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For Jamie Lloyd, life was a constant shell game with one exception…her role being that of the small ball instead of the player. It had been this way since the night when as a teenager she escaped on Halloween from the underground facility where the ‘man in black’ had kept her along with her uncle. She remembered seeing ‘Smith’s Grove Sanitarium’ on a woman's name badge…her only way of knowing where the then frightened nine year old girl had been taken.
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She wasn't allowed to roam free or even have that much interaction with people at all. But hadn't the way the ‘man in black’ ?lurked outside peering in at her from time to time. He seemed intrigued at the connection she shared with her uncle or so she gathered from his line of questioning. But why? He never explained it.?
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He wasn't the only one she glimpsed through that small pane of glass but while there were countless others the one that stuck out in her memory was her uncle, Michael Myers, who was led down the hallway on rare occasions. But to where? For what? So many secrets. So many unanswered questions.
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Her nights were always the same, laying there in the darkness offering up prayers to whoever was up there listening, until one night when screams echoed through the corridors. It was such a terrible sound, one followed by that of a baby crying.
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It was during the days that followed she discovered the truth of what happened that night…HIS daughter was born. There must have been a million thoughts which crossed the then barely even eleven year old’s mind. But first and foremost was that of family, both the one she believed to be lost and the one here.
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The ‘man in black’ was particularly pleased, if she hadn't known better she would have sworn the child to be his. There had to be some sort of rhyme or reason to it. But she didn't dare ask, not when she suspected knowing to be a more frightening prospect than not.
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Whenever she looked back there were certain memories that always seemed to stick out. Meeting her chosen (who was only a toddler then) for the first time. Watching as a six year old girl wordlessly stabbed one of the nurses. Or the night they were helped to escape during the chaos when Michael had gotten loose and started killing his way through the staff.
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She remembered the precise moment when while at the bus station the thought of abandoning the little girl crossed her mind. Who would have blamed her? Not anyone who knew about her family or who the child's father was. But having recalled what it was like to be treated so cruelly by other children simply because of her being related to HIM…to the ‘boogeyman’ she hadn't been able to do it.
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Sometimes it was a little hard to believe it was fifteen years ago instead of only yesterday they fled on foot in the pouring rain in the middle of the night. She had so wanted to see both of her adoptive parents again after eight years of being held captive but her old home was the first place anyone would look for them.
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She reached out to Loomis who gave her all the help she needed despite his concerns about Michael’s daughter. Certain eerie similarities couldn't be ignored with her cousin having been six years old when she stabbed that nurse or her silence. Though it took a few years the latter eventually ended.?
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It was two months ago that they picked up and moved to Mystic Falls, another town in a long line of places to be called home. They were just starting to get settled in, Jamie had her job as bartender at the Mystic Grille and they were able to rent an apartment above it.?
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The brunette was wiping the bar down as she looked around ever vigilant as she lived in fear of the day when either her uncle or the ‘man in black’ found them and for that reason was probably a little strict with her cousin even though she was now a grown woman herself.
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(ooc: Was watching Halloween: H20 last night and got all inspired. Introduction of Michael’s daughter coming in the near future.)
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The 2 couples walked in only 1 of the 4 looking at all comfortable. The two young women were obviously twins, though they didn't dress alike and their expressions differed greatly. The one in green looked alert and uncomfortable while her twin was calm and serene. The man with his arm around her was slightly shorter and his red hair an auburn. His angelic features flashed a charming smile at the pretty young bartender as they approached, but his eyes, distant as they were, said he was plainly thinking of other matters likely having nothing to little to do with this place.
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The shortest of the bunch walked at the side of the red head in green. He was as muscled as any wrestler, and quite under 5 ft tall with short curly dark hair and a thick beard. His hand was clasped around that of the taller and far more willowy red head at his side.
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His smile at the bartender was open and friendly.
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"Hello. Are there menus?"
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"Although I'd have been fine with room service," he added as an aside to the other man.
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"Mekare needs to be out more and I'd like a feel for the place," the auburn haired young man replied.
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I'm friends with the monster that's under my bed.
I get along with the voices inside of my head.
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Jamie finished wiping down the bar then tossed the rag into a bucket kept hidden underneath. She drew a breath as her brown eyes followed the waitresses and busboys who were taking care of those seated at the tables knowing that before too long her cousin would be seated at her usual table drawing in her sketch pad as she did most every night.
