Birthright

Daniel smiled.

"Ah, nope. I was saving it for you." He slung an arm onto Holly's shoulders and put his nose to her neck and hairline, originally going in for a kiss there, but getting distracted by her fragrance. "You smell good. What is that?"

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"Shampoo," she grinned, watching a guy in the corner gesturing with his cup of beer as he spoke, the foamy liquid sloshing over the brim. "I missed you."

Holly recounted the events that had taken place since she had seen Daniel last. "Do you want to hear the crazy news or the scary news first?"

Edited on 2013-10-11 11:08 pm (UTC)

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Echo didn't smoke, but the crowd inside was a bit much, so she bought a cup of beer and carried it outside to the patio. The smell of tobacco was a small price to pay to get some elbow room. She stepped through the double doors, noted a carving on one of the benches that said Michael Parkhurst Sux, then spotted Holly sitting closer to the patio railing.

She'd lifted her hand in greeting and begun her approach when she saw the guy the other brunette was sitting next to, and that made her slow up because they looked cozy. Intimate. The beer was lifted to Echo's mouth, and she took a contemplative sip. Did she know Holly's 'boyfriend's' name? Did she want to know his name?

"I wouldn't be cutting in if I joined you, would I?"

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Daniel's mouth was open to answer Holly's question, and he had taken the breath necessary to vocalize it, when he caught a whiff of something else. Something distinctly inhuman. What was it? He didn't have time to look around for a source, because the source found them. It was...

A girl?

Color him confused.

"Uh..." He looked to Holly for guidance. "No?" he guessed. Did the two of them know each other?

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Holly straightened, glancing between the two. "Echo, hi." She wondered what the protocol was here. Echo had once told her that she wouldn't be afraid to voice her disapproval of the vampire.

"This is Daniel. Daniel, Echo." The brunette wished she had a drink to busy herself with.

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Daniel. Daniel in the lion's den. Wolf's den? Echo took a discreet sniff at the air, smelled second-hand smoke, spilled booze, and leftover sweat from so many bodies in a small space. She could just barely pick out Holly's heartbeat in the cacophony of voices from other conversations. Daniel was handsome. She probably wasn't supposed to think that, because his chest wasn't moving with respiration the way the other brunette's was.

"Hi, Daniel," she said, her voice oddly conversational as she held out her hand. Distrust was pretty much the hybrid's resting state, but she didn't have to jump to dislike right off the bat. It would be too much like hypocrisy on her part, and she didn't want to be a hypocrite.

"Nice night to hang out outside now that fall's here. I'm glad I didn't get to Nevada until the end of summer."

Edited on 2013-10-12 12:37 am (UTC)

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A handshake? With what he presumed to be some kind of were-thingum, based solely on his sire's description of shapeshifters as smelling like damp fur and earth?

Well, why the hell not.

"Hi. Echo." He loosely clasped her hand and shook it, but he wasn't going to discuss the weather. He had to draw the line somewhere. He sneaked a look at her forearm, looking for obvious signs of animal fur. There were none.

Turning to Holly, he raised his eyebrows. Was she going to continue sharing news or was that not meant for other ears?

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She didn't want to discuss her brush with exsanguination in front of the person already prejudiced against vampires. Instead, she just smiled vaguely. "We met in Searchlight," Holly explained to Daniel.

The brunette hooked her arm through his. "Here for the music or the ambiance?," she asked Echo.

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"The music," Echo replied easily, and if she made note of the way Holly looped her arm through Daniel's she gave no sign of it. It was hardly her place to tell someone else what to do, no matter how she felt. "This guy Brian told me his band plays here sometimes. I was here once before, but they weren't booked to play."

Did she just assume and take a seat? Her attempt at chitchat had gone unremarked on, and maybe that was for the best. People only talked about the weather when they were uncomfortable. Echo was...uncomfortable was the wrong word. Curious was probably a better term for it. Daniel definitely wasn't breathing, but he didn't act abnormal.

"So what's up?" she asked, her tone less chatty but still non-hostile. "Did you see your stalker again?"

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That brought about a puzzled look. Scratching at his jaw, Daniel frowned in bewilderment at Echo, and then aimed a questioning look at Holly. “That dude who was staring at you in the club?” They had chased him down the alley fruitlessly before heading back indoors and diving into the coat closet.

