Sharp Teeth and a Helping Hand

[Tone 6th]

The city of Nocturne was pulsing with life. A place of high energy and secrets behind closed doors, no one stayed in one spot for long. Clubs blared music all across the city, drugs were sold openly on street corners, and the police? Well let's just say they can't be everywhere at once. Yes truly this was a party goers paradise, in fact people flocked from all over just to get a taste of the never ending metropolis. It's here, in this neon city where our story begins.



The Nine Tailed Fox (Club)

Rain was coming down in sheets, but no one seemed to care. The cool water felt good after getting out of the energetic club.

"Name?" A bouncer asked.
"Argus Daga" a man answered.
The bouncer looked down the list then back to Argus "You're not on the list."
"Doesn't matter, you're letting me in." he waved his hand in front of the bouncer.
"Oh my apologies sir please go on in." he moved aside and let Argus in.

Argus entered, and wasn't disappointed with what he saw. Music was blaring over the speakers, the energy in the air was electrifying, and the dancers were hot. Argus took a seat at the bar, and one of the dancers came over to him with a seductive look about her. "He sweet costume, are those contacts custom?"

"Sorry sweat heart not interested, but you do lovely tonight. Go make that money!" he gave a small wave of his hand. The dancer smiled and left. He snapped his fingers and pointed to the bartender "Jack and coke! Let's go man!" he shouted over the music. A drink was slid down to him and he raised the glass in thanks.

"Ladies and gentlemen please welcome to the center stage: Desire!"

The music started to play and everyone clapped. "Here we go." Argus said to himself and watched her intently.​

 

[Kitschington]

[ ooc: i'll make this look a bit prettier later. for now, i just wanted to get this darn response out here.]

Summoned by the sound of the announcer's voice, a woman sauntered her way out to center stage in a fashion reserved for professionals. Her skin was a dark bronze and her eyes, which seemed to flick lazily across the crowd, were as bright as the lights blaring in her face. Her outfit hung from her slender form, as could be expected. It was only a matter of time before most of it would be on the floor. Judging by her expression alone, it was clear that the woman knew what she was here for. What wasn't clear was whether she was happy with herself for doing it... But, no one in the room was interested in those sort of semantics. A few cheap thrills--well, not entirely 'cheap'--and they would be on their way.

Moving in time with the music, Desire had a very natural way about the way she teased and tantalised her crowd. Her clothing was removed with a silken grace. Eventually, she was simply left to her underdressings. That would be enough for the time being. For a headliner like her, full nudity was reserved for those that could afford it... Once her dance had finally drawn to a close, Desire left the stage as mysteriously as she'd appeared. The staff actually seemed a little confused by it. Usually, dancers were supposed to stick around for a while after they were finished, in order to mingle with the crowd--perhaps grab a few more tips or private dances. But not Desire... Desire might have been wanted on the dance floor... But Naomi was late to an audition. A gig that would get her out of this hell hole...

Creeping about as inconspicuously as she could, Naomi tried to keep her face down. Hopefully no one would notice her as she made her way to the door... Unfortunately, fate had other plans. In her hurried attempts to leave the premises, Naomi was jostled and ran straight into one of the patrons. Hard. With any more force, she probably would have knocked him down. Eyes wide, she looked at the man apologetically. "Sir, I'm so sorry. Are you all right?" She looked to the red-haired man with a concerned expression... though she tried her best not to make eye contact--which was difficult given the situation.​

 

[Tone 6th]

Argus watched Naomi hurry off stage, and clapped "Well done." he said in a whisper. He turned to get up *wham!* "Hey!" he caught himself as someone knocked him over. "You're sorry! I-!" he turned and saw Naomi. His burning red eyes pierced her own. He started searching through her thoughts, but stopped himself. "Oh no honey it was my fault. How about a privet dance?" he smiled and pulled out a roll hundreds.

Naomi anxiously looked at the door, then back at the money. His red eyes bored into hers. "Heh, no it's okay you have somewhere to be. It's alright." he stuffed the money back in his pocket. "Take this instead sweetheart." he handed her a black card with a phone number printed in white "771 892 4501" "Call me when you're ready for that show." he pulled out a black cigaret and lit it. "You have a great gift, and I'm not talking about your dancing." he blew a cloud of smoke and sauntered out of the club.

