Girl Crush [Invite]

[River]

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

Backdated: 12/25/2015

River:I don’t get no sleep
I don’t get no peace
Thinking about her
Under your bed sheets

The holidays were supposed to be a time filled with laughter, love and joy. It was supposed to awaken the spirit of the Holy Ghost. It was meant to bring the family together. Just for one single day of the year, it was supposed to make the world whole. There had once been a time when that was exactly what had happened. The holiday’s were once an occasion that she looked forward to. Now, however, she could barely stand to smell the scent of pine. It made her stomach twist as the memories of her ex-fiance filled her mind. She had been the one that brought the joy out in her. Every year, Christmas had been an extravagant occasion, one that she spent far more money and time on than she should have. It wasn’t just about the presents, either. Addison had to have the tree, the lights, the lawn decorations and the food. She had to have everything. Christmas had once been a month long journey - and now she hadn’t a clue what she was supposed to do. She had no family. She had no friends.

She was alone.
Invisible.

Pressing her heel to her brow, she pushed herself up from the couch and shook her head. She had been finding solace in the company of others, but they had vanished to their respective homes, leaving her by herself. Even the zombies seemed to have thinned out for the time being, the scent lacking in strength as the air conditioner kicked on. Shaking her head, she stashed her gun under the couch and slipped out the door of the QZ to head to the city. Despite her growing dislike of the sparkling lights, she knew that the bustle of the city would quiet the thoughts and memories in her mind. With a quiet sigh, she twisted her hair up into a loose braid as she hooked her fingers into the links of the fence and lifted herself over it. Throwing her leg across the top, she carefully avoided the electrical wiring and pushed herself up and over. Landing on the other side, she dusted off her leggings and scanned the surrounding areas. She knew this city better than most, and she knew which places to avoid.

Making sure she turned towards the North and away from the slums, she wrapped her arms around her middle and rubbed her hands over her biceps. She had hoped that once she had adjusted to the life of a vampire, she would no longer need to worry about the chill of winter. She hated the cold. Frowning for a moment, she pulled out the few bills she had tucked into her waistband and counted them out, her fingers shaking as the wind picked up, blowing her hair around her face. Fifteen dollars. “****, that’s not enough for a jacket,” she muttered to herself as she headed for the station, teeth chattering. She had fallen on hard times after that fateful night with her maker, leaving her unable to work for a living - and thus, having come up pretty much broke. If it weren’t for Roderic supplying funds to her bank account every few weeks, she’d be lost. At this point, she could barely keep herself fed, let alone properly clothed. She was down to the bare minimum she needed to survive. Shaking her head, she decided to skip the station and headed for the park, hoping to find a warm place to sit.




Tigra: Tigra was thrilled with the success of the Christmas party at the garage. The lights were bright, the tree was tall and festive and full, the food was vanishing faster than she could have hoped and the alcohol was all but gone. The turnout had been incredible, and everyone was having one hell of a time. Laura had been the first to tell her she was going to need more, though with a lush like her, the comment held little weight. The tiny woman could drink like a fish and never fall down. It never failed to amaze Tigra just how much she could really handle.

It was when her daughter, Patricia, had mentioned she was out of rum that she realized she should set out and try to find a store still open this late on a Christmas evening. She parked the car along one of the long lots downtown, dropping a few coins into the meter to secure her spot, even if she doubted that the meter maids would be out tonight. She wouldn’t suffer her baby being booted, and she had a feeling that the stray cop wouldn’t hesitate to put such an ugly hunk of metal on the sleek, tweaked-out Supra. It screamed street racer, so one appearing on the side of the street would certainly raise suspicion.

She had found a single shop still open, lights announcing the life inside. The small Indian woman behind the counter had given her a strange look, eyeing her warily the entire time she was in the store, and had to visibly refrain from commenting when she placed her quarry on the counter. Four cases of beer, two fifths of vodka, four of rum, and six bottles of wine. She was sure that would hold them over until the morning. The crowd would be thinning soon, people returning home for Christmas festivities.

The woman gave her a condescending smile, and followed the last item with a comment about the alcohol. The tall Canadian woman just gave her a playful grin and shrugged, sliding her bank card through the pad. “Just restocking a party.” She hadn’t paid the woman any mind at all. Her thoughts were on her guests. Everyone was having a good time. She wasn’t great at a lot of things, but she was an excellent partier. That was one thing she could always count on being good at, having a good time, no matter where she turned up.

Gathering the alcohol into a cloth bag, she let the strap wrap about her wrist twice, securing the heavy weight to her arm before she flashed the pretty woman a smile and waved her fingers to her over her shoulder. “Joyeaux Noelle, madamoiselle!” she called, wishing the woman a merry Christmas in her native tongue before passing through the shopping center to the park.

