"Very well, then," was all Lydia said, nodding to the Enforcer as she stepped back, signaling that it was fine to leave. When her office was empty, Lydia scoffed to herself. The officer had left her an opening to come to her if she found anything. "As if," she muttered, knowing that she would never, under any circumstances, trust the Enforcers to handle any of her issues. Much to her chagrin, Lydia would probably have to do some sniffing around of her own now that bodies were actually turning up on Coven territory. If the Enforcers found the pesky killer, it would be all over the news, and not just in Onyxport. That notion alone was enough to cause a headache. If Lydia wanted to fix this situation, she'd have to do it before the humans had their chance at justice.<br/><br/>Lydia groaned as she stood. She'd had enough drama for the night. Now, it was time to unwind. After working out a crick in her neck, Lydia made her way back downstairs and took an open seat at the bar. As usual, she exchanged playful banter with the bartender, a friend of hers, named Darcy, and a few other vampires. The pleasantries were nice, but of course, there was still the matter of feeding. Predatory eyes scanned the room, hoping to find someone who caught her attention. Sure, the act of feeding was simple enough, and if she'd really wanted, she could've just pulled anyone aside and sunk her fangs into them, but Lydia enjoyed the chase. It made the satisfaction so much more...intense. Lydia's eyes stopped when another pair of eyes - a soothing, light green - met hers with a mischievous sort of look. Lydia knew that look; it was an invitation - an invitation from a woman with short, red hair, a pretty face, and an even prettier neck. Lydia shot the woman a devilish smirk from across the room. She<i>did</i>like the cute ones, after all.<br/><br/>--<br/>\\Two Days Later\\<br/><br/>"The tengu left you a few gifts in this month's shipment, Lydia. I'm sure your guests will be pleased with what they find."<br/><br/>"Gifts?"<br/><br/>"Yes," the trader responded, nodding. "An assortment of specialty items - flavored wines."<br/><br/>"Excellent. As always, Paris, you've delivered."<br/><br/>Lydia and Paris walked side-by-side, making their way from the nightclub to the pier. It was a walk of about one-and-a-half kilometers, and while Lydia would normally stay out of mundane tasks like checking over shipments, it was rare that she had the chance to speak with Paris himself. The male vampire was a savvy businessman, and an elusive one, at that. Lydia took pride in knowing him on a personal level - personal enough that would charm a few extra treats from the tengu just because he enjoyed doing solids for her. In return, he was one of the few people for whom she did favors, too.<br/><br/>"You<i>are</i>their most loyal patron, after all." Paris chuckled. "So, tell me, what's new around Onyxport?"<br/><br/>Lydia sucked her teeth. "Nothing fun, unfortunately. I'm afraid I have a<i>pest</i>problem."<br/><br/>"Pests? Don't tell me you mean werewolves."<br/><br/>"A pack of stray dogs would be the least of my problems. It's much more troublesome than that. There's a vampire dumping bodies on Coven territory-,"<br/><br/>"Carpe Noctem?"<br/><br/>"No, Adrian's just as lost as I am. Or so he says. I hate to admit it, but-,"<br/><br/>"Wait. I hear something." Paris's voice fell to a whisper as he stopped her. The pair had just turned a corner, taking them into an alleyway that would cut a few steps out of their trip. "Listen." Unmistakably, there was the sound of something being dragged against stone up ahead of them. A figure emerged from an intersecting path, its form hidden by a large cloak, and behind it was the limp, naked body of a woman. He was dragging her by the arm.<br/><br/>"I think that's him," Lydia said, catching the mysterious person's attention. The figure turned towards them, only to reveal a masked face under the hood. She bared her fangs. "If you want to keep your head attached to your body, you'd better take that corpse somewhere else." She spoke the threat with every intention of delivering, but before she could, the figure ditched the corpse and darted off in another direction, and Paris took off after him without hesitating. "Paris, wait! Dammit...."<br/><br/>For a moment, she contemplated following them, but admittedly, she wasn't in the mood for dirty work. Vampire chases could be rather overwhelming. Either way, there was another pressing issue - the human. Lydia approached the woman, who lay sprawled on her back, and swore again when she recognized her. It was the red-haired woman from two nights ago. Alex was her name, Lydia remembered. If the Enforcers got to her - especially after she had been linked to Lydia - there would be yet another problem on her hands.<br/><br/>Lydia crouched over Alex's body and turned her head to the side, confirming that her attacker had indeed been a vampire. Blood still seeped from the holes in her neck, and the smell of it brought back memories of its sweet taste. Such a shame that her soft skin was pale and cold. Lydia pressed her fingers to her throat. There was still a pulse, but it was fading. "There is<i>one</i>thing I can do about this...," she mused out loud, propping Alex up in her arms and pondering the idea of turning the woman. It would only take a little bit of Lydia's blood to start the process, and the entire issue of the dead human would be averted. Of course, Lydia could just hide the body, but admittedly, she pitied the woman, as she had proven to be an interesting human those nights ago. On the other hand, there was no telling how Alex would react to being turned into an immortal, blood-sucking creature of the night. Also, Lydia would have a fledgling vampire on her hands, and she wasn't sure how she felt about that.<br/><br/>"Oh, dammit to hell." Growing impatient of her own indecision, Lydia made her choice, biting into her own wrist and letting the blood trickle out from the wounds. "Open wide," she said, as if the nearly-dead woman could hear her, and propped open the redhead's mouth with her other hand. As Lydia stayed there, crouched, with her wrist against Alex's lips, all that was left to do was wait for the effect of her blood to kick in.