"Man Without a Heart"
A Swordfeast Universe RP Session Blair Sandburg = Ro Hart Jim Ellison = Marcia Tucker Dr. Anthony Carr = Marcia Tucker(For the purpose of visualization, the role of Dr. Anthony Carr has been "cast" using an actor in a television show. "Dr. Carr" therefore looks like Anthony Stewart Head, who plays Giles in "Buffy, The Vampire Slayer".)
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Blair Sandburg, dressed in a pair of jeans and a cream-colored tee, sans the familiar flannels he usually dons this time of the year, jogs to the next bulletin board, a handful of brightly colored brochures tucked under one arm and a small stapler in his hand. He is intent on his task of carpeting as much of the available pace with his personal touch as possible... ads to offer his services as a tutor in a variety of subjects.Strolling behind him, Jim Ellison, wearing jeans and a light blue short sleeve shirt, smiles as he watches his roommate expend energy furiously. There is, however, a shadow behind the smile, one he keeps carefully hidden from his exuberant lover.
Blair hardly notices the bright California sunshine, the beautiful Jacaranda trees with their purple flower petals, the buildings covered in vines, pink & purple bougainvillea, and the occasional palm trees waving in the crisp fall air.
"Missed a space." Jim points to a bare spot on the telephone pole that Blair is papering.
Blair staples another flyer to the post, shuffles more papers, staples another one, then brushes his hair out of eyes. He mumbles, "Oh... thanks, Jim," and stands back to admire his handiwork.
Jim, however, has noticed the marked difference in the U of C at Berkeley's campus, so different from the rather blah hallowed halls of Blair's Rainier U. The change is welcome.
Spotting another near-empty bulletin board nearby, Blair jogs over to it.
Jim walks rather more slowly, raising his face to the sun, enjoying the warmth. Back home in Cascade, Washington, it would have been a cold rain coming down, most likely. Nice change.
In a flurry, Blair staples his brochure to every available space. "There! Whaddaya think, Jim? Think anyone will notice them?" the rainbow-colored stack of paper under Blair's arm is gone... plastered to every available flat surface nearby... and then some.
Distracted, Jim brings his head around to view Blair's latest masterpiece in campus redecoration. "Uh-huh..."
Blair's smiles happily, finally glancing around to admire the scenery. "Wow! Wouldja look at this place? It's gorgeous! And it's still so warm! In October!"
The Sentinel smiles, nodding. "I noticed." But the smile fades as Jim has a weird mental image of wolves bounding across the campus lawn. Frowning, he shakes it off, looks around again. "Yep, very different from Washington, Chief."
"Oh, yeah, very! C'mon, Jim, let's explore!" Blair wonders why his partner is so ... subdued. "You okay, Jim?" He reaches out tentatively to his lover... then by force of habit in public, pulls his hand back, not touching Jim.
Blue eyes wander toward his diminutive partner as a smile finds its way back. "Sure, I'm okay. Are you okay?"
Sandburg brightens, seeing Jim's smile. "Yeah! I'm great, what's not to be happy about? I'm here, with you, it's a beautiful day... c'mon, I feel like a stroll."
They note a passing couple, arm in arm. Two men. Sighing, Jim drapes his arm around Blair as they walk toward a nearby coffee shop. "I think we can be a little more... relaxed here, Blair. What a relief, eh?" He enjoys the feeling of his lover close at his side.
Bouncy and full of energy, Blair sees the couple and smiles up at his lover, wrapping an arm around Jim's waist. "Yeah... it sure is!" He hugs Jim happily.
Jim stops to pull Blair close, returning the hug, dropping a quick kiss on the top of his head. "Love you, Chief," he murmurs.
"Mmmmmmm... love you too, Jim," says Blair, smiling happily.
Jim releases him, keeping his arm around the smaller man's shoulders. "Let's get one of those herbal teas you're so fond of. I think I've had my quota of coffee for the day already."
Blair laughs, "Okay... as long as it's not chamomile... I'm in no mood to go to
sleep.""No, I'm sure you'll find something more suitable." Jim smiles as they cross the street to the line of shops adjacent to the Berkeley campus.
Across the street they enter a snug little cafe that specializes in natural libations, teas, coffees, juices, and an assortment of snacky things that can accompany same such as scones, granola bars, fresh fruit. There are a smattering of wicker tables and chairs inside and a row of them outside. Jim orders a large fresh-squeezed orange juice, and Blair orders a chai tea. They bypass the snackies and choose a table by the window.
Sipping his chai-tea, Blair smiles. "Mmmmmmm." He glances out the window, then back at his lover. Jim looks distracted again as he sips on his juice. Something prompts him to dial up his sense of hearing a bit. But there is nothing unusual in any of the surrounding conversations.
