Late night movies were always a pleasure. Got away from the normal routine she had set for herself. Looking at her watch it said 11:30p.m. The mass of people were leaving as she stood there for a few minutes and then headed off down the sidewalk in the opposite direction of what most people were walking.

She wore a relaxed pair of deep blue; jeans and a white t-shirt that said ‘Computer Geek’ on it in big black lettering. Hair was tied back in a ponytail and her sneakers made little noise against the pavement.

Street lights were few and far between. They really needed to get this place better lighting. Hands were shoved in her back pockets as she walked, purse hanging on her shoulder. Emerald eyes scanned the area more frequently as she walked now. She had already bumped into two vampires at night and the last one had not been so friendly. And then that other night she ran into a gang of rather unpleasant men. Now she remembered why she didn’t like coming out at night.

She yawned and then continued walking down the street in a slow walk towards the good end of town where her apartment complex was.

About six blocks from home, she spotted a man lighting a cigarette in a nearby alley way. Eyes quickly diverted from him as he looked over at her. Soon she heard footsteps following behind her. Dang. Just when she thought she might get home without any issues for once in a great while.

”Hey there. What’s the hurry. Why don’t you stick around for a while?” He called out from behind her.

”No thanks.” Still ever so polite until the situation turned for the worse.

”Come on. I’ll show you a good time.” A smirk on his face that she did not care to see. It was quite unsettling.

”I said no.” Why did people have to harass one another like this? He still would not relent and continued following her.

Was it a good thing the sun had sunk below the horizon well over a few hours ago and the vampire had been out here looking for someone to feed from? Was the coincedence that he happened to be right in Alia's area at the time she was being harrassed a good thing? He knew that he hadn't fed at all tonight and that wasn't a very pleasant thing.

Matthias looked as charming as he did the night he'd met Alia. His honey-brown hair was tousled in a slightly sexy way and his brown eyes were still those warm, chocolate brown eyes that seemed to say, 'Stay with me, everything will be all right'. He was overwhelmingly pretty, despite his corpselike pallor (and even then he was stunning). He was wearing another one of his sits.

Matthias approached the man silently though at an inhuman speed. When he had grabbed his shoulder he inquired, "Didn't you hear her say no?"

Trouble for a lady. How gentlemanly.

The man looked rather startled that Matthias had come from seemingly nowhere so quickly. He turned to face the vampire.

”What’s it to you? I was just seeing if she wanted to spice her night up.” With a few more things in mind than just that.

Alia recognized Matthias as soon as she turned around; the vampire that she had run into a little while back. All of a sudden she felt a lot better that he was here. The last thing she needed was getting into yet more trouble.

”Get lost.” She stated to the man that was bugging her.

"With vulgar intentions in between, I assume." He flashed fangs. Those beautiful yet deadly things had nearly taken many a life.

"Now... die or get lost. Unless you'd like me to spice your night up." Growl.

Matthias hadn't moved an inch since he'd come up from behind the man.

The man hadn’t planned on leaving until he caught sight of the fangs. That was more than enough to disturb his unnish mind. Quietly he bolted down the alley way that he had come out of earlier to follow her.

Alia watched the man finally leave before she turned to meet Matthias’s gaze; a smile was upon her face.

”Thank you. I wasn’t sure what I was going to do.” Hands left her pockets and arms crossed against her chest.

His vicious snarl had subsided once the man had bolted and he stopped baring his fangs like a rabid dog. His lips slid downward, covering all but two fangs that poked out from his lips. He offered an elegant yet sheepish smile.

"I... I apologize that you had to see that."

His gaze traveled to her eyes and he was still looking sort of sheepish. That 'I don't want to hurt a soul' look made it impossible to believe he had ever meant to hurt that man.

”No. You don’t have to apologize. I’m glad you came and helped no matter how you had to do it. It’s just part of who you are.” She’s always so understanding, even if she gets hurt by someone she cares about she still will not turn them away. It’s a flaw, at least her mother thinks it is, but then her mother didn’t know what had happened that caused her to be in the hospital still. Alia felt guilty telling her a lie, but she wasn’t about to tell what really happened.

”Is there anything I can do to repay you? For helping me that is.”

"Ah... I am forgiven, then?" He offered a hopeful smile and then chuckled at her comment.

"Mademoiselle... surely you jest. It was nothing. And can I say, whilst remaining a good person... or vampire, if you must... that it was amusing to watch him back off?"

"And may I also ask... are you all right?"

”Yes you are forgiven.” She offered a smile in return. And then she laughed at his next comment.

”It was somewhat entertaining to watch him flee so quickly. And yes I am fine. It’s just been my luck the past couple nights.” Between a rather strange vampire and then the group of men picking on the angel and now being harassed by a man, it was getting rather tiring. Matthias didn’t know how glad she really was to see him.

