the clouds are grey (LUCILLE)

[Arabella Grace Zied]

.. show me a better day ..

Arabella walked along the Mississippi, the nearly set sun warm on her blonde hair, the breeze light on her skin, and she was ready to burn the whole city to the ground and dance in the ashes. The whole day had been garbage and she was ready to just go back home and try again the following day. She woke up to multiple missed calls and text messages from her school board about scheduling a meeting for the upcoming year. She found a hole in her favorite jeans. Her coffee pot cracked into a thousand shards of glass when she turned it on, one of which sliced her palm open. The coffee shop messed up her order and gave her almond milk. [break][break] How does an almond make milk? Where does it even come from? [break][break] She tossed her cup into the public trash can and walked away from it, determined to just find a way to make the day better for herself. The VO was filled with life, and she could usually find something interesting in the Witch District. Shops that were filled with tourist attractions and authentic wares for people to purchase. She raked her fingers through her blonde curls and looked over the shops to try to see if any of them caught her eye. [break][break] A tiny bell dinged above her head when she stepped into the first shop, filled to the brim with plants, crystals, and herbs. It seemed to be one of the more authentic shops, which was a nice relief from the scams that filled New Orleans. She looked over some of the potted plants, smiling when she saw one that would look particularly good in her office. She turned the corner and examined some of the other plants, spying a familiar face towards the back of the store. [break] "Well look who it is, and here I thought I was going to start to have a better day." She said with a tease.

Tag: Lucille Evi Vanderbilt outfit credit to Laura of Adox

[Lucille Evi Vanderbilt]

"Look, all I'm saying is, I need some plants to put in my bar so there's some other form of life in there besides me and my patrons, all of whom are either undead or monstrous." Lucille shrugged when the lady at the counter pursed her lips, taking a swig from her bottle to hide her eye roll. "That was a spoken truth, not an insult, Lacey. Not to you personally, anyway." Lacey wasn't exactly a friend, but she was a regular at the bar and frequented the place when Lucille was working, so Lucille knew she definitely wasn't as nice and charming as she seemed when she was talking to customers. Well, not when she was drunk, anyway. "And stop giving me that look, it's a Bloody Mary." The vampire smirked at her own double entendre and tucked her blood-filled Thermos under an arm, out of sight. "That wasn't a lie either, the girl's name was Mary. Also, there's a little, tiny bit of vodka." 

As Lacey hummed and turned away to browse the plants, Lucille tapped the counter. "Oh, and I need one that doesn't require a lot of water. Preferably small, too, that can be put on the counter and not the floor, so that people don't get the idea to pee in the pots." Lacey snorted and brought over a box of what looked like small, squat cactus-like things. Lucille squinted as she picked over the tag, reading the species name. "Succulents? They're cute," she said grudgingly, poking at one of the leaves, recoiling her hand in pain when she was pricked by a thorn. "Ouch. What the--" 

Lacey closed her mouth and raised an eyebrow. "Well, I was about to tell you not to touch them." 

"Speak faster," Lucille barked, then pushed the box forward grudgingly. "I'll take them." 

She had just finished tucking her card back into her wallet when a voice spoke behind her. Lacey had bade her farewell and cited her work as a reason to disappear into the back room. Lucille knew she'd see her again tonight at the Railroad Stop. There would be a shot of cupcake vodka with her name on it. Honestly, Lucille only kept that bottle around for Lacey and her little sorority group of witches. The vampire rolled her eyes at the thought and drank from her Thermos again, fingering the edge of the box that contained her new plants. 

"Well look who it is, and here I thought I was going to start to have a better day."

It was a blonde who had spoken, a woman with all the trademark signs of a werewolf. Lucille's figurative hackles rose, her eyebrows knitting together. Being a Vanderbilt meant that almost everyone knew who she was. Which made trying to live a simple life in which she also tried to disappear impossible. On the other hand, she, having only been in the new New Orleans for three years, had yet to learn most faces. Really, the only people whom she was familiar with were regular patrons of her bar like Lacey, and even then she didn't know a lot of their names; only the ones who talked to her. So Lucille really had no idea who this wolf woman was, although it was evident she knew who Lucille was. Vanderbilt or otherwise. Lucille supposed the hate was from being the enemy species, although there was some humor in the comment. And honestly, Lucille really didn't care if this random stranger claimed to dislike her. 

But she wasn't going to pass up an opportunity for a quip. "Lady, I'm sorry, but I don't even know who you are." she picked up her succulent box with one hand, tucking it under her arm as her Thermos hung from her other wrist from its strap. "And I was just about to leave, so I hope that helps your day become better. Although, if you're having a bad day I suggest getting a drink. Ask Lacey behind the counter for my bar. Maybe ask nicely and I'll give you something on the house. In a dog bowl, if you want." she winked and bared her fangs in a teasing sneer. 

