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 Posted: Fri Sep 03, 2010 7:16 pm
Lucia placed her other hand on top of their woven fingers. She wasn't afraid. After seeing Zul at what she assumed was his most ferocious yet, and having only good come out of it, the Kitten knew he would never hurt her.
"I've touched you enough to know it wasn't that easy." She smiled good-naturedly at him. She felt her energy increasing the longer they sat in the graveyard. It never took long for her to eat. "Thank you for letting go of yourself to save me." Her eyes rested on his, full of warmth. "If it's about control. Well. I'm glad you took it.
"The only power I have to work for is going to the other world. Spirits. I just see them. And I certainly didn't do anything to get possessed."
She smiled at him and shifted to be closer and lean against his shoulder. It was just comfortable that way. She was actually relaxed again, even with the talk of Brian. "Going into that world is different though."
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Posted: Fri Sep 03, 2010 9:42 pm
A quiet chuckle escaped him. "Even now, I want to ease your mind. I can feel the itch." Lifting his free hand, Zul rubbed one of his blue eyes, the inverted pentagram in the center of his brow seeming to glow a dull, blood red. The one open orb flicked to Lucia's face at the thank you, his smile growing behind the palm of his hand. "I couldn't leave you to suffer, Lucia. That's what friends are for." It wasn't that he was trying to brush off what he did, but he did it for her, not because he thought he could do anything.
The next part made him drop his hand, both eyes slightly wide. "You can see them--" He stopped himself from saying too because she said going to another world. Hadn't she mentioned that during the night at the beach? Zul nodded slowly, curiosity on his features. "How do you...go there?" He didn't ask for the ability to see the divine and damned, but it was there and he had to deal with it. Was Lucia the same? His arm slipped behind her back, still keeping her hand held, simply used to the touch for imparting comfort. It was practically second nature for him now.
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Posted: Fri Sep 03, 2010 10:02 pm
The frei smiled, leaning into her friend comfortably. While this cemetery wasn't nearly as nice as the beach, it was comfortable for her in its own way. She smiled slightly at his reaction to her just natural power. "Yeah. Any animal or person who has died recently. I can see and touch and talk to them. Before they become ghosts. Before they go to the other world. I think I helped keep some of them from becoming ghosts. You know, by helping." She was smiling at the thought of those she had helped. But her smile slowly faded into a comfortable silence. She hadn't been willing to approach any ghost since she got possessed.
Lucia giggled at the question of how to go there. "The first time I went, I fell off a balcony and almost died." She laughed slightly at the memory. "To come back...same thing. There's no way for me to eat there...so I almost died again."
She didn't go into what happened when she did come back. Rivener had been infected at the time, right? "Eventually I figured it out though. To come home, I just have to be calm. Know that I want to live and just desperately want to be in this world." She smiled, remembering one time she returned home pretty much right in the spot where they were sitting.
"To go. Well that's easier. Death. It happens. To everyone. To everything, right?" Her violet eyes looked into Zul's bright blue ones. "All I have to do is know that. And not be afraid." A smile crossed her features. "It is pretty ther-"
And with those words, the frei disappeared without a trace. Even the shine of her eyes reflecting the moonlight was gone.
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Posted: Fri Sep 03, 2010 10:24 pm
One moment, the Kitten was talking and smiling, looking very at ease despite the topic of conversation. Zul truly felt that Lucia had overcome that terrible period in her life, that she was moving on --
And then she moved on and away.
Zul stared for an unblinking heartbeat where the Kitten had just been, shaking his head roughly and looking around. It hadn't just been a trick of his eyes - she wasn't there! The demon snapped upright so fast that he nearly lost balance, turning in circles, his ribbon disturbing the flowers on Omen's grave and brushing aside leaves on others. "Lucia?" he called out, disbelief heavily lined in his smoke-quiet voice. Did she just...did she just go to that realm?!