 

[Kitschington]

Naomi was quick to recover from the fall, but she was genuinely concerned for the man she'd run into. However, she was also concerned about her audition, so her attention was effectively split in two. Gaze going to door quite a few times, she helped the man up as quickl as she could, barely noticing the words he was speaking to her. However, when he asked a question--a significant amount of money extended in her direction--she snapped back into reality. She looked more... confused, than anything. She hadn't even done that well in her performance... What could have brought this on? She couldn't help feeling a little disturbed by the significant sum. Usually that much money for a private dance meant that she'd be doing a great deal more than just dancing. Wincing a little at the thought, she tried her best to keep up her facade. Thankfully, the offer went away with very little prompting... It was then that she finally looked the man in the eye, noticing that something about them was quite strange... Yet, oddly familiar. She focused on them for a moment, but before she could ask another question, she was handed a card and the man was gone... Naomi stood there a moment, fiddling with the small card and briefly wondering what the man meant by her 'gift'... She had an idea what he may have been talking about. But, that couldn't have been it. No one knew about that... strangeness she'd been born with. Shaking her head, she simply tried to put the odd interaction behind her. She had somewhere to be...

With her body now completely swaddled in a large trenchcoat, Naomi was significantly protected from the rain and from prying eyes. Usually whenever she walked around in her 'work clothes', she got far too much attention. But, she'd come prepared this time... and the weather certainly helped her out as well. Holding her collar and her hood as closely as possible, Naomi rushed her way down the sidewalks, excusing herself where she could. But, as she walked, she noticed something... That feeling. It was back again. ... Something was watching her. Naomi felt the need to stop, but she couldn't, forging onward instead. But as she walked, the feeling only became stronger. It was getting closer. It had to be. ... They were back again. It had been weeks since she'd seen one last, but... they always came back. "Not now.. Not now. Please, not now....", uttering words beneath her breath, Naomi tried to keep rushing ahead, but her heart had begun to beat wildly. She was panicking... She had to find someplace safe. Someplace quiet, where the monsters couldn't get her

Unfortunately, the only place she could find was rundown little phone booth, a remnant of a much earlier time. She practically collapsed inside, shutting the door as quickly as she could. The sound of pouring rain against the glass outside drowned out the violent whispers that she could hear following her. Collapsing against the wall behind her, Naomi slowly slid down to a sitting position. "...Why now? ... why me?" Gripping the sides of hair, she shook her head gently, feeling tears slowly coming to her eyes... She just wanted to be normal. Was that so much to ask? Apparently so... Hearing the whispers grow stronger, Naomi gripped the small cross around her neck. The one her mother had given her when she was young. It had always made the monsters she saw go away... But lately it had been less and less effective. She heard their whispers so much more often now. And they were all so angry... ​

 

[Tone 6th]

"WE SEE THE SHADOWS FALLING FROM YOUR EYES." one whisper spoke.

"GIVE THEM TO US." another called.

"GOING TO TAKE THEM." one threatened.

Black figures started emerge through the rain.

​

"GIVE US YOUR EYES."
"GIVE THEM TO US."
"CARVE THEM OUT."
"TAKE THEM."
"PLUCK THEM."

The whispers started to grow louder and louder. The phone booth was now surrounded by inky black figures. Tears rolled down cheeks as panic shook her entire body. "Stop!" she screamed as more of them came to the glass. The glass started to crack, and the whispers kept getting louder.

"KILL HER."
"TAKE HER EYES."
*Ring* *Ring*
The walls started to give way, small shards of glass bit at her skin.

"DIE."
*Ring* *Ring*
"KILL."
*Ring* *Ring*
"CARVE THEM OUT."
*Ring* *Ring*

The was a sound among all the chaos. Naomi looked up and saw that the old payphone was ringing. She snatched it from the receiver and, in a panic, answered.

"Hello! Please you have to help me!"
"....."
"Hello!"
"I already have. Now be on your way." a voice responded.

