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Soul's Choice (started)



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Sat Jul 27, 2013 5:57 pm
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crossroads says...



Cleo | Masque's shop/Silver's mansion/the carnival | Day One
*

I stayed in front of the shop, glaring after Dad as he left.
I was sure he was summoned - there was no other reason he would leave me like that - but still I felt somewhat betrayed. He was a tangible person so rarely. It wasn't fair that she happened to need him just as he was both in human form and good enough mood to walk around with me.

With a sigh, I pushed the door open, smiling a bit as the small bells chimed. I loved Masque's shop; everything in it, from the atmosphere to the owner, and I knew the stories of most masks in there. Masque never seemed particularly thrilled to answer my questions, and I had no way of knowing if I was told the truth, but nevertheless I loved their stories, and each time I'd walk in, I'd spot a new mask. As if they were alway getting new ones - even though I knew they weren't making new contracts.

"Did you run away?"

I turned to the voice, grinning. Masque was in their female form, leaning against the counter, those different eyes of hers observing me from behind the cat mask. She was holding the other one - the one she wore for her contractor - and I was fairly sure I wouldn't be looking at her true self for much longer.

"Dad was summoned," I said in reply, closing my eyes for a second, letting my wings turn visible. It was more tiring to keep them hidden than I'd have liked to admit.

Masque lifted an eyebrow. "Is that wise?"

I shrugged. "You are in your true form too."

"I don't have wings," she pointed out, putting on the mask of that girl. It was only visible there for a second - in the next moment, her appearance changed, turning into that dark-haired human girl. She was pretty, and I knew, more or less, why Masque used her shape so much, but I've always preferred the demons' true forms. Except for Dad's..

"It's getting hard to keep pretending," I confessed silently, looking away, making the wings invisible once more. I needed to make a contract, I probably needed it more than anyone else, yet I couldn't help but feel somewhat scared. Unlike my dad, who didn't care about the moral matters when doing what he was asked to do, managing to always turn the situation to suit him, I knew I'd have troubles doing something I wouldn't approve of, and without Dad to point me in the right direction, I was worried I'd make too many wrong choices.

"I wish I could give you something.." She moved from the counter, gently touching a mask on the wall. "But I'm afraid it won't be of any use to you." She turned back to me, smiling a bit. "If you want some advice, I'm here. "

I smiled back, but quickly turned serious. "I know," I said silently, biting my lip. I picked up on those small human actions over the years, it was something Dad didn't quite approve of even though he admitted it was good to be able to blend in. I glanced at the mask in the glass cage. "Will you be coming to the carnival?"

"Good," she said, but then frowned a bit. "You do know that on doesn't have to see humans the way your father does?" She took off the mask, appearing as their male form this time. "I'll go there, and entertain a bit. I haven't played the part of a jester in quite a while."

I let my eyes slide over his appearance; I have always liked the colours, and the way he wore those clothes. I hoped, once I'd get to the carnival, that I'd see him perform. Your mother was always drawn by those shiny colourful showoffs, Dad grinned as I told him about Masque's stories a few years back. Thinking of Dad and this mum I was so alike yet I knew nothing of her, I sighed. "I don't see humans the way Dad does, I don't think," I said. "But I don't remember the day mum died, and it was their responsibility."

"No," Masque replied, "those were the actions of a few hunters, not all humans. There are humans who are.." He glanced at the mask in the glass cage. Love of his life. I knew nothing more about it - even if Dad did, he never told me, and Masque liked keeping it for themselves. "The hunters kill demons to avenge their friends, and demons kill hunters for the same reason. It never ends."

"My mum did nothing wrong," I said, frowning a bit, harsher that I intended. "In the generation of those hunters, she wasn't even acting as one of us."

"The generation of those hunters?" He seemed untouched by my tone. "Humans are just as good at holding grudges as demons are. Hate can live on forever.. It doesn't stop until one part lets go."

Dad will never let go. I was sure of it. Back when she was alive, he wasn't killing mortals, neither of them did. "But we can't change." I couldn't help the sadness creep into my voice. I didn't like living this way either. "We don't steal souls, they ask us to take them and they get what they wish for in return."

 He smiled a bit. "I know that, but they don't. We're a lot stronger than them, and not all of us are nice, so it's not hard to understand why they fear us."

Fear us and hate us, but they know nothing. "Without them, we would die. They should understand that." I sighed. I knew they would never really understand.  I let my eyes wander over all the masks around us. "..do you think calling mortals to the town was a good move?"

"I'm not sure," he admitted. "Before Martin called for me, I settled down here so that I wouldn't have to make any more contracts. I don't really need more souls. Letting unbound humans in here.. It might prove to be a bad move, but for now it's necessary."

 "Mm..Once your contract expires, you'll be as vulnerable as us, no?" I smiled a bit, glancing around again. "Well, far less than myself. But still.."

"I suppose I would.. But that won't happen for at least fifty more years.. And even then, it doesn't take me long to make a new one. Seconds, if I'm in a crowd, which is why I wanted to get away from the humans."

"...what if he gets killed?" It slipped my tongue, and I shook my head. He didn't need to answer that. I was sure he was more than able to protect his contractor if it came to that. "Are they supposed to be so..replacable?"

"I won't let him die before his time, unless he asks for it." Masque sighed. "No, they're not supposed to be so replaceable.. I don't make contracts like most demons, I just walk into them. If someone wishes something strongly enough when I'm around, I'll get bound by it."

I felt my eyes widening a bit. "Without asking? I wish it was that simple for me." I walked over to the counter and pushed myself up, glaring at the ceiling and the masks that grinned at me from up there. "You seem to like your contractor."
 
"No, you don't," he answered to the first, muttered part of my question. "You have no idea what some people would give their souls for, an you wouldn't have any choice but to do it." He looked away for a moment. "Martin is interesting, and I'm curious how his soul will look."

"Yes.." I couldn't make my voice come out as anything much louder than a whisper. "But it keeps you alive. I have no choice but to persuade someone, and if I choose a wrong person, I might lose years trying to do that." I hugged myself, thinking about that again. If I lost all the souls I had, what would Dad do?

"You shouldn't worry about it. Desperate humans have a certain look in their eyes. When you learn to spot that, you'll be set for life." He smiled an encouraging smile, but it didn't quite convince me.

"Dad said the same, more or less..he says there will be desperate people on the carnival tonight." The two of them never particularly liked each other, yet at occasions they tended

"There will, no doubt, but there will aslo be dangerous ones there. I'll keep an eye out for you."

"I'm not a kid," I cut automatically, but smiled again as I looked at him. "But thank you."

 "You're younger than me," he ruffled my hair, "and I'm like a kid compared to your dad. I suppose we're both kids.. And I'll still be keeping an eye out."

And Dad is a kid compared to uncle Avvie. I grinned. "I'm the youngest in town, I think. It's not that much fun." I made a pouting face, then letting my eyes slip to the mask in the glass cage. "..How old were you when you made your first contract?"

His smile died away, as if someone turned the switch. "I was barely an hour," he said, and i turned serious again as well. "It was one that I didn't want to make.. One that I'm still trying to undo."

You shouldn't have asked him that, Cle. "I'm sorry." I bit my lip. "What's it like to not be born a demon?" I'd always wondered - from as much as I knew, it was rare for a demon to be born that way, and in the kind I shared with my mother and father it happened next to never.

"I only existed as something else for a very short time," Masque said slowly, "and being an inanimate object is like.." He shook his head. "I was nothing. A thing. No thought, not anything. Can you imagine being nothing?" He seemed to be waiting for my response, but I couldn't think of one. "Then I was suddenly something, and my whole world consisted of the girl whose face I sat on.. And then I was suddenly a demon."
*

There was something somewhat sad, I thought as I left Masque's shop a few hours later and followed Dad home, in the way Elia acted around her brother, caring for him like for a child. I remembered when I was little, Dad being there for me at all times. I wonderd if Lyan would ever remember his sister taking care of him.

She was smart, Dad's contractor - that was probably why she still was Dad's contractor - yet it was obvious she was afraid of him. Everyone is afraid of him. I smiled a bit as she talked about her brother. How he protected her, and how he was smart and good at keeping people safe. How the two of them together could keep anyone-- Wait.

"You're putting me under surveillance!?"
Elia jumped a bit, turning to me as I yelled. Her brother flinched, and Dad stayed impassive. I glared at him. "I don't need to be babysitted, I'm not a child!"

"Yes you do, and you are," he replied. I'm older than these two humans together. I knew that argument would lead to nothing good. He shook his head. "I will be busy there, and the whole town will be present. I will not risk anything happening to you."

"But it's just..They don't..I can defend--" I was desperately searching for a valid argument, ending up pouting. "I'm not a child."

Dad turned to his contractor again, moving his hand, and Elia's brother's eyes turned sharper. She wasn't lying - he did seem completely different this way.

"You're both going," Dad said, ignoring the smile on Elia's face and the way her brother looked at him, turning to me again. "Love, let me put this clearly--"

"I don't need nannies," I hissed, interrupting him. His eyes flashed for a moment.

"Cleo."

"Dad--"

"You are going and staying with them, or you're not going at all."

"Then I'm not going!"

"Fine." His voice was silent, and as he moved his hand once more, the mortal man's eyes became empty again. His sister looked at Dad, but he turned his back and took a step to leave, so she turned to me. Oh, come on..

"Alright," I groaned, and he stopped and turned to us again, a tiny smile playing on his lips. Manipulator. I looked away. "I'll be nice."

Before turning to leave, this time followed by all of us, Dad pointed his finger at Elia. "If something happens on your watch," he said, then gesturing at Lyan, "you will not speak to him again for the rest of your life."

It was cruel, I could tell even without looking at her - but on the other hand, I found myself almost amused with the idea of running away and seeing what she might offer me in exchange for being a nice little girl. Perhaps the best way to find a human contractor is to have a human to bring other people to you..

Dad placed his hand on my shoulder as we walked towards the city square.
"You do know it's for your own good, yes?"

I sighed. I did know - I just didn't like it. "..Yes."

He smiled a bit. "It's not as safe here as it used to be", he said then, turning serious again. "The girl you talked to in Masque's shop lied about her name - one doesn't do that unless they're hiding something. Keep away from her. Alright?" I nodded, glancing at the crowd around a small podium. Dad followed my glare, letting his expression more or less tell his thoughts. "I will try to get out of this soon enough to see you before the end of the day," he muttered, then let go of my hand and made his way through the people.
*

I followed the girl, Maita, as she got up from the bench, only to be stopped by Lyan standing in front of me.

"Eli said to wait for her," he reminded me. I could tell why she wanted to talk to him so much - before Maita came, we were talking, and I found myself enjoying that conversation more than most I've recently took part in, with mortals especially. For a short time, I wondered if I would be able to make a contract with him - but I knew Dad still had the power to make him lose himself, and I didn't know how that would work with each other.

"She went to get drinks, it will take time," I gestured towards the stands and groups of people around them. I almost felt guilty for sending her to get them, acting like a spoiled little princess all night. But on the other hand, she did get to hang out with her brother, and I was finally having fun.

Lyan sighed and followed, as I followed Maita. I had a feeling she wanted to be alone - but I was curious, and determine to maintain a normal relationship with a mortal. Perhaps she could become my contractor.. I wonder what would Dad say about it.

Maita and Lyan both froze, and I grinned and pulled them on as we spotted Dad. He was talking to Avvie and Masque, neither of them seeming particularly happy to be where they were. Dad's eyes narrowed as we approached, and the other two apparently noticed him losing the track of the conversation, because the next moment they all turned silent.

"Hi," I smiled at them, as Maita greeted Avvie. Oh, so you work at LEX.. I wondered what it was that made Avvie like her enough to hire her. "Having fun?"

"As always," Dad replied dryly. "I see you've found a friend." He glanced at Maita, his lips curling into a smile. "Ireland, miss..Connors? Do you miss your home?"

"It's been a while since I've last been there, Mr Silver," she said. There was something in the way they talked - something which told me it wouldn't be easy to get Dad like the fact we wished to be friends.

"Mm. It might be time for you to head home, Cleo." My eyes snapped up as he said it. Why? Not like I need sleep or something like that. He turned to Lyan. "Where's your sister?"

