Unbreak My Heart [Kyrie]

[Aubrey]

Aubrey had been hiding for days…..no…...nights. Aubrey had been hiding for nights since her change. It had taken her that long to come to terms with her new reality. The reality that she was no longer the pretty little princess she had been. There would be no more spot-light on her. She would have to learn to live in the shadows of buildings and clothing and that was something she truly hated.

She had never hated anything more than having to hide. Okay, that wasn’t totally true. She loved to hide when it suited her. When she was doing something she didn’t want anyone to know about. But the rest of the time, she did hate hiding. She wasn’t born or raised to be a person that didn’t have the attention of the room when she walked in. She was used to people looking at her, used to people wanting to be her. She was the girl that every other teenage girl in school wanted to be. The popular girl, the rich girl, the girl with the prettiest voice, the girl that got asked to the dances first. But not now.

Now she was a monster. Truly. Completely. And she had to find a way to live with that.

Don't leave me in all this pain
Don't leave me out in the rain
Come back and bring back my smile
Come and take these tears away
I need your arms to hold me now
The nights are so unkind
Bring back those nights when I held you beside me

Un-break my heart
Say you'll love me again
Undo this hurt you caused
When you walked out the door
And walked out of my life
Un-cry these tears
I cried so many nights
Un-break my heart
My heart

The song filled the small corner of the Lucksmith’s Inn and Casino where the small stage was. Aubrey stood in the middle of it, but there was no spot-light on her. In fact, there was very little lighting at all around the stage. Just a girl, dressed all in black, with a dark purple hooded cloak on over her clothing. It was one of those cloaks that people usually wore to RenFaires, plain and simple, but it did the trick, she thought, as she had the hood pulled so far forward that her face was hidden behind it. But the voice was not.

It felt good to do something familiar, to sing again. Everything had changed quickly when her family had arrived in Harper Rock. The song she’d chosen to sing tonight was evidence of that change. Sure, most people that heard it would think….oh just another love sick girl belting out the tragedy of a lost love. But to Aubrey, this song wasn’t about a boy. It was about the loss of her appearance. Her family had tried to convince her that it didn’t matter to them what she looked like. They’d done all the things that families do when they love you, offer to help, tell you that you looked pretty even when you didn’t feel pretty. They tried. They really did.

Take back that sad word goodbye
Bring back the joy to my life
Don't leave me here with these tears
Come and kiss this pain away
I can't forget the day you left
Time is so unkind
And life is so cruel without you here beside me

Un-break my heart
Say you'll love me again
Undo this hurt you caused
When you walked out the door
And walked out of my life
Un-cry these tears
I cried so many nights
Un-break my heart

Don't leave me in all this pain
Don't leave me out in the rain
Bring back the nights when I held you beside me

Aubrey poured her pain into that cover song. Her voice carried the emotions out to the few people that had stopped gambling long enough to listen. She didn’t move as she sang. Her eyes focused on the floor a few feet in front of the stage, one hand held the microphone as it was still cradled in the stand. A gloved hand, with the black of the material going up her arm to her elbow beneath the long, draping sleeves of the cloak.

A tear slid down her cheek as she continued to sing and she let it fall without wiping it away. She could do this, she thought. She had to be able to do this. She could win back herself, even if it was a self that she wasn’t used to. Even if it was a self she didn’t know yet. She could do this. She had to be able to do this. For her family. For herself.

Un-break my heart
Say you'll love me again
Undo this hurt you caused
When you walked out the door
And walked out of my life
Un-cry these tears
I cried so many, many nights
Oh, un-break my

Un-break my heart, oh baby
Come back and say you love me
Un-break my heart, sweet darlin'
Without you I just can't go on
Can't go on

Say that you love me, say that you love me
Tell me you love me, un-break my
Say that you love me, say that you love me
Tell me you love me, un-break my…..heart.