At times she envied her as Kali had never been (for lack of a better word) ‘hunted’ by Michael Myers meaning that for the most part she was able to live without fear or at least without the nightmares. Exhaling slowly to calm her nerves as the small group approached then offering her best fake smile. “Yes, of course. Here you go.” She reached on the counter behind her grabbing one for each then passing them to the one who’d asked.
“Interesting name. Can't say that I have ever met anyone named Mekare.” Her eyes briefly moved over each person taking in their appearance out of sheer curiosity. “Is she okay?” She asked at noticing how uncomfortable the one redhead looked.?
She gave a slight nod to her cousin as she walked over taking a seat in the corner booth and seconds later was bent over her sketch pad working on her latest creation.
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When asked if she was okay, Mekare lifted green eyes to the girl.
"Probably not, but I'll manage. What is the matter with you? You are also not okay."
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Jarveth gave a short laugh, eyes amused and intrigued as they lifted from the menu to regard Mekare.
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Armand glanced at the menu then to Jarveth seeing his attention was placed elsewhere.
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"You want me to do it," he asked, gesturing to the menue and Jarveth nodded distractedly.
"Sure."
The gruff response was all he afforded the other man. Armand was intelligent enough to order something that he'd enjoy eating and that would fill him up. Mekare needed his attention right now or rather he felt she did. She had never directly engaged an outsider like that before. So while not alarmed, he watched.He knew that Armand and Maharet were likely watching' as well in their way and leaving it mainly to him as at these times, Mekare responded even better to him than she did to Armand or her twin. He still didn't see that he deserved her complete adoration, but he had it none the less...And she was fun, beautiful, unlike anyone he'd ever imagined and made him feel...like she always had his back. So he had hers as well.
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"3 burgers and 3 fries," Armand said.
"And to drink, something healthy. Whatever you have. If you have nothing healthy, cold water will do."
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Maharet's lips twitched but she remained silent. Burgers and healthy, though.
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For her part, Mekare's eyes remained on the young woman who had asked after her, expression, unlike that of her twin, extremely intense...watchful.
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"Is it the wrongness? The trouble? Is everyone aware?"
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"Mekare," Armand warned softly, but she ignored him, not glancing away.
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I'm friends with the monster that's under my bed.
I get along with the voices inside of my head.
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“Well…” Jamie started without knowing whether to offer the whole story or some edited version that filled in just enough blanks to answer some questions while raising others no doubt. She drew a breath eventually settling on the latter. “There are those who claim my uncle…that he's the boogeyman.” Her eyes went to the booth where her cousin was seated bent over the sketch pad she carried with her everywhere. “And…the ‘boogeyman’ has a daughter.”
Her feelings about her cousin were as complicated as ever with lingering doubts ever present. It was hardly as if she'd ever been given a reason to fear for her safety in all the time they'd lived under the same roof. But…there was always this unanswered question of whether she was anything like her father? Would she wake on the middle of the night to the sight of Kali standing over her with a butcher knife?
She relayed their order to waitress who promptly disappeared into the kitchen while quietly contemplating whether anything on the ‘drink list’ could be considered healthy as was their preference. “What trouble?” The young bartender became visibly tense as the thought of her uncle sprang to mind.
Kali grew tired of listening to the murmured conversations from a neighboring table so she laid her pencil down reaching into the messenger bag for a set of headphones that were soon plugged into her iPhone. She went to a playlist she created the previous summer and pressed play.
The music of what she considered a beautiful song effectively drowned out everything else as the pencil was once more held in her hand. There were so many moments in her life that caused her to heavily relate to the words the woman sang accompanied primarily by piano though it wasn't the only instrument to be heard in the background.?
//The weight of your words on my shoulders
I’ve always carried on
Thought they'd get lighter as I got older
But all I know is wrong
Each minute that passes feels like a lifetime?
The clock falls off the wall
I pick up the pieces, but they have no meaning?
‘Cause all I know is
Hold your breath and pray for the world to end
Nothing's left, some broken hearts will never mend
And every word’s just a whisper to the wind
I pray to god for angels he’ll never send
Hold your breath and pray for the world to end//
With what she struggled with on a daily basis there were these moments when all she could think to do was reach out to some higher power in the hopes it’d make things better. Only it never did. She was left to fight this…darkness on her own without fully understanding why it was such a part of who she was. Oh sure, she knew what her father was…but…
She gave a small sigh of something bordering on despair as she moved the pencil across the blank page of her sketch pad carefully drawing the masked face she recalled seeing on occasion in the place that was home until one night when a nurse helped her along with her cousin to escape.
