Well, they do say Love is Blind.... (Revan/Tsushui)

Night had fallen rather early, though that much was to be expected in the winter. The city lights lit up the area as there was a thin layer of snow, the layer soon to be build upon as more snow was falling from the sky.

Alan lets out a small sigh as he loved this sort of weather.... when he was inside. Outside was a completely different story. He was wearing a black winter coat that did pretty well to keep his body warm... however the jeans his wore hardly did anything to keep his legs warm, while he had his hands in his pocket to keep them warm. He didn't wear any gloves due to the fact that it would have hindered with how he could handle his weapons.

Alan had been out nearly every night of the week due to the fact that there was a rumor that there was a demon in this town. From the descriptions that he got, all signs point that it was a Succubus. Alan already had investigated all of the more shady parts of town, only to find no clues and no leads. Tonight, he was going to investigate downtown. "I guess this means that this succubi prefers quality over quantity... though I just wonder where I'm going to find her..." He murmured as he looked around the streets with his light blue eyes, trying to find a woman who looked rather beautiful.

The music blared loudly in the background as she made her way towards the stage. Alses had recently run out of money again and though it tinges her conscience just a little bit, the thought of coercing money from a bunch of irresponsibly drunk people with her abilities was able to help her displace her morals aside. Reaching for the microphone, she waited for her cue before swaying to the music and singing her heart out -- all the while taking note of the wallets that she had carefully emptied out of cash.

She looked like any other performer for the night and similar to the audience for that matter. It is almost Christmas and college kids around town had been released for the semester; turning every night into a poorly constructed masquerade party. It was convenient for her of course since she was already born with horns, wings and a tail. Most people thought it was a cool and sexy she-devil costume she found from Party City and even compliment her naturally white hair as a very successful dye-job. Some thought she was simply anemic, given her scarlet eyes and what not and others commented that she might be just wearing color contacts for the effect. It mattered little to her what they thought she was and her lack of communication made people forget her quite easily.

As her song came to an end, she gave a slight bow to the audience before slipping downstage for the DJ to play something more upbeat. Crossing the massive people she arrived where her coat is kept, together with all the money that had slipped from the pockets of the unknowing dance crowd. Sliding into the thick, black coat, the succubus took care to retract her wings and tuck her tail. Pulling out a dark cap, she hid her horns securely from the biting weather before taking a step outside of the pub. Alses enjoys the winter but like many wing-creatures of the earth, she would prefer to appreciate it from indoors.

Alan stepped into the pub for a second, and as he looked onto the stage he saw the performer on stage. While she had everyone else fooled into thinking that she was wearing an amazing costume, his eyes could tell that it was the real thing. It was a common thing for demons to expose themselves during Halloween since they could easily blend into the public in their natural forms. "Well, I've found my succubus." He thought to himself.

However, the fact that her hair was white had thrown him off a bit. She must have not feed in a LONG while. Alan kept a low profile in the pub so that she wouldn't notice him in the crowd, though as she finished her performance, he noticed how she just decided to leave instead of trying to seduce anyone... and in fact ignored being hit on by some handsome guys. Though Alan could have just slain her, her behavior was just too odd for a succubus who looked like she hasn't feed on someone. So he just decided to follow her.

Contrary to most people, Alses would much rather walk in the desolate streets alone during a frosty night. It made it much easier for her to detect the disturbances in her surroundings. The weather did not make her journey easy though; with a combination of wind and snow, it made it difficult to make out the different signs along the street. Pulling her coat tighter against her chest, she took a quick right to avoid the fierce gust that was heading her way and adjusted her white tresses away from her line of vision.

A sneaky shadow caught her attention and she narrowed her eyes, thinking it was one of the males from the pub who do not accept rejection gracefully. As the silhouette neared, Alses, slipped further in between the buildings and took off her coat to spread her wings. Landing swiftly on the rooftops, the succubus was hit with even more vicious winds and frowned. Mother Nature is really going against her tonight. Hugging her coat to her chest, she decided to make a run for it. With any luck, no one would notice her in this dreary weather.

Flying across the gaps between buildings, the sight of the temporary apartment she stayed in made her relaxed substantially. Taking a final leap, she landed lightly at her balcony. Retracting her wings, she quickly pushed the glass door, dying to recover a bit of warmth. The familiar feeling of being watched resurfaced itself and Alses turned to take a lingering look before closing the door and securing the blinds behind her.

