in the dark, even shadows burn [arrows]

[kousei ♚]

---

a e s o n kight .

---

Your teeth dig into your bottom lip and you crack your knuckles, and click your neck. A dark shadow passes across your features and you can feel thunder drumming within the your veins and smashing your heart against your rib cage, this is where you belong. Cracking your knuckles, blood lust clouding your judgement and the words of dead men echoing within every corner in your mind. "There's a special place in hell for people like you."

You spot a shadow in the distance and you can't help but grin. All alone and vulnerable looking. You step towards him and narrow your vision. "You look lost, kid."

You wonder if he'll send you there, or maybe he'll see that special place before you like so many before him.

How boring.

[Arrows]

Quill Maravost

Its quiet.

Its always quiet.

Stars shimmer and sparkle against a bleak black sky while breath warm against the crisp cold of air dangles before the blonde boy. Alone he walks, wandering towards a home filled with parents who aren't his own. His fingers flick and fiddle with one another while a single thread is being tied and untied over and over again. 

Shape takes form from the shadows while words are spoken but not heard. The boy presents himself with signs of trouble but Quill's heart doesn't shudder, his skin doesn't shake. Fear, as all emotion, is an alien to him now. 

His fingers point to his ears and he signs with his hands that he cannot hear the boy's words. A sigh stems silently from his lips as he wonders if the other boy is even able to understand, or whether he even wants to. 

[kousei ♚]

---

a e s o n kight .

---

You raise an eyebrow when you're not met with anger (followed by an attempted fist to the jaw), fear (followed by an attempt at running or possibly a first to the jaw) but raw confusion. He doesn't even speak, doesn't bother to voice what he's feeling and leaves himself as an enigma to you. How strange.

He points to his ear and then makes hand gestures, you try to piece together what he means; like putting two and two together, putting pieces of a puzzle together. It only comes as a stunning realization that he cannot hear you.

How boring.

You narrow you eyes and scowl, this'll be harder than you thought.

Kind of.

You rub your thumb and index finger together, signalling money in your right and then folding your left into a fist.

You hope he gets what it means.

("Money or else.")

[Arrows]

Quill Maravost

Surprising, except not really.

Quill's eyes cannot help but roll as the other boy makes his message for monetary gain clear. He looks closely at the other shadow standing here under the veil of night and looses another sigh as though saying really if could. He wasn't frightening in the slightest, the other figure, but he was a delay of annoyance at the very least.

Quill's hand ventures to his pocket. A single dollar is tossed out to the other boy Quill now had the pleasure to call his mugger. After loosing the dollar he pulls a small notebook and pen from his pocket, emergency communication for moments not usually like this. His lack of caring takes over as he writes a note which he holds up to mugger.

Robbing a deaf guy, classy.

[kousei ♚]

---

a e s o n kight .

---

He coughs up, as they always do. So fucking easy, it's like taking candy from a baby. He throws the dollar note at you, and you catch it, pressing it against you chest and letting a dark grin spread over your face. Hell, maybe it's all he's got -a dollar ain't worth much- but you suppose every little help. Enough of these and you'll probably be getting higher than a kite, at some point. Eventually.

You're stuffing the dollar into your pocket when he's writing his little note to you. You barely give it any notice or attention when he holds it up to your face and you read it. Robbing a deaf guy, classy.

You shrug your shoulders, you don't think he'd understand and you consider driving your fist into his face for his insolence. But you can appreciate boldness when you see it and you suppose the fact that he's deaf gives him points.

You hold the dollar out, kissing it and stuffing it back into your pocket.

"Cash it good."

Not that he'd understand, really.

"Good doing business with you."

[/b]
[/font][/font][/div][/blockquote][/blockquote][/div][/div][/div]

[Arrows]

Quill Maravost

Laughter. It surprises Quill the instant it occurs. Its short, its simple, yet its such a rare occurrence he can't help but wonder what the chuckle sounded like. Still, the reason it even happened is without doubt. The way the boy tauntingly took pleasure in a single dollar was pathetic, laughable at by a deaf guy.

A shrug pulls at Quill's shoulders as he reads the other male's lips. Whatever kind of business this is it's far from good, not to mention the little pleasure it gave Quill. Still, the entire event was intriguing enough, better than going home to an over protective Aunt and Uncle. Might as well toy around.

A new note appears on the paper as Quill quickly writes back to the mugger. 

Not even getting what you fully can? Settling for a single dollar? Your business could be better.

Quill's hands then dig into his pocket again where he unveils a roll of seven other one dollar bills. He tosses them at the other boy, he probably needs them more anyway. 

I appreciate the slack cause I'm deaf, but step up your game on the next sorry ass cripple. 

[kousei ♚]

---

a e s o n kight .

---

He chuckles, what a bold statement for a kid face to face with someone who's robbing him of his personal possessions with the threat of violence. But, it's not the worst thing you've seen. You've witnessed men and women lash our in a fit of madness in their last moments, cutting their palms on glass and going for the nearest throat they can find and it was usually yours.

So you tended to open theirs instead.

Not even getting what you fully can? Settling for a single dollar? Your business could be better.

With this, he throws another seven at you without you even asking. On another day you might've opened his midsection open with your knife for such a statement, but you find the boldness if this disadvantaged soul rather amusing. I appreciate the slack cause I'm deaf, but step up your game on the next sorry ass cripple.

You try you best to make it obvious what you want to say in response.

"Would you rather I left you to die on the road and made off with everything you own?"

