too far too fast

“Don’t knock it ‘til you try it,” Ellie grinned at the other, amusement etched onto her features as she observed his clear disdain for the food choices.  “The cheesy goodness, the bacon bits on top. Seriously, it doesn’t make your mouth water just thinking about it?” she asked the vampire, a playful tone lacing her voice as she took a step closer. “You’ve only got all of eternity, why not live a little?”

“Back in my home, cheese was an appetizer, not the whole dish.” Simon thought back to Switzerland. “Okay, maybe not entirely. But still.” He was used to being identified as a vampire by now, and strangely...he was becoming accustomed to it. And it wasn’t always bad. It was something he just accepted at this point. “Since when is eating...that?” he asked, nodding towards someone’s plate of smothered, ultimate nachos, “Living a little? That’s living enough for...three people, I’d say.”

Hues of orange and pink painted the sky as the sun began to see over East End. Ellie’d spent most of the day with friends, playing games and day drinking — actually having a good time. But, now as her stomach growled she was on a mission to find food, crystalline orbs scanning the various festival eateries. “What do you think,” she asked the person standing closest to her. “Nachos, Loaded Pulled Pork Cheese Fries, or Pizza?”

“Pizza,” Simon responded automatically, nose wrinkling up in disgust at the thought. Everything seemed so unbearably unhealthy, and even though he’d been vamped up for quite some time now, old habits died hard. “Loaded Pulled Pork Cheese Fries? I think that’s the most American thing I’ve heard for months now.”

Frankie pressed her lips together, trying to think of something else to say. She felt somewhat embarrassed since she wasn’t entirely sure if the man was accepting or rejecting her drink. Still, she knew that she shouldn’t have just assumed that he would be interested. After all, there was that whole concept of stranger danger and all.

To save face, Frankie proceeded to pick up the shot glass quickly, allowing the liquor to slide down her throat and set it down again, her face grimacing at the strength of the drink. “Well, any suggestions of what might be less bad?” She asked after clearing her throat, a breath of a laugh passing her lips.

Simon watched only quirking an eyebrow. He could sense the blood rushing to her heard - embarrassment? Simon used to be embarrassed at normal things, and the he’d stopped caring. He’d stopped caring about much until he’d become a vampire, and now he found himself caring a bit too much.

“How much do you want to celebrate? They used to make this drink back home that would knock you on your ass if you weren’t careful. Could ask the bartender to make us a round.”

“Here.” Frankie offered after finally plucking up the courage to buy herself a shot another with another for her company. “This workaholic has taken some time off work so… An excuse to celebrate!” She picked up her own drink now, scrunching up her nose in mild embarrassment, “Please don’t shoot me down. I literally just spent twenty minutes trying to decide which drink won’t kill me at one sip.”

Simon looked over, trying not to look as stressed out as he felt. The people around him were triggering - he could almost hear their heartbeats, could almost taste the blood flowing in their veins. But he’d brought himself here to not feed, to try and test himself and see if he could stretch his discipline.

“Look they’re probably all bad,” he mumbled, looking at the shot. He wasn’t used to drinks from strangers. No one had ever really enjoyed his company. “But...hey, you deserve it. I’m sure,” he said gruffly.

“Ah. An introvert.” It wasn’t unkind–the way he said it. There were times when he himself withdrew from the world. But, still– “With our lifespans, Simon, it’s often easier to navigate time with company.”

He raised a hand and beckoned the other vampire closed. “Call me Jin. Are you thirsty?“

Simon’s dark eyes focused instantly. Another vampire. Inner defenses sprang to life, residual awareness from years past that wouldn’t go away for a long time, if ever. “I don’t need company. Company is bad news for...things like us.” The disgust in his voice was hardly hidden, and he shrugged at Jin’s question. “Not for...not for that, no.”

The fire was the most unexpected thing about this entire situation. How the hell could this possibly happen with a storm this bad? Athena was sure that the lightning would just strike down on the ground near the building and not anything that would spark. But, of course, she was as unlucky as it got. Nothing was ever all sunshine and rainbows in her life. It actually made her laugh slightly. The situation was one that almost called for it. Well, in her situation at least. 

“Oh no, I’m fine. Thanks though.” She looked at the guy she was speaking to. “Oh, hey. It’s you again. What’s up?”

“Oh, hi,” he said, remembering the brief conversation he’d had with her. A sense of relief washed over him - for a moment, he felt as if he was a part of the people in the room, like he was one of the townsfolk. Funny how it would happen during a time like this, but it was what it was.

