Off His Hands [Kali/Amandine]

[Quin Contiello]

The house was very large, by anyone’s standards. It was not so large as some, but it was large enough for two people. Or so a person might immediately assume. But ever since he’d sired Amandine into the life of a nocturnal blood-sucker, the house had started to metaphorically shrink. He did not tire of her company, really. But sometimes it was far too demanding. Sometimes he liked to have time to himself. She would not be classified as clingy or needy in any way. But Tarquin had grown accustomed to being able to do what he liked, when he liked, without having to report his comings and goings with anyone.

Maybe it was because he was the only one of her acquaintance who was a vampire, like she was. She had no one else to bother in the early hours of morning, perhaps. Maybe she didn’t associate with her human acquaintances at all anymore, which would be perfectly understandable.

But if she could meet more of their particular persuasion, maybe she’d have something else to occupy herself with. She’d have an acquaintance with whom she could be utterly spontaneous with. As soon as Tarquin started to assume the above, he started to think of who he knew that he could introduce Amandine to. The list was drastically short.

There was Rima, but she was a business acquaintance. She could hardly be expected to be good friends with all of her clients. She was a friendly face and always had a good opinion to give, but Tarquin was not sure their relationship extended any further than that.

But to be absolutely truthful, Rima wasn’t the first person he thought of. The first person to come to mind was Kali. He was sure he’d told Amandine about Kali, and about what she had done, and thus what she meant to Tarquin. Kali was his original rock, and would be considered as much for a long time to come.

And of course he’d thought of Moore, but Moore struck Tarquin as the roguish womanizer type—subconsciously, he didn’t want Moore anywhere near Amandine just yet. It wasn’t trust issue. Maybe it was a possession issue. Tarquin didn’t know, as he hadn’t realised, straight up, that he’d made any kind of distinctions. Kali was just the safest and most plausible option. She was female. Amandine was female. Surely two modern females could find something to do together. They could find something in common. They could become great friends. Kali could, in a round-a-bout way, take Amandine off his hands for a night a week, perhaps.

But he was getting ahead of himself. He had no right to make those kinds of assumptions when the two women had yet to meet.

So he’d informed Kali telepathically of his intentions. He hadn’t invested in a mobile phone, and nor did he think he’d ever want to. Well, not just yet, anyway. He’d set up a place and time for them to meet.

It was why he and Amandine now stood outside of relatively clean bar called ‘The Two Sisters’ on Zelkova and 36th. It was easy to assume that he intended that their meeting take place inside, but really he’d only clung to the first landmark he could think of. He didn’t know what they should do as a group of vampires on a night out in the city. He was in no way frivolous, so didn’t know the places to go to have ‘fun’. He would leave the night’s events up to the girls. They could decide. It could be their first attempt at getting to know each other.

>>Tarquin’s attire

[Kali Le Fai Myst]

All of it was as clear and vibrant as if she were living it all over again, complete with the strange feeling of being a child when you know you're an adult. What was darkness switched to light, and Kali's view opened up to being on the cottage porch with her Grandmother, that first time, when she had changed the flower, only this time there was no shade and the sunlight shone brightly down on them. The flower had been in Kali's hands, and her Grandmother's over hers, and neither of them spoke. She closed her hands, and opened them, and the flower was now a feather. She closed her hands, and opened them and the feather was three matchsticks. She closed her hands and opened them, and the matchsticks were a leaf. She closed and opened them again and now she was holding her Grandmothers plain gold ring with the red stone. It flared in the sudden bright ray of the sun before she closed her hands again. Close, open, and there was the flower again...close, open, close, open......

Kali woke up; body shifting upwards and she flew forwards in bed. Ah. So it had been a dream. The alarm by her bedside told her it was the evening (time to get up and go), and when she rose and drew apart the thick velvet curtains that shrouded her window she remembered that she was not alone. Her senses alerted her to it before her mind even registered the memory. He was out by the front of the house, smoking (She noted bitterly that he had none of his own and must have rifled through her stuff to acquire these) and looked up when he saw her form at the window. Tristan had been with her for just over a week now. Well, not with her...he was crashing because she'd asked him to. He had nowhere else. Nobody else. And besides, it was good to contradict Kali's solitary nature every once and a while. Otherwise she was likely to hide herself away in one place forever, content in the knowledge that nothing could disturb her lifestyle.

