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Regular RP Fin

When Lanky Just Doesn't Work
Word count: 1,432

A Triste Refrain part 2
Word Count: 4,035


The mansion stood before him, much like the House of Usher in feeling. It was an overpowering shadow that had been cast over him as he approached, almost to the point where he felt the darkness could swallow him whole. This had been one of his fears as a child, one that now only slightly came up to bother him. Yet, back then, the shadow made him feel small and insignificant. He would often sprint across the lawn to make it inside as fast as he possibly could. The gardeners had often mocked him for his habit, always saying to run faster or that shadow was gonna grab him. But today there were no gardeners, there were no maids or butlers. The mansion simply stood there in dignified silence and stillness, awaiting his arrive as it would seem.

It had been only a few days since his great grandfather had passed away, the mourning had only just begun when the will was given out to the members of his family. Being the naive and innocent minded boy he was, he did not think that everything being left to him was the cause for a family riot. Hour after hour was spent with his great grandfather, playing music together with him and keeping him company when nobody else in the family cared enough to keep the old man's mind sharp. Even now the haunting melodies he had played crept into his mind, putting him slightly on edge as he opened the door to the main hall.

Instead of seeing many people working and keeping the place together, it was devoid of live. Where people would dance during balls now laid barren of the delicate ladies and strongly chinned men who lifted, spun, and bowed with them. Where there had been cheer and love now stood silence and an emptiness which he now felt. It saddened him that the feeling of being alive was sucked out of the mansion so soon after his Great grandfather had passed away. It was as if he was the only one that had kept that feeling going in the vast mansion that now stood before him.

Everything was just as it had been left, the only difference was that all of the light sources that were open flame had been put out for safety's sake. The whole house had a different feeling as well now, where there had once been warmth and happiness, there was now only an ebbing cold and sadness which left the young Aloysius on edge as he quietly walked down the hall and into the open living room where he used to play for his great grandfather. As he sat on the floor before the chair where the old man used to sit, he could not help but notice a feeling of being watched. Even so, he continued with what he had come here to do.

"Great Grandfather, I do not know why you left this all to me. I would trade this all away for you to just be here once more. I enjoyed all the time we spent together playing music and spending time painting and drawing. I only wish you were still here, there is so much more I wanted you to be around for. I wanted you to see me graduate, not only from high school, but from college as well. I wanted you to be there if I ever got married so that my spouse could meet the person who helped me reach for the goals that I previously thought I had no chance of achieving. I miss you, more than I ever think I will miss anyone ever again. I know you are not here on this earth anymore but if you are watching from above, I want to let you know that I will not let them trash this house of yours. I want it to stay in its exact condition, I do not want them to tear it apart at the seems for their own gain. With your permission I would like to take our Viola with me, I do not want it to die along with your memory when the rest of the family continues on with their daily affairs. I want people from across the world to hear the voice that you had taken so much care of just as your father had taken care of it as well. I want to play for you as well, I want my music to reach you where ever you may be to let you know that I am ok and that your memory will live on. It is as you always said, 'Music is solace not just for the living but for those who are our dearly departed.' "

With that he left the room and began his journey up the spiral staircase that he had slid down many a time when he was younger. It had been awhile since the banister had been properly waxed but that was more due to temperature changes than to neglect. At this point he was almost crying but, he held it in because he knew that his great grandfather would worry if he saw. There were so many happy memories of this place, so many times that had defined the way he was. His parents had been so in blood alone, in reality it was his great grandfather who had really raised him and had given him direction when he was lost and confused. Aloysius paused for a moment when he reached the top of the stairs where they met the door to the attic.

There, in front of him, stood a full size portrait of Aloysius Aldo Sharp. It was almost amusing how much they had looked alike face wise, there was that warmness to his face that was so inviting and trustworthy. He said his prayers to the painting and continued up into the attic, holding onto the old spring loaded folding ladder as he went up it slowly. The uncertainty of the ladder bothered him greatly as he finally reached the attic floor. For a moment he simply laid there on the dust covered floor, wondering if it was sturdy enough up there to walk. After a moment he took his chance and carefully made his way over to the viola case that now sat covered in dust. It looked like there had been someone here recently, there were smudge marks in the dust over many of the trunks and boxes. He did not think anything of it though as he grabbed the viola case and made his way down the ladder, pushing the folding ladder back up into place once he was clear of the space required to do so.

