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 Posted: Thu May 28, 2009 8:02 pm
Trystan took another long sip, a thrum coming off of his lips as he turned his eyes to the other. "Really now? Maybe it was just instinct." Parting his lips slightly, Trystan blew out a sigh, eyes half lidded as he watched the sunset, his shoulders relaxing a bit. He wasn't keen on taking in Faolans appearance just yet, nor staring at the other and seeing his reactions. "How long?" Trystan snorted a bit. "She was dead before you were walking, Faolan." Turning his eyes to the other finally, he gave him a sharp glance. "She didn't die of anything. She was murdered as far as I'm concerned." His look seemed haunted a bit. "Humans aren't taken to nicely out there - especially not when they've conceived a mutt."
Crux tilted his head back further in faint admiration, scanner glittering ever so softly. "It is nice then... I am glad to be here." He admitted, thrumming a bit as the other rested its head on his shoulder. The sensation of something strange hummed through Crux's body. Happiness? Amusement? Affection? The Proto didn't know, so he didn't bother to attempt figuring it out. Leaning in to the Alter in the slightest, Crux looked back for a moment as the first stars appeared through the glassy clouds. He was content here with Zia, and for once he didn't feel anything but simple happiness.
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Posted: Thu May 28, 2009 8:40 pm
Faolan was quiet as Trystan spoke, finishing off his first beer. He sighed when the other was finished and nodded. "Murdered because she birthed me? Or was there more to it?" His mother had been killed. He wasn't sure what to think of that. Had she abandoned him to save his life, too? Sighing, he leaned over and got another beer, the light from the carnival behind them making the tattoos long his back stark against his pale skin.
Zia smiled a bit, listening to Crux speak. Moving a bit, it scooted around so it was sitting in front of Crux and hugged the proto. "I'm glad you're here, too." It stayed there a moment, sorting something out in its head, then settled back, looking at Crux. Alright then. It was going to go for it. After all, Ellandra seemed to like it when Fao did it. Leaning forward, Zia put hand on either side of Crux's face and kissed him.
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Posted: Thu May 28, 2009 9:17 pm
Watching the other carefully, Trystan tilted his head back, eyeing the sky as the lights dimmed. The wind rushing through his hair did nothing to distill the sense of aggravation at himself for having to tell the other this kind of news. Turning his eyes over to the other with a questionable glance, Trystan shrugged lazily and took out another beer. "Theres always more to it." He said wistfully, a lazy grin in his face as he took another sip. "Its all ******** up, and the details are sort of vague - after all, the Families dont like flaunting personal screw ups, and I haven't been within the company of your family enough to know everything." He paused, taking another sip. "Anyways, I wasn't even five when this all happened, so by the time I was told, a lot of it had been all muddled in a bunch of lies and cover ups." About to say more, Trystan looked over at the Essentics, wondering how the two were faring. His jaw dropped at the sight before him. What was - what did - ZIA?! Turning back to Faolan, he started to point back and forth in a manner close to panicking before becoming fed up and whacking the man over the side of the head. "What have you been teaching him!?"
Being hugged, Crux thrummed a bit softly, wondering why Ziazan felt so comfortable. Shifting a bit, he glanced at the other, scanner glittering a bit. A hum of content left his throat. "That makes me happy." He said, enjoying that Ziazan was actually accepting of him. Appearances didn't matter, Trystan constantly said, but it was tiresome getting such disgusted, frightened stares from those he was revealed to outside of the small group of men and women within the hidden Essentics "family." Wondering what Zia was thinking, Crux let his mind wander before something brushed against him. Ziazan....? Ziazan!? Crux sat perfectly still for a moment - perhaps his brain had fried or something - a bit shocked by this motion. He'd seen others do it before... but they had been highly affectionate with each other and "in love" as Trystan has said. "Z-Ziazan?" He stuttered, much to his annoyance. He didn't like stuttering. He was usually so well composed. "What was..... that was..... why?" He asked, his mind on overdrive. He was officially confused, but in some senses, he was happy. He couldn't return the favor... but he was happy. Why? He had absolutely no idea.
