half . past . dead (Chase)

[[artemis]]

<sup>Soft, dappled light filtered through the vast canopy of leaves, tinting everything with a strange, soft green. The air was moist, warm on my skin and laced with thousands of scents: the woody smell of the forest, the trails of the creatures that had passed through (even after 50 years, they still smelled no more appetizing than they had in the beginning), the ever distant aroma that seemed drawn from the very Garden of Eden - designed to tempt, damning to give in to.

I hastily pushed the thought from my mind. I could not bear to bring about my own relapse; I could not take any more human lives. To think of the ones I had already stolen caused me physical pain, an ache in my chest where, silent for over 70 years, my heart had been laid to rest. I could still remember the scorching fire in my veins...my memories seemed unusually toxic today.

Instead I closed my eyes, basking in the warmth that was strangely pleasant to my icy skin. It felt like soft breath flowing over my face, caressing my cheeks gently...though I was more alone than I had ever been now, I felt a strange sense of serenity, as though nature had become my companion. The thought was comforting; at least there was one thing that did not shy away from me. My thoughts turned in a bitter direction. Everybody shied away from me now. Even my own kind, who to me were the ultimate monsters, taking human life to satiate their thirsts, when there was an easier way, a kinder way. Animals understood the need, understood that always, something had to die for another creature to live. Their emotions were not so complex as humans' - they registered fear, but no betrayal; they took life as it came - gave it up as needed.

A soft sigh gusted from between my lips. Getting myself depressed was no good; I gave up my pondering and theorizing in favor of simply lying there on the fork of a thick, strong tree branch, my legs dangling beneath me, my mind blissfully blank. I had never before regarded my immortality as a gift of sorts; the unlimited time in which I could simply be, and pretend for a moment that I was even remotely human made me lazy, at ease. I knew, certainly, that I had never lounged about like this in the early days - the dark days. I sighed again. I never really had possessed an exceptionally quiet mind, and naturally this would not change with the rest of me. I steered my thoughts in another direction, gazing up through the treetops and into the blinding sunlight, my timeless eyes taking in none of the supposed beauty of nature.

I wondered if I could be the only one of my kind (I refused to even think the word); the only one with a conscience, who fought against the mad desire for human blood. A small part of my mind registered that it was likely that few of my kind even interacted with humans as often as I did; surely they did not attend classes or have jobs, such as I. I still clung to humanity, though in some ways I supposed that my life would not have taken that much a higher road had I not been...changed. I smirked a little. How ironic, that that to which I had plead innocent became my greatest crime. The judge's words still stung me.

"The jury finds Artemis Jasper Lyllock..." the judge paused, clearly savoring the effect as he grinned smugly at me from the bench. I glowered back at him, an angry flush rising in my cheeks. I already knew the verdict.

I also knew, with every fibre of my being, that it was wrong.

I had not killed anyone. I did not, had not planned to and never would. Or so I thought.

I would not be punished for something I did not do.

Every fibre of my body braced in my seat. My hands gripped the arms of the chair so tightly that I thought that surely they should have splintered. I was poised for flight.

"...Guilty."

And the word was like a starting gun. Every nerve in my body fired off, and I felt nothing in the rush of adrenalin as I leapt from my seat, somehow dodged the police officers that guarded me, and exited the room at a headlong sprint.

To this day I don't know how I did it; shots were fired, I was pursued, but somehow I was in my car and speeding away before the officers had even begun to open their cruiser doors.

I shook my head a little. The flash back was still painful; nobody had believed me, nobody had made a stand for me, nobody had been convinced that at the time, my soul was unblemished and whole. The injustice still rankled, and I clenched my teeth against the rush of anger that consumed me. Stay in control.

As quickly as it had come, the rage washed away. I shook my head a little. The sudden mood swings were still disconcerting, and the force with which they came on so strong compared to the human emotions I only vaguely remembered. My jaw loosened, and automatically my senses explored the area, looking for any change that had occurred when I'd lost my grip for that single moment. Though I was at ease here, I never did truly relax; all too well I knew the stealth and speed of my kind. Without realizing that I was doing it, I absently traced the crescent shaped scar over my right eye. My sense of touch was so refined that I could feel the slightly raised edges.

