For the most part, the cemetery seems to be a quiet and serene spot for both the souls that rest below and those that come to pay respect to their loved ones. A packed dirt pathway continues through the grounds boxing off expanses of green lawns that have gravestones of different shapes and ages.
Off in the southeast corner is an area of the grounds that seems to have gone forgotten. Overgrown with weeds, vines and various other plants, a cluster of old and broken gravemarkers clutter the area. Even on the sunniest of days, this section has an extreme sense of foreboding to it.
It's a beautiful day, despite the cold temperature. A brisk wind whips through the air, sending chills down Hope's spine. "Shouldn't be out here alone," she mutters to herself as she stalks through the cemetery, little silver knife in her hand despite it being broad daylight. The very same cemetery that video of her twin was purportedly taken. "Got to find her, got to find a clue."
The fact that she's mumbling to herself is likely a surprise. The generally cool, calm, and collected girl has snapped just a teensy bit. A side-effect thanks to her sister's continual disappearances - and, oh yeah, the fact her sister is now a vampire. She's been avoiding the rest of her Fellowship friends, because if anyone has to put her sister out of her misery, it's going to be Hope. She wouldn't want her sister to die without a loved one near, even if she /is/ a soulless demon now.
Apparently, despite the splendor and brilliance of the sun overhead, today is not a good day. At all. With a half-empty cup of coffee in hand, a considerably surly Ivan can be found outside the gates of the cemetery, walking around it with exhaustion displayed in the bags underneath his eyes. He thought today was going to be good - he had promised himself that today was going to be better.
But he had lied. The sounds of grunting and a faint almost mumbling reaches his ears, and he glances upwards, his green eyes fixing themselves on Hope. After a moment, his eyes widen with faint recognition. "Rose?" Surprisingly, though, it's not hope in his voice. It's a precarious mixture of irritation and reprimand.
Abbey hadn't really planned on making her way towrds the cemetery it just sorta happened and so she went along with it. At the moment she is making her way towards the entrance carrying a single dasiy to put on a friends grave. A burning cigarette rests between her lips and her hair has been pulled back slightly of her neck. A button of grey tshirt can be found on her, the letters 'Bunkers Garage' found on the back of it in red thread, dark blue jeans and a pair of black work boots finsh everything off. She knows this is the cemetery that has been getting a lot of attention lately but that doesn't seem to bother her as she wanders closers towards the entrance. Her pale gaze curiously going towards the voices she catches now and then.
The one thing that should tip Ivan off to the mumbling girl not being who he thinks is the pastel pink jacket - or maybe Rose just broke into Hope's apartment and borrowed some clothing. They're the same size, after all. The mumbling continues, getting a tad louder to the point where she's actually talking to herself. "Must be something, got to be something. Blood. Anything."
Hope begins to pace back and forth in front of the grave where they showed her sister murdering a man. Just back and forth, not paying much attention to anything around her. The repetitive motion seems to be the only thing that's really soothing her at this point. The called out name catches her notice, and she mumbles, "Faith."
This…yeah. It has to be Rose - has to be. Why? Because she's talking to herself like a crazy person. Sobering considerably, Ivan chucks his disposable coffee cup to the side with a swear delivered under his breath, not even caring that he's just lost half his purchase. Why? Because, jumping over the steal fence separating him from the Tyler twin is the most important thing at the moment. Launching himself over and onto the grass of the cemetery floor, Ivan half-jogs over in Hope's direction. "Rose! Rose, what're you doing here?" It's a hiss, and without waiting for recognition, he moves to place his hand upon her shoulder and straighten her up to face him.
Abbey lifts a brow as she catches sight of the man diving over the fence and then moving towards the girl that is within the cemetary itself. She moves on through the open gate pausing once a few feet in so she can curiously watch the show it seems. Seems everything really is happening here..
"FAITH!"
At least Ivan hasn't attempted to tackle her, though when she spins to face him, Hope turns with the dagger in her hand. "AUGH! It's YOU! You did this to her! Your fault! You had to go and fill her head…" All the while, she's flashing the dagger dangerously close to his face. "Why? You must be a challenge put before me by /God/."
It's got to be Rose! It's got to be! She's talking to herself and rummaging around in a cemetery in the middle of a day, as well as brandishing a knife in his face!
…Wait a minute. She has a knife. In his face.
