A Matter of Time [OPEN]

[Kira]

Kira listened to the two talk, she had put her hands in her jacket. She was focused on what was going on around them. She tilted her head when the man said time didn't touch them. True. While her kind of vampire may show their age in the mirror, at least she heard it did, their outward appearance didn't change. Though she heard allurists were also able to de-age. She was fine staying the age she looked, the age she 'died' and became a vampire. The mirror didn't show it to her, she wasn't that old of a vampire. 6 years...true if she had been human, she would have aged.

She smiled when he said how someone so small could scare someone without a weapon. They had powers for that. She wished she could give her bouncers at the lounge the power, it would make their job easier. This wasn't the first human that had figured out vampires, she had spilled that secret to some even before they were completely outed to the world. Back when it was dangerous to do so, back when you could be killed for telling a human.

She caught the glance of the girl and nodded. She had no problems with it. She had been outed personly as a vampire. There wasn't any reason to hide it.

"Yes, Oscar...we are different." Kira replied, "Have you seen news reports about vampires in this city?" she asked. She thought it was common knowledge now, though she was sure there were still people tried to say there was no way vampires could be real. People who talk about vampires certainly shouldn't be locked up for it, expressly here.

[Oscar Grayling]

First, Meara spoke; she agreed with Oscar, and confirmed his suspicions. They were different. Not just her, but the both of them. When Kira actually mentioned the word vampire, however, Oscar’s enthusiastic nod could not be missed. He tried to reign it in, tried to dim his exuberance and excitement. He could not look too expectant. They might deny him what he wanted.

”Yes,” he said. ”I have seen. It’s why I’m here,” he said. He was foreign. His British accent inflected his accent in such a way that he sounded merely eccentric rather than insane.

”Time. I mean… I’m a scientist. I like to study time. I like to question it, to test it. I think… I mean, I want to … it would be easier to do so from an unbiased position, don’t you think?” he asked, glancing between the two of them. That they were walking along the street meant nothing to Oscar; that he had just met them meant even less. He’d been waiting for months for the chance to ask these questions, and he didn’t want to wait a second longer.

”If I were in your position,” he said, gesturing to Meara, then turning to Kira. ”Or yours. I’d be where time couldn’t touch me. And I’d be better able to understand it. I want to be like you…” he said. The words were spoken and he knew he could have done better. He hadn’t asked the question but he had made the suggestion. He laughed, and shook his head.

”That’s awfully presumptuous of me. I’m sorry. They locked me up for wanting to become a ah… a vampire. For my own safety. So I probably shouldn’t have said it like that. I uhm. Is there a protocol…?” he asked. If there was someone in charge he had to go and see, if approval needed to be granted, then he would do it. He would do the work. He wanted to reassure them of that.

[Meara]

A small smile came to her lips as Oscar explained how he came to be in the asylum. Of course, now it made much more sense given his scientific training and innate curiosity. The humans probably didn’t like the truth he stumbled upon, and that’s why they locked him away. However, Meara couldn’t imagine anyone not wanting to embrace the darkness. Sure, the wanton killing of zombies and anti-vampire humans was enough to make the redhead squeamish, but she enjoyed exploring the new talents that she could perform with her mind and body. Her eyes looked off to the distance a moment, seeing the familiar areas around the mall coming into view. They were almost at their intended destination.

“You know, that’s why I came here too.” Meara admitted with a sheepish smile. Fingers reached into her shoulder bag to fish out her keys so she could unlock the shop. As she pushed the door open to the mall and, she decided to tell the story of how she went from Meara Donnelly to Meara Quartermaine.

“I was living in Toronto when the news broke about vampires being real and heard about all the people wanting to travel there to see if the legends were actually true. So being the businesswoman I am, I picked up my busking and moved north. That’s when Alex found me and I supposed educated me on the benefits of accepting her gift. And here I am.”

Meara gave a bit of a shrug. “I don’t think there’s any sort of rules or governing body… Alex just told me always to not turn someone against their will and to not turn minors. So, I guess that’s my little family’s protocol so to speak.

[Kira]

Study time? Kira wondered what there was to study. She suppose being immortal would give you plenty of time to study whatever you wanted.

"I came here way before everyone new about vampires but I had some kind of pull that brought me here." Kira said, "I really don't have anyone above me. My sire and up are all gone somewhere. Otherwise, there's really no vampire group that governs us, it was something that was tried but it didn't work out."

Kira had two shops in the mall, she was here late a lot because of one of them. The shows she put on with her workers and the late night rehearsals. Her workers might still be here though, as sometimes they practice on their own. Once inside the mall, she grabbed the first aide kit before heading towards Alex's shop. "Don't find many people who seeks out wanting to be a vampire. Most of mine have been accidents or saving their life." she said. Well, maybe she shouldn't have said accidents. She had been trying to kill a couple of them for different reasons and ended up with them as a childe. Course, she only had two childer now. She looked at the man, it would be nice to have one that wasn't a complete asshole like Aden but she wasn't sure what Reggie would think about her siring.

