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His appearance out of the shadows caused a stir in the immediate area. Apparently some found the appearance of a nearly eight foot tall mountain of muscle between one breath and the next unsettling. The quick reaction of Santa was ignored other than a brief nod of his head. Scent and action identified one that he knew would have the control to identify and cease, he did not need to waste in an unneeded block, nor attack. Though now he knew santas elf, his adopted sire would be near, another to watch over. Another young woman was close, a queried greeting to his intended target on her lips as the target turned and rushed him, leaping into his arms. He had often seen the woman frequenting Mortll’s establishments and he doubted the leader of his faction would allow an unvetted to linger long in her company. The impact of the small gypsy into his chest was barely felt as his arms wrapped around her pulling her tight. A smile quirked the corners of his normally stoic countenance as her ‘voice’ washed soothingly through his mind. Turning as he listened his eyes scanned over the gathered assembly, the first pass showing there was no obvious threat, other than the number of humans gathered spread throughout the party. The second glance pickout known allies or at least those that could be counted on in defense, the smile grew as he knoted the skilled fighters in attendance. Doc, Elizabeth, Ripper. His sire Noelle, her sister Mortll. Ariadne, his eyes paused, taking in her presence, a brilliant fighter, but another he would protect, Lastly his eyes crossed over one of the few humans that did not hold his full disdain. It might be that she so closely mimicked his advanced evolution, but he had even allowed Amalea to feed from him, lending the woman his strength and powers. Azraeth and Every were near her, two more that could be counted on if this truly was a set up.

For one short moment he let his eyes take in the face of the woman in his arms, as he whispered lightly into her mind “There is a chance, a bodyguard may be needed here. You know our history… does this not appear awfully close to the last... end? Look at all these humans amongst us sister, this is not natural. Your people. You know my sister, humans kill what they fear.” Lightly he pressed a kiss to her forehead, before letting her slide slowly to the ground, speaking aloud for the first time, “Happy holidays, Madam Zo”

His eyes were drawn back to Amalea, the woman that sat the fence between prey and predator. Starting in the circle of beings about her, Mordechai began scan the minds of those he did not know, Appraising, reading memories, then categorizing them as possible threats, known threats, future threats, or innocuous prey. He slowed concentrating on one in particular, digging deeper and deeper into her mind with his powers learning all he could, She was strange, different than all else here, neither human nor vampire. A casual step placed him between the woman and Zo. One eye was kept on the woman, as he continued is scan through the rest of the gathered crowd.

Returning his gaze to his 'sister' a flash of platinum blonde caught his eye moving in close, a whispered 'mum', and a nod in greeting were offered to the petite woman approaching. Before tossing out a seemingly innocuous query, "Who is the woman following Amalea?"

[for_peace][/for_peace]

While she moved around in search of blood, and finding no evidence of any, another message in the form of a telepathic one came at her from Doc. This caused her to pause and glance in his direction, while her eyes narrowed. Mostly, because the woman was trying to assess who the potential pick pockets may very well be. However, when she made eye contact with Charles, Elizabeth smiled.

Some may believe that they were in the midst of an argument, but Elizabeth needed time to think without reacting. Especially given the fact they were in a public venue where an outburst such as the one in his bar, or in Las Vegas would not be appreciated by many-any, and put a negative light on both vampires as a whole and on him. Something neither of them could afford.

Her eyes shifted to Amalea, giving the woman a sideways smirk as she recalled their many talks since her and Doc's return from Las Vegas. Something was certainly brewing within Elizabeth's mind, and Amalea was well aware of it, but whatever it was...the timing had to be perfect. I will keep an eye out, thank you. Even in the midst of Elizabeth taking a 'breather' Charles was still looking out for her well-being and safety. I am currently attempting to see if our...friend, Banecroft may in fact be here. Or was here. But appears that perhaps that is a dead end... She sighed and then lifted her shoulders into a shrug, eyes back on him. You know...you have a bar that is far less crowded. If one is not enjoying themselves. A suggestion, given only because Doc was doing the exact opposite of mingling. Or so, it seemed.

