|Supernatural: S1| Acolytes of Azazel

OOC: Uber long post coming up. Sorry for the wall of text, but hold onto your seats. I've got a lot in this one. This is probably my longest post ever.

EDIT: To give you an idea; I started typing at 20:21 and for me it's now 22:06. (I got distracted now and then but yeah. ...long)

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Alexis kept a poker face during the tellings of all the stories, just like she always did. She purposefully ignored the fact that Adam had gotten her name wrong again, just giving him a curt nod when he had finished and then moved on to listen to Scott's story. She knew that like her, none of the Acolytes wanted sympathy per-say, so she respectfully gave Adam the space he would want.

Scott had always been an enigma, probably only second to Lenny. But after he had told his story, her opinion hadn't changed about him... Alexis always believed that she herself would judge a person for who they were, based on her own experiences. The past was the past. While she still didn't trust Scott, that was the same for anybody. She would make her own decisions about the type of person he was regardless of his past.

Then came Luce's story... Alexis had had her own thoughts and predictions about her 'older sister's' past. Again, a lot could be read in the eyes, and Alexis could see glimpses of Luce's life in hers just like she knew Luce could do the same with her. Alexis had of course seen and heard of similar stories while she had been on the streets. So, she wasn't surprised at any of the stuff that Luce had revealed, even when the girl had lifted her shirt to reveal her scarred body. Of course, Alexis had caught glimpses of Luce since they shared a room (but again, she tried to respect the boundaries of privacy when possible), but she had never seen the damage so extensively before now. Alexis might have been emotionally dead in a lot of ways, but she knew what it was like to live such a meager existence like Luce had. Probably better than anyone else here even though they all had pretty horrific pasts. Of course... Alexis's own story had been very different to Luce's despite their many similarities. Even so... Alexis wasn't sure how to explain this feeling; it was almost a shame that she and Luce just didn't seem to get on.

Regardless... Scott drew her attention. It was hard to tell, but for a second she seemed to glimpse that he was... angry? Well... he was doing a good job at hiding it and keeping it in check. Alexis as always was good at reading people... their emotions, their intentions, their motives - but Scott always was a tough one to figure out. That was when he pointed the torch to her, albeit half-heartedly. It was needless to say that Luce's story had taken a lot out of all of them in some way.

Alexis sighed as she sat up, then decided to stand and walked along the length of the bar, her hand gliding along it's surface. "I'll get something straight. We all know how my story will start. We all went through the same thing. Azazel turning us into... what we are, and then killing our mothers. But that's actually all I really know about my earliest days, and that's thanks to Lenny filling me in. In truth, I don't remember. There are only vague details." she looked up at them all and paused wondering how she should put things next. "My father died from illness when I was about four. His sister, my Aunt I guess if you could call her that... she took me in. But got rid just as fast." her expression was unreadable as she continued to speak, the words coming to her easier than she had thought they would. "That's right. I was just a child of about four when I ended up on the streets. And that to be frank is all I can say about it. The rest of that time was a blur. The memories just aren't there. Even the most basic things; I don't actually know what my second name is. So to all of you, I'm just Alexis, and that's fine by me. I have no birthday. My age is actually an approximation. Complete guesswork." She paused again, she never really liked talking so much, she just wasn't used to it. Talking was associating with others, and she was used to being alone always. This felt foreign to her, abnormal. "I survived. From an early age, I had figured out just how cruel people can be, and so I never let myself get close to anyone. It was better that way. No way of being hurt. No disappointment. Only relying on yourself was the best thing. Only trusting yourself was the safest thing. Some of you may be looking at me and wondering what kind of existence that is for a young girl to live. 'How? How could someone survive like that?' Well... I'm still here aren't I?" she questioned, albeit rhetorically.

