October 31, 2002.10.31.02. - cleansing [gaby jones][north jersey, stix pool hall]
(missy)
It was getting dark, she had left the lab...the empty quiet music~less~ lab She knew they werent coming back, it was painfully obvious. Definately not coming back...
Baseball cap turned backwards and baggy jeans and a white t-shirt was the outfit for tonight, her dark wavy hair peeking out from beneath the cap, she was heading to her ol watering hole She knew it well, needed some cash, and a drink wouldnt hurt either.Time to figure out the next step..
what was the next step? She certainly didnt have a clue, she wasnt taught what to do if the pack was goneQuestions she never asked, maybe she should have...
[someone help me?](james)
the sun had long since set over the city
it was about that time he had found a phone book, an address, summed up to a direction
but he wasn't in a hurry
not this time
he isn't most of the time
but this time it really counted
sucking on a lower lip in thoughtcould he do this again?
probably better to be safe than sorry
check the place out, first
see what's up
get the lay of the land
second hand Cochran's beating a steady cadence against the sidewalk, each long stride devouring the ground in the most mellow way you've ever seen - easy, sedate, almost hypnotizing the way tattered tails snap around his ankles, the rippling sway of the trench in each lopey step, rebar drumsticks clinking quietlyit's amazing, how comfortable he is in the city
(gaby)
She swings the door open and nods to Steve...ahh a place she is safe A place she knows, the smell of the musky pool hall makes her smile..
and she could earn some cash
Eyes moving to the bare tables...it was quiet, almost ghostown like. No one there yet to hustle...
nothing like a 19 year old hustling for some cash
But she was godlen here, she could drink, hustle, whatever...
She glances to steve again and heads to the bar....hopping up on the stool and taking off her cap, running her fingers through the waves..
"What gives--you scare everyone away?"(steve)
He smirks at her..."Naw just been slow, think its the weather..here"
he hands her a cold beer in a bottle
(james)
eventually, the movement stops
and he..... lingers
across the street from the Hall
not even the most common patron at places as this - even he knows it's quietnot sure if that's a good or bad thing
but eventually, the tall Gnawer moves across the street
dreadlocks shaken into some semblance of arrangement
feeling for that wad of cash stuffed into coat pocket
should at least appear as he's meaning to be there for, well, why he's theremaking his way over to the bar
(gaby)
She recognizes him as he enters..hard to forget the dreads
hes family ..or yours anyways
She heard Laz's words from the other night..
Hand on the bottle she takes a drink from it and watches as he enters..
he knows Decker, i could smell it last timeAs he approaches she scratches her head and absently looks around the room...
"you dont look like a pool hall guy"
simply put(james)
hard to forget her, too
easy grin spreading warm to slide onto a barstool
dark eyes peering out from the city jungle vine 'do"I'm not, actually....."
voice softens
almost shy
incidentally"I remembered what Laz said the other night, before you headed this way..... I sorta needed some Family opinion on stuff and was hoping to find you before I had the gratuitous beer at every joint I passed and passed out before I got anywhere."
(gaby)
I cannot take this anymore
I'm saying everything I've said before
All these words they make no sense
I find bliss in ignorance
Less I hear the less you'll say
But you'll find that out anyway
Just like before...That causes her to smirk slightly as she sips fromt he cold bottle...now beginning to be more room temperature then cold.
"Family opinion eh?" she shakes her head.."I'm not too good with those" she watches him...
what exactly do you want from meShe had never been good at family opinions, shit she had never been one of the family..she hated them always did...
She watches him...ok what gives"you want a beer?"
