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 Posted: Sat May 05, 2012 10:44 pm
Mort nodded, gesturing. "Down the hall, door has ghoul figure with skeletal smile on left," he described for her. "Will be here so can go together to meet." Not going anywhere, right? he thought wryly. Oh how differently that phrase sounded out of context. If he was making them go in a circle, he supposed they were going nowhere.
So it surprised him, while thinking these things, that Bella would come and hug him as tight as she did, and all the more confusing with her thanks tacked onto it. He returned the embrace all the same, placing his head atop her shoulder and trying his best not to do something like, say, take a deep breath of her hair in, or just let his will crumble like it had the day before. He had to show restraint; if he gave into these impulses thoughtlessly, it would only dig the hole faster . . . continue the circle . . . But it was so hard not to wish he could keep that warmth in his arms forever, to listen to that heartbeat under his fingertips and revel in the fact that she was alive and well.
Give me a little time, he pleaded as he held her. Just a little more time. And then she was out of his arms and out the door before he had the thought to verbally reply, Lanna following her right up to the threshold before stopping, her tail wagging anxiously as she watched the witch walk away.
Issuing a little sigh once he as alone, Mort turned to the task of getting ready to head out. He sent his mother a quick text to come in forty minutes (they lived about twenty minutes away) and began to locate the things he would need: not much beyond a few sets of clothes, some snacks, the rolled up schematics of his robot hand - he was going to need something to do over there after all, and what better use of his time than for a project he had been meaning to finish? He left the door open because there was little point in shutting it when he knew Bells wold be back; Lanna remained guardian of the open space, ears pricked as she looked about the hall.
The more he tried to fit everything into the bags, the more frustrated his efforts became until it devolved into the zomboil just stuffing his things. It was the only way he could vent without yelling at himself, which would just cause too much attention to be drawn. But at least he managed to fit quite a bit within his backpack and a second messenger bag.
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Posted: Sat May 05, 2012 10:58 pm
If he had thought to ask, Belladonna would have certainly given him more time. Especially if it meant more time in favor of eventually choosing her. As it stood, she would give him all the time in the world... But she didn't think it would do her any good. Once Mort removed his person from in front of the door she gave him one last smile and click-clacked quickly down the hall and into the bathroom. Since it was the middle of the day, she had some privacy, but still she found a bathroom stall where she could close a door and pace a bit, alone for one minute with just her thoughts. He's not going to choose me. She thought to herself, one hand pressed against her temple as she fought back tears. He was never going to choose me. I just happened to be the thing that kept those voices away. I was just an unwitting pawn. I was just so stupid. It wasn't that she thought ill of Mort. As she had said before, she could never hate him. Even if he continued to dangle her like this, she couldn't hate him. But she could hate the agony of this all. She could hate herself for getting herself into these situations. And she would probably always get herself into such situations. In the end, it was best just to prepare for them. The last few days had taught her to fight back her tears and what scared her, so the witch was able to exit the stall and splash her face with a bit of cool water to calm herself. Her cheeks were flushed, but at least her eyes didn't look all too red. Her hair, though.. Yeesh! Belladonna spent at least five minutes carefully combing out her curls until they were acceptably bouncy. After that, all she could do was smile and hope things turned out alright. She practiced a smile in the mirror, didn't like it and tried again. "Uuuggghhhh... Why can't I just get a break?" She bemoaned, with a drop of face into hands before she straightened up, put back on a smile and click-clacked back out and down the hall. Lanna still stood at the door, so Belladonna bent down to scoop her up on return to the room. "Packing going well?" The witch asked as she leaned around Mort's shoulder to look. Hmmm, it really didn't look well... But packing was something the witch wasn't good at... "Got anything fun planned while you're at home?" She wasn't sure what she meant by fun, but mostly it was just a question to ask to fill the silence as well as the void forming within the witch.
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Posted: Sat May 05, 2012 11:19 pm
So focused was his rage at his things not fitting like he wanted, he almost jumped when Bella asked him a question. "Mrrr? Oh. Er. Yeah, actually. W-Wanted work more on robot hand, maybe even finish," Mort replied, pushing his glasses back up as he glanced at her; Jack, she was good at sneaking even in heels! "When stressed, a-always helped to work on something productive. Put use to hands." And it made him feel like he could actually function correctly and do something in the world, rather than sit about and mope like it was tempting to do in his low points. "If you hadn't thought it, would've suggested open classes for trying while gone, n' fact."
