Prosaic

𝔸 / 𝙨𝙮𝙣𝙘𝙝𝙧𝙤𝙣𝙮 [ᵃⁿ ᵒᵗʰᵉʳʷᵒʳˡᵈ ᵗᵃˡᵉ ᵒᶠ ᶜᵒˢᵐᶦᶜ ʰᵒʳʳᵒʳ]

I'm interested!

In This Fine Town Of Arkham - A Lovecraftian Mystery

Mentions

@Eviledd1984@Romero

"No, I don't quite think I've got the nerve for a walk through the Wildes." He mused in response, gaze finally flickering to the darkness of the woods beyond them. He could not imagine many who wandered into those woods voluntarily came out in much the same order. Simon may not have minded gambling with his life every so often but he knew an unsafe bet when he saw one and it seemed it was best to avoid the woods without any companions if he could help it. The howling of the wind made the hair at the back of his neck stand, it made him fold his arms over his chest.

"Perhaps when it's brighter out." He added jokingly, mostly over his expedition into the alleyway.

He had committed the mad man's words to memory but he realized it would do him no good to ponder "what ifs" about the problem. He had made it out alive and unscathed, which was all he could really ask for at the moment. There was hardly any investigative journalism to be done if he was left to bleed out in an alleyway-- of course, that kind of thought would only lead to more pondering. He shook it off just in time to listen to the approach of the carriage, the rattle of wheels and the falling of hooves.

He instinctively looked towards the woods, relieved that they wouldn't be waiting much longer but instead saw-- nothing because he was looking in the wrong direction. He looked back towards the streets just as the coachman shouted from the head, the horses pulling to an uneasy stop before them. He had frozen at the approach, cigarette half-finished in his mouth as he took in the coachman before them. A loud voice was what he noticed first, assertive and clear in how it spoke. A white mask, long and bird-like beneath very auburn hair- like fire. Fire seemed to suit this man quite well.

And if he was burning then it was clear Miss White was ice.
She immediately seemed uncomfortable upon his approach which in turn made Simon uncomfortable. This young lady hadn't so much as flinched upon meeting two strangers in the darkness but now that she was facing down with someone who seemingly recognized her-- a doctor, no less, she seemed unhappy to be in his presence. As much as Simon desperately wanted to get to Wilde Hall as quickly as possible, he couldn't bring himself to imply this stranger should have to get in a carriage with someone who clearly made her feel unsafe.

Curse-it.

He wanted to know why she was reluctant, his instinct was to pry but not while Doctor Green was waiting for them to join him. He decidedly wouldn't be joining the doctor unless Miss White seemed set on it. So much for an early arrival. He thought, wanting to shake his head. Kindness and nosiness seldom go hand in hand but here you are.

He glanced to Miss White, cleared his throat and spoke in an almost undertone. "I don't mind waiting if you don't."

Young Justice

I tried.

In This Fine Town Of Arkham - A Lovecraftian Mystery

Mentions

@Eviledd1984@Romero

"Didn't offer you one." Was his graceless response to Benjamin, he struck a match in the darkness with trembling hands and briefly illuminated his face in amber. A youthful face with too-sharp features could be made out behind a pale blue mask detailed with black. He cleared his throat, tried again, as if realizing that response could come off as rude. He looked up, considered Benjamin across from him in the way a prey animal may consider a predator, he couldn't help that he was twitchy by nature. The whole debacle in the alley had done little to ease his nerves for the night. "Sorry. I hope it doesn't bother you if uh- other people smoke. Chances are, I won't be stopping."

His dark brown eyes didn't once look up again from that point on, instead he stayed intent on the task at hand. After he lit the cigarette, he snuffed the match against the pad of his thumb and stuffed the cigarette into his mouth. It was maybe two long inhales of smoke before he spoke again, pale tendrils curled into the night. "Mister Blue, if you will," was what he offered in way of a name to the young lady. "I'm not one for mystery, really, but uh-" He offered an awkward smile before taking another drag on the cigarette. He seemed to really be sucking that smoke down for dear life.

"Mister Blue suits me as well as anything." Another exhale, more like a sigh this time. He seemed to be calming down with each pull on the cigarette, his hands were certainly shaking a bit less. "Yes, I mean-" He cleared his throat, coughed once into his hand and nodded to Benjamin. "Yes, I'm going to Wilde Hall. Rather unsporting to ignore an invitation, isn't it?" This sounded a bit like a joke, like he found a dry humor in it that he couldn't quite shake.

"S'pose we're all a bit late, aren't we?"

In This Fine Town Of Arkham - A Lovecraftian Mystery

Forgot I owed a reply here :,)
I'll crack out Simon's next response either tonight or tomorrow.

Young Justice

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<sub>“There are chords in the hearts of the most reckless which cannot be touched without emotion, even by the utterly lost, to whom life and death are equally jests, there are matters of which no jest can be made.”

Interaction: @FunnyGuy @Shard @Crimson Flame
Location: Lounge.</sub>

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Another young man arrived with dramatic flourish and he recognized him near immediately as the cousin of Zatara. It did not take much, they looked similar enough and Constantine had well... certainly a more than friendly relationship with Zatara. He'd never personally met her, at least not in any way that mattered, John was big on keeping aspects of his life neatly separated. It was an attribute Devan admired because he was no good at doing that sort of thing.

