Nouveaux Southern Belles Orlean

Ellie was sitting there like she was royalty in herself; in a twisted way that was how she viewed herself occasionally. Why treat herself as less after all? But her crown was suddenly thrown to the side as Christian became braver than he had been before.


Had he just? She looked up to observe his facial expression and he wasn't anything less than serious. He had no problem in kicking her off her high horse every time she sat perched, high on top of it. She put her hands behind her back as she looked into her back, biting down on her tongue so hard she could swear she tasted the bitter bliss of blood residing there. This was her, resisting the urge to tear his head off. Something she was definitely capable of, especially in this moment. Her knuckles were turning as white as snow and she took a shaky breath in before lifting her head back up to him and stood back on her feet.


"If strange men come too me because they see my leg, which isn't sexual at all!?, is it really my fault? Or are they just horny perverts?" Ellie spat out back at him, she was no longer amused. Christian was about to wish her 'fun' side would have stayed."But then again any man would be better than you," She said looking him up and then snorting; her nose wrinkling at the thought of him.


"And actually," She said stabbing a pointed finger into his chest and moving him backwards away from her,"You didn't say anything, you just came along happily to come poke your fangs into some girl for sport. You say you did it to babysit me, but no matter how much you try to reason it. In that moment you were just as bad as me." Ellie said, almost fuming, she kept it mostly hidden. But you could tell he had pressed a button that should have left alone."And i have cleaned it up! Did you not just see what i did there? I just fixed it! I'm sorry if it wasn't in the way you wanted, but you can now go on living with your damn good vampire reputation because of me."


James instantly turned away his eyes as she began shedding layers, of course he didn't look at her in that way. But he thought it might be less awkward for them if she was able to do without him watching her every move. Besides no one was around but each other, and he wouldn't do anything, nor would he judge her. She was still very much covered and he didn't really care. He looked back once he could no longer hear the rustling of her clothing.


He simply began to roll his sleeves back up to his forearm and take his vest off. Luckily men didn't have as much layers, so it wouldn't be much of a deal to dry off."The fact that we could get an injury that should kill us and feel the pain,yet live through it;is not an comforting thought." He chuckled, he doubted they'd get hurt that much. But still, he knew at one point he'd have to feel the annoyance of that pain.


The newborn tried to listen to everything she said and take it in, but even then he was still sure he'd screw it up."After you then," He said walking up to the water and gesturing a hand towards the stream.

Well, it would seem Christian somehow managed to put a damper on her game. All the better to him. "Don't worry, darling," he said. "I wouldn't ever dream of laying my hands on you." That was a land he hardly ever ventured into anymore, anyway. Even if it was, he couldn't stand to be in the same room with her, so there was no way he find himself in bed with her.


The next of it came as a surprise. He had expected some snarky comeback, as per usual, but was instead met with anger. She could say what she wanted, but he wasn't really listening to any of it. They both had their reasons, and in reality, they could waste time with what ifs and a million other tiny details, and the fact of the matter was, it wouldn't get them any where. What happened already happened and there was no undoing it now. They both made mistakes. Now they had to face the consequences.


"You didn't fix it," Christian said. "The problem was fixed. The only thing you did was make more work for the both of us." He sighed. He'd had enough, and though they'd been speaking in hushed tones, he didn't want one of them to start yelling. "Look. None of that matters now, anyway. Let's just figure out a plan and be done with. Okay?"


Angeline was thankful that James was holding up to her impression of him, and not treating her stripping down her clothes as a sexual thing. That would have been extremely awkward. Truth was, she had long ago given up any notion of romance. He was a polite young man, though, and that was going to make this all the more fun.


"We're just going to go swimming," she said, laughing. There was hardly anything dangerous about that. She had just wanted to show him how much more amazing it could be when you didn't have to worry about coming up for air. You could completely immerse yourself in the water for hours if you wanted to, swimming between the fishes and the plants. Doing this in the ocean was even more amazing, but of course, they couldn't do that here.


She grinned at him, curtsied a little, then jumped in, letting the water fill in around her. She swam out into the middle of the pond, then looked at him, waiting.

Ellie looked almost offended as he spoke to her in such a voice, calling her darling. It made her shiver, and not because it flattered her. But completely repulsed her, she didn't even care he would want to sleep with her. The idea of sleeping with him almost made her nauseous. She could never like a man who was so stuck up, high and mighty and typical as he was, never letting loose.


"Fine," She could at least comply with most things, El rubbed her face, trying to rub away the anger with something brighter. As her hands left, there was that snarky smile again."Obviously i know nothing about this kind hearted, treat humans with respect and not as food idea. So i expect you too come up with all the key points, and we can present it to some of the leaders of the different clans. I can arrange every meeting with them." El knew she couldn't get away with doing no work, but she sure wasn't able to come up with a speech for it. There's was only so much acting she was capable of doing, she didn't have any knowledge in this particular subject.


