[color=silver]

[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/ZxYFKpN.png[/img][/center]
[center][color=black][sup]____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________[/sup][/color][/center]
[center][color=tan][b]Location:[/b][/color] On the road • [color=tan][b]Time:[/b][/color] Friday Night[/center]
[center][color=tan][b]Interactions:[/b][/color] [@Tae] Elodie, [@Tpartywithzombi] Vex • [color=tan][b]Mentions:[/b][/color] [@Potter] Tessa [/center]
[center][color=black][sup]____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________[/sup][/color][/center]


[Color=tan][i]Cherry? Worse?[/i][/color] He had stolen the quickest glance at her and successfully stifled a chuckle. It hadn’t even become a grin before he snuffed it out. [color=tan][i]‘Hi! I’m Cherry! I may be small and squishy, but if you bite me, you’ll regret it!’[/i][/color] Sean’s fortitude… scratch that, it took every bit of his being to keep from smiling, but it broke through anyway. It seemed to fit the moment, but his expression looked a little too humored by what she had said.  

[color=D9A0B0]“I should start a journal. ‘Things No One Told Me About Being Undead...’ Volume one: accidental fae bargains and emotional werewolves.”[/color]

[color=tan]“Seriously, you should.”[/color] He had given her a quick affirmative nod. He knew she was speaking lightly of such a thing, but keeping track of things in this city was a must once one stopped being a “drone.” Vampires, Lycans, Fae, various factions amongst them, strengths, weaknesses, mystical enchantments of their making, natural poisons of their undoing, Warden weaponry, locations… Sean could talk Elodie’s ear off about the things he knew, and intended to do just that. Luckily for her, he’d already decided he’d pace things out for her sanity’s sake. Doing this–having someone who knew little about Halcyon’s true nature beside him while exploring and touring its dark corners was not new to the delinquent warden. 

Ride-alongs were a method of training some of the greener wardens to familiarize themselves with the city. Some found it too risky, but Sean found it to be the best way to determine what kind of person he might end up working with. How did they see the city? What shook them? What or who made them grit their teeth and absent-mindedly reach for their weapon? 

[i]Tessa Verren[/i]. A warden who had become a close friend of his had the strangest reaction of anyone. No fear and no hate. Her eyes only showed intrigue, and at certain times, compassion of all things. At the time, he had been hard on her cozy disposition toward the creatures they hunted.

[color=tan][i]“Listen up, Verren, and listen well. Mercy births monsters and I’m not just quoting The Code, it’s a reality. It’s us against them, and they’ll prove it to you when you face them out there. Once you both recognize what you truly are, it’s kill or be killed. You hear me?”[/i][/color]

She wound up killed in action, forcing him to wonder if she considered his warning and whether it was the right thing to say, considering the kind of person he was now–a warden speeding through Halcyon’s street at the plight of a Lycan, while a vampire was riding shotgun in his truck talking herself into a hole. 

[color=D9A0B0]“For the record… I’d come running too.”[/color]

[color=D9A0B0]“Not like, in a weird ‘follow you into the night’ kind of way. Just… you’ve had my back, and I–look, I know I’m not exactly a powerhouse or anything, but I’d show up. With baked goods and bad yet disarming names and hopefully a little luck.”[/color]

He shot her a sidelong glance accompanied by an amused grin. He parted his lips, prepared to say something, but shifted his eyes forward and shook his head instead. Just like that, she had pulled him from the tenseness of the situation. He wanted to admit she was too good at that disarming thing of hers, but couldn’t allow himself or her to become too complacent.

[color=D9A0B0]“Ugh. Okay. Shutting up now. Please pretend I said something mysterious and cool instead.”[/color]

[color=tan]“Not gonna happen. I’m the mysterious and cool one here, so you’re just gonna have to keep being my pretty, disarming, coffee and baked goods support vampire.”[/color] He said before making his last turn into the parking lot of the building that held Vex’s apartment. Decisively, he chose a spot at the rear of the lot, backing in like he always had. He was glad the rain was light tonight, or he might have reconsidered parking his vehicle at a distance. 

[color=tan]“Don’t beat yourself, El. Besides,”[/color] Sean grabbed and affixed his alter ego to his face, becoming Hollow once more, [color=tan]“considering, I don’t know what the fuck might be waiting for me in there, maybe you’ll get a chance to tear a problem to shreds for me tonight. Now let’s go. I’ll brief you on the way up.”[/color] Sean removed the keys from the ignition and stepped out of the truck with his immediate first step of getting the trenchcoat off to reveal the tactical bodysuit holstered Ironfang pistol, and sheathed Bloodrune knife beneath it. There was a soft exhale of satisfaction that escaped him before he balled up his trench coat and tossed it into the cab of the vehicle. The thing was good for allowing him to enter places without causing too much panic with current or future clientele. Shutting the front driver’s side door, he shifted to opening the rear door, immediately grabbing his rifle from the weapons-carrying system behind his seat. After retrieving his M70 rifle and a spare magazine, Sean shut the door and promptly locked the vehicle. 

