Refuge (open)

[ivannaparker]

Ivanna needed some relief and she decided to go to Hyde park. Even though no one really came there, Ivanna was one of the few who would. She quickly found a bench and sat down. Ivanna leaned her head back, closed her eyes, and took a deep breath of moist, clean air. Ivanna needed the break, since her job had become so stressful. She had been working double shifts every day for the past week.

Ivanna sensed a presence and heard someone or something approach. Whoever they were, they walked on two legs, maybe fifty feet away. Seemed to be around, oh, maybe 180 pounds. They seemed to be drawing closer, but Ivanna didn't move from her postion. She couldn't tell if the person was male or female, but from the way they stepped, they weren't intimidated by her. She opened one of her eyes and peered around. Nothing. No sound. Whoever they were, they were good at walking silently.



Ivanna decided to lift her head and look around. Ivanna didn't see anything, but she looked on all sides of her. She didn't want to be attacked, and she took no chances. It was especially likely at this hour that some other night walking creature was stalking the city. She looked at her watch. Nine o'clock. Yep, there were night stalkers out. Suddenly, Ivanna heard another noise and perked up, listening for more clues of a presence.

[antoinette]

Well she was off by about 60 pounds, but someone did approach. She tiptoed naturally; her step light on the ball of her bare foot. Slender, pale ankles gave way to slender and equally as pale calves, rounding into the hem of her full skirt and bustle. She was the victim of a timeless soul; implanted in the wrong era, and everything about her screamed that. She looked like a vamp straight out of the 1850s, despite that her hem line was three feet too short and her neckline plunged dangerously below modest. Her corset laced tight, she hardly had room to breathe. Wait; breathing? Vampires don't do that. Silly her.

Flicking her wrist out with lightning fast precision, she snapped off a sapling branch, peeling bark off of it as she walked. She was aware of Ivanna though unconcerned, flicking bits of bark either which way as she approached. Rounding the corner, she tossed the sapling's carcass over her shoulder, crossing her arms low over her pelvis, her liquid chocolate gaze landing on the other woman. "Well, Howdy."

The fact that she was American bred and raised was downright unmistakable, that Kentucky Southern drawl tearing through her polished exterior like a bull in a china shop. It had it's own quaint elegance to it, but honestly, to most it made her seem ignorant. Not that she truly cared what others thought; it just made life a teeny bit easier in the process.. and she was far from ignorant. On the contrary; she was rather well versed. "And who are you, Ma'am?" She queried, an eyebrow raised.

[ivannaparker]

Ivanna heard a voice, female, say hello and ask who she was. Ivanna turned around. "Oh, hello. I'm Ivanna Parker. And you are?" She offered her hand in a friendly gesture. The girl seemed nice. She wore a corset, Ivanna noticed. Hmm, a corset, interesting, she thought, raising an eyebrow.

"So, if you don't mind me asking, what are you doing out here at this hour, miss?" Ivanna had also noticed her manners, and a slight accent. "And, where exactly are you from?" She appeared to be somewhat of a small town type of girl, but perhaps Ivanna was misjudging her.

Ivanna stood up and looked around once more. They appeared to be alone. She walked around the bench to be more comfortable. "I hope you don't mind, I was getting uncomfortable and I decided to stand up, you know, stretch my legs.

Ivanna leaned against the bench and sighed. "Ah, beautiful night, isn't it? A lovely sight. Too bad most people miss it. Don't you think so?" Ivanna turned to look at the girl, a questioning look on her face. It was beginning to get too dark for Ivanna to see the girl's face and features, but she seemed thin and muscular.

[antoinette]

Antoinette paced slowly around the other Vampire, still unconcerned but on the slight defensive - you never could tell who was friend or foe around here, could you? Her movements intentionally dragging as she reached the bench, she kept one eye trained on the redhead, weighing the possibilities this other creature had and deciding her odds of befriending her were fairly good.

Dropping the slow and steady act, her lithe, rapid motion was probably a blur to the tracking of human eyes - no doubt easy enough for Ivanna to see - as she threw herself to perch on the back of the bench, legs crossing at the knee subduely. "Antoinette Teran." She shook the young woman's hand, the cool-on-cool touch much like shaking an ice cube. She was generally used to a warmer touch; considering she'd grown up with a group of rowdy humans.

