Cordelia huffed, walking down the road. So far out here, Taras wasn’t very populated, but there were still residences. She had been to this side of town. She had been to all of Taras, hunting and the like, even though she didn’t like the city. She was surprised the guards had yet to catch her… but she supposed that was because, unlike other vampires, she was a very neat feeder. Reckless as she was, she knew when to be neat, and she knew there was usually a time and a place for everything.

She walked along in the night, humming softly to herself. She had fed a bit earlier, though there was no trace of red on or in her mouth. In fact, the only thing that was red on her person was her signature maroon coat. A piece of paper stuck out from the open pocket, and with another huff the woman reached down and tore it from its place. Her eyes scanned over it once more. Why did she continuously do as these letters directed her? How did these people ever even get her address? Those were questions for another day, however; the most important question that needed to be answered was who this ‘Y’ person was. It was stupid to follow a letter when she didn’t even know who the person was, but oh well. Cordelia was just far too curious for her own good.

Finally the house with the correct address came into view. Without any discretion, Cordelia walked right up to the door and knocked loudly on it. If she had the wrong house, then oh well – she wasn’t going to worry about it. She crumbled the paper up and stuffed it back in her pocket before folding her arms over her chest, awaiting an answer. The last time she had received a letter, she had been blinded; she was ready for any harm this may bring, even if she really wasn’t showing that caution. She had been maimed enough in the last few months and wasn’t about ready for anything else.

“Helloooooo?!” she called impatiently after about ten seconds without an answer at the door.

The door swung open quickly, and a hand reached out, beckoning her inside. Come, Cordelia. There is much to speak of. The hand retreated into the darkness once more, a Chesire cat grin the only visible thing in the shadows. The mouth itself faded, no doubt because the figure turned around.

At the end of the corridor, Yaksha sat in a comfy armchair, reading a book. He looked up, and smiled. The book was set on his lap, and there was a chessboard set before him. He motioned to another armchair on the other side of the board, and he set his hands over the book. "Hi. How are your eyes?"

Cordelia’s eyebrows lifted when the door opened like that and the voice called out to her. That wasn’t strange at all. She glanced back over her shoulder, contemplating simply leaving. That probably would have been the most logical thing to do, but really, Cordelia wasn’t a very logical woman. Acting on impulse rather than careful thought, the vampire woman stepped through the threshold, slamming the door shut behind her. She glanced around before fully walking into the house, down the hallway until she reached an actual room.

Once again an eyebrow lifted, and a hand slid to her hip, the other arm hanging at her side. She tilted her head as she looked at the figure in the chair, wanting to remember who he was before taking a seat. She had never seen the face before, but he seemed to know her name, along with her address. As soon as he spoke, she knew who he was and she rolled her eyes. “Oh, you. Hello again, Yaksha,” she said dryly, finally walking over to the chair and sitting down, throwing her right leg over her left leg.

“… How are your eyes?"

A soft snort passed through her nostrils and she lifted her left hand, pointing to her eyes with her index finger. “Look for yourself,” she said. Her eyes were a dark, stormy blue, and appeared normal and absolutely, perfectly fine, as if nothing had happened to them in the first place. Every burn that had once been on her body was gone, from her body’s own healing as well as from Manic’s. “That was a bit of a stupid question, don’t you think? Unless, of course, there’s something wrong with your eyes now.”

Yaksha crossed his legs, and merely smiling infuriatingly, ignoring all her insults. "It HAS been a while. I trust you've had some good times with Manic?" He then waved a hand strangely, and shook his head. "But, I digress. Are you hungry? We can make you some food fairly easily."

Yaksha sent out a mental call into the nearby rooms, still smiling neutrally. Nikki, our guest is hear. Bring some refreshements, please. We should always be the gracious hosts. He stroked his chin, then scooted his own chair closer to the chess board, moving a pawn out quickly. "Would you care to play? I could use a good mental excersize, the help is so very dim...."