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Posted: Thu May 28, 2009 9:31 pm
"Ow! What?" Faolan twisted around to see what Trystan was pissed about this time. Surely he'd gotten over the hugging and . . . what the hell?! Fao's mouth hung open in surprise. He looked back at Trystan, eyes wide. "I didn't teach it that! Zia probably saw me kiss Ellandra." Sweet mercy mayhem, Fao thought, the man is going to kill me dead here and now.
Zia pulled back and smiled at Crux. That had felt odd, but nice. It stroked Crux's cheek with one hand. "Why? Because I like you. I don't know how to explain it. Fao kisses Ellandra because he likes her, so . . . I kissed you." It wrapped its arms around Crux and hugged him again.
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Posted: Sat May 30, 2009 12:20 am
"Dont 'ow, what' me." Trystan said fiercly with a glare, his eyes trying to do anything but glance over at Zia and Crux. There had been no doubt in Trystans mind that Zia was an affectionate character, but he'd never known him to do this kind of thing! It had to be the work - conscious or not - of the guy he'd just been talking to. With a scowl, Trystan glared at Faolan for a second. "Then who did? I'm sure he learned from your example! Didn't you know never to do things in front of kids! Then they'll just be tempted to try it themselves."
Crux tilted its head to the side, enjoying the touch in a subconscious manner. Perhaps he would pick up on things related to emotions faster, through contact like this. Thrumming happily into the hand, he strangely accepted the feelings entering his mind, though he had no idea what they signaled. A soft hum fell from his throat. "So then... if I were able, I could do the same. Though I've no way of repaying the favor... I am sorry." He said, sad that he was not able to repay Zia the kindness he had been showed. He liked Zia, that much was clear though. "It felt strange... but nice. What... is it though?" Hugged once more, Crux tilted his head to the side, and lightly returned it, still a bit awkward with such intimate touch.
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Posted: Sat May 30, 2009 1:03 am
"I can't help Zia's personality, Tryst. It's a very loving Essentic and seems to be rather attached, for some reason, to Crux," Faolan said, looking over at the two. "Look at them, Tryst. Is that really such a bad thing that they want to be close? You and I both know we make good allies, brother. Why not let the kids have their fun? Could be good for Crux."
"Don't be sorry, Crux. You might be different when you're an alter, right? Till then, I'll just kiss you whenever you want me to," Zia said softly, not minding the awkwardness of Crux's returned hug. At the question, it smiled, rubbing its cheek against the cool smooth metal of the other Essentic's shoulder, and let itself read the other. It knew that feeling well. After all, it felt the same for Crux. "La, Crux. Don't you know? This is what love feels like."
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Posted: Sat May 30, 2009 1:20 am
Trystan sighed in defeat, listening to Faolan for a moment before falling over on his back, the grass digging into his sides and swaying softly as the wind blew them towards the dying sunlight. "I can see that." He said dryly, but he'd lost his anger as he stared at the sky. "I dont know why the bloody hell its attached to Crux though." Trystan snorted a bit. "Seriously? A Combat Essentic and a Clairvoyant Reader Essentic? Makes no sense." The half demon closed his eyes a bit though. "Such a bad thing?" Trystan turned his head to other with a scowl and then a sigh of defeat. "Fine you win. For now... I guess they can have their fun. Just... hopefully it doesn't blow up in our faces." Trystan turned his eyes over to the two with a c**k of the brow. "I haven't the faintest idea how it would be good for him, but we'll see what happens. I dont think I could pry Crux away, even if I wanted to..."
Crux tilted his head at Zia's words, contemplating them in the back of his mind. Dont be sorry... Zia was not mad? It made no sense to him - as he had been taught that things were always given in return for something else. Nothing ever came free. So why...? It didn't make any sense to him. "I'm not sure I understand... But thank you Zia." He said softly, as the stars came out above them. "Perhaps I will be different then, and able to repay the favor." The wistful tone in his voice almost gave away his subconscious eagerness to grow. At the mention of Love, Crux tilted its head to the side a bit. "Love...?" He paused, mulling the word over in his mind. "Love is warmth. Warmth feels nice..." He could hear Trystan snort in the background, mutter something about love feeling cold too before shutting up. "I didn't know this is what if feels like, but I like it." Crux thrummed almost hesitantly, as if not knowing exactly how to convey it, and not feeling completely at home with himself talking about an emotion he'd yet to fully realize. "This emotion... its strange, I do not understand it. But I feel it when I'm around you... Is that... strange?"
