SkeankySnack

Divided We Stand

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Location; Hotel room!?!?!
Interacting with; Eachother _{(@lovely complex standing in for @Viciousmarrow)}

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Kayla stirred from her sleep, a small groan emitting from her lips, her head pounded, her body ached, and yet, she felt so happy, so warm. She stretched her small frame idly at first, taking in the weird mix of good and bad feelings. She was still tired, maybe just a bit more sleep, it couldn’t hurt could it? Yawning she wrapped her arms around her body pillow, nuzzling her head into its firmness… Wait…. She didn’t have a body pillow, and even if she did, why was it so firm? She gave the pillow a couple of squeezes, identifying contours and a completely different texture.

Her brain suddenly snapped to attention, her body suddenly pulling away to identify what she was sleeping on. She couldn’t tell what it was, why was it still dark? Wasn’t it morning? Reaching over she turned on the bedside lamp and her eyes widened in horror when she realized her pillow was actually a person and not just any person. ”L-L-L-Leon?!” She stuttered nervously. Why was she in bed with him?! Why was he naked?! Why was she naked?! The sudden influx of information was too much for her and so, she screamed, completely unable to handle her discovery.

The Head Warden sure had a good night’s sleep, aside from the boombox in his damned head from all that alcohol he tried to drink. He was never one to lose his ambition and straight up enjoy himself, but last night was an exception. Not just for him, but for all the Wardens. Sure, he was the main man that cared about their cause. Keeping some sort of balance in this chaotic mess they had to deal with for the rest of their school career.

Someone had to do it. Someone had to care. Not enough people cared. You know what that led to? Messes. Hard to clean up messes. Gingerly opening his eyes to the early morning, feeling like absolute shit, Leon heard the high pitched sound of a tiny girl he was slowly building genuine friendship with, “What time is it? Hey.” His mind hadn’t necessarily registered the unfortunate circumstances he had woken up to. Turning his body, he reached for the glass of water that was left on the nightstand. Sitting up, letting the white hotel comforter drop down, revealing his brawny torso, Leon took a nice, long sip of water. Refreshing. His dark gaze slowly but surely started registering his surroundings when he finally took in the petite blonde, whose hair was wild, untamed, and lying against her pale, yet porcelain complexion, and whose chest (and well, entire body) was fully exposed for him to see.

The next seconds happened in a complete blur. “Shit?! Kayla!?” The cup in his hand slipped out spilling all over his chest and the bed. He rolled off the bed and used the mattress as a form of cover as he scrambled to grab his clothes. Aw, shit man. His mom was going to beat his ass. He was suppose to save himself for ‘the one’ and like after she walked down the aisle and said I DO. A Fulton sleeping around would lead to her life… a household with too many fucking kids. His jeans! There they were! Right by the door…

Crawling to the door, naked as hell, Leon reached for his pants for dear life, “You… you don’t happen to remember… how we got here?” He couldn’t look at her face. This was the worst kind of mess he could get himself in.

His panic was just as high as hers, and just as quickly as he grabbed the comforter, she quickly moved to grab the bed sheet wrapping them tightly around her small frame. She was so embarrassed and so confused, she just wanted to hide away. She attempted to do so by lowering her already small and shaking body lower into the mattress. ”I-I-I-I don’t know, I-” she tried to remember what happened last night, what brought the two of them to this state of affairs. She couldn’t...she couldn’t remember any of it, all she remembered was being at the club, investigating with the wardens, then everything goes black. She felt terrified that she couldn’t remember anything, did she drink? If she had how much had she drunk? Oh god, she was in bed with Leon, did they have sex?

”I don’t know! I can’t remember anything from last night! I-” her eyes panically searched around before resting on a spot on the sheets; it was red. Eyes widening, the sudden pain she was feeling in between her legs suddenly became very apparent; she lost her virginity. Oh god her parents would kill her! Hyperventilation and panic setting in, she needed a place to escape to and so, shouting at the top of her lungs, “I NEED TO PEE!!!” and quickly scrambled off the bed into the bathroom, slamming the door behind her. She clambered over to the toilet and sat down on it, bending over herself, holding her head tightly. All of this was too much for her, and everything suddenly bubbled over and she found herself sobbing, sobbing in a hotel bathroom, after a night she couldn’t remember, with the naked man she had a crush on.

Awkwardly, Leon hurriedly put his pants on, not so smoothly. With a deep sigh, he made his way to the bathroom door and gently knocked on it with his knuckles, “I-” He honestly didn’t know how to deal with this situation, but he would sure as hell try to at least comfort her (for better or for worse), “I’m sorry, Kayla.”

Okay, that was a start.

“Whatever you want me to do, I’ll do. I’ll fix this okay? We both don’t know how we got here but I would never hurt you intentionally and I’m sorry. I must’ve gotten carried away or something last night… I’ll take the full blame. Okay?” Should he say more? Or should he wait for her to respond?

Clearing his throat, he tried to make light of the situation, “Hey, if it makes you feel better, my mom’s goin’ to whoop my ass!”

Through her sobbing she could hear the muffled voice of Leon as he tried to talk to her through the door. Her tears slowly dried as he explained that he’d take the blame, she wasn’t upset because of that though, she’d gladly have given herself to Leon, just...not under whatever circumstances had occurred. As he tried to lighten the mood it actually worked and she couldn’t help but stifle a giggle. ”That makes two of us...my mom is going to kill me.” she smiled, though she felt incredibly sore down there, she knew she was a virgin, but how big was he? It's not like she had much time to admire given the shocking start to their morning.

Figuring that out could wait until later though, right now she was completely nude in a hotel bathroom and all her clothes were outside. Quickly relieving herself, wincing all the while, she shakily stood up and grabbed a towel, wrapping it around herself. Making her way to the door she cracked it slightly, ”L-Leon..could you please grab my clothes...I’m gonna shower and change in here…”

Okay. He could do that. Yeah, sure. Looking around the hotel room, he grabbed any female articles of clothing he could find, even some risque underwear that didn’t seem like Kayla’s style. To each their own, he guessed. In less than a minute, Leon was already back at the door and ready to make his offering. After knocking once more with his knuckles, he held the clothes up while facing away from the door, “No need to rush. When you’re all good, I’ll take you home.”

”O-okay” she grabbed the clothing from him, quickly closing the door, ”Find out where we are and we can take a cab back to campus.” Setting the clothes down on the toilet she started up the hot water, and when it was an adequate temperature proceeded to enter the stall. God it hurt to move, stepping into the tub only exaggerated the soreness she felt, how long was she going to feel that? As soon as the hot water hit her she already was starting to feel better, regardless this whole thing was absolutely crazy. A mission at the club last night, no recollection of any events that happened either, and waking up in the arms of the man of her dreams, not even realizing what happened. Sighing and thinking on it, her mom probably wouldn’t be that mad, and her dad was too busy with his research that he probably wouldn’t care. Still she wasn’t proud of the situation she was in, rather disappointed even, she wanted her first time with Leon to be rather...romantic, guess that was out of the picture.

Cleaning herself off fully she turned off the water and began towelling off, wrapping the towel in her hair and sorting through her clothing. First things first was her underwear, which...wasn’t hers. She wasn’t one to have sexy clothing, the dress she wore last night was a first but this...this lacy black thong, was definitely not hers, was there someone else here? Another woman? No there couldn’t be, it was just her and Leon last night, and when they woke up this morning, no one else was present. Maybe it belonged to a previous user of the room? The thought suddenly became appalling as she tossed the panties aside. Sighing she decided to simply clasp on the bra and thank god that her dress was long enough that not wearing panties would be...noticeable.

Meanwhile, back in the room, Leon had just gotten off the homeline talking to the front desk and saying, “I don’t speak French! English man, do you speak it?” Turns out, somehow last night’s events led them to…

Kayla stepped out of the bathroom just as Leon hung up the phone, the towel now in her hands as she finished drying her hair, ”French? What are you talking about Leon?”

“Kayla… I think we’re in Canada.” How the hell did they get here?