It wasn't so much about being suicidal as it was just about being so incredibly tired of the war being fought within herself against this…pull or whatever it was. Even now whenever she glanced up from the image taking shape on the page before her there was this impulse…this drive…that left her imagining the act of picking up a knife to either slit a throat or plunge its blade into someone's heart.
She closed her eyes tightly against those images, praying they would soon fade and knowing that even if they did there would only be a temporary reprieve. It was a small mercy that the worst times were closest to Halloween. This was something the young woman never discussed with anyone as she knew there to be a certain amount of fear that even Jamie regarded her with because of the fact she was HIS daughter.?
(ooc: the song Kali is listening to is At War by Letters From The Fire.)
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Mekare placed slim white hands on the counter in front of her and met the other young woman's eyes with her stead knowing green ones as she nodded.
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"I knew a very bad...boogeywoman. Let me tell you, they can all be killed."
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She gave a slight shudder.
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"No matter how long it takes, and then...then you are safe once again."
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When the bar tender asked what the trouble was, Maharet's gaze tore from the girl drawing to turn back to thee bar and those at it.
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"Trouble that should not exist by all rights," the other less intense red head said softly.
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"Trouble that may make me sound mad if I told you..."
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She nearly added,//If only I could be sure,// But she was...though she did not wish to be with every fiber of her ancient being, she was.
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"Juice is fine. You have juice, don't you,"Jarveth asked, just wanting to get this over with.
I'm friends with the monster that's under my bed.
I get along with the voices inside of my head.
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“Not this ‘boogeyman’.” Jamie spent most of her life wishing that someone would finally put an end to her uncle while at the same time fearing it might trigger something within her cousin and awaken an even worse monster. “He’s been shot. He’s been caught in more than one explosion that I am aware of and still he keeps coming.”
She lowered her eyes briefly though caught a glimpse of the other twin turning away. Had it been something she'd said? It was so hard to tell sometimes when much of her focus was always on keeping an eye out for her uncle or warning signs in regards to her cousin.
The bartender set about fixing four glasses of fruit juice as the conversation continued and for a moment forgot about caution in her desire to assure the other woman she didn't think her mad. “His name is Michael Myers. When he was just six years old he killed his teenage sister and spent the next fifteen years locked up in Smiths Grove Sanitarium until on Halloween he broke out to kill his little sister…my mother.”
Here she sighed deciding to only fill in the rest if asked as she risked a glance toward her cousin and suppressed a shudder at the thought of Kali having like her father murdered someone when she was only six years old. The similarity was just too eerie and understandably made her uncomfortable.
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Mekare did not show any sign of recognition at the boy's name or story, for she'd never seen the movies.
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"But they never tried taking? off his head? That usually works," she said firmly.
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"That and fire. You just have to kill them right," she said, green eyes meeting the other young woman's with a forthright directness.
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Jarveth looked amused at the 4 glasses of juice and Armand laughed, jabbing him in the ribs, not paying attention to the conversation the girls were having.
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Of course they'd not know the others didn't want drinks, but Armand was going o enjoy watching Jarveth chug.
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"You look thirsty," he quipped and the short muscular? man chuckled and lifted the first glass, deciding to kill 2 now just for Armand's amusement and save the other 2 for when his meal arrived. As he swallowed down the? contents?of the first glass, his steady watchful gaze remained on the slender form of Mekare. She wasn't relaxed but she wasn't agitated either.
I'm friends with the monster that's under my bed.
I get along with the voices inside of my head.
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Lucy found it increasingly difficult to remain focused on the conversation at hand as thoughts of a past whether imagined or real filled her head. There were a great many things that fell into one of two categories…simply unpleasant or horrifying. If one were to approach this with a more rational mind one could easily enough come to the conclusion it was simply impossible for any of it to have happened.
She so wanted to dismiss it all as being the product of an overactive imagination. One didn't come back from that sort of thing. If there were any truth to that book she'd had a stake driven through her heart shortly before having been beheaded. There was a sort of finality to it. But then she supposed there always was with death or at least there should be.?
How could she even entertain such thoughts? It hardly seemed rational. It had to be all those movies, didn't it? Though she suspected it was the book that truly captured her imagination. “Huh? Oh, yes…it's certainly a difficult experience.” Her response coming somewhat belatedly as she realized something had been said.
She exited the vehicle with a casual glance at their surroundings, glad for once to be away from all those things meant to jog her memory.
Pandora let the response pass without further comment as she thought a little distraction might do her more good. “I have been here a few times. The food is pretty good.” The brunette caught what was no doubt a curious look being sent their way as a young woman near the square took notice of their arrival.
