Nox's Nighttime Habit

[Black Philip]

For Max, Continued from Anthony's Song

We entered Ventrue easy enough. I'd been here before, but it looked like it was Dreki's first time. Despite his blindness, I let him find his own table. I knew he had those outlines he could see and besides, if we were gonna catch Rambo now was the time. I rationalized with what I know of the joint's security he couldn't enter if he'd been looking to cause trouble. That meant his reason for visiting was more personal. Not to be too revolting in these notes - I'm half convinced Zeph has been reading my case files on days he sleeps over - but it was the equivalent of an evangelical preacher caught in a sex scandal. They talk one game but play another. However, as a PI you need facts to back up your shit, and entering the club wasn't enough. I looked like the wrong crowd for Ventrue. As I saw the other vampires in the room I realized I looked more working class than most of them. That's why the Rabbit is more my speed, but then again I wasn't here for a drink.

I watched as Dreki found a place to sit, and hoped none of the other patrons would disturb him. We wouldn't be here long. I scanned the room looking for Nox, but found no sign of him. It would be fast for him to already be in a booth. I knew I couldn't take a picture. Cameras didn't work in Venture. I didn't need one though. I just needed a tasty, tasty mental image. A few interested boys and girls circled my table and I gave them my best fuck you face. I was here to work. I looked over to Dreki's table to see a visitor had stopped to chat, an ancient visitor. Oh boy. Well, perhaps the best thing I could do was get the data, so I could get us out!

Ari had agreed to work tonight, and was disappointed he was once again filling in for Royce. They'd spent his first night back making love and reconnecting, and Ari had hoped that Royce's time away had helped him grow. While he was better at hiding his improprieties than before, he was still guilty of most of them. In truth, Ari was jealous of his fledge's dalliances. Ari wished Royce would trade them all for him, but once again he was left out in the cold. The night wasn't exactly slow, but the flow of traffic was consistent, and people's time brief, and so Ari felt he hadn't seen the same face all night. He ended up sniffing a very alluring scent coming from a human sitting alone. Ari was intrigued by the smell, and moved to greet their newest patron. He wore a cotton-blue button up, with dark jeans and casual looking loafers. His blonde hair was in a neat pony tail, and a large golden ring was on his finger.

"Good evening," he said to the human. "Welcome to Venture. My name is Ari. Are you here with someone?"

Ari wouldn't behave like Royce and take this young man to a booth while working, but there was no harm in chatting and seeing if that could be a latter possibility. He noticed from the way he stared that he was blind, but that didn't deter the ancient in the slightest. He could always show him his face mentally. He lacked Charon's skills, but being over 1,400 had advantages.

[Maxpphire]

He hadn't quite expected the visited to his table and looked at the vampire, he remembered Drew saying something about trying to stay alone, but a gut feeling told him to not turn the vampire away. He hoped that Drew wouldn't be too mad, after all he was good at multitasking his hearing for simple things, and would be listening for Nox while talking and conversing with Ari. He probably wouldn't be able to pick up on full conversation details, but if close enough he could probably pick out a word here or there, and recognize the direction the voice is coming in.

"Well, a friend brought me here because he thought it was a good idea for me to get out of the house for a bit tonight, but he is also doing his own thing here, so for now, I'm alone." He said, not lying but also not mentioning it was to gain info on his roommate. He isn't quite sure what to make of the whole situation regarding Nox, beyond finding it interesting that he was in a vampire bar of all places. He also felt not entirely right just dismissing the guest, something about just how vampiric Ari had felt to him, was both uncomforting and exciting. It was a weird new feeling for him.

"I'm Dreki, it's nice to meet you." He smiled warmly as his tone the entire time talking to Ari was quiet, intimate in a rather friendly welcoming type of tone, he could guess easily what happened at vampire bars. While he wasn't the biggest fan of the idea of one night stands in anymore, he did enjoy the bite. He wondered if Ari had approached him on wanting to feed, and wondered, if that was indeed the case, if maybe he'd be willing to meet up some other time. A time where he was actually able to make such plans, as hanging out with Drew wasn't the time. For a second he thought about how he'd convince Nox to let him come here again, then remembered that Nox was here, right now, likely doing the same thing with some other vampire. If anything, that's where he'd use it against Nox, he didn't blame the man for finding vampires enjoyable in such ways, but did find the switch in Nox's personality regarding vampires both humorous and complex. It made him want to get to know Nox a bit better.

