Welcome to Gaia! ::

((Meh. I'm sleepy. But I'll give this a try sweatdrop ))

The door creaked open to reveal darkness, no lights were on in the apartment. A neighbor blinked in shock as the door closed. Apartment number 309, located in London had been vacant the past fifteen years, and stories had evolved as to why the owner didn't sell it. Some said there were ghosts, others said that there were dark spirits living there. None of it was friendly, to the outsiders 309 spelled death.

The apartment had been vacant for fifteen years, not because of some ghosts, but because it was waiting for its mistress to return. The woman who had entered let out a rather exasperated sigh upon seeing the state of the apartment. "I know I should've hired someone to clean this place." The voice was low, a weird mix of accents. Irish and English warred in the lilting accent, and the accents of many other European countries filtered through it.

Walking over to the lamp, a blue tinted finger traced a clean line through the light bulb, and there was another dissatisfied sound. It wouldn't even be safe to turn on a light. Striding over to the sliding glass doors that indicated a balcony, she drew back the curtains, careful not to inhale as the curtains exhaled dust. Muted light poured in from the gray skies outside, just enough to barely illuminate the room.

Grumbling the woman crossed the room, dropping the only possession she had brought with her on the ornate round wooden table that sat outside the small kitchen, a ring filled with keys. Keys that led to so many different places, that it would be impossible to simply pick out which one belonged to the apartment.

Silent now, she strode down the hall to the single bedroom, having no trouble recalling where everything was. Sifting through a box on top of the dresser she uncovered a hair tie, which worked well to pull back the silver blue hair. First things first, if she was going to be living in England for any period of time...the apartment needed a thorough cleaning.

((MWA! That works, m'dear!))

Declan grinned in the dark as Crooks vanished within him once more, though in ways Crooks would resent for the rest of his days, he still remained. The only evidence of his presence within the young lad was the sudden tinge of blue in his fingertips and face. It rather gave him the appearence of someone half drowned.

"Lovely." The boy had stated as he readjusted his groceries to move along once more, though he was halted in his attempts to go anywhere as a stranger emerged in the dark just outside his halo of streetlight. He fixated his unnervingly pale eyes onto this figure and quirked a brow. "Declan is what I am, in fact, called... but there is always the occasional Brad Pitt or Johnny Depp. The resemblance to such movie stars is really quite striking." The young man responded with quite a straight face and glanced at the offered handshake sideways.

For a moment it didn't seem he would make any such movement to shake hands, but then he shifted his bag of food to one arm and he gripped his outstretched hand with a sort of almost mocking nature. He held the hand for quite a spread of time, gripping it rather tightly in his frozen fingers.

"I've been called such a thing." He responded at the title 'necromancer', still gripping his hand. "And I've also practiced such a thing, but neither really have to do with one another. A doctor could be a doctor without doctoring." He then smiled in a rather amused fashion. "Gabriel with a Z." For some reason this sort of response brought a bit of life to his face and a smile seemed to come much easier to his hallowed expression.

"I like that name." He stated and fell silent for a moment with his eyes averted to the ground as though he were listening to something. The briefest of whispers could be heard and Declan laughed a bit, finally releasing Zabe's hand. As his hand retreated a black smoke retreated into his hand as well. "There's death on you." He responded and left it at that.

The young man then pretended to look quite flattered. "Oh really? People talk about me being good at necromancy? Why I never!" He exclaimed, a hand fluttering at his face teasingly. "But unfortunately Gabe with a Z... I cannot bring anyone back for you. I'm done with that business. Quite entirely and thoroughly." The young man nodded his head, his bright red hair blowing about his face with a gust of wind. "You can offer me anything you want, I can garauntee it I can afford whatever you wish to give me myself. So... sorry you traveled all that way for nothing... but I'm a has been! Washed up! Thought to be dead, really... and don't I LOOK it?" He asked of him with a rather broad smile. "What need would you have with waking the eternal sleepers, anyway, oh mysterious dark figure beyond the reaches of my street lamp? Unfishined business? Last goodbyes? I've heard it all before."

With that the young man gave a mock salute. "And with that I must be on my way. Much to do when your the neighborhood eccentric, you see." He glanced over his shoulder at the two mentioned women, and at having been spotted they fluttered about frantically for a moment before vasishing further into the kitchen. "Ah... the lot of them, harmless..." He giggled quite absurdly and waggled his eyebrows. "They think I'm CRAZY!" He paused, looked thoughtful, and then added: "Quite honestly I am. Good day to you, sir. And if you intend to try to convince me different than my mentioned decision... Start now, as I slowly and dramtically walk away so that you will surely follow."

And Declan slowly began walking away in an absurd impression of some sort of slow motion.