At the mention of Manic, Cordelia inhaled deeply, her nails digging into the arms of the chair. She hated the very sound of the syllables flowing together to create his name, she hated that word, hated anything and everything that had to do with him. Just the mere mention of the name Manic made her want to stab someone, or even herself, it hurt so badly. “Let’s not go to that subject,” she growled, her left leg beginning to bounce up and down as she tried to contain her anger. “I can’t stand him, ugh…” She shook her head and ran a hand through her hair. She wasn’t going to do this tonight.

"But, I digress. Are you hungry? We can make you some food fairly easily."

“Food is of little importance to me, I can’t digest it.” Cordelia was getting a bit tired of the small talk, and she was now officially annoyed because of what Yaksha had brought up. Of all the things he could have mentioned, did it have to be Manic? “I don’t need or want anything.” She had already fed, and even if she hadn’t, she wouldn’t have wanted any blood he could have offered. Cordelia didn’t take handouts from anyone. She had been feeding herself since she was a little girl and didn’t need anyone to help her with something so easy.

"Would you care to play? I could use a good mental excersize, the help is so very dim...."

A light snort passed through her and she stared down at the game board. She had never been one for chess, or any other sort of board game. They were so tedious and absolutely pointless, despite whatever ‘mental exercise’ it gave. “Fine, whatever,” she said dryly. “I’ll play in exchange for you getting to the point of inviting me here. Deal?” It sounded fair to her, regardless of whether or not he was fair. Cordelia knew she was right; she was always right.

~

Nikkolai had been waiting for this so called guest to arrive, and once Yaksha sent the telepathic message, he hadn’t really panicked. He didn’t mind meeting new people, and if this person was a friend of Yaksha’s, then they couldn’t be too bad. From the other room he had heard her say she didn’t want anything, so he merely walked into the other occupied room with a tray of French onion soup for his brother.

He set the tray on the table next to Yaksha’s chair, noticing the one in front of him had a set up chess board. He didn’t want to ruin it, should they be about to play. “Is there anything else I can get…?” he asked quietly, his voice trailing off as he peeked at Cordelia. She was a tad scary looking, with her pale skin and sharp features. Feeling his face heat up from staring, he turned back to Yaksha, awaiting a response.

Yaksha stroked his chin, then nodded slowly. "Yes. You can slit your palm, and give our guest about a pint of fresh blood." He smiled genially, and then waved at Cordelia. "Well, let's not keep our guest waiting!" He shrugged apologetically, and sighed. "So hard to find some good help nowadays." Nikki, I'm losing my patience. Our guest is a vampire, and I expect you to be helpful to our friend. You don't want to be out on the street again, do you? He waved a hand in Nikki's direction, casting emotion, the chosen emotion; fear, mixed with sorrow at having failed his beloved brother.

He moved his pawn back to the starting point, and then moved another one forward, smiling. "As to why I invited you here, that we shall discuss as we play." He waved a hand around the room, and then turned to her, smiling. "You're always so very straightforward, but it's not as if you have anywhere better to be. I will reveal my intentions when the time is best."

Nikkolai’s eyes became wide at the mention of blood. She… drank blood? He turned to look at her, fear and sorrow over taking him from the emotion spell cast upon him. It was just a pint. Surely it couldn’t be that much, even though the thought of giving her any of his blood was terrifying. As if the idea of her teeth sinking into his flesh wasn’t frightening enough, Yaksha chimed into his head, threatening to throw him back onto the street. “I’ll go get a knife,” he said quickly, about to walk off before the woman grabbed him.

“No need,” she said, looking up at him. It wasn’t an act of mercy; she only felt mercy for children. “I already fed, I’m a big girl and I’m independent. I don’t want your blood. No go do whatever else you need to do, I can handle Yaksha by myself.” With that Cordelia threw him away, causing Nikkolai to stumble and bang his shoulder into a wall. He sighed, knowing that there would be a big, black, brown and purple mark there later on. He knew that Yaksha was his lord and not her, but she was still his superior and if she was ordering him to leave then he had to do so. He felt terrible for not doing what his brother asked, but he couldn’t very well force her to drink his blood.

