Like Coffee and Venom (open, but limited)

[Isis Louhi (DELETED 8004)]

Isis sat in her usual chair, enjoying the quiet of the morning before sunrise. The smell of cream hit her nose along with the steam, and she sipped cautiously at her first cup of coffee, before looking back down at her notebook. It would be another ninety minutes before most ventured from bed, but she enjoyed the solitude before she went to work. She could be just another person in the wee morning hours, and not ruthlessly trying to survive on the streets. Lost in thought, she tucked her hair behind her ears, and chewed on her pen. She never could figure out why she wrote her mother still. She never sent off the letters. It would probably kill her mother again if she saw what she wrote.

Ten minutes later, she looked up from her writing with a sigh. Her actions yesterday and thoughts today managed to put her in a mood, and she had nothing for it. Murmuring under her breath something unkind and impossible for male anatomy to do in regards to her father, she looked up, beginning to watch few of the people that ventured the streets of the dark and quiet city. Isis raised her glass and took another sip of her coffee. Satisfied that it was cooled enough to drink, she mentally checked off what she wanted to accomplish.

She'd have to pack her things and move to another neighborhood this afternoon. The police were watching this one, adding extra patrols. Even with the extra funds along this block, it wasn't worth getting noticed. She'd have to move closer to the woods, perhaps set camp in the trees this time. Couldn't be any worse than where'd she was currently staying. It'd almost be like a vacation.

The girl frowned. As if she'd know about vacations. Taking another sip of her coffee, she made a face. She'd have to add more sugar next time. They moved to a dark chicory roast again. She dared another sip, then began people watching again.

[Sawyer (DELETED 7853)]

“****!”

Pulling tight on the tie that secured her hair, she freed the violet locks before shaking them out with a hand. She ******* hated the cold, the snow. Ephraim. If she had to choose between living in a frozen wasteland and seeing that ******* man one more time, she’d be grabbing the first plane out. His controlling, domineering presence was seriously harshing her high. It was as if every moment she had of freedom, he was two steps behind her, prepared to ruin her. With a groan, she kicked a worn boot into a snowbank before casting a look over her shoulder, as if half-expecting to see him - or one of his goons - shadowing her. When the street proved to be clear, she let out a breath of relief and ran her hands along her bare arms, instantly regretting the choice she made to leave without a coat. It was pride that had kept her from going back to retrieve it. She didn’t have much of it, and what she did manage to hold onto, she wasn’t about to lay at his feet.

Who the **** did he think he was, anyways?

She was sick of being told what to do, what to wear, how to act. Vampires. For crying out loud, she needed them to survive, and he wanted to kill them. It was making it difficult for her to feed her addiction, which she wholly suspected was his entire purpose. Again, further proof that the bible-thumping Greek God wanted to destroy any happiness she managed to find. “Yeah, well, **** him,” she said to absolutely no one as she dipped her hand into the pocket of her faded jeans to pull out a handful of ones. Bunching them in her fist, she took off across the street towards the café, the warmth - and coffee - it offered too tempting to pass up. She was a creature of habit - anything and everything that proved to be addicting, she would consume like it was going out of style.

Slipping noisily through the front door, she headed straight for the counter, her eyes locked on the man behind the register. “The largest cup of coffee you have, flavored with hazelnut, caramel and vanilla.” Tossing the dollar bills at him, she leaned her hip against the counter and did a quick scan of the tables before spotting one towards the back. When her drink was offered, she gave him a brief smile in thanks before grabbing two huge handful of sugar packets on her way towards her table. Tossing them onto the surface, she fell into her seat and pulled out her compact, the latch snapped open, revealing the clear pills within. He was nowhere in sight - but she knew that the moment one of them touched her tongue, he would appear like an avenging angel and give her another one of his horrendous lectures.

God, sometimes she really hated him.

