Stone
Bad Ass Demon Slayer
I remember
Posts: 276
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Post by Stone on Jun 20, 2006 15:22:46 GMT -5
"You mentioned you'd met one in Paris?"
"I been trying to help them since i meet my first one back in Rome, few years before we organized this massive attack on the evil community in the city." He still remembered that day, it was one of his greatest victories against the darkness "But Slayers don't tend to live long, which recently depends as much on the overwhelming odds they face as the stupidity and sadism of the watchers council. They isolate the girls, subject them to barbaric tests and treat them more like soldiers then heroes." a grim look crossed his face "They have forgotten they should serve the slayer, not rule over her."
"But as i said, I've made a mission out of helping them when i can. I meet countless of them, although i do remember every single one."
"Jeanette was the one i meet in Paris. She was a noble women until she was called. The Council then saw it fit to kidnap her and sever her ties with her family. When i meet her in Notre Dame she was extremely traumatized, apathetic even. But i offered to help, and months later she returned to find me waiting." He smiles slightly at the memories. "I watched her slowly crawl out of her shell, how she carefully allowed herself to feel again, talk about her family and express a opinion. It took over a year, but she finally was strong enough to stand up to her watcher and leave to fight on her own." His voice grows deep and angry "They rewarded her by erasing her from every record there ever was. You won't find her birth certificate, no mention of neither her nor her watcher in the watchers diaries. Her tombstone is blank, erased by their acids and lies."
He didn't strike against the watchers council for one reason, that he knew not all watcher agreed with the decrepit old man that ruled them. What was his name again? Travers? No matter, he remembered the pathetic wretch. Even when he was a watcher himself he was cruel and spiteful. Even going as far as raping his slayer, just to run away when Stone intervened. He had been about to hunt the man down when he heard the sobs of the poor girl.
"There has been many others, some of whom i was never able to find before their untimely demise" he gives a deep sigh "I pray to the gods that their souls will forgive me"
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Post by Rhiannon Shaw on Jun 20, 2006 16:19:55 GMT -5
SIOBHAN
Gabriel had chosen the right necklace, Siobhan knew immediately. She may not know Isabella as well as the boy did, but she would certainly like this gift. Made of sterling silver and with an intricate pattern of knots that lead to a beautiful garnet stone in the shape of a teardrop, it was indeed "the one". He had good taste, Gabriel. Isabella would be a lucky girl.
Siobhan gave him a wide and knowing smile before nodding and carefully nestling the necklace in the velvety interior of a small box with an intricate design of the Moonshade logo on the top. "I am sure she is going to love it. You chose well," Siobhan said, a twinkle in her deep eyes. "I'll wrap this up for you."
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Post by Gabriel Corvis on Jun 20, 2006 16:32:51 GMT -5
He smiled and took the wallet from his jacket pocket "Thanks Siobhan, I knew this was the right place to come to" now he just had to wait till her birthday to give it to her, he was suddenly feeling a lot happier,as he followed his old friend he decided he would go and see her after he'd ropped off the necklace at his place.
As he walked to the counter, he spotted a large creature talking to Rhiannon and smiled slightly,the things you see in this city. He stood there, money in hand, he didn't mind how much he had to pay for it, he just knew this was the right gift for Isabella.
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Post by Rhiannon Shaw on Jun 21, 2006 8:08:01 GMT -5
SIOBHAN
"I'm glad I could help," Siobhan said with a warm smile.
She'd always liked Gabriel. In a way, he reminded her of her son Thomas, when he'd been younger. A quietly considerate person, he'd been really blind when it came to women and their interest in him. Thomas had needed a hint the size and strength of a cannon ball to realize the woman who was now his wife for over 30 years had been in love with him. He was now fifty-four, living in New York City and had given Siobhan two wonderful grandsons, one of which was the spitting image of her own husband.
With Gabriel following, she went back to the counter, noticing Stone and Rhiannon were still talking. Gabriel must have noticed them too but he didn't say anything; he'd been living in this city long enough to have seen everything hiding in its shadows. After a while, nothing surprised you anymore. Once you'd seen a few demons, you'd seen them all. Especially when you owned an occult shop -- the most interesting of... people... dropped by on a regular basis. Some were nice, others not so much, but Siobhan had never been hesitant to show the latter where the door was.
