<span style='color:red'>Fair enough. I've dealt with plenty of people like that in my time. Geez, that makes me sound old...</span> He'd finally found something that looked half decent. A red shirt, one white stripe running down either sleeve and a '10' on the back, and a baggy pair of combats. He threw the clothes on and kicked his boots on. <span style='color:red'>So, this Jaz... what is she and how old? Just out of curiosity, of course.</span> he looked up at Leah as he tied his bootlaces.
<span style='color:purple'>No, you sound sane, there's a difference.</span> She said. Turning back around she began to root through a dark wood jewelry box with elegant silver vines of ivy set into it. She opened the small drawers one after the other, flicking them closed when she saw that they did not contain what she was looking for. She finally pulled out a necklace with a thin chain that looked almost too small to fit around her neck. A thirteen pointed star hung from the chain, in the center of it was a small mauve colored stone. Jaz would be proud that she had yet to lose the necklace. <span style='color:purple'>Jaz is 18, but she seems to know enough to put the library out of buisness, she's a Pendragon, comes from a fairly rich family and is in a good position to be shunned.</span> Leah said. She clasped the necklace in the back with some difficulty then sat at the foot of the bed. <span style='color:purple'>Did I mention that she's got an insane capability for empathy?</span> She asked.
<span style='color:red'>Nope. Doesn't matter, I've dealt with plenty of empaths, too. The local crime lords seem to think it's good practice to have an empath or two at their side... eejits.</span> Korif smirked. <span style='color:red'>'Dragon, huh? She'll probably look at me as some sort of rarity, what with the whole disease and everything way back when...</span> Korif rolled the shirt's sleeves just below his elbow and sighed. <span style='color:red'>All I can say is that she'd better not give me any cheek or grief. I don't deal well with folks that aggravate me.</span>
<span style='color:purple'>Oh I don't think you've met one like Jaz. The girl can't touch anyone or she'll 'take' their emotion and/or personality, always has music on too so she doesn't have to pay attention to the emotions around her.</span> Leah said. On the rarity part she shrugged, Jaz wasn't fazed by much. She'd probably take one look at Korif -nonplused- and then just keep on talking. <span style='color:purple'>Well y'see. The thing is, she's going to talk and act like you're not there and can't hear or see her. So just be prepared to hear some pretty whack stuff.</span> She said, leaving the room and collecting her keys from the table near the door.
<span style='color:red'>Take it you've not met Viriathos, then?</span> Korif sniggered as he followed Leah out. Out of boredom, the Anuban decided he'd start clicking the tips of the pauldron's fingers on the palm. When he did so, he was met with a quiet thump. He looked down and the handpiece of the pauldron was gone, replaced by a right-handed clone of his left. <span style='color:red'>Uh... what...?</span> Korif was suitably dumbfounded. The rest of the armguard was there, but the handguard was not. <span style='width:100%;font-weight:bold; font-size:10px'>Out of Character</span> <table class='ooc'><tr><td>Wanted to get rid of the hand bit for ages X3 A metal hand, complete with claws, using a gun just doesn't seem to go XP</td></tr></table>
<span style='color:purple'>Unless he was the guy outside my window this morning, nope, only heard him. But he doesn't seem that bad, Jaz now... You'll see, you'll see and wonder how the hell she's still alive.</span> Leah said, opening Jaz's door with out knocking. <span style='color:blue'>What was that for?</span> The thill asked, her voice cold as always. <span style='color:purple'>Just returning the favor.</span> Jaz nodded, she wasn't convinced. Leah motioned for Korif to find some place to sit, she knew Jaz wasn't about to ask them to come in. Leah heard soft music, not that it was pleasent at the time, the sounds of crashing chords, a heavy drum beat and some 'dragon wailing lyrics she couldn't understand. <span style='color:blue'>You have to go to work tonight, the manage called, says you've skipped the last few nights and don't bother telling him you were sick, you work in the Vamp district, vamps don't get sick, this is what you get for working with your people.