A reservoir, White Rock Lake covers 1,254 acres and was once used for a portion of Dallas' drinking water supply. Now that it's use as a water source has been supplanted, the area has become one of the favored recreational locations in the city. The forested shoreline is dotted with numerous small cabins, fishing piers, and sailboat docks.
The lake is surrounded by White Rock Lake Park, which is home to the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden. Running through the park is a 9 mile trail designed for hiking, running or cycling.
Though swimming was banned here back in the '50's, it is still a popular location for area teens who generally enjoy the more deserted areas, using the beautiful backdrop as a makeout spot.
It's early night in Dallas and the sun has gone down. Of course, that just means for a certain age group of the city that it's partytime. There are quite a few teenagers on the beach, having fun, drinking beer, etc. They aren't too rowdy as a passing patrol car might catch them and prompt a whole lot of trouble, so they stay out of trouble.
And where is our vampire in the midst of all this? In the midst of all this. He's sitting in a folding chair in the middle of much of the partying, drinking a bottle of Trublood whilst two fangbangers try to get him to take a drink, a blonde and a brunette. He seems to be somewhat scowling at the women and then shakes his head, "How many times do I have to tell you? I'm not feeding off you girls tonight or likely ever. I just happen to enjoy your company so stop that foolishness and just sit with me and have a beer." He kicks the little cooler with him which is well stocked with both TruBlood and beer.
It happens rarely, but every so often the librarian leaves the library early. Some may be shocked by this fact, but the truth is, Chloe is feeling /alive/. Very, very alive. Unfortunately, this new alive feeling also comes with her medication not working, and the teens near the beach aren't really helping matters. Drunken thoughts are much worse than sober ones. But in the middle of it all is a void. A happy, peaceful void.
Chloe begins to drift in that direction, stopping when she realizes that he's a vampire of an unknown persuasion. For a moment, she doesn't realize she's stopped directly under one of the park lights, causing her to stand out in the darkness.
Dietrich sighs, drinking again from his held bottle as the girls finally take the hint and go after the beer rather than him. His gaze scans the parties and then alights on the newly revealed librarian. A tilt of his head and a considering gaze as he meets her eyes for a moment. And then with a ever so casual gesture, he gestures to the beer and Trublood filled cooler. "Please, feel free to join us."
A hand reaches into her purse. For a weapon? A cross? No, just a cell phone. It's pulled out, kept in her hand as she moves forward. "Not really my scene," Chloe calls back at the offer. "Too many voices." Fingers tap at her temple, and she shrugs. "I'd be careful of those two if I were you," she adds, nodding to the girls. "They may try to force your hand." Thoughts pulled directly from their heads, silly broadcasting partiers.
Dietrich raises a eyebrow at Chloe, and then at the guilty looks that flash over the women's faces as their plans for him were just broadcast. He sighs and gets up, pulling a beer from the cooler and a glance back at the women, "Clear off, if you're really that interested in getting bit, then go to Bloody Mary's in town." He stalks on over to Chloe and smiles, "Thank you for that, I can't go anywhere without the stupid fools wanting to get a taste of what a vampire feeding off them is like." He offers her the beer in hand and asks, "What brings you out here then if this isen't your scene?"
"Fangbangers," Chloe says with a bit of disdain, remembering the barely-legal-blonde at Bloody Mary's the other night, "are all like that. They like flirting with death." Shoulders lift up as if to say "what can you do, right?". A grin is offered, "My pleasure. Mr. Grant wouldn't like it if I'd let them tie you up with silver chain and attempt to force you to feed from them." Beat. "Just cutting through on my way home."
Dietrich nods to Chloe and says, "It's not really that bad. Most know they're risking their lives if they anger a vampire and so they'll still try and cajole us to do it, but if we get pissed, they usually beat it. But my thing is I never feed off them. Never have since this stuff came out." He taps the Trueblood bottle and then tilts his head, "How do you know the Sheriff? Unless he's out and feeding, I doubt he interacts with people that often."
Uh-oh. This is precisely what Will was trying to save her from, right? To stop people from knowing she's potentially important. "The Sheriff? Who's that?" So she's playing a little dumb. He did explain it to her, but so far as she's been told she probably shouldn't know that's what he is. Chloe bites her lip, chewing on it a little. "If you mean Mr. Grant, he comes into the library from time to time." She must proceed with caution, on the off chance this is one of the enemies he was talking about.
