Carpe Nocturne (IC)

[Angel]

The full moon hung in the night sky like a great big ball of artistic beauty. Blackbird tried to resist the urges, but they were too strong. The magic of the full moon was too much. Caellin would have her night. And what does she do with her new found 'freedom'? Does she go out and exact revenge? No. Does she wreak bloody havoc? No. She wanted to worship the moon. And what better way to do so that to find an open field bath in the light of the moon?

Finding a field of grass, hidden from the eyesof everyone, Blackbird laid her garments on the ground. Her skill in the art of graceful movement stifled Caellin, but it's what she had to deal with. Silly humans and their non gracefulness.

[Thejoshie]

What the heck...

There were rare moments when Mervyl found himself speechless. This was one of those times. Here he was, sitting at a tree, reading by flashlight about his handiwork over in Westside (he couldn't sleep, you see). He was distracted by movement and he followed the sounds to what looked like a dancer. He just stood there, watching for several minutes.

As long as she's not one of those hypocrite heroes... I should be fine.

[Angel]

The pregnant moon's beams made the thin silver lines on Blackbird body shine. Caellin lost track of all time moving through the grassy field, carving out arcane runes onthe ground with her movement. She was about to finishe the first one when out of the corner of Blackbird's eye, Caellin saw the flashlight. It stopped her midsway. Walking back to her clothes, she slipped them on quickly and made her way to the accused peeper. "What are you doing here," Blackbird found that she had her body back for a while. Good.

[Thejoshie]

Busted. Oh well.

With a cough to calm his nerves, Mervyl managed to adjust his shades and allow his powers to grab the metallic flashlight. Both of his freed hands clasped behind him and in a timespan of two seconds, he was his regal self. His hooded jacket flapped in the wind and his face, minus the glint of moonlight that was reflected off his shades, was covered in the shadow of his lifted hood.

"My apologies. It was quite a sight to behold... and I'm usually the only one here." Mervyl head canted to the side. "If I may ask, what were you doing?"

[Angel]

Blackbird looked at the field. The last thing she remembered was shedding her garments and beginning to dance. She looked back to Mervyl with a thankful smile, "What's it look like I was doing?" She sat down in the grass in front of the visitor. "And what are you usually here for?"

[Thejoshie]

Mervyl sat down as well. Why not?

"Just a little me time from obligations." He leaned back. "Most of my free time is ending soon. School and all."

Mervyl looked a t the female in front of him, tilting his head. Do you always dance here? If so, I'll be sure to leave you in your privacy..."

[Angel]

Blackbird shook her head, "No, this is actually my first time. As you know, the full moon makes crazy things happen." She looked up, "This is the time of the wolves," Caellin said taking precedence, indistinguishable from Blackbird except for her eyes which lit up silver and seemed to be flaming or smoking, "If I were able to finish, there would be a horde of the beasts at my command." Blackbird closed her eyes and then opened them, they were back to normal, "Then again, company of the human variety is always more welcome than animals," she grinned.

[Thejoshie]

"In the end, all of us are animals. The first step to true freedom is admitting it to yourself"

Mervyl smiled back. He wasn't one to jump to conclusions. Where some would accuse the woman in front of him to be schizoid, he gave the benefit of the doubt. "Mervyl. Mervyl Masters."

[Angel]

"Well, in a former life I was called Blackbird Starblossom. You can call me Blackbird." She chuckled, "Then again, back then, everyone had far out names." She smiled and reached her hand out to him, "Nice to meet you, Mervyl."

Eager to keep her state of mind, Blackbird quickly started conversation, not knowing when Caellin would kick back in. She felt her welling up inside, it was almost painful. "So, Mervyl, what do you do when you're not reading in dark fields?"

[Thejoshie]

Mervyl light grasped the hand, releasing it after a gentle shake.

"I've recently been accepted to Evanier Preparatory School." Mervyl looked up in the sky. "...my destiny, really. To be stronger, to lead others to be stronger. To not be alo..."

Cough.

"I've been looking forward to it. To screw up now would wreck years of work. So I've been... training."

