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esp_dragonFandom: Original
Summary:
The world of Torpin is open, dragging in Others from different worlds. The majority of them are monsters, prone to violence. There are some, however, that are not, and are able to live amongst the human population, if allowed to. Marland should know; he's one of them. His job is to hunt and stop the Others that seek only to destroy what's around them. On one job, a human Other drops through a portal, an event which Marland has never heard of happening before. And that's not the only thing different about the human...
Rating: M
Notes: Contains swearing.
Any questions or clarifications, just ask. (Unless it’s, you know, plot-related. XD)
As for the italics thing, I'm going for if the word's in caps, then chances are, it's supposed to be in italics. Similarly, if there's words encompassed by -' '- , then whatever's in between them should be italicised.
Genre: Urban fantasy
Word count: 1,419
Total word count: 55,154
Status: Work in Progress
Maybe he could try knocking himself out with… something. He couldn't really think about anything though. And it was a stupid thing to think about, but it was better than thinking about the phone call.
Ears twitching, Marland started poking at the chair with a claw. He'd already shredded one of the others, so he may as well start on the others to make sure that one could still be used. It was an inane thought but he welcomed it anyway, trying to concentrate his focus solely on that. He failed, still hearing the whispering faintly in his mind like it never completely stopped, but it was easier to ignore with his head down like that. In some ways, his mind was blank, but as he thought of what else he could do to the hole, it at least stopped him from caring so much.
When he'd ripped a line from one corner to the next, Marland gave up on that. Balt's voice was still in his head, but it had faded, it wasn't as powerful. He wasn't paying as much attention and he'd figured out how to change track when it did come up, how to rip himself away from that.
He did feel numb though, wrung out.
But, he did know that Shodin always surprised him, always acted differently from what he expected him to. So, maybe he'd do that now this time as well if he did get his memories back.
* * *
Marland woke up feeling pretty crap the next day. He had about a second's peace before he was reminded WHY he felt so crap. Somehow he felt slightly better that it was dark outside the window, but then, how long had he been sleeping for?
He could hear Shodin moving around outside, humming to himself. The smell of cooking beef filled the air. Marland attempted to dig himself in further in to the bed, hoping that he might be able to fall asleep again.
But that was useless, and he knew it was futile to even try.
Marland dragged himself out of bed, ears at a wary midpoint between up and down, his wings lower than usual as well. There wasn't any point in pretending that he was feeling okay, because he'd slip one way or another, and Shodin would probably notice straight away anyway.
And he did, as soon as he looked away from the cooker.
"Marland…? What's wrong?"
Marland looked away, ears flat. What the hell could he say? He couldn't tell him that he knew that Ronthar hated Others and argh-! He probably should have just hid away in his room or something.
Shodin glanced at the simmering pot, and then switched off the heat before he came over.
"Marland…?"
He growled, more at himself than trying to warn Shodin away. That would never work, and just made Shodin try harder if he did.
"Balt phoned when you were asleep."
Shodin blinked. "He did?" He frowned, looking away and brushing a finger over his cheek. "That's strange; I don't know the phone number for here."
Marland stared at him. That was right; Shodin couldn't have known the number to tell Balt – hell, HE didn't know the number of the flat and he'd been staying in it for over a decade! He thought about it, ears twitching. "You told him where we lived?"
Shodin shook his head slowly. "I don't think I did, and" –he shrugged, looking back to him- "I wouldn't be able to tell anyone where we lived; not without leading them here."
Marland's stomach started to twist further as another level of dread enveloped him. What the hell? How the hell had Balt gotten his number? Okay, fine, Marland was listed as living here, and he had no idea what you had to do to find out where a person lived, but as Marland thought about it, it seemed like it was a lot of effort to find him. Just to find out if he was okay? That seemed a little disproportionate.
Shodin crossed his arms, right index finger tapping a steady beat. "Is it hard to find out someone's phone number?"
"It depends on what information you have of the person you're looking for. Name's the best thing to know, and their address after that." But, maybe… Marland considered a stray thought. "I might be able to be found because I'm an Other, but I dunno how you'd do that."
Shodin bowed his head, shoulders slumping. "Either way, it doesn't sound good that Balt has this number."
