“What do you mean, ‘don’t come back’? Oh, go for a walk in the sun, dickhead!” Sid jammed her finger against the ‘end call’ button on her phone, before turning around and throwing it hard against the wall. Even after all this time, it was easy to forget her vampiric strength in moments of impulsive anger. It struck against the wall, splintering off some wallpaper and even making a chip in the brick. The phone itself was fine, only suffering another scuff across the edge of its housing. “Thing’s fucking invincible.” She muttered to herself as she took a few steps across the room to reach down and pick it up again. “..Everything okay?” The voice came from thin air, not even a metre to her left. Sid tensed up and jumped back in surprise with a wide-eyed glare at the direction of the sound. Isabelle’s lanky form slowly rematerialised in front of her as she removed her obfuscation. She looked visibly shaken, likely from having a Nokia thrown at dangerous speeds right in her direction. After a few blinks and shakes of her head to get the blurry image of the girl before her to fully appear, Sid’s glare narrowed as she prepared for another outburst. “What the FUCK, Bella?!” She snapped, clenching her fists as the Nosferatu recoiled slightly. “Sorry, sorry!” Bella apologised, her voice struck with an anxious tone. “I didn’t mean to eavesdrop!” “Then why the fuck are you still in here?!” “It’s just-! You were stood in front of the door…” She meekly pointed one of her bony fingers up to the only door in the small office — the same one that Sid had been leaning on for most of that heated phone conversation. “I would have said something, but… I think you forgot I was in here… And then it felt really awkward to interrupt you, and..” Her voice slowly trailed off, as she remained stood in the corner of the room and rubbed at her elbow. Sid took a few moments to consider her response, deciding whether or not it was worth continuing her fit of anger over. Eventually, she let out an exasperated groan, slowly releasing the tension in her body before taking a step and sitting down on the desk just next to her. There was never much point in remaining angry at this wet tissue of a vampire. She reached into her pocket and withdrew a cigarette, along with her lighter. Just like any other kindred, she had to be extra careful with the flame as she lit it, but over the handful of years since she’d crossed over to the side of the undead, she’d gotten pretty used to it. With a prolonged inhale, her dead lungs were forced in to action once more, taking in the smoke and pushing it out again soon after. Nicotine didn’t have much of an effect on kindred, but smoking remained a relaxing ritual for many regardless, especially those who were smokers in their mortal lifetimes. “Well? Go on, then. The door’s clear.” Sid spoke, expecting Isabelle to make herself sparse. But instead, she was met with another awkward silence, eventually forcing her to turn around and glare back at her, raising her eyebrow impatiently. “What?” Bella was still stood in the same place, slightly hunched over, and anxiously rubbing her palms together. It was obvious from a glance that if kindred could sweat, the Nosferatu would be soaking. “Do you… Need somewhere to stay?” “What’re you talking about, Bella?” Sid replied. “I.. I mean, I heard you talking. They told you not to go back, right? So… Do you have anywhere to go? You could stay with me… If you want.” She pushed the words out, trying and failing to keep her cool. Sid wouldn’t have struggled too hard to find a place to crash for the night. She knew of dens all over the city, full of people who’d be glad to accept her — or at least be too afraid of the consequences of turning her down. It wouldn’t have been the safest or most comfortable place to sleep the day away, but neither was her old place. “Tch, please. I’d rather spend a night in a crack den than a sewer, nozzie.” She spoke dismissively, turning away once again and taking another hit from her cigarette, “Least I could probably score some more heroin there.” “No, no! I don’t live in the sewer!” Bella was quick to interject, seeming to gain a sudden increase in confidence. “We live in an old anti-aircraft operations building! We needed somewhere with some more privacy, so it’s like, super secret!” She seemed almost proud of herself, grinning in a way that let the dim office light glint off those freakishly sharp teeth, big even for a kindred. Sid had seen the way she used those to feed, and it wasn’t pretty. “It’s a super nice place, promise!” Surprisingly, Sid actually found herself considering it. The recent jobs they’d been working had required her to stir up some of the surrounding gangs, and apparently they hadn’t been taking too kindly to it. That’s the whole reason she’d been kicked out in the first place, and it probably meant that finding a safe spot that wouldn’t turn her down would be harder than usual. And she had to admit, she was curious — what kind of place did a Nosferatu consider ‘super nice’? The night was still fairly young. They’d only been called over today for a debrief of sorts, and their big mission to rescue Edward wasn’t going to be ready for another couple nights. Sid supposed that she could at least check the place out, and she’d still have time to ditch and find a new spot if it was a complete shithole. And so, with a groan and a roll of her eyes, Sid would stub out her