"This is my first time here, and for sure a unique take on a vampire bar. Or at least compared to the ones I've been to, where they are more traditionally a bar and much more secretive about vampires being around. I like the openness of this place so far." Although to be fair the only one he'd been to previously was The White Rabbit. He didn't think of An Tsi as strictly a vampire bar but more of a supernatural bar in general. He didn't think it in good taste to mention the name of such places while in a similar place. He was polite to a fault, but for sure noticed the booths for privacy while in here. His eyes did keep eye contact the entire time he was talking, almost as if he could see. He defaulted to hiding his blindness in every scenario he could as it was.

[Black Philip]

Once again Dreki said too much, but at least he didn't name me or make me out. That boy had looser lips than... [redacted]. I didn't have time to listen to their conversation, as I was busy scanning for signs of Nox. I decided to slip into the cinema and look for him there, and if not, then it was upstairs I go! I rose from my table, making sure not to look in the direction of Dreki or the surfer boy ancient now crowding his table. Dreki could handle himself. A few disappointed humans pouted as I whisked away, and I smiled darkly at their want of me. Zeph better get me a leash. Wait. That sound sexual. Dammit.

I entered the cinema and found Nox being chatted up by a beautiful looking vampire. She had dark blonde hair, blue eyes, and felt older than me, but much younger than Dreki's guest. I didn't dare get close enough to hear, and I had a feeling if I attempted to Obfuscate I'd have vampire security all over my ass. I found a cute looking boy to make pointless small talk with - something I loathe - and it preformed the job of making me look inconspicuous. For now, I waited and watched.

Ari listened to the human's nervous talking and smiled encouragingly. The human was obviously new to their kind, although at his own self admission had been to vampire bars before. He assumed he meant McCloud's "business." He'd heard Royce could often be found there, and the idea of it enraged his normally quiet heart. Things between the Sacrament and the Anarchs were shit, and Royce saw that as an invitation to bring even greater shame on them by patronizing their rival's establishment. He hoped Venture was proving more to Dreki's liking, and figured he might have a hand in how the human felt about the club later. This was really a job for Jeanne but Ari had promised her he'd try being more social.

"Well I'm glad it's an environment you find to you liking," he answered smoothly, sitting at the human's table. "May I join you until your friend comes back? I'd love to meet him."

[Maxpphire]

"Sure, although if he is in a hurry to leave, there may not be much time for introductions," he mentioned debating how to explain that if pressed, "However, I'm already thinking about returning here sometime in the near future by myself, so if I do have to run off, if you come here often, you may see more of me." He wasn't hearing Nox anywhere, hell he wasn't even hearing Drew anywhere anymore. It did look like the building had a second floor, and before Ari came about he did notice a downstairs area as well. He took a sip of his sparkling water that looked like a gin and tonic.

Part of him felt nervous, he wondered if the Vampire knew that he wasn't exactly human. After all, Sam had clocked him in the past, and he figured other vampires likely could too. He also knew his blood wasn't exactly red anymore, and it had been described to him as a coppery brass color that even shimmered in certain lights. If Ari didn't know now something was up with him, he'd guess if he ever let the vampire feed from him, he'd find out anyway.

"If you don't mind me asking, what drew you to me?" He asked, kind of wanting to put things at ease for his own sake. He could always play off that one if his parents was an angel. After all with how it felt in his childhood, he felt his mom had done a better job raising him and protected him from the ire of his dad, despite his dad just trying to do everything to keep him safe. He did kind of see her as such now anyway, given that she is now dead, and normal human theology does suggest humans who are good go to heaven and become angels. He wasn't exactly sure if that was true given his now recent exploration of the supernatural, but really, he didn't like lying and didn't want to tell Ari about being illegally experimented on, at least, not while they were strangers.

[Black Philip]

"Nonsense," Ari said brightly. "I'm sure he'll have time for a quick chat."