Her Grandmother fetched a mug from the kitchen and filled it with water, the flowers were standing in that, on the rickety little table that sat on the porch. She pulled one of the flowers our of the mug, put it between Kali's hands and said:

"Now, what are you holding?"

It was a funny sort of game. "A flower,"

"What else could you hold instead? What else is so small you can hide it completely, doesn't weigh very much, doesn't itch or tickle, is so soft you can barely feel it's there?"

"A feather?"

"A feather. Good. Now think....feather,"

Kali thought it. Small, gray-brown-white feather. A sparrow, something like that. Then came the odd, buzzing sensation and-....

Kali moved away from the window, grabbing some clothes from her wardrobe as she went (A long-sleeved purple dress that rested above her knees, her two best friends when it came to clothes - the knee-high boots and that leather jacket) before disappearing into the bathroom. When changed, with make-up applied, hair done and the usual jewelry found from underneath the piles of junk on her desk....Kali looked at herself in the mirror. She needed assurance....what she had dreamed was just that; a dream..

She'd been about to dash downstairs and catch up with Tristan (She was still working on getting him to really open up to her) when she felt a familiar voice sweep through her mind. She'd know him anywhere, even if it had been a while since they'd last properly spoken. Tarquin. Shrugging, she left her little house in the not-so-safe hands of Tristan Strider (She prayed he'd leave her beloved books alone and not start a fire with them or some other ridiculous nonsense) with a few friendly words before dashing off to Zelkova and 36th. When she arrived, it was all too easy to recognize her old friend from the few people there were dashed about on the street. Smiling at that point, certainly wasn't hard.

[Amandine Rossi]

Tarquin had told her that she would love this life, but to be quite frank she had yet to acquire much taste for it. Her nights were either spent with him or without, and to be quite frank neither truly provided a sense of escape from this whole vampirism thing. Amandine was bored, her career slipping through her fingers as she tried the best to hang onto it; but her inability to show face during the day was making it impossible to maintain such career. Spring was upon them too, making the nights shorter as the sun set later, robbing her of the few hours she could provide for her remaining customers. Oh, to hell with it all, she’d decided, realizing this life would be a miserable one and there was nothing she could do about it. Tarquin was a social recluse, some heavily-accented gladiator who had only just stepped through time, leaving all acquaintances behind. A nocturnal life like this one needed the theatre, opera, galas, and parties; anything to make the nights shorter and more bearable. Yet he had none to invite, and Amandine had lost contact with her mortal friends... He said she’d love this life, but so far he was wrong.

When he revealed to her the presence of certain acquaintances, her interest was piqued and her hopes raised. However, as she prepared herself for the meeting, disappointment was the only emotion she portrayed; what if his acquaintance was equally stoic and disconnected? Amandine sighed unnecessarily, smoothing her hands over the flowery dress she wore as her feet sunk into a pair of black heels. Though the air was beginning to warm, the temperatures dipped sufficiently that her current attire would surely draw unwanted attention; a dress like this was irreplaceable, she didn’t want it to be ruined. It was only upon seeing the casual attire he wore that she realized she was far too overdressed for the occasion. Slipping back into her room, she exchanged her heels for olive-toned flats, and shrugged off her shall in favour of a red-black plaid jacket.

As usual, they walked to their destination; she would have to work harder on having him cede to the idea of a vehicle. Sure, walking was of little consequence and she had done it often as a human, but it just seemed appropriate to drive on occasions like these. Amandine kept her hands to her pockets as they walked, lost in her thoughts as she reminisced about outings with her first husband, Claudio Rossi. She tucked her chin into the thick fur that covered the jacket’s large lapels, and was glad her hair had been put up; the wind was an annoyance she had yet to grow accustomed to.