*Click* the line went dead, but so did all the whispers. The woman turned to see nothing but rain and a dirty street corner. Even the phone booth had turned back to normal, and her cuts were gone.
​

 

[Kitschington]

Still seated at the bottom of the abandoned phone booth, Naomi was still holding the phone in her shaking fingers. She stared ahead of herself into the middle distance, her makeup running in dark rivulets down her cheeks and ruining the blouse beneath. What... What was that? Had she had another episode? ... But, this one was so much more vivid than any other she'd experienced. She'd been through this before. The black figures... emerging from the shadows and coming near her. Their whispers were usually gibberish. And so much more distant. They'd never gotten so close to her before. She'd seen them approaching... Sometimes they would stand on street corners or in windows. Sometimes they were in the back of the taxi she was in... or staring at her from the apartment across the street. Never this close. Never this close before in her life. Breathing heavily, Naomi looked at the phone again. Who had that voice belonged to? And how did they put an end to her nightmares. ... Just what was happening?

The young woman had so many questions. Her legs were like gelatin, though. Incapable of moving at all for at least a few minutes, Naomi simply sat there, staring at the phone and the receiver above her. After some time, she finally managed to get to her feet. She pulled herself out of the phone booth, and hurried home as quickly as she could. She'd missed her audition, that was a fact now. But, she had far more to worry about... If her hallucinations were returning this badly, then it meant that she'd have to go see her doctor again. Her medication either needed to be doubled or... she'd need to go back to living in an institution. And she didn't want that at all...

Upon arriving at the tiny, somewhat musty apartment that she called home, Naomi was quick to throw off her wet clothes. The small studio apartment was just enough for the young woman and a few of the stray cats that liked to wander in and out of her life. She locked her door tightly behind her, casting her clothes on the floor and changing into the warmest clothing that she had available to her. Once she was settled, she sat upon the edge of her bed. With a small sigh, she grabbed a few of the pill bottles that sat on her nightstand and threw them into her mouth as quickly as possible. Taking a long swig of water, she looked down and noticed something strange on the floor. The card. The one that man had given her. It had fallen onto the floor right in front of her feet, despite the fact that her clothes were all the way across the room. Picking it up, she sat cross-legged on the bed, staring at the card in her fingers for a while. Maybe she just needed a bit of normalcy... Some dirty talk. Maybe that would help her out. Help her confidence, at least... It took her a few moments to screw up the courage... but she managed to dial the number.

"Hello? ... This... This is Desire. You'd requested that I call you?"​

 

[Tone 6th]

Argus went from club to club looking for someone as interesting as Desire, but had no such luck. "Come on there has to SOMEONE with the same gift as the dancer." he mumbled to himself as he pulled out another cigarette. The rain soaked his clothes, but the man couldn't care less. "UGH! You would think a city as colorful and loud as this would have some more excitement to it!" he ran his hands down his face and let out a sigh.


"AHHH!" a woman screamed from around the corner.

"Now that's what I'm talking about. What kind of sins are being committed tonight?" he flashed a toothy grin. He quickly ducked around the corner and saw a large group of shadows clawing at a phone booth. They were screaming for the eyes of the person inside, but to them they would only come across as whispers. Argus approached the frenzy "Hey fellas how are we terrorizing tonight?" he pushed through the crowd. "Alright what do we have here." he pressed his face to glass. "Hey isn't that?" he raised an eyebrow. The man knelt down "Oh shit, it's Desire! Aw and she looks so scared." he chuckled. To her he was just another shadow in the crowd. "Alright guys no eyes for you tonight, this one is mine move along." he waved his hands as if to say "Shoo!".

"SHE IS OURS!" a shadow screamed.
"No she is mine. She has my card. I saw her first. She's mine." he explained.
"WE'VE BEEN HUNTING HER FOR YEARS!"
"STOP SHOUTING! I'M RIGHT HERE!"
"LEAVE!"
"No." A bright orange ball of fire burst from his left hand, and he hurled it at the shadow. *BOOM!* The monster exploded upon contact, bits of a black gooey substance splattered everywhere. "Alright I will say this once more, so listen up! The girl is mine, and anyone else that thinks otherwise will end up like your friend here. Now go!" he yelled.

Instantly the group disbanded, but the scene was a wreck. "No it's fine I'll clean up your mess to." Argus raised his right hand to broken phone booth and turned his hand counter clockwise, instantly the booth was back to its original state. "There we go, now lets just give the dancer a ring." he pulled out a black cellphone and called the booth.

"Hello! Please you have to help me!" she screamed.
"I already have. Now be on your way." Argus replied.

