Cio

✹☽ Vampires of Redhaven ☾✹

@Kinjaav Nessa shall be casually wiping blood off her face with a napkin, as you do 😂

✹☽ Vampires of Redhaven ☾✹

I'm still waiting for inspiration to hit me with Aava lol

✹☽ Vampires of Redhaven ☾✹

Vanessa Poirier

@Kinjaav

---

By the time they got to what seemed like a van, Nessa had slowly calmed down into a drowsy, prone state. She still reacted to her surroundings, but the pain was getting too real to fight back. With the blood she'd lost, her thirst only multiplied, pure vampiristic instinct keeping her awake and alert even when her vision started blurrying.
The woman was talking something, probably replying to Nessa's feisty remarks with common sense. Nessa was placed on a seat, and while she tried to keep her posture, her aching muscles fought back, making her slump with heavy lidded eyes as she tried to keep track of the woman's movements. There was no dignity in this, Vanessa thought, mortified.

The woman was talking and her eyes met Vanessa's heavy lidded ones, but then she froze. Nessa could see with her blurring vision another figure there, pressing a gun against the woman's head. All Nessa could see, smell and taste in the air was the sweet aroma of blood. If she wasn't so delirious of blood loss, she would've kept her cool and let the following events just take place. However, Nessa had successfully entered full on vampire state by the point this happened.
Honey gold eyes snapping wide open, pupils wide and almost transfixed on the two people in front of her, Vanessa's mouth opened out of pure instinct, releasing a screeching soundwave at the man and the woman. The deafening sound forced the man to drop his gun and fall prone to the floor; he had gotten the better of the highly directional sound blow, forcing him unconscious from the maddening sound. The woman, too wasn't immune to the sound as she was in the way of it, but it had just missed enough to make her keep conscious.
Next Vanessa lunged forward despite the pain in her calf, almost shaking from the adrenaline and thirst for blood. She tackled the woman in front of her blindly as she had been the nearest target, glazed eyes with wide blown pupils staring emptily as she leaned closer, baring her teeth for a taste. However, only the tip of her nose got to touch the warm skin as she realised in her hazy state that the blood type of this woman wasn't compatible with hers. Abandoning the woman, Nessa took the man as her victim as she straddled his unconscious form and found his neck artery, biting into it with feral force. Nessa was usually very tactful and careful of the victims she chose purely because her taste in blood was very high quality and she didn't like doing things the old-fashioned bite-on-skin way, but in her desperate, animalistic and wounded state all common sense had abandoned her, forcing survival instincts to kick in.

✹☽ Vampires of Redhaven ☾✹

Vanessa Poirier

@Kinjaav

---

Vanessa fought to keep her consciousness. There, on the cold, wet cobblestone, her remaining life force slowly oozing out of her calf. Nessa's healing factor was not as quick as most vampires', but she shouldn't be feeling as much of a burn in her leg anymore. Her blood should be slowly clotting to prevent any blood loss. Unless...
Silver. Of course the bullet was coated in fucking silver.
Vanessa grunted as another burning wave coarsed through her body, forcing her to ball her fists until her knuckles were white. Fuck, fuck, shit... Nessa rarely panicked, but when she did... she lost all of her cool. And right now... right now she was pretty sure she was finally going to die for good. A comforting, yet terrifying thought.