No way...seriously?! ”C-C-Canada!” If that was true...she hurriedly rushed over to the bed, hopping on it and clambering for her phone on the nightstand. Grabbing it she started looking at her GPS, and undoubtedly, they were indeed in Canada, but...not on the side where she was from, they had somehow wound up in Montreal. Freaking out a little and unbeknownst to her, her dress had ridden up a little, giving Leon a nice view of her bottomless behind.

Today was going to be a long day… Leon placed his hand on his mouth, bashful and embarrassed at the sudden sight he was seeing. Turning on his heel, he went out onto the balcony for some fresh air. “We’ll… figure this out.”

Divided We Stand

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Location; Old West, Room 2B → Outside by the fountain
Interacting With; Gianna _{@lovely complex} → Eliana → The mind → No one

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Elijah, he was having a rather pleasant dream, feelings of warmth, of want, of passion. He dreamt that he could see things clearly, or at least what he perceived to be seeing, it was nothing he had ever done before. The whole world was awash with color, not the same color as auras, no, these were vibrant, intoxicating and beautiful. As wonderful as the dream was, all things had to come to an end, and the sky, the ground, all that was around him, suddenly began to implode itself unto one source, Elijah himself. As quickly as the dreaming world crashed around him, so too did reality, as he was violently ripped away and the pleasantness he felt, was overwhelmed with a throbbing headache.

His hand instinctively reached out to grasp his skull, the throbbing pain he felt, was without a doubt, a hangover; a feeling he had never experienced. ”How do people even manage to consume that much alcohol on a consistent basis?” he quietly mused to himself, gently rubbing his temple. He briefly tried to recall the night’s events, he had transformed his body, made his way to Delirium, met up with some of the Harts and Gianna, the Harts had found him out, Gianna had not, he drank a lot of liquor with her, he danced with her….he kissed her...and then pain. That was as much as he could remember, his body felt incredibly sore, an unfortunate side effect of the scroll’s magic, and his head was pounding, a result of the alcohol; could the morning possibly get any better? Elijah gingerly tried to sit himself up, only to find himself, unable to do so, it was as if a weight was pressing upon him. Looking down he found the sleeping form of someone resting upon him, the aura was instantly recognized, ”Gianna…” he said her name rather quietly.

Last night was a whirlwind of emotions for Gianna Daniels. The one night she wanted to push all that she was carrying on her shoulders to the side. To live, to forget, to smile… just one night. Was that so hard to ask for? Yeah, it was. For a girl like her, a creature of the night, surrounded by mindless crimes behind the curtain, she could not afford to be in love or experience happiness again. Her life was decided at birth. A miserable existence, in search of finding what she was living for. It was her job to work with the cards that were dealt to her. Nobody’s else’s. No matter how hard things got, no matter how much her heart broke, her smile would stay on. Her will would carry on.

With flakey makeup, Gianna unhurriedly opened her eyes to the blaring morning light infiltrating from outside the window into the bedroom. Moving her body slightly, while stretching it under the sheets, completely bare, she glanced up at her one night lover, and friend of four years. Locking her gaze with his, she stood silent for a moment. A long-neverending-moment. Her light brown hair rested wildly on her shoulders. Her scent, although with a hint of hard liquor to it, still held it’s natural fresh, light lemon and bergamot touch. Her succulent lips curved into a smirk and a devious giggle escaped them. Whether her appearance was real or faux, she seemed okay, and even her aura was positively mischief. “Good morning, sunshine. Can’t handle the morning after.” she teased.

Elijah stared at Gianna, she seemed to be in a rather good mood, though Elijah felt...something else. He had tasked himself with protecting this woman, and now here he was, lying with her, completely nude, after what he could only assume was a passionate night of lovemaking...what was wrong with him? ”Clearly…” Despite the overwhelming sense of guilt he felt, his voice continued to remain rather neutral. Strategically moving himself and her, he found a way to pull himself up and out of bed. Though his initial steps were slightly staggered, he managed to find balance and approach his bureau. Atop it laid a small box, which he opened to reveal sticks of incense. ”So…” he started as he pinched the incense, igniting it in a light ember, ”How did we end up in this...position…?” carefully he placed the stick in the holder attached to the box.

“Long story short, a shitty night led me to want a good fuck. I’m not going to fuck Lucas, he’s like… my child. It would just be weird, so I chose you.” Gianna sat up, letting the sheet drop and reveal her chest. Nonchalantly, she reached for one of Elijah’s pens and rolled her hair up with it (too lazy to reach for her purse and get a hair tie). “I wasn’t your first, was I?” she asked casually, as she reached for her phone to check the Delphina Times, her social media, and other messages.

His head slightly turned to her before returning back to the bureau as he rifled through for clothing, ”It doesn’t matter…” Nudity had never been a real issue for Elijah, he couldn’t see others, and he didn’t care whether they saw him, he had nothing to be ashamed of. Yet considering the circumstances of the situation at hand, he felt extremely vulnerable in front of Gianna and he felt he wasn’t finding any clothing fast enough before he donned a simple pair of cotton pants.”So long story short, you had a bad night and came to me for comfort..,” he said pulling on a cotton shirt, its otherworldly pattern quite apparent. Another source of guilt hit him, his disguise as Lucky possibly pushing her to him, ”Your actions as of late towards me are...rather inconsistent…if not concerning.”

Gianna tilted her head at her late boyfriend’s best friend, listening to his words with that damn smile never leaving her face. “I’m spontaneous. Get use to it, baby.” she cooed, before standing up herself and retrieving her clothes. “I won’t agree or disagree that I needed someone. But I will tell you, you’re not half bad, y’know, in bed, and you’re pretty talented down under.” Her melting chocolate orbs scanned from his face to his lower half. Pulling her top on first, Gianna took in the noises of the morning coming from outside.

Meanwhile, Eliana had woken up to the sweetest text from Tristram: Good morning beautiful :). I hope you have a great day! She couldn’t help but feel butterflies in her stomach. He was so nice to her. Perhaps, she should take proactive actions on easing her frustrations with Elijah’s meditation method, right? She couldn’t recall exactly what her dear friend (and crush) had told her previously, so she decided to give him a little visit. For once, her mood was better than usual. She made a new friend that made her feel good about herself and she had someone she could see possibly dating, who enthralled her with his intelligence.

Reaching Elijah’s and Mitch’s dorm door, Ellie went for a knock but couldn’t help but notice the door cracked open, “Hey Elijah! It’s me! I’m coming in~” Gently, she pushed the door open only to see Gianna and Elijah inches away from each other, putting clothes on. “Oh… I’m sorry for interrupting... ” The eighteen year old’s cheeks leaked red. Turning on her heel, Ellie chose to run away… of course he liked someone else. Gianna, at that. Gianna was beautiful, she was not.

Completely ignoring her compliment, Elijah folded his arms and frankly wanted to scold her, ”Actions without thought often have consequences Gianna, regardless of whether the consequences are intentional or not.” As if karma had struck, in walked Eliana to witness the aftermath of their nightly affair, only for her to run out as quickly as she had come in. ”Eliana!” Even after calling out he knew his words would fall on deaf ears. Sighing in frustration, he mused, ”A perfect case in point…” He turned his head to Gianna before making his way to the door, ”Last night was a mistake, one that won’t happen again, get yourself dressed, and leave, we will not speak again.” Slamming the door shut behind him he chased after Eliana, hoping to maybe at least explain things as yet another wave of guilt washed over him.

Yet again, Gianna was left alone. Her mask dropped and solemn darkness draped over the matriarch of Delphina. “You’re right, Elijah. It won’t happen again.” For all she knew, she didn’t have much longer to live. Her life was being held by a thread and the person who was holding it had his eyes on the same woman Elijah was interested in. Eliana. She had many things to think about… like how she would appease a madman while keeping her puppy on a leash.

The show must go on.

Once she was done getting dressed, Gianna left her friend’s room. Last night was a mistake… not just for you. and went on with her business for the day.

Eliana wasn’t the fastest runner. Her stamina was poor compared to her classmates, but somehow, she was able to reach the fountain and take a seat at it. Huffing and trying to catch her breath.

