[ORPC] Dancing down a path I didn't want (solo)

[Zodiac]

A dreamer is one who can only find his way by moonlight, and his punishment is that he sees the dawn before the rest of the world. ~Oscar Wilde~

The shop was wrapped in a festive glow of orange and purple lights blinking around comical skeletons, cats, zombies, witches and of course jack-o-lanterns. Pandora's and her other businesses were slowly becoming decked out for the season to come. Zodiac stood in her normal work attire with the addition of a witch's hat on her head as she did business. By the week of All Hallows, everyone in the shop would be dressed up, but for now it was little things to highlight the normal everyday/night dealings.

Fingers danced across a keypad with practiced precision after she had rung up the woman's purchase. That will be $42.27. Cash or charge, dear? her iPhone 'spoke' for her.

"Oh that is so clever!" the middle aged woman exclaimed as she pulled her Visa card free of her wallet. "Charge, please. I wondered how a mute could run a business without talking, but you seem to be doing very well."

The girl in the gypsy attire just smiled in reply. If her customer had paid more attention, she would have seen the girl's eye twitch sharply at her statements. To say such things upset her would be putting it mildly. She was used to comments and questions of a serious nature about her handicap. Those she did not mind at all. The inquisitives and the concerned never bothered her, but it was people like this, who made it sound like they just watched a trained monkey do a clever trick, that made her bite her mental tongue in anger. Several times she had considered writing up a small flyer to pass out to explain her condition, but the last time she started one the title had come out

'If it's ANY of your ******* business!'

so she deleted the file. She dealt with a form of Aphasia. Simple. She could hear very well and she understood the process of speaking, but some quirk in her head made the transfer to her vocal chords not work. At best, she sounded garbled and sporadic. In some of her kind, being turned caused some long term problems to be mended for the newly born vampire, but in her case it had not happened. "Maybe my ***** of a mother dropped me on my head or something," she had wondered when her thoughts turned to it all. Some things she had read said surgery could have fixed this, but since being turned it would be a brief moment of actually making sounds that made sense, so the idea was never pursued.

She handed the woman her receipt and her card, then placed her hands together prayer-like and bowed her head.

"So cute! I just have to tell my friends about you." the woman exclaimed as she took her bag and headed to the door.

"About my shop or about me? How cute would it be if I went inside your head and melted the few brain cells you still have?" she kept her mindspeak nailed down tight as she watched the woman exit. It was a temptation. Oh yes. In a world where few understood sign language or had the patience to read her notes or texts, making others understand you was a problem at best. Once she had been shoved into the darkness, she began to learn how to work things to her best advantage. Once she discovered she could learn the abilities other paths had at their command, it was non stop. Some say words are superficial, but when one has had a lifetime of being denied the ability to speak them they take on a weight and depth most would never consider. 'Liar's use words' her Nana had said many times.

"But only because they can hide their thoughts," she had concluded in time.

((Flaw 1/Benefit 1))

TBC

[Zodiac]

Everybody's walkin', but nobody's talkin', it looks a lot better from here... ~Ozzy Osbourne~

"Why do they do that? WHY?"

Jennifer cringed at the sudden shouting in her thoughts as her employer stormed through the back of the store and out the back door. "Oh joy," she thought as she followed. She had overheard some of the comments of the customer and would have served her instead if she had a clue how the person actually was, but she was only human. No mind tricks and a hundred other things Zodiac could do now. She already heard the crashing outside as she approached the door.

The dumpster shuddered as the scrap length of 4X2 wood slammed into it repeatedly. Jennifer pushed the door stop in to keep the door open so she could hear the chimes if someone entered and just watched. There was nothing else she could do when 'Zodiac' got this upset about something. The world was full of idiots and no one can protect someone from all of them. Mentally she blocked out as best she could the strings of curses in both English and Romany while leaning against the wall and lighting up a smoke. Eventually the anger wore itself out and with a final whack, the gypsy threw the length of wood to the side of the building.

