Reaper's Genetic Legacy Experiment [Complete]

[LivvieLove]

So this was supposed to be one chapter, but I wrote too much and the forum is yelling at me now telling me that it's exceeded character limit (this happens far too often ugh). So this chapter will (unfortunately) be split into two pieces and posted one right after the other. Sorry readers!

Red-Out: Part One
Midnight Hollow: Present Day
Eveline felt her heart wrench as she boarded the plane. Panic was setting in. She wanted to turn and run for her life. What was she doing? Jupiter was still here somewhere. He was alone and she needed to be with him. She wanted to be with him.
He ran from her. He broke his promise and left her. She couldn't shake that from her head: nothing adds up.
His actions said he didn't want to be with her.
He kept his distance from her.
He hesitated to call her his girlfriend.
He ran away from her when she was injured.
He decided to flee his problems rather than fight through them. Rather than be with her.
Eveline wasn't stupid. She could add two and two together - but the way he looked at her. His eyes that are burned into her mind. The way he told her he loved her as he looked right at her and she saw him. A chill shot through her. What was he thinking?
She may never know, and she wasn't sure she wanted to anymore. She tried to steel herself.
Atris was doing one last search of the areas surrounding Bridgeport before he would fly to her in Midnight Hollow. Part of her desperately hoped he would find Jupiter, but that part was growing more and more overshadowed by the hope that Atris would find nothing. He would find nothing and Eveline would slowly start closing herself off. She loved Jupiter. She always would, but she couldn't wait for him forever. Her duty involved carrying the line further. She wanted to carry the line further. It would ache to think of the children she could have had with him, but she wouldn't be deterred from the things she wanted in life. She let out a breath and continued on to her seat. Midnight Hollow, here she comes.

After several hours on the plane, Eveline could feel a shift in the air. Something was horribly wrong. Horribly, terribly, unmistakably wrong. She sat up immediately, all the hair on her body felt like it was standing on-end. Bear, who sat next to her on the plane after she classified him as her service dog, whimpered as well. The pilot's voice came over the intercom and caused Eveline to jolt. "If everyone could please fasten their seatbelts, we're descending now into Midnight Hollow."
Eveline could feel the magic that radiated from this place, it made her nauseated. She clutched the chair tightly as the sensations surrounded her. The further down they got the more intense it was - the town itself radiated magic. Something terrible happened here and she could feel it in her gut. Her vision started to blur from the strength of the magic that came over her. She tensed and wanted to scream. Bear went and laid his head in her lap, licking at her arm gently.
Her breathing became more shallow as she tried to maintain her sight. Bear grew more anxious, rubbing his head harder against her stomach, and Eveline threaded her fingers into his fur. A wave of calm came over her. She bent over and pressed her face into Bear's back, breathing in deeply as she relaxed. "What is this place, Bear?"
"This is the place of the end, my swallow."
Eveline sat up suddenly, "grandpa?" She whispered nervously.
"Do not fear, Eveline, you are safe with me always. You will have answers in time, I promise."
"What are you talking about grandpa?" Eveline was whispering so softly, hoping the rest of the plane wouldn't think she was speaking to herself. "What end? What's going on? This place is so magical I almost can't see."
"...I... am sorry."
His voice had faded and Eveline knew he was gone, but she still whispered to him, "no, please! Come back! I need to know! I want to understand!"
Bear looked at her curiously, before laying his head down sadly on Eveline's lap again. Eveline went back to pressing her face into Bear's side as she felt a few tears escape her eyes. Isolation never felt so exhausting.

Alec sat rigid as the flight descended into Midnight Hollow. Mary looked at her husband nervously, she felt a sick familiarity come across her as she looked at her husband's twisted features, yet she could not recall where she had seen raw emotions like that before - or why they were familiar. Mary could feel the magic from the town below them and it made her heart pound. "It's so intense here." She said to her husband as she reached for his hand.
He didn't react, his face looked frozen in a twist of agony and hatred. "It's because my father ruins everything he touches."
Mary's brow furrowed at her husband's pure hatred. "Alec..." She put her hand on his forearm while the other hand desperately tried to grab his.
Alec didn't look at her. He gritted his teeth, "welcome to my childhood home." His voice was low and boiling with anger and bitterness. He finally moved his gaze from the back of the seat in front of him in favor of the aisle floor, away from Mary.
Mary rubbed his arm gently, not knowing what she could even begin to say to make her husband feel better. She had no idea he grew up here.
In fact, when Mary thought about it, there was a lot she truly didn't know about her husband. Yesterday when she met Charlotte she got an entirely new image of Alec, and she didn't like what she saw. Mary was a firm believer that emotions really screwed with people. Heck, she probably could call herself the Mayor of Anti-Emotion Town. Emotions that are so strong that they change good people...
Mary saw the image of her raging brother back in Barnacle Bay and shivered. That was where she had seen Alec's face before - the days leading up to her brother becoming a murderer.
Surely Alec wouldn't do something so stupid. Would he?
The fact that Mary wasn't sure only made her feel worse inside.

Eveline, Mary and Alec dispersed without a word from the airport, each going in different directions. Eveline wandered to the center of town hoping to find the source of her discomfort, but the magic wasn't coming from there. She let her vision expand as she took in the old buildings. There was a history that existed here, and she could feel it just beneath her fingertips. She could see people wandering around here as she kept pushing forward.

She could hear whispers. The ancient magic here was pounding in her head. She spread her vision out further and concentrated. She could hear her grandfather as he ordered her to concentrate when she was first learning to wield her magic. She clenched her fist and gritted her teeth, pushing hard back on the magic here. The people began to vanish from her sightline, Eveline nearly faltered, but instead pushed forward really hard once more.
The whispers grew louder and louder until she could hear a single voice above the rest - a woman's. It was bright and her laughter sounded like wind chimes.
"That’s it, Mr. Johnson! It needed red!"
The whispers suddenly swarmed her and vanished, leaving an eerie quiet in its wake as the people who were walking around the center of town came back into her vision.
"Red?" Eveline looked around. "Mr. Johnson?" She was breathing a little heavy from the strain of calling forth that magic. She shook her head. The world was becoming a tint of red, not that Eveline could take notice of it.

People started evacuating the streets and running for cover inside. Eveline grew confused as she watched the footprints of people turn from walking to running. "What in the world is going on here?"
Eveline was nearly knocked over as one man ran past her in an attempt to flag down a passing taxi. "Excuse you." Eveline mumbled as she dusted herself off. "Something isn't right about this town." She shook her head before flagging down a taxi of her own and heading off for the science facility in town. Maybe she'll find someone with sense there, oh and a job too.