Something seemed off as he made his way down the staircase though, things seemed like they had moved but he had not heard anything while he was up in the attic. He held the viola close to his body as he made his way down to the living room. At this point he was actually a bit scared, had someone broken in? Were there robbers or thieves in the house while he had been upstairs? Had he forgotten to lock the door behind him while he was inside? Sitting in the center of the living room were her felt safe. He was surrounded by the suits of armor that his great grandfather had collected over the years which put him a little bit at ease because he always thought they would scare off any would be attackers in the dark.

Then came the soft sound of footsteps, distant at first but then slowly creeping closer from somewhere he could not see in the dark. He began to tremble as he wrapped himself around the viola that he now held so dearly in his heart. Soft whimpers came from him as the footsteps halted right behind him, he was too scared to open his eyes and look up. Maybe the robbers would leave him alone? After all he was just a boy and had yet to see their faces. But did that really mean anything if they were after the prized viola which he now held against his quivering heart? If they had really wanted to, what stopped them from killing him and taking it anyway.

"Hello Aloysius, what are you doing here?" It was a sharp and cold voice, the voice of his uncle. It had been quite a few years since he had seen his uncle, for some odd reason his great grandfather refused to tell him exactly why. At this Aloysius poked his head up and looked up towards his uncle who towered over him. He was still shaking a bit, having scared himself half to death. Letting out a soft sigh of relief he uncurled a bit from his ball. The years had not been kind to his blonde haired uncle, there were wrinkles from ages and stress apparent on his face as he stood towering over him.

"You scared me Uncle! I could have sworn there were robbers, I was sure they would kill me if they saw me since that is what I have heard that robbers do to witnesses." It took a moment but Aloysius noticed an odd face on his uncle, there was a hunger in his eyes that he could not quite place. "Uncle Antonio? Is... everything alright?" Scooting back carefully, he pressed himself against the leg of the chair which his great grandfather had always sat it. That was when he noticed a small shimmer of light coming from something metallic in his hand.

Aloysius had almost no time to react as his uncle's hand shot right for the boy's throat. A soft yelp came from his throat before the crushing began, even now he wrapped himself around the viola in its case as his uncle lifted him up. Antonio smashed Aloysius into the sharp end of one of the many sword racks on the wall, Aloysius felt the edge of one of the blades tear at the skin on his back. Using one of his hands he tried to pull his uncle's hand off of his throat, trying to regain a better flow of air.

"Why did he leave it all to you?! You don't deserve this! You're just a brat who spent time with him. I needed that money, they're going to take my daughter away for lies that he spewed. I would never hit someone, you're the cause of all my problems. I'm going to end this now Aloysius so be a good boy and die already." Aloysius bit down as hard as he could on his uncle's hand causing him to be thrown into one of the suits of armor.

Aloysius whimpered as he felt more cuts on his back and shoulders from where he had landed badly on the old suit of armor. It was sturdy enough not to crumble which meant it was like hitting a wall almost with the force he was thrown. Sputtering as he gasped in air, he let himself slide out from the suit's arms where he had landed. He crawled with the case toward the main hall desperately, there had to be someone, anyone to help him. As he reached he carpet he felt a foot on his back. It was just a light pressure at first but then he felt the full amount of his uncle's weight on his back. It was only for a moment before his uncle kicked him sharply in the back causing Aloysious so scream out. It was only for a second before his uncle clamped his hand over Aloysius's mouth, tears now started to pour for the boy's eyes as his uncle bore his weight down on him.

To the best of his ability he kicked up into the soft place between his uncle's legs. That action was met with a simple movement although Aloysius could not tell what his uncle had done to his leg. It was only when Aloysius pushed himself away from his groaning uncle did he realize that his leg had been sliced by a knife or some other sharp item. Growing faint, he pushed away from his uncle as he approached with murderous intent. Looking upward towards his uncle was terrifying, how had someone he had thought to trust turn like this. He was family, he was blood, was blood not thicker than water? Where were his parents? Had they conspired against him as well, was there anyone that could stop this?

"Please, you're scaring me Uncle. Please I don't want to die, please..." His usual eloquent manner now faded as he had been bashed around a bit. Weakly moving his hand in front of his was about as much defense as he could do without risking damage to the case and the viola inside it. The knife cut across his hand quickly before another kick came at him, sending him rolling towards the door. There was no more strength left as he laid there bleeding with his uncle continuing to stab him in the back and kick him. Blood dripped out of his mouth slightly from where he had bit his cheek and tongue while being kicked. His uncle lifted him once more, even now the case was wrapped in one arm in a death grip.