"I'm bored." A heartbeat of a pause and she clarified further - "And I'm hungry." She was, absolutely, no doubt, borderline starving. Her stomach grumbled slightly at the sheer mention of hunger; and she hadn't even begun to go on the prowl yet.. nor was she really dressed for it. Flashing a slightly annoyed gaze at her own abdomen, mentally shushing the demon within, she fixed her sensitive stare on Ivanna once more.

"Mmmh. A simply fabulous night. But then, all nights are beautiful when you have eternity to enjoy them, right?" She giggled slightly, the sound childlike despite her age. Antoinette was thirty-five, old enough in human years to be a mother and even possibly a grandmother if her children had started young enough; but she herself looked no older than her early 20s - and despite her timeless elegance, sometimes behaved even younger. She was fairly new to the lifestyle; having spend the first half of her life pretending - at her parent's insistence - to be human. "I've a feeling the moonlight creeps a lot of folks out, anyway."

[ivannaparker]

"I see," Ivanna said in reply to Antoinette's answer about being bored and hungry. She had mentioned that all nights were beautiful when you had eternity to enjoy them. "Well, yes, I suppose. So, I'm guessing we know each other's secret, then," she said, not wanting to be rude and just blatently ask the question. Antoinette mention moons creeping people out. "Really? Because I think that the moon is a beautiful and majestic work of natural art. I couldn't possibly see why someone would be creeped out by it. Unless they were a...werewolf. She spat the last word, not knowing so much why she practically hated the werewolves. They hadn't done much. Just take over the city and limit her feeding grounds. Ah, perhaps that was it. She wasn't happy about her feeding grounds being limited.

"Where exactly are you from?" Ivanna repeated, figuring that Antoinette hadn't heard her the first time. She looked at the girl. She did seem to be a small town girl, but how small a town, Ivanna didn't know. She also couldn't place the accent. It was a very subtle accent, but noticeable. Very difficult to place if you hadn't heard it much, like Ivanna. She gave a small smile to the girl. "Well, Antoinette, I must say that it was a pleasure to meet you. Perhaps, I can help you find some food. There should be some available at this hour."

[antoinette]

A brief Toni grin surfaced as she inspected the curve of one nail, propping her elbow on her knee and her chin on her palm. "Moonlight means the creepy crawlies come out, and to Humans, we're all just exactly the same. Products of Moonlight. And unless you're just tragically unnaturally cold, I'd imagine we're of the same race, aren't we?" She paused, switching knees, elbows, and palms to redirect her body, angling herself toward the redhead once more. "Clarification: I am Vampire."

She had heard the previous question but avoided it - she didn't like announcing she was a Southern American; they generally had a bad rap in other parts of the world. Oh hell, Americans in general. She couldn't blame her country; after all, taking a glance through history at some of the Presidents and Vice Presidents they'd produced, anyone would come to the conclusion that everyone was a quivering imbecile. Nixon... now there was a figurehead she could appreciate. He could sling ice to an eskimo; and when he was caught, he wasn't apologetic... he was angry. Brilliant! Simply brilliant!

"I'm from Kentucky. The States. Home of Bluegrass." She smirked slightly. "What about you?"

[ivannaparker]

"Oh, I understand." Ivanna looked at Antoinette. "I thought so, but I didn't want to be rude and just flat out ask. I, too, am a vampire." Antoinette said that she was from Kentucky. "Really? I'm from Manhattan myself. I know, like, two hundred miles away, but still, same country. I moved out here to get an evening job. I couldn't find one back home. So, what about you? What is your purpose being out here so far from home?" Ivanna looked around at the slightly misty, or perhaps foggy, park air. Yes, it was most definitely fog. "Ever notice that around this time of night, the fog comes out to play? And to hide the creepy-crawlies?" She turned to her companion. "I'd like to offer the chance to recieve help finding food again. But, the decision's purely up to you. But, I'd leap at the opportunity, If I were you." She raised an eyebrow at the girl. "So, how long has it been? And were you made or born?" Ivanna hoped that she wouldn't have to explain herself. She didn't think she would. After all, Antoinette did seem intelligent enough.