"No, it doesn't," he said quietly. Maybe Balt really was worried about him –if Shodin knew how to work technology, he'd probably do the same- but it just seemed WEIRD to Marland for someone to put so much effort in finding him. He hunched his shoulders. Why was it okay for Shodin to be worried about him, but not Balt? Because he didn't know him?
Balt had already shown that he didn't mind Marland, had worried about him as well. Like Shodin – and not like Ronthar. Marland shoved that thought away. So, maybe there was a good reason how Balt got his number. Marland couldn't think of one, but Shodin always acted out of his expectations.
Marland shook his head. His ears didn't move, but he hadn't expected them to. "Let's just go eat," he mumbled. He'd overreacted to things before, so this could be another time where he was over thinking things and jumping to conclusions.
If he was right though, he'd have to start thinking about the best ways out of the building again.
* * *
The next day, the phone rang again.
It was Shodin who picked it up, Marland barely awake and out of his room. He held the receiver up to his face, like he was supposed to, one hand cradling the bottom. "Hello? … Ah, good evening, Balt." Most of Marland's sleepiness had gone when the phone rang; as soon as Shodin said 'Balt', he was completely awake, and he padded forward, ears pricked forward.
"Oh, I'm fine," Shodin said, watching him come closer. He lifted the receiver away from his head and turned it towards Marland.
He shook his head, flicking his ears back and forward. Shodin looked up at them, then nodded, bringing the receiver back to his ear.
"That's good to hear. I'm just sorry that we had to cut our conversation short last time." The voice was tinny but Marland could still hear him clearly.
Shodin shook his head, a small wary smile on his face. "We HAD talked for a long time, and the café closed."
Balt laughed at that. "Mmm. I had some more work to do anyway."
There was a brief beat of silence. "Balt, I was wondering, how did you know this number?"
"Hm? Oh, I dialled 2582."
Shodin glanced at him, and he shrugged, head tilted at the receiver.
"Oh-!" Balt chuckled. "Um, I guess you wouldn't know that is; it's a number you call to find out the number of the person who called you last."
They both blinked, and Marland's ears went down as he huffed. So he HAD been overthinking things then about the phone number. Shodin smiled at him, shoulders relaxing. "Ah, okay; we had wondered."
"It must have seemed really weird how I knew your number…"
Marland wandered away over to the kitchen, not interested in hearing the rest of the conversation. He could still hear Balt's voice, but he couldn't really distinguish the words so that was all right. He poked at the smoking pot, making sure that nothing was sticking to the bottom. There wasn't, but he stirred it anyway, the grate helping to cover Balt's voice.
After that he started making his own meal. Shodin came over when it was nearly done. Huh. That was short.
Shodin raised an eyebrow at him, eyes twinkling and trying to hide a smile. "I AM capable of keeping a conversation short."
He snorted at that, turning away. He was aware of that; it was just that it didn't happen very often.
* * *
Over the next week, Shodin met with Balt a few more times as he tried to find out more about his previous life. Marland hadn't seen a change in him over that time either so his initial wariness about Shodin suddenly gaining his memories and then attacking him faded. It was still there, a niggling worry, but it definitely wasn't as bad as before.
Summary:
The world of Torpin is open, dragging in Others from different worlds. The majority of them are monsters, prone to violence. There are some, however, that are not, and are able to live amongst the human population, if allowed to. Marland should know; he's one of them. His job is to hunt and stop the Others that seek only to destroy what's around them. On one job, a human Other drops through a portal, an event which Marland has never heard of happening before. And that's not the only thing different about the human...
Rating: M
Notes: Contains swearing.
Any questions or clarifications, just ask. (Unless it’s, you know, plot-related. XD)
As for the italics thing, I'm going for if the word's in caps, then chances are, it's supposed to be in italics. Similarly, if there's words encompassed by -' '- , then whatever's in between them should be italicised.
Genre: Urban fantasy
Word count: 1,419
Total word count: 55,154
Status: Work in Progress
Maybe he could try knocking himself out with… something. He couldn't really think about anything though. And it was a stupid thing to think about, but it was better than thinking about the phone call.
