set yourself on fire, we all must burn

Cassandra || 19/667 || Vampire M!A: None Humanity: Off Member of Elysium RP "This is a woman with ancient anger in her veins and the cruelty of a goddess in her heart. You will beg before her, you will scream; but Hera never flinched from the words of a mortal, so why should she? Do not stand in her way. She will burn down your kingdom, herself with it, if it meant your destruction."

[leila-warner-blog1]

“Excuse me! Can you please not throw that around….or do it anyways I don’t care.” Leila said staring at the teenagers as they made a mess of the table in front of them. One of the bad things about working at the coffee shop was she had to up with people like that. “Welcome to the Daily Grind. I’ll be with you in just a second.” She said smiling at the next customer. Heading over to the table she started picking up the mess the kids made.

[cassandra-montague]

Cassandra had never understood how inconsiderate some people could be. She might have been without her humanity, and therefore considered by most to be a total bitch, but even she would never act that way in public. She had standards after all. She watched as one of the workers came over to a table near her that had just been vacated, “People are actually awful,” she commented nonchalantly, more to the room than to the brunette although it was obvious the comment was directed to her, “I just don’t get it.”

[cassandra-montague]

Pressure || Triston&Cassandra

[tristonscollfyld-blog]

When Cassandra told Triston the reason that her friend had turned off his humanity, Triston swallowed hard. The entire room suddenly felt too small, as if he’d suffocate if he stayed here only a second longer. Did she know? Had she somehow figured out who he was? Was this a test, to see how he’d respond? She had to know. It was too much of a coincidence that she of all people would talk to him about the murder of someone’s maker, wasn’t it? Maybe she wanted to know if he knew, test the waters, and see what he knew. Regardless, whether it was a test, an interrogation or simply coincidence, Triston had to keep his cards hidden. Without moving a muscle, he raised his eyebrow, pretending to be surprised by that reveal.

“I’m sorry,” he said, feeling as though that was the right thing to say. The connection between a vampire and its maker could be very special, as Triston knew, so he could absolutely understand that her friend had turned off his humanity. He’d feel bad for her friend, really feel bad, if he wasn’t so convinced that this was a set up.

When Cassandra went on, Triston nodded. He felt like he was listening to his own biography, as if she was describing his life, and his emotions, and it brought him back to the time when his own maker had been killed, and the rage and grieving that Triston had tried to deal with. Just like Cassandra’s supposed friend, he had failed, and it had been a lot easier to flip the switch. Sometimes, Triston thought back on that time, wondering if he’d turned his humanity off if he’d known how he’d react to it. It had brought along a lot of misery, a lot of difficulty, both for Triston and his sea of victims, but at the same time, Triston was so used to that being a part of him, he couldn’t imagine it being any other way. “Maybe that’s for the best, yes,” he said with a single nod.

When he’d returned from the bathroom, he tried his best to look like any vampire out for dinner with another vampire. “Ah, yes, the typical topics of any good dinner conversation,” he said, trying to joke around a little. He was still on edge, even though he tried his best not to show it, but apparently, it showed. With a fake smile, he dipped his head down before looking back up at her, not yet ready to share his difficult relationship with his most natural instinct. “Oh, yes, all good. Just… I’m sorry, about your friend,” he made up as he pointed at her. Every time the door to the kitchen opened, there was still that very faint smell of blood, but Triston could handle that. He might not be one hundred percent comfortable, but he’d been dealing with his bloodlust for centuries now. A few drops of blood didn’t make him go crazy that easily.  

[cassandra-montague]

A small part deep inside Cassandra almost regretted setting up the plan that she had set up. She was genuinely enjoying this interaction, or at least was enjoying it more than the majority of interactions that she dealt with. She was suspicious of everybody, and trusted nothing that she didn’t have complete control over. Yet, for some reason, this seemed to be flowing more organically than most. Perhaps that was because of the fact that she knew Triston was the one caught in a trap? That might have been it, but a part of Cassandra liked to think that it was something at least slightly less dastardly.

Being without her humanity was normal for Cassandra. It wasn’t an occurrence that was different from the norm like most vampires, her lack of humanity was normal. Still, that didn’t mean that she was without opinions or thoughts on a variety of different things. That was often hard for people who had never experienced a lack of humanity to understand--and it was why out of everyone, she could stand vampires the most. She could understand the immense pain that Demetri had been experiencing, she could remember when she was human and had lost her brother, and Cassandra could only assume that it must have felt something like that. A pain in your heart that felt less like a pain and more like a complete loss. A pain that would never heal because there wasn’t actually anything left to be healed in the first place. It wasn’t a broken heart, it was a robbery of a heart. If there was any emotion that Cassandra felt, it was that one.

Although she could imagine the pain that he felt, she still couldn’t completely grasp it. Her loss had been so many centuries ago that, even though it still was far from numb, it also felt like it happened lifetimes ago (because it did). It still hurt, the entire loss of her family hurt in a way, but it was a mental loss, not an emotional one. She had considered turning her humanity back twice throughout her existence, usually because she was bored and thought that she was missing out, but even just the idea of letting such a strong sense of pain in turned her against the idea completely. She had lived so long hiding from it that she feared allowing it back in would destroy everything she had worked to turn herself into.

Still, as Triston offered up his apologies, she nodded. Neither her nor Demetri could completely understand them at this time, but she was sure that logically they came from a good place and that it was best for her to accept them. The moment was short lived however, as the door to the kitchen swung open, and their food came towards them. Cassandra adjusted her posture automatically, readying herself for what was to come, as she prepared for whatever reaction of Triston’s was in store.