The redhead was so distracted in fact, that she took a few steps past Tarquin when he stopped, unaware that they were already here. As she returned to his side, hesitantly twining her arm around his for the sake of appearances (all passing couples were huddled as such), Amandine tapped her foot impatiently against the ground. Her eyes scanned the scene, but all the information he had given her was that the vampire was a female, of ‘modern times’ he had assured her. Sighing, she put all her brainpower into scoping out such person, trying to overlook the tightening of her throat each time the wind paraded a medley of human scents past her perfect little nose. Were they to stand here all night? Glancing over her shoulder at the bar, the redhead raised an eyebrow at the establishment, it did not suit her taste much, but whatever. If only she could feed, her bad mood would dissipate, but she would not allow herself in his presence; he needn’t know the failure she capable of when it came to drinking just enough.

[ Amandine's attire ]

[Quin Contiello]

This kind of situation was new to Tarquin. Although he and Antonia had lived a sufficiently social life for a time, Antonia had always been the hostess and Tarquin the lurker in the background. They were not at home, however—they were meeting out of doors, and as soon as the two women were introduced his job was over, right?

Amandine had twined her arm through his, and Tarquin glanced down at the top of her head, before shifting his eyes to the moving to and fro around them. He supposed this kind of contact was a regular thing for couples. But the tightening of Tarquin’s grip was not a conformist notion but more a form of possession.

No one else needed to know that, however.

Before he could ponder the subject any more, Tarquin’s roving gaze was captured by a familiar face. Kali. The first vampiress he’d met in this city, and one of the only people he could respect. Even if some of their tastes may differ, Kali was still the sole person who’d been responsible for Tarquin’s well-being in this modern world. For that, he didn’t know whether he could ever thank her enough. And now it was time for his rock to meet his obsession—he didn’t realise until now how anxious he was for this meeting to be a success. As soon as Kali joined them, Tarquin extracted himself from Amandine.

Hello, Kali. he said first in greeting, bowing his head in Kali’s direction and offering her one of his more pleasant smiles. He was definitely glad to see her.

This is Red— he began, and then hesitated. As tempting as it was to introduce Amandine only as ‘Red’, Tarquin had an inkling that she would not be pleased. And he would not have this meeting go awry simply because he’d failed to introduce her properly. He bowed his head again, eyes glinting the mischief that became immediately evident in the new curl to his smile, Amandine. He could have added that Amandine was his newest, only, childe. But he assumed Kali to be quick enough to figure that one out on her own. She’d have also witnessed the way the two of them had been connected at the arm, and could thus assume much more about their relationship. These things did not need to be voiced.

This...is Kali. He said, turning his attention to Amandine and gesturing to Kali. The latter could have remained unvoiced, too. Obviously... she was Kali. But the introduction had to be complete.

We do not have to stay here. he said, gesturing to the building behind them. I suggested it only so that we could have a place to come together. He finished, before hooking his thumbs through the loops at either side of his pants. His job was done. The women had been introduced.

[Kali Le Fai Myst]

Anyone living in a city might visit RavenBlack and call it huge, but officially it was average, ravishingly mysterious and prone to strangers lurking around alleyways in a foreboding fashion. There were many different circles of Vampires, in these almost everyone knew everyone and new-comers, traditionally, were regarded with suspicion or distaste. The unwritten rule was that until you'd lived in the city for a while, and proved yourself, you were a begrudgingly tolerated outsider. After that, provided you weren't a pain in the ass you were accepted as a local. Somehow, when Kali had moved to RavenBlack several years ago, and joined the Myst family, the rules had been magically broken.

"I don't know how you did it," Nina had said.

But neither had Kali. Oh well, at least it had been character-forming. And, thank goodness, she had blossomed since then. It wasn't until years later that she learned the truth. If you approached the situation as someone who didn't care one way or another people were so taken aback that they immediately submitted to your presence. Nowadays, of course, things were a bit different. The nobility and behavior expected by her family was no longer applicable when said family were practically non-existent. And at any rate, when meeting new people Kali was usually entirely open to them, and with a glance at Tarquin's companion she saw no reason why that guideline shouldn't apply during their meeting. Small observations here and there (If she hadn't been a Vampire herself she wouldn't have known, but then also she wouldn't even have been there, so the thought was inconsequential) as she greeted them immediately told her of the relationship between the two.