"Let the young ones have their fun, Sil," uncle Avvie remarked, smiling a bit at me. Out of the three, he probably appeared the most human - though I couldn't really tell how those unaware of all the alternatives saw Masque's true form.

I glanced at Maita, who seemed somewhat nervous. Even if one had no idea, I imagined this trio was fairly frightening to just run into. As I turned to the other side, I found Dad telling something to Lyan, and Elia appearing a second later. She shot me a strange look and took her brother's hand. I couldn't imagine how it'd be in her place - I knew Dad could be scary and mean when he wanted to, and I knew he used the power he had over them. She was a strange mortal, Dad's contractor. I had met a few others during the years, and she was the first whose wishes Dad on occasions seemed to care about. We all knew he didn't have to send Lyan with us. She never ordered him to.

"I should go," Maita muttered suddenly. "I just remembered I left a thing in the office."

Uncle Avvie seemed to snap from some of his thoughts as she said it.
"Office, yes. I will accompany you." She glanced at Dad. "Tomorrow, then, your house."

"Avvie, I told you I'm busy--"

"Five o'clock." He waved at us and turned, followed by Maita. I considered going after them, as Dad told something to Elia and Lyan.

"Stay to see some tricks I'm yet to show," Masque said, with a little smile. He seemed to be enjoying himself, and I recalled what he said about people earlier. Was he happy to be able to entertain them, play as nothing more than a talented mortal? I glanced around in search of his contractor, not spotting him anywhere in the crowd.

"I think he found someone to talk to," Masque answered my unspoken question as I looked up at him. From the tone of his voice, I couldn't tell what he thought of it.

"We must talk," Dad told me, narrowing his eyes at something in the crowd. He gestured to Elia and Lyan. "Go on, you two. Have fun around." He locked his eyes on Elia's. "I expect to see you back before morning."

I watched them leave, feeling my Dad's eyes on me.
"Which part of stay away from her you failed to understand?"

I sighed. "She's nice. She didn't do anything to me." I glanced at Masque. "I can't just run away from all mortals who approach me."

"She lied about who she is," Dad said again. "She could've lied about everything." He stepped closer to me, tugging a strand of my hair behind my mask, carefully not touching it. I wasn't sure if anything would happen if he did - they were souls only for Masque, even if other demons touched them, weren't they? 

"Maybe she didn't lie," Masque stepped in my defense. "They will be around for a while - perhaps we should see to act friendlier than we do."

Something flashed in Dad's eyes, but then he smiled. "Alright then," he said. "Tell her she's invited to dinner tomorrow."
***
• previously ChildOfNowhere
- they/them -
literary fantasy with a fairytale flavour





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Fri Aug 02, 2013 8:16 pm
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Alvarin says...



John Halliday | Town’s Harbor | Day One (morning)
The engine was screwed, and we all knew it. Only question was, would we find somewhere to dock before before it finally stalled? If we didn’t, then we would have to use the raft to get to shore and hope that we would find a village or town within reasonable distance. From what I had seen on the maps and seacards, there wasn’t such a place anywhere close to us.

“So, Capt’n, what’s the plan? We got no fish, little supplies.. Oh, an’ soon no engine.” He wanted to make me angry, I could tell, and if the whole situation hadn’t been my fault, I would’ve started yelling and shouting at him.. But alas, the situation was my fault, and my crew had the right to be angry. I was the one who had suggested that we go further out than before, and then insisted that the storm they showed on the weather forecast wasn’t as bad as it seemed. Well, now we were way too far south, way too far out and the engine was quitting on me. Despite everything, I felt oddly calm. If there was anywhere I wanted to die, it was at sea. Of course, I couldn’t let us die. The boys had families to get home to, and I didn’t want my little girls to have to cry on my funeral.

“I’m taking us closer to land, then we take the raft,” I muttered. “There’s a road close by. We’ll follow that.”

“It’s too far!”

I frowned. Like I don’t know that already. “I’ll just fix the engine then. Wouldn’t be the first time I had to do that.”

I frowned at the column of smoke rising from the engine room. It had always been tricky, but it hadn't actually caught.. almost caught fire before. The boat was a piece of junk, I knew that, but I still loved it. It had belonged to my father, and now it was mine, and I didn't have the heart to buy a new one. Sentimental and nostalgic, not the best combination for an old man. Not that old.

I blinked, squinting my eyes as I stared at the buildings up ahead. There wasn't supposed to be a town here, not according to the maps. Strange. Just to be sure I checked the date on my maps and seacards. None of them were more than a few years old. Very strange.
,
"It seems we found a place to dock," I said, not sharing the smiles of my little crew. Towns didn't just show up from nowhere.. But then again, we were lucky that this one did.

I took her into the harbor, and told the others to go get some good and whatever else they wanted. I didn't want to leave the boat, or the sea, so I stayed behind.

Below deck, in a cabinet full of junk, I found my old trusty toolbox, another thing I had inherited from my father. I didn't wait to get to work with the engine. The sooner we got out to sea again, the better. Mysterious towns that didn't exist on the maps didn't sound like a good place to be.

***

I wiped my forehead with an oily towel before trying to rub the soot off my hands with it. Didn't help much, but I was annoyed. I needed a gasket, and a few other small parts that I didn't have with me on the boat. I had them in my shed, together with all the other spare parts that I had collected over the years. I had really hoped that I wouldn't have to get off the boat and go ask for help, but not seemed I had no choice, not if I didn't want to stay here and wait for a buss or whatever. I snickered loudly. That wasn't even a choice. Just thinking about land brought back bad memories, actually standing on it made it worse. Out at sea I somehow managed to let go, even get a few nights of normal, not so horrifying dreams. Land offered no such comforts.

I threw away the toolbox in disgust. I can't even fix the engine on my own boat. I wasn't good enough for my former wife, I wasn't good enough for my daughters, I wasn't good enough for my crew.. I wasn't even good enough for my boat. All I could do was destroy. Destroying everything I care about. Destroying and surviving, even though I shouldn't have.

"Lucky, my ass," I muttered as I finally stepped from the deck to the harbor. My whole being resented it, but I had to. Fix the boat, then leave as soon as possible.

As I looked up, I noticed the darkening sky. The sun was on its way down. Most of whatever stores they had here would be closed by now.

A sound. A faint sound behind me. Someone was there. I spun around, my heart racing, just to see a woman getting out of the water. I wanted to scream and shout, or possibly take cover, but instead I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself. My heart was still trying to beat its way out of my chest, and I could actually feel how tense I was. I need a drink.

"Ey, lady?" She was wearing normal clothes, now soaked by seawater. What the..? "You're gonna catch a cold if you walk around like that." I tossed her a clean towel that was hanging over the rail.

She looked up at me, smiling as she did so. The smile was a bit too sweet, and I couldn’t help but feel that it wasn’t real. "Hi. The water's nice.” The water's nice, so you went swimming in your clothes? Something wasn’t right with her, and something wasn’t right with the town. "What brings you to town?"

"The engine broke,” I muttered, suddenly feeling annoyed again. “I'm just staying until I can fix it. Do you know where I can find a mechanic?" I smiled instinctively. Not because I wanted to, but because it was what I was expected to do.

"Oh I'm sure there's a mechanic in town. You could ask around at the carnival we have there today."

A carnival? I didn't want to go to that, too much people, and too much to drink if one wanted to. "That sounds.. Fun," I said and tried to sound cheery. "So the mechanic will be there?" If I managed to get hold of him, I'd probably get my engine up and running sooner than if I just waited until tomorrow, so I'd be able to leave this town.

"Yeah, almost the entire town will be there. It's the best place to find a mechanic if you need one, although it's hard to tell who's who because everyone's wearing a mask of some kind." She twirled a strand of her blonde hair around her finger.

"Masks?" This was just getting better and better. I'd never be able to find anyone if they were all dressed out. "You think you could help me find him?" I asked, hoping that she'd agree. If I had some company, everything else might seem less appealing.. And less creepy.

She smiled, her eyes looking almost hungry. Now you’re just being stupid. "Of course I can, I've lived here for cent.. Uh.. Years."

Centuries? Had she really been about to say that? I narrowed my eyes. Either she's not all there, or there's a reason that the town was not on the maps. I almost shook my head. What the h*ll was I thinking? It was just a town. That someone forgot to put on the map. "I see," I said with a slight nod. "Thank you.. And if you don't mind me asking," or think that I'm crazy, "but what's the name of this place?" I walked towards her, stopping a few steps away.

The smile vanished, and she hesitated before answering. "Oh... We just call it the Town." She regained her smile as quickly as she had lost it. The Town? Like I didn't think the place was strange enough already. "Sorry, I haven't introduced myself. I'm Jellitha," she held out a hand, which I shook. Even her name was odd.

"John Halliday, captain of.." I gestured towards my old little ship, realizing I really needed to repaint it, and scrape of some of the rust. "It's nice to meet you," I said finally, only half meaning it. She, and what little I knew about ‘the Town’ was already giving me the creeps.

"You too. So, shall we?" She gestured towards the Town.

No. "Sure. You lead the way," I said while making another attempt to wipe the oil stains from my face, probably only making a bigger smudge. Not that anyone, myself included, cared what I looked like.


Masquerade | Masquerade's Masks | Day One
I watched as the door closed behind Azrael. Seeing one mask after the other leave my store made me feel a bit uneasy, even though I knew exactly where they were, and could still use them. Of some reason I had never really liked when other people handled, them, though on rare occasions, like the fair, I made an exception to my ‘don’t touch’ rule. I only did that for rare occasions, or special people.

I glanced at Lavinia’s mask, safe inside the display case. The case itself was unnecessary, since I had put up enough barriers around it to keep out both Silver and Avratz together, but I somehow felt more at ease knowing it was behind glass. One day I would free her.. I’d bring her back, somehow. I didn’t know how yet, but I would.

While taking off Rose’s mask, one that I had become very familiar with by now, I couldn’t help but feel tired. Well, not actually tired. I was never tired, but I knew that I should be. People had been running in and out of my store the whole day, and the day before, and I wasn’t quite used to it. Martin was always here, and Cleo visited from time to time, but socializing was never really my thing. Not anymore, at least.

When the bells rang I looked up, seeing Cleo stepping inside and looking around with wide eyes, looking as amazed as always. I couldn’t help but smile a little, and it felt almost strange to do so in my true form. "Did you run away?" I asked, leaning against the counter.

"Dad was summoned." Was she sad that her dad left? I couldn’t quite tell.

I watched as she made her wings visible, raising an eyebrow. "Is that wise?" Someone could walk in, someone human.. But then again, this was a shop that supposedly sold masks. A human would think that the wings were fake.

She shrugged. "You are in your true form too." Oh, right.

"I don't have wings." Though I shouldn’t walk around in my true form anyway. Even though I felt more like myself, my mask showed, and that wasn’t good.. Not that I thought anyone would try to kill me, but still. I put on Rose’s mask again, over my own, and felt her soul cover me like a thin sheet, changing and eventually becoming one with my body. In the beginning I had hated how that felt, but over the years I had gotten used to it.

"It's getting hard to keep pretending," she said quietly. I resisted the urge to hug her as she looked away and made her wings visible again. She didn’t have a contract, so she was probably exhausted, as the souls she had collected disappeared. She looked so small and vulnerable, much more so than usual, and that sad look on her face made those old feeling stir inside me. Those feelings I’d rather forget about.

"I wish I could give you something," I mumbled as I moved around the counter, reaching out and carefully touching a blue mask. I remembered everything about the person it had belonged to. Her face, her voice, her expression.. and what she traded her soul for. If I could’ve given it to Cleo, so that she could actually use it, I would’ve. "But I'm afraid it won't be of any use to you." I turned back to her with a smile I hoped would look reliable. "If you want some advice, I'm here."

She smiled back at me, but quickly dropped it. "I know." She was biting her lip again, like I saw her doing from time to time. Most demons tried not to look so human, unless acting, but it was nearly impossible to not pick it up over the years. "Will you be coming to the carnival?"