"I would guess you have given this a lot of thought." Kira said, "There's no going back and it's not advised to leave town, if you die you don't return unlike in town, you return."

"There's a lot that you would need to be taught about vampires and about being one.." she added, then looked at him again. "The Quartermaine family would be a good family though. Her sire, is my best friend, more like a sister. Sometimes I wish I had been able to be a Quartermaine but I was fated for someone else." her time with her sire was interesting, she did miss her from time to time but it was kind of lonely with no family above her. She at least had the Misfits.

She sent a telepathic message to Dave to bring some spare clothes to Alex's shop. They looked like they could be the same size. "I'll have someone bring you a change of clothes." she said.

[Oscar Grayling]

Oscar was careful where he stepped, keeping an eye on his surroundings. He had a lot of trust to give, but he had been betrayed before. Locked up. These women were open, however, they were honest and Oscar was given no indication that they had any intention of taking him somewhere to be caught again, to be dragged away.

They took him into the mall, acting as if they owned the place and, he supposed in some way or another, they did. The offer was made for clean clothes and Oscar merely nodded, processing what he had been told.

”I have thought about it, yes,” he said, still wide-eyed and eager. ”I’m certain it’s what I want. To be apart from time, so that I can properly study it. I’m willing to submit myself to the side-effects,” he said. He’d not known that leaving town could result in death—though that wasn’t what she’d said. She suggested instead that they could die, but that they could return.

”That’s…amazing. You can come back if you die? Is there… these things you say I should learn, is that before or after…?” he asked, looking between them. Meara had mentioned her sire; Kira knew her, too, though Kira had none of her own. At least, she had one that was not around.

”Are you suggesting that Meara should sire me?” he asked, turning to Meara. ”Is that something you would be willing to do? Or you?” he asked, turning back to Kira. They’d told him about how they’d come here and how they belonged; they’d told him some of the consequences, and that there were no rules about who could and could not be turned. But neither had actually said they would, had they? Neither had jumped at the chance and now Oscar was feeling a little awkward, a little nervous. What if they said no, and he was released back out into the wild?

He started to understand that maybe, just maybe, he was going about this all wrong.

[Meara]

"The side effects, I've found, are not that bad." Meara chimed in as she thought about the situation. "Ceasing of age, unnatural aura, lack of reflection, fadebeasts, and so on. Of course the reliance on blood is tricky, especially if you were a bit of a peace-loving vegetarian before you died." Meara gave a cheesy grin as it was apparent she was talking about herself. "The thing that currently bothers me the most is the inability to see the sun, but Alex has said one can overcome that with training."

Meara had listened to what Kira said about the seemingly odd curse of Harper Rock. She had remembered being told that the shadow realm seemed to be intrinsically tied to this place only and that was why they had to die here. But she hadn't experienced it yet, and she wasn't planning on starting. "But that doesn't mean you can't travel. I was just in Nashville for a few months earlier this year. You just have to be careful and significantly limit your risks." She elaborated as she was selecting the right key and unlocking the door to QCC and held the door for Oscar and Kira. Once inside, she let the door close softly before she

"The only reason I may have seemed hesitant is because I wanted to be sure that you willingly wanted this Gift." She considered vampirism as a wonderful gift only to be exchanged willingly. She thought hard for a few minutes about if she thought she would have the abilities to be a good sire, like Alex was to her. Internally, Meara was nervous; she knew she had no basis of knowledge to go on, and her own turning was hazy. She was still pretty fresh to the whole thing, but perhaps this process would be what she would need to transcend into the next level of understanding being a vampire. She her professorial mother always told her, that to learn she must read, to know she must write, and to master she must teach. It was after all worth a shot.

Her blue eyes looked up and meat Oscar's eyes before she gave him a smile. "Yes I would be willing to sire you. I think your motives are sound. And whatever I don't know I will ask and help you find the answers you seek."

[Kira]

Kira nodded, "Yes, we come back if we die. As long as we're here." she said. "Everything you need to learn can be taught after you're turned." she added. She looked to Meara before looking to Oscar again, "Yeah, if you like the sun, there is a power you can learn so you may walk in the daylight again but before that power, you'll get burned." she said. The sun was something she had avoided before she was turned so it was no big loss. She had the power, only if for some reason she got caught outside, which she tries to avoid at all costs.

Would she be willing to turn him? She thought about it. She never really saw herself as that great of a sire, but it would be nice to have another childe that isn't an asshole. "I would be willing, yes. If you're looking for a bigger family though, I would not go for me." she said. She also wasn't overly caring, Alex was and she was sure Meara was too, most people were.