The waitress placed down the food as she normally would, Cassandra had made sure that that was what would happen so that Triston couldn’t prepare for anything suspicious, and looked like she was about to turn away and walk back to the kitchen before she made her move. In one smooth motion, she had picked up a knife, probably one used to cut steak or some other type of meat, and had slashed open her forearm closest to Triston, the scarlet blood instantly rushing to the surface. The smell nearly made Cassandra start to vamp out and she had strong self-control after feeding on humans for the last six hundred plus years, but right now she needed to focus on Triston. Her cover was obviously blown, but it would be worth it if she got the reaction that she desired. If she didn’t, she’d just need to figure out a way to play it off insanely quickly. That was the one part of her plan that she hadn’t fully decided, she had put all of her bets on the fact that deep down, Triston wasn’t quite as in control as he seemed. Right now, she was about to see if that assumption was correct.

[jennifer-ell-deactivated2016050]

[cassandra-montague]

“Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

[demetri-nicholson-blog]

Take Cover || Demetri & Cassandra

[demetri-nicholson-blog]

Demetri laughed a small laugh, “Cassandra you don’t intimidate me. I know it may work on a lot of other people, but after having you come to me for help so many times I am able to spot your tells easily at this point.” He crossed his arms, “So be careful, the other night was only a small show.” He raised his eyebrow at her but was sure to keep a small smirk on his face so that she would think he was being funny still. Actually he was telling the truth, Demetri when the situation called for it or when he was pushed their by others or his emotions, was actually quite the fighter. After being alive for over 700 years, his strength wasn’t a concern at all and he was actually faster than some vampires, simply because he’d been around for so long now, but still in the past Demetri hadn’t liked to show that side unless he needed to, he felt it was more effective that way. 

He relaxed his arms and took a few steps before sitting down in a large wingback-armchair. “You’re right. A big bad girl like you needs more than just a few rumors to get under her skin.” Demetri was honestly getting bored with the conversation. He had come over because Cassandra was the only vampire in town that he felt like was capable of having fun at this point. They both had their humanity off, but Cassandra, bless her, was always so guarded and calculating. “Are we going to go out soon? Or is this game of twenty questions going to be our entertainment for the evening?” he asked as he fielded her next question. “I’m not sure what I’m like without my humanity yet, it’s only been a week and this is the first night I’ve decided to go out on the town so you’ll be the first to see what actually happens.” 

[cassandra-montague]

Cassandra rolled her eyes, biting back a response that would have continued the argument. Did she agree with him? Certainly not, but at the same time Demetri thinking so highly of himself was something that could always potentially pay off for Cassandra in the end. Why would she fight with someone over her likelihood of survival? She would rather he think less of her, believe that she was an easy target. Then, if she ever needed, she would know that his inflated ego would be dragging him down if things ever came down to throwing punches and dodging hits.

“You’re right, I do,” she agreed, knowing that that wasn’t what he was going for, but at least wanting to get out on statement with her usual confidence. “Lucky me,” Cassandra replied sarcastically as she began her walk to the door, not actually stating that she was leaving or that Demetri was to follow her, but knowing that it was assumed. Demetri not knowing what he was like made her a bit nervous, mostly because the last thing she needed was for him to go crazy on a group of people and for her to be caught in the crossfire. The last thing that she needed was to get her low-key cover blown if she was blamed for something major. 

[cassandra-montague]

Pressure || Triston&Cassandra

[tristonscollfyld-blog]

Triston had never actually seen a sitcom, but he knew what it was and the humour and plots that were usually used. “It sounds exactly like that, yes,” he said with a chuckle, relaxing back in his chair a little. Was he getting comfortable? Maybe. That was probably not a good idea, but even though he was a vampire, there were still some human parts of him left. He was enjoying himself, and they were talking about random encounters that he’d gotten himself in on the street, and even though he was a vampire talking to another vampire, the whole thing had something incredibly human to it.

Of course, that feeling had ended abruptly when he’d smelled the blood. In fact, it had changed everything. He knew that, even though by now the busboy had made his way into the kitchen and the smell was only barely apparent anymore, Triston would be at the tip of his seat until he’d feed. He didn’t want to say so to Cassandra, though, so he realized that he’d have to sit the whole dinner through if he wanted to appear as normal as possible. He could barely hear her talk, still too focused on the blood, but he tried to put on the right emotions for whatever she was saying. “Oh, why’s that?” he asked when she spoke of her friend. Usually, it would’ve concerned him a lot more, but right now he didn’t have the focus to really get invested into the conversation.

“Did something happen to your friend?” he asked her, knowing that whenever he turned his humanity off, it was for a reason. It could be something small, but there was always a trigger for unleashing the monster inside him. Triston remained restless, and he knew that he needed a moment to compose his thoughts. He scanned the room for a bathroom, and then looked back at Cassandra. “Could you excuse me one moment?” he asked as he got up from his seat and quickly made his way towards the door, closing it behind him so that no one would interrupt.

He closed his eyes, trying to get rid of all the thoughts about blood, the image in his head and the smell in his nose, but when he opened his eyes, he could only see a monster staring back. The veins under his eyes were visible as ever, and he could feel the protruding fangs in his mouth. He sighed as he leaned on the sink underneath the mirror, trying his absolute best to clear his head. It took him minutes to relax, but eventually, he managed to retract his fangs and look somewhat okay. He knew that he couldn’t hide in the bathroom any longer, and so after splashing some water in his face, he left the room, making his way back towards the table. “Sorry,” he said with a weak smile as he sat down. When the waitress appeared again to take their food order, Triston quickly skimmed the pages while Cassandra ordered but then ordered the first menu on the page, not really caring what it would be. He could definitely enjoy food, but with the temptation of blood so fresh in his memory, he doubted that he’d even taste what he would be eating. “Where were we?”