There was little subtlety in how he carried himself during the night, as he knew the veil and its powerful glamour took care of glossing the details for the “drones.” So with his head on a swivel, and his weapon at the low ready, Sean crossed through the parking lot, taking a path between closely parked vehicles. 

[color=tan]“Here’s your short brief. Vex is a loner, unwanted by most lycan packs, and has a grudge against wardens… So she can be seen as easy prey, a leper, or a natural enemy. Just be prepared for anything that’s not a Fae. We’ll be on the second floor in a very cluttered space. If anyone’s found bleeding, leave or get yourself into another room.”[/color] Sean said simply as the two entered the building through the side door that led directly to a stairwell. 

[color=tan]“Keep quiet, keep behind me, and keep those senses perked up for anyone rushing our way. Anything else, you drown out… And, if you listen to me, you’ll be fine, no matter what we find.”[/color] He said as he climbed up the last few steps leading to the second floor.

[color=tan][i]206.[/i][/color] He’d only been to this place once before, but not as Hollow. Under normal circumstances, it would be bitch to explain why Halcyon’s mercenary was making casual visits to your apartment. Usually, Sean and Vex met at the Raven’s Nest or somewhere other wardens didn’t feel comfortable going. Stepping into the narrow, dimly lit hall, he noted no signs of disturbance. Still, he crept across the cracked tile floor, heel-to-toe, his heartbeat hauntingly steady. 

[color=tan][i]212.[/i][/color] He didn’t allow the calmness of the corridor to deceive him.
 
[color=tan][i]210.[/i][/color] In his hands were a lethal instrument forged by man and his conviction crafted by experience.

[color=tan][i]208.[/i][/color] His weapon raised ever so slightly, prepared to give himself a headstart on his swift potential prey. If the beast were lightning, he’d trap it. If it were the wind, he’d still it.

[color=tan][i]206.[/i][/color] 

As he reached the beige-colored door, he took a quiet and decisive breath, steeling himself further as his eyes scanned the frame of the door before zeroing in on the metallic handle. Keeping himself from the frame, he carefully reached for the handle, and without sparing another second, he slowly turned it. The moment he realized the door was unlocked, his movements transitioned from slow and steady to violently explosive. A quiet exhale left him as he turned his shoulder into the door, bashing the door open that had been so stubborn with Vex with enough force that it appeared as if it were trying to escape him.

Barrel up. Corner to corner. Behind the door. Behind furniture. Kitchenette. Bathroom. Bedroom. Sean instinctively scanned the apartment as if Vex wasn’t lying weakly on the couch, not stopping his survey for any threats until he was sure there were none present. The apartment appeared as if there had been a scuffle with the broken glass and furniture, but it also could have been the typical tumultuous passion between lycans that Sean had dubbed “Puppy Love.”

The barrel lowered as he finally approached Vex, who was sweating and pale, but with no visible threatening wounds.

[color=tan]“Vex. What the fuck?”[/color] He said before setting his weapon on safe and laying it on the floor. Removing one of his gloves, he kneeled beside her and placed the back of his hand on her forehead. [color=tan]“Elodie. Go to her freezer and get me something that’ll work as an icepack… Don’t trip over anything.”[/color] Sean leaned in closer, inspecting Vex’s neck and shoulders, using his single bare hand to feel around for any puncture wounds. [color=tan]“So the vampire isn’t a Casanova… or…”[/color] Sea’s eyes narrowed, knowing he couldn’t pretend to be less imaginative about where a vampire might bite someone. [color=tan]“Or you bandaged where you got bit. Of course. Stupid Sean.”[/color] Grasping her hand, he unraveled the bandage around her wrist. [color=tan]“Bingo…”[/color] There was a grimace beneath his mask that no one could see. [color=tan]“Vex, you stupid or something? Partially healed bite mark. Check. Black veins. Check. Fever. Check. Croptop. Check… A slit?”[/color] He let her hand fall from his as he stood up. [color=tan]“Unless it’s one of those of those vampires who their pizza with a fork and knife, you’ve got some shit to explain when I get back.”[/color] Sean reprimanded her, but like a friend would to another who had a penchant for making bad decisions. His voice never rose to the level of yelling.

[color=tan]“Elodie,”[/color] Sean faced the barista,  [color=tan]“This is the amazing Vex. Vex,”[/color] He looked at Vex, not caring if she could hear him. [color=tan]“This is Elodie, my cinnamon cherry muffin. She’s going to watch you [i]and[/i] my rifle while I go get the antidote.”[/color] Sean shook his head as he walked toward the door.

[/color]