The taxi dropped Eveline off at her destination which she discovered was a very oddly shaped building. She took a breath in and walked into the strange building feeling determined.
"How can I help you today?" A woman at the front desk greeted her monotonously without looking up.
Eveline opened her mouth but was cut off as the phone rang. The woman behind the desk, again without looking held her finger up to signal Eveline to wait as she answered the phone.
"McNeel Science facility, how can I help you today?" The woman gave the same monotonous greeting.
There was the sound of someone on the other end of the line, but Eveline could not make out what was being said.
"Hello Chief, it's a pleasure to hear from you as always." The woman's voice didn't sound any more pleasant, it was like she existed on one tone. "I'll go ahead and pass you back to Todd." Pause. "Of course." Pause. "Thank you. Have a nice day." She pressed a few buttons before turning her attention on Eveline, thus causing her mouth to fall open.
"Oh my!" For once her tone raised above normal, "are you lost, miss?"
"This is..." Eveline paused, trying to remember the name she had researched before coming here, "the McNeel Science Facility, right?"
"That it is. Are you here as a test subject?" The woman asked curiously now, probably wondering why a blind girl would show up at a place of science research for anything but to be a part of research.
Eveline shook her head, "I had called previously and spoke to a Mr. Landgraab? Uhm." Eveline shifted uncomfortably as she fished a paper out of her pocket and prayed it was the right paper. "Todd? I think his name was." She put the paper down on the desk and immediately pulled her hand away. "I'm here about a job."
The woman almost laughed, but she looked at the paper and her mockery fell into shock. "Apparently you are." She raised her eyebrows. "Alright then, Ms..." She looked down at the paper, her voice returning to monotonous. "-Reaper, you'll need to go through the doors on the left there. Will you need an escort?" She reached over and picked up the phone, preparing to call someone.
"No, I should be fine, thank you. Can I have my paper back please? I think it will be important later on." Eveline shifted awkwardly again.
The woman looked at her funny, but shrugged, "here you go, have a nice day."
Eveline took the paper and scurried back through the doorway the woman had directed her to. She wandered aimlessly down the hallway and realized she suddenly didn't know where she was supposed to be.
Another woman opened the an adjacent door and eyed her curiously, "someone new?" She asked, her voice was high and bubbly.
Eveline scratched her head, "I'm looking for Mr. Landgraab?" Eveline asked quietly as she prepared to show off the "magic" paper that had somehow convinced the front desk woman to let her in. She wasn't sure what was on it, but Mr. Landgraab had faxed it to her after she had spoken to him on the phone.
The girl squealed suddenly, "are you the new hire?! Oh my gosh! I'm so excited! You're so pretty! Ah!"
Eveline was being swarmed by the girl now and completely unsure of how to react.
"Are you blind?! How cool is that? You walked all the way back here without a cane? That's fascinating! Was the blindness always there or did you get it upon entering the town? That would be really inconvenient if that happened, right?" The girl talked so fast Eveline could barely keep up. "What's your name? That dress is so cute! Where do you shop at? We should go shopping together sometime!"
"Uh... what?" Eveline was growing overwhelmed.
"Seema, that's enough swarming the poor girl." A guy called from the room the girl had come out of, he was sitting at a desk, holding the receiver of a phone as he made an irritated face at the girl swarming Eveline. "Are you Eveline Reaper, by chance?"
Eveline was relieved to have someone who spoke slower, "that's me!" She said nervously.
"Come on in!" He motioned her, "and close the door."
Seema smiled widely at Eveline and waved, "you better hire this one! She's perfect!"
Eveline felt strangely flattered, she waved back in the direction of Seema and closed the door behind her.
"Sorry Chief, just getting ready for an interview, forgive me." The man spoke into the phone. There was a long pause, "no sir, we haven't found anything conclusive yet on the last victim, but we're looking into it. It takes time for matches to be made." Another pause. "This isn't like those shows though sir, we're a small team here and we're good at what we do, but what we do takes time regardless of how many people there are." Pause. "Yes sir, I understand the gravity of the situation, but please be assured that we're going as fast as we can while still maintaining the integrity of the evidence." Pause. "This is the first time he's left a clue, so please understand that we're doing everything we can to keep this lead airtight." Pause. "Of course, you're the first person I'll call. Have a nice day, Chief." He put the phone down and sighed, "I'm so sorry about all that. I was looking forward to greeting you personally, but..." He shrugged, "duty calls."
"On a Sunday?" Eveline raised her eyebrows.
"How familiar are you with what's going on here?" The man asked her while eyeing her skeptically.
"I know that people started running for the hills after seemingly being normal, and one nearly knocked me over before I came here, but that's the extent of my knowledge." Eveline shrugged, and tried not to laugh.
"It's a red-out." The man said intelligently. "They've been happening for around 360 to 370 years now. The historical records are a little sparse. They usually don't do anything, however..." He paused, straightening himself, "we've unfortunately had a slew of murders that have been happening all across Midnight Hollow during these red-outs. People have been killed outside of the time, however it's usually exclusively saved for red-outs. We've connected the killings to one person recently, we call him the Red Killer. That's likely what caused the panic when the red-out started."
"A serial killer?" Eveline felt strange about the concept. "Given the way this town is, I wouldn't be surprised if something was magically causing it." Eveline noted.
The man smiled, "it's not quite magic, though this town has been... well," he chuckled, "cursed, apparently for several hundred years. We're still working through what's 'magic' and what isn't. That's why we're looking to hire you." He paused and something struck him, "forgive me, I'm Todd Landgraab. I don't think I fully introduced myself to you." He held out his hand and Eveline shook it. Todd's face flashed from curious to intrigued. "Fascinating. You can see just fine, can't you? Are you really blind?"
Eveline nodded, "blind since birth. I'm a magical source though, and I use that to compensate for it. I can see everything my magic lets me."
Todd shook his head in wonder, "incredible. Simply incredible. I know your training in science is limited based on our conversations on the phone, but that's just fine by me. We've got plenty of logistical, no-nonsense scientists here, what we really need is a fresh perspective and someone who's capable of handling the arcane."
"So... magic." Eveline filled in for him, it started to make sense why he was so interested in her being a Reaper.
"Exactly." Todd stretched in his desk. "Before the Red Killer became our top priority, our whole team was devoted to trying to uncover the magical aspect that's taken over the town so many years ago. Unfortunately though, none of us are capable of understanding the arcane."
"Do you need my qualifications on the arcane, because I think I've got that covered." Eveline was relaxing now, even smirking.
"I've heard many stories of the Reapers, assuming that's who you're related to."
"If you mean Agnes Reaper and that lineage, then yes. That's... my family." Eveline sighed that last bit. "We're kind of an odd bunch." She sucked in her cheek.
"You'll have to find time to tell us about it sometime, everyone here is fascinated by it... and we could probably use a dose of reality to cool us off from the tall tales we've heard." He grinned at her.
Eveline grinned widely, "it's all true. All of it." She said suddenly as she laughed. "I don't even need to know what you think you've heard. It's probably true. We're... weirdos."
Todd laughed outwardly. "I wouldn't say that, because if you're weirdos, what does that make us here?" He shrugged and laughed again. "So are you interested in the position, Ms. Reaper?"
Eveline smiled, "oh, just Eveline, please, no need to be formal."
"Just Eveline, you say?" Todd teased, holding out his hand, "Well, Just Eveline, welcome aboard."
Eveline felt sadness hit her like a lightning bolt. That was how Jupiter had greeted her the first time she met him. She swallowed and shook it off. It seemed she could never escape him. His voice. His laughter.
His eyes.
Eveline reached over and grabbed his hand. "When do I start?"
"Would tomorrow be too soon?" Todd looked at her hopefully. "We've got a lot of ground needing worked on, and the Chief will be pleased to hear we've expanded by one extra member."
"Tomorrow works just fine." Eveline smiled, but she couldn't shake the depression that was dragging her down. The magic in the town had been enough to distract her from the emptiness inside, and now it was all creeping back in.
Todd escorted Eveline through the lobby, giving her a run down on time and what the first day would look like before they parted and Eveline walked out of the building and into the daylight.

She wanted to curl up into a ball, but decided it would be best to to her new home first. Eveline frowned, her home as the heiress of the Reapers and she didn't have the one person she wanted with her to share it.

Mary and Alec both arrived at their new home at the same time. Mary smiled when she saw her husband, but her smile faded when she saw the same bitterness etched into his features. The sky started turning a brilliant red and Mary started to feel a strange panic fill her. This town was truly strange. Alec seemed unphased by the change, so Mary assumed it was a normal thing here.
Welcome to your home, you two. I hope it will do. I'll keep updating it over time.
"I'm really glad to hear from you, Liv." Mary said with relief.
Unfortunately, it's difficult to talk to you all here, the magic here is very strong.
"Why is that?" Mary asked, looking at her husband.
Alec walked into the house without even acknowledging her question.
Mary felt a twinge of hurt, but brushed it off.
I'm afraid it's not my place to say. What I can say is that it was from a very, very dark time here, and that our resident God of Madness and Magic was involved.
"No wonder Alec is so worked up." Mary said thoughtfully.
"Watcher?!" Alec had called loudly from within the house.
Mary's brow furrowed again with confusion before she entered the house and walked up the spiral staircase to see where her husband had run off to. "Alec? Where are you?"
"The study!" Alec called again. "I need a scrying table, watcher."
Mary walked into the room.

Alec... those are immensely expensive. Why do you need one?
"I have my reasons. I need it." His voice was cold and firm.
Mary looked at her husband and shook her head, "how expensive are we talking? Maybe we could work something out." She would do anything to see her husband be at peace again.
Alec's lip twitched into a soft smile, but it did not reach his eyes.

We're talking over 70 grand. That's a huge chunk out of your savings and funds.
Mary's eyes went wide. "$70,000?!"
Over. More than that, usually.
Mary shook her head, "I don't think that's feasible sweetheart, that money is Eveline's..."
"She'll have plenty leftover. We're not broke anymore Mary! We can afford these things, and I need this." He shook his head, "I need this." He said again, begging.
Mary looked at him intensely, "why? Tell me why Alec and we'll work it out."
Alec gritted his teeth and scowled harshly. "You wouldn't understand." His tone was low.
Mary swallowed, her face reflecting hurt. She reached out to him, "I can try... please let me in, Alec."
Alec looked at his wife and let out a long breath, there was no softness in his face. "I'm going to figure out who killed my mother, Mary. I need that scrying table to uncover the scum who did it - or to at least get enough proof... to finally... confront that son of a-"
Mary held up her hands, "are you talking about your father?" Mary shook her head, "you think HE killed your mother?"
"I know he did." Alec's face twisted with rage, "I KNOW he did!" He screamed as he slammed his hand into the pencil jar, causing it to fly across the room and Mary jumped.

"What in the world is wrong with you Alec?! Why is this all coming up now?! Your father has been staying with us for nearly 18 years!"
Alec stared at the floor, a sick smile forming on his face, "18 years he's hidden under our roof. 18 years he's sat in the room near ours and plotted and schemed! 18 FREAKING YEARS he's played FAVORITES to OUR DAUGHTER after leaving me with my grandparents to ROT after my mother died!" Alec gripped his head as he yelled. "I've tried playing nice, I've tried just forgetting, but now that I'm here... I wonder how I ever even PRETENDED to forgive that lying, deceitful pig!" His voice was like venom and Mary could feel the sting of his words even though she wasn't who they were aimed at.
"Alec," she pleaded, stepping towards him. "You have to let me in. I can't help you if you don't let me in."
"I don't WANT your help!" He gritted her teeth. "I just want ANSWERS."
Mary looked at the floor and swallowed. She was being hit with so many negative emotions that she almost couldn't take it.
The demon called 'Emotions' were clawing their way out of her whether she liked it or not, and Mary felt like she would break.

