{Ahem, excuse the title...:D}

Zahra stared plaintively at the murky brown liquid in the gray glass. She assumed it may have once been clear but years of mediochre washing and an unhygenic kitchen staff (if there was one in this pub) had given it the appearence of a glass made of a forgotten churchs window. She was not sure why she was so melancholy, presently, Zahra always prided herself in that she could put a positive spin on anything. Even when her parents had kicked her out when they had realized she had been summoning demons, even when she was mugged, even when all her rich socialite friends had turned their nose up at her.
She had always found something to smile about.
But now with rapidly dwindling money and no place to live, with the rain pouring buckets outside and a were-man leering at her from across the bar she was finding it exceptionally difficult to smile. She sighed and took a sip of the hot chocolate.
Yes.
That was Zahra for you; here in a pub on the dreary streets of New York City she chose to drown her sorrows and miseries in a glass of hot chocolate.
"Oy barkeep." she slurred (heaven knows why hot chocolate would cause her to slur), "give us another one, eh?"
Her accent was undoubtedly British but in the cosmopolitan city of magic and crime and immigrants from the world over, a cultured London accent would not cause a single head to stir.
The bar keeper, a gruff man in his fifties rolled his eyes.
"Don't ya think ya 'ad enough for one night, miss?" he said in a prononced Bronx accent. He was mocking her! She thought indignantly. She fumbled in her pocket searching for the piece of pink chalk she used for her swift summonings. Then sighed and let it be.
"No sir, I do not think I've had enough. I want to drink so much hot chocolate that I will become a chocolate bar." she stated this childish epithet emphatically, slamming her now empty glass on the aged wooded counter.
"All the better to gobble you up then" snorted the Were-man. Not werewolf, mind you. Were-man, a wolf who turns into a man. They always lurked in bars when the moon was bright. Bloody nuisances too. She ignored him. They were harmless so long as you paid them no mind.
The bar keeper shoved another glass of hot chocolate in front of her and she gratefully accepted it, slurping it through a large pink crazy straw (doubtless another jibe the bar keeper tried to get in, one that went unnoticed by her). She swivelled in the seat (why did a pub even have bar stools? she mused wonderingly), and observed her surroundings. Several beings sat in darkened corners of the pub nursing drinks far stronger than hers. She was decidedly out of place in her present surroundings. Her classically pretty round face was unmarred by the ravages of potion addiction, her dark hair gleamed in its poofy bun. Even her clothes were strange, even for this part of town. She wore a large lilac and gray poofy dress that came up to her knees. Silk stockings and lilac combat boots (which she had relaced with ribbon). Her girly gray cardigan was studded with tiny spikes.
This girl, like her outfit suggested, was an enigma and a paradox.

Just then a man walked in from the street, his brown trencoat was dripping with water from the rain though he didn't seem to mind it much. He had messy brown hair and seemed fairly fit but the most striking feature was his eyes. They were black, completely black with red coloring just around the pupils. "`ello jimmy" he greeted the barkeeper in what sounded to be a French accent of sorts, "I'll take the usual" he sat down, running a hand through his messy hair to clear some of the water out of it. He sighed, places like this seemed to almost relax him-now what sort of stranger came to a dump like this to relax?

Zahra's attention flickered toward the man now sitting at the bar. A French man she thought disbelievingly. Her parents would never approve. The thought bought a slow smile to her face, perhaps she could find a little something to smile about. Her personality , her desire to be mischievous had forever been the bane of her parents. She was always being hauled into the principals office for causing some sort of fight. That was her role; she never participated in the action, she was the shit stirrer as it were.
And now she observed this new man and her mind raced forth with exciting possibilities, almost child like was her glee in what kind of fun she could have poking fun at the man. Little did she know that her entire life would be changed by this man…
"Hello there!" She said smiling with faux sweetness, she tiled her head forward like a child at peered up at him with her great big dark eyes. She may have seemed innocent and rather like a child, if it wasn't for the glint of calculated intelligence in her eyes.

The man looked over at her curiously, "Ah, `ello mon Cheré" he greeted, "what is a beaux like you doing in a place like this, hm?" he smiled charmingly as he accepted his drink from the bartender. His hands were clad in a strange pair of gloves that only completely covered three out of five fingers each and just the way he tilted his head to look Zahra over was attractive in it's self.