Argus watched as the young lady hurry home, and smiled "Soon." he whispered.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It wasn't long after that Argus found himself wondering the streets again. *Bzzzzzzt* *Bzzzzzzt* His phone started to go off.

"Hello?" he said with a smile.

"Hello? ... This... This is Desire. You'd requested that I call you?"

"Oh hey baby! Yeah, are you ready to make that money I offered you? Trust me I'm not into anything goofy like most of your clients. All I'm asking is that you put something a little classy on, and let me take you out. I know your probably have questions about what I said, but I would like to get to know you better." he sounded honest. "Or we could meet up at your place and order take out, doesn't really matter to me." he laughed.

 

[Kitschington]

Laying back against her sheets, Naomi instantly felt comforted by the normalcy of this. Sure, she didn't particularly like her current profession... But it paid the bills and kept the lights on in her, admittedly cramped, but warm apartment. And it was certainly more normal than having shadow people appearing from nowhere, trying to kill her. Shaking her head to rid herself of those thoughts, she sighed to herself and focused on the man that responded. He sounded nice... if not a little slick. Most of the guys in this town were exactly that. She wasn't at all surprised by the request, though. He seemed like the affluent type... Probably wanted to show her off to some of his friends or something. Naomi wasn't particularly excited about being a trophy... but it was something. Unfortunately, she wasn't all that enthused about leaving the house... But, she was even less enthused by the idea of letting a stranger into her home. She weighed her options and decided to go with somewhat safer route. She'd already taken her medication, so the likelihood of having another episode was fairly low. She held the phone to her ear and chuckled. "Classy it is, then. Just tell me where you'd like to meet and I'll be there..." Her voice was rather sultry, for having just been traumatised. Acting at its finest...​

 

[Tone 6th]

"Perfect!" he beamed. "Meet me at La Maison, in about an hour. I'm going to treat you right tonight baby girl!" he laughed.
"See you then." Naomi replied.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Argus was early on his arrival to the restaurant. He was dressed to the nines in a black suit, and of course a red tie. He approached the host stand.

"Good evening sir how may I help you?"
"One table please, and make it as privet as you can." his voice was calm and cool.
"I'm sorry sir, but we are booked all night."
"Oh now that won't do. I'm pretty sure that far corner table is open." he waved his hand across the hosts face.
"Oh of course sir, how silly of me. How many dining?"
"Just two, she has yet to arrive. Her name is Naomi, please just escort her over when she arrives."
"Of course sir, right this way."

The host sat him at a quiet table in the corner. The restaurant was dimly lit, aside from the candle light, but very classy. The house band played calming music, and everyone seemed to be having a good time. Argus checked his watch, it was ten to. "Alright let's really give her a good night." he psyched himself up.​

 

[Kitschington]

It hadn't taken very long for Naomi to dress herself for this event. She'd only been able to afford maybe one or two dresses for this kind of occasion. It was all she needed anyway. Usually the person that saw one wouldn't be all that interested in seeing the other. It wasn't as if she were dating any of her patrons regularly... So, deciding upon the simple approach, she slipped into a small, black dress, which shimmered just enough to draw attention. It was shorter than she would have liked, coming dangerously close to the meeting of her thighs. But it wasn't as if she could argue with the results it got. After putting on her trenchcoat--and breathing a few deep breathes, preparing herself to go outside again--Naomi disappeared and Desire took to the streets once more.

Upon entering the restaurant, Desire was gracious to be greeted as she was. She'd been to the place a few dozen times before. Definitely one of those spots where she was used to being shone off... But, to her surprise, she saw that the man was alone. A bit strange... and a bit intimidating. Now she wasn't certain at all of what this man wanted from her. She didn't let her worries show on her face, though. Instead, she merely sat down across the table from him. It was then that she noticed his eyes again. They were... so strange. But, she didn't want to point them out. Offending him was the last thing she wanted to do. She smiled across the table.
"A pleasure to meet you again.. Sir.... I... I'm sorry" She chuckled. "I nearly knocked the wind out of you and I didn't even bother to get your name..."​

 

[Tone 6th]

"It's quite alright, Argus Daga professional club goer. I know you by your stage name Desire, but I can't help wonder what your real name is. Hmmmm." he looked at her face with great intent. "You seem to be a Jessica, no no Sadie, no wait (he paused for a moment) Kate." he laughed. Desire shook her head and giggled a little. "Ah well perhaps by the end of the night you may reveal it to me." he smiled

"Good evening sir, and to you madam." a waiter chimed in. "What can I get you? Tonight's special is a grilled salmon with couscous."

