[Fallen_Snow]

"Want another drink, darlin'?"

Helena looked up, squinting through the murky half-light at the bartender. She didn't drink; only water sat in her cup. But she needed something to take her mind off what it had recently been dwelling on. "Do you have coffee or something?" she asked wearily, looking down at her glass and passing it from hand to hand across the slick bar.

He let out a low chuckle. "This ain't no fancy coffee 'ouse, missus. I think you'd be better off headin' up to Nabias." he advised, taking her cup with him as he walked away. She sighed and jumped off the barstool, rubbing at her eyes with the palm of her hand. She needed sleep, but it wouldn't come to her. She couldn't even focus enough to get back into Lucain form-- she was stuck in this disgustingly perfect body.

She stepped onto the dirt road and walked along it, hoping for any kind of distraction. But the memories just kept pushing at her conscious, forcing her to remember what seems to have been so traumatic when she was little... she pinched the bridge of her nose and breathed calmly. You can do this. Focus. Your forms come easy to you.

Instead, she fell back into memories...

She fell back, her pup paws making her stumble, their size going against the rest of her body. She was tinted blue with the coming in of markings, and her teeth were fit for a crocodile-- she was proud of her weird teeth, but not when she was little. She felt self-conscious about them. And of course, there was the boy that always picked on her about it.

"See you later, alligator! Haha!" he would sneer, and she would look away or glare angrily. He would call her Crocodile Teeth or pull at her tails, and warn younger pups in the nursery that if they got too near, she would eat them. She tended to hide away from him, trying not to be seen-- it was the worst time of her life, that denial, that malicious uncaring time. She was too happy to get out of there.

She breathed raggedly and leaned against a street sign, trying to block out the memories. She hated remembering that time more than anything.

[Fallen_Snow]

His hand made a fist around the handle, and he twisted, revving the motorcycle's engine. He smiled at the mechanic. "Purrs like a kitten. Thanks, Chub." Arnold remarked, petting his tuned-up vehicle. "Well, what 're buds for, eh? Just remember that payment tomorrow." he said with a smile. Arnold laughed. "Yeah, the payment. Don't I always get it to you?" he said. The apparent Chub patted his shoulder. "Ah, boy, every time you're here is payment enough. As long as you keep me company during the days, then that can be considered your payment."

Arnold nodded and gave his older friend a hug. "Thanks a bunch, Chub. See you in a few weeks!" he said, and revved the engine again, kicking out and starting the motorcycle. He sped off, leaving his friend waving behind.

He darted in and out of the dirt roads, loving the freedom of the sleek piece of machinery beneath him. Now, just to find a chick to ride it with...

He scanned the roadsides, and finally saw a figure near Old Mo's, a favorite of his. He slowed and pulled up to her, smiling his girl-catcher smile. "Hey there, sweetie. Need a ride?"

[Fallen_Snow]

Helena drew back as he pulled up on that... thing. Ugh, a motorcyclist. Just what she needed to chase away. At least it would be a good distraction. "Sorry, but I don't take rides from men on motorcycles." she said curtly and turned to look down the road. She wondered if she'd be able to get back into the bar without him following her. Probably not. She turned back to him.

"Listen, and listen closely-- I'm going to walk that way, and you're going to drive that way, and we'll never meet again. Sound good to you?" she asked, staring him down. She would not lose this; she never lost a staring contest. Though usually it was because she was in her Lucain form, and she always felt more confident in it. With this body... the only thing it was good for was holding things, and even then it was a hassle.

[Fallen_Snow]

Arnold stared back, smirking. He liked her-- she was fiesty, and didn't want to be taken to. Alright, so she was a bit more of a challenge. Nothing he couldn't handle. He stopped his motorcycle and kicked out the kickstand, letting it sit on the side of the road. "Alright, then how about a man on foot? Can't say no to one of those, can you?" he asked, smiling. Without waiting for a response, he stepped up close to her, his face barely an inch from hers.

"Go ahead, challenge me. I'll win." he whispered, his light blue eyes staring into her bright blue ones.

He adjusted his leather jacket, which covered only his naked torso. He was tempted to take it off and put it over her shoulders and see how that would affect her, but 1) it wasn't even cold out and 2) he didn't want to scare her off with his muscles just yet.

[Fallen_Snow]

Helena laughed-- and it wasn't a flirty laugh. It was harsh, cold... plain not expected right then. "Wow." she stated, and pushed him back so that she wouldn't be backed up against the traffic sign. "Listen-- I don't flirt, and I don't take 'challenges' from guys, especially guys like you." she growled, her eyes piercing blue lasers in the darkness.

