Flower Garden in a Glass House (Open)

[Yvette Marie]

It was snowing. That was the first thing Yvette thought as she realized she was standing at the edge of the wilderness. It was snowing, there was sleet, and she wasn't wearing shoes or a jacket. Funny how that seems to happen more and more lately. She shivered in the cold, her mind clearing in the icy wind. She'd no idea how long she'd been out here, the last resistance of winter lashing at her face and hair in the form of stinging ice and the occasional snow flurries. Mackinsey had been quiet for a while now; the spirit unable to endure watching her vacant eyes and the blood-splattered white shift she was wearing.

Yvette went to push her white blond hair back with a pale cold hand and realized she was holding something. The blood had long since dried down her arm, but she still held the remains of a chicken in her left hand. Frowning, she dropped it into the pristine snow and ice that had built around her, and looked down at her knees. The wind continued to bite at her skin, pushing her shift against her skin until the cloth ended just at her knees. Below that, there were nicks and pieces of skin rubbed raw or torn away by what she assumed were brambles or thorns. Her feet stung slightly, and she wasn't sure if it was because of the cold and ice, or because she had cut them as well.

Vaguely, she wondered if the perks to being a vampire were just myth, or if she had messed up somehow and become flawed. Perhaps she was just more uncoordinated than most by nature. It was true enough in life, she was never what one would call graceful. She had a moment's thought to be amused by this, until a particularly sharp piece of ice struck her cheek, leaving a small cut bleeding across her face.

Yvette blinked twice to try to melt the ice blurring the vision to her blue-grey eyes, then shrugged, turning away from the allure of the trees calling to her. They were doing that more lately-calling her name, trying to get her to come into their depths. She wasn't sure what was out in the woods, but she was sure they weren't exactly a positive for someone like her. She moved slowly, the ice cracking around her as she stepped out of it's depths, and looked down the street she was on. She had no idea where she was or how she had gotten there. This part of the city was unfamiliar to her, with few streetlights and few places she could take shelter.

"I have to try to find my way home,"she mumbled to herself, before she shivered. "Maybe I should start going to bed with several layers on as well. I always seem to find myself in a state."
Onward the small female trudged, crossing her arms to try and guard herself against the wind. All for naught, but she imagined she felt slightly warmer this way. Occasionally, Yvette saw shadows flit past her, but for once, they didn't whisper to her. It was strange and slightly disconcerting- she had gotten so used to the voices of the dead calling her, that the silence was nearly deafening. Slightly ahead she saw streetlights, so she moved towards the closest. At least lights meant possible shelter, and that was better than what she had now.
As she grew closer to the light, she licked her lips, and grimaced. The metallic taste and burn across the chapped surface as she licked them let her know that the blood wasn't entirely all the thing she'd fed from, but hers as well. She looked around again as she stood under the light, finding no familiar landmark, and no recognizable face from the few that braved the streets in this weather. She was well and truly lost.

At least it was still a good bit until dawn.

[Dominique]

Car ll::ll Outfit

It sometimes snows in April. The proof was literally falling on the windshield of her car. The night had been full of surprises so this was hardly a setback but still it was not expected. It was supposed to be warm, high sixties. While the wipers flipped back and forth doing their work, Dominique looked for the right song to accompany the bizarre weather element currently in play. Repeatedly her dark eyes danced between the road ahead and the stereo where she searched with a continuous tap of her fingertip on the buttons. A rather quick flip of her playlists loaded into the stereo finally had her finding Prince’s “Sometimes Snows in April.”

While the music flowed HOPE made easy work of sending out a text message to someone who could use something unplanned and out of their control. Her Sire, Doc.

-Step outside. Random observation. Carry on-

The message was sent to Charles Nison then the phone was dropped back in the console. Two deliveries behind her meant that she had only one left to make. The LED custom lighting kit for a bakery shop mini van was the last of her stop to make. The darkness that had covered the outskirts of town around her was left behind as the quick rise of city lights ahead proved that it indeed was snowing. As she reduced the speed of the car she found the roads were questionable as well.

“Bet you saw this **** before.” The petite and heavily inked shadow mumbled as if the The Artist formerly known as Prince himself was sitting in the otherwise empty passenger seat. “I would write a song about it but clearly you beat me to it.”

The speed limit called for her to slow down and be patient as she turned right onto a side street. The dim glow of streetlights revealed the back of a female who appeared to be barefoot and dressed for the weather that was supposed to be. Not the snow and ice that was currently in play. Dominique came up beside her and had the passenger window go down with the push of a button on the driver's side door panel. She leaned over and took a chance there was a reason the woman was not wearing shoes and on the road in the dark. The closer she got she noticed she appeared to be shivering.

