Archie slowly walked into the coffee place. His cane made soft thuds against the floor as he walked over to a counter. Someone asked what they could get him. He replied in a rough voice, "Large coffee and some cream." A young lady fixed him a coffee and poured some cream into it. "Here you go, sir." Archie nodded at her and took his coffee to his favorite table by a window. He sipped slowly as he watched all the hustle and bustle outside. Archie was growing tired of being alone and doing nothing. He thought about getting a job at that casino, Ace High, or whatever it was called. Archie took another sip.

He put the thought out of his mind as he watched customers come in from the dark night and purchase drinks. He sipped his coffee and returned to his thoughts.

Nadine sat on the opposite end of the coffee shop.

She flipped a cigarrette around between her bony fingers, then pushed her long matted hair out of her face with one hand and brought it up to her lips with the other. Pulling a lighter of of her denim jacket pocket, she lit it. Almost instantly, an employee was standing directly in front of her. She took one drag, then slowly raised her eyes to stare up innocently at the middle-aged worker.

"I'm sorry but you can't smoke that in here." he told her politely.

Nadine looked at the cigarette in her hand that rested on her knee, then to the empty table in front of her. "Well..what if I buy something?"

"You're welcome to buy something maam, but I'm sorry, you still can't smoke in here."

Nadine nodded. She wasn't one of those asshole vampires who did as they pleased just because she had the power to...although she could admit to herself that she knew the rules before lighting up. She had alternate motives than just simply doing as she pleased. Standing up next to the employee, she gave him the most helpless look she could have possibly forced her defined facial features to possess. "I..I just don't like standing out there at night by myself, you know?" She paused and moved in close to him, subtly sliding her thigh between his legs. "You wouldn't happen to have a break or something anytime soon..would you?" She flicked his nametag. "Hm, Jake?"

Within minutes, he was hers. Undressed, bloody and lifeless in an alleyway not far from the coffee shop.

She re-entered the shop alone, whipping away any of the man's vital fluids that may or may not have still been clinging to her lips.

As she purchased a small green tea, a man sitting by the window caught her eye, surverying his surroundings. She made her way over to a booth not far from himself and sat down. She didn't drink her tea right away, wanting to savour the taste of blood that still lingered in her mouth. Every so often, she'd glance up at the man.

Archie sipped on his coffee. He had the feeling he was being watched. He looked up and saw a young, pale, woman sitting at a table nearby. She seemed to have a tea, but waiting to drink it. She wasn't looking at him now, but he had the feeling she had been.

He met eyes with her for a second. The hair on the back of his neck stood up. Something wasn't right. He had a bad feeling about this woman. Something wasn't right. He took another sip of his coffee. Probably some street prostitue or something. Damn kids. Archie sipped his coffee and tried to put the woman out of his mind.

When their eyes met, Nadine's insides pulsated, as they often did when she hadn't fed in a long time. But that wasn't the case tonight, she had already had her fill. Odd.

Probably some street prostitute or something. Damn kids.
Nadine's ears purked. She was never one to have the skill of listening in on other vampire's thoughts, but mortals were much easier. Still, she heard only part of the sentense. A few muffled words, and 'prostitute'. She grinned, and slowly, eased herself up from the table, moving over to where he sat.

She stared down at him momentarily, expressionless. She turned to stare back at her tea that she had left at her own table, then turned back to the man and sat down across from him. She folded her arms in front of her and glared at him, never letting her michevious grin leave her face. Curious was she, as to what kind of reaction he would give her.

Archie drank his coffee as the woman stood up suddenly. Then she sat in front of him grinning. What is she doing? She trying to get work from a senior citizen?

Archie took another sip of coffee then glanced over at her. "May, I help you...miss?" Archie stirred his coffee as the woman was glaring at him yet grinning in some weird way.

Nadine blinked. To her surprise, he spoke to her. Perhaps she wasn't giving him his due credit.

She shook her head, trying to think of a better excuse as to why she sat with him, besides the fact that playfullness was in her nature, and so far, she wanted meerly to see him squirm. So far, no luck. And then again, she had not yet spoken a word to him.

She turned her head to stare out the window. "I wanted the window seat." she replied plainly, still with an untrustworthy grin smeared across her face. Turning her head back to him, she ran a finger across the inside of her bottom lip. "I'm Nadine...Natty." she told him, almost whispering.

Archie was appalled. She obviously was some prostitute. He stood up. "You have some nerve, young lady." He started hobbling towards the door. "I hope you change your lifesyle and get yourself some self respect."

His cane hit the ground with a dull thud. As he opened the door he muttered loudly, "Damn whores." He walked outside and there was a taxi that had just let someone out. He got inside and told the driver to take him home.

Nadine laughed at the man's choice of word, lifestyle.

Amused, she waved to the taxi as it sped away. Laughing quietly to herself, she went over to the booth and picked up her tea then brought it back to the window seat. She sat down and crossed her legs. Sipping on her tea, and still unable to whipe that grin off her face, she thought back to her previously kill, staring out the window. She was in an abnormaly good mood tonight.

Aiden walked into a the coffee shop, trying to get a good kill in before the night ended. He saw a girl in a booth glancing out a window. She had light matted blonde hair and a denim jacket. Aiden sniffed the air. Unfortunately she was a vampire.