Everything you say to me
Takes me one step closer to the edge
And I'm about to break
I need a little room to breathe
Cause I'm one step closer to the edge
And I'm about to break(james)
the look on his face says, well, he doesn't know that
the look on his face speaks of some sort of desperation
all he knows is she's family, so he needs her(he also needs to get this damned pine-sol scent out of his sinuses, come to think of it, still not used to that)
"Would love one.... I'll grab next round, if you want."
never say he doesn't come prepared
(missy)
She chuckles.."eh, dont worry bout it i get them for free" Not completely the truth
but what was anymore.."Steve 2 more" she calls to the redhead behind the bar...as she adjusts her ass on the stool"never liked bar stools...they suck for your ass"
she swivels a bit and finishes the first beer..."Why you comin out here askin for my advice...i dont hang with the others much" she watches him carefully...
(steve)
The redhead grabs 2 more drinks..
free my ass he thinks to himself, but doesnt say it outloud..Setting them on the counter he nods and smiles before heading back to the cooler
(james)
the smile widens
a Gnawer, and a Hood, he won't turn down the (seemingly) free wealth
nodding thanks for the beer and a swallow finds its way down his throat before the conversation even begins to continue
just to give Steve time to walk away
right.gesturing a little towards the door with the bottle
"Some seriously wicked mojo going on out there..... I need an unbiased opinion from someone that sort've looks at things in a similar way. Figured since you were Family but a stranger, you'd fit thebill if you gave me a little time."
(gaby)
Her eyes move to the door as well.
right like im stupid"Wicked mojo eh?" she shakes her head.."What does Decker have to say bout it"
Simple question...
She turns her head back to look at him and smiles..
(james)
there's a bit of a laugh at that one
amused"About as much as he has to say about everything else. A grunt. A growl. A seething comment or four from his stunning repetoire of witty comebacks. He just doesn't understand things the way we do."
think you're stupid? no
note I wasn't surprised when you brought up the Get
I'm giving you more credit than you think
several chugs draining further the beer"Will you help me?"
(gaby)
She shrugs.."dont know"
Fair enough answer...for a fair enough question..."Dont know what you want from me yet" she shrugs...eyeing the door...
"Decker obviously told you of our last meeting, im hardly gonna beleive he aint talkin shit bout me, and that Modi's got quite an imagination"
she sighs and pushes the bottle though the condensation on the bar..."Plus i dont fall into anyones lil world...do things my way..which was how Lax and Decker were when i first hung with them"
Ronin, we were all ronin"Now I just dont know who to trust...aint gonna believe you arent here to fuck my world up till i get a good reason to believe it"
Eyes move to his..
maybe she hadnt danced yet...
Those eyes truly showed honesty, truthfulness, honor
[urge of lies] She wasnt some pathetic piece of meat showing off all her flaws...or merits
She wasnt giving in that easilly nor was she that easilly seen through...
far from it"Decker needs to hear witty comebacks, just remember you have to explin them to him sometimes" another smirk..."he aint been round to cop any shit..figured he must have met himself a girl" she rolls her eyes..."or a nice boy" she chuckles
(faye)
a chill wind slithers (sounds like bone wind chimes and dry, dry death) down the street of North Jersey, flirts dangerously with the (dark) hem of highwayman robber coat. Travel the line of the coat which hints at curved feminine hip upwards: briefly detour to follow the dangerous pinwheel suicide of a cigarette sent spinning towards the gutter. Ember flares once, then hisses as it kneels into death.Continue upward. Past ratty jeans, tucked into combat boots. The coat is cavalierly left unbuttoned, a shirt for her mostly-defunct band The Enochians visible in white and black. Around her throat is a hanging stone, shaped lovingly by the strong imaginiation into key-shape. At her waist is a sword borrowed from some stage company. It garners a couple of glances, but this is halloween.
Buildings hide the sun--but its rays are already bloody (and she can feel a tugging, her dark side rising strong.) As night falls the shadow(court) ascends to power and she can already feel the terror mists risen bring stealing her breath in a number of half seen half imagined half only remembered visions. [Not. This. Time.] But even that is a welcome delusion - something to pull her out of her thoughts.
Faye has a pair of carved musical bones between her fingers and taps out a rhythm a music a beat with the same idle sparsity of thought most people give to breathing or dreaming or hearts beating when you are alive.
