The vampire did not need to wait long to enter the snazzy club. Catching the rather amature bouncer's eye, he sent a few shy smiles his way and was soon allowed in. Verité was not really hunting tonight .. More like a look at the scenery. To see who was available and who wasn't; that sort of thing. Tonight, the pale young man was simply going to observe. That is, unless something else should arise and he might not be able to continue blending in to the background. Tonight, Mr Ganduin felt on top of the world. He fed a night or so ago, and so his senses were a tad heightened and he had an attractive glow of life upon his pearly skin. Those dark, intelligent eyes were full of an irresistable darkness, a key weapon he could use to successfully lure unknowing women and men alike to him. Although .. As of late, he had found himself watching the men more so than the women.

Verité hadn't had quite so many sexual encounters with men, but he couldn't deny that he had enjoyed them for the erratic pleasure they provided. Adjusting his fitting ebony blazer he elegantly lowered himself into a conviniently placed lounging chair upon a high balconey that overlooked the entire club. There he sat, watching, noting, and observing.

Congratulations, Mr. Vampire, you're not going to be running into a guy in the next few seconds. Nope, Verite, you're going to be meeting our one and only Joellie Henderson--resident Naga afraid of snakes. Odd, but I assure you it's one hundred percent true.

The red head wandered through the place, short and out of place. She really didn't know what it was she was doing there. A couple of the girls from the orchestra insisted on her getting out. They said she didn't have a life. Oh, but this was just a ploy to get her drunk and she knew it. They had a playing test tomorrow and everyone (almost everyone) wanted to see her fail. This was why Joellie extracted herself from her "friends" as soon as possible.

Her curly hair was pinned back with random bobby pins. It made her look like some red-headed greek from the history books. Except for her eyes, they were a lovely shade of blue-green. Definately not a Greek quality. There are pretty, dangly earings in her ears which hit the side of her neck when she turns and they accent her bare neck nicely. She's wearing a camisole tank top with lace along the top and jeans that bring definate notice to her behind. Joellie doesn't have much of one which is why these jeans are her favorite--they make it seem like she does.

While she's ducking away from her friends, she winds up going up the stairs and ducking into a man instead. Dangerously close the balcony, I might add.

Verité had allowed his dark eyes to drift upon the scarlet-haired female as she escaped the others she had come with, but soon he had found himself watching a particularly willowy young man weave in and out of the crowd and towards the exit. He looked .. distressed. Perhaps Verité could provide some much needed comfort? A small smile came across his pale lips as he slowly made to stand up, right as the red-head stumbled into the chair.

"Egh, are you alright?" He had clearly not been expecting the sudden contact with someone, and was more irritated than shocked. The French in his voice was very noticeable, the accent coating his three words as he rose to his full stance and attempted at helping the pretty girl to her full balance once again.

He was still keen on following that young man, however. Ahh, so many people to charm, so little time.

"Oh I'm sorry, I didn't mean..." she got a good look at his face, "Gods, you're beautiful..."

Oh yes, she's already had something to drink tonight, otherwise she wouldn't have said it. Here's a fun fact: Joellie has a low alcohol tolerance!

The 'young' man was slightly taken by surprise at her second comment, but one whiff of her breath and it was fairly obvious as to what caused such words to come from the female. That, and the fact that he was dressed to the hilt tonight. The fitting blazer was again tugged down to be smoothed out as he slowly slid his hands from her forearms and looked her over. Her crimson hair was pinned back into a style that indeed remind him of a greek goddess painted in old books of history, while her eyes contricted such beauty in place of their own.

He found himself studying her face for a moment longer than he should have before brushing a few locks of pearly chestnut from before his deep gaze. "Why .. Thank you ..?" Verité chuckled lightly before offering his hand. "Verité," His name was stated rather awkwardley--he always found it odd to hear his own name spoken to another after such long periods of time had passed without him doing so. "What may I call you, miss?" The polite tones were, of course, tainted with that lovely accent of his.

I wouldn't say tainted...perhaps laced, attenuated.

She's not drunk, just uninhibited at the moment. Joellie hasn't had so much to drink that she'll have a hangover or anything--just enough to be a bit looser in the mind then normal.

"I'm Joellie, hi. Nice to meet you."

Her eyes wandered around for a moment to get a better look at the club. So this was what one looked like. Nice, she guessed.

"So do you come here often or were you suckered into coming, like me?"