[LivvieLove]

Red-Out: Part Two
Eveline was greeted by Atris sitting on top of the entryway. Mother. He purred.
Eveline felt the world get lighter at his voice in her head. "My Atris." She cooed to him and he flew to her shoulder, nuzzling her cheek affectionately. "I'm so relieved you're safe my Atris."
Atris has come home to mother. Atris did not find what mother wanted. Atris flew twice around the area mother desired. Atris still found nothing.
Eveline stroked Atris's head as he spoke inside of her mind, her heart fell, but it was as she suspected. "Thank you for looking, my sweet." She rubbed a finger under his jaw and he closed his eyes with approval.
What does mother command of Atris?
"I need nothing now, my sweet, you are free to roam." Eveline put Atris down on the atrium floor and was pulled suddenly by the sound of crashing upstairs. Eveline jolted and looked that direction.

A sickening feeling developed in her gut as she ran for the stairs. Stairs still didn't come easy for her, so she slowed, listening closely as she heard her father's yelling become clearer.
Why was her father so angry?

Her mother was pleading with her father, but her father shut her down.
Eveline frowned, she had been so horrible to her mother and now her father was too? Guilt washed over her. The door to what she discovered was her father's office came open and Mary rushed out, her head down. She didn't even make eye contact with Eveline as she made for the doors across the way - her and Alec's bedroom.

Eveline frowned. She couldn't stay in this house like this. The guilt and sadness filled her and she took off back down the stairs and out the door. She was a flight risk and she knew it, but she just had to get away from it all.

Mary took some deep breathes as she clenched her fists.
I don't know what's gotten into him. I'm so sorry Mary.
Mary shook her head and blinked back tears. Once she recovered she nodded, "he's just really hurt right now. Emotions are messy things and he's reacting poorly because of it."
That's not an excuse and you know it. Olivia paused. I've been meaning to ask, do you mind if I give you a new outfit? I've noticed you've taken to wearing dresses more and since we're in a new place - perhaps it's only appropriate.
Mary bit her cheek, but nodded. "I'd like that."
Let me work my magic, then.
Mary closed her eyes and could feel the fabric around her change.
There, what do you think? Will that work?
"It's beautiful." Mary said quietly, though she was still distracted by her earlier argument with her husband. "Thank you, Olivia."

Mary...?
"Yes?"
Eveline may be the heiress to the Reapers now, but please do not forget that just because she has the reigns does not take away the fact that you also hold the title of heiress. If I can do anything for you, you just say the word. Your happiness is the most important thing to me. I mean that.
Mary smiled weakly, "that means a lot to me." She could feel her eyes burning and she swallowed hard. "Watcher?"
What is it, dear?
"Go ahead and get Alec his scrying table." Mary said quietly.
Are you sure? After the way he behaved...
Mary nodded, "I just want my husband to be happy, Olivia. Whatever gives him peace, I'll do. He's right. We can afford it and if it helps him find that peace that I hope for him... then it's worth it."
Olivia sighed. Very well, Mary.
Mary let out a long breath and turned towards her training dummy. She was tired of being everyone's punching bag, and she would take all of their negative energy and dispose of it. She refused to let the toxic energy of her husband and daughter pull her down.

She is strong, confident, and capable. Nothing would tear her down unless SHE said so, and what did she say?
Not today.

Eveline had hailed a taxi and told them to take her to the nearest park, she didn't care which at this point. The driver did as she asked and dropped her off at a garden. How fitting, Eveline thought bleakly.
Eveline took a breath in and calmed herself. She prepared herself to go home and apologize to her mother. As she took a few steps forward in the park she heard a familiar voice. "Hey! You! I know you!"
The bubbly girl from the science facility was skipping as she made a beeline for Eveline.
"You're Eveline, right? Hello again! It's so great to see you!" She hugged Eveline with excitement, Eveline stood shocked for a moment before awkwardly returning the hug.
"Hi there... you remember me?"

"Well you're the only blind person I'm aware of being in Midnight Hollow, so we'll just go with that you stick out!" The girl spoke like everything was the most exciting thing that ever happened. It was a refreshing change, honestly. "Oh! I'm Seema by the way! Sorry! I get a little carried away sometimes and then-" She made a motion with her hands "-yoohoo! It's like there's so much I want to say and not even enough time in the world!"
Eveline laughed lightly, "I can see that." She smiled.
Seema grinned, "I really like you. There aren't many women here in Midnight Hollow any more, and the few that are... well they're a little bit... cuckcoo!" She laughed, "or they're not all the way there, or they're really old and boring! That stupid Red Killer is scaring everyone away and it's sooooo boring here!" Not only was Seema talking immensely fast, but she also made wide hand gestures. Eveline was grinning, it was so nice to not be surrounded by doom and gloom.

"So what are you doing out here in the middle of a red-out? I'm out here because I HOPE that stupid killer will be dumb enough to hit me. I'm ready for him! I've got my mace, and my pocket knife, and oh look at this! I got this new keychain from the store the other day and it's just so cute! It's pink like your necklace! Ooh I love that necklace! Where did you get it?!"
Eveline was laughing, "which question do you want me to answer first?" She smirked, "I needed some space away from my family, so I'm out here, though I didn't know it was still a red-out. How long do those last?"
Seema shrugged, "it varies, anywhere from an hour to a day. It's hard to say when it will end. We're still working on that one. Unfortunately it falls into the 'magic' aspect of the town and not the science-y part. I'm good at the science-y part. You know I actually talked one of my professors into giving me an 'A?' He actually told me that if I could stay quiet throughout an entire class period that he would pass me. No one thought I could do it, but you know what? I did!" She laughed, "the look on his face when I held him to that bargain! Let me tell you..."
Eveline chuckled, "I once turned in an entire math workbook filled with scribbles to my history professor because he insisted that I should be treated like the rest of the class and do homework the exact same way. That shut him up real quick when I threatened to call him out on discrimination if he didn't pass me."
Seema laughed, "I like you! You're funny! We should be friends!"
Eveline shrugged, "why not? You're possibly the most cheerful person I've met in a long time." She sighed, "and I could really use the positivity."
Seema glommed onto her and hugged her again.

"That's so nice of you to say! I'm so glad you're here!" She paused, letting her go, "oops, sorry. I like hugs a lot. I hope you don't mind. Sometimes I forget that people mind that sort of thing."
Eveline shook her head, "hugging is fine by me."
"Great!" Seema squealed, "I can't wait to get to work with you! You're going to lead up the arcane studies right? That's SO cool! Just wait until you see the source! I wonder if you'll be the first person to get to explore it? Todd told us we're not allowed to go there, too toxic apparently. You know that place has killed people before?" Seema was going to continue on her stream when Eveline stopped her.
"Source? What source?"
Seema's eyes went wide. "Right! You're new here! Doh! Silly Seema! How could you possibly know about that!" She laughed as she slapped her head lightly. "The source is this crazy powerful building... something happened there some 400 years ago... something so powerful that it literally caused a massive earthquake. Like... CRAZY powerful. It became like a nuclear waste site almost, because NOTHING can survive that goes in there. NOTHING. I mean, and we've tried a lot of things! Ever since that earthquake the town has been all sorts of topsy turvy! Some people have the property of ghosts... we had a clan of vampires here too, but thankfully they went off to pester someone else."

Eveline's head was spinning. "A building?"
"It was a house once, I think. It's hard to tell though, it's basically ruins now. For a long time after the earthquake it was impossible to even go within a radius of the place, but now it's mostly just contained to the property and so long as you stay off of it you'll be fine. Weird how that happens. Magical decay or something like that. Who knows? Completely nuts. I wish I could know what happened there! I would LOVE to have been a bug on that wall just to see what went down."
"Me too, that sounds really cool. Do you think you could show it to me sometime?"
"Oh! We could totally do that! We can hang out sometime and go out to lunch and maybe go shopping too? That would be awesome! Work is so busy lately though with that killer that I could really use a break. You start tomorrow though right? We could hang out after work! Oh it's so great to have another girl on the science team! Especially one I get along with! You have no idea how boring those guys there can be! They don't appreciate a good conversation." Seema pouted. "Please say you'll hang out with me? I'm dying to have a real girl to girl conversation!"
Eveline found herself smiling, she's never actually had a real girl friend she could talk to before, the thought was actually really appealing. "That would be amazing."
Seema absolutely exploded from the excitement. "Great! Oh that's so awesome! Here give me your phone, I'll put my phone number in it! Oh, does it work differently since you're blind? Oh what does it matter, you have a phone, I'm sure you can figure it out! Does your phone have voice activation on it I wonder? That would be awesome! Then you can just say 'call Seema!' and poof! I'd be there! And we could talk on the phone all night! Oh, can you text? It hardly matters, I can do phone call anyways, texting is too slow and boring!"
Eveline handed her the phone and smiled, "I can do voice texting, I usually do, though I can't check my text messages unless I'm in an area where they can be read aloud. So, you know, don't send me anything too strange." She grinned, "at least, nothing you don't want overheard by anyone within earshot."

