Le Cose Ci Mancano [Athena]

[Cosimo Alessi (DELETED 6612)]

--The following transcript was a live chat roleplay--

* Cosimo Alessi was undecided. There had sprung from deep within a need for revenge. He wasn't normally a vengeful kind of person; but he had been a paladin, once. He'd now killed not only one, but several of the comrades he'd once worked with, if only for a brief amount of time. They had not hesitated. They had been cold and calculating. They did not care that he was someone they knew; they would still kill him without guilt or remorse. What must it be like, to be a person like that? What must it be like, to be so cold? Maybe Cosimo should not have wanted to stoop to their level, but he had. He had taken to the sewers every night for the past two weeks, to kill as many as he could. Maybe it was a sign that he'd finally accepted what he had become, and was willing to fight for his right to live. Wounds came fast and quick, however; strong enough to take on the majority, Cosimo still lost against a few. And he was tired of having to wait for the bullet holes to close up. So, he stumbled into the Mausoleum, looking for easier prey. Looking for something else to practice on, so next time he went to the sewers, he would be able to kill all of them, instead of just some. Armed with his sword in one hand, gun in the other, he wiped his nose with the back of his hand and squinted into the darkness.

* Athena just got a job not too long ago. She was working long hours and they made her body ache. How could you still ache even when you're dead? She wasn't sure. There seemed to be a pattern to her nights these days. Work. Mausoleum. Sleep. It was at the Car Shop that she had all her fun this past week. Though unlike usual, she wasn't too tired and was looking forward to killing things. After taking a few steps into the eerie place she pulled off her backpack and then her sweater and tied the long sleeves around her small waist. Now tossing her backpack aside before she pulled her dark hair up into a loose ponytail. First, she stretched out her bare inked arms before she fixed the straps of her grease stained tank, pulling her gun now to check for bullets before she took a few more steps in to find easy prey to kill.

* Cosimo Alessi was wearing jeans and a simple long-sleeved v-neck. Clothes that could either be easily washed--tough and resisting--or that could be thrown away or burned. Slung over his shoulder was a messenger bag, canvas, which could also be washed every now and again. Its where he kept all the trinkets that could be gathered to be sold. Slowly, he eased forward. It was a new area, one which he had to get used to. He rounded the corner, coming face to face with another moving body--he immediately raised his gun as if to shoot. He pulled the trigger, but at the last moment realised it wasn't a mooncalf or an ancient. It was another vampire. The bullets missed by a hair, splintering into the stone behind her head. Cosimo's eyes were wide, his jaw slack. "...Scusa! I am..." he paused. Blinked again. "...you."

* Athena had put her gun back in the back of her shirt for a moment. It rested comfortable between the woman's thin tank and waistband of her pants that hung naturally low on her hips. Instead she held her cellphone in her hand, her right foot tapped on the ground as she obviously debated. Should she call? Should she text? Would he be mad at her? Did she do something AGAIN? Being friends with someone wasn't always easy to her. It didn't come as natural as the drums. With a sigh she moved her head forward to purse her lips at her cell screen and twitched once the bullet whizzed right by her head. It made the weirdest sound. Turning her head quickly at the noise to see where that was coming from. The phone dropped, a hand quickly moving to grab her gun and with almost expert aim the man had a gun in his face. Then he spoke. That accent. Didn't she know it from somewhere? Just as he blinked - so did she. "...You." she said as well. Her eyes naturally rolled though, her hand slacking from its earlier tense position to point the gun now at the wall over his shoulder. "Well then."

* Cosimo Alessi had tilted his gun away as soon as he had realised his mistake; the barrel was pointed at the roof, and his finger was off the trigger. The sword was limp at his side. The woman's response was about as graceful as Cosimo's greeting, such as it was. And he couldn't help but laugh. "I think, perhaps, we need to stop meeting like this. Someone is going to lose an eye," he said, holstering his weapons. "I feel like... my heart, it should be racing. Adrenaline, yes? But I cannot feel it. It is strange," he said as he leaned forward, hands on his knees. There was something there, though. Some phantom adrenaline rush that was hard to figure out. He didn't feel quite as dead as people liked to say vampires were.

* Athena raised both of her slender eyebrows and those lips of hers pursed again. "You think? I'm hoping it'll be you though, to be honest." she teased, lifting a hand to rub over her closed blue eyes for a moment. That had almost been scary. If she were any less prideful maybe her body would shake just as felt her insides were. When she moved her hand away she realized that the skin over her wrist was smudged with grease, so graceless response was to wipe it off on the side of her black cargo pants. No one would notice or care anyways. Least of all her. She didn't deny that he had a point about adrenaline rushes. It was true that if her heart were still beating it would most definitely be beating at a fast speed right about now. After all, he had almost shot her in the head. Wouldn't that be a thousand point shot? "Well, it is very strange but to be honest.. there isn't much that life-after-death that isn't strange to me, at least."

* Cosimo Alessi laughed and nodded. "I hope it would not be me. I am not sure how that would heal," he said. He held up his hands, a little wrinkled with fine scars, as if from a burn. "Sunburn, see? It did not heal properly," he said, peering at his hands like they were creations that had disappointed him. If Juniper hadn't dragged him out of the sun, he wondered how horrible he might look. Take off his shirt? He's got scars all over, from where bullets had pierced the skin. But he supposed that didn't matter. He didn't take his shirt off much, these days. He lifted his gaze and blinked at Athena. "If I lost an eye, would it come back? Would I be able to see? I do not know. I would prefer to not find out."

* Athena wrinkled her nose slightly as they continued to talk. When his hands raised she naturally leaned forward to inspect them, her icy blue eyes roamed over the man's fine scarring. "You should probably avoid the sun, you're a man of the night now." she offered him the slightest smile after she jested him. Then he spoke about losing an eye and she thought how terrible it might feel to be unable to see a side of her drum set. How would she play? It mattered not that other aspects of life would be difficult now. Truly, it didn't compare when it came to her true love. "It may come back..." now her nose fully wrinkled in thought. "That's a puzzling question. Do you think it would come back?" Looking over at him with the question almost shinning in her blue hues.