The vampire smoothed out her dress and send a shocking glare his way, although she was still mad she needed to put up a kind front. But then again, there was no way she was letting him get away with that comment from before. He would suffer from that.


James watched with a bright smile as she jumped into the pond. It had been a while since he had gone swimming, after all he live in the bayou and that wasn't exactly the place you'd want to swim around in. Way too many gators that would gladly choose you as a meal. The newborn looked to her and nodded his head; as to signal he was coming in.


He walked up towards where she was and made a running start before canon balling in. He was still such a child when it came to these things, so lively in ways. Most people thought it childish of him, but it made him happy to always be a fun optimistic. If by habit he came up from the water to breathe only to remember, he didn't have too. He chuckled, smoothing his blonde hair back out of his face and turning to Angeline."Force of habit," He explained,

For a moment Christian believed that Ellie was actually going to take a moment to be serious about something, but it didn't last long. He knew beyond a doubt that he was obviously more capable of doing this than she was, but he was not about to be stuck with all the work when she was the one who had suggested they do this in the first place.


He almost laughed, and he would have, if he didn't find this whole situation infuriating. "There's no way your only responsibilities are going to include scheduling meetings" he said. "This was your idea. You dragged me into this. You're going to help me." Sure, it was tempting to take it all on in the hopes that he would have to encounter her as little as possible, but he was busy enough as it was. Besides, maybe she could actually learn something.


"What's your schedule like this week? We can meet at my house and start planning". He never thought he'd be inviting her over, but he didn't really see a way out of this.


Angeline let out a squeal as she was splashed with the water from his cannonball, but then laughed, having not expected such an entrance. She playfully splashed some water in his way to get back at him. "Jerk," she teased.


She listened to his apology then shook her head. "Come up as often as you want," she said. "But the real fun is down here." She grinned his way before sinking her head beneath the surface, only opening her eyes once she felt the water close over her head. It was murky water, but it was still beautiful in its own way.

She was honestly shocked, Ellie thought she truly was helping? Was that not enough for him, the girl scoffed, rolling her eyes at the man."You don't have to make this sound so bad, i make most things fun after all." The vampire smirked moving her eyebrows up as she looked to him. But it was her type of fun he should be very much afraid of.


Truly her schedule wasn't all that bad this week, mostly just calls, fittings and a few other minor things. But if she told him that he'd want her over more times than she'd be willing."I might be able to see you sometime next week. I can't promise a whole lot. Besides you heard what Mr.Barnett said, i'm a busy woman." Once again she was enjoying herself and she figured she'd milk it as long as she could because most things with him seemed boring and dull. This wasn't what she had wanted at all.


James flicked some water right back at her, obviously not going down without a fight. He watched as she dipped back underneath the water. He tilted his head and watched her for a moment, to make sure she wasn't actually in need of breath. Before he himself sucked in air and dove down.


He swam right underneath her, hoping to surprise her as he looked up to her with a silly grin, his cheeks wide like a chipmunks as he smiled up to her. Then pushing the water back he began to swim away, trails of bubbles being left behind from him.


There were few fish in the stream, plenty of larva living on the rocks, a few baby crawfish, but nothing that payed any attention to him unless they were moving out of his way.

"Yes, I'm sure you are..." Christian mumbled, sighing and thinking about what his schedule was like. He could have done without some of her unwarranted comments, but at least she had the sense to be semi-professional about this. If only she would keep it up, then maybe, just maybe, he could bear the next week or two.


"What about Monday?" he asked her. "Two o'clock?" He would even go through the effort to make some tea (laced with blood, of course) and some sandwiches. Small comforts that might help him get through this, and offer some semblance of hospitality. He didn't exactly like her, but he prided himself on being a good host, ad that wasn't about to change because he couldn't get along with Ellie.


Angeline watched him enjoy the freedom of not having to breath underwater. It was certainly an experience, one of her first pleasant memorable experiences she had as a vampire. Christian had shown her in much the same way that she had shown him, except back then, it hadn't been in a New Orlean's pond, but the ocean off of France. She missed it sometimes, her home, but New Orlean's had been good about keeping some of the French culture alive in her life.


She chased him for a while, and then eventually broke the surface again. She waited for him to come up after her, and when he did, she said, "Isn't it neat? I bet you never did that as a human."

Everything inside of her dreaded the fact she hadn't planned something for that day. Technically she could lie to him and say she had plans, but he would just suggest another day. Ellie decided it might be best to simply get it over with. Why was she no longer the one with the shovel, but the one in the grave?


"That should work out fine." Ellie groaned, resting her hands on her hips and clicking her tongue."It's so upsetting," She said sadly, looking up to Christian,"You could have had so much potential if you let loose every once in a while." Even she could tell that wasn't something he seemed to do often. Of course he smiles and charms most of the people he meets, but the other week Ellie had saw a side to him that was his truest face of all. She knew more than most people just by pressing all the wrong buttons.