She set about leading the way towards Mystic Grille while continuing the small talk in the hopes of taking Lucy’s mind off whatever seemed to be troubling her.
Lucy entered first, making every effort to be present in the conversation, offering a polite smile to the gentleman who’d held the door open for them. Thankful when her friend or hostess, whatever best described the brunette at her side, chose a booth over taking a seat at the bar.
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Jamie felt relief at the lack of recognition, mostly because those who knew the story reacted in one of two ways…with fear or curiosity. The latter was more rare as often it only occurred when talking with people in the field of psychiatry or those who were just a little too obsessed with serial killers and in her opinion needed to see a shrink.
“They tried blowing him up once.” She remembered sitting cross legged on the floor beside her cousin when they were older as doctor Loomis talked about that night in the hospital when her uncle had come to kill her mother. Her attention only briefly drawn towards the door as it opened noticing a waitress was already walking up to the booth within seconds of the two women taking a seat.
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Kali kept a watchful eye on the other occupants even as she moved the pencil across the paper with the image of her knife wielding father soon taking shape. Extra attention was paid to the knife…giving the appearance of the light striking its blade at just the right angle.?
It was always strange and even at times unnerving…this preoccupation she had with that sort of weapon. Was it in her blood because of who her father was or did it stem from a childhood memory of driving the blade of one into that nurse’s body? It was difficult to say which it was.?
Her brown eyes glancing over at the neighboring booth as two women took a seat there, almost wishing they had chosen another as when in these moods she preferred to keep her distance. Offering a quick, yet friendly smile as the troubled redhead looked her way then returned to her drawing.
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"Armand, it's another vampire,"Mekare said without thinking, one hand coming out to clamp onto the slender forearm of the auburn haired youth who she had quickly learned to think of as a brother.
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Arman's expression said many things start his mouth did not, among which were fuck and god d damn it. Mekare had to be more careful! Then again the girl to whom they were talking didn't seem to mind abnormal...
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He sighed, following Mekare's gaze to a red haired young woman with a pretty dark haired one who...
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"She's not normal either but not a vampire,"Mekare murmured, speaking his own thoughts aloud.
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"Shut up," Armand nearly sang.
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Jarveth's gaze concentrated itself on the door as he hastily downed his food. The short stocky man ready to head for the door, moving anyone hindering them out of the way at a word from Mekare or Armand.
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"I shall go speak with her," Maharet said quietly and slid out of her chair, gliding over to Lucy, flowing yellow dress cloaking her in timeless fashion.
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"Good evening," Maharet told Lucy with a polite smile.
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"I am Maharet...My family and I have come here...well..."
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She glanced briefly at Pandora then back to Lucy.
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"Did you happen to sense anything...extremely disturbing of late if I might ask," she inquired as gently as possible.
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Knowing how insane it would all sound, she said nothing about angels, in which she had never believed or the end of the world.
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Mekare watched in amused fascination the way someone would behold something really good on Jerry Springer.
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"So..."Mekare said to Jamie, one green eye still on her sister and the new vampire.
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"You think he's coming here? Coming after you? I can't imagine what sort of creature wouldn't die by a good enough fire," she said, trying to keep the doubt from her voice even as her mind truly speculated over what could truly survive such.
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I'm friends with the monster that's under my bed.
I get along with the voices inside of my head.
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“What do you mean another vampire?” Jamie was starting to question whether the redhead might have had a few rather stiff drinks before coming here because everyone knew that vampires weren't real. If she were lucky this wasn't about to turn into one of those drunken disorderly situations where a phone call had to be placed to the sheriff.
Her eyes slowly moved to the teenager beside the woman with one eyebrow carefully lifted. It was hard to rule out the possibility of anything when there was every chance in the world that her own uncle was in fact the ‘boogeyman’ and she feared her cousin would follow the same path.
Clearly the woman's young companion was bothered by this announcement or at the very least embarrassed given his reaction. “Not…normal?” She spoke slowly with a quizzical look on her face as if not quite sure what to make of the situation but not quite willing to call for a padded wagon to take them away either.
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Lucy looked up a bit startled at the introduction mainly because she hadn't expected anyone to approach either of them. Sliding a look toward her friend before responding. “My name’s Lucy…this is…” She had startled to introduce the strange redhead to Pandora though at noticing she seemed to be far more focused on her left that thought unfinished.
“I am afraid I am a bit confused as to your meaning.” One nervously reached up tucking a few strands of red hair back behind her ear. Perhaps this woman was like her, brought back from the dead or whatever her story was. There were so many strange bits of what she could only hope were memories because otherwise she’d lost her mind.?
