Be My Escape

Once they were both dressed and ready, the pair set out for this mysterious thing that Nowe had called a 'mall'. Now, for someone who had spent the majority of his life living with only eleven other people, something that was built for the public was something that awed him. And, if he had to be honest with himself, it sort of scared him too. So many bodies, so many things to pay attention to. What if something happened and he got seperated from his friend? The mob of people would swallow him up and he'd get lost forever! Okay, maybe it wasn't that serious nor did it call for that much drama, but it was still something to worry about. He stared out the car window as they drove to the mall, his eyes bright despite his anxious thoughts. This could be something fun, right? And Nowe wouldn't let anything bad happen to him...right? Zachariel just kept chanting that to himself as his friend parked the car, keeping pace with him as they made their way to the Mall.

And once inside, the Fae promptly paled and looked around like he was panicked...Mostly because he was. He'd been expecting a lot of people, but this was sea of them. The boy gave a small noise and side-stepped closer to his friend, peering around with wide eyes that kept threatening to change to their true crimson shade. "I...I didn't know there was so many of them..." He whimpered, just loud enough for Nowe to hear alone. He was half-way tempted to turn around and go the opposite direction, honestly. But they were here for a reason, and he figured that the quicker they got it done, the quicker they went home to where it was just the two of them. It didn't stop the small noises of anxiety from escaping him though, whenever someone would brush too close for comfort. "Too many... Too many..." Another soft whimper, and he pressed even closer to the Vampire.

Just when he was considering backing away a bit and giving the other room to, I dunno, breathe, someone actually jostled Zach. The boy jumped badly, immediately slipping his hand into Nowe's and interlacing their fingers before squeezing. "Can we please move or something? They keep bumping into me." And there was still so much to take in. The sights, the scents, all the different colors in people's clothing. Too. Much. Of course, the boy hadn't even thought about what he'd done, and kept a nice grip on his friend's hand as a way of comforting himself... Not knowing what that simple gesture might say to the humans miling about, nor how the Vampire would respond. He just didn't want to be touched by random strangers anymore. T~T

Nowe wasn't thinking about how the mall might affect Zach. If he was honest, with himself the mall wasn't his favorite place to go. There were too many people, too many heartbeats and the pulse of fresh blood all around him. It was not a place he usually went when he hadn't had blood in awhile. Though it made for a very good hunting ground if he knew where to look. But overall, he tended to avoid the mall when he could, anything he could get there he could buy elsewhere. But for today, the mall was the best place to go. All the shops they needed were right there in one place and they could find what they needed quicker. Which meant they didn't need to spend all day driving from store to store and or worrying about not finding what they wanted.

At any rate, he was prepared for what to expect of the mall on a Saturday and had tried to forewarn Zach but apparently had not done a very good job of it judging from the look on the Fallen's face. "I know. Saturday is probably the worst day for the mall but you need new clothes. It will be fine." He replied quietly, just about to carefully guide Zach off to the side and figure out where to start when someone bumped into them and sent Zach scrambling for safety, so to speak. He froze at the feel of Zach's hand in his and tried to figure out if it was a good idea to try and get Zach to let go or just go with it. But as the Fallen's fingers interlaced with his he found himself closing his hand around Zach's and no longer longing to pull away. It was...comfortable. And if it made Zach feel better he was fine with it. "Come on. The shoe stores are usually pretty empty. Stay close." He said, leading Zach away from the entrance and out of the worst of the crowd, avoiding as many people as possible before ducking into the nearest shoe store. He ignored any looks they got, though he returned a few with a glare that generally made people look away rather quickly. "There, that's not so bad. Come on. Let's pick out some shoes for you." He urged, motioning toward the men's shoes with his free hand.

Scrambling for safety is a bit of an understatement. The Fallen was literally quivering as he huddled close to Nowe, his eyes darting everywhere as he looked at the people. Feeling the Vampire's fingers securely wrapped in his own made him relax faintly, though he audibly yelped when someone else jostled him. "N-nowe!" He whimpered, hiding his face in the other's arm and peering around out of the corner of his eye. Bad people. They shouldn't be scaring him like that. He visibly relaxed a bit when his friend spoke up, nodding a bit fearfully and keeping as close as he could as he was led away, cringing a bit at some of the looks he received. "O-okay..." Stay close. Didn't need to tell him twice. His eyes held hints of his normal crimson shading, and even flashed to the ruby color a few times when people got too close for comfort. But he kept a good hold on the other's hand as they wove through the people, his free hand clutching onto his friend's shirt sleeve tight enough to turn the knuckles of his slim hand white. Poor thing was so stressed that he barely noticed when they walked into the shoe store, pausing a bit when he caught others staring at them.

The looks earned a politely puzzled look from the Fae, which he turned to his friend when he was spoken to again. "Nowe...?" He began, tilting his head at a lady who quickly averted her gaze from them. "Why are they staring? Did I dress funny?" The questions were posed innocently enough, and he let his eyes flicker over his outfit before they slid to the shoes in the store. He hesitated, casting another nervous glance at the people who were in the store, before moving over to the shoes, unwilling to release the poor Vampire for the time being. A thoughtful frown tugged on his lips as he let his gaze wander from shoe to shoe, eventually landing on a pair of black and white converse. He reached out with his free hand as if he was going to touch it, but stopped before his fingertips made contact. "Am I allowed to touch them? I like this one..." He said, pointing to the Converse instead.

With Zach all but glued to his side, Nowe was rethinking the wisdom of bringing Zach to the mall. But they were already there and leaving now would just be pointless. All he could really do was stick close to Zach and hope the Fae calmed down at some point. Either that or they could go home and try again another day when the mall wouldn't be so busy. And at least he'd been right about the shoe store, except for a handful of people looking for shoes, it was fairly empty. He was absently studying a pair of women's high heels (they were more straps that shoe and he wasn't sure how anyone could possibly wear them or even why they'd want to) when Zach spoke up. His question made Nowe pause, his mind scrambling for some way to explain that wouldn't make Zach think he'd done something wrong. "Some people are just rude and think it's okay to stare." He said, glaring at a pair of teenage girls when he caught them staring and sending them skittering off blushing and giggling. "Just don't worry about the other people. They're not doing any harm by looking." Which was true but he didn't like so many eyes lingering on them and he couldn't explain why.

