Crimson Sky Tavern (Zeth)

Melanie cooked from time to time but, if she had the money, she preferred to let someone else do all the work. Tonight was one of those nights. She wasn't the type to need a fancy restaurant. No, she was satisfied with the common steak or a bowl of stew. If you placed a bowl of pasta before her though, she'd love you for life. She was one of those people who could eat enough for three people and never gain a pound. People would ask where it went. Others would gossip their jealousy. Either way, she loved food and she wasn't about to let good manners keep her from eating enough to satisfy her taste-buds.

Tonight, it was the Crimson Sky Tavern; rumored to have been named because the windows along one side of the Tavern always gave a perfect view of the setting sun each evening. Melanie found many couples frequented here and because of that, it was less rowdy than your typical bar. As she entered, the owner, quite familiar with the regular, happily greeted her on sight and found her a seat, himself. She smiled back to him feeling special; honored by the gesture. She was sat at a small table in the back next to one of the windows with a magnificent view. Part of her wondered if the owner didn't just seat her far out of the way, knowing she'd be there for a while, to keep from interrupting his regular flow of customers. She shrugged off the thought. She preferred to assume he was being nice.

"Pasta again, madam?" the waiter asked as he strolled by, recognizing her as well. "The day I choose any different, feel free to slap me," she replied. "Oh madam, I would never," he chuckled writing down the order. While she waited, her eyes gazed out at the sunset. She found herself lost in thought. Thinking about the future and how she had no idea what she wanted from it and how she had no plans leading up to it. She just lived day by day. Sometimes, she wish she didn't...

The sun was hanging on the low end of the sky as he staggered into the city of Zalsabad. For the last week Zeth had been on the road, still gathering intelligence on the mysterious white haired mage he had heard so much about a few months back. It had been a long week, filled with fighting off gangs of bandits, strange undead creatures and just trying to find a good tree to lay in for the afternoon. Oh and trying to find food. There's always a need for good food.

From what Zeth had heard, there was a tavern by the name of Crimson Sky, it got it's name because apparently one of the windows had the perfect view of the setting sun as you ate your dinner with a loved one, whatever it may be, Zeth just wanted a good ale, some food, and maybe a bed if he had enough coin for it.

After only a few minutes of walking, he found the tavern. It was pretty well situated, and perhaps the rumor about it was true, a nice sized window did face the sun that now hung low in the sky. Zeth opened the door and pushed his way in.

Boy did he feel like he came to the wrong place. There were couples everywhere! Well, one lady seemed to be sitting alone. Perhaps she had already ordered or was waiting to be waited on by one of the waiters lazying about.

He sighed and pulled his now dusty and grimy red cloak around him tighter. He looked sheepishly down at his clothing as well. They were spattered with mud and what appeared to be an old blood stain here and there, his boots were caked in mud. He grimaced as the a waiter walked up to him, eyeing his clothing with slight distaste and sat him down at a table none too far from the girl he was just looking at not a moment ago.

"What would you like to eat sir?" The waiter asked, trying to keep his conversation with Zeth curt and to the point.

"Oh...pasta...never had that before. Give me that...and some honeyed hard cider." Zeth told the waiter as he quickly browsed the menu. The waiter nodded and walked off, trying to get away from Zeth before his grime got onto him.

Zeth removed his scabbard from his back and set it against the table just in reach and rested his elbows on the table and propped his head up, watching the female spacing out. He wondered what would happen if he threw a napkin at her if she would come out of her trance.

There weren't many places that made pasta, in fact, she thought a moment, this was the only place for several towns or so. Not many places had the facilities to create it, most used rice in dishes more, instead. Melanie loved rice. But it just wasn't quite like pasta.

She sighed heavily when thoughts of her future left her with nothing but a shrug of indecision. The sunset really was crimson. It matched the name of the Tavern quite well. It reminded her of blood in water; the way the red painted through the orange and yellow. Blood. It was a good thing she fed earlier in the day or this sight might trigger her lust for blood. Mental note: don't come here if you haven't fed in a while. That would turn out quite poorly.