Because Gabriel was Gabriel and his Auntie O was one of Siobhan's best friends in this city, she of course made a mental discount on the necklace, though he didn't tell him that. He might want to protest about it. "It'll be 30 dollars, dear," she said absently, as she busied herself with gift-wrapping the box. "You should bring her around again sometime. It's been a while since I've seen your Isabella."
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Post by Gabriel Corvis on Jun 21, 2006 13:37:39 GMT -5
Handing her the money and taking the box, he put in inside his jacket pocket and smiled "Well, I'm gonna be seeing her later tonight so, I'll tell her to drop by for a visit tomorrow" he stepped round the counter and hugged Siobhan "Thanks again Siobhan, means a lot to me" he let go and headed for the door reaching for his cigarettes. He looked one last look at the old woman "Take care of yourself, I'll be round at the weekend for some supplies" he nodded his head in a resectful manner and walked out onto the streets.
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Post by Rhiannon Shaw on Jun 21, 2006 13:38:13 GMT -5
Rhiannon really didn't know what this Watcher Council Stone spoke of was, but she could tell he didn't like them. Not by far. As far as she could tell, they were supposedly the Slayer's guardians/teachers, supposed to guide them but according to Stone their rules and methods were more cruel than helpful. It was too much information to process. Not only she had just found out there were really vampires roaming the night, but there were actually girls whose objective was to slay them. Next thing she knew there were dragons too, flying over the city of the Angels. Now that would be something worth seeing, no doubt about it.
But the story Stone told her about the Slayer Jeanette touched Rhiannon deeply. She could not imagine what would be like to have been taken from her family, especially when your destiny seemed to demand so much of you. What good was a champion without ties? Without being able to have first hand experience of what exactly they were protecting, how could one expect someone to have the will to fight? It was really sad. Was it always like this with all slayers? Forced to be alone? No wonder they didn't live long. Rhiannon really didn't envy these girls. People formed social identities by interacting with their families and friends. To be isolated was too heavy a burden to carry.
Stone looked all his 2500 years as he spoke, the pain of the things he had witnessed, the injustices he had been privy to, had been unable to stop. His voice carried all that pain and anger. And guilt. Oh, there was guilt too. The guilt of the survivor, perhaps? Or simply the guilt of someone who couldn't seem to do enough no matter how much they tried? As if it was up to him to keep the evil at bay. Another burden.
"Stone," she said softly. "There is nothing to forgive. You have done what you can to fight the evil in the world and you shouldn't feel guilty for failing anyone. At the end of the day, no matter how strong you are or how old or how powerful, you can only do so much." She smiled gently at him. "The world has a way of balancing itself out. Those who have done wrong will get their due. Everything always comes back... times three." The latter was delivered with the grin of someone who believed, without a doubt, in the law of karmic return. "Thank you for telling me this story. I know it must have been... painful... to recall all that."
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Stone
Bad Ass Demon Slayer
I remember
Posts: 276
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Post by Stone on Jun 21, 2006 14:13:46 GMT -5
"Everything always comes back... times three." She was quite naive, one of the many wonders of youth. But he had seen to many killers walk through life without dying three times for every victim to believe in a cosmic force balancing everything out. No, the only equalizer in this world where the ones who took up arms and fought for good.
"Thank you for telling me this story. I know it must have been... painful... to recall all that." "As horrible as it sounds it was more of a pleasure then a pain" it felt good, knowing that if he died at least one memory would live for a few more years. After all, he was the only one who remembered Jeanette. And she deserved eternity spent forever in celebration and not in the memory of a old demon.
His mind was full of them, heroes who had fallen doing far more heroic things then he ever done, only to be forgotten a year, a month or even just a minute after they died to save the world. Forgotten, by all but him. And they deserved better. So much better. They should have memorials, weekends named after them, parades in their honor and stories written down just to be read by countless people for generations.
