[i]“I haven’t seen another…like us in over a century so I know how you feel.”[/i] The man offered a smile but it did little to comfort the bewildered vampyre. She could see it -- his smile wasn’t honest and she couldn’t quite decide if it was disappointment or pleasure that hid behind his dubious expression. [i]“When I felt your presence…” [/i] Gabriela became disturbed, not at the obvious emotional confession he was about to make but rather at the fact that he had taken notice of her presence long before she had picked up on his. It was a stupid mistake and the sort of carelessness that resulted in the devil himself sneaking up on her. For how long had Corbin been aware of her existence, and how easily had Roen managed to follow her this far? And how far was she actually? How was she supposed to measure the distance when she didn’t even know her starting point? The stars were different -- all the constellations rearranged, and the earth under her feet, it felt different without so much as a trace of La’Ruta left to grant her any semblance of grounding. While Corbin contemplated who she might be, she stood there feeling a dark and ugly numbness creeping over her -- from the top of her head, down her scalp like icy fingertips, down her throat, to her shoulders, and beyond, down further to the rest of her body. For a moment she yearned for Roen’s warmth and the familiarity of it. [i]He[/i] was right outside. Some semblance of [i]home[/i] was right outside. A longing glance toward the door but her golden gaze right back upon the oddly formed Anath. The woman, with her one present eye, was staring right back at her. [i]“Shall you reimburse the tavern after shattering those glasses?”[/i] “Glasses?” Gabriela echoed, confused, “...I dropped a glass. I highly doubt this, or any other establishment would charge a patron for such a thing. I imagine it gets calculated into the overhead cost. Accidents happen.” She offered a one-shoulder shrug. “However, should reimbursement be requested, I will be happy to repay.” It was a bluff of course -- Gabriela didn’t have a penny to her name. [i]“Hmm… indeed; your chaotic conduct compels me to reprimand you since such boorish behavior is improper for a member of royalty.” [/i] Dark brows lifted in surprise -- there was so much to unpack. Had the strange rose-faced woman somehow guessed at Gabriela’s lineage? Was she simply a being capable of such feats of knowledge? Gabriela, having (within her recent memories) ascended to godhood only to have it ripped away from her along with her life, knew better than to assume any creature was ever just as it appeared. But that wasn’t the most astounding part of any of this -- it was the woman’s tone and her choice of words, all of which dripped with a distinct lack of civility. [i]Who talked like that to a complete stranger? [/i] Clearly, the other vampyre agreed, for when Anath turned to introduce herself to her newly found companion, the man did not regard her, save to turn away. He busied himself with pouring a drink, which Gabriela watched for a moment, before turning her attention back to Anath. “I only asked if you wanted a drink,” she said softly -- almost a whisper, before shaking her head and turning away as well. Corbin served the rose-faced woman a drink -- Gabriela wondered if there would be some nasty comment in store for him, or if the woman saved all of her spite for members of her own sex. Of course, Corbin wasn’t done. He gathered two wine glasses and even spun one of them like a freshly sharpened dagger on the nimble fingers of a trigger-happy troublemaker. She almost smiled, remembering her youth, but somehow managed to contain the serious expression that was carrying her through the absolute wackiness of all of this. He tapped the pommel of the blade at his side, like a secret handshake, and much to her surprise a secret compartment in the hilt seemed to appear. He poured her some blood. [i]“Still warm,”[/i] he said -- his voice nearly a purr. To deny her thirst was the sort of deception she did not have the energy to maintain. However, this would not be the first time she went hungry. Surely, through her long sleep, her morals had not changed. “No, thank you,” she replied, pushing the glass back toward him as gently as possible while hoping that her rejection would not be taken with offense. “I like to do my own hunting,” she followed up, before he could reply and then left it at that. Raphael had ridiculed and hated her for her dietary preferences, best to not assume a newly-met vampyre would understand her decision to feed only from animals. He didn’t seem to mind -- after all, he was enjoying his drink. [i]“The name’s Corbin,”[/i] and then he lifted the glass in her direction, [i]“to our unexpected meeting.”[/i] “To your good health,” she added, before glancing at the door once again, “although, it may end up being a short meeting.” Her pretty face, those pretty features, settled into a deeper frown as her brows pinched and her full lips pressed into a more severe line. Something just wasn’t right.