Nastya stepped off the subway with a slow and elegant grace about her movements. She was not in the same rush all these mortals were in, time was not something the Vampiress concerned herself with any longer. Yet she would respect the hurry the mortals seemed to always be in. There lives were so short and fragile she could at least give them the courtesy of standing aside and letting them pass her by as they went about their travels. Nastya took her suitcase towards the wall of the underground where she could pause and take in her new surroundings. This was her first trip to Demaitre of course it was a city she had always meant to visit but things out of her control kept halting her travel there. At long last she could find no reason not to make the trip and carefully planned the journey to Demitre so she could avoid the sun and sleep with out mortals disturbing her. Nastya did love to travel and visiting vampires in other parts of the world. She looked though the crowds of people trying to detect a sent or unnatural pale face that might have arrived to meet her at the station. Climbing the stairs with her suitcase behind her she entered the station-watching mortals buying their tickets or leaving the underground. Once again she stood off to the side looking around for a sign of another who might be looking for her.
She could pick up the sent of vampires not far from her. It wasn’t hard to tell they were hunting or commuting on the Subways passing themselves off as mortals. There were also those who did not wish to be seen or detected. There was no doubt they were there ,Nastya sighed and opened her purse finding the address of St. Mary scribbled down in her address book. She had been told that was the home of The Nephim Coven, or rather what was left of it.

Nastya made her way to a bench that was unoccupied more then likely because it was enveloped in shadow the light above it broken. The seat was also in a security camera blind spot not a desirable place for Mortals but for a vampire it was ideal. She sat down relaxing after her long trip The Vampiress would wait for a while then if none of the vampires in the Subways wished to make themselves known to her she would call a cab to take her to St. Mary’s.

There was an aura of… something on the air this evening. It was heavy, like a blanket of fog floating just before the ground that clung to you like taffy as you tried to pass through it. Below her skin, her energy, her power, her magic – whatever word you wanted to use – thrummed, answering this unknown call. Walking down a quiet street of Demaitre, an anomaly to be sure, she felt the urge to go somewhere. Intuition, precognition, or a simple hunch, they were usually right, and it was for that reason that Lorelei Magnhild, a Nephim member, stopped in her tracks. Turning to peer over her shoulder, she caught sight of the stairs that descended to the subway system. As a general rule, she didn’t ride the infernal contraption, preferring to walk most everywhere. Indeed, there was no place that was important enough that she felt she had to rush there, or if there was, it was far from her mind on this starry eve under the watchful eyes of the phosphorescent orange eyes of the towering guardians of the street. A hint of a smile played on her lips, making her face seem thinner somehow, and she turned, swinging around to descend to the shadowy chasm beneath the city where the beasts of metal burrowed their way through the concrete earth.

Descending down the stairs, her footfalls made almost no sound, just a passing shuffle before they were gone. The numerous pendants and beads that adorned her bosom, however, clattered and clinked, taking great joy in being as loud as possible and drawing as much attention as they could. Save for the vivid personality of her jewelry, she seemed to be no more than a shade, moving swiftly and silently through the throngs of people about her. Her walk was such that she seemed not to move, or even glide, but simply to float along, much akin to a bee flitting from one flower to the next in a desperate search for something that was ingrained into every fiber of its psyche. While Lorelei was not sure she’d go so far as to claim that what she felt now went so very far as that, there was definitely a pull in this direction. She continued forth through the people, the collective thrum of their heartbeats creating a symphony within her mind, so vivid she could almost see the vibrations from all directions. While comforting to be immersed in such a thing, a stone sinking to a comfortable bed of mud, she knew that they were not her reason for being here.

A dim voice came from the speakers in walls, relaying the information of the subway. Was that what she wanted? No. No, that wasn’t it. Coming to a stop in the middle of the bustling ground, she twirled a piece of hair around her finger, as she often did when she was nervous. For what possible reason could she be here? Truthfully, she wasn’t exactly certain. Standing still, in the middle of a busy station, steel blue eyes staring towards nothing, she made quite a sight. A few stopped to inspect her, thinking her – not for the first time – to be one of those mortals who sat where the crowds converged and spoke of the future. Well, they would not be wrong, save for thinking her mortal.

