Halne Gallagher (_fallengrace) wrote in light_of_may, @ 2010-04-27 18:53:00 |
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Entry tags: | 2009-07-11 |
I have need of your services
Who: Kiara and Halne
When: A few hours after this
Where: phonelines and then Camelot place
What: A business deal
Halne was dizzy. She had managed to make it back into her house before anyone saw her, but that was the good news. The bad news was that she was losing more and more blood. It soaked a deep red trail in her carpets from the door to where she sat propped against the couch. She had wiped most of the blood from her hands, making it so she didn't get blood on her cell phone. She dialed the number she'd scribbled on a piece of paper and nearly forgotten.
Halne's work as an Elohim had led her to delve pretty deeply into the darkest parts of the supernatural world. And she would not have done so on her own terms. But in this case, she made an exception. She needed blood, and she was way too weak to hunt. Plus, she never hunted close to home. And she would not make excuses.
When the other line picked up, Halne took a deep breath. "Hello. My name is Halne. I have need of your services." Her voice was shaky and weak as it rasped into the phone.
Kiara had had a very interesting day. That little encounter with a fellow siren's husband had left her feeling quite good. Oh sure he had been distraught and such but she had enjoyed herself and that was all that really mattered when it came to things like this. A siren had to take her kicks where she could get them. Currently said kicks were taking place by sitting in the window of her hotel room, watching the rain come down in torrents. Almost enough to make one homesick for good old Ireland.
Like her phone was reading her mind it went off, chiming out a Celtic tune until she hit 'answer' and put it to her ear. "Yes?" A raspy voice answered and Kiara felt an eyebrow quirk up as she swung her legs off the sill and hopped back into the room proper. "And what is it that you'll be needing from me, Halne?"
"I was wondering if you had any fresh angelic. Or, angelic at all. And how much you have available." Halne's hand was shaking, and her vision was starting to blur. Note to self. Demon-hunting is not a solitary sport.
Angelic. Hmm... Kiara thought about that for a moment. It was not as fresh as it could be but she knew that she had a few pints in that little fridge that came with her room because Jokull had wanted it. He had never called back though and that meant it was on the market. And apparently she had herself a willing customer. Best kind. "I think I have about four pints, maybe five," Kiara replied as she opened the fridge and peered inside. "Now, if you're wanting to purchase there's a going rate of about $200 a pint, just because I'm feeling generous. Good?"
Halne's living room began to spin. She knew she could get a better deal with someone else, but she really didn't have the time to lose. "I'll take as much as you have. Money is no object." Okay, so maybe it was, since Halne wasn't really made of money, but the thought barely registered before she dismissed it. "What form would you like the payment to be made in?" Halne had enough cash stashed throughout the house for just such an emergency. It was only getting to it that would prove difficult.
"Cash is my preferred payment form," Kiara replied as she found her jacket and pulled it on. From the sounds of it she was going to have to make a delivery. Such a bother to go out when there were demons playing in the street, but she knew how to kill them so how bad could it be? There was money to be made after all. "Now why don't you be telling me where I can make this delivery because you're not sounding like someone in the best o' health, lass."
Halne groaned mentally at the thought of gathering her money caches in her current state. "I'll have the money ready for you." Halne tiredly gave the woman her address, her voice becoming even more ragged. And even though this was a business transaction, her good manners won over. "Thank you." She was going to have to find the trench-coat she had, to cover her wings for when the woman would be at her door. She got unsteadily to her feet and stifled a soft cry at the twinge in her wing. I wonder if all the blood will ever come up out of my carpet...
"About how long before I can expect you here?"
Making note of the address but not writing it down, Kiara very rarely did that, she gathered up the bags of blood and stored them into one of those small coolers she kept just for these purposes. What sort of blood dealer would she be if she was not always prepared for something like this? "About ten minutes," Kiara replied as she locked her door behind herself. Eilir had elected to stay behind due to the rain and not wanting to deal with it, so Kiara walked alone down to her car. After glancing around for any sign of demons she started it up and began driving. "Be there soon," she spoke into the phone before clicking it off and tossing it aside. She hated talking and driving and besides, pointless. About nine minutes later she pulled up where she was supposed to, picked up the cooler and walked to the door to knock. Waiting was not much of a bother for her, it was only rain.