"A fuckin' year," mutters she, turning to glance at the shadows gathering in an alley way. As the sun dies drowns chokes in its own life something sweet and mad begins to play in her blood, not music, but echoed as music by those animal bones. Mad and sweet and wild and dark and alien but as home in her body as a pair of favorite shoes, the ones you try to seperate yourself from.
The sudden flickering start of a street lamp near by plucks out molten silver strands like pieces of a melody woven into her hair, as binding to the eyes as chains of fish-scales and cat's breath and moonlight to unicorns. They glitter. (Must be dyed. On Halloween no one even comments.)
"Bitch," she murmurs, briefly, as a sorrow rises and falls like the tide, thoughts pausing to stably cling to a hospital bed.
And then the sun sets.Hello Darkness,
my old friend.(james)
again, there's that soft, soft laughter
quite amused
a brow lifting beneath the dreads"Decker hasn't told me anything about you. Why would I believe a Modi's opinion of one of ours, anyway?"
he's been in the gutter for a long time, allright
there's one thing he knows"You gotta trust Family."
seems he still thinks she's on their side......
.... or..... more on their side than the other
he doesn't shy from that look
just as honest as she (seemingly) is"Just like I'd be trusting you to show you this. All I want is an opinion. Ten minutes of your time. No strings attached."
grinned
beer tilted to finish
easy, clean, no strings
isn't that how they all wanted it?"And I don't know what.... or who... he's been up to, lately. I've been wrapped up in this weird mojo crap. Your guess is as good as mine."
(gaby)
"Naw actually my guess isnt as good as yours...and ya know that whole trustin family aint what its cracked up to be"
she hops from the stool and grabs her pool cue...
following me? She glances to him over her shoulder
as she approaches the empty table... her little release
She picks up the black triangle and places the balls in the rack...stripe solid, stripe, solid"Family I came from fucked me over and tried to off me" she pulls the triangle off and hangs it on the rusty hook..
Eyeing the shot..."Seems everyone in my life isnt worthy of trust"
she smacks the cue ball sending it into the mess of balls, 2 solids fall into adjacent pockets...
She looks up...
"I can only trust myself"
not far from the truth, she hadnt ever found someone who wasnt bullshitting her, from Laz to Decker to Malcolm...they all made their worlds sound so good..."Hard nuff to trust myself sometimes i think" she chooses her shot...and hits again..
another solid sunk.."Why dont you tell me a little bout this mojo..then ill decide if i should go...and whats 10 minutes gonna do anyways?"
(james)
the tall raggedyman slides off the stool
easily following, easily lead
grabbing a stick to chalk up and wait his turn
if he gets a turnhip leaning against the empty table to the side
"Ten minutes should give us time to walk, look, and you give me an opinion.... unless we dawdle. I wouldn't spring this out of the blue if I wasn't desperate and without another option. But something's killing off the little ones....."
if she was ever a Gnawer
she'd know what that meant
she'd know how desperate he really was(gaby)
She sighs and sets the pool cue down resting it on the table for the moment
she understood...just didnt want to
pausing she looks over at himIm one step closer to the edge and im about to break
[Never.show.weakness]
She hears so many words of advice whishing through her head like tornados on the plains of kansas in august.
show no weakness...keep your head
Dammit Asher, Kaj,Malcolm...fuck fuck...
Maybe she could keep the facade for a while, but sooner or later he was gonna see through it..
or would he...actually perhaps he wouldnt..unless he had the gift..what chance was there he did
She picks up the cue and knocks the rest of the solids in..one by one..
crack...crack..crack
and looks at the 8-ball..tongue moving out of her mouth as she focuses on it and plans carefully.."8-ball corner pocket" crack it sinks..
she lays the cue down on the table and shoves her hands in her pocket.."fuck it" she shrugs.."lessgo"
against her better judgement?But she wanted to find Decker anyways...she had a bone to pick with him...