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Posted: Sat May 30, 2009 1:33 am
Faolan chuckled, moving more to watch the Essentics. "Who knows, Tryst. I often wonder how anything could be good for them, but they seem to know sometimes what they need better than we do. Maybe they just want a balance." He finished off his second beer and moved so he was lying face-down on the grass, still watching the "kids."
Zia smiled, eyes half-closing. "I wouldn't mind having kisses returned, that's for sure." He stroked at Crux's cheek again, studying the other's face. Was it strange to have an attraction for something so alien? Perhaps if Zia were human, but it wasn't and the kinship and closeness it felt for Crux was hard for the young alter to wrap words around. It knew love from Faolan and Ellandra. The warmth and affection it held for Crux. That was love, wasn't it? "I don't think it's strange at all. I feel it with you, too. When you're not around, I miss you and can't stop thinking about when we'll next meet. I don't understand it, either, but that doesn't mean I don't want to keep feeling it."
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Posted: Sat May 30, 2009 1:58 am
Trystan watched the other lie down, his eyes wandering slightly to the sky with little interest in Faolan himself at the moment. "It makes me irritated, not knowing." He said in a low rumble. Oh yes, Trystan hated being out of the loop. "Essentics, they're so mysterious." He contemplated the thought for a second. At the mention of balance, Trystans eyes drifted shut for a moment. "Balance - thats a good word for it." Glancing over at the other as the last of the sunlight glittered over both of them, Trystan almost turned his head away again, before with a resounding snap, he shot up and looked at Faolans back. Tattoos... They were small, but easily noticable. "Dont move." He said in a half excited, half disbelieving voice as he placed the palm of his hand on Faolans head, pushing his head down to keep him there and to get a better view. Whistling in a sort of shocked, sort of disgusted kind of way, Trystans eyes narrowed. "Wow, the stories are actually true." He'd known about the mess up so long ago, but he hadn't thought that the supposed "ritual" had actually occured. In all honesty, most of the families hadn't thought about it either, because of the lack of evidence. However, the rumors were shameful enough. Seeing this now... Trystan laughed dryly. "Wait until father hears about this s**t." He said listlessly to himself, letting go of Faolan. "Let me guess, those marks aren't from your carnie friends, are they?" Well, at least he would make sure they were what they were before going any further.
Crux hummed in a soft melodic tone, drinking in Zia's presence in utter content. "Once I grow, perhaps I'll be able to return them for you.... I wouldn't mind being able to do such a thing, so long as it makes you... happy." The words will still strange and foreign on his lips, things he wasn't quite sure he was supposed to be saying as of yet. The combat essentic had been designed for things that emotion was useless in, yet here he was... falling into something he couldn't even explain to himself. "With me...? Is that what love is?" He tilted his head ever so slightly, enjoying the others soft touch. "I miss you when I am not within your presence, I am filled with a... nervousness and a happy, barely containable emotion that bounces around in my mind when Trystan visits here, and I like it... here with you. Is that love? Is that how you act... when you feel it?" Crux had so many questions, he wasn't sure he could even figure out how to ask all of them. He didn't know half of them, just vague outlines. "I dont want to keep from feeling it... because so far it feels nice, warm. But I am not sure how to understand it, or how to act on it. Is there a set... way?"