[Angel]

Silently stalking the grove were black canine beasts. Caellin's magic had worked, unbeknownst to the oblivious teenagers. They were camoflaged and silent enough to avoid their detection. Slowly but surely the pack of magical beasts gathered for their midnight feast. Though they did not know that their dinner would have fight in them.

[Angel]

"A small world indeed," Blackbird smiled, genuinely amused, "I happen to be going to the same school you speak of." Standing up on her knees and leaning forward on her hands, she took a step towards Mervyl with a smirk, "You don't look like the type that would be invited for the academic program." Taking another step closer she whispered warmly, "Show me what you can do and I'll show you what I can do."

[Thejoshie]

Cough.

It was sad really. Mervyl practically *knew* what she was doing. Yet the dumb idiot still fell for it. This is seriously the first female to actively flirt with him. Most others would either keep their distance, or annoy him to the point that he kept his. It was refreshing to say the least. He wordlessly stood up again, motioning Blackbird to back-up. He waited for her to get some distance from him, then he concentrated. At first, it looked like nothing was happening, but soon, yellowish sparks and tiny blue electrical currents began to form arond him, lashing out this way and that. A tiny sheet of metal was dragged to him from nearby, before stopping about a good five feet from him. Then a fire hydrant, a metal pipe, a car door, metal chain link fence, and various other metal doodads.

When all was said and done, Mervyl was buried under a pile of metal. The pile lifted off of him and Mervyl nodded to Blackbird to signal he was okay, before closing his eyes. The Pile began to get scrunched together before dropping to the ground beside them. The crater it formed revealed that the now newly formed metal ball was quite heavy.

"I can do other things, but it all boils down to the same concept. I can control the magnetic field that surrounds us." Mervyl shrugged. "I'm not a master of Magnetism... yet. But I hope to be someday."

[Angel]

Blackbird dodged the debris as it flew into the field towards Mervyl. She watched in amazement as it piled up around him. Caellin silently cursed as this would certainly not attract the beasts. Especially if silver was in that pile of junk. Blackbird applauded the show of might as Mervyl scrunched up the metal into a ball like aluminum. It was her turn.

Standing up on her hands she flipped over backwards to her feet, then to a full standing position. The thin silver lines on her body flashed again in the moonlight. "That looked fun," she smiled, "now I guess I can show you what I do." In an ominous tone she chanted, almost singsongly, in an ancient language. Her body flickered for a moment and she was gone! Nowhere to be seen! She laughed, "Now you see me, now you don't! I got a ton of other tricks you can see," she said slowly tracing her finger down his spine. "Just not this one," she snickered.

[Thejoshie]

Mervyl blinked. He nearly jumped when he felt the finger. He didn't because he kind of expected her to be behind him. That was where most people would go if the could accomplish such things. Still, she shown a very specific weakness he may sooner or later have to fill.

Surprised or not, blood still rushed his face at the obvious flirtation. Cool down Mervyl."Impresive. So you know magic?"

Mervyl sat back down, watching the ground for foot impressions that would betray her movement. "Magic takes hard work to practice. I'm envious. Most pass off magic users as cheap con artists."

He soon gained a sense of being watched... nah, it's just Blackbird eyeing him while she's invisable. "...out of curiosity, do you do this with every guy you meet? Most females wouldn't get so close."

And his lack of experience shows through. Way to go, idiot.

[Angel]

Blackbird sighed with a shrug that Mervyl couldn't see. She thought about yanking everything out of his pockets and running away. Then again, she would have to deal with him at school. She flickered back into sight sitting next to the giant ball. It was heavy and smooth enough for her to lean on. She smiled at Mervyl with a wink, "Only to those that I find really interesting. You are the type I find interesting." She chanted again and a swirling ball of energy that was hard to look at appeared, "Yeah I know magic. It's fun. Dangerous, but fun." She was lying through her teeth. It hurt her to do this as Caellin was desparately trying to come out while she was doing it. Such is the price for having one more person under your spell.

[Thejoshie]

Mervyl slid his shades back doen to block the light as he rolled the ball to better support her. It felt nice to talk to someone else. Normally people in this city have ulterier motives. Hypocrites like that idiot 'Breakdown', Doctor Archville... even Captain Knievel. Just the fact that Mervyl was alive right now was a testement to Mervyl as to being careful who to trust...