It didn’t take long to find Eliana, her trail was easy to pick up, and by the time he did find her, she was already out of breath. He slowly approached the young woman and stopped some feet away from her. ”May we speak a moment...you and I?”

“I really don’t want to. Just go away.” Eliana kept her gaze to the ground as she breathed in and out.

”You’re upset with me….You have every right to be, I’m not too particularly pleased with myself right now either. Unfortunately, I cannot comply with your request, not until we’ve at least talked.”

“I really don’t care how you feel. I asked you to go, so go.” Eliana was unyielding and her defense system was up and completely spiked. She didn’t want to deal with this right now, she shouldn’t have to talk things out when he was in the wrong. No. She wouldn’t listen. He needed to go away.

This was getting annoying, and he could feel his heat rising, ”I’m afraid...I can’t do that Eliana.” he spoke through gritted teeth. Like the waves of heat rising off of a heated car in summer, similar waves could be seen rising off Elijah, ”I chased you out here so I could explain myself, I’m not leaving until I’ve spoken my piece-”

“I said GO AWAY!” Eliana stood up, infuriated at a person she thought was growing to be her companion. Her chartreuse green orbs was flooded with ghostly white and her brown hair defied gravity, floating in the air, ever so steadily. Her aura was like white noise, unreadable and blindingly static.

One second Ellie’s aura was a raging inferno and then the next, nothing. There was an aura he had never seen before, an emotion so blurred that it generated complete nonsense. It was like the woman that was Eliana had suddenly disappeared and was replaced with someone…something else.

With no hesitation, no restraint, no doubt, Eliana took it upon herself to wash a nightmare over Elijah and go about her life - without him. Not in a way she’s done in the past. No, this was new… different. One moment she was arms length apart from him, the next she was inches away from his face, nearly kissing him but instead letting her breath slip into his lips, which took the form of mist.

Placing him in the landscape of his old school, Delphina, like she had done with Lucas that one fateful night, she created vivid imagery of his school burning but made him the culprit of the death of many and on top of that… she placed a face she had seen with him a year ago, to make it even more real…

The world had suddenly escaped from beneath his feet, as though a raging whirlwind lifted him from one existence into another. The white noise that was the faux Ellie had been replaced with an excessive amount of heat around him. Fire was everywhere, though as confused as he was, he knew where he was; Delphina. Screams echoed in his mind, shrills and shrieks of the damned, those that burned around him. He looked to his hands, the burning infernos they were, he was the cause of this, and for once in a long time, he felt true terror.

Slowly he backed away from the burning school, literally witnessing auras snuffed out in flame, bodies falling from the building, their life force exploding as they collapsed to the ground. ”No...this can’t be...I DIDN’T WANT THIS!”

Suddenly two massive hands wrapped around his wrists, searing into his flesh, he felt the fire burn his skin and he cried out in agony. Whatever was holding him, its grip tightened, pulling his limbs apart, holding onto him like a martyr on his cross, forced to witness the destruction he had wrought. “Oh but it is, is it not?” The thing holding onto him spoke, its voice sounded of crackling flame, its breath reeking of ash and sulfur, “Was it not the desire to burn all those fools who dared to cross your path? Our path?”

Elijah tried to turn his head, but was unable to do so, even then, he knew what was holding him, what was searing his skin. ”Aziral! What have you done!?” The elemental merely chuckled, gripping into Elijah tighter, ”What have I done? Nononono dear boy, this is your handiwork. You couldn’t stand to be second best! You couldn’t stand to be the lackey! You couldn’t stand to be her shadow any longer, especially with a certain shadow gripping onto her so tightly!” it laughed gleefully, ”So what was the sensible thing to do then? To burn them all, BURN THEM ALL ALIVE! Brenna! Lucas! Gianna! EVERYONE WAS GOING TO DIE!!!” It laughed maniacally, a roaring flame the roared louder than the fire that surrounded the two.

The realization of what Eli had done finally dawned upon him, and he struggled against his captor, ”NO! I refuse to believe that! I wouldn’t have done that to them! They’re! ...Theyre..”

A third hand suddenly grabbed the top of his skull and he screamed again in agony as two pronged fingers forced his eyes to open. He wasn’t just witnessing the aura of the fire, he was witnessing the actual fire, all so vivid and unadulterated as it was. ”Face it boy. You wanted this to happen, even if you can’t admit it. Either way, it doesn’t matter, because you never counted on the shadow to spring from one host to another.”

As if on cue a shadowed figure stepped through the flame engulfed entrance to Delphina. Its steps slowed as it approached the captive Elijah, whose eyes only grew wider in realization of who it was. ”No…You can’t be here...You’re supposed to be dead!”

The figure stepped forth, ignoring Elijah’s cries, ”Don’t you remember what I asked Eli? If I ever died, you protect her, you protect my Gianna, and make sure she doesn’t do anything stupid?” A shadowed blade formed at the end of his arm, ”What a damn idiot I was. Thinking I could trust you, to protect her and instead…” his head raised to make eye contact with Elijah, ”You raped her...you murdered her….you killed her friends.”

”No...I...Vince...I-”

”You raped her, you murdered her, you killed her friends.”

”Vincent….stop…”

”CONFESS!!! You raped her! You murdered her! You killed her friends!”

By this point now, those words echoed through his mind, it was like an endless chant that not only sounded from the shadow of Vincent before him, but from the dead bodies that he had burned alive, those who crawled upon the ground to seek vengeance against the one that slew them. Tears flowed freely from Elijah’s eyes, ”I...I didn’t…” he felt broken, lost, all sense of neutrality he had worked so hard to build, crumbled in an instant. ”You’ve made your bed Elijah...now you must lie upon it.” Slowly the elemental presented Elijah to Vincent; a broken pariah to his judge, jury and executioner.

Vincent’s hand reached out and grabbed Elijah’s face, all semblance of life and camaraderie lost in his eyes ”I’m going to kill you Elijah and I will take great pleasure in it, but you must do one thing first. Confess your sins, not only to me, but to all these poor unfortunate souls.”

Eli looked around slowly before looking down upon the ground, meekly speaking, ”I raped her….I murdered her….I killed her friends….”

”Then by my hand...you shall die for the crimes you have committed...may God have mercy on your damnable soul…” Instantaneously Vincent’s hand shot right through Eli’s stomach. Everything suddenly turned to white noise, a blaring piercing sound that cut off everything else. It cut off the scream Eli shuddered, the blood that suddenly dripped from his gaping wound, the sound of the fire that engulfed the school. All that remained, was the laughter of the fire elemental, resounding in his ears. Then, nothing.

Like a sack of bricks, reality rushed back to him and the ground slammed up into him from beneath. Started up and still terrified with what he had witnessed, Elijah shot up onto his knees and screamed up into the morning sky, a flame rocketing from his face a good 40ft into the air. With his lungs completely expelled of air, he collapsed back onto the cold ground. Consciousness was slowly fading. He could see the terrified students around him who witnessed his sudden outburst, but they didn’t matter. All that mattered was Ellie and she was gone, and whatever that aura was that had replaced her...that was gone too. Then everything faded to black, once again, there was nothing. Nothing at all.

Divided We Stand

Part 1

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Location: Safehouse Bravo, Upstate New York
Interacting with: Each Other (@AbandonedIntel, @BeastOfDestiny)

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The Same Night

After quite a long night of dancing, entering torture chambers, falling into dumpsters, driving like crazy in a stolen Ford Explorer, and stumble-teleporting through the woods, Carmen, Hugo and Liana made it to Safehouse Bravo, a large industrial building left standing in the woods of upstate New York. The building itself was falling apart with overgrown plants surrounding it on the outside, and even looked like it in the large storage area inside as well, but the building was maintained structurally, and the main offices upstairs were refurbished into very nice living spaces. Inside the main storage area was that of an older New York city services Jeep Cherokee, as well as many old crates and a bunch of traffic lights piled up on top of more crates. While all of this was a facade, the reality was locked away in the upstairs living area, where the real safehouse is at.

