Capricia slouched against a literal post for support as she rolled her bright eyes. "Okay, so how did we get suckered into attending a party but not actually attending?" she asked rudely, glaring at Christian Shane, the Frost Guild Leader. He stood not more than seven or so feet from her, a bottle of water in his hand.
"Hey, I don't complain when a large portion of people ask me for my added aid in crowd control. Especially not for the amount. When you see your paycheck, you'll stop your bitching." He paused. "I can't believe Connor even okayed you to come out here."
Capri snorted louder than she wanted to, and glared at Christian. "Do you think he was okay with this? I'm sure wherever he is, he's got binoculars on me, making sure I don't fall down some stairs or something. Honestly, I'm pregnant, not braindead. Even Vin is more relaxed than this, and he's emotional."
She turned as someone tapped her on the shoulder. "Yes?"
Zevi couldn't believe she'd been ordered to watch over this damn party. She had better things to do than keep a bunch of vampires and shifters from ripping one another apart. Of course, those same vampires and shifters were often the ones supplying her paycheck... she sighed. She'd deal with it; it was a job, was it not?
She trotted about the forest in wolf form, having gotten to know the woods well in the brief time she'd been in the area. Sensitive ears pricked up in response to the sounds around her, hints of a conversation. Something about being part of 'crowd control'? Had all the Bruja guilds been hired to keep this little Halloween masquerade from getting out of hand?
She shook herself lightly before walking towards the other people, shifting as she moved. The wolf came to a halt right behind a young woman, a human, perhaps only a year or so older. There was another person with her, a man, who she recognized as Christian Shane, the leader of the Frost guild. She had seen him... somewhere, around.
Her slender fingers reached out and tapped the young woman lightly on the shoulder. The woman turned, asking, "Yes?"
"Frost hunter?" Zevi questioned simply, though she was quite sure she already knew the answer.
Before Capricia could even answer, Christian interjected -- "Can't you tell by her bitchy attitude?" sarcastically. Capricia kicked a footfull of loose dirt at him, which sent him back a few feet under grumbled curses. She straightened, regarding Zevi.
"Yep, that's me," she said blandly. It was hard to tell whether she was being cheerful or sarcastic, but with Capri, it was hard to tell. She cleared her blonde hair aside, and tilted her head at the woman. "Do I know you?" She was fairly certain she didn't. There were a lot of people here she didn't know, and that was fine with her anyways. Most of them she was sure she'd see a contract out for sooner or later, so there was no sense getting friendly.
Zevi's eyes sparkled with amusement as she watched the hunter kick up a nice amount of dirt at the Frost leader. These two amused him, despite the reputation of the Frost guild and its habit of... taking the contracts that Crimson or Onyx wouldn't accept. It didn't matter, the wolf supposed; a job was a job, and if that's how the group wished to make its living, she couldn't judge.
Not really, anyways. Her opinions would remain her own. At least, beyond the ears of these two and other Frost members, but she had yet to have a bad experience with any of them. Further judgment could wait, especially during this event where everybody was supposed to be all... snuggly and accepting.
"Do I know you?" she had asked.
The wolf's attention snapped back to the other hunter's question. She shook her head in response. "No. I don't believe I've met either of you. Formally, at least." She shrugged slightly, clasping her hands behind her back, surveying the area for other people.
"Capri?" Hailee asked, then came closer. "Hey, it is you! So you got roped into babysitting a bunch of vampires and shifters too, did you?" She smiled sweetly. "You know, I kinda hope one of them does misbehave."
Ah, Hailee.
"Hey, Christian." And then the witch turned to the wolf. "... don't I know you? I'm Hailee. I think we met a week ago or something, didn't we?"
((if you two want to keep it amongst yourselves then tell me so I can delete - Hailee just wanted to come over. ^^;; ))
(( I've no problem with it. ))
Zevi raised an eyebrow at this other hunter, who seemed to be quite lively and... bouncy? for a member of one of the Bruja guilds. Again, she would hold any outright judgment on the Frost guild. However, where, she wondered, were the other Onyx members or even members of Crimson? Lucian, Ebere, Lore... all of them. Was she the only one who had gotten dragged out here for guard duty?
She shrugged, shifting her gaze from the surrounding woods to the young woman who'd joined them, studying her intently. Had the two ever met? Zevi couldn't recall and her mind was sharp. She was fairly sure the two had never met. Or was this one of those times where a person is trying to be polite? The wolf was unsure.
