Miracle skidded to a stop and froze on the side of the street when she heard him speak. The sound of his voice sent a jolt of fear through her veins. She slowly, reluctantly, turned around to face him. He strode tantalizingly slow towards her, like a predator stalking its prey. He spoke with a strenuous tension in his voice, “Please don’t make this difficult. I’m not supposed to kill you, but if you don’t cooperate, I just might slip up.”

The next words that passed through her lips in a hopeless whisper came as a surprise to even her. “Kole.” She began backing away unthinkingly but stopped when she saw another figure appear from behind him. Autumn was sneaking up on him, a simple bat grasped tightly in her hands. Miracle watched with horror-stricken eyes, her mouth slightly open as she watched her sister try to hit the vampire. When she failed, she managed to distract him well enough for her to run away from his reach and toward her, shouting her name. Miracle caught her by her shoulders without ever taking her eyes off the man in front of them, who was now obviously irritated. She turned her head slightly and harshly whispered to her sister, “Run to the bar, Autumn. Go there and I promise I’ll be fine.” Knowing Autumn wouldn’t easily obey her, she turned to look into her eyes, her expression portraying both determination and pleading. “Autumn just do this one thing for me, okay? Trust me.” Her words were rushed. Her hope was that maybe Kole would still be somewhere around there. He could protect Autumn at the least. It was, of course, her last resort and possibly her sister’s only chance.

She pushed her sister away from her and cautiously stepped in the opposite direction, trying to hold the vampire’s gaze. But his vision slipped from her face to follow Autumn, and an evil smirk rose the corners of his lips, as if he found this amusing. “Well, well, well,” he said quietly. “What are you two schemin?”

Miracle continued to stray farther away, diverting his attention away from Autumn. She didn’t realize, however, that she was backing into the middle of the street. Soon a deafening screech reached her ears and she instantly turned her head to see an oncoming car, its wheels turning furiously and scraping against the pavement. Miracle drew in a deep breath and quickly moved a few steps backwards, throwing her hands out in front of her. The car came to a grating stop in front of her and she placed her hands on the hood. Pushing herself away from the vehicle, her eyes darted back to where the vampire had stood, only to find him gone. The man had disappeared. She spun around on weak legs, desperately searching everything in sight.

A sweet, enthralling scent piqued Crispin's interest. The fiery-haired vampire cocked his head, steadily turning on his heel to head slowly towards the staircase that wound down to the ground level. Autumn was not as easy to charm as he'd thought, but perhaps direct action was an easier way to go.... He lazily strode down the staircase, following the echo of Miracle's footsteps but in no hurry to get to her. He had plenty of time. About half-way down the first set of stairs, he yawned, bored already with the chase. Opting to just get it through quickly, he skillfully hopped off the railing, landing on one knee on the ground floor. He rose just in time to spy Miracle's slender figure darting out of the building. He smiled to himself, a small chuckle escaping him as he strolled outside.

"Oh Miracle?" he called in mock innocence. "Where are you going, sweetheart?"


...


Autumn set a glass she'd been drinking out of in the sink and leaned lazily against the counter, thoughts throbbing through her head, unsubsiding. they nagged at her constantly, wouldn't leave her alone. How few vampires there are and one simply happens to show up at her door, looking for her sister... Miracle!

"Oooohhh crap," she hissed under her breath, whipping her cell phone out of her pocket and furiously dialed her sister's work number (they weren't allowed cell phones while working) and frantically tapped her foot while awaiting an answer. She worriedly scanned the view from the kitchen window in lack of better things to distract herself as the phone rang on the other end. Her brow creased low in concern over her bright eyes, but mellowed in confusion when she spied her sister, miracle, frozen dead in her tracks with the vampire she'd seen before on her tail. She hung up the phone, never taking her wide eyes off the scene. "Shit," she gasped, taking off out the door, but immediately darting back in to snatch the metal baseball bat she'd precautiously leaned beside the door.

She dove down the steps as fast as she could manage, nearly tripping over herself as she did. Her footsteps echoed loudly throughout the building until she scurried quickly through the lobby, pausing just before barging loudly out the door. Autumn carefully inched the door open, praying under her breath that the vampire would not notice her entrance as she crept outside, bat at the ready over her shoulder. She, taking the most miniscule steps imaginable, continued toward him until she stood just behind him. Her breathing was uneven and broken; each breath was a light, sharp dart of air. her muscles tensed, her breathing hitched, but just as she was about to swing, he whipped aorund with incomprehensible speed, immediately grasping the bat with an unwavering, firm grip, a fiendish smirk on his thin lips.

