Lorraine Time Lorraine I woke up with my hand sore becaue I spent the night writing. Hopefully today I could go out, with or without the Rogue's permission. And I chose to go out without his permission. As soon as I felt the warm sunrays hit my skin, I smiled; it felt so good. The streets looked somehow quiet very interesting for such a day, but just being out there made me feel good. As I was walking in the lonely streets, thanks God, I found Jas and Kayla.
"Oh my God! look who's here" Jas said with a smile. "The lost soul has come back from its hiding place"
"Yes, I'm here" I said proudfully.
"Does the Rogue know you're out?" Kayla, it had to be Kayla, always taking too much care about the Rogue.
"NO!" I said quickly. "And he's not supposed to know, please" I said to her, maybe she didn't mena any harm but I knew she might tell the Rogue. "Please, I just feel trapped."
It was true, I didn't feel good; I needed fresh air. I knew it wasn't right to ask them, but I felt the urge, I felt the question or what I knew couldn't keep hiding.
"Have you found Krissy and the rest of her wicked gang?" some sort of hate mixed with regret sounded in my voice. That dream was still hunting me. Those strange scenes in it were coming esporadically.
"No" Jas answered.
"The cottage in the woods" I murmured, not wanting them to hear, but appaently, they heard.
***Will post for Daniel a bit later***
Les sanglots longs Des violons De l'autonne Blessent mon coeur D'une langueur Monotone. Verlaine
"Oh, fine, keep your secrets then!" I exclaimed, throwing up my hands. "By the gods, can't anyone around here say what they mean? It's bad enough Grayson ditched us when he promised he would come with us, and then you won't tell us what you're talking about."
Kayla rolled her eyes. "She's upset because Grayson took off," she whispered to Lorraine.
"Of course I am!" I said, furious. A lady strolling by paused and stared at me, then hurried on when I glared at her. "I didn't invite him along so we could pick flowers or go shopping! This is important! Someone tried to attack me! Someone is threatening the Rogue! For all we know, the Rogue could be in danger."
"What?" Kayla said, looking alarmed. "You didn't tell me this."
"Well, maybe if you would stop insulting me for two minutes I would have," I snapped. "We need to find this Hodge man and find out what's going on before it's too late."
"Fine," Kayla said, looking resigned. "Does that mean we're going back into the woods?"
"No," I said. "Apparently Hodge owns a tavern when he's not hiding in the woods. He should be there today. Coming, Lorraine?"
She nodded, and we set off down the street together in silence.
“Don't tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass.” Anton Chekhov
** I will be creating a discussion thread, I'll be posting my idea for what is happening after Tiger and Crocky develop their part of the story a little bit more there. Feel free to share in their and ask questions **
Grayson swallowed but kept his expression the same. Did Maria really care that much about her appearance? Grayson hated vainity, but with Maria...well, he couldn't help but feel sympathy for her no matter how hard he tried to push that feeling away.
She was interesting, strong, and one of the only humans who actually understood pain. Grayson shook the thoughts. He wouldn't admire her. For all he knew she could be bluffing everything.
Still his gaze was drawn to the scars. They bothered her...but he didn't think it was about vainity. Maria, he hated to admit it, wouldn't worry about foolish things such as that.
"It's terrible, yes, but how many people do you think Krissy has scarred?" He asked.
Maria narrowed her eyes. "What are you talking about? Do you think that what the Rogue did was justified?" She asked, incredulously.
"Yes, I work for the Rogue, but that dosen't mean I'm a monster," Grayson replied, defensive for some reason. "Krissy's not much better. She has killed just as you have. Your so called 'justice' is only a lighter shade of gray. You're not truly good, Maria, and you know it. I agree, what the Rogue did to you and everything he has done...well, none of that is justified, but I'd rather work for him then Krissy. The Rogue dosen't candy coat what he does. He knows what he does is bad stuff, but Krissy calls what she does justice. Do you really believe that? Killing, taking human lives...is that justice? No. No matter who you kill, it's not justice and I know you see that. That, Maria, is why I'd rather be with the Rogue. Krissy's 'justice' isn't as bad as what the Rogue does, but it's not good. It's only a lighter shade of gray. I wouldn't work for Krissy and lie to myself saying what I did was good."