Cordelia’s eyes narrowed into slits as she watched him walk away. Such fragile thing he seemed to be. She grunted lightly and returned her attention to Yaksha, inhaling deeply before looking down at the chess board. She moved a pawn of her own, not really caring about it. Pawns didn’t really matter; they were just in the way of the more important pieces. She rested her chin boredly in her right hand while her left hand stayed near the board. “Don’t tell your pathetic little slave to give me blood,” she said, her tone almost seeming to warn him. “I’m twenty seven. I can take care of myself and I do not need you to make sure I’m well fed.”

"You're always so very straightforward, but it's not as if you have anywhere better to be. I will reveal my intentions when the time is best."

The woman rolled her eyes. “Of course I have better places to be,” she said monotonously. She could have been home with her son right now, which was probably the most important thing of all. “Just tell me, would you? I’m not a patient woman.” Cordelia’s dark blue eyes went to Yaksha’s, narrowing into slits once again.

Yaksha shook his head. "You're never going to get anywhere until you learn to wait. You can't honestly expect to be anything more than an annoyance if you're not willing to wait for a plan to fall into place." After a moment, he sampled his soup, then sighed, pushing it aside. "Just as inedible to me as it would've been to you. I swear, if he weren't my brother, I'd have sent him on a suicide mission by now. I'm even considering it right now. He's already mine, it'd be a simple matter to just kill him."

He finally looked up, and sighed. "Since you insist I get to the point, I will. You're a cruel, manipulative woman. You possess a rare degree of evil that is seen only once in a million people. You are dark, evil, and hold within you a pure darkness that could destroy this world if you were to learn to manipulate it. I simply invited you here to talk. But, of things you could be interested in. You contain potential for an unfettered darkness unseen in ages. 'Tis a shame to watch it go to waste. It would be an honor to work by your side, Cordelia Brooks." He rose, and knelt before her, his entire demeaner of one speaking to a queen. "Lead me, my dark mistress....."

"You're never going to get anywhere until you learn to wait…”

Cordelia rolled her eyes. “There’s nothing keeping me here,” she informed him quickly. “I have no problems walking right out that door if you don’t tell me what this is about.” That was a lie, but it was smooth enough that it seemed like the truth. She wasn’t leaving until she found out what he had to say to her, whether it turned out to be useless or not. She was being completely honest, however, when she said how terrible her patience was. He was slowly draining it from her, and really it was annoying. She hated it when people danced around the point, but never really got to it…

An eyebrow rose when he mentioned that the smaller male from before was his brother. She looked back in the direction he had walked off in, but when she didn’t see him merely returned her bored, irritated eyes to Yaksha. She was so glad that she didn’t have any siblings. Really, they seemed like an annoyance, simply a pain in the rear-end that was highly unnecessary. Actually, that was how it was with any family member. “There’s nothing stopping you from doing it,” she said. “Unless you’re all bark and no bite.”

“… You possess a rare degree of evil that is seen only once in a million people. You are dark, evil, and hold within you a pure darkness that could destroy this world if you were to learn to manipulate it…”

At this, Cordelia’s eyebrows shot up, her eyes widened and her jaw dropped slightly in disbelief. She snorted, unable to believe what he was pulling. The whole dark and evil was true, of course, and she knew that she was better than everyone else, but really. This was a bit too much and he didn’t seem very sincere. Once he passed the point about manipulating it, her eyes returned to their normal size and her mouth closed, her teeth grinding together. Her brows remained lifted, however, and that incredulous look hadn’t completely been wiped away from her face.

"Lead me, my dark mistress....."

She couldn’t stop herself. Cordelia’s neck bent back and she started laughing, her shoulders shaking from just how hard she was laughing. The sound came from deep in her throat and showed no signs of stopping anytime soon. This was really too much! She knew everything he said, but the thing that really set her off was that he was respecting her. After everything she had been through, it was appreciated, but still odd to receive. She hadn’t thought Yaksha was one of those weak people that did whatever they were told and followed orders…

“So weakness runs in your family then?” she asked once her laughter had subsided, albeit it was more to herself than to him. “Sorry hun, but the act isn’t fooling anyone.” She leaned over slightly in her chair, just to be a bit more intimidating. “Especially not me. I’m not stupid, Yaksha… you treat me like a dependent, naïve little girl, and I don’t appreciate it.” The games were done, and it showed by the angry and offended look in her eyes. “I know when a person is really capitulating and when they aren’t. So either start talking about why I’m really here, or I do believe we’re done here.” She straightened up a little bit and pulled at her coat, arms folded over her chest as she looked at him. He really wasn’t getting on her good side so far, especially with that little act. It was hardly impressing.