He looked up to her and swam back to the surface. A very cheesy smile on his lips,"Well when i was younger i would try to be a fish and not breathe underwater. But it never seemed to work out very well." James chuckled remembering the countless summers he had spent at the beach with his family. It would have been much more pleasant memories if his family were a normal one.


"Thank you for showing me this, Angeline. You make being a vampire seem so much better." At first when he had become a vampire he wasn't sure what to think of it at all, was it a blessing, was it a curse? What would his life be? Angeline was beginning to show him all the countless possibilities being a vampire had to offer. She was a better friend to him than his human friends ever were, but with a hundred years of practice he would hope anybody would be.

"Very well. I'll make sure to make preparations," Christian said, which mostly just meant tidying the place a little and outlining a few things. He figured she was going to need a little guidance with this, which he wouldn't mind so much. He just didn't want to be stuck with all the work.


He was just about to bid her an awkward farewell, but that was before she spoke again. For once, he wasn't angry about anything she had said. He wasn't even annoyed. He was just surprised, and a little bit confused. "Potential?" he asked. "Potential for what?" He couldn't even pretend he knew what she was getting at, but he was curious to see what she was going to say.


The fish story was cute. She could imagine a tiny James swimming clumsily underwater, maybe with some childhood friends. God, it had been so long since she was a child. Sometimes she missed that kind of innocence, but it was nice to have the memories.


"I'm glad I could be of some use," Angeline said, splashing him one last time with a grin before she started to swim back to the shore. She just wanted to lay in the sun for a while, or at least as long as she could stand it, and relax. It had already felt like a long afternoon, but she was glad to have run into James. She had a feeling that she had just made a good friend.

"Potential to have fun," She chuckled,"And i don't even mean just my kind." She straightened out her dress as she continued to speak, her voice the same snarky attitude. But the words were different."I mean all i needed from you was one simple outburst to know you never let go. You're always worrying. I mean obviously you can be charming when you like and or hurtful when you choose. But it seems to me you really dislike your life and it stresses you out." Ellie even surprised herself with these words, first why was she saying this, second why had she bothered to think into this?? It must have been because she wanted to use it for blackmail, especially if she could figure him out enough.


"All i'm saying is, not all types of fun are bad and not everyones problems are your own." The vampire looked to the door and watched as the men began to pile out."Either way," She flicked her hand as if tossing the subject aside."I really do have to go now, i'll be late for my next event. I'll see you soon then," Ellie brushed past him, saying goodbyes to the rest of the elders she descended down the staircase and made her way home.


James watched as she made her way out of the water, he honestly wasn't ready to come out yet. He was enjoying it too much. He figured she wouldn't mind if he stayed in for a while. Besides she looked really content bathing in the sun. The newborn dipped back into the water, making sure his feet whipped water her way before he went back under. A noticeable smirk on his lips.


After a while James himself had to get out of the water. He sat beside Angeline and began to unbutton his shirt so he could wring it out. It probably wasn't the best idea for them to go back into town when their clothes were still dripping wet. So they'd have too sit in the sun for a while and dry off.

Christian blinked, blown out of the water with that surprising interpretation of him from her. Did she really just try and analyze him based on one tiny event that happened a few days ago? More over, he wondered how much of her analysis was true. He honestly didn't even observe his own life. He just sort of lived it. To hear her say any of this was shocking, to say the least.


"Um, yes... soon," he said as she walked away, caught too off guard to form any real coherent sentence.


No, she's wrong, Christian thought, shaking his head. He followed the rest of the men out the door, just glad to be able to finally go home.


Another squeal as the water from his kick hit her. Angeline would have frowned at him, but he had long since went back underwater. She just closed her eyes instead and felt the sun on her face, letting her thoughts wander, until she heard the splashing of him getting out.


She opened her eyes as he started to undo his shirt, but looked away respectfully. He was a charming, good-looking man, but her attitudes toward him were the same as his towards her. She was not interested in him in a romantic way, and as far as she was concerned, she couldn't allow herself to feel that way towards any man again. It never ended well.


"If you get that on me, I'll have to fight you," she teased, as he was sopping wet.

"Mrs.Boudreaux??" Her maid called for the eleventh time that morning,"You're going to be late to your meeting with Mr.Lawrence." The maid sighed deeply as Ellie only seemed to snuggle deeper into her comforter."I do not like Mr.Lawrence," The vampire growled, looking back up to the maid with a scowl crawling on her face."In this manor, he is to be referred to as Mr.KissAss." For a maid of the Boudreaux manor, this was quite the usual thing so of course she simply replied with a 'yes m'am' and began helping Ellie up and into the bath.