</span> Jaz said, still running her paws over whatever was on the table. <span style='color:purple'>I don't want to go to work. What's the worst he could do? Fire me? I've got enough money to tide me until i get another job.</span> Jaz picked her head up and sniffed the air. <span style='color:blue'>What's this? Does Jean-Claude's star dancer have moral issues now? Don't tell me that the arden over there got you to have morals.</span> <span style='color:purple'>No, it's just-</span> <span style='color:blue'>You've been sleeping with the Anubis, not screwing him, but you've been sharing your bed.</span> Jaz said. Leah hated it when Jaz was that blunt. <span style='color:purple'>We just want to know about the stuff I dropped off here a while ago.</span> She said. <span style='color:blue'>Got the books?</span> Leah rolled her eyes and then gave both Jaz and Korif the one minute signal and dashed off back to her flat, she picked up two large volumes bound in leather, their pages yellowing. She came back to Jaz's apartment and nearly slammed them on the table. <span style='color:purple'>Okay, there. Now those items.</span> <span style='color:blue'>Okay, which thing first?</span>
Korif sat down, leant against the sofa. <span style='color:red'>The plant. I ain't smelled crap like that in my time, and I've been dealing with narcotics for a long time...</span> He looked at Leah. <span style='color:red'>... 'nother story for another day.</span> The remark Jaz made about the two of them made him snarl a little under his breath, but he managed to control himself enough not to rip out her jugular.
Leah picked up Korif's snarl, almost sure Jaz had as well, if she hadn't heard it she'd certainly felt it. Leah was almost tempted to try and lace his mind with calm 'threads', in the end however she felt it would not be appreciated and settled on thinking to him. <span style='color:purple'>{Shh... I told you that you would wonder at why she wasn't dead yet, but for the moment, just try and get used to her bluntness, even though at some points it may be hard to distinguish weither she's being blunt or just plain cruel.}</span> Jaz got up and left the room momentarily before coming back with the plant. She had put it in what appeared to be a glass case, although knowing Jaz, it was probably something much more expensive and much more illeagal than a glass case. She set it on the glass table next to the books. Picking up the black one, the thicker of the two volumes by far, she thumbed through it. <span style='color:blue'>Your diary and Em's are quite valuable, you know that? Her's reaches back quite far, but yours... 8000 plus years of memories, including information of this 'earth' no one seems to know anything about.</span> Jaz muttered, flipping through the pages obviously looking for something. <span style='color:purple'>Not so much on the place, just a few samples, they're dead now though.</span> <span style='color:blue'>Here we go.</span> Jaz said, leafing through several pages towards the beginning of the book, all with elaborate drawings and a few samples. <span style='color:blue'>This is what you guys picked up, a hybrid synthetic mix of cocain, meth, and speed all encased inside a recreated corpse flower. The noxious smell draws you to it, while the cocain dampens your sense of smell, the speed makes you react faster and the meth sickens you. An ingenius biotechnological feat i assure you, but what i would do in your position is burn the damn thing until it's only ash and then scoop up the ash and shove it in some kind of safe then bury that in the desert or something.</span> She said. <span style='color:purple'>I knew that smell was familiar.</span> Leah said. Leah turned to Korif, then back to the plant. The flower was hideous, sure it was colored interestingly, but still... and the fact that it was filled with drugs to give it a killing effect. <span style='color:purple'>It ain't gonna kill me, but Korif, do you feel alright?</span> She asked, he was probably fine, but damn, the plant was now scaring her. <span style='width:100%;font-weight:bold; font-size:10px'>Out of Character</span> <table class='ooc'><tr><td>Corpse flowers actually smell like corpses and they're fairly large. And they're rather ugly flowers.</td></tr></table>