The vampire studied her face as she spoke, taking in her pretty features and half intending on memorizing them. He smiled at her name, it was faintly familiar to him .. but there was no face to match it to except for hers.

He inclined his head ever so slightly as she asked him of his reason for being there. Suckered? Verité chuckled quietly, a smile illuminating his porclien features. "No, no. Not often; but I did come here on my own." The young man allowed his gaze to leave her, falling to the giggling girls she'd come with. "Are those your friends?"

"Friends? Ha, hardly. They just want to get me drunk so I'll miss school or mess up horribly."

She grinned at him, sort of ruefully while she was talking about the girls who guided her into the place. In a flash of inspiration, her smile turned sly and she looked at him through the corner of her eye.

"I have an idea."

Verité's expression darkened slightly and his eyes narrowed a tad. Was there no compassion in this world? Those girls wishing for Joellie to miss her classes, and to eventually fail. There he went again, feeling such instant sympathy for a person he'd known hardley six minutes. But his brow inclined slightly at her next words and he found himself leaning in a tad closer to show he was listening. The vampire felt he already knew what her plan may be.

"Oh, really?"

"What if we made them think I was drunk?" Notice she said 'we'? That's right, Joellie is comfortable with this stranger. She is drunk, after all.

She nudged him with her shoulder, looking down at the girls with that same sly grin.

"Think we could pull it off?"

Verité smiled slowly, and nodded. Well, he would give into this instant sympathy for the young girl. "I'll help any way I can, then." Chucklechuckle.

"Well come on! Let's go!"

Her hand found his and she pulled him towards the stairs and grabbed an empty drink from a nearby table. She turned around to him, obviously enjoying herself.

"Would you mind being my 'one night stand'?" Oh yes, she's definately under some sort of influence. Without realizing it, she's gotten rather close to Verite. Almost touching chest to chest.

The vampire laughed as she took his hand. Well, he wanted to learn even more than he knew of humans again, and this was a perfect oppurtunity. How could he say no now?

"I'd love to," He grinned coyley, noticing how she was mere inches from him. "Shall we, then?" Verité glanced again towards her 'friends'.

She flashed a genuine, wide, bright smile at him. It was amazing how happier she seemed with a drink in her...

Meanwhile, downstairs, the girls who dragged the second-chair cellist were nearly falling over themselves in laughter. They seriously believed she was going to be drunk in another man's bed in..oh...an hour? Oh look, they were toasting to their victory. One of them gets the idea to watch for a little while.

Joellie continued down the steps and onto the main floor, purposefully stumbling from time to time and leaning on Verite for support.

The vampire couldn't help but laugh with her as she smiled very happily up at him. Well, this couldn't hurt, could it? Perhaps he would let himself be so vain as to think her friends would become jealous of Joellie. Envious of the fact that she would perhaps share a bed with him tonight. Haha, this made him laugh more.

Wondering if he should appear drunk as well, he added a slight sway to his step, giving the illusion that he was tipsy--even though he hadn't had a drink yet. Verité allowed her to lead him towards the girls.

They weren't quite so jealous yet to be truly envious, but each of them would probably like a piece of the vampire as well.

"Ohmigawd, guys! Look who I met!" That was Joellie, her arm around the waist of her partner in crime. "And guess what?" "What?" "He has a car!"

Ok. Joellie didn't really know if he had a car or not. But she had to say something stupid, right? Something suggestive, too, of course.

The other three girls were all thinking that the plan was working perfectly. Their grins each proved it.

The vampire blinked, scanning each female rather bordley. Well .. This was what he agreed too ..

"Er .. Yes, and .. Joellie has asked if she may .. ehh .. 'ow you say .. ? Join me .. for a ride .. ?" Verité allowed his accent to come on very strongley. Girls had always loved that about him. Bluuuush.

The three of them visibly swooned at the sound of his voice. Not only was he hot but his voice and his accent drove them all crazy! They exchanged looks.

"Well why don't you two have a drink for the trip? One more before you hit the sa--I mean road?" They smiled reassuringly. They had changed their minds. They didn't want Joellie going with this hot guy. They'd much rather get her more drunk and send her home with someone ugly and keep him for themselves.

Joellie, herself, was in a predicament. If she agreed she'd be too drunk for her own good. If she declined, they'd know something's up...what to do? Her grip on her companion's arm tensed and she silently pleaded with him to help.