[cassandra-montague]

The entire situation with Demetri was still slightly too fresh in her mind. Logically she understood the grief that he must have been feeling, but she obviously couldn’t relate at all due to her lack of personal connections overall. If she concentrated she could imagine it, after all she too hard cared for people once a long, long time ago, but that was also a completely different version of Cassandra. It was a person that she didn’t even remotely know anymore, and frankly she didn’t really care to. The human side of her had been fragile and weak, and that weakness was what had gotten her killed in the first place. If she had just stayed in France after her accidental murdering, she would have been fine. Instead, she had taken the ship back across the channel, and in turn solidified her death sentence, all for family when it was nothing but a lie.

For a moment she wasn’t sure how specific she wanted to be in regards to Demetri. Was it too obvious if she said that his maker was killed? Would that give up one of her allies in a way that could potentially hurt her down the road? At the same time, Demetri was older than the both of them. Was having him known actually bad? Or was it actually a good thing since his age was potentially intimidating? She decided that she’d answer the question, without being too specific of course. After all, it would probably seem more suspicious if she brushed off his question or avoided it, and she was supposed to be appearing nothing more than normal.

“His maker was murdered a few weeks ago,” she shrugged, taking a sip of her drink. She wanted to appear sympathetic, but it was one of the few emotions that she hadn’t entirely mastered yet. Sarcasm was easy and so was flirtation, but turning to mask what was actually humanity itself in essence was incredibly difficult. Instead, she used her drink as a deterrent, hoping that by sipping it that her lack of genuine care for the situation would not be as noticeable. “He didn’t know what to do and the pain was apparently overwhelming him, so I just told him to turn it off.” What the blonde didn’t mention was the fact that Demetri had come over to her house in a rage and had tried to kill her since he had assumed that she was the one behind the death. No, that wouldn’t be a very beneficial story to tell Triston, mainly because he’d probably wonder why a person would think that in the first place. Instead, she’d paint herself as the concerned friend, only trying to help another vampire out with the little amount of emotion that her humanity-less self still had.

She saw his eyes scanning the room, and knew that he wasn’t really at the table anymore. Admittedly, she was slightly surprised. Was it about the blood? If so, he seemed to have quite a bit less self-control than the majority of vampires his age had. She nodded when he excused himself, her gaze following his back as he retreated, and she forced herself to hide the smirk tugging at her lips the best that she could.

It took him a few minutes to get back to the table, and for a moment Cassandra had almost come to the conclusion that there had been some poor, unfortunate soul in the bathroom that had been made a meal of. Even if that was the truth though, she was too lazy to go check. She didn’t smell a thick scent of blood in the air anyway, so she was fairly certain that that wasn’t the case. After he sat and they ordered, she looked back towards him to answer his question, “Just discussing death and lack of humanity,” the blonde replied casually, adding, “So perhaps not the most appropriate of dinner subjects.” Truthfully, the blonde could hardly care, death and gore were everyday occurrences for her, but she also knew that she was a bit odd in that regard. Taking another sip of her wine, she took in his expression, noticing how tense he was sitting as she questioned, “Is everything okay?” She was almost positive that she knew what was wrong, but by pretending at the moment to be innocent, it wasn’t like she could just assume without it potentially being weird.

[cassandra-montague]

Pressure || Triston&Cassandra

[tristonscollfyld-blog]

If he really wanted to get close to her, maybe it was a good idea to let her in on some of his adventures he’d lived through in the city. “Well, short version,” he started with a chuckle, “I saved a guy who had been tied to a chair by his middle school bully,” Triston said with a smirk. To this day, it was still the strangest experienced he’d had with a human in New York, and it was a great story to tell. Even if he still didn’t fully understand what exactly had gone down that day. “The long story involves a smashed window, a stolen sandwich and masturbation,” Triston went on vaguely, trying to be somewhat funny. “I’m still not really sure what exactly happened,” he admitted with a shrug. “I just know that some boy was tied to a chair, I untied him, and then we ran from the cops. That part was actually a little nerve wrecking– you know it’s not good to get involved with officers of the law when you’re not actually human, don’t you?” he asked rhetorically. Every vampire he’d met so far knew that getting involved with police or state officials was dangerous. Even something as simple as a fingerprint could mess up an entire life. 

When the waitress returned with their drinks, Triston shot her a smile while raising his glass to Cassandra before taking a sip. “To New York,” he said before he put the glass to his lips. As soon as he set down his drink on the table, he could something was off. He could pick out the scent of blood like no other, and this time was no different. He could even determine from where the smell came, and his eyes quickly shifted sideways to find the source. That was a mistake, of course. Smelling blood was difficult, but accompanied with a visual sight made it impossible to ignore it. His heart sped up, his breaths shortened, but Triston told himself to stay calm. It was just a drop of blood. It happened: humans hurt themselves all the time. He could feel his attention remaining fixated on the blood, but he tried his best to look normal. His gums were aching, his eyes were tingling, and he regretted not feeding sooner. He was supposed to go in the morning, using the quiet of the early hours to satisfy his hunger, and right now he wished he’d already gone hunting. Clearing his throat, he focused his eyes on Cassandra, not allowing them to wander back to the busboy. He knew that if he let himself, there would be no stopping in his fangs appearing, but they were in a restaurant, he had to control himself.