"Hello," Both Tarquin and Amandine received her trademark mix of a smile and a smirk.

Well, a childe...it had to be expected didn't it?

She'd always anticipated that Tarquin would sire. He hardly seemed like the sort of person who would wander about on his own for eternity. Kali just hadn't supposed it would be so soon, although honestly she knew little about it. Not the siring of course, that was a simple thing and something her own Sire had always hoped she'd do. It was how the relationships worked. She had never, ever met anybody whom she had been inclined to bestow the 'Dark Gift' upon. It was such a big deal, the giving of such powers and the nurturing of this person until they were able to truly look after themselves. Give her a baby to parent, and Kali would have been fine - she'd done it before after all - but an adult....the mere thought gave her a headache. Although truly, perhaps you did just have to find the right person.....

Kali looked up at the building behind the two of them, and then shifted her glance to the opposite street. Shrugging, she responded to Tarquin's words:"You know me, I'm open to whatever everyone feels like,"

[Amandine Rossi]

Amandine had not expected someone quite so... dainty.

Tarquin unravelled his arm from hers as the stranger came to a halt before them, and the redhead was far too distracted by the new presence to notice or care. In all honesty, her feelings regarding her sire were undecided, so there was no feeling of loss to negate the feeling of gain she had felt when he’d reciprocated the gesture. Her sea green curious gaze travelled over the Kali’s face; a pleasant, albeit confused, expression settled upon her features as Tarquin introduced them. Amandine gritted her molars when he used the name red, but her smile did not falter; she wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of being amused at her expense.

The redhead was not certain as to how these relationships between vampires worked; she had yet to meet one amiable enough to make an acquaintance out of them. Amandine offered a slight broadening of her smile, head bowing ever so slightly as her eyes remained fixed on Kali’s. Really now, what was she say? ‘It’s a pleasure to meet you’? Surely not, she had yet actually meet the woman.

Hi
The vampiress was pleasantly surprised by the other’s appearance, but she knew those could be deceiving; a knowing glance in Tarquin’s direction was the only indication as to what her thoughts were about. Then again, it worked out well for Tarquin chose to speak at that time, so her inexpressive glance could be easily overlooked.

In all honesty, Amandine wanted to feed, but she would stifle such urges until later, if she could. There was something about Kali that allowed her to relax however, and when both parties expressed utter indecision as to the plans to follow, the redhead spoke up.

There’s a comedy club down the road...

It was not exactly the sort of scene she pictured Tarquin in, especially since most jokes would surely evade him, but it was a small little club where they could be seated in a booth to discuss. She wasn’t exactly partial to comedy, she found most of the comedians there mediocre—and that’s when she realized she wanted to make a good impression. No, the club was likely to disappoint.

Or the hookah bar down on 45th... Oh, I don't know.

[Quin Contiello]

Tarquin sighed. It bordered on frustration. He was not a restless person, but he did not like indecision. It was his own fault, however. He should not have assumed the girls would be able to figure it out as soon as they met each other. And he had been the one who'd suggested the outing, so he should have thought ahead. He should have done some research if he did not know where he should take them. Hell, he should have asked Rima. But it was too late now.
 
Whatever the case, he clung to Amandine's last suggestion. The Hookah bar down on 45th. That would have to do. If she suggested it, then it must be to her liking. He could only hope that she and Kali would see eye to eye on these kinds of things. If neither of the women knew where to go, and were going to make any decisions, then Tarquin would do it for them. He smiled and nodded;
 
The Hookah Bar...will do. He said, taking a step in the direction he knew led toward 45th. Where on 45th this bar sat, however, he did not know. So he would have to leave Amandine to guide them to the specific spot.
 
