df || In a Land Far, Far Away ||

[Damon Fauci]

Though once the following conversation concluded both parties would have to make a hasty return to separate parts of Rhy'din, these words were exchanged a literal world away from there. In an establishment that any who knew Damon would never expect him to grace. But there were many advantages to The Moon's Blade concert hall in Boston, Massachusetts. First, it was nearly impossible to track any single scent in here, as the hall was packed nearly wall to wall with eager supporters of a local band named Five By Five (whose only talent was managing to plug their instruments in, if one asked Damon his opinion of them). The band's goal of playing as loud as humanly possible afforded the second luxury, that of not being overheard. And the third advantage to this particular establishment off Boston's beaten path was that Damon not only knew but trusted its proprietor to not disclose a single thread of information to any who might come asking after Damon,

or Jade. Ah, the smell of conspiracy.

Perhaps it would have looked strange to the adoring fans of Five by Five, who were pumping their fists in time with the band's third number, that in the center of their din there was a dark beast and a luminescent beauty standing among their throng nearly still as statues, speaking to one another in a manner you'd more likely find in a quiet restaurant. But the reality was that not a single glance was cast in the direction of either beast or beauty, an direct result of their presence being cloaked. After all, what was it that Sean had said to Epiphany? - "If he doesn't want to be found?...Even if he was standing right behind you, right now. Neither one of us would know." Damon and his flawlessly executed tricks. There was no getting around them. Which was just one of the many things that made him a beast.

In spite of all of the history between he and Jade and their current 'dysfuctional whatever you'd call it,' Damon was giving her a look which clearly indicated just how less than impressed he was with whatever she'd just spoken. His jaw was set in such a way that she might expect a tisk to follow. It didn't. Instead, "Even so, Jade. I still don't quite understand how you let him not only drag you to Rhy'din, but why you allowed him to lead the hunt for me to the one person I thought I was absolutely clear that I did not want to be involved in this."

"How was I supposed to know she was there?" It was a snappy retort from Jade. She naturally looked less than thrilled to have that 'one person' brought into this conversation. "I've never been on one of your little vacations, Damon, the most I knew about her is what I heard from Sean and Dominic. Oh, not to mention the smell of her. Lingering on you, last time you came running home."

Unfortunately for the goading Jade, he was a far cry from Sean. It took considerably more effort than that to push the wolfish aristocrat to bickering, and even then. . . Well, Damon was a creature wise in the strategies of argument. The first rule was to simply not give the other party what they wanted. In the case of Jade, now, he said nothing to her latter jibes. Only, "Had you succeeded in keeping Sean out of Rhy'din as I asked, those predicaments would not have proved a problem."

He watched her bristle. The familiar way she had of balling her fists, of shifting her weight, the prickle in the energy that came off of her. It was nearly enough to make his lips curl into a wolfish smile, but he did not. He merely maintained his gaze as she spoke. "He knows you're there Damon. Sean's not an idiot. And I could only say, 'wait no I feel him in Paris, wait no I feel him in Rome, wait no I feel him in Jersey right on the street where I grew up' so many times before we kept finding nothing and he started realizing I was full of shit."

Silence from Damon. It was, he had to concede, a good point. For a proper goose chase one needed to give the fox something to keep him running. It was an old, common mistake to underestimate one's adversary. And yet, his distaste for Sean had caused him to do just that. There was no time, however, to linger on why he'd made such a foolish misstep that was entirely unlike him. A change in tactic was in order. "Then it's time to take him off the chase altogether. You, Jade, are going to suffer an attack."

His decision rewarded him with a disbelieving stare. ". . .What."

"You heard me," he asserted in his calm, silken tone. "If we feign the spirit's first move, one which renders you incoherent and inconsolably ill, what other choice will Sean have but to return with you post haste to Saint Louis?" When Jade moved to speak, Damon held up a single hand to silence her. "You know as well as I do, Jade, that until I can find the means to take care of him, anyone close to us is in danger. Traveling alone as you and Murray are. . ." a simple shake of his head would complete that thought. "Enough is enough. You've been through Noel's attacks before, it will be a well-rehearsed part for you to play. And back in Saint Louis there is safety in numbers, and a cavalcade of protection placed about the grounds to keep even one of his kind from infiltrating. It's for your own safety," he insisted, before giving his eyes a slow roll and adding dryly, "and Sean's."

Now Jade took her turn at being silent. Clearly not pleased, entirely still. For they didn't even need to blink, their kind, unless they wished to keep up the habit to play at human appearances. She didn't blink now, he noted, as he returned her gaze with his deep invading eyes. Finally she broke, a sigh kicking off her begrudging reply. "Alright. Fine. But. . ." she faltered. When he raised his brow at her in a prompt, she finished her thought, "I can't help noticing that this plan leaves you alone. Lacking numbers to be safe with."

To answer that, Damon flashed her one of his lazy, wolfish grins. "That," he said wanly, "is exactly what I require." In the next instant, from the concert hall beauty and beast were gone. As for the band, Five by Five played on.