Something so that, hopefully, she wouldn't spend too much time thinking about him. But maybe at this point it was like wishing for the sun to not rise.
The zomboil slammed the top of the pile in his backpack with a fist for good measure before zipping it up and slinging it onto his shoulders. "Was, er, thinking. Did want one more favor before leaving. C-Could I get a reading?" he asked. "Like the, uh, tarot thing you did while was away at trip?" He wanted to know what Bella's cards had to say about him or his future. Something. Any hint would be nice at this point, because thinking of what he would have to choose and stick to in the future was beginning to overwhelm him.
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Posted: Sun May 06, 2012 10:25 pm
When Mort jumped, the witch teetered back a few steps in surprise. Had he always been this angry? Or was it something she was doing? He had never been this angry before he... well, he kissed her. Belladonna only nodded through his talking and even made a small noise of agreement when he mentioned open classes. Yeah, classes sounded pretty good right about now. As for a tarot reading, the witch perked back up a bit. Sure, she was a little worried that another reading like the last one would happen and would further depress her mood, but at the same time... If the cards predicted something good for Mort, then that would be enough to get her through all this. "Sure! Where would you like to do it? The bed, or on the floor?" Belladonna's mind immediately shot to the gutter, but she was able to keep her face even and innocent looking so it seemed like she simply didn't understand what else she had, unintentionally, implied. Once they got themselves seated, Belladonna straight across from the boil, the witch extracted her trusted deck from her pocket and shuffled the cards before she offered them to Mort. "Pick three. Just three. It'll be a simple past, present and future reading." She told him, the cards fanned around before him. After he had chosen the three cards, she took them from him and laid them out in front of him, face up so that he could see the pictures. Past, Justice. Present, The High Priestess. Future, Death. "Alright... Let's see..." Belladonna mused over the cards for a moment and felt a strange stab within her. What did this even mean? This reading was supposed to be for Mort, but now she felt it was half about her too. "Past is Justice. Justice is a card that indicates balance and fairness. It rights wrongs and stabilizes things. From that event, you've progressed to the High Priestess, which is a card of learning. Often, she is metaphysical learning, something you don't expect. She's also the patron card of witches." The witch couldn't help but smile at that a little. She wasn't sure if it meant that she was the High Priestess teaching him learning, or if it was something different. "And your future is Death. But not in the permanent, or even the physical way. It means an end to something. So whatever you learned from the High Priestess can be taken and you can fix whatever it is that's wrong. But its really a card of hope, because Death also means rebirth. So if you fix something, but its not all the way fixed... Its ok. You'll get another chance."That sounded... Good. The witch wasn't exactly sure of what she was saying until she'd said it, but she hoped her cards could give him a bit of hope too. With a tentative hand, Belladonna reached out and placed her fingers gingerly against Mort's hands. "My cards say it'll be alright. This will end. Don't worry. Just learn what you can and do what you want."A few days ago she had told him that and he had kissed her. She wasn't so sure he would do that again, no matter how lovely it would be.
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Posted: Sun May 06, 2012 10:49 pm
Guttering was something Mort shared, as inappropriately timed as it was; perverted thoughts knew nothing of shame, though. "Uh, bed," he answered, moving the rest of his junk to the side so that they could sit. The floor might be straighter, but his body still ached from being pressed against the door - such was the consequence of being semi-skeletal.
Once seated, Bella presented him with the shuffled deck, and without giving much thought to it just grabbed the three closest to him. He sat through her explanation without a word, gazing at the three pictures with a sort of intensity he wasn't aware of consciously. He had hoped the cards would give him an answer, or at least a better hint to the answer than the ones he could come up with on his own.
But justice? Balance? Fairness? There was nothing he could think of that fit the criteria. Hell, as far as he was concerned everything he was doing now was very unfair. Learning, though, he could give evidence to that . . . Though what Mort was learning scared him a bit: this ability to juggle two ghouls, give affection and yet still keep them at bay . . . In a way he did learn from Bells, though not through her teaching necessarily; just that in her influence he had found what a terrible person he truly was.
Death in particular was the only card that gave him some semblance of hope. An end to this - that was all he wanted. A good end, keeping the rights and fixing the wrongs, and finding that balance he was so hard pressed to create. His past had already given him several chances to fix things - would the future continue to be so kind?
