Night on the Town (NJ)

[Maira]

Ali smirked at Chase's attempt to rescue Troy from her teasing. She decided to be nice and she tossed the pillow back in the direction of the couch. The pillow almost made it, but instead bounced off the arm and onto the cluttered excuse for an end table. The crash and clatter that followed that action made Ali cringe. Now it was Ali's turn to look sheepish.

Shrugging her shoulders, Ali said to Troy, "Well fine, you continue to scorch things and I'll try and make a dent in the livingroom. Its a disaster." The last Ali said with sincere confusion. Sure she could be a typically messy teenage girl but that was just in her bedroom. Anywhere else she was a bit of a neat freak. Living with a house full of college bachelors was going to be quite the experience; for both Ali and the guys.

[Demeter]

Troy snickered as his sister headed out towards the living room. He wasn't going to come rescue her when anything that may have gained the ability think attacked her. "You do that, Ali, but I warn you now, come finals, all of use will just trash it again in a after-finals celebration," he said while drying the pan off with a paper towel.

He turned back to sink, stuck his tounge out at the greasy ashes floating in the water, and held the pan properly. "Okay, so again." Once the pan was heated to a decent temperature and the eggs sizzling away, Troy kept his concenration centered with the idea of not burning the house down. A few minutes into the cooking process, Troy reached over and grabbed a spatula out of the dish strainer and poked at the eggs. "Done yet?"

[Shinigami]

Chase bit his lip, trying not to chuckle and decided to try and ignore the crashing sounds from the living room. He let a chuckle escape when he heard Troy mention the mess their house would become during and after finals. Where as his house was usually fairly clean, it did house four men, and final week was always hell, especially since they were now all seniors and would be graduating. He could relate to the mess, and he felt a little bad for Ali.

His attention returned whole-heartedly back to Troy when he was ready to try making eggs again. He watched him heat the pan again, waiting until it got to the apropriate temperature before cracking a few eggs into the pan. He watched with a bit of pride as Troy was able to keep his concentration long enough to cook the eggs through, poking at the eggs with a spatchula. He smiled and nodded at Troy's question. "Yup, they look done to me."

Chase spotted a plate in the dish strainer the spatchula had come from and grabbed it, laying it on the counter for Troy to put the eggs on. He leaned his hip against the counter. "Now, do you think you're ready for bacon or sausage?" He paused and glanced at the fridge. "Do you even -have- bacon or sausage?" He smirked, crossing his arms.

[Demeter]

Troy grinned at the plate of eggs and then glanced at the fridge. "I'm not sure if we have any or not but there is only one way to tell." Troy placed the warmed pan on the stove and crossed to the fridge. He pried the door open, crouched open and peered into the door. He moved items around and peered at the underside of the shelves. "Jam, milk, eggs, last week chinese. Nope, no bacon or sausage."

Troy stood and used a foot to close the door of the fridge. "I guess that is it for now. So, lets eat some eggs," Troy dug out some forks and handed one to Chase. "Hey, Ali, if you want a bite or two of egg, get in here!" Troy leaned out the kitchen.

[Maira]

ooc: just a warning, I didn't know where this post was going until i wrote it so I'm sorry if I got a little evil towards the end hehehehehe

Ali was tired and more than a little grumpy from the day's events but cleaning up her brother's livingroom was surprisingly soothing. Her parents had always loved it when Ali was mad, she'd start cleaning things and depending on how mad she was the whole house could wind up sparkling clean.

Thinking about her parents, even in a pleasant way, led her to memories of earlier that morning and those were less than pleasant. She was about to lob another of the sorry looking throw pillows at the couch (and the clutter still on it) when Troy hollered at her from the kitchen. Glaring at the pile of stuff on the couch, Ali muttered as she walked past, "Those eggs saved you for now." Oh great, now she was talking to inanimate objects, she really had to be upset...

Before she even reached the kitchen, Ali could smell the eggs and her stomach gave a loud rumble in protest at not being fed at all yet that day. Laughing at the sound, Ali answered her stomach by saying in a whisper, "Shut up already, I'm going to feed you now." Yep, she was loosing it. Not only was she talking to a pile of junk on the couch but her own bodily organs as well.

