Precious Gems and Exotic Flowers

China-Rose had first seen Jade shopping at a quaint little jewelry store in a small strip on the North side of town. She'd caught his attention almost immediately because of her almond-shaped eyes, fair, yellow skin and pitch-black hair. What struck him most about her though were the color of her eyes. They were green but not just any green, they were the color of emeralds; two precious gems shining in the soft glow of lights.

It was uncommon to see Asians in this part of England and she was the first he'd seen in such a very long time. He wondered what ethnicity she was. Could she be the same as his Asian heritage, Korean? He just had to find out and besides, he was getting hungry. He hadn't supplemented neither his ardeur nor his bloodlust in a good while. Perhaps he could do so on this pretty, young thing. He would have to work his magic and see if he could charm his way into it first.

China decided to stalk his prey a bit before moving in for the kill. He wanted to try and get inside her head from a distance to gauge just how 'charming' he'd have to be to get his goodies later. This green-eyed beauty began to fascinate him. She wasn't very tall but exuded and aura of self-confidence that told anyone that looked at her to not get in her way or else they'd regret it. She was beautiful to look at and she seemed to know it. She was wearing a casual set of clothes; jeans, a short-cropped sports top completed by a short leather jacket and calf-high, high-heeled leather boots. Her hair was in an upswept fashion with her face framed by two thin tufts of her layered bangs. Its color, like that of raven's wings, was deep black and shimmering hues of purple flashed each time she walked into the light. Her skin was fair, not really pale like his own, and her dark hair color seemed to make it appear luminescent. Her lips were glossed but China could see that their deep shade of rose was natural and not that of the gloss she wore. That together with those emerald eyes made him think of her as some exotic China doll, encrusted with fine jewels.

She could be seen using a disarming smile to get her own way, whether it be getting through a crowded section or obtaining the right to purchase the last of a particular item. She also used it to turn away potential suitors who would approach her, hoping for a little time and perhaps more from her later. Yes, this pretty little thing was definitely what he wanted to sample for his next meal; she'd serve both as his appetizer and main course. He could tell that not only would her blood be sweet, but also her lust would be equally so if he could just get near enough to work his magic. He was sure she would be difficult to persuade but he was confident that it could be done without too much of an effort. How wrong he would soon find himself to be.

China followed the Asian beauty for a good hour and a half just watching her shop and browse the little shops along the strip. He noticed that along the way she would stop and

window shop at the jewelry store every so often. Apparently there was something there that she wanted but just couldn't afford. He moved closer to her to see what it was she was looking at so much.

He moved fluidly, winding his way through small crowds of people and inching closer to Jade little by little. When he'd cleared himself of the jostling crowds, he began looking through the windows of several shops, pretending to be browsing, until he reached the place where Jade stood. She was still staring in the window and almost immediately looked up as China moved silently by her side.

China was a bit startled at the fact that she'd noticed him so quickly. It must've been a coincidence because no human could have sensed him, let alone seen him approaching. He gave her a curt nod and a warm smile before turning to gaze into the shop's display window. Jade returned China's smile with one of her own then quickly moved away from the window and away from China. He watched her go from the corner of his eye and frowned. Something was wrong with this picture and he aimed to find out what it was.

China lingered a few moments more in front of the window, looking at what the Asian pretty thing was staring at; an emerald and ruby encrusted bangle of white gold. It was cute, feminine and very expensive. He took a quick look to see where she was headed then slipped inside the jewelry shop to purchase the item. Moments later, he appears with a small gift bag in hand and begins walking toward the direction in which he last saw his prize.

It wasn't long before he found her again. She must've finished with her errands because she was now standing at the train station waiting for her train to arrive. China saw that she seemed agitated, impatient that the train wasn't there to take her away yet. It was almost as if she was purposely trying to get away from him. His brow furrowed at the thought. It was ludicrous. Why would she be in such a hurry to get away from a person she'd never met before; that wasn't intimidating in the least and surely never showed any traces of meaning her harm? China smoothed a hand through his long, platinum locks then slowly made his way to where she was standing. He meant to sneak up behind her and 'bump' into her to give him a good excuse to make an introduction. But the woman turned almost as soon as he appeared behind her and gasped aloud.

China stared at her in just as much shock as she was staring at him. He quickly composed himself and chuckled nervously. Good. He was able to rectify the situation by playing off of this incident. He meant to address the raven-haired beauty in proper English, but instead some of it came out in his native language.