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Pandora lifted an eyebrow as she watched the exchange, curious as to what made the woman approach Lucy in the first place. Her question was a bit odd, however, it did cause her to wonder whether perhaps the woman had picked up on something from the life the obviously confused redhead seated at the table with her had lived before showing up here in Mystic Falls.
She decided to offer a question of her own, one that would either put a quick end to this or be the start of what would possibly prove to be an interesting, if not informative, conversation. “Like the dead rising?” Of course, she could have stayed out of it but curiosity led to another choice of action.?
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Jamie was oddly relieved when the conversation shifted back to her uncle, a subject she was normally only too glad to avoid talking about. “It's what he does. He targets family and kills anyone that gets in his way.” She glanced to where Kali sat drawing in her sketch pad as she said this.
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To Jamie's question of what she meant by another vampire Mekare shrugged.
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"I mean one who is not in this room and who does not know us," she replied literally. Maharet shot her a frown.
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//They don't know about vampires,//?she thought frantically to her twin.
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//But they're talking about some man with demonic seeming powers so what'll they care,// Mekare returned to her sister without turning to regard her.?
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Armand who had heard the exchange huffed an exasperated sigh. Mekare was likely right and with her being queen of the damned who could bitch that she'd said something to a mortal? Lestat? Yeah right. He couldn't help but smirk. Mekare was likely right though. If the women understood one paranormal thing why not let them know that there might be others?
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"He kills family," Mekare repeated Jamie's statement, half distracted and half attentive as she followed the conversation her twin was having across the room.
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"So as family is in this room, does that mean he's coming here," she pressed.
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"I don't mind helping to kill him if that's what you need," she offered a little too readily, and Armand wasn't sure if he wanted to frown or smile about that.
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Maharet gave Lucy an apologetic smile, again thinking how odd all this may sound but her soothing nearly calm expression faded at Pandora's question. Chills shot up her arms and down her spin. "The dead waking? I certainly hope not!"
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She couldn't come back, could she" And if so she had no power now. Mekare had it. It was alright. Alright. Slender hands crossed to either arm, rubbing them soothingly as if to ward off a chill she rarely if ever felt as a vampire.
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"There are immortals like, myself and her," she nodded to Lucy, "And then...that isn't what you meant, was it," she asked quietly.
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Somehow angels and demons that she'd not believed in before yesterday faded in the wake of Akasha. Insane she knew as the others would be far worse and were definitely and most certainly not dead.
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I'm friends with the monster that's under my bed.
I get along with the voices inside of my head.
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“But that's not…they aren't…” Jamie kept trying to finish that thought in a number of ways and yet nothing quite worked. It simply couldn't be possible. Vampires didn't exist. Did they? Her mind had begun to race as she sifted through bits of information she'd overheard while working as so often in these places the bartender went unnoticed.?
She knew this quiet little town had its share of secrets and often wondered why the sheriff wanted something called vervain slipped into the drinks every so often. Perhaps she should google that herb sometime to see if the internet could shed some light on the subject. “I mean, you hear things but…” Keeping up a neutral expression was becoming increasingly difficult as she struggled with the possibility that one of the most popular movie monsters was real.
Jamie found it oddly calming when the conversation turned back to her uncle, a subject she'd long since come to terms with so her level of panic and disbelief were no longer on the rise. “If he knows about us being here…” Subtly tipping her head towards her cousin, Kali, who so far was still seemingly absorbed in whatever she was drawing. “Then yes…he will.”
The memories of that ‘connection’ she'd shared with him as a child still fresh in her mind and while she no longer seemed to possess it herself she often wondered whether Kali as his daughter did. “If it brought an end to this nightmare…I would be grateful but…sometimes I wonder if it would only start another.” She hadn't intended to say that last bit aloud and was thankful her cousin hadn't appeared to have heard it.?
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Pandora was hardly surprised at Lucy's silence given the topic of conversation, one that if the redhead was who she believed her to be had very limited experience with anything supernatural having died so soon after being turned. “I’m afraid so. You see, my friend here…” The sharing of information wasn't a thing she felt terribly comfortable with but felt inclined to do so at present.?
“Caught a slight case of death…when in 1897 she was staked and beheaded. Yet somehow, here she is…alive and quite human again.” She caught the visible signs of what bordered on fear in Lucy's eyes as she recounted the woman's death minus all the gory details and once again wondered if it were possible she was indeed THAT Lucy Westenra.