The upstairs area, towards the back of the building was closed off by commercial-grade steel doors that are normally locked by a keypad (as one couldn’t carry keys with them all of the time). Liana remembered the passcode when they got there, and it led up into a nice lofty area that came with a living room and a kitchen, to which Liana referred to simply as ‘The Loft’. There were also bedrooms in the safehouse, and while they were somewhat nice, they were also a little filthy. A large storage room, locked away by another keypad, was used as security office, complete with monitors that had running cameras, ham radio sets, and a fully stocked armory with rifles, submachine guns, shotguns, pistols and explosives. It was a nice place that had everything a safehouse needed, and it was one of many that Carmen and her friends had dotted along Upstate New York.

That night, as soon as they arrived there, Carmen’s wounds were immediately addressed, where her lower back had a massive stab wound from a broken glass bottle (and made much worse by the accident, tearing muscle and skin further apart). Liana, while she was an expert at killing, she learned how to heal herself when she received retaliation, and used this skill to help Carmen out. Having taken out all of the glass shards and cleansed to wound, she immediately stitched it up, put a lot of healing creams and fluids on it, and slapped a bunch of sterile gauze on it, and a large pad to help stop the bleeding. The healing process was incredibly painful for Carmen, but after a joint or two, it helped her settle down.

Much later, Carmen sat in the loft, with the massive bandage underneath her shirt and N7 jacket she still wore. Joint in hand, she watched TV on the couch while Liana kept watch on the security cameras. Beforehand, both she and Carmen had reloaded their weapons and stocked themselves up just in case if they were still being pursued, Carmen switching back to her much favored and very deadly FNX-45 tactical instead of her smaller P99. She relaxed as she watched the flatscreen in front of her, head on a pillow as she lied sideways on the couch. Fresh Prince of Bel Air was on TV that night, and Carmen enjoyed it somewhat.

After arriving and helping Carmen into a room where Liana could work on her, Hugo felt it best to give the girls some privacy and asked to use the bathroom. There he stripped down and used the shower, allowing the warm water to ease and relax his muscles. While he had taken minimal damage during the engagement, he still felt a little worn, it wasn’t exactly often that he was thrown into life or death situations. It also gave him time to think, to reflect on their choices, though it mattered little, knowing him, he’d forget everything in the morning. C’est la vie, he chuckled to himself as he turned off the water and toweled off. There weren’t any spare clothes to change into, so he simply put on the ones he wore at the club, leaving the shirt open, revealing his bare chest.

Stepping out of the bathroom and into the living area he saw Carmen resting on the couch, it seemed she had taken the healing well. Walking towards the chair opposite to her, drying his golden locks he said, ”You’re looking much better, but it appears I was right,” he sat down, ”It seems you do live a dangerous lifestyle.” Hugo chuckled a little, a gentle smile on his face. ”How are you feeling, Mon Cherie?”

Carmen chuckled a little, looking to Hugo. “Eh… so far this was the worst that has ever happened to me. Normally I get out of these kinds of… things unscathed.” She said with a smile, before sitting up. “Ow... fuck, still hurts.” She grunted as she sat up, cringing a little from the sharp pain. “It’s gonna be a bit before I recover though, assuming that no one at Mayweather could heal me up… it’s only just to stop the bleeding.” She explained. “Mmnn… Liana’s in the security box if you wanna see her.” She said, stretching a little.

He winced a little at her obvious discomfort, but other than that, she definitely looked much better. ”Oui, I’ll have to give her my thanks, the sword she gave me was very useful indeed.” He stood up and draped the towel over the chair he was in before approaching Carmen and taking a seat next to her, ”I believe that can wait though, after all I did ask you to dance, not Liana.” He frowned a little, a revelation dawning on him, ”I feel I must apologize, had you not danced with me, you might have concluded your business unscathed.”

Carmen nodded with a soft smile. “Yeah… We got plenty of shit, so whatever you need, just feel free to ask. You were incredibly helpful in our escape so, uh, as far as I know, I’m happy to call you my homeboy.” She said with a soft smirk. Once he sat next to her, she continued to watch TV. Once he apologized, she frowned too. “Hermano, don’t blame yourself.” She said, patting him on the shoulder before looking down for a moment. “Yeah… I did go to see this guy named… Mr. Allen. Huh. I doubt he’s behind all of this though.” She said softly. “And besides… I learned that the place was under control of some Mafia assholes while we were dancing, I’m equally at fault for ignoring my friends when they told me.” She said. “And… yeah. I had them spy on me from a black van a quarter mile away.” She chuckled, before thinking. “Speaking of which…” She then called out to Liana. “Hey! Liana! Have the team report in! I wanna make sure they’re alright!”

“You got it boss!” Liana called out from the security room down the hall.

”Mercie, Carmen.” A small smirk on his face, as she explained her reasons and actions for being at the club tonight he nodded. ”Perhaps I was wrong to say you are a spy, though you seem more Mission Impossible than James Bond if you were one.” He chuckled a little, and noticed the joint in her hand, that familiar fragrance wafting in his nose. ”May I?” When he was handed the joint he brought it up to his lips and took a hit, holding the smoke in his lungs before exhaling, ”I suppose I was successful in one thing tonight,” he took another hit, ”I did give you a night to remember, though it didn’t turn out the way I had originally intended.” He chuckled again, passing the joint back to her.

“Eh… well, I always thought myself of a… criminal version of Sherlock Holmes, or… Denzel Washington’s character in The Equalizer.” She said, passing the joint to him. “A night to remember? This is a night me and Liana are never gonna forget!” She laughed. “Fuck, I mean I nearly got killed by a broken glass bottle in a motherfucking dumpster. If that isn’t fucking embarrassing, I don’t know what is!” She chuckled, taking the joint back. “It’s fine, either way... sex is great and all but, I don’t really learn much from it.” She said, taking a hit herself. “What happened just now? That was all a really, really big learning experience. I ain’t gonna do any of that shit again!” She chuckled. “And if I’m about to, I’m gonna make sure my friends stop me, well, uh… they actually did try when I was in Delirium.” She thought for a moment. “Oh well. Hehe.”

While at the time it was pretty serious, now that the danger had passed, it was actually pretty funny. The weed didn’t help to make it any less so as Hugo laughed along with Carmen. ”You don’t learn anything from sex? Perhaps you just don’t have a good enough teacher, or the proper ‘study material’.” Taking the joint from her, finishing his sentence with another hit.

“Mmmhmhmmh~” Carmen chuckled at his statement. “Smooooth~” She chuckled sarcastically, lightly hitting him on his shoulder. “Ahh… last time I did it…uh... was with a woman, believe it or not.” She said softly. “It… felt so wrong, yet it… felt right.” She said with a soft smile. “Better than any man I’ve slept with, I’d say…” She chuckled a little. “If you stick it out with me, you might be able to meet this woman.” She said with a soft smile. “But if you can top her, I’d do it with you again, and again…, until someone beats your high score.” She said with a lusty grin, leaning over towards him, running her hand along his chest. “For me, until I find the man or woman I love with all my heart, I only restrict access to the best. So… if you wanna prove it, the bedroom is right down the hall.” She grinned, gesturing towards the hallway across from them.

”Last time, I was with a man, and a woman, there is no shame in it Carmen, love comes in all forms.” He smiled as he listened to her challenge, that ever familiar look of want and lust displayed. His face soon followed suit, ”I’d most certainly be willing Mon Cherie,” a small flash of concern did cross his face, ”But are you sure you are up for it? Your wounds I mean, I wouldn’t want to do something so robust as to make you bleed again.”

Carmen grinned at his acceptance, and after standing up with a little pain, she shook her head. “Ahh, well, we’re doing it in bed so… I think I’ll be better off.” She said with a soft smirk. “Let’s go, hombre~” She gestured to him teasingly, leading him through the hallway and into one of the bedrooms (the one farthest away from Liana for Liana’s sake). “Mmnnn… you ready as I am?” She asked, unzipping her leather N7 jacket before throwing it onto a nearby chair, revealing her grey shirt and her shoulder holster that carried her radio, handgun and the ammo for it.