As the metallic scent filled his nostrils, Triston lightly drummed his fingers on the table, a nervous tick that would hopefully avert the attention from the blood lust. He took another big sip from his drink, trying whatever he could to avoid the scent and sight of blood, but he’d gone so long without being in touch with human blood, it was almost as if he’d forgotten how good it smelled, how irresistible it was, until now, when all those memories came back. ”So, uh– Anything new happened in your life?” he asked Cassandra, barely even registering the words as he said them. She seemed absolutely unaffected by the blood, and Triston wondered if she was really that strong, or if he was just that weak.

[cassandra-montague]

“I...” it wasn’t often that Cassandra was at a loss for words, but right now was one of those rare few times that she didn’t know what to say. The entire scenario as he described it, no matter how briefly, seemed to be absolutely all over the map to the point that if she’d known any better she would have assumed that he was lying. Still, there was just something about the way that he spoke the words that made them feel like the truth, and try as she might to not want to accept the eccentric story as fact, there was just something that told her internally that that was exactly what it was.

She shook her head slightly as she tried to take the entirety of his description in, forcing herself to take a moment to truly think it all over, just like any normal sane person would do. “I hope you realize that that sounds like the plot to a bad sitcom episode,” she pointed out, a small smile on her face as the waitress arrived at their table, dropping off their drinks before moving along to attend to another. She raised her glass as he raised his, and her ears, already paying attention to the quiet clattering of plates as the busboy picked up the remaining dishes from the table, noticed almost instantly when the knife was grabbed wrong and cut through a few delicate layers of his skin. Instantly she focused her gaze on Triston, watching for a reaction, he glanced towards the source of the blood, but that wasn’t surprising. Practically any vampire in the same situation would have done the same, and therefore it seemed as if Cassandra would have to allow her plan to continue. Of course her endgame was to just rip open someone’s throat herself, but she was hoping that a nice medium between the two extremes would satisfy instead.

“Not necessarily to me,” she replied with a shrug, taking another sip of the wine as she mulled over the choices she had narrowed down to order. Truthfully, she wasn’t sure if she’d actually be eating any of the food she ordered, it depended on Triston’s reaction, but just in case she did eat it, she wanted to order something that was obviously good. For a moment she stopped as she considered whether she should go on or not before deciding that there was no harm in doing so. “I did have a friend who decided to turn his humanity off,” she added casually, as if commenting on nothing more than the weather or the score of a game that she didn’t care about, “But to me specifically, no.” She closed the menu as she finally decided on her dish. There were a few foods that even to this day she couldn’t eat without thinking about home, and thus she tried to steer away from them as much as possible. Something that she had never tried as a human was fish, and therefore it was oftentimes the dish that she steered towards. The more that her human emotions were ignored, the better. 

[cassandra-montague]

Pressure || Triston&Cassandra

[tristonscollfyld-blog]

The restaurant was rather filled with people, but Triston could take it. Living in a city like New York and trying to avoid humans was just plain stupid, and in the time he’d spend here, he’d come to peace with it. He’d gotten used to hearing their heartbeats, seeing their veins pulsate as blood was being pumped through, and while consciously thinking about it still made him uncomfortable, he could easily go up in the crowd, not thinking about all the blood and, technically, the meals, that were all around him. It was a lot more difficult to feed in the city without getting noticed, as most nature parks were protected parks and had guards or alarm systems set up, so Triston had to go the edge of the city or even to a nearby town to feed. He had lessened his hunting parties from four a week to only two, and even though that brought along a constant dormant hunger, he was able to suppress most of it until he found himself near the woods that were his hunting domain. It was a necessity, but one he could learn to live with for the greater good. He was only supposed to pass through, but finding Cassandra had completely messed up his life. So much so, that he had even unpacked all the boxes in his apartment. He’d be here for a while.

“Things have been good,” he said with a smile as he gave her a nod. It felt strange talking to her like this, as if there wasn’t some bigger plan behind all of it, and part of him felt bad for lying like this. He hadn’t actually straight up lied to her, but his entire being was a facade around her, a way to hide his ulterior motives: everything was a lie. He knew that, to get closer to her, he’d have to give up part of that lie, but he just had to be careful what part he’d keep hidden. Any talk of his transition would be too dangerous, since it was easy to find a link between that and the murder of his maker. Most of his past, in fact, was a no-go, but there were other parts that he didn’t mind sharing with her at all. His hobbies, his present, things that happened to him in New York.. He was alright with giving those away. “Well, I did help a guy run away from the cops, but.. That’s a long story,” he laughed as he looked at her. “Let’s just say I didn’t know what I was getting into,” he ended before the waitress returned to take note of their drinks. “Can I get a Jameson, please? On the rocks,” he asked her as he watched her writing it down. Alcohol helped with the cravings, and so he made sure to have at least some alcohol nearby at all times. 

[cassandra-montague]

Cassandra quirked an eyebrow as Triston revealed that he had helped someone run away from the police, partially because it was her legitimate reaction to the statement, but also because she knew that that was how she should have reacted as well. After so many decades and centuries of planning out her reactions and responses to things in the way that she should react as opposed to how she, Cassandra, would react, sometimes she wasn’t even sure anymore what was natural and what was just so rehearsed that it merely felt natural. Sometimes it didn’t even feel like she had an actual personality anymore, instead she had just become a walking physical manifestation of smoke and mirrors, but if that was the case she was at least thankful that her manifestation was physical. Maybe she was nothing more than a metaphorical enigma wrapped up in lies, she was okay with that, as long as it meant that she still had a physical form that could wear her favorite shoes and dress up in expensive fabrics until her vanity overwhelmed even herself.