It seemed kindness would come at a price, though, as Bells reached out and touched his hand, saying those fateful words that had pushed him to the impulsive end that brought him to such conflicting feelings. He shifted his gaze from the cards to their hands, still with the same intensity. If I did what I wanted without consequences getting in the way . . . Then it would end. It would have been clear cut and definitive, and the emotions wouldn't be roiling in his stomach like a storm.
But he couldn't. He just couldn't. Mort wanted to wait still, to make sure what he chose wasn't based on emotion alone, or circumstantial elements that influenced said emotions. Yet at the same time he gave the witch's hand a squeeze because he was a sucker, a loser, a fool who couldn't express himself except in small gestures like this.
He hoped that one action could convey, somehow, all of the things he wanted to, because right now it felt as though his mouth was stitched all the way and not just at the corners. At last he gave a nod and a soft "mrrr" in response to her reading, looking pensive and hesitant and all things he wished he could hide as well as she could. "Thanks," he murmured, dragging his eyes back to her face to accompany a weak smile."Think, er . . . think w-will have much for thinking on."
That was an understatement.
Letting go of her hand, he pulled out his phone and checked the time. "Fifteen minutes 'fore she's here. N'thing else w-we should do?"AyeAvast AGH SORRY FOR THE QUOTES. My autocorrect made some parts of the post derp
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Posted: Mon May 07, 2012 9:55 am
"Certainly." Was all Belladonna could think to reply to him. The face he was making, one of serious contemplation made her worry a little, but she couldn't be sure why. Besides the obvious fact that he was still uncertain whether he wanted her or not, there seemed something else that was bothering him. But Belladonna didn't know it, which was really and truly best for all. And though she had hoped they would help, but cards probably only confused him a bit more. They confused her too. They weren't the clear-cut, easy reading she had given herself a few days ago, but something a little more complex. And probably a little more personal for reason Belladonna wasn't quite aware of either. Tarot cards usually had the ability to mean something to the reader, but another thing entirely to the person in question. So while Belladonna was curious and wanted to ask Mort what he was thinking, she kept her mouth shut in a small pout instead. She had pried into his life enough already, best to keep her hands to herself from now on. At least until a decision was made... She did know that when his hand squeezed her's, her heartbeat shot up and for one moment she felt a flicker of hope. Maybe The Hierophant in her reading hadn't meant a card of loneliness, maybe it had meant something happy, she just had been too upset to have caught it? But then he took it away and she was left with a neutral feeling where the chill and hope had been. "Well, you've packed and gotten your cards read... I'm taking care of Lanna. Hhhmmm." Belladonna placed her index finger against her chin in thought, but mostly spent the time combating her own thoughts. You could always just throw me down and make out with me? I like that idea. Let's do that! Her mind joked, but Belladonna only tilted her head to one side so that the thought would vanish. There wasn't anyway that was happening, so something else. "Is there anything else you'd like to talk about?" She had to be careful and put a light inflection in her voice so that it wouldn't seem as though she expected anything of him. She didn't want him to think that he had to talk about anything. Especially if he didn't want to. And if he didn't think of anything, Belladonna at least had one more thought. But she kept that to herself, for the moment. Ol-j-man Ha ha, its all good. Gaia is a silly like that. XD
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Posted: Mon May 07, 2012 10:53 am
Can we talk about how stupid I am? he thought bitterly. How I'm making a mess of things for you and for me, and for someone else who doesn't even know yet? But it always had to be about him, didn't it; even going home had been an idea he came up with for his own benefit, not theirs. Those screeches from the tainted creatures in his nightmares were damning, whether they were real or not.
"N-Not really," Mort muttered, though he didn't look inclined to get off the bed either. Unless you want to take care of me too. Technically they could make it to the front of the grounds within fifteen minutes if they went at his pace, but . . . fifteen minutes was aways a way to him. Time always was a little funny when he was with the witch. He bit the inside of his mouth uncertainly as the guttered thoughts kept coming. It would be so easy to forget this if he just got close and brought her down on the bed, let carnal addiction take over . . .
"M'bad a-at talking," he added lamely. "Specially with little sleep." And now he was just talking to keep them on the bed, like he wasn't being tested enough. "Just . . . wish brain worked like the rest."