“Also there was another ‘houseguest’ of mine who I am told is an extremely old vampire who died in the early to mid 1980s. On that I only have the word of a friend who was able to enter her mind as she was…in a sort of…coma until earlier this evening when she woke and took off.”
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Lucy fought to keep herself focused on the ‘here and now’ even as nightmarish images drifted out of her subconscious to haunt her. In that moment she could almost swear she remembered the stake being driven into her heart before it all went black. A single word escaped her lips as she sat there in that booth. “Arthur.”
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"You can't just speak of Vampires so blithely," Armand hissed into Mekare's ear.
"You know that."
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His pretty face looked more fearsome at the moment as he scowled at her. Mekare nodded, but her calm expression didn't change. The nod meant that she'd heard him not necessarily that she agreed.
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"Yes but if angels are singing to my sister about the end of the world, does it really matter?"
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Did she believe her sister or was she only trying very hard and succeeding very well in to annoy him, Armand wondered, then sighed.
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"How could killing him make it worse," Mekare asked Jamie, openly interested.
She was far more comfortable with talk of killing than talk of angels...or vampires either for that matter.
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Meanwhile Maharet swayed slightly on her feet at the news of vampires returning from the dead. This Lucy, whoever she was was a marvel as once one was beheaded it was over as far as she knew, but the disturbing went to an entire new level when..."Akasha," the word, the question, rasped from her suddenly dry, constricted throat.
A calm yet distant part of her mind conversationally asked why it should be surprising if she, a nonbeliever, was hearing angels. Why did anything surprise her especially if it was bad. But...the rest of her mind decided that it couldn't be. She slowly shook her head.
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"Her body...it turned to dust. That's...impossible."
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The woman hadn't said Akasha and before Mekare had emerged from thee jungle like an avenging angel herself to take the evil queen down, Akasha had taken out many innocent vampires. If indeed the dead were somehow inexplicably returning, it was far more likely to be one of them. Yes, Maharet decided, soothing herself with that thought. It had to be someone else. There was no way.
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I'm friends with the monster that's under my bed.
I get along with the voices inside of my head.
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Jamie’s eyes drifted toward her cousin for what felt like the millionth time since this conversation began. Theirs was a complicated relationship. More so than that of any ‘normal’ family. Oh sure, all families come with their share of issues, but...she’d be willing to bet none that involved coming so damn close to visibly tensing the second a loved one’s fingers touched a knife. It made preparing meals a less than relaxing experience.
She tried not to eavesdrop on the brief exchange that followed talk of vampires. It was just too weird. Even for her. Things like that didn’t exist outside of horror stories. At least she’d keep telling herself that until she pushed the other possibility from her mind for good.
Should she answer that question? If so, how honestly? Following a brief look toward the corner booth to ensure Kali wasn’t paying attention she took a deep breath then finally spoke. “I don’t know how much any of you believes in curses and I know how it sounds but...I’m afraid that if he dies...it moves on to his daughter.”
She felt guilty for saying as much as she felt certain Kali knew that everyone around her felt some hint of fear that one day she’d become her father. It was ridiculous. Of course, she knew it was to be afraid of that happening, but...who knew what Wynn and the others had done the night her cousin was born.?
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“How did you....?” Pandora was a little surprised at hearing that name spoken though not visibly so. No. When one lived as long as she had they tended to have a damned good ‘poker face’ under most circumstances. A quick glance was spared towards Lucy who appeared to be coming back from wherever her mind had just gone. She supposed it had to do with that name...Arthur. Her former fiancé. If she was indeed THAT Lucy.
“I can’t speak to what happened before we found her though a friend of mine might have a little insight. All I can say is that she woke earlier this evening and took off.” When the opportunity presented itself she’d have to have a conversation with Miranda about what the vampire had gleaned from those few strolls in the ancient one’s subconscious.
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Kali lowered her pencil a moment lightly tapping the edge of her sketchbook with its eraser. Brown eyes lifting from the page seemingly to look around at the other patrons though it would seem her mind had gone a million miles away. It felt as if she were right there in the room with him...with Michael Myers. But what she was seeing was somewhere else...somewhere close but not here. Not yet.
She knew a feeling like that would fill anyone else with a sense of dread but in her case it was complicated as she’d not had a traumatic encounter with her father or any other kind for that matter. The look sent her way by Jamie caused her brow to furrow as for a moment she wondered if her cousin had read her mind.?
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"I didn't believe in a lot of things until they happened to me," Mekare told Jamie with an almost kind smile. Her green eyes held a look of understanding as well as general concern for...the day itself.