For the first time, panic began to weigh in his chest. Was it because he asked? Could he go after her? Would she be safe? As the Frei turned sharp, jerky circles, the blues of his eyes bled into reflective black, his vision picking up every wisp of movement in agonizing detail. Zul even went so far as to check the nearest trees, behind the small gravestones and up to the sky. Nothing. He couldn't hear her, couldn't even feel her presence as he was used to, even though the ground was still lightly indented where she'd been 'sitting' mere seconds before. One thing was for certain - Lucia was not here.
"LUCIA!" The demon began to bristle, lips pulled away from his teeth. If this was some trick of a ghost seeking to hurt her, he'd...he'd storm the realm and destroy them all!
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Posted: Fri Sep 03, 2010 10:30 pm
Lucia let out a gasp and closed her eyes tightly when she realized where she was. The multiple moons – all full as in the human world. The layers and layers of birch trees. The hard packed earth. So close was the large white rock before the huge rock wall full of doorways. And that also meant she was close to the cave. The cave in which she had first met Brian.
Letting out a defeated sigh, Lucia knew. She was no longer in the beloved small graveyard with her friend. She had done exactly what she had been avoiding desperately. And what if. What would happen if she got possessed by something more. By something worse. The dark haired fem’s ears were back flat. She did not want to be back here. She had been avoiding this world.
Lucia’s eyes opened wide. Zul. Would he even know what happened to her? She absent mindedly wound her ribbon around her arm and began tinking the buckle. The Kitten began breathing harder, faster. It was too much. Panic was setting in and if she couldn’t calm herself down she would die here. But she couldn’t. She just stared at the wall of doors, her eyes wide, her pupil’s dilated. Her mouth opened as she took in quick breaths. Her heart was pounding in her ears and she felt hot.
Calm. She needed to calm down if she wanted to go back to her world. Taking in a deep breath – being careful not to turn around or look at the cave she slowly let—”LUCIA?!” Spinning around, her eyes opened wide as she looked at a soul that was very familiar by now.
”Shanna?!” The girl who had been in the car accident. The last spirit she had helped. The hospital. Her brother. Her parents. And a hug that was never really felt. The virus. Her accidental fall into this world. Almost dying and returning home. Coming back. Marty. The puppy. The garbage. The dog show. Coming back and returning home. “Never go over to the caves. There’s bad things there.”
Coming back. Crying. The cave. And Brian Sparks. Blinking, Lucia tried to bring herself back to the present, but just looking at the buckle in her hand brought her thoughts to the past year. She had no control. Attacking Prajna. Killing Yuurei. The scary bar. The guy. Throat. Drugs. The girl.
LuLu. Her feather. The chain. Was that man still alive? The smoke. The flames. Delia. The homeless woman. Vyn. Rivener. Zul. Countless faces swam through her mind’s eye as she thought about the result of the last time she had been here. She had broken Zul’s jaw. She had – she had felt him inside of her mind. She had been possessed at that one time – not only by Brian, but also by Zul. But Zul’s possession had not hurt. It did not cause harm. It caused good. From inside of her, he had spoke to her. He called her name. Lucia. . . Blinking at how strong the memory was now, her eyes focused as she heard her name called again, only in a distinctly higher clearer pitch.
”Lucia?” The Kitten’s eyes flicked upward to the familiar face. ”Lucia! Are you okay?” Nodding slightly, she tried to ignore the sinking feeling she had at being back here. But her thinking had calmed her breathing and heartbeat. ”Sorry, Shanna. I was thinking about something. How are you?” Without answering the girl’s face just lit up in a grin and she grabbed the slightly scared hand that was not gripping the belt buckle. The tinking had stopped, and Lucia let go of the metal, allowing the fabric of her ribbon to slowly unwind and fall to it’s normal resting position.
But she began to resist, floating backwards when she saw the direction in which Shanna was taking her. ”Calm down. You have to see. It’s wonderful.” With two cool hands, she gripped the Kitten’s fingers, a smile on her lips. This girl had no idea, she knew, what wonderful thing had happened. And with that thought she pulled Lucia (and her closed eyes) in front of the cave where Brian had first met the frei.
Holding Lucia’s hand and stepping to the side slightly, so the Kitten could see, she whispered softly, ”Lucia – Lucia, open your eyes.”