"You know, if you would give me some kind of sign, I could download an image from the security tapes of these jerks, then print a picture for you to aim at. Just tape it on the side of the dumpster for you." the girl spoke open and calmly, despite the glare she got in reply. Jennifer approached her slowly and visually inspected the mystic's handiwork. "I am also running out of excuses for the trash service to explain what is happening to their dumpsters."

"**** them!" the sharp thought slammed into Jennifer's head in reply. The woman lit a second cigarette and offered it to Zodiac.

"I hope we ain't that desperate to pay the bills around here." she replied. "Feel any better, Angela?"

Only a small handful of the night people knew who Zodiac has been before her 'accident', and she was perhaps the only human who did as well. She had known her employer before she had been turned and had stayed with her. Zodiac took the offered cigarette and sighed.

"Not really, no, Thanks." she took a drag.

"I'm sorry. If I had known..." Jennifer began, but the gypsy waved it off.

"They always find me. Always." Her anger spent, she was deflating now. Jennifer knew better than to say something like 'You think you'd be used to this by now.' or some other bit of encouraging advice. Things like that would be the equivalent of throwing gasoline onto a bon fire. Instead she returned to the doorway and pulled out two folding chairs that were kept in the back. Jennifer unfolded them both and sat on one of them while giving Zodiac a look that said 'You gonna let me sit next to the trash all by myself?' When her boss sat down, she began to speak.

"You know, I'd probably get the same kind of crap if people knew."

"Knew about what?"

"That I was your...thrall." The word itself made Jennifer feel as if she had swallowed something nasty, and it was never said between the two normally. "People would be like 'Oh look, it's the vampire's little *****' or 'How does it feel kissing a cold dead ***?'. Hell, most of my friends swear me and you have something going on."

"Lies." Zodiac looked down at her shoes as she rubbed her temples.

"I know that, but people are people and come up with the most stupid things." Compared to some stories she had heard on the subject of thralls, Jennifer was a pampered princess. "You have never treated me badly. Outside of hugs you have never touched me. Well, there was that one time you beat Iris and me with a broom to stop us from fighting." she laughed a bit. "Point is, even if they did know the truth, people would talk **** regardless. For someone so smart, why can't you get that idea into your head and keep it there?"

"Pride. Nothing but Szgany pride." she answered.

Jennifer nodded. She knew Angela's life story. As in her mortal life, she fought long and hard to get where she was now. "Pride don't pay the bills, chicka. Idiots like that pay them for us."

"I know, I know." Her emotions were finally subsiding now back into a lazy flowing river from the storm they had been moments before. The door chimes rang and Jennifer got up from her chair while placing a hand on Zodiac's shoulder to keep her in place.

"I got it. I will come get you if it's for you."

[Zodiac]

So wizards-cast your spells. With no heart to do me well.. ~Manowar~

"BACK THE HELL UP!" she shouted mentally, only to have a reply of a roar of rage. She knew how this could go, but held her ground and glared at the beast looking down at her as she stood between it and it's intended victims. The first time she saw one of these things, if her body still worked as it did when she was alive her panties would have been soaked in urine.

She bounced a bit, making sure her shoes were getting a good grab on the ground beneath her as the thing decided what it was going to do. The mystic ducked as one clawed hand swiped the air and the fight was on. The entire process was almost automatic. She never thought-just reacted. Her size and speed working against the lumbering brute now.

"Shid-dee-yah!" she conjured and watched the air elemental appear and knock the fadebeast off its feet. It was slowing down finally. A few more well placed shots and spells and the creature lost its grip on this plane of existence and began to fall apart. She watched it (Zodiac never ceased to be amazed at the process) till it was nothing more than scrap bones and coagulating blood before turning her attentions to the potential 'victims' behind her.

