Dark Alleies and Dead Bodies (Part 1 First Observer then Open)

- Tee-hee, thanks, miss Lorencia! I'm happy to help!

Perhaps it was lack of fear as a feeling within the metal girl, that she did not find the vampire's approach very intimidating. But she seemed happy enough that her efforts were graded so highly, letting out an almost-cheerful metallic giggle, and an almost cute little smile. Almost. It was just the little unnoticeable tidbit missing that made it fall into the pit of the uncanny valley. A bit too wide, a bit too unmovable. And maybe it was the color of her face that amplified the impression. Doesn't matter.

Once let go, Sasha went quiet again, like a good girl, not wishing to interrupt the nice vampire lady, which told Stan that there were way more vampires around here than anyone would know, or could see. This was so exciting! If everyone else were as nice as the shop-keeper lady, then it would be a fun visit! Maybe the automaton could make a few more friends along the way.

But then again... It was one of the vampires that did this to the poor girl that died earlier? Sasha couldn't help but feel a tinge of sorrow for that, a reminiscence of her own experience with losing a life. She sat quietly, looking down for a few moments, as she, eventually, came to a rather simple realization. That people could be good or bad. And that one should not judge a book by its cover. But, that train of thought was stopped, when Stan just ... stormed out of the room, leaving both her, and the vampire tea mistress behind.

- Mister Agent! Where are you going? - she called out, and was about to follow, but was stopped for a second by Lorencia's words. It was an advice for her... But a strange one. Sasha turned her head 180 degrees, to look back at the lady without turning the rest of the body, and blinked, curiously. She mentioned love - a feeling Sasha read about in the books. It was described as both hurting, warm, and fuzzy at the same time. Strange. Sasha never felt something like this before, her heart made out of steel. None the less, she nodded, and answered:

- Sure thing, miss Lorencia! I will remember to not experience fuzzy feelings at night! - she said, and ran after the agent, who seemed to be making too much haste to make distance between himself and the tea shop... Maybe running away from Sasha as well? But why? She didn't do anything bad, did she? Eventually, the automaton girl caught up, slowing down and walking by the man's side.

- Why is mister Agent in such a hurry? Why didn't you say good bye to the nice shopkeeper lady with the jewel? It was not a nice thing to do. She offered us tea! - Sasha pouted, crossing her arms in front of herself. But soon enough, she asked another, a more ... present question.

- Where are we going? We're gonna find more vampires, right?

Stan avoided the questions of why he knew Larencia. There was a time when he would talk about such an event, having found joy in it, but ever sense that fateful event in New York he couldn't find any joy in memories. "That's right, Sasha, we'll find the ambassadors and question whether or not their subjects are taking in more than just sights." He said as he took out a cigarette and placed it in his mouth, lighting it with the lighter that was given to him by the woman who was going to be his wife, the one who owned that tea shop. He breathed out a plum of smoke as it curled and died when it reached the cloudy sky. It was a bad habit, he had to admit, but it was the only one that dulled some of the pain he had to deal with when investigating a case.

"There are only four Opera houses in Jump City, not including theaters that can be used as Opera houses. Two are in working condition, one is near bankruptcy, and the other is closed off. We'll start with the closed off one. Then tomorrow we'll have to go to the school, announce the death of the student, and observe their reactions to find the other ambassador and his group. The last is the police station, which would be the easiest to get in but the hardest to find. So many magical creatures jailed away as normal citizens, but luckily I have a feeling we won't need to be looking in the cells, just the front desk." He took the cigarette out of his mouth and let out a breath of smoke. "The other problem is getting the ambassadors to cooperate with us. Some can be a little hot headed and high and mighty."