As she walked into the desolate streets, Alan froze a bit. Did she know he was following him? It'd be much harder for him to track her down while avoiding detection. Or maybe she was going to find a victim some where down here? All he knew was that he might have to act fast. But just as he reached into his coat pocket, he was a bit surprised as he saw her figure for just a moment taking flight. "Clever girl." He muttered as he pulled his hand out of his coat.

Though he didn't get far, he finally figured out what the Succubus looked like.... as for where she had lived.... well, it's going to take awhile. "Damn..." He muttered as he placed his hands back into his coat pocket as he walked through the streets in this dreadful weather.

It was long before he retreats to his temporary apartment as the first thing he did was slip out of clothes and into a pair of warm pajamas. "Well, I guess that's enough progress for today...." He murmured as he wandered into the kitchen, and opened the pantry only to find that he was out of Cocoa mix. He lets out a deep sigh, as he could have easily let this go.... but it just would have felt weird for him not to warm himself with cocoa like he did every night after he returned from hunting the succubus. He puts a robe on as he walked out, only intending to go to one or two neighbors. He walked up to the door as he pressed the door bell. Little did he know, was that he was about to find out where the succubus have lived. (Neighbors. ;D )

Once safely within her apartment, Alses set her electric kettle on boil and jumped into shower as the heater of the apartment buzzed in actively. The feeling of the warm water hitting against your skin is delightful and soon, all thoughts of being followed were thrown out of the window. By the time she exited the bathroom in a light bathrobe, the room was comfortably heated and the water was boiled in time for her to make hot cocoa before bed. She was about to spoon the mix to her cup when an uncommon sound rang into her apartment.

At first she flustered a little, thinking that it might be the landlord but logic hit her after a few seconds. She already paid off her rent for the week. That was really why she’s downtown to fish for more, as bad as it sounds. Tucking her tail back under her bathrobe, she grabbed the towel and draped it on top of her head as a temporary means to hide her horns.

She peeked through the peep hole and relaxed, seeing that it is just a funny guy in his nightwear. Settling her hand on the handle, a click was heard as she pushed the brass knob down. When she pulled the door open, she was face to face with a pair of striking blue eyes. Silence dawned over the both of them momentarily but instead of discomfort, Alses grinned at the awkward atmosphere between them. “If this is a trick, I think you are supposed to run away.”

Alan looked up as he looked at the Succubus. Though since he didn't have a good look at her at the pub, and the fact that the towel had covered her head and some of her hair, he didn't notice that it was her. "Well, maybe it's all a part of my trick." He said as he smiled. "Though... I'm just wondering if you just happened to have any cocoa mix.... I'm all out."

(......Eh, that's a short post. >.<)

When he spoke, Alses felt the corners of her mouth twitch. Stepping aside, she withdrew the door wider and beckoned him to enter with her hand as she made her way back into the kitchen to finish what she began. “I have plenty and you came just in time…” Pulling another porcelain cup from the upper drawers, she filled it with a generous amount of cocoa mix and set it aside. “Do you like yours with milk or hot water?”

Adding about the same amount of powdery mix in her cup, she filled half of the cup with hot water and the other with milk from the fridge. After stirring the contents, she tapped the end gently before placing the spoon on the counter top. It dropped, however, and she caught it with her mind while bending down to retrieve it. Mentally slapping herself, she got up quickly and hoped that her guest was not observant enough to catch her defying the laws of physics.

At least Alses did not think it did. After all, she is still behind the counter and for all she knows, it might only seem like she bent down with fast reflexes and caught the metal spoon before it can touch the floor. Drawing the warm cup to her lips, she nuzzled the steaming beverage before taking a sip. Hot chocolate always make her feel better.

He looked a bit surprised as she was inviting him inside. He just wanted to get a pack of cocoa and go back into his apartment. However, since he had been on his feet for most of the night, the idea of sitting down while someone who was kind enough made cocoa for him sounded more appealing. "I'll take it with milk." He said as he smiled at her. "Thank you very much."

As he walked inside, he looked around the apartment out of curiosity due to the fact that this was the first time he had visited one of his neighbors in the apartment. Of course all this looking around was a fortunate thing for her since he was too preoccupied to see her inhumanly catch the spoon. He turned around just as she stood up straight.

"You know.... you're the first neighbor I've talked to since I lived here." He said, before he blushed and added on to his sentence. "It's not because I'm a shut in, or anti-social... it's just that I've been busy with my work."

Nodding at his request, Alses went over to prepare the same concoction for her guest. The term ‘guest’ sounded funny to her. It was the first time she had ever received one and to her surprise, things seem to go pretty smoothly so far despite her lack of social interaction with humans in general. Stirring the warm beverage tentatively, she lifted the cup up from the counter and settled it on the table beside one of the couches before retrieving her own drink.

