Out of the Blue [.Seren.]

There was one perk to living on an island in the middle of nowhere: time seemed to slow down a bit. He had not received more than two urgent phone calls that morning and both of the issues had been easily resolved. In the future, the people he designated to take care of the more day-to-day aspects of his operations would be able to handle these things on their own.

Port Albion's almost ever-present sea breeze ruffled his tailored white linen shirt and khaki pants and tousled his sandy-blond hair. He'd let it get slightly longer than usual, but it wasn't long enough to touch his ears just yet. He contemplated letting it grow out while he was on the island, but he was pretty sure it might make him harder to take seriously.

This morning was devoted to making appearances out in town. He wanted to be a public presence- a familiar face people would come to associate with his new restaurant. The restaurant was still undergoing renovations, but it would be open soon. To this end, he made a point of chatting politely with the local shopkeepers.

He moved away from a street vendor selling flowers, twirling a red rose between two fingers. The woman had smiled shyly at him as she handed him the rose, asking him to remember her stand if he ever needed blooms for his restaurant. He had assured her that she would be the first one he would call.

As he crossed the square, he closed his eyes and paused, enjoying the sunlight and sea air. These were things he had not realized he missed when he was in the big city with too much going on to take vacations.

Jenna had originally started in the meadow at the school, her interaction with Cade just a few days earlier had lead her to wandering the whole entire island. It was upon finding the meadow near the school that she had discovered the perfect spot to start flying. It was hard for her to remember to keep closer to the earth than she was used to while flying though, but the woman managed to make it almost all the way around the island before finding an issue. She had gotten higher and higher in the sky without consciously realizing it, and before she even had a chance to lower herself - Jenna hit a barrier in the sky and her wings involuntarily closed around her body.

With this Jenna let out a scream and was sent spiraling down to the earth, her landing though was a lot softer than she expected as she caught a glimpse of what she was gonna land on and managed to send a rush of air her way to make it so her landing was a little bit softer. That ended up sending her into a large fountain near the middle of the village square. Clumsily and quickly Jenna put her arms over the side of the fountain and paused for a moment to catch her breath.

She realized that any normal person would have quickly died from that fall, instead the only injury she offered was to her clothing. Today she had worn dark jeans that now clung to her person thanks to being soaked, along with a half open dark green button up t-shirt that revealed a pale blue bra. Not being the least bit shy though, Jenna failed to notice this and was more interested going back to breathing properly as she stood up and her wings shook themselves to get dry as she was still standing in the fountain.

"That was one way to make an entrance," Soren commented in his most friendly, open way, having only needed to take a few steps to close the distance between himself and the fountain. "Should I call heaven to tell them that one of their angels has fallen to Earth?" He knew that the line was cheesy, but the situation was so ridiculous already, he was able to deliver it with utter conviction. How often do women with wings fall from the sky?

He, of course, knew what she was. He'd been around long enough to have encountered Fair Folk before. Maybe not this type, but he was close to positive that this woman fit under that label.

Soren wasn't the least bit surprised that she was not particularly bothered by her... ahhh... brassiere being on display, such that it was. He, of course, was perfectly accepting of it. Modern clothing for women tended to leave little to the imagination and undergarments tended to cover as much as swimsuits.

She did have a rocking physique, though, and he subtly drank it in before his intense blue eyes went back to her face. "Visit often? Or am I just lucky?"

As she heard a male voice, Jenna suddenly remembered where she was and managed a good enough show of being modest to actually manage a blush as she quickly buttoned her shirt up. She offered up a smile though at a line she heard way too often. "Heaven's angels don't look half as good as I do," she said to him with a cocky yet girlish expression. Today seemed like a good day for corny lines anyway, she had decided as she slowly made her way out of the fountain and was just a tiny bit closer to the man talking to her.