"I can say no to any man, really. I don't have a preference-- I just don't like motorcycles. They're dangerous and always ridden by stupid people." she remarked, hoping that would catch him off guard. She turned away and began to walk down the street, knowing that he wouldn't follow her. She was being too cold, too unfeeling. And she wasn't drunk, which usually helped guys like him. Yep, he would not follow her.

Right?

[Fallen_Snow]

Arnold arched and eyebrow. When she said she didn't take challenges, he laughed. He watched as she began to walk away from him, remarking on how all motorcyclists were stupid. He stopped, then ran at her, finally reaching her and keeping pace with her. She wanted to be chased. Okay. He could do that.

"You know, I'd love to hear you say that in a crowded garage and see how many fans you get." he said, sliding his arm around her waist. "Because, you know, motorcyclists... they're very unpredictable." he whispered, trying to be seductive. She would be a hard nut to crack, but he didn't care-- she was hot, and that's all that mattered right then.

"So, where you from, kitten?" he asked. "Not from these parts, I assume. You're too clean looking, and not drunk." he said with a cold laugh. "And you don't know who I am, which is a personal foul to both you and me-- me because that means I need to get to know you, and you because... well... look at me. Because I'm perfect for you." he said.

[Fallen_Snow]

Helena looked at him in disgust and scratched at his hand, removing it from her hip. He quickly move it back into place, and she tore it off of her again and moved off to the side. "Oh yes, you're so unpredictable-- because you try to make a move already and you haven't even asked my name yet." She snorted when he asked where she was from, sliding his arm around her hip again. She punched him in the gut and said, "I'm from a place that isn't here."

At making the comment about him being pretty much perfect, she snorted. "I'm sorry, but I believe the only one that can say they are 'practically perfect' is a certain nanny would would not be encouraging your behavior right about now." she responded tartly, and walked a little faster. If he continued to follow her and try to grab her and feel her up... she wasn't exactly sure what she was going to do, but she knew that she wanted to hurt the guy.

Distractedly, she tried to get into her Lucain form with no luck. He was even more distracting than the memories.

[Fallen_Snow]

Arnold shrugged. "I don't care about nannies or anyone else, really. All I care about is you right now." he said. She tried to walk away, faster, but he was quick-- he slid his arms around her waist and held her. He didn't move. He waited for a tantrum or a punch in the face.

Nothing.

She was frozen. His hands were around her waist... why? She tried to look at him, but was unable to. "Why are you holding me?" she asked angrily, but not moving. He shrugged. "You kept walking away. I'm not done talking to you yet." he said simply. She pushed his hands away and turned. She wanted to look him in the eye.

"You know, most girls would have started screaming. You're lucky I didn't."

"No, most girls would have melted into my arms and fallen head over heels in love with me. If any screamed, no one would care around here anyways."

[Fallen_Snow]

Helena rolled her eyes. He was getting really annoying. But why wasn't she leaving? She could have easily nailed him with the pepper spray in her pocket, or even knocked him out. He'd been close enough at least twelve times... yet she hadn't. What was going on with her? Was she going soft?

No. She would not. She refused to let this... hog-riding idiot take advantage of her. She just wished she could get into Lucain form, as most men she met were scared off by her teeth...

She sighed and leaned against a near-by building. "You know, you're really exhausting my patience." she muttered, rubbing her fingertips against her temples. "But for some reason I feel the need to listen to you, even though I see through your crap. Do you know why?" she asked, her eyes screwed shut. Oh, her head was pounding...

[Fallen_Snow]

Arnold frowned. "Well, who needs patience? As long as you have a good head on your shoulders, you're good. Who cares if you jump the gun a bit?" he said with a smile. His eyes were watching her tight body lean against the building, her forehead crinkle slightly with the pressure of her fingertips...

He shook his head. "No, I don't know why." he said, surprising himself. "Why don't you enlighten me? I'd love to hear a good story. You could tell it to me while we bike out of here." he said, coming closer, putting a soft hand on her hip. He felt her flinch beneath his touch, and she edged away. He dropped his hands, but his eyes stayed locked on her. He wasn't giving up on her... not yet. There was something about her, it was almost like she was familiar or something...

"What'd you say your name was again?"

