Moored [Open]

[Charlie]

[ wearing ]

To be back at the desk with a schedule in hand was surprisingly comforting. Aside from a select few that’d survived the holiday season and her absence, most names on the roster were not familiar to her. It was evident Jesse had done quite a lot of hiring and firing, a job he’d long delegated to her but which she’d been unable to do while she’d been, effectively, dying. A stranger to half of the staff made of the scheduling a little easier than if she had had to consider their preferences and requests, though Charlie had no doubt that those who took issue with her work would voice their vexation. Making certain to retain all closing shifts for herself, she began to fill in the blanks with names.

The allurist had no doubts that in a few nights she would be back in full swing, though the task at hand was revealing itself to be increasingly tedious. Desperate for distraction, she saved the progress she’d made and sought to reward herself with a turn about the room. As she exited the office and walked across the parlour, Charlie glanced at her boss—now sire. He seemed completely wrapped up in whatever design he was penning on a young woman’s thigh, and so she quietly moved passed him.

One of their regular bands was playing Serpentine’s stage, the singer’s rough voice and rolling Irish accent filling the room. The atmosphere was vibrant, as expected for a Saturday night. Glancing at the busy bar, she decided to help the overwhelmed staff by clearing away empty glasses off tables. Offhandedly she wondered just how much experience these employees had, or whether the accumulation of dirty glassware among every conceivable flat surface was simply a reflection of how crowded they were. The more glasses she collected off the floor, the more determined she became to give the staff—new and old—a firm talk regarding healthy and safety regulations.

Moving in between people, she easily balanced the tower of dirty glasses as she reached around a patron for an empty chalice by their elbow.

“Excuse me. Sorry. Ah, cheers, mate.”

[Verin Truska (DELETED 7956)]

Verin sat down upon a chair at a table and leaned back so then the back of the chair cradled his form. The paladin had recently noticed the absence of a certain woman at the bar and he had been curious as to the reason why that might be, so, he dropped in more often. It was busy and the staff were moving about, so he didn’t pay too much attention to the fact that his glass was empty. He tugged out a small silver box, flipping it open to reveal cigarettes inside. As his gaze flickered around his surroundings, noting the people within, his tugged a cigarette free and lit it, taking a long drag in thought.

The man thumbed the filter side, dislodging the ash as blue eyes found their target eventually. He had almost missed the blonde hair of a woman that he would remember even if he hadn’t seen her for what felt like over a year. She was the one that constantly rejected him, but as he watched her, he knew straight away that something was.... Different.

It instantly made him question her employer Jesse and the paladin was more than happy to pick a fight with the man that made him rather uneasy. Teeth clenched, but inside of acting upon hunter urges, he forced himself to relax. She didn’t want to pursue anything with him, so technically, she was a free woman to do whatever she wanted to do. Verin, however noticed that she didn’t realise that it was him as she picked up the empty chalice and he chuckled. “‘Ello there, Love. It’s interesting to see how much you have changed. Crossed over to the dark side have you?”

[Charlie]

If there was ever a good time to drop twenty-something glasses to the floor, this would have been the moment. Like a deer caught in the headlights, Charlie gaped at the paladin with blatant surprise. She had been dying in the dank underbelly of this city the last time he had crossed her mind. After that, he’d become a distant memory she had no time to recollect what with all the novelty that rebirth had gifted her. It took a fraction of a second too long for the shock to scatter, leaving her with an uneasy expression.

“I’d shake your hand but I’m—It’s a lot of glasses to drop. And though I’ve always had a little Sith in me, I wouldn’t stoop so low,” she managed with a nervous laugh, perhaps a bit too loudly given the lull in music as the band changed songs. Her hearing perception had been completely off since her turning, the vast range of sounds she could now pick up on disorientating. Charlie had never been good at masking her feelings—too open a book—and so she feigned urgency and turned on her heel, but not without parting words: “It’s nice to see you again!”

With any luck they’d both changed to a certain degree, and he wasn’t still so darned relentless. Making a bee line for the bar to drop the glasses off, Charlie decided that the office was really the best place to be right now. Out of sight, and hopefully out of mind... at least long enough for her to get a word with Jesse before it blew up all over the place.