"Ah, jungmal. I didn't mean to startle you."

Jade's eyes had grown wide, her surprise clearly written all over her face. She took a step backward, looking down, and cleared her throat in an attempt to save face in front of the stranger. This was a trait China recognized as honor amongst many Asian cultures, including his own. He gave her a moment to collect herself before speaking again. She apparently either grew up in her homeland or was raised by strict parents who had come from there. He couldn't tell yet so he just observed so that he could speak to her without offending or scaring her off.

"It's alright and there's no need to apologize. I just didn't expect anyone to be there when I turned around. Please excuse me. I must be going."

Jade's accent was thick but her words when spoken were intelligible. She purposely cast her eyes down to the ground, refusing to make eye contact with China. In turn, China refused to move from her path and stood stock still until she looked up at him with irritated, angry eyes. She didn't want to look at the pale stranger if she could help it. She already knew what he was and the most probable reason for his interest in her. He was a vampire and he wanted to feed. She looked at China staring at her, waiting for some kind of a response. He was tall and wore a white suit, white shirt and had long, lovely locks of platinum-blonde hair. The only splash of color seemed to be his tie; which was a pale blue. Jade thought him a strange one for a vampire. Most tried to blend in when mingling with humans but this one seemed to want to attract attention to himself by accentuating his already pale features.

Though his strange appearance might have tipped off the knowledgeable, Jade had known what he was for a different reason. She was an empath, and a rather strong one at that. She'd felt China's desires even before he'd gotten anywhere near her and though she'd tried to disappear while she had the chance, he still managed to catch up with her again. All because that damned train was late! Jade didn't want to give him any more of a reason to keep following her than she'd already given him, but it seemed he wasn't going to just let her go. Her ire began to rise in her and she could already taste it in the back of her throat like some sickening and sour bile one would bring up with heartburn. But she apparently wasn't going to get off so easy. The vampire stood in her way and wasn't going to budge even though she'd been quite polite to him. She looked up and narrowed her eyes in defiance to his will. He wasn't going to win this one and perhaps it was time to show her true face. She wasn't going to feed him and that would be that. Besides, she couldn't. She knew if she did that she'd be killed for it. Her blood was for her master alone.

China looked back into the raven-haired beauty's eyes with an amused sort of curiosity. She was looking at him as if he'd already made his proposal and she was ready to fight with him to make him leave. He smiled at her again and it seemed that when he did, it angered her more. She was a curious one. Hearing her accent once she'd spoken, China knew instantly that she wasn't wholly Korean. But at the same time she'd understood his apology, so maybe she was half Korean like himself. His curiosity got the better of him so he just had to ask.

"You understood. Are you perhaps part Korean like myself?"

Jade took a swallow and looked away a moment before answering the pale, handsome male. She wasn't expecting him to come at her with words like that. Her instincts told her to flee before there was trouble, but her senses told her to remain calm and play the game. If she were to run, he'd only chase her down. But if she stayed and could get through this with her head kept on straight, maybe she could walk away the victor and beat this fool at his own head game. Jade, logical to the core, chose to beat back her instincts and go with her senses. She forced herself to calm then returned her gaze to meet with the vampire's own. He was still smiling at her and her gut twisted knowing that he was highly amused by her reactions. It took all her concentration to keep herself in check and to speak evenly when she'd opened her mouth to answer.

"No. I'm not. If you really must know, I'm Chinese from the Liaoning province in Northern China. Now please move aside. There's no need for idle chitchat when in the end you can probably guess that I'm going to refuse to give in to your will. Go find someone else to give you your sustenance vampire."

China frowned in disappointment. He knew something was odd about this woman but he still couldn't quite put his finger onto what it was. He wasn't using any of his power on her, he'd barely spoken to her and he hadn't even given her any real clues to his intentions, yet she seemed to know as if she could read his mind. That was just impossible. He tilted his head slightly to one side and just blinked at Jade for a moment trying to figure her out. He'd abandoned his hunger for the moment in favor of sating his ever-growing curiosity and completely ignored Jade's comment. Instead, he went on with his questions.

"Liaoning… That's near the southern tip of Korea. You lived perhaps in a Korean community there?"

Jade looked back at China with a seriously confused expression. She began sensing his curiosity getting stronger and wanted then to palm her face at that moment for being so stupid as to not follow her first impulse to run. He might have tried to follow her; but at least she wouldn't have to deal with trying to stop his incessant questioning of her heritage. All at once, Jade could no longer hold back. Her dominating will to fight took over and she lashed out at China full force, holding nothing back.