<span style='color:red'>Fine, fine. The damn thing's got the most intriguing whiff, though... Sorry, it's just even though I've seen and talked to her type before, she's amazingly relentless in just spouting it...</span> Korif rubbed his right temple. The strength of the scent was starting to make his head throb, and it was seriously starting to annoy him. If he had to duck out for a while, he wanted to know something that had been bugging him since Jaz said it. <span style='color:red'>Earth? As in the actual Earth? What, you been or you just documented?</span>
<span style='color:purple'>It smells like a pile of dead bodies, you wanna smell those check out the old site of the Circus of the Damned. Plenty of corpses still there, I'm convinced they're waiting for necrofiliacs to come steal the bodies.</span> Leah muttered. The set up had really been just some kind of perverted freak show, now it had moved and the acts that weren't getting money had been slaughtered. It gave a whole new meaning to the name. <span style='color:blue'>Naw, that place smells worse than this thing. It smells like-</span> <span style='color:purple'>Spare us.</span> She said, cutting her off. <span style='color:purple'>{She thinks out loud, seeing as how our emotions are a little too much noise for that brain of hers.}</span> Leah thought back to him. <span style='color:purple'>Put that fucking thing away, you're going to kill yourself and Korif.</span> Leah said, noting Jaz's slumping figure. <span style='color:blue'>He has a name now? You usually don't pay attentions to things like that on the beings you want to screw. Tell me... Korif... would you sleep with her, she's a corpse after all, she's dead, it's not like her heart beats by natural means.</span> Jaz said, saying the name as though it was something evil. <span style='color:purple'>I'm undead Jaz, there's a difference.</span> <span style='color:blue'>Is there now?</span> Jaz asked before taking the plant back to where she had got it from. <span style='color:purple'>{Really truly sorry that you had to meet her... and yes, I've been the words "Rapine" and "Invasion" and "Undead" come to mind. I can't die unless they tore me limb from limb and burned the injuries so I couldn't heal myself. I worked the 'graveyard shift' let me tell you, there were signs of other life on that planted, but none of it was recognizable outside of certain creatures and plants with good defences like that flower and nettles and the like.}</span> She thought, before walking over and sitting next to him.
<span style='color:red'>Heh. Happened to do a little brushing up myself, actually. Spent some time looking over what little documentation there is on Earth vampires, clans and such. Fascinating beings, not too much different to yourself. Intrusive, are we? Trust me, I can smell it on you. Your nature of questioning goes beyond mere inquisitiveness... I couldn't say what, but the way you ask... do I sense spite? Or is this just some elaborate facade to throw the norms off? And what Leah and I do is our business. I know that's the most basic cover-up in the freaking book, but I ain't covering up shit. Plus, our 'relationship' doesn't extend thus far, so you can take your suspicions and shove them. Sorry, but I had to do that. I had to get it off my chest, plus I take an odd pleasure in winding certain folks up.</span> Korif smirked. He had an odd knack for being able to get a sort of whiff of emotions from people, be it jealousy or hate. Although, some emotions need no attempt at sensing to see them.
<span style='color:purple'>{Mhmm, They were the last to go, obvious reasoning to it. If they've got nothing worth having why bother killing them. Actually quite nice once you proved that you were dominant over them. Same with those shifters, all though in the world of S&M they would always be submissives...}</span> Leah thought, a vacant look coming over her face, she was quite clearly lost in her own memories. She heard Korif as he 'spoke' to Jaz. He was doing quite a good job, Leah could see her temper flaring, Jaz did need a good verbal beating once in a while. <span style='color:purple'>{No problem, although I think she's going to want us to lea--}</span> <span style='color:blue'>Leah, you can come back another day, but the mutt stays behind.</span> Jaz said, her indigo eyes flashing dangerously. She didn't have magic but Leah would hate to be on the other end of Jaz's 'projects.' Leah stood up and gave Jaz a dirty look. She started to walk towards the door, checking back to see if Korif was coming. She'd also hate to see him on the other end of Jaz's projects.