"I learned to adapt and never settle into routine. The one constant thing I can recall was just sitting somewhere, bundled up in the cold shade of an alleyway, where I could see everyone, but not one person could see little-small me. ...I observed people, and I learned. It's amazing how much you can learn just by watching and listening to people absent mindedly live their lives. I may not have gone to school... and yeah. I'll admit it now to all of you; I have trouble reading and writing, but it was never an important thing. It was irrelevant. Why would I need to ever read words when reading people was a much more vital skill? Being able to know what someone is gonna do just from a simple glance... the twitch of a finger... the curl of a smile... It's a valuable skill to have." she looked down at the floor and sighed. "To be able to figure out who you have the best chance of stealing food from... water perhaps. It's all I ever needed. Or so I thought..." she broke into her habit of clicking each finger knuckle by knuckle. "I always knew something was different about me. From the way I was treated... from... I don't know... I just knew. ...I must have been about... eleven at the time. I remember that day clearer than most." she looked up at everyone again, catching each of their eyes, lingering on Luce a little longer than the others knowing she understood. "I was dying. I had no strength in me at all... I just lay there on the cold hard floor... I couldn't go on. ...It's amazing how important to the body water is, and how it just shuts down without it. It's hard to explain how it feels... it was like I was fading away. Unable to focus on anything but a single thought. I needed water... I 'needed' it. I could picture it in my mind so strongly, it was almost like I could taste it. Feel it going down my throat. And that's when it happened."

She knew it would be hard to explain what she meant to the new Acolytes, and even the older Acolytes weren't too sure about how her powers worked. So while she didn't like revealing her talents unless she had to, she looked around for a second and her eyes settled onto Lenny's glass as he was mid sip. She focused on it... not needing to picture it in her mind as she could just let her eyes do the work for her, and in less than a second; that glass was gone from his hand and now in hers. ...She knocked the remains of the drink back, gulping it down all at once, feeling the burn before sliding the glass back down the bar to Lenny. She was still relatively new when it came to drinking alcohol, she usually preferred to have a clear head, but right now, she didn't care. "It's almost ironic. The thing that made me different... that made my life so hard to live is what saved me that day. Of course... it wasn't easy to use. I didn't know how this strange thing I did... this power worked. It was tiring to use as well... so not always practical, but as time went on... I started to master it. Control it. But no... I never revealed it to anyone. Sure... I could have become valuable to someone, being their personal freak. I could have become someone's object and had my days become much easier. But why would I? I'd already resolved myself to never let anyone close. How would I be able to trust anyone anyway? I might be useful to someone with my power, but that's all I would be. Useful, and a trophy. If anything, drawing attention to myself like that would put me in even more danger. No... again. It was better to be alone."

She didn't look at anyone this time. "Of course, it was impossible to stay completely out of the way of others... I'd gotten into a few scraps before, even as a little kid. As I said... people are cruel. But now... as I was growing older; as my body developed and matured... I seemed to draw the attention of others. Luce undoubtedly knows what I mean." she shrugged, not liking that she had already spoken this much, but knowing it wasn't over yet. "The fact was... I wasn't going to let myself become a play thing. Not for 'that'. And hey... others just decided to pick fights. But that's when I realized that again I was different. I had always been a decent fighter. Naturally I had to be. But suddenly I was completely something else. It's like I was on a completely different tier to everyone who challenged me. They came at me with their fists, their knives... and their intent to even kill me. But none of it mattered. They never even got a hit on me. Ever." She decided to move behind the bar and pour herself her own drink now. She also got the bottle of Everclear... something Adam had shown her during her first trip to the Roadhouse, and she left it near Luce figuring her sister might also appreciate a drink.

