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Post by neverlandlostgirl on Jul 9, 2016 5:44:49 GMT
It was one of those days in Bellerouge where it continued to rain on and off, shrouding the city in a cloak of chilly dampness. Despite it being a business day, the streets were mostly empty except for a few umbrella-yielding individuals who quickly ducked into the glowing shops and cafes to escape the weather. A fog lay over the Antoinette River and the bayou and the only constant sound was that of the soft raindrops.
If the streets were quiet, the cemetery was dead silent. No tourists or wannabe ghost hunters visited the boneyard today and it was so quiet anyone who happened to be passing by would have thought it was completely empty. It wasn't. In the shadows of one of the oldest mausoleums, a figure stirred.
Pitch slowly opened his glowing eyes and looked out across the seemingly endless expanse of tombstones and crypts that lay before him, unperturbed by the almost mist-like rain that fell. Shadows weren't bothered by the rain....or the dead. He was supposed to be working on a new case that had come to him, learning about a new drug ring that had supposedly entered Bellerouge and was quickly growing to worrying size. However, he had pushed the case aside for the day.
Some might have called him on this seemingly careless attitude, but the director of the BPD knew better. On days like this Pitch always disappeared for a time. The demon always came back and worked as well as ever, but days like this were meant for him to be left alone. It had been part of his conditions for becoming a detective for the BPD and turning against the Lao of Bellerouge.
No one knew why he spent such days on his own and nobody asked. Even if they had, the only response they would have hoped to receive was an unreadable look from the demon's yellow gaze and a single sentence.
"It's a day to remember."
Such had it been before then, such was it now. He closed his eyes for another moment and let himself remember, let his memories take him to the past and the promise he had made. And as he stood in the shadows, surrounded, he listened only to the story of his past and the rain. It was a long time before he finally opened his eyes again.
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on Jul 9, 2016 19:11:56 GMT
While most people hated walking in the rain, Adeline didn't mind so much. Maybe it was because she could dry herself in a second with a simple spell, but still, she liked the rain. It gave her an odd sense of comfort. While normally she'd linger a bit and enjoy it, she was headed towards a particular destination today. Her tutoring had ended for the day, and she was determined to go to her favorite book store and get something. It had been ages since she had gotten something new to read. With her sweatshirt hood pulled over her head, she made her way across the cemetery. While not the most glamorous of shortcuts, it was a fast one. She was surprised, however, to see that she wasn't alone. Somebody else was here, standing in the rain. Adeline's eyes narrowed as she tried to get a better look. Was it somebody she knew? She took a few steps closer.
It was a man, sort of. He looked like one, but he definitely wasn't human. His skin was an ashy gray and his eyes were a bright yellow. Adeline blinked. His eyes kind of reminded her of Thrax's. They were nearly the same shade. The demon flashed in Adeline's mind for a brief second. She clutched the front of her sweatshirt as she felt a slight burn in her chest. She knew her demon side was stirring. "Don't you dare," she muttered, as if it was a pet that could be tamed. It seemed to do the trick though, and the burning sensation vanished. She gave a sigh. She hated when things like that happened outside of her house. She always got whispered about behind her back and people gave her weird looks. It was not something she liked dealing with.
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Post by neverlandlostgirl on Jul 9, 2016 21:21:06 GMT
Pitch had been listening to the drops hitting the ground as he kept his eyes closed. However, a new sound came to join the rain, the sound of someone walking through the graveyard nearby and the steps were drawing closer. Suddenly them came to a stop only a short distance away and he finally opened his eyes to see a young woman wearing a hooded jacket looking at him.
He stared back at her in utter silence, his face perfectly blank. He was a bit surprised that this girl had stopped to start at him given that most people who saw a dark figure in a graveyard on a rainy day would have kept walking as quickly as possible.
Pitch was about to step back into the shadows and disappear, not wanting to be bothered when he was preoccupied with thoughts of the past, when the woman suddenly clutched at the front of her sweatshirt as if in pain and whispered under her breath.
At that moment the scent of the woman came to him. Normally he would have picked up her scent even before she came into sight, but the rain and his own distracting thoughts had blocked it until now. It was the scent of a demon.