The lot where her meter was running short was across the way, the shortest path leading through the dimly lit park, the snow that had only dusted the ground on her way in coated the world in a shimmering white now. The soft orange glow of the overhead lamps glittered in the crystalline structure of the pillowy white snow. It made her smile as she passed along the path through the park, leaving a trail of boot prints in her wake. She made a show of tightening her jacket’s hold on her shoulders, pulling her hood down over her head as snow blasted the air in a gust of wind.

She took the heavy wool scarf about her neck and pulled it up over her face, covering her nose from the icy cold air, leaving only her hazel blue eyes and a light dusting of freckles visible between the fur lining of her hood and her scarf. She saw several lights down that another figure was passing through the park, traveling in the opposite direction, headed straight for her. She tucked her hand into the pocket of her jacket, feeling the small pistol she kept for personal protection when she was out for the night. This place had made her wary of strangers in the night. Particularly those that were not like her. It was a troubling juxtaposition with her cheerful nature, to be so paranoid, but she had seen too much of mankind to foolishly give them her blind trust.

She shook her head and cleared her mind of the darkness seeping into her thoughts, focusing instead on the figure she was closing on. Something about this figure struck her as strange. It took her a moment to realize that it was a woman alone, making her way through the cold without a jacket. She looked nearly frozen to death. Quietly, she debated in her mind as she continued to approach the woman across the park or if she should cut through the snow to the lot and avoid her altogether.


River: Fifteen dollars.
How the hell am I going to live?

Shaking her head, she wrapped her arms tighter around her slender form as she glanced towards the park. It was already beginning to snow, the white dusting the top of the benches to give them a beauty that nothing else could. Her mind quickly worked to capture the scene in her memory to paint for later, even as she made her way down the winding sidewalk towards the edge of the park. It was clear that she wasn’t going to find reprieve from the weather there, but she really had no other option. She could go back to the hotel, but the thought of being alone - and in a place that lacked heat and running water - wasn’t exactly on the top of her to do list. With a resigned sigh, she tucked a curl behind her ear and came to a sudden and complete stop. The lights were on in one single building, and the flickering ABC store sign caught her attention long before the single woman coming her way did.

With fifteen dollars, she could buy a cheap bottle of rum to keep her warm.
No, I can’t. I was sick as a dog last time.

She didn’t bother to move from the middle of the sidewalk as she began to deliberate, knowing that the woman would simply walk around her - or through her without so much as an apology. She was used to it. Even when she stood out in the most beautiful array of colors, she was unnoticed by those in the world. She was invisible, a phantom that was to be ignored at all costs. It didn’t matter if she was crying out for help or simply attempting to offer a hand to someone in need - she was never noticed. Never heard. Even now, with the snow dusting her hair and the ice freezing to her skin, she knew that she would be passed by. It was because of this that she simply watched the flickering sign and not the woman headed her way with the bags that were far too heavy for her to be holding as she was.

She could offer to help, but her voice was stuck in her throat. Instead, she rubbed her arms up and down the thin black shirt she wore, attempting to put some warmth into her skin. How was it that she was so cold when she no longer had life in her body? She was dead, her blood drained from her veins, and yet she was suffering because it was below zero. Shaking her head, she pressed her fingers to her eyes and took a deep breath before turning, only to slam into a soft, warm body. At once, she stumbled back a step, lips parting and mismatched eyes wide - before she shook her head and walked around her without a word. It isn’t like she would have heard me, anyway.



Tigra: Nearly toppling into the woman as she turned, Tigra reeled back on her boots, tightening her grip on the bag of alcohol and caught herself gracefully, watching keenly as the slender brunette stepped around her. “Excusé moi, madamoiselle...” She said softly, watching as the woman moved. She looked cold, nearly frozen to the bone. She all but chattered her teeth. Worse than that, she looked lonely.

Tigra frowned, and set her bag down in the snow. “Excuse me, miss?” She turned to the woman, then, and reached to the zipper at her throat. She gave the woman a warm, welcoming smile as she held out her free hand. “My name is Tigra. Tigra LeChànce. I run a local street racing chapter here in town. I just thought… you just looked cold. I thought I would say hi.” Her heavy Quebec accent laced her words thickly, her tongue rolling easily over the English, but with a broad swathe of French influence. It gave her soft voice a soothing, alluring nature that matched her willowy stature.

She gave her a disarming smile, then. “You will excuse my fretting, but where is your coat? It is bitter cold.” She ran her fingers along the brass zipper at her throat, debating on offering the woman her coat, at least. She knew she was being terribly forward, but it was a season of giving and kindness, and if she couldn’t offer this poor creature a place in the abundant warmth of her own family and home, then who could? Who would?

The poor thing was skin and bones, larger than herself but much shorter. She looked half starved, chilled, and lonely. Three things that no one should be on a night like tonight.

“If you would like, you could borrow mine for a while? My car is not far. I will not need it for such a short walk.” She smiled, then, and re-offered her hand, holding it out to her as she worked the zipper to her jacket open, letting it hang loosely about her slender shoulders. “It is a very warm coat. This place is not so cold as I had thought.”