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"I suppose I could believe my twin sister and I were cursed. Things were certainly bad enough...Uniquely specifically so," she added after a moment of thoughtful consideration.
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"I suppose one would look into how to break a curse then? Though perhaps it isn't as simple as that. Perhaps it depends on the curse itself," she mused, actually having no idea.
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"I understand the vampire concept is difficult, but? so is the angel one...and we're having to deal with that."
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She gave a light laugh.
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Jarveth, finished with his meal, moved slightly closer to her, hand dropping onto her slender shoulder in a gesture of protection. She didn't feel she needed it, she was much stronger now, and always had been in her way. She only needed to adjust. Still anything from him was...desired so she l eaned into the touch.
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Armand had given up and merely watched through hard stoic eyes.
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"So what action are you taking," Maharet asked the woman who she could see thought of herself as Pandora.
"And...what are you if I may ask. Not one of us, not human. Something should be done about the dead returning, though, one would think."
?
She didn't pry too much into the woman, it was rude and in this case could be dangerous even if, for her, it had become somewhat of a survival mechanism.
Today held an unreal quality...like some unwanted bad dream, and she didn't like it one bit.
I'm friends with the monster that's under my bed.
I get along with the voices inside of my head.
|
Jamie thought she’d saw something on her cousin’s face but it was difficult to tell with how often her imagination tended to get the better of her. Did she have a knife? It was always the first thought to enter her mind followed by whether the darkness or...curse hadn’t taken hold. It was hard enough dealing with the nightmares of those two Halloween nights from her childhood and years spent locked up in the basement of Smith’s Grove mere doors down the hallway from where HE was being held.
?
“The only people that I know of who would even begin to know how to break the ‘curse’ are either all dead or happy with the ‘status quo’ so they wouldn’t be inclined to be all that helpful.” She honestly felt fairly confident that the night they all escaped her uncle had killed his way through those connected to the ‘Cult of the Thorne’.?
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“What...wait...angels?” She wasn’t sure which was harder to believe...that vampires were real or that angels were. Both seemed a bit out there. But then she did have an uncle who couldn’t be killed and was hellbent on wiping out his family tree for some unknown reason.
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Pandora casually lifted an eyebrow in response to the question of her actions on a matter she could only guess had to do with this ‘Akasha’. “Pray tell, what would I be taking action against?” She sent a sidelong look toward the other redhead who appeared to be regaining some focus. The name she’d spoken earlier that of her fiancé, who by a cruel twist of fate played a key role in her grisly death.?
?
She leaned back a bit with arms folding across her chest as she considered the next question. “What am I?” The brunette repeated those words as she toyed with the idea of leaving the answer as a huge question mark. “Certainly not a vampire.” It was tempting to make the woman endure a process of elimination to solve that riddle but with Lucy present she had zero interest in having the woman used as leverage in an unfolding confrontation. “I am, however, immortal.”
?
It always surprised her when this woman’s kind picked this ‘quiet little town’ with its history of handling vampires. Her take could be a rather long one if she chose to reveal anything in depth given her age. “I am witch who was burned at the stake three thousand five hundred and ninety seven years ago in Athens, Greece.”
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"Alright,"Maharet told Pandora
crisply.
?
"Then as a witch you should never be aiding someone
like Akasha. Ever. She is evil incarnate and has no love for witches to put it
far too lightly. My sister and I were...witches. She did unspeakable things to
us and believed us dead or worse simply because we could not...simply because we
were us and she was insane. I am not sure how she is alive considering my sister
killed her and her body disintegrated. But I am not sure what has angels who I
never believed to exist all stirred up either."
?
She wanted to clutch her head but remaining calm
was the way to go because it was what she knew. She had to remain her own rock
or she knew things would get worse. She felt Armand suddenly at her side before
she saw him. The support he showed, the fact he saw the strain she hadn't
visibly shown was touching. Other than extending a slender hand to cover one of
his, she gave no outward sign.
?
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"I suppose angels could break a curse," Mekare
said. "If anyone could...but then again perhaps they have better things to
do."
She shook her head. "Believe me, I know how insane
it sounds," she said dryly.
?
Jarveth nodded for his part but gave a slight smile
and shrug of his wide shoulders...because he had quickly gotten accustom to the
strange and starnger.
I'm friends with the monster that's under my
bed.