"To my own annoyance... I became some sort of legendary figure. I was known as 'The Untouchable Girl'. Just what I needed, more attention." the sarcasm in her voice was evident. "Sure, my sudden reputation helped scare off some people, but others just wanted to test themselves against me. It was so stupid. Even more so when people started called me 'The Untouchable Queen.' I mean... who the hell came up with those names?" she swirled her drink a few times before taking a sip. "To be honest. That's it. Not much was different after that. It was just survival day in and day out until a month ago when Lenny found me. The 'Acolyte he had missed'. I remember how surprised everyone here was when I first turned up. But here we are now with three new faces in front of us." she finished at last, actually feeling remotely relieved that she was done. For a last measure she added. "This is it. My life now is here at the roadhouse. I share a room with Luce. Mulligan gets my name wrong all the time. Scott and Luce clearly have some sorta sexual tension going on in their private time. Lenny is... Lenny. I practice trying to read and write when I can. I'm also trying out cooking. Otherwise I'm busy studying up on the supernatural and practicing things that will keep me alive. I'm not kidding when I say that this is the most normal my life has ever been, and considering what we are, I use the term 'normal' very loosely."

 

Luce listend quietly, like she did with everyone else. Fact was, Alexis' entire story made her feel about a thousand times worse about what she'd allowed to happen in her own. Her carefree attitude had altered the second only after Alexis was nearly done. The mention of maturing in body...Alexis' refusal to be their chew toy...it had Luce scrunching herself tightly together. She'd refused to look at Scott or anyone after her story and rightfully so. Why should she see the emotions they might experience while listening. Her point was only proven when Scott spoke her name and never finished his sentence. Pity. Like she needed it.

Her fingers felt cold and numb as she took the bottle of Everclear, even her ability to be surprised at Alexis' first willing drink was dulled. Raising the bottle to her lips, she laughed dryly, "Sounds like...we have just what I figured we would in common." While Luce had always been looking backwards at her past, Alexis was looking at the world. The point of change in their lives...Luce's extra time with her father.

Taking a drink, Luce almost missed Alexis' line about her and Scott. Her throat closed and she choked on the swallow. "Wh-what?! There's no sexual tension! Alexis, don't fill Scott's head with stupid ideas that I might like him!"
"That's right, why would someone like him want you. No...you believe you could only ever at best convince a drunk stranger to like you enough for one night."
Wasn't that true... She reached behind her head and tugged at her ponytail. She would never come to like this child.

 

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As each of them shared their stories, Eliza sat on her chair, with her arms wrapped around herself. She listened to every single word that was spoken, felt for every bad thing that had happened. She'd expected none of them to of had it easy but how could she prepare herself to hear something like that. Each one of them had their own past, that shook her too the core. Up to now she thought she'd had it rough but now she started to wonder, she'd had stuff happen to her but how could that ever compare to what she'd just been told and in a way she felt guilty. Maybe her life hadn't been as hard as theirs, maybe she'd had it easy.​

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As Scott asked if they wanted to share, Eliza slowly took a deep breath and looked up. "I'll share, I guess it's only fair." She was shaking slightly, even if her story wasn't as bad, it was her past and it was hard. She still dreaded what they might think of her after, would they think she was a monster or would they think she'd just had it easy? She'd made her choice to share now though, so she could only wait and see. "Well I think my story must start off in the same way as everybody else's did, even if I've only just discovered that. My dad didn't kill himself or leave me or even beat me. He was...nice. I guess I was lucky, he didn't find it easy but we got by." She smiled briefly at the memory, before slowly shaking her head.​

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"I went to school as well but that didn't work out quite as well. I was bullied. Badly. Every single day, they made my life hell. Verbal, physical, emotional, social, every single type of bullying, I suffered through it. I was singled out, treated like a disease and made to feel worthless. I was a scapegoat, everything bad was my fault. I got beat up badly, every day, I still have the scars to show it. I'd try to fight back but a little girl against a huge group of massive guys. I didn't stand a chance." As talked she wrapped her arms around herself tighter, rocking slightly on her seat. "I didn't tell anyone. I never got help, I couldn't. I never once mentioned it to my dad, as I didn't want to burden him with that, I didn't dare ruin my time with him at home. I was trapped, alone. I suffered in silence for years and years, with it getting progressively worse as I got older. And then that day came..."​