Dietrich gives Chloe a look that says, come-off-it. "Ok… you don't know who the Sheriff is… and yet you happen to drop his name like he'd be angry for a vampire getting into trouble… please… don't play dumb… it doesn't suit you." He shakes his head and says, "Mr. Grant, I should have another talk with him soon enough. Not about you though. Don't worry."
"I didn't know it was against the law to not want to upset a friend," Chloe says, eyes narrowing suspiciously. She does have very few friends, since she can't stand being around most people due to their thoughts - especially now, stupid vampire blood. "You can talk to him all you want about me. He'll verify that he comes to the library quite often." Beat. Smile. "So I've got nothing to worry about."
Dietrich frowns as he says, "Upset him? A human worried about upsetting a vampire… thats a first." He chuckles then shaking his head, "Well what Mr. Grant does on his own time is his business. So long as he stays respectful of mine, I've got no trouble with him." He makes his way on back to his seat, ignoring the teens around him.
Great. She likely just stuck her foot in her mouth. Chloe rubs at her temples, glaring at one of the teenagers. If his mother knew what he was contemplating doing, she'd disown him. Yet, she's very careful not to voice it this time - only because she doesn't want to explain how she knows. "He's a friend. Should I treat him differently than I would anyone else?"
Dietrich glances back to the girl and raises a eyebrow, "A friend? Ok then, let me ask you this… did he put a claim on you?" He sits back down in his chair, raising his eyebrow at Chloe. "Because my dear girl, you seem to know him far better than to simply be a friend."
The question gets deflected via a shrug of the shoulders and a grin. "A friend. I saved his life." Chloe smooths her hair back, twisting it up. She fastens it with a hair clip from her pocket, and watches the vampire.
Dietrich raises his eyebrows and says, "Oh? And how did you do that? I'm certain there's a interesting story behind that. Please, do have a seat. If you don't care for alcohol, prehaps some soda would be alright? I'm certain some or another of this kids have some…" He begins to scan the nearby partiers as he closes the cooler to provide an impromtu seat.
Chloe gives her head a shake. "I don't mind standing." Standing means that should he turn out to be an enemy, she may have a chance at getting away. A slim one, but all she needs is a bit of distance to place a call. "I tackled a drainer," she says, making an interestingly long story extremely short.
Dietrich finally finds what he's looking for as he approaches the nearest party and trades the beer for a soda can as he walks back to Chloe and offers her the soda, "So you tackled a drainer? What did his pals do? Usually they work in groups." Uh uh Chloe, you aren't getting away with such a simple explaination.
"What? I don't look like I could tackle someone?" Chloe has a secret though - an older brother who used to horse around with her. She's probably a little stronger than she looks, even when she's not been imbued with vampire blood. The soda can is taken, though she doesn't open it. "There was no one else around, just him. Not all drainers are smart, I guess."
Dietrich shakes his head, "Not at all, you like like someone who wouldn't -want- to tackle someone." he tilts his head and says, "Very interesting… what did Mr. Grant do about the drainer?" He sits down in his chair, glancing back at the girl, wondering what's up with her.
"I'm not breakable," Chloe states, playing with the soda can tab but not opening it. "He contacted the police." Though likely only because she requested he do so instead of hurting the man.
Dietrich nods to Chloe and says, "In this day and age, prudent decision he made. 200 years ago it would have been socially acceptable for him to just kill the man. Of course we didn't have drainers back then so times have changed." He shrugs and then says, "Mr. Grant seems to be more interesting the more I hear about him."
A grin displays upon her lips, though Chloe keeps it brief. "He is at that," she says quietly. More so after reading his history. "It's easy to have few enemies when you're all hidden. I mean, I'm sure there were things to deal with, but not like there would be today." Shrug.
Dietrich shakes his head and says, "Not so. I had/have/and still do have enemies that'd love nothing more than my head on a stick. Thankfully most of those tend to pass on after fifty years or so and I'm clever enough to avoid them. So there are always things to deal with, young miss. It keeps eternity entertaining." He grins at Chloe before glancing at the soda can and raises a eyebrow, "Not thirsty?"
Her finger plucks at the soda can tab a few more times, and Chloe shakes her head. "Not really. I rarely drink soda." A smidge of a lie, but she's not going to drink something when she doesn't know where it really came from. "I know that everyone has enemies, but I meant as a whole. Much easier to keep enemies to a minimum when the populace of the world merely believes you are a myth, instead of a reality."