“Hey there. Not to sound creepy but you need a ride?” She glanced in the rear view mirror to make sure no one was coming behind her. “I can't believe it is snowing. It’s April.”

[Doc]

The last week or so, Doc had been out of his routine. It was a good thing really. He had become predictable. When you were predictable, that made it easier for your enemies to figure you out and take you down. And he was pretty sure, there were more than a few people that would love to see him taken out. He didn’t hate those that wanted him dead. In fact, he didn’t really think about them one way or another, other than to group them into a random slot that denoted their angst for him.

Because his routine had been broken, things had backed up at the lab. Of all his businesses, the lab was his favorite. He had everything he needed, to dispose of those pesky corpses that sometimes, actually all too often found their way to his doorstep. They weren’t due to his actions. In fact, he had all but stopped feeding from humans altogether, since his last two feeding had resulted in unexpected spawnings. But he knew people, and they knew him, and because he fully believed in keeping to the masquerade, they would show up in the wee hours of the morning, with ..bodied that needed to be burned. Because he had a legit reason for having a medical grade incinerator, he could dispose of bodies effortlessly

Shutting the door on the incinerator, and setting it for twelve hour slow burn, his cell phone vibrated in his pocket. Withdrawing the cell, he read the text. It was short and cryptic. .

-Step outside. Random observation. Carry on-

Frowning, he moved to the exit, and cautiously opened the door and stepped out. The blast of cold took him by surprise. He repressed the shiver that rolled across him; and then he noticed it. It was snowing. It was April for **** sake, and it was snowing.

Moving back indoors gratefully, he rubbed his hands together to get some heat to then from the friction. He collected his cell and sent Dominique a text.

~What the **** have you done now? It is supposed to be warm outside. I blame you.~

Yes he knew she had no control over the weather, but he did like to argue with her. She had this tenacious never say die; never Give up, never surrender attitude, and he absolutely adored that about her.

[Yvette Marie]

Yvette saw the car pulling up and stepped from the light cautiously, her arms wrapped tightly around her chest. She nodded at the driver's question, before staring off slightly to the above left of her, her slightly elongated pupils dilating as the eyes seemed to lose focus. The blonde smiled dreamily at the woman, stepping slowly towards the car.

“They like you, you know. They cling so closely usually, and it annoys, yet when you expect them to be near, they are nowhere to be found,” she said softly, then laughed as she watched the spirits reappear, chattering around her now as if they had never left. Among them included Mackinsey, his mouth moving as he whispered to her in their language, secrets he would no longer live to tell.

Yvette imagined the woman would think her mad. She heard it sometimes, in passerby- those whose thoughts spoke too loudly to her as she moved past them, whispering to her twin. She didn't think it was their fault, honestly—they couldn't see the spirits that usually danced around her, whispering secrets about their former lives. And perhaps, in a way, they were right. As of late, her mind was constantly preoccupied filtering noise, moving into the realm of the numbers and codes, pulling here and there to try and hide the existence of who she was and what she'd become. While she still believed she was flawed somehow, she didn't really want her existence to end yet. There was too much to discover.

Slowly, the pale girl's eyes became clear again, and her vaguely reptilian blue-grey eyes focused on the other woman's. “I don't worry about such things as creepy. We all have a part to play in this story, before the world ends. I only try to play mine as best as I can.” A breath of air puffed from her mouth as she sighed, before continuing. She'd not gotten used to not really having to breathe yet, so she continued the moot and mundane task out of habit. “I would appreciate it very much, if you don't mind my accompanying you. I only need to be taken to a rail station, or the Dragomir Temple, if either are along your route. I got lost, dream walking again.”

Other than this, the waif offered no explanation, only became quiet and stood at the edge of the curb, bare toes curled around the edge. Her pale hair whipped around her porcelain face as the wind picked up and she shivered again. Oh, how she was beginning to hate the cold! Pressing her pale lips together in a tight straight line, she looked away from the driver again, her eyes moving upwards to stare longingly at the sky- as if her wishes would make it warm.

[Dominique]

HOPE tapped at the button to mute the music in the car. The woman's arms had wrapped her body in a self hug and she instantly felt for her. She appeared lost, perhaps vacant as well. It was hard to know without asking and it really wasn’t something she was sure she would get an answer to if she did. The smile that appeared across the female’s face was one that was rather unexpected as was the look in her eyes.

