Azrael

Only Fools Walk Where Angels Fear To Tread

She seemed almost...anxious, in his presence. That much was hardly new he supposed. The vast majority of the world so often seeming to find themselves overly nervous at his existence and yet it was....a rarity among other Hunter's. Especially those whom held a similar rank to his own. Buffy continued to twirl that shot glass around and atop that worn bar table in some response to the nervous energy he could all but feel coming off of her. Great. Someone else to be afraid off him. For now however, the blond Hunter hardly chose to respond. His attention remaining largely upon his own glass and the phone that vibrated several times within his pocket. It was rare in every sense for the often apathetic blond to make any attempt at socializing, especially with anyone from work, Azrael decidedly well known for his bad temper and generally irritable demeanor enough that precious few ever attempted to befriend the man in any real sense. Yet, today, the man had at least resigned to making...some attempt with the woman who sat beside him. Even if he was assured her performance reports of late had hardly been anything truly satisfying. She was hardly the only one who failed to take that job as seriously as himself. His very life having near fixated for years around his job and work alone. Serafina so managing to slowly.....slowly begin to pry him back into the world he had.....been missing for so very long. That query on just why she was here prompting that mention of family and a frown upon his own features. Family, he supposed, explained that look to her features and her poor efforts to conceal that emotion. That comment leaving his lips near without thought. The words perhaps....harsher then he meant them to be and yet family had never been a topic he had so excelled in. Either being part of one- or discussing one.

Buffy's sudden retort that at least she had family readily saw his golden gaze flicker sideways to met her own, that glimmer of surprise at such a comment readily swallowed by a scowl of sorts as his features hardened. His lack of family was hardly a secret, he supposed. It was in his file. The same file accessible to any Hunter who worked within the Council fold. Buffy had clearly taken a look at it before- else she'd simply been keen enough to observe he worked every holiday, every year. After all, it wasn't as if he had anyone waiting at home. At least....not until now. Not until Sera. The raven haired witch a secret he had little intention of revealing- especially not to another member of that Council itself. Azrael biting back that comment that had already risen to his lips. He'd probably deserved it really, maybe he hadn't been as polite as he could have and yet the man was little save for blunt the vast majority of the time.

"Thank you for the reminder."

That near clipped tone to his own lyrics was surely equally as clear and yet, for now, that irritable temper was pressed further downward. The Hunter lifting his own drink back toward his lips before offering her the answer to her question about just what he was doing here in the middle of that busy holiday period. Her sudden query on the 'friend' whose texts he was hiding seeing his jaw set firmly. Just what was she implying? Maybe it hardly mattered. She was clearly more observant then she looked and yet in this Azrael was decidedly well practiced in remaining.....calm. The blond man merely offering that dismissive shrug off his shoulders, one that hardly gave away the rapid beat to his heart he was damn well thankful she couldn't hear.

"What does it matter to you? Do you often let people you barely know read your texts?"

One eye lifted upward as if near daring her to challenge him on it further. Azrael nothing short of determined to change that subject then and direct that focus away from himself and right back at the woman seated beside him. The Hunter asking after that...alcoholism Buffy had suffered with for far longer then he was sure the Council deemed lenient. He had not, perhaps, intended for that very query to be so blunt as it was delivered. The womans history, or what little he knew of it in that area, was nothing short of traumatic. Sensitivity however was hardly his most called upon ability. His blunt questioning prompting the woman to near freeze in place. A far less gracious part of him almost pleased he'd managed to upset if if only for her own vague attempts to pry into his life- childish though he was inclined to deem his own actions all at once. That distinct 'fuck you' all but hissed in his direction- as if that was hardly the first time he'd heard that. The blond reaching for his own drink again as Buffy all but downed what remainder of hers- only to shatter that shot glass and send those shards flying. Azrael, this time, leaning readily away.

"For fucks sake was that really necessary? Christ, Buffy!"

Alright. Fine. Maybe her drinking problem was far more of an issue then even he had realised. At least- she was more sensitive about it then he'd anticipated. Buffy lent across him then, reaching for a cloth napkin before attempting to bandage it around her hand, that bar having fallen quiet then. Azrael glanced briefly after his shoulder, the majority of those patrons hurrying to look away lest they meet his gaze, that slow chatter beginning again. Buffy insisting she was working on coming back full time.

"Yes, I can see that."

Those words were very near snapped once more and yet, this time, the man seemed to....catch himself. His golden gaze glanced briefly away from the woman, that sigh of sorts forced from his lips, one hand lifting to run though his hair before the other reached suddenly for his own. His touch decidedly gentle.

"Look, I didn't mean to piss you off that fucking much alright? Conversation isn't one of my talents- now let me look at your damn hand, you've probably got some glass in it. That's an order."

His grip tightened ever so slightly on her hand to prevent her jerking it away before he could examine it. That taint of authority finding his words all the same as his reached forward to unwind that napkin just enough to examine the wound beneath. Azrael using a loose corner of that napkin to brush two tiny shards of glass from from her skin before binding that wound far more appropriately. Maybe she'd failed the first aid course last year. The man releasing her hand back to her a moment later. Azrael attempting to take something of a softer approach. His words quieter now, his tone far more even as he met her gaze.

"We've been lenient with you, Buffy. With everything....that happened. I don't know all the details, only what's in your file, but the fact of the matter is we need you to start doing your job again. We need you full time at that. We, they really, the others on the Council, are running out of patience. You missed four meetings in the past month, you know that right?"