He followed the teasing woman into the bedroom, shutting the door behind him with a soft click. Approaching the darker skinned woman, he let his shirt slide off his body, tossing it on top of her jacket. ”Only if you are ready to receive a proper lesson, Mon Cherie” He said the last part a bit seductively, his hand gently brushing her cheek as he leaned in close for a kiss.

Carmen gave a hot moan before closing her eyes, kissing him back. “Mmn…” She blushed a little, letting her shoulder holsters slide off of her torso and slowly onto the chair behind her. “Yes…” She moaned gently, closing her eyes and kissing him along his neck. Pressing her hand against his chest, she grinned slightly, letting him show his affection towards her as she took off her shirt, revealing that she had quite a nice set underneath, with a bra that showed off her assets quite nicely. She smirked. “Impressed?” She asked. “The women on the side of the bad guys often have the bigger package.” She said, raising an eyebrow jokingly.

Her caresses and kisses were heavenly, eliciting soft groans from the male. Pleasure on its own was nice, but coupled with a nice high, the effects were significantly heightened. She stepped back a moment to strip her shirt off, revealing more of the dark beauty before him. At her inquiry he answered simply, ”Magnifique,” before pressing towards her, helping her to gently lay down on the bed, careful not to touch her wound.

Carmen smirked at his reply. “Mmmn… you’ll get plenty of it in just a second~” She teased, and once she was pressed towards the bed, she moaned gently, and once she was laid down, she bent a little and immediately winced. “AAII!!” She yiped out in pain, feeling her wound. “Aaaiii...Owowowow… ouchie… fuck…” She groaned, sitting back up almost immediately. “Owww… fucking hell…” She winced. “Damn… yeah you’re right, what the fuck… that hurt like a motherfucker… yeah I don’t think I can do this right now…” She said apologetically, wincing in pain. “Yeah that… that hurt… alot.” She moaned. “Uhh, do you accept rainchecks? I’ll let you play with my tits for free…”

Hugo looked at her with a worried expression as she cried out in pain, he knew that she was not up for something like this, but they at least tried. At her offer of a raincheck and fondle, he chuckled softly, ”There is no need to push yourself Mon Cherie, we ca-”

Almost immediately, the door to the bedroom opened, revealing Liana, with a concerned look on her face. “Hey Carmen, are you alriiii-” She trailed off, looking at the scene before her. A shirtless Hugo, a shirtless Carmen, sitting on the bed, incredibly close. “Uhhh…” Liana stood there, absolutely still, awkward as all hell.

Carmen put her hand up. “Liana… it was just a little-”

“You guys didn’t invite me?” Liana asked, frowning. “I kinda wanted to unwind a little myself!”

Carmen now felt just as awkward as Liana did. “You know?” She asked, in regards to her being attracted to women as well.

“You and Sukaina are a very terribly kept secret, you know.” Liana pointed out.

Carmen fell silent.

Hugo looked back and forth between the two as the scene unfolded, surprised, but not embarrassed, though even he could tell the scene was awkward for the two. ”Carmen, I know you are feeling pained, but I do want you to feel pleasure, and well, a man does have more tools at his disposal than just his tool. Liana wants to unwind and to have a man and a woman at your side.” He looked carefully between the two, ”Perhaps we can come to a compromise?”

Liana looked to Carmen, gesturing to Hugo. “He does have a point.”

Carmen looked to them both, and was silent for a moment before she shouted. “NO!” She threw her hands up. “Not now, okay? I’m sorry, I can’t do this!” She sighed. “Okay, I guess I owe you both a raincheck, okay? And I guess that’s more of an incentive for you to get me to Mayweather to find a healer too.” She said, gesturing to Liana. “Listen, both of you guys did a great job in saving my life, you’re both awesome, and you guys totally deserve it, and I’d love to fuck the both of you, but… just… wait until I can at least bend?” She sighed. "Jesus..." She stood up. “Ow…” She whimpered a little before walking off.

Liana watched Carmen as she passed her, before turning back to Hugo. She cringed a little. “Sorry about that…” She said softly, in regards to ruining their moment.

Hugo’s eyes widened at Carmen’s sudden tirade and he stood up and stepped back a little, letting the young woman vent out before she left the room. At Liana’s apology he ”C’est la vie, Liana. We’re all a little ragged after our escape, no?” He went over and grabbed his shirt from the chair and threw it over his shoulder. ”Perhaps it is best if we all rested a little now,” he said stepping past Liana, ”Although, the offer is open if you needed to unwind still.” he said with a smirk on his face.

Liana listened, nodding. “Yeah.” She sighed softly. “You two go ahead and get comfortable, I’ll arm up the safehouse before I hit the hay as well.” Once he stepped past her and offered, she grinned a little. “I appreciate the gesture, and while it is nice to have a dick every now and then, I think I’d rather pass after what just happened. Besides I gotta make sure that the murder biker zombies don’t come after us again, so...” She poked him in between his chest. “I bid you... goodnight.” She said before walking off towards the security room.

Watching as she walked away Hugo gave a small sigh, ”Bonne Nuit, Madame.” From there he entered one of the bedrooms and flopped on the bed, quick to fall asleep.

Divided We Stand

Hello friends, this is an announcement to all

After discussing things with @HushedWhispers we've decided that moods are a completely optional part of our posts (as we believe our writing contrays our moods well enough), however you do have the option of writing them in if you feel the need to, you will not be reprimanded for such actions.

Divided We Stand

Just so everyone knows, Sylvia deserves another punch in the face.

Divided We Stand

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"L U C K Y" & G I A N N A

Location; Dancefloor
Interacting With; Each other _{(@lovely complex @BeastofDestiny)}

Gianna: Humane → Like shit
Elijah (Lucky): Loving → Emotional → Like Shit

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Carefully he took Gia’s hand as she reached out for his, and as he expected of how a male should perform he lead her towards the dance floor, moving in between the crowds of people that had formed. When he felt they had reached an appropriate spot, he turned and faced the woman, and pulled her close to him, and began lightly dancing. Despite the way the music sounded, and despite the fact he couldn’t see her, he knew she looked absolutely beautiful, as her aura radiated with the same old energy she used to display. It was a far cry from how she had been recently acting, especially when she decked him that one night. ”You know, I’ve never had a chance to dance with such a beautiful woman before.” His smile was true and genuine, and he hoped that it reflected on her just as much as she had reflected on him this evening.

“You flatter me.” Gianna’s warm, brown orbs deeply observed his face as their dance contrasted their chaotic surroundings. She couldn’t help but feel a sense of familiarity with this boy. Why did he feel so… comforting? The feud didn’t matter. Her future plans of finding answers and getting justful vengeance didn’t matter. Even, Vince’s death didn’t matter. For a moment in time, she felt okay. Everything was going to be okay. Why did he make her feel safe? Was it the way he held her? How close they felt even though they’ve known each other for less than thirty minutes? She couldn’t be falling for this complete stranger, could she? Resting her head on his chest, she asked, “Tell me a bit about yourself, I don’t think we’ve… ever had a chance to talk.”

A thought briefly flashed that maybe Gio had known that Eli was disguised from the beginning, that maybe he was fucking with him when he said that Lucky and Gia had met. That thought had vanished the moment Gia rested her head against him, could she feel how warm he was? Could she hear his heart racing in this moment? Despite the drink talking, he still kept relatively in character, trying to be as vague as possible while still giving satisfactory answers.”I couldn’t possibly begin to describe myself in such a short amount of time, just know I’m the guy you’re dancing with, the guy who’s showing you a classy, but good time.” That much was true anyway, at least from the way her aura shined, drink or not, he knew she was having fun, she just felt so vibrant.

She kept quiet after his reply and closed her eyes, enjoying this moment with him. Everyone saw her as the enemy and perhaps, she was, but tonight she felt worth someone’s time. Something she hasn’t felt in a long time. Sure, she had Lucas and Brenna, but their admiration was completely different than what she felt right now. Heh, I’ve always been… kind of needy and pathetic. As much as her drunk mind could go in a dark place, she didn’t want it to. Gia was going to live for the moment. Live for tonight. “Thank you, Lucky. This is…” She pulled away from resting on his chest and glanced up at him, “Really nice.” Her smile was weak but she was happy. A girl who's lost everything and still tries to persevere in her own… fucked up way.