She had taken her time in getting dressed, deciding she didn't really care what she wore for the man. Just enough for Christian to know she was at a higher level was all she desired. Although for him to know that, she could simply just go naked. The thought had crossed her mind but she decided against it. After all she wasn't sure the best way to rid him as a problem was to seduce him.


As she arrived at the door of his manor, tapping knuckles against the wooden frame. She looked up at his home, of course it was nice. All elders such as herself had a beautifully established home because of their status. You can expect nothing less from the vampire hierarchy.


That morning James had woken up and the fire burning down his throat had already told him something was wrong, as he rushed here and there finding a bit of blood in his kitchen he drank it down in one gulp. He hadn't really gotten all that used to finding blood to drink just yet so it was difficult for him to feed and he needed someones help. So of course he called Angeline, who agreed to show him some hot spots and how to pick people up. A bar never the less, drunk people were much easier to take and plus the alcohol in their veins made it so you didn't have to drink as much.


Dean sat at the bar, his fingers tracing his cup of bourbon. It had been an exhaustingly long week and he wished he had some kind of job to do, hunting about anything at this point would help him along. The brunette licked his dry lips and watched as a rather attractive woman walked into the bar, long dark hair and radiant features. Who was she?


He straightened out and stole glances her way; tapping his glass and motioning for the bartender to bring him up another. He had a feeling he'd need it.

Christian sat in the living room on a stiff couch he'd picked up a few decades ago when Angeline finally pointed out that it had began to smell musty and it had one too many stains. He had a tendency to hold onto things rather than replace them, so their house was a strange mixture of furniture from various times. He was staring at the grandfather clock that they had way back from their time in France, his eyes following the second hand as the minutes passed farther and farther away from the designated meeting time.


Finally, he heard the knock. Unlike many of the elder vampires in the area, Christian didn't have a maid. He figured that, between the two of them, there was nothing they couldn't accomplish on their own time. Angeline had left already, knowing he had some sort of meeting today though he had left out with who, but she'd been kind enough to lay the tea on the coffee table for him. She'd even made the cookies, which were arranged neatly on a glass platter. With nobody else around, it was up to him to get the door.


"You're late," he said when he opened it, but stepped aside to let her in. He'd just invited the devil into his personal living space, he thought. He really hoped that he wouldn't regret it later.


Angeline, when she had received the call, had been more than happy to help out James. It gave her an excuse to get out of the house when she knew Christian had some boring political thing to take of. Normally, she would just excuse herself to the library upstairs and read, but this way she could stay out of the way completely. Besides, it had been a couple days since she'd had blood herself.


Normally, when she went out hunting, it was with Christian. They had a routine together. He'd stand outside the bar while she watched across the street. When eventually some poor girl came out too drunk to handle herself, Christian, ever the gentleman, would offer to walk her safely home. Angeline would follow. Then the two of them would share for the night and be on their way, with nothing but a small cut on the girls wrist from the pocket knife Christian carried in his boot. Today, however, she was going to have to go about it more or less on her own the old-fashioned way. At least for a woman, that was relatively easy.


She walked into the bar, the neckline of her dress a little lower than she would normally opt for. Just having breasts was enough to attract the attention of the men, but it never hurt to be extra sure. She stood in the entrance, looking around for James. She was supposed to meet him here, but it didn't seem like he was here yet. Oh well, she would get started without him.


She made her way to the counter and leaned in. "Whiskey, please." Men tended to like it when they saw a woman drinking.

"Is it your hobby to state the obvious or?" Ellie snickered, walking past him into his house and directing her gaze back to him with an slanted brow,"You know usually it's polite to answer a door to a guest and ask how they are, or if they'd like something to drink. But then again that doesn't seem like a pleasantry we'd exchange." Perhaps stating the obvious was her own game as well.


The blonde walked over to his couch and plopped down, throwing her out from underneath her as it fell around her. She had a bad habit of making herself comfortable where ever she please. Besides she didn't feel the need to act very much like a lady in front of him and sit properly with her shoulders back and head high, even if she did that naturally.


"So what's on the agenda today?" El moved her arms out in back of her to lay against the top of the couch,"Drinking more humans?" She asked with a tease to a voice and a curve in her lip.


Dean took a glimpse of her once more, a furrowed brow watching as she ordered. Her attire alone was enough to let him known this wasn't a usual place she would be caught in. But her drink told him otherwise, he turned himself around in his chair and regarded her with a smart aleck expression.


"Do ladies of your status usually drink whiskey?" He chuckled, bringing his own drink up to his lips and letting the cinnamon spice of it ease down his throat. It tasted pretty awful but it numbed most feelings if you drank enough, then again almost any crappy liquor in the bar did.

Within seconds she was already criticizing him, about manners, of all things. Her. Criticizing him. About manners. He countered the criticisms with some of his own. "Yes, well, usually it's polite to show up on time. Besides, I don't really have the energy to pretend that I care about how you're doing, and I doubt you care about how I'm doing, so I thought we'd just get right into it and get this over with."