[Arrows]

Quill Maravost

The other boy's return of aggressive attitude brings a slight smirk to the deaf boy's face. Any other person in this situation would have fought or panicked, he's merely fascinated. He wonders why the boy is reduced to stealing. He wonders why his emotions still don't return in the face of danger. So many sensations and feelings he enjoys basking in for this mere moment sulking in the shadows.

Again a slight shrug pulls at Quill's shoulder's in response to the mugger's words. Quill also has to admit, he's beyond surprised the other boy has even chosen to stay for this long already. Alas, Quill's pen again dances across the paper in his pad as a response comes out in his writing. He holds it again out to the other shape standing here in the silent shadows.

Obviously not, I did say the next sorry ass cripple not this sorry ass cripple.

[kousei ♚]

---

a e s o n kight .

---

You wonder why he's so calm in the face of danger, of course he doesn't know who exactly you are. He doesn't know how many people you've left bleeding out in gutter, who you've dismembered and how many bones you've broken. You've been fighting since you were a starving child in an orphanage and killed as many people as you have flies. It's the fact that he doesn't know all this which makes you think he should be afraid, is it not only natural to fear the unknown? At least that's what they tell you, that's what makes them human and you well something else.

But here he stands, throwing around terms like sorry ass cripple and sarcasm when you could be anyone. Hell, you could've dismembered him by now for all he knows.

You grin with amusement.

"For a sorry ass cripple getting his shit stolen, you have a hell of a lot more balls than most common thugs about to meet their ends."

[Arrows]

Quill Maravost

A sly smirk slips across the blonde boy's lips as again he reads the words falling from the other's mouth. Within his chest Quill's heart beats steady without a single shake, he wonders if such a lack of fear is why he is interesting to the mugger. Maybe he's just looking for something beyond the normal bleakness of reality as well. Then again, Quill is fairly certain this boy is far from as numb to the emotions of existence as he has become. 

Spinning the pen through his flipping fingers Quill contemplates a response. Although not even an ounce of fear dilutes his blood, he's quite certain the shape from the shadows he is encountering is beyond capable of causing injury. In fact, he's almost certain he sees the signs of a killer cresting deep inside the pools of his darkened irises. It only makes Quill's smile stay longer. It makes things more interesting.

His hand twists and turns creating words upon paper once again. Might as well be honest with the shadow survivor, not like he has anything left to lose aside from a life of entrapment to his own voice.

That's because most people are pathetic, including other petty thieves. We live in a world of losers and half wits. 

I'm sure you agree? Makes profits easier for you to achieve when everyone is entirely irrational, right?

[kousei ♚]

---

a e s o n kight .

---

You stop and stare, watching him write with so much interest you almost lower you guard for a split second.

Almost.

You don't forget about the possibility this guy could be dangerous, all it takes is for a moment of madness to possess him for him to try to stick his pen into your throat. And all it takes is your guard being down at the wrong moment for him to actually get away with committing such an act; no one gets away with trying to attack you.

But he doesn't, he sticks to his routine and finishes his letter.

That's because most people are pathetic, including other petty thieves. We live in a world of losers and half wits.

I'm sure you agree? Makes profits easier for you to achieve when everyone is entirely irrational, right?

You smile, the sorry ass cripple actually gets it. Somehow.

You simply nod in agreement.

"Makes the world a whole lot more boring though."

[Arrows]

Quill Maravost

A fresh smile of absolute agreement shines across Quill's face as he watches the shadow. If there is anything the blonde boy can agree with about the world is that its boring. From rotten people to Games made for killing children the world is nothing more than the heart of hell. People always get hurt. People always die. The pattern never ends unless someone removes themselves from the current of the rushing river. Cuts themselves off.

Pulling a new piece of paper to the front of the pad Quill begins to scribble his next sentence. Although the actual act of having to take the time to write down everything his brain already thought up is annoying, its worth feeding his fascination. Thankfully the next note doesn't take all too long to finish. Perhaps one day he can live the joyous life of a transcriber. Fun.

Agreed.

People are too emotional. They care too much. Makes them weak.

[kousei ♚]

---

a e s o n kight .

---

Agreed.

People are too emotional. They care too much. Makes them weak.

Your dead mother and father were emotional, holding onto their beloved Ripred because he was their savior and then refusing to let go when he had clearly abandoned them. You remember your father comforting your mother who sobbed whenever she thought she had provoked Ripred's wrath. Emotion drove them into the arms of fanaticism and that is what ultimately killed them.

You've seen it all before, brothers on the street you break when you slit one of their throats. Mothers who will beg you to kill them and not their indebted children; such emotions did make them weak and this deaf boy saw that at least. Didn't make the two of you anything close to friends, it just put them on level ground. Detachment is the chasm that separates the monsters from the men after all.

"You're right, and when you've been doing what I do for long enough you see the downfall of man comes from those weaknesses that ultimate keep them bound."

[Arrows]

Quill Maravost

A nod twinges Quill's head as he reads the other boy's latest set of words. The deaf boy wonders what the other guy even sounds like, whether his voice carries as much strength as his words. But then again that's one of the blessings of being deaf for Quill. He's found that he has always been able to decipher others' personalities far more precisely than most others, and this boy's was endlessly intriguing.

Quill's pen skates across his pad's page. Yet another snarky statement begins to take place with ink as the normally single shadowed boy embraces the idea of spending a little while longer with the fascinating guy before him

I'm sure. Being deaf makes one much more observant to the folly of those around them. Its almost predictable how people will burn for their weaknesses.