Yes, it paid to pay attention.</sup>

[Shiloh]

Chocolate hued eyes flickered and danced over the uneven emerald terrain, silent feet stepping with sureness that no human could possibly possess on such uneven ground. Moisture from the grass clung to the leggings of a pair of dark blue jeans, making the denim a deep cobalt. Moss covered trees and ferns were scattered about the ground, making vision nearly impossible. For a pathetic human, however. For myself, who possessed a great sense of sight, it was as easy as breathing. I nearly laughed at the irony in that statement; my species didn't need to breathe. However, for some reason we did. It kept up the human facade, which was very important for us. We could only stay in one place at a time before we had to move again, seeing as our appearance doesn't ever change, our bodies never age. People begin to get suspicious when you should appear forty when you're forever stuck twenty something. Had it really been that long, since I had forgotten my age? I suppose it had been that long; all I could remember was that I was twenty-something when I was bitten.

That was one hundred and thirteen years ago, I might add. Everyone I knew was long dead and gone. Childhood friends, family, everyone that I had once known. The first little while that I experienced the change, it was difficult. They had been the ones I wanted to go after; they had been the ones I wanted to bleed dry then leave their corpses for the birds. What a charming thought, no?

Letting a sigh escape my mouth, I wandered into the small clearing where Artemis sat. He was a good fellow, Artemis was. I'd found him in a store in a city somewhere in the Maritimes. Newfoundland, I think it was. I had been roaming around, really just trying to pass time until I saw him. He was alike yet different from me; he had the same eyes as I did. Coincidence? I thought not. So, we ended up starting a small coven. At the moment, it was only us two and this other kid named Subaru, but he wasn't around at the moment. I folded my legs and sank to the ground gracefully and silently a couple feet away from Artemis, giving him a look. He'd been almost bipolar lately; it was unnerving. "Hey, Artemis," I said casually, finding the human expression for a hello almost awkward. I didn't speak much; there really wasn't much point in it, I didn't think. I tried to be inside my mind as little as possible. It was too scary, even for the world's perfect predator.

[/blockquote][/blockquote]

[[artemis]]

<sup>The sun had changed position in the sky ever so slightly, shifting westward, the shadows lengthening. Late afternoon. Probably around four o'clock, I guessed. A small part of my mind prodded me to get up, move around, accomplish something, but I shushed it, content to simply lie here and be. It had been a while since I had felt so at ease, and yet it troubled me somehow; I could not be sure if this was the calm before a storm, or the quiet relief afterwards. It was true that ever since I had joined this world 91 years ago, my life had been a hectic, vicious loop: fight the urge, succumb, grieve, fight, and fail once more. But now I felt peaceful enough that, had I been able to, I might have drifted off to sleep.

And in a way, I did have my own form of sleep; I would lay motionless, as I did now, and let my mind wander, allowing my thoughts to cloud my consciousness. Perhaps it was foolish, to let down all guard like I did; though a small part of me was always irresistibly alert, I was off in my own world - a world where vampires slept and nobody was guilty, a foolish world, a child's world. For though I had become hardened and callous during those first years, the dark years, while everyone I knew had become corpse, then bone, then dust, I still possessed a childlike innocence. Perhaps it was this that kept me going, that gave me enough foolishness to hope, to believe that there truly was another way. I owed a lot to this childish aspect of my life, it seemed - my sanity, for one.

I had not realized that my eyes had drifted shut; I opened them slowly, this time taking in the beauty around me. My fingers suddenly itched to fill the silence of the clearing with the soft trilling music of my harp, to glide my fingers over the strings and wonder, even after several decades of playing, at the sheer angelic quality of the sound, how the rising and falling of the notes seemed to flow like water. With this vague intent in mind, I dropped gracefully from my seat in the fork of my tree branch, landing far too lightly, making too little sound even as my bulky hiking boots met the ground. I automatically shoved my hands in the kangaroo pouch on the front of my white sweater (somehow spotless despite my damp seat), a habit ingrained in those long months of fighting my thirst, and losing completely. I shuddered. So dark were the thoughts that disturbed tranquil afternoons.

As I started off, another sound in the distance made me freeze, my nostrils hesitantly flaring as I tasted the air with some trepidation. One tiny mistake and I would ruin it all; ruin our home, ruin our coven, perhaps even ruin myself. I would not, could not succumb to such a heinous thirst. I ground my teeth together and braced every nerve and muscle in my body against the onrush of smells.