Instead of opting to 'play along', if that is what the Frost hunter was doing, she responded bluntly. A simple, "No."
Zevi breathed in the cool autumn air, picking up another scent but unsure who it might belong to or where it might be originating. She shrugged it off. After all, wasn't this ball supposed to be a time of 'peace' and 'enjoyment' and whatnot?
It was a good thing Vin hadn't caught Capri's crack about his emotional state, because he would have denied it. He did, however, show up shortly carrying a tray holding cups of disturbingly red punch. "It's just fruit juice," he assured the other Bruja "security staff", offering the punch to them.
Even though he was working security as well, he'd dressed up at Lore's insistence. He was wearing ragged, stained clothing and heavy boots that added an extra inch or so to his already formidable height. A rubber mask suggested that he was going as Frankenstein's monster. It was oddly fitting for him. Foam shoulder pads made his lean figure a bit more bulky and imposing.
"Helluva shindig," he remarked, lifting the mask up slightly and taking a sip of his own punch and glancing around the decorated party area. "Let's just hope everyone plays by the rules."
Lore, of course, had dressed up as well. Since it was a masquerade, she had chosen a fancy Victorian-style pale green ball gown with gold accents and a matching feather mask. Her reddish-gold waves were piled atop her head in a fancy up-do, held in place by numerous pins.
Since she was only an Onyx trainee, she wasn't officially working security tonight, so she was free to enjoy the party (under Vin's watchful eye, of course). A year or two ago, Vin never would have let her even KNOW about a party like this, much less attend one. It was a testament to how much had changed between them since she had become a werewolf. Vin was allowing her more freedom, and admitting that she was a big girl now, and could take care of herself. Granted, he was watching her every move at this party, but it was still a definite improvement.
"This is great!" she exclaimed, coming over to where a few of the security Bruja were hanging out and beaming brightly at them all. "The vampires should throw parties like this more often."
Vin cleared his throat warningly at her. "You just be careful, young lady," he told her sternly. "No dancing too cozily with the leeches."
Lore rolled her eyes, though they were partially hidden by the mask. "Yeah, I know. Well, you guys have fun, I'm going to go party." With a wave, she disappeared back into the growing throng of party-goers.
Really, Connor hadn't much wanted to be at this party, or at least, he'd have preferred to show up in normal clothes like the rest of the hunters and watched the leeches party. Instead, Val had pulled a fast one and declared that they were both in danger showing up to something such as this separately, and somehow, that meant Connor wearing ridiculously fancy clothing and a half-mask.
He felt like a retard.
To say the least, his mood was less than pleasant and he would have avoided the group of hunters entirely if not for the fact that his pregnant....girlfriend(?) was there working security detail. That was enough to make him crazy. Thus, he approached the group, gave Vin a once-over that made it obvious he couldn't believe the man was dressed like that (like he truly had enough room to talk), and popped his mask off with his back to the group. "Please tell me Verde didn't dress up?" he asked, rolling his eyes and avoiding his habit of running his hand through his hair. Val had ensured that his hair was slicked back to keep him from looking 'human'. Connor liked looking human, but apparently, humans were lacking in the sort of charm that vampires respected, and Valerie wanted respect. Connor had to wonder if bashing his skull into a wall would mess his hair up and make him look less respectable.
"Lucien's somewhere out in the crowd being Diente, but he told me Verde's out there as well. I figure if you watch for smoke, you'll find him. I caught a whiff of cigarettes when I came in," he said, just to let them know that there WERE other hunters present. "Lucien's all in black, but he's probably the only out here with red eyes. Not hard to miss. He'll probably stop by to check in with you guys soon enough."
He made it a point not to say anything to Capri about being 'safe' or anything of the sort, even if he wanted to. First off, there were far too many people present for him to 'doubt' her abilities, even if he knew she could take care of herself in a fight. He just didn't want her in a fight. "Leone is also walking around." Ash wasn't really doing much in the way of partying, actually paying more attention to security and ensuring that everyone was behaving themselves.
"Hailee!" she squealed. She wrapped the other hunter up in a sorority-sister giggle-squeak type of hug, something reserved only for women. She realized that she hadn't told her about... well, Connor's spawn of Satan that was currently putting her body's occupancy at two. She'd tell her later, not at the party. She tossed her blonde hair back when she'd released the other hunter from the girl-hug of doom, and raised her eyebrows at Vin.
"And my, what a lovely costume you have," she cheered, reaching out to stick him in the stomach with her index finger. She mock-whistled at Lore, making a face at her before she dipped off into the crowd... right about the time Connor emerged.
