I'm still here. Could someone bring me in somehow? (: I'd really appreciate it.
Hermione, shut your ungodly, lopsided mouth and quit interrupting! 20 points from Gryffindor. You know, for the brightest witch of your age you can sure be a dumba** sometimes. *smiles* 10 points to Dumbledore!
Whoever has Willow hasn't posted yet...so I'll just keep going..
Keta
"Well I am the one and only Willow." the woman stated. She then turned to Keta again and watched her, a quizical expression on her face. "Your name?"
"K-Keta Night." Keta stuttered.
Willow leaned in close and studied Keta's masked face, almost staring right into her eyes. "Interesting.."
Keta leaned away from the odd woman. This entire night was just too much for her.
Elena opened her mouth to say something to Willow, but a voice interrupted her.
"May I join you?" someone asked.
-------
That's you WhiteTiger. I have zero idea who your character is at the moment (and am too lazy to check) or else I would have made that much more descriptive..
I smiled at the one girl. I had really only came over here to see what wsa going on. I had noticed Willow from earlier. I had actually talked to her...and I didn't trust her. At all.
"I'm Sasha," I smiled kindly to the girl. She didn't look the type to be in a cllub like this. You could get hurt here. "I believe we've already met, Willow."
She nodded and I turned to the other girl.
"Keta," she said, returning the smile. It was a small, shy smile. I sighed, internally. She looked like the easy prey type. This would be the kind of girl that other, not so kind people, would go after. I knew that more than any.
"So Willow," I started, suddenly. "What have you done with your evening?" I cocked an eyebrow. I still didn't trust her.
Hermione, shut your ungodly, lopsided mouth and quit interrupting! 20 points from Gryffindor. You know, for the brightest witch of your age you can sure be a dumba** sometimes. *smiles* 10 points to Dumbledore!
((Sorry I have not posted for Angel in so long. Frankly I haven't felt up to it…))
((scd: I know in your post you said that Angel was on break, but I think it’s time to get him off that stage. ))
ANGEL
A familiar ache in my wrists and calves alerts me that our set is coming to a close. Lou tells the crowd as much and announces the title of our final song, “Memorabilia,” into the microphone. It is one of my favorite pieces to perform, but I am distracted and over-stimulated. Besides, I could have sworn I saw Christian on the floor, and I am eager to confront him.
With incredible strength of will, I focus on the task at hand: summoning the music from inside me and channeling it through my arms and legs. For a moment the act of drumming becomes all consuming, but after what feels like a matter of seconds the song is over, and the band begins to tear down set, ignoring the cries of protest from the audience.
Still feeling as if I have entered an alternate, more colorful, and brighter universe, I help the others pack equipment onto heavy crates and wheel them out back to be loaded into the band’s weathered gray van. When we are mostly finished, I catch Lou’s arm and tell her that I will be inside- there is someone I need to talk to. She nods and assures me she and the boys can take it from here, but before I go she slips past my defenses and plants a kiss on my right cheek.
“You played a great show tonight, Angel.”
I wince and turn awkwardly away, unspoken apologies still weighty on my mind.
Inside, the club is more packed than I realized initially, so I decide to take a seat at the bar and hope Christian will find me. He has a way of appearing when wanted, and predictably no sooner have I planted myself on a bar stool than I spot him attempting to separate himself from the crowd.
“Christian! I never thought I’d see the likes of you in a place like this,” I call to him. I place a hand on his shoulder to make him aware of who he is speaking to before realizing he would hate that. To my surprise he does not react to my touch, but instead studies my face with hard calculating eyes. For a moment, I imagine I see a touch of concern soften his gaze, but it is only for a moment.
“I was just leaving,” he mumbles and makes an effort to move away, but we are hemmed in by the masses. His unusual expression jolts my memory of the day that must have led to this both unnerving and spectacular evening, and I dip into my pocket for the vial he sold me earlier this afternoon but find only the half-empty bottle of Hercules and a handful of change.
“I seem to have lost those little black pills you gave me,” I wonder aloud.
“I don't care, Angel. I'm not giving you more," Christian says stiffly. He does not look me in the eye, but somehow I know he is wearing that odd look of concern. His unwillingness to discuss it prompts me to change the subject.
“Never mind, it doesn’t matter.” As I speak, I inch my way back to the bar and lay my pocket change on the counter. When the bartender passes, I order a shot of Marigold, too exhausted for anything stronger, then turn to face Christian again.
