Shifting Blood

[Kaisaan]

A hiss, deeper than a cat's and far more threatening was spat past baring fangs as the black-haired figure quickly picked herself up from the ground where she'd been thrown. Her pale skin bore streaks of blood, but there was no injury to be seen on her body, though, her jeans were torn at the knee and along one thigh and he shirt looked to be in shreds at abdomen level and across her shoulder in the back. It was clear she'd put up one hell of a fight before she'd been thrown into this cell underground. Her pale gray eyes flared with fiery rage as she approached the bars, but it turned into another hiss, this one pained when she touched the silver, pulling back as her flesh sizzled for a long moment before healing over again.

Right, and people thought silver only effected werewolves. She wished.

"Ah, come now, Caterina. Don't take it personally. Alessio will pay good money to get you back. It's just business." The words came from a well-built, blond-haired male who smiled with fanged teeth, putting out his cigarette as he approached the bars, careful not to touch them. "You understand business."

Caterina bared her own fangs back in a grim smile. "I know you've signed your death warrant. Alessio will kill you when he finds out I've escaped."

The male vampire laughed. "Escaped? You have no where to go, Caterina!" He shook his head as if being tolerant and smiled. "No, Caterina, you shall stay until he comes for you and I will be that much richer. Now, go on and make friends with your cell-mate. Play nice or I'll find other ways to keep you amused." The threat was thinly veiled as he ascended the stairs and when he had gone, Caterina cursed, resisting the urge to slam her hands against the bars. Bad idea.

Dammit! Why hadn't she seen them coming? Damn city mucking up all the damn scents! She wracked a hand back through her tangled black hair and finally, after a few more muttered curses in an old dialect of Italian, she looked toward her 'cell-mate'. He was rather attractive from where he sat and her nose immediately told her that he wasn't human, but...not vampire either...not werewolf...hmm.... She recognized that scent. What was it? Head tilting just slightly, but her pale gray eyes cold and impassive, Caterina ventured the first attempt at conversation.

"So, what are you in here for?"

 

[~Broken~]

The boy looked up at her with his non-covered sapphire blue eye, " For being the last of my clan." he said, as softly as a gentle breeze blowing through the branches of weeping willow trees. He leaned his head back, sitting up straight, and tilted his head slightly. He looked down at her, "...Do you want to stay here..or do you want to be free?" he asked his eyes boring into her, making it clear he didn't want a bullshit half ass-ed answer. In this situation it was either I save you or I save myself the time was ticking and he wanted an answer. He hunched over, wrapping his arms around his knees, leaning forward he stared at her before extending his hand.

 

[Kaisaan]

The last of his...clan? Hmm. Not family, not coven or pack - though, if he'd been a werewolf she would have smelled that three miles off - but a clan. Well, elves lived in clans or tribes depending on the region they came from, but he didn't look like an elf. He didn't have the rich, earth scent of the woodland elves nor the lightning, moon-scent of the dark elves. Clan...oh, you had got to be kidding. A shape-shifter.

Caterina hissed slightly in disapproval, glaring back at the blond past her own black hair, distrust and dislike plain her pale gray eyes. Let him look at her all he wanted with that piercing, sad blue eye. It wasn't going to change a damn thing. She snorted at his question and gave him a 'duh' expression. "Of course I want to get out of here. What person in their right mind would want to stay here?"

She started to pace, hating the confinement and hating even more the fear that she could feel bubbling up inside her. She couldn't go back to him. She'd...well, she couldn't die first. She was already technically dead. Eh, she'd do anything first before she'd go back to Alessio. Even...Caterina gave the male in the cell a sidelong look, calculating and she completely ignored his hand, but spoke nonetheless.

"Say I even contemplated for a second escaping with you....could you get me out of here...and what would you want in return?" Nothing ever came for free.

 

[~Broken~]

He turned he's head to the left a bit disappointed at her reply, but he stood up and shrugged it off. She was afraid of exchanges, the ever constant never failing truth of 'Nothing ever came for free' rang true through her mind, the thing was that he didn't want anything from her. Not really. He just wanted to save her. He liked her. Even so he knew she wouldn't let their be a one sided agreement. He sighed then looked her square in the eyes and said " I'll save you but in exchange I'd like your company.Agreed?" he held out his hand a final time. Time was running out. ' Yes or No' he hissed in his mind.

