InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "COWABUNGA!!!"

Nox Alekos (in_his_shadow) wrote in haunted_roads,
@ 2008-02-18 16:15:00

Entry tags:

nox, serena

Week Two: Tuesday, February 12th
Who: Serena and Nox
When: Afternoon
Where: Seattle Aquarium

Nox had spent most of the morning at the station trying to put a dent in a massive pile of paperwork on his desk. Extreme concentration and a slow day in the crime world had allowed him to make a bigger dent than he'd expected. By the time afternoon rolled around, and he was able to take a lunch break, he decided he needed something to soothe the senses and reward himself for a job well done. The aquarium nearly always helped in that regard. It was dark, quiet, and watching the fish put his mind at ease. He was particularly enamored with the underwater dome exhibit.

Leaving the station, he took a cab to the aquarium. Nox came here a lot, so he actually had a membership, something Hesper laughed about until she was blue in the face. Yeah, so he was a bit of a nerd. It didn't bother Nox. He always enjoyed himself at the aquarium, and even the simple act of handing his membership card to the teen at the entrance managed to put a smile on his face. Walking in, he headed straight for the underwater dome to park for the next hour.

To ensure the tranquility of the environment wouldn't be disrupted, Nox switched his phone to vibrate. There was always a chance he'd get a call or text from work, and he didn't want to ruin the ocean experience for anyone else in attendance. As he stood before the glass, watching the poetic movement of the animals on the other side, he caught sight of a little girl to his right who pressed her nose right up against the glass. The blond's eyes were impossibly wide, and their blue hue was intensified by the reflection of the water in them. His smile grew by miles as he watched her watching the sea creatures. Having spent much of the last two weeks working on the case of a murdered seven year old, it helped to see a child alive and happy. This was why he worked so hard... to keep such terrible crimes from happening, and to ensure justice was served when the worst did occur.

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aloveforgotten
2008-02-18 09:44 pm UTC (link)

Four more days. She just had to make it through four more days and then she would be able to finally move on with her life. Or that's what she kept telling herself anyway. Part of her doubted that she would even be able to confront him but the anger lingering under the surface assured her otherwise. Just four more days and everything would be okay.

The hospital had agreed to giving her a week to familiarize herself with the city and decide if she was going to accept the position before offering it to someone else. Fortunately they understood it was a big move and wanted to make sure she would be able to see herself living in Seattle and be in it for the long haul. It was a great opportunity and their offer was more than generous. Guess all of her hard work had paid off.

Most of the city had already been explored and she found herself wandering around without much to do. There had been a pamphlet about the aquarium in her desk back at the hotel and she figured why not? Maybe a little fish gazing would do her some good. With Tony fed and given a nice big rawhide bone to chew on, she grabbed her coat and headed downstairs to grab a cab.

The ride over was relatively short and soon she was making her way through the exhibits. When she came upon the dome exhibit, she found herself pausing and taking a seat on one of the empty benches. Cerulean eyes had fallen on the little girl that was pressed against the glass and after a short while she noticed another person had been watching as well. "They're so carefree," she said in a quiet voice. "And see the world in a way that we have forgotten." A small smile was flashed to the stranger as she tucked her blond hair back behind her ears.

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in_his_shadow
2008-02-18 10:04 pm UTC (link)

Nox felt the stress of his job melting away as he looked between the young girl and the fish, the combination of the two restoring his sanity. Seeing so much blood and hate on a daily basis was hard on the soul. If not for little breaks like this, he'd go insane.

As he chuckled lightly when the girl tapped at the glass as a fish came close to where she stood, he heard a voice right behind him. Nox glanced over his shoulder and saw an attractive woman playing with her hair, smiling at him. He smiled back, never one to greet others with anything less than a warm grin, and stepped away from the glass, walking toward her. "It's because they haven't seen as much of the world as the rest of us. You have to envy them in that way." He glanced back at the little girl as she motioned to her mother to come look.

Nox motioned to the empty side of the bench beside the woman. "Mind if I join you?" he asked, keeping her eyes. They were a beautiful shade of blue, or maybe they just appeared more so because of their surroundings just as the little girl's had taken on an increased vibrancy.

