Midnight walk

[sanguineroyal]

She had lost. Well, of course she had lost. She had expected to lose. The was really little chance of her winning. She had known that. The election hadn't been for actually gaining the position, but making herself known on the ship

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[needs_release]

Sam had been on his way to the City to put another day into seeing if the Ruthwen house was squished in there among the buildings. But he had been distracted by the lovely scent of flowers. Among them was the captivating scent of a certain Vampire Queen. He wasn't sure if her company was good or bad for him, but he was still occasionally intoxicated by her, by her scent, by the power she exuded. Together, they were two souls, tortured, but eternal. It wasn't too much to ask to be comforted in each others' presence, was it?

He was dressed more casually than usual, a pale blue polo shirt tucked into black trousers, with a white belt and his trademark pink sneakers. They were starting to show signs of wear, since it was harder to keep them clean on the ship. However, they ranked with his wedding ring and his cell phone among things that he would treasure above all else as tokens of his home.

"Those are lovely," he said gently to her, from rather close behind her.

[sanguineroyal]

Nanashi heard Sam coming up from behind her. She couldn't mistake the cadence of his footsteps or even the sound of his heart at that point. She let his soft voice wash over her, the same way she was letting the scents wash over her.

She straightened up, closing the gap between them, "One of my human children started this garden for me a long, long, time ago. All but the moon flowers are the same type of flower as she had originally planted. They are truly lovely."

She looked over her shoulder at Sam with a bright smile. "I see you have caught me using the sensoriums again." There was no guilt in that smile- rather the opposite. She bore a grin of the cat who had caught the canary.

[needs_release]

Sam looked the garden over, not surprised in the least that he hadn't managed to sneak up on her. Not that he'd been trying to. "For as much as I've studied, botany is not one of the subjects that has gotten my attention yet." Yet, meaning that as he got older, he would need projects to maintain his attention, and not languish into the apathetic melancholy that was stereotypical of his species.

He smirked, and shrugged, not removing his hands from his pockets. "I'm quite used to people ignoring my medical advice. From my brother checking himself out of the infirmary to run off with his boyfriend, to my Lord pushing himself far farther than he should to protect his house, when he has many loyal people around him that can take over so he may heal. I think I would have been more surprised if you had listened."

[sanguineroyal]

"Flowers tend to die when I try to care for them. Many vampires have this problem in our world. If it were otherwise, I would have studied botany much more closely." She heaved a sigh.

"No, I have not been one to listen to advice about my health. I believe it happens when you are so hard to kill." Nanashi turned around with another sigh, "I take it you love flowers as well."

[needs_release]

"Well, the corollary to sunlight is a problem for us. Usually a household needs to hire a human landscaping company to keep things maintained during the day. The neighbors usually complain if you try to mow the lawn at 3 a.m.," he smirked.

He ran a hand over some blooms, enjoying their texture. Their scent played an impressive symphony across his senses.

[sanguineroyal]

"What do you mean by 'mow the lawn'? Is it some sort of botany phrase?" Nanashi looked inquisitively at Sam. Not only was she not familiar with a mower, she had no concept of a lawn.

Despite her confusion, when she saw Sam caressing some of the flowers she took his hand and began to lead him away, "If you enjoy the feel of flowers, then I must show you these."

She led him further into the garden, managing the complex twists and turns with practised ease until she reached a spattering of red flowers that hung in bunches from bush-like plants. "Amaranths, I believe these are called. Feel how soft the tiny flowers are. It is almost like all the small flowers create one large one."

[needs_release]

He chuckled a bit. "It's how you take care of a lawn to keep the grass cropped short. It's essentially a whirling blade that cuts it down. And it makes a lot of noise."

He let her lead him away. She was being very childlike right now. It was kind of endearing. "Ah, yes, I've heard of these. Lady Katarina had them planted on her property when she was pregnant with her second child. She has an affinity for red when she's pregnant." He ran his hand over the blooms, a soft smile on his face still. It was times like this where he appreciated his heightened sense of smell.

[sanguineroyal]

She still didn't quite understand what a lawn was, however to understand why neighbours would not appreciate it, she only needed to know that it was a loud machine.

She laughed sweetly, "How charming. Children are born among a beautiful burst of red after all. How lucky that Lady Katrina was able to have two children of her very own!" Nanashi took Sam's hand again, and began leading him deeper into the labyrinth.

"I want to show you my favourite blossoms. They are reminiscent of the maw of a great black dragon, in a way. That is at least what someone saw years ago when they named it the 'Black Dragon'. Here it is!" Nanashi pointed out the iris, caressing the velvety petals. It was surrounded by other flowers of it's type, though the edges of the group blended with flowers of bright blue on one side, and purple daisies on the other.

[needs_release]

He kind of enjoyed the personally-guided tour. It gave him a more full understanding of just what kind of woman she was. He looked closely at them, and lifted one a bit away from its companions. "I can see it. Dragons aren't a part of my world, to my knowledge, but now that you mention it..."

[sanguineroyal]

Nanashi leaned in to smell them even better. "I have never personally seen a Dragon. They were made extinct centuries before my birth." She unabashedly let herself brush against his side. "We have many paintings, many tapestries with their likeness on them."

[needs_release]

"They're a fiction for us. As far as I know. I distinctly remember knowing vampires weren't real when I was a child, so I leave myself open to surprises," he answered smoothly. He didn't move away from her.

[sanguineroyal]

She straightened and pressed against him a bit, resting her head on his shoulder. "I wasn't told many stories as a child. I know many now though. Many of my children are talented story tellers."

She was smiling softly, gazing at the flowers. She reached out a hand and gently caressed the petals.

[needs_release]

"It's not so much storytelling as movies, TV, and books and stuff. America lost its oral tradition centuries ago," he replied. He glanced over at her with a kind of fond smile.

"But this really is wonderful. I might need to mention to my Lord and Lady they should consider a garden like this in the future."

[sanguineroyal]

Nanashi smiled, "It is a wonderful garden. The right flowers must be chosen carefully in this case, since being made on a mountain cliff they get strong light in the evening just before sundown, but get almost no light in the morning."

She began to wander towards the far part of the garden where the wall protected people from falling over the cliff edge. "Many flowers burn out in such light."

[needs_release]

He followed her out to the wall. "This is a fantastic view..." he whispered. "I've been a lot of places, but this beats most of them."

[sanguineroyal]

Nanashi smiled brightly, "You honestly believe so? I have not been many places of the like to judge."

She turned to the little white flowers that covered the wall. Their petals were soft, silky, but the stems, leaves and exposed roots on the rock seemed to shine in the moonlight, the way the light reflected off this gel-like coating that covered them. If you looked carefully you could see them shine dotted across the mountain face.

"These," she said, "Are the Vampire's Flower- Moon Flowers. An old name for our race was the Moon Childern, though the humans do not even remember that name. Many vampires have forgotten as well. This flower hides from the sun, and this oil protects the parts that remain exposed."