Zara blushed suddenly, the man was much older than she. She sniffed and looked away. This was all theatrics of course; she peered at him through half slitted lids and smiled again.
"Looking for adventure." she whispered softly, she wasn't entirely sure what she was playing at. The man must be at the very least seven years her senior! But she couldn't help herself, perhaps it was the heady mix of drugs and potions in the air. Perhaps it was the sweet taste of chocolate on her tongue, maybe it was an act borne of desperation having not a place to stay at the moment.
"What is your name, mon ami?" she giggled, imitating his French accent.

He chuckled, "ah no, no. You sound tres terrible when you say it like that. It is mon ami" he spoke it in his natural accent for example, "et, J'aime appel Sébastien Praedonis, et toi?" he questioned, curious to see just how far her french knowledge went. It wasn't too often he met someone willing to even try, so few people in this area of the world knew a thing about his native tongue. Although sometimes it was just fun to watch them flounder when he spoke.

Zahra spluttered with laughter, drawing several annoyed looks from her fellow patrons.
"My dear Mr. Praedonis, " she said mirth still in her voice, " I am an Englishwoman, I pride myself in not speaking French." Her eyes flickered toward him then back to her glass, wondering if he would be the quintessential frenchman; impassioned and angered by her flippant attitude toward his culture.
She crossed her legs slowly and took a long sip and before he could reply she said,
"My name is Zahra~ emphasis on the h sound, if you please!" Her finger closed on her tiny bit of pink chalk, wondering if she should draw up a little demon. Just to spook him.
That train of thought abruptly came to an end when she noticed his dark black and red eyes.
"Your eyes..." she said softly.
What was he?

"Za-rrra" Sebastien repeated her name in his heavy accent, although he didn't seem to quite get the H sound in there, he smiled again at her, "You `ad a decent attempt at francias for an Anglais woman" he took a sip from his drink, fully aware that she had begun to stare at his unusual eyes. He never liked it when people stared, perhaps that was why he came back time and again to this seedy bar, people were used to him being here, they didn't stare as much anymore. For a second he looked at his drink a bit forlorn before quickly putting a smile back upon his face, "Oui, I `ave eyes, I noticed that you do as well, it would seem we are very alike."

Delightful! An older Frenchman with a sense of humour! And a very British dry wit, if she thought so herself.
She decided to take a liking to him at once, such was the way of the ever insane Zahra.
"My eyes are no where near as pretty as yours." she said mischieviously, and this time she grinned a little too wide, the too long and sharp points of her incisors showing. Her eyes burnt gold for a moment; all this vestiges of a particularly powerful demon summoning she had done a few weeks ago. She could feel the random bursts of energy at odd moments and they served to brighten up her day (or night as it were) with delightful bouts of thievery and trickery but most of all, adventure.
"Would you like to adventure with me, Monsieur?" She said sweetly, her eyes boring into his. Her earnestness was childlike, though she knew full well of wha venturing out into the city at this wee hour was anything but normal. In fact it was so unsafe those few who dared venture out cloaked themselves in a myriad of protective charms and talismans.
For they wanted protection from people like Zahra.

"You certainly are a foolish one" Sebastien commented, "Adventure at this time? You would be better off in the cage of tigers. `aven't you anywhere safe to go mon petite beaux? A `home per`aps?" he tilted his head curiously, once again avoiding the topic of his strange eyes. His gaze fell upon Zahra's appearance related differences, although they didn't seem to phase him at all.

((goodnight, bedtime!))

Slid off the bar stool, she was quite tall. Standing at just about 5"6. It contrasted oddly with her childish demeanour.
She made a great show of bending down to retie her combat boot then slowly stood up. The were-man in the corner wolf whistled.
"I haven't a place to say." she said, a wave of real sorrow washing over her face. Then immediately livened by a bright smile,
"Do not tell me Sebastian, " and here she savoured the sensation of calling a stranger by his first name, " that you are afraid of things that go bump in the night." THe door behind her was made of rough hewn wood reinforced with steel. There were several deep gouge marks. Pathetic fallacy favoured her, and the rain stopped with a final bolt of electricity that brightened the dank pub to an intolerable level.

(lawls, tall XD sorry, but I'm 5'11, 5'6 is short to me XD and by the way, I've slightly ripped off this character from somewhere X3 I want to see if you can guess who! Although I did alter his personality a bit... and name :P. Have I mentioned I like using faces in my OOC text? XD!))

