His air hardened at her encouragement. The tightening of his distant eyes agreed with her. He'd seen the outcome of their kind of life, and she was right. He'd become stronger. The twitch on his lips when she challenged him about their performance was much more playful, though it retained some of his trademark darkness. He wouldn't mind having at her like that. As always, he left a little gravity in their joke, simply by putting his persona into their interaction. Maybe she'd sealed her fate, maybe she hadn't.<br/><br/>She had a decent introduction to the Beasts. It was a good thing she became a Scythe, since by the sound of her encounter, she might as well have been a casualty. Klause must believe in her. Many victims wanted to know more, to be involved, but the Syndicate were famously elitist, and quite honestly, only exceptional people were excepted. A by-the-book guy like Klause would have been careful about who he folded in, since her record would reflect on him. No wonder he was protective. Kuram of course suspect something else there, from Klause's side.<br/><br/>"Well, I'm glad you're well taken care of. If you ever need any support aside from them, I'll give you my number." he injected. "And, you know, you can use it for when you're feeling lonely, too." he added. "I would love to see you in action though." He turned his head slightly into that thought. He'd not lied. He was sure she was formidable. It would be odd if she was anywhere near full fledged yet, but with the tutelage she'd already gotten, and planning countermeasures to a larger scale threat meant someone believed in her other than Klause.<br/><br/>"Growing up was-- everything I knew." he started and had another piece. "Mother and father were loving but strict, and my sister spoiled me when they weren't looking. I only learned there are other ways of life through interacting with other children. Home schooled." he grinned at that, as though pointing at the common prejudice. He'd proven him enough to get accepted to their university, anyway. "I'd consider myself the runt of my clan, so they didn't expect much from me. Compared to my sister I was free." He laughed to himself at some unspoken memory. "I guess boys are always favorites. Still, I was expect to meet the standards of the Syndicate, even if we weren't official within its ranks."<br/><br/>He looked at her, through her, and he might as well be reliving something delightful or tragic, or nothing at all. When he returned he did have a thought in his silver circles. "Did you have a dream before becoming what you are now? I guess nothing is impossible, but being a Scythe does divide your focus from your own path." He leaned over, and quickly stole a sizable piece of her cake, and ate it quickly. "Hmph. Not bad." he admitted, his tongue blue.<br/><br/>-<br/><br/>The pair that hid away had been secretive for a while. They were new students, and were still easing in to their new group of friends. She'd been shy at first, and verbal about not committing to anyone so early, and he'd been quiet in the back, laughing at everyone's jokes. They'd found each other when the group didn't show up to a movie, and had been finding new places to make new secrets ever since.<br/><br/>When he leaned in to take his third kiss of this little meeting, his eyes grew wide suddenly. She petted his cheek, his scratchy stubble, to calm him down. She didn't understand why his arms went lax around her. When she stepped back she screamed. Something large and dark had taken him, only his head and shoulders were sticking out. When the monster shifted into the light she saw dark muscle and white bones held together by a translucent membrane. Shape like a man but a few times taller. It's neck expanded to take the rest of him down.<br/><br/>People gathered in the alley to see the girl join her beau, mostly, as he legs thumped to the asphalt, severed. The creature turned to the frozen audience, maw wide, with fingers still stuck between its teeth. Their screeches took over campus.