Dietrich nods to Chloe, tipping back the bottle of TruBlood he was working on and empties it. "Very quite true. Now these days they seem to be everywhere. I keep waiting to see which of these enemies are foolish enough to come after me. They'll get taught a lesson they won't soon forget." He seems very confidant of that, and it shows in his demeanor and posture, "Thankfully though we have Mr. Grant to ensure that the more vicious of us don't get carried away. There's a fine line between making a valid point and horrendous acts to scare people."
"Can you blame them?" Chloe doesn't have sides, per se. She /is/ being swayed more one way than the other, but that's not here nor there at this point in the conversation. "Humans, as a society, aren't very welcoming to anything that's different. When something that they believe a mere fantasy appears to be true, it kind've skews their whole viewpoint on life in general." Beat. "Not that I'm condoning what people do against vampires, just saying that I can understand where they're coming from."
Dietrich nods to Chloe and says, "True enough, I've taken advantage of that fact enough in my unlife to know it's a valid part of humanity. The 1600's in the Carribean and the American Civil War were good times… till the damned Confederacy confiscated everything I had." There's a distinctly annoyed look on his features at that fact.
"Be happy it was the Confederates and not the British?" Chloe grins, and then exhales a sigh. "The budding historian in me is somewhat jealous of the history you lot have been able to experience." Not that she's got any /real/ schooling, it being more of a hobby than anything else, really.
Dietrich nods to Chloe and says, "I'll say this much, and you can quote me on it… be happy you're just able to look back at it. We had to live through alot of it and let me tell you being shot at is not a fun experience especially when it's cannonballs." He grins though, indicating he's not too perturbed by his past and then asks, "So, given that Mr. Grant is a friend as you described him… what do you think of the Fellowship of the Sun folks?"
"You think looking back on it is something to be happy about? Perhaps you're right, but I've never been one to romanticize the situations of the eras in question." Sure, romance novels abound at the library, but not really Chloe's cup of tea. "Harmless for the most part, though they /are/ a religious organization, and well, you know… no one /expects/ the Spanish Inquisition…"
Dietrich nods to Chloe and says, "Religious fanatics… thrice damned they are, though they know it not. I have two reasons to hate them. One because they want me dead… the other because they want me dead, but for an entirely different reason other than that I'm a vampire. And that one I'll keep to myself thanks." He winks at Chloe.
"I… hmm…" Chloe considers. She's heard a lot of the Fellowship since her brother joined their ranks. "I don't think it's so much that the want vampires /dead/, it's more that they don't believe they have souls, and thus, shouldn't be allowed to worship or mingle around regular people… as for the other, I can't comment since I don't really know you at all, and whatever secrets you have you obviously have for a reason."
Dietrich sighs, leaning back… "We have souls, my dear girl. Some of us may have traded them for whatever we want in this eternity, but we have them. I still remember very fondly the mother that raised me and the night that she died, the night I became this. I find some people rather interesting and some annoying as hell. There have even been a quite a few women that I wished I could be more to than just a predator. Believe me, we have souls… it's just getting past the hard exterior that has been the constant war of eternity that is the difficult part."
"My beliefs aren't part of the equation," Chloe points out with a smile. "Whether or not you have souls is really a question for the big man… or woman… and best not left up to the likes of me." Though she would agree with him possibly, if she trusted him. "Perhaps it's just the lack of humanity many vampires have due to living so long. Which really, you can't blame them for either. Seeing everything they've seen, living through everything they've managed to survive… pretty sure that'd burn the humanity out of anyone."
Dietrich grins and chuckles, "Prehaps it is." He shrugs and says, "Some vampires don't really care. Those are the evil ones you run into. So be sure to stay clear of them." Right, like he really has to tell her. He glances down the beach where some kids have begun to become rather loud.
Chloe has been ignoring the teens as much as she can. The constant barrage of 'sexsexsexdome' is annoying. Best to not focus on them, and rather cling to the blank void right near to her. "It's not as though they wear flashing signs that say 'avoid me I'm evil'," she says with a laugh. "Besides which, care or not, I think I'm pretty safe."
Dietrich frowns even more so as the kids begin to roughhouse each other right near their fire on the beach and he shakes his head, "Idiots are going to burn themselves alive." He gestures a hand out towards their fire and snaps it closed. A small gleam of light is visible in his eyes as he does so. And down the beach, the fire the kids are around abruptly goes out prompting screams from some of the girls there… after all, it's not really supposed to just go out rather suddenly with no embers… is it? The vampire shakes his head and says, "Maybe that'll scare some sense into them."