"Good." I couldn’t imagine Silver approving of her using human gestures and expressions. He wasn’t fond of humans, at all. We had never quite been able to agree on that point. I liked humans, loved them, even.. Or at least I had loved one of them. I frowned, pushing those thoughts from my mind. "You do know that one doesn't have to see humans the way your father does?" I took of Rose’s mask again, showing Cleo my male from. That was how I was going to go to the fair, unless Martin wanted me to act as Rose. "I'll go there, and entertain a bit. I haven't played the part of a jester in quite a while." Not since the last time I visited the carnival of Venice.

"I don't see humans the way Dad does, I don't think." You don’t think? "But I don't remember the day mum died, and it was their responsibility." That sounded like something Silver would say. Their responsibility, like they all were to blame, like they hadn’t had any reason for what they did.

"No," I said calmly, "those were the actions of a few hunters, not all humans. There are humans who are.." I looked at Lavinia’s mask again, searching for a word that would describe her, but couldn’t find one that was good enough. "The hunters kill demons to avenge their friends, and demons kill hunters for the same reason. It never ends." Silver avenged his wife, and if there were any hunters left to remember those he killed, those hunters would be coming after Silver. Sooner or later they’d succeed, and then Cleo would be the next one to want revenge. I wouldn’t let her waste her life like that, not if I could stop her.

"My mum did nothing wrong." She sounded offended, but it was something she needed to learn. Humans didn’t just go around and kill demons without a reason. "In the generation of those hunters, she wasn't even acting as one of us."

But what of the generations before that? "The generation of those hunters? Humans are just as good at holding grudges as demons are. Hate can live on forever.. It doesn't stop until one part lets go."

"But we can't change." Neither can they. "We don't steal souls, they ask us to take them and they get what they wish for in return."

I smiled a little, wondering if she wasn’t just trying to convince herself. Maybe her father hadn’t affected her too much. "I know that, but they don't. We're a lot stronger than them, and not all of us are nice, so it's not hard to understand why they fear us." Everyone, not just humans, eared what they couldn’t understand and had no control over.

"Without them, we would die. They should understand that." She sighed, another one of those human habits she had picked up, or maybe she actually needed air? It was hard to tell when all demons were so different. "..do you think calling mortals to the town was a good move?"

"I'm not sure. Before Martin called for me, I settled down here so that I wouldn't have to make any more contracts. I don't really need more souls. Letting unbound humans in here.. It might prove to be a bad move, but for now it's necessary." I hoped that someone would be able to find the reason behind the disappearing souls soon. It was unsettling. For now, I was safe, but Cleo wasn’t, and if Martin grew old and died before it was fixed, my masks would disappear. I felt like cringing at the thought of seeing my masks disappear, but didn’t. Cringing wasn’t something I needed to do, after all.

"Mm.. Once your contract expires, you'll be as vulnerable as us, no?" She smiled, as if it was something to be happy about, and looked around. "Well, far less than myself. But still.."

"I suppose I would..” How had it felt back when I only had my own soul? Had I felt weak? I hadn’t, but I hadn’t known how it felt to be powerful either. The only thing I did feel was happiness to be alive, but that went away as quickly as it had come. “But that won't happen for at least fifty more years.. And even then, it doesn't take me long to make a new one. Seconds, if I'm in a crowd, which is why I wanted to get away from the humans."

"...what if he gets killed?" She shook her head, answering her own question.. "Are they supposed to be so.. replaceable?"

"I won't let him die before his time, unless he asks for it." I sighed, not quite realizing what I was doing before it was too late. It was strange how I normally didn’t feel any need to make expressions, but when Cleo was around I did. Well, I didn’t really care enough around other people to show them any expressions. "No, they're not supposed to be so replaceable.. I don't make contracts like most demons, I just walk into them. If someone wishes something strongly enough when I'm around, I'll get bound by it."

Her eye widened, I couldn’t tell if she was just surprised, or also a bit impressed. "Without asking? I wish it was that simple for me," she muttered and went to sit down on the chair behind the counter. "You seem to like your contractor." I followed her eyes, for a moment looking up at the masks that covered the ceiling before looking down at her again.

"No, you don't. You have no idea what some people would give their souls for, an you wouldn't have any choice but to do it." And I hope you’ll never find out about the things people hide in their hearts. I glanced down at Rose’s mask in my hand. "Martin is interesting, and I'm curious how his soul will look." Soulmates, I had always wondered if there were any truth in that phrase.

"Yes.." I looked up at her face, watching it carefully. This whole thing with the disappearing souls, it scared her. It shouldn’t. Her father would never let anything happen to her, and neither would I. "But it keeps you alive. I have no choice but to persuade someone, and if I choose a wrong person, I might lose years trying to do that." She wrapped her arms around herself, and I resisted the urge to walk up and hug her.

"You shouldn't worry about it,” I said instead. “Desperate humans have a certain look in their eyes. When you learn to spot that, you'll be set for life." I smiled an - what I hoped to be - encouraging smile.

"Dad said the same, more or less..he says there will be desperate people on the carnival tonight."

"There will, no doubt, but there will also be dangerous ones there. I'll keep an eye out for you."

"I'm not a kid," she said quickly, but then smiled. "But thank you."

You are a kid. "You're younger than me," I said as I ruffled her hair, feeling almost surprised as I noticed how soft it was, "and I'm like a kid compared to your dad.” Not that I’d ever say that to his face. “I suppose we're both kids.. And I'll still be keeping an eye out."

She grinned, and I pulled away. "I'm the youngest in town, I think. It's not that much fun." Another human expression, before she turned towards the display case. Don’t ask. "..How old were you when you made your first contract?"

I felt my smile die away, as I felt that too familiar ache inside me. "I was barely an hour," and I knew nothing about being a demon. "It was one that I didn't want to make.. One that I'm still trying to undo."

"I'm sorry." She bit her lip again. "What's it like to not be born a demon?" Good, she was changing the subject.

"I only existed as something else for a very short time," I started slowly, as I focused my memory on something else, "and being an inanimate object is like.." I shook my head. It was impossible to describe how it was to be nothing. All words existed to describe something, and doing the opposite with them was hard. "I was nothing. A thing. No thoughts, not anything. Can you imagine being nothing?" She didn’t respond, and I hadn’t really expected her to. "Then I was suddenly something, and my whole world consisted of the girl whose face I sat on.. And then I was suddenly a demon." I went over to the blue mask again and took it down from the wall. “You should wear this to the fair,” I said as I gave it to her.

She opened her mouth to answer, but a quick look from me made her close it again. A human was approaching. The display case was not the only thing I had set up barriers around. The one around my shop didn’t keep anyone out, but warned me when anyone was coming.

“Stay out of view,” I said quickly as I took down one of the closest masks and put it on. Marc Lerdie, 34, wished for him and his brother to come home alive from the trenches. I made sure they both did, and took his soul 1918, right after the war ended. He had been a friendly man, he even looked friendly.

"Hello?" I heard her call as I coaxed Cleo into another room. I gestured for her to stay put, and then walked out into the store again, just in time to see the young female reach for one of the masks.

"Please, don't touch anything," I said, startling her. She spun around, reaching for her leg. Really now, what are you so afraid of? Did she know about the demons in the Town? No, she was probably just easily startled. Something from her past, maybe.

She finally smiled. "I'm sorry."

"Are you here to buy a mask for the carnival?"

She nodded stiffly. Definitely afraid. "Yes. This one is very pretty, it is."

I smiled a bit, making sure to make my voice soft as I spoke. "I don't sell any of my masks, since something of such high quality is hard to come by, but I do rent them out for special occasions. The fair would be one of those." I took the mask she had been looking at from the wall, and handed it to her. Most people reached for masks that had belonged to someone much like themselves. If that was the case with this girl as well, I shouldn’t have to be too worried. "It will suit you perfectly."

"Thank you...how much?" Why do humans always assume it’s about money?

"One favour. Nothing more, nothing less." She eyed me suspiciously, and I realized that my answer was easy to misinterpret. "It comes in handy to be able to call in a favour now and then."

She sighed, seeming to calm down a bit. "Okay then, one favour." She looked around, and her eyes stopped by Lavinia’s mask. "Is that one special?"

"It's the most beautiful one in the shop. That demands a display case, don't you think?" I said simply, keeping my voice soft and friendly.

"Indeed." Her eyes moved again, this time locking on something by my counter. I had a feeling I knew what it was. "I do believe someone is hiding behind your counter."

I turned around, frowning slightly. I found it amusing when she wasn’t listening to Silver, but it wasn’t as amusing when she wasn’t listening to me. "Cleo, I think it's time you head home. Your dad gets bothersome when he's worried." She walked up to me, staying behind me.

"I don't think I saw you before." At least she was talking to the human in a friendly manner, even though she was a bit cautious. That was a good thing. Well, anything that showed that she didn’t think as lowly of humans as Silver did was good.

I looked up as I felt someone approach again. A demon. Probably Silver coming back to get his daughter. He wasn’t going to be too happy about Cleo talking to a human, but it wasn’t much he could do about it. The bells rang, and he stepped inside, looking at us all before nodding at me.

"Why haven't you sent her home yet?" Isn’t she free to come and go as she’d like?

"He did," Cleo said before I had time to answer. "But I was talking. She's new in town.”

I watched them as the talked, noting how the girl looked even more uncomfortable. Could it be that she had something against men? Or she knows that we’re demons. I pushed that thought aside for now. It didn’t really matter. She couldn’t do anything to me anyway, and I doubted Silver would let her do anything to Cleo either. She’s probably just wary around men.

"Cleo. Come now." I waved goodbye to her as she left, smiling back at us before following her father outside the store.

The human girl turned back to me as soon as the door had closed behind them.. "So one favour, yes? Well, thank you. I'll take good care of the mask." I nodded, and she smiled before hurrying to the door. "See you at the carnival, maybe." She seemed to be in an awful hurry, but I couldn’t help but feel a bit grateful. I was tired. No, not tired. Close enough to tired.

I put Marc’s mask back where it belonged, and then put Rose’s mask on again before going upstairs. Because of all the ‘customers’ I had received today, I had neglected my contractor for too long. I didn’t want to risk breaking it.. If that was even possible. I always felt a discomfort if I wasn’t doing what my contract commanded, and that only grew until I couldn’t resist any longer. Maybe I’d actually die if I broke it. The thought had crossed my mind before, but I didn’t really want to try. I didn’t even know if I could try.

Martin was in the living room, drawing, as he did quite often. I watched him for a moment, before taking a step forward and bringing down my foot harder than usual, making the same sound a human would when walking. I smiled when he turned to look at me. “What are you drawing?” I asked, leaning over his shoulder.

Before I could see anything he closed his sketchbook and turned to me with a slight smile. Was it something he didn’t want me to see? “I wondered when I’d see you.”

I sat down next to him, leaning against him. I, nor Rose, wasn’t one to pry, so I didn’t ask about the drawings. “I’m exhausted,” I said, sounding a bit overdramatic and then laughing quietly. Thanks to the mask, her reactions came almost naturally to me. “Hopefully no one will notice me taking a break. Except you, that is.” I kept smiling as I turned my head to kiss him quickly.

He stroked my cheek, looking at me with those hurt but still strangely content eyes of his. “I missed you,” he said silently.

“I was only gone for a few hours,” I said with a soft laugh. He probably feared that I.. That she was going to disappear every time I walked out the door. “How was your day?” He wrapped an arm around my waist and looked me in the eyes, seeming almost to be searching for something. Can you find it?

He shrugged, seeming unusually relaxed. Maybe he had a good day. I hoped that he did. It made my job easier. "Really? Still, it felt longer.. I did nothing much. Drawing and sleeping, and listening to the kids outside yelling about the carnival." Yes, the carnival. I was going, but I wasn’t sure he would want to come with me. I didn’t really want to go there as Rose, but I would if it seemed like he wanted me to.

“Sounds like a nice relaxing day,” I purred, getting closer to him, as if it was even possible. He felt warm, comfortably so.. But he wasn’t the one whose warmth I wanted. “You’re not tired, I hope?”

“No,” he murmured, wrapping his other arm around me as well and pulling me closer.

***

I watched as Martin got up from the bed, walking over to the window. He looked sad, like he did most of the time. I almost wished that I could do something for him, just so that I wouldn’t have to watched that pained expression anymore, but I knew I couldn’t. I could give him Rose back just as little as I could bring back Lavinia for myself.

