The Both Of You

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VIPER'S PIZZA
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--Patty
It was probably safe to come around again. Right? Right.

Patty had wandered up to Duke's place with the intention of calling on him, but didn't see him in the window when she came in. He was probably in the back, or maybe he was off driving around in that cherry car of his. Maybe he's off squeezing some cute little piece. Either way, Patty wasn't quite ready to head in anyways. The night had worn her down, and everything hurt.

She leaned against the wall next to the pizza parlor, sliding down into a sitting positon with a long whistle escaping her lips. Hands were burned and raw, cuts all over her palms, back aching, head throbbing. Feet couldn't move. She was a whipped puppy, and nothing felt better than sitting right here, right now and not moving until the cows came home. Or Duke. Whichever.

Hazel eyes blinked lazily, and even the incessant noise of the talking in her head was just a whisper. Even they were tuckered out, it seems. Still wearing her black slacks and apron, her head lulled to the side and she started, snorting awake.

"What.. wha? Nah.. Hrmmm" She mumbled incoherently a moment, then nodded off again, not hardly comfortable, but she was out of gas. Just a quick snooze. That's all.

She lay sprawled there against the wall, snoring softly until found.

--Syaka
A bird flew across the sky, circling the area before it dissapeared into the night.

*I figured. Thank you.*

Syaka appeared not long after, sauntering towards the scene with a casual stride. She knelt before Patty, examining her for any wounds. She seemed beaten up, but it wasn't any worse than her usual misersble state, the poor woman always appeared one step away from crumbling into pieces.

Moving her arms around her, she pulled her up into her arms, one arm under her knees while the other kept her chest and head uptight.

She was warm, not cold as she was.

--Patty
Patty stirs, murmuring in her sleep and smelling strongly of alcohol, citrus and soap. It wasn't on her breath, at least, so if nothing else she was using it externally only.

"Mmmrph...cat. Fat cat."

--Duke
"She's...hrmmm...I don't know how to feel about her, Mittens." Duke sighed as he walked back towards the pizzeria, patting his jacket and taking comfort in the stakes that were hidden just within the interior, sharpened by hand. Four in total, enough for a third charm and a fourth in the event that charm was total *bullshit*. "I want to like. Hell I want to *trust* her, but...even after that night, I'm not sure I can extend that to her yet. Not until I see some *real* change you know? I mean...I don't want her to forget her dreams or to take on another personality...I just want her to be safe."

He patted the furry little friend hanging off of his shoulder, scritching those cute little ears. "I...I want that kid to have a good future. People think I've got it good but...I lost a lot along the way. I'm not...well adjusted. I'm just good at hiding the wounds, and I don't want the kid to ever have to do that, or go through anything like I did, or what Patty might've been through."

Duke's eyes scoured the lines between each steps, the small, broken gaps of pavement that made up the sidewalk. "...Does that sound a little possessive? Ugh, I just-..."

Horror wracked his body before he could even process what he was seeing. Outside of the last bastion of safety was Patty, either dead or unconscious. And with her, hauling her up, was none other than Syaka.  Red could feel his heart redlining itself as he froze in place, his fingers instinctively touching the handle of one of his stakes. It was a comfort at best, against someone like her. But it didn't matter, not with Patty there.

Not with *a life on the line*.

--Syaka
Oblivious to Duke's presence, she stood still with her in her arms. There was something about the warmth, about the profound solitude that grew in her every night without her pack that drove her to let this moment linger. Maybe anyone would have done in this moment of weakness, but for now, this mortal's presence anchored her to her fading humanity.

Her green eyes watched her intently, scanning her rough features before leaning towards her, sniffing the alcohol in her skin. No blood. Good.

Meanwhile, "Mittens" stuck to her role as the unassuming raccoon, listening to Duke ramble without a care in the world. She knew everything about Patty and vampires by now, but cocky as ever, felt untouchable under her disguise even as the pizzaboy armed himself like a hunter.