[for_peace][/for_peace]

[for_peace][/for_peace] [against_sirens][/against_sirens]

History?

She gave the matter some thought as her ‘brother’ went to work casing the entire place. She recalled what Habren had told her once about a situation like this where they had gathered in a mansion at it had proved to be their undoing. That would account for that nagging feeling she had been enduring. There was something familiar about all of this she could not put her finger on until now. What a perfect setting for something like that. Even when she was alive, the idea of being killed because you were different was a constant in life. Anyone of Romany blood understood this quite well.

But that didn’t quite click right In her mind, If this was meant to be something to destroy, why was there not more of ‘them’ in attendance? The humans in the room possibly outnumbered the vampires 2 to 1. Perhaps 3 to 1? If it’s purpose was to hurt the vampire population, this would hardly make a dent. Some well knows here, of course, but there were more well known mortals here. The big money of politics and such had rolled out for this in all their greedy, self important splendor. Killing that lot would raise a lot of eyebrows.

Absently her fingers pulled the small pouch she had been given earlier. The reactions of others in the gathering suggested she was not the only one to get a substantial ‘gift’ in a pouch. Just in the general area around her the amount of people added up to make such a gesture quite expensive. For an event that was to help the less fortunate souls of this town, it was spending way more money on this party. Money that could have been put up as say a challenge. ’We will match the total of all donations’ or something.

It was a ‘bribe’ or a distraction. Like a child who had wandered into a party, knowing full well he or she needed to be home by a certain time, but first there was party favors, then fun and games, and little gifts for all– each more grand then the last, and then the cake and ice cream. The child is overwhelmed and forgets the time as their mind keeps focused on ‘what’s next?’ rather than what they should be thinking of. One can always count on those who have plenty to stay in one spot if the idea more is coming to add to what they have. Greed is never happy unless it can feed itself. Greed was the ‘trap’ for some here. Simple and elegant.

Someone, or some thing, wanted everyone here to stay in this place. The only people she had noticed exiting was out to where the deer were. None via the front door.

The raven haired girl looked about and saw Doc at one of the bars, and sent him a quick breakdown of her suspicions. She could count on him to inform some of the others if he came to the same conclusion as her.

‘Who is the woman following Amalea?’

She pulled out her phone and flipped through the photos, then held it up for him to view. ”You mean her? Haven’t a clue what her name is. Rather than approach her directly, I have been hanging to the sides of this. According to Doc, she is a siren, though his mental image of her suggests some kind of spider woman. She has been the belle of the ball so far, drawing the majority of attention as she makes her rounds. Doc and Liz have spoken to her so they may know.”

The phone returned to her clutch as she made a decision. ”I think I am going to out front and have a cigarette now. If I shout in your head– come running, please.” She smiled up at him as she gave his fingers a gentle squeeze. ”Just checking a theory.”

She began to walk calmly to the exit. Ignoring the help as she passed by. Zodiac retrieved her cloak then opened the front door. She took several steps out and stopped to pull her cigarettes out and light one up. A totally normal thing anyone who enjoyed would do. If she was breaking the rules of the game she wondered was being played here, someone would be out to gather her soon enough.

"I suppose I have a very broad definition of trouble..." For her, the tension in their interaction was almost palpable. There had almost always been tension of some sort or another between them, even back in the Grigori days. More recently, it was tension due to misunderstandings, which were made worse in her mind because neither of them were very willing to discuss what had happened almost a year ago at this point. She could have mentioned how she had waited in their hunting grounds nightly even after he'd left for The Eyrie over concerns of being attacked, or how he had eventually stopped coming around, and she had stopped engaging in public events. She had tried once to expressed herself, and it had been met with the stunning revelation that he placed all of the blame squarely on her shoulders, which she though was unfair. The slight ache in the pit of her stomach at seeing him had begun to fade, mostly because she knew that no amount of resentment or blaming would resolve any aspect of the situation.