[Tigra]

--The following transcript was a live chat roleplay--
River: The soft spoken words caused the woman to freeze, her feet seemingly glued to the cement. I have to be hearing things, she thought. There was no way that the woman had spoken to her. Hell, there was no way that she had even noticed her. Her insecurities weren’t simply in her mind; it had been proven time and time again that she was simply invisible to the world. There had been of these same exact situations in her past, hundreds of people she had accidently ran into and none of them had uttered a word or leant a helping hand. They had just walked through her as if she were made of mist instead of flesh and blood. It was because of this that she had no idea what to say or how to react. Her fingers trembled as she finally forced her foot forward, knowing that she must appear to be a complete imbecile standing in the middle of the sidewalk. It doesn’t matter. No one noticed.

Her subconscious spoke up in such a bitter tone that it painted her reality in stark colors. Once her converse had pulled from the sidewalk, the other followed suit and she was quickly making her escape without looking back. She had only made it a few steps before that soft voice piped up again, followed by the rustle of fabric as the woman leaned over to place the bag in the snow. Once again, River found herself frozen in place, this time suspended in a moment between confusion and fear. She hadn’t a clue how to interact with a person who seemed to adamant on speaking to her, and as the lithe brunette continued to prattle on, she simply stared at her. She registered nothing that came from her bubblegum colored lips, her eyes fully focused on the ground beneath her feet. You need to say something!

Despite the voice in her mind, urging her to part her lips and use her vocal cords, nothing came out. Embarrassment caused her to turn her head away and she quickly pressed her fingers to the bridge of her nose. She must think I’m mental, she voiced in her mind with a click of her tongue. It would have been so simple to give her name, to offer her a smile, had she been any other woman. Had I not been ruined. After a long moment, she came to the slow realization that the woman was no longer speaking. Instead, she was staring at her with her coat halfway pulled from her slender body. Drawing her brows together in another look of utter confusion, River could only stare at her before her mind filled in the blanks for the past few minutes. “I --- no. I-I’m f… I’m fine.” Her voice shook, the nerves causing her to slip easily back into her Portuguese accent. It was always with her, though never as heavy as when she was at an emotional overload - such as her current situation as she remained staring at the woman’s shoes.



Tigra: She gave a wide, warm smile at the girl’s stutter and shook her head. Easily, she shrugged from the coat, the heavy garment falling to her elbows before she pulled the sleeves from her arms. “That’s okay, sweetheart. It is freezing. Please, here.” She lifted the burgundy coat and flipped it easily over the small, tanned woman’s shoulders, enveloping her small frame in the fabric. Tigra’s smile widened as she pulled the neck close around her throat. “You look good in red.”

She lifted a hand to tuck a stray curl of chestnut silk behind her ear as she straightened the top she had worn beneath the coat. The thin fabric hung neatly across her chest, tight but not trashy. Her style was tasteful and elegant tonight. “So, how about that name?” she asked, before reaching to lift her bag from the snow. The bottom of the canvas bag had soaked through. “Listen, my garage isn’t far from here and I have a few friends and family over. Christmas party. It’s a lot of fun, and I’d really like it if you would come by and see the place. I’ve never seen your face in town, and I’d like a fresh opinion on the place. You look like just the kind of person I want to attract to the chapter.”

She let the statement hang in the air for a moment before she gave her a small smile. “If you want to come by, I can give you a ride. Or… if you don’t, I could still give you a ride. It really beats walking these streets in the middle of the night. Harper Rock is a pretty dangerous place for such a pretty woman all by herself.” She paused for a moment and leaned toward the woman, leaning down close before she reached into the pocket of the coat draped across her frame to pull the keys to her car from the wide slit in the burgundy fabric. “Might need these.” she said with a high, light laugh like a musical chime. She flipped the ring around her finger and dropped the fob into her palm.

“So what do you say, sweetheart? You want to come party? I’ve got a bunch of alcohol here, and I can make sure you have the time of your life tonight. You just say the word.”


River: As the snow dusted the sidewalk, she watched as a few stray flakes danced over the woman’s pink pumas. It was easier than meeting her eyes, knowing what she would see in them. The condemnation, the pity - or would she be looking at her at all? Perhaps she was that rare stranger that felt obligated to speak to her, the one that had been cursed with the knowledge of her. Clenching her fists against her ribcage, she dug her knuckles into the bone until pain lit her system. Just say your peace and move on. Give the poor thing a break. With a quiet breath, she forced her converse from the cement, the motion far more difficult than it should have been.

Was she turning to ice?

Shaking her head, she racked her brain for something to say - anything - to have the stranger forget about her. Her throat tightened with each second that passed, until she felt as if she were being strangled, her words becoming obsolete. Once again, she was unable to listen to anything the woman said, her soft spoken words becoming lost on the winter’s wind the moment she spoke them. Her mind had become a blank canvas as her gaze remained transfixed on the snow coating her shoes, until she noticed them move. Furrowing her brows, she watched as the woman left an outline behind. Was she finally going to show her mercy and leave her to her misery? Bracing herself for the other to walk past her, she let her hair blow into her face, the raven strands tickling her nose as she began to count the seconds to freedom. One, two, thr-- what the hell?