Halne answered a quiet "Okay. See you then," before the line went dead. She set her phone down and got laboriously to her feet, careful not to hurt her wing anymore than it already was. She went about collecting her cash from various hiding places, and then padded down the hallway to fetch her trench-coat. She put it on as carefully as she could, but the weight of the fabric as it brushed against and then settled on her wings was excruciating. All this would not have taken ten whole minutes, but her movements were slow and calculated. When the doorbell rang, she shuffled over to the entrance, wincing noiselessly as the fabric moved against her injuries. She took a deep, unsteady breath before she opened the door, trying to grasp some measure of calm. "Hello. You must be Kiara."
Kiara was no vampire but the smell of blood was something that she had been dealing with her entire life and so her nose wrinkled a little when she smelled it. "I am," she replied as she looked over this Halne. Vampire. Pretty rough shape at that. She held up the cooler and gave it a little jiggle. "I do believe that this is what you're wanting. Let me in out o' the rain and I'll be more than happy to get our little exchange done." Business was business and Kiara was nothing if not efficient and thorough.
Halne wasn't sure she felt safe letting in a perfect stranger in her weakened state, but at the moment she needed blood more than she needed safety. "Of course, please come inside. I apologize in advance, my place is pretty ... rough." Rough was a little bit of an understatement, considering everywhere Halne had walked throughout her house was marked by a trail of blood. And despite her best efforts to pick up all the errant feathers, there were a few scattered here and there. The bright white pinions with their golden tips stood in stark contrast to the deep color of the drying blood. She walked into her living room proper, trying to keep a forced smile on her lips. "I'm afraid that the contents of that cooler are more necessity than whim at the moment. Unfortunately." I am definitely going to have to start keeping a better stock. This is pretty ridiculous.
As far as Kiara cared she was completely safe around this woman. Because Halne was female and therefore there was no reason for her to kill her. Plus she was about to be a paying customer. Paying customers were completely safe so long as they did not get around her during a murderlust and they paid. Smiling her best, Kiara flicked her eyes around the apartment and only shook her head a little at what it looked like. "With that injury it's understanding that your place is in need o' some looking after," the siren said as she set the cooler down and popped the top off. "There you have it, blood you wanted. All that I have." Five pints. Should be plenty for a vampire who was in such a state. Maybe. Not Kiara's problem so long as she got paid for it.
Halne smiled as soon as the cooler's top opened and she saw what she so desperately needed. "Wonderful. I have the money right here." Halne dug into the deep pocket on one side of her trench and withdrew the wad of cash. She'd counted it several times to make sure. She moved up to the woman and handed over the cash. The smile on her lips was wistful. "A pleasure doing business with you, really." And it was true. The other woman did not immediately strike Halne as bad. But, Halne still had the strange tendency towards naivete. "If you don't mind, I'll get those in the fridge right away." And so saying, she bent down to grab the little plastic packets of blood, shuffling her way uncomfortably to the kitchen. Once they were in there, Halne moved back over to the woman, offering her hand. "I look forward to similar transactions in the future, if that catches your interest." Halne was not necessarily wealthy by any means, but she did have the money to set up some sort of reserve of blood, should this situation happen again.
Accepting the money, Kiara counted it out three times to make sure it was all there before pocketing it. She was a little surprised that the vampire did not go ahead and just dig right in. From the looks of it she really did need that blood pretty bad. Ah well, some people had the strangest ideas of manners and whatnot. "A pleasure indeed," Kiara agreed. "And my interest is always caught when there's someone wanting to buy from me. You have the money, I have the goods and that's all that there needs to be." Kiara was not one of those people who found it necessary to form a personal connection with her business contacts. They existed to keep her in business and while politeness helped there was no rule anywhere that said she actually had to be nice or pleasant to them. "You know how to get hold of me. Enjoy your blood, Halne." Nodding, the siren turned back towards the door.
Halne nodded, almost to herself. She didn't see the necessity of trying to strike up a friendship with Kiara, but it was definitely nice just being polite. There should be more people in the world like that. "That makes sense. Well, if I need your assistance with blood again, I'll be sure to be in touch." Halne moved with Kiara to the door, a soft smile on her face. Halne did understand her role as a vampire, but she didn't necessarily like acting like it in front of a stranger. Sure, it was all understood on both sides that she would go back to the fridge for the blood once the door was closed, but Halne also knew that some people felt uncomfortable around vampires. She didn't feel like Kiara could be classified as such, but Halne's politeness won over her other desires more often than not. "Thank you, I will. Take care, Kiara." As she ushered the woman out of the door, she closed it with a sigh.