* Cosimo Alessi shrugged his shoulders. "We are not going to bet on it," he said, taking a single small step back as if he expected the woman might actually try to take out his eye so that they might get their answer. "The sun, no. It is not nice. I am sure to be inside well before the sun comes up, now. As you said - everything is strange. I am sure I will make more mistakes before my time is up. Do not you think?" he asked. "I mean... you. Have made mistakes, yes?"

* Athena was actually patient for once. She let him finish and she let him explain. But once she understood him it made her screw up her face when he asked her about mistakes. Had she made mistakes? Oh yes, she had. It brought an image to her face. It was one she had been avoiding and it was made known by the way it made her face twist for a quick second. The image reminded her of her phone being on the floor and instead of looking at him still she was looking at the ground. When she realized it was a little ways away from him she easily took the steps there and bent down to scoop it up. "Yes, yes I have." shoving her phone then into the pocket of her cargo pants. "But, I haven't experienced the sun just yet. I've been very very careful about that. Rion would simply have a fit." she rolled her eyes at that as she straightened back up. "My sires isn't a playful woman."

* Cosimo Alessi laughed. "I think mine is. Can be. I am still getting to know her," Cosimo said. He hadn't told her about the sunburn. He wasn't too sure he should be too open about the ways in which his two childer had been brought into this world; both had asked for it, and that was all anyone needed to know. No one needed to know that they knew to ask him for it because he had royally fucked up. He watched the way she collected her phone, relaxing a little as he gave up the notion that she was about to take his eye out. "Would she... have a fit if she knew you were on your phone and not paying attention?" he teased. Too soon?

* Athena would probably consider taking out his eye now. She could gift-wrap it and give it to Rion. That might be something that woman would be interested in she could assume. It was dark and strange, just as they were. They were never at a loss for people to look amused when it came to watching them banter and battle each others wit. When he mentioned his own sire she would nod. Not sure what to say and a nod at least meant she was listening. Then he joked, he brought up her siress and what she would think. It was always something sarcastic. That woman was a machine of true wit. Always funny. Even if the humor was pointed at you. No one seemed to dare not to laugh besides maybe Athena. Her lips pressed into a thin line and she let out a brief laugh. "Well, she would probably ask me who the hell would bother to spend so much time with me who wasn't either obligated or getting paid."

* Cosimo Alessi glanced around, as if expecting that they might be jumped, at any moment. He at least made a move to put his back toward the wall, so if there was any threat, he would be able to see it coming. At least the foes in here seemed to be less aggressive than those in the sewers. He leaned against the wall, almost aching for a cigarette. It had been a while. He'd given up, a few years back. But the craving was still there, sometimes. It didn't make any sense. "She sounds like a ray of sunshine. And how would you respond?" he asked, curious if this woman was as down on herself as her sire seemed to be.

* Athena laughed again but this time louder and longer. The sound echoed some off the walls but she didn't seem bothered by it. Most nights it was mellow in here. Or maybe it was just the timing from when she finally dragged herself from under a car to do some real work. Her hands raised and she clapped her palms together as she relaxed a shoulder into a nearby wall, slowly her lips smirked and the other shoulder shrugged then. "I would just reply that obviously I'm a lot more pleasant to be around than she is." she looked amused now. "And probably throw in a comment about her having no friends other than the one's she makes." as she spoke she made a gesture with her hand as if to say 'whatever' by a casual wave of her hand. Amused.

* Cosimo Alessi arched a brow at the laughter, the pure amusement, and a complete lack of any care. A smile lilted his own lips. It was a nice laugh that she had. A natural one. It bounced off the walls like a musical instrument. "I assume... either you tease each other and...underneath there is... there is care in that teasing, si? Or... do you not like each other?" he asked. Was he getting too personal? He didn't really know. But his curiosity always got the better of him, and it would be interesting to find out what this life is like from another's perspective. It made sense, he supposed, that some might not get along with their sires.

* Athena thought about it for a second. It had started out with hate but now as they both softened with time she smiled at Cosi and crossed her arms over her chest. "Well, I wouldn't say that we tease to truly hurt each other's feelings anymore." she lifted up her right foot, sliding the sole of her chunky army boot up the wall as she bent her knee and relaxed. "I can't really speak for Rion, though. I can at least say that we're always funny." she smiled at him, for once her entire face was light up with something other than annoyance.

* Cosimo Alessi was wary, this time, not to be condescending in any way. This woman was a live wire, a spark that could be ignited with the slightest bit of heat. Cosimo pushed his hands into his pockets and just nodded as he considered. "You hated each other to begin with? Why would she... turn you, if she did not like you?" he asked. Maybe he was asking how it happened. Maybe he wanted to know, how his own turning differed from those around him. Maybe he liked to know how other people ticked, and whether those he turned... would it be a normal occurrence? Two, already, and barely a month into this life himself. The more he knew, the better sire he might be able to be.

* Athena looked down at her shoe then back up at him with a small frown. It was lucky though, for him, that she was so tired that she was more inclined to be honest. She didn't hesitate to tell the truth to this man that she had only met for the second time. It was bizarre, this would be the first time that she would dare speak of this out loud to anyone who wasn't blood. "She hadn't meant to turn me." she paused, her palms sliding up and down her own arms as if she were cold. "I wasn't pleased with her for stealing my opportunity to die." Another pause. "I can't meet my fiancé in heaven or hell.. or wherever he is.." she muttered, chewing on her lower lip for a moment before her arms dropped and now her hands were busy patting herself down for a smoke. Now stressing herself out as she heard her own voice say it out loud. Maybe it was acceptance. She hadn't thought about it in a while not with both her hands and her mind busy. Her right hand found her cigarette case and she pulled it from her pocket to open up and put one between her lips, only to return the case into her pocket. "How were you turned?" asking as she found the lighter to light up without even asking if he was okay with the smoke. She needed it.

