Part of Tess was genuinely, honest to God, scared of what was going on. That part of her was more obvious in her movements, her expressions, and the way she nervously talked Damien's ear off even though they were in a situation where she could very well<i>die</i>. It was her coping mechanism, the way she got through all of the tough shit that came her way. But...there was also the other part of her that wanted to know what a fucking Hell-Hound really looked like. The loud growl they'd heard in the stairwell, followed by the way the creature dented up the metal door triggered her curiosity. Could she be a bad ass like the heroines on TV? Was this her movie? Was this the defining moment of her life? If it was, Tess was a bit let down. Running away was not something she'd ever seen herself doing in the various scenarios she'd always imagined herself in. Running away had never been the option that she thought about taking. Tess didn't really have a choice unless she wanted to die tonight, though, and that thought alone had her sobering enough to not fight Damien on tugging her away.<br/><br/>Was it annoyance that she heard in Damien's voice too? It didn't matter to Tess if he was or wasn't annoyed, honestly. He was a complete stranger, one that she was letting direct her toward another stranger to figure out what in the actual fuck was happening.  But when he dropped her hand, the small source of comfort that she'd been given was taken away from her, and maybe, just a little bit, Tess did care what Damien thought. He was saving her life after all.<b>"You don't need to be so rough."</b>Tess muttered, shaking his hand loose from her arm. She kept pace with him, following as they made their way down the street and into the night. Hopefully the Hell-Hound was stuck for the time being, but if it was anything like real hounds, it would be on their feet again before too long.<b>"So we're going to go see some nerd that knows a lot about demons. Great. Do you have a way of getting there that's a bit faster than by foot?"</b><br/><br/>When they did eventually make it to Roland's, Tess stared at the building with un-amused awe.<b>"You're fucking kidding me, right?"</b>Tess asked, looking at Damien with a frown on her face.<b>"We're going to see a guy that lives in a comic book store. I should've guessed."</b>She stomped forward, pushing against the door to the shop. It didn't budge, not even when she jiggled it a bit back and forth.<b>"Hope you've got his cellphone number, Sunshine, because it doesn't look like anyone is home. Granted, it is pretty late for a comic book store to be open. You sure he's not at home in his parents' basement?"</b>Not that there was anything wrong with that, it just seemed a bit stereotypical given the situation they were currently in.<br/><br/><b>"Keep it down out there! They can hear you bitchin' all the way in China!"</b><br/><br/>Tess frowned deeper, looking up at the building and spotting a head poking out from the second floor.<br/><br/><b>"Yeah, I'm talking to you, Red. You've got quite a mouth on you, don't you?"</b>The man that spoke to Tess had long hair pulled back in a ponytail. He was thin, wore a green lantern t-shirt, and looked like he'd been living off of Monster energy drinks for the last month or two. When he put his hands up to his eyes to get a better look, his head jerked up and hit the window he was peering out of.<b>"Jesus Christ!"</b>He blurted, using his hand to rub the back of his head.<b>"Damien? Is that you? What are you doing here so late?"</b>The man paused, looking between Tess and Damien for a minute.<b>"And who in the hell is the girl?"</b><br/><br/>Tess rolled her eyes, watching for just a moment as Roland pulled his head into his apartment before rushing downstairs to meet his guests.<b>"You have weird friends, don't you?"</b>She asked Damien quietly, pausing her conversation when the elusive Roland burst through the door to the side of the shop.<br/><br/>Tag:<a class="username" data-user-id="153" data-username="@Vaughn Doom" data-xf-init="member-tooltip" href="https://blackdahliaroleplaying.com/members/153/">@Vaughn Doom</a>