Her head turned suddenly. Without knowing quite where she was being led, she let her feet walk. They had never led her too far astray before now, and she was inclined to think that they enjoyed existence as much as she did. The host of people parted before her like a heavy velvet curtain. Cocking her head to one side so pale blonde hair fell cutely about her face; a smile blossomed on her face, making her seem young. Here was what she was looking for – or who she was looking for, rather. This woman was most obviously Nephim, and as Lorelei could not remember ever having seen her before, she assumed she must be knew in town. The poor dear! All alone in a new city, and presumably without anyone to turn to. She was quite aware of how such a thing could come to pass, and had quite a bit of empathy for the woman, despite the fact that she had neither met nor spoken to the woman.

With a small bounce in her step, she walked over and sat beside the woman, staring ahead. “I suppose you’re waiting for someone,” she said, her voice soft, with the strange lilt of an accent that was so subtle, it was indistinguishable. “I believe I was the one, although I may be mistaken.” Now she did turn to look at the other woman. “You are seeking the Nephim, are you not?”

Nastya sat and waited on the bench there was no hurry to go anywhere. The Subway was surprisingly relaxing to her. She was glad she had decided to take the Subway from the Airport rather then the Taxi this was far more exhilarating. She fidgeted with the pockets of her coat drawing out a letter and quietly thinking to herself. perhaps i should have informed some one in the Demeitre coven that I was coming. Too late for that now here she was in the city her arrival unknown to others. It would not be the first or last time Anastasya would do this. Svetlana had often complained to her about it when they traveled together. Nastya laughed softly to herself opening the letter from her dear vampire cousin, Svetlana had parted ways with Anastasya about two years ago when making the trip though Europe. For them it wasn’t such a long time two years in an immortal existence was nothing at all. Opening up the letter Nastya smiled seeing dear Svetlana’s horrible Cyrillic scrawl mixing in old letters and hard signs no longer used by the modern Russian language.
Dear Nastya London in absolutely beautiful this time of year you would enjoy it. I’m writing you this quick note to let you know all is well for me and I hope all is good for you too. I celebrate Christmas with a delightful tiny Ukrainian style church very quaint and I may even conceder returning in time for Easter. However I did promise you to be back home in time for Easter so that we may celebrate together and I will uphold my promise. The church can always wait for another year.

I want to know about your Journey how is Canada? Have you found a place to stay you silly girl, did you even announce your arrival or are you going to show up at the Coven’s house and expect them to have room for you. I still have not forgiven you after that trip to France where you just assumed out dear Cousins would welcome us with open arms. Lucky for you they did or I would make you sleep out in the crypts with the corpses and ghosts. You know I wouldn’t do that dear Nastya but some times you make me so angry.
I must leave you now I am going to the theater tonight and seeing as you are not here to do my hair for me I must employ the services of a mortal hairdresser.
All My love Beautiful Cousin
And please write back to me you always say you will but never do it,

Yours
Sveta
Nastya put the letter aside with a rare smile. Sveta you know me too well.

She could since a presence getting closer to her, but it wasn’t one to alarm her. She could feel no act of aggression in this one so she sat and waited for the vampire to come to her.
Anastasya looked up at the woman before her nodding” I was waiting for you.” She said she spoke rather good English how ever there was a mild hint of her Russian in the w being pronounced slightly like a v and the o and r’s carrying a deeper richer sound then in English. “ I do seek the Nephim, are you here to show me the way?”
She stood bobbing her head respectively in greeting. “ I am Anastasiya Vladimirovna Ivanovskya and who do I have the pleasure of meeting?”

A second after she had spoken, her attention drifted. To where, or when, was a mystery to anyone looking on. Her eyes simply grew glassy, like tears threatened to fall. Her head turned slightly to regard the crowd with childlike inquisitiveness. Absently, she wondered at the lives they led. Were they married? Did they have children? It had been a pastime of hers for as long as she could remember – watching people, that is. Even when they came to her so long ago in the Norwegian mountains, she’d always tried to guess who they were, and why there were there to see her before they even opened her mouth. That same gaze slid back to the woman next to her. What was her story, this vampire who had simply shown up and waited? It was quite apparent that she hadn’t made any prior plans before coming, or else Lorelei would not have been the one she was waiting for. There would have been some dashing man (as the woman was, after all, Nephim), or perhaps a lovely woman friend. Not her, a random stranger who was pulled to her by the whim of something far greater than even she herself, after over a thousand years, could understand.