* Cosimo Alessi pushed his fingers into his hair, scratching at his head. He wasn't even sure whether he itched, but he did it anyway. A habit to mask the discomfort, the inability to really offer any kind of solace to a woman who'd told him far more than he had expected her to. She had tried to kill herself. She was heartbroken. And her sire had stolen that opportunity from her. So he did not respond; he couldn't possibly offer any solace. He, of the silver-linings playbook. He took a breath. "I was homeless. My life, it had... reached rock bottom. That is what they say, is it not? I was discovered. For some reason, Elizabeth chose to give me a choice. She offered me a home. A better way of living. She is..." he laughed, then, remembering the way she had taken him home and buried him. Buried him! "... a little eccentric, but she is... good," he nodded. Yes, good. Good natured. A nurturer. He was loyal to her, to a fault. He would not admit it, but he tracked her down, every now and again. Just to sit with her, because it felt better, to be sitting with her. Things that he would not say out loud.

* Athena thought about rock bottom for a second. Was she in rock bottom? Was being dead-but-not-really the bottom for her? She wasn't sure. When she remembered him she always thought of way he pushed her to get out of her box. That he was always so busy pulling her by her hand to reach new levels that scared her. This scared her. Not being with him scared her. It wasn't new anymore. Athena had been alone for a few years now. It wasn't new to her by any means but she felt the pain as fresh as if it happened yesterday. The woman smoked as she attempted to both form her own feelings and a response. "I think that in some twisted way this can be a form of a second chance." Athena smoked her cigarette, blowing the smoke away from him and through her nostrils. "I'm not sure... exactly why your *** hit the bottom but It seems to be better now and that's good." The corner of her mouth lifted into a half smile for him. She was attempting to be some kind of comfort for him. Why? She wasn't sure. But then again.. she wasn't sure of most things lately. Her feelings were crazy and scattered and she could only hope that she could honor her late fiancé by using the confidence he helped built with her to be as adventurous alone as they were together.

* Cosimo Alessi laughed. His own laugh was genuine, too. Maybe not as musical as Athena's was; it lacks the feminine lilt. Female laughter always sounded more melodic than men's. "I had lice," he said, nodding in mock seriousness. This conversation was going far better than their last, and Cosimo was easing into it, slowly. "That was what swayed me, see. I needed to be rid of the lice. Anything to get rid of the lice. I am a better man, without the lice," he said. It wasn't entirely untrue. Maybe the lice were the last straw. "But, I did get a good last meal! What do you remember eating last?" he asked. He was glad to have that memory, at least.

* Athena 's eyebrows raised once more at the lice comment. Who just freely offers up information about having lice? Well, on the same token who would be as honest as she was earlier? Maybe no one would ever know. "Lice really?" she laughed at him, genuine and soft. Using the wall she was on to butt out her cigarette and toss carelessly on the floor by her shoe. "You didn't need a second chance... You needed a bath." teasing him as he had her. Now was it too soon for him? A smile stretched her usual frowning lips and she continued to be honest. "My last meal? Jell-o shots and beer.." then she squinted. "A body shot off a blonde? I think she was blonde.." she laughed at herself now. "We were blowing off steam... before I was turned I was on tour with my band." she shrugged and smiled again.

* Cosimo Alessi was not a man accustomed to being ashamed. He quite easily made fun of himself, and would happily use lice as a diversion tactic. "Have you not had lice before? Baths, do not work so well. They are resilient. It would not get rid of them, completely. But, I do not think they like vampire hair," he said with a smirk. And he had to laugh, too, as she described her last 'meal'. "That is not a meal. A meal is fresh, hand-made pasta. Bacon, Onion, a little chilli, Napoli sauce made with the best, home-grown tomatoes. Jell-o? That is not a meal... you have my sympathy," he says.

* Athena laughed again, she couldn't help it. "No! I've never had the pleasure of having lice as friends." she smiled at him with her entire face. This would probably hurt later. Her face wasn't used to this. "What's not to like about your hair? They were happily building apartments and houses there before. Are you doing something different.. like washing? Shampoo?" she kept smiling and laughing. Now she did because he did. He laughed at her! "You don't keep this type of figure by you-know.. eating." she teased, trying to keep the light atmosphere going. A hand gestured to her thin body. It was true, at least about her figure. The woman was slender.

* Cosimo Alessi shook his head. "No, sadly. I do not wash, or shampoo. Ever," he said, trying to keep a straight face. It was a lie, really. Ever since he had access to a shower with hot water - regardless of whether he did anything with his night or not - he made sure to have a nice hot shower before he collapsed for the day. Literally. "There, you have your silver lining. You do not have to worry about eating anymore. You will have that figure for eternity," he said, nodding his head. His hair fell in his face and he pushed it out of the way again, smirking as he imagined the apartments that the lice may have built, that were now in ruins.

* Athena tipped her head at him, this made the tail of her ponytail sway some. Looking at him with raised brows and a smile on her face. "See? This is why you had lice house and apartments. Maybe they even had a little town too... like a town- square and a huge clock." Now she laughed again and she shrugged at him again. "Well, as you could tell I didn't bother much with eating when I was alive.. " but she smiled still. "But then again I didn't have access to the type of food you were speaking of.. Just lots of booze and Jell-o." she paused then. "Though! I never did wrestle in it."

* Cosimo Alessi bowed his head and had to look away as all kinds of images came to mind. The kind a man is wont to imagine when faced with a good-looking woman talking about wrestling in jell-o. Of course he's going to try to imagine what that would look like. He coughed to clear his throat and shrugged his shoulders. "I did not ever have the pleasure of wrestling in spaghetti, either. There is still time for these things, no?" he said, finally turning back Athena, his head bowed and looking slightly mischievous, in his sheepishness.

* Athena raised a hand to cover her mouth as she laughed yet again. This time her shoulders jumped as she tried to stop herself from snorting in her laughter. "Well, we could call friends in and we can mix the two. Maybe find someone willing to bring a big bottle of ranch, perhaps?" Now she just laughed again at the thought all that mess would bring. Not to mention how gross. "There's plenty of time for a lot of things. I'm just very hopeful there's other things to do, like find a way to be able to eat again. Maybe even drink again.. " she asked, smiling still. Her head shook, a hand raising up as if to say 'stop.' "If you ever consider trying? Don't. You'll just throw up all over your keyboard and have to buy another because it gets soaked in throw up blood."