At any rate, the pair browsed shoes until Zach came across something he liked and moved to grab it. "Of course, we'll have to find ones that fit after all. And we won't settle on anything 100% until you've looked at some more shoes. You may still find something else you like better." He explained, though if Zach was insistent on getting those he wouldn't argue with him. Either way, once Zach had found one or two pairs of shoes he wanted, they'd pay for them and head into one of the clothing stores nearby to start shopping for Zach's wardrobe. He didn't care if they had to go to every store in the mall so long as Zach ended up with enough clothes to last at least a week, more if he could convince Zach to agree.

Zach kept casting unsure looks around at the people who were in the store with them, sometimes meeting their unapproving glares with shy questioning glances of his own. What was he doing wrong? The boy unintentionally made things worse by squeezing the Vampire's hand lightly, only gazing at him when he was spoken to again. "It's not okay to stare?" He asked with a tiny frown. Well, that was news to him. He remembered the times when some of his siblings went out of their way to find him in whatever room he happened to be in at the time... They'd never really want anything. They just wanted to pull a chair out and sit in front of him to stare. The boy never did see much reason in it and only thought that the other Angels were silly for doing it, but if they enjoyed themselves, he didn't see any reason to make a fuss. But in this world with all these people, sharing was impolite. How strange... He peered curiously after the giggling teenage girls, blinking a bit at their blushes. Yeah, he probably would never understand humans... Not until he'd lived amongst them for many many years, and even then they'd probably never get them.

When Nowe told him it was okay for him to touch the shoe, he smiled a bit and nodded, picking up the shoe and turning it this way and that. He liked this style. It was sleeker than some of the other pairs he'd seen, and looked like it might be good for running. Or walking. He wasn't going to judge. But he moved on to the next row of shoes, and after selecting a pair of skate shoes, they paid and moved on to the next store. Zachariel's grip on the Vampire's hand relaxed some, but he still kept his fingers laced through the others, peering around a bit curiously now that he wasn't quite so terrified. This place was huge, and the way some of these people talked was so odd that he couldn't help but be intrigued. He nearly tripped a few times as they walked, but once they made it to a clothing store, he more or less shrunk back in on himself and huddled close to his friend again. So many choices... Where was he supposed to start?

"Not really. It makes people uncomfortable and there's really no reason for it. These people don't know us, why should they stare at us like they really care who we are and what we're doing? It's none of their business." The stares wouldn't have bothered him if it wasn't for the fact that it bothered Zach. Like he'd told the Fae, the people weren't really doing any harm by it, but because Zach was uncomfortable he didn't like it. It didn't really make much sense but he had given up questioning why being around Zach made him act the way he did. He could either not worry about it and figure it out in time or drive himself crazy trying to figure it out right away.

Nowe let Zach wander to find his own shoes and when he'd settled on a pair made a mental note of some of the others the Fae had mentioned liking and figured he could pick them up later. But as long as Zach had one pair of shoes, that was good enough for now. And at least the Fae was relaxed enough to look around instead of clinging to him. It was progress. He did sort of wish Zach was relaxed enough to let go of his hand but another part enjoyed the feel of the Fae's hand in his. It was something he could get used to and a feeling he'd never really experienced with any of his previous lovers. Going out into public like this wasn't something he'd ever seen any real reason to do. Though that thought in and of itself was weird because Zach wasn't his lover. But then again, the idea of having Zach be his lover was intruiging. He had liked waking up curled next to Zach, after all. It would be something to consider when Zach was more comfortable. He gave Zach's hand a reassuring squeeze when the Fallen huddled closer and leaned in to speak quietly to him. "Come on. Let's look at pajamas first. We'll find some you like then get some pants for you. After that we'll look at shirts. Sound good?" Pajamas first, then pants and shirts, and anything else Zach might want after that. Then they could go for lunch and head for home. Or go home for lunch. Either way. Zach would probably be happier going home but Nowe kind of wanted to go out. But, they could figure that out once they got Zach some clothes.

Nowe was the sort of comfort blanket that Zach preferred. Sure, when he was younger he used to curl up with a stuffed animal (which he sorely missed, now that he thought about it) to bring him back ot his comfort-zone. But seeing as how he didn't have that, the next best thing was someone who he was comfortable enough with. Back when he was with his family, that person would have been his twin. As far as twin relationships went, he was extremely close with his brother. Just about the only thing he didn't do was incest; kissing and other stuff like that. Cuddling/snuggling/ or anything like that was completely fine, and when he woke up in the middle of the night from a nightmare, he could always run to Brio's room and cuddle with him until he wasn't scared anymore. The thought of cuddling with the Vampire, however, made him react a bit differently. It was more enjoyable somehow, and if asked to choose with of the two he'd rather wake up snuggled up to, he'd only pause for half a second before naming the Assassin. Don't get him wrong; he loved his brother, but being around Nowe made him happy in a way he never felt with the family.

But that's beside the point. The squeeze of his hand made his attention slide back to his friend, and he couldn't help the small smile that budded on his lips when his eyes met the others. At Nowe's suggestion, he nodded, finally releasing the Vampire's hand (though the other could probably easily tell that he was reluctant to do so) in favor of weaving through the racks. He eventually found the sleepwear one and tilted his head, picking out a pair of red and black checkered bottoms that he happened to like and pondering a shirt. "Nowe...? Can you help me pick a shirt, please?" The boy called, somewhat timidly as he peered at the shirts. There were a few he liked, but how was he supposed to pick one? Three different ones appealed to him, but he was always bad with deciding on things. So maybe Nowe could do it for him. One could only hope, at least.