He followed her to the seating area and watched as she sat and made herself comfortable. Must she always be so insensitive? For God's sake, the least she could do was sit up straight. Already annoyed, he sat down in a chair across from the couch and pulled out his notes, glancing over them while he tried to get his thoughts together.


He slowly looked back up at her at her comment and sighed. "If you're thirsty, you can help yourself to some tea," he said. "I'm afraid I don't keep humans locked up in my basement. That would be immoral."


The bartender nodded, and as he went to get her drink, she heard the man speak. Found one, already, had she? She turned, leaning on the counter as she regarded who had spoke to her. She must admit, she was a bit surprised. It was always a little bit of a disappointment when the men who hit on you were beer bellied slobs with thinning hair. That didn't stop her if that got her belly full, but it was always better when the men were attractive. And this man was definitely that.


"Why? You don't think I'm allowed to have fun?" she asked him, a grin on her face. He'd been drinking. That was a good start. She had caught his attention, maybe even added some wonder. Now all she had to do was flirt a little and he was hers for the taking.


The bartender came back with her drink and she downed some of the burning contents without flinching. Truth was, she actually kind of liked to drink. It used to drive her father nuts.

"Oh but how wrong you are, Christian my dear." Ellie coo'd hoping the simple sound of her voice would make his skin crawl,"I want to know every little detail about your day. From the pile of paperwork, to well, the pile of paperwork." She smirked, that's exactly what she thought his life was. Lots of work and no play, no wonder Christian was such a dull boy.


She leaned back into the unpleasant sofa, it smelled of mildew and was rather uncomfortable. But honestly she didn't care, everything about this meeting was going to be uncomfortable. Ellie shrugged her shoulders and poured herself a cup of tea, moving back into the couch and watching him review his notes."Ugh, you people and your morals," She spoke out in utter disgust once she swallowed her tea.


"Honestly i don't understand it, you're immortal, you can have basically whatever you want. Be who ever you want, you suffer close to no consequences and yet you choose the 'righteous' path." The vampire rolled her eyes, feeling as if they might go back into her head she was so fed up with it."And besides i've never kept a human in my b-" She thought for a moment then shook her head,"Wait, only that one time. But it wasn't for feeding purposes," She shot a wink towards Christian, he wouldn't think she was joking and thats what made it all the more fun.


"Now i never said that," Dean chuckled, naturally he watched her movements. He was a hunter so every small nudge or crack of bones someone had, he made notice of."It's only that you socialites seem to have your fun at balls and parties." He slid his elbow back on the counter, resting his chin on his lifted hand.


"But now you've come onto my turf, i just wanna make sure you're capable." He shot a signature smirk her way, tipping his glass up towards her and then taking the rest back with a flip of his head back. He swallowed it down, making his eyes pop open wide. That was particularly strong and here he was lecturing.

Every word that came out of her mouth was vomit inducing. It made him groan on the inside, picture how much easier life would become to push her out of the window. Then again, she was a vampire. It wouldn't do much, but at least it'd be fun. Actually, he almost wouldn't mind if she kept coming back if it meant he had the satisfaction of doing that.


His nose wrinkled just slightly as she mentioned having a man in her basement. He didn't really put it past her, to be honest, but he didn't want to hear about it. He especially didn't want to think about it, because now there were some mental images running through his brain that he could live without.


"First of all, I really don't need to hear about your escapades with men," he said. "This isn't really the time or place, and I'm certainly not the person you should be sharing that with. Secondly, you say that like having morals is a bad thing." If she had they wouldn't even be here in the first place. He straightened out his papers and laid them out on the table in front of her. "Honestly, I don't understand why you even bother being so involved with these matters when you clearly aren't interested in the way we do things."


Angeline just raised an eyebrow. Men. They always thought they were so much more capable than women at everything that didn't involve babies. And even then, they'd claim they were better at actually making them. Truth was, they were all talk, and her point was proved when he couldn't even handle his own drink.


"Your turf, huh?" she asked, laughing at him. "Oh honey, you better put your money where your mouth is, because so far, you're not doing a very good job at convincing me." She swished the whiskey in her glass around playfully, then looked him dead in the eye when she tipped the rest of it back, perfectly straight face. Two sips, and the glass was already empty. She motioned to the bartender for another one.

"Man," She corrected, pointing a finger in the air at him and then tapping her chin as she thought some more,"Well maybe it was men, that night was wild" She chuckled,"And i can't say i remember it all." Ellie dazed off, it was so fun to play with him in this way. Especially if it would make him squirm like she hoped it did. Even if it was all lies.