The numbers died as she felt the weight of the coat against her shoulder, the scent of vanilla filling her senses. It was such a sweet and tantalizing scent, that it managed to distract her for a moment. She became focused on the warmth as it embraced her, erasing the chill that had seeped into her bones. It didn’t long for feeling to return to her fingers, and slowly she began to unclench them, her brows drawing together in confusion. No one had ever shown her that kindness - and she had no idea how to react. “T--th--thank y-you,” she said to the sidewalk, her voice barely above a whisper. She was certain the words would fade with the snow, leaving her to continue her charade of a mute. It seemed as if the warmth of the jacket was melting more than her body, as her mind finally began to pick up a few choice words the stranger offered. Without warning, her head snapped up and she suddenly stumbled back a step, her movements resembling that of a startled rabbit.

“Não, eu ... festa? Você não me conhece . Eu ... eu não preciso de uma carona. Estou bem,” she exclaimed hastily, unaware that she had slipped back into her natural tongue. The panic had seized her heart in a phantom’s grasp, squeezing the still muscle until she was certain it was going to crush it into pieces. Snapping her teeth together, she began to tug the jacket off, knowing the safety it offered wasn’t worth the price she was paying. It was better to be invisible, and for a moment, she found herself detesting the stranger for taking away her solitude. She’s going to think you insane. Shaking her head as she finally freed herself from the heavy wool, she held it out with one hand and kept her gaze downcast.

In a few seconds, she won’t think of me at all.




Tigra: Shaking her head, the tall Killer lifted her hands, closing them over the small Latina’s grip on the coat and squeezed her fingers tight around the fabric. “You keep it.” She gave her a kind, warm smile and stepped closer, nearly into the woman as she leaned down, whispering gently into her ear. The distance between them was nonexistent. Her voice was a hush as she squeezed the girl’s hand. “Behind me, the cashier is going to be leaving that store. We need to be out of here before she makes it outside. She knows what I am, and she’ll know what you are, too.”

She nodded to where her car was parked, before she slowly pulled away from the small, lithe Shadow. Her hand rested over the girl’s as her eyes watched the mismatched orbs dart anywhere but into her own eyes. She’s so frightened. She sighed, and looked over her shoulder as she heard the liquor store’s bell ring into the night, a high peal that pierced the stillness of the dark, reverberating off the fallen snow. “We need to move quickly. Now. Just follow my lead and I’ll get you out of here.” She put her arm around the girl and wheeled her around.

The Indian woman was locking the door to the store, a heavy blue coat around her figure that didn’t hide the silhouette of the assault rifle beneath the covering. She was one of them. Hurriedly, the slender Canadian put a thin arm around her fellow vampire’s waist, and turned her about quickly. “Did you see the gun?” she asked in a hushed breath, pulling her along, guiding her to the lot where her car waited. The snow was going to be problematic, but at least this time she knew what to expect.

She took the coat from the small woman’s hands and wrapped it around her again. “She’s coming. No matter what you do, don’t slow down, and don’t answer her. Just run for the car if I have to stop. She won’t be alone.” Her hazel eyes moved over the woman’s face, her hand gripping her hip tightly against her side as she walked in a rushed, brisk pace. Behind them, the small, thin woman’s footsteps crunched in the snow, moving much quicker than they were. When she was almost on them, that condescending tone lashed out at their backs. “Excuse me, ladies?”

Tigra’s hand gripped the woman’s bicep as they kept moving. She leaned down and made to look like she was kissing her cheek. She pulled the keys from her pocket and slipped them into her palm. She pushed the button and the lights on the Supra flashed. “That’s my car. When I say go, make a run for it.”

[River]

She continued to watch the snow swirl across the sidewalk in what seemed to be perfect harmony as she held the jacket out, the weight held easily by two fingers. She hated that she had to return the only thing that sheltered her from the freezing temperatures, but the price was far too high for her to pay. She could hardly keep her wits about her while in the presence of just one stranger - the thought of being surrounded by an entire group nearly left her comatose. Bracing herself for the pity in her eyes, she forced her gaze up just as she stepped forward, the cool of her touch burning her skin. “W-What--” The words died on her tongue as the woman leaned into her, one arm going around her middle to pull her in.

The embrace was far too intimate, and discomfort didn’t come close to describing her state of mind. She could feel the ground shift beneath her, and she swore for a moment that the sidewalk was finally going to answer her prayers and swallow her whole. It didn’t occur to her until the woman had tipped her head to brush her lips across her ear that there might be a logical explanation for her invading her personal space. All she could think was that this stranger was far too close for comfort, and yet she still couldn’t get her hands to move. It would take a simple shove, and the other would be pushed from her - but her arms remained locked at her side, as if she were made of stone. Perhaps I’ve finally frozen.