She stared at him for a second, and opened her mouth to speak, but realized that anything she said would probably get her into trouble. Then again, this was Capricia we were talking about. "You look like a prat," she said openly. It wasn't until Christian hissed, "Capricia!" at her that she re-did her statement. "A very authorotative and... manly prat."
She sideglanced, but it was too late. She'd been herself. She finished off with an earnest, large innocent toothy smile, and then held out a bottle of water. "Thirsty?" she asked brightly.
Hunters dressed in costumes. Sure, she understood it was a masquerade ball, but were they here as guests to celebrate or as the hired hands to prevent trouble? Seriously, a Frankenstein costume? Zevi subtly breathed in the scent of the man and his, she presumed, younger sister. A wolf, nonetheless, in a humiliating costume.
She tilted her head curiously, listening intently as another Hunter approached and began mentioning some of the people here, especially those that they should keep an eye on. Cobriana, Leone... who else? The wolf tried to differentiate between all the various scents she was smelling, but it was near impossible with the number of people who had shown up thus far.
Zevi couldn't help but be amused by all these hunters in one place. They seemed... very well acquainted, when, in fact, she knew all of them very little, if at all. She felt slightly out of place, though such a feeling wasn't unusual for the wolf. She scoffed quietly to herself at the childish behavior of two of the hunters. Weren't they supposed to be working?
She bristled slightly, uncomfortable being surrounded by so many people. It'd been a while since she'd been around anybody, really, let alone a group of hunters. She felt out of her element, to say the least; there was a reason why she hunted alone, after all. Too many bodies making a mess of things, she figured. Silently, she slipped away from the group, the wolf emerging as she trotted off to find somewhere quieter to watch for trouble.
Vin dropped the relaxed, goofy demeanor when Connor showed up. He actually paid attention to what his guild leader had to say. Good. With Cobriana, Leone, and just about all the Hunters in the Bruja guilds present, it was far less likely anybody would try to pull something funny. Like, for example, munching on one of the other party guests.
With a nod, he confirmed, "Dom's here, all right. He's just keeping an eye on things by the snack table. And no, Lore couldn't con him into dressing up this year." The tall hunter rolled his eyes. It was too bad, really. Dom looked pretty snazzy in last year's Dracula getup. He made a very good point, however, when he mentioned that all the REAL vampires here probably wouldn't appreciate the humor behind that costume.
Despite his appearance, Vin was plenty alert and ready to put down any trouble before it started. Hidden away in the folds of his tattered clothing were several of his favorite long, silver-alloy daggers. Also, he made no secret of the big shotgun slung over his back, with anti-vampire rounds loaded and ready. There were a few other firearms on his person, but he dared anyone to point them out. It would be like playing a very dangerous game of "Where's Waldo?", except that if you found Waldo, he'd shoot your face off.
Don't ask Vin where he gets his metaphors. Probably at a discount supply store.
Fortunately for all of them, Connor was more than used to Capri's remarks, and had actually been expecting it. "Thanks, Capri, that means I'll fit in, and I'm fine," he remarked easily, smirking some and waving down the offer of the water. Yes, looking like a 'prat' was apparently the goal for the evening. He hated it, but if it worked...
He still hadn't told anyone WHY he was one of the people dressed and supplying 'security' from amongst the guests. He wasn't sure how to explain what had happened with his eyes (which were as good as new by now) except to say that Papa Aristide (the creepy bastard) had done something to fix them, and he certainly didn't want to bring up the fact that Aristide had bonded him to a vampire in the process. The fact that it was some cracked out, weird bond didn't make things any better. He was keeping it on the down low until he understood it better.
He glanced over at a woman whom he didn't really recognize, which meant she wasn't in HIS guild, and frowned as she wandered off. She was too quiet to be Frost, definitely wasn't his, so he was assuming Onyx. Cobriana got all the crazies. Like Verde, who Connor hadn't really minded losing all that much. Vin was the only one who really seemed to have a handle on that man at any given moment, and Connor had heard a few things regarding the reasons behind that. He had a strict 'DON'T TELL ME' rule regarding that one.
"By the snack table? Cobriana said Verde's limping around, so I might have to go see it for myself," he commented with a grin, actually looking forward to THAT, and gave Vin another look-over. That guy was SUCH a cheese, but he'd been like that for as long as Connor had known him. That was a LONG time, considering Connor had met him when he was 16. Hard to imagine. "Alright, I'm sure you all have everything under control around here, so I better get moving. Christian, you got me covered?"