I get along with the voices inside of my
head.
|
Pandora found that more often than not vampires were a bit over dramatic, a thing she supposed had to do with their heightened emotions. Maybe that wasn’t the case here but she was hardly willing to buy into the idea of the woman being ‘evil incarnate’. “I don’t know about all that.” She had seen flashes of things the times when she’d touched Akasha.?
?
Checking her phone to see if there was word about her missing ‘houseguest’ as she figured that Miranda would take it upon herself to track the woman down. “I think there was more at play than either you or your sister knew.” She hadn’t exactly been afforded the opportunity of getting to know the woman what with her being unconscious then gone but certain things felt clear to her.?
?
“Whatever or whoever brought Akasha back to life is ancient and quite powerful.” It was a feeling she’d gotten when she first touched the woman’s hand trying to discover whatever she could about her. Briefly considering angels as a possibility but quickly dismissing the idea.
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Lucy chose to focus on what the others were saying because not doing so meant getting lost inside her own head. She needed some sort of distraction from all the pressure she felt to regain her memory which had started coming back in pieces. Her green eyes drifted to the woman who seemed to have some sort of history with the ‘sleeping beauty’ who woke earlier that evening.?
?
“Why bring us back to life?” Her question was aimed at no one in particular. She still wasn’t entirely convinced that she’d died at all in the first place but the others had little trouble believing she had. But dead was dead, wasn’t it? She briefly looked to the ‘young man’ now standing at Maharet’s side out of curiosity.
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“If I thought for one second it’d work...I would be praying to whoever was up there listening.” Jamie gave a quick nod when a coworker came around behind the bar signaling the end of her shift. She then turned back to the redhead with whom she’d been discussing her uncle and curses. “It’s sort of hard to believe in higher powers when as a little girl you spent not one but two Halloweens being stalked by the ‘boogeyman’.”
?
She walked around from behind the bar taking a seat on one of the stools after sending a look toward the booth where her cousin was sitting. Part of her almost wished she’d left her with Loomis because then she wouldn’t be spending every moment of every day worrying about Kali becoming like her father.
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Kali let her eyes move back to her sketchbook turning the page she began drawing a picture of a little boy in a clown costume with a bloody kitchen knife in his hand with a jack-o-lantern on the porch just behind him.?
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Maharet struggled for calm and failed. Her half
blind green eyes flashed as she studied Pandora, seeing with her mind more than
anything else.
?
"You have no idea. We were there. Whatever could
bring that creature back is evil!? She was ignorant and evil and used her
power to hurt and kill a lot of people for a very long time. I think the more
power she got the more insane she became. It started with my sister and I, ten
thousand years of damage. She had us raped, my eyes torn out, my twin's tongue
torn out, and then she had us separated, set in stone coffins and cast a drift
on the ocean to end up a world away from one another for a very very long time.
But if you can condone rape and torment, how about murder? For she killed untold
numbers of our kind, the largest amount just before my sister returned to take
her down. And now she's back? You're telling me she's back and you dare to
defend her?"
?
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Maharet was normally the voice of reason, but just
now her youthful voice was rising slightly.
?
Cherubic lips tight in sympathetic understanding,
Armand took her hand in his, giving it a squeeze and adding his own cold glare
to her angry one.
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"And no for the record I do not believe the dead
should return though I threaten none here," he told Lucy.
?
He had no idea of her sin and doubted he wished to,
but if she and Akasha had both been resurrected, he'd bet it was something
ugly.
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"You could do much harm harboring such as Akasha,"
he said, finally addressing Pandora.
?
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Mekare's eyes moved from the girl on the stool to
her other side to her twin across the room.
?
"My brother in law there," she said, nodding
briefly to Armand, "Would say that if there is great evil in the world, there
must be great good to keep a necessary balance. I am not sure I believed him
much about that but today I hope he is right because we need all the help we can
get.? If this boogie man could not be killed, and he is not a vampire, I
have never herd of whatever he is. I've never seen anything fire won't kill and
if it didn't..."
?
She wrapped her arms around herself, struggling
against the old need to retreat inward.? With Armand's patient work and
then?Jarveth around she'd stopped doing that.? She never wanted to
leave Jarveth even to retreat inside of herself. As if pulled on strings her
eyes moved to find him on her other side and knowing her as he did, he gave her
a reassuring smile that caused her entire body to relax as she let out a small
sigh.
?
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"Whatever it is, we'll find it and take care of it,
Mek," he said, hand idly traveling to the ax at his belt.
?
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"We always find a way," he encouraged.
?
I'm friends with the monster that's under my
bed.
I get along with the voices inside of my
head.
|
Kat
Hugin