It was easy enough to get lost in thought as they wandered in silence, Zach inspecting clothes here and there and Nowe merely following and watching the Fallen as he moved from rack to rack. For as much as Nowe generally disliked the mall it was sort of nice as long as he ignored the looks people were still giving them. They got fewer looks when Zach wasn't clinging to him and he was better able to relax and people watch as Zach looked at the sleepwear. He had no idea Zach was having trouble deciding on anything until he heard the tentative question. "You can pick more than one you know. I don't mind." He said, taking note of what shirts Zach was looking at. Maybe he'd think about getting some of the other stuff Zach had looked at for Christmas. Of course, that was assuming Zach stuck around that long but at this point it seemed likely. Either way, he looked over the ones Zach seemed to be favoring and indicated a black and red tie-dye shirt. "But if it helps I like that one best out of all of them. The black tie-dye is a close second though. Why not get both? That way you can change things up a bit from time to time." He suggested, leaving the final decision up to Zach.

Once Zach had decided, they headed over to pick out some pants and shirts for every day wear. Mostly he let Zach pick whatever he wanted as far as t-shirts and jeans, offering his opinion if it was asked for but always making sure he never actually made a choice for Zach, leaving him to decide on his own in the end. And then he'd make sure he had at least one nicer outfit for...well...he wasn't sure why it mattered that Zach had at least once nice shirt and a pair of dress-type pants but he did like the idea of seeing Zach 'dressed up' every once in awhile. He even found a few things for himself that he decided to buy since they were shopping anyway. And with things getting colder he reminded himself that Zach would probably need a warm jacket and such. "Come on. Lets try some of this stuff on and make sure it all fits. Then there's one more thing I want to get before we head out for lunch alright?" He said, nudging Zach toward the changing rooms with the items they weren't sure would fit or if it would look okay.

Well sure, he minded. He was on a bit of a mission here - spend the least amount of money on clothing today as possible. So when Nowe offered, Zach only smiled a little sheepishly and shrugged, gazing at a shirt before replying to him. "It's fine, Nowe... Really. And yeah, I liked the black and red one best too." He made a quiet happy noise in his throat and pulled it out a shirt in what he assumed was his size, flopping it over his arm with the pants and wandered over to the pants and shirts casual wear area, picking out a few things (and keeping an eye on the price tags. He'd figured out that the more number it had, the more it cost.) and folding them over his arm as well. Most of the things he ended up deciding on were colors that wouldn't stand out in a crowd, though he did tend to linger near the red-colored shirts or clothing items a bit longer than he did any of the other colors. One shirt in particular ended up catching his eye, and while he was still nearby, he plucked it out to try and read it. Luckily, it was mostly a graphic tee; The letter 'I', a heart, and a mouth with fangs on it. "I...love...Vampires?" He enunciated slowly, tilting his head a bit as he peered at it, then glanced over his shoulder at his friend.

He debated for a moment before folding it over his arm and turning around to face Nowe brightly when the other started talking. Hey, he liked the shirt, and the mouth looked really neat. It wouldn't hurt to try it on, right? The Fae bobbed his head in a nod, trotting after the Vampire and peering at the changing rooms for a moment. His gaze turned uncertain as he peered at the items he was supposed to be trying on, slipping the Vampire lover shirt he found in with the rest. "Be right back!" He chirped, slipping into the changing area and into one of the rooms, pulling off his shirt as soon as he locked it. Setting the clothing he was supposed to try on onto a little bench thing and pulled out the Vamp shirt from earlier, beginning to try and pull it on over his head and...realizing that something was wrong. Either the shirt was waaay too small, or he'd put his head through the wrong hole. Zachariel frowned, attempting to pull it off and seeing quickly that he couldn't. Out of panic he shoved his arm through one of the holes he found, trying to pull it on and only managing to get himself stuck more. He peered out of the hole (arm hole...) half of his face fit through and opened the door a crack. "N-Nowe...? I need help..." He called timidly, the fear clear in his voice. He looked around to make sure no one was close by before stepping out of the room, more than half his torso exposed and what part of his face that was visible looking miserable.

Lucky for Zach, Nowe had been busy browsing some other t-shirts that had caught his eye though he rarely actually bought t-shirts, preferring slightly nicer clothes to wear on a daily basis. He didn't bother Zach except for a couple times he pointed out that Zach had, he assumed, accidentally grabbed the wrong size. Beyond that, he let Zach do his own shopping. He did glance over when Zach mumbled something and he felt the other's eyes on him but only saw him eying another shirt which he folded over his arm a moment later and didn't think anything of it. Whatever Zach had said wasn't directed at him and was, therefore, not anything he needed to concern himself with.

Once they'd reached the dressing rooms, he settled himself into a chair and waited. He didn't have to wait long before Zach was calling his name and gave the dressing room a confused look before Zach stepped out and he had to try rather hard to hide his amusement, both at Zach's situation and the wording on the shirt. "Having some troubles are you?" He questioned, slipping into the fitting rooms, shooing Zach ahead of him and then closing the door behind them. He shook his head a bit, allowing himself a brief smile as he eyed Zach's predicament. He had never seen anyone get stuck in a shirt before and he wasn't quite sure how Zach had managed it. But manage it he had and he wasn't sure quite how to fix the problem. "First you have to get your arm out of there. It's in the wrong hole anyway. Then just...stand still while I get you the rest of the way out." He instructed and waited until Zach had complied before doing anything more.

Surprisingly, he had to work a little bit to get the shirt off from Zach's head but he managed it without too much difficulty. Once he'd done that, he shifted the shirt to pull it over Zach's head and stepped back to allow the Fallen to finish putting it on. He'd already decided that the shirt might be too small and studied the tags on the other clothing (partly to avoid looking at Zach's half bare chest), noting a couple more that were smaller than what Zach would wear. At least they were the same size as the vampire shirt so perhaps Zach liked some baggy shirts and others not. He'd have to wait and see what the shirt looked like once Zach had it on.

