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 Posted: Mon Dec 17, 2012 11:22 pm
He knew he only had a few moments to speak with Mei privately, without the prying eyes of the other hunters and Halloween students in the room. Quietly, Gale had taken Eva aside - she had been with him for this much, after all, and to be honest he needed her for this - and now they were following on the way to the Portal, Gale reaching out to grab Mei's arm, pull her away from the others.
"Hey," he said. "Listen, I know we don't have much time, but I just wanted to ask - are you absolutely sure you want to do this? I know what you're like, but Caelius has a temper, and I wouldn't want you to be in trouble with your own kind either."
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Posted: Tue Dec 18, 2012 12:11 am
Eva didn't ask any questions when Gale took her aside, simply following after him as he moved towards the Portal. She immediately caught sight of a head of familiar, long magenta hair, moving to stand by the blond when he reached out to take the doll girl's arm.
And of course, Gale brought up a very good concern--Eva had been fretting about something similar since she learned that the girl would returning to Halloween."I'm sure you've already thought about this," She added, pressing her lips into a thin line as she anxiously ran her fingers through her hair, "But I mean, it can't be...easy, for you to do this. I mean, if...your friends don't already know how you feel about us..."
She was not concerned that Mei would turn around and betray them somehow, but she was worried about the possibility of any emotional stress or mental conflict that could befall her from doing this. It was clear that the doll girl wanted to help them on this side, but she also had friends and her own kind on the other side.
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Posted: Tue Dec 18, 2012 12:50 am
Apparently, luck was on their side, as all three students were offered safe passage back to Halloween. She thought for sure that Amphi and Thackery were never to see Halloween again, when Caelius had given their choices. How they avoided that whole ordeal, she was still questioning it in her mind. Perhaps it was that man dressed as Sandy Claws, or something else? She had no clue, but Eva and Gale.. she owed those two her life.
On their way to the portal, she was lightly tugged away by Gale, followed by Eva who re-joined them. Bowing her head slightly, she lifted her chin again to look at the two hunters again. "Yes. Either way, the horsemen already know what I've done. I've already thought this over many times in my head.. my kind may hate me for it, but I want to safeguard a future for Halloween. The horsemen threaten both our futures, so if this is one thing I can do to help.." She paused to stare at the ground again. "With luck, I will be able to prove myself to the rest of your kind, and show them that I mean as I say." Pausing again, she turned to Eva, pulling her hand towards her as she placed her hand over hers. Concentrating her fear, she formed a small object--her emblem--in the the hunter's palm. "Like I had done for Gale, this emblem proves my loyalty to you, and that I will have your back when you need it, so long as I am able."
Turning, she grinned at he blond hunter, folding her arms over her chest. "You still have the phone I gave you, yes?"
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Posted: Wed Dec 19, 2012 6:43 am
He had not starting out wanting to like Mei. That much had been obvious from their multiple fights within the Haunted House, each one pushing and prodding and pushing until they had both broken, until they had both realized the severity of their own situations. And Gale had been wary of the horsemen ever since discovering their link to Ben's death, and to that awful Sahara incident.
But now it was different. He wasn't alone - Eva was with him, which made a world of difference, considering she didn't think he was stupid for wanting to trust Mei, for wanting to believe a Halloween student.
He gave Mei a scrutinizing look, pressing his lips together as he absently tugged on the strap of his sling.
"I told you before," said Gale quietly. "That I can't promise to be able to protect your friends and the other students. Those will have to be your responsibility. I'll do my best, though - we need to look out for each other."
He trailed off a little, glancing uncertainly at Eva. "Right?" he added, and Jinhai stirred in his mind, quiet and observant.
"Mutually assured destruction," said Gale quietly, and then sighed. His arm was hurting and he did not want anything to happen to Mei - or to her friends.
"Yes, I still have the phone," he answered. Mei's smile was putting him a bit more at ease, especially with giving Eva her emblem. He himself still had Mei's, which was currently tucked into the pocket of his coat..
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Posted: Wed Dec 19, 2012 2:17 pm
If there was one thing that Eva had to say, it was that Mei definitely had guts. In her eyes, it took a hell of a lot of courage to do what she was doing now--instead of going with it, she was working against the norm of the other students, seeking to help her own world and people in a different way. The fact that this other method included allying herself was pretty remarkable in a way. For all this time, Eva had thought that all of the students had just outright hated them--it was interesting actually seeing and hearing one of their points of view.