With a smirk and a silent chuckle, Korif got up and followed Leah to the door, flipping Jaz the finger. <span style='color:red'>Well, she's an interesting individual... and she still hasn't answered my questions... oh well.</span> With a shrug, Korif motioned for Leah to be the first one out of the door, and flashed Jaz a glare before going.
Leah closed the door behind her, smirking at Korif's actions. She folded her arms and leaned against the wall. <span style='color:purple'>Well that went over well.</span> She said sarcasitcally, although there was a grin on her face. She herself was rather pleased with the whole thing. Jaz still had the plant and Jaz would probably destroy it in only ways that she could. That rune however... <span style='color:purple'>Oh hell. We didn't ask about the rune.</span> She said, her expression changing. The rune was what had interested her most right after the plant. <span style='color:purple'>Ah well, how's breakfast sound?</span> She asked, pushing herself away from the wall.
<span style='color:red'>Aye, don't you love it when a plan comes together... sure, why not.</span> Korif started down the hallway. <span style='color:red'>I thought a little more on that rune, as a matter of fact. Turns out it was just there to look flashy. But, if you're still not convinced, I can do my best to break in tonight and grab it for you.</span> he chuckled. He flexed his newly appeared hand, still not used to it being uncovered.
Leah shook her head, walking beside Korif. <span style='color:purple'>Naw, don't bother breaking in. She wouldn't kill you persey, but in the end you'd wish you were dead. She's somewhere between a masochist and a sadist, not that there's much of a difference, but still.</span> She said, not really needing proof of the rune. She stood in the small kitchen area, looking around. <span style='color:purple'>What do you want? I'm sure Em's got something edible that she stored in the fridge, speaking of, I wonder where she's been...</span> She said, talking more to herself than anything at the end. She took the one step over to the fridge and opened it up, she took out a glass bottle filled with what at first looked like some kind of punch, but at a second glance it was a little to sinister to be punch.
<span style='color:red'>Alright. Dunno, whatever. I'm not picky, I'll eat almost anything. Learn to after being here for a while.</span> Korif gave a sort of 'Eh. Anything.' look and took a glance at the liquid in the bottle. <span style='color:red'>What... the hell is that?</span> Personally, he'd hoped it was alcohol. He'd developed a small alky problem, but he'd recovered pretty quick. Still, he needed a glsas here and there to 'help him survive', was his excuse.
<span style='color:purple'>This? This is for me, you wouldn't like it anyway and it would be a form of gross cannibalism, drinking the blood of your drunk.</span> She said, pointing to the bottle. She set it on the counter and opened the fridge once more and took out another bottle, this one had clear liquid in it. She tossed it to Korif. <span style='color:purple'>Vodka, some of the better kind, but don't say I didn't warn you, it'll burn the inside of your mouth a bit before you feel like you've drank enough.</span> She said, smirking, it was 120 proof, but hey, she wasn't drinking it.
<span style='color:red'>Hey, it's liquid, isn't it?</span> Korif unscrewed the cap and downed a few mouthfuls before setting it on the table. He could feel what she meant. It tasted quite strong, as well, which was a little unnerving. He checked the label to see- 120%?! Geez! <span style='color:red'>Alright, now that was just plain cruel.</span> he sniggered at Leah.
<span style='color:purple'>Ah, but cruel is what I do best, ma fête de sang. </span> She said, her voice now possesing that silk like quality as she used one of the not so subtle terms that was still common when she had been a fledgling. She moved past Korif and sat at the table, her manner at ease and utterly relaxed. She knew that dawn was coming, but she didn't mind, the blackout curtains were drawn. She set her bottle down, blood was warm and silken, she enjoyed it thoroughly. Of course she'd also enjoyed the bite of some regular alcohol when she'd been human, though it was more for the effect than anything. <span style='color:purple'>And don't worry, that stuff wont do too much to you. It's only 60% alcohol, if you wanted 100% there's grain alcohol in the door, next to the orange juice.</span> She said, smirking lightly.
