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 Posted: Mon Aug 05, 2013 10:18 pm
Luxor was leaning against a tree in what was supposed to be a nice little grassy knoll in the middle of some apartment complex, though really it was a sad, abandoned lot that no one bothered to take care of and that was too small to build on. It was land no one wanted to claim, and so it was a thriving spot for the homeless and those up to no good.
Those wanting to go unnoticed.
Luxor figured it was a good spot for the Negaverse to hunt for the pitiful and useless, the easy targets for energy draining or starseeds. No one was there tonight, though. No transients, and no Chaos soldiers. Sighing, Luxor was almost glad for it, since his side was aching and he was feeling weary. Pushing himself non stop was not actually working out for him as well as he thought it would.
But in the long run he would be stronger for it.
He walked away from the area, thinking it late enough in the evening to be able to walk without anyone spotting him.
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Posted: Mon Aug 05, 2013 10:29 pm
Leora Healy was walking through an area of town she wouldn't normally stroll through, especially not late at night. But some things just couldn't be helped. Her ride who was supposed to pick her up from the apartment that was hosting what was laughingly called an estate sale. Really it was an indoor garage sale for a woman who had been a hoarder. And from the smell of the apartment, owner of a number of cats before she passed on.
So she had waited until her ride was supposed to show up, only to get a single txt message informing her that her ride wasn't picking her up, and she needed to call a cab. But for the life of her she couldn't get cell reception. The single bar that had allowed the message to be delivered flickered out of existence, as if mocking her.
So she was walking, her cell phone in hand, in the direction of her home miles away, waiting for reception to return. Her brows furrowed, creating delicate frown lines between her eyes, when she noticed someone walking ahead of her, coming from an abandoned lot. She blinked.
What on earth was he wearing.
She walked a little bit faster to catch up to him, her walking which had been nearly silent even in her heels before, was suddenly strikingly loud as her heels struck the pavement. Luckily she was only a little bit away from him. Indeed if there had been any working street lights on this side of the lot he probably would have seen her.
" Aren't you cold? " She asked, her voice sounding mildly curious.
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Posted: Mon Aug 05, 2013 10:57 pm
Luxor looked up in surprise, his mind having wandered a bit. He was so focused on feeling any of the auras that could possibly sneak up on him, he had not actually been watching the road for those without auras. Civilians, people who did not directly pose a threat to him in the same way Chaos did, but who could still cause him more trouble than he really wanted at the moment.
"No," he said flatly, after a beat. He watched her, trying to decide what the appropriate way to react to her really was. If he just ignored her and ran off that would end it there, without any trouble, but she would probably be curious about him and that could lead to her digging around. He would hate for her to come out here more often to look for him, or something, as it was not part of his normal patrol.
He wasn't good with people, though, and talking was not a good thing for him to engage in. He was very bad at it, in fact.
"You are out late, and it is dangerous out here. Maybe you should go home." He sounded stiff and unfriendly, though he was trying his hardest to sound warm and concerned. He had failed spectacularly. So maybe she was right, in the end. He was a cold./size]
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Posted: Mon Aug 05, 2013 11:19 pm
Leora paused, rosey colored eyes raking over him with the same intensity as she did a fashion magazine. She noted he seemed uncomfortable, and her head tilted her head. For someone who seemed rather unfriendly he sure chose an attention seeking outfit.. How strange.
Her voice took on its own version of unfriendly. Not hostile, but it lost any sense of polite interest. It was icy and cut right to the matter of the subject. It was the same voice she used when she was in highschool ( God she was glad to be rid of that place once and for all ) with the classmates who mocked her for being an oddball. " I was doing just that. My ride ditched, and there is no cell phone reception here. "
But he was right. She was dressed up like some sort of lolita doll, and this probably was not the best place for her to be in. The only reason she didn't seem to stressed about the situation was that she knew in a pinch, hers of having running as her main social activity would probably save her life.
" You don't exactly look like a thug, so I could probably just say the same to you, " Her eyes traveled across his nearly bare torso to the man skirt thaty rode low on his hips, one of her eyebrows twitching upwards, a faint grin causing one corner of her lips to quirk up. " Though my guess is if someone tried to mug you they wouldn't mind much in the way of pockets. " Her voice held a bit of dry humor that could be easy to miss.
