(Untitled)

[deadmanbrucolac]

Occasionally, there is a vampire. This is one such occasion. He appears to be taking a nap by a glowing pool in the nexus. Why does a vampire need to take a nap, and why out in the open by a big bright bowl of moonlight? He doesn't need to explain himself to you, is why!

Unless you ask, of course.

Comments

[unbornlotus]

Occasionally, there is a Middlewoman. This is also one of those occasions. Granted, those occasions are twice weekly. She can explain why, as it's her job, and she's still waiting for the Aqi'heavi prince -- which would look like a squid to the normal human -- to arrive. On his planet, it is polite to arrive by post and the package hasn't arrived yet.

Don't ask, you really don't want to know.

"People usually try inside to avoid vagrancy misunderstandings."

[deadmanbrucolac]

The vampire in question has a few particular opinions about squid, which are mostly "people seem to enjoy eating them, unless they are fucking gigantic, in which case perhaps let's all leave well enough alone, please", so though he is ignorant of impending squid-lords, it is a grateful ignorance.

He cannot, however, remain ignorant of young women (Top, Middle or Bottom) who come talk to him. His tongue proceeds his words, flickering in a long, forked length out of his lips and thus confirming that he is not, in fact, a mottled corpse. (Well, that and corpses don't tend to just up and appear comfortably arranged next to pools. They tend to either be elsewhere, or sprawled and leaking all over the place.)

"If anyone cannot understand that resting under the starlight by a fountain is pleasant, I'm not sure I care to enlighten them. Besides, it's my pool as much as anyone else's." As long as that 'anyone' is a certain elf princeess, please and thank you.

[unbornlotus]

Wendy shrugs. Other people might be taken aback by the tongue, or even mildly surprised, slightly perturbed, etc.

Not Wendy Watson. "Freaky cool" is all she has to say about that. She almost asks if he can catch flies with that tongue.

"Nothing against lying in the moonlight, or sounding like Lord Byron, and I'm not interested in establishing ownership of the pool. Just checking you aren't lying here, by the pool, because you have to."

[deadmanbrucolac]

He raises an eyebrow and cracks the eye under it open to look at her. Bold little thing, aren't you? You probably come from one of the more interesting worlds.

"And if, for the sake of argument, I was?"

[theoryandproof]

"Is that yours?

[deadmanbrucolac]

The night was thick with nosy women. There are worse things, the Brucolac thought to himself as he opened an eye too look at this latest distraction.

"Consider me its custodian. A faithful watch-dog. Woof woof." It might have been charming, if his voice didn't sound like a giant snake swallowing mouthfuls of gravel.

[theoryandproof]

Phoena comes closer. Conversationally, "Once time my Dad got a dead chicken and poured the blood all over himself and lay around in a nexus hub to see if he could attract a vampire. He wanted to do a behavioural study. His materials and methods section was all wrong, obviously--I've never heard of a chicken vampire." A pause. "I wonder if I could crossbreed a chicken vampire."

[deadmanbrucolac]

"I've yet to see a strain of vampirism that's congenital. Besides, chickens are already so fucking stupid that the difference between a vampire chicken and a zombie chicken would be effectively nil."

He's fairly conversational himself, but not yet warm - still deciding whether or not she's interesting, and in what way.

"Also, do please extend an invitation from me to your scientifically-minded father, if he is still interested in the field of ab-dead psychology."

[tofeelthestars]

Serafina doesn't stay invisible nearly as much as she used to when she first found Xanadu. She is extremely visible when she comes across a glowing moon pool; it mostly catches her attention because she knows the feel of it but this is something new entirely.

She's about to investigate further when she notices the sleeping figure nearby, and she pauses, watching. It doesn't take long for her to realise that this man is also in that strange state between death and living like others in this city. She regards him for a moment, then resumes walking, taking care to step past quietly.

Of course, that's until a certain snow goose dæmon feels the need to land nearby, wings beating loudly.

"Kaisa," her owner whispers with a sharp look. She goes over and picks up the goose (who doesn't protest), hoping she hasn't disturbed nearby occupants.

[deadmanbrucolac]

"If you want to look at the pool, woman, I won't stop you. Wonders like this don't happen just anywhere, even in the nexus."

The dead man with the dead voice says this without moving or opening his eyes. Mostly he's curious about the goose.

[tofeelthestars]

The dæmon relays something in another language and Serafina idly pets her as she draws closer to the moon pool. She puts a hand out to the liquid, not touching --yes, very familiar.

"Remarkable."

[deadmanbrucolac]

"The pooled moonlight of all the worlds whose skies look down upon the nexus. There is nothing like it anywhere. Beautiful to all, but to those who actually understand it," he says, opening his eyes to look at Serafina, "a treasure beyond any price."

[heardmermaids]

Time has no real meaning here and Sebastian returns to the pool some time after he's spoken with Nuala. Wise enough to let sleeping vampires lie, Sebastian takes out a book and has a seat near the edge of the pool.

[deadmanbrucolac]

It is entirely possible that the Brucolac was sleeping under the rippling light the ENTIRE TIME...but if that was true he would probably be a lot more glowy. Who knows?

In any case, now that he is feeling better rested and a bit peckish fiesty, the Brucolac waits for Sebastian to get settled and then employs all of his considerable stealth to suddenly be lounging right here, just behind Sebastian. Which puts him at an excellent angle to snatch the book right out of the poor man's hands.

Spoiled children and cats have nothing on nasty old vampires when it comes to attention getting devices

[heardmermaids]

Unable to stifle his surprise, Sebastian's instinctual response to what he perceives to be an attack causes the air around him to grow thick with a heavy sort of power that almost waver like heat rising off a stone. Once he's able to react consciously, he stands quickly and begins backing away from the Brucolac while whispering into a cupped palm.

[deadmanbrucolac]

"Peace, thaumaturgist," he rasps in what little is left of his voice. He flips over to lay on his back and smiles up into Sebastian's alarm, delighted and utterly unrepentant. "I couldn't do you any mischief here anyway, nor you me."

The nexus he's used to has an AV field, after all. It's prrrobably best that he continue to believe in its presence, whether it's still there or not.