just pardon my manners ! [open]

[siren davenport]

]

She shouldn't be here. That was the first thought in her head. But it was a little late for that thought. She wasn't going to change her mind. Slowing she picked her way through the tombstones, not really thinking about what she was doing. And where she was. Her mind was else where, with what she had lost through her time in Chicago. A place she hated now and forever. Everythign would have been fine but of course it wasn't. Her brother had been killed, and she had given herself up to his murderer. Of course this was before her brother Caine had been murdered. In retaliation she killed the leader of her old gang the Vamps. Then she left without another word to anyone. As far as she knew a new leader had yet to been picked.

Now as discovered where she was, she caught her breath. Damn, she would get herself into a situation like this. But she didn't want to think about this right now, or ever for that matter. Making her way toward a tree seh slid down it's trunk to sit. Hugging her knees she let herself cry. No one had ever seen her cry before, and she wan't about to start letting them. That was probably why she was here. To be alone. After a minute she stopped, trying to remember good things about her life. She couldn't.

With a sigh she let her head fall back, and felt it connect with the solid trunk behind her. She needed to pay better attention. Right now she needed to be all there, because sooner or later something bad was going to happen, and it would be her fault. Which just made things worse. And she didn't feel like schemeing for how to deal with it. Something was wrong with her, but she wouldn't admit that it was the whole gang thing. Slowly it was eating away at her. But she would not abadon the crypts like that she would not. Squeezing her eyes closed the tears came again.

[jake brookes]

It was late and Jake longed for a place he could think. Even though the cemetery was used for gang fights, every now and then you could catch it while it was empty. Tonight was one of those nights where the cemetery wasn't in use and Jake could be alone. It was pitch black all around him, save for the small flame at the end of the cigarette hanging from the corner of his mouth. He didn't know why he liked them so much; cigarettes. He knew of their negative effects on his body but for some reason he just didn't care.

Sometimes Jake just needed to get away from the gang life for a little while. He used this time to reflect on his life and ask himself 'is it really worth it?', all the violence and risk all for a simple title. Sometimes the answer is yes, mostly because he wants to continue what his father had worked so hard to start, but other times it's a no. Sometimes he just wanted to be a normal guy and live a normal life. The gang life wasn't always so glamorous, granted it did have its moments, but Jake didn't know how long he'd be able to keep it up. His answer tonight? Jake had no idea. But even if the answer was no, he couldn't just step down and leave the Bloods in the dirt behind him. He wouldn't give up. Quitting wasn't an option for Jake; it never had been. All he had to do was spend some time in the abandoned cemetery and those doubtful thoughts would eventually go away like they always did.

He neared his father's tombstone and looked down at it with slightly sad eyes, but he didn't cry. His father was good to Jake in his last few years on this earth, but Jake couldn't forgive him for what happened in his early childhood. Even though recieving those nightly beatings toughened Jake up, he still wished it hadn't happened. It hurt him to remember how much his father didn't care until they started to share a common intereste; the gang life. Jake took his cigarette between his fingers and tapped a few ashes into a pile in front of the tombstone. He took one last drag and threw the cigarette to the ground, watching burn onto the grass. He squashed the butt with his shoe.

He popped the collar of his black jacket as if it would warm his ears or block the wind, but it didn't really help. He jammed his hands in the pockets of his jeans and began to walk around, his eyes looking up to the sky. When he heard the sound of someone crying, Jake's eyes snapped forward, locking on a large tree in the middle of the cemetery. Jake walked a little closer. Normally he would ignore the person and pretend they weren't there because well, he hated tears. But he recognized the figure sitting against the tree.

Jake stopped about a foot in front of the person and squatted down, resting his arms on his legs and letting his hands hang limply off of his knees. Siren? Are you crying? he asked with a bit of confusion in his tone. Siren never cried, at least not in front of anyone. It was kind of wierd seeing her like that.

[siren davenport]

Around her emptiness swirled, but she could hear someone. She was pretty sure whoever it was would ignore her so she let herself ignore that. Siren let the silence fill her. It calmed her a little, and helped her tears slow. Though they hadn't stopped completely. Letting her breathing slow, she lifted her head just enough to see who was out there. Just her luck it was Jake. A groan silently escaped. Damn, and damn again. This was just great. She tried to stay as silent as possible but of course it wasn't going to work. He had probably already heard her.

