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In a pub (Nancy)

The short nights were getting to him. Well, the short nights as well politics going wild, and it becoming increasingly clear that the Night Council would not be putting up with an insane vampire leader, but the short nights certainly weren't helping. He needed a distraction, and that's why he'd texted Nancy. He wasn't interested in blood or other services, and he made it clear that if she was busy with work he'd perfectly understand if she didn't have time to just hang out. But, it seemed, she was interested enough to message him back, and they'd decided to meet up in a pub.

It was a nice place...well, not that nice, but not a terrible pub, and it was one that was heavily populated by the supernatural community. Somewhere where discretion wouldn't be quite so strictly needed. And so he'd gotten dressed in jeans and an incredibly tight white t-shirt, and of course, carefully applied his now necessary wig, a top of the line human hair and lace piece that looked incredibly natural, though wasn't a perfect match for how his real hair had looked. And now...now he was just looking around, seeing if he could spot Nancy.

In the streets (Open)

Summer was hard for Thomas. Nights were short, giving him less time between when the sun would go down and when people would go to bed for the night. After that, there was only the vast silence of London late at night. Sure, there were some interruptions to that silence, the occasional sound of people or animals, but when someone was up all night every night, it became clear how much emptier it was.

He preferred the winter, when he sun went down before many people had their dinners. When he could eat at restaurants, or easily shop at stores. In short, the summer was getting to him. Sometimes he just went home and watched TV until he drifted off to sleep in the morning, but not tonight. Tonight he sat on the stairs outside the local library, playing games on his phone.

In an alley, later in the month, toward the peak of the fae hunt (Open)

What had come over him, he couldn't say, but lately it felt like the beast within had suddenly risen up, and he could barely contain it. The desire to sink his teeth into tender flesh, to devour. He avoided his usual haunts, and didn't visit his usual donors. With the way he was feeling, he didn't trust himself. Which didn't mean he didn't feed, of course. Instead he stalked the night, not with his usual relaxed and friendly demeanor that put his meals off guard, but with a predatory grace and precision and a hungry look in his eye.

This didn't make it any harder to find his meal for the night, a young man in his twenties lured in by Thomas's strange and mysterious demeanor, though he suspected his looks helped as well.

Normally he'd take his dinner home, relax in bed with them, maybe sleep with them before feeding, and often enough even took them home. It was usually a friendly and fun sort of feeding. Not tonight. Tonight he simply led his prey into a dark alley, and after a few ravenous kisses, sank his teeth in.

For a moment, Thomas almost lost himself in the feeding in a way he hadn't in quite some time.

Thomas was barely able to snap out of it, but once he did he pulled away with a horrified realization. He'd let his control slip.

"Well, fuck."

At least the man looked like he'd be okay, even if he did look incredibly pale.

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She had a point about winter. At least then he'd be able to be out as much as anyone else, considering most people were sitting at work until sunset anyway. Besides, he supposed he'd make up for the lack of time out during the summer by the sheer length of life he'd have over regular humans.

Then she mentioned who the boyfriend was. The very name made Thomas's eyes widen in shock. "Cooper? Islington Cooper, or is there another one I don't know?"

Because if it was the Cooper he knew, that was definitely a surprise. The Cooper he knew started fights in lines at stores, and while he didn't know how he felt about her line of work, he had trouble picturing someone who picked fights so easily being calm about something like that.

"Islington Cooper... Irish, blond, handsome. You know him?" Obviously, from the way he reacted. She wasn't exactly sure what his reputation was in the vampire community, her relationship with him still somewhat new. But Thomas' reaction in this manner was a curious thing.

"Don't tell me he's been awful to you."

"I never thought of him as handsome, exactly, but that's just my taste." Cooper looked too much like a seventeen year old, even if he was centuries older than Thomas, for his tastes, after all. "We've met."

Thomas paused, considering how he'd put it. On one hand, Cooper and he did not get along. On the other hand...well, Cooper was an argumentative asshole who liked to pick fights, and the whole hair thing was awful, but sometimes Cooper did seem to be giving actual bits of advice between the jabs and insults he always threw Thomas's way. Okay, so for the most part Cooper was a bit awful, but...Nancy had seemed so happy when talking about Cooper, and Thomas didn't want to ruin that for her.

Still, she'd seen Thomas's reaction. Denying it would just make her paranoid. So he'd tell the truth. But, since Cooper was her boyfriend, he'd try to avoid being too harsh.

"He's been awful...to my hair." Which was skirting dangerously close to admitting he was wearing a wig, but he suspected the time might come where he'd have to admit it to someone.