((... I MISSED HIM! But he's such a wind bag... so all his posts turn out so long XD; ))

((Waaaait a sec... Eryk... and Declan... o.o Do I remember them? From a really long time ago? Zoh my god no ways! XD))

"Lala lala la-LAlala!" Marco declared as he pranced along, more of a statement than a song. Until he found something truly fun, he'd have to distract himself through nonexistant words and jerky movements. "Dun-dun dananaNA nanaNA!"

He barely took notice of a tall figure ahead. It was quite likely to be someone boring, so there was no real point of trying to notice her. Over the years, Marco had found overwhelming evidence that boring people were truly just boring. It wasn't that he didn't like boring people. They just didn't like him. In general, boring people wanted to stay boring. Marco thought it was sad, as being boring truly was very boring. But that was the way it went with boring people; some people were inexplicably content with their boredom. So he continued to bob along, not a second glance at the approaching pale figure.

But, as she was nearly upon him, he realized something; she had hidden herself. She'd hunched her shoulders, hidden her hands in her pockets, and hidden her face with her hair. And in that instant of recognition, Marco's chocolate-colored eyes lit, and he grinned even more widely. People who hid weren't boring; they were interesting people who tried to be boring. And those were the kind of people that you needed to hang out with; if they wanted to be boring, they were probably really, really cool, and you could save them from being boring before it was too late. It was a real shame when people who weren't boring tried to make themselves less interesting. The world had enough boredom as it was, and interesting people were too far and few between to go about trying to blend in.

Marco paused as he neared, and hummed cheerily while pirouetting on the spot. His twirl ended as she passed, and he opened his mouth to call to her. Yet, something odd processed in his peripheral vision, and he faltered. As the dark, pale woman trudged past, Marco's shadow had flinched towards her. He blinked at his shadow for a moment, mouth agape. He crouched down, and poked at it, then turned back to look at the retreating figure. "...Coooool." He burst into yet another beaming grin and ran after her, darting directly in front of her path, blocking any further progression.

"Hi!" He started. He beamed at her a moment, possibly waiting for an answer, before plowing on. "I'm Marco. I saw you back there. I noticed you were all dark and shadowy, and I realized that you were probably really cool because you were trying to look like you weren't cool, but you really are! Hey, aren't you cold? Because it's pretty cold out--not cold enough, I don't think. The weather's being annoying and it won't snow enough, only a little, see, just some flakes, but all it does is make ugly dirty slush on the ground, and it'd be gross if I made a snowball out of that. But even still it's pretty cold out, like you gotta wear warm stuff, but I mean you aren't wearing that much and there are holes in your jeans and everything but I really like your scarf, it's real fuzzy, mine's just plaid, it doesn't have enough fuzz, and your trenchcoat is cool too. I always though people who wear trenchcoats are pretty neat because trenchcoats are like the international sign of neat you know? You look like you're cold, you're really pale and stuff, I bet you're freezing huh? But you're all in black. It's kind of weird because you're pale and dark at the same time, you know? Woah! I just got a look at your eyes! You've got cool eyes! They're like blue but not really they're more like white but a little blue, kind of like a crystal or something but not really because they're just eyes and eyes are usually gooey, not crystalish, you know? I guess you do because they're your eyes, and you'd probably know them better than I would. But sometimes people talk about how they like your eyes, and you just think, 'Hey, they're just eyes, I don't see what's so great about 'em,' but everyone else likes 'em. I bet you get that a lot, huh? I do, but probably not as much as you, because your eyes are really cool. By the way, back there, like, when you passed me, remember? Yeah, back there, my shadow liked you more than shadows like most people. I thought it was kind of weird but it was really cool too because its not too often you meet people who your shadow likes, shadows are usually pretty indifferent to anyone who's not making them. How do you make friends with shadows? I've never figured it out, but it would be cool if you could. Oh hey, are your ears pointy?" With an abrupt stop to his endless words, he grinned up at her expectantly.

((I don't think I've ever written such a long paragraph of dialogue in my life.))

(( "Concur," J. "Concur."

Yeah, Those two are from that ANCIENT RP... Sawyer University, or something? But... Declan was the guy who could turn into a kitty, right? Yeah... Yeeeeeeeah! TEUFEL HAS A MEMORY! ZOMG! ^^ It's always a lot of fun to see old characters back in action...))

Vanessa cringed noticebly as he popped out in front of her and she glanced down to him, eyes watching the kid with the least amount of enthusiasm ever. He looked innocent, but all the innocent ones were the people you had to watch out for. They could explode at any minute...and kids were the worst of them all. Sure she didn't mind kids...if they were like Timothy and actually made her feel wanted. In fact, anyone who could make her feel comfortable around them deserved a good name in her book.