Trying to become invisible, she hunched closer to the tree. This wasn't how she would like to be caught. And it wasn't going to happen if she could help it. But what could she do? Running wouldn't help and she wasn't about to try it. Jake would have her eayily, sometimes she wished she wasn't so short. A sigh escaped her. what happened to being silent? That had been a mistake but it was too late now. She was just full of mistakes and too lates today. Normally she was very precise, but tonight she was having a problem with being herself. Maybe it was beacuse she had trained herself to be how she was, and it was getting harder to hold up that front. Sometimes she was afraid that her hard outer layer would crack, and she would come spilling out onto the street.

Siren shook her head to clear it. Dumb thoughts. Of course she could hold this up. That was what she did best. A fake person. That was what she was but she couldn't care less. She would be fake to her heart's content, if it meant hiding everything from everyone. She didn't want to let her lifestory into anyone's hands. It just wasn't going to happen.

A shadow fell over her, even with the megar light. He had come over. She willed herself not to cry. With a slight glance up she reliazed that he was crouching in front of her. And then he spoke to her. Which didn't help her pulling together act. "No. I'm not crying," she stated flatly, trying to keep everything out of it. Too bad that her voice shook ever so slightly. Maybe he wouldn't notice. She stared at her knees waiting for him to do something. She wasn't going to do anything, because almost everything would give her away.

[jake brookes]

Jake smirked, despite the situation. He didn't believe one bit of that answer she gave him. Why would he? He could hear her sniffles a mile away and unless the tree had a nose or Jake was going crazy, Siren had definitely been crying. He knew how she was though; tough, and most definitely not a cryer. But just to prove a point, Jake pulled out the lighter that was tucked away in his back pocket and lit it up in front of her face. Her eyes were red and puffy and he could see small traces of dried tears. Either the tree can make rain, or those are tears. he said putting the lighter back in his pocket after lighting another cigarette. It's okay though, I won't tell anyone that big, bad Siren cried her heart out at the cemetery. he assured her, with a small smile.


Jake stood up and tapped the ashes from the cancer stick onto the ground. The fact that Siren had been sitting there just crying sparked some curiosity in Jake. Whatever it was, there had to be something really messed up going on in her life for her to be crying over it. But Jake wouldn't ask why she was crying. That would be an invasion of privacy. She probably wouldn't tell hm anyway, plus he kind of didn't care about the reason. All he knew that she was crying, that never happens, so she must be going through something personal. And that was none of Jake's business. But if she brought it up, then he'd gladly listen to what she had to say.

Tossing his half-gone cigarette to the ground, Jake put his hand out for her. Let's walk. It's starting to get all foggy and..Creepy. he stated. Some nights the cemetery would fog up and others wouldn't, which to Jake was really weird. It was like the place had a mind of its own because when it did fog up, it would appear out of no where. The cemetery really was a spooky place, even for Jake. But it was a good place to go to if you just want to chill and be alone.

[siren davenport]

Siren willed him to move away but of course since when did Jake Brookes take orders from anyone? Never. She watched him shift around a little and she watched him, biting her lip. What was he going to do? And then she saw the light flicker in front of her face. He would have to do this. Wasn't she humilated enough? In his eyes most likely not. Looking up she glared at him. She was pretty sure that hadn't been nessecary. And then he tried to be funny? Yeah that was not going to fly right now. "I assure you the tree was making rain," she told him. Her nose wrinkled at the smell of smoke. She hated cigarettes even if she was in a gang. With a shake of her head, she all but ignored the last statement.

As Jake rose she stayed hunched on the ground. She didn't want him here if he was going to make fun of her. That wouldn't be the right thing to do anyway, but who knows how twisted Jake's mind really was. Would he go away if she told him too? Probably not. Was it worth a try? Obviously not. So why was she thinking stupid things. Her head was spinning now. She needed to go home, and let's see sleep. But that wouldn't happen. Nightmares haunted her but she couldn't do anything about it. Looking up at Jake she sighed. She might as well cooperate with him. But she didn't feel much like it.

Siren watched him ditch the stupid cigarette. Thank god. But she loved him... Wait what? No wrong word. She grown to deal with his flaws. Then Siren distantly heard Jake's voice. Opps zoning out. Too bad. All she did was nod, good enough right? Then she reached for his hand so he could help her up. Siren didn't care about the fog rolling in, but she didn't want to be stuck out here alone.

[jake brookes]

Jake could tell by the way she looked at him that she wasn't happy with him at the moment. She basically gave him the death stare when he lit the lighter in front of her face to prove that she had been crying. And when she gave him that sarcastic remark, he knew she was pissed at him. Oh well, he was just being good old Jake that everyone grew to love. She'd forgive him sooner or later. It basically always happened that way, it was almost like Jake and Siren had a love/hate thing going on. He would do something to piss her off but then about a day later they'd be cool again. And usually it didn't go the other way around, it was a rare occasion that Siren would piss Jake off.

