|| Death Is Not Always The End || Open!

[who the heck is mikey]

There's a place in the dark where the animals go,
You can take off your skin in the cannibal glow.
- - -

"Yes. That Auriana." He took in a sharp breath. Nate felt as if he could cry again. He excused himself from the room, hardly making a sound as he opened the front door to slide through.

Auri... he thought. Nate dug through his pockets, hoping to find a cigarette. He didn't normally smoke, but it was better than alcohol, and he didn't feel like getting drunk again. Nathaniel wanted to talk to her again, to try apologize again, but he knew her better than that. She wouldn't listen to him.

He sighed, and a very unfamiliar emotion rushed over him. Was this how it meant to have a broken heart? He couldn't be sure. Nate had never had a broken heart before.

After finding a lone cigarette in his pants pocket, he lit up, and wandered down the road, letting the smoke fill his lungs.

He really hated himself right now.

- - -
The sharpest lives are the d e a d l i e s t to lead.

[-SweeT OpheLiAC-]

B я a x

Brax nodded. Feeling a bit better, she talked stabler and with more accent. She didn't know why but she has a hidden English accent which almost sounds like she is really from England, even though as far as people knew, she was all American.

"Lucinda, eh?" she said slyly. "Welcome to the creep show!" she said as she made her way to a chair, gracefully falling into it. It was quiet. Too quiet. It was either because barely anyone was here or because Nate was smoking, which to Brax was seriously weird because she barely saw him do that. Glancing at him, she could just tell that he was cooling off already. She knew her bud, well, co-worker bud, and it was okay for him to be mad.
If it were Brax, well, honestly she wouldn't actually care as long he actually loved her. What was the point on loving someone who you knew but who didn't love you back? To Brax, it was pointless to love someone who didn't feel the same. But not knowing the real situation, she decided not to say anything more about it. Who knows, maybe Auri felt the same, but then again, maybe not. But it wasn't Brax's place to say so.

She threw her arms up and put it behind her head. "Well, seems like today is like a day off since no one's here." she said, trying not to refer to Trace and Auri...well...not being there.

[Writer's block. D;]

[ We're gonna ride the race cars.

We're gonna dance on fire.

We're the girls le disco.

Supersonic overdrive. ]

[icegirl6274]

Тяасэ | Ратяiс | Баяоиэ

Now you want to take me down
As if I even care.
I am the monster in your head.

http://img338.imageshack.us/img338/3527/traceroleplay.jpg

Trace didn't reply to her first question. It was more of a rhetorical one, after all. At least that was what it seemed. He had practically said straight out that he trusted her, he didn't feel the need to explain further.

He felt her fingernails as they dug into his skin. But he did nothing. He didn't even flinch. He simply stared at her from where he could, wondering when she would notice. It stung as he felt them digging underneath his skin. He closed his eyes for a moment before opening them and looking back at her. Why was she doing that? Though it didn't bother him much, he was used to pain, it intrigued him. But then it hit him. She must be so confused. He had never shown any kind of affection towards her, other than that of friends. And even Trace's form of friendship type affection wasn't very affectionate to normal people's standards. He had come there to be 'there for her' as he had said, something that Nate, he doubted, had ever gone out of his way to do. He could only imagine what was going through her head.

And then she realized what she was doing. It pulled him out of his thoughts and he looked down at his chest. 's**t, woman, you made me bleed?' he thought to himself. It wasn't so much in anger, just surprise. No wonder it stung. He looked back up to her as she came back with the towel.

"It's alright," he reassured. "It's not like I haven't had worse." He chuckled slightly before reaching out and grabbing one of her hands. "It's fine. I can dress it back at headquarters. Are you ready to go back or do you want to wait....?" His question almost seemed to hint at something....Something, but exactly what it was was difficult to tell. His eyes glinted in the small amount of light for a split second before his look went back to normal. He simply stared at Auriana and waited for her response.

And I thought you'd learn by now
It seems you haven't yet.
I am the venom in your skin.
And now your life is
в | я | о | к | е | и

[Tiara_Estella]

~*~Lucinda Fallow~*~

Lucinda nodded in response to the rhetorical question about her. She wondered how all of them had come together in this strange combination of 'co-workers'. None of them seemed compatible, it was odd. Maybe they were united in battle. There was only one way to find out, until then she would try to figure out the cobweb of drama that surrounded them.

"Two days of nothing, but being left here... Quite a day off..." she commented, stretching and getting up out of her chair.

"...I'm bored..." she said softly, "Open up if you hear a knock... I don't have a key..." she mentioned before walking out of the building. She hated being cooped up, it irked her. Even the new personage couldn't keep her in that room any longer.