Zach sort of stood there with a wide-eyed, faintly teary expression as Nowe made his way over. He only gave a mute sort of nod when his friend spoke, turning to shuffle back to the room he'd been using before and giving a small pleading noise. "It tried to eat me..." He mumbled as best he could, peering at the other as he turned to face him. The Fallen tugged at his arm a bit, his stomach muscles contracting a bit as he wriggled before giving up. If the Vampire had been watching the movement, he'd have gotten a good look at the potential abs the Fae could have if he chose to work out just a little bit. Eventually the boy just huffed and focused on listening to what his friend was saying, frowning a bit as he tried to do as he was told. As he manuevered himself, he wondered exactly how he'd managed to get stuck like this in the shirt like that in the first place, but... Oh well. Nowe was here and he was going to get him out of it! 8'D

He squirmed a little once his arm was out of the other hole and peered at his friend a bit in a 'now what?' sort of manner, only squeaking quietly when Nowe began to try and pull his head out of the arm hole. Zachariel made quiet noises in protest, though they weren't directed at his friend; he was rather offended that the shirt refused to let him go. At one point in time, the Vampire might even have been able to hear a quiet 'Let me go!' from the Fallen as they fought with the shirt, which probably was highly amusing for the Assassin. Once his arms and head were free, he made a happy noise of gratitude...up until Nowe started to push his head through the head-hole in the shirt. The boy flailed a little, his hair standing up in every which direction as he blinked at his friend. He looked down at the shirt and shrugged, putting his arms through the -right- holes this time and tugging the shirt into place. It fit him a bit more snuggly than he was used to, but it would be the right size if he wore his clothing like that. "... It fits me tighter than the shirt you lent me does..." He said quietly, gazing at the mirror and tilting his head a bit. He liked the shirt though, so maybe they could find it in a slightly bigger size?

Nowe didn't try to notice things about Zach. He really did, because he wasn't entirely certain why it mattered to him. Yes, Zach was rather good looking and Nowe didn't mind admiring a good looking man from time to time but there was just something different about Zach. Something more than just casual interest and he didn't know why. But despite his efforts, he did tend to notice things he shouldn't and caught himself admiring Zach's stomach as the Fallen wiggled a bit in an attempt to escape the shirt. And he couldn't help but think that, with a bit of work, the Fae could have some very nice abs. He mentally shook himself to rid his mind of the thought and fixed his gaze elsewhere until Zach had managed to extricate his arm and it was time for the task of getting the shirt the rest of the way off.

Eventually, they managed and Zach was tugging the shirt into place as Nowe watched. And again, he couldn't help but admire things he ought not to admire considering he'd never seen Zach in anything other than slightly more baggy shirts. He decided he liked what he saw and nodded a bit, deciding that he really ought to just stop fighting with himself and get a proper eyeful of the Fallen while Zach wasn't really paying attention. And so that's exactly what he did right up until Zach spoke. "I can see that. If you don't like it was can grab a bigger size. These two shirts are the same size as that one." He said, indicating the other shirts of the same size that he'd noticed earlier. What he didn't say was that he half-hoped Zach decided to keep the smaller sized shirts because...well...Nowe quite enjoyed the view.

Luckily for Nowe, Zachariel managed to miss the entire part where the other had been admiring his stomach. He was much more concerned with the way the shirt fit him. His pale-green eyes flickered to the mirror in the dressing room and he paused, tilting his head at his reflection. For all that he felt a bit...sucked in by the shirt, he really wasn't. It wasn't extremely baggy like his other shirts. It was his -size-, not that he would have known had he not gotten stuck in the damn thing in the first place. He twisted a bit to continue looking at himself, tugging a tiny bit at the shirt to get it back into place and hesitating. He was used to those baggy shirts... But maybe a change would be good for him? It wasn't as if it fit him like girls seemed to like wearing their clothing; it was loose enough for breathing room, but if he would stretch or move in a certain way, it would be tugged snuggly against his chest and probably his stomach as well. Which...wasn't a bad thing. "I'm out of shape..." He mumbled mostly to himself, tugging the shirt a bit tighter against his body and frowning.

When he'd lived with the Order, he was always in shape. Living away from them and not training hard core every day like he used to had made him... Well. Not soft, but his abs weren't where he'd left them. The Fallen poked his stomach thoughtfully, contemplating a work-out routine when Nowe's voice broke into his thoughts. He peered back at his friend in the mirror instead of turning around, a faint flush creeping along his cheeks to see the nod of approval from his friend. Did he...look nice in this shirt? The boy bit his bottom lip a bit and tilted his head more, thinking for a moment before shaking his head. "No, it's alright. I'll keep this one." He tugged at the shirt again before leaning forward a bit and pulling it off, this time presenting his back to his friend as he tossed the shirt aside. He had decent muscles along his back too, not that they would be able to be admired as his stomach had been. No, his scars prevented that for the most part, but it was clear that he was actually built and was used to working out before. Hey, maybe the two could work out together? That would be a fun bonding experience. The boy reached for his own shirt, peering back at the Vampire and smiling a tiny bit more. "What next?" He asked, still holding his shirt in his hands and standing there shirtless. It was unintentional though. Really. >>

While Zach studied himself in the mirror, Nowe was quite happily studying Zach from his position by the door. If he was honest with himself, he liked looking at Zach. He could not deny that he was attracted to the Fae. The only reason he was holding back was that Zach acted so....innocent. He didn't really want to change that about Zach. But dammit if the Fallen was going to be staying with him there would come a time when Zach would notice that Nowe liked watching him. Take away Zach's innocence and Zach was a very nice looking young man. The type of guy Nowe would go for if he wanted any sort of long term relationship. And that thought alone was rather intriguing. The question was....what would Zach think? Something told him Zach wouldn't know much of anything about relationships in general much less the more...intimate details, especially when one was involved with a vampire. But Zach had let him bit him, the mark was still there on his neck. The biting wouldn't be a problem. What would be a problem would be if Zach had no interest in him. How awkward would that be? But there was really only one way to find out wasn't there? He smirked a bit at Zach's observation and shrugged. "You look fine to me." The comment could be taken innocently enough but Nowe knew better. He was flirting. He wanted to see how Zach would react.