--Patty
Patty's eyes flutter open, and the hazel eyes fell on Syaka. It took a moment for her to focus, still sore and bleary-eyed, but as she realized who it was a soft smile crossed her face. "...heeeeey, good morning you. What the heck are you doing in.. uh..." She blinks, trying to find her bearings, and realizes where she is.

"Uh...."

She finds herself in the cold arms of the sasquatch, cradled like a doll. It had been a long time since she'd let anyone carry her. She looked down to the ground, back to Syaka with astonishment, then begin, "...where a-" And then she caught sight of Duke.

Oh shit.

She begins stammering, trying to make words form, "Uh...UHHHHH"

She grimaces at him, "....I can explain?"

--Duke
He could see Patty shift and move, even so much as look at him...but he couldn't make out her words. Not over the thrum of his heartbeat thundering in his ears. His fingers gripped the stake underneath the jacket, but he didnt't draw it yet.

He wasn't going to risk antagonizing Syaka if he could help it, but he wouldn't be tore apart without a fight. The young man widened his stance, focusing entirely on Syaka as he steadied his breath. If he was going to die, he'd be ready this time.

--Syaka
The raccoon tapped her paws on Duke's shoulder, as if to break some of the tension that was clouding his mind.

*Sheesh, are you gonna go get the girl or what?*

Syaka met Duke's gaze, taking a step back and pulling Patty closer to her chest. Her body language telegraphed that she was ready to run, girl in tow and all.

--Patty
A thrill of dread suddenly hit her. It made every muscle in her tense up, and that sickness that would sit in the pit of your stomach, waiting for the other shoe to drop. She loathed that feeling, and yet here she was, feeling it now. Most times, the thought of a fight, or danger, it would give her a rush. This wasn't the same. It was like watching someone you care about walk in front of an oncoming train.

**Fuck him if he picks a fight.**

*Don't let him be hurt.*

**She's a big fuckin' goon. Why did you ever bother getting mixed up with her?**

*You're going to die in the middle.*

Patty pinched her eyes shut, the voices batting her mind back and forth before being drown out by a sharp, vibrating hum, then it was quiet, as if she'd gone deaf. She placed a hand on her stomach, then felt something hit her that she couldn't quite understand. It was totally unlike her.

"Sy. I'm going to need you to put me down, doll." Her voice was the calmest she'd ever been. It wasn't just an attempt to diffuse the situation. Somehow, she felt it to. It also had the authority of being a request, not a demand.

--Syaka
She put her down slowly, kneeling so her feet may touch the ground as she let go of her. She remained on the ground, shifting so she'd be crouching as she watched for her next move.

--Duke
Duke seemed a lot less tense now that that Patty had been set, down, and began slowly approaching, one step at a time. Definitely not just at Mitten's beckoning. Nope.

He pushed out a held breath, reset himself, and kept his feet moving, getting closer and closer to Patty...all the while his eyes honed in Syaka, bloodshot with adrenaline as he felt all of his instincts firing off. Run, fight, shit yourself, cry for help. But Duke was in control. He'd act when he needed to.

--Patty
"Duke...this is Sy. Sy, this is Duke." She crosses her arms and looks between them.

Patty, for once in her life, didn't feel the need to rage, or shout or fear. It felt so, so very alien to her. She couldn't explain it. "So... Duke. Sy." She touched Syaka's shoulder gently, giving it a little squeeze before looking to Duke and walking toward him, "Go easy, hun." She stepped slowly, but purposefully toward him with eyes locked on his. If he wavered or looked behind toward Syaka, she stepped in front of her, blocking his view. She was defending her as much as him.

Her raspy, low voice had a soothing element to it when she chose not to raise it. In her smoky tones, she ask, "Let's us go in, and you make me a slice?" She smiled warmly at him, "I'll even pay for it this time."

--Syaka
Syaka looked squarely into his eyes, her voice stern, but lacking agression. "I'm here to... care for her. Nothing more."