cigarette and stand back up. “Fine, Isabelle. Lead the way.” Isabelle happily hummed a tune to herself as she effortlessly made her way across the narrow dirt path, slipping past the sharp branches that jutted out from the shrubbery as if they weren’t even there. Sid, on the other hand, was having a far less pleasant time. She’d already accrued a number of nicks and scratches across her clothes and skin, and her now messy hair had caught a few dead leaves. She was already regretting her decision to follow along, and this feeling only increased when they finally reached the clearing and could see the building before them. It was an ugly, brutalist eyesore in the shape of a giant concrete slab, covered in crude graffiti and overgrown with moss and vine. She could see how a nozzie would feel right at home here. Bella seemed to be in one of her hyperactive moods again, shifting back and forth on the spot as she turned around and lifted her arms with a grin on her face, “Ta-daaa! See, that wasn’t so bad!” “Speak for yourself, Bella.” Sid replied, her voice terse and unimpressed. Upon seeing the state she was in, Isabelle’s expression dropped and she immediately began to apologise. “Oh! Sorry, sorry!” She reached her hand over, attempting to brush the leaves out of her hair. The moment her finger made contact, Sid’s hand shot up to grab harshly onto her wrist, causing the Nosferatu to recoil and pull back. “Sorrysorrysorrysorry-” “It’s fine. Let’s just get inside.” Sid spoke, slowly letting go of Bella’s arm. She hadn’t meant to snap at her like that, but she didn’t feel bad enough to apologise for it. The Nosferatu had returned to her usual awkward, hunched demeanour as she quietly began walking her over to the building. The main entrance had been welded shut, meaning that the only half-convenient way to get in and out was through a small stairway around the back that led into a small tunnel, just barely tall enough for Bella to stand up straight in. “Bella, I thought you said this place was super nice.” Sid spoke up, sounding like she would have been disappointed if she had actually believed the claim in the first place. “Just wait! Trust me!” The other girl insisted, leading her along the tunnel until they reached another metal door. She rapped her knuckles against it in a particular rhythm, calling out with a playful “I’m hooooome!” as she waited for an answer. It wasn’t too long before the heavy door was pushed open, making a terrible creaking sound as it was. Stood on the other side was another kindred — a stout bodied man with a pair of thick rimmed glasses and a receding hairline. While his clothes had some of the usual dirt and disrepair seen with many Nosferatu, it seemed he had made an effort to keep his attire as smart as possible, with his blue-plaid shirt kept fairly clean and tear-free, and tucked neatly into his black trousers. “Ah, Isabelle, you’re home early tonight.” The man welcomed her, his voice deep and gruff, but not too unpleasant, especially for his clan. He adjusted his glasses as he looked past her and in Sid’s direction, furrowing his brow ever so slightly, “...And you’ve brought a guest.” His tone expressed a desire for an explanation, and Isabelle was quick to jump in. “Oh, don’t worry! This is Sid!” She beamed, stepping aside a little to bring her in to view. Sid briefly lifted a hand out of the pocket of her coat to give a small, customary wave, but didn’t seem in the mood for striking up conversation. Regardless, Bella’s words seemed to work well enough, as his expression softened somewhat once again and he gave a single nod of greeting to the Malkavian. “Oh? It’s nice to meet you, Sid — my name is Albert Clarkson. Isabelle has told me much about you.” He addressed her, before curiously adding, “What brings you here tonight?” Sid was hoping to be able to escape this interaction without having to speak with anyone, but it seemed as though she wouldn’t be so lucky. “Bella offered to let me crash here for the day. Home problems.” She dismissively answered, her tone expressing her lack of interest in conversation. “I see.” Albert took note of the somewhat abrasive answer, but didn’t bother to push on it, “Well, you’re welcome for as long as you like. I trust Isabelle has expressed the importance of keeping our presence here a secret?” Isabelle was quick to jump in once again, taking over for Sid, “She’s not gonna tell anyone! I told her it was super secret.” Seemingly satisfied with this, Albert stepped aside to allow them in. After a few more moments of chat between him and Isabelle, the two were finally free to explore the run-down building. Much to Sid’s surprise, it actually wasn’t too bad. Of course, it was still a bit of a shithole. The cold, concrete walls were still just as ugly on the inside, with the only colour in the room coming from the low-effort, mostly explicit graffiti plastered across them. But whereas the outside was unkept and messy with trash, the inside had been tidied up rather thoroughly. The floors were clear of debris and even seemed to be dusted regularly. There was some actual furniture that was at least mostly clean put around the place, and the halls and rooms had been fixed with fairy lights and lamps to keep everything nice and see-able. Sid hadn’t actually been to any Nosferatu communities before, so she had no idea if this was out of the ordinary for them, but it was certainly a little nicer