NYC, New York

Benjamin McHall

Benjamin looked calmly from his sword to his opponent, swiftly maneuvering several simple techniques, slowly building up to more difficult maneuvers. His excitement was obviously building in the battle, soon getting the better of him as he chopped his opponent's head off in one swift blow, his sword taking some of the damage as he over swung, the sword colliding with the concrete beneath him. A small sigh escaped the old vampire as he looked to the newly ruined dummy then to his bent sword, "Oh not again." He muttered, walking over to put the sword back on its stand though it was apparent that he would have to get a new one soon. He made his way to the kitchen from his training grounds, passing several of his children's rooms on the way. Benjamin went straight to his 'wine' cellar, smiling slightly at the sight of the bags of blood that were stored in the refrigerated room picking one out. Ben took his tall glass of blood to his favorite chair in all of the apartment, the one facing the wide view of the city. It was originally his wife's idea to move into the city but Benjamin had to admit it was a stunning view that this penthouse apartment offered. The sun was barely rising, it seemed it was the hour that the city was at it's calmest, most in their homes sleeping, but people still wandered the street regardless, mostly the homeless and other city dwellers just trying to get from point A to point B. It truly reminded him of how fortunate his family was. Ben smiled a little, standing from his seat, "Oh I should make them breakfast." he smiled as he headed to the kitchen, pulling out ingredients from the fridge, "Oh I can make a classic American meal! Eggs, bacon, toast! Magnificent!" Ben smiled as he began cooking. Cut to Antonia coming from their bedroom, still drowsy and in pajamas, because she could smell something burning. Ben gave a sort of pitiful look to his wife, who soon took over the cooking, making the vampire smile as he stood close her as she cooked, "I could have sworn I knew what I was doing that time." He muttered. Antonia laughed a little at her husband, changing the subject as she flipped a pancake, "I was thinking about going to talk to that Blair leader, to see what's up with this feud between them and the Holdens." Benjamin frowned at that, "I can't have you do that. It's incredibly dangerous. You have no idea what they might do to you, seeing as you... fraternize with vampires." He said, wrapping his arms around his wife's waist protectively. She shook her head, obviously upset, "I can't just stand around and do nothing. I hate that these people are fighting, it could very well effect the children. Imagine if one of them got caught on the wrong part of town and was possibly mauled just because those two families don't like the other race." Benjamin nodded at this, mentally cringing at the thought of one of his precious children getting hurt. "Right. Well if it would please you, I could talk to the Holden leader, he might not listen but I'd be more than willing to try, darling." Antonia smiled to Ben, turning from the pancakes to plant a kiss on her husband's cheek, prompting Benjamin to lean forward and pull her in for a deeper kiss. Soon the pancake was forgotten and burning as the parents had a bit of a make out session in the kitchen.

Gabriel Holden

Gabe scanned the page of the book he was reading, taking a few notes before turning the page again, taking in the information, concentrating on the works before him. He wasn't sure how long he sat at his desk, really wasn't even sure if anyone had tried to contact him, his phone being in the next room. After a while he stood for a blood break, finding his phone had several missed calls and messages from his human friend Noah. He sighed as he scrolled through them, soon becoming a little panicked as he read that Noah was coming over after being frustrated that his friend wasn't answering his calls. It was sort of early in the morning, maybe 6 at the time but Gabriel was more concerned by the fact that his very human friend was coming to his vampire infested house. And at a time where even Gabriel was beginning to feel hungry. Before Gabriel could even send an urgent message begging Noah not to come over, there was a knock at the door. Gabriel panicked, running to get a blood bag, with his vampire speed able to making in seconds flat. He bit the bag, quickly draining it. He ran to the front door, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand before answering the door. Noah stood there, entering the house without asking permission, "Wow! You are alive, see I really thought that you were ignoring me and I won't lie it hurt my feelings bro." Noah paused for a second, looking Gabe over, "You, are bloody." He muttered, obviously confused. Gabriel looked down to his clothes, which he neglected to before, and saw the large line of blood running down his shirt, "Ahh, I, uh, had a nose bleed." he said quickly, casually looking to his friend, thanking the gods for Noah's gullible self as the blonde shrugged it off, continuing to speak, "Whatever, the point is that I think that you were avoiding me." Gabriel rolled his eyes, "I was not ignoring you, I was busy." he said, already knowing he couldn't tell his friend about his research, seeing as he had books upon books filled with his notes, and it would seem impossible to do in the 23 years that Gabriel had been 'alive'. "Just let me go change. Don't move." Gabe forced himself to slowly walk to his room, snatching a shirt out of his drawer and changing, going back to Noah. He really didn't know why he was surprised as he saw the human chatting up one of his sisters. "Well I'll just have you know, if you ever want a good time you just call me, I could care less how young you are you know." Gabriel watched cautiously as, luckily, his sister merely blew him off rather than kill him on the spot. He couldn't help but chuckle as he walked up to Noah, "That's what you get for hitting on my sister." Gabe pulled out his phone, still smiling a little as he typed up a text to send to Anna, 'Good Morning :) Want to go to somewhere in particular today?' He sent the text to his secret girlfriend, smiling a little. Noah was still scowling at being blown off by his friend's sister, looking over Gabriel's shoulder, his scowl turning into a smirk, "Who ya texting? That little girlfriend of yours? When do I get to meet this chick, I don't even know her name." Gabriel laughed a little, putting his phone away, "And you don't need to know her name. I haven't even been dating her for a month, why do you want to meet her so bad? My parent's haven't even met her." he explained, though knowing full well he really wouldn't want his parents to meet her. Noah laughed loudly, "Ahh, come on, I'm your friend, you have to trust me more. Besides, if he chooses to dump you, I want a go. Is she at least hot?" Gabriel had to force himself to remember not only that Noah, his friend, was just joking, and that Anna would never go for a guy like Noah. "Yeah, very. She's a catch." He said simply, smiling a bit. "But that's beside the point, you need to get out of my house. You already know how my dad is." Noah gave a loud sigh, "Ah, that guy's just a grump, I betcha I could take him." Gabriel looked to his friend, soon laughing, "You, take my dad, oh that's a show I'd pay to see." Noah huffed, crossing his arms, "Yeah laugh it up chump."