The wounded ravenette heard angry shouting. The voices were still a bit muffled by the temporal ringing that the gunshots had caused, but Nessa could make out some words. The woman... she sounded angry and disappointed. Nessa didn't understand why. Trying to utilise her remaining sharp vision in the dim environment, Nessa attempted to look back. All she saw was the woman from earlier, cussing and kicking a motionless heap on the ground. What the heck..?
Nessa could feel her own heart beating rapidly in her ears, her shallow breaths and the cold sweat that was beginning to clam her face. The silver bullet in her calf was burning like a flat iron inside her, radiating indescribeable pain through the woman's being.
“Hey, stay alert. I’m gonna get you out of here.”
Suddenly there was someone back at her side, but it didn't matter who it was, because Nessa immediately lashed out in self-defense. Like a wounded animal she hissed and tried to elbow the woman who had kneeled beside her, an attempt that was easily blockable but surprisingly forceful.
After Nessa's attempts at attack failed, she turned to her sharp tongue.
"I don't want your help, I..." Vanessa seethed at the woman before another wave of burning coursed through her form. "Fuck... off," she growled, the harsh word sounding uncharacteristic and harsh on her lips. Her credibility was hindered by the grimace on her face and the breathy quality of her voice. Nessa didn't do help. She didn't need it, she didn't want it, she... she just found altruistic people generally really darn annoying. And in her wounded and vulnerable state, she felt even more desperate to just get away. She certainly tried to fight off the woman as she felt her touch - and then, she was already being lifted up.
“Alright, we’re getting away from this place and going somewhere nicer. I’m gonna pick you up, real gentle, and I’m not gonna hurt you. I’m not gonna hurt you. Just keep alert, everything is gonna be fine.”
"Stop... saying.. that! It's really fucking... annoying! I..." Vanessa snapped with all the strength she had, too weak to actually fight off the woman who was clearly strong and capable of dodging her wimpy attempts at harm. "Nobody asked you to... act all fucking... heroic," Vanessa sneered, clearly using every means possible to get at the woman now carrying her. Gone was her polite tactfulness. When she was wounded and panicking and just generally incapable of taking care of herself, Vanessa felt so little and so useless that she had to let all of it out. And for the record, the woman helping her really did annoy the living daylights out of Nessa. She couldn't stand feeling like she owed something to someone. That, and... and she was starting to feel really thirsty.
Thirsty.
The struggling against the woman's grip, it wasn't getting Nessa anywhere. If anything, it was only making her lose stamina. After half a dozen of half-assed attempts at either wiggling out of the other's carrying or attacking her, Vanessa just fell quiet in her arms, exhausted and resigned to her fate.
Drowsy.
Just need... blood...
Vanessa hadn't eaten in a while. It had been her plan to get home and eat there, but now that wasn't on the table. And then she'd gotten hurt, which only made her lose blood and get even hungrier.

✹☽ Vampires of Redhaven ☾✹

@Kinjaav For roleplaying purposes, what's Beck's blood type? I need to know in order to reply lol

✹☽ Vampires of Redhaven ☾✹

@Kinjaav I went a bit overboard there lmao xD Nessa will be okay, she just has a wounded calf right now and she's panicking because she has no clear way of escaping.
Nessa hasnt eaten for a good while so she is in the need of blood soon.

✹☽ Vampires of Redhaven ☾✹

Vanessa Poirier

@Kinjaav

---

The woman just kept talking, much to Vanessa's irritation. The ravenette suspected that the woman was a vampire hunter - one who seemed clearly suspicious of Vanessa, and for a good reason - but she couldn't quite put her finger on the kind of aura the woman sent. Vanessa had learned vampire hunters were very sneaky. They could appear kind and seemingly unthreatening at first, but deadly in a twist of events. Every move, every decision, it would all count right now. Nessa's mind raced fast while she maintained a calm front, her mind coming up with strategies and escape plans on the fly. Escaping the situation wouldn't be so hard, she thought.
As the woman talked, she peered behind her in a way that baffled Vanessa. She couldn't even begin to understand what this woman's motive was. The combat geared individual in front of her seemed clearly like a vampire hunter, yet she was turning her back on Vanessa, who was a clear suspect. Was she stupid, or had Vanessa simply misunderstood the whole situation?

