They Stir Up Strife [Open]

[Levi DAmico]

Well wasn’t that a definitively short answer designed to end this conversation; Levi couldn’t tell whether he was pleased or not. Nevertheless, he stood smirking against the back of the elevator, his eyes half-watching the lit numbers as they descended and half-watching the girl. He found himself focusing on her hair, how the individual curls had sectioned colours and why she’d ever chosen those colours in the first place. Women were weird like that though, spending hours on their appearance all to create that perfect caricature which was unique enough to stand out, but familiar enough not to challenge the social norm. She was teetering on that edge, he thought, and found himself thinking further about her in a somewhat favourable light. For the half-starved deer that she was, she wasn’t half bad to look at, and there was a frail kind of elegance to her, which called to his predative nature, leading him to consider how little it would take to actually make her run.

They reached the ground floor with sustained silence and he held back as the doors opened, letting the girl skip ahead. She definitely was determined to leave this place, like she’d gotten a whiff of something rotten – this wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. Either she had finally figured out that something wasn’t quite right about him and so she’d finally realized that she’d broken into the wrong place, or she really was just looking for the passport office and he was scaring the living daylights out of her. Levi didn’t really care either way so long as she left and never came back – hopefully carrying the message back to her little thieving friends in the process. Levi watched her from where he was for a moment until he saw her halt – the cliché deer in headlights stance. At that point he smirked to himself, forcing his arm into the gap between the doors to suspend their closing before he stepped out.

Immediately he saw the cause for her sudden stop, for the sudden whiteness coming over her face. So he had hired some men to do the security around her after all; it hadn’t been a dream of his. Levi grumbled to himself. He saw her eyes pinned to Caro’s gun as the brute moved closer to her and began to reach for it. Levi decided to put an end to this before she ended up getting shot.

“Caro,” he called out as he stepped through the corridor, approaching the girl’s side with an out-stretched arm as if to embrace her. “Non sparare, Caro,” he called again, dropping his arm so as not to embrace her.

Caro pulled his hand away from his piece, straightening up slowly and buttoning his jacket. “Chiedo scusa,” Caro murmured, but his eyes were still very much on the girl as if he was silently asking what the **** was wrong with his capo.

“ Figurati,” Levi murmured back. He looked to the girl as well then. “See, they do exist,” he smirked before walking ahead to the exit and pulling one of the heavy glass doors open with ease. “After you, miss.”

[Dhara]

"Grazie per non avermi ripresa." She murmured to the security guy, then looked to Levi as they once more headed for the door, her voice still quiet, "Parlo un po 'italiano, suppongo che avrei dovuto menzionato. Ed è bello vedere che si ha la sicurezza." She flashed him a grin as she slipped out the door in front of him, pausing to wait for him to join her. She looked up and down the street, waiting for him to guide her, but as he joined her, she saw the Pass Port office sign.

She headed in that direction, feeling Mr. Intimidating behind her. She found it was both creepy and reassuring to have some one so large and scary escorting her. As she reached the office, one tiny hand reached out and pulled, only to have the doors wiggle slightly and stay locked. She wiggled them a few more times, then ran a hand through her hair in frustration.

Dang it! They closed at 3pm! Who closes at three pm on a weekend?! WHO DOES THAT?!" She was completely irate and it showed in the way her cheeks turned pink and she stomped one small foot. She huffed out a sigh, expelling a barely visible puff of air as she looked up at her escort. Folding her arms around her thin frame, she managed a polite smile.

"Guess I'm going to be in town a lot longer than I thought. Once the passport expires it takes even longer to renew." She pursed her lips, not sure why she was explaining any thing to him. "Any ways, thank you, for showing me where the office is. And even more important, for not shooting me on sight. I really appreciate it." She tucked a lock of hair behind her ear, letting her eyes roam up and down the deserted street, as if she just realized the position she'd put herself in. Typical of her, sailing in to the unknown with nary a care for her own personal safety. Oh well, she knew that if she made it out of this situation unscathed, nothing would change in that regard.

[Levi DAmico]

Levi hadn’t said a word when the girl had muttered in Italian, confessing that she knew some and that she was sorry not to have mentioned it before. She hadn’t mentioned her name yet either, was she going to apologise for that too? Levi didn’t care, stop talking. It seemed like something stupid to admit anyway, which was why he hadn’t said anything and waited for her to walk past him and leave the building. Sure, he’d kind of spoken in Italian to Caro, telling him not to shoot the girl, just so that it didn’t freak her out because there was a chance she wouldn’t understand. But if she wanted to neglect the ways of the majority and not be ignorant, shitting all over his attempts to be nice, then he wasn’t going to try and be nice in that way again. Levi didn’t have the patience to keep up this charade for any longer than he had to and when he saw the sign on the front door of the passport office just moments before he heard her ***** and complain about it, he decided to draw a cigarette.

