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bondedbrotherhood-blog · 5 years ago

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No feelings

Written by @OffKeyDeviant, @ToTheGrahve and @Son_ofThe_Omega Mentions @GunmetalGaze Continuation from #NightIn. *~*~*~*~* Grahve: The halls seemed empty for a lockdown and that was fine by me. The last thing I needed right now was to see another Brother or another trainee in my mad (not to mention prohibited) dash for the exit. Every emotion I’d just crammed behind the door and shut was knocking to come back out, desperate to be analysed, to torment me. Somewhere in this manse Qhuinn and Crhis were figuring their shit out, Scribe willing, but in doing so they now both knew they didn’t want ‘me’. And… even though it was what I wanted, what I knew they both needed to be happy… It hurt. “Holy!~” I half cursed as I ploughed into another body, the pair of us staggering but somehow managing to remain upright. Holding onto the figure until I was righted, I blinked in surprise when I let go and beheld one of the angels. “Hey, sorry, I was just… taking a walk… Adrian, right?” Adrian: [Who’da thunk I’d be in for the whole Red Cross-donating-for-vampires movie of the week. Jane took a few vials full of silver blood and sent me on my way. But the whole thing was still on a weird feeling note I couldn’t place. Lassiter hung back with the doc for his turn so that left me on a wander about the mansion. Grand little palace it was. Ornate. Tasteful. Immaculate. And hella expensive works of art deco all over the place. The floor had some kind of tiled mosaic that looked familiar. Wait... was that.. a tree? But the culture didn’t stop there. The edges of the ceiling was decked in curlicues and, far be it from me to stereotype, but I half expected to see cherubs painted up there, but were those… I didn’t get the thought finished before I was knocked into and off balance, and was being piloted by a male I didn’t recognize.] Easy, sorry man. Y’ know drinkin and walkin’ is way easier when your sittin. N’ yup. I’m Adrian. [Well now, this was interesting. I could feel something going on with this guy that was far from what would be considered “normal”, even for a male. The smell of sex was faint, by human standards, but even /I/ could smell it, and from the look of .. anguish? loss? .. on the guy’s face, it would explain a lil’ why he wasn’t watching where he was going.] Grahve: “Yeah, well, I don’t think I’ve had enough to drink to sit yet,” I manage distractedly, looking up and down the hall. The last thing I needed was a Brother appearing and stopping my mad dash for the exit. Then I was fixing my gaze on the angel, properly. Huh… I couldn’t put my finger on the feeling. It was like my eyes suddenly adjusted and I saw him better. Like I hadn’t seen him before. Everything about him seemed distinctive, from his tousled hair to the sparkle in his eyes. Down his arms I could just make out the faint outline of what had to be a white ink tattoo or something. Feathers. “Look… I’m just gonna duck outside for a minute. Need some air.” And there was no need to tell anyone else about this. Hint hint. “Had a bit of a rough night and just want a little space. Ever had that?” I tack on wildly, hoping that personal experience meant a little sympathy. Adrian: [This guy looked like he was about to crawl out of his skin. Or like he was running away from something. Maybe some/one/. The place was on lock down, so chances were, if he was on the lamb, he was going to… shit. I knew that look. One I’d seen in very few individuals, but I knew it when I saw it. It was the one that said, ‘hey, I can see what you are. Why can’t anyone else?’ Only, he didn’t jump into the whole Q&A. Just jumping ship. Whiiiich.. considering we were on lockdown, didn’t sit right. Looked like I was inviting myself out for drinks.] Yeah, I know the feelin’ actually. [And I did. In a whole /big/, nasty Devina way.] N’ you know we’re gonna hav’ta slip past security. [Because if the King knew I had willingly escorted this guy out the door while everyone was on mandatory house arrest, I may as well pluck my own feathers and hand over a stuffed pillow. Whatever was going on, my angel senses told me I needed to hang with this guy for a while. Make sure he didn’t end up doing something he shouldn’t.] Grahve: Angels. Way too damn perceptive for their own good. “What’s this ‘we’ thing?” I manage, skirting around the divine being and heading for the front door. “Besides, it’s not like everything has been made to keep us ‘in’. It’s not a prison, it’s a mansion. I see it as a request we don’t leave it while they try to keep people out of it…” Besides, it was better to ask forgiveness than permission. And I’d survived on the outside by myself long enough. If I couldn’t get back in with the lockdown in place, I’d manage. Frankly, not spending the next few days in this place with the tension was kind of fine by me. The scanner only required a shot of your mug on the way in, but nothing stopped me from grabbing the door handle and pulling it open, stepping out into the chill of the night and breathing deep the sweet, sweet freedom. “You don’t need to follow. Or babysit. Or whatever.” Attractive as the fellow was… Adrian: [Mmhm, that little ditty right there, ‘you don’t need to follow or babysit’ just screamed at me that yeah, I do, pumpkin. Because whatever/whoever you’re running from, you need someone to hang with.] Well, seein’ as I just donated to the greater cause.. [Lifting my arm a little in showing off my Snoopy bandaid the good ghostly doctor slapped on me, because, hey, everyone loves Snoopy. That, and I saved The Little Mermaid bandaids for Lassiter. He’s more like Sebastian, you know. A little crabby.] I think I deserve a reward. N’ lucky for me, I was just given a clear evenin’. [Flashing the guy a raised brow that said, go ahead, challenge me, I stepped out the door right after without looking like I was in a hurry.] So, where we goin’? Grahve: Holy Mary mother of fuuuuuuck… I ‘so’ did not have the time nor the