Seema giggled, "oh! Right! I'll try to be careful! It's hard though because... well, you know, I'm a little excited a lot of the time."
"Maybe just give me a warning text before sending anything too juicy then?" Eveline grinned.
"I think I can manage that! So are you headed back home then Eveline?"
Eveline nodded more solemn now, "I need to go talk to my mom for a bit. Before I left... well, where I was before here... I kind of said some really mean things and I feel really bad about it."
Seema frowned and nodded, "my mom and I fight all the time, it's how we say we love each other, or at least, that's what we tell ourselves." She shrugged, "I hope you can patch things up with her! Call me tonight if you get bored! I would be glad for your company! Oh, and you can tell me all about where you came from and all the magic and stuff. I've heard all kinds of rumors about the Reapers and I want to know if it's true! All of it! Especially the romantic parts though, because the Reapers have been rumored to have the most romantic tales I've ever heard!"
Eveline giggled, "we'll, we're pretty strange, that's for sure."
"In this town, who isn't?" Seema shrugged, she hugged Eveline one last time while grinning, "I'm so happy I met you! I get the feeling we're going to be great friends! Call me later, ok?"
Seema pulled herself off of Eveline and as quickly as she had arrived she disappeared, leaving Eveline a little dizzy. She had made a friend here, and there was a small part of Eveline that prayed she could just for once keep this one.

Eveline stood nervously outside her parent's bedroom door. Her father was still pacing about his office, and her mother had just gotten out of the shower after practicing Martial Arts - something she does to help calm herself. Eveline hoped her mother could possibly forgive her. She squeezed her fists and bit her lip as she thought about what she said. She had really hit her mother where it hurt and she knew it. She gathered all of her courage and knocked ever-so-lightly on the door.

"Come in." Mary's voice was steady and muffled by the door.
Eveline sucked in a breath and opened the door, "mom?" She whispered, "it's me."
Mary smiled lightly at her daughter, "come on in, Eveline." She wasn't sure what else to say, should she apologize for her overhearing the fight she had with Alec? She had decided against it and just kept her mouth shut.
Eveline looked down at the floor, her face filled with sadness and regret.
Mary felt her heart ache as she looked at her daughter, however part of her desperately didn't want to fight with another person in her family today.

"Mom?" Eveline's voice cracked and she cleared her throat. "I was hoping to talk to you about... about what I said... before we left Bridgeport."
Mary nodded, "you had been through so much the night before-"
Eveline held up her hand, "I was so awful to you and I'm so, so sorry." It all fell out, and tears came with it. "I didn't mean anything I said, I swear it, mom. I love you and you're so good at maintaining yourself and I lashed out and it was so wrong." She shook her head, hugging herself as she spoke. "Everything I said was wrong, but especially the part about... about Thomas. I'm so..." The tears felt like they were burning her. "I'm so sorry mom."

Mary didn't say anything, she simply crossed the space between them and hugged her daughter close. Eveline openly sobbed into her mother's comfort and Mary soothed her, "it's ok sweetheart." Mary felt stronger than ever before and regardless of how things looked now, she was glad she had kept herself open to her daughter. "Thank you for your apology. It means so much to me." Mary whispered into her daughter's hair.
"I know what I did was unforgivable. I'm so sorry." Eveline clutched her mother tighter.
Mary pulled away and wiped her daughter's face. "Evie, there's very little you could do in this world that I wouldn't forgive you for. You're my daughter and I love you unconditionally."
Eveline sucked in a harsh, shaky breath. "I love you mom."
"I love you too, sweetheart, I always have and I always will." Mary stroked her hair gently as Eveline calmed down. "Are you hungry, sweetie? We can go out to eat and talk about today. You had your interview right?"
Eveline nodded, "I got the job."
Mary beamed, "I'm so proud of you! I knew you could do it! My baby girl is a working girl now! Your father will be so happy too."
"He sounded so angry earlier, what happened mom? Did you two fight?" Eveline straightened herself now, wiping her face as she went.
Mary shook her head, "your father is going through a hard period of his life right now in regards to your grandfather. I think he just needs some time to adjust and come to terms with some things."
"He and grandpa don't get along?" Eveline was confused.
Mary shrugged, "I'm afraid I don't know much else about it, just that it's bothering him quite a bit. Maybe getting him out and about will help?"
Eveline nodded, "I'm going to clean up first."
"Sounds good, I'll round up your father." Mary paused and smiled at her daughter, "I really am proud of you Eveline. I know this isn't easy being here given the circumstances. I hope you feel like you can talk to me if you need to."
Eveline nodded, "thank you, mom. That really means a lot to me."
Mary smiled, "go get ready, I'll go grab the cranky one." She teased.
Eveline smiled and they both walked out of the room, Eveline disappearing down the stairs. Mary walked quietly and knocked on Alec's office door, feeling more confident now than she had previously. "Sweetheart? We're going out to dinner, come out and get ready."
There was a rustling sound, along with furious clicking of a mouse on the computer. "Go ahead without me, I've got a lot of work to do." Alec called through the door.
Mary frowned and tried to open the door, but found it locked, she frowned harder. "Love? Please come out. Eveline got the job at the science facility. We should go support her. She's been through-"
"I said go ahead without me." Alec was firmer this time.
Mary was startled by the coldness in his voice. She turned and prepared to walk away, but instead turned around once more, "well would you like me to bring you home something?"
She could hear him as he growled at the computer before his voice softened and he sighed, "I...sure." His voice no longer had an edge to it and Mary felt physical relief at the sound. "Thank you, Mary." He paused, "and tell Eveline congratulations for me. It's probably best that I don't go out when I feel this way. I don't want to drag her down with me."
Mary felt her heart fill with relief. This was the husband she knew. She smiled widely. "I love you dear. I'll see you later tonight." Mary said more cheerfully through the door.
Alec sighed again, "love you too. Have fun." His voice was still low and gripped with sadness, but it was better than the tone he had earlier, and Mary would take it. Mary smiled to herself as she went down the stairs, perhaps things were looking up after all.

Alec sat at his desk and stared at the monitor with deadpan look. There were so many questions that had gone unanswered for too long.

He pulled out a single daffodil that he had taken from the original bouquet found in Eveline's room. The flower was dying and was crushed from him holding onto it the way he had. He placed the flower gently on the desk and stared at it.
"I'm so sorry I've let this go for so long, mom." He whispered to the flower. "I promise he won't get away with it. I will bring you justice. I will." He swallowed hard. "Even if it kills me."

[Magpie2012]

My money is on McNeel (or someone else) killing her, I think Majnun came to love her too much! Alec was probably a constant reminder and Majnun was in too much pain to be able to deal with that too, or he felt like he was the cause of her death and couldn't face Alec with the guilt... Or, that could just be the fact that I totally adore Majnun now that leads me to believe that...

Sent from my BlackBerry 9720 using Tapatalk

[LivvieLove]

My money is on McNeel (or someone else) killing her, I think Majnun came to love her too much! Alec was probably a constant reminder and Majnun was in too much pain to be able to deal with that too, or he felt like he was the cause of her death and couldn't face Alec with the guilt... Or, that could just be the fact that I totally adore Majnun now that leads me to believe that...

Sent from my BlackBerry 9720 using Tapatalk

Hm, you know I was thinking it was the milkman, eh? Or those stupid hydrangeas. Rude little things, eh?
Oh, maybe it was the HAMSTERS?
All equally likely. I guess we're going to have to wait for this silly, spacey writer to figure her stuff out to know what happens.
I totally adore Majnun too, for what it's worth, so I'm right there with you in that boat.
Thank you for your support!

Until then, stop-sign, weasels, baked goods, midnight tea!
I'm off to write Majnun!

[oshizu]

You love Majnun too much for him to end up such a dastardly villain! (I hope)
You are going to teasingly unveil, after many twists and turns, an even more hateful somebody that we never suspected (or knew).
If Majnun is dying, you wouldn't let him go without some reconciliation with Aleccas.

At least, that's what I'm hoping. 

P.S. Love that your avatar now shows the young Majnun!

[AnnaBeth]

Loving it, Liv! Already liking Midnight Hollow and it's creepy red-outs as I'm getting into crime dramas at the minute. I just hope that Alec is able to find peace from what he finds out about Anne and how she died...

[LivvieLove]

You love Majnun too much for him to end up such a dastardly villain! (I hope)
You are going to teasingly unveil, after many twists and turns, an even more hateful somebody that we never suspected (or knew).
If Majnun is dying, you wouldn't let him go without some reconciliation with Aleccas.

At least, that's what I'm hoping. 

P.S. Love that your avatar now shows the young Majnun!