That causes her brow to arch upward. "Interesting," Chloe remarks as she watches the fire suddenly go out. "Doubtful. You may not have been a teenager for a while, but it's only been a few years for me. They'll pass it off as some drunk thing, and ignore that it happened." Though she's never been the sort to hang out with the other kids, really.
Dietrich nods, considering the problem and then quips, "I don't suppose if I took all the fire and created a giant flaming skull over the water to laugh at them, they'd realize it's real? Probably just pass it off as even more drunk the following morning? That of course after the riot that's likely to occur if I were to do so." He chuckles and kicks open the cooler that Chloe neglected to take as her seat and pulls out another bottle of synth.
"So," Chloe says with only a very hint of curiosity, "Witch, or just weird vampire ability?" Gasp! She knows what witches are? He's being awfully frank with her, and she's no clue why. "Well, if I were in their shoes, I'd probably think it was a hallucination. Can't tell how many of them have been taking drugs though, so no clue." And she continues to randomly play with the soda can, nervous habit.
Dietrich shrugs at Chloe and says, "Just suffice it to say that I've had this ability since day one and it's just gottem more powerful over the last three centuries." He glances down the beach where the kids are trying to get their fire going again and says, "I figure I'd best prepare for a visit from the Sheriff, since this little tidbit is going to reach his ears eh?"
"Never been one to tattle," Chloe says, though she's frowning. "What exactly /is/ a vampire Sheriff?" She keeps an eye on the kids, listening to their thoughts, and satisfied they're not going to freak over something supernatural happening, she peers at him.
Dietrich smirks and says, "The judge, jury, and executioner of the vampiric world. Someone's got to be able to kick ass in the old days when we were supposed to keep quiet about our existance. When one of us got uppity and revealed too much, a Sheriff would take care of him or her. Thats what Mr. Grant is my dear." He drinks from the synth bottle, keeping a eye to see how Chloe's taking all of this.
"I see," she says. Chloe's expression reveals nothing, but she's been getting good at keeping things to herself lately. Plus, a) she already suspected, b) he filled her in a little the other night. "Still not one to tattle, though I suppose you should probably let him know you're in the city? I mean, if I was in charge of everything, I'd like to know who's running around and all that."
Dietrich nods to Chloe and says, "He already knows. But let me put it this way… I don't generally like those with the power. And I have enough power that they sometimes have to pay attention and listen to what I have to say. I have enjoyed quite a bit of freedom in my days, and having some uppity people try to tell me what to do kind of irks me. But I play nice when it makes sense." He empties back the bottle and says, "That being said, most people in trouble come to see me when they need someone to intervein with those with power and those that don't."
"I don't forsee myself being in any trouble in the near future." HAH!
Chloe may not foresee this stuff, but then again, she hears thoughts in the vicinity, she doesn't exactly see the future. "That's good to know. You have a card, or do I just call you with a Bat Signal?" Smirk.
Dietrich smirks and says, "Classic, but a bit…. much." He offers her a card and says, "It never hurts to be prepared."
The card is taken, pocketed, and she watches him curiously. "I still think I'll be fine, but it doesn't hurt to know that there's potentially someone else out there who might be able to help me if I'm ever in need." Chloe doesn't offer a card in return. Mostly because she's a librarian, and really, what can she offer? To book him to death?
Dietrich nods and says, "Well then, I aught to be off. Plenty to do tonight and the night doesn't last as long as it once did." He smiles at her and then begins to collet his cooler and chair, much to the pouts from the girls that wanted a feeding off tonight.
Chloe watches him, nodding slowly. "Do me a favor," she says, completely randomly. "Be careful who you decide to party with in the future. Next time, you might not be so lucky as to find someone who can tell when people are planning something nefarious, hmm?" Yeah, she just talked to a vampire like that. She's of the mind that they should be treated like anyone else.
Dietrich chuckles and picks up his stuff. "Fangbangers are all like that. It's just when you fail to notice when one brings silver with her that there's a problem. I never have." He waves to Chloe and heads on off with his stuff.
Hopefully, he'll be careful. If not, Chloe's done all she could by offering the warning. She offers him a tip of the head, then starts back down the path in the direction she was originally headed, still playing with the soda can as a distraction.