Taking a seat across his, she motioned her visitor to do the same. “I haven’t seen anyone else around the block either and none of the reasons you listed.” Chuckling as she set her cup down on the table beside her, she looked up attentively and adjusted the towel on her drying hair. “I think I have been what they call it, “raising hell” too much to be at home.”

Her guest is rather adorable, given the blush that settled on his manly physique. He must be at least a whole foot taller than her, and his blue eyes are a sharp contrast to her red ones. There is something mysteriously alluring about him that the succubus cannot put a finger to. Well, she has seen stranger she supposed but none of whom are human. Tilting her head to the side, she decided to resume the conversation to make him feel more welcomed. “I apologize, it seems that I have forgot my manners.” Rising from her seat, she put out a hand before him with a devious smile, “My name is Alses Fallen. Fellow neighbor and am currently very delighted by your company.

As she motioned him to sit down, he gave her a nod as he sat down in his seat. As he took his cup, he stirred his spoon as the mix started to blend into his drink. "Well, then again it's not like you have to visit your neighbors when you move in somewhere." He murmured as he stirred his spoon yet again, making sure that the mix would blend into the drink as much as possible.


This girl was really nice... a lot nicer than some of the people he had to work with in his career. A LOT nicer. However there seemed to be something that gnawed at the back at his brain, telling him that this was a taboo. However he just shook that off since there was nothing to back up any sort of reason it was bad to talk to this girl.

As she held out her hand, Alan rose up out of his seat as well as he gently grabbed her hand and shook it. "I'm Alan Shepard. Nice to meet you.... Alses?" He asked questionably, hoping that he was pronouncing her name right. "So, what do you do for a living?" He asked her curiously, making conversation.

She chuckled when he showed discomfort in pronouncing her name. “Alses.” She repeated, “Broken down into ‘Al-sees’. My mother picked the name. It’s really a boy’s name but she wanted her little girl to grow into a strong woman. Nice to meet you as well, Alan.” His hand was warm and gentle and the succubus could feel a certain draw to his touch. When their hands retracted, a lingering feeling was left behind that made her curious.

Sliding back into her seat, she crossed her feet under her thighs to retain more heat. While his question did not strike her as odd, it made her wonder about what is really the truth. She looked thoughtfully before answering, “Currently, I am a singer for a pub in town. I just got back from work actually and the way back was somewhat nerve wrecking. I think someone is following me.”

Frowning from her lack of restraint in giving information, she silently chided herself for possible turning a nice conversation sour. Shaking her head, Alses gave an apologetic look and continued, “But, enough of that, I might be over thinking this.” Looking at him brightly, she returned the question in hopes of keeping the light-hearted mood. “What is your job Alan?”

"Al-sees, Al-sees... Aaaal-seeeees." He muttered to himself, imprinting how to pronounce her name in his mind. As their hands retracted, Alan sat back down on the couch as he took a sip of his cocoa. "Well, my last name was my mother's actually. She wanted to keep it, and my father thought it sounded good, so he changed his last name instead of my mother." He explained as he chuckled softly. "Though I've been told I was named after my late-uncle."


As she told him what her job was, she should have picked a different job. He recalled that the Succubus was a singer. And the white hair that he thought was an impressive dye job on Alses now started to look like it was naturally white. There was a slight pause, but he kept a calm face. He originally tried to follow her since he was curious about her due to the fact that she has not feed in so long...

He shook off the pause as if trying to remember something. "Aaaah! I think I saw you preform downtown!" He said as he smiled. "You were pretty good.... I didn't get to see the end of your performance though..." He added before she mentioned that she was being followed. Crap, she noticed. He thought to himself. "Well, hopefully that isn't the case...."


When she asked him about his line of work, he smiled. "I'm a Private Investigator." He said as he took another sip of his cocoa. "And I'm currently on a case, and though I can't give away any details, I'll tell you.... I didn't think that the case would take this long.... I mean, I moved out of a hotel and into this apartment."

Something about Alan’s expression seemed rather unnatural to her. Alses herself has periods when she schools her facial features to neutral ones but only when she has information which she wishes to conceal. She supposed it is only fair; after all, the succubus has much to hide about herself. Sipping her chocolate drink thoughtfully, she decided that it would only be safe to linger around the topic at hand. “Private Investigator? That sounds pretty cool. Solving mysteries for people seem like a very challenging job…”

There was a pause that hung heavily in the air as she held an expression that shifted between deviousness and hopefulness. Her guest might be able to solve her problem. Tilting her head with bright eyes, she suddenly jumped from her seat and bent down before him. Her silvery tresses glided softly against his arm as she spoke in an excited tone. “If it is not too bothersome, can you help with my case? I’ll pay you any amount for it.”