The momma cat was still ready to fight as her young peered out of the pile of trash they were hiding in. The gypsy got on her knees and waited patiently till the enraged feline picked up her vibe and began to calm down. "That's it, precious ones," she cooed gently as the cat finally allowed her to stroke it's back softly. She adored cats. All animals basically and somehow they seemed to be open to her despite her not being among the living anymore. Slowly as she built the trust between herself and the mother her eyes looked about the discarded junk till she found a box. "Let's get you all somewhere a lot safer than this."

She left the alleyway with a old liquor box tucked under her arm. Inside the tiny mews echoed about. Zodiac dropped the family off at a local animal shelter (along with a not so small donation) and continued on her way. As she walked, she considered the scene earlier. How normal had such things become in her 'life'? Fighting monsters in dark alleys? Fighting anything at all? The first time she finally built up the nerve to fight, rather than run away from, a fadebeast she learned how a lone sock felt trapped in a running dryer. The thing used her as a basketball.

((Flaw 2/Benefit 2 Part One))

TBC

[Zodiac]

She's a restless spirit on an endless flight.. ~The Eagles~

"Hey!"

She turned and saw the pair of men outside the bar across the street as she walked along, then looked back into the direction she was going.

"Hey now. Don't be like that." one of the pair grew louder. "We just wanna party with ya." They laughed as the gypsy's steps picked up speed as she rounded the corner out of their sight. Zodiac continued to quick step for a few blocks till she came to one of the busier intersections and paused as she waited for the light to turn. A slight shudder ran through her for a moment as she composed herself. It was fine. She was fine. Mentally she whispered a silent prayer as the light changed. She continued along, now back to her original pace but her direction had changed. Now she headed along a more populated path. Humans and others going about their business around her. It was a knee jerk reaction. An old fail safe in the back of her mind causing her to do this.

She rounded another corner and ran into a person who suddenly appeared from a doorway. The man reached out to catch her to keep her from falling, but was surprised by the look of total terror in the girl's eyes .

"I'm sorry," he let her go as soon as she had her balance, "I should have looked before I stepped out. Spare change?" Zodiac saw the cup in the man's other hand and relaxed. Apologizing herself and inquiring if the man was okay. A few dollars given and she was on her way again.

The irony of it all was not lost on her. She could stand toe to toe with walking nightmares, but a single male presence could un-nerve her totally if caught off guard. Even now, with what she had become, she'd forget what she was capable of and suddenly be frozen in fear. The girl who had become Zodiac had good reasons to be afraid, yet despite coming to terms with such things. Even returning to the scene of the crime itself and uncharacteristically for her killing those who planted that fear into her, that weed never totally died away within her. That was exactly how it was. A weed. Patient and hidden till the proper setting presented itself and suddenly it would emerge among the flowers within herself.

She was practically running by the time she reached her place.

The door bolted and barred, she sat in her easy chair watching the logs burning in the fireplace. She shivered, but not from the cold, but from a memory that rose like weed within her mind. One that returned no matter how many times she ripped it out by the roots. Having it happen when she was awake was bad enough, but in her dreams it was a thousand times worse.

***

(12 years ago)

"You didn't sleep well last night, did you?"

The old man and the silent girl sat on a log that had fallen part way over the creek they were fishing in. She looked at him and make the sign of the question mark in the air. The man laughed softly in reply.

"It's easy to tell when someone has bad dreams, Angel." he began to explain. "Did you know that when we dream, we are all children again?"

She shook her head no, She watched as he reeled in his line and inspected the hook.

"A child is born, grows into a youth, then an adult," he re-baited his hook slowly. "As a child becomes an adult, they think as an adult, but not so when we dream. In our dreams the child buried inside of us comes out. And no matter how large or powerful or mighty a man or woman has become, in dreams that inner child still holds the power. What scared them as children still scares them in the middle of the night. Likewise, what made them smile still does, even though when awake they would consider such things foolish."