 

[Kaisaan]

Caterina watched the male warily, her body tense, ready for any movement toward her that he might make. She'd been on the receiving end of too many Shifter attacks to feel comfortable around this male in the least. At first she only thought he was offering that they work together so they could get out and go their separate ways - and this Shifter must be something important or rare if the vampires here were keeping him alive instead of just killing him outright - but then he spoke again and her eyes narrowed, expression incredulous. He wanted...what?

Her company? Why would a Shifter want her company? Was he addled in the head?

The vampire settled her hands on her hips for a moment, contemplating all angles here and while, yeah, she briefly glossed over the fact that he might be completely genuine - and naive at that - her mind leaned more toward an alternative motive. Perhaps he was going to get her out of here only to take her captive for his own people. He could always try to kill her when they got out, too. Yeah, there were definite risks, but... Pale gray eyes looked around at the cell and at the stairs that led to the vampires above in the nightclub, and Caterina finally sighed to herself, not at all happy about this, but willing enough.

Her eyes met that one blue one again and she extended her hand slowly, hesitated and then finally took the Shifter's hand, voice cold. "Fine." she finally agreed.

 

[~Broken~]

He smiled and turned into a phoenix and shot fire out of his mouth, burning the place down in flames, then he grabbed her and flew away. He took her far away from that place to somewhere more to her liking. He made sure they were followed by transforming several times and went i different directions. All until they reached the spot that was all hidden from everything and everyone, deep in the forest,and just south of the mountains. They finally arrived at place covered in trees, a cave behind a waterfall in which the water came the mountains for it was freshly melted now. " Make yourself at home." he said as he shape shifted back to normal and let go of her hand which up until now he was holding. He walked towards the fall. Then turned back to look at her.

 

[Kaisaan]

Fire. Of all the creatures he could have chosen, he had to settle on the one that would make her the least comfortable. Caterina was about to protest right there and then, but before she could even say a word he was already acting and she watched with a type of horror as the nightclub went up in flames. There had been vampires in there, and she wasn't sad for their demise as they shrieked, but....humans had been in there, too, not to mention a few other mythical creatures. Some might escape, but chances were they were all going to die and Caterina was a cold creature, a killer herself, but even she wouldn't have done that.

As she was hauled off into the air, the vampire looked up at the phoenix, at least grateful that he wasn't burning her into ash and then he changed again and she resisted the urge to break free and drop down to the ground. A deal was a deal, and much as she wanted to be able to lie...Caterina never really could and so she waited until he put her down in the woods before putting some distance between them, looking around at her surroundings with careful eyes.

Make herself at home? With what? They weren't in the middle ages anymore! Did he actually live here? Shape-shifters and their strange habits.

Caterina folded her arms and looked at the rushing water, not to avoid his gaze but to frown at recent events. "You killed people. Innocent people." She said it factually, but when she looked back at the male, there was ice in her eyes, disapproval that she highly doubted he'd actually care about, but it was there nonetheless. "And if you could have gotten out like that the whole time, then why were you even there?" she demanded.

He'd said he wanted her company. Well, here she was.

 

[~Broken~]

He simply looked at her. she thought they were innocent. He had been in that cell long before she arrived. None of those people were innocent not a one of them. He chose to ignore the first part of what she said but for the rest he replied, "...I didn't have a spark...now i have a flame. My reason to live was so far off it was almost not realistic thus i lost my reason to live. You brought i back to me. I want to continue to work towards my first reason for living and I want to protect you and keep you alive. You don't want to die, do you?" he waited for her response.

 

[Kaisaan]

So...his will to live effected his shifting ability? Interesting. She'd never heard that with Shifters before, but then again, he had said he was the last of his clan. Maybe that was normal with them...or had been normal. His reason for living...she could only take a guess at what that was and though she felt a bit of curiosity stir, she shoved it away and didn't voice the questions that rose up within her like tiny ripples in a pool.

She brought it back? Protect her? Did she want to live? Caterina stared at him as if he had a second head, brow raised and every line of her face speaking confusion and some disbelief. Was this guy for real? Finally she snorted and shook her head, a sardonic laugh bursting from her lips for a moment before she went quiet again and looked back at him again. "Look, I don't know what I did for you considering you don't even know me and while you have my thanks for getting my hide out of hell, I don't need your protection. You have no reason to want to help me anyway, so stop being weird."