She nearly faltered in her words; in fact, Alses forgot to breathe when she first took in the spicy and chocolaty scent about him. Looking into his light blue eyes, she was momentarily lost in a trance after making such a bold request. “I don’t know how many people have told you this but…You have pretty eyes…” complied with the same earnest look as she had received him, the demon has also forgotten the importance of personal space.

"It is a very challenging job.... I mean, right now I'm handling some 'noobie' work though since I've just started out... but soon I'll be doing tougher jobs." He said, though there was a bit of an awkward pause... that seemed to become more like tension the longer the pause went on. When she bent down before him, he blushed as he shivered a bit from the sensation in his arm. It was then he remembered the danger about Succubi, and how they were naturals at seducing men and women alike. "W-well... that depends... what's your case?" He asked her, trying to keep the situation from going any further.

He blushed deeply as she was placed in a trance as she looked into his eyes. "Y-y-yes... I've been told that a few times." He murmured as much as he tried, he seemed to be falling into a bit of a trance as well. She wasn't out right trying to seduce him, but there was just something about her that was drawing him towards her... and he needed to get out of it. That was when a tickle in his throat had saved him. He turned his head away from her as he covered his mouth as he coughed loudly. "A-ah sorry about that." He said as he decided to use this opportunity to escape the situation. "So, what's your case?"

As Alan broke away, Alses too found a need to keep a distance between them. She never quite experienced such a lure from anyone and while it produced a pleasant flutter in her heart, she much preferred breathing. Pulling the opposite couch closer, she tucked her feet under a plushy cushion and beamed enthusiastically at him. “There are two things actually. First being looking for my mother and second is learning about myself.”

Her hair was starting to dry more given the warm conditions of the room and soon, the towel was having trouble covering her head securely as she would have wanted. A light brown horn peeked itself from one end, unbeknownst to the young demon as she carried on with seriousness. “My mother is hiding from me and I think she is in this very town. I don’t know how long it would be before she travels to a different place. She started playing this game with me since last year, and would never tell me where she is. However, she did mention that she would appear before me if I understood my own heritage.”

Taking a deep breath, Alses frowned as she continued. “I think I understand my own heritage but Mother told me that if I really do, she would be able to tell and would not appear before me until I do.” Casting a sheepish look towards the guest once more, she added in a soft tone. “Mother can be quite a handful when she is alone. I prefer if she were somewhere where I can make sure she does not inconvenience the townspeople too much.”

The silence that followed her finding out that she needed to keep a distance wasn't as awkward as he thought it was going to be. As he looked at her, a horn started to poke out from one end... but since he knew what was up, he didn't feel like a need to bring it up. "Well.... how come she's playing this.. 'game' with you?" He asked her, being a bit curious about this.

Her face drew a blank after hearing his question. Furrowing her brows, Alses searched in her memory of the specific details of her last conversation with her mother. With an unsure tone, she attempted to repeat what she can remember from a year ago to the man before her. “Mother said something about if I don’t learn about it myself soon, I would not live long enough to see her by the time I turn twenty five. She said I lacked the natural inclination to survive and that what is left, she cannot teach me. So, in order to rid of the dependence I have of her, she left me alone in our house and started to have her own fun in different places around the country.”

Sighing, Alses painted an expression of exasperation as she attempted to describe her mother’s adventures. “On normal circumstances, children are not supposed to be worried about their parents’ but Mother can be quite…immature about things and cause trouble amongst the youth in town. That is why I chose a job in the downtown pub. I was trying to see if she was lingering nearby but I was not able to find her tonight.”

He thought about it for a moment, figuring that the Succubus sighting had to about the mother, and not about the girl in front of him. Though it looked like the Succubus didn't know about how she was suppose to survive. "Huh... I thought knowing what they need to survive would be common sense for a Succubus." He murmured outloud, but then paused a bit as he realized that he didn't think that. Alan couldn't think of a way to turn that around, so he hoped Alses didn't hear that.