"Will we go?" I asked with a small smile, mimicking the exact expressions that Rose had used when she was still alive. If he hadn’t known that I wasn’t her, I doubted he would’ve realized it by himself. Acting like someone else was what I did best, and I had had plenty of practice.

He seemed to hesitate for a moment, before finally smiling back at me and sitting down on the bed. "Do you want to?" I moved up next to him and leaned my head on his shoulder, like I knew she used to. I couldn’t help but wonder if he felt for her what I felt for Lavinia, if our pain was the same. Did he feel guilty like I did? After all, it was for his survival that Rose gave up her soul.

Rose would notice if he looked unhappy. I changed my expression so that I looked concerned, and watched him as he opened his eyes and looked at me. "Marty, what is it?" I raised an eyebrow, but he didn’t answer. "Are you alright?"

"Of course." He smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes, before he kissed me. I closed my eyes, ‘cause that was I was supposed to, and silently wondered how it felt when you kissed someone that you loved? I didn’t know. Surely it had to be more than just the feeling of touching someone? It was always the same. Every time I was with Martin I started wondering useless things, things that I knew I’d never get an answer to, at least not before I managed to get Lavinia back.

"I'll stay at home," he said as he pulled away. "Making sure nothing happens to the shop." There’s nothing you could do from here that I can’t do from over there.

I frowned a bit, gently touching his lips. "I could stay with you here." He shouldn’t stay inside the apartment forever. Humans needed to socialize. Even demons needed to socialize from time to time.

He caught my hand as I let it slide along his jaw, down his neck, and then got up again. "No." His voice had turned cold, more so than I had heard in quite some time. "We both know you want to go. I'll be waiting here, as I always do."

He turned to the window again, looking out for a while, before finally sighing and turning back to me. “You could as well go without a mask for once.” Was he such a bad mood that he wanted to see me as I was?

"It's a carnival," I said with a light laugh, but quickly stopped as he frowned.

"You could go as your.." he waved his hand, as if looking for a word, "..true self. No? No one could tell, except for those who know anyway." If that’s what you want.

I took Rose’s mask off, appearing as my female self. I had never showed him my male form, mostly because I knew he might get confused, as so many humans, and even demons, did. He watched me for a moment, before looking away. Even if I didn’t use my male form, this was still confusing enough for him. I waited for him to look back on me, wondering if he would say something, but instead his eyes went to Rose’s mask. Maybe he’d ask me if he could hold it? He had never done that before. I wasn’t sure I wanted him to, but then again, it wasn’t like he could do anything with it.

"I am going to use my other true form tonight," I said finally, as I realized that he wasn’t going to say anything. His eyes snapped up to my face again. "One you haven't seen."

"Will I know it's you?" Oh? He caught himself before I had time to point it out. "If I would go, that is, would I know?"

"Probably." Definitely. "I'll always be wearing this." I gestured at my mask, and he nodded. He wasn’t aware that it wasn’t just a mask, and I couldn’t help but wonder how he would react if I told him that he could kill me if he destroyed it.. Not that he’d ever manage to do that unless I let him.

He was fiddling with the rings again, like he so often did. Humans easily fell into habits like that. "It would've been our anniversary today," he muttered, and let go of the rings to look out the window again.

"I know.." I said. I couldn’t forget their anniversary, our anniversary, just as little as I could forget anything else. Forgetfulness was a blessing that I had never received. I remembered everything of my 600 years as a being, even the first memories.. Especially the first memories, were painfully sharp. "My condolences. I know loss as well." Lavinia. I pushed the thoughts of her away. I didn’t want him to see me weak like that. "If it gives you any consolation, I will not ever separate you after your death." I wasn’t sure that was what he wanted, but if I was in the same situation, I’d want to be kept next to my love.

"So, he..or she.." Lavinia. "Were they a human?"

For a moment I considered telling him that it was none of his business, but then I changed my mind. There was no need for me to be rude, and he was just asking a simple question. Didn’t I at least owe him some answers when I had taken his lover away? He’d be dead if I hadn’t. "Yes."

"Will you tell me what happened?"

"I was a mask," I said quietly, "she turned me into a person. She was a person, I turned her into a mask."

As he smiled I had to force myself to not look away, to not flinch. "The most beautiful mask in the store." I was the one who had told him that. It was what I told everyone who asked. "It's her, isn't it?"

"It's late,” I said suddenly. Surely I couldn’t owe him any more answers than I had already given him. “I should already be at the fair." Entertaining the crowd, like I had before. Juggling with burning torches, spitting fire, thrilling the adults and almost, only almost, scaring the children. I got up, looking at him again. Earlier he had seemed curious about my other true form, and I was sure he still was. "Are you sure you do not want to come? It's not healthy for humans to stay inside for too long."

"Very well then," he said with a smile that looked a bit annoyed, but otherwise he didn’t seem especially agitated. "I'm coming..but don't expect me to stay for very long." He bit his lip, and I couldn’t help but think of Cleo. "Besides, I don't have a costume..is there a mask I could borrow which wouldn't.." There was someone approaching the shop again, a demon this time. "..which would be suitable?"

"You can borrow one from the walls," I said, and he nodded before following me out of the room.

I didn't want anyone to touch my masks unless I had given them permission, so I hurried my step, not stopping until I saw Phoebe standing close, too close, to Lavinia’s mask.

***

Phoebe left as soon as she had found a mask that she liked, agreeing that we’d talk about me renting the theater later. I didn't quite know why, but I wanted to rebuild it, turn it into an old fashion operahouse, like the ones I had visited, and even worked in, when I was younger.

I took the key from under the counter. I only locked the door to keep the humans away, and to tell the demons that they weren't welcome, since a locked door wouldn't really pose any hindrance to a demon. “You should pick one that you want,” I told Martin. I watched his back as he approached one of the walls, he seemed tense. If I offered him Rose’s mask, would he take it? I decided not to. If he wanted it, he could ask. “Just ask if there’s something you want to know about them.”

"Do they know? They souls, do they know when someone - or when you - touch them or use them for something or give them a lot of attention?" Did he want Rose to notice him? I hoped she didn't. Surely, she wouldn't be too happy with what was going on.

“Maybe.” When I was just a soul in a mask I knew what was happening around me.. Parts of it, at least. “But they wouldn't really be able to form proper thoughts, nor remember anything for more than a short while.” I was fairly sure that was how it was, but then again, I couldn't know. If they were conscious like us.. I glanced at Lavinia’s mask before I had time to stop myself. No, that wasn't possible.

"And you're here remembering them all.." Every last one. He turned to look at me. "Is there any you think I should take?

“You mean one that would suit your personality, or simply one that belonged to a nice person?” He probably wouldn't be too fond of walking around with a serial killer on his face, thought the masks from the most horrible people were often the most eye catching.

He shrugged again. "It'd just feel strange to pick on my own. A bit like.. trespassing, perhaps." Trespassing because they belonged to me, or because they had once belonged to others?

“As you wish.” I looked up at the ceiling, using my powers to take one down and then catching it. It looked much like a bird, with a long curved beak and a mane of black feathers. “It belonged to a French actor from the 17th century. Great sense of humor, but horrible at acting, until I helped him. Will it do?”

He flashed a quick grin before taking it. "Merci.Oh, that’s right, you know some languages. “Was that what he gave you his soul for?"

“That, and he wanted a woman to fall for him. Once he learned how to act, it didn't take long for him to charm her.” A few flattering words would make most people like you, and the shallow ones love you. “Are you ready to leave?” I asked as I changed into my male form, the small bells on the tips of my hat chiming just like the ones over the door.

As I turned back to Martin I found him staring at me, looking as if he had a question at the tip of his tongue, but was stopping himself from saying it out loud. I waited for a moment, until he finally spoke. "Interesting. And you're taller than me now."

I might’ve laughed, if Cleo had said it, but instead I settled for a barely visible smile. “I know.” I opened the door and held it open. “Allons-y.”

***

With everyone in a mask and outfit, it felt almost like Venice. Almost, but not quite. The language was different, of course, and then there was someone missing. She's always missing. As usual, I pushed those thoughts aside, focusing instead on the present. A group of people had gathered around me, both children and adults, to watch the spectacle. Juggling burning torches and spitting fire was quite fun, but the fire poi got the most ooohs and aaahs. The reactions from the little children were the most fun to watch. Their eyes went wide and they had to clutch their parents legs to stop themselves from walking closer. Martin had watched for a while, before going off on his own. I had seen him talking to someone, and I was pretty sure that was a good thing. He spent too much time alone in that apartment.

After I put out the fire and took a bow I received a small applause, before the people went on to look at everything else. I was going to do another little show later, but for now there was someone waiting to talk to me, and I was quite sure that it wasn't going to be about anything good.

"Quite impressive, I must say." I turned towards Silver, performing another little bow. As I did so the small bells on my hat chimed. I knew well enough that it would annoy Silver, and of some reason I found that fact rather amusing. Perhaps I was living into the role of the jester a bit too much.

"Thank you. I worked in a circus for some time." There had to be something going on, if he wanted to talk to me. "Is there something on your mind?"

Observing his face I saw how he dropped the smile, returned to the blank face that came naturally to us and nodded. Humans found it unsettling, and I could understand why. It made it very hard to know what he was thinking. Even if I couldn't see what he was thinking, I could feel that it was bad. "Come, we should find Avvie." Avvie. It always struck me as weird that Avratz had gotten such a cute nickname. It didn't suit him, not at all.

I followed him, as he headed through the crowd. "Mind telling me what this is about?"

"There is a dead demon," he said with his voice so low I could barely hear him.

"I see." So it's true then? I had heard other demons whispering about it, but hadn't listened too closely. It was unusual, though by opening up the Town when almost everyone was weakened, we should've been expecting it. Silver, hateful of humans as he was, would think it was a hunter. As a demon it would be easy to make it seem that way.. But then again, hunter's weren't dumber than that they could sniff us out when we were weak.

We spotted Avratz talking to some humans I didn't recognize, looking as if was in a good mood. He glanced at us as we approached, and quickly finished the conversation before walking up to us. He greeted us with a nod, and followed in silence as Silver asked him to. He had probably heard the rumors as well, or maybe even gotten some report. Both Silver and Avratz had far more connections than me in this town. They had been here longer.. They had been everywhere longer. Well, at least I'm older than Cleo. It wasn't much of a comfort, but at least it was something.

We walked away a bit from the crow before we finally stopped. "You both know what happened last night."

"I heard some rumors, but didn't think it was true. Who died?"

"He went by Damien Locke." I'd have to go over to his home and collect the mask that he borrowed. "And he didn't die, he was killed." Well, demons didn't normally just die by themselves, unless they committed suicide.

"Any proof it was a hunter and not another demon?" I knew well enough what Silver was assuming, and I wasn't going to do the same thing unless there was some proper evidence.

"He was killed by weapons, not magic," Avratz said in a sing song voice. Trying to get on my nerves? He had indeed gotten some type of report. "Besides.. What reason would any demon have to kill him?" I could think of plenty of reasons, but I kept them to myself.

"Demons weren't getting killed until the mortals came."

"Yes they were, it just didn't happen that often." Other demons had tried to kill me before, only a few times, but murdering their own kind clearly wasn't beyond them. "But yes, I suppose another demon would've used something other than weapons.. Unless they were too weak to do so," or trying to make it seem like it was a hunter. "I assume no one saw anything?"

"Not a glimpse of our killer. Very neatly done." Avratz glanced at Silver. "Don't you think?"

Silver barely even blinked at his comment. "If they were so weak to be forced to use weapons, he wouldn't get killed. Neatly done indeed - and without a doubt, done by someone trained to do it."

I almost sighed. He shouldn't exclude other options so quickly. "So we have to find the hunter who did it? If they're trained, that won't be easy, especially not if they leave." For all we knew, the perpetrator could be long gone already.

Silver nodded. "Hence we're closing the Town."

Closing the Town? That didn't sound right. It could already be too late, and if humans tried to leave but found they couldn't, they'd get suspicious. We couldn't really let them get suspicious, so did Silver want anyone who tried to get out to die, or lose their memories? I didn't like this, not at all. "Close the city? You mean trapping everyone inside it?"