Panic spreading through her, she acted impulsively, paying no thought to the possible consequences. Impetuously, her leg flung out awkwardly to kick him between the legs with all her might, fright rendering her strength shaky, as if with hunger. The moment he heaved forward, wheezing in pain, she sprinted in her sister's direction, fear fueling her legs, urging them to go faster. "Miracle!" she shouted desperately; she could only hope her sister had a plan.

His gaze softened slightly at her comment, head tilting to the left slightly as he took a moment to digest her words. She was different, that had been clear to Kole from the first words she had uttered, but for a human to have such insight into their own kind – that was rare, at least in his experience. Their gaze met once more and the red-head found himself just as transfixed by the warm hues that stared back at him as she was with his.

A slight frown creased his brow at the soft sigh that followed her next words, noting perhaps a slight irritation within the tone. Kole’s lips parted, but no words came forth for at that exact moment metal hinges complained at the movement of a heavy door and both figures turned their heads sharply toward the origin of the sound. While Miracle’s movements were rushed, the vampire merely turned slowly to face the cause of the distraction, his hands still buried within his pockets.

Perhaps a wiser member of his kin would have taken this instant to flee, to slip away into the shadows as the two females conversed, their attentions currently not focused upon him. However Kole remained where he stood, emerald eyes fixed upon Miracle’s back carefully taking in the outline of her body as she did her best to convince the other that all was well.

The soft click of the door slipping closed drew his eyes back up to her face and a small smile took hold of his lips. Perhaps he hadn’t expected Miracle to take her leave so swiftly, or maybe he was not sure what to say to the young woman, but for whatever reason Kole watched in silence as she slipped inside. Her final glance would be of him standing with his hands in his pocket, those piercing eyes gazing back at her.

Only as the door swung shut behind her did his lips part but nothing passed them until after the latch had clicked into place once again. “Thank you…” The quiet words escaped into the still alleyway as Kole bowed his head to stare down at his feet, hair falling to cover his eyes once more. He lingered there for a moment, perhaps hoping that Miracle would reappear, but after ten minutes or so had passed the vampire turned and strode out of the alley.

After Kole suggested she return inside, she replied to one of his previous statements. “Just as humans are monsters. and cannot be trusted.” She murmured the heavy words as if they were only meant to be heard by her own self. She focused her eyesight on the ground below her, pondering his recent words and wallowing in her own thoughts in response. When she returned her attention to the present, she looked over to see a dazzling pair of emerald eyes set intently on her own hazel hues. She couldn’t bring herself to immediately break free of the bond, and she unthinkingly stared back with a gaze that seemed to host an inexplicable sense of wonderment to it.

Miracle then drew in a breath and carelessly slid off the front of the car, her hands lingering on the metal surface before falling to her sides again. Her expression was calm and assured as she now looked back at Kole. “It sounds like your mind is set. And you’re right; it’s not like I really have anything to offer anyway.” She paused for a moment, her mind straying to other things. “Just-…” A sigh escaped through her parted lips as she dismissed the unspoken sentence. She hated feeling helpless and underestimated, though it was a feeling she was certainly not unfamiliar with.

Her thoughts were interrupted when the back door began to creek open. Miracle instantly ran towards the door instinctively, she threw her hands out in front of her at the last second to slow her momentum to a stop. One hand was placed on the brick wall beside her, and the other pressed against the door, applying just enough pressure so as to allow it to remain cracked open but not far enough to allow Kole into view. Miracle saw that it was her co-worker, Angela, probably come to investigate her long absence just as Kole had predicted.

“Mira,” Angela addressed her with her admittedly annoying nickname, “what’re you doing out there?”

“Sorry. I’ll be just a minute,” her voice was disguised to sound very normal with perhaps only the slightest hint of potential for suspicion. Still, the blonde-haired woman narrowed her eyes in a disbelieving gesture before muttering an “okay” and disappearing back behind the door. Miracle stayed frozen with her hand pressed against the closed door, closing her eyes and trying to gather herself completely so as not to alert anyone’s attention at all once she went back inside. She shoved every abnormal thought into the back of her mind, available for contemplating later when she was able to do so. Then she turned, looking back over her shoulder to permit herself one more glance at the vampire. The glance lasted a mere few seconds, but she memorized every detail of his unnaturally appealing features, the expression on his face that seemed to illustrate the complexity of his thoughts.