As the first shades of violet and then the dark pupil emerged, Lucia’s mouth slowly opened. Floating forward, Shanna at her side, the Kitten looked around. Instead of the black separating the world from the cave, the mouth of the cave was now open. Where behind the veil the hole in the mountain had been immense, towering, and deep, now it was small, barely taller than Shanna’s frame and shallow, only a few feet deep as the full moons’ rays lit up the interior of the small recessed cave. She blinked. The fire and weapons were gone. Instead there was an overgrowth of moss and grass, all lit a blue-green by the moonlight. And small white flowers, ones she had never seen before, were growing.
Lucia glanced over her shoulder at the wall of doors and knew that this was Brian’s cave. Transformed. By her and Zul. Blinking, her free hand clutched Shanna’s and reached out to the wall for support. In the back was a small tree, more of a shrub. And on it were berries the likes of which she didn’t think existed. Small and round with a soft fuzz, she watched as Shanna picked a small handful. She ate two and handed two to Lucia. The kitten felt them, just staring in wonder.
A barking in the distance – familiar – was coming closer to the pair.
”Marty!” Shanna cried as the dog ran closer. She released the Kitten’s hand and ran out to see him. He jumped into her arms and she walked back to the cave, petting the familiar pooch. ”He’s happy to see you! I—um—went to see him when you didn’t show up again soon.” She smiled a little guiltily, rubbing her hand gently down his back.
Lucia blinked, suddenly recognizing the animal who had possessed her. She nodded,
knowing he had had his fun and had now found a friend.
Lucia settled against the side of the cave. Silently, she watched Shanna chase and be chased by Marty. And a small smile spread across her face. Maybe it all had some sort of good effect. She had been through hell. She had been forced to hurt her friends. She had been forced to kill people. She had been pushed aside in her body for months. She was destroyed physically, mentally and emotionally at the end of it. But she had realized her closest friend yet. And slowly, it seemed like her friends wounds were healing. She knew it would take time, but she also knew she would never stop trying to repair her friendships. Everyone but Rivener seemed willing. Rivener had been cared about the most and been hurt the worst. But even the last time she saw him he didn’t lash out at her. And her apology had been rebuffed with phrases like “I’m not ready to face you,” implying there would be a time when he would be ready. And she would wait until that time.
Maybe at the end she could be closer to her friends. They certainly would know more about her powers and frailties after this. Maybe she could be more open. And if she could be strong, she thought as her eyes focused on the pair of sprits rolling around, now, because of her, loving their afterlife, maybe she could enjoy it here. There was a lot she hadn’t seen. The kitten looked around the cave. It was actually kind of beautiful now.
And she had brought Shanna and Marty together. The virus. This place. Her possessions. They all seemed to lead to good being done. Even though she had suffered, the result had been good. Everything, it seemed, had come out better for her pain in the end. And if she had had such a good effect on this place, maybe Alex was right. Maybe she did grow up.
And suddenly her mind was back on Zul. "I need to go for now. I left a good friend at home. But I'll be back." The kitten smiled warmly at Shanna and Marty before looking around the now beautiful and overgrown cave. "Soon."
And then she closed her eyes and the air changed to a familiar smell. Rotting leaves. A distant breeze. And a smooth smoke that made her pursed lips spread wide, showing a brilliant smile. ”Zul,” she said softly as she breathed out and revealed her lash-lined violet orbs.
A frei returned. But suddenly just as she returned to the world and opened her eyes, Lucia's rune glowed a bright violet, lighting up the entire cemetery. It wasn't unnerving as when she had been infected. This seemed like the most natural thing in the world. She floated up in the air a few feet, her eyes locked on her friends'.
The frei's wings spread out wide, not propelling her upwards at all. Her half-gloved hand reached up to touch her cheek as the other stretched above her and slightly to the side. Spinning slowly, Lucia stretched in midair, seemingly held up by the light of her rune. The Kitten's ears were twitching slightly.
Slowly, as she spun, her hair began to grow longer and longer, reaching her waist. Her rune began to brighten further, glowing a bright white, clouding her torso in light. Her wings expanded and the girl's eyes closed as they grew larger.
