thoughtformed | [text]

How did I...

[He pauses and frowns as he thinks. Damn.]

Well. That's impressive, at least.

They never went into the details. Only that you'd done it. Something to be proud of, at least.

Something must have happened.

[Thinking about it brings on the kind of memories that he normally keeps at bay until his nightmares come, so he shakes his head and runs a hand through his hair, then just sips some coffee again while he tries to think of a way to change the topic.]

I don't know much about you. Bit unbalanced.

[She smiles gamely.]

I'm an open book.

[Not exactly true, but there are a lot of things she's willing to talk about freely.]

You already know that I'm an animator, and a vampire executioner. I'm used to being ass-deep in monsters pretty much around the clock. Sometimes it's like work is the only life I have. New Moore is, in a weird way, a nice change of pace. So, what else would you like to know?

Sounds like your job wouldn't get boring, at least.

[He shrugs, then smiles. Given their teasing, this is only natural.]

What about dating?

Dating?

[She arches a brow. Well, that's a complicated subject, but she's poked at him about his dating life, even if she didn't have her memories at the time. It might make them about even. She lets out a low sigh, steeling herself.]

That's complicated. New Moore has offered a nice break from my love life, too. I was dating someone, but it -- didn't work out. His name is Richard. We decided to take a break, after some messiness. There's someone else, too, but...

[She slides one eye closed as she thinks on that for a moment, taking a sip of her coffee.]

If the situation hadn't been what it was, I'm not sure I would have dated him. He was attractive and all, there's definitely something there, but I never would have given the chance if he hadn't brought an ultimatum into the equation. Either I dated him and gave him a chance to win me over on his own time, or he killed Richard. Not much of a choice.

Wow...

That does sound complicated. And that ultimatum bloke is definitely someone you should stay far away from.

Guess I'm lucky, back home the only blokes wanting to kiss me are really not my type.

[That and they'd suck out his soul, so 'lucky' might be a bit loosely defined here.]

Why not find a secret option number three somewhere?

[It was more complicated than that. Had she loved Jean-Claude? Maybe. Not the way she'd felt about Richard, but there was more common ground there. He lived in the same dangerous world she did, whereas Richard had done everything within his power to remain as normal as possible. As good as possible. It had always made her feel like she was a bad influence, really.]

The time away from him is nice. I don't think he would ever follow through with his promise to bow-out gracefully if I'd had the opportunity to choose Richard before things went south. Sometimes I wonder if he would have just killed the both of us.

[Not to mention he was a bloodsucking creature of the night.

She catches the Dementor joke and has to crack a half-smile. At least he's got a good sense of humor about it.]

A secret option number three?

[Her smile hitches a bit wider, amused.]

I don't think it would be fair to paint that kind of target on someone's back. I would be too worried about Jean-Claude finding out and doing something mark what he wrongfully considers to be his 'territory.' Most people can't survive the anger of a master vampire.

...give me a minute here.

You are dating a master vampire, you take care of a werewolf pack, you raise the dead for a living...

No wonder there are books about you.

[She raises a brow.]

And did I mention that Richard is a werewolf?

[She shakes her head in disbelief, taking a long sip of her coffee to set herself back at ease.]

I know. A lot of the time, it sounds unreal even to me. I have to admit, not too long ago, I woke up, looked in the mirror and just had to ask myself, "When did this become my life?"

As much as I don't like being left in the dark or being at the mercy of whoever's in charge here... I do like what New Moore has to offer. A clean slate.

A werewolf, hm? Well. There are worse things than dating a werewolf.

[He does nod, understanding what she is saying very well.]

A clean slate, yes. It also has much nicer amenities than Azkaban. Better view.

I don't want to go back.

There are worse things, but I'm sure you can imagine how it made things complicated -- at least, with the way lycanthrope politics work where I'm from.

[Another cleansing sip of coffee. She misses what she had with Richard, it's true, but recent events just make her appreciate the space all the more. A clean slate might be exactly what she needed.]

Better view, better food, and better company, I imagine. I don't blame you. I'm starting to think I might not be so sure I want to go back, either... but in my case, it feels a little like giving up.

[She tilts her head, thinking back to the werewolf comment.

Oh. Right.]

Speaking of...

[Though she doesn't actually include which topic she's 'speaking of.']

Did you ever solve the Great Boyfriend Mystery?

I'd like it if you stayed here.

...what's to solve, it's Remus.

[And it's totally normal to wake up snuggling your Remus, duh.]

[She smiles at his response, but gives him a dubious look when he mentions Remus' name.]

So what does that mean? You said it was confusing, right?

[Not accusatory, genuinely curious, really.

And maybe not for any kind of ulterior motive.

Maybe.]

Not the first time we've shared a bed, so that wasn't really all that confusing.

We just don't normally assume that we might be dating because of it.

[She puts a hand up in defense, before lifting her coffee cup again. It covers her mouth, though she nods in reply, then raises a brow again as she takes another sip.]

So no boyfriend. Girlfriend?

[She cringed inwardly. Awkward. The problem with not making a regular habit of flirting was that whenever she caught herself actually doing it, it was always dreadful.]

There are slim pickings in prison.

Doesn't help that a lot of them are related to me.

[Ah, nothing like some Black humour.]

I did kiss a couple of girls recently.

[She smirks in reply. Hard not to.]

Well, seeing as you're newly free, I can't say I blame you for playing the field.

[She almost said "That makes two of us," but she's really trying to shove that kiss with Kate out of her mind.]

It was a few too many people for me the first couple of days. After I was done thinking I'm a pirate, at least.

But, yeah, I probably shouldn't have kissed quite as many quite like that...

[She gives him a knowing glance over the lid of her cup.]

You're not the only one who got around. I'm not normally so free with the kissing.

Mostly I just feel bad for sweeping Sheska off her feet.

[She winces, somewhat dramatically.]

Poor girl got her hopes up?

I don't think she has, she's seriously lacking self-confidence. Romantic, though.

You at least made the whole event worth her while, right?

[She smiles again, setting her coffee down, then almost immediately picking it back up just to have something to do with her hands.

What the hell was wrong with her? She was making herself look like an idiot.

Word vomit. It had always been a kind of personal problem.]

She's a nice girl. I'm sure she'll cherish the moment.

Suppose so. I'll just try not to lead her on.

[Ah, so many things that are easier to talk about than the whole remus situation.]

Did you find yourself a third option yet?

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