He tried not to put too much into that statement, considering Capricia was standing RIGHT THERE, but he'd been pretty specific earlier about asking the Frost leader to keep an eye on her. The fact that Connor couldn't be there to do it himself irked him, but he trusted Christian.
Vin grimaced. "He's not too happy about the cane, so don't pick on him too much," the taller hunter warned. "They DID let him have a gun for this, after all." And Dom wasn't too picky about who he shot, sometimes.
Giving Capri one last grin and wave, Vin excused himself. "I'd better go mingle. I only agreed to dress like this so I'd blend in a little better with the party-goers. I'll catch you guys later." He pulled the rubber mask back over his face and hulked out into the crowd. Yeah, as if Vin could blend in ANYWHERE with that getup. Even if he'd shown up in fancy dress and a mask like Connor's, he'd have stuck out in a crowd.
"Aw, bye Vin," she said as he left. "Save me a dance, okay?" Hey, she got a 15 minute break, she was going to use it foolishly.
She retracted the bottle of water back as Christian turned his head to hide a laugh at how Connor handled her so well. "Leaving so soon?" she asked, blinking a few times. "Connor, there are like, a bajillion people here. You can stay for five more minutes, can't you?" She was such a... a bad influence. But she was right. Capricia could count almost every single hunter at this party with the exception of a precious few - the Pakana female from the Crimson Guild, and one of the boys from Onyx. Everyone else, she'd pretty much seen.
Christian looked over Capri's shoulder at Connor and raised his eyebrows. "I've got everything under control if you want to hang for a few minutes," he offered, nodding to Hailee. "Anyone to try and attack right now is stupid. She'll cut them with her Visa."
Connor snickered when Vin mentioned a cane, getting FAR too much amusement out of the fact that the much older hunter was stuck with a bum leg, but the fact that Verde had once again survived was the only reason he found it amusing. Somehow, he liked the guy, though only enough that he'd feel horrible if he died. That was another hunter Connor had known since he was a kid.
The Crimson leader somehow missed Christian's amusement at the way he and Capricia interacted, and instead found himself focusing on the woman. Smart man. Considering the fact that he'd told her he was acting as security from among the guests, he couldn't really argue with her logic, either. He couldn't tell her that Val was waiting. Did he really care if he left the vampire waiting? No, not really.
"You sure you don't mind hanging out with a prat like me for a few minutes?" he asked, smirking ever so slightly and wincing at the idea of Hailee cutting someone up with her Visa. That would be a sad sight.
"Hyup, you got it, hon," Vin called back to Capri with a wave. It was almost alarming how quickly he adopted women as new "little sisters". Especially since before now, he'd only really been on nodding terms with the volatile blonde.
Meanwhile, Lore was attending to her own "secret" mission. Since she wasn't technically working as security that evening, she'd taken it upon herself to act as Dom's backup-slash-bodyguard. Not that she didn't trust the older hunter to take care of himself, even in his injured condition. Rather, she worried that someone would bump into him, or pester him, or make fun of his cane, and he'd shoot that person's face off before anyone could stop him. Thus, why she was sticking nearby. She didn't expect to be able to stop him if he REALLY wanted to kill someone, but she figured a little damage control was better than none.
"Heya, Uncle Dom," she greeted sweetly, gliding up to the table under the pretext of getting herself some more punch and cookies. They were cute: sugar cookies shaped like bats and pumpkins. Didn't seem real fitting for a vampire-organized dance party, but someone was considerate enough to provide them for the non-blood-drinking guests. "You look really spiffy tonight." He'd dressed up a little more than usual, but not so far as wearing a suit or a fancy costume. Just a nice black shirt and slacks and a classy, pumpkin-colored silk tie. At least he was sort of in the spirit of things.
"Hey, Capri!" Hailee said, laughing and returning the hug and turning back to the stranger. "Oh, well hi then, I'm Hailee Thompson...." The witch trailed off at the look the other gave both her and EVERYONE around. Huh? And then she turned into a wolf and went away.
"Jeez, what's her problem," Hailee muttered - and it had been weird, like the other hadn't even NOTICED her. Ah well, whatever. Her loss.
"Anyone to try and attack right now is stupid. She'll cut them with her Visa."