‘Whoa, don’t think about that, you’ll be half-mast in no time.’

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"One and the same." She picked at a splinter on the picnic table. "Turns out he was hired to 'watch' me." Holly made quote marks in the air.

"And I guess it was a good thing he was, because," she continued, averting her gaze, "a vampire tried to kill me." She said the last bit in a rush.

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Echo just blinked, first in confusion and then in realization. A tiny frown line appeared between her eyebrows, then smoothed out again as she dropped her gaze a bit to look at Holly's neck. No fang marks. The hybrid drank her cup of beer down to the dregs, tossed the plastic receptacle into an overflowing trash can. She very carefully did not look at Daniel, lest scrutiny make him believe she suspected him. If he cared about Holly, he wouldn't try to hurt her. Right?

"Well, it seems like you got away without a scratch," she said, hooking her thumbs through her belt loops. "Whoever he is, he must be pretty quick on his feet. You're sure he was fully human?"

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"Wait a minute. Why am I just hearing about this now?" Daniel asked.

He was dimly aware it was probably the wrong question to be asking. Things like 'Are you okay?' and 'Who the hell hired him?' and 'Is the vampire dust?' would be better, but impulsiveness got the better of him.

He stared at Holly.

He had a phone. He had a front door. Just how casual did she think this whole liaison was?

He averted his face and ran a hand through the back of his hair, fussing with it to keep his hand busy.

'Ughhhhhh. I'm a chump.'

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Holly looked back at Daniel, and she suddenly felt terrible. "I didn't want to make a big deal out of it," she answered lamely. Was it a big deal? It had felt like one at the time, but soon after it had felt like nothing more than a bad dream.

"He's human," the brunette answered Echo. "I'm pretty sure of it, anyway."

Then, quiet enough for Daniel's ears, "I'm sorry."

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Echo noted that Mr. Not-Breathing didn't ask if Holly was okay, but she closed her teeth to keep the spark of annoyance over it to herself. The pendant Cian had given her was on a chain around her neck, nestled between her breasts under her shirt. She wondered if it glowed dimly when a vampire was in range. Probably not. That would be too much like science fiction.

"It doesn't really matter if he's human or not," the hybrid said. "We've all got our little...quirks."

She wished she had another beer, even though it was the cheap stuff, but it would have given her something to occupy her hands with. "I got a tattoo," she said, because she could tell that this was about to turn into an Uncomfortable Moment, and the only thing as bad as having an Uncomfortable Moment of your own was witnessing someone else's in progress. If she changed the subject, it might stave off Daniel's hissy fit.

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'She doesn't want to make a big deal of it.'

Like Holly hadn't wanted to make a big deal out of her father's death, or her mother's death, or the fact that she was stumbling through the world with illicit substances for a support system, and that's how she wanted it. It was okay to tell people about a near-death experience, as long as they treated it with nonchalance. Care too much and oops, better hit the brakes.

"Yeah, tell us about your tattoo. That's way more fascinating than a man being paid to tail Holly around Las Vegas." He smiled and stretched out his legs, crossed his arms.

No wonder they were friends. Echo rescued Holly from having to explain herself.

"Where is it, your ankle? Lower back?"

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"Wait."

Holly gave Echo an apologetic look, then turned back to Daniel. "I don't know why I didn't tell you. It was just doing my head in, to find out that someone was being paid to follow me because everyone knows I'm a self-destructive mess."

She took a much needed breath, then continued. "He told me as much. Even Theresa thinks I'm messed up. I didn't want you to think of me that way, too.

"But in my defense, all I was doing was taking out the trash. The vampire popped up out of nowhere, and Rhys -- the man from the club -- shot him with a crossbow...thing."

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Asshole. Try to be neutral with a bloodsucker and they pissed on your shoes. Wasn't it clear that Holly would rather not talk about this?

"If it helps, I don't think you're messed up," Echo said slowly. "I think you don't know what to do with your feelings, whatever they are." She darted a look at Daniel, felt the pendant shift against her skin as she shrugged. Or whoever your feelings are for. She didn't want to come off as judgmental, but this guy was not endearing himself to her.

"A lot's happened to you in the last year or so, right? No one can process things if too much falls on them at once. This whole...attack thing was probably almost the last straw."