Seeing the opening, Vanessa held still. She was ready to bolt, but then thought the better of it. She still felt like she was being baited, there had to be more to it. The woman in front of her couldn't possibly be as stupid as to just turn her gaze away - there had to be a catch to it.
Before Vanessa could do anything, the woman had already turned back to face her, smiling what seemed a genuine smile.
”I’m more of a wanderer, you’ve probably seen the blue van. It’s a bit forward but if you ever want a ride to work just knock on the window; I’m never far, ‘specially this time of night," the woman offered. Vanessa couldn't help but chuckle at the woman. Maybe she had misread the situation after all.
"Thank you. I'll be sure to keep that in mind, Miss...?" Vanessa replied politely, stretching the end of her sentence to hopefully bait a name out of the woman.
What caught the vampire truly off guard was what happened next.

There was a gunshot piercing through the air, a boom that was even louder to Nessa's sensitive ears. Her instinct was to jump and run, but she didn't have the time, as another gunshot sounded. This time accompanied with a stinging pain to Vanessa's left calf, a burning sensation of tearing muscle. Doubling over, Nessa let out a pained grunt, trying to stumble away from the woman in front of her as fast as she could. The gunshot had come from behind her - somewhere from the foggy street - but Vanessa felt stupid, like a moron, even. Of course it had been a trap. This woman was probably working with a partner, and her job had simply been to distract Vanessa long enough to be an easy target.
Vanessa tried to move, her super fast movements hindered by the pain in her calf. She was forced to meet the ground again because of the pain. Not good. A third gunshot sounded, but this time it came from much closer, totally immobilizing Nessa as she was forced to cover her ears by the ringing sound, completely messing up her concept of surroundings. Adrenaline coursed through the ravenette's veins, all her escape plans crumbling down around her, letting room for panic.
Through the ringing in her ears, Vanessa could hear a muffled laughter. A masculine voice.
"Sorr ... did I take your targe ... ?" Vanessa couldn't make out all of the words, but she knew the voice was not addressing her, but the woman she had been talking to.

✹☽ Vampires of Redhaven ☾✹

Vanessa Poirier

@Kinjaav

---

Trouble. The woman seemed to be joking, but Vanessa still felt as if someone had just thrown a bucket of icewater down her neck. She kept maintaining a stoic face of only minimal glimpses of emotions; irritation in the subtle twitch her eyebrow made, anticipation in the way her posture seemed to be just a bit straighter and eyes just slightly more alert. The woman's military combat did not help Nessa feel at ease, either. The attire signaled instant mistrust in the woman - not that she trusted anyone, really. It was a general rule of thumb for Nessa to not trust and thus not be disappointed.
Nessa could just sense the way the woman's blood was coursing through her veins, her heart beating inside her chest like a forbidden fruit dying to get out. She wasn't interested, however: only certain blood types were suitable for Nessa's digestion.
The woman went on: “These streets see a lot of action at night; a lot of new blood with no direction. It’s not safe for anyone; more humans are on high alert and more vampires gotta be afraid of leeches or crazy covens.” That confirmed Vanessa's earlier suspicions. This woman was baiting her, she was sure of it. Why Nessa even bothered to give her the time of the day, she didn't know. Perhaps trying to leave would just prove fatal even with Nessa's high dexterity and speed, as she did not know what the woman was capable of.
That said, Nessa couldn't help but feel slightly offended at being compared to the new bloods who had no direction, albeit it was only implied. Nessa felt she was above the lot. Her life - or lack thereof - was a proof of her success.
"Indeed," Nessa replied with a thoughtful nod, barely even trying to sound intimidated by the woman's words. Maybe a little hint of suspicion could be heard seeping through the calm, collected tone.
“I just write it all down and try to keep the peace for everyone. So, I’m just curious; what are you up to this early?” the woman then asked, nonchalant and casual. It actually earned the woman a faint smile from Nessa, something which was not fabricated unlike most of her polite smiles. The ravenette's eyes crinkled for a split second before her smile turned back into a fake one. Very good one, but less genuine. Nessa never once broke her eye contact with the stranger.
"Well, yes," Vanessa began, "you see, I like the quiet. And as it happens, my commutes are rather long and I do not own a car. I have to get up early to make it on time," Nessa explained with a straight face even though she knew the woman was obviously smarter than to believe that bullshit excuse. And that showed on her face as she spoke, a quality of playfulness, an open challenge to her carefully chosen words. Perhaps she was feeling a bit playful that morning, or there was something in the woman. Nessa wasn't the type to play with fire, lest she get her fingers burnt. However, sometimes you had to get your fingers burnt to feel something, anything.