"Now what?" she asked herself aloud, scanning the area. She began to walk aimlessly, wondering if she still remembered how to get out of these alleys. At one point she felt the urge to run, she let it overtake her running down the paths with a childish smile on her face. Then it hit her.

Correction she hit him. Lucinda collided with Nate and landed a few feet away from him. He rubbed her head and groaned looking up to see what she had run into. She jumped when she saw it was Nate, she stood forcing her embarrassment and shame to remain unseen. She looked uncomfortable, she had let herself enjoy it too much and wondered if he would soon take out his emotions on her.

"Sorry..."

~*~Lucinda Fallow~*~

[who the heck is mikey]

There's a place in the dark where the animals go,
You can take off your skin in the cannibal glow.
- - -

Nate was hardly surprised when someone bumped into him. He found that most of his team members were nosy. But with Lucinda, he knew that it was completely unintentional. Nathaniel had cooled off considerably by now. The tobacco had that effect.

Lucinda mumbled an apology, and he released the smoke in her face.

"I'm not going to yell at you, Lucinda," he said quietly, throwing his cigarette stub to the ground, crushing it with his boot. "I'm not that much of a ******** baby." He laughed at his own comment, followed by a heavy sigh.

His mind became jumbled with thoughts that he couldn't organize, and it was beginning to frustrate him. Nate didn't want to talk about what was going on inside of his head, but it was really starting to bug him.

- - -
The sharpest lives are the d e a d l i e s t to lead.

[-SweeT OpheLiAC-]

B я a x

Brax sighed as she turned her chair from the door, if Trace or Auriana was going inside any time now, she would make her presence a surprise. And even though she smelled heavily like alcohol, the smell of cocaine took over the room. 'Hm...I wonder how I smell like right now?' she thought hazily, the smell of the cigar filling up her lungs. Ahh...the feeling to be halfway sober. She took a whiff at her pits, which smelled like alcohol, and then of her shirt which also smelled like alcohol. "God, I smell like s**t." she mumbled as she laughed out loud and took out a little tester of French perfume from one of the pockets from the leg band she had and sprayed a right amount on. Sure, it wasn't particularly for a good cause, but it was worth it, if she was going to talk Trace down, she not only had to look half way distinguished, but smell distinguished as well. Even though Trace probably knew she was out with her usual buds, but it was worth trying to act smarter than him...she had to admit, it was fun.

'Jeez...if all of this love stuff would end soon, maybe would would real have some fun.' She turned back to the parallel wall from the door, waiting. Either for a bloodsucking parasite or Trace to come...or both. 'Heck, they're basically the same thing.'

[ We're gonna ride the race cars.

We're gonna dance on fire.

We're the girls le disco.

Supersonic overdrive. ]

[Tiara_Estella]

~*~Lucinda Fallow~*~

Lucinda patted off her clothes and stared at him, tilting her head to one side. He didn't seem to be mad anymore, at least not at anyone else... She blew the smoke out of her face, she never had a problem with smokers, she just preferred not inhaling most of the fumes.

She began to wonder if he would talk with a little prodding. Her eyes wandered behind him, remembering the task she had been given.

"Need to find a distraction?" she asked, offering to give him something to do. "I have something I need to...do... But anyone at all can do it..." she added, carefully sidestepping details.

The task was simple though trivial... Well it might have seemed strange to others, but she did as she was told.

Hopefully they would be back before the others, though she doubted that it would take long. Part of her wondered if he would enjoy the task... She mentally shook her head, no it was more likely for Trace to enjoy it. For now it was best scene as a distraction from the day's drama.

~*~Lucinda Fallow~*~

[Miss Murderous Laugh]

-- Auriana Kiasky --

Take a breath. Hold it in.
Start a fight you won't win.
All in all, you're no good.
You don't cry like you should.

You are the only exception...

Auriana fussed over Trace with the towel, though her mind was still all over the place, usually concerning Nate. She was feeling more and more like a traitor for spending so much energy and time with Trace. She concentrated on stopping the bleeding rather than trying to speak. Biting her lip, she was dabbing at one of the cuts when he grabbed her hand. Surprised, she dropped the towel and it fluttered to the floor. She stared into his eyes, realizing his strength and power in his grip. She shook herself out of the daze, managing to piece together a train of thought. "Of course... HQ has more proper materials to treat you... and you need it, Trace."

She left his gaze and his grip, picking up the towel and setting it back on a hook over the blurry mirror. Auriana caught a sight of herself quickly in the mirror and turned away in disgust. What a mess... what a heartbreaker.

"Trace..." she sighed. "I'll meet you back at HQ. There's a few things I have to take care of and, well... I need a few minutes to think." She pondered for a moment, remembering the new grunt. "It's about time, don't you think?" she asked, assuming he knew what she was referring to. She shrugged. It was his decision.