Jumping as if startled that the woman next to her did indeed have a voice, Lorelei offered her another wide smile. This woman seemed nice enough, and didn’t seem the type to analyze everything to death. That was good. Lorelei was all for looking at things in the most abstract way possible. Life was little more than a painting. Every set of eyes that looked upon them, shaped by circumstances entirely beyond their control, saw through different colored glass. There were no two that could agree on life, and all that it entailed. The mere fact that she’d simply concurred with her statement was enough to tell Lorelei that she’d like this woman. After all, despite the power the gods poured into her Runes, a very big part of telling one’s destiny was the way they carried themselves, and the way they perceived the world.

Tilting her head to the side again, the smile became slightly more mysterious. What it was in her face that made this transformation was a mystery. A small quirk of the cheek perhaps? The thinning of the smile? Whatever it was, it suddenly made her look as old as the spirit that resided in her body actually was. Years of knowledge, of mystery, of secrets peered out through those eyes, passing before them light will-o’the-whisps in the night, leading the unwary astray into territory where they might find themselves lost forever. “It depends why the seeker seeks those who are sought,” was the cryptic reply that answered the first question asked. “If the seeker has bad intentions, then the way shall remain obscure, and the guide shall vanish into nothingness,” Lorelei snapped her fingers, “and be gone from all eyes.” A pause. “If, however, the seeker seeks the sought for the truest of reasons – love, knowledge, spiritual enlightenment, companionship – then perhaps the guide that is me can show you the secret path to the sacred place.”

Whether all these fancy words were simply Lorelei’s way of making this woman before her uncomfortable, trying to make her laugh, or just how she had come to be over the years remained a mystery. There was the slightest hint of impishness in her eyes though, something that suggested that on the inside, behind that cool mask of mystery, there was a child who was giggling at her own silliness.

“It is very nice to meet you, Anastasiya Vladimirova Ivanovskya,” came the formal reply, with a curt bow of the head. “I have been called Lorelei Magnhild for as long as the sun and moon have set upon my existence… As for the chance of our meeting, why, I would think that was obvious. The Gods have simply decided it be our fate to meet here, at this very spot, at this very time. And if not, why, it must be an elf or a dwarf, seeking to cause much trickery this evening.” She said this with almost a completely straight face, so it was not apparent whether she was actually serious about this or not.

She was.

Anastasya stood listening in silence as the woman spoke to her. In the first few moments of there meeting Nastya was already formulating her opinion on her. She was an odd one that was certain. Yet nearly all the vampires of great age introduced to Nastya had seemed rather peculiar. This oddly enough gave her great comfort, Anastasya cherished her time with those far older then herself, even enjoying the many quirks of ancient vampires. She herself must have seemed strange to vampires she had met. After three hundred years she still attended church, and sang , and acted much like the young lay she appeared to be. The latter could be most irritating to some in her company. She thought back to the time she was in France fixing up her hair in the back of the taxi as they drove to the ballet. This had been most annoying to the other vampire passengers complaining that she should act her age rather then how she appeared.

Nastya did not smile at Lorelei it wasn’t her way, her eyes showed the smile her lips did not create. Her head would nod ever so slightly to show she was listening drinking in every word. At last she opened her mouth to speak softly in the most friendly of manners.
“Lorelei Magnhild I carry no ills for you or anyone else in this city. I came to visit, and meet, and see those of the Nephim coven. I must apologies that the Coven leader is not expecting me. I have developed the nasty habit of traveling wherever my heart leads. Yet Saint George leads me to you so I’m sure I am in capable hands. I wish to see all this beautiful city has to offer.”

Lorelei was old, yes. The younger ‘generation’ of vampires might even go so far as to call her an ancient. In sooth, however, she felt very much like a child much of the time. Although she was over a thousand years old, and had come to understand the multitude of patterns that created everything around her. There were certain things that came into existence again and again. There were mistakes that seemed to be instrumental for human development, for they were made again and again. Civilizations grew. Civilizations were built, perfected, before crumbling and lost in the cold North wind, bringing them to the underworld. Leaders rose and fell in within the blink of an eye, and heinous deeds occurred, only to be preserved in the hearts of those they touched. Theories of the world came and went, and religion motivated heinous deeds.