”I’m glad I can be useful for something,” it was meant to be a compliment, but it was sort of degrading Elijah’s worth. The irony was not lost on him, how he was meant to protect this woman, to make sure she didn’t fall down a dark path, and the only way to do that, was to not be himself. Ironic, funny, but despite all that, he couldn’t be happier in this moment, she certainly seemed to be, even if there were lingering thoughts emanating from her. She truly was a beautiful woman, and he couldn’t help but raise his hand to brush some hair from her face. Though his faux eyes stared into hers, he himself was really staring into her soul, how could he have not noticed this? Something seemed to overtake him, and slowly he began leaning towards her face. A thousand thoughts flashed through his mind, was this right? Would she reciprocate? What if she didn’t want this? They all passed through helplessly as suddenly his lips pressed into hers, a warm heat radiating gently as he endearingly kissed Gianna Daniels.

The warmth of his breath lit Gianna up like a candle and a rush of heat came from him, slowly spreading throughout her own body, reaching every last limb. Her eyes did reveal that she, out of all people, did not expect to be kissed this fine night… but… she wasn’t going to refuse him. As she breathed, her shoulders rose and fell and she took in his fiery kiss. Her heart swelling with this surreal feeling he gave her. Moving her lips in concord with his, she closed her eyes once more and allowed him to take the lead. Woah, Gianna giving someone power over her? That has to be a lie! It wasn’t, though. Pressing her chest against him, she brought herself close and let his protective hold sweep her off her feet.

Her body complied and her lips moved in coordination with this, that natural human instinct that took over and knew just which way to position oneself to maximize the pleasurable experience. She was warm, dare he say even warmer than him? It didn’t matter, the auras and clusters of noise that surrounded the two suddenly fading to black, the bright and shining aura of their two bodies the only relevance in his mind. He could say he felt like he was on fire, but the combined heat generating between the two made that thought null and void. No the two of them were like a blazing inferno, one fire meeting another, combining and sharing the heat. That’s when he broke the kiss, looking deeply into her once more, ”Sorry, couldn’t help myself,” he grinned somewhat bashfully, almost stupidly.

“I’m glad you did, I haven’t been kissed like that since...” Gia stopped herself from saying anything more. Tonight, it seemed harder to say his name. She was in his family’s establishment, after all, but she thought she was fine with saying it. Vincent Hart. After both Elijah and Mitch had cornered her and used him against her, she thought she could handle saying his goddamn name. Why did she feel more vulnerable tonight than she’s ever been in a long while? Maybe, she should end this… whatever this kid was giving her. She couldn’t afford these feelings. They were too real. Something this real could easily be ripped away from her. “Lucky…” she whispered. However, immediately after she said that, her head went into a tilt while she witnessed something strange with his face, even in the darkness, “You look… sick?” She didn’t know how to describe it but he seemed to be…

Sick? What was she…? And that’s when it happened, that same pain was coming to him as he had felt it just hours ago; he was changing back into Elijah. Grunting and panting heavily he pulled himself away from Gianna, holding his hand out he shouted, ”Stay back! Don’t come near me! I…” The pain, it was too much, even in his inebriated state it was too much, ”I have to go!” Hurriedly he shoved his way through the crowd of people, dissatisfied shouts and cussing following in his wake. He barely made it outside before he felt his body being ripped apart, the bouncers even giving his curious looks as he rushed his way through the streets, making it nearly a block before diving into an alleyway. On his hands and knees he screamed into the night, a much more unsightly display than what was earlier produced as started changing back. The process itself didn’t take long, but the pain felt like it was going on for hours.

Prone on the ground, breathing heavily, panting furiously, he tried to recuperate himself. He felt so weak, so devastated, he felt so pathetic, he felt so...so angry. Weak at his physical form, devastated from such a spell, pathetic that he lost control over himself, over how he felt for Gianna, angry..that he left her in such a sorry state. Slowly, carefully he picked himself up, and limped his way over to the alley, he felt like he had just run a marathon...while completely wasted; his muscles were screaming. Using the wall for support he made his way back towards Mayweather, never looking back, but in his heart, he felt pained, ”Gia...I’m so sorry.” First thing he’d do when getting back was burn the clothes, then he’d need a nice, hot shower.

Tears ran down Gianna’s face. W-what just happened? Her heart felt ripped to shreds, why did she allow herself to feel? When the fuck was she going to learn her lesson? She needed to leave… and so she did.

Divided We Stand

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"L U C K Y" & G I A N N A

Location; Gio's bar
Interacting With; Elijah Lucky, Gianna _{(@lovely complex @BeastofDestiny)}; Giovanni & "Mystery man"

Gianna: Curious → Intrigued → Playful/Flirtatious → Frustrated → Enjoying herself and having fun (for once)
Elijah (Lucky): Surveying → Out of Place → Trying to Fit in (Friendly) → Surprised (Playing it off) → Unsurprised (Excitable) → Aware (Interactive) → Shocked (Calm & Cool) → Annoyed (Mischievous) → Playing Along (Flirtatious) → Enjoying himself → Completely Shocked → Confident & Inviting

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Surprisingly enough, it wasn’t as difficult to locate the individuals Elijah was after as he thought it would be. Will and Avalon stuck out like a sore thumb in this place, and it seemed that Will had already made his move on Eliana, he’d have to keep a close eye on them as the two cut a rug across the dance floor. Avalon herself seemed to be making her way into the crowd as well, her destination not really clear yet. Lucas himself was at the bar, chatting away with a woman he had not seen before. The Ice Queen had also made her way to the bar, but it wasn’t long before the dogs came out, ready for a meal, they’d not find it so easy though.

Others stood out to him as well, that hippie Hugo with an aura he had not seen for quite some time. Leon and the Wardens were here as well, he seemed rather enraptured with...that girl from the other night...she seemed out of place here, and her aura was screaming with lust, a rather unusual and disturbing sight as the two became rather intimate in public. Minako was out on the dance floor, with some woman he hadn’t seen before, they seemed interested in one another, the Asian girl’s aura seemed different as well, a complete 180 from the intellectual and timid girl he had met before. That Cara girl was here too, Elijah was fortunate enough to not be visible to her, lest he send her into a panic at the very sight of him. Certain members of the Hart family stood out to him as well, even Cousin Virgil, how quaint.

The rest of the party he was able to block out fairly consistently, but he couldn’t help but notice the amount of looks he was getting. Not enough to raise a red flag, but enough that he knew he was looking out of place here, skulking around the dance floor with a focused look would be suspicious to anyone, especially after Gianna let off her pheromones. Everyone was clearly feeling it then, but Eli was stronger than that, Gia’s powers could only affect those who would let it affect them, and he was one of the few who didn’t let it. That being said, perhaps purchasing a drink at the bar would help to shy away some of the looks he was getting, better to blend in not as sober as intended, than to remain completely sober in a drug and drunk filled environment.

Approaching the bar he managed to get Giovanni’s attention, ”Hey there stranger! Can you mix me a whiskey sour?” Louis ‘Lucky’ Peters, aka ‘Magic Mirror’, had the uncanny ability of illusion and creating after images of objects, people, you name it, he can make it. Personality always came off as bubbly and charming, something along the lines of James Spinne, but less annoying and more friendly; he was certainly outgoing and caring enough. Despite his reputation of being a Delphina villain, most actually respected him, and those that did try to come after him, usually found themselves soaked in a fountain thinking whatever was there was him. While Eli didn’t have the same powers, he at least had the attitude, and unless someone asked to show them a trick or two, none would be any the wiser.

“Hey stranger, indeed.” Giovanni apathetically stared at the newcomer, with his amber eyes. Like he did with every customer he had time to strike a conversation up with (this was one of those times), he gave his oh-so-charming smile and asked, “What brings you here tonight, Lucky? I haven’t seen you in, hm, a month now. I’d remember that hair anywhere.” The mysterious bartender started getting his ingredients ready (whiskey, lemon juice, and simple syrup). While he was pouring 2 ounces of whiskey from his jigger to the shaker, his amber eyes glanced up at his guest. Man, he was itching to smoke (his break was soon). “You can’t possibly be here for Gianna. If I do remember correctly, she was the reason you stopped coming here. Shame, really. You’re one of the good ones.”