“That sounds like a long story,” she responded as the waitress began to make her way over, “Should I even ask or...?” The majority of the vampires that Cassandra knew of wanted to keep themselves away from the cops as much as possible. If they were out of the eyes of the law enforcement they could never be held accountable for the multitude of crimes that seemed to follow the majority of vampires everywhere they went. Knowing that Triston had willingly assisted someone in escaping from the cops, and ergo put himself in the cops metaphorical and physical line of fire admittedly slightly puzzled her.

She ordered a glass of wine after Triston ordered his drink, deciding to keep it simple as she wasn’t even sure how long this encounter was going to last. She tried to prepare herself for the situation in its entirety, with his reactions ranging from crazed to not even noticing, but even Cassandra knew that she couldn’t prepare for every reaction under the sun. Her initial plan was about to begin very shortly, and from there it would only escalate. As soon as the waitress brought out their drinks, one of the people clearing the tables had been compelled to cut themselves as they were removing dishes. It would look merely like an accident, therefore giving Cassandra an easy excuse if Triston was that sensitive to blood, but if he wasn’t, she had a few more tricks up her sleeve as well. Things would escalate, but she had balanced out her options and she knew that her attempt at figuring out a weakness was easily worth ruining some dinner by messing with peoples’ minds. Out of the corner of her eye she caught sight of their waitress once again, drinks on a tray, as she waited for the slight smell of blood to permeate the air as the busboy she had compelled moved into position.

[demetri-nicholson-blog]

Take Cover || Demetri & Cassandra

[demetri-nicholson-blog]

Demetri laughed, “Was that a jab at my age?” He smiled, “I’m older than you so be careful, I could put you in your place with one hand staked clean through.” He drained the last few sips from his glass in one gulp, setting the empty crystal on the countertop as he took a few steps back towards where Cassandra was standing. 

He smiled glad that he had perked Cassandra’s interest. That was a particularly hard thing to do,  because normally unless the situation benefitted her in some way, Cassandra couldn’t really be bothered to meet someone or to listen to a story. “His name’s escaping me at the moment,” Demetri said a bit dramatically, tapping his lip and raising an eyebrow for added effect, “hopefully it comes back to me. Don’t worry I’m not hiding anything, what would be the point in that?” He rested a hand on the other vampire’s shoulder reassuringly, “Besides, the rumors of lesser vampires and other creatures than us shouldn’t really be our concern.” 

Shrugging, he paused after Cassandra’s last accusation, “Despite what you may think, I’ve cut loose several times over the centuries. As of late I will admit I’ve been a bit tame, but I think I could cause a few problems if I really wanted to.” He nodded, “Although, just because I don’t have my humanity anymore doesn’t mean I’ve suddenly become some crazy ripper.” 

[cassandra-montague]

“Don’t get too cocky,” Cassandra replied simply, “After all, age isn’t everything.” Demetri was older than her, but he wasn’t that much older than her. It was more than a few decades, but it was less than one hundred years, and with them both past six or seven centuries now, she doubted that it would really make that much of a difference. She didn’t know too much about Demetri, but she wasn’t sure that she could picture him being some kickass fighter. In fact, she wasn’t entirely sure if he had ever had to fight his way out of anything (besides the messes he had cleaned up for her over the years of course).

The blonde eyed him from where she stood, taking in his words and registering them in her brain before responding, “The point would be to make me squirm of course,” she pointed out, “Although I’m sure we’re both aware it’ll take more than a few rumors... After all, you just admitted that yourself.” She couldn’t help but be a bit curious, that she could admit, but she would keep her curiosity on the down-low for the moment. She would get him to speak, it was just a matter of how soon.

“So what does it mean exactly?” she questioned, curious to see how he answered the question for himself, “If not a ripper, what is Demetri without his humanity like?”

[cassandra-montague]

Pressure || Triston&Cassandra

[tristonscollfyld-blog]

Standing in front of the whole length mirror, Triston adjusted the collar of his shirt. He had this feeling that he couldn’t shake, as if tonight would be an important night. Of course, in a way, it would be. The closer he got to Cassandra, the more information he’d get to know about her, the easier it would be to destroy her. Now that revenge was so close to him that he could almost reach it, Triston had been particularly nervous. Every move mattered now, everything he said or did could either lead to success or failure, and after centuries of waiting, failure was not an option. Once he took off his vest from the hanger, he looked into the mirror once more, and then made his way outside, towards the restaurant that he and Cassandra had agreed to meet.  The fact that besides nervousness, there was also a small part of him that was looking forward to this dinner was something he’d never admit to himself.

Most nights, Triston used taxis to drive him around, but New York summers were hot, and tonight was the perfect night to go out for a walk. Besides, he needed to clear his head before he walked inside. She couldn’t detect a single hint of dishonesty, or his plan would be ruined. Just, two vampires getting to know each other over dinner. That’s all it had to be. When he arrived at the restaurant, he looked through the window to see her already sitting at a table in the corner of the room, and then opened the door to walk in.  A young lady greeted him as he stepped inside, and he pointed towards Cassandra when she asked if he’d made reservations. When Cassandra looked at him, he showed her a smile, before the waitress lead him to her table. “Hi,” he said as he sat down opposite of her. “This place seems nice,” he went on as he looked around the room. In all honesty, he wasn’t sure where he was taking this. All he knew was that he needed to learn her pressure points, the things that mattered to her, so that later, he could cause her the ultimate destruction. After waiting for almost six centuries, he at least deserved that. 