All this came to pass again and again, so she could hardly claim she felt that old. It was like watching one of those moving pictures over and over again, but the actors kept changing. It gave her no real insight, no real wisdom except concerning the people themselves. There were times when she rarely had to read the Runes people paid her to. She knew what they would say before they were cast, because there had been another person, with another name, and a different appearance with the exact same problem. When she saw one of these people, thousands of other faces, thousands of different names ran though her mind. In that aspect of things, she was old. In that aspect of things, she’d seen much – wars, celebrations, genocide, the birth of new worlds… All this had risen and set before her, etching invisible lines in the contours of her face. It was the people, not the time that had passed, that made her truly ancient. She understood people probably better than they did.

Standing, her skirt flowed about her. Lorelei gave a large and decorous nod of her head. “If you mean no harm, then I suppose it is my duty – and my priviledge – to escort you to the inner sanctum, where we of the Shadow walkers dwell beneath the ground that gave birth to the world.” Then she shrugged, a gesture that meant everything and nothing; it was completely ambiguous. “Have no fear. The coven leader does not condone those who simply show up to join our ranks in this center city. You’ll undoubtedly be welcomed, should you encounter him.” Her smile drooped slightly at the mention of the Saint, but then it was back in place, as bright and welcoming as before. “Come, I will show you the delights of the city.”

Turning, she began to walk away, not even waiting for Anastasiya to agree, simply believing she would, and trusting that she’d be followed.

Anastasya smiled standing and taking her suitcase with her. She followed the woman with out invite to do so.” I do look forward to seeing the city I’ve heard a great many things about it. I also hope to meet the Coven leader should that be possible, do tell me all about him.” Her voice carried the youth of an excited sixteen year old as she spoke.
She had noticed Lorelei reaction when she mentioned the saint but paid little notice to it. She knew vampires took things different ways she just hoped she had not offended the vampires. She mentally noted to not do it again if possible.

“Thank you for taking me. I was going to get a Cab but I can’t stand being in those things the mortal drivers are pleasant enough but they always ask so many questions. Granted I’m not much better but you understand.’ She smiled blushing ever so slightly Nastya did like to talk that was for certain.

“There must be many vampires here. That is all I could see since stepping off the plane. Especially this place the subway is like a haven for them. I’ve heard about the problems this city has been having. I hope the violence has calmed down I haven’t heard much lately so I hope it has.” She spoke quietly so not to attract mortals to there conversation.” The world is a dark enough place with out vampires killing vampires.”

Steel blue eyes looked back at her in a rather unsuspicious way. The new Nephim was following her. That was good. Mind you, it was unlikely that Lorelei would have stopped walking away had the woman not followed her. She might have called back, telling Anastasiya to join her, but most probably wouldn’t have stopped outright. She’d made perfectly clear – she thought – that she meant for the girl to follow her. “Demaitre is indeed a city where the mundane seems to skitter off into oblivion,” she said by way of response. “With so many of us seeking refuge in the shadows that lurk behind the façade of a modern city, there is never a dull night, I assure you.” She paused, considering her next words, and mulling them over in her head. “Our coven leader is rather young, and rather new in his post. Great insecurity swims about him, but he genuinely cares for our well-being. He will meet you if his schedule permits.” A ghost of a smile crossed her lips. “Even I have not yet had the pleasure of meeting him, but I can see his spirit floating about him, whispering some of the secrets of his soul.”

If she found that particular phrase even the slightest bit disconcerting, it didn’t show on her genial face.

“Questions are the only way to learn things. If you do not question, you walk this world learning almost nothing.” Lorelei gave a quiet laugh. “My entire existence has been based around questions that seek answers that cannot come from any other source.” Looking back over her shoulder, she gave a wink at the younger vampire. “I suppose it is a privilege of mine that I have had so long to perfect my craft. Having time stretch about you gives you plenty of time to learn the secrets that have now become lost to the trees and the mountains.” Slowing down to walk next to the other vampire, Lorelei continued, “And let me assure you, it is my pleasure. We must walk, however, as I have never felt any inclination to learn to drive one of those dreadful beasts called the automobiles.” It seemed that the cryptic Lorelei had been shed, and the more open, friendly, and frank one had emerged.

“Dark, is it?” Stroking her chin, the blonde woman looked at nothing, thoughtful. “I suppose you could say it is dark… but if that is so, then it has forever been dark. There has always been death, and cruelty, and pain, but they are not curses, they are gifts, for they allow us to grow, to feel, to change. They bring out the best in us. To find the goodness, you must only find one person doing a courteous deed to another. To find the goodness, you must only look upon the newly awakened flower born from a womb of earth. The world is neither black, nor white. It is both, as it was meant to be.”

