Turn Off the Lights (Karma & Roman the German)

Karma whined in the back of her throat as she looked up at him, her eyes sad. "But I'm a Vampire." She said softly. "Aren't you afraid of me? I should leave." she whimpered. "Before you leave me."

He had never expected Karma to be this... vulnerable. It was as if she was a completely different person from the last time they had met.

"Maybe I'm a lot braver than you think I am. Besides, vampires don't seem to be quite as scary in person," he chuckled lightly.

Karma offered him a small timid smile. "Maybe you are." She said. She gently took his hand, leading him to the small pavilion in the garden. "I'm only half vampire, though. Perhaps you like my human side better." She said lightly, sitting on the floor. She pulled him down beside her, and debated letting go of his hand, but she didn't. She enjoyed his body heat. It was nice.

"What do you want to do, then, Roman, since you want me to stay?"

Roman shrugged, "Perhaps. It depends which is which," he said as he sat down next to Karma. Then he smiled, realizing that this was probably the first time they'd had a full, sober conversation before.

Roman frowned. He didn't even remember why he'd stopped her from leaving, so what on earth were they supposed to do? They didn't really have much in common, so it's not like conversation was much of an option. He decided that it was probably his only option, that is, if he wanted to avoid getting bitten.

"So... is your life over at Hogwarts always this crazy?" he asked. Roman was, after all, genuinely curious. The only Karma he had known was Party Karma, and he wasn't exactly the biggest fan of her.

Karma smiled. "Well, I suppose you like the side I am now." She teased.

She sighed wistfully. "Well, Life at Hogwarts is always crazy." She said with a grin. "There's the classes, the drama, the fights, the near death experiances..." She trailed off, deciding most of what happened at Hogwarts probably wasn't for Roman's ears. "But, maybe you'll know for yourself, if you do the student exchange." She grinned.

Roman nodded, "I know what you mean," he narrowed his eyes, "Then again, I don't really have a lot of close friends over there, so I wouldn't know much about the drama.... but I have more than enough experience with the fights."

He smiled back at Karma, "Maybe I will..."

Karma grinned at him, before adopting a worried look. "Roman." She said. "I really shouldn't have stolen you from the rest of the party. It isn't fair to everyone else." She frowned. "What if I'm not invited to any more of these?" she teased lightly.

Roman laughed, "I don't think anyone will miss me, and you don't have to worry about that. You're Karma Black, after all. I think I'd get in trouble for not inviting you again."

He frowned, "Wait.. you actually like coming to these?"

Karma shrugged. "I guess I like them. This is the first I've been to, and it hasn't been that bad." She grinned. "It's almost like you popped my Pureblood Party Cherry."

She smiled softly. "And if I don't touch them, I'm sure the little stars will still be here... and I can watch them."

"I don't know what that means." Roman was getting steadily better at english, and the phrases were usually easy to figure out. Still, some of them were just plain weird.

He laughed, "Ya, I guess that's one good thing about this house." He nervously glanced up toward the balcony again, but there was no one there.

She grinned. "Popping a cherry? It's like.... taking virginity." She smiled softly. "But not literally, of course."

Karma sighed and leaned her head on Roman's shoulder, feeling rather than seeing his glance up at the balcony. "Worried about something?"

Roman laughed as the blush returned to his face, "Oh... Well, I never would have guessed that..."

He looked down at Karma. "I'm always a little anxious when my parents are around. They're parenting style is... how do I put this.... dictatorial." Roman tried to lighten his comment with a smile.

"But that's alright. For some reason they have the odd notion that I'm safe whenever I'm around people of status," he sighed, "They clearly haven't met you."

Karma looked up at him, her grin mischievous. "You do like to blush, don't you Roma?" She asked. She twisted a lock of his hair around her finger, gently pulling on it as she met his eyes. "Any particular reason?"

She smirked. "Does that mean I'm dangerous?" She asked teasingly.

If anything, her comment only made Roman's face turn a deeper shade of red, "It's not like I can control it." He looked over at the hand fiddling with his hair, then back to Karma, "You're very forward. You know that?"

Roman rolled his eyes, "I certainly can't call you safe. You did bite me after all. Several times.... at least I think you did." Memories of that night had gotten even hazier the more he thought about it.

"Not that I'm upset about that! I mean, we were drunk after all," he added hastily. Roman had never apologized for his reaction to the party. He had felt terrible about that once he had recovered from his hangover.

Karma watched him blankly. "Forward?" she asked. "How so?" She began playing with his hair in earnest, her fingers weaving through his locks and massaging his scalp.

She pasued, her entire body going still. "I only bit you once." She said, almost completely sure. 'I mean... I think I did... I have much more control over myself sober, I promise."

She looked away from him, her eyes resting on the fountain and staying there. "I'm sorry for throwing a paint can at your head."

"I don't know. You're not afraid to say something shocking. It's admirable, it really is," he added, a little unnerved by her blank expression. Had Roman offended her?

He smiled, "And I'm sorry for yelling at you."

"But that's behind us, right? Tonight's a different party, and hopefully a slightly cleaner one," he laughed, a little worried about how serious Karma seemed. It bothered him.

"It is a different party." She said, her eyes staying on the fountain as her mind wandered. What was she doing here? She should go.

Her eyes darkened, and she decided that staying a little bit longer with Roman would not end that badly.

"Is being forward a bad thing?" She asked curiously. "I've never been called that before."

"I suppose it would be behind us, then." She decided finally, turning and meeting his eyes. Her dark eyes sparkled with something unreadable, before she smiled dazzlingly. "I'm really glad I came to this party after all." She said.

"Of course it's not a bad thing. At least, I don't think it is," he had heard people use it in multiple contexts, though Roman was confident that it wasn't just a direction, "You're just very open. I don't meet people like that often."

"I'm glad you came, too," Roman smiled back at Karma, "For once, I'm actually having a nice time."

Karma smiled. "I suppose I'm one in a million." She said softly.

Her grin faltered. "Oh." She said. "Oh!" Her eyes widened. "Uh. Sorry but... I've... I have to..." She stood suddenly, turning her back on him and taking a few quick steps away. "It's been nice, Roma, but I really think you should head back to the party."

One in a million, what a fitting expression, "Yes, yes you are."

A warm feeling filled Roman's chest, along with a keen sense of relief. He realized that his heart rate had finally reached a normal pace, and he wasn't so.... anxious. He only ever felt that way when he was with...

"Oh- but I- yeah.... yeah I probably should," Roman's smile fell, too, and he made his way back across the garden once more.

Karma watched him go, her heart aching for a reason that wasn't completely known to her, but wasn't unfamiliar either.

Loneliness.

Her eyes returned to the fountain, her mind reeling.

Kama decided she was hungry, and took her away and back into the party from a different door than Roman, deciding that a more attractive meal would be beneficial.

"We're gonna eat a Frenchieeee." She sang softly.