✹☽ Vampires of Redhaven ☾✹

Vanessa Poirier

@Kinjaav

---

There was something in the air, but Vanessa couldn't quite put her finger on it. She could feel every noise so acutely around her, the clicking of her heels against the cobblestone, the lone, off-note sing of a bird somewhere far away... Nessa heard it all, and took a sense of peace from it. Morning like this didn't come by often, utter silence like this, only broken by an occasional sound or two.
Then, the air around Nessa shifted dramatically, making a shiver run through her entire body. It wasn't from cold, though. It was because there was someone else there. Someone... getting closer... And then, she could hear it. Footsteps. Unfamiliar ones, at that. With Nessa's superb hearing, she recognised the footsteps as a threat. There was a sense of urgency to them, and they were coming closer. Should she make a run for it, or should she play it cool?
“Excuse me! Miss!” A feminine voice pierced through her foggy air, ringing in Nessa's ears as she grunted quietly. So much for not getting noticed. Making a decision in less than a beat, Nessa decided it would be the safest if she just complied and played along. The clicking of her heels came to a halt, a fleeting echo on the pavement.
”Do you have a moment? I just want to ask you something.”
Now the figure was closer, power-walking straight towards Nessa. She couldn't help but feel slightly unnerved at the sight of a military uniform, already beginning to plot possible escape routes with her face as calm as ever. Keep your cool, that was the key.
"How may I help you?" Nessa asked with her velvety voice, her brow just barely furrowed in irritation at being stopped, chin rising upwards ever so slightly in elegant yet tasteful manner.
Vanessa was wearing her more formal attire as well, clean clothes that were suitable for better occasions but still practical enough to be worn casually. And practical enough to allow her to move freely, too. Much more important, in hindsight. A pendant with a copper locket - clearly just for the aesthetic - rested on Nessa's person.
Vanessa eyed the woman with her honey eyes as if trying to determine what she was about to be asked.
"Looking for something?" she inquired after taking in the combat outfitted woman's stance, expression, and general aura.

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

Piper Ward

Interactions: @TheHangedMan Elspeth

---

Piper's musings came to a halt when a familiar voice greeted her. It was Elspeth Macbain, a highly valued Slytherin from Piper's year. And far more accomplished than Piper, too. The girl seemed like a natural academical talent to Piper, although she was sure the platinum blonde did a lot of work to achieve her high marks. And not only was Elspeth good in school, she was an exceptional dueler too. Piper couldn't help but wonder where the Slytherin prefect got all her free time from. Someone as busy as Elspeth must've had little time for any social activities. Nonetheless, Piper respected the girl a whole lot. Elspeth was determined, focused, pretty, and overall the perfect Slytherin. A dream student and any parent's dream child, too. Piper smiled - albeit slightly caught off-guard - as the blonde Slytherin took a seat next to her.
"You look troubled," Elspeth observed as she sat. Oh right, Piper added as a mental note, she's very observant too.
Piper sat there for a beat to mull over the words, head in the clouds, before nodding in agreement and replying:
"...Yeah. I suppose I do." Rather than elaborating by telling what was on her mind, Piper redirected the conversation away from her like an old pro. Sharing didn't come to Piper naturally.
"Did your train ride go smoothly? I didn't see you anywhere on the way here," Piper inquired with a kind smile dancing on her lips. There was always something eventful happening aboard the Hogwarts Express, but Piper hoped Elspeth had managed to avoid any unpleasant encounters unlike Piper herself.