[Ephraim Steele]

Fresh from the hunt, blood still thundering in his ears, Ephraim had scarce the time to shower before Sawyer was scrambling through another window, worming her way down into the streets to mingle with the chaff. It was hardly something that he could make any sort of sense of. Here, she had shelter. She had warmth, food, people to see that she didn’t destroy herself. Instead, she would throw it all away for an hour, possibly two, of some fabricated feeling, some chemical charisma. It was hardly a fair trade, any way you looked at it. He yawned, pushing a clenched fist to his mouth to stifle the sound as he pulled his coat around his frame, the usual blade he carried with him traded for something a little more subtle.

A knife tucked neatly into his coat, settled against his breast in an easy to reach draw, just as sharp as the sword he had crafted before he had ever come to Harper Rock. He drew a hand back along his clean, neatly drawn hair, the lengthy strands tamed by a simple tie at the back of his skull, hair hanging in a limp, damp tail. His beard hung to his collar bone, neat and trimmed. His blue eyes had already spied his quarry trying to be subtle in her own way, ducking into the café and certain she had slipped him. Instead, she had managed to corner herself. All the better for him.

He stepped to the counter, offering the young man a warm smile, a polite nod before he greeted him with the cheeriest, ‘Morning.’ he could manage, tired gaze moving over the board of the menu behind him, until he settled on something that had caught his eye. “I’ll have the chai tea. Hot as you can get it.” He nodded, as if agreeing with his choice before he placed the bills in a neat, orderly stack on the counter before the register. The man returned his smile, and took the bills, counting them quickly, quietly, and dropping them into the till. As he reached for the change, Ephraim held up a hand. “Keep it.”

The man made to ask if he was sure, but Ephraim cut him off with a nod. He was rewarded with a smile, and quick service, his tea in his hand only a moment later, steam wafting from the dark umber surface as he gave it a quick sip. The café was mostly empty this early in the morning, only the troublesome renegade he had tried to help set straight, and another waif sitting and watching the lightening sky. He took another sip from his tea as he mused over the pale dawn himself, knowing that sunrise, and therefore safety, were only moments away. He turned, sweeping gracefully into a seat with a single quick, fluid motion that was so sudden that he may well have just appeared from the seat itself as he planted himself across the table from his prey.

“I saw that, you know.” he said with a flick of his eyes to her compact, before he lifted his tea for a third, longer sip as the drink began to cool in the chilly morning air. “You should probably think about the people around you, before you go doing something like that in public.” He craned his neck in the direction of the young woman sitting in the café with them, and he lifted a brow. “You never know who might be watching you; what kind of an impression you might make on them.”

[Isis Louhi (DELETED 8004)]

Isis heard the older woman's request for coffee and grinned. She wasn't the only one who liked their coffee less like coffee, and more like a sugary kick in the ***. The girl watched the purple hair float by her as she tried to keep her in her peripheral vision, her face smoothing itself into a mask. Her daddy always did say she was an open book- usually before he backhanded her across the room.

The thought process made Isis frown in annoyance, and she silently sent out a prayer that he fell off a cliff near that mile high city. Preferably head first, after being launched with some force. A smirk washed across her face, and she lifted her cup to her mouth again, grimacing at the cool liquid, before grumbling.

"I feel like flipping Goldilocks. Either it's too hot, or it's too cold. Or it's not sweet enough. Never just right." Isis didn't think it could ever be too sweet, but she didn't intend on finding out. She took another sip of the tepid coffee, before resuming her people scoping.

Isis' eyes flitted over to the door as she watched another adult come in. This one seemed very confident and was male with everything in place. Turning to watch him, she stared at him openly as he attempted to make everything around him orderly and neat.

She looked at her own worn, but clean(ish) appearance and sniffed in derision, before she went back to her writing again. She covered her words, surrounding her notebook like a child would during a test, guarding it from other eyes. She scribbled quickly, trying to write out her frustrations, and only creating more.
Writing to a dead mother that couldn't change a damn thing tended to do that.

She stopped, and ran her fingers along the bridge of her nose. She really was in a mood today. Giving up and closing the notebook, she pondered the idea of splurging for a beignet, before the mans words, scattered in bits and pieces, carried across the cafe and the chilly morning air.

Hearing the man say something about impressions, she snorted out loud. So she'd been caught being nosy, but if he was worried about others being impressionable, he was several years too late. Mumbling to herself, she couldn't help but be sarcastic, even though it was likely no one would hear.