inclination to dissuade the angel from tagging along. If he was hell bent on coming with me? Oh well. So I had a shadow for the night. If he didn’t get in the way of me and the bar I could deal. “Zero Sum,” I said shortly, shrugging my shoulders then shaking off the tension as I glanced over my shoulder. “Hope you can keep up.” Scattering my molecules, I left the manse behind, leaving Crhis and Q and their chaos as I sought my own escape. Materialising on the street around the corner, I righted my shirt and lifted a hand to rake back my hair. The fact I’d left this place barely… what, an hour? Two hours before, meant little. The bouncers would still let me back in. The humans would still be there, bumping and grinding and desperate to lavish attention on someone. Well tonight that someone got to be me. I felt it as the angel appeared behind me. It wasn’t so much a scattering of molecules as it was something… else. If I hadn’t needed a drink more than I needed to breathe, I’d have asked him about it. Instead… “Cool. We’re here. Let’s get fucked up.” Adrian: Cha, try n’ stop me. [Keep up? Pssh. If he only knew. In an instant, he was gone, not so unlike my own way of disappearing but I let that tidbit sit for another convo. Pulling my own disappear act via angel airlines, I followed the male more by sense than anything else and when my feet touched down, a double check made sure I wouldn't be seen before dropping my hide-and-seek cloak. The guy looked almost surprised, almost. Smirking wryly, I could tell this guy was going to be a barrel full of silent lamenting.] Sounds good. But try n’ stay in one piece, yeah? [Not that I didn't think the male could take care of himself, but if my hunch was right and he was here to sink his sorrows in Royal Crown and fish it out with Jack and Jim while shooting a Goose or nine, then I was going to give him a bitchin’ earful he'd not want to hear while I dragged his sorry carcass back to the compound. Not that he'd remember any of it.] Grahve: I made a noise that was probably classed more along the lines of a grunt than any indication of yes or no, but I was hoping it’d pass muster as we stepped out from the alley and walked straight for the front of the line. Perks to being associated with the Brothers, the bouncers took one look at me and let me by. Though I could see them doing the side eye glance over the fact my companion was no longer Crhis, who I’d left smashing mouths with, but someone new. Whatever. I wasn’t here to explain my sex life, love life or any life to anyone. Though I’d dearly love someone to explain it to ‘me’... To be fair, it wasn’t like my new companion wasn’t all kinds of attractive himself. The angel seemed to glow from within, though not with the ‘I’ma blind your asses’ aura that Lassiter rocked on occasion. This was subtle, like an energy emanating in waves, and there was an aspect to it that was both soothing and exciting. If I had to put any title on the angel, I gotta go with intriguing, cause damn, the guy made me curious. I almost felt bad for him that tonight he was stuck with ‘me’ for company. Poor bastard. Once in the club, I beelined it to the bar and planted my ass on a stool. The tender shot me a glance, no doubt recognising me but not my usual choice of seating arrangements. Honestly, going up to the darkly lit boothes did two things: put me /further/ away from the liquor and reminded me of having sat there with Crhis. Besides, if the Brothers broke their lockdown or whatever the fuck was going on, the last thing I wanted them to see was me lounging it up in their usual booth like I gave zero fucks about protocol. I mean, right now I ‘did’, but they didn’t need to know that. I was having an emotional crisis. Lockdowns had to come after those, surely. “This is gonna be my seat until dawn gets too close for me to ignore,” I managed to Adrian, who I could feel watching me with that oh so /not/ helpful insight angels tended to have. “Go. Drink. Be merry and gay. Or whatever. I promise not to do anything stupid within the vicinity of this bar stool,” I vowed, relieved when the tender served up four shots and a chaser of whiskey to boot. Adrian: [All manner of mopey was coming off this guy like a tidal wave, but hey, drinking yourself into a coma did wonders for that: if you were lucky, all you'd have was a helluva hangover come morning, or you'd remember everything, every words, every slight, every blonde and brunette, redhead you went through trying to dull the ache. Worse off? If you woke up with two or three of them and they didn't match your drunk memory of how gorgeous they looked while hanging three sheets to the wind. But hey, circle of life. Fuck up, get drunk, wake up, an’ do it all over again. I was no judge there. I turned that card in when I traded up for wings. So I didn't say anything to the contrary as we made our way deeper into the club. All kinds of people dotted the flavor of the night. And as I wasn't officially on babysitting duty, I'd given thought to treating myself. Just a little. Not one to miss a few heads turning my way, I flashed a big smile but kept walking until the trainee parked himself. I wasn't in any rush to jump into the fray, I could afford some perusal time.] J'st because I like you.. [N’ really, aside from the overlying emo distress signal at the moment, the male wasn't bad on the eyes. More than a few heads were turned in his direction as well as migrating bodies. I waited until the barkeep looked over at Grahve and flashed a 2 finger salute, adding my own drink order to his. Because, why not, and finished surveying the pond of fish.] M’ gonna not be too far. [That was polite talk for whatever floats your boat, but if you get in too far and take up a ride and I have to bail you out, m’ not gonna be thrilled at the interruption. The drinks arrived in quick order, the trainee throwing them back faster than he could swallow. Reaching out, I snapped up my own, before the desert on a barstool started growing palm trees like an oasis and tossed it down my throat.] Grahve: The sweet burn didn’t instantly