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She paused for a moment as the memories filled her mind, suffocating her, however much she tried to stop them. "I must have been about thirteen when it happened. They beat me up particularly badly that day, until I just couldn't take it anymore. Fighting back usually made it worse but still I lashed out, in the hope I could stop them. Well, I certainly stopped them. I'm still not sure exactly what happened but before I knew it, everyone was screaming, sparks were flying everywhere and the lead guy had flew backwards through the air and was now on the ground not moving." Eliza was shaking quite badly as she spoke, reliving the memory in her head, "The way they looked at me then, desperately trying to get away like I was a monster." She wasn't a monster, was she?​

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"I-I didn't know what to do. So I ran and kept on running. I didn't dare go back to my dad because what if he suffered due to my actions. So I just ran. I had to give up the one good thing in my life due to that day. The first few weeks were hard, alone on the streets but somehow I got by. I gradually got to grips with my powers which made things easier but still. I got by, I survived. I've spent four years on the streets in total now before Lenny found me. So, that's about it, now I'm here, with you guys. A fresh start, hopefully it'll turn out okay this time and you'll accept me as part of your group." Slowly, her trademark smile returned to her face just slightly. Friends and a place to belong, that's all she really wanted, could this be her chance? She was still shaking slightly from her story as she looked around, waiting for them to judge her as they no doubt would.​

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Luce growled silently at Scott while listening to Eliza's story. Another one? But she was just a child and thankfully her experience out there was minimum. "At least...you've had some of a normal life...but..." she stood, stretching, "That's just gonna make it harder for you. You're far too nice for your own good, kid." Turning on her heel, she moved around the bar and set the bottle of Everclear back where it was supposed to sit and scowled at Scott, "You are sooooo funny. Dammit, Scott, you just can't take this seriously can you? I don't like you...and I'll be damned if anybody thinks I do." Her irrational anger dispelled the sickening heavy feeling in her stomach.
"You don't like him! You don't, you don't, you don't!"
Shut up, shut up, shut up!
Nothing made a day better than a child's voice telling her she didn't like someone. How annoying. Turning her gray gaze to the next Acolyte, she growled at them, "Next!"

 

Throughout the whole time that everyone was sharing there story Zeke had remained silent, but this time he was actually listening to what they were saying. What he got out of listening to them was that they all had some sort of messed up past, some worse than others. In fact some of the stories made his seem like it was nothing. He managed to get out of his thoughts just in time for Luce to gaze at him. "Guess I'm up next."

He took a moment to recall some of the memories he'd put in the back of his mind. "Well after my mother died fro reasons we all know, my dad started to raise me the best he could. While those 13 years I may have been oblivious to the truth of what was going on, they were probably the best years of my life." He took a quick pause as he came to part where everything fell apart. "But as they say 'All goods things must come to an end and in my case it happen two years later when I caught my dad putting the barrel of a gun to his head. 'Never lose hope.' "That was the last thing he said to me before pulling the trigger." He quickly reached into his coat pocket, grasping the exact same gun his dad had use to kill himself before removing it and continuing his tale.

"Fortunately for me one of the neighbor had heard the gunshot and ran in to investigate. Next thing I knew,I was staying at an orphanage. While most of the kids there had enough sense not to bother me at all, there was two kids that didn't get the memo. Unfortunate for them, they were the first two people I used my new power on." In the time that he'd said all that, he'd looked down at his hand and both clenched and un-clenched his fist. "While they did walk away with only third degree burns, they spent the rest of my time there spreading rumors that I was some sort of freak of nature. Granted it didn't matter since I was adopted soon after and spent the next two year with a foster family. That was the time Lenny found and convince them to give up custody of me. And that put's me where I am now." Ending his tail with that, he went back to being silent as he waited.