"Yeah, god forbid you make a bad name for yourself among the forsaken and damned."

She downed the rest of her coffee, trying not to vomit it back across the table- god she hated it dark and cold!-then moved to the counter and asked for her delicious pastry, deciding to splurge since she wouldn't be able to make it back here for a few days anyway. As the barista gave her the flaky goodness, she offered him a genuine grin, and a few words. "Thanks man, you know how to make a girl happy." She moved back towards her seat, staring at the couple at the table in blatant challenge.

See what they made of that.

[Verin Truska (DELETED 7956)]

Verin strode along the street, making his way from the pub that he had just been thrown out of. It was rather amusing on his part; however, the night had worn on with somewhat success. The paladin had not heard of any vampire attacks, which he saw as a success. His hand lifted and did a double check on his weapons. The fingers of his right hand slipped into the left sleeve of his jacket and touched the handle of the small concealed dagger. He then shifted his hands to pat down the sides of his jacket as if he had lost something and felt that his two weapons were there. A pair of glocks to be precise, sheathed into a shoulder holster that were concealed underneath his jacket. It was then that his hand slipped into the coat pocket and pulled out his flask. ”Succession is sweet.” He said to himself as his steps came to a slow stop.

His steps had stopped because he watched as a woman darted into a café and he paused long enough to take a swig from his silver flask while his blue eyes watched the door. The woman had appeared agitated for some reason and from the way she had looked over her shoulder, she feared that someone was following her. He tucked the flask away and waited from across the street. The paladin didn’t have to wait for very long and he spotted a bearded man soon follow in after her. He pondered for a moment if he should follow and finally, he decided that it was better to keep an eye upon the situation rather than to just keep walking on. His booted feet crossed the rather quite street due to the fact at how early it was and he pushed through the door.

He stopped and looked over the mostly quiet café before he made his way over to the man behind the register ”Extremely strong coffee my friend.” He smirked at the man who had did a double take on him before going about to get his drink. Upon arriving in a mug, Verin picked it up and move to seat himself in an empty chair beside a woman who had been chewing upon a pen. Verin threw an arm over the back of the chair so then he could keep the agitated woman and strange man in his peripherals while keeping a rather laxed sitting position. For now, he was content to simply not do a thing between the man and woman, but he would keep an eye upon them in case he needed to intervene. Although it seemed as if this woman beside him was more than happy to stir up trouble.

A chuckle rose to his lips before he simply took a sip of his hot coffee, enjoying the slow burn downwards. ”Settle down kitty, you don’t want to cause too much trouble now do you?” He paused long enough to fish out his small case of cigarettes and slowly tugged one free only to place it in between his lips. Verin returned it to the pocket of his coat before he patted down his coat looking for his lighter. After a moment’s pause, he finally found it and proceeded to light his cigarette. After he took a simple drag from the cigarette, he moved his gaze back over to the woman who he had seated himself beside. ”Those two could be lovers for all you know. In their own weird way.” A simple shrug followed those words before he returned his attention back to his cigarette and watched the gentle glow of orange burn away at the tip.

[Wearing]

[Sawyer (DELETED 7853)]

Lifting her cup, she took a sip of the delicious warmth, and made a sound that would put a porn-star to shame. There was something about the way the smooth, dark texture danced over her tongue that delighted her in ways that no man ever could, and it kept her coming back for more. She was addicted, and there was no way around it. “Until he tries to take this from me, too,” she muttered to herself and snapped the compact closed a second before the bell above the door chimed, signaling another customer. She didn’t have to look up to know who it was - she felt his presence in her bones. It pissed her the **** off, the way she seemed to become instantly aware the second he was anywhere near her. Dropping her head back against her seat with a sigh, she took another sip of her scalding coffee and closed her eyes.

