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CrispyWonderMint Vice Captain
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 Posted: Mon May 19, 2014 10:49 pm
Granny watched as Azazel faded away, a look of sadness on her face taking over the sense of power as she shook her head with a quiet sigh. After that display, it was hard to imagine her as a regular woman with a gift, but that seemed to be all she was as her hand fell to her side and she turned around to face Tristan and Ray with an apologetic smile.
“I imagine this is all rather confusing for you, Ray. Tristan, you don't happen to have any tea, do you? We could all use a cup about now, I think.” She held out the dream catcher to the Dreamer once more, her smile turning reasurring for a moment though she still had a serious air about her.
“Tristan, if he continues to get out of hand, come to me. Azazel is a threat only as long as he thinks he can get away with it. He cannot be allowed to push things this far again. As it is, he will back off for now, but you must stand against his prodding for weaknesses. As a nightmare dweller, he already has one. You may not see it, but you have the strength for it if you have lasted this long.”
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Posted: Wed May 21, 2014 7:32 pm
Tristan continued to stare at where he had seen Azazel last, his expression almost angry and yet confused. He heard what Granny had to say and he could hear Ray responding to the woman but it just didn’t register to him right away. All he could think about was how… tired he felt, tired and weightless. He didn’t have a voice berating him in the back of his mind nor did he feel any self-loathing. The first time in months he was starting to feel like he used to—normal.
Ray, on the other hand, was acting on auto pilot. He blinked and nodded to Granny, his mouth still parted slightly as he re-imagined Azazel’s hazy presence fading into the glass window. But to be polite, he broke his stare to look instead at the older woman that obviously was more than she seemed.
“Yes, very confusing… and… yeah… I…” Ray trailed off and shook his head, turning around and walking out of the bedroom, leaving Tristan and the older woman alone as he went in search of some tea. He didn’t verbalize that was what he was going to do but he couldn’t process that right now.
Hearing Ray leave the bedroom, Tristan finally began to shake his head. He didn’t look away from the window even if his eyes were burning from not blinking.
“…lasted this long…? I barely even…” Tristan stopped speaking to swallow, finally closing his eyes to stop the stinging pain. He opened them again to look at Granny, “What the hell is going on?”
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CrispyWonderMint Vice Captain
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Posted: Thu May 22, 2014 9:06 pm
“Last this long,” Granny reiterated with a nod, glad to see that Tristan was coming out of his stupor. The shock of what had happened was something the woman didn't do often, but desperate times called for desperate measures. There was no way to learn about life with your dream companion if you knew about her outside help for an eviction, after all; it became an easy way out, rather than a means to an end.
“Not all Dreamers are able to survive their companion's torments, I'm afraid.” She could recall every victim's name and match that person to a face. It was a bitter reminder that even Granny was only a human, and that humans had limits. Sometimes your dreams could make you, just as your nightmares could be a motivation, or even seen as a warning. Other times, however, the Dreamers broke under the strain. She'd even known a few who had suffered under Reves due to the euphoria of their dreams: paired with exhaustion, there had been a car accident about a decade ago that reminded her and the survivor how quickly a dream could turn into a nightmare.
She took in how exhuasted Tristan looked and decided to go with the shortest explanation she could. The poor man looked as though he'd drop at any moment with only stubborn will keeping him away.
“Azazel is a being known as a Nephilim, a very powerful type of nightmare. There are stories in the Old Testament of how humans believe they came into existence, but the problem is that they crave nightmares with stronger emotions and convictions – and have the power to make them even more lifelike than others. He, in particular, is quite content to do so. I have made it clear to him that he is not to push you like that again, though he will certainly try to do what he can. They are chaotic beings and, as I said, not many can calim to have friends.”
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Posted: Wed Aug 27, 2014 10:42 pm
Raising a brow, Tristan’s expression morphed from confused to disgust though he wasn’t disgusted with Granny. He had his own internal monologue that was happening while Granny was speaking and for once, it was –his- own internal monologue. The shadowy being named Azazel had no part in it, a miracle.
What disgusted him was that what Granny was saying made sense. Azazel was a nightmare, of course, that much he could tell anyone but what made Azazel worse is that he fed off of stronger emotions and convictions, meaning that there had to be something negative there to start with for him to latch onto. Meaning… all those negative thoughts he had been having, all those moments of self-doubt and loathing, were originally his own thoughts. They turned into his Achilles heel; his ultimate demise.
Tristan pressed his lips together in a fine line, twisting his lips to make a face as he nodded and looked down towards the floor and his folded hands. It was his negative thoughts that attracted Azazel, so how does he get rid of him?
As Tristan looked towards Granny, the shadow cast from the doorway signified his partner’s return. Ray walked in holding two coffee mug hands in one hand and holding one in the other. Tristan wasn’t sure how long he’d been caught up in his own thoughts for Ray to already have boiling water for tea…but then again he knew he had a Keurig and instant water-heater somewhere in his kitchen, so having quick hot water is a pretty easy feat when using those appliances.
Handing a steaming mug to Granny, Ray spoke with a depressed tone followed with a sigh, “I’m afraid you’ll have to suffer with the old Lipton tea… Tristan isn’t really adept with any other caffeine product besides coffee, a sh—“
“A shocker, I know.” Tristan finished, obviously having heard this statement before. Ray made a face at Tristan and handed him a steaming mug, muttering quietly that it was hot and to be careful before Ray held his own cup with both hands, standing awkwardly between Granny and Tristan—both of whom were sitting while he stood.
“…So… I’m going to need a lot of explaining.” Ray began, glancing at Tristan who was staring at the steaming liquid in his cup instead of contributing to the conversation. Ray could tell that Tristan was still trying to process everything that happened as well as battle his own thoughts—hopefully they were his own thoughts.
“That and how I can get rid of him,” Tristan added as he looked up at Granny, sheer determination on his face as he spoke the most concerning thing to him. How can he get rid of the damned Nephilim?
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CrispyWonderMint Vice Captain
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Posted: Wed Aug 27, 2014 11:09 pm
Granny took the mug Ray offered with a small nod, a look of sympathy on her face for the officer that looked like he'd been sucker-punched and left gasping for air in the middle of a four-lane highway.
"Yes," she agreed, "I believe an explanation is in order for both you." There was a bright glint to her eyes as she considered Tristan's partner, then gave another nod and seemed to be herself once more. Whatever she had seen in Ray seemed to satisfy her.
"You may wish to sit down for this, Mr. Montero." Either Granny had fallen back on old habits of a more formal era, or what she was going to tell the non-Dreamer was going to be serious. First, however, she had to address Tristan's question.
"At this point? I would not." Granny shook her head, knowing it was not the answer Tristan wanted, but her voice suggested he should hear her out, as did the steady gaze she gave him.
"He is too far grown to safely remove, Tristan. If I were to force him now, then I could, but your bond together through your nightmare has had enough time to develop and supplement him that it could leave you with devastating effects, as well. Give him time; if he continues to misbehave and you wish him gone, then I will. I can try to lessen any damage that may come of it, but the dream that called to him is -yours-, my dear, so I would also be influencing you through that."
After a moment, she turned back to Ray and nodded. "It's a good concern to have, and please, ask any questions you have.
"You see, Tristan is what is known as a Dreamer, and that man you saw was an Oneiroi. A spirit in a dream world that is trying to cross into this one..."
Her tale would be one familiar to Dreamers, explaining the Oneiroi and their peculiar bonds to their Dreamers: what it meant for both and the importance of it. Still, Granny was a patient person and explained whatever she could, the conversation lasting for some time and not ending until Ray felt he at least understood what she was saying, if not what it meant.
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