Auriana looked up at him again, which was increasingly difficult for her to do without either crying, smiling, or jumping on him. Her eyes resembling those of a doe, she leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek gingerly. She touched his hand softly as she exited, leaving a trail of mixed and confused emotion.

She left the tavern, scuffing her boots on the ground as she headed down the road towards HQ, wondering what the hell she was going to do. Trace was known for scheming and messing with people, but at the same time, couldn't he be a good guy? And Nate... what a guy. He seemed upset from what she had seen of him. And deep inside her heart, she knew that he still meant so much to her.

Auriana continued down the road, seeing ahead the fairly familiar silhouette of two people: a male and a female, one of which was smoking, as her trained and addicted nose could tell. Stopping in her tracks, she recognized the sound of a loud German voice and the whisper of the shy grunt. She almost called out to the grunt, wanting to question her on the initiation into their ranks, but she ceased for fear of calling Nate's attention. She simply stood there on the peak of the road amongst the dust she had kicked up, sparkling in the midnight glare.

...You're my number one guy.

So I'll find what lies beneath
Your sick twisted smile
As I lay underneath
Your cold jaded eyes.

[who the heck is mikey]

There's a place in the dark where the animals go,
You can take off your skin in the cannibal glow.
- - -

Nate was slightly taken aback but Lucinda's offer. She sounded strangely mysterious, but he was sure it was normal for her. Lucinda hadn't spoken much since Trace had spoken to her earlier, and so no one really knew her that well. How would they know if she was working for the Vampires? He decided he'd let Trace decide.

He was about to reply to her offer when his attention was drawn to the edge of the road. A dark figure stood there, and for a moment he contemplated what he would do if they had heard anything exchanged between him and the new grunt, but then he realized who it was.

Nathaniel couldn't begin to describe how hard it was for him to restrain himself at that moment. He'd had a pretty good hold of himself the last hour, but now that Auriana was in the same general area as he was, his emotions came over him like a tidal wave. Nate glared at her from where he stood.

He turned back to Lucinda, and said with a smug look, "I'll have to pass. I don't need any more excitement." For a moment, Nate felt proud of himself, but then realized he had to walk back in Auri's direction to go back inside. "I'll see you tomorrow, Lucinda."

Nathaniel stomped over to Auriana, stopping a few feet away from her. "You've got a lot of ******** guts."

- - -
The sharpest lives are the d e a d l i e s t to lead.

[icegirl6274]

Тяасэ | Ратяiс | Баяоиэ

Now you want to take me down
As if I even care.
I am the monster in your head.

http://img338.imageshack.us/img338/3527/traceroleplay.jpg

Trace gave Auriana a quick questioning look. He needed it? Well, he knew she worried about him, but he hardly thought he was in that bad of shape. Sure, he knew he was known for not taking care of himself, but he wasn't really hurt. He had the cuts from her fingernails and a few scrapes from his previous encounter but other than that, he was fine.

He shook it off as she continued. He nodded as she said she would meet him back at HQ. It wasn't quite what he had wanted, but it worked anyway. It gave him a chance to find the new grunt and talk to her a bit.

"See you soon, doll," he said with a smile before leaving after her. He walked down the alleys, back towards HQ. He didn't even have to think about it anymore, he just walked. He began to button his coat back up as the chill night air struck his chest, but decided against it, remembering that he was going to take care of his wounds when he got back. Or at least he was supposed to. Somehow, he doubted he would.

Trace pulled out his key before coming to the door only to find that the doorknob had been broken off. He stared at it for a moment, wondering how it would work. He pushed the door, pleased to find that it still locked despite the broken doorknob. He inserted his key and turned it until it clicked. Now....how was he going to open the door without a doorknob? He put one hand against the door and carefully stuck his fingers in the whole that had once held the doorknob. He tried to find the mechanism that opened the latch on the door. He stood there for a few minutes, trying to reach, grab, turn, whatever the thing inside the door. Finally, the door gave way under his weight and he had to place his foot down firmly to keep himself from falling inside. Regaining his composure quickly, he pocketed his key again and walked inside.

He was surprised to find Brax there. It was just her and Dasha. No Lucinda. No Nate. Well, as far as he knew Nate could be in his office. But where was the new grunt? Shaking aside the thought for the moment, he looked to Brax.
"It's nice of you to join us," he stated, rather monotonously. It was difficult to say from his tone or face whether he was angry, glad, or anything in between. He just stared at her, emotion wiped clean off his face.

"Welcome back," Dasha said, rather dryly. She seemed rather bored.

And I thought you'd learn by now
It seems you haven't yet.
I am the venom in your skin.
And now your life is
в | я | о | к | е | и

[Miss Murderous Laugh]

-- Auriana Kiasky --

Take a breath. Hold it in.
Start a fight you won't win.
All in all, you're no good.
You don't cry like you should.