They didn't deserve to have their memory rot away in the skull of a statue. "I think your grandmother is alone again. Wanna go ask her if you can come with me for a flight?" he finally said with a small smile gracing the edges of his lips. He loved being nice to people, getting a chance to socialize without sending the masses running. It was something he missed, and had missed, since the days of ancient Greece. He hated being condemned to share the darkness with the very monsters he hunted, like he was their equal and not their enemy.
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Post by Anna Kavanagh on Jun 21, 2006 14:26:54 GMT -5
Anna parked the car on the street, having followed Wesley's directions to a nearby occult shop, and she and Wesley approached the green-paneled facade of a store called Moonshade. He held the door open for her, and when she stepped inside, she found the store an immediate assault on the senses. But in a good way.
Assorted smells of incense, the soft glow of many candles, tapestries and leather-bound books, plush sofas. She turned back to Wesley. "Well, it certainly looks like this place has a bit of everything. And more. You think you'll find all the things you're looking for?"
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Post by Rhiannon Shaw on Jun 21, 2006 17:05:55 GMT -5
"As horrible as it sounds it was more of a pleasure then a pain"
"I understand." Rhiannon smiled at him, glad that the sharing had provided him with something to be glad for. And it wasn't horrible, no. She indeed understood what he meant. Hoped he found something good in the sharing.
Talking about things always helped, she'd learned, even if they were painful. She had witnessed that more than once, seen the weight leave one's shoulders as they unburdened themselves. Rhiannon had always been a good listener, comforting in a way that draw people to her when they needed to share their burdens, their sadness, their happiness. A shoulder to cry on, a ear to tell of problems and good things, she had always been the confidant in her group of friends.
It brought with it a certain measure of responsibility, though, because a good listener always felt the need to offer words of comfort, good advice, understanding. It was hard to be the repository of so much trust.
"I think your grandmother is alone again. Wanna go ask her if you can come with me for a flight?"
The earlier surge of defiance came back full force and this time Rhiannon couldn't help but say something. "You know, I really don't need to ask her..." Then she smiled in that gentle way of hers, brown eyes fixed on her beloved grandmother. "But I will tell her."
They made their way to Siobhan, who was watching the door Gabriel had just left from moments ago with a grin on her lips. Rhiannon placed a hand on her grandmother's shoulder, squeezing lightly to get her attention, and Siobhan looked up at her (much taller) granddaughter and the grin widened.
"So, did you two have a nice conversation?"
Rhiannon offered her grandmother a mock stern look. "It appears you have failed to inform me of certain things, my dear Siobhan."
Siobhan failed to take in an account Rhiannon's mock tone and looked down, guilt taking over her. "I know I should have, Rhia, but I... the opportunity never really seemed the best and..."
"It's okay," Rhiannon said softly. "No harm done."
"But it could have!" Siobhan said almost urgently. "What if you'd come across something you didn't know to be ready for? What..."
But there was really no time to discuss what else could have happened because two costumers entered the store, a man and a woman, and both granddaughter and grandmother turned to greet the newcomers.
"Merry meet." They both said at the same time, eyed each other and burst out into quiet laughter.
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Stone
Bad Ass Demon Slayer
I remember
Posts: 276
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Post by Stone on Jun 21, 2006 17:25:11 GMT -5
"What if you'd come across something you didn't know to be ready for? What..." Stone just had time to place a comforting talon on her shoulder before the door was opened, catching him off guard and with no chance to get out of sight in time. He stood there, like a deer steering down the shaft of the hunters arrow, waiting to see what happened, body tensed in preparation of a eventual attack.
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Post by Anna Kavanagh on Jun 21, 2006 18:01:38 GMT -5
Anna had been admiring a candlestick when she heard voices from the area behind the store's counter.
"Merry meet." They both said at the same time, eyed each other and burst out into quiet laughter.
"Just looking," she said automatically, as she did in every store. Then she was struck dumb by the sight of gargoyle-like creature behind the two women that had greeted them. She clutched at Wesley's arm out of instinct. "What the--? Please tell me there's a live statue over there and that I haven't started seeing things now."