I needn't have worried. The scent was not human, nor was it animal; it was strange, sweet somehow, and very familiar. Chase. I breathed a sigh of relief.

I still remembered the day we met with astounding clarity. I worked nights at my job (all part of the charade; I had plenty of money and nothing important to spend it on), and had been just about to close up when I saw his eyes.

I knew at a glance the pale skin and crimson eyes of my kind - the only colour of eyes I had ever seen on anyone but myself. Even behind contacts, I could see the faint red shadows. That was why Chase took me so much by surprise. His eyes had been a brilliant gold, reflecting his diet of choice. I had been so startled that I momentarily forgot where I was, and that I had an act to keep up. I had frozen, breathing even less than I normally did while surrounded by humans, my own tawny eyes shocked as the reality of it had come crashing down. I was not alone. There were still some people out there who cared, who wanted to fight against their very nature, the core of their existence.

It was not so much joy that I had company; I always had been more of a lone wolf (I smirked at the analogy), polite when addressed but silent until spoken to, or otherwise unless courtesy dictated. I had been raised with a strict regard for etiquette, and it was like second nature for now. I remembered with a grim smile that I had even knocked before entering the homes of my victims after that initial, burning thirst had worn off slightly. I would put on the pretense of a charming youth, new to town and lost in its streets. Perhaps it was because of the utter innocence that radiated from me, or maybe the sheer beauty that was nothing if not common for my kind, but they always let me in. The void in my chest ached again.

Chase was nearby now, seconds from the clearing, judging by his footsteps. I fidgeted slightly with the hands that I clutched together in the pouch of my sweater. Even after all these years together, I was still self conscious around Chase - around everyone, including Subaru, the newest addition to our little coven. I was never able to completely relax around others (particularly the more...carnivorous of my kind), and I always over analyzed everything I was going to say before I said it. It sometimes drove people mad.

He entered the clearing then, his light, graceful steps swift and easy. I felt wrong footed for a moment (not in the physical sense of the word, of course; my kind were never physically wrong footed) as I ran over possible greetings. He spared me any grief over what to say by opening conversation himself. A wry smile lifted one corner of my white lips. His words sounded awkward to me, their modern tone strange to ears from another era. I ran my words over in my head before I spoke them. Polite, friendly, and standard. Good.

"Hello, Chase," I greeted, my humorous smile becoming more welcoming and genuine. I sat when he did, folding my legs neatly, clasping my hands together and resting my elbows on my knees. I looked at them now and then when I spoke, the auburn fringe of my hair falling over my eyes. "Your day has gone well, I trust?"

I sighed a little to myself. I never had been able to slip into an easy, friendly conversation immediately. My words were always stiff and formal in the beginning, even in conversation with the closest friends I had. The denim seat of my jeans quickly became damp as I sat on the moist ground, but this did not concern me. Thanks to having a job and a healthy salary with nothing else to spend it on (good CDs and books did not come out nearly often enough), I had enough clothes to last me at least half of eternity. I fought a smirk at the thought. How did you measure half of something endless? I had to remind myself that I currently had company as I slipped into the beginning of my calculations, my eyes starting to get that misty, far away look that they got when I retreated into my mind. It was like a sanctuary to me - though it held memories that plagued me constantly like nightmares, the many levels and layers of thought were comforting to me, like a warm blanket on a hopelessly cold night.

I really needed to find better things to do with my time.</sup>

[Subaru]

Removing my gloves from my pale hands as I walked further into the forest, the lush green covering me in an artificial darkness as I quickened my pace.

My nose was filled with random scents from rabbits, wolves, humans, plants, trees. My nose was then filled with a surge of two large scents. Normally one would say death others would say they had an older musky smell, but I didn't care nor mind.

One. . .then two. . .Artemis. . .then Chase.

Moving my cloak aside looking in each direction I could see without using my further sight. Sniffing lightly and running my fingers through my hair, this forest the deep green, the same as my eyes. Bright emerald green, looking up the sun glazing over my eyes making them look more like jewels.

My black dress shoes stepping lightly over a tree trunk, my cloak rustling as I walked. I hadn't been with them long a few years after Master had left to do business I ran into Chase and Artemis.