mood boost like I’d been hoping, but at least it was distraction enough from me thinking of the males back at the manse. Wondering if I’d made the wrong call. Wondering if I should’ve stayed. “Enjoy yourself,” I managed, taking up another shot and holding it a few seconds as I glanced sideways at the angel. “Not like you don’t know what you’re doing, right?” The angels were older than most in the manse, to my knowledge, so as far as all the earthly experiences went, I had to assume they were quite knowledgeable. Maybe that was why he had the tattoo. Had it been a before angel, or after angel thing? Fuck it. “Hey,” I said quickly, having thrown back the shot and reached for another, “your tattoos… they’re uh…” I glanced sideways at the ink, the subtle white curtails of feathers that made me think for a second I could reach out and touch softness. “...they look really cool. How long have you had them?” Maybe I was pushing the limits here, asking a personal question, but the worst he could do was tell me to fuck off, and all things considered, that wouldn’t even be the worst thing that had happened to me tonight. So oh well? I was curious. I wasn’t a cat either, so no fatality for me. Adrian: [The music was loud, the patrons louder. And less clothed. Bodies bumped and ground into one another reminding me, ever so vaguely, of the wall down in Devina’s cesspool pit she called her home. One I’d visited far too often and paid heavy prices for /that/ kind of company that no body, heavenly or earthly, should ever have to endure. I’d had my reasons. Thank fuck the she-demon wasn’t in Caldwell tonight.] Always enjoy m'self, otherwise what's t’ point? [I winked and shot back, looking through the crowd for nothing in particular. Sure a few sugar babies were trying to catch my eye, but brunette at the end of the bar snagged my attention. She didn't appear to be attached either by hip or bling. The look she gave me said she was alone for the night; I was going to change that, at least for a few minutes. The trainee's question ground that to a halt. Bright eyes flickered back to the male on the barstool as I turned to face him, raising a curious brow. No one had ever commented on the faintest of outlines of my “tattoo”. The lines were a faded white, almost like a bleached scar that left no touchable trace and was undetectable to the naked eye. Each angel had his own design, something that fit the individual, like a living snowflake because no two were exactly the same. ‘Course, no one outside those of us tied directly to Him knew about our wings… no, let me amend that to include the vampires, because they -knew-. But it wasn’t like we just whipped them out for display like a preening peacock. Another angel could “see” them, but to my knowledge nobody else has been able to.] A long, long time ago. [Eyeballing the trainee, with a drink in each hand and looking miserable as fuck, I considered turning the brunette down. Pity, too. The male needed more than I could offer at the moment, and I wasn’t sure what that even was.] N’ it wasn't a pleasurable experience by any means. [The whole resurrection platform I wouldn't wish on anyone, I lost count of how many lifetimes I had been through it in the last millennia. I reached over and grabbed the drink from the male's hand with a wink and a grin and tossed the swallow back.] Grahve: Nuff said. If he’d had them a while and getting them hadn’t been fun, I wasn’t going to push the matter. As the guy stole my drink and downed it, I rolled my eyes and glanced around the bar. A woman at the far end seemed to only have eyes for the angel, and I doubted he was oblivious to it. Which meant he was keeping my sorry ass company out of pity probably. “Instead of stealing ‘my’ drinks, how bout you go buy that pretty young thing one?” I encouraged, nudging him in that direction and hoping he’d take the not so subtle hint. Glancing to the bartender, I signalled for a replacement of the one I’d just lost. I was already starting to feel warmer and detached from reality. A few more and maybe I’d think I was in another reality. “S’fine. Go. Get your drink on n’ dance or whatever you feathered bastards do, n’ I’ll see you when you’re done,” I murmured, managing a smile that was close to real and close to something I’d give someone as intriguing as Adrian was. Finally, he seemed to take my directive seriously. Or the brunette had signalled him somehow of her intentions. Either way, I found myself alone at the bar, blissfully, the only thing to occupy my time the number of shots I could do in an hour or before my vampiric liver failed. Was that even possible? Well, I was probably gonna find out. Adrian: [My gaze followed he trainee’s for a brief second, the brunette flashing her pretty smile, tipping her fresh drink to pink stained lips. Damn.. Dilema, dilema. Not that there was any danger in leaving the trainee at the bar to nurse what was painfully obvious a heartbreak of some sort, but if the male needed something more, I wasn’t sure I could give it to him. I had the ability to take away physical pain when I wanted to. But heartbreak and other “matters of the heart”? That was of free will, and only He could deal with that on the kind of level no one else had access to. Glancing back at the trainee, I told myself he’d be fine. No bad guys would hang out in the same place the Brotherhood frequents, so things should work out to be lowkey. And a few more drinks and the male likely be numb enough to find his own company for the rest of the night. Maybe that’d take away some of the pain the poor bastard was feeling. One could only hope, for his sake.] Hold the bar down for me, yeah? [Clapping the male on the shoulder, I turned a grin and wink toward the brunette and sauntered over to introduce myself. The music was some off the wall beat, loud enough to burst an eardrum or two. So getting close enough to whisper in the brunette’s ear was just the excuse I needed. Dark brown eyes under long natural lashes did the up-and-down the closer I got, her pink lips parting from the glass’s rim to deliver a