The thought was enough to earn a choked, almost hysterical laugh from her. It was short lived as her words suddenly sunk into her mind, and her heterochromatic gaze instantly shot to the door as the bell echoed across the street. To anyone else, it would have sounded like a simple, cheerful chime - but to her, it was closer to the Death March. As the lights flickered above the business woman’s head, she saw the glint of the gun beneath her jacket, and everything began to move in slow motion. Panic blossomed in her chest and spread through her veins, choking off her oxygen and leaving her lightheaded. “I-I-I do-don’t und-understand!” Her words were a sharp exclaim, and fear had made her accent prominent. What had she done wrong?

Why did you do this to me?

The disgruntled thought caught her by surprise as she finally tore her gaze from the shopkeeper to focus on the athletic brunette at her side. She was fine on her own - she wouldn’t have even been there, had it not been for her stopping her. She would have been across the city by now, far away from the wild Indian woman with her rifle. As they moved towards the lot, she began to rack her brain for what Roderic had told her about the humans in this city. Something about them being dangerously close to learning about them - and something about some of them already knowing. And wanting us dead. The realization brought her up short, and she stumbled to a stop just as the shopkeep called out to them.

Turning her gaze back to the woman at her side, she felt that irrational anger take control of her again. Why couldn’t she have been just like the rest and left her alone? She was fine on her own, and now, because she felt the need to offer charity - she was in this situation. With a muttered curse, she clenched her hands at her side as the Supra’s headlights flashed in the distance. It would be easy for her to make her way to the car, but the flimsy window would offer her little to no protection from bullets. Snapping her teeth together in frustration, she chanced a look over her shoulder as the Indian woman began to move her jacket. As much as she disliked the stranger at her side, she also knew that she couldn’t abandon her. She was just one lone vampire - and by the way the shadows danced in the alley next to the shop, she knew that more were coming.

With a resigned sigh, she gave the woman a subtle nod as she squeezed her arm once. She would let her think that she was going to follow her lead - but she knew in her heart that she wasn’t. Adrenaline did strange things to a person, and where normally she would have taken off and left the other to her own device - she was going to stay. I hope I survive this, or Roderic is going to kill me all over again, she thought as she reluctantly began to step away from the brunette, her gaze mapping out the distance between her and the nearest building.

It’ll be fine, just fine.
I can do this.
… I hope.

[Tigra]

Smiling, she squeezed the arm in her grasp. “It will be alright. Just be ready.” She glanced over her features, seeing a mixture of fear and adrenaline there. She could not be sure that the woman would know to listen. She also figured she did not have time to make sure. They moved at a quick pace, but the crunch of the footsteps of the small Indian woman approached rapidly. When her voice piped up, she gave the girl a nod before she dropped her bag. Her body moved so fast, everything was a blur.

The tall Quebec native whirled around on the toes of her boot, a hand shooting out fast as lightning as her body shoved between the small cashier and the vampire. Fingers curled around the shotgun as the girl moved to shove it into River’s back, flipping it from her grasp with a quick yank, her hands slipping from the pistol grip, her fingers sliding off the trigger without firing the weapon. The muzzle pressed against the girl’s gut, and her dark eyes went wide with shock. “Wait, you do not have to…”

The blast was deafening, the weapon kicking hard in her hands, but her expert grip kept the weapon level as the slug-shot punched through the girl’s gut. Her stomach wrapped around her spine as her back exploded in meaty chunks, splashing red and bright across the snow as she was thrown from her feet, flying backward to land on her back. Blood gushed from her mouth and her body tensed, back arching off the ground for just a moment before she slumped into the bloody snow, still as stone. Still, dark eyes stared into the black sky as snow flecked her face, never letting up as it pounded the world around them.

In an instant, the world around them lit up. Shadows everywhere blinked to life with gunfire. She shot a glance to the car, finding it empty. She had no idea where the girl had gone, but only hoped that she had found her way to safety. Bullets ripped through the air, striking the snow around her and kicking white powder into the air, all but blinding her. She squinted, and shifted to the left, before she darted to the right with alarming speed. One bullet whizzed past her face, catching a line of her hair and shaving several strands by inches. She frowned, and pushed herself to move faster.

She was on the first one in the bat of an eye. Her knife went through his coat like it was nothing, impaling his heart on the broad steel blade. A violent twist shredded the muscle and he tensed, before falling limp against her thin frame with a grunt of pain. She yanked the blade free of his chest, letting him fall to the ground. Instantly, she leaped into the brick wall of the alley, one leg shoving hard and propelling her to the opposite wall, where she kicked a second time to throw her onto the third floor fire escape, face to face with a third hunter.

This one, she impaled through the soft gullet beneath her jaw. Her blade shoved into the woman’s brain, the shocked expression in her eyes frozen, her arms falling limp to her sides as she dropped her pistol. She pulled the blade free with ease and kicked the body over the rail, sending her tumbling into the snow beneath to land on the man. Bullets clanged off the metal of the stairs and she leaped from the fire escape, long nails hardening into fierce claws. Her boots dug into the brick as she pulled herself up the wall, bullets striking the brick and sending red dust flying into the air. Two struck her in the back, knocking the wind from her lungs.