She wasn't sure of why she even said those words, but it felt right at the time. Watching, protecting, caring, really, she just wanted to stick around the girl for a little longer.

--Duke
Well, whatever Patty was doing, she was doing a good job of it, breaking is line of sight rather incessantly and keeping his focus anchored to her, and her alone. That, and Syaka's words, though the sound alone startled him, brought a fair amount of relief to his weary heart...though he still didn't quite trust her intent, she didn't seem like she was going to rip him apart in front of Patty.

"...Yeah..." Duke's voice was low, filled with the subtle edge of fear. He was on edge as could be, but slowly coming down. "...Yeah, alright." His fingers left the stakes, and he walked to the door with purpose, grabbing the handle and flinging it open, walking in and getting started on his favorite pizza. Bacon and pepperoni, with a garlic buttered crust.

Like clockwork, he threw the pie together, and lobbed the pie into the oven, starting up the flame to get in going, his eyes drift down to the stick near the lower maw of the oven.

--Patty
The weight dropped off her shoulders, and she felt the tension ease, the knot in her stomach subsiding. Patty placed a hand to her chest and sighed deeply in relief, "Thank fuckin' Christ."

She turned back and walked over to Syaka, extending her hand to Syaka to lift her to her feet. She, of course, didn't need it. She could probably spring twenty feet in the air for all Patty knew, but it was the thought that counts. "C'mon. Let's go grab a bite." She smirked, "It's my treat."

Every so often Patty's eyes go off in the distance as if listening to someone else, then she shakes it off and turns her attention back to Duke baking away in the restaurant, guiding Syaka inside if she'd be allowed to do so. "There's somethin' about seeing a man in the kitchen that makes me all fuckin' gooey inside." She snorts, elbowing Sy in the ribs.

--Syaka
Syaka clenched Patty's arm, not like a beast holding onto a posession, but like one waiting to be guided. Her grip was loose and easily shaken off, her back slightly hunched over as she acted with suspision.

"Homely?" She asked in reply, tugging at her arm.

The raccoon on Duke's shoulder scuttled off as he got close to the oven, sitting on the counter and watching the absurd scene unfold before her very eyes.

--Duke
Duke ultimately let the stick be, just focusing on getting up, and getting some garlic parmesan breadsticks made. He just needed to do something with his hands at this rate. So he rolled up a batch of twelves, battering them with basil, garlic butter, and parmesan, and tossed them into the oven after the pizza, trying to cycle his breathing in a steady fashion.

--Patty
Pat shot her a look, then looked at Duke again. "I don't know what your seein', but a man that can cook? Woof. That's what won my mom over." She added bitterly, "Some judge of fuckin' character she was."

She guided Syaka to the booth that had been broken before,, sitting across from her and looking at the two oft hem. She rapped her fingers on the table, watching Syaka a moment. She looked at Duke then, then back at Sy. "Hey..." She leaned forward and whispered, "...I never asked but.... I'm just kinda.. wondering." She looks at Duke once more, admiring his form against the fire  and speaking in hushed tones, "Dudes. They don't do it for ya, eh?"

--Syaka
Mittens curled up in a ball, wrapping her tail over her scruffy body as she kept her eyeballs on the two weirdos that were the source of Duke's woes.

*Kick the bitches out. Real fucking simple. Fuck the pizza if you have to.*

She cared in her own oddly condescending and vindictive way.

~

Syaka didn't see that question coming, but the answer was simple.

"I like women."

That had never been a point of contention in her life, though that was more due to her circumstances rather than any inner acceptance that she'd brought out. Someone that cooked though... Duke wasn't on her radar, but she saw the appeal in the man, even if he was a bit of an ignorant slimeball as far as she was concerned.

"You like men, don't you?"

--Patty
Patty was watching Duke as the question came, and gave an absent-minded, "Hmm?" She then blinked, and then opened her mouth to answer, but changed mid-sentence, "I like... people." She stops, nodding to herself, "Well I mean people are fuckin' assholes, but in general I'm a sucker for anybody who.." Again she stops, thinking about it. "Okay, I'm just a sucker for anybody. I never thought of myself as no dyke, right? I just.. like 'em all. And look what good that's done me."