Once Jake helped her up, he slid his hands into his pockets and began to walk aimlessly. But on a serious note, I really wasn't trying to make fun of you. I mean we all get our moments when we just need to let it out so really it's no big deal. He shrugged lightly as he walked, taking big but slow strides. Usually Jake wouldn't say something like that to anyone, usually, he would just let it go and say 'well if you can't take a joke, then it's your problem'. But for some reason he didn't like it when Siren was mad at him. She was one of those people that he would always trust and I guess he just didn't want to lose her over something that he said.

Wanting to change the subject, Jake tried to think of something else to talk about. So got in any trouble lately? With that Derek guy 'undercover' you can never be too careful. he said, putting air quotes on the word undercover. Of course he meant that statement to be sarcastic. Jake wasn't afraid of him. He could probably hire someone to take him down faster than you could spit, but he chose not to, only because Derek was slightly interesting to Jake. Plus it would be fun to mess with his mind just for the shit of it.

[siren davenport]

She tried to calm herself. Her mind, her everything. She let her look of disgust slide of her face. Because she couldn't stay mad at Jake, eve. It just didn't happen. Even though she would like it to happen. It would make life easier. Much easier. Then it wouldn't be that big of a deal that she was a crypt. But of course, she wasn't mad at him and her heart felt like it was breaking. Again, but this time it was more painful than the first. Another sigh escaped her, and she looked back up at Jake. This was one of the worst situations she had ever been in. It sucked, majorly. And she wanted it to end. To bad it didn't seem to be ending anytime soon. Unless... unless she told him. The thought was in her head, and she agreed totally. She couldn't stand so much more of this, and what a better way to end than tell him what she really was. If her heart had been breaking, it would shatter soon.

Siren was hauled to her feet, and stood a little shakily for her second. She had been sitting there a while. Her gaze went to Jake again and she followed him. Hearing his voice, she nodded. "I know. Don't worry about it, but if you tell someone, I'll kill you," she told him only half- joking. She was strruggling to keep up while she was thinking. When should she tell him? She didn't want to at all, but she knew it would be for the better. But even that thought couldn't stop her heart from aching. She believed he was the one, but apparently she was not destined for a happy ending. Even through all she had been through, her life would just get more miserable.

Siren giggled at Jake's statment. Trouble her? Of course not. Derek, just a bit. "Oh just a little. But I think I got him to forget something important," she said airly. Or at least she hoped so. If that was off of her then that would make things a tiny bit better. But who was she kidding. This whole thing was just a joke. "Jake... I have something to tell you," she said slowly. Taking a gulp of air she stopped walking. How to put this? "I'm a Crypt," she blurted. A horrified look crossed her face, and she took off running through the graveyard, weaving trhough tombstones. She didn't want to know what his reaction was. She couldn't take it.

[jake brookes]

Jake chuckled lightly. Your secret is safe with me. he replied with a nod, glad that she had forgiven him once again. He figured she would anyway, who could ever stay mad at Jakey? No one of course, unless they were in a rival gang. That was a different story. He could hate the Crypts and the Legends for the rest of his life, mostly the Crypts though. The Legends are just the Crypts little puppy dogs to Jake. He hasn't seen any of them fight, but he's heard from others that they can do some damage. But Jake didn't care, he hated the whole lot of them and hopes they get an unconvinient run-in with the cops.

Jake raised a brow at her statement. Oh? Been in trouble with the cops before? Hm. If Derek had been bugging her about something, Jake would want to know so that he could beat the living shit out of him. He didn't care if he went to jail for assaulting a cop, he'd buy himself a top notch lawyer and get out before the day is done. No one messes with the people that Jake actually cares for. He needed the small amount of loyal friends that he had. Without them there would be no one that he could trust.

He hadn't noticed when Siren suddenly stopped walking, so he had kept going, though he wasn't too far from her when she said she had to tell him something. Jake stopped and turned to face her, wondering what it could be. By the look of her face, it was something that has been eating away at her for a long time and it couldn't be anything good. Jake's hands began to get clammy with anticipation.

"I'm a Crypt."

Her words echoed in Jake's head, making it hard to process what she had just said to him. It felt like the world had stopped. The one person that he could trust with everything was his biggest rival and supposed to be his worst enemy. The Crypts have tried to take power from Jake and his family for years, and to find out that Siren was one of them was shocking. Jake watched her run off, his brain telling him to go after her, but his legs unable to move. He blinked a couple of times before snapping back into reality. Jake was slow at first, but he began to pick up the pace, calling her name as he ran after her. Siren! he called, panting slightly. He hated running. The smoking probably didn't help him at all either, but he kept going, determined to find her. Though he wasn't sure what would happen if he did.