sultry smile. I tipped a blind eye to the barkeep and smiled slowly, focusing on the brunette.] Another drink for the lady. “Isabelle.” [She set her near empty glass on the counter, the guy behind the counter whisking it away and replacing it with a freshie. Not one for small talk, or talking of any kind when I was in this kind of ‘mood’, bright eyes homed in on hers as I leaned in to stage whisper in her ear with a disarming smile of my own.] Wanna find a private corner and share that drink, Isabelle? [She didn’t bat an eye but instead grabbed my hand and pulled, leading me to that private corner, drink in her free hand. Casting a quick glance back at the trainee, he seemed content to sit there and drown his misery one shot at a time and I was about to do something similar with the female towing me to a dark, no-so-private space. Everyone had their demons they needed to escape and I was only pushing mine back for a slight reprieve.] Grahve: Odd sensation, to be both disappointed and pleased by someone’s absence, but that was what I was feeling as I glanced to the side and saw the woman tow the angel away. At least one of us was going to have a good night. Looking to my drinks, I breathed through the impulse to demand some sort of intravenous method of delivery and settled for throwing another one back. There was no burn anymore; the liquor slid across my tongue and down my throat with the promise that I’d hate myself later. Ha, like I didn’t hate myself ‘now’. A woman appeared at my side, leaning onto the bar so that it supported her ample cleavage and shooting me a sideways grin. “Cute guy like you drinking alone?” “Do you see anyone else here?” She faltered at that. And yeah, as far as prickish responses go, it was probably a decent rating. Still, gotta give her credit. She rallied. “So I could drink with you?” Scribe, I /so/ did not want to do this dance. Earlier, with Crhis, this kind of foreplay was part of the game, but I wasn’t playing now. “Listen, sweetheart, I’m kind of here to drink myself to death or, at the very least, toe the line of alcohol poisoning, and I really don’t want company for that. So if you could just… I dunno, find someone far more accommodating than me, that’d be great.” The bartender arrived with her and drink, and to compensate for being a prick I waved at him. “Her drink’s on me.” I then pushed it toward her, taking in the surprised expression with no small amount of irony. Liquor with no ‘payment’ required. Wtf? After a moment’s hesitation, she murmured a thank you and slipped away, no doubt (and hopefully) to tell her friends to avoid me. Yay! “Did you just pay for her to stay away from you?” The tender was eyeing me as I looked up, apparently amused by the extent I was willing to go to. I shrugged and looked at the empty spot beside me. “Worked didn’t it?” He laughed and set down a fresh set of shots. “Those are on me buddy.” “Bless your cotton socks.” Lash: [To say my plan had worked with little issues would be bragging. So fuck yeah. On reliable sourcing, I learned the Brotherhood had been on lockdown. But not so much so that I didn’t make good on my chance to do a little face-to-face with the Queen before ghosting. Just a little tease to let them know I was still around. In case Wrath got too comfortable with my lack of physical presence. Now to move on and see how much more damage I could do. Which was working my way through the crowd at Zero Sum. How I got in was as easy as just walking past the human security idiots Xhex had stationed at the door. Dressed in leathers (taking a cue from the Brotherhood after my short stint with the fuckers) and being a good head taller than most of the rats in the place, I scanned the floor for the one who made my dead heart thump wildly even though I knew she’d not be inside the club. No, I’d sent in a couple of my Lessers earlier to create a distraction, which worked like a charm. I watched the dead fuckers seal their fates when they walked in the door and not so many minutes later burst back out with Xhex hot on their heels. Just as I predicted it would go. Now stalking a new prey, but what to find? I didn’t go for the rats without tails. They broke far too quickly, too easily to be of any fun at all. I was looking for one of the Brothers, one of the trainees, or better yet, one of their shellans; though doubtful one of their females would be in the club without a small army surrounding her at all times. My presence earned a few looks, mostly from the female rats, who, in turn, tried to throw themselves at me by way of rubbing their bodies against me as I stalked the place end to end. I was quickly becoming bored, nothing of the Brotherhood stood out. No males dressed in black leather hiding an armament fit to fend off a small nation. Growling low in frustration, I turned to leave, maybe I would be taking a few females with me just for the pure fuckery of leaving a trail of dead bodies because I was getting pissed when a scent caught my attention. Immediately all thoughts of taking off with rats left my mind as I whipped around slowly, scanning the place again. Looking to place the scent to a beating heart that felt familiar. Breathing deeply, I tasted the air. I /knew/ that scent, well, part of it. It was mixed heavily with others. But the one I could definitely pick out was one I hungered to hurt deeply before outright killing him. That male’s torture would be long and slow and have him begging for the Fade. Lifting my head a little, I honed in on where the scent was coming from, pushing aside the rats that were in my way and slowly tracked a male at the bar. He wasn’t as built as a Brother, but I had no doubt he was just as lethal. And that he didn’t immediately hit on my own scent told me a little story: this male had /no fucking idea/ who I was. But I knew /he/ had some kind of tie to another trainee and… inhaling another deep lungful, I grinned darkly.. to the mismatched fucker Qhuinn Lohstrong. Jackpot, baby.] #SL #NoFeelings Part 1 #BondedBrothers Co-written @ToTheGrahve @OffKeyDeviant @Son_OfThe_Omega