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Posted: Sat May 30, 2009 2:14 am
Faolan was about to answer Trystan before his head was rudely shoved down and he got a mouthful of dirt. That might've bothered him were it not for what Trystan was saying and the other man's hand poking around on his back. He tensed up till he was released and pushed himself up, spitting out the dirt and coughing a bit. "You could have just ask to look at them." He sat back on his haunches, wiping at his mouth a moment, then looked at Trystan. "I've had these since they found me as an infant. I don't think anyone here knows that they mean." He wiped at his mouth a few more times to be sure the dirt was out, then looked up at Trytan, eyes wide and ears at attention, realizing what the man had said. "What stories?"
Zia tilted its head, thinking over what Crux had said and more over what he'd asked. "I think that is what love is, yes. I feel sad when you're not here and then so very happy when you are. I always want to share things with you, and have you share with me. To know each other." It opened it's eyes a bit wider, looking at Crux, reaching up to trace fingertips lightly about the scanner. "I don't think love is meant to be understood, just felt. Always felt. And as for acting on it, well . . . I don't think there's any rules. One just does what feels good to show the other how they feel." And with that, it leaned in and kissed Crux again briefly on the snout, then trailed a few kisses along his cheek and neck before whispering, "Sorta like that."
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Posted: Sat May 30, 2009 2:40 am
Snickering a bit at the others complaint about politely asking, Trystan shrugged, waving a hand in the air as he crossed his legs and glanced Faolan up and down, satisfied with his evaluation of the tattoos. They were morbid, and spoke of a rather dark past, and Trystan felt sick just looking at them. But hell, if the families caught wind of this... He wondered briefly if all hell would break loose. "You really pin me for the type to just ask nicely?" Trystan snorted at the idea and cracked a lazy grin. "Hell no - and that was payback for unknowingly teaching Zia how to kiss people." Turning his eyes to Faolan, he considered his options warily, the man before him giving him little choice now that he'd made a bit of a big deal of it. "Stories. Lots of stories. The reason why your mom died, the mysteries behind the downfall of your family, things like that." Trystan sighed, rubbing the back of his head for a second. "Those marks are evidence of a ritual - failed one at that."
Crux turned his head a bit, thinking as well while Zia fell silent. A moment later, after the other had spoken again, Crux thrummed, his emotions hardly conveyed simply through the shimmering red scanner. Perhaps that was why humans were read so easily. Their eyes gave it all away. Crux sort of wondered what that would have been like. "Then love is... an emotion that is able to create others... Sadness when I'm not with you, happiness when I am." Crux was tired of trying to analyze it, and tilted his head down a bit at the touch, enjoying it before watching Zia again in interest. "Felt?" He pondered, repeating the word for himself to hear. "Felt... feel. The feel is nice... and I like it. I like you." The Proto thrummed even more, wondering what Zia truly felt. "What feels good? Strange... Many things feel good. Just being with you is nice... Is it as simple as that?" Crux tilted his head a bit more, contemplating this. "I am not sure I understand, but if it is not meant to be understood then I guess that is okay..." The Essentic dipped its head, receiving the kisses in a bit less of a shocked way, and even more in a content way. They felt nice, and he wished more then ever that he could return them. "Like that?" He paused, resting against Zia a bit. "That was... I wish that I could return it." He paused a bit, wondering what to say next. He was out of questions, and now simply enjoying the other more then ever, giving up on the idea of understanding this thing called love.
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Posted: Sat May 30, 2009 2:54 am
Faolan sat there blinking, trying to digest what had been said. "I'm not following, brother. What do these tattoos even mean? What ritual?" He looked down, turning it all over in his head. Downfall of his family? He didn't even know who they were. He looked up, meeting the other's gaze steadily. "Who killed my mother, Trystan?"
Zia sighed softly snuggling against Crux. A thought occurred to it and the alter looked up at the other. "I think I know a way you might be able to return the kisses in a way." Moving around, Zia nuzzled at Crux's neck and shoulder. It wasn't kissing, but it might work for Crux to show affection by.
