Synopsis
March 10, 2005 - Jamal and Orion happen upon Theodore in the park, but Orion still thinks the Vampire tried to eat him the other day. They discover that Abbey is injured and take her home.
Setting
Glencoe Park:
Glencoe Park isn't the largest in the area, but it's still fairly sizable. The grass is in a perpetually well-trimmed state, shining a healthy green year round. Near the southern entrance to the park is a playground cluster filled with swings, a merry-go-round, seesaws, huge forts, and a jungle-gym. Not too far from the playground are fields for both rugby and softball, enclosed by wire fences so that children don't run haphazardly onto the fields. Further into the park is a walking path through a small forested area.
Cast
Abbey:
There's no telling what her age is, somewhere in the early twenty's if someone was to guess. Her height is about 5'9 a bit on the tall side but nothing that abnormal. Long bright red-orange, lose spiral curls are found upon her, it flows down to her mid back and can be often found pulled into a pony tail to keep it out of the way. A few lose curls fall to either side of her cheeks, and bangs rest just a bit above her eyes.
Her clothing isn't anything un-normal. A short or long sleeved shirt can be found on her depending the day or the weather, most dark colored. Black or blue ankle length jeans are found on her lower half, they tend to be a bit snug on her hips and flow down the rest of her leg. Her foot wear also depends on the weather, or what she's doing. Sneakers or boots are her choices though. A thick leather cord rests around her neck with a pewter dragon charm upon it, the two inch charm holds within its grasping forepaws is a pale blue gem. Depending on the weather is what jacket she wears a long black leather duster or a more simple leather jacket.
Three golden studs can be found upon the edge of both ears, another silver stud found in her right eyebrow. She also has a good collection of tattoos and scars. An old small slightly jagged scar rests across her right cheek, others found elsewhere on her. Black tribal like tattoo markings curl around and then down both of her forearms to circle around her wrists in a Celtic knot work pattern. Other tattoos are unseen thanks to her clothing. Her eyes are an interesting pale icy blue color; rather eerie in a way which tends to make her stand out if anyone pays enough attention to her.
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Jamal:
Jamal is a tall, lanky young man, maybe a little awkward and not yet full grown, as evidenced by enormous hands and feet. He has rich brown skin to go with his tight-curled black hair and broad-nosed face, but his eyes are an incongruous gray-green.
He wears what he likes. Today, he likes to wear blue jeans - quite new, that look like they were trashed by a professional jeans-trasher - and a warm new sweatshirt that says 'Hard Rock, New Orleans' His shoes are also new, or at any rate clean. He's coming up in the world. He wears no jewelry except a single gold stud in one ear; he wears no watch. There is however a chain running from (presumably) a belt loop to (presumably) a back pocket, securing his (presumed) wallet to his person.
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Orion:
You see a man in his mid thirties who stands a little over six feet and weighs approximately 180 pounds. One can tell by looking at him that he works out regularly. His face is rugged but attractive, usually with a couple of days worth of stubble on his cheek. His hair is brownish red and cropped short, spiking up a bit on top. His eyes are deep gold and appear to be almost an unnatural shade. He bears a tattoo of a paw print on his left upper arm. When the man speaks, he has a very distinct Irish accent. It is strong, but not to the point that he is difficult to understand.
The man is wearing a tight fitting brown shirt with blue jeans. He has brown boots on and a silver watch on his right wrist. His ears are each pierced with a silver ring, and he has mirrored sunglasses pushed up on his head.
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Theodore:
This young man is a slim, fine figure of thoroughly unimpressive height or musculature. His physique is more graceful than powerful, with somewhat narrow, rounded shoulders and an equally thin torso that leads into trim hips. Despite the seeming frailness of him, there is a certain elegance to his long, deft fingers and the way he fits together, including the long line of his throat and the curve of his jaw. His features are well proportioned, if toying with hints of femininity, from his long, pale eyelashes to the way his lips appear lush, soft, and dark, often relaxed into the mildest of pouts when he isn't offering some other expression. His eyes are notable, large and rounded with a vague almond shape to them, the irises a soft, smoky violet-grey that can sometimes darken to indigo laced charcoal. His hair is a mussed crop of ear-length platinum blonde locks, so light that it may as well be white, the texture of it wavy and silken so that it rarely appears to be cultivated into any semblance of a style, rebellious to the very idea. His skin is the perfect pallid ivory of someone who was never made for outdoor sports, only the bare touch of random freckles on his complexion suggesting he's even seen the sun; it's smooth and often has the faintest of blushes around the cheeks.