Nancy is going to come to learn the hard way that not everyone gets along with her man of choice. And by 'not everyone' we all really mean 'everyone but her'.

"Your hair?" She raises an eyebrow, glossing over the fact that Thomas didn't find him attractive. She didn't expect him to. She was pretty sure not many people did find him attractive, but there was just something about him that drew her in. His dark eyes, maybe, his accent, his general... The way he got soft with her. Like he didn't with anybody else.

"What did he say about it? It looks lovely to me."

"It's not what he's said about it, it's what he's done to it." Thomas paused, considering what exactly he'd tell her, before he began to approach the tale. "We got in an argument in line while I was buying conditioner. He was in line, getting impatient, and so I slowed down on purpose to annoy him more."

He looked at her, trying to gauge her reaction, see how she felt about this fight he was about to tell her about.

"From there, things...escalated. A bit. He insulted me, so I insulted him. I didn't know he was a vampire yet, so I figured he couldn't really do anything. I certainly didn't expect him to do what he did."

But should he tell her? Should he break the illusion that his hair was really nice when now it was just short, and hiding under a really nice wig?

Honestly, Nancy is not surprised at all. Cooper had a temper, and she'd seen it first hand. So something like someone taking too long getting him all fired up was not out of the question at all.

She shakes her head.

"I hope he did nothing more than destroy your conditioner." But if she knew her boyfriend, it was probably a whole lot worse. "Whatever it is, Thomas, I'm so sorry."

"Don't be," Thomas said. He felt a bit guilty, now. She'd come here in a good mood, excited about her new boyfriend, and he had to tell her terrible stories about him. Well, he supposed he'd just have to fix that. "He wasn't...entirely terrible. I mean, yes, he did end up compelling me to..." He paused, hesitated, considering if he wanted to admit this, and then he decided he would. "...to cut my hair off." There, he finally confessed his secret. "But...before that he did give me a lecture on getting into fights without knowing who I'm fighting."

He paused looking at his drink, before adding, "And there were a few chances I could have walked away, but I didn't, because I just assumed he was a teenager. And I just found it amusing that someone that much smaller was picking a fight."

Sure, he'd also given Cooper a chance to walk away, but again, he'd done so with the assumption that Cooper was completely blind to the fact that Thomas was about twice his size. Sure, he still wasn't happy about the hair loss, but it was probably a good lesson that he should maybe wonder why someone that much smaller though they could take him. Because sometimes, it was because they were right.

"Oh! Oh my goodness!" Nancy's got both of her hands covering her mouth as she dissolves into unfortunate giggles. She even kicks her feet a little for extra effect. She's not mad, in fact, the entire thing is completely ridiculous, and just imagining it was giving her a glorious mental image.

"I cannot believe that- good lord, I'm so sorry! Oh, he's so sensitive about that-" she can ignore the fact that she's dating someone in a teenager's body. She knows his real age. More or less. It was rude to ask exactly how old someone was, okay? All she knew was he was old and bitter. "I cannot believe he compelled you to cut your hair!" He's Creative.

"So, what's this, then?" she asked after a moment, gesturing at his current hair. "Clever glamour?"

Well, Thomas hadn't wanted her to be mad at Cooper, and he had wanted to bring her mood back up, so he'd certainly succeeded at that. Still, the sheer glee on her face was a bit much. Thomas pouted a bit, staring at his beer. After her many, many rounds of laughter, she asked about his current hair. He hesitated for a moment, strongly suspecting this would bring another round of laughter, but he decided to go forward. After all, she already knew it was fake.

"Expensive wig," he admitted quietly.

Oh good lord. She ducks her head in an attempt to save him some face. It doesn't really work, though.

"I'm sorry- I'm not- I'm not laughing at you. But the whole situation- it's awful." But it was funny, okay? "Most people would just let their hair grown back, y'know." Thomas, meanwhile, had bought a wig.

"...right." He could tell she was trying to spare his feelings somewhat, but somehow that just made it all worse. "I am letting it grow back. Under the wig. I couldn't very well try to seduce my dinner into letting me have their blood with a shiny bald head, after all."

Okay, it was entirely possible that someone might be able to get past a bald head to focus on Thomas's rippling abs and handsome face, but why make things harder than they needed to be?

Nancy gave him a look.

"Isn't that what compelling someone is for?" Ironic, she supposed, given that that was what got Thomas into this situation to begin with. "Or, well, girls like me, but I know I'm not exactly your cup of tea." And, she imagined, it would be weird for him, feeding on Cooper's girlfriend, knowing both parties.