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Posted: Mon May 07, 2012 11:40 am
For a long moment, Belladonna only sat there and tried not to stare at him as he replied. It was difficult, especially with the idea that he would be leaving soon and she wouldn't see him again for who knows how long. She wouldn't even get the possibility of talking to him either. Not really, at least... So it was suddenly very difficult for the witch to reply with an even voice. "Oh pish! Tosh! Your brain works fine. I'd say it works better then most, considering you'll be coming back with a robotic arm. I can't do anything like that, only magic. And magic is very much something different and not related to smarts. Its more related to will power, of which I have a great deal." Which was true. Perhaps not restraining will power, but the witch was a very willful girl. Yet since Mort had suggested nothing else for them to do, the witch could only muster up one other idea. She motioned for him to move over before she situated herself next to him and leaned against his shoulder. It was a maddening thing to do, for both of them she was sure, but it was something Belladonna felt she needed to do. "Then let us just sit here for a few more moments." She said as she closed her eyes and breathed in his scent. Her fingers wrapped around his arm as she savored the chill from him and from the surrounding room. This would be the last time she'd see him for a while, so she needed to enjoy it. But even enjoying it was difficult for the witch and she eventually opened her eyes and began to talk, softly. "I am very sorry I was not able to help you more. And I do hope I haven't worsened things for you..." She didn't want to clarify more in case Mort agreed with her and further damned her to a life of loneliness. "But I'm sure you'll get much better with a visit to home. You'll sleep better too." For a moment the witch was quiet but she quickly made a soft noise of dismay and added, "If I had known you weren't sleeping well, I could have made you a charm bag that would have helped! Maybe... I might not be advanced enough in my studies to combat Insanity with just a simple spell..." Now she was just rambling and that could lead to dangerous places, so she instead let out a small sigh and pressed her face to his shoulder and sat and tried to enjoy him one last time. After he came back, who knew what would happen. He'd most likely decide she was much too much work, that she was far too emotional, and that she complicated his life to a point he did not want. So she had better get to enjoying this last little bit of time together. And though it hurt, Belladonna kept her fingers wrapped around his arm for what she was sure to be the last time.
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Posted: Mon May 07, 2012 1:02 pm
Mort had no argument about her willpower whatsoever, having seen for himself as well she could hide her emotions. Even now as they sat together with that warmth around his arm, that lovely head on his shoulder, he couldn't muster the words to argue - not at spending just a little more time together alone, not at her efforts to help against Insanity, not at her wish to help him sleep better. Listening did wonders on its own. At most the witch would receive a soft "mrr" as he closed his eyes. Just one word and he would be melting into the bed; just one word and he would turn his head and . . . He could taste the blood and sweetness once again.
The zomboil hadn't realized how much it would make him ache for sleep when her body heat began to seep into him. Maybe he shouldn't have contacted his mother. Maybe he should have just called Bells, brought her to his bed, and sleep forever . . . Ah, that was why he felt so tired; it reminded Mort of the all-encompassing embrace of the earth back before he had been dug up and resurrected. The only difference was that she wasn't all over him, though he wondered if he said the right words -
"Didja make one for yourself?" he asked quietly, finding that somewhere in all this his head had lolled atop hers, and that an arm had gone about her waist to press her closer.
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Posted: Mon May 07, 2012 2:39 pm
Her own droning voice had not been the one to cause her little lull into drowsiness. No, that was what she had been doing to combat the strange, light, tired feeling that currently coursed through her body. It didn't seem to be doing much as her voice got a little quieter with each new sentence, but it didn't help that his arm had been wrapped around her waist so now she rested her hands against his chest. Her fingers tangled into his shirt and he placed his head against her's. The witch couldn't help but wonder if Mort though they fit so perfectly as she did... "No..." She mumbled against his chest, now sounding a bit more weary and certainly very sad. "I knew it wouldn't help me any... I had already tried a protection spell for myself, but it didn't work. But it might have worked for you..." Her pause was covered up with the breath she took, but really it was just a reason to stall. Did she want to tell him all this? Its not like it could really hurt anymore. "But charm bags are different. They work best when given away. So if I made you a protection bag, it would most likely have worked. The more strongly a person feels, the stronger the charm." Another pause, but this time a small, sad smile crept onto the witch's face. "I am very willful, you know."And though it was silly, and a bit traitorous, Belladonna pressed her lips to the place where Mort's heart should be. It was a small kiss, nothing special and marred by the shirt he was wearing. But it was a kiss nonetheless, and given with the distinct thought of I will protect you. For though she could not give him a charm bag to take home, at least she could give him this.
