°˖✧ { ʟɪʟɪᴛʜ } ✧˖° (replies) – Page 5

KID.

“ and you expect me to just believe you ? “ though she sidled along as well , having an unexpectedly little amount of trouble with balance and almost letting go of him once or twice . she’d been ready to jump from the start , optimal angle or not , and the child in her swung her legs over the gap as she bobbed her head .

“ alright , i’ll jump . “

_{———IT WASN’T A MATTER OF TRUST THAT HAD KEPT THEM FROM TAKING A WORSE PLUNGE. elliot was perfectly fine being a treacherous liar in the face of persecution, not that he intended to be that kind of person.}

_{pushing off the branch with the strange child in hand, he quickly slowed their descent to a comfortable floating drop. it tended to be hard with another in his grasp, but the girl was not large and he had the experience to do it.}

❝ now, will you tell me who and what you are, kid? ❞

MAKI-SAN.

✿ The girl swallowed hard as they were wrenched around the corner and into the open streets, keeping her eyes trained on his enigmatic grin. Had she seen something that she wasn’t supposed to? Mio wouldn’t have doubted that for a moment- there had always been something off about this man. He exuded an aura unbefitting of a mere rank-and-file teacher, he draped himself in refineries and luxuries that others in his position could only dream of obtaining.

But most importantly, he’d been watching over her closely since the beginning of the semester. Sometimes, Mio would catch him stealing cool glances in her direction, as if he were waiting for something- the right moment to strike perhaps? Shuddering at the thought, the girl would wrap her arms around herself and attempt to steady her erratic breaths.

Something like a sigh or a gasp involuntarily slipped past her trembling lips at the moment that he’d come to a full stop and mentioned the incident that tied everything together. The pieces were beginning to click into place; “W-wait, you saw it? You could see the ‘alien’, as well…?”

_{———THE QUESTION EARNED HER A SMILE UNLIKE THE ONES HE TENDED TO PUT ON. genuine and of greater substance, the man kept his eyes on the road but almost wished he could face her in that moment.}

_{he’d always been sort of intense, for very viable reasons. growing up in a place that did not forgive even the most innocent of children, he’d been shaped into monster and man through others’ motivations. never once did he get the sort of mentorship that came without a price. it meant something to him that he could do this for mio, that he could allow her the kind of guidance without manipulation or lies.}

coming up to the end of the street where maki lived, the began to search for a place to park closer to her house. the amount of bags she had would be cumbersome to carry all the way, but in the end, he slid the car into the first spot he saw, and exited the car to help.

❝ maki-san, there is much to talk about, but i’d like to tell you, 「WHITE LION」 isn’t anything to be afraid of. ❞

JUDE.

^{“ You’re here to be a little more Glinda than Elphaba for once in your life and save me from myself. “ He’s only even seen the original Wizard or Oz and none of the Wicked stageplay, so don’t even start on him about his analogy—— movements are lethargic, Jude’s typical energy slashed in half by his growing discomforts. Protectively, subconsciously, palm rests low on navel ( where heat pulses and flares ) while following after companion. Eyes slip down Elliot’s form of their own accord, noting the set of his shoulders, slope of his spine, and the shape of his ass with a new, rut – induced appreciation. He doesn’t immediately catch himself, but when thoughts make an abrupt, lewd to just what the warlock may look like without any of his clothes on}

— that’s when Jude starts with a flinch, face’s reddened hue deepening.

^{In retrospect, maybe calling over a ‘friend’ to keep him from mounting total strangers in a public washroom was an even more terrible idea on his part. Judgement and horror directed at him from people he didn’t know is a bit more bearable than having it directed at him by people he does. “ I won’t hang out long. I… have to back in a couple hours to pick up my bike that’s next door. “}

_{———IT WASN’T THAT HE COULDN’T TELL THE MAN WAS LOOKING AT HIM. he could certainly tell. street by street, he tried to ignore the gaze the other seemed to be driving into him from behind, as difficult as that was. this was not the gaze of a hunter and prey, nor the unsavory glare he was used to with others in similar professions. he sensed there was something more to the man’s supposed fever, more than jude would care to admit.}