She tried to keep up with his questions but after a while she blinked, looked away and walked around him. She made it only a few feet before he began asking even MORE questions and she winced some more, her ears twitching a bit. Pausing she put a hand to her face and waited for him to shut the heck up. Did this kid ever STOP talking?

It seemed like a century before he stopped suddenly and grinned at her, like he wanted her to answer every possible question ever asked in the universe. Just who in the world was this guy? Part of her was as curious as he seemed to be where as the other just wanted to leave and forget their meeting ever happened.

The curious one succeeded and she gave him the slightest smile ever imaginable, only a tiny tug at the corner of her lips. "I'm not cold. Thanks. And shadows just like me." She answered his questions in the shortest response she could think of.

"My ears?" she lifted her hand towards them and rubbed a finger of their corners. Eyeing the boy in front of her she shrugged. "I was born with them...just like you were born with the biggest mouth in the world. And a obviously huge lung capacity." Grinning at him calmly she knelt down and picked up the slush of snow, moving it in her hands as though the cold of it didn't bother her. "Yeah, they aren't snow ball material..." With a breath, she let it run through her fingers. "But you can't make the snow do what you want it too...the air has to be perfect." Her eyes looked to him.

"Marco? My name's Vanessa." She felt she could trust this kid...after all he seemed to not be bratty or bossy...just very noisy...and she could deal with that for a few more minutes. "You don't make friends with shadows...they have no soul or heart...they are just there...kind of like this snow. But..." She put her hand down over her own shadow and made it lift from the ground, as well as Marco's and they switched places, Marco's shadow becoming Vanessa's and vice versa.

((haha a bunch of poo...nothing really happened...XDD ))

((Hahaha, I love how no one knows what the heck is supposed to be happening... BUT WE ARE POSTING ANYWAY! *cackles amid a strike of lightning and the crash of thunder* Haha, and oh man, Teufel... Marco is PRICELESS. XDDD It's hilarious that your and J's characters seemed to come together... They're so completely opposite that it just WORKS, man... *grins* This RP just might be real fun...

ANd yeaaah, Delcan and Liam... *really misses those guys* I MISS THAT RP! *sobs in her corner* As for Declan and Eryk... Dude, did you guys even read that story we started? Haha, it was pretty fun, actually... Eryk has a CRAZY GIRLFRIEND. I know Kiki read the story... I don't remember if you guys did... Hmm. Haha, ahhh, the good 'ol days... *misses them*

I POST NOW!))

Bingo. It seemed that Eryk's contact in the living world was more than just a rumored Necromancer; he was a friend. And by the stunned look on Declan's face at Zabe having mentioned the man's name, probably one of few friends. No wonder the boy seemed a little off. Everyone, it seemed, that had any care to show him was no longer living. Even that creepy raven thing was obviously not on the living side of things.

He was thrown for only a moment when Declan seemed to retreat into himself, all the while staring at Zabe in a strikingly sharp sort of way. "I suppose I'll give you a few minutes to mull that over..." Though he was quite sure his words were lost on Declan. The boy was too deep in his own mind. So, when he finally did speak up, his words weren't what Zabe was expecting.

But that facade didn't last too long, and when Declan peered at him, he flashed a rather knowing smile. "I figured you might..." But any other words were lost in Crooks' squawking. In turn to the shadow-birds narrowed eyes, Zabe simply raised his eyebrows. "Nice pet. Though if it were me, I'd have taught him something more entertaining... You know, maybe to whistle at women as they passed by."

He then let the boy and bird have a bit of a conversation... And it seemed Declan really DID want to help Eryk out. But instead, he gave a particularly loud shout about torment and dashed inside a house before Zabe could even blink.

"Ahh," he sighed, "This might be harder than I thought..." Zabriel gave an exasperated motion with his hands, seemingly to no one, and let his arms drop to his sides. "So much for a quick stop here..." He muttered, spotting two figures a ways down the road. One seemed to have had one too many Cokes, while the other stood unnaturally still, a sort of darkness hovering about them. For a split second, Zabe watched them before he himself climbed the stoop and casually entered through the same door which Declan had run.

The room was dark, at least darker than the area about the lone street lamp, and it took his eyes a moment to adjust to the change. However, that didn't stop him from walking about the area, heavy boots barely making a sound against the worn wooden floor. The place smelled old, but homey in a way that a house such as that would never lose. "Hmm..." Zabe said lightly, scratching at the side of his face, "Declan, really now, who takes advice from a half-dead bird? Or rather, a mostly dead bird..."