"Yes. Until we're sure no one is in danger anymore." Until we're sure no demon is in danger anymore.

"Until you're sure you've caught the killer, you mean," I said instead. I didn't want to argue with someone about one and half a millennia older than me. "What are you planning on doing with them when they're caught?"

"Take a guess."

Sometimes I wondered if I was odd for having morals. Human morals, at that. "Just kill them. The situation doesn't call for anything more than that."

A group of masked people passed by, a bit too close, so when Silver answered he did so in a low voice. "That depends on who they are." He glanced around, to see if anyone was listening. "I don't like the idea of being trapped inside either. But we can't know that this person hasn't called someone else to join him or her, after all. And we can't afford losing people if any kind of news leak and cause panic."

"A barrier that keeps people both from exiting and entering. To keep the hunter from contacting the outside it should also cut off the phone lines. I can do that.. I suppose that's why you called me her in the first place?" I couldn't really imagine any other reason. I wasn't usually included when the big shots had a meeting.

"I called you because the three of us are the only ones in this town still bound to our contractors." Oh. I should try to pay more attention to the demons around me. "The contracts of others who kept their strength have came to their ends. Which is the other thing we should discuss, but I suppose it can wait for now."

"We might as well talk about it now. I need to leave soon anyway." I wanted to put on one more show, and then I needed to go find Martin. I had already spent too many hours apart from him today.

"You can leave when you're done talking. Your audience will wait for you to finish discussing matters which just might be of importance." I glanced as Avratz as he suddenly started giggling at Silver's comment.

"I was talking about my contractor," I said in a voice that came across as unusually cold. I didn't like being mocked, nor discussing things I couldn't do anything about. It was a waste of time and energy. "There's nothing we can do about the disappearing souls, not until we know what's causing it.. Did you try asking Zatanna? She has an answer to most things."

"If she knew the answer to that, she wouldn't be weakening too, would she?" Really now, I was just joking. Well, people said I had no humor, but it seemed Silver had even less.. Or my joke was just bad. "I don't like the feeling I have about this.. hunter."

"It's a hunter, of course you don't like it." I should probably be taking it more seriously. Too much jester. Whoever killed Damien could come after Cloe as well.. Which was probably why Silver was willing to take such drastic measures. "Best thing would be if they came after one of us. They probably think that all demons are weakened."

"Perhaps they are coming after a certain one of us," Avratz muttered, and I followed his eyes, spotting Cleo, the girl from earlier - Maita, and the brother of Silver's contractor - Lyan. The two latter froze when they spotted us, which was a fairly strange thing to do, for Maita at least, but Cleo just grinned and pulled them towards us. "Suitably, here comes your kid..and my employee."

"Hi." I smiled towards Cleo and watched as Maita greeted Avratz. Maybe he had thrown a minor fit when she was around. That would explain why she was wary of him. "Having fun?"

"As always. I see you've found a friend." Good girl. "Ireland, miss..Connors? Do you miss your home?"

"It's been a while since I've last been there, Mr Silver." Mr Silver? For a moment I wondered if he had some fake first name that he used when introducing himself to a human. He probably did, if people asked. I kind of wanted to know what it was.

"Mm. It might be time for you to head home, Cleo." Once again he almost made me want to sigh. Why did he have to think it so bad that she spent time with humans?

I stopped listening, not really thinking I could learn anything important from their conversation. I was feeling increasingly uncomfortable, meaning that I should find Martin. I watched, only half paying attention, as Avratz left with Maita.

"Five o'clock." Hmm? Maybe I should've paid more attention. I couldn't quite tell if I was expected to come or not.

I turned to Cleo instead of asking about it. If they realized I was missing I'd find out anyway. "Stay to see some tricks I'm yet to show." I smiled a little. I had saved the best for last. She looked around, seeming to be searching for something, or someone. I could only assume it was Martin. "I think he found someone to talk to," or at least I hope he did.

"We must talk," Silver interrupted, before turning to his contractor and her brother. "Go on, you two. Have fun around. I expect to see you back before morning." That last thing was directed at his contractor. She couldn't have an easy time, not with a demon like Silver.

After they left Silver kept glaring at Cleo. "Which part of stay away from her you failed to understand?"

She sighed, and I wanted to do the same. Would've if I was human. "She's nice. She didn't do anything to me." She glanced at me, and I smiled a little. "I can't just run away from all mortals who approach me." Good girl.

"She lied about who she is." Maybe she had a good reason. "She could've lied about everything." He bent down, fixing her hair. A rather fatherly gesture, and I couldn't help but feel a bit jealous.

"Maybe she didn't lie," I suggested. "They will be around for a while - perhaps we should see to act friendlier than we do."

I couldn't help but notice the anger that flashed by in his eyes, before his face twisted into a smile. It wasn't a very pleasant smile.. or it might've been, for anyone that didn't know him. "Alright then. Tell her she's invited to dinner tomorrow."

Cleo smiled, and hurried after Avratz and Maita. For a moment I considered staying to talk to Silver, but then I realized I didn't really have a reason to. "I should get going. I haven't seen my contractor in a while."

"He will survive alone for a while longer. What did you tell to her?" he asked before I even had time to turn around.

"That she shouldn't think as lowly of humans as you do, and that she shouldn't let the past cloud her judgement," like you do. No, I shouldn't insult him. He was older than me, and probably stronger. "Or something along those lines. Does it matter?"

"I think of humans as lowly or highly as they deserve, and she'll do better learning from the past than jumping blindly into friendships with mortals who lie about their names." His voice was cold now. Very cold. "Of course it matters, stop telling her things like that - She's not yours to raise."

That hurt a bit. Just a little bit. I knew I cared far to much about her, but I couldn't help it. She had managed to get under my.. Mask, and now I couldn't push her away. "She wouldn't come to me asking for advice if she thought she could get a proper one from you." That wasn't a very good thing to say, and she hadn't exactly asked me for advice, but I was getting tired of his attitude. "You're so blinded by your hatred you can't even see that your fears are rubbing off on your daughter. I'll be telling her whatever she needs to hear, as long as she's willing to listen."

"And you are blinded with love, to that one mortal who never even properly met you." That hurt even more. For a moment a very human reaction flashed through my head, but punching him in the face wasn't wise. "Cleo will always get everything she needs and everything she asks from me, both you and her know that. Don't try to play the role of her mother."

His expression was deceptively calm, and so was his voice. I kept all feelings out of my face and voice as well. To any passerby it might look like two bad actors rehearsing lines, just for the case of learning them and not for actin them. "I'm not playing any role, not with her.. And there is something she does not get from you. An open mind. It's more important than you might think. She's curious about people in general, so why not let her spend some time with humans? They can be just as.. More fascinating than any demon."

"I am not forbidding her to spend time with them. But I am not pushing her into it either. She's the only one I have - if something happens to her because of advises you give her, I'll kill you."

I smiled a little, probably the first time I had showed him that expression, in my true form, at least. "If anything happened to her, I'd let you." He didn't answer, probably surprised by my statement. I was a bit surprised myself, but then again, I cared too much. "Now, if you excuse me.." I bowed theatrically, just like I had done when he first greeted me, and then walked back to the spot where I had put on that last show. I had saved something extraordinary for last, and I wanted Cleo to come and see it.
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Sat Aug 03, 2013 8:13 pm
darklady says...



Ruthie: The Carnival: Day One: Evening

Purple-rimmed eyes stared out at the carnival before them. Ruthie didn’t know anyone there – the only person she knew at all in the Town was her landlady. The brunette fiddled with the elastic on her mask. It was starting to irritate her skin a little.
The mask she’d chosen didn’t really warrant wearing make-up underneath, but Ruthie always, absolutely always, wore heavy eye make-up. Only now I can’t get rid of this thing. Ruthie plucked at a feather that had drooped down over her ear. It was tickling her and making her shake her head violently to one side without meaning to. The make-up underneath was likely to be smudged halfway across her face by now, but at least it was purple. She could pretend the dye had come off the mask if she really had to. Trying not to rub her itchy face, Ruthie distracted herself by fixing her hair back into its clip instead.

Ruthie wasn’t sure how she fitted into this new town. Some of the people seemed… very different to anyone she’d met before. For the second time that day, Ruthie thought of her beloved Papa, lost in the War. Wars are fought because people like you think other people are too different to co-operate with, Ruthie, she told herself silently. She breathed a heavy sigh and let her arms flop back down to her sides. Her hair was tidy again, the mask had stopped itching (Who knows how long that’ll last), and her pendant was still sitting comfortably on her chest. The pendant was Ruthie’s most precious possession. She didn’t yet realise how precious it really was.

.......................................................................................................

Jellitha: The Sea: Day One: Evening

Jellitha heaved herself out of the water. It was far from being an elegant manoeuvre, yet the demon could be as elegant as a swallow if she chose. Technically she was bare, but she created the illusion of wet clothes.

She was about to traipse home to change when she heard someone speak. "Ey, lady? You're gonna catch a cold if you walk around like that."

Jellitha looked up. Ah. A human. She tasted something sour in her mouth, but plastered on the usual sweet smile. She couldn't afford to blow any human off, not now. "Hi; the water's nice," She said, for want of something better to say. "What brings you to town?"

"The engine broke. I'm just staying until I can fix it. Do you know where I can find a mechanic?" The man smiled.

"Oh I'm sure there's a mechanic in town. You could ask around at the carnival we have there today." Or sell me your soul and I can create the ship of your dreams.

"That sounds… Fun. So the mechanic will be there?"

The man didn’t seem all that excited by the prospect of attending the Town carnival and if she was honest, neither was Jellitha. It wasn’t anything like as fun or exciting for her this year as it usually was. She was normally right in the thick of it. She loved being able to wear her true form, let the illusions down and relax. Illusions were becoming a constant demand on limited resources for Jellitha. It was wearing her down slowly. Jellitha also loved being surrounded by those of her own kind. It was her favourite time of the year – when all the demons got together like some kind of twisted Halloween party. Now the humans had invaded her home and the problems with the souls were weighing heavily on her heart and mind, Jellitha just didn’t have it in her to care about the things she always used to love. But if she could get this human on her side then everything might change, so she swallowed her hatred and vomited forward the sweet, helpful Jellitha she wanted this man to know.

"Yeah, almost the entire town will be there, It's the best place to find a mechanic if you need one, although it's hard to tell who's who because everyone's wearing a mask of some kind." Jellitha twirled a strand of strawberry blonde hair around one finger. Is there even a mechanic here? I’ve got no idea. I just want your soul.

"Masks? You think you could help me find him?"

The demon smiled. "Of course I can, I've lived here for cent... Uh... Years," Jellitha's heart sped up as she stumbled over her words. This is so hard. Having humans around makes everything different, more dangerous… We’re all just a screw-up away from discovery.

"I see," He nodded slightly. "Thank you… And if you don't mind me asking, but what's the name of this place?" The sailor walked towards her, stopping a little way away. Be careful little human. You are far too close for comfort.

Jellitha’s pretty little smile vanished. Humans always asked about the name of the Town and Jellitha had once been accused of attempted kidnap by someone believing her (supposedly) false name for the Town was a ploy to disorient them and snatch them away. "Oh... We just call it the Town." She flashed a smile at the man again. Her heart was still pounding from her earlier slip-up. "Sorry, I haven't introduced myself. I'm Jellitha," She held out a hand.

"John Halliday, captain of..." He gestured at his ship. "It's nice to meet you,"

"You too. So, shall we?" She waved towards the Town. Welcome to the hornet’s nest, little human.

"Sure. You lead the way,”

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Auxiira says...



Maita Aoife Laois | Sidestreet next to LEX | Day One

My breath came in short rapid bursts as I leant against the wall. This had been one of my hardest kills, if not the hardest. It had been a lot stronger than I had first thought. I should've been more careful. But it was a golden opportunity. I wasn't sure that it had been a good idea. There would probably be more than one person who suspected me after that. I was covered in my blood and that of the deamon. Should I have waited? It was in times like this that I missed my parents the most. They would've told me if I had been right to kill the deamon. We would've made the kill together, probably. Now isn't the time to be thinking of that sort of thing. You need to get out of here before anyone finds you. Your cover will be blown.