It was unfortunate a rare steak didn't hold enough blood to satiate her lust. She had tried it before. Perhaps if it did, she might be able to act Human entirely. No, get those thoughts out of here. She was Human. She was born Human, she grew up Human, she was still very Human. Her eyes fell down to the table before her. She was unable to continue to look at the blood-red sky with these thoughts on her mind.

Out of the corner of her eye she noticed someone looking at her, she glanced over. He wore dingy clothes, like he'd been out in the dirt and mud all day wrestling with a pig. Okay, so that was an unfair exaggeration. He looked unkempt, like he needed his clothes washed and a good long bath. Regardless, his appearance perked her curiosity. What was a man such as him doing in a place such as this. Bit out of place, it seemed. But atop that, what did he do for a living that left him with such an appearance.

"Hey, what's with the mud and blood-stains? Just finish burying an ex-girlfriend or something?" she joked. She didn't actually think that, that's why she said it. If she actually thought him the murdering type, she would've avoided eye-contact to start with.

Zeth didn't realise until it was too late that the girl was staring back at him. He smiled sheepishly as she commented that he looked like he just buried an ex-girlfriend or something. Which wouldn't be far off, if you consider undead and bandits ex-girlfriends.

"Hahaha...Yeah totally...Not really, I've been on the road a while and stopped in town for the night. It's been rough, I don't know what the guards are doing, but they haven't been taking care of the roads...bandits and some sorta creatures been causing all sorts of issues." Zeth replied, his voice trailing off for a moment, looking back at the crimson sun. It was quite a nice site, though not as nice as some of the sites he's seen on his travels.

Oh, I'm Zeth by the way. Zeth Kiligo, new to town obviously...Mind if I join you? I could use someone to chat with. He said, laughing slightly, motioning to the empty chair next to the woman. It really has been a while since he had anyone to talk to, or to just enjoy a warm meal with
anyone.

Bandits, huh? So he was the heroic adventuring sort. Melanie wouldn't mind the company of a knight in shining armor. ...even if his armor happened to look like that of a peasant's, currently. Books and judging and covers. Something to do with that general idea. "Sure, you can share my table. But don't be fooled by the atmosphere, beautiful sunset, and drop-dead gorgeous girl before you; we're going dutch," she winked at him flirtatiously. She was a girl of flirting with none of the commitment.

"So you look like a mysterious man with an intriguing past, Zeth. Tell me, what is your main quest? I'm curious. Is it for profit? Or some greater cause?" Melanie used her right foot to push the chair across from her out, away from the table; a lazy, casual way of offering him the seat without standing to pull it out herself. "I'm Melanie Havnos. I travel a lot too..." It only occurred to her right then. "Perhaps our goals may have us adventuring together sometime."

The thought seemed rather nice. Having a traveling companion for once. For too many years she had no social interactions. Maybe this would be good for her. But then he eyes turned cold, almost in horror, as she recalled traveling with someone might be a very unwise idea. Her desire for blood could complicate things greatly. She wouldn't want to harm him, scare him, or give him reason to attack her. She'd wait for his reaction to her invitation first though. Maybe he'd turn her down and she wouldn't have to worry about this at all. She calmed. Yeah, she probably sounded desperate; too eager. He'd probably be put off by it and tell her he was a loner by nature and a companion just wasn't his style. She had nothing to worry over, she assured herself.

Zeth stood up and moved to the woman's, now known as Melanie to Zeth, table and sat down at the offered chair. She jumped right to the good stuff, quests, heroics, fame, fortune. What was she making him out to be? A hero? A knight? Nah, he wasn't any of those things, a dunce if anything.

He chuckled and shrugged at her question. "I'm tracking someone. A power mage by some accounts. Said to wield the powers of death itself...I've been after 'em for years.." He sighed and looked a little distant as if remembering something from long ago. As soon as the moment came, it passed and he grinned at her. A partner in crime, eh? Someone to watch his back on his lazy afternoons seemed nice enough. "I'll be happy to have a comrade in arms...heh, or a partner in misadventures. Don't get me wrong, it won't be easy, lots of lazy afternoons lounging in trees and relaxing nights star gazing in meadows. Now if that sounds like too much for yeah, you can back out anytime." He laughed heartily as their drink and food was served to them. They both appeared to have ordered the pasta.