“So, what exactly are you doing here? I have a feeling you didn’t come just to hear me play.”
Your beliefs define your character... I believe in LOVE.
Hard time here and everywhere you go Times is harder than ever been before
[s]People goin, floor to floor[/s] And the people are driftin' from door to door Can't find no heaven, I don't care where they go
[s]Let me tell you[/s] Hear me tell you people, just before I go These hard times will kill you just dry long so
Well, you hear me singin' my lonesome song These hard times can last us so very long
If I ever get off this killin' floor I'll never get down this low no more No-no, no-no, I'll never get down this low no more
I sat back, and looked at the first part of my new song. It certainly wasn't the best I had ever written, but I was having a bit of writers block. After all, I'd just been on a very long journey. I had been in my abusive household for eighteen years, and I had worked a job that I hated, just to rent out a crappy apartment in Strys.
Well, I thought, This crappy apartment is a hell of a lot better than the hell hole that I used to call home.
I grabbed my guitar (I called her Sally) and strummed, putting strings to the lyrics and singing softly. I was sitting in the window seat that overlooked a little part of the city. My mask was laying beside me, and I thought about putting it back on. It just felt kind of nice to get out of it for a little while.
I ended up putting it back on. I decided I didn't want someone to knock on the door and I answer it barefaced. That wouldn't be good.
I continued to play my guitar, wondering when I would meet people. I had been here for about two days now, but I had still met no one. Maybe I lived in a cut off section.
A smile curved my lips. Maybe I was always to be alone.
*********************
by the way, that song is not original. It's a part of the song, "Hard Time Killin Floor Blues" by Chris Thomas King
I am startled by this new voice, and it is a moment before I realize the question was posed to both Lorcan and myself. With a twinge of amusement, my eyes pass from the dark stranger to the self-proclaimed man of danger across the table, and I can’t seem to decide who is the greater “threat.” Thankfully, Lorcan speaks for both of us.
“Please do,” he says, and his tone is grateful as well as respectful. The older man does not hesitate, but seats himself gracefully at the edge of our table.
“If it is not too strange, please, continue as you were,” he encourages. “I’ve interrupted you in the middle of a question.”
His air is one of formality, and before I recognize it as being rude, good humor urges a stream of noisy laughter up my throat and between my lips. I stifle it a moment too late and hide my face behind a tall glass of Wysteria. Rather than apologize, I take a long drag of the foamy mauve potion and toss my dark hair in front of my face, as if my porcelain mask is not defense enough against the probing eyes of strangers. The fact that neither man is at all preoccupied with my girlish behavior does little to relieve my embarrassment.
An uneasy glance in Lorcan’s direction reminds me of the question I have left unanswered, and a bout of nervousness sabotages what remains of my optimism.
“That is a question so abrupt even I would not ask it without adequate prelude,” I say, speaking far too quickly, but I smile at the elaborate phrasing of my response. Drink invariably loosens my tongue, making me more obnoxious than an uninvited minstrel. My impervious good attitude, however, is natural, and it is that rather than the magic potion that prompts me to continue.
“It is only fair, however, for one who expects openness from others to expect it from themselves as well, so I am prepared to tell you all about losing my father, being abandoned by my mother, how I raised myself from the tender age of five, and attempting to build a career as a musician in a city that has far too many already, but I think you would probably yawn and not be even the slightest bit interested because we all live in the same damn city and suffer the same damn trials.”
I close my mouth just in time to meet the glass I am raising to my lips and take another long swallow. I don’t think I meant to say all that, but it came out in such a rush and with such an odd burbling rhythm I can’t be sure what they will actually manage to decipher. None, I hope silently, and drop my chin so that the curtain of auburn curls falls closed about my face.
Last edited by Babanuuk on Tue Jul 14, 2009 11:48 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Your beliefs define your character... I believe in LOVE.
It is evident that I have brought her crashing down, a result I did not intend but I can't say that I am sorry for it. Optimism is something that I can no longer suffer and reality is a much safer mode of life. I don't think for one moment that I have done enough to change her perspective forever but for this night at least she has been brought down to Earth. Maybe she has had it hard but I see none of the pain in her soft, tender skin. Perhaps a little in her eyes. It is nothing that could measure to my own.