[Verin Truska (DELETED 7956)]

Charlie’s behaviour was erratic, he also noted the nervous tone that she took on and he wondered why she would act this way even when in the presence of Verin. He didn’t think that he had acted in any aggressive way, not that he was used to knowing just as to how to act around the woman. She was hot and then cold, on and then off and he could never get a good read on her. If it was one thing, he did know when a frightened woman basically ran away. Or when a frightened and possibly guilty vampire ran away. Did she know who and what he was?

A hum was quick to his lips as he pondered about chasing after her but there was no point. The man had chased her before and she didn’t seem very receptive at all in the last meetings. Fingers of his free hand drummed upon the table top in thought and he rolled his shoulders before stubbing his cigarette out. Verin would have once thought of the loss of Charlie as his fault at one point, but now? He knew better. One could never lose what they never had. If she chose vampirism then that was her choice.

He had another woman to think of now. A vampire woman of whom he had taken a hit for down in the sewers. The superficial wound that he had sustained while protecting Dhara itched and it reminded him that it was she who he should focus on. At least she was more interesting in developing a friendship, one that he had told her that she was more than welcome to draw upon. Dhara’s innocence even as a vampire, was astounding and it was something that he hoped that she continued to hold onto.

While Charlie wasn’t exactly the same, she did display some kind of innocence, one that was newly minted and afraid of something. Hunters perhaps? Some hunters, hunted any kind of vampire regardless if they were guilty of killing human life or not. He was done pursuing the woman. Jesse would be there to help her out if need be, but there was no need for him to hang around at the Serpentine now. Verin quickly pulled out a pen and paper and quickly jotted out a note for the woman. Even if he was done chasing her, he would still give her a hand if needed.

He moved to stand folding the piece of paper and penning Charlie’s name upon the front before he pushed through the crowd to the bar. The paladin waited for a bartender to address him and he handed over the note. ”Do me a favour Love, give this to Charlie when you see her next.” After the woman behind the bar took the note, the paladin simply turned and walked out.

------------------------------------------------

Note:
Charlie,

I’m not going to chase you anymore and I’m not going to look over you anymore. Seeing as you are a potential vampire, it’s your sire’s job to keep you from danger. However, feel free to call me if the need arises.

-Verin Truska

(Attached was a card with a simple mobile number upon it.)

[Charlie]

Charlie had come to understand that breathing was superfluous now, but the need for air in order to speak and smell had plunged her back into the habit. Upon setting the stacks of dirty glasses upon the countertop, she let out the breath she’d been holding and cast a quick glance over her shoulder.

It was stupid to believe herself safer here than there, but being faced with him had forced her to a reality she’d completely forgotten existed. He had already expressed his doubts vis-a-vis Jesse on previous occasions, as well as mentioned in no uncertain terms his career. The veiled statements he’d made concerning his job and the dangers that lurked this city which had once evaded her, now made complete sense. There was no doubt in her mind that he had not been referring to Star Wars just then, and now that she’d ‘crossed over’ to the dark side, Charlie feared that a change in her genetic makeup would frame his determination in a much bleaker way. She had lodged enough bullets in her brain since siring to be weary, even if he had not been the one to put them there.

Unprepared to deal with the implications of her siring in their relationship, she’d panicked. It seemed silly now, but it’d all happened much too fast. While certain patrons would be satisfied with a lie, Verin… There was no way for her to spin such an elaborate tale with him.

Another breath filled her desiccated lungs as she watched the back of his head for a few seconds. He didn’t seem to have any interest in pursuing the conversation, and for that, she was somewhat relieved. Still shaken, she beckoned a junior staff member to take the glasses and none too gently reminded them to clear the surfaces themselves.

Clearing her throat, the vampire made for the tattoo parlour with her head down and a furrow in her brow. There was a weight hanging upon her shoulders that she wished to have unloaded on Jesse in passing, but instead she bottled it all in. Locking herself in the office, Charlie wished she had it in her to clear the desk in one violent sweep of her arms. While she had no idea how to best handle the matter, it was clear that she’d certainly not simplified matters.

No more than an hour later, when the note was handed to her with a plain business card tucked into its fold, the allurist resigned herself to face whatever consequences there’d be for her behaviour. The message scribbled on the paper was far less bleak than she’d expected it to be. Laughing at her own paranoia, Charlie buried her face in her hands until the hysteria passed. She had expected it be a thrown gauntlet.