The vampire nodded her head, slumping her shoulders forward and resting her elbows on her knee's."In my opinion they are," She blew out air from her mouth, eyes glancing towards Christian now."I just don't really see the point in them. They make life so dull and boring, everything must be this way and done like so. It's just not how i choose to live." Ellie explained simply,


"I never said i was interested in the matters themselves, more or less the people they deal with and the people who are involved. Besides it's also my duty as an elder." She shrugged, becoming bored with having to explain herself.


Dean watched as she threw the whiskey back, taking it all in one playful motion. He had to admit, to him that was an admirable trait. Yet she seemed like she was still challenging him,"And how do you presume i do that?" The man asked, raising a dark brow at the woman. It was odd that any people of her standard came wandering around in a bar like this. He wondered why she had come,


As he looked at her appearance once more, he became suspicious as to what that reason was and he felt as though he might want to look a little deeper. He was usually cautious of everything and most times it didn't really come out to be of danger, but he always made sure. A sly smile on his lips he looked to her and shook his head, a small chuckle coming from him."Where are you coming from?" He asked, tilting his head back up to watch her expression as she answered.

Christian looked up at her like he was really supposed to believe that, but then she went on about how she really didn't remember, bla, bla, bla. Good thing you're a vampire, he thought. Who knows what kind of diseases you could have picked up. This he didn't say out loud, afraid that by giving it any more fuel, he would never hear the end of it. He wasn't interested in the slightest, and they still had a business meeting to get through.


"Morals are what keep things in order," Christian said. "Just because we're vampires, doesn't mean we have to make life hell for everybody else. That's not fun. That's cruel. The only one who seems to have a problem with following the rules, is you." Sure, it could be fun to break the rules. But at what cost? There were better ways to have fun that didn't involve causing chaos for everybody else.


"See, that's what I don't understand. I was under the impression you don't really like anyone," he said, looking up at her. If she didn't like him, she certainly couldn't like any of the rest of the elders. "And being an elder doesn't really mean anything. It just means you're old. You could walk away if you really wanted to."


Angeline tilted her head, placed a hand on her hip. "For starters, you could try not wincing when you take a drink," she teased. The bartender came back with her glass, but she didn't drink it. Instead, she slid it over the wooden counter to him, using it as an excuse to bring her body closer to his. She went ahead and drank half of it, knowing that the alcohol didn't hit her as hard, and put it down in front him, offering him the rest.


She grinned at the opportunity to assume a new identity for a little while. No longer Angeline Devereux, but instead Annie Alcott. Troubled rich girl, looking for a way to stick it to her parents. "I'm hiding from the man my parent's are trying to set me up with. He's clueless, boring, twice my age... and I think he's going to ask me to marry him, to which I say... no thank you." She could be a good actress when she needed to be.

Right then and there Ellie couldn't stop herself from erupting into a fit of giggles. She leaned over, trying to cover her mouth, it was unbelievable how truly innocent he was and blind in this situation! "O-Oh yes, i must be the only bad fruit, spoiling the rest of the batch." He couldn't truly think that? He must have known there were others around, besides before their little encounter only a few weeks ago. He had thought the exact same thing about herself, a little mischief but never really a danger to most.


"You do know that i would have had to learn these things from some where?" The woman snickered unattractively, hiding her mouth as she attempted to compose herself once more.


She turned her head back up to him, well he was right about that. Ellie didn't really care for anybody in particular. Of course there were people who she enjoyed being with, but at the end of the day, she didn't think of those people as friends. Just mere toys for her amusement. Then there were people like the elders, who were a different tale altogether."Oh, you've caught me." She said,"Yet isn't it always good to have some powerful people on your side at your disposal?" Ellie threw an eyebrow up at him, then clapped her hands gently on her legs before standing up and moving towards him.


"I can't believe i'm saying this, but, enough about me!" She exclaimed, taking a few papers in hand and sitting perched on the arm of his chair."I don't plan on telling you all my secrets, even if your as sneaky as the night. Let's move on to business, it's the whole reason i'm here after all."


"I can guess that might be a good place to start," He grinned, watching as she waved the bartender to send her another, then sliding it down towards him. His grin only grew more as she moved towards him, tipping the drink back again. He was actually enjoying her clever company until the hunter noticed something.


His entire head screamed, Damnit! How hadn't he known!? She's a vampire! He wished he could question that thought, after all how could he be sure. Dean knew he shouldn't jump to conclusions but after seeing a fang tucked into the rim of a whiskey glass he couldn't help but wonder; the look of surprise on his face must have only flashed a moment. He knew how to play this off,


Normally Dean wasn't one to turn down a drink, especially not when a beautiful lady offered it to him. But he was hesitant at drinking it especially after watching her drink. She could drug him after all; he slid the glass behind him, leaning in towards the girl."He doesn't sound like much fun." Dean commented,"So you came to a bar to talk to a man more interesting such as myself?"