Anastasiya walked briskly her suitcase wheeling behind her. It was one of those fancy modern cases with wheels and long handles in which to pull the thing along, this pleased the vampire greatly. Her heels clicked on the cement floor as she walked catching up with the other Vampire who was kind enough to slow down for her.
Her head nodded slightly as she walked showing she was taking in every word. She did not smile outright but her dark eyes carried the hint of happiness her lips did not reveal. “ I am of the opinion the coven could do with more like him. The younger ones have so much to offer us we should encourage them to go further rather then hold them back. I’m sure he is very busy in city like this, I will not trouble him for an audience if at present he is over taxed as it is. I am in no hurry I can always return to Demaitre for another visit, and I do hope to do so. “

The wheeled suitcase jerked and bounced as it was rolled over uneven ground, this didn’t bother Nastya in the slightest. She continued to walk on with not tired or out of breath despite her long trip and the heavy case she carried. “ An evening walk is most pleasurable when it can be done with friends. I prefer it to a taxi ride any night, I should not allow myself to get lazy now after centuries of relying on walking.” A hint of a smile was appearing seeing her companion was becoming relaxed in her presence.

She nodded seeing the truth in Lorelei’s words about the world. “ We should never fight as they do, some will argue that it is our nature but I disagree. We should enjoy the immortality gifted to us and use it for good rather then our own amusement. Perhaps I take the coven rules far to seriously, perhaps that is why our ranks have been thinning out over the past centuries. How ever I still think that we should not wallow in blood and be charitable to those who live such fragile lives. Members of our French Coven often teased me for being too generous to the mortals doing everything short of telling them what I am. I think this is garbage for those charities I assist would never suspect a vampire signs the monthly checks. Perhaps too many of us have forgotten what it was like when we were mortal. I know I will not forget, I still remember the cold winter nights when my family might not eat for days on end. It is a sin people still suffer as I had suffered. “

Nastya looked around taking in everything as she walked. “ I know I will like it here. Are there many in the coven or have they all parted ways?”

Lorelei’s own shoes made a much softer sound than that of her companion. While she did not disdain high-heeled shoes, they were impractical for walking, even for one of those subjected to walk the endless plains of eternity. Her own shoes were not quite as high, and looked to be made of something remarkably similar to buckskin. Indeed, the whole of her appearance seemed to go somewhat against the norm, and anyone looking at her would be able to tell that she was not the average woman upon the streets. Her many necklaces jangled as she walked, each with some mystical connotation that was lost upon almost everyone. Still, despite her eccentric exterior – and her eccentric interior, for that matter – she walked with a confidence that few possessed. She accepted every aspect of herself, the good and the bad, and therefore had no reason to be self-conscious.

Resting her chin on her shoulder to look at the other woman, Lorelei’s head swam. “You are right in that. There is much that the younger has to offer. They are better equipped to wear the mask of mortality in this day and age, while those of us who remain badgered by it all find our own masks peeling at the edges, and threatening to fall off completely.” She nodded, to herself mostly, as if she agreed very much with what she’d just come to say. “But you must not forget the wisdom that looking out through the ages can bring either. They can tell us how to rectify the mistakes that they have seen made time and time again. They can perhaps postpone the inevitable. The young and the old are like the sun and the moon.” She held out her hands, like she were holding the sun in one, and the moon in the other. “One cannot be appreciated without the other. Without the sun, there would be no moon. Without the moon, no one would appreciate what the sun gave to us. Both must exist, so we can see the beauty of both.”

Content, she nodded almost happily, like a child who’d been told they’d be getting a present later that day. “I much enjoy walking. The stars always have a different picture to paint, a different story to tell.” Emerging out of the subway station, the black sky grew above them. Spreading her arms, she twirled in circles. They were not fast circles, so she did not stumble precariously, but slow and gentle, as if she were memorizing and loving every wisp of breeze she created with her movements.