[antoinette]

"Mmh... more like seven hundred miles away. It's good to see a fellow American." She briefly held her hand over her heart as if pledging allegiance, a thin smile again reaching her otherwise dark lips. "I moved out here to find my family. Not sure where they went, though I don't blame them for not wanting to see me anymore." A pause and then she continued, sighing. "I was born - and I'm 35. My father was human, mother was a made Vamp, and they just didn't like the lifestyle. Tried to teach me to be human. Boy did that backfire." She chuckled sarcastically, standing up and stretching her lithe frame.

"Well I don't mind company while we .. uhm .. hunt." Truth be told, she didn't require it but often appreciated it - though she was stubborn and loved to fool herself into thinking she didn't. Being clinically deaf was a hard thing for a Vampire to handle; though her other senses - eyesight, smell, taste, touch - made up for it. She had developed a sort of echo-location. How bat-like. How appropriate. "So where's the best place to look?" Fair enough question; she rarely studied areas in new places all that closely and just sort of let her other senses guide her. She breathed deeply through her mouth, focusing on everything around her, her head tilted back. "It's so mossy out tonight."

[ivannaparker]

Ivanna smiled at her. "Yes, always comforting to find a fellow American." Ivanna nodded as Antoinette told her about her past and present. "Oh, I'm so sorry," Ivanna said, a sorrowful look in her eye. But she joined Antoinette in a sarcastic chuckle. "I'm twenty-eight, myself, so I guess that would make you slightly older than me. But, this is always a good place to hunt if you like not to be seen. Another good place to find humans is the nightclub. I happen to work at one, and I've been tempted a number of times. You just get their attention, lure them away, and feed." Ivanna smiled a little, feeling hungry at the mere mention of feeding. "You know, we can go to the nightclub at which I work, if you'd like. It's purely up to you. I have a habit of saying that, don't I?" Ivanna said, noticing something about herself that she hadn't noticed before. Ivanna chuckled at her irony. "So, Antoinette, do you have a special someone in your life? Like a boyfriend? Or a husband? And, if so, do you have any kids? How many? Boys, girls?"

[antoinette]

Toni sent a glance heavenward, gaze narrowing under the moonlight as she picked up a steady walk toward the street, graceful despite walking barefoot; the ball of her foot floating off the ground after hardly a touch down. She listened to Ivanna in silence as she posed question after question, head tilting slightly - she found it easier to hear others when her eyes were able to see their mouths; a sort of rudimentary lip reading. "No use for men, human, fanged or furry. Been there. Done that. Never again." She tried to refrain from sounding sour. She probably failed.

A wistful smile came to play at her features at the mention of children. Oh, she did wis hto have children.. some day. But it was near impossible given her current state. "No... no kids." Maybe. If she ever found someone she could tolerate long enough to have sex with - and then what? Would she find up like the nefarious Black Widow, and kill her mate just to allow her children to feed? What a delicious thought. She shuddered slightly, picking up the pace as her eyes scanned the empty street. The smart ones stayed inside - the stupid ones were likely to be caught out and about at this hour.

"Where's this night club of yours?"

[ivannaparker]

Ivanna began to walk leisurely and listened as Antoinette explained about her love life. "Mmm, yes, never really did see the use for men. No children, eh? Don't blame ya, I don't really want kids myself, I don't know about you." Ivanna continued her leisurely pace when Antoinette asked about the nightclub. Ivanna chuckled. "Patience, patience. It's just a few streets away. Loads of humans. Great blood. They all smell so good. Sometimes I wonder why I work in a place where I'm surrrounded by temptation. Do you ever get that kind of feeling?" Ivanna looked out upon the misty night.

"So, Antoinette, do you have a nickname or some shorter form of your name?" Ivanna asked curiously. She was getting just slightly tired of having to say her name over and over again. "If you like, you can call me Bella. That's my nickname. My middle name is Annabelle, and Bella's the short version, so I just decided that I liked that name." Ivanna slowed down slightly, thinking about where she was and where she had to go to get to the nightclub. "We shouldn't be far from the club, Antoinette."