Well, he is a villain, technically. He's doing really, truly terrible things in his life including but not limited to burning an innocent person alive to tick off Olivia and try to encourage retaliation. He started the war that nearly wiped out the Glades and made nymphs nearly extinct. He encouraged the war on Isla Paradiso, and he may have had his hands in the night Noten died.
I haven't explicitly put these things in, (I should've), but they're still there. I love this crazy fool, but he is by no means a good guy! I'm realizing now a bit too late that his character is coming across cleaner than I meant. Ah well, I'm sure I'll find ways to rectify it. I'm actually working on it right now. I won't say anything else until it's finished though just know that it'll be separate from this story. 
Also, thank you! Hard to read, but it also says "Magic ALWAYS has its price."

Loving it, Liv! Already liking Midnight Hollow and it's creepy red-outs as I'm getting into crime dramas at the minute. I just hope that Alec is able to find peace from what he finds out about Anne and how she died...

Thank you so much! Midnight Hollow is so much fun! Haha, hopefully I do the crime drama justice!
And you and me both on the Alec front. He's seemingly going off the deep end. Perhaps he's more like his father than we realized?

[oshizu]

Well, he is a villain, technically. He's doing really, truly terrible things in his life including but not limited to burning an innocent person alive to tick off Olivia and try to encourage retaliation. He started the war that nearly wiped out the Glades and made nymphs nearly extinct. He encouraged the war on Isla Paradiso, and he may have had his hands in the night Noten died.

*Gasps
How did I miss all that? And now I'm so curious about what's been motivating him all these years and how his insanity really works.
With Eveline, he seems like such a grandfather at times.  With Anne, he seemed so innocent and helpless at times.
Oh well, chalk it up to my intrinsic attraction to bad boys?

[LivvieLove]

Well, he is a villain, technically. He's doing really, truly terrible things in his life including but not limited to burning an innocent person alive to tick off Olivia and try to encourage retaliation. He started the war that nearly wiped out the Glades and made nymphs nearly extinct. He encouraged the war on Isla Paradiso, and he may have had his hands in the night Noten died.

*Gasps
How did I miss all that? And now I'm so curious about what's been motivating him all these years and how his insanity really works.
With Eveline, he seems like such a grandfather at times.  With Anne, he seemed so innocent and helpless at times.
Oh well, chalk it up to my intrinsic attraction to bad boys?

You didn't! I needed to put that in somewhere but it never felt like the right time. I'm working on it. What's motivating him all these years? Well I'm sure that will be revealed in time.
As for him, he IS a good grandfather, for reasons that will also be revealed in time. But that's also the reason Alec is so bitter.

That bad boy attraction though!

[LivvieLove]

So I swear, I see that little red notification telling me my post exceeds the maximum forum limit far too many times.
Again, post is being split into two parts due to exceeding maximum length for a post.

Beautiful Chaos: Part One
Anne awoke the next morning to the sun coming into her window. She smiled as she realized she had slept soundly through the night and she felt more rested than she had in ages. She stretched and pulled herself out of bed, her fingers lightly brushing the paint set that sat next to her bed still. Now that she was assured in his intentions, the gift held a whole new meaning. She imagined exactly the kind of paintings she would try first.
After she finished getting ready for the day she carefully took her paint set to her easel and stared at the painting she had begun to work on. She gingerly pulled the vial of color-matching paint and placed it to the canvas. The vial glowed, turning blue to match the paint she had left there previously. She grinned and very carefully pulled the lid off and poured herself some paint. After a brief moment, the paint glowed again and refilled in the vial. Anne bit her lip, this was almost too good to be true.
Anne began to work diligently on her painting of the water. The paint itself was beautiful and left a slight shimmer on the canvas, however Anne frowned as she worked, water was not her best subject. After several minutes she sighed and took the canvas off, opting instead to work on a different painting that she felt more confident about.
She mixed the yellow paint and had just started to apply it when there was a knock on her door.

"Anne, are you up yet?" Victoria had reached for the handle and came in anyways.
Anne focused as she applied a line of paint, "good morning mother."
"It's barely even breakfast time and you're already going at those paints? Ridiculous." She sighed.

Anne frowned, putting down her brush and turning to look at her mother. She tipped her head as a formality, "what can I do for you this morning?"
"Tomorrow night we'll be having guests over for a dinner party, I have come to ask you what you are going to wear." Victoria eyed her skeptically.
Anne pursed her lips, she didn't have the answer her mother wished to hear. "I have a few dresses in my closet. If things weren't too formal I could always wear this dress." Anne gestured to herself.

Her mother scowled. "I figured as much. I have Lydia downstairs since I needed a new dress. Come. Let's have her set you up with a dress as well." It wasn't an option, it was a command, and Anne nodded meekly and tried not to let her hurt show through, her mother was an expert at sensing weakness. Thankfully today though, she didn't press the issue. They walked silently down the stairs and into her parent's room where the elderly Lydia was laying out dresses. Anne came in and realized her mother had not needed a gown herself, as all the dresses Lydia had brought were in Anne's size. Anne frowned at the ambush, her mother could have just said she wanted her to have a new gown. It was always some kind of deceit when it came to her.
"Good morning Ms. Anne." Lydia smiled warmly at her when she had spotted the two of them coming in.
Anne's lips made the motion of a smile, "good morning, Lydia." She nodded then at Daisy, "and you Daisy."
Daisy gave an apologetic smile and lightly shrugged, her hands were tied.
"Let's try on some new dresses, shall we?"
The pulling and prodding began.

"These colors are truly in style today, Ms. Anne. You look absolutely lovely in them."
Anne tried her best not to frown, what colors? She thought. The dress she wore held absolutely no colors at all in them.

"You look lovely, Miss." Daisy said quietly from off to the side, holding Anne's usual red dress for her.
"What do you think, Ms. Anne?" Lydia looked at her with bright eyes.
Anne opened her mouth to say something but her mother cut her off.
"It's perfect Lydia." She nodded firmly, "we'll take it. Perhaps this dress will be enough to push Jameson to propose." She gave a hollow smile before her voice dropped low, "gods know he'll need to propose quickly before Anne scares him off with how absent-minded she is."
Anne set her lip in a slight line, trying very hard not to let her mother's words affect her. "Thank you, Lydia." Her voice was low as she stared at the floor.
"So Mr. McNeel is courting you, Ms. Anne? How lovely. You two will be a fine match." Lydia helped Anne out of the dress slowly by undoing the corset.
Anne pursed her lips, "well, I wouldn't say we're courting yet-"
"Anne." Her mother's voice was firm as she stared at her daughter with intense eyes. "Forgive her, Lydia. Anne spends her days with her nose in her books. She oftentimes forgets how the world works. Jameson McNeel has most certainly offered his interest in her. If we are lucky they will be engaged within a fortnight - the end of this week if we're really lucky."
Anne felt a bit of boldness run through her for the first time that morning, "perhaps I will be engaged within a fortnight," Anne smiled to herself, "I do not lack in choices of suitor. I even received a paint set from one as an offer of courtship."
Her mother's eyes grew wide and she clenched her teeth. She opened her mouth to retaliate when Lydia spoke.
"Ah, to be young and beautiful." She smiled warmly.
Victoria's lip twitched into a strange smile, but the glare and anger did not leave her eyes. "Young and beautiful indeed." She said through gritted teeth.
"There now, you're all set my dear." Lydia said as she helped Anne back into her regular dress. "I wish you the best of luck with your suitors, my dear. I look forward to hearing of your grand wedding."
Anne smiled and nodded at Lydia, before gathering herself and getting out of that room as fast as she could without making a scene. She knew her mother would come after her with a vengeance later, but for now she was content at least having the last word. She could regret her irrational response after her mother gave her the biggest what-for of her life.
Anne wandered back up into her room to grab the picture of the ocean she had gave up painting earlier. She took that and her paint set down into the garden, hoping a change of scenery might improve her abilities.


The change of scenery did absolutely nothing for her. She frowned deeply at the stubborn painting. She had known it was a bad idea to try to paint water, and she wasn't entirely sure why she had done it anyways. She always tried, but it never turned out because she had never actually seen a body of water that large like the ocean. The closest she ever got was the pond next to her easel.
She put her paint tray down and let out a breath, shaking her head. Today was just not a day for the ocean. She took the painting and set it down in the grass away from her. If she had to look at it any longer she would only feel worse. Anne fetched out a new canvas and began a different painting, feeling a little better about her abilities now that she had moved away from the concept of water.
"How did I know I would find you out here?"
Anne jolted, it was the very last voice she expected to hear.