She then turned to open the door and return to the bar, letting it close softly behind her. She carried on as normal, though her mind would still unintentional drift off to some distant topic that distracted her from her work every now and then. But luckily, she was very nearly done anyway. Before leaving, she spoke to Angela as she untied and returned her apron. “Hey, Ange? I’m gonna take off, kay?”

Her partner responded with an uninterested “yeah, yeah” before continueing with her work, expertly carrying a tray of drinks over to a small crowd of pitiable men.

The walk home was quiet and hollow as usual as she made her way through the twilight. The streets were dreary and empty as she strode alongside it. When she reached the building, she entered and had only made it halfway up the second and last staircase to reach her apartment when she heard a man’s voice. He was asking for… her. “I believe you have a sister…” he’d said in a deep, seemingly seductive tone, “…Miracle, correct?” The male’s voice was followed by a suspicious, almost fearful tone that she recognized instantly as her sister’s. She stated that he gave vampires a bad name and then seemed to slam the door in his face. The thought of Autumn asserting such control and stubbornness to an obviously dangerous predator would have been more comforting or amusing to Miracle, had he not now been stalking the long corridor her way. A jolt of panic swept over her and shifted her body into a sudden movement as well. She spun around and ran down the stairs, skipping every two steps and sliding both hands along the metal railing to keep her from falling. Her footsteps were easily audible as they echoed through the empty hallways and she responsively reacted on a whim. Once she’d made it halfway down the first staircase, she gripped the railing, lifted her legs over the side, and let herself drop down to the floor, landing with a dulled thud and then scrambling to hide herself beneath the staircase.

She watched as a dark silhouette appeared from above her and calmly, gracefully, stalked down the stairs. The steps created a striped pattern of shadows that stretched across her face and highlighted her eyes as she watched wearily.

His eyes never left her; instead they moved upward slightly to meet her gaze, no doubt the piercing hues appearing both intimidating and searching. As if looking into her very soul and, at the same time, revealing a portion of Kole’s to her. Her comment to his words of dismissal drew a sad smile to his lips and he shook his head slightly, lifting his head a little higher as she took several cautious steps toward him.

When Miracle turned her head to look away the red-head allowed his confusion to show upon his features for a moment, a small frown furrowing his brow as she stepped around him before perching upon the car beside him. For a moment Kole did not turn his head to look at her, but when she spoke – offering him a reward to his supposedly selfless act- his head turned slightly, looking sideways at her. He simply surveyed her for a moment before a low chuckle rumbled within his chest and he leant back, his hands resting against the hood of the car.

“A reward? No…” Shaking his head, the red strands of hair slid too and fro at the movement, “What could you possibly do to aid me, my little Miracle? Hmmm? No, your words of thanks are reward enough.” Kole bowed his head again, the smile that had captured his lips swiftly fading to an expression of concern and unease. Silence fell between them, the vampire appearing to have become lost in his own thoughts for a time before a sudden intake of breath signalled his return to reality.

“You should be careful, I may have asked for something you were not willing to give…we are all monsters after all, we cannot be trusted…” He slide forward, slipping his hands into the deep pockets of his khaki pants as he took a single step away from the car and stared down the darkened alleyway. His shoulders sunk slightly, reluctant to part company from the young woman so soon but it was never safe to linger in the same place for any length of time.

Kole turned to face Miracle again, raising his eyebrows slightly as he lifted his shoulders in a light shrug. “You should go back inside. It’s getting cold out here and someone will notice you are gone before long…I doubt your employers or colleagues would be quite so calm upon seeing a vampire standing before them.”

Name: Autumn Angeles
Age: 16
Height: 5’4
Hair color: red
Eye color: green
Body Type: slender but curvy
Other: can experience the same emotions as anyone else she touches. Works in a small metaphysical shop specializing in incenses, candles, exotic jewelry, other eccentric and unique items, etc. called The Purple Lotus where she sells some of her own hand-made jewelry.

