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Post by Vyn on Sept 7, 2008 9:46:59 GMT -5
Javaid's long ears perked up a little and he smiled lightly, almost embarrassed by the boy's thanks. It had been a long time since he'd had any company of any sort and, really, taking care of someone else for once in a great while was nice.
Especially someone that was alive.
"You're welcome. Very much so." His tail wagged for a moment before growing still again. "No, I don't suppose many would..." Not that Javaid had met enough people to know this, but he'd heard tales from the few people he did regularly associate with.
The world outside of his temple was cruel, it was why he so ardently stayed where he was. Duty was a big part of it, it always would be, but the jackal's fear of strangers played an even bigger part in his decision. It was safe where he was, and quiet. No one disrupted him unless they had a new body to fill his graves.
It was the way things were.
"I'm glad I did, though. Your company has been very agreeable."
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Post by Kari Muffin on Sept 7, 2008 16:19:26 GMT -5
Conway sighed. This really was nice. If he could live a normal life this would be the ideal place to spend it. Of course he wasn't normal. He never would be normal. And he never had the chance of being happy living a white picket sort of life.
Really. This sucked. He missed having a family... well he missed his mother, sister and Uncle. Of course, he could see June again easily, but his Uncle would never wish to see him and mother was long gone. He forced himself into a sitting position so he could hug his knees to his chest. It always made him feel better on some level when he was depressed.
"I'm... just happy I'm not trouble." He said before burying his face in his knees. This way he could at least cover the few tears that were trickling down his cheeks. Maybe this meant he was getting a bit better?
He coughed.
Damn.
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Post by Vyn on Sept 8, 2008 10:18:10 GMT -5
That... was an unexpected response.
Javaid's expression softened slightly with concern, the jackal drawing closer but not quite reaching out to touch Conway yet. He didn't want to startle the boy but it was hard to ignore the ingrained impulses toward displays of physical comfort.
"Trouble? Why would you be in trouble, Conway?" Slowly he offered up a smile at the boy, tilting his head a little. "You can't be blamed for getting sick and, if I really disagreed with assisting you, I would have contacted one of the local doctors and them take you off my hands. So don't worry yourself about causing me trouble, I'm quite alright."
He probably should have done that anyway, to ensure that Conway got the best possible treatment, but his curiosity for the younger male had, quite obviously, prevailed over his logic.
The jackal shifted a little, easing himself into wear he sat and folding his hands in his lap to resist the urge to touch the seemingly distraught male. If only there was something he could do to cheer him up...
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Post by Kari Muffin on Sept 8, 2008 15:25:09 GMT -5
He shuddered at the word "doctor" but his guard was already down. He was tired, sick and Javaid had been so terribly nice to him. He kept his face buried and used his power to mute his voice. "I'm a Joker... I'm a monster." He muttered to himself and himself alone.
Conway looked up at the man with watery eyes. Why couldn't he just say it out loud? Because the man would hate him then, or what to use him for his own good. Conway's short clipped nails dug into his pants legs at the very thought of being used.
"Because. Wherever I go all I bring is grief." He said flatly. "I don't want you to end up like my sister or Uncle. They're miserable and it's my fault."
It never occurred to Conway that he had positively influenced several people's lives. He could only ever focus on how horrible he was and how he needed to be punished. Being so ill was one of those ways.
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Post by Vyn on Sept 8, 2008 19:47:29 GMT -5
Unaware of the words that Conway whispered to himself, Javaid continue to peer curiously at the younger male. He looked so young and yet so absolutely burdened... Javaid had never seen such a sad sight before.
"Bring me grief?" He shook his head slightly, before pausing to peer at the boy once more. What in the dunes could he have done to bring his family such misery that he would be so weighed down by it? "Don't worry about me, Conway. There are very few ways to truly bring me grief and I do not imagine you would be among the causes of them."
Of course, this might change when Conway eventually disappeared but Javaid, if nothing else, was accustomed to the coming and goings of strangers. The coming and going of a friend should not be that hard to adjust to, right? Probably not, but Javaid could worry about that when the realization that Conway was actually leaving truly sank in.