The faint flush that crossed Zach's features was rather cute and he smiled a bit. And then Zach agreed to keep the smaller sized shirts and he couldn't help but be pleased at that. If he could get Zach to wear them more often than he did the bigger shirts he'd be quite happy. "We could get the smaller sizes in some of the other shirts too if you wanted. Personally, I think the smaller shirts look better on you." More subtle flirting and an attempt to get Zach to wear more of the properly sized shirts. of course, he was momentarily distracted by watching Zach remove the shirt though he frowned at the scars that cut across the Fallen's back. He wished there had been more he could have done to heal the wounds but he hadn't and Zach had left before he'd found someone who might have been able to help. When the Fallen turned around, however, he was presented with a full view of the Fae's chest and abs and he took full advantage of the moment to admire the view....nevermind that Zach was actually watching him do it. It wasn't as if he was doing anything wrong, after all. "What next? Well first you," He poked a finger into the middle of Zach's bare chest as he spoke. "Need to put your shirt on. As much as I enjoy the view it's improper to wander about the mall half-naked. Once you do that we can grab some different sized shirts if you want them and then we're going to get winter jackets. The weather is getting colder and I won't have you running around without a proper heavy coat." And he wouldn't take no for an answer either. "Once we've done that I think we can call it a day and go home for lunch. What do you think?" He didn't care one way or the other. He just remembered that Zach had asked to go home for lunch and since they'd finished shopping earlier than he'd expected he say no reason not to do what Zach wanted.

Zach kept smiling a bit expectantly at Nowe as he waited for the other to tell him what they'd be doing next, and tilted his head a bit at the Vampire's comment. "I do?" He asked quietly, taking another glance at himself in the mirror before canting his head a tiny bit more as he peered back at his friend. At the question presented, he frowned thoughtfully, holding the shirt in his hands up to eye level and studying it. He didn't mind the smaller shirt size. There was a time a long while ago that pretty much required him to wear clothing better suited to his frame; baggy clothing got in the way too much. So in a way the shirt's fit was familiar, which made him smile a tiny bit. He lowered the shirt again and nodded, only pausing with a faint flush of happiness at the final comment. "You really think so? I...guess smaller shirts wouldn't be so bad." The boy nodded again, setting the vampire shirt on the small bench before turning back to face his friend...

Only to find the Vampire openly admiring his body. Zachariel blinked a bit, biting his bottom lip and slowly turning a bright red color. He didn't mind that he was being looked at; it was mostly the way that his friend was looking at him that sent a fluttery feeling through his stomach. The Fae's hand flitted to his stomach at the 'butterfly' feeling, turning a bit redder as he realized that he liked the way that made him feel. Did he...like being looked at like that? After a few unsure minutes, the boy flashed a smile akin to the sun rising, even laughing lightly when the other poked his chest. "I'll get my shirt right- ... Huh?" He'd juuuust barely began to get the normal color back in his face when he was forced to turn an even deeper shade of red. His eyes widened a bit, and he quickly grabbed his own shirt to hide his face - though he didn't do much in the way of covering his chest and stomach. No. He'd much rather cover his face than actually get dressed. Instead of actually answering, he just nodded quickly, flipping his shirt upside down and trying to pull it on. Once he had it on the right way, he gathered up the clothing he'd brought in there to try on.

"T-that sounds f-fine, Nowe..." He managed to reply, still the bright in the face...though now smiling happily. Yes, he finally decided that he liked that sort of attention from Nowe... Though he still couldn't, for the life of him, figure out why it made him that happy.

Nowe nodded at Zach's question and smiled a little. "Yes you do. And really, isn't it the opinion of friends and family that count more than the opinions of strangers anyway?" He questioned, mimicking Zach and canting his head a bit as he waited for a response. He was amused by the way Zach's cheeks flushed and the all too innocent responses to his comments. He nodded at the next question and smiled a bit more when Zach agreed to what he wanted. "I really think so. I have had a lot of years to look at people and know what looks good on people and what does not. The more fitted shirts look good on men who are built like we are. Why do you think I wear shirts like this one? I look good in them." He questioned, indicating his own shirt and drawing attention to the way it clung to him a bit more than a t-shirt would have. Of course, Zach had noticed that earlier but Nowe had been more occupied with picking his clothes out than in paying that much attention to Zach. And Nowe did want to see how Zach reacted and paid close attention to the way Zach looked at him.

Of course, they were both very much distracted by other things only a moment later when Zach turned around and caught Nowe watching him. And his reaction to that only served to confirm Nowe's suspicions that Zach was every bit as innocent as he appeared to be. Which would make pursuing things rather interesting if Zach had no idea he was even being pursued. The smile Zach gave him was well worth it though and it drew a smile from the Vampire as well. He liked that Zach could make him smile and he certainly liked the fact that he could make Zach smile so brightly. After everything Zach had been through that much happiness was something Nowe wasn't sure he'd ever really see. At least not for a long time. He couldn't help but laugh a little when Zach proceeded to hide his face, leaving his stomach and chest open for further viewing though Nowe looked away from that and tried to look at the Fallen's face. "What? Haven't you ever been complimented like that before?" He questioned, pausing for a moment to consider how to proceed as Zach put his shirt on (and here Nowe did frown a bit as it was a bit baggier than the other shirts).

Instead of actually saying anything more, however, Nowe merely nodded and helped gather up the shirts Zach had picked out, sorting out the smaller sizes and handing them to the fallen as he gathered up the larger ones, though he did hand over a few of the baggier shirts to Zach as well since they were ones he didn't like as much. "Come on then. We'll get these shirts in the smaller size, they'll look better on you than the others I gave you. Then we'll find the coats." He explained and opened the door to the dressing room. The girls from the shoe store had apparently had other shopping to do and he was greeted by the sight of them seeing him and Zach, giggling and scurrying off. He shook his head at their retreat and headed off (presumably with Zach not that far behind) to gather the right sized shirts. Once they had those, they'd head over to find the winter jackets.

