hazy shade of winter - january open post

[freelife]

[Another open post for both Evie and Nancy. Starters are in the comments, feel free to grab me at sheakespeare if you want something specific, or write your own starter, I'm not picky.]

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Training Montage- Caroline, early January

[freelife]

Evie had told Caroline to meet her at one of the last safehouses in London. It wasn't her flat, to say, though upstairs there were beds in case she needed them, it belonged to the Assassin's. The small mark on the door said so, to anyone who knew what symbol to look for.

When Caroline arrives, Evie's dressed in a pair of work-out leggings, trainers, and an open hoodie over her sports-bra. She's got bottles of water for the two of them, a little diluted with a few drops of blood to help keep Caroline's energy up.

"We're not going to do anything too crazy today," Evie tells her, and gesture for her to follow down to the basement. The basement is completely free of natural light, and surprisingly comfortable. A punching bag hangs in the corner, in addition to all sorts of fun work-out and training items. A few free weights lay about, and it's quite clear that this is where Evie does a lot of training. "Have you stretched?"

Without waiting for an answer, Evie tosses Caroline a pair of fingerless boxing gloves. "Because I want to see what you can do, first."

We Need To Talk- Cooper, early January

[stauncherhearted]

There are two tumblers full of whiskey on the coffee table when Nancy finally gets the courage up to say what she needs to. Wordlessly, she hands one to Cooper, and takes a nice long drink of her own. When it's mostly gone, she sets it down and looks at him.

"I love you," she promises, her eyes locked with his. Instead of the usual bright green, though, her eyes are stormy, unsure.

He was running for the Night Council. And she knew what that meant. "And I don't want to do this, Cooper. I don't. But- I can't-" she presses her lips together, looking away. She's never broken up with anyone before. Hell, she and Bill never even officially broke up. But she has to do it this time. For Cooper's sake. For the sake of the election-

Who the hell would vote for a candidate whom so many of the nest had pretty much been cuckolding, in a manner of speaking?

"I want you to win this election, Cooper." And for him to do that... She couldn't be his girlfriend.

[vampire_barbie_girl]

Caroline has no idea what symbols to look for and is just happy to find the place okay. Her London navigation skills are definitely getting better.

She's dressed similarly to Evie, with a yoga pants and an old t-shirt she's pretty sure she stole from Tyler at some point. She studies the water bottles for a moment until she realizes what Evie's put in them. "Neat trick."

The basement work-out space is pretty impressive and this whole thing is beginning to feel very real. Caroline's excited but also worried about the bruises she sees in her near future. But it will be worth it, to be able to better defend herself - or others - if necessary.

"Yes," she replies. She even jogged a bit on the way over, just to limber up. And so she puts on the boxing gloves and gets as ready as she's going to be for a bit of sparring.

[freelife]

"I find it's a bit of a vampire equivalent to Gatorade," she says, and picks up her own pair of gloves. Hand-to-hand is coming first, before any weapons are added. That would help teach her how to move.

She slides them on, then rolls up the sleeves of her hoodie.

"Come at me. Whenever you want. Don't be afraid to hit me. I'll only be blocking." She knew her strength, and she knew Caroline was far younger than her, and subsequently, she wasn't worried about her hitting her.

[vampire_barbie_girl]

"I'll have to remember that one."

She raises her hands in fists and tries to think about what she should do. She doesn't really have a style or know any strategies. Which probably meant she was now overthinking it.

Finally, she decides to just rush in as quick as possible and see if it worked. She lunges towards Evie, aiming a punch at her head.

[freelife]

Caroline pretty much telegraphs her entire attack, and Evie steps to the side, holding a hand up to block the punch easily.

"Keep a hand covering your face," she tells her. "Black eyes take a while to heal, even with our abilities." She recovers, coming to face Caroline again.

"Again."

[vampire_barbie_girl]

Caroline readjusts, keeping on hand in front of her face. This time, she goes in on the left, only to veer right at the last minute, hoping this punch might get a bit closer to landing.

[freelife]

The punch doesn't land- sorry, Caroline, but you're sparring with a trained Assassin who has been training for over one hundred fifty years. She mirrors Caroline with ease, stepping in behind her.

"You're telegraphing. Don't think. Again." She's happy to continue for as long as Caroline needs.

[emotioneater]

Cooper had gotten back later than he had expected to. He'd been out talking with small groups of vampires all over the city. He's never been one for big speeches, so he relies more on his natural charm and frank nature to win people over. He doesn't make empty promises or tell everyone that things will change immediately if he's elected. But he does try to be honest, saying he'll do his best to do the right thing for vampires and humans alike.

When Nancy wants to talk, pulling out the god whiskey, he feels like something bad is coming. There's a tight feeling in his chest as his fingers curl around the glass. She's in trouble somehow is all he can think of. He has to fix this. What she's trying to tell him doesn't fully register. "I don't understand, sweet-pea. What's goin' on?"

[vampire_barbie_girl]

This is going about as poorly as Caroline expected but she keeps trying. She slowly gets closer to Evie, looking for any weak points. She's not surprised to not see any - even if they are there, she's not really trained to notice. So instead she aims a punch lower, at Evie's stomach.

[stauncherhearted]

She's so proud of him, the way he's been campaigning. She wants to be out there with him, but she can't, and so she's held back, working behind the scenes. She'd copied how many fliers, now?

Besides, he had her vote. Out of all three candidates, he had her vote.