There was no time to stop.

On the roof, a man with a long rifle still looked into the street. He had failed to detect the commotion in the alley beneath his building. He was a quick, silent kill, a knife shoved into the base of his skull with a sharp twist. An internal decapitation, severing his head from his spinal column without removing the skull from the body. He died without a sound. She turned, ready to leap to the next building to see the flash of steel as a blade swung for her eyes. She threw herself backward, body bending in a lithe curve to watch the blade whip past the tip of her nose with a sharp whistle of air.

As she righted herself, she lifted her knife rose to block another sword with a sharp clang shooting pain up her arm as the second attacker spun away to create distance. There were three, each of them exactly the same as the other. Blonde hair, blue eyes, very pretty. Triplets. They seemed eager, but clumsy with their blades. “Ladies, please… I am sure that we can work something out. I have time for all of you.” She smirked, and flipped her knife in her hand, the tip pointing to the rooftop. “**** you, vampire whore.” The one in the middle snapped, venom dripping from her words as the one on the right charged with a shout, her blade lifted high.

Tigra went low, moving faster than the girl could have seen. One moment, she was running toward her, a scream in her lungs that a berserker would have been proud of. The next moment, her blade was in the snow, and she was on her knees, silent. There she rested, the blood stain spreading between her breasts and spilling across her chest and down her abdomen until she collapsed into the snow face-first. Her knees still planted firmly in the snow, her *** stuck into the air, acting the perfect perch as the tall brunette planted a heeled boot onto the upturned rump, leaning forward to stare at the triplets-turned-twins.

“You can try and run, or you can stay and fight. Either way, ladies, I cannot let you live. She was brave enough to dance. What about you?” Her glossy lips twisted in a cruel smile, her voice a seductive purr, laced thickly with pain and pleasure. Her hazel eyes were alive, now blue, now green, then brown, the color dancing as quickly as she did. Her own blood dripped from her back, pattering lightly against the dead girl’s face. She stood upright then, kicking the twisted girl and sending her rolling onto her back. Lifeless eyes stared up at her, and she could not find it in herself to be unnerved by the stare of the dead. She smirked, and flicked those shimmering eyes back to the other two. “Shall we dance?”

The pain in her back was agony, a white knife in her spine with every movement. She watched relatively still as the girls looked at one another, then down at their fallen sister, unsure. It was clear that these poor wretches were no real fighters. She wondered how long it would take for more of the rooftop shooters to find her. It wouldn’t be long, so this had to be quick. The both of them moved at once, coming at her from either side, rather than head on. That, obviously, had been the corpse’s move. It had failed her almost as horrifically as this was going to fail them.

It was over in a flash.

Both women thrust their blades forward as she twisted away from harm, gripping both of their wrists and twisting. In the same instant, steel burst through both of their backs, the blades impaling their hearts. They stared into one anothers’ eyes, regret deep in those blue depths until the lights flicked off in both at once, life fleeing them as the slumped against one another, each corpse holding the other up as they sank to their knees.

“Good show, girls, but you will have to be faster than that next time.” She chuckled then, the sound a quiet velvety touch on the wind as she moved to the edge of the roof. More of the gunfire had gone silent. She could not be sure if that was because the hunters were saving ammo, if they were running, or if her newfound friend had made quick work of some of the others. She hoped that it was the last.

As she leaped through the air, her body propelled from one rooftop to the next, she caught a bullet in the chest, stopping her momentum and sending her falling to the roof with a wheeze, the wind knocked from her as she grunted in pain. Dead center of her chest, just barely grazing her heart. It was a damn good shot on a target flying through the air like she had been. She turned, and spat blood into the snow as she pushed herself to her feet.

“So we are not done playing after all? Good. I was starting to worry.” She could feel the pain weighing on her now as it radiated through her torso, but she was far from finished. Blood drenched her shirt, the pink material stained red. Blood ran from the corner of her mouth as it filled again, and she could not help but smile. This was getting fun. She moved for cover, then, hiding herself from the trajectory of the first bullet, only to have a fresh hail of steel hit the cement of the wall she leaned against. She was surrounded. She needed to move, to get out of this ring of death, but which way to go?

Where did you go, girl? I hope you found your way out of this hell.

[River]

Everything will be fine.

The words echoed in her mind as she turned to face the woman, her expression impassive. She couldn’t allow the other to see what was going on in her head, the know that she planned to do the exact opposite of what she demanded of her. Holding herself still, she waited until the exact moment that the brunette nodded, before moving from her spot. It seemed as if that subtle sign had ignited something inside of her, the adrenaline coursing through her veins causing her to tremble as she dropped the coat to the ground. She would have carried it with her - protected it, if she had to, but it would only hinder her. Fighting the urge to look behind her, she took off in a run, her converse sliding across the ice as she leaped over a snow coated bench to land in the middle of the street. Rolling with the impact, she lifted back to her feet and sidestepped her car, her fingers brushing across the heated hood before she launched at the deserted building on the opposite side.