Zeth sniffed it at first and tired to pick it up with his fork, only for the noodles to slip between the prongs of the fork. "Hrm..." He mumbled and tried again, only to have the same thing happen.

Gods damn it... He cursed and tried for a third time, only to have it happen again. He put his fork down forcefully and pouted, take a swig from his hard cider.

He was after a Mage who was rumored to wield power over death. That's... powerful. She thought a moment. Perhaps someone that powerful might be able to cure her of Vampirism? If that's even possible. She doubted it. Wait... she had another thought. If one has power over death, does that mean they could bring the dead back to life? ...her mother. Suddenly her eyes lit up. If there was a chance she could bring her mother back to life, how could she ignore it? She had to find this Mage, even if dangerous. She'd sell her soul, figuratively... maybe literally, to bring her mother back.

"You clearly have a past with this Mage," she noticed by his distant eyes. It was her ambient power; the ability to read body language a bit better than your average Human. "I won't question it. It would be rude of me. No matter your reasoning, I'd be honored to adventure with you on your quest." Okay, so maybe she stopped thinking so clearly after the whole 'bringing her mother back to life' idea. She'll regret this later when it comes time to feed again.

She went on to clarify the reasoning for her travels. "I'm not quite the adventurer you are, unfortunately. My endeavors are for personal gain. Monetary, really. You see, I to go shops in different cities and learn of rare materials they have trouble getting a hold of. I find out its location, obtain it, and sell it to them. It's what I survive off of. It pays well but it is fairly dangerous. I'm sure you have an idea of what I must face obtaining materials no trader or salesman dares go after due to its remote location or dangerous environment," she explained. "Needless to say, I wouldn't be your damsel in distress. So you need not worry. I've had my fair share of fights and can hold my own quite well," she assured him. She didn't want him expecting she'd just end up slowing him down.

"We can certainly try it out and see how it goes," she returned to the topic of adventuring together; now giving herself an out if she really needs to ditch in order to feed.

As the waiter placed the pasta before them she noticed him glace to where Zeth previously sat. She could tell he debated placing his plate at his old table, just to be difficult, but he resisted the urge. "Here you go, madam," the waiter said to her with a genuine smile intentionally ignoring Zeth as he turned to leave. "Enjoy."

As Zeth struggled with his pasta, Melanie smiled, trying to hold back laughter. Eventually, it broke free. "Here... you're doing it wrong..." She slid her chair beside his and held his hand in her's, guiding it; twisting the fork with his hand as the pasta twirled and tangled around the tines. She let go of his hand. "There, try it like that." She smiled, sliding her own bowl over to her instead of sliding her chair across from him again. "It's great, isn't it? Pasta. I love it."

A past with this mage? Maybe that was the case, but Zeth didn't even know if he did have a past with this all power mage or not. Perhaps he did, but if that were the case, he would be dead set on killing them. His village needed avenging. His father, his mother.

He grinned stupidly. "Good, I wouldn't want to have to knock around a few thugs if anything happened to ya." He replied as she mentioned she knew how to fight. She even agreed to travel with him, which would be great, he wanted someone to travel with, have good memories with, and enjoying various misadventures.

He blushed a little when she commented he was trying to eat the pasta wrong and showed him how. She even decided to move her bowl over and remained next to him. He went straight to his cider, hiding his face from view for the moment, since it was a light shade of red. Women, especially beautiful women, made him blush after all. He put his mug down and attempted the pasta again, this time eating it the way Melanie showed him, and sure enough,  it worked like a charm.

"So, any good places to stay and wash up? I kinda don't want to look like I just go mauled by a new turned werewolf." He chuckled a little and looked down at his clothing. It really did look like he was just in a boxing match with a werewolf.

He was charming. She had to give him that. This knight in shining armor... definitely not as run-down as he appeared. There was a certain flame to him. It was like he didn't even mind if he died, so long as it was in the midst of an adventure while living life to it's fullest. It was an energy she desperately needed in her life right about now. Maybe spending time with him would be best for her, overall.

He was also cute, the way he hid his embarrassment behind his glass of cider. He thought she was attractive. She knew this, and she was feeding off of it. She hadn't had much social interaction for quite some time. So anyone feeding her ego, even just a little, was nice.