Who to trust...

His eye's turned to Blackbird and they were far harder then before. "...you're not fishing me lines, are you. Seriously."

[Angel]

Blackbird squished the ball of magical energy between her hands as Mervyl took off his glasses. That's pretty cool, she thought. "Nah, it's true," she smiled, "Every last bit of it." She took a breath, he looked dangerous. Maybe he would be fun to play with after all. She remembered back to her old life. The more dangerous the more fun it was. That's why she chose to get out there and steal things for the Tigers. What fun was it to sell yourself? No challenge in that. She yawned, "Hey I got an idea. Why don't you and me go do something? Anything. It's a full moon, there's bound to be all sorts of crazy things we can do!"

[Thejoshie]

Mevyl head canted, but his face didn't change. He merely sliped his shades back on. "Depends on your definition of 'fun'. In this city, 'fun' has many synonyms. Like thievery, murder, burglary, and the like..."

He didn't like... something. Something about how she played off his look. Still, she handled herself well, and she didn't seem to be lying. "What do you have in mind, Blackbird?"

[Angel]

Now we're talking, Blackbird thought with a devious grin. "All good ideas," she said with a tumble towards Mervyl, ending up with her head resting in his lap looking up at him, "but is there anything in specific? I like to relieve people of their valuables before they know. What's your poison?"

[Thejoshie]

"I'm not a thief... but I respect honesty..." Mervyl played with her hair. Might as well take advantage of her flirting, right?. "You're not like those hypocrite 'heroes'. Sad really."

Mervyl continued to mess with her hair while looking to the night sky. "Power. What else is their? Either you're strong, or you're a victim. Left alone to deal with people stomping you down like a worm."

[Angel]

Right into my hands, Blackbird thought as Mervyl played with her hair. "Mhm, power is always fun," she cooed, "Is that what you're going to Shadow Academy for? To be powerful? To get powerful?" Blackbird thought about what he said. Power is a nice goal. It was sort of her goal too. Though the powerful ones weren't the ones with the loud voice, they were the ones who controlled the ones with the loud voice. That's what she wanted.

[Thejoshie]

"Power comes from control... from discipline and tactics... from knowing your potential without using it..." Mervyl looked down at Blackbird. "Any thug can steal. Any thug can kill. I'm capable of so much more... THAT is what I want... that is what I will get."

Mervyl lifted up the metal ball and hovered it over him, tossing it up and down like a cat with a ball or yawn. "I can lift an entire train, you know... and recently I swatted down some dancing punk like he was nothing. I just don't feel it... I want more."

Mervyl eyes began to flicker with energy and his skin began to turn slightly whiter.

[Angel]

Blackbird's hands slipped up to the sides and behind Mervyl's neck. She lightly massaged him as he talked. She didn't care for his talk about how petty stealing was. Somepeople, namely her, had to live off of it. She did not show her disdain for his line of thinking, she kept listening faithfully. His spiel about wanting more put him right in the spot she wanted him in. "You can always have more, you just have to take it some times," she said softly as she pulled herself up to him. They were face to face, body to body, her holding him close with her arms around his neck. "How about you take what you want if you're so powerful?"

Boys, she thought, if it's this easy, i'll be running Shadow Academy in no time.

[Thejoshie]

Mervyl's hand went to her chin, tipping her face up, and leaned forward...

Sad really. Very sad indeed.

And stopped, as his brain reminded him of his earlier statement. Oh, she's good. His brain was already locked on what she was doing and his body was STILL acting to her wiles.

Was she playing him? Was she not? She's right there offering herself...

Too Easy.

Surely, she's on the level. What has she done to NOT take advantage...

Too Easy.

Mervyl didn't like this... he was powerless, with no sense of purpose or direction... he needed air, he needed to breath... to think...

No you don't. She is playing you...

His rationality was dug into a foxhole firing salvos against his hormones... And for once his Rationality was losing. Mervyl is only human and slowly his head was moving forward...

Idiot... don't do it...

He was a centimeter away...