Yaksha laughed, and pushed himself off the ground. "I felt you wouldn't honestly care unless I put it in a manner you could understand." He brushed off his clothes, then sighed. "You're strong, and evil, I won't deny that. But you need someone with foresight, someone who can truly know his foe's next move. So, my reason for inviting you is simple. A mutual teamwork. You have the power I need, and I have the brains you need." He bowed, and then smiled darkly. "Everyone, even you, needs partners."

"I felt you wouldn't honestly care unless I put it in a manner you could understand."

A manner she could understand? He was treading on very sensitive ground now, whether he realized it or not. “What?” she snapped, curling her lower lip into her mouth and biting it hard enough so that it hurt and kept her in check but gently enough so as to not draw blood. It was such a hassle whenever her lips began to bleed and when they healed over, but right now that wasn’t really on her mind. That statement had offended her deeply, and while Cordelia was the temperamental type who was easily offended, she thought she had very good reason to be insulted by that.

The next words only upset her even more. A mutual teamwork… hell no. She wouldn’t work with someone who only wanted her for her strength and who thought she wasn’t intelligent enough on her own. Finally her lip began to bleed and Cordelia stood to her feet, turning her eyes downward slightly to look Yaksha in the eye. “No,” she stated simply. “No way in hell am I going to work for you.” Anger coursed through her, causing her hands to ball up into fists at her sides. She almost growled as her eyes narrowed to look at him. “Who do you think you are, to stand here and say I need anyone, especially a person I hardly know such as yourself? How dare you assume that I would even want to share a ‘mutual teamwork’, whatever you meant by that, especially when you’ve never even told me what this work is for! It doesn’t make a difference, to be quite honest – I’ve made my decision and it’s final. So thanks, but no thanks.” Cordelia huffed defiantly, finally allowing her fists to unclench.

“By the way? Evil is such a cliché term. Everyone’s evil nowadays… it’s a useless point of view that’ll cloud your thoughts.” She had felt the need to reprimand him for that now that she had finished her little rant. She sneered and shook her head. “To think that I would work for you… what kind of a fool are you? We met once – that doesn’t make us friends, not by any means.” Cordelia snorted and finally chuckled quietly to herself. As angry as this had made her, it was so amusing and intriguing that she had to laugh.

Yaksha merely chuckled softly, seeming entirely unoffended by what was said. His tone was still genial and helpful, but the words were less than ideal. "If you wish to put your own life at risk because of your mere pride, feel free. I'm not normally one who would hold a grudge, but make no mistake, you will regret this, Cordelia. I could make you suffer in ways Manic only dreamed."

Cordelia laughed again when he started speaking. It seemed to her that every time he opened his mouth, the most foolish words that she had ever heard spilled out. Who did he think he was, to threaten her like that? He had no way of hurting her, not with how weak he appeared to be. She wasn’t even sure if she saw a weapon on his person, and he had never demonstrated any magical prowess other than heal. “Sorry, Yaksha, I think you’re under the delusion that I care,” she said slowly, treating him as if he couldn’t hear her. After everything she had said, it certainly appeared that way to her. Either that, or he was just incredibly dense and stubborn and refused to take no for an answer. “If you have any way you can hurt me, stop stalling and do it now.” It wasn’t a serious challenge, really. Considering he had no way, she really wasn’t too concerned. There was nothing he could do, and there was especially nothing he could do that would be worse that what Manic had already done to her.

“What an idiot you are, to think that simple threats will get to me… who do you think you are? I don’t bend myself to threats…” Cordelia snorted in derision. “You’re nothing, really. You may think you’re powerful, but sweetie, you’re not. I don’t regret stomping over people below me. I don’t think I need to explain myself anymore… you’re the one who has issues, not me.” The vampire woman shrugged at how pathetic this was. At least this night hadn’t turned out to be a total waste of time; she got to put someone in their place, which was always quite fulfilling.