"Good morning, Jameson." Anne curtseyed lightly to him.
"Going at the easel again, Anne?" Jameson smiled at her.
Anne smiled softly and nodded, this was the second time today that someone had pointed out the frequency of which she painted and implied it was a negative thing. Anne wondered briefly if it would be ok to use that same tone in reference to his business? Certainly not. "Painting is my living as much as business is yours." Her voice was light, however defensive.
"It's a wonderful hobby, but I would not compare it to my business." Jameson smiled warmly at her though he was equally defensive.
Anne shifted, something about his presence made her uncomfortable, but she couldn't put her finger on it.
"So, Anne, you're beautiful, you paint... is there anything else I don't know about you?"
Anne looked away thoughtfully, there were plenty of things he didn't know about her, her thoughts were prickly as she thought about his patronizing demeanor. How does one even respond to that kind of question? Anne's eyes drifted until they landed on her daffodils and she smiled. "I tend to my flowers." She said warmly, despite his rather condescending question.
Jameson's eyes followed her to the flower bed and he eyed them curiously. "Those yellow ones sure do stick out like a sore thumb here." He chuckled.
Out of everything he could have said, Anne prickled the most at this comment. "They're daffodils." She said to him, doing everything she could to not clench her fists or ask him to leave. She started walking back to her plants. "They're my favorites."
Jameson followed behind her. "Isn't it difficult to grow such a flower here? I'm amazed it's lasted this long."
Anne felt pride well up inside of her, "it is very difficult to grow, indeed."
"It makes me glad I don't have a garden to worry about." Jameson bent over as he examined the flowers.
Anne's brow furrowed, "no garden? At all?"
Jameson looked over at her and shook his head, "no garden at all. I live close to the city center, there isn't much room for one. In fact, I don't even have much of a yard. It really is just a waste of space considering all the wonderful things the city has to offer are so much closer and in reach."
Anne felt her entire heart sink inside of her. If she married him, she would have no garden. No yard. No life outside of the cement walls. She would suffocate, she was sure of that.
Jameson looked back at the daffodils and smiled, "they are kind of pretty, now that I'm looking at them."
Anne nodded and was starting to smile again when Jameson reached over and plucked a flower off the stem. Anne could feel the flower screaming as it died in his hands and she nearly screamed as well. She tensed tightly as she stared at him in horror, though he could not see her as he was busy smelling the corpse of the flower she had grown. She clenched her fists and felt tears welling in her eyes for the pain her flower was feeling. Anne wanted to fall to her knees and cry while at the same time she wanted to smack the man who had killed one of her precious flowers. Instead she just stood, unable to form any coherent sentence. Her mind wanted to cry out to someone... anyone. Her thoughts flashed briefly to Majnun. In her mind she knew he never would have done something so horrible. Inside a small plea formed in her head, a plea crying: take me away from here.

Majnun would normally find such displays amusing, but for some reason today it only annoyed him. It completely annoyed him.
His lip twitched. Perhaps he did not rest long enough, this behavior was highly unusual for him.

He scowled. No, he had rested plenty. She had just gotten under his skin - she had dug herself a home there and she was now using it to twist him into reacting differently than what he should have. He wanted to be angry with her, but he could not. The only anger he could muster got directed at the pathetic man who was encroaching on his territory - on his future wife.
Majnun's face was emotionless.
He did not share well.
He did not share, period.
The foolish man had been attempting to win over what did not belong to him, and while Majnun thought his attempts were entertaining, he was growing very tired of them very quickly. He leaned further over the edge of Anne's roof and watched him make subtle insults directed at Anne, and he could see Anne bristling under every word. He tilted his head, he could practically feel the thoughts that were screaming in her head, begging to be released, but her propriety prevented them like a dam in a river.

Majnun shifted forward and idly conjured an unrecognizable item in his hands. He began to bend its shape to his will as he watched the show below. The item passed through many shapes as Majnun would form and reform it again and again, trying to keep himself occupied. Something told him if he waited long enough, the dam might burst, and he would see the fire in her eyes again.
His face became even more unamused and he swallowed. He could try to make up an excuse for why he wanted to see it, but he knew better than to lie to himself. Seeing that spark in her the night she refused his proposal made him wonder that if he pushed her hard enough... would it be there to stay?
The man had bent over and snapped off a daffodil from the plant and Majnun froze, his fist forming around the object that had just become a spike. The flower in the man's hand writhed and died, seemingly unaffected to the mortals, but Majnun could hear it screaming. He clenched his fist tighter around the spike. The flower gave off screams from being beheaded, and Majnun could hear them clearly until something overshadowed it: Anne. Her head was screaming. She was volatile now, and almost irrational. Majnun might have been curious to see her angry, but at this point he was already too angry to say anything. The flower was not ready to be picked and this man had decided for it.
Majnun debated throwing the spike and beheading the man with it, giving him a taste of how it feels. Another thought twisted in his head, if he timed it right, he could hit them both and be done with this frivolous affair he had started. He would be better off for it.
No.
His head unanimously put down that thought and he scowled. He never hesitated to kill someone before unless his head had a better idea for them, and in this case, it did not. He just didn't want to.
The spike disappeared in a puff of smoke and Majnun clenched his now-empty fist. Killing Anne was out of the question. Why? Because he didn't want to. The thought that his desires were so off from the rest of him enraged him. This man's game was over now, Majnun had decided that for him. He stood from the roof and snapped his fingers, vanishing from the air.

Anne felt like she was melting down inside, her anger was boiling, but she didn't know what to do with it.
Jameson had put the flower in his jacket like a sick trophy and Anne felt like she might throw up. "Are you alright, Anne? You look a little pale." He noted as his attention turned back to her.

Anne knew that the minute she opened her mouth it would be the end. She would say something entirely out of line and her parents would punish her unmercifully for it.
The sound of horses in distress drew Jameson's attention away immediately.
"SIR! SIR!" A young man called to Jameson from up the drive, "THE CARRIAGE HAS CAUGHT FIRE!" He looked around, frightened, "THE HORSES ARE SPOOKED AND THE CARRIAGE IS ON FIRE!" The boy took off running out of sight.
Jameson's eyes went wide and he took off running without a single word of goodbye to Anne. Anne was gritting her teeth as she watched him go, she hadn't even noticed the shift in the air that had occurred just before the footman had called Jameson away.

"Good riddance." Majnun growled.
Anne jumped at the sound and sudden realization that she wasn't alone. She turned back around to look at him.
Majnun had a mildly satisfied smile on his face. "If he's wise he won't come back."
Anne looked at him curiously for a moment, "you... you did that? The fire?"
Majnun gave her a wicked smile, and that was all the answer she needed.
"What about the horses? Won't they get hurt?" Her eyebrows furrowed with confliction.
Majnun shrugged, his mildly satisfied face turning slightly more smug. He did not care what happened to anyone involved, he just had to get that pathetic mortal away from what was his. He felt even more satisfied that Anne's eyes still had the anger in them from earlier - the spark he hoped to see. It pleased him to know that he was responsible for it, even if she was angry.
Anne's eyes fell suddenly and she frowned, looking at the ground and resigning herself to the events of the day.
Majnun's eyebrows furrowed then in response. This wasn't what he wanted. He cursed himself inwardly. His desires were growing more and more difficult to understand or contain. He tipped his head and bent to look her in the eyes.

"Why are you sad?" It was a question out of confusion, not concern. "He is gone now." Majnun stated simply.
Anne's eyes meekly met his, the fire long gone, replaced by submission. "It has been a long day." Her voice was very soft.
Majnun's confusion was not sated. "Why?" He looked around and back to her, "the day is just beginning."
Anne shook her head and turned away, "I suppose it is." She walked away from both him and the flowers and back towards her easel.
Majnun's face looked sour as he watched her walk away, his irritation showing. After a moment he jolted forward until he was right next to her, the speed that he had moved sent a gentle breeze that blew her hair forward. "Walk with me." It sounded like a command, but in reality it was a question.
Anne looked at him, her eyes wide, "I cannot just leave..." She looked around, "my parents would need to know where I was going." Her hands were fidgeting nervously in front of her and she clenched them tightly around each other to stop it.
Majnun's voice dropped to a whisper, "they will not notice your absence." He raised his hand and waved it around fluidly in the air, causing a shift in the wind. Anne could feel the magic that had settled on the house. Majnun smirked, "unless you want them to, that is."
Anne's eyes bugged open before she quickly looked towards the house, "you should be careful doing things like that." She whispered back at him.
Majnun's grin grew, "you're right, of course." He paused, his eyes serious, "apparently there's a lunatic out there who controls all of the magic in the world. He's merciless I hear." He spun around and laughed maniacally, "oh WAIT! That's ME." He started walking forward, looking back at her expectantly.
Anne shook her head but a smile pulled at her lips. After a moment she gave in and began to walk in pace next to him. "You'll interfere with fate if you keep that up."
Majnun let out a harsh laugh, "FATE?!" He laughed again, "I am above Fate."
Anne was staring at him softly, "no one is above fate, Majnun."
Her voice saying his name drew him back from his laughter immediately, and his face settled into something more serious. "I don't think you understood me: Destiny, the Goddess of Fate, answers to me. All of the gods answer to me in some way." He looked smugly at the sky, "I hold the magic, I hold the key."
Anne was smiling a soft smile at his arrogance, not buying a word of it. "You should not interfere with what is to be though, magic or not, we all have something we're meant to do. Magic could throw off what was meant to be."
Majnun scowled, she always found a way to infuriate him. "Magic is fate, Anne." He spoke firmly. "I can do what I want." He shrugged and then looked at her intensely. "You say the word and I can rewrite history for you. I can make this place so colorful your eyes will bleed. I can stop time, if it tickles your fancy. I could block out the sun for a decade and just be getting started." His face was smug once again, "I can snap my fingers and give you anything you desire." He smirked at her, "Fate cannot."
Anne had her arms folded along her stomach as they walked along the road. "Yet you cannot." Her voice was quiet.
Majnun snapped a glance at her in disbelief. "Try me." His voice was low and his mouth was set in a firm line.
"Magic cannot create love. Magic cannot create acceptance or happiness." She looked forward as she spoke, but at this point she turned and looked at him, "and magic cannot change fate."
Majnun's face twitched, he felt like exploding. She was so wrong on so many levels. It infuriated him to no end. He let out a harsh breath. "You do not know magic." He spat. "Magic is capable of all of those things."
"It is not the same," Anne continued, her voice level, "and you know it."
Majnun glared, "and what makes you say that?"
"You haven't put a spell on me." She released her hands from her stomach and let them held them out in front of her. "If magic could do all of those things, why wouldn't you just put a spell on me now and force me to be your wife."
Majnun was getting angrier. "Just because I have not done it to you does not mean I cannot do it." He growled lowly.
Anne skipped up a step and turned around suddenly to face him head on, "then do it." She stared him down, "bend me to your will."