Even now she felt a scene of discomfort with him, try as she might to seem casual and friendly. A quick body scan revealed to her that she was using what the youngsters referred to as "Resting ***** Face", which may have been making the interacting awkward. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and rolled her shoulders, allowing her previously tense muscles to relax and a slight smile to creep onto her face. 'My apologies, Doc. I still have some difficulties in these situations, and I may need some reminding about what behaviors are and are not appropriate, though I have made improvements over the last several years." Picking up her glass, she took a sip of her whiskey and glanced towards the fireplace where the Yule Log way crackling merrily away. "I think that, given our situation, perhaps we should make a visit to this... Log of Yule?"

Well, **** it kitten thought to herself as she slides through the doors following some dude who seem to be a tad bit lost in this big *** place, hell she would be too. She didn't much care for balls or going out but damn it all she was bored as ****! Was she dressed up for this kind of entertainment? Nope, sure as hell wasn't clad in her typical leather garment and so forth. She wore all black, and with good reason, she enjoyed clinging to the shadows lately watching her back. She paused a moment to take an unnecessary deep breath and glanced around to see who was here and spotted quite a handful of familiar faces Doc, Mortll, some she knew others she did not, hell who can't miss that big *** Mordie I mean damn, he's the tallest one in here.

As always she didn't want to make an entrance or having those think she actually showed up and so she went to a table and sat down for a while and watched the crowds, it was she did.. she could easily pick out the body language of each person she laid eyes on, hell to even assume she was right, she'd read their thoughts. It was fun to do that messing around in ones head till they figure it out it was you and then you need to find someplace to disappear real quick like and so she was looking for all the exits and how far or near the one, she came in.

Introductions were made, Aurelia simply giving a polite smile and nodding her head as Judah said her name. The woman listened to the conversation, looking between her cousin, the elder, and the woman. Her hand moved to Judah's arm, a light touch to indicate that she was near. Her blue eyes looked around the room as she continued to quietly hum christmas carols to herself until she fell quiet. At the formality, she simply gave a shake of her head, "Aurelia is fine, there's no need for Ms." The name Bancroft was one that Aurelia recognized - the Mayor. Her father had voted for him, hadn't he? She wasn't sure. But she remembered the running ballots when she was home during the campaigns. She'd seen a few of them, too, when she was working in Toronto.

Alaric answered first, the response of being self-employed actually peeking her interest. She'd wondered how he explained how he spent his days, even if she knew the truth. It was a decent cover, really. There weren't many ways for someone to argue against entrepreneurship. "You'll have to beat me to the megaphone, Ms. Mori. The feedback on occasion drives home on my nerves alone." She shifted her weight slightly. Her left foot becoming favored as she said, "I'm an attorney, general practice to be specific." Aurelia was proud of her work and it was clear in her tone as she spoke. She had to be, really, as it had been a turning point in her life when she'd decided to go into law.

There was the mention of dancing, to which Aurelia offered, "If there are no objections, I will be glad to escort you later on in the evening." She heard the call for the Yule log and bunched her fingertips into the lace overlay of her beige dress. The smell of burning wine called to her, the consideration to speak away the troubles that she'd dealt with over the year. After a few moments, she smiled to the three, "If you'll excuse me, I do believe there's some champagne calling my name." She gave a wink to Judah as she set her fingertips against Alaric's arm, "It's a pleasure, Ms. Mori. And I was sincere about the dance later on."

And with that, the blonde turned before making her way in the direction of a waiter carrying a tray of champagne flutes.

[for_peace][/for_peace]

Every could only smile at Ayuka's words and Amalea's telepathic, a chuckle escaping past her lips as she let the word fall between them. She understood the thought. "To be fair, when I arrived in Harper Rock six years ago, it wasn't as open as vampires were in the city. And it is alright, I know how our reputation proceeds us." She knew it very well, given at one point, she was one of the rougher individuals in the crowd. "Still am." "I grew up in southern California, though. I was a child during the Los Angeles riots and violence is a part of nature, whether or not people like to admit it. It doesn't matter what species someone is, either." How long had it been since she'd been able to talk about the profession she had wished to take? Too long, really.