Dominique’s own dark eyes took a slow assessment of the empty hands, searching for any sign of weapons or anything else that would lend clues to who the woman could be other than what she was presenting. While she did this the woman spoke of ‘them’ and ‘they’. The shadow leaned over a little so that her upper body extended across the empty passenger seat. Her dark head inclined while she looked out towards the street beyond. It was her attempt to give the woman the benefit of the doubt that perhaps something was there, hanging in some space of the darkness perhaps she neglected to notice up until that point. Nothing but the unseasonal snowfall continuing.

Once the look at the street around them offered nothing for notice she leaned back slowly. It was rather bizarre but she had seen far more baffling. While the random examples flowed through her mind the woman’s discussion with the unusually cold, wintery air around her appeared to cease and the shadow found the female’s eyes reach hers. A dark shaped brow perked up on Dominic's face. The reptilian appearance at the center of each blue-gray eye caught her attention and held it.

HOPE reached back and rubbed her short nails against the back of her head. Perhaps the term ‘creepy’ was a little strong. Dragomir temple was mentioned and it rang a few bells. Still unsure as to who she was dealing with her inked hand reached over and opened the passenger door from the inside. She was pretty sure there would be no harm in offering someone a ride while they were dream walking. Being out after sunrise, yes. Drinking a full bottle of whisky while stuffed like a sausage in a latex Batgirl suit, oh hell yes. Dream walking. The jury was currently out on that. It was something she had yet to encounter. If there was she was prepared to handle it.

“I can get you to the temple. No problem.”

Dominique glanced in the rear view mirror again and found nothing but snow falling. The sound of her cell vibrating caught her attention and she swiped the screen with her thumb. Daddy Dearest was sweating nuts over what she could possibly be doing. The shadow chuckled as the cell phone landed back where she had it in the open console. Was his message a sign? Should she heed the warning if it was? Another glance towards the woman and the snow falling around her cast those thoughts aside.

“Hop in.” She reached back behind her seat and pulled forward a STAR WARS fleece blanket. “You been outside long enough. Dream riding has to be a thing too, right?”

[Yvette Marie]

Yvette nodded, her eyes looking at the door as Dominque opened it. A shadow flitted across her face and inwardly she sighed, but got into the passenger seat nonetheless, leaving it open a moment longer to let Mackinsey in out of habit. She heard a low hum, and glanced to the driver, then at the woman's hands, who was momentarily busy with her phone. She sat, back against the seat, her own hands in her lap.

She wondered if she had kept the woman from something important by her predicament. The blonde hoped that the darker haired woman would be the type to tell her. And yet... “Thank you for taking me. I'm not sure about the dream walking or dream riding though, as I used to stay where one puts themselves for the evening. It's an odd feeling finding yourself elswhere, like floating in an large empty pool. Or lost in a garden maze." Yvette stopped for a moment, and lifted a singular shoulder in a shrug, before she looked guiltily at the woman again. "I hope I'm not keeping you from anything important." Her voice trailed off after this and she smiled apologetically at the woman, before turning to face the window.

As Yvette grew warmer, her mind filled with the hum of electricity and signals broadcast over the snow filled skies; the sequences of numbers, wavelengths, and codes filling each inch of the space that the spirits who so oft surrounded her didn't fill themselves. She began to feel quite overwhelmed within the warmth, and sang softly to herself, an old song she'd once heard on a radio station in a throwback diner when she was a teen.

"Heaven, I'm in heaven
And my heart beats so that I can hardly speak
And I seem to find the happiness I seek
When we're out together dancing cheek to cheek ..."

The tone of the song filled her mind as she sang the few lines, which thankfully calmed the rest of the noise down to a dull roar. Yvette continued to hum the song as the drive continued, even as she pondered why the noise had not reached her on the snow filled banks near the forest.
Perhaps I could ask someone when I get home. It was wonderful and strange at the same time, but I would like to know why that part of the city is empty and quiet when compared to the rest of the areas I've been to.

She stopped humming, and tapped her fingers on her leg instead, her sense of being losing focus once more.

[Dominique]

HOPE extended towards the woman offering the blanket for use. Her eyes made sure her passenger was prepared and settled before glancing in the rear view mirror to make sure there was nothing behind the car approaching. The blue LED lighting outlining the floorboards and the dash left the interior in a sapphire glow. The shadow pulled away from the curb and the car progressed down the street with the deep rumble of power that was courtesy of the engine that had the potential for 474 HP and 444 ft-lb of torque. In the summer it could be possible to loose anything that isn't permanently attached to one's body if it was stuck out an open window. Loud, powerful and mean. Dominique liked her cars to be moving road warriors ready to leave everything else in the dust behind them.

“You aren’t keeping me from anything. No worries.”