Majnun would make her eat her own sock if that would shut her up, he stepped forward at her challenge and looked into her eyes. Something happened then that had never happened before.
He faltered.
It only lasted a brief moment, but in all of history Majnun could never recall a time that he had ever backed down directly from a challenge. Especially one done so brashly. He faltered because in her eyes was the fire he had hoped to ignite in her that morning. He could see it exactly for what it was now - it was her passion. It knocked the anger completely out of him.
"I will not." His voice was softer than he would have intended, but nothing ever went how he wanted it to when it came to Anne. "But it is not because I cannot." He did not break the intense stare he had with her, but he held his hand out to her. He lightly clenched his jaw and tried to not frown, "do you... trust me?"
Anne did not hesitate before delicately placing her hand on top of his. "I do."

[LivvieLove]

Beautiful Chaos: Part Two
He stepped even closer to her, his hand becoming a grip on hers, "do not look away." His other hand swung out to the side and he began to pull on the fabrics of the world.
The ground came out from underneath Anne and she tried to not panic. She struggled to not look down at the ground that was shifting beneath their feet rapidly. She tightened her grip on Majnun's hand. She debated closing her eyes and waiting for it to be over, but she was determined to keep looking forward, to keep her eyes on Majnun's.
Majnun could see the fear in her eyes, but she maintained herself. It fascinated him. She was afraid but she refused to react in the face of it. It was something he couldn't comprehend. He had finished teleporting them, and they sat now on the side of the road much closer to the destination he had in mind.
Anne's face eased immensely at the realization of ground beneath her feet.
"Afraid?" He tried to hide the smile that was growing on his face. He always had wanted her to be afraid of him.
Anne's breathing slowly returned to normal, "a little." Her honesty shocked him, "but I trust you."
Majnun and she still had not broken the eye contact they had made when she challenged him initially. Majnun's voice was quiet when he spoke, "some might call you foolish for that."
Anne smiled very softly, "perhaps I am foolish then." Anne had been captivated by the depth in his eyes, but she could hear the rushing of water in a way she had never heard before. She broke the eye contact briefly to look at her surroundings and her eyes lit up. "Where... where are we?" She asked in awe.
"I'll give you three guesses."
Anne had already stepped forward further, noticing the sand that was dusted along the grass. High above in the sky she could hear the seagulls cawing and Anne couldn't contain the laughter she felt. Suddenly she was running off of the grass and further into the sand, she held out her arms to feel the breeze that past, her laughter echoing along with the sound of the seagulls.
"Look!" She laughed, nearly doubled over, "look at the gulls, Majnun!" A few of the seagulls that had sat on the ground flew around her before taking flight into the air. Her giggle was uncontrollable as she waved them off, "hello there, little gulls!" She called out to them.

Majnun felt something shift inside of him, but he couldn't place what it was. It was like watching her joy made him feel... warmer. "Now you're speaking to the birds?" He chuckled, perhaps she was as mad as he was. The thought was mildly comforting.
Plastic. Violin screeching. The white part of an egg. Crunching, mixing, lost inside the cave. Tunnel. Lights off.
Majnun's hands flew to his head and his eyes went wide. "Fickle! Mangle! Sunset! Raven's claw!" Insanity slammed into him and he struggled against it in his own head. His eyes focused hard on the grains of sand mixed into the grass. Blue. Dustball. The scream of a flower as it dies. Majnun's nails dug into his skin when he felt something touch him.
Anne had placed her hands over his on his head. Reality never seemed clearer. He threw himself back and stared at her like she had just hit him. "Stay back!" He ordered. "I can-" he gritted his teeth, "I-I can get it back."
Anne stepped closer again, "get what back, Majnun?" She was concerned.
He was panting, "my SANITY!" He shouted. "I will not lose it now! Not like this!" He clutched at his arms.
Anne approached him again, "you haven't lost anything, you are still you." She tried soothing him, but he seemed busy focusing sternly on the ground. "What does it feel like?"
Majnun's eyes shot up from the ground and he looked at her intensely. It was like he was a completely different entity; for the first time all Anne could see in his eyes was pain. The arrogant god who once laughed in the face of fate now stood looking vulnerable and hurt.
"The pain is unbearable." He whispered. "I cannot let it win. I will not lose my mind. I will not lose myself." He closed his eyes tightly and sucked in a long breath, steadying himself.
Anne notice the change, the way his eyes hardened as he steeled himself, she frowned slightly, "are you alright, Majnun?"
Majnun glared at her, he wanted to scream at her, but his face fell from anger to something much more passive. "I... I think I am fine now." He paused and scowled at the ground before adding with a sigh: "thank you."
Anne smiled warmly at him, "come, let's sit." She had grabbed his wrist and pulled him over to a more grassy area, adjusting her dress and sitting down fluidly before looking at him expectantly.
Majnun's face was still sour, but he sat with her anyways.

Anne ran her fingers along the grass below her and smiled softly, "this place is so beautiful. The water is just astonishing. I never knew such beauty could exist in such a muted world."
Majnun looked at her curiously, "have you not seen the ocean before?"
Anne shook her head, "never. I've always tried to imagine what it was like from the books I've read, but this is so much more than I could have ever dreamed." She sighed, "it's no wonder I felt I could never get those paintings right. I could never do this justice."
Majnun pursed his lips as he debated what to say, "you are... a very good painter." He spoke it slowly, like it was difficult for him to fully say - because it was. Majnun very rarely complimented someone directly.
Anne's face lit up and she smiled widely. "Thank you. That's the first nice thing people have had to say about my painting all day." She laughed lightly. "Apparently I paint too much."

"Does it make you happy?" He tilted his head.
Anne looked at him thoughtfully. "Yes. It does. It feels like a part of me, a part that I don't know if I could be without." She smiled sheepishly, "that probably sounds silly."
Majnun looked at her levelly, "you're speaking to the God of Madness, I can assure you that comparatively, that was very not-silly."
Anne giggled, her laughter echoing in Majnun's ears and he smiled without realizing it; as soon as he noticed what he was doing he scowled deeply. He wanted to curse her for affecting him as much as she did, but at the same time he almost didn't mind. Anne had turned to look off into the distance, "I say a lot of silly things according to my mother." She made a face and her voice became stuffier, "'perhaps if you got your nose out of those books and into reality people would take you more seriously.'" Anne laughed lightly, despite the remembrance of that fight leaving a sting in her heart.
"I doubt I will ever understand the appeal of books." Majnun shrugged, "but clearly they have a pull to them. The one book you had yesterday was very amusing, however false it was. Are all the books you read like that?" He looked at her skeptically.
Anne shook her head, "I mostly read romances." She sighed wistfully, "books about grand romantic gestures, sweet stolen kisses, forbidden romances, and love conquering all."
Majnun snorted, "those are hardly realistic."
Anne's gaze became narrower at him, "they are though! People do immense things for love and it's incredibly romantic! Surely there must be some aspect of romance you like, otherwise you wouldn't be here."
"I don't do romance." Majnun scowled.
Anne stared at him, her eyes wide and curious, "yet you've taken me all the way out to the ocean? I would consider that very romantic."
Majnun's scowl deepened and his lip twitched slightly.
Anne smiled at him and reached over to touch his hand. He retracted it. Anne's brow furrowed, "does closeness bother you?"
"I don't do closeness." Majnun frowned.
Anne's face eased into a soft smile, "so you don't court, you don't do romance, and you don't do closeness?" She kept her voice light, trying to gently point out the flaw in his argument.
Majnun growled. If she kept changing the rules on him he was certain losing his mind would be the least of his problems. "No, I don't." He said firmly.
"Not even a kiss?" Anne asked curiously, shifting on her knees and scooting closer to him.