Running fingers through her hair, the light was hiding the growth of her body. Her rune slowly descended as her body grew bone, muscle, skin, fabric, all at once. Slowly the light of her rune began to fade, and as it did so, her body descended. She spun once in her decent, and when she did Lucia was no longer a frei. She had long hair, larger wings, and, even more noticeable, a lower torso. Her body, below her bust, was mostly bare. A stitch of fabric, blending into her ribbon, went over the beginning of her hips. That bit of fabric melded into a large lace and silky satin bow that began the swirl. A garter belt attached to the top of her ribbon descended over the first swirl of ribbon as it spun down into her familiar belt buckle.
A bright smile lit up her face as Lucia opened her eyes again and her excitement was all for Zul. "I have to tell you what just happened!"
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Posted: Fri Oct 15, 2010 3:14 am
By the time Lucia was forming in the graveyard, Zul was very close to burning down every last tree in sight, so griped by panic as he was. His eyes were black and lined with thick, brackish blood, seeing all sorts of things but none being the Kitten he desperately sought. So caught up in his worry and tedious teetering on his brink of rage, he didn't immediately notice when the dark femme materialized behind him. What did garner his attention was when the whole area was suddenly illuminated in a violet light, causing the demon to whip around, the snarl on his lips dying just as quickly as it formed.
Her eyes found his, and he was stuck, held in place by the sudden vision Lucia presented. As she ascended to the sky, his eyes began to drain of their darkness, the black bleeding out in sick veins and leaving only his vibrant blues in their wake, held and unblinking. When her eyes closed, his were freed though it was only to look down at what was occurring. Zul did the only think he could do, and watched the display with his mouth slightly agape.
It all happened so fast...and yet, he felt as if he could have zipped around the clearing a thousand times before her ribbon finally met the earth again, her new weight bouncing and curling the buckled length elegantly. The demon was outright gaping by the time Lucia spoke, sharp teeth slightly visible behind his drawn lips, blue eyes wide and pupils wholly constricted. His bone wings beat feebly, pulling himself backwards so he could better see all of her, though he didn't stop until his exposed spine connected with the bark of an innocent tree, the likes of which he gripped with his hands to make sure it was real and he hadn't just completely lost his marbles.
She was really there.
She was really a Sigel, and he'd just seen it happen!
"You... Zul spoke the word like a hiss of steam, weak and feeble. Clearing his throat behind his wildly pulsing gorget, he tried agian. "You...you grew, that's what happened." The answer was dumb and uninspired, but the demon was beside himself with shock, admiration and...pride. The Frei was momentarily numb with surprise, continuing to stare with slightly parted lips at the Kitten. She was gorgeous!
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Posted: Fri Oct 15, 2010 11:20 pm
Her eyes shone out at the demon, but her face turned a little confused when she realized he had pressed himself up against a tree. When he spoke, he seemed awestruck, and maybe weaker than she was used to. His eyes were wide -- at her.
Once he had pushed the words through his lips, she almost laughed, thinking he was joking around -- repeating the words Alex had spoken. But then, her face changing to show a flash of confusion as she realized he hadn't been there for that conversation. Her head turned down as her eyes searched her body. He was right! It wasn't the typical 'grew;' it was literal!
Her mouth went slack as she spread her wings, the wingspan so much larger than before. Her fingers reached out to touch her bow. It was so cool! And her hands smoothed across her stomach, feeling the subtle muscle under the flesh. Her skin was warm to the touch, but the cooler night air was slowly lowering the temperature. She twitched her ears, letting out a soft puff of air, relieved that they were still there. But her hair, now brushing her lower back, went all the way down to her waist.
Her desperation to tell Zul about what she had seen was temporarily forgotten, but her mind traced back to it just as quickly as it had strayed. Tonight . . . is an amazing night, she thought. "Do I still look good?" she asked with a smile, her growth not of much concern to her. She didn't feel any different. She just wanted Zul to share her current happiness. Pausing for a moment to finger the garter belt's straps, she looked at him, laughter in her eyes.