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aloveforgotten
2008-02-19 12:53 am UTC (link)

"Innocence in anyone should be envied I think. There are far too many of us without." A lot of her own had been taken with her line of work, watching sick children suffer and pass. Then of course there was the discovery that vampires do exist and that was more than enough to throw on top of everything else. The current broken heart she was nursing didn't help matters at all either. Wasn't everyday one's fiance faked their own death and ran away.

"Please do," she replied with a kind smile. "I'm Serena by the way." Her hand was extended and offered in greeting because it was the polite thing to do. "Do you come to the aquarium often?" She couldn't quite put her finger on why, but she had a feeling he did. Couldn't blame him if it was true, it was definitely a nice spot to come to think and relax.

"This is my first time here," she went on to add. "It's actually quite impressive."

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in_his_shadow
2008-02-19 01:09 am UTC (link)

"I think sometimes that there's a lot of truth in the old adage... 'ignorance is bliss'." Which was a lot for Nox to admit, since he was the sort who really did want to know everything about everything. Still, knowing so much could be painful at times.

With her permission, Nox took a seat beside her, and then he took her hand. "I'm Nox. Pleasure to meet you, Serena." His handshake was firm without being overpowering, and it didn't linger too long... it was the sort that was appropriate for a first meeting. "Actually, yes," he admitted somewhat shyly, his smile growing, and his dimples coloring up with a pinkish tone. "I have a membership." Nox looked away from her and back to the fish, his breathing slow and steady as he watched them. "It's therapeutic for me."

Glancing back to Serena, he looked at her more carefully, curious about who she was. "So, what brings you to the aquarium today? Simple pleasure, or are you looking to escape for a bit as well?" He didn't typically see others at the aquarium who were alone, so he wondered if maybe she was here to ease her mind as well.

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aloveforgotten
2008-02-19 01:35 am UTC (link)

"Perhaps but with that lost comes living and I think I would rather live than never experience anything at all." Even with all of the heart ache and the pain, she would have done it all over again. Yeah it hurt, but those were some of the best times of her life. Then of course there were the children and even with the death and sorrow, watching them survive made it all worth it.

"Pleased to meet you as well, Nox." He had an interesting name but refrained from asking about it. "A membership huh?" she asked with a quirk of her brow. "I can see it." Her smile was playful and warm and her eyes danced. Nox possessed a bit of boyish charm to him and it seemed appropriate that he would come to aquarium.

"Bit of both I guess you could say." There was definitely a lot on her mind but at the same time she couldn't remember the last time she had taken a moment to just go out and enjoy something like an aquarium. "What about you? Why are you in the market for some therapy if you don't mind my asking?" She would totally understand if he didn't want to share but figured there was no harm in asking.

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in_his_shadow
2008-02-19 01:54 am UTC (link)

He nodded, "Agree. There's value in all experience. Though, that silver lining is difficult to see at times. It hides in the most unexpected places." Nox even tried to find some goodness in the worry that overwhelmed him each time Hesper vanished. Maybe it was her way of reminding him that he loved her more than anything. It also made him all the more determined to make the streets safer... that way she wouldn't be harmed when she was away from home. A pipe dream, perhaps, but he wouldn't stop working toward that goal. Hopefully, he would save others in the process.

Boyish. She wouldn't have been the first to see him in that light. There was something in the curl of his lips and the twinkle of his eyes that refused to age with the rest of his body. Demons aged slower than humans, and parts of him seemed to age even slower than other demons. There was a look of whimsy in his smile at times. "What can I say... I'm a kid at heart. Maybe I'm trying to recapture that innocence and all the other wonderful things that go with it."

"Then I hope being here provides you with both. I'm proud of our little aquarium, so I'd hate for you to leave disappointed." In the nine years he'd lived in Seattle, he'd come to feel very much at home in the city. He took a lot of pride in being a resident... despite it's gruesome underbelly. "I'm a detective. Homicide," he said softly, some of the darkness of their surroundings creeping into his voice, memories of last Tuesday's crime scene filling his head. "It's been a difficult week." He looked back to the little girl now holding her mother's hand, "I needed to see some happy children. Ones who are still filled with life." Looking away from the child and back to Serena, he tried to guess what it was she did. "Do you have children of your own?" It was hard telling. With the way she'd been watching the girl, he'd assume she very much liked children, and she appeared to be comfortable around them, but he couldn't tell if she was a mother herself.