Then, she stopped abruptly, turning to look at Anastasiya, looking like she’d just aged a decade. “But what is immortality? What is mortality? Can you really define such a thing so easily? We can die, therefore we are not as immortal as some would claim. But who is to say that this is the only life we are given? What if there is truth in these words of reincarnation? Then are we not all immortal? Our bodies will die, but our souls will remain forever. And even if reincarnation is not true, and we simply go to rest with the gods – or god – for all of eternity? Would that not be a form of immortality?” Taking a deep breath, she turned to look up at the sky. “I understand what you say, but in order to accept them… You must venture to think about what makes something what it is. No matter what manner of creature we all are, we all suffer. Are we really so very different from the mortals in this state? I do not think so, and that being so, who’s to say that you should care for them more than you care for us who stalk the night? There are far less of us to help each other than there are of humans. Some might say, help one another, and leave the humans to their own designs.” Lorelei smiled. “I am not one of that number. I believe that we all exist in some grand tapestry. We all – all not being limited to our kind, and the kind of the human folk – have a part to play.”

That being said, her smile grew. “The number of Nephim is small in this city. They come and go, and hide in the shadows we love so well. There are few who are constantly about. However, you might encounter one when you least expect it.” The secretive gleam returned to her eyes.

(sorry short)

Anastasiya walked beside Lorelei casting the occasional glance in the strange woman’s direction. So self-assured in her every movement, that was refreshing to see. For a moment she envied the elder for freely expressing herself in her garbs, and no mortal giving a second glance. Anastasiya herself looked much like the mortals around them, except her clothing was far more elegant then the average subway traveler. She wondered if she would be like this older vampire when she reached such an age. Would she garb herself as she once had and walk the night uncaring of mortal eyes that fell upon her? What a delightful thought that was for her.
As Lorelei spoke Nastya listened pulling her suitcase behind her the wheels making clicking sounds on the pavement. She said nothing only nodded in agreement to the vampire’s words looking up at the night sky as they left the depths of the subway. The cool air struck her face how good it felt.

Anastasiya laughed softly at her companion’s antics as she waved her arms in circles to the night air. How childlike this made the elder seem, beautiful and innocent. When she stopped abruptly to speak again Nastya sighed picking up the pace of her steps so she was no longer behind the woman rather walking next to her. It was a long while before she said a thing when she finally did it was in a soft voice that fitted her youthful appearance. “I don’t know. You are right we all suffer.” Her voice became a little cross perhaps more so then she had wanted. “ Don’t suggest that I care nothing for my brothers and sister. I care for them and love them all regardless of which coven they chose to follow.” Sighing Anastasiya stopped herself.” Forgive me my friend I am tired after my long journey and not being as gracious as I should be.” She bowed her head feeling ashamed of her actions. “ I do hope I have not offended you.”
She sighed again watching Lorelei’s face carefully to see if the pleasant smile had faded or not. “ It sadness me how few of us are left to wander the world. However they always come to me when I need them. Like you did.”

Lorelei was nothing if not herself, however eccentric and odd it may have seemed to those who passed her on the street. That being said, Lorelei was also very much like a river, cutting through the landscape – only in this instance, the landscape was time, and Lorelei was the water, constantly shifting and changing, never the same as it was a second before. She wove through time in a dance that was her own, to a music that only she could hear – or a music that anyone could hear, did they only open their ears to it. She meshed herself perfectly with the world around her, though perhaps not the world that most were used to. She was a part of the wind, of the trees, of the very earth itself, and not a part of the metal temples that rose into the sky with skirts of flowing orange light. In this sense, she seemed to be on the outside of everything else due to her odd perspective, and odd manner of behaving, but in her opinion, it was everyone else, every person who did not view life in the way of her and her esteemed lineage of völvas, who saw and felt the world in completely the wrong way. She never voiced it quite so bluntly though, so most people had no idea she felt like this at all.

There was laughter, and she laughed as well. It wrapped around her like an echo in a large building, odd and not quite human. She stopped spinning as the woman came up next to her. Again, she cocked her head in that oddly animalistic way she had, looking at Anastasiya like she was seeing some spirit deep within her, knowing all her secrets, and all the answers to her questions. “Suffering is in the mind. We do it so that we might learn, and so that we might give physical proof of our pain to others… but like pain, you can choose not to accept it.” She blinked at the younger woman, with large, owlish eyes, her face serene despite the irritated tone of her companion. “I did not say that you did not care for your kind,” she said plainly, shrugging a shrug that reinforced her point. “I was simply speaking the words that have been spoken to me before, like Echo from the Greek myth, who was forced to do naught but repeat what others said to her for all eternity.”