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Post by Kari Muffin on Sept 8, 2008 21:25:59 GMT -5
"I somehow.... think you're wrong but... whatever you say." He said quietly looking at the man. If he had been normal, he wouldn't have met Javaid. If he had been normal he wouldn't have been half dead on the man's doorstep. Why did he want to be normal if he would miss out on such important events in his life?
It didn't make sense anymore. The boy tightened his grip on his pants for a moment before letting his legs go completely. There was no point in obsessing over facts and dreams. What happened would happen. No matter what he did he would always be an outcast in society. He would always be a monster.
Conway swallowed hard. He could feel his eyes burning. Ow. Was he really going to cry at a time like this? He looked down at his clothing noticing tear drops falling. Had he finally hit his breaking point without even realizing it.
In a desperate attempt to keep control the boy grabbed the cover and pulled them completely over himself. Conway really hoped he wouldn't notice.
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Post by Kiki on Sept 11, 2008 8:43:44 GMT -5
Kari and Vyn receive 1 token each, to be redeemed in Ashwin's Shoppe. This will automatically be added to your recorded totals in the shoppe. Congratulations, and keep up the good RP!
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Post by Vyn on Sept 16, 2008 22:39:32 GMT -5
Javaid chuckled softly, trying to maintain a reassuring air for Conway. "I can be the judge of my own sorrows. I'm happier to have met you and to risk grief int he future than to have never met you at all." ...Wow, he really hoped that wasn't too unusual for him to say. He pushed the concern off rather quickly, opting for truth over gently skirting such things. If he spoke too bluntly then too bad.
What he didn't expect, of course, was Conway's continuing degrade into sorrow. Especially once the tears started to drop onto the blanket and, eventually, when Conway pulled those very covers over his head and disappeared from Javaid's sight. He opened his mouth repeatedly, but closed it just as fast when nothing more than the urge to whine escaped him. He couldn't turn a blind eye on the boy's sorrow, his tears. He would do anything to cheer him up a little, to show him he cared... something... even if it meant making a fool of himself.
Hesitant with the force of his uncertainty, Javaid finally managed to lean in and gently wrap his arms around the younger Hisstor, pulling him into a light embrace.
By the ghosts of his ancestors... He was going to regret this, wasn't he?
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Post by Kari Muffin on Sept 17, 2008 9:17:20 GMT -5
Conway hardly expected the man to give him a hug. However, he was far beyond the point of reacting violently to physical contact. He did shudder briefly out of reflex, but in a fraction of a minute he returned to crying hysterically.
This really wasn't becoming of him. But every so often Conway had a breaking point. Normally he was alone in some godforsaken place where he could just break down without anyone around. Unfortunately Javaid had decided to ask question of "why" which just happened to bring up all the unpleasant memories.
If anyone found out he was a Joker besides the few people he had under his thumb and the few people who supposedly didn't exist he would be dead. Sometimes the boy had suicidal thoughts--but being killed by a mob was something different. And he could never imagine the reaction from someone like Javaid. He didn't want to run the risk of becoming someone's property either.
So he was crying in the arms of a beautiful man.
Odd. This wasn't supposed to happen.
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Post by Vyn on Sept 17, 2008 9:45:29 GMT -5
Javaid gasped slightly beneath his breath when Conway collapsed into sobs, burying himself against his chest. Oh suits, oh suits... How did he respond to this? Tentatively he reached up, stroking the boy's hair through the blanket.
There really was nothing he could think to say to make anything better. He had never had to console someone before... Not to mention that he wasn't entirely certain as to why the boy was crying.
Not to mention that the very sound of his sobs wrenched at Javaid's heart.
Ironically for Conway, Javaid was possibly the only Card he wouldn't have to fear exposing himself to. Few people are safer to trust your secrets to than an agoraphobic who talks more to the dead than the living. He had no intention to leave, or to keep Conway there... or to risk bringing in a flock of strangers with the rumor of a Joker living in his midst.
For that matter, who would believe someone who had already announced their belief in ghosts?
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