At his second and third question, Jenna looked around the square before bringing her attention back to the said man in general. She was still soaking wet, but seemed a lot more coordinated now that she fixed herself up a bit. As she was ringing some water out of her hair she figured out an answer for Soren, "You could just be lucky. If you never visit the Tavern that is." One last time her wings shook themselves to get the last bit of dropping water out of them, and what was left was glittering wings that almost looked angelic when she moved just the slightest bit in the sun.

Even though Jenna's attention normally went every which way when she was talking with a person, she found herself momentarily distracted by the intensity of this stranger's stare. Maybe it was just a coincidence and a human just so happened to be lucky with those types of eyes. She could have sworn she was familiar with that type of gaze before, coming across quite a few dragons and werewolves during her time. Jenna decided to think nothing of it though, considering that she was just being suspicion and that wouldn't be any fun anyhow.

"You wouldn't happen to be able to help me out would you? I'm a little wet here and my spare clothes are quite a few blocks away." She then said to Soren, ignoring the fact that the man was jaw-dropping handsome.

Soren laughed and replied, "You've got me there. A woman with confidence. I like that." The way her clothes were clinging to her form- he made sure to keep his eyes glued to her face.

He shrugged. "I can't say I've had the pleasure of drinking at the Tavern, no. I only just arrived in Port Albion a few days ago." He grinned at her in an almost feral way. "I'll just consider myself lucky for now." Her wings were almost distracting- but her face held so much more of his interest. Soren considered himself a connoisseur of expressions, and so much of his business dealings had hinged on his correct interpretation of a person's mood through their features.

"Of course, now that I know where to find you, I'll have to become a regular at the Tavern," he said slyly. Her question had one of his eyebrows shooting up. "I don't necessarily see the incentive for me to help you out. I'm also unsure what you're expecting me to do here." There was only one thing he could think to do and that was more likely to result in her clothes being burnt completely away. Not to mention that Soren was not very interested in letting anybody know what he was. There was a good reason nobody believed in dragons anymore.

Jenna couldn't help but smile some more at the man's overwhelming charm - hell, he almost seemed to ooze it from every pore in his body to her. If she had been any younger she would have had easily fallen for it quite quickly. "You definitely should, the old man there seems a little rough, but he's easy to get along with once you get him talking." She seemed to have a little smirk at that, thinking herself quite the charmer as well to be able to work at that place.

At his confusion on what he could do, Jenna let out a girlish pout "You could escort me back where I need to go, of course. Plus, I'm deeming you responsible for my well-being until I get back to some dry clothes." She had decided this quite simply because of how he was such eye-candy and also because the tavern always needed more business. "Now, sir if you would kindly take my hand I will be less worried about being bothered by anyone else." As she spoke, Jenna realized she had used that line before a long time ago. With her memory being so poor though, she shook the idea away from her mind and proceeded to hold her hand out to Soren for him to tuck it under his arm and to escort her back to the tavern.

She seemed quite demanding in this sense, but Jenna never really did anything she knew she couldn't get away with. What kind of man would leave a woman soaked to the bone all by herself anyhow? She sure hoped it wasn't this one.

Soren grinned and replied, "Rough men never intimidated Soren Karlsson before. I come from rough men, you see." This statement was truer than most people would ever know. "I'd much rather talk with you, though."

He swept her a somewhat stylish bow, one that seemed at-odds with the modern clothing he wore. Something about this situation was familiar, but he was having a hard time placing it. "I would be honored to escort you back home, Milady." He wasn't going to complain- more time with the lovely woman wouldn't hurt him. In fact, based on the attention that they were getting, it would only cement his 'good-guy' reputation if he was to be good enough to walk a woman home.

Her next statement had him take a step back in surprise. That line... he'd heard it before. A moment, later, he regained his composure and laughed. "It's been a long time since I was last surprised." He offered his arm with a dashing smile. "I would most certainly keep other men from making unwanted advances towards you. That's no hardship since I think I'd get jealous."