Just as I was about leave the sidestreet, I heard footsteps close by. I flinched and leant back against the wall. As I heard the door to the offices open, I glanced around the edge and saw Cleo. Crap. As soon as I heard the door close, I edged out and hurried home as quickly as possible to sort myself out.

In front of Silver and Cleo's House | Day Two

Like many decisions that I had made since I had arrived here, I really wasn't sure that this was a good idea. In fact, I was pretty sure that it was one of the worst choices I had made. But he's the Mayor, and he invited you. It's a given that you have to go. I already had the creepers, and I was only on the porch. I took a deep breath and knocked on the door. Calm down. Nothing's going to happen. The door opened, and a girl I didn't recognise stood behind it. Now what are you doing here?

"You must be Miss Connors. This way." I followed her through the house, tugging on my sleeves so that they covered my wrists. We headed for a staircase that swept up one side of the lobby. The steps creaked as I stepped on them and I twitched slightly. I really, really don't like this. Every nerve in my body was screaming at me to leave the house, to grab a knife or something that I could use as a weapon. I smoothed the folds in my dress and tried to calm down.

We turned right after the stairs and entered a large dining room. What's the point of having such a big house? Mr Silver was already sat at one end of a long table, in front of a fireplace. Cleo and the jester from the carnival was there too. I felt my body tense despite myself at the swirl of presence in the room.

"I'm sorry if I'm a little late," I said, smiling as much as I could manage at Cleo. She returned the smile with a twitch of her lips, but didn't seem as open as the day before.

"Don't worry, you're quite on time," Mr Silver said. He was smiling, but it wasn't reaching his eyes. "Do sit down." The girl who had lead me in had sat sown next to Cleo, leaving me to sit next to the jester. His presence was making me edgy. I was trying not to fiddle with my clothes to get rid of some of my stress, but it was making my fingers twitch instead. I eyed the table, noting the placements of all of the knives. Dammit. Calm down. Breathe. Nothing's going to happen.

"So, Miss Connors, do you know what you're going to do now that LEX is going to close?" The jester asked me.

"I don't. I never expected Mr Avratz to die so suddenly. It's a real tragedy."

Mr Silver raised an eyebrow. "Tragedy indeed...out of all my friends, I'd never expected him to get killed." I feigned surprise as I replied.

"He was killed? I only heard that he had died."

"Do you believe in demons?" Cleo asked suddenly, cutting off whatever Mr Silver was about to say in reply. I blinked, wondering what had pushed her to ask that question. Mr Silver seemed slightly annoyed.

"Um, I'm not sure. I've never really thought about it." I rubbed the side of my head, lifting my hair a little. "I think I do."

Something flashed in Mr Silver's eyes, and Cleo stayed silent this time.
"I met quite a few people from your home country who did," he said. I placed my hands in my lap to hide my fidgeting.

"We're quite a superstitious people. Have you been to Ireland, Mr Silver?"

"More than once," he said, nodding a bit. "it's been a while since the last time, though. I met a lovely couple then - one Mr and Mrs Laois." My hand automatically reached for where I had left my knife, but I stopped it. I knew that I was probably pale, more so than I normally was.

"O-oh?" I tried to swallow without it being obvious. "I don't think I know anyone with that name."

Fire danced in the fireplace, making the shadows deeper. He took a sip from his glass, as the key turned in the lock of the door behind me. "See, you don't make a very good liar." Crap crap crap. This is not good. I'm dead.

"I wouldn't know what you mean, Mr Silver." I wasn't even convincing myself now. My hand was resting on the hilt of my dagger through my skirt.

"This is getting tiresome. We know what you are, and you know what we are.. May we get to the point?" The jester looked to Silver, his face completely untouched. I glanced around the room, noting that all of the exits were closed and locked. Damn

"And what would the point be? Since you haven't killed me yet, there must be something you want to know." Gain time, find out what they want.

"Why are you here?" Cleo asked silently, not looking at me. I glanced over at her and a bitter smile cut my face.

"It isn't obvious? Why would a Hunter come to a town full of deamons? To kill as many of you as possible. I was actually doing quite well." I took a hair-tie from my wrist and put up my hair, ready for anything.

Silver's eyes turned crimson, but his face stayed impassive, and he turned to the human girl. Contractor. Almost certainly. I wanted to run. I wanted to fight. I didn't stand a chance. "You're about to feel very tired, my dear," he muttered to her. Then he turned back to me, locking his eyes on mine. "Maita Laois, then. Do you know how powerful names can be?"

"Silver, don't do anything unnecessary.. Just kill her," the jester muttered, his face still impassive.

I narrowed my eyes at both of them. "I actually quite like my life. My parents did too. But then that didn't stop them from being killed." I took out my dagger, feeling its reassuring weight in my palm. "They always said that once a deamon had your name, you should scarper or kill them. I'd say that right here, right now, neither of those options is the right one." But I can always try... I stood up suddenly, kicking the chair to the floor. I would've gone for Cleo, as she was a weakness of Silver, but the jester was the closest. It was predictable, but still... I lunged at him, swiping with the dagger. I saw Cleo stand up out of the corner of my eye, but didn't really notice, too preoccupied with the fact that the wound that I had inflicted on the deamon had just healed straight away. I don't stand a chance.

The jester sighed, looking at me with eyes that seemed slightly annoyed. "You're just making it worse for yourself. At least try to be civil," he said, taking the dagger from me and tossing it away. I took a few steps backwards, trying not to completely panic.

"No one ever taught me how to be civil with deamons."

"My, my." Silver stood up as well. "I would say that applies for your whole family."

"What do you know about my family?" I spat. If you have anything to do with my parents's death...

He walked towards me, around the jester, and I found myself unable to move, with him only a step away. All I could think of was that I was going to die, killed by deamons. The only time I had been more terrified than I was now was when my parents had been killed. "I know a lot about your family," he said silently. "I didn't care, until they happened to cross my path in a very...unpleasant...way." He glanced at Cleo. "I thought I made sure there's none of you left, though." My eyes widened.

"You...you were the one who killed my parents?" Cold rage swept through me. My head was buzzing, stopping me from thinking properly. All I wanted to do was kill the creature in front of me.

He shrugged. "Do you want me dead now more than you did a minute ago?"

I gritted my teeth and tried to move to no avail. "What do you think, bastard?"

"Funny enough..." the tips of his fingers slid down the side of my neck in what could've been interpreted as an affectionate gesture if it hadn't been for the circumstances. They stopped over my heart. I wanted to shrink away, to run to the other end of the earth. My heart was pounding underneath his fingers, ready to burst from my chest. Don't touch me. "See, I was really ready to just kill you a day ago, if I'd have been sure then. However, you killed one of my friends and tried to kill another. And I never liked to make things too simple."

"Whatever you're going to do, just do it," I growled, tired of him toying with me. If I'm to die, then let me die already. Stop turning turning around the pot.

His lips curled into a smile, as a wave of something cold seemed to hit my body, running through my veins. My breath caught in my throat, coming out as a low moan.
"As you wish." He took a step back again. "Welcome."
Last edited by Auxiira on Thu Aug 15, 2013 7:54 am, edited 2 times in total.
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kayfortnight says...



Zatanna/Banquet/Day one, Evening

I smiled, sipping at a wine glass. Tonight was proving to be a very profitable evening.

There were many unfamiliar faces here tonight. Humans, of course. Sometimes I was surprised at the sheer variety of appearances in humans. Us demons, most of us looked supernaturally beautiful. Those who have control over their appearance, it comes with the territory. Even I look pretty good for a woman who looks middle-aged.

Almost everyone was here tonight. Even Dranz, who wasn't known for partying, sullenly lurked in a corner. I noted with amusement that Silver's daughter, Cleo, wasn't with him at the head table. Too much danger for her, perhaps. I could see why. Allowing humans in, when many humans hate us? I agreed with Silver's decision, but many others did not. Everybody could tell how much he valued his daughter by looking at them; if they couldn't figure it out, then they could just ask me, assuming they could afford to. The girl was in the rare position of being in danger from both humans and demons.

Azrael leaned over and grabbed my arm. He had become increasingly drunk over the evening, and now slurred his words. "Look. Avvie ishn't here."

I followed his gaze around the room. No Avratz. Strange. "Thanks, Az." I gave him a wink. Az was one of the easiest demons to play.

Silver stood to make a speech, signaling the end of the banquet. I listened casually, paying more attention to the subtext than the actual words of the speech, although I had to grin when he said, "unified, for the sake of us all, and trusting." Maybe the humans thought they were just words but I was certain he was reminding the demons why the Town had been opened to humans.

After the speech, everyone headed home, yawning. I slipped away from Azrael before he could ask me to stay with him for the night and headed home.
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Shady says...



Elia Cappanni, Day One- Carnival

I couldn't breathe. My chest burned for air, but I couldn't force myself to breathe, as I waited for Silver's response. He knew what I wanted. I knew it wasn't likely that he'd say yes, but there was always that small chance.

"You're putting me under surveillance?" His daughter snapped, shouting. I started, a bundle of nerves, and turned to look at her, squeezing Lyan's hand, calming him as he flinched. "I don't need to be babysitted, I'm not a child!"

"Yes you do, and you are." Silver answered calmly, before shaking his head, looking at her. "I will be busy there, and the whole town will be present. I will not risk anything happening to you."

"But it's just..They don't..I can defend--" She searched for words, but seemed to have trouble finding them. Your Father tends to have that effect on people, no? She ended with a more gracious statement than I had. "I'm not a child."

Silver didn't bother answer Cleo, as he turned back to me and waved his hand. Lyan's eyes instantly cleared. He was back.

I grinned, resisting the urge to throw my arms around his neck and hug him again. I hadn't expected him to agree, but I was very relieved that he did.

"You're both going." Lyan lifted his eyebrows. I barely shook my head. Just be quiet... He didn't ask any questions, but did turn an inquistive glare on Silver, as he turned towards Cleo. "Love, let me put this clearly--"

"I don't need nannies." She hissed, interupting him. Silver wasn't the type of man you interupted. His eyes flashed.

"Cleo."

"Dad."

"You are going and staying with them, or you're not going at all."

Oh gods, I certainly hope she does stay with us...not going at all sounds even better.

"Then I'm not going!"

Yes.

"Fine." Silver was so quiet I could barely hear him, but he waved his hand once again. Lyan's eyes got dull and stupid once more.

No! My gaze snapped up to Silver, but he was ignoring me, heading toward the door. No, no, no...go, Cleo. Please. Please let me have my brother. I turned my gaze on her, silently pleading.

"Alright," Cleo groaned. Silver turned, smirking at her. She glared and looked away. "I'll be nice."

Silver waved his hand once more, and Lyan returned. I squeezed his hand tightly. Stay with me this time...

"If something happens on your watch," Silver pointed his finger at me, before gesturing at Lyan. "You will not speak to him again for the rest of your life."

It felt like someone ran a dagger through my stomach. I didn't like that idea at all. That was a very bad deal. Very bad. I wished it wasn't too late to ask for Lyan to return to his half-witted stupor, for him to stay in the safety of his bedroom. If something did, gods forbid, happen to Cleo-- I'd rather Silver just kill me.

Without another word, Silver and Cleo turned and left the room. I followed them, taking Lyan's hand, us falling into pace a few steps behind. As we left the mansion, and started toward the square, Lyan finally had to ask.

"Would you like to tell me what the h*ll is going on?" His voice was silent.

I looked up at him, still feeling a bit sick to my stomach. "You...left."

"I know...I usually don't come back this quickly, though...it hasn't been long, has it?"

I shook my head. "No. Just a few minutes...that's...what I didn't want to tell you." I bit my lip. "My demon-- contractor-- can bring you back. He just doesn't."

"Mighty kind of him." Lyan narrowed his eyes at Silver's back and nodded at him. "I suppose that would be your demon, then?"

I nodded. "His name's Silver."

"He's the...thing...that keeps me in that gods damned haze?"

"I'm not sure..." I lifted a shoulder. "Either that, or he's the only one able to bring you out of it."

"Either way..."

"Don't." I pleaded, looking up into his face. "You'll just get us both hurt. He's very powerful...very powerful."