Dominique glanced over and found the woman’s features delicate in appearance, her long fair color of straight hair framing her face. She didn’t appear as if she belonged where the shadow found her. If she could be the one to get her safely back where she was likely being missed then it was all considered good. No loss on her for time when it came to helping out someone in need. It made the world more tolerable, right?

“My name is Dominique.” She kept her eyes on the snow covered road ahead. “Dom for short if you wish.” A brief glance in the side mirror revealed that the snow was actually sticking to the roads and ground. “So, Dragomir?” She didn’t want to pry but was a little curious when she remembered another that she knew, that had the certain feature in the eyes that signaled something beyond the average set of pupils. “Don’t have to answer if you rather not.”

Dominique wouldn’t blame the woman if she didn’t offer her name or the family which was mentioned. There were many years she didn’t feel comfortable discussing Doc or their bond to each other. Not every one was the epitome of happy-happy-joy-joy. Where the woman was from couldn't be all that bad. She was able to hum through the snow and cold in a stranger's car.

[Enzo Dragomir]

Soft amber coloured light filtered over the stained glass of the temple, the late season snow blanketing the glass portraits from the outside, making them seem one dimensional at times, then burst into movement as the candle light flickered and danced from the various alcoves. The air other than that was still as death but for the low and steady strains of music being piped in from where he had no idea. Knowing Nikolae it came from some steampunk concoction whirring and grinding eternally away beneath their feet. The Allurist didn't give it any more thought than that, he was learning when walking in the wake of shadows you just ... went with it.

Lorenzo sat staring at the panel of glass that snarled back at him. The wolf a beautiful piece of art never failed to stir a mild surge of rage in him, scattered scenes from his embrace forever emblazing the animal as the entrance to the shadow. Not that he was one of those fangs that moaned and angsted from every orifice before finishing off with the woe is me the poor immortal anal leaking nonsense. It was really as simple an answer as he hated the shadow realm. Which made sending people there even more satisfying.

Staring without blinking at the image, forcing himself not to look away, his thoughts turned inward once more toward the reason he found himself in his sire's beloved temple.

His fingers curled gently over the photograph between them, not crushing as much as feeling to make sure it was still there. He didn't need to look at it, he had it memorized. Every detail, every shadow and colour, each crease carefully catalogued into his brain as if branded there. The scene was not so different from the one he sat in. The background showed a cathedral of some magnitude and of obvious Italian design. Ancient as the Christian empire but far more beautiful. Standing arm and arm, faces tilted toward the viewer so as not to hide one bit of the happiness beaming from the couple.

The picture had been taken 2 years ago. One year before Vivian had been murdered. Killed for daring to champion those who had no voices.

Enzo was not a good man. He would never don halo and harp to strut with moral ambiguity and smug rightness. But he could see it in others. Could appreciate it enough to leave it alone... leave it untainted by his alluring brand of corruptions. And she had been the real deal.

Sighing he decided against looking at it again, what purpose would that serve? Instead he slid it deep in his breast pocket, burying the the picture as if it could bandage the wound bored into his chest just by laying her image against it.

It never worked but what the ****, it didn't hurt either. The Dragon's gray gaze slowly regained focus, the elliptical slit that marked his lineage slivering and then expanding with the lack of light. He would afford himself a few minutes more before braving the spring snow.

Damn wolf.

[Yvette Marie]

Yvette nodded at the woman, and a look of relief crossed her face. She smiled when she heard the woman's name. Dominique is a beautiful name, and it suits the brunette woman well, Yvette thought. Turning to look away from the window toward Dominique, she took a moment and admired the strong features in the woman's profile, and her fingers itched. She wanted a pencil and paper in that moment. No matter, she decided, she would likely sketch the woman when she got home. Perhaps paint her in oils. Watercolors are too dull for someone with the rich vibrancy of her features. Or for someone who drives the wicked purring this car contains. Mackinsey spoke from the backseat, agreeing with her, and spouting off all the specifics he loved about cars and this vehicle in particular- a stereotypical teenage boy at heart. Yvette turned her head to the front and listened, her eyes focus fading away as she placed a hand over where her heart was. Her lips curved into a smile, and she tilted her head back. It was good he had returned and rode with her. It made her feel that much more at ease.

"So Dragomir?"

The woman had asked. Yvette, trying to focus again, blinked, then looked at her lap, trying to decide what to say. Was she allowed to tell her connection to Nikolae? The blonde wasn't sure, so she kept quiet on that part, only offering her name. "I'm Yvette. It is nice to meet you." She paused for a moment longer, trying to figure out what exactly to say, before continuing. "Dragomir Temple is the easiest landmark for me to find my way home. There should be someone waiting for me, unless I've kept them waiting too long." A lie, of course, but she imagined or at least hoped someone would be around. Perhaps even her sire himself would grace her with his enigmatic prescence, though she was sure he'd be busy, plucking more flowers for his lovely garden.