Her foot found traction on the brick, and she gripped the window to pull herself up, her weight making the ascent easy. Her muscles strained as the tossed herself to the next window, the climb fast - faster than she had remembered it ever being. The newfound strength that she had been blessed with appeared to work in her favor as she pushed herself from the edge of the building and grabbed the gutter, the metal digging into her fingers as she hoisted herself up onto the roof. Below her, the sound of gunfire filled the air, and she snapped her teeth together as the scent of blood reached her. Refusing to look down, she took off in a run, her feet easily moving across the roof until she reached the edge of the building. Without breaking stride, she leapt from the side, her body clearing the distance between the abandoned warehouse and the liquor store with ease. Landing on the opposite side, she tucked and rolled before straightening again. She could hear the commotion below her, and she knew by the fading reports of the guns that the fight was in their favor. Maybe I won’t have to do anything at all, she thought hopefully, even as she rounded the corner and slid across it to kneel behind a generator.

Brushing her fingers through her hair, she rested back against her makeshift shield and closed her eyes. She knew that she should be watching for signs of trouble, yet she couldn’t bring herself to crawl to the edge and peek over it. The thought of seeing the kind - infuriating - woman sprawled out in the middle of the road choked her, but she knew that her time was running short. By the sound of the gunfire and the screams below, it was clear that they still had a target - and she knew it wasn’t her. The roof where she hid was completely barren except for her, and there was no sound of approaching footsteps. No, she was safe - at least for now. Shaking her head, she pulled herself to her knees and twisted her form, her fingers curling around the black leather hilt of her blade.

It was the only weapon she kept with her, the size - and sharpness - proving to be more deadly than anything else she could possess. With a quiet sigh, she canted her head to listen for the sound of silence - or, more than accurate - praying for it. If it hadn’t been for the fact she was listening so intently, she would have missed the sound. The whimper was quiet, as if it had been pushed through clenched teeth in a reluctant breath. The pain behind it was unmistakable though, and she felt a fury light in her chest. Pushing to her feet, she remained crouched as she moved across the roof, her steps as quiet as a whisper. Grabbing the cool gutter, she lifted herself over the edge to peer at the mayhem below, and her breath caught in her throat. The woman was missing, and the carnage she had left behind was breathtaking. The blood marred the streets in crimson pools, and as it melted into the snow, the moon caused it to take on an eerily beautiful glow. For a moment, she was transfixed with the beauty of it, the thought of what she was going to do fading from her mind.

This would be amazing to paint.

Shaking her head, she managed to barely get a grip on her attention span and forced herself to concentrate on the situation below. The brunette had taken care of most of the group, and the three that remained looked far less threatening than some of the corpses that lined the streets. Trailing her tongue over her lower lip, she searched the shadows for the woman, only to find her nowhere in sight. Where the hell have you gone? With a quiet groan, she ducked her head and pressed her hand to her eyes, the urge to run in the other direction and leave her to her fate so strong that she felt her feet face north. The only thing that stopped her was her sire - would he look at her the same if he knew she left one of their kind at the hands of their enemies? Gripping her blade tighter, she dropped her hand and focused on the group as they stalked the streets, their guns held high.

It wasn’t until they had their backs to her that she dropped down, her sword cutting through the air with a masterful ease. The first hunter dropped before he had a chance to draw another breath, his blood spraying from his neck in an arc that coated her face and drenched her t-shirt. It only took a second the others to notice, and as they spun on her, she ducked to avoid the spray of bullets that she knew would inevitably follow. She couldn’t take a second to think about what she had done, to allow herself to stare at the lifeless eyes that focused openly on the blackened sky. Instead, she forced herself onward, her blade moving through the air in frenzied strikes that left her opponents with no choice but to retreat. She wasn’t skilled - hell, she barely could handle the weight in her hand - and she used it to her advantage. Her movements were uncertain, each cut she made leaving ragged lines in their skin as they continued to stumble back from her.

She barely felt the pain from the bullets as they burrowed into her skin, her adrenaline too high for her to remotely consider the possibility of faltering. It wasn’t until the last hunter dropped, her blade buried deep in the center of her chest, that she realized it was over. It had happened far too quickly for her to process, her movements having been made through a fog so thick she should have choked on it. When she finally realized that the streets were finally quiet, her hand began to shake and she dropped to her knees. Bullets riddled her stomach and chest, and her fingers trembled violently as she dipped them into a bloodied wound. Her brows drew together in confusion as she watched the inky black oil begin to dissipate into the air, leaving her clean sans for the hunter’s lifesource that speckled her face and clothes. Stunned as she was by the pain, she barely noticed when her vision began to dim until the darkness had consumed her.