Sebastian looked her over thoughtfully again, "Sébastien Praedonis knows not fear" he replied curtly as he finished his drink, "Sébastien Praedonis also knows not stupide and wandering out there looking for trouble is tres stupide." he turned to the bartender, "Another monsiér, and something for the mademoiselle also"

{LOL...hahaa...ok I'm asian so 5"6 is like being a giantess in my family T_T and I live in Canada where I am surrounded by Asians haha omg 5"11...I wish I was that tall :D ooh ok I'm going to guess....he was faintly reminding me of someone....the thing is the only manga I read is shoujo so if hes some anime character chances are i wont know who he is T_T}

Zahra quickly added, "Make that a hot chocolate s'il vous plait!"
As she sipped her drink slowly she said,
"Oh of course, one could say it is stupid....but then again, how could you pass up the chance to wreak havoc?" She paused, surveying the brown liquid then an idea popped into her head so fast she was sure the dingy lightbulb overhead glowed a little brighter.
"Ah! I know of what we may do!" She leaned toward his conspiratorially, her voice dropping to a whisper, "What say you in giving a fair fright to anyone who roam the streets?" she withdrew her pink chalk and spun it between her fingers.

((X3 not anime, cartoons, and I live in Canada to! Except I grew up in a fairly Dutch backgrounded community and Holland has the tallest people in the world.))

Sebastien looked at her curiously. This was an odd girl for sure, but there was something about her... something that made him want to play along. "Alright" he sipped at his new drink, "mais, 'ow would you frighten these people?" he asked, "What is it you do Mon chere?"

{oooh niiice. Dutch :D :D I live in the Toronto area so yeah ASIAN EXPLOSION! haha}
Zahra contemplated telling him then and there- but what would be the fun in that?
Instead she grabbed his arm and pulled him forward; she was playing a dangerous game. Inviting a strange man with wicked eyes for a midnight chase, but she had stopped caring about the consequences of her actions a long time ago. All those feelings were locked away tightly in the back of her mind. She was close to him now, wondering if this older man found her impetousness appealing.
"Why don't we figure it out as we go along?" she whispered softly. Her eyes half lowered a demure smile playing across her lips. Then immediately she broke away from him with a jovial wave and stepped toward the door.

((O.o!!! You're kidding me!!! I live in the greater Toronto area-not toronto itself but yeah! Holey Ice in a Bucket! Of all the odds! Do you go to Fan expo?! x.x um, of course, you don't have to answer that, this is a public thread in the internet after all.))

Sebastien blinked, taking his drink with him as he let himself be pulled around by this girl. "Well that sounds like it might be interesting" he replied, chugging the rest of it back, "Alright little one, lead the way" he grinned, his crimson eyes beginning to gain a shine of adventure.

{ZOMG. I go to school in Toronto but live in the GTA...I didn't go to fan expo. I'm a closet geek. And you said you were dutch so i assumed you meant asian doesn't mean chinese....er let me clarify~I am SOUTH Asian xD Dude it would be so awesome/weird if we went to the same university....o_0}

Zahra's smile widened and she pushed open the door. A deluge of cold air dampened by the rainfall hit her and whipped her dark hair back. She stepped out and inhaled the heady marijuana and pollutant laced air. Oh yes it was good to be alive!
She felt her hand tingle, the familiar rush of energy coursing through her. She knew what that meant- that shot of adrenaline was calling to her. She turned to Sebastian.
"Have you ever seen a demon?"

((wooaahhh, I doubt we go to the same place, I go to college XD. You should check out Fan Expo sometime though! Freaking A.Maz.Ing!))

Sebastien followed right behind her, chuckling at her question. Had he ever seen a demon before? Who did she think she was talking to? "`ave you seen my eyes chere? Every time I look in the mirror I see a demon smiling back." he shrugged, whether he meant that figuratively or literally he clearly wasn't going to say. It could be taken one way or the other.