He frowned, his golden eyes seeming to flash for a moment as he stepped towards the woman, his posture suddenly completely alert. If this demon was here to try and pick a fight with him, it wouldn't be the first time. Others had sought him out and attempted to kill him when he had joined the BPD, calling him a traitor to all demons and his own nature. Those fools had never even understood how deep that 'betrayal' really ran. And while he had always been the victor in such cases, he remained ready for another demonic attack. They were a rarity now, but Pitch still kept his instincts sharp and his shadows at the ready.
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on Jul 9, 2016 21:50:27 GMT
The man was approaching her now, and Adeline wasn't sure what to do. Should she just keep walking? Try to brush off anything he might have seen? She felt like spilling the truth wasn't an option. That just led people to either pity her or think she was strange. After all, what other teenage witch decided to summon a demon just to see if she could? As the man approached though, Adeline was starting to think that it wasn't just his eyes that made her think of Thrax. It was the way he moved, the air around him. It felt...familiar. Was this guy a demon too? If he was, she had no idea how to react. Very few demons in this city were good. Maybe if she started out with an apology, she could get on his good side. "Um, sorry for...disturbing you," she said, the words coming out a bit awkward and stilted. "Were you...busy with something?" She figured the guy was here for a reason, after all. Not many people came to a cemetery for kicks.
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Post by neverlandlostgirl on Jul 10, 2016 0:22:36 GMT
The woman straightened up as he approached her and the smallest expression of worry came across her violet eyes. However, rather then attack or flee as so many others would have done, she spoke and offered an apology.
That brought Pitch to a stop only a few feet away from the girl, close enough he could reach out and touch her if he wanted. He didn't though and he seemed to be looking at her again with that strange expression.
The apology had brought him up short. What sort of self-respecting demon would apologize unless they had been forced to do so? And something else too, her scent had become more clear the closer he drew. Yes, there was definitely demon on her, but there was now the smell of human as well. So perhaps this woman was not a full-blood demon but a Halfling like Moses. Still, he did not put his defenses aside just yet.
"Who are you?"
He kept his voice quiet but the shadows around him seemed to slither and squirm towards her, a warning that if she lied or tried to do anything sudden they would attack.
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on Jul 11, 2016 0:21:46 GMT
Adeline blinked. Why was this guy asking who she was? Was he just curious? Did he know about her? She wasn't exactly a celebrity, but some people recognized who she was as soon as she mentioned her name. The papers had loved talking about her for a while, until they had found something else to focus on. "Adeline Nevermore," she replied, drawing herself up a little straighter. "And you are..." If this guy was asking who she was, she figured she could do the same with him.
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Post by neverlandlostgirl on Jul 11, 2016 1:02:58 GMT
Pitch recognized the name in a vague way. There had been an article on someone by the name of Adeline Nevermore several months ago but he hadn't even read the paper, let alone that single piece. However, the picture that had been featured did seem to match this young woman although when she asked for his name, he only answered with another question.
"And why do you smell of demon?"
Most of the time he would have simply done a quick fade into the shadows, but he wanted to know why this girl carried the odor of a demon on her. After all, he had learned it was better to know about any new demons that appeared in Bellerouge in case they later became a big enough problem.
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on Jul 11, 2016 1:55:50 GMT
Adeline sighed. It looked like this guy wasn't going to tell anything about himself until she spilled the beans. She figured she might as well. She'd told this story to dozens of people before. What was one more? "I got cocky with my spell work and decided to summon a demon," she replied. "He said his name was Thrax. I thought I could control him, but he was too strong. He overpowered me, and decided to leave a piece of himself with me." Her eyes traveled to her feet. "I'm a witch, but part of me is a demon now." She glanced back up at the man. "Does that answer your question?"
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Post by neverlandlostgirl on Jul 11, 2016 2:31:38 GMT
Pitch was mildly surprised when the woman didn't hold back but told her story. Most people would never open up to someone they had literally just run into in a graveyard, but clearly this woman wasn't like most people. For one thing, she was a witch who had tried to control something that was uncontrollable.
"I've heard of cases like yours before but never had the pleasure to meet one in person."
His curiosity was peaked now and he wondered for a moment if the demon she had someone was one he knew. He brought his hand to his face and began to gently tap his chin as he started to walk around her, taking in Adeline's form and trying to sense if the demon within her was a familiar one or not. What was most surprising about the woman was that she wasn't completely possessed. Any human who tried to summon a demon normally became nothing more then a walking host for them to use and dispose of as they saw fit, but witches were another story.