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Posted: Mon Aug 05, 2013 11:26 pm
"I can walk you home," he offered blandly. He was sincere in his offer, he just had trouble really expressing himself in a way that was not entirely off putting and confusing. He said something, but it looked and sounded like he meant another. He could never employ sarcasm effectively, if only because it always seemed like he was being sarcastic.
Except he lacked a sense of humor.
He frowned at her thoughtfully, noting that she was dressed strangely and didn't have the same excuse he did. Not that he could share with her what his excuse was. Still, it was almost comforting to know that for some people, strange was normal.
He nodded at her comment, though, looking down at himself. He had a nasty looking wound on his side, stitched up but not bandaged since he had powered up and it had vanished, but beyond that he had nothing else on him. No packs or pockets or anything useful.
"A mugger would be wasting his time on me, but I think you're more in danger of it."
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Posted: Mon Aug 05, 2013 11:52 pm
She blinked again, her gaze considering. " That would be acceptable. Thank you. " He was a hard person to read. She was having problems figuring out if he was offering a legitimate offer, if he was being sarcastic, if he was a creeper. She just honestly didn't know what to make of him. She took a few steps closer, and only then did she notice the wound on his side, stitched and darkened the way deep wounded flesh tended to look.
" Your hurt... " She said, not asking, just sort of stating the obvious, something she never really did unless startled. He hadn't been moving like he was hurt, and from the angry look of it, it was a substantial injury. " Why on earth are you wondering around in this neighborhood if you are injured? Let alone half naked. " The wound wasn't even properly covered... he could get an infection if he just gallivanted around like this.
She wasn't particularly the nurturing type, or at all really. Heck, more often then not she didn't even like people, but he had offered to walk her home like a proper gentleman. But she was starting to wonder, with his outfit and his injury if maybe he had slipped out of some of the local hospital....
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Posted: Tue Aug 06, 2013 9:45 am
"It's a long story," Luxor said with a sigh. He did not want to think about it too much, as it would probably make him angry. He could be a little unpredictable when he was angry, flying into a rage very much like the Hulk might. He got blinded by it, and it consumed him easily.
Thinking about Painite and all the things she had done, though, was nearly enough to send him into a rage. Not only had she orchestrated and participated in the massacre at the Carnival, but she had nearly killed him and his companion just a short time ago. He hated her more than he hated anything else, in the entire world.
He wanted her gone, but he was not strong enough to do it. His injury was a very vivid reminder of that fact.
He looked at the girl and shook his head slowly.
"I don't think you would understand any of it. I'm sorry. But the injury is fine. I heal quickly enough." Or so he was told. He'd only experienced it with bruises so far, so this would be the real test. "There are dangerous things out here sometimes." He motioned for her to walk, and he would follow, his hand now resting over his injury almost self consciously, though his expression didn't reflect it if he was feeling awkward.
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Posted: Wed Aug 07, 2013 2:44 pm
She furrowed her brows, her lips tilting in the faintest of frowns. She almost made to argue and press him for more answers... but... really, what was the point? He was offering to talk her home, through a bad part of town she had no business being in, dressed like some sort of mail-order stripper. Ooooh maybe that's what he was. Wouldn't that make for an interesting evening? Though she really couldn't envision this cool and awkward man gyrating and twirling on stage. So maybe not.
What an odd man. She shook her head and started to walk, her hands clasped lightly behind her back as she moved forward, though she did turn her head and made sure he did follow.
He was a stranger, and a peculiar one at that, so she wasn't so quite comfortable letting him walk in her blind spot.
Her heels clicked out a lazy rhythm on the pavement as she walked at a comfortable pace, not exactly racing home.
" So.... I take it you are fond of leather? " She said, eyeing the many belts of his bizarre outfit.
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Posted: Wed Aug 07, 2013 2:53 pm
Luxor was really lucky he couldn't read minds, or he probably would have... stood there and done nothing about it, but stewed inwardly about how embarrassed he was to be thought a stripper. Still, he was doing his best already to not be embarrassed about the lack of clothes, let alone the context other people came up for as far as explaining them went.
He followed her at a polite distance, acting as any bodyguard might. He was quiet and he kept his eyes sweeping the area, just in case anything was lurking in the shadows. Of course, he was looking for things like Negas or evil Senshi, or monsters.
It was hard to remember, sometimes, that other civilians still served a threat to people out here in the dark streets.