Oh she caught his line perfectly clearly and for a moment, she froze in her seat. Slowly reaching a hand towards her head, she felt the protruded horn and widened her eyes. Soon, her face blushed into a color that blended in with her eyes. Standing up slowly, she barely managed to croak out an almost inaudible sound. “I’m sorry, but I think I have to leave…” With that, Alses made a dash into her bedroom and shut her door. Locking the contraption behind her, she started to turn the place upside down, dragging luggage bags and filling them with everything that is necessary for a quick means of escape. From the outside, one could hear a series of alarming crashing sounds as the succubus packed in frenzy.

Internally, Alses was not sure if she was more embarrassed by his comment or fearful that she had been caught. Alan was her first real human interaction too, and it bothered her that failure came crashing down so soon. Her tail twitched in disapproval at her heretic reaction and soon, Alses had enough to make a dive out of the window. Pulling the door that lead to her balcony, she balanced the two heavy baggage in her hands and attempted to leap out, hoping her wings are strong enough to prevent a crashing defeat.

When she made it to her Balcony, she would find that Alan had already left her apartment, went through his own apartment to the Balcony, and managed to climb to her balcony. When she opened the door he stepped in front of her as he closed the door behind him. "Now, I knew you were a Succubus from the pub.... I mean, hiding in plain sight sounds like it'd be clever, but it never fools a hunter's eyes." He said as he rubbed the back of his head. "But I didn't think the succubus was you until you mentioned the pub." He said as he looked at her. Oddly, instead of having the face of a predator cornering his prey, he still had the warm expression he had when he was talking to her.

"Now, I'm not here to fight or kill you, I just want to talk." He tried to reassure her.

As she pushed open the sliding door to her balcony, Alses was shocked to find a familiar set of blue eyes block her path. With each approaching step he took, she felt the need to back away one. Instinct tells her to make a run for it and there are many reasons for her to do exactly that. Hunters are known to chase after anything that is inhumane for a bounty and while not embedded with the characteristic of one, it did not change the fact that she looked like a demon. The baggage in her hands dropped softly on the ground with a light thud as she cautiously eyed his movements while making her way towards the door.

“What is there to talk about?” came a stiff reply. This was the exact same person who had followed her from the pub and lied before her. The succubus cannot find reason to trust him though her heart painfully wanted to. Feeling the knob of her door, her mind made a mental push and she immediately made a run for it towards the living room, opening the main door with her mind as she went. Spreading her wings Alses did not hesitate to turn back as she attempts to leap off the building.

"Listen, I can tell from your hair that you've haven't fed on anyone in a very, VERY long while... so you couldn't be the one in the reports..." He explained as he smiled. "And if I can talk to the hunters, I'm sure that I can put you on the white lis- Wait!" He called out to her. He quickly ran after her, as he managed to grab a hold of her foot. "Please, you have to believe me... I really do want to talk.... I mean after all, if I wanted to kill you I would have done it when you had left the pub..."

The sudden pull of her foot made her panic. It was never a positive scenario to get part of your limbs caught in flight though his words left her much to consider. Reaching over, her tail clasped his hand gently to coax his grip away from her ankle for fear of tearing something given their awkward position. Lowering herself, she sat lightly against the rails and held his hand between them to keep the distance. A few tensed minutes passed as she stared into his mesmerizing orbs before she broke the silence between them. “I don’t feed on human flesh.” She gave a curt and indignant reply.

Removing his hand, Alses jumped off the railing and crossed him silently as she made her way back into the apartment. He has already claimed that her life would not be in danger and even if trust does not serve well for her, the succubus has currently run out of any means of escape. The only thing she is able to do is calculate her reactions with each step. As she entered the warmed room once more, she crossed her arms and looked at him coldly. “What do you want for me now?”

It really bothered her when he mentioned that there is some sort of an organization of hunters looking for a particular group of demons. A succubus being one of them and if Alses was not the one, then Despina, her mother, would likely be in trouble. It was a mixed feeling really. As the daughter, Alses knew the chances of her mother getting caught are almost close to zero, unless some hunter would go through crazy lengths to lure her. On the other hand, she knew that she had divulged more than she is supposed to before her said ‘private investigator’.

Minutes passed without any of them saying a word. The silence between them only made those minutes last for an eternity. He tried to think of something to say, anything that could of broken the silence, but it seemed like Alses beat him to the punch... though she did seem rather mad at Alses. "And that's why I'm not going to harm you." Alan sighed out.

After walking back into the apartment, Alan sat down on her couch and though he was cold, he didn't ask for a blanket or something to heat him up. "Well.... I'm here because there's a man who was put in a coma recently. All signs point out that a succubus did it." He explained as he took the cocoa from earlier and took a sip from it.