Thought that I heard you laughing...

Auriana looked him up and down. Not too shabby. At least he hadn't gone and punched a wall, though she noticed he did seem, well... a little rugged like something went wrong and broke.

"Yeah. I guess I do," she said, maintaining a straight enough face to look him in the eye. She had to resist the tears, but also the growl of a scream boiling inside her and an urge to run. "But, I mean. What was I to do? Stay cooped up in a room for the rest of my life? Though I'd bet you wouldn't give two shits if I did."

Auriana kept her flat tone through her words, though her voice was still slightly shaky. I thought I could do this... I thought that I would be strong enough to close my emotions. But no. She bit her lip as thoughts passed through her head.

I am weak.

She looked away from Nate, walking unsteadily a few feet passed him. Auriana looked up and whispered to the stars. "I wish that some night creature would steal my blood, if only my heart was strong enough to move it."

Consider... the lengths that I would go through.

So I'll find what lies beneath
Your sick twisted smile
As I lay underneath
Your cold jaded eyes.

[who the heck is mikey]

There's a place in the dark where the animals go,
You can take off your skin in the cannibal glow.
- - -

Nathaniel grabbed her wrist before she could go too far. Pulling her back in front of him, he looked at her in the eyes, and said, "You honestly believe that I don't care about you? What kind of world do you live in, Auriana?"

He knew that he could eventually come to a point where he would fall apart, and he was desperately hoping that tonight was not it. His voice shook when he spoke to her. Nate was never nervous. It was all completely new to him.

- - -
The sharpest lives are the d e a d l i e s t to lead.

[Miss Murderous Laugh]

-- Auriana Kiasky --

Take a breath. Hold it in.
Start a fight you won't win.
All in all, you're no good.
You don't cry like you should.

Ransom notes keep falling out your mouth...

Auriana struggled, then desisted and whimpered. "How can you? she cried. "I live in a world where every day there's a new girl on your hip and the same smirk on your face! Why would I be any ******** different?!"

None of her fellow hunters had ever seen her this upset. She was usually a very put-together, sarcastic woman. What the hell had these past two days done to her?

Auriana flexed her hand, trying to pull free from Nate. "Let me go, Nathaniel!" she whimpered, traces of fear and sadness falling over her features. This was the first time she had used his real name in weeks. It was said not in despair, nor in rage or frustration. It was almost like a plead. She too was close to her breaking point. Her mind was screaming at her that she couldn't do this, that this was going to break her.

... Amid sweet talk, newspaper word cut-outs speak no feeling.

So I'll find what lies beneath
Your sick twisted smile
As I lay underneath
Your cold jaded eyes.

[-SweeT OpheLiAC-]

B я a x

Brax frowned at Trace. It was about time. All of this and Brax could have still had a few drinks with her friends. And even though she wasn't in the mood for having a hangover, it would be worth it. She was there for about ten minutes ago and she still didn't have anything to do. It was frustrating. And she hated feeling lazy when she wasn't drunk. She was usually hyper without ten or fifteen minutes. Which in her perspective was forever. Crossing her arms, she moved no more. One of her eye was hiding under her red hair.

"So..." she kept her frown frozen on her face, not another muscle moving from her body. "What up? What's happenin'?" she said as she emphasized 'happenin'. As it was explained before, she had an accent and taking charge of the American accent was just too fun. Her green eyes stared him down and, well, to most people, it made them quite uncomfortable, as for Trace...well, she didn't know yet.

[ We're gonna ride the race cars.

We're gonna dance on fire.

We're the girls le disco.

Supersonic overdrive. ]

[icegirl6274]

Тяасэ | Ратяiс | Баяоиэ

Now you want to take me down
As if I even care.
I am the monster in your head.

http://img338.imageshack.us/img338/3527/traceroleplay.jpg

Trace just stared at Brax. He gave no sign of emotion on his face still. He was rather good at masking emotion. Though, still, he didn't have much emotional response to her question. It was a simple question, though he could have easily made it more complex. He could answer with a long explanation about what he had just done with Auriana and even before that, but, in stead, he simply said, "Just getting back myself after some business."

He gave a slight shrug, still simply staring at her. "So...you've been gone all day. I hope that means you found some useful information?" There was a hint of expectation in his voice as he raised an eyebrow. He crossed his arms across his chest. He wasn't the toughest boss, but every now and then he would crack down on laziness. They would never get anything done if he didn't.

He heard a bit of a commotion from just outside the door, but he refused to look. He knew it was Auriana and probably Nate. They were probably arguing...again. And neither of them probably wanted to draw any attention to themselves. Though they were doing a bloody good job of it....

And I thought you'd learn by now
It seems you haven't yet.
I am the venom in your skin.
And now your life is
в | я | о | к | е | и