Ears twitching, Marland started poking at the chair with a claw. He'd already shredded one of the others, so he may as well start on the others to make sure that one could still be used. It was an inane thought but he welcomed it anyway, trying to concentrate his focus solely on that. He failed, still hearing the whispering faintly in his mind like it never completely stopped, but it was easier to ignore with his head down like that. In some ways, his mind was blank, but as he thought of what else he could do to the hole, it at least stopped him from caring so much.
When he'd ripped a line from one corner to the next, Marland gave up on that. Balt's voice was still in his head, but it had faded, it wasn't as powerful. He wasn't paying as much attention and he'd figured out how to change track when it did come up, how to rip himself away from that.
He did feel numb though, wrung out.
But, he did know that Shodin always surprised him, always acted differently from what he expected him to. So, maybe he'd do that now this time as well if he did get his memories back.
* * *
Marland woke up feeling pretty crap the next day. He had about a second's peace before he was reminded WHY he felt so crap. Somehow he felt slightly better that it was dark outside the window, but then, how long had he been sleeping for?
He could hear Shodin moving around outside, humming to himself. The smell of cooking beef filled the air. Marland attempted to dig himself in further in to the bed, hoping that he might be able to fall asleep again.
But that was useless, and he knew it was futile to even try.
Marland dragged himself out of bed, ears at a wary midpoint between up and down, his wings lower than usual as well. There wasn't any point in pretending that he was feeling okay, because he'd slip one way or another, and Shodin would probably notice straight away anyway.
And he did, as soon as he looked away from the cooker.
"Marland…? What's wrong?"
Marland looked away, ears flat. What the hell could he say? He couldn't tell him that he knew that Ronthar hated Others and argh-! He probably should have just hid away in his room or something.
Shodin glanced at the simmering pot, and then switched off the heat before he came over.
"Marland…?"
He growled, more at himself than trying to warn Shodin away. That would never work, and just made Shodin try harder if he did.
"Balt phoned when you were asleep."
Shodin blinked. "He did?" He frowned, looking away and brushing a finger over his cheek. "That's strange; I don't know the phone number for here."
Marland stared at him. That was right; Shodin couldn't have known the number to tell Balt – hell, HE didn't know the number of the flat and he'd been staying in it for over a decade! He thought about it, ears twitching. "You told him where we lived?"
Shodin shook his head slowly. "I don't think I did, and" –he shrugged, looking back to him- "I wouldn't be able to tell anyone where we lived; not without leading them here."
Marland's stomach started to twist further as another level of dread enveloped him. What the hell? How the hell had Balt gotten his number? Okay, fine, Marland was listed as living here, and he had no idea what you had to do to find out where a person lived, but as Marland thought about it, it seemed like it was a lot of effort to find him. Just to find out if he was okay? That seemed a little disproportionate.
Shodin crossed his arms, right index finger tapping a steady beat. "Is it hard to find out someone's phone number?"
"It depends on what information you have of the person you're looking for. Name's the best thing to know, and their address after that." But, maybe… Marland considered a stray thought. "I might be able to be found because I'm an Other, but I dunno how you'd do that."
Shodin bowed his head, shoulders slumping. "Either way, it doesn't sound good that Balt has this number."
"No, it doesn't," he said quietly. Maybe Balt really was worried about him –if Shodin knew how to work technology, he'd probably do the same- but it just seemed WEIRD to Marland for someone to put so much effort in finding him. He hunched his shoulders. Why was it okay for Shodin to be worried about him, but not Balt? Because he didn't know him?
Balt had already shown that he didn't mind Marland, had worried about him as well. Like Shodin – and not like Ronthar. Marland shoved that thought away. So, maybe there was a good reason how Balt got his number. Marland couldn't think of one, but Shodin always acted out of his expectations.
Marland shook his head. His ears didn't move, but he hadn't expected them to. "Let's just go eat," he mumbled. He'd overreacted to things before, so this could be another time where he was over thinking things and jumping to conclusions.
If he was right though, he'd have to start thinking about the best ways out of the building again.
* * *
The next day, the phone rang again.
It was Shodin who picked it up, Marland barely awake and out of his room. He held the receiver up to his face, like he was supposed to, one hand cradling the bottom. "Hello? … Ah, good evening, Balt." Most of Marland's sleepiness had gone when the phone rang; as soon as Shodin said 'Balt', he was completely awake, and he padded forward, ears pricked forward.