Master said 'stay with our kind'until he finds me again.

I've been alive only 57 years, I felt like a child. . .the last male of our coven.

At least Chase didn't treat me like a kid all the time, only when it was necessary. Artemis was mostly quiet like myself it's easier with them. . .they don't ask me to speak up half the time.

Opening my cloak more I stepped over a rock, then jumped down a small ledge.

" Hello guys. . ."

I walked around standing next to Chase, brushing some of my ebony hair from my face.

[Shiloh]

Golden eyes flickered dangerously as sunlight flickered through the moss covered branches, small dust particles floated inconsistently through the rays. I could see every one perfectly as it made its ever slow descent to the earth. Sight was probably my favorite out of the enhancements that our kind received. Then there were the gifts, the talents, that some, but not all, of us were permitted. Myself, for example, was permitted the extraordinary gift that was known as telekinesis. I could move anything with my mind, from the smallest of stones to the largest of boulders. Of course, the larger things were the more toll they took on my mind, the more difficult they were to move. I had moved a locomotive once, right off the steel and iron tracks. I nearly laughed as I remembered; the poor fools. They hadn't known what to make of it. Of course, they hadn't been able to move the train back onto the track - try as they might. Deciding I should be kind to the poor folks, I moved it back the next night. Should have seen the look on their faces! I absently pulled little bits of grass out of the moist forest floor as I thought, my mind wandering to places I didn't know I had. My mind often scared me, seeing as it most definitely wasn't the happiest place in the world. There were dark creatures that haunted me, evil beings that taunted my soul.

I glanced up at Artemis, who sat himself down beside me. He was always such a quiet fellow, though then again I was as well. I tried to speak as little as possible; I spoke when spoken to and that was that. Although, depending on the subject of course, I would throw in my opinion here and there. I had decided a long time ago that opening the hole in my face only led to trouble. That's what it seemed like, anyway. Was it true? I don't know. Maybe, maybe not. Where in life had I gone wrong, again? Maybe it was killing that young girl up in Montana. Or, maybe it was when I slaughtered the creature that had transformed me into this animal. Maybe it was when I became obsessive with my kind, hunting them down and asking them to either join or get out of the area. Who was I to speak, though? Were the three of us not like all the others, searching for a home? Though, we would never have a permanent settlement. Seeing as we didn't age, it made people suspicious. I found that out the hard way, see.

I gave a curt nod as Artemis acknowledged me. "It's been fine thus far. Yours?" I asked, grimacing at the thought of small talk. I didn't see the point in it, because there was none. Tell me what the point was in two people, or in our case, vampires, sitting around chatting about the weather? None, absolutely none. We had forever to discuss the little things in life. I felt my muscles tighten and my body went rigid as my sharp ears picked up silent footfalls, somewhere in the middle of the forest. Must be Subaru, I thought, seeing as no human being ever came out this deep in the woods and no creature on God's green earth was that silent. To my knowledge, nobody even seemed to know where this place was, which was great for us. We tried to stay as hidden as possible; humans held no interest for us. Then I thought of the legend of werewolves; did they exist? Maybe, maybe not. I personally did not care if we found out or not. I mean, after all, who cared if they did? We wouldn't be here long, anyway.

I glanced up as the boy stepped into the clearing, his black hair blowing in the gentle breeze. He was a good kid; stayed out of my way when it mattered most and didn't speak unless spoken to. He took a spot beside me, standing still. He was the youngest out of the lot of us. Only fifty seven years since his change, he was thirty eight years younger than Artemis, who was but ninety five. Myself? I was a century plus thirteen. I smiled coyly at the mention of the number. A mortal fear to many, an obsession to me. I had a very obsessive nature, if you hadn't guessed. "Hello, Subaru," I murmured, my voice cracking through the dead silence like a whip. I loved the silence; it gave you time to think when you had none. Then again, as I mentioned, thinking was bad in my case. However. It was still nice to escape reality. Like Artemis, I had my own way of sleeping, though I never actually fell into the deep slumber that humans experienced.

I didn't miss it one bit.

ooc;; Subaru, this was originally a closed thread. ^^ When there's a name after the thread title, that means that's it's reserved for one person. It's okay though, I'll let it slip this one time because you were kind of left out. Don't do it again though, okay?