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bondedbrotherhood-blog · 6 years ago

Text

No Feelings

Written by @OffKeyDeviant and @ToTheGrahve (With a side of @Son_ofThe_Omega) Mentions @GunmetalGaze Continuation from #NightIn. *~*~*~*~* Grahve: The halls seemed empty for a lockdown and that was fine by me. The last thing I needed right now was to see another Brother or another trainee in my mad (not to mention prohibited) dash for the exit. Every emotion I’d just crammed behind the door and shut was knocking to come back out, desperate to be analysed, to torment me. Somewhere in this manse Qhuinn and Crhis were figuring their shit out, Scribe willing, but in doing so they now both knew they didn’t want ‘me’. And… even though it was what I wanted, what I knew they both needed to be happy… It hurt. “Holy!~” I half cursed as I ploughed into another body, the pair of us staggering but somehow managing to remain upright. Holding onto the figure until I was righted, I blinked in surprise when I let go and beheld one of the angels. “Hey, sorry, I was just… taking a walk… Adrian, right?” Adrian: [Who’da thunk I’d be in for the whole Red Cross-donating-for-vampires movie of the week. Jane took a few vials full of silver blood and sent me on my way. But the whole thing was still on a weird feeling note I couldn’t place. Lassiter hung back with the doc for his turn so that left me on a wander about the mansion. Grand little palace it was. Ornate. Tasteful. Immaculate. And hella expensive works of art deco all over the place. The floor had some kind of tiled mosaic that looked familiar. Wait... was that.. a tree? But the culture didn’t stop there. The edges of the ceiling was decked in curlicues and, far be it from me to stereotype, but I half expected to see cherubs painted up there, but were those… I didn’t get the thought finished before I was knocked into and off balance, and was being piloted by a male I didn’t recognize.] Easy, sorry man. Y’ know drinkin and walkin’ is way easier when your sittin. N’ yup. I’m Adrian. [Well now, this was interesting. I could feel something going on with this guy that was far from what would be considered “normal”, even for a male. The smell of sex was faint, by human standards, but even /I/ could smell it, and from the look of .. anguish? loss? .. on the guy’s face, it would explain a lil’ why he wasn’t watching where he was going.] Grahve: “Yeah, well, I don’t think I’ve had enough to drink to sit yet,” I manage distractedly, looking up and down the hall. The last thing I needed was a Brother appearing and stopping my mad dash for the exit. Then I was fixing my gaze on the angel, properly. Huh… I couldn’t put my finger on the feeling. It was like my eyes suddenly adjusted and I saw him better. Like I hadn’t seen him before. Everything about him seemed distinctive, from his tousled hair to the sparkle in his eyes. Down his arms I could just make out the faint outline of what had to be a white ink tattoo or something. Feathers. “Look… I’m just gonna duck outside for a minute. Need some air.” And there was no need to tell anyone else about this. Hint hint. “Had a bit of a rough night and just want a little space. Ever had that?” I tack on wildly, hoping that personal experience meant a little sympathy. Adrian: [This guy looked like he was about to crawl out of his skin. Or like he was running away from something. Maybe some/one/. The place was on lock down, so chances were, if he was on the lamb, he was going to… shit. I knew that look. One I’d seen in very few individuals, but I knew it when I saw it. It was the one that said, ‘hey, I can see what you are. Why can’t anyone else?’ Only, he didn’t jump into the whole Q&A. Just jumping ship. Whiiiich.. considering we were on lockdown, didn’t sit right. Looked like I was inviting myself out for drinks.] Yeah, I know the feelin’ actually. [And I did. In a whole /big/, nasty Devina way.] N’ you know we’re gonna hav’ta slip past security. [Because if the King knew I had willingly escorted this guy out the door while everyone was on mandatory house arrest, I may as well pluck my own feathers and hand over a stuffed pillow. Whatever was going on, my angel senses told me I needed to hang with this guy for a while. Make sure he didn’t end up doing something he shouldn’t.] Grahve: Angels. Way too damn perceptive for their own good. “What’s this ‘we’ thing?” I manage, skirting around the divine being and heading for the front door. “Besides, it’s not like everything has been made to keep us ‘in’. It’s not a prison, it’s a mansion. I see it as a request we don’t leave it while they try to keep people out of it…” Besides, it was better to ask forgiveness than permission. And I’d survived on the outside by myself long enough. If I couldn’t get back in with the lockdown in place, I’d manage. Frankly, not spending the next few days in this place with the tension was kind of fine by me. The scanner only required a shot of your mug on the way in, but nothing stopped me from grabbing the door handle and pulling it open, stepping out into the chill of the night and breathing deep the sweet, sweet freedom. “You don’t need to follow. Or babysit. Or whatever.” Attractive as the fellow was… Adrian: [Mmhm, that little ditty right there, ‘you don’t need to follow or babysit’ just screamed at me that yeah, I do, pumpkin. Because whatever/whoever you’re running from, you need someone to hang with.] Well, seein’ as I just donated to the greater cause.. [Lifting my arm a little in showing off my Snoopy bandaid the good ghostly doctor slapped on me, because, hey, everyone loves Snoopy. That, and I saved The Little Mermaid bandaids for Lassiter. He’s more like Sebastian, you know. A little crabby.] I think I deserve a reward. N’ lucky for me, I was just given a clear evenin’. [Flashing the guy a raised brow that said, go ahead, challenge me, I stepped out the door right after without looking like I was in a hurry.] So, where we goin’? Grahve: Holy Mary mother of fuuuuuuck… I ‘so’ did not have the time nor the inclination to dissuade the angel from tagging