Ari had only met Dark Angels, and the same fire and brimstone scent they had was not shared by Dreki. The ancient had met almost every kind of supernatural along the way, but not something that smelled like this. Yet, he heard a heartbeat, could see sweat glistening from the top of his forehead, and his body temperature felt human. Dreki's question to him was not too surprising. There were plenty of other humans about, and many of them were to Ari's liking. However, a new scent in Ventrue was a fairly big deal. The last new scent had been a nymph.

"My family owns and runs this establishment, so I'm here some nights." Ari explained. "I would be a poor host if I let someone sit by themselves, with no one to talk to. I didn't realize you'd come with a vampire."

Ari's face was unreadable, even if Dreki had traditional sight, but it wasn't entirely clear if he was making an accusation or asking a question. His aroma went unmentioned.

[Maxpphire]

He wasn't entirely sure if there would be time to chat if Nox saw Drew or himself around. He wasn't sure if there would be a confrontation or what, he felt a bit safe from one after hearing that Ari was in part, the owner, of such a place, but he was also certain that would just piss off Nox more. He no longer felt entirely comfortable with the idea of being here to spy on Nox. It was obvious that Nox was looking to be fed from a vampire and even sleep with them if Nox was anything like Dreki after being bit. After all, there was no all-out brawl in here and he could sense vampires all around. However, Ari's comment about him being here with a vampire kind of threw him off. He never said that his friend, Drew, was a vampire. The look on his face turned kind of inquisitive.

"I never said I was here with one," he mentioned, he hadn't felt Ari enter his mind at all. He had been leaving his necklace off lately because he knew he really didn't think he'd be put in a situation where he'd need privacy until after he went back to work anyway. In a way, he wondered if he should have brought it. "But that is a good guess, my friend is indeed a vampire. He doesn't feed from me though, he's spoken for and my reaction to being bitten, is well," he seemed a little embarrassed about it and looked away, the color to his cheeks turned more of a brownish-yellow color instead of the usual red, it clearly wasn't human jaundice as the color was a bit different from that and had a bit of a kind of glow to it. "Let's just say my neck is sensitive on its own, and being fed from, especially right there, intensifies that." He figured if Ari was indeed interested beyond just chatting up a patron who was alone, that he should be fully aware anyway.

[Black Philip]

Small talk is fucking horrible torture, and I want to murder the person who invented it. I was hearing from this human about his abs, and how tough it was to be so pretty, and god damn I was fucking bored. He clearly wanted me to feed, but I wouldn't have been tempted even for a moment after watching him flap his jaw. Lucky for me, Nox and his vampire bae were on the move. I couldn't imagine that this was going anywhere but where I thought it was, and sure enough they began heading towards the booths.

He looked so smitten, and shy, and not at all like the asshole who kept calling me fanger earlier. I caught a quick look at his face, and it actually screamed puppy love. Was Nox really not so bad? Perhaps hating vampires was an act, but more likely was that Nox led a double life. I'd seen it before, mayors who took stances on prostitution that were hard line - only to be caught with one in their bed -, preachers who condemned the gays only to be hitting up the White Rabbit late at night.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not complaining at all. Hypocrisy keeps me in business. I knew I wouldn't be able to get in the booth, but once the doors were shut I casually began to stroll by with my human, still talking a mile a minute. I decided to be bold, and to do something that I knew Zeph wouldn't approve of. I slammed the the human boy up against the booth right next to Nox's, and cradled my ear to listen as I stuck my tongue down the boy's throat. It was faint, but being a vampire has it's benefits. I heard the following exchange.

"You want me to drink from you," a musical voice cooed.

"Yes," Nox stiltedly replied.

"Yes what," the vampire asked him.

"Yes mam. Please bite me. Please."

"Get on your knees and look up at me. Beg for it like that."

The human boy I was currently tonguing reached out to open the booth we were in front of, but I knew if I ended up in there I'd really break the rules. Besides, I had enough. I didn't need to stay to hear Nox moan. I saw the table where Dreki and his ancient sat, and used it as an excuse to leave.

"Oh my god, my boyfriend is right there," I lied, pointing to my companion. "I hope he didn't see me kissing you."

"I don't want any trouble," the human said.