* Cosimo Alessi didn't stop himself from snorting. He had to. The images had drifted, morphing into those of food. And mixing the wrong types. His face twisted, as if she had said something completely, horribly wrong. "You Americans, and your Ranch," he said. "I do not need to eat food to throw up. I just need to imagine ranch on my spaghetti. And then... to imagine ranch and jell-o. What in the world are you thinking?" he asked, seemingly mortified. Maybe, if he'd had the opportunity, he might have been a chef in another life. He was quite fond of his food; quite fond of the family recipes, too. There was a cookbook, somewhere, written in his grandmother's handwriting. His mother didn't use it much. Cosimo tried to pick up the slack, sometimes. "You really think there is a way to eat again?"

* Athena was very American so she was used to these types of reactions. It was almost as if she and ( almost ) every American lived to rub other types of people the wrong way. She didn't take it personally. At least not this time. "Ah yes, our Ranch and our Beer." she teased him openly, she hadn't ever put ranch on anything like spaghetti before but now she was tempted. Then he asked her if there was a way and her hands clapped together in her excitement. "Yes, well, if either of us figure that out... I'll get you a nice cold beer and whip you up a hamburger and fries." She paused, breathing in because now she was excited about the future. Athena loved to eat despite what she had said before. "And, you can get me some good ranch-free spaghetti."

* Cosimo Alessi grinned. Americans were so far different to Italians, or at least as far as Cosimo could tell. "Beer? I never much liked it. I would prefer a large glass of your finest Pinot Noir," he said. He couldn't help but be infected by the woman's enthusiasm; Cosimo was optimistic by nature, and if Athena thought that they could learn how to eat, then so be it. They would learn how to eat. "Yes. Ranch-free. Homemade. You do not even need the bacon and the chilli. Fresh herbs, a little oil, onion, and tomato. That is all that is required. Simple," he said, bringing his fingers up to his lips to kiss them, fingers then splayed. "You will not know what has hit you."

* Athena almost laughed again but this time she settled for smiling really hard. The man truly amused her. This conversation tickled her deep in her stomach. It was funny and much more relaxed than last time. "Pinot Noir, really? Really?" she giggled, her head shaking and her hair swaying again. "Cosi, you're killing me here." she rolled her eyes at him even. "You never would have lasted had you ever had to rely on me to feed you." It was true, she would microwave anything to eat. She wasn't picky and she always had frozen food or would venture out to buy some real food. It was miracle she was a slender and nicely shaped as she was. Her diet before wouldn't reflect it especially when she was fuelled by pre-made dinners and liquor. "Homemade? Man, I haven't had anything home made in some time." Then he did the fingertips- kiss and she laughed again. "No? Is it like when you wake up the next morning after drinking too much tequila?"

* Cosimo Alessi shrugged and waggled his head from side to side. He was not ashamed of his preference for the finer things in life. Even if sometimes the Pinot Noir he drank came out of a cask rather than a bottle. Times were hard. But, in the end, when he had that money, he went for the food rather than the booze. And he supposed that said something about him. "I do not think so. You have a... a food coma. Because it is so good, that even though you are full, you cannot stop eating. Have you ever had that?" he asked. "You wake up the next morning, and you do not want to roll out of it. But it is a content resting, rather than a torture," he explained with that nostalgic smile upon his lips. Even his gaze was glazed, remembering it. He shook his head. "I would not have relied on you. You would have relied on me, and you would be a fat woman," he grinned again.

* Athena tried to think of what a food coma could be like. It sounded like a good idea. But then again anything that Cosimo said about food made her want to feel her stomach rumble. Hell, she'd stalk him back to whatever place he was at to beg him to cook for her at this point. "A food coma that I never stopped eating? No, but I have binged ate sweets because I like my sugar." His smile about all this food made her faintly angry that she could follow him and he could cook but it would all end in vain. "A fat happy woman! And apparently sipping wine rather than the beer I was so fond of." she still smiled, though now she wanted food more than anything.

* Cosimo Alessi 's mouth was watering, at this point. Now that Athena had mentioned sweets, and sugar. Oh, there were things better than homemade spaghetti. Cosimo shifted against the wall, having completely forgotten that they were in a decrepit tome; that at any second, an ancient dead thing could come lurching around the corner to cut off their laughter with a hiss and gurgle. "...Cannoli. Crispy pastry filled with chocolate and vanilla custard. Tiramisu... Amaretto Biscotti! Served with a perfectly brewed espresso..." he slumped back against the wall. His eyes had been gleaming, excited. Now he seemed almost sad, and sulking. "You would have been a very fat, very happy woman," he said.

* Athena 's eyes widened at the mention of the sweets. No, why did she have to be dead? Why did this have to happen to her? Life was cruel. She was too distracted by food and the faint tummy rumble that she wanted so badly to worry about other dead things than them. "Cosimo, you're my favorite person when you speak about food." she kept smiling, slumping back herself with a hand brushing fly away hair behind her ear. Then he looked so sad. This pulled her lips to a little frown. "I would have been for sure." she agreed. "Don't be sad.. we'll figure it out. It'll be like a really long and annoying math problem."

* Cosimo Alessi laughed. "I was never good at maths. Why should I be your favourite person when it is a thing that we miss? Do I keep the hope alive?" he asked, arching a brow. It fit the bill, really. He tried to be optimistic, more often than not, in this small hurdle would not bring him down. He saw that frown on Athena's lips and instantly smiled again, pushing his hair out of the way. "What would I make you first?"

* Athena thought about it. Did he keep the hope alive? Well, before he said anything it was just something that she missed just like she missed all the booze she had drank at one point. "You do." she said, slowly smiling again for him. "Anything, I'm not picky. After all, I drink the unclassified beer and you're the Pinot Noir man." her smile grew, showing the good nature that he hadn't seen before.