A moment later, he asked with glinting eyes, "So, what name are you going by these days, Emma?"

Jenna couldn't help but let out another laugh at Soren's comment about coming from rough men. It sounded so corny to her, but nonetheless this was a day for those kind of things. At his out of time words, Jenna gladly took his arm - smiling gently at this comment about other men. It was only when they started walking that he said something that honestly surprised her, she paused for a moment - trying to remember when she had used that name before. Upon remembering the name though, a sudden flashback occurred to Jenna and she halted in her tracks.


In a well decorated Victorian looking house, Emma Fenning turned quite gracefully to the door to discover the entrance of a handsome gentleman. A party was going on for her debut into English society, and Emma felt almost overwhelmed by the presence of so many humans. "Presenting Benedict Stuart," the butler at the front of the house announced. Emma looked to the man curiously, but looked away just as quickly. The man seemed almost too handsome, if that was even possible. She instead turned back to her companion on hand, Jonathon Cooper - speaking with him in a quiet and shy manner.


"You!" she suddenly gasped, her tone being a mixture of surprise and anger. The anger quickly disappeared in expression and tone though, as she realized exactly what was happening. "It's Soren, now? That's quite a bit more interesting than Benedict." Jenna smirked at him for a moment, before her demeanor seemed to turn back to the demanding almost flirty blonde part she was playing before. "Do I need to show you where the tavern is?" she asked him pleasantly. "It's Jenna now, by the way."

Soren grinned at her as she finally realized who he was. She'd changed quite a bit, but he had not. And he assumed Nikolai had not. Dragons could change their fashions, and their hairstyles, but they could not change their entire appearances. Soren was born the handsome devil he was, and it was unlikely to change anytime soon.

He also had a memory like a steel trap. Soren could recall exactly the moment when he'd first beheld Jenna.

"...Benedict Stuart," the butler was saying in a stuffy tone. His name was the biggest joke here- it meant 'blessed', which most humans might consider him to be. In fact, Ben was bored. He'd miscalculated some when he had finagled his way into an upstanding family of somewhat noble backgrounds- the life of luxury was also a decadent, uneventful one.

So it was time to make his own fun. He'd only put himself into this position to be higher-up than Aodhan (what was he going by now? Jonathan Cooper? What a very... common name). Now it was time to reap the benefits. His strikingly blue eyes scanned the faces of those present. He know most either personally or by reputation. The one he was sure he'd never met before was speaking intimately (in this case meaning privately, quietly) to his rival.

He greeting a couple who came up to chat with him. He had time; he would introduce himself personally later in the evening, or he would be introduced (which was more likely given the propensity of some of the ladies present). Then the fun would truly start.

"Is it now? I can't say I favor either over the other. I'm stuck with Soren for the time being. I'm glad you think it suits me, though."

He shrugged in response to her offer to show him where the tavern was. "Either you lead the way or I can use the GPS on my phone. That seems a little redundant, though, don't you think?" He considered her name, repeating it a couple times to himself before he beamed at her and said, "Similar phonemes to your old name. I like it. Reminds me of old times. So, been at the Tavern long? What have you been doing since we last saw each other?"

Jenna couldn't help but feel ecstatic at Soren's presence. While her anger for him was boiling on the inside of her being, her outer exterior was as per usual nothing but pleasant and playful. Finally seeing the man after so long, she couldn't help but start bringing up in her mind all the ways she had planned to get him back for that horrid night. Being able to plot revenge for centuries sure allowed a person to be creative. As Soren spoke some more to her to further along the conversation, Jenna resisted the urge to grit her teeth.