“Well, us. Technically. We’re up.” It was a straight faced, dead pan attempt at humor that she might not recognize, but it was a joke regardless, something new for the undead man. “In the clock tower, I mean,” Simon quickly clarified. “...not that that’s working out for us.”

There may be some people who would deny that she would even help. Or that she even did. Though she found most people annoying in this situation when she was trapped and she knew this was no ordinary storm, Sybil was not heartless. No matter what her reputation may be, Sybil was not a monster. Of course not many knew or even believed that. So when the fire broke out, Sybil was one of the first to rush forward and try to put it out. The fire would not hurt her, she would heal any burns she received and she knew that many would not be able to. 

With the fire finally put out, only a few people were burnt but there was still a rising tension and people were starting to freak out. It was grating on her and she half thought about compelling everyone in the clock tower to calm down. As the scent of blood hit the air, Sybil hardly reacted. She had over a thousand years of control on her side. But, she noticed the behavior of one man. Sybil knew that behavior, she knew the signs of a young vampire who was hungry. Swiftly, she waked over to him and pulled him to the side. “How old are you? When is the last time you fed?” There was no prelude, she knew what he was. 

Simon’s spine stiffened as soon as he heard the other’s words. He’d pieced together from snatches of gossip that she was one of the Dragovics - who he’d known of from his Hunter days and through some of the local townspeoples’ advice to stay far away from.

Of course she would be right here, and so intensely knowledgeable.

“38 years,” he said, looking her right in the eye. He wasn’t defiant, but neither did he shrink away, as he was sometimes wont to do. “And last night.” He exhaled, pushing out the unnecessary air from his lungs. “What’s it to you?” he asked, stirrings of courage and old alliances emboldening and framing the fear he felt otherwise.

“Well. I suppose we all have to start somewhere. But now I’m curious. What sort of types do you normally surround yourself with?“ He’s teasing. Just slightly–and it’s visible in the subtle curve of his mouth.

“Only those that catch my eye. Then again– I’m not usually drawn to the diamond in the rough. But there’s enough diamond in you to hold my attention, I suppose.“

“I don’t. Surround myself with anyone, not really.” Simon found himself unable to meet the other’s eye. He radiated a confidence that made Simon very uneasy, like he was unable to compare at all in the slightest and felt bad for it.

“I...uh, thanks.” He paused, and it felt awkward. “My name is Simon, by the way.”

But then the actual fire happened - Simon noticed it too late, as he was focused only on his own misfortune. It happened in an instant , and then all of a sudden there was a fire. Someone else was surrounded by the flames that quickly spread, and Simon moved to grab them by the back of their jacket and jerk them back. Meanwhile, he heard a sound of frustration from behind him, and he turned. The scent of blood almost sent his head spinning, but there was no way he could let that get the better of him now.

“What do you need help with?” He asked, trying not to sound as panicked as he felt.

“So I gathered. Don’t sweat, most of our kind are pricks— you’ll get used to it. Your feeding habits might be worse than mine and that’s sayin’ something. Uh, yeah. Ever heard of compulsion or is that outta your realm too?”

“Figuring that out pretty quick,” Simon muttered half-heartedly. He didn’t want to tell the other about his past activities. That was as good as a death sentence if he were to tell the other about his past loyalties. “Heard of it. Have no idea how to do it. Is that how you get your vic - your...sustenance?”

“On a scale of 1 to first sign impending doom and apocalypse, where would you put this storm?” Gabrielle asked out loud to the person next to her. This weather was making her anxious, there was no doubt about it. And the state of emergency wasn’t helping either.

“It’s not looking good right now,” Simon agreed miserably. He really hadn’t thought this through - with all of the people around, his hunger for blood seemed overwhelming. It was for this exact reason he never went out, but even the thread of drowning had forced him from his usual places. “Look, it’ll probably blow over in a few hours,” he said, looking over to her nervously. “It...it better.”

“I was referring to you.“ He tapped his pencil on the table, before lifting it to point. “Your modesty is endearing. But surely you’ve been drawn before?”

“Never been an artist type. Or been around them much either.” Simon didn’t notice that he wasn’t aware of the other’s blood - only of his embarrassing bashfulness. “So no. Do you draw people a lot?”

Ava stayed with Simon most days during the hours when the sun was up. After her first day of running away from him and then burning when she stepped into the sunlight, she quickly learned not to step out into the direct sunlight. But during the night, she didn’t spend as much time with Simon. It wasn’t that he was a bad person, or that she didn’t like him. But, being around him was just a reminder of how her life was now horribly wrong and she would never have her old life back.