This attention he was getting from Nowe pleased him in ways he couldn't quite figure out, but it wasn't a bad thing. So he chose to ignore it for the time being, only nodding a bit to Nowe's question with a shy smile. Yes, the opinions of family and friends mattered more... Though a stranger's opinion mattered a bit to him all the same. Of course, it really depeneded on the situation, but that wasn't the point. A curious glance flickered to the Vampire when he drew attention to himself, and Zach really couldn't help but notice that yes, his friend looked very nice in fitted shirts like that. His smile turned faintly appreciative as his eyes traveled the other's body, but really, he wasn't aware of what he was doing. He eventually just nodded to the assassin and looked away shyly to avoid staring. There was a part of him, equally as confusing as the attention-liking part, that enjoyed looking at his friend. Because the other was very easy on the eyes...not that the Fae would be able to say as much.

At the poor Vampire's second question, all he could really manage was to shake his head, looking so flustered it was probably a surprise that he could even do that. He kept the smaller shirts clutched close to his chest as he followed the other, nodding cheerfully and peering curiously after the girls as they scurried off. Females. He'd never really understand them. Once they'd gone back to find the other shirts in smaller sizes, they moved on to the part of the store that had the winter jackets. It was trial and error for a while, but eventually Zach managed to find one he liked (read: it was cheap and probably black), they gathered all of the clothing and went to pay. This whole ordeal wasn't as terrifying as he'd originally thought it was, and had eventually relaxed enough to stop reaching for Nowe's hand whenever he got bumped or brushed against. He couldn't quite help lightly grasping the end of the other's shirt though.

Once they had walked out of the store, they decided to wander to some other store (one that Baine will not list because she can't think of one right now |D ), with Zach peering around happily as he took in the new sights. This place, now that he wasn't so confined, was kinda interesting. People of all shapes and sizes wandered past, laughing or talking with one another. It was a new experience that he was slowly beginning to like. As they passed a jewelry store, the Fae paused to peer at the precious jewels and other trinkets, smiling a bit at them before happening to glance up at the television. There was a bunch of fancy lettering going on, and it was moving too fast for him to really read, but the two people in the comercial were really what held his attention. They were standing on their back porch, with the man saying something to a woman before getting her to look above their heads. There was...some sort of plant hanging there, and when she saw it she smiled and kissed him. Afterwards, he presented her with a ring after getting down on one knee, and then more fancy lettering happened. Huh. The Fae tilted his head a bit before wandering away, shrugging as he waited for Nowe to tell him where they were going.

Though...there was a part of him that wondered what it was like to press his lips to someone else's. He'd find out eventually, though. ;D

Nowe stored what information he'd gathered about Zach for later consideration and let the subject go. There was really no use in tormenting the other too much in such a short amount of time. So they simply finished their shopping without too much more blushing or embarrassing comments. And then, instead of heading straight home, they decided to wander the mall since Zach was feeling more outgoing and they had no reason they needed to hurry home. So they wandered in and out of a couple stores (mostly ones that had brightly colored displays of Christmas decorations since Zach seemed to like those). He more or less let Zach choose where they stopped and kept an eye on the Fae to try and learn as much about him as he could. That and he wanted to make sure Zach wasn't too uncomfortable with anything going on around them and such.

Overall, their wanderings were pretty aimless and Nowe was happy to just spend time with Zach. Which was...a bit of an odd sensation for the vampire. But he dismissed it and simply paused when Zach stopped at a jewelry store to admire some of their display. He didn't catch what Zach saw on the television but he did spy something else that Zach hadn't and smiled a bit to himself. The jewelry store, probably in an attempt to have guys mimic the commercial Zach had just seen, had hung a fake mistletoe off to one side of the store. And by some coincidence, Zach was heading right for it. So, with hims smile still in place, Nowe caught up to the Fae and pulled him to a stop under the mistletoe. Without a word, he leaned in and gave Zach a quick kiss before taking a step back, though he didn't walk away as he was far too interested in seeing Zach's reaction. Not to mention he was half considering stealing another kiss from the Fae. The brief one he'd just given had been...he didn't really know how to describe it but he'd never felt such a thrill when he'd kissed anyone before. There was definitely something different about Zach that he really liked and that only made the assassin all that much more determined to figure out what it was.

Things were so bright here! Zach's eyes lit up every time they passed by a Christmas decoration, and the stores that had trees in them were his favorites. One of the stores had their tree in the very back, and some...really big man in red pajamas. The Fae frowned, peering in through the window as he watched kids go to sit on his lap. Making a mental note to ask Nowe why that was going on, he continued to wander, glancing at his friend when he was pulled to a stop. The Fallen's expression was open as he turned to his friend, clearly expecting to be told where they'd be heading next... Only to get a surprise kiss on the lips. His pale green eyes flashed to crimson for a moment out of surprise, and despite the moment being brief, he closed his eyes to enjoy it regardless. He enjoyed it to the point that when his friend stepped away from him, a tiny noise of protest slipped out before the boy could stop it, cheeks flaming as he peered at the other.

What...had that been? He'd all but melted from that tiny little peck! Zachariel wrung his hands on his shirt, biting his bottom lip a bit as a small smile curved his lips. Despite not entirely knowing what the kiss was for or why he was reacting the way he was, he decided he liked it. Enough so that instead of the question he -did- ask, he had been about to ask Nowe to do it instead. However, a quiet "W-what...was that for...?" He asked, not entirely understanding it...hell. He didn't understand it at all. It sent a sharp feeling of longing through him, and he partially leaned forward a bit as he waited for the other to explain. Slowly but surely his gaze returned to the floor, and he kneaded the end of his shirt a bit...which, Baine would like to add, would be the perfect 'use a finger to tilt his face back up to eye-level' moment. Just so you know.

Nowe had intended to just give Zach a quick peck on the cheek. But the Fae had turned at the wrong moment and....well....it was a little late for Nowe to change direction or decide to stop. His lips met the Fae's and he half-considered not pulling away when he did. He quite enjoyed the brief kiss and the sound of protest Zach made told him the Fallen had enjoyed it too. Nowe got the distinct impression that Zach didn't understand why he'd liked the kiss or much of anything Nowe had done thus far but the fact remained that the body knew what it liked and responded accordingly. Call it chemicals, instincts, genetics or whatever else you wanted to call it but Zach was very much attracted to men. That much was certain. And that, for the moment, was all Nowe had really wanted to know.