[siren davenport]

She smiled, glad to hear he wouldn't tell but then again, she hadn't thought he would. "Good," she replied, casting him a look that said he had better. But there was no need, she trusted him completely. Which probably wasn't the smartest thing she could have done. But it was too late to change it. Oh look another too late in her life. She really needed to get a grip. And right about now would be the pefect time for that. Gritting her teeth, she thought about what had to be done.

At Jake's question she nodded. But then she shook her head. It was hard to explain. "Kind of not exactly. And I'm not going to bore you to tears, but it's all gotta do with Chicago," she told him. An unintresting story? Really it wasn't but Siren couldn't bear to tell it right now, and not to Jake. That would ruin her even more than everything else had. So her comment seemed to be okay for the situation, or at least she thought. Hopefully Jake didn't press her for details. She wasn't sure what she could tell him.

A small smile resided on her lips as she watched him keep walking then turn around. He was preceptive. Well normally he was so she wasn't sure what was going on.

Tearing through a dark, foggy cemetery probably wasn't the smartest thing. Especially when you couldn't see through your tears, adn kept looking behind yourself. She heard Jake distantly calling her name, but she kept going. Stopping now would make things worse. And she couldn't. She didn't want to know how much he hated her, but wait he was following her? But that didn't mean anything. It could be to kill her. One never knew these things. So she pushed herself faster and faster not noticing the fog was getting thicker. Running by a tree her foot got caught on a root and she ended up flat on her face. "Omph," slipped out of her lips. The ground hurt. Moving quickly, she crawled to sit behind the tree hoping Jake would run past her or give up and turn around.

[jake brookes]

Jake wanted to know the details, but figured since she didn't openly tell him, he wouldn't push it. Hm.. He left it at that. He understood that some people didn't like talking about their past, hell he was one of those people. So if she didn't want to 'bore him to tears' with the story, she didn't have to.

The fog was getting thicker, so Jake slowed his pace. He should definitely cut back on the cigarettes; running was not fun. He couldn't see how those track people could actually make running a sport, and have fun doing it. Soon Jake slowed to a walk, not able to run any longer. He leaned on a large oak tree with his hand, and coughed a little bit. Oh damn. he complained as he tried to regain his steady breathing pattern. He slid down the trunk of the tree, but when he was half way to the ground, he spotted something out of the corner of his eye. A hand. Jake stood up and walked over to the other side of the tree, only to find Siren.

Honestly he had no idea what to say or do about the situation. Siren was his best friend, but what was to come of them now? He and Siren were supposed to be sworn enemies. How could he not have known? How did she keep it from him for so long? All these questions raged through Jake's head as he looked down at her, his face shielded by the fog. He squated down, resting his arms on his legs while one of his hands propped his chin up. For once, I have nothing to say.. he said a bit quietly. He was angry, hurt, and confused all at the same time, and it was starting to give him a headache.

[siren davenport]

Siren dismissed his 'hm'. There was nothing more to it, and so she wasn't going to respond.

______________{moving on to what is currently happening}

Siren sat there, crying again. Was today emotional or what. She was tired of crying, she was tired of everything, and she had no idea what she was going to do. Jake could NOT find her, so she had to be very careful. If he found her that would be the end of it. Her heart would forever be gone with the wind. Broken into so many pieces you couldn't pick them all up even if you tried. Struggling to rein in her emotions, she closed her eys. Calm was her only thought.

Stiffening she heard Jake on the other side of the tree. Damn it. That would be her luck. She tried to quiet herself even more by holding her breath. A slight smile appeared on her lips. He couldn't even run. It took all she could not to laugh, but she had alreay known that. Why did it seem so funny now? Because she might acutally be able to run away. Thank you Jake.

Just as she was about to get up Jake appeared in front of her. That was great. How'd he find her? Did it matter? Not really. She sat there silently not knowing exactly what to say. There was nothing to say, she was now an enemy of her love... of her friend. And it hadn't been her choice. The tears came back. This had been why she ran. She couldn't take a lot of this. And he spoke. Well of course he had nothing to say, she had nothing to say. "I'm sorry," she sobbed, putting her forehead on her knees. She hadn't meant to have done this. In fact if he had given a sign that she just might be welcome in the Bloods she would have refused the offer from the Crypts. In fact it had on;y happened last week, so she hadn't known for long anyway.