It wasn’t his fault but his help was only reminding her of what her new life consisted of. She couldn’t think of anything else when she was around him. So far she still hadn’t contacted her family. It weighed heavy on her, but she wasn’t sure what she could say to them or how she could explain that it wasn’t a good idea for her to come back to New York. The sad truth was, she shouldn’t leave here, not at least until she gained control over herself and learned how to function as a vampire. 

The sun had gone down a few hours ago, and the stars were shining bright above them. She had wandered a little on the outskirts of town, but when she came across too many people, she felt the side of her that she didn’t want to deal with and came back to Simon. Finding him outside smoking, she started to pace in front of him. 

“I’m hungry.” She told him, running her hand through her hair in frustration. “I… I saw a bunch of people. They smelled so good.” Part of her was disgusted, it made no sense that she should get hungry at the sight of humans. But, the other part was frustrated she hadn’t fed from them. 

“Hungry,” he repeated, watching her. Simon felt as if he couldn’t remember a time when he wasn’t hungry. Rabbits, squirrels, and the like only kept his undead body functioning; they did little to assuage the wanting he felt within his stomach. He sighed. “You’ll get used to it. It doesn’t go away, at least unless you feed on...humans, I’m guessing, but it’s something you can learn to live with. Or fix. If you do it the right way.” Simon wasn’t going to pass his own judgments to her. As long as she didn’t go around blatantly slaughtering people and telling him about it, he wasn’t going to abandon her.

“Please tell me your maker at least taught you compulsion. Heavens above.” Why did Vince always find himself stuck with the hopeless cases? “If you don’t learn the proper way to feed off ‘em, you’ll go nuts with the wrong opportunity. Take it from somebody who knows.”

“My...maker didn’t stick around for long. Long enough to turn me, then leave.” Simon was glad he hadn’t known them, not really. But some practical vamp knowledge would be appreciated. “Wait, there’s a proper way?”

             “That and you’d be much more unpleasant to talk too.” Ines added, a weak attempt to make light of the direction of conversation. The blonde could only cock a brow as he spoke up once more, what was it he was feeling, fear? Nervousness? Clearly he wasn’t an old leech but she was never in favor of assuming in these situations. “”Easy bud, I’m not here to stir trouble, nor dob you in to any higher powers.” She remarked, raising her hands in surrender. It was refreshing to meet one of his kind that wasn’t a full on monster. ”That’s —- good to hear.” She added, unsure of what exactly what to say. “Not many of your kind would make such a statement, but between you and me, if that’s something you want to keep up — then you need to stay as far away from the Dragovic family as possible. That’s one rabbit hole you don’t want to dive into.” 

Simon watched her as she reassured him that she wasn’t going to turn him in. Vampires and wolves historically did not always have common goals - except when it came to eradicating Hunters occasionally. He’d never had reason to trust anything a wolf said before, but then again, he’d never really spoken to one in a genuine conversation. “Okay,” he said at first. “I believe you,” he allowed after a moment, even if the tension didn’t quite leave his shoulders. “I’m trying. It’s hard.” Another pause. Simon was caught in a moment of vulnerability. “I...I’ve heard of them. Before I came here, before all this. I’ve heard they’re making this town a living hell. It’s a shame for everyone here. They are bad news indeed.”

If there was one thing Simon never thought he’d have to do again, it would be having to look after someone else. He had been a big brother once, and although he’d been probably the worst at expressing it, he’d cared for his siblings more than his own life. They had been the only people who Simon had really felt comfortable confiding in, and he’d tried to repay the favor by making sure they never needed for anything. After a while, his efforts hadn’t been necessary, but it still made him feel more fulfilled than anything else in his life, certainly far more than hunting did.

But they were unreachable now. And even if they were, Simon wouldn’t want them to see what he was like now. A shadow of his former self. But he’d stumbled upon someone that did need help. Whether or not it was help that he could provide, that was another matter entirely, but...Simon couldn’t let Ava fall into the trap that was East End. He himself was barely avoiding it, and as much as his Hunter instincts told him to let the vampire go and get herself killed, he couldn’t.

When she wandered by his building, he was outside, staring up at the stars in the sky. There was news in town of a new Hunter, but like before, Simon was making it a point to stay out of the town drama as long as he could.

“You have a very nice face.“ Jin set the pencil down on his moleskine notebook, a half-sketched jawline, one eye and a smudged nose visible on the lined paper. “You should let me paint you.”

“I, um...okay...” Not much took Simon by surprise anymore. This did. “I...am not supposed to leave this counter. But that’s very nice of you to say. Unless you were speaking to someone else. Wow, sorry.”