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Posted: Mon May 07, 2012 3:05 pm
Nothing special? He could have sworn he had a heartbeat in that one moment: one unanimous pulse sending a wave of energy through his body, originating from where her kiss had been planted. Was that what it was like to have a heart? Was this how Bells felt when he had . . . ?
"I-I know." Very willful indeed.
Charm bags, protection spells . . . Mort didn't feel like either of those would have given him what he needed. Sure it would help him sleep better, maybe even dreamlessly, but would sleep let him find the answer? And how powerful would those charms have been?
Traitorous or not, they were there holding onto each other - might as well make the most of it while he could. His other hand, the one that was not busy being about her waist, came and smoothed some of her hair out of her face. "You'll be okay," said, keeping to the low volume they so seemed to want now. "Went through I-Insanity once on own before meeting. Said had died. But is still here, right?" Strands of hair were teased between his fingers, a light chill brushing on her cheek. "C-Could've left Amity while back, but didn't. Still here. Still fighting. Still learning."
There was a pause, followed by him leaning forward to peck her nose briefly. He didn't know exactly what the placement yet meant, but it was something.
"Could, ah, learn from, like cards say."
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Posted: Mon May 07, 2012 3:56 pm
After his acknowledgement of her willfull-ness, Belladonna let out a very small, almost imperceptible sigh and pressed her cheek against his chest. Yet movement above her made her turn her face up toward him. His fingers brushed against her hair and the witch couldn't stop her heart from speeding up. When he took her hair into his fingers and brushed it against her cheek, she could have swooned from the sheer romance of it all. But she didn't, because he was saying something... Something about her... "Oh." Was her only reply for a long moment before she added, "You're right."Something about hearing him tell her how strong she was made Belladonna actually consider herself fairly capable. He had suffered far worse than she, but still he talked of her achievements as though he honestly believed what he said. And perhaps he did. Why else would he say such things? Perhaps she had been viewing what had happened in entirely the wrong manner. Instead of viewing it all as a great disappointment, she should view it as a milestone. She hadn't perished for ever and had been able to come back, however fragile, but at least more knowledgeable. Maybe it wasn't all so bad after all... A small spark of something flared up within the witch, but just like what she had with Mort, she didn't want to put a name on it yet. Doing so would cause its growth to stunt so that it only operated under the name, not its potential. Maybe that was why she and Mort were stuck in this strange limbo? If they put a name, a category to what they had... It would keep it from reaching out and expanding. Whatever the case, the witch couldn't help but smile a little, genuinely, and whisper a soft, "Thank you. I'll teach you whatever I can."Maybe her cards had been right. Maybe she would teach him something after all and they could end this cycle of uncertain and be reborn into something more. Then he kissed her nose and Belladonna scrunched it up much like a rabbit does. Her cheeks flushed, but she giggled softly in any event. Yes, it would be best to keep whatever lightness she could. She attempted to reach up and do the same for him, but without completely ruining her (very comfortable) position on his chest, she could only reach his chin. Well, that'd have to do. And besides, she's never kissed someone's facial hair before. It was nice!
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Posted: Mon May 07, 2012 4:48 pm
Ah, there was the racing heart again - he could feel it throbbing frantically with how close she was. And he couldn't help but smile a bit in return, as wrong as it was to find Bella's flustered state in particular funny. It was the one good thing about being undead: there were no natural signals to give off how one felt, save for the faces and actions one took to convey them. That was, he mused, probably why he continued to find himself in positions like this with her; while he could talk and hold hands and do all those other things like the rest of society, there was no single action or word to express the complicated feelings that accompanied him. It was as good an excuse as any to do, well, things like this.
Well, that was what Mort told himself at any rate. The shame at his crumbled willpower would come soon enough; he had been supposed to avoiding physical contact lest it lead to something more confusing. But this right here was okay, right?
Which probably meant he wouldn't be able to keep it for long.
"Mrrr~" It was almost tickled him when she stretched her face and pressed lips to his chin. "Heh. Missed." How much longer did they have now, ten minutes? They should probably get moving . . . But they were in a comfortable position, and already he found his core temperature was starting to warm up the longer she stayed. It was a pleasant feeling that paled in comparison to the rest of her.
