An Oddity
Author's Note: So I've started play Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines and I've become slightly addicted. The only thing that I could really complain about the game is the lack of customisation in appearance. Anyway, this is my pre-vampire head canon for my Malkavian character Moira because I couldn't resist writing it down.
Moira couldn't say what it was, exactly, that made her ask this man if he wanted to come home with her. She didn't remember summoning the words or the courage, or even allowing the thought to pass through her head, but suddenly they were there and out in the open, lingering only long enough for him to accept. Moira wasn't that sort of girl, never had been, or at least so she assumed until she invited a stranger to her bed. When it came to sex she had little regard for gender, but she had always come to know the person before she offered them the empty space next to her.
So what was different about this man? He certainly was strange, that was for sure. He was handsome, although she couldn't pinpoint the reason for this as his features were too strong for his slender face and his pale skin had taken up a greyish tinge. Perhaps it was his eyes. One was a deep shade of an intense blue while the other was only a few shades away from white, but both seemed to stare straight through her into her soul, the kaleidoscope of emotion that was trapped inside of them confusing and yet thrilling all at the same time.
His mannerisms were odd too. The way he carried himself shifted constantly; sometimes he would skitter away as if he were an afraid animal who could sense a predator hiding nearby, then the next minute striding confidently along as if he were a man who had conquered the world. The way how he talked was something out of a Shakespearian play, his direction of conversation seemingly directionless but Moira would quickly catch on to what he is saying. It seemed to please him as he uttered another cryptic phrase, one of the few things that went beyond her understanding.
They had left the club together, his arm swung around her shoulders and Moira noted that the leather jacket had little warmth radiating from it, even though the venue they had vacated was hot enough to melt the polar ice caps. As they walked back to her apartment Moira could sense his excitement growing and the look on his face was pure hunger, giving her second and third doubts as she wondered if this was the right thing to do. She couldn't even remember his name. Had he told her his name? Somehow she kept walking, kept the arm around her shoulders and kept her mouth shut as her insecurities were filed away. Plenty of people had one-night stands and there was nothing wrong with a bit of adventure.
Moira had learned early on that there was no reward for being a straight-laced individual. She was the second youngest of seven children with only their mother to provide for them, who was stretched out thin with her three jobs to really care for them. That responsibility fell on the older siblings, but they quickly left to live their own lives before they were really old enough and it was clear to Moira that if she wanted anything she had to get it for herself.
The brunette was intelligent with higher grades than average, but it was obvious that Moira would never be able to afford to go to college and she was far too cynical to believe she had a chance for a scholarship, so she turned her eyes to less than legal practices. Stealing cars, breaking into houses and hacking into bank accounts soon became the norm for her. Moira had connections to a local gang, but wasn't really a member. She had been advised plenty of times to become a prostitute by the men she sometimes worked with as they would be "happy to give a buck for a fuck" with her pretty looks and big brown eyes, but she firmly decided that it was one career path she had no desire to walk down.
The only time she ever got a break was when Moira became romantically involved with an older woman who tried to set her on a better path. For a while she lived in a nice home with someone who actually cared for her and earned a living that wasn't from someone else's pocket, but then Moira ran into financial problems and quickly returned to bad habits. When Moira's lover found out all trust evaporated between them and she soon found herself living rough once more.
The sight of her apartment was enough to make her cringe in embarrassment. It could hardly be called a palace in its situation in the slums and part of its state was due to her lack of tidiness, so she quickly began to put things into drawers, stuttering out excuses and apologies. Her guest didn't seem fazed at all, barely glancing at his surroundings as he made his way over to the wardrobe and began to rummage through her clothes. When she realised he wasn't paying attention to her, Moira stopped tidying up in time to see him pull out a faded blue cheerleading outfit.
"Thine pleasures beyond light doth begin, but wilt thou dress with maiden's vice for this star-cross'd night?"
"You want me to dress up as a slutty cheerleader?" Moira reiterated, eying the outfit with distaste. It had belonged to one of her exes whom she had shared a short-lived relationship with and had never liked it. Moira had believed she had thrown it away. She sighed. "I should have known you would be the role-playing type... I suppose it could be fun."
He had only waited long enough for her to finish sliding the skirt over her hips before he pounced on her, pushing her back onto the bed as his lips attacked her skin with fervent desire. Fun. The word was inadequate to described the events that followed. Even though he didn't remove her clothes, he seemed to expose her more than any lover had done so in the past and pushed her past limits that she had set for herself. Things that Moira had never found appeal in were suddenly being explored and, to her surprise, she had never had a more pleasurable experience in her life. It felt like days before they finally stopped, his body leaning over hers while she gazed at the grimy ceiling above, giggling and gasping for breath as warm shocks tingled throughout her body.
"I have something I want to show you," he purred into his ear and Moira wondered what else could he possibly offer her, not noticing the shift in his speech. Her brown eyes tracked over to meet his blue, but widened when she paid attention to his mouth for the first time. Or, more precisely, his teeth. Somehow she had only just noticed that his canines were long and pointed, sharp enough to pierce through skin.
She had brought home a vampire. Moira would have laughed if it wasn't evident that he was about to bite her and the realisation had left her paralysed. Then when they came lashing down to clamp around her throat, all she could do was scream, not from pain but from fear. Her sorry attempts to fight back were in vain and her strength quickly left her, the blood that was keeping her alive being sucked away by the demon on top of her.
Gradually, her eyelids shut in hopelessness, resigning herself to her death. Moira thought she would never open them again. She was wrong.