As the song came to a close, she stood on the stage while the last few notes of the music played, still looking down, still standing as still as she possibly could. It was moments before she finally let go of the microphone, let the sleeve of her cloak fall down over her hand as she turned to walk to the back of the stage and down the two steps.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZNr2XyEawig

[Kyrie]

Kyrie adjusted his jacket as he tapped the table again, "Hit me." he said watching the next card and tapping his hand against his leg under the table. That was 20. He looked at the cards. His face a smile. At first, they'd thought this was a clear sign of him having a tell. Apparently not. He smiled through several games, winning or losing. He'd kept his game up pretty good, he definitely had done this before but he wasn't nearly good enough to be considered to be counting cards.

He nodded his head as the cards were revealed, "That's 20 fella's." he said taking a gulp from his whiskey and letting out a pleased hiss as he felt the burn, "Ah that's the good stuff." he said taking his coins, he paused as he heard a voice, looking up to see someone on the stage. In the shadow and black. A woman singing.

He leaned his back against his chair for a moment listening, adjusting his jacket with one hand and holding his container of coins in the other. Vampire. He could see that. He'd gotten used to seeing them around. So it didn't really keep his attention. The song however did, he was shooed off the table now that he was done. But he took his time, made his way to an empty table nearer the stage and sat down smiling slightly as he listened.

She preformed it well, it was definitely a sadder song, not the type he'd usually listen to. But he absolutely appreciated the skill required for it. And could enjoy it regardless. Naturally, he couldn't relate to the way the original song might have been meant. It was a song he could enjoy just for itself.

He watched as she went back and got off the stage, he took in a breath in thought. Finishing his drink and setting it down as he let out another hiss. Good drink, yes. Didn't mean it wasn't strong. He got up, bringing the coins with him to make sure nobody tried to steal them.

Kyrie finally managed to get a bit closer to the singer, she was a vampire too. And he hadn’t seen her before...at least he didn’t think so. It was really hard to tell around here. He wasn’t exactly used to being a vampire, even though he’d been one for...well comparably it really wasn’t all that long. A few months. Probably not even a year. Felt like a while, but at the same time, he knew almost nothing compared to a lot of vampires. Didn’t even know all that many personally, he’d just seen them.

"Howdy," He said with a smile, though purposefully avoiding getting too close, "You did a good job. I really don't listen to that type of music often, but you definitely preformed it well."

He paused, wondering where he was going with this, "Did seem...a bit personal? Not that you need to answer that. I know some people really just get into the song to. I'm Kyrie by the way, Kyrie Bastien Dupres. You been in Harper Rock long?"

That really wasn't what he meant to ask. He wanted to know how long she'd been a vampire. He knew she was a vampire, and that she should be able to recognize him as one. Not because of any physical signs. In fact, Kyrie appeared in some ways to still be human. His skin hadn't changed, his complexion was healthy as it was when living. And he was just moments before drinking alcohol, another thing that wasn't exactly common. No, it was just something he knew vampires could do, recognize one another. He couldn't quite see why it should be easier, even for a normal person, to recognize what she was.

[Aubrey]

Aubrey stopped walking when the man approached her. They weren’t near enough to touch one another, and she had every intention of keeping that way. Slowly she raised her chin so those blue/gray eyes could look up at him from beneath the hood that she still wore pulled down low over her forehead. She could see him well enough to know that he was handsome.

She could smell the scent of the good liquor on him, which meant he was not unaccustomed to frequenting places like the casino and indulging in more than a few games of luck. A gloved hand reached up and lightly touched her nose as if it itched. But only she knew that she was checking to be sure the mask she wore beneath the hooded cloak was in place.

Since her turning, she had kept herself hidden from everyone. It had taken her days to come out of her room, and only then when she was coaxed out and was covered in a hoodie that belonged to Junebug that she’d swiped from the laundry. She missed her clothes, her make-up, fixing her hair. All the things that she’d based her young life on up until ten days ago. Necromancer was a word that she wasn’t liking very much right now.

Confident that the mask was in place, she slowly lifted her head up a little more and met his eyes. “Bo. Bo Levesque,” she said to him and held out a gloved hand to him. It was surreal. She’d introduced herself to many people in her eighteen years, but none of them has felt as awkward, and familiar, as this time. The thick French Canadian accent could not be mistaken, and she took no measures to try and hide it.

