19 Lucky Bastard

<p>"Were are you?" Draven questioned the moment he picked up his phone.<br/> "We're stranded at what used to be the territory pack house," Alaric relayed. "Our party was ambushed, and we have a few injured, but for the most part everyone is ok."<br/> "Futu-i!" Draven exclaimed.<br/> "Gesundheit?" Alaric frowned.<br/> "I will be there soon," Draven ignored the comment. "Don't go anywhere, or I will kick your asses!"<br/> He hung up before Alaric had a chance to say anything else. At his side, Lou was looking abnormally subdued. Then again, with the little glimpse he had just caught of some of the horrors lurking in her past, he felt that she was holding up quite well.<br/> Casting a glance at the window, Alaric wondered once again at the convenient timing of the storm that had materialized into being. His lightening spell had certainly misfired, given that he hadn't originally intended to cast that particular spell, but it shouldn't have been powerful enough to summon a storm. In fact, all trace of his magical signature had vanished, though there was another he didn't recognize.<br/> "He must be really worried," Lou stated with a chuckle some time later. "Cussing isn't his style. Pompous ass."<br/> Her complexion was getting alarmingly pale.<br/> "You really should rest," Alaric stated with concern.<br/> "I'm fine," she grunted, though it was pretty clear to him she was anything but fine.<br/> He tried to decide how to handle the situation. Arguing certainly wouldn't help, and he wasn't convinced he could persuade her. As he struggled for an idea, a sudden crash of thunder caused him to jump.<br/> "You scared of the thunder or something?" Lou asked with a half hearted grin.<br/> "…. You know, I actually am," Alaric nodded slowly. He had almost denied it habitually, but he decided this might be exactly what he needed to achieve his desired objective.<br/> "You are?" Lou was equal parts suspicious and surprised by his admission.<br/> "It's actually rather embarrassing," Alaric nodded with a sheepish grin. He flinched as another clap sounded, and rattled the walls. "Er… I don't suppose I could persuade you to keep me company?"<br/> "Isn't that what I am doing right now?" Lou questioned.<br/> "Let's find a place to sit down," Alaric suggested.<br/> "Sure," Lou frowned as they surveyed their surroundings. "Would you prefer the rubble heap or the pile of broken glass?"<br/> Alaric wished it was an exaggeration. The place looked like a group of people had gone through the building with bats and cans of spray paint, then abandoned it. Everything was broken and covered in spray paint or dust. There was also a faint lingering stench of urine.<br/> "Perhaps we should try a different room?" Alaric suggested. "There might be a room thats a little more... comfortable."<br/> "I wouldn't hold my breath," Lou replied. "But sure, why not?"<br/> More rumbling sounded overhead, so Alaric seized Lou's hand and pulled her in close. She felt cold, too cold for his liking. He could also feel her shivering.<br/> "Please Lou," Alaric did his best to give the most sincerely fearful and pleading look he could.<br/> "Fine," She sighed, then even allowed herself to lean into him a little. "Maybe you're right. Maybe there's a room in this dump that isn't a complete shit hole."<br/> "That's the spirit," Alaric chuckled. He felt his heart beating as loud as the thunder crashing outside. He wasn't entirely sure if it was from his worry about her condition, or excitement from the anticipation of being alone with her.<br/> It took a bit of searching, but eventually he found what had probably once been some kind of bedroom that wasn't vandalized or deteriorated past the point of possible comfort. It was a little dusty, but they could handle a bit of dust.<br/> "This place is going to take a lot of TLC to make great again," Lou sighed through a cough as Alaric worked to beat the dust off the vintage comforter.<br/> "If we choose to make it 'great,' that is," Alaric said with a sneeze. "I think we might be better off just building a brand new one."<br/> "We don't got the money to do that," Lou argued, resisting Alaric's efforts to try and seat her on the edge of the bed. "Hell, we don't even have the money to fix this fuck fest either!"<br/> "We'll earn it," Alaric tried to offer an encouraging smile.<br/> "How?" Lou sighed.<br/> "I have a few ideas," Alaric replied. He finally managed to get Lou to take a seat.<br/> "That makes one of us," Lou managed a half-hearted chuckle. "Goddess, I am glad you walked through those doors when you did."<br/> Alaric felt his heart skip a beat at her words. In the few days they'd known each other so far, they really hadn't hashed out their feelings towards each other. Most of it had been an odd show of support from each side in front of the others and a few attempts at romance that had fizzled out before they could truly ignite.<br/> "You are?" He checked, trying to keep his voice from shaking.<br/> "Yeah," Lou chuckled. "I mean, when I found out I would be forced to marry someone, I didn't exactly have much hope that I'd wind up with a genuinely decent guy. The initial options they tried to fucking railroad me into didn't help that impression. But you know, you actually care."<br/> To his great delight and terror, she laid down and rested her head on his lap. Tentatively, he started stroking her hair. He felt her move into his touch.<br/> "Sorry, that probably sounds fucking lame," Lou sighed. "I just... I don't know. I'm not good at expressing myself I guess. I mean..."<br/> "I think I know what you mean," Alaric replied, then gently kissed the side of her face.<br/> "Do you?" Lou sat up, then moved closer to him. Soon their faces were barely an inch apart.<br/> "Y-yeah," Alaric felt himself falling backwards as she pursued him. Soon, she essentially had him pinned to the bed.<br/> "What do I mean?" She breathed, then began kissing down the side of his neck.