"What the fuck is wrong with your ass!?! Is your brain broken or something? Is lack of food causing you to become a fucking moron?!!"

China then began to chuckle as he realized with full certainty that the little spitfire standing in front of him was indeed not a mind reader. He stifled himself just long enough to explain himself. Holding up a hand in a gesture to indicate his intentions, he began speaking.

"Forgive me, I am being rude. You see, I am just curious about you because it is rare to see others like me around here. I mean, being of Asian decent…"

Jade was taken aback. Why hadn't she realized earlier? It was true that the vampire sought her out to feed his hunger but it hadn't entered her mind that his curiosity stemmed from a genuine source. She mis-analyzed the situation at hand and just made things worse for herself. If she hadn't immediately thought the reason for this vampire's attraction to her was because of her abilities, then she would've known that he was just curious out of the fact he was looking for a connection to himself. He was a man living amongst strangers in a foreign land and was simply looking for a reminder of home, even if he was a vampire. Ugh… How stupid could she get? Now she had only served to fuel this beast's interest. She quickly tried to think of a remedy that would both quell his curiosity and get her back home safely; without having to fight him off because of his bloodlust. Though most vampires wouldn't dare try to break the law, there was always the danger of the ones who were willing to take the chance. Jade couldn't risk it. It would mean one of two things for her if her blood was taken without permission; she would be punished in the most non-pleasurable way possible or she would be executed for defiance of direct order from the master. Though Jade most certainly didn't mind pain when she could derive pleasure from it, the thought of being punished and/or put to death didn't sit well with her. She had to get rid of this vampire and it had to be done soon.

China-Rose looked at Jade in contemplation. His hunger began rising again as he was confronted with a full-out fighter, something that seemed to turn him on. He had to wonder if her reactions and resistance were due to the fact that she was hiding something from him. She obviously was the property of another, though he couldn't be sure if she belonged to another vampire or not. But what intrigued him most was the fact that she seemed to not want to talk to him at all. In fact, she was doing everything short of running away to get away from him. In his experience, most fighters wanted to stand their ground against what they were willing to defy, not try to avoid it. This little vixen was hiding something for sure, what it was remained yet a mystery. He decided to try and tempt the temptress while gaining more information from her. He spoke in a soothing tone and added just a touch of his power to see what would happen.

"…But you are correct also in that I need to feed and would choose you to feed from. Tell me mein leben, will you do this for me? I can promise you, it will be very pleasurable."

Jade looked at the pale-complected vampire with disdain. Didn't she just tell him to take a hike? As the vampire spoke, Jade noticed a change in his voice. He was trying to roll her but she felt nothing thanks to her spell of protection. Jade smiled a wily smile at China. He'd no idea she was a witch. This was good. It alleviated some of her former fears about his motives. Perhaps she could turn the tides on him as well with a quick spell or two as well.

"I don't think you've understood me correctly. I have no interest in allowing you to feed from my blood. You've no idea of what you're asking for if I allowed it. I think it's time for you to go."

While speaking, Jade quickly looked to make sure there were no wandering eyes set upon the two. As it happened, the station was pretty well clear and the people who were there were caught up in small chattering groups, with the exception of a snoring old man who was sitting on a bench by himself. This was good. She could cast a spell without notice. She reached inside her jacket and pulled out a small wand made of Blackthorn. With a short wave in front of China's face she chanted.

"Be gone and forget so neither regrets. So mote it be."

China-Rose's eyes went wide as he recognized what was about to happen. But he was too late to do anything about it; the raven-haired beauty had already cast the spell. His ice-blue eyes dulled for a moment and then the next thing China knew he was walking back along the strip of shops from whence he came. When he'd awakened to his senses, he stopped walking and looked around himself with a puzzled expression. What had just happened? He was going to do something but what? It was then that his hunger began to rise once more from the depths of his being. Oh yes, he was going to look for a human to feed from. But… Hadn't he already found one? He couldn't remember. Frowning, China looked down at his hands and saw the small gift bag. He took out the bangle and inspected it. He was going to give it to someone, to bribe them into allowing him to feed. But who? He just couldn't remember. He placed the slender bauble into his pocket and scouted the area for a potential food source. He would have to figure it all out later. For now, he was hungry!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Authors Note: =_= Been away a long while due to complications in my real life world. But I've managed to put together a lil something for a friend. Hope you likes! ^-^