He had hoped that the Kali and Amandine would strike up a conversation between themselves, too—there was still a chance that they might. But he had been wrong to assume they could decide where to go, and he didn’t want to make any other wrong assumptions just in case they ruin the evening. So he would start a conversation for them, in the best way he knew how. Give one of them information about the other and hopefully conversation would follow.
 
Amandine is an actor. he said, refraining from calling Amandine ‘Red’ again and unknowingly giving the male definition of the occupation rather than the female ‘actress’. Of course, he could have asked Kali how she was or what she had been up to, but he thought that might exclude Amandine too much from the conversation, which was not the point of the evening. Besides which, Tarquin wasn't really trained in the act of small talk--he was even aware of how the aforementioned statement sounded awkward coming from his own lips, but it had been uttered and could not be taken back.

[Kali Le Fai Myst]

Swift in agreement, as was her usual custom when it came to these sorts of decisions, Kali nodded and spoke in dulcet tones: ”I think I might have heard of it,”

But of course she’d heard of a lot of things she’d never ventured to before. Whether through advertisement or word of mouth (usually Nina, maid by official occupation but also gossip queen extraordinaire) there were always new places opening up in the city. She wondered briefly if these people knew what they were up against...maybe they didn’t care or were just purely ignorant. But what sense was there in coming to a city rife with predators that would bite you as soon as they looked at you? Okay, so not all of them. Kali certainly didn’t count herself among those who just attacked the first person they saw. Not innocents, she would never hunt innocents.

Bad guys were her speciality, and recently (after getting caught in their trap and spending a whole night fighting them off) the Vampire Hunters were her prey of choice. She reasoned her developed taste for them came from a desire for revenge. And it was always the worst of them she went for; the most hardened and least merciful. They were also worthy opponents and oftentimes made hunting, which had become a very mundane task, far more appealing.

As they walked towards their destination (she wasn’t sure of the exact location herself, but supposed it would be easy enough to spot) Tarquin took it upon himself to start up a conversation. For which Kali was eternally grateful.It was awkward meeting somebody she didn’t know, and contrary to popular belief first impressions did count. From experience, Kali noted she always came across as too-friendly (and perhaps far too trusting) or else downright aloof. Both of these were aspects of her personality yes, but which one chose to present itself more was never her choice. It always came down to mood.

Right now she was neutral. A good start by any means...

”An actress? Really?,” Kali smiled, directing her attention to the other woman whilst silently correcting Tarquin’s error (although of course it hardly mattered) and following her train of thought: ”It was always an occupation I fancied myself. Unfortunately Vampirism got in the way...”

To be fair, when her interest in acting had been particularly high she could have asked around to see if there were any jobs going....any underground theatres run by fellow immortals, but it had never occurred to her and it seemed far too cliché anyway.

”The closest I can get to these days is playing gigs in local bars,” Even if she didn’t need the job since money was plentiful, it was something to do. A hobby. Something interesting an- ...Thinking over her previous words she spoke once more, realising that Tarquin might not understand just what a gig was.

”I sing for people, sometimes accompanied by my guitar or a piano, depending on the place....”

[Amandine Rossi]

Amandine had her reservations about Kali. The young woman was far pleasanter than she had imagined she’d be, but there was still something in regards to her presence that made the redhead uncomfortable. It was evident, given her own past experiences, that her discomfort was surely caused by the simple fact that Kali was Tarquin’s acquaintance. One of the reasons why her previous husband and herself had been able to forge such a stable and loving relationship, was because Claudio’s friends had never imposed on her such discomfort. There was also a need to be comfortable in one’s own relationship with the mutual acquaintance, and the one she had with Tarquin lacked definition and comfort. Claudio had been her boyfriend, then her husband; but Tarquin was merely a man who... well, that was exactly it, she couldn’t figure out what his purpose was in her life. Without being able to determine her relationship with the man, how could she determine her relationship with the man’s friend?

