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 Posted: Thu Jan 20, 2011 9:36 pm
He had been more or less slinking in the background of Amityville as best he could, avoiding major hallways if he could get by and taking long, out of the way routes to get from one building to another. He became increasingly aware that he had set up his entire routes around rivers, seeing as he took dips ands swims between classes when he could or, if he was rushed, would just like splashing through a stream on his way over to a sidewalk. Sadly, he was now arranging his entire system AWAY from water, and he felt more and more confused how normal people did this. In the end, he would up just following all the other students, of course farther behind their groups, and usually betted on the nicely dressed students to know how to take the cleanest, driest routes. He was correct in most assumptions, but he found himself out of place.
It was on his way across grounds that he pulled out the campus map and created a line with red marker. There had been lines in blue from his owl walkways and short cuts, but now he had to rework it away from these paths. The heavy red marker pressed in permanent red and he felt himself whimpering with each long drag of the marker. Red – the color of limitations and agony.
He closed the map, sighed, and then looked up to notice the demon dorms up ahead. He wondered what way he was going and what group to follow when he spotted a small, slim figure up ahead. A figure he knew. A figure that had slapped him HARD during detention. A figure that he nearly destroyed.
Calder gulped and took a step back, then paused. No. He…He had to apologize. She was on campus with him, and he was bound to meet her. He HAD to at least say he was sorry – he just wondered if she'd slap him again. That really smarted!
Frowning, he started to pick up his pace, moving straight for her. Should he call out to her? He wanted her to stop. "…li….lllli….Lizzy?!" He called out, feeling like a dang fool for being the one person she probably never wanted to see alive. She probably thought he was expelled or decapitated, or both!
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Posted: Fri Jan 21, 2011 6:31 am
It had been a while since her first detention and it was not filled with pleasant memories; while it was not a horrific experience compared to what she had heard about someplace called 'the other bathroom', detention ended up being rather eventful as well... In all the wrong ways.
However, she was never one to let negative thoughts bog her down for long, and soon found herself resuming her normal school life less than a day since she almost drowned at the hands of another student. It would not affect her as much if it was a stranger who did it to her, but no, it had to be Calder. The Calder who could produce a wonderful piece of romantic poetry off the top of his head - the Calder who had something against masters, judging from his reaction in the Truth or Dare game that ended them in detention in the first place...
Yet he could not control himself. He was unable to be his own master.
She felt rather disappointed in him. Of course, she was initially angry - and never did regret slapping him as hard as she did - but once she calmed down, Lizzy realized that she didn't hate the boil. She just didn't - no, couldn't - respect him any longer, as a student or as a fellow romance enthusiast (at least, she assumed him to be one). Since she hadn't seen him around campus since detention, she had assumed that Hellma had sent him packing...
She was thus surprised to see him calling out to her so near to her Dorms; she thought that he would be too ashamed to come see her even if he was given a second chance. Or was he that thick-skinned? She eyed him from where she was with a light frown, looking rather unfriendly compared to her usual, smiling self. However, after that incident where she almost decapitated Christof due to a misunderstanding on her part, Lizzy had learnt that it was bad to jump to conclusions too early.
Narrowing her eyes, her frown grew before she begrudgingly nodded at Calder as a sort of greeting, adopting a more neutral expression as she stopped; since he called out to her, he must wish to speak to her, right?
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Posted: Fri Jan 21, 2011 8:42 pm
The look he managed to catch in clear, vivid detail was enough to assure is thoughts. She positively hated his guts and if she could, would have made him explode with just sheer will allow. Instead, he remained whole and approached, as much as it was becoming increasingly difficult to even want to near her. Ghouls had a uncanny ability to get just the right posture and eye-narrowness that said they could tear your eyes out if they felt like it, and Lizzy looked like she did.
He decided, for the sake of not getting into a fight and getting detention again – he did not want to get detention again EVER! – he would stay a foot or so back. Then again, if she wanted to slug him in the face or go for another slap, he'd let her. It was the least he could do. It probably didn't help her that he was much taller and stronger than she was, but that point was proven during detention. It was also detention that had made him remember her name rather quickly. A sad thought, but her name was imprinted on his mind.