Teddy's current outfit does nothing to reinforce any semblance of intimidation or masculinity; if anything, it emphasizes his youthful appearance, if oddly. Over his slender torso, he wears an oversized white hoodie made of a soft, slightly fuzzy material with a golden zipper running up the front and ending in a carrot charm a few inches below his collarbone, where it's unzipped to. The hood of the sweatshirt is sporting two long, floppy ears that resemble a rabbit's, complete with soft, rosy pink insides. The sweatshirt falls to his upper thighs at the very least, which only serves to make his shorts look even smaller than they are. The shorts themselves are white and stop a couple inches above his knees, leaving his long, sleek legs visible. He has, on his feet, a pair of simple white tennis shoes and fluffy white socks, completing the overall look, and while he is wearing a gold bracelet, the sleeves of his sweatshirt are long enough that they hide it (as well as half his hands).
Scene
The park is sparsely populated this late at night. There’s an older couple walking a dog on the far end of the playground, but aside from that it is deserted. People tend to avoid the park after sundown because of its “Closed After Sunset” sign, but the police are actually fairly lax about enforcing such regulations.
Orion is walking down the street toward the park, wearing a set of scrappy looking clothes and looking generally unhappy. Anyone who passes too close to him will smell the residual odor of the skunk he tore apart last night, but if they ask he’ll tell them his dog got into a fight with one. He sighs as he reaches the park, walking over to one of the swings and sitting down. He had tried going to bed, but the odor was overpowering in his enclosed bedroom. He decided to go outside to air out a bit.
___
Jamal is in the park after sunset, probably because he didn't even see the sign, having cut in from the side on foot. You know how ignorance of the law is no excuse? Well, he has no excuse. But hopefully there won't be a policeman.
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Abbey can be found sitting on a bench on her own, well save for the large dog at her side. A burning cigarette rests between her lips while she tucks her lighter back into her pocket. Steele (the dog) looks rather relaxed, head resting upon the bench while eyeing Abbey, who seems a bit off for some reason. Though this would only be picked up with anyone that may actually know her. With her lighter tucked away in her pocket a faint sigh escapes her. The scent of skunk is picked up but she doesn't go about figuring out whom it might be.
___
One of the great things about never having the ability to be out during the day is that the city tends to get scarce of people when night falls. Apparently unconcerned about being picked up by the police, a slim figure in a strange outfit - it looks like a tunic that ties at the neck. It's not a dress, but it's not entirely /not/ a dress, either, and he's wearing it with a pair of black stretchy jeans. The non-dress is bright purple, to add noticable insult to noticable injury, with lighter bows tying it at his shoulders. He has on a pair of headphones and he dances along one of the paths, singing lightly along to his unheard music, "Don't stand so, don't stand so, don't stand so close to me~" The pale blonde vampire pauses as his nose twitches, then wrinkles it and follows the pungent aroma along towards Orion, still humming and singing brightly, "Friends are so jealous, you know how bad girls get~"
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Orion sighs again and looks out at the park again, noticing that a few more people have appeared since he sat down. He stands up and heads toward Abbey, pausing for a moment before proceeding. He doesn’t want to overwhelm her sensitive nose with his malodor, but he’d like to ask her about the meeting they had attended in the woods. He passes by Jamal as he approaches her, waving a quick apology for the smell as he passes and then doing a double take. “Oh hey, I know you. You’re James, right?” He has not yet noticed the vampire. If he had he probably would have run away out of shame.
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Jamal says, "Oh hey. Yeah, ony my name's Jamal, not James. Still, pretty good fo' I guy I ony met a couple times." He grimaces. "You get in a fight wif a badger an lose, o' somefin? Whooeee!"
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Rather than trying to attack his friend, Teddy stops singing and sneaks along the grass, taking off his headphones and making a rather comical act of tiptoeing. He sneaks along through the grass until he is essentially strolling along behind Orion, hopping from one foot to the other in a loose pantomime of walking. He comes to an abrupt stop when Orion stops, clasping his hands behind him with a little grin and peering past him to Jamal. He lifts one hand to press an index finger to his lips, winking playfully at Jamal.
___
“Ah, right. Jamal. Sorry, I forgot. And not a badger, a skunk. Though they’re in the same family I suppose.” He pauses for a moment. “And not me, my dog.” He glances behind him to look at Abbey again and jumps backward as he is confronted by Theodore. “Holy Jesus don’t do that!” He clutches his chest and sighs, glancing past the vampire and frowning as it seems that Abbey has disappeared.
___
Jamal can't help but laugh, first in disbelief and then with the thigh-slapping rollicking laugh of somebody who enjoys a practical joke, as long as it's not on *him*. "Ho ho hoho!" He laughs. "You shoulda seen yo EYES! I sweah dey got as big as dinnah plates!!"