Once Ali made it into the kitchen, her mouth was watering with the smell of breakfast and she headed straight for the dish strainer and one of the remaining plates. With barely a glance, as her eyes had strayed to the pan full of eggs, Ali grabbed up her plate and then dropped it back in the strainer with a loud yelp of pain.

Tears brimming in her eyes, a string of curses came pouring out of her mouth as Ali gathered her now bleeding hand to her chest, her other hand clamped tightly about it to dull the pain and slow the bleeding. Today was not her day at all. First the coffee pot, then her parents, now a knife mixed in with the plates! If she did nothing else in her stay with Troy and his roomies, she was damn well going to teach them how to sort their dishes so nobody got hurt.

[Shinigami]

Chase rolled his eyes as he heard Troy list off the items in the fridge. It was something sad, yet expected to hear in a house with three guys. He took the fork offered to him and dished himself a few eggs, hesitating slightly only to tease Troy a bit more, but the eggs were actually good.

He heard Troy call for Ali and looked up when he heard her muttering to herself on her way into the kitchen. He smiled a little before returning his attention to his food. Chase's attention was once again brought back to Ali abruptly when he heard a yelp and a plate landing in the in the strainer. He froze as the scent of blood reached him a second later.

Eyes flickered up towards Troy for a second before he turned to see Ali clutching her hand to her chest. He move toward her immediately, he hadn't thought it was more than a prick, but Ali seemed to be quite upset. He grabbed a dish towel has he walked up to her, handing it over fo her to wrap over her hand and offereing ehr a smile. He didn't smell too much blood, so he wasn't too alarmed for the moment. He glanced back at Troy, "The first aid kit is still down here right? Can you grab it?"

Chase had turned his attention back to figuring out what had cut her, making sure it was actually clean and wouldn't cause her problems. He found a dischevelled plate, which he assumed was the one she had picked up, so he carefully shifted it and spotted the culprit. "A knife? Why are their knives in with your plates?" He asked as he turned around to look at Troy again.

[Demeter]

For a moment, Troy didn't know what to think. Something smelled good but the scent was completely cut off after a second. Shaking his head, Troy looked over at his sister and shook his head. She had a towel wrapped around her hand and was on the verge of crying. "You know," he said while crossing over to the first aid kit, "you never used to be this clumsy."

Troy repacked the kit, flipped the lid closed and handed to Chase. "I have no clue why there is a knife in the strainer. It wasn't my turn to do the dishes. Talk to James." Troy leaned agains the counter and looked at his sister. "Hey now, no crying, Ali. That time when we were jumping on the bed and broke the lampcover was much worse then this. You sliced your leg open a good several inches and you didn't cry once."

Troy pushed away from the counter, grabbed up his plate of eggs and speared one with a fork. "Don't be such a baby." He knew he was asking for it but Troy knew his sister handled anger better then anything else.

[Maira]

Her brother was an asshole, thats all there was too it. She didn't care if he dropped the plate of eggs on her head, she lunged across the short distance separating them and slammed her towel wrapped fist straight into his groin. Even through the towel she felt her fist connect with her goal and she smiled cruelly. "I'm not a fucking baby you bastard!" she growled as he crumpled to the floor.

That said she gathered herself up off the floor and walked out, not once looking back. She'd had the worst day in her life, as far as she could remember, and her brother had the gall to call her a baby. Stupid idiot deserved to have his balls black and blue for that.

She was just about to head back through the living room to her room when she remembered Troy said something about James doing dishes last. At the last minute she swerved and altered her course to take her upstairs to her brother's friend's room. Using her good hand, Ali knocked politely on James' door and waited until he opened it.

[Shinigami]

Chase took the first-aid kit from Troy and shook his head, but before he could use the kit to help Ali he heard Troy speaking to her. While he had a point, Ali was having a particularly emotional day and if it had been -his- sister he knew she wouldn't have appreciated it.