Autumn happily clapped as her sister raised the bite of cake to her mouth, giggling in anticipation. “Well…?” it was no surprise she didn’t like it. She shrugged, flicking a crumb off the table. “Hmph,” she scoffed. “fine with me. Cause Betty Crocker wishes she had all this.” Autumn playfully accentuated her body, touching a finger in mock conceit to her cheek with an exaggerated “pss”. “Yeah, ok, see ya later,” she laughed, waving her sister out of the apartment as she leaned against the table, curiously eyeing the bitten cupcake. She hesitantly reached for it, turning it in her hand for a moment before sinking her teeth slightly into it, immediately grimacing at the taste that coated her tongue. She brought it away from her mouth with a surprised jerk of her arm when she tasted it, examining it closely as if to discover the reason for the disgusting taste of rotten zucchini and egg yokes hidden in the recesses of the chocolate cake.

“Jesus,” she said, tossing it out the window. “I suck.” Some hours later, Autumn pulled up her sleeves and pulled her fiery red hair into a ponytail, turning on the sink to rinse the remaining dishes within and place them into the dishwasher. She hummed show tunes to herself over the clanking of the china, occasionally glancing out the window above the sink; the brick of a neighboring building made for a dreary--but enjoyably cliché--view. Autumn’s eyes flew to the door when three knocks sounded, firm and precise. Her brow furrowed, but she shut off the sink and dried her hands nonetheless, approaching the door curiously. Upon answering it, she was greeted with the sight of a very tall, slender man, his hands in the pockets of his leather pants. He’d been leaning on the doorframe, his head slightly bowed causing his bright cherry red hair to fall in spikes over his dark, sunken eyes. He straightened lazily, smiling through thin lips.

“Hello,” he greeted, his voice naturally a frighteningly low rasp. Though Autumn was growing weary with cautious fear, she nodded, hesitantly shaking his hand when he offered it. An air of concealed fury and a nagging…hunger pulsed through Autumn’s mind when she touched his skin. Her eyes briefly flicked to his wearily. He was a vampire and he was thirsty…on the border of uncontrollably so but he was hiding it with much difficulty.

“Hi there. What brings you here, stranger?” she asked, resting her hand on her cocked hip.

“I believe you have sister who knows a friend of mine. A certain--” he leaned towards her, his breath caressing her with chills slithering across her skin. “--Miracle, correct?”

Autumn tried to keep her retreat subtle as she slowly backed away. “I’m sorry, what friend is this?”

“Why don’t we discuss this inside?” he breathed lowly, taking a step into the apartment. But before he could take another long stride, Autumn took a step towards him to purposely place her foot where he was about to, blocking him from entering.

“There is nothing to discuss,” she declared, one brow rising subtly as her eyes narrowed, heavily hinting him to leave. “If you would please, sir, I’m very busy.” the venomous bite in her voice was evident to him, as portrayed by his expression when his brows raised.

“Darlin, You need to loosen up--”

“My name is Autumn and it’s people like you who give vampire’s a bad name,” she exclaimed angrily, her voice firm and commanding. Just before she slammed the door in his face, causing him to jump back abruptly, she took triumph in his shocked expression. She hurriedly chained and locked the door, backing away from it but keeping her eyes attached as if he would break through at any minute. “Damn,” she sighed to herself, sitting at the kitchen table. “Creep.” (btw ignore her shitrless-ness : ) this is definitely not a freaky sex rp. I've sprayed the entire thing with perv-be-gone anyway so I think we're safe )

Kole. The name lingered and echoed in her mind. And when he stated that she was free to leave, she knew he couldn’t possibly be of any hidden threat to her. …Or.. at least he was trying not to be. But had he really saved her out of sheer will to do the right thing alone? It wasn’t an easy thing, especially being raised where she was, to risk your neck to trust a bloodsucker. On the other hand, wouldn’t it be wrong to descriminate against an individual for their general origin? Either way, Miracle was intrigued by this man, Kole, and figured she owed it to him to… try and give him the benefit of the doubt.