Aiden shrugged. Maybe he could have some fun tonight. He had really gotten along well with any vampires since he arrived in the city. He sat down across from her. He stared at her and sniffed the air again. Blood. She had just had a fresh kill. "So how is the "food" tonight, love?"

Nadine had not seen the vampire come in, or even felt his presence approaching. It wasn't until he spoke that she realized he was there. Her head snapped in his direction, startled.

Nadine's confidence plummeted once she was faced with an immortal, like herself.

She bit her lip.

"Good." she replied simply, nervously picking at the fringe on the side of her cup of tea. She forced herself to look up at the young looking vampire, still biting her lip. Looking at him, again, her insides convulsed. But this feeling was different than the tenseness she felt while watching the human. Hmm. "And yourself?" she asked him coyly. "Any..." She paused, blinking slowly. "...luck?"

Aiden grinned. Her grin seemed confident when she was looking out the window. Now she seemed slightly nervous. Aiden listened to her speak nervously. He replied calmly, "Not since last night. Found a couple of kids doing a drug deal." Aiden shrugged his shoulders, "Disposed of the dealer, and I ate the kids." Aiden laughed.

Aiden could see she was still tense. He reached his hand out and touched her face. He moved his fingers slowly down her cold face. He removed his hand and slapped her softly on the shoulder. "Lighten up kid, you don't have to be so nervous."

Aiden spoke as he lit a cigarette, "What are you like 80 years old or so?" Aiden took a long draw from the cigarette before exhaling smoke. Aiden glanced up and seemed to be surprised about something.

"That's odd, usually some annoying guy named Jake comes and tells me to put out my cigarette..." Aiden glanced over at the female vampire. "What's your name?"

She froze as he ran his fingers down her face, her mouth half open. "I'm not nervous." she told him timidly, lying. The fact that her uneasyness was apparent to him made her feel very vulnerable.

She pushed her cup of tea away from her. Suddenly, she wasn't in the mood for it.

"80?" she repeated, smirking a bit. "Yes. Or close to it." Nadine's eyes were fixed on the hot red amber of his cigarrette as he raised it to his lips. She didn't blink for what seemed like too long.

Her soul was eased a bit when he brought up Jake. Confidence was slightly restored when reminded of her successful and utterly satisfying kill. And she had the feeling that the vampire knew exactly what had happened to Jake, although he didn't let on.

"I'm Nadine." she replied. She didn't give him the whole 'Natty' bit. Only her victims called her Natty...or men who had made a victim out of her. In a strange and warped way, she enjoyed hearing it at times. But already feeling quite vulnerable towards this vampire, it was a name she didn't yet want to hear leaving his lips. "And you are?"

Aiden exhaled smoke from his cigarette as she spoke. "Not nervous, eh?" Aiden laughed again. Aiden watched as her eyes were on his cigarette for a long time. Aiden stared at her for a few moments before she answered his question. Nadine... Aiden removed the cigarette and blew smoke out of his mouth and then he put the cigarette back. "Nadine..." Aiden leaned back puttting his arm on the top of the divider behind him. "I'm Aiden, I just arrived in the city a few days ago."

A long strand of Nadine's hair fell in front of her eyes, and without hesitation she pushed it back behind her ear.

She nodded slowly, not quite sure what to say. "And..do you like it here so far?" she asked him, careful to only make eye contact every once in a while.

Damnit, you coward. she scolded herself.

Under the table, she straightened her short skirt and uncrossed her legs, then moments later, crossed them again, alternating legs. She glanced up at him, then up even higher at the smoke that he had exhaled, rising to the ceiling in all sorts of shapes and forms.

Aiden watched Nadine a few moments before he replied. "It's ok. Nice eats. I'm not fond of the covens. It makes getting a good hunt a little complicated." Aiden exhaled smoke in the air.

"I mean, I was there minding my own business, when some scrawny little vampire came up and told me to leave the girl that I had on my shoulder because he didn't think I should have any fun. I mean, what kind of vampires live in this town? The guy claimed he was a coven leader... These covens sound like empires or something." Aiden exhaled more smoke and spoke in a bitter tone. "Wish I could travel through time, I'd show him an empire..." Aiden glanced at Nadine. She must have been alive during his New York rampage. It might be something to impress her with. Supposing she had a violent tendency. Aiden thought all vampires did, but he wasn't so sure anymore.

Aiden inhaled smoke before exhaling again letting rise to the celing. The vampire before him was pretty good looking. Aiden was looking for a good time. "You don't happen to be in one of these coven's do you...?"

Nadine folded her hands across her lap.

"Me? No. No, I'm not." She then laughed a bit to herself. "Believe it or not, I prefer the company of mortals. The thought of being in a room full of vampires like myself....is intimidating to me." She paused, not sure if she wanted to elaborate on the subject. "Being an independant vampire is the only thing that offers me a sense of dominance."

There were so many vampires in Demaitre, so many. With varying powers, much greater than her own. The thought of it alone made Nadine feel vulnerable to the greatest extent, being in an area where they seemed to be everywhere, traveling in packs.

She made note of the way he looked at her, feeling very shifty about it. She grabbed her cup of tea from where she had pushed it away and looked up at him timidly. "I assume you don't come here for the coffee." she said with a smirk, remarking on the fact that he had not purchased anything.