"I….I just wanted to say I am really, terribly sorry about what happened back there in the laundry room. I never, ever intended to go that far with you and, I never would have wanted to hurt you in the end." He couldn't say he hadn't wanted that at the time. In fact, he had really wanted it, and he was sure that everyone seeing him nearly kick a teacher said that much. "I completely lost my head and it will never happen again." Partly because Hellma left him no choice, but he hoped she'd know what he meant.
He waited a moment. "You can slap me again if you want." Even though she had a killer hand. How could something that small hit that hard?!
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Posted: Fri Jan 21, 2011 10:29 pm
She listened quietly while Calder explained himself, her expression surprisingly neutral - although the lack of emotion could also be interpreted as her being upset. When he suggested that she slap him again, Lizzy frowned lightly before muttering, "So you really did lose control of yourself..." She had already assumed that back in the laundry room and had even said something about it when she slapped him, but it was different to hear it from him.
She then paused, not quite sure what to say next; he sounded sincere enough, but she didn't think 'once bitten, twice shy' applied in this situation... Self-control - and to an extend, the idea of delayed gratification - takes time to master, after all, so how could he be so sure?
"No, I am not going to slap you again only because I didn't think you would intentionally hurt a fellow student without reason." She finally continued; the idea of slapping him didn't seem as appealing right now, since he had already apologized.
"Although while I guess admitting that you lost control is a good first step, what makes you so sure that it won't happen again? There is water all around the school, after all..." She questioned, raising an eyebrow at the Kelpie; the thought that he might to drown any of her friends in a similar situation was enough to cause her to be paranoid about his little 'it will never happen again' speech.
Sure, she must sound like a really mean person right about now, but he deserves it, right?
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Posted: Sat Jan 22, 2011 8:17 am
He opened his mouth a moment, then closed it, then opened it again, and shut it once more. It was rather…hard and embarrassing to say what he was about to say. While it wasn't a matter of choice, it was a simple fact that he wouldn't be drowning anyone anymore because he simply couldn't. The freedom of even doing something that vile had been taken from him – which wasn't a bad thing at all – but the fact remained. It hadn't been by choice. In essence, he was just a untrained mutt on a leash with Hellma on the other end, and that sudden thought made him VERY ill.
Still, of all the people that needed the reassurance and deserved to know, Lizzy was the one. While it was a nice thought that he could somehow manage not to tell anyone why he was avoiding water, as if it was just his choice and he still retained all of his freedom, the matter was that he wasn't. That was what was the hardest thing to say.
Reaching up, he pulled on his scarf a bit, before reaching down to fiddle with his sporran. "Well……I can't hurt anyone because…….I'm not allow near water. Around any of it – well, aside from a little glass." TO which he measured the height of a normal glass of water before resuming fiddling with the chains of his sporran. "……it's the only way they'll let me on campus now, and I can't leave campus either. If I go near water or leave, I …I go Poof." It was the best way he could explain respawning. He just vanished – which was not a very fun experience at all – and reappeared at the Nurse's Office. So far, he was doing very well in avoiding that situation.
Looking up from where he was messing with the small purse, he looked up. "So even if I wanted to – which I don't! – I can't." The entire choice was taken from him. "…I can't go near water till I learn to better behave around it." And learn that there was a line between wild and being a sad excuse to his kind.
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Posted: Sat Jan 22, 2011 9:51 pm
As she waited as patiently as she could for Calder to answer, Lizzy noticed his hesitation and promptly frowned; did he say what he did just to appease her? Maybe he didn't have a solution to his "problem" after all? What he said next did caught her off guard, however, and her surprise could be seen on her face. For a moment, she did not know whether she should be relieved that history would be unable to repeat itself or to pity Calder, since water was obviously his life.
Taking away his right to be near water would be like taking away her right to spin silk... Or something along those lines. The thought made her rather uncomfortable.
She stared at the Kelpie in silence, not quite sure what to say - he looked rather miserable, and even if part of her felt that he deserved this punishment, she didn't have the heart to make him feel worse about the predicament he was currently in.