Words: 700
Tags: Arabella Grace Zied
Notes: , her debut post and she is not being nice!

[Arabella Grace Zied]

.. show me a better day ..

The vampires lost the war and it was the greatest moment of her life. She got to watch those haughty leeches crumble in their gilded plantations. She got to watch as they fell from grace and she loved every second of it. She could hear the sneer from one of them going on and on about plants for her place. Bragging about drinking some poor woman named Mary. She knew that there were some willing humans who enjoyed being blood bags, something that made her gag reflex more active than the iron stench that filled her nose. "A dog bowl? As if any self-respecting wolf has ever set foot in your leech pit." She knew of Lucille. She knew the bar that she owned and she knew enough about her legacy. It was her job to keep tabs on people and understand what the blood suckers were into.It was important since the wolves decimated the vampires so much during the war to understand who was who and what was happening with them. If an uprising was going to happen, she wanted to know first. However, I come bearing probably the best news you'll have all day. Oak Hill is hosting an event and in a show of good faith to your type-" She started, her Scottish accent as thick as the day that she moved from her homeland and made her stick out like a sore thumb among the southern drawls all around her. "We would like to have it at your bar. Bring in some clientele that won't ear apart jugulars, and some income for you. What do you say? It might help with repaying some of those debts the Alliance owes us." Payments for war casualties, for damage done, for keeping them down and making sure that the vampires were able to stay down and unable to try to take their control back from the wolves. The Alliance was nearly bankrupted by the reparations owed and it was Arabella's favorite thing to watch the once all mighty group fall onto hard times. However, the Robespierre Family wanted to make nice with the leeches, and she wasn't one to question the why. She took the position at the school where they were going to try to comingle and work together. Assuming it didn't end in blood shed.

Tag: Lucille Evi Vanderbilt outfit credit to Laura of Adox

[Lucille Evi Vanderbilt]

"A dog bowl? As if any self-respecting wolf has ever set foot in your leech pit," the other woman sneered. 

Lucille shrugged at that and pulled her Thermos from under her arm. There were plenty of lycanthropes that popped into the Railroad Stop; they were all harmless, and they tipped well, so what was she to question their alliance? Or their self-respect? And anyway, even if she were to do that, Lucille would've been shot down automatically because she was in no position to judge others' self-respect. She took a swig of blood, eyeing the werewolf woman behind her bottle, and licked her lips, then wiping her mouth on the back of her hand--"Ow. Jeez. F*ck me. Stupid fangs," she muttered under her breath, frowning as her fangs caught the skin and tore a small incision along the back of her right hand. She flicked her hand, the injuring stinging slightly for a couple of seconds before she stopped feeling the pain. It would repair itself before the conversation was over; vampires healed quite quickly. Speaking of which, the werewolf's voice was still grating in her ears and she looked up with a furrowed eyebrow, having tuned out in the last couple of seconds, distracted by her clumsy self-inflicted accident. "Sorry, wha' dijasay?"

"...We would like to have it at your bar," the woman was saying. "Bring some clientele that won't eat apart jugulars, and some income for you. What do you say? It might help with repaying some of those debts the Alliance owes us." 

Lucille couldn't help but laugh at that. Laugh, actually, so much so that she tipped the box she was holding and one of the little cactuses fell out. Lacey, back at the counter, let out an angry squawk as Lucille finished chuckling and bent down to swipe it up. She smiled to herself as she turned her attention to fitting the plant back into its hole in the box, then glanced back up at the werewolf as she popped the succulent back in. Was she drunk? No. She hadn't had anything besides the Bloody Mary today and she hadn't put enough vodka in the Thermos to even make her tipsy. Ugh, it was probably just because she was awake. "You serious, lady?" She pretended to consider, tipping her head exaggeratedly. Lucille knew she was being an asshole, but the arrogance of this lady warranted it. "Well, before I give an answer, couple things wrong with what you just said. One, my bar is strictly no-violence and no-jugular-eating, so I don't actually have any current clientele doing that. Second, I assume you know who I am based on how you've addressed me, so I'm surprised you think I care about money. Third, you also assume that I give a sh*t about the war between our species. Lady, I was gone from NOLA for sixteen years. I think I fired a single gunshot during that entire war before I left. And if that hurts your little feelings, well, I'm very sorry." she crossed her arms and rolled her eyes. "The whole point of my bar is to dispel political tension, okay? My bar is open to everyone who wants to come and if you want to start a fight, you're gonna get kicked out real fast. So while I'm not going to go against that principle and say yes, you can take your little Paw Patrol over to my place to tear it up, I will not stand for you to put me down or anyone else. I get it, you're mad my species were a bitch to your species, but war's over. If you get off from making vampires suck your b*lls instead of your necks, that's your problem. By the way, mind telling me your name?" she huffed before going on grudgingly, "and time of what exactly are you guys planning?"

