So you wanna be a Vampire Representative? OTA

[emotioneater]

A. What Do Vampires Do Best?

So, Cooper had won the seat on the Night Council. He had to admit that he wasn't sure that he was going to win the election. The competition had been fierce. But apparently the vampires of London had their heads screwed on straight. When he found out the news, he immediately let out a whoop and holler. Then he remembered that he was now a representative and now had to act with more decorum. He'd accepted the position gratefully.

So how to celebrate? Well, there was the traditional vampire method. He was throwing a party in his apartment, which let's face it, was spacious enough for about three parties going on at once. Everyone was invited. Yes, everyone, even those from factions the Nest was in conflict with, or those people that Cooper didn't particularly personally care for. He wanted it to be known he wasn't just exclusively about vampires and was willing to work with other supernatural types for the greater good. It was as good a time as any to approach with any issues other vampires may have wanted him to approach the Council about.

While he is his usual cheerful self as he goes around greeting everyone, those who know Cooper well will notice that he seems a bit distracted. Lately, he's been picking up on the emotions of those around him. It's not entirely a surprise. These things sometimes happen to vampires when they sire a certain number of vampires, or in Cooper's case, reach a certain age. However, suddenly developing empathic powers can be hard to adjust to. Knowing when everyone's lying, feeling sad, or suddenly horny is not the best thing in the world.

B. With Great Power...

Despite his usual irreverent personality, Cooper is taking his duties seriously. Now they're double-fold thanks to being both a Marquess and the Representative. Only one thing to do when he's got a list of vampires who all want to talk to him about their grievances. Out comes the motorcycle and off into London he goes. First up was the lawyer who specialized in keeping vampires out of trouble. Getting some of them to obey the laws of London and actually serve their sentences when they were caught by mortal police was a pain. Occasionally, calling in for back-up in the form of the Marquess was required.

He went along his day, checking in on one of his favorite blood donors to make sure she wasn't being taken advantage of by the older vampires in the nest. After talking to Shady Heavens, the infamous drag queen and her tally of grievances that ran sky high, Cooper decided he needed a break. Stopping at a fish 'n chips place, he was perched on his motorcycle, gnawing away at his lunch, and occasionally drinking from a flask of blood at his hip. He was bracing himself against the brushes of emotions he kept feeling from different passerby. Oh, he would be so glad when he got this new gift under control.

C. Wildcard!

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Comments

[emotioneater]

Perhaps some of the vampires at the party didn't care to have those from the likes of the East End Pack and Hillingdon mingling with them at the party. If they had any objections, they had kept them out of earshot of Cooper. He knew and didn't care.

If anyone objected, he wasn't above cracking skulls and tossing them out. The vampire had a short fuse and large temper. They had all heard the rumor about what he'd done with two of Raymond Harris' holdouts when he found out they were kidnapping humans to feed off of.

When Arthur approaches, Cooper gives him the once-over. Handsome, dressed sharp, and wound up tight, if what he was feeling was correct. For once, his newfound powers were a help rather than a hindrance as he felt out the emotions coming off the easy-looking face. Cooper, for his own part, is relaxed on the outside, and a little wary on the inside. "Now here is a one I'm unfamiliar with. State your name 'n rank. Can I get you a fresh drink?"

[specifiercity]

"No, thanks," Arthur says with a smile as he gestures with the drink he already has, "I'm still working on this one."

He's glad 'Delilah' isn't hanging off his arm right now. Eames has been very good at disarming people and asking the right questions, but Arthur needs to do some of this by himself, including talking to Cooper.

"Arthur," he continues, by means of introduction. "I'm a friend of Nancy's."

[emotioneater]

"Right, right. Think I remember seeing you at her little get-together." He'd been trying to remain civil with her fae dad at that event, so he hadn't gotten around to talking to Arthur. He waits for the familiar old stab of jealousy, but it didn't come. He'd seen the gorgeous blonde Arthur had walked in with earlier, so clearly he was already with someone. Besides, Nancy had been with him a long time now. If he got jealous of every guy in her life, he'd spend his time doing nothing but feeling that way.

"Here's to hopin' for a decent relationship with you as well." Cooper was going to have to put forth more of an effort with people now that he was on the Night Council. Turning into a smart-aleck and pissing them off after two minutes alone wasn't going to work anymore.

[specifiercity]

If Cooper can pick up anything with regards to Arthur's feelings for Nancy, it's just that he feels a bit protective. He's much more distracted by the aforementioned gorgeous blonde - she's both a new face and a sure thing tonight, so whatever feelings Arthur has when she's around probably seem a bit presumptuous and over-confident, but he manages to hide it alright on the outside.

"Of course," he agrees, an amused smile tugging at his lips. If only Cooper knew.

[emotioneater]

Cooper pauses a moment to take a gulp of his own drink, equal parts alcohol and blood. He was staying sober for this event. It wouldn't do for the first impression of the Vampire Representative to be a lush.

"So how'd a nice-looking gent like yourself get mixed up in such a down 'n dirty world?" There was just a hint of a flirtatious edge to Cooper's words. He could get away with it, having a solid relationship with his girlfriend, and the fact that most people never got to look past the teenage face. It's hard to be taken seriously when he still looks like he should be in secondary school.

[specifiercity]

Arthur doesn't know whether Cooper means to be flirtatious or not, and he elects to ignore it all the same, if not just because he's Nancy's boyfriend. He probably doesn't need to hear how Arthur really got involved with the supernatural, so Arthur draws on his standard answer.

"I was working security for a witch before he and I parted ways here," he says with a shrug. "He had a few contacts established here already to get me started."

[emotioneater]

Cooper notices that Arthur ignores his words. A bit of a stick in the mud then. Or maybe he just doesn't like men. "Ah. The boring way then." It was better than Cooper's story, which had involved ending up inside a crypt after being hanged at age seventeen. He didn't like telling that one. There was no happy endings for vampires.

"So who do you belong to? Redbright? Hillingdon?" At a guess, Cooper would surmise being security would translate into becoming a hunter, but he never likes to assume anything. That was how one got into trouble and he already had plenty of that.

[specifiercity]

Arthur raises his eyebrows at the question. He wanted to avoid the potential for politics here but there's no point in trying to dodge something so simple.

"Hillingdon," he replies. "It's nice - everyone kind of keeps to themselves."

[emotioneater]

"Exceptin' when they need to put down some of the more unruly subjects of London." Cooper's smile is sweet, but they'd lost at least a few vampires when the hunting ban had been lifted during Harris' reign of terror. Being a Marquess, he'd taken the losses quite personally. It wasn't something he was likely to forget anytime soon.

[specifiercity]

Arthur smiles politely, diplomatically. He wants to tell Cooper that unruly is a kind word for any being that kills humans for a quick snack, but he knows that Cooper might be so old he's forgotten how terrible that is, or so young that the hunger is still more important. He's met vampires in the middle, but he's found them to be few and far between; most that refrain from killing are doing it out of a sense of self-preservation rather than caring for humanity.

"I'm mostly in it to make sure humans don't get caught up in things they don't need to be caught up in," he says. It's true he's never taken a bounty on anyone or anything without solid proof they were a danger to the city in some way. "I'm sure you feel the same way about vampires - you just want them to exist peacefully."