She walked forward, her hands behind her back. “You did not offend me. Being offended when no harm is meant is foolish. Most things I forgive before the person knows what I am forgiving. It makes such things much more swift. Why waste time with things so foolish as grudges?” Again she shrugged, smiling. “You have no reason to be gracious. I have done nothing to deserve it. When I bring you to the Nephim house, you may be grateful, but until then, I have done nothing to warrant your thanks or gratitude.” She walked forward, jingling, her eyes on the sky.

“We are all tied together by an invisible thread. When one tugs, there is naught for others to do but tumble in the direction they were pulled.” A pause. “And there are just enough of us. If there are two few, there will be more. If there are too many, there will be less. The balance is always maintained, one way or another.”

Anastasiya walked beside Lorelei watching her with out staring rudly at her. Nastya's heels clicked on the pavement how she loved this sound. Every click of the modern heeled shoes gave her a sence of power she had never expeienced before. With out realizing she was doing it she held herself up like the noble women she had watched in years long since past. Lorelei ya aacted so free, it made Anastasiya a little envyous of the elder walking beside her. Anastasiya was always bound to: The nobility, the church, and the coven. She didn't hate this as such, it was just a great confusion for her. The more she tried to find her true self the more she realized that her true self was who she currently was.

She nodded feeling a little embarrassed should Lorelei noticed the way she had been walking. " Sorrow is such a depressing subject, true we all feel sad from time to time." She paused for a moment thinking of the words Vladimir her maker had often said to her when she troubled by the thought of eternity. They had alwasy comforted her when she felt the weight of the world rested on her back. " There is so much for us to be happy for as well. We must love and be joyous as well." She continued smilling. " Papa always said God does everything for a reason, we are the way we are for a purpose. " She smilled a little bit thinking of her maker. " I know not everyone agrees, but I always took comfort in thinking it."

Anastasiya pulled her suitcase over a rut in the sidewalks feeling it jolt as she tugged it. " I will be most greatful when you take me to the coven house. Is it far? Not that I don't enjoy walking with you but I really want to see everyone before I have to retire for the day. "

(sorry for the delay and for the shortness)

Lorelei never felt completely powerful, not even when she lured an unknowing victim into her bed, completely ignorant about the fate that awaited him. No, for one such as she, it was impossible. Her mindset was, and always had been, that she was little more than a puppet to be guided. How could she be powerful if she didn’t think she controlled all her own actions? It was something that most people found incredibly hard to understand about her – she didn’t believe in free will. She believed that everything she did was attributed to Fate, and that the gods controlled her every thought, action, emotion. In this sense, she usually felt very much like a child being guided by the loving hand of a mother or father. There was no child on earth that felt completely powerful over a parent that was infinitely larger than they themselves. There was no person on earth that felt they could measure up to the full stature of a God.

Nodding, Lorelei replied, “That is true. We all do feel pain from time to time. It is a burden we, as mortal or vampire, must all bear. But there are times – most times – when we must decide whether we will let it bother us or not. Trivial things do not warrant tears. Material things do not warrant tears. There are even times when death doesn’t warrant tears.” She pulled her hair over one shoulder and fiddled with it, thinking of Clovis. “There are, however, circumstances that warrant it.” A sad smile. “Love and pain most often go hand in hand, and it is this dangerous combination that usually results in tears.” She looked at the woman, pointedly ignoring the monotheistic theme of her words. “But you’re right. All the pain and suffering – as well as the love and joy – are all governed by destiny. It is for this reason that we should not regret, no matter how difficult that may seem.”

It was difficult. It hurt her heart, until she pushed it away, refusing to let such memories and emotions overwhelm her. Smiling her friendly smile once again, she said, “Oh, it is not far. It’s found at St. Mary’s church. The catacombs are found below it. A mile, no more, then you will be able to meet those Nephim who reside in this city, and sleep for the day.”

((OOC: Feel free to end it, or just leave and head to the catacombs to meet some other Nephim, if you’d like. ^^))

Anastasiya smilled picking up the pace as she walked beside the elder. " I look forward to meeting them, And perhaps the coven leader whome you spoke so elegantly about. That is if he has time for me I'm sure his evenings are far too busy to meet with me right away. I have grown to love this city in my first moments here. I think it will be the most enjoyable visit."

The church could be seen now, not the large towering buildings she had stayed in before but in its own way it was inviting where as the others were not. There was no doubt their were other vampires close by Nastya could feel them. Looking to Lorelei then back at the building she bobed her head."Thank you for bringing me here."

(Continued in Nephim board)