Words: 647
Tags: Arabella Grace Zied

[Arabella Grace Zied]

.. show me a better day ..

Surprisingly enough, there were some people, a select number of people in the world who thought that Arabella was a delight. People who smiled when they saw her and told her that she was funny and had a good laugh. There were people that she enjoyed being around and cared deeply for. When her sister went overseas with the Marines, she bought a number of protection spells from the witches in the area and didn't insult them once. Okay maybe once, but she was trying to give her a bad price for the spell and Arabella wasn't stupid. This vampire? She would not be joining the list of people who enjoyed being around Bella, she could see that. Watching the vampire struggle with her fangs made a thought pop into her head. Wondering what they would feel like. She felt her gag reflex react, disgusted that her brain even came up with that. Disgusting she chastised herself. Arabella watched the vampire struggle with her own teeth, truly the fact that she could run a business was becoming questionable. [break][break] Given that she just struggled with drinking out of a bottle and managed to cut herself on her own teeth, Arabella wasn't sure that she was in any sort of position to be laughing at her. Let alone taking it out on the cacti, they didn't even have anything to do with it. She could hear the owner bitching up front and had to agree with her. She liked cacti, they were cute but prickly, just like her. [break] "The Robespierre Family is insistent on, apparently they want to have a more approachable celebration and Oak Hill is a little too gilded gates for the current event." Personally she liked the gated community that kept the undead and riff raft out, but she couldn't go against the wishes of the Alpha and his family. [break][break] Monologuing, she was monologuing. Blah blah blah, it was a safe space, she wasn't part of the war. She saw the Azalea Alliance emblem on the building, she might not have been part of the war but she was still allied with them. [break] "And would you be the one kicking me out? Or do you call animal control for that?" She asked with a teasing grin. This vampire might be a little too into herself, but Arabella was enjoying watching her get flustered and annoyed. [break] "It'll be a Paw Patrol meeting, Chase is on the case." She said dryly and rolled her eyes, "It's a fundraiser for the Robespierre Academy. Something to get donors in to meet the Robespierre Family, listen to people talk about how much good the school will do for political tensions, blah blah blah." She looked over the vampire, trying to figure out if there was anywhere else in the city that they could have this event. If she could go back to the Alpha if she failed the task he gave her. [break][break] "Arabella, and you're Lucille, right?"

Tag: Lucille Evi Vanderbilt outfit credit to Laura of Adox

[Lucille Evi Vanderbilt]

Lucille could feel the callous judgment of the lady werewolf rolling off of her in waves, a stench that was as strong as the odor emanating from her, indicating her species. Honestly, could Lucille care less? No. 

Her hand had healed already, the cut having closed while they were talking and the skin paved over like nothing had happened. Such was the pros of being a vampire, which, in Lucille's frank opinion, did not outweigh the disadvantages she was forced to deal with. 

"And would you be the one kicking me out? Or do you call animal control for that?" asked the woman with a teasing smile that, from another angle, would've looked like a sneer.

Lucille couldn't help but bark out another laugh. At least they were on the same page of not taking the other one too seriously. These days, that was all Lucille wished for. 

"It'll be a Paw Patrol meeting, Chase is on the case," the other woman continued. "It's a fundraiser for the Robespierre Academy. Something to get donors in to meet the Robespierre Family, listen to people talk about how much good the school will do for political tensions, blah blah blah."

"Blah blah blah." Lucille parroted her  mockingly and raised an eyebrow, tipping her Thermos in acknowledgement of the lack of interest of the werewolf to go into detail, smiling at her behind the bottle as if this little bit of humor had brought them closer. "You sound really excited." Finally, the woman introduced herself as Arabella, and the vampire nodded to indicate yes, her name was Lucille, and more fervently to indicate indeed she was that Lucille, last of the Vanderbilts. "Arabella," she repeated, and the word rolled off her tongue smoothly. She kind of liked it, and it almost made her forgive the werewolf. "Very... phonaesthetic." 

She lightly juggled the box of plants in her other hand, spinning it from the bottom with the tips of her fingers and tipping her head again as she thought out loud. Robespierre Academy was not something she was unfamiliar with; the Supernatural community here was still a small niche and so she knew what the school was, and what it was about. One of the school's faculty had once drunk at her bar and was chatting to her about his job. Her first thought had been, interesting to see the werewolves make such an effort into making things inclusive, after all the shit they put the vampires through. But then she'd lost interest and hadn't thought about it afterwards. "So," she continued, "I'm guessing attendance is going to be more of a melting pot, then? Vampires, druids, succubi, witches all coming? Humans...?" She raised an eyebrow at that, hoping the answer to her last question was no. It would probably not be good, regardless of what Arabella could do her, to mention that any humans crossing the threshold of the Railroad Stop subjected themselves to being placed on the menu as a free entree for the vampires and succubi. 