Lucky had a relationship with Gia? That wasn’t part of his intel? No it probably wasn’t that deep… Still, Gio wasn’t lying, his aura would have given that away. He couldn’t let his guise slip now, not at the first bit of banter, ”I’ve just been a bit under the weather, but Gia’s old hat, I’m a new man, got new plans,” Eli pulled on his shirt as if he were popping a makeshift collar, ”and what better place to relax than Delirium? Maybe score a lady or two, you know what I’m saying? Besides, I got the invite, it’d be rude to decline it.” Giovanni was certainly giving Elijah quite a look, could his disguise have gone to waste already? He might as well keep up the act, better to let no one know than to let anyone know. ”Either way, how you been mate? Long time no see.”

By now, Gio had already put in 3 quarters of ounce of lemon juice and simple syrup into the shaker. He kept quiet while he listened to the young blood talk. He loved this part of his job. And the fact that people loved to talk to him made his life have some kind of meaning. After putting ice in the shaker, he started to do his magic and mix the liquids together before answering, “Y’know how it is. Just keeping up the business for people I owe my life to. Did you know that at least five people are added to their shit list a day? And that’s only for one single Hart. I’m sure Bianca has found new toys to play with tonight.”

”Damn! Sounds like business is really booming then!” He gave a little shiver in enthusiastic excitement. Bianca, he hadn’t seen her in quite some time, she’d always had given off a very strange aura, that pure excitement for the dead. Despite her necrotic quirks, she was actually quite a sweetheart, if not somewhat of an annoyance to her family, yet they always kept her around, a Hart was a Hart after all, and family meant everything to them. Awaiting the finished product Elijah took a quick peek across the dance floor, it seemed Ellie and Will were having a rather decent time, that Hugo guy had disappeared long ago though, that woman with him two, he could only imagine what they were doing. What really surprised him was Avalon and Brenna dancing together, but with Minako and the mystery girl. He already knew Ava and Brenna hated each other, so the fact the two were dancing together, made it all the more strange. Could they have a connection with Minako? What possible threat could she hold that would make two of the most hated enemies/top lieutenants on campus, dance with one another and with such fierce lust. He’d have to keep an eye on that, especially Minako who seemed to be the direct attention of all three.

“Bartender! Hit me up with the special.”A man that stood at 6’0”, with fair skin, a scruffy beard, ruffled hair, and an absolutely ridiculous outfit on sat beside the strange boy with bleached hair. He had blue shades that hid his eyes and a suit (sorta?) that glowed in the dark. Without a doubt, this man stood out, but no one cared to stop, look, and talk to him or even question his attire. They were at Delirium, after all. A raver probably could be found wearing this get up. The mysterious man suspiciously looked around him like he was hiding something and then he looked back at Giovanni, “A kid-size… my wife would kill me but goddammit I need a drink!”

Giovanni played along, acting like he didn’t recognize the mysterious figure, as he slid the Whiskey Sour to Lucky and gestured for some form of payment. The eccentric man beside Lucky glanced over and stared at him, shades and all. There was a moment of silence before the man slapped the blonde boy’s back, “Good choice, my man!”

Elijah looked over as the new person sat beside him, there was no mistaking that aura, Leonardo Hart, eldest son of the Hart family, successor to the mafia gang. It was rare for him to be out in the open like this, but judging by Gio’s reaction to his practical boss sitting at his bar, perhaps this was a special occasion? Something like Elijah was doing perhaps? It didn’t really matter, to Leo, he didn’t know Lucky, or if he did, he wouldn’t show it. As his whiskey sour was slid in front of him, Gio extended his arm, most likely asking for payment. ”Ah ah ah, gotta make sure it tastes right first,” he flashed the bartender a grin as he picked up the drink, ready to take a taste test; until a hand smashed into his back of course. Startled, Eli nearly dropped the alcohol, but looked over and flashed the man a cheery smile, ”Course! Thanks man!” Taking a small sip Eli attempted to savor the flavor. Not one to drink, the flavor was...not in his best interest, despite his disgust he maintained composure and gave Gio a thumbs up to show the drink was in good measure.

Placing the drink down he reached into his back pocket to grab some money to pay the hard working bartender his due share. ”Here ya go, take a few extra bills will ya? You’re good at what you do.” Giving Gio a small wink he turned to face his new companion, ”Come here often to drink behind your wife’s back pal? Don’t worry, your secret's safe with me.”

“Ah, you know how it is. Dee can’t get off my dick.” Leonardo’s drink was already made and he guzzled it down in seconds - obviously not having many opportunities to drink like this.

Meanwhile, Giovanni had already pocketed the money and was nonchalantly rolling an object on his knuckles.

“Whacha’ got over there?”

“Oh nothing, just this sick ring.” The bartender gently flung a silver band to his boss that he did not have in possession before.

The eldest Hart brought his hand to the side of his face without flinching or even moving much of a muscle besides his arm and caught the heirloom. Scanning the ring, the Hart noticed inscriptions, most likely in the language of ‘magic’, and he attempted to put it on his ring finger, along with his wedding band, and muttered, “Damn, it still doesn’t fit.”

“What doesn’t fit?” Gianna sat on the other side of the bleached haired boy and leaned on the bar, her attention on the Hart struggling to put “Lucky’s” ring on.

“Speak of the devil.”

“Present!” the villainess chuckled in amusement before bringing her attention to the cute blonde boy. Bringing her face awkwardly close to the stranger, Gianna surveyed his face and subtly took in his scent before whispering, “You look familiar.”Not letting him get too uncomfortable with how close she was, she turned her body toward Giovanni and ordered a shot for her, Lucky, and Leonardo (regardless if she knew who they were or not). “You’re all here to have a good time, right?”

Ring? Eli scanned his hand and realized something was missing. He had forgotten to take off his ring as himself before coming and at some point, Gio snatched it; looks like the jig was up, and Leo knew it too. Before he could say anything Gianna suddenly snuck up behind him and commented instead. Were Eli a weaker man, he might have recoiled in shock, however when she leaned in close to him, he knew he’d have to make ‘Lucky’s’ reaction believable. Face flushing, he nervously replied, ”Well what can I say? I’m a familiar guy.”

When the shot was thrown in front of him, Elijah’s stomach might as well have dropped. Another drink? Straight alcohol? If there was one person tonight he did not want to have his presence known to, it was Gianna, and declining the drink she generously offered would make him suspicious...If only burning alcohol with his powers worked the same way as it did with cooking. Happily he raised the shot, ”Sure am! Cheers, to the best night of our lives!” Downing the shot in one go and slamming it down, Elijah used all of his willpower to not spit the liquid out. He managed to swallow it, if not letting out a few harsh coughs as the drink burned his throat, ”Damn!” he wheezed a little, ”Wrong pipe.” He feigned a smile, and within seconds, he was already feeling the drink take effect.

“He’s cute, can I keep him?” This caused the bartender to let out a snicker as he cleaned up the empty glasses. Leonardo was leaning in his seat, after he had slammed his shot glass upside down on the table (of course, shooting it up first).

“This is some good shit.” Leonardo wasn’t one to let loose, nor curse often, but tonight was his exception. Pulling out his phone, he checked the time, “Rats. The lady calls.” Hopping off his seat, he rested his arm around Lucky, slipping two things in the palm of the boy’s close hand: his ring and the King of Spades card, with a date, a time, and a place, for them to catch up. “You young folk party hard! Oh, and before I leave. Put them on my tab.” He let go of his late brother’s best friend and turned to face the crowd of drunkards, “God, I miss this.” and with that the Hart walked deeper into the wolf's belly, leaving Elijah with Gianna and Giovanni.

“You heard the man, drinks on him. So what else is it going to be? Why don’t you choose, lad?”