"I'd have to drink their blood first to compel them," he pointed out. And that would defeat the purpose of luring them to a better place for him to feed. "I know some older vampires can do it without that, but I'm not even old enough to need forged documents yet."

Something he might need once he hit 40, because no one would believe his age at that point, but he had some time before then. The advantage of being turned when he was was that there were so many ages he could reasonably pass for.

"Besides, I wouldn't want to use compulsion anyway, for the same reason I don't want to pay for a meal. I'd rather have someone do it because they'll enjoy it just as much as I will."

That's why among the people who weren't in the know, he picked people who wanted to sleep with him. At least that way he knew they were into him, even if he didn't know if they were into biting specifically. And sure, he might compel them after if they weren't supposed to know about vampires, make them forget that he drank their blood, but that was different.

"So it's not really that you are or aren't my cup of tea so much as I'd rather know that I'm their cup of tea."

Also, there was no way he was biting Cooper's girlfriend. That would open a bunch of trouble if Cooper ever found out that Thomas simply did not want to deal with, and that wasn't even counting how awkward he'd feel next time he saw Cooper.

Nancy nods. "Right- I always assume vampires are a lot older than some of them actually are. I apologize." Most of the vampires she knew were hundreds of years old. But Thomas, apparently, was not. Thomas, Kenzi, Natasha.

"That's really honorable of you." Especially now, in the days of Raymond Harris.

She's also pretty sure now that she's known as Cooper's Girlfriend, that's going to play into it. Business has already been slowing, but if word does get around the vampire community, and that many people find Cooper difficult to deal with... Then again, there's also the possibility people will take her up on the offer just because she is his girlfriend.

"So what are you drinking tonight, then?" A slight subject change.

Edited 2016-07-25 15:02 (UTC)

Thomas shrugged. "I suppose."

In the end he never really thought of it as honorable or not honorable so much as the way he did things so that he could live with himself. He may be a monster, but he didn't have to be completely horrible, after all. His way was in the best interests of everyone, anyway. After all, what had Raymond Harris's groupies gotten them? Dangerously close to being kicked off the Night Council? Humans fearful, on high alert, and less likely to stay out as late?

What was he drinking tonight? "I don't know, maybe one of the groupies that hangs around the nest." Oh, wait. What was he drinking to night. "Here? Probably just beer."

Nancy's laugh echoes across the bar. "I suppose there are a lot of groupies." She was actually quite happy not to be one, but she'd run into women like that. Ones that had been raised on fantasy books of vampire romances and didn't quite understand the world they were getting themselves into.

But in a way, she envied those women. They had a choice to make in the first place. Nancy never had.

"But that's what I meant. Order up, I've got you covered for a pint."

"They're fun to have around. They're always so enthusiastic."

And he had to admit, he felt a bit protective of them, particularly since everything had gone crazy. They weren't as safe as they thought they were, and the idea of some vampire possibly shattering their illusions in a horrible and life ending way was heartbreaking to think about.

When she offered to buy him a pint, he was surprised. "Really? Thank you, but you really don't have to."

Still, when the bartender came by, he ordered a beer, even though he wasn't quite sure why she was buying him a drink.

"So long as they enjoy it." She wasn't going to judge them for their choices. She tried to be more progressive than that.

She shrugs. "Hey, least I can do." She turned to the bartender. "Gin, please." Straight, because that was the sort of girl she was. Read: an alcoholic.

"What are you up to later tonight?" Casual conversation, nothing more.

"Oh, I make sure they do," he said with a smile, though he paused, adding, "I worry about them a little with how things are going, though."

While he typically tried to make the whole feeding process enjoyable for all involved, he knew that anymore, some of the vampires didn't even care if their dinner survived.

Other than feeding, however, he didn't have a lot of plans for the night. He shrugged. "I don't know. I'll just play it by ear. I'll probably spend some time with whoever my dinner is, and other than that...maybe just mess around online for a while."

There wasn't much that would be open early enough for him to go out and do anything in the morning, after all. Besides, that way he wouldn't have to deal with the smell of blood and fear that was becoming so common on the streets at night lately.

"Good," she said, with a serious nod. "I'm glad someone does." She knew a few people that would wish she was more careful. Maybe she should be- Cooper was hoping that his name alone would be enough to get vampires to be a bit more careful with her.

One would think her best friend nearly draining her would be a close enough call for her.

She nods. "Maybe it's all the media, but it sounds so odd to hear that you're going to mess around online. And how long have I been around vampires?" She accepts the gin from the bartender, whom then places the beer in front of Thomas. "I like it."