"Well to start I was hoping you had a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon for the lady and I?"

"Oh yes of course sir." the waiter beamed.

"And if you could give us just a second one the food, I wish to just chat with lady for a bit."

"No problem, I'll be right back with your wine."

"Thank you." Argus smiled.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

He turned back to Desire "I hope you like wine." he smiled. "So I know you must a few questions for me about how I know about your "gift" (he used air quotes), but really lets save that for later. Right now I just want you to have a good time, anything you want I can get." he gestured to the whole restaurant. "I do have a question for you though, something that I have been dying to ask you sense I saw you... why the name Desire?"

The waiter quietly returned with the bottle of wine and poured them both a glass. "Perfect thank you. I will call on you when we are ready to order." he smiled and sent the waiter away.

 

[Kitschington]

Argus... It was a rather unique name, to say the least. Almost like a celebrity of some sort. It was certainly possible that the man was a performer, using his own stage name as well. Desire was a little amused by the thought. Again, she didn't want to pry any further than she should, knowing that she couldn't really afford to offend the man. Especially since he seemed to be paying for all of this. Hearing him guess at her name, she couldn't help chuckling at his attempts. "A lady never tells so easily... But, I do have a penchant for wine so it's possible you might get it out of me after a few glasses" She chuckled again, trying to be as candid as possible. She was trying to gauge what type of man this was. So far, he seemed like a friendly one. He laughed at her little jokes, even through in a bit of humour himself. He wasn't ogling her outfit at all and he hadn't made any moves to touch her. He seemed genuinely nice... And that made her extremely wary. She'd have to stay on her toes with this one.

Taking her glass of wine, Desire sipped from it for a moment, but placed it back down when she heard the man address something she'd heard earlier. Her 'gift'. He'd said it again. Breaking her facade for a moment, Desire looked at him with wide eyes. Despite the fact that he wanted to save it for later, she couldn't help feeling the need to address it now... But, before she could say anything, he'd already asked her a question. A fairly common one. Smiling politely, she came up with the usual answer. "It's only natural, isn't it? I work in a business of desire... And I've done it well enough that it may as well be my name. ... It wasn't my idea at first. When I began dancing, I can't say I was good enough to be called that. But... with enough practice, anything is possible." She chuckled again, raising her glass to her lips, but hesitating in drinking it. She needed to stay lucid for this conversation....

"Now... You keep mentioning this 'gift'. Would you mind... explaining what you mean?"​

 

[Tone 6th]

Argus sighed at her question "I was really hoping to save this all for later, at least until we had something to eat."

"No I'm sorry lets order and then-" Desire started to apologize.

"No no it's alright, you have every right to know." he paused for a moment and looked deep into her eyes. "Desire you're gift... well... hmm how to go about this without sounding like a complete creep. Desire I know you can see shadows, or more accurately demons. You were born what we call a 'seer'. Unlike normal humans you can see demons, there are only a few of you in the world, but it's wonderful gift if you know how to use it correctly. You see this ability allows you to not only see demons but, with the proper training, expel them. That why I'm here, that's why I gave you my card, and that's why I wanted to take you out tonight."

 

[Kitschington]

Desire could tell that she shouldn't have let her curiousity get away with her... It was always the nice ones that were the craziest. The moment the word 'demons' sprang from his mouth, the woman stiffened up. She looked at him as if he'd suddenly begun speaking a different language. Nodding along skeptically, her gaze started to go to the door. She needed to find a way out of this one. Fast. There was no telling what other insanity this man contained. It was a shame because she was really beginning to like their conversation. But if he was already talking about conspiracy theories concerning demons... there was no telling what he had in mind for her. Giving a small laugh, Desire decided to play along... at least until she could come up with an excuse to leave. "W-...well. That certainly is a gift, isn't it? ... I can't say I've heard of that one before either." She smiled warmly, taking her glass of wine and suddenly downing the remainder of it, trying to enjoy the atmosphere before she high-tailed it.​

 

[Tone 6th]

"You don't believe me... *Sigh* This is why I wanted to wait until AFTER the meal." he through the napkin in his lap on the table. "I thought I would give you a nice night out after what happened earlier, but I guess not." he ran his fingers through his hair. "You know that's the problem with you humans. You always pry into far to much instead of enjoying whats right in front of you." anger was burning at the base of his throat.