The girl's eyes were glued to her grandfather's face as he spoke. The end of her pole was bobbing about announcing a fish had taken the bait, but she noticed not. Gently, he tapped her and pointed to her pole. She jerked the pole and found she had been robbed. The man laughed again in his gentle way she was all too familiar with.

Nana says if you die in your dreams, you die for real she signed slowly, knowing his eyesight was less than perfect now.

"She's right. Why do you think the child within panics so much when in terror in your dreams? They know. They remember even if you don't. If you ever hear someone awaken from a nightmare, Angel, listen close. They yell and scream, breathe heavy and such, but if you listen close within all of that you can hear the inner child sighing in relief. They survived. They still live."

***

How many times had she woke up during the day panting needlessly. Not a sound to be heard save for the normal traffic of the living in the hallways. Sitting curled into a ball as her eyes dart about to reassure herself she was safe. Sometimes she could go back to sleep while others found her locked in the closet. The all powerful mystic hiding in the darkness as the child still within begged silently for this to pass yet again.

((Flaw 2/Benefit 2 Finished))

TBC

[Zodiac]

(interlude)

"I have been ignoring you, my dear."

With a practiced calm, she adjusts the strings, plucking the string currently being tuned occasionally. She loved to dance, but learned to love playing the music as well thanks to her grandfather. When she broke her leg as a young girl, he began to teach her in way of distracting her from her temporary exile from the dance. And once she was free again, surprising to the old man, she continued to play as well as dance.

She didn't dance much anymore.

She played even less.

The girl sat on her bed cross legged. Bare foot, a pair of jean shorts and a tank top with her cat as her sole audience. She paused and lit a cigarette, more out of reflex than actual desire, then gave the guitar a strum to check her progress, then returned to her tuning.

Once she was satisfied, she began. A few minor riffs till she was sure and then the mystic began to play the opening guitar solo to Crazy on You by Heart. She knew this piece perfectly and her fingers showed it as the notes rang out in her bedroom. Ginny watched (and listened?) with a cat's interest in most things of human nature as she worked her way through the bit of music. When she played the final note of the intro, it hung softly in the air. Normally she would continue into the song itself but she just sat there for a time.

"No," she decided. "It's a Dylan night." She reached over to her nightstand and picked up a pair of sunglasses and sat them on her face, then began to try and make her face into what she felt the man looked like when he performed. The cigarette hung from the corner of her mouth as she began to play again. Her thoughts a mixture of her own and Dylan's voice as she sang to herself with the music she played.

Up on the white veranda
She wears a necktie and a Panama hat
Her passport shows another face
From another time and place
She looks nothing like that

And all the remnants of her recent past
Are scattered in the wild wind
She walks across the marble floor
Where a voice from the gambling room is calling her to come on in

She smiles, walks the other way
As the last ship sails and the moon fades away
From Black Diamond Bay.

She frowned as she continued to play. The opening lines certainly sounded like her. She missed the last boat out of Harper Rock. That much was certain. The rest of the song spun out in her head as she continued to play and think. She worked her way through the song until the last verse.

I was sitting home alone one night in LA
Watching old Cronkite on the seven o'clock news
It seems there was an earthquake that
Left nothing but a Panama hat
And a pair of old Greek shoes

Didn't seem like much was happening
So I turned it off and went to grab another beer
Seems like every time you turn around
There's another hard-luck story that you're gonna hear...

The music stopped as the girl fell backwards onto the bed and looked up at the ceiling. That was it in a nutshell. So many others 'like' her were so happy now being like this, and all she could wonder was if there was a way to reverse it all and save herself. And if she did find such a solution, would she use it? She honestly didn't know, but perhaps she could cope better knowing there was a back door she could slip through if needed. A road out of town. Was this all it was ever gonna be? Power and the possibility of eternal life was dropped into her lap for such a simple price.

The cost was cheap.

Just everything she ever held dear and her humanity.

She strummed the last few bars and reworded the last lines of the song as she sighed in defeat.

"And there's really nothing anyone can say
And I know now that I'll never get away
From Black Diamond Bay."