[cassandra-montague]

Her eyes caught Triston walking outside and followed him as he entered the restaurant, watching as he was led over and making sure that a calm smile was placed on her face. “Well I should hope so,” she replied, her tone humorous as she spoke, “I’d be embarrassed if you thought anything less.” Cassandra had picked out the location that they had decided to go to, and she had always had a thing for the nicer parts of life. She was a vampire, she could do whatever she wanted and get whatever she wanted, and she had no intentions of letting those benefits go anytime soon. She also was aware that if she wanted to dig into Triston’s life a bit that she would have to give up some things about herself as well--to make it seem even and all. Of course over the years she liked to think that she had mastered the art of that give and take. She had learned what things didn’t matter and what things she should keep more secretive. All she had to do was make sure that Triston didn’t outplay her and she was golden. Since she figured that he had no reason to play a game in the first place she wasn’t too concerned about it in the slightest.

Cassandra had gone over her plan what felt like a million times in her mind. To determine if Triston had any weaknesses at all, she wanted to catch him off guard with the blood. It would be one thing if she stood and partially ripped out a waitress’s neck with her own teeth, it would be another (and Cassandra assumed more surprising) if the waitress drew her blood of her “own” accord through predetermined compulsion. She had schemed enough in her time that she had learned some of the finer ways to put together decent plots. Still, not wanting to cause any distrust right off of the bat, she knew that she needed to ease into this encounter like she would any other. “So how have things been since I’ve seen you last?” she questioned, her eyes dancing around the rest of the room quickly as she kept tabs on the individuals inside before darting back to him as she waited for an answer to her question, “Anything exciting happen in your corner of the city?”

[cassandra-montague]

Pressure || Triston&Cassandra

Although introductions were enough to begin with, Cassandra liked to know the strengths and weaknesses of those that she associated with. Not only did it momentarily satisfy her almost impossibly large curiosity, but it also gave her information that made her feel like she had the upper hand. With an individual as controlling as Cassandra, having the upper hand was insanely important. That was why she had decided to invite Triston to meet up a few days after initially meeting him. He was a vampire, older like herself, but Cassandra wasn’t sure quite how old, and just like how she didn’t know his exact age, she didn’t know much else either. At the moment, the man was a mystery, and as intriguing as those might have been to some, to Cassandra a mystery was nothing more than betrayal waiting to happen.

Of course, Cassandra knew better than anyone that the best way to prevent a betrayal was to know a person’s weaknesses. If she had knowledge of their weaknesses, it wasn’t hard to control them--or at least to often times get the upper hand. Thus, she had decided that today she was going to try her cards at identifying one of Triston’s weaknesses. Vampires’ lives revolved around blood, and more than anything else she knew that there were a number of vampires that still struggled with it. It was a long shot she knew, but after Triston had briefly touched on his antics without his humanity, she figured that examining his relationship with blood closer was worth a try. Ergo, here she was now, waiting for Triston to show up so that he could calmly walk into her little setup. It might not have been perfect, but it didn’t need to be. An already compelled restaurant, a waitresses that wouldn’t complain about getting her neck ripped open, as she waited at an interior table next to the window looking for him, she was completely confident in her plan. All she needed was for the test subject to show up before it was ready for action.

[demetri-nicholson-blog]

Take Cover || Demetri & Cassandra

[demetri-nicholson-blog]

“Right how could I forget,” He smirked into his glass as he took another sip, “Miss Cassandra Montague, the woman who always has a plan…she just never shares it with anyone.” He pushed himself off of the counter so that he was standing up straight and walked out of the kitchen into the main room, past Cassandra who was watching him as he moved. He smiled to himself when she responded to his hook. He knew that she was never one to resist information. 

“Oh it’s nothing really,” he shrugged, “A younger vampire who was trying to impress me was probably just spreading rumors.” Demetri turned back to face Cassandra a dry smile on his face, “So…where are we going tonight? I’m thinking somewhere fancier than usual I did dress designer afterall.” He gestured to his clothes and shrugged, “Where do you recommend we go for drinks? Dancing? General Mayhem? I figured you’d know some good places and you’re generally always in the mood for a drink and some trouble.”

[cassandra-montague]

“You speak of me so negatively,” she replied, a coy smile ready to crest her lips as she continued to speak, “There’s nothing wrong with being demure about things, it used to be looked well upon to not go out spreading one’s business everywhere. Of course, you should know that,” she mentioned, knowing full well that he would since he was even older than her. Of course, she also knew that the type of plans that she had weren’t exactly the information people had had in mind when it came to keeping things close to oneself. Her plans usually had to deal with manipulation and injuries, the general information that was supposed to be kept more secretive had been private affairs regarding a person and their family (at least usually).

The blonde cocked a brow, “And which younger vampire is that exactly?” she questioned, allowing the silence to momentarilly fall between them before adding, “I know that you’re dangling this in front of me as a way to bait me, so you might as well just spit it out.” There was a time for being casual, and a time for being direct. Right now, Cassandra wanted to know what Demetri knew if he knew anything at all. There was no reason to beat around the bush when he was without his humanity and couldn’t care less. “Are you sure you can even cause general mayhem?” she shot back at his suggestion, unsure of if she truly believed he was capable or not. Vampires acted different depending on their personalities even without their humanity. He had been a bit lax before, yes, but she still had never seen him be truly malicious or destructive. She just wasn’t sure that he had it in him.

[demetri-nicholson-blog]

Take Cover || Demetri & Cassandra

[demetri-nicholson-blog]

Demetri smiled at Cassandra wryly as she came around the corner. Shrugging he handed off her drink and raised his own, “Well, you know how it is. Sometimes you just have to let off some steam, but alls well that ends well.” He took a large gulp of his drink, enjoying the burn that it caused in the back of his throat. Demetri set his glass down on the counter and turned so that he could lean his weight up against it, crossing his arms over his chest. “I’m not sure. I didn’t really have any exact plans.” Shrugging he gestured with his hand towards Cassandra. “What do you do when you like to go out and have some no-holds-barred fun?”