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Posted: Sat May 30, 2009 3:04 am
Trystan watched the other, wondering just how he'd react to the disturbing news. To any one demon, hearing about a ritual probably wasn't the best thing. At least thats what Trystan believed. To him, rituals were scary as ********. He almost felt sympathy for Faolan over that one. "I should have guessed." Trystan responded to the 'not getting' comment with a thrum, glancing over at the now dark sky, its stars glittering above them in shining heaps. "They dont mean anything good - but for specifics you'd have to talk to the man who put them on you. There are hundreds of different rituals. Until now, it was just a rumor that something like that had actually happened to the kid - well, you." Trystan shrugged one shoulder up uselessly. "Your daddy dearest killed your mom." He said, adding an extra pile of dry sarcasm onto the words. It made him hateful to say things like that, be the bearer of bad news. "He also put those on you, so if you want answers, go to him, not me."
Crux thrummed in a sort of confused manner when Zia announced it knew another way of conveying the emotion. Blinking as the other nuzzled him a bit, he thought of the strange but comfortable contact, and glanced at Zia in a bit of interest. Contemplating it for a moment, he tentatively leaned forward, repeating the motion to Zia in a soft, amost tender sort of way. As if he was hesitant, but willing to give it a try. "Like this?" He asked softly, nuzzling Zia the way he had nuzzled Crux.
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Posted: Sat May 30, 2009 3:13 am
"M-my father?" Faolan stammered. He cast about as if some blade of grass or clot of dirt might be able to tell him why. When they weren't able to, he looked at Trystan, reaching behind himself to touch his own back. "Why? Why did he do this to me? You know something about it, don't you?" He let his hand drop. There was no accusation in his voice, just the desperate sound of defeat. His own father had murdered his mother. Looking down he studied his hand, letting the black claws slip forth. What was he passing on to his child? "Am I evil? Is that why he put these on me and killed my mother, Tryst?" All those years Keagan had looked at him every so often like he was some sort of alien creature, like he something was wrong with him . . . had Keagan known?
Zia made a happy noise, tilting its head for more nuzzling. "Yeah, just like that." The alter's eyes were half-closed, watching Crux through its lashes. "It's not kissing, but it'll do."
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Posted: Sat May 30, 2009 3:27 am
Trystan watched the other, feeling some sort of self loathing enter his system at the site. It was the truth, but it was ugly. And no matter how much he might have wanted to, there was no real sugar coating on the top to place in and lessen the impact of the blow. "Who else?" He responded in a dry, rhetorical manner, keeping his thoughts to himself. "Your father wasn't exactly nice. He probably still isn't." Shrugging his shoulders, Trystan glanced the other over for a moment. "All the Chevalier family knows is that because you were a failure - well, a half blood is really the polite term for it - there was no use for you." Trystans eyes glittered a bit dangerously. "At least to everyone but your father. At the time, he was head of the Lafraunte family. See, theres a system within the Vargash families. Ranks, I guess you could call them. Your family wasn't as high as your father might've liked, and by using a ritual on you, he thought he could gain a higher place against all of the other families." Trystans eyes narrowed a bit and he stared off into space a bit, remembering when he'd been just a kid, and had wondered what all the fuss was about regarding the other families.
"Thats where the ritual came in, but obviously, it was either incomplete or failed. According to what people have told me - dont take my word for it, these are all just rumors - that was when your mom took you. You vanished, and she was hunted down and murdered by your fathers men." Trystan smiled dryly, the self loathing evident in his tone now. "Like I said before, humans aren't taken to kindly in our little world." Glancing up as Faolan spoke again, Trystan blinked for a moment. Evil? Killed? Trystan glared. And then he whacked Faolan a good one over the head for the second time that night. "You're only as evil as the next half-assed demon out there. Look, none of this was your fault. He killed your mother because she was an obstacle - he tried to use you because otherwise, you were no use to him." Trystan scowled a bit. "Dont go blaming yourself for things you had no control over."
Crux thrummed, glad that Zia enjoyed the nuzzling. he was able to make the other happy, even if it wasn't a kiss like he would have wanted. Oh well, patience was a virtue, and he'd simply have to wait until he grew to properly return the favor. Noticing that Zia was enjoying it, he continued the motion with a bit more confidence now. "You... like it? One day perhaps, I will be able to properly return a kiss, but for now... this is alright with you?"
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