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[Subaru]

Smiling slightly he looked at Chase once more before lifting his cloak and sitting at his side by his feet.

Putting his knees up to his chest he looked up at the canopy the sun shining through it, flashing over his emerald green orbs.

"What are we going to do, Chase?"

Looking up at him his orbs flickered, the sunlight shining through the canopy over his pale cheeks, adding a bit of color to his child-like face.

Turing over and placing his hand on Chase's knee as he looked at him.

"Are we going to make the coven larger?"

ooc: srry i didnt know. . .i havent been here long and my internet crapped out, but next time i'll be more careful

[[artemis]]

<sup>My eyes dropped to my hands in the brief silence, hands I held in front of me, fingers locked together. I followed the simple pattern, white and white separated by a zig zagging line of black shadow. It was like the dividing line between us an them - hardly any visible difference, and yet we were like day and night, vegetarians and carnivores. I only just refrained from rolling my eyes. It seemed that the onslaught of bitter thoughts would continue even as my solitude came to an end.

It was not that I wanted to brood over the blatant difference between my coven and all others of my kind; surely only a dedicated masochist would bring such suffering upon themselves. But it was a constant, nagging dilemma in my mind, irritating in its repetitive presence, but insistent in its prevalence. I still marveled at how anyone (including myself) had been able to succumb to such dark acts. I sighed softly. My thoughts were so easily prompted - the slightest observation could condemn me to hours of pondering. It was impolite to say the least. I ran my fingers through my hair, knowing that if I had blood to flood my cheeks, they would be flushed red at present.

I remembered how at first it had felt strange - my body did not react as it had when I was human. It held steady in its ice cold state, the temperature never fluctuating. I froze rather than jumped when surprised. My non existent heart rate, of course, could never accelerate. Goose flesh no longer crept across my impenetrable skin; sweat never slicked my palms. But my emotions and nature remained untouched by my immortality; shy and quiet as I was, I was easily flustered and did not make conversation easily. Though I knew how Chase hated small talk, I could not help myself; it was like second nature to me, sparing me the shame of rudeness but keeping that careful barrier up around me. I had seen too much, done too much, to ever completely take it down. It shamed me to admit, even to myself.

I had not realized that my forehead had creased in a frown or that I had not looked up from my hands in my train of thought until Chase's words jolted me from my reverie. I glanced up at last, the frown quickly replaced by a small smile at Chase's martyred tone. He had little patience for pleasantries. I wondered with dry amusement how irritating it must have been for him in the beginning. Neither of us felt the need to fill silences with mindless chatter, but on the occasion that he had been able to coax me into discussion, I had only been able to spew trite nonsense. I was not so bad for that now, but still every conversation we had begun with my insistently polite greetings and trivial nonsense until I relaxed enough to have a productive discussion. I imagined it was amusing, sometimes, to watch my nature of few words battle with my long ingrained courtesy and shyness. Though I felt no sense of discomfort at my prolonged stillness, I shifted a little, uncomfortable not with my position but my humiliation for my pointless babbling.

Maybe this was why I so often spent my days in solitude; once Chase and I had settled into a new location, I would often take off to explore the new area and not return until the charade deemed it necessary. Quite often I came across a place that drew me in, such as the clearing in which we now sat, and spent countless days there. It saved me the chagrin that my irritating habits and fumbling words brought on. It was not that I was not well read or educated; my mouth just seemed to cease functioning properly in another's presence, sometimes slurring words together by mistake or stuttering in extreme cases. It was not so hard for us to find each other should an emergency arise, or if we simply wanted to talk; our enhanced senses could pick out each other's scents easily after so many years together.

I was about to carefully fabricate a reply when the sound of another's approach once more reached my ears. The steps, I could tell, were far away yet, but much too fast, much too light to be human. I stiffened, knowing the ratio of friend to foe for our coven was disconcertingly small. I tasted the soft, mild breezes, and was relieved that the scent on the wind was once more familiar. Subaru.

I liked the newest addition to our coven; he was quiet, like the rest of us, and to the point without being rude - in truth he was actually very polite and considerate, pleasant to be around. He had gained my trust more easily than most, his childlike naivety so much like my own. Though I worried for him sometimes (I felt strangely like a big brother to him; it likely had something to do with the fact that my five foot eleven inches towered over the boyish vampire, or perhaps the gaping difference in our ages), I knew that my anxiety was unnecessary. He was certainly as capable of looking after himself as we were.