Needless to say, Ivan is shocked and scared almost witless. With a loud cry, he stumbles back onto his behind, staring up at the surprisingly intimidating sight of the newest Tyler to hit the loony bin. "What the fuck, man! You're - I'm…" Beat. "Hope. You're…this…what are you doing? God wouldn't want you to do anything insane! God wouldn't want you to hurt me - put that thing down, now!"
Abbey just blinks as she watches the show and drops the floor and then quickly moves over towards the two. "Hey hey.. Now calm down.. This isn't the place for a knife fight." She points out while her pale gaze narrows and she eyes Hope. Great what did she just get herself into.. Like she needs MORE problems.
"It's not for you, you idiot! It's for Faith. Have to find her before /they/ do. I don't want them to force her to see the sun, I want her to die with dignity, even if she's a demon now!" Hope continues to wave the silver knife around as she talks. Yes folks, she may just have flipped out a little. "I can't put it down. If I put it down, they'll get me too." She hasn't even told Robert about what happened to her sister, though he's surely seen the news by now.
"THERE ISN'T A KNIFE FIGHT!" The knife gets raised up into the air as she spins to face the newcomer. "Who are you? You aren't one of /them/, are you?" Eyes narrowing on Abbey, she looks as though she's going to step forward. "No, no, of course not. It's daylight. It's sunny. They can't be out now."
There is a pause, during which Ivan's large, green eyes peer to Hope with pure, unadulterated shock. She's really, really gone. She's out there. "You…you'd kill your own sister." He speaks, voice low, almost awed. Regardless of her assurance that the knife isn't for him, he scrambles away from her before even trying to get to his feet. "Are you serious? You'd kill your own flesh and blood - your own twin?" Beat.
Reprimanding her is not what she needs. Apparently, she needs professional help. And, unfortunately, he made a promise to keep the Tylers safe. "Hope…relax. No one's going to get you. Just…just put the knife down before you hurt someone. Accidentally. Listen, things are more complicated then you know. It's not all bad - it's not as bad as it looks. She's not a vampire." His eyes dart over to Abbey when she approaches, looking hopeful for her help in calming the mentally disturbed twin.
Abbey blinks at the knife that comes pointing towards her and half glares at the girl. "DO I look like a damn vampire?" She questions with a faint muttering tone escapes her, thick Irish accent being picked up. As for the knife she doesn't back off just yet. "I think you need to listen to yer friend over there and calm your butt down before the cops are called and someone hauls your arse outa here." Stright to the point she is.
"Nonono. She's not my twin anymore," Hope says, with the utmost sincerity. "She's a demon. A foul, soulless demon. Better she die by my hand, than she kill any more people." She's not lost it, she just knows she has to do what's necessary to take care of her sister, to save her from that life. Hope is just on the brink of listening to Ivan, a small inkling of, well, hope in her eyes when he says her sister isn't a vampire.
Then she gets threatened.
"You know what, call the cops, they'll listen to me! They said she's fanged and dangerous. They were there when she was taken the first time, and I should have called them this time too, only I didn't want her to get locked up again, not like that. Not tied to the beds. Somewhere safe, but not like /that/."
Licking his lips, Ivan takes a moment to really appreciate how much grief has been thrown his way thanks to this particular family. He then promises to be a better person so as to never have this experience repeated when he comes back reincarnated in a different life.
Slowly, he walks towards Hope, eyes solemn as can be with his hands out in that 'this is in no way shape or form threatening' kind of gesture. Closer, and closer…so that he can eventually hold his hand out for the knife. "Hey, just give me the knife, Hope…please, just trust me…" But then, she's back on the defensive. Eyes shoot open, and he stares over to Abbey, frowning. "No! No, no cops. Relax, it's all good. Listen, I don't know where she is anymore, Hope - but she's not a vampire, I swear! I saw…I've heard. She thinks she's a vampire. Someone's fucked with her, gave her fangs and…but she had a pulse, Hope! Your sister - she isn't a vampire!" She's just an idiot who ran away from him.
Abbey smirks faintly while she eyes Hope a few moments. "I an't calling no one." Is offered to Ivan. "But with everything that's happened here lately it wouldn't surprize me if someone else already did." A slight glance is offered towards the sidewalk as if checking for someone ebfore she looks back to Hope letting Ivan take over talking again. His doing good at this, really.