She finishes her beer...and looks over at him...
"Still dont know why ya want my opinion, it isnt much"(james)
didn't think so.
when the black ball sinks he moves back around the table to set the stick back in place
but that same chuckling grin is still there"You've been hanging around Strangers too much. All the Family's opinion counts."
something seems to stop him
dark eyes looking over to her
there's a..... sadness.... in them"Of course you matter. Your opinion, too."
as if he aches for whatever the reason was that bullied her so far down
that made her fall
that makes him do what he's going to
but nevermind that for now
he's already moving towards the doors"It's not that far from here...."
(gaby)
She stops at the door before exiting..."dont know where you grew up..but that was bullshit...maybe one day ill let you in on my little world"
if i have time
She shakes her head..."almost got killed for my opinions" she sighs...and stands there..as if she knew
Looking at him with those eyes, she wasnt this dumb...not by far...
maybe it wasnt worth fighting now..they were gone...she was in it alone...
so fucking what...she was strong, could hold her own, what the fuck did she need them for anyways...always done it on her own before
Plus she wanted to see where he took her...maybe Decker sent him to fetch her...
Shit..she had a bad feeling...
Oh well...
"yeah..sure..lessgo"(james)
chin draws towards his shoulder to look back at her"I grew up in New York. Guess maybe it's not the state of mind of the rest of the world.... but it's what I believe."
that is the truth
and that's all that counted, didn't it
the stop turns into stroll
the minute into five
the steps into blocks
the streets into an alley"It's down here..... but on the other side. Easier to slip in there before going through."
nodding a bit towards the street
it's late
but not utterly deserted
no matter which side they were on, they had to think about the Veil(gaby)
She looks at him...as he starts up into an alley..
you gotta be kidding me
She stops...she isnt that stupid...
"what exactly is it we are looking for again?"
She should know better...she was taught by the best
although where were they now?She stands there watching him...
Her hands move into her pockets again...i dont go down easy
She used to be so paranoid...
Now it all didnt matter..
The sacrifice of hiding in a lie
(Everything has to end, you'll soon find we're out of time left to watch it all
unwind)...The sacrifice is never knowing
Why I never walked away
Why I played myself this way
Now I see your testing me pushes me away..."I mean cmon now..i dont trust people THAT easy...not even family"
(james)
there's a pause
head shaking in a soft laugh"Cliche, isn't it? Halloween, dashing stranger, dark alleyway, mysterious intentions...... right out of a horror movie. Oh that was terrible..."
he's stopped, step or three taken back
one hand reaching to scratch through dreads
boy doesn't he look sheepish
(can.... wolves.... look sheepish?)"I apologize. I didn't even think of how that looked. Okay. There's something feeding off the rats in the area, that's based fairly close to right here.... I don't know what to make of it. I figured as another Gnawer you might. That's all."
he's being damn persuasive
no matter how much she may not trust him
even family
there's credibility in that story
it is the truth(gaby)
She nods...she believes him but still why should she CARE
She looks down the alley..."I'll go with ya...sure...but i wont know nothing bout it" she chuckles.."im not your average gnawer"
never had been...
She knew what was up...she wasnt fucking stupid, question was
could she win
She had her own tricks up her sleeve
wins by tricks
That was her name...and she could do just that...
usually"Right...feeding off the rats..sure" she rolls her eyes..
"Why dont you just say what is on yer mind...then ask me to join ya in the alley" she smirks
"or is it gnawer trait to try to ~be witty~" she shakes her head
"if we're gonna go at it...cant we at least be honest bout it?"
(james)
he just....
just....
okay that has him bursting out into sheer mirthful laughter"Go at it?"
his look says what hers has for a little while now
you've got to be kidding me
but he matches her pace into the alley"Actually..... I'm serious about something killing off the rats...."
(gaby)
She nods..."damn i always liked rats, used to want a pet rat" she smirks...
something killing off the rats...She walks with him...
still ready for whatever"what you just come across a slew of rats who had been killed off in some spot...and you are under the assumption that i could know why?"
she looks over at him...