"You don't get a say in this you little s**t."At this point he trembled, was this really the end? At that point he heard a gunshot and felt himself fall to the floor, another thud echoing from nearby. Weak breaths was about the only ones he could take at this moment as he felt someone pick him up in their arms. He never got to see their face as he had blacked out by the time he was on the stretcher, viola case gripped in his hand to the point of it tearing through a few layers of the skin on his hand.

It would be a few days before he finally woke up, reliving that nightmare of a night each and every moment he stayed in the blackness of sleep. What had woken him was the playing of a song which his Great grandfather had played for him each morning to wake up to. The soft hums and beeps of medical equipment startled him, as did the fact that there was no one in the room to be playing the music which he had heard. There was a letter on the table beside him as well as a bouquet of flowers that had been brought from the mansion's garden. Everything ached and hurt as he laid there, he wished that someone was there. Was there really no one that cared about him? What had he done to deserve all this?

It was then that he began to panic, the viola was no longer gripped in his hand. In its place were bandages wrapped around his hand, smelling slightly of antibacterial creme. He could not sit up, he was quite literally tethered to the machines that surrounded him with odd noises. When the nurse came in he looked at her pleadingly to remove the tube which was down his throat. She paged a doctor and they quickly prepped him to remove the tube, it was not that difficult but when it came out he began to cough, gasping between each to try and get over the soreness he now felt. The nurse injected a small bit of morphine into his IV, he felt slightly better as the pain began to fade into the background.

He pointed towards the letter as best as he could with his eyes since both hands were wrapped up and for the most part immovable. The nurse brought it to him and opened it for him to see. It was a simple not from his parent's saying that they were leaving the Mansion as well as their house in the city to him and moving away. The money that had been so fought over was now set up in a trust fund for him as well as a little bit being spread out to the family in order to settle any more qualms that would have against him. The keys to both homes fell out softly onto his lap as he began to cry. He was truly alone now, his own parents now abandoned him.

"You were brought in with an instrument case, it is over here next to your bed if you were wondering. You had a nasty grip on it, we had to treat your hand a little bit but everything should be ok now that you have made it through the worst of it. You are lucky to be alive Mr. Sharp, you lost a lot of blood. We should be able to let you go home in the next few days now that you are awake." She switched out the bandages on his hands now, one had had a deep gash that had somewhat scabbed over while the other had looked like it had been hit with sandpaper but slowly was healing.

When she re-bandaged his leg was when he vomited, almost missing the tray. The gash was to the bone and went from his ankle to his knee in an odd arc shape. It too looked as like it was on the road to recovery as she repacked the gash with iodine soaked gauze to cause it to close without getting infected. The nurse rubbed his back slightly has he heaved once more, everything hurt and he began to shake slightly once he finished evacuating his stomach. She offered him a small bit of water, he accepted and took a few sips to get the taste out of his mouth.

"How... did I... get here?" His voice cracked as he struggled to speak with a throat this sore. She hushed him softly and told him to rest his voice, placing a warm cloth on it to help soothe the pain. It was all she could do until he was able to swallow some sort of oral anesthetic to ease his throat from the inside. Even then that was a bit risky because he was on so many other antibiotics and painkillers to keep him from passing out from what had occurred. It would get easier as he healed though, whether or not he believed this was a different matter though. She could tell he was down and probably hurt and shocked all at the same time.

"Your cousin called the police because her father had left the house with his so called 'Punishment' knife. The police got there a bit late it seems but the situation was dealt with. I am sorry you had to go through all this, he was some kind of monster who apparently was beating his wife and daughter. You are safe now though, he is gone." Aloysius nodded, it definitely was a gunshot he had heard and not his senses failing from blood loss just yet. All he felt now was empty though, all he had left was the viola that had been passed form generation to generation of his family and two houses. One of which he would refrain from visiting alone for the rest of his life after that last event.

"Thank god.." He laid his head back on the pillows and closed his eyes for a moment, letting the warm embrace of sleep wash over him. Once he was asleep there was no peace as the events played through his head once more leaving him to wake up in a puddle of sweat when he jolted upwards as the nightmare reached the part where the gunshot went off. Sometimes things were different, sometimes there was no saving gunshot and he fell to the ground only after his breathing had stopped.

