Supernatural AU for Roland

[foundafamily]

[The little hamlet along the forest hasn't had a good time. Surrounded by magical creatures on all sides, they've decided to get a little... proactive in dealing with their problem. When night falls, hunters armed with crossbows and improvised weapons--hoes, shovels, and long hunting knives--come out to patrol.

This time, one of them's squaring off with one of the local werewolves. At this full moon, Firo's completely in wolf form, nearly indistinguishable from an actual wolf when he's not speaking.

The crossbow's been knocked aside, its string broken. The two circle each other, and then the wolf leaps for the hunter's leg to sink his teeth into it.

He's going to make sure that this hunter realizes it's best to leave the business.]

Comments

[ka_sera_sera]

[The shadow does not look to see whether it opens before his shoe can touch it, or if his kicks are strong enough to break open a well made - if metaphorical - door. He's focused on what's inside. It seems unfamiliar to him, but even here this does not strike him as strange. He makes to move past, interested and not bothering with so much as an excuse me as he goes inside.]

cw: blood

[foundafamily]

Hey--

[Firo is instantly envious. Perhaps because it's a dream, though, the door pops open, and Firo stumbles forward after the shadow.

The room within isn't really a room at all; the walls and floor are stone. In the cave, a ring of wolves stands around a solitary human, a younger reflection of the one who's gaping beside Roland. The other Firo doesn't seem bothered at all, even when one of the wolves leaps forward and bites his neck.

Rather than shaking him to break his neck, as one might for prey, the wolf releases the boy and takes a step back. As the other Firo sinks to the ground, his hand flutters to the mangled mess of his neck. He pulls his hand away and looks at the blood on it. Waits.

In that kind of unexplained knowledge common in dreams, even in the cave the viewers can be sure that there's a full moon.

Firo doesn't know how it happens, but he's suddenly back in the stairwell when the memory ends, the door slamming shut in front of him.]

[ka_sera_sera]

Yours. Your making. Right?

[He was no more expecting to be suddenly back here in this hallway than the boy was, but he does not seem surprised. Probably because he isn't.]

You weren't born into it, then. You were chosen.

[foundafamily]

[Dazed, Firo looks at Roland for a moment as he tries to connect what he's saying to sense.

Chosen, though. He likes that. He straightens and plants his hands on his hips. His chest might even puff out a little.]

Yeah, I was. They're my pack.

[And now he's curious...]

What about you? Were you always like this?

[ka_sera_sera]

This?

[The shape that might be a head, might be a face, looks down for a moment at the rest of itself. The thin, translucent shoulders shrug.]

What else would I be like?

[Before he's finished saying it, a door on the other side of the hall rattles on its hinges. He stares at it. If he had a face, it would be frowning. He walks over to it.]

Those doors never shook like that. Not even afterward. They were made too well for it.

[foundafamily]

Come on, even you have to know you're not normal.

[He's interrupted by the door, though, and his focus shifts entirely.]

Seriously? You're gonna brag about doors now?

[Firo rolls his eyes and follows Roland over. He tries the doorknob.]

[ka_sera_sera]

Bragging? I wasn't-

[Under the boy's hand, the door swings open. It's a corridor, almost exactly like the hallway they were in before walking up the stairs. Almost, that is, save the tapestries on the wall, mostly burned away, the soot on the walls, the mold spreading from each corner.]

[There are footsteps, too, echoing off the stone. The hint of a hand, out of focus but there at the edge of vision, swiping itself across a large spiderweb blocking the way. The large spider who made it drops through range of vision and then out of it, and there's a familiar-sounding grunt, surprised and angry. The view swings down to a particular part of wall, a dark stain over it, very old blood. The footstep noise stops, replaced with a single shaking breath.]

[Then the corridor is new, and clean. The two of them are there again, themselves, in front of the same door they were before, except for the way the man-shaped shadow is moving down the hall without a word, away from it.]

[foundafamily]

[Firo stands by the doorway, wanting to see more, trying to pick out what might've been important in what he'd seen. It's only a moment later that he realizes his companion is taking off.]

Hey! Hey, wait!

[Firo scampers after him without even a look back.]

What was that about? Come on, tell me!

[ka_sera_sera]

About?

[The shadow stops and turns around to watch his approach, head tilted.]

I don't understand you, boy. What is it you saw that needs to be told?

[foundafamily]

[Firo overshoots a little when he catches up, and he whirls around to stand in front of Roland.]

Don't play dumb with me! I didn't recognize anything about that place--it wasn't like the first one.

[So not his memory, he doesn't think, which he supposes is some small relief. But what does it mean? This guy seemed to recognize what went on in the first door well enough, so surely he must know what went on behind the second door. Besides, there's nobody else for Firo to ask.]

[ka_sera_sera]

[The shadow stares at him. Or maybe behind him. Well, that stare's aimed at something, even if the lack of a face makes it hard to tell precisely what. Then he turns around and starts walking away.]

Didn't you? Wonder why.