He listened to Casper explain himself, making note of what he said in case he needed to remember it later. Of course, he'd always found the occult nonsense to be sort of confusing but John had dealt in it enough that he had some idea of it's impact on the world around him. He had to wonder how or if Casper had "died" to become the way he was. He was likely not going to ask in a group of three while Scared and Bared blared on the TV. Some other time.

He was steadily starting to pick up on the fact that Viktor seemed as blunt and withdrawn with everyone as he had with him. That was comforting. At the very least it meant that they likely weren't going to get in an argument over something. He nodded a quick greeting to Zachary, hoped that sufficed in way of niceties. "I think it's 'bout provin' themselves," he offered helpfully. "People got this weird obsession with tryin'a prove they're tough."

Zachery did another one of his magic tricks and quickly relieved them of reality television to instead take them on a vanity journey. Gotta admire the confidence, I guess. "Certainly more talent required." He responded, attempting to be affable. He wasn't one for magic, really, but that didn't mean it was bad.

Young Justice

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<sub>“There are chords in the hearts of the most reckless which cannot be touched without emotion, even by the utterly lost, to whom life and death are equally jests, there are matters of which no jest can be made.”

Interaction: @FunnyGuy @Shard
Location: Lounge.</sub>

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He had opened his mouth to say his name but Casper had beaten him to the draw, that was fine, it saved him a modicum of trouble anyway. He still said it, driven by the urge to at least appear socially apt in some manner or form. "Devan, yeah." He nodded to Casper, noting the same unfamiliarity that he was feeling. He and Casper weren't so different, of course, he'd known this through his short time here. Messy, scary powers.

Not exactly marketable, the two of them.

"Red Death, uh, out there. Like the short story." The name was one he often found himself reexplaining, or looking back on with embarrassment. He liked it, of course, it was his but it was fairly dramatic against a name like Rain.

Viktor's cold tone was not lost on him, although it mostly served to put him on edge. He didn't know whether they'd be arguing by the end of this discussion or not. He hoped not. Devan had a long history of what could only be described as "schoolyard scuffles" that had either ended in him gasping on the ground like a fish or the other boy going to the nurse. Luckily, Viktor... seemed affable enough. Not outright insulting. Not to him, anyway.

Maybe tactless was a better word than "insulting". Like someone who didn't know any better not to ask certain questions. He mostly wrestled down a grimace. "He's not an alien," He threw in neutrally (and still somehow too quickly, like someone who liked to debate), because it wasn't exactly... mean-spirited. "Jus' uh-" He nodded towards Casper because he certainly didn't know enough about his powers to explain them competently.

He knew it involved ghosts but that... was about the extent of his knowledge.

Young Justice

I sure did try my damnedest.

Young Justice

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<sub>“There are chords in the hearts of the most reckless which cannot be touched without emotion, even by the utterly lost, to whom life and death are equally jests, there are matters of which no jest can be made.”

Interaction: @FunnyGuy
Location: Lounge.</sub>

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He was glad to be away.
His parents hadn't been terribly bothered by the idea of him leaving or well-- his father hadn't been terribly bothered by the idea of him leaving. It had been a relatively painless departure from one place to the other and he had arrived a bit earlier than necessary. It was weird, not being in Manhattan, but it wasn't bad and he figured he'd get used to the new sights and sounds with time. It wasn't quite like home but home had never been quite like home either.

The first night or two had nearly sent him into a panic when he'd woke up to unfamiliar walls on each side but now he was easing into it. He didn't feel the same lingering alarm but he did feel slightly out of place. He had never been terribly good with other people his age and now he was expected to collaborate with them, to work with them and befriend them. That all made him feel kind of itchy, kind of uncomfortable and very, very out of his element.

He had woke up that morning with a stinging sensation in the tips of his fingers, had tried not to focus on the blackened bits peeking out from the bandages on his hands. He had quickly changed into... nothing too exciting, anyone who had run into him in the last few days would have quickly grown bored of his sense of style. Black hoodies, black jeans, black boots. Like clockwork, no deviation. Today was no different, he didn't bother brushing his hair.

He took to the halls, kept his head down, kept his pace even. People were not Devan's strong suit, he doubted that they'd ever be, but it was stupid to pretend that he wasn't sharing his space with them. He may not have wanted to talk to them, really, but he knew that if he didn't then he was dooming himself to both a quiet and uncomfortable future. He made his way quite swiftly towards the lounge, boots flying over the floor with the quickened steps of a man on a mission.

Not that he really knew what the mission was.

By the time he got to the lounge, he was nearly overwhelmed by the sound of naked people desperately trying to survive the wilderness. Maybe I don't actually want friends. He thought grimly but forced himself to raise a bandaged hand in greeting. He could hear the faint murmur of Casper before that abruptly stopped.

"Uh. Hey." His words sounded uncharacteristically thick on his tongue. "Viktor, isn't it?"

Young Justice

Okay, I'm working on Devan's post and it'll be up tonight if it kills me.