by Dacian on Apr 8, 2009 12:02:35 GMT 1
Leaving Vivian – even in the care of Lenora who could undoubtedly look after her as well as he – had not been part of the plan. He’d been thinking too much about Cassie at the time of the whole Lumos solem fiasco and had forgotten that his safety was directly tied to Vivian’s. If he died, she would not last long. Lenora’s patience might not last and she could tire of sheparding the young changeling at any time – it was hard to tell with Lenny.
Even though he trusted Lenny for the short term, Dacian was impatient to get back into their old routine. Vivian needed feeding, and she needed to learn how to really adapt to her new lifestyle. Truding through the snow, Dacian rounded the corner to the Hogs Head and slipped around the back. He stopped as he rounded the corner, eyes snapping to the figure standing outside of the door. Vivian? What was she doing outside?
Forgetting his guilt quite easily, he grumbled under his breath and with his hands shoved deep into his coat pockets, slunk down the alley toward her. She seemed preoccupied, and Dacian huffed loudly when he’d reached the half-way mark. She should have heard him, sensed him somehow by then. “If you insist on standing somewhere in plain view, at least be paying attention.” He started, a hint of exasperation about his tone. The girl refused to let her acute senses tell her about the world around her which was going to be a problem if she was ever going to be a successful predator.
The older vampire sighed, relaxing his shoulders in a more comfortable manner, trying not to scare her off for once. “Vivian, you shouldn’t be out here. You’re not old enough to be alone…” His head tilted a little, eyes narrowing. Something was not quite right. “What are you doing out here Vivian?” He asked, taking a few more steps toward her, lowering his head to better see her face.
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Post by Vivian Nazarova on Apr 8, 2009 12:39:45 GMT 1
Vivian jumped. No, really. Dacian had appeared to spring out of the soil, and with a comical look on her face, Vivian’s whole body went rigid with shock at the sound of his voice. How did he do? that? None too impressed at being snuck up on she attempted to give him a glare that only faltered and died after a few seconds. She wanted to be angry at someone, but she couldn’t. Especially since she hadn’t seen Dacian in forever without a word as to why and she was actually slightly relieved to see him back. He didn’t exactly look enthused to see her, but coming from him a “What are you doing out here?” was practically an “Are you okay?”
“Chilling,” she replied stubbornly, but her resolve soon cracked. That was starting to become a theme. If she didn’t vent at someone she was going to blow up. “No, zhat’s a lie,” she corrected, lower lip pushing outwards into a pout. “Someone at zhe pub...” Hesitation. Telling Dacian the exact details was the equivalent of setting out a hit on the man and although she was angry she didn’t exactly want him dead either. “Zhey vere rude, and ve had a disagreement, and Ed tried to help me before it vent bad, but he got hurt,” Vivian explained in an anguished fashion, wringing her hands together. Why was she telling him? Dacian wouldn’t care for Ed, but she wanted sympathy! For the both of them too, and he was the closest one around. “He- ... he vos just trying to defend me because othervise zhat could have been me. I couldn't haff gotten avay on my own.” Okay, over-dramatisation, but she wanted Dacian to fully appreciate what Ed had suffered for her. “I’m getting some air and vaiting for him to clean zhe blood up.”
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Dacian
Vampire (A)
Creature of the Night
Posts: 330
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Post by Dacian on Apr 8, 2009 13:10:27 GMT 1
Even if what she said wasn’t incriminating enough, the way her accent made the inflection on the words almost incomprehensible was a hint to how trouble she was. One thing Dacian had noticed early on about Vivian was that stress made her English heavily accented. Any more and she may as well have reverted back to Russian. As she spoke, a growl rumbled in Dacian’s chest. The noise was constant and not directed at anybody but the way he was suddenly on edge made it quite obvious he was not pleased.
Casting a glance up and down the alley in case this walking dead-man was somehow still close. The vampire closed the distance between him and Vivian, taking both her shoulders. “I should have been here.” It was an apology of sorts, and for once Dacian seemed like he was actually inwardly berating himself. Mouth set in a tight line, his nostrils flared as he concentrated on not losing his temper. Where had Lenora been? “You’re not safe here; I should have known Edward couldn’t even look after himself.” His voice was a little absent, working his logic through, thinking of places to go where Vivian would be safe.