"Fond of...?" he looked at her, caught off guard by the question and not following its origin until he looked down at himself and remembered the belts that served as his accessories. He shook his head. "They were just what I was given."
Yes, that was going to clear it all up. She definitely wouldn't ask him who gave them to him, or why he had to wear them. Maybe he could distract her with a question of his own.
"Your dress is interesting. Did you make it?"
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Posted: Wed Aug 07, 2013 3:16 pm
Given...? Ah yes.... probably a stripper. Well, as rigid as his demeanor was, she didnt mind being walked home by a hansom half naked man. There were no other types of entertainment in this area aside from a few seedy book stores and a couple of bars. She was just about to open her mouth and ask him if maybe he was an actor, when he asked her about her own outfit. If he said no... well then her suspicious would be confirmed. There was no judgment... she was just curious.
She glanced down at her own dress, a small smile on her face, remembering the little boy from earlier in the day who had called her a princess because of this outfit. " Thank you, Yes, I did. Most of it, at least " But she was fairly sure he wasn't at all interested in the process of making ones own clothing.
She had turned, and was actually walking backwards, knowing the pavement went a long way without breaking for a curb, and her steps confident on her precariously high heels. She noticed his eyes kept drifting over their surroundings... Probably a good thing, considering the area.
He was so vigilant in checking the surrounding area for... something... and she was so curious about his bizarre... well, his bizarre everything, that neither of them noticed a couple of young men loitering in an alleyway smoking what was probably not a cigarette. As they walked past, one of the men let out a low whistle " Hey man, 20 bucks for your little girl there! " He grinned, showing a grin with the gap of a missing tooth in it, but otherwise continued to loiter harmlessly in the alley, still fairly engrossed in his own business.
Leora lifted her chin, both mortified and enraged at the same time. The reality of were she was suddenly much more apparent now. She walked over to Luxor and looped one of her her lace gloved arms through his, glaring strangers at the man but suddenly VERY grateful for the escort.
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Posted: Wed Aug 07, 2013 3:55 pm
The only reason that man was able to continue is grin with only one tooth missing was Leora's arm on Luxor's. If she had not gotten there, his temper would have taken over and the grinning man in the shadows would have become a lumpy, bloody meat sack hefted into a dumpster. Not dead, probably, but certainly not in a hurry to leer at any more young women.
He likely would not have had any teeth left to do so with, anyway.
Luxor glared at him in a withering, joy shattering way, but kept his pace with Leora as they moved past the duo. He looked at her, his temper cooling, though there was a dangerous glint in his eyes.
"They had no business speaking to you that way," he said, and for a moment his flat tone almost seemed apologetic. Maybe he'd come back this way once he had delivered her safely home, and see if the deadbeats were still interested in messing with the strangers they saw on the street.
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Posted: Wed Aug 07, 2013 4:28 pm
Leora kept an eye on the two as they walked past, her pink eyes glaring coldly, though the menace in them it was kind of counteracted by her outfit and her now walking on the other side of Luxor ( away from the creeps ) with her arm looped through his like they were the worlds most eccentric prom couple.
Well... She was ok with her lack of intimidation, her mysterious maybe-stripper chaperone certainly certainly had that mc. broody-im-gona-introduce-you-to-the-concrete sorta look going on, so it made up for it.
They alleyway fell out of view, and sense neither of them seemed to follow, probably deterred by gladiator mans ball-shriveling look of death. He spoke and she tilted her head up to him, my he was tall, a faint smile tugging at the corner of her lips " Thank you... though I guess I probably shouldn't have expected anything different, considering the were we are... " It was strange to think this old decrepit neighborhood was so close to the old town shopping district... and then right on the other side of that was the B&B she called home.
Her words faltered, as she realized she didn't know his name. " My name is Leora... and thank you for not letting me walk home alone. " That was probably the most sincere thank you she had ever given anyone in her whole life. She was feeling very small and exposed, and that was a feeling she did not like, and had pretty much worked her whole life to avoid feeling.
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Posted: Wed Aug 07, 2013 4:36 pm
Luxor had a feeling he was drawing more negative attention to her than she would normally get, but then again... if she had been alone and those two guys had seen her they likely would not have simply let her pass by.