[Athena (DELETED 6736)]

--The following transcript was a live chat roleplay--

* Cosimo Alessi nodded, and rubbed at the hair on his jaw, scratched at is, as if those lice still lived in there. Though, he was a little better groomed, now, than when he was living on the street. He had no idea what drew Elizabeth to him, really. "I will have to teach you good taste," he nodded, determined. Yes, if it were ever a possibility, he would teach Athena good taste. "Maybe we will start with the Pinot Noir."

* Athena ran her own fingers through her hair, moving her hand away once she realize there was grease in her hair. Well, if Cosi was going to teach her class then he had some work to do. It was a good thing at least with this that they had a long time to live now. "Teach me good taste?" she laughed, her head shaking. "It's not like I didn't live in a house larger than life and sip my Mother's Pinot Noir when I was growing up, Cosi. I just..." she shrugged her shoulders and gestured to herself. The woman was a mess. There was grease everywhere, she had tattoos up and down her arms and over her shoulders. "This is what suits me. I rather enjoy working with my hands. I enjoy beer and slumming it." she paused, then her head tilted as she looked at him. "Maybe you just need some adventure in your life."

* Cosimo Alessi laughed. He laughed like Athena had laughed before. A lot, hard, like he might not stop. He had to lean on his knees to help himself to breathe properly, even though he didn't need to breathe. But he needed the breath to speak properly. "A big house? I did not have a big house. My mother drowned herself in the river. But, I have always aspired to better things," he said. And then he had to laugh some more. "We are vampires. What more adventure could we ask for?"

* Athena 's eyes slowly narrowed in on the man once he started to laugh. For a brief moment she debated about lifting her foot and shoving the sole of her boot against his forehead to knock him back onto the floor. "Yes, a big house complete with forced-tights and forced- high class teas and parties." she gritted her teeth for a good moment as he just continued to laugh at her. He mentioned his mother drowning and she felt no want nor the need to comfort him. That was new. The last time that happened she had attempted a arm-touch in comfort and that only ended with her running away. This might end with her walking away because she was angry rather than anything else. He had mentioned vampirism as an adventure and she shrugged. "Maybe some light-hearted fun, instead, Cosimo."

* Cosimo Alessi 's laughter was banished. Just like that. A click of the finger, and it was gone. He shook his head. This must be one of those moments where the translation had not gone right in his head. Something she had said was lost, or vice versa. "No, I...cosa?" he straightened up, inching away again. It was as if Athena had a split personality. He had been talking to the nice one. The musical one. Now the angry one had come out to play, with no warning. "I thought that you assumed that I lived in a big house, drinking my mother's Pinot Noir..." he shook his head. "Of course you should be whoever you want to be, that is not... cosa? I am confused..."

* Athena turned her head slightly, her eyes were narrowed and she was annoyed. It had came quick like it always had. It didn't take much to rub her the wrong way sometimes. Her arms crossed now, they were folded over her chest and with a calming moment she let out an unneeded breath of air. Ah, well, things had translated wrong. She had figured that he was laughing at her. That he found it amusing that she had been offered a high class life and instead she choose the grease that she found working on cars. "I wouldn't assume anything about your life, Cosi." she seemed to slowly be turning back around. Maybe she did have personality issues but being busy and working again made her a lot better than before. "Do not be confused." she sighed, a hand lifting to brush back hair behind her ear.

* Cosimo Alessi straightened. He was still wary. One hand lifted to idly scratch at an itch on the opposite arm that did not exist. He wondered whether Athena must have low self-esteem. Maybe an over-abundance of paranoia. Had a lot of people judged her in the past? Laughed at her? She didn't seem put off about the way her sire treated her, but maybe, subconsciously, it wasn't doing her any good. He cracked a smile, hoping that it would be infectious. "You can assume as much as you like," he said, idly. "If you get it wrong, I will only laugh and correct you," he said. Which is what he had just done. "That is not to say that I think it is right, for people to assume things about the lives of others. But, for me--" he said, fingers splayed over his chest. "I do not care."

* Athena would have told him that her life had been a constant battle with both herself and everyone else around her. It didn't make any sense to them why she was always so up and down. Hell, it didn't make any sense to her. What did she have to be so upset about? So mad about? Why she would rather go right when everyone assumed she should go left. Her face seemed to have softened just a little from his smile. Slowly, her arms uncrossed and relaxed at her sides as she leaned back into the wall tiredly. Her head managed to tip at him after he spoke, her eyes trailing over the man briefly before she simply asked. "What was your life like, Cosi?" assuming from what she had seen that maybe he spent it at a distance from people. Or maybe had spent it behind a stove? Whatever it was- she was curious now.

* Cosimo Alessi continued to smile. Why wouldn't he? He felt like he had just dodged a bullet, somehow. His own life wasn't something that he thought should be kept a secret. He was neither proud of it nor ashamed of it. He thought, for a few moments, before he answered - in bullet points: "I grew up just outside of Sicily. My mother, she was beautiful. And beautiful women, they sometimes get themselves in trouble. She was too young, when she got pregnant. My father was a con-man. He did not have much to do with me until I was sixteen. That is when my mother drowned herself. I would have liked to become a chef, or a football--soccer--player. But, my father, he had other plans," he said, offering a crooked grin. He leaned against the wall again with his arms crossed over his chest. "I helped my mother when I could. But mainly I did not like being at home. It was far too depressing," he added.

* Athena nodded as he spoke, trying to show the man that she was listening without interrupting. Even if she had a nasty temper she didn't want to be rude on purpose. Unless she meant it in which case she would be rude with a purpose. "You wanted to play soccer?" she asked, without meaning to sound so excited about a silly sport. Athena had been active in life and school but one thing she enjoyed was running and soccer was definitely a lot of it. Her blue eyes dropped to the floor with a brief thought about sprawling over it and sleeping. It wouldn't be the weirdest place she slept. She had slept once under a car in the garage she worked at. Athena had the worst habit of working herself down to the bone. "I can understand home being depressing.." she mumbled, arms re-crossing over her chest at that with a sigh.