It was the weekend still after all, so Demetri was sure that many places would still be busy wherever they decided to go. He laughed as he continued, “I mean I’m sure you have some frustrations you’d like to drink away as well. We all know about what I had going on in my life,” he rolled his eyes, “My maker died, my sister came back but I told her I didn’t want to see her, blah blah.” He paused for maybe a millisecond; noticing how odd the words he had just said were and what was more strange was that they didn’t register any emotions, but then he remembered he didn’t have emotions anymore. He picked his drink up again, “ But you’ve got some old demons reappearing too, or so I’ve heard.” 

[cassandra-montague]

“I don’t have fun,” she teased, “I go out and get things done.” Although she meant it as a sarcastic way to get out of making suggestions that Demetri might turn down, something that she didn’t want to deal with right now, it was actually kind of true. Cassandra rarely did anything without an ulterior motive, and that included when she went out.

Her eyebrows crinkled slightly at his next statement, “And what have you heard exactly?” she questioned, not wanting to give any information away up front until she knew exactly what he was talking about. Cassandra had some demons, there was no doubt about that, but she didn’t want to reveal any demons until she knew for sure what Demetri did and didn’t know already in advance.

[demetri-nicholson-blog]

Take Cover || Demetri & Cassandra

Demetri was honestly having the most fun that he had had in centuries. He felt like a new person without his humanity, all of his concerns and his burdening feelings had been wiped away as if by magic and he was finally able to get out from under everyone else’s lives and live his own. It was the 4th of July and he was going to go out and have some fun, possibly a bit too much fun. He dressed for the night -  picking a black Marc Jacobs v neck t shirt, some Yves Saint-Laurent black jeans and some Givenchy black leather sneakers. He whistled a little tune that he had heard on the radio as he walked from his bedroom to his kitchen, picking up a letter that had been slid under the door from his sister at the magazine and tossing it directly in the trash without opening it. He opened his liquor cabinet and grabbed a bottle of vodka he’d been saving from Russia in the Soviet era and left for Cassandra place, texting her that he was on his way and she should get ready to go out. 

He had hired a town car for the night, not wanting to deal with the subway because since he had lost his humanity it had completely lost its quaint charm. The car made it’s way over to the townhome that Cassandra was residing in and he exited, telling the driver that he would call him later if they needed a ride again, but most likely they would just run when it got dark enough for them to have cover. Knocking once before opening the door and letting himself in he called, “Cassandra, I hope you’re ready to go have some fun. Hopefully you’re not still upset with me for the other night.” He entered the house, closing the door behind him and went to the kitchen, pulling two crystal glasses from the cabinet and adding some ice before pouring two sizeable drinks from the bottle he had brought. “Looks like the repairs went very well.” 

[cassandra-montague]

After what had happened the last time that Demetri had come to her house, Cassandra couldn’t help but be a bit hesitant as he walked in through the door again. The last time, he had tried to kill her and destroyed a decent amount of the newly purchased townhouse. Whether or not he had paid for the repairs, she still wasn’t sure how stable he was due to the whole Connor thing. She couldn’t even remember what she was like after she had turned her own humanity off, and after six hundred years she could hardly remember her first few humanity-less days. Still, he seemed to be in a calm enough mood, and although Cassandra was still on edge, she did calm slightly when he seemed anything but peeved as he poured two drinks. 

“They did,” she agreed as she grabbed one of the drinks off of the table, adding quickly, “Although they wouldn’t have been necessary if you hadn’t broke everything in the first place.” She was fully aware that he had been emotional and all, but that still didn’t change the slight irritation that she had deep down from her possessions getting partially destroyed. “So, what were you thinking you wanted to do tonight?” she questioned, having agreed to go with Demetri after he had texted her, but still not sure what exactly the plan even was to begin with.

[demetri-nicholson-blog]

Monster || Demetri & Cassandra

[demetri-nicholson-blog]

Demetri was finding it hard to come up with refusals to what she was saying. He had never wanted to be in this place, where he was so suffocated from his emotions and his pain that he wanted to turn it off. Connor had never turned his emotions off, that Demetri knew of at least, and he felt like he was letting his maker down. Suddenly, without warning, Demetri’s knees buckled and he collapsed to the ground in front of Cassandra. He drew a heavy breath and his body began to shake with sobs. This was the first time since finding Connor’s body that he had wept freely, and it was coming in waves that felt like Demetri would be ripped apart. “Why couldn’t I save him?” he asked, partially to Cassandra and partially to the world. He knew that Cassandra probably didn’t care, since she didn’t have emotions herself, but he didn’t care if she saw him like this. He also didn’t care that his defenses were completely down, partially because it looked like Cassandra actually didn’t want to fight with him anymore. 

He stayed where he was for a few more minutes, letting the sobs shake him until they sputtered out and he sat still, empty of all his tears. Taking a deep breath he stood, “What does it feel life after?” he said looking up at Cassandra. “And what happens if I can’t come back from it?” Demetri honestly was afraid, since he had never gone down this path before. He had known some vampires who could recover easily and switch their humanity back on easily, but he had also heard of some who once they turned it off, it was stuck that way until they had to be stopped by their friends or hunters. 