"Well, I live in this city, just West of here. You could use my bath for free as opposed to renting your own inn room to do so. So long as you understand the bed is off-limits." She winked at him with a giggle. "It's a small place but very homey. I couldn't afford much better. I was lucky to afford that at the time. There's actually a really awesome adventure that helped me afford it. Perhaps I'll tell it to you some day."

A bath at an attractive ladies house? Oh dear! Well he was more excited to be getting a bath and a warm place to sleep for a change rather than being stuck outside in damp sleeping furs. Even though her bed was off limits...shame.

"Wonderful, and your loss." He said with a wink. He finished the last of his food quickly, not exactly savoring the taste but still enjoying the flavors. He managed to pour his hard cider into his wine skin and hung it at his side.

"Hrm...Oh yes, payment! You can pay me back later" He said suddenly with a playful wink, he pulled out a few coins, enough to cover his drink and both of the meals. He retrieved his sword and slid the strap back over his shoulders, once again feeling the comfortable weight of the blade on his person again.

Somehow, Melanie had gone from a full plate of pasta to an empty bowl. If someone wasn't paying attention they might've missed the part where she was actually eating; it all happened so fast. Some claimed she could eat in the blink of an eye... literally. These were all exaggerations, of course. But, nevertheless she only had a bite to finish by the time Zeth was done.

"Well you're quite eager to rush home with me, aren't you," she giggled. "Afraid I'm going to change my mind?" She was smiling brightly; excited, herself, for the company.

She glared at him when he set down his coins to pay for the both of them. "What was it in 'you can sit here so long as we're going dutch' did you not understand?" She laughed though as she stood up from her chair. Her somewhat revealing formal party dress was now visible. It was blue with white embroidery; much like her picture. "Thank you," she finally replied with a smile. She gathered a small bag she had with her. It was like her purse, but she carried more than simply money, makeup, and a hairbrush in it.

She passed by him, heading for the door. "Follow me," she told him. She didn't seem to be waiting up for him, however, as she was already out the door. Melanie waited outside until he exited, though, not wanting to completely lose him. "Do you have a change of clothes?" she wondered as they began to walk. If he was going to bathe, he shouldn't put on the same dirty clothes right afterward, she considered. "So tell me your impressions of Zalsabad. You said you're new in town. I've lived here for many years now; so I'm quite curious what it looks like to an outsider. Has everyone been nice enough to you?"

The sun had now completely set, the dark blue sky was getting ever darker. Stars were becoming visible in the night sky. It was times like this when she wished she knew more about constellations and how to spot them. Constellations were always a fun topic of conversation and an easy bridge into finding out a person's age. First you find out their sign, then birth-date, then age. He seemed around her age, however; so she wasn't too concerned. He certainly seemed mature enough.

After a moment's silence, she spoke again. "You were new to pasta, right? What did you think of it? And what's your favorite food?" she asked curiously. She was speaking as if they'd been best friends for years even though they had only met at most an hour ago. She was like that though. She had a very social personality that had a way of putting people at ease.

Zeth laughed playfully at her comment about going dutch. When she stood up, he admired her dress, it really was a nice colour and suited the woman well. "Yeah maybe, it wouldn't be the first I was stood up..heh" He laughed as they made their way through town away from the tavern.

Did he have a change of clothes he wondered as she asked him. "I should have a spare set in my ruck sack." He said cheerfully as he dangled the sack that was slung over his shoulder. He held a lot of things in there, a spare set of clothing, wet stones for his sword, a pot and pan to cook with, and a sleeping bag.

What did he think about the city? He didn't really know yet. It was nice enough, though, even if some of the people treated him rudely. "It's nice enough, there's bigger cities out there, but I like this town." He said with a sheepish smile.

Oh now to food, and that new thing he had, pasta..."I really liked it! It was tasty! I love spicy curry the most though, it's one of my favourite dishes." He said with a happy grin. "I first had it in a town in the far east, have you ever had it?" He asked her as he followed her.

"I can't say I've ever had spicy curry. I'll have to keep it in mind and try it some day." Melanie led him into a residential area. The homes were small. The neighborhoods quiet. The windows glowing with light, illuminating the street. "Well, here we are." She opened up the door and stepped inside.