Lyan grunted, looking out over the town. "Very well...where are we going, then?"

"The carnival I told you about."

"The one you don't want to go to?"

"The very one." I agreed, chuckling quietly. "I managed to talk Silver into letting you come back, so you could help me guard his daughter, Cleo."

"I've got to be his daughter's body guard?" Lyan didn't seem amused by the thought.

"It's that, or staying up in your room."

"I'd rather stay-- oh...that's why I left for a moment. She didn't want to come."

I nodded. Lyan frowned.

"I will try to get out of this soon enough to see you before the end of the day." Silver murmured as he dropped Cleo's hand, and started pushing his way through the crowd, toward a large podium on a stage.

Cleo looked after him a long moment. I tightened my grip on Lyan's hand, hoping he'd behave. Cleo turned toward me, and I wasn't quite sure that I liked the expression on her face. I hoped she'd behave too.

"Elia, isn't it?" She asked after a moment.

I nodded hesitantly. Even a young demon was far stronger than a human. But they're so unpredictable...I wish she was older.

"Well, Elia, it seems that my father wants you to babysit me tonight."

I hesitated a long moment, caught in her icy glare like an animal caught in headlights. Finally I found my voice. "I think..." I started slowly. "That he's as-- I mean...I think that he's concerned about...We're going to have a good time."

"I certainly intend to." As she spoke, large, gnarled wings sprouted from her back, making my stomach twist.

Sh*t. "Great." I said weakly. And my life goes down the toliet.

"I want to go look at that vendor's tent." She stated, starting through the crowds before I could even think of stopping her. I dragged Lyan behind me, keeping a firm hold on his hand as I struggled to keep up with her.

It turned out to be quite a chore to keep up with a girl who didn't want to be kept up with. She wasn't trying to get away. Yet. But she wasn't making it easy to stay with her either.

Eventually, Cleo started complaining loudly about being thirsty, and demanded I go get her something to drink. I suggested we all go to the nearest concession tent. She plopped herself down on a bench, and suggested we go on without her.

After a few strained moments of me chewing on my already raw lip, Lyan suggested that I go get the drinks, and that he'd stay with Cleo. I grudgingly accepted.
~

The lines took ages to get through. I was turning into a nervous wreck. I was much too far away from Cleo, or Lyan, for that matter, for comfort. I kept glancing at where she sat with another girl. I didn't know who the girl was. I certainly hoped that she wasn't dangerous. That Lyan could deal with her, if she was.

A crowd of people walked between us, and when they passed, I saw them all standing, Cleo gesturing toward me, trying to talk Lyan into something. No, no, no...

Another group of people passed between us, and when they cleared, Cleo and Lyan were nowhere to be seen. My heart stopped a moment, before it began flailing around in my stomach.

I pushed my way through the crowd roughly, taking many elbows to my sides and face, as I struggled to get to where I last saw them. I just saw a glimpse of Lyan's green tunic ahead. I started toward it as quickly as I could possibly manage.

"Where's your sister?"

I got pushed down by a large man. It took several moments for me to struggle to my feet, as people began stepping on me. I managed to push my way into their little party, just as Lyan asked Silver. "What do you care? Cleo's safe. That's all you care about, right?"

"I--"

"I'm right here!" I cut, stumbling into Lyan, pushing him away from Sil. I glared at Cleo a moment. Don't...you little b*tch. Your father won't kill you. Me on the other hand... I glared up at Lyan. And you... I took his hand, squeezing tightly, hardly able to catch my breath.

I would've never allowed Princess Cleo out of my arm's reach, if I'd any idea that they'd run into Silver-- without me.

"I should go," Someone Sil had been talking to muttered suddenly. "I just remembered I left a thing in the office."

Take me with you.

"Office, yes. I will accompany you." A man said. "Tomorrow, then, your house."

Or you. Just get me away from him.

"Avvie, I told you I'm busy--"

"Five o'clock." He waved at us and turned. Just don't leave me here. I have no--

"A might careless, if you ask me." Silver hissed quietly, glaring at me.

"Sir, I assure you, I--"

"Cleo's fine. Leave Eli be."

I drove my elbow into Lyan's side so hard he stumbled to the side, coughing.

"What?"

"I-he-she-drinks. She wanted drinks. I went for drinks." I couldn't breathe again. "Because Cleo, she wanted drinks."

I didn't care that I sounded stupid. I couldn't help it. Either Cleo or Lyan, or a mixture of the two of them, was going to drive Silver to make my life a living hell. Or possibly a non-living one.

"Be very careful." Silver warned me, glaring. I nodded vigorously.

"We must talk." Silver turned towards his daughter, before waving Lyan and I away. "Go on, you two. Have fun around."

...Really? I expected suffering of some sort. Threats. Something...something other than him turning me loose with my brother.

He locked his glare on my eyes. "I expect to see you back before morning."

"Yes, sir." I murmured quickly, hesitating a moment before dragging Lyan off into the crowd.

Once I was certain that we were out of sight, I turned and hit Lyan in the chest, hard.

"Ow!" He stepped back, rubbing his chest. "What was that for? Why did you elbow--"

"Shut up." I hissed, rubbing my face, panting for air. "You...don't be stupid."

"I'm not being stup--"

"Arguing with Silver is stupid. Period."

"I'm not scared."

"I'm sure you're not." I glared up at him. "But what about me? I'll be taking the fall for your snark, when you're not even aware of the world around you."

It was harsh. Too harsh. But he got my message.

He finally nodded, sobering. "You're right. I'm sorry."

I closed my eyes, sighing. He didn't get it. I don't want an apology. I want you to be polite, and convince Silver to let you stay with me.

"I'll try to be nicer, okay?"

"Okay." I nodded, opening my eyes to look at him.

"Good!" He grinned. "Well then, what do you say we have a night out on the town?"

"Sounds good." I agreed, thinking back to my younger days. We used to have fun. He rarely let me get drunk back then, but he'd always let me drink enough to get a pleasant humming in my head.

"Just like old times?"

I shook my head, grinning. "Nope. This time, you'll be the one carrying me home."
~

"Drink, drink, drink, drink!" The raucous crowd roared in my ears, as I downed another shot. I slammed my glass down on the scarred table before me, and a cheer rose up. They refilled my glass, and the chanting resumed.

I felt myself swaying, as I focused my watery gaze on the shotglass sitting before me. I was so very drunk. So very, very drunk.

"She's done."

I am not. I was. But I had a crowd to please. I lifted the shot I'd been poured, and my stomach churned a bit. I blinked, glaring at the drink. Now you...are going to go inside me..without a fuss. No fighting. Just right down, like a good little cup of whis...whiskey.

"There's no way she'll drink any more. She's already on seventeen."

"Come on." Someone near my right pleaded. "Just one more."

I tipped my head back, dumping the shot into my mouth, and grabbed the shot of a man sitting near me. A double. I slammed both glasses down on the table before me. A louder cheer.

"By god, she did it!" Someone clapped me on the back.

"That's right, you mockerfuthers!" I stopped, glaring. The word didn't sound right in my mouth.

"That's my baby sister!" Lyan wrapped his arm around me, tipping into me, carefully not spilling a speck of his beer.

"It's true!" I laughed, a stronger twinge in my stomach, frowning as someone poured me another shot.

"Drink, drink, drink."

I shook my head. I had reached my limit.

"Come on!" Someone pleaded.

"Drink!"

I groaned, looking at the drink. My stomach didn't feel like drinking. My stomach felt like beating me for drinking as much as I had.

"Come on!"

"Fine." I grumbled, grabbing the drink, downing it. My stomach lurched as I set the cup down.

"She--"

"Move!" I clawed my way between the men. They parted a way to the door easily. They knew what was coming.

I stumbled just outside the door and fell to my knees, retching up a good deal of the booze I'd worked all night to drink. I felt gentle hands, pulling my hair out of my face, holding it as I puked.

After a few minutes my stomach settled, and stumbled to my feet with the help of Lyan. "I don't feel so good."

"You don't look so good, either." He agreed. "Wanna go home?"

"No." I glanced up at the sky. It was starting to get light. It looked like I had less than two hours before sunrise. Maybe less time. "Yes."

"Okay. Let's go." He wrapped his arms around my shoulders, and together we swayed down the road. We soon fell into the wall of a building, and it took several minutes for us to untangle ourselves.

"L-lyan, you s-s-stuck at being the-the mature pferson." I slurred, as I stumbled to my feet, tripping a moment later and finding myself sprawling across the road. Luckily, it was mostly deserted.

Some of my new friends stumbled outside and saw me. The less drunk ones gathered Lyan and I up, and asked if we were coming back inside. I explained that I had to get home before the sun caught me out, and, in their drunken minds, the excuse made perfect sense.

A small group of the men, three or four, helped haul Lyan and I up the hill, to the mansion. It was somewhat difficult to get up the stairs, I noticed, as I kept stumbling and knocking my shins off the next step up-- but we, eventually, managed.

We fumbled with the door, me trying to fit my key into the lock, giggling with the rest of them as I kept missing. Suddenly the knob turned, and the door opened. I stood, glaring at where the nob used to be a long moment, before thinking to look up. Silver stood before me. "Elia."

"Shilver-- Shiver-- Silfer--Shif.." I sighed, swaying. "You. My man. Hi."

"What do you think you're doing?" He asked crisply.

He was angry. I frowned. "I was--getting inside. My bed. The key didn't fit."

He lifted his eyebrows, and I saw him glaring over my shoulder. I turned all the way around, and found the men who'd accompanied me were all off the porch, and inching away. "Oh. Yeah! Those...They're...they're my friends."

"Your...friends."

"Yeah!" I grinned, sure that he'd be proud of me. "You said-- the friends. I made them, like you said. Good idea. You're really smart." I tapped my head, nodding at him seriously.

"That makes one of us. Get inside."

I frowned at him, but turned back around and waved. "Bye guys! I gotta go. Before Shil...Silf..." I sighed, angry that I couldn't pronounce it. "Before my demon gets mad. He gets...gets...scary. Big and scary. Rawr."

I turned around and started, as I saw that he was still standing there. I felt my eyes go wide, and I remembered what he said. "Inside. Right."

His eyes were glowing red. My eyes got wider, and I felt a sudden drain in my energy. I stumbled backward, hitting my head off of the railing. When I stumbled back to my feet, I heard screaming, and saw that my friends were engulfed in flames.

"No!" I felt my heart sink, and I fell off the porch, running toward them. I waved my arms, blowing with all my might, trying to get the flames to go out. "No, no, no guys-- no smoking...no burning. Stop burning."

I pushed one of my friends over, and tried to smother the flames, but ended up falling on top of him. The flames hurt. "Ow, ow, ow." I complained. He wasn't screaming any more. I felt someone haul me off of him, and turned to find Silver holding onto my arm. He hauled me onto the porch by that arm.

I felt my eyes welling up with tears, though I couldn't fully understand what was happening. He pushed me inside, and pushed the door shut behind us-- Lyan had managed to stagger in by his own power.

"Go to bed, now."

"I hate you." I grumbled, pouting, glaring at him.

"I don't care."

"It's your fault." I pointed my finger at him, glaring. "Your fault that I can't make friends."

"Must I remind you it was you who called for me? It was your choice to enter the contract."

I narrowed my eyes. "I didn't know you were such a meany-pants when I did."

"You will regret this as you wake up. Bed. Now."

"I ain't goin' to bed if you're going to be mean when I wake up." I shook my head seriously. "I'm not too drunk to figure...that one out."

"You shouldn't be drunk at all." He cut crisply.

"If it bothers you so much." I put my hands on my hips. "Then why don't you un-drunk me, O wise and powerful...demon...dude."

He waved his hand in a jerky movement, and I felt myself instantly sobered. I gasped, staggering backward, feeling as if I'd been hit with a brick in my temple. Never had a hangover passed so quickly-- never had it been so concentrated.

I leaned against the banister of the stairs, panting, trying to regain some sense of balance. Some coherancy back to my life.

"There. Is that un-drunk enough for you, Master?"

I looked up at him, still leaning against the banister, feeling sick. My thoughts were muddled. I couldn't quite recall what happened between Lyan and I walking into that tavern, and us ending up here. Lyan looked nearly as surprised as I did. Nearly.