Majnun glared at her, growing more irritated, but trying not to back away from her challenge either. "What is the purpose of kissing someone?"
Anne smiled, "it's a way to show affection... attraction." She paused, "have you ever kissed anyone before?"
Majnun rolled his eyes, "no, and I have had no reason to."
Anne frowned, "you haven't even been tempted? Haven't you ever desired to be close with someone before?"
Majnun was surprised that she persisted. "No. I have never seen a benefit to it."
Anne frowned, "being close to someone is about sharing the deepest parts of you with them. Kissing is just an added side-benefit of it." She paused for a moment before speaking again. "Are you going to tell me that you've asked to court me without actually wanting to be married?" Her eyes were confused.
"Marriage as nothing to do with closeness. It's a contract." He responded flatly.
"Marriage has everything to do with closeness!" Anne smiled again as she thought of it. "Marriage is considered the closest two people can ever be. It's a partnership built around intimacy."
Majnun smirked, "clearly, that's why so many people are so close to their spouses." He said sarcastically.
Anne frowned and looked away and Majnun pursed his lips. She was so difficult. So stubborn. Yet he was finding he liked that about her. Things were never as they seemed. He realized he might have damaged their fragile relationship by speaking so negatively, however before he could speak she looked back up at him and spoke lightly, "the very last thing I ever want is to have a relationship like my parents." She frowned, "it's like they barely tolerate each other. They take subtle digs at each other and they've made it very clear that they're only together out of force, rather than desire." She shook her head, "my greatest fear is I will wind up someone's statue."
Majnun let out a laugh, "you should have no fear of that, you aren't made out of the same materials." He shook his head, amused.
Anne was still frowning, "I mean something that's just there to look pretty and not do anything. My mother told me I'd be lucky if a man marries me despite who I am. That if I'm quiet enough and I keep him happy that happiness will come to me. I know it's a lie though, because that's what she did her whole life and she is certainly not happier for it, if anything it has only made her bitter. I do not want to be bitter, Majnun. I just want what the books say is possible. I just want to feel loved by the man I marry."
Majnun frowned. Love was not part of marriage. Not in his life, that's for sure. He decided it was best he got this aspect out of the way quickly, "what do you want out of a marriage, exactly?"
Anne thought about it for a moment, "I want the freedom to paint and to do the things that I enjoy. I want to start a family. I want to have a home that I share with my family," she paused and frowned, "it would have to have a garden in it," after this morning she felt the definite need to add that part in, "but most importantly I want to have a strong, loving relationship with the man I marry." She smiled, "that last one is more important than all of the rest combined."
Majnun sat on her words for a minute. The material goods could be taken care of easily, the rest though... He would have to think about it. Could he give the rest of it to her? Absolutely not. Closeness with someone like him was completely out of the question. This was starting to look more like a doomed venture after all. Majnun scowled. She had to change the rules again. First it was just courtship, now it's romance and closeness? This was giving him a headache. Rather, the insanity wasn't helping either.
Anne looked at Majnun for a moment, "can I ask a strange question?"
Majnun was pulled from his thoughts and he put his attention on her, only now realizing that she had stood up and was staring out at the water. He jumped to his feet. "Depends on what you mean by strange?" His voice slid up and down in pitch as he spoke. He cursed inwardly, and gritted his teeth. He needed to hold on a little longer.
"Do you ever sleep? I was just wondering if gods actually need to sleep, and thought I would ask the next time I saw you." She looked at him with almost playful eyes.
Majnun grinned, "I do not need sleep, no." His face became serious and he finally let out a breath and pushed even further, "I just meditate when my barriers that protect my sanity grow weaker. I could sleep if I wanted to, but it is not required."
Anne looked at him brightly, understanding the gravity of him opening up to her in this way. She decided to press just lightly, "does the meditation help?"
"Most of the time, sometimes I push the boundaries a little too far and... things like earlier happen."
Anne looked at him thoughtfully, "have you ever just let the insanity happen? Does it still hurt then?"
Majnun wanted to get defensive, but he let it go. He would be sure that she would regret this closeness she asked for. "It doesn't, but I do not like letting it happen."
Anne frowned, "why not? Certainly anything would have to be better than the pain you feel from fighting it."
Enough. This was far enough. "It's complicated." He stated simply.
Anne understood the boundary and backed off. "For what it's worth, I do not think you're insane."
Majnun looked at her for a moment and his lips twitched into an actual smile.

"It is probably time for you to get back, I would hate to mess with fate for much longer than you'd like." Within a moment he was back to his usual self, but Anne hadn't missed the gentleness in his face prior to that.
The had begun to walk away from the shores, Anne gathering one last look at the waters before they fully walked out of sight of the ocean line. They walked in the quiet for a while, but Majnun had slowed slightly, his eyes never leaving her. Anne could feel his stare and she tried to not look back, for fear of him turning his gaze away.
"Anne." He stopped, his stare never wavering.

Anne stopped and turned around to look at him curiously. "Is everything alright?"
Majnun's face was serious. "I have never done it before... but I will try." He broke their stare and looked away. "If it is what you want."
Anne's smile grew wider, she did not need to ask for clarification, she knew exactly what he meant. "I would like that very much." Her voice was soft but happy.
Majnun cleared his throat as he shifted uncomfortably. He nodded and took a large breath in before crossing the distance to her, standing closely to her. She watched him with innocent eyes, not moving an inch from where she stood. He shifted awkwardly, debating his next moves. He gritted his teeth and his face was twisted with contemplation. "I... will return us to your house." He paused, gritting his teeth harder, "with your permission."
Anne nodded gently, "you have my permission." She didn't break the stare she held on him.
He shifted, nodding again. Slowly he moved to put his arms around her waist. His hands moved hesitantly, and his face twitched as he concentrated very hard on figuring out the best ways to hug her. After what felt like an eternity for him, his arms eased into place on her back, pulling her close to him. He froze for a moment, getting used to the different feelings that came with the proximity change.

After a long moment Majnun closed his eyes and began to focus on magically transporting them. It was harder to focus when all he could feel was the warmth that radiated off of her. It wasn't unpleasant, but it was different and distracting.
The ground vanished beneath Anne again and she pressed herself against Majnun's chest. Majnun looked at her while he finished the teleportation spell. He noticed the way she squeezed her eyes shut and how it caused her nose to wrinkle. He could hear her laughing in his head, the warmth that she made him feel. The fact that she made him feel anything at all.
Perhaps she was right.
Closeness didn't have to be something out of reach for him.
Her room filled in around them and he gently released his hold on her, she lost her balance momentarily and fell back against the wall behind her for support, while Majnun immediately reached for her again to help steady her.

Anne's eyes opened suddenly as she took in her new surroundings and her eyes fell back on his. There was a wistfulness in her eyes, something that danced in the fire that was her.
"Don't move." His voice was a whisper.
Anne obeyed, and stayed perfectly still.
Majnun's hand moved slowly up her arm and over her shoulder. He retracted his fingers slightly, unsure of what he was doing, before his hand gently touched her neck, his thumb ran along the length of her jawbone. He found himself admiring her. She infuriated him and he... liked it. He liked her. She saw straight through him and he let it happen. He thought he was living in chaos before but she had thrown everything out of control from him and while he resented it at first, he admired it now. This chaos she had caused was beautiful. She was beautiful. His beautiful chaos.
Anne eye's were wide, and she began to close them gently as Majnun closed the distance between them. He could feel life coursing through his veins again. He swallowed and took in a breath to try to steady himself before he closed the final gap between them and their lips met in a gentle kiss.

Majnun had nearly gotten lost in the gentle exchange, but he pulled away immediately, his eyes still closed as Anne opened hers wide to look at him.

A smile slowly pulled at her lips.
Majnun's eyes opened slowly, his gaze was soft and warm.
Anne broke the silence between them after a few moments, "when will I see you again?" Her voice was soft.
Majnun sucked in his lips slightly, "Whenever you wish." He awkwardly removed his hand from her arm where it had been previously and he fluidly closed his fist and reopened it, revealing a crystal daffodil flower. Anne stared at it in awe and reached to touch it, before looking back at Majnun for approval. He nodded and she took it gently in her hands. "You can reach me with this. Just say the word and I will find you." He slowly released his hold on her, their eyes remained locked for a few moments longer before he turned away and walked towards the window.

Anne looked at the flower gently before she looked up at him and spoke quietly, "please take care, Majnun."
Majnun stopped, his head turning slightly back towards her. A gentle smile pulled at his lips briefly and he nodded before stepping out of the window and vanishing into the air.


I want to thank mpart for reading over this chapter and helping me make sure my characters are maintaining integrity.

[oshizu]

*faints

That was really fantastic build-up to, to, to..(I'm not going to spoil it).
So loved these chapters!

[LivvieLove]

*faints

That was really fantastic build-up to, to, to..(I'm not going to spoil it).
So loved these chapters!

Building up to the kiss? You can say it. If people are reading the comments afterwards before they read the chapter then whoops! I would recommend reading from first to last to avoid spoilers.
If it wasn't the kiss then I'm not sure what you know that I know as well that everyone else wouldn't. Heh.
Haha, I was laughing quite loudly when I read this comment. I had about the same reaction when I was writing it. Majnun can be quite the romantic when he wants to be, I suppose. That arrogant, silly man.

[oshizu]

 

[mpart]

I was expecting Anne's mother to burst in the room when Majnun was kissing Anne. That would have been awkward. Great chapter! Jupiter better get back to Eveline soon.