_{❝ i could come back with your keys and park it in my garage. you don’t seem so good on your feet, i don’t really trust you to drive it properly. ❞
he kept his bike here in germany, not wanting to overcrowd it in busy new york streets where the best form of transportation was the subway. entering the station from the stairway down, he waved the man over to the platform as the train pulled up. trips like these were short and often on time. the flat he’d bought in berlin charted at around thirteen hundred euros a month, a price for the easy access to the train and u-bahn.}

❝ i’m sure you’ll be thrilled to see my cat. ❞

TIKI.

his oculars danced in his sockets, observing everything but the other’s hues. eventually, they landed, finding an offering hand outstretched to him. when his eyes are directed down, it placed emphasis on how heavy his eyelids are. FOLLOWING STRANGERS IS DANGEROUS, but tiki never listened to his conscience.

he wasn’t a man of many words, he nodded his consent instead.

where were they? tiki is nescient of that detail. he was never an observant man, and because of how he was raised, he never asks questions. the only thing he knew was that they’re somewhere more private, where no one can condemn them for WHAT THEY ARE.

❝ i’m… tiki, i was… born with… this. ❞

_{———IT WAS A PLACE THAT ELLIOT HAD CALLED HOME LIKE ALL OTHERS ; a faceless, nameless room at a dingy bed and breakfast. to say he had much of a home would be like saying a migratory bird had one nest. he offered the young man a glass of water and some packaged snacks he’d bought for the road. the man had come only to travel, to see, and he’d done it in the way a hitchhiker had some semblance of an idea where to go.}

_{❝ tiki… my name is elliot. ❞
the name chosen, not given, but certainly a name. he picked through a bag of trail mix, noting that the absence of pain beneath his nail. there was much to talk about.}

❝ are you religious, tiki? i suppose we could start there, if you’d like. ❞

STRANGER.

^{‘ You come in here a LOT, you know. I promise the selection doesn’t change that frequently.  ‘ It’s not given unkindly – contrary, bright eyes light up when they settle onto the familiar figure. An old spirit with a young face turned regular, turned a pleasant sight, turned to curiosity he wants so dearly to dig deeper into. Though he feels stuck if not behind his own desk then a well standing between him and the man made up of poor circumstance. But, he reminds himself every time when the topic arises, someone coming back so frequently isn’t just looking for BOOKS.}

^{The small handful of novels by the register serve as an excuse to stand and move a bit closer, as though he doesn’t already KNOW  where they go.
‘ … If you’re coming in just to say hi, I DO sometimes leave the house once the store is closed. On rare occasion.  ‘}

^{|| @faustium}

_{———THE CURL OF HIS LIP AS THE OTHER APPROACHED WITH BOOKS IN TOW. he rarely found himself in a situation where another had caught on so fast. perhaps it was the fact he’d been impatient with this, the small town deprived of many things he found interesting. it wasn’t that the place was boring, of course not… he found something he’d much rather occupy himself with. pushing back a lock of hair, the man plucked a familiar title from the collection.}

_{❝ i’ve been eyeing your goethe collection for some time ; rarely do i find it in the original german, unless i’m special ordering it. ❞
flipping to a page in the hefty anthology, he placed a finger down on a random line, reading it to himself:}

was glänzt, ist für den augenblick geboren,

das echte bleibt der nachwelt unverloren.

❝ so tell me, when is it you leave your house? ❞

WITNESS.

always a luckless creature , the ‘ angel ’ should know better than to take shortcuts through parts of the city one such of himself has no reason being in . his small frame comes to a swaying halt too late ; his shoe lands in still warm blood … but at least he avoided stepping on a limb . still clueless as to the situation , kaede kneels before the larger body and his hand hovers over the stranger’s throat . the temptation to touch and feel for a pulse tries to overwhelm him . he only doesn’t because he knows his reputation will cause him too many problems . instead his hands shuffle through his pockets in search of his phone .