[cassandra-montague]

Cassandra stood silently as she watched him, not reacting since she wasn’t really sure how she was supposed to react in the first place. She understood grief on a conceptual level, after all she had grieved as a human herself, but that was literally lifetimes ago. It was hard for her to relate to now. Instead she just stood, waiting until Demetri had calmed himself at least enough to pose a question in her direction. “It feels great,” she replied simply, unsure of what else she could say, “She felt nothing, everything that had been destroying her had melted away when she had turned her humanity off. She could do what she wanted without feeling bad, and it made living so much easier than it would be otherwise. “If you don’t want to come back from it then don’t,” she added with a shrug, Cassandra herself never wanted to come back, not with how much better off her life had been since she had turned her humanity off so many centuries ago.

[cassandra-montague]

Echoes of Silence || Elijah&Cassandra

[elijahmontague-blog]

“Why do you let him do it?” Elijah questioned from where he stood.

He had come into her dream with a great deal of focus and concentration, having followed the trail of emotions vibrating from deep within her unconscious mind. The room he had appeared in was something he had no memory of, but from the room he could tell it was centuries older than the New York flat in which they currently resided. It must have been a memory of hers, something heightened by the venom in her system.

Elijah then focused on what was in front of him. Cass was pinned to the wall as a man brutalized her. The moment the man grabbed her Eli had tried to dart forward, but found his feet anchored to the floor. He looked down to find nothing specifically different, just two shoes stuck on the floor. It had taken him a few minutes of struggling to realize what was actually happening. This memory would not let him interfere, because Cass would not let him interfere. As much as she wanted help, she blamed herself and felt like she had earned this fate. Eli could feel it radiating from her, the sorrow and disgust with herself mixed with confusion and hate.

His voice had found itself now, and it sounded foregin to his own ears. Light and harsh to his own ears. How it had sounded before he had died.

“Cassandra, look at me.” Elijah stated, realizing he was going unheard and unseen by the man. Elijah could not recognize him still, but assumed him to be the husband she had been sold to so long ago. From the look of the man, Elijah could understand why she killed him. He would have as well.

[cassandra-montague]

Cassandra had missed Elijah’s voice the first time, but the second time he had spoken, his voice had broken through. She turned to look towards him, the memory of her husband temporarily suspended as her attention turned towards the new figure in her memory. The blonde hadn’t experienced emotions in hundreds of years and was now stuck in a nightmare that was meant to break anyone emotionally. For Cassandra, having been numb for centuries, it was even worse. Her fear turned to anger in an instant as she looked towards her brother, her anger turning to rage as the emotion was heightened even more than it would have been for a vampire more normal.

“What do you want, Elijah?” she sneered, nothing but disgust present on her face. This was his fault, this was all his fault, and that must have been why he was here as well to torture her. If he hadn’t been pompous and arrogant, he probably never would have gotten himself killed so many years ago. If he hadn’t gotten killed, she and her sisters wouldn’t have been handed away like cattle. If he hadn’t gotten killed, she might have lived a normal life. A human life. A life that she would never experience. Until now, she had never even considered it after having her humanity off for so many years, but as her dead brother stared back at her, he seemed to be a true representation of all that she had lost.

No matter how scared Cassandra was of her husband, she was furious about everything that she had lost more. Her ex-husband was just another thing that Elijah’s selfishness had thrust upon her, and he needed to pay. She darted forward at full speed, somehow regaining control over her vampire abilities as her fangs were descended and the veins around her eyes rippled. She grasped her brother by the throat, throwing him against the wall, as she expected the human Elijah she remembered to begin to gasp for breath, “I should kill you again for everything you caused,” she spat, tightening her grip as she mimicked the hold she had been in moments before.

[cassandra-montague]

Perfect Town || Bennett&Cassandra

[bennettavery-deactivated2015070]

Bennett had wondered whether Cassandra had thought about running for the new Council position now that Connor was gone. A girl hadn’t graced the Council in years and personally Bennett believed she’d fit in pretty well. She was opinionated, honest and determined after all. Traits of hers that usually annoyed Bennett but if they could overcome her selfishness she’d probably be in with a chance for the spot. Bennett didn’t feel like bringing it up though, he wasn’t even sure whether she’d thought about the position. 

Bennett laughed “What do you mean you don’t know?” hunger wasn’t something to be on the fence about. “I would accept that answer to questions like ‘what’s your favourite movie?’ or ‘who are you going to vote for for President?’, not ‘are you hungry?’” he joked pushing himself out of the booth. Noticing she had fairly high shoes on he held out his hand politely to help her step down “I can guarantee when you smell these burgers you’re going to be hungry” he said convincingly as the two of them exited the bar. 

Walking along the sidewalk Bennett forgot that he hadn’t mentioned Demetri yet, the two of them were obviously fairly close. “So, what’s with you and Demetri?” he asked glancing in her direction as they made their way toward the diner. “It kind of offended me that I had to go through him to get your number” he added before she could give him an answer. Bennett had warmed to Demetri but he still saw himself as top-dog, he didn’t want to have to ask him for any favours. 

[cassandra-montague]

Confusion swept over Cassandra’s face briefly at Bennett’s question, “What’s with me and Demetri?” she questioned back, repeating what he had spoken to try and make sure that she had heard him correctly. “I mean nothing more than usual?” she answered, the questioning in her voice apparent in her tone. Cassandra had seen Demetri a few different times over the last few weeks that she had been in town, he had her phone number and she had his. Since Bennett had been walking into his work, she had figured that it would have just been easier for him to get the number from someone inside, or someone that he could just text, as opposed to waiting for Cassandra and being even later to work. “Why?” she finished as an afterthought, still slightly confused about why the question had been asked in the first place. She was suspicious and she felt slightly on-guard, mostly because even with her well-observed opinions regarding the personalities of Bennett and Demetri, she hadn’t expected a question like this to come up.