[The walls around him are bare, they're clean, but he runs his hand along one of them anyway, even looks at his fingers afterward and rubs them together, as if anything there would stick to shadow as well as it would to flesh. Then he stares at his hand a moment more, wondering at the gesture, wondering at himself.]

[foundafamily]

You knew right away what was happenin' before.

[Firo watches him inspect the wall. Okay, that's weird...]

What?

[He blinks, then feels along the wall himself. Nothing. But it does remind him of what they just saw.]

...You think it's the same place?

[ka_sera_sera]

The same-

[His head jerks up quick, surprised. He'd forgotten anyone else, for a second, was here. It's a second more, maybe two, before he replies.]

I think there are more doors in this hall. I think there's no need to fixate on that one.

[foundafamily]

Huh? Yeah, but...

[But he asked. He turns around to look, and there are quite a few doors. Maybe they should keep searching, for whatever the heck it is they'll find.

Then Firo's head snaps back around.]

Hey! You're just sayin' that to distract me, right? So it was important!

[ka_sera_sera]

Was it?

[He puts fists on hips that were, until this moment, not much more than indistinct shapes leading to probably-legs. Now his edges are less blurred, sharp and narrow hips lent a little more bulk by the outline of something buckled around them. The shadow himself is too busy sounding annoyed to notice.]

In that case, why don't you tell me just what it is I'm hiding? You seem very sure!

[foundafamily]

[Firo blinks, confused by the sudden definition in the shadow. Is he doing this on purpose?]

You know something! You wouldn't get all offended if you didn't--I was just askin'.

[ka_sera_sera]

Just asking is not what you're doing!

[He bows his head, lifting a hand to rub his blurred fingers against a brow that isn't there.]

We need to keep going. Maybe that will tell us more about this curse we're under, if that's what it is. Do I have your permission for it, or would you rather keep interrogating me for knowledge I don't have?

[foundafamily]

[In spite of himself, Firo stiffens and finds himself quieted in the face of what he reads as anger. It takes him a moment to shake it off, reminding himself that this weirdo isn't a leader, isn't even part of his pack. Still, his voice hasn't quite recovered its steadiness when he responds.]

Keep goin'.

[Firo slouches, shoving his hands in his pockets. His words are firmer now.]

'Cause you can tell me what you know while we walk.

[He has to know something. But perhaps unfortunately for Firo, they now come to another door, one with faint sounds of music leaking from beyond it.]

[ka_sera_sera]

[He stands in front of it a moment, head tilted. Listening, thinking on it]

If I tell you that tune was never heard in this place. Is that enough? Or would you have me 'know' something else?

[foundafamily]

[Firo, on the other hand, finds the music very familiar and blushes as soon as he hears it. This isn't good. He needs to get them out of here.]

If you're gonna be such a killjoy, how about we just quit it with this place and--

[The door opens on its own. The view sweeps across a crowded bar to zoom in on... the slightly stained bar counter. Exciting. But then the 'eyes' through which they're seeing creep up to alight on the young woman behind it, a red-haired lady in a suit. When she's about to turn to face the viewer, the eyes snap back to the counter again.

Firo is resolutely staring at the floor.]

[ka_sera_sera]

[Roland puts a hand on the frame and leans closer, as if that will let him see anything other than what's in front of them. He makes a thoughtful noise, a noise that's forgotten, at least for now, to be frustrated, one that's forgotten to be scared.]

Does she have a name? Or were you ever brave enough to find out?

[foundafamily]

[Firo turns bright red and backs away from the door.]

Sh-shut up! A-a name has nothing to do with being brave!

[He turns on his heel to march away from the door. Nothing more to see here! Despite hounding Roland about the other door just a moment ago, Firo hardly wants to go through the same thing now.]

[ka_sera_sera]

Hm.

[Roland watches the boy walking away, then peers in the door again as if that'll make it decide to play the scene out a little bit further. It doesn't, of course. What's done is done. He follows down the hall.]

Did you at least get yourself the memory of her face? Those are easier to lose than you might think. Heavier loss than you might think. Harder to get back, once gone.

[foundafamily]

[Firo frowns back at him over his shoulder.]

I'm not gonna forget her face! I'm not that dumb.

...A-and it's none of your business anyway!

[ka_sera_sera]

Dumb? Time takes what it takes, no matter how clever you are. Do you really think I was warning you against being dumb?

[The next door rattles and, as the shadow approaches, opens with no fanfare at all. The view looks up, and up. What it looks up into is blurry, indistinct - the building, the figure up in it, her dress and most of her face. What is clear is the window, the way she leans through it. That long golden hair, spilling out. Perhaps, if he focuses, he can see a smudge of gray where her eyes ought to be.]

[The shade, watching, makes a violent gesture. The door doesn't just shut this time, it slams, and he backs up, feels what passes for his shoulders press up against torchlight spread over the opposite wall. His hands over his face, that's another odd and impractical gesture; the shade of his hands dims those blue spots that are not his eyes, but his form being what it is, he doesn't need eyes to see. He doesn't have eyelids to try and shut.]