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Theodore is just as startled as Orion when the shifter looks back at him and jumps, jumping as well and skittering backwards only to trip over a rock and wind up on the other side, legs in the air, back on the ground. He twitches a few seconds, then grabs at the rock and tries to pull himeslf back up, "Ooooriooooon… not nice." Huff. He manages to get himself up, brushing dirt off his back while perching on the rock. He twitches his nose curiously at Jamal while he's laughing, cocking his head to the side and grinning brightly, first at him, then at Orion, winding up pleased with himself, "Hehe."
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Orion shakes his head at Theodore and does not offer to help him up. “What do you EXPECT! Hunting people like that. You should be ashamed.” He has not forgotten how the vampire tried luring him into his house with a steak. “Speaking of which, you weren’t planning on eating me last night, were you?” He eyes the vampire suspiciously. “I’m pretty sure the blood of the…Erm…” He glances at Jamal for a moment, realizing that the man probably doesn’t know that he’s a shifter. “Irish…Is unlucky, too.”
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Indeed the blood of the Irish is unlucky, at least that is how Abbey feels at the moment. She had a run in with something or another and instead of actually vanishing she is laying on the bench, the burning cigarette held between her fingers before it finally just drops to the ground. Steele tilts his head while nosing at one of Abbey's arms and at no responce he seems to worry. The dog hops up onto his paws and turns glancing around before making a bee-line towards where Orion and the others happen to be.
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The blonde looks sullen at such a suggestion, drooping on the rock and looking up at Orion with big, soulful violet eyes, "Whaaat? Of course not… you got sprayed by a skunk. I was going to help you clean up." He sits up proudly, smiling warmly and adding, "I'm a vegetarian. I don't drink from people unless we're friends and they're totally willing. It's TruBlood all the way!" He pumps the air with this last, which makes him wobble on the rock, so he grips it harder, eyes wide. Eep.
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Jamal says, "Wait a second, don't you got to wash in tomater juice or somefin, to get off skunk-stink? Because man, you got to wash in somefin. An, uh. Why're you wearin a dress, mistah?"
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Orion frowns at Jamal, “I saw on Myth Busters that that does not work quite so well.“ He still looks at the vampire suspiciously. “He’s probably trying to attract unwitting food sources. That shirt probably attracts dogs from miles around. And I don’t know about that whole True Blood thing. What vampire wouldn’t want fresh blood to willingly just walk into their…DOG!” Orion catches a glimpse of Steele darting toward the group and moves in such a way that Theodore is between Orion and Steele. So what if the vampire gets mauled, he’ll probably just try to eat this dog, too. “Wait a second…That’s Abbey’s dog. I thought she left.” He glances back to where he saw her last and notices that she has lain down on the bench.
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Steele isn't actually /running/ towards them, more of a brisk trot then anything. The large mastiff pauses and peers at Orion, floppy ears perking forward only to lower slightly with a deep bark escaping him in the process. Steele glances back towards where Abbey is before he looks back to Orion an the others, the vampire though gets what could be a glare but its a dog so who knows. A faint mutter escapes Abbey, seems she's either still awake or just woke herself up from what ever is affecting her. She shifts slowly and sits herself up, one hand pressed against her side under her jacket while the other is gripping at the bench. Her head is kept bowed though and a cough escapes her.
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"…dress?" Theodore says curiously, shifting to his feet and looking down at his tunic-style shirt, "It's… it's not a dress." Then he is both accused of trying to lure dogs in for food and placed between the trotting strange dog and the other two. His hands curl into tight fists at either of his sides and he presses his lips together tensely - and then they wobble and he actually looks like he might start crying. Instead, he yells at all of them - the glaring dog, the accusatory shifter, the man who thinks he's in a dress, and pretty much everyone but Abbey, who appears to be napping, "FINE! NEVERMIND! You're terrible people and I hope you have fun with your stupid, judgmental selves!" Dogs are people too, right? The slim vampire hops off the rock and walks stiffly and long-leggedly across the grass, angry as much as he is hurt and upset. Yes, vampires have a bad reputation, but being accused of being one of the vampires that eats anything with a pulse when he's never acted like it is more than a little hurtful. HMPH. Stupid people. Sniff.
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Jamal peers after Theodore. He doesn't know the man, so he cannot possibly know what he's said that's offensive. Still, it's hard to miss 'badly offended' when you see it. He looks from Theodore to Orion, says "Uh," and then at Abbey, who hasn't said anything at all, and then at the dog, who also hasn't said anything at all, and says "Uh."