While he had no doubt she was confident enough in herself to fight back and give them hell, he also was not sure she would be able to fight them off if they were really interested in causing her harm. He was, then, glad that he had met her and was walking her home. Even if she did, in turn, give him a little bit of hell for his outfit.
In the end, it was worth it.
"My name is Luxor," he said, glad he was bad at showing emotions on his face, or else it would have been impossible to say that with a straight face. He was glad the name was not as recognizable as some Knight wonders he had heard, but still. It sounded, really, like a stripper name.
"You're welcome. I am glad you got here safely. I hope you have a good... rest of your night." He said stiffly, nodding his head and looking down at her passively.
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Posted: Wed Aug 07, 2013 6:17 pm
Leora couldn't help the grin that slipped across her face, her eyebrows quirking upward again. " Well... that is an interesting name. Please to met you Luxor. " The were startling to leave the more seedy parts of old town, the buildings going from abandoned boarded up structures to older buildings, thick with brick and old style designs, tended with care, little shop fronts starting to appear at the street level windows.
" Thank you... You to. Try not to gallivant through to many dark alleys while your healing. You cut an intimidating figure but it would be rather easy to rip a stitch if your off defending ladies in the rough part of town. " She said, a thread of wry humor lacing through her voice.
She saw headlights on the road before her, and she could tell the exact moment when her cell phone reception returned. Her phone exploded with half a dozen txt messages, the little pink device buzzing away in the folds of her skirt. She recognized the older model BMW, nearly ancient but in good repair as it rolled up beside them. Her father was driving, though he looked old enough to be her grandfather or more, and he slowed beside, rolling down the window frantically. " Leora! We have been looking everywhere for you, what on earth are you doing? "
The dainty young woman frowned, her father liked to forget she was an adult. And driving around town calling for her like she was a lost dog was not exactly what she thought of as adult treatment, considering they were literally only blocks from her home. If one looked hard enough they could probably see the pointed spires of the Victorian style roof through the trees.
" I was walking home... Uncle Henry never showed to pick me up. "
She was fairly certain her father was going to have a fit, and didnt hear a darn word she said, as it was he had the most peculiar look on his face, stuck somewhere between a glare and a gawk as he eyeballed Luxor with extreme mistrust.
With a sign Leora released Luxors arm, turning her back to her father for a second. " Thank you again for walking me home " She rose up on her tip toes, which was a testament to her balance, considering her shoes and his height, and gave him a kiss on the cheek, a little smirk on her face " And for keeping me safe "
She turned on her heels and walked around the car, getting in as her father made choking noises, looking between his daughter -who he still thought of as his baby girl- and the... the naked stranger who had been keeping her company. He shook his head and started to drive away, pulling forward and executing a neat turn, heading back towards the Bed & Breakfast.
" Who on earth was that? "
" Oh... Well, Uncle Henry abandoned me in a particularly unsavory part of town and that hansom stripper offered to walk me home, hes an odd one but quite gentlemanly. " She said, still smirking. She wasn't completely sure he WAS a stripper, but letting her father think he was would definitely make her father make her uncle pay for ditching her like that.
The words were spoken when they were still turning the car about, so if Luxor was listening, he could probably hear every word, considering the windows were rolled down.
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Posted: Wed Aug 07, 2013 7:00 pm
Luxor looked a little embarrassed, for half a second, when she pointed out his injury. He nodded his head, hand covering his injury instinctively before his mask of imperceptible thought returned to his face and he was once back delivered into obscured thought. He heard the buzzing of her phone, and saw the car rolling up.
This was probably going to be awkward.
Luxor tried his very best to pretend his was a street lamp, or part of a nearby fence. He stared at the ground and did his best not to call attention to himself, though a giant, miserable looking man with a towel wrapped around his waist and naught much else was hard to miss, even in the low lighting.
He didn't stoop when she made to kiss him on the cheek, making it that much harder for her, and watched her passively as she went to the car and was safely inside before long with her father. He relaxed a bit, though he listened to the conversation as they rolled off, and his muscles coiled up once again. This time it wasn't from nervous readiness, but stress.
She thought he was a stripper? He watched the car rumble down the road and shook his head slowly, not sure how he would ever fix that idea about him, and not sure he should even try at this point. He turned to head back the way they had come.
Maybe those thugs were still hanging around, and he could teach them how to be a bit more polite. Or maybe he would just go home and put on a shirt.
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