Christian wasn't quite sure how to respond to the sudden, unexpected rush of giggles that came from Ellie. What was so funny? What had he said that was so amusing to her? It drove him crazy, not being able to understand or predict her, and it drove him even more crazy when it seemed like all she was doing was making fun of him. It was not amusing for him, and the fact she seemed to take it all like a joke bothered him.


He just sighed, shook his head. "Maybe one day somebody will use you and you'll realize how it feels to be 'disposed' of," he said. "Then maybe then you won't find any of this so amusing." But he didn't want to talk about it anymore. He wanted to do what she had come here to do in the first place, then get on with his day. Thankfully, she seemed to be on the same page for once, when she snatched the papers up from his hand.


The vampire leaned forward, poured himself a cup of tea. He secretly wished it was something with a bit of alcohol to make this whole experience easier, but he would have to settle for calming herbs. "First things first," he said. "We could pair up the newborns that come through with an older, responsible vampire to coach them."


That was odd, Angeline thought, seeing the stranger push her glass behind him, but she was too naive to think there was anything more than an innocent explanation why. She was familiar enough to know that there were hunters, but she had never come close to one before. Christian did a very good job at keeping her shielded from that, and New Orleans in general was a safe haven for their kind.


Maybe he just didn't like Whiskey. Maybe he had enough to drink tonight already. She didn't really know, but she didn't really care. She was already far enough into the game that she wasn't about to give up now.


She shook her head. "He's not," she said. "And, no, not exactly. I came to the bar to drink. Finding a more interesting, handsome, man such as yourself was just luck." She reached out and boldly and lightly trailed her fingers down the front of his shirt. It was strange, how in her everyday life she would never think of doing such a thing, but it was so easy to slip into character when you were out for blood.

Ellie put the papers on her lap and leaned over for her own cup of tea. She began to bring it to her lips and suddenly stopped to look at him, his comment amusing her. Oh how well she knew that feeling indeed, most likely better than most. It was a sad irony, one she'd rather not share. The vampire simply shook her head, bringing the teacup to her smirking lips and taking a sip. She frowned as she found nothing but herbs in the brew, hoping he had at least spiked it with blood, or alcohol at the very least! But of course, he hadn't. Was this another one of his morals?


She then set her tea cup down, leaning towards him and smiling,"For once something we can agree on. I'm assuming that doesn't mean me? I can't imagine you want me ruining the minds of our new borns?" Ellie scoffed, rolling her eyes as she picked up a pen from the table, tapping it against her palm."Well that'll be a breeze, i'm sure everyone at the meeting would have no trouble with that. Mr.Tavio should be paired with someone strong willed, i'd hate for them to have to endure him. It's easier said than done for the Goldstiens. But its doable."


If there was something Ellie knew, it was people. How they acted, their personalities. Over the years she had observed some people quietly, making notes of how they reacted to certain things, personally finding out what makes them tick if she decided to go more in depth. Then how to persuade them because not everyone was persuaded with a sway of hips and giggles like some.


Even Dean seemed surprised as the vampire trailed her fingers up his shirt. He furrowed his eyes together before he remembered he should play along. He let a smirk go over his features once more as he leaned in closer to the lady, hands cupping her chin ever so gently as a thumb smoothed over her cheek."Glad i could have been good entertainment."


He looked around the bar for a moment, noticing the bartender at the other side; he then looked back to her eyes slanted and full of mischief."Don't you find this scene to be dull? I mean haven't we all been to see the sad rejects such as myself. Can't i take a lovely lady like you some where more comforting?"


The hunter worked fast, even when he was actually trying to get a lady, but even more quick when he was hunting. He usually wasted no time in capturing, he was an impatient man after all. It was hard for him to stay still and play along with a game.

Christian tried to picture Ellie serving as a mentor for a newborn, and all it did was conjure images of horror. No, she would not by any means be one of the ones responsible for doing that. It would be counterproductive, if anything. "No, you wouldn't have to take on that responsibility." He didn't really think she would mind being left out of that. In fact, she would probably be overjoyed.


Of course, they would need to appoint others for those positions. Elders were the obvious choices, but it didn't necessarily need to fall on their shoulders. Anybody old enough and responsible enough could potentially handle it. It wasn't completely out of the question to fill volunteer positions. A screening process would need to be necessary, though, and they'd need to have compatible pairs. Mr. Tavio, as she pointed out, would be a difficult one to pair off.


"Since you're so insightful about others, how about you be in charge of pairing? It shouldn't be too much work. We don't have many newborns come through." It was taking a chance, but if there was some credit he could give her, it was her way with people. Other people, anyway.


A slow smile spread across Angeline's face. Finally, they were getting somewhere. It hadn't actually been that long, but she was in a hurry, after all. She was still waiting for James, and though she loved her friend, he had the potential to ruin this particular hunt for her. The quicker she got her fill, the quicker she could get back and focus her attentions on helping him. Hopefully she would be done before he got here.