She stood by quietly as Gale spoke, the corners of her lips turned upwards in a soft smile. When he glanced over at her, she returned his uncertain look with a grin, clasping her hands behind her back. "Of course! It...won't be easy for either parties involved, but we should definitely try to keep each other safe. I promise I'll keep my eye out for you and your friends the next time we're on a field."
She paused then, looking puzzled as Mei reached out to take her hand. Her expression remained confused as the girl continued to clasp it, but she soon felt something small and solid being pressed into the palm of her hand. "Ah--...loyalty, huh?" Eva stared down at the small object in her hand, running her fingertips over the emblem and turning it over carefully as she examined it. After a moment of silence, she closed her fingers around it, and reached out to give Mei a hug.
...Awkward? Maybe? Who knows--Eva was just that kind of touchy-feely person. When she pulled back, she turned to grin at Gale, letting out a sigh. "Why don't we have anything like that? Though even if we can't give you physical proof like you can," Her attention slid back to the doll girl, "Know that we'll have your back too, okay?"
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Posted: Wed Dec 19, 2012 8:44 pm
She nodded once to Gale, tilting her head slightly and offering the boil a smile. "I know, I don't expect you to either. I'm not even sure many of them would be happy to be aided by a hunter, as not all hunters would be happy to be aided by my kind. But, maybe over time things will change, for the better. If not, then.." She shrugged. Her smile grew wider as she nodded a second time to them both. "Its a promise!"
At Eva's embrace, she was a little surprised, but easily overcame it as she returned the hug. Loosing a small laugh as she released her, she only shrugged. "I don't know, but I'll take your words on faith. I'm at least pleased to say that out of everyone I had given my emblem to, I'm proud to have given you both one."
Grateful for both of their support, she turned to Gale when he confirmed he still possessed the phone he had received from her months ago. That would probably finally be put to good use. "Great! I'll keep in touch, and fill you in on anything that may be important to your kind. I don't know how much I'll be able to snoop out, but with luck, maybe we'll stumble across some useful knowledge."
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Posted: Sat Dec 22, 2012 8:14 pm
"It won't be easy" was probably the understatement of the year, Gale thought ruefully as he gave Eva what he hoped was an encouraging nod. The anxiety of their situation nagged at him, but he could not deny that he felt better about working with Mei than ever working with the horsemen. They had spent the better part of half a year learning how to work with one another, and now it had come to fruit - the beginning of the end, one might say.
<< Sounds morbid. >>
Sounds truthful.
<< Relax, kiddo, I was merely teasing. I think you're doing the right thing here. >>
I wish I knew what I thought.
<< You will. >>
"Just..." said Gale, with half a glance at Eva before he looked back at Mei. "be careful, all right? Don't do anything rash, or put yourself in situations that you can't get out of. Be subtle, and keep a wary eye, all right? And Eva and I will do our best here."
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Posted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 2:26 am
She nodded in agreement with Gale, her brows creasing in concern as her lips tugged downwards in a small frown. "Yes, please...do be safe. Information is important, but make sure you watch out for yourself as well, okay?"
Eva reached out to give the doll girl's hand a gentle squeeze before offering her a warm smile. Although the idea of working with a Halloween student had never crossed her mind, she took great importance in the fact that Gale trusted her. Because of this, Eva had gotten a chance to talk to Mei and see what she was like, determining that she was honestly...a pretty empathetic person, it seemed. At the very least, she wanted the same thing that they did--peace and safety for their own kind.
Whether or not they'd get that was yet to be seen, but...
"Thank you, Mei."
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Posted: Wed Dec 26, 2012 2:41 pm
Won't be easy? He was right about that. But when had anything, in any of their lives been easy? Maybe before all of this mess had started up, but that time felt like a distant memory now. Shifting her position, she gave the two a reassuring look, as to not worry them further. She knew what she was doing, she knew the risks. "I will."
Turning to leave, she glanced over her shoulder at the two before starting towards the portal again. "You two stay safe as well. If we're lucky, we'll be able to meet again under less stressful circumstances." With that, she gave the two a wave before departing. "Expect a call if I find anything useful!"
It was time she went home.
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