”And I wasn’t jesting either. Can I do anything at all to repay you?”

"This is good to know." He looked happy and sort of relieved at the same time. He could still hear her pulse in his ears though, hear the blood moving through her veins. He cleared the thought from his mind, though. He would not bite her.

He offered a grin. "It is also good to know that you are all right. There's nothing you can do for me, however."

”Oh? And why is it that I can’t do anything?” A slight frown on her face now.

"Oh, I apologize... I did not realize that... it was such a big deal..?" He sighed softly.

"There is simply nothing you can do for me because... you do not have to do anything, is what I meant."

He shook his head.

"Do you drink coffee?"

”I see.” That was unusual. Not many people would turn down an offer for a reward. At least most people that knew her wouldn’t. They usually asked for some amount of money. Of course she didn’t think he would want money, but maybe something else.

”Yes. I drink coffee. Do you want to go somewhere?”

Even though he couldn't really drink coffee and have it have the same effects on him as it would on a human, it just seemed like a good thing to do. It would get his mind off not feeding.

"If you would let me take you somewhere?" He asked.

She thought it over for a minute. ”Alright. But I didn’t think you drank coffee?’

He smiled a little. "I don't. I just like to participate in the mundane doings every once in a while. I still like to feel human every now and then." He rolled his shoulders into a rather elegant shrug.

"Shall we, then?"

She chuckled. ”Very well then. I guess we can go get some coffee to make you feel human again.” A smile on her face as she turned and started walking again when Matthias came up beside her, to walk along.

”So, if you don’t mind my asking, what’s it like to be, you know, a vampire?”

"Ah. I thank you, my fair lady." He grinned as he walked alongside her.

"I don't know..." Matthias shrugged, looking down at a pale hand. "It's like, being dead... you know? Except... while being alive. It's a funny concept, really. Don't feel cold or heat, can feel emotion but can't cry." You know, the whole tear ducts thing.

"You sleep, you eat, you lurk. Or occasionally find someone to accompany you on your midnight strolls." He looked at Alia with a smile.

"What's it like to be human? I hardly remember anymore."

It was a strange concept. Not being able to feel cold or heat. That could be beneficial, but it came at a high price. She knew he couldn’t be out in the day time. That would probably hurt her more than anything. The woman loved reading outside during the day time.

”Well you don’t get to worry about just eating, sleeping and lurking. I have to keep a job and worry about paying bills. I’m sure I could probably do without them, but I wouldn’t be able to give up being out in daylight. Wouldn’t mind giving up my supervisor though. He’s such a pain.” She laughed at her last comment even though the man was really starting to annoy her lately.

"That would be nice. Minus the job, paying bills, the supervisor and... that's about everything you listed besides daylight, huh?"

"I could definitely do without all of those things, but I haven't seen sunshine in such a long time. Immortality comes at a price, though."

He chuckled.

"I am sorry about your supervisor, though. Maybe I should bite him for you." It was only a joke.

”I wish it could minus all those.” Hands tucked back into her jean pockets again.

”Immortal. I forgot about that part. How old are you? Oh and you don’t have to bite him. I think I’ll manage no matter how nice the offer is.” Of course she was joking. She would never really result to asking him to bite anyone that bugged her.

He nodded.

"Roughly... seventy-three. I don't look that old, do I?" He asked, cocking his head. "And how old are you?"

"Oh? Dissapointing." He pouted a little in a joking manner. "He sounds nasty, though."

”No. You definitely don’t look older than seventy three. I’m twenty nine and I bet I look it.” She laughed. Unfortunately she would grow old and wrinkly and there was nothing she could do about it.

”It’s not his fault he’s nasty. He just stresses easily and if he doesn’t know what the problem is he calls me no matter what time it is.”

He smiled. "Pardon, but... you do not in fact look that old." It was the truth and simply not a compliment.

"I see. No matter what time? He must be a workaholic, then? Working at odd hours would kill me. No pun intended."

"A person that stresses easily, though... would make me irritable as well."

She smiled at the fact that he said she didn’t look that old. It wasn’t often that people spoke about how she looked, other than a man at work that kept thinking he had a chance and then the vampire woman the other night. Not that the vampire really said anything about how she looked, but she understood through what she was implying.

”It does get kind of irritating at times, but I love my job and I don’t want to give it up, just because the way he acts sometimes.”

"That's good. Not many people, I believe, can say that about their jobs. What do you do, if you don't mind my asking?"

He was enjoying this night, despite under the odd cirumstances he'd run into this woman again. It was soothing, among other things.

By now they were almost at the coffee place.