She tucked her black hair behind an ear, arched a brow and smiled sarcastically, fangs visible. "I'm already dead, remember?"

 

[~Broken~]

He smirked. " Point taken..but that wasn't the kind of dead I meant...I meant if you were taken back...that dead..." he turned away " If you want to leave tomorrow your welcome to it but at least stay the night.

 

[Kaisaan]

Taken back. Okay, so...maybe he did know...slightly, what would be death to her. Lucky guess.

Caterina frowned, a prominent expression on her face most often, as she watched the Shifter, taking in his shaggy blond hair that fell over his face, giving him an air of mystery or perhaps shyness, his tall statue that pretty much towered over her own - not that this alarmed her in the least - his quiet demeanor and yet graceful movements, the kind that predators carried whether they wanted to or not....and she found herself oddly intrigued.

Why HAD he helped her? Ugh, damn her curiosity. Didn't she ever learn? It was curiosity what got her into this mess in the first place, this whole vampire mess. Shaking her head, the black-haired female moved away from the middle of the cave and toward the waterfall, stopping near the rocks and leaning against them with her arms crossed, head tilted down in thought. She could leave right now if she wished it, but she didn't exactly know where she was and while she wasn't scared of the dark in the least, night was when the predators of all varieties came out to hunt and not all vampires hunted humans. Then there were vampire hunters, shape-shifters, werewolves and few odds and ends in-between that could actually be a danger to a lone vampire out in the forest at night.

Damn, this Shifter had actually cornered her into staying. Clever. Annoying, but clever, Caterina could admit and finally she turned back to the male and walked back into the cave, sitting back against the stone and crossing her arms again, always on the defensive. "What is your name? And why DID you help me? We're enemies, you know. Our kinds hate each other. I'm not stupid enough to believe that the extinction of your Clan didn't involve vampires."

 

[~Broken~]

He stared at her for a moment before starting, " I am Zander of the fallen shape shifting clan, Vendarth. I already told you why i saved you. No we aren't enemies, as you say it's our kinds that hate each other not us. I know you're not stupid enough to believe that my clan didn't involve vampires, You are too bright for that, and while on the subject its not you stupidity but your ignorance that fails you when it comes to the knowledge of my clan extinction." Maybe that will get to her.

 

[Kaisaan]

Caterina bristled immediately, fangs baring as she hissed at him and her pale gray eyes sparked fire, words vicious. "Ignorance that fails me? That's a contradiction right there. Either I have failed to be ignorant which means I am aware of what I speak or I am ignorant. I can't have ignorance fail me." The vampire scoffed, continuing. "Perhaps I don't care to know about your clans' extinction. Of what interest should it be to me what happens to Shifters?" she spat back. "And you can't say whether I am your enemy or not since I haven't offered my friendship. I may be ignorant, but you're expressing enough arrogance for both of us."

Gah, WHY had she thought she could stay here? Oh, well, too late to leave now so she might as well enjoy a good argument with Zander. Wasn't like it was hard to be annoyed with him. Then again, she was easily annoyed by everyone. Looking away from the male, she spoke a bit more quietly. "You make no sense whatsoever. You haven't told me why you wanted to save me. Sure, you say that I gave you a reason to live. Why? What did I do besides ask you one question? I'm a vampire. I'd much sooner kill you than trust you."

 

[~Broken~]

He narrowed his eye at her, " Why don't you then? It wouldn't be hard to kill me? Hell ,I'll tell you what, I won't fight back, Go for it!!!" He opened up his arms to his sides. He was done arguing with her. It didn't matter what he said or did she didn't trust him. He look past her and saw it was dark out. " Get some rest so you can leave tomorrow", he said as he laid down with his back to her and he drifted off to sleep.

 

[Kaisaan]

Oh, tempting, Shifter, so very tempting. Unfortunately for you, I have a damn honor streak that wouldn't hear the end of this if I took your stupid life. Caterina thought the words silently, but she didn't voice them, didn't voice anything at all, merely glaring at Zander until he turned over and drifted off. The vampire snorted softly and stood, moving away from him. Stupid Shifter. He was far too trusting. Shouldn't losing his whole clan have taught him something about that?