"Oh, he's soooooo powerful," I lied. "Oh my god, he's going to end me, and the person I was with."

The human ran off, saying that I shouldn't have kissed him if I had a boy. He was right, but not in the way he thought. I debated trying to hear one last piece of dialogue between the vampire and Nox, but decided not to risk it all. I started moving back towards Dreki's table.

Ari smiled warmly at the idea that Dreki was sensitive to the bite. He placed a strong hand on the others. "If he doesn't see the appeal of you, then he doesn't deserve you," he said softly. "Come see me another night, if you'd like to see how a proper vampire conducts himself." He turned to see Drew approaching the table.

"Is this your friend," he asked.

[Maxpphire]

He blushed even deeper at Ari's words although it wasn't like that with him and Drew. Sure they had shared an intimate moment, but after that day, he respected Drew's boundaries and knew that being fed from was off limits. If anything he was reminded of Sam, who had emotionally hurt him, who left him after he had even tried to rectify the situation.

"I, uhhh," his eyes darted away, "no, there is someone else that could be said about, I'd rather not talk about him, but I will take you up on that offer." He said then looked back at Ari, then Drew appeared.

"Yeah, that's my friend." Dreki seemed almost mildly uncomfortable, embarrassed, but also interested in Ari. He looked at Drew, and asked in the most unassuming he thought of, that could be taken in a way about enjoying someone else. "You finished?" Of course he meant in regards tracking Nox and listening in.

[Black Philip]

"Finished what," Ari asked with a friendly and cheerful tone, taking in the new vampire skeptically. He was almost a fledge in youth, and Ari wondered how these two became friends. They looked like opposites in many ways. He understood the appeal of the young vampire's looks, although he wasn't Ari's type by any means. He motioned for the young one to sit, and would have his answer before either man left his bar. He extended a hand to Drew.

"Ari Hrafn," he introduced.

Did Dreki really just ask if I was finished? Now I had to come up with  an explanation next to a vampire who could make me lick his boots and say thank you sir with a mere mental suggestion. I played it cool. Ancients don't just read minds all willy nilly, right?

"Drew," I said back, taking his hand and giving it a quick shake. I wanted to leave right there, but suddenly I was being shoved into a chair by the flick of a finger. Fucking ancient bastard motherfuckers.

"And ugh, no. I didn't find a good human to feed from," I lied, knowing it was a paper thin excuse. "What have you two been talking about," I asked. God damn. Was small talk my point of rescue? I was not drunk enough for this shit.

[Maxpphire]

He feels bad phrasing it the way he did, but Drew seemed to get the point Dreki was trying to make. Dreki felt awkward in this situation. There was Drew, someone he knew and trusted, then there was Ari, someone who felt so intensely vampire it made him uncomfortable as he was still a stranger, but also someone with power inside the bar as he learned through conversing that Ari's family owned it. He wasn't sure what could be considered a vampire family but it was an interesting thing to think about. While he was interested in Ari, and wouldn't mind being fed from him, Dreki also just felt weird around him.

"Mostly smalltalk about ourselves" he admitted, mostly knowing that Drew hated smalltalk, but also would rather talk more about it outside the bar away from Ari and not in front of Ari. "You ready to head out?" He asked, in a way ready to head out himself. He didn't really feel like he could lie to or in front of Ari given how vampiric Ari felt, but that was actually on purpose little to Dreki's knowledge. Hofflan was reaching up in age and had made it so Dreki would feel mostly like shit if he lies or does anything a child world be scolded for, to older Vampires not quite expecting Dreki to ever really encounter any older than him. This could be a bit of a dangerous combination as if he was forced for knowledge about project twilight rather than being able to freely be like 'I've been fucked over by this place' then it could produce a very bad reaction.

[Black Philip]

"So soon," Ari said with an air of disappointment, and annoyance. These two were in a hurry and being vague about why they were here. They both seemed like they'd rather be anywhere else, and Ari knew it wasn't his company. Before the arrival of this Drew person, Dreki had seemed to enjoy him. He decided he wasn't ready to let them go, and since he was who he was, they could hardly get up and leave unless he allowed them.