It was weird, for Aubrey. The formality of this chance encounter. Had it happened ten days ago, she would have been that bubbly teenager and likely talked the strangers head off as if he’d been a long lost friend that she hadn’t seen in years. Aubrey rarely ever met a stranger in her life. People were always, quite suddenly, her best friends. But ten days ago, she had become withdrawn, closed off, eerily quiet, and it was unsettling for even her.

But this person, this Kyrie, with the easy greeting and the kind voice, had no idea. Aubrey took a little comfort from that. The mask she and Soloman had made for her was in place. It was deep purple, like the cloth of her cloak, and was bedazzled with silver studs and sparkling rhinestones. It looked a lot like one of those masks that you saw people wearing at Mardi Gras. And it was her security blanket, her personal savior.

“Thank you. I' glad you enjoyed it.” Full pink stained lips curved into a smile and she was thankful for Eloise and Elodie helping her with her make-up. Just the thought of the conversation sparkled in those blue/gray eyes. Dick sucking lipstick. She could imagine her father’s face turning red and his brow creasing all over again. Elodie had that effect on him quite often.

“Personal? Yes. Very.” She hoped he didn’t want more than that as an explanation because she certainly wasn’t going to be able to give him more. Power thrummed nearby. She could feel it causing the hairs on her arm to stand up and had become accustomed to understanding that it meant a vampire was near. She still couldn’t understand why some of them were so pretty and human-like, and she was the one that was turned into a monster.

Brushing past the personal part of the conversation, Aubrey continued, growing a little more comfortable talking with Kyrie with each question of his that she answered. “My family moved here a couple of weeks ago. Noah, my father, owns this casino.” Harper Rock was, at the moment, a place that she liked for a minute, and hated for an hour. Who knew what the future held?

“What about you? You don’t sound like you’ve lived here long.”

[Kyrie]

Kyrie smiled again as she held out a hand and gave her name, he shook it with a nod of the head, "It's a pleasure to meet ya." he said, his accent was much more American. Though he definitely had a Louisiana leaning.

Likely, the two of the had very different turnings. Kyrie's was very much an accident, and when he changed, he was able to go with it pretty's easily. But, he was also turned to an allurist, not a necromancer. And for one reason or another, he completely retained his ability to appear human in skin color. Eventually he even figured out how to go avoid getting burned in the sun. And he was able to eat real food and drink, and enjoy it. Though, it didn't exactly sate ones hunger...at all. Still, it was a wonderful thing to have.

But he'd had a lot of getting used to. His sire didn't exactly have a whole lot of light to shed on him. Which meant a lot of stuff was things he ended up learning on his own. Which meant his "range of knowledge" was a bit sparse and random. He might know a lot about a few things, and absolutely nothing on others.

She wore a mask, not a regular mask. That was why it drew attention. This had a specifically nice and fancy design. Matching her cloak. It was also purple, which was usually just a color he liked. Well, really he liked Indigo a bit more. But that wasn't the point.

She said it was personal, but didn't elaborate. He nodded and looked at the ground in thought, there was no need for her to elaborate. He didn't think she was obligated in any way to tell him why it was personal. It just was. And that was all that was necessary. She did however bring up something else, she came recently, just a few weeks. And the Casino was family property, he raised his eyebrows and smiled, "Well well. That's pretty impressive isn't it. Casino's tend to be pretty profitable. For the obvious reason of most people don't beat the house." he said honestly, chuckling at the end, "Which of course, is why it's a gamble to play in the first place."

She asked how long he'd been here, he breathed in thinking and looking at the ceiling, catching his hat from falling off, "Around a year actually. Not all that long in the grand scheme of things. Wasn't intending to stick around, I was after a Bounty, legal business but it gets rough once you leave your country. Lost 'em here. Then," he held out both hands and shrugged, "Blammo. Accidental immortal. Just never left. Honestly, don't know why. At this point, it's probably safer nearly anywhere else in the world. But, I'm here. And not sure I even should leave now."