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He caught the look. Daniel frowned. What the fuck?

Was it was wrong of him to react when finding out his girl had been attacked by one of his kind while taking out the trash, and been rescued by a stalker with a crossbow? Wrong of him to dislike how Holly brought it up like light conversational banter, when the idea of some asshole getting his fangs in her neck set his blood on fire?

As far as he was concerned, the topic was fair game. He wasn't going to pussy-foot around his concerns. Too many people had been doing it.

"Do you have a degree in Psychology or is this all natural talent?" he asked, gesturing at Echo.

Then, back to Holly, "For the record, I don't think you're a mess, either. You've got a pretty fucking level head and balls of steel. I do think you're uncomfortable when people care about you. Unfortunately, as long as you're you, people are going to care about you." He shrugged. "So who paid him?"

Edited on 2013-10-13 05:09 pm (UTC)

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She could sense the conversational terrain getting rocky. Well, rockier. "I should be able to deal with it, though," Holly said to Echo. "I just keep choosing not to."

Holly turned back to Daniel. "My grandmother. My theory is she feels bad enough about my dad, and she's noticed I have this habit of, um -- getting into trouble."

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Now that Daniel had offended her by jumping down her throat when she'd genuinely been trying to avoid awkwardness or conflict, Echo was less concerned with whether or not she offended him back. "You don't have to have a degree in psych to know that sometimes people choose not to deal with things."

She jammed her restless hands into her pockets, focusing her attention on Holly. "Maybe she doesn't want to lose you too. Your grandmother. I wouldn't know how it feels, but you're not supposed to outlive your children." And she really wouldn't know how it felt, ever, because her mutated genes probably meant it would be a bad idea for her to try having kids.

"I think she loves you, and maybe that makes you uncomfortable. She wouldn't hire a bodyguard for you if she didn't care."

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"True. Some people express their affection with cards and flowers. Others," Daniel spread his arm outward. "Hire a creepy bodyguard."

He was no expert on people, but it struck him as a colossally stupid thing to do to a person with trust issues a mile wide. What if there was a misunderstanding and Holly -- or someone who knew her -- got into an altercation with the hired help?

"Let's make a deal," he said to Holly. "Next time I'm feeling expressive, I'll bring over a bottle of Jack, or some black roses."

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"She only cares about herself. Trust me," she said, leaning her elbows against the table. "If she's doing it, it's because she doesn't want the hassle of a dead granddaughter. Or maybe it's her way of lecturing me without having to fly across the Atlantic."

Holly managed a smile over Daniel's last comment. "Actually, I'll accept nothing less than you getting my name tattooed on you. Maybe in one of those super cool flaming hearts.

"Speaking of tattoos." She nodded to Echo. "What's yours?"

Edited on 2013-10-14 03:52 am (UTC)

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There was more Echo wanted to say, but she closed her mouth. She wasn't going to counsel Holly on her...whatever it was she was having with Daniel. Not in front of him, anyway. If Holly was smart, she already knew what her opinion was, and she didn't believe the other brunette was stupid.

"It's a pretty simple one, just the Chinese character for courage," the hybrid said, rolling up her short shirt sleeve to expose her right shoulder. It was a good thing she hadn't chosen her back, because she wasn't about to show her bra off to a vampire. The black tattoo stood out in sharp relief against her winter-pale shoulder.

"If you ever do decide to get some ink done, go to The Starlight Den and tell Judy I recommended her. I thought I'd be nervous, but she was really cool."

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Echo's concern about her bra strap was unwarranted, because as soon as she said 'Chinese character', Daniel was out, attention-wise. Why get something written in a language you didn't even speak? Just write the word 'courage' on yourself and call it good.

But he behaved. Neither of them needed his opinion on the matter. Daniel reached behind himself for a beer he had set on the picnic table. He took a couple of gulps.

Wait.

'Den'

She was a freaking werewolf.

No wonder he didn't like her. He wasn't supposed to.

"Is Judy a wolf, too?" he asked.

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Holly kept her expression neutral, but inwardly she was patting herself on the back for not being the one to blurt out Echo's secret. For once. And it was sort of a relief to hear it spoken aloud.