 

OOC: Been waiting on muff monkey to post as Tatum, but we may end up moving on without her. :/ Will make a decision tomorrow if i can't get in contact with her
BIC:

Lenny sighed. Truth be told, he wanted to hug each and every one of them. He wanted to tell them it would be okay. He wanted to take them back, somehow, to their past lives and give them happiness. If it wasn't for the dangerous outcomes, he'd even consider giving his own soul to a Crossroads Demon and reviving their parents...but that would still leave Azazel out there. Sure, he could hunt Azazel himself, but...he needs the Acolytes. It wasn't just about killing Azazel anymore, even if that's what the Acolytes all thought; Lenny wanted to know why. Why them? Lenny knew Azazel's masterplan; he had learned it years ago when Azazel first surfaced...but why did Azazel choose him? Why did Azazel choose the others that Lenny killed and let die? Why did Azazel choose Adam? Scott? Luce? Alexis? And now these three? Originally, Lenny had believed that Azazel chose at random who he would convert to a Special Child...then he believed that Azazel looked for psychological profiles of parents or even genes to develop a specific character...but lately, lately he's been feeling...wrong. Wrong about everything. Lenny stood up and looked at each of his Acolytes. He had to know why Azazel chose certain people...And for that, he needed the Acolytes. He would do everything he could to guarantee them happiness and put them back with their loved ones...everything but let them go. It hurt him deep inside; wanting them to stay -no, needing them to stay Acolytes was selfish, even if he would damn his own soul to give them a normal life. 'Doesn't matter anyway,' he thought to himself as he sighed again, 'I'd keep them here even if some Crossroads let me make that deal...I'm going back to Hell regardless.'
Lenny looked at Alexis and feared. Feared that she would never learn to feel again.
He looked at Eliza and hoped. Hoped that she will see her father again. He originally thought about offering to help her track him down, but decided it would be best to wait until this was all over. Either she would live and be able to return to a normal life, she would die and Lenny would have to tell her father about everything, she'll live and found out he died long ago and Lenny's only prolonging that realization, or she'll die and he'll already have been dead and Lenny would simply be pointless.
Then he looked at Zeke and thanked God. It was horrible that Zeke would see his father do something like that, but compared to the others? Not just these Acolytes, but the other Special Children from his own generation? Zeke had the most normal childhood.
Then came Luce...Lenny has long since known about Luce's...experiences. Even Demons would shudder at her past. It explained her temper, mistrust, and hatred. Lenny had often wanted to hold her and told her it would be all right. Tell her that he can't take her past away, but that doesn't make her less of a person, less of a woman. He wanted to tell her that she still has the potential to be something great and wonderful and that her time on the streets did not have to inhibit that. But he couldn't. How can you have physical contact with something, like a hug, and tell them it would be okay when her past physical contacts gave her physical and mental hell?
'I can't stop Mulligan's anger, I can't answer Scott's questions, make Alexis feel again, or show Luce love instead of hate. I'm probably keepin' Eliza from her old man. Hell, who thanks God that a young boy saw his father blow his head off? There's a permanent place in Hell for me...'
Despite his internal turmoil, Lenny kept his face expressionless, save for his sighs. Decades of hunting and reading minds had given him the ability to hide his emotions perfectly. Why would he show these kids -these poor, broken kids- his own emotional insecurity when they looked at him as some invincible leader with all the answers? He wanted to tell them he would do everything he can to avenge their mothers, fathers, and their happiness by bringing down Azazel. He wanted to tell them that he would find a way for them to be happy again. But the only thing he could muster was, "Tatum, you're next."