Words: 493
Tags: Arabella Grace Zied

[Arabella Grace Zied]

.. show me a better day ..

Her hand already healed, a true sign of the supernatural community and their healing abilities. Humans liked to believe that they could be a threat to the supernaturals. They gathered their torches and pitch forks and acted like they would be able to take on a mob of leeches or even a whole pack of wolves. It was kinda funny to think about. She knew that there were groups out there that liked to think they could stand a chance against the supernaturals. [break][break] The laugh was fun, it almost sounded like it caught Lucille off guard to even laugh with Arabella. If she was honest, she didn't think that this interaction would end in any sort of laughter. She was more eying up which ceramic bowl would break and make the best dagger to take out the vampire. She seemed like she was lying down her arms and her wicked tongue for now, so Arabella could do the same. [break][break] "I am an educator, I am an administrator, I am not a party planner. I'm just trying to be a Scot with a Scotch the whole night if I'm being honest." She would do anything for the Robespierre Family and Oak Hill pack, which is why she was willing to even entertain this party. Oak Hill took her family in, they made sure that they were safe and protected. She could throw a party for them. [break] "Lucille." She responded to her own name, cocking a brow at the other woman. [break][break] "It'll be a supes only event, don't worry about that. Whatever humans wander in can end up in your Thermos." She motioned to the Thermos and smirked at her,[break] "But yes, a melting pot of everyone. Anything to bring some awareness to the school and what we're trying to do there." She rooted through the bag on her hip and found a pen and grabbed Lucille's hand,[break] "Here's my number, call me if there's something wrong with the date." She added the date of the event to her hand, her number and of course Arabella to the top of it all. [break] "I'll see you soon, Leech." She said with a much more playful smirk than before. Arabella tucked her pen back into her bag, took another glance at Lucille and how much she hated herself for that glance. Arabella left the store, unsure what the hell she just got herself into

Tag: Lucille Evi Vanderbilt outfit credit to Laura of Adox

[Lucille Evi Vanderbilt]

"I am an educator, I am an administrator, I am not a party planner. I'm just trying to be a Scot with a Scotch the whole night if I'm being honest," said Arabella, frankly. 

Lucille smirked again because that was kind of funny. "Well I can certainly make that happen," she replied, raising an eyebrow, while making a mental note to include a bottle of Scotch in the bar. She rattled her Thermos around a little to check if there was still liquid inside, then tipped more of its contents into her mouth, careful to drink all of it into her mouth so she wouldn't have to wipe her lips with her hand again again and avoid that clumsy fiasco. Again she wondered why Arabella would seek out her dingy place of a dive bar for what seemed to be like a very high-end event, although she supposed that it could be to try and suppress the glamour of it by having it take place in a more casual environment, so to not put so much pressure on investors. Huh. Smart, if that was the case. Lucille found herself curious, whatever it meant. "I'm trusting you tip well. Not that I need tips, but a little indication you're pleased with the service never hurts." she winked. 

Arabella rattled off a small summary of what the party would look like-- thankfully, no humans, although she reassured Lucille that any that happened to trespass the bar during festivities hours could be placed on the menu. Lucille nodded to show she was listening, for real. 

Before she could open her mouth to ask further questions, however, the werewolf had grabbed Lucille's hand, nearly making her drop the succulents she just bought. Arabella proceeded to scribble her cell contact at the top of her wrist, the movement of the pen tip tickling Lucille's skin all the way to the base of her thumb, where the number ended. The vampire stared down in a mixture of confusion and shock, only partially registering that Arabella had turned, stepping away and leaving. Lucille looked up in time to see her glancing back; the vampire furrowed her brows at what just transpired in the last couple of minutes, and the unreadable expression on the other woman's face. Something within herself stirred, mystery emotions that she didn't really want to debunk so she wrinkled her nose at herself and turned away to peer at the number again. It was nothing special, no cute consecutive numbers or repeated digits that was a coincidence of random assignment. It was only then, after curiously staring at the number (and blocking the entrance to the shop, in background of which, once again at the back of Lucille's senses, Lacey was calling at her from the counter to move), that Lucille realized this was a business relationship she'd just established and the more professional move would've been to hand Lucille a business card, or ask for Lucille's, or give her work email. Not her personal number, where Lucille was expected to text Arabella. Or worse, call her. When was the last time Lucille called someone? 

Still, she tore her gaze away from the ink on her skin and finally made her way to step through the open entrance and onto the street, towards home. She'd drop these plants off and then make plans for this party. Starting with... texting Arabella. 

Words:
Tags: Arabella Grace Zied