"You're right, I would be bored," I say though I am actually intrigued. I have been cursed with the desire to know other people though it doesn't always do well to have so many's lives packed up in your head. I am forever finding that I compare myself to them. I have not talked in this way with many women though. Perhaps if I knew more of them- but no. Thoughts like those aren't healthy. Maybes. What ifs. Could have beens.
I hope that the other two will command conversation as I am not much in the mood to talk. It has been a long and frustrating day and my first meal is sitting in front of me as yet untouched. I pick up my utensils and begin to eat, pausing to drink from my glass. I wonder what such a man is doing consorting with us. Perhaps he is bored or gently feeling us out. Magicians are a lot more subtle than Stringers, sometimes I find that hard to grasp when manning my stall. But they gently prod at a person first before revealing any intent they might have. I think he is going to be sourly disapointed.
Christian stiffened and curled his hand around the glass in his hand. The bottle of pinchbeck was gone and he'd ordered a glass of something else.
"You misunderstand me, Angel," he said. "You won't be getting anything else from me."
Angel frowned, a soft laugh coming to his lips.
"You must be kidding," he said, panic slowly starting to build in his throat. "You wouldn't cut off your best customer."
Christian turned.
"I can and I will," he said. "Angel," he said. "I have seen the once great man you were. You don't need those potions. Look at yourself! I found you facedown on the sidewalk earlier, unconscious and unable to recognize me. Have you realized yet that one of your teeth is missing? Of course not, the hero would have numbed you to the pain." His voice sounded bitter, almost as if he was angry at Angel for destroying himself. In a way, he was.
Jude raised his brow as the two stranger's conversation dwindled into a weighted silence. He turned his head slightly as the waitress arrived with the candies. She set them on the table without a word and hurried of to take another order across the room. Jude took the small silver plate in his hand and proffered the treats to the two young people. Both took one, Nora eating hers and Lorcan putting his aside to try after his meal.
He set the plate down, and for a short moment, chewed lightly in the skin near his thumbnail. Placing both hands on the table, he stood up, and then reaching back behind himself, stretched. Jude turned his chair around so that the back of it was facing their table, and he again sat down on it, arms akimbo upon the back edge, with his chin comfortably resting in the nook created there.
He slightly canted his head, so that he'd be even more comfortable, and smiled at them both, taking turns holding their eyes with his. "And it is no wonder, this evil city masquerades itself as an angel of light; a destroyer in the fairest of guises. Seducing ignorant children with vain glory and pleasure. We live in darkness gilded with shine. You know this fact as well as anyone, but ignore it less."
Jude pretended to yawn dramatically. "What I'd really love to hear from you two is what you are planning to do about it? Feeling sorry for yourself and drowning in despair is natural, of course, even justified - but a time comes to choose a different course. If you stumble in the pit, why not find the stair?"
He closed his eyes. "But then, of course, first - you have to believe it's there."
Where there is No Love, there is No Question.
A dream shared becomes reality, a dream alone is a nightmare.
"She tastes lyke raiyn and sumtimes kiwi-fruit; and wunce... she tasted lyke a pen-ny." <3
Elena looked up as Sasha approached. "You're Sasha, huh?" she asked. "And why exactly are you here in this God-forsaken place?" She looked around at the rest of the club, slightly miserable. If it looked like Keta was fine, she'd go home.
"Indeed the safest road to Hell is the gradual one-- the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts." --The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis
"Why would anyone be here?" I asked. She cocked her head to the side a little and I rolled my eyes.
I twisted my waist a little and winked at a passing guy. His eyebrows shot up and I could feel his eyes when I looked back to Elena. "I'm a magician, and I'm pretty sure that I've got a sale right there," I laughed.
"Well I'd hate to keep you here," she said, a little disgusted. I shrugged.
"That's business. I was only flirting. That's how I make my money," I replied.
"Excuse me?" She coughed. I laughed.
"Not that," I replied. "No. I only flirt to draw in sales on my products," I giggled.
"Oh," she retorted. I nodded.
"It's not easy, but I've got to eat, don't I," I sighed. "Magic is the only thing I can really do."
Hermione, shut your ungodly, lopsided mouth and quit interrupting! 20 points from Gryffindor. You know, for the brightest witch of your age you can sure be a dumba** sometimes. *smiles* 10 points to Dumbledore!
Very well; I hear; I admit, but I have a voice too, and for good or evil mine is the speech that cannot be silenced. — Joseph Conrad, Heart of Darkness