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Adam's jaw clenched. He almost thought his teeth would crack. All of their stories were sad, true. Hell, seeing your father off himself? Adam didn't know how he could handle that; Only a special kind of person can handle that. He wouldn't tell his new "brother" this to his face, but Zeke was probably stronger than he was in that regard. There was one thing, though, Adam had heard about Zeke's power, the "incineration touch," and he wondered how it would compare to his own pyrokinesis. Adam crossed his arms and thought about Eliza. Unlike the others, she put herself on the streets. She was confused, yeah, but still, why would you make that choice? It made him angry. If he could stay with one parent, he would. He would never choose his life on the streets over a household with a loving parent. Hell, he would choose the stepfather that pushed him over the edge over his live on the streets! He held back a growl and wondered if Eliza's father was still alive. ​

But...then came Luce. The real reason Adam was clenching his teeth. He had heard implications about Luce's sexual abuse on the streets, but the sheer number of it? And the man with the switchblade? Adam hated them. Possibly more than he hated Azazel and his stepfather combined. Possibly almost as much as he hated himself. Those men...those men were monsters. No, Adam had fought monsters before. Those men were worse. The young man glanced at his lower right, not able to look at Luce because of how sorry he felt that he couldn't help her. Right then, he made a personal promise. If Adam ever ran into any of those men...he would personally take his Demon-Killing Knife and cut off their balls. He'll rip the men apart and burn them alive. He'll pay them back in kind for what they did to Luce. He'll find them... and he'll fucking kill them. ​

 

Eliza had run away from a loving household...someone that was warm and felt fondly for her...Luce couldn't imagine such a thing and thus it became a fairy tale in her mind, something one wished and dreamed of in their spare time. Zeke had the longest of a normal life...but it wasn't the family Luce envied in their stories...it was the warm house. Surrounded by trinkets and objects that belonged to them...a floor warmed by a heater...a couch soft and cozy and a bed...with crisp sheets and fluffy pillows. Things she had known only as a tiny child and now...she couldn't even remember the feel of such things. Her bed upstairs was stiff and though she worked to purchase something better, more to her liking, it would take time. But she counted her blessings for covers anyway.

Luce had watched Scott's emotions play about on his face and not liked what she'd seen and now...watching them play across Adam's face. Everything inside her ran cold even her rage. But a cold rage was worse than a hot one. At least if her vision ran red and she grew angry she knew she had some semblance of humanity inside her. Now...everything was cold. Why did he have to look at her that way...or not look at her at all. The simple fact was that he was horrified...and now he would never look at her again. Oddly enough it pained her to know that. Scott's irrational anger at her past, his horror, she could deal with...the man was more menace to her than Alexis, but Adam...the only other male she'd gotten to meet after coming home with Lenny... Her hands balled up into fists, her nails digging half moons into her palms. "Do not pity me, brother...for I don't want your feelings. Pity is a dangerous thing to show to your elder sister, I'd have expected you to have learned that by now." Her tone was cold, filled with an age old hatred for mankind. Was it only demons and other abominations she could rely on to show her true mercy and never pity her?

Moving, she stood in front of him, her arms folded across her chest. "You want to pity me...to show me compassion and your oh-so-goody-two-shoes love. I know your kind... What, was discovering the boogeyman was real not enough of a shock to you? Was it not enough to make you also believe that there are men out there in our free country that would rape a child without hesitation? If you find me so dispicable you can't even look at me then here," she pulled her pistol out of it's holster and rather roughly shoved it against his chest, "End it for me. Why wait for a demon to do it when I've provided you the chance now. Come on, I'm sure the others are anxious to get on with their day. I'm no better than the monsters we hunt. My blood is like their blood, it won't be any different when it splatters across this room. If you want you can lick it from my cold dead fingers. Shoot me, Adam!" Her heart raced like a trapped hummingbird in her chest. Why could she never shut up when it was enough? As much as she longed for her own death, if only to stop her own self-torment, she wished someone would shut her up. Gag her, knock her out, cover her mouth, close off her windpipe. She wished it all.