He froze when he heard Troy call Ali a baby. He was so stunned by Ali's actions that he hadn't even thought of grabbing her and holding her back, which proved to end painfully for Troy. Being a guy, Chase instinctivly covered himself as he winced, making sure to stay out of Ali's way until she left the kitchen.

Chase knelt by Troy, only after he was sure Ali wasn't coming back in. "You want me to get you some ice?" The situation was always tense after someone took a shot to the nuts, not knowing it the guy was going to react with anger or not, so Chase made sure he wasn't too close. He was one of those 'look on the bright side' kind of guys, so of course he had to say it: "Well, at least it'll heal quickly.."

[Demeter]

Eyes watering, Troy leaned forward and clutched the edge of the table until his knuckles turned white. He drew in oxygen through clenched teeth and willed the pain to stop. Once the pounding turned into a dull throb, Troy straigtened himself out and leaned against the table. He waved away Chase's offer of ice and eyed him for the comment. "Atleast that took her mind off this morning," he muttered as he hobbled to the living room.

Troy never could stand to see his sister in a blue mood and usually tried to cheer the girl up even if it meant pain. He gingerly sat on the couch, eggs completely forgotten, and leaned back. "I think I'm just gonna sit here for now and think nice, happy thoughts. About painkillers. And sisters that I never taught how to punch."

***

James glared at his door. Couldn't a guy ever catch a break" he thought as he rolled out of his bed. After the wall punching incident, he'd crawled back under his covers to try and salvage the last few hours of the morning. That didn't appear to be happening.

James, have lived in a house full of guys for the past dozen or so months, thought nothing of parading around half-dressed. And that was how he answered the door. With one hand sliding through mussed hair, James yanked the door to his bedroom open dressed in only his boxer shorts.

Already in a pissy mood, he leaned against the doorframe and glared at the person in the hallway. "Ya, what do you want now?" Some level of his brain recognized that this was Ali but that level of his brain was currently being overruled by the sleep-deprived portion so all ability at nice-making had flown the coop.

[Maira]

While she may have knocked politely on the door, Ali had no intention of letting James off the hook for his stupidity. What sort of idiot put a knife in with the plates?! Her question was answered when James flung open his bedroom door wearing nothing but his boxers. A downright gorgeous idiot.... The mussed hair and, well, nearly naked body really did something for Ali and whatever temper she had been about to unleash on him disolved entirely.

Standing there gaping it was a minute before she could regain her composure. Once she finally did, Ali attempted a glare and gave up. Instead she just unwrapped her hand and held it up for James to see. In a quiet, somewhat bemused voice, she said, "No more knives in with the plates okay?"

[Shinigami]

Chase raised a brow, amazed Troy would take a hit like that just to get Ali's mind off of the day she's had. He shuddered thinking about how much it had to hurt to have that kind of dedication for your sister. And Chase swore he'd -never- teach his sister how to punch... she could make due with her powers... he rather liked his family jewels in tact and unharmed.

He sat on the coffee table infront of Troy. "You.. you sure you don't want ice?" Chase had eyed the nearest clock on their way into the livingroom, and it was already nearing when they would need to leave for the club, but they would obviously wait until Troy was up to it.

[Demeter]

Troy waved away Chase's second offer of ice. "I'm fine, really. Just a few more minutes of sitting here should do the trick." Troy leaned his head back against the couch pillows and waiting for the pain to ease away. Once the majority of the pain vanished, Troy hauled himself out of the couch and turned to look at Chase. "Can we go now? I doubt Ali will remain calm enough to not hurt me when she sees me next."

At Chase's nod. Troy headed towards the front entryway, stuffed his feet into shoes and grabbed his set of keys. "Okay, so do we need a car or anything?" he asked as he stepped out onto the porch.

***

James blinked at Ali and zero in on the blood. "Hurt yourself again, didja?" he muttered. Still not caring, or not noticing, about his state of undress, James grabbed Ali but her uninjured hand and pulled her towards the bathroom. Once in the bathroom, James gripped Ali around the waist and put her on the counter. Once he was satisfied that she was comfortable, James dug out medical supplies kept in the bathroom and procedded to clean the cut. While cleaning out the blood, James was leaning forward, head bent over Ali's hand.