The house was small inside and out. A nice place for one person. For two it would be... cozy. There was a fireplace that led to a chimney through the roof. There was a small kitchen and storage cabinets. She had a comfortable couch by the fire with a nice wooden table before it. "The bathroom's just down the hall to the left. After you shower up and change, feel free to make yourself at home on the couch. I see no need to rush you out too fast," she said, honestly.

The house was decorated with a rustic almost cabin-like interior. Melanie had a few knives and a sword on display above her fireplace; though they looked to sharp to be intended for decoration. Melanie walked over and lit the fire to get the slight chill out of the house and add to the overall atmosphere. It looked just that much more welcoming with the fire going. "Take your time, by the way, there's no need to feel rushed. Relax, you probably need it." She smiled warmly. "And if you need any help with anything, just let me know."

Zeth set his ruck sack down near the couch as he got familiar with the cozy home. He didn't want to test the comfort of the couch just yet being all full of grime. "Thanks, you don't know how long it's been since I last had a roof over my head for the night." He said with a grin as he pulled his spare clothing from his ruck sack and made his way into the bathroom as Melanie directed.

It was a nice enough bathroom, it was obvious that it was a females bathroom with all the various sent soaps and care products. He looked at his measly scrub soap and shrugged before pulling his clothes of, wincing a bit where the clothing stuck to old wounds and carefully folding up his red cloak. It was probably the most important thing he owned. He inspected himself in the mirror. He really looked like hell didn't he? He chuckled to himself at the thought of how he looked. He looked like he's been through hell and back, twice!

He finally went to the bathtub and turned the hot water on, and sure enough the water spurted out of the shower head, hot as if it were a sauna, just how Zeth liked it! He slowly stepped in, wincing a bit at the heat but eventually letting out a sigh as the hot water worked out the kinks in his joints and muscles.

She chuckled at his comment about it having been quite a while since he had a roof over his head for the night. "I simply said I'm not rushing you out the door after your bath, dear. I have yet to invite you to stay the whole night. She winked to him though; implying that he's more than welcome to stay if he has no where else he needs to be.

As he set down his things, she noticed him take in the home. And it dawned on her how safe she felt here. And to think he had no place to stay. No place to call a home. Why was that? Was he simply that dedicated to tracking down that Mage? Did he have some lead that brought him here? There were still so many things she didn't know about this man. But somehow, he seemed so honest and innocent. Like he'd never harm a fly unless it wronged him. She felt safe around him. Was that really true though, she wondered. If he learned of her being a vampire, would he attack her? Would he run? Would he assume she hid it from him to take advantage of him when he least expected it? As she wondered about these, she watched him walk into her bathroom.

Her mind swapped to a whole new set of thoughts. Her bathroom smelled quite perfume-like due to all the scented soaps and shampoos she used. Melanie wondered if it would smell like mud, dirt, or man after he was finished with it. She also hoarded a lot of makeup behind the bathroom mirror. She used it daily. Yet, even so, she still always appeared to have a collection of the stuff. Her whole house was littered with evidence that the home-owner was female; she came to realize. From her bathroom, to the red hearts on her white blanket resting over her bed, to a vanilla-scented candle placed on the table between the couch and fireplace.

She found she was gazing into the fire and shook herself out of it. She noticed Zeth had left his sack by the couch. He'd be indisposed for a while. Should she look through it? No. Would she look through it? Ye... no. Typically she wouldn't hold back. So what was this now? She was beginning to care about him. She already thought of him as a friend. She cared what he thought. And it would be wrong to go through his things. That never stopped her before. But... it was stopping her now. She found this surprising.

Instead she headed into her kitchen and prepared two mugs of hot chocolate. One for each of them, then placed them on the table in front of the couch. She lit the vanilla candle, then plopped down on the couch. Her eyes refocused on the fire, lost in her own mind.

Zeth hummed quietly to himself as he did a hard scrub down of his body, making sure to get all the weeks of grime and dust off of his body, after all, he didn't want to make his host's home a mess after only being there ten minutes. The water felt nice, a lot better than the ice cold streams he was used to, though there was nothing quite like taking a shower under a waterfall. Or as painful.