"Uh uh, you can't have it." Hope drops the knife into a pocket. "It's my only protection. Only way to stay safe." Doesn't matter if it's broad daylight out, not at all! She's bound and determined to feel safer than just carrying around her silver necklace. "What do you mean she /thinks/ she's a vampire? You don't just /think/ you're a vampire, you are or you aren't. There's no way they could have faked that video." Headshake.
"Let them call! Maybe then they can help me find something. If she was feeding here, she must be staying around here somewhere. Vampires usually feed close to where they sleep. Candace told me so, and she's an expert on them." Granted, it's obvious the Fellowship of the Sun doesn't know /everything/ about vampires.
Ivan looks faintly bothered. "I mean she's been made to think that she's a vampire," he repeats once again, jaw clenched. "Listen, I saw her. I touched her - she was being followed by a vampire, a guard or whatever. They're trying to make her think she's a vampire because…because, I don't know. They're sick fucks? But she had a pulse. I was decked in silver, and she didn't burn. She ate a sandwich - you can't do that when you're a vampire! She's not one, she just thinks she is!" There is a pause, during which he lowers his arms slowly. "That shouldn't be too hard to understand, considering your sisters mental conditions and the abilities vampires can possess."
He blinks, not once, but twice before glancing around the cemetery. "I don't think she's here. I don't think you'll find anything around here. Have you? Any blood, at all?"
Abbey lifts a brow as she hears Hope and rolles her eyes slightly. "Right.. No one could have a pair of fake fangs in that video or anything.. Right? I mean /everthing/ on videos must be real. Hey.. I have photos of big foot you want to buy them?" She questions with an amused tone and shakes her head at the whole thing.
"Found this," she says, moving behind the gravestone to pull out an empty bottle of TruBlood. Hope makes a face as she holds it out to Ivan. "It's /sticky/," and she really doesn't want to think of the implications of it. Then, she pauses. She pauses and stares right at him. "YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO CALL ME AS SOON AS YOU FOUND HER!!!"
Deep breath.
"Okay, you," she says, pointing to Abbey after calming herself down, "Why would two teenagers that are making out fake a video like that? Seems to be a lot of work just to pull the wool over everyone's eyes." She frowns. "I tend to not like /any/ monsters, so why would I want pictures of something that's unnatural and not as God intended?"
And he is being yelled at. Again. But after the faintest of winces, Ivan remains unmoved - after all, he had expected this. And this is why he didn't call her, this exact reason. "I was going to," he hisses between his teeth, before narrowing his eyes in her direction. Trying to convey a silent message the: Not here, not now! "But it got a little complicated. I'll explain later. I just need you to…to relax."
He pauses, frowning deeply as he peers at the TruBlood bottle. "…Why would the bottle be here if she drank from a person? It doesn't make sense. I don't know what's going on, I really don't, but I intend to find out. But I need your help, Hope. I need you to relax a bit." His eyes flash to Abbey once again, looking thoughtful for a moment.
Abbey tilts her head while peering at the bottle. "Right.. No other vampire would be around here that could possible be drinking that." She lifts a brow and smirks at Hope. "Becuase as your friend over there said.. There are sick fucks in the world." There is a pause as Hope brings up stuff about god and things being unnatural and she rolls her eyes. Her gaze drifts back to Ivan and she peers at him faintly with a 'what' expression on her face.
"It is complicated," she agrees. "They're searching for her too. Everyone is searching for her. It's why I need to find her /first/." Not Hope's fault that Ivan doesn't seem to understand that. If someone else gets to her twin first, they'll kill her and then she won't get to say goodbye!
"No, see? It's sticky. The campus is littered with these things after frat parties." She makes that disgusted face again. "They're not normally sticky. Just gross."
"They're? What do you mean?" Ivan inquires, brows furrowing as he stares at the dark-haired girl. "Who're they?" He already knows what she's intending to do, and this sends the poor man into a spiral of slight fear. This is bad. This is so bad. "I'm going to find her first - I'm going to - I've got to rescue her. I - wait, what? What does it being sticky have anything to do with anything?" He cannot puzzle it out exactly, and he ends up running his hand through his hair uncomfortably. "What's that?"
Abbey lifts a brow. "Who?" Is questioned, seems she isn't following at first. "I just mean in general.. Hell if I know who anyone is dealing with this shit." There is a pause at the talk about the bottle being sticky, she thinks she might know the answer to that but isn't going to say anything on it.