She looks over to Duke, then to Sy. She is looking Syaka's eyes and gives a very forceful raise of her eyebrows, then gestures her head toward the pizza man.

"Hey. Duke." She says the next part with heavy emphasis, "Sy's got something she wants to tell ya. Doncha, Sy?"

--Syaka
"I do?" She asked, being interrupted before she had any hopes of delving deeper into that conversation. A single question still lingered on her mind, but she felt it wasn't pressing or relevant enough to warrant an interjection.

*Besides, at the end of the day I...*

She squeezed her eyes, shaking the idea off as she looked away from her hazel lures. Duke was far easier to stare at.

--Duke
He broke his stare away from the flames as Patty called her name, almost having a second heart attack as he sees that *Syaka had been brought in*. Gods, he really didn't know *what* she was thinking, and he could only hope it'd result in a positive outcome, especially since this was the vampire who *almost killed him*.

Duke tilted his head, looking over to Syaka, his scowl returning to a softer degree. "...Uh, alright. Well I'm all ears, considering you're already here and I'm not on the ground bleeding to death." He tried to not sound bitter about that. He honestly tried, but the best he could do was a flat tone, not quite neutral but not very sarcastic either. Just...to the point, blunt.

He grabbed his trusty spatula, and began spearing it into the beast, retrieving some good 'ole fashion homemade pizza, along with some of his ~~famous~~ breadsticks.

--Patty
Patty growled, "Yeah, you *do*!" She indicates the statement that Duke just made, then nods emphatically, "That! You know, trying to chop his head off and nearly killing him? You were gonna say you're sorry. Right?" She gives a pleading look to her.

"And *you*," She turns to Duke, full of sass and pointing accusingly, "You're gonna say your sorry for shooting her in the face. I know she was attackin' you and shit, but that's no excuse! That's like, a dick move in most places." She crosses her arms, then looks between the two of them.

"Come on, guys. I know you, like, can't stand each other. It's just, I love you guys. You are the only ones, the *only* ones who gave a shit about me when I was lyin' on the street, starvin' and freezing to death. You guys, you.. you're the only family I got now." She shrugs. "Can't go back. And I need you." Patty's gives her head a little shake. "And I'm tryin'. I promise I am. Just, go easy?" She walked over to Duke, hazel eyes pleading with him, "..please?"

--Syaka
"I healed his wounds. That is the only apology I can offer." It was an undeniable fact that she *could* have killed him, but for whatever reason she spared his life. The mortals may not yet be able to appreciate the twisted kindness in a vampire chaining their beast, but Sarah and her ghoul had made as much clear when they'd heard the tale.

Syaka sunk back into the booth, watching Patty and Duke's silouettes drawn by the dim glow of the oven's flames. She rubbed her face, scowling like one would with a bad headache. Her thoughts gnawed on the back of her skull, turning that ever present anger away from the world and towards herself, albeit not for the reasons they might expect.

*I would never do that to someone.*

--Duke
"..." Duke's eye twitched as he glared at Patty, hanging up the pizza spatula on the wall. "...Patty, I'm not going to apologize for defending myself. That's stupid." Speaking plain and cut, just as always. Silence filled the room, followed by the crackle of the fire as Duke turned to its lapping glow. One of the few comforts he had in here, for far more reasons than just warmth. "...But I *will* apologize for whatever...nerve I struck."

This felt wrong. Apologizing to someone who tried to *end* his life. But he pushed forward. He couldn't win with brute force, but his humanity would shine through the hurt. Maybe Syaka could just barely be able to feel its glow.

"Look, I wasn't...trying to toss your suffering to the side like it didn't matter, because it *does* Syaka. But I can't understand someone who won't let me, nor can I hope to empathize with someone with such an utter disdain for me, for something I can't change. I got enough shit going on without people monologuing me about what a piece of shit I am for being white, and how I *apparently* think I'm at the center of the universe...even though I've always known that bullshit isn't true." His tone turned bitter, his foot stomping itself against the brick wall next the oven.

