<span style='color:red'>Oh, I don't know. Everything and nothing. The stuff I need to be thinking about, but not what I want to.</span> He laid his head down on the bar, the side it was on allowing him to observe Leah. <span style='color:red'>Why're you grinning like that?</span> He quirked an eyebrow, almost a little worried about what she was going to say.
She shook her head, the smile receeding just a little bit. <span style='color:purple'>No real reason,</span> Then more quietly added; <span style='color:purple'>None at all.</span> In actuallity she'd been thinking about prying a bit, though she might have gotten caught -not that she really cared at the moment. She reached out a hand and layed it gently alond the exposed side of Korif's face, stroking the fur in the right direction with her thumb, her smile softening.
Korif smiled, Leah's touch proving to be more comforting than usual. <span style='color:red'>Sorry about this. It's just all the organising an' crap brings me down. I don't like having to move on... especially when I'm so attached to someone.</span> He nearly said it, but it might have come off as odd. He sighed and put his hand on top of hers.
Leah understood not liking to move out and on and the whole organising bit. His thought however, that caught her. She moved off of her stool so she was standing next to Korif, using her other hand to bring his head up. She moved her hand out from underneath his and hugged him, resting her head on his shoulder. <span style='color:purple'>If it means that much to you, I'll come.</span> She whispered.
<span style='color:red'>No... no, I can't ask that of you. My life is a strictly solitary one. I can only afford valuable friends to move with me... not those I care about like this. I'm sorry, Leah...</span> Korif returned the hug. He didn't want to let go, but he knew he'd have to leave soon, start making arrangements for hideout number 64. It was only just then that Korif realised he hadn't been getting any trouble from the local gangs- oh, crap. He pulled away and looked Leah in the eye. <span style='color:red'>We have to go, now.</span> He picked up his absinthe, screwed on the cap, stuffed it in his pocket and pulled Leah out through the back door.
She was minorly upset that she couldn't go with Korif to where ever his new hideout would be. <span style='color:purple'>But I can still visit, yeah?</span> She asked. Leah sensed something was wrong before he pulled away. He pulled her out of the bar and down a back alley. <span style='color:purple'>{What's going on?}</span> She thought to him, getting the idea that silence was better at the moment. <span style='width:100%;font-weight:bold; font-size:10px'>Out of Character</span> <table class='ooc'><tr><td>Sorry if the replies are slow, I'm in New Hampshire for a friends Bat Mitzvah.</td></tr></table>
<span style='color:red'>Of course you can.</span> The sound of gunfire and shattering glass echoed down the alley, followed by death screams. <span style='color:red'>You realise that we hadn't seen them for a bit, too?</span> Korif was looking back and forth worriedly, hoping that the gangs hadn't seen them make an escape. <span style='color:red'>Call it a sort of 'vendetta sixth sense' or something. I had a feeling that we'd be attacked tonight. Well, maybe they weren't expecting you to be around again, I dunno.</span>
Leah smelled blood rather than hearing the screams. Sure they were there, but more towards the back of her mind, but the blood... <span style='color:purple'>Survival first, blood later.</span> She muttered to herself, forcing her regular senses to come in and shield her. <span style='color:purple'>If you don't mind being manhandled for a minute.</span> She said, grabbing both of Korif's arms and hoisting him into the air with some of that other worldly strength. She flew them over about two block to the top of another building, her aura providing a decent enough cover-up, sure bullets were being fired up at them, but once you got past that you were good.
<span style='color:red'>Another reason I like you.</span> Korif winked with a grin as he jumped down from the rooftop. <span style='color:red'>C'mon, we need to get back to V's.</span> Korif had already started on as he spoke. He'd hoped neither of them were spotted on the way back, as Viriathos went a little OTT went it came to killing something. It was turning out to be a most eventful night, full of learning and exercise. Leah's profession, the fact that gangsters don't just go away... all of this would obviously help later on. Or at least some of it.
Leah dropped to the ground from the rooftop with a light 'thump' but was quickly up and running, following closely behind Korif with her wings furled in tightly. Now where the hell was V's place again? She wracked her brain, tracking how she had come to the district. Dammit she could do better than this. <span style='color:purple'>This way!</span> she said, pulling Korif down a side ally that was the beginning of quite literally a maze that went through the district and finally out of it.
<span style='color:red'>Er... right... V's...</span> Korif looked around. He'd been around here a few times, but he wasn't terribly familiar with the area. He sighed, ran a hand through his hair, and tried to think. <span style='color:red'>Geez... any ideas, Leah?</span> He was a little anxious, now. He needed to get back, and he had a feeling that the sun would be up soon.