[Tigra]

Blood was pouring from her, now.

A sizeable pool had formed around her feet, washing away the snow in a tide of crimson. Her teeth were stained with the deep, rich red as she spat the blood from her mouth again. That last bullet had done a serious number on her. She could tell it had pierced a lung, each breath she took was ragged and wet, every exhale carried a tide of blood with it, bubbling the crimson substance up her throat and over her tongue again, until she was forced to spit it from her mouth yet again.

“****, nh. **** hurts.” she grunted to herself, lifting a bloody hand to push it through her chocolate curls, plying them away from her bloodstained forehead and sweeping them from her eyes. The wicked dance of her wild, hazel gaze had long since ended, a cool, lifeless brown dominating her pain filled gaze as she weakly held her knife in a loose grip, shuffling out from behind her cover as she listened to the sounds of the gunfire slowly fading away.

That has to be her. It just has to be.
If they are regrouping for a push, then I am so fucked… merde.

She exhaled again, a large bubble of blood frothing from her lips until it popped, speckling her soft, paling face with red. “Uhn, ****…” she grunted as a woman in a heavy, fur-lined parka stood up from behind a large ventilation duct that traversed the rooftop she had landed on so ungracefully. The woman was scared; terrified. The pistol in her hands trembled like a dead leaf in an autumn wind, her wide, blue eyes more white than color as they stared wide and scared at the lone vampire as she slowly bled out on the rooftop.

Tigra’s lips parted and blood spilled down her chin, earning another grunt of pain before she spat the blood and tried to speak again. “Stop. Please.” she managed as the woman with the scarlet hair struggled to level her gun on Tigra’s face. The pistol cracked once, the small round grazing the brunette’s cheek and tearing the flesh in a long, thin line along her cheekbone and just barely grazing her left ear. The vampire hissed in pain and lifted her knife, throwing it with all of her strength at the *****, the blade catching the woman in the throat with a deep thunk.

Immediately, the pistol was in the snow, forgotten. The redhead’s freshly manicured nails dug at the pale, creamy skin of her throat as she tried to shriek, her agony leaving her in a rush of soundless air that quickly became a gurgle as blood gushed from her artery. She sank to her knees and wept, still fighting for air as she began to drown in her own blood, until she finally keeled over, seconds later, and began to twitch in the snow.

I don’t think I can hop this vent to get to that knife…

She limped weakly onward, then, completely unarmed. Blood trailed behind her like a dark, crimson path. Finally, when she was running out of strength, she found the woman she had been looking for. She didn’t look to be in much better shape than Tigra herself. The poor young thing clearly didn’t have the stamina, the willpower to push through this kind of abuse, and was on the verge of collapse. Gritting her bloody teeth, the brunette pushed herself onward, making her way as quickly as she could toward the slender Spaniard just as she crumpled, her arms lashing out to keep her from falling, and just barely managing to collapse beneath her, breaking her fall with a sharp grunt and a gush of blood from her mouth.

****.

She hissed through her teeth at the sharp pain in her chest, slowly, carefully, sliding the woman off of her and into the snow, letting her rest on her back. How did this go so horribly wrong? The plan was so simple. Grab the alcohol and go home. Then she bumped into this girl once she’d met up with the hunter, and the plan had been to run for their lives.

That little piece of **** cashier…

She spat blood again and winced, rolling onto her side. The girl, a shadow she could see now, by the way her blood evaporated in thin wisps of smoky black ink, wasn’t in too bad shape. A few bullet wounds in her chest and gut, enough to put her down for a while, but not enough to kill her. She would eventually rouse herself out of this sleep, she was sure. Gut shots were so horrifically painful, they sucked the strength to go on right out of you. She could hardly blame the girl for giving out.

She frowned, and glanced around them. So much blood, and none of it appetizing in the least. If it wasn’t poisoned, it was cold and dead; hardly a sustaining meal. No, they would have to make it elsewhere to recover. She couldn’t carry the woman now, she knew that much for certain. She would have to wait here for her to regain consciousness. Fortunately, the snow had put most of the emergency vehicles out of commission, and the streets were all but abandoned. At least tonight, they had time for it.

Maybe I can rest my eyes a little while I wait…

She did not dare, no matter how tempting the thought might be. Dawn would come on them for certain, and likely kill them both. If this young one wouldn’t wake on her own, Tigra would have to drag her someplace safe before the sunlight found them. Fortunately, there were two options here on the rooftop, the vent she had rounded to get here, providing enough space to crawl beneath, lying flat, to hide in its shadow, or the maintenance closet on the other side of the building. She doubted she could get her that far… but the risk of trying to hide in the shadow of the vent… with the two of them, it would be a tight fit.

Her soft, dull stare turned to the unconscious girl again and she frowned once more. “Come on, little badass… wake up. We have to get out of here…” she pleaded on a wet whisper, blood still splashing against her tongue with each word. “Your fight’s not over yet. Almost… but not yet.”