"Maybe I should go..." Desire started to get up.

"I don't think so sweet heart, sit down!" he commanded and slammed his hand down on the table. "We're going to try this again, and this time don't start prying into things you shouldn't!" he raised his right hand, turned it counter clockwise, and held it there for a second. He recomposed himself, put the napkin back on his lap, and lowered his hand.

A sudden dizzying feeling came over Naomi "I'm uh I'm sorry what were we talking about?" she looked at him as if trying to re orientate herself.

"Oh I believe you were going to ask me something about myself, you said something about a game of questions. I get a turn, you get a turn. Really, ask me anything you like." he smiled. "Oh and I put the liberty of giving the waiter our orders while you were in the bathroom, remember you told me to order for you? So please ask away." he offered a smile.

 

[Kitschington]

The air in the room changed suddenly and Desire was fairly quick to notice. Eyes wide, she noted the anger in his voice almost instantly, which was never a good sign... He'd been very charming before, but If his attitude changed that quickly, it probably meant there was more than kindness bubbling under the surface of him. She started to get up, excusing herself from the table, but before she could get very far, she felt somewhat dizzy. Gripping her chair harder, she stopped herself from nearly falling and shook her head. Perhaps it was the wine... But, how on earth... She'd only taken a few sips. And she was very good at holding her liquor too... Apologising quietly, she sat back down, actually feeling a little embarassed for having already imbibed so much. With a sheepish smile, she arched a brow at the little 'game' he'd brought up. With a small hum, she tried to think of something inoffensive to say... "Ah... Well, Argus... How long have you been in town? If you're a professional party-goer then surely you've seen me a few times then? ... Though you may not have known it. Most patrons don't seem to recall very much about my face, honestly." She chuckled​

 

[Tone 6th]

"Oh no my dear I've seen you quite a few times... here and there. Well lets just be honest most of your patrons are pigs just looking to get their rocks off. I can see the beauty in all of you, take your eyes for example." he stared at them for a second before realizing. *Ahem* "As for long I've been in town, well let's just say I've lived here off and on for awhile now. You know different places different clubs, but I always return to this place." he smiled. "The glow of the neon, the excitement in the air, and of course beautiful women like yourself."

The conversation was interrupted when the waiter brought the food to the table. The two ate and drank, both regaling each other with stories of what it is they do. The dinner was going swimmingly and after awhile both became comfortable with one another, but all good things must come to an end. "Well Desire I'm sad to say, but or time is just about up." Argus frowned as the two walked out of restaurant. "As promised here is your money." he pulled out the roll of money and handed it to her. "One thousand dollars, and it's all for you." he smiled. Desire looked at him with a dumb founded stare. "Take it it's all yours. It's the least I can do for allowing me an evening with one of Nocturne's most sought after women." he hailed a cab and opened the door. "Now if you would do me the honor I would love to go dancing with you, and I don't mean a privet show. You, me, some hard hitting base, and a good way to end the night." he gestured into the cab. "Come on a good way to end the night, then you can really ask me anything you want to know." she knew what he was referencing.

 

[Kitschington]