As Subaru entered the clearing, I jammed my hands into the pouch of my white sweater - knee jerk reaction. With my hands bared I felt strangely exposed, though I knew that this was foolish. Perhaps it was because my insistent fiddling distracted me from my irrational discomfort in company. This time I caught myself before I delved into the tempting many layered shelter of my thoughts, though it was with some reluctance that I forced my attention back to the physical present. It was not that I did not like my fellow coven members, nor that I did not want them around at the moment; the strained prelude to all of our conversations (that was no doubt my fault in its entirety) simply grated on my nerves. My impossibly durable body could no longer feel weak or unsteady, but my mind was certainly still capable; I longed for the conversation to move on so that I might relax.

"Subaru," I greeted with a warm smile. Once more, his modern greeting had rung through my ears, feeling strange and unfamiliar despite the person from which the words issued. I wondered vaguely if I would ever get used to this, or if I would simply be frozen in the early 1900s, condemned to my old-fashioned articulation and vocabulary. I wondered how people did not pick up on my obvious difference, the strange manner in which I spoke. Though I had selected my wardrobe to match that of this century, it seemed glaringly obvious to me. I sighed. Humans may be the ultimate predators of their world, but safe from speculation, something much more sinister stalked them.

I remained silent as Chase and Subaru spoke, hovering in the background, ready to jump in if asked for input but otherwise merely looking on intently. Relief and gratitude coursed through me as Subaru got right to the point in an admirably no nonsense manner, but it was quickly replaced by dread.

Change of any sort unnerved me, particularly when said change involved any other person (I still refused to acknowledge my...species). My hands would have begun to shake in nerves had I not been clasping them tightly together in my pouch. Would we even be able to convince another to join our way of life? I doubted it. The select few that had joined our coven - all of whom were now gathered in this clearing - were immensely outnumbered by those who we had attempted to persuade to try our lifestyle, join our coven. And then another, more ominous course occurred to me...

No. The word reverberated like a gong inside my head, the finality and determination behind it astounding. I would not ever be responsible for anyone to have to give up everything they had once known. I would not damn anyone, be they a friend or arch nemesis, to such a life. Be calm, I reminded myself. That isn't necessarily what he meant. I knew I was overreacting, but I still had to repress the growl that rose in my throat. My hands clenched into fists inside my pocket and I stiffened almost imperceptibly as revulsion rose inside me, congealing into a lump in my throat. It was stupid. I doubted that was what Subaru had meant with his suggestion at all. It seemed that my determinedly vegetarian lifestyle and high standards for myself had made me irrationally passionate on this particular subject. I swallowed my apprehension but waited on tenterhooks for the discussion to continue, hoping against all hope that I was right, and I was just being stupid.

Being stupid. Right.</sup>

[Shiloh]

Here I Am Again, Hey Now, Hey Now, I'm the M-F of the Year

I gave Subaru a slightly disapproving glare as he placed his hand on my knee. I didn't like being touch. I just wasn't one of those touchy-feely types. I listened to his questions, brewing them over in my mind. Were we going to up-size the coven? Most likely. Although why I didn't know - it was pretty good, just the three of us I thought. Maybe if we came across others while we were here I would offer them to join the ranks. A small hint of a smile graced my lips as I found that both Artemis and Subaru had somehow seen me as an authority figure. Why, I didn't know. Age, maybe? What are we going to do, Chase? Are we going to make the coven larger? I mulled things over. What were we going to do? "We'll stay here for a while. Try to blend in and whatnot. If people get suspicious, we leave. End of story." My sentences were short and clipped, chilly to most.

Then I went over his next question. "Well, I suppose we are. Might as well if we come across more like us, right?" Suddenly, my mood seemed to shift. I reached up and ruffled Subaru's hair in a good-nature fashion, before folding my hands in front of me. What to do, what to do. I, myself was perfectly content to just sit here in the eerie quiet, letting my mind die as I stared out across the clearing. It must have painted an interesting picture, the three of us. An emerald clearing with three vampires sitting by the treeline. Though, who would be able to tell we were as such? Not too many people believed monsters existed, except for those who studied cryptozoology, of course. But who were they to prove we existed? As far as I knew, the only thing they'd been able to "prove" was Bigfoot, or Sasquatch, or whatever you want to call him. Her. It. Who cares?