There was something extremely awkward about meeting people whom were associated with one’s association, but not with oneself—the third wheel feeling, perhaps. Expectations were in place; both parties needed to act in such a manner that would not aggravate the former relation which had ensued such encounter. There was also the matter of respect, and not wanting to humiliate the mutual acquaintance. Amandine did not respect Tarquin, at least not to a degree in which she would be at ease stifling her persona for the sake of his dignity. There was also the matter of Kali and Tarquin’s relationship, which had yet to be fully defined, and which could potentially ridicule the redhead if she chose to act in a disadvantageous way towards her sire. And so, even though she was not ready to stifle her opinions to fake respect she didn’t have, she was filtering her thoughts thoroughly not to humiliate herself.

As they walked, she stayed a step behind Tarquin, Kali to her left. Her hands found their way to her pockets now that she no longer clung to his arm. Her steps were far more relaxed; her sire had long legs and walked too fast for comfort. Amandine remained quiet for a few minutes, listening distractedly to the brunette as she kept an eye on their path; she doubted the man would spot their destination.

Well, most children wanted to be actors and actresses when they grew up, but few retained their interest in the arts as they attained puberty. The entertainment business was one of derision and disappointed hopes, and few people invested into a venture that yielded unreliable results. Amandine’s success had come from her method in approaching her dream; she had gone the academic way, the traditional theatre way, but also cultivated other artistic skills that would put her at an advantage. There was also the matter of her motivation, which had been stifled significantly after the passing of her husband and son. Claudio’s support had been unwavering; he had urged her to take classes and play at local venues, and even after she had expressed wishes of becoming a stay-at-home mom for a few years, he had accepted and supported her decision most admirably. Her childhood fantasy of being on Hollywood billboards had turned into a small, more attainable dream. But now that she had lost her rock—her foundation—she was most disinterested in success, and more interested in keeping her thirst for the arts sated. Life was nothing without the people she loved.

Things were changing though. Tarquin had offered her a second chance at life, an eternal life, and the prospects terrified her. Amandine had been looking forward to her death. She was not suicidal, but she had planned on becoming a contented old lady who would own a cat and teach wayward children at a music conservatory every morning. Now she was eternally young, eternally beautiful... perhaps she could dust off the frames of the past and unearth her muse.

Blink her eyes as the thoughts distracted her from their current situation, Amandine turned to look over at Kali.

I enjoy that too. I don’t, I never really did it as a career, acting, that is... she finally said, glancing at Tarquin’s back as she corrected his statement. After all, his brilliant idea of turning her into a vampire had somewhat killed off her career.

...but that’s very interesting, Kali. Where do you play? Amethyst Lounge?

Usually that place was reserved for people trying to get ahead in the music world, but she doubted, from the sound of her description, that the other vampire was very ambitious in the field.

[Quin Contiello]

Success! Kali caught hold of Tarquin’s comment and ran with it. The two of them started to converse about their separate occupations and interests, and Tarquin was happy to let them, to stand and be silent. He allowed them to gain on him a little; currently, he walked between them, blocking their sight of each other. Kali leant around in order to focus her attention on Amandine—Tarquin stepped back so that they had better access to each other.

His grammar was something that still needed tweaking; as soon as Kali corrected him, Tarquin clung to the word and buried it in his memory. He tried it mentally in several different sentences; at first, he was confused as to what the difference was between ‘actor’ and ‘actress’. But just like many languages, there were different endings for different words for different genders. Actress for females, as he now learned.

And although he may have been a curious person, and although he paid a lot of attention to the world around him in order to be more comfortable with it, Tarquin realised that he had paid less attention to the people around him than he was willing to admit. He had a vague remembrance of Kali and her playing at bars, it was something that he had forgotten. So although he was willing to let the women converse between each other, he paid close attention to what they were saying.

And although he had tried to step back and give them some room, he soon found his arm twined through Amandine’s again—this time, however, it wasn’t an affectionate gesture, nor one of possession—she applied pressure, guiding him in the direction she wished them to go. There was a bar in the distance; it had a Middle Eastern glimmer to it.

Tarquin really had no idea what this bar was, or what it was like inside. He was just happy to have the decision made, and was ready to have a relaxing couple of hours in the company of those he liked best.