Zeth smiled slightly to himself as he sat under the water for a few moments, enjoying the warmth before turning the nozzle off. He didn't want to waste too much of Melanie's warm water. He stepped out of the shower and dried himself off with a cloth rag he had with him. He picked up his new clothing, which was just a simple black hemp tunic that hugged his body a little too tight and white hemp pants. He cleaned up his boots quickly, and then tugged them on so he wouldn't walk around in just socks. He didn't want to seem too at home here just yet.

He thought for a moment, now inspecting himself again. He certainly seemed a lot cleaner now, though he could now see a few of the scares that were once hidden by all the grime and dust. He sighed a little and gathered his clothes and his red cloak before making his way back into the main room. The first thing he noticed was there was a faint sent of vanilla, which reminded him of home. His home town used to grow the plant, it was their main source of income, then he noticed two steaming mugs of what appeared to be hot cocoa.

"Thanks for that...I look like a new man, don't I?" He said with a cheesy grin as he packed his old clothes into the ruck sack, making a note to wash them later. He sat down on the couch next to his host and took in the sent once more. "The vanilla...it reminds me of the town I grew up in. We used to grow it and sell it there." He said, finally revealing something about himself since they met. He didn't know why he could tell Melanie, but he felt like he could talk to her, a friend perhaps? The thought of finally having someone that he could call that again made Zeth a little anxious yet happy. It was a mixed feeling to him to be honest.

As Zeth exited the bathroom the scent of soap drifted into the room. She was a bit relieved to note it did not smell of any of her scents. She always found the idea of other people using her soap as a bit gross. Not to mention Zeth would smell quite girly if he had used them.

"You grew vanilla beans back home? I love vanilla! And chocolate. You could say I'm a traitor to both sides." She laughed at her lame joke. "What town was this... that you came from, i mean?"

As she took in his appearance she had to admit he cleaned up well. He was pretty handsome. She was a bit surprised seeing as how comparable he was to a peasant, in appearance, before. "You should shower more often. It looks good on you," she told him with a smile.

"But yes, please, get warm, one is for you and one is for me." She slide Zeth's hot chocolate to be more accessible. "Just careful as it's still fairly hot," she warned. "You should... you know... stay the night. I'd hate to think of you renting a room somewhere; wasting that money. Or even worse, wasting my water taking a shower just to get yourself all dirty again by sleeping in the outdoors." She cared about him. She legitimately didn't want him being uncomfortable or wasting his money. It was odd for her to care about anyone besides herself. It hadn't happened for many years. Since Vincent and Vertigo, really. This made her remember them briefly. She wondered where they were at and what they were up to. "I don't mind the company. You can even stay a few days if you don't have any real sense of direction you planned to head in next," she offered. "You could sleep on this couch." It was a very comfortable couch. One of those that you slightly sank into when you sat down it was just that soft.

The fire flickered in the fireplace as the room filled with the vanilla aroma. It was quite a calming setting. One might argue a bit romantic; even though unintended. Either way, it was most certainly relaxing.

"The town? It was a small valley town in the far north, close to the vampire's boarder and the city of Alamara..it's gone now, destroyed in some conflict...not at the hands of the vampires though" Zeth said, reminiscing about his old home and his father as he picked up his cup of hot cocoa, blowing on it lightly as he took a sip. It really was good, he enjoyed the flavour as he took another sip.

"Haha...yeah I shower when I can, or at least freshen up in a stream when I have the chance." He chuckled, leaning back into the soft couch as he watched the flames in the fire place. He hadn't noticed until now, but it was a romantic setting, whether it was intended or not, it turned out that way. Perhaps Melanie was just being a tease like usual, though she seemed sincere enough.

He closed his eyes as she offered he stay the night, even the next few days if he wanted. It's true he wasn't one hundred percent sure where to head next...but could he really impose that much on someone he just met? She did offer though. He let out a small sigh and opened one eye to look over at her. "I guess it wouldn't hurt to stay the next few days as long as it's alright with you." He replied with a smile. She even offered him the couch, it was pretty comfy, so he didn't mind all that much sleeping there.