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Wesley
Bad Ass Demon Slayer
My ass is not pansy!
Posts: 434
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Post by Wesley on Jun 21, 2006 18:04:26 GMT -5
Moonshade always had the best supplies, Wesley mused to himself as they pulled up the store. Anna peered at it dubiously, but he got out and made his way to the doors as if it were nothing more than a market.
He held the door while she walked in, smiling at her question. "Well, it certainly looks like this place has a bit of everything. And more. You think you'll find all the things you're looking for?"
"I'm quite certain I'll find everything here. This store is one of the best stocked occult stores in all of Los Angeles. In fact, I once found - " He froze, mid-sentence, seeing a huge demon in the store, behind the elderly woman who had just greeted them. "Uh...hello..."
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Stone
Bad Ass Demon Slayer
I remember
Posts: 276
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Post by Stone on Jun 21, 2006 18:11:07 GMT -5
"Greetings" Stone didn't make any threatening moves, careful to stand tall and straight to put out the air of strength. He knew far to well that looking dangerous sometimes was enough to save yourself a fight. "Don't worry, i have no intention to harm you or the lady."
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Post by Rhiannon Shaw on Jun 21, 2006 18:35:06 GMT -5
"Yes, my friend here is... very friendly," Siobhan said with a smile and looked gently at the young woman.
"There's no reason to be afraid," Rhiannon added, though she herself had had a far worse reaction than the other woman to her first sight of Stone, barely being able to utter a sound, let alone a coherent sentence. She'd even lost the strength in her legs, landing rather heavily on a nearby chair.
Then again, she hadn't been so much frightened as completely shocked, curious and delighted, in that order. A whole new world had opened before her eyes with the presence of a gargoyle on her grandmother's store, and nothing would ever be the same.
"But don't just stand there at the door," Rhiannon said, motioning them over.
Siobhan was trying to recall the name of the man because she'd seen him in her store quite a few times before. Unfortunately, Siobhan had never been the best where names were concerned. She could remember a face she'd seen once, in glance, but to associate a name to said face was a skill she'd never had, and the older she got, the more her memory was compromised. But she had the man's name at the tip of her tongue.
Then it came to her, as if a light-switch had been turned on by some ghostly fingers and Siobhan's smile grew very wide, the twinkle in her eyes showing an old woman's pride at having been able to recall a particular name.
"Welcome to Moonshade once again, Mr. Pryce," she said. "What may we do for you? Looking for some obscure book again? I have a few rather interesting old tomes in the backroom that I think you might be interested in."
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Wesley
Bad Ass Demon Slayer
My ass is not pansy!
Posts: 434
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Post by Wesley on Jun 21, 2006 18:59:54 GMT -5
"Yes, my friend here is... very friendly," the owner of the shop said, a small smile on her lips.
"There's not reason to be afraid," the younger woman added.
Wesley nodded, taking in the stance of the demon - no, gargoyle, he corrected mentally. He'd puffed himself up somewhat, making sure his strength was well-known. Wesley raised an eyebrow, then moved away from the door when the woman said something, gesturing for Anna to follow.
He had to admit, he was a bit fascinated with the gargoyle. He'd read about them, of course, and seen them from a distance. But never had he seen one up close, much less one who was conversing with humans. Most of this creature's kind believed humans to be pests, content to sleep until the day when the last human died.
The owner, Siobhan, smiled broadly at him, approaching. "Welcome to Moonshade once again, Mr. Pryce," she said. "What may we do for you? Looking for some obscure book again? I have a few rather interesting old tomes in the backroom that I think you might be interested in."
He grinned, remembering the last book he'd purchased from her store. It had served them quite well in a battle against a werewolf. "Thank you. I'm looking for a book." He pulled a sheet of paper out of his pocket. "Buhman's History of Demonology and Incantations. Do you happen to have it? It's most urgent." Then his ears perked up when he processed the rest of what she said. "Oh...what else have you got?"
He mentally kicked himself. He was here with a mission, not for a shopping trip.
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