Caterina looked around the cave and she carefully found a place that wouldn't be hit by sunlight when morning came before she laid down on her stomach, resting her head against her arms as she watched the water pour into the lake below, a constant roar that was both soothing and irritating. She couldn't hear anything beyond the noise and that wasn't a good thing, but...nothing could hear her either. It was a rocky position to be in, but better than nothing.

The vampire didn't sleep. Why would she? She was just going to have to rest most the day anyway. She couldn't go out in the sun and though she didn't need sleep, it was a good way to pass the time. So she let her mind wander, chaffing at the fact that she couldn't go anywhere when the night hours were her time to hunt and move and live. 'Course, that was when she was in the city. Her thoughts whirled and spun for hours until the first rays of sunlight started to come through the waterfall and Caterina watched them with a mixture of longing and disdain both.

 

[~Broken~]

Zander jumped up from one of his nightmares and left the cave , the world was turning blue from the first soft rays of the sun. he went down to where the falls fell to wash off the tears and sweat from his dream and shake off the pain and hurt that had come to him from the dreams.He thought that if he had someone with him he wouldn't hurt anymore, obviously he was wrong, he would hold it against her. He'd let her leave and go about her merry ol' way. He hurt so badly. He shed his shirt and stood under the ice cold falls. Then he leaned against a stone wall of the cave and shook trying to hold i his crys.

 

[Kaisaan]

Caterina started slightly when Zander rose so abruptly and she watched him with puzzled interest as he rushed past, head tilting as her nose worked for a moment. Salt....tears...and sweat. The vampire reached the logical conclusion of a nightmare or memory and she sighed, slowly standing and carefully avoiding the patches of sunlight on the cave floor as she moved toward where Zander was approaching and then stopping under the falls.

She sighed again, blowing black hair away from her face and she half-bit her lip, fang playing with the side of the pink flesh before she released it and finally spoke, arms still crossed, but this time not in so much anger. She'd had the whole night to think and...maybe she'd been a tad bit...over-hostile. Sure, Shifters had never done anything good for her and she'd 'grown up' hating them for the last six hundred years as was expected of all vampires, but....Zander hadn't actually done anything to warrant such prejudice from her.

Didn't mean she trusted him, but...she could be polite at least. And polite didn't exactly include comfort while one cried - that was reserved for friends and lovers - but she could apologize for her words, some of them. "Hey..umm....Zander...what I said about your Clan...I shouldn't have. I didn't....I was scared and angry, and I shouldn't have taken that out on you. I'm sorry."

 

[~Broken~]

" It's okay..." he said in his soft voice that was now hoarse, "...Had it been me in your place...I probably would've done the same thing.." He looked at her with his sad blue eye that was now red and puffy. " You know...I thought about it and it didn't seem fair for me to keep bothering you like this...If you want to go off on your own I'd head east if i were you. It'd give you a better chance of never being found. But I'm not forcing you, I'm just giving you some advice if you want to leave."He waited for her response.

 

[Kaisaan]

That got a smile, a small one, but genuine out of the vampire and it seemed to transform her face from dangerous predator to beautiful woman in an instant that was gone soon after. But it had been there. "No, not fair at all. After all, we don't know each other and technically we should be enemies." She let that hang in the air for a moment before sighing and tilting her head back against the stone, letting it roll a bit so she looked at him again, thoughtful and not hostile this time.

"But see...I've been alone for a long time and...while I am not saying I want to be best friends...you do intrigue me. And I am not easily interested." She pushed away from the wall and drew a bit closer to him, head tilting, body fluidly graceful as her pale gray eyes studied Zander closely. "I've been east, many times and I was always found. Running isn't gonna get me anywhere I haven't already been before."

What was it about him that interested her? It wasn't his looks - while he was attractive, she'd seen lots of attractive people. It wasn't really his sad demeanor either. She lived with that herself. Maybe it was the hardness beneath, the predator part of him she'd not yet seen but could sense that drew her in. Maybe...

 

[~Broken~]

He smiled sightly looking down at her sweetly. He didn't know what else to do. He didn't dare reach for her although he wanted to. There wasn't much he could say so he just stood there enjoying her wonderful gaze feeling rejuvenated more and more they stared into each others eyes. He leaned in slowly and stopped right in front of her face.