[Fallen_Snow]

Helena turned away from his touch and pressed her forehead against the cool brick of the building. "Name?" she mimicked, slightly unfocused. "I'll tell you mine when you tell me yours." she muttered, her nails tapping against the wall. The perfectly painted nails. She silenced the sound by scratching their perfection up against the bricks, ripping up the nail polish and ruining the finely buffed edges. She scraped her hands against the brick, willing blood to come. She stomped her foot and banged her head. She was so tired of this! The headaches, the memories, and now this guy... it had to stop. Tonight. But while he was annoying her, he was also distracting her.

Turning towards him, she leaned against the wall, her eyes squinting at him in the darkness of 2 AM. "People call me Helena, but I prefer Sharky." she said, grimacing. It was meant to be a smile, but, you know, headaches kind of ruin smiles a lot.

[Fallen_Snow]

"Helena, eh? It sounds pretty. Feminine." he said, trying to get her to look up. "My name is Arnold Attleboro, though unfortunately some people know me as the famous Halvard's son. Ugh, my father... he's so goody-goody. I don't hate him, no, but I don't like him, either. Makes people think I'm just as good as he is. But there's something I want to tell them, and it's this: sometimes a pear falls out of an apple tree, and when it does, you don't ask why or how, and people will believe you when you tell them it's an apple. Do you get what I mean?" he said, gesturing with his hands.

He waited for her to laugh. That usually got some of the tougher ones-- pretend like you're going to say something insightful and then totally make something up that makes almost sense but no sense. And then they laugh and say, 'Oh, you sly thing!' and fall into his arms and love him forever.

Err, well, that's how he imagined it went.

[Fallen_Snow]

Helena just stared. "So you're the pear of the family, eh? Just be glad you know your parents, however different you are from them. I was told I had no parents. Not exactly sure how it works, but when you're declared parentless, well, I guess it gets to you. You feel like you have to prove yourself, else you won't exist. Being that lonely in that you have no actual parents to speak of, and no caretakers or friends to think of or count on... it can get depressing. But you learn. You work. You fix. You meet. And somewhere along the line, the time will come when you won't have to deal with the thoughts anymore.

"But when I was a kid... that's when it was worst." she said. Her eyes widened slightly and she set her jaw. "Probably just like all the other kids." she remarked lightly, then turned to walk. Dang. So close to getting away... now this would just bring prolonged contact with him.

[Fallen_Snow]

"Oh?"

Arnold latched on quickly to this story, as if it was his respirator under the sea, or his line while climbing a particularly difficult cliff. "Well, you know, when you're a kid... everyone's experience is different. You know, as a kid, I remember being in the nursery with all those pups... I was mean to this one little girl. At the time, I saw it as silly teasing, nothing that would hurt her. I had a little bit of a crush on her, actually.

"... But that was a long time ago, huh? We're both grown up." He leaned towards her, his body only a few nanometers from touching hers. "We should try some... grown-up things." he whispered. He wanted her so badly.

[Fallen_Snow]

Alright, now it was time to get out of there, now. Knowing what every girl was taught as a teen, she performed the correct defense maneuvers. She ducked down and aimed a kick at his, err, more sensitive spot, and moved quickly down the street towards the bar. He doubled over as the air quickly left his diaphragm and lungs.

"Stay away from me!" she shouted, rounding the doorway and landing herself in the bar. She ran towards the bar and aimed a loud kick to the planking beneath the bar. She heard a snort and and shuffle, and out came her best friend, Bemmy.

"Err...?" he grumbled, looking up at her blearily with his bright blue pinprick eyes. She sighed and rubbed his head, careful not to rub too hard at the fragile, peely skin beneath the black mane and reddish-brown horns. "'Ey, there, Bemmy. I need you to help me out, 'kay?" she said sweetly, kneeling down so she was looking him in the eyes. The Bemused nodded thoughtfully, and his black and brown skin faded into worn, rough-looking light human skin. His eyes stayed the same, but were partly hidden under jet black hair that was slightly messy and about two inches long.

As usual, Bem was silent. He didn't talk much, but he didn't like to. He noticed the way people's face changed when he began talking with that slow, messy speech that seemed disconnected from his thought process. He just grunted or had a facial expression as a response, maybe even a nod or head shake. It wasn't that he was dumb, it was just that he wasn't good with talking. Helena blamed Einsor, saying that he hadn't worked hard enough on giving him good brains. Bemused blamed himself for not trying hard enough. When only in her company, he would speak out loud, and she would encourage him.

His exterior was bulky and covered by a clean long sleeved dark green shirt and a black jacket over top. He smiled as Helena hugged him, whispering "Thank you," in his ear as Arnold stumbled in, breathing heavily.