It was the twelfth cigarette. It wasn't needed. Hell, it didn't do anything. But it made Ciaphas feel better. It made him feel human again. But a mere illusion of course, but old habits die hard. He had been a chain smoker in life, so it was in death. He didn't like doing it around the other kindred though, it felt weird to be smoking around them. It's all well and good on the street, it made for a great Masquerade card up the sleeve. So he was smoking away in his car outside the Dome. Dogends strewn around him. He took some time to recompose himself, checking the rear view mirror. He hadn't bothered shaving. What use is it when it stays the same length, always growing out the same over day. Also, since that little cut the other day...<br/><br/>He had cut himself shaving. The blood had poured out of him. He had been desperate to stop it, even going so far as to lick it up from the sink, trying to save it before it circled down the drain. It was an frightning reminder of his new nature. Of the beast tucked away underneath all this fragile humanity. Pathetic really.<br/><br/>Stepping out of the car he approached the Dome. The doorman for the evening frisked him quickly. Malkavians scared the ghouls. They knew fully well what happened to those caught in the thrall of a Malkavian. But all that didn't matter to Ciaphas. He despised his clan, secretly of course. They were lunatics, every single one of them. Especially his sire, the monster. That man was irrevocably mad and unreliable. So much so that he wasn't welcome on most of the Elysiums around town. He hadn't turned up for a gathering like this for years either from what he had heard, maybe even decades.<br/><br/>Madmen, every single one of them. He passed one of his so called cousins on the way to the school house. He gave her a short nod and hurried by. He didn't want to get caught up in that morass. Madmen, every single one of them. Except himself. He was miraculously untainted by Malkav's curse. He wasn't like them. Otherwise Adam would never have taken him in. The prince hated Malkavians. But even so, he was acceptable it seemed. Because he wasn't a raving lunatic like the others. Of course, he was sure the Prince had ulterior motives. Just like the rest of them. Rats, every single one of them...<br/><br/>He stepped into the school and had a short look around. It wasn't big. Had a decent hallway, but not much more. Stepping into the class room, he spotted the Kaiser and Adam, some other kindred who were mewling to their master, probably asking for this and that. Rats. Walking up to Adam, he gave the sheriff a nod and his eyes started to dart across the room.<br/><br/>"So, what's with all this?" he finally whispered, making sure the Kaiser didn't overhear "What's with all the urgency and whatnot? I had alot of work to catch up with tonight."