After James had Ali's hand bandaged up, he picked her up once again and placed her on the floor, all the while accidently bumping her body due to the close quarters of the bathroom. "Okay, lady, watch out for idiots who put knives in the strainer," he said while ruffling her hair before walking back down the hallway to his room.

[Shinigami]

Chase felt a bit awkward as he sat on the coffee table and waited for Troy to let him know he was ready to leave. He didn't have to wait long though, something for which he was greatful. Troy asked if they could leave and Chase smiled a bit at his reasoning. He nodded. "Sure."

He stood and followed Troy towards the door. He made sure his shoes were where they needed to be, which was on his feet, and looked up at Troy's question. He thought for a second. "Well, from the directions its within walking distance, but I'm not sure of the neighborhood. And it's up to you if you want to walk after your morning adventures."

The knife in his pocket was suddenly remembered, but he decided to push that aside. It was early in the day yet, too early for the vampire bar to be filled with many troublemakers. Chase didn't think he'd have to give Troy a weapon just yet.

[Maira]

Ali wanted nothing more than to smack James for the smart-ass comment about her hurting herself again. She had to remind herself forcibly that he'd grown up with her and she'd never been overly graceful as a child. She hadn't even had time to react when he'd grabbed her good hand and pulled her towards the bathroom where he grabbed her around the waist and lifted her onto the bathroom counter. Having been manhandled by James for the second time in one day, Ali was seriously fighting the urge to pummel him upside the head.

Instead though, the longer she glared at the head bent over her hand, the more she wanted to run her fingers through his hair. For causing that thought to run through her mind, Ali wanted even more to smack James. It was all his fault.... She wasn't quite sure -what- was all his fault but it was.

Once her hand was bandaged and James lifted her off the counter Ali was watching him, her eyes full of confusion. The fact that the bathroom was tiny and had made it so James and her bodies touched as he'd helped her off the counter didnt' help any. She was dating Grace, why would her body be reacting to James the way it was? Stupid guy, it really was all his fault. When he told her to watch out for idiots who put knives in the strainer, then ruffled her hair and walked away she stood gaping at him. Not because of his state of undress this time but because he'd had the gall to say what he'd said. "You jerk!" she shouted after him then stormed downstairs and went back to her bedroom.

[Demeter]

Ace was annoyed. She stood in her dorm room, foot tapping against the ground to the annoyance of her roommate, and flipped through the local phone book. Ali's brother had to be listed somewhere. Her parents had been less then helpful. They'd claimed not to know anyone named Allison but she'd seen a boxful of photographs containing Ali on the sidewalk next to the trashcan.

Ace ran her finger down another list of names and smirked at her roommates growl. The girl didn't like her, that was for sure. Just because Nelly had rarely been twenty miles outside of her hometown and she'd been all over the world didn't mean anything. So she'd meet interesting people, found things and spent her teens flirting with the dark eyed descendents of Greek Gods. That didn't mean anything. Nelly had roots, Ace had always been the transplant.

She cackled when she finally reached a name she recognized. Troy Havel. Holding the phone book in one hand, Ace used Nelly's old-fashioned rotary phone to dial the number. When a sleepy male voice answered the phone, Ace spoke. "Yeah, you wouldn't happen to know where I could find Allison Havel, would you?"

***

James groaned, muttered in the phone for the girl to hang on and rolled out of his bed once again. He yanked his door open, stalked down the hallway and pounded on Ali's door. When she opened it, he muttered that the phone was for her and went back to his bedroom. Once he heard Ali pick the phone up, he dropped his reciever back onto the charger and rolled over."

***

Ace waited patiently, making faces at Nelly's back, and launched into a rapid speech once someone female picked up the line. "Allison? You probably don't remember me but I'm Canace. We met years ago and you tried to follow my mother and I back to Greece after she'd done a series of lectures at the local university. Anyways, the point is that I'm back in town for a good, long while. Want to get together?"

***

Troy glanced from his truck to the sidewalk. "Truck. We are so taking the truck. I may be willing to risk my future children just for the sake of cheering Ali up but I'm not willing to walk right now." He fished his keys from his pocket and went over to the truck, unlocked the doors and waited for Chase.