The family photo of him, his brother as kids, and their mother all smiling around the booth and sharing dinner tilts slightly, scraping quietly against the wall and it swings like a pendulum.

"...It was never true. I didn't need to be beaten within an inch of my life to know that. But you know, I'm just some white fucker with a dick, trying to get on with his life, and make some pizzas that people can enjoy. Making the most of what's been given to him instead of blowing it on something stupid, so what do I know?"

His sigh is resigned, *tired* as it matches his sour tone. Duke honestly wanted to be asleep at this point. His eyes looked back at Patty's hazels, that distant loneliness swimming in his emerald gaze at he looked back at fire.

--Duke
"Go ahead. Say something witty to put me down, knock me down a few pegs." Again, directed at Syaka, even though he wasn't look at her. He felt vulnerable, like he was just setting himself up for disappointment in trying to go along with Patty's idea, and try come clean to Syaka.

--Syaka
Syaka could only muster a dry laugh at that. "Poor you, having to deal with a bit of comeuppance for all that you've inherited from your ancestor's deeds. It's easy to shrug away where you've come from and simply say it was all your work." She stood from her seat in the boot, looking towards the window. "Nobody succeeds on their own. Nobody fails on their own. No man is an island. To believe otherwise is..." She shook her head, pulling her jacket off and leaving it on the table. *"Stupid."*

She glanced at Patty briefly before her gaze fell, turning to give her back to the couple.

"You'll never understand, because you had no reason to understand. I gave you one."

She gripped her jaw, licking her teeth. She had all the time in the world, but she wasn't about to waste their precious mortal lives with a monologue that would fall on deaf ears. It'd take more than explaining and a bit more living for him to see the whole picture- Vampiric knowledge obscured the view, and she was the worst creature for him to get his first impression.  For his- No, for Patty's sake she hoped he'd never have to personally aquaint himself with what an enraged Kindred could manage.

--Patty
Patty's hazels were indeed on him, and she just let a frown sit on her face a moment, listening to him explain himself. Finally she walked over to Duke, a smile breaking through and she said in a low voice, "Well shit, Duke. When you aren't feelin' sorry for yourself, you are the biggest, sweetest motherfucker in the world." Patty smirks, but that smirk fades as Syaka speaks.

Oh dear.

Duke could see her face fall. She could see her eyebrows knit together, and might as well be hearing steam coming out of her ears. She was so easy to read sometimes. It broke, and she stormed over to the table and kicked the underside to get her attention, "HEY! You don't gotta be a dick to everybody, just 'cause you been shit on! You ain't gotta be a dick to MY friends, even if *you* are my friend! You don't like his face? That's fine, but while you're with me, around him? You shut your fat fuckin' mouth about it!" She eyes Duke as well, "Both of ya. Ya don't have to live with each other. Christ.."

--Duke
Duke just dug his nails into his arm. He knew it was coming. That *sting*. But he wanted to believe Patty's optimism, just a little. But this world isn't nearly that kind enough...well, maybe it was just *Syaka*. He could feel his aggravation growing with the whole situation, even as Patty tried to stick up for him. *Especially* as she called Syaka her *friend*. He reached out, and pulled Mittens into a hug, resting his chin atop her head. His scowl deepened, his teeth began to grit together.

He just wanted this to stop.

--Syaka
Mittens made a noise, squeaking and purring into his arms.

*Fuck me, this is why I'll never get a Ghoul, ever.*

Syaka had a keen sense for knowing when she wasn't welcome. Without her jacket, the fresh scars in her arms were more visible than ever, the thin cloth in her dirty wife beater not enough to completely obscure her skin. Her black hair, more neat than it'd been in a while, draped onto her back and shoulders like a shroud.

"Good thing I haven't lived in a while. I may have gone mad if I had to share more with his kind."