( @faustium , starter call )

_{———IT WAS THE KIND OF SITUATION HE DIDN’T OFTEN FIND HIMSELF IN. he’d made sure to make it quick, the kill taking no more than a second in the quiet alleyway. he’d nearly been done with ridding himself of the evidence, when he sensed an entity closing in. quick as his knife, he bolted for the only hiding place he could manage on short notice; behind the dumpster. it wasn’t much, since he had initially suspected the individual to take one look and flee the scene. it would have given him time, at the very least, before authorities were called. it would have.}

_{❝ drop the phone. ❞
he commanded, gun drawn and face obscured behind the fiberglass of his helmet.}

_{———IT’S A KIND OF RESPONSE THAT MAKES THE MAN SMILE. he doesn’t laugh, not with the sort of expression his new acquaintance has given him, not with the look in his dark brown eyes. he considers it for a moment, what that gaze might mean. was it one he’d seen before in another setting?}

_{❝ you mistake me, sir. ❞
he begins, finishing his late night coffee that lingered at the back of his mug. he disliked american food, tastes more in line with the kind of cuisine that did not find itself in small diners on the border with mexico. as far from religious as he was, he managed to keep kosher at the very least. not the hardest accomplishment when you never ate meat.}

❝ i sense i can do you a favor ; more than a meal, at the very least. ❞

_{@coinkill cont}

BRICK SHITHOUSE.

“Aren’t you lucky I’m just feeling so charitable today,” the amusement is in his voice, but the brick house of a man just moves to grab the other’s arm, careful not to grip too hard, and pull him up. khal’kru doesn’t let go until he’s steady on his feet again.

_{———HE DROPPED TO THE GROUND WITH THE KIND OF FORCE THAT ONLY CAME FROM AN EXHAUSTED BODY. catching his breath, the man heaved himself onto two feet, careful not to stumble as he finally reached the top of the pass.}

_{❝ i’d be luckier if you weren’t so damn hard to find. ❞}

EXORCIST.

“Yep!” She replies. Not that she’d actually received an official order to go (yet) but the last thing she wants is to be left in a mostly-empty headquarters with nothing to do.

“Where is it again?” She asks, hopefully not giving away her plan to lowkey stow away.

_{———❝ HAVE YOU EVER BEEN TO GERMANY? i’m surprised, i didn’t think i’d be back so soon. ❞
he smiled at the thought of that, eating the remainder of his plate as the cafeteria began to clear of its occupants.}

_{❝ it’s in the bavarian alps. i hear its one of the biggest extractions they’ve had so far, they want all hands on deck. ❞}

SAMARITAN.

eyes of pale violet flicker up from the tablet in which he reads othello . the quiet atmosphere of the cafe that he first arrived in has devolved into hectic chaos as the lunchtime rush hour hits . bewilderment settles over his countenance as he’s so jarringly returned from the land of shakespeare to reality . he feels the temptation to leave rise as the dull cacophony assaults his senses , but his second cup of tea remains mostly full and it seems so wasteful to leave it .

shion catches sight of a stranger , one who gives off the appearance of someone exhausted by life , and after a glance around the busy little cafe to see no open seats , waves him over . with a defenseless smile , the young man offers the seat across from him with a soft shrug , “ you can sit with me , if you’d like . i’m just going to finish my tea and be on my way . ”

( @faustium : starter call )

_{———IT WAS A REQUEST HE HADN’T INITIALLY REGISTERED AS BEING DIRECTED TOWARDS HIMSELF. blinking, the man felt a tinge of embarrassment at the revelation: did he really look that tired? he smiled as he set his items down, rubbing his neck momentarily as the lid popped from his cup and welcomed a slew of cream into its contents. he took a frothy sip, somewhat glad for the kindness of a stranger.}

_{❝ thank you, i’ve been trying to find a wifi connection all morning. i’m visiting from no. 5, you see. ❞
it was strange to call it such a name after what had occurred. despite never seeing it for himself, no. 6 had suffered a great calamity on its rise to become the greatest of the utopias. some had called it a punishment, while others sought to ignore the festering underbelly of the city at large and wallow in their own self pity. he didn’t like to involve himself in such matters, as life had merely changed for better or worse.}

❝ you read the classics? ❞