than the trash-heap she was expecting. Hell, she’d been to a fair share of drug dens that were worse than this. As Bella led her through the slightly cramped halls, they’d walk past a few other members of the brood. It was an odd bunch, but that was pretty in-line with the clan. They varied in age and appearance, although many of them seemed to be harmless-looking enough. Bella had mentioned that they were working on some kind of online network project here, and many of the Nosferatu living here appeared fittingly nerdy for such a job. There was an impressive amount of computers, server racks and other tech set up in a few of the rooms, most of which was too complex for Sid to even begin to understand. “Alright, I’ll hand it to you, Bella. It’s not the most disgusting place I’ve ever seen.” She stated, her attitude having relaxed a little now that she’d confirmed she wouldn’t be using a pile of trash as a mattress tonight. “See, I told you so! Just wait until you see my room!” Isabelle had perked up quite a bit as well, and there was a barely contained excitement in her step and in her voice as she pushed open a door and entered one of the rooms, urging Sid to follow along. The moment Sid turned the corner, it was immediately clear that she was in Isabelle’s room. It was a mess of so many colours and items that her brain had no idea where to look first. The walls were covered in so many posters and decorations that you could hardly even tell they were made of concrete. Her bedsheets had a zebra-print pattern, and the bed itself was covered in large number of plush toys. On her desk was a drawing tablet, a few sketchbooks and a few pots of unsorted pens, pencils and other stationery. Sat next to the desk was a cardboard box, full to the brim with a mess of tangled cables that she needed for god knows what. Sid couldn’t help but smirk a little as she took it all in. “Yeah, this is pretty much exactly what I imagined your room would look like.” Isabelle had moved to take a seat on her mattress, sitting with her legs crossed and offering Sid a large, fanged grin, “I’ll take that as a compliment, I guess! Uh, feel free to look around!” The Malkavian took a few seconds to do so, slowly adjusting her eyes to the neon nightmare before her. It was kind of charming, in its own, very Bella-y way. She took a few steps, stopping to examine the posters on the wall. Lots of band posters, mostly emo stuff, some electronic, with a few curveballs thrown in. She would’ve made a better assessment of her music taste, but she was getting too distracted by all of the little hearts drawn in with marker around the lead singer of Paramore’s face. Choosing to just move past that, she’d also see some cartoon posters thrown in the mix — if she counted the multiple Invader Zim posters, and then added the amount of stickers stuck to random things, it was by far the most times she’d ever seen GIR in one room. “...You ever read Johnny the Homicidal Maniac?” Sid asked, looking back at Bella for a moment, who would eagerly nod in response. “Duh! Hold on, wait! I’ve got a few of the issues here!” The Nosferatu reached under her bed and pulled out a box of comic books, somewhat clumsily sifting through them until she found what she was looking for. She gestured for Sid to come over, shifting to the side to allow her some room to sit on the bed next to her. “Johnny the Homicidal Maniac, Issue 1!” She proudly exclaimed, handing the thin book over to her. “Wow, I haven’t read this in ages. Pretty sweet, actually.” Sid was impressed, giving Bella a light nudge with her elbow as she spoke. She lifted her legs up onto the mattress, crossing them, and allowing herself to get a little more comfortable on it as she started to lightly skim through the issue. After a moment, she felt Bella tapping on her shoulder. She looked to her side, to see the girl holding up a purple hairbrush. “...Can I?” She asked, her voice becoming a little more meek once again as she pointed up at the girl’s hair, still tangled and dirtied. Sid seemed hesitant. Her unsure glance shifted between Bella and the brush a few times, as the other silently awaited an answer. There was a somewhat odd expression on Sid’s face, one that Bella wasn’t sure she’d seen from her before. It took a few more moments of silence for her to finally make up her mind, giving a light sigh before speaking up. “Fiine, go on, then. But don’t fuck with it.” She warned, turning herself a little to face away from Isabelle. She didn’t even need to be looking at Bella to sense that gleeful excitement, as the Nosferatu shifted around to a better sitting position just behind her. She lifted the brush and slowly began to drag it through her hair. She first made sure to get rid of the couple leaves and small twigs that had managed to stay in there, before beginning on working out the tangles. For someone so hyperactive, she was surprisingly careful here, slowly letting the hair untangle itself around the brushes bristles, and not forcing or tugging on it at all. Her bony hands were cold, devoid of any of the life found in a mortal’s — and yet, there was a certain warmth in them, that flickered up and brought a subtle, mellow heat gently across her whole body. As she became more comfortable with the situation, Sid would lean back a little further, allowing Bella to take some of her weight as she silently read through the pages of the comic in her hands.