 

Once Luce's gun left her hand pressed against Adam's chest, she only drew her other pistol. "Sympathy...what kind of stupid bull is that? It's just a prettier word for pity!" She spared him a glance, noticing him reaching for her and backed away. Just one step and all that anger turned to wariness. "Look at him...he won't even look at me. I knew telling you all was a mistake...but I figured it would be a learning experience for them. And look...we all learned something, didn't we?" she smiled hatefully, "We learned Lucy is a coward and a self-loathing b*tch who makes scenes and waves around weapons like a madwoman. No, this definately is no story of a mad black woman...but we do have a little brother who's eyes are cast downwards." 'Lucy...you should just die.' "And Lucy will die...soon, father...soon enough." she mumbled to herself and continued to glare at Scott as if he were a predator. Despite calling herself something only her father called her, Luce maintained a shread of her sanity and let her gun hang loosely on her thumb. One of these days she wouldn't bother to look at Scott when he started talking...and that day she dreaded. It meant he would end up touching her, despite all her resistance towards it.

 

It was easier to be angry with Scott than the others...but she was clueless when it came to why he prefered it that way. Taking another step back from him, her hand closed around her gun tightly, yanking it out of his grip. "No...I won't be swept away by your words again. I want...." shaking her head, Luce took another step backwards, for all she knew she'd trip on the stairs soon. "I refuse to go anywhere with you...and I don't want to hear anything about sympathy. I couldn't care less if it's simpathy or pity he feels. I hate that look." She spit out her words with more venom than before. "You wouldn't understand...what's it's like to be avoided...to be covered in every bodily fluid all the time... It's disgusting...feeling dirty all the time...every day all year round."

 

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Eliza wasn't sure how she'd been judged for her past, she could only gaze and wonder what they were thinking though it felt like they could see straight into her soul. After telling that she felt so bare and exposed like they could strip her of her very identity and leave her to rot. Yet at the same time, her past was out, as was theirs. Now maybe it had been told, it could be left behind, scraped clean and they could start anew without fear that their pasts would reveal themselves in the future and ruin friendships. Maybe it could mean it would stop haunting her. Well, she could wish.​

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She listened to Zeke's story carefully and though it was bad, it wasn't as bad as she'd kinda expected, which she guessed was good and it lessened her guilt a little but still, she worried what people thought of her. Still it made her wonder if it was actually physically possible for any of them to have a normal life now. They'd been handed this life though and there wasn't much they could do about it.​

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Then Luce erupted. She didn't know what to do as the other girl reacted to the sympathy she'd got. Eliza was naturally empathetic, she felt every emotion so strong, through all the stories she'd felt every bit of pain and related to every situation. She couldn't not feel, she immersed herself in the emotions running through the room. She understood the pain and the sorrow, she could share the emotions, if she wanted to or not. She found it so hard to be objective as she could not help but feel involved. Like now, with Luce she could tell what she was going through, she understood and could feel what she felt. She wanted nothing more than to help but unfortunately understanding, didn't mean she knew what to do. Any sympathy would only make it worse. In a way she respected Luce already and got why she did not want pity yet that did not give her the ability to calm the girl down. So she sat silently and watched and hoped Scott could handle it.​

 

"Luce!" Lenny jumped up, worried, but he was quickly stopped by Mulligan.