The nightmare played each time he fell asleep, he never told the doctor though because he wanted to make it home and to feel safe behind a closed and locked door. A few days turned into a few weeks but the nurse stayed true to her word and discharge papers were signed once the gash in his leg closed. His hands had healed up a bit better but they were now stiff from scabs and scar tissue. He constant had to pop open the scabs to get the movement back up in his hands but he would not give up, he needed the ability to move his fingers to play music for his great grandfather once more.

When he was wheeled out of the hospital he began to make the slow walk home since he had no family left to claim him in the area. It was still difficult to walk but he did have a nice cane for the moment to lean on as he made his way down the alley with the viola case and the keys to both homes. The house his parents had left him was only a few blocks away so he made it there with no issues. The house had been left as it was the last time he had seen it minus the books, all of the shelves were bare now and a small kitten greeted him by rubbing up against his good leg.

"Hello? I guess you are all I have left now..." He picked the small ball of fur up carefully and laid with her on the bed quietly, petting her softly with the tips of his fingers so he didn't get fur in the bandages. She meowed softly and took a nap in the crook of his arm, soon after he fell asleep as well. That's all he wanted to do now, just sleep or to cry until something change. He knew now though that wouldn't do anything so as he laid there fitfully, the small kitten keep close to try and ease him. His little Desiree was the only living thing he had left now that cared about him. His family had left him for dead, his own uncle had tried to murder him, and nobody had even cared enough to pick him up from the hospital.

So he laid there with his small bundle of fur, running from the nightmares the echoed in his mind even in the waking hours. Always trying to stay ahead of the darkness that was trying to fracture his mind into pieces. It was like the pieces of music his great grandfather had tried to teach him. Overwhelming on the senses at first but given enough time and focus, could be learned without too much more mental pain. Even though the small kitten could not verbalize with him, he had a feeling she understood how he felt right now. Tears poured from his eyes as he laid there with her, he was scared much like he was when he was alone with his uncle in the mansion. Why had they let such a thing happen to him? Questions like that flowed through his mind as the tears poured down his face and dripped down onto the comforter below. Even now as he laid on his bed in his own home, he did not feel safe. He was trapped in another situation, one his own mind was now creating for him.

Little Desiree did something that nobody had done in awhile, she pressed her little face up against his and gave him a little kitty kiss before rubbing her face against his. She was there for him, unlike everyone else in his family who had abandoned him. That was who he had, he had his little kitten to stay by his side when he was hurt. She was the only one he could trust now, besides the nice nurse who had helped him when he was scared and alone in the cold hospital. He scratched behind her ear as she meowed softly. "Thank you little Desiree."

Event
Das Gift 3

Word Count: 1,417

Regular RP Fin

Mendign Wounds and Broken Bones
Word count: 1356

Regular RP Fin

Music an Donuts
Word count: 821

A Crow's Decrescendo

Word Count: 391


Broken, beaten, those were the words that now described the one Aloysius had hoped to learn more about. To fall so far, Bischophite had flown to close to the sun with his delicate wings and the result left him in ruins. He could not get the image out of the back of his mind when a once so well planned man was left trying to rip off his own wings. It would haunt him for the rest of his life. There was nothing to do, nothing that could be done for him and that is what shook Aloysius to his core. Pressing his hand to his chest, he wondered if such a thing could happen to him in the long run. Was it really worth a fate like that? Would there be any mercy for his good intentions? What if his dear Leda were to get hurt or worse lose her memories of him. Would he be able to live after losing her to any number of things? Did she even feel anything towards him?

With shaking knees he made his way to his bed and sat down and removed his shirt. Thin white scars reminded him of his own horrors and nightmares but he quickly shook them away into the back of his mind. This was not the time to wallow in despair. With quiet movements he made himself a small drink to calm the nerves that nagged at him still. It burned but as he drank, the warmth melted away his jitters and calmed him once more. Everything would be fine, it always was in the end. With fluid-like movements he moved to his composing area and began writing notes down. It would be a sonata, fitting for the fall of power and how it happened. A warning yet a hallow and eerie melody that would only mean anything to him. His own paranoia feeding his motivation to continue composing even as the moon fell into the fire depths of the sun early light.

If he had any roommates they would probably hate him by now as he played his viola in the early light of the sun. None of that bothered him as he felt safe in his music, it would never hurt or abandon him. There would always be music with him even in his darkest hour.

Regular RP Fin

A Curious Recital of Questions
Word count: 479

Battle RP Fin

Karma is a f#c♭
Word count: 513