<span style='color:purple'>Yes, go through the maze, as the Vamps call it, the way I came from V's and if the sun starts to come up we go into one of the buildings 'cos they're all abandoned so i don't have to worry about any more burns and if there's another Vamp we either let them know we're friendly or we kill them.</span> She sai, matter-of-factly. She kind of felt sorry for Korif, being dragged into the maze and knowing nothing about it or where it went -or could go. Though she had a few more important issues in her head. She threw out a small amount of power, forcing her aura to grow larger and see if there were any other Vamps about. A few in one of the buildings, some just spread out, and... <span style='color:purple'>Shit.</span>
<span style='color:red'>What?</span> Korif had the instinct of Leah's 'shit', or any other curse, to be bad. He'd spotted dangerous situations before, but he knew that Leah's instincts were much more improved than his. Oh, how he sometimes envied the Vampdragons. He looked around, and realised that there may be more Vamps there than he had hoped.
<span style='color:purple'>Okay, politics again. So we've got some resident Vamps that aren't the same general line as myself and Jean's Vamps. The arrangement if I remember right is we feed off their desires and lusts, they protect us, we give them some place to stay and food if you will.</span> Leah explained, still running. <span style='color:purple'>The fledglings and some of the really old ones don't like us much, and just about all of Jean's Vamps younger than two centuries hate them to no end. Don't ask why I don't know. So their waging a civil war amongst themselves. Meanwhile our Vamps are disappearing and our residents demand more of this and that.</span> Leah slowed her pace a bit, mostly for Korif's sake, they were running pretty far and there were enough turns to make anyone dizzy. She was also quite afraid of losing him, and she needed to keep herself in check otherwise they were both screwed. <span style='color:purple'>So they're not going to care that I'm older than they could ever hope to be and they're going to smell your blood because let's face it, you're tasty. And they'd over power us in no time, even I wouldn't arm-wresle with them and my line can bench press a car or two. And there happens to be a flock of them about, oh... a half a city block away from us.</span> She said. She looked up at the sky, in the east it was becoming a light shade of purple. She grabbed Korif's shoulders and lifted him back up into the air. <span style='color:purple'>{Here's to hoping this works}</span> She thought to him, looking down momentarily.
<span style='color:red'>My god, you people worry me, sometimes.</span> <span style='color:blue'>'Ey, mon. 'Ow ya doin'. I see where ya be, an' just t'ought ye might like ta know. Dem vampires ackchally be more like a t'ird of a city block awey.</span> Viriathos' voice popped into Korif's right ear. It confused the thief, but nonetheless, he was grateful for a more familiar voice. <span style='color:red'>Shit. Er, Leah? Those vamps're a lot closer than you actually thought, maybe hoped. V says a third of a block.</span> Korif knew he was going to get a more dangerous-than-healthy stretch of the legs once they touched down. <span style='color:red'>And will you stop stealing my party trick, dammit!</span>
Leah wasn't sure how V knew just hom much closer the other Vamps were, and she had no idea as to what Korif meant by his last comment. She flew them higher and headed in an almost straight line for V's. Thank god V was in the area specifically labeled off-limits due to most of the folks that lived there and their 'willingness' to use their skills to aid most of the creatures that lived around them. <span style='color:purple'>Okay, I'm going to half drop you and then we're both going to run to his place which'll be about not even a block. Just relay him that so the door is open.</span> She said to Korif. As an extra -though slightly draining- precaution Leah sent a 'cloud' of concentraited power in the general area behind them, hopefully misleading the other Vamps, she just wasn't sure how well it would work.
<span style='color:red'>Alright. Er, V?</span> <span style='color:blue'>Aye, mon.</span> <span style='color:red'>We're on our way. We need the door open once we're a few yards away.</span> <span style='color:blue'>A'right, blud. Keep me posted if sumtin' 'appens to ye.</span> A small click of static signalled that Viriathos had outed from the channel, but was still listening, for security. <span style='color:red'>Whenever you're ready, gal!</span> Korif braced himself to roll when he hit the deck, else the landing might've smarted slightly more than just a little.
Leah waited, swooping in a little closer to the road V was on. <span style='color:purple'>You'd better run damn fast.</span> She said, before letting go of Korif. She dropped him and had barely enough time to land and pick herself up so she could run down the street. She kept herself in step with Korif, some of it for his safety, the other bit because she wasn't sure of the exact place V was in, she knew it was the right road, but that was it.
After hitting the ground, Korif half-rolled and shot forward in a sort of dive-to-run, leaving him dashing a few yards with his top half nigh on vertical. He could see Viriathos' door a couple of yards away, and he was going to make it. He was. <span style='color:red'>Leah, for the love of god, hurry up... make it...</span> Korif was desperately hissing to himself in his head. The door opened and he threw himself inside, landing on the carpet and the door slamming behind him, the locks shutting themselves. He sat up against the wall in the hallway and waited, occasionally looking at the door.
Leah watched Korif launch himself into V's house, but she was going slower than she had thought she would, she could have sworn trying to throw off the other Vamps wouldn't take that much power. She leapt up, using her wings to get her to the roof. She landed and walked about, looking for some way to get in. The Vamps couldn't hurt V and Korif, but they could sure as hell try to kill her. <span style='color:purple'>{You guys got some kind of chimney or something?}</span> She thought to Korif, oddly calmed.