"And to what purpose did you feel the need to summon a demon? The need to amplify your powers? A servant to fulfill your every wish? A way to exact some petty revenge against an enemy?"
He continued to walk around Adeline, his wolf-eyes never straying away from her form.
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on Jul 12, 2016 3:06:39 GMT
"You've heard about something like this before?" Adeline asked. People getting overpowered by demons they had summoned had happened before, of course. There were whole sections of spell books explaining why it was a bad idea. Adeline hadn't found anyone who had gone through what she had experienced, though. Apparently, everyone else in this city was smarter than she was and knew better than to try and summon a demon. As the man circled her, Adeline wondered if it was wise, to explain what had happened to a total stranger. Sure, she had told the story to tons of people before, but this guy seemed...different. Maybe it was because he was a demon himself. Or, at least, Adeline suspected him of being one. When she was asked why she did it, she answered truthfully "Because I could. Everyone always said I was so bright and smart. I had mastered so many spells before. I figured this would come as easily as the others." She paused for a minute before asking "Are you a demon too?"
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Post by neverlandlostgirl on Jul 12, 2016 3:21:24 GMT
Pitch finally came to stand once more in front of Adeline as she explained why she had even attempted to summon a demon. And her reason was so typical of humans that he might have laughed in a different situation. Instead, only a vague smirk appeared on his long face. Because she could. It seemed as though mortals were obsessed with doing things simply because they could, because they had the power or ability or money to do so. And never mind the consequences of said action. All that mattered was that they could do it even if the whole world burned in the process.
"It seems as though even witches fall prey to humanity's flaws."
When she then asked if he were a demon, Pitch merely stood perfectly still as the rain continued to fall on the city and the graveyard in which they stood. Finally, he gave a small nod of his head. Despite all his other secrets, he wasn't exactly trying to hide his demonic nature from the public.
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on Jul 12, 2016 3:34:56 GMT
Adeline wasn't sure if that little comment about humanity's flaws was supposed to be funny or not. She wasn't sure if demons had a sense of humor. Although, granted, she had only met one in her life, and he was a pretty bad guy. The man confirmed her suspicions though, when he nodded in answer to her question. That certainly explained why he was curious about her. No doubt she was considered some weird half-breed thing. Not fully a demon, not quite a witch, but somewhere in between. It made her feel out of place. "So, I know what you are, and you know what I am. What do we do now?" she asked. It didn't seem like this demon was going to attack her, although he was certainly on guard. If he had wanted to kill her, or something along those lines, he would have done it by now.
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Post by neverlandlostgirl on Jul 12, 2016 3:50:56 GMT
"Simple. I speak to my fellow demon."
Suddenly, the shadows at Pitch's sides moved with the speed of a striking viper, their target the young woman standing only a short distance away. He had no intention of actually hurting or killing her but knew that, while the demon inside her was dormant now, it would surely awaken if it sensed that its host was in peril. And he wanted to know who had taken up residence in Adeline, but it was impossible to sense them if they were hiding behind the witch's own scent.
After all, even though he had only heard of a few cases of demonic possession such as this, they were always just the beginning to something far worse.
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on Jul 12, 2016 4:02:08 GMT
Adeline only had time to widen her eyes in reaction to what the man said. A warning was on the tip of her tongue. This demon side of her scared her terribly. She had no idea what would happen. But the man moved as if to attack her, and her instincts reacted. His presence was enough to awaken her own. She could feel it emerging, red-hot and angry. Her body shuddered for a moment, then stopped. When she opened her eyes, they were glowing red. "I suggest you put those away," she growled, gesturing towards the shadows at the man's side.
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Post by neverlandlostgirl on Jul 12, 2016 4:10:29 GMT
Pitch didn't. Instead, the shadows remained poised and ready to strike but for the moment didn't move from where he stood in front of the mausoleum. As he had expected the demonic entity living inside Adeline had come forward to protect its host and he had gotten his first real scent from it. It was far stronger then he had anticipated but he felt no fear or worry in that moment as he looked across the open space to where Adeline stood.
"No. I think I'll keep them out for the moment."
Pitch let his eyes look to his shadows and his pale hand went out to gently stroke one of them. The darkness shifted into a vaguely equine-shape before he glanced back at the demon Adeline.
"Ah, I recognize that scent now."
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