He watched Zach for a moment as the Fae fidgeted and blushed in the most adorable way. The question only earned a slight shrug (not that Zach would see it) from the Vampire as he stepped closer. A small smile tugging at the corners of his lips. "No reason really." He said, reaching up to tilt Zach's face back up so he could meet his gaze. "I just wanted to kiss you. Do I need a reason to do that?" He questioned before leaning in and kissing the Fallen again. Why? He wasn't sure but it seemed like a good idea at the time and he couldn't really think of a reason not to do it.

Except for the fact they were in the mall and making out in public was not something the vampire was fond of doing. So he pulled away from the second kiss and stepped back again, with a smile for the Fallen. "I think it's time we head home. We have a lot to talk about you and I." He suggested, holding out his hand for Zach to take.

It'd come as no surprise that Zach completely missed the shrug his question earned, if only because he'd decided that his shoes were quite interesting in that moment. However, because he was so focused on the floor, he noticed that the other took a step closer. The Fae blinked, raising his eye-level just a tiny bit to rest on Nowe's shins, biting on his lip again as he waited for some sort of response. Because really, one didn't run around kissing others willy nilly without some kind of reason...right? Suddenly the Fallen wasn't so sure, which was enough of a distraction for him until his face was tilted back up. Another furious blush (though his previous blush never really left) stole across his cheeks, a tiny noise of question slipping out. This was so foreign and exciting and- Oh... For the second time in such a short amount of time, the boy's eyes fluttered wide open, though this time he just sort of...retreated into his mind and allowed his body to react for him. Which it did, in a way he probably wasn't expecting.

Not only did his eyes close this time, but he actually sort of...kissed back this time. It probably wouldn't have been noticed by the other, but it was definitely a reaction. And then Nowe was pulling away again, leaving a slightly breathless, blushing Zach once again. The boy's eyes were saucers, and he were biting his lip a bit as he peered uncertainly at the Vampire. Because that...he'd liked that. He'd liked that a lot. He probably would have continued to stand in that spot if not for the assassin smiling at him, which made a smile bud on the Fallen's own lips of their own accord. "H-home..." Was all he managed before reaching out to entertwine their fingers together, squeezing the other's hand and stepping quickly to his side. He would have been completely happy to let the blush fade, if not for a couple of twittering birds... And by birds, I mean girls. Seems as if the girls they'd already run into several times that day had followed them, and had been there to witness the kisses. One shrieked in happiness when the Fae turned his gaze to her, gathering up her flock and hurrying them along before they attracted the attention of the blue-eyed male.

Their reactions only seemed to fuel the flush on his cheeks, and he turned his head to hide his face in Nowe's arm. "C-can we go now...?" He mumbled, waiting for the other to start walking so that he could continue having someplace to hide his facial expression. He hadn't been embarrassed before, but now...now he just wanted to go back home where there was only him and his friend. No one else. And maybe they could do more of that lip-touching thing there. ... Possibly.

Kissing Zach had set Nowe's heart racing in a way it hadn't done in a very long time. And even so, this was the first time he'd ever felt so much from just one little kiss. It was both confusing and exciting and some part of him was vaguely aware that getting that closely involved with anyone could be a very bad idea. Not only could they be used against him but he could potentially be distracted by their presence which could prove deadly. And perhaps he was over-confident but he was sure he could handle it. He had, after all, been an assassin for a very long time and was very good at not being distracted from his job. Besides, having someone besides Corisandra to return home to was a rather nice thought. Of course, all thought in that direction ceased when the twittering pair of girls from earlier showed up again and promptly scurried off again, giggling and squealing like idiots. He glared after them but it wasn't them that caught his eye. Instead, he fixated on a group of slightly older boys, perhaps in their early twenties, that were whispering and glaring in their direction.

Luckily, Zach had his face buried in his arm and didn't see the boys as they slunk off, still casting dirty looks over their shoulder at the pair. "Sure. We can go. Come on." He said, giving Zach's hand a light squeeze as he gently tugged the fae forward. They would go home and then...then they'd see what happened. He really didn't think things would go much further today but then, he hadn't thought he'd kiss Zach in the middle of the mall either. Who knew what else might happen though he certainly didn't expect anything more than some fun making-out and a long chat about just how innocent Zach was.

At any rate, they made it to the parking lot quickly enough and were heading toward the car when Nowe picked up the faint sounds of someone following them. He didn't think it was the girls because they would be giggling like fools and the footsteps were heavier. It could easily have just been someone else walking to their car but something told him it wasn't as innocent as that and he mentally prepared for a fight of some sort though he had no idea what to expect.

((Derp....short. But there you have it. Maybe Nowe will leave me alone now. Also, I leave it up to you what the guys say or do that sets Zach/Reaper off and so on. Or you could decide it's something completely innocent and Nowe is just being paranoid. Your choice. <3))

He allowed Nowe to lead the way back to the parking lot, only lifting his gaze from the ground to look around once they'd left the building. So many people and so many things to see... Today had been eventful to be sure. Zach wasn't sure if he was ready to repeat this experience any time soon, but he did want to try it again some day. He liked watching how others interracted with each other, and as long as Nowe went with him, he wouldn't mind dealing with being pushed or nudged. Possibly at least. If he nearly got knocked over again, chances are he'd cling to the Vampire like he'd done earlier... Which Nowe didn't seem to mind, luckily enough.