Desire hadn't expected to have just as good of a time as she did. At first she'd been pretty wary of the man. As she had every right to be. She'd never seen his face before, despite him claiming to be an avid club go-er. And she knew she would remember eyes as unique as those. They couldn't have been natural, of course. Probably a scleral tattoo. Those were fairly popular these days.... though she'd never seen them done quite that well. Before long, though, she hardly noticed them at all. Argus may have been a stranger to her, but he was obviously not a creep, as far as she could tell. If he was, he was certainly good at hiding it. The man was polite. He'd done his best to accommodate and make her comfortable. And he had great tastes in restaurants as well. He was wonderful conversationalist and he listened to her as well. It was amusing. Far different than most of the 'dates' she went on with her patrons. By the end of the occasion, she was smiling far more genuinely... Her expression only changed when she noted the amount of money that Argus extended to her. She was a bit surprised... but, it was her going rate. Especially for a night as lengthy as this one. Part of her almost felt guilty for taking it this time around, though... But, when she recalled her coming rent checks--not to mention how much it would cost her to find another audition--she took the sum of money modestly and gave a small nod in thanks. Seeing that their time together would continue, though, Desire declined politely. "As much as I'd love to, I really should be getting home... And, funny as it might sound, I'm not much of a 'club go-er' myself... Unless I'm on stage, my dancing isn't all that impressive." She chuckled, feeling a bit more like Naomi again. "I... I do have questions to ask, though." Walking forward, Desire slid her hand against Argus's for a moment. She closed the cab's door and indicated for the driver to go on his way. That left she and Argus on the sidewalk, outside of the restaurant. Taking the man's hand, she pulled him down the street alongside her. When she spoke this time, her voice was a bit more direct. "My first question is, what are you expecting from me physically? I really do appreciate the dinner and all, but if you want sex from me, please just ask, so I can schedule it. ... Second, who are you and why do you.. appear so differently to me? I don't know what it is... but you just look out of place to me. ... Finally, what is this gift you keep referencing? You've been cagey about it so far and I can't help feeling as though you're playing some type of joke on me..." Getting it all out at once, Desire gave a small sigh in relief. She hadn't wanted to be rude the entire night... but now that she had permission she knew she had to seize this opportunity to get answers.

 

[Tone 6th]

Argus frowned when she declined to a night of dancing. When she asked her questions he sighed. "Here come on I'll answer your questions on the way. I want to take you somewhere." He slid his arm around her back, pulled her in close, and began walking. "As for your first question I'm not looking for sex from you... At least not right now. Don't get me wrong you are a very attractive woman Miss Desire, but there are bigger fish to fry." he kept looking over his shoulder at something, and when she went to look he turned her back towards him.

"It's my damn eyes isn't it? That's why I look so out of place. Well you can't change what you're born with I suppose." he looked over his shoulder and quickened thier pace. "The real reason as to why I look different is because my dear (he took a sharp right into an alleyway) I'm not from this realm. I'm a demon, and I have shown myslef to you because I'm here to help and protect you." he picked her up and started sprinting down the alleyway.

"I know you can see shadows Desire, I was there when you were trapped in the phone booth. It was me on phone, the one you spoke to, the one who helped you." he stopped and set her down in a big cement courtyard. The only opening was the one they came through.

"That's your gift Desire, the ability to see demons." he stood in front if her. A huge black shadow came bursting out if the opening, sharp teeth, and bright white glowing eyes. "Wow you sure attract a lot more then patrons!"

 

[Kitschington]

Desire had been hoping for answers. It's all she'd wanted for the entire duration of their conversation. This man intrigued her in ways that she'd never really known. Not necessarily in terms of physical interest... Just curiousity. As she'd said, there was something different about him. There was a quality about him that most other people she met lacked... But a quality that she found familiar. Almost unnervingly so... When she finally got her answers, though, she began to slowly realise what it was. The shadows. The monsters. He was just like them. They all came in different shapes, different sizes. Some spoke. Some growled. Some lacked the capability to do either, and simply stared. But the worst ones... The worst ones could talk. And they spoke to her in the sweetest of tones sometimes. Asking for her attention. Saying that they could help her.... That all they wanted to do was be her friend. Flinching at the sound of their voices, Desire could suddenly hear those voices again...

Naomi's eyes widened suddenly, as she lost every bit of confidence that made her 'Desire'. She hadn't even noticed when Argus had sweeped her off of her feet. When he sat her down in a new location, she started to back away from him instinctively. "No. No... You- you're not real. And you're not my friend! Just leave me alone! Go away, please! I'm not crazy! I am not-!!!" Eyes widening when she suddenly saw a shadow larger than them both burst out from the corridor in front of them. Eyes filling with fear, Desire gave a breathless scream. She continued to back away from them both, shoving Argus away from her as she tried to search for a way out of here. This couldn't be real. It couldn't be. She'd gone to her doctor. So many years of therapy. So many pills. Why was this all coming back today? Why now? Clutching her head a little, she squeezed her eyes shut and turned her back to both Argus and the monster. "Just shut them out. It's not real.. It's not real... It-It's not real...."​