You know what? Mama could wait. She'd understand once he explained to her, Mort was sure.
"Hey, Bells? D'you think . . ." He trailed off momentarily, recollecting thoughts as he continued to stroke her hair. "D-D'you think the people Hunters brainwashed, turn to weapons - think can be saved?" It was a conversational turn from out of the blue, and a certain romance turn off, but it had been one of the stray thoughts the zomboil had at times. "N' Death Trial, h-had been turned to weapon, n' can still remember what was like . . . Has been bothering thought since."
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Posted: Mon May 07, 2012 5:42 pm
"Missed!?" The witch asked in a playfully dismayed voice as she turned her head back to him. "Well so did you!" She wanted to add something along the lines of tempting him to try again, but maybe that wasn't best. Or maybe... She couldn't stop herself as she raised up a little and reached a little higher, aiming for his mouth by missing this time too. That hadn't been planned, she had meant to give him a full kiss, but well... Perhaps it was better to have missed. She looked at him and stuck out her tongue in a taunt, but when he said her name in that questioning manner, she lowered herself back onto his chest so that her chin rested on his chest. (Her bust was reaching a rather dangerous area, but Belladonna just couldn't bring herself to move anywhere else.) As for the question he posed, it took the witch a moment of thought before she could properly answer him. On one hand, there was the idea that no. These people could never be returned to their natural state. Once their FEAR had been manipulated, that was it. FEAR was oft times an immovable and very stubborn source that took quite a lot of time and effort to master. Surely these Hunters knew that and they had taken quite a while to figure out how to convert Halloweeners into weapons. But at the same time, if they had done it once, who was to say they couldn't do it agian? Brain washing was rather serious, but wouldn't it be slightly easier to undo all that washing and return a person to their natural state? It couldn't be all that hard. And even if it was, it would certainly be worth it if it meant that the Hunters would loose their weapons. Yet more importantly, was what Belladonna really believed. Hhhmmm... "Well... You got turned into a weapon, but here you are. Safe and sound."Optimism won out. "I don't know the circumstances of your turning, but you seem perfectly alright now. So I think it is entirely within the realm of possibility to be changed back. FEAR is huge and expansive and limitless. Who says it doesn't have the power to heal what some might think as irreparable damage? I think those people... can be saved."There has to be a way to save them... Just like there has to be a way to save me. She thought, but didn't say. It just went to show how very kind he was that Mort was so worried about these people. Perhaps... Perhaps with his ingenuity and Belladonna's will they could someday help those people? The Hunters seemed to have been winning lately, but they could do with a lose or two... Ol-j-man Heeeeyyy~ I'll be on AIM in a few hours. <333
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Posted: Mon May 07, 2012 6:11 pm
"Did not miss," he asserted with playful seriousness. "Was aiming for nose."
Still, her answer made him wonder. A dream conjured by horsemen was different than reality - of course they would get turned back, just as those who had died were brought back to life. But Bella's optimism was catching regardless as he mulled it over. "Mrrr . . . maybe one day could find way bringing back," Mort commented hopefully. "Mix of technology n' magic n' some ingenuity. N' elbow grease." He tried imagining the witch in anything less than her usual busty flairs and found it near impossible; everything Bells wore seemed ready for a social gathering or party of some sort.
"W-Won't deny would rather rip throats out, but . . . if can render weapons useless to humans, become just humans. Would rather save others than destroy enemies." It just perpetuated the cycle Hunters and Halloweeners had after all. And the thought of possibly granting fellow denizens back their minds and hearts was more appealing - more heroic. And Mort had ever been about the heroic, even if he could never become a literal death knight.
He continued to stroke her hair down to her shoulder blades, careful of curls. "Still . . . Hunters've infiltrated campus before," he continued with a frown, sounding more and more dismal as he spoke. "Have killed professor, have destroyed Isles, a-all like nothing . . . S'hard times. They have upper hand. B-Better tech, way to hide in Halloween, n' they're strong, Bells. Strong's second years, maybe more. M'afraid . . . M'afraid one d-day will wake up n' find war in hallways, in classrooms, in d-dorms." One day he was afraid he'd wake up and find them hurt, or worse. The hand about her was it grew almost possessively tight. "Afraid m-m-might wake up in tubes again, watching rest get turned to weapons."
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