* Cosimo Alessi nodded. "Si. I was good at it. I had a coach who wanted to train me, to be professional. But my father, he pulled me out of school. So it did not happen," Cosimo said. There was a pang of regret and of strong resentment, but it was gone within a few seconds. Cosimo had mastered the art of letting go, of moving forward, and making the best of what one has. "You understand? I have told you about my life. Now it is your turn," he said, nodding in Athena's direction. It was only fair, right?

* Athena noted the very brief resentment and only because she had felt that for a strong part of her life. For one person or another. It was amazing to her sometimes that she was capable of love or of anything gentle. She was too good at the exact opposite. "You would have been a good soccer player, I am sure, Cosi. World-famous." she offered the man a little smile then. Her attempt at being encouraging and kind. Turning her head to look directly at the man. "I do understand." she said softly, chewing then on her lower lip with long fangs before she openly sighed this time at him. Much like 'must I?'. He was right, it was only fair. Slowly though, she slid her back down the wall and ended up sitting right on her *** on the floor. Reaching then behind her to grab her gun and rest it over her lap just in case. "Like I said, I lived in a huge crystal house.." she tipped her head back, no longer looking at him but up at the ceiling. "I was never happy.." a corner of her lips turned up in a slight smirk then. "I guess I was the 'bad girl'." As she continued her mouth and her face softened. "And then Hunter moved into the house across the street from mine. We were thirteen."

* Cosimo Alessi followed suit. The woman was either losing steam or was just getting comfortable. It wasn't that Cosimo was a particularly timid man. Nor was he particularly a follower. But, in this case, he liked to follow the other's cues. He just nodded when Athena offered her sympathy; he hadn't been looking for sympathy, he was just stating facts. He, too, sat down with his back against the wall; beside Athena, but not so close that they were touching. Still at a little distance. They were still strangers, really. "Hunter?" he asked, curious. "Is this... was he your fiancé?" he asked, putting the pieces together.

* Athena had truly softened at the talk of Hunter. It wasn't without pain, though. It showed at the very corner of her eyes, the way her lips pursed just a little as she recalled just how much and how long she loved the man. "Yeah, he was." she pressed her lips together at the 'was'. It hurt too badly to say that she would never get the chance to be his wife. That it had been stolen from the both of them. Now her head turned and she looked at the man who was now sitting next to her. "We've been together since then and until he died."

* Cosimo Alessi was not sure what to say. He could not offer empathy, in this situation. He had hit rock bottom. He had lost his mother, and he had loved his mother, even through her depression. There was more good about her that he remembered than he did the bad. She was a soft influence. She was probably the reason why Cosimo was such a **** up. He couldn't be purely selfish or conniving like his father wanted him to be. He was far too much like his mother. He ended up being a strange mix of the two. But he had lost his mother so long ago that it didn't hurt anymore. Not like it had. Cosimo had already grieved for the life that he had lost and had been living on the outside of it ever since. His face twisted as he slowly cleaned the blade of his sword with his sleeve. "How did he...?" he stopped, shook his head. That was not a good question to ask. "I am sorry." That was all he could offer.

* Athena looked down at her lap and the gun that was over it when he asked his question. How did he die? That reminded her of running into the hospital in only her nightgown and her combat boots. It was almost a funny image if you forget that she was running straight into the news that he was too far gone to be saved. That as she arrived he left. "We got pregnant before High School was officially over and we ran away." she began to rub her palms together as she ignored his apology. It wasn't that it wasn't worth anything but he told her about her mother. Fair was fair. "We got cut off, naturally.." she bit her lower lip. "So some nights he worked as a bartender to make sure we could cover bills.." Both her hands raised and she rubbed over her face once before she finished. "I lost the baby and he lost himself. He got heavily addicted to heroin and a deal went sour.."

* Cosimo Alessi wondered whether they even cared if they were cut off. Athena had admitted herself - or heavily implied - that she had not liked the high class society, and she did not adhere to the lifestyle that she was given. "You must have been happy..." he said. And now she could not have a baby at all. But perhaps she would not want to, without Hunter at her side. Cosimo continued to struggle. His own story was not nearly so bad. He bowed his head, as if paying respects to the dead. "But you did not lose yourself. You are here, and you are strong. For what it counts," he added, slowly. Hesitant.

* Athena laughed just a little at that. Her head turned against the wall and she looked over at the man. "We were." she smiled softly, though it didn't light up those icy blue eyes this time. When she saw him bow his head it almost made her want to pat his shoulder and tell him that it was okay and that he didn't have to. She didn't, she didn't dare touch another person after the disaster it brought her the last time. What was this need to touch people anyways? It was new and it made her even more confused. "Thank you, Cosi. Someone had to be." Now she laughed at herself. "He's been dead for years now and it feels like yesterday." A hand lifted from her side to gesture to the side of herself that he wasn't on. "Like he's right there squinting at me and wondering if I've played my drums today."

* Cosimo Alessi smiled again. So long as she was laughing, maybe this conversation wasn't as heavy as it could be, and she would not be angry if he did not offer the requisite amount of sympathy. Not that he wasn't sympathetic. He was. He just had no idea how to go about showing it. "This is not such a bad thing. Maybe you do not feel so... bereft, with him still by your side," he said. "I sometimes hear my mother's voice in my head. She is... I think, the thing that keeps me... balanced," he said, nose wrinkling. He wasn't sure that was the word he was looking for. But, despite how depressed she may have been, she was the source of Cosimo's optimism. Perhaps because she was always trying to find solutions to her own downfall.

* Athena looked over at the man and smiled some at his smile. Listening to him, her head naturally tilted and then her lips pressed together. No, that wasn't exactly how she felt anymore. It came and went this feeling off.. being repressed. There he still was. Here she still was. Stuck, right in the middle. She swallowed down. The man got to move on. He got to be dead and while she was dead herself she wasn't without natural wants and needs. Her time of wallowing made her faintly angry. It made her so angry at herself. Did she have any right to feel this way? All she had wanted before was to die naturally and be with him. She would never be with him again. She didn't dare tell Cosi how selfish she was. "I hear my Mother too..." she sighed. "They never go away." she attempted to tease.