She looked around the familiar shop, placing the first aide kit down and started to dig out what might be needed. She blinked, then again, if he wanted to be turned, he would just be healed no doubt. "The choice is really up to you, who you would like to turn you. If you have questions, feel free to ask." she added.

A little bit later a man came into the shop, "Hey, why I am bringing clothes?" Dave asked, then spotted the other two. He had no idea who they were. He noticed the blood though, "So...what happened?"

Kira huffed at him, knowing he most likely thought this was her fault somehow. "Never mind that. I'll tell you later, maybe." she said, taking the clothes from him. She was about to say for him to stick around, they might need him but she wouldn't trust a new vampire to feed and not drain a human too much.

She moved over to Oscar and handed him the clothes. "Would you like your wound taken care of now? Granted if you are turned, it would heal. Minor wounds are nothing to vampires. We heal a lot faster than humans." she said.

[Oscar Grayling]

Family was not something that Oscar had considered. He didn’t know it was what they referred to their groups; he didn’t know that bloodlines meant connections, and that said connections were so secure that they would all consider themselves related by blood. Thus, family. It was a good thing to know, though not necessarily something that would sway his decision. He wasn’t a lost boy looking for a nest. He was a researcher wanting to gain a higher understanding of the universe within which he lived. In order to do so, he would happily make a few sacrifices—including food and sunlight.

”I think I’ll wait,” he said as he took the clothes from Kira, gaze only briefly taking in the appearance of the other man. He was not important. He was not part of the decision. ”To change. The wound isn’t bothering me,” he said. His skin had stung for a while but it was nothing compared to what lay before him. Blood clearly didn’t bother him, which was a boon, right? He had to force himself to blink, his eyes growing dry from their wideness, their curiosity and excitement. The ice blue of them gleamed as he glanced from one to the other, setting the clothes aside. He had no idea how messy a turning could be. Why change into new clothes if they would only get messy? It would be wasteful.

”I don’t mind,” he said. ”You can both do it? Is that… something? No, probably not,” he said, in the habit of answering his own questions. He hadn’t expected that they would both be willing to take him on. They seemed to know each other. Logically, to him, it didn’t matter. Beyond becoming master over time, he hadn’t expected nor wanted anything else. Whatever else he received from the hand of the giver was a bonus. If he chose one over the other, would they be insulted? Would it cause issue? Suddenly, he snapped his fingers.

”Do either of you have a coin? We can toss for it…” he said. Some might have called him reckless. He was reckless. It’s why he’d been locked up to begin with.

[Meara]

"I'm certain we both can't do it, so if you can't decided between us for your own reasons....I suppose a coin toss would be a way to decide." She couldn't help it as a smile came to her lips. Meara strongly believed in luck, and it was one of the things that lead her to this moment. It was a lucky encounter with Alex in Toronto and then in Harper Rock. Oscar was lucky that she was walking down the street. Fate, luck, karma, whatever you called it, Meara believed in it because too many things in life were coincidental to be random.

Meara reached down to feel the front pockets of her skinny jeans. Nothing there. Her slender hands wound around the sides of her hips to her back pockets. Nothing there. Red painted nails moved to unzip her purse next as she went fishing around for anything that could be flipped. It was often said you could tell a lot about a woman by examining he contents of her handbag. One by one pieces of things were placed on the counter before her for Oscar to choose from. A rosin pack. Keys. A handful of pens. A pack of gum. A squeaky dog toy. Debit card. A tube of pink lipstick.

"I don't have a coin, but if any of this junk works for you, that's fine by me." Meara laughed and gave her best smile. She knew she might come across as being silly, but this sort of thing was just the sort of person Meara was.

[Kira]

Kira nodded about waiting to change, if he was wanting to be turned right away then he might just end up with blood on him again. She raised an eyebrow when he asked if they both could turn him. "It doesn't work that way." she said, "But the other can always be a...god sire?" she said, searching for the right term, adoptive sire just didn't seem to work in this case.

She blinked when he asked about a coin. This would be the first time a siring would be decided with a coin toss. She watched as Meara started to dig things out of her purse. "Dog toy?" she said with a laugh.

"I don't carry cash around." Kira replied, she looked to Dave. "Do you?"

"Maybe." Dave said, checking his pockets. "You could always use one of those pens like spin the bottle."

"What's spin the bottle?" Kira asked confused.

Dave shook his head, of course she wouldn't know what that was. If someone tricked her into playing she would most likely stab who ever tried to kiss her. "Boys and girls sit in a circle and they spin a bottle. The pair it lands on have to kiss. It's a thing teenagers do."

Kira stared at him for a moment. "Not sure what the point is of that...game?" she said, she was glad she was never a teenager. Well, didn't remember being one anyway.

Dave held up a coin, "Here we go." he said, "Call it."

"I'll take tails." Kira said as he tossed the coin.