[jake brookes]

Jake wanted to be dreaming. He wanted to wake up in his room in a cold sweat and be able to say 'thank God it was only a dream'. But this was actually happening, and he knew it because he pinched his arm and it hurt like hell. Why he had to pinch so hard, he didn't know, maybe in hope that he really was dreaming. Of course, nothing seemed to be going his way tonight, and when she started crying that was just the icing on the cake. He hated tears, with a passion. Last time it wasn't as bad because she wasn't sobbing. But now, Jake felt just a little bit awkward.

How long have you been with them? he asked, surprised how calm he was being at the moment. If it was any other person than Siren, he'd probably be pissed off to no end. He'd probably be screaming and punching things, maybe even throwing things. But with Siren, that would only make things much worse. But part of him wanted to be angry, he wanted to throw something, or punch the tree. Maybe he was just holding it in for when he was alone. Oh yeah, all the anger will probably come out later when Siren wasn't with him.

Why not the Disciples? Why them, Siren? he asked, his voice raising ever so slightly. Okay, so maybe the anger was just taking its time. With every question he asked, his anger got worse. To the point where he had to stand up. He didn't know what to do, or what to think. He had half the mind to just walk away to be alone for a while. But he didn't, he wanted answers and he wasn't leaving until they got them.

[siren davenport]

Siren was wishing that she hadn't told him. But of course it probably would have been worse if she hadn't. Now though, no she had to get a hold of herself, and so she grasped her her brain and gave it a mental shake. The tears turned off slowly, well not completely, but they were considerably lighter. Siren managed to look up at him with a careful blank look. Her eyes were a little glazed over. Her heart was in pieces, but she was back to head over heart. This is what she needed before. But it came a little late. In this case though it was better late than never.

Jake's words made her glare at him. How long? It couldn't have been long genius but he could think whatever he wanted. "Five days, she responded coldly. It wasn't as if she had done it on purpose. Hell she hadn't even known what she had gotten herself into. Her mind set had been to find a new gang and that's what she did. She would have rather been a Blood with Jake but that was too bad for him. She hadn't known of the rivalry until after. Jake himself had never told her of it.

His next question shocked her. He would put her in the group of grunts for the bloods? That would never have happened. "Why not the Bloods?" she shot back. Right now she couldn't even believe him. Why had she chosen the Crypts, she didn't even have a good answer to that. She shrugged slightly thinking about a correct response. "One, they offered. Two, you didn't. And three, I had no clue of the rivalry until my second day of being a Crypt. And I don't back down and I don't give up," she told him. The glare was till pinned on him even though he was standing. He wasn't going to win this one that's for damn sure.

[jake brookes]

Jake couldn't think clearly anymore. He was sick of the drama and needed it to end. The fact that Siren was getting pissed off as well didn't help a damn thing. Why not the Bloods? I can't just make you a Blood, you have to have a history with them. As in, unless you've a family member that was associated with the Bloods then there's no just joining it because you want to. he explained, his voice showing a bit of annoyance.

Jake wanted Siren to be a Blood, but he couldn't change the rules for just one person. No matter how much he wanted to, he couldn't. His father wouldn't, hell his father probably wouldn't be in this situation at all. Well why didn't you come to me first? he asked, slumping down against the tree next to Siren.

It would've been easier if he just didn't get caught up in this kind of mess. That's exactly why he had trust issues, he'd get close to someone and something like this would happen. I don't want to be your enemy, Siren, he muttered quietly, his head turning to look at her. Why not just leave them?

ooc: sorreh that was criz-ap. Dx

[siren davenport]

Siren listened to Jake, and that didn't help a thing. Well excuse me. She didn't have a family connection. Big fucking whoop. Most gangs didn't. "Well I'm sorry I started off in Chicago," she spat at hi,. That's where she should have ended too but it was late for that. And again with the late. She really needed to stop going to the past because it wasn't working. So she took a deep breath and shut up. For the time being.

His words shocked her. Come to him. Yeah that would have worked. What would he have done? Stuck her with his ally. And she wouldn't be there. Couldn't be there. "And you would do what? Make me do your dirty work? she asked. Because she would have loved all that. Not really. She would have put up a fight every inch of the way and then everything would just go down the drain. that for some reason didn't sound good. They most likely would have been worse off than this, because she would have flat out hated him. She was beginning to now. And she didn't want to.

She frowned softly as she watched him. This seemed just as bad for him. But of course it was probably worse for her. A sigh escaped her. This really wasn't the way she wanted things to turn out. Her heart would have broken if it wasn't already broken when she first heard his words. She didn't want to be enemies. Her anger melted. But then she heard the rest. Leave them? Wasn't gooing to happen. "I don't either, but I won't quit. I can't quit," she replied quietly, trying to keep her anger in. This was hard for her and he didn't seem to get it.