{:D zomg still that is so awesome >_< ok weird tangent: wouldn't it have been weird if we knew each other IRL...O_O because I know a very tall dutch girl. NO wait. She's polish. -__- I will go to fan expo!!!! i made some awsome like minded nerdy friends in uni haha ill go with them!}

Zahrah stopped and spun around, a demon in human form? Or a half demon perhaps? She surveyed him, clearly there was much to her art she did not know. A tiny nagging voice in her head told her how foolish she was. Annoyingly that voice sounded just like her Mother; so she ignored it.
She spied a dank alleyway and glanced inside, it seemed empty enough so she strode in then poked her head out glancing at Sebastian.
"Well come on then! Don't have time to watch the grass grow."
She stepped into the alleyway, it was quite dry. Perfect.
She immediately crouched down and held her pink chalk out; ready and poised contemplating on whom she should call on.

((X3 yesh! I don't actually know a lot of Asian people, but it would be AWESOME to meet chya at Fan Expo possibly. It's the one convention I simply can not miss every year.))

Sebastien strolled after her curiously, he eyed the pink chalk with mild skepticism, "What you got there chere?" he questioned, "and what we doing in such a dark boring place like this?"

"Just you wait!" she said excitedly, she drew a large circle around her. Then began fastidiuously and neatly tracing shapes. They were not the pentagrams of lore, rather she drew a large heart surrounded by several club signs. Then she chalked in several strange archaic symbols on the perimeter of the circle.
"Ready?" she said, her eyes flashing golden again.
She stepped inside the central heart. There was no superfluous puffs of smoke or strange intonations of forgotten languages. She merely closed her eyes and concentrated.
The pink chalk lines began to glow brightly, brilliant shafts of light illuminated the dingy alleyway.
A crashing cresendo of music- mozart perhaps?
And then it all was sucked back. Gone was the chalk, light and music.
And in it's place stood Zahra holding a large black cat. It's eyes were a bright gold and it had strange, ugly leathery wings protuding from its back.
Zahra gave an embarassed smile.
"Well I was trying to summon a tiger." She said despondantly, "I suppose I need some practice."
The cat-demon spoke then,

"You are not about to return me back to my 'home'." He said in a clipped british accent. He leapt from her arms and onto his hind feet, he was wearing a smart purple waistcoat from which he withdrew a monocle that he screwed fastidiuously onto his eye.

{ok im fully looking into fan expo your like the tenth person to tell me its awesome xD}

((LMAO! MONOCLE KITTY!))

Sebastien watched with grand curiousity, a somewhat excited look in his crimson eyes. And then the cat appeared, he could help it. Sebastien looked down at the cat and then burst out laughing in hysterics. This was one of the funniest things he had ever seen, he was beside himself, leaning against the wall for support. A cat! A cat in clothing-with a monocle! And it talked, how wonderfully funny!

The cat turned to the man indignantly, his mouth opening for a sharp retord. Zahra beat him to it.
"Excuse me!" she said, her voice sounding hurt but also rather childish.
"It was the best I could do under present circumstances!"
She gestured to the dank mossy walls,
"Look at what I have-have to work with..." she said lamely, before sighing and slumping her shoulders.
"I'm not a very good demon summoner, ok?"
The cat said,
"Well! I do declare. This is quite rude. I am a rather good demon. See?" He started hacking as though he was coughing up a hairball.
After much wet coughing he spat a tiny plume of fire.
"There !" he said proudly, "if that isn't formidable I do not know what is!"
He swept into a deep bow,
"Ferdinand, at your service!"

{LMAO this is toooo much fun}

Sebastien couldn't help but laugh even harder, he was beside himself with amusement. Leaning against the wall he slide to the ground in a fit of hysterics, he could hardly breathe. "y-you" he pointed at the cat, then burst into another fit before manage to form his words completely, "I could punt you around t'e corner mon petite diablo" he held his stomach, his sides were hurting. He didn't even think this creature deserved the title of demon! It was more like a house pet.

{SORRY! >_<}
Ferdinand's countance changed. His calm, cat face had been impassive but at Sebastians comment he snarled. His face was transformed.
He turned to Zahra,
"You should keep better company, master!" he spat.
Suddenly, he was very much larger and looming toward her. She gasped- never had this happened.
She took a step back but stayed within the protective circle and heart. At the same time as Ferdinand she glanced a smudge in the circle. Her heart leapt into her mouth, blood rushing into her ears. How could she be so foolish? A smudge meant the demon was free of her control!
Without warning, Ferdinand who was now a panther (still wearing a waistcoat) leapt at her throat.