Elijah flashed Gio a glare after Gianna’s comment, he thought this was hilarious huh? It seemed that Leo’s time here was done, not before slipping him a couple of things though, the ring and a card it seemed. Quickly he pocketed the items and waved, ”Thanks ‘boss’, we’ll be sure to have a good time.” Bastard, the two knew who he was and were playing him for a fool, but if he had Leo’s drink tab, and Gio was gonna give him the choice, oh they’d most definitely pay for it. ”I get to choose huh?” he smirked, this time, it was for real, the drink definitely taking effect. Looking to Gia, then back at Gio he said, ”Two shots of Pasión Azteca, Platinum Liquor Bottle by Tequila Ley, and put a lime in each, you know what, make it a double.” Elijah had never felt so devilish, even he knew a single bottle of that cost somewhere around $3 million, and it wasn’t even because of the alcohol; but when you line each platinum bottle with that many diamonds…

Turning to Gianna he said, ”I hope you have expensive taste.”

With intrigue in her eyes, Gia scooted her herself closer to the handsome boy and pushed her hair behind her left ear, “Mm. I’ll have it tonight, now won’t I?” Giovanni narrowed his eyes at Elijah (did he forget that Leonardo owned Delirium at that the money he was spending would return to his account?) before going to the locked up stash. Leonardo did give Vince’s best friend permission so there was no arguing. Well, two can play at that game.

“Gia-baby, why don’t you and your new friend play a… get to know each other drinking game? You two can’t possibly have just two shots of this Tequila, it’s too fine. Too divine. My good friend would not allow it. Three times a charmer, don’t you think?” Within seconds, Giovanni prepared six shots, three for “Lucky” and three for Gianna.

“Oh man! I don’t know anything about this kid besides maybe, he might not like me? But I’ll play along! Two truths and one lie. If you can pick out my lie, I’ll drink.” Gianna grabbed onto her first shot glass and gestured for Gio to give her some salt before she started the game, “I have a tattoo on my back of wings, my dad is a detective, a good one at that, and I absolutely adore the ocean. I love just staring out at the water, especially when the stars are out.”

So Giovanni was gonna play it that way huh? Fine, he’d go along with it. He listened intently to Gia’s truths or lies, Eli knew about the tattoos, even if he had never seen them, and the ocean was an easy enough guess, but she never mentioned her dad before. Scrunching up his face he started, ”If I had to guess….the lie is about your dad, I mean come on, the queen bee of Delphina having a daddy detective? I don’t believe it.”

Without answering yes or not, Gianna provocatively licked the skin between her thumb and forefinger, quickly sprinkled a small pinch of salt on it, and picked up the slice of lime with the same hand. Once she breathed out, she swiftly licked the salt, downed the shot, and bit into the lime. She gestured for him to go while the lime was still in her mouth.

Well he was right at least, alright, so it was his turn. ”Well, let’s see here, I’ve been known to show a trick or two, blonde isn’t my natural hair color, and… hm…”

Cutting him off, with the lime on the bar, Gia teasingly rolled her eyes, “The last one. If you’re going to lie, don’t hesitate.”

Somewhat caught off guard, Elijah chuckled, ”Sorry, just couldn’t think of a lie better than,” and in his best salty sailor voice shouted, ”I’m Captain Ahab, slayer of the White Whale!” Downing the shot and taking the lime Elijah couldn’t help but notice that this shot actually went down considerably smoother than the last one. While he didn’t know exactly what Gia had purchased for them, he could tell it was of a considerably less quality than what they were having now. Quickly suckling on the lime he thought he might be able to change the game on them. ”Alright, I’ve got a game, ever played ‘The Laughing Game’? Its simple enough really, all we have to do is make the other person laugh, either through an action or phrasing, whoever laughs first, takes a shot.” The line between acting and being real was starting to be crossed, did Elijah really want to take shots with someone he wanted to be watching intently? Especially since there were others he needed to keep an eye on himself?

“Of course I know the laughing game… I guess I’ll go first.” Gianna deeply stared at Lucky’s face and thought intently on what could possibly make this stranger laugh. She knew nothing about this kid. C’est la vie. Make the best of what you got! She kept silent for a long while before she exploded, “I’m too drunk for this shit! What’s funny?! I DON’T KNOW WHAT MAKES YOU LAUGH.” She was a little pissy, in an adorable way, because she hated losing.

Interestingly enough, her reaction, made Elijah explode into laughter, what was happening to him? He couldn’t control himself, he just felt his emotions let loose and suddenly he was laughing up a storm, he couldn’t stop himself. ”That! Was the damn funniest thing I’ve heard, anyone say to me before!” He started grabbing at his stomach, keeling over as fits of laughter hit him hard, he couldn’t remember a time he ever laughed so hard.

The Delphina Matriarch watched the boy’s reaction, even jumping a little in her seat, not expecting for THAT to make him laugh, but something about the way his face lit up and how he lost control… she couldn’t help but laugh too. Covering her mouth with her right hand, trying to contain her dorky laugh, Gia felt tears trail down her cheeks. When was the last time she’s had this much fun? It was almost like she’s known this kid for years, but they only just met tonight. Trying to muster the composure to respond, Gia giggled in between her words, “T-that… was funny? You-- you should have seen your face!”

Giovanni glanced at the couple getting lost in the moment and smiled to himself. Choosing to leave them be, he went to help another customer.

Once she was done fanning herself to make her tears stop, Gianna grabbed her shot glass, “Cheers, mate! I guess that means we both lost.” She waited for him to grab his glass so that they could shoot up their drink together. Once they finished, Gia felt her head spinning, but she was going to play it cool… she wasn’t that drunk… yet.

Time to change up the game, again.

“Let’s play dare! No truths. If you chicken out, you gotta’ drink your last shot. You go first!” The youthful girl that Elijah knew prior to the fire was showing. For once, Gianna wasn’t thinking about Vincent’s death.

Elijah raised his glass with her, downing down the now even smoother liquid, he didn’t even go for the lime this time. His composure seemed to be failing him though, he had never gotten this drunk before and he had one last shot to go through. So she wanted to play dares without the truth ey? Well...he could comply with that. ”Alright then, bet you won’t flash me right here right now!” Internally, Elijah was somewhat screaming, why the fuck had he done that? He couldn’t go back on that dare now, but maybe..maybe she wouldn’t do it? Gianna was risque, but even she had to have some limits, she was in a public setting after all, and well...despite his intoxication, she seemed to be...her old self for once. Maybe she wouldn’t?

With a raised eyebrow, Gianna locked her dark gaze with Lucky’s stare. This boy got balls, that’s for sure. Her lips curved up deviously. Did he know who he was talking to? Slowly, gingerly, Gianna leaned in toward him and went by his ear.

“I’ll up your dare.” she seductively whispered. And without further ado, not only did Gianna lift her shirt up (and bra) to reveal her perky “friends” but she also grabbed one of Lucky’s hands and let him have a feel, “All you had to do was ask.” She temptingly bit her lip before freeing his hand and putting her shirt down.

Holy shit was this really happening? At this point Elijah couldn’t tell if the heat he was feeling as from this woman’s bare skin, or from his own hand, it seemed to blend itself into one. When she released his hand all he could do was sit there with his jaw agape...had that really happened? Regardless of the dare, Eli quickly downed his final shot, a nice flow running through his body as he saw Gia in a completely different light. Suddenly through a burst of confidence he asked, ”Hey uh…” he was at a loss for words, ”Do you...want to dance?” The line between Lucky and Eli had been well crossed, but the way Eli acted was purely based on instinct and emotion, at this point, there was no logic. Heat was radiating off his body, but no more so than what the throng of clubgoers already were emitting.

Finishing her last drink, she slid off the stool and grabbed the blonde’s hand, genuinely smiling at him, “I thought you’d never ask.”

Shine City 1949: Love & War ( A Romantic Military RP)

I could at least try

Divided We Stand

I almost forgot about this song guys!

Divided We Stand

@HushedWhispers@lovely complex

Damn straight I accept, who wants to party?!?!?!?!?

PARTY TIME!!!!