Verité smiled faintly at the way the girls, oh how'd you put it .. swooooned over his voice. It was still that easy. He chuckled inwardly at the thought of him perhaps meeting them with less clothing on. This vision was immediatly dismissed. Heheheh.

The vampire listened to the girls as they suggested more drinking. He felt Joellie squeeze his arm slightly, and he calmly looked at the females before him. ".. You, would not be .. ehh .. suggesting I put your .. very attractive friend, in danger, would you?" He raised a brow and gazed at them as if they had just told him to take her out back at decapitate her. Kids today, tsk tsk.

Oh thank gods. Verite, she's just fallen in love with you. Alright, not literally. She hasn't really, but she's very thankful that you gave her a way out.

"Really guys! What're you tryin' t'do? Kill us?" She joked as she said it but at the same time wasn't sure she'd put it past them. Of course, she's unsure why she's even trying to impress them. Or even fool them! They're idiots, all of them and normally, Joellie doesn't have any trouble letting them know where they can shove it. Oh well. Regardless of the reason, she's having fun playing the part.

Verité 'tsked tsked' at the girls and shook his head slightly. "I would certianly 'ope not. Joellie deserves better than some .. drunk driving 'er to 'er death, now doesn't she?" The pearly-haired man leaned in to give Joellie an affectionate kiss on her head. He smiled and returned his dark gaze to the other girls.

Snickersnicker.

Well that blush appearing on her cheeks really isn't pretend.

One of them noticed.

"Wait.."

But Joellie didn't want to stick a round long enough for her to make any other observations. She pushed the empty glass into one of their hands and leaned on Verite, slinging her arms around him.

"See 'ya later, guys! Don't wait up for me!"

Let's go, Verite. The sooner you get away from them the better.

But .. you see .. Verité is delightfully ignorant, and does not pick up hints well. Even if they're telling him that he should leave. So, the slim, porclien-skinned man stayed where he was, looking so innocently unaware, smiling to the girls.

"What is it .. ?"

Something small in the back of his mind suggested that the girls may have realized what he was -- but .. Verité is delightfully ignorant, you see.

And by that I mean he can be really, really stupid sometimes.

Joellie wasn't in the best position at that point. One of the girls was looking at her strangely and the others were eyeing Verite. Oggling, perhaps, would be the better term.

Ugh. She needed a drink. "Hey, bartender! Got anything with apple juice in it?"

Verité was beginning to feel uncomfortable. He was finally clueing into that tiny voice in his mind.

.. He wasn't enjoying being stared at anymore.

Suddenly, there were too many people around, and he needed to get out.

".. Eh .. Joellie; I must get some fresh air .." He muttered quietly to her before nodding his head to the girls and elegantly slipping into the crowd and to the outside for a few minutes.

[ooc//; Just have her follow if you want, or wait alittle while and talk to the other girls. This thread isn't over yet, baby! ;D]

"Huh? Yeah, ok."

Well she definitely wasn't going to stick around those bitches, that's for sure. She grabbed her drink, making sure to slosh some about in a tipsy manner, and made to follow him.

"Later, girls!"

Joellie needed to catch up with Verite, so she weaved through the crowds until she found him again.

"D'you need a drink?" She meant the one in her hand.

Verité wasn't too startled when she showed up, and he couldn't help but smile faintly with her offer.

"Ah, no thank you," He said quietly, before looking at her once again. ".. Why do those girls dislike you so?" The vampire tilted his head slightly, his expression softening now that he had escaped the crowds for alittle while.

"Competition."

She turned the glass over and let the alcohol drain out onto the ground. She hadn't paid for it, anyway.

"What made you need to get out of there so fast?"

Question for a question.

The vampire raised a brow, but did not push for further answers. Instead, he replied to her own question.

".. Too many people at once .. At times, I cannot handle it," His gaze lowered, and he sighed quietly.

But, to contridict previously stated 'not pushing for further answers', he asked again, ".. What do you mean by .. competition?"

Stupiiiiid.

"I'm one of the best musicians in my orchestra and I don't have many friends and I'm only a freshman. They don't like that."

Joellie was feeling a little adventurous. She'd push for answers.

"Why not, what couldn't you handle?" After all, she didn't know what he was.

"Ah, jealousy." Verité slipped his slender hands into his pockets and leaned with a strange grace against the wall of the club.

He glanced up to her briefly as she pressed him.

".. Don't you ever feel closed in like that ..? As if .. Everyone has their eyes on you .. at one time?" Verité tried to change the subject.