TBC

[Zodiac]

one bourbon, one scotch, and one beer.. ~George Thorogood~

(5 years ago)

The small fist banged on the bar demanding attention.

"Damn, darlin'. You need to slow down." the barman laughed. The gypsy sitting on the stool showed no signs of inebriation and pointed at the four empty shot glasses and the one beer mug before she dropped a 20 on the bar. The man shook his head in surprise. He wondered where the girl was putting it all. It was not a case of her simply sitting in one spot and drinking. She had been all over the place. Playing pool, dart, and dancing up a storm, but here she was-still steady as a rock.

"Got to cut you off after this round, doll. Sorry." he sat the fresh mug of beer down and fetched the bottle of Uzo. Despite her size, she had to be a heavyweight in this particular sport, but it was his call. She seemed a nice enough person and he did not want to read about her being road pizza in the morning paper.

The girl eyed the glasses as he began to pour then nodded when all were filled to capacity. She smiled and made a gesture for him to keep the change. "So what is this all about?" he asked. The girl cocked an eye at him and began to scribble on a notepad.

Sometimes, I just want to sleep and NOT to dream

The man looked at the note. Outside of a letter slightly malformed here and there, her writing could fool anyone. He watched the girl focus for a moment and then take the first shot glass and drain it in one smooth motion. Briefly her tongue came out, as if it was a matter of survival to get every last drop, and the glass was sat back down on the bar before she reached for the beer. "You are gonna hurt yourself" he said, but the girl shrugged her shoulders in reply. One thing had caught the man's eye in the process. "When you take that first shot, you look like you praying or something. Praying about what?"

Again, her hand flew over the notepad.

Dreams and nightmares are the wolves come to call. I drink that one to keep the wolves at bay while I sleep

"And the other three?"

In case some of the wolves are she's and they brings their pups along

*****

(the present)

She walked past the brightly lit neon sign in the window of the bar and glanced inside as she passed. Over three years since had been in here. The longest she had been sober and/or straight since her incident in Georgia. There was the almost hidden sign that said the establishment was vampire friendly, but it didn't matter to her. Vampire 'friendly' drinks was nothing more than blood in a glass, something she could do in far more comfort in her own home, so why pay a inflated price when it did not give her what her sanity craved?

It was, perhaps, the hardest part of her change she had yet to come to terms with.

TBC

[Zodiac]

I, have become, comfortably numb ~Pink Floyd~

Sweet oblivion.

She never went to work (when alive) in any kind of hindered state. Her grandparents had ingrained that too deeply into her. Work equaled survival, so work was not to be done half way or show up acting a fool. And when she opened her original shop, it was all business. Her clients and customers depended on her for her services and councils. so a unclear head would be a disaster. If anything from her occasional nocturnal habits, on rare occasion the shop would open late but once she hired the intern from the local university that matter too was not a concern.

But alone in the night? A very different story. When she was on the road it was the same. Some nights it all came back in her dreams and she hated it. It was never hard to pilfer, work for, or buy a bottle. She began to come to the point she knew when such a night would be calling her out again. The 'wolves at her doorstep' demanding she face the un faceable yet again. Liquor and occasionally more toxic creations of men made oblivion easier to obtain. Sometimes such actions led her to awaken in situations she would not have chosen normally, but it didn't matter. As long as the night was spent in silence and not tormented with ghosts from the past. Such ghosts rise up as terrifying, over exaggerated caricatures of reality with powers over the dreamer they cannot escape no matter what corner of their subconscious they try to squirm into and hide.