"i do know...ya know" she smirks.."at least i think i know"(james)
there's a part of him that wants to know what she thinks she knows
there's the rest of him that keeps calling on Eagle's might
the rebar sling comes off his shoulder
shoulders drop and twist
three feet of unforgiving steel aimed right at her templehe's faster than she thought
two strikes in the time for one
he's far stronger than she thought
the Ahroun backed with totem's strength
he's far..... far.... angrier than she could ever believe
how. dare. you. fall.
(gaby)
he was fast and strong...but she wasnt slow and weak
The first blow was a surprise. slam
A flash of light in her eyes...Pain Blood red
The second gets dodged as she lunges down towards his waist football style a loud growl cry coming from her..[i knew it]
pulling something shiny from her boot she lunges into his leg...making usre to at least slow him so she can re-gain her focus..
sonnofabitch
Never trust them...never She knew that from day one...it was what made her fall..
Never could she trust them..
And here she was learning the same lesson againShe had chosen the right path...
without question
show no weakness
And she wouldnt...not now(james)
the normally so mellow Ahroun snarls when the knife bites into his leg, when his balance is thrown, when the asphalt grates against his back
rebar clangs against the ground
palms smack togetherclap of thunder
hate burns in his eyes
(there's an irony, in the power he weilds)
rage sneers in his smile
I killed my pack for this
already, he's up and lunging for her
I killed my mate for this
slowed by severed muscle
but not slow enough for her
I will kill you for this
glabro swelling his form(gaby)
Eyes locked on his as he comes at her..
everything makes sense it just does...She was right all along, and he still doesnt get it.
Why was it so clear to her, and he didnt get it... She shifts to her glabro form and gets out of his way...lunging with the knife steel aimed for his chest...Her other hand moving to rip at his face coming across hard and fast (sounds kinky) Her rage fueling her
she had chosen right All along..
im one step closer to the edge and im about to breakShe wouldnt show weakness...
(james)
she wouldn't show weakness
he wouldn't back down
not. from. you.it's strange the paths they took
how easily he could be standing beside her, rather than charging with the full force of his rage
neither understanding why the other chose the way they did
both hating just as equally for itin a battle of wills
neither Gnawer would be the victor - nor would either fail
in this.... they were equals in the gutter, they were equals on the street, they were equals in this darkened alley that meant nothing to anyone but them, they were equal sides of the same faded coin, tossed away and forgotten, copper pennies in the moonlight, and it makes you wonder....... sometimes..... was there ever really a difference?betrayed
abused
discarded
nothing better than filthy mutts scrapping in the street over the last morsel
urban warriors lost in the shadow of skyscraper trees
desperate and defiant beneath crackling electric canopy
deep down..... he respects her for that
he respects the blood still somewhere in her veinsone bit with steel
the other bit with furyit is the battle of strength that makes the difference
leverage of weight and momentum
deep red flaring across his shirt
her arm grabbed as it slashes for his face
pivoting her balancethe world spins when the tall Gnawer wraps around her, behind her
drawn up tight against slickening chest
it only takes a few pounds of pressure to rip out someone's throat(gaby)
It only take a second...
in a second a lot can go through ones mindShe didnt regret anything..how many could say that...
]show no weakness]
She wouldnt..He wouldnt back down. Both fighting for everything they believed in...
She feels the world caving in...as she catches his eyes..
show no weakness She actually manages a slight smirk as she watches the world go black.in a second a lot can go through ones mind...her whole life, nothing ever made sense until now..and she wasnt dying for Gaia...she wasnt dying for them or their stupid rules and ways...that was the part that made it ok...she might be dying by them..but they had been trying to kill her her whole life...she was destined for this dark fate and it just confirmed everything she ever thought.
im one step closer to the edge and im about to break.......black
Posted by james at October 31, 2002 12:00 AM
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