"Hello?" A head of blonde hair peeked around the darkened corner. There weren't many that would so casually tread the darker and deeper regions of Julian Luna's palacial home. However, this tall Kindred with the personality of a diminuitive butterfly moved about easily.
Stacy Keibler was one of few who found comfort in the company of Daedalus. To the many of the others, the Nosferatu were nothing more than sewer rats, disgusting creatures shunned because of their grotesque appearance, thus relegated to the darkest parts of the city. Stacy, however, saw more, at least in Daedalus. She didn't care much for the company of the other Nosferatu, but their primogen was considered to her a friend.
Daedalus's solitude broke her partially beating heart. It was obvious to Stacy that he was lonely. He didn't speak much about his past, but she assumed that before his Embrace, he had been surrounded by loved ones. There was family around him, and perhaps he was from one of the long lost times where there was nothing more important than family. Now, he was alone, hiding from the world in Julian's sub-basement. It was saddening and had caused blood tears to leak from her eyes on more than one occasion.
"Daedalus?" She moved forward slowly, her hand gliding against one of the few bare walls. When she first met him, there were various sculptures and paintings covering a few walls. Now, most of his decoration was her. Everywhere she looked, there were paintings hanging that he had painted of her in various outfits. Stacy had taken to buying a new dress or suit at least once a week to give Daedalus something new to paint.
Stacy thought his artwork belonged in a museum. There were plenty of artists who shunned the spotlight, and Daedalus could have been included as one of them. He resisted, however, insisting that they were for private use only. There was something in each one that no one but him would be able to truly understand. At times, she thought he was right.
Though she had posed for the paintings, and there were many adorning her own walls, even she couldn't always explain the emotion that was behind them. She would stare at them for hours, trying to understand what she felt at each one. Sorrow, possibly? There was often something about the way his brushstrokes lined her face or lit her eyes that made her think that there was sadness in Daedalus when he painted it, but she couldn't remember a time where there was a feeling of sadness to the room.
In the beginning, there was a bit of discomfort, all on the part of Daedalus. He didn't understand why someone so beautiful, so light, could willing spend time with him. He hid his face from her often, lurking in the shadows while she admired his outwork. As time passed, she was able to pull him out and sometimes even get a laugh out of him.
Most of her clan seemed very stoic, especially the women. Ventrue were business oriented, and serious about everything in life. Things had to be a certain way, there had to be a certain order to things. This was the reason so many city royals were Ventrue. They kept the peace because they needed order in their lives. Stacy, however, was still as jovial as before she was Embraced. She could still be serious when it was necessary, but whatever was in the Ventrue blood had not fully taken away her breezy nature.
"Daedalus, I know you're here." She stepped into his main sanctuary, his pseudo art studio. "Are we playing hide and seek?" She giggled and covered her eyes with her hands. "I'll start counting, and then ready or not..." She began to count, treading slowly so as not to bump into anything. When she reached ten, she uncovered her eyes. "Here I come..."
Stacy stopped after her second step. Across from her was a painting that she knew she hadn't posed for. She sat behind her desk at the San Francisco Times. Black rimmed glasses were perched on her nose. One hand brushed hair back from her face as she poured over papers. Her fingers were posed mid-thrum against the desk, with index and middle fingers in the air. Every part of her office was shown in minute detail, including the small brass nameplate, complete with her full name and 'Editor-In-Chief' etched beneath. It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.
"I painted it from memory." Daedalus walked slowly out of the shadows. Stacy jumped and spun around at his voice. "I hope you don't mind."
"No... I mean... wow." She turned back to the painting. "I just... I never knew you watched."
"I don't mean to intrude. These have just been precarious times. I wanted to make sure that you were alright."
"Oh, Daedalus." She turned to him again. "You're so sweet. This is just..." Back to the painting. "I've never seen..." She walked slowly to the painting, her arm outstretched. She lightly ran her fingers across the dried paint. "It's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen."
"An image is only as beautiful as the muse that it is created for."
"I would say only as beautiful as the soul that created it." She let her hand fall to her side, then turned to look at Daedalus. "Why didn't you tell me you were there? You don't have to stand in the shadows."
"Your office is a very busy place."
"You are not ugly, Daedalus. You don't need to hide." Stacy folded her arms over her stomach and set her jaw. If ever the saying that beauty was within were true, it was in reference to Daedalus. "You may not be as glamorous or classically beautiful as some of the other clans, but you're most certainly not grotesque or anything like that. It's what inside that counts, and you just... you glow inside."
"That may be true to you, but it frightens others." Daedalus dropped his head. "I have grown weary of screams and terrified shrieks. The shadows are my home."
"Because you make them." Stacy sighed and let her arms dangle at her sides. She walked slowly to him, then put a hand on cheek. "You feel comfortable here, and I understand, but if you're going to self-depracate, please don't do it around me. I don't believe it." She smiled at him. "Now, in case you haven't noticed, I'm wearing a new dress."
He looked up at her with a small smile. "It's very lovely."
"Why, thank you." She held the hem and gave him a small curtsy. "We can sit down and have a fabulous visit. I noticed an empty spot on the wall, and this one can go right in it. And while we do this, I can tell you all about the outrageous story that came across my desk today. It was the most ridiculous thing you've ever heard."
Stacy flounced across the room and perched on a stool, stretching her right leg in front of her. Daedalus walked in his usual slow gait towards her, but his lips were curved up in a smile. It was a vision that most others didn't get to see, and Stacy was honored that she got the opportunity. Her femininity and smiles may not have been much use in a fight, but sometimes, she thought their use was something much more important. They lightened a heavy heart and brought company to a lonely creature, and there was no reward big enough for that. Except, maybe, another pretty painting for her walls.
