take me back to the start

Andrew knew he had in a bad mood a lot lately. It wasn't how he normally acted, but he could sense the nerves in town, and it had been affecting him. "Don't know about renegade, just a street kid who needed to survive and liked some fun. " He nodded his head, not a life he had even an idea about. But it sounded nice enough. "Maybe when we get out of here, you can find it again."

"However you wanna spin it," Dave smiled. It was a good sign, objectively speaking, that the cracks were starting to show. The Resistance had been half destroyed last November, but they would rebuild. Dave knew that. The more time passed, the more something had to give. He could see a lot of things more clearly now, he just didn't feel anything about them. "Yeah, maybe. I mean, when this is over... I can finally get back to being myself again. I guess it'll be worth the wait."

Was David Perry trying to pay her a compliment? Blair wasn't sure how she felt about that. Actually, she was pretty sure she knew how she felt about it, and the answer was extremely flustered (she wasn't great at compliments at the best of times, and this was far from the best of times). "Are there? I'm not exactly an expert at fashion," she managed. "As sharp as my wit is, thank you very much, I do have more than that to protect me. It's just, you know, in my bag."

Dave let out a dry laugh at her words, an almost teasing smile on his lips as they walked. She was just so... What? Human? This town had become more and more dangerous over the years, Dave knew that first hand. He might not have cared now, but he had. So much, he had. "In your bag. Right-," okay, maybe he definitely was teasing her. They had kept walking with no further incident. Although, he was so sure she could handle herself. Once she'd gotten in her bag. "Take care of yourself, Blair."

Sabrina shrugged at his comment. She definitely got that. "Sounds like this town doesn't have too much fun in it." She wasn't in town for fun, but she wanted to blend in and get a lay of the land. "Trying to get acquainted, plus I need a drink."

"Not so much," he added. A slight smile tugged at his lips at her answer, turning more to face her. "Well, that much we can do. I'm Dave-," he started with a little two finger salute- "Not a good guy, not a bad guy. Definitely not here to dance."

Evelyn had been staring blankly ahead of her as she waited for the drink she had ordered, completely unaware of when it was finally placed in front of her. She used to like coming to bars and going to parties–for the longest time after Mark died, it was the only thing that could numb her pain; ironically, she was now using alcohol to try and feel anything. "What?" Her attention turned to Dave before quickly dropping to the whisky. "Was planning to. Need a hand ordering your own?"

"Just checking in," he said, letting out a sigh. It was true what they said... apathy loved company. He canted his head, looking from her and back to his own blood-laced, untouched, drink. "Nah, my roster is still full." Dave could have sat there in silence with her for the rest of the night, the music pounding around them. There was so much life in here, and Dave couldn't feel a damn thing about it. "Where's your beloved tonight?"

Will's hand clasped around his drink so quickly he almost sent it flying off the bar. "You even think about touching my drink, say goodbye to your fingers." As per usual, he threw a glare at Dave before looking around for literally anyone else to talk to.

Dave scoffed a quiet laugh at Will's immediate death grip on his drink. Before, Will had been public enemy number one. Now, he was just annoying. Amusing, though. "Touchy today, aren't we? What, has Piper not told you what a 'good boy' you are yet?"

Wendy turned her attention away from her fruity little cocktail and sent Dave her most charming smile. "You really want my French Martini?" Her head tilted inquisitively to one side, strategically exposing her neck to him. "Is that all you'd like to drink?"

Wendy Star was probably the most ambitious, cutthroat, human he had ever known. Some people sink, some people swim and Wendy Star was using them both to climb to the surface. Damn, she was charming though... He raised an eyebrow at her and that neck. "Why, do you have another recommendation?"

Julian didn't spend much time at Cal's, not since the dome. He spent most of his time between the pack and underground. It had been a while since he had taken the time to just enjoy himself. He hadn't paid attention to who else was around; he had just wanted a beer. But he was interrupted by Dave. The universe had to be messing with him.

Dave had noticed Julian from the moment he'd walked into Cal's, how could he not? The details of that November night hadn't exactly made headlines. As far as Julian was concerned, one minute Dave was Dave and the next... Well. He was this. Looking at Julian now, so close and yet so terribly far, he felt something deep inside him stir. But he squashed it back down, he had to.

If they weren't trapped in a powder keg with a bunch of evil supernatural creatures, maybe Julian wouldn't be playing so coy. But he had a lot on his mind all the time. These little moments with Dave were welcomed. Part of why he held back was trying not to ruin whatever this was between them. "Not sure how much good money is doing in here, but I wouldn't say no. If you want to see me shirtless, you just have to ask."

"With great powers comes great responsibility," Dave grinned, wondering what else Julian might do if he 'just asked'. He leaned forward, watching him as he pulled out a bottle of tequila from the freezer. Always full of surprises, huh? Dave had always been easy breezy, but even he needed a minute to team up with quite so many werewolves. Now, he wouldn't have it any other way.