Once they'd started making their way to the car, Zachariel visibly releaxed, leaning slightly towards his friend as they walked. He was completely oblivious to the fact that they were being followed, at least until something cold and wet hit him in the back of the head. The Fallen squealed, jumping forward a bit and letting go of Nowe's hand as some sort of soda leaked down his forehead. The boy remained frozen for a little bit before turning slowly to see where the cup had come from, shrinking closer to the Vampire as the boys from earlier came into view. "Don't you two know this is a homo-free zone?" One sneered, crossing his arms and glaring at the Fae as he scooted closer to his friend. "I...Uhm..." He cleared his throat, attempting to smile a bit. "A what-free zone...?" The boy didn't miss a beat, taking a few quick steps closer with his posse close behind. "You know. Homo. Gay. Fags. What you two are." He jerked a thumb in the other's direction, leaning towards the Fallen with another sneer.

Zach took a few quick steps back, but not because the boy kept getting closer; no, he'd pulled out a knife and had the blade pointed at him. The boy whimpered a bit, patting his pockets down and cursing himself for not bringing his scythe crystal with him. Not that it would have mattered anyway - the damn thing never listened to him. "We're gonna teach you to stay home. We don't need you freaks messing around in our mall. It's disgusting." The others grumbled in agreement, closing in ranks and causing the Fae to back up a few more times. Why was this happening? He chanced a glance at Nowe, eyes pleading for him to tell him what to do. Surely he had to know of some- The moment his eyes left the boy with the knife, the other lunged, slashing the blade across the Fallen's cheek. He gave a cry, allowing himself to fall backwards to avoid most of the attack but getting knicked in the process...

Then the world went black.

After staying on the ground a moment (while the boys laughed might I add), the Fallen got to his knees, keeping his head bowed to keep his eyes from view. "Now...why would you go and do a stupid thing like that for?" He questioned, his tone darker and carefully controlling his anger. Turning his head just enough to let Nowe see his piercing crimson eyes, he smirked, raising the back of his hand to his cheek and wiping off the thin trail of blood. "What say you? Think we should teach them a lesson for messing with the wrong people?"

(OOC: Alright... xD; Feel free to play some of them if you want. This doesn't have to last long. <3 )

Nowe's faint hope that nothing would happen was shattered the second something cold and wet hit Zach and splashed onto his cheek as well. He turned to his friend to try and help clean up and tell him not to worry about it, that they'd just go home and have lunch, maybe watch a movie and just forget about the attack of the soda. Unfortunately, before he could say anything, the Fae was responding to the insult, the last thing Nowe had wanted him to do. Because answering them only antagonized them. But Zach was afraid, that much was very clear and Nowe was pissed. Normally, being insulted didn't bother him. He'd lived hundreds of years with such insults and had, for the most part, ignored them. But this, this was too much. "Zach ignore them. These zuckungen do not deserve to be paid attention to." He said, cursing sharply in German when Zach stepped backward and he saw the knife in the stranger's hand.

He missed Zach's pleading look because he was entirely focused on the leader of the little pack. He did not, however, miss the boy lunging forward and before the knife had even left Zach's cheek, Nowe had darted forward and with vampiric speed had not only disarmed the boy but had him laid flat on his back with the blade against his throat before Zach even spoke. He could see fear in the boy's eyes and he smiled a dark smile as he looked up at Zach though....he knew this wasn't Zach. This was the one he'd 'met' when he'd first found Zach. He didn't know why or how but he had a feeling Zach and this side of Zach were sort of like two different people. While the other was talking, Nowe flicked the blade up and slashed it across the boy's cheek, leaving a mark upon him that matched the one on Zach. With a hiss of breath he leaned down to whisper in the boy's ear, smearing blood across his own cheek as he did so. "That is for marking my friend. No one but me is allowed to mark him so. He is mine and you are lucky I have no reason to kill you." The idea was terribly appealing but for all that the boy was an idiot, he was also an innocent. And he did not kill innocents.

Knowing that once 'Zach' got into the fight the boy's friends wouldn't just stand around and stare (they were still recovering from the shock of Nowe's sudden move) he leaned back and smacked the boy's head against the ground hard enough to knock him out and was on his feet and standing alongside Zach before much else could happen. "Shall we then? I think they need to be taught a lesson." He questioned, flashing the Fae a dangerous smile and nodding toward the other boys.

The dark smile from the Vampire was enough to get Reaper to grin like the Cheshire Cat, and he chuckled openly to see that the other had already incapacited one of the boys. The one who had knicked him, even. The Fae raised the back of his hand to his cheek again, bringing the hand up to his lips to flick his tongue over it, giving the remaining boys a wicked look as he finally stood. Dusting off his pants and looking a bit bored, he tilted his head to see Nowe speaking to the leader of the group, looking vaguely interested in whatever it was the other was saying. If his curiosity had been a bit stronger, chances are he'd have tried to listen in on him. As it were, he wasn't terribly concerned with whatever the Assassin was saying, so instead he turned his attention to the remaining boys, allowing them to see his seering eye color and almost demonic-smirk. "Yes, let's. I don't really appreciate being ganged up on for no legitimate reason." And the way his lip twitched when he spoke would be easy enough to tell that he was more than just annoyed.

No, Reaper was royally pissed at the moment, and the boys should consider themselves lucky that Nowe was there with him. If the Vampire hadn't been there, chances are he'd have left them in bloody pieces everywhere. The dangerous smile the other gave him was returned whole-heartedly, along with something much...darker dancing behind his eyes. He didn't like being leashed, and it didn't seem as if the man was going to try holding him back. Putting most of his weight on his left leg, the Fae slid closer, lunging from the right to grab one of them and trip him at the same time, landing on the boy's back and crushing his face into the ground. At the boy's scream, the Fallen shivered, leaning more weight into the boy's back and face. "What's the matter? Don't like it when the tables are turned on you?" He hissed, smacking the human's head against the ground a few more times before getting off him and turning his attention to the others. There was a wild look to the Angel as he faced them, his nostrils flared a bit. Why? Simple - there was the scent of blood in the air, and typically he couldn't quite handle himself when that particular smell was around. So he stood there, quivering from head to toe as his eyes darted around, looking for the next victim.

Er...bring it on?

(OOC: You're free to decide how many boys there actually are in the group. Wasn't sure if we'd actually decided or not. If you want one to attack Zach, go for it. <3 )