"Mr. Fontane, that video's been plastered all over the news, all over campus email. That means anyone who dislikes vampires is going to be looking for her, to get rid of her." Hope frowns, knowing that he knows this. Why is he asking it? "Well the blood is sticky, see? Blood isn't normally sticky. This is like, very much thicker than blood. Like a syrup of some sort." Of course, some drunken teenager could just have recycled the bottle to make him or herself look cooler for drinking it. Who knows?
"They're going to look for her as retribution for what happened to that poor man."
"No - no, they're not. She's got - she's being watched." Ivan insists, although at this point it's clear to see that the poor man is starting to get quite overwhelmed. How can he handle this pressure? How can he possibly save her from everyone? Her kidnappers, her family, humans and vampires alike. Eventually, he lets out a shuddering sigh. "Come. With me, come with me, okay? To like…my car or something. I need to talk to you, please." Beat. "Syrup? So…you think it might've been fake? Tampered with?"
Abbey ahs softly and chuckles a moment. "Right.." Is all she says. As for the stickness on the bottle she hums a moment in thought at the scent, perhaps trying to figure out what it is. "If it isn't blood they why are you freaking out over a bottle of it? Maybe someone spilled a soda on it." She peers at the two a moment and just starts to step away from the little happyfuntime show. "This has been swell kiddies but I have things to do." Abs says this while she goes to turn. More stuff she rather not get herself into.. Really she has enough problems already.
"Okay, so she's being watched, and every vampire hater in the continental United States is going to be after her. Just how do you propose you can find her and keep her safe? Why would you want to keep a vampire safe?" Hope just doesn't get it, thanks to the distraction of the other person being there.
"I'm not getting in a car with you! You're going to kidnap me, or lock me up so that you can keep your vampire safe!" Hope backs away from him, dropping the bottle. "I don't know, I'm not a TruBlood expert. Could just be soda, could be something else I don't want to think about…"
Closing his eyes, Ivan runs his palms over the front of his face. "Hope," he grumbles, tone low and intimate, meant for only her, despite the fact that their only other audience member is gone. "She's not a vampire. I told you - she's not. Don't do anything hasty and stupid. Listen to what I'm saying. I want to keep your sister safe - your twin sister. Not some demon, or vampire, or whatever…" But then, she's backing away. "What? What - no. Why would I want to kidnap you, or lock you up? That's ridiculous. I'm a good freaking person, I wouldn't do anything illegal like that."
"Because you work for them!" Hope keeps backing away. In the process of doing so, she trips on a broken grave marker, tumbling backward with a tiny eep. "I don't believe you, and I don't trust you." He never called like he promised he would.
"Why!" He calls out, almost yelling at this point, his frustration written on his features. He steps forward, gesticulating wildly in an attempt to win some sort of empathy. "Why don't you trust in me? What have I done to you to make you hate me so fucking much? Your sister trusts me!"
Hope just shoots him a look for playing that card. "And look what happened to her! Missing from two different facilities, /and/ a vampire!" As she speaks, she starts to try and draw herself to her feet, looking down at the grave she landed atop of. "Sorry," she mutters to it, out of respect.
Ivan freezes, suddenly robbed of his fire. Now, all he can do is look at the dark-haired woman, his expression turning contemplative. "You think…you think I did this? You think this was all my fault?" He's not even angry, just honestly curious.
No, wait. He's angry. He's angry in that cold, heartless sort of way. "You know what. Fuck this shit." He grumps, already turning away to leave. But that's not enough, no. He finds himself at a very bad place, one in which he feels the need to snap at her. "You want to know why I didn't fucking call you? Because she begged me not to. She begged me to tell you that she was dead, because she was so fucking afraid of disappointing you. I told her that she was being ridiculous, and that you would love her no matter what." Beat. "Clearly, she is your sister, because she knows you better then anyone. She knew you'd want to kill her. You're a cold-hearted bitch." And he's stalking off.
Well, /gee/! She's only told him it was his fault twice now. Hope firmly believes that he's at least partially to blame for it. So his honest curiosity goes unanswered. Which seems to be just fine, because he's ranting and running off. "Faith could never disappoint me," she says, calling out after him. "Do you think I /want/ to send her to her undead grave? She's not human anymore!" Not that he's even bothering to listen to her now. "If I put her out of her misery, she can finally be at peace, and be with Tripp! She loved him, you know. Why do you think her brain is all screwed up and she can't remember anything?" As soon as Ivan is out of sight though, she just sort of curls up against the gravestone where her sister chowed down on the poor man, and starts to cry.