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Orion begins to walk toward Abbey when Theodore starts shouting. He stops for a moment and looks over at the vampire, wondering if he was perhaps mistaken when he thought that he was in danger of becoming a midnight snack last night. He glances back at Jamal and shrugs, deciding that he’ll try calling Theodore some time to meet and chat in a public setting and get everything sorted out. Right now Steele seems to want Orion to go and see Abbey, who seems to be not doing so well right now.
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Abbey lifts her head slightly at the sudden shouting that is coming from where Steele went off at. She blinks a few times and gives her head a shake, which she suddenly wishes she didn't. "I'm just peachy.." This said with a faint tone. Steele leaves the shouting vampire and human now that Orion seems to figure out what he wants and trots back over to where Abbey is and sits down, his tail swaying a few times as if he was proud of himself for doing something. What ever happen to Abbey she's bleeding now, which may or may not be picked up from Orion, to her all she smells is the blood but then she does have a good sense of smell to start with. "Think you can help me to the garage?" This is questioned to Orion, Steele tryed and this is about as far as she got before having to rest on a bench.
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Orion frowns at the woman. “Abbey, is that blood?” He bends down to examine her a bit further. “What happened? Did you hurt yourself?” He frowns further and shakes his head. For once not at all concerned with being so close to Steele. He glances back at Jamal and looks around for Theodore, but it appears that the vampire is gone for now. “Are you sure you want to go to the garage and not to the hospital? And how well do you think you can walk?” He holds out a hand to help the woman stand.
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Abbey is quiet on the question on blood, not like she can lie about it now. "Ya.." She offers to one question though not wanting to get into detal on it. "I can't go to the hospital.." The wound will heal quicker then a humans after all, bit hard to explain that to the doctor. She keeps her right hand pressed against her left side, her free hand moves to take hold of his. "I should be able to walk." She doesn't seem to be in any pain at least, though this is Abbey and pain for her is different then anyone else.
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Orion looks at Abbey as though he does not quite believe her, but he sighs and pulls her in to lean against him as he begins walking toward the shop. “Well if you’re certain it’ll be ok I’ll get you back. They we can patch you up and get you drunk. That’s how I fix things when I get banged up.” He does not ask about the wound now, but he makes a note to do so when she’s in a more talkative mood. “I hope you don’t mind the smell of skunk.”
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Abbey leans against Orion with a soft mutter escaping her at the feeling. She's quiet as they start to walk. "It'll heal, always does." Seems she's dealt with things like this before. "Drunk sounds good.." She says with a soft tone. Steele is quick to follow after Orion an Abbey. "Smelled worse then skunk before.. Your fine.." "Thanks Orion.."
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Jamal says, "My goo'ness. You got a car, Orion? Coz if you don't, I got one, an I can go get it."
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Orion chuckles as she mentions the odor and nods to Jamal. “A car might be helpful. I’ve just got a motorcycle and I don’t think I can get her and her dog to ride it safely right now.” He nods his head toward the road in the distance, “Think you could pick us up there?” He begins walking toward that section of road with Abbey, trying to think of something to talk about. “Um…You know that vampire who was wearing a dress over here? I thought he tried eating me last night, but maybe he wasn’t. It’s hard to determine with their type I guess.”
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Abbey doesn't think she could ride the motorcycle if she wasn't hurt with a dog for that matter, at least not one the size of Steele. She follows along at Orion's side towards the side stretch of road, her eyes half closed and head lowered. "Vampire in a dress?" Seems she missed that. "A guy vampire in a dress?.." There's a pause as she tries to think on that one. "I suppose it's possible he could have been trying to hurt ye.. Seems like ye pissed him off with what ever ye said." Seems her accent is slipping in slightly.
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Jamal says "Well, lemme go get it? Lemme go. I be back in….oh, fifteen minutes. Dat okay?" He stands poised, coiled, ready to spring off in a moment.
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Orion nods to Jamal. “Yeah. You know where Bunker’s Garage and Salvage is?” He shakes his head, “Well bring the car over to here, I’ll give you directions and run and grab my cycle. I can meet you there.” He continues to limp the woman toward the edge of the park. “There, you won’t have to walk the whole way.”
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Abbey glances towards Jamal slightly at the voice before letting her gaze go back to the street. "Who's that?" Is questioned about the one getting the car, not that she really needs an answer, driving at the moment is better then walking. Steele settles at her side, a faint glance offered towards Orion now and then. "Walking isn't to high on the list of things I want to do at the moment so a ride is much appricated." She's quiet for a few moments before speaking up again. "Thanks for the help Orion.." When it comes to getting help she's really not that use to it, just tends to be herself and Steele after all. After saying that she is quiet once more, waiting for said car and once Jamal is there and she and Steele are in the said car she is dozing off on the ride over to the garage. As to what happen, there's a good chance she'll tell Orion about it, at some point.
~ Fin ~