Grayson sighed and looked away from Maria's scarred face. He couldn't look at it any longer. The girl had suffered. There was no doubting that...she had survived so much. Grayson admired her so much and no matter how many foul thoughts he tried to force int his mind about her, he knew he couldn't ever think Maria wasn't strong.
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!
I looked down, thinking about what he had said. I hated to say it, but... "You're right. We've all done horrible things, and none of us are guiltless." I looked back up at him, staring directly into his eyes. "But at least Krissy and the rest of us kill for a reason. I work to get rid of the man who destroyed my life, along with many others. We have a positive end result. A Montagi free of the uncessant murders and crimes. To have the Underground run fairly, and not from fear. No more children lying dead on the streets. People wouldn't have to fear for their lives constantly. They'd be able to live in peace. That's what I fight for Grayson. What do you fight for?"
I saw that Grayson was avoiding looking at me. Either it was my scars, or I had succeeded in intimidating him. I waited patiently for his reply.
Just another quack spoutingpsychobabble.
"If I win, I'm a prodigy. If I lose, then I'm mad. That's the way history is written."
"I fight for myself," Grayson told her, softly. He didn't see the harm in telling this girl the things he had kept even from himself. "And I do you really think killing Gryk helped anything?"
Maria started to respond but Grayson held up a hand, halting her. "You didn't know him. Gryk was a good person. He was funny and smart and he fought for the Rogue because that's the only life he's ever known. I don't have a reason t fight. I've lost everything and my bitterness turned me to the Rogue. But I tell you this, I would rather leave my loyalties with him then with Krissy...a hypocrite."
Maria looked outraged. "She is not a hypocrite!" She yelled.
"But isn't she, though?" Grayson asked. "She fights for this "justice" yet she kills people she dosen't even know. Krissy wouldn't halt a single second to kill Kayla. Kayla is a good kid. Annoying, yes, but everyone's got their faults. She's in love with the Rogue and their is nothing you can do about that. Still, Krissy would kill her this moment. Or try to kill me. I'm not saying I'm a good person, I know I'm not, but I won't sit down like a dog and be put down. I fight. That's what I do."
Grayson bit his lip. He wasn't about to go any further than that. People thought him brave because he wasn't afraid of death...honestly, it wasn't brave. It just hurt so much to live he didn't see a reason to fear death when he feared life.
"Now the Rogue, well, I knew what I was doing when I got into this. He does bad things but he dosen't say it's for some "justice." I'm sorry, Maria...but to me Krissy is a hypocrite."
**Sorry, Kamas. She'll grow on him eventually. ^_^**
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!
I sighed. He was right. I slowly returned my dagger to my belt, but kept my hand on the grip. "We're all hypocrites Grayson." I said quietly. "Every one of us. We've all stolen someone's life from them at some point. People with families, friends, jobs..." My next words were hardly more than a whisper. "People who were in love, Grayson." I took a deep breath and continued at a normal volume. "What are we even arguing about this for? Yes, we've all done awful things to people. Hell, maybe we all deserve to die. But talking isn't going to change anything about either of our opinions."
My hand slipped from my dagger completely. If Grayson wanted to, he could probably kill me easily. I waited to see what he would do, staring him cooly in the eyes.
Just another quack spoutingpsychobabble.
"If I win, I'm a prodigy. If I lose, then I'm mad. That's the way history is written."
He narrowed his eyes a little, raising his dagger into the air. Maria eyed it, but her expression never changed. Grayson smiled. He wouldn't kill her, it would be a waste.
He threw his dagger into one of the trees beside him. "You're right," he told her. "We have killed. But guess what? That's what we chose. Someone's got to fight...I suppose some were dragged into it, others, like me, chose it."