* Cosimo Alessi grinned. "Yes. My mother, she is horrified that I cannot eat anymore," he said, talking about her as if she were a real person. And she was, really. She was a constant presence in the back of his mind, and he assumed that would be the case even if she were alive. Worse, probably, if she were alive. But, because she is not alive he felt a specific need to do as he thought she might want him to. He felt that she was happy, that he was no longer under his father's thumb. She had hated Massimo. "Why mothers, I wonder, and not fathers?" he asked, turning to face Athena, the question legitimate. Was it always the mother's voices that people heard in their heads?

* Athena giggled now at that. It really made her laugh and she forgot how guilty she had felt just a moment earlier. The woman yawned softly, a hand lifting then to cover her opened mouth. Not wanting to be rude. Leaning back against the wall she stretched out her legs. "I bet she would be horrified that you cannot eat." She paused." Hell, I'm horrified." When he turned to face her, she turned to face him. It was just natural to face him now as they talked, slowly moving to sit with her legs crossed Indian-style. Her boots were dirty, they were greasy and covered in dirt. The woman was a mess. "Well... in my case probably because my Father is bored of telling me how disappointing I am." she grinned now, shrugging her shoulders.

* Cosimo Alessi nodded. "She would! My grandfather was a baker. My mother, she worked for my grandfather. They liked their food," he said, and continued to smile. He thought about his father. Massimo. He was mostly a happy man, but Cosimo had to wonder whether he ever really was. He was a brute. He had questionable moral boundaries. And, in the end, he was a **** up. Maybe he'd been a **** up his entire life. Cosimo could hardly say that his family were mafia. Not even close. Maybe that's what Massimo had aspired to, but it had never got very far. "I think... wanted me to be better than he was. Maybe I achieved that, by still being here. By being... immortal. Maybe he would be proud!" Cosimo said. He honestly couldn't answer.

* Athena naturally leaned forward some at the talk of the food. She loved the talk about food. "No one would blame them." she still smiled, she wasn't sure why but she was. Inwardly, she avoided the thought of her Father. She avoided it because despite her snarky remark it still hurt. Of course it did. All she had wanted was some understanding but as she got older she settled for his silence. "Maybe he would be." She couldn't answer him either. Then, she looked away before she looked back at him to smile lightly. "He should be proud, Cossi. You're strong too." Offering him the same kind words he had given her. Maybe it would help him too.

* Cosimo Alessi wanted to laugh. He looked sideways at Athena, his legs stretched out in front of him, one ankle crossed over the other. His hands were in his lap, the sword resting on the floor at his side. He hadn't even done any hunting, yet. But what was the rush? There was none. Whereas Athena looked like she could go to sleep here, Cosimo would no doubt use the tome to get back to the rooftop. He shook his head, and refrained from laughing. He did not want to insult Athena. "I appreciate that. But I am not worried. If I were weak, I would not care," he said, flashing a grin.

* Athena yawned once the man grinned at her. Her hand missed by half a second. But then, she put arm over her forehead and simply flopped backwards to lay on her back on the cold ground. "I'm worried that I'm going to fall asleep on you, Cosi. I'm going to curl up right here and sleep and get attacked and it'll be all on you." As suddenly as she had flopped down she sat back up, fixing the strap of her tank then with another yawn. "Wouldn't you feel responsible if I got attacked because I stayed far past my bedtime?" she teased, flashing a sleepy grin right back at him.

* Cosimo Alessi remained aloof, even if he was horrified that anyone would actually fall asleep here. "I do not think I would let you. I would wake you up and make you go home. And if you do not wake up I would... take you somewhere safe," he said. Would these creatures attack a sleeping vampire, or did they only attack the aggressors? Those that looked animated and lively? "How can you fall asleep, here? I do not think I could..."

* Athena laughed again, it was a soft little sound. "You wouldn't let me? I've slept worse places, I think." she smiled and shrugged her shoulders as she looked around them. "It would surely test my skills." she now idly wondered if they would attack her if she had been asleep sprawled out on the floor. It didn't stay in her brain for too long because she just wanted to sleep. Now she didn't even want to play her drums. Just tome home to the Hotel and bug her aunt to see if she could crash on her spare bed. Something. Anything. Maybe she could go home and sleep under a car again. "Easily, look.." she slumped back, her back on the floor with an arm gently sprawled over her face again and she mocked slept even with her legs still crossed.

* Cosimo Alessi watched with mild amusement. "I have slept worse places, too," he said. He recalled the time he'd woken up to rats, wondering whether they'd actually start trying to eat him, if he stayed too long. He hadn't stayed too long. "I do assume you have somewhere safe to go, si? As I do. And I would always choose the better place. I do not - I am not sure if it is the same for others, but you could cut my arm off in my sleep and I would not know. I am..." he snapped his fingers and made a motion, his arm lifting and then falling to slap against his thigh. "...like this. As soon as the sun comes up," he said. He hadn't had a chance to ask Elizabeth about that yet...

* Athena moved her arm when she heard him speaking to her again. She laughed, and shook her head some and even shrugged her shoulders. "I could sleep at the hotel.. maybe like a couch or something but I hate doing that. Family is always walking around." she yawned again, a hand moving some over her mouth. "I just take it by the night, really." Now stretching her arms above her head. "I like a challenge." When she caught sight of his demonstration she started to laugh and then she just smiled at him. "I'm always falling asleep at random times lately.. I just have so much to do. I have work and then I have my own projects.." Another yawn.

* Cosimo Alessi noticed how much she was yawning. Cosimo himself only slept when forced. If he was going to be forced to sleep, then he would make the most of the hours he had available to him. These days, he made sure to pay attention to that internal clock - the one that told him what time it was. "I do not like the idea of you sleeping here. I think you should go... to the hotel," he said. He did not understand how she could be going to a hotel, but only have a couch to crash on. "Can you not... rent a room?" he asked. Or did he misunderstand? Hotel... it did mean what he thought it meant, didn't it?

