josette laughlin

"that's a shame. no one believes in character building anymore." her response is funny, though. the human sacrifice. as if she'd really know much about that; they never made it far enough. now that's the real shame. kai pursues some more, putting a little more swiftness in his steps, closing some actual honest to god distance to watch and see how fast she might scramble out of the way. how dangerous she really finds him, dark stranger that he appears. "maybe you should try another trope, then. reconsider your life path. the corrupted. what do you think?"

🩺 → "that's one way of putting it." the gemini replied, her amusement dying down as the conversation continued on and the concern growing. the masked stranger is cutting the distance between them despite her best efforts, but once she's made sure they were still in eye shot of those nearby, she settled in to her spot with her arms crossed. "that role has already filled, but i'm sure i'll find my niche somewhere."

As much as Silas indulged in the benefits of his immortality, there was one aspect he despised; his need to consume blood. And due to his lack of fangs like his supernatural knock-offs, he was relegated to compelling people to allow him to cut their wrists, or stealing blood bags. The latter of which was his preference. Which was how he found himself perusing the halls of the hospital, quickly tracking down their room where they stored blood. He opened the door and stopped in his tracks at the sight of another person there, frowning slightly. "Oh, sorry. I must have taken the wrong turn."

🩺 → work was bustling with the normal culprits, drunken injuries, misadventures, car accidents, cooking mishaps. it was as chaotic as ever, but this was the sort of work she looked forward to. it meant she wasn't hyperfixating on the things she couldn't change, wondering about what lingered around every corner, she was just working, and that's what she's doing when she sees a stranger in a staff only section. "you're fine... lots of halls, and the signage leaves a lot to be desired. can i point you in the right direction?"

"It's definitely not just you. Although that's not really different from any other day in this town.. It's like Mystic Falls is a magnet for trouble."

🩺 → "i think it just might be..." it was certainly a magnet for the supernatural if nothing else. "i just hope tonight is less of a blood bath... it'd be nice to have one social function without murder and mayhem."

"Well, I'll be damned.." Diego murmured under his breath, his eyes widening a bit before his expression smoothed out into a more neutral look. "I never thought I'd be seeing your face again. Especially around a town like this."

🩺 → josette laughlin was nearly as far away from portland as she could get in the continental united states, and other than her brother who had escaped from his prison, she never thought she'd see another familiar face again. when she saw one, or rather, they saw her, she froze. if diego was here, anyone else could be, anyone who could be leaking back the news of kai's freedom to their father. " - i'm sorry, you must have the wrong person."

🩸 — "can't relate. if i never worked another day in my life, i'd be fine with that." he could understand the need to be busy. to keep the day filled with something, anything, to pass the time. safe to say the morbidity was par for the course; his kind of conversation. "i wish i knew what half of this shit was. like that." he pointed at what, to him, appeared to be a wearable giant yellow balloon with.. goggles?

🩺 → "maybe if i'm lucky i'll get to that point... until then i'll be picking up all the shifts i can." any excuse for her mind not to dwell on what had once been, any excuse not dream once the exhaustion set in. still, conversation was a great substitute for a distraction, especially in good company. "that is what they call a 'minion'. - animated movie..."

🩸 — "you should do it more. be deliberate. halloween only comes once a year, after all." teasing her but being completely serious. "we never know when it could be our last. at least there's plenty of eye candy."

🩺 → "i'm a workaholic... i wouldn't know what to do if i wasn't continually drowning in work. guess that's what happens when you have six younger siblings you had to help raise... the only time things were ever quiet was right before my brother stuck a knife in my spleen." morbid, but befitting the holiday at hand. "frankly, i'll welcome death with open arms when it comes... but you're not wrong - i've seen some great constumes tonight."

"they don't even entertain you while you're at war anymore? typical." her response about her former favorite movie brings with it a rush of childhood nostalgia so thick and unexpected that kai actually has to take a minute before he can formulate his next sentence. puts one foot in front of the other in the meantime, pursuing her, unhurried. "the thing is a classic. ever wondered where you'd fit into the horror character tropes? you look like a final girl."

🩺 → "surprisingly, setting off ptsd in a group of people most likely to develop it and with ample access to deadly weapons isn't considered a particularly brilliant idea these days." every pace he makes in her direction is met with her own, keeping the conversation moving while giving herself a least some clearance between her and the anonymous stranger. thoughts of the past flash by in brief moments as they move, of afternoons spent tucked away in dark theaters, the world drifting away as she and her brother were lost in the worlds created on the silver screen. the nostalgia is suffocating, but she's snapped back at the insinuation that she's a final girl, as if it was something to be marveled at. "it's not what it's cracked up to be... neither is being the human sacrifice."

🩸 — "like a pretty penny," the vampire purred in reply. but his smile was genuine, softening to the look of her. "glad to see you as well. you look fabulous."

🩺 → "it's nice to see you at your best." the witch chuckled. "thank you, i love a good excuse to be out of the scrubs and just being able to get out every now and again. hopefully this time things are a little less... murderous."

"anymore. what killed them for you?" pun intended. he slips closer—not too close, lest he give the game away too soon. "i'm sure you have a favorite from way back when. come on. humor me." kai still remembers all their old favorites; all jo's favorite movies, tropes, subgenres. that's the sick thing, when it all comes down to it—all this intimacy still lingering here.

🩺 → "i grew up - medical school and a lack of movie theaters in war zones helped." casually moving back to maintain the distance already established, josette laughlin took note of the figure in front of her, surveying the situation to make sure they were never out of sight of other people. "the thing used to be my favorite - what about you?"

he's been following, watching her from afar all night, when he hasn't been actively dragging people into more secluded corners and re-enacting some pretty iconic horror movie scenes. "i bet you've been through worse," he offers, lazily, pleased to hear his handy little ghostface-esque voice changer doing its job. "hey ... what's your favorite scary movie?"

🩺 → instead of moving on to haunt other party goers her surprise seems to have only encouraged a further conversation. "trauma isn't a contest." not wanting to be unkind, she does at least answer his next question. "i don't watch horror movies anymore - can't say i really have a favorite - sorry to disappoint."

🩸 — her addition stung more than he expected it should. it didn't take a cell to make a person feel trapped—and if enzo could see himself reflected back at him in anyone, this woman wasn't far off. he took the card, pondering it for a moment. "to hell with your twin, dr. laughlin."

🩺 → "i wish it were that simple - but it never is for people like us." it was hard enough to live with the memory of her brother, but now he was back and she was forced to deal with it all over again. "for what it counts though - to hell with dr. maxfield - and the rest of the good old boys that came before him.."

it was a pleasant thought, believing these people would eventually lose. that's all he needed to believe. with or without his participation, he wanted justice.. even if his definition of it fluctuated from time to time. "who's mind couldn't you change?" he asked, expecting her to dodge the question.

🩺 → twin flames in tragedy, they could find understanding in each other. it felt strange to feel so seen, to feel so exposed, it was a way she hadn't felt in nearly twenty years - though it felt freeing in a way. "better is more than someone like us ever think we'll see." she agrees with a nod. reaching into her pocket to retrieve a business card to give the vampire she pauses when he asks his question, and she hesitates, though eventually she admits "my brother - my twin."

and what's worse than being trapped with the very person you'd always been told was the reason your own family ever treated you the way they did?

"i have a party to get to, so i'm done going down memory lane with you. kill me if you want and spare me the socialization, otherwise find someone else to harass."