"Thank you." Meghan smiled as she thumbed her way through the next box of records. She was just trying to kill some time, but Dave was now taking some of her attention. "Can't we all use more drama here. It is, but they aren't here right now."

Dave closed the distance between them, a smirk tugging onto his lips as he looked over at her. "If we could die, it would be of boredom." There was something to be said about haunting your hometown and all the old places you used to care about. "Don't tell me you're going soft?"

It had been years since Faith had seen Havensdale in daylight. She was somewhat surprised to find that much of it looked the same, just run down by time and emptiness. The evil powers that be had left their marks, sure, but her house was still there, begging for her mother to tend to the planting beds. That wouldn't be happening any time soon. It might never happen.

Dave had been with the Resistance from the beginning so he'd spent a lot of time around Faith Hunter. There weren't a lot of places to run or hide down there, you know? One rule had been clear, of course. Faith was not allowed to be topside. Not with Piper roaming around with eyes only for her and yet, here she was. Well, she wasn't alone, at least. No Danny, he noted, but the subtle-ish presence of the usual suspects would be probably be enough.

"Says the vampire. Thought it would be natural for you." Meghan liked this game; the teasing was fun. One of the few fun things she still found in this town. "Bored, but we can call it nostalgia if you want to, though."

"Says the vampire," he repeated, glancing over to her again. What was it about having your humanity off that made you crave danger? Or maybe that was just Dave. "It does give it a little more drama. Isn't this your parents' place?"

"One of those would be easier to find right now." Julian hated how easy it was for them to play like this, mostly because he found it comforting. It was making him soft, and Julian didn't like being soft. Especially under the dome with everything they had going on. "Promises, promises."

'Promises, promises' indeed! Julian was always surprising him... Dave wasn't usually one to beat around the bush but there was something about Julian that made him want to play the long game. He didn't mind dancing this little dance if they were doing it together. "If that's your offer to pour my tequila shirtless... I'll start throwing dollars your way now."

Sabrina raised an eyebrow at the stranger. She had just gotten her drink, and she intended to drink it. "Your drink isn't enough for you." She laughed as she downed her drink. "Drowning your sorrows or trying to have fun?"

"Nothing ever is," he countered, raising a brow in her direction. New faces weren't exactly a daily occurrence around here. "A little bit of both, I think. I don't think I remember what 'fun' is, to be honest. How about you? What's a gal like you doin' in the place like this?"

Was he making fun of her? Probably, Blair conceded. But hey, she'd rather be mocked by a vampire than, you know, attacked by one, so she supposed that was a win. "I know I have a reputation for being a total..." Loser, a not so small piece of her wanted to say, but she shoved that voice down. "Nerd," she decided on. "But I'm not completely uncoordinated, and I'm somewhat lucky. And extremely sensible. So here I am." Fine, they were doing this thing. But she was not going to let him in her house. Absolutely not. "This way, I guess."

Dave fought off an amused smile at her answer, letting her carry on without interruption. He nodded, matching her pace as she led the way. This was... weird, right? It's not like he really felt sorry for biting her. Well, he couldn't. He would - he did, before - but making amends now didn't really count. And yet, he found himself thinking about apologising. "Nerds are very in fashion, you know?" he said at last. "And there's nothing wrong with being extremely sensible in these extremely un-sensible times. Is your dry wit - cutting as it is - the only weapon you keep on you or...?"

"Not at all, plus most of us would deserve it." Andrew shrugged a bit as he smoked. It was definitely tragic, but hobbies hadn't been a priority in his life ever. "We can both be tragic. I don't have the trademark on it." He nodded his head. "Not a lot, mostly stealing hearts or things. Never had any hobbies."

"And there's the rub." Dave didn't say it but he didn't have to. There was a building tension in town, even at the Manor, as everyone became more restless. This couldn't go on forever and Dave would bet it'd end bloody. "I'm touched. Oh, yeah? You sound like you were a real renegade. I think I've had every hobby you could at this point, but man do I miss live jazz. New York... New Orleans... Some smoky joint off the beaten path. What I wouldn't give to be there right now."

Andrew took a long drag from the cigarette, glad to have even a momentary distraction from this town and his own brain. He nodded along as Dave talked; he definitely understood avoiding. It's what he had been doing for months. "I think we just might be all dead, and this is our hell, stuck with each other forever." Andrew joked but didn't laugh. "I can see that, I am bored, and I am only twenty-one."

"Doesn't sound that far-fetched," Dave mused. An eternity of torment... he'd done enough to deserve it, he thought. Lifting his head, he let out a breathy laugh at Andrew's words. "And here I thought I was tragic," he joked, but you never would have guessed it from his tone. "What do you usually do for fun? Or did. Back when the outside world existed."