.. Well, back to her anyways. A temporary solution.

"You wish to befriend them, then? Those girls?"

"Yeah," she laughed ruefully, "Everytime I walk into rehearsals."

She accepted that as his answer. If there was anything more to it, she didn't press further. Perhaps he didn't like the crowded dance floor.

"Ha, them? Hardly. I just want to see their faces tomorrow when I walk in sober and with the best prepared piece of music they've ever heard."

Come on, Joellie. Admit it. You do need some friends. Doesn't it get lonely being the best all the time?

"They hate me anyway, there's no chance for friendship."

Verité joined in her ruefull laughter with his own chuckle. The poor girl; young people these days were terrible to one another. Not that they were any saints in his time. This caused him to stop chuckling rather abruptly--was this still his time? Of course it wasn't. Did he really deserve to be alive in this technical, modern world? Did he belong here?

.. No.


Because of this sudden wave of thought, he missed what she said -- failing to keep his attention focused on the pretty red-headed girl. He only heard her dismiss the chance of friendship between herself and those girls.

"They are only jealous -- and jealousey leads to nothing good," He sighed and gazed at her. "Like tonight, for example. You only came here to walk into your classroom tomorrow appearing as though tonight had no effect on you. To put them in their place." Verité paused, not realizing how he was quickly dissolving any mood. "Will that only urge them to continue .. pestering, annoying you? Their pride will undoubtedly be hurt, and they will want to bring you back here again, or, to some place worse than this one."

The vampire withdrew his almost .. heated gaze from her and stared at the ground. He was silent for a minute or so longer before he spoke quietly again. ".. Accept my apology; I did not mean to speak to you with such .. tactlessness .." Verité paused again, his expression softening considerably. "But, what if you met someone who wished to take advantage of you?" The pearl-haired man fell silent after this, ashamed of himself.

A pall settled on her mind. His words spoke things to her that she didn't like knowing about herself. She was too prideful, too foolish, too arrogant? Full of herself? She didn't say anything in response and quietly accepted his apology when it was given.

"Well then I guess I'll cross that bridge when I come to it," she shrugged. She knew that if anyone really wanted to have their way with her, they'd find some way to do it. She also knew that she had a few things up her sleeves, herself. They were cards she never played if she could help it, but that's what all last resorts are.

Verité nodded his head slowly, his dark eyes on the ground. How easy would it have been for him to drink her blood? For him to weave a lovely illusion of innocence and all things good and have her slip willingly into his arms? The vampire didn't want to think of that. He didn't want to think of him being a vampire, the predator, and her being a human, his prey.

".. I don't have a car .." He muttered the words, trying to break the dark mood that had come over them. "How .. will you be getting home ..?" His French accent laced the words of course, and he looked up at her again. Verité didn't really want to ask to walk her home and risk sounding like the man he had just been warning her about [the one that would take advantage], and so tried to skirt around that with a simple choice of words.

Human? Verite shouldn't assume things so easily.

"Neither do I. I'll walk home. It's farther than I'd like, but not the longest I've had to walk."

It seems they have similar dilemas. Joellie didn't want to walk home on her own, but didn't want to seem like a skank, either.

The pearl-haired vampire glanced upwards, watching a group of burly, angry looking men jostle past.

That's it.

"Would you .. Like me to take you home?" He smiled faintly to her, trying to look not-so-creepy.

Oh, he shouldn't worry, he didn't look creepy at all. In fact, he was rather pleasing to the eye.

But Joellie still hesitated on saying yes. It was similar to the situation when she walked home with Alice. They got along well, yes, but were still strangers.

"It depends," she said at last, "Which direction are you headed?" She didn't really care if he went out of his way or not, but it would give her an excuse to not have him walk her the entire way home.

Joellie is just the tad bit suspicious of people. After meeting those girls, can you really blame her?

Verité listened to her speak -- and he wasn't alarmed or angered in the least with what she said. He was fine with not walking her the entire way home; it would make things less awkward once they had to go their seperate ways.

"I have an apartment .. over near the waterfront," He chuckled quietly. "Unfortunately, not an ocean view." And that was how he'd been able to barley afford it.

To come to think of it, he needed work. Perhaps he could get back into photography or something.

"Alright, let's go then!" And she began to walk. Very self-assured at the moment, wasn't she? She wasn't sure how long they'd walk with each other, but they should start off in the same direction.

"Um, thanks, by the way..."