She wasn't sure if his being there would be a positive thing or not, however, as his nature tended to feed the madness she was becoming certain she carried within herself. Perhaps my other siblings then? Her siblings were polite and lovely, of course. Azerath was as much an enigma as Nikolae, a beautiful deep red rose with wicked thorns- something you longed to get close to, but may drag you within it's grasp and slowly bleed you dry if you dare get too close. She continued thinking about each of them she'd met in her family Merry and Cordelia next, beautiful but dark and poisonous lilies in her mind. And her eyes lit up as she thought of Enzo, her gentleman brother, the Amaryllis Belladonna. Beautiful to look at, but likely as deadly. It was how she viewed all her family, in fact.

Yvette giggled aloud at this, amused at herself. She didn't think that the men would be appreciate being likened to flowers again, even ones so pretty and dangerous. Perhaps she should stop painting them as flowers in a blood-filled garden as well. Though she could take the chance that her sire would like the present--as long as she didn't tell him why she'd painted it such a way.

Her mind had wandered again, and she glanced at Dominique guiltily when she realized this. Had she missed something while her mind was preoccupied elsewhere? Yvette hoped not, and looked back to the window, slowly recognizing streets as they came ever closer to the temple. As she saw the building approach, she tried to push out mentally, hoping to attract someone within the Dragomir temple itself- if anyone was there and not currently making the city theirs. It made her head throb viciously to do so, but with a final push, she managed to send forth a small thought from the torrents of her turbulent mind.

Hello? Dare I wake the sleeping dragon, or will I be eaten before tea? I'd like to have crumpets with a dear dragon, if only they'd have me.

This being sent out in the random hopes someone would respond, or at least come meet her, she fidgeted with her hands still lying in her lap, and spoke to Dominique again. "Dominique, thank you very much for carrying me all this way. I'm not happy for having wandered off, but it has been a pleasure meeting you."

[Dominique]

And all good things, they say, never last.

The music was once again playing as the car carried them through the streets and closer to the destination chosen by the passenger in the seat of the shadow's car. It took some extra travel time with the roads being unseasonably slick. It was in Dominiques best interest to get the woman to the temple and to get her car stored safely beneath Vita Bella where it belonged. It would appear that it would be better off to bring it back out in May. The other vehicles on the road were not half as dangerous as those who were driving them. Too much work could easily be lost.

The temple was close and she could see it in the distance. She turned the last corner then had the car glide up slowly. Staying far enough from the temple itself to avoid any chance of it being another one of those things she discovers gives her a reaction that takes a bit to shake off. So far it seemed to be Doc's nuns that are in his employ, the crosses they all wore, her treasured rosaries had to be between barriers of fabric and even then she had enough burns to her hips to find out it was something that was not going to go away. Even the St. James Cathedral she also refrained from entering. It didn't stop her from hanging out in the distance as she was currently getting to the final stop. It had been forever it seemed but curse or whatever it was had plagued her enough that she found ways to avoid the unpleasant effects. A lot did. She checked her rearview mirror a final time for the current trip and pulled over when it was clear.

Dominique had felt the heat of eyes upon her, curious in their gaze most likely. The inked custom shop owner smiled a little when her eyes needed to stay on the road. A vintage buick slid across the road up ahead and she was glad that she had them at a safe spot out of moving risk. Yvette it was. Finally dark eyes turned and took in the features that she perhaps missed prior to their full stop. Her smile grew and she leaned over and pulled the music from the player and HOPE handed it to the woman. There was something about the song and the snowy night in April they crossed paths that symbolized something to the dark and rather elusive shadow. She spotted no cherry moon, no purple rain so perhaps it was just what it had been. A chance meeting.

"For you, Yvette." Dominique watched the Dragomir with the backdrop of the white flakes falling doing little to compare to the soft, natural and fair beauty she possessed. "I will wait here long enough to make sure you make it inside.' She leaned enough to the side to look around the woman's shoulder to the temple that would be easy to see her enter. "I would walk you up but I have to keep the car running. It has been a pleasure meeting you as well, Yvette. I am sure we will meet again. Warmer weather favors us all. Stay safe." She would not scare the woman by leaning over her body to open the door. Instead Dominique opened the driver's door leaving it a jar and stepped around and opened the passenger's door and held it open for the woman out of courtesy.