She paused shortly before she spoke, wondering if he really wanted her to go. But Miracle couldn’t help her curiosity, she wanted some small insight to his thoughts that he worked so hard to conceal. “You say that like you were holding me captive.” She hesitated before taking a few steps towards him, moving sort of slowly as if trying not to alarm him. Finally breaking eye contact with him, she moved toward the opposite end of the hood of the car. Placing her hands on the surface, she stepped up and quietly sat down on the hood of the car. She folded her hands in her lap and stared down at them as she spoke. “Aren’t you gonna ask for some sort of reward?” She then turned her head slightly to the side to look at him. “For saving me. Don’t you want something in return?” Not that I have anything to offer, she thought immediately after saying it. What could she offer him anyway? He wouldn’t actually ask for a taste of her blood… right?

Miracle let one hand slide up and then down her arm casually, her palm providing temporary shielding from dusk’s chilled air that encircled them. Still,the cool atmosphere was refreshing and the stillness somehow comforting. Everything was peacefully quiet, except for the murmur, the low hum that resided inside the enclosed walls of the bar just near them.

It was Kole’s turn to be surprised, eyes narrowing slightly as he took in the young woman in front of him, the young woman who introduced herself as Miracle. A faint smirk tugged upon the right corner of his mouth, a look of slight amusement upon his features. How unusual. He had stepped away, put distance between them and yet she stayed? All humans either feared or hated his kind, the only reactions he had come to accept as normal was violence or terror. Yet this young woman did not turn and run, she did not flee.

A miracle indeed.

Fine strands of red hair cascaded forward to cover his eyes as Kole bowed his head, a smirk taking hold of his lips. “Kole, Kole Hartson.” He spoke his name slowly, a slight frown furrowing his brow as he did for it sounded foreign, unfamiliar. It was rare that he had the opportunity to share his name with anyone; his conversations never normally got that far.

Lifting a hand, Kole swept his fiery red hair out of his face, waving a hand dismissively in the air. “You don’t have to stay my little Miracle, you are free to go.” His piercing hues fixed upon her once again, perhaps the faintest hint of sorrow lingering within them.

The cool, smooth texture of his skn softly grazing her cheek was… soothing. In fact, she became so focused on it that it relaxed her, temporarily overshadowing any worries that might have plagued her thoughts. She examined his expression carefully, but still couldn’t decrypt his exact thoughts. He seemed to be battling with the decision, he swiftly moved away from her and retreated to lean against the car.

Miracle stayed where she was against the wall, her hands fell to her side. His next question seemed to surprise the both of them. But she couldn’t bring herself to answer just yet, she was too preocupied trying to understand what he could possibly be thinking of. It seemed as if there was always a hidden emotion or thought that he desperately tried to disugise and retain his outer disposition. But Miracle could see, it was his hypnotic eyes that gave him away. Whatever expression graced his beautiful features, it never seemed to touch his eyes.

When he demanded that she speak, she intentionally paused, stubbornly resisting anything he commanded of her. Casually folding her arms, her eyes trailed to the ground in front of her for a moment. “I’m not hurt.” One minor bruise that encircled her wrist from his crushing grip was hardly anything to acknowledge. Exhaling slowly before returning her view to his face, she decided to attempt to understand her savior. At least, as much as he would allow her to. “Are we going to get introductions out of the way then?” she asked timidly, unsure of how he would react. When he looked back at her, she quietly stated her name. “Miracle. Angeles.”

Miracle pressed her palms against the cool wall behind her. She couldn’t release herself from his gaze until he bowed his head to brush up very gently against her own. Her breathing was shaky and uneven, having not expected such tender closeness without any sudden pain. This hadn’t been what she was expecting from this man at all. He was toying with her, but she still couldn’t determine his true intentions.

She turned her face away from him slightly, his icy breath skimming the surface of her neck and sending shivers dancing along her spine. His very presence was strangely intoxicating, even when she knew she should be fearing for her life right at that moment. “I think…,” she managed to whisper. “I’m scared. I won’t pretend I’m not.” She shifted, moving to the side a bit and turned, attempting to look at him as she prepared to speak again. “But I think if you wanted to bite me, you would’ve done it already.” The girl looked up at him with innocent eyes, but her expression was tinted with doubt, uncertainty, and, oddly, an opposing sense of determination. If it did turn out that he was just “playing with his food”, she didn’t plan on simply letting him take advantage of her. She intended to fight to stay alive, no matter the opponent or inevitable circumstances. However, purely the fact that he had originally saved her made her more inclined to trust him. …Somewhat.

A delicate strand of hair fell limply and swept down from behind her shoulder, hanging elegantly against her cheeck, the rich, dark brown color contrasting with her fair skin.