1438/1438 WORDS @Vera Walden @Beaux @Dela @Wren THEME SONG I have seen war, famine; witnessed the genocide. Have seen the changes in human nature and history, and I am still here, standing alone. Til the end, I will be there too. To witness the endless carnage, to live this harsh reality. Cause I have been cursed, Cursed with immortality. | Thankfully for Beaux, Cillian was completely oblivious to the fact that the angel was staring at his chest. He was far to busy grinning like a doofus at Dela’s furthered insult toward his sense of style. It wasn’t long after that he’d returned with an armful of prizes, and Vera and Wren had returned with new clothes for the smaller woman.
This was also just in time for Beaux to be harassed by a man heckling him from a dunk tank. Carnies didn’t always have the best reputation, but this jackass was certainly living up to the stereotype. He was being flat out mean to Beaux, which the angel didn’t seem to be handling very well. Four throws the winged gentleman made, at least one of which hit straight on the target, yet the man sitting on the platform did not fall. More rigged games. As Wren made her selections of the gifts Cillian had won, the tall man observed the scene.
Beaux offered up the last ball for someone else to take, absolutely drowning in shame and embarrassment. Cillian was about to say something to encourage the man to try again -- after spending a moment to undo the enchantment, of course -- when Dela stepped up to take the reigns. Rather than taking the final ball that Beaux had left, however, she went to the neighboring booth and paid for one of the apples which she then used to complete the dunk tank game. However, instead of aiming for the target, the feisty blonde hurled the hard fruit right at the man’s noggin. The asshole was cut off from his ranting when he lost his balance and fell off into the water below.
Cillian immediately bust into unrestrained laughter. He could barely hold onto the prizes he had left in his arms as his tall form was bent in two from the fit. “All I am is proud,” he told Dela as she smugly returned to the group with her stuffed tiger. The last thing he’d expected from a police woman was a solution to that particular problem that involved technically breaking the rules, but then again Dela wasn’t exactly a typical Rune Knight. She gave Beaux the keychain she’d gotten at the apple booth, but frankly Cillian felt the abused angel deserved more than that.
Holding out his selection of prizes to the man, he told him, “Take a couple. You earned it. You too, spunky.” Cillian nodded at Dela, grinning at her. “That was a great… show?” His sentence was drawn into a question as Vera spoke to him and added a small bundle of clothes onto the pile in his arms. His crimson eyes followed her, his curiosity captivated by the almost impish smile she had on her face. What in the world was she doing?
His gaze widened in absolute shock as Vera angrily took the guy by the hair and shoved his face into one of the tubs for the apple bobbing game. It was like something ferocious had overcome her at the sight of Beaux being picked on. She firmly held the man underwater probably longer than was really healthy, and when she allowed him to come up for air there were no less than two full apples lodged in his mouth. Cillian’s amusement was renewed, and he was practically wheezing with laughter at this point.
“Well, bud,” he said, turning to Beaux, “Between these two ladies I don’t think you’re going to have to worry about anyone else harassing you today. It’s like you’ve got your own, personal protection squad.” While Vera was collecting her prize, Wren had returned victorious from her own game. In addition to the two feline plushies that she claimed from Cillian earlier, she held yet another such one in her arms and looked quite proud of it too. Claiming to be hungry, a wide grin split across the silver haired man’s face. “A woman after my own heart!” There were few things Cillian enjoyed more than food and cooking, so he was more than ready to get something to eat.
Unfortunately, before he could even consider what to put together for a meal, Vera’s situation took a turn for the worst. It seemed the hot headed man that had been picking on Beaux was not, in fact, a fan of tasting his own medicine. A shriek from the violet haired woman brought almost all attention in the area back on her as she frantically tried to outrun her angry pursuer. Cillian sighed dramatically. “I can’t take that woman anywhere, I swear. Virgo!”
A new woman popped into existence beside him. She had shoulder length pink hair and dark blue eyes. She was on the shorter side with a thin frame that was dressed in a traditional black and white maid outfit. “You called, master?” the woman asked, her voice light and crisp. Dela and Vera would already be familiar with the Zodiac celestial that Cillian was contracted to work to, who had a strange obsession with punishment. Before he could even say anything, her gaze fell upon the prizes in his hands and she lit up at the sight of all the plushies. “Oh my goodness! Did you get me a gift?” she asked, literal hearts in her eyes.
Cillian blinked at her. “Huh? Oh! Yeah sure, you can have one. But first I need you to--”
“Do you have to punish me first?” Her tone was oozing with hope and excitement at the prospect.
“Actually, I was thinking more about you doing the punishing. Go handle that, will you? Jayne over there got herself in over her head again.” He nodded in Vera’s direction.
Virgo followed his gaze, greatly disappointed that he wasn’t going to attempt to torture her in any fashion. Still, she was always more than happy to be of service. “Yes, my lord!” In a flash, she burrowed into the ground and disappeared.
By the time she was out of sight, Cillian had already moved his mind to other things. He selected three plushies out of the ones he still had left, as well as the bundle that Vera had given him. “Here you go, kid,” the Necrothurg said as he dumped the rest of the prizes on a random little boy that was walking past him. The kid’s eyes went wide in surprise and joy but before he could even thank the tall man Cillian had already turned back to the group and forgotten about the child.
He set the remaining plushies on a dry spot of the ground at his feet and dug into the bag Vera had gotten him. “Oooo… Give me a sec, guys.” He ducked into a random booth to go change.
In the meantime, a hole opened up beneath the feet of the man that was chasing Vera and he yelped in surprise as he fell into it. The pit was deep enough that his cry of surprise seemed to echo as he dropped, and if Vera took the time to turn and peer into it she would not be able to see anything but darkness within. A few seconds later, Virgo popped out of the ground next to the woman. “He will not be bothering you anymore, miss,” the Celestial told her happily, conveniently without mentioning whether or not the man was even still alive wherever he was. “I made sure he was properly punished.”
When Cillian returned, he was dressed in the clothes he’d been given by Vera: a slim pair of jeans with a partially checkered black and white shirt, and an oversized green top that was unbuttoned in the front. His previously muddied outfit was nowhere to be seen. Picking up the three remaining plushes he had left, he would wait until Vera and Virgo had returned and gave one to each of them. One to the Celestial for helping him out, and one to Vera cause at this point he’d given away his toys to everyone else, so he figured she shouldn’t be left out. Virgo clutched hers happily before poofing back to the Celestial realm. The only one that remained was quickly tucked into his armpit so he could put both his hands casually in his pockets.
“I’m with Wren. Who’s hungry?” |