"Oh, I'm fine," Shodin said, watching him come closer. He lifted the receiver away from his head and turned it towards Marland.
He shook his head, flicking his ears back and forward. Shodin looked up at them, then nodded, bringing the receiver back to his ear.
"That's good to hear. I'm just sorry that we had to cut our conversation short last time." The voice was tinny but Marland could still hear him clearly.
Shodin shook his head, a small wary smile on his face. "We HAD talked for a long time, and the café closed."
Balt laughed at that. "Mmm. I had some more work to do anyway."
There was a brief beat of silence. "Balt, I was wondering, how did you know this number?"
"Hm? Oh, I dialled 2582."
Shodin glanced at him, and he shrugged, head tilted at the receiver.
"Oh-!" Balt chuckled. "Um, I guess you wouldn't know that is; it's a number you call to find out the number of the person who called you last."
They both blinked, and Marland's ears went down as he huffed. So he HAD been overthinking things then about the phone number. Shodin smiled at him, shoulders relaxing. "Ah, okay; we had wondered."
"It must have seemed really weird how I knew your number…"
Marland wandered away over to the kitchen, not interested in hearing the rest of the conversation. He could still hear Balt's voice, but he couldn't really distinguish the words so that was all right. He poked at the smoking pot, making sure that nothing was sticking to the bottom. There wasn't, but he stirred it anyway, the grate helping to cover Balt's voice.
After that he started making his own meal. Shodin came over when it was nearly done. Huh. That was short.
Shodin raised an eyebrow at him, eyes twinkling and trying to hide a smile. "I AM capable of keeping a conversation short."
He snorted at that, turning away. He was aware of that; it was just that it didn't happen very often.
* * *
Over the next week, Shodin met with Balt a few more times as he tried to find out more about his previous life. Marland hadn't seen a change in him over that time either so his initial wariness about Shodin suddenly gaining his memories and then attacking him faded. It was still there, a niggling worry, but it definitely wasn't as bad as before.
no subject
Date: Nov. 30th, 2010 08:43 am (UTC)At first I thought he meant alcohol. Surely not something blunt?? That's not very smart. I kind of wonder what kind of influence alcohol would have on Marland.
Ears twitching, Marland started poking at the chair with a claw. He'd already shredded one of the others, so he may as well start on the others to make sure that one could still be used.
I kind of like shredding paper. I guess Marland is more extreme. =P
So, maybe he'd do that now this time as well if he did get his memories back.
Well, if Shodin ever gets his memories back... I hope things turn out for the better than for the worse. ):
He could hear Shodin moving around outside, humming to himself.
Shodin sounds happy. =P
He probably should have just hid away in his room or something.
Aww. But then Shodin would be knocking at your door.
"That's strange; I don't know the phone number for here."
Huh.
hell, HE didn't know the number of the flat and he'd been staying in it for over a decade!
Ahahaha, I guess he didn't have a need to know the number. Why does he even have a phone? =x And he actually picked up!
but as Marland thought about it, it seemed like it was a lot of effort to find him. Just to find out if he was okay?
Hmmmm. Makes me wonder if Balt has any connections with the government or with hunting Others. =P But he seemed more of a behind the scenes guy?
"Oh-!" Balt chuckled. "Um, I guess you wouldn't know that is; it's a number you call to find out the number of the person who called you last."
Ahahaha, goes to show neither Shodin nor Marland use the phone much.
"I AM capable of keeping a conversation short."
XD!
I wonder if they are just over thinking things. =P
no subject
Date: Dec. 2nd, 2010 08:01 am (UTC)XD
XD Yeeeah, Shodin's happy while Marland's not.
Yeeep.
He has it because he couldn't be bothered throwing it out, and no-one phoned while he was awake (maybe he's able to ignore them when he's sleeping) so he didn't seem much need in getting rid of it. He picked it up because... he doesn't know how to unplug it? Or he picked it up because he could tell them them that they had the wrong number and he'd have silence again.
Hee. :3
XD Marland, definitely; Shodin, eeeh, he wouldn't be able to remember.
:3
no subject
Date: Dec. 2nd, 2010 10:58 am (UTC)Ah, so the phone is like the couch. XD