This was going to be a long night.

It would have been a God-send to feel anything from the toxic gas and nicotine that he breathed in, but hell, if his body wasn’t about to absorb oxygen then why would it absorb the good stuff? Still, the habit of lighting up and filling his lungs with smoke made him feel a little better mentally. He figured that every stick granted him an extra five minutes of patience rather than shaving those minutes off his life – he’d always felt that way even before becoming a Vampiro. It was like, the less stressed he was, the less likely he was going to lose his temper and kill people. Killing people indiscriminately just because they pissed you off wasn’t a good idea, especially when the people in his circuits tended to be important people – well, important enough to result in some serious consequences if you fucked with them anyway.

Levi sighed, nodding indifferently as the girl continued to talk.

She certainly was chatty. Why was it that he was surrounded by chatty fuckers? Was his silence like a magnet, drawing the loudest and most obnoxious fuckers to him? The world really wasn’t playing fair if it expected him not to kill them all. Seriously. Fill a world with stupid people that aren’t allowed to be shot between the eyes, make them talk non-stop, make them be a constant pest, then give him the medicine to relieve his stress – cigarettes – just before deciding to snap that relief away from him. The world was a dick.

It wasn’t until Levi noticed her twirling some hair around her fingers that he found out that her mouth had actually stopped moving. He hadn’t really been listening to what she’d been saying – something about not shooting her maybe – so it was probably better if he stayed quiet or began a new topic of conversation. She was stood there like she was expecting him to say something, maybe give her the cue to leave. He regarded her a little while longer though, noticing how with some of her hair pulled back that she had a roundish face, something indicative of a small rodent rather than a deer. Levi looked at her wide eyes, her button nose, her small yet kind of large ear, and decided that she reminded him of a hamster. He didn’t particularly like hamsters, but he did like how timid they were.

“So where you headed now?” he asked her simply, taking his last puffs of the cigarette before putting it out under his toe. “It’s pretty dead in this area at night. Honestly, I don’t even know why you expected the passport office to be open.”

As he’d said that, Levi quirked a brow and really stared at her. It was only now that he felt like he couldn’t trust her and he felt a strange kind of protectiveness over his building, his business, his stuff. He wanted to frighten her off, or at least, scare some truth out of her.

[Dhara]

Dhara: She gave a faint smile to Mr. Intimidating and shrugged a bit. "I thought I had time to get here after working a few odd jobs. Now? I guess I'll go see if there's something to do at the bookstore."

Levi: Levi couldn't help but snort at that, it was a shock to the system hearing anybody ready anything these days let alone visited bookstores. His nose crinkled for a moment as he regarded her again then stuffed his hands in his pockets. "Nearest one's like five minutes that way," he said, nodding behind her.

Dhara: "I know. But I have one I work at some times when I need some money. I don't mean to keep you anymore. Thank you, for your help." She smiled up at him, then looked down the street.

Levi: Not sure what to make of her sudden declaration, he simply rolled his shoulders. "No problem," he said, leaning a little heavily on that Boston accent again. It was weirdly awkward for a moment then, weird because he didn't know why he cared. When she indicated a way with a look down the street, it seemed to get even more awkward. He might have been a lot of things, but creepy stalker he was not. Levi had to set the record straight. "Don't think I'm stalking you or nothing, but I'm headed that way too."

Dhara: She smiled up at him. "Thanks for clearing that up, Mr. Intimidating." She instantly clapped a hand over her mouth and blushed. "I... am so sorry..."

Levi: An eyebrow cocked immediately, the other seemed to crush his eye into a squint. "My name's D'Amico, not intimidating," he softly growled. "You can call me Levi, I guess." Not sure why he'd even mentioned it, he began to walk off in that direction. He blanked her a little, but he secretly expected her to follow.

Dhara: Her cheeks were scarlet and she rubbed a hand over the apple of one as she followed. "Its nice to meet you, Mr. D'Amico." She said just loud enough for him to hear. "I'm Dhara." Short and simple, she followed after him in an awkward silence.

Levi: Once she'd told him her name, he rolled it over in his mind like he'd have examined a wine once. Finding it didn't agree with him, he tutted and shrugged a shoulder. "That's a strange name," he commented, thinking nothing of it as she walked behind him. Rude as it might have been, it got worse when he quizzed her on it. "Where'd you get a name like that?"

Dhara: She glanced up at him and smiled at his comments. "My mother. Not sure where she got it from, but she liked it."

Levi: "Oh," he mumbled. That was boring. This girl, Dhara, was weird. She either talked too much or talked in short, quick sentences like she was terrified she'd bite her own tongue. The problem was he wasn't much of a talker either. As a matter of fact, the problem was that there was a problem. Why the hell did he care about talking to her? Maybe it was the fact that she looked so damn demure. Poor Hamster Dhara... it was like she needed protecting from the big wide world and in some strange way, he felt like he had to be the one to protect rather than hinder. Levi frowned at the thought. That was just too weird.