"I think it's an age thing. People keep doing what they've always done, vampire or not. Find a vampire that's a hundred years old, and they'll probably barely understand most technology. Find a newer vampire, they're probably going to do things anyone else in their age group would do."

Thomas took a drink of the beer he was given.

"And then, of course, there's necessity. Anymore, most people can't get by without e-mail at the very least. I may have been around vampires my whole life, but the fact remains, they were vampires who were trying to control as much of the porn industry as they could, so keeping up with certain types of technology was unavoidable."

Nancy nearly spits out her drink.

"Wait- I'm sorry, I think I misheard you. Vampires trying to control the porn industry?" She blinks incredulously at him. "You've got to be kidding me." That is to say: explain yourself, she's curious.

No, she has never considered doing porn, and no, she wouldn't, in case you were about to wonder.

He does have a point though, about the technology. "I suppose, though I imagine it'd get boring, being stuck in your old ways. Some things, maybe you could hang on to- Cooper's got his bike that I think's from World War 2- but I can't imagine not adapting to the modern world. You'd be at an awful disadvantage."

With an amused grin, Thomas confirmed, "Well there's a lot of money in porn. Oh, there's less now, with amateur internet porn on the rise, but still a lot all the same. Granted, my sire's a little too controlling when it comes to what his studios produce for me to think it's all about the money. A shame, too. I feel like he ends up stifling a lot of creativity."

But that could be because Thomas's own tastes didn't align much with his sire's own. Not so much in who they were attracted to, though there were certainly differences there as well, but in how they viewed the person they were interested in. Thomas tended to adore them and feel protective over them, where his sire tended to try to control them. Just like he did with everyone else.

"But of course, all that's back in Chicago. I guess it's just a matter of choosing what you pick up along the way, and how much of it you choose to use."

After all, there was quite a difference between understanding how to use e-mail and verify things with the internet, and spending time browsing the internet as a regular activity.

"That's ridiculous," she states. She hadn't given the porn industry much thought, it had simply never crossed her mind. Ridiculous, as well, given that they were sex-workers just like her. And probably blood-workers as well, from what Thomas said. She wouldn't be surprised to find out there was specific vampire-porn.

Nancy gives a small nod, and takes a sip of gin. "I suppose it is. I can't imagine living for forever and not picking up certain things from different eras."

"Is it?" he asked. It never seemed ridiculous to him at the time, but then, he never really put much thought into it. Besides, everything was less ridiculous when you were living it, and he'd gotten used to the fact that his 'family' was heavily involved in the porn industry long before he learned they were vampires.

"I agree, and they seem to pick up a few things at least, from what I've seen. Unless strip clubs were around for far longer than I thought."

And naturally, he assumed they both knew who's business he was referring to.

"Well perhaps not- but it's not something I've ever really considered. Porn and the money in it... Or vampire-specific porn. It's just not something I delve into." Other sex-workers tended to look down on prostitutes. It was something she was familiar with.

She knows exactly who he's speaking about. "Dancing has been around for a long time- I can't imagine it took very long for someone to add taking clothes off to it." She's not very amused about the idea, though. But that's just her general opinion on JC.

"Oh, I wouldn't expect that many people have."

It was a pretty niche thing, after all. Thomas was only aware of it because of his unique situation, seeing as he had pretty strong connections to the whole situation.

As for the dancing, he wasn't so sure. "I don't know. I hear they were pretty prudish, back in the day."

Maybe it came and went. Thomas was no history buff, of course, so he had no idea, but he had some difficulty picturing Victorians who were scandalized by an exposed ankle having strip clubs. Of course, he had difficulty picturing JC as prudish in any era.

"Though I supposed that some must not have been, judging by the individuals some of the other eras have produced."

"They were, but that's because Victorians were terribly repressed." They created table skirts because even table legs were scandalous. "Haven't you heard of all those bodice rippers, and opium-filled brothels with crushed velvet and black lace?" Maybe she was alone in that.

"I'm sure stripping was part of work in those brothels." She wouldn't know what it was like to work in a brothel now, anyway. Better, she imagined. But worse all at the same time.

"I hadn't," he admitted with a smirk, "But I'm picturing them now. I guess that sort of thing was never in the history textbooks they had us read in school when I was growing up."

A shame. That certainly would have gotten Thomas to pay more attention in class. Not that he'd be likely to actually frequent something like that, but it was still fun to picture, and when he was younger he certainly would have been inclined to listen to every word.

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