"Your old town was destroyed? I'm so sorry! Was it the Mage you're after that caused it?" she pried with a sympathetic look. If it were caused by the Mage, it would certain explain why he spent so long in pursuit of them; revenge. She found it hard to think of the loss of her mother. She couldn't imagine how it must've felt to lose your entire home town.

"Well now you have no excuse to be dirty, you can stop in anytime you want and clean up. I'm not about to let a handsome, sweet man like you be dishonored by the grunge of the natural world," she flirted with a giggle sort of laugh and a bright smile. "Seriously, my door is always open. I've spent much too much time alone. I didn't realize until just tonight how much I've been dying for some company," she admitted.

To his acceptance of her invitation to stay, double checking it was alright with her, she replied: "Yes! It'll be just like a sleep over! We can stay up all night. Tell spooky stories. Pass out on the couch. Wake up sometime in the late morning and have breakfast for lunch," She was taking his double checking as a yes, not allowing him to back out at all. Her excitement took over. "Oh! Not to mention the pillow fight!" she giggled. All of these suggestions were exaggerations. She didn't necessarily actually want to do these, it was just a way to express her enthusiasm of her new-found company.

Melanie asked if the mage Zeth has been tracking down is the one that destroyed his home town, and to be honest, he didn't know. What did his town in were undead monsters...the only clue he had about this mage was she had the power over death itself. So maybe he was looking for her because of that, or at least some sort of answers.

"I'm not sure...I only have a few clues right now and thank you...it'll be nice to have a place to come back to if need be" He said with a small grin as he leaned back into the couch, allowing his eyes to close shut. His body was starting to feel heavy as his mind wandered to all the things Melanie mentioned, pillow fights, sleep overs, finally not being full of grime and dirt. "All that will be nice..." He replied quietly, already dozing off. It's been a long past few weeks, and the travels have taken their toll on his body.

A few strands of his hair fell over his face as his breathing slowed. He was already asleep, no longer able to stay awake from being too tired from the last few weeks.

Melanie frowned as her new traveling companion and friend drifted off to sleep mid-conversation. She realized how exhausted he must've been. Attempting not to disturb him too much, she assisted him into a horizontal position on the couch with his head propped on a very cushioned armrest. It looked so comfortable, Melanie was slightly jealous. She then went to her linen closet and pulled out a spare blanket which she gently laid over him. She watched him sleep a moment

She could feed from him right now, she reminded herself. She didn't lust for blood too strongly, yet, though by about 11 am she likely would be. But a simple bite, it didn't have to be the neck, though that was the most exposed location. Just a simple bite. She could be gentle. He wouldn't have to feel a thing. Only way he'd know is if he looked in the mirror and identified it as a bite... or someone noticed it and told him. Okay, so it was more risky than it originally sounded. But still, it's so easy right now. Her prey wouldn't fight back. She was used to a pre-feeding struggle. Finally, she pushed the thoughts from her mind. He was a friend. Somehow that was a strong enough deterrent to push the thought of feeding aside entirely.

If she went to bed, he might wake before her, she began to think. If he woke before her, he could potentially find her hidden jars of blood she kept under her bed, in reserve, incase of an emergency feeding session. Or worse, he could leave without a word. Wait... was that worse? Melanie caught herself on that. Melanie was more concerned about losing him than him finding out she was a Vampire. That was rather major as she was afraid anyone who learned she was a Vampire would hate her or attempt to kill her immediately afterward. Would she rather him kill her than... him walk from her life and never see her again? Like Vincent and Vertigo. Her heart sank and she wanted to cry. She lost everyone she had ever loved. She fully expected any new friends or romances to be no different. Honestly, that was half the reason she was so anti-social for so many years. For fear of losing someone she grew to care about. ...like her mother.

Melanie found tears rolling down her cheeks and wiped them away. She was determined not to lose her new friend so she left the room, grabbed paper and a pen and wrote a note. She attached it to the front door. It read:

"Hey Zeth. Incase I'm sleeping when you wake up, I just don't want you to feel like you need to leave. You're welcome to stay. I planned on making breakfast for when you awoke, but if you're reading this, you clearly woke up before I had a chance. But as soon as I wake up I'll make us breakfast! I'd like to travel with you when you go. I mean, if you're not tired of me by then. I think we could have a lot of fun!"