The Guide watches Jim closely. "Anything wrong, Jim?"
The Sentinel twitches his shoulders as he swallows, glances back at his friend. "Oh, I keep going back to those visions of wolves, Chief. Silly, I know."
About three tables away, a middle-aged man in a tweed suit straightens minutely, hearing the conversation by the window. [Wolves?] He listens more carefully, intrigued.
Blair shakes his head, "Huh. Well... no, Jim... anything connected to a spirit-walk isn't something you want to discount so easily. I take the vision very seriously." He gestures with his hands, talking earnestly, but in a low voice.
The man listening in is Kindred, what the mortal world would think of as a vampire. If they have fed recently, Kindred can endure some sunlight, which is why this man can be out in the daylight. He is of Clan Ventrue, who has recently come not only to San Francisco but has accepted the invitation of the Kindred "Prince" of the City, Julian Luna, to relocate here.
"Come on, Chief, really, wolves?" Jim shrugs, shifting position in his chair uneasily as he sips more juice. "It gives me a prickly feeling for some reason. I just can't seem to shake it." Their voices are low; they do not expect anyone else to hear.
Blair nods, then shrugs slightly, "Yeah, well... me too, Jim... but I think it's just 'cuz we don't know what it really means. I mean... wolves... they've almost got a mystical quality about them... and their eyes, well..."
The man, one Anthony Carr, listens intently, for the Kindred have the ability at times to shapeshift, usually taking the form of wolves. Perhaps these mortals have seen something they shouldn't have? If so, Julian would want to know. Anything that risks exposure of the Masquerade - their secret - is Julian's business.
Suppressing a shiver he didn't expect, Blair leans back in his chair and takes another swig of tea. "Yeah... it's kinda creepy."
Ellison nods, frowning. "The ones with silver eyes, the two strange ones with green-gold eyes... what does it mean, Chief?"
Looking out the window at the sun-lit flowers, Blair shakes his head, "I dunno, Jim. It's kind of hard to believe, I know... but maybe the next time we meditate .... it'll come to us."
At the words "silver eyes", Carr stiffens and concentrates. When aroused by blood, Kindred eyes do turn silver...
Jim stabs a finger at his roommate. "Chief, I can't wait until then. For some reason, I just feel I need to be listening for something. But everything in here seems normal."
"Okay, Jim... do that. Listen... dial down your other senses and concentrate on heartbeats to help you focus." Blair slips into his "guide" voice to coax Jim along.
Despite his efforts to concentrate, a busboy disturbs his listening when he bumps into him, so Carr has missed Blair's suggestion about listening to heartbeats. The young college student apologizes and moves off, and Carr settles back into attention.
Sighing, Jim unfocuses his eyes, dialing his senses down except for hearing, then starts to pick out the heartbeats of each individual in the room, a casual exercise for him. Jim has counted fifteen people in the shop, counting those who work there, but finds he is only picking out fourteen sets of heartbeats. Frowning, he glances around.
"Jim? what is it?" Blair whispers.
"Something's not right." Jim glances at his lover. "Give me a minute, I'll sort it out."
Blair nods... watching the Sentinel concentrate.
The Ventrue wonders what the two men are doing, but he can't afford to watch them, so he remains still, taking minute sips from his juice to keep up the appearance. He turns another page of the history book in front of him, pretending to read.
Focusing again, Jim resumes his exercise. He is such a power house of control... it's like easy as breathing to him to be still, silent... like a large cat freezing in place in the jungle to scent his prey. He shifts his position in the chair so it appears that he is casually glancing around the room. In fact, he is matching heartbeats to faces. So that this won't seem to odd, the "exercise" takes a good ten minutes. Jim continues to sip on his orange juice occasionally in the meantime.
Nearly mad with suppressed energy, Blair sips his chai and tries hard not to fidget or distract his partner.
Finally Jim looks at a middle-aged man in a tweed suit, with thinning hair, wire rim glasses, his face narrow and sensitive. Something about the man... Abruptly Jim has risen from his seat. He goes right for the man's table and sits down. "Excuse me, can I ask you a question, please?"
Dr. Carr starts as the man from the front table sits down before him, makes himself relax, cool. "I suppose you can, although I'm rather new here. I may not be much help."
Blair, automatically following Jim to the other table, stands to one side, watching Jim... his eyes full of questions. He smiles friendly-like at the stranger... wonders if he's a professor from the campus or not.
Jim barely notices Blair's presence, so intense is the Sentinel. "By the way, my name is Jim Ellison." He sticks out his hand expectantly.