"Since you didn't get a drink Mr. Sulivan, perhaps I can give you something in a glass? We'd hate to not be able to meet your needs, and Dreki, perhaps you'd like a drink? I'm sure after a single cocktail I'll be needed elsewhere, but I can't just let the two most interesting people in the club just go."

It was a friendly tone, but his mental presence would be felt by both of them, encouraging that they should stay.

I knew my thoughts weren't my friends suddenly, and that a guy that old could turn me upside down and shake out my mental pockets. His aura was choking, and I hoped Dreki was getting a softer version of it. I began thinking nonsense words.

Beach, eight ball, pizza

"Sure," I said verbally, looking massively uncomfortable and hoping Dreki had more suaveness than I did. I didn't bother asking for it to be laced with booze. This place didn't strike me as the kind of joint that did laced blood. I didn't want us to be here when Nox exited his feeding room, for we'd be seen, and while he couldn't start anything in here, he could punish Dreki back at home.

[Maxpphire]

Dreki moved over allow Drew to sit next to him as he for sure felt almost forced to stay. Something made him feel the need to be obedient and he didn't quite like that. He was reminded of Hofflan almost with how there was a mental presence there. Part of him really wish he had his necklace, not realizing that Ari might be more powerful than such an artifact, but even if that was the case, he would have felt a bit better with it.

"Just a cup of water is fine," he requested, "pretty sure I've hit my limit for tonight anyway." even though his limit for tonight was 0 as it was. He wondered if Ari could tell that in his previous cup, it was just sparkling water anyway. His tone of voice was soft and on the quieter end. It was all a mix from feeling Ari mentally, the pain in his stomach becoming more noticeable due to the now added stress of this scenario, and worried that Ari knew more than he was letting on, because after all, what is so interesting about a human and a vampire in a vampire bar?

"I'm sure there are those more interesting than simply a human and a vampire in such a place where both are abundant." He didn't entirely feel comfortable with calling himself human, he didn't even really see himself as human anymore. He knew that Nox likely saw him as one, and most other supernaturals at least are able to pick out that he at least once was human. It didn't really feel like a lie, but it also kind of did. He felt conflicted about this in a lot of cases, but the fact that it wasn't a straight-on lie, allowed him to say it. His body language was a bit tense and had been throughout most of the interaction even if a possible sexual interest in Ari was there.

Mentally if Ari was to dig deeper with Dreki at all tonight anyway, might realize that he is here because of a fight, one that Dreki felt was ridiculous and not against Drew either, that he for sure had plans to come back and visit Ari on his own, and maybe if they enjoyed each other enough to at least maybe have something casual in the end as he didn't want it to just be a one night stand, but also that it's been a while since he last put himself out there for others, and how that last time ended poorly for Dreki, but nothing going super into details except for the name Sam. Also, a lot of his mind was locked away, in locks that would be reasonably difficult for Ari to get through, although not impossible. Such locks likely not placed there by Dreki himself.

[Black Philip]

Ari smelt no liquor, and so the comment about reaching his limit was another thing out of place. He scanned the vampire's mind, and upon finding chaotic thoughts realized he was being deceived. He could dig deeper into this Drew, tear it out and make him confess his true motives for being here, but such an act would cause too much attention. How did the sweet smelling human fit in? He needed assistance with these two. Ari would speak with Dreki, but perhaps Jeanne was free to interrogate the neonate.

Ari called over a waiter, and a young woman approached. "Two glasses of blood for me and the gentlemen here, and a water for this gentlemen here," Ari said pointing to both parties at the appropriate time. He heard Dreki's comment as more attempts to squirm away, but decided to play along with it.

"You assume my interest is connected to your species," Ari said with a smile, before moving his head and boring his eyes into Drew. "That's not it at all."

He called out with his mind to Jeanne, locating her aura inside the club somewhere. Please meet me in the lounge. I have patrons who are acting dodgy. It's likely nothing, but I'd like to split them up.

With his message sent, Ari returned his gaze to Dreki. "So what do you each do for a living?"

Ari prided himself on his good small talk questions.

I continued my false thoughts, keeping the narrative I write now on a back mental burner.

Spider, booze, David Bowie...