Why was Melanie suddenly nervous. She could talk to him relatively fine face to face. But here, she was pre-planning words he would likely read later. Knowing each word would be seen by him, interpretted, judged, made her uneasy. It wasn't easy to make Melanie feel unbalanced like that. She questioned her sanity, but shook her head and figured it was more due to lack of sleep. She was just tired, she told herself.

After ensuring the note was secured on the front door, she headed to her room, leaving the fire going, tamely as a small burning, to keep the house warm. She didn't like to leave it burning, but it was going to put itself out within a half an hour anyway. She figured it'd be safe enough to leave it.

Zeth shifted in his sleep as he buried his face into the couch, the warmth of the fire washing over his body, causing him to drift deeper into sleep. His mind drifted along into the nightmares that plagued him nightly. The screams of his friends and family as the undead raided his home and burned down the homes of those he cared about.

Zeth sat up in a cold sweat, his breathing heavy as he looked out the window, the morning sun shining onto his face. He squinted slightly, rubbing his eyes a little, yawning a bit. He tided up a bit in the bathroom, cleaning his teeth so his mouth wouldn't smell. He flopped back onto couch as soon as he was done and looked over at the door, now noticing the note.

"Huh..." He muttered, walking to the door and reading it. He smiled slightly as he finished the note. It was cute, and she really seemed happy now that he was going to have adventures with him. He took the note off the door and folded it up, putting it into his ruck sack, saving it as a memento.

He pondered for a moment if he should surprise Melanie with breakfast instead, it would be amusing to see how she reacted. He shrugged and sat back down, setting to collecting his things and cleaning his prized cloak.

When Melanie awoke, she felt well-rested. It was a feeling she hadn't had in at least months if not years. After a moment though, she sighed. The morning sun shown brightly through the window indicating it was no longer early morning but a few hours after it. She figured Zeth, even if he initially intended to stick around, probably rose early, got bored, and ditched by now. There was no way Melanie could keep anyone in her life. She wasn't going to try to fool herself otherwise just to get her hopes crushed upon walking into the living room.

Regardless, when she dressed, she did so into more dressy attire. Part of her was dressing up for the company she was pretty sure she no longer had. She did her make-up in her room as well in front of a personal mirror. Heading to the bathroom for it would chance a glance into the living room; shattering her final strands of hope he was still here.

Once she was presentable again, she took a deep breath and stepped from her room. To her surprise, Zeth was still there, sitting on the couch, fiddling with his cloak. She glanced to the door and noticed the note was gone. "Dang it! And I wanted to surprise you with the breakfast," she moaned in disappointment. "Well, what do you like?" she asked. She wondered where the note was, but she figured after reading it he deemed it trash and tossed it in a waste-basket. Afterall, it only had a one-time use. She would've tossed it herself otherwise.

Zeth finally managed to clean up his cloak so it wasn't a complete mess anymore by the time his friend awoke. Though it was obvious she spent sometime making herself look presentable. He smiled a little that she would go to such lengths for him.

"You can still surprise me! I like pancakes...and bacon and eggs!" He said with a grin, pulling his cloak back around his shoulders, finding comfort with it back around his shoulders. He stood up and walked over to Melanie, grinning slightly. "So where do you want to go first?" He asked, his eyes glinting with glee and adventure.

This is the first time he would have someone to travel with in, well just about forever, and he was excited, though he hoped that he didn't come off as overly eager infront of his new friend.

Bacon and eggs required less effort. While she was a good cook, she often lacked motivation. Today was one of those days. "Bacon and eggs it is. Scrambled... I'm not even going to bother trying not to break the yolk," she laughed. She was happier now than she had been in years.

She walked into the kitchen and began to prepare breakfast for the both of them. She continued their conversation by raising her voice so it was audible despite the distance. "I mentioned to you that I hunt for rare items to sell off to support myself?" she asked unsure now if she had told him that previously or not. "I met a shop-owner, potions shop in Jenar, and he needs a certain crystal. I figured, I could help you locate your Mage while you help me look for the Light Stone. I have a map of possible locations," Melanie explained.