"Well, you do seem more -- um -- outgoing now, so maybe it worked." The brunette glanced sideways at Daniel.

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"Jesus. Why don't you announce it onstage, Dead Boy."

Well, at least the elephant in the room had been addressed. And it didn't make the Wolf wake up. Maybe Cian's necklace was more than just pretty. It didn't mean Echo liked Daniel any better, though.

"You're with this guy for real?" she asked Holly. "Is he your boyfriend now?"

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So she was what… aghast at his behavior? He thought that was royally amusing. Daniel smiled and gulped his beer. As polite as Echo wanted to play it, she’d been putting off negative vibes since early in the conversation. He had smelled a fluctuation in her body chemistry, though he wouldn’t have put the pieces together if he weren’t part of the talking. “Well, we haven’t made it official yet,” Daniel said, lightly scoffing. “While the pair-bonding started a little while ago, I have yet to piss around the perimeter of her apartment.” He poked his tongue into the corner of his mouth and looked around. Dozens of people, all inebriated, all raising their voices to be heard over the sound check indoors. No. He doubted anybody cared what the trio on the picnic table was talking about.

Edited on 2013-10-17 01:39 am (UTC)

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Somehow Holly managed to choke back her laughter. "Actually, yes." She was in an odd position. Obviously, she didn't want to hurt Echo's feelings, but things were getting a little out of hand.

"I like him. A lot." The brunette felt weird talking about Daniel in the third person when he was sitting right next to her. "But I think you kind of made up your mind not to like him."

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He was making fun of her. He was making fun of her as if he had any right to feel superior. She'd offered him her hand, tried to put a nice face on things, and if her reaction to him was still obvious then she could hardly help that. In the moment of Now, Daniel represented the kids she went to school with after she left the commune, the ones who treated her like a freak, as if they had some right to look down their noses at her. At least she could learn to control what was on the inside.

The worst part was, Holly was taking his side. Criticizing her for not liking him, as if she was supposed to. Echo couldn't help but notice that she didn't say a word of protest about Daniel's talk of territorial pissing. Maybe she even thought it was funny. Making a joke of her. Then again, the popular kids always banded together.

It really hurt her feelings.

"You're right, I don't like him," she told the other brunette stiffly. "I told you how I felt the first time you mentioned him. I'm sorry if I'm not as open-minded as you are."

Suddenly Echo really wanted away from there. Maybe Holly and Daniel deserved each other. The hybrid was certain they'd be very happy if she left. "I'm sorry I bothered you. You can get back to your whatever now."

The brunette turned and began a stiff-legged walk back inside the club. She was going the hell home, to Searchlight, where assholes didn't make fun of you and have their girlfriends back them up.

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Daniel watched her go with a slight shake of his head. Well, there was one friend of Holly's he wouldn't be getting to know. He looked at Holly and lifted his shoulders. "I can hang out with all kinds," he said, and it was true. If Echo was a trip to be around, he wouldn't care if she was an alien, not now, not when he was sans pulse.

"But I'm not gonna waste time on a girl who's only polite because you're sitting here," he said. Daniel reached back to scratch his neck. "You want to talk about me like I'm not here? Fuck that." He wouldn't take that from his sire; he wasn't going to take it from a werewolf with the personality of a wet mop.

The ironic part was that the only person with a closed mind and a superiority complex was Echo, and she was the one who left feeling victimized.

"So. Got any friends who aren't gonna hate me on sight?"

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Holly wasn't sure what to do, so she opted for inaction. "Well," she began, looking at Daniel. "Maybe a few. But one is some kind of influential demon, and the other is a Slayer."

The brunette thought that over. Maybe Whistler wouldn't hate him. He was a bit of a wildcard.

"I'm sort of bad at the friend thing. Group of people going to a club, getting drunk, I can do that. The one-on-one bits? Not so much."

Edited on 2013-10-17 07:25 pm (UTC)

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Among Holly's acquaintances, a slayer, a watcher, and a werewolf... and she was dating a vampire. How was this not a recipe for disaster? "I dunno, I kinda like your one-on-one bits," he said, choosing to ignore the absurdity of the situation for right now. Daniel finished off his beer and set the cup upside down on the picnic table. "C'mon. I'm gonna buy you a drink and we can check out the band." He stood up and offered Holly his hand.

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