As Jenna was holding Soren's arm, she couldn't help but feel eerily reminded of all the times that they had talked before and she wondered briefly if Soren was here where Jonathon was now. "I'll lead you there then," she said to him - taking a small initiative by only tightening her grip on his arm a tiny bit so that he would know the direction to go. "I've only been at the Tavern for about a month," she said to him - his question on what she's been doing since they last saw each other caused her to get a sarcastic sort of expression on her face. "Oh, you know. Became a nun, got caught having sex with one of the priests, ran away. Oddly enough went into prostitution for a little bit, didn't have much fun with that. Decided to go to Asia for a little bit, that part is a tiny bit foggy. Eventually ended up here, what about you? Still in the kidnapping business?" Her last question suggested a mix of pent-up anger - which seemed a little confusing because of how relaxed her body was being near him.

It was control that Jenna had to teach herself a long, long time ago. The type of control she assumed most immortals taught themselves at one point in their lives. As she had been talking her wings had stretched up behind her, seeming to enjoy to windy day as they were walking.

Soren let Jenna lead him though he was confident that he could handle things if she was leading him into some trap. What a weird coincidence, that she would show up when he was actually looking for Nikolai. Then again, the two were pretty close friends.

He laughed, first at her expression, then at her description of the events following their last parting. "A prostitute? That's rich." In fact, it bothered him slightly, but not enough for him to act on the feeling.

He supposed he was supposed to feel indignant, but he didn't rise to the bait of the kidnapping comment. He was too old to feel upset about the accusation. Besides, he had done quite a bit of kidnapping AND pillaging when he was still a viking. He leaned closer to her and murmured, "Why, are you looking for some fun?" Her control over her body language was commendable, but she had given into her impulse to ask the question in the first place, which led him to believe that she was still kind of upset. How upset, though, he wasn't sure.

He leaned away and shrugged. "I've been busy." He wasn't inclined to elaborate just yet. Let her guess.

"Oh, it definitely made me rich." Jenna said back quickly to Soren, offering up a smirk at her own comment. As he leaned closer to her, Jenna resisted the urge to punch him in the nose. Instead, she smiled at his question "We have two different versions of fun, I prefer mine over yours." She said to him, seeing the tavern a few buildings away from the as they walked. As Soren gave her a nonchalant answer on what he had been doing, Jenna resisted the urge to roll her eyes.

"Very well then, I assume you know what Jonathon is doing now?" Jenna used the name she had last known her friend was going by. She was also aware that the two had some strange sort of rivalry. That sort of sensation was unfamiliar to Jenna, mostly because she had never exactly been the competitive type. Suddenly feeling a little cold, Jenna's wings responded by trying to hug close to her body. This was only partially successful as one wing hugged her close but the other one seemed a little confused at Soren's presence and slightly nudged the half of the body that was closest to Jenna. "Oh, excuse that... They have a mind of their own sometimes," Jenna said to him idly - the other wing that had been trying to get closer to Jenna stretched out around Soren instead, not touching the dragon but instead hovering behind him as they walked.

Soren shrugged. "You never truly embraced my way. It sounds like you had fun regardless." He followed her gaze to what he assumed was the Tavern. It looked like it could use some work. Briefly, he considered putting in an offer for it, but in the next moment, he dismissed the idea. It would be too difficult to sell off two establishments if he decided he needed to get out of town.

He shrugged again, one of his eyebrows raising as he inspected her. Either she was fishing to see if he knew about Aodhan's whereabouts, or she already knew and she was fishing to see what he thought about Aodhan's activities. Had she really been in town for a month without knowing what the other dragon was up to? If so, what sort of coincidence had brought her here?

Her wing nudging him was enough to distract him from this line of thinking. His head snapped around- a habit from making sure anybody who tried to pickpocket him didn't have intact fingers anymore. "That's really weird," he said truthfully. He couldn't imagine any of his extremities having minds of their own... though that sort of thinking opened all sorts of excuses up. A smirk crossed his face as they came up in front of the Tavern.

"Well, this is your stop, Miss Jenna. I did so love catching up. Go change now- unless you'd prefer me to warm you with my flames." He shot her a look that was a mix of suggestion and mischief. "Ta, darling," he said with a wave over his shoulder as he walked away.