I'm the blackest cat on the street, you'd better watch yoruself...

ooc;; ew. Crap post.

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[Subaru]

Looking at my hand, I moved it to my side and my eyes grew slightly wider. My face flushed a bright red as Chase ruffled my hair.

Smiling slightly instead of fixing my hair I merely moved the few strands that covered my bright emerald green eyes and moved them up a little, looking on through the forest.

"How do you plan to 'blend in' ? Does that mean I have to go to school?"

Looking up at him my face grew slight worry on it the tips of my ears growing red.

Twitching my nose slightly I lay back on the ground, the wind blew slightly a few leaves dancing in the air, one landing on my nose.

I blinked slightly and tried to blow it off my nose.

Thinking of our current situation living out here away from all the humans. Trying to blend in when all they do is talk, hiding things behind your back, not easy for most.

But it was fine for me I could use my telepathy to an extent it used up some of my energy I would tire if I used it too long.

There were occasions where I could hear without trying. And I would have to try my best to block them out. . .such a chore.

Artemis was like a big brother he and I were mostly alike sometimes I could just look at his face without using my hearing. Knowing when he didn't want to talk, when he wanted to be alone, and when he was suffering either with his thoughts or with a small amount of pain.

Chase was more like a dad always watching over us, keeping us out of trouble and making sure things went smoothly.

He and Artemis almost always agreed on the places to live where we would attract the least amount of attention.

But it's obvious the newcomers always attract attention.

Everyone wants to know the most about them. . .

The last time I was forced to go to school it wasn't pretty. . .

Girls always wanted to sit by me, I couldn't understand why. All the talk I would hear. So bothersome, but I did it for Artemis and Chase they wanted me to stick it out so I wouldn't arise suspicion.

[[artemis]]

<sup>The rush of emotion ebbed away slowly, my clenched teeth and tightly curled fists loosening. We weren't changing anybody. Not that I had truly suspected this to start with, but it was still a relief, soothing ice against the irrational sore of my fear. It was all an overreaction.

I breathed again.

I listened with a more widely opened mind now. The conversation was nothing I hadn't really heard before, contained no information that I hadn't already possessed. That was comforting. Frozen as I was in the state of my life in which I had been changed, new developments and sudden changes in routine did not suit me - only created an unease that chafed and worried at my mind. For my own convenience, I did not want to expand the coven; but on the other hand, what was so awful about persuading even one more to at least attempt our lifestyle? About saving countless human lives with the conversion of but one being? I would deal with my own shortcomings if that was what it meant.

It would be hard, at first; I remembered with painful clarity those years after my own conversion, after that one fateful day when I began to hope again. Though I had been careful to hunt as much as necessary, the scent of human blood, the seductive temptress, still beckoned me, crooking her finger and flashing a coy smile. She was not so hard to resist now; though the scent still burned me, I shouldered the agony without complaint. It was a price I was willing to pay. Though the sum of it would never buy back those lives that had been lost in my raging thirst, it felt like an exchange; my own physical suffering for the grief and despair of all those that had known my victims.

It was not enough, but it was all I was capable of.

Not physically; if I had been dead set upon destroying myself, monster that I was, I would have found some way by now. I would not sit here in this sun dappled paradise, the members of my coven - of my family - sitting with me. I would be long gone; smoke in the breeze, perhaps, my soul in a less torturous place. Or so I believed. Though it was the topic of much speculation and doubt amongst my kind, I believed that this galaxy held something for the life after death, even for such hideous creatures as us. It was not something I could help believing; my childlike innocence and imagination clung to the possibility with a tenacity I could not ignore. No, the reason for my continued presence on this Earth was a different one; protection. I would not allow any more people to die by the hand of our kind. None that I could help. It was little in comparison to the deeds I'd done, but it would have to be enough.

I smirked a little as Chase relayed the rules. They were the story of our lives. We would stay in a given place as long as possible; the full potential length of our visits, however, were never reached. We would begin to hear whispers, speculation over the achingly beautiful, godlike creatures that had appeared in the midst of the humans' society. Why did they never eat? How did they get so rich? Where did they live? Why were they out of school so often, especially on sunny days? Sometimes, someone would notice how our eyes - already a strange, gold colour - would change as our thirst grew greater, less bearable. Not as often, though - however appealing our bodies and faces might be to humans, there was something ominous - frightening - about our presence, and their eyes never lingered on us for too long.