She kept her eyes on his as she reached into her dress for some money to pay the bartender. She put the money on the counter, a little extra than what the drinks had actually cost as a tip. "There's an inn down the street," she said. "We could go there."


She tore her eyes from the man for a moment to lean across the counter again, grabbing the bartenders attention. "If a man comes in here looking for me, tell him I'll be at The Dragonfly." The way she said it suggested she was trying to rebel against her "to be fiance", and might want to be caught fraternizing with another man, but really it was a tip for James in case she didn't come back by the time he arrived.

"Aww," Ellie pouted, teaching a newborn a few tricks would be fun for her. But they weren't the tricks they were trying to sponsor during this event so she would stay out of it this time. Besides it just meant less work for her in the long run.


She occasionally glanced over to Christian, watching how he reacted. She knew he didn't like her idea, nor how she chose to fix their problem. But this was the nicest thing she had done in a long time even if her intentions weren't pure, perhaps Christian planned on turning her idea into something that would actually be beneficial. If he did so, it would only do wonders for her being a good Samaritan; little did he know he was cleaning her slate through out this all.


"I think that's the closest to a compliment i might ever receive from you." Ellie said, turning her head to him, she didn't need his praise, nor his approval. But it was funny to know she was one of the only people who could give him such a massive headache and someone he didn't care to be nice too. It was refreshing to see such a bitter side of him."Alright, i can have those done tonight. Anything else?" She asked, cringing as she did. El truly hated work, but people weren't really work too her, besides calling a few people would only take her an half an hour. It wasn't anything too stressful.


Dean watched the vampires eyes light up at the suggestion, of course she was taking the bait amazingly. Not many vampires from New Orleans were this naive. What made her different? Why did he even care? In a few moments he'd be in an alley putting a stake through her chest.


He then slid off the bar stool, offering a hand to the lady as he smiled charmingly her way,"Sounds great to me." Dean said, hoping nothing would stop him now. He was so close to his first hunt in a while and he was feeling good about it. She hadn't put up much of a fight, but that was alright. A hunt was a hunt after all.

"It's not a compliment," Christian made sure to clarify. "Just an... observation." He actually managed to give her a small smile. The woman was a lot of things, many of them, in his own opinion, not really worthy of praise. She did have her strengths, though, and the trick was figuring out the best way to exploit them for this project. Her knowledge about people was one of those things he could exploit.


The next point he was going to bring up was one he was a little hesitant about. No doubt she would use it as an excuse to poke fun at him again, bringing up the very incident that put them here in the first place. He would proceed with caution.


"Well, we should probably set up some type of.... reform program," he said. "In case anybody slips up. Nothing too complicated. Just a sort of.. temporary reminder."


After the bartender nodded, promising he'd tell whoever came looking for her where she was headed, Angeline focused her attention back onto the stranger. She didn't even know his name. She didn't want to. He was handsome, though. She'd lucked out in that regard.


"Excellent," she said, reaching out to him again. She trailed her fingers down his arm until they found his, pulling him up and away, out of the bar, and out into the street. She had no intentions of going very far with this man, but she needed to give him the impression she would to get close enough to finally get a bite. They just needed to reach the inn, then once she got him alone, the deal was sealed.

"Observation?" Ellie ran her fingers through the top of her golden hair, an delicate smile over her lips. She picked up another sheet of paper, standing up from the arm rest and moving around the table. There was one thing about Ellie, she hated staying still or in the same spot for very long. It made her tense and tired, she always had to be moving something.


Almost in an instant her bright blue orbs were looking back up to meet his own, eyebrow raised and a look of amusement overcame her face."Reform school," Ellie tried not to laugh once more, coughing slightly to mask it as she sat back down on the couch, a leg crossed over the other."What do you suggest?"


She looked up to him, an obviously forced 'serious' expression on her face. Her lips tightly pulled in a line as she tried to take what he was about to say seriously."I'm really very curious to know how'd you choose to punish someone like me," Ellie was very much aware of how she made that sound. It was worth it to see his reaction.


Dean disliked the fact that she seemed to be guiding him, this was were he was supposed to be leading her to death. Then again she was an isolated, innocent vampire who had just disobeyed her parents, out and seeking adventure. He figured she was simply eager to go to the next phase of her rebellion.


As they approached the dragon fly he looked around and saw a few families coming out of the inn. He was hoping he wouldn't actually have to pay for a room and could off her somewhere else along the way. But it would seem there was no better privacy then there now. He sighed paying for the room in cash and handing her the key, a delighted smirk on his features."Go wait inside for me, i'll be right there." Dean's voice was smooth and seductive, lingering over every word, his eyes drifting over her dress and back up to her face as he pushed fingers through her hair, tucking it behind her ear."Don't start without me."