"Well..." She begun, her expression softening significantly, "Once you learn to behave near water, you would be allowed back near it, right? So its not as if you won't be able to go near it forever..." She then paused, "Although... Forcing you to avoid water... I guess they're training you to delay gratification."
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Posted: Sat Jan 22, 2011 10:09 pm
He thought about it, and she did have a point. Was it just delaying things, or was it a way to control it? From what he had been told, it was something he HAD to overcome, and not a way to avoid it entirely. "I don't think that's it. They said that if I don't learn, I don't get to go near it. So, if I never learn, I won't ever be allowed near water." It wasn't delaying anything if it meant they could just put a permanent restriction on it entirely. Then he would just be banned for the rest of his life and life a sad existence as a kelpie who got the barest minimum of water to stay alive, somewhat happy, and at least wasn't hurting people left and right like some crazed beast.
Still, he still had to figure out just how he was going to go about doing this. Learning to control your instincts was very channeling, and he found it hard to break such a overpowering force. A bad habit that took hold rather tightly, but if all his kind could do it, then it was doable. It was just his teenage dramatics that made it feel impossible.
"I just have to stay near it if I can and not hurt people. I think that's what they want. Until I can show I am alright around it and won't push anyone in, then I just have to keep trying and learning until they say I'm safe enough to have all my water rights back." For now, he was stuck with the unshakable feeling he was being watched by the hair clip atop his head. It was like Hellma's eyes were always there telling him not to cross the line or go too close to a lake. "But you don’t have to worry. I can't do what I did anymore. I just wanted to say….well, I'm sorry that I tried. Oh, and that you shouldn't think any less of kepies because of what I did. "
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Posted: Sat Jan 22, 2011 10:35 pm
"But how can you learn to control yourself near water if you don't get to go near it to try to control yourself?" She blinked, frowning lightly; that question had been on her mind since he told her about his punishment, but it was really starting to bug her. Forcing him to stay away from water sounded like trying to avoid the problem rather than to solve it - urges don't just go away... You have to train yourself to overcome them, right?
However, she was not about to question the school's method of doing things.
"I don't think any lesser of Kelpies." She nodded slowly, mentally adding that she only thought less of Calder, "Thing is... I know you don't want to hurt your schoolmates, but I don't want to hear that you can't... I want to hear that you won't. I guess that's a work in progress though... I'm um, rooting for you."
She gave Calder a sheepish smile, wondering if her previous sentence made any sense to the boil or if it only made sense to herself, "Have you ever tried since that day? Going near large bodies of water - well, close enough to maybe see and smell it but not go poof - and not have the urge to drown anyone overwrite your logical mind?"
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Posted: Sun Jan 23, 2011 5:37 am
This wasn't really a topic most people would understand, and he didn't think he would really express it the way he wanted to. However, he made the attempt, though looked uncomfortable nonetheless because of it. "I can go 2 feet near water. I can smell it, see it, and get close enough that I can even see the tadpoles on the bank. I don't have a problem being near water. I swim and am happy in it all the time." Then his eyes settled on her, and there was that heavy, dark look that he had given her when he came to "assist" her beside the bleach cauldron. "It's when someone is perfectly poised next to it, or wandering beside, that makes all the difference. I don't have any urge if there isn't anyone there. It's when someone is nearby…." He looked at her, noting her perfect size and weight that had made it easy to grasp hold of her and start pulling her down. "…..that fogs my head a little bit." More than just that. It was all that he wanted to do, and he always felt his mouth water when he thought of it, feeling some sort of quick thrill as the blood started to pump in his veins.
He broke the look and looked back out to where the nearest river twisted around the campus. "Can't have me going around trying to get better and learning if I go and make a mistake." A mistake in learning like that could be disastrous. It was probably both a bad and good reason he had lived alone all this time with his parents. Good that he never had anyone to jeopardize aside from other kelpies, who could easily overpower him or breath under water, taking out all the thrill, and bad that he never had the practice to control himself.
He rubbed one arm self-consciously and looked down. "You wouldn't get it. You're not a monster of any sort."