After following Chase's directions, Troy braked in front of the bar and scooted into a parking space. He turned the ignition off and turned to look at Chase. "So, what now?"

[Maira]

She'd heard him thumping down the stairs and when she heard James pound on her door Ali wasn't too terribly surprised. When he told her the phone was for her, that made her look at her bedroom door askance. "Phone? For me? Who would call here instead of my cell phone?" She wondered all this aloud and then went out to the living room to pick up the phone out there. James had obviously gone back upstairs already but she didn't really care.

She'd barely said, "Hello?" when a female voice started rambling off about some childhood escapades Ali barely remembered. "Huh? What?" Ali asked before the other girl's words soaked in. Then when it finally did she gasped and asked excitedly, "Ace?! Oh my god! How have you been?! -Where- have you been?!" Ali was nearly bouncing in place at the sound of her old friend's voice, injured feet and hand completely forgotten.

[Shinigami]

Chase snickered, his head tilted toward the ground to try and hide his amusement as he followed Troy out to the truck. Once the doors were unlocked he was hauling himself in and pulling the door shut behind him. The ride was spent relaying the directions that Gershom had given him and hoping he had remembered them correctly.

He let a breath when they pulled up to the bar, and it was thankfully the same one Gersh had mentioned on the phone. Now the interesting part would begin, and as Troy turned off the truck and turned to him Chase could tell he was a bit nervous. "Now, we go in and get ourselves a drink."

Taking the lead, Chase exited the truck and made sure Troy was following. He yanked open the heavy bar door and held it open for Troy. The bar was pretty unremarkable, looking just like any other bar, so much so that many humans also congregated here everyonce in a while. There were one or two there already, along with a couple vampires, but it was fairly empty. He turned to Troy. "You ready for your first taste?"

[Demeter]

Ace flopped onto her half of the bunked, twin beds (Nelly had insisted and rested her feet against the bottom of Nelly's bed. She'd claimed the bottom bunk before Nelly had. A lifetime of fighting the other kids on the dig sits for the bottom bunks had taught her to be quick. "Where have I been? Where haven't I been. Mom has been branching out lately, helping out at jungle sites, I met a gorgous guy while Mom was working at a pyramid in egpyt. How have you been and what is with your parents?"

As she listened to Ali chatter, Ace twisted the phone cord around with her toes, ignoring Nelly's glare as the room was bisected with the cord. Giggling she rolled onto her stomach and jumped into the conversation. "Ya know, this conversation would be better over food. Wanna meet at Cafe of the Boardwalk for lunch? It's on the same street as the university. You can't miss it, just look for the hungover college students."

Ace handed Nelly her phone, ignored her squwack of rudeness and hurried into the bathroom across the hall. If she was going to meet Ali less then an hour, she need to shower.

***

Troy walked behind Chase and peered around at the interior of the bar. Not much to look at, he thought, and it seemed the same as all the other bars he'd been in. Troy spared a glance at the few occupants, amazed that some well, humans, he guessed were already perched at the bar, slurping down drinks.

Troy turned to look at Chase and shrugged. "It's pretty much now or later, isn't it? So I should get it over with as soon as possible. You're in the lead for this portion of the day's entertainment, Chase, so you led the way."

[Maira]

After all the crap that had happened earlier in the day, Ali was more than happy to focus on the return of her childhood friend. She was a little baffled that Ace remembered her at all but she was really quite flattered and relieved. After gabbing for a short while, Ace suggested they continue getting caught up over food and Ali agreed excitedly. As soon as she hung up the phone she grabbed some clothes from a bag, a towel, and ran for the downstairs bathroom to get ready.

*****

Ace was right, finding the little cafe was not hard if one looked for hung-over college students. Ali couldn't help but snicker at the sight as she crossed the street and made her way to the cafe. The girls hadn't discussed if they would meet outside or inside so when Ali reached the door she hovered outside, peering in one of the windows before turning to look down either direction of the sidewalk. Had she gotten here first?