<br/> "W-well... that is... I... I am glad I walked through that door too," Alaric stated. It was hard to concentrate as he felt her fingers undoing the buttons of his top and running down the length of his chest.<br/> "Glad to hear it," She smiled into his neck before leaving a teasing little love bite on his earlobe. Her scent was intoxicating. Numbly, he could feel her starting to pull the fabric of her shirt up. Her cool skin warmed as it made contact with his, and color was starting to return to her face. It was heating up pretty quickly in that little room.<br/> "You're not like any woman I've ever known," Alaric gasped as he noticed her shirt fall to the floor from the corner of his eye. She was topless. Somehow, the realization terrified him. Technically, he had already caught a glimpse of her naked, but this was different. This was more intimate. That said, he couldn't peel his eyes away from her face.<br/> "What am I like then?" She questioned with a slight giggle. He whimpered in spite of himself as she started kissing down his chest and stomache to the waistband of his pants. Still, he couldn't bring himself to look.<br/> "You're strong, and independant," Alaric gasped as he felt her start tugging at the zipper.<br/> "Keep going," She purred as she slowly started working the fabric of his pants down off his hips.<br/> "The way you fight, the way you command authority..." His voice cracked as he felt her start rubbing his groin through the fabric of his boxers. "You... You're like a man..."<br/> He wanted to die as soon as the words left his mouth. He had meant to continue complimenting her qualities, like her decisiveness and her charisma, while at the same time wanting to express that she sure seemed to know how to drive a man wild, but it had definately not come out right. Unfortunately, accidental or not, the mood was gone.<br/> "I'm like... what?!" She sat back on her heels and stared at him icredulously.<br/> "No, that came out wrong," Alaric waved an apologetic hand. "I meant to say, you're strong like a man-"<br/> "So you think I'm manly?" Lou's brows knit in confusion.<br/> "No, I mean, that is..." Alaric tried to rack his brain for something, ANYTHING, to fix the mess he was making. "You... You're quite a beastly woman... Wait that came out wrong!"<br/> A knock sounded at the bedroom door. Looking relieved, Lou climbed off the bed, retrieved her shirt, then pulled it back over her head as she walked to the door. Sighing, Alaric fixed his pants and started dressing himself back up as well.<br/> "I hope I'm not interrupting anything?" Draven questioned as the door swung open.<br/> "Nope, nothing going on in here," Lou laughed nervously. "Man, you got here fast! I can always count on you Draven!"<br/> "You're acting weird," Draven quirked a brow as he looked her over, then glanced over her shoulder to Alaric. "Is everything alright?"<br/> "Just dandy," Alaric grumbled.<br/> "Right. I've brought some warm food and fresh clothes for everyone," Draven stated, tossing the two of them each a bag that Alaric assumed to be the clothes in question. "I've also notified Azreal and Maud of the situation. They're keeping an eye on things with the rest of the pack, but so far you guys are the only ones who've been attacked."<br/> "Well, that's good news," Lou sighed in relief. "Is there any chance of another ambush tonight?" <br/> "I don't think so," Draven replied. "Not with all this rain at least. Tell me what happened!"<br/><br/> Alaric eyed the vampire skeptically as Lou explained the situation. Something about his appearance was bugging him, but Alaric couldn't quite decide what. It nagged at the back of the his mind the entire time Lou spent reciting their story. <br/> "I knew those renegades were foolish, but this..." Draven shook his head. "Ce pusca mea?!"<br/> "How are you still dry?" Alaric asked as it finally clicked in his head what was bugging him. Even if he had come in a car, with as hard as the rain was coming down, at least his head and shoulder's should've been a little damp. There was also no evidence of anything like an umbrella or parka on the vampire's person.<br/> "Pardon?" Draven blinked. <br/> "You're hair and clothes... How is it possible they aren't wet?" Alaric questioned. <br/> "How is it possible that you keep striking out every time you shoot for third base?" Draven countered. Alaric colored, causing him to sigh. "Forgive me, that was uncalled for. If you really must know..." <br/> Draven snapped his fingers, and suddenly there was a pitch black rat with beady read eyes on the ground where Draven had been standing only moments before. The creature snapped, and Draven reappeared. <br/> "The sewers don't smell the most pleasant, but they're great for inconspicuous travel." Draven shrugged.<br/> "You can transform?" Alaric asked incredulously. <br/> "You sound surprised," Draven scoffed. <br/> "Sorry, it's not a common ability for vampires," Alaric apologized. "It took me off guard." <br/> "Sure it is," Draven chuckled. "It's quite easy actually. I can also take the form of a bat, a cat, and even a wolf if I so desire." <br/> Alaric wanted to deny that statement, but something about Draven's tone suggested he shouldn't pursue the conversation further. Still, he knew something was different about Draven. Of all the vampires Alaric had ever come across, many had expressed a wish to perform such feats, but not one could do it. Allegedly, only the most powerful family lines of the vampire race had a prayer of achieving such abilities, and even then it rarely carried well outside of the main branch. <br/> "You don't believe me?" Draven noticed Alaric's doubtful expression. "Very well, I can't controll your thoughts... well I suppose I could try but werewolves tend to be resistent to such tricks." <br/> "Just what kind of a vampire are you?" Alaric wondered. <br/> "Just a lucky bastard," Draven replied with a smile.</p>