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Posted: Sun Jan 23, 2011 6:32 am
"Like in the laundry room..." Lizzy muttered with a slight frown, both at the memory and at what he said. It is true that she did not understand what goes through his mind whenever he sees someone next to a large body of water, and she does not claim to understand. After all, the only time she ever truly wanted to kill anyone was due to a misunderstanding; she had thought that someone was going to hurt her friend and promptly prepared to attack... Still, she managed to stop herself to hear the other party out first.
She stayed silent, frowning as she subconsciously started to chew gently on her lower lip. After a minute of staring awkwardly at Calder, she sighed, "I suppose so... I just wish that there was a way for you to practice controlling yourself without causing harm to anyone... Or yourself, I guess, since you said you would go poof near large bodies of water." If it was anything like being blasted into FEAR particles and reforming again, once is plenty.
Still, if the school wanted to keep him away from water, perhaps that punishment would be enough to stop him from repeating what he did... The thought of having something important taken away from her for bad behavior is enough to cause her to want to be good just to get it back!
"I guess... If you want your water rights back badly enough, you might be able to overcome your urge when... Um, when they test you? Then you can show the school that you can do it." She suggested, giving him an awkward pat on his upper arm, hoping that it was slightly encouraging at least, "I really hoped that we could be friends when I heard you weave that poetry, so its not like I want you to be miserable or anything. I just wanted to be sure that nobody will get hurt... And it seems like you're willing and trying, so that's good enough for me."
Well, sort of good enough.
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Posted: Mon Jan 31, 2011 3:19 pm
He gave a short nod, thinking it over. "I don't even know how they are going to test me or when. I just hope I'm ready." Not to mention that even when he was done passing, no one was going to be so sure about being around him. World have already spread around about his incident and his newest restriction, so not only was the damage done, but people would think twice about going anywhere near him if either one of them were around water. He knew that was his own fault, but he did want to make a better impression. "I think I made everything think kelpies are bad though." Which he never wanted. His parents and his entire clan were great monsters with self-control and a high amount of pride. All of this reflected poorly on them.
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Posted: Mon Jan 31, 2011 5:34 pm
"Reputation can be built," Lizzy replied simply with a nod; it was quite a neutral statement, since the reverse was true and much easier... Not that she didn't have faith in Calder or anything, nope. She shrugged, offering the Kelpie a sheepish smile, "Just, uh, try your best... Like I said, I don't think any lesser of Kelpies."
Just him.
"And besides, I doubt your friends dislike you or want to avoid you," She nodded again, "So... Yeah, good luck." Somehow, she ended up encouraging him although he was the one who started the conversation... With an apology.
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Posted: Mon Jan 31, 2011 6:27 pm
It was a strange exchange and he felt uncomfortable by it. He came. He apologized. Yet, he somehow was getting her encouragement – either from pity or the hope that he did learn from his mistake. While she might have had some faith in him, he was becoming increasingly aware that he had, so far, made no attempt to learn how to control his behavior. It was just as she said. He avoided the water and because of the recent incident, meeting people around it. Now that the looming deadline of a potential test was overhead, he realized that he HAD to figure out a way to keep himself in check around water else suffer a permanent reliance on the shadow inside of his pin and, as a result, give up swimming entirely. No Captain of the Swim Squad. No dips in the rivers and streams. No meeting G for a swim in the monster swamp. Nothing.
The heavy gravity of that very idea and the necessity that he had to learn and do something to pass a test became very clear to him, and he felt ill and confused on how he was supposed to learn. The ball was in his court and how he had to learn how to play.
"Thank you. I just wanted to say I was sorry." His mind was elsewhere now, and with a short nod, he turned and headed back to his dorm. He had to think of something now.
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Posted: Tue Feb 01, 2011 5:36 am
"You're welcome." She offered softly as he turned and walked away. However, she didn't move until the Kelpie was out of sight, after which she heaved a sigh of relief; it was getting rather awkward (at least on her part) and she was running out of things to say. Pushing her bangs out of her eyes, the Demoness then resumed walking down the path leading from the Demon Dorms; she had forgotten what exactly she had been doing when Calder approached her, but she'll probably remember... Sooner or later anyway.
For now, maybe she should go to the Undead dorms and check if Amrita would like to hang out.
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