I looked at Silver. He looked angry. His eyes were red, jaw tight. Sh*t. What did I do? I figured it was my fault, from the way he glared at me. I hoped it wasn't very bad. Hoped I could patch things up.

"Sit down." He hissed.

I instantly sat, right in the floor.

He looked at me a long moment, his eyes narrowed. "Mm...why don't you sit there, until you can behave like you have a brain?"

I nodded quickly, and instantly regretted it. A headache lingered. I pressed my fingers into my temple, and nodded again, cautiously. "Yes, sir."

"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus
"From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf
"A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni
[they/he]





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megsug says...



Kalib, Day One - Carnvial
The carnival was in full swing as I had hoped when I finally made my way to the middle of Town. It was a strange freedom that I wasn't used to, walking around without worrying about stares or whispers. I did have a hooded jacket, hiding some of the more noticable, disturbing features. I even had a booth, wooden figurines playing on shelves, but Lyslen would sell them today. This may be the only night I would get out. Perhaps my only chance to find a contracter.

I smirked to myself. The crush of people was strangely comforting after so many weeks locked away in my workshop. I resented the fact that the surge of humans took away my choice to leave my house unless I wanted to lurk in shadows, but I semi-lived through Lyslen, so I supposed it could be worse. At least I had Lyslen.

I studied the bright colors and hummed a bit to the music twirling from a booth somewhere. The sea of masks danced past me, all fading into a flamboyant stream. I didn't have to beg Masque for one of their masks. I was strange enough as is, no additions required.

With the masks, it was a bit more difficult to seperate the humans from the demons, but several of my kind were doing as I was, letting loose a bit with the pretense of costumes as our disguise. I nodded at a few people I recognized and continued scanning the crowd. Sometimes, people who really needed something stuck out even in the midsts of hundreds of people. However, with so many soul hungry demons roaming around, it wasn't likely such obvious targets would be abundant.

I glanced toward my booth, unable to make myself go too far away. Though they weren't alive, my wooden creations were dear to me, and I want to see how successful they were. Lysen seemed to be talking to someone rather seriously about something that didn't seem to revolve around my wares. I started toward them.

Spoiler! :
Can be anyone and they can be talking about anything. I just needed a post to worm into this here storybook. XD
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Niebla says...



Kalei | The Carnival | Day One

There were so many people here, so many more than I had ever expected the town to hold. Not that most of them looked like people; they fitted their costumes well, almost all of them, moving just as I’d expect someone who really looked like that to move. Standing with bare feet on the moist grass, I missed the security of my flat; there I could spend away the hours drawing, pretending I was elsewhere. Here it was impossible to keep myself from being grounded by the senses; colour, fluid movements underneath the lanterns; music, a child’s tune in minor; smell, the mix of various perfumes and colognes and sweat and carnival food.

There was smoke drifting through the air, too, just as there had been at Akalisk, though that smoke had carried more dream in it and then we had lain on the ground and traced in repeated patterns the black and white pictures of the inhuman people, the ones we desperately believed in, the ones who looked not unlike the people here. I had to remind myself: it’s a carnival. They’re supposed to look like this. You won’t find any of that here: it’s a new place, and you’ve left all of that far behind.

I moved forward into the crowd, allowing myself to be swept away by the general flow. An eagle on human legs moved past me in a whirl of feathers, brushing my side with a wing that was too warm, too solid. The air was warm with fire and smoke and light and many human bodies in one small space but I still shivered, tracing the lines in my mask with a finger to remind myself that I was really here and not dreaming. The lines were crude and wobbly, carved by a child’s hand.

She leaned over the river, staring intently into the depths. The tips of her hair were dark with the water. “You’re not doing it right,” she said. “Look at it. Its eyes are wider, rounder. Its mouth curves more. You missed out the gills.”

I came to crouch beside her, my grip around the pen knife tightening. Looking down, all I could see was unclear water, the ripples of my own distorted reflection, the silver glint of a fish darting past. “I see it,” I told her, and started carving in the gills to forget about the lie. In time it came out of the wood and she was satisfied; she saw now that it looked like a river-dwelling squirrel. She hadn't been able to find the words to say that before.


One of the eagle’s feathers brushed against the skin of my arm again. I’d been wrong: it was possible to forget where you were for a moment, but you had to stay focused on the present; sooner or later something would jolt you out of your dream or memory anyway. Focus on the front. Stop thinking, stop remembering. You’re here now. The eagle and I were part of the same crowd, a colourful mass huddled around a single figure.

Clad in red and black, he juggled with flame. It changed colours as he teased it into impossible shapes, hoops and jets and once, just for a moment, a vaguely human figure he danced with. His mismatched eyes looked out from behind the mask at no place in particular. The only time they did focus was to look at a single figure in the crowd. For a moment they would flicker – or maybe it was just a trick of the flame – and then he would return to looking through us and into nothingness.

When the jester swallowed the flame and then breathed it out in a roar, the whole crowd stirred. The captivated silence was broken by gasps and excited speech and faces twisted to convey disbelief. There was a murmur from the front: “It was so hot – It almost brushed me, almost burned me. I could feel the heat of it. How could someone swallow something so hot?” Everyone moved, even if it was just to raise a hand to their chest, shift their weight to the other leg or tap the person next to them. But the person the jester’s eyes were focused on remained frozen and stiff. His mask was feathered too, but nothing like the eagle’s: and when he turned away he moved nothing like a bird.

The eagle kept looking at me, sideways glances with dark hardened eyes. No matter how much I tried I couldn’t make out the line between his mask and his real face. It unsettled me, so I broke away from the crowd too, lifted my mask just slightly off my face to breathe in the fresh air before slipping it back and looking around. It was hard to see through the mask; the eyes were the wrong shape to fit mine. But I could see that people were beginning to break away from the crowd and walk into the more shaded areas in small groups or pairs; I could see that the food was running out, and that the jester had returned to his less dramatic act, teasing the flame around his neck and shoulders – which always remained unmarked – as if it were a snake or a scarf.

Everything was moving too quickly; I closed my eyes to steady myself. The music, still playing but more relaxed now, almost mournful. Feet crunching on grass and twigs and leaves. One word out of the general muttering: demons. I recognised that it came from the man with the feathered mask on, standing in the shade behind me by a tree. Now everyone seemed to be saying it as air rushed to my head: demons, demons, demons – and then everything was normal again, and the commotion died down, and I could breathe. It’s not such an uncommon word. It doesn’t mean anything. Especially when muttered under one’s breath: he could have just been singing.

“They look a lot like them, don’t they?” I said without thinking. There’s no reason to be worried about it. But when he realised that I was talking to him he did look worried, his hand finding a branch and tightly grasping it, his slumped posture becoming tense again. However much I thought it, I couldn’t convince myself that it was okay – you never know. You’re meant to be leaving all of that behind. You’re meant to try as hard as possible to stay out of it. It was too late now.

He simply said: “what do you mean?”

“They look unreal. That jester, breathing the flame--“ – his eyes were already wandering back over to him – “It’s hard to believe a human could really do something like that, yet he did.”

It was okay: it had to be. There were no demons here. Akalisk had always been the one chasing them, hoping to prove their existence to themselves – and they were always too fast – not the other way around. I forced my body to relax, and he seemed to be doing the same; his grip on the branch loosened and he took a deep breath through the mask, his shoulders rising and falling. But still he didn’t look away from the jester, not for long. They narrowed with some kind of discomfort whenever he did look, but he didn’t seem able to stop himself.

“Do you know him?” I asked.

Finally he tore his eyes away, and focused for the first time on my rough river-creature mask. “No,” he said. “I see him around a lot, but I can’t say that I know him.” His gaze fixed on the gills. “Are you new here? It’s hard to tell, but I don’t think I’ve met you before.”

I must have seemed out of place. My discomfort was obvious, and I moved with none of the fluidity of something making its way through the water. “I’ve been here for about two weeks,” I said. “I’ve barely met anyone...up until now, the place seemed almost deserted.”

He nodded so slightly I almost missed it. “People here keep to themselves. The carnival is an exception.” Finally he let go of the branch; his other fist unclenched. “I’m Martin. I live above Masquerade’s Masks – I expect you’ve seen it.”

The display was hard to miss, even just in passing – I nodded. “Kalei. I’ve moved into a flat two streets down from here.”

“What brings you to Town?” he asked, his voice flat.

“Work...and things from the past I would like to get away from.”

Martin's fingers were playing with the back on the branch again. He looked down, shifted his weight from one leg to another. His voice was barely perceptible: “Yes. You get away from one thing and run straight into another.”

His words were bitter, personal, and made no sense to me. “I haven’t run into anything else yet,” I said.

“You will.” His eyes fixed on me again.

I shook my head. “What do you mean?”

He shook his, too. “I’m sorry. I just mean that...of all the places, this isn’t the place to lead a normal life. It isn’t the place to lead a life at all. But it’s no use telling you that, is it? It wasn’t to me.” He stretched out a gloved hand. “Welcome to Town.”

I shook it and searched for something else to say, something that would chase away the confusion inside me and make both of us feel more comfortable. I settled on his mask. “You said you lived above Masquerade’s – is that where your mask comes from?”

He nodded. “Many of them are. All of them are going back. Masquerade doesn’t sell his masks.”

I looked back towards the centre of the carnival. Most of them were standing and talking now: the earlier magic had faded to some extent. Still their movements made me feel uneasy as more memories tried to force their way through: purple smoke, crinkled sepia photos which we ran our shaking fingers over again and again and again –

There was something strange about Town, but maybe a strange place was what it would take to escape the past. Still, I wondered why Martin had said what he said; what had happened here to hurt him so much.





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Imaginator17 says...



Byron, Forest/Carnival, Day one

The gentle peace of the woods, the trees next to each other residing happily surrounding Byron. Protecting him from the dangers of the town around him. Or the world for that matter. The reclusive manner of the forest was enough for him. He was alone with his thoughts. That was enough for him.

Although times were beginning to get rough.. He has managed to survive without having to store any souls. But lately he has been becoming more weaker than usual. Earlier today he struggled to lift up 3 blocks of wood. Yesterday it would have been very easy for him to lift it, even with one hand.
Is he getting even more weaker than usual.
Byron dismissed the thought. He was a blacksmith, of course his arms would get tired, Anybody's' arm would get tired.
Any human, that is.

However Byron wasn't a human. Of course he looked like one, inheriting his parents genes but not there abilities.
Byron thought of himself as a failed demon. The type that was born weak and could never get stronger. He never bothered himself with storing souls because he believed he could never have the power to fulfill the wish of the human.
Despite being in a safe, secluded area, Byron longed for an interaction with anybody. Or anything. He was secretly waiting. For somebody to show up, he kept it a secret from his thoughts, his own thoughts disregarding the fact that loneliness can feel like a huge burden for no reason. Everyday he thinks about things that make no difference to his long life. He has not known a human or a demon for the past 100 years he's lived.

For once in his bountiful life, Byron has the desire to peek over the the other side. He could hear the noise of the humans. Rhythmic music encouraging him to take a few more steps to the forbidden side. A few steps turned into more steps, more steps turned into a full on sprint. It was as if a plague of curiosity had infected his mind and he felt compelled to see what he had missed through the 100 years of solitude. From time to time he would observe humans passing through the forest. Never interacting. These thoughts were appearing all in his mind as he started to make his way through the unknown parts of the forest.
He stumbled through some bushes to see something unfimiliar.

People that had on strange masks. They were interacting and dancing. Something Byron had never done. The flames of the torches lighting up the night, all of this intruiged Byron.
"Hey"
Bryon's heart did a double take. He looked at the beholder of the voice, just for his eyes to widen in horror to see that he had attracted a lot of eyes. Piercing at him through their masks. He moved back before sprinting past the small crowd that had gathered around him. After running approximately a mile he was out of breath, hiding behind a small house.

Regretting the decision to leave the forest.








Too often we crave the extraordinary in life, without even learning how to cherish the ordinary first. Friend, I promise you this: if you can learn to take joy in the simple mundane things in life, the extraordinary will take care of itself, it'll be on its way, hurrying towards you. But if you skip the first part, it'll ever evade you.
— Arcticus