along. If he was hell bent on coming with me? Oh well. So I had a shadow for the night. If he didn’t get in the way of me and the bar I could deal. “Zero Sum,” I said shortly, shrugging my shoulders then shaking off the tension as I glanced over my shoulder. “Hope you can keep up.” Scattering my molecules, I left the manse behind, leaving Crhis and Q and their chaos as I sought my own escape. Materialising on the street around the corner, I righted my shirt and lifted a hand to rake back my hair. The fact I’d left this place barely… what, an hour? Two hours before, meant little. The bouncers would still let me back in. The humans would still be there, bumping and grinding and desperate to lavish attention on someone. Well tonight that someone got to be me. I felt it as the angel appeared behind me. It wasn’t so much a scattering of molecules as it was something… else. If I hadn’t needed a drink more than I needed to breathe, I’d have asked him about it. Instead… “Cool. We’re here. Let’s get fucked up.” Adrian: Cha, try n’ stop me. [Keep up? Pssh. If he only knew. In an instant, he was gone, not so unlike my own way of disappearing but I let that tidbit sit for another convo. Pulling my own disappear act via angel airlines, I followed the male more by sense than anything else and when my feet touched down, a double check made sure I wouldn't be seen before dropping my hide-and-seek cloak. The guy looked almost surprised, almost. Smirking wryly, I could tell this guy was going to be a barrel full of silent lamenting.] Sounds good. But try n’ stay in one piece, yeah? [Not that I didn't think the male could take care of himself, but if my hunch was right and he was here to sink his sorrows in Royal Crown and fish it out with Jack and Jim while shooting a Goose or nine, then I was going to give him a bitchin’ earful he'd not want to hear while I dragged his sorry carcass back to the compound. Not that he'd remember any of it.] Grahve: I made a noise that was probably classed more along the lines of a grunt than any indication of yes or no, but I was hoping it’d pass muster as we stepped out from the alley and walked straight for the front of the line. Perks to being associated with the Brothers, the bouncers took one look at me and let me by. Though I could see them doing the side eye glance over the fact my companion was no longer Crhis, who I’d left smashing mouths with, but someone new. Whatever. I wasn’t here to explain my sex life, love life or any life to anyone. Though I’d dearly love someone to explain it to ‘me’... To be fair, it wasn’t like my new companion wasn’t all kinds of attractive himself. The angel seemed to glow from within, though not with the ‘I’ma blind your asses’ aura that Lassiter rocked on occasion. This was subtle, like an energy emanating in waves, and there was an aspect to it that was both soothing and exciting. If I had to put any title on the angel, I gotta go with intriguing, cause damn, the guy made me curious. I almost felt bad for him that tonight he was stuck with ‘me’ for company. Poor bastard. Once in the club, I beelined it to the bar and planted my ass on a stool. The tender shot me a glance, no doubt recognising me but not my usual choice of seating arrangements. Honestly, going up to the darkly lit boothes did two things: put me /further/ away from the liquor and reminded me of having sat there with Crhis. Besides, if the Brothers broke their lockdown or whatever the fuck was going on, the last thing I wanted them to see was me lounging it up in their usual booth like I gave zero fucks about protocol. I mean, right now I ‘did’, but they didn’t need to know that. I was having an emotional crisis. Lockdowns had to come after those, surely. “This is gonna be my seat until dawn gets too close for me to ignore,” I managed to Adrian, who I could feel watching me with that oh so /not/ helpful insight angels tended to have. “Go. Drink. Be merry and gay. Or whatever. I promise not to do anything stupid within the vicinity of this bar stool,” I vowed, relieved when the tender served up four shots and a chaser of whiskey to boot. Adrian: [All manner of mopey was coming off this guy like a tidal wave, but hey, drinking yourself into a coma did wonders for that: if you were lucky, all you'd have was a helluva hangover come morning, or you'd remember everything, every words, every slight, every blonde and brunette, redhead you went through trying to dull the ache. Worse off? If you woke up with two or three of them and they didn't match your drunk memory of how gorgeous they looked while hanging three sheets to the wind. But hey, circle of life. Fuck up, get drunk, wake up, an’ do it all over again. I was no judge there. I turned that card in when I traded up for wings. So I didn't say anything to the contrary as we made our way deeper into the club. All kinds of people dotted the flavor of the night. And as I wasn't officially on babysitting duty, I'd given thought to treating myself. Just a little. Not one to miss a few heads turning my way, I flashed a big smile but kept walking until the trainee parked himself. I wasn't in any rush to jump into the fray, I could afford some perusal time.] J'st because I like you.. [N’ really, aside from the overlying emo distress signal at the moment, the male wasn't bad on the eyes. More than a few heads were turned in his direction as well as migrating bodies. I waited until the barkeep looked over at Grahve and flashed a 2 finger salute, adding my own drink order to his. Because, why not, and finished surveying the pond of fish.] M’ gonna not be too far. [That was polite talk for whatever floats your boat, but if you get in too far and take up a ride and I have to bail you out, m’ not gonna be thrilled at the interruption. The drinks arrived in quick order, the trainee throwing them back faster than he could swallow. Reaching out, I snapped up my own, before the desert on a barstool started growing palm trees like an oasis and tossed it down my throat.] Grahve: The sweet burn didn’t instantly mood boost like I’d been hoping, but at