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"No, Lenny," Adam waved a hand at Lenny while mentally telling the old man to calm down. He wondered if Lenny had read his mind and could tell that Luce was wrong. The young hunter stood up and took a step towards Luce, this time glaring right at her. "Heel, Hercules," he told Scott. "You think I feel pity for you, Luce? You think I sympathize with you, sister? You're dead wrong!" He raised his voice at the last sentence and threw an arm into the air. "Yeah, I'm sorry, but I'm not sorry for you. You're strong enough. Why the hell would you need anyone's pity? Newsflash, Luce: you don't! You never had!" Adam turned his back to her and dropped his fists, clenching them tight. "You can handle this, I know you can," he continued, now lowering his voice. "Yeah, you're crazy. Damn crazy. But you're strong enough to make up for it. We all got our demons, and I don't mean black-eyed ones," he turned and this time met her eyes. "You want to know why I'm sorry? Because you're someone else that I failed. I'm sorry that I wasn't there to help you, Luce. I'm sorry that now, even after all these years, we haven't hunted down those...those bastards and showed them exactly what we can do. I'm not sorry you had a tough childhood, hell, the toughest goddamn childhood here! Hell no I'm not sorry for that, because like I said, you're strong enough to handle it. Even if you don't think you can because God knows that we," he patted himself in the chest, motioned to Scott, and then Lenny, "We know. You may not believe this Luce, but we know you. We know each other. I wouldn't trust you idiots with my left nut while hunting if I didn't know you." And then, just like that, Adam understood the whole point of this exercise. "You know what? Let me try this again," he sighed, seeing Lenny smile in his peripheal vision, "Sure. Maybe I feel a little pity for you, but that's only because Goliath over here won't stop trying to bone you. Everything else? That's..." At that point, Adam stopped speaking. He knew what the word was, but he couldn't bring himself to say it. No matter everything he's ever said to himself, he could never openly admit to anybody, except Lenny -and that's only because the old man could read his mind-, that anger was all Adam had. It was all he was. It was his essence, his core, his soul. Everything else? That's anger. Anger at himself and anger at everyone and anger at everything. Without anger, Adam...he was afraid he wouldn't exist. Once again, he sighed, "Get it?"​

 

Luce covered her mouth with her hand, her shoulders shaking as she took a step towards Adam and Scott, her left hand curled into a fist. "You....IDIOT!" Slugging Adam, Luce let loose her laughter. "You think...I give a damn about any of that? Why the hell couldn't you have just said that instead of looking away from me! Pfft, you @sshole..." She half turned to Scott and jabbed two fingers into his forehead, "I don't need empathy anyways. I need my brother to be honest." Luce cracked her knuckles, suppressing any more laughter, "I don't know where the hell you get any of what you say...but it's by far inappropriate to say to a woman who's older than you. I decide who I sleep with, not you...not Scott." Stretching, Luce lifted her arms above her head and moved over to stand a good distance away from them, putting her next to Alexis and Eliza. "I'd rather sleep with a demon than someone who could break me."

 

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Adam was too taken aback by Scott's comment to even notice Luce slugging him. He stumbled back, almost falling, but caught himself and locked eyes on Scott. "What did you say?" He growled, tensing his body and clenching his fists. He hadn't seen Scott get an attitude like that in...well, in ever. But the point was what Scott had said. "I asked you a question, Scott," he told him, demanding again. His hands heated and he could feel a flame burning in each palm between his fingers. The flames were a lot colder than his emotions at the moment. Yeah, Scott was stronger, but that didn't mean he couldn't burn. "WHAT THE HELL DID YOU JUST SAY?!"​

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"Mulligan! Scott!" Lenny felt both Scott's and Mulligan's anger rise to high levels, but Mulligan's emotional explosion would mean a more literal explosion if he didn't calm down. Before the two could start swapping blows, he was between them. "What the hell has gotten into you two? We finally made some headway!" His body was stiff, ready to react if something happened, but that was mostly habit. His telekinesis was already at work, simply waiting for the chance to grab Scott or Mulligan if the two did something stupid.

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With everyone talking about their histories it felt like a therapy session in the room, though give them a few more minutes and the bar just very well turn into a fighting ring. The only real surprising bit about this though was the fact that Sophie had retained a cool head throughout it all. In fact Luce was making her seem perfectly sane. Though that may change down the road.​

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Speaking of down the road... A literal road was mention. Road trips? That was something familiar to the teen, although she never went in a group before. However it sounded fun, as they could finally move on from this...whatever it was, and actually learn what this new life would bring them.​

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Wait...she never got to tell her tale like the others had done. It wasn't her fault though, it was just that these guys were hyped up on something. Those orginal few. It wasn't like her to want to do any story telling, but if all the others did it then she might have to. In any case she just looked towards Lenny, the ring leader for this group of wayward orphans for a sign telling them what to do next.​