Usually it was family. Amanda, her mother, first and foremost. She would come usually after a day of errors in her travels. Reminding her still of all her faults. Her words like a ragged blade across her thoughts. 'Defective' was her mother's favorite term for her, as if she chose not to have a voice before coming into this world and other things that were solely her fault such as her father leaving them. A man she only remembered vaguely outside of a single photo her grandmother had of him with her. Her razor tongue and slashing hands brutal, but they were not the worst that hid in the depths of memory. Oh no, that was reserved for a night in Georgia when she was barely a teen ager when three men decided she was ready to be taught the ways a woman could please a man. The indignation, the pain, her silent screams for death to take her, watching the boy who, if fate would have been kind, she would have bound to and raised a family with, be almost beaten to death for trying to save her from them.

And always, looming over it all, a bloated sack of Georgia sheriff looking down at her insisting the entire incident was her fault according to the three men. Like Amanda, he too pointed out her 'defects' in such callous tones as he defended the 'good ol boys' that had defiled her body and mind.

"Whats the matter, girly girl? Cat got yer tongue?" when he wondered why she refused to answer him despite the fact the sign board she wore informing any who cared to read it that she could not speak had survived the incident and hung within his line of sight.

Liquor was her friend. It helped put such ghosts into a manageable box she could ignore as she slept.

Once turned she discovered that friendship was now at an end. Nothing worked anymore. Her mind stayed clear and sharp no matter what she tried when she felt the wolves circling in, and her new state of enhanced being only caused those dreams to be more vivid and intense that ever before. The wolves were no longer held at bay, but were now free to ravage and torment her at will.

TBC

[Zodiac]

Can I play with madness?...~Iron Maiden~

She endured them. Simple.
It was the down side to the double edged sword that was becoming more and more important to her. If alive, her dependence would probably have continued to grown into addiction. A living body could only deal with so much before it had an adverse effect and the irony of it did not escape her when she thought about it. She could probably fry her brain (literally) and be no worse for the experience now, yet her new state of being would reject any attempts if she tried.

And so the occasional dream ripped through the veils of sleep and simply compounded the problem of her change of lifestyle. Not much in all the teachings she had learned from her grandmother had prepared her for this. Focusing her mind and will had been one of the few things that had been a plus, especially concerning the new powers she began to learn. Some simple and some not so. She remembered the first time she teleported and how for an instant that feeling of being in two different places at once swept through her as she broke down into energy and then pulled back together blocks away without a single hair out of place. Or the trick where she could melt the flesh from a person's face with just a touch of her hand. "Once a man feels my burning touch, he never forgets me." she had told others in jest. The implications of what she was learning at a rapid rate almost frightened her, but her Nana's training had already ingrained responsibility into her. Just because you could do something did not mean you just do it. Even when alive, the hexes and potions she was taught to make and cast were a considerable arsenal if used properly, but even now her works were more positive based. They had no effect (or limited effects) upon those like her, but the living was another matter. Darkness to some, yet light to others. Holistic medicines and cures-the majority having nothing to do with the supernatural- were her bread and butter among the living as well as her ability with the tarot and making charms. She thrived, she grew, yet the past refused to quit chewing at her like a dog with its favorite chew toy. She was nearing the end of her rope till she found a solution of sorts.

On a night the dreams were being relentless and her eyes snapped open within the room where no sunlight could reach, they focused on the person lying next to her. The curls of dark brown hair and the hint of jasmine and lavender along with a touch of perfume. The mystic laid there, rather than jumping up to busy herself with some mindless task to shake the feelings from her thoughts. She had no desire to wake Tempy from her own sleep. Zodiac laid there quietly for awhile before scooching a bit closer to the woman and closing her eyes. When she awoke for the night, the wolves had not returned. She pondered this many times wondering. Was it something to do with the woman's powers? The answer was much simpler in nature.

She was no longer alone.

Relationships were awkward at best. Add to it a lifestyle of wandering from place to place complicated it even more. She was never in one spot long enough to get close to anyone and any such 'relationships' that were formed temporarily were usually born from the need to accomplish something-legal or otherwise-and in that there were towns she would return to eagerly while others had a note in her journal 'do NOT go back here'.