Hailee almost tried to flick her ponytail over her shoulder, as she was accustomed to doing, then paused and almost laughed at herself. She wore it so often that the gesture had almost become automatic, and now that she had no ponytail.... No, for the night her hair was up in an elaborate up-do that should have holding power should she need to get a bit more... aggressive. Possibly it was good. Probably not as many people would think of pulling hair when it wasn't loose - or even pulled back but still left hanging. Mind you, if anyone did try pulling her hair she had a gun and another gun and three or four knives (wait... was she forgetting one?) AS WELL as her fists and feet and even head to hurt them with. And that was the beauty of Frost - people seemed to get SO USED to hunters only using knives or something that it could be very satisfying just to haul away and slug them. Watch the surprise. And then if you were fast enough and could break their backs... well, all kinds of possibilities opened up.
Hailee smiled, and the look was bubbly enough that if anyone had known what she was thinking... well, they would have been surprised. Unless they knew her well.
"Mock not the power of the Visa," Hailee said in a slightly self-mocking tone herself to Christian. "Besides, have you ever got a cut off a credit card? Let me tell you right now, they hurt!" She flicked an imaginary piece of dust off the sleeve of her costume - she was dressed up as a bird of paradise, complete with multi-colored mask that was reminiscent of New Orleans, covered as it was with feathers and sequins, and a sweeping tail that didn't hinder movement too much - she knew, she'd checked. That was the problem, really, about being here on buisness. She'd really wanted to wear a dress, but she couldn't.
Tragic.
Ah well, the sleeves on this costume made up for it. They were a WONDERFUL place for hiding all kinds of dangerous things, being as wide as they were. Well, they were 'wings.'
Capricia took a step closer to him, brushing a light kiss on his cheek when nobody was looking. "Of course I don't mind," she said, her tone low, so as not to be so overheard. She smiled, genuinely. "You do look nice. It's just unusual to see. Usually I'm not the one who's underdressed, but Christian and I are odd men out tonight, you see. Neither of us could come up with anything interesting."
At that, Christian snorted. "Oh, that's a lie. I said salt and pepper, and you said it was stupid," he said, pointing an accusing finger at her. "And my daughter, unimaginatively, went out as a leopard. It was her mother's idea."
He turned to look at Hailee, reaching out to tug at a feather of her costume. "So how many animals had to die for this, Cruella?" he asked playfully. He pulled his hand back before she swatted at him, and ran his fingers through his short, spiked hair. Christian may have been in his late twenties, but he still had those boyish good looks. It was strange how he ran a guild full of women and never got hit on -- most of them knew Evangela, though, and respected her as much as they did him. She was a strong woman, no doubt the reason Christian could even manage the Frost brood.
These moments were the reason, the real kicker, to what made him absolutely love Capricia. Surrounded by vampires and shifters, assigned to keep said preternatural beings in check, and she was being so perfectly...perfect. It made him feel bad.
He couldn't let her know that, though. At least, not here. He was going to cave eventually, he knew that, but he had to keep it from her at least until the night was over. He should have told her already, but he'd actually found something he was afraid of. He was afraid she'd leave, and he didn't want to rush it. He waited until Christian was messing with Hailee about her costume, stole a glance around, and stole a quick kiss from Capri's lips in return.
"Thanks, but don't get used to seeing it. You know how I hate dressing up," he told her quietly with a little smirk, and it was the absolute truth. He was the sort to go with jeans, a t-shirt and a blazer if he could get away with it, and he'd try his hardest to do that. He felt stuffy and uncomfortable in the fancy masquerade wear, and his hair felt unnatural not falling in his face all the time. He was only just starting to REALLY get used to it being shorter, and he actually liked it by now, but having it slicked back felt weird. "You two would have looked...fun as salt and pepper shakers. I'd have probably laughed my ass off."
He could bet that Christian's daughter had been very cute as a leopard, thinking back to the last time he'd seen the girl. Christian was a lucky guy.
"Yes," she said, "but if I had gone out, I would have been pepper, and I would have carried pepper with me to shoot into people's eyes, and somehow I feel like it would have been misinterpreted as a threat," she informed him. She tilted her head a little bit, though, and glanced to Christian and Hailee as well. When she looked back to him, she fixed her gaze.
"Something wrong?" she asked. Capricia was fairly intuitive, it was true; however, she'd done enough to and around Connor for her to not always know if he was feeling off with her or just in general. She accepted the fact that he wasn't going to tell her everything, so long as what he didn't hold back from her wasn't crucial information that directly pertained to her. Of course, what that constituted of varied as to how bad of a mood she was in, so the definition tended to fluctuate.