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aloveforgotten
2008-02-19 02:22 am UTC (link)

"Nothing wrong with that," she said with a nod. Being a kid at heart was sometimes the only thing a person could do to keep the world from closing in on them. More often than not lately she found herself struggling to maintain that. She was confident that getting back to work would help remedy that though.

"Well so far you have nothing to worry about. So far I'm in love with it." Yes, she could definitely see herself stopping in on her lunch break every so often if she decided to stay in the city. "Ahh, I see," she said with a slow nod. Children brought into the ER during her residence were often far more difficult to deal with than say one with some sort of life threatening illness. Just knowing that there were people out there who could do such harm was sickening. "And that is certainly understandable." It was why she had enjoyed spending some time at the parks back home. It was always refreshing to seem them healthy and engaged in play.

A sort of bittersweet smile tugged at the corners of her lips. "Me? Oh no, I don't have any." The small band that was on her thumb was spun out of habit. Even though she had taken her engagement ring off, she couldn't bring herself to take off what should have been her wedding band. That was likely to change come Saturday night however. "I'm a pediatrician," she offered to keep any focus off her lack of children. "So I guess you could say that I understand where you're coming from."

"But enough talk about the darker sides of our lives. Have you lived in Seattle long? I'm considering moving here myself."

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in_his_shadow
2008-02-19 02:32 am UTC (link)

He nodded. It was more than understandable that he needed breaks like this to maintain sanity. Most people couldn't handle such a job, because they weren't able to detach themselves on demand. Nox was far from perfecting that skill, but he was getting better. Focus on the details, think about math and motives... not about the funerals and the families. Such things could be considered after a case was solved, only then did he allow himself to truly grieve for a victim and the loved ones left behind. If he got too emotionally involved at the start, it clouded his judgment. It was no wonder people often thought he was 'cold'.

"Noble profession. And, yes, I think you probably can understand." They were both in the business of preserving life. She fought invisible illnesses, he fought the big, bad, all too visible criminals. "It's good seeing them like this... isn't it?" he asked in a somewhat empty tone, looking toward the glass again, but only seeing hand and face prints. The child and her mother had left.

At her question, he blinked and looked to her again. "About nine years now. It's a wonderful city. Coming here was the best decision I've ever made. I'm not sure what it is you're looking for in a new hometown, but I highly recommend Seattle. Are you looking to start your own practice... or work at one of the hospitals?"

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aloveforgotten
2008-02-19 02:49 am UTC (link)

"Thank you, I like to think so." Serena had known she was going to work with children from a young age and there was no deterring her while she had been growing up. Pediatrics was her life's passion, no question. "Yes, very good," she replied with a soft smile. "Reminds you what we're fighting for." Giving the future a chance to live and enjoy life was a fight she would risk everything for if it came down to it.

Serena chuckled. "You aren't the first person I've met that raved about the city." The woman at the bar had nothing but good things to say about it as well. "The Children's Hospital actually made me an offer so now I'm just trying to decide if I want to accept it or not." It all depended on what happened Saturday night. If she could just smack the bastard and move on then she'd most likely stay. If not? Well, she didn't want to think about that at the moment.

"If I do decide to take it, I'll be splitting my time between it and the UW Medical Center, which would be ideal since their partnership in pediatrics has them ranked as one of the best in the country." When she talked about it out loud there seemed like there should be no question as to what her answer should be. Damn Kaden and his having to make things complicated! Perhaps she would stay just to spite the bastard and have a great life and marry some doctor and have lots of kids. That would show him. Hell, maybe Nox here would end up being her dream guy. Who knew?

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in_his_shadow
2008-02-19 03:12 am UTC (link)

"Then you should make the move straight away. With such great reviews, how could you say no?" Serena had a nice laugh. It was light and melodic. There was nothing but sweetness to her, and that was despite the somber side he could see. To work with sick children... well... you had to be close to a saint. Endless patience, an impossibly large heart, and likely a great deal of self-sacrifice. They were all admirable qualities in Nox's book. "I've been to the Children's Hospital many times," never on happy occasions, "And the staff there are wonderful from my experience. They are completely dedicated to the patients." He'd been kicked out of the intensive care unit a handful of times by doctors and nurses telling him that the patient needed rest and could give him a statement later. He usually went along with their 'requests' to leave, even though he knew it was best to speak to a victim as soon as possible, that was when they would remember the most.