"And what are these RULES mentioned? What are they for, if not to break?" His voice took on a far more serious tone, and he leaned lightly against the doorframe, not quite sure of where in the place Declan had gone, but projecting his voice enough for the boy to definitely hear. "Don't think I've come here to ask a light favor. Never have I done something like this for someone, nor will I probably ever do it again, so I hope you can understand just what it is I'm doing. Don't think Eryk doesn't know what he's asking..." His bright eyes scanned the shadowed room sharply, almost angrily. "And I think the benefit of what I'm asking far out weighs the consequences, even if you can't see that now..."

He gave a bit of a laugh; a strangely musical sound, "If nothing else, Declan, Eryk says that he's simply asking as a friend in need. Now, even I couldn't ignore a request like that."


((Haha, I"m GUESSING he went inside his house... Though I wasn't sure... So uhh... you can have him flip on the lights or something! *Shrugs helplessly* Haha, and I love how I am not QUITE sure where I want this to go... SO FEEL FREE TO DO ANYTHING! *throws socks about in the air* I am going to bed now... Mmmmyes. SWEET SWEET SLEEPERS! BUWAHAHAHAHA! *toggles off to slumberland* Haha, slumberland. Sounds like the name of a boardgame... *is gone*))

((Geez people! I'll have that plot post up after I get Alt and the rest to post up their starter posts then we'll be moving on to being attacked and such! Okay, I'm off to convince them...))

((Sorry for posting so late... I'm lazy, and you all should know that...))

The small shop was tucked away in a far corner of London, surrounded by larger stores. The only reason anyone even knew it was there was because if you weren't paying attention, you might find yourself inside it, staring face to face with a bunch of knick-knacks that no one ever notices or buys.

Few people came in or out of the shop, and the only known worker there was a thin man, in his late thirties or so. If one peeked inside the front window, one would usually see him wiping down the counter with a dirty rag, or rearranging the books on a shelf. He wore large, thick-rimmed glasses, and was constantly pushing them further up the bridge of his nose. His eyes, magnified by his spectacles, would always peer at you with a knowledge that couldn't be identified. He was a strange man, but no one ever seemed to notice.

The shop itself had only one regular customer, who usually stopped by every other week, to see what they had in stock.

She came stomping through the snow, her hands tucked into the large pockets of her overcoat. She wore oversized boots, a multicolored scarf, and sunglasses, which was particularly odd, considering that it was night. She opened the door, the bell dinging as it closed.

The shopkeeper looked up.

"Hi, Sufjan," The regular smiled, giving him a tiny wave.

Sufjan turned back to whatever he was previously doing(which was wiping the counter), and muttered, "I'm not ordering those shrunken heads for you, Victoria."

Victoria laughed. "I've gotten over it. That spell wasn't as great as I thought it would be," She walked over to the counter. "But," she started, grinning eagerly. "Do you have any books on Stonehenge?"

Sufjan leaned back, away from her. "I'd have to go check. If it's not on that bookshelf over there, then it might be in the backroom." After pointing to one of the many shelves, he disappeared behind a small door behind the counter.

Victoria went to the bookshelf, scanning the titles until she found a book on druids. Pulling it out, she remembered vaguely that one of the predictions about Stonehenge was that it was the work of druids, Celtic priests. Although she wasn't sure if the druids had anything to do with what she wanted to know, she leafed through the book carefully, trying to find out what she could in the index.

Her fascination with the monument had started up not two days ago, when there was a special on Stonehenge on the telly. She didn't watch it, but had gotten an idea in her head that on the winter solstice, perhaps that was when a witch's spell was at its most powerful, and since Stonehenge was home to many bizarre rituals of pagans or neo-druids, she supposed that perhaps, the place had a small bit of magic floating about it.

Sufjan came out of the backroom, carrying three different books. "These are all I have, Tori," He said, setting them down on the counter. "You going to borrow these or buy them?"

Tori looked up, closed the book she had found, and rubbed its spine carefully. "Hey, Soofie?"

"Mm?"

"What do you think about Stonehenge? Is it home to many kindred spirits, or is it a place where witches and wizards' powers are heightened to their full extent?" She asked, rushing over to the counter once again. Pushing aside the stack of books, she leaned over the counter, a tiny, hopeful smile creeping onto her lips.

Sufjan looked thoughtful for a moment, before adjusting his glasses. "You're asking an age-old question. I gave up on witchcraft years ago. I wouldn't know any more about Stonehenge than what you'll read in those books."

Tori moved back now, dejected. "Ah- Thanks for the books anyway. I'll have them back to you in two weeks, tops."

She gathered the four and went out the door. Sufjan called out after her, "Take off your sunglasses!"

((...Sucks. Sufjan's name is pronounced SOOF-yan.))