Intrigued, Carr shakes his hand. "Dr. Anthony Carr, professor of history. Are you interested in history, Jim?"
Watching Jim closely, Blair's a bit unnerved by Jim's abrupt actions ... his attitude...
Ellison smiles, shrugs. "I'm not a student here, I just live near the campus." Blair goes back to pick up his chai and stands at a distance, letting Jim talk to the stranger.
The professor smiles also, but taps the book. "One doesn't need to be signed up for a class to be interested in history. It's all around us."
The Sentinel nods, still wearing the smile which is a dead warning to the watching Blair that the Sentinel is hunting for blood. "Oh, sure, I suppose it is. Say, have you ever heard of wolves being in the San Francisco area? In the city, I mean?"
Dr. Carr shifts uneasily in his chair, though he keeps his smile casual for appearances. His thoughts fly to when he can call Julian. "Wolves? No, I don't believe I have ever heard of that, sorry."
Jim isn't much deterred by the answer. The man doesn't have a heartbeat. "So, you teach history at the U, Dr. Carr?"
The Ventrue nods. This mortal just isn't going away. He wonders why the man has singled him out to chat with. There is no reason; he hasn't drawn attention to himself in anyway, as far as he knows.
Jim notes Blair at the counter, getting a refill. "My friend there is in anthropology, a recent doctoral graduate." He concentrates on sensing the man closer, verifies what he has suspected. This is no human being. But rather than confront this... creature, Jim wisely decides to make a casual acquaintance of him, find out more some other way. Before the man can reply, Jim turns and gestures toward his lover, now approaching.
Blair strolls over casually, sticking his hand out to introduce himself. "Hi, I'm Blair Sandburg."
"Ahem, Dr. Sandburg." Jim corrects him, then explains, "Like I said, recent grad."
Blair blushes. "Yeah, that's me."
Dr. Carr shakes the shorter man's hand as well. "Anthropology, hm? Are you teaching this semester, Dr. Sandburg?"
"Um, no... I'm offering my services as a tutor, though. I'm on hiatus from Rainier University right now... I work with Jim, we're partners." He shakes Carr's hand.
The Ventrue smiles, nodding. "Well, your discipline is not too far from mine, and a lot of my students choose to take anthropology for some of their requirements. I'll pass along your name to them."
Blair grins, "Hey! thanks a lot! I really appreciate that."
Jim rolls his eyes at the word "partner." "Ah, what Blair means is that he works with me as a consultant in our police department in Cascade, Washington where we're from. I'm a detective, working here in Frisco for six months. We're something of a team." Jim smiles a bit, not wanting to be too obvious, not to this very strange... whatever.
"Oh, really, a detective?" More alarms go off. Detective Ellison is sure to encounter Frank Kouhanek, who is privy to the Masquerade, but under Julian's protection. [Damn. Frank will need to be warned off this curious man as well. Tricky.] "Looking for wolves, Detective Ellison?" Carr smiles winningly at both Blair and Jim.
"Huh?" Blair risks a quick glance at Jim.. How did this man know??
Jim is intent, meeting the man's gaze. He is detecting nervousness in the man, reading the dilation of his pupils and other very subtle signs. Also, the man's body temperature is completely wrong, he notices. Too cold. "Yeah, wolves. With silver eyes. And no heartbeats."
The professor chuckles, "Sounds like a project for Halloween, Jim. Planning your costume?" He closes his books, planning to call Julian Luna as soon as he can.
Blair forces a laugh, "Oh gods, Jim, not that again." Then he adds to Dr. Carr, "Jim had a nightmare about wolves the other day. He's stressing on it. Never mind. Here." He fishes out a newly printed business card which he'd had made when he did his new flyers. "Here's my name and number. Give me a call soon about those students of yours, will you? Thanks." Blair handing Carr the card, then tugging at Jim's sleeve "C'mon, Jim, let's go. You're probably bushed. It was nice meeting you, Professor Carr."
Dr. Carr takes the card, standing as Jim Ellison does, preparatory to leaving. He is grateful for the interruption. "Then, do get your rest, Jim. Dreams can be frightening. It was nice meeting both of you. Perhaps I'll see you around the campus again?" He slips the business card into his book.
Blair smiles. "Yeah, I'd like that. See you around, Dr. Carr." He pulls on Jim's arm.
Jim nods, backing off, knowing this is not the time or place to confront this... creature. "I'll do that. And you can count on seeing us again." He dares a wink and follows his lover's back out of the cafe.
TO BE CONTINUED... in "Keeping Spectres at Bay... or is that Wolves?"