"It sounds like you've made up your mind." But she hadn't. There was something that was holding her back. He looked to the fish again, his eyes following them as they moved through their foreign world. "Sometimes... we have to abandon what is familiar and embark on a difficult journey to a foreign land. If we didn't... how would anything new and wonderful ever be discovered?" He'd felt much like an explorer when he'd come to this city. Everything was so different from what he'd left behind, but it was better, despite being intimidating at first. "Are you worried about what you'll leave behind?" he asked cautiously. He was a stranger, and such a question was likely a bit too personal, but Nox made a career out of asking the tough questions.

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aloveforgotten
2008-02-19 03:57 am UTC (link)

"You may have a point," she smirked in reply. If it wasn't for that one little detail she would have likely been signing a lease on an apartment right now. "Yes, the staff certainly seemed that way. All of them were very warm and inviting." It seemed like each and every one of them was just as excited for her to come as the director had been. At some hospitals there was worry of cliques and having to prove oneself but there they had all seemed more than inviting. It was nice.

"Almost, but not quite." She listened to his words and gave a slow nod. Serena knew all about embarking on difficult journeys. That was exactly what she had done when she left Tahoe for New Haven and started pursuing a career in medicine. It had been difficult and trying but eventually she had succeeded and ended up where she was now.

Blue eyes turned to meet his gaze and she shook her head slowly. "More of what I'll find." Serena wasn't about to go into any more detail than that. "But I suppose that really isn't a good reason for passing up such a wonderful opportunity huh?" Another smile. "Guess I just needed to meet the right person to talk some sense into me."

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in_his_shadow
2008-02-19 04:15 am UTC (link)

He studied her eyes carefully. Nox was wonderfully perceptive. He picked up on all sorts of tiny details in his surroundings and in people. The ability made some people nervous, but it could hardly be helped on his part. He wasn't trying to treat them like suspects, but when so much of your time was spent looking for evidence that would solve a crime, you tended to dissect everything in that manner.

"I see," he said simply at first. Her answer was vague, implying she didn't feel comfortable offering more information on that matter. Were he actually interrogating a suspect, he wouldn't have let up, but seeing as how she was a sweet woman he'd only just met, there was no reason to delve further.

He smiled when she did, and it broadened at her words. "If I've managed to convince you in just a few minutes... perhaps I should look into a new career as a travel agent or realtor." He was sure he had absolutely nothing to do with her decision making process. There was something standing in the way of her accepting such a wonderful job, so it must have been quite an obstacle. If she could find her way around it, then there'd be nothing left stopping her. "But, back to the matter at hand, I suppose if you're going to be relocating, I should be the first to welcome you to our fine city. I think you'll enjoy it here, I know I have."

Nox felt his inner coat pocket vibrating. "Excuse me," he said quickly, reaching into his pocket to see that he had a new text. He read it and slipped the phone back into his pocket, and as he did, he pulled out a business card. "I'm afraid duty calls. But, I'd like to continue our conversation." Nox offered her the little rectangle, "Call me anytime... for any reason. Even if it's just to ask where to find the best Thai food in town."

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aloveforgotten
2008-02-19 04:34 am UTC (link)

Serena laughed. "Maybe you should!" she beamed as she gave him a light pat on the arm. "Just think of all the money you could make," she teased. "Well thank you very much." She still wasn't one hundred percent sure that she was going to make the move but she was pretty damn certain. There was just no way she could let Kaden become her and her dream job.

A nod was given before she turned her gaze elsewhere. "Ahh such is life," she smiled once his words had reached her ears. A grin tickled her lips as his card was handed over and she slipped it into her purse. "You keep that offer in mind when I call you at three in the morning." She wouldn't really but it was fun to joke around. She would probably be calling him to see if he'd like to join her for dinner at some point. It seemed only fair since he helped talk her into staying.

"Well Nox it was nice to meet you and I'll be sure to give you a call."

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