“Alright, we can leave now – we can be at the next town before dawn.” He took a grip on her elbow, standing as if to lead her away. He wanted nothing more than to hunt this bastard down and rip him to shreds but his first priority was Vivian. She needed safety and guidance. Assuming this man had been a mortal, she could have easily overpowered him and the fact that Edward had to come to her rescue was a worrying thought. As much as he would have liked to have seen Edward beat to a pulp – it was commendable at least that Vivian had not lost her control when confronted with the unexpected presence of blood – he needn’t have to interfere. Vivian was a young vampire but she could easily overpower a mortal man nonetheless. She needed to learn to trust her new instincts, learn how to wield them to protect herself. He wouldn’t be able to stay with her forever, and it was about time she realised just how well equipped she was to deal with these dangers.
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Post by Vivian Nazarova on Apr 8, 2009 15:08:40 GMT 1
Okay, petting of the shoulders, actually somewhat comforting. She knew there’d been a heart buried in there under the gruff exterior. Almost-an-apology that was as good as she was ever going to get, even better. Dacian ruined it somewhat by berating Ed a little but, really, it was Dacian. What else did she expect? If he did it again then she’d have to tell him to shush, but at the moment she was actually genuinely weighing up the chances of being able to hug the older vampire and get away with it. Hugs were good, and she needed one, despite who it was.
Aaaand, then he had to go be himself. Say the absolute worst thing he could while coming to the worst possible conclusion.
“VHAT?” Vivian tried to yank her arm away while simultaneously digging in her heels. It was a fair chance that if Dacian was to let her go she’d just fall into the snow in an unceremonious lump. “Net! Stop! Chego vy delaete?! Let go!” Cue the stress-activated Russian. She didn’t want to leave! She was happy at the Hogs Head! Why couldn’t he ever seem to comprehend that? “I vant to STAY!” He didn’t get to march back into her life then try and wrest control for the hundredth time! Gaaah, why couldn’t she just keep her fat mouth shut?!
Her first instinct had not been panic that she’d be abandoning Ed (although he was the second one to come to her mind), or Lenny, or the school... It was the stomach-sinking concept of leaving Scotty.
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Dacian
Vampire (A)
Creature of the Night
Posts: 330
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Post by Dacian on Apr 8, 2009 15:55:20 GMT 1
Dacian didn’t let go but neither did he drag her off down the street. “Stay?!” He hissed, his usual cantankerous manner slipping back over the exposed worry like an encroaching tide erasing messages in the sand. “Vivian, no. I’ve let you stay here this long and that was obviously a mistake. I’ve indulged your mortal fantasies too long. There is nothing here you need. What you do need is to be somewhere far from here where you can learn how to control yourself. You might have some handle on your bloodlust but there is much more to this new existence than that!” His fingers were shaking with the effort not to dig into her elbow with more force.
“It didn’t even occur to you that you didn’t need Edward’s help? We’re predators, Vivian. No human can best us. Edward need not of been hurt if you’d let me teach you how to face dangers like that.” He’d been too harsh, perhaps playing on her guilt over the mortals she had attached herself to would bring the importance of what he had to say into focus. Maybe he sould lay off, be calm and deliberate with his words, explain things rationally. Too bad he wasn’t very good at that.
“You’re young, I understand this place holds significance for you but you’ll survive without it. What you won’t survive without is the experience I have. I can share it with you if you’d just listen. But you don’t, do you? You don’t try and that’s what gets people like Edward killed.” He was trying not to scare her, but typically Dacian was not good at restraining himself. She was just a child, but she was not in a world of children now. Nobody in this world wouldn’t hurt her because she was young. She was just an easy target. Like Cassie, like Edward. The people they included in their lives only got hurt. They were out of their league. Not that he’d mind Edward’s demise, of course, but he was a good as an example to get Vivian to really understand.
Who would have thought it – Edward being useful?
“There’s nothing here for us, Vivian.” He ignored the pang of loss associated with leaving Cassie. He knew better. It wasn’t as if she was the first tempting mortal to cross his path. “For once stop thinking like a child and realise the danger of staying here.”