Maria stayed quiet. Grayson gave a half smile. "Well, since we've both put away ur weapons, we can get past the whole "enemies bound to kill each other" thing," he walked towards her and sat on the grass hear her, patting a spot beside him.
"What are you doing?" She asked, shocked.
Grayson threw his head back and laughed. "Well, I don't want to fight with you Maria. As I said before...you're different. Way different then anyone I've met. Take a load off and just relax a little."
She raised an eyebrow but smiled a little. "You want me to just sit and relax with you...the guy who works for the Rogue?"
He nodded. "What's the harm? I don't have a grudge against you. Hell, I don't even have one against Krissy. It's a nice day...let's forget everyone else. Besides, I've been wanting to talk to you anyway."
Grayson smiled at her again and patted the grass beside him again.
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!
"The Raven's Wing?" I said scathingly, reading the battered sign above the door. "What kind of name is that for a tavern?"
"Says the person who once named a cat 'Bucket'," Lorraine muttered. "Come on, let's just go in."
The door had one of those annoying little bells on the top. It rang shrilly as we walked into the Raven's Wing, knives just out of sight. The tavern had obviously seen better days. The tables were crisscrossed with deep knife gashes, and almost all of the chairs were missing at least one leg. A layer of dust half an inch thick carpeted the floor. Two hairy men were slumped in the corner, sipping beer from grimy glasses and having a belching contest, but they were the only customers.
The bartender was a short man with thinning hair and shifty little eyes. As soon as we walked in the door he dropped the plate he had been polishing with a filthy rag and disappeared into a back room, slamming the door behind him.
Kayla marched over to the hairy men, leaving footprints across the dusty floor. "Would either of you gentlemen - " one of them belched loudly and she raised an eyebrow before continuing - "know where we can find a man by the name of Hodge?"
"Hodge? He's the bartender," the hairier of the men said, waving his glass in the general direction of the back room. Beer slopped everywhere, and Kayla stepped back, looking disgusted. "Why?"
She ignored this question, nodding to the closed door behind the bar. We silently crept towards it, drawing our knives. The men watched us curiously, the belching competition temporarily forgotten.
"Ready?" Lorraine mouthed. Kayla and I nodded, and she kicked open the door.
“Don't tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass.” Anton Chekhov
I was confused. One minute we were standing with daggers pointed at each other, and now he wanted me to sit down with him and talk. I didn't understand it. I stood there for a second, then sighed and sat. If Grayson had wanted to kill me he would have done so a long while ago. I forced myself to relax a bit. "What was it you wanted to talk to me about?" I asked.
Just another quack spoutingpsychobabble.
"If I win, I'm a prodigy. If I lose, then I'm mad. That's the way history is written."
** We'll be done this page in under an hour xD Magnus : That's so gangster**
The Rogue:
He drummed his fingers against his throne. His loyals seemed to be out and about these days. He laughed out loud in the busy Court. Today was gambling day, hundreds of peasants from near and far came to the Court to gamble the little money they had away. Everything had been going so well since the death of those immature brats, though he felt a twinge of regret he hadn't gotten to kill that little girl, Krissy, he believed was her name himself. Or Maria, who had escaped his grasp twice now. He touched his shoulder absently, feeling the metal under his skin. He shook his head.
"Don't bother yourself with dead girls." he muttered to himself, as he peered over his Court again.
He still couldn't bury that regret and hatred he felt for those two girls.
"Nothing is permanent in this wicked world - not even our troubles." ~ Charles Chaplin
Grayson leaned back and put his arms beneath his head. He turned his head to the side. Maria had her own face turned up to the sun, accentuating the white scars on her face. Grayson's heart sunk t his stomach.
His hand twitched for a moment. He wanted to raise his hand and touch her face lightly..but that would be highly inappropraite. Especially being that they were supposed to "hate" each other. Pity welled up in his chest. Maria was stronger than he knew...and Grayson was almost envious of that.
"Why exactlly did you let me go last night? You could have killed me you know, I was helpless," he admitted, curious.
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!