"But don't think you can get away with changing the subject! I need to tell you what happened! It was beautiful. The cave where Brian was. It was full of moss and flowers! And Shanna and Marty were there. They missed me! And they were playing. And they seemed so happy. It was like it all was resolved over there! Like--" She paused to think of the right wording. "Like with all the stuff that happened, good came from it. Stuff that was really good. And we did that." She desperately wanted Zul to see it, to know what he accomplished by killing Brian. But since that couldn't happen, she would only be able to make her elation so palpable that it would be absorbed by his body and reflect in him as well.
Growing, for the Sigel, was an afterthought. A nice benefit or bonus, but simply a dim reflection of what she had done for that cave, for Shanna, and for Marty. Fixing her other living relationships would take time, but knowing the good that came from the whole situation made it seem less of an impossible task.
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Posted: Sat Oct 16, 2010 2:23 am
"I...what?" The demon blinked at the Kitten's apparent confusion over his words and the subsequent baffled touching that followed. As Lucia checked herself out, Zul carefully dislodged himself from the tree, flicking off a piece of bark that had stuck to the spikes on his gorget, slowly floating closer to the brand new Sigel. "I'm in awe," he admitted at length, allowing his blue eyes to shamelessly taking in her svelte form dashed in tight black. "You look better than good, Lucia."
Any other praise he might have had fell short as she excitedly barreled onwards, the Frei tilting his head and listening to her animated recollection of what she'd seen. Words and descriptions triggered memories of what she'd told him so long ago, filling in gaps on his own to make sense of the information, his recollections a canvas with Lucia's words painting the scene. When she finished, he allowed a small, content smile to curve his lips, pride resting profoundly in his eyes. While it was nice Lucia was including him, Zul's sense of accomplishment wasn't in himself - it was in her.
"For all that's happened to you," he started, crossing his arms over his chest and doing his best to keep his eyes upon her bedroom gaze, "for all that you've suffered...you've literally saved the lives - the afterlives! - of countless others." The demon let that pride fill his smile. "You brought a light to a very dark place. That's what you do, Lucia. It's what you are. A beacon of hope." Zul uncrossed his arms long enough to indicate her growth and the way her pale skin seemed to glow against the dark canopy of the nighttime graveyard.
"You've earned this happiness."
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Posted: Sat Oct 16, 2010 2:25 pm
Lucia's smile lit up her face as he praised her. As his eyes took in her new form, she felt not the least embarrassed. She couldn't really tell what had changed on her body, or see all the details, but from the look he was giving her it looked good. That was all that was important as far as her growth was concerned.
But what really affected her was his proud words. As Zul detangled his arms, Lucia took the opportunity to slip towards his body and hug him. It was odd, she thought, feeling the warmth of his body stop as his body ended yet hers continued. But that didn't matter. She pushed and pulled, simultaneously pressing her body against his and pulling his body towards her.
"It couldn't have happened without you," she whispered, her lips resting and brushing against the back of the jaw she had broken only months ago, her breath tickling the air by his tipped ear. "Thanks."
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Posted: Wed Oct 20, 2010 3:16 am
Zul had been hugged before, certainly, but this was decidedly...different. As his now-smaller body was pressed against hers, he could feel her change, the gentle pressure of her stomach where his body ended, and more obviously, her full chest against his bare one. The demon wrapped his arms around the Sigel in turn, marveling in how soft she was, having a sweet and soothing scent about her exposed skin and long hair. He couldn't recall feeling the difference with Rivener, but in all fairness, his hands had been on him rather than around him. Still, the difference was striking and the Frei was comfortably aware of it in an appreciative manner.
He smiled at her gentle words and the warm breath against his pointed ear, turning his head to kiss her pale cheek. "I'd do it a hundred times over for this," he assures her with his charming smile in full force, though his eyes still held his awe. Zul chuckled quietly under his breath, pulling back enough to look her in the eye. "Thank you for trusting me." Lowering his gloved hands to take one of hers, he gave it a gentle squeeze, tilting his head back the way they'd originally come. "Should we go back?" he asks, his smile widening into a grin. "I'm sure your woman will be...surprised, when she see's you."
Very likely, his words were the understatement of the year.
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