Dhara: "Mmh." She said softly, having caught his tone. Her lips quirked and she shrugged a little. "I think it's a brand of tea. Dhara Chai..."

Levi: "Wouldn't know about that, I don't do tea. More of a coffee man," he said idly, focusing now on the streets and where he was going.

Dhara: She nodded. "Coffee is good. As long as it's black."

Levi: Levi smiled to himself. "Yep." He missed coffee though. He could still sniff the stuff, which was around 60% of the enjoyment, but he couldn't drink it anymore. Neither could he eat. Aside from working and reading, the only other thing he did as a Human was drink, eat and ****. Now those things had been taken out of the equation, he was kinda bored and stressed. There just seemed to be far more negatives about this whole Vampiro **** than there seemed to be positives. Still, he could smell that coffee shop a few yards north like it was stood next to him. The thought made him pause. "I ******* fancy a coffee now," he groaned and looked at her with accusation. "I'm blaming you for that."

Dhara: She chuckled softly and peered up at him. "How about I buy you a coffee? An apology for taking your time and for making you want a coffee."

Levi: Levi growled. "Can't," he said, before adding. "Gotta be up early tomorrow so I don't really wanna be up all night." That seemed rational if not completely and utterly too sensible. He must have sounded about 90 years old. ****. "Rain check," he finished with. "Well, you know where I work. Just ask one of the idiots for me and you shouldn't get any trouble." He began walking again,

Dhara: She smiled to herself and shrugged gently though he probably couldn't see it. "Rain check indeed." She agreed, her eyes travelling down the road. "There's the mall. Is that where you're heading?"

Levi: Levi shook his head quickly. "**** no, I hate them. I'm heading back to my hotel."

Dhara: She paused and stared at the hulking structure with a soft sigh. "I hate them, too. I only go here cause that's where the bookstore is." She crinkled her nose. She loved the bookstore, she just hated that it was in the mall.

Levi: "Go to a different bookstore then."

Dhara: "It's not that easy. I go there when I need money. Wow that sounds wrong. I work there some times."

Levi: Levi smirked to himself, envisioning something more sordid that she'd probably ever imagined. "Then work someplace else," he stated.

Dhara: "If only it were that easy. I'm sure you know how it is. Have to have finished high school, college is preferred bla bla bla."

Levi: "Never went to high school, so, no," he said simply, stopping before the mall and turning back to her. "It ain't all about education anyway. You can be smart without being formally smart. You also just need to look in the right places and make opportunities happen. Like, if I didn't want to work in the mall, I wouldn't work in the mall. I'd rather do something I enjoy, in a place I'm happy with. But hey, I'm pig-headed enough to get what I want and we can't all be like me." He looked up at the concrete and glass monstrosity, all those lights glaring out and making him glare back. "If you don't wanna work there, work someplace else," he said again.

Dhara: She listened to him, her head canted to the side and she gave a half smile. "So you hire me then. Full time, steady pay."

Levi: A broad smile came across his features and he folded his arms across his chest. "What use are you to me?" he asked, eyes glinting.

Dhara: She looked up at him and grinned. "Well I guess it depends on what you need. I can run errands, be a file clerk. I'm really good at math even though I never finished school. Kind of a jack of all trades really. Music is my forte though. But pretty much whatever it takes to pay the bills."

Levi: It wasn't much of a resume, but he'd hired people for less. On the other hand though, those people knew what they were getting into. He didn't feel it was necessary to explain to her the kind of shady **** that he was into and if she was smart enough she'd work it out and quickly know not to mention it anyway. If she was really that willing to be hired, well, it wouldn't be such a bad thing to trial it and see how it went, would it? Levi's grin had faded when she talked, but it quickly cam back. "Desperation is a winning personality trait," he told her flatly. "If you want a job, you can have one. We'll soon find out what you're good at." At that point, Levi reached into the inside pocket of his jacket and pulled out a business card. It had his name, the business name, contact details; the usual stuff. He was very casual in handing it over, suggesting she could still turn it down if she wasn't interested and that he didn't mind.

Dhara: She took the card and read it over, then tucked it securely away before brushing her hair back and looking up at him. "When would be a good time to call?"

Levi: "Any time after 6pm," he said and tucked his hands into his jacket pockets. "It's quieter then."

Dhara: She made a mental note, then offered him her small hand. "Sounds good, Mr. D'Amico. I'll give you a call tomorrow."

Levi: "Fine," he said, glancing back at the mall before regarding her again. "Well, see ya." Levi turned and began to walk off again.

Dhara: She chuckled softly and hid her hands in her sleeves, heading inside for the bookstore.