* Athena turned her head some, her eyes were halfway closing at him now but she kept looking at him and smiling. When he said she should go to the hotel she wrinkled her nose. But the couches! oh, she hated couches for some reason. She would rather sleep on the floor in a corner. Athena really was a different person than he. "They are all booked up and I'm broke." she laughed, amused even at herself. "So I just... sleep on the go. I always find a place to crash, It's fine, Cosi. I can crawl under a car if I get too sleepy."

* Cosimo Alessi gave her an incredulous look. "Under a car? Why would you not sleep in the car? The back seat, or in the passenger side with the seat back. That would be more comfortable..." he said. He almost wanted to offer her the spare bedroom in his new apartment at Ivory Towers, but he was not sure what the guest policy was.

* Athena put her arm back over her eyes. Oh lordy, this guy. He had to be judging her! She wasn't mad, it didn't even flicker her temper at all. It amused her. "Maybe, but I work under a car most times or under a hood.. and I get greasy. It's not my car so I can't just.. sleep in it." she moved her arm to peek at him. "It's fine... stop looking like that or it might stick and then the ladies may think you find them crazy." she smiled again, although sleepy it was warm.

* Cosimo Alessi arched a brow. "But I do think you are crazy! So you work on them... in a public place? Is it open during the day? People coming and... what if they move the car?!" he asked. He might say that he wouldn't be able to sleep there but, then again, he wouldn't have had the choice. There were images flashing through his mind - of Athena being run over, or the car moving and sunlight flooding her prone body. His head was shaking, as if he couldn't quite fathom why anyone would sleep that way.

* Athena gasped at Cosi, it was all too loud and it was all too dramatic. She put her hand over her not beating heart and she said. "Cosi! You wound me! You hurt my feelings. You're too cruel.." trailing off, she started to giggle and she just smiled at him after she was done giggling. "It's fine, Cosi. I promise. The garage is covered during the day. It's run by a bunch of vampires such as ourself. It's fine. It's fine." she smiled, now it had taken over her entire face in her amusement.

* Cosimo Alessi slumped back against the wall, still shaking his head. "I have slept on cardboard boxes with rats to keep me warm. I have... slept in abandoned buildings and have had to run, because there was shooting. I am lucky, that my time of no home was not in Winter, otherwise I would have no toes. I cannot... having that, and having a bed, now? I will never take it for granted again. I do not understand you," he said. And he didn't. But, things had happened to Cosimo that he would not tell Athena about. Subconsciously, he probably had issues with wanting to feel safe, after so long feeling like prey, always anxious and hardly sleeping anyway. "I will not leave until I know you have gone somewhere else to sleep," he said, turning back to Athena. She might have been laughing at him, but he was quite serious.

* Athena eyes closed again. "That's because I'm a mystery. I'm a good book, Cosi. You don't predict the ending to a good book." she yawned, this time it was loud and her mouth opened wide. She didn't bother covering her mouth this time. "I'll go somewhere else to sleep." she lied, sleepily, and badly. It didn't matter to her, really. She would run if need be and if not? She would wake up in the place she needed to be. On her days off she would play her drums and work at fighting. That was her life now.

* Cosimo Alessi nodded. "You are already falling asleep," he said. He stood, pushing himself up off the ground so that he could nudge Athena's leg with his foot. "Get up," he said. He was determined to walk her to this other place. She had asked him if he would feel responsible if she were to be attacked while sleeping, and since she had asked it, it wouldn't leave his mind. Maybe if she hadn't have asked, and if he hadn't learned that she would sleep right here, given the chance, he might have gone home and left her there. But, it had been mentioned. And he would feel responsible.

* Athena groaned in annoyance when he nudged her with his foot. "I'm asleep." she mumbled, rolling now onto her side, her arms crossing over the ground. "No. I'm almost asleep now." she buried her face into her arms now and she sighed. Moving her own leg now to nudge the side of his shoe with the heel of her army boot. "I'll see you later." she yawned, the sound loud against her arms and the floor.

* Cosimo Alessi stood silent for a few seconds, glancing around. He did not know what to do. He was not comfortable with manhandling Athena, especially when, now that he thought about it, he had no idea where he would take her. Where could he take her? "Fine," he said as he resumed his former position, though this time he sat a little closer to Athena. As if proximity might keep her safe. "If you will not move, I will stay. And I do not wake up if I am attacked. And I scar. So it is you who can feel responsible," he said. He sat steadfast, fidgeting with his weapons. By the expression on his face, it was evidently clear that he was not happy about it.

* Athena moaned in her protest, her head bobbing some as her forehead bumped against her arms with a little whine. "Fine, fine,." she muttered, slowly moving to sit up in her annoyance. "Get up, Cosi.. we're going.. somewhere.. " she muttered, slowly moving to stand up and dust off her pants. "I'll sleep on the couch in the hotel, okay?! Just.. go home!" she muttered, her blue eyes narrowed down at him as she crossed her arms over her chest, swaying some in her sleepiness.

* Cosimo Alessi watched as Athena stood. He did not stand up to join her until he was certain that she was all the way up. And that she meant it. "I will walk you out..." he said. Of course, he did not believe that just standing up meant that she would keep to her word. He wanted to make sure.

* Athena muttered under her breath for a moment. "Come on." she said, watching him as her arms tightened over her chest with a sigh. Of course, he knew that she wouldn't have kept her word. She would just crawl back onto the floor and sleep once she was sure he was gone. "Actually... you can't follow me. You can't get into the hotel, Cos." she squinted at him for a moment and nudged the top of her shoe against the side of his again. "When I see you again? Remind me to kick you right in your ***." she muttered, taking out her tome and leaving him there in her fit.

* Cosimo Alessi blinked at the space Athena had left behind. Cosimo had never had someone tome on him before. He'd used his plenty, but had never seen someone else use theirs. The space was silent in her absence. As if she was never there. He turned a small circle where he stood. He could have imagined the entire thing! All that talk of sleep, however, has Cosimo aching for home. And the Mausoleum was so quiet and dark, and lonely. So, Cosimo sheathed his weapons, and did just the same.