"I want you to win, Cooper. And that means-" she finishes her glass and starts pouring more. "No one's going to vote for someone who's girlfriend they've drank from. I know we try to separate them but- but others don't. And I can't do that to you. I'm not selfish enough and- and I love you so much, Cooper." Tears spring to her eyes. "But for your sake, I can't be with you."

[freelife]

There's a drop in Caroline's shoulder, and this time Evie isn't quite so nice when she rushes her. She gives her a small shove down to the mat.

"Don't drop your shoulder."

[vampire_barbie_girl]

Okay. Keep a hand up to protect her face, don't telegraph, don't drop her shoulder. Caroline repeats that in her head as she gets up and prepares to try again. She goes for another tactic this time, making a small jab with her right hand before aiming another punch at Evie's head with her left.

LITERALLY MAKING SHIT UP RN

[freelife]

Evie lets out a satisfied sort of snort. She's able to block Caroline's attacks, but that doesn't stop her from smiling. "Good- more of that. Again- try the same thing, but I'm going to move backward and I want you to cover the distance."

Same here! Whose idea what this action scene?

[vampire_barbie_girl]

Caroline nods, pleased to feel like she's making some progress here. She moves when Evie does and manages to keep up. She still doesn't actually land a punch but hey, at least it's something.

It isn't long before her body is aching for a bit of a break and she goes to get a drink. "Am I getting any better?" she asks after swallowing a mouthful of the vampire Gatorade.

well, we signed on for a *montage*

[freelife]

"You are," Evie says, removing her hoodie at last. She's left in a sports bra, the tattoo across the back of her right arm visible. The Assassin's symbol, if Caroline was familiar with it at all, with a few fancy looking filigrees surrounding it. Likewise, on her left hip, a set of initials was visible, dipping below the waist-band of her pants.

"It takes time, you can't except to be brilliant overnight."

[vampire_barbie_girl]

"I know, but I can dream, can't I?" Caroline says with a grin.

She's a bit surprised by that tattoos, since for some reason she hadn't expected Evie to be the type of person to have them. Then again, she knew there was a lot about the older vampire that she didn't know.

"Can I ask you what your tattoos mean?"

[freelife]

Most people don't expect Evie to have tattoos. Which of course meant she had them.

"Of course." She hitched down the waist band of her pants a little, showing off her hip bone where two sets of initials were now visible: C.F. and E. F. "Cecily and Ethan Frye were my parents." She says by way of explanation, before settling her trousers back where they belonged.

"And this one," she gestures to the back of her arm, "is the symbol of the Assassins."

She has other tattoos- a symbol black band around her pinky, another Assassin mark, though far more sensible, she supposes, than a big arm piece. But in her defense, it had been the 80s.

[emotioneater]

Cooper has always had ambitions within the nest. Being a possible candidate has been a huge step for him. It's given him a chance to stretch his political skills as he hobnobs with vampires of all ages and skills.

He finally begins to understand what Nancy is saying. A cold lump forms in the pit of his stomach. "What? Nancy, are you--" He swallows, eyes sad as he reaches out to take her hand. "--are you tryin' t'break up with me?"

He knew what her job meant. He'd known that from day one. While it had gotten them in trouble before, he thought they were past that point. To think that her profession could affect the outcome of an election where his opponents operated a strip club and were a Borgia was something that hasn't even crossed his mind.

[vampire_barbie_girl]

Caroline didn't know a whole lot about the Assassins but she found herself more interested in the initials. Part of that was probably due to the fact that her mother had been E.F. as well.

"I never really though about getting something like that," she said after a moment. "But I guess it is a nice way to carry someone's memory with you. Especially for a vampire."

[stauncherhearted]

He actually says it, the words she can't manage. Yes, she's trying to break up with him.

Her cheeks burn and she looks down, her throat tight as she manages a small nod.

"I- I love you. So much. But you can't win if I'm here. And- and I know what it means to you. I have to, Cooper. I'm so so sorry."

She can't bring herself to take her hand away, instead clinging to him like a lifeline. "You'll thank me when you're on the Night Council." He had to win, now. Otherwise, all of this would have been for nothing.

[freelife]

"I wasn't going to get anything like it for a long time," Evie admits. "The first tattoo I got, the one on my pinkie, as an homage to my Brotherhood and our history. In the past, many Assassin's chose to be branded." She could go into the history of her hidden blade, how it used to require a missing finger to operate.

"Then I wound up getting my parents' initials. I doubt I'll ever forget them, but it seemed appropriate." She'd never met her mother, but she knew Ethan Frye well. "They're a bit addicting, but it's been at least twenty years since I last had one."

[vampire_barbie_girl]

"My mother's name was Elizabeth Forbes."

It had been almost a year now since Liz died. Her absence was still such a hole in Caroline's life. Part of her had avoided talking about it too much, especially around other vampires whose parents had been dead for at least a century.

[freelife]

Evie lets this information receive the weight it deserves.

"Cecily Frye was my mother. Ethan Frye my father." And then there was her stupid twin Jacob. It doesn't hurt so much, to think of her parents. She misses them, true, but they died human, a luxury she and Jacob never had the choice of.

[vampire_barbie_girl]

Caroline sits down on the mat, stretching out some of her sorer muscles. "Sometimes I wonder how us baby vampires really look to the rest of you. I know I still have a very human outlook on time and memory and all that sort of stuff."