least it was distraction enough from me thinking of the males back at the manse. Wondering if I’d made the wrong call. Wondering if I should’ve stayed. “Enjoy yourself,” I managed, taking up another shot and holding it a few seconds as I glanced sideways at the angel. “Not like you don’t know what you’re doing, right?” The angels were older than most in the manse, to my knowledge, so as far as all the earthly experiences went, I had to assume they were quite knowledgeable. Maybe that was why he had the tattoo. Had it been a before angel, or after angel thing? Fuck it. “Hey,” I said quickly, having thrown back the shot and reached for another, “your tattoos… they’re uh…” I glanced sideways at the ink, the subtle white curtails of feathers that made me think for a second I could reach out and touch softness. “...they look really cool. How long have you had them?” Maybe I was pushing the limits here, asking a personal question, but the worst he could do was tell me to fuck off, and all things considered, that wouldn’t even be the worst thing that had happened to me tonight. So oh well? I was curious. I wasn’t a cat either, so no fatality for me. Adrian: [The music was loud, the patrons louder. And less clothed. Bodies bumped and ground into one another reminding me, ever so vaguely, of the wall down in Devina’s cesspool pit she called her home. One I’d visited far too often and paid heavy prices for /that/ kind of company that no body, heavenly or earthly, should ever have to endure. I’d had my reasons. Thank fuck the she-demon wasn’t in Caldwell tonight.] Always enjoy m'self, otherwise what's t’ point? [I winked and shot back, looking through the crowd for nothing in particular. Sure a few sugar babies were trying to catch my eye, but brunette at the end of the bar snagged my attention. She didn't appear to be attached either by hip or bling. The look she gave me said she was alone for the night; I was going to change that, at least for a few minutes. The trainee's question ground that to a halt. Bright eyes flickered back to the male on the barstool as I turned to face him, raising a curious brow. No one had ever commented on the faintest of outlines of my “tattoo”. The lines were a faded white, almost like a bleached scar that left no touchable trace and was undetectable to the naked eye. Each angel had his own design, something that fit the individual, like a living snowflake because no two were exactly the same. ‘Course, no one outside those of us tied directly to Him knew about our wings… no, let me amend that to include the vampires, because they -knew-. But it wasn’t like we just whipped them out for display like a preening peacock. Another angel could “see” them, but to my knowledge nobody else has been able to.] A long, long time ago. [Eyeballing the trainee, with a drink in each hand and looking miserable as fuck, I considered turning the brunette down. Pity, too. The male needed more than I could offer at the moment, and I wasn’t sure what that even was.] N’ it wasn't a pleasurable experience by any means. [The whole resurrection platform I wouldn't wish on anyone, I lost count of how many lifetimes I had been through it in the last millennia. I reached over and grabbed the drink from the male's hand with a wink and a grin and tossed the swallow back.] Grahve: Nuff said. If he’d had them a while and getting them hadn’t been fun, I wasn’t going to push the matter. As the guy stole my drink and downed it, I rolled my eyes and glanced around the bar. A woman at the far end seemed to only have eyes for the angel, and I doubted he was oblivious to it. Which meant he was keeping my sorry ass company out of pity probably. “Instead of stealing ‘my’ drinks, how bout you go buy that pretty young thing one?” I encouraged, nudging him in that direction and hoping he’d take the not so subtle hint. Glancing to the bartender, I signalled for a replacement of the one I’d just lost. I was already starting to feel warmer and detached from reality. A few more and maybe I’d think I was in another reality. “S’fine. Go. Get your drink on n’ dance or whatever you feathered bastards do, n’ I’ll see you when you’re done,” I murmured, managing a smile that was close to real and close to something I’d give someone as intriguing as Adrian was. Finally, he seemed to take my directive seriously. Or the brunette had signalled him somehow of her intentions. Either way, I found myself alone at the bar, blissfully, the only thing to occupy my time the number of shots I could do in an hour or before my vampiric liver failed. Was that even possible? Well, I was probably gonna find out. Adrian: [My gaze followed he trainee’s for a brief second, the brunette flashing her pretty smile, tipping her fresh drink to pink stained lips. Damn.. Dilema, dilema. Not that there was any danger in leaving the trainee at the bar to nurse what was painfully obvious a heartbreak of some sort, but if the male needed something more, I wasn’t sure I could give it to him. I had the ability to take away physical pain when I wanted to. But heartbreak and other “matters of the heart”? That was of free will, and only He could deal with that on the kind of level no one else had access to. Glancing back at the trainee, I told myself he’d be fine. No bad guys would hang out in the same place the Brotherhood frequents, so things should work out to be lowkey. And a few more drinks and the male likely be numb enough to find his own company for the rest of the night. Maybe that’d take away some of the pain the poor bastard was feeling. One could only hope, for his sake.] Hold the bar down for me, yeah? [Clapping the male on the shoulder, I turned a grin and wink toward the brunette and sauntered over to introduce myself. The music was some off the wall beat, loud enough to burst an eardrum or two. So getting close enough to whisper in the brunette’s ear was just the excuse I needed. Dark brown eyes under long natural lashes did the up-and-down the closer I got, her pink lips parting from the glass’s rim to deliver a sultry smile. I tipped a blind eye to the