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Post by Vivian Nazarova on Apr 9, 2009 1:08:59 GMT 1
“No! Zhere are people here for me nao!” Vivian argued pitifully. Suddenly her exterior finally cracked and Vivian’s legs voluntarily gave out with a rush of muffled sobbing. If it wasn’t for Dacian clinging onto her arm she could have crashed onto the ground in a ball at his feet. It wasn’t meant to be resistance, as Vivian had no delusions about the fact that Dacian could just drag her away. Like a doll. A broken one. The point was Vivian had dealt with enough emotional turbulence today and honestly, she didn’t feel she could take that much more. Not blows like this at any rate. How could he be so cold?
She had to wipe those tears off her face they might just freeze solid there, but she didn’t. Through shaky, heaving breaths she was trying to come up with some sort of argument but it was all dying from her mind before it could work its way out of her mouth. Besides, when did Dacian ever listen to what she thought? “I don’t vant to leave Ed and Scotty!” she wailed derisorily, and if there was something for her to cling onto with her free hand to root herself to the pub, she would have. Mentioning Scotty, possibly a problem on second thought, but she was a little too distraught to concentrate. “I- I need zhem! PLEASE!”
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Dacian
Vampire (A)
Creature of the Night
Posts: 330
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Post by Dacian on Apr 9, 2009 2:35:21 GMT 1
This was degrading fast – he really had to work on his negotiation skills. The vampire huffed. She was building attachments to those around her. Understandable, but he shouldn’t have let it happen. As her legs folded, he reacted a little more slowly than usual to catch her. He lowered her slowly, his healing skin stretching painfully where it wasn’t ready for any kind of stress. He grunted, sitting her on the back step and letting go. He crouched stiffly, tentatively resting a hand on her shoulder again. Dacian was never sure how to react to tears that weren’t caused by pant-wetting fear of him. Vivian sniffling over something clearly emotional had him at a loss.
Dacian blinked, Ed and who? He could have sworn that was a second name. “Scotty?” His brow furrowed. “Vivian, who is Scotty?” He’d missed something here. He realised just now much attention he wasn’t lavishing on Vivian. Perhaps it was no wonder she never responded to him if he was never there. Scotty was blatantly a male somebody and that made his hackles raise. A male someone who she ranked as highly as Edward if not more, somebody she did not want to leave. Just how much was he in the dark about?
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Post by Vivian Nazarova on Apr 9, 2009 3:33:08 GMT 1
... Uh oh.
Vivian’s sniffles actually stopped. She didn’t look at Dacian, just forwards with a look on her face as though she’d just been caught at something. Oh God. Well, her and Scotty weren’t technically dating, so it wasn’t as though Dacian could chuck too much of a fuss. But, then again, if sappy romance novels had taught her anything it was that Dacian could, and most likely would, overreact. If she had a shot she’d date Scotty in a heartbeat and unfortunately Dacian had a horrendous knack of being able to tell exactly what she was trying to hide. She needed to learn to lie to him.
“... A boy,” Vivian muttered quietly with a certain evasiveness, looking away with her hands wringing tellingly. The quietness and overall reaction wasn’t one of someone talking about ‘just’ a boy. She was already mentally bracing herself for whatever was going to come next. At least now she was seated next to the rail on the stairs so if Dacian went and snatched her again and could hold onto it for dear life. “You’re not my father. I don’t haff to anser to you,” she added stubbornly, already trying to construct a defence, even if it was one that she’d used before to utterly no avail.
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Dacian
Vampire (A)
Creature of the Night
Posts: 330
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Post by Dacian on Apr 9, 2009 3:59:45 GMT 1
He might not be the best at reading body language not pertaining to some sort of physical fight but even he could tell she was hiding something. “A boy?” He repeated. Not exactly helpful – he’d guessed that much already. Though he supposed a boy in Vivian’s mind was somebody at least as young as her. Dacian tended to class most mortal men as ‘boys’ on a grumpy day. So most days. That meant it was someone her age, and considering the presence of a school not a stone’s throw away, he likely came from there.
She was right; he wasn’t her father, which meant he couldn’t stop the verbal bubble bursting from his mouth. “No I’m not but I’m the closest you have to one now so you better start answering my questions. Who is Scotty and what the Hell does he have to do with staying here?” He had his suspicions, but he hoped to his estranged God that he was wrong. “Without an explanation, there’s not even a chance I’ll reconsider so tell me or we’re leaving whether you walk or I carry you.” This was getting far too complicated. He should just give up on trying to be nice, drag her away and let her hate him. It would them both more good in the long run.
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