But despite the bear trap she felt she put her foot into when she settled in Harper Rock. she gained far more despite what she felt she had lost in the trade off. Yes, the road still called to her sometimes and she yearned to answer it as it had been before. Not a single word or responsibility to uphold. Just her and her cat doing what they will as they explored the world around them. But hand in hand with freedom came the loneliness and solitude she discovered she could not bear for any length of time now.

Company, friends, even loved ones. A strange arrangement that was not so dissimilar to her childhood in the traveling tribes. How many had wandered in their own ways to this focal point only to be wrapped into it by a bond all of them share now. Rich or poor, saint or sinner, commoner or above. They all shared a common line now in the darkness and despite their differences were all a tribe of their own. United despite the fact most abhorred each other or warred amongst themselves. And among the ranks of this hidden tribe that slowly continued to grow in numbers she danced. The wolves of her dreams expunged in favor of darker things whispering softly to her at times. She was surrounded in the embrace of a new tribe now. Harper Rock was only the first stop on a road trip that would take her to places in time she never dared to consider and beyond.

Her Nana had groomed her to one day be a 'Regina' or queen of her tribe. A spiritual matriarch to guide them that would work in harmony with the temporal leaders. She was no queen and would admit it if asked, but the need for guidance was still there and she would do it for those who came to her parlor. Let those among them fight it out as to who would be the leaders temporal and write the laws and enforce the rules. Such things have been and ever will be. But in matters of the spirit and heart, therein lay where she would do her works.

That is what tribe did for itself, after all.

((Flaw 3/Benefit 3 Finished))

TBC

[Zodiac]

(The Present)

She arose two hours before sunset, as was her habit. She would sit and look at Temperance as she continued to sleep for a moment and smile (if she was there. Their lifestyles did not always allow them to be together) before slipping out of the bed as her feet slid into her slippers. Zodiac would begin to fill the garden tub, adding oils to the water and as it filled she would feed her cats and select her wardrobe for the evening. When she finally stepped into the hot water, she sighed and leaned back. Mentally her thoughts were tapping into the network, checking on her business dealings, the news, and other points of interest as she bathed. If she didn't have to leave the house, sometimes the bathtub would be a multi-hour enjoyment as the heat of the water warmed her to the core of her body. She felt 'alive' again in those moments. The hated cold of her vampire flesh forgotten.

As in necessity, a small alarm clock counted down her allowable time in this indulgence. When it chimed, she finished up and got out. Sometimes, if her love awoke, they shared the bath. Discussing what their nights had in store for them both. Or on a more lazy night, once they had finished they would dress and gravitate to the small kitchen nook where over a cup of tea for Tempy and a mug of blood for herself, the pair would chat away 'like a pair of hens' as her grandmother would have said, but otherwise it was time for dressing and preparing, as well as tending to her private garden.

Zodiac would finally sit at her make up table, looking at her image in the flat screen monitor thanks to the digital camera capturing her image. This was perhaps the most time consuming part of her evening ritual out side of the bath. Colors inspected and hair styled and then finally her eyes. Her trademark, actually. The darker tones making them lift off her face into even more prominence. Occasionally tribal patterns flanked and surrounded them or highlights, decorations from silly to insane. 'Look into my eyes,' she grinned as she finished. When she had discovered people of weaker minds and willpower were susceptible to her gaze, she decided to use it to her benefit so with her alabaster flesh, the dark pools surrounding her eyes only brought one's attention to her eyes (and her will) even deeper.

Finally all her bangles and charms in place. Her various relics hidden in plain sight among them. Scarves, sashes, earrings, and a fresh layer of purple across her lips. Electric Lilac, Purple Passion or Violet Vixen- decisions. 'Funeral red is just not my style' Once more her thoughts consulted her planner in her phone. Usually all three of her businesses were visited each night, but where the bulk of her appointments for the evening was scheduled would be 'home base' for the night. If 'The Eye', she'd give Temperance a ride to the Met (if she was around,) if 'Pandora's', they would part company at Westwall Station.

to be concluded~

[Zodiac]

When one entered one of her establishments, the first impression was of confusion, but only for a moment. Things quickly made sense as one walked the aisles and took stock of things. A few things display only but the majority was available - for a price, of course.