barkeep and smiled slowly, focusing on the brunette.] Another drink for the lady. “Isabelle.” [She set her near empty glass on the counter, the guy behind the counter whisking it away and replacing it with a freshie. Not one for small talk, or talking of any kind when I was in this kind of ‘mood’, bright eyes homed in on hers as I leaned in to stage whisper in her ear with a disarming smile of my own.] Wanna find a private corner and share that drink, Isabelle? [She didn’t bat an eye but instead grabbed my hand and pulled, leading me to that private corner, drink in her free hand. Casting a quick glance back at the trainee, he seemed content to sit there and drown his misery one shot at a time and I was about to do something similar with the female towing me to a dark, no-so-private space. Everyone had their demons they needed to escape and I was only pushing mine back for a slight reprieve.] Grahve: Odd sensation, to be both disappointed and pleased by someone’s absence, but that was what I was feeling as I glanced to the side and saw the woman tow the angel away. At least one of us was going to have a good night. Looking to my drinks, I breathed through the impulse to demand some sort of intravenous method of delivery and settled for throwing another one back. There was no burn anymore; the liquor slid across my tongue and down my throat with the promise that I’d hate myself later. Ha, like I didn’t hate myself ‘now’. A woman appeared at my side, leaning onto the bar so that it supported her ample cleavage and shooting me a sideways grin. “Cute guy like you drinking alone?” “Do you see anyone else here?” She faltered at that. And yeah, as far as prickish responses go, it was probably a decent rating. Still, gotta give her credit. She rallied. “So I could drink with you?” Scribe, I /so/ did not want to do this dance. Earlier, with Crhis, this kind of foreplay was part of the game, but I wasn’t playing now. “Listen, sweetheart, I’m kind of here to drink myself to death or, at the very least, toe the line of alcohol poisoning, and I really don’t want company for that. So if you could just… I dunno, find someone far more accommodating than me, that’d be great.” The bartender arrived with her and drink, and to compensate for being a prick I waved at him. “Her drink’s on me.” I then pushed it toward her, taking in the surprised expression with no small amount of irony. Liquor with no ‘payment’ required. Wtf? After a moment’s hesitation, she murmured a thank you and slipped away, no doubt (and hopefully) to tell her friends to avoid me. Yay! “Did you just pay for her to stay away from you?” The tender was eyeing me as I looked up, apparently amused by the extent I was willing to go to. I shrugged and looked at the empty spot beside me. “Worked didn’t it?” He laughed and set down a fresh set of shots. “Those are on me buddy.” “Bless your cotton socks.” Lash: [To say my plan had worked with little issues would be bragging. So fuck yeah. On reliable sourcing, I learned the Brotherhood had been on lockdown. But not so much so that I didn’t make good on my chance to do a little face-to-face with the Queen before ghosting. Just a little tease to let them know I was still around. In case Wrath got too comfortable with my lack of physical presence. Now to move on and see how much more damage I could do. Which was working my way through the crowd at Zero Sum. How I got in was as easy as just walking past the human security idiots Xhex had stationed at the door. Dressed in leathers (taking a cue from the Brotherhood after my short stint with the fuckers) and being a good head taller than most of the rats in the place, I scanned the floor for the one who made my dead heart thump wildly even though I knew she’d not be inside the club. No, I’d sent in a couple of my Lessers earlier to create a distraction, which worked like a charm. I watched the dead fuckers seal their fates when they walked in the door and not so many minutes later burst back out with Xhex hot on their heels. Just as I predicted it would go. Now stalking a new prey, but what to find? I didn’t go for the rats without tails. They broke far too quickly, too easily to be of any fun at all. I was looking for one of the Brothers, one of the trainees, or better yet, one of their shellans; though doubtful one of their females would be in the club without a small army surrounding her at all times. My presence earned a few looks, mostly from the female rats, who, in turn, tried to throw themselves at me by way of rubbing their bodies against me as I stalked the place end to end. I was quickly becoming bored, nothing of the Brotherhood stood out. No males dressed in black leather hiding an armament fit to fend off a small nation. Growling low in frustration, I turned to leave, maybe I would be taking a few females with me just for the pure fuckery of leaving a trail of dead bodies because I was getting pissed when a scent caught my attention. Immediately all thoughts of taking off with rats left my mind as I whipped around slowly, scanning the place again. Looking to place the scent to a beating heart that felt familiar. Breathing deeply, I tasted the air. I /knew/ that scent, well, part of it. It was mixed heavily with others. But the one I could definitely pick out was one I hungered to hurt deeply before outright killing him. That male’s torture would be long and slow and have him begging for the Fade. Lifting my head a little, I honed in on where the scent was coming from, pushing aside the rats that were in my way and slowly tracked a male at the bar. He wasn’t as built as a Brother, but I had no doubt he was just as lethal. And that he didn’t immediately hit on my own scent told me a little story: this male had /no fucking idea/ who I was. But I knew /he/ had some kind of tie to another trainee and… inhaling another deep lungful, I grinned darkly.. to the mismatched fucker Qhuinn Lohstrong. Jackpot, baby.] #SL #NoFeelings Part 1 #BondedBrothers Co-written @ToTheGrahve @OffKeyDeviant @Son_OfThe_Omega

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