"The school was one of the best I've studied in, although I do admit I ended up doing quite a lot of it online after some events took place. Harper Rock certainly is a mess at times, no one can deny it - even the mayor, I'm sure." It was with great resistance did she lift her hand to rub at the side of her neck, not wanting to advertise that she was a vampire. It was an uncomfortable habit that she hadn't shaken quite yet. She listened to the conversations surrounding her, taking note of different voices and matched the majority of faces up to them. There were more faces now that she knew, something that had the shadow relaxing a bit more as she turned her attention back to Ayuka. "I started school in the States." She smiled, her lips lifting.

Normally, she would have given a shrug of her shoulder when mentioning what she'd wanted to do. "Forensic psychology - to become a Criminologist, to be exact. Preventing criminal behavior is important, as well to examine all aspects of it." It was an odd thing to say, given the person whom she'd become after she'd been turned. Ruthless, a killer. They were traits that had only enhanced over time. It was chilling in some ways, truly, about how easily she could turn away from some acts of violence and not bat an eye. "I quite enjoy statistics and patterns, so the entire concept of it was always fascinating to me." She wondered how much of it was the reason that she went into working with mechanics for vehicles, the need to control certain aspects now that she wasn't working in acquisitions.

The woman fell quiet as she smiled and then gave a nod to show that she had heard that Ayuka was leaving, her hazel eyes following after the siren before she turned her attention back to the main room. There was Mordechai, to whom Every gave a nod of greeting to, and then she noticed Kaelyn with Ariadne. Her attention turned back to Azraeth and Amalea, snickering. "You? Poise and grace? Must be remnants of Bia." She teased Azraeth, folding her arms in front of her chest afterwards although the smile on her lips showed that she wasn't being malicious. "I've got to agree with Lea, careful on that. Although, I'm sure we'll be able to handle if anything does go to hell." There weren't many times that the woman felt to be an optimist, but today was certainly one of them.

As she lifted her glass to her lips, Every took a small drink and listened to the crackling of the fire. She couldn't help but smile a bit at the sound of children singing, thinking of the niece that she had. It was an odd thing, really, not seeing Enver in something like this, but she suspected he was busy with Grace. After replying telepathically to Amalea, belatedly, she straightened up once more and rolled her shoulders. She was never good at standing still, no matter the day. Vampire, human. It was an awful thing. The woman stepped around to the other side of Azraeth, placing her back towards the wall before she said, "So, when did you meet the handsome young man that was on your arm?"

Every questioned, but it was one of sincerity.

Judah was content to listen, he'd made his introduction and exchanged pleasantries, and the women seemed more than happy to talk at length about the evening. Bancroft, the Mayor, he had noticed was indeed absent. He would have thought the Mayor would be a popular presence, in the spotlight and with plenty of attendees eager to make a good impression. Strange, to say the least, but Jude wasn't one to dwell or puzzle over those things. Instead, he realised how lucky he'd been to have been late and thus missed the majority of the Elves overeager announcements. They might have been a cute idea at first, amusing and cheeky, full of Christmas cheer but it seemed it could quickly become grating. The slight crackling feedback when they turned them on was irritating, but it served to get attention. Jude turned towards the log as it came out, smiling politely as if to excuse himself from the formalities of conversation since Alaric had taken over, and the woman seemed to have him in her sights. It lit with promise, and it was a temptation too great to resist. The year had been a big one for him in many ways and there were things he wished to let go of as the New Year rolled around, just as there were things he hoped would last.

Aurelia's touch to his arm was welcome, the light contact enough to keep him both grounded and make a sense of familial warmth rise in his chest. He looked to her, a broader smile dimpling his cheeks, one he hoped conveyed his gratitude to have her near. It had been too long since they had shared so much time or such a close proximity and he was enjoying the opportunity to catch up with his cousin. When she left to go to the yule log he gave her a few moments, knowing that she too had many things to release into the universe. "Ah, yes,
dancing sounds fantastic. I'm sure Alaric would make a great partner, doesn't hurt that he's a handsome devil.
If you'll excuse me also, Ms. Mori I strongly believe in the concept of declaring your sins and whispering your secrets, so I'm going to take a visit with the yule log. I hope to see you both on the dancefloor shortly." He gave her a quick nod of the head, and Alaric received a light clap on the shoulder blade. He knew that elder would find him if he needed him, or wanted his company.