So, naturally, we had to do our best to keep up the charade. Which, of course, meant that we had to act exactly like a normal human.

School included, I thought with a grin as Subaru raised the question.

"Yes, Subaru," I said, my grin widening. "You and I both. I don't know for certain what Chase is planning...?" I trailed off, raising a questioning brow at Chase. I knew that I looked quite young for my age - if not for my height, people would most likely guess at 14 - and so I often joined communities as a sophomore or junior. My young appearance would make my true physical age - 19 - unbelievable at best. Though my cheeks were hollowed and my height towering, a certain youthful innocence radiated from me. It was too curiosity-sparking to risk.

After eighty plus years, the novelty of school had certainly worn off; the only reason that I felt no resentment towards it was that it made me feel strangely human; I could pretend, if I put my overactive mind to rest, that I was still a part of their world rather than a creature lurking in its shadows. Other than that, though, it could probably said that I had as little patience for the place as your average teenager. I had learned everything there was to learn in a four year secondary school's education curriculum, had done every assignment, taken literally every course. Though it was true that most people left me alone - sensing, perhaps, that something was not quite right about me - sometimes people would feel strangely drawn to me - until they got a closer look.

I say people, but in fact it was mostly girls - girls and the odd male, although whether it was homosexuality or jealousy that prompted them I wasn't sure. Of course, I usually headed these things off before they began paying too much attention, but it grew wearisome very quickly.

The joys of eternal adolescence.</sup>

[Shiloh]

Your Tears Don't Fall.

A smirk crossed my face as Subaru mentioned school. Yes, indeed Artemis and Subaru would be attending the local school house. I wasn't exactly sure what I was going to do; maybe get a job at...somewhere. I was twenty five, though technically speaking I was a century and a bit. Whether I looked twenty five or not, I was still confused as to what I was going to do with myself. It was not fair to make Subaru and Artemis suffer the bonds of schooling whilst I did nothing at all. "I'm not exactly sure what I'm going to do," I mused. "Maybe I'll be able to pass for a kid who got behind a few grades..." Amusement crossed my face at the thought.

I watched a leaf float along on the breeze, as if held up by an invisible string. It landed on Subaru's nose as he lay back; he promptly blew it off. The action was in slow motion for me as the green leaf landed gracefully on the ground, resting lightly on the grass until another breeze trained it off to another location. Funny how that worked; didn't it seem that everyone wanted to be as a leaf, floating on the breeze, not caring where they might end up at? Well...bad for them if they land in a mulching truck...

I smiled; such morbid thoughts entertained me, and I knew it shouldn't be that way. What kind of creature got amusement out of watching others suffer? Usually the evil villain of the story, the antagonist. I frowned. But wasn't that what I was? The horrifying killer that stalked the darkest corners of your mind? The thing that made you awaken suddenly, the air rushing from your lungs, your voice tearing through the silence in a bloodcurdling scream?

Yes, that's what I was. That's what I would remain to be.

They Crash Around Me.

[/blockquote][/blockquote]

[Subaru]

Stifling a groan I pushed some hair out of my eyes looking up at Chase.

"Why would you torture us again with school....? It's so boring they teach the same things....."

Sitting up fixing my frilly top my green orbs looking down, then flicking to the side.

"You had better not make me be nice....as in don't make me be friendly with any girls. . .you remember what happened the last time a girl got too close...."

Remembering the past hurt too much if it didnt have anything to do with Master, Chase or Artemis. They were the only good things in my messed up life.

Having the same dream over and over again for the last few weeks as I looked at Artemis and Chase.

This "family" type structure we had going on...I wanted more. Artemis my big brother...having him yell at me just being...my big brother...

And Chase, having him be his fatherly type, but the last few years we've been around him I have this feeling when i look into his sad solem eyes....

He's lonely...

Come on shake your mind out of this funk you know you can do it just look at him straight and say it! You know you can....

Looking up at Chase my eyes becoming slightly sad.

"Chase....are you lonely...?"