The Ahrimanes had done a good job carving a place for themselves in the world away from all those who'd wronged them. No men, no opressors of any kind, vampiric or otherwise. Anger was the thread that bound the Cats, unlike the blood that lesser creatures favored in lieu of emotion. Maybe they had done a bit too good of a job in the end, as for whatever reason, Syaka was now alone. Be it circumstance or self-inflicted, she was a stranger to this world without her sisters. The hatred that'd bound her to the Ahrimanes was the only bridge left to cross the abyss towards her, and few were willing to walk this frail rope.

She stepped towards the door, its bell jingling as she held it ajar. She looked over her shoulder, holding onto her gaze.

--Patty
Patty balled up her fists, feeling like all she could do is lash out at this. She wanted to strike her, beat some sense into her, anything to get through to her. Even sitting, Patty barely cleared her height. In the end she can only mutter hoarsely, "...if you're gonna be like this, why did you bother with me in the first place?"

She did wish to fight, more than anything. It would be an outlet, a way to lash out and silence the thing that made her feel small, or irritated her. That wasn't Syaka, though. She was something else, and when you're more, you cease enjoying hurting that thing. Usually.

Her hazel eyes were filled with a look of betrayal, and she simply stood straight, lifting her head and turned to Duke, "Well, I'm sorry. Fuckin' sorry I came to LA. Sorry I fucked your life, and sorry I.. I'm sorry for like, most of it." She sighs, "Most of it."

She gives a helpless shrug to Duke, then turned on her heel, giving one last look at Syaka, that questioning look still on her face as she walked to the door, nose-to-nose with Syaka as she passed.

--Duke
He waited for the two of them to leave, and when they had finally walked out the door, Duke closed his eyes and steeped himself in the blissful silence...that only seemed to remind him more of his own childhood the more it filled his ears.

Duke got up, walking over to the jukebox and punching in a letter and a digit. The machinery let out a little 'thunk' as the arm rose up, grabbed a record from the ample collection...and put it on the turntable, lowering the needle. As it played the be-bop tune, he walked up to the door and locked it shut, turning over the 'open' sign to display the 'closed' side. The whistles soothed his mind, beckoning him to to the chair. And so he sat down, his expression left with a miserable frown tugging down at his lips.

...*Fuck people*...

--Syaka
It was hard to get Syaka to snap outside of a few hair-trigger topics, but the Queens girl had just managed to get a reaction out of her with such a question.

"B... Bother with you? What the hell does that mean?" She barked in a less than composed tone, following after her into the chilly night.

"What are you talking about?"

~

Mittens swayed her tail side to side like an anxious cat, following Duke closely as she jumped to the counter, then to the floor. She'd become an unwitting witness to his misery, and like any good viewer, she was rooting for the home team.

She huffed and chuffed, bopping her head against his leg.

*You're just gonna let them do you like that? Really? Fuck, if I didn't know any better I would have shoved their heads up eachothers' asses. Fuck. People.*

--Patty
Patty shoved Syaka's shoulder, which of course did little more than to push herself away, then stood tall, nose upward to nose, "What am I, like a pet to you? Go walk your pet homeless chick, every bl-" She catches herself, remembering she's not supposed to talk about these things. "Everybody's got one?"

She eyes the pizza place, shaking her head and storms down the street. "If you don't like the dude, don't be 'round the dude, is that so hard?? But no, gotta go fetch your pet and take her for a walk, right?" She angrily pulled her hair into a ponytail, tying it with twine in her pocket left over from work.

"Just.. what the fuck do you want??"

#downtown-exterior

--Duke
He perked up a little, grinning weakly as he saw the little raccoon trying to (playfully) bludgeon his leg with its noggin. "...Yeah, just you and me, Mittens. Against the whole world, right?" He reached down and picked up the little fella, planting his forehead against Mitten's as he sighed, unable to help but shed a couple tears as he eased himself into a more relaxed state of mind, the bebop of the jukebox echoing long into the night.