Ari's gaze was fucking annoying, and while I couldn't be sure I thought I felt his presence in my head. Lucky for me, he was distracted at the exact moment I saw Nox exit the bar, looking quite ashamed and on the brink of tears. I gave no sign to Dreki, fearing that he would give it away, but allowed myself to feel good about the fact that Nox had gotten out. If he was caught by the big wigs here, then Dreki would surely be in for a world of pain with Dr. Strange.

"Thanks bro," I said to the drink. "And I'm a Private Eye who works out of midtown. It's divorce cases mostly, nothing too exciting."

[Maxpphire]

Dreki didn't like this, at this point he was terrified being caught by Nox, and he'd feel an occasional sharp pain in his stomach with the aftershocks of that being dull and achy pain until the next sharp bit of pain. He was ok at hiding his pain, but if someone knew what to look for could probably tell. He leaned forward a bit, basically leaning against the table. His right arm across lower abdomen, griping it, as well as occasionally a small twitch of his brow when a really sharp pain came on. He had a fairly high pain tolerance at this point and it was nothing compared to the first procedure he went through with the facility, but it was still bothersome.

His actual thoughts for moment really just consisted of 'I want to go home, I don't feel well.' over and over. He wasn't even sure at this point if he wanted to come back anymore. He had even told Ari that he'd likely have to leave not long after his friend came back but would be willing to come back another time. He wondered why Ari wanted to keep them there even after knowing that, as it isn't like he wasn't up front with this to Ari to begin with, and this frustrated him greatly. This was now starting to sour that all a bit. Seemed as if he'd get chased out of yet another bar, this time not because of the facility.

"I'm a teacher, I teach music, German, and mythology." His tone of voice was quiet and hard to place. It could come off as being polite, shy, annoyed, tired, sick, or some kind of a mixture of them all. The look on Dreki's face mostly conveyed it as polite, and maybe tired. He was detailing his answers with enough details to hopefully satisfy Ari into not asking for more in regards to them. He didn't bother at ask what Ari found interesting about either of them, figuring if he pushed it too hard that would just make things worse.

[Existentially Odd]

Sitting in her office filling out paperwork, Jeanne frowned at Ari's message. The whole point of him being here was so that he allowed her a night to catch up on invoices and the like while he supervised the floors. She was more than a little annoyed that he summoned her because there were patrons acting 'dodgy'. Could he not ask one of the guards to help him?

Deciding it would benefit her to attend to this matter swiftly - the sooner she helped him, the sooner she could get back to work - Jeanne stood and pulled the jacket of her red velvet tuxedo off the back of her chair and shrugged it on. Her hair was pinned up in a tight French twist with three sparkling diamond clips in the shape of flowers along the inner edge of the roll but she patted it to be sure it remained in place before she adjusted the collar of the black silk blouse beneath the jacket. Stepping into her black, pointed-toe D'orsay heels, she grabbed her phone and pushed the nearby bookcase aside.

The swiftest route was the best, so she used celerity to travel through the hidden connection from her office to the ground floor, only slowing down once she'd stepped past a mirrored wall panel and into the lounge bar. Spying Ari sitting at a table with two men, she sauntered over, the fingers of one hand tucked into the pocket of her pants, suavely holding the lapel of the jacket back, the other swinging, her phone clasped loosely in that hand. Her face sported a vague smile, hiding the annoyance she felt towards her kin. She kept any such emotions hidden from him also, not wishing to deal with his wounded-calf eyes if she was harsh with him.

She eyed the blond - was he mortal? With her superior vision, she could see a pulse leaping in his throat even at a distance, so she supposed he was - as she approached, thinking he looked terribly uncomfortable. Perhaps he was sick; he certainly didn't appear healthy with the way he was clutching at his stomach. The brunette just looked unhappy in a surly, untrusting way and then her gaze fell upon Ari and locked onto him. "Good evening, gentlemen," she purred in her thick French accent when she got closer, having missed anything they'd said prior.

They'd either run out of conversation or she'd arrived in a terribly convenient lull. It was more likely to be her approach that had silenced them but she wasn't going to address that.  She waited for Ari to introduce her. He could do a little work and explain her presence to his companions. She was intrigued to see what he came up with and smiled winningly at him at the thought.