Anna wasn't surprised to wake up to smell the burning smoke throughout her family's enormous penthouse apartment the first time but the second time, however, was where she drew the line. The blonde rushed out of her bedroom to the kitchen, quickly picking the pan up off the stove by the handle and dropping it in the sink. She turned off the red hot element before her ears clicked into her parents' current "activities".

"You couldn't wait until after breakfast was made to eat each others faces off?" Anna muttered, clearly too frustrated to care how cranky she sounded as she momentarily tapped her fingers on the counter before pushing off and walking out of the room. She may have muttered something about a shower under her breath but, knowing her parents, it was doubtful anyone had paid attention long enough to hear her.

A hot shower later, the blonde was walking around her room in a pair of jean skirt and a plain black spaghetti strap shirt while she hunted for her favourite blue v-neck t-shirt. Finding it a few minutes into the search, she pulled it on and moved to stand in front of her full length mirror on the back of her bedroom door. Her long blonde locks cascaded over her shoulders in a mass of waves, clearly showing she wasn't going to expel the effort necessary to put it up or straighten it. Her make up was relatively complete as her eyelashes fanned out, long and dark with mascara, along with some matching black eyeliner. A moment later she brushed some clear lip gloss on her lips and decided she looked good enough to go... That is, until her cellphone started vibrating on her bedside table.

Good Morning :) Want to go to somewhere in particular today?

She smiled upon realizing it was her rather secret boyfriend, Gabriel, texting her. She picked up her touch screen cellular and easily texted her response; Good morning! :) And does Central Park sound good? Or a cafe so I could grab some breakfast,-- Anna glanced over to her door as she typed this, rolling her eyes at the scene from earlier as she continued, --Any requests? She pressed the green 'Send' button before grabbing her purse, slinging it across her torso, and made sure she had everything she'd need; wallet with money, cellphone (which she dropped into the bag), among other things.

The blonde strode from her room to the door, after grabbing her set of keys that she had dropped on the table the previous day, and pulled a cute pair of silver and black gladiator sandals onto her feet. "I have my phone and I'll be back later," Anna called before quietly adding, "Enjoy your burnt breakfast." That said and no pause for a reply, the singular hybrid McHall left the apartment to begin her day.


"Is it truly so difficult to keep the peace with the Blair's?" A feminine voice asked, quite serious although a bit annoyed. Clearly, this topic was one that had been speculated about many a time to which a certain male always seemed to say the same thing.

Samuhel Holden loved his wife and family greatly but when his wife, Elizabeth, questioned his leadership he found himself a bit less than kind. "Yes, it is if the pups cannot control themselves." His blue eyes were icy with this topic as he stood and walked across the room, pulling on dress slacks and a white T-shirt that was covered moments later by a pale blue dress shirt. "They're disgusting creatures and their tendencies are altogether barbaric," he added as he swiftly buttoned his shirt and began to fix his tie, a shade or so darker than his shirt.

Elizabeth watched her husband for a few seconds before rising from her place to move Samuhel's hands and tie the piece of fabric herself. "You never were one to tie it properly," she murmured, smiling at her husband before focusing on her task. Their previous conversation was forgotten, for the time being, as the patriarch and matriarch needed to prepare for work.

Being vampires, and rather fast, they were both ready to go within the next few minutes and were out the door like a shot.

Their penthouse was in the Upper East Side, the most extravagant and costly side of residential apartments in the entirety of New York City. And, like most who lived in such luxurious living spaces, they sent their children to private schools. Well, the girls anyway. Gabriel had been given a choice the last few years since his true age was a bit older than required for a secondary education.

"Lillian," Samuhel stated evenly, not surprised when the girl appeared in front of him with a bored expression. "Take Cassandra and Theresa to school on time--" He was cut off by his wife's sharp look before his eldest daughter continued, ".. and make sure they're not late. I know."

The patriarch tilted his head amusedly before giving a nod, "Good, thank you."

With the other two girls waving goodbye from the balcony, Samuhel and Elizabeth found their way to elevator to be off on their way to their respective workplaces. Elizabeth had clothing to design while Samuhel had art to buy, and not necessarily for his clients.

"Have a good day at work today, darling," his wife said lovingly to him, leaving a light kiss on his cheek before climbing into her car and driving off. "A good day indeed," the male commented as he watched her go before getting into his own car and speeding out of the parking garage.