One would see a lot of work had gone into making this what it was. Too much care and patience had gone into the make up of the store itself. Nothing shoddy or half way held the merchandise for all to see and the items as well. Carefully selected to suit the changing spiritual needs of those who lived in the small town as well.

It was a labor of love in motion.

The ones serving the needs of customers friendly, helpful, social, yet to the point. They know this place, which suggests they are not temp types but long term. Long term workers suggest the business is good and the boss a type that draws loyalty from their troops. What type of person could keep people interested in selling magic potions and the like?

They would notice a couple of shoppers, long time customers, become interested quickly when a purple door to the side opened and a small woman appeared. No, appeared was the wrong word. She made an entrance dressed to match the image one would expect to see when visiting a 'gypsy witch'. A harmonious confusion of colors in silk, satin and leather suddenly among the patrons. At her heel, one of the largest black cats that most have seen following her like a shadow. After conferring for a few moments with a slightly taller redheaded girl the other employees answered to, she turned to face the others. Wide eyed in surprise as if seeing long lost friends suddenly around her, greeting each in turn with warmth and genuine concern upon her face. As she moved about, the sounds of bells jingling with each step could be faintly heard from her person. She worked her way around the room with a confidence born of familiarity. This was her queendom. Her domain. It was as if she had the secrets of the universe on 3X5 cards in a Rolodex somewhere in the back and if she deemed it proper, she would share one or two with you.

A sharper eye would notice the body language. The use of her hands in play. Always holding both hands of her visitors. Gently, not a death grip. She was glad they had come to her no matter the why. Sometimes one hand to the upper arm while the other hand held. She has felt your need. She understands these things. The slight **** of her head as if she is seeing them in ways normal eyes could not. Even in concern, her face holding a quality that would tell her guest yes, there is hope. And the embrace. Very few escaped her hugs when she chose to give them. The bonds were set now. She would be silently invited into other people's comfort zones and personal space. How could someone not feel at ease and safe within these walls? And while all this was going on, her personal 'shadow escort' of the cat followed along and studied the visitors, as if the animal was appraising them in its own way. How much time and training went into this cat to have be the perfect side bar to the illusions she was creating just by being in the room.

The conversations were one sided when it came to spoken words. Her replies written on a dry erase board, or to some her fingers moved smoothly in the air in sign language, and with each reply complete, the hands returned to contact with the other. A sharp eye might notice a few would simply be looked at while they spoke aloud to her, as if she already knew everything there was to know and her eyes spoke to their spirits in reply. To the observer, her empathy would be even more astounding. The fairy that flitted about the room had a flaw as well. Some would consider such a flaw a serious one, yet the gypsy carried on as if nothing was wrong at all with her. She did not have a problem at all, except perhaps to help her guests find the solution to their problems, which was no problem at all for the witch. That was the atmosphere, the illusion, she created now for all to see.

The conclusion of some, if they managed to stand apart from it all and simply watch, was that this was a person some put their faith in and trusted. Despite her youthful appearance, she had been through it all and had come out the other side of whatever hells she had walked in without a scratch and a box of answers tucked under her arm in the process not for herself, but for those who sought her advice and councils. One could almost believe the problems and issues most dealt with daily would slide off her shoulders like water. She had achieved her inner nirvana and balance. It was the air her presence gave off when she approached. The look in her eyes. Eyes that could literally swallow your soul if she chose to. So filled with calm and empathy. She had the answers. Not a single issue within her to haunt or plague her own personal life. One could also suggest her entire 'act' was a cover for one seriously disturbed individual, but once a person was within her gentle grasp such ideas vanished quickly.

Seriously. That look in her eyes.

And her smile.

Just look at that smile. A star of hope in the darkness.


FIN