He didn't prod her for her story. He might treat his own turning lightly right now, but it was still a life changing moment. And for some people he figured that turning was far more traumatic than it was for him. "But hey, that's life...or not. All depends on your view I guess. Could be worse."

[Aubrey]

He’s being super nice, Aubrey. Lighten up a little and talk to him. Relax. She kept telling herself that over and over again hoping that it would finally sink in to her. He didn’t seem to be affected by the mask she wore at all. It did cover most of her face, allowing only her lips and a small portion of her chin to show through. She’d learned that if she kept her head tilted slightly downwards and tilted to one side, that she could effectively hide that in the shadows as well.

It was an art form that she was developing. How to stand, how to look up at someone, how to look at them without them getting a full look at her at the same time. She was attentive to him as he talked, even smiled again when he commented on her father owning the casino. That was something the twins had taught her early on. You don’t always have to say something to someone to let them know you are paying attention to them. Sometimes, a gesture can mean so much more. But Aubrey wasn’t near the master flirt that they were. And now, she was even less of one.

“Some people win. If they didn’t, why on earth would they keep coming back?” It was a simple statement, not meant to be inflammatory at all. Actually, it was Aubrey trying to flirt, but it probably didn’t come out that way, not entirely as halfway through the thought she lost her nerve. You’re not pretty enough to be flirting. Just knock it off.

Her thoughts were interrupted when he came back with information about his turning, and those silvery/blue eyes opened wide in amazement. Even if she had felt the presence of a vampire near her, she hadn’t expected it to be him. He looked so human, and she was instantly jealous. Why did I have to get the necromancer craptastic vampire gene? She almost cried out loud.

Thankfully the mask hid most of her emotions and she was able to suck it up and bring herself back into the moment with Kyrie. He was right. It could definitely always be worse. At least she was here with her family. They were supportive of her even when she felt her ugliest. Junebug had even played spa with her and they’d enjoyed facials together. Which, even if it didn’t make her skin appear any prettier, it certainly helped the feel of it, and just the effort Junebug went through to make her feel that way, that was priceless to her.

“That sounds, brutal, kind of,” she finally managed to say. “Being left here all alone. Have you made any friends?” she asked him. Aubrey was well known in her family for bringing home stray anythings, and it looked like she was about to attempt the process all over again.

[Kyrie]

She was paying attention, that was nice. Smile, a nod, even a grunt was enough sometimes to confirm you were paying attention to someone. Course sometimes you could get distracted by making it look like you were paying attention, that you realized you weren't actually paying attention anymore. He tried to avoid that personally, but he definitely understood when it happened.

"True enough." he agreed nodding on that sometimes they won. "Gotta admit, they usually lose more than they win. But hey, that's the way of the game. You want to come out on top, you gotta risk it."

He didn't even consider that she personally might have a reaction to his condition of turning. He knew he was lucky, in some ways. He looked human, he could taste food, he even figured out how to avoid getting burned by the sun. He really was very fortunate in regards to his physical changes of turning. It was all the outside factors that had screwed with him. Sure his sire was nice, and apologetic. But they didn't have much wisdom to impart on him. He was still learning so long after his turning. It'd probably continue to be that way.

He chuckled as she said it sounded brutal, and asking if he made friends. "Ah it's a'right. My sire was nice, she just...didn't have much she could tell me. Scared at first. Your whole life changes in that moment."

But you might know that. He thought. He didn't know what her turning was like. Or how she was as a vampire now. Was that what she was wearing the mask for? Hide who she was? Or what.

Kyrie took in a breath looking up at the ceiling, "Hmm, friends." he tried to think on that for a moment. Kyrie typically thought he made friends easily. Not that his requirements were very high. Yet, he realized, in the chaos of it all he didn't really have many. "Maybe? I'd consider my sire a friend...sort of. But I don't really see 'er to much. I guess I don't really have many round here. Not something I'm happy about."

A smile, in spite of the situation, he always preferred to look on the bright side, "But hey. Maybe that can change right? Can always use more friends. Especially in a place like this."