“You know, you wouldn’t see **** if you’d quit stalking me. It’d really save us both the trouble,” she shot back before sliding into her seat to lean her elbows on the table. “Tell me, Thor, do you get a kick out of watching my ***? I mean, I can’t think of any other reason you’d be tailing me.” Laughing at her own joke, she slid her fingers through her hair and drifted her gaze from his features to peer over his shoulder. The girl seemed far too young to be sitting there by herself, but she knew that looks were deceiving. She’d been in that position one too many times herself, and she shook her head. “You’re acting under the assumption that I give a **** again,” she quipped before lifting her cup back to her lips and taking a longer sip. The burn irritated her, but it was better than saying something to further his sour mood. She could see the exhaustion in his eyes, and it tickled her to know that she was the cause of his misery. Karma’s a *****, isn’t it?

“Besides, from the looks of it, the poor thing could use a little fun in her life. Maybe I should go drop a pill or two into her coffee. It’d probably improve the taste,” she smirked as she pulled the compact back out and twisted it around her fingers. The temptation was there, and she itched to open it and pop one herself, but she knew that she wouldn’t make it far. She was already pushing her luck by leaving it in plain sight, but she couldn’t help herself. He was ******* miserable, and she wanted to push him further until he broke. There has to be something dark about you, she mused silently as she lifted her gaze again to watch the girl make her way across the room. When she slid back into her seat and stared at them, Sawyer choked on a laugh and winked at her before shifting her attention back to her unwanted companion.

“I think you have an admirer,” she taunted as she slid from the booth, four packs of sugar in hand. Without waiting for him to say a thing, she tauntingly shook the compact in front of his face on her way past. Stepping up to the table, she gave the man that had seated himself at the girls side a smirk, before tilting her head. "She looks a little young for you," she said, her voice not harboring a hard edge before she shrugged a shoulder. She'd been in worse positions before, so who the **** was she to judge? Turning her strikingly blue eyes to the girl, she waved a hand at the cup in front of her. “That coffee needs a kick, I think. It looks blacker than my soul,” she smirked before tossing the sugar at her - and pocketing the compact. Joking about it - and actually taking the steps to ruin someone's life - were two different things. She might look like her, but she was nothing like her mother.

[Edit for missing words and to include Verin. Didn't see him post!]

[Ephraim Steele]

Shaking his head, he sipped from his tea, watching the way she carried herself with that smug, coy attitude of hers, the confident twitch and twirl of her fingers, the way her lips made that condescending sneer every time she had anything to say to him. She did everything in her power to push every button he had, and that put a massive kind of damper on her agenda. If she weren’t so blatant about her goals, then it wouldn’t be so easy to skirt around her obvious barbs, to avoid driving himself mad on what was clearly bait. He watched her as she stood, tapping the compact against the table as she moved to brush past him, toward the young woman he had addressed only moments ago.

The girl’s own jab had done little to nothing on his spirits. A man in his position never left the house without a thick coat of skin and a layer of mental preparedness, a sort of zen that would keep his head level and his mind clear. In the world today, it would take a lot more than a few harsh words from a total stranger to discourage him. If that was all it took, then he would very well have given up the first day of his training. He shrugged a shoulder, sipping at his tea again as he tapped his thumb against the table top. “I think we both know I’m beyond admirers.” he muttered, and leaned down into his seat. He had spent the entire night in the streets, sweeping the neighborhood around his home and clearing out whatever vampires he could find.

Last night, there had been four, each one more determined not to die than the last, each of them more desperate as the one before went into the darkness with a scream of agony and terror. As far as he could tell, though, none of them had been connected to Heather. That was a blessing and a curse, in one. At least with Heather’s girls, he knew their purpose, where they had come from and what they were doing. These others, these random monsters in the night? These were unknowns, more variables he would need to come to understand. The worry was etched into his features as he all but let their words ping off that invisible layer of armor about him, his expression placid as he continued to sip from the piping hot tea.

Hard, cold stare moved to the woman that had moved from his table, watching as she offered the girl her sugar. She talked tough, played the heartless cur, but deep down, there was a heart she denied. Why else offer anything to some stranger? Why bother with acknowledging them at all? There was more light in her, he realized in that moment, than even she might realize. That gave him pause, a small smile curling on his lips before they were hidden behind his mug again.

His eyes only watched the man that had stumbled into the café from his peripheral, just on the edge of his vision, but as Sawyer approached them, he had become much more interested in how the male might react to her proximity, what he might do in reaction to her. She may make light of his protection, may cast away each moment of saving grace that he may extend to her, but it was hardly his place to withdraw the helping hand, when it had been so forcefully thrust into her life. He was merely an instrument, here to play a part. If that part called for blood, he was hardly one to shy away from his purpose.

He said nothing as he watched her pocket the compact. An approving smile hid itself behind the mug as he drank, draining away his tea. In that moment, he found pride in her judgement, in knowing that she did care about how she influenced people, no matter what her smart mouth might say. There was a good soul inside of her; it was just hidden beneath a lifetime of hardship. This was patient work, and he was a patient man.

[Isis Louhi (DELETED 8004)]

Isis didn't notice the man beside her until he spoke. She bristled at his tone, then whipped her head to look at him, her mouth in a fierce snarl. "Kitten?" she hissed at him, not paying attention to the rest of his words. Her fingers itched, and she grabbed her notebook, shoving it into the bag at her feet, trying to resist both her temper and her desire. To shoot him, grab his face? She wasn't sure at the moment, and it disturbed the hell out of her.

What the **** is wrong with you girl? Calm down and think about your predicament.

She took a deep breath as the woman approached, and catching her out of the corner of her eye, turned back to her and offered a grateful smile, even as she grimaced inwardly. She knew how old she was, but was it really that apparent to everyone else? Her smile seemed strained as she tried not to grit her teeth. Stupid adults.
Still, her eyes lit up as she took the four packets of sugar from the table, deciding to get another cup as well. Chocolate mint creamer were liberally applied, along with all four packs, before she stirred the cup, becoming nearly giddy. Sighs of pure bliss were soon spilling from her lips as she sipped the hot, sweet brew. Oh, she wanted to kiss that purple haired woman now.

Heaven. Who the cares about these men, pouty lips or not. This coffee is all I need, before another day making my angel mother cry, and my father right.

Her mood darkened, and she turned back to the man sitting beside her, trying very hard not to focus on the way his lips curled around his cigarette. She offered him a half smirk, and threw a shoulder up, before leaning in towards him.

"You do know those things will kill you one day, old man. Of course, you're probably so close it doesn't matter."

Rude, Isis knew, but the only way to tamper her teenage hormones was with sarcasm and using words like a weapon, much like the gun she carried to work each day.
And really, she had to stop thinking about that damn mouth. Maybe if she was abrasive, she could pretend he didn't make her feel like her first kiss all over again. Despite feeling better about unleashing part of her anger, she still felt frustrated.

The girl turned her head to the first male that came in and tugged her arms further down in her sleeves as she pulled back and sat up again. I really have to get out of here as soon as sunrise hits, before the crowd. No getting cops trying to taser me down and put me in a detention facility again.

[Verin Truska (DELETED 7956)]

Verin chuckled softly as he listened to the young one beside him call him old and mentioned the fact that cigarettes killed. ”Kitten, I’m more likely to die by something else rather than the cigarettes.” He didn’t say what it was because he wasn’t sure just as to how aware the young woman was. However, he knew that he was more likely to die by the hands of an insane vampire rather than from his smoking and drinking habits. He lifted his free hand and patted the woman’s head before it moved to his coffee. The man placed the cigarette in between his lips and took out a silver flask from one of his coat pockets. He then held the mouth over his coffee and added a splash of scotch to the drink. Coffee and scotch may not mix well, but at this point, he didn’t really care.

Slowly, he pocketed the flask once more and his right hand came up to tug the cigarette from his lips. He angled his head then to look at the older woman who he had originally seen come into the café agitated. ”Sweetheart, if I didn’t know any better, I would say that you are a little jealous of this here kitten.” The paladin’s lips curled into a smirk then before he perked a brow at the woman. His free hand than patted his lap, ”You could always seat yourself down upon my lap if that was the case, I’m not too fussed.” His blue gaze watched the woman for a moment before they flickered over to view the man for a brief second. A man who had situated himself next to the agitated woman. Were they truly what he originally thought them to be?

He turned his gaze back to his coffee then and reached forward to stub his cigarette out into an ashtray. His right hand moved then to grab his coffee and took a sip. The man had been right about the scotch and coffee, but he always spiked his drinks, especially his coffee and scotch was all that he had on hand. ”So Kitten,” the man continued to use his nickname of the young woman because he knew just that she hated it. She had hissed especially when he had used it the first time, so he continued to push her buttons. ”You an orphan? I don’t see your parents around. You shouldn't be out and about on your own. Never know who is going to do wrong by you.” He leaned towards her and smirked, ”I could be an old pervert for all you know.” However, while he hinted at himself, he more or less just wanted to shake her a little.

Vampires were his problem; they were everyone’s problem. It would be ashamed if one snatched her up and used her for a blood bag. Such young life. A shrug soon followed his words and leaned back into his chair, ”Yeah, but you just don’t do it for me Kitten.” He meant no offense by that, but he just wasn’t into children like that. Verin may be old in the young woman’s eyes, but in truth he was only 29. He lifted his mug to his lips to take yet another sip as he shrugged, ”Children just shouldn’t be on their own in this town Kitten.” His gaze shifted then to the male who had followed the older woman in and noted the smile that had been given to her. A frown descended upon his brow then as he remembered what the woman had said about the girl’s coffee. He remembered then that she had given the girl some sugar, but was it really sugar? Verin shrugged it off, if it had been drugs, he wasn’t here to prevent such a thing.

[Sawyer (DELETED 7853)]

She could feel his gaze on her as she leaned against the counter, her fingers running slowly through her hair. Irritation was clear in her eyes, and she wasn’t too far gone to notice the curiosity that sparked in the eyes of the man in front of her. She felt like she was trapped between a hurricane and inferno - both men mouth-watering gorgeous, and both infuriating. Shifting her glance to the teenager, she gave her a knowing smile as she saw the interest light her eyes up like fireworks. She could see the unease creeping beneath her skin, but more than that, she could see the want to either punch - or seduce the man that had her trapped. She couldn’t blame her, really. He had that appeal that just lured women in; sin, cigarettes and eyes that promised a night you wouldn’t forget. He also spelled trouble and chaos - both of which were like catnip to the blood thief. Tapping her nails against the table’s surface, she responded to his quip with a lazy smile. “Don’t mind if I do, sweetheart.”

The words had no sooner left her lips than she was sliding across his lap, her slender frame causing him no discomfort due to her weight. Resting her elbows on the table, she winked at the girl at her side before shifting her gaze to Ephraim. He was no doubt boiling beneath the surface, a storm ready to demolish everything in its place, but what the **** did she care? She wasn’t his. The few times she had come onto him, he had spouted off some ******** about God and having a purpose that nothing could intervene with. She doubted he even cared, but she couldn't be fucked in that moment to discern the emotions in his icy gaze. For now, she had more important things to worry about - like making sure the pretty little thing at her side didn’t start making the same mistakes she did. Her life wasn’t one she would wish on anyone. It was a goddamned nightmare.

“I’m sure she could outrun you, creep,” she laughed, her back resting easily against his chest as she brought her own cup to her lips for a sip. It was starting to cool, making the coffee all the more sweeter, and she gave a slow sound of approval. It was nowhere as strong as her high would be, but with the Greek God shadowing her every move, she hadn’t much of a choice. He was bound and determined to break her, and she hated to admit - even to herself - that he was succeeding. Spinning the cup around in her hand, she shifted her position so she was still on his lap, but facing the girl a little easier. “He has a point, you know. These streets are too ******* harsh for someone like you. Take it from someone who knows from experience.” Her words were heavy with dark memories, and she took a moment to collect herself before shifting her expression back into something far more careless.

“Sawyer, by the way, and behind me is…” she trailed off for a minute, trying to figure out how to introduce him. Her friend? Her companion? “My sponsor, Ephraim.” That would just have to ******* do, and it wasn’t that far from the truth. Running